AEW’s Tony Khan announced on social media on Wednesday that Ibushi has officially joined the company’s roster following his participation in the Like a Dragon Gaiden street fight on Dynamite.
Khan posted:
The Golden Star won the @SEGA LIKE A DRAGON GAIDEN STREET FIGHT tonight on #AEWDynamite on TBS, and now it’s official: @ibushi_kota is ALL ELITE!
Ibushi made his AEW debut in July of this year in the annual Blood & Guts match as the partner of Kenny Omega, Hangman Page, and The Young Bucks against Jon Moxley, Wheeler Yuta, Claudio Castagnoli, Konosuke Takeshita, and PAC. He returned to the company for matches at All In, WrestleDream, and on this week’s Dynamite.
Ibushi announced in October that he had joined AEW but was still allowed to work with other companies, but the promotion had yet to make an official announcement as to his status.
Ibushi made his return to the ring in 2023 after over a year off due to a serious shoulder injury. After several years as a top-level performer for the promotion, Ibushi’s NJPW departure was announced at the end of January 2023.
He held the IWGP World Heavyweight, IWGP Heavyweight, IWGP Intercontinental, IWGP Tag Team, NEVER Openweight, IWGP Junior Heavyweight and IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles with the company. He also won the G1 Climax tournament twice, and appeared in the G1 finals in four consecutive years from 2018-2021.
Ibushi was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 2022.
Kota Ibushi has revealed details about his contract with AEW.
During an interview posted to X by HD Subs, Ibushi revealed he signed with AEW at Blood & Guts on July 19. He also said that there were certain conditions he required be met in order to agree to a deal, such as him continuing to live in Japan and being able to work for other promotions.
“I’m based in Japan and I will travel for the matches,” Ibushi said. “Basically, I’m in Japan, I work in Japan, I will be active.”
“There are other things that make the contract even more flexible,” he continued. “Like if I could work for another promotion. That kind of thing is normal. Like, ‘Can I compete in another match?’ We talked about all those kinds of details and I still got the okay.”
Ibushi continued to say he requested AEW reduce the amount of matches in the deal so that he would not have to travel to the United States as often.
“Because if I go too many times, my activities in Japan will be limited so reduce the number of matches a little bit more. When I said that, that is okay too. It’s the best deal.”
Ibushi later wrote on X, “Even if it’s not full time, my life is dedicated to AEW. I don’t play matches in Japan, I’m here to attend gym and school. That’s why pro wrestling is all about AEW.”
Even if it's not full time, my life is dedicated to AEW. I don't play matches in Japan, I'm here to attend gym and school. That's why pro wrestling is all about AEW.
I would like to make a slight correction. My current contract is with AEW. I think AEW is the best in the world. That's why I want to seize the opportunity in America or AEW and make it an even greater organization.
He later added, “I would like to make a slight correction. My current contract is with AEW. I think AEW is the best in the world. That’s why I want to seize the opportunity in America or AEW and make it an even greater organization.”
Ibushi made his AEW debut in the Blood & Guts match this summer. He returned to the promotion for All In at Wembley Stadium and the following week in Chicago for WrestleDream.
Kota Ibushi talks how and when he signed a contract with AEW:
"During the discussion, they asked me how we could come to a deal. I said unless it has these conditions, I don't want to sign a contract. That was the hardcore match, double ring, cage. That's the day we signed the… pic.twitter.com/ZCM2fuTEST
Kota Ibushi continues to deal with injuries as he heads into Sunday’s WrestleDream.
The 41-year-old suffered a shoulder injury in the finals of the G1 Climax on October 21, 2021. After numerous setbacks in his recovery and a public falling out with NJPW, he wouldn’t return to the ring again for 17 months.
Ibushi recently told Sports Illustrated that he’s still not fully recovered and is also dealing with more recent injuries.
“I cannot say that I am completely better,” said Ibushi, speaking through a translator. “Newer injuries have proven difficult. However, my fighting style will never be limited. I will continue to find a way to fight.”
Ibushi will team with Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega to wrestle The Don Callis Family in Seattle on Sunday. He teased that he also has a future “dream match” opponent in mind.
“I hope to be able to play a role in deepening the connection between Japan and the United States,” he continued. “After that, I personally want to have a dream match with a wrestler I have yet to fight. Hopefully, you will soon know who that is.”
Ibushi has wrestled five times since his match against Kazuchika Okada in the 2021 G1 Finals was stopped early. Those include All In on August 27 and his first match back in Japan at a GLEAT show in Korakuen Hall on August 4.
Ibushi returned to the ring over WrestleMania week this year for GCW, wrestling at Bloodsport 9 and Spring Break 7. He then made his AEW debut on July 30 in the Blood & Guts match.
In response to criticism that he was moving slowly in the double-ring cage match, Ibushi posted that he “ended up moving like an old man” after stepping on thumbtacks.
“I’m home It’s my fault that I didn’t know thumbtacks and glass after all this time. I have thin wrestling shoes, so it penetrated and it was just painful from the middle, and I ended up moving like an old man. I’m sorry! Far from being unable to kick, both ankles were stiff,” a translation of his post reads.
“Life with a cane for the first time in my life No, I’ll be cured tomorrow! That is Kota Ibushi!”
Konosuke Takeshita and Don Callis have chosen Kota Ibushi as their next target.
Callis revealed on Wednesday a painting showing Takeshita standing over a fallen Ibushi, about to stab him with a sword as Callis is seen giving the order. After revealing the painting, Callis said that they would spill Ibushi’s blood in the ring while Omega sat at home, as Callis explained it, “like a cuck”.
Earlier this year, Callis severed his relationship with Kenny Omega and aligned himself with Takeshita. After winning the six-man trios match at All In by pinning Omega, Takeshita followed up by defeating Omega clean at All Out. Omega hasn’t been seen since the back-to-back losses.
On Wednesday’s Dynamite, Callis demanded that going forward, everyone should call Takeshita the Alpha, saying that anyone who can beat Omega twice can be called an Alpha, unlike Chris Jericho.
Ibushi has made two AEW appearances in the last year. The first was at Blood and Guts, teaming with Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, and Eddie Kingston in a winning effort. The second was the trios match at All In where he, Omega, and Hangman Page lost to Jay White, Juice Robinson, and Takeshita.
Kota Ibushi has revealed why he was “moving like an old man” during the Blood & Guts match on Dynamite last week.
The double-cage match was just Ibushi’s third match since 2021, after having wrestled two matches for GCW over WrestleMania weekend this year. Some have been critical of his performance in his AEW debut, stating the 41-year-old was moving a little sluggish during the match.
Ibushi noted in a social media post on Tuesday that the thumbtacks scattered across the mat during Blood & Guts ended up negatively impacting his performance.
A translation of Ibushi’s Tweet reads:
I’m home It’s my fault that I didn’t know thumbtacks and glass after all this time. I have thin wrestling shoes, so it penetrated and it was just painful from the middle, and I ended up moving like an old man. I’m sorry! Far from being unable to kick, both ankles were stiff
Life with a cane for the first time in my life No, I’ll be cured tomorrow! That is Kota Ibushi!
Ibushi was voted to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame Class of 2022. His Wrestle Kingdom match against Shinsuke Nakamura won Match of the Year in 2015. Ibushi was also voted the Best Flying Wrestler in 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2013.
Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back with tons to talk about including the debut of Nick Wayne, Ibushi debuting for AEW with Blood and Guts, the death of Mantaur, Adrian Adonis, full recaps of AEW and NXT and tons more. A packed show as always so check it out~!
Timestamps:
Start: Fallout from AEW Dynamite, AEW may move to 12 pay-per-views
20:34: Manutar passes away
28:08: Ratings
34:42: A huge weekend ahead, G1 Climax lineups
38:28: Dave’s Adrian Adonis Dark Side of the Ring thoughts
Kota Ibushi and PAC were revealed as participants in the July 19 Blood & Guts match on Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite.
In the show-closing segment, PAC was revealed as the final member of the Blackpool Combat Club team for next week’s Blood & Guts match, as BCC & PAC attacked Kenny Omega of The Elite. It was then revealed by Omega that Kota Ibushi would be the final member of The Elite’s team, as Hangman Page and The Young Bucks made the save for Omega.
Next week’s Bllod & Guts match lineup is now official, with The Elite (Omega, The Young Bucks, Page & Ibushi) facing Blackpool Combat Club (Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, Wheeler Yuta, Konosuke Takeshita & PAC).
Ibushi’s long-awaited AEW debut in Blood & Guts will mark his return to the ring for the first time since March 2023, where he wrestled at Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport & Joey Janela’s Spring Break events for GCW. Prior to that, Ibushi had not wrestled since suffering an injury in the G1 Climax finals for NJPW in October 2021. A lengthy injury rehab and dispute with the NJPW office followed, and NJPW officially announced Ibushi’s departure from the company in January of this year.
Ibushi has a storied history with Omega, with five tag team title reigns across multiple promotions in Japan as The Golden Lovers. As a unit, Omega and Ibushi faced The Young Bucks in a tag match at NJPW Strong Style Evolved in Long Beach, California in March 2018. Omega and Ibushi have not teamed since December 2018.
PAC has not wrestled since March 2023’s ScrapperMania events in England and Ireland, and last wrestled for AEW in January in the final match of the best-of-seven series between The Elite & Death Triangle for the AEW World Trios Championship.
Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive is back with tons to talk about including Jerry McDevitt retiring, RAW ratings for Monday night and what spiked the quarters, a full recap of Dynamite from Wednesday night, Kota Ibushi and tons more. A fun show as always so check it out~!
With AEW’s third-ever Blood & Guts match coming up in two weeks, the teams are starting to come together with two potentially high-profile exceptions.
On Wednesday’s Dynamite, the five-on-five double cage match had its first eight men confirmed as The Elite will have Kenny Omega, the Young Bucks, and Hangman Page on one side with the Blackpool Combat Club bringing Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, Wheeler Yuta and Konosuke Takeshita on the other.
That leaves one member per team remaining with the BCC’s Bryan Danielson on the shelf with a broken forearm and noted Castagnoli antagonist Eddie Kingston in Japan for the annual NJPW G1 tournament.
Following the taping for this Friday’s Rampage, Omega addressed the Edmonton crowd and said he would give a hint about their mystery partner. As he has said before, he recently took time off and didn’t stay home, but rather took a trip “not to Canada” to recruit an old friend. That friend cares about Omega, the people in the ring (the Bucks and Page), AEW, and about changing the face of professional wrestling.
Some fans were chanting for Omega’s former teammate and free agent Kota Ibushi which Omega didn’t attempt to downplay.
Ibushi’s deal with NJPW ended in January of this year and AEW head Tony Khan said that bringing Ibushi in would be “something to consider.”
Conversely, there was no hints given on Wednesday about who could join the BCC for the violent match which will be held at Boston’s TD Garden as part of the Wednesday, July 19th Dynamite.
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On the same week AEW began to celebrate their 100th episode of Rampage coming up Friday, they also began their focus on next month’s 200th episode of Dynamite.
That show will take place on Wednesday, August 2nd at the Yuengling Center in Tampa, Florida. The company’s weekly flagship show first bowed on Wednesday, October 2, 2019, in Washington, DC.
Former NJPW star Kota Ibushi is set to wrestle his first match in Japan in nearly two years.
At GLEAT’s second-year anniversary show on Saturday, a video aired announcing that Ibushi will be coming to the promotion at their Ver. Mega show on Friday, August 4. The show is being held at Sumo Hall in Tokyo. It will be Ibushi’s GLEAT debut.
GLEAT hasn’t announced Ibushi’s opponent for the match.
Ibushi’s last match in Japan prior to this was the 2021 G1 Climax finals, where Ibushi suffered a shoulder injury against Kazuchika Okada. The injury forced the match to end in a stoppage.
Ibushi departed NJPW when his contract with the company expired this January.
Ibushi returned to the ring this March for the first time since his shoulder injury. He wrestled two matches at GCW’s The Collective, defeating “Speedball” Mike Bailey at Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport and defeating Joey Janela at Joey Janela’s Spring Break.
During a February appearance on Busted Open Radio, Tony Khan addressed the possibility of bringing Ibushi into AEW.
“There’s a lot of great free agents in the world of pro wrestling, but certainly Kota Ibushi is a great talent,” Khan said. “When you have a name like that, that is certainly somebody everybody in the world of pro wrestling would be very fortunate to have in their promotion. We really wanted to work with him in the past, so I think that is certainly something we’d have to consider.”
New champions were crowned at NJPW Dominion on Sunday.
Francesco Akira and TJP regained the IWGP Junior Tag Team titles from KUSHIDA and Kevin Knight. Akira scored the win for his team, pinning Knight after both he and TJP connected with running knees. This is their second reign with the titles.
Later in the show, Bishimon (YOSHI-HASHI and Hirooki Goto) won the IWGP Tag Team and New Japan Strong Tag Team titles, defeating Yujiro Takahashi & EVIL and Aaron Henare & The Great-O-Khan after hitting their powerbomb/GTR combo on Takahashi. Bishimon won the vacant titles after Aussie Open were forced to vacate the titles last month due to Mark Davis suffering an injury.
After the match, Alex Coughlin and Gabriel Kidd came out wearing Bullet Club t-shirts, revealing they had joined the group. They attacked Bishimon, making it clear they were next in line for a title match.
Elsewhere on the card, SANADA retained the IWGP World Heavyweight title against Yota Tsuji, Hiromu Takahashi retained the IWGP Junior Heavyweight title against Master Wato, Zack Sabre Jr. retained the New Japan World Television title over Jeff Cobb, David Finlay retained the NEVER title over El Phantasmo, and the team of Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Tomohiro Ishii retained the NEVER Six-Man Tag Team titles against Shota Umino, Jon Moxley, and Claudio Castagnoli.
It’s WrestleMania weekend which means GCW’s Collective series of events which means another edition of Joey Janela’s Spring Break.
The seventh edition in the series is live from Los Angeles, California, and features several high-profile, first-time-ever matches.
After he wrestled his first match since October 2021 Thursday at Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport, former NJPW star Kota Ibushi will return to traditional action as he takes on Janela himself.
Budding superstar and AAA Mega Champion El Hijo del Vikingo will go one-on-one with “Speedball” Mike Bailey for the first time.
The GCW Tag Team titles will be on the line as the Motor City Machine Guns will defend against Nick Wayne & Jordan Oliver.
The unusual combo of Maki Itoh & Nick Gage (aka Maki Death Kill) will team up against former GCW Tag Team Champions BUSSY (Allie Katch & EFFY)
The PPV will also feature a Grab the Brass Ring DLC (doors, ladders and chairs) match.
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Show Report —
The show started 20 minutes late.
Grab the Brass Ring Ladder match: Blake Christian defeated Gringo Loco, Komander, Jack Cartwheel, Billie Starkz, Shane Mercer, Tony Deppen, Alec Price, & Cole Radrick
I’m sorry, but the name of this match is so funny. A “Grab the Brass Ring” ladder match in a venue where you literally can’t hang anything from the ceiling, so it’s just pinfall or submission? Anyway, the winner earns a title shot. Blake Christian was an unannounced addition.
Gringo and Komander had an early exchange. Mercer pressed Price over his head and tossed him onto a pile of opponents before Gringo whacked him with chairs and hit a jumping destroyer. Christian smashed Radrick with a ladder-assisted senton.
Price used two attempts to stomp Starkz through a door for two. Gringo was the base on a Cartwheel-Deppen Tower of Doom suplex spot. Cartwheel then put Radrick through a door on the floor. Mercer hit Moonsault & Battery off the ladder. Gringo smashed him over the head with unprotected chair shots.
Gringo set Mercer up on a door bridge, but the door broke before he could do anything with it. A second attempt led to Price jumping off a ladder bridge to the floor, Komander doing his rope-walk dive, and Gringo putting Mercer through the door with a senton bomb. Starkz planted Radrick for two.
Starkz hit the Sugoi Driver on Radrick, but Christian came in and stomped her face-first into the mat for the win.
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GCW Tag Team Championships: The East-West Express (Jordan Oliver & Nick Wayne) defeated The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) (c) to win the titles
The East-West Express gained the upper hand early on, landing simultaneous dives. Back in the ring, they kept it up with tandem offense until the Guns hit Oliver with a Magic Killer to take control. Shelley and Sabin isolated Oliver in the ring as Wayne was busted open.
Oliver fought back with a running clothesline and tagged in Wayne, who ran wild on Sabin. Shelley cut Wayne off with a facebuster into the turnbuckle pad. Oliver backflipped out of a sunset bomb attempt, but Sabin returned fire with a Death Valley bomb for two.
Shelley and Wayne exchanged finisher attempts until Shelley hit Shell Shocked for two. He immediately transitioned into the Border City Stretch as Sabin put Oliver in a cloverleaf. Wayne cradled Shelley to break the submission, but the Guns maintained control.
Bad timing led to Shelley booting Sabin. Wayne took Shelley out with a dive and Oliver hit Shelley with the Clout Cutter for a good near fall. Both of the East West Express hit Clout Cutters for another near fall. They finally hit a double team Clout Cutter for the win.
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DDT’s Yoshihiko, a human-sized doll (and current Ironman Heavymetalweight champion), came out for a promo. Interviewed by Emil Jay, she said nothing but gestured a lot. She nodded “yes” when asked whether she’d stick around in GCW.
Charles Mason and Parrow interrupted. Mason took Yoshihiko out with a cheap shot and called her “not real.” He took out a knife and was about to cut Yoshihiko open, but Yoshihiko’s handler got in the way. Parrow crushed the handler, and Mason unmasked him as Jimmy Lloyd. Mason made Lloyd look as Parrow was about to spike Yoshihiko, but she fought back and hit Parrow with a German.
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Hijo del Vikingo defeated Mike Bailey
They both had each other scouted at the start. Bailey got a brief advantage after some kicks, but Vikingo returned fire with a rope-rebound kick of his own. He stumbled on a double springboard but recovered to land a tope suicida. Back in the ring, Bailey took out Vikingo’s legs and began to dismantle the left. He twisted over into a modified deathlock.
Vikingo fired back with overhand chops. They had a long multiple-minute chop exchange until Bailey surprised Vikingo with a kick combination. A running shooting star press got two. Vikingo came back with a black hole slam and running knees through the ropes before concluding the run with a shooting star press off the apron.
Back inside the ring, Vikingo hit a springboard Phoenix Splash for two. Bailey avoided a dive and hit a top-rope Asai moonsault. He landed moonsault double knees and a buzzsaw kick for two. Bailey kept up the relentless assault with kicks, but Vikingo avoided the Ultimate Weapon. They botched Vikingo’s imploding dragonrana, but Vikingo hit a stalling German for two.
They traded strikes on the apron. Vikingo avoided moonsault knees and landed a crazy diving destroyer on the ring frame. Bailey countered a top-rope shooting star press and hit Meteor Rain, a top-rope fisherman’s buster, for a near fall. Vikingo fought out of the Flamingo Driver.
After jockeying for position on the top rope, Vikingo hit an avalanche spinning side slam followed by the 630 splash for the win.
Allie and Itoh had a cute-off at the start. Gage and Effy tagged in, with Gage taking control after a running elbow drop. BUSSY cut Gage off and isolated him with double teams. Gage fought off both opponents, and a stalling vertical suplex allowed him to tag in Itoh.
Itoh let us know that she’s the cutest in the world before hitting a swinging DDT on Effy for two. Gage produced a pizza cutter, but Allie cut him off and wrapped a chair around his head. Effy and Allie both used the pizza cutter on Itoh until Gage ran in for the save. Itoh got her payback with the pizza cutter as Gage carved up Effy.
Gage and Allie both took out an opponent, leading to them exchanging forearms in the ring. Gage then hit the Chokebreaker, but Effy broke up the pin. Itoh whacked Effy with a chair, but Effy gained control of the chair and smashed it over Gage’s head. Itoh chokeslammed Effy over some propped-up chairs, but Allie broke up the pin attempt.
Allie made Itoh cry, then mocked her. Effy rolled Itoh up for two. Gage made it back in as Itoh hit a diving DDT and Gage hit almost like a One Winged Angel for the simultaneous pinfall victory.
– Gage was about to cut a promo post-match, but Matt Cardona showed up with Steph De Lander and attacked Gage with a chair. He complained about not being booked on WrestleMania. GCW World Champion Masha Slamovich then showed up and faced off with De Lander, leading to an impromptu GCW World Championship match.
GCW World Championship: Masha Slamovich (c) defeated Steph De Lander
De Lander somehow maintained control throughout pretty much the entire match despite not being in wrestling gear and wrestling the promotion’s world champion. She eventually chokeslammed Slamovich through chairs for two. Slamovich came back with an air raid crash through a door. She went for the White Knight Driver, but Cardona ran in and broke it up.
Cardona was about to hit Slamovich with a chair, but Gage and Itoh ran out for the save. Slamovich locked on the sleeper for the win.
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Kota Ibushi defeated Joey Janela
Neither man took control for a few minutes. Janela tried to play some mind games to get into Ibushi’s head. He surprised Ibushi with a rolling elbow and laid in chops in the corner, but Ibushi returned fire with a mid kick. Janela cut him off and beat him down until Ibushi popped up with a hurricnrana. Ibushi then landed an Orihara moonsault to the floor.
Ibushi kept up the attack with an arm-trap German, He climbed the ropes again, but Janela popped up and brought Ibushi crashing down with a superplex. They fought on the apron, where Janela charged at Ibushi — but Ibushi moved out of the way, sending Janela face-first into the ring post. Janela was busted open.
Janela caught a running attack from Ibushi and turned it into an apron DDT. He set up a structure of doors and chairs on the outside. They fought each other around the turnbuckles, leading to Ibushi hitting a crazy German suplex from the ring to the floor through the door structure. It wasn’t perfect, but it was definitely insane.
Back inside the ring, Janela hit two Death Valley drivers, but Ibushi kicked out at one. They traded forearms until Ibushi finally stopped the exchange with a suplex. Janela returned fire with a German, but Ibushi hit one of his own. Simultaneous clothesline attempts led to the double down.
Ibushi laid in a flurry of strikes, his classic strike combination. Janela countered a standing moonsault and landed a lariat followed by a package piledriver for two. He laid in repeated thrust kicks, but Ibushi cut him off with a running knee before hitting the Kamigoye for the win.
– After the match, Janela talked about his career and what led to this point. He thanked Tony Khan before welcoming Ibushi back to the business of pro wrestling. They shook hands and posed before signing off.
The ninth edition of Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport promises to be a newsworthy one as it will feature the return to action of former NJPW star Kota Ibushi.
Ibushi will face “Speedball” Mike Bailey in his first match since he injured his shoulder in the 2021 NJPW G1 tournament finals. He became a free agent earlier this year and this weekend will mark his return to in-ring action.
Former AEW World Champion Jon Moxley will return to Bloodsport action against Alex Coughlin while Barnett himself will take on Timothy Thatcher.
Johnny Bloodsport (John Morrison) will face Royce Isaacs while Davey Boy Smith Jr. battles JR Kratos.
Other action includes Marina Shafir against Killer Kelly and Erik Hammer vs. Calvin Tankman.
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The show opened with a full in-ring introduction to each of today’s participants. Each wrestler walked to the ring as the announcer called their name. By the end, Josh Barnett & Timothy Thatcher stood at the front of the formation ahead of their main event later tonight.
Barnett grabbed the mic before it was over and said some words: “There is no equal to Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport. Thank you all. Let the battle commence.”
Jeff Cobb defeated Calder McColl via TKO
McColl was aggressive in trying to take Cobb down early on, but Cobb was immovable, more or less. McColl switched to a seated open guard and tried baiting Cobb in with a modern jiu-jitsu approach. Still, no dice. Cobb, the pedigreed freestyle wrestler, offered McColl a chance to play Cobb’s open guard. Gutsy move, Mr. Cobb.
It was moments later when Cobb yeeted McColl over with a head and arm suplex. McColl would later get back on top and throw in some hard shotei palm strikes.
When McColl went for a flying triangle choke, Cobb caught him mid-air, power bombed him and then laid in a shot to a downed McColl before the referee called for the match, giving Cobb a TKO win ala Rampage Jackson. This was a nice and strong opener and the crowd exploded for the finish.
Erik Hammer defeated Calvin Tankman via submission
Both competed the last Bloodsport event at the Ukrainian Cultural Center in Los Angeles.
The groundwork was chippy between the two at first. The larger Tankman took an advantage on top, but Hammer escaped to the floor for a quick breather. This was Hammer’s first match in 18 months.
Tankman launched Hammer with a urange throw. Hammer recovered and later threw a flurry of short elbow shots to a grounded Tankman. Nice escapes from Hammer during the back-and-forth between these two.
Hammer would eventually submit Tankman when Hammer switched into a strong North/South position to set up a double wrist lock. He would lock Tankman’s arm and shoulder in place, pulling up and cranking on it for the tap. This was submission wrestling 101 from Hammer. This was a quick bout, but a good one.
Marina Shafir defeated Killer Kelly via submission
Shafir toyed with Kelly early on, bullying her. Shafir tossed her with a throw before smacking Kelly so many times that she fell out of the ring. Shafir followed her to the floor for some more bullying, but Kelly was able to pick up some momentum and change the pace. She put Shafir in a twister before launching Shaffir with two German suplexes. The crowd chanted for her from here.
Shafir muscled her way back into the match and at one point used a hard front kick to knock Kelly down. Shafir locked in a one-armed sleeper while Kelly tried to stand up. Shafir answered by collapsing Kelly back onto the mat, finishing things with an inverted triangle choke for the dominant win.
Kota Ibushi defeated “Speedball” Mike Bailey via TKO
Ibushi’s shoulder seemed just fine tonight.
The Beastie Boys’ “Brass Monkey” sounded and Bailey came out to a big response. The announcers put over Bailey as having “the best WrestleMania weekend ever in independent wrestling history” last year.
Ibushi made his return to a pro wrestling ring after more than a year and received a hero’s welcome. He walked to the ropeless ring with new music and clearly lots of mixed feelings running through his head. He looked emotional as he slapped hands with fans at ringside.
“Speedball” rolled over to Ibushi’s corner during his introduction and bowed to him, deeply. Ibushi would do the same thing during his intro. The crowd was HOT for his return and broke out into a loud I-BU-SHI! chant early.
The two traded strikes and kicks while the crowd continued chanting.
Bailey went for a triangle choke on the ground and Ibushi tried countering it into a clover hold until Bailey released it. Bailey controlled on top in side mount from here, until he’d eventually slide into full mount. Ibushi would escape and end up in Bailey’s closed guard.
When Bailey tried lifting Ibushi off him with his legs, he inadvertently launched Ibushi onto the floor. The crowd started chanting for Ibushi after that, for some reason.
Back in the ring, the match heated up in terms of action. Lots more strikes unloaded. Bailey did his signature kicking flurry before destroying Ibushi’s face with a standing vertical moonsault double knee drop. This looked *brutal.”
Bailey moved into an armbar, but Ibushi would counter and roll into Bailey. Bailey decided to roll to the floor for a break, but Ibushi wouldn’t break his grip from Bailey’s waist. He’d then deadlift Bailey from the floor back into the ring.
The finish saw Ibushi lay Bailey out with a Regal Plex followed by a kamigoye knee to the face.
The crowd erupted. Ibushi looked emotional upon winning. He motioned to Bailey that those two should meet again in the future.
Erik Paulson Lifetime Achievement Award Ceremony w/ Chavo Guerrero Jr.
Next, an awesome quick tribute package video aired for submission wrestling and MMA pioneer, Erik Paulson. Not only has Paulson trained some of the best fighters and wrestlers of today, but he was also one of the first foreigners to compete in mixed-rules bouts in companies like SHOOTO (Satoru Sayama’s company) in Japan.
Paulson received a Lifetime Achievement award from the promotion, and it was presented to him by former Bloodsport competitor and legend in his own right, Mr. Chavo Guerrero Jr.
Guerrero explained that Paulson was the first American to win the World Light Heavyweight Championship for SHOOTO in Japan, and that he trained under the Machados, the Gracies and “Judo” Gene LeBell among others. He also trained the likes of Josh Barnett and Brock Lesnar.
The mic kept cutting in and out for both Guerrero and Paulson’s speeches, which was annoying.
Paulson spoke briefly on the importance and background of catch wrestling before thanking everyone for the award. Guerrero gave him a customized plaque and a bouquet of flowers before he left the ring. This was really, really cool, and I’m glad they did it. Erik Paulson is a legend and deserves his proverbial (and literal) flowers.
Bad Dude Tito defeated Yuya Uemura via submission
The ring announcer’s mic kept cutting in and out during the introductions and Uemura’s name was cut off during his announcement. Can they switch out the mics or XLR cables? It’s killing me.
Uemura sported a fresh new man-bun. He and Tito squared off and Tito shoved him in the chest and caused Uemura to fall to the floor. Uemura was back in and took him down with a double leg. The two went back and forth on the mat, furious mat wrestling. Uemura seemed to have a slight advantage but honestly they kept things very 50/50.
Tito worked to lock in an armbar of his own for a while. He’d later switch to a kneebar. Uemura broke free and chopped Tito’s back really hard.
The match heated up with Uemura unloading a flurry of offense that saw Uemura dive onto Tito on the floor.
Uemura would go for another suplex, but Tito countered and locked in an ankle lock to tap Uemura out. The TMDK member picks up the win.
Tito went to shake Uemura’s hand afterwards, then pie-faced him instead. What disrespect! Uemura went after him but the referee kept Uemura at bay while the cocky Tito left ringside.
Harry “Bulldog” Smith defeated JR Kratos via submission
It’s great to see HBS back in Bloodsport. Kratos busted out his black gi pants like he often does for his Bloodsport appearances.
Slow and steady start to this one. Both are gigundous dudes. Neither seemed to grab the upper hand, maybe until Kratos was able to stay on top of HBS in side-mount working the double wrist lock. HBS would get on top for a bit, too, but Kratos used a head scissors to peel DBS off of him before peppering him with some hard elbow shots. DBS responded with elbows of his own before throwing a few grounded knees.
When they got to their feet, the two started throwing hands—open hands. HBS threw a hard knee and a few elbows.
Kratos tried going for a Boston Crab but couldn’t lock it in. HBS would lie atop Kratos and blast him with more elbows.
DBS tried it earlier, but he would finally be able to hoist the large Kratos up in the air with a power bomb, but Kratos survived it. He’d actually return fire with a huge jumping knee strike and a back enzuigiri kick. Both were knocked to the mat for some moments.
They got into a collar-and-elbow tie-up as they tried standing up. They did it on their knees actually. They’d then trade elbows and strikes. Kratos shouted “Come on, motherf***er!” and the two broke into a flurry for strikes.
The finish saw Kratos go for a vertical suplex, but HBS countered it and shoved Kratos down into a crossface LeBell Lock submission for the tap. Really good stuff.
Johnny Bloodsport defeated Royce Isaacs via submission
Johnny Bloodsport (John Morrison) got a nice chant from the crowd when he came out. Royce Isaacs came out to “California Love” and rocked a wild Streets of Rage 1 custom jacket.
The ring announcer’s mic kept cutting out during introductions, again.
Johnny is so smooth on the ground, which is something we hardly ever get to see from him unless he’s at something like Bloodsport. He’s a big dude, too, but he moves like he’s a foot shorter. It’s easy to forget this is Johnny Mundo.
The bulkier Isaacs was able to shut down Johnny down on the ground, for the most part. Johnny was able to escape and lock in a side headlock, which Isaacs quickly reversed, taking Johnny’s back and then going for an armbar before Johnny spun out and escaped himself. Fluid mat wrestling between the two; it’s literally “hold for hold,” as they say.
Some idiot in the crowd thought it’d be funny to shout “WRESTLING!” during some of the quiet parts of the match because some folks just can’t ever seem to keep it in their pants.
Isaacs would attack with a double wrist lock before launching Johnny with some big boy suplexes. Johnny used his hips to swivel and pivot out of harm’s way. It was very interesting seeing how Johnny escaped from some “basic” holds with creative, stretchy counters.
Isaacs was able to get Johnny’s back and lock in a tight sleeper. Isaacs locked in a clover hold but Johnny escaped.
The finishing sequence was pretty wild. Isaacs exploded out of nowhere with a jumping piledriver that he followed up with a dragon sleeper. It looked as though it was lights-out for Johnny, until he cleverly rolled out of the dragon sleeper into North-South before standing up and gator-rolling Isaacs—a pro wrestling version, though, which looked almost more like a swinging neck breaker—then rolling from North-South into a full mount with a front facelock submission. Beautiful. Isaacs rolled into it to escape, but Johnny kept the hold locked on and kept Isaacs in closed guard before getting Isaacs to tap. Very cool match. I think many would enjoy Johnny Bloodsport in more of these scenarios.
Jon Moxley defeated Alex Coughlin via TKO
The crowd broke out into a big “Moxley” chant during the introductions. He wore his black hoodie that read “Blackpool Wrestling.” Coughlin jaw-jacked before the bell even sounded. This had the energy of a grudge match.
Moxley controlled on top for the early part of this. The announcers mentioned how much Mox’s fight skill has improved over the past few years.
Mox was able to push Coughlin to the floor. When Mox locked in a triangle to a standing Coughlin, Coughlin grabbed Max and power bombed him onto the edge of the ring apron. He launched Mox with a side-salto suplex inside the ring. Coughlin was feisty.
Max locked in a front face lock with guard applied, but Coughlin muscled out of it with a deadlift pop-up power bomb. Coughlin is freakishly strong.
They pummeled for leverage on their feet. They threw flurries of short body shots. Mox threw four hard headbutts before using a butterfly suplex on Coughlin, who was up immediately, but dazed.
They began trading really hard shots until Moxley locked in a bully choke. It looked like that was it for Coughlin until he deadlifted Mox off of him, but only for a moment, as Mox relaxed his weight onto Coughlin and brought him straight back down to the mat. Mox used some brutal grounded knees before locking in a D’Arce choke. Moments later, Mox rolled into a front facelock from the mount, and Coughlin was unconscious, so the referee decided to stop the match. Moxley wins again at Bloodsport. Great bout.
Timothy Thatcher defeated Josh Barnett via submission
This ruled.
Thatcher received a huge chant during his introduction. Barnett wore his IGF books that read “GENOME” and “JLB” down the sides.
Thatcher was aggressive early on. He managed to stay atop Barnett while he peppered Barnett with body shots as he held control over JB. He went for a bow-and-arrow submission but Barnett rolled out of it and began working a heel hook submission. Thatcher defended well but Barnett was in control from here.
There was a 70-30 chant that broke out in favor of Thatcher. This is Barnett’s show, though! Thatcher was able to escape, stand up and lock in a Thesz-like standing half-crab. He’d continue the attack with a short-arm scissors, a common hold in catch wrestling, a move one would see Billy Robinson or Antonio Inoki employ regularly.
Barnett would work a double wrist lock for a while, but Thatcher would reply with a Kimura of his own, though this time Thatcher grapevined his leg over Barnett’s neck, increasing the torque. Barnett found an opening and grabbed a hold of Thatcher’s ankle and applied a toe lock/ankle lock, a beautiful counter. From here, Barnett transitioned into a stepover toehold w/ facelock, a signature of one Erik Paulson in addition to others like Lou These, Masahiro Chono, etc.
Barnett would drill Thatcher with a huge backdrop suplex. Thatcher would later respond with one of his own. Thatcher would then fight for the double wrist lock again while the crowd chanted for him. Barnett muscled up and out of the hold with an exploder suplex.
When Barnett power bombed Thatcher, Thatcher immediately countered it with his signature Fujiwara armbar. Barnett rolled out of it, but Thatcher seemed to have expected that, so he seamlessly moved into a kneebar that had Barnett writhing in pain. Barnett would ultimately tap to Thatcher’s kneebar, making Thatcher the first-ever wrestler to beat Barnett at his own event by his own rules. The student becomes the master. The two bowed to each other and shook hands afterwards. Excellent main event.
Final thoughts:
If you’re already familiar with Bloodsport, then you will absolutely not be disappointed with tonight’s show. These tend to fly by, they’re filled with variety and surprises but also dignity and respect towards the talent and the fans. Other quick hits:
Thatcher had his moment, and rightfully so. He and Barnett had a true main event level match.
Mox vs. Coughlin need to have a rematch somewhere, ASAP. They are meant to be rivals.
Johnny Bloodsport is very much worth your time; Royce Isaacs continues to impress, improve and stay solid in the eyes of fans.
Smith vs. Kratos simply kicked ass.
Ibushi’s return was great and he tore it down with “Speedball.”
Shafir looked 10x cooler tonight than she usually does on AEW.
Joey Janela’s opponent for his Spring Break event is now set.
Janela announced on Twitter Wednesday night that he will face Kota Ibushi. This year’s Spring Break event will take place on March 31 at the Ukrainian Cultural Center.
“My whole career has been dedicated to being selfless, young guys & gals or older that are giving it or gave it all to this business & getting them the respect they deserve!, Janela wrote. “But it’s my TIME! I will put on the best performance of career! For those that support me, Thank you.”
Other matches set for Joey Janela’s Spring Break include Speedball Mike Bailey vs. El Hijo Del Vikingo and The Motor City Machine Guns vs. East West Express (Jordan Oliver and Nick Wayne) for the GCW Tag Team titles. Maki Itoh and Nick Gage will also team together on the show, though their opponents have not been named.
Ibushi is also set for Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport on March 30, where he is scheduled to face Bailey. It will be his first match since October of 2021, when he injured his shoulder in that year’s G1 Climax finals against Kazuchika Okada. His contract with New Japan Pro Wrestling expired earlier this year.
In this week’s issue *Complete Royal Rumble coverage *Match and performer of the week *Highlights of the Rumble *The story of the Reigns-Zayn angle *Why Reigns vs. Zayn won’t be happening at WrestleMania *Records set at Royal Rumble *How many people watched Royal Rumble on Peacock *The 15 largest gates in pro wrestling history *PPV crossover with Full Gear and Survivor Series *Elimination Chamber update *Wrestlemania update *Return of Pat McAfee *WrestleMania sponsorship *Nick Khan talks WWE sale *Khan talks about the next rights deals *More on the Vince McMahon investigation and how much it cost WWE so far *WWE business numbers for 2022 *A look at the career of Fedor Emelianenko as he has his retirement fight *What pro wrestler brought Fedor into prominence *What former pro wrestling promotion did he first become a star in *A look at hs glory days in Pride *Who is the best heavyweight ever *The life and times of Lanny Poffo *His career high points *Winning the world tag team title at the age of 20 *Feuding with his brother *The big name historically Randy Savage was to feud with that never happened *The funeral of Jay Briscoe *Another new lawsuit filed trying to get Vince McMahon out of power *Legendary enhancement wrestler Kenny Jay passes away and the night he had a match with Muhammad Ali *Why he never became a bigger star *The story behind his match with Ali *2022 Wrestling Observer Awards allot *The most detailed look at the television ratings over the past week *International TV ratings for AEW and WWE *Streaming ratings for AEW & WWE *Ticket sales for upcoming shows *One of the oldest titles in history defended on Jericho cruise *Keiji Muto struggles through retirement matches *New Japan changes with New Japan Strong *Mercedes Mone talks her new Japan debut *Hiroshi Hase in controversy over doing a wrestling match last month *Why Kota Ibushi did Bloodsport *Thought on AEW doing house shows *Difference between AEW and WWE fans *Thoughts on MJF vs. Takeshita *New A&E wrestling schedule
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Friday Update
We have a show today where we talk some news regarding the WWE sale and ten talk to Adam Cole about all aspects of his career, recovery from his injury, growing up as a fan and the evolution of his career, as well as a story on meeting Britt Baker. Bryan and I will be back tomorrow night with a ton of different events to talk about for our weekend show.
The new issue of the Wrestling Observer is up on the site now. It’s a loaded issue with the most detailed coverage of the Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber, WrestleMania, the WWE business, the retirement of Fedor Emelianenko and stories on the deaths of former wrestlers Lanny Poffo and Kenny Jay.
Smackdown tonight on FOX has Charlotte Flair defending the Smackdown title against Sonya Deville and Ludvig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci vs. Braun Strowman & Ricochet, with the winners getting a tag title shot. The big thing is obviously the aftermath of the Roman Reigns-Sami Zayn Royal Rumble angle. They also shot an angle today at a NASCAR appearance with Judgment Day vs. Rey Mysterio & New Day, which will air on tonight’s show. The show has had a lot of tickets sold in the last few weeks and was over 9,000 this morning.
Rampage at 10 p.m. on TNT: *Kenny Omega & Young Bucks vs. Matt Hardy & Isaiah Kassidy & Ethan Page for trios titles *Swerve Strickland vs. Brian Pillman Jr. *Saraya & Toni Storm vs. Renegade Sisters *Rush vs. Christopher Daniels
While I don’t know anything comes of this, Rizin promoter Nobuyuki Sakakibara went public that he is trying to put together a Manny Pacquiao vs. Kota Ibushi match now that Ibushi is a free agent.
The Reyes del Aire match from Arena Mexico this past Friday night, which was really spectacular, is at 1:27 of the show here. This is an example of the best of CMLL these days.
It’s a real big weekend of events coming up. We’ll be doing polls on the New Japan shows in Sapporo on Saturday and Sunday, NXT Vengeance on Saturday and the Stardom show tomorrow (late tonight) from Sapporo with Giulia vs. Suzu Suzuki and Saya Kamitani goes for the Wonder of Stardom record for most title defenses against previous record-holder Momo Watanabe. You can leave a thumbs up, down or middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected]
New Japan Pro Wrestling at 3 a.m. Eastern late night (midnight Pacific) has Tetsuya Naito vs. Shota Umino, Will Ospreay vs. Taichi and TJP & Francesco Akira vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru &* Douki for the IWGP Jr. tag titles. They have another show at midnight Eastern Saturday night with Hiromu Takahashi vs. Yoh for the IWGP jr. title, Zack Sabre Jr. defends the TV title against Tomohiro Ishii and Hirooki Goto & Yoshi-Hashi vs. Mikey Nicholls & Shane Haste for the IWGP tag titles.
Kento Miyahara vs. Yuma Aoyagi for the Triple Crown takes place tomorrow. Those two always kill it and have the unique ability to make a 30:00 match feel like 15:00 because of Miyahara’s pacing ability.
We’re also looking for reports from these shows *WWE tonight in Greenville, SC with dark matches and anything not on the live show *WWE house show tomorrow night in Columbus, GA *MLW TV tapings tomorrow night in Philadelphia at the 2300 Arena with Alex Hammerstone s. Jacob Fatu for the MLW title (the taping for the debut of their TV on Reelz Tuesday night) *WWE house show Sunday night in Pensacola, FL We’re looking for results, finishes and highlights to [email protected]
MMA returns to CBS television from 9-11 p.m. Eastern for the first time in 12 years tomorrow night with Bellator featuring Fedor Emelianenko’s retirement fight, going for the heavyweight title, from the Kia Forum in Los Angeles: *Sabah Homasi (170.8) vs. Brennan Ward (170.8) *Johnny Eblen (184) vs. Anatoly Tokov (184.8) for the middleweight title *Ryan Bader (234.4) vs. Fedor Emelianenko (236.2) for the heavyweight title
UFC has an ESPN+ show tomorrow from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. Eastern time. Yes you read that right. It’s late here so it can be in a better time slot in Asia, since the show features a number of Asian fighters as it was originally supposed be in South Korea before being moved to Las Vegas. *Tatsuro Taira (125.5) vs. Jesus Santos Aguilar (125) *Jun Yong Park (185.5) vs. Denis Tiuliulin (186) *Ji Yeon Kim (125.5) vs Mandy Bohn (125.5) *Seung Guk Choi (125.5) vs. Hyun Sung Park (124.5) *Toshiomi Kazama (136) vs. Rinya Nakamura (135) *Jeong Yeong Lee (145) vs. Zha i (145.5) *Jaka Saraagth (155) vs.; Anshul Jibli (155.5) *Yusaku Kinoshita (170.5) vs. Adam Fugitt (170.5) *Doo Ho Choi (145.5) vs. Kyle Nelson (145.5) *Marcin Tybura (253.5) vs. Blagoy Ivanov (256.5) *Da Un Jung (205) vs. Devin Clark (204.5) *Derrick Lewis (265) vs. Serghei Spivac (255.5)
Reelz on Sunday will be having a three hour wrestling block starting at 9 p.m. Eastern with shows in Chyna, Owen Hart and Roddy Piper.
El Hijo del Vikingo was announced for the WrestleCon Super show on 3/30 in Los Angeles. Will Ospreay was previously announced for the show.
UFC has moved the 2/18 fight with Marlon Vera vs. Cory Sandhagen from 2/18 to 3/25. The 3/25 show will be in San Antonio. Taila Santos vs. Erin Blanchfield will be the new five round main event on the 2/18 show.
Bet Online has put up odds for WrestleMania:
Cody Rhodes -400 Roman Reigns +250
Rhea Ripley -500 Charlotte Flair +300
The Miz and Alexa Bliss will be appearing on the TV show “That’s My Jam” during the second season that starts on 3/7 in the Tuesday night at 10 p.m. time slot on NBC. Jimmy Fallon hosts the show.
Other Notes
AIW tomorrow night in Akron, OH at the Tadmor Shrine features Paul London.
GCW on 2/18 in Lo Angeles has Gringo Loco & Los Vipers vs Jack Cartwheel & Arez & Mago, Nick Gage vs Mike Bailey, Komander vs. Lio Rush, Blake Christian vs. Willie Mack and Los Macizos vs Bollywood Boyz.
Combate Global announced the signing of 19-year old Angelo Pettis, the cousin of Anthony and Sergio Pettis.
Bryan Alvarez & Tom Lawlor will wrestle as a tag team for Black Label Pro Wrestling on 3/25 in Crown Point, IN at the RDS Gym.
