[2018-04-06-WWN-Mercury Rising 2018] Matt Riddle vs Will Ospreay

[ShittyLittleBoots]

This had the makings of being the best match of the entire weekend, but ultimately I thought Ospreay got too much of his weak looking offense in. Riddle looked like a damn killer in it, what a meanstreak! Watching him destroy the shit out of Ospreay was amazing & Ospreay was overall a good FIP, but like I said, he got way too much offense in. And those nearfalls after the whole referees-checking-on-him -angle were quite ridiculous. Ospreay showing that "fighting spirit" is never not cringeworthy. All in all, a really good match, loved it, but it was also quite disappointing at the same time, because it had makings of being a classic. Easy MOTN of Mercury Rising though. Riddle's an absolute stud. ***3/4

[tim]

I loved this match. Ospreay mostly being worked over and hitting a few big highspots is exactly what his role should be in every match. Also, he should never be allowed to work a match longer than 15 minutes (unless it's against KUSHIDA). So this is a match that optimizes Ospreay, and in such contexts I generally really like him. They played off his neck injury from Sakura Genesis and it was really effective. The crowd was actually involved in the match and really hot and sympathetic for Ospreay, rather than just sitting on their hands and popping for spots. The last couple minutes were great with Ospreay getting a super hot run of offense, including a totally sick powerbomb, into a great ending spot. My match of the weekend so far, one of my favorites of the year.

[Edwin]

I was ready to dislike this as Ospreay is someone I'm not a fan of, but this far exceeded my expectations and it was actually great. At a show where everyone was showing signs of fatigue and slowing down, these two put on amazing performance. Riddle did an amazing job of putting a nasty beatdown on Ospreay and Ospreay did an amazing job bumping like crazy and selling it. Loved the nutty top rope bump off the twister and the drama added with the refs. coming in to check on Ospreay and Riddle pulling on the bandages on Ospreays neck and back. The finish with Ospreay's hope spots was unbelievable and had the fans going bonkers. I imagine this live was unbelievable. What a weekend for Riddle.

[Boss Rock]

Great match. Proof that Ospreay can actually be a really good babyface and not just an exciting spot guy. Riddle was a huge dick throughout and Ospreay's neck selling was consistent and realistic (although a great deal of that was probably real pain) without any of the annoying screams. These two have a ton of chemistry together and would love to see a continued feud down the line.

[Cap]

I am not the high vote on either one of these guys, but this match blew me away. I just rewatched it last night for the first time since seeing it live and I loved it even more. This is my favorite version of each guy. Ospreay had an all time performance with his selling, his grit, and his comebacks. Riddle should be a big dominant, borderline heel champion like this all the time. The spot off the ropes that brought the refs out looked absolutely brutal. Ospreay's hope spots late in the match were absolutely incredible. They played off Ospreay's match with Scurll (another match that I surprisingly high on) really well and produced the best match I saw live on the weekend and probably the second best match overall. I think this is a legit great match that achieved an emotional high at a time when the room was starting to fade just a bit. ****1/2 (I could see me bumping this down the road - that is how high I am on this).

[Zoo Enthusiast]

I have to rewatch this to see if I was losing my mind during it as completely as I think I was. I really do not like Ospreay very often but I was right there with him on this one. Riddle won the belt the night before and I totally thought he might lose this by the time they hit the finishing stretch. This was the best match I saw live all weekend.

[El-P]

Second great match for Riddle, and the first time I see Ospreay as someone that really could be special. I turned the corner on him during the Mania week-end for one simple reason : his willingness to sell his previous injury in every match, making a wholesome story about a banged up guy digging from within to fight his matches. And with Riddle being a total dick at the end (not talking about the post-match promo, which was as breaking the fourth wall as I've ever seen), this worked wonderfully. Not sure I'd have it above the ZSJ match, it's either/or, but Riddle has impressed the hell out of me during this insane week-end.

[Phil Schneider]

Riddle continues his incredible Mania weekend with a wild sprint with Osprey. Osprey comes in with his neck taped from a gif worthy blown spot in New Japan, and Riddle just viciously attacks him. He really feels like he wants to knocks his blocky yellowed British teeth down his throat. Osprey gets his neck wrecked with Riddle just crawling all over him and landing sick elbows right to the KT tape on his neck. The spot where Osprey climbs to the top rope with Riddle on his back, only to get murder deathed off the top rope was truly nuts. I honestly would have been fine with the match ending there, it would have established Riddle as a vicious killer, and Osprey as a tough guy with a death wish. The post restart stuff was great though, the crowd gets totally behind Osprey and his comeback and it ends up being really frenzied and great. I wouldn't think these guys would work well together, as Riddle against flyers is often iffy, but this was a hell of war. Loved it.