Dave Meltzer’s rating for Will Ospreay’s latest pay-per-view match has broken an 18-year streak.
As reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Ospreay’s match against Mike Bailey at Bound For Glory was rated 5.25 stars, the highest rating in the 20-plus-year history of TNA/Impact Wrestling and the second ever five-star match for the promotion.
The match itself had high expectations from the start as the crowd were described as “going nuts” right from the opening bell. Meltzer also praised the crispness of both performers in the match and described both Ospreay and Bailey as “on a different level.”
The prestigious rating is Bailey’s first in his career and the 31st for Ospreay, who still holds the record for more critically acclaimed matches than anyone in history. Ospreay also has another unique record in 2023 as he has had five-star plus matches in 4 different promotions; New Japan, AEW, Rev Pro and Impact.
The high rating continues the buzz around Impact Wrestling, who announced at the end of Bound For Glory that the TNA name would be making its return in early January 2024, much to the delight of fans.
In recent news, Dave Meltzer awarded Will Ospreay his eighth five-star match for 2023.
When Did Dave Meltzer Last Rate A TNA/Impact Match Five Stars?
Prior to Bound For Glory 2023, the promotion only ever had one match that was rated five stars. As seen at Unbreakable 2005, AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels and Samoa Joe battled over the X-Divison Championship in the main event of the show. Many are surprised that the promotion only has 2 highly rated matches in its 2 decade-plus career despite the long list of legendary names that have performed for the promotion.