NJPW and Stardom present Historic X-Over II from Osaka featuring a mixed tag team main event.
IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Zack Sabre Jr. teams with Stardom 5 Star Grand Prix winner Maika against El Desperado and Starlight Kid in the main event.
In the semi-main, IWGP Women’s Champion Mayu Iwatani defends against Momo Watanabe.
Taichi and Natsupoi team against Clark Connors and Thekla in another mixed tag bout on the card.
In an intergender KOPW 2024 hardcore match, current KOPW holder Great-O-Khan defends against Suzu Suzuki.
An eight-person mixed tag features Hiroshi Tanahashi, Ryusuke Taguchi, Hanan, and Saya Iida vs. Gabe Kidd, Drilla Moloney, Saya Kamitani, and Natsuko Toura.
Oleg Boltin, Tiger Mask, and Toru Yano take on Jeff Cobb, Callum Newman, and Francesco Akira in trios action.
AZM, Miyu Amasaki, and Mei Seira face Konami, Ruaka, and Rina.
Tam Nakano and Saori Anou take on Syuri and Tomoka Inaba in the main card opener.
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Pre-show
Hanako and Aya Sakura defeated Ranna Yagami and Sayaka Kurara
Kurara and Sakura began the night’s affairs, with the larger Hanako being tagged in to be the difference-maker. Yagami cleared some momentum for her team with leg strikes and drop kicks, withstanding Sakura’s own offense. Kurara on her own struggled to find any leeway, but with a combined dropkick with Yagami, she almost found her way. With anothre assist from Yagami, Kurara nearly earned a Jackknife pin on Hanako, had it not been for Sakura breaking it up. Hanako plummeted Kurara with an Argentine Backbreaker for a pinfall victory.
Initially, the Liv Morgan/Raquel Rodriguez dynamic of Hanako/Sakura made for an incredible dynamic, but I found myself enamored with Kurara’s undying spirit despite being short of where Yagami and her opponents were. Furthermore, Yagami’s efforts to carry the load and help her partner gave the story an interesting trajectory.
Main card
Cosmic Angels (Tam Nakano and Saori Anou) defeated God’s Eye (Syuri and Tomoka Inaba)
Stardom veterans Nakano and Syuri locked up, with the former’s explosive flashiness being little match against the latter’s grounded matwork. Anou, however, kept pace with both Inaba and Syuri simultaneously. The collisions between Syuri and Anou epically clashed, with neither maintainging control for long.
Nakano found herself ensnared by Inaba’s fiery force, with little leeway found. Inaba nearly squeaked out a victory with a Michinoku Driver, but Nakano kicked out. Keeping Syuri from the ring, Anou played interference while Nakano quarterbacked her way to victory after a Screwdriver silenced the young Inaba once and for all.
This was my first time seeing Inaba in a while, and I believe I am a fan. Nakano was fun as always, but Syuri and Anou stole the show as far as this match was concerned. I want to live in that moment when they were the legal competitors forever.
Neo Genesis (Mei Seira, AZM and Miyu Amasaki) defeated H.A.T.E. (Konami, Rina and Ruaka)
H.A.T.E. gave no time for Neo Genesis to gather any breath. Konami and Rina in particular put Amasaki through her woes. Ruaka was equally as forgiving to the isolated Amasaki. The legal Seira faced the same struggles, but her agility halted the brutish force of Ruaka. AZM’s high-speed prowess gave her the best luck out of her team, but only so far as to leave Rina dependent on H.A.T.E.
The swiftness of AZM and Rina was tested further as their partners brawled on the outside; a series of reversal pins proved unsuccessful, with AZM the closest. Stealing from their opponents’ playbook, Neo Genesis played the number’s game with a 3-Way Connection. To add finality to the match, AZM soared with a Flying Leg Drop on Rina, ending the match in a pinfall.
The underdog story of Neo Genesis against the dirty-tactics of H.A.T.E. kept me glued to my screen. Rina and AZM’s chemistry is undeniable in particular.
United Empire (Jeff Cobb, Callum Newman and Francesco Akira) defeated Toru Yano, Tiger Mask IV and Boltin Oleg
Beef collided as Cobb and Oleg bounced off one another and exchanged forearms like a violent Christmas. The younger Oleg dominated United Empire’s heavy, but the legendary Tiger Mask didn’t have the same effect. Surprisingly, neither did Yano, a Cs obb flipped onto his back. Akira and Newman worked in tandem to squash the prone Yano. Cobb followed suit. An enraged Yano unleashed a fire that was but an ember as he quickly tagged in Oleg.
Clearing house, Oleg nauseated Akira with the Boltin Shake, but for all his power, he was not as quick as the speedy Newman. Tiger Mask, however, used his experience to reign in Akira with a hold. A Double-Underhook Tiger Bomb almost put Akira away, as did a Crucifix Pin. Akira’s agility and youthful resilience kept him afloat, however, as he dropped a Fire Bomb ’99 on the legend for a pinfall.
Oleg needs a singles title sometime soon. But I will say Akira’s developed well since I’ve first seen him. I love matches like these where Cobb’s basically playing stepfather to the younger UE members, and I grinned at his clash with Oleg.
H.A.T.E. (Natsuko Tora and Saya Kamitani) and Bullet Club War Dogs (Drilla Moloney and Gabe Kidd) defeated wing☆gori (Hanan and Saya Iida) and Hiroshi Tanahashi and Ryusuke Taguchi
After some comedic back-and-forth between Tanahashi and Taguchi with H.A.T.E., Kamitani and Hanan rushed around the ring. Moloney swiftly dispatched Taguchi, but Iida chopped with all her might on the War Dog’s chest until he finally fired back. A brawl ensued on the outside, with Kamitani throwing Taguchi into the seats.
Back in the ring, Tora slammed and throttled Iida. She made her comeback after fending off the bigger opponent and launched herself off the turnbuckle to grant Tanahashi a tag. His hot tag started with a Dragon Screw Leg Whip to Tora and a Senton to Moloney. Hanan demanded a tag, to which she hoped to tackle Moloney but instead fell victim to a Backbreaker stiff strikes from Tora. After a Backdrop to Tora, Hanan tagged in Taguchi while Kidd finally entered the fray. Taguchi, agonizing over several comedic assaults, stared up at the lights when Kidd slammed him with a Piledriver for the pinfall.
The glee and comedy in intergender warfare was both uncomfortable and hilarious. Despite Taguchi being the consistently funny one, I got a chuckle at Hanan demanding to be tagged in just to be trounced by Moloney and Tora.
Great-O-Khan (c) defeated Suzu Suzuki for the KOPW Championship
The corners were stacked with steel chairs, which Suzuki planned to use, but Khan decided otherwise. The imposing Khan ignored her strikes and planted her with elbows. Making handy use of his size, he stomped, ragdolled, and slammed her across the ring; her echoes reverberated into the Osaka night. Suzuki at last gained an edge, using it to spank Khan with a chair and shove plastic forks in his mouth. Much to Khan’s terror, she stapled a picture of Khan’s signature question mark to her cheek. She then ripped it off of herself and stapling it to Khan’s forehead.
Placing a garbage can over his body, Suzuki smacked him with a chair before unleashing further torment on the entrance ramp. Regaining his initial momentum with physical strikes, he incurred great agony when Suzuki stapled his nether regions. Aiming to suplex Khan off a ladder onto a table spiked with forks, he instead pushed her into it and nearly won. An Eliminator dropped her onto a garbage can atop a horizontal-prone ladder, with Khan earning a pinfall victory.
This match had no right to be this exhilarating. Deeply unsettling while telling a great story of a woman who would stop at nothing to take gold from a beast. Khan’s endurance amid carnage and weaponry made him the perfect foil.
Taichi and Natsupoi defeated Clark Connors and Thekla
H.A.T.E. immediately jumped Taichi and Natsupoi, with the Cosmic Angels coming to the latter’s defense. With that chaos out of the way, each team and their partner took on their respective sexes. Weary of Thekla’s teasing of Taichi, Natsupoi stood her ground amid the underhanded tactics of the Toxic Spider. Carnage erupted on the outside, leading to Thekla to bully her former Donna Del Mondo stablemate. Wrenching open Natsupoi’s mouth, Thekla cranked her neck far enough to draw screams.
Taichi bounced back against Connors was in the middle of stretching out Connors when Thekla almost got in the way. Connors gained control, but Taichi snatched it back with a Dangerous Backdrop. Using her core strength and arm cast, Thekla’s aspirations for victory were dashed upon Natsupoi clenching her foe’s damaged limb in an armbar. An enraged Thekla was halted by Taichi, and she struck him with her cast. Connors struck Natsupoi across the face after an accidental Gore to Thekla. Natsupoi launched off the tope rope with a Fairial Gift to Thekla for the win.
As a Donna Del Mondo fan, seeing continuation of Natsupoi and Thekla’s past friendship was nice to see. The anger and emotions felt real. Taichi’s own frustrations with SANADA betraying Just 5 Guys for Bullet Club felt real. The alliance between Connors and Thekla features a lot of chemistry. This was the best-built match on this card and these things paid off.
Mayu Iwatani (c) defeated Momo Watanabe for the IWGP Women’s Championship
Scouting Watanabe’s every move and using her agility to work around it, it seemed Iwatani was off to a hot start. The predictable H.A.T.E. interfered, however, leading Stardom’s Ace to fall prey to an outside beatdown. Due to this, Watanabe stayed fully in control, battering the champion with cruel glee. After Ruaka accidentally struck Watanabe, Iwatani took full advantage, reeling back after any fight Watanabe had in her.
Following a spill to the outside, the women returned and fired off with consecutive strikes, as Iwatani followed with a High-Fly Flow. With the champion in control, Iwatani opted for a series of finishers, with a Moonsault putting her inches before victory, stolen away by interfering H.A.T.E. members. Watanabe teased using her baseball bat to secure a dirty yet easy win but tossed it aside. For an extended period, Watanabe remained in control, but no matter what, she couldn’t land a 3-count pin. With a new breath of life, Iwatani rose to deliver a Dragon Suplex that incapacitated Watanabe long enough for the pinfall.
— Post-match – Iwatani announced she would defend the IWGP Women’s Championship at Wrestle Kingdom on January 4. AZM appeared, challenging Iwatani for that date.
Match of the night. Iwatani proves once again that she remains among the best joshi wrestling talent in the world, let alone Stardom. Watanabe throwing that bat away made for a gripping finish—Roddy Piper/Bret Hart vibes.
Main event
Zack Sabre Jr. and Maika defeated El Desperado and Starlight Kid
Desperado grappled with the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion to a stalemate, leading to Starlight Kid and Maika to lock up. The former’s petite and aerodynamic flow contrasted with the larger power in the latter. Desperado and Sabre returned to action, with Sabre being more rounded in his approach. Desperado flattened Sabre with a Spinebuster but met with the same fate with a Penalty Kick.
A Moonsault to Maika by a hopeful Starlight Kid gave no quarter, as the red-haired wrestler used her height to withstand Starlight Kid. Pulling Maika in for a deathly hold, Starlight Kid’s grappling ended courtesy of Sabre rolling himself and Desperado on top of them. Starlight Kid struck Sabre in the face, but he dropped her over his shoulders as Maika hit Desperado with a Rolling Lariat. She later earned the win for herself and Sabre after a Michinoku Driver on Starlight kid for the pinfall.
An entertaining bout, but perhaps one that would’ve been better on the upper-midcard or the penultimate match. Everything was executed nicely, engaging the whole way through. But there were other matches that could have been in its place. However, this represents the best of NJPW and Stardom right now. Overall, a good match.
While it doesn’t carry the same feeling as the 2022 Historic X-Over, this year’s iteration hits high notes, refreshing fans on storylines from both companies. Storylines weren’t necessarily advanced, aside from the IWGP Women’s Championship and Thekla’s tumultuous past with Natupoi after the latter’s betrayal of Donna Del Mondo and the departure of Giulia. That said, I hope Historic X-Over stays a consistent fixture of both companies going forward.
