Tag: KUSHIDA

Impact Derby City Rumble Friday TV taping spoilers: New World title challenger

Posted on by Ian Carey

The first night of Impact Wrestling’s Derby City Rumble television tapings took place on Friday from Old Forester’s Paristown Hall in Louisville, Kentucky.

BTI: 

  • Laredo Kid defeated Johnny Swinger
  • Bhupinder defeated Vincent w/Maria – Maria was tossed from ringside. Heath caused a distraction and then attacked Vincent after the match. 
  • Matt Vine defeated Ryan Van Rock

Impact Taping:

  • Deonna Purrazzo & Chelsea Green defeated Mia Yim & Jordynne Grace 
  • X-Division Champion Mike Bailey successfully defended against Deaner
  • Masha Slamovich defeated Madison Rayne w/Gisele Shaw. After the match, Slamovich handed Shaw an envelope. Tenille Dashwood did not appear on the show for The Influence. 
  • Bullet Club’s Chris Bey & Ace Austin defeated The OGK (Mike Bennett & Matt Taven). Heath made another run-in against Honor No More in this match, helping Bullet Club pick up the victory. 
  • Alex Shelley defeated Chris Sabin to earn an Impact World Championship match against Josh Alexander at Emergence. Shelley made Sabin tap to the Border City Stretch. After the match, Deaner and Doering attacked the MCMG. KUSHIDA then made his first appearance and made the save. 
  • Impact Digital Media Champion Brian Myers successfully defended against Black Taurus. After the match, Bhupinder tossed Myers back in the ring so Decay could get some revenge. 
  • Karl Anderson defeated Kenny King. After the match, King attacked Anderson with a chair after the match until Heath made yet another save against an Honor No More member. 
  • Tiffany Nieves defeated Jada Stone. Tasha Steelz was on commentary. Killer Kelly then ran down and attacked both Nieves and Stone after the match. 
  • Josh Alexander defeated Shera. This match may have been ended early due to Shera getting hurt. He needed help getting to the back. 
  • Sami Callihan called out Moose and Steve Maclin, who did a backstage vignette revealing they will be working together. 
  • KUSHIDA defeated Rich Swann in the main event. 

Impact will be back in the same venue on Saturday for night two of Derby City Rumble. 

KUSHIDA challenges Alex Shelley to NJPW Music City Mayhem match

Posted on by Ethan Renner

KUSHIDA has issued a challenge to Alex Shelley for NJPW Music City Mayhem. 

In a video promo released on social media, KUSHIDA challenged his former Time Splitters tag team partner to a singles bout at Music City Mayhem on Saturday, July 30. 

In the promo, KUSHIDA issued the challenge by way of writing a letter to Shelley, referring to Shelley as “my dearest professor, my best friend, my all-time best partner.”

As the Time Splitters, KUSHIDA and Shelley twice held IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship gold in NJPW. The duo last teamed on a couple of live events and in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic in NXT in 2020.

KUSHIDA made his in-ring return to NJPW earlier this month following a three-year run in NXT. 

Here is the lineup for Music City Mayhem so far: 

NJPW Music City Mayhem, Saturday, July 30, 3 p.m. Eastern time on FITE TV pay-per-view —

  • No DQ match: Jon Moxley vs. El Desperado
  • Davey Richards vs. Clark Connors
  • Hiromu Takahashi vs. Blake Christian

KUSHIDA to face Rich Swann in Impact Wrestling debut

Posted on by Joseph Currier

KUSHIDA now has an opponent for his Impact Wrestling debut.

In his first appearance for Impact Wrestling, KUSHIDA will face off with Rich Swann at this Friday’s Derby City Rumble television tapings. The match will air on a future episode of Impact.

The Derby City Rumble tapings are being held at Old Forester’s Paristown Hall in Louisville, Kentucky this Friday and Saturday. KUSHIDA has been announced for both nights of the tapings.

A singles match between Motor City Machine Guns tag team partners Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin has also been confirmed for Friday’s tapings.

KUSHIDA, who departed WWE this April following the expiration of his contract, made his return to NJPW last month by confronting IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Taiji Ishimori.

After returning to NJPW, KUSHIDA made an Instagram post noting that he’s still going to be living in the United States and will be based out of Los Angeles. KUSHIDA wrote that he will “look to bring excitement to New Japan, New Japan’s Junior division, and NJPW LA Dojo.”

KUSHIDA debut, Alex Shelley vs. Chris Sabin set for Impact Derby City Rumble

Posted on by Ethan Renner

KUSHIDA’s debut, plus the Motor City Machine Guns facing off have been announced for next week’s Impact Derby City Rumble television taping.

Impact announced on Thursday that NJPW’s KUSHIDA will make his debut for the promotion at the Derby City Rumble taping in Louisville, Kentucky on Friday, July 15, and Saturday, July 16. Also announced for Louisville, the Motor City Machine Guns will square off in a singles match, as Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin go head-to-head.

KUSHIDA has been announced for both days of the TV taping, while Shelley vs. Sabin was specifically announced for the Friday, July 15 event.

KUSHIDA recently returned to NJPW after a stint with WWE as a member of the NXT brand. The six-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion left WWE following his contract expiring in April after a three-year run with the company. 

Impact World Champion Josh Alexander, Sami Callihan, Eddie Edwards, Tasha Steelz, Doc Gallows, Karl Anderson, Ace Austin, and Matt Cardona have also been advertised for appearances at next week’s events. 

KUSHIDA comments on returning to NJPW’s junior heavyweight division

Posted on by Ian Carey

KUSHIDA is back in NJPW and says he will “look to bring excitement to New Japan, New Japan’s Junior division, and NJPW LA Dojo.” 

The six-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion took to Instagram recently and commented on his return to the promotion. 

“Today, I signed with New Japan Pro-Wrestling. I will return to New Japan Pro Wrestling,” Kushida began his post. 
“I am so honored to be back and to wrestle on the New Japan Pro Wrestling ring. Some people say I want to wrestle in heavy weight division or I want to be in Bullet Club, these are all fake news.”

KUSHIDA continued to say that he is in the process of moving from Florida to Los Angeles, where he will be based out of moving forward. 

“Right now, I am still living in Florida. I am trying to move to Los Angels but still im midst of moving.

I will return to US this week and look start new life in Los Angels next week…I hope.
Sign an apartment? Can I speak english? So much troubles and busy everyday but will try and update my Instagram as much as possible.

To live in Los Angels and to wrestle has been my dream for a log term. I will look to accompolish this dream, hopefully.
I will look to bring excitement to New Japan, New Japan’s Junior division, and NJPW LA Dojo.

Thank you to those who supported me on my journey and thank you all for your support.

Sincerely,

Kushida
June 22nd, 2022″

KUSHIDA’s first match back in NJPW has been announced for July 3. 

KUSHIDA, KENTA return matches announced for NJPW Road

Posted on by Bryan Rose

KUSHIDA and KENTA are returning to in-ring action on New Japan Road shows set for next month.

NJPW announced tonight that KUSHIDA’s first match back will be on July 3, when he teams with Hiroshi Tanahashi and Alex Zayne to take on KENTA in his first match back since January, Taiji Ishimori, and Gedo. On July 4, he will team with Tanahashi to take on KENTA and Taiji Ishimori in a singles match.

KUSHIDA made his return to NJPW on Tuesday morning, when he challenged Taiji Ishimori after he successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Hiromu Takahashi. Ishimori told KUSHIDA he needed to win a few matches before challenging him and left.

KENTA has been out of action since January after suffering injuries in a match against Hiroshi Tanahashi. He has since been announced for next month’s G1 Climax 32 tournament.

Alex Coughlin and The DKC of the LA Dojo will also join the tour, teaming with Clark Connors to take on Taichi, El Desperado, and DOUKI on July 4. The trio will then face Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, and Alex Zayne on July 5.

KUSHIDA returns to NJPW at New Japan Road

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Two months after departing WWE, KUSHIDA has returned to New Japan Pro Wrestling.

KUSHIDA made his return to NJPW by confronting IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Taiji Ishimori at Tuesday’s New Japan Road event in Tokyo. Ishimori had defeated Hiromu Takahashi in the main event of the show before being confronted by KUSHIDA.

KUSHIDA announced that he’s signed an NJPW contract and promised to spend the rest of his pro wrestling life in an NJPW ring.

KUSHIDA said that Ishimori may think he has no challengers left, but he’s wrong because KUSHIDA is back. Ishimori told KUSHIDA that he’ll need to prove himself before getting a title shot.

During his first stint with NJPW, KUSHIDA held the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship six times.

KUSHIDA left NJPW in January 2019 and officially joined WWE in April of that year. He was part of the NXT roster for three years until departing WWE when his contract expired this April.

KUSHIDA was a one-time NXT Cruiserweight Champion while with WWE.

Dave Meltzer reported after KUSHIDA’s WWE departure that he was expected to return to NJPW in June.

Kushida expected to return to NJPW following WWE departure

Posted on by Ian Carey

Kushida is expected to return to New Japan Pro Wrestling. 

It was reported yesterday that the 38-year-old has left WWE after his contract expired recently. Our own Dave Meltzer addressed what could be next for Kushida on Monday’s edition of Wrestling Observer Radio. 

“He is done. His contract expired, it was not a secret that he wasn’t going to stay. I know in WWE the belief is that he starts with New Japan in June. That’s what they believe and it’s probably the case.”

Kushida wrestled for New Japan from 2010 until early 2019. During his time with the company, he was a six-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion, two-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion (w/ Alex Shelley as the Time Splitters), won the Best of the Super Juniors in 2015 & 2017, and won the Super J-Cup in 2016. Along with Shelley, he also won the Super Junior Tag Tournament in 2012. During his time in WWE, he was a one-time NXT Cruiserweight Champion. 

Kushida reportedly gone from WWE

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Kushida is reportedly gone from WWE.

Sean Ross Sapp reported tonight that Kushida has left WWE after his contract expired.

Kushida signed with the WWE in 2019 and participated in that year’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic tournament with former partner Alex Shelley. In April of 2021, he defeated Santos Escobar in a open challenge match to win the NXT Cruiserweight Championship. He lost the title to Roderick Strong in September.

After losing the Cruiserweight title, Kushida started to team with Ikemen Jiro, and together the two became known as Jacket Time. He was originally scheduled to face Von Wagner in a match on last week’s episode of NXT. However, he was taken out prior to the match backstage by Wagner. Instead, Wagner faced and defeated Kushida’s tag team partner Jiro.

Prior to his run in NJPW, Kushida was one of the top stars of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s junior heavyweight division, winning the IWGP Junior Heavyweight title on six occasions.

NXT Level Up results: Jacket Time vs. Joe Gacy & Harland

Posted on by Chick Fritts

James Drake defeated Xyon Quinn

There was absolutely nothing special about this match.

Quinn and Drake opened by trading holds. Quinn gained the upper hand by interrupting Drake mid-sprint; Zack Gibson pulled Drake to the outside to save him. Quinn pursued Drake, only for Gibson to land some strikes while the referee wasn’t paying attention.

Back in the ring, Quinn continued to fight, even after Gibson’s interference. He endured a deep choke, responding with more strikes after escaping. A chokeslam from the top rope prompted Gibson to distract Quinn again. Drake grabbed the tights, rolling Quinn into a pin that ended this match.

After the match, Quinn pulled Gibson into the ring and hit him with a swinging Samoan drop.

Elektra Lopez defeated Sarray

This was bad—really bad. Sarray is some kind of magic school girl now, so that’s something.

Lopez used her size advantage early to gain control. She tossed, pulled, slammed, and dropped Sarray, with next to no resistance. Eventually, Sarray dodged an elbow drop, opening Lopez up to a dropkick and a pair of double stomps. Sarray tried for the knee but missed, crashing into Joaquin Wilde. Lopez capitalised, dropping Sarray on her face before pinning her to close the match.

Joe Gacy and Harland defeated Ikeman Jiro and KUSHIDA (Jacket Time)

The more I see from the Harland/Gacy pair, the cooler I get on them. This match wasn’t bad, but the culty stuff is too much for me.

KUSHIDA wrestled Gacy to the mat early and tagged out after proving his superiority. Jiro continued KUSHIDA’s lead, landing multiple jacket punches, forcing Harland to tag in.

Jiro tried striking down Harland, but the tree did not fall. Harland landed a splash into the corner before slamming Jiro into the mat. Harland stretched Jiro over the ropes, forcing Gacey to calm him down. Gacy tagged in, landed a DDT, and tried for the pin; Jiro kicked out.

Jiro reversed a backdrop into a crossbody, buying him enough time to tag KUSHIDA into the match. KUSHIDA unloaded with heavy offence before Harland interrupted a handspring. KUSHIDA tried following up with an octopus, but Harland hit the ring. Gacy had to calm Harland down again, allowing Jiro to tag back in. Harland’s gaze froze Jiro, opening him up to a big lariat from Gacy. Harland tagged in once more, landed a giant splash, and pinned Jiro to close the show. 

WWE reveals lineup for second episode of NXT Level Up

Posted on by Joseph Currier

WWE has revealed the lineup for the second episode of NXT Level Up.

The new series made its debut last week, replacing 205 Live on Friday nights. It features some of NXT’s “brightest young talent as they look to make a name for themselves and begin their climb to the top of NXT 2.0.”

The three matches that will be airing on this Friday’s NXT Level Up are:

  • Jacket Time (Kushida & Ikemen Jiro) vs. Joe Gacy & Harland
  • Xyon Quinn vs. James Drake
  • Sarray vs. Elektra Lopez

Kushida was also involved in the main event of the premiere episode of Level Up last week. He lost to Edris Enofe on the show.

Drake and his tag team partner Zack Gibson recently made it to the semifinals of the 2022 men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic before losing to The Creed Brothers, who went on to win the tournament.

Quinn lost to Gacy in the main event of the final 205 Live episode two weeks ago.

Neither Sarray nor Lopez are involved in this year’s women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. That tournament began on NXT earlier this week.

Sarray is currently on a three-match winning streak.

NXT Level Up airs on Peacock/WWE Network at 10 p.m. Eastern time on Fridays. It’s taped before NXT each week.

NXT Level Up results: Kushida vs. Edris Enofe

Posted on by Chick Fritts

Harland defeated Javier Bernal

Harland started the first NXT Level Up match in dominant fashion. After being slammed into the mat a dozen times, Bernal tried to rally. Unfortunately for Bernal, Harland withstood the attempt at offence before closing the match with a slam, reminiscent of John Cena’s old Protoplex.

Even with Bernal’s mid-match spark up, this was a total squash.

Ivy Nile and Tatum Paxley defeated Fallon Henley and Kayla Inlay

This was an enjoyable match. Nile is very over with this crowd, and for good reason; she is constantly a standout performer on all of the cards I’ve seen her on.

Nile opened the match with a quick takedown, but stood things back up immediately. While standing, Inlay was able to force Nile into the corner, prompting a tag and double dropkick, leaving Henley in control. Henley, in her offence, allowed Nile to be too close to Paxley, allowing Nile to stealthfully tag in and take control. What followed was a fun sequence, punctuated with a suplex into a standing corkscrew to the leg of Henley.

Nile landed a suplex before locking in head scissors. Henley tagged out after escaping, leading to an intense sequence from Inlay. Inlay landed a slam, prompting Paxley to hit the ring; this distraction bought Nile enough time to lock in a dragon sleeper to score the submission victory.

Edris Enofe defeated Kushida

This wasn’t anything spectacular, but it had its moments. The finish was a shock, at least to me, and the contents were entertaining.

This match opened with back and forth wrestling. Once Kushida found his footing, he continued with the grappling, taking control when on the mat and keeping Enofe there. Enofe eventually rolled through Kushida’s ground control, gaining control of the leg. Enofe tried to capitalize by climbing to the top, but Kushida caught him on the way down with a dropkick. Kushida followed up with a flurry of kicks and a DDT. Kushida locked in an armbar for a convincing finish tease.

Enofe caught Kushida again with a dropkick mid handspring. Enofe then climbed to the top again before connecting with a beautiful dive. Enofe then hooked the leg and pinned Kushida for an upset victory to close the debut edition of NXT Level Up.

Closing Thoughts

While structurally identical to 205 Live, this show had a different atmosphere that added to the final product. The matches were not incredible; in fact, they were pretty on par with 205 Live standards, but the crowd was hot. Also, the show’s name is no longer a lie, so that’s nice, I guess. Overall, this was a slight but still noticeable improvement.

WWE reveals lineup for NXT Level Up premiere

Posted on by Joseph Currier

WWE has officially revealed the lineup for the premiere episode of NXT Level Up.

NXT Level Up debuts on Peacock/WWE Network at 10 p.m. Eastern time this Friday, replacing 205 Live. The show, which was taped before NXT earlier this week, will feature some of WWE’s “brightest young talent as they look to make a name for themselves and begin their climb to the top of NXT 2.0.”

In the main event of the episode, Kushida will take on Edris Enofe. Harland vs. Javier Bernal is also set for the show, along with a tag team match with Ivy Nile and the debuting Tatum Paxley facing Fallon Henley & Kayla Inlay.

Kushida and Enofe were both recently involved in the 2022 men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. MSK defeated Kushida & Ikemen Jiro in the first round, then defeated Enofe & Malik Blade in the semifinals.

Bernal made his WWE debut on 205 Live last month, losing to Draco Anthony.

Inlay debuted for WWE in a loss to Sarray on NXT two weeks ago.

Paxley (real name Natalie Holland) is having her first match for WWE on NXT Level Up. She’s a powerlifter who signed with WWE after taking part in last August’s tryouts in Las Vegas.

“With an eye on Dusty Cup glory, Malcolm Bivens and Nile have recruited Tatum Paxley,” WWE.com wrote. “If Paxley proves half as focused and deadly as Nile, the newly formed duo could emerge as tournament favorites. Nile and Paxley will look to kick off their partnership with a victory against the intriguing duo of Henley and Inlay.”

This year’s women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic begins on NXT next Tuesday.

WWE 205 Live results: Kushida vs. Damon Kemp

Posted on by Chick Fritts

Brooks Jensen defeated Bodhi Hayward

Jenson has decided to wrestle in blue jeans, along with a giant belt buckle and cowboy boots, just in case there was any illusion of subtlety in his character. This was a cute little match with a cute little finish.

After a chain wrestling sequence, Bodhi landed an arm drag, opening Jensen up to a handful of standing splashes. Jensen reversed momentum with an arm drag of his own before landing some strikes. Jensen locked in a choke that acted as a catalyst to Bodhi’s comeback. Bodhi landed a bunch of strikes and tackles. Bodhi was setting up for a final blow, but Jensen caught him with a knee to end the match.

Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter defeated Fallon Henley and Lash Legend

This was a pretty by-the-book tag match.

The match began with Legend throwing Catanzaro across the ring. Carter tried helping Catanzaro in overwhelming Legend, but was unsuccessful as Legend soon was in complete control.

Henley was able to maintain her team’s lead for a while, but eventually, Catanzaro got the hot tag. Legend tagged in, but was unable to stop Catanzaro’s momentum. Carter held Legend in place as Catanzaro landed a nice splash, leading to the pinfall victory.

Brooks Jensen and Josh Briggs were dancing outside of the ring after the finish.

Kushida defeated Damon Kemp

I liked this quite a bit for what it was. Simple and to the point as both men pulled off a nice, focused match.

Kemp opened the match by shooting on Kushida, resulting in an early toss. Kemp didn’t follow up, allowing Kushida to start the ground game following a quick transition. Kushida paid close attention to Kemp’s arm, but eventually Kemp used his strength to regain control.

A German suplex from Kemp was followed with hesitation due to his damaged arm. Kushida was able to take the lead back quickly and maintained it by working on Kemp’s arm again. Kushida fought out of a fireman’s carry and transitioned into an armbar resulting in the submission.






















WWE 205 Live results: The Creed Brothers vs. Jacket Time

Posted on by Chick Fritts

Ivy Nile defeated Erica Yan

This was fine, especially for such a one-sided match. 

Nile proved early she had the strength advantage, controlling both a grounded and standing Yan. Yan finally created some separation with a rollup minutes into the match. Yan’s offence was short-lived, however, as Nile landed a step-up kick, leaving Yan laying. A dragon sleeper in the centre of the ring proved too much for Yan, leaving Nile with the submission victory.

Boa defeated Draco Anthony 

This match was utterly dated, to say the least. Boa’s offence feels like something from a bygone era, before the world knew of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and the east was a mystical region shrouded in mystery—utterly bizarre. 

Anthony gained the upper hand early but failed to convert into anything substantial. Unlike Anthony, Boa’s offence was significant; he landed a back body drop, followed by strikes and a butterfly suplex. On the mat, Boa squeezed Anthony with a nerve hold. 

Anthony tried to rally but was cut off when Boa grabbed him by the chin. This chin hold was so painful that he fell to the mat, leading to the referee stopping the match in favour of Boa. 

Julius Creed and Brutus Creed (The Creed Brothers) defeated Ikemen Jiro and Kushida (Jacket Time)

This was an exceptional match. The inter-team in-ring chemistry combined with the creative ringwork made for a great main event, even considering some early flaws in delivery. 

Before the match, the Creed brothers cut a less than stellar promo, essentially saying they were going to beat up anyone in their way. 

Jiro immediately fell victim to the wrestling of the Creed brothers. A series of Jiro forearms from behind allowed Kushida to tag into the match. Likewise, Kushida fell to the Creed brother’s strength after entering the match. 

Kushida was able to withstand the Creeds long enough to tag Jiro back into the match. Jiro and Creed fought back in tandem, but Brutus ended their comeback by launching Jiro onto the arena floor. The brothers, again, took turns throwing Jiro across the ring. An inverted bear slam turned into a one-arm powerbomb, comparable to a crucifix powerbomb, and yielded Brutus a near fall. 

Jiro escaped a bear hug and stalled long enough to tag Kushida into the match. Jacket Time’s tandem rally forced a pin breakup. The breakup bought the Creeds enough time to subdue Kushida and catch Jiro with a nasty slam. Brutus then launched Julius from his shoulders into a moonsault before hitting a standing moonsault of his own. Brutus pinned Jiro to close the match.