YAMATO vs. Ryusuke Taguchi from NJPW’s Best Of The Super Juniors 2009

Recap from Lee Goodfellow: 

I believe this is only the second YAMATO match to be featured on freeprowrestling.com. In a perfect world, every match on this site would feature YAMATO. The future Dragon Gate ace and self proclaimed “coolest and sexiest man in the world” was over in New Japan for Best Of The Super Juniors back in 2009. He was a heel back then, a role he recently returned to at the time of writing. The bell rings, and they wrestle, as often happens in a wrestling match. YAMATO has the advantage in the mat, they swing and miss strikes leading to a Guerrero/Malenko double dropkick standoff…except YAMATO is posing lying down. He’s the best. They trade running strikes and Taguchi dances. This match rules. YAMATO nails him with a dropkick. More running then a couple of arm drags gets Taguchi in control. He works the arm. YAMATO dodges a running attack then busts out an exploder suplex to regain the advantage. Korakuen rallies behind Taguchi. He eventually fights back. but gets his face booted off. Comeback number two is more successful, nailing a low dropkick after a dodging session. Diving dropkick gets Taguchi a two count. He hits the three amigos? Viva La Raza. YAMATO kicks out at two. Chops and kicks and stuff happen. A diving splash is countered by Dragon Gate’s number one chef. Taguchi gets german’d, then brainbuster’d. Two count for YAMATO, who immediately transitions into the CBV! Nice. They trade forearms, which YAMATO wins. Nails a running version. Goes for another, misses a lariat, german suplex gets Taguchi two! Tiger suplex attempt is countered by YAMATO, rolls him into a two count, Taguchi kicks out but is put straight in ankle lock, he almost makes it to the ropes so YAMATO transitions into the CBV! A long struggle to the ropes is ultimately successful. YAMATO calls for Gallaria. Taguchi gets out of it, they trade strikes, straight jacket german gets Taguchi a two count! Enziguiri to YAMATO and then a reverse tombstone! One, two, three!

Winner: Ryusuke Taguchi

 

Thoughts: I recently declared YAMATO the second best wrestler in the world. I probably would have said something similar back in 2009 if I hadn’t just discovered who he was at the time. Dude put in a fantastic technical heel performance here. Taguchi played his role fine (and the crowd was way behind him), but he was a shade of the man who would go on to face Kota Ibushi in an instant classic BOSJ final two years later. The match was a good time, becuase of a hot Korakuen Hall crowd and YAMATO basically being a god.

Rating: ***