Tag: new japan road

New Japan Road results: Shingo Takagi vs. Tomohiro Ishii

Posted on by Ethan Renner

NJPW ran their second of four straight nights in Tokyo’s Korakuen Hall today with a New Japan Road show that featured two title matches. 

The top two matches are well worth going out of your way to see. 

Here are full results and match recaps:

YOTA TSUJI DEFEATED GABRIEL KIDD

Kidd really has something. He’s not as good as Karl Fredericks, but he’s better than Tsuji. 

They started out with some chain wrestling. Kidd broke cleanly against the ropes. Tsuji did not break cleanly when given the same chance. 

Tsuji used a slam for a two count. Tsuji went for a crab but couldn’t get it. Kidd blocked another slam attempt and hit a dropkick, then used a slam for a two count. 

Kidd applied a single-leg crab. After a long struggle, Tsuji forced a rope break. Kidd hit some stomps. They traded forearm strikes. Tsuji hit a spear, then a powerslam, before locking in a full crab. Kidd tapped out. Good opener. 

MINORU SUZUKI, TAICHI, EL DESPERADO & YOSHINOBU KANEMARU DEFEATED WILL OSPREAY, HIROOKI GOTO, YOSHI-HASHI & YUYA UEMURA

This was a crazy fun brawl. 

The CHAOS team employed a Suzuki-gun tactic in attacking before the bell. Uemura ran into the ring and blasted Suzuki with a dropkick, then hit dozens of unanswered forearm strikes in the corner. Referee Marty Asami got shoved down by Uemura, which was not a DQ. 

YH tagged in and Suzuki came back with an armbar over the ropes. Suzuki-gun turned this into a brawl around Korakuen, and Suzuki absolutely killed Uemura, hitting him with slaps and strikes, then using a chair and a variety of plunder as they fought all around the building. 

Taichi went to work on YH in the ring, hitting a series of kicks. YH came back with a rewind kick. Ospreay tagged in and hit Pip Pip Cheerio on Taichi, then a double handspring kick to an interfering Desperado and Kanemaru. 

Goto blind tagged in. Ospreay hit a standing shooting star to Taichi. Goto covered for a two count. Taichi and Goto traded lariats. Taichi hit a high kick into a double down. 

Uemura and Kanemaru tagged in. CHAOS went 4-on-1 against Kanemaru. Uemura hit a dropkick and an overhead belly-to-belly for a near fall. 

The match broke down and everyone jumped in. Suzuki got one last shot in on Uemura, hitting a PK. Kanemaru used a Boston crab on Uemura, who finally forced a break. 

Uemura used a cradle for a two count, but Kanemaru then hit Deep Impact for the pin. 

Suzuki hit Uemura with a knee strike after the bell. He teased hitting the Gotch-style piledriver, but let Uemura go instead, perhaps in a grudging show of respect. 

KAZUCHIKA OKADA, TORU YANO & COLT CABANA DEFEATED TOGI MAKABE, TOMOAKI HONMA & TOA HENARE

Yano and Cabana did some comedy right at the outset, fighting over who should start the match. Okada started instead. 

Honma and Okada began. Honma missed a kokeshi. Yano and Henare tagged in. Yano untied a turnbuckle pad. Henare hit some strikes. Yano used a hair pull, then sent Henare into the exposed buckle. 

Cabana tagged in and did some more comedy spots with Yano. Henare fired back on Cabana with chops, then missed a splash off the second rope. Okada tagged in and got hit with a vertical suplex. 

Makabe got a tag and hit a powerslam, then ten punches in the corner. Okada blocked a northern lights suplex, then ran into a lariat for a two count. Okada hit an air raid crash, then tagged Cabana. 

Cabana hit some jabs and a bionic elbow. Makabe responded with a lariat, then tagged Honma. Honma hit a bulldog and a kokeshi. Henare and Makabe cleared the opposing apron, then went 3-on-1 on Cabana. Honma hit a diving kokeshi for a near fall as Okada and Yano saved. 

The finish saw Yano hit Honma with a low blow while Cabana took the ref. Cabana then used his Superman cover for the pin. 

MANABU NAKANISHI, YUJI NAGATA, SATOSHI KOJIMA, HIROYOSHI TENZAN & TIGER MASK DEFEATED TETSUYA NAITO, SANADA, EVIL, BUSHI & HIROMU TAKAHASHI

Sort of a surprising result here. 

Nakanishi and Naito started off. An LIJ triple team failed, Naito rolled outside, then Nakanishi hit a double tackle on BUSHI and Hiromu, who both flew around for Nakanishi. Nakanishi and Tiger worked over Naito for a bit, before LIJ went to work on Tiger. 

There was a funny spot where Hiromu made a big show of hitting a Mongolian chop on Tenzan while Naito held Tenzan, who then ducked, and Naito took a comedy bump off the chop from Hiromu. 

The dust settled, leaving SANADA and Tiger legal. Tiger blocked a TKO and hit a tiger suplex. Nagata tagged in and hit SANADA with kicks. SANADA blocked an exploder, landed on his feet out of a standing moonsault attempt, then hit a dropkick. 

Nagata fought off a paradise lock attempt, blocked a TKO, then hit an exploder. EVIL and Kojima tagged in. Kojima hit machine gun chops on EVIL. He tried for a top rope elbow but got cut off. EVIL and SANADA tried a Magic Killer but Tenzan saved. Tenzan and Kojima hit a TenKoji cutter on SANADA. 

Kojima hit a Koji cutter on EVIL. EVIL ducked a lariat and hit Darkness Falls for a near fall. Nakanishi jumped in and racked EVIL, then hit a cutter out of the rack backbreaker position. Nakanishi then hit the ugliest plancha you’ve ever seen onto a bunch of guys. He tried. 

The finish saw Kojima hit EVIL with a lariat for the pin. I kept waiting for EVIL to kick out but he never did. 

The New Japan dads celebrated their big win. 

JAY WHITE, TAMA TONGA, TANGA LOA & BAD LUCK FALE DEFEATED HIROSHI TANAHASHI, KOTA IBUSHI, JUICE ROBINSON & DAVID FINLAY

White, Finlay and Ibushi looked great here, where as it was a night off for everyone else. 

Bullet Club attacked before the opening bell. Ibushi and White began as the legal men with a hot exchange. Ibushi avoided a kendo stick shot from Jado on the apron, then tagged Finlay, who scored a two count off a diving uppercut from the middle rope. 

White suplexed Finlay over the top to the floor, where Bullet Club attacked the opposing team. Back inside, White and Tonga doubled up on Finlay. Tonga and Loa both hit slingshot sentons on Finlay. Fale tagged in and stood on Finlay’s back. Fale looked really heavy and slow, even by his standards. 

Tanahashi tagged in and hit a crossbody. He was really not moving well. The match broke down. Ibushi hit a crazy missile dropkick off the top rope. Tanahashi hit a dragon screw to Fale. Loa tagged in and got hit with Twist and Shout. 

Juice tagged in and hit a crossbody on Loa off the top rope for a two count. Juice hit an inverted atomic drop and a Russian leg sweep on Loa. All of his teammates hit pescados. Jado jumped in with a kendo stick, but the ref took it away from him. 

Juice and Finlay hit a double flapjack to Loa. Finlay hit Loa with a stunner. Gedo took the referee, allowing Tonga to jump in and hit Juice with a belt shot. Loa then covered for the pin. 

Tonga hit Ibushi and Tanahashi with belt shots after the match for good measure. Loa then hit Ibushi with Apesh*t, and Tonga hit a gun stun on Tanahashi. 

IWGP JUNIOR HEAVYWEIGHT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH: SHO & YOH DEFEATED ROCKY ROMERO & RYUSUKE TAGUCHI TO RETAIN THE TITLES

You know Taguchi has his working boots on when he breaks out offense besides hip attacks. He did that here. These guys tore the house down. 

YOH and Taguchi started out with chain wrestling. Romero and SHO tagged in. Romero got cut off. Taguchi got a tag and had a fairly even back and forth with YOH. Taguchi hit a dive from the second turnbuckle to the floor, then a tope con giro. 

Back inside, YOH hit a GTR for a two count on Taguchi. Taguchi managed a tag to Romero who hit forever clotheslines and a swing DDT. Romero worked over SHO’s left arm. 

SHO went for a sleeper. Romero blocked, then hit a falcon arrow into a cross armbreaker. Taguchi jumped in and locked YOH in an ankle lock. SHO and YOH both reversed the submissions. Romero forced a rope break. 

Romero and Taguchi hit stereo hip attacks. They did a comedy spot, teasing ramming Romero’s head into Taguchi’s ass. Romero blocked and hit a swing DDT. Taguchi hit a Bomaye. Taguchi and Romero hit a combination Dodon/codebreaker. Taguchi and YOH fought to the floor, leaving SHO and Romero legal. 

SHO blocked a sliced bread attempt. YOH cut off a Romero clothesline attempt. SHO and YOH hit stereo knees to Taguchi. SHO and YOH hit a tandem move for a near fall. Taguchi saved Romero from a 3K. Everyone hit a lariat. Romero hit everyone with knees. SHO hit Taguchi with a spear. 

Romero and SHO traded lariats. Romero used a backslide for a near fall, then used a hurricanrana into a victory roll for another two count. Romero took a flip bump off a lariat from SHO. 

SHO hit a deadlift German on Romero for a two count. SHO hit a powerbomb onto his knees for a near fall. Taguchi made the save, then got tossed to the floor, where YOH hit a plancha. 

Romero used an inside cradle for a near fall. SHO and Romero traded jumping knee strikes. Romero hit a rewind kick. YOH hit an elevated flatliner. SHO covered, but Taguchi made the save. YOH accidentally caught SHO with a superkick. 

Taguchi hit a hip attack to YOH. SHO saved. Taguchi missed with a hip attack, got sent outside, then ate a dive from YOH. SHO hit Romero with a lariat, then hit Shock Arrow for a near fall. The place was going nuts. 

SHO and YOH then immediately hit Strong X for the pin. 

All four celebrated together after the match. 

NEVER OPENWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH: SHINGO TAKAGI DEFEATED TOMOHIRO ISHII TO RETAIN THE TITLE

This was not at the level of their G1 match last year, which was a match of the year candidate, but this was a great main event. These two have a special chemistry. 

They had the unenviable task of following the previous match, so they smartly began slowly. They worked a lockup for a long time, then got the crowd going with a serious of shoulder tackles. No one went down on the first several tackles, then Shingo finally got Ishii to go down. 

Shingo hit a senton, then a series of knees. Ishii dropped Shingo with his own knee strike. Ishii hit a series of headbutts. Shingo then hit a couple of his own. Ishii dropped Shingo with a headbutt. They traded chops. Shingo hit a vertical suplex. 

They traded a long series of forearm strikes. Ishii finally backed Shingo into a corner and hit a series of punch and chop combinations. Shingo stood Ishii on his head with a DDT. Ishii sold his knee on landing. Shingo then answered the previous punch and chop combos with a series of his own. 

Shingo hit some short kicks, then one big PK. Ishii fired up, backed Shingo into a corner, then hit a series of chops to the throat. Shingo blocked a charge into the corner. Ishii slid to the apron and teased a suplex to the floor. Shingo blocked, made it to the apron, then hit a death valley driver on the apron. 

Back inside, Shingo hit a sliding lariat and noshigami for a near fall. Shingo hit Ishii with a lariat and you could virtually see Ishii’s soul leaving his body. Ishii came back with a powerslam, which Shingo no-sold. Each no-sold two suplexes from the other, before Ishii hit a Saito suplex, which left both men down. 

They traded a series of hard lariats, running the ropes like mad men. Shingo took a flip bump off a lariat. Ishii hit a powerbomb and used a jackknife cover for a near fall. 

Ishii teased a superplex. Shingo blocked with a series of headbutts. Ishii hit one big headbutt, then connected with the superplex for a two count. 

Shingo blocked a sliding lariat. Ishii blocked Last of the Dragon. Shingo hit a lariat. They traded headbutts. Shingo landed a series of unanswered forearm strikes. 

Shingo hit Made in Japan. Ishii kicked out at two. Shingo hit a Pumping Bomber. Ishii kicked out at one. You knew the kick out at one was coming, you just didn’t know when. Ishii hit a German. Shingo no-sold. Ishii hit a lariat. Shingo kicked out at one. 

Ishii hit an enzuigiri, then used a sliding lariat for a near fall. Shingo blocked a brainbuster and hit a driller for a near fall. 

Shingo went for Last of the Dragon, but Ishii blocked. Ishii hit a headbutt to the chest, then a lariat. Shingo hit a headbutt, draped Ishii in the ropes, then hit a GTR. 

Shingo hit a Pumping Bomber for a close near fall, then hit Last of the Dragon for the pin. 

Both men sold exhaustion after the match. Ishii, unable to stand, threw some strikes at Shingo on the mat. Ishii rolled outside and grabbed a chair. He teased going after Shingo with the chair, before being held back by ringside attendants. Ishii stumbled to the back. 

Shingo cut a promo. He said Ishii beat the hell out of him tonight. He said Ishii gave him everything he had and he’s in pain, but it’s a good kind of pain. He said that clashing spirit with spirit is professional wrestling. 

Shingo promised to continue elevating the NEVER title, then told anyone who wants the title to come get it. 

Four title matches set for New Japan Road shows

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Korakuen Hall will host four title matches as part of this month’s New Japan Road events.

NJPW’s New Japan Road show at Korakuen Hall on Thursday, February 20 will be headlined by NEVER Openweight Champion Shingo Takagi defending his title against Tomohiro Ishii. This will be Takagi’s first title defense since winning the championship from Hirooki Goto at the New Beginning in Sapporo night one.

SHO & YOH will also defend their IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles against Rocky Romero & Ryusuke Taguchi on February 20.

Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kota Ibushi are challenging Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa for the IWGP Tag Team titles at New Japan Road on Friday, February 21. Tonga & Loa won the titles from Juice Robinson & David Finlay at NJPW’s New Beginning USA show in Atlanta earlier this month.

Ibushi is returning to the ring at NJPW’s Tiger Hattori retirement event at Korakuen Hall on February 19 after missing the New Beginning USA tour due to illness.

The NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team titles will also be on the line on the February 21 New Japan Road show. Takagi, EVIL & BUSHI are defending their titles against Toru Yano, Colt Cabana & Taguchi.

Takagi, EVIL & BUSHI became the Six-Man Tag Team Champions at Wrestle Kingdom 14 night two in January.

Both New Japan Road shows will air live on New Japan World, along with Hattori’s retirement event on February 19 and Manabu Nakanishi’s retirement event on February 22. Here are the full New Japan Road cards:

New Japan Road (Thursday, February 20) —

  • NEVER Openweight Champion Shingo Takagi defending against Tomohiro Ishii
  • IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions SHO & YOH defending against Rocky Romero & Ryusuke Taguchi
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kota Ibushi, Juice Robinson & David Finlay vs. Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, Jay White & Bad Luck Fale
  • Manabu Nakanishi, Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata & Tiger Mask vs. Tetsuya Naito, EVIL, SANADA, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI
  • Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano & Colt Cabana vs. Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma & Toa Henare
  • Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, Will Ospreay & Yuya Uemura vs. Minoru Suzuki, Taichi, El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
  • Yota Tsuji vs. Gabriel Kidd

New Japan Road (Friday, February 21) —

  • IWGP Tag Team Champions Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa defending against Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kota Ibushi
  • NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Champions Shingo Takagi, EVIL & BUSHI defending against Toru Yano, Colt Cabana & Ryusuke Taguchi
  • Kazuchika Okada, Will Ospreay & Rocky Romero vs. Tetsuya Naito, SANADA & Hiromu Takahashi
  • Manabu Nakanishi, Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Yuji Nagata vs. Jay White, Bad Luck Fale, Gedo & Jado
  • Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma & Toa Henare vs. Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI
  • Juice Robinson, David Finlay, SHO & YOH vs. Minoru Suzuki, Taichi, El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
  • Tiger Mask & Gabriel Kidd vs. Yota Tsuji & Yuya Uemura

New Japan Road results: Okada & Ibushi vs. SANADA & EVIL

Posted on by Ethan Renner

Tokyo’s Korakuen Hall was the site of today’s New Japan Road event.

Hiroshi Tanahashi teamed with Tomoaki Honma & YOSHI-HASHI in an effort to take the NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team titles from Ryusuke Taguchi, Toru Yano & Togi Makabe in the semi-main event. This was the third in a series of four matches commemorating Tana’s 20th anniversary in NJPW. 

The main event previewed the top two matches at next Monday’s King of Pro Wrestling event, as Kazuchika Okada & Kota Ibushi took on SANADA & EVIL in tag team action. 

Ibushi will defend his right to challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom against EVIL next week, while Okada will defend said championship against SANADA. 

Here are full results and match recaps from today’s show:

HIROYOSHI TENZAN, SATOSHI KOJIMA & YUYA UEMURA DEFEATED YUJI NAGATA, MANABU NAKANISHI & YOTA TSUJI

This was a fun opener, especially considering the advanced age of four of the competitors. 

Tenzan and Nagata began. Tenzan hit some Mongolian chops. Uemura and Tsuji tagged in. Uemura was a house of fire, quickly dispatching of Tsuji. Nakanishi tagged in and hit Uemura with a headbutt, then his team took over. 

Nagata got a tag and continued working over Uemura. Tsuji tagged in, looking to redeem himself. He hit Uemura with three slams, then used a lateral press for a two count. 

Uemura came back with a spear before Nagata and Kojima tagged in. Kojima hit some machine gun chops. Nagata cut him off before he could hit a top rope elbow. Kojima hit a Koji Cutter. He went for a finishing lariat, but Nagata caught him in an exploder suplex and tagged Nakanishi. 

Nakanishi fired up the crowd and hit a weak lariat for a two count. He got the Argentinian backbreaker on Kojima, but Tenzan broke it up. Tenzan and Kojima tried to double up on Nakanishi, but he hit them with a double suplex instead. 

Tsuji got a tag. He hit Tenzan with forearms and a dropkick, then hit a slam for a two count. Nagata and Nakanishi jumped in for a triple team on Tenzan. Tsuji hit a spear, then used a full crab on Tenzan, but Kojima quickly broke it up. 

Tsuji went nuts with chops on both Tenzan and Kojima. He hit the ropes, but ran right into a TenKoji Cutter. Tenzan then used an Anaconda Vice on Tsuji for the submission victory. 

SHINGO TAKAGI DEFEATED TOA HENARE

As you might expect, they didn’t get a lot of time, but they had an excellent match. Shingo’s matches have a different feeling to them, as his intensity is nearly unmatched. Henare rose to the occasion and more than held up his end of the bout. Good stuff. 

Henare came out of the gate quickly. He aggressively went after Shingo, with him sending Shingo to the floor with a shoulder block. Shingo fired back quickly. He sent Henare over the top rope, then hit his own shoulder block on the floor. 

Back inside, Shingo used a series of short kicks to the head, then a double sledge to the chest. Henare ducked a Pumping Bomber, then hit a diving shoulder tackle. Henare followed up with a corner clothesline, then hit a vertical suplex. 

Henare hit a diving chop for a near fall. Shingo came back with jabs, a lariat, and a throw. Henare blocked Noshigami, then hit a headbutt to the chest. Henare hit a big rugby tackle out of the corner, earning a two count. 

Shingo blocked a uranage attempt, then hit Noshigami for a two count. Henare no-sold a lariat. Shingo hit a series of short elbows, but Henare fired up and hit a big series of strikes. 

Shingo came back with a lariat, then hit a Pumping Bomber. He covered, but only got a two count. Shingo then hit Made in Japan for the pin. 

MINORU SUZUKI & YOSHINOBU KANEMARU DEFEATED JUSHIN THUNDER LIGER & TIGER MASK BY DQ

Suzuki and Kanemaru attacked Liger and Tiger as they were climbing into the ring. Suzuki attacked Liger with chairs, then choked him with an umbrella. Back inside, Suzuki and Kanemaru went for their opponents’ masks, but stopped before they would have been disqualified. 

Suzuki hit Liger with a stiff forearm shot. Liger went down. Kanemaru tagged in and hit some stomps. Liger fired up and went after Suzuki on the apron, but Suzuki slapped on an armbar over the ropes. Kanemaru hit Liger with a drive-by kick on the apron. 

Suzuki used a kimura on Liger. He hooked Liger’s left arm over the ropes, then attacked it with kicks. Liger blocked a PK, then hit some Shotei palm strikes. Suzuki tried a misdirection spot to set up a rear naked choke, but Liger cut him off, then hit a brainbuster. 

Tiger and Kanemaru tagged in. Tiger used a rolling kneebar, which Kanemaru sold in a big way. Kanemaru forced a rope break. Tiger hit a tombstone, then went to the top rope. He missed on a diving headbutt attempt. 

Kanemaru hit a lariat, then hit a perfect top rope moonsault for a two count. Tiger fought off a Deep Impact attempt, then hit a Tiger Driver. Both tagged out. 

Liger and Suzuki exchanged palm strikes to the chest. They fought to the floor, where Suzuki sent Liger into the barricade, then used a chair. Suzuki brought two chairs into the ring. He took one, and Liger took the other. 

Suzuki shoved the referee down, and Liger and Suzuki had a chair fight. Liger snapped, then hit the ref with the chair for the DQ. 

Suzuki grabbed a microphone and taunted Liger. They did several pull-aparts. Thanks to Chris Charlton and Google Translate, I was able to deduce that Liger and Suzuki promised to fight to the death next week, and Suzuki called Liger by his shoot name. I really need to learn Japanese. 

Suzuki and Liger is the feud of the year. Change my mind. 

HIROOKI GOTO, SHO, YOH & TOMOHIRO ISHII DEFEATED YUJIRO TAKAHASHI, TAIJI ISHIMORI, GEDO & JADO

Ishii and Yujiro began. Ishii hit some big forearm shots. The CHAOS team was able to fight off Bullet Club’s first attempt at a group attack, but they fell victim to the second. This became a brawl around the arena, but couldn’t touch the heat of the last match. 

Jado ended up the legal man, and he started working over Ishii with eye rakes. Gedo tagged in and choked Ishii in the blue corner. Ishimori tagged in. He tried a backflip kick, but Ishii caught him with a suplex, then tagged YOH. 

YOH hit a flying forearm on Ishimori. Gedo jumped in, and so did SHO. SHO and YOH hit stereo dropkicks on Gedo. YOH then used a falcon arrow on Ishimori for a two count. 

YOH teased a dragon suplex, but Ishimori blocked. YOH hit Jado with a baseball slide. YOH ducked under a series of attempted strikes from Ishimori, but ran into a kendo stick shot from Jado. 

Yujiro and Goto tagged in. Goto hit a wheel kick in the corner, then hit a suplex for a two count. Goto teased an Ushigoroshi, but Yujiro blocked it. Yujiro hit a basement dropkick, then tagged Gedo. Gedo hit a jawbreaker, then used a superkick for a near fall. 

The match broke down here. Gedo grabbed brass knuckles. YOH fought him off. Goto fought off a kendo stick shot from Jado. Yujiro hit Ishii with an inverted DDT. SHO and YOH hit stereo planchas. Gedo used a schoolboy for a two count on Goto. 

Goto hit Gedo with an Ushigoroshi, then hit a GTR for the pin. This match was kind of a mess. 

Goto cut a promo on Jay White after the match. 

TETSUYA NAITO & BUSHI DEFEATED TAICHI & DOUKI

Boy did this show start to drag after the Suzuki and Liger angle. 

Naito and DOUKI began. Naito got hit with a kamaguri by Taichi from the apron. From there, DOUKI and Taichi turned the match into a brawl around ringside. DOUKI and Taichi established the advantage, then went to work on Naito. 

DOUKI and Taichi used a series of tags, working over Naito in a dull manner. The crowd doesn’t buy DOUKI as a threat, and Taichi was not having a good night. Naito came back with an enzuigiri, then hit Taichi with a low dropkick. 

BUSHI got a tag. He hit Taichi with a missile dropkick, then used a swinging neckbreaker for a two count. Taichi cut him off with a kamaguri in the corner, then tagged DOUKI. DOUKI connected on a springboard DDT for a two count. 

DOUKI called for Suplex de la Luna. BUSHI blocked it, then rolled into a cradle for a two count. Naito and BUSHI doubled up on Taichi. Naito sent Taichi outside after a dropkick. 

DOUKI and BUSHI were still legal. DOUKI used a rolling cradle for a near fall. BUSHI hit a codebreaker, then hit the MX for the pin. 

NEVER OPENWEIGHT SIX-MAN TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH: RYUSUKE TAGUCHI, TORU YANO & TOGI MAKABE DEFEATED HIROSHI TANAHASHI, YOSHI-HASHI & TOMOAKI HONMA TO RETAIN THE TITLES

Tana and Taguchi began with a nice mat wrestling exchange. YH and Yano got tags. Yano tried to untie a corner pad, but YH cut him off. Makabe and Honma tagged in. The former GBH teammates got a nice reaction. Honma ducked a lariat, then dropped Makabe with a shoulder tackle. 

Honma hit Makabe with chops. Taguchi and Yano jumped in, but Tana slammed both of them. Tana and Honma missed on kokeshi attempts. Taguchi missed a kokeshi on Honma. Yano untied a corner pad, and Makabe sent Honma into the exposed buckle. 

Yano tagged in. He sent Honma and Tana into the exposed buckle. Taguchi got a tag and hit Honma with a series of hip attacks. Makabe tried a brainbuster on Honma. Honma reversed into what was supposed to be a brainbuster, but it was really sloppy and dangerous. 

YH got a tag. He dropped Makabe with a shoulder block. Makabe cut him off with a lariat, then tried for ten punches in the corner. YH hit a powerbomb out of the corner. Makabe popped up, then hit a lariat. 

Tana and Taguchi tagged in. Tana blocked a hip attack. He teased slingblade, but Taguchi hit him with a hip attack, then went for three amigos. Tana blocked the third amigo, then hit Twist and Shout. Tana hit a slingblade. 

Tana went to the top rope. Makabe and Yano grabbed his ankles. Honma and YH fought them off, but the distraction was useful. Tana missed a High Fly Flow. Taguchi missed a Bomaye. Tana tagged Honma. 

Honma hit a bulldog, but he missed another kokeshi attempt. Taguchi hit a series of thumbs to the eye, then tagged Yano. Yano ran into the exposed buckle. Honma missed a kokeshi. Tana hit Yano with a dropkick, and Honma finally hit a kokeshi. Tana and Honma then hit stereo kokeshis. 

YH hit Yano with a meteora, and Honma used that to get a near fall. Honma hit a diving kokeshi off the second. Taguchi hit him with a hip attack. YH took out Taguchi with a lariat. YH and Tana ducked a Makabe double lariat. 

Yano hit low blows on Tana, YH, and Honma. Taguchi hit a hip attack to Honma, and Yano used a schoolboy on Honma for the pin to retain the titles. 

Other than the fans holding up placards for Tanahashi as he entered, there was nothing special at all about this anniversary show for The Ace. 

SANADA & EVIL DEFEATED KAZUCHIKA OKADA & KOTA IBUSHI

Ibushi and EVIL started off. They had an intense staredown. EVIL hit a shoulder tackle, but Ibushi kipped up out of it. Ibushi hit a dropkick, then tagged Okada. Okada demanded that SANADA tag in, and he obliged. SANADA and Okada did some crowd work. Red Shoes played along, and this seemed to be a pro-SANADA crowd. 

Okada missed a series of dropkick attempts. The story heading into their match next week is that Okada can’t hit his dropkick on SANADA. SANADA hit a dropkick. EVIL and SANADA took control as the match spilled to the outside. EVIL and Ibushi fought in the crowd. 

Back in the ring, SANADA scored a near fall off his attack on the floor. EVIL got a tag, then hit a seated senton on Okada in the corner. SANADA tagged back in to hit a series of short elbows. He then used a back elbow for a two count before working a chinlock. 

Okada came back with a flapjack, then tagged Ibushi. EVIL tagged in as well. Ibushi ran wild, hitting a back elbow, a mid kick, and connecting with a standing moonsault for a two count. EVIL hit his ref-assisted mid kick, then tagged out. 

SANADA locked Ibushi in the Paradise Lock, then broke it with a dropkick. SANADA covered, but Ibushi kicked out at two. Ibushi hit a frankensteiner, then tagged Okada. Okada hit a running back elbow. 

Okada and SANADA exchanged forearm strikes. SANADA hit a basement dropkick, then blocked a dropkick attempt in the corner. Okada countered with an air raid crash, a slam, and a top rope elbow. 

Okada hit his Rainmaker pose. EVIL jumped in and hit him with a German. Ibushi hit EVIL with a backflip kick. SANADA hit Ibushi with a springboard dropkick. Okada went for a tombstone, but SANADA reversed it into Skull End. Ibushi broke up the hold. 

SANADA hit a backbreaker. He went for a moonsault press, but Okada rolled out of the way. SANADA landed on his feet. He teased a TKO, then tried for Skull End. Okada ducked out, and SANADA ducked a Rainmaker. Okada hit the ropes, then finally hit a dropkick. Both tagged out. 

Ibushi and EVIL traded strikes. EVIL tried a misdirection lariat, but Ibushi countered with a powerslam, then hit a moonsault for a two count. 

Ibushi tried for a Last Ride. EVIL blocked it. Ibushi hit a German into a bridge for a near fall. Ibushi went for a Bomaye. EVIL blocked it with a lariat, then hit Darkness Falls. Okada broke up the pin. SANADA jumped in and threw Okada outside. 

EVIL tried Everything is EVIL, but Ibushi blocked it. EVIL hit a rolling elbow. He tried a lariat, but Ibushi countered with a high kick for a two count. EVIL escaped a Kamigoye. SANADA hit Ibushi with a dropkick. Okada sent SANADA outside. 

Okada and Ibushi missed a double dropkick on EVIL. EVIL hit Everything is EVIL on Okada. Ibushi hit EVIL with a Bomaye. Ibushi went for a Kamigoye on EVIL. SANADA saved, then hit Ibushi with a TKO. 

EVIL hit Everything is EVIL on Ibushi, then used a jackknife cover for the pin. This was a heck of a main event tag match. 

Six-Man Tag Team title defense set for New Japan Road

Posted on by Joseph Currier

A Six-Man Tag Team title defense is now set for Monday’s New Japan Road show.

NJPW has announced that NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Champions Togi Makabe, Toru Yano & Ryusuke Taguchi will defend their titles against Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomoaki Honma & YOSHI-HASHI at the October 7 event.

The match was originally announced as being non-title, but it was made a title match after Tanahashi, Honma & YOSHI-HASHI defeated the champions in non-title action at Friday’s New Japan Road show.

Makabe, Yano & Taguchi have held the NEVER Six-Man Tag Team titles since January.

Tanahashi is having a series of four matches to mark the 20th anniversary of his debut. The Six-Man Tag Team title match will be the third in that series. The fourth match will take place at King of Pro Wrestling on October 14, with Tanahashi & Honma facing Makabe & Yano.

Monday’s New Japan Road show will air live on New Japan World with Japanese commentary. It’s taking place at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and will begin at 5:30 a.m. Eastern time. Here’s the updated card for it:

  • Kazuchika Okada & Kota Ibushi vs. SANADA & EVIL
  • NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Champions Togi Makabe, Toru Yano & Ryusuke Taguchi defending against Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomoaki Honma & YOSHI-HASHI
  • Tetsuya Naito & BUSHI vs. Taichi & DOUKI
  • Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, SHO & YOH vs. Yujiro Takahashi, Taiji Ishimori, Gedo & Jado
  • Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask vs. Minoru Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
  • Shingo Takagi vs. Toa Henare
  • Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Yuya Uemura vs. Yuji Nagata, Manabu Nakanishi & Yota Tsuji

New Japan Road results: Takashi Iizuka retirement match

Posted on by Ethan Renner

NJPW ran Tokyo’s Korakuen Hall today with a New Japan Road event, featuring Takashi Iizuka’s retirement match. 

The match itself was nothing special. The circus surrounding it and the cast of characters that faced off in the bout was pro wrestling at its wackiest. The undercard featured the return of Tomohiro Ishii, Yuji Nagata, Hirooki Goto, Will Ospreay, and Killer Elite Squad, all who took time off on the last tour.  

The show was the first of three consecutive nights at Korakuen. Friday and Saturday’s events are joint cards with Ring of Honor, branded Honor Rising. 

TAIJI ISHIMORI & ROBBIE EAGLES DEFEATED JUSHIN LIGER & YUYA UEMURA (7:49)

Ishimori will defend his IWGP Jr. Heavyweight title against Liger at the anniversary show on March 6, so the focus was placed on them here. Liger looked good, while Ishimori only did a fraction of what he usually does. 

Liger earned a quick one count, then used a camel clutch. Ishimori reached the ropes, and both tagged out. Eagles used a lariat on Uemura, and tagged Ishimori. Ishimori cranked on Uemura’s neck. Uemura missed with one dropkick attempt, but hit it on a second attempt. 

Liger got a tag and hit a shotei, a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, and used a Romero special on Ishimori. Ishimori came back with a handspring enziguri. Eagles and Uemura got tags and traded strikes. Uemura hit three straight shoulder tackles, then a corner dropkick. 

Uemura used a crab, but Eagles reached the bottom rope. Eagles used an inside cradle for a two count. Eagles hit the turbo backpack and made a cover, but Liger broke up the pinfall. Liger and Ishimori brawled to the outside, while Eagles hit a 450 on Uemura for the pin. 

Liger and Ishimori continued brawling after the match, with Liger getting the upper hand. 

TIGER MASK, TOA HENARE, TOMOAKI HONMA & TOGI MAKABE DEFEATED SATOSHI KOJIMA, MANABU NAKANISHI, REN NARITA & YOTA TSUJI (11:36)

A rare win for Henare. Not much to the match. 

Makabe and Tsuji began. Tsuji took Makabe off his feet with a tackle. Tiger and Narita tagged in. Tiger gave Narita a good bit of offense, before connecting with some strikes. Honma came in and used a back elbow for a two count, with Nakanishi jumping in to break up the pinfall. 

Henare got a tag and continued the beatdown on Narita. Makabe did the same. It looked like Narita got a bloody lip here. Honma came in and Narita hit a dropkick, enabling him to tag Kojima. 

Kojima hit machine gun chops on Honma, then hit a top rope elbow for a two count. Kojima hit a Koji cutter. He teased a brainbuster, but Honma reversed it into one of his own. Nakanishi jumped in and speared Honma, then hit a lariat. Nakanishi and Kojima doubled up on Honma.

Makabe jumped in for a double lariat. Honma hit a kokeshi, then tagged Henare. Kojima blocked a Samoan drop, and hit a DDT. Tsuji got a tag and used a crab on Henare. Tiger jumped in and forced a break. While the other six brawled around ringside, Tsuji and Henare traded strikes. Henare hit a headbutt, a lariat, and a uranage for the pin. 

TOMOHIRO ISHII & YOSHI-HASHI DEFEATED YUJI NAGATA & SHOTA UMINO (13:45)

This was great when Nagata and Ishii were in together. That looks to be a program going forward. 

It’s clear that YOSHI-HASHI has taken a step back since returning from injury this year. His offense doesn’t look crisp at all. Ishii and Nagata began and had a great striking exchange. Ishii’s intensity may be unmatched in the entire business. Ishii escaped an armbar attempt. 

Umino and YH tagged in and had a forgettable sequence. Ishii jumped in and used a half crab, but Nagata entered to break it up. Ishii and Nagata brawled on the floor, with Ishii getting the upper hand. Back inside, Ishii hit a brainbuster on Umino for a nearfall. 

YH and Umino exchanged chops. Ishii no-sold a bunch of Umino’s chops. Umino fired up and hit a big chop, which Ishii sold. Umino hit a second rope dropkick, then tagged Nagata. Nagata landed a series of kicks. Ishii blocked an exploder, then fired back with a headbutt and kicks of his own. Ishii hit a german, and Nagata hit an exploder. Nagata used a Nagata lock, but YH broke the hold with a kick. Ishii hit a powerslam, into a double down. Both made tags. 

YH and Umino exchanged forearms. Umino scored a knockdown with a running forearm. He followed up with a back elbow in the corner and a vertical suplex for a two count. Umino used a crab, but Ishii broke it up with headbutts. Umino nailed Ishii with a dropkick. Nagata caught YH with a kick, and Umino and Nagata doubled up on YH. Umino hit a missile dropkick and made a cover, but Ishii slid in for the save. 

Umino went for a fisherman suplex, but YH blocked. Umino used a rollup for two, then hit a bridging german for another nearfall. YH hit a superkick for a nearfall, then used the butterfly lock for the submission. 

Ishii and Nagata went after each other after the bell, trading chops. 

SHO & YOH DEFEATED EL DESPERADO & YOSHINOBU KANEMARU (12:12)

This was pretty good. SHO and YOH are getting the next Jr. Heavyweight tag title shot, so the booking here made sense, with the number one contenders getting the win. The post-match was better than the match itself, though. 

3K hit tandem dropkicks right away, establishing the early advantage. Despy and Kanemaru turned it into a brawl, and took control. They fought into the crowd. SHO ate a dropkick to the head on the apron. Kanemaru and Desperado worked over SHO’s head and neck with kicks and a neckbreaker. 

Kanemaru used a lariat and an inverted DDT for a two count. Kanemaru used a camel clutch. YOH jumped in to break up the hold, but Desperado tossed him to the floor. Desperado hit two slams. SHO hit a suplex, then a spear, and made a tag. 

YOH hit a flying forearm and a kip up. YOH caught a kick and Desperado dropped into the splits. YOH hit a low dropkick for a nearfall. Desperado came back with a spinebuster, and tagged Kanemaru. YOH hit a dragon screw on Kanemaru, then made a tag. SHO hit a pair of lariats, but Kanemaru hit an enziguri. Kanemaru hit a dropkick to the head, and earned a two count. Kanemaru hit deep impact, but YOH jumped in to break up the ensuing pinfall attempt. 

Kanemaru and SHO exchanged strikes. SHO hit a german. YOH jumped in for the double team. 3K hit stereo knee strikes. SHO hit a backstabber, and YOH hit a dropkick. Desperado speared SHO. Kanemaru missed with whiskey mist, and SHO hit a lariat. YOH took Desperado out with a pescado, then jumped back into the ring to help SHO hit the 3K on Kanemaru. SHO got the pin. 

Shingo Takagi and BUSHI came out after the match and confronted 3K. YOH dared them to get in the ring, which they did. Shingo laid them out with pumping bombers. 

HIROOKI GOTO & RYUSUKE TAGUCHI DEFEATED ZACK SABRE JR. & TAKA MICHINOKU (10:55)

Goto and Sabre exchanged holds to a stalemate. They locked knuckles, and traded the advantage. This was a showcase for Sabre. Goto broke the hold and used a tackle. Both tagged out. 

TAKA and Taguchi did some comedy. TAKA used an eye poke. Taguchi hit a hip attack on TAKA. Goto came in and held TAKA. Taguchi nailed Goto with a hip attack as TAKA ducked out of the way. Goto hit Taguchi with a lariat by mistake as Sabre ducked out of the way. 

Sabre worked over Taguchi, hitting a series of uppercuts to the butt. Sabre used a bow and arrow hold, then used it to pick up a two count. TAKA made a tag and went for a crossface, but Taguchi reached the ropes. TAKA hit a pair of knee strikes for a pair of nearfalls. 

TAKA used a crossface on Taguchi, while Sabre tied up Goto. Taguchi reached the ropes. Sabre caught Taguchi going for a hip attack, and used a body scissors. Taguchi popped up and hit a hip attack, then tagged Goto. Goto hit Sabre with a clothesline, then suplexed TAKA onto Sabre. Goto hit a leg lariat. He went for a suplex, but Sabre slipped into a double wristlock. Goto reached the ropes. Goto hit a spinning lariat. 

Taguchi and TAKA made tags. Taguchi hit a hip attack. He held TAKA up, and Goto hit TAKA with a lariat. Goto and Taguchi hit some tandem offense, but Sabre jumped in and tied both of them up. TAKA hit a superkick on Taguchi for a nearfall. 

Taguchi and TAKA exchanged enziguris. Taguchi went for dodon, but TAKA rolled through. Taguchi then rolled through that, and pinned TAKA. 

HIROSHI TANAHASHI & WILL OSPREAY DEFEATED LANCE ARCHER & DAVEY BOY SMITH JR. (12:47)

Smith’s tan was absurd. Smith and Archer took the bulk of the match, and looked good. Ospreay’s selling was quite good here. Tanahashi didn’t do much. 

Tana and Archer kicked things off. Archer took Tana off his feet with a tackle, then stomped on his lower back. Smith and Ospreay got tags. Smith showed great agility for his size. Archer jumped in for the illegal double team, and Killer Elite Squad took over. 

Archer got a tag and hit Ospreay with a pounce. Archer connected with some hard strikes. Smith got a tag and used a delayed vertical suplex for a nearfall. Tanahashi came in to break it up. Smith used a Romero special and a stretch muffler. Ospreay got a quick rollup for a nearfall, then hit a handspring enziguri, then another enziguri to Archer. Tana got a tag. Archer missed a charge into the corner. Tana hit a jawbreaker and a dragon screw. Tana went for slingblade, but Archer caught him and hit a black hole slam. Smith got a tag and hit a knee strike, a big boot, and a legdrop. 

Tana came back and hit twist and shout. Ospreay got a tag, but continued selling the damge from Smith’s submission holds to his left leg. Ospreay hit pip pip cheerio. He missed with an enziguri, and Smith hit a deadlift suplex. Ospreay hit a Robinson special. Smith blocked an Oscutter. Smith hit a powerslam for a nearfall. Smith took Ospreay to the second rope and hit a powerslam. Tana came in for the save. 

Smith and Archer teased a killer bomb, but Ospreay escaped. Tana hit a slingblade on Archer, and Ospreay hit a standing Spanish fly on Smith. Ospreay followed up with an Oscutter on Smith, and got the pin. 

KAZUCHIKA OKADA, TORU YANO & HIROYOSHI TENZAN DEFEATED TAKASHI IIZUKA, MINORU SUZUKI & TAICHI (22:11)

Shinpei Nogami came to the announce desk to announce Iizuka’s final match. Of course, Iizuka attacked him and tore his shirt off. 

Tenzan again appealed to Iizuka to remember their friendship before the match, but Iizuka jumped him, as Suzuki-gun attacked before the bell. 

The match began with Iizuka and Tenzan in the ring. Tenzan hit Mongolian chops. Yano got a tag and pulled on Iizuka’s beard. Iizuka choked Yano. Tenzan raked Iizuka’s eyes. Okada got a tag and hit a slingshot senton. Tenzan tagged in and chopped away at Iizuka. Suzuki cut him off, applying an armbar over the ropes. The match spilled to the floor. Taichi attacked Okada with a chair. Iizuka attacked Tenzan with a chair. Tenzan beat the count back inside at 19. 

Taichi took Iizuka’s muzzle off, and Iizuka bit Tenzan, Yano and Okada. Taichi took the referee, allowing Suzuki and Iizuka both to bite Tenzan’s hands. Taichi got a tag and hit Mongolian chops on Tenzan, which the crowd hated. Tenzan hit a mountain bomb, then tagged Yano. Yano untied a corner pad. Taichi hit Yano with the pad. Taichi went to untie another pad, and Yano hit him with a pad. Taichi went to take his pants off, but Yano cut him off and took them off for him. Taichi sold this like he was embarrassed. 

Okada and Suzuki got tags. Okada hit a back elbow and a DDT. Suzuki and Okada exchanged forearm shots. Suzuki hit a PK for a nearfall. They traded shots again. Suzuki used a rear naked choke, then went for the Gotch piledriver. Okada backdropped out of the attempt. Okada hit a series of uppercuts. They traded big boots, into a double down. Iizuka got a tag. 

Iizuka bit Okada’s foot. He attempted to use a length of rope to choke Okada, but Okada ducked it and hit an air raid crash. Okada hit a top rope elbow. He teased a rainmaker and a dropkick, but Iizuka evaded both. Iizuka used a sleeper, but Okada escaped. Iizuka ducked a rainmaker, but Okada hit a dropkick. Iizuka applied a kneebar, while Suzuki took Tenzan to the floor with an armbar. Okada sold this for all it was worth before reaching the ropes. 

Okada hit a DVD, then tagged Tenzan. Tenzan cleared the apron, then hit chops on Iizuka. Tenzan hit a clothesline in the corner, then a brainbuster. Iizuka hit an inverted atomic drop, and Suzuki-gun jumped in for a triple team. Iizuka used a sleeper on Tenzan, but Yano broke up the hold. Taichi took the referee. Iizuka grabbed the iron fingers. Tenzan begged him not to use them on him. Iizuka hit a low kick and swung the glove, but Tenzan ducked. 

Yano hit a low blow on Iizuka. Okada hit a tombstone. Tenzan hit a top rope elbow of sorts. Tenzan draped their old tag shirt over Iizuka, then hit him with a moonsault and got the pin. 

After the match, the crowd chanted for Iizuka. Iizuka sold being conflicted. Tenzan offered a handshake, and Iizuka finally accepted it. The feel-good moment was short-lived. Iizuka then bit Tenzan, and hit him with a chair. All of Suzuki-gun entered and held up Tenzan. Iizuka used the iron fingers on Tenzan. Iizuka wandered off through the crowd. Taichi picked up Iizuka’s iron fingers and teased putting them on, which got a reaction. 

The crowd continued cheering and chanting for Iizuka for several minutes after Taichi exited, hoping for an encore appearance, but there was none. 

Takashi Iizuka’s retirement match set

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Takashi Iizuka’s retirement match has been set.

Iizuka will team with Suzuki-gun stablemates Minoru Suzuki and Taichi on 2/21 at Korakuen Hall. They will square off against the team of Kazuchika Okada, Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Toru Yano in the main event of the first New Japan Road card taking place this month.

This comes as a storyline has been building between Iizuka and former tag team partner Hiroyoshi Tenzan, who wanted to team up with him before he retires. It was in April 2008 that Iizuka turned on Tenzan, joining GBH and radically changing his look, adopting a madman persona.

Despite this, Tenzan still wants to mend fences with Iizuka before he retires. Iizuka has rebuffed Tenzan’s requests, opting to attack him instead. Even after Tenzan showed him a shirt from their tag team days that said “friends”, Iizuka jumped Tenzan and ripped the shirt, making it clear that he has no intentions of teaming with him.

Iizuka first entered NJPW in 1986, his first match against Akira Nogami. He’s remained in New Japan ever since, winning the tag team titles on three occasions.

New Japan Road results: Tiger Mask & Tiger Mask W vs. Okada & Gedo

Posted on by Bryan Rose

The Big Takeaway —

The two Tiger Masks defeated IWGP Champion Kazuchika Okada and Gedo in the main event, setting up the showdown between Okada and Tiger Mask W at the 45th Anniversary show. The rest of the card built momentum towards their eventual matches in the New Japan Cup preliminary round.

Show Recap —

Yujiro Takahashi defeated Tomoyuki Oka 

Yujiro had him in control early, Oka came back and looked good and nearly had him in a Boston Crab, but Yujiro escaped. Yujiro cut off Oka and planted him with the pimp juice DDT for the win in a basic match.

Roppongi Vice, Yoshi-Hashi & Jado defeated Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Taichi, Desperado & Taka Michinoku

This was a solid, action packed eight man match. Taichi used a ring bell to beat up Jado with. Everyone worked on Yoshi-Hashi at one point with Taka Michinoku signaling him out. Yoshi-Hashi cut him off and locked in the butterfly lock to which Taka submitted quickly.

Taichi was mean, throwing the ref to the floor after the match. The rest of CHAOS posted for the fans and helped the referee to the back.

Kenny Omega, Bad Luck Fale, Tama Tonga and Tonga Roa defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi

Another solid bout although the previous match was a bit better. The heels worked over Kojima, but both Nagata and Nakanishi came in to clear house. Omega laid out Nagata with a snap German suplex but walked into the tomahawk chop by Nakanishi. Omega came back with the knee strike and Tama Tonga followed with the gun stun for the pinfall.

Toru Yano, Tomohiro Ishii and Hirooki Goto defeated Jushin Thunder Liger, Tomoaki Honma and Togi Makabe

This was another pretty good tag team match. Honma and Ishii had a really nice exchange, and so did Ishii and Makabe. Yano came in and was worked over by all three of his opponents. Liger did Yano’s spot where he shoved Yano into Ishii then did a low blow/roll up, but Yano kicked out. Yano did his own low blow and Ishii rebounded with a lariat, then Yano rolled up Liger for the win.

Minoru Suzuki and Davey Boy Smith Jr. defeated David Finlay and Katsuyori Shibata

Suzuki and Shibata started things off, but he tagged in Finlay, who got worked over by both men. In terms of physical appearance, I think this is the best Smith Jr. has ever looked. Shibata came back in but his bum shoulder got worked over. They both wore each other out and DBS unloaded with a butterfly suplex. Suzuki put Finlay in the sleeper but Shibata came back and wiped him out on the outside. DBS cut off Finlay and planted him with the bulldog bomb for the win in a good match.

Shibata and Suzuki brawled after the match. Desperado and Davey Boy Smith wiped out the ringside staff and DBS even powerbombed one of them. Suzuki bailed as Shibata tried to recover on the outside.

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Juice Robinson, Michael Elgin, Ryusuke Taguchi & KUSHIDA defeated SANADA, BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito and EVIL

This felt shorter than the other tag matches on the card, but was pretty good as well. Tanahashi and company actually laid Naito out with a five way dropkick which looked kinda silly but cool at the same time. They tried it again, but failed. Elgin went for an assisted inverted Alabama Slam using Tanahashi, but it backfired with EVIL getting the knees up. Juice and BUSHI came in, and after some back and forth, Robinson pinned BUSHI with the Pulp Friction.

Naito immediately jumped Juice after the match but Tanahashi made the save. EVIL and Tanahashi met and had a staredown as they are due to meet at the opening round of the New Japan Cup. 

Tiger Mask W and Tiger Mask IV defeated IWGP Champion Kazuchika Okada and Gedo

This was a good main event as people were into it and the action was really well done. W sported a new mask and worked tons better under it than he did with the old mask, which had to be a pain.

W and Okada went at it and exchanged some great back and forth, both dodging Tiger Driver and Rainmaker attempts. Okada and Gedo worked as heels, trying to rip off the masks. IV and Gedo went at it as W wiped out Okada with a hurricanrana. Gedo kicked out of the Tiger Driver at one point for a big pop. 

Gedo had IV n the Gedo Clutch roll but W broke it up. Both Tiger Masks took out Okada with a double dropkick and hit diving headbutts on Gedo. W wiped out Okada with the Golden Triangle moonsault on the outside and IV followed with the Tiger Suplex into a bridge for the win.

Both Okada and IV cut promos after the match. W and IV interacted with fans to close out the show.

Final Thoughts —

This wasn’t a bad show, but there was nothing absolutely blow away. It was a skippable show, but did do a good job to building for the New Japan Cup and the 45th Anniversary show that are taking place soon.