June 11, 201411 yr comment_5606673 If only Sugiura had been a shoot style wrestler... Of course, who isn't going to look good in the ring with a game Alexander Otsuka? Sugiura and Otsuka look great doing all of that amateur wrestling stuff and the headbutt/blood make this really intense. This is a great match and one of the best from 2001.
March 29, 20178 yr comment_5793644 What a match. It's always neat to see amateur wrestling stuff incorporated into prowres, and these two did a really neat version of that while simultaneously gradually increasing the intensity, with it just exploding in the finishing stretch. That damned Headbutt may be the most a wrestler's ever bled from one, talk about a spot that insantly completely changes the flow of the match. Of course the Suplexes were just beautiful, but they also smartly build the nearfalls playing off previous spots, and the execution was amazing, you don't see anyone else do a gutwrench suplex counter into a leglock, let alone done as smoothly as here. ****1/4
May 12, 20187 yr comment_5849157 Two bald machine suplex machines, scrambling around the mat in a slick shoot amateur fashion, looking for the first suplex while simultaneously avoiding getting suplexed on their head. Sugiura fires off the first suplex with a belly-to-belly. Otsuka is able to take him down with the front necklock but Sugiura deftly bridges out and works into a front mount, where he just starts slapping Otsuka silly. You wonder, why is Otsuka taking all these slaps but then he gets up to his feet and headbutts the shit out of Sugiura, blood trickling down from his forehead as he smiles at Sugiura. What a MAN. They first trade headbutts, the blood spattering everywhere, and then suplexes, with Otsuka hitting a deadlift German and Sugiura with a cool rolling gutwrench. At this point in the match, Otsuka's a mess but when Sugiura tries for another gutwrench suplex, Otsuka picks the ankle and grounds Sugiura with the leglock, ultimately snagging a kimura for the submission victory. Great match.
October 27, 20213 yr comment_5966829 Sugiura was terrific in this. He absolutely schooled Otsuka on the mat with his aggression and skill. Otsuka got some of the more dangerous holds in but Suigura led almost all the exchanges and escaped the guillotines easily enough by shifting his (and Otsuka’s hip) upwards. The match wasn’t filled with high spots but the grappling was simple and compelling. The headbutt exchange leading to the blood helped give the match its reputation, but the quality came from Sugiura working the mat. ***1/2
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