NJPW star Jeff Cobb could soon be leaving Japan for a new destination.
On Thursday, Fightful reported that WWE has its eyes on signing Cobb — with one source claiming that he is already on the internal WWE roster. Cobb’s NJPW contract expired earlier this year, but he is still competing for the promotion at the moment.
Dave Meltzer confirmed in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that WWE and Cobb have had talks about him joining the company:
“Sean Sapp reported that Jeff Cobb is coming in [to WWE]. His New Japan deal expired at the end of January but he is currently in Japan for the New Japan Cup,” Meltzer wrote. “He’s been living for a while in Fukuoka, Japan, but at 42, it was also known that he sensed this was perhaps his last chance to make the kind of money WWE & AEW pay. He did turn down AEW several years back because he was happy in New Japan, so happy that he ended up moving there. The only thing we have heard from WWE at press time is that there have been talks, but no confirmation of a deal. Cobb is booked for the 4/11 New Japan show in Chicago.”
Amid the speculation about his status, Cobb defeated Tetsuya Naito on Friday to advance to the quarterfinals of New Japan Cup 2025. He referenced the rumors about his future during a post-match promo, saying that everyone on the internet expected Naito to win. Cobb also posted a tweet before the match playing on the WWE rumors:
Geez guys relax! I just woke up and holy hell! Look at all these notifications! I guess I have some explaining to do. Well let me calm everyone’s nerves….. the rumors are in fact 100% TRUE.
I will be eliminating Naito from the New Japan cup LIVE TODAY! So tune in to njpwworld!… pic.twitter.com/mNzHWmzrdn
Cobb’s next New Japan Cup match is against Shota Umino this Saturday. The tournament finals are happening on March 20 with the winner receiving an IWGP World Heavyweight Championship shot against Hirooki Goto in the main event of Sakura Genesis on April 5.
Cobb, who competed for Guam as an amateur wrestler in the 2004 Olympics, has been a pro wrestler since 2009. He made his NJPW debut in 2017 and is a former IWGP Tag Team Champion and NJPW World Television Champion. He’s starred for Lucha Underground, ROH, and PWG in the past as well.
After their last match ended in a double countout, El Phantasmo and Jeff Cobb are set to meet again for the NJPW World TV title.
A TV title match with ELP defending against Cobb will headline NJPW’s Road to the New Beginning show at Korakuen Hall on Monday, February 3. The match will likely have a no countouts stipulation with NJPW saying that both competitors have requested it.
Shortly after returning from a battle with cancer, ELP won the NJPW World TV title in a four-way match at Wrestle Kingdom 19. Cobb — who was also part of that bout — got a one-on-one shot against ELP at NJPW Battle in the Valley last weekend, but it ended with ELP retaining due to a double countout.
Ren Narita was NJPW World TV Champion prior to ELP winning the title at Wrestle Kingdom. Cobb held the championship from May-October 2024 before dropping it to Narita.
NJPW has also announced a title match for the Tuesday, February 4 Road to the New Beginning show at Korakuen Hall. El Desperado will defend his IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Kosei Fujita in that night’s main event.
Jeff Cobb is teaming with The Learning Tree this Sunday.
Chris Jericho, Big Bill, and Bryan Keith spent Collision walking around backstage giving patronizing advice to those they came into contact with. However, the trio ended up coming into contact with their Forbidden Door opponents Hook, Katsuyori Shibata, and Samoa Joe. They ended up brawling into the ringside area. That was Cobb came and attacked all of The Learning Tree’s opponents. The segment ended with Jericho raising Cobb’s hand.
NJPW World Television Champion Jeff Cobb has hit the ring!
Originally, Jericho was set to team with Bill and Keith. However, he revealed on Dynamite that Keith was injured. He played a video thinking the person responding would agree to team with him, but as it turned out Minoru Suzuki not only didn’t agree to team with Jericho, but challenged him to a match for the FTW Championship.
Here’s the updated card for Sunday’s PPV:
AEW World Champion Swerve Strickland defends against Will Ospreay
Ladder match for the vacant TNT Championship: Konosuke Takeshita vs. Mark Briscoe vs. Jack Perry vs. Lio Rush vs. Dante Martin vs. El Phantasmo
Title for title: TBS Champion Mercedes Mone vs. NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Stephanie Vaquer
AEW Women’s Champion Toni Storm defends against Mina Shirakawa
IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Jon Moxley defends against Tetsuya Naito
Owen Hart Foundation men’s tournament quarterfinal match: Bryan Danielson vs. Shingo Takagi
MJF vs. Hechicero
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Orange Cassidy
The Elite (Kazuchika Okada & The Young Bucks) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi & The Acclaimed (Anthony Bowens & Max Caster)
The Learning Tree (Chris Jericho, Big Bill & Jeff Cobb) vs. Samoa Joe, Hook & Katsuyori Shibata
Zero Hour: Kris Statlander & Momo Watanabe vs. Willow Nightingale & Tam Nakano
Zero Hour: Owen Hart Foundation women’s tournament quarterfinal match: Saraya vs. Mariah May
Zero Hour: Mistico & The Lucha Bros (Penta El Zero Miedo & Rey Fenix) vs. Titan, Yota Tsuji & Hiromu Takahashi
Zero Hour: House of Black (Malakai Black & Brody King) vs. Private Party (Isiah Kassidy & Marq Quen) vs. Tomohiro Ishii & Kyle O’Reilly vs. Gabe Kidd & Roderick Strong
Reigning and defending NJPW TV Champion Jeff Cobb wants a fight for this month’s AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door.
Following his successful title defense over Tomohiro Ishii at last night’s NJPW Dominion, Cobb spoke at the post-event press conference and said that it was Forbidden Door season and “If you’re elite, challenge me.”
As of now, no members of The Elite have matches set for the Sunday, June 23rd pay-per-view that fuses talents from AEW and NJPW and now Stardom and likely CMLL.
“The big shiny golden belt that symbolizes NJPW TV is calling. I’ll make you famous,” he said.
Cobb has held the title for just over a month after defeating Zack Sabre Jr. at May’s Wrestling Dontaku with defenses over Lance Archer and Ishii.
Cobb has never wrestled in a singles match in the brief history of Forbidden Door, losing in an IWGP & ROH Tag Team title four-way at the inaugural edition and then falling in defeat in a trios bout last year. Including those bouts, he has wrestled six times in AEW since 2020, last appearing in a tag team match last month.
Lance Archer is coming for the NJPW World Television title.
The company released a video on Saturday showing the AEW star issuing a challenge to new champion Jeff Cobb for their upcoming Resurgence event on May 11 in Ontario, California. In the video, Archer congratulated Cobb but also took a shot at the United Empire, asking who the leader was. He said he’d go a little old school and go American Psycho to become the new television champion.
Cobb won the title from Zack Sabre Jr. on May 3 at Wrestling Dontaku. After the title victory, Cobb challenged anyone to challenge him for the title.
The lineup for the Saturday, May 11 Resurgence show is below. The event will air as a pay-per-view on NJPW World at 9:30 p.m. Eastern time.
IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Jon Moxley (or Ren Narita) defends against Shota Umino
NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston defends against Gabe Kidd in a No Ropes Last Man Standing match
NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Stephanie Vaquer defends against Alex Windsor
NJPW World Television title: Jeff Cobb defends against Lance Archer
Tetsuya Naito & Yota Tsuji vs. KENTA & David Finlay
Tom Lawlor & Fred Rosser vs. Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs
The 2024 New Japan Cup continues today in Hyogo with the final opening round matches.
Yota Tsuji faces Jeff Cobb in the headline bout on today’s show.
Taichi takes on Ren Narita in the semi-main event.
El Phantasmo vs. Mikey Nicholls is today’s other tournament match.
The winner of today’s main event will face the winner of Phantasmo vs. Nicholls on March 15. The Taichi/Narita winner will face Zack Sabre Jr. on the March 15 show. Sabre is one of four wrestlers who received byes into round two.
The tournament will be whittled down to the final 16 competitors following today’s matches.
Five tag team matches round out today’s undercard, including a Los Ingobernables de Japon vs. United Empire eight-man bout, with LIJ’s Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI facing UE’s Great-O-Khan, TJP, Francesco Akira & Callum Newman.
The show streams live on NJPW World beginning at 2 a.m. Eastern time.
Bullet Club cheated, and the upcoming Goto/Owens match was teased throughout this match’s runtime.
The babyfaces spent quite a bit of time on top, but we’re cut off by tandem attacks. Most of the Bullet Club offense was focused on Honma. After prolonged isolation, KENTA trapped him in a pin with his feet on the ropes to steal the win.
Just 5 Guys (DOUKI, SANADA & Yuya Uemura) defeated CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano) & Ryusuke Taguchi
Yano and Taguchi set the pace of this match from the beginning. After tons of chicanery, Ishii tagged in, leading to a competitive back and forth with DOUKI. Uemura then challenged Ishii, utilizing his arm drags to establish control.
Uemura and Ishii traded strikes in the center of the ring. Ishii overwhelmed Uemura, forcing a tag to SANADA and Taguchi. Taguchi, with Yano’s help, unloaded on SANADA, taking back control. Taguchi launched into a pinning spree, which backfired when SANADA caught him in one of his own. Taguchi failed to kick out, leaving J5G with the win.
Guerrillas Of Destiny (Hikuleo, Jado & Tanga Loa) defeated BULLET CLUB War Dogs (David Finlay, Gabe Kidd & Gedo)
The War Dogs started this match with a brawl. They cleared the ring of the babyfaces, establishing solid control. BC then worked to isolate Jado, keeping him away from his partners for minutes.
The eventual double tag led to a babyface rally. Loa gained quite a bit on Finlay. Once Finlay tagged out, the War Dogs hit the ring in an attempt to retake control, but he held them off on his own. Loa then hit Gedo with a knee strike to win the match.
El Desperado, Oleg Boltin, Shota Umino & YOH vs. House Of Torture (EVIL, Jack Perry, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Yujiro Takahashi)
Before the match began, EVIL forced an announcer to call Jack Perry to the ring. Perry then replaced SHO in this match.
Unsurprisingly, this match opened with a HoT-initiated brawl. Oleg reversed momentum for his team in the ring before tagging out. Once Desperado established a more substantial lead, HoT rushed the ring, starting another brawl.
Once Umino tagged in, the match began to turn around for the babyfaces. HoT attempted to cheat their way back into control, but a match breakdown followed. The babyfaces maintained their lead through the chaos, leaving Umino free to unload on Yujiro. Umino locked in a crossface and held onto it through a distracted referee long enough to win the match.
Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito) defeated United Empire (Callum Newman, Francesco Akira, Great-O-Khan & TJP)
A full-fledged brawl kicked off this match. Once the match gained some order, UE had full control over Hiromu.
Eventually, Naito tagged in and beat down O-Khan (who had spit on him during UE’s control). Naito uloaded on O-Khan and his backup before returning the favor, spitting on O-Khan multiple times.
A double tag to Shingo and Newman led to an athletic back-and-forth. The match broke down once both men exhausted each other, and everyone else hit the ring. Shingo emerged from the chaos, standing tall. He then dropped Newman with a pumping bomber and Made in Japan to win the match.
New Japan Cup: El Phantasmo defeated Mikey Nicholls
This match opened with a pro-longed feeling-out sequence. The pair began to trade forearms, leaving the stronger Nicholls in the driver’s seat. Nicholls then tossed ELP to the floor, where he continued his attack. Back in the ring, Nicholls continued his advance, virtually uncontested.
Eventually, ELP landed a kick, which opened the door for a methodical rally. ELP landed a pair of springboards for a nearfall. When Nicholls attempted to reverse momentum, ELP caught him with a DDT and a moonsault to the floor.
Nicholls powered up, ending ELPs steak of offense with a lariat. He then hit ELP with a superplex and a sitting lariat. Once ELP kicked out, Nicholls climbed to the top and attempted a moonsault, but ELP rolled out of the way.
With Nicholls on the back foot, ELP caught him with a burning hammer. Instead of going for the cover, he hit Nicholls with sudden death; Nicholls kicked out. Nicholls then attempted a quick pin, leading to a back-and-forth. After multiple roll-throughs, ELP successfully pinned Nicholls.
ELP advances to round two.
New Japan Cup: Ren Narita defeated Taichi
This match was about as unenjoyable as a match could be. Calling this underbooked would be a massive understatement. There were probably ten ref bumps, twelve run-ins, and thirty fouls.
Narita and Yoshinobu Kanemaru attacked Taichi before the match could begin. Taichi held them off before throwing Kanemaru to the floor. Boltin Oleg then ran to the ring, grabbed Kanemaru, and carried him to the back.
Once the bell sounded, Narita launched an attack on the outside of the ring. Narita threw Taichi onto the floor seats before attacking him with a chair. Taichi was then forced to beat the referee’s count. In the ring, Narita continued to pick apart Taichi.
After an extended period on the defense, Taichi caught Narita with a kick. A massive forearm from Taichi sent Narita crashing to the floor. On the outside, Taichi returned the favor, whipping Narita into the barricades and chairs.
Taichi grabbed Narita’s pushup bar, leading to a confrontation with the referee. With the referee distracted, Narita attempted a low blow, but Narita avoided it. Taichi dropped Narita and ripped off his breakaway pants.
Narita interrupted Taichi’s offense by pulling the referee in front of Taichi. This allowed Narita to lock in holds, reversing momentum. Narita then hit Taichi with a low blow and a German suplex for a nearfall.
After surviving Narita’s tactics, Taichi hit Narita with his own low blow. Taichi then locked in a hold in the middle of the ring, forcing Dick Togo to hit the ring. With the referee distracted, Narita tapped out, and Taichi broke the hold. Narita shoved Taichi into the referee, leading to a full-fledged attack from House of Torture.
Just 5 Guys eventually hit the ring to save Taichi. They cleared the ring of HoT and pulled the referee back in. Taichi then hit the Dangerous Suplex for a nearfall. Taichi hit another, but the count was interrupted by Jack Perry.
Perry tried for a running knee, but Taichi knocked him down with an axe bomber. Narita tried to hit Taichi with the pushup bar, but Taichi kicked it from his hands. Kanemaru then ran to the ring, spit whiskey in Taichi’s face, and hit him with the bottle. Narita closed the match by hitting the double cross and pinning Taichi.
Narita, and the rest of HoT, will be seen in the second round.
New Japan Cup: Yota Tsuji defeated Jeff Cobb
This was the comfortable match of the night and the only match I would recommend checking out. This was a very good match; the progression worked extremely well on a native level, and the action was a blast. Great.
A collar-and-elbow tie-up kicked off this match. This led to a strike battle that turned into shoulder blocks. Cobb bested the footballer with a tackle, forcing Tsuji into the corner.
Tsuji turned the match around with a rana from the top rope. He attempted a tope, but Cobb caught him and slammed him into the apron. On the outside, Cobb clubbed Tsuji with forearms before returning to the ring.
In the ring, Cobb maintained his dominance, tossing Tsuji around with ease. He slammed Tsuji into the corner and hoisted him to the top rope; Cobb then hit Tsuji with a gut-wrench suplex from the top, scoring a nearfall.
Cobb placed Tsuji back in the corner. This time, Tsuji caught Cobb with a stomp on the mat, opening the door for a rally. Tsuji hit a head scissor takedown to send Cobb to the floor, which Tsuji followed with a successful tope.
Back in the ring, Tsuji began to work over Cobb, busting his nose in the process. Tsuji attempted a curb stomp, but Cobb powered through, provoking Tsuji into a strike exchange. Tsuji won out and dropped Cobb with an STO.
Tsuji tried for the curb stomp again, but Cobb rolled out of the way. Cobb followed up with a moonsault, resetting the match in his favor.
Another back-and-forth strike battle began, with Tsuji winning out. This didn’t deter Cobb, leading to a slick exchange of finish attempts. Cobb attempted Tour of the Islands, but Tsuji slipped free. Tsuji tried for Gene Blast, but Cobb reversed into a powerbomb.
Cobb hit a spin cycle and an F5000 for a pair of nearfalls. Tsuji tried answering Cobb only to eat a lariat. Cobb then pierced Tsuji with a colossal spear for a convincing false finish.
Cobb, looking to finish, tried for the Aloha Maker. Tsuji avoided the attack, dropping Cobb with a headbutt. Tsuji then landed a curb stomp and pulled Cobb to the corner. Tsuji then planted Cobb with a curb stomp from the top rope and a Gene Blaster to win the match.
The Bullet Club War Dogs team of Clark Connors and Drilla Maloney have won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships.
NJPW’s show at Korakuen Hall on Sunday featured several matches in the ongoing rivalry between The United Empire and Bullet Club. The two factions will wrestle inside a steel cage at the New Beginning in Osaka on February 11.
Connors and Maloney defeated Catch 2/2’s TJP and Francesco Akira for the belts in today’s main event. The finish of the match saw Connors pin Akira after a Full Clip to win the belts.
💥Road to THE NEW BEGINNING💥後楽園大会‼️
UNITED EMPIRE🆚BC WAR DOGSの4番勝負‼️ 最後の勝負はIWGPジュニアタッグ選手権💥
TJP has been under the influence of his new Aswang character (an evil being from Filipino folklore) since being locked in a coffin by Bullet Club in the lead-up to Wrestle Kingdom. This new vicious side of TJP came out in Sunday’s match when he wanted Akira to help him use a table against their opponents. When Akira hesitated, it gave their opponents an advantage. Later during the match, Akira again hesitated when Maloney attempted to use a fork on his opponents. Chris Charlton noted on commentary that Akira might not have what it takes for vicious matches such as the steel cage match scheduled for Osaka next weekend.
Bullet Club attacked after the match and left the members of United Empire lying in the ring as David Finlay cut a promo. Once Finlay was finished, Bullet Club powerbombed Akira onto a bunch of chairs.
Jeff Cobb was originally supposed to wrestle Alex Coughlin on today’s show. However, NJPW announced Cobb sustained a thigh injury and was replaced by Great-O-Khan in the match. They also ran an angle where Cobb was attacked in the back by Bullet Club after an autograph signing.
“Jeff Cobb, who was scheduled to compete on tonight’s card in Korakuen hall, has sustained an injury to his left thigh, and will be unable to compete tonight,” the promotion wrote. “We apologize to fans who were looking forward to seeing Cobb wrestle and appreciate your understanding.”
After an intense night in Korakuen Hall, War Dogs sent a powerful message to United Empire, who appear in disarray before next week's steel cage match.#njnbg report:https://t.co/iW1P3l3a6I
Two wrestlers advanced to the quarterfinals of NJPW’s G1 Climax 33 tournament on Wednesday on the final night of D Block matches.
Tetsuya Naito defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi in today’s main event to secure the top spot in D Block. Zack Sabre Jr. earned a spot in the quarterfinals as well by defeating Hirooki Goto in the semi-main event.
Naito and ZSJ both finished the round-robin portion of the tournament with 10 points, with Naito holding the tie-breaker by way of his victory over ZSJ on the August 2 show from Hiroshima.
United Empire’s Jeff Cobb just missed out on the top spot in the block after going to a double count-out with TMDK’s Shane Haste and finishing with nine points. Haste purposely got both of them counted out to prevent Cobb from reaching 10 points. Had Cobb won the match, he would have finished on top of the D Block with 10 points and tie-breaking wins over both ZSJ and Naito.
The quarterfinals are scheduled for Thursday, August 10, from Chiba. The semifinals will be held Saturday, August 12, and the finals take place on Sunday, August 13.
NJPW’s G1 Climax 33 tournament continues today with C Block & D Block matches in Tokyo at Korakuen Hall.
In the main event, Zack Sabre Jr. faces Jeff Cobb in a battle of unbeatens. Both enter the match with 3-0 records in this year’s tournament.
In the semi-main, the undefeated David Finlay faces Tama Tonga.
The full lineup:
D Block: Zack Sabre Jr. (3-0, 6 points) vs. Jeff Cobb (3-0, 6 points)
C Block: David Finlay (3-0, 6 points) vs. Tama Tonga (2-1, 4 points)
D Block: Tetsuya Naito (2-1, 4 points) vs. Shane Haste (1-2, 2 points)
C Block: Eddie Kingston (2-1, 4 points) vs. Tomohiro Ishii (0-3, 0 points)
D Block: Hiroshi Tanahashi (1-2, 2 points) vs. Toru Yano (0-3, 0 points)
C Block: Shingo Takagi (1-2, 2 points) vs. Mikey Nicholls (1-2, 2 points)
D Block: Hirooki Goto (2-1, 4 points) vs. Alex Coughlin (0-3, 0 points)
C Block: EVIL (2-1, 4 points) vs. HENARE (1-2, 2 points)
Our live coverage begins at 5:30 a.m. Eastern time.
**********
Recommended Matches
Shingo Takagi vs. Mikey Nicholls – An action-packed match with some color. Wonderful.
Eddie Kingston vs. Tomohiro Ishii – This match was nothing short of fantastic—easily amongst the best matches of the tournament and the best individual performances from both men—a must-watch.
Jeff Cobb vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – Another match that is in the running for “best match of the tournament”. This was ridiculous bell-to-bell action packed full of ZSJ nuance and Cobb’s stunning acts of athleticism—a must-watch.
**********
EVIL defeated HENARE
From the pre-match chair attack to the outside fighting, this was a full-blown HOT match. In the end, a referee distraction left EVIL free to hit a low blow, followed by Everything is Evil for the win.
Evil sits strong in his block with 6 points.
Alex Coughlin defeated Hirooki Goto
This has been a breakout tournament for Coughlin, if I’ve ever seen one. It shouldn’t be a surprise at this point, but Coughlin worked a violent match here. After dominating Goto for the entire runtime, Coughlin dropped Goto with a jackhammer to win his first match in the G1.
With this win, Coughlin avoids mathematical elimination, earning his first 2 points.
Shingo Takagi defeated Mikey Nicholls
With lots of powerful exchanges that built to an explosive finishing stretch, this was a great Shingo outing. Shingo bested a bloody Nicholls with a body press that looked it was supposed to be a pumping bomber; either way, it was awesome.
Takagi sets in the middle of C block with 4 points following this win.
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Toru Yano
Even after a challenge from Tanahashi to get serious, this match was anything but. Only after minutes of Yano chicanery Tanahashi closed the match with High Fly Flow.
With this win, Tanahashi moves up to 4 points and eliminates Yano from playoff contention.
Tomohiro Ishii defeated Eddie Kingston
This match was all about Ishii working over Eddie’s injured back in the beginning. Eddie was forced to challenge Ishii with strikes, leading to some electric exchanges. Once the striking ended, the bout exploded into the most impressive back-and-forth in the G1 so far. The war ended once Ishii lifted Kingston for a picture-perfect brain buster.
This win puts Ishii on the board, earning his first 2 points.
Shane Haste defeated Tetsuya Naito
This match was a definite cooler compared to the last, but this was still good. Naito worked the neck during his periods of control, setting up Destino. After kicking out of one, Naito attempted another, but Haste reversed into Bomb Valley Death for an upset victory.
This win leaves Haste with the majority of D block with 4 points.
Tama Tonga defeated David Finlay
In a bit of a dynamic flip, Tama rushed Finlay in the opening moments, which Finlay was able to take advantage of. Finlay took the action to the ring, where the match played out with multiple momentum shifts. After hitting a spear, Finlay hoisted Tama up for a powerbomb, but Tama reversed into a pin, stealing the win.
This win ended Finlay’s undefeated streak and ties Tama with block leaders, sitting at 6 points.
Jeff Cobb defeated Zack Sabre Jr.
My God, this match was incredible. Cobb dominated the early portion of the match; his size played as a constant check to ZSJ throughout the open while remaining agile and grapple-hardy throughout the runtime. ZSJ eventually swung back, utilizing holds to keep himself in the match. In the end, this wasn’t enough, as Cobb connected with throw after throw before finishing the match with Tour of the Islands.
This win leaves Cobb as the only man undefeated in D block with 8 points.
NJPW has announced that Zack Sabre Jr. will defend his NJPW World Television Championship against Jeff Cobb at the Wednesday, May 3 event. The Strong Openweight Championship will also be up for grabs as KENTA faces Hikuleo.
The championships being on the line in these matches became official after successful title defenses at NJPW Capital Collision in Washington, D.C. Sabre retained against Tom Lawlor, while KENTA retained against Eddie Edwards.
Sabre became the first-ever NJPW World Television Champion by defeating Ren Narita in the finals of a tournament at Wrestle Kingdom 17 this January.
KENTA won the Strong Openweight Championship from Fred Rosser in February. Wrestling Dontaku will be the first time the title has ever been defended in Japan.
Wrestling Dontaku is being held at the Fukuoka Convention Center and will air live on NJPW World. Here’s the updated card for the event:
IWGP World Heavyweight Champion SANADA defends against Hiromu Takahashi
NEVER Openweight Champion Tama Tonga defends against David Finlay
NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Champions Minoru Suzuki, El Desperado & Ren Narita defend against Kazuchika Okada and two mystery partners
NJPW World TV Champion Zack Sabre Jr. defends against Jeff Cobb
Strong Openweight Champion KENTA defends against Hikuleo
For the second straight week, Kenny Omega will compete in a singles match on AEW Dynamite.
Tony Khan has announced that Omega will defend the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship against NJPW star Jeff Cobb on Dynamite this Wednesday (March 29). The episode is taking place at Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis.
Khan noted that AEW will take a closer look at the matchup on tonight’s special Saturday edition of Rampage.
Omega won the IWGP United States Heavyweight title from Will Ospreay at Wrestle Kingdom 17 this January. This will be Omega’s first title defense since becoming champion.
In backstage comments after an NJPW show earlier this week, Cobb revealed that he would be coming to St. Louis to confront Omega on Dynamite. Cobb had been calling out Omega in recent weeks.
Omega teamed with Kazuchika Okada to defeat Cobb & Aaron Henare at NJPW New Year Dash earlier this year.
Omega is coming off a victory against El Hijo del Vikingo in the main event of Dynamite this past Wednesday. Aside from an AEW Dark match against Hagane Shinno, it was Omega’s first singles match in AEW since Full Gear 2021.
Here is the updated lineup for Wednesday’s show:
IWGP United States title: Kenny Omega (c) vs. Jeff Cobb
AEW International title: Orange Cassidy (c) vs. The Butcher
Adam Cole vs. Daniel Garcia
Ruby Soho vs. Willow Nightingale
Blackpool Combat Club vs. Dalton Castle and The Boys
Cobb has been calling Omega out in recent weeks including on Tuesday’s New Japan Cup Finals show from Nagaoka. He then revealed in a backstage interview that he plans to confront Omega on the March 29, 2023, edition of AEW Dynamite from St. Louis.
NJPW posted a video of Cobb’s backstage comments to YouTube on Tuesday.
Cobb said:
When my New Japan Cup ended, I set my sights to my goal before the New Japan Cup started and that was you, Kenny.
I’ve tried countless times, countless times for you to accept a challenge from me. I’ve done everything, I’ve mocked you, copied you, I mimicked you and nothing came about it.
The one thing that did come about it was a lot of backlash, Kenny. Funny thing is, it wasn’t backlash from you, it was backlash from the Twitter people. To be quite honest with you, it shook me for Twitter to be angry at me because I mimicked and teased Kenny Omega and I’ve come to the conclusion that I really could give a f–k what Twitter thinks. You see, Twiter isn’t a real place, the real place is in that ring.
Now Kenny, you have been dodging me and dodging me and doging me for a month. Yeah, I said it, Twitter is f—ing fake. Kenny Omega, Jeff Cobb, that’s real now.
The last and final warning – it’s not even a warning – I am telling you firsthand, I’m coming to St. Louis and I’m gonna knock on your door. I’m gonna find the EVPs dressing room, knock on it and see if you let me in.
Cobb and Omega have only faced each other once previously. Omega teamed with Kazuchika Okada at New Year’s Dash in January and defeated the team of Cobb and Great-O-Khan.
Cobb has wrestled three times on AEW programming including at last year’s Forbidden Door event. Cobb was defeated by Jon Moxley in his first AEW match on the February 19, 2020, edition of Dynamite. He returned on the June 22, 2022, edition of Rampage and defeated FTR’s Cash Wheeler. FTR then defeated Cobb & O-Khan as well as Roppongi Vice in a triple threat match for the IWGP and Ring of Honor Tag Team Championships at Forbidden Door.
Jeff Cobb vs. Bad Dude Tito in a singles match headlines this Saturday’s NJPW Strong Nemesis episode.
Cobb, representing United Empire, vs. Bad Dude Tito, representing TMDK, was announced for Saturday’s show by NJPW on Monday night.
Two additional matches have also been announced for Saturday’s show.
In a trios bout, AEW’s Eddie Kingston will team with Homicide and David Finlay against Team Filthy’s “Filthy” Tom Lawlor, Bobby Fish, and Danny Limelight.
In Saturday’s opening contest, Che Cabrera will take on Mascara Dorada in a singles match.
Strong’s Nemesis episodes were taped on December 11 at the Vermont Hollywood venue in Los Angeles, California.
The full lineup for Saturday’s show:
NJPW Strong Nemesis, Saturday, January 14, 8 p.m. Eastern time on NJPW World —
Jeff Cobb vs. Bad Dude Tito
Eddie Kingston, Homicide & David Finlay vs. Team Filthy (“Filthy” Tom Lawlor, Bobby Fish & Danny Limelight)
Jeff Cobb is off the NJPW Tamashii events scheduled for this weekend.
NJPW announced Wednesday morning that Cobb, scheduled for shows in Christchurch, New Zealand and Sydney, Australia is now off those shows due to personal reasons.
As a result, the cards for these shows have been changed. Updated lineups for both shows are as follows:
November 11 – Christchurch, New Zealand:
Taiji Ishimori vs. Aaron Solo
KENTA vs. Andrew Villalobos
Richard Mulu vs. Michael Richards
Tome Filip and Stevie Filip vs. Rowan Davis and Nikolai Anton Bell
Bad Luck Fale and Jack Bonza vs. Tony Kozina and Jake Taylor
Mart Tui and Chris Miles vs. Jordan Allan-Wright and Shep Alexander
November 12 – Sydney, Australia:
Taiji Ishimori vs. Mick Moretti
Michael Richards and Andrew Villalobos vs. Caveman Ugg and Ricky South
Aaron Solo vs. Lyrebird Luchi
Bad Luck Fale, Jack Bonza, and KENTA vs. Mat Rogers, Jude London, and Paris De Silva
Robbie Eagles vs. Carter Deems
Unsocial Jordan and Aaron Jake vs. Richard Mulu and Jake Taylor
Mat Diamond vs. Jordan Allan-Wright
NJPW announced the launch of the Tamashii brand back in September. It will feature talent from the Australasia scene as well as talent from NJPW and their dojos in New Zealand and LA.
Jeff Cobb will be part of NJPW TAMASHII’s debut events in November.
The promotion announced on Monday that Cobb, a member of NJPW’s United Empire stable, will be part of the talent lineup for the TAMASHII brand’s first shows in New Zealand and Australia on November 11 and November 13.
The launch of the TAMASHII brand was announced last week, with NJPW announcing their intent to break into the Oceania market by running a regular touring brand, similar to the NJPW Strong brand in the United States.
In addition to Cobb, Bad Luck Fale, KENTA, and Taiji Ishimori have also been announced for the events. Tickets for both shows are on sale now, with only standing room tickets left for the Sydney, Australia event on November 13. Seats still remain for Christchurch, New Zealand on November 11.
Meet and greet ticket packages with members of Bullet Club (Fale, KENTA, Ishimori) are also available for both shows.
