2021 Ongoing MOTY List: Ki vs. Ninja Mack

30. Low-Ki vs. Ninja Mack Loko Wrestling 9/18

PAS: Ki as a base for a wildly athletic guy is an aspect of his game we haven't seen a ton of, but he is really good at. Mack is a guy with big big spots, who hasn't always had a ton of connective tissue, and Ki is a guy who is great at providing that tissue. This was a killer 9 minute match, where Mack got to showcase his stuff inbetween Ki kicking in his lungs. Mack has maybe the smoothest kip ups I can remember seeing, he just moves from his back to his feet like he teleported, and a lot of the early match is him evading Ki's attacks by flipping in and out of things. I don't know Mack's background, but he wrestles like a college gymnast, with tons of crazy spins and a signature multiple backflip Space Flying Tiger Drop which Ki viciously cuts off with a kick to the back. I really bought Mack's near fall, he hits an uppercut so hard that it sent Ki's prop holster flying into the crowd, but then ate knees on a 630 senton. One Woo kick and Warriors Way later it was over. Totally delivered the big moments and showed that Ki can still keep up with the kids. 

ER: It's a pretty bold move to work a ninja gimmick opposite Low Ki, the man who moves more like a ninja than any wrestler ever. It made me skeptical before even watching the match, which just made me more vulnerable to being blown away by Ninja Mack. Mack is smaller than Ki, and it's cool seeing Ki work a match where he's the guy being evaded by a quick small guy. Mack doesn't move like a pro wrestler, he moves like a ninja, or a circus performer, and there's a no-contact exchange that made me do the 10 second rewind over and over again just to watch their movement. Ki was running the ropes fast and Mack was doing leapfrogs over him, and on the last one Mack just leapt backwards into the air and his trajectory looked like he was going to backflip directly onto the top of his head. Instead he landed pillow soft on his upper shoulders and just glided up to his feet. It didn't look like the movements a man could have made without the assistance of wires. It's awesome to see someone outquicking Ki and Ki having to find his way back into the match, and I don't know if there are many more spectacular ways to transition to offense then to kick a man in the stomach after a multiple back-handspring Space Flying Tiger Drop. Moonsaulting to nothing is bad, but hitting nothing while also getting a boot to the gut on the way to nothing is just cruel. Mack's 630 senton also looked spectacular, and I love how Ki got a hard knee up into Mack's back and then sold that knee accordingly. The Warriors Way that finishes everything is sick, with Ki just sticking straight into Mack's sternum like a lawn dart. 

2021 MOTY MASTER LIST