Perfect Matches (according to Jo)

“Move over, Dave Meltzer!”

Anyone who’s listened to our little podcast over the years knows just how inconsistent and bizarre Jo Graham’s match ratings are. Here is a list of every match she’s rated 5/5 stars, in chronological order, along with a little description as to why she thinks each match is “absolutely perfect”.

This one’s for the freaks.

  • Sting vs Ric Flair for the NWA Title @ Clash of the Champions, NWA (1988)

    • “I generally do not enjoy long wrestling matches. I tend to believe that shorter is better. However! Sting vs Ric Flair at Clash of the Champions, 1988, is one hour long and it is absolutely perfect. This match is an incredible display of using character work over physicality - in fact they barely wrestle at all. 5/5 stars.”

  • Madusa vs Paul E Dangerously in a Clash of the Sexes Exhibition Match @ Clash of Champions, WCW (1992)

  • Aaron Baker the Dark Angel posing routine @ World Bodybuilding Federation (WBF) Championship (1992)

    • “OK I know this isn’t technically wrestling, but I think many things that aren’t pro wrestling are still important (and adjacent) to pro wrestling. I truly believe that modern-day extremely muscular wrestlers could learn a thing or two from Aaron Baker’s posing routine.”

  • Terry Funk vs Atsushi Onita in a No-Rope Exploding Barb Wire Timebomb Death Match @ FMW (1993)

    • “Look. It’s just iconic. I can’t say why, just watch it. Watch it immediately.”

  • Alundra Blayze vs Bull Nakano (with Luna Vachon) for the Women's Championship @ Summerslam, WWE (1994)

  • Earthquake vs Adam Bomb @ Wrestlemania 10, WWE (1994)

    • “Sometimes a match is great because it knows exactly what it is and doesn’t try to hide it. And look: this one’s not winning any awards. I’m certainly not going to tell you need to go out of your way to watch it, because you don’t. No one does. But trust me when I say that Wrestlemania 10, perhaps the single greatest WWE PPV of all time, NEEDED this match.”

  • Razor Ramone vs Shawn Michaels in a ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship @ Wrestlemania 10, WWE (1994)

    • “This is the first ever WWE ladder match and it’s also possibly their best because of that fact.”

  • Clowns R Us vs The Royal Family @ Survivor Series, WWE (1994)

    • “This is famously considered to be one of the worst matches ever produced for television. But I think it’s perfect. Sometimes you just want to see a bunch of tiny clowns get revenge against an evil king.”

  • Doink and Dink vs Luna Vachon and Bam Bam Bigelow @ Wrestlemania 10, WWE (1994)

    • “Dink is an absolute BEAST in this match.”

  • Bret Hart vs Owen Hart @ Wrestlemania 10, WWE (1994)

    • “In this match, Owen Hart takes on his (real-life) older brother, the legendary Bret Hart, in an attempt to prove himself as the better wrestler. They fight like brothers do: scrappy, and personal. And yet, these brothers come from one of the greatest wrestling families of all time: so it also has some of the best chain-wrestling you’ll ever see. Keep an eye peeled in this match for my favourite ever camera shot - right from above.”

  • Aja Kong vs Bison Kimura @ AJW Destiny (1995)

  • Ken Shamrock vs Vader @ In Your House - A Cold Day In Hell, WWE (1997)

    • “This match requires a bit of context. Vader was known to work stiff (meaning when he hit people it genuinely hurt) and Ken Shamrock was a legitimate MMA fighter. Allegedly before their match, someone backstage warned Ken Shamrock that Vader worked stiff and told Ken to hit him hard back. Ken takes that advice to heart and proceeds to beat seven shades of grey out of Vader. At one point Vader tells Ken to “slow down!” and when he doesn’t slow down, gives him a receipt (a receipt is when a wrestler hits someone hard for real - an unspoken message that means “stop hitting me so hard or I’ll hit you hard back”). So this match is basically two dudes beating the hell out of one another, each thinking that they’re doing the right thing by doing so.”

  • Tommy Dreamer vs Raven in a Loser Leaves Town Match @ Wrestlepalooza, ECW (1997)

  • Dean Malenko vs Eddie Guerrero @ Starrcade, WCW (1997)

  • Shawn Michaels vs The Undertaker in a Hell in a Cell match @ In Your House, Bad Blood, WWE (1997)

  • Ken Shamrock vs The Rock @ WrestleMania 14, WWE (1998)

  • Kurt Angle vs Stone Cold Steve Austin for the WWF championship @ SummerSlam (2001)

  • Eddie Guerrero vs Edge in a No Disqualification Match @ Smackdown, WWE (2002)

  • DLO vs Triple H in a blindfold match @ Raw, WWE (2002)

  • Mick Foley vs Randy Orton in a Hardcore Match @ Backlash, WWE (2004)

  • Shawn Michaels vs Hulk Hogan @ SummerSlam, WWE (2005)

  • Kurt Angle vs Shawn Michaels @ WrestleMania 21, WWE (2005)

  • The Big Show vs Akebono in a Sumo Match @ WrestleMania 21, WWE (2005)

    • “Sometimes pro wrestling pretends to be something else. This time it’s pretending to be a legitimate sumo match - except with the Big Show who is……..let’s just say………not qualified. 5/5 stars.”

  • AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe vs Christopher Daniels @ Unbreakable, TNA (2005)

  • JBL vs John Cena in an I Quit Match @ Judgment Day, WWE (2005)

  • The Trial of Eric Bischoff @ Raw, WWE (2005)

    • “One of my favourite parts of pro wrestling are the worldbuilding backstage segments. This one takes place over the course of an episode of Raw, and it’s to determine if Bischoff should get to keep his job as General Manager. Includes witness testimony from some of the greatest midcarders of all time. 5/5 stars”

  • AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe for the X Division Championship @ Turning Point, TNA (2005)

  • Amazing Kong vs Tyler Black @ NWA Midwest (2007)

  • Kenny Omega vs Mike Angels - Audition for DDT (2008)

    • “I personally think this is one of the most romantic pro wrestling matches ever made. Kenny Omega sees Kota Ibushi from all the way across the world in a promotion called DDT and knows one thing: he absolutely, must, under any circumstances wrestle that man. This is his audition match. If you enjoy silliness, fun, backyard wrestling and lofi slapstick make-do, you’ll have a good time.”

  • JBL vs Rey Mysterio for the Intercontinental Championship @ WrestleMania 25, WWE (2009)

  • Colt Cabana, Darkness Crabtree, Yohnel Sanders and Swamp Monster vs Scott Parker, Shane Matthews, Takoyakida and Ebessan (Kikataru) @ King of Trios, CHIKARA (2012)

    • “Sometimes you just want a fun, silly match! This is a great example of comedy wrestling, and is perfect for kids of all ages.”

  • Tajiri vs Kana (Asuka) @ SMASH (2012)

  • Sami Zayn vs Cesaro @ NXT (2013)

  • William Regal vs Cesaro @ NXT on Christmas Day (2013)

  • Kevin Owens vs John Cena @ Elimination Chamber, WWE (2015)

  • Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kota Ibushi @ WrestleKingdom 9 (2015)

  • Sami Zayn vs John Cena @ Raw, WWE (2015)

  • The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler @ No Mercy, WWE (2016)

  • Shaemus vs Cesaro @ Clash of Champions, WWE (2016)

    • “In 2016 Sheamus and Cesaro had a series of boring matches that most people hated. Their very final match was at Clash of Champions and it’s one of the greatest matches of all time. One of the best examples in wrestling of faking it till you make it.”

  • Kevin Owens vs Sami Zayn @ Battleground, WWE (2016)

  • Shinsuke Nakamura vs Sami Zayn @ NXT Takeover Dallas (2016)

  • Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada @ Wrestle Kingdom 11, NJPW (2016)

  • Orange Cassidy vs David Starr @ Beyond Wrestling (2018)

  • Stephanie and Triple H vs Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle @ Wrestlemania 34, WWE (2018)

  • Will Ospreay vs Kota Ibushi for the Never Openweight Championship @ Wrestle Kingdom 13 (2019)

  • Invisible Man vs Invisible Stan with Bryce Remsburg as Referee @ Spring Break 3 (2019)

    • “What if you had a wrestling match starring two wrestlers who are completely invisible? Now you know!”

  • John Cena vs The Fiend Bray Wyatt in a Firefly Funhouse Match @ WrestleMania 36, WWE (2020)

  • Will Ospreay vs Konosuke Takeshita @ AEW Revolution (2024)