JANUARY INDY ROUNDUP

Watch This week'sNJPW New Year Dash, WCPW KirbyMania, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11\
Roundup
So, we'll do a few things different this time around. For the smaller or lesser known promotions, I'll update them after WWE's Big 4 PPVs. If Italicized, those will be the promotions I'll update quarterly.

United States
ROH
January Tapings
Tanaka and Komatsu def. Cheeseburger and Ferrara and St. Giovanni and Ali
Scurll def.Robinson
Briscoe def. Lethal
Whitmer and Martinez and Hanson and Rowe were counted out
Taven, O'Ryan and Marseglia def. A'Gau, Hollis, and Skylar
The Young Bucks def. Tanaka and Komatsu
Dijak def. Shelley, Sabin, Gresham, and Rush
Page def. Sellis
Fish and Lethal def. Cole and Rhodes
Briscoe def. Rinauro
Coleman, King, and Titus def. Castle and the Boys
Young def. James
Cabana def. The Boys
Daniels def. Briscoe

(2/11)
Cole, The Bucks, and Rhodes vs. Lethal, Fish, and the Briscoes
Donovan Dijak vs. Marty Scurll for the Ring of Honor Television Championship

(2/12)
Cody Rhodes vs. Dalton Castle

(4/1)Supercard of Honor
Jyushin Lyger (New Japan)
Dragon Lee (Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre)
YOSHI-HASHI (New Japan)
Volador Jr. (CMLL)

Dalton Castle vs. Adam Cole for the Ring of Honor World Championship


TNA
Brother Nero, Eli Drake, Bram and Kingston, And Trevor Lee def. Crazzy Steve, Jessie Godderz, Mahabali Shera, Matt Hardy, Mike Bennett, and Tyrus
Drew Galloway def. Moose to win the Impact Grand Championship
Moose wins the 100000 Joker's Wild Tournament
Trevor Lee def. DJ Z for the X Division Championship
Lashley def. Eddie Edwards for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship
Moose def. Drew Galloway to win the Impact Grand Championship

LUCHA UNDERGROUND:
Johnny Mundo and The Mack go to a Time limit and score draw for the Lucha underground Championship
Johnny Mundo def. The Mack in a falls count anywhere match to retain the LUCHA Underground Championship
Kobra Moon, Pindar, and Vibora def. Aerostar, Drago, and Fenix to win the Lucha Underground Trios Championship
Pentagon Dark and Son of Havoc def. Cortez Castro, Male Suerte, Drago, Paul London, and Salvador for the Gift of the Gods Championship
Pentagon Dark def. Son of Havoc for the Gift of the Gods
Fenix def. Marty Martinez in a Luchas de Apuestas match
Dante Fox, Killshot, and The mack def. Drago, Pindar, and Vibora for the Trios Championship
Prince Puma def. Johnny Mundo for the Lucha Underground Championship
Pentagon Dark def. Prince Puma in a Loser leaves Town Match for the Lucha Underground Championship

EVOLVE
Evolve 76
Tracy Williams and Fred Yehi def. Tim Thatcher and Jeff Cobb for the Evolve Tag Team Championships
Chris Hero def. Keith Lee
Ethan Page def. Zack Sabre Jr. via DQ....BUT for the Record Ethan Page tapped and was paying for his attack on Sabre Jr.'s hand so the way I will remember this will be: Zack Sabre jr. Def. Ethan Page via Submission
Matt Riddle def. ACH
Jason Kincaid def. DUSTIN (SAD FACE)
Jaka def. Peter Kaasa
Darby Allin def. Chris Dickinson

Evolve 77
Barrett Brown and Darby Allin went to a No Contest
Barret Brown,Darby Allin, and Zack Sabre Jr. def. The Gatekeepers (Blaster McMassive and Flex Rumblecrunch) and Ethan Page
Tracy Wiliams def. Laredo Kid
Catch Point (Chris Dickinson and Jaka) def. Jason Kincaid and Sammy Guevara
ACH def. Fred Yehi
Matt Riddle def. DUSTIN
Tim Thatcher def. Jeff Cobb to retain the Evolve Championship
Zack Sabre Jr. def. Chris Hero in Hero's final Evolve Match before going to NxT again. 

2/24 Evolve 78 (JOPPA MD)
Evolve Champion Timothy Thatcher, Tag Champions Tracy Williams and Fred Yehi, Drew Galloway, Zack Sabre Jr., Ethan Page, Jeff Cobb, ACH, Jason Kincaid, Jaka, Chris Dickinson, Darby Allin, 
2/25 Evolve 79
3/30 Evolve 80
3/31 Evolve 81

Style Battle
Dave Crist def. Darby Allin
Dezmond Xavier def. Sammy Guevara
AR Fox def. Austin Theory
Anthony Henry and Fred Yehi went to a time limit draw
Dave Crist def. Dezmond Xavier
Jason Kincaid def. Chris Henry, Chris Silvio, Dante Caballero, DJ Talamantez, Drew Bronson, Hunter Law, Matthew Palmer, Mitch Mitchell, Rob Barnes, Trevor Aeon, Wheeler YUTA, and Jake Omen
Dave Crist def. AR Fox


PWG
Only Kings Understand Each other 2/18
Lio Rush vs. Ricochet
Jay White vs. Marty Scurll
Rey Fenix vs. Trent?
Jeff Cobb and Matt Riddle vs. Brian Cage and Michael Elgin
Cody Rhodes vs. Trevor Lee
Ohio is for Killers (OI4K) (Jake and Dave Crist and Sami Callahan vs. SuperKliq (The Young Bucks and Adam Cole (BAY BAY!))
Chuck Taylor vs. Zack Sabre Jr. for the PWG World Championship!
Beyond Wrestling
1/28
Scarlet and Graves, and Ohio is 4 Killers def. Team NEPWA
JT Dunn def. Brian Milonas
EYFBO def. The Pretty Boy killers
Joey Janela def David Starr, John Silver, and Jon Gresham
The Wolves def. Da Hit Squad
Brian Cage def. Donovan Dijak
1/29
David Starr def. Joey Janela
John Silver def. Chris Dickinson
Pretty Boy Killers def. Da Hit Squad
The Wolves def. EYFOB
Matt Riddle def. Brian Cage

CZW
Tag Team: Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz
Heavyweight: Joe Gacy
Wired:Joey Janela

CHIKARA

2/4 National Pro Wrestling Day
5/27Chikara Aniversario: School Reunion

8/5 Chikarasaurus Rex: Flesh and Stone

FIP

Everything Burns
Fred Yehi def. Teddy Stigma
Hooligans def. Drennan and Parrow
Stone def. Davis
Fox, Allin, Crist, and Callahan def. Xavier, Cade, Kincaid, and Guevara

MCW

Broken Anniversary (1/28)
Henry vs. Rush
Excellent vs. Feinstein
Vineberg, Jeremiah, and Studd vs. Bruiser
Melina vs. Blake
Broken Matt and Brother Nero vs. The Ecktourage

NWA

World Tag: Rob Conway and Matt RivieraHeavyweight: Tim Storm
Women's: Jazz
North American Heavyweight: Tyson Dean
North American Tag: Teddy Hart and Big Daddy Yum Yum


Pro Wrestling Syndicate(PWS)
No Updates
Absolute Intense Wrestling (AIW)
Absolute: Josh Prohibition
Intense: Alex Daniels
Tag: Gringo Loco and Steve Pain
Women's: Shayna Baszler
AAW
1/7
Cabana def. Young
Wentz def. Perry
Vega and Fitchett def. Hooligans
Havok def. Valkyrie
Brubaker, Gakiya, and Esparza def. Cannon, Hartenbower, and Waylon
ACH def. Crist
Wolf def. Machete
Nasty, Braxton, Rice def. Lyndon, Fontaince, and Alonzo
Fenix def. Elgin
Callahan def. Morrison

1/20
OI4K def. Kingston and Homocide
Fox def. Xavier, DJZ, and Moose
Everett and Evans def. Vega and Fitchett
Callahan def. LeRae
Kong def. braxton and Machete
Sydal def. Richards
Martinez def. Love
Galloway def. Young
Abyss def. Cabana
ACH and Fenix def. Cage and Elgin

12/30
Homicide over Braxton
Kong/Crane def. Crists
Riddle def. Richards
Elgin def. Xavier, Fitchett, and Gonzalez
Galloway def. Cobb

Pentagon Jr. def. Chris Hero

Taylor and Cabana def. Vega and Young

Lovelace def. Lee

ACH def. AR Fox for the Heritage Championship

Sami Callahan def. Rey Fenix

Shimmer

Tag Team: Tessa Blanchard and Vanessa kraven
Shimmer Champion: Mercedes Martinez

Shine

Tag Champions: Raquel and Santana
LuFisto def. Allysin Kay and Mercedes Martinez for the Shine Championship

Heartland Wrestling Association (not Active since 2014)
No Updates 

Carolina Wrestling Federation Mid Atlantic
Mid Atlantic Rising Generation league: Cain Justice
Television: Aric Andrews
Tag Team: Aaron Biggs and Mecha Mercenary
Ultra J: Chet Sterling
international Heavyweight: CW Anderson
Heavyweight: Trevor Lee

Premier Wrestling Experience (PWX)

Tag Team: Lance Dude and Rob killjoy (The Ugly Ducklings)
Television: James Drake
Heavyweight: Jake Manning

Lucha Va-Voom

No Updates

Ohio Valley Wrestling
Heavyweight: Rocco Bellagio
Tag: Big Jon, Elijah Burke, Justin Smooth
Television:Tyler Matrix
Women's Rebel 

Reality of Wrestling
No Updates

House of Hardcore
No Updates

House of Glory
No Updates

Jersey All pro Wrestling

Archadia is Light Heavyweight Champion

BLK Jeez is Heavyweight Championship

Tag: Homicide and Kingston

Women's Champ: Kimber Lee

Global Force Wrestling

Cody Rhodes is GFW NexGen Champion
WrestleCade

No Updates

F1RST Wrestling

No Updates
Ariya Daivari is Wrestlepalooza Champion
Tag Team: Darin Corbin and Ryan Cruz

Adrenaline Championship Wrestling

Light Heavyweight: Diaz
Women's: Kaycee Carlisle
Tag Team: The Wildcardz (Eddie Page and Jason Radatz)

Heavyweight: Ruckus


All Pro Wrestling

Tag Team: Marcus Lewis and Will Hobbs
GRPW Dynamite division: Boyce LeGrande
A{PW Worldwide Internet:Will Cuevas
Universal Heavyweight: MVP

Big Time Wrestling

No Updates

IWA Mid South

Mid South Heavyweight: John Wayne Murdoch


Juggalo Championship Wrestling

No Updates

Puerto Rico

Jr. Heavyweight: Tommy Diablo
Puerto Rican Championship: Mike Mendoza
Tag Team: Lightning and Thunder
Universal: Carlito

United Kingdom

Progress
Ch. 41
Dennis, Andrews and Newell def. Black, Cooper and Banks
Storm def. Ray
Seven and Bate def. Scurll and Sabre Jr. , and Davis and Lynch to win the Tag Shields
Dunne def. Aichner to retain the Staff
Sebastian and Eaver def. Mambo and Sexsmith
Havoc def. Ospreay

Ch. 42
Sexsmith def. Sebastian
Dieter Jr. and WALTER def. Davis and Lynch
Havoc def. End
Windsor def. Grace
Cooper and Banks def. Mastiff and Ligero
Spud def. Robinson
Riddle def. Brown to win the Progress Atlas Championship

Ch. 43 (1/29)
The London Riots (James Davis and Rob Lynch) def. The Kings of the North (Bonesaw and Damien Corvin)
Laura Di Matteo def. Chakara
Jurn Simmons def. Roy Johnson
The South Pacific Power Trip (TK Cooper and Travis Banks) w/Dahlia Black) def. Ringkampf (Axel Dieter Jr. and WALTER)
Jimmy Havoc def. Pete Dunne (c) via DQ in a Progress World Championship match
Mark Andrews def. Dave Mastiff, Jack Sexsmith, Marty Scurll, Nathan Cruz, Sebastian, Trent Seven, and Zack Gibson to win the Tropic Thunderbastard and a future Progress World Championship Match

Revolution pro

Tag Champs: Charlie Sterling and Joel Redman (def. The London Riots on 1/8)
HIGH STAKES
Josh Bodom def. Ryan Smile for the Interim Cruiserweight Championship
Sterling and Redman def. War Machine (Hanson and Rowe)
YOSHI-HASHI def. Pete Dunne
Zack Sabre Jr. Def. Marty Scurll
Trent Seven def. Trevor Lee
Jay White def. Martin Stone
Katsuyori Shibata def. Matt Riddle to retain the Heavyweight Championship

ICW

2/5
Wolfgang (C) vs. Trent Seven

Attack pro:

Tag Champions: Lloyd Kat and Splits McPins
Champion: Eddie Dennis
24:7 Warren Owen

Main Event Championship Wrestling

Heavyweight:Jason Prime
Tag:BT Gunn and Chris Renfrew
North East Championship: Liam Slater

Fight Club Pro: 

Attack/FCP WrestleHouse

Shay purser def. Clint Margera def. Drew Parker for the 24/7 Championship
Joel Allen and Moustache Mountain def. Brooks, Lykos, and Shay Purser for 24/7
Warren def. Joel Allen 24/7

Preston City:

Champion: Iestyn Rees

Tag: Joe Hayes and Martin Kirby

Cruiserweight: Ashton Smith

New Generation Wrestling:

Matt Myers def. Nathan Cruz for the Undisputed Championship

All Star Wrestling: 

No Updates

What Culture
KIRBYMANIA

Hendry def. Drake

Scurll def. Kidd

Ivelisse def. Austin

Coffey def. Banks

Gracie and Archer def. Ligero and Kirby

Rhodes def. Sabre Jr.

Bully Ray, Robinson and Wainwright def. Galloway, Moss, and Slater

Hendry def. Conners

Lights Out
Moss and Slater retain over Gracie and Archer
Priestley def. Ivelisse and Blanchard
Banks def. Sabre Jr.
Scurll def. Ligero and Kidd to become No. 1 to Cody Rhodes
Primate def. Rampage
Coffey def. Williams
Robinson and Wainwright def. Hendry and Kirby
Rhodes retains over Ricochet
Galloway retains over Bully Ray

Sabre Jr. def. Gabriel Kidd
Joe Coffey def. Drake
Moss and Slater def. Robinson and Wainwright
Priestly and Ospreay def. Ricochet and Blanchard

Pristley def. Roxxy
BT Gunn def. Travis Banks
Rampage def. Primate
Cody Rhodes def. Marty Scurll
Joe Hendry def. Doug Williams
Martin Kirby def. Bully Ray (Parmesan GETS POWERBOMBED! YAY!)

World Of Sport Wrestling

Episode 1:

Dave Mastiff w/Sha Samuels and Johnny Moss def. Grado to become the 1st World of Sport Wrestling Champion.

Kenny Williams (from ICW) def. CJ Banks, Sam Bailey, and Delicious Danny to qualify for the Battle Royale for a WoSW Championship opportunity.

Viper def. Alexis Rose in the first Female vs. Female wrestling match in WoSW.

Mark and Joe Coffey def. Ashton Smith and Rampage Brown to qualify for the Battle Royale

El Ligero def. Zack Gibson to qualify for the Battle Royale

Grado defeated Johnny Moss, Sha Samuels, The British Bulldog, Joe and Mark Coffey, El Ligero, and Kenny Williams to win the Battle Royale and earn a shot at the WoSW Championship

Kenny Williams eliminated by Johnny Moss

El Ligero eliminated by She Samuels

Mark and Joe Coffey eliminated by Sha Samuels and Johnny Moss

The British Bulldog (Davey Boy Smith Jr./David Hart Smith) eliminated by Sha Samuels and Johnny Moss

Sha Samuels eliminated by Grado

GRADO def. Dave Mastiff to win the World of Sport Championship!!!!!!

GERMANY

WXW

12/10 16th Anniversary:

Seven and Bate def. Brookes and Dunne
Klinger def. Dragunov
Starr def. Brookes, Da Mack, and Dunne to win the Shotgun Championship
A4 def. Ringkampf to retain the Tag team Championships
Axel Dieter Jr. won the Unified World Wrestling Championship

MEXICO

CMLL
Dragon Lee def. El Barbaro Cavernario to retain the World Light Weight Championship

AAA
Fenix and Pentagon Jr. have left AAA. 

Lucha Libre Elite
No Updates

JAPAN

NEW JAPAN PRO
New Year's Dash
Finlay, O'Reilly and Ricochet
Page and Takahashi def. Gunn and Tatsu
Beretta, Romero and HASHI def. Cole and the Young Bucks
Saito, Tenzan, Kojima, Cheeseburger and Norton def. Fale, SOLDIER, Omega, Tonga, and Loa
KUSHIDA and Elgin def. Takahashi and Naito (DRAGON LEE RETURNS)
Makabe, Honma, Robinson, Shibata, and Nagata def. Goto, Okada, Ishii, Yano, and Ospreay (SUZUKI GUN RETURNS!)
Tanahashi, Nakanishi, and Taguchi def. BUSHI, EVIL, and SANADA to win the Openweight 6 Man Championships

New Beginning in Sapporo (2/5)
Takashi Iizuka vs. YOSHI HASHI
Dragon Lee, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Manabu Nakanishi, Michael Elgin, and Ryusuke Taguchi vs. BUSHI, EVIL, Hiromu Takahashi, SANADA, and Tetsuya Naito
Roppongi Vice vs. Taichi and TAKA Michinoku (JR. Tag Team Championship Match)
Hirooki Goto vs. Juice Robinson (NEVER OPENWEIGHT)
CHAOS (Ishii and Yano) vs. GBH (Makabe and Honma) vs. KES (Smith Jr. and Archer) (Tag Team Title)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki (Heavyweight Championship Match)

New Beginning in Osaka (2/11)
NEVER OPENWEIGHT 6 MAN (Tanahashi, Nakanishi, and Taguchi) vs. BUSHI, EVIL, and SANADA
RevProBritishHeavyweight (Katsuyori Shibata) vs. Will Ospreay
Jr. Heavyweight Takahashi vs. Dragon Lee
IC Championship Naito vs. Elgin

Pro Wrestling NoAH (January Title Changes)

Hajima Ohara def. Taiji Ishimori to win the GHC Jr. heavyweight Championship

Kenou and Masa Kitamiya def. Go Shiozaki and Maybach Taniguchi for the Tag Championships
Current Heavyweight Champion: Katsuhiko Nakajima

Dragon Gate

Eita defended the Brave Gate Championship against Kagetora
Kanda, Susumu, and Ryo Saito def. Ben-K, Kotoka, and Masato Yoshino and VerserK for the Open the Triangle Gate Championship
CIMA and Dragon Kid def. SHINGO and T-Hawk to retain the Twin Gate
YAMATO def. Naruki Dog to retain the Dream Gate

Osaka pro
Nothing to Report
Big Japan
Daisuke Sekimoto def. Hideyoshi Kamitani
Abdullah Kobayashi def. Kankuro Hoshino
Yuji Okabayashi and Daisuke Sekimoto regained the Tag Team Championships
Michinoku Pro Wrestling
Nothing to Report
Pro Wrestling Zero 1

Isami Kodaka and Takumi Tsukamoto (NWA Lightweight Tag)
Shinjiro Otani (Zero1 Jr. Heavyweight Champion)
James Raideen and Masato Tanaka (intercontinental Tag Team)
Kohei Sato (World Heavyweight Champion)

Wrestle-1

Trios: Jun Kasai, NOSAWA, Shuji Kondo
Champion:Masayuki Kono
Tag:Kaz Hayashi and Kotaro Suzuki
Cruiserweight:MAZADA

AJPW

Triple Crown: Kento Miyahara
GAORA TV:Jiro Kuroshio
Jur. Heavyweight:Keisuke Ishii
All Asia Tag: Atsushi Onita and Masanobu Fuchi
World Tag :The Bodyguard and Zeus

Kaientai Dojo

Champion:Kengo Mashimo

Tag:Ayato Yoshida and Kyu Mogami

UWA middleWeight:Ayumu Honda

UWA Tag: Ikuto Hidaka and Minoru Fujita

Independent Jr. Heavyweight: Shiori Asahi 

Dramatic Dream Team Pro

King of Dark:Nobuhiro Shimatani

Extreme:Jun Kasai

Tag Team:Masakatsu Fungi and Yukio Sakaguchi
Openweight:HARASHIMA
Jr. Heavyweight Champion:Shiori Asahi
Ironman Heavymetalweight Champion:hyota Echizenya

Reina Joshi Puroesu

No Championships to report

Ice Ribbon

ICExInfinity:Risa Sera

Tag Team:Misaki Ohara and Ryo Mizunami
Triangle Ribbon:Manami Toyota

JWP Joshi Puroesu

Openweight:Hanako Nakamori

Jr. Yako Fujigasaki

Tag Team: Command Bolshoi and leo

Princess:Yako Fujigasaki

World Women's Championship: Hailey Hatred

Sendai Girls Pro Wrestling

World Champion:Aja Kong
Tag: Hikaru Shida and Syuri


CANADA 

International Wrestling Syndicate

No Updates

Border City Wrestling

No Updates

Maximum Pro Wrestling

No Update

Northern Championship Wrestling

Antonio Corsi def. Urban Miles for the Inter Cities Championship
William Brady def. Leon Saver for the Quebec Championship

Alpha 1 Wrestling 

Jade def. KC Spinelli
Richey Shane Page def. Heidi Lovelace
Alessandro Del Bruno def. Donovan Dijak and Shane Sabre
Jim Nye, Joey Kings and Steve Brown def. Ethan Page, Space Monkey, and Will White
Kobe Durst def. Michael Elgin

Shane Sabre def. Ethan Page
Del Bruno def. Silas Young
Josh Alexander def. David Starr via DQ
Space Monkey def. Jim Nye and Evil Space Monkey
Greg Iron and Rickey Shane Page def. EYFBO

The First Year at a Glance

So, as of Wrestle Kingdom 11 it will be one year since I've started this blog. Now while I haven't posted as many detailed opinions as I had wished in year one due to business that came up, I intend on posting more opinionated posts in the future for the big events and on the statuses of the various wrestling scenes that I try to update results on in the months roundups.

In the meantime, this particular post is just to say thank you to those who actually take the time to read these. I intend to improve the quality of the posts, as well as keeping the upcoming reviews concise but without sacrificing the quality and the bias that I hold. Hey, I have to uphold the nickname somehow.

So without further ado, the rest of this post is to express my thoughts about the wrestling scenes for the year.

Canada: I think the Canadian scene, while not weak necessarily, is at a point where it's actually worse to be in the Country's wrestling scene rather than branch out. Basically how the UK scene was for the last decade or two. While the Canadian Indy Scene has produced Kevin Owens/Steen and Sami Zayn into WWE, the remaining Canadians on the scene have had limited success (with the exception of Kenny Omega...who is KILLING it in New Japan), with Ethan Page and Josh Alexander being two of the current guys that have been able to escape the bounds of Canada. Speedball Mike Bailey would have been another guy, but with his legal situation results in a 5 year ban from the US, he's truly just limited to Canada and Japan, which unfortunately lowers his stock. Longtime indy mainstays Scott Parker and Shane Matthews are still scene every once in awhile but were squashed by The Revival in their NxT Shot. That being said, Nicole Matthews is one of the top females on the indy scene currently so there is still so talent coming out of Canada overall.
Top matches in Canada or featuring Canadians in the indy or WWE scenes
5 Stars
Kenny Omega vs. Tetsuya Naito Gl Climax Day 18
4.75
Michael Elgin vs. Kenny Omega At NJPW Dominion
4.5
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn at Battleground
4 Stars
Chris Jericho vs. Sami Zayn at Clash of Champions
3.75
Bobby Roode vs. Tye Dillinger NxT Takeover Toronto

Biggest Winner: Kenny Omega: Two time 6 man champ, IC Champ and G1 Climax all in the same calendar year...holy Crap...Not to mention now being treated as a legitimate star in Ring of Honor and even having some shots taken and received with the New Day in an unforseen and incidental cross-promotion war!
Honorable Mention: Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens: How many times did these two manage to steal the spot light on cards this year? More than enough. You could argue that Owens and Omega could have been equal, but bad booking of the Universal Championship scene keeps Omega at Advantage. As for Zayn, he had multiple Match of the Year candidates against Shinsuke Nakamura, Owens, Cesaro, Miz, and AJ Styles. However, his shoddy booking post draft stopped him here. 

Biggest Loser: Tyson Dux: Yeah he was part of the Cruiserweight Classic, but he was one of a few people who didn't shine when he had a chance on the biggest stage, similar to his TNA stints that I remembered. Great worker, but unfortunately just doesn't shine when needed. 

Mexico
Well, on the one hand....via Lucha Underground (which will be a completely separate section) AAA is still on the scene. However it's just not via AAA. CMLL has had some great matches here and there, and Lucha Libre Elite had some cool matches (See Elgin vs. Volador Jr.) I would admit though that Mexico and Canada are in similar situations, except Mexico still had their top two promotions in the wrestling diehard's eyes. That being said, having Gran Metalik and Raul Mendoza represent Mexico in the CWC were fantastic choices, with Metalik reaching the finals. Dragon Lee has also been a fantastc find for Ring of Honor and CMLL.  Finally, you can't talk about the Mexican scene without mentioning the (as of 12/28 before the last episode of LU)
Best Matches
Volador Jr. , Calienta, Mistico II vs. Euforia, Gran Guerrero, Ultimo Guerrero 4.75
Kamaitachi vs. Dragon Lee Fantastica Mania 2016 4.5
Gran Metalik vs. TJ Perkins CWC Finals 4.25
CMLL:Dragon Lee vs. La Mascara in a Luchas De Apuestas Match 4.25
UK and the rest of Europe

Biggest Winner: Pentagon Jr. Man, this dude has killed EVERYTHING. While you could make an argument for Fenix, Aerostar, or Drago, Pentagon is the AAA star that has connected best with the American Audiences. Regardless of situation, there has to be a day when this guy touches either WWE or New Japan gold because even though the character is a ridiculous concept (Zombie Samurai), this man is for real. 
Honorable Mention: Gran Metalik. His performance at the CWC was phenomenal and I'm looking forward to seeing more of this guy (I saw some of his work in New Japan and wished he had been more over)
Biggest Loser: Alberto El Patron. Dude was horridly misunderutilized in WWE, trading off a then irrelevant US Championship that hurt both him and Kalisto, then (while he got a win at Wrestlemania) was essentially used horribly in the League of Nations, then left WWE with Paige in a pretty scandelous way. He's starting back up in WCPW and I believe he won CMLL's World Championship....but considering everything, this year could have been so much more for the former Del Rio. 

Japan and Asia: Japanese Wrestling is at an all time high, coming from Wrestle Kingdom 10 and all throughout the year. Multiple matches have been highly rated and lately you have seen cross brand promotion between the top 2 Japanese promotions in New Japan and Pro Wrestling NoAH. Also, the Women's scene has seen a mainstream renaissance thanks to exposure via Asuka in NxT, as well as Meiko Satomura in Chikara and Io Shirai in Lucha Underground. 

Biggest Winners:Shinsuke Nakamura, Kazuchika Okada, Asuka, Io Shirai, and Tetsuya Naito
Nakamura had one final huge match in New Japan, def. AJ Styles before heading off to NxT and essentially stealing Wrestlemania Weekend alongside Sami Zayn in his Debut, then winning the NxT Championship from Samoa Joe on two separate occasions. 
Okada placed himself as the Top Guy in New Japan, finally beating Hiroshi Tanahashi at Wrestle Kingdom 10 in yet another 5 star classic, as well as (with the exception of a month or two)keeping the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in his possession for the majority of the year. 
Asuka won the NxT Women's Championship and kept it from NxT Takeover Dallas to the end of the year, showing various character development in the process. 
Since Asuka left for WWE, Io Shirai has been killing it for the Japanese scene, to the point of being named Japan's Female Wrestler of the Year. This culminated in an appearance for Lucha Underground, where she was the member of the Black Lotus Squad that defeated Pentagon Jr. 
As for Naito, the character change that started in 2015 has fully developed him into the leader of the (latest) popular stable, Los Ingobernables de Japon. He was the only person to hold the IWGP Heavyweight Championship other than Okada after Wrestle Kingdom 10, and is the current IWGP Intercontinental Champion. LIJ is starting to take over even the Bullet Club as the most over stable in NJPW currently. 
Honorable Mention:Naomichi Marufuji and Katsuyori Shibata.  The dude is still leading the (admittedly) struggling Pro Wrestling NoAH and had a fantastic showing at the G1 Climax. Alongside current GHC champ Katsuhiko Nakajima, Marufuji has been leading the Noah invasion, which will hopefully continue into 2017.
Shibata won the NEVER Openweight Championship in a stiff classic against Tomohiro Ishii (which I thought was a better match than the AJ Styles/Shinsuke Nakamura match). Then (with 2 blips in Nagata and LIJ's EVIL) he dominated the NEVER Openweight Championship seen. To top it all off, he goes to Revolution Pro Wrestling and defeats Zack Sabre Jr. to win one of arguably the top 2-3 British Heavyweight Championships on the UK scene. 
Biggest Loser: Manabu Nakanishi. Out of the remaining veterans of the previous generation, Nakanishi is sadly the most irrelevant. His fellow comrades from yesteryear all had a version of a career renaissance or send off. Hiroyoshi Tenzan had a spirited (albeit unsuccessful) run in the G1 Climax, Yuji Nagata was able to grab hold of the NEVER Openweight Championship, and Satoshi Kojima proved he could still go with the younger generation....still holding the NEVER Openweight 6 man Tag team Championships with David Finlay and Ricochet. Personally, Nakanishi needs to fade out man....or use 2017 as his springboard. 

US Indies (including TNA, Lucha Underground, and Ring of Honor)
I would say the US indies shined on the MainStage this year more than most. Guys that had been on the indies for years like AJ Styles, Roderick Strong, Eric Young, Bobby Roode, TJ Perkins, amongst others. However the two biggest winners of this year for indy wrestling: Matt Riddle and Chris Hero. They were dominant and fantastic everywhere they went.


Top 10 Matches of the Year:
1)Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn NxT Takeover Dallas
2) AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro Raw after Wrestlemania
3)Kazuchicka Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi Wrestle Kingdom 10
4)AJ Styles vs. John Cena Summerslam
5)Shinsuke Nakamura vs. AJ Styles Wrestle Kingdom 10
6)Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll Revolution Pro High Stakes
7)Richochet vs. Will Ospreay Best of the Super Jrs.
8)#DIY vs. The Revival NxT Takeover Toronto
9)Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii Wrestle Kingdom 10
10)Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens Battleground

For All of WWE, New Japan and the Indies, here are the events to look forward to in 2017
WRESTLE KINGDOM 11 (See Results!)
UK Championship Tournament (WWE)  (See Results!)
NxT Takeover:San Antonio (NxT) See Results!
ROYAL RUMBLE (WWE)See Results!
New Japan Cup (NJPW)
Young Lions Cup (CHIKARA)
Natural Progression Series (Progress)
WrestleCon (Indy Wrestling)
NxT Takeover: Orlando (NxT)
WrestleMania (WWE)
DDT4 (PWG)
Ultima Lucha 3 (Lucha Underground)
Lucha Libre World Cup (AAA)
Best of the Super Juniors (NJPW)
Super Strong Style16 (Progress)
16-Karat (WxW)
Aztec Warfare 3 (LUCHA Underground)
G1 Climax (NJPW)
Battle Of Los Angeles (PWG)
Summerslam (WWE)
Shamrock Cup (MCW)
Top Prospect Tournament (ROH)
Best of the Best (CZW)
Jim Lyman Cup (AAW)
King of Trios (CHIKARA)
Bound for Glory (TNA)
Survivor Series (WWE)
Survival of the Fittest (ROH)
Fear and Loathing (ICW)
Tag League (NJPW, NoAH)
Cage of Death(CZW)

WWE in January 2017. UK Tournament, NxT Takeover San Antonio and Royal Rumble!

1. UK Tournament

The Official Participants
England
Tyson T-Bone (Malvern, Worcestershire)
Trent Seven (Wolverhampton, West Midlands, Chikara Campeon de Parejas, Fight Club Pro Champion, ICW and WCPW wrestler, Progress Tag Team Champion)
Dan Moloney (Birmingham, West Midlands, Chikara Team Fight Club Pro member)
Roy Johnson (London)
Saxon Huxley (Hartlepool, County Durham)
Sam Gradwell (Blackpool, Lancashire)
HC Dyer (Leicester, Leicestershire)
Pete Dunne (Birmingham, West Midlands, WxW Shotgun Champion, Revolution pro British Cruiserweight Champion, Progress World and Tag Team Champion, Fight Club Pro Champion)
James Drake (Blackpool, Lancashire, Progress Wrestler)
Joseph Conners (Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, WCPW World Champion)
Danny Burch/Martin Stone (London, NxT Wrestler, Wxw Tag Team Champion, Revolution pro Tag team Champion, Full Impact Pro Florida Heritage Champion)
Tyler Bate (Dudley, West Midlands, WxW Shotgun Champion, Progress Tag team Champion, Campeone de Parejas)
Wales
Mark Andrews (Cardiff, Former TNA British Boot Camp Winner, Progress World, Tag Champion, Natural Progression Series Winner, 2015 Chikara Rey de Voladores)
Ireland
Jordan Devlin (Bray, County Wicklow, ICW)
Northern Ireland
Tucker (Belfast)
Scotland
Wolfgang (Glasgow, ICW World Champion and Zero-G Champion)

The Alternates, Originally announced, questioned Wrestlers
Tiger Ali (Swindon, Wiltshire England)
Ringo Ryan (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)
Jack Starz (Leicester, Leicestershire, England)
Chris Tyler (Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England)

Round 1
Tyler Bate def. Tucker
Wolfgang def. Tyson T-Bone
Mark Andrews def. Dan Moloney
Trent Seven def. H.C. Dyer
Jordan Devlin def. Danny Birch
Joseph Conners def. James Drake
Pete Dunne def. Roy Johnson
Sam Gradwell def. Saxon Huxley

Quarterfinals
Bate def. Devlin
Wolfgang def. Seven
Andrews def. Conners
Dunne def. Gradwell

Semi-Finals
Dunne def. Andrews
Bate def. Wolfgang

Neville def. Tommy End

Finals
Tyler Bate def. Pete Dunne via Tyler Driver '97 (Tiger Driver) to become the first WWE United Kingdom Championship

2. NxT Takeover San Antonio
a)Bobby Roode def. Shinsuke Nakamura for the NxT Championship
b)Asuka def. Nikki Cross, Billie Kay, and Peyton Royce for the NxT Women's Championship
c)The Authors of Pain (Rezar and Akam) w/Paul Ellering def. #DIY (Johnny Gargano and Tomasson Ciampa) for the NxT Tag Team Championships
d)Eric Young w/Alexander Wolfe and Killian Dane def. Tye Dillinger
e. Roderick Strong def. Andrade Cien Almas

3. Royal Rumble
a. Kevin Owens(c) def. Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship
b. John Cena def. AJ Styles (c) for the WWE Championship and won his 16th World Championship
c. Charlotte Flair (c) def. Bayley for the Raw Women's Championship (god that's awkward to say)
d. Neville def. Rich Swann (c) for the Cruiserweight Championship
e(p). Nia Jax def. Sasha Banks
f(p). Gallows and Anderson def. Cesaro and Sheamus (c)for the Raw Tag Team Championships
g(p). Becky Lynch, Nikki Bella, and Naomi def. Alexa Bliss, Mickie James, and Natalya

H. Randy Orton def. Roman Reigns, Bray Wyatt, Chris Jericho, The Undertaker, Sami Zayn, The Miz, Goldberg, Luke Harper, Baron Corbin, Rusev, Brock Lesnar, Enzo Amore, Dolph Ziggler, Dean Ambrose, Apollo Crews, Sheamus, Cesaro, Big E, Xavier Woods, Kofi Kingston, Braun Strowman, Tye Dillinger, James Ellsworth, Big Show, Mark Henry, Kalisto, Big Cass, Mojo Rawley, and Jack Gallagher to win the Royal Rumble and earn a Championship opportunity at WrestleMania 33



Elimination Chamber
John Cena(c) vs. AJ Styles vs. 2 vs. 3 vs. 4 vs. 5


Also as a side note, based off of a report from the Westling Observer, the next NxT Callups can be varied based off of these groupings:

Samoa Joe, Bobby Roode, Eric Young, and Austin Aries (Roode and Young will be in NxT for the foreseeable future, Aries is currently a Commentator for 205 Live until his orbital bone heals up)
-Joe in Particular could be up as soon as the Rumble.

Group 1: Shinsuke Nakamura, Andrade Cien Almas, Alexander Wolfe, TM-61, Hideo Itami, Tomasso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, Chris Hero, Elias Sampson, Tye Dillinger
-Nakamura is heading into a program with Roode, Almas isn't quite ready, Wolfe will probably join Young, TM-61 could potentially come up after Mania or Summerslam, Itami has a built in return program with Austin Aries, whether it's in NxT or 205 Live, Ciampa and Gargano are both 205 promoted, and could come up after Mania as the next 205 touted guys, Hero just returned so expect him in NxT for the foreseeable future, Sampson isn't ready. Dillinger is and could be a surprise entrant.

Group 2: Tino Sabbatelli, Riddick Moss, Big Damo, The Authors of Pain, Tommy End, Roderick Strong, Dan Matha, Oney Lorcan, Wesley Blake, Buddy Murphy, Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder
-Sabbatelli and Moss are getting their legs as a tag team currently. Damo just debuted, so he could be the anchor behind Wolfe and Young's call up until he's ready, The Authors are more than likely clinching the NxT Tag Straps so not expected yet. Tommy End hasn't debuted, Strong has to work on his mic skills, Matha is still pretty green, Lorcan needs a new name, Blake and Murphy need personality injections stat, and The Revival are there to stay as lynchpins for NxT until there's a workhorse team ready to replace them.

Smackdown Women's
Projected WrestleMania Card
Brock Lesnar vs. Goldberg
Triple H vs. Seth Rollins
Big Show vs. Shaquille O'Neal
Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho (US Title)
Bayley vs. Charlotte (Raw Women's)
John Cena vs. Randy Orton (World Title)
AJ Styles vs.
Roman Reigns vs. The Undertaker
Braun Strowman vs.
The Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Raw tag team champions vs. Smackdown Tag team Champions
IC Championship Match
Cruiserweight Invitational
Smackdown Women's Championship Match

Wrestle Kingdom Review

During the Show, there will be a tally between the 3 stables and the New Japan roster, which will show the various teams' record throughout the night.
1)New Japan Rumble
Entrant 1 Michael Elgin
Entrant 2 Billy Gunn
-test of strength so far
Entrant 3 Bone Soldier (Formerly Captain New Japan...WHO SUCKS)
-immediately gets his ass kicked for a good while.
Entrant 4 CHEESEBURGER! (YES!)
-Bone Soldier eliminated by Cheeseburger! (YES! BECAUSE BONE SOLDIER SUCKS!)
Entrant 5 Jyushin Thunder Lyger
-Billy Gunn eliminated by Michael Elgin (SUCK IT)
Entrant 6 Kuniaki Kobayashi
-Kobayashi tried to take the mask.
Entrant 7 Tiger Mask IV
-Kobayashi eliminated by Tiger Mask....with help of Lyger and Cheeseburger
Entrant 8 Manabu Nakanishi
Entrant 9 Ryusuke Taguchi
-Nakanishi eliminated by Elgin, Cheeseburger, Tiger Mask, Lyger, and Taguchi
Entrant 10 Yoshi Tatsu
-Tiger Mask eliminated by Lyger and Taguchi
Entrant 11 Yuji Nagata
Entrant 12 Hiroyoshi Tenzan
-Yoshi Tatsu eliminated by Nagata, Taguchi and Cheeseburger
Entrant 13 Hiro Saito
-Nagata eliminated by Tenzan and Saito
Entrant 14 Scott FLASH Norton!
-Taguchi eliminated by Norton
-Saito eliminated by Elgin
-Norton eliminated by Elgin
-Tenzan eliminated by Elgin
Final 2: Michael Elgin and CHEESEBURGER!!!!!!!!!!
-Cheeseburger elminated by Elgin via Elgin Bomb

Winner of the New Japan Rumble: Big Mike: Unbreakable Michael Elgin
NJPW:1 Bullet Club: 0
Opening Contest: Tiger Mask W Anime Matchup
Tiger Mask W vs. Tiger the Dark
-Tiger the Dark hit a Fosbury Flop that well....looked very similar to ACH's Dive (also had a decent Tombstone).
-Tiger Mask W hit a Golden Triangle Moonsault, as well as transitioning a Tiger Bomb into a Last Ride Powerbomb. A lot like Kota Ibushi

Slow match, but a good showcase of both "characters" moves.

5.5 out of 10

First Title match of the night: Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championships
Rocky Romero and Berretta (Roppongi Vice) vs. Matt and Nick Jackson (c) (The Young Bucks)
-Roppongi Vice earned the title shot by winning the Jr. Tag League
-Rocky Romero going for title reign no. 7
-Both Jacksons were coming in with a crapton of gold and a custom "SUPERKICK PARTY" Tag Team Championship
-During this match: Rocky Romero hit 5 out of 8 possible forever clotheslines. The Young Bucks hit 9 Superkicks on Roppongi Vice....and 1 on a Young Boy.
-Countered the Finlay Roll into a crucifix.
TITLE CHANGE! Roppongi Vice def. The Young Bucks to Win the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championships (Rocky Romero's 7th reign).
NJPW:1 Chaos 1 Bullet Club 0
6.75 out of 10

Title Match No. 2 NEVER OPENWEIGHT 6 Man Tag Team Championships
Team New Japan (C) (Ricochet, David Finlay, Satoshi Kojima) vs. Bullet Club (Yujiro Takahashi, Bad Luck Fale, Hangman Adam Page) vs. CHAOS (YOSHI-HASHI, Will Ospreay, and Jado) vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (SANADA, EVIL, BUSHI)
Bullet Club and CHAOS lead off the gauntlet
-Ospreay died his hair blond...similar to YASHI
-Bullet Club Eliminates CHAOS. Yujiro def. Jado via Short DDT.
Team 2 Los Ingobernables de Japon (SANADA, EVIL, BUSHI)
-Sanada def. Yujiro via Dragon Sleeper
-LIJ eliminates Bullet Club
Final Team: David Finlay, Ricochet, Satoshi Kojima
-Kojima is sprayed by BUSHI, followed by an STO by EVIL
TITLE CHANGE! Los Ingobernables de Japon (EVIL, SANADA, BUSHI) def. Team New Japan (Satoshi Kojima, Ricochet, David Finlay), Bullet Club (Yujiro Takahashi, Bad Luck Faces, Hangman Page), and CHAOS (Jado, YOSHI-HASHI, and Will Ospreay).
Los Ingobernables de Japon: 1, NJPW: 1, CHAOS: 1, Bullet Club: 0
6 out of 10

Match 5: The American Nightmare Cody Rhodes vs. Juice Robinson
-Robinson's leg buckled in the early going.
-Rhodes was a fantastic heel
Rhodes def. Robinson via Cross Rhodes
LIJ:1, NJPW:1, CHAOS:1, Bullet Club :1
5 out of 10

Title Match 3: Ring of Honor World Championship
Kyle O'Reilly (c) vs. Adam Cole (BAY BAY)
-This was the final culmination of a longtime rivalry dating back to beginning of the decade.
-Kyle O'Reilly had not re-signed with ROH.
-O'Reilly's Shoulder was hit with a chair in the early going and it affected him the entire match.
-Cole hits 3 straight Superkicks, followed by a Last Shot Brainbuster to win a record 3rd ROH Championship Reign.
TITLE CHANGE! Adam Cole (BAY BAY!) def. Kyle O'Reilly via Last Shot to become the 1st 3-time Ring of Honor World Champion!
LIJ: 1 for 1, NJPW: 1 for 3, CHAOS: 1 for 2, Bullet Club: 2 for 4
6.7 out of 10

Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
Great Bash Heel (NEW JAPAN): Togi Makabe and Tomoaki Honma vs. CHAOS:Toru Yano and Tomohiro Ishii vs. The Guerrillas of Destiny (Tanga Roa and Tama Tonga)(c) (Bullet Club)
-The most cursing in a single title match I've heard in a very long time. At least 20 Fuck Bombs, 5 Shit references, a few damns, and hopefully a few other details.
-The Guerrillas were the defending champions, GBH were the Tag League Winners, Ishii was a last second replacement for a tag team partner...and Yano stole the Tag League Trophies and Tag Titles
-This was probably the first time since Wrestle Kingdom 10 that I had any sort of good will towards Togi Makabe.
-Yano is a brilliant Bastard. He turned the referee around simply so he could low blow Bullet Club, leading to the Double Lariat by Ishii and his own rollup. Based off of all that...
TITLE CHANGE! CHAOS def. Great Bash Heel and The Guerrillas of Destiny to win the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships
CHAOS:2 for 3, New Japan 1 for 4, LIJ 1 for 1, Bullet Club 2 for 5
7.25 out of 10 just off of entertainment alone.

Jr. Heavyweight Championship
KUSHIDA (New Japan)(c) vs. Hiromu Takahashi (Los Ingobernables de Japon)
-That was an amazing Sunset Flip Bomb that nearly ended it early for Kushida
-For a slower Jr. Heavyweight matchup, this was a much more compelling matching, complete with danger and hope spots. The Time bomb senton, the Sunset Bomb, a counter from another dive into a cross arm breaker, fantastic stuff.
-KUSHIDA was VICIOUS in this match...dear god never seen him with such a killer instinct in tact.
-Even though the Ingobernables dudes are supposed to be heels, man Takahashi came off as such a face in the hover board lock.
-I like the fact that all of Takahashi's moves have his gimmick in it...."The Ticking Time Bomb"
-Like Last year, the Jr. Heavyweight Championship match was Main Event Quality! Worth Watching definitely, had the same type of drama as the Dolph Ziggler/The Miz IC Title match at No Mercy. Fantastic stuff!
TITLE CHANGE! The Ticking Time Bomb Hiromu Takahashi def. Time Splitter KUSHIDA to win the Jr. Heavyweight Championship!
LIJ 2 for 2, CHAOS 2 for 3, New Japan 1 for 5 (0 for 4 on the Main Card), Bullet Club 2 for 5
8 out of 10

NEVER Openweight Championship
Katsuyori Shibata (New Japan)(c) vs. Hirooki Goto (CHAOS)
The series so far is 2 wins for Shibata, 2 wins for Goto, and 2 double knockouts.
-Admittedly the match I thought would steal the show...because Shibata-san. I Don'T Need Another Reason!!!!!
-Meiyu Tag reunion rematch from Wrestle Kingdom 8 as well as the last day of G1 2015. The former tag team champions from Wrestle Kingdom 9 have an even more storied history than O'Reilly and Cole.
-Hirooki Goto tends to be a choker in big events and in big title matches...similar to how Shibata was last year going into Wrestle Kingdom 10 against Tomohiro Ishii. That being said.....Shibata has a boatload of injuries and is essentially being held together by medical tape.
-DEAR GOD that first chop by Shibata!
-As a personal comment: as much as I love Shibata, he's such a dick when it comes to selling. You'll hit him with a spinning heel kick....and then he'll immediately double stomp the back of your head. That's just screwed up.
-Goto with some Whiplash inducing Lariats....this is cringeworthy.
-I don't know which one is more fun to watch....a Goto/Shibata match or a Steen-Owens/Generico-Zayn match.
-Shibata kicked out of Goto's pre-Chaos finisher!!!!!! (the Helluvator looking move)
-This match psychologically was much better than last year's NEVER title match, and I thought that match was on the same level as the Styles/Nakamura AND the Okada/Tanahashi match.
-GTR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!GOTO DIDN'T CHOKE!!!!!!!
TITLE CHANGE! Hirooki Goto def. Katsuyori Shibata to win the NEVER Openweight Championship

-Ken Yasuda is introduced as a special ring announcer for the IC Championship Match
Intercontinental Championship
Tetsuya Naito (C) (Los Ingobernables de Japon) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (New Japan)
-What a fantastic match!
-Naito and Tanahashi both worked on the legs, to attempt to take out the Stardust Press and the High Fly Flow.
-Especially impressed that Naito had no interference from LIJ
-Tanahashi is so good at selling....until it's time for the High Fly Flow attempts.
-I think it's cool that Tanahashi has to use three or four variations of the High Fly Flow in order to win. Rather than one big move that trumps all, he hits his big move multiple occasions BEFORE he tries a pin attempt. It's like he compounds the storyline impact of his finisher.
-Naito's finisher is SO COOL. Throwback to a running version of the Ultimo Dragon's Asai DDT in WWE.
TITLE DEFENSE: Tetsuya Naito def. Hiroshi Tanahashi to retain the IWGP Intercontinental Championship

Heavyweight Championship
Kazuchika Okada (Chaos) (C) vs. Kenny Omega (Bullet Club)
-I'm numb.
-This match was Over 9000 out of 10.
-Don't bother with waiting for a result or a summary of this match. GO WATCH IT NOW DAMMIT. Legally, Illegally, through a stream, through New Japan World, swim your way through every site that is full of potential viruses (unless you have a PC...then think about it a bit...then do it)
Watch out for a couple of the major spots, amongst them probably the most majestic hardcore spot I've seen....ever.
Result:GO WATCH IT YOURSELF

December WWE/Overall analysis of the brand split from the WWE Draft to 12/31

Quick Results of Takeover Toronto and Survivor Series
Bobby Roode def. Tye Dillinger
The Authors of Pain def. TM-61 for the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic
#DIY (Ciampa and Gargano) def. The Revival (Dash and Dawson) to win the NxT Tag Team Championships
Asuka def. Mickie James to retain the NxT Women's Championship
Samoa Joe def. Shinsuke Nakamura to win the NxT Championship

TJ Perkins, Rich Swann, and Noam Dar def. Drew Gulak, Tony Nese, and Ariya Daivari
Kane def. Luke Harper
Team Raw (Charlotte, Bayley, Nia Jax, Sasha Banks, and Alicia Fox) def. Smackdown (Becky Lynch, Alexa Bliss, Natalya (who replaced an injured Nikki Bella), Naomi, and Carmella).
The Miz def. Sami Zayn to retain the Intercontinental Championship
Raw (Sheamus & Cesaro, Enzo Amore & Big Cass, The Club (Gallows & Anderson), The Shining Stars (Primo & Epico), and The New Day (Kofi Kingston, Big E, and Xavier Woods)) def. Smackdown (The Usos (Jimmy & Jey), Heath Slater & Rhyno, American Alpha (Chad Gable & Jason Jordan), The Hype Bros (Mojo Rawley & Zack Ryder), and Breezango (Fandango & Tyler Breeze)
The Brian Kendrick def. Kalisto to retain the Cruiserweight Championship
Smackdown (Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton, AJ Styles, Shane McMahon, and Dean Ambrose) def. Raw (Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens, and Braun Strowman)
Goldberg def. Brock Lesnar (in 86 seconds)


Going into WWE TLC and Roadblock, here are the current champions
Raw
Universal:Kevin Owens (def. Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns, and Big Cass on Raw in October)
United States:Roman Reigns (def. Rusev at Night of Champions)
Women's:Sasha Banks (def. Charlotte Flair On Raw on Nov. 28)
Cruiserweight:Rich Swann (Def. Brian Kendrick on 205 Live on Nov. 29)
Tag Team: The New Day (Kofi Kingston, Big E, and Xavier Woods) (Def. The Lucha Dragons(Kalisto and Sin Cara), The Prime Time Players(Darren Young and Titus O'Neill), and Los Matadores(Diego and Fernando) at Summerslam 2015)

Smackdown:
World Heavyweight:AJ Styles (Def. Dean Ambrose at Backlash)
Intercontinental: The Miz (def. Dolph Ziggler on Smackdown on November 15)
Women's:Becky Lynch(def. Alexa Bliss, Nikki Bella, Naomi, Natalya, and Carmella at Backlash)
Tag Team:Heath Slater and Rhyno (def. The Usos at Backlash)

NxT:
Champion: Shinsuke Nakamura (def. Samoa Joe at NxT Live in Osaka, will be shown on 12/7)
Women's Champion: Asuka (def. Bayley at NxT Takeover Dallas)
Tag Team: #DIY (Tomasso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano) (def. The Revival (Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder) at NxT Takeover Toronto)

TLC: Tables Ladders and Chairs
Kickoff Match: Apollo Crews, The Hype Bros (Mojo Rawley and Zack Ryder), and American Alpha (Chad Gable and Jason Jordan) def. Curt Hawkins, The Vaudevillians (Aiden English and Simon Gotch), and The Ascension (Konnor and Viktor)
-Useless match....seen an incarnation of this on multiple occasions.

The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt and Randy Orton) w/Luke Harper def. Heath Slater and Rhyno to win the Tag Team Championships
-Short match, but The WYATT's WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP!

Nikki Bella def. Carmella in a No Disqualification Match
-As a match, this was blah. Carmella wasn't so dangerous as I had hoped her to be with a Kendo Stick....and Nikki Bella's insistence on continually using the fire extinguisher smoke was monotonous. In fact, the only thing that saved that spot was JBL explaining how it would actually affect Carmella, which made it easier to understand. The post match, with Carmella stating that Natalya attacked Nikki....could have been better. This was a rare dud in a Smackdown PPV.
4 out of 10

Baron Corbin def. Kalisto in a Chairs match
-This had no reason to be a good match....and it was a great match.

The Miz (w/Maryse) def.  Dolph Ziggler for the Intercontinental Championship in a Ladder Match

Alexa Bliss def. Becky Lynch in a Tables Match to win the Women's Championship

AJ Styles def. Dean Ambrose for the World Heavyweight Championship in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs Match

Roadblock: End of the Line
Rusev def. Big Cass via Countout
-Dumb match, interesting storyline....roles are flipped. Rusev Wins! (3 out of 10)
Sheamus and Cesaro def. The New Day (Big E and Kofi Kingston) w/Xavier Woods to win the Raw Tag Team Championships (7.75 out of 10)
-Fantastic match, great and logical finish, and Hell...it was great post match as well.
Sami Zayn def. Braun Strowman via Survival (6 out of 10)
-Condescending match, good storytelling....but admittedly I want more.
Seth Rollins def. Chris Jericho (6 out of 10)
-Good match, Jericho and Rollins both solid....would have been better as a featured Raw match.
Rich Swann def. T.J. Perkins and The Brian Kendrick to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Championship (5 out of 10)
-Good match, dead crowd...NEVILLE RETURNS AS A HEEL!
Charlotte def. Sasha Banks in Overtime (3-2) to win the Women's Championship in an Ironman/Ironwoman match. (7.5 out of 10)
-Glad the feud is finally ending, way to balloon the Title Reigns, fantastic last 10-15 minutes (including overtime...so basically when all the falls were counted)
Kevin Owens def. Roman Reigns via Disqualification to retain the WWE Universal Championship
-Decent match, fantastic ending to the match (even if it was a cop-out) and fantastic ending to the PPV (SHIELD LIKE THINGS!) (6.9 out of 10)

WWE UK Championship Tournament Announced
Finn Balor, William Regal, Michael Cole, Triple H involved
Nigel McGuinness brought on as a Commentator
The 16 Members of The Tournament are:
Trent Seven (Progress, Fight Club Pro)
Jack Starz
Pete Dunne (Progress, Revolution Pro, Attack Pro)
Wolfgang(ICW)
Roy Johnson
Sam Gradwell
James Drake
Jordan Devlin
Tyler Bate (progress, Fight Club Pro)
Joseph Conners (WCPW)
Tyson T. Bone
HC Dyer
Dan Moloney (Fight Club pro)
Chris Tyler
Saxon Huxley
Ringo Ryan
Tiger Ali
Tucker
Mark Andrews

Raw:
Pros: There is more prestige overall and the talent pool honestly is bigger on Raw (due to the three hour Raw). Squash matches work in this scenario. Balor, Rollins, Jericho, Zayn, Owens, the Cruiserweight Division(Swann, Neville, Gallagher), and the greater usage of Women's Wrestling branching out (Hell in a Cell, Street Fights, 2 out of 3 falls).
Cons:Storylines tend to lack quality build until PPVs, booking is very inconsistent. Lack of using talent to best extent (CESARO, ZAYN), Limited Women's Division

Smackdown:TALKING SMACK, Better usage of GM and Commissioners, Better utilization of both young and old talent (Corbin, Styles, Lynch, Bliss, Bella, Cena, etc.). Breathing new life into stale characters (Miz, Ziggler, Orton, Wyatt), Better build and payoff on storylines (Corbin/Kalisto, Miz/Ziggler, Ambrose/Ellsworth/Styles) and Still some talent being unused: Apollo Crews, Naomi. Questionable decisions on talent usage (James Ellsworth, Dean Ambrose), John Cena Booking Problem (well...the 12/27 part)

Section 1:Roster Usage:Advantage Smackdown
Section 2: Storylines: Advantage Smackdown
Section 3:Ability to reach past current viewership: Advantage Raw
Section 4:usage of talk shows and affect on product: Advantage Smackdown

Smackdown is the better show. Who would have guessed?

According To Meltzer:
Top Matches of the Year:
4.5 Stars
AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose TLC
#DIY vs. The Revival NxT Takeover Toronto
Dolph Ziggler vs. The Miz No Mercy
TJ Perkins vs. Kota Ibushi CWC Finals
AJ Styles vs. John Cena Summerslam
The Revival vs. #DIY NxT Takeover Brooklyn II
Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens Battleground
Kota Ibushi vs. Cedric Alexander CWC Second Round
The Miz vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn vs. Cesaro Extreme Rules
Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles Extreme Rules
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn NxT Takeover Dallas
Roman Reigns vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Brock Lesnar Fastlane

4.25
The Shining Stars, Amore and Cass, Cesaro and Sheamus, Gallows and Anderson, and The New Day vs. Breezango, The Usos, American Alpha, The Hype Bros, and Heath Slater and Rhyno Survivor Series
Samoa Joe vs. Shinsuke Nakamura NxT Takeover Toronto
TJ Perkins vs. Gran Metalik CWC Finals
AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose Backlash
Gran Metalik vs. Akira Tozawa CWC Quarterfinals
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Samoa Joe NxT Takeover Brooklyn II
Dean Ambrose vs. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens vs. Chris Jericho vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Sami Zayn Money in the Bank
AJ Styles vs. John Cena Money in the Bank
Zack Ryder vs. Stardust vs. Sin Cara vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn vs. Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler Wrestlemania
Triple H vs. Dean Ambrose Roadblock
Dean Ambrose vs. Kevin Owens Royal Rumble

4
Miz vs. Ziggler TLC
Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte Raw 11/28
Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins Hell in a Cell
Banks vs. Flair 10/3
Chris Jericho vs. Sami Zayn Clash of Champions
Cesaro vs. Sheamus Clash of Champions
Finn Balor vs. Seth Rollins Summerslam
Asuka vs. Bayley NxT Takeover Brooklyn II
Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins Battleground
The Revival vs. American Alpha NxT Takeover The End
Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn Payback
AJ Styles vs. Sami Zayn Raw 4/11
AJ Styles vs. Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro vs. Chris Jericho Raw 4/4
Charlotte Flair vs. Becky Lynch vs. Sasha Banks Wrestlemania
American Alpha vs. The Revival NxT Takeover Dallas
AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho Fastlane
Triple H vs. Sheamus, Ziggler, Wyatt, Del Rio, Miz, Swagger, Lesnar, Henry, Rowan, Zayn, Ambrose, Owens, Strowman, Neville, Show, Stardust, Harper, Truth, O'Neil, Kingston, Ryback, Goldust, Kane, Jericho, Axel, Breeze, Styles, Rusev,Reigns (The Royal Rumble Match)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Finn Balor NxT 6/24

Top 10 Matches of the Year:
1)Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn NxT Takeover Dallas
2) AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro Raw after Wrestlemania
3)AJ Styles vs. John Cena Summerslam
4)Kota Ibushi vs. Cedric Alexander CWC Round 2
5)Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte Raw after Battleground
6)#DIY vs. The Revival NxT Takeover Toronto
7))Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens Battleground
8))The Miz vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn vs. Cesaro Extreme Rules
9)Johnny Gargano vs. Tomasson Ciampa CWC Round 1
10)Dolph Ziggler vs. The Miz No Mercy


Ranking the PPVs (NxT Takeover's will be in Parenthesis)(then Best/2nd Best match of the night and Main Event)
A)(NxT Takeover Toronto (#DIY vs. The Revival in a 2 out of 3 Falls match for the NxT Tag Team Championships, Samoa Joe vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for the NxT Championship)

B)(NxT Takeover Brooklyn II (The Revival vs. #DIY for the NxT Tag Team Championships, Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Samoa Joe for the NxT Championship))

C)(NxT Takeover Dallas(Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn, Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe for the NxT Championship))

1D)Battleground (Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens, Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)

2E)Survivor Series (Tag Team Survivor Series elimination match, Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar)

3F)Money In the Bank (AJ Styles vs. John Cena, Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)

4G)Payback (Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn, Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)

5H)Extreme Rules (The Miz vs. Cesaro vs. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn for the IC Championship, Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)

6I)Royal Rumble (Royal Rumble Match and Ambrose vs. Owens for the IC Championship)

7J)No Mercy (Dolph Ziggler vs. The Miss for the IC Championship in a Career vs. Title Match, Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton)

8K)Roadblock:End of the Line (Cesaro and Sheamus vs. The New Day, Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship

9L)TLC (Baron Corbin vs. Kalisto in a Chairs Match, AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose in a TLC Match for the WWE World Championship)

10M)Summerslam (AJ Styles vs. John Cena, Brock Lesnar vs. Randy Orton)

11N)WrestleMania 32 (Zack Ryder vs. Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Dolph Ziggler, Stardust, The Miz, and Sin Cara for the IC Championship, Roman Reigns vs. Triple H for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)

12O)Backlash (The Miz vs. Dolph Ziggler for the IC Championship, AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose for the WWE World Championship)

P)(NxT Takeover The End(The Revival vs. American Alpha for the NxT Tag Team Championships, Samoa Joe vs. Finn Balor for the NxT Championship in a Cage Match))

13Q)Hell in a Cell (Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins in a Hell in the Cell Universal Championship match, Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks in a Hell in a Cell Women's Championship Match)

14R)Fastlane (AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Brock Lesnar)

15S)Clash of Champions (Cesaro vs. Sheamus Match 7, Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins for the WWE Universal Championship)

16T)Roadblock (The Revival vs. Enzo and Cass for the NxT Tag Team Championships, Triple H vs. Dean Ambrose for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship)


Royal Rumble
30 Man Royal Rumble: Goldberg, Brock Lesnar, Kofi Kingston, Big E, Xavier Woods, Chris Jericho all entered.
NxT Takeover: San Antonio
Bobby Roode vs. Shinsuke Nakamura for the NxT Championship