Tag: new japan cup 2026

NJPW Cup 2026 tournament winner crowned

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Make way for the prince.

Callum Newman defeated Yuya Uemura in the finals of this year’s New Japan Cup on Saturday morning. In what ended up being a classic battle between the two young stars, Uemura battled through two brainbusters but walked into a lariat from Newman, who then scored the pin with the Make Way.

The win makes Newman, 23, the youngest NJPW Cup winner to date. He will now challenge Yota Tsuji at Sakura Genesis on April 4 at Sumo Hall.

After the match, Newman cut a promo saying that no one in the company wanted to win this more than himself, declaring that this was his empire and his company now. The win, he said, makes him one of the best wrestlers in the company and declared himself the ace of New Japan. 

Yota Tsuji came to the ring and stared down his future opponent, telling Newman that at Sumo Hall, he was next. It was at this moment the rest of the United Empire appeared and circled around Tsuji, but Newman ordered them to stand down as the IWGP Champion retreated and headed to the back. The NJPW Cup winner then ended his promo by telling the crowd that they will all make way for the prince and kiss the crown.

Newman defeated OSKAR, Hartley Jackson, Hirooki Goto, and Shota Umino to make it to the finals. Meanwhile, Uemura bested the likes of Great-O-Khan, Drilla Moloney, Shingo Takagi, and Boltin Oleg.

NJPW reveals full New Japan Cup finals card, Takeshita title defense set

Posted on by Joseph Currier

With the finals now set, NJPW has revealed the full card for the last night of New Japan Cup 2026.

The tournament will conclude in Niigata on Saturday with Callum Newman and Yuya Uemura facing off in the finals. In addition to being crowned the New Japan Cup winner, the victor earns an IWGP Heavyweight Championship shot against Yota Tsuji at Sakura Genesis on April 4.

It was already known that Konosuke Takeshita would be in action on Saturday. NJPW has now confirmed that he’ll be defending his NJPW World Television Championship against a mystery opponent. It’s the first title defense for Takeshita since he defeated El Phantasmo last month to become champion.

“The NJPW World TV title will be on the line when Konosuke Takeshita makes his first defense,” NJPW wrote. “After winning the title in overtime at New Beginning USA in Trenton New Jersey, who will step up to the plate and face the Alpha?”

Saturday’s event is being held in Niigata and will air live on New Japan World starting at 2 a.m. Eastern time. Here is the complete lineup:

New Japan Cup 2026 finals (Saturday, March 21) —

  • Tournament final: Callum Newman vs. Yuya Uemura
  • Yota Tsuji, OSKAR, Yuto-Ice & Daiki Nagai vs. Zack Sabre Jr., Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita & Hartley Jackson
  • Oleg Boltin, Toru Yano & Aaron Wolf vs. Ren Narita, Don Fale & Dick Togo
  • Shingo Takagi, Drilla Moloney & Taiji Ishimori vs. Jake Lee, Francesco Akira & Jakob Austin Young
  • Shota Umino & Tomoaki Honma vs. HENARE & Great-O-Khan
  • YOH, Master Wato & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. DOUKI, SHO & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
  • Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI & Tatsuya Matsumoto vs. Taichi, Satoshi Kojima & El Desperado
  • NJPW World Television Champion Konosuke Takeshita defends against mystery opponent
  • Masatora Yasuda vs. Taisei Nakahara

New Japan Cup 2026 finals set

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Either Callum Newman or Yuya Uemura will be crowned the winner of New Japan Cup 2026.

The New Japan Cup finals are now set with Newman vs. Uemura scheduled to take place this Saturday (March 21). They each booked their place in the match with semifinal victories today. In the main event, Newman defeated Shota Umino to advance. Uemura had already defeated Oleg Boltin in the semi-main.

A confrontation between Newman and Uemura then took place at the end of today’s card.

“Your dreams finish tomorrow. I finished your best friend’s off tonight. You ain’t making it past me,” Newman told Uemura. “Do what you will Yuya, I’m going to f***ing murder you.”

Uemura responded by saying that he will not let Newman prevail in the tournament. No matter what heel tactics Newman tries to use, Uemura promised to stand tall.

An IWGP Heavyweight Championship shot is at stake with the Newman vs. Uemura winner going on to challenge Yota Tsuji for the title at Sakura Genesis on April 4. If it ends up being Tsuji vs. Newman, that would continue the rivalry between Tsuji’s Unbound Company faction and Newman’s United Empire. A Tsuji vs. Uemura match would pit two of NJPW’s most important building blocks for the present and future against each other.

Will Ospreay — who had a tense interaction with his former protege Newman back in January — was watching today’s show and reacted to Newman advancing to the New Japan Cup finals.

For both Newman and Uemura, this would be their first time ever winning the New Japan Cup. The finals are airing live on New Japan World on Saturday with a start time of 2 a.m. Eastern.

New Japan Cup 2026 semifinals set

Posted on by Joseph Currier

New Japan Cup 2026 is down to its final four competitors.

The semifinals are now fully set after the completion of Tuesday’s event in Fukushima. Shota Umino and Callum Newman earned their spots in the next round of the tournament, joining Yuya Uemura and Oleg Boltin. Both semifinal matches will take place this Friday.

Umino pinned Zack Sabre Jr. to advance to the semifinals, while Newman used a low blow to help advance over Hirooki Goto. Uemura and Boltin had already secured their semifinal spots with respective victories over Shingo Takagi and Ren Narita.

Of the four semifinalists, none have ever won the New Japan Cup before.

The final two nights are happening this Friday and Saturday with both shows being held at Aore Nagaoka in Niigata. An IWGP Heavyweight Championship shot is at stake. The winner challenges Yota Tsuji for the belt in the main event of Sakura Genesis on April 4.

New Japan Cup 2026 schedule —

Semifinals:

Friday, March 20

  • Shota Umino vs. Callum Newman
  • Yuya Uemura vs. Oleg Boltin

Finals:

Saturday, March 21

  • TBD

First New Japan Cup 2026 semifinal set

Posted on by Ian Carey

The first semifinal match in the 2026 New Japan Cup is now set.

The quarterfinals began on Sunday in Yamanashi.

In the main event, Yuya Uemura picked up the victory over Shingo Takagi with a Deadbolt to punch his ticket to the next round.

In the semi-main event, Boltin Oleg defeated Ren Narita. Oleg had to contend with Narita attacking him before the bell and interference from Yoshinobu Kanemaru and Don Fale, but ultimately picked up the win with the Kamikaze after 12 minutes and 23 seconds.

Uemura and Oleg will now face each other in the semifinals on Friday, March 20 in Niigata.

The tournament continues with the final two quarterfinals on Tuesday in Fukushima, with Shota Umino vs. Zack Sabre Jr. and Hirooki Goto vs. Callum Newman.

Quarterfinals — 

Tuesday, March 17:

  • Hirooki Goto vs. Callum Newman
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Shota Umino

Semifinals —

Friday, March 20:

  • Yuya Uemura vs. Boltin Oleg
  • TBD

Finals —

Saturday, March 21:

  • TBD

Another quarterfinal matchup set for New Japan Cup 2026

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Hirooki Goto and Callum Newman are headed to the New Japan Cup 2026 quarterfinals.

The tournament continued on Friday with Goto and Newman winning their second-round matches. With respective wins over Jake Lee and Hartley Jackson, they’ve advanced to face each other in the next round. The Goto vs. Newman match will take place on March 17.

Goto, a mainstay of the NJPW roster, is looking to win his fourth New Japan Cup. He previously won the tournament in 2009, 2010, and 2012.

Newman has never won the tournament before. As one of the top young foreign wrestlers in the promotion, he’s become the leader of NJPW’s United Empire faction.

The quarterfinals are now almost fully set with Yuya Uemura vs. Shingo Takagi, Oleg Boltin vs. Ren Narita, and Goto vs. Newman confirmed. We’ll find out the last remaining matchup this Saturday when Yujiro Takahashi takes on Shota Umino and Zack Sabre Jr. battles Ryohei Oiwa in the second round.

New Japan Cup 2026 runs through March 21, with the winner receiving an IWGP Heavyweight Championship shot against Yota Tsuji at Sakura Genesis on April 4. Here is the updated schedule for the remainder of the tournament:

Second round —

Saturday, March 14:

  • Yujiro Takahashi vs. Shota Umino
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Ryohei Oiwa

Quarterfinals —

Sunday, March 15:

  • Yuya Uemura vs. Shingo Takagi
  • Oleg Boltin vs. Ren Narita

Tuesday, March 17:

  • Hirooki Goto vs. Callum Newman
  • TBD

Semifinals —

Friday, March 20:

  • TBD
  • TBD

Finals —

Saturday, March 21:

  • TBD

Two more names advance to New Japan Cup 2026 quarterfinals

Posted on by Joseph Currier

New Japan Cup 2026 continued to progress through the second round with two more tournament matches taking place on Thursday.

With respective victories over HENARE and Satoshi Kojima, Oleg Boltin and Ren Narita secured their spots in the quarterfinals. They will face off against each other next with Boltin vs. Narita taking place on March 15.

Boltin and Narita have now each picked up two victories in the tournament. Boltin has defeated El Phantasmo and HENARE, while Narita defeated Taichi in the first round before this win over Kojima. The 55-year-old Kojima initially wasn’t part of the New Japan Cup field but replaced the injured Tomohiro Ishii at the last minute and had a first-round bye.

There are still a few more second-round matchups left before the quarterfinals begin. Those will go down this Friday and Saturday before the quarterfinals kick off on Sunday with Yuya Uemura vs. Shingo Takagi and Boltin vs. Narita.

An IWGP Heavyweight Championship shot is at stake with the New Japan Cup winner earning the right to challenge Yota Tsuji at Sakura Genesis on April 4.

Here is the updated tournament schedule:

Second round —

Friday, March 13:

  • Callum Newman vs. Hartley Jackson
  • Jake Lee vs. Hirooki Goto

Saturday, March 14:

  • Yujiro Takahashi vs. Shota Umino
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Ryohei Oiwa

Quarterfinals —

Sunday, March 15:

  • Yuya Uemura vs. Shingo Takagi
  • Oleg Boltin vs. Ren Narita

Tuesday, March 17:

  • TBD
  • TBD

Semifinals —

Friday, March 20:

  • TBD
  • TBD

Finals —

Saturday, March 21:

  • TBD

First New Japan Cup 2026 quarterfinal matchup set

Posted on by Joseph Currier

The second round of New Japan Cup 2026 began on Tuesday with Yuya Uemura and Shingo Takagi booking their spots in the quarterfinals.

Uemura and Takagi advanced with respective victories over Drilla Moloney and Don Fale. The first quarterfinal matchup of the tournament is now set, with Uemura and Takagi scheduled to face off against each other on March 15. The winner of that then advances to the March 20 semifinals.

So far in the tournament, Uemura has notched victories over Great-O-Khan and Moloney. Takagi’s win against Fale was his first of the tournament due to receiving a first-round bye.

New Japan Cup 2026 runs through March 21. An IWGP Heavyweight Championship opportunity is at stake with the winner earning a title shot against Yota Tsuji in the main event of Sakura Genesis on April 4.

Here is the updated schedule for the remainder of the tournament:

Second round —

Thursday, March 12:

  • Ren Narita vs. Satoshi Kojima
  • Oleg Boltin vs. HENARE

Friday, March 13:

  • Callum Newman vs. Hartley Jackson
  • Jake Lee vs. Hirooki Goto

Saturday, March 14:

  • Yujiro Takahashi vs. Shota Umino
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Ryohei Oiwa

Quarterfinals —

Sunday March 15:

  • Yuya Uemura vs. Shingo Takagi
  • TBD

Tuesday, March 17:

  • TBD
  • TBD

Semifinals —

Friday, March 20:

  • TBD
  • TBD

Finals —

Saturday, March 21:

  • TBD

Next two wrestlers advance in New Japan Cup 2026

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Callum Newman and Jake Lee are the latest names to earn their spots in the next round of New Japan Cup 2026.

NJPW celebrated its 54th birthday with an Anniversary event at Ota City Gym in Tokyo on Friday. The card included two New Japan Cup tournament matches, with Newman defeating OSKAR and Lee defeating YOSHI-HASHI to advance. The first round is now nearly over with only two matchups left.

It will be Newman vs. Hartley Jackson and Lee vs. Hirooki Goto in the second round on March 13. Jackson and Goto were two of the wrestlers who randomly received a first-round bye in the tournament.

So far, Yuya Uemura, Don Fale, Ren Narita, Oleg Boltin, Newman, and Lee have advanced out of the opening round. The last two matchups are Shota Umino vs. Chase Owens and Yuto-Ice vs. Ryohei Oiwa. Both of those are happening this Sunday.

The tournament runs through March 21 with the winner receiving an IWGP Heavyweight Championship shot against Yota Tsuji at April’s Sakura Genesis event.

Here is the updated schedule for the remainder of the tournament:

First round —

Sunday, March 8:

  • Shota Umino vs. Chase Owens
  • Yuto-Ice vs. Ryohei Oiwa

Second round —

Tuesday, March 10:

  • Yuya Uemura vs. Drilla Moloney
  • Don Fale vs. Shingo Takagi

Thursday, March 12:

  • Ren Narita vs. Satoshi Kojima
  • Oleg Boltin vs. HENARE

Friday, March 13:

  • Callum Newman vs. Hartley Jackson
  • Jake Lee vs. Hirooki Goto

Saturday, March 14:

  • Yujiro Takahashi vs. Shota Umino or Chase Owens
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Yuto-Ice or Ryohei Oiwa

Quarterfinals —

Sunday, March 15 and Tuesday, March 17

  • Matches TBD

Semifinals —

Friday, March 20:

  • TBD

Finals —

Saturday, March 21:

  • TBD

Two more wrestlers advance in New Japan Cup 2026

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Ren Narita and Oleg Boltin have earned their spots in the next round of New Japan Cup 2026.

The second night of the tournament took place at Korakuen Hall on Thursday with Narita defeating Taichi and Oleg defeating El Phantasmo. Their second-round matchups are now set with Narita vs. Satoshi Kojima and Oleg vs. HENARE scheduled for March 12.

Kojima and HENARE are among the wrestlers who randomly received a first-round bye in the tournament. The 55-year-old Kojima was a late replacement to the New Japan Cup field after replacing the injured Tomohiro Ishii.

New Japan Cup 2026 began yesterday with Yuya Uemura and Don Fale advancing to the second round. The tournament runs through March 21, with the winner receiving an IWGP World Championship shot against Yota Tsuji at Sakura Genesis in April.

This Friday, two New Japan Cup first-round matches will be part of the card for NJPW’s 54th Anniversary show. Here is the remaining schedule for the opening round:

Friday, March 6 —

  • YOSHI-HASHI vs. Jake Lee (winner faces Hirooki Goto next round)
  • OSKAR vs. Callum Newman (winner faces Hartley Jackson)

Sunday, March 8 —

  • Shota Umino vs. Chase Owens (winner faces Yujiro Takahashi)
  • Yuto-Ice vs. Ryohei Oiwa (winner faces Zack Sabre Jr.)

NJPW reveals bracket for New Japan Cup 2026

Posted on by Joseph Currier

NJPW has revealed the full list of participants for New Japan Cup 2026.

The tournament begins on March 4 and runs through March 21. An IWGP Heavyweight Championship shot is at stake, with the winner set to challenge Yota Tsuji for the belt at Sakura Genesis this April.

In total, there are 24 participants in the tournament but only eight first-round matchups. Eight wrestlers — Drilla Moloney, Shingo Takagi, Tomohiro Ishii, HENARE, Hirooki Goto, Hartley Jackson, Yujiro Takahashi, and Zack Sabre Jr. — have randomly received first-round byes and have already secured their spot in the next round.

Here is the complete bracket and opening round schedule:

Left side —

  • March 4: Yuya Uemura vs. Great-O-Khan (winner faces Drilla Moloney on March 10)
  • March 4: Aaron Wolf vs. Don Fale (winner faces Shingo Takagi on March 10)
  • March 5: Taichi vs. Ren Narita (winner faces Tomohiro Ishii on March 12)
  • March 5: El Phantasmo vs. Oleg Boltin (winner faces HENARE on March 12)

Right side —

  • March 6: YOSHI-HASHI vs. Jake Lee (winner faces Hirooki Goto on March 13)
  • March 6: OSKAR vs. Callum Newman (winner faces Hartley Jackson on March 13)
  • March 8: Shota Umino vs. Chase Owens (winner faces Yujiro Takahashi on March 14)
  • March 8: Yuto-Ice vs. Ryohei Oiwa (winner faces Zack Sabre Jr. on March 14)

The quarterfinals will then take place on March 15 and March 17, leading into the semifinals on March 20 and finals on March 21.

Tsuji won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 20 last month and has already successfully defended the title against Jake Lee. A double champion, Tsuji also holds the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship and is set to defend that title against Andrade El Idolo at NJPW New Beginning USA.