4+ star rated matches for 2015 so far

[Shadowmancer]

4 stars

*Forever Hooligans vs Time Splitters vs reDRagon vs Young Bucks – Wrestle Kingdom 9(NJPW)

*AJ Styles vs Hiroshi Tanahashi – New Beginning In Osaka (NJPW)

*Bayley vs Becky Lynch vs Charlotte vs Sasha Banks –Takeover : Rival(WWE NXT)

*Roderick Strong vs Trevor Lee –From Out Of Nowhere (PWG)

*Biff Busick vs Mike Bailey – From Out Of Nowhere (PWG)

*Hirooki Goto vs Katsuyori Shibata – New Japan Cup (NJPW)

*Charlotte vs Sasha Banks – NXT Live (NXT)

*Andrew Everett vs Caprice Coleman vs Cedric Alexander vs Matt Sydal vs Moose vs Tomasso Ciampa – Supercard Of Honor IX (ROH Wrestling)

*Randy Orton vs Seth Rollins – Wrestlemania 31 (WWE)

*Bad Luck Fale vs Kazuchika Okada – Invasion Attack (NJPW)

*Roppongi Vice vs Young Bucks – Invasion Attack (NJPW)

*Roman Reigns vs The Big Show – Extreme Rules (WWE)

*Hirooki Goto vs Shinsuke Nakamura – Wrestling Dontaku (NJPW)

*Austin Aries vs Kurt Angle – Destination X (TNA)

*Sasha Banks vs Becky Lynch –Takeover : Unstoppable (WWE NXT)

*Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins – Elimination Chamber (WWE)

*Hirooki Goto, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Katsuyori Shibata, Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. Kazushi Sakuraba, Shinsuke Nakamura, Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano & YOSHI-HASHI – Best Of Super Juniors Day 12 (NJPW)

*Captain New Japan, Hirooki Goto, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Katsuyori Shibata & Togi Makabe vs. Kazushi Sakuraba, Shinsuke Nakamura, Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano & YOSHI-HASHI – Best Of Super Juniors Day 13 (NJPW)

*Dean Ambrose vs Seth Rollins – Money In The Bank (WWE)

*Austin Aries & Bobby Roode vs Eddie Edwards & Davey Richards – IW#572 (TNA)

*Ethan Carter III vs Kurt Angle – IW#572 (TNA)

*Chris Jericho vs Neville – Beast In The East (WWE)

*Kazushi Sakuraba vs Katsuyori Shibata – Dominion In Osaka jo-Hall (NJPW)

*[Jay Lethal vs Roderick Strong – Death Before Dishonor (ROH Wrestling)

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tetsuya Naito – G1 Climax Day 5 (NJPW)

*Neville vs Seth Rollins – Raw 3.08 (WWE)

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Tomoaki Honma – G1 Climax Day 14 (NJPW)

*Hirooki Goto vs Michael Elgin – G1 Climax Day 16 (NJPW)

*AJ Styles, Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson vs. Kazuchika Okada, Matt Taven & Michael Bennett – G1 Climax Day 19 (NJPW)

*Brock Lesnar vs The Undertaker – Summerslam (WWE)

*Andrew Everett vs Biff Busick – BOLA Day 1 (PWG)

*Hirooki Goto & Tomoaki Honma vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW Road To Destruction 11.9 (NJPW)

*Bad Influence vs Young Bucks vs The Kingdom – ROH All Star Extravaganza (ROH Wrestling)

*Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt & Luke Harper vs. Chris Jericho, Dean Ambrose & Roman Reigns – Night Of Champions (WWE)

*John Cena vs Seth Rollins –Live In MSG (WWE)

*Time Splitters vs reDRagon – Destruction In Kobe (NJPW)

*John Cena vs Seth Rollins – Night Of Champions (WWE)

*Togi Makabe vs Tomohiro Ishii – King Of Pro Wrestling (NJPW)

*Roppongi Vice vs reDRagon – Road To Power Struggle 1.11 (NJPW)

*Karl Anderson vs Shinsuke Nakamura – Power Struggle (NJPW)

4.25 stars

*AJ Styles vs Tetsuya Naito – Wrestle Kingdom 9 (NJPW)

*Kurt Angle vs Bobby Lashley – IW#551 (TNA)

*Adrian Neville vs Finn Balor – NXT Takeover : Rival (WWE NXT)

*Matt Sydal vs Ricochet – PWG From Out Of Nowhere (PWG)

*Ethan Page & Josh Alexander vs Young Bucks – PWG From Out Of Nowhere (PWG)

*reDRagon vs Young Bucks – ROH 13 Anniversary (ROH Wrestling)

*Hirooki Goto vs Kota Ibushi - New Japan Cup FINAL (NJPW)

*Aero Star vs. El Mesias vs. El Texano Jr. vs. Psycho Clown – AAA Rey De Reyes (AAA)

*Bad News Barrett vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Luke Harper vs. R-Truth vs. Stardust – Wrestlemania (WWE)

*Kenny Omega vs Mascara Dorada – Invasion Attack (NJPW)

*Adam Cole & The Kingdom vs AJ Styles & Young Bucks – ROH Best In The World (ROH Wrestling)

*Jay Lethal vs Jay Briscoe - ROH Best In The World (ROH Wrestling)

*Cesaro vs John Cena – Raw 29.06 (WWE)

*Cesaro vs John Cena – Raw 6.07 (WWE)

*Finn Balor vs Kevin Owens – Beast From The East (WWE)

*John Cena vs Kevin Owens – Battleground (WWE)

*John Cena vs Seth Rollins – Raw 27.07 (WWE)

*Hirooki Goto vs Kazuchika Okada – G1 Climax Day 8 (NJPW)

*Michael Elgin vs Tomoaki Honma – G1 Climax Day 8 (NJPW)

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Katsuyori Shibata – G1 Climax Day 13 (NJPW)

*Cesaro vs Randy Orton vs Kevin Owens – Raw 10.08 (WWE)

*Yuji Nagata vs Kazuchika Okada – G1 Climax Day 16 (NJPW)

*reDRagon vs Young Bucks – G1 Climax Day 19 (NJPW)

*KUSHIDA vs Ricochet – G1 Climax Day 19 (NJPW)

*Finn Balor vs Kevin Owens – NXT Takeover : Brooklyn (WWE NXT)

*Will Ospreay vs Mark Andrews – Bola Night 1 (PWG)

*Ricochet vs Zack Sabre Jr. – Bola Night 2 (PWG)

*Drew Galloway vs Mike Bailey – Bola Night 2 (PWG)

*Aero Star & Fenix vs Drago & Pentagon Jr. – Bola Night 2 (PWG)

*Kota Ibushi vs Togi Makabe – Destruction In Okayama (NJPW)

*Sasha Banks vs Bayley – NXT Takeover : Respect (WWE NXT)

*The Undertaker vs Brock Lesnar – Hell In A Cell (WWE)

*Caristico & Volador Jr. vs. La Mascara & Rush – Lucha Libre Elite 25.10 (LLE)

*Young Bucks vs Matt Sydal & Ricochet – Road To Power Struggle 1.11

*Matt Sydal & Ricochet vs Roppongi Vice – Power Struggle (NJPW)

4.5 stars

*Togi Makabe vs Tomohiro Ishii – Wrestle Kingdom 9 (NJPW)

*Fenix vs Mil Muertes – LU #19 (LU)

*Daniel Bryan vs Roman Reigns – Fast Lane (WWE)

*Kota Ibushi vs Tetsuya Naito – New Japan Cup Semifinal (NJPW)

*Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins vs Brock Lesnar – Wrestlemania 31 (WWE)

*Shinko Takagi vs Akira Tozawa – Dragon Gate 8.05 (DG)

*AJ Styles, Doc Gallows, Karl Anderson, Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson vs. Hanson, Jay Briscoe, Mark Briscoe, Ray Rowe & Roderick Strong – ROH/NJPW Global Wars Night 1 (ROH Wrestling)

*John Cena vs Kevin Owens – Elimination Chamber (WWE)

*John Cena vs Kevin Owens – Money In The Bank (WWE)

*KUSHIDA vs Kenny Omega – Dominion in Osaka-jo Hall (NJPW)

*Hirooki Goto vs Shinsuke Nakamura - Dominion in Osaka-jo Hall (NJPW)

*AJ Styles vs Kota Ibushi – G1 Climax Day 5 (NJPW)

*Kota Ibushi vs Katsuyori Shibata – G1 Climax Day 7 (NJPW)

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Shinsuke Nakamura – G1 Climax Day 8 (NJPW)

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Hirooki Goto – G1 Climax Day 14 (NJPW)

*Tomoaki Honma vs Tomohiro Ishii – G1 Climax Day 16 (NJPW)

*Michael Elgin vs Tomohiro Ishii – G1 Climax Day 18 (NJPW)

*AJ Styles vs Kazuchika Okada – King Of Pro Wrestling (NJPW)

*Hirooki Goto vs Shinsuke Nakamura – Destruction In Kobe (NJPW)

*Seth Rollins vs John Cena – Summerslam (WWE)

*Hiroshi Tanahashi & Katsuyori Shibata vs Kazuchika Okada & Kazushi Sakuraba – Power Struggle (NJPW)

*Fenix vs Matt Sydal – Bola Day 1 (PWG)

*Marty Scurll & Tommy End & Zack Sabre Jr. Vs Young Bucks & Roderick Strong – Bola Day 1 (PWG)

*Chris Hero vs Timothy Thatcher - Bola Day 2 (PWG) starts around 32:00

*Andrew Everett & Biff Busick & Trevor Lee vs Young Bucks & Super Dragon – Bola Day 2 (PWG)

4.75 stars

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada – Wrestle Kingdom 9 (NJPW)

*Seth Rollins vs Roman Reigns vs Brock Lesnar – Royal Rumble (WWE)

*Kota Ibushi vs AJ Styles – Invasion Attack (NJPW)

*AJ Styles & Young Bucks vs Kazuchika Okada & Roppongi Vice – ROH/NJPW Global Wars Day 2 (ROH Wrestling)

*KUSHIDA vs Kyle O’Reilly – Best Of Super Juniors Day 13 (Final) (NJPW)

*Kazuchika Okada vs AJ Styles – Dominion in Osaka-jo Hall (NJPW)

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kota Ibushi – G1 Climax Day 1 (NJPW)

*AJ Styles vs Hiroshi Tanahashi – G1 Climax Day 17 (NJPW)

*Kazuchika Okada vs Shinsuke Nakamura – G1 Climax Day 18 (NJPW)

*Atlantis vs La Sombra – CMLL 82nd Anniversary Show (CMLL)

*Tomoaki Honma vs Tomohiro Ishii – Power Struggle (NJPW)

5 stars

*Kota Ibushi vs Shinsuke Nakamura – Wrestle Kingdom 9 (NJPW)

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Tomoaki Honma - New Beginnings Sendai (NJPW)

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Hiroshi Tanahashi – G1 Climax Day 19 (Final) (NJPW)

This is the list of all the matches this year that Dave Meltzer has given 4+ stars to. This list is just insane in terms of just numbers of matches of this level of quality. I know that it is subjective towards one mans opinion but it is one man that watches probably more wrestling than KB

 

[Pay Per Ghost]

I maybe in the minority but D Bry Vs Roman should be a 5 star. Go back and watch that match, the hate, the build, the crowd and the sheer emotion is palpable.

Also Cesaro Cena should be 4.75;Cena/KO trilogy love is appreciated.

 

[Shadowmancer]

Any Mod mind fixing the Royal Rumble entry to be correct entrants. As well as removing the time stamp bit from the Chris Hero Vs Timothy Thatcher match.

Daniel Bryan Vs Roman Reigns at Fastlane is probably about right for what it got. its the most memorable match on a card that was a bit lack lustre apart from Kidd and Cesaro beating the Usos.

 

[MCMG]

This goes generally unnoticed but the WWE's top guys really have some great matches. Maybe it's because of the time in the ring they are afforded but it shows in-ring work is just as important (if not more so) in modern-day WWE.

Cena, Brock, Rollins and Reigns have been presented as the top guys and have all delivered. I'm not really sure about Japan but there is a perception from many fans that WWE just push whoever the fuck. The Miz aside, there hasn't been a main-event player in the WWE who can't go since the mid 90's. For what it's worth, Meltzer's ratings for Japanese matches are still generous. It's his opinion, fine, but there is no way I can accept all those 4.75/5 star matches without suggesting he is biased.

 

[X]

Roman/Bryan was good, but I don't think I gave it even 4 stars let alone 5. ***3/4 is what I remember giving it.

Lists like these are exactly why I always laugh when people talk about how bad wrestling is now. Maybe it doesn't have the same excitement or popularity as the Attitude days but the in-ring work has never been better for most companies.

 

[agentmichaelscarn]

I only watch WWE/NXT so with that said the three best matches I've seen this year were Rollins/Cena/Lesnar at RR, the first Owens/Cena match and Sasha/Bayley at Takeover Brooklyn.

 

[Kris Benwa]

For the sake of conversation I thought Bryan vs Reigns was dry. I liked Cena vs Rusev better

Speaking of my guy John Cena look at how many times his name appears. That's an awful lot for a man who supposedly cant wrestle. Also I'm happy that the Royal Rumble triple threat got 4.75 but I need to rewatch it. I like other matches better but maybe cuz I haven't watched that since it happened.

Surprised by how many of these i disagree with though

 

[BaconBits]

I don't take much stock in Meltzer's rankings. They're way, way too smarktastic, but considering how his customer base is pure smarks, I can't say I blame him for going that direction.

 

[Shadowmancer]

I don't take much stock in Meltzer's rankings. They're way, way too smarktastic, but considering how his customer base is pure smarks, I can't say I blame him for going that direction.

It may be "smarktastic" but it is not to far wrong. all three of those matches that have gotten 5* this year thoroughly deserved them. But remember that one of the main criteria for his ratings is that it is pretty much a gut reaction immediately post seeing a match on tv.

 

[Dr. Mantis Toboggan, M.D.]

Reigns vs Lesnar, Cena vs Owens, Lesar vs Undertaker were top quality