Probably the definitive Fit Finlay v Chris Benoit slobberknocker. I always remembered this for the violence and obviously it's stiff as a bastard, but watching it this time I felt like the stiffness was only the fourth best thing about it. A thing that maybe we should be hesitant to find enjoyment in given the history of Chris Benoit's brain, but that can be a bridge of self-reflection for another day. Either way, this was all about the struggle. The whole thing was a struggle. Nothing ever comes easy with Finlay and he'll make you earn absolutely everything. Obviously Benoit has some of the best move execution ever and obviously he worked stiff anyway, but Finlay was the perfect opponent for him because he'd make sure Benoit had to fight to get anything off. Every strike felt meaningful, every chop or forearm, everything that was attempted that didn't come off, and I know that sounds silly on the surface but it was honestly the vibe I got from this (and the same went the other way, with Benoit making Finlay earn his keep). Basically every hold or move had some kind of resistance from the opponent, some kind of pushback that meant it couldn't just be carried out like the person taking it was a warm body. The early matwork is about as close to Battlarts as you'll ever get in the WWE and it all looked snug and mean and painful and extremely uncooperative. Benoit hits the triple Germans and Finlay is trying to stick a finger in his eye in between suplexes. Benoit will not be turned over into a pin so Finlay just cranks his neck and forces him onto his back. Finlay tries to kick Benoit in the gut and Benoit grabs his leg and rips him into a dragon screw and it did not look like Finlay was prepared to manoeuvre himself into that bump. Then there was plenty of the regular savagery with them throwing forearms to the back of the head and headbutts and elbows to the neck and slapping the jaw off each other. That slap Benoit threw from his knees was unbelievable and Finlay's reaction was tremendous, backpedalling like a bully who bit off more than he could chew and did not in fact want the smoke. It's been ages since I've watched Finlay and I still love him, for all the reasons mentioned already but also for the little moments of shithousery in amongst the bastardry. He called Robinson over at one point to check his eye, clearly trying to draw Benoit into letting his guard down, and Benoit just stood there without taking his eyes off him, knowing exactly what the play was. When Finlay knew it wasn't working he waited until Robinson moved across Benoit's line of vision and basically used the wee fella as a shield so he could clonk Benoit with a forearm. When he took over for the first time it was with an eye poke and there was nothing feigned about that one, then he clotheslined Benoit out his boots. In general I liked how the match was structured, with the early parts mostly worked even, everything being laid in enough that something simple felt like it could swing momentum, before Finlay managed an actual run on top. The heat may have started to dip a little before Benoit's final comeback, but they sure brought the crowd back after the German on the floor. I thought the finish was great too, the sort of thing that works especially well in a match where even the low end stuff looks like it could end the thing. It's also sort of jarring how much Finlay here looks like my da does now, although thankfully my da never beat the brakes off me and I should count myself lucky that he merely abandoned me as a child. This might be a top 20 WWE match ever.
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