Ranking NJPW's Wrestle Kingdom 11 Matches From Worst To Best

It was the main four bouts of the evening which had fans most hyped for the show and the NEVER Openweight Championship match between old friends/foes Katsuyori Shibata and Hirooki Goto delivered all the violence people were hoping for.

Understandably, the crowd were fired up for this strong style battle and the wrestlers were fired up too, as they proceeded to kick, forearm, headbutt and slap the crap out of one another in a typically brutal encounter which was another great entry in their on again/off again rivalry. Shibata had been very vocal about Goto and his lack of passion in the lead up to the match so, naturally, he got a very motivated Goto in this one who finally got the big win over his childhood pal after a reverse GTR into a regular GTR, shortly after Shibata had kicked out of the Shouten Kai.

Most likely, this sets up Goto for a solid run with the title in 2017 as he tries to prove himself as more than the 'nearly man' of New Japan. As for Shibata, this could be the start of him stepping up to the main event scene, although a short break may be in order for the hard hitting striker given that he is currently being held together by tape due to his multiple injuries.

This was the first of four Match of the Year contenders from Wrestle Kingdom 11, but for me the other three bouts topped even this classic.