(Almost) 5-Star Match Reviews: A Collection of CESARO Matches

If you ever wanted to find someone who encapsulated the debate between a pro wrestler and a pro wrestling star, look no further than Cesaro, a.k.a. Claudio Castagnoli. The man has been wrestling for over twenty-five years and has been all over the world. He’s one of the most universally admired and respected people in his business and has been described with almost exclusively flattering language by his peers. Hell, Paul Heyman once described WWE fumbling him in the mid-2010s as “a crime” because he was such a talented and naturally gifted individual. Some fans, however, have argued that he’s just a good worker and a good worker does not a top star make. His critics have pointed to an alleged lack of charisma, subpar promo delivery, and a generic look reminiscent of a create-a-wrestler template. In other words, Cesaro/Castagnoli is a living, breathing example of the sizzle or steak argument. What sold him to me was when Kevin Steen called him a “human horse” in a shoot promo. Once you look at his matches with that in mind you can’t unsee it. With that, let’s look at a random collection of singles match to see if that reputation holds true.

Claudio Castagnoli vs. El Generico – PWG Battle of Los Angeles 2011

The Story: Pro Wrestling Guerilla is one of the most influential indy promotions of the last three decades. They operate out of California and was essential in cultivating the wackier, spotfest-heavy, humor-laden style that guys like The Young Bucks and their friends would bring to AEW. As a major indy operation outside of the highly concentrated east coast, PWG naturally drew many of today’s top wrestlers through their doors. Many of these wrestlers came only a handful of times per year, such as with its annual tournament called the Battle of Los Angeles. Here in the 2011 edition, a pre-FCW Castagnoli took on ROH and indy mainstay El Generico who was still a good three years away from signing with NXT.

The Match: Castagnoli pushes Generico down and we get an early hold exchange. Generico lands some impressive armdrags but Castagnoli works the arm some more. Generico’s subsequent escapes and counters have a bit of mockery in them so Castagnoli drops him and lands a neck twist. Generico fights out of a neck crank so Castagnoli overpowers him again and works a knuckle lock. Generico counters with a springboard backflip armdrag and lands a leg lariat for two. Generico does the corner punch spot but Castagnoli drops him down face-first. Castagnoli works the back with knees and a pendulum backbreaker into a back stretch. He follows with a straightjacket back stretch but Generico reverses into a straightjacket choke of sorts. Castagnoli powers out and lands some cheap-shots. He applies a bow-and-arrow hold and then counters a headscissor with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a series of two-counts.

A big hammer throw into a corner leaves Generico groaning in pain. Generico escapes a front chancery and attempts a headscissor. Castagnoli tries a powerbomb counter but they botch it slightly so Castagnoli covers with a trio of gutwrench powerbombs for two. Generico ducks a pump kick to send Castagnoli to the floor and hits a suicide senton dive. Generico attempts a dive but Castagnoli catches him in another tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. He winds up for an uppercut but Generico blocks and covers for two. Generico’s tilt-a-whirl headscissor is countered into the UFO…which is then countered into a headscissor. Helluva Kick connects. Castagnoli counters a Brainbuster into a pop-up uppercut for a near-fall. Generico floats over into a crucifix pin for two. Generico attempts to counter the Ricola Bomb with a Code Red. Castagnoli power lifts him to his feet and lariats him for another near-fall. Both men struggle atop a turnbuckle. Castagnoli attempts a Super Ricola Bomb. He dives off and the wrestlers trade pinning positions until Generico’s on top and gets a three-count out of nowhere.

Winner after 15:18: El Generico

You can watch the full match here.

Review: That was a typical indy-style match that worked thanks to the contrast between serious Castagnoli and happy-go-lucky Generico. This dynamic played to both wrestlers’ strengths and created a fun story of Castagnoli brutalizing Generico with his powerful moves whenever he was in control but then getting flustered whenever Generico showed him up. Generico was in his element playing FIP that took a shitkicking until the right moment came up, basically like a taller and heavier version of Rey Mysterio. Despite a slow start things really picked up after the dive with Castagnoli trying frantically to regain control only for Generico to exploit openings more often than not. While it’s not as good as their more famous NXT encounter, this match provided enough of a glimpse of what was yet to come.

Final Rating: ***3/4

WWE United States Championship Match: Kofi Kingston [c] vs. Antonio Cesaro – WWE Main Event, May 1, 2013

The Story: Kingston beat Cesaro two weeks earlier and Cesaro invoked his rematch clause.

The Match: We begin with a technical exchange and a series of unsuccessful pinning predicaments from Cesaro. Kingston counters with a leg scissor for a one-count. They trade armlocks until Cesaro pulls Kingston down by his hair. We get a dropdown sequence and Kingston attempts a back kick but Cesaro catches him in midair and takes him down. Cesaro with a big gutwrench suplex. Kingston answers with a headscissor and a springboard splash. Cesaro bails to ringside and upon returning from commercial we see Cesaro working a chinlock. He follows with a head-butt/enzui leg drop combo for two. A butterfly suplex likewise yields a two-count. Cesaro shuts down a comeback attempt and slaps the back of Kingston’s head. Kingston jumps over Cesaro and fires back with ax handles. Kingston lands his Boom Drop but Cesaro escapes to avoid Trouble in Paradise. Cesaro hotshots him and in the process Kingston’s leg gets caught in the ropes.

Kingston lands the SOS/Ranhei but only gets a two-count. Cesaro counters an Irish whip and hits a Michinoku Driver for two. Another uppercut gets two and Cesaro attempts a Karelin Lift. Kingston teases a sunset flip counter but Cesaro kneels on top for his own cover but Kingston kicks out. Another commercial break ensues and upon return Cesaro misses a corner charge. Kingston springboards onto Cesaro, who catches him in the powerbomb position, only for Kingston to headscissor Cesaro into the steel steps. They struggle back into the ring and Kingston has difficulty ascending the ropes due to his leg. He attempts a top-rope crossbody but Cesaro catches him. Cesaro attempts a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Kingston counters with a cradle for two. Cesaro answers with an uppercut and a double stomp to the bad knee. Kingston fights out of a half-crab and gets a roll-up for two. Cesaro blocks TIP and does a one-leg giant swing back into the half crab. Kingston gets a ropebreak after a long struggle so Cesaro hits his over-the-rope Superplex for two. A scoop slam/double stomp combo likewise gets a near-fall. Back to the half crab. Kingston breaks free so Cesaro dropkicks him. Kingston escapes a Neutralizer, sidesteps on a charge, and lands the TIP to the back of Cesaro’s head out of nowhere to get the three-count!

Winner and STILL WWE United States Champion after 20:28: Kofi Kingston

You can watch the full match here.

Review: This was another hidden gem from what was at the time very much a tertiary show. These two worked wonders together and produced a quality match worthy of the “main event”. Cesaro was a wrestling machine as always and wrestled circles around Kingston which forced the babyface champion to work extremely hard to overcome multiple roadblocks. I never considered Kingston all that impressive especially with his overly simplistic strike-heavy arsenal. Because of his lack of technique compared to his challenger, Kingston had to focus on enduring and waiting for the opportune moment to strike. Sure enough that’s how he won and it was definitely surprising. That said, I found it a bit disappointing that Kingston endured such extensive weakening of his leg yet still hit the TIP with one-hit-KO power. It was more of a surprise victory than a decisive one and made Kingston’s win feel less earned that it should’ve had he made more of a sustained turnaround. Still, for a random match on a show that never got the most focus from WWE’s management, this is as good as it gets.

Final Rating: ****

WWE United States Championship Match: John Cena [c] vs. Cesaro – WWE RAW #1153, June 29, 2015

The Story: During Cena’s US Title Open Challenge series he defeated many wrestlers including Dean Ambrose, Neville, Kane, and Sami Zayn. Eventually he ran afoul then-NXT Champion Kevin Owens, who began interjecting into Cena’s matches. It looked like they would clash in this open challenge but then Owens decided to have someone else take his place: Cesaro

The Match: Owens is on commentary as the match begins with basic hold exchanges. Cesaro attempts a hiptoss but Cena counters with a monkey flip. Cena escapes a deep headlock but Cesaro catches him on a leapfrog and powerslams him for two. Cena attempts to AA out of a headlock but Cesaro drop him. A gutwrench suplex gets a two-count. Cesaro maintains control with strikes and holds, keeping Cena down each time the champion tries countering. Cesaro hammer throws Cena into a corner but Cena retaliates with a dropkick. Cesaro dodges a corner charge and lands a double stomp to the gut followed by mounted forearms to the head. Cesaro gets another near-fall off a diving elbow drop and attempts a Sharpshooter but Cena kicks him off. Cena hits his side suplex but Cesaro clotheslines him before he can land the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Cena resists a giant swing. Cesaro transitions into a catapult toss. Cena reverses that into a springboard stunner for two. Cesaro lands on his feet off an AA attempt and hits a pop-up uppercut for two. Cena reverses a Neutralizer with an STF. Cesaro powers out and reverses into a Sharpshooter. Cena gets a ropebreak. Over-the-rope Superplex. Two-count. Cesaro lands one corner uppercut but Cena blocks the second and hits a Tornado DDT. Two-count. We get a yay/boo punch exchange. Cesaro flips over the rope and onto the apron. He attempts a crossbody. Cena does the Mark Henry spot into a front facebuster. Two-count. Cesaro dropkicks Cena off the top turnbuckle and hits a running uppercut against the barricade. Another two-count. Cena blocks another Neutralizer and hits a Code Red for a near-fall. Cesaro blocks an AA and lands the Neutralizer for two. Cesaro hammers Cena with uppercuts, does the giant swing, and then locks in the Sharpshooter. But here comes Owens to rain on the parade by interfering. There goes the match.

Winner and STILL WWE United States Champion due to a Disqualification after 20:10: John Cena

You can watch the full match here.

Review: While this wasn’t as good as their rematch the following week, this was an exciting match that made the most out of WWE’s noted main-event style match formula. Cesaro dominated the first half while Cena did the other. They had plenty of strong back-and-forth exchanges. It had the typical tense near-falls with Cena busting out rare and unusual techniques to show he wasn’t such a limited or repetitive performer. Cesaro proved himself a worthy challenger by unleashing everything in his arsenal yet Cena still endured. They pushed each other to the limit and it looked like Cesaro could pull off a miracle, only for Owens to cause the DQ. This made sense given the larger the story between Owens and Cena and it had a silver lining in the form of the following week’s rematch. It was a delightful little gem from a bit of a downer of a year and it reminded people that Cena was capable of far more than what he was usually booked to showcase.

Final Rating: ****

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Chris Hero – wXw 16 Carat Gold Tournament 2007

The Story: Westside Xtreme Wrestling (wXw) is a German wrestling promotion operating in the Ruhr Valley area of western Germany, close to Germany’s border with Netherlands. Castagnoli was one of the promotion’s founders and wrestled his first match in the opener of the promotion’s first show. Like many classically-oriented promotions, wXw promoted its own singles tournament, called the 16 Carat Gold Tournament. In this case founder Castagnoli took on his longtime rival Chris Hero in the first round of the tournament’s second iteration. Also, the fans sit right next to the ring and are literally touching it, which means that there’s little chance for the wrestlers to brawl ringside, catch a breather, or stall.

The Match: Basic technical grappling and armwork opens the bout. Hero wrestles into a leg hold but Castagnoli gets a ropebreak. they work a knuckle lock until Hero counters into a double-arm stretch, only for Castagnoli to counter with another armlock variation into a bow-and-arrow hold. Hero transitions to another knuckle hold and they do the bridging power spot until Castagnoli answers with a leg scissor to work Hero’s ribs. That becomes a modified Boston Crab from Hero and then a cover by Castagnoli that ends with a ropebreak. Castagnoli works a leg but Hero counters out of different holds. That leads to an exchange that’s hard to describe because whoever’s recording this either zooms in too much or shakes the camera. Either way, it’s a bit unpleasant of a viewing experience.

Hero lands a dragon screw into a Deathlock-style leg breaker. After a short breather, Hero applies a modified half crab until Castagnoli gets a ropebreak. Hero manages to make a snapmare look vicious and then attacks the leg some more until Castagnoli hits first with a dropkick to Hero’s knee. Castagnoli gets revenge by working Hero’s knee viciously with a wide variety of techniques. He removes Hero’s kneepad and grinds the point of his elbow into it. Despite Hero hitting pretty stiffly to try and escape, Castagnoli lands the single-leg giant swing. Castagnoli lands more attacks to the leg including another single-leg swing and a crazy Figure-Four variation. Hero escapes and tanks multiple hits until he counters with a backslide for two and hits a modified dragon screw. He gets a second wind, springboard dropkicks Castagnoli’s knee, and hits a wild chain cradle for two. He throws Castagnoli off the top rope and locks in his own half crab. Hero attempts an Irish whip but Castagnoli counters into a sort of sideways fireman’s carry spun into a facebuster.

Castagnoli hits the Alpamare Waterslide for two and applies another half crab until Hero gets a ropebreak. he attempts the Ricola Bomb but Hero counters with an armdrag and hits a high kick for a one-count. Both guys trade running pump kicks and one-counts. Hero gets two off a jumping variation and goes to the top rope but Castagnoli cuts him off and hits a run-up headscissor and an uppercut for two. A kneeling Ricola Bomb gets two so Castagnoli locks in a stretch muffler hold. Hero counters with a Texas Cloverleaf. Castagnoli counters back. Hero gets a ropebreak and fights out of a Superplex attempt. Then he diving double stomp’s Castagnoli’s knee and reapplies the Cloverleaf. Castagnoli taps!

Winner after 28:29: Chris Hero

You can watch the full match here.

Review: Despite a bit of difficulty following the action thanks to some “choice” camerawork, this was a great match. It was your typical 2000s indie wrestling with a mixture of old school grappling, limb targeting, sudden turnarounds, wacky holds, and no-selling of strikes. However, the meat of this contest centered on the wrestlers’ dueling leg strategies which turned this into a gritty battle of survival over whose approach would win out in the end. They used the flashier indy stuff as distraction or flair while putting most emphasis on their submission holds and targeted attacks. Both wrestlers retold the same story with newer and in some cases experimental techniques which both looked interesting and made sense given what they were going for. It was far from a spotfest or overly ludicrous since both men remained grounded in a sense of realism that wasn’t always found on the independent scene. Thankfully they followed through with that story to the very end and tweaked existing moves to fit the story, rather than build a story around existing techniques. All in all an exciting match from a largely unknown promotion.

Final Rating: ****1/4

WWE Universal Championship Match: Roman Reigns [c] vs. Cesaro – WrestleMania Backlash 2021

The Story: At long last, Cesaro gets a world title shot. After ten years, Cesaro earned a shot following an important victory over Seth Rollins at WrestleMania. However, standing in his way was an in-his-prime Roman Reigns who, on that same ‘Mania card, defeated both Edge and Daniel Bryan so emphatically he stacked them up and pinned them both at once. He was in prime form as a wrestler and as a character. Despite Cesaro’s momentum, Reigns wasn’t worried as he believed what many observers noted: that being a workhorse just wasn’t enough. Given Reigns’ progress and dominance, few expected Reigns to lose yet there was still enough of a curiosity factor in seeing what Cesaro would do in such a one-sided, pressure-heavy environment.

The Match: They jockey for control until a stalemate occurs. We get some basic hold exchanges until Reigns knocks Cesaro down with a shoulderblock. A dropdown sequence ends with s shoulderblock from Cesaro for a one-count of his own. Cesaro attempts some quick roll-ups but Reigns escapes each time and bails to ringside. Reigns hits back with shoulders to the gut but Cesaro hits back with a springboard uppercut. Reigns blocks a giant swing and dumps Cesaro ringside. Cesaro appears to tweak his left shoulder but toughs it out, only for Reigns to drop him once back in the ring. Reigns attacks the shoulder and works the neck with headlocks and cravates. Reigns lands a suplex and kicks Cesaro in a corner while showing a look of disgust on his face. Cesaro escapes another cravate but Reigns knocks him down for a one-count. Cesaro fights out again but Reigns answers with a one-arm Samoan Drop.

Reigns attempts a Superman Punch but Cesaro hits a pop-up uppercut first. He hits a trio of corner uppercuts and a high kick for two. Cesaro attacks the left leg but Reigns gets a ropebreak. then Cesaro lands a corkscrew plancha to the floor. Reigns rolls away to safety but Cesaro chases him down and uppercuts him into the barricade. A top-rope crossbody gets Cesaro a two-count. Reigns blocks an over-the-rope Superplex and counters a second attempt with kicks to Cesaro’s head while pulling his right arm. Reigns continues attacking the arm with a drive-by dropkick to the bicep and shoulder that sends Cesaro into a ringpost. One, two, Cesaro survives. Reigns is all smiles as he twists the arm and lands over-the-shoulder armbreakers. Cesaro breaks free but eats a clothesline. Reigns gloats and talks more smack as he lands knees to Cesaro’s midsection. Another high kick and more trash-talking. Cesaro strikes back, tanks more shots to the arm, and surprises Reigns with a discus lariat. Cesaro fires up and attack with any limb he can. Despite the pain his arm he lands his over-the-rope Superplex for two.

Reigns blocks a Sharpshooter so Cesaro double stomps his gut. Cesaro attempts a Neutralizer but his bad arm gives out, allowing Reigns to counter with a Fujiwara armbar. Cesaro rolls into a cradle for two and attempts a springboard – only to eat a Superman Punch. Two-count. Reigns teases a spear. Cesaro hits an uppercut. He attempts a pop-up but the arm gives out again. Reigns locks in a guillotine choke. Cesaro deadlifts him into a sort of spinebuster and forces his way into a Sharpshooter. Reigns reaches out. Cesaro transitions into a Crossface. Reigns moves forward. Cesaro rolls him to the middle of the ring. Reigns takes advantage of the weakened arm to power out and land ground-and-pound forearms. A deadlift powerbomb gets Reigns a two-count. Cesaro blocks more forearms. Reigns mounts him and wrestles into a front chancery and then floats over into another guillotine choke. Cesaro powers up one again. Reigns tightens the hold and brings him back to the mat. Cesaro resists until his head turns purple and then he goes limp. The referee calls for the bell. Reigns retains!

Winner and STILL WWE Universal Champion by referee’s decision after 27:30: Roman Reigns

You can watch the full match here.

Review: Hell yeah, this was amazing. THIS Roman Reigns was awesome: trash-talking, cocky, menacing, aggressive, unforgiving, and most importantly, CAPABLE OF WINNING ON HIS OWN. For years WWE kept repeating the same unclean, controversy-laden finishes that led to the dreaded “50/50 booking” trope or frustration from audiences who wanted genuine conclusion to matches. That closure is what we got here as Cesaro fought with all he had yet couldn’t match Reigns’ viciousness. He brought his A-game and went up against an in-his-prime champion who was no longer boxed in by the goody-goody babyface constraints imposed on him by 2010s Vince McMahon. Reigns was excellent during this period, wrestling like a confident master who backed up his arrogance with a mix of power and clever technique. He used strategy against Cesaro by attacking the right arm which took away Cesaro’s signature striking game and made it much harder for Cesaro to deliver consistent damage. LOGIC IN A ROMAN REIGNS SINGLES MATCH, who’d have ever thought that would appear? But Cesaro fought bravely nevertheless and put on an underdog performance of a lifetime. He fought fearlessly, threw whatever he could, and tried relying on his strength advantage only to come up short. Aside from being a great match, this performance showcased Reigns’ growth as a performer and his transition to a more dynamic performer. He got the guillotine choke over, showed a more cerebral side to his wrestling, and made the most out of the match’s downtime by playing the trash-talking final boss/mafia don type that The Rock wishes he was. The wrestling was well-executed, they avoided the temptation of a murky finish, and the finish was definitive without the need of the typical parade of finishers and kickouts. Even the commentary was better than usual with Michael Cole balancing neutrality and description with support for Reigns and an investment in Cesaro trying to make a fairytale come true. While that didn’t happen, this match is definitely one of the best matches of both men’s career. Hell, I’d go so far as to say this is Reigns’ best singles match in terms of bell-to-bell action prior to 2026. Seek this out if you haven’t already.

Final Rating: ****3/4

As always, thanks for reading.