NJPW Strong results: Team Filthy vs. Team Rosser elimination match

Tonight saw the last installment of episodes from the recent NJPW Strong: Rivals taping in Hollywood.

Daniel Garcia defeated Yuya Uemura via submission

This was really good. Yuya Uemura has gotten huge in the past two or three years. He could pass for an American football player now, easily.

They went back and forth down on the mat early on. When they broke, Garcia did a mock clap at Uemura, a patronizing “good for you” gesture. Uemura put Garcia down briefly with a few Ricky Steamboat armdrags, which he has down pat.

Garcia was aggressive in his comeback, stomping, punching and even biting Uemura. He blasted Uemura with a loud chop. Uemura exploded back with a shotgun dropkick and a flying forearm. He earned a two count after dropping a running elbow on Garcia, then another after a backdrop suplex. He planted Garcia with a high-angle German for another count of two. Garcia busted out of Uemura’s double-bolt suplex.

Both men traded elbows and lariats. Garcia went for a sharpshooter, but Uemura rolled Garcia into a cradle for a close nearfall. Garcia next laid Uemura out with a piledriver, which only earned him a two count. Frustrated, Garcia immediately began throwing hammerfists down on Uemura before locking him in a low-angle sharpshooter. Uemura fought the pain while trying to grab the ropes for a break, but in the end he couldn’t take it; Garcia would pick up the win via submission.

Garcia offered up a handshake afterwards, but Uemura shoved Garcia instead. Their rivalry doesn’t appear to be over just yet.

Black Tiger defeated Rocky Romero

This crowd loved Rocky Romero. They started chanting “RO-CKY!” as soon as his music hit. The two started brawling from the get-go. Black Tiger gave Romero a lariat and sent him over the guardrail. Romero then landed a hurricanrana off the guardrail onto the floor.

Tiger landed an elbow to the back of Romero’s head, then used a neckbreaker on him for a two-count. Romero leveled up later on and returned Tiger’s attack with a flurry of chops. The crowd was loud in support of Romero, the fourth Black Tiger. He threw the new Black Tiger into the corner and landed a couple Forever Clotheslines before spiking him with a satellite DDT.

Black Tiger went for the Tiger Driver, but Romero slipped out and locked Tiger in an armbar. Tiger lifted Romero in the air with Romero still attached to Tiger; Tiger planted him with a short powerbomb to shake him off.

Romero came back and tried ripping off Tiger’s mask. Romero took Tiger out with a tope suicida moments later. He threw Tiger back in the ring and landed Sliced Bread, but only for two. The crowd was pretty hot by this point in the match. Romero ran up the corner post for Sliced Bread #2, but Tiger caught Romero and spiked him with a tombstone piledriver. Both wrestlers were flat on the mat as the ten-minute call sounded. Tiger would attempt another Tiger Driver, but Romero reversed it into another frankensteiner. He then caught Tiger with a knee, then tried coming off the ropes with another, but Tiger decked Romero with a huge lariat of his own. He finally used a sloppy Tiger Driver on Romero for the somewhat shock win.

Afterwards, Black Tiger grabbed a kendo stick and looked like he was going after Romero some more, but Romero caught Tiger in an armbar and wouldn’t let go until staff and security got involved.

Ten-Man Tag Team Elimination match: Team Filthy (Tom Lawlor, West Coast Wrecking Crew, JR Kratos & Danny Limelight) defeated Clark Connors, Fred Rosser, Rust Taylor, the DKC & Adrian Quest)

Quick note on the rules: If a wrestler is pinned, submitted, or thrown over the top rope, they are eliminated from the match.

“Filthy” Tom and Danny Limelight trapped Clark Connors in the corner and mauled him just after the bell sounded. Limelight landed a high dropkick, then danced a little. Connors caught Limelight coming off the ropes with a huge pounce and a German suplex that folded Limelight. Quest tagged in later and caught Limelight with a corkscrew bodypress off the second rope. Announcer Alex Koslov mentioned that Quest has been wrestling since he was 13 years old.

Limelight tagged out to Jorel Nelson, who quickly tagged partner Royce Isaacs. West Coast Wrecking crew then grabbed Quest and hoisted him up into a fireman’s carry-into German suplex double-team maneuver. The rest of Team Filthy then stormed the ring and took out their opponents on the opposite side so that they’d have enough room to do the simultaneous five-man Team Filthy Pose.

Later, Quest was able to put Limelight down with a reverse frankensteiner and finally tag out to the DKC, who came in like a house afire. He chopped up Nelson and Isaacs, and Limelight as well until WCWC came into the ring to take out the DKC. They did a slingshot Death Valley bomb onto Nelson’s knees, thus creating a backcracker effect on the aforementioned Death Valley Bomb Isaacs used. The team then pressed the DKC into the air and hurled the Young Lion out of the ring with a double press slam. This was the first official elimination of the match.

WCWC planted Adrian Quest with a spinning vertical suplex into Liger bomb combo and earned a nearfall. Danny Limelight then connected with a high frog splash off the top, but when he went for the pin, Quest rolled Limelight onto his shoulders with a crucifix for the three-count. Limelight was the second elimination of the match.

WCWC went after Fred Rosser next and tried dumping him over the top rope. Rosser bit both Nelson and Isaacs to break free and inch closer towards the center of the ring. Rosser then eliminated Isaacs after connecting with a fireman’s carry gutbuster and a running single-leg basement dropkick to the face, scoring the pinfall.

Rosser and rival Tom Lawlor were in together next, but before they could mix it up, Lawlor distracted the referee for a moment so Jorel Nelson could pop in and low-blow Rosser behind the ref’s back. Nelson would then throw Rosser over the top rope to eliminate him.

Rust Taylor was in next. He and Nelson traded hard forearm shots. Taylor locked Nelson in a single-leg crab/footlock.“Filthy” Tom ran in to break it up, but Taylor back-body dropped him while still holding Nelson in the half-crab. JR Kratos pulled Nelson’s arm closer to the ropes for a break, a blatant and desperate disregard of the rules in front of the referee. Before Nelson could reach the ropes, Clark Connors appeared from around the corner and took Kratos out with a tackle. This meant that Nelson couldn’t get close enough to the bottom rope for a break, so he tapped out and was eliminated. Lawlor took Taylor out with an enzuigiri. Taylor blocked a single-leg with a knee strike and tagged out to Connors. Lawlor and Connors went shot-for-shot in the middle of the ring. Lawlor caught Connors with a triangle choke on the top rope. Lawlor flexed for the crowd as referee Jeremy Marcus yelled at him to break the hold.

While Connors and Lawlor were fighting on the ring apron, Taylor and Kratos were brawling at ringside. Kratos kept trying to assist Lawlor while he was with Taylor on the apron. Connors finally darted across the apron and speared Lawlor, taking both Lawlor and himself onto the floor and out of the match. Connors and Lawlor then brawled around ringside and into the backstage area.

Kratos pounded Taylor with elbow shots, and later used a massive Liger bomb on Taylor to eliminate him from the match. Kratos thought he had won, but Quest appeared from the opposite side of the ring and got in Kratos’ face. In response, Kratos looked at Quest and flipped him the double-bird. Quest landed two low running dropkicks to Kratos’ knee. He flew through the ropes and took out the rest of Team Filthy on the floor.

Kratos welcomed Quest back into the ring with a series of big front-handed chops, then plastered him with a running lariat that turned Quest inside out. Kratos scored the pinfall and was the last man standing, which means Team Filthy are your winners.

Final thoughts:

Yet another solid hour of pro wrestling from NJPW Strong. I thought the standout was the opener, Daniel Garcia vs. Yuya Uemura, though Black Tiger vs. Rocky Romero had the best crowd response and a well-built finish. The ten-man tag did a good job at furthering a few storylines while not repeating the same matches these guys have had in the recent past.

Episodes from the Strong Style Evolved tapings in Tampa will begin airing next week.

NJPW Strong results: FinJuice vs. JONAH & Bad Dude Tito

NJPW Strong: Rivals kicked off tonight in Hollywood. Ian Riccaboni is still subbing for regular NJPW Strong announcer Kevin Kelly, who is calling the New Japan Cup overseas this month.

TJP defeated Brogan Finlay via submission

TJP has a new look and vibe now since he joined United Empire. He goes by “The Public Enemy” and has longer hair and updated ring gear.

Newcomer Brogan Finlay, son of Fit and brother of David, got bullied by TJP. TJP gave Finlay a rough Otani-style face wash in the corner. Later in the match, Finlay channeled his father, Fit, and used a fireman’s carry roll on TJP, which earned him a two-count.

Towards the finish, Finlay decked TJP with a lariat, but both were down for the count. The crowd then started a 60–40 chant in favor of TJP. In the end, TJP connected with a Mamba Splash to Finlay’s back before locking in a modified STF. A number of fans were chanting “Tap! Tap!” at Finlay before he tapped out.

Afterwards, TJP got on the mic and called the crowd a bunch of “Silver Lake 5s” before stating that he is the best junior heavyweight alive. He explained how he’d already won the IMPACT X-Division and WWE Cruiserweight championships in the past, and that when he’d win the IWGP junior heavyweight title he’d be the first-ever “Triple Crown” junior heavyweight.

Before he was finished talking, a video flashed across the monitors with the phrase “KING OF THE ROPES” on it, and Mascara Dorada appeared at the ring entrance. He’s formerly known as Gran Metallik from WWE 205 Live and appeared in the WWE Cruiserweight Classic along with TJP. He got in TJP’s face. They got into it for a second, but TJP slipped out to the floor. Mascara Dorada teased diving onto TJP but instead bounced off the ropes and did a backflip onto his feet. It looks like these two will square off sometime this year on NJPW Strong.

Christopher Daniels defeated Karl Fredericks

This kicked ass. Seriously.

Fredericks was filling in for Gabriel Kidd, who was originally scheduled to wrestle Christopher Daniels.

Daniels offered his hand to Fredericks, who declined.

The crowd was pumped for this one. The two had a great exchange on the mat early on, building slowly to bigger and bigger spots. When Fredericks was gaining ground on offense, Daniels cut him off with a flapjack. He then suplexed the larger Fredericks in the air and brought him down gut-first onto his knee.

Daniels lit Fredericks up with chops. The crowd enjoyed his fire. They loved Daniels as well, and many fans kept shouting “SCU!” at him throughout the match. It wasn’t like this when Daniels faced Jay White at the same venue three months ago, there appeared to be different kinds of fans at this taping.

Fredericks landed a Shibata-style low dropkick, but Daniels responded later with a perfect Blue Thunder bomb. I don’t think I’m doing it justice in this write-up, but the smoothness and chemistry these two had with each other was excellent.

Daniels went for Angel’s Wings but Fredericks reversed it. When Fredericks missed a Stinger Splash in the corner, Daniels laid him out with a standing uranage before sticking a picture-perfect double-jump moonsault on the “Alpha Wolf” for the impressive win in just under ten minutes. For a TV match on a one-hour show, it doesn’t get much better than this. Quality stuff, people.

Daniels grabbed the mic and called Fredericks “a tough son of a bitch.” He said Fredericks had made both the LA Dojo and Mr. Shibata proud, and that if he ever wanted to run the match back he gladly would since Daniels thinks he’s “the future of this business.”

The two shook hands and Daniels thanked the crowd before both headed to the back.

JONAH & Bad Dude Tito defeated FinJuice (David Finlay & Juice Robinson)

Both teams brawled at the start. We saw a very “no-nonsense” version of FinJuice, or more so than usual, I guess. Juice connected with a big spinebuster that flattened Bad Dude Tito, then crashed into Tito with a running cannonball in the corner.

When Robinson went for a plancha onto the floor, JONAH caught him mid-air, then slammed him back-first against the ring post.

The finish saw FinJuice go for a Doomsday Device on Tito, but JONAH crotched Finlay on the top turnbuckle, then distracted referee Jeremy Marcus to keep him on the opposite side of the ring. With the ref’s back turned, Shane Haste, who is most recently known as Slapjack from WWE, dashed to the ring from out of nowhere to give Robinson a deadlift Tiger-into-backdrop suplex and disappear. Bad Dude Tito then dove off the top ropes with a frog splash that put Robinson away; Tito & JONAH are your winners.

Shane Haste came back to the ring to celebrate with the two. Haste tossed Robinson out of the ring. David Finlay ran back into the ring and started brawling with all three before they cornered him and took him out as well. Little brother Brogan Finlay, who we caught in the first match earlier on the show, arrived to help out but instead got mauled by JONAH, who crushed him with two big splashes off the top rope, as Tito and Haste held David Finlay on the ground, forcing him to watch JONAH destroy his younger brother. They didn’t formally announce it on the show but this faction seems as though it’ll be the latest iteration of TMDK, the group that Mikey Nicholls was also a member of. He’s the long-time tag team partner of Shane Haste and has been working sporadically for NJPW in recent years.

Final thoughts:

This was a great hour of pro wrestling. I thought Christopher Daniels vs. Karl Fredericks was the stand-out match, but the main event tag team brawl was really good as well and I think myself and many others would like to see more of this FinJuice vs. TMDK feud play out. But Daniels and Fredericks was outstanding, especially for a match that didn’t even go ten minutes.

Next week’s episode features another “U S of Jay” challenge match, plus Kevin Blackwood in his NJPW Strong debut vs. Ariya Daivari, and Bullet Club’s Hikuleo vs. Young Lion Kevin Knight in the opener.

NJPW Strong results: JONAH vs. David Finlay

Tonight saw the second installment of NJPW Strong: Nemesis tapings from Hollywood.

Karl Fredericks and Kevin Knight defeated Stray Dog Army (Bateman & Misterioso)

Hot start between Knight and Misterioso, who kicked the match off for their teams. Bateman later pulled Fredericks off the ring apron to the floor. He worked over Knight, who kept trying to fire up, but Bateman kept shutting him down, mainly by using barred tactics like eye pokes and gauges, and joint locks.

Misterioso missed a flying legdrop, which allowed the babyface LA Dojo team to make a comeback. Fredericks and Misterioso had a fiery exchange towards the end, but it was Fredericks who would pin Misterioso with the Manifest Destiny to pick up the win.

Brody King defeated Dave Dutra

Stiff match. “The Battle King” Dave Dutra has appeared on AEW Dark in the past. He chopped Brody King early. Both the audience and King knew that Dutra had bit off slightly more than he could chew already. The “You f*cked up!” chants began raining down. King was super over with the Hollywood crowd.

King threw Dutra to the floor and chopped him up, much to the pleasure of the audience in attendance. Dutra would come back and land a big moonsault to the floor onto King. He’d put King down with a swinging DDT at around the five-minute mark.

King fired back with a rolling lariat and a massive elbow shot and the Gonzo Bomb for the win. Dutra took a beating. Hardcore 1—Black Metal 0.

JONAH defeated David Finlay

Finlay was great. These two had their first encounter at the Battle in the Valley special in San Jose back in November. JONAH attacked both Finlay and his tag team partner, Juice Robinson, after Robinson’s match against Moose.

JONAH charged at Finlay at the bell. Finlay dodged him. Some fans booed Finlay while some in the crowd cheered him. His haters were noisy, but more liked Finlay than disliked him.

JONAH ragdolled Finlay around on the floor outside the ring after catching him mid-air. He landed a big standing senton on Finlay before abusing him some more in the corner post.

When the five-minute call sounded, Finlay had fired himself up and mounted a comeback. He’d fly onto JONAH with a pescado to the floor. When Finlay was in control, a number of fans started chanting for JONAH.

JONAH come back and put Finlay out with a backbreaker, a massive lariat that turned Finlay inside out, a power bomb, and finally a huge splash off the top rope, which would put Finlay away for good.

Final thoughts:

Tonight saw another solid section of the recent Nemesis tapings. JONAH vs. Finlay is worth checking out. I expect to see more of these two plus Juice Robinson mixing it up going forward.

Next week’s episode sees Team Filthy take on Fred Rosser, Tyler Rust, & Rocky Romero in the main event.

New Japan Cup night two results: Kazuchika Okada vs. Gedo

Recommended matches —

  • Yuya Uemura vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
  • Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata

Report —

New Japan Cup first round match: Taiji Ishimori defeated Gabriel Kidd (8:54)

There was not a lot wrong with the work in this match but it would have benefited greatly from having a crowd. 

Kidd grabbed an armbar. Ishimori briefly escaped but Kidd got back to the armbar and got a quick one count. Kidd hit a shoulder tackle. He tried for a crab but Ishimori forced a rope break before the hold could be applied. 

Ishimori tripped Kidd near the ropes and tossed him outside. Ishimori whipped Kidd into the barricade, then rolled him back inside for a near fall. Ishimori hit some knee strikes and raked Kidd’s back. 

Ishimori hit double knees in the corner. He teased an attack off the second rope but Kidd intercepted him with a dropkick. Kidd fought for and finally landed a vertical suplex for a near fall. 

Ishimori cut Kidd off. He teased a sliding German but opted for a springboard attack instead. Kidd was supposed to catch him off the ropes and apply a crab but the timing was messed up. Kidd got the crab but Ishimori forced a rope break. 

The finishing sequence saw Ishimori hit a back elbow and a back handspring kick for a near fall. He then applied the Yes Lock and Kidd tapped. 

New Japan Cup first round match: Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Yuya Uemura (9:34)

These two had a good match. They had a hot start and a great series of near falls at the end. 

Uemura is gigantic. 

They came up with a creative start as Uemura attacked Kanemaru before the opening bell. Uemura hit a slam and a dropkick. Kanemaru rolled outside. Uemura avoided a whip into the barricade and hit some strikes. 

Back inside, Uemura used a side headlock. Kanemaru broke free and took the fight back to the floor. This time he was able to send Uemura into the barricade. Kanemaru then hit a leg slice over the edge of the barricade. 

In the ring, Kanemaru used a headscissors on the mat. Kanemaru hit some short kicks to taunt Uemura. Uemura fired up and hit a vertical suplex, a dropkick and a springboard crossbody for a near fall. 

Uemura hit his trademark double underhook belly-to-belly but Kanemaru kicked out at two. Uemura charged but Kanemaru pulled the referee in his path. Kanemaru hit a kick and grabbed his whiskey bottle. The ref pulled the bottle away and Uemura rolled Kanemaru up for a near fall. 

Uemura used three quick cradles for near falls. Kanemaru then cut him off with a dropkick and hit an inverted DDT for a near fall. 

Kanemaru then climbed to the second rope and hit Deep Impact for the pin. 

Kanemaru poured whiskey on Uemura after the bell. 

Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, SHO & YOH defeated Shingo Takagi, EVIL, SANADA & BUSHI (12:15)

The CHAOS team went four-on-one against BUSHI at the outset. Goto hip tossed YH on top of BUSHI for a near fall. LIJ then used a four-on-one to cut YH off. They focused on YH’s left arm in working him over. EVIL hit a senton for a two count. 

SANADA used a cobra twist. Shingo tagged in and took a shot at his first round opponent SHO on the apron. Shingo hit a knee drop on YH. YH fired up and tagged SHO who had a nice power exchange with Shingo. SHO powered Shingo up with a suplex for a near fall. 

SHO and Shingo exchanged strikes and lariats. Shingo ducked a lariat and hit a German. SHO no-sold it and hit a lariat into a double down. 

YOH and BUSHI tagged back in. YOH hit a nice hip toss, a dropkick and kipped up. YOH hit a head and arm suplex into a bridge for a two count as the other six competitors brawled around ringside. 

BUSHI hit a jaw breaker and a rewind kick. YOH tried a Pele kick but their timing was off and it looked bad. Goto tagged in and fell victim to a four-on-one. BUSHI hit a back stabber for a near fall and a swinging DDT for another two count. 

BUSHI called for the MX. Goto ducked and the move missed. Everyone jumped in for a big move. YH hit EVIL with a lariat and fought off a Magic Killer. SHO suplexed Shingo. 

The finish saw Goto hit BUSHI with an ushigoroshi and a GTR for the pin. 

**********

A Way to The Grandmaster hype video played before intermission. 

**********

New Japan Cup first round match: Yuji Nagata defeated Minoru Suzuki (20:36)

This won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but these guys presented a master class on getting a lot out of a little, playing to your strengths, selling and intensity. Happy Birthday to the king, as Suzuki turned 52 today.

Suzuki hit a big boot at the opening bell. Both men then fired off a series of strikes. Suzuki laughed as Nagata gave him his neck and invited some forearm shots. They traded forearm strikes to the side of the neck. Both saw their necks turn red from the force of the strikes. 

After trading forearms, they moved on to trading slaps to the face and neck. Suzuki teased going down after several unanswered slaps but stayed up. The first five minutes of the match consisted entirely of strikes back and forth. 

Nagata hit a big boot. He went for a second boot but Suzuki grabbed a kneebar. Nagata forced a rope break. They rolled outside where Suzuki sent Nagata into the barricade. Suzuki hit Nagata with a bucket and a water bottle. 

Suzuki grabbed a chair. The referee tried to grab the chair. Suzuki shoved the ref to the ground and he took a bump. Suzuki then retrieved a second chair and used it on Nagata’s right arm. Suzuki wrenched Nagata’s left arm in the barricade. 

They teased a countout but Nagata made it back in at 19. They traded strikes again in the corner. Suzuki dropped Nagata with a slap. Suzuki tried for a figure four around the post but the ref broke it up. 

Suzuki hit a series of palm strikes to the chest in the corner. Nagata tried to fire up but couldn’t. Suzuki hit a kick in the corner. He went for a PK but Nagata caught the kick. Nagata then hit a series of kicks to a seated Suzuki. 

Nagata hit a big boot in the corner. He tried for a suplex but Suzuki caught him in a guillotine. Nagata powered out of the hold and wrenched Suzuki’s right arm. Nagata then hit a series of kicks to the right arm. 

Nagata continued working the right arm. Suzuki sold as though his elbow was dislocated. Nagata tried to wrench the arm again but Suzuki blocked and applied a rear naked choke. Nagata teased passing out. Suzuki gave up the hold and made a cover but Nagata kicked out. 

Suzuki used a sleeper. He transitioned for a Gotch-style piledriver attempt. Nagata blocked the piledriver. Suzuki hit a knee strike. He tried for the piledriver again but Nagata powered out. 

They traded forearm strikes. Nagata was bleeding from the mouth. They traded hard slaps to the face. Suzuki hit a headbutt and Nagata dropped to a knee. Suzuki hit two more headbutts and both men went down. The last headbutt was borderline unsafe. They traded more strikes. 

Nagata hit an exploder out of nowhere. Suzuki used misdirection to try to set up a rear naked choke but Nagata blocked and hit a high angle suplex hold and pinned Suzuki for the upset. 

New Japan Cup first round match: Kazuchika Okada defeated Gedo (15:31)

They used every trick in the book to make this a passable manager vs. wrestler battle. 

Gedo entered with his right arm in a sling. He cut a promo. Okada entered. Okada demanded that Gedo remove the sling before the match started. Gedo pulled a spray bottle out of the sling and tried to spray something in Okada’s eyes but Okada blocked. 

The bell rang and Gedo laid down, inviting Okada to pin him. Gedo tried to pull brass knuckles out of his jacket but Okada blocked and took them away. While the referee disposed of the knuckles, Gedo pulled a wrench out of his pants and used it on Okada’s abdomen. 

Gedo again used the wrench on the floor. Gedo grabbed a table and hit Okada with it. Okada beat the count back inside but Gedo sent him back to the floor. Gedo used a chair on Okada at the five-minute mark. 

Back inside, Gedo hit a series of kicks and punches. Okada blocked a kick and hit a big boot. Okada hit a running back elbow in the center and another in the corner. Okada hit a DDT for a two count, still selling his abdomen. 

Okada hit a scoop slam. He teased a top rope elbow but Gedo rolled out of the ring. Gedo used a hammer to attack the abdomen and tossed Okada back inside. 

Okada reversed a whip and missed a dropkick attempt. Gedo covered for a two count. Gedo used a bow and arrow but Okada reached the ropes for a break. Gedo blocked a flapjack but Okada countered with an air raid crash. 

Okada went for a tombstone but Gedo fought it off by holding on to the referee. Gedo threw Okada into the ref and hit a low blow. 

Gedo retrieved another set of brass knuckles that had been taped to the post. Gedo used the brass knuckles and revived the referee. Gedo used the Gedo Clutch but Okada kicked out at two. 

Jado made his way to ringside. Gedo tried a Blade Runner but Okada blocked. Okada again tried for the dropkick but Gedo avoided it. 

Jado took the ref. Gedo tried another brass knuckles shot but Okada ducked and hit a dropkick. Okada hit a second dropkick at 15 minutes, sending Jado crashing to the floor. 

Okada hit a tombstone and used the Deep In Debt for the submission victory.