From Wednesday, December 31st, through Sunday, January 4th, independent professional wrestling hoped to ring in the new year in a big way. With Beyond Wrestling, GCW, and FSW saying goodbye to 2025 on New Year’s Eve, and West Coast Pro Wrestling ringing in the new year on the first weekend with a big event, here are five must-see matches from the weekend.

5. Alpha Zo vs. Shimbashi from West Coast Pro’s “Operation Stackola”

On Sunday, January 4th, West Coast Pro kicked off its 2026 in a big way as they returned to Oakland, CA, for it’s event, “Operation Stackola.” This show saw a bunch of great action, including Vinnie Massaro defending the West Coast Pro Heavyweight Championship against Danny Orion, Johnnie Robbie defending her West Coast Pro Women’s Championship against Jordan Blade, and so much more. However, the match that stole the show saw Alpha Zo meet Shimbashi in a number one contender’s match for the West Coast Pro Heavyweight Championship. I went into this match not knowing a ton about Shimbashi. However, in my first sighting of him, I was not disappointed. He looked excellent in this one and put up a fantastic showing against one of the best on the West Coast to do it, Alpha Zo. Zo is someone I’m much more familiar with. I’ve become a massive fan of his with all the times I’ve seen him at West Coast Pro, and it just seems impossible for him to have a “bad” match. Zo is one of the hardest workers I think I’ve ever seen inside of a professional wrestling ring. He’s an absolute star waiting in the wings to shine for any major promotion. Together, Zo and Shimbashi made magic for a shot at the top prize in West Coast Pro. They both knew it wouldn’t be easy to get past the other, but God damn, they both gave it their all in this one. I was exhausted even watching these two go at it. That’s how good it was. You felt every move, and you felt the exhaustion radiating off of Zo and Shimbashi. The craziest part about it is that this match can be watched free of charge, not behind any pay wall whatsoever. So, there’s really no excuse. Go and check this one out on the West Coast Pro YouTube channel now.

4. Brittnie Brooks vs. Fallyn Grey from FSW’s “Countdown 2 Midnight”

On the final day of the year of 2025, we saw Future Stars of Wrestling say goodbye to 2025. The night saw some great matches, including an FSW Title match between G Sharpe and Bryce Saturn, Sky High face off with The Asylum, and so much more. However, the match that stole the night for FSW for me was the one that saw Brittnie Brooks put her FSW Women’s Title on the line against one of her biggest rivals in the year of 2025, Fallyn Grey. For those who don’t know, Brooks may be the best unsigned talent on the independent wrestling scene today. Brooks is a mainstay on the West Coast, but is finally branching to the East Coast, as well. She’s one of the most talented, charismatic, and impressive young guns around today. Her future in this world is beyond bright. She will wind up in the WWE one day, for sure. Do you know who else will have a similar track record if she keeps going the way she is? Her opponent in this one, Fallyn Grey. Grey is my 2026 women’s breakout star of the year, and for good reason. Grey has impressed every single time that she has stepped in the ring. She has the potential to do great things in this world. Whether she’s a babyface or a heel, Grey knows how to make fans feel things that very few know how to do in this world. From her presentation to her talent when the bell rings, Grey has it all. While they face off quite often, Brooks and Grey never cease to amaze me when they share the ring. Brooks and Grey will go down to be one of the best women’s rivalries in all of 2025, and perhaps one of the best rivalries to put the West Coast scene back on the map. Yes, they are truly that good. Go back and watch this one available anytime on TitleMatchNetwork.

3. Donovan Dijak vs. Eye Black Jack from Beyond Wrestling’s “Heavy Lies The Crown”

On New Year’s Eve, Beyond Wrestling held its final, and one of it’s biggest shows of the year, “Heavy Lies The Crown.” This was a very, very, VERY long show. According to IWTV, the show ran for five hours and two minutes. However, you know what was most interesting about that? It didn’t even feel that long. One of the best matches of the show saw Donovan Dijak make his return to Beyond Wrestling to face off with one of the hottest, young up-and-comers, Eye Black Jack. Jack Pasquale has had arguably one of the best rookie years in independent wrestling that we have ever seen. It’s astonishing to think that he’s only had 75-ish matches and he’s already this good. Jack started training in the summer of 2024 and took off almost instantaneously on Wrestling Open. He has the look, the style, and the charisma to do great things in this business. However, he had one of the toughest challenges of his young career in this one as he faced off with Donovan Dijak. Since being released from WWE, Dijak has been on a whole other level. He truly hasn’t missed a step in the ring and has become one of the “kings of the indies,” as Jack put it to PWPonderings in a recent interview. But it’s very easy to see why he thinks that, because it’s hard to argue. This was one of the best pure wrestling matches on the entire show. Pasquale is in line to be a breakout star in 2026, and with performances like that, it’s easy to see why. Following the match, Dijak even hopped on the microphone and put Jack over as the “future of professional wrestling.” Very big words from one of the independent scene’s biggest stars. Go back and check this one out on the Beyond Wrestling IWTV VOD channel.

2. 1 Called Manders vs. Zachary Wentz from GCW’s “Do Or Die”

On New Year’s Eve, Game Changer Wrestling said goodbye to 2025 with the only way they know how to, a very fun wrestling show, of course. This show saw a lot of different types of wrestling, some violent, some serious, some playful, but most of the wrestling we saw was good. However, there was one case where I absolutely loved the entire match from start to finish, and that was the singles bout which saw 1 Called Manders face off with Zachary Wentz. Without giving too much away, these two encapsulated every type of wrestling into their single match. It started out with a little bit of comedy, then it got serious, and then we saw Manders and Wentz do what they do better than a majority of independent wrestlers around today. Manders is one of my personal favorites to watch around today. He’s a cowboy, and he’s a great callback to the early days of JBL, known as Bradshaw at the time. Manders is a hard-hitting bruiser who is not afraid to mix it up with whoever you put in front of him. There’s a reason that whenever you see Manders on the card, you know you’re about to have an absolute banger of a match. His opponent in this one was an excellent dance partner. Wentz is a high-flying maniac who has fun wrestling, but is not afraid to get serious when the time comes. He absorbed all of Manders’ big hits and came back with bigger hits of his own. Everything Wentz does in the ring is so fluid, and whether in TNA or on the independent scene, Wentz is continuing to amaze fans with the stuff he can pull out of his repertoire. After the match, Manders cut a promo about how he and Wentz used to live together in Dayton, OH. They know each other so well, and that was on full display in this one. This truly was my show stealer of the night for GCW on New Year’s Eve. Go back and check this one out on TrillerTV+.

1. Aaron Rourke & Marcus Mathers vs. The Shooter Boys (Aaron Ortiz & Anthony Vecchio) from Beyond Wrestling’s “Heavy Lies The Crown”

From top to bottom, the Beyond Wrestling “Heavy Lies The Crown” card was absolutely stacked. We saw so many good matches and so much amazing action. However, perhaps one of the best matches of the night saw Aaron Rourke team up with Marcus Mathers to face off with The Shooter Boys’ Aaron Ortiz & Anthony Vecchio. This was a match that had a lot at stake for the Wrestling Open tag team division. This match marked Mathers’ 140th, and final, match of 2025, and he didn’t disappoint. As a matter of fact, nobody in this match did. It’s no secret how good Mathers and Aaron Rourke are, but seeing them in the ring together doing whatever they’re doing is always going to be a treat. Mathers has one of the brightest futures in the world of professional wrestling, and the same can be said for Rourke. They were/are both WWE ID prospects for a reason. Now, the world is beginning to find out what the independent wrestling fans already know: how damn good they are. Mathers is back on the independent scene now more often, with his WWE ID prospect run coming to an end. This is a treat for the wrestling world and the independent wrestling scene. Unfortunately, it happened, but Mathers is going to continue to show the world exactly how damn good he is, and this match proved just that. Rourke is a monumental player in the LGBTQ+ scene, and everything he does in the ring is done for his community. As for The Shooter Boys, they have to be two of the hottest up-and-comers around today. They are a call back to great mat-based tag teams like American Alpha, and of course, the World’s Greatest Tag Team. The Shooter Boys are one of my favorite tag teams on the independent scene, and they have such a bright future ahead of them. Ortiz and Vecchio complement each other very well, and if they continue going at this rate, they will be one of the best tag teams to ever do it. Seriously, go check all four of these guys out, and be sure to go watch this match, now available on the Beyond Wrestling IWTV VOD channel.