List of professional wrestling matches rated 5 or more stars by Dave Meltzer
Professional wrestling journalist and historian Dave Meltzer has assigned ratings to professional wrestling matches since the creation of his publication, the Wrestling Observer Newsletter in 1982, and named his first 5 star match in 1983. Receiving a 5 or higher star rating is considered by many to be a great achievement,[1] though the ratings themselves are ultimately the opinions of Dave Meltzer.[2]
The highest rating ever given to a match by Meltzer was 7 stars, which he awarded to Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada at Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall in June 2018. There have been 131 matches awarded 5 or more stars; Mitsuharu Misawa has the most individual matches with 25.
Matches
1980s
Date | Match | Promotion | Event | Rating | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
April 7, 1982 | Ric Flair vs Butch Reed[lower-alpha 1] | CWF | Miami Beach show | 5 | [3] |
April 21, 1983 | Dynamite Kid vs. Tiger Mask | NJPW | Sumo Hall show | 5 | [2] |
December 5, 1984 | Kazuo Yamazaki vs. Nobuhiko Takada | UWF | Year-End Special | 5 | |
December 12, 1984 | Bruiser Brody and Stan Hansen vs. Dory Funk Jr and Terry Funk | AJPW | Real World Tag League | 5 | [4] |
March 9, 1985 | Kuniaki Kobayashi vs. Tiger Mask | Sumo Hall show | 5 | ||
August 22, 1985 | Lioness Asuka vs Jaguar Yokota | AJW | Summer Night Festival in Budokan | 5 | |
January 28, 1986 | Jumbo Tsuruta and Genichiro Tenryu vs Riki Chosu and Yoshiaki Yatsu | AJPW | New Years War Super Battle | 5 | |
February 14, 1986 | Ric Flair vs. Barry Windham | CWF | Battle of the Belts 2 | 5 | [2] |
April 19, 1986 | Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers vs. Butch Miller and Luke Williams | JCP | Crockett Cup | 5 | |
January 20, 1987 | Ric Flair vs. Barry Windham | World Wide Wrestling | 5 | [5] | |
February 26, 1987 | Chigusa Nagayo vs. Lioness Asuka | AJW | Kawasaki show | 5 | |
March 20, 1987 | Akira Maeda and Nobuhiko Takada vs. Keiji Mutoh and Shiro Koshinaka | NJPW | Korakuen Hall show | 5 | |
April 11, 1987 | Ric Flair vs Barry Windham | JCP | Crockett Cup | 5 | |
July 31, 1987 | Animal, Dusty Rhodes, Hawk, Nikita Koloff, and Paul Ellering vs. Arn Anderson, Lex Luger, Ric Flair, The War Machine, and Tully Blanchard | The Great American Bash | 5 | [2] | |
December 6, 1987 | Chigusa Nagayo, Mika Suzuki, Mika Takahashi, Yachiya Hirata, Yumi Ogura, and Yumiko Hotta vs. Etsuko Mita, Kazue Nagahori, Lioness Asuka, Mika Komatsu, Mitsuko Nishiwaki, and Sachiko Nakamura | AJW | unknown | 5 | [6] |
December 16, 1988 | Genichiro Tenryu and Toshiaki Kawada vs. Stan Hansen and Terry Gordy | AJPW | Budokan Hall show | 5 | [2] |
January 28, 1989 | Genichiro Tenryu, Toshiaki Kawada, and Samson Fuyuki vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Yoshiaki Yatsu, and Masanobu Fuchi | Korakuen Hall show | 5 | [7] | |
February 20, 1989 | Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat | WCW | Chi-Town Rumble | 5 | [2] |
March 18, 1989 | Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat | Washington, D.C. show | 6 | [8] | |
April 2, 1989 | Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat | Clash of the Champions VI | 5 | [2] | |
May 7, 1989 | Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat | WrestleWar | 5 | ||
June 5, 1989 | Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Genichiro Tenryu | AJPW | Budokan Hall show | 5 | |
November 15, 1989 | Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk | WCW | Clash of the Champions IX | 5 | |
1990s
Date | Match | Promotion | Event | Rating | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 31, 1990 | Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Naoki Sano | NJPW | New Spring Gold Series | 5 | [9] |
June 8, 1990 | Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | Budokan Hall show | 5 | [2] |
September 30, 1990 | Jumbo Tsuruta and Akira Taue vs. Mitsuharu Misawa and Toshiaki Kawada | October Giant Series | 5 | [10] | |
October 19, 1990 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada, and Kenta Kobashi vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Masanobu Fuchi, and Akira Taue | Korakuen Hall show | 5 | [11] | |
January 4, 1991 | Akira Hokuto vs Bull Nakano | AJW | Korakuen Hall show | 5 | [12] |
February 24, 1991 | Barry Windham, Larry Zbyszko, Ric Flair, and Sid Vicious vs. Brian Pillman, Rick Steiner, Scott Steiner, and Sting | WCW | WrestleWar | 5 | [2] |
April 20, 1991 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada, and Kenta Kobashi vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Masanobu Fuchi, and Akira Taue | AJPW | Korakuen Hall show | 5 | [11] |
August 9, 1991 | Big Van Vader vs. Keiji Mutoh | NJPW | Violent Storm in Kokugikan Night 2 | 5 | [2] |
April 24, 1992 | Kyoko Inoue vs. Manami Toyota | AJW | Wrestlemarinepiad | 5 | [13] |
April 30, 1992 | El Samurai vs. Jushin Thunder Liger | NJPW | Sumo Hall show | 5 | |
May 17, 1992 | Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, Larry Zbyszko, Rick Rude, and Steve Austin vs. Barry Windham, Dustin Rhodes, Nikita Koloff, Ricky Steamboat, and Sting | WCW | WrestleWar | 5 | |
May 22, 1992 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada, and Kenta Kobashi vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Masanobu Fuchi, and Akira Taue | AJPW | Super Power Series[14] | 5 | [11] |
May 25, 1992 | Kenta Kobashi and Tsuyoshi Kikuchi vs. Doug Furnas and Dan Kroffet | Super Power Series | 5 | [13] | |
July 5, 1992 | Kenta Kobashi and Tsuyoshi Kikuchi vs. Masa Fuchi and Yoshinari Ogawa | Summer Action Series | 5 | ||
August 15, 1992 | Manami Toyota vs. Toshiyo Yamada | AJW | Mid Summer Typhoon | 5 | |
April 2, 1993 | Kyoko Inoue and Takako Inoue vs Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki | Dream Slam I | 5 | [15] | |
Shinobu Kandori vs. Akira Hokuto | 5 | ||||
April 11, 1993 | Manami Toyota and Toshiyo Yamada vs Dynamite Kansai and Mayumi Ozaki | Dream Slam II | 5 | ||
April 25, 1993 | Kenta Kobashi vs Toshiaki Kawada | AJPW | Champion Carnival | 5 | [16] |
July 2, 1993 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Jun Akiyama vs. Toshiaki Kawada, Akira Taue, and Yoshinari Ogawa | Summer Action Series | 5 | [11] | |
July 29, 1993 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Stan Hansen | Budokan Hall show | 5 | [13] | |
July 31, 1993 | Aja Kong, Kyoko Inoue, Takako Inoue and Sakie Hasegawa vs. Cutie Suzuki, Dynamite Kansai, Mayumi Ozaki and Hikari Fukuoka | JWP | Thunder Queen Battle in Yokohama | 5 | [17] |
December 3, 1993 | Akira Taue and Toshiaki Kawada vs. Kenta Kobashi and Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | Budokan Hall show | 5 | [13] |
December 6, 1993 | Manami Toyota and Toshiyo Yamada vs. Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki | AJW | St. Battle Final | 5 | [18] |
December 12, 1993 | Manami Toyota and Akira Hokuto vs. Toshiyo Yamada and Kyoko Inoue | Tag League The Best | 5 | [19] | |
Manami Toyota and Akira Hokuto vs. Toshiyo Yamada and Kyoko Inoue | 5 | ||||
January 29, 1994 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Giant Baba vs. Toshiaki Kawada, Akira Taue, and Masanobu Fuchi | AJPW | New Year Giant Series | 5 | [20] |
March 20, 1994 | Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels | WWF | WrestleMania X | 5 | [13] |
April 16, 1994 | The Great Sasuke vs. Wild Pegasus | NJPW | Super J Cup | 5 | |
May 21, 1994 | Mitsuharu Misawa and Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue | AJPW | Super Power Series | 5 | [11] |
June 3, 1994 | Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada | Budokan Hall show | 6 | [13] | |
July 8, 1994 | The Great Sasuke vs. Jushin Thunder Liger | NJPW | Summer Struggle | 5 | [21] |
August 29, 1994 | Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart | WWF | SummerSlam | 5 | [13] |
October 9, 1994 | Kyoko Inoue and Takako Inoue vs. Manami Toyota and Toshiyo Yamada | AJW | Wrestlemarinpiad | 5 | [22] |
November 6, 1994 | Art Barr and Eddie Guerrero vs. El Hijo Del Santo and Octagon | AAA | When Worlds Collide | 5 | [13] |
November 20, 1994 | Aja Kong vs. Manami Toyota | AJW | Doumu Super Woman Great War | 5 | |
November 30, 1994 | Rey Mysterio Jr vs Juventud Guerrera | AAA | Matamoros show | 5 | [23] |
January 24, 1995 | Mitsuharu Misawa and Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue | AJPW | New Year Giant Series | 5 | [11] |
March 4, 1995 | Kenta Kobashi and Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Johnny Ace and Steve Williams | Budokan Hall show | 5 | [13] | |
April 15, 1995 | Akira Taue vs. Mitsuharu Misawa | Budokan Hall show | 5 | ||
May 7, 1995 | Manami Toyota vs. Kyoko Inoue | AJW | G*Top 2nd | 5 | |
June 9, 1995 | Kenta Kobashi and Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Akira Taue and Toshiaki Kawada | AJPW | Budokan Hall show | 5 | |
June 27, 1995 | Manami Toyota vs. Aja Kong | AJW | Sapporo show | 5 | |
June 30, 1995 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Satoru Asako vs Toshiaki Kawada, Akira Taue, and Tamon Honda | AJPW | Summer Action Series | 5 | [11] |
July 23, 1995 | Manami Toyota vs Mima Shimoda | AJW | Korakuen Hall show | 5 | [24] |
August 30, 1995 | Kyoko Inoue and Takako Inoue vs. Manami Toyota and Sakie Hasegawa | WWWA Champions Night | 5 | [25] | |
September 2, 1995 | Akira Hokuto vs. Manami Toyota | Destiny | 5 | ||
September 22, 1995 | Rey Mysterio Jr vs Psicosis | AAA | Mexico City show | 5 | |
March 9, 1996 | Juventud Guerrera vs. Rey Mysterio Jr | ECW | Big Ass Extreme Bash | 5 | [26] |
May 23, 1996 | Mitsuharu Misawa and Jun Akiyama vs. Akira Taue and Toshiaki Kawada | AJPW | Super Power Series | 5 | [11] |
June 7, 1996 | Jun Akiyama and Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Johnny Ace and Steve Williams | Budokan Hall show | 5 | [13] | |
October 10, 1996 | Dick Togo, Men's Teioh, Shiryu, Shoichi Funaki, and Taka Michinoku vs. Gran Hamada, Gran Naniwa, Masato Yakushiji, Super Delfin & Tiger Mask IV | Michinoku Pro | 3rd Anniversary | 5 | [27] |
December 6, 1996 | Akira Taue and Toshiaki Kawada vs. Jun Akiyama and Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | Budokan Hall show | 5 | [13] |
March 23, 1997 | Bret Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin | WWF | WrestleMania 13 | 5 | [28] |
June 5, 1997 | Koji Kanemoto vs. El Samurai | NJPW | Best of the Super Juniors IV | 5 | |
June 6, 1997 | Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada | AJPW | Budokan Hall show | 5 | |
October 5, 1997 | Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker | WWF | In Your House 18: Badd Blood | 5 | |
December 5, 1997 | Akira Taue and Toshiaki Kawada vs. Jun Akiyama and Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | Budokan Hall show | 5 | |
June 27, 1998 | Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka | RINGS | Fourth Fighting Integration | 5 | [29] |
October 31, 1998 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | 26th Anniversary Show | 5 | [28] |
June 11, 1999 | Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Kenta Kobashi | Budokan Hall show | 5 | ||
October 24, 1999 | Mitsuharu Misawa and Yoshinari Ogawa vs. Kenta Kobashi and Jun Akiyama | October Giant Series | 5 | [30] | |
2000s
Date | Match | Promotion | Event | Rating | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
December 14, 2000 | Masanobu Fuchi and Toshiaki Kawada vs Takashi Iizuka and Yuji Nagata | NJPW | The 2nd Judgement!! | 5 | [31] |
March 1, 2003 | Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Kenta Kobashi | Noah | Navigate For Evolution | 5 | [28] |
July 10, 2004 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Jun Akiyama | Departure | 5 | ||
October 16, 2004 | Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk | ROH | Joe vs. Punk II | 5 | |
September 11, 2005 | Christopher Daniels vs. A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe | TNA | Unbreakable | 5 | |
October 1, 2005 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Samoa Joe | ROH | Joe vs. Kobashi | 5 | |
March 31, 2006 | Cima, Masato Yoshino, and Naruki Doi vs. Dragon Kid, Genki Horiguchi, and Ryo Saito | Supercard of Honor | 5 | ||
2010s
2020s
Date | Match | Promotion | Event | Rating | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 4, 2020 | Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi | NJPW | Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night 1 | 5.5[lower-alpha 3] | [37] |
Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi | Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night 1 | 5.5 | |||
January 5, 2020 | Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito | Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night 2 | 5[lower-alpha 4] | ||
February 14, 2020 | Will Ospreay vs. Zack Sabre Jr. | RPW | High Stakes | 5 | |
February 29, 2020 | Kenny Omega and Adam Page vs. Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson | AEW | Revolution | 6 |
Wrestlers with the most 5-or-higher-star matches
As of June 14, 2020.
Rank | Wrestler | No. of 5+ star matches |
Highest rating |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Mitsuharu Misawa | 25 | 6 |
2 | Kenta Kobashi | 21 | 5 |
3 | Toshiaki Kawada | 20 | 6 |
4 | Kazuchika Okada | 19 | 7 |
5 | Kenny Omega | 16 | 7 |
6 | Akira Taue | 15 | 5 |
7 | Hiroshi Tanahashi | 13 | 5.75 |
7 | Manami Toyota | 13 | 5 |
9 | Ric Flair | 11 | 6 |
Will Ospreay | 11 | 5.75 | |
11 | Kota Ibushi | 10 | 5.75 |
12 | Tomohiro Ishii | 8 | 5.5 |
13 | Tetsuya Naito | 7 | 5.75 |
13 | Kyoko Inoue | 7 | 5 |
14 | Ricky Steamboat | 5 | 6 |
Barry Windham | 5 | 5 | |
16 | Johnny Gargano | 4 | 5.5 |
Adam Cole | 4 | 5.5 | |
Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson | 4 | 6 | |
19 | Shingo Takagi | 3 | 5.75 |
Samoa Joe | 3 | 5 | |
Bandido | 3 | 5 | |
Katsuyori Shibata | 3 | 5 | |
Zack Sabre Jr | 3 | 5 | |
Stan Hansen | 3 | 5 | |
Rey Mysterio | 3 | 5 | |
Aja Kong | 3 | 5 | |
Jushin Liger | 3 | 5 | |
Cutie Suzuki | 3 | 5 | |
See also
Notes
- Occurred before the creation of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Originally 5.5, but later revised
- Originally 5.25, but later revised
- Originally 4.75, but later revised
References
- Hart, Bret (2009). Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling. Grand Central Publishing. p. 214. ISBN 978-0-446-54528-0.
- "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019)". IWNerd.com. 1 January 2018.
- Meltzer, Dave. "Dave Meltzer on Twitter: "I was there. Nothing on the undercard was anything special. Main event was easy *****. Best match I'd ever seen live up to that point."".
- "Meltzer's Classics". RamblingsAboutWrestling.com.
- "Meltzer's Classics". RamblingsAboutWrestling.com.
- "Meltzer's Classics". RamblingsAboutWrestling.com.
- "In Search of Five Star Matches Part Two". PlaceToBeNation.com.
- Meltzer, Dave. "Dave Meltzer on Twitter: "In 1989, Flair & Steamboat did 10.25 stars working an afternoon and evening show in Landover & Philly on house shows."".
- "Meltzer's Classics". RamblingsAboutWrestling.com.
- Meltzer, Dave (August 21, 1991). "More WWF steroid troubles, Billy Graham lawsuit". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
- "Hall of Fame season: The best matches of Akira Taue". F4WOnline. September 22, 2015. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (February 25, 1991). "Full Wrestlemania card released". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
- "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019) - Page 2 of 6". IWNerd.com. 1 January 2018.
- Kreikenbohm, Philip. "AJPW Super Power Series 1992 - Tag 6". Cagematch.net. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (January 17, 1994). "The 1993 Wrestling Observer Reader Awards issue". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (May 10, 1993). "Konnan retires, Hogan buries WWF, Heyman new promotion, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (August 30, 1993). "Wrestling recovery?, Terry Gordy collapses,Gene Okerlund leaves WWE". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (April 19, 1993). "Von Erich death fallout, Hogan title update, Mania buyrate, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (March 7, 1994). "Lawler case finished, WWE leaks finish that didn't end up the finish". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 8 January 2020.(subscription required)
- Meltzer, Dave (March 21, 1994). "Tonya Harding and wrestling, Hogan/WCW, Mania X preview, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 8 January 2020.(subscription required)
- Meltzer, Dave (August 8, 1994). "Back to business after trial, a huge week for pro-wrestling internationally, new promotion starting up, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (December 19, 1995). "Epic Rickson Gracie vs. Yoji Anjoh story which ultimately led to the creation of PRIDE, UFC IV set, Real World Tag League tournament, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (January 30, 1995). "1995 Royal Rumble, angle to bring Ric Flair back to WCW, "Nu Jack" legal issues, business trends of past three years, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (October 23, 1995). "Bill Watts already gone from WWE after three weeks, New Japan/UWFi update, Ultimate Ultimate tournament pairings, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (January 22, 1996). "Results of the 1995 Observer Newsletter Awards, 1995 Record Book, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (January 13, 1997). "1997 Annual Awards Issue, a look at all the major shows of the year, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- Meltzer, Dave (November 11, 1996). "Infamous angle where Austin broke into Pillman's house, thoughts on Hall of Fame issue, Pancrase PPV, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019) - Page 3 of 6". IWNerd.com. 1 January 2018.
- Meltzer, Dave (August 3, 1998). "More on Leno and WCW, WWF Fully Loaded review, death of June Byers, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 9 March 2020.(subscription required)
- Meltzer, Dave (November 15, 1999). "ECW November to Remember review, Dynamite Kid book, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 8 January 2020.(subscription required)
- "NJPW The 2nd Judgement!!". Cagematch.net. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
- "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019) - Page 4 of 6". IWNerd.com. 1 January 2018.
- "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019) - Page 5 of 6". IWNerd.com. 1 January 2018.
- "Dave Meltzer puntúa con 5 estrellas un combate de WWE después de 7 años sin hacerlo". February 2018.
- "Dave Meltzer puntúa con cinco estrellas dos combates de NXT TakeOver: New Orleans". 2018-04-14.
- "A-Kid recibe grandes elogios por parte de Dave Meltzer debido a su combate contra Zack Sabre Jr. En Madrid". 2018-11-12.
- "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2020) - Page 6 of 6". IWNerd.com. 1 January 2018.
- "Todas las estrellas de Dave Meltzer para Double or Nothing". 2019-05-31.
- "Primera lucha de Moxley que recibe 5 estrellas de Meltzer". 2019-07-26.
- https://superluchas.com/walter-vs-tyler-bate-5-25-estrellas-via-meltzer/
External links
- Top Rated Matches of All Time on The Internet Wrestling Database
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