The NJPW World Tag League 2024 continued in Osaka on Sunday.
B Block matches were featured on today’s show. With each team having wrestled five of seven scheduled matches, two teams sit atop the group with 8 points, two sit just below them with six points, two below them at four points, and two teams have been mathematically eliminated with only two points gained thus far.
Toru Yano and Oleg Boltin improved to 3-2 with a win over TAKA Michinoku and Taichi in the opening tournament match. Boltin pinned Michinoku, eliminating TAKATaichi from advancing to the next round.
The tournament match between The Natural Classics and House of Torture devolved into a low-blow fest by the finish. That’s when Dick Togo tossed salt in the eyes of Stevie Filip, allowing Ren Narita to hit Double Cross for the win. With the loss, the Natural Classics are eliminated and House of Torture improves their record to 4-1.
Jado and Hiroshi Tanahashi kept their chances alive with a win over Hiromu Takahashi and Tetsuya Naito in the semi-main event when Tanahashi hit the High Fly Flow on Takahashi.
In the main event of Sunday’s show, the IWGP World Tag Champions Henare and Great-O-Khan defeated TMDK’s Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls and improved their record to 4-1. Both the United Empire and House of Torture teams sit at eight points, but HENARE and Great-O-Khan hold the tiebreaker as a result of their win over EVIL and Narita on the November 26 show.
NJPW World Tag League 2024 night ten tournament results:
B Block: TMDK (Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls) (2–2) vs United Empire (HENARE & Great-O-Khan) (3–1)
B Block: Jado & Hiroshi Tanahashi (2–3) defeated Los Ingobernables De Japon (Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi) (3–2)
B Block: HOUSE OF TORTURE (EVIL & Ren Narita) (4–1) defeated Natural Classics (Tome & Stevie Filip) (1–4)
There is little separation in A Block through the first nine days of World Tag League 2024.
With key victories on Friday, Shingo Takagi & Yota Tsuji and Gabe Kidd & SANADA improved their records to 3-2 with six points. They are tied at the top of the block with Jeff Cobb & Callum Newman and Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI. Behind them, four teams have 2-3 records and four points.
Here are the quick results from night nine:
– A Block match: Shingo Takagi & Yota Tsuji defeated Jeff Cobb & Callum Newman
– A Block match: KENTA & Chase Owens defeated Zack Sabre Jr. & Ryohei Oiwa
– A Block match: Gabe Kidd & SANADA defeated Shota Umino & Tomoaki Honma
– A Block match: Alex Zayne & Ryusuke Taguchi defeated Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI
There are now six Tag League shows left, including the finals that will be held on December 8. The next event is a B Block show taking place this Sunday.
Though the celebration was short-lived, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jado got their first victory of World Tag League 2024 on Thursday.
Tanahashi & Jado defeated Taichi & TAKA Michinoku in the main event of Tag League night eight. But after the match ended, House of Torture launched an attack with EVIL laying out Tanahashi ahead of their match at Wrestle Kingdom 19 on January 4.
In today’s semi-main event, EVIL & Ren Narita picked up a tournament win against Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls. Here are the quick results from the show:
– B Block match: Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jado defeated Taichi & TAKA Michinoku
Great-O-Khan & HENARE, EVIL & Narita, and Naito & Hiromu are tied at the top of B Block with all three teams having six points. The tournament runs through December 8. The next show — an A Block event — is taking place this Friday (November 29).
NJPW World Tag League 2024 continued on Tuesday with a show featuring B Block matches in Fukushima.
The main event saw the IWGP World Tag Team Champions HENARE and Great-O-Khan hand EVIL and Ren Narita their first tournament loss, overcoming House of Torture’s interference to do so. After the match, The Young Bucks, Matthew, and Nicholas Jackson appeared via video and issued a challenge for Wrestle Dynasty, saying they wanted to win the IWGP tag belts again before retiring.
After three rounds, five teams sit tied atop B Block with 2-1 records, two sit just below them with 1-2 records, and Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jado continue to be the only winless team with an 0-3 record.
NJPW World Tag League 2024 night six tournament results:
The 2024 World Tag League continued today with a show at Korakuen Hall.
Matches in A Block were featured on the show. The main event saw Yota Tsuji & Shingo Takagi pick up a win over Gabe Kidd & SANADA when Tsuji countered a low blow attempt from SANADA into a hurricanrana and got the pin.
Tomoaki Honma & Shota Umino handed Bishamon their first tournament loss in the semi-main event. After, Claudio Castagnoli appeared on the screen and called out Shota Umino for Wrestle Dynasty.
Only the United Empire team of Jeff Cobb and Callum Newman remain undefeated in the group. They defeated KENTA and Chase Owens on today’s show, dropping the Bullet Club team to a 0-3 record. The only other winless team is Alex Zayne and Ryusuke Taguchi, who dropped a match to TMDK’s Zack Sabre Jr. & Ryohei Oiwa today.
NJPW World Tag League 2024 night five tournament results:
Los Ingobernables De Japon (Yota Tsuji & Shingo Takagi) (2–1) defeated War Dogs (Gabe Kidd & SANADA) (1–2)
The 2024 World Tag League continued on Saturday in Fujisawa.
The second night of round-robin action in B Block was featured on today’s show.
Toru Yano and Boltin Oleg picked up their first round-robin win in the main event, defeating the LIJ team of Hiromu Takahashi and Tetsuya Naito. It was a bit of a bizarre finish, as Oleg tossed Takahashi on top of Naito and Yano swooped in to cover both of them for the pin. Takahashi and Naito were seen complaining to the referee after.
Only one team remains undefeated in the group, Ren Narita and Evil. They picked up a win over TAKA Michinoku & Taichi today after Dick Togo gave Michinoku a low blow (or what Chris Charlton referred to as a shot to “the Giant Bernards”) with a reinforced push-up bar.
The only winless team in B Block is Tanahashi & Jado, who lost to the IWGP tag champions HENARE and Great-O-Khan today.
NJPW World Tag League 2024 night four tournament results:
B Block: Toru Yano & Boltin Oleg (1–1) defeated Los Ingobernables De Japon (Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi) (1–1)
B Block: United Empire (Great-O-Khan & HENARE) (1–1) defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jado (0–2)
B Block: House of Torture (EVIL & Ren Narita) (2–0) defeated TAKATaichi (TAKA Michinoku & Taichi) (1–1)
The second night of World Tag League 2024 took place on Thursday with the first B Block matches of the tournament.
Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi were one of the teams that started their Tag League campaign with a victory, defeating Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls in the main event. Here are the quick results:
– KENTA, Chase Owens & Taiji Ishimori defeated Gabe Kidd, SANADA & Gedo
– Jeff Cobb, Callum Newman & Jakob Austin Young defeated Alex Zayne, Ryusuke Taguchi & Katsuya Murashima
– Masatora Yasuda and Daiki Nagai went to a 10-minute time limit draw
Victorious in their first tournament match, Tome & Stevie Filip are an Australian tag team known as The Natural Classics. The brothers are part of Bad Luck Fale’s Bullet Club Rogue Army and have competed on the NJPW Tamashii brand in the Oceania region.
World Tag League runs through December 8 with the next show — an A Block event — set for this Friday. The tournament will likely determine IWGP Tag Team title challengers for Wrestle Kingdom 19. Those belts are held by Great-O-Khan & HENARE.
Here are the initial standings through the first two nights of tournament action:
New Japan Pro Wrestling’s World Tag League 2024 kicked off on Tuesday.
A Block matches were featured on today’s show in Tochigi. The first night of B Block matches takes place on Thursday.
NJPW World Tag League 2024 night one results:
A Block: TMDK (Ryohei Oiwa & Zack Sabre Jr.) defeated Bullet Club War Dogs (Gabe Kidd & SANADA)
A Block: Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) defeated Bullet Club (Chase Owens & KENTA)
A Block: LIJ (Shingo Takagi & Yota Tsuji) defeated Alex Zayne & Ryusuke Taguchi
A Block: United Empire (Jeff Cobb & Callum Newman) defeated Shota Umino & Tomoaki Honma
Other notes from the show:
Oiwa got the pin on Kidd with a schoolboy. With Oiwa scheduled to challenge Kidd for the NJPW Strong title on December 15 a Strong Style Evolved, the two brawled following today’s main event.
Bishamon began their quest to win a fourth straight tournament with a win over Owens & KENTA in the semi-main event.
Ryusuke Taguchi was named as Alex Zayne’s mystery partner in the tournament.
Tournament Standings:
A Block:
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI (1-0) 2 points
Jeff Cobb & Callum Newman (1-0) 2 points
Shingo Takagi & Yota Tsuji (1-0) 2 points
Zack Sabre Jr. & Ryohei Oiwa (1-0) 2 points
KENTA & Chase Owens (0-1) 0 points
Gabe Kidd & Sanada (0-1) 0 points
Alex Zayne & Ryusuke Taguchi (0-1) 0 points
Shota Umino & Tomoaki Honma (0-1) 0 points
B Block —
Great-O-Khan & HENARE (0-0) 0 points
Taichi & TAKA Michinoku (0-0) 0 points
Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls (0-0) 0 points
Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi (0-0) 0 points
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jado (0-0) 0 points
Tome Filip & Stevie Filip (0-0) 0 points
Toru Yano & Oleg Boltin (0-0) 0 points
EVIL & Ren Narita (0-0) 0 points
Action in the B Block kicks off at the Funabashi Arena in Chiba on Thursday, November 21, 2024.
NJPW World Tag League 2024 night two lineup:
B Block: LIJ (Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi) vs TMDK (Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls
B Block: Oleg Boltin & Toru Yano vs House of Torture (Ren Narita & EVIL)
B Block: Just 4 Guys (TAKA Michinoku & Taichi) vs United Empire (Great-O-Khan & HENARE)
B Block: Jado & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs The Natural Classics (Tome & Stevie Filip)
With Super Junior Tag League over, NJPW now shifts focus to its heavyweight tag team tournament.
World Tag League 2024 begins on Tuesday, November 19 and will run through Sunday, December 8. The tournament consists of 15 events that will all air live on New Japan World.
Known as the Natural Classics, brothers Tome Filip & Stevie Filip are an Australian tag team making their official NJPW debut in the tournament. They have been part of NJPW’s Tamashii brand in the Oceania region.
World Tag League will likely set up Wrestle Kingdom 19 challengers for IWGP Tag Team Champions Great-O-Khan & HENARE, who just won the belts from Haste & Nicholls at Power Struggle.
Power Struggle saw Robbie Eagles & Kosei Fujita crowned as the winners of Super Junior Tag League 2024. It will be a four-way match for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles at Wrestle Kingdom 19 with KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight defending against Eagles & Fujita, TJP & Francesco Akira, and Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney.
NJPW World Tag League 2023 concluded on Sunday in Kumamoto.
Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI defeated El Phantasmo & Hikuleo today to win the tournament for a record third straight time. They are also the first team to win the tournament while also holding the IWGP Tag Team Championships.
Bishamon have made history!
The first IWGP Tag Champions to win World tag League, and the first to ever threepeat!
With the win, Bishamon earned the right to pick which team will challenge them for the IWGP Tag Team Championships at Wrestle Kingdom. Goto said in a post-match promo that they would like to face ELP and Hikuleo again, this time with both the IWGP Tag titles and the NJPW Strong tag titles at stake inside the Tokyo Dome.
ELP and Hikuleo defeated Bishamon in the round-robin portion of the tournament, making a clash at Wrestle Kingdom essentially a rubber match.
A full report from today’s show is available here.
Monstersauce (Alex Zayne & Lance Archer), Minoru Suzuki & Yuji Nagata defeated BULLET CLUB (Alex Coughlin, Bad Luck Fale, Gabe Kidd & Jack Bonza)
United Empire (Callum Newman, Great-O-Khan, HENARE & Jeff Cobb) defeated CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano), Oskar Leube & Yuto Nakashima
House Of Torture (Ren Narita & SHO) defeated Shota Umino & Tiger Mask
House Of Torture (EVIL, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Yujiro Takahashi) defeated Kaito Kiyomiya, Ryohei Oiwa & Tomoaki Honma
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada defeated Gates of Agony (Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona)
Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, Shingo Takagi, Tetsuya Naito & Yota Tsuji) & Zandokan Jr. defeated Just 5 Guys (DOUKI, SANADA, Taichi, TAKA Michinoku & Yuya Uemura)
World Tag League Final: Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) defeated Guerrillas of Destiny (El Phantasmo & Hikuleo)
NJPW World Tag League 2023 final round-robin standings:
A Block —
Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd (5-2): 10 points
Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls (5-2): 10 points
Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano (4-2): 8 points
Great-O-Khan & HENARE (4-3): 8 points
EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi (3-4): 6 points
Shota Umino & Ren Narita (3-3): 6 points
Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona (2-5): 4 points
Kaito Kiyomiya & Ryohei Oiwa (2-5): 4 points
B Block —
Hikuleo & El Phantasmo (5-2): 10 points
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI (4-2-1): 9 points
Lance Archer & Alex Zayne (4-3): 8 points
Taichi & Yuya Uemura (4-2): 8 points
Atlantis Jr. & Soberano Jr. (3-3-1): 7 points
Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr. (3-3): 6 points
Yuji Nagata & Minoru Suzuki (2-5): 4 points
Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (2-5): 4 points
December 8, NJPW World Tag League 2023 night 15 tournament results:
NJPW World Tag League 2023 semifinal: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defeated Gabe Kidd & Alex Coughlin
NJPW World Tag League 2023 semifinal: El Phantasmo & Hikuleo defeated Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls
December 10, NJPW World Tag League 2023 night 17 tournament results:
NJPW World Tag League 2023 finals: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defeated El Phantasmo & Hikuleo
Bishamon will aim to make history as the first team to win three consecutive World Tag Leagues in today’s finals.
The team of Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI will try for their unprecedented third straight tournament win against Guerrillas of Destiny’s Hikuleo & El Phantasmo on today’s show.
Bishamon currently hold the IWGP Tag Team Championship, while GoD hold the NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team titles. The tournament winner traditionally challenges for the IWGP Tag titles at Wrestle Kingdom, so a Bishamon win seems unlikely.
Goto has won the World Tag League a total of four times with three different partners — YOSHI-HASHI, Katsuyori Shibata, and Karl Anderson. Only Antonio Inoki has more career World Tag League wins (5) than Goto.
A series of eight tag matches fill out today’s undercard, highlighted by a 10-man tag semi-main with SANADA, Taichi, Yuya Uemura, DOUKI, & TAKA Michinoku facing Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, Zandokan Jr. & BUSHI, plus a Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada vs. Gates of Agony tag.
This showcase opened with the New Japan pair checking the Kyushu Pro imports. Oleg outpowered both of his opponents early, but Nozaki fought back with a throw. Once Oleg regained control, he tagged out to Taguchi, who decided to run the ropes instead of taking advantage, letting both opponents connect with uncontested offense. Looking to close, the Kyushu pair cleared the ring. Instead of setting idle, Taguchi took advantage with a surprise pin on Asosan, which was enough to win the match.
The opening minutes of this match were fairly contrived. TMDK took control and worked to isolate Soberano. Atlantis helped Soberano bounce back, leading to a double dive to the floor.
Back in the ring, Fujita took control of Wato, who attempted to rush Fujita outside. Fujita maintained this lead for some time with a bit of assistance from his TMDK partners. Eventually, Wato bounced back, hitting a high-angle German suplex before pinning Fujita.
Monstersauce (Alex Zayne & Lance Archer), Minoru Suzuki & Yuji Nagata defeated BULLET CLUB (Alex Coughlin, Bad Luck Fale, Gabe Kidd & Jack Bonza)
This was another average match. Even the War Dogs seemed bored.
Fale and Archer opened the match with little more than a tease before tagging out to Coughlin and Nagata. Coughlin established a lead before tagging back to Fale, who slowed the match while wearing down Nagata.
Suzuki eventually tagged in and took out Kidd and Coughlin. Suzuki attempted the Gotch piledriver, but Kidd stuffed it and escaped to Bonza. Zayne stepped in to challenge Bonza, taking a solid lead. Suzuki helped Zayne close with a Gotch, followed by Archer throwing Zayne onto Bonza, which led to the pinfall win.
United Empire (Callum Newman, Great-O-Khan, HENARE & Jeff Cobb) defeated CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano), Oskar Leube & Yuto Nakashima
This match was good. Newman, Leube, and Nakashima were the standouts; they looked great, both on the offensive and defensive.
Soon after the opening bell, Yano and O-Khan tagged in, leading to an extended period of silliness. Ishii eventually tagged in, leading to a counter period of heavy striking. This led to a match breakdown that saw an intense back-and-forth between teams. From the fog, Cobb emerged with the lead. He then hit Leube with Tour of the Islands to win the match.
After the match, Henare and Ishii brawled on the outside. Cobb tried calming Henare down inside the ring, but Ishii fired back, attacking all of UE. For this, he got another beatdown. O-Khan stood over Ishii with one of the NEVER Six-Man belts.
House Of Torture (Ren Narita & SHO) defeated Shota Umino & Tiger Mask
I am highly skeptical of Ren in HoT, but this was great. If Ren maintains this level of intensity without falling into this faction’s lazy go-to match structure, this could be the hottest thing in New Japan.
Ren did not come to the ring when the match started, instead sending Dick Togo. In a bit of a turn, Shota was on the offensive in the opening brawl. Shota beat down Togo on the floor, writing him off for the rest of the conflict.
In the ring, TMIV and Shota beat down SHO, taking complete control early. Just as Shota secured the double underhooks for Death Rider, Ren Narita ran in. With Ren finally in the ring, the match could officially begin.
The actual match was quite brief. Ren beat down Shota on the outside. SHO dropped TMIV on the inside before pinning him to win the match.
House Of Torture (EVIL, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Yujiro Takahashi) defeated Kaito Kiyomiya, Ryohei Oiwa & Tomoaki Honma
This was a better-than-average HoT match. Interpret that as you will.
This match opened with HoT rushing the babyfaces. They used weapons and attacks on the outside to gain a lead early. Kaito eventually began a rally, but it failed, leading to an even longer period of HoT control.
The first turnaround for the babyfaces happened after Honma tagged in. With help from the rest of his team, he scored a nearfall, but HoT fired back with more cheating. EVIL hit Honma with Everything is Evil, winning the match.
After the match, HoT beat down the babyfaces some more. Ren and SHO joined the attack, prompting Shota to hit the ring. Ren tried his best to avoid Shota, leading to a pursuit to the back.
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada defeated Gates of Agony (Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona)
I didn’t love this. It was slow to a fault and generally uninteresting.
GoA gained significant control over Okada early, isolating him from Tanahashi and slowly working him over. The eventual hot tag to Tanahashi evened the odds, giving Okada time to recover.
Once Okada tagged back in, a slow struggle for control with GoA followed. GoA took control back, forcing Tanahashi to make the save once again. Once Tanahashi cleared the ring, Okada was able to regain his footing and hit Liona with a rainmaker to win the match.
Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, Shingo Takagi, Tetsuya Naito & Yota Tsuji) & Zandokan Jr. defeated Just 5 Guys (DOUKI, SANADA, Taichi, TAKA Michinoku & Yuya Uemura)
This match had its highs, but on the whole, it was nothing more than adequate.
SANADA and Naito opened the match with a tease before tagging out to Tsuji and Uemura. After Uemura won out in a brief encounter, Taichi and Shingo tagged in for a strike exchange. Shingo bested Taichi, forcing a tag to DOUKI, leading to the first period of LIJ control.
SANADA saved DOUKI with a hot tag, taking out all of his former factionmates in the process. Once the ring was cleared, Naito stepped up to challenge SANADA, putting him on the backfoot before tagging out to BUSHI.
TAKA scoring a nearfall on BUSHI forced everyone to hit the ring. Both teams traded moves, but LIJ won out in the exchange. This freed BUSHI to land his finish on TAKA and win the match.
After the match, Zandokan was allowed to join the LIJ salute.
World Tag League Final: Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) defeated Guerrillas of Destiny (El Phantasmo & Hikuleo)
I’m sure folks will love this, but it did absolutely nothing for me. It felt heavyhanded and filled with spots only because it was the finals. Without the big moves and false finishes, you could sneak this match onto any other night of WTL, and no one would notice. They tried to make this feel big but only made it feel manufactured.
The opening minutes saw both teams slowly trying to eke out the lead. GoD gained the upper hand first, isolating Goto from YH for quite a while. Bishamon gained their footing by hitting the ring together, overwhelming both of their opponents. Now, with a lead, Bishamon returned the favor, isolating ELP for as long as they could manage.
A hot tag to Hikuleo allowed GoD to answer Bishamon’s control. ELP landed a dive to the floor, taking out both of his opponents. ELP considered using a chair, but Hikuleo talked him out of it; instead, he opted for a table. Goto saved YH from being driven through the table, leading to a struggle for control in the ring.
YH and ELP traded strikes for a while before turning to springboards. Hikuleo then hit the ring, dropping YH with a chokeslam. YH slowed GoD’s advance by blocking a dive with his knees; this didn’t really matter, as GoD maintained their control long enough to land a powerbomb from the top rope, scoring a nearfall.
Hikuleo attempted a splash from the top rope but missed. This bought YH enough time to tag out, leading to an extended struggle for control between both teams. Bishamon hit Shoto, but Hikuleo made the save. Goto tried climbing to the top rope, but Hikuleo pulled him down, teasing a spot with the table from earlier in the match. YH made the save, helping Goto drive Hikuleo through the table with Shoto.
Now, without a partner, ELP took on both of Bishamon. He escaped Shoto and hit Goto with an aided neckbreaker of his own. ELP followed up with multiple big moves that yielded false finishes.
ELP tried for Sudden Death, but YH cut him off with a superkick of his own. Bishamon then hit GTW, but ELP kicked out. Finally, Bishamon hit ELP with Naraku and won the match and world tag league.
After the match, the teams shook hands, and Bishamon cut a show-ending promo and posed with their belts and trophies.
Don’t let my negative reviews sully the rest of this tour. The stale booking is a downer, but other than tonight, it’s been a ton of fun with a few bold choices that have been New Japan’s Q4 highlights.
The full card is set for NJPW’s World Tag League finals.
World Tag League 2023 comes to an end as the finals stream live on NJPW World starting at 12:30 a.m. Eastern time this Sunday (December 10). In the main event, Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI face Hikuleo & El Phantasmo to determine the World Tag League winner.
Goto & YOSHI-HASHI earned their spot in the finals with a semifinal victory over Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd. Hikuleo & El Phantasmo defeated TMDK (Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls) in the semifinals.
Goto & YOSHI-HASHI and Hikuleo & El Phantasmo are both current tag team champions in NJPW. Goto & YOSHI-HASHI hold the IWGP Tag Team titles, while Hikuleo & El Phantasmo are the Strong Openweight Tag Team Champions.
Eight other tag matches are part of the card for Sunday’s event. Among them is a bout pitting Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi against AEW/ROH team Gates of Agony (Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona).
The full card is listed below:
World Tag League 2023 finals: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI vs. Hikuleo & El Phantasmo
SANADA, Taichi, Yuya Uemura, DOUKI & TAKA Michinoku vs. Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, BUSHI & Zandokan Jr.
Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona
The World Tag League continued on Thursday in Miyazaki.
The final night of round-robin action in the B Block was featured on the show.
After a slow start to the tournament, Bishamon has qualified for the knockout stage. They defeated Taichi & Yuya Uemura in today’s main event. They now move on to face Alex Coughlin and Gabe Kidd in the semifinals on Friday.
El Phantasmo and Hikuleo punched their ticket to the semifinals as well. They finished first in the block after defeating Lance Archer and Alex Zayne to run their record to 5-2. They’ll wrestle TMDK’s Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls on Friday in the semifinals.
Longtime rivals turned tag partners Yuji Nagata and Minoru Suzuki picked up their second win in the tournament on Thursday as well. They defeated Jack Bonza and Bad Luck Fale, avoiding a last-place finish in B Block. Nagata and Suzuki shook hands after the match, which got a big reaction from the live crowd.
Matches in the B Block were featured on today’s show from Kochi. With each team having one match left in the round-robin, several teams are still in the running to advance to the semifinals.
The final night of B Block action takes place Thursday in Miyagi. El Phantasmo & Hikuleo vs. Lance Archer & Alex Zayne, and Taichi & Yuya Uemura vs. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI are both “win and in” scenarios that will take place on the show.
It’s GoD vs Monstersauce and Bishamon vs J5G Thursday so those matches are win and in.
The top two teams in each block advance to the semifinals on Friday, December, 8, in Kagoshima.Head-to-head records determine tie-breakers. The finals take place on Sunday, December 10, in Kumamoto.
World Tag League 2023 standings:
A Block —
Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls (5-1): 10 points
Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano (4-2): 8 points
Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd (4-2): 8 points
Shota Umino & Ren Narita (3-3): 6 points
Great-O-Khan & HENARE (3-3): 6 points
Kaito Kiyomiya & Ryohei Oiwa (2-4): 4 points
EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi (2-4): 4 points
Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona (1-5): 2 points
B Block —
Lance Archer & Alex Zayne (4-2): 8 points
Taichi & Yuya Uemura (4-2): 8 points
Hikuleo & El Phantasmo (4-2): 8 points
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI (3-2-1): 7 points
Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr. (3-3): 6 points
Atlantis Jr. & Soberano Jr. (2-3-1): 5 points
Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (2-4): 4 points
Yuji Nagata & Minoru Suzuki (1-5): 2 points
A Block matches scheduled for Wednesday, December 6 in Saga:
Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls (10 points) vs. Gabe Kidd & Alex Coughlin (8 points)
At Saturday’s event in Osaka, Lance Archer & Alex Zayne were dealt their first loss of World Tag League 2023.
Archer & Zayne lost to Minoru Suzuki & Yuji Nagata, giving Suzuki & Nagata their first victory of the tournament. Archer & Zayne now have a 4-1 record in World Tag League.
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI, Taichi & Yuya Uemura, and Hikuleo & El Phantasmo were victorious in the other tournament matches that took place on Saturday. Here are the full results:
– B Block match: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defeated Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr.
– B Block match: Minoru Suzuki & Yuji Nagata defeated Lance Archer & Alex Zayne
– B Block match: Taichi & Yuya Uemura defeated Atlantis Jr. & Soberano Jr.
– B Block match: Hikuleo & El Phantasmo defeated Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza
