KENTA vs Ricky Marvin-NOAH 15.10.2009.

I'm pretty confident in calling this the greatest under two minute match of all time. I was wondering how some of these NOAH matches would hold up for me but this one absolutely did. The match start off with probably theg reatest blindsight dive of all time, you've seen the spot where one wrestler attacks the other before the match starts a thousand times, and a fair share of those have been junior dives, here KENTA is just normally walking around the ring and Marvin comes out of nowhere crushing him. His next move is getting KENTA back into the ring and John Woo Dropkicking KENTA. That's a move that looks badass by itself, but here KENTA's skull crashes into the bottom turnbuckle. Marvin follows it up with a Powerbomb for an early nearfall setting the insane pace. That is followed by KENTA's transition back into control, which has KENTA try a couple of counters that Marvin adjusts to-first by Savate Kicking him, and then when Marvin bounces off the ropes and you already see KENTA countering that with a Front Head Kick Marvin does this amazing Jackie Chan kip-up combo. I really have nothing against flips in wrestling nor anyone wrestling any style, my problem most of the type is simply that many wrestlers don't possess the creativity and wrestling intelligence that Marvin displayed here. You could also have a situation where Marvin would do five of those while his opponent did some other flips, but that doesn't really convey the sense of struggle in that flashy move it did here, where Marvin legitimately looked like a kung fu master. KENTA takes all of Marvin's shots and still comes back with a Discus Lariat. This could've bothered me, but with their difference in hierarchy and how the match was worked I deemed it fitting. From then on it's a game of cat and mouse with KENTA blasting Marvin with huge kicks and attempting the G2S while Marvin attempts desperate flash pins and counters. The second time he goes for the same counters KENTA is ready-and he catches him, counters his counters, knees him and kicks him in the head and goes over. Wonderful pro wrestling. ****

KENTA vs Takashi Sugiura-NOAH 13.11.2011.

A month before KENTA has beaten Sugiura in a grueling, thirty minute match to become the #1 contender for the GHC Heavyweight Championship. You can see that tensions are still high even before the match, as their postures and facial expressions tell you they're ready to duke it out, and boy do they ever. This match is kind of like the world's most awesome Pancrase sprint, as they just go out there and slap the hell out of each other, but they don't just exchange strikes by doing the "I strike you-you strike me" spot for two minutes before going to a finish, they bust out combinations, duck, block and counter. KENTA stops for a moment before the Go 2 Sleep, and it's uncertain whether KENTA was genuinely unbalanced, selling his knee which was tapped up or the lines blurred, but it's not even that important as the effect is the same. The finish plays up the urgency really well, as it's not something usually used as a finish, rather a swift adaption to the attacks and a more definitive method than insisting on finisher spamming and a war of attrition unfit for what they were going for here. All time great 2 minute sprint. ***3/4

Minoru Suzuki vs KENTA-NOAH 27.8.2005.

KENTA attacking Suzuki before the bell here was very well done, he just dashed at him and booted him in the head, and Suzuki's towel blocking his vision made for a great detail. KENTA brought great fire and his offence was as crisp as I remembered it to be. I loved the transitions Suzuki would use-the Front Necklock/Guillotine where he left KENTA hanging in particular was a fascinating visual, and he was at home when it was time to stretch KENTA, but I wasn't in love with the portions in the match where in the middle where he was outstriking KENTA. Due to their difference in stature KENTA had to sell really big for Suzuki and he did, but Suzuki isn't big enough and didn't hit hard enough that it'd make those long moments of selling after every strike fitting. The match went into another gear when they moved onto the finishing stretch and started working more evenly, Suzuki's Leglock counters were awesome as was him busting out a Giant Swing out of Half Crab and they smoothly worked them into the match since KENTA has enough kicking offence he doesn't have to to pointless rope running of doom with no moves being attempted in them, and the final slap battle was perfectly done with Suzuki evading KENTA's strikes and gaining a bigger and bigger advantage until finally just nuking him and putting him away. ***1/4