Tag: new japan road results

New Japan Road results: IWGP Junior Tag tournament finals set

Posted on by Parker Klyn

Today’s show was held at the Sendai Sun Plaza Hall.

Satoshi Kojima defeated Yota Tsuji (7:35)

This was simple and well-worked as usual.

After some early chain wrestling, Tsuji was knocked down with a shoulder tackle. Tsuji eventually fought back with Kojima’s own machine gun chops, but Kojima turned it around with chops of his own.

Tsuji hit a big overhead suplex and surprised Kojima with an inside cradle for a near fall. After a forearm battle, Tsuji locked on a crab but Kojima reached the ropes.

Tsuji hit some stiff strikes which Kojima countered into the Koji Cutter. Kojima’s lariat finished the match.

Kazuchika Okada, SHO, Toru Yano, & Gabriel Kidd defeated Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, & Yuya Uemura (14:36)

On Friday’s upcoming show from Korakuen Hall, these two teams (sans the Young Lions) will face off for the NEVER six-man belts. This was a very good preview for that, as most of these CHAOS vs. CHAOS matches have been over the last couple tours. 

Yano and Goto started off, and the former immediately removed a buckle pad but was met with a shoulder tackle. Kidd tagged in and faced off with Goto.They performed some chain wrestling, but Kidd took advantage when Yano distracted Goto. Uemura ran in and fought Kidd, and he and the champions maintained the advantage on Kidd for a while. 

YOSHI-HASHI entered the match, and he and Ishii hit a double team move. Ishii put Kidd in a single-leg crab but SHO ran in to break it up. Ishii then tagged in Uemura, which gave Kidd a chance to tag out to Okada after a dropkick.

Okada ran wild on YOSHI-HASHI with his signature offense. Okada attempted the air raid crash neckbreaker but YOSHI-HASHI fought out and hit the bunker buster and the headhunter.

Ishii tagged in and laid in strikes. Okada countered into the Cobra Clutch and the neckbreaker.

SHO tagged in and ran wild on Ishii with strikes and a spear. Ishii fired up and they continued to stiff each other with forearms. Ishii eventually took control with a German suplex, and the three champions hit some combination offense.

The finish came when Ishii tagged in Uemura. Uemura locked on a crab but Kidd broke it up. After a great dropkick, Uemura hit his overhead suplex but SHO kicked out and applied the cross armbreaker for the submission.

**********

Post-match, the two teams (especially Ishii and SHO) faced off as the champions held their belts. SHO put Ishii in an armbar and the challengers stood tall.

Kota Ibushi, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Yuji Nagata, & Tomoaki Honma defeated Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & DOUKI (13:53)

Suzuki-gun attacked before the bell. The legal men worked out to be Suzuki and Nagata, who battled with strikes. Nagata hit an exploder suplex and tagged in Honma, whose multiple attempts at Kokeshi headbutts were foiled when Suzuki rolled out of the way. Suzuki put Honma in the rope-assisted triangle and the two teams brawled on the floor.

Honma made it back into the ring at the 19 count, but was leveled with a Suzuki forearm. Suzuki-gun continued to beat down Honma, with all members of the team getting involved. Honma eventually countered Sabre’s Cobra Twist attempt into a Cobra Twist of his own, followed by a Kokeshi headbutt and the hot tag to Tanahashi.

Tanahashi ran wild with dragon screws. His flipping senton got a nearfall, but Sabre applied the octopus hold. The two continued to battle, but Tanahashi got the better of the exchange with an inverted dragon screw. 

Taichi and Ibushi tagged in and peppered each other with kicks. Ibushi hit his striking combination followed by the standing moonsault for two. Taichi locked in a modified dragon sleeper and tagged in DOUKI, who hit a lariat, a slingshot DDT, and Suplex de la Luna for a few near falls. We then got the parade of big moves, capped off with a slingblade from Tanahashi. The kamigoye finished off DOUKI after a better-than-usual Suzuki-gun multi-man match.

**********

G1 Climax Participant Announcement

The blocks are as follows:

Block A

  • Kota Ibushi
  • Kazuchika Okada
  • Tomohiro Ishii
  • Shingo Takagi
  • Yujiro Takahashi
  • Taichi
  • Minoru Suzuki
  • Jeff Cobb
  • Will Ospreay
  • Jay White

Block B

  • Hiroshi Tanahashi
  • Hirooki Goto
  • Toru Yano
  • YOSHI-HASHI
  • SANADA
  • Tetsuya Naito
  • EVIL
  • Zack Sabre Jr.
  • Juice Robinson
  • KENTA

This is a great lineup, even with the inclusion of Yujiro. Block A, in particular, looks fantastic. I can’t help but think that SHO, despite being a junior heavyweight, is a big absence from this tournament. Slotting him in Block A over Yujiro would have led to even more great matches.

I’m more than ready to see Ospreay, White, KENTA, Juice, and Cobb return to NJPW. Just about every major NJPW heavyweight has returned at this point; the only notable absences I can think of are Bad Luck Fale, David Finlay, and, of course, Jon Moxley.

*****Intermission*****

Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, & SANADA defeated EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, & Dick Togo [10:19]

Bullet Club attacked before the bell and SANADA and Togo were left in the ring. SANADA was sent outside and beaten down by his former tag partner EVIL.

Back inside, Togo hit a dropkick for two. EVIL tagged in followed by Yujiro as Bullet Club continued their beatdown of SANADA. SANADA gave Yujiro a taste of his own medicine by escaping a front chancery by biting his hand.

Shingo tagged in as he and SANADA stopped EVIL from getting involved. Yujiro raked Shingo’s eyes and pulled his hair, followed by a flapjack into the ropes. Shingo fired back with lariats as Naito and EVIL were tagged in. 

Naito ran wild on EVIL, and concluded by applying a leg nelson. After distractions from Togo and Yujiro, EVIL took advantage by whipping Naito into an exposed turnbuckle and hitting a fisherman’s suplex.

Togo tagged in and just straight-up shoved down the referee, but Shingo and SANADA stopped Togo and Yujiro before they could use their weapons.

The finish came after a cathartic beatdown of Togo. Shingo hit the Pumping Bomber followed by Naito hitting the Destino for the pin.

This was much better usual as these matchups have consistently been the least exciting part of this tour.

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag title tournament match: Taiji Ishimori & Gedo defeated Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato (w/ Hiroyoshi Tenzan) (14:07)

This was the worst match of the short tournament. Instead of the engaged, high-octane heel mannerisms we got in their previous two matches, we got the worst of Bullet Club here — plodding brawling with tons of cheating. The closing sequence with Ishimori and Wato was still entertaining.

Gedo baited Wato at the bell by confronting Tenzan. When Tenzan was about to get involved, Ishimori took advantage by attacking from behind. Wato and Taguchi fought back with some combination offense and Gedo insisted on a timeout. He then sent Wato to the floor, where Ishimori drove him into the barricade and Gedo whipped him with his belt. 

Back inside, Bullet Club continued their beatdown of Wato. Wato was sent outside again, but Taguchi stopped the whipping attempt by whipping Bullet Club with a towel. After an extended heat segment, Wato eventually reached Taguchi for the hot tag.

Taguchi hit hip attacks on both of his opponents, followed by the Three Amigos suplexes. Gedo fought out of the third, but Taguchi applied the ankle lock. Gedo attempted a low blow after pulling down the official, but Taguchi avoided it.

Ishimori tagged in and hit a running knee for two. After countering a sunset flip, Taguchi tagged in Wato. He and Ishimori performed some lucha followed by Wato hitting his running corkscrew plancha and a springboard uppercut for two. Wato missed a spinning back fist, and Ishimori hit the rebound enziguiri. 

Taguchi entered the match and set up for his team’s finisher, but Gedo knocked Wato off the top tope. Wato fought out of the Bloody Cross and hit a cyclone kick.

Taguchi dispatched Gedo with a plancha, but Ishimori cradled Wato followed by the Yes Lock. Wato nearly reached the ropes, but Ishimori rolled him back to the center and Wato was forced to tap out.

Both teams finished 1-2 in the tournament.

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag title tournament match: El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Hiromu Takahashi and BUSHI (17:45)

This was a good but not great main event. The action was well-worked but a bit lifeless for a Hiromu match, and it broke down into ref bump mayhem at the end.

The story at the start was Hiromu and BUSHI getting into their opponents’ heads with quick tags and attacking the non-legal man.

Hiromu immediately attempted a sunset bomb on Desperado, before he and BUSHI hit double team moves back in the ring. Suzuki-gun then took advantage with brawling outside. As Kanemaru distracted the official, Desperado hit Hiromu with the ring bell mallet.

Back inside, Desperado attempted to unmask BUSHI. Suzuki-gun continued to beat down BUSHI with frequent tags and double team moves. BUSHI was beaten down for a long time, but eventually tagged in Hiromu after a dropkick/bulldog combination.

Hiromu missed a dropkick after the hot tag, but maintained the advantage with a hurricanrana. Hiromu hit a running dropkick to the outside, driving Kanemaru into Desperado. Back in, Hiromu hit a Falcon Arrow for two. He and Kanemaru wrestled back and forth before Kanemaru hit a DDT and tagged Desperado.

Desperado maintained the advantage with a suplex, but a corner lariat attempt allowed Hiromu to backdrop him into the turnbuckle. BUSHI tagged in and hit a diving hurricanrana on the outside.

Back in, a DDT from BUSHI got a near fall. BUSHI attempted his swinging neckbreaker but Desperado fought out and the two continued to battle.

Kanemaru entered the match and he and Desperado hit some tandem offense before Hiromu broke up the pin. Hiromu and BUSHI performed some double teams of their own, but Desperado kicked out.

After Hiromu sent Kanemaru to the outside, it was just BUSHI and Desperado in the ring, where BUSHI hit a destroyer for a nearfall.

BUSHI set up for the MX, but Desperado escaped. Kanemaru controlled the referee and Desperado hit a low blow followed by the El Es Culero cradle for the win.

As both of these teams finished 2-1 in the tournament, they will meet in a finals rematch on Friday.

Final Thoughts

Even though the junior tag tournament matches weren’t the best we’ve seen, the undercard really stepped it up for this show, providing good setup for Friday’s NEVER six-man title match as well as the G1 Climax.

The highlight of the show was the G1 participant announcement, which should leave any NJPW fan thrilled for the tournament’s start next Saturday.

New Japan Road results: Junior Tag Team title tournament continues

Posted on by Ethan Renner

Recommended matches —

  • Master Wato & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI 

Report —

Makuhari Messe International Conference Hall 3 in Chiba was the venue for today’s show. 

Yuji Nagata defeated Yuya Uemura (8:46)

This was a very good, technically sound opener.

Nagata used a headlock takeover. Uemura used a headscissors escape. Nagata went to work on Uemura’s left arm, setting him up for a Nagata Lock later. Nagata hit some big kicks. 

Uemura made a comeback with strikes and a double underhook belly-to-belly. Uemura hit a hard slap to the neck and a series of slaps to the face. Nagata fired up after the slaps. 

Nagata hit a big mid kick, an exploder, then used the Nagata Lock II for the submission. 

Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI & Gabriel Kidd defeated Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano, SHO & Yota Tsuji (11:35)

Ishii and SHO began with an awesome exchange. They were the highlight of the match. I would liken the rest of this to a fun house show match. 

SHO called in his teammates and they went after Ishii. Yano exposed a buckle and did some comedy spots. Ishii tagged Kidd who got cut off. Kidd did some spots with Okada. Okada hit a slingshot senton. 

Kidd managed to tag Goto. Goto and Okada had a sequence that ended with a lariat from Goto. YH tagged in and hit Okada with a running chop, a thrust kick and a headhunter. Okada hit an air raid crash and tagged Tsuji. 

Tsuji and YH were in for the finish. Tsuji got a near fall off a spear. YH used a bunker buster for a two count, then locked on the butterfly lock for the submission. 

**********

Ishii and SHO went after each other after the match. The traded forearms. Okada broke it up and went after Ishii. 

Kidd tried to jump in and Ishii knocked him down with forearms. Clearly SHO and Ishii is a future direction. 

**********

Minoru Suzuki, Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr. & DOUKI defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi, Satoshi Kojima & Tomoaki Honma (14:05)

Suzuki-gun attacked before the opening bell. Tanahashi was quickly cut off and Suzuki-gun took turns working him over for the first several minutes. 

Tanahashi hit a twist and shout on Taichi and tagged Ibushi. Ibushi cleared the Suzuki-gun apron and hit a high kick and standing moonsault for a two count. Ibushi and Taichi traded kicks. They hit simultaneous high kicks into a double down. 

Kojima and Sabre got tags. Kojima hit machine gun chops. Sabre cut him off before he could hit a top rope elbow and used a kimura. Sabre continued to attack Kojima’s left arm. Sabre hit a northern lights suplex and transitioned to an armbar on landing. Kojima forced a break. Kojima hit a cutter into a double down. 

Honma and Sabre did battle. Honma fought off a double team from DOUKI and used a brainbuster on Sabre for a two count. Honma missed a kokeshi. Sabre locked on a triangle. Ibushi made the save. Taichi took out Ibushi. 

It was still Sabre and Honma in for the finish. Honma hit a headbutt. Tana jumped in for a slingblade. Honma used a diving kokeshi for a two count. Sabre blocked a brainbuster and used an octopus hold for the submission. 

Poor DOUKI. As Sabre had Honma in the octopus, DOUKI went for a dive off the post onto the other four guys and the match and Kidd who was serving as a ringside attendant. DOUKI missed everyone and landed right on his butt on the floor. No one ever catches that guy. 

*****Intermission*****

Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi & SANADA defeated EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi & Jado (8:48)

The less said about this the better. 

Bullet Club attacked LIJ as they made their way into the ring. Jado stole Naito’s ring jacket. 

Naito managed a tag to Shingo. Naito and Shingo doubled up on EVIL. Naito and SANADA then double-teamed EVIL. SANADA hit a dropkick for a two count. 

EVIL grabbed the ref. Jado hit SANADA with a kendo stick from the floor. Yujiro and Jado double-teamed SANADA. 

Jado hit a lariat and a draping DDT. The list of people I would take a draping DDT from would not include Jado at this point in his career. 

EVIL exposed a buckle and sent Naito into it. Shingo hit EVIL with a lariat. Yujiro threw Shingo outside. Yujiro took the ref. Jado tried a kendo stick shot but SANADA blocked and used an O’Connor roll into a bridge for the pin. 

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag title tournament match: El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Taiji Ishimori & Gedo (16:49)

I find heel vs. heel brawls oddly satisfying as a change of pace, maybe because we see them so rarely and I enjoy the comedy. The match was too long but entertaining. 

These two teams of horrible characters used every trick in the book to cheat and broke every rule in the book in an effort to get their two points. 

Bullet Club exposed a buckle in their corner and sent Desperado into it. Ishimori and Gedo worked Desperado over with eye gouging, belt whips and every heel trick imaginable. 

Desperado managed a tag and Kanemaru entered. Kanemaru went after Gedo’s left knee. Kanemaru tried Deep Impact but Gedo got his foot up so Kanemaru jumped off the second rope into a low blow. 

The timekeeper was confused by the low blow and rang the bell soon after but the match continued. 

Ishimori and Desperado tagged in. Desperado escaped a Yes Lock and blocked a Bloody Cross attempt. Gedo got a tag and hit Despy with a thrust kick for a two count. 

Desperado twice grabbed the ref and tried to low blow Gedo but Gedo blocked both times. Everyone hit a lariat. Desperado was the last man standing. Gedo blocked a Pinche Loco attempt. Desperado hit a spinebuster for a two count. 

Desperado used a stretch muffler. Ishimori broke it up and bumped the ref. 

Gedo avoided a whiskey bottle shot from Kanemaru and hit a low blow on Desperado. Ishimori sent Kanemaru outside after a seated senton. 

Desperado hit a right hand to Gedo. Kanemaru jumped back in and used the whiskey bottle on both Gedo and Ishimori. Desperado then hit Pinche Loco for the pin. 

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag title tournament match: Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI defeated Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato (w/Hiroyoshi Tenzan) (18:03)

A very good main event. 

Wato and Hiromu began. These two could have great matches together. They started off hot with a leapfrog spot and a misdirection spot. Wato hit spinning kicks off both spots. 

Wato avoided a BUSHI distraction and went after Hiromu’s left leg. BUSHI jumped in for the illegal double team to cut Wato off, then went outside to send Taguchi into the barricade. 

Hiromu hammered Wato with chops. He threw in some Mongolian chops to taunt Tenzan. Hiromu used a camel clutch. Taguchi entered and broke it up with Mongolian chops. 

BUSHI got a tag and continued working on Wato. He used a neckbreaker for a near fall and hit some kicks. Hiromu tagged back in and hit some vicious palm strikes to the chest. They continued to use quick tags. Taguchi tried to save with a hip attack but he missed. 

One thing I like about Wato’s selling is that he makes sure to work in some hope spots. That’s a lost art when guys are selling today. 

BUSHI used an STF but Wato forced a rope break. Wato hit a rana on Hiromu and a dropkick on BUSHI before Taguchi got a tag. 

Taguchi hit a double DDT and a series of hip attacks. Taguchi hit a springboard hip attack for a near fall on BUSHI. BUSHI blocked three amigos. Taguchi ducked a rewind kick and used an ankle lock. Hiromu interfered to break it up but Wato sent him outside and hit a tornillo. 

Taguchi hit a Bomaye on BUSHI for a two count. He went back to the ankle lock. He gave up the hold and went for Dodon. BUSHI blocked. They traded enzuigiris into a double down. 

BUSHI sold the damage from the ankle lock as Wato tagged in and peppered him with kicks. BUSHI hit a DDT and tagged out. 

Hiromu hit a huge shotgun dropkick on Wato. Wato avoided a DVD into the buckle. Hiromu recovered and hit a dropkick and a falcon arrow for a near fall. Taguchi and BUSHI brawled to the floor. 

Hiromu hit a DVD into the buckle. Wato blocked Time Bomb. Taguchi hit Hiromu with a hip attack. BUSHI hit an atomic drop on Taguchi. Everyone was in and everyone was down. 

Taguchi hit a hip attack and a plancha to BUSHI. Taguchi and Wato hit a tandem facebuster off the top on Hiromu but Hiromu kicked out. Wato went up top but BUSHI stopped his momentum. Taguchi hit a hip attack on the apron and he and BUSHI crashed to the floor. 

Wato missed an RPP. Hiromu hit a corner lariat. Wato hit a corner dropkick. BUSHI and Hiromu hit tandem dropkicks. Taguchi broke up a pin. BUSHI hit a tope suicida to Taguchi. 

Hiromu and BUSHI hit tandem superkicks and a tandem powerbomb for a two count. They followed up with their LAT tandem finish and Hiromu pinned Wato. 

Hiromu closed the show with a promo. 

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag title tournament standings —

  • Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI 2-0 (4 points)
  • Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato 1-1 (2 points)
  • Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado 1-1 (2 points)
  • Taiji Ishimori & Gedo 0-2 (0 points)

New Japan Road results: Bullet Club vs. LIJ

Posted on by Ethan Renner

NJPW ran a New Japan Road show today in Korakuen Hall in front of an announced 482 people, roughly one-third capacity. 

Recommended matches —

I can’t recommend anything as must-see in the ring, but you should watch the main event to stay current on storylines. 

Report —

Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima defeated Yota Tsuji & Yuya Uemura (10:28)

This was a solid opener and Uemura was the star of the match. 

Kojima and Tsuji began and traded a few power moves. Tenzan and Uemura tagged in and they did some mat wrestling. They traded strikes until Tenzan cut Uemura off with Mongolian chops. 

Kojima and Tenzan worked Uemura over. Kojima used a neckbreaker for three near falls as Uemura did a great job selling his neck. Tenzan and Kojima took turns chopping Uemura in the corner. 

Tenzan used a brainbuster for a near fall. Uemura managed to tag Tsuji who gut cut off after a mountain bomb from Tenzan. Kojima tagged in for machine gun chops but Tsuji cut him off before he could hit the follow-up elbow. 

Uemura hit Kojima with chops. He hit both Tenzan and Kojima with a double dropkick. He used a crab on Kojima. Tenzan tried to break it up but got hit by a Tsuji spear. Kojima finally forced a break. 

The finishing sequence saw Kojima kick out of a double underhook suplex from Uemura. Uemura hit the ropes but ran right into a lariat for the pin. 

Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, YOSHI-HASHI & SHO defeated Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, Ryusuke Taguchi & Gabriel Kidd (12:00)

The highlights of this one were the exchanges between Honma and Ishii. Ishii went out of his way to make Honma look good and the crowd really got into their spots. Kidd also looked good here. 

Honma got some early offense on YOSHI-HASHI. YH was slightly favoring his right knee which he injured during the New Japan Cup. 

Honma and Ishii traded a bunch of chops which got the crowd into the match. Honma missed a kokeshi. Taguchi hit an illegal elbow drop on Ishii to cut him off. Taguchi Japan went four-on-one against Ishii before Ishii escaped. 

Yano and Taguchi did some comedy spots. Makabe and SHO traded a series of forearm shots. Yano exposed a buckle which led to the finish. Kidd hit a dropkick on Yano and used a crab but Ishii broke it up. 

The finish saw everyone jump in for a big move. Kidd rolled Yano up for a near fall before transitioning to a crab. Yano reached the ropes, hit a slingshot into an exposed buckle and used a schoolboy for the pin. 

SANADA & Shingo Takagi defeated El Desperado & DOUKI (12:41)

The action in this one was weak for a Shingo match but this was all about setting up his match at Sengoku Lord. 

Shingo and SANADA attacked before the opening bell. Shingo went right for Desperado, his opponent in the NEVER title match on Saturday. 

Suzuki-gun turned the tide and turned it into a brawl around ringside. This was notable as it was the first crowd brawl in the COVID era that required fans to move. 

DOUKI used a chair on Shingo’s left leg, so it looks as though he will go into the match Saturday selling a knee injury. DOUKI and Desperado worked over SANADA in the ring before SANADA managed a tag. 

Desperado continued working on Shingo’s left knee. He used a stretch muffler and Shingo sold for a long time before finally forcing a rope break. Shingo hit a back elbow, jab and lariat before tagging out to set up the closing sequence. 

DOUKI hit a neckbreaker and his Day Breaker slingshot DDT for near falls. Shingo and Desperado brawled to the floor. SANADA tried for Skull End but DOUKI cradled him for a near fall. 

SANADA then lifted DOUKI for a TKO before transitioning to Skull End instead. He locked in the dragon sleeper and body scissors and DOUKI tapped. 

Desperado attacked Shingo after the bell and stole his NEVER Openweight title belt as well. 

**********

There was an intermission for cleaning the ring. 

**********

Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto defeated Yujiro Takahashi & Gedo (11:51)

I was willing to give this Yujiro vs. Okada program a shot but it was clear in this match that they need to get out of this as soon as possible. Yujiro’s work is just nowhere near Okada’s level and the people don’t care about the feud. 

Okada wanted to start off with Yujiro but Yujiro begged off. Okada hit Gedo with a dropkick. Gedo tried to run to the back but Goto went after him and brought him back to the ring. Goto tagged in and worked on Gedo with stomps. 

Gedo cut Goto off with a thumb to the eye. Yujiro interfered and aided in attacking Goto before turning his attention to Okada. The crowd was completely silent as Yujiro posted Okada and nailed him with punches on the floor. 

Gedo exposed a buckle and sent Goto into it. Gedo and Yujiro spent several minutes working on Goto before he finally managed a hot tag to Okada. 

Okada hit his trademark back elbow, back elbow in the corner and DDT sequence on Yujiro. He teased an air raid crash but Yujiro blocked. They worked back to the air raid crash and Okada hit it before both tagged out. 

The closing sequence saw Goto hit a wheel kick and a Saito suplex for a near fall, then hit the GTR for the pin. 

Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr., Minoru Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi, Yuji Nagata & Master Wato (12:07)

Suzuki-gun attacked before the opening bell. Taichi used his mic stand to attack Tanahashi. Suzuki and Nagata began with an exchange that left you wanting to see a rematch of their New Japan Cup classic. 

Tanahashi and Sabre tagged in and the story they told was cool as Tanahashi was able to get the upper hand on the mat at first and had a counter for every hold Sabre tried. Sabre used interference from Taichi to target Tana’s right knee and take over. 

After a few minutes of continuing to work on the knee, Tana managed a dragon screw on Taichi and tagged Ibushi. Ibushi hit a standing moonsault for a near fall. Ibushi and Taichi traded kicks before Wato and Kanemaru tagged in. 

Wato hit a standing moonsault for a two count. He went to the top rope but Suzuki jumped in and cut him off. Kanemaru recovered and hit a one-legged dropkick and inverted DDT for a near fall. 

Kanemaru hit Deep Impact and had Wato pinned but pulled him up after the count of two. Kanemaru then hit Touch Out (spinning brainbuster) for the pin. 

Nagata and Suzuki went at it after the bell and had to be pulled apart. Sabre and Taichi talked trash to Tanahashi and Ibushi. 

Suzuki and Nagata had a second pull-apart and traded slaps to the face so they definitely look to be running that back soon. 

EVIL, Dick Togo & Taiji Ishimori defeated Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito & BUSHI (14:03)

This had a unique start as Hiromu came to the ring acting very heelish. He kept his ring jacket on while everyone else was getting ready for the match. 

Hiromu stared at EVIL before taking his jacket off and revealing a Bullet Club shirt. He pointed a finger gun at EVIL before turning it on Naito and BUSHI. Naito and BUSHI acted confused. Hiromu then attacked EVIL and revealed that this was all a ruse and he was still LIJ. 

Bullet Club tripled up on Naito as the match began. Togo used a fist drop before slapping a chinlock on Naito. Naito blocked a DDT and used a crab on Togo before EVIL jumped in to cut him off with an eye gouge. 

Hiromu and EVIL got tags. Hiromu hit a low dropkick on EVIL. Togo and Ishimori tried to cut him off but Hiromu fought them off. Hiromu hit a shotgun dropkick off the apron onto all three Bullet Club members. 

Back inside, Hiromu hit EVIL with a falcon arrow for a near fall. The crowd got into the match at this point. EVIL blocked Time Bomb and took the referee, allowing Togo and Ishimori to expose a buckle and double up on Hiromu.

EVIL repeatedly sent Hiromu into the exposed buckle. Hiromu came back with a superkick and a lariat into a double down. 

BUSHI tagged in and hit an enzuigiri and a missile dropkick on EVIL. He fought off attacks from Ishimori and Togo and hit a tope suicida on EVIL. BUSHI and Naito held EVIL up while Hiromu hit a doomsday device missile dropkick. BUSHI covered for a two count. 

The match broke down as everyone jumped in at the finish. EVIL hit Hiromu with a lariat. Togo choked BUSHI with a ligature while Ishimori took the ref. 

EVIL then hit BUSHI with Everything is EVIL for the pin. 

After the match, Togo choked Hiromu out with the ligature. EVIL teased hitting EVIL on Hiromu but chose not to. 

EVIL cut a brief promo before standing over the fallen LIJ to close the show.