User:Dave Metzer
Dave Meltzer | |
---|---|
![]() Meltzer in March 2018 | |
Born | David Allen Meltzer October 24, 1959 New York City, U.S. |
Occupation | Author, journalist, historian |
Alma mater | San Jose State |
Period | 1971–present |
Subject | |
Notable works | |
Spouse |
Mary Anne Mirabal
(m. 2002) |
Children | 2[2] |
Website | |
f4wonline |
David Allen Meltzer[3] (born October 24, 1959) is an American journalist who reports on professional wrestling and mixed martial arts.
Since 1983, he has been the publisher and editor of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter (WON). He has also written for the Oakland Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, Yahoo! Sports, SI.com,[4] and The National Sports Daily. He has extensively covered mixed martial arts since UFC 1 in 1993 and currently covers the sport for SB Nation. He has been called "the most accomplished reporter in sports journalism" by Frank Deford of Sports Illustrated.[5]
He is also a frequent lecturer on many aspects of the business of MMA, professional wrestling, and boxing at the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University.[6]
Early life
Meltzer was born in New York City,[citation needed] and lived in upstate New York[7] until he was ten,[citation needed] before his family settled in San Jose, California.[citation needed] Meltzer earned a journalism degree from San Jose State University and started out as a sportswriter for the Wichita Falls Times Record News and the Turlock Journal. He demonstrated an interest in professional wrestling and a journalistic approach to it early in life. Meltzer wrote several wrestling-related publications that predate WON, dating back to 1971. The most notable of these was the California Wrestling Report, ca. 1973–1974, which reported on the still-extant National Wrestling Alliance territories operating out of Los Angeles and San Francisco. Meltzer comes from a Lithuanian Jewish background.
Wrestling Observer
The beginnings of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter date back to 1980, when Meltzer began an annual poll amongst those with whom he corresponded regarding professional wrestling. According to Meltzer, he was just a fan at first. A short time later, he began maintaining a tape-trading list, and would occasionally send match results and news updates along with tape updates. Meltzer stated that he wanted to keep his friends in college "in the loop" for his tape trading and the happenings in the business, as the mainstream wrestling magazines catered to a somewhat younger demographic.[8]
Star rating system and impact
Meltzer popularized the star rating system (devised by Jim Cornette and his childhood friend Norm M. Dooley),[9][10][11] which rates matches on a scale of zero to five stars (sometimes going to negative five stars in the case of very bad matches) in a similar manner to that used by many movie critics.[7] Meltzer has also given ratings that have exceeded five stars. The first 6 and 6.5 stars took place in 1981.[12] The highest he has ever rated a match was seven stars, given to Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega for their match at Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall in June 2018. Wrestlers such as Bret Hart have written how proud they were when their performances were praised in the WON.[13]
Bibliography
- Tributes: Remembering Some of the World's Greatest Wrestlers (Winding Stair Press, 2001, Hardcover) ISBN 1-55366-085-4 ISBN 978-1553660859
- Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Wrestlers (Sports Publishing, 2004, Hardcover) ISBN 1-58261-817-8 ISBN 978-1582618173
Awards and accomplishments
- Cauliflower Alley Club
- James Melby Historian Award (2017)[14]
- George Tragos/Lou Thesz Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
- Jim Melby Award (2016)[2]
References
- ^ The Wrestling Professor (November 17, 2004). "Pick My Brain Interview: Dave Meltzer". The Armpit. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
- ^ a b c Laprade, Patric (July 18, 2016). "Melby Award for Meltzer proper recognition for pioneering work". Slam! Sports. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
- ^ Wrestling Observer Newsletter trademark, Trademarkia, Accessed August 12, 2010
- ^ Observer, Dave Meltzer, Wrestling. "AEW's Battle With WWE Is Heating Up". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Rossen, Jake (May 15, 2013). "In World of Wrestling, Trying to Keep It Real". The New York Times. Retrieved May 18, 2013.
- ^ "Lecture by guest speakers Mike Church and Dave Meltzer in Prof. George Foster's class in SearchWorks". 2003.
- ^ a b "Dean S. Planet's Celeb Interviews". Dean S. Planet's. Archived from the original on August 3, 2003. Retrieved July 11, 2007.
- ^ Benaka, Lee (1991). "The Lee Benaka Interviews - Dave Meltzer". Benaka, Lee. Death Valley Driver Video Review. Archived from the original on July 30, 2007. Retrieved July 11, 2007.
- ^ Cornette, Jim. "Stars in Their Eyes – FSM#138". JimCornette.com. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
- ^ Cornette, Jim. "Stars in Their Eyes". Archived from the original on August 15, 2017. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
- ^ Bixenspan, David. "Rating Pro Wrestling's New "Best Match Ever" Is Way More Contentious Than It Needs To Be". Deadspin. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
- ^ @davemeltzerWON (March 24, 2019). "The first 6 star and 6 1/2 star..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Hart, Bret (2009). Hitman: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling. Grand Central Publishing. p. 214. ISBN 978-0-446-54528-0.
- ^ "Congratulation to Dave Meltzer, the 2017 James Melby Historian Award Winner". Cauliflower Alley Club. December 20, 2016. Archived from the original on July 26, 2018. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
Further reading
- Pick My Brain interview with Dave Meltzer
- DeathValleyDriver interview with Meltzer
- Dean S Planet interview with Meltzer
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Dave_Meltzer_2018.jpg/170px-Dave_Meltzer_2018.jpg)
Professional wrestling journalist and sports 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]
The first match rated more than 5 stars by Meltzer was Ric Flair vs Ricky Steamboat at a house show in Landover on March 18th 1989, which was awarded 6 stars.[2] The highest rating ever given by Meltzer is 7 stars, which he awarded to Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada at Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall on June 2018. There have been 199 matches awarded 5 or more stars; Mitsuharu Misawa has the most individual matches with 25.
Matches
1980s
Date | Match | Promotion | Event | Rating | Ref. | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | April 7, 1982 | Ric Flair vs. Butch Reed[a] | CWF | Miami Beach show | 5 | [3] |
2 | April 21, 1983 | Dynamite Kid vs. Tiger Mask | NJPW | Big Fight Series II Night 19 |
5 | [4] |
3 | December 5, 1984 | Kazuo Yamazaki vs. Nobuhiko Takada | UWF | Year-End Special Day 10 |
5 | |
4 | December 8, 1984 | Bruiser Brody and Stan Hansen vs. Dory Funk Jr. and Terry Funk | AJPW | Real World Tag League Night 15 |
5 | [5] |
5 | March 9, 1985 | Kuniaki Kobayashi vs. Tiger Mask | 85 Gekitoh! Exciting Wars Night 14 |
5 | ||
6 | August 22, 1985 | Lioness Asuka vs. Jaguar Yokota | AJW | Summer Night Festival in Budokan | 5 | |
7 | January 28, 1986 | Jumbo Tsuruta and Genichiro Tenryu vs. Riki Choshu and Yoshiaki Yatsu | AJPW | New Years War Super Battle Night 25 |
5 | |
8 | February 14, 1986 | Ric Flair vs. Barry Windham | CWF | Battle of the Belts 2 | 5 | [4] |
9 | April 19, 1986 | The Fantastics (Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers) vs. The Sheepherders (Butch Miller and Luke Williams) | JCP | Crockett Cup | 5 | |
10 | January 20, 1987 | Ric Flair vs. Barry Windham | World Wide Wrestling | 5 | [5] | |
11 | February 26, 1987 | Chigusa Nagayo vs. Lioness Asuka | AJW | Kawasaki show | 5 | |
12 | March 20, 1987 | Akira Maeda and Nobuhiko Takada vs. Keiji Mutoh and Shiro Koshinaka | NJPW | Spring Flare Up Night 21 |
5 | |
13 | April 11, 1987 | Ric Flair vs. Barry Windham | JCP | Crockett Cup | 5 | |
14 | July 31, 1987 | Paul Ellering, The Road Warriors (Hawk and Animal), and The Super Powers (Dusty Rhodes and Nikita Koloff) vs. The Four Horsemen (Arn Anderson, Lex Luger, Ric Flair, The War Machine, and Tully Blanchard) | The Great American Bash | 5 | [4] | |
15 | 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 | [5] |
16 | December 16, 1988 | Genichiro Tenryu and Toshiaki Kawada vs. Stan Hansen and Terry Gordy | AJPW | Real World Tag League Night 23 |
5 | [4] |
17 | January 28, 1989 | Genichiro Tenryu, Toshiaki Kawada, and Samson Fuyuki vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Yoshiaki Yatsu, and Masanobu Fuchi | New Year Giant Series Night 17 |
5 | [6] | |
18 | February 20, 1989 | Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat | WCW | Chi-Town Rumble | 5 | [4] |
19 | March 18, 1989 | Landover, MD show | 6 | [7] | ||
20 | April 2, 1989 | Clash of the Champions VI | 5 | [4] | ||
21 | May 7, 1989 | WrestleWar | 5 | |||
22 | June 5, 1989 | Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Genichiro Tenryu | AJPW | Super Power Series Night 18 |
5 | |
23 | November 15, 1989 | Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk | WCW | Clash of the Champions IX | 5 |
1990s
Date | Match | Promotion | Event | Rating | Ref. | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
24 | January 31, 1990 | Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Naoki Sano | NJPW | New Spring Gold Series | 5 | [5] |
25 | June 8, 1990 | Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | Super Power Series Night 19 |
5 | [4] |
26 | September 30, 1990 | Jumbo Tsuruta and Akira Taue vs. Mitsuharu Misawa and Toshiaki Kawada | October Giant Series Night 2 |
5 | [8] | |
27 | October 19, 1990 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada, and Kenta Kobashi vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Masanobu Fuchi, and Akira Taue | October Giant Series Night 16 |
5 | [9] | |
28 | January 4, 1991 | Akira Hokuto vs. Bull Nakano | AJW | Korakuen Hall show | 5 | [10] |
29 | February 24, 1991 | The Four Horsemen (Barry Windham, Larry Zbyszko, Ric Flair, and Sid Vicious) vs. Brian Pillman, Sting, and The Steiner Brothers (Rick Steiner and Scott Steiner) | WCW | WrestleWar | 5 | [4] |
30 | April 20, 1991 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada, and Kenta Kobashi vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Masanobu Fuchi, and Akira Taue | AJPW | Fan Appreciation Day | 5 | [9] |
31 | August 9, 1991 | Big Van Vader vs. Keiji Mutoh | NJPW | G1 climax 1991 Night 2 |
5 | [4] |
32 | April 24, 1992 | Kyoko Inoue vs. Manami Toyota | AJW | Wrestlemarinepiad | 5 | [11] |
33 | April 30, 1992 | El Samurai vs. Jushin Thunder Liger | NJPW | Explosion Tour Night 13 |
5 | |
34 | May 17, 1992 | The Dangerous Alliance (Arn Anderson, Bobby Eaton, Larry Zbyszko, Rick Rude, and Steve Austin) vs. Sting's Squadron (Barry Windham, Dustin Rhodes, Nikita Koloff, Ricky Steamboat, and Sting) | WCW | WrestleWar | 5 | [11] |
35 | May 22, 1992 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Toshiaki Kawada, and Kenta Kobashi vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Masanobu Fuchi, and Akira Taue | AJPW | Super Power Series Night 6[12] |
5 | [9] |
36 | May 25, 1992 | Kenta Kobashi and Tsuyoshi Kikuchi vs. The Can-Am Express (Doug Furnas and Dan Kroffat) | Super Power Series Night 8 |
5 | [11] | |
37 | July 5, 1992 | Kenta Kobashi and Tsuyoshi Kikuchi vs. Masanobu Fuchi and Yoshinari Ogawa | Summer Action Series Night 2 |
5 | ||
38 | August 15, 1992 | Manami Toyota vs. Toshiyo Yamada | AJW | Mid Summer Typhoon | 5 | |
39 | April 2, 1993 | Kyoko Inoue and Takako Inoue vs. Cutie Suzuki and Mayumi Ozaki | Dream Slam I | 5 | [13] | |
40 | Shinobu Kandori vs. Akira Hokuto | 5 | ||||
41 | April 11, 1993 | Manami Toyota and Toshiyo Yamada vs. Dynamite Kansai and Mayumi Ozaki | Dream Slam II | 5 | ||
42 | April 18, 1993 | Bull Nakano vs. Devil Masami | JWP | Korakuen Hall show | 5 | [14] |
43 | April 25, 1993 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada | AJPW | Champion Carnival | 5 | [15] |
44 | July 2, 1993 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Jun Akiyama vs. Yoshinari Ogawa and The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) | Summer Action Series Night 1 |
5 | [9] | |
45 | July 29, 1993 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Stan Hansen | Summer Action Series Night 22 |
5 | [11] | |
46 | 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 | [16] |
47 | August 31, 1993 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Steve Williams | AJPW | Summer Action Series II Night 10 |
5 | [17] |
48 | December 3, 1993 | The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) vs. Kenta Kobashi and Mitsuharu Misawa | Real World Tag League Night 18 |
5 | [11] | |
49 | December 6, 1993 | Manami Toyota and Toshiyo Yamada vs. Dynamite Kansai and Mayumi Ozaki | AJW | St. Battle Final | 5 | [18] |
50 | December 10, 1993 | Manami Toyota and Akira Hokuto vs. Toshiyo Yamada and Kyoko Inoue | Tag League The Best | 5 | [19] | |
51 | Manami Toyota and Akira Hokuto vs. Toshiyo Yamada and Kyoko Inoue | 5 | ||||
52 | January 29, 1994 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Giant Baba vs. Masanobu Fuchi and The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) | AJPW | New Year Giant Series Night 20 |
5 | [20] |
53 | March 20, 1994 | Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels | WWF | WrestleMania X | 5 | [11] |
54 | April 16, 1994 | The Great Sasuke vs. Wild Pegasus | NJPW | Super J-Cup Final | 5 | |
55 | May 21, 1994 | Mitsuharu Misawa and Kenta Kobashi vs. The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) | AJPW | Super Power Series Night 6 |
5 | [9] |
56 | June 3, 1994 | Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada | Super Power Series Night 16 |
6 | [11] | |
57 | July 8, 1994 | The Great Sasuke vs. Jushin Thunder Liger | NJPW | Summer Struggle | 5 | [21] |
58 | August 29, 1994 | Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart | WWF | SummerSlam | 5 | [11] |
59 | October 9, 1994 | Kyoko Inoue and Takako Inoue vs. Manami Toyota and Toshiyo Yamada | AJW | Wrestlemarinpiad | 5 | [22] |
60 | November 6, 1994 | Los Gringos Locos (Art Barr and Eddy Guerrero) vs. El Hijo Del Santo and Octagón | AAA | When Worlds Collide | 5 | [11] |
61 | November 20, 1994 | Aja Kong vs. Manami Toyota | AJW | Doumu Super Woman Great War | 5 | |
62 | November 30, 1994 | Rey Misterio Jr. vs. Juventud Guerrera | AAA | Matamoros show | 5 | [23] |
63 | January 19, 1995 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada | AJPW | New Year Giant Series Night 14 |
5 | [24] |
64 | January 24, 1995 | Mitsuharu Misawa and Kenta Kobashi vs. The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) | New Year Giant Series Night 17 |
5 | [9] | |
65 | March 4, 1995 | Kenta Kobashi and Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Johnny Ace and Steve Williams | Excite Series Night 12 |
5 | [11] | |
66 | April 15, 1995 | Akira Taue vs. Mitsuharu Misawa | Champion Carnival Night 19 |
5 | ||
67 | May 7, 1995 | Manami Toyota vs. Kyoko Inoue | AJW | G*Top 2nd | 5 | |
68 | June 9, 1995 | Kenta Kobashi and Mitsuharu Misawa vs. The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) | AJPW | Super Power Series Night 15 |
5 | |
69 | June 27, 1995 | Manami Toyota vs. Aja Kong | AJW | Zenjo Movement Night 40 | 5 | |
70 | June 30, 1995 | Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, and Satoru Asako vs. Tamon Honda and The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) | AJPW | Summer Action Series Night 1 |
5 | [9] |
71 | July 23, 1995 | Manami Toyota vs. Mima Shimoda | AJW | Japan Grand Prix Night 8 |
5 | [25] |
72 | August 30, 1995 | Kyoko Inoue and Takako Inoue vs. Manami Toyota and Sakie Hasegawa | WWWA Champions Night | 5 | [26] | |
73 | September 2, 1995 | Akira Hokuto vs. Manami Toyota | Destiny | 5 | ||
74 | September 22, 1995 | Rey Misterio Jr. vs. Psicosis | AAA | Mexico City show | 5 | |
75 | March 9, 1996 | Juventud Guerrera vs. Rey Misterio Jr. | ECW | Big Ass Extreme Bash | 5 | [27] |
76 | May 23, 1996 | Mitsuharu Misawa and Jun Akiyama vs. The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) | AJPW | Super Power Series Night 5 |
5 | [9] |
77 | June 7, 1996 | Jun Akiyama and Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Johnny Ace and Steve Williams | Super Power Series Night 15 |
5 | [11] | |
78 | October 10, 1996 | Kaientai DX (Dick Togo, Men's Teioh, Shiryu, Shoichi Funaki, and Taka Michinoku) vs. Gran Hamada, Gran Naniwa, Masato Yakushiji, Super Delfin, and Tiger Mask IV | Michinoku Pro | 3rd Anniversary | 5 | [28] |
79 | December 6, 1996 | The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) vs. Jun Akiyama and Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | Real World Tag League Night 16 |
5 | [11] |
80 | March 23, 1997 | Bret Hart vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin | WWF | WrestleMania 13 | 5 | [29] |
81 | June 5, 1997 | Koji Kanemoto vs. El Samurai | NJPW | Best of the Super Juniors IV Night 17 |
5 | |
82 | June 6, 1997 | Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada | AJPW | Super Power Series Night 16 |
5 | |
83 | October 5, 1997 | Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker | WWF | In Your House 18: Badd Blood | 5 | |
84 | December 5, 1997 | The Holy Demon Army (Toshiaki Kawada and Akira Taue) vs. Jun Akiyama and Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | Real World Tag League Night 15 |
5 | |
85 | June 27, 1998 | Kiyoshi Tamura vs. Tsuyoshi Kohsaka | RINGS | Fourth Fighting Integration | 5 | [30] |
86 | October 31, 1998 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Mitsuharu Misawa | AJPW | 26th Anniversary Show | 5 | [29] |
87 | June 11, 1999 | Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Kenta Kobashi | Super Power Series Night 14 |
5 | ||
88 | October 23, 1999 | Mitsuharu Misawa and Yoshinari Ogawa vs. Burning (Kenta Kobashi and Jun Akiyama) | October Giant Series Night 11 | 5 | [31] |
2000s
Date | Match | Promotion | Event | Rating | Ref. | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
89 | December 14, 2000 | Masanobu Fuchi and Toshiaki Kawada vs. Takashi Iizuka and Yuji Nagata | NJPW | Judgment Day | 5 | [32] |
90 | March 1, 2003 | Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Kenta Kobashi | Noah | Navigate For Evolution | 5 | [29] |
91 | July 10, 2004 | Kenta Kobashi vs. Jun Akiyama | Departure | 5 | ||
92 | October 16, 2004 | Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk | ROH | Joe vs. Punk II | 5 | |
93 | September 11, 2005 | Christopher Daniels vs. A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe | TNA | Unbreakable | 5 | |
94 | October 1, 2005 | Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi | ROH | Joe vs. Kobashi | 5 | |
95 | March 31, 2006 | Cima, Masato Yoshino, and Naruki Doi vs. Dragon Kid, Genki Horiguchi, and Ryo Saito | Supercard of Honor | 5 |
2010s
2020s
Wrestlers with the most 5-or-higher-star matches
As of August 31, 2024.
Rank | Wrestler | No. of 5★ matches |
Highest rating |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Mitsuharu Misawa | 25 | 6 |
2 | Kenta Kobashi | 23 | 5 |
3 | Kazuchika Okada | 22 | 7 |
4 | Toshiaki Kawada | 21 | 6 |
5 | Kenny Omega | 19 | 7 |
Will Ospreay | 19 | 6 | |
7 | Akira Taue | 15 | 5 |
Hiroshi Tanahashi | 15 | 5.75 | |
9 | Kota Ibushi | 13 | 5.75 |
Manami Toyota | 13 | 5 | |
11 | Shingo Takagi | 12 | 6 |
12 | Ric Flair | 11 | 6 |
13 | Tomohiro Ishii | 9 | 5.5 |
14 | Jumbo Tsuruta | 8 | 5 |
Tetsuya Naito | 8 | 5.75 | |
Kyoko Inoue | 8 | 5 | |
Young Bucks | 8 | 6 | |
18 | Jun Akiyama | 7 | 5 |
19 | Masanobu Fuchi | 6 | 5 |
Zack Sabre Jr. | 6 | 5 | |
Toshiyo Yamada | 6 | 5 | |
22 | Adam Cole | 5 | 5.5 |
Ricky Steamboat | 5 | 6 | |
Akira Hokuto | 5 | 5 | |
Barry Windham | 5 | 5 | |
Rey Fénix | 5 | 5.75 |
Promotions with the most 5-or-higher-star matches
As of August 31, 2024.
Rank | Promotion | Abbreviation | No. of 5★ matches |
Highest rating |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | New Japan Pro-Wrestling | NJPW | 76 | 7 |
2 | All Japan Pro Wrestling | AJPW | 35 | 6 |
3 | All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling | AJW | 19 | 5 |
4 | World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment | WWF/E | 14 | 5.5 |
5 | All Elite Wrestling | AEW | 13 | 6 |
6 | World Championship Wrestling | WCW | 7 | 6 |
7 | Pro Wrestling Guerrilla | PWG | 5 | 5 |
Ring of Honor | ROH | 5 | 5 | |
9 | Jim Crockett Promotions | JCP | 4 | 5 |
Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide | AAA | 4 | 5 |
Promotions with the most higher-than-5-star matches
As of August 31, 2024.
Rank | Promotion | Abbreviation | No. of 5+★ matches |
Highest rating |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | New Japan Pro-Wrestling | NJPW | 25 | 7 |
2 | All Elite Wrestling | AEW | 5 | 6 |
3 | World Wrestling Entertainment | WWE | 4 | 5.5 |
4 | World Championship Wrestling | WCW | 1 | 6 |
All Japan Pro Wrestling | AJPW | 6 | ||
Stardom | Stardom | 5.5 |
See also
- Professional wrestling in Canada
- Professional wrestling in Japan
- Professional wrestling in Mexico
- Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom
- Professional wrestling in the United States
- Professional wrestling match types
Notes
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.
- ^ Dubey, Dushyant. "WWE News: Dave Meltzer says that Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat house show matches in 1989 did a 10.25 star rating". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
- ^ Meltzer, Dave [@davemeltzerWON] (April 1, 2018). "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."" (Tweet). Retrieved January 8, 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019)". IWNerd.com. January 1, 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Meltzer's Classics". RamblingsAboutWrestling.com.
- ^ "In Search of Five Star Matches Part Two". PlaceToBeNation.com.
- ^ Meltzer, Dave [@davemeltzerWON] (June 14, 2017). "In 1989, Flair & Steamboat did 10.25 stars working an afternoon and evening show in Landover & Philly on house shows" (Tweet). Retrieved January 8, 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ Observer Staff (August 21, 1991). "August 21, 1991 Observer Newsletter More WWF steroid troubles, Billy Graham lawsuit". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Hall of Fame season: The best matches of Akira Taue". F4WOnline. September 22, 2015. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (February 25, 1991). "February 25, 1991 Wrestling Observer Newsletter Full Wrestlemania card released". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019) – Page 2 of 6". IWNerd.com. January 1, 2018.
- ^ Kreikenbohm, Philip. "AJPW Super Power Series 1992 Tag 6". Cagematch.net. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (January 17, 1994). "Jan. 17 1994 Observer Newsletter: The 1993 Wrestling Observer Reader Awards issue". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ "Bull Nakano vs. Devil Masami". Cagematch. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (May 10, 1993). "May 10, 1993 Observer Newsletter: Konnan retires, Hogan buries WWF, Heyman new promotion, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (August 30, 1993). "August 30, 1993 Observer Newsletter: Wrestling recovery?, Terry Gordy collapses,Gene Okerlund leaves WWE". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ "Kenta Kobashi vs. Steve Williams". Cagematch. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (April 19, 1993). "April 19, 1993 Observer Newsletter: Von Erich death fallout, Hogan title update, Mania buyrate, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (March 7, 1994). "March 7, 1994 Observer Newsletter: Lawler case finished, WWE leaks finish that didn't end up the finish". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (March 21, 1994). "March 21, 1994 Observer Newsletter: Tonya Harding and wrestling, Hogan/WCW, Mania X preview, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (August 8, 1994). "August 8, 1994 Observer Newsletter: Back to business after trial, a huge week for pro-wrestling internationally, new promotion starting up, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (December 19, 1995). "Dec. 19, 1994 Observer Newsletter: 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 March 9, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (January 30, 1995). "Jan. 30, 1995 Observer Newsletter: 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 March 9, 2020.
- ^ "Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada". Cagematch. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (October 23, 1995). "Oct. 23, 1995 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Bill Watts already gone from WWE after three weeks, New Japan/UWFi update, Ultimate Ultimate tournament pairings, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (January 22, 1996). "Jan. 22, 1996 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Results of the 1995 Observer Newsletter Awards, 1995 Record Book, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (January 13, 1997). "Jan. 13, 1997 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: 1997 Annual Awards Issue, a look at all the major shows of the year, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (November 11, 1996). "Nov. 11, 1996 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: Infamous angle where Austin broke into Pillman's house, thoughts on Hall of Fame issue, Pancrase PPV, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019) – Page 3 of 6". IWNerd.com. January 1, 2018.
- ^ Observer Staff (August 3, 1998). "August 3, 1998 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: More on Leno and WCW, WWF Fully Loaded review, death of June Byers, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (November 15, 1999). "November 15, 1999 Wrestling Observer Newsletter: ECW November to Remember review, Dynamite Kid book, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- ^ Observer Staff (January 1, 2001). "JANUARY 1, 2001 WRESTLING OBSERVER NEWSLETTER: CANDIDATES FOR WRESTLER OF THE YEAR, SAKURABA DEFEATS ANOTHER GRACIE, MORE". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
- ^ a b "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019) – Page 4 of 6". IWNerd.com. January 1, 2018.
- ^ "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2019) – Page 5 of 6". IWNerd.com. January 1, 2018.
- ^ a b "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2020) – Page 6 of 6". IWNerd.com. January 1, 2018.
- ^ "Dave Meltzer 5 Star Matches List (1983 to 2021) - Page 7". IWNerd. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
External links
- Official website
- Top 100 Matches on Cagematch
- Top Rated Matches of All Time on The Internet Wrestling Database