New champions were crowned on night two of NJPW Strong Independence Day from Korakuen Hall.
Eddie Kingston is the new Strong Openweight Champion. He defeated KENTA in the semi-main event of Wednesday’s show to win the title. The finish of the match saw Kingston block a GTS, deliver multiple spinning back fists and then hit a Northern Lights Bomb for the win.
Kingston becomes the fifth wrestler to win the title since its inception in April 2021. KENTA’s second title reign concludes just 45 days after defeating HIKULEO for the belt at Resurgence.
Giulia is the new Strong Women’s Openweight Champion. She defeated Willow Nightingale on Sunday’s show to win the title. The finish of the match saw Giulia duck a lariat attempt and deliver a knee strike followed by a Northern Lights Bomb for the win, the same move Kingston would use to win his match later in the show.
Giulia becomes just the second wrestler to win the belt after Nightingale became the inaugural champion after defeating Mercedes Mone in the finals of a tournament at NJPW Resurgence.
ジュリア「（ウィローに）またいつかどっかの場所で、いつか必ず、あなたとまた戦いたい。To Be Continuedってことで、サンキュー・ベリーマッチ！…あとこの（※ベルトを叩く）“チケット”を手に入れたんで、行き先はどこかなぁ～？ 楽しみだなぁ～！」
The main event of the show saw Jon Moxley defeat El Desperado in a Final Death match. Moxley cut a promo after about getting to share the ring with Jun Kasai the night before and called Korakuen Hall the heart of professional wrestling.
In other news from the show, NJPW officially announced that Wrestle Kingdom 18 will take place July 4, 2024 from the Tokyo Dome. They announced the official logo for the event as well.
Rocky Romero convinced the Bullet Club War Dogs team of Drilla Moloney and Clark Connors to put their newly won IWGP Junior Heavyweight tag titles on the line in their match against him and YOH. However, the champions ended up retaining when Connors pinned Romero.
After heaving his head wound opened up on night one of the two-night event, JR Kratos was pulled from night two. He was replaced by Satoshi Kojima, who defeated Oskar Leube.
NJPW Strong’s two-night Independence Day event concludes today with a Final Death match at Korakuen Hall.
In the main event, Jon Moxley takes on El Desperado in a Final Death contest. Desperado & Jun Kasai defeated Moxley & Homicide in a Doomsday No DQ match on yesterday’s show.
Three titles are also on the line at the event.
KENTA defends the NJPW Strong Openweight Championship against Eddie Kingston, Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defend the IWGP Tag Team Championship against Gabe Kidd & Alex Coughlin, plus Willow Nightingale defends the NJPW Strong Women’s Championship against Giulia.
The undercard:
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomohiro Ishii & The DKC vs. Tom Lawlor, Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs
Lance Archer & Alex Zayne vs. Bad Dude Tito & Kosei Fujita
Rocky Romero & YOH vs Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney
Rekka opened the match hot against Taguchi, prompting tags to Oleg and Katori. Oleg, in possession of Katori’s stuffed rabbit, played a dominant game of keep-away while establishing a solid lead for his team. From here on, the New Japan squad traded tags and custody of Katori’s bunny.
Taguchi slammed the bunny on the ground and shoved it into his pants to a chorus of boos, giving Katori enough time to mount a comeback and retake rabbit control. This led to a hot tag into Libre, who gave the FREEDOMS team a fighting chance. From here, the teams traded momentum with back-and-forth tags.
The match ended with an extended sequence between Rekka and Wato. Wato finished the bout with a bridging German suplex.
After the match, Taguchi attacked Katori and Katori’s rabbit.
Satoshi Kojima defeated Oskar Leube
This was great. Even with Kojima as a last-minute replacement, Leube put in a vivacious performance.
Leube opened the match with a shoulder tackle that knocked Kojima to the floor, but Kojima answered with one of his own. Leube tried for a chop in the corner, but again, Kojima responded with a barrage of chops. Leube kept up the fight, trading strikes with Kojima before landing a big slam.
Kojima kept Leube from getting too far ahead, hitting a quick Koji Cutter before attempting a lariat. Leube blocked the lariat with a big boot, but Kojima was quick to respond with another. After hitting the lariat, Kojima pinned Leube to win the match.
Nowhere near perfect, but this was another fun watch.
The match opened with a short back-and-forth between Homicide and Akira. After the tags, Catch 22 worked to isolate Oiwa, setting up a path for the rest of the match.
A hot tag to Homicide opened the door for a colossal comeback. Homicide hit TJP with multiple suplexes and a DDT for a near fall.
With Oiwa’s help, Homicide maintained his lead for some time, even with Catch 22 hitting the ring. Eventually, Catch 22 was able to clear the ring of Homicide and hit Oiwa with their double running knee to win the match.
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: BULLET CLUB War Dogs (Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney) (c) defeated CHAOS (Rocky Romero & YOH)
This match was nothing short of fantastic. I have a feeling that this War Dogs reign is going to be incredible.
Before the match could begin, Rocky asked if the match could be for the Junior tag belts. After some hesitation, Moloney agreed, making this a title match.
The match began with the War Dogs rushing YOH and Rocky, taking the match outside the ring. On the outside, CHAOS fought back, but back in the ring, the War Dogs established firm control, isolating YOH for some time.
A hot tag to Rocky allowed for a comeback from the babyfaces. YOH landed a falcon arrow, but Moloney avoided the tandem finish. Connors hit the ring to make the save.
Connors and Moloney hit Rockey with their tandem chop-block spear, forcing YOH to break up the pin. This led to an extended back and forth with multiple convincing near falls, including a 3K from YOH and Rocky. To close, Moloney hit a Drilla Killer, leading into the War Dogs’ tandem leaping spear/suplex.
The match began with Tito calling out Archer. Archer obliged, leading to the pair coming to blows. This encounter was short-lived, allowing the other two to lead a sequence of their own.
Once Tito tagged back in, he worked to isolate Zayne while taunting Archer. Once Archer eventually tagged in, he ran through Fujita and Tito with ease. Archer and Zayne then hit Fujita with their moonsault chokeslam for a near fall.
Tito hit the ring, turning the match into a chaotic brawl. Both teams worked to gain ring control, but after an extended back-and-forth, Archer killed Fujita with a lariat and pinned him.
After the match, Archer announced Zayne would be his new partner under the team name “Murder Sauce”.
Hiroshi Tanahashi, The DKC & Tomohiro Ishii defeated Team Filthy (Jorel Nelson, Royce Isaacs & Tom Lawlor)
This show keeps on giving.
After a brief opening with Tanahashi and Nelson, the match broke down. Ishii and Lawlor traded strikes as the rest of the men hit the ring. Eventually, the in-ring multi-man fight calmed down a bit, but the momentum continued to shift drastically.
After Team Filthy isolated DKC for some time, Ishii tagged in for a fiery rally. Isaacs answered Ishii’s comeback, leading to an intense back-and-forth between the pair.
Tanahashi tagged in, prompting Team Filthy to hit the ring again. An assisted falcon arrow and a running knee from Isaacs scored him a pair of near falls over Tanahashi. As Isaacs grew more desperate, Tanahashi took advantage, trapping Isaacs with a snug pin to win the match.
WrestleKingdom Announcement
WrestleKingdom was announced for its typical January 4, Tokyo Dome slot, along with a new logo. The show event will seemingly be one night.
I had extremely high expectations for this match going in, but it blew them away. This was one of the best matches of the year, no qualifiers needed.
Giulia opened the match by rushing Willow, but Willow stuffed Giulia early, blocking an arm drag and a head-scissor takedown. Giulia attempted to take the match to the mat, but Willow continued to escape before landing a massive powerbomb to establish a strong lead.
After an extended period on the back foot, Giulia secured a choke which she turned into a DDT. This led to a bit of a rally, but a massive pounce put Willow back in control. The follow-up cannonball and driver resulted in an excellent pin attempt.
Giulia ate a buckle bomb, setting Willow up for a moonsault attempt. Giulia avoided the dive, allowing her to lock in her Bianca submission, establishing control for the first time. She followed with a throw that led to a joint strike exchange.
A pair of lariats from Willow dropped Giulia. Willow tried to follow up with a powerbomb, but Giulia reversed into a code red for a near fall. This led to an intense struggle for control that featured a super butterfly suplex for another great near fall.
Giulia dodged Willow’s next lariat, hit a knee strike and a Glorious Driver to close the match and win the Strong Women’s Championship.
IWGP Tag Team Championship: Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) (c) defeated BULLET CLUB War Dogs (Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd)
While not as good as their match from last night, this was still quite fun. These War Dogs are the best thing to happen to Bullet Club in years.
The War Dogs tried to rush Bishamon like they did last night, but Bishamon was ready. After withstanding the initial rush, Bishamon kept up the pace, attacking the War Dogs both in and out of the ring.
The fighting on the outside eventually allowed the War Dogs to gain some footing. This allowed them to write off YH for a while and begin to focus on Goto. After YH recovered, he tagged in and began a rally. Before Bishamon could hit a tandem finish, Coughlin hit YH with a chair. The War Dogs hit YH with a double muscle buster for a near fall.
A late match reset led to a Bishamon rally. After dropping Coughlin across Kidd’s knee, Goto and YH hit Kidd with Shoto. They then pinned Kidd to win the match and retain their tag belts.
NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship: Eddie Kingston defeated KENTA (c)
Everyone knows current KENTA can be hit or miss, but this was quite good.
KENTA baited Eddie into a chase early on, earning a quick lead. Eddie answered with a suplex and a chop, sending KENTA to the floor. Eddie pursued KENTA but missed a strike, driving his hand into the ring post. KENTA followed up, focusing on Eddie’s hand from here on.
Eddie fought back in a strike exchange and landed a pair of suplexes to gain a lead. Eddie locked in a choke, but KENTA walked into the ref. KENTA then baited a recovering referee into thinking Eddie was choking him with a shirt before really bumping the referee. KENTA then grabbed a belt but lost control of it to Eddie. Eddie thought about using the belt but decided against it. While Eddie was discarding the belt, KENTA grabbed another, which he used to drop Eddie.
Eddie kicked out of a double foot stomp and locked in a stretch plum in the middle of the ring. KENTA worked his way to the rope, blocked the follow-up back elbow, and connected with a flurry of strikes. KENTA then hit a running knee before attempting the GTS; Eddie blocked.
After avoiding Kenta’s finish, Eddie hit two weak spinning back fists. A massive lariat yielded a near fall. Eddie followed up with another back fist before picking KENTA up and dropping him on his head to win the Strong Openweight Championship. Eddie Kingston is a champion in New Japan.
Final Death Match: Jon Moxley defeated El Desperado
This, unsurprisingly, was an extremely violent match. I don’t think it quite lived up to their previous match, especially on a visual level, but it was an intense war.
Before the match began, two barbed wire boards were set up in the corners. Once the bell sounded, the men tried whipping the other into said boards, but neither could pull it off at this point. Instead, Desperado rolled to the outside and blasted Moxley with a pair of trashcan lids.
Desperado grabbed a table from under the seats. After whipping Moxely into the barricade, he set up the table and climbed up one level of stairs. Moxely fought Desperado on the stage and threw him into the table, but it failed to break. After the table held strong, Moxley placed Desperado on it and hit him with an elbow drop; it held firm again. Moxley then placed him on the table again and landed a double-axe handle; the table refused to break.
Moxley moved on, slamming Desperado into four standing chairs before shutting Desperado’s leg in a chair. Moxley then threw Desperado in the ring and began to stab him with a fork. Moxley followed up by throwing Desperado into the barbed wire board for a near fall.
Back on the outside, Moxley killed Desperado with his own guitar. Moxley didn’t waste time, using the remnants of Desperado’s guitar to stab at his neck. Moxley challenged Desperado to return to the ring, only to stab him with a fork and bite him after returning to the ropes.
Desperado began to fight back with chops and forearms before whipping Moxlet into the other barbed wire board. Desperado then placed the board’s remnants on Moxley’s back and drove it into him with a chair. Desperado hit a backdrop, and a Kasai frog splash for a near fall.
Desperado grabbed a cheesegrater stashed in a bouquet of roses to draw Moxley’s blood before grabbing another table. Desperado set up the table, topped with a barbed wire board. Both men struggled for control, resulting in both men falling back into the barbed wire-adorned hardware; “holy sh*t” and “this is awesome” chants rang through Tokyo.
Both men wrapped barbed wire around their hands before driving skewers into each other’s heads. Moxley followed with a cutter, a barrage of elbows, and a choke. Desperado refused to quit, forcing Moxley to drop the hold.
Moxley attempted a death rider, but Desperado avoided, hit a spinebuster, and a pinche loco for a near fall. Moxley answered with a death rider, but Desperado kicked out. It took a curb stomp, a lariat, and another death rider to close the match for Moxley.
Moxley closed the show by declaring himself the king of NJPW. He thanked Korakuen Hall for being the “heartbeat of pro wrestling”. He thanked Desperado and Kasai for the matches before paying special tribute to the late Danny Havoc, who Kasai greatly inspired. Moxley then left through the crowd, marking the end to one of the best New Japan shows of the year.
The opening night of NJPW Strong Independence Day included a pair of tag team title changes.
Bullet Club War Dogs are now in possession of the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles and the Strong Openweight Tag Team titles. Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney defeated TJP & Francesco Akira to win the Junior Heavyweight belts, while Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd claimed the Strong Openweight titles by defeating Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI.
There will be a chance for the faction to add more gold as Coughlin & Kidd challenge Goto & YOSHI-HASHI for the IWGP Tag Team titles at Strong Independence Day night two on Wednesday. Goto & YOSHI-HASHI are entering that match at a disadvantage after Coughlin & Kidd continued to attack them following their match on night one.
David Finlay introduced Connors as a new member of Bullet Club at NJPW Capital Collision this April. Moloney, Coughlin, and Kidd were then added to the group at Dominion last month.
Here’s the full lineup for Strong Independence Day night two:
Final Death match: Jon Moxley vs. El Desperado
NJPW Strong Openweight Champion KENTA defends against Eddie Kingston
IWGP Tag Team Champions Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defend against Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd
NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Willow Nightingale defends against Giulia
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomohiro Ishii & The DKC vs. Tom Lawlor, Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs
Lance Archer & Alex Zayne vs. Bad Dude Tito & Kosei Fujita
Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors vs. YOH & Rocky Romero
A Doomsday No DQ match headlines night one of NJPW Strong Independence Day.
In the “Exciting Encounter” main event, Jon Moxley teams with Homicide against El Desperado & Jun Kasai in a no DQ tag match.
The IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles are on the line in the semi-main, with TJP & Francesco Akira defending against Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors.
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defend the NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team titles against Gabe Kidd & Alex Coughlin.
The undercard:
Giulia & Thekla vs. Willow Nightingale & Momo Kohgo
KENTA & Gedo vs. Rocky Romero & Eddie Kingston
“Filthy” Tom Lawlor vs. Kosei Fujita
Lance Archer, Ryohei Oiwa & Alex Zayne vs. JR Kratos, Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs
The DKC vs. Bad Dude Tito
Kickoff match: Ryusuke Taguchi, Oskar Leube & YOH vs. Kengo, Takahiro Katori & Dragon Libre
Our live coverage begins with the kickoff match at 5:10 a.m. Eastern time.
This was a fun-enough showcase of some unfamiliar freelancers. Even with all the fresh talent, the real standout was Leube.
The match opened with a series of one-on-one encounters, showcasing the independent talent against the NJPW regulars. Throughout the process, Leube gained multiple leads by utilizing his size. Eventually, the freelancers won a lead, but again, Leube was able to make the save. YOH finished the match by hitting Dragon with Direct Drive and pinning him.
Bad Dude Tito defeated The DKC
The match opened with an athletic sequence that went back and forth for some time. Tito won out in the early portion by utilizing his power, landing suplexes, and slowing down the pace.
DKC launched a comeback, winning over a lot of the crowd, but in the end, Tito caught DKC with a Steiner Screwdriver to win the match in dominant fashion.
JR Kratos, Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs defeated Alex Zayne, Lance Archer & Ryohei Oiwa
This was a decent little match that will be memorable for the crimson mask that Kratos left with.
The early portion of this played out with the heel squad gaining an advantage by isolating their smaller opponents. This led to Archer growing desperate for a tag.
Once the tag came, the crowd erupted for Archer. He then teed off with Kratos, trading strikes that slowly escalated into powerful moves. Archer tried to close by choke, slamming Zayne into Kratos, but Kratos caught Zayne. This initiated a chaotic exchange between the teams. Once the fog faded, Nelson hit Oiwa with a springboard cutter and pinned him to win the match.
Tom Lawlor defeated Kosei Fujita
This was an excellent grappling-heavy match. Fujita is a star in the making, no doubt.
The match opened with a scramble on the mat for control. Lawlor, unsurprisingly, gained control early, working Fujita’s leg. Fujita held on, eating strikes and powering through moves, but failed to gain anything substantial for quite some time.
A sudden dropkick from Fujita turned the match around. Fujita continued the rally, forcing Lawlor to take the match back to the mat. Lawlor was able to buy time, saving him from an embarrassing defeat.
Lawlor hit a spear and a penalty kick, but Fujita kicked out. Lawlor then reversed a rolling choke attempt, but again, Fujta escaped. Finally, Lawlor hit Fujita with a knee to the back of the head to win the match.
Eddie Kingston & Rocky Romero defeated KENTA & Gedo
The match opened slow, with neither heel wanting to engage Kingston. The heels worked to isolate Rocky before throwing him to the floor. Kingston tried backing up Rocky outside the ring, but this is where Bullet Club thrives, allowing the domination to continue.
The tag to Kingston eventually came, and he took full advantage. After connecting with a barrage of chops, Kingston hit KENTA with an exploder suplex. KENTA responded with a DDT and a quick tag to Gedo.
Gedo tried turning the match around, but Kingston completely ignored his attack. KENTA hit the ring, leading to a quick brawl, but in the end, it came down to Kingston and Gedo once more. Kingston hit Gedo with the spinning back fist and won the match.
This was all-round a fantastic match. Willow is a total star, and it seems like New Japan understands this.
Giulia and Willow opened the match with a grappling sequence. Perhaps surprisingly, Willow maintained the upper hand throughout, constantly outpowering Guilia.
A double tag allowed Thekla to turn the match around. With Giulia’s help, Thekla isolated Momo, building to an eventual hot tag. Willow continued dominating Giulia.
Thekla was able to secure a submission on Willow, forcing Momo to hit the ring. This led to a brief period of chaos that allowed Willow to retake the lead. Willow climbed to the top rope, but Thekla met her there, landing a superplex. Guilia followed up with a top rope dropkick, setting up Thekla with a dive to the floor.
It didn’t take long for Willow to bounce back. After dropping Thekla, Willow climbed to the top again and threw Momo into their opponents. Willow then hit Thekla with a nasty senton, a driver, and a powerbomb to win the match.
After the match, Giulia and Willow had a brief staredown.
NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Championship: Bullet Club Wardogs (Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd) defeated Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) (c)
This was another great match. The Wardog team feels ruthless instead of petty in cheating, a welcome change to the stale Bullet Club formula. Kidd and Coughlin had something to prove, and boy, did they ever.
Before the match could even begin, The Wardogs attacked the champions. They then beat down Bishamon outside the ring, establishing a nearly uncontested lead early on.
After an extended period of YH isolation, Goto was able to tag in. Goto and Kidd traded strong blows long enough for YH to recover. YH then tagged in and chopped down Kidd in the corner. Goto helped YH set up Shoto, but Kidd evaded the finish. This bought Coughlin enough time to drop YH with a chair. The Wardogs then hit Goto with a double chokeslam, making YH an easy pick. Kidd and Coughlin hit YH with a double muscle buster and a piledriver before pinning him to win the NJPW Strong tag titles.
After the match, the Wardogs continued the attack on Bishamon, setting up a favorable environment for tomorrow’s rematch.
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: Bullet Club Wardogs (Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors) defeated Catch 22 (TJP & Francesco Akira) (c)
Another example of the “Wardog style” working well.
Similar to the previous match, Bullet Club started the match by rushing the champions and taking the fight to the floor. The fight continued deep into the crowd, climbing the stairs of Korakuen. To fight back, Akira lept from the stairs into the Bullet Club, putting them on the back foot.
In the ring, Catch-22 were more in their element. They kept the challengers on the back foot until Bullet Club isolated TJP. Akira was quick to back TJP up, landing a tandem facebuster and an impressive dive for a nearfall.
The Bullet Club team tried to finish TJP, but Akira pulled TJP out of harm’s way. The Wardogs cleared the ring of Akira and hit TJP with a spear from the top rope to win the match and the junior belts.
Exciting Encounter Doomsday No Disqualification match: El Desperado & Jun Kasai defeated Jon Moxley & Homicide
Unsurprisingly, this was a violent, bloody war. It’s certainly deserving of a deathmatch label.
As soon as the match began, the fight spilled to the floor. It was chaos from the start. The men used kendo sticks, spikes, and trash can lids all in the early minutes, with neither team gaining a clear lead.
As the match wandered its way toward the ring, Moxley stabbed Kasai with a fork. Between the ropes, Kasai returned the favor, cutting Homicide with a butcher’s knife and prepping a fork-covered board. Kasia’s prop backfired as Homicide delivered a backdrop that sent Kasia crashing into his own contraption. Moxley also dropped Desperado into the board before grabbing a fork that he drove into the face of Desperado. By this point, this match was a bloody mess.
Moxley dropped Desperado with a piledriver, but Desperado kicked out at one. Moxley then left Homicide to take care of Desperado after hitting an awkward dive to the floor. Homicide continued to use forks, this time between Desperado’s legs, setting up Moxley for a figure four attempt.
Kasai started a rally, dropping Moxley with a suplex before slicing his face with the butcher’s knife. Kasai then grabbed a razorblade cross that he set up in the corner. Moxley avoided the attack from Kasai, driving him into the crucifix instead.
After Kasai survived a razorblade cross, a curb stomp, and a cutter, Moxley tagged into Homicide. Homicide failed to hit the cop killer, setting Desperado up for a rally. Desperado struck Homicide with a trashcan but failed to close.
Kasai turned his attention to Moxley, driving a fist full of stakes into his head. This cleared the ring of Kasai and Moxley, leaving Homicide free to attempt cop killer again. Desperado avoided the move before hitting Homicide with a low blow. The low blow was followed with a pair of pinche locos, with the second landing on a trash can. Desperado then pinned Homicide to win the match.
Desperado and Kasai cut a show-ending promo to a massive ovation. An English “This is awesome chant” broke out after teasing a potential World Tag tease from the pair.
A Strong Women’s Championship match has been added to the July 5 NJPW Independence Day event.
Giulia will challenge Willow Nightingale for the Strong Women’s Championship on July 5. Giulia issued the challenge to Nightingale on the Stardom event that took place on June 25. Nightingale is the first Strong Women’s Champion, defeating Mercedes Mone on May 21 after Mone was injured during the course of the match.
A new match has also been added for the first night on July 4. Nightingale will team with Momo Kohgo to take on Giulia and her Donna Del Mundo stablemate Thekla.
Here is the updated card for next week’s Independence Day events:
NJPW Strong Independence Day night one, Tuesday, July 4, 5:10 a.m. Eastern time on NJPW World pay-per-view —
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: TJP & Francesco Akira defend against Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors
Exciting Encounter Doomsday No DQ match: Jon Moxley & Homicide vs. El Desperado & Jun Kasai
NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Championship: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defend against Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd
Eddie Kingston & Rocky Romero vs. KENTA & Gedo
Tom Lawlor vs. Kosei Fujita
Lance Archer, Alex Zayne & Ryohei Oiwa vs. JR Kratos, Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs
Bad Dude Tito vs. The DKC
Willow Nightingale & Momo Kohgo vs. Giulia & Thekla
Kickoff match: Ryusuke Taguchi, YOH & Oskar Leube vs. Kengo, Dragon Libre & Takahiro Katori
NJPW Strong Independence Day night two, Wednesday, July 5, 5:10 a.m. Eastern time on NJPW World pay-per-view —
NJPW Strong Openweight Championship: KENTA defends against Eddie Kingston
Final Death match: Jon Moxley vs. El Desperado
IWGP Tag Team Championship: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defend against Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd
NJPW Strong Women’s Championship: Willow Nightingale defends against Giulia
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomohiro Ishii & The DKC vs. Tom Lawlor, Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs
Lance Archer & Alex Zayne vs. Bad Dude Tito & Kosei Fujita
Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors vs. YOH & Rocky Romero
Jon Moxley vs. El Desperado in a “Final Death” match has been added to NJPW Strong Independence Day, as the cards are now set.
After squaring off in a tag team match on night one, Moxley will face Desperado in a Final death match on night two on July 5. Moxley & Homicide will team on night one on July 4 against Desperado & Jun Kasai in an “Exciting Encounter Doomsday No DQ” match. That match has now been made official after being teased last week.
An IWGP Tag Team title match has also been added to the July 5 show, with Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defending against Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd of Bullet Club. On July 4, Goto & YOSHI-HASHI will defend the NJPW Strong Openweight Tag titles against Kidd & Coughlin.
Here are the full lineups:
NJPW Strong Independence Day night one, Tuesday, July 4, 5:10 a.m. Eastern time on NJPW World pay-per-view —
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: TJP & Francesco Akira defend against Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors
Exciting Encounter Doomsday No DQ match: Jon Moxley & Homicide vs. El Desperado & Jun Kasai
NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Championship: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defend against Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd
Eddie Kingston & Rocky Romero vs. KENTA & Gedo
Tom Lawlor vs. Kosei Fujita
Lance Archer, Alex Zayne & Ryohei Oiwa vs. JR Kratos, Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs
Bad Dude Tito vs. The DKC
Kickoff match: Ryusuke Taguchi, YOH & Oskar Leube vs. Kengo, Dragon Libre & Takahiro Katori
NJPW Strong Independence Day night two, Wednesday, July 5, 5:10 a.m. Eastern time on NJPW World pay-per-view —
NJPW Strong Openweight Championship: KENTA defends against Eddie Kingston
Final Death match: Jon Moxley vs. El Desperado
IWGP Tag Team Championship: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defend against Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomohiro Ishii & The DKC vs. Tom Lawlor, Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs
Lance Archer & Alex Zayne vs. Bad Dude Tito & Kosei Fujita
Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors vs. YOH & Rocky Romero
Jon Moxley and El Desperado will be facing off twice at NJPW Strong Independence Day.
At Saturday’s New Japan Road show, a video aired with Moxley challenging Desperado to face him in a “Final Death” match at night two of NJPW Strong Independence Day. Moxley said the match will have no winner — it will only have a survivor.
Sounds good. July 5, the second night for #njpwSTRONG in Korakuen, a singles match with Moxley? When it’s time for him to show up he shows, when it’s time for him to speak he speaks. That’s why I love Mox.
He said ‘Final Death?’ That sounds like anything goes to me. I’ll take it!
NJPW Strong Independence Day is taking place at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo on Tuesday, July 4 and Wednesday, July 5. At night one of the event, Moxley is teaming with Homicide against Desperado & Jun Kasai.
Kasai made a surprise appearance at New Japan Road to officially accept Desperado’s offer to team together at Independence Day. It was Kasai’s first time appearing in an NJPW ring.
Kasai: BUT Despe, if I’m to step into a NJPW ring, it has to be with the right rules. I’ll be happy to be your partner, but I came here to make NJPW history.
Despe: Deathmatches in NJPW.. there might be a bit of resistance, like there’s been to me on Twitter, but I’ll do what I can to do right by you.
Moxley defeated Desperado in a no disqualification match at NJPW Music City Mayhem in July 2022.
The Independence Day events will be the first time NJPW Strong has held shows in Japan. Night one will feature TJP & Francesco Akira defending the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles against Clark Connors & Dan Moloney. Eddie Kingston is challenging KENTA for the Strong Openweight Championship on night two.
El Desperado has asked hardcore wrestling icon Jun Kasai to be his tag team partner at NJPW Strong Independence Day against Jon Moxley & Homicide.
In a video posted to the NJPW World YouTube page and NJPW’s social media accounts, Desperado asked Kasai to team with him against Moxley & Homicide on night one of Independence Day on July 4 at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo.
NJPW has yet to make the match official, still listing Desperado’s partner as “X.”
Kasai, 48, has a history of death match wrestling both in Japan and on the American independent scene. He wrestled in death matches three times for GCW in 2022, and won the 2014 CZW Tournament of Death in his most high profile American matches over the past decade. Light tubes and razor blade board death matches have been staples of Kasai’s 25-year career.
NJPW Strong makes its Japan debut with Independence Day events at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo on Tuesday, July 4 and Wednesday, July 5. Night one will see TJP & Francesco Akira defend their IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles against Clark Connors & Dan Moloney.
On night two, Eddie Kingston challenges KENTA for the Strong Openweight Championship.
The TJP & Akira vs. Connors & Moloney title match was set up following TJP & Akira’s title defense against KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight at Dominion this past weekend. Moloney turned against the United Empire after the match and joined Bullet Club.
Kingston issued a challenge to KENTA for the Strong Openweight Championship at Resurgence last month. KENTA regained the title from Hikuleo that night.
The Independence Day events are taking place in advance of this year’s G1 Climax. At Dominion, it was revealed that this year’s G1 will see Kingston compete in the tournament for the first time ever.
Kingston underwent successful hernia surgery in May.
NJPW Strong is headed to Japan for the first time for a pair of pay-per-view events at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo.
NJPW revealed Sunday that NJPW Strong Independence Day events will be held on Tuesday, July 4, and Wednesday, July 5 at Korakuen Hall. Both shows will air as pay-per-views on NJPW World.
AEW’s Eddie Kingston, Fred Rosser, Hiroshi Tanahashi, plus Team Filthy’s Tom Lawlor, JR Kratos, and West Coast Wrecking Crew (Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs) are the talent announced for the events so far.
BREAKING
July 4 and 5, #njpwSTRONG comes to Korakuen Hall for the first time! STRONG's Independence Day is in Japan this July!
Kingston appeared in a video promo on Sunday’s Resurgence pay-per-view in issuing a challenge to the NJPW Strong Openweight Champion for a future event. KENTA defeated Hikuleo by countout to regain the Strong title at Resurgence.
It was also revealed on Sunday’s Resurgence event that new Strong Tag Team Champions will be crowned in a Bishamon vs. House of Torture match at Dominion on June 4, as Aussie Open have been forced to vacate the titles due to an injury to Mark Davis.
The inaugural Strong Women’s Champion was also set to be crowned in Resurgence’s main event, a tournament final match between Mercedes Mone and Willow Nightingale.
