The Best of the Super Juniors continued on Sunday from Korakuen Hall.
El Desperado vs. Francesco Akira headlined the show. Hiromu Takahashi vs. Taiji Ishimori was the night’s semi-main event.
BOSJ 30 night eight 5/21 full results:
- B Block: El Desperado defeated Francesco Akira
- A Block: Hiromu Takahashi defeated Taiji Ishimori via referee stoppage
- B Block: YOH defeated Kevin Knight
- A Block: Lio Rush defeated TJP
- B Block: Dan Moloney defeated Robbie Eagles
- A Block: Mike Bailey defeated Ryusuke Taguchi
- B Block: Master Wato defeated BUSHI
- A Block: KUSHIDA defeated SHO
- B Block: Clark Connors defeated Yoshinobu Kanemaru
- A Block: Titan defeated DOUKI
Titan kept his chances of advancing in the tournament alive when he made DOUKI submit in the opener. He faces Hiromu Takahashi on the final night of A Block round-robin action.
Clark Connors initially kept his chances of advancing alive with a win over Yoshinobu Kanemaru, although results later in the night eventually eliminated him. He picked up the victory with No Chaser.
KUSHIDA had to overcome a lot of cheating by the House of Torture to defeat SHO. Kevin Knight helped fend off EVIL’s efforts to interfere and KUSHIDA finally locked in the Hoverboard Lock for the win. It’s been a difficult tournament for the former two-time BOSJ winner. He sits at just four points with one match to go.
Master Wato became the first wrestler in the tournament to get to 12 points with his win over BUSHI with a German suplex. He has Kevin Knight in his final match. BUSHI’s record in the tournament drops to 1-7.
Mike Bailey became the first wrestler in the A Block to get to 12 points when he beat Taguchi with a pinning combination. He’s looking good to advance and faces Lio Rush in his final match. Taguchi, in his 20th BOSJ, drops to 0-8.
Kevin Kelly noted that Dan Moloney is wrestling with a separated shoulder. Despite this, Robbie Eagles focussed on his leg for much of the match. Just when it looked like Eagles had the match in the bag, Moloney hit the Drill Killa for the win. Moloney improved to six points but doesn’t have a chance to advance. Eagles sits at 10 points and will still have an opportunity to make the semi-finals. He faces El Desperado on the final night of B Block round robin action.
Lio Rush picked up a hard fought victory over TJP, finishing off his opponent with the Final Hour. He improves to 12 points and will face Mike Bailey, who also has 12 points, on the final night.
YOH improved to 12 points as well with a win over Kevin Knight. He will face Kanemaru on the final night.
Takahashi vs. Ishimori had to be stopped early when Ishimori was unable to continue. He took a big clothesline that looked like it caught him on the chin moments before the match was stopped and Takahashi was declared the winner. However, he appeared to be favoring his shoulder as he was helped to the back. Takahashi joins Bailey and Lio Rush atop A Block with 12 points. He takes on Titan on the final night of round robin action. Ishimori, technically still in the running, is scheduled to face TJP if he is medically cleared to do so.
El Desperado became the third wrestler in B Block to reach 12 points when he defeated Francesco Akira in the main event. The finish of the match saw TJP attempt to throw in the towel for his United Empire teammate but Akira ended up throwing the towel out of the ring. Then it looked like referee Hiroyuki Unno was going to stop the match but Akira kept coming. Finally, Akira submitted to Numero Dos, eliminating him from playoff contention.
A Block —
- Mike Bailey (6-2) — 12 points
- Lio Rush (6-2) — 12 points
- Hiromu Takahashi (6-2) — 12 points
- Taiji Ishimori (5-3) — 10 points
- Titan (5-3) — 10 points
- TJP (4-4) — 8 points
- DOUKI (3-5) — 6 points
- SHO (3-5) — 6 points
- KUSHIDA (2-6) — 4 points
- Ryusuke Taguchi (0-8) — 0 points
B Block —
- Master Wato (6-2) — 12 points
- YOH (6-2) — 12 points
- El Desperado (6-2) — 12 points
- Robbie Eagles (5-3) — 10 points
- Francesco Akira (4-4) — 8 points
- Clark Connors (4-4) — 8 points
- Kevin Knight (3-5) — 6 points
- Dan Moloney (3-5) — 6 points
- Yoshinobu Kanemaru (2-6) — 4 points
- BUSHI (1-7) — 2 points
The tournament continues on Tuesday from Osaka. The final night of action for the A Block will take place on the show.
BOSJ 30 night nine, A Block, 5/23 lineup:
- Ryusuke Taguchi vs. KUSHIDA
- Titan vs. Hiromu Takahashi
- DOUKI vs. SHO
- Mike Bailey vs. Lio Rush
- TJP vs. Taiji Ishimori
BOSJ 30 night ten, B Block, 5/24 lineup:
- BUSHI vs. Francesco Akira
- El Desperado vs. Robbie Eagles
- Master Wato vs. Kevin Knight
- Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. YOH
- Dan Moloney vs. Clark Connors
The top two in each Block advance to the semifinals, which will take place on Friday from Yoyogi National Gymnasium. The finals are on Sunday from Ota City General Gymnasium.
