Match of the Year Tournament - A Block - January 2026

What's new, friends? 

Welcome, one and all, to the beginning of the 2026 Match of the Year Tournament! For those that want a refresher on how things work in the tournament, please refer to my Rules and Regulations post I drafted up last year. 

But, if you're already a seasoned reader, click right on through and see what I felt was more than up to snuff this month! 

The Pre-Quarterfinalists

The January Pre-Quarterfinalists

A great way to start 2206, January had some stelar matches to start the month, a bit of a dip in the middle, and a strong end that has given January a strong leg up for the rest of the year. Not to say it can't easily be outdone as the year goes on, but the rest of the wrestling world will need to put in a considerable shift to come out on top by the end of 2026. 

Let's look at the month that was.  

 

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Yota Tsuji - 01/04/2026

An early contender for match of the year, Tsuji and Takeshita went to war with both of their titles on the line, delivering a hard-hitting, insanely action packed bout. A make-or-break match for both men, they pulled out all the stops and all but ensured that no matter what the outcome was in this match, both men would be coming out of this match looking better than they were when they went into it. In the end, Tsuji toppled Takeshita to reach the top of NJPW in a blisteringly fun match. 

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada - 01/04/2026

A tour de force in dramatic storytelling, the final bout of the Ace of the Universe was as emotional as it was long, with both Tanahashi and Okada turning back the clock to do everything they could to come out the victor. Regardless of the result, Tanahashi was going to be riding off into the sunset, but he was doing everything he could to go out with one final win. In the end, it was Okada who dug back into his old bag of tricks, digging out the Rainmaker of old to decisively put Tanahashi away for the final bell. At last, the Ace can rest. A spectacular match that was as story rich as you could hope to find. Fantastic stuff from both men. 

 

Andrade El Idolo vs. Swerve Strickland - AEW Dynamite - 01/28/2026

The recent push of Andrade has been really pleasant, actually, getting to see a highly skilled wrestler elevated to a position on the card that he feels deserving of is a nice change of pace. If there's one thing I can say about current AEW, it's that they're making a solid attempt to make the Men's World Championship something people want. But anyways, this match was fantastic. It's easy to forget just how good Andrade is after he's spent so much time languishing in tag teams or with bad booking, but once the handcuffs are off and he's in the ring with someone like Swerve, he's as good as they come. These two were going back and forth with some gnarly counters and near falls, with Andrade picking up, what some may consider, a shocking pinfall! Great stuff. Great way to end a month. 

 

Out of these three top contenders, which match came out on top?! 

 

 The Quarterfinalist

The January Quarterfinalist

When you start the year with a, what I believe was, a legitimate Match of the Year contender, it's hard to beat it, even if the rest of the month had some more than stellar matches that followed. Takeshita and Tsuji was brilliant, hard hitting, exciting, and felt so fresh and fun on a New Japan card that felt pretty underwhelming up to that point.  

 

One month down! The start of my first full year of the Match of the Year tournament is underway! I'm excited to see where this year takes me. I have high hopes for the year ahead!

Until next month, take it easy friends!