2018 Ongoing MOTY List: Ki vs. Yehi

74. Low-Ki vs. Fred Yehi MLW 12/13 

ER: I'm sure we were all hoping for something a bit different when these two squared off for the first time ever. They're the two best workers in the fed and you'd want to see a match between them as high end indy dream supermatch, but this is worked as a match within their respective spots in the MLW Totem, where one of these guys is the current Heavyweight Champ and the other is a guy who was ranked behind Simon Gotch while they were in Team Filthy. But it's these two, so obviously any time we get from them is going to work. We get cool stuff you'd expect like Ki trying to snap Yehi's arm over the ropes, and other great little moments like Ki heading off to the ropes but getting his leg grabbed by Yehi before he can run, and Ki lets him stand up (while Ki himself is on one leg) and peppers Yehi's eye with sharp elbows until he lets go. Ki spider monkeys himself to Yehi's leg and Yehi does these big exaggerated high steps to get out of it, and it all shows just how cool these two move. This gets really great once they start throwing blows, with Ki breaking out of the corner and punching Yehi under the sternum across the ring, then snapping off big kicks, but Yehi caught a kick and foot stomped him and legswept him. Yehi even gets a very believable nearfall off a high cradle, really looked like they would suddenly give him this huge and sudden win and then set up a big challenge with Lawlor and a big re-match with Ki. But that doesn't happen. The actual finish is crazy, with Ki winding up on the top rope, throwing elbows at Yehi's head, and then one MAMMOTH overhand strike down across Yehi's chest. That strike right there looked like a finish. You never seen shots thrown from that angle and this one looked like it hit with tremendous force. The Warriors Way pushes back out the portions of Yehi's sternum that Ki sent inching towards his spine, and Yehi is a sicko and wasn't even on the mat when he took it, just a huge stomp right to the tenderest part of the back. Damn, boys. Cannot WAIT to see these two match-up again, several times.

PAS: Ki wrestles so infrequently these days, that I fear this might be the only time we get to see them match up, awesome as fuck WCW Pro match isn't ideal, but this was an awesome as fuck WCW Pro match. MLW Ki wrestles so differently then other times in his career. He seems to be working as almost a counter puncher, waiting to land one or two big kill shots, waiting for openings, wrestling defensive and viciously landing shots when he can. I loved Yehi pushing Ki into the corner, and Ki unloading with four nasty body shots right to the ribs on the break. We got a couple of great Yehi flurries of offense, and then an absolutely killer finish, with Ki sitting on the tope landing a crossface shot on a standing Yehi across his jaw and onto his chest. Sounded like a baseball bat hitting a mango, and the a grisly double stomp on Yehi's back. Great stuff by both guys, would love someone to book a long rematch somewhere but if this is what we get, it was pretty great.


COMPLETE AND ACCURATE LOW-KI