If you had Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Joey Janela on your bingo card for 2025, Saturday was your night.
The NJPW legend made a surprise appearance to come out of retirement at the annual WrestleCade convention in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, to answer Joey Janela’s open challenge.
According to reports, the match lasted just four minutes with Liger picking up the victory.
Nearly three weeks after celebrating his 61st birthday, Liger returned to the ring nearly five years after retiring following his tag team match at 2020’s Wrestle Kingdom 14 when he and Naoki Sano fell in defeat to Hiromu Takahashi and Ryu Lee.
Liger was inducted into the RevPro Hall of Fame this past August after being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2020. He left the sport as an 11-time NJPW Junior Heavyweight Champion, six-time Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion, CMLL Middleweight Champion, and even had runs as WWF Light Heavyweight Champion in 1997 and WCW Light Heavyweight Champion in 1991-92.
Revolution Pro Wrestling is set to honor one of NJPW’s greatest-ever legends during Forbidden Door weekend.
The British indie promotion announced today that it will induct Jushin Thunder Liger into the RevPro Hall of Fame on Friday, August 22. Liger will be appearing in person at the induction, which is happening at RevPro’s Global Wars UK show at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre in London.
🚨Friday August 22nd Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
A man who could be in any Hall of Fame for his contributions to wrestling.
But to RevPro Specifically:
⚡️He was the first NJPW wrestler to be showcased on a RevPro event opening the door to a great relationship… pic.twitter.com/VAkmR6Lqn9
Liger made several trips to RevPro during his career and was the winner of the promotion’s inaugural British J-Cup tournament in 2017. In today’s announcement, RevPro credited Liger for opening the door to the strong working relationship the company has with NJPW.
“He was the first NJPW wrestler to be showcased on a RevPro event opening the door to a great relationship,” RevPro wrote.
Liger retired from the ring with his last NJPW match taking place in 2020. His last time competing in the UK was for RevPro in 2020.
Following his retirement, Liger was also honored with an induction into the WWE Hall of Fame.
The RevPro Hall of Fame was established in 2021 with the late Ryan Smile being selected as the first inductee.
RevPro, NJPW, ROH, and CMLL wrestlers will be featured on Global Wars UK, an event that’s happening as part of RevPro’s 13th anniversary weekend. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Jay Joshua is the latest match to be announced.
Global Wars UK is happening two days before AEW & NJPW Forbidden Door 2025. That pay-per-view is being held at The O2 Arena in London on Sunday, August 24.
Jushin Liger is on his way to attend tomorrow’s Owen Hart Cup Finals on AEW Collision.
Liger posted to Twitter on Friday that he was at the airport and on his way to Calgary, the city he went on excursion to in 1987.
“I am at Haneda Airport now. From now on, I will go to Calgary, Canada via San Francisco. I was invited as a guest at Owen Hart’s memorial tournament ☆ I’m looking forward to Calgary after a long time,” reads a translation of Liger’s Tweet.
— 獣神サンダー・ライガー ☆ Jushin Thunder Liger (@Liger_NJPW) July 14, 2023
Liger, under his real name of Keiichi Yamada, went on an excursion from NJPW to Stampede Wrestling in May 1987. This was when Bruce Hart relaunched the promotion following Stu Hart having sold it to Vince McMahon in 1984.
After a couple of months of teaming with Mr. Hito on shows in Alberta and Saskatchewan, Yamada and Owen Hart began teaming together. They defeated Gerry Morrow and Bad News Allen in their first match together. When it was time for Liger to return to Japan later that summer, Owen went with him. At the time, Owen was The North American Champion in Stampede Wrestling, the most prestigious championship in the promotion. Owen would team with Mark Rocco and lost to Yamada and a young Keiji Mutoh on their first show back for NJPW.
Owen and Liger wrestled 10 singles matches against each other, all in Japan, splitting the series 5 wins apiece. Owen even once successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Liger in 1988. Their final match against one another took place in the Top Of The Super Juniors tournament in 1991 when Liger defeated Owen in a match our own Dave Meltzer rated four-and-a-half stars.
It’s been announced that Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Hirooki Goto in an interim AEW World Championship eliminator match has been added to Dominion. The winner of that match will advance to compete for the interim AEW World Championship at Forbidden Door.
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NJPW has released the full card for Dominion that will take place later this month.
The card will take place June 12 at Osaka-Jo Hall. New championship matches have been added in addition to the IWGP World Heavyweight title match between champion Kazuchika Okada and challenger Jay White.
Juice Robinson will be defending the United States title against Will Ospreay, who issued a challenge, and SANADA, who returned at the Best of the Super Junior finals after recovering from injury. Tama Tonga will defend the NEVER Championship against Karl Anderson, Shingo Takagi will face Taichi for the KOPW 2022 provisional trophy, and Chase Owens & Bad Luck Fale will defend the IWGP Tag Team titles against the United Empire’s Jeff Cobb and The Great-O-Khan.
Hiromu Takahashi, who won the Best of the Super Juniors, will not get his championship match against Taiji Ishimori at Dominion. That will instead take place June 21 at Korakuen Hall.
The full card is as follows:
Kazuchika Okada vs. Jay White for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship.
Interim AEW World Championship eliminator match: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Hirooki Goto
Juice Robinson vs. SANADA vs. Will Ospreay for the IWGP United States Championship
Tama Tonga vs. Karl Anderson for the NEVER Openweight title
Shingo Takagi vs. Taichi for the provisional KOPW 2022 trophy
Chase Owens & Bad Luck Fale vs. Jeff Cobb & The Great-O-Khan for the IWGP Tag Team titles
EVIL, SHO, and Yujiro Takahashi vs. Zack Sabre Jr., Yoshinobu Kanemaru, and El Desperado for the NEVER Openweight Six-Man titles
Toru Yano vs. Doc Gallows
Tetsuya Naito, BUSHI, and Hiromu Takahashi vs. El Phantasmo, Ace Austin, and Taiji Ishimori
TJP, Francesco Akira, and Aaron Henare vs. Ryusuke Taguchi, Master Wato, and Hiroyoshi Tenzan
Jushin Thunder Liger has been announced for the WWE Hall of Fame.
Tokyo Sports this morning put up an interview with Jushin Thunder Liger, where he confirmed the news. It was previously reported that Liger would likely be one of the names announced for the upcoming ceremony.
Liger started his career in 1984, but it wasn’t until 1989 when he adopted the Jushin Thunder Liger persona based on a popular children’s anime that was airing in Japan at the time. Liger instantly became one of the top junior heavyweight acts in NJPW, winning the IWGP Jr. title 11 times throughout his career.
He also achieved popularity in the United States, wrestling for WCW sporadically between 1991 and 1999. His most memorable matches in WCW were against Brian Pillman, and in fact the first ever match on Nitro was a bout between Liger and Pillman.
Liger retired earlier this year on January 5, teaming with longtime rival Naoki Sano in a losing effort against two current IWGP Jr. heavyweight stars in Hiromu Takahashi and Ryu Lee.
The retirement ceremony of Jushin Thunder Liger takes place tonight in Ota Ward Gymnasium at New Years Dash.
Liger wrestled his final match yesterday at Wrestle Kingdom 14, teaming with Naoki Sano in a losing effort against Hiromu Takahashi and Ryu Lee. He also wrestled on January 4, teaming with The Great Sasuke, Tiger Mask and Tatsumi Fujinami, losing to the team of Naoki Sano, Shinjiro Otani, Tatsuhito Takaiwa and Rysuke Taguchi.
The New Years Dash card normally takes place the day after Wrestle Kingdom. It is a mystery card, with matches not being announced until bell time. The cards usually consist of eight and six man tag team matches.
Matches that take place tonight will likely set the stage for The New Beginning, which takes place next month. Some confrontations that took place last night included Minoru Suzuki laying out Jon Moxley and KENTA assaulting Tetsuya Naito after Naito became the first person to win both the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental titles.
Join us for live coverage starting at 4:30 a.m. EST.
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JUSHIN THUNDER LIGER RETIREMENT CEREMONY
This was one of the best things you will ever see in professional wrestling.
The show opened with a great video package highlighting some of Liger’s milestones. This was an amazing video.
Liger entered, followed by the non-LIJ/Suzuki-gun/Bullet Club/CHAOS roster members. Tanahashi presented Liger a bouquet of flowers. They posed for photos with Liger, then left Liger in the ring.
CHAOS then entered to Okada’s music. Okada presented Liger with flowers, then the CHAOS squad posed for photos. Okada pulled out his phone for a group selfie. CHAOS then surrounded the ring with the rest of the roster.
The NJPW chairman, Naoki Sugabayashi entered and presented flowers. NJPW President Harold Meij presented flowers.
Chikage, Liger’s wife, then entered and presented flowers, as did his son, Takamitsu. This was amazing. We got a shot of Tanahashi in tears.
A video message from Antonio Inoki played. He wished Liger good health and said he raised a glass to Liger tonight, even though Inoki doesn’t drink any more.
Liger said he debuted as Liger in Tokyo Dome, and yesterday had his last match there. He thanked Hiromu Takahashi and said he was glad to be retired at his hand.
He thanked the fans for supporting him for 31 years. He said Liger the wrestler is no more, but NJPW will continue to thrive thanks to everyone you see around the ring.
He said his mother is at an advanced age and in poor health, but she was at the Dome and made it here tonight. He thanked her for raising him and being there.
He thanked his wife and son. He said he’s made them lonely living this life, but he’s coming home, so they’ll have to put up with him. He thanked the fans.
We got a ten bell salute. Liger posed in the ring as his music played. The roster climbed back into the ring and tossed Liger in the air. Liger shook hands with everyone in the ring.
Tanahashi asked the crowd to sing Liger’s entrance song. The crowd sang and clapped along. Tana held a mic and sang with Liger.
Liger left the ring, then walked around all four sides, waving to the crowd. He made his way to the stage, bowed, then made his exit.
KARL FREDERICKS, ALEX COUGHLIN & CLARK CONNORS DEFEATED TOA HENARE, YOTA TSUJI & YUYA UEMURA
Uemura and Connors started off. Uemura used a hammerlock on the mat. Connors forced a rope break. Connors used a chinlock with a grapevine on the legs.
Coughlin and Tsuji got tags. Tsuji hit a tackle. Coughlin hit a chop as these two looked to up the intensity. Tsuji hit some right hands. Coughlin hit a big chop, then used a gutwrench throw for a near fall.
Connors tagged in. Connors and Coughlin cleared the opposing apron. Fredericks tagged in and got a two count off a double tackle. The L.A. Dojo team isolated Tsuji in their half of the ring, working him over.
Tsuji hit a slam to Coughlin, then tagged Henare. Henare hit tackles to Coughlin and an interfering Fredericks. Henare hit a Samoan drop on Coughlin for a two count. Coughlin ducked under a lariat. Fredericks and Connors entered for a triple team. Connors hit a spear, allowing Coughlin to make a cover. Tsuji jumped in to break up the pin.
Henare hit a vertical suplex, then tagged Uemura. Fredericks tagged in as well. They traded chops and strikes. Uemura tried a double underhook suplex, but Fredericks blocked and hit a backbreaker. Uemura answered with a dropkick off the ropes, then another in the corner. Uemura hit a double underhook suplex for a near fall.
The match broke down. The other four competitors jumped in, then bailed to the floor, brawling. Uemura used a full Boston crab on Fredericks. Coughlin jumped in to break it up. The ring cleared again.
Uemura hit a series of uppercut forearms. Fredericks responded with a dropkick. He tried a spinebuster. Uemura turned it into a cradle for a two count. Fredericks then hit the spinebuster and an elbow drop.
Fredericks used a single-leg crab. Uemura fought it for a long time, then tapped out. A fun opener. Tsuji, Coughlin and Connors brawled to the back.
EL DESPERADO & YOSHINOBU KANEMARU DEFEATED SHO & YOH, HIROMU TAKAHASHI & BUSHI, EL PHANTASMO & TAIJI ISHIMORI
Only two wrestlers were legal at a time, but anyone could tag in anyone. The rules made it so that there was a ton of action, but this was not a memorable match.
ELP and Ishimori attacked SHO and YOH before the openiing bell. SHO and YOH hit tandem dropkicks. ELP and Ishimori rolled to the floor. SHO and YOH teased stereo dives, but BUSHI and Hiromu cut them off.
SHO and YOH double up on Hiromu. Ishimori jumped in with a springboard knee, landing awkwardly. ELP tagged in to continue working over Hiromu. Bullet Club tied Hiromu to the tree of woe, then stood on his crotch.
Kanemaru blind tagged himself in. He hit a leg slice over the barricade on Hiromu, then a DDT on the floor. Suzuki-gun and Bullet Club teamed to go 4-on-1 on Hiromu. SHO and YOH cleared the ring and SHO continued working over Hiromu. Hiromu came back with a pop-up powerbomb.
BUSHI entered and cleaned house. Desperado and Ishimori blind tagged in. Ishimori hit Despy with a handspring kick. SHO tagged himself in and hit Despy with back elbows. Kanemaru cut him off. SHO hit a spear to Desperado.
SHO and YOU double-teamed Desperado. They hit stereo knees. The match broke down as everyone jumped in for a big move. YOH hit a dive. SHO and Desperado were left legal. They traded strikes. SHO hit a lariat, then hit a lungblower for a near fall.
SHO got caught with a right hand as he set up for Shock Arrow. Desperado set up for Pinche Loco. BUSHI jumped in and spit black mist. Desperado ducked, SHO got hit with the mist, and Desperado pinned SHO with a schoolboy.
Desperado and Kanemaru likely made themselves number one contenders for the junior heavyweight tag titles by pinning one of the champs.
KOTA IBUSHI, HIROSHI TANAHASHI, JUICE ROBINSON & DAVID FINLAY DEFEATED TAMA TONGA, TANGA LOA, BAD LUCK FALE & CHASE OWENS
Owens and Ibushi started out. Ibushi hit a dropkick. Tana entered and hit a second rope crossbody. Tonga provided a distraction from the apron and the match broke down. Fale and Jado worked on Tana on the floor. Tonga and Loa brawled with Ibushi in the aisle.
The beatdown on Tanahashi continued in the ring. Loa tried a brainbuster. Tana reversed into Twist and Shout, then tagged Juice. Juice hit Loa with a cannonball, then a Left Hand of God. He went for Pulp Friction. Tonga jumped in and hit a Tongan twist.
Finlay jumped in and hit back elbows to Tonga and Loa. Owens hit a dropkick through the ropes onto Ibushi. Juice and Finlay hit stereo suplexes on Tonga and Loa. Fale ran in and knocked them down with a double tackle.
Owens tagged in. Juice hit him with a Juice Box, then tagged Ibushi. Ibushi hit a mid kick to Owens, then a double backflip kick on Fale and Owens. Jado used a kendo stick on Ibushi Owens hit Jewel Heist for a near fall as Finlay saved.
Owens hit a shining wizard for a two count on Ibushi as the other six men brawled on the floor. Owens hit a jumping knee strike. He went for a package piledriver. Ibushi backdropped out, rolled through, then hit a Bomaye.
Ibushi hit a mid kick. Tana jumped in for a slingblade on Owens as well. Ibushi then hit Kamigoye on Owens for the pin.
After the match, Tanahashi and Ibushi pointed at Juice and Finlay’s IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team titles. That makes as much sense as anything to keep Ibushi and Tanahashi busy while the top title picture is crowded with Okada, White and perhaps SANADA after tonight.
I shouldn’t be surprised given that Shingo and Ishii are two of the very best wrestlers on God’s green earth, but I was caught off guard by how great this match was.
Ishii and EVIL began with a series of hard strikes. Goto and Shingo tagged in and the heavy hitting continued. Goto hit a brainbuster, then used a chinlock. They traded lariats. On the floor, meanwhile, EVIL used a chair on Ishii.
Shingo and Goto then brawled to the floor. Shingo posted Goto, then sent him into the railing. EVIL posted Ishii. Shingo hit a slingshot knee drop. EVIL tagged in for a bronco buster. Shingo tagged back in for a brainbuster on Goto for a two count.
EVIL tagged in. Goto used a misdirection lariat, then tagged Ishii. Ishii hit a series of forearms and chops in the corner. Ishii got whipped into the buckle, then hit a tackle out of the corner. EVIL blocked a back suplex and hit a ref-assisted mid kick, then a draping stomp to the chest.
EVIL used a fisherman buster for a near fall. EVIL hit a misdirection lariat out of the corner. Goto jumped in and Shingo cut him off with a lariat. Goto and Shingo fought to the floor.
EVIL used a scorpion deathlock on Ishii. Goto jumped back in and broke the hold before hitting a lariat, dropping EVIL. Goto used a sleeper on Shingo. Shingo broke it with a jawbreaker, sending Goto rolling to the floor.
Shingo and EVIL doubled up on Ishii. EVIL hit Darkness Falls for a near fall. Ishii blocked Everything is EVIL and hit an enziguri. Both tagged out. Shingo and Goto traded lariats, neither man budging. Goto tried a GTR. Shingo blocked, then hit a sliding lariat.
Goto hit a wheel kick in the corner, then hit a suplex for a near fall as EVIL saved. Ishii hit a back suplex to EVIL. Goto hit Shingo with an ushigoroshi. Ishii hit a sliding lariat. Ishii assisted Goto on an elevated GTR for a near fall. Everyone hit a big lariat. EVIL hit Goto. Ishii hit EVIL. Shingo hit Ishii. Goto hit Shingo. This was awesome.
Goto and Shingo traded shots. Goto hit a hard slap to the face. They traded headbutts. Shingo caught a mid kick. He draped Goto in the ropes and hit a draping GTR. Shingo then hit Last of the Dragon and pinned Goto.
This was an awesome match. The commentators pointed out that Shingo had just pinned the NEVER Openweight champ. EVIL and Ishii also had a staredown after the match.
Shingo cut a promo after the match. He said Goto was a tough bastard, but he beat him. He said they’re 1-1 in singles matches, so how about a rubber match. He put over Naito’s double title win and said he wants to taste a championship as well. He challenged Goto to defend the NEVER title against him.
KAZUCHIKA OKADA, WILL OSPREAY, YOSHI-HASHI & ROBBIE EAGLES DEFEATED MINORU SUZUKI, TAICHI, LANCE ARCHER & ZACK SABRE JR. BY DQ
There were a couple of significant angles at the finish and after the match. Taichi and Okada looks to be a program going forward and the next angle in the Suzuki and Jon Moxley feud took place. The match itself wasn’t much, and it dragged.
Ospreay and Sabre began with some mat work. They then traded holds on the mat. Ospreay used a heel hook. Sabre slid out and used a kravate. Ospreay feigned a magistral cradle attempt, then hit a flying headscissors. Eagles tagged in and hit a tandem kick with Ospreay.
Eagles hit Sabre with mid kicks. He hit the ropes, but Suzuki cut him off and applied an armbar over the top rope. Everyone brawled all over the building. Suzuki piled chairs and pieces of the fence on Eagles. Taichi posted Okada.
Suzuki-gun continued working over Eagles in the ring. Archer allowed Eagles three free strikes, then dropped him with a forearm. Archer hit a pounce. The beatdown went on forever. Suzuki used a heel hook and a kneebar. Eagles finally forced a rope break.
Eagles hit a wheel kick to Suzuki. YH and Archer tagged in. YH hit a headhunter. Taichi jumped in but ate a hurricanrana. YH and Archer exchanged lariats. Archer tagged Taichi. YH tagged Okada. Okada’s neck was taped up. Taichi hit a back suplex.
Taichi hit a buzzsaw kick on Okada for a two count. Taichi took his pants off. Everyone jumped in. Archer hit a black hole slam on YH. Okada hit a dropkick to Archer.
Taichi then pulled out the iron glove handed down to him from Iizuka. Taichi hit Okada with the glove for the DQ.
Taichi then cleared the ring with his microphone stand. Sabre and Ospreay fought in the aisle. Sabre locked a rear naked choke on Ospreay.
Taichi teased a piledriver to Okada. He was interrupted by Jon Moxley’s music. Moxley entered through the crowd and chased Taichi from the ring. Okada rolled to the floor and Suzuki jumped in to face off with Moxley.
Moxley and Suzuki traded slaps. Moxley hit Death Rider on Suzuki, then posed with over Suzuki with the IWGP United States Championship. After Moxley left, Suzuki laid on his back in the ring, laughing.
Suzuki struggled to the back, still laughing.
TETSUYA NAITO & SANADA DEFEATED KENTA & JAY WHITE
Naito went after KENTA before the opening bell. In the ring, SANADA hit a dropkick to White. He teased a springboard dropkick, but Gedo grabbed his ankle. All four brawled on the floor. KENTA sent Naito over the barricade, then hit a DDT on the floor.
Back in the ring, White hit a neckbreaker on SANADA for a two count. KENTA tagged in and milked the crowd for boos. KENTA rolled back outside and sent Naito into the barricade again.
White tagged in and used a chinlock, then hit a back elbow for a near fall. KENTA tagged in and danced to the anti-KENTA chants from the crowd. SANADA hit a dropkick off the second rope, then tagged Naito.
Naito hit KENTA with strikes, then a neckbreaker over the knee, then a low dropkick. White jumped in and got hit with a hip toss and a dropkick. Naito hit a draping neckbreaker, then a standard neckbreaker.
KENTA came back with a dropkick. White tagged in and targeted Naito’s legs. Naito hit a hurricanrana, then tagged SANADA. SANADA hit both KENTA and White with dropkicks. SANADA then hit planchas to both men.
White came back with a snap Saito suplex and a Blade Buster. White tried a uranage, but Naito saved. KENTA jumped in and went after Naito. SANADA used Skull End on White. Gedo jumped in and SANADA crotched him on the middle rope.
SANADA used a spinning Skull End on White. He went for a moonsault but landed on his feet as White rolled out of the way. They traded standing switches. White hit a sleeper suplex. White tried a Blade Runner, but SANADA reversed into a clutch for the pin.
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After the bell, White hit SANADA with a low blow. KENTA went after Naito on the floor. KENTA threw Naito inside.
Gedo slid chairs into the ring. KENTA and White used the chairs on Naito and SANADA.
White cut a promo. He said SANADA has been believing in himself too much lately, and like everyone else, he’s not better than Jay.
KENTA grabbed the mic and insulted the crowd. He mocked Naito. He said he had a lot of fun at the Tokyo Dome killing Naito’s applause. He promised to take both of Naito’s titles away from him. SANADA’s music started playing, but KENTA demanded that his music be played, and it was. Naito and SANADA were helped to the back to close the show, KENTA’s music playing.
So no big SANADA turn, but a clear top challenger established for Naito, and a White/SANADA program were set up here.
Jushin Thunder Liger’s final Korakuen Hall match takes place this morning.
He will team with Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kota Ibushi in the main event, taking on the CHAOS team of Kazuchika Okada, YOSHI-HASHI and Rocky Romero. While Liger’s last match may be the focus, it will also continue the build between Kazuchika Okada and Kota Ibushi as they are set to face off on January 4 for the IWGP Heavyweight title.
The co-main event will be a tag team match, pitting Tetsuya Naito and Shingo Takagi against Chase Owens and Jay White. Naito and White will be the other blockbuster title match to take place on January 4.
The rest of the undercard will feature tag team matches that will continue the build to Wrestle Kingdom. Hiromu Takahashi and Will Ospreay will be on opposite sides of a tag team match that will continue their story.
Join us for live coverage starting at 4:30 a.m. EST.
This was just your basic opener, but it had exceptional heat from the sellout crowd.
Tiger and Taguchi had a brief, crisp exchange at the outset. Tsuji and Makabe came in and Tsuji again went after Makabe with intensity. Tsuji got a knockdown off a shoulder tackle. Honma tagged in and got cut off after missing a kokeshi.
Uemura and Tsuji renewed their rivalry and traded spots. Taguchi tagged in and had a nice back-and-forth with Uemura.
Taguchi tried a Dodon, but Uemura turned it into a victory roll for a two count. Uemura then used a single-leg crab. Taguchi rolled through into an ankle lock. Taguchi then gave up the hold and hit Dodon for the pin.
SHO, YOH & ROBBIE EAGLES DEFEATED EL PHANTASMO, TAIJI ISHIMORI & GEDO BY DQ
This was more of an angle to further the Roppongi 3K vs. ELP and Ishimori bout at Wrestle Kingdom than an actual match.
SHO attacked ELP as Bullet Club posed in the ring before the opening bell. They brawled all around the arena. SHO, YOH and Eagles hit dives from the ring and Bullet CLub teased walking out on the match.
SHO, YOH and Eagles went after Bullet Club and they brawled near the entrance Gedo used an eye rake and that allowed Bullet Club to get the heat on SHO. SHO made a hot tag to YOH and 3K hit stereo knees.
Eagles tagged in and hit a 450 to Ishimori’s leg. He put him in the Ron Miller Special. Ishimori was about to tap when ELP pulled the referee out of the ring. ELP hit Eagles with a belt shot for the DQ.
After the match, SHO and YOH laid out ELP with a 3K, then reclaimed the Super Jr. Tag League trophies that Ishimori and ELP stole weeks ago.
BUSHI DEFEATED ZACK SABRE JR.
Sabre was accompanied by Taichi, who was cosplaying as Masked Black Horse. Sabre took the ref and Taichi stomped on BUSHI on the floor. BUSHI tried a headscissors but Sabre tied up his legs on the mat.
BUSHI tried a dropkick, but Sabre blocked. BUSHI hit a missile dropkick, then hit a suicide dive on Taichi. BUSHI then hit a sick DDT on the apron. The finish came out of nowhere. They traded a couple of cradles, then BUSHI used a BUSHI roll for the flash pin.
After the match, Taichi beat up the referee. Sabre sold the upset big, kicking the turnbuckle pads.
KENTA, TAMA TONGA, TANGA LOA & BAD LUCK FALE DEFEATED HIROOKI GOTO, JUICE ROBINSON, DAVID FINLAY & TOA HENARE
The babyfaces were ready for a Bullet Club attack before the bell and ran wild at the outset. Their fortunes changed when Finlay missed a plancha. Loa ducked a Left Hand of God from Juice and G.O.D. spent a couple of minutes working Juice over.
Juice managed a tag to Goto. KENTA tagged in as well. Goto hit a suplex. Fale tripped Goto from the floor, allowing KENTA to hit a draping DDT for a two count. KENTA hit a Shibata dropkick. Goto countered with an ushigoroshi.
Henare tagged in and peppered KENTA with strikes. Henare hit a Samoan drop for a near fall. KENTA used a distraction from Jado on the floor to hit a lariat on Henare. Goto jumped in and KENTA nailed him with a knee strike. KENTA then hit the G2S on Henare and pinned him.
After the bell, KENTA hit Goto with a G2S. Tonga hit a gun stun on Finlay. Loa hit Apeshit on Juice. Bullet Club stands tall heading into Wrestle Kingdom.
WILL OSPREAY & TOMOHIRO ISHII DEFEATED HIROMU TAKAHASHI & EVIL
You need to watch this match.
This was the best tag match I’ve seen this month. All of these guys are beyond great. Ishii and Ospreay are a super fun team. Ishii is all banged up, limping around, has his left knee wrapped, and is still incredible.
I’m not sure which was more impressive in the first minute of the match, Ospreay and Hiromu’s opening sequence or Kevin Kelly’s call of the sequence. They did about three dozen moves and Kelly called all of them.
EVIL and Ishii tagged in and started brawling in the corner. Ishii hit a series of chops and forearm strikes to the throat. EVIL came back with hard slaps and Ishii went down. Hiromu and EVIL went after Ospreay and Ishii on the floor.
Ospreay got sent into the barricade, then thrown on top of the English announce desk. EVIL and Ishii took the fight back to the ring. Hiromu tagged in and hit some chops on Ishii. Ishii hit a powerslam and tagged Ospreay.
Hiromu teased a sunset bomb to the floor. Ospreay teased an apron bomb, then hit a flying headscissors on the floor. Ospreay hit Pip Pip Cheerio off the barricade. This was an excellent sequence, but terrifying.
Back in the ring, Hiromu hit a clothesline. Ospreay missed a handspring kick, but landed on his feet out of a German. Hiromu hit a pop-up powerbomb. Both tagged out.
EVIL and Ishii traded strikes. Ishii had a bloody lip. They traded suplexes. EVIL hit a fisherman buster for a two count. Ospreay hit a kick from the apron. Ishii hit a German. Ospreay used Ishii as a springboard for a standing shooting star, then as a base for Pip Pip Cheerio. Ishii got a near fall.
Hiromu jumped in for a double team. EVIL and Hiromu hit superkicks. EVIL hit Darkness Falls for a near fall as Ospreay saved. Hiromu and Ospreay traded. Hiromu suplexed Ospreay into the buckle. EVIL hit Ishii with a lariat for a two count.
Ishii blocked Everything is EVIL. EVIL blocked a lariat. Ospreay hit a Sasuke Special on Hiromu. Ishii hit a sliding lariat on EVIL for a two count. Ishii then hit the Vertical Drop Brainbuster and pinned EVIL.
TETSUYA NAITO & SHINGO TAKAGI DEFEATED JAY WHITE & CHASE OWENS
Naito and White went after each other at the opening bell. White still had his ring jacket on. Gedo grabbed Naito’s ankle allowing White to take over. White choked Naito with his ring jacket and threw him into the barricade.
Owens tagged in and missed a fist drop and an elbow drop. Naito hit a low dropkick and tagged out. Shingo hit a big vertical suplex. Owens used a hair pull and teased a package piledriver. Shingo teased a sliding lariat. Owens connected with a shining wizard, but not the shiniest wizard. Both tagged out.
Naito hit combinacion cabron in the corner on White. White hit a back elbow, then spiked Naito with a DDT. White hit a Blade Buster for a two count. Naito made his own comeback with a series of hard elbows, working on White’s arm, setting up Destino. Naito shoved the referee. White hit a snap suplex into a double down.
Owens tagged in and hit a dropkick. Naito hit a neckbreaker, then tagged Shingo. Shingo and Owens traded strikes. Shingo ended the exchange with a lariat.
White and Naito jumped in. Naito hit a swinging DDT on White, then an enziguri on Owens. Shingo hit a Pumping Bomber on Owens, then hit Last of the Dragon for the pin.
After the match, White and Naito continued to fight on the floor. Naito sent White into the barricade, then threw him into the audience. Naito taunted White ahead of their Wrestle Kingdom bout.
Liger winning would have been the feel-good moment of the year, but there are bigger masters to serve with Wrestle Kingdom on the horizon. Knowing how NJPW tends to book retiring legends as well, this had to be the expected finish.
Ibushi and Okada began. They milked the crowd. Red Shoes did the bit where he judges the dueling chants.
Okada and Ibushi traded strikes. Ibushi hit a big mid kick. Okada missed a dropkick. Ibushi ducked a Rainmaker. Okada ducked a high kick. This was a good tease for January 4. Both tagged out.
Liger and Romero tagged in. They shook hands, then locked up. Liger hit a shoulder tackle. Romero missed a baseball slide. Liger hit a baseball slide, then used the Romero Special. Tana and YH got tags.
Tana and YH traded chops. YH hit his dropkick to the ack with Tana draped over the ropes. All six men brawled around ringside. YH sent Tana into the barricade. Okada rammed Ibushi’s head into the Wrestle Kingdom briefcase.
Back inside, YH worked over Tana in the corner. Okada tagged in for a slingshot senton. Romero tagged in and hit chops and forever clotheslines, then used a jumping knee strike for a near fall.
YH tagged back in. YH and Tana exchanged chops and forearms. Tana hit a slap, then a dragon screw, then tagged Ibushi. Ibushi hit a running mid kick, a series of slaps, then a standing corkscrew moonsault for a near fall.
YH came back with a low dropkick, then tagged Okada. Okada hit a back elbow. Ibushi hit some punches. Okada countered with a flapjack. He tried a tombstone, but Ibushi blocked, then hit a powerslam and a second rope moonsault for a near fall.
Ibushi hit a high kick. He teased Kamigoye, but Okada blocked and hit an armdag. Ibushi answered with a dropkick. Liger tagged in and hit YH with a shotei, Romero with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, a shotei to Okada, then hit a top rope brainbuster on Okada for a two count as YH saved.
Liger teased a Liger Bomb. Okada blocked. Liger used a sunset flip for a near fall. Liger ducked a Rainmaker, then hit a spinning shotei. Liger hit a Liger Bomb. He covered, but YH ran in for the save.
Ibsuhi and Tana hit stereo planchas. Liger blocked a Rainmaker and hit a slap to the face. Liger tried a brainbuster. Okada blocked, then hit a spinning tombstone. Okada then hit the Rainmaker and pinned Liger.
After the bell, Okada whispered something to Liger.
Liger was helped to the back. Tana went to the back along with Romero and YH, leaving Okada and Ibushi in the ring.
Okada and Ibushi went nose-to-nose and bumped chests. Okada posed on the buckle with his belt as indoor snow began to fall.
White ran in and attacked Ibushi and Okada. Naito ran in and attacked White. Gedo hit Naito with a chair. White laid out Naito with a suplex.
White hit a snap suplex on Ibushi. Gedo hit Okada from behind. White then laid out Okada with a snap suplex. Okada slipped out of a Blade Runner, then hit a dropkick.
Okada cut a promo. He said he’s the best there is. He said Ibushi better give him his all on January 4. Okada posed with his belt, with snow falling.
Okada then told the crowd he had three things to tell them. He thanked Liger, thanked everyone that came to see NJPW in 2019, and said he’ll see everyone at the sold-out Tokyo Dome on January 4 and January 5.
The past will meet the present in the final match of Jushin Thunder Liger’s legendary career.
NJPW has revealed the cards for Wrestle Kingdom 14 nights one and two. The shows will feature the final two matches of Liger’s career, with a retirement ceremony then being held for him at New Year Dash.
Rivals Liger & Naoki Sano will team together against Hiromu Takahashi & Ryu Lee (Dragon Lee’s new name in NJPW) on Wrestle Kingdom 14 night two. Liger & Sano will be managed by Yoshiaki Fujiwara.
Lee issued a challenge to Liger on the last show of NJPW’s World Tag League, and Liger replied by saying he wanted to face both Lee and Takahashi.
Liger’s match for night one had already been announced. It will be Liger, Tatsumi Fujinami, The Great Sasuke & Tiger Mask IV (w/ El Samurai) vs. Sano, Shinjiro Otani, Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Ryusuke Taguchi (w/ Kuniaki Kobayashi). Norio Honaga will referee the eight-man tag.
Liger’s matches will open both Tokyo Dome shows. Night one is taking place on January 4, night two is on January 5, and New Year Dash is on January 6. New Year Dash is taking place at Ota City General Gymnasium.
Dragon Lee resurfaced at tonight’s World Tag League, challenging Jushin Thunder Liger to what will be one of his last matches.
After a six-man tag team match that featured Liger had concluded, Dragon Lee appeared on the video monitor. He said he used to be known as Dragon Lee, but now is going by the name Ryu Lee. He said Liger was an icon of pro wrestling all over the world and understood that he would soon be retiring. Lee requested to face him in one of his last matches.
Liger responded by saying he would take that as a challenge. But Liger also mentioned that he wanted to face one other person, someone who is just coming back from a neck injury. He didn’t mention Hiromu Takahashi by name, but Takahashi has just returned after being gone for more than a year due to a neck injury.
With two possible challengers, no match was made official. Jushin Thunder Liger already has a match set for January 4, but does not have a match announced for January 5.
CMLL, who owns the rights to the Dragon Lee name, fired Lee back in September for not following guidelines set by the programing department. He most recently challenged Kenny Omega for the AAA Mega Heavyweight championship back on December 1 in a losing effort.
Liger’s second-to-last match will take place on January 4 when he will team with Tatsumi Fujinami, The Great Sasuke and Tiger Mask to take on the team of Naoki Sano, Shinjiro Otani, Tatsuhito Takaiwa and Ryusuke Taguchi.
The retirement ceremony for Jushin Thunder Liger will take place on January 6 at New Year Dash.
NJPW has set a date for Jushin Thunder Liger’s final match in the United States.
It was announced tonight that Liger’s last US match will take place at New Japan Showdown in San Jose on Saturday, November 9. Who Liger will be facing in the match has yet to be revealed.
Liger will retire in January, with him having his final matches at Wrestle Kingdom 14 nights one and two.
NJPW has announced that Liger, Tatsumi Fujinami, The Great Sasuke & Tiger Mask IV will face Naoki Sano, Shinjiro Otani, Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Ryusuke Taguchi at Wrestle Kingdom night one on January 4. El Samurai will be in Liger’s corner, while Kuniaki Kobayashi will be accompanying their opponents.
Liger’s match for Wrestle Kingdom night two hasn’t been announced. His retirement ceremony will be held at New Year Dash on January 6.
The San Jose Civic is hosting New Japan Showdown in San Jose. New Japan Showdown in Los Angeles will take place at the Globe Theatre on Monday, November 11.
Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, and Taiji Ishimori have been added to both New Japan Showdown events. Kota Ibushi, Juice Robinson, Tetsuya Naito, EVIL, SANADA, Jay White, Chase Owens, Minoru Suzuki, and Lance Archer will also be on both shows, while Liger, Kazuchika Okada, and Will Ospreay will only be appearing in San Jose.
Jushin Thunder Liger’s first retirement match has been announced.
New Japan Pro Wrestling held a Wrestle Kingdom 14 press conference this morning and announced Liger’s first retirement match that will take place on January 4. He will team with Tatsumi Fujinami (marking his first appearance in the promotion since 2008), The Great Sasuke and Tiger Mask to take on the team of Naoki Sano, Shinjiro Otani, Tatsuhito Takaiwa and Ryusuke Taguchi.
El Samurai will be cornering Liger’s team, while Kuniaki Kobayashi will be cornering Sano’s team.
Liger has feuded with many of the wrestlers taking part in the match. His debut match under the Jushin Thunder Liger gimmick was a victory over Kobayashi. His match against Sano on January 31, 1990 won Match of the Year in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
NJPW also confirmed that a second retirement match will take on January 5. The retirement ceremony will take place on January 6 at New Year Dash at Ota City General Gymnasium in Tokyo.
Jushin Thunder Liger will be in action at NJPW’s Super J-Cup shows, but he won’t be one of the entrants in the tournament.
NJPW has announced that Liger will be wrestling in non-tournament action at all three of next month’s Super J-Cup events. Liger is also being billed as the “producer” of the Super J-Cup.
Liger’s matches for the shows have yet to be revealed. Liger wrestling at the events comes in advance of him retiring at the Tokyo Dome in January.
The list of participants for the Super J-Cup has also yet to be announced. The tournament will feature 16 entrants. Will Ospreay, Dragon Lee, Caristico, El Phantasmo, SHO, and YOH have been included on advertising for the tournament.
The first round of the Super J-Cup will take place at the Temple Theater in Tacoma, Washington on Thursday, August 22. The San Francisco State University Student Life Event Center in San Francisco, California will host the second round on Saturday, August 24. The semifinals and finals will then be held at Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, California on Sunday, August 25.
Jushin Thunder Liger will be facing off with three opponents in his CMLL farewell match.
CMLL announced yesterday that Liger will face Caristico, Negro Casas, and Ultimo Guerrero at their show on Friday, July 19. The event is taking place at Arena Mexico in Mexico City.
It will be a “Relevo CMLL” match. Two wrestlers will be in the ring at a time, with them being able to tag in and out. There will only be one fall in the match.
Liger announced at a press conference in March that he’ll be retiring at the Tokyo Dome in January 2020. NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 14 is taking place at the Tokyo Dome on January 4 and January 5.
Liger, Juice Robinson & Toru Yano vs. Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi & BUSHI is set for the opening night of this year’s G1 Climax in Dallas, Texas on July 6. Liger has also been announced as the producer of NJPW’s Super J-Cup tournament, which is being held in Tacoma Washington on August 22, San Francisco, California on August 24, and Long Beach, California on August 25.
Jushin Thunder Liger has added another U.S. date to his retirement tour.
NJPW has announced Liger for the opening night of this year’s G1 Climax, which is taking place at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas on Saturday, July 6. NJPW has yet to reveal Liger’s match for the show or if he’ll be appearing at other events on the G1 tour in Japan.
Liger announced earlier this year that he’ll be retiring at the Tokyo Dome in January 2020.
Liger took part in the Honor Rumble match on the G1 Supercard pre-show at Madison Square Garden last month. He also appeared at the WrestleCon Supershow in New York City, teaming with X-Pac & Hurricane Helms against Caleb Konley, Jake Manning & Zane Riley.
Kazuchika Okada, Kota Ibushi, Tetsuya Naito, and Jay White have also been confirmed for the G1 show in Dallas and are expected to be four of the entrants in the tournament, though the list of participants for it won’t be announced until we get closer to the G1. The tournament will conclude with three straight nights at Budokan Hall in Tokyo from August 10-12.
This morning’s Road to Wrestling Dontaku event celebrated the 30th anniversary of Jushin Thunder Liger’s career.
While Keiichi Yamada made his wrestling debut in 1984, it was exactly 30 years ago today on April 24, 1989 that the Jushin Thunder Liger character made its debut, which was based on a popular anime running in Japan at the time.
Here are results from today’s show at Korakuen Hall.
Satoshi Kojima, Shota Umino and Ren Narita defeated Yuji Nagata, Yota Tsuji and Yuya Uemura
Story of the match was that Umino would constantly target Nagata, who would have none of it. This was a good opener, the young lions always show a lot of fire and that gets people into the matches.
Interestingly, it was a young lion that got the win this time around, and not even with a Boston crab. Narita and Uemura traded some good looking offense right before Narita pinned Uemura with a overhead suplex into a bridge.
Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi and Taka Michinoku defeated YOSHI-HASHI, Tomoaki Honma and Rocky Romero
Sabre and YOSHI-HASHI worked a lot of the match, with Sabre focusing on YH’s taped up shoulder. Taichi was tagged in after Taka and Rocky wrestled for a bit. Rocky got some near falls, but Taichi cut hm off with a big boot and hit the last ride powerbomb for the win.
Minoru Suzuki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru and El Desperado defeated Jushin Thunder Liger, Ryusuke Taguchi and Tiger Mask
Suzuki took Liger into the crowd, much like other days and hit him with a number of chairs. Liger recovers and grabs a chair, fending himself from Suzuki as Desperado and Kanemaru keep Taguchi and Tiger Mask at bay.
In the ring, Liger stomped on Suzuki but he quickly takes Liger down and mounts him, punching him into oblivion. Desperado tries to intervene but Suzuki is incensed, shoving him down too. Liger cuts him off with a koppo kick as Tiger Mask and Kanemaru go at it. Suzuki chokes Liger out of the ring as Kanemaru sprays Tiger Mask with whiskey, takes off his mask and rolls him up for the win.
After the match, Suzuki continued to destroy Liger on the outside with more chair shots as young lions come in. Liger took a mic and says they fight in the ring, this is sacred ground.
Suzuki grabs a chair and enters the ring, but Liger grabs a chair of his own. They eventually throw down the chairs and go after one another, but are seperated quickly. Liger repeats what he says, saying if Suzuki can’t get it done in the ring he should leave New Japan. Suzuki responds by laying out Umino and Tsuji on the outside, then finally made his exit. This was all pretty cool but it doesn’t feel like the end of their feud.
Juice Robinson, Dragon Lee and Mikey Nicholls defeated Chase Owens, Bad Luck Fale and Taiji Ishimori
This was your run of the mill six man tag on a Road To undercard. Not bad, but not a ton to it either. The crowd was pretty hot for everything they did, so that was a plus. Nicholls and Owens had some good chemistry with one another towards the end, with Nicholls planting Owens with the Mikey Bomb for the win.
Hirooki Goto, Togi Makabe, Toru Yano and Toa Henare defeated Jay White, Guerillas of Destiny and Hikuleo
Another good tag match. White and Goto faced off here and were the highligt of the match Hikuleo and Henare also worked together, with Hikuleo looking more comfortable in the ring. Jado came in for the distraction as Yano and Hikuleo were in the ring, but it backfired as Yano low blowed Hikuleo then rolled him up.
Yano escaped after the match with all of Bullet Club’s belts, including the NEVER six man tag team titles.
Tetsuya Naito, EVIL and BUSHI defeated Kota Ibushi, Tomohiro Ishii and YOH
Good tag match. The two big feuds highlighted during this match were Ibushi and Naito, who brawled around the ringsider area early, and EVIL & Ishii, who kept it in the ring. YOH kicked out of Darkness Falls, and when EVIL went for his STO Ishii came in and broke it up.
After everyone came in, YOH went for a dragon suplex but EVIL broke it and took him to the corner. BUSHI assisted him in laying out YOH with a lariat as BUSHI wiped out Ishii on the outside. EVIL applied the scorpion deathlock/sharpshooter, which looks to be his submission going forward, then got the submission win.
Naito and Ibushi exchanged words after the match.
SANADA and Shingo Takagi defeated Kazuchika Okada and SHO
I dont think this was as good as the main event from yesterday, but this was still a pretty good main event. It helps that the crowd was hot for everything all night, and things did pick up towards the end.
After some mat wrestling, SANADA takes out Okada as he and Shingo focus on SHO, who gets thrown into the barricade. After being worked on, SHO makes the hot tag to Okada who goes wild on Shingo.
Okada tags back in SHO as he and SHINGO exchange strikes. SHO tries for a lariat, but Shingo is unphased. After some maneuvering, SHO hits two for a nearfall. SHO hits a back cracker and goes for an armbreaker but it is broken up. SHO continues to mount offense, but is quickly taken out by a lariat.
SANADA comes in as SHO gets the upper hand, but SANADA escapes the shock arrow and applies the cold skull. Okada breaks it up, but SANADA countered by taking out Okada, hit SHO with a tombstone then submited SHO with the cold skull. A fun main event.
Shingo says some words after the match, but the crowd desperately wants SANADA to say something to close out the show. He re-enters the ring, takes the mic and says that tombstone was a special gift to Okada. He says he has a bit of good news, that Korakuen Hall is the best place in Tokyo, and that he will see them next time.
