KENTA is simultaneously one of the most influential and one of the most underrated wrestlers of his generation. His in-ring work embodies Japanese strong style; he employs an arsenal of hard-hitting strikes and submission maneuvers. KENTA has wrestled in numerous promotions across the globe, most notably Pro Wrestling NOAH, Ring of Honor, and New Japan Pro Wrestling where he is currently a member of Bullet Club.

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For a career as extensive and consistent as KENTA’s, narrowing down his top 10 matches can be quite the ordeal. That’s why sites like Cagematch exist. The following is a list of the best matches of KENTA’s career, as voted by hundreds of fans on Cagematch.net.

10 KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji vs. Makoto Hashi & Yoshinobu Kanemaru (9.33)

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For much of his career, KENTA wrestled as a junior heavyweight. This match takes place early in his career, specifically on September 12, 2003. The notability of this match is greatly boosted by the fact that KENTA is teaming with Naomichi Marufuji, one of the greatest rivals of his career.

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Additionally, the two are up against one of the most underrated junior heavyweights of all time, the cunning Yoshinobu Kanemaru of NJPW's Suzuki-Gun.

9 KENTA & Kenta Kobashi VS.Katsuhiko Nakajima & Kensuke Sasaki (9.34)

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For fans unfamiliar with Kenta Kobashi, he is perhaps the most influential mentor in KENTA’s career, along with several other wrestlers Kobashi inspired. He retired in 2010, making this match from June 2008 one of the last in his legendary career. He and KENTA didn’t always see eye to eye, but they worked together here and put on a tag team classic.

8 KENTA vs. Bryan Danielson (9.35)

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Bryan Danielson and KENTA are two generational athletes. Their styles also line up with each other well; both are capable of extremely brutal strikes while being proficient in technical wrestling as well. This dream match from ROH in June 2007 is a real gem and well worth a watch.

7 KENTA & Go Shiozaki vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima & Kensuke Sasaki (9.39)

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KENTA is perhaps most known for his matches in Pro Wrestling NOAH, and for good reason. In NOAH, KENTA was able to consistently wrestle with athletes who worked just as stiff as he did. This led to a lot of venomous, stunning strikes that wowed audiences. This tag match, featuring staples of Pro Wrestling NOAH is one example of that.

6 KENTA & Taiji Ishimori vs. Kota Ibushi & Naomichi Marufuji (9.52)

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Junior heavyweights in NOAH, much like those in NJPW, are known for their fast-paced, high-flying matches. This match was meant to be a fairly standard showcase of the division but turned into something so much more. Not only did it feature three amazing athletes in their primes with Ishimori, KENTA, and Marufuji, but it also featured the up-and-coming Kota Ibushi.

5 KENTA, Akihiko Ito, Atsushi Aoki, & Kenta Kobashi vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima, Kensuke Sasaki, Kento Miyahara & Takashi Okita (9.52)

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This tag match from August 2008 was the result of an inter-promotional feud between Pro Wrestling NOAH and Diamond Ring, a now-defunct promotion that was also known as the Kensuke Office. The match features a good mix of daredevil rookies and tough veterans, both fighting tooth and nail for the honor of their team.

4 KENTA vs. Low Ki (9.53)

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As old-school fans know, Ring of Honor used to be the American capital of strong style professional wrestling. This match from 2005’s Final Battle PPV demonstrates that clear as day. It features KENTA and one of ROH’s top stars of the time, Low-Ki. The environment of this match also adds to its intensity. Mid-2000s ROH had one of the most consistently hot crowds since ECW. This match was no exception.

3 KENTA vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima (9.53)

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This match from February 2009 is another bout from the feud between NOAH’s faction, BURNING, and the Kensuke Office. KENTA’s opponent, Katsuhiko Nakajima, is a rookie at this point in his career. Nevertheless, he was able to go toe-to-toe with one of the sport’s very best for the entirety of this 40-minute banger of a match.

2 KENTA vs. Bryan Danielson (9.57)

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This ROH match from September 2006 is the first of four singles meetings between KENTA and Bryan Danielson. The two fought twice in ROH and twice in Pro Wrestling NOAH. Each time they would go into the ring intent on destroying each other. This match, at least according to users of Cagematch, was their greatest encounter and one of the best matches of each man’s career.

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Given who these two men are, their matches contain a lot of strikes, all delivered with incredible force. Not every wrestler is tough enough to fight in this style, but those that are can put on otherworldly showings of violence like these two.

1 KENTA vs. Naomichi Marufuji (9.68)

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This match from October 2006 is everything a fan could want out of professional wrestling. KENTA and Naomichi Marufuji have incredible chemistry. On their own, each athlete is one of the best of their generation. This match between them is predictably one of the best in Pro Wrestling NOAH’s history. It’s a modern classic that still holds up as iconic, even almost two decades later.