The quarterfinals of the New Japan Cup started during today’s show from Korakuen Hall. Here are the results of the preliminary matches and a full report of the Cup matches.
Nagata won via submission over Kidd with the Nagata Lock II.
Jay White, Bad Luck Fale, & Chase Owens defeated Juice Robinson, David Finlay, & Toa Henare (10:46)
Fale pinned Henare with the Grenade. White faces Finlay in two days in the Cup quarterfinals.
Will Ospreay & Jeff Cobb defeated SANADA & BUSHI (8:34)
Cobb pinned BUSHI with the Tour of the Islands. Ospreay faces SANADA in two days in the Cup quarterfinals.
New Japan Cup quarterfinal: EVIL defeated Toru Yano (7:54)
This was about as compact and focused as a Yano match gets. It wasn’t a classic or anything, but it was entertaining.
Dick Togo was out there with EVIL as always. Yano demanded that Togo leave ringside, but was nearly counted out while he waited. EVIL attacked when Yano made his way back to the ring, then distracted the official as Togo attacked on the floor. EVIL then sent Yano into the barricade, knocking down the timekeeper in the process.
Back in the ring, EVIL used various nefarious means to beat down Yano. Togo consistently got involved. Yano nearly got the upper hand through a whip into an exposed turnbuckle, but EVIL turned the tables and resumed the beatdown.
Yano finally made his comeback by yanking EVIL down by his hair and sending him into the exposed turnbuckle. He sent Togo packing and hit a belly-to-belly suplex on EVIL.
Yano sent EVIL face-first into the exposed buckle and rolled him up for a near fall. He then sent EVIL to the floor and choked him with Togo’s wire before tossing EVIL underneath the ring. The count almost reached 20, but then the lights suddenly went out. EVIL appeared back in the ring, hit Everything is EVIL, and pinned Yano to advance to the semifinals.
New Japan Cup quarterfinal: Shingo Takagi defeated KENTA (23:47)
This match was disappointing. The final five minutes were excellent, but the crowd was dead silent for KENTA’s heat segment, which took up half the match’s duration.
KENTA immediately powdered to the floor and stalled. After a minute or so, he came back into the ring and they locked up. KENTA kept pulling Shingo’s hair so they transitioned into exchanging forearms. After a snapmare, KENTA laid in kicks, but Shingo hit a body slam. Shingo laid in repeated strikes in the corner before his attack moved to the floor.
Shingo attempted to bring KENTA back into the ring, but KENTA rolled to the outside and attacked Shingo with the bell in the same manner he had been attacking people with his briefcase. He hit a DDT on the floor, forcing Shingo to make his way back in the ring to beat the count. KENTA resumed his beatdown in the ring, cranking on Shingo’s neck and laying in more kicks. This heat segment went a long time, almost ten full minutes.
The crowd was behind Shingo as he fired up and hit his signature strike combo. He downed KENTA with a shoulder block and followed it up with repeated knee drops. KENTA hit a DDT, but Shingo just pressed his way right out of it and hit a big vertical suplex. KENTA hit his twisting DDT into the top rope followed by a diving clothesline for two. He then went for Game Over, but Shingo was too close to the ropes.
They traded forearms before KENTA caught a boot and hit the Shibata corner dropkick. Shingo rolled out of the way of the double foot stomp and hit a DDT. KENTA avoided the sliding lariat and hit a draping DDT of his own before following it up with a fisherman’s buster. He landed the diving foot stomp for two. Shingo went for Made in Japan, but KENTA fought out and locked on Game Over, but Shingo reached the ropes again.
KENTA hit a tiger suplex, but Shingo popped up and flattened him with a Pumping Bomber. The crowd finally got really into it at this point, 20 minutes into the match. They traded forearms before Shingo caught one and turned it into Made in Japan for two. They had a great stiff strike exchange where KENTA baited Shingo into forearms before catching him with repeated backhands and a knee lift for two. The Busaiku knee followed for two.
After KENTA pulled his knee pad down, Shingo countered the Go To Sleep and hit a Death Valley driver. A Pumping Bomber followed for two, and the Last of the Dragon followed for three.
Shingo will face EVIL in the New Japan Cup semifinals.
Before the show went off the air, Shingo cut a promo on EVIL, who emerged to stare his former stablemate down. Dick Togo attacked Shingo from behind, and they beat him down with a Magic Killer. EVIL stood tall to end the show.
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Juice Robinson & Toa Henare defeated Jay White, KENTA & Chase Owens (w/Gedo) (13:18)
Tanahashi used a Texas cloverleaf to submit Owens.
New Japan Cup second round match: Toru Yano defeated The Great-O-Khan (13:02)
I don’t how what to say about this.
The comedy in the first few minutes was fun. Then they had a boring stretch. Then there was almost a stabbing.
O-Khan allowed Yano to tape his hands behind his back. O-Khan then dared Yano to hit him with a corner pad. O-Khan ducked the corner pad and broke his hands free of the tape.
O-Khan took a flat-back bump and dared Yano to try to cover him. Yano charged in and got caught in a kneebar. Yano forced a break.
O-Khan sat on a chair in the middle of the ring. Yano sat on a chair in the aisle. O-Khan took Yano’s KOPW trophy and threatened to stomp on it to get Yano back inside.
O-Khan offered a handshake. He took Yano down with the handshake and stomped on Yano’s right arm. O-Khan hit a gutwrench throw for a two count. He used a head-and-arm choke on the mat. O-Khan sat on Yano’s back in the corner.
O-Khan missed a charge and ran into the exposed buckle. Yano hit a throw into a double down. Yano hit a slingshot into the exposed buckle.
O-Khan used the iron claw to get a near fall. Yano sent O-Khan to the outside and tied his ponytail around the barricade. O-Khan produced a pair of scissors from his boot and cut himself free.
O-Khan teased stabbing Yano with the scissors. Yano avoided him and hit a low blow while the ref was down. Yano hit a tackle and rolled O-Khan up for the pin.
Yano advances to the quarterfinals and faces the winner of the next match on Tuesday, March 16.
New Japan Cup second round match: EVIL (w/Dick Togo) defeated Jeff Cobb (23:08)
Cobb was very good here and this was one of EVIL’s better efforts of late. The usual Bullet Club shenanigans took away from what could have been a fun fight between two powerhouses.
EVIL stalled for the first minute. He teased that he was afraid of Cobb’s power. EVIL used a distraction from Togo to hit a kick. Cobb no-sold and sent EVIL outside. Cobb sent EVIL into Togo, then hit Togo with a right hand.
Back inside, Cobb hit a dropkick and a couple of right hands for a near fall. Togo tripped Cobb from the floor, allowing EVIL to take over. EVIL sent Cobb into the barricade. Ring announcer Abe took a bump. EVIL hit his baseball swing with a chair.
EVIL worked on Cobb for a bit in the ring, then sent him back outside. Abe took another bump as Cobb took a whip into the barricade. Togo exposed a buckle and EVIL whipped Cobb into it.
Cobb came back with right hands. He avoided a ref-assisted mid kick and hit an impressive throw. Cobb hit a superplex for a two count. Cobb avoided a misdirection lariat. Cobb hit a lariat, but EVIL got his knees up on a standing moonsault attempt.
EVIL hit a lariat, then used a scorpion deathlock. Cobb powered his way to the ropes for a break. EVIL hit Darkness Falls for a two count. Cobb avoided a whip into the exposed buckle and hit a superkick. Cobb hit a powerslam for a near fall.
Togo jumped on the apron. EVIL ran into Togo. Cobb hit a German and a standing moonsault for two. Cobb hit a spin cycle and got a visual pinfall, but referee Red Shoes took a bump from EVIL’s feet as Cobb spun EVIL around.
Togo jumped in as Cobb teased another superplex. Cobb fought off Togo, then hit a double powerslam to both Togo and EVIL. Togo got sent outside. Cobb revived the ref. Cobb hit a powerbomb for a two count.
EVIL raked Cobb’s eyes and hit a lariat. Cobb blocked Everything is EVIL and hit a German. Both men ran into the exposed buckle.
Yujiro Takahashi appeared and jumped on the apron for a distraction. EVIL then hit Everything is EVIL and got the pin.
EVIL advances and faces Yano in the quarterfinals on Tuesday, March 16.
Great-O-Khan, Will Ospreay & Jeff Cobb defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima (10:22)
Good opener.
Tanahashi’s side overcame an early sneak attack from United Empire. Tanahashi played some air guitar. Kojima tagged in and got cut off by an interfering Cobb. O-Khan used a head and arm choke on the mat. Ospreay tagged in and continued the attack. Cobb got a tag and did some impressive power spots.
Kojima made a clunky comeback on O-Khan and hit a cutter. Tana got a tag and hit each member of Empire with a dragon screw. O-Khan fought off a cloverleaf attempt. O-Khan and Tana traded strikes and brought the crowd into the match. O-Khan hit a powerslam and tagged Cobb.
Tana avoided a charge into the corner and hit twist and shout. Tenzan got a tag. He did a couple of clever Mongolian chop feignts, as he’s banned from doing the move. Tenzan hit a brainbuster. Tana’s side went 3-on-1 against Cobb.
Tenzan used an Anaconda Vice on Cobb. Cobb fought out of the hold and tagged Ospreay. Tenzan hit a mountain bomb on Ospreay. O-Khan saved Ospreay. Ospreay and O-Khan hit tandem hook kicks.
Tana jumped in and O-Khan nailed him with a Dominator. Cobb hit a Tour of the Islands on Kojima. Ospreay hit an Oscutter on Tenzan for the pin.
O-Khan cut a quick promo after the match and United Empire stood tall over the fallen trio.
There was a tease of O-Khan trying to recruit Yota Tsuji after the match.
Tanga Loa (w/Jado) defeated YOSHI-HASHI (12:58)
This was a tough ask of these guys in a single and the booking of the match was straight out of Monday Night Raw.
YH got the early advantage by working on Tanga’s left arm. He used a couple of submission attempts and arm wringers. Jado tripped YH from the floor and Tanga used the distraction to take control of the match.
Tanga used a back suplex and some forearm shots. YH came back with a basement dropkick to the left leg. YH hit a couple of chops and a headhunter. Tanga regained control and screamed at YH to fight him. YH hit a powerbomb out of the corner for a two count.
Tanga fought out of a butterfly lock and hit a jumping kick. Tanga hit a spinebuster for a two count. Tanga teased Apesh*t. YH slid out and hit a series of superkicks. Tanga no-sold five superkicks. YH hit a sixth superkick and a backstabber.
YH hit a senton bomb off the top for a two count. He used a gator roll to set up another attempt with the butterfly lock. Jado jumped in with a kendo stick and YH gave up the hold. Tanga accidentally hit Jado. YH used a schoolboy for two.
YH hit a dragon suplex and a meteora. He went for Kharma. Tama Tonga ran down for the distraction. Tanga hit Apesh*t and pinned YH.
G.O.D. went for a Magic Killer on YH after the bell. Goto ran in for the save and the next match began right away.
Tama tried to roll Goto up in seconds, but Goto fought off the pin. They brawled outside. Jado hit Goto with a kendo stick.
Goto made a comeback with a wheel kick in the corner. Goto blocked a superman punch. Tama hit a Tongan Twist for a two count. Tama used a guillotine to set up a DDT. Tama missed a frog splash. Goto hit an elbow to the back of the head.
Jado took the ref. Tanga jumped in and got hit with a Goto headbutt. Goto knocked Jado off the apron. Goto blocked two gun stuns and hit a GTR for the pin.
KOPW 2021 provisional Championship YTR-style Texas strap match: Toru Yano defeated Chase Owens to retain the title (12:50)
Terrible match, as you might expect. They didn’t go for all comedy or all serious fight and it went way too long.
They did some comedy brawling with the strap on the outside. Yano’s shirtwas draped over the strap and they played tug-of-war. Owens taped Yano’s hands shut so he wouldn’t be able to remove the corner pads. Owens removed three pads. Both got sent into exposed buckles.
Yano hit a low blow and went for the last pad. Owens blocked and hit a jewel heist. They brawled back to the floor. Owens teased a package piledriver on the exposed arena floor. Yano blocked with a backdrop.
Back inside, Owens went for the last pad. Yano pulled him away and hit a powerbomb, then removed the pad to retain.
Jay White (w/Gedo) defeated Tomohiro Ishii (25:42)
Ishii’s whole gimmick is that he doesn’t sell, so they built the match around Ishii selling and it was great.This started slowly, built well and the final sequence was tremendous. These are two of the best wrestlers alive.
White began with his customary stalling. White took the ref and Gedo raked Ishii’s face. Ishii fired back with strikes. White bailed to the ramp to collect himself. White dropped Ishii across the top rope, then dropped him ribs-first onto the barricade. Ishii sold his ribs.
White repeatedly sent Ishii into the ring and the barricade, working on the ribs. White continued to attack the ribs with a bearhug on the mat. Ishii had a brief flurry with a powerslam, chops and a vertical suplex. White came back with strikes to the ribs and a DVD for a near fall.
White fired off some hard chops in the corner. Ishii no-sold the last chop and came back with chops to the throat. White managed a complete shot and a deadlift German.
White went back on the attack with a suplex into the buckle, then a suplex into the barricade. They teased a countout. Ishii made it back in, but ran into a blade buster for a near fall. Ishii blocked a uranage and hit a headbutt. White hit the uranage and a Kiwi Krusher for another two count.
White stomped away at the ribs. Ishii no-sold a series of strikes and dropped White with a single elbow strike. Ishii sat White on the top rope and hit a jumping headbutt. Ishii hit a superplex for a near fall. Ishii used a sleeper. Gedo jumped on the apron and nailed Ishii in the ribs.
White hit a sleeper suplex at the 20 minute call. White then used his own sleeper. White hit a Regal suplex for a two count. Ishii used a sleeper. White escaped and hit a vertical drop brainbuster. Ishii kicked out of his own finisher. Ishii reversed a Blade Runner attempt into a German and a double down.
White kicked away a lariat. Ishii hit an enzuigiri and a stack cover powerbomb for a near fall. Gedo jumped in the ring. Ishii blocked a low blow from White and sent him into Gedo. Gedo took a bump and rolled outside. Ishii hit a sliding lariat for a near fall.
Ishii blocked two Blade Runners and a bloody Sunday DDT. White avoided two brainbusters. White hit a sleeper suplex. Ishii hit a headbutt. White reversed another brainbuster into a Blade Runner and scored the pin.
This was very good. It fell short of a classic Okada main event because of the Bullet Club interference and the ref bump that have been plaguing the company over the last year.
Okada fired off some strikes at the opening bell, then sent EVIL rolling outside to collect himself after a big boot. Togo tripped Okada and EVIL tried to use the distraction to his advantage. Okada survived the attack and hit a slam and a slingshot senton for two.
Okada hit a neckbreaker, then used a chinlock. The fight went to the floor. Togo tried to interfere but the referee stopped him. EVIL used Togo to set a screen and chased Okada back into the ring. EVIL took control and took the match back to the outside.
EVIL sent Okada into the barricade. The ring announcer took a bump beyond the barricade. EVIL hit his baseball swing chair shot to Okada. Togo exposed a buckle and EVIL sent Okada into it. EVIL took the ref and sent Okada out to Togo. Togo stomped on Okada.
Togo threw Okada back in. Red Shoes refused to count the pin after Togo’s interference. EVIL got three near falls in quick succession. EVIL missed with a senton. Okada hit a diving uppercut forearm.
Okada hit a running back elbow, a back elbow in the corner and a DDT for a near fall. Okada sent EVIL to the floor with a dropkick. Okada chased Togo up the ramp. EVIL went after them. Okada hit both with a DDT on the ramp.
Back inside, EVIL hit a lariat and a fisherman buster for a two count. Okada got to the ropes as EVIL tried to lock on the Darkness Scorpion. Togo interfered and punched Okada. Okada blocked Darkness Falls and hit a flapjack into a double down at the 15 minute mark.
An intricate series of reversals led to Okada hitting an air raid crash neckbreaker and a shotgun missile dropkick. EVIL hit a lariat and Okada’s neck hit the exposed buckle. EVIL hit a superplex and then got the Scorpion applied. Okada forced a rope break.
EVIL hit Darkness Falls. Okada kicked out at two at the 20 minute call. Okada blocked Everything is EVIL. EVIL blocked the Money Clip. Okada sent EVIL into the exposed buckle and got the Money Clip applied. EVIL raked the eyes to break it.
Togo hit Okada with a chair and jumped in. Okada hit a series of right hands to Togo, then hit a dropkick on EVIL. Okada used the Money Clip. EVIL tried to grab the referee. Red Shoes fought off EVIL’s grip. Okada hit a tombstone.
Okada went back to the Money Clip. EVIL shoved Okada into Red Shoes. Red Shoes took a bump. Okada hit a spinning Rainmaker. Okada used the Money Clip again Togo jumped in with his ligature. Okada fought out of the choke, sending Togo into the exposed buckle. Okada hit a tombstone on Togo.
Okada teased using the ligature on EVIL. EVIL hit a low blow. Okada hit a low blow. Red Shoes was down, Togo was down, EVIL was down, Okada was down.
Okada hit a spinning tombstone. Okada locked on the Money Clip again. Okada applied the hold again in the center of the ring. EVIL forced a rope break.
Okada hit a short Rainmaker. EVIL hit a Rainmaker and a dragon suplex. EVIL hit a lariat. Okada kicked out at the last possible second.
Okada blocked Everything is EVIL. Okada tried Everything is EVIL and EVIL blocked. EVIL blocked a Rainmaker. Okada hit a falcon arrow out of what might have been a tombstone attempt.
Okada then hit the Rainmaker and got the pin.
**********
Okada cut a promo after the match. He said he wants to get back in the hunt for the IWGP title. He said there’s a proper order of things in life and he knows he has to win the New Japan Cup to make that happen.
Okada said it’s his place to rescue the IWGP title scene and he’ll do that by winning New Japan Cup. He thanked the fans and said he’ll see them tomorrow.
Ishimori pinned BUSHI after BUSHI was hit with ELP’s Sudden Death superkick.
El Desperado and Yoshinobu Kanemaru attacked ELP and Ishimori after the match. Desperado and Kanemaru vs. Ishimori and ELP for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag titles will likely be added to Thursday’s show. ELP and Ishimori had been set to defend against Hiromu Takahashi and BUSHI, but Hiromu is now out for six months.
SANADA defeated Tomoaki Honma (12:45)
SANADA won by submission with Skull End.
EVIL & Jay White (w/Dick Togo & Gedo) defeated Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii (13:40)
EVIL pinned Okada after hitting Everything is EVIL.
NJPW’s Road to Castle Attack tour continued today with the fourth consecutive night of action in Korakuen Hall in Tokyo.
The originally scheduled main event of Tetsuya Naito & SANADA vs Kota Ibushi & Yuji Nagata did not take place due to a knee injury suffered by Naito on yesterday’s show. Instead, Naito opened the show with a promo, apologizing to the crowd and addressing Ibushi. SANADA then face Nagata in a singles match in the semi-main.
According to NJPW’s Chris Charlton, the severity of Naito’s injury is unclear, but Charlton speculated that Naito will likely still wrestle Ibushi for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship at Castle Attack in Osaka-Jo Hall on February 28.
The Road to Castle Attack tour continues this weekend with untelevised events on Friday and Saturday. The tour returns to Korakuen for broadcast events on Monday, February 22 and Thursday, February 25. Castle Attack will be a two-night event in Osaka on Saturday, February 27 at 2 a.m. Eastern time and Sunday, February 28 at midnight Eastern time.
Here are the results from today’s show:
Great-O-Khan, Will Ospreay & Jeff Cobb (w/Bea Priestley) defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Gabriel Kidd (11:39)
Cobb pinned Kidd after hitting a Tour of the Islands.
Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI & Toru Yano went to a no contest with Jay White, Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa & Chase Owens (w/Gedo & Jado) (11:41)
More matches have been announced for both nights of Wrestle Kingdom 15.
Following the events of the Best of the Super Junior/World Tag League finals, Hiroshi Tanahashi will now face Great-O-Khan in a special singles match on January 4. Khan destroyed both Henare and Tanahashi following a tag team match, with O-Khan focusing on Tanahashi’s knee.
World Tag League winners Tama Tonga and Tanga Loga, the Guerillas of Destiny, will face Taichi and Zack Sabre Jr. for the IWGP Tag Team titles.
After he had won the Best of the Super Juniors tournament, Hiromu Takahashi challenged the winner of the following day’s Super J-Cup to a match. El Phantasmo defeated ACH to win the Super J-Cup back-to-back and accepted Takahashi’s challenge for January 4. Taiji Ishimori will be defending the IWGP Jr. title on January 5 against the winner.
SANADA and EVIL, meanwhile, will face each other on January 5. SANADA wildly attacked EVIL after Dick Togo choked out SANADA at ringside. The two ended up fighting all the way backstage.
Shingo Takagi and Jeff Cobb will meet for the NEVER title on January 5. Cobb pinned Shingo during the World Tag League, eliminating Shingo and SANADA from the tournament. Cobb attacked Shingo during the Budokan Hall finals show and held the NEVER title up high, indicating he was next for a title match.
Here is what is currently announced for both Wrestle Kingdom cards, which will take place on January 4 and 5 at the Tokyo Dome:
January 4:
Tetsuya Naito vs. Kota Ibushi for the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental titles
Kazuchika Okada vs. Will Ospreay
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Great-O-Khan
Taichi & Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Guerillas of Destiny for the IWGP Tag Team titles
Hiromu Takahashi vs. El Phantasmo
January 5:
Winner of Naito-Ibushi vs. Jay White for the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental titles
SANADA vs. EVIL
Shingo Takagi vs. Jeff Cobb for the NEVER Openweight title
Taiji Ishimori vs. Hiromu-ELP winner for the IWGP Jr. title
Coming out of this year’s G1 Climax, NJPW has revealed the card for their next major show.
Power Struggle will take place at the Edion Arena in Osaka, Japan on Saturday, November 7. The card features six singles matches.
The build to Wrestle Kingdom 15 will pick up with IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito defending both of his titles against EVIL in the main event of Power Struggle. In the semi-main event, G1 winner Kota Ibushi will defend his title shot contract against Jay White. The contract gives Ibushi the right to challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Championship in a double title match at Wrestle Kingdom 15.
It was announced during the G1 finals that Wrestle Kingdom 15 will again be a two-night event. It’s being held at the Tokyo Dome on Monday, January 4 and Tuesday, January 5.
Also at Power Struggle, KENTA will defend his IWGP United States Heavyweight title shot contract against Hiroshi Tanahashi. KENTA won the title shot contract in NJPW’s New Japan Cup USA tournament. Jon Moxley is currently the IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it isn’t known when Moxley will be able to defend the title next.
Will Ospreay turned against Kazuchika Okada at the G1 A Block finals and is now in a stable with The Great O-Khan and Bea Priestley. Okada and Great O-Khan will face off at Power Struggle.
A NEVER Openweight Championship match and a match for Toru Yano’s KOPW 2020 trophy round out the Power Struggle card. The full lineup is listed below:
IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito defends both titles against EVIL
Kota Ibushi defends his Wrestle Kingdom 15 title shot contract against Jay White
KENTA defends his IWGP United States Heavyweight title shot contract against Hiroshi Tanahashi
Kazuchika Okada vs. The Great O-Khan
NEVER Openweight Champion Minoru Suzuki defends against Shingo Takagi
Toru Yano defends his KOPW 2020 trophy against Zack Sabre Jr.
They went the technical wrestling route for most of the contest. Uemura was incredible here.
Uemura used a knuckle lock, then a short arm scissors which he used to roll Kidd around the ring. Kidd used a chancery to soften Uemura up for his buttefly suplex.
Uemura tried to strike with Kidd. That was his downfall. Kidd hit a forearm, a dropkick, then used the butterfly suplex for the pin.
G1 Climax B Block: YOSHI-HASHI defeated Toru Yano (6:11)
This was absolutely horrendous. I’m a fan of Yano comedy but this didn’t work.
YH tried taping Yano to the barricade and his bo staff. Yano tried to spray hand sanitizer in YH’s face. There were two ref bumps. Yano exposed a buckle.
For the finish, YH blocked a low blow and used Yano’s arm to cradle him for the pin.
G1 Climax B Block: Juice Robinson defeated Hirooki Goto (12:09)
Goto got a couple of hope spots but the bulk of this was Juice going after the bad shoulder.
They came out firing off strikes. Juice sent Goto outside and hit a plancha. Goto sold his taped shoulder after the impact of the plancha and that became the story of the match.
Juice blocked an ushigoroshi and hit a superplex. He maintained neck control on the landing and went for a jackhammer. Goto blocked and hit a neckbreaker.
Goto finally connected with an ushigoroshi. A series of counters and teases ended with Goto blocking Pulp Friction and locking on a sleeper. Goto used the sleeper to set up a pair of cradles for near falls.
Juice connected with a Left Hand of God. He followed with an awkward-looking Pulp Friction and pinned Goto.
Goto really sold this as a big deal in the post-match with his facial expressions. A pro’s pro job by Goto.
***** Intermission *****
G1 Climax B Block: Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Zack Sabre Jr. (12:02)
This was a fun match. These two have great chemistry, but they have had more crisp matches.
Sabre scored early with a couple of quick cradles. Tanahashi took a second to regroup, then used a side headlock takeover. He maintained the hold for a long time. Sabre eventually transitioned to a headscissors. They traded these two holds for quite a while.
Sabre went after Tanahashi’s neck with neck cranks and a triangle. Sabre used an octopus. Tanahashi reversed into his own octopus. Sabre went for a Euro clutch. Tanahashi reversed into his own clutch hold for a near fall.
Tanahashi focused on Sabre’s right knee with a low dropkick and inverted dragon screw. Sabre used an inside cradle and a guillotine. Tanahashi reversed the guillotine into twist and shout.
Tanahashi went for a slingblade, the first time either guy hit the ropes in the match. Sabre blocked. Tanahashi got it on his second attempt.
Tanahashi hit a standing High Fly Flow. Sabre rolled through on the landing. Tanahashi trapped Sabre in a cradle and got the flash pin.
Tanahashi held the cradle for a few extra seconds and Sabre threw a tantrum as a result.
G1 Climax B Block: KENTA defeated Tetsuya Naito (21:06)
I was not a fan of this match. I thought they had a good eight minutes laid out and stretched that into 21:06. The finish was very clever.
Both stalled at the outset. KENTA stole a near fall off a cradle. Naito went for a walk around the ring and stalled some more.
They tied up. Naito went after KENTA’s bad shoulder with a hammerlock. KENTA rolled to the floor and grabbed his briefcase. KENTA shoved the ref down and Naito ate a briefcase shot. KENTA went to work from there.
KENTA used a chinlock, a headscissors and a headlock at the 10 minute call. Naito hit his combinacion cabron in the corner and a crucifix. KENTA responded with a top rope clothesline for a two count.
The match finally picked up as Naito made his comeback. Naito hit a poison rana and a series of back elbows, looking to soften up KENTA’s neck for Destino. Naito hit Gloria for a two count.
KENTA blocked Destino and went for a GTS at the 20 minute call. Naito reversed into a Destino but could not follow up with a cover.
Naito rang up the arm and went for Destino. KENTA hit two spinning back fists. Naito answered with Valentia.
Naito went for Destino. KENTA caught Naito’s legs and cradled him for the flash pin.
This loss eliminated Naito.
G1 Climax B Block: SANADA defeated EVIL (27:00)
Lots of Bullet Club-style interference in this one but a good main event with a good story.
Hiromu Takahashi was at the commentary table and played an important role.
Nothing of consequence came from the opening volley. EVIL teased an Everything is EVIL. SANADA teased a Skull End.
EVIL rolled to the floor. SANADA teased a plancha but flipped to his feet on the apron, then pulled himself back into the ring to pose.
After a trip from Togo, EVIL used a snap suplex on a stack of chairs on the floor to take control of the match.
Back inside, EVIL used a scoop slam and a cocky, one-foot cover. Red Shoes refused to count the pin due to the underhanded tactics used on the floor.
EVIL took the ref. Togo pulled SANADA to the floor and sent him into the barricade, then tossed SANADA back in. EVIL used a single-leg crab. SANADA responded with a dropkick to the knee and a back suplex.
SANADA hit his trademark plancha. He put both EVIL and Togo in paradise locks, then broke the holds with a single dropkick.
EVIL gouged the eyes and hit a ref-assisted mid kick, avoiding a TKO in the process. A clever sequence ended with SANADA avoiding a misdirection lariat and hitting a springboard dropkick.
SANADA used the threat of a TKO to set up a Skull End but EVIL powered out. SANADA hit a magic screw and a tiger suplex for a two count. The crowd really got into the match at this point.
SANADA used a spinning Skull End as a precursor to a moonsault attempt. EVIL rolled out of the way and SANADA crashed to the mat. Togo exposed a buckle. SANADA missed a charge into the corner and got sent into the exposed steel twice.
EVIL hit a superplex to set up a scorpion deathlock. SANADA fought to the bottom rope to force a break. EVIL hit Darkness Falls for a two count at the 20 minute call.
SANADA blocked Everything is EVIL and hit a TKO. They did a lengthy double down, prompting Red Shoes to check if both men wanted to continue. They did.
SANADA avoided the exposed buckle and used a moonsault to transition to Skull End. EVIL slid out but SANADA immediately got the hold applied agai and locked in the body scissors. EVIL pried his head free, but SANADA popped up and hit two moonsaults.
Red Shoes went to count the pin. Togo pulled the ref out of the ring. Togo used a chair on SANADA and peppered him with right hands.
EVIL and Togo hit a Magic Killer. Hiromu Takahashi jumped up from the commentary table to come to SANADA’s aid. Hiromu hit a superkick to Togo. EVIL hit a low blow on Hiromu. EVIL and Togo hit a Magic Killer on Hiromu at the 25 minute call.
Togo revived the ref. SANADA stole a near fall off a cradle. EVIL planted SANADA with a lariat. EVIL hit a second big lariat and called for his finisher.
SANADA reversed Everything is EVIL into Skull End. EVIL grabbed the ref. Togo choked SANADA from the apron. Hiromu superkicked Togo and SANADA recovered.
SANADA then used a Japanese clutch and got the pin.
SANADA wins B Block.
SANADA closed the show with a quick promo and said he’ll see us tomorrow.
Following a collar-and-elbow tie-up and a trading of strikes, Kidd dropped Tsuji with an arm drag and knife-edge chop. Soon after Tsuji used a dropkick, which he followed with two standing dive variations.
Tsuji then turned his attention to the leg of Kidd, placing him in a unique submission that he converted into a pin attempt. Kidd was able to survive the dual-pronged finish and reassert his position with an uppercut.
Kidd prevailed in a fight for a brainbuster. That left him a favorable position that he fumbled almost immediately. Tsuji was able to milk this opportunity with a slam, but Kidd popped up and responded with a dropkick.
Kidd then secured the underhooks and landed his finishing suplex.
This was a weaker Young Lion outing. Instead of the typical application of a simple story, this felt like an exhibition of moves.
G1 Climax B Block: Zack Sabre Jr. defeated YOSHI-HASHI
Sabre’s ground game was at work from the opening bell. He immediately took YOSHI-HASHI to the mat and kept him there.
YH, once standing, was able to connect with some high impact strikes but soon after found himself back on the mat. Sabre toyed with YH and even allowed him to show signs of defiance but Sabre was clearly on a different level. Even still, YH was holding on.
YH was able to interrupt Sabre’s offense with a kick to the head. This opening allowed YH to land multiple dropkicks and attempt a powerbomb. Sabre slipped free of the more setup intensive maneuver but was dropped with a chop. YH landed the powerbomb and locked in the butterfly lock. Sabre, after a long stint in the hold, fought to the bottom rope.
Sabre scored a takedown which he followed with a double foot stomp to YH’s arm. Sabre tried for a pin following a kick to the chest but YH kicked free and immediately returned to his feet; a strike exchange followed. YH won out and connected with a double knee and a superkick, both landing a near fall.
Sabre was able to take YH back to the mat, arm in hand. YH, try as he might, was unable to fight free and eventually submitted to Sabre.
This match was a tip-top YH performance. The volatile energy he exuded made a finish feel imminent at all times.
G1 Climax B Block: KENTA defeated Toru Yano
Prior to the start, Yano was searched by the referee. Multiple rolls of tape were found in his tights.
Following the bell, KENTA grabbed his briefcase and Yano grabbed a chair. Yano was tricked into ditching the chair, so he grabbed a turnbuckle pad to be on equal footing. Yano was again tricked into dropping his weapon and tried grabbing another pad. KENTA this time actually disarmed before leaving the ring. Yano also exited.
Both men stayed outside in a game of chicken, only returning at the referee’s count of 19. KENTA left the ring again immediately after. Yano pursued KENTA and succeeded in whipping KENTA into the barricade. KENTA began to fight back but was distracted by a roll of tape the referee failed to confiscate from Yano. Yano sprayed KENTA with a bottle of sanitizer and pummeled him with a turnbuckle pad.
KENTA made his way back in and whipped Yano into an exposed turnbuckle. KENTA then tried using the bottle for himself but was blocked by Yano. Yano avoided the liquid but was whipped back into the exposed corner. KENTA was then free to use the bottle. KENTA splashed Yano with the sanitizer and tried pinning him to no avail.
Both men returned outside, fighting over the bottle. A spill left the referee blind. KENTA then led Yano up the ramp while brandishing his briefcase. KENTA hit Yano with the briefcase and tape flew from within. KENTA then used the tape to secure Yano to the entranceway. Late in the referee’s count, KENTA entered a sprint leaving Yano trapped.
Yano was unable to escape leaving KENTA with a count-out victory.
This was a Yano match and not a particularly good one.
G1 Climax B Block: SANADA defeated Juice Robinson
In the early going, Robinson tried to take SANADA to the mat but was stopped by a SANADA dropkick. SANADA tried something similar but Robinson’s elbow found SANADA’s face.
Robinson connected with a spinebuster that sent SANADA rolling to the outside. Robinson whipped SANADA into the barricade and landed a backbreaker and a senton once back in the ring. Robinson was able to further his advantage by avoiding SANADA’s counter attempts and landing a back body drop.
SANADA rolled out of the way of a Robinson cannonball to temporarily extinguish Robinson’s flame. Robinson found himself on the receiving end of another dropkick and a plancha. As the two’s short stay on the outside ended SANADA was caught by Robinson in a fireman’s carry. SANADA was able to slip free, secure a takedown, and lock in the paradise lock all in a matter of seconds.
SANADA broke the lock with a dropkick and worked Robinson into the corner. Robinson was able to fight free and land a quick uranage. SANADA crawled to the corner to catch his breath. Robinson pounced at the positioning of his opponent and landed a cannonball. SANADA was then lifted to the top rope and hit with a superplex, which fed into a jackhammer.
Robinson connected with a powerbomb and began to strike. SANADA ducked the Left Hand of God and locked in the dragon sleeper. Robinson fought free and nearly connected with Pulp Friction.
This same sequence played out again in a similar fashion before a set of grappling nearly allowed Robinson to steal a win via a cradle.
Instead, SANADA locked in the Skull End. Once Robinson’s body was limp SANADA scaled to the top, landed a moonsault, and pinned Robinson.
Something felt off here. Maybe it was the gray SANADA clashing with Robinson’s glow. Either way, it resulted in a lackluster dynamic and a fine-at-best match of moves.
G1 Climax B Block: Hirooki Goto defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi
Both fought for dominance in the early going with light moves and chain wrestling. A knee breaker allowed Tanahashi to transition to the mat.
After returning to their feet it was Goto who won out in a strike battle and landed a backdrop and a bulldog. Tanahashi fought free of a fireman’s carry and a dragon screw took the leg out from under Goto. Goto was then hit with another leg whip, this time into a rope. Tanahashi began a continued wearing down on Goto’s leg.
Goto caught Tanahashi with a quick ushigoroshi and initiated a passionate strike exchange. Goto landed a clothesline but was unable to follow up. Tanahashi whipped the neck of Goto before landing a slingblade.
An open palm strike then dropped Goto long enough for Tanahashi to climb to the top but not long enough to land a move. Goto triggered a top rope fight and after a headbutt landed a ushigoroshi from the top rope.
Tanahashi tried falling out of the way but Goto was able to pull through and connect with GTR. Goto then hooked the leg and pinned Tanahashi for the first time inside of the G1 format.
Strong execution from both men in a to the point, all business match.
G1 Climax B Block: EVIL defeated Tetsuya Naito
EVIL clubbed Naito immediately following the bell, but failed to follow up. Naito instead connected with an arm drag and rana that sent EVIL to the outside providing Naito with a perfect opportunity to taunt the defector.
EVIL was stretched out on the mat once returning to the ring. Naito hit the ropes but was grabbed by Dick Togo. Togo struck and whipped Naito into the barricade before EVIL took over.
Naito then was sent crashing into chairs on the outside. EVIL followed up by hitting his signature double-chair baseball swing on Naito. EVIL continued his illegally gained dominance inside the ring.
Naito stuffed a suplex attempt and avoided a senton, reopening a window of opportunity. An elbow and dropkick placed Naito back in the driver’s seat. A dropkick to Togo only prolonged his chance of staying there.
EVIL tried using further underhanded tactics and was able to stifle Naito’s lead with the unwilling aid of the referee with his leg catch spot. Naito stuffed a suplex attempt once more and took EVIL back to the mat just in time for Togo’s reemergence.
While Naito was seemingly distracted by Togo, EVIL ran for a tackle of sorts that Naito was able to sidestep, sending EVIL crashing into Togo. Naito then landed a spinebuster and continued his ground work on EVIL.
EVIL powered free of Naito’s control with a fisherman’s buster. EVIL hoisted Naito onto the top rope and connected with a superplex. Naito just barely kicked from the pin attempt that followed.
EVIL then locked in a scorpion deathlock on his prone opponent but Naito crawled into the ropes. EVIL set up for a lariat but was caught by a well-placed kick which was followed by Gloria.
Naito gained wrist and waist control shortly but EVIL freed himself with a simple shove and a senton. Naito then was pushed into turnbuckles that became exposed at some point, hit with a tiger suplex, and a giant lariat. Naito kicked out from the pin attempt.
EVIL lifted Naito onto his shoulders but Naito wiggled into Destino. Naito was unable to follow up. EVIL hit Darkness Falls following a brief struggle. Naito stuffed two attempts at Everything is Evil.
Enter Togo.
Togo distracted Naito and the referee long enough for EVIL to land a low blow. Togo threw a chair into EVIL. While the referee was paying attention to the armed EVIL, Togo began chocking EVIL with a band.
Naito, now on his last legs, landed a shoulder tackle after shoving off Togo. EVIL stuffed a suplex and Naito stuffed Everything is Evil. Naito then landed Destino and scored a near fall.
Naito tried for another Destino, but EVIL reversed into Everything is Evil and pinned the double champion.
This match was long, boring, and another EVIL win over Naito means we will likely see it again.
That said, any other result would leave a lot of A Block without any conceivable means of victory, so the finish makes sense regardless of how frustrating it is.
Kidd got the better of a nice chain wrestling battle. This was going to be contested on the mat until one of them got frustrated and started striking.
Uemura broke first. He fired up and hit a slam and some strikes. Kidd no-sold a tough forearm strike but Uemura dropped him with another.
Uemura tried for his double underhook suplex but Kidd blocked. Uemura hit the ropes but ran into a Kidd dropkick.
Kidd used a brainbuster for a near fall, then hit a double-arm suplex for the pin.
G1 Climax B Block: Hirooki Goto defeated YOSHI-HASHI (14:12)
Great effort from both guys. YH was eliminated from contention with the loss, but he has had a series of excellent performances in this G1.
YH acted as though he was going to break cleanly against the ropes. Instead, he hit a chop. YH tried to out-power Goto with shoulder blocks but Goto established the power advantage.
YH then went after Goto’s taped-up shoulder. He used arm wringers and a hammerlock, sending Goto shoulder-first into the buckle. YH tried for a cross armbreaker but couldn’t get full extension. Goto forced a rope break.
Both fought for a vertical suplex. Goto blocked and hit a back suplex out of the corner instead. Goto hit a wheel kick and a bulldog for a two count.
YH fought out of an ushigoroshi attempt and hit a headhunter. YH hit a series of chops. Goto answered with an ushigoroshi. YH fought out of a GTR attempt. They used a misdirection spot to set up simultaneous lariats. YH then hit a thunderous lariat to end the sequence.
YH ducked a lariat and hit a dragon suplex. YH hit a meteora for a two count, then slapped on a butterfly lock. YH modified the hold as Goto tried to fight for the ropes. YH eventually transitioned to a sleeper, then hit a backstabber.
YH hit a fisherman buster for a near fall at the 10 minute mark. Goto blocked a Kharma attempt and hit a GTW but could not follow up with a cover.
They traded strikes. Goto hit a big forearm. YH ducked a lariat and hit a lariat of his own. YH blocked a GTR and hit a headbutt. Goto answered with a headbutt.
They traded slaps. Goto hit a stiff slap, a GTR, then covered for the pin.
G1 Climax B Block: Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Toru Yano (12:21)
I can’t believe they went twelve minutes. They made it work, though.
Yano pulled four rolls of tape out of his tights at the opening bell in an effort to demonstrate that he was going to fight fair.
Both broke cleanly against the ropes after locking up. Yano then took another roll of tape out and threw it away. Yano offered Sabre a free amateur hold and Sabre accepted. Sabre used a headscissors but Yano made the ropes immediately.
Sabre allowed Yano a chance to apply a hold. Sabre tied Yano up and tried a cradle but Yano made the ropes. The fight spilled to the floor. Yano used a chair on Sabre and taped him to the chair through the barricade. Sabre beat the count back in at 19.
After a struggle, the referee freed Sabre from the chair. Yano offered an apology and bowed to Sabre. Yano wanted to shake hands. Sabre accepted the handshake but Yano used it to set up an eye rake and a fireman’s carry.
They again fought outside. Sabre used an ankle lock to drag Yano towards the entrance. Sabre raced Yano back to the ring. Yano just beat the count at 19.
Sabre attacked the left leg with strikes and a kneebar over the bottom rope. Sabre went back to the ankle lock. Yano fought his way to the corner and removed a turnbuckle pad. Yano shoved the ref and hit Sabre with the pad.
Sabre tried a clutch but Yano reversed into a cradle. They traded pinning combinations for near falls. Yano sent Sabre into the exposed turnbuckle.
Yano tried a powerbomb but Sabre caught him in a guillotine. Yano reversed the hold and used a cradle for two. Sabre blocked a low blow and again applied an ankle lock. Yano hit Sabre with the pad but Sabre no-sold it.
Sabre then transitioned to a modified figure four. Yano finally tapped.
***** Intermission *****
G1 Climax B Block: SANADA defeated KENTA (11:24)
This was well-worked and had a creative closing sequence.
KENTA tossed his briefcase in the air to distract the referee and attacked SANADA before the opening bell. KENTA chose SANADA’s neck as his target. He used a neckbreaker and a headlock early. KENTA hit a back elbow for a one count, then applied a headscissors on the mat.
SANADA came back with a backdrop, still selling the damage to his neck. SANADA used a paradise lock and broke it with a dropkick. KENTA blocked an attack in the corner and hit a swing DDT, dropping SANADA’s neck across the top rope.
KENTA hit a top rope clothesline for a two count. SANADA teased a plancha but KENTA side-stepped and tripped SANADA on the apron. KENTA then hit a draping DDT for a near fall.
KENTA hit a yakuza kick and a stalling dropkick in the corner. He followed with a double stomp off the top rope for a two count.
SANADA blocked a GTS. KENTA slipped out of a dragon sleeper. KENTA fought to get Game Over applied, but SANADA reached the ropes before he could get it. SANADA hit a TKO.
KENTA shoved SANADA into the ref at the 10 minute mark. KENTA hit a DDT. With the ref still down, KENTA grabbed his briefcase. KENTA swung and missed with the briefcase. SANADA dropkicked the briefcase into KENTA’s face.
SANADA went for a moonsault. KENTA got his knees up and cradled SANADA for two. KENTA used two more quick cradles. SANADA reversed the second into an O’Connor roll and got the flash pin.
G1 Climax B Block: Tetsuya Naito defeated Juice Robinson (25:02)
This was excellent. It took three Destinos for Naito to put Juice away, but Juice never hit Pulp Friction, so they have a story for the next time they face off.
Juice did some crowd work right away. They did a couple of comedy spots, teasing locking up but ducking out of the way at the last second.
They fought to the floor. Juice whipped Naito into the barricade. Naito climbed back in and hit a flying headscissors. They rolled back outside and Naito repeatedly sent Juice into the ring frame and the barricade.
Back inside, Naito hit some short, taunting kicks. Naito used a crucifix andmocked Juice’s earlier crowd work. Juice fought to the ropes to force a break. Naito continued his taunting.
Juice came back with a series of jabs and a DDT. Naito avoided an attack from the top rope. Juice landed on his feet. Naito hit a hip toss and a dropkick. Naito hit a neckbreaker over his knee, a second neckbreaker, then used Pluma Blanca. Juice forced a rope break.
Juice avoided a flying forearm and hit a full nelson slam into a double down. Juice hit a cannonball and again got the crowd fired up at the 15 minute mark.
Juice hit a superplex, maintained control of Naitos neck on landing, then hit a jackhammer for a two count. Naito fought off a Pulp Friction attempt and a Juice Box. Juice then connected with a Left Hand of God.
Juice went for a Juice Box. Naito reversed into a poison rana. Naito hit a top rope frankensteiner. Juice answered with a leg lariat. They did another double down at the 20 minute call.
Naito tried a tornado DDT. Juice blocked and hoisted Naito up. Naito countered into Destino. Juice kicked out at two.
Juice blocked a second Destino attempt and hit a powerbomb. They had an intense striking exchange. Naito took a flip bump off a left hand. Naito blocked a Pulp Friction attempt. Juice connected with a Left Hand of God.
Naito blocked another Pulp Friction attempt and ducked a left hand. Naito hit another Destino but Juice again kicked out.
It took a third Destino for Naito to finally put Juice away, 1-2-3.
Naito continued mocking Juice’s mannerisms after the match.
This was a Bullet Club main event with ref bumps and interference aplenty. To the surprise of nobody, Tanahashi still put on an incredible performance.
EVIL hit a kick to the gut and used a side headlock at the opening bell. Tanahashi escaped and employed a headlock takeover. He maintained the headlock as they got to their feet. Each pulled the other’s hair. Tanahashi hit a second rope crossbody and played some air guitar to close the opening sequence.
EVIL took the referee. Togo pulled Tanahashi to the floor, hit him with punches, then whipped him into the barricade. EVIL pulled a pile of chairs from under the ring. He Pillman-ized Tanahashi’s neck against the post with a chair, then suplexed poor Yota Tsuji onto two chairs.
EVIL exposed a buckle as Red Shoes began to count Tanahashi out. Tana beat the count back in at 14. EVIL hit a snap suplex but Red Shoes refused to count the pin. EVIL went to work on Tanahashi’s left leg.
EVIL tried to use Red Shoes to assist in a mid kick. Tanahashi blocked and hit a dragon screw instead. EVIL tried to send Tanahashi over the top rope but Tana skinned the cat back in. EVIL immediately hit a German and a fisherman buster for a two count.
Tanahashi tried for a cloverleaf but EVIL fought it off. Tana hit a baseball slide to Togo and a dragon screw in the ropes to EVIL.
Tanahashi then got the cloverleaf applied. EVIL fought out and tried a low blow. Tanahashi blocked the low blow but got sent into the exposed buckle.
EVIL hit a misdirection lariat for a two count. Tana blocked Everything is EVIL and turned a Darkness Falls attempt into a slingblade.
Tana went to the top rope. Togo jumped on the apron. Tsuji jumped up and tackled Togo. Tanahashi hit a standing High Fly Flow. Tana locked in a cloverleaf. Togo fought free of Tsuji, jumped in and bumped the ref, then choked Tana with a steel cable. Tanahashi fought out of the choke and sent Togo packing.
Tanahashi hit twist and shout and a slingblade for a two count.
Tanahashi went up top and hit a High Fly Flow to EVIL’s back. He flipped EVIL over and went for another. Togo threw a chair at Tanahashi. Tana caught the chair. Tana gave the chair to the ref. Togo then crotched Tana on the top rope.
EVIL hit a superplex and made a cover. Tanahashi kicked out at two. EVIL hit Darkness Falls for another two.
EVIL hit Everything is EVIL. It was as though all the life was sucked out of the crowd with that move. EVIL then covered for the pinfall victory.
The participants and blocks for this year’s G1 Climax tournament has been announced.
The biggest news coming from the announcement is that several wrestlers who have been unable to travel to Japan due to COVID-19 restrictions have made it in for the tournament. The tour will be the first in months for the likes of Will Ospreay, Jeff Cobb, Jay White, KENTA, and Juice Robinson.
KENTA, Cobb, and White have been working shows for New Japan of America, namely the New Japan Strong shows that have aired over the summer.
It also cements several rematches from recent high profile feuds. EVIL and Tetsuya Naito, who just headlined Summer Struggle in Jingu, share the same block. Kazuchika Okada and Yujiro Takahashi are also in the same block and have been feuding for the last several months.
Here are the blocks and participants in this year’s tournament:
A Block:
Kota Ibushi
Tomohiro Ishii
Kazuchika Okada
Shingo Takagi
Yujiro Takahashi
Taichi
Minoru Suzuki
Jeff Cobb
Will Ospreay
Jay White
B Block:
Hiroshi Tanahashi
Hirooki Goto
Toru Yano
YOSHI-HASHI
SANADA
Tetsuya Naito
EVIL
Zack Sabre Jr.
Juice Robinson
KENTA
The G1 Climax tournament this year will start on September 19, with the finals taking place at Sumo Hall on October 18.
The Adam & Mike Big Audio Nightmare is back to take you through all of the week’s Japanese pro wrestling news and more.
Featuring the return of Mike Sempervive, we take a deep dive into NJPW after the Jingu Stadium show like what’s working, what isn’t, what they are missing out on most by being so isolationist, and what this all means for the G1 Climax and beyond.
After that, it’s our usual tour around the Japanese wrestling scene as we talk Stardom’s 5 Star GP, NOAH’s Nakajima turn, TJPW’s Princess Cup, how Daichi is on a roll in BJW, 2AW news and notes, and much more for FREE this week!
Five title matches will take place today at NJPW Summer Struggle in Jingu, held at Jingu Stadium.
In the main event, former Los Ingobernables de Japon member EVIL, now part of Bullet Club, will defend the IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental titles against LIJ leader Tetsuya Naito. EVIL won the titles from Naito at Dominion in July and turned on him after winning the 2020 New Japan Cup the day prior.
In the semi-main, Zack Sabre Jr. and Taichi will defend the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships against former champs Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kota Ibushi.
In another LIJ vs. Bullet Club match, Hiromu Takahashi will defend the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship against Taiji Ishimori.
Shingo Takagi will look to make his fourth successful defense of the NEVER Openweight Championship against Minoru Suzuki.
The finals of the 2020 KOPW tournament will take place. Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano, SANADA and El Desperado will face off in a four-way to determine the provisional 2020 King of Pro Wrestling. The winner will go on to defend the title for the rest of the year. The title holder at the end of the year will be the 2020 KOPW.
The only match without a title at stake will feature Master Wato against Yoshinobu Kanemaru in the opener.
Our live coverage begins at 4 a.m. Eastern time.
**********
The venue looked great. The wrestlers entered from the dugouts.
They didn’t get much time and they botched a couple of spots. Not a smooth start to the show.
Wato got some early offense with a back elbow. Kanemaru cut him off and hit a leg slice over the barricade. Wato got tied to the tree of woe and Kanemaru hit a sliding dropkick in the corner.
Wato came back with a tornillo, springboard elbow and a monkey flip for a near fall. Kanemaru missed a moonsault but landed on his feet. Kanemaru shoved the ref down. They botched a spot. Kanemaru hit an inverted DDT.
Kanemaru swung a whiskey bottle but Wato ducked it. Wato went for a facebuster but it looked as though they botched that one as well.
Wato went for RPP but Kanemaru trapped him with a sunset flip and got the flash pin.
Toru Yano defeated Kazuchika Okada, El Desperado & SANADA to win KOPW 2020 (7:02)
The other three guys started going at it while Okada was posing on the buckle during his entrance.
They did some comedy spots with Yano. Yano exposed a buckle and Desperado and SANADA got sent into it. Yano teased a dive but Desperado pulled him out of the ring.
Okada and SANADA teamed up to hit some offense on Desperado and Yano. SANADA locked Yano in the paradise lock and left him in the hold for a long time. Okada hit a shotgun dropkick and SANADA bumped Yano to break the hold.
Desperado hit Guitara de Angel on Okada for a two count. Okada blocked a Pinche Loco attempt and slapped on the Money Clip. Desperado pulled the ref down by his shirt and the ref bumped.
With the ref still recovering, Yano hit a low blow on Okada and used a schoolboy for the pin.
Yano pinned Okada. What?
NEVER Openweight Championship match: Minoru Suzuki defeated Shingo Takagi to win the title (14:57)
This was an awesome match.
They began beating the hell out of each other right away and spent the first several minutes just trading strikes and chops.
Suzuki got a sleeper applied. Shingo fought the hold forever. Suzuki switched to a Gotch-style piledriver attempt. Shingo hit a backdrop out of it. Shingo missed a sliding lariat. Shingo hit a DVD.
Shingo missed a sliding lariat but hit Made in Japan for a near fall. He went for Last of the Dragon but Suzuki fought it off. Suzuki hit a series of headbutts.
They did a couple of misdirection spots that ended with Suzuki hitting a dropkick. You know it’s a special match when Suzuki busts out the dropkick.
They traded headbutts on the mat. They traded strikes as they climbed back to their feet. Suzuki hit another headbutt. They traded strikes again.
Suzuki went back to the rear naked choke. Shingo teased passing out but Suzuki gave up the hold and went for another Gotch piledriver. Suzuki pointed to the sky, hit the piledriver and got the pin.
What a war.
*****Intermission*****
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship match: Taiji Ishimori defeated Hiromu Takahashi to win the title (13:30)
This was a good match but not at the level of Hiromu’s best matches as he had to sell his shoulder a ton instead of doing his usual insanity.
Hiromu’s left shoulder was taped and Ishimori went after it right away. Ishimori fought for a la Mistica. Hiromu blocked the first but Ishimori got it on his second attempt. Ishimori got the Yes Lock applied but Hiromu reached the ropes for an immediate break.
Ishimori avoided a sunset bomb and sent Hiromu into the barricade. Hiromu came back with a shotgun dropkick off the apron and Ishimori flew into the barricade. Hiromu hit a falcon arrow for a near fall.
Ishimori avoided a German into the buckle and hit a poison rana. Hiromu popped up and hit the German into the buckle. Hiromu hit a Dynamite Plunger for a near fall. Both hit German suplexes and both no-sold them. Hiromu hit a lariat into a double down.
Ishimori blocked Time Bomb II. Hiromu blocked a Yes Lock attempt. Ishimori hit a lungblower into another double down. Ishimori blocked a flying headscissors and used the Yes Lock. Hiromu fought to the ropes to force a break.
Hiromu blocked a Bloody Cross. Ishimori hit a buckle bomb and a lariat. Hiromu agaiin blocked the Bloody Cross and hit a DVD into the buckle. Hiromu hit Time Bomb but Ishimori kicked out.
Ishimori hit an inverted Bloody Cross and used the Yes Lock. Hiromu fought the hold but Ishimori rolled him back to the center of the ring and kept the hold applied. Hiromu tapped out.
IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship match: Taichi & Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kota Ibushi to retain the titles (16:00)
This was a good match that didn’t have enough time to kick into high gear. With consecutive losses in title matches for Ibushi and Tanahashi this felt like the end of this program, which is fine. They’ve had a ton of matches this summer.
Tanahashi sold for the first several minutes as this followed the pattern of the matches these teams have had all summer. Ibushi tagged in and ran wild. He hit a standing moonsault for a near fall.
Ibushi had a lengthy exchange with Taichi. They traded high kicks into a double down.
Tanahashi and Sabre tagged in and went after Sabre’s taped right knee. Tanahashi got a measure of revenge on Sabre and Ibushi and Tanahashi hit the assisted dragon screw on Sabre’s right leg that Sabre and Taichi have been hitting on Tana recently.
Tanahashi and Ibsuhi hit Golden Blades on both guys. Ibushi blocked an iron glove shot from Taichi with a high kick. Ibushi and Taichi brawled to the floor, leaving Tana and Sabre in for the finish.
Tanahashi hit a standing High Fly Flow. He went for a second High Fly Flow but missed. Taichi jumped in and Sabre and Taichi hit Tanahashi with Zack Mephisto. Taichi held Ibushi at bay while Sabre pinned Tanahashi.
IWGP Heavyweight Championship & IWGP Intercontinental Championship double title match: Tetsuya Naito defeated EVIL (w/Dick Togo) to win the titles (26:20)
These guys worked incredibly hard but all of the interference and a couple of key botches kept this from being the classic IWGP title match they were going for. EVIL is a good brawler but still not at the level of the best guys in the world.
They built the match around going after each other’s necks.
Naito and Togo started brawling before the bell. EVIL used the distraction to jump Naito. Togo exposed a buckle and Naito got sent into it.
EVIL took Naito outside and hit him with a chair. He did his chair swing against another chair against the post spot.
Back inside, EVIL hit a neckbreaker for a near fall. Naito came back with a swing DDT and a one-legged dropkick. Naito took out Togo with a baseball slide and hit a combinacion cabron on EVIL in the corner. Naito hit a neckbreaker for a near fall.
Naito used a crucifix. Togo jumped on the apron with a chair and distracted the ref. Naito gave up the hold and went after Togo. EVIL used Red Shoes to assist in hitting a mid kick. EVIL hit a lariat to the back of the neck and a double stomp in the corner.
EVIL went for Darkness Falls on the apron. Naito blocked and hit a neckbreaker off the apron. Naito hit a top rope frankensteiner for a near fall. EVIL blocked Gloria and sent Naito into the exposed buckle.
EVIL hit a top rope superplex and Darkness Falls for near falls. Naito got sent into the exposed buckle but popped out of the corner and hit a tornado DDT into a double down. Naito hit a rolling kick in the corner and followed up with Gloria.
Naito hit an inverted swing DDT out of the corner for a near fall. Naito went for Destino but EVIL blocked with an eye rake. EVIL took the ref and Togo hit Naito with a chair. Naito blocked Everything is EVIL and hit a series of elbow strikes to the back of the neck.
Togo jumped on the apron. Naito sent EVIL into Togo. Togo took a bump off the apron.
Things fell apart quickly here. EVIL pulled Red Shoes into Naito’s path as he came off the ropes. Naito didn’t bump Red Shoes but went down anyway and sold his head. EVIL then threw Red Shoes into the exposed buckle and Red Shoes rolled to the floor.
Togo jumped in and EVIL and Togo hit a Magic Killer. BUSHI ran in for the save. Gedo ran in and raked BUSHI’s eyes. Gedo and BUSHI brawled to the floor.
Naito blocked a chair shot from EVIL. Togo choked Naito out with a ligature. SANADA ran in and hit EVIL and Togo with dropkicks. SANADA hit a TKO on Togo. BUSHI hit a codebreaker on Gedo and SANADA hit a plancha to Togo. BUSHI and SANADA dragged Togo and Gedo to the back.
Naito hit an enzuigiri and a flying forearm. Naito hit Destino. EVIL kicked out at two. Naito went for another Destino. EVIL grabbed the ref and hit a low blow on Naito. EVIL hit a lariat for a near fall.
They did a series of counters and Naito flubbed a Valentia. Naito blocked a low blow, hit Valentia, hit Destino and got the pin.
**********
Naito closed the show with a promo and posed in the ring as fireworks went off in the background. That was a great visual.
The top two matches for Summer Struggle in Jingu have been announced.
In a press conference held this morning, it was confirmed that IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental champion EVIL will defend both titles against Tetsuya Naito. This comes after EVIL defeated Naito at Dominion to win the titles following interference from EVIL’s new partner, Dick Togo.
Naito confronted EVIL at the end of Sengoku Lord last weekend, setting up the title match for next month.
Hiromu Takahashi will also defend the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Taiji Ishimori on this card. It was Ishimori who attacked Hiromu after losing his double title match to EVIL at Sengoku Lord. Naito eventually ran in for the save.
NJPW chairman Naoki Sugabayashi also noted that although IWGP rules say titles must be defended every six months, the period during the state of emergency won’t count against Hiromu.
Additionally, a new championhip, the KOPW 2020 title, will be determined in a fatal four-way match. Four matches will take place on August 26, with the winners advancing into this match. Competitiors fighting for the championship will name their stipulations and will allow fans to vote on the matches they would want to see.
Summer Struggle in Jingu will take place on August 29 at Jingu Stadium in Tokyo.
This was a well-worked opener. You can really see the toll that injuries have taken on Ishimori as he is still spectacular in short bursts but has really slowed down overall.
Uemura got the best of the opening mat wrestling sequence. Ishimori turned it into a brawl and whipped Uemura into the barricade. Ishimori worked on the neck.
Uemura made a comeback and used his cool rolling cradle for a near fall. They traded cradles and sunset flips for a series of near falls.
The finish saw Ishimori hit a lungblower. He followed up with a strange sequence on the mat that saw him finally lock on the Yes Lock and Uemura tapped.
Togi Makabe, Satoshi Kojima & Ryusuke Taguchi defeated Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano & Gabriel Kidd (10:25)
This was originally scheduled as an eight-man with Tomoaki Honma on the winning side and Yota Tsuji on the losing team but both were pulled after coming in contact with someone who had COVID-19. Both are said to not be showing any symptoms themselves and were pulled for precautionary reasons.
The match began and ended with Makabe and Kidd. Kidd was fired up and hit Makabe with strikes. Taguchi and Yano tagged in for some comedy spots. Kojima and Ishii had a fun exchange that saw Kojima hit a top rope elbow for a near fall.
Kidd got a series of near falls on Makabe. Makabe cut him off with a lariat and hit a German into a bridge for the pin.
BUSHI and SHO kicked things off. Goto tagged in and worked on BUSHI. LIJ used an illegal triple team to cut Goto off. Naito tagged in for a sequence with Goto. Goto avoided a charge into the corner and hit an ushigoroshi on Naito.
YH tagged in for a surprisingly intense sequence with Naito. They traded forearm shots and Naito sold a lot for YH. Naito hit an enzuigiri and we were back to SHO and BUSHI.
SHO dodged a rewind kick. BUSHI hit a swinging neckbreaker. SANADA tagged in for the closing sequence. Everyone jumped in for a big move. SHO hit a spear for a near fall. SANADA went for Skull End but SHO turned it into a cradle for another near fall.
SANADA then used Skull End and SHO quickly tapped out.
**********
They announced an on August 29 outdoor show, their first in 21 years at Jingu Stadium on the aptly named Summer Struggle tour.
We then had an intermission as they cleaned the ring.
Suzuki-gun attacked before the opening bell and the match broke down into a ringside brawl. Suzuki and Nagata renewed their rivalry by trading strikes. Suzuki choked Nagata with a camera cable.
Suzuki-gun cut Wato off and worked him over. Wato came back with a nice dropkick on Taichi before tagging Tanahashi. Tanahashi took on all of Suzuki-gun by himself. He hit a somersault second rope senton on both Taichi and Kanemaru at the same time.
Taichi came back with a gamengiri on Tanahashi. Sabre and Ibushi tagged in for a sequence of strikes and trading cradles for near falls. DOUKI tagged in and got two honest to goodness near fall on Ibushi with a lariat and a driver.
The match broke down. Suzuki and Nagata traded strikes. Nagata hit an exploder on Suzuki. Tenzan hit Sabre with a wheel kick. Wato hit a springboard forearm to DOUKI.
The finish saw DOUKI shove the ref down. He then swung his metal pipe at Ibushi. Ibushi ducked and hit a Kamigoye for the pin.
Kazuchika Okada defeated Yujiro Takahashi (13:44)
This was one of the weaker Okada matches you will ever see. Yujiro just isn’t a top flight singles guy. Okada had to sell most of the way to make the match work at all.
Yujiro ducked outside at the opening bell. They brawled in the aisle and around ringside. Okada missed a charge and Yujiro hit a drop toehold to send him into the barricade. Back inside, Yujiro hit some punches from the mount.
Yujiro hit a legdrop for a two count. Yujiro used a chinlock and hit a one-legged dropkick for another two count. Yujiro hit a big boot and a stroke for another near fall.
Okada came back with a shotgun dropkick and a DDT. Okada tried for a cobra clutch but Yujiro bit his hand to force a break. Yujiro hit another one-legged dropkick and used a fisherman’s suplex for a two count.
They traded strikes. Yujiro hit the ropes but ran into a dropkick. Okada then hit a tombstone and locked on the cobra clutch. Yujiro reached the ropes to force a break.
Okada teased another tombstone. Gedo jumped on the apron with a wrench and took the referee. Yujiro used the distraction to hit Okada with his pimp cane. Yujiro hit Miami Shine for a near fall. Okada blocked Pimp Juice but Yujiro hit a big boot for another near fall.
Yujiro avoided a dropkick and hit a lariat for a two count. Yujiro went for a razor’s edge but botched it. They went right back to the same move. Okada slid out and got the cobra clutch again. Yujiro again bit his hand.
Okada went for a Rainmaker. Yujiro ducked and hit a lariat. Okada hit a dropkick and knocked Gedo off the apron.
The finish saw Okada use the cobra again. He gave up the hold and hit a spinning tombstone before going back to the cobra clutch. Yujiro tapped out.
NEVER Openweight Championship match: Shingo Takagi defeated El Desperado to retain the title (17:03)
This was a very good match built around Shingo selling his left leg.
Desperado stole Shingo’s title belt on Monday. He refused to hand the belt over to Red Shoes before the match and tried to hit Shingo with it. Shingo ducked the belt shot and teased his own strike with the title before handing it off to the referee and the match finally began.
Desperado went after Shingo’s left leg. He snapped it over the barricade then attacked it with a chair. Shingo’s selling was awesome. Shingo came back with a crazy double dragon screw. Desperado answered with a spinebuster.
Desperado got a stretch muffler applied but Shingo forced a break. Desperado again got the hold applied and again Shingo forced a rope break. Shingo hit a DDT and a sliding lariat.
Shingo used noshigami but could not follow up with a cover. Desperado rolled outside and grabbed a chair befire deciding to use the title belt as a weapon. They did a countout tease but Shingo made it back in at 18.
Desperado hit a spear. Shingo blocked Pinche Loco. Desperado hit an Angle slam before going back to the stretch muffler. He used the hold to go for a pin but Shingo kicked out. Shingo blocked Pinche Loco but sold his knee going out.
They traded strikes. Shingo hit Made in Japan for a near fall. Shingo went for Last of the Dragon but Desperado blocked and used a crucifix for a near fall. Shingo blocked a low blow and hit a lariat.
Shingo hit a pumping bomber. He then hit Last of the Dragon for the pin.
Shingo limped to the back still selling his leg.
**********
We got another intermission before the main event.
**********
IWGP Heavyweight Championship & IWGP Intercontinental Championship match: EVIL (w/Dick Togo) defeated Hiromu Takahashi to retain the titles (33:58)
The last seven or eight minutes were very good but they went forever before that. they worked the match at EVIL’s pace instead of Hiromu’s which hurt the match too. Hiromu was fantastic but the whole EVIL run is built on ref bumps and interference and it limits how good the matches can be.
Hiromu hit two shotgun dropkicks in the ring immediately. EVIL rolled outside and Hiromu hit two shotgun dropkicks off the apron to establish the early advantage.
Hiromu hit the ropes but Togo tripped him. EVIL took the referee and Togo hit some stomps on the floor. EVIL placed a chair around Hiromu’s neck and hit it with a second chair. EVIL exposed a buckle and repeatedly sent Hiromu into it. Hiromu sold his neck.
EVIL used a chinlock, then took the ref again. Togo interfered from the floor. EVIL hit a neckbreaker but missed a senton. Hiromu hit a headscissors and knocked Togo off the apron. Hiromu hit a sunset bomb that wiped out both EVIL and Togo. Hiromu whipped Togo into the barricade.
Back inside, Hiromu used a falcon arrow for a near fall. EVIL blocked a Time Bomb attempt and hit a stomp. EVIL teased Darkness Falls on the apron but Hiromu blocked and hit a superkick. Hiromu hit a Dynamite Plunger on the apron.
Hiromu teased a dive off the post but EVIL pulled two young lions in his path. Hiromu then hit a senton off the post onto EVIL and the lions. Hiromu hit another Dynamite Plunger for a two count.
Hiromu blocked a Magic Killer and hit a shotgun dropkick. EVIL answered with a snap suplex into the turnbuckle pad. EVIL hit a top rope superplex. He went for Everything is EVIL but Hiromu blocked.
EVIL hit a German but Hiromu landed on his feet. Hiromu hit a superkick and a German. EVIL used a standing switch and hit five more Germans. Hiromu blocked Everything is EVIL and backed EVIL into the exposed buckle.
Hiromu locked on D. EVIL tried to hit a slingshot out of the triangle but Hiromu sat down in a cradle for a two count. Hiromu hit some strikes and used an inverted suplex for a two count.
EVIL blocked Time Bomb. Hiromu blocked a low blow and hit a lariat for a two count. Togo jumped on the apron and Hiromu knocked him off with a back elbow.
Hiromu hit a running death valley driver into the corner pad. He went for Time Bomb but EVIL blocked. The ref got bumped on a Hiromu charge into the corner.
Togo jumped in and attacked Hiromu. EVIL and Togo hit a Magic Killer. Togo went up top but got crotched on the top rope before falling to the floor. Hiromu blocked Everything is EVIL and hit the move himself at the 30 minute mark.
Hiromu hit a death valley driver into the exposed buckle. He hit Time Bomb but EVIL kicked out. Hiromu hit Time Bomb II but Togo pulled the referee out of the ring before he could count the three.
Togo choked Hiromu with his ligature. EVIL then hit a low blow.
EVIL hit Darkness Falls. He followed up with Everything is EVIL for the pin.
**********
Ishimori ran in and attacked Hiromu after the match, so that appears to be the next IWGP Jr. Heavyweight title program.
Naito ran in to make the save for Hiromu. He then faced off with EVIL and cut a promo. He hinted at a challenge in the future but nothing will likely be made official until the cards for the Summer Struggle tour are announced.
EVIL, Ishimori and Togo celebrated in the ring to close the show.
