THE MOSS COVERED THREE HANDLED FAMILY CREDENZA
ARTICLE # 69
MAY 19, 2003
Vintage Pegasus
Chris Benoit has been a top ten worker for more than a decade, a longer peak period than most great workers enjoy in today’s era. He has long been one of the best wrestlers when it comes to having great matches in a variety of styles and settings. While many of his best matches have come against some of the best puroresu juniors, this article takes a look at some of his work against American talent, both in Japan and in the United States. This article takes a look at 5 matches, two from the U.S. and three from Japan, during the years Chris Benoit was known in Japan as “Wild Pegasus”.
11/93: Chris Benoit vs Sabu
Sabu lunged at Benoit’s leg and took him down but Benoit kicked him away. Sabu took Benoit down and applied a toehold but Benoit stood up and countered with a dropkick. Benoit applied a full nelson and then a headlock. Benoit took Sabu down and applied a wristlock. They did a knucklelock and Sabu pounced on top of Benoit but Benoit pushed him off with his feet. Sabu took Benoit down, then stomped and choked him. Sabu gave Benoit a slingshot legdrop for a near fall and applied an armbar. Benoit ducked down in a criss cross and Sabu vaulted over him. Sabu gave Benoit a spinning mule kick and hit a tope. Sabu then hit an Asai moonsault on Benoit. They returned to the ring and Sabu stomped Benoit. Sabu missed a slingshot legdrop and Benoit fought back with chops. Benoit clotheslined Sabu for a near fall and back suplexed him for another near fall. Benoit gave Sabu a neckbreaker but Sabu tripped him up and choked him. Sabu won an exchange of blows with Benoit and slammed him. Sabu moonsaulted Benoit for a near fall and applied an armbar. Benoit countered a tilt-a-whirl slam but Sabu took him down in a criss cross. Sabu grabbed Benoit’s legs but Benoit countered by flipping Sabu overhead. Benoit dropkicked Sabu out of the ring but botched a dropkick through the ropes…STOP THE PRESSES!!! BENOIT SCREWED UP!!! Yep, it can happen to the best of ‘em I guess. Benoit hit a tope and elbowed Sabu. They traded blows and Benoit slammed Sabu. Sabu caught Benoit on the top rope with a punch but Benoit blocked a top rope huracanrana and Sabu crashed to the mat. Benoit clotheslined Sabu and gave him a top rope back superplex for a near fall. Sabu hit Benoit with a chair, then jumped off the chair in giving Benoit a running splash in the corner. Sabu jumped off the chair again but Benoit moved and Sabu crashed into the corner. Benoit gave Sabu a top rope superplex. Benoit gave Sabu a knee to the gut and dropped him gut first across the top rope. Benoit landed a couple chops. Sabu blocked a suplex back into the ring and suplexed Benoit over the top rope to the floor. Sabu then hit a slingshot moonsault to the floor on Benoit. Sabu gave Benoit a baseball slide kick but missed a second. Benoit tombstoned Sabu and gave him a top rope headbutt for a near fall. Sabu fought back, backflipped, and clotheslined Benoit in the corner. Sabu tried to repeat the spot but Benoit caught him and German suplexed him for a near fall. Benoit missed an elbow but clotheslined Sabu on the rebound. Benoit charged but Sabu moved and Benoit flew between the ropes to the floor. Sabu gave Benoit a somersault plancha, and it sounded like they crashed through a table although the hard camera angle did not pick it up. Benoit barely beat the count back into the ring, but Sabu didn’t and Benoit won via countout at 15:12. Given this was their first match against each other, this was a great effort. Sabu’s big spots, while similar to his ECW days, seemed much more natural here. He wasn’t obsessed with using the chair so most of his big spots were flips and dives. Also, Sabu was clearly in better shape than in future years as his movements seemed sharper. Benoit wasn’t in his best form, but still excellent with his usual crisp movements and high impact offense. Maybe because of their unfamiliarity with each other, Sabu seemed to let Benoit dictate much of the flow of the match. As a result this match had fewer notable flaws than the usual Sabu match. Not as spectacular as a match between them could have been at the time, but very solid and both men got to show what they could do. ***1/2
4/16/94 (airdate): Chris Benoit & Jushin Liger vs Rick & Scott Steiner
Scott dominated Liger on the mat early. Scott countered a takedown and remained on top of Liger on the mat. Scott applied a headscissors and continued to dominate Liger on the mat. Scott tackled Liger on a criss cross. Scott blocked a kick and took down Liger again. Rick tagged in but Liger flipped him off and tagged Benoit. Rick took down Benoit but had a tougher time with him than Scott had with Liger as Benoit held his own. Rick applied a waistlock and out of nowhere launched Benoit with a brutal released German suplex in a cool spot. Both Steiners kicked Benoit repeatedly in the corner. Liger intervened but Rick got the better of him as Scott threw Benoit out of the ring. Liger and Benoit jumped off the top rope in opposite corners but Rick and Scott respectively caught them and gave them simultaneous powerslams in a great spot. Liger caught Rick on the top rope as Benoit caught Scott on the top rope and they gave the Steiners simultaneous top rope huracanranas. Benoit gained a near fall on Scott. Liger gave Rick a koppo kick and Benoit maneuvered from a crucifix into a sunset flip of Scott for a near fall. Liger spin kicked Rick out of the ring and hit a plancha. Benoit went for a superplex, Scott blocked it, but Liger intervened and they gave Scott a double top rope superplex for a Benoit near fall. Liger gave Rick a kneelift and threw him out of the ring. Benoit clotheslined Scott but Rick caught him and German suplexed him as Scott delivered a clothesline of his own. Scott gave Benoit his tilt-a-whirl slam and Rick elbowsmashed him for a near fall. Rick slammed Benoit upside down into the corner and gained a near fall. Scott gave Benoit a second rope Samoan drop for a near fall. Rick applied a camel clutch on Benoit. Rick belly to belly suplexed Benoit for a near fall and applied an armbar. Benoit backed Rick into his corner but Rick knocked Liger off the apron with an elbow. Scott gave Benoit a modified tiger driver for a near fall. Liger intervened but Scott knocked him out of the ring. Rick applied an armbar on Benoit. Scott gave Benoit an overhead belly to belly suplex. Rick lifted Benoit but Liger intervened. Liger caught Scott on the top rope and gave him a second rope electric chair. Liger tagged in, dropkicked Scott and gave Rick a koppo kick. Liger clotheslined Scott and dropkicked Rick off the apron. Liger gave Scott almost a top rope brainbuster for a near fall. Rick intervened but Benoit threw him out of the ring. Liger gave Rick a baseball slide kick. Liger and Benoit gave Scott a double top rope headbutt and Liger gained a near fall. Liger slammed Scott but Rick press slammed Benoit clear out of the ring. Rick caught Liger on the top rope. Scott went for a back superplex but Liger fell on top of him for a near fall. Rick whipped Benoit into the barricade. Liger gave Scott a Liger bomb for a near fall as Rick whipped Benoit into the barricade again. After back and forth suplex counters Scott kneelifted Liger and gave him a screwdriver for the pin at 14:03. An awesome match as you’d expect from these four at the time. The Steiners from what I’ve seen never really adjusted their styles too much, in part because most of their opponents in previous Japanese tours had fit their style well. Liger and Benoit weren’t as ideal a fit for them, but they adapted to the Steiners and allowed them to dictate much of the match. Actually this might have made the match better than it would have otherwise been. Both Steiners looked great in tossing their opponents all over the place with their array of suplexes and power moves. Liger and Benoit worked great as an underdog tag team, in particular Liger’s intense hot tag comeback late in the match. Although the Steiners dominated, Liger and Benoit still showcased their strengths as workers. However, the bottom line is that this match is geared more towards fans of the Steiners, both of which were so much better in the ring than they are now (if you’ve only seen Scott in the WWE you’ve really missed out). If you are such a fan, GET THIS MATCH. ****
7/13/95 Best of Super Junior ’95 Tournament Semifinal: Chris Benoit vs Black Tiger (Eddy Guerrero)
Tiger applied a headlock and took Benoit down. Benoit countered with a top wristlock and armdragged Tiger. Tiger applied a hammerlock and snapmared Benoit before applying a modified surfboard with his head pushing against Benoit’s back. Benoit reversed the surfboard and grinded his knee into Tiger’s back. Tiger kicked Benoit away. Tiger took Benoit down and applied a chinlock. Tiger turned the hold into a camel clutch. Tiger applied a Gori special on Benoit and then applied a chinlock with Benoit still draped over his back. Tiger spun around and dropped Benoit to the mat for a near fall. Tiger powerbombed Benoit for a near fall and gave him a pumphandle backbreaker. Tiger gave Benoit his slingshot somersault senton for a near fall and applied a chinlock. Benoit escaped, kicked and elbowed Tiger. They did a criss cross and traded German suplex counters. Tiger knocked Benoit into the corner and gave him a second rope headscissors takedown. They did a criss cross and Benoit gave Tiger a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a near fall. Benoit back suplexed Tiger for a near fall. Benoit snapmared Tiger and applied a headscissors on the mat. Tiger escaped and maneuvered Benoit onto his shoulders for a near fall. Tiger pounced on Benoit but Benoit gave him a huracanrana. Benoit countered a sunset flip but Tiger kicked him and rammed him into the corner. Tiger suplexed Benoit out of the ring and hit a plancha. Tiger powerslammed Benoit and gave him a frog splash for a near fall. Tiger applied a chinlock. They did a criss cross, Benoit went down for a monkey flip, but Tiger stomped him. Tiger tried to suplex Benoit out of the ring again but Benoit blocked it. Benoit tried to suplex Tiger into the ring but Tiger flipped over him. Tiger flipped out of a back suplex attempt and kicked Benoit. Tiger suplexed Benoit out of the ring but Benoit held onto him and they both crashed to the floor. Benoit hit a tope suicida and gave Tiger a ton of punches on the apron. Tiger headbutted Benoit and gave him a huracanrana off the top rope for a near fall. Tiger gave Benoit almost a backdrop driver and his BT bomb for a heated near fall. Tiger rammed Benoit into the corner but Benoit whipped him into the opposite corner. Benoit gave Tiger a gutbuster and a brutal powerbomb for a near fall. Benoit dragon suplexed Tiger for a near fall. Tiger rolled up Benoit for a near fall. Tiger countered a powerbomb and kicked Benoit. Tiger gave Benoit a brainbuster for a near fall. Tiger attempted a second rope BT bomb but Benoit flipped to the mat. Tiger kicked Benoit and gave him a tornado DDT for a near fall. Benoit blocked a top rope huracanrana and gave Tiger a second rope tombstone for the pin at 16:42. Both men were in their prime as workers, and this match was as great as you’d expect in a big match setting from these two. Tiger was in top form and displayed a degree of athleticism he has rarely shown in WWE. In addition to being as razor sharp as usual, Benoit took more spectacular bumps here than you’ll see from him nowadays. In other words, while Benoit vs Guerrero is a guaranteed great match today, back in the mid 90syou were guaranteed an even higher standard. This match wasn’t quite as great as I previously thought it was, but not by much. The opening minutes were fairly unspectacular and some of the chinlock spots weren’t as interesting as I’m told such spots were in their 1996 BOSJ match. Not a bad mix of action though as they’d do a few big spots from time to time during the first half before settling down again. The last 5 minutes were first rate, with lots of big and/or high impact spots along with some heated near falls. Finish was cool because Benoit didn’t use a second rope tombstone very often. Not quite a classic, but still outstanding. ****1/4
2/25/95 ECW Tag Team Title: Sabu & Tazmaniac (c) (w/Paul E. Dangerously & 911) vs Chris Benoit & Dean Malenko
All four fought before the bell with an intense exchange of blows. Benoit got the better of Sabu while Malenko fought with Taz. Taz snapmared and headbutted Malenko, then threw him out of the ring. Benoit got the better of Sabu and clotheslined him. Malenko repeatedly kicked Taz in the corner. Sabu slammed Malenko and gave him a slingshot leg lariat for a near fall as Taz gave Benoit an overhead belly to belly suplex for a near fall. Sabu charged but flew out of the ring when Malenko pulled down the top rope. Benoit and Malenko got the better of Taz and Benoit rammed him into the corner. Malenko brought Sabu’s neck down across the top rope. Benoit whipped Taz into an elbow from Malenko. Malenko gave Sabu a delayed brainbuster and a second one for a near fall as Benoit pounded Taz with chops. Benoit lifted Sabu in a powerbomb and Malenko came off the top rope with a clothesline/neckbreaker hold. Taz gave Malenko a T-bone suplex and Benoit a belly to belly suplex. Malenko kicked Taz and went for a dragon suplex but Taz countered with an inverted suplex. Taz caught Benoit on the top rope, dropped him neck first on the top rope and caught him on the rebound with a great released German suplex for a pop. Taz lifted Benoit but Malenko clipped his knee. Malenko threw Sabu out of the ring and kicked Taz’s leg. Malenko applied a legbar on Taz as Benoit stomped him. Benoit kicked Sabu off the apron. Malenko and Benoit slammed Taz knees-first on the mat. 911 carried Taz to the back as Malenko and Benoit double teamed Sabu. Both men stomped and pounded Sabu. They gave Sabu a double backdrop but went for a flapjack and Sabu countered in mid-air with a double dropkick for a pop. Sabu hit a somersault tope on Malenko and then took out Benoit on the other side of the ring with a tope suicida. Sabu then hit an Asai moonsault on Benoit. Sabu took out both opponents with a plancha and brought a table into the ring for a pop. Sabu launched off a chair in the ring and took out both opponents with a somersault plancha. Sabu slammed Malenko, placed the table on the top rope and sat the chair on top of the table. Sabu climbed up but Benoit knocked him to the mat. Benoit and Sabu briefly fought on the table. Benoit then gave Sabu a powerbomb off the table from the top rope to the mat for the pin at 10:30 to win the title. A bit shorter than desired, but a really hot match that played to everyone’s strengths. Taz was great at tossing Benoit around with his array of suplexes early on. When it came time to give Taz the mid-match beatdown, Malenko did a great job attacking his leg. Throughout the match Benoit was his usual sharp, high impact self. Also, during the brawling Malenko didn’t seem out of place like some would expect. When it was time for his comeback, though, Sabu completely stole the show, doing one great spot after another after another. This was a sensational segment because Sabu wasted no time going from spot to spot, only taking a little time to set up the finish. And what a finish it was, with Benoit putting an exclamation point on a red hot closing stretch. Almost everything seemed natural, very little seemed contrived except for maybe the finish, and even that didn’t take long to set up. Each segment flowed into the next reasonably well and the match did have the notable storyline of Taz’s injury. If you’re an ECW fan, this match is a must-have. A bit short so I’ll hold back a little on the rating. ***3/4
5/3/95: Chris Benoit vs Too Cold Scorpio
They traded wristlocks and armbars early. Benoit armdragged Scorpio and applied an armbar. They did a wristlock/flip counter sequence and Benoit armdragged Scorpio. Benoit applied a wristlock but Scorpio bridged up, backflipped and armdragged Benoit. Benoit took Scorpio down but Scorpio flipped him over with his legs. They had a test of strength and traded the advantage. Benoit kicked Scorpio and crossed Scorpio’s arms in front of his neck. Scorpio superkicked Benoit and chopped him. Benoit whipped Scorpio into the corner but Scorpio sunset flipped him for a near fall. Benoit took down Scorpio with a headlock but Scorpio countered with a back suplex. Benoit maintained the headlock and tackled Scorpio. They did a criss cross, Scorpio took down Benoit but Benoit flipped him over with his legs. Benoit kicked Scorpio but Scorpio blocked a German suplex. Scorpio charged but Benoit dumped him to the apron. Benoit elbowed Scorpio but Scorpio rammed him into the corner and gave him a top rope dropkick. Benoit rolled out of the ring but Scorpio hit him with a running tope. Scorpio headbutted Benoit twice and slammed him. Benoit applied a Boston crab and then a Mutolock. Benoit stomped Scorpio and gave him a northern lights suplex for a near fall. Benoit German suplexed Scorpio for a near fall and chopped him. Scorpio kicked Benoit and rolled him up but only gained a one count. Scorpio high kicked Benoit and hit a top rope corkscrew splash for a near fall. Scorpio then went up like he was going to superplex Benoit, but instead knocked him off the top rope to the floor with a dropkick. Scorpio then hit a spectacular moonsault over the ringpost onto Benoit. Back in the ring Scorpio moonsaulted Benoit for a fairly heated near fall. Scorpio whipped Benoit into the corner but missed a corner splash. Benoit gave Scorpio a released German suplex but hurt himself as well. Scorpio kicked Benoit but Benoit countered a top rope victory roll and slammed Scorpio to the mat. Benoit tombstoned Scorpio and gave him a top rope headbutt for the pin at 14:06. The finish was a bit sudden, but it wasn’t like these two would work a long stretch of near falls anyway. This is one of those matches that falls victim to Dome juniors syndrome (this took place in the Fukuoka Dome) in terms of crowd heat. For a juniors match to be over in a dome setting there usually has to be some sort of emotion or significance, or novelty involved that exceeds that of a run-of-the-mill New Japan juniors match. It’s hard to call a match like this, a very good match, run-of-the-mill, but by mid-90s New Japan juniors standards this was. The lack of real emotion or a sense of urgency was really magnified in the dome setting, which took the match down as much as half a star from what it would have rated in a smaller arena setting. Both men were their usual selves, Benoit being sharp as usual while Scorpio was quite spectacular but lacked substance in between spots. Fans of both men should enjoy this, but both men have had better matches, including against each other. ***1/4
Next Article: All Japan Old School III
BACK TO THE MOSS COVERED THREE HANDLED FAMILY CREDENZA MENU
HOME