The Battle of Los Angeles is the big annual tournament for PWG where most of the best wrestlers on the independent circuit compete against each other. PWG has a strong reputation for having some of the best stars today wrestle there when making their names. Talents like Kevin Owens, AJ Styles and Kenny Omega left their footprints in PWG’s history.BOLA often created the strongest interest for PWG with fans dreaming of potential matches as the rounds go by with endless possibilities. The most fascinating matches are worth seeking out for fans wanting to witness the big names going at it. PWG thrived thanks to the matches like the ones to take place during BOLA.
10 Kevin Owens Vs Finlay (2011)
One of the most unlikely matches to take place in PWG featured the legendary Finlay appearing in the 2011 Battle of Los Angeles tournament. Kevin Owens was selected to face Finlay in the first round to create interest.
The match was a hard-hitting fun time with Owens taking the victory. Later interviews saw Owens calling Finlay one of the best opponents of his career. Finlay had a few great matches on the indie circuit during his short time in between WWE stints in the early 2010s.
9 Seth Rollins Vs Alex Shelley (2007)
Seth Rollins didn’t spend as much time in PWG as most of the other names on this list, but he certainly found an opportunity in small spurts. The young Rollins had huge potential and certainly fulfilled that by today.
Alex Shelley was the opponent of Rollins when facing off in the 2007 Battle of Los Angeles. Rollins and Shelley had a great 20-minute match that saw Shelley advancing in the tournament. The performance of Rollins was enough to make him stand out positively.
8 Bryan Danielson Vs Davey Richards (2008)
There were a few appearances for Bryan Danielson in the PWG Battle of Los Angeles tournament, but one forgotten gem featured him facing off with Davey Richards. Fans often overlook Richards’ success in wrestling due to his early retirement before recently returning.
However, the idea of Danielson and Richards facing off in 2008 was a dream match for fans of technical wrestling. Danielson won the intense match to move forward in the tournament by making Richards tap out.
7 Kevin Owens Vs Johnny Gargano (2013)
The success of Johnny Gargano in wrestling started to take off when Kevin Owens was viewed as the top indie star. PWG booked them face off in the second round of the Battle of Los Angeles tournament back in 2013.
Gargano defeating Owens to advance in the tournament was a huge upset that helped him get more over moving forward. William Regal attended this event as a WWE scout and it played a role in Owens getting hired the following year.
6 Kenny Omega Vs Ricochet (2014)
Two of the most exciting wrestlers in the world were starting to find their groove in 2014 when Kenny Omega faced off with Ricochet. PWG became a favorite promotion for each performer long before their current status in the business.
Ricochet pulled out a surprise victory over Omega in the semi-finals of the Battle of Los Angeles tournament. PWG was arguably at its peak around this time with a hot crowd popping for every second of exciting action.
5 Penta El Cero Miedo Vs Matt Riddle (2017)
AEW and WWE each currently sees Penta El Cero Miedo and Matt Riddle as tag team stars with big singles potential. The unlikely pair had a match for PWG during the Battle of Los Angeles tournament of 2017.
PWG booked it for the second round, and it was arguably the best of that entire round’s matches. Riddle scored the victory over Penta to advance, but fans were just excited to see the unexpected dream match booked on the fly.
4 AJ Styles Vs Roderick Strong (2014)
One of the strange yet fascinating matches to tale place in the 2014 Battle of Los Angeles tournament featured a rare AJ Styles appearance. NJPW hiring Styles and making him a top star made it a rule that he couldn’t lose on smaller shows.
PWG booked Styles against Roderick Strong in the second round and had to book a way for Styles to lose without getting pinned. The DQ finish allowed Strong to advance, but it was the first DQ for PWG in many years since they ditched that concept.
3 Kenny Omega Vs Kevin Owens (2009)
Rumors of Kevin Owens joining AEW when his WWE contract expires already has fans hoping for a dream match against Kenny Omega. Both stars faced off in PWG over twelve years for the 2009 Battle of Los Angeles.
Omega scored the win in a fun match to advance, but the duo could have a much bigger impact facing off today. The improvement makes this one of the biggest realistic attraction matches if Owens goes to AEW to deliver a rematch to the forgotten PWG bout.
2 Adam Cole Vs Sami Zayn (2012)
The career of Adam Cole started to take off around 2012 with great stints in Ring of Honor and PWG. A forgotten match from Cole’s PWG run came in the 2012 Battle of Los Angeles tournament against Sami Zayn under the El Generico gimmick.
The first round match saw fans expecting Generico to win as the established PWG main eventer, but Cole spoiled that by advancing. PWG believed strongly enough in Cole to go all the way and win the entire tournament against most predictions.
1 Kevin Owens Vs AJ Styles (2005)
The careers of Kevin Owens and AJ Styles saw them both having strong stints in the early stages of PWG. Styles thrived working the indies in between his TNA time and Owens was trying to break out to get more opportunities.
The Battle of Los Angeles tournament of 2005 featured the first of its kind having Owens and Styles facing off in the second round. Styles advanced as the bigger name and went to the finals before falling short to homegrown PWG talent Chris Bosh.