2019 Contenders

We’ve another ever-growing list of matches that you should go out of your way to watch.

These are all matches we’ve given more than **** to, for anyone wondering what our criteria is…

Will Ospreay vs. Kota Ibushi (New Japan, WrestleKingdom 13, January 04, 2019)
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan, WrestleKingdom 13, January 04, 2019)
Jay White vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, WrestleKingdom 13, January 04, 2019)
Tetsuya Naito vs. Chris Jericho (New Japan, WrestleKingdom 13, January 04, 2019)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kenny Omega (New Japan, WrestleKingdom 13, January 04, 2019)
Moustache Mountain (Trent Seven & Tyler Bate) vs. Zack Gibson & James Drake (WWE NXT UK, Takeover Blackpool, January 12, 2019)
Bobby Gunns vs. Shigehiro Irie (wXw, Back to the Roots XVIII, January 19, 2019)
Mike Bailey vs. Scotty Davis (OTT, Contenders 13, January 20, 2019)
Volador Jr. vs. Caristico (New Japan, Fantasticamania – Night Eight, January 21, 2019)
Lucky Kid vs. Chris Brookes vs. Bobby Gunns vs. Timothy Thatcher vs. Ilja Dragunov (wXw, Road to 16 Carat Gold: London, January 26, 2019)
David Starr vs. Absolute Andy (wXw, Road to 16 Carat Gold: London, January 26, 2019)
War Raiders (Hanson & Rowe) vs. Undisputed ERA (Kyle O’Reilly & Roderick Strong) (WWE NXT, Takeover: Phoenix, January 26, 2019)
Johnny Gargano vs. Ricochet (WWE NXT, Takeover: Phoenix, January 26, 2019)
Finn Balor vs. Brock Lesnar (WWE, Royal Rumble 2019, January 27, 2019)
KUSHIDA vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (New Japan, Road to the New Beginning – Night Three, January 29, 2019)
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. EVIL (New Japan, The New Beginning in Sapporo – Night One, February 02, 2019)
Shane Strickland vs. Jordan Devlin (OTT, Unfinished Business, February 03, 2019)
Team Whitewolf (A-Kid & Carlos Romo) vs. Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis) (Rev Pro, Live at the Cockpit 38, February 03, 2019)
Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Taiji Ishimori (New Japan, The New Beginning in Osaka, February 11, 2019)
Jay White vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (New Japan, The New Beginning in Osaka, February 11, 2019)
Veit Müller vs. WALTER (wXw, Dead End XVIII, February 15, 2019)
Jordan Devlin vs. David Starr (OTT, Homecoming 2, February 17, 2019)
Shigehiro Irie vs. Ilja Dragunov (OTT, Homecoming 2, February 17, 2019)
PAC vs. WALTER (OTT, Homecoming 2, February 17, 2019)
A-Kid vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Rev Pro, Live at the Cockpit 39, March 03, 2019)
Will Ospreay vs. Jay White (New Japan, 47th Anniversary Event, March 06, 2019)
RINGKAMPF (Timothy Thatcher & WALTER) vs. Shigehiro Irie & Yuki Ishikawa (wXw, Inner Circle 7, March 07, 2019)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Yuji Nagata (New Japan, New Japan Cup 2019 – Night One, March 08, 2019)
WALTER vs. David Starr (wXw, 16 Carat Gold 2019 – Night One, March 08, 2019)
Pentagon Jr. vs. Ilja Dragunov (wXw, 16 Carat Gold 2019 – Night Two, March 09, 2019)
Rey Fenix vs. WALTER (wXw, 16 Carat Gold 2019 – Night Two, March 09, 2019)
Bobby Gunns vs. Absolute Andy (wXw, 16 Carat Gold 2019 – Night Two, March 09, 2019)
Kota Ibushi vs. Tetsuya Naito (New Japan, New Japan Cup 2019 – Night One, March 10, 2019)
Lucky Kid vs. Ilja Dragunov (wXw, 16 Carat Gold 2019 – Night Three, March 10, 2019)
Lucha Bros (Pentagon Jr. & Rey Fenix) & Rey Horus vs. Schadenfreude (Chris Brookes, Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) (wXw, 16 Carat Gold 2019 – Night Three, March 10, 2019)
Lucky Kid vs. WALTER (wXw, 16 Carat Gold 2019 – Night Three, March 10, 2019)
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Kota Ibushi (New Japan, New Japan Cup 2019 – Night Seven, March 15, 2019)
Jordan Devlin vs. WALTER (OTT, ScrapperMania V, March 16, 2019)
Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, New Japan Cup 2019 – Night Nine, March 20, 2019)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, New Japan Cup 2019 – Night Eleven, March 23, 2019)
SANADA vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (New Japan, New Japan Cup 2019 – Night Eleven, March 23, 2019)
SANADA vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, New Japan Cup 2019 – Night Twelve, March 24, 2019)
A-Kid vs. Will Ospreay (Whitewolf Wrestling, Total Rumble 9, March 30, 2019)
James Mason vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Rev Pro, Live at the Cockpit 40, March 31, 2019)
Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) vs. Swords of Essex (Will Ospreay & Paul Robinson) (PROGRESS, Chapter 87: Breadknife, March 31, 2019)
David Starr vs. Lucky Kid (wXw, Amerika ist Wunderbar, April 04, 2019)
Daisuke Sasaki vs. Konosuke Takeshita (DDT Is Coming To America, April 04, 2019)
Barbaro Cavernario vs. Dragon Lee (WrestleCon: Mark Hitchcock Memorial Supershow, April 04, 2019)
Bandido vs. Will Ospreay (WrestleCon: Mark Hitchcock Memorial Supershow, April 04, 2019)
Air Wolf vs. A-Kid (CHIKARA, Once Upon a Beginning, April 05, 2019)
Mr. Touchdown vs. Dasher Hatfield (CHIKARA, Once Upon a Beginning, April 05, 2019)
Utami Hayashishita vs. Momo Watanabe (Stardom, American Dream in the Big Apple, April 05, 2019)
Kazusada Higuchi vs. JD Drake (WWN, Mercury Rising 2019, April 05, 2019)
Will Ospreay & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Suzuki-gun (Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr.) (Rev Pro, Live in New York City, April 05, 2019)
Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) vs. Roppongi 3K (SHO & YOH) (Rev Pro, Live in New York City, April 05, 2019)
War Raiders (Hanson & Rowe) vs. Ricochet & Aleister Black (NXT TakeOver: New York, April 05, 2019)
Matt Riddle vs. Velveteen Dream (NXT TakeOver: New York, April 05, 2019)
WALTER vs. Pete Dunne (NXT TakeOver: New York, April 05, 2019)
Johnny Gargano vs. Adam Cole (NXT TakeOver: New York, April 05, 2019)
Dragon Lee vs. Bandido vs. Taiji Ishimori (New Japan x ROH, G1 Supercard, April 06, 2019)
Kota Ibushi vs. Tetsuya Naito (New Japan x ROH, G1 Supercard, April 06, 2019)
Marty Scurll vs. Matt Taven vs. Jay Lethal (New Japan x ROH, G1 Supercard, April 06, 2019)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Jay White (New Japan x ROH, G1 Supercard, April 06, 2019)
Kofi Kingston vs. Daniel Bryan (WWE, WrestleMania 35, April 07, 2019)
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Kota Ibushi (New Japan, Sengoku Lord in Nagoya, April 20, 2019)
Los Ingobernables de Japon (Shingo Takagi & BUSHI) vs. Roppongi 3K (SHO & YOH) (New Japan, Road to Wrestling Dontaku 2019 – Night Nine – Aki no Kuni SENGOKU EMAKI, April 26, 2019)
Taiji Ishimori vs. Dragon Lee (New Japan, Wrestling Dontaku 2019 – Night One, May 03, 2019)
EVIL vs. Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan, Wrestling Dontaku 2019 – Night Two, May 04, 2019)
SANADA vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, Wrestling Dontaku 2019 – Night Two, May 04, 2019)
Kyle Fletcher vs. Jordan Devlin (PROGRESS, Chapter 88: Super Strong Style 16 2019 – Night Two, May 05, 2019)
Jordan Devlin vs. David Starr (PROGRESS, Chapter 88: Super Strong Style 16 2019 – Night Three, May 06, 2019)
Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) vs. Suzuki-gun (Zack Sabre Jr. & Minoru Suzuki) (Rev Pro, Epic Encounter 2019, May 10, 2019)
El Phantasmo vs. David Starr (Rev Pro, Epic Encounter 2019, May 10, 2019)
Shingo Takagi vs. SHO (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night One, May 13, 2019)
Taiji Ishimori vs. Dragon Lee (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night One, May 13, 2019)
SHO vs. Dragon Lee (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Three, May 15, 2019)
YOH vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Six, May 19, 2019)
El Phantasmo vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Seven, May 22, 2019)
Bandido vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Eight, May 23, 2019)
Shingo Takagi vs. Dragon Lee (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Eight, May 23, 2019)
El Phantasmo vs. Rocky Romero (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Nine, May 24, 2019)
Cody vs. Dustin Rhodes (AEW, Double or Nothing, May 25, 2019)
Lucha Bros (Pentagon Jr. & Rey Fenix) vs. Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) (AEW, Double or Nothing, May 25, 2019)
Robbie Eagles vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Ten, May 26, 2019)
Taiji Ishimori vs. Shingo Takagi (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Thirteen, May 31, 2019)
Michael Oku vs. PAC (Rev Pro, Live at the Cockpit 42, June 02, 2019)
Will Ospreay vs. Ryusuke Taguchi (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Fourteen, June 03, 2019)
Jon Moxley vs. Juice Robinson (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Fifteen, June 05, 2019)
Shingo Takagi vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Best of Super Junior 26 – Night Fifteen, June 05, 2019)
Will Ospreay vs. Dragon Lee (New Japan, Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-Jo Hall, June 09, 2019)
Tetsuya Naito vs. Kota Ibushi (New Japan, Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-Jo Hall, June 09, 2019)
Michael May vs. Jonathan Gresham (Fight Factory Pro Wrestling, Episode 9, June 21, 2019)
Rey Horus vs. Bandido (OTT, WrestleRama 3, June 23, 2019)
David Starr vs. WALTER (OTT, WrestleRama 3, June 23, 2019)
Robbie Eagles vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Southern Showdown in Melbourne, June 29, 2019)
David Starr & The OJMO vs. WALTER & Shigehiro Irie (PROGRESS, Chapter 90: The Lonesome Death Of The One-Man Cabaret Act, June 30, 2019)
Ilja Dragunov vs. Jordan Devlin (PROGRESS, Chapter 91: Prog On The Tyne, July 06, 2019)
Lance Archer vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night One, July 06, 2019)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night One, July 06, 2019)
Ilja Dragunov vs. WALTER (PROGRESS, Chapter 92: Entertaining Friends, July 07, 2019)
Daniel Makabe vs. Timothy Thatcher (3-2-1 BATTLE!, Wet Hot Seattle Summer 3, July 12, 2019)
Jeff Cobb vs. Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Two, July 13, 2019)
SANADA vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Three, July 14, 2019)
Jay White vs. Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Four, July 15, 2019)
SANADA vs. EVIL (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Five, July 18, 2019)
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Five, July 18, 2019)
Will Ospreay vs. Kota Ibushi (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Five, July 18, 2019)
Jon Moxley vs. Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Six, July 19, 2019)
Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Seven, July 20, 2019)
Mike Bird vs. Charli Evans (GOOD Wrestling, GOODstock Show 2, July 20, 2019)
Calum Black vs. Jordan Devlin (OTT, Contenders 15 – Guaranteed Irish, July 21, 2019)
Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Eight, July 24, 2019)
KENTA vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Nine, July 27, 2019)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Juice Robinson (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Ten, July 28, 2019)
Chris Dickinson vs. Daisuke Sekimoto (Beyond, Americanrana 2019, July 28, 2019)
David Starr vs. Joey Janela (Beyond, Americanrana 2019, July 28, 2019)
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Eleven, July 30, 2019)
Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Twelve, August 01, 2019)
Tony Deppen vs. Daniel Makabe (Scenic City Invitational Tournament 2019 – Night One, August 02, 2019)
EVIL vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Thirteen, August 03, 2019)
Kota Ibushi vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Thirteen, August 03, 2019)
SANADA vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Thirteen, August 03, 2019)
Shingo Takagi vs. Tetsuya Naito (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Fourteen, August 04, 2019)
KENTA vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Fifteen, August 07, 2019)
Shingo Takagi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Sixteen, August 08, 2019)
Daisuke Sekmoto vs. WALTER (wXw Toronto, August 09, 2019)
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. KENTA (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Seventeen, August 10, 2019)
Will Ospreay vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Seventeen, August 10, 2019)
Kota Ibushi vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Seventeen, August 10, 2019)
Shingo Takagi vs. Hirooki Goto (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Eighteen, August 11, 2019)
Jay White vs. Kota Ibushi (New Japan, G1 Climax 29 – Night Nineteen, August 12, 2019)
Amazing Red vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Super J-Cup 2019 – Night One, August 22, 2019)
SHO vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Super J-Cup 2019 – Night Two, August 24 2019)
Mike Bailey vs. PAC (OTT, Live in Cork, August 25, 2019)
Dragon Lee vs. El Phantasmo (New Japan, Super J-Cup 2019 – Night Three, August 25 2019)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (New Japan, Royal Quest, August 31, 2019)
Minoru Suzuki vs. Kazuchika Okada (New Japan, Royal Quest, August 31, 2019)
Charli Evans vs. Kanji (Wrestling Resurgence, Arthouse Wrestling Volume 3, August 31, 2019)
Tyler Bate vs. WALTER (WWE NXT UK, Takeover Cardiff, August 31, 2019)
Daniel Makabe vs. Carlos Romo (Breed Pro, Breeding Ground 3, September 07, 2019)
Alex Cuevas, Omari & The OJMO vs. More Than Hype (Darren Kearney, LJ Cleary & Nathan Martin) (OTT, The Road to Fifth Year Anniversary, September 07, 2019)
Scotty Davis vs. David Starr (Darren Kearney, LJ Cleary & Nathan Martin) (OTT, The Road to Fifth Year Anniversary, September 07, 2019)
Will Ospreay & Robbie Eagles vs. El Phantasmo & Taiji Ishimori (New Japan, Destruction in Kagoshima, September 16, 2019)
Leyla Hirsch vs. LuFisto (wXw, Femmes Fatales, October 05, 2019)
Timothy Thatcher vs. Bobby Gunns (wXw, World Tag Team Festival 2019 – Night Two, October 05, 2019)
El Phantasmo vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, King of Pro Wrestling, October 14, 2019)
David Starr vs. Mercedes Martinez (Beyond, Uncharted Territory S02 E03, October 17, 2019)
Cara Noir vs. Ilja Dragunov (PROGRESS, Chapter 97: Sex Robots Will Eventually Be Capable Of Murder, October 27, 2019)
David Starr vs. Jordan Devlin (OTT, 5 year Anniversary, October 27, 2019)
Tony Deppen vs. Daniel Makabe (WAC, Year One, October 27, 2019)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. KENTA (New Japan, Power Struggle, November 03, 2019)
BUSHI vs. Will Ospreay (New Japan, Power Struggle, November 03, 2019)
Ilja Dragunov vs. Alexander Wolfe (WWE, NXT UK #70, taped November 15, 2019)
Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi vs. Minoru Suzuki & Lance Archer (New Japan, World Tag League 2019 – Night Two, November 17, 2019)
David Starr vs. Timothy Thatcher (wXw, Road To 19th Anniversary: Hamburg, November 29, 2019)
Darius Lockhart vs. Senza Volto vs. Ricky Knight Jr. (Rev Pro, Live at the Cockpit 48, December 01, 2019)
David Starr vs. Leyla Hirsch (Beyond, Uncharted Territory S02 E12, December 19, 2019)