Steve Grey vs Keith Haward (2/5/85)

Steve Grey vs Keith Haward (2/5/85)

Really well done slow burn match which is as much a great illustration of Steve Grey's underappreciated talents as it is a Haward showcase. Grey isn't on the level of Cortez when it comes to grappling and matwork so Haward is far more reserved in his approach here, but Grey's strength lies in his expressive charisma and agility and ability to develop his style to reflect the changing tone of a match, which in this case sees the bout descened into a wriggly match with Haward drawing the ire of Grey and the crowd for continuously going after Grey whilst he's still technically on the mat and not on his feet. Both men pick a limb to focus on, with Haward targeting the left arm & Grey weaking the left leg of the more physically imposing Haward. The match had a nice structure and theme with Grey's agility and mat prowess continuously frustrating Haward in preventing him from grounding Grey and securing a submission and there were a couple of really intricate selling moments from Grey: the first coming about after a quick arm wringer where he noticeably goes into the next lockup with only his right arm and the second in the way in which he beautifully sells the headlock sleeper exchange in the third fall which draws a convincing TKO nearfall.

Thought both the first and second falls were done really well with a satisfying continuity arc. Haward nabs the first with a beautiful floatover into a rollup and in the second fall, Grey becomes noticeably more physical with a stiff forearm and employing Finlay esque precision and creativity in using the ropes to further weaken the leg of Haward and eventually draws Haward into attempting the same sequence that won him the opening fall, only for Grey to be able to sense it and counter into a pin of his own to level the match. The gradual build in teasing Grey's eventual surfboard was rather meticulously done and was something quite unexpected from a WOS bout and one particular fine touch was Ken Joyce as the ref noticeably protecting Haward's damaged knee when forcing a break in the surfboard.

Great match and definitely an illustration of how WOS worked these developing shift in emotion and tone matches very astutely.

Jon Cortez vs Keith Haward (1/14/84)

 Jon Cortez vs Keith Haward (PART 1)

 Jon Cortez vs Keith Haward (PART 2)

Despite there being a lot of clipping (the second link has Walton saying its the final fall meaning between the end of the first link and start of the second the first two falls have occurred) this is still an excellent grappling contest and something anyone who enjoys matwork would do well to watch. It feels more like an exhibition match given the clipping and the general pace of the match, but both workers are excellent grapplers (Haward is an olympic freestyle and apparent sambo grappler) who are able to work a compelling match with constant dual control but channel it into a well worked and engrossing contest. There's a lot of struggle for control and counters and both men display some immense quick fire bursts of technique to escape holds: Cortez's handstand counters in particular are a thing of beauty. Well wrestled, some incredible counters and holds applied, perhaps one of the finest WOS bouts in terms of pure precision wrestling and an absolutely excellent finish, this is definitely something people will dig.

Clay Thomson vs Reg Trood (12/30/72)

Clay Thomson vs Reg Trood (PART 1)
Clay Thomson vs Reg Trood (PART 2)


Excellent wrestling match with some tremendous intensity which really added to a lot of the holds and viciousness in which they were applied. Thomson is a truly unique wrestler and watching this makes me want to revisit his match vs Alan Sarjeant which blew me away the first time I saw it. His selling in the first round of a leg scissor hold is stupendous, you can hear him violently coughing and it plays into the next couple of rounds with Thomson looking cagey when locking up with Trood and constantly having to find ways to escape headlock and leg lock submissions. Thomson eventally incurs a public warning for his second refusal to break appropriately when he finally gains the advantage by targeting the taped up leg of Trood (really liked how he seemed to respectfully stay away from the leg until it became clear he was in trouble and because his bubbling frustration from the earlier holds was causing him to lose his cool) which he does so with some painful looking holds. Both men do a very good job as well at breaking up the grappling with some quickfire rope exchanges and Thomson's growing frustration which surfaces at numerous key moments in the match (refusing to accept a handshake to escape a submission he's tied up in) really adds to each rope exchange with him focusing on some aggressive throws and headbutts. Actual finish was well done with Thomson slowly making Trood's weakened leg the focus of his attack and slowly gaining a seemingly unstoppable advantage, then taking the contest to the ropes and having a crucial counter up his sleeve to set up a flash pin for the victory.

Really well done WOS 'intense' grappling match, with Thomson's growing frustration and distain towards Trood's holds providing for some story to add to the already stellar wrestling.

Jon Cortez vs Zoltan Boscik (4/14/71)

Jon Cortez vs Zoltan Boscik (PART 1)

Jon Cortez vs Zoltan Boscik (PART 2)

Jon Cortez vs Zoltan Boscik (PART 3)

Excellent wrestling match here. Not quite the clash in characters and overly explored story dominating the match like we were treated to in Grey vs Myers, but they do a terrific job working a constantly momentum turning match and mixing in some sensational escapes and counter wrestling to boot. Boscik is a really silky smooth wrestler and he makes some intricate escapes here look effortless, Cortez himself is a phenom in athleticism and grappling and he's more than up to task here with some never before seen escapes to traditional holds and always trying to hang with Boscik whether its on the mat or in some brief but heated flurries of strikes. Boscik does a good job at making the match a bit more heated and contested by the third round with a more ruthless demeanour when he seizes an opportunity, and Cortez sells the slow bubbling frustration very nicely. Finish is outstanding.

Steve Grey vs Clive Myers (11/22/75)

Incredible wrestling match, right off the bat these two just have that magical chemistry you rarely find. Everything is fluid, crisp, timed to perfection, the game of human chess may not possibly be explored better than this match. Each sequence and grapple feels so hard fought for with both men constantly having to explore new avenues and give up fruitless attempts at securing a submission.

The contrast in characters also really adds to the match and takes it up another level. Myers is hardly your Ric Flair snob but he just looks like a well groomed and respectful star, despite having the humbled modesty of a Ricky Steamboat. Steve Grey however...well you just can't not love the guy. He has that scruffy everyman look to him and just looks like the punk kid nobody would give a second chance to upon first glance, and the beauty of this match is that despite taking Myers to the limit and holding his own it feels like Grey is constantly the guy you expect to come out second best in every lock up no matter how many times he outsmarts or out-manouevres Myers. There's just this everyman attribute in him that makes him the clear sympathetic babyface you can't root against.

Anyway the match has some incredible counters and submission attempts. They do a sterling job at interjecting some light hearted comedy into the match in order to keep the crowd invested and to provide some relief to the intense grappling, but when both men lock up its just pure brilliance. The lightening speed in the takedowns and transitions in the guard are staggering and Myers in particular pulls out some never before seen counters and frightening feats of athleticism. Check out how he alters his position in the first video when he has Grey's leg wrapped up, he sees Grey looking to take his right leg and effortlessly stretches his right leg back to close that escape route and add to the pain.

Grey himself is the ultimate defence and unleashes his famous 'human ball' counter a couple of times, once you get past the whackiness behind it its actually one of the more smarter escape routes and he times it wonderfully for it to come off as recongition he's in danger rather than a carny party trick. His counter out of it in the second video is also spectacular anyway you look at it. They time the rope running exchanges superbly as well, each exchange lasts under 30 seconds but between the lightening speed both men unleash as well as the timing after engaging grappling it really hooks you into each transition and keeps you on the edge of your seat. Finish is also fucking beautiful, I demand someone steal that pin in the near future.

Gilbert Cestra vs Billy Cantazarro (FRANCE 1960s)

Gilbert Cestra vs Billy Cantazarro PART 1
Gilbert Cestra vs Billy Cantazarro PART 2

How good is this match? Its at worst a top 10 match in the history of wrestling for my money, that's how good it is. The grappling, the counters, the timing, the pacing, everything is just wonderful and transcendent for its time. People talk about how Dynamite Kid is a pioneer in the 80s but these guys are pulling off sequences and transitions that people today would be lucky to ever replicate. What makes the match even better is that it has a clear story of parity and one-upsmanship and feels like a grappling equivalent to Flair/Steamboat in that both guys come off as the definition of rivals. There's plenty of stiff strikes in amongst the wonderful chain wrestling and there are about half a dozen counters/escapes I can't recall ever seeing before. GREATNESS.

Steve Grey vs Ken Joyce (8/9/75)

Steve Grey vs Ken Joyce (PART 1)

Steve Grey vs Ken Joyce (PART 2)

Terrific pure grappling contest with some sensational counters, takedowns and submissions mixed in with some light hearted comedy. These two are both amazing grapplers and really work a smart and even contest that resembled a Lucha title bout with how they shifted momentum every now and then and established both men as capable of besting the other. Grey's escape of a headscissors spot at 14.40 has to be seen to be believed, so graceful and smootly executed and the crowd reaction was a nice touch. He also locks in an insane indian deathlock/over the head leg submission that looked incredible and something you expect out of Negro Navarro.

They also run some fun comedy moments particularly Grey's attempts to fool Joyce by tieing himself into a ball and feeding the arm to counter it but Joyce being wise to his opponent and in most cases playing basketball with Grey helpless and even picking him up clean off the mat and bouncing him off the floor which looked hideous. Joyce later attempts to trip Grey who casually sidesteps him and boots him in the arse for good measure! They also threw some nice headbutts during exchanges and did a terrific job in not only pacing the match smartly between comedy and serious grappling but also mixing flawless exchanges with gritty and painful looking holds that looked like a struggle to lock on.

Very fun match for any Lucha fans or people looking for intense grappling with killer submissions and flawless matwork with some nice strikes thrown in for good measure.