2016 Ongoing MOTY List: Gulak/TJP vs. Sabre/Callihan

1. Drew Gulak/TJ Perkins vs. Zach Sabre Jr./Sami Callihan EVOLVE 54 1/23

ER: I loved this and it might have even been my favorite Gulak performance. The term "ring awareness" gets tossed around by commentary crews in practically every match you ever watch. It's basically a meaningless term at this point. But damn Gulak was so good and just so aware of where he was at in the ring and in the structure of the match that it really felt like the definition example of the term. Flashy submission style wrestling tends to work better in a singles match setting, as the subs need time to build and tag settings make it easier for partners to break things up. But he (and the others) were really good about cutting off the ring, tagging in and out at proper times to keep the flow going, and doing neat things like saving partners from a sub while actually doing damage to his opponent. I loved when Sabre had Gulak trapped in a kind of backpack Americana, while Sami has TJP trapped in a sub, and Gulak just falls on top of the pile effectively ending all submissions. Gulak and Sabre were so fun together, with fun flashy counters and learned mistakes. Sabre did one of my favorite reversals by pulling his own leg close with his own leg to get out of a sub, and then when Gulak did the same moments later Sabre countered it, but Gulak was right there to quickly roll through Sabre's counter surfboard. It's all happening so quick and laid out so smart that it's really wonderful when it works out as well as it does. Gulak was really a terror throughout, though. His ring positioning was killer, both for his own subs and to not make his opponent look like a boob (how many times have you seen somebody supposed to be trapped in a sub, but then have to move AWAY from the ropes so as to look more in danger, due to his opponent's lousy positioning?), and his timing was on point. He always knew the right moment to tag in TJP, and the right moment to do cool things like a fast surprise tope towards the end of the match. Sabre Jr. feels like a guy with a million cool tricks up his sleeve and is able to do flash without making it look rehearsed and exhibition-y. Callihan is a welcome return to the indies and I like him diving back to this style, and also like him breaking from formula by doing things like bailing to the floor to plaster Matt Riddle in the face with a kick. I thought all the subs worked great in the tag setting, and I think that's much more a testament to the 4 guys in the match than anything else. This was really great.

PAS:  I really enjoyed this a bunch too, the main the night before was more of a bomb fest, this was almost a hyped up version of a maestros tag, all four guys tried to whip out a bunch of crazy submissions and the constant saves stopped them from doing a catch and release which can weaken Lucha versions of this match style. I have been a bit of a Sabre Jr. agnostic before, but he has really kicked it into gear in the last year and is already on a hell of a roll in 2016, I loved him as the flashy submission artist in contrast to the more subdued Gulak, they just meshed great. Callihan is so much fun in these tags too he wrestles like he's on speed and it is a great contrast to the submission work, we get some pretty counter mat wrestling and then this lunatic runs in to kick people in the face. Didn't love the finish, as partner dissension is an old school wrestling trope which bores me, still this was overall a heck of match.


2016 MOTY MASTER LIST