NJPW is introducing a set of Tag Team title belts for Tamashii, its brand that’s based in the Oceania region.
The inaugural champions will be crowned in a one-night tournament that’s taking place at Tamashii’s Cold War show on Friday, July 4. The show is being held at Mangere Arts Centre in Auckland, New Zealand. Matchups for the tournament have not been announced yet.
“In the rich tradition of tag team wrestling in Oceania, TAMASHII’s teams have been the cornerstone of the brand since its inception, with the Pretty Boys (Mark Tui & Richard Mulu), Ungrateful 1’s (Trent Hooper & TJ Illes), Jungle Fury (Johnny Gunn & Bruno Astro) and more being joined recently by the returning Youngblood (Oskar Leube & Yuto Nakashima) as they continue their international excursions,” NJPW wrote.
“With competition in the tag ranks only intensifying, TAMASHII has now created titles to cement excellence in the brand. The first ever TAMASHII Championships, the inaugural champions will be decided through a one night tournament set to bring red hot action to the New Zealand midwinter!”
The Tamashii brand launched in 2022 as a way to feature talent from NJPW’s New Zealand Dojo, where Bad Luck Fale is the head trainer. This is the brand’s first championship. NJPW did hold an Oceania Cup tournament in 2024 with Jack Bonza being crowned as the inaugural winner.
NJPW announced on social media that the first-ever tournament for the Oceania Cup will take place on August 16 at the Metro Social in Sydney, Australia. Tickets will become available at 11 am this Thursday via Ticketsearch.
“#njpwTAMASHII returns to Sydney on Friday August 16 with the NJPW OCEANIA CUP. A tournament featuring 8 of the top Heavyweights in the Oceania region with the winner receiving the first ever NJPW Oceania Cup!,” NJPW wrote.
The Oceania Cup was originally scheduled to take place last year in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales. However, NJPW later announced that they would pull out of the tour, with TNA taking its place. Those shows took place on June 30 and July 1 and were headlined by Alex Shelley defeating Steve Maclin to retain the TNA World Championship and Deonna Purrazzo defeating Gisele Shaw to retain the TNA Knockouts title.
NJPW will also hold a Tamashii event in Rolleston, Christchurch, New Zealand on July 28 at Rolleston College.
Jeff Cobb is off the NJPW Tamashii events scheduled for this weekend.
NJPW announced Wednesday morning that Cobb, scheduled for shows in Christchurch, New Zealand and Sydney, Australia is now off those shows due to personal reasons.
As a result, the cards for these shows have been changed. Updated lineups for both shows are as follows:
November 11 – Christchurch, New Zealand:
Taiji Ishimori vs. Aaron Solo
KENTA vs. Andrew Villalobos
Richard Mulu vs. Michael Richards
Tome Filip and Stevie Filip vs. Rowan Davis and Nikolai Anton Bell
Bad Luck Fale and Jack Bonza vs. Tony Kozina and Jake Taylor
Mart Tui and Chris Miles vs. Jordan Allan-Wright and Shep Alexander
November 12 – Sydney, Australia:
Taiji Ishimori vs. Mick Moretti
Michael Richards and Andrew Villalobos vs. Caveman Ugg and Ricky South
Aaron Solo vs. Lyrebird Luchi
Bad Luck Fale, Jack Bonza, and KENTA vs. Mat Rogers, Jude London, and Paris De Silva
Robbie Eagles vs. Carter Deems
Unsocial Jordan and Aaron Jake vs. Richard Mulu and Jake Taylor
Mat Diamond vs. Jordan Allan-Wright
NJPW announced the launch of the Tamashii brand back in September. It will feature talent from the Australasia scene as well as talent from NJPW and their dojos in New Zealand and LA.
Jeff Cobb will be part of NJPW TAMASHII’s debut events in November.
The promotion announced on Monday that Cobb, a member of NJPW’s United Empire stable, will be part of the talent lineup for the TAMASHII brand’s first shows in New Zealand and Australia on November 11 and November 13.
The launch of the TAMASHII brand was announced last week, with NJPW announcing their intent to break into the Oceania market by running a regular touring brand, similar to the NJPW Strong brand in the United States.
In addition to Cobb, Bad Luck Fale, KENTA, and Taiji Ishimori have also been announced for the events. Tickets for both shows are on sale now, with only standing room tickets left for the Sydney, Australia event on November 13. Seats still remain for Christchurch, New Zealand on November 11.
Meet and greet ticket packages with members of Bullet Club (Fale, KENTA, Ishimori) are also available for both shows.
NJPW is launching a brand aimed at the Oceania market of New Zealand and Australia.
In a press release Wednesday night, NJPW announced the launch of NJPW TAMASHII, with the first shows set for New Zealand and Australia in November.
KENTA, Taiji Ishimori, and Bad Luck Fale have been announced for the events set for Christchurch, New Zealand on Friday, November 11, and Sydney, Australia on Sunday, November 13. Tickets for the shows go on sale Friday, September 9.
In the release, NJPW likens the TAMASHII brand to the NJPW Strong brand in the United States market, with talent from the company’s New Zealand dojo set to be used the way the LA Dojo has been on Strong.
The full text of the press release:
Tokyo/Auckland September 8 2022
New Japan Pro-Wrestling is excited to announce the November launch of NJPW TAMASHII, a new brand that will see the best of NJPW in Japan compete with the cream of NJPW’s New Zealand Dojo, as well as the best talents from Australasia.
Meaning ‘spirit’, or ‘soul’, TAMASHII is the logical continuation of the philosophy behind NJPW STRONG in the United States, which has seen established names from NJPW compete with brand new prospects emerging from NJPW’s LA Dojo, as well as the best from the local scene.
The first NJPW TAMASHII event will take place on November 11 in the Pioneer Recreation & Sport Center in Christchurch New Zealand. Sunday November 13 will see TAMASHII hit Liberty Hall in Sydney Australia.
Already signed for the debut NJPW TAMASHII events are big names from BULLET CLUB. KENTA, who wrestled on the very first official match for NJPW STRONG in 2020, is joined by IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Taiji Ishimori and the Rogue general Bad Luck Fale.
Fale is the principal force behind NJPW’s New Zealand Dojo, the rising prospects of which are set to be highlighted and developed through TAMASHII events, having already been focused on in the Lion’s Roar docuseries on NJPW World.
‘This was once the most popular professional wrestling territory in the world,’ Fale commented. ‘Now with so much talent in Australasia, it was logical to expand the New Japan brand in the territory. We’re very excited for what the future holds.’
Representative Director for NJPW Takami Ohbari stated ‘New Zealand, and Oceania at large is a rapidly growing professional wrestling market rife with strong potential talent. It’s for that reason that we established the New Zealand Dojo, and why these events are so important for NJPW’s ongoing global expansion. The last time NJPW was involved in events in New Zealand specifically was all the way back in 2016, so I thank our Kiwi fans for their patience. Whether from the NZ Dojo, or further afield, you’ll see the same fighting spirit that is uniquely NJPW’s throughout these events. I hope you come to experience them for yourself, and know that TAMASHII is the place to find genuine Strong Style action in Oceania.’
‘We have been working hard to develop and refine our teaching to provide the best possible training,’ remarked NZ Dojo Head Coach Tony Kozina. ‘The Young Lions that have earned a place on these debut events all possess top notch work ethic and strive to go beyond their best both in and out of the ring. On November 11 and 13 the world will see what we are capable of’.
Tickets for both NJPW TAMASHII events will go on sale on September 9 at 12AM midnight from Eventfinda (NZ) and 10AM AET from Moshtix (AU). We look forward to allowing fans to experience the next stage in NJPW’s international expansion and to be in on the ground floor of a new era for professional wrestling in the Australasian market.
