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 finals of the 2023 World Tag League will pit champions vs. champions.
The semifinals took place on Friday in Kagoshima and saw NJPW Strong Tag Team Champions El Phantasmo & Hikuleo defeat TMDK’s Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls in the first semifinal match. Friday’s main event and second semifinal match of the evening saw IWGP Tag Team Champions and two-time defending World Tag League winners Bishamon defeated Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd.
YOSHI-HASHI: We've managed to make it to the finals! As you can see by Phantasmo and Go-chan, we're beaten up. But this is about skill and soul, body and bonds. If my neck is bad, Goto will be my neck. If his arm is bad I'll be his arm. That's everything. That's strength. No…
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.
The World Tag League continued on Wednesday in Karatsu.
The final night of round-robin action in the A Block was featured on the show.
The Bullet Club War Dogs team of Alex Coughlin and Gabe Kidd defeated TMDK’s Mikey Nicholls and Shane Haste in the main event to clinch the top spot in A Block. Both teams finished with 10 points and 5-2 records, but Coughlin & Kidd were awarded the top seed on a head-to-head tie-breaker. TMDK also moves on to the semifinals after finishing second in the block.
Ren Narita joined House of Torture on Wednesday’s show as well, turning on his partner Shota Umino. After taking a boot to the stomach from EVIL during a pre-match attack, Narita remained on the outside of the ring throughout most of the contest. When Narita finally did return to the ring, he refused a tag from his partner. Umino fought against HoT all alone and looked to have the match won as he went to hit EVIL with a Death Rider, but Narita hit the ring and choked his partner out, allowing HoT to pick up the win. After the match, Narita hit Umino with a chair and put on a House of Torture t-shirt.
💪WORLD TAG LEAGUE 2023 唐津大会🏆
場内騒然… 成田が海野に決別のチョークスリーパー‼️ そしてHOUSE OF TORTUREへ加入…#njpwworld で配信中📡
“I’ve been looking forward to this day for a long time,’ Narita said after the match. “This is the day that handshake was all leading to. I’ve never felt better. Oh, yeah, this is Ren Narita.”
Gates of Agony appeared to have joined the faction earlier in the tournament as well, only to turn on their new teammates on the very next show.
NJPW World Tag League 2023 night 13 results:
World Tag League 2023 A Block match: Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls (10 points) vs. Gabe Kidd & Alex Coughlin (8 points)
World Tag League 2023 A Block match: HENARE & Great-O-Khan (8 points) defeated Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii (8 points)
World Tag League 2023 A Block match: Yujiro Takahashi & EVIL (6 points) defeated Ren Narita & Shota Umino (6 points)
World Tag League 2023 A Block match: Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona (4 points) defeated Kaito Kiyomiya & Ryohei Oiwa (4 points)
Jack Bonza, Bad Luck Fale, & Taiji Ishimori defeated Ryusuke Taguchi, Yuji Nagata & Minoru Suzuki
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 —
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 —
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
The final night of B Block action takes place tomorrow in Miyagi.
B Block matches scheduled for Thursday, December 7 in Miyagi:
Hikuleo & El Phantasmo (8 points) vs. Lance Archer & Alex Zayne
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)
Matches in the A Block were featured on today’s show from Hyogo. TMDK’s Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls improved their tournament record to 5-1 after defeating Shota Umino & Ren Narita in today’s main event.
NJPW World Tag League 2023 night eleven results:
World Tag League 2023 A Block match: Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls (10 points) defeated Shota Umino & Ren Narita (6 points)
World Tag League 2023 A Block match: Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd (8 points) defeated EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi (4 points)
World Tag League 2023 A Block match: Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano (8 points) defeated Kaito Kiyomiya & Ryohei Oiwa (4 points)
World Tag League 2023 A Block match: HENARE & Great-O-Khan (6 points) defeated Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona (2 points)
Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, Zandokan Jr, & BUSHI defeated Oskar Leube, Ryusuke Taguchi, Alex Zayne, & Lance Archer
Soberano Jr, Tiger Mask, & Atlantis Jr. defeated Jado, El Phantasmo, & Hikuleo
Jack Bonza, Bad Luck Fale, & Taiji Ishimori defeated DOUKI, Yuya Uemaru, & Taichi
The top two teams in each block advance to the semifinals on Friday, December, 8, in Kagoshima.Tie-breakers are determined by head-to-head records. 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 (4-1): 8 points
Taichi & Yuya Uemura (4-1): 8 points
Hikuleo & El Phantasmo (3-2): 6 points
Atlantis Jr. & Soberano Jr. (2-2-1): 5 points
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI (2-2-1): 5 points
Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr. (2-3): 4 points
Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (1-4): 2 points
Yuji Nagata & Minoru Suzuki (1-4): 2 points
B Block matches scheduled for Monday, December 4 in Kuchi:
Taichi & Yuya Uemura (8 points) vs. Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (2 points)
El Phantasmo & Hikuleo (6 points) vs. Soberano Jr. & Atlantis Jr. (5 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
The A Block was in action as night nine of NJPW World Tag League 2023 took place in Wakayama on Friday.
Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano, Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd, Mikey Nicholls & Shane Haste, and EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi all picked up victories. Here are the full results:
– Bad Luck Fale, Jack Bonza & Taiji Ishimori defeated Hikuleo, El Phantasmo & Jado
Nicholls & Haste are now in sole possession of first place with eight points. Behind them, three teams have six points, three teams have four points, and one team has two points.
World Tag League 2023 standings:
A Block —
Mikey Nicholls & Shane Haste (4-1): 8 points
Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd (3-2): 6 points
Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano (3-2): 6 points
Shota Umino & Ren Narita (3-2): 6 points
Great-O-Khan & HENARE (2-3): 4 points
Kaito Kiyomiya & Ryohei Oiwa (2-3): 4 points
EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi (2-3): 4 points
Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona (1-4): 2 points
B Block —
Lance Archer & Alex Zayne (4-0): 8 points
Taichi & Yuya Uemura (3-1): 6 points
Atlantis Jr. & Soberano Jr. (2-1-1): 5 points
Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr. (2-2): 4 points
Hikuleo & El Phantasmo (2-2): 4 points
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI (1-2-1): 3 points
Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (1-3): 2 points
Yuji Nagata & Minoru Suzuki (0-4): 0 points
The next World Tag League show is a B Block event from Osaka on Saturday (December 2). The tournament runs through December 10.
World Tag League 2023 continued on Wednesday with a show from Shizuoka.
Lance Archer and Alex Zayne currently sit atop the group with a perfect 4-0 record. They defeated Taichi & Yuya Uemura on today’s show, who went into the match undefeated but now drop to a record of 3-1.
The main event of Wednesday’s show was a time-limit draw between Bishamon and the team of Soberano Jr. and Atlantis Jr.
To the best of my knowledge the first time limit draw in the modern World Tag League. 2014 saw a double ring out with Suzuki/Iizuka vs Yano/Sakuraba. Last time limit draw in a tag tiurney was G1 Tag 2008 I think, Hirasawa and Nagata vs Nakanishi and Yoshie #njwtl
The Gates of Agony also accepted an offer to join House of Torture on Wednesday. The timing of the alliance is interesting, as they’ll wrestle Yujiro Takahashi & EVIL on Friday.
NJPW World Tag League 2023 Night Eight results:
World Tag League 2023 B Block match: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI (3pts) vs. Soberano Jr. & Atlantis Jr. (5pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block match: Lance Archer & Alex Zayn (8pts) defeatedTaichi & Yuya Uemura (6pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block match: El Phantasmo & Hikuleo (4pts) defeated Minoru Suzuki & Yuji Nagata (0pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block match: Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (2pts) defeated Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr. (4pts)
NJPW came to Nagoya on Tuesday for night seven of World Tag League 2023
The show featured A Block tournament matches. In the main event, Shota Umino & Ren Narita defeated Kaito Kiyomiya & Ryohei Oiwa. The show also saw TMDK take their first loss of the tournament. Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls lost to Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano.
AEW/ROH team The Gates of Agony got their first World Tag league victory, defeating Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd.
The 2023 World Tag League continued on Sunday in Fukushima.
Matches in the B Block were featured on the sixth night of the tournament. With all teams having wrestled three times each, the Monstersauce team of Lance Archer & Alex Zayn and the Just Five Guys team of Yuya Uemura & Taichi sit atop the block with 6 points each.
IWGP Tag Team Champions and two-time defending World Tag League winners Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) finally got in the win column on Sunday as well, defeating Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza.
NJPW World Tag League 2023 night six results:
World Tag League 2023 B Block match: Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr. (4pts) defeated El Phantasmo & Hikuleo (2pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block match: Taichi & Yuya Uemura (6pts) defeated Yuji Nagata & Minoru Suzuki (0pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block match: Hirooki Goto.& YOSHI-HASHI (2pts) defeated Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (0pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block match: Lance Archer & Alex Zayn (6pts) defeated Atlantis Jr. & Soberano Jr. (4pts)
TMDK were victorious in the main event as night five of NJPW World Tag League 2023 took place in Fujisawa on Saturday.
Improving their record to 3-0, Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls defeated Great-O-Khan & HENARE. Haste & Nicholls are in sole possession of the A Block lead with six points.
– Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, YOH & Ryusuke Taguchi defeated Bad Luck Fale, Jack Bonza, Taiji Ishimori & Gedo
– Atlantis Jr., Soberano Jr. & Boltin Oleg defeated Lance Archer, Alex Zayne & Oskar Leube
– Yuto Nakashima defeated Katsuya Murashima
Behind Haste & Nicholls, there are three A Block teams with four points. Three other teams have two points. Kaun & Liona are in last place with zero points.
World Tag League 2023 standings:
A Block —
Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls (3-0): 6 points
Kaito Kiyomiya & Ryohei Oiwa (2-1): 4 points
Alex Coughlin & Gabe Kidd (2-1): 4 points
Shota Umino & Ren Narita (2-1): 4 points
EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi (1-2): 2 points
Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano (1-2): 2 points
Great-O-Khan & HENARE (1-2): 2 points
Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona (0-3): 0 points
B Block —
Taichi & Yuya Uemura (2-0): 4 points
Lance Archer & Alex Zayne (2-0): 4 points
Atlantis Jr. & Soberano Jr. (2-0): 4 points
Hikuleo & El Phantasmo (1-1): 2 points
Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr. (1-1): 2 points
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI (0-2): 0 points
Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (0-2): 0 points
Yuji Nagata & Minoru Suzuki (0-2): 0 points
The next Tag League show is on Sunday (November 26) with B Block action. The tournament runs through December 10.
Matches from the B Block were featured on today’s show at the Aimesse Yamanashi in Yamanashi, Japan.
The story in the group thus far is IWGP Tag Team Champions and two-time defending World Tag League winners Bishamon have lost their first two matches in the round-robin. They were defeated by the Monstersauce (Alex Zayne & Lance Archer) on Friday.
After Friday’s show, three teams sit atop B Block with four points, three are tied at the bottom with zero points, and two sit in the middle with two points.
NJPW World Tag League 2023 night four results:
World Tag League 2023 B Block: Taichi & Yuya Uemura (4pts) defeated Hikuleo & El Phantasmo (2pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block: Alex Zayne & Lance Archer (4pts) defeated Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI (0pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block: Yota Tsuji & Zandokan Jr. (2pts) defeated Minoru Suzuki & Yuji Nagata (0pts)
World Tag League 2023 B Block: Atlantis Jr. & Soberano Jr. (4pts) defeated Bad Luck Fale & Jack Bonza (0pts)
