Tag: njpw dominion

Hirooki Goto vs. Shingo Takagi for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship headlines today’s NJPW Dominion.

Goto will go for his sixth successful defense of IWGP gold in the main event, but Shingo holds a 3-1 edge over the champ in their four previous singles meetings.

In the semi-main, IWGP Global Champion Yota Tsuji defends his title against Gabe Kidd in a matchup of two of the company’s brightest young stars.

Bullet Club continues to implode as David Finlay of War Dogs faces House of Torture’s EVIL in a dog collar chain deathmatch.

NEVER Openweight Champion Konosuke Takeshita defends his title against Boltin Oleg/Oleg Boltin on the undercard.

Great-O-Khan and Callum Newman put their IWGP Tag Team titles on the line against Tomohiro Ishii and Taichi.

The IWGP Junior Tag titles are also up for grabs today with YOH and Master Wato facing SHO and Yoshinobu Kanemaru.

Hiroshi Tanahashi’s road to retirement continues with a singles match against Yuya Uemura.

Shota Umino and El Phantasmo take on Zack Sabre Jr. and Ryohei Oiwa in an undercard tag team bout.

In another War Dogs vs. House of Torture matchup, Taiji Ishimori, Clark Connors, Drilla Moloney, and Chase Owens face SANADA, Ren Narita, Yujiro Takahashi, and a new mystery member of HoT in the main card opener.

A Young Lion tag team bout is set for the pre-show with  Katsuya Murashima & Shoma Kato vs. Daiki Nagai & Masatora Yasuda.

**********

Pre-show

Katsuya Murashima & Shoma Kato defeated Daiki Nagai & Masatora Yasuda

Murashima sunk in a deep Boston Crab on Nagai to near success. Yasuda valiantly fought out of an Avalanche Powerslam, but fell to another. Murashima kept him in the center of the ring in an unrelenting Boston Crab that tapped young Yasuda out.

These four Young Lions were already good, but they’re putting their own respective feels together so finely. They’re worth keeping an eye on, particularly Murashima and Nagai.

Main show

House Of Torture (Ren Narita, SANADA & Yujiro Takahashi) & Bad Luck Fale defeated BULLET CLUB War Dogs (Chase Owens, Clark Connors, Drilla Moloney & Taiji Ishimori)

SANADA emerged during House of Torture’s entrance looking like Giant Gonzalez; however, it was new House of Torture member Fale who stole the limelight to Owens’s chagrin. Rechristened to Don Fale, he no longer represented Bullet Club after 12 years in the group. He leveled him out, in addition to Moloney. Takahashi held some of the War Dogs at bay, but Ishimori fought back, nailing it with an enzigiri to Takahashi. Fale handled Moloney on the outside despite Owens’s pleas and questionings. Connors trounced Fale with a tire, proceeding to Jeep Flip Takahashi.

Moloney executed a tight Spinebuster on SANADA, who countered with a Magic Screw off of the top rope. Moloney attempted to aid Owens to finish off SANADA with a guitar shot. Owens then hit Moloney with a low blow to the shock of Osaka. SANADA finished off Moloney with a guitar shot for the win. Chase Owens joins Bad Luck Fale as a member of House of Torture.

Not a fan of House of Torture, but this development provided a shock to open the main card. All I can really say as I think that Fale and Owens fit in fine there. At least the promoters got this out of the way immediately. I don’t want to call him Don Fale though.

TMDK (Ryohei Oiwa & Zack Sabre Jr.) defeated El Phantasmo & Shota Umino

Umino and Oiwa locked up into a stalemate, whereas continued Sabre controlled Phantasmo to ground his otherwise dynamic, well-rounded style. Oiwa joined his teammate in targeting Phantasmo’s limbs like they were playing musical chairs. Umino blasted into his hot tag with a fiery comeback that toppled Sabre with a Tornado-DDT. Phantasmo saved Umino from a united front by Oiwa and Sabre, nearly capitalized with a Moonsault.

A desperate Oiwa reached for a Doctor Bomb, which failed to secure the pin on Phantasmo. TMDK wore down their opponents with sleeper holds, yet ultimately staggered to synchronized enziguris from their foes. Umino and Sabre exchanged multiple pin variations with Sabre succeeding a final one in a flash for the victory.

Sabre’s way of snatching a surprise win from the ground is why he’s such a compelling watch.

Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Yuya Uemura

The match saw Tanahashi’s technique being seasoned to test Uemura, but not fast enough to keep up. Uemura worked the arm of The Ace, yet incurred the shock of a Flying Crossbody and Back Body Drop with a middle-rope Senton for extra measure. Uemura countered a Sling Blade into an attempted Deadbolt Suplex, but dropped from Tanahashi’s Dragon Screw Leg Whip. A successful Sling Blade teetered the match in Tanahashi’s favor.

Tanahashi baited Uemura into rage, with Uemura temporarily tiring out from a stiff exchange. He dove for Tanahashi but landed on his elbow, weakening it. Tanahashi stopped Uemura with a Dragon Suplex. The Ace almost succumbed to a juji-gatame, had he not wisely leveraged the weight of the two to sneak a pinfall.

Tanahashi taking measured approaches to overcome the spry Uemura for a win was an excellent story, as he visibly analyzed his next steps after the initial grappling. Hopefully they revisit this before Tanahashi hangs up his boots.

House Of Torture (SHO & Douki) defeated Master Wato & YOH (c) for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship

Prior to the bell, SHO blamed Wato for the injury suffered by advertised partener Yoshinobu Kanemaru before revealing his new partner, a returning Douki. The pair immediately dispatched YOH on the outside. SHO set Douki up for a Basement Dropkick to Wato as he held up the champion’s legs. Kanemaru revealed his injury was a ruse when he chopped Wato in the crotch from the top rope before wrapping up his arm again. Wato, distressed, crawled for a rope break during a nasty Single-Leg Crab courtesy of Douki.

He and SHO continued wearing down the lonesome Wato before they dropped to his double-clothesline. YOH made the hot tag, unloading on SHO with aerial maneuvers. Wato delivered a plancha to Douki, dazing him enough to slingshot him into the barricade. Kanemaru swung with his whiskey obttle and SHO with a screwdriver but missed the champions and hit each other. Douki leveled the playing field, swinging a pipe on Wato after Kanemaru spat whiskey in YOH’s face. Douki secured Wato’s arm and knee into a hold that strained both to tap him out as SHO forced YOH to watch.

An unexpected turn from Douki and an unexpected title change. House of Torture boosted their roster tonight and I’m not overly fond of this recruitment. Still, I think the paring of Douki and SHO could bear fruit and be a net positive for the stable.

Taichi & Tomohiro Ishii defeated United Empire (Callum Newman & Great-O-Khan) (c) for the IWGP Tag Team Championship

Newman exploded onto Taichi, overwhelming him with the quickness. Khan furthered the punishment, with a Big Sit to pour salt in the wound. Ishii barreled in with the tag, blasting through Khan and Newman, emphatically dropping the former with a vertical suplex. Khan used Ishii’s own momentum against him; he flipped the challenger over for an arm hold.

Taichi endured Newman’s flurry of attacks, grabbing a comeback with a lariat and excitedly throwing off his longer pants to reveal his short trunks. Building up to an attack, Taichi fell instead to Khan, who booted Ishii in the face when he tried to make the save. This set up Newman for a Shotgun Knee to plummet Taichi to the outside. Khan sacrificed himself to take Ishii out on the outside, leading Newman to a Spanish Fly on Taichi. Khan’s efforts were thwarted, however, as Ishii rescued Taichi. With that, Taichi sent Newman to the mat with a Black Mephisto for the win.

After the House of Torture updates, this is a welcome return to form on the level of Uemura versus Tanahashi. Though I wish Newman had more time with the belt after the confusion with Jeff Cobb months ago, he and Khan put up a valiant effort. Seeing Taichi celebrate with some gold was heartwarming though, and I’ll not say no to Two-Belts Ishii.

G1 Climax entrants announcement

Block A: Hirooki Goto, Boltin Oleg, Yuya Uemura, Yota Tsuji, David Finlay, EVIL, SANADA, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and two winners of qualifying matches.

Block B: El Phantasmo, Shota Umino, Shingo Takagi, Zack Sabre Jr, Great-O-Khan, Gabe Kidd, Ren Narita, Konosuke Takeshita, and two winners of qualifying matches.

Oleg Boltin defeated Konosuke Takeshita (c) for the NEVER Openweight Championship

LIke two rampaging bulls, champion and challenger clashed, with Boltin’s force dropping Takeshita, who returned the favor and followed up with a top rope dive. Takeshita threw everything into battering Boltin, but eventually was caught over the Kazakh wrestler’s shoulders, who sent him flying to the entrance ramp. Takeshita unleashed a loud, resonant forearm to Boltin at the top of the ramp. The champion was sent tumbling down the sloping entrance after a brief Boltin Shake.

Barely making it to the ring, Takeshita withstood a Boltin Bomb, regaining control with a Blue Thunderbomb transitioned into a Boston Crab. Boltin maintained his resilience, pulling Takeshita from the top rope and dropping him over the shoulder to the mat. Takeshita tried choking him out, but the Osaka crowd gave him the will to flip Takeshita on his back. The pair matched lariat for lariat twice, with Boltin left standing each time. Boltin trounced Takeshita with a Kamikaze for his first NJPW title win, the first Kazakhstan champion in the Japanese promotion.

Astounding closing segment. Boltin’s late 2024 and early 2025 saw him interspersed with some of NJPW’s finest veterans, showing only glimpses of his brilliant, birlliant potential. He bounced off of Takeshita well, with chemistry to instill them as incredible dance partners. Onward and upward for the new NEVER Openweight Champion.

EVIL defeated David Finlay in a Dog Collar Death Match

Each man wrangled with the dog collar chain with utmost trepidation. Finlay made the first move, yanking EVIL in for a torrential rainfall of fists anywhere he could ground or corner him. The War Dog wrapped EVIL’s side of the chain onto a ring post to first choke him, then batter him with forearms. The leader of the House of Torture then fell over the top rope, with Finlay hanging him. As the House of Torture swarmed upon Finlay, the War Dogs came to their leader’s aid.

Meanwhile, SHO removed the turnbuckle pads from each side of the ring. Out in the crowd, EVIL whacked Finlay with the steel chain, bloodying his forehead and gagging him with the sheer steel. EVIL perched Finlay upside down on one exposed corner, and distracted referee Marty Asami while his stablemates choked Finlay with the chain. Finlay reached some reprieve through sending the chain into EVIL’s groin, where he proceeded to batter him with the metal.

The War Dog then threw the House of Torture landlord to the outside in a powerbomb that laid out his stablemates. EVIL earned his salvation after being left tied to a ring post when he yanked Finlay into the post, and again, in an attempt that saw his head through a chair. Hoisting his opponent back into the ring, EVIL swing the chain onto Finlay’s beaten flesh. Finlay deployed Oblivion with his knee adorned in the chain and a series of powerbombs wore EVIL down. Just as Finlay choked EVIL with the chain, EVIL did the same to Marty Asami. House of Torture attempted to interfere, but the War Dogs came to his side. EVIL removed his collar, threw a table at Finlay, and rejoiced as Don Fale dropped onto Finlay on that same table. With his Darkness Scorpion hold assisted with the chain, EVIL choked Finlay into complete unconsciousness.

The flashes of genius in this match, the creative ways that the collar and chain were used, were tragically and ironically suffocated with the overwhelming numbers. Sad, as this was a good EVIL performance without House of Torture.

Gabe Kidd defeated Yota Tsuji (c) for the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship

Tsuji soared out of the ring to topple Kidd after a brawl sent him tumbling. The pair exchanged hands, almost ending in a double-countout avoided at the last second. Kidd and Tsuji engaged in a stiff series of punches, the latter suprising with a shot to the liver. The War Dog earned a breather after sending Tsuji out, greeting him with a lariat upon re-entry. A comeback swung to Tsuji’s favor after a superkick sent Kidd to the mat.

Dangling Tsuji to the top rope, Kidd overshot a senton that knocked both men’s head in a frightening manner. Tsuji staggered Kidd with a tope suicida, who fired back with a Tombstine Piledriver on the outside. Evoking Claudio Castagnoli’s Swing, Kidd sank in a deep, deep Boston Crab. Tsuji mustered enough spirit to cause a rope break. The champion traded chops with the challenger, with one echoing with a heavy wince. Kidd withstood two Gene Blasters before destroying Tsuji with a Death Rider + Piledriver combination to become the new champion.

Post-match: Kidd gave Tsuji his props before directing his attention to Hiroshi Tanahashi, opening the ropes as a sign of respect. He then challenged The Ace to a match in the near future.

It certainly doesn’t help that this followed the preceding slog of a dog collar match, but there was no sauce to this match. New Beginning in Osaka back in February positioned these two higher up as stars. Where was that? Tsuji at least reclaimed his energy halfway into the match. Kidd ended up a parody of himself—his brawling style replaced instead with a sports entertainment vibe. I watch WWE for WWE, I watch NJPW for NJPW. The saving grace was that these two put it together in the final minutes. I will say that Kidd battling between his War Dog and Death Rider identities at least made for a compelling narrative. Also, congrats on the new belt, champ.

Main Event

Hirooki Goto (c) vs Shingo Takagi for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship

These beefy warriors clashed with collisions and chops in a deafening cacophony of flesh on flesh. Goto shoulder tackled Takagi so hard that he had to get a moment to recover his bearings and patience. Takagi fired back with a Tornado-DDT and a lariat to scramble Goto towards the outside. Takagi, unrelenting, suplexed Goto at the ramp and dropped a standing Senton to the weakened champion’s back. Adrenaline coursed through Goto’s veins as he caught up with Takagi enough to topple him with a lariat. Goto devastated Takagi, sending him to the outside where he broke the 20-count at 18. He evaded a GTR but ate a merciless lariat.

Takagi mounted an offense with a lariat and got some hits in, but was left rattled by an Ushigoroshi. Goto hit a GTW and relied on a GTR to no avail. Takagi was inches away from a new title with a Last of the Dragon but failed. He tried again with a Pumping Bomber and Burning Dragon. The pair battled, a seesaw of finisher attempts that saw Goto drop Takagi with a Shouten Kai. With a soul on fire, Goto ate a lariat like it was candy but collapsed to a Sliding Pumpkin Bomber to his back. After an unsuccessful GTR, Goto chipped away at Takagi as the 30-minute count ticked closer and closer. Goto ultimately retained his championship after one last GTR.

Yes. Absolutely yes. This is what tonight should have been, from top to bottom: the multi-man, tag team, and singles matches. The crowd was so loud I couldn’t even hear commentary; Osaka was completely unglued. Pro wrestling should feel this way. Props to Takagi, out on his own without a stable against a man hellbent to make up for the lost time he spent outside of the title scene. Goto and Takagi have cemented themselves as who the roster should aspire to be.

Closing thoughts

The House of Torture matches are a slog to get through. If it’s necessary to a viewing experience to witness the developments in recruitment, one would do well to fast-forward. However, the TMDK/Umino and Phantasmo match was fine. Boltin’s title win over Takeshita was a triumph that may go overlooked. Tanahashi and Uemura was a lot of fun, and I hope they run it back. Ishii and Taichi becoming IWGP Tag Team Champions off the heels of a great match at the emaciated but still strong United Empire had its own thrills. Not that it’s any surprise, but Goto and Takagi’s main event is required viewing.