Josh Nason's top 21 Limitless Wrestling matches of 2022
By Josh Nason
With the Limitless Wrestling event calendar finally changing over to the new year with Saturday’s Hard to Handle (limited tickets available & streaming on IWTV), it’s time for my favorite matches from the past year that was in your favorite indie promotion of all-time: Limitless Wrestling.
By now, you’ve already seen the year-end awards which had some great candidates. You’ll see many of those on this here list, but surprisingly, my top choice for match of the year is one that didn’t make the official cut for the awards. Luckily for you, you can watch many of these matches on YouTube or on IWTV.
By the way, I’m the co-host for the Limitless Wrestling Podcast — THE official podcast of Limitless. Get the pod wherever you get your podcasts by searching for "Limitless Wrestling.”
Let’s get to it.
The Top Ten
Match of the Year: LW World Champion Alec Price vs. Ace Romero anything goes (February’s 2 Hot 2 Handle)
This was the capper on a pretty amazing night that the LW debut of Maine wrestling legend Scotty 2 Hotty in his return back to the 207. Price and Romero have had one of the best rivalries in the company’s history, dating back to The Road.
Fast forward to last February in the follow-up to their title match at January’s Cut Loose when they opened the show and went to a no contest, leading to this lovely, violent affair. By the way, Anthony Greene was the special guest referee — also set into motion at Cut Loose.
Both guys were taken to the absolute limit and certified Price as someone who could go in any kind of style. Romero is no slouch when it comes to these kinds of matches, but the results kept him off the radar until August’s Vacationland Cup which set up his eventual title win over, you guessed it, Price.
Here’s the rest of my top 10 in chronological order:
LW World Champion Alec Price vs. JD Drake (January’s Limitless Worcester)
This was Price’s second title defense and a bit unheralded, in my opinion. This was a banger of a match and a rematch from Price’s first big break at November 2019’s Twilight Zone. A lot changed in that time as evidenced in this match.
JONAH vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey (March’s Thrill of It)
Voted by the fans as their top match of last year, this featured two contracted Impact talents making their Limitless debuts in the midst of Bailey on the indie run of his life. There was no storyline or backstory: just two super-talented athletes with much different body types and styles going head-on. And it was awesome.
Anthony Greene vs. Channing Thomas (April’s Hard Not to Act Reckless)
The month prior, Thomas had told then-manager Jon Alba that he wanted to prove himself against a big name. He got one in former two-time LW World Champion Greene. This was a wrestling clinic and one that showed exactly how great Greene is and that Thomas was walking up the driveway to knock on the door of much bigger opportunities later in the year.
LW World Champion Alec Price vs. Lince Dorado (May’s Actin’ Up)
I gotta be honest: I think this match was completely slept on in the awards and was the cherry on top of one of my favorite LW shows of last year. Price continued his run of top performances against top competition, showing he belonged. Dorado was more than game in trying to take home the LW title and was impressive in doing so.
Channing Thomas vs. BRG vs. Mac Daniels (August’s Vacationland Cup)
This match not only had stakes with a VLC spot on the line, but a big backstory with the implosion of Prestigious as discussed in full on an episode of the LW Podcast last year. Three young guys trying to make a name for themselves and going all out in the process plus a big Jon Alba bump? Sign me up.
MSP vs. Dirty Dango & Davey Boy Smith Jr. (September’s Chasing Forever)
This followed Dango’s shocking betrayal of MSP at July’s Crunch Time and MSP’s scathing promo at August’s VLC (that also belonged on the awards list in my opinion.) This was a fun match with some heat to it and featured Smith’s first LW match since September 2019’s Know Your Enemy at the Portland Expo. MSP with a grudge is a fun MSP to watch and we haven’t seen Dango since.
Anthony Greene vs. Andy Brown (October’s LW vs. Blitzkrieg Two Night War, night 1)
This was a great match that opened up the two-night event with a backstory we talked about the podcast. Brown was having some self-doubt issues about his standing and future in pro wrestling and Greene was a key component in telling him to keep going. Good thing he did as Brown is on the cusp of big things in Limitless. This was another underrated match well worth checking out.
B3CCA vs. Kylie Rae (December’s Dirty Laundry)
This was Rae’s Maine and LW debut and she didn’t disappoint, going toe-to-toe with B3CCA in a match that wasn’t just among the best women’s matches of the year but the best overall. With Rae possibly heading to WWE, a rematch between these two may be years away but I hope that someday, it will happen in an LW ring.
Above The Rest vs. The WorkHorsemen (December’s Dirty Laundry)
Talk about a grudge match. Started by a simple comment on social media, both teams went to battle and then some. This was just the second match for ATR in LW and they took it to JD Drake and Anthony Henry who were more than content to give it right back. This is another one I’d love to see run back, perhaps several times.
The Best of the Rest
But wait, there’s more. Here’s my honorary mention list of matches I also enjoyed the hell out of for a variety of reasons — many of them HOSS FIGHTS.
Rip Byson vs. Slade (January’s Cut Loose)
Anthony Greene vs. Nolo Kitano vs. Kevin Blackwood vs. Blanco Loco (January’s Cut Loose)
Anthony Greene vs. Rat Daddy (February’s 2 Hot to Handle)
Rip Byson vs. JD Drake (February’s 2 Hot to Handle)
Beef vs. Slade (March’s The Thrill of It)
Anthony Greene vs. Rip Byson vs. JD Drake (March’s The Thrill of It)
BRG vs. MORTAR vs. Dezmond Cole vs. Ryan Mooney (April’s Hard Not to Act Reckless)
Slade vs. The 1 Called Manders anything goes (May’s Actin’ Up)
Max Caster & Shook Crew vs. Circus Ninjas (August’s Vacationland Cup)
B3CCA vs. LuFisto (October’s Fresh Blood)
Dezmond Cole vs. Bryan Keith (December’s Dirty Laundry)
And there you have it. The 2023 list begins Saturday with Hard to Handle.