Most Exciting Mania Week Matches 2026

This will just be a list of all the matches that excite me for this coming weekend of wrestling. Quick sidebar, nothing from Mania proper will be here I do not watch WWE and that will not change this weekend. This'll be vaguely in order of excitement but thats hard to quantify. Now to the list. (This will come out after some shows have happened, I have not watched any at the time of writing this.)

1) Mad Dog Connelly vs Karl Greco-Malenko Action: We Gambled Away the Graphics Budget

The old addage is "styles make fights" and this'll be one of the most intriguing versions of that saying. One of wrestlings premier brawlers of today taking on one of the greatest grapplers to ever step into the squared circle. Quite frankly, I have zero clue what this match will look like but honestly, that is at least half of my excitement. Wrestling can be very predictable in the modern day and this match feels anything but, and that has me stoked.

2) Yuji Nagata vs Josh Barnett Josh Barnett's Bloodsport

I have watched far too much 2000s NJPW to be anything but excited at this. Nagata can still go and Barnett is one of the most interesting workers whenever he steps into the ring. This is a rematch of a Tokyo Dome main event, much lower stakes for this one; however, that makes it feel even more special. It's a rematch based on pride, on having a last dance with someone you worked with over 20 years ago. Allowing them to simply put on a match as best they can, built on decades of experience. Very few workers are as familiar working with a shooter, as Nagata is, and that makes it even more intriguing.

3) Slade vs Dr. Redacted Barbed Wire MDK: Fight Club

This is a match of two men who can take inhumane punishment, surrounded by barbed wire, working a deathmatch. Redacted is replacing Krule here, who got pulled following the fake stabbing incident. Redacted recently won the American Deathmatch Championship at the recent ICW:NHB 97 show which is the last they will run under that name before rebranding to simply NHB in a hellacious war with John Wayne Murdoch; also on that show Slade went to war with Casssanova Valentine in a match that was sickening. Two of the best workers in the deathmatch scene who seem perfect for each other.

4) Senka Akatsuki vs Dani Luna West Coast Pro

Senka is one of the rising stars of wrestling, even stealing the show last year over Mania weekend vs the legend of Aja Kong. Her opponent is one of the very best British wrestlers going today. I am really intrigued by how this match will end up looking, Dani had an absolutely awesome match with Chihiro Hashimoto over 16k weekend, and am intrigued how she and Senka will work together. It is not the last time Senka will show up on this list at all.

5) Rina vs Athena Stardom

I mean what do I even need to say here. It's the ROH forever champion vs one of the very best of Stardom. It is not exactly a hard sell, this one. However, I will do my best to sell you even if that is not enough. Both are BITW caliber, Rina has had multiple MOTYC including my third best match of the year, and Athena works magic no matter who she is facing. The proof will be in the pudding here.

6) Thomas Shire 1 Called Manders vs Gary Jay Aaron Williams

Cowboy Way is one of the best tag teams going today and Unsigned and Don't Care are just as good. A match that may fly under the radar that could easily be the best match of the weekend. Gary Jay is having an awesome year, including a great match vs his partner here. Thomas Shire is one of the most solid workers going today and Manders is Manders; one of the best. This is gonna be a hard hitting slugfest of a southern tag and that is all I can ask for in a match.

7) Ultimo Guerrero vs Blue Panther CMLL at the Palms

It's one of, if not the most consistent singles pairing in wrestling; two older workers capable of stealing the show every single time out. From Arena Mexico to Guadalajara to now Las Vegas, one of the CMLL's great pairings is coming state side. I hope the chants of Blue rain out as Panther takes flight in this one.

8) Johnny Robbie Mio Momono vs Sareee Takumi Iroha Marvelous

Sareee is attempting to wrestle in Japan and the States in the same day and this match shoul,d on paper, deliver. Robbie is one of the best indie workers going, Sareee is the final boss of freelancers and Mio and Iroha are two of the best Marvelous has. I am really intrigued to see how they make the dynamics work for this one in a really interesting match. I don't feel this match really requires a massive sell.

9) Toxin vs Rob Martyr Fund Me Mania

This is booked by lucha memes and is two of the best indie workers anywhere in the world working an amazing match that could steal the weekend. Look out for this match when it pops up next week sometimes, for a very crisp match that should be great. Rob Martyr deserves all the world and I hope he gets even more recgonition for how good he is.

10) El Desperado Jun Kasai vs Matt Tremont Nick Gage vs Rina Yamashita Takeshia Maseda Despe Painvitational Vegas

Um just read the names in this death match, it will be fucking insane. I guess I should write more about this but I really don't know what else to say. These 6 are going to go fucking batshit in this match and it will be glorious.

11) Fuminori Abe vs Erick Stevens Josh Barnetts Bloodsport

Abe is one of the very best workers today just fully BITW tier worker. Stevens has been an awesome addittion to the indie scene since coming out of retirement, and has killed it in many different matches. Barnett always books a match or two you cannot believe is actually going to happen and this is certainly one of them.

12) Senka Akatsuki vs Aja Kong

Aja still knows how to work magic within her limitations after 4 decades of wrestling. This is a rematch of one the best matches to happen last year and Senka has only gotten better at honing her instincts since them. She is still so new to wrestling in general but is so unbelievably good, and Aja is Aja.

13) Haybusa Masato Tanaka vs Bear Bronson Mr Danger MDK: Fight Club

This is an interesting match to me, almost exclusively due to Tanaka vs Bronson. Bronson feels like exactly the type of worker Tanaka will thrive with. Mr. Danger is pretty damn good but am not sold on the new Hayabusa yet. However the sell here is without a doubt Masato Tanaka vs Bear Bronson. Should be a hard hitting brawl.

14) Willie Mack vs Beast Mortos Sabu Memorial Show

This match just sounds really godsdamn fun tbh. Should be a spot fest and a really good one at that. Two big lads going nuts.

15) Johnnie Robbie vs Mio Momono West Coast Pro

I really am excited for this one, should be a great match between two very good workers. I cannot wait for this match to air, it will be special. Just another dream match happening over the weekend.

16) Mizuki vs Miu Watanabe vs Miyu Yamashita TJPW at the Palms

This is a special triple threat; three of the very best TJPW has to offer. Many, if not most of the very best matches TJPW has featured at least one of these three. I am excited to see how they pull off this match even if multi-men matches like this aren't usually my speed.

17) ZSJ vs X Despe Painvitational

ZSJ challenged Hikaru Sato but he is only for Japan, so now we have a mystery opponent; my guess would be Abe and that would be awesome. I am intrigued by the options here and ZSJ is one of the better workers today. If it's Abe the match would be absolutely amazing.

 18) Mark Davis vs Masato Tanaka Mark Hitchcock Memorial

This will be a hoss fight of the highest order. Which is all I really need to be excited but this should be a really great showing of what Masato Tanaka is best at. I am really excited for Masato to be back in the US and this is a wonderful use of his talents.

19) Dr. Redacted vs Toby Klein

I don't know if this match will make air but please gods have it make air. Toby can still go and Redacted is amazing. I just want to see what these two psychos (affectionate) will do to each other and I hope I get to see it. They will try and kill each other in the best way.

20) Galeno vs Bandido Mark Hitchcock Memorial

This is an interesting power vs speed matchup with a massive size difference that should lead to an awesome match. I really cannot wait to see what they come up with in this awesome match. The Mark Hitchcock memorial show should be one of the best of the weekend and this match will be a large reason why.

Its a very exciting Mania weekend and I cannot wait to see what it delivers. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Top Ten Matches from 8/25/2025-8/31/2025

Hi, This is my list of the top matches not from WWE/AEW of the week. I do allow myself to have ROH matches on this list just do to how little recognition it does get despite being a quite good product if a hair lacking. (Not listed here but do highly recommended the Adam Priest Workhorsemen vs Sky team match from the honorclub episode this week.) There are spoilers ahead, a ton of spoilers if that bothers you I do recommend just scrolling to see the match-ups and going to watch them then coming back. This will be a weekly article that I will be doing every week. Last week was truly a busy week with a ton of awesome wrestling.  10. Dream Star GP Day 7: Chika Goto vs Mayu Iwatani This match was in Chika's hometown meaning the crowd was red hot. Whilst Mayu is the icon and will be cheered a majority of the time this match was not one of them. In response Mayu worked this one leaning heel. I really enjoyed a more dominating Mayu when the audience wants nothing more then for Chika to w...
Read more

Tradition

 This will be a little different then my usual posts. I am going to be talking about my view on wrestling as a medium and also my personal views on things like the history and tradition in professional wrestling. The ideas of how the art form evolves as the decades pass and the newer generation continues to push the boundaries of what is physically possible. To preface I am not saying what once was is better, what I am aiming to say is that some things got lost during the continued innovation that has been, overall, truly great. Some of the things lost were intentional, some were not, nonetheless it was. I am going to choose two matches from a few weekends ago that can show how great a young wrestler desperately clinging to the traditions of the past can be. Xelhua is the focus of this post, and the two matches couldn't be in any more different locations. One was in the main event on a Friday night in Arena Mexico, the cathedral of Lucha Libre, the other was in Terrazza Elma for a...
Read more

First Tokyo Dome Show: Battle Satellite.

  Battle Satellite in Tokyo Dome This is the first show to be held in the newly built Tokyo Dome. Antonio Inoki's NJPW during an incredibly hot period of business is the first to run it. Match 1: Young Lion Cup Hiro Saito vs Naoki Sano Saito is first to gain an advantage but Sano uses his speed to take out Saito and hit a dive on the outside. Saito is able to work from on top here. Quite enjoy Sano as a fiery babyface. Saito is an unbelievable heel using his size to his advantage. He is really grinding out Sano in this one. Sano’s kicks are awesome in this one. Am a hair confused on how either man is a young lion. However this is damn awesome with fantastic heel face dynamics. Hiro Saito hits a fantastic missile dropkick to send Sano to the outside before eating shit on a dive. Sano hits a massive crossbody to the outside. Sano gets impossibly close on a two count. Saito hits a backslide but Sano gets a rope break. Saito hits a fantastic electric chair drop and a bridging German su...
Read more