Ricky Starks has been awarded his first five-star match by Dave Meltzer, following his incredible fight against Bryan Danielson at AEW All Out 2023.
The pair fought in a strap match on the pay per view, with Danielson coming to the rescue fo Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat.
Starks had previously attacked Steamboat, whipping him with a belt before challenging him to the match. The WWE Hall of Famer chose Bryan Danielson to replace him, setting him up for the match at All Out 2023.
Danielson and Starks had one of the hardest-hitting matches in AEW history. Kicks, forearms and simply whipping each other with the strap, nothing was off limits for these two.
Ricky Steamboat even got involved, hitting punches and chips onto Big Bill after he tried to get involved in the finish of the match.
Without Starks taking the lead in the strap match, the bout would be nowhere near the five-star rating that it truly deserved.
Ricky Starks was originally supposed to wrestle CM Punk in the bout. He was embroiled in a feud with the Best in the World over his “Real World Championship”, and the pair both held one win each over each other.
However, Punk was fired by AEW just one day before All Out, so Danielson was drafted in on Collision to replace him.
When Dave Meltzer gave the match a five-star rating in the Wrestling Observer, it gave Ricky Starks the first five-star match of his career.