After a strange first round of booking that saw two of the tournament favorites eliminated, the 2018 New Japan Cup quarterfinals are set.
The second round of the tournament will feature Juice Robinson taking on Michael Elgin, Hiroshi Tanahashi going one-on-one with Bad Luck Fale, Toru Yano vs. SANADA, and in what could make for the match of the tournament, Zack Sabre Jr. will face Kota Ibushi for a spot in the final four. Round two kicks off Wednesday in Shizuoka.
One non-tournament item worth noting from the shows on this tour is that IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada is actually defeating tag opponents with his Cobra Clutch, in an effort to establish that submission as a legitimate finisher.
Below are the results from Monday’s action in Kagawa.
Toru Yano defeated Davey Boy Smith Jr. by countout
Yano tried to tape Smith to the ropes, but he failed. There were lots of standard Yano spots, including removing the turnbuckle pad. Smith rammed Yano into the exposed buckle. They brawled outside and into the crowd, and Yano barely beat the count back in.
Smith worked over Yano, getting a near fall with a gutwrench suplex. Red Shoes took a bump, and Smith hit the turnbuckle chest-first. Red Shoes took another bump, and Yano swung a chair but missed. Smith set the chair up in the corner, whipping Yano into it and into the exposed buckle.
Smith hit a belly-to-back for a near fall, then applied a crossface, but Yano made the ropes. Yano used a slingshot, sending Smith into the buckle, then hit a low blow for a near fall. They rolled outside, Smith crotched himself on the barricade, and Yano beat the count back inside, scoring the victory.
If you like Yano comedy, check this out. If you don’t, it’s not must-see.
SANADA defeated “Chuckie T” Chuck Taylor
I think SANADA is one of the best guys in the business, because he can wrestle everyone’s style. You want to fly? He can do that. You want to brawl? Sure. You want to try something new? Okay. That was on full display here, as these guys did a little bit of everything.
They started with their state-of-the-art opening sequence, then followed with some crowd brawling, straight out of 1998 WWF. Taylor grabbed a table and teased suplexing SANADA through it, but SANADA reversed and suplexed him on the floor. He teased a suplex of his own from the apron through the table on the floor, but Taylor blocked it.
SANADA worked over Taylor’s legs, but he fired back with a dropkick, a powerslam, and a figure four. SANADA reached the ropes, hit his leapfrog dropkick spot, then a plancha to the outside. They hit the ropes, then Taylor hit a powerbomb for a near fall and followed up with a crazy tope, and an even crazier standing senton over the barricade, landing on the unpadded arena floor.
Taylor slammed SANADA on a pile of chairs, but SANADA popped right up and powerbombed him through the table. SANADA connected with a springboard dropkick and a belly-to-back for a near fall. Taylor connected with a Falcon Arrow, but he missed when going for a moonsault, allowing SANADA to hit a TKO for two.
SANADA missed a moonsault off the top. Taylor countered, hitting the Awful Waffle off the top for a close near fall. That really got the crowd into the match for the first time. SANADA used a dragon sleeper and teased the Skull End, but Taylor slipped out and rolled him up for two.
Taylor scored another near fall, but SANADA quickly applied the Skull End. SANADA released it, opting to go to the top for a moonsault. He landed it, and got the pinfall.
This felt more like a collection of spots than a psychological clinic, and the lack of heat hurt the match, but the effort from both guys was there and this is worth going out of your way to see.
– Young Bucks defeated Juice Robinson & Toa Henare
Fun match with a lot of comedy. Young Bucks are very charismatic performers live, and both Juice and Henare gave strong showings. Henare comes off as having a potential superstar presence. Young Bucks won with the Meltzer Driver.
– Lance Archer defeated Elliot Sexton
Solid big man match with a fair amount of comedy in it. Sexton is a member of TMDK and former MCW Heavyweight Champion. Archer won with his finish.
– Guerrillas of Destiny defeated Yugi Nagata & Mareko
Mareko is one of wrestlers trained through Fale Dojo and he was making is pro debut here. He’s a thickly built Samoan and showed potential. Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa are both very entertaining to watch up close. Tama does a lot of little subtle humour for the crowd that you sometimes miss on TV. GOD won with Tama using the Gun Stun on Mareko.
– Bullet Club (Kenny Omega, Bad Luck Fale, Gino Gambino & Chase Owens) defeated TMDK (Marcius Pitt, Damien Slater, Jonah Rock & Slex)
Good 8-man tag match. TMDK did not look out of their depth against Bullet Club. Crowd was split, mostly supporting TMDK who were formed in Perth, but cheering for Kenny when he was in.
Wanted to make a special mention of how good Marcius Pitt was in this match, and I very much hope that him and Slater get brought into NJPW on an ongoing basis. Jonah Rock was also impressive and him vs Fale got a big reaction. Omega tried to get a Chase is on the Case chant going for Owens. Omega pinned Slex with the 1 Winged Angel to win the match.
– Minoru Suzuki defeated Davis Storm
Storm is a veteran of Australian wrestling who was one of the founders of EPW in Perth. He also did sometime training at the Inoki LA Dojo in the mid-00s. He was very well received by the crowd as was Suzuki who is fascinating to watch in person. Suzuki won with the Gotch Piledriver in a short but intense match. Storm took a series of chops that were so brutal his chest was red afterwards.
– Jay White & Tomohiro Ishii defeated Mick Morretti & KUSHIDA
Good match. Morretti is a Sydney based wrestler who made a very good impression. White won with the Blade Runner on Morretti. After the match KUSHIDA got in Ishii and White’s face in a way that came off like he was challenging them.
– Cody defeated Will Ospreay and Robbie Eagles in a triple threat match
Ospreay and Eagles have excellent chemistry together. Eagles should be in the BOSJ tournament this year. Cody got the biggest reaction of the night, and came off like a total main event talent.
At the start of the match Ospreay pointed out that one half of the crowd was cheering Cody and the other half were booing him. This became a thing throughout the whole match, with the crowd playing along with one side of the room cheering him and the other booing him the entire time.
Cody won by pinning Eagles after Ospreay had hit the Oscutter and throwing him away. After the match, Cody tried to do the One Winged Angel to Eagles, but Ospreay stopped him and hit Cody with the Oscutter and then Eagles hit a 450. Possibility that the match might lose something on tape rather than live, but definitely a must-see once it is available.
– EVIL & SANADA defeated Rocky Romero & Okada
Good match, everyone involved was over but it also suffered a little following on from the 3-way. EVIL beat Romero with the STO. Surprisingly for me, they didn’t do an angle where Okada chased LIJ away. Instead EVIL and SANADA did the closing promo.
The production crews from Australian promotions were taping all of the shows, so it’s likely that a selection of matches from the tour will go up on NJPW World.
Kitamura took the early advantage with a shoulder block and a scoop slam. Nagata went to work on the left arm, but a rope break forced the action back to the middle of the ring. They exchanged strikes, with Nagata getting the better of the exchange. Kitamura came back with a gutwrench suplex for a nearfall, and racked Nagata for a near submission.
They had a slap fight in the center of the ring, which ended with Kitamura selling exhaustion. Kitamura hulked up and hit a spear for another nearfall. Kitamura went for the jackhammer, but Nagata locked on an armbar. Kitamura reached the ropes, forcing a break. Nagata hit a kick for a nearfall.
Nagata took a series of chops, which was the last gasp of offense from Kitamura. Nagata hit a high-angle suplex and bridged into a pinfall. A very basic opener, furthering the story of Kitamura’s test.
Suzuki-gun worked over SHO’s injured back, which was all taped up. The action spilled outside and SHO and YOH were both repeatedly whipped into the barricade. Back inside, Desperado used a reverse Gory Special to continue working on SHO’s back.
YOH tagged in and ran wild with a dragon screw, a flying forearm, and a slingshot double footstomp. Desperado swung the advantage back to his team with a spinebuster, forcing a tag to SHO.
SHO got a nearfall with a suplex, but his back gave out when Roppongi went for their finish, giving Kanemaru an opening. Kanemaru hit a superplex and applied a Boston crab. Rocky Romero took the referee to complain about Desperado’s interference, allowing Desperado to interfere, and blast SHO with a chair. Oh, sweet irony. SHO tapped out to the crab, and Suzuki-gun continued to beat down Roppongi after the bout.
Suzuki-gun grabbed the IWGP Junior Tag belts and taunted Roppongi with them after the bout, establishing themselves as future challengers for the championships. This told a good story and set up a match for down the road.
TOGI MAKABE, MICHAEL ELGIN, KUSHIDA, RYUSUKE TAGUCHI defeated SUZUKI-GUN (MINORU SUZUKI, TAKA MICHINOKU, TAICHI, TAKASHI IIZUKA)
Makabe, Elgin, KUSHIDA and Taguchi got the jump on Suzuki-gun at the bell, but Suzuki-gun quickly turned it into a brawl. Taichi went after Taguchi with the ring bell hammer, exacting revenge for his actions against his wife in Sapporo.
Elgin tagged in and did some power stuff, but Iizuka used an inverted atomic drop, forcing a double down. Makabe and Suzuki tagged in, and business picked up. They did a long forearm strike exchange. Suzuki threatened to strike with a closed fist, which forced the ref to intervene, allowing Suzuki’s teammates to go to work on Makabe.
Iizuka tried to use the iron glove, but Makabe survived the attempt. TAKA tagged in, and Makabe hit him with the King Kong kneedrop for the victory, while Makabe’s team held Suzuki at bay.
Makabe cut a promo after the match, challenging Suzuki for his IWGP Intercontinental title. After refusing Makabe’s challenge for weeks, Suzuki accepted, and got a parting shot in on Makabe. On his way out, Suzuki attacked a young boy at ringside. This was all about establishing Makabe vs. Suzuki down the line, and there wasn’t much to the match. KUSHIDA is one of the best guys in the world and he barely tagged in here.
CHAOS (IWGP UNITED STATES CHAMPION JAY WHITE, TOMOHIRO ISHII, TORU YANO) defeated JUICE ROBINSON, DAVID FINLAY, TOA HENARE
Yano immediately untied the turnbuckle pad and tried to hit Juice with it, but Juice ducked and used an airplane spin. White tossed Juice into the exposed buckle, and Chaos took over. Ishii and White worked over Juice, forcing a tag to Finlay.
Finlay and White had a hot exchange. Finlay tagged in Henare, who scored a nearfall on White,, while the other competitors brawled outside. White recovered and hit the Blade Runner on Henare. Just as he did at Korakuen earlier this week, rather than going for a pin, White locked Henare in a crucifix and rained down elbows, forcing a stoppage finish.
White continued punishing Henare after the bell, and also attacked the referee. The White/Finlay sequence was nice, but this was all about furthering White’s Switchblade persona.
Rey Mysterio cut a video promo, announcing that he will wrestle for the first time in New Japan, and challenged Jushin Liger for the Strong Style Evolved show in Long Beach on March 25. Liger was at ringside doing commentary, and accepted the challenge.
BUSHI defeated GEDO
BUSHI came out with Brutus Beefcake shears, threatening Gedo’s beard. Gedo came out with two of BUSHI’s masks tied around his neck, threatening BUSHI’s mask.
Gedo went for the mask right away, but BUSHI fought him off. BUSHI ripped at Gedo’s beard, and locked in an STF. Gedo forced a rope break. Gedo tied BUSHI to the top rope with the laces from his mask.
BUSHI had a young boy cut him free with his shears, and sent Gedo outside. BUSHI hit a dive and sent Gedo back inside, in full control. Gedo grabbed the mask again and cradled BUSHI for a nearfall. The ref got bumped. BUSHI went for the mist, but Gedo avoided getting it in his eyes and hit a low blow for a nearfall. BUSHI hit a codebreaker for a nearfall. BUSHI went to the middle rope and hit the MX for the pin.
BUSHI reclaimed his masks after the match, but was stopped before he could go after Gedo’s beard with the shears. This was not worth going out of your way to see, putting it mildly.
TETSUYA NAITO defeated YOSHI-HASHI
YOSHI-HASHI jumped Naito on the aisle as he made his entrance, and hit Naito’s Tranquilo pose in the middle of the ring, to a chorus of boos. Naito recovered and took control of the bout from the opening bell, to a mixed reaction from the Osaka crowd. Naito repeatedly spit on YOSHI-HASHI, selling his disrespect of his opponent.
YOSHI-HASHI fought back with a basement dropkick and a DDT. He hit a tope con hilo and a neckbreaker on the ramp. YOSHI-HASHI used a butterfly lock and hit an elevated DDT. Naito fired back with a slingshot dropkick in the corner, after a weird transition.
Naito hit a flying forearm, but YOSHI-HASHI countered Destino. They exchanged forearms and had a slap fight, which YOSHI-HASHI got the better of. Naito took a flip bump off a clothesline, and ate a powerbomb for a nearfall. YOSHI-HASHI quickly transitioned back to the butterfly lock. Naito reached the ropes after a long tease of tapping out.
YOSHI-HASHI went for Karma, but Naito countered with a release german suplex. Naito hit an enziguri and a top rope rana. He followed with a dragon suplex, and hit Destino twice, scoring the pinfall.
The story they were going for here was that Naito underestimated YOSHI-HASHI, and every time he let up in the match, YOSHI-HASHI showed heart in fighting back, and more than held his own. I think they largely succeeded in telling that story.
Taichi jumped Naito on the ramp after the match, and dragged him backstage. That was strange, and unexpected.
IWGP JUNIOR HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION WILL OSPREAY defeated HIROMU TAKAHASHI to retain the championship
They started at a million miles an hour, doing a cutting edge opening sequence, highlighted by Ospreay going for the Sasuke special, only to eat a german on the floor. Takahashi tossed Ospreay into the barricade, and Ospreay sold his neck.
Back inside, Takahashi used the ropes and kicks to continue working over Ospreay’s head and neck. Takahashi used a headscissors lock, but Ospreay got a hope spot in with a handspring into an enziguri. They worked outside, and Ospreay gained control of the bout with a sprongboard forearm off the barricade.
Back inside, Ospreay scored a pair of nearfalls with unique covers, as Takahashi started to sell his legs. Takahashi hit a pop-up powerbomb, and Ospreay nailed a cutter, before handspringing into a german from Takahashi. Red Shoes took a bump, and Takahashi hit a sunset bomb to the outside as he recovered.
Takahashi hit a senton onto a standing Ospreay from the top rope to the floor, and tossed him inside for a nearfall. Takahashi went for Time Bomb, but Ospreay fought out. Takahashi hit a lariat and Ospreay took a crazy flip bump. They went tot he top, and Ospreay dropped Takahashi into the ring on a deadlift.
Ospreay hit a front flip DDT, and went for the Oscutter, but Takahashi countered. After a double down, they exchanged forearm strikes, selling exhaustion. Ospreay hit the Cheeky Nandos and a reverse rana, dropping Takahashi right on his head, in a terrifying spot.
Ospreay went for a Time Bomb of his own, but Takahashi reversed it into a piledriver for a nearfall. Ospreay hit a dragon suplex, but Takahashi landed on his feet. Ospreay went for the Oscutter, but Takahashi countered. Ospreay hit a standing Spanish Fly, and a 450 on Takahashi as he was draped over the ropes for a nearfall. Ospreay hit The Beheading for another nearfall.
Takahashi survived all of that, but had nothing left in the tank. Ospreay hit his first Oscutter of the match, and it was enough to score the victory. This was excellent, well worth going out of your way to see.
NEVER OPENWEIGHT CHAMPION HIROOKI GOTO defeated EVIL to retain the championship
They had a nearly impossible task in trying to follow the last match, but they decided to take the opposite approach, and began at a very slow pace. EVIL took over after hooking Goto’s neck in a chair and slamming him into the ring post.
Goto briefly got some offense and a nearfall, but EVIL regained control with a clothesline in the corner and sent Goto outside. EVIL bumped the ref and tried to hit Darkness Falls onto a stack of chairs, but Goto countered and hit a suplex onto the chairs.
Goto took over, but EVIL regained control as Goto went for a superplex. EVIL bumped Red Shoes again, and used a foreign object on Goto. Goto recovered and hit an ushigoroshi for a nearfall. They exchanged strikes and lariats, and Goto bled from the mouth.
EVIL hit Darkness Falls for a nearfall, and the crowd started to get invested. EVIL hit a suplex and a lariat for another nearfall. EVIL teased a dragon suplex and went for another lariat, but Goto countered and hit a rope-assisted neckbreaker for a nearfall. Goto ducked a lariat and hit GTR for the pin. Nothing wrong with the match, but its placement hurt it.
IWGP HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION KAZUCHIKA OKADA defeated SANADA to retain the championship
They spent the first seven minutes of the bout trading holds, and this had all the signs of a one hour draw. The first highspot saw SANADA hit a facebuster from the apron to the barricade. He followed up with a piledriver on the ramp. Back inside, SANADA cranked on the neck, hit a back elbow and a standing moonsault. He hit a dropkick and another piledriver for a nearfall. Okada hit a desperation flapjack and they did a double down just past the ten minute mark.
Back up, SANADA took the Flair corner bump onto the apron, and Okada dropkicked him to the floor. Okada took the fight outside, clotheslined SANADA over the barricade, and hit a draping DDT from the barricade to the floor. SANADA beat the count back inside, as Okada took control of the bout.
Okada got the better of a forearm strike exchange, and hit the flying elbow off the top. Okada went for the Rainmaker, but SANADA countered with a desperation suplex. Okada went for the Tombstone, but SANADA countered with a dropkick, and sent Okada outside. He hit a slingshot plancha, and followed up with another plancha, without the assistance of the ropes. This was right about the twenty minute mark, and the crowd really started to get into the match here.
Back inside, SANADA survived a roll-up and teased the Skull End, but Okada slipped out and reached the ropes. SANADA clubbed Okada with forearms and got a nearfall with a TKO. Okada went for the Cobra Clutch, but SANADA slipped out and hit a moonsault onto a standing Okada, and applied Skull End. Okada escaped the body scissors twice, but SANADA reapplied, and they teased a tapout or a stoppage, but Okada finally reached the ropes.
SANADA missed a moonsault and landed onhis feet, selling his knees. SANADA hit a tiger suplex for a close nearfall, and stacked Okada on the top rope. He dropped him off the top and got a nearfall. Okada went for the Rainmaker, but SANADA ducked and hit one of his own for another close nearfall. Okada applied a dragon sleeper and hit two dropkicks.
Okada hit a Tombstone and signalled for the Rainmaker, but SANADA turned it into another Skull End attempt. SANADA gave up the hold and hit a moonsault off the top for another nearfall, but sold his knee on the landing. He went for another moonsault, but Okada got the knees up and hit the Rainmaker. He could not make a cover as the thirty minute mark passed.
Okada was first up, and hit a Rainmaker. He went for another, but SANADA countered. Okada hit a german, but SANADA was back up. Okada hit the jumping Tombstone and another Rainmaker, covered, and got the pin. A truly great match, and an excellent main event.
Chaos won the night against LIJ, 3-2.
With the win, Okada tied Yuji Nagata for the second most successful defenses in a single IWGP title reign, and extended his records for longest continuous reign, and most overall days holding the championship.
After the bout, Okada declared his intention to compete for the New Japan Cup this year, and to face his Chaos stablemate Will Ospreay at the Anniversary Show on March 6.
New Japan Pro Wrestling set the stage for Saturday’s New Beginning in Osaka with two nights of televised action from the Road to the New Beginning tour on Monday and Tuesday in Tokyo’s Korakuen Hall.
The most notable bout from the two shows was the IWGP Tag Team Championship defense by SANADA & EVIL, as they retained their titles over Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto. SANADA is Okada’s opponent on Saturday, and his title defense here should lend him some credibility and momentum, as he enters what could be the biggest match of his life.
EVIL is also set to challenge for Goto’s NEVER Openweight Championship in Osaka.
Liger and Tiger worked over Narita’s left leg, and Narita’s selling looked good. Tiger went to work on Yagi’s left arm, and Yagi actually got some offense in, firing back with chops. Taguchi put a stop to that, forcing a tag to Umino.
Umino got a near fall and a near submission on Taguchi, but Liger made the save. Taguchi got the pin with the Dodon after surviving a La Magistral cradle. This was fine — a typical veterans vs. young boys tag match.
Hikuleo & Yujiro Takahashi defeated Manabu Nakanishi & Tomoyuki Oka
A short, thoroughly unexceptional bout. Hikuleo is the former Leo Tonga. The Bullet Club team established themselves as heels, breaking rules and jumping Oka at the bell. They brawled to the floor. Oka was dominated, but he was able to tag Nakanishi.
Nakanishi scored with some chops and tipped control of the match to his team. The big man tagged Oka back in, which proved to be an error in judgment. Oka ate a DDT from Takahashi and was pinned.
Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeated Katsuya Kitamura
This was a challenge, as Tenzan is clearly beaten up and having trouble moving. They had a slow match, with Tenzan taking the bulk of the offense.
Kitamura showed heart in surviving through some near falls, but he eventually tapped to the Anaconda Vice.
Sho, Yoh & Rocky Romero defeated El Desperado, Taichi & Taka Michinoku
This was solid. Suzuki-gun turned it into a brawl, which served as the great strength of the match, as it highlighted Sho and Yoh’s selling, which is the strongest part of their game. Sho’s back was taped up and Michinoku targeted it.
The match broke down into a six-way. Romero and Desperado took the ref, before Romero hit a tope to the outside, wiping out Taichi and Desperado. Sho and Yoh hit their finish on Michinoku for the win.
Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano defeated Juice Robinson & Henare
The crowd was solidly behind Robinson. Ishii no-sold most of Henare’s offense in the early going, lending more credibility to his selling of the youngster’s offense late in the match. Ishii is really a brilliant worker. They did some of the standard Yano comedy spots, including removing the turnbuckle pad, which the referee didn’t even bother to chastise him for.
Towards the finish, as Ishii started to sell and the contest became more back and forth, Yano tied Robinson to the barricade by his hair, leaving Henare to go it alone. Ishii hit the brainbuster and picked up the pinfall.
Suzuki-gun pounced before the bell rang. Stop me if you’ve heard this one, but they brawled around ringside. Makabe and Elgin fought off Suzuki and Iizuka, and the brawl was kept short, as KUSHIDA and Kanemaru went at it in the ring.
The brawling picked up again, and Suzuki and Iizuka brawled into the crowd with Elgin and Makabe. Desperado joined in the brawl and helped Suzuki-gun waylay KUSHIDA, and the brawlers took over. KUSHIDA sold for a while, before tagging Elgin in, allowing the big man to do his power stuff, which always gets over.
Suzuki and Makabe squared off and exchanged forearm strikes, which got a big reaction. Suzuki slapped on a sleeper, missed the Gotch piledriver, and slapped on another sleeper in a cool spot. KUSHIDA made the save as Iizuka went for the iron glove. The finish saw Makabe hit the top rope knee drop on Kanemaru for the victory.
After the match, Makabe challenged Suzuki for an Intercontinental title match, and Suzuki snapped, attacking the young boys at ringside.
Jay White defeated David Finlay
I recall an interview with William Regal where he was talking about an unnamed prospect that WWE was interested in, believed to be Adam Cole, who they had passed on because he looked too young to be taken seriously as a tough guy. I think of that every time I see Jay White in action. His character is supposed to be this ruthless killer type, but he looks too young for me to take him seriously as a grizzled, deranged madman.
The work here was quite good, highlighted by a state-of-the-art opening exchange. They brawled to the outside, and White took over after hitting a suplex on the floor. White worked over the legs and the injured shoulder of Finlay. White suplexed Finlay over the top to the outside, which was nuts.
White swung a chair at Finlay, who ducked and hit a spear for a near fall. Finlay opted not to use the chair when he had the chance, which the crowd applauded him for. Finlay hit a Lumbar Check for a near fall. Finlay went for his cutter, but White reversed into the Blade Runner for the pin.
They didn’t get a ton of time, but they did well with what they had. White punished Finlay with elbows after the match.
Tetsuya Naito, SANADA, EVIL, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI defeated Kazuchika Okada, Will Ospreay, Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI & Gedo in an elimination match
This was a unique match, as eliminations could take place via pinfall, submission, disqualification, or over the top rope, Royal Rumble-style.
Takahashi eliminated himself going for a sunset flip from the ring to the floor on Ospreay, who was eliminated as the move was executed. YOSHI-HASHI eliminated Naito over the top rope. Gedo was disqualified for removing BUSHI’s mask. YOSHI-HASHI tossed BUSHI, leaving CHAOS with a 3-2 advantage.
Okada and SANADA had a nice back and forth, teasing their upcoming title match and ending with Okada eliminating SANADA over the top. EVIL dumped Okada immediately after, making it 2-1 for CHAOS. EVIL tossed Goto, leaving it a 1-on-1 between EVIL and YOSHI-HASHI.
YOSHI-HASHI kicked out of the Darkness Falls, and scored a near fall with a powerbomb, before falling victim to Everything is EVIL for the pin, and a victory for LIJ.
They used the same template as the young boys opener the previous night, with Liger dominating and the boys getting some offense in on his partners. Narita did a fair bit of damage to KUSHIDA by employing a modified Sharpshooter and a Boston Crab, but he eventually tapped to the cross armbreaker.
Hikuleo & Yujiro Takahashi defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Tomoyuki Oka
The work was not particularly smooth here when Hikuleo and Oka were in together, but Hikuleo in particular has improved greatly in the last few months. This was short, but they did more near falls than you would expect from the second match on the card.
Takahashi pinned Oka after a DDT.
Manabu Nakanishi defeated Katsuya Kitamura
This was the fifth match in the seven match trial series that is supposed to be getting Kitamura over, I suppose? I understand the principle, but I’m not certain that it’s working as designed. Nakanishi is much better off in tags these days, but this was short enough and simple enough that he looked fine.
They exchanged power moves, chops, shoulder blocks, and the like, and brawled outside. Kitamura hit the spear, but he couldn’t get Nakanishi up for the Jackhammer, and fell victim to a lariat. Nakanishi hit a double sledge to the chest for a near fall, and racked Kitamura for the submission.
Sho, Yoh & Rocky Romero defeated El Desperado, Taka Michinoku & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
Roppongi 3K took the advantage early, but Suzuki-gun turned it into their standard crowd brawl, working over Sho’s injured back and gaining the edge. With Sho selling on the apron, Yoh worked the bulk of the match, selling for Suzuki-gun.
Romero got a hot tag and used an eye rake and a backslide on Michinoku for the pin. Suzuki-gun beat down Roppongi 3K after the match.
Jay White, Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano defeated David Finlay, Juice Robinson & Henare
Yano aimed to tie Robinson to the top rope by his hair, following up on their match from Monday, but failed. Robinson and Yano did some comedy. Ishii and Henare worked together again, and Ishii sold more early on than he did the previous night. Again, so smart.
White hit the Blade Runner on Henare, and followed up with elbows, taunting Finlay. With Henare taking punishment, the ref called for a stoppage.
Suzuki and Makabe brawled through the crowd and to the backstage area, furthering their angle, as they teased the idea that Makabe is going to try to force Suzuki to accept his IC title challenge. Iizuka and Taguchi did some comedy, then Elgin tagged in for his power stuff.
Suzuki and Makabe tagged in and exchanged strikes, and Makabe survived a sleeper attempt and tagged out. Suzuki continued working on Makabe even though he was no longer the legal man, and he used a sick hangman’s choke. Taguchi was legal, and tapped to a Suzuki heel hook.
Suzuki-gun ran wild after the match, laying out Elgin and Taguchi. Suzuki provided the exclamation point, hitting Makabe with the Gotch piledriver. Suzuki grabbed a microphone and cut a promo, refusing Makabe’s challenge.
It may be too early to second-guess the booking decision not to put the IWGP title on Naito at Wrestle Kingdom, but at this point, it certainly feels like Naito has lost a bit of his luster since falling short there. The LIJ team worked over YOSHI-HASHI, perhaps punishing him for eliminating so much of their team in the main event on Monday.
Ospreay tagged in and exhibited why he is my favorite high flyer in the business today. He and Takahashi did some cutting-edge stuff together, then Gedo and BUSHI tagged in and slowed things down. YOSHI-HASHI hit a lariat and hit Karma for the win.
YOSHI-HASHI attacked Naito after the bout, setting up their match on Saturday.
IWGP Tag Team Champions SANADA & EVIL defeated Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto to retain their titles
There were dueling chants for Okada and SANADA, who started the match. They began slowly, working holds. SANADA went for the Paradise Lock, but Okada kicked out and tagged in Goto. SANADA and EVIL took the action outside, and EVIL guillotined Goto against the post with a chair.
EVIL and SANADA worked over Goto back in the ring, and they continued to go at a slow pace. Goto hit a desperation lariat, then made the tag to Okada. EVIL tagged SANADA, who tossed Okada outside and hit a plancha on the IWGP Heavyweight Champion.
Okada fought back and briefly locked in the Cobra Clutch, which Okada is still struggling to get over as a potential finisher. Goto got a tag and applied a sleeper. He teased a GTR, but EVIL made the save. Okada jumped in and hit his dropkick on EVIL, and all four men ended up down in the ring, selling.
Okada broke up a Magic Killer and Goto and Okada hit duel Ushigoroshis, in a cool spot. EVIL reversed a GTR attempt, hitting a fisherman’s suplex and Darkness Falls for a near fall on Goto. Okada broke up a pinfall, but SANADA jumped in and nailed Okada with a Rainmaker. With Okada down, EVIL and SANADA hit a Magic Killer on Goto. EVIL hit Everything is EVIL on Goto for the pin, retaining the titles.
SANADA cut a promo after the match, promising to take Okada’s title on Saturday in Osaka.
With Wrestle Kingdom 12 and New Year’s Dash in the rearview mirror, New Japan Pro Wrestling has revealed the lineups for their next three major shows.
NJPW will be in Sapporo for two New Beginning shows later this month and in Osaka for a third New Beginning event on February 10th. The Osaka show has the most loaded card of the three, with IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada defending against SANADA, NEVER Openweight Champion Hirooki Goto defending against EVIL, Hiromu Takahashi challenging for Will Ospreay’s IWGP Junior Heavyweight title, and Tetsuya Naito facing YOSHI-HASHI.
There are also four title matches set for Sapporo. Hiroshi Tanahashi will put his IWGP Intercontinental Championship on the line against Minoru Suzuki on night one, and Togi Makabe, Henare & Ryusuke Taguchi will challenge for the Bullet Club’s Six-Man tag titles.
Kenny Omega defending his IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship against Jay White will headline on night two, and Roppongi 3K will get their Junior Heavyweight tag title rematch against The Young Bucks.
Most of the big matches for this tour were set up at New Year’s Dash. As part of the storyline where Okada accepted SANADA’s challenge to a title match, Okada & Goto will be challenging for SANADA & EVIL’s IWGP Tag Team Championship at a Road to the New Beginning show at Korakuen Hall on February 6th.
Both nights in Sapporo and the New Beginning in Osaka will air live on New Japan World with English commentary available. Here are the full cards for the shows:
The New Beginning in Sapporo (night one, January 27th) —
IWGP Intercontinental Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi defending against Minoru Suzuki
Kenny Omega & The Young Bucks vs. Jay White & Roppongi 3K (Sho & Yoh)
New Japan Pro Wrestling has one more title match scheduled before Wrestle Kingdom 12 at the Tokyo Dome.
NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Champions SANADA, EVIL & BUSHI will defend their titles against Bad Luck Fale & Guerrillas of Destiny at NJPW’s Road to Tokyo Dome show on December 17th. With SANADA & EVIL challenging Killer Elite Squad at Wrestle Kingdom, a title change would clear the way for the NEVER tag belts to be featured on the card.
SANADA & EVIL defeated Guerrillas of Destiny in this year’s World Tag League finals, with BUSHI getting disqualified against Fale earlier in the show after using the black mist.
The NEVER Six-Man titles were featured in a gauntlet match at Wrestle Kingdom 11. Whether Los Ingobernables de Japon retain or not, the full card for January’s Dome show likely won’t be announced until after Sunday’s six-man title match happens.
SANADA & EVIL vs. KES for the IWGP Tag Team Championship was added to the Wrestle Kingdom 12 lineup at a press conference overnight. Minoru Suzuki vs. Hirooki Goto in a match where Suzuki’s NEVER Openweight title and Goto’s hair are both on the line has been set up as well, though NJPW has yet to officially announce it.
Korakuen Hall will host Road to Tokyo Dome shows on December 17th and 18th as the final build to Wrestle Kingdom takes place. Hiroshi Tanahashi isn’t listed on the card for either night at Korakuen, which means that his first match back from his knee injury is scheduled to be when he faces Jay White at the Dome.
Kazuchika Okada facing off against Tetsuya Naito in tag team matches ahead of their IWGP Heavyweight Championship bout is the main event for both Road to Tokyo Dome shows. Okada & YOSHI-HASHI vs. Naito & Hiromu Takahashi will headline night one, with Okada, Sho & Yoh vs. Naito, Takahashi & BUSHI set for night two.
The stage is set for January 4th and what promises to be a memorable Wrestle Kingdom 12.
Tetsuya Naito scored a tag team victory over his Wrestle Kingdom foe, IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada, but it was Okada who left Naito laying after the match at Monday’s World Tag League 2017 finals in Fukuoka.
Okada snapped after Naito taunted him with a promo, applying a Cobra Clutch — silencing the pro-Naito crowd and planting a seed of doubt as to whether or not the Tokyo Dome will be the site of Naito’s coronation as the top guy in New Japan for 2018.
Elsewhere on the show, Chris Jericho made a surprise appearance, laying out Kenny Omega and leaving his Wrestle Kingdom foe bloodied. Jericho played a total heel in the angle, displaying a mean streak that we haven’t seen from him since his Best in the World run nearly a decade ago. After a sneak attack, Jericho hit Omega with a Codebreaker and a belt shot, and flipped off the crowd for good measure, adding heat to their feud. Jericho also gave Don Callis a Codebreaker.
The World Tag League tournament final was the main event of this show, but it felt like something of an afterthought. The Los Ingobernables de Japon team of SANADA & EVIL defeated the Guerrillas of Destiny, who represented the Bullet Club, cementing their status as challengers for the IWGP Tag Team titles at Wrestle Kingdom. After issuing a challenge to the champs, Killer Elite Squad, another match was set for Wrestle Kingdom. The full card (or at least most of it) will be announced in a press conference on Tuesday.
This was a matchup of young guns (and Makabe) against veterans. They didn’t get a lot of time. The vets did some of their trademark spots, then it broke down, leaving Kawato and Kojima in the ring. Kawato ate a lariat for the finish.
War Machine, Jeff Cobb & Michael Elgin defeated Hangman Page, Yujiro Takahashi, Chase Owens & Leo Tonga
The War Machine/Cobb/Elgin team did a ton of power stuff, while Owens and Page countered with a good bit of flying and lucha spots. Tonga worked the bulk of the match for his team, and he ate a Fallout for the loss.
Bad Luck Fale defeated BUSHI by DQ
Fale had BUSHI pinned but decided to pull him up for some more punishment. BUSHI responded by spraying Fale with the black mist, then kicking him low for the disqualification. Why? Why was this on my television?
Best Friends (Beretta & Chuck Taylor) defeated Death Juice (Juice Robinson & Sami Callihan)
This served both as a palette-cleanser and one last opportunity for Taylor and Callihan to make a lasting impression in Japan. My gut says that Callihan did well enough to be asked back, and his association with the very over Robinson helps. Taylor, through no fault of his own, is another good worker on a show full of them.
Robinson hit a double noggin knocker at one point. I didn’t think I’d see that spot in 2017 New Japan. Beretta kicked out of a package piledriver and a powerbomb, and the Best Friends hit Strong Zero for the victory.
Lance Archer worked over YOSHI-HASHI while the rest of the guys did the requisite Suzuki-gun brawling spots all over the arena. YOSHI-HASHI sold forever — until making a hot tag to Ishii. Davey Boy Smith Jr. cut off Ishii, getting a near fall. Yano untied a corner pad, and Archer ran into the exposed buckles. Goto and Suzuki tagged in, and there was a notable buzz in the crowd as they traded strikes, which bodes well for the Tokyo Dome.
The match broke down into an eight-way. YOSHI-HASHI saved Goto from eating a Gotch piledriver from Suzuki and left Desperado to eat a GTR from Goto for the finish.
Goto challenged Suzuki after the match, and Suzuki accepted — after Goto agreed to put up his hair. Both guys were great in doing their promos.
Cody & Marty Scurll defeated Kota Ibushi & KUSHIDA
Ibushi and Cody started off, and they did a nice sequence of spots, establishing each other as being on the same level. It looked to me, someone who has never taken a bump, like Ibushi was slowing down at certain points to allow Cody to keep up at some points. At other times, it appeared that Cody was more than holding up his end of the bargain.
Later, Cody went to work on Ibushi’s right leg, but Ibushi was able to hit a moonsault for a near fall. Cody responded with an Alabama slam, and KUSHIDA and Scurll tagged in. Cody did a nice springboard dive to the outside on Ibushi, while Scurll got a near fall on KUSHIDA with a brainbuster. Ibushi hit a ridiculous springboard moonsault to the outside on Cody, and they brawled up the ramp. Cody got the best of the exchange, hitting Cross Rhodes on the stage.
While the referee was distracted, Scurll threw powder into KUSHIDA’s eyes, then rolled him up for the pin.
Kenny Omega & The Young Bucks defeated Rocky Romero, Sho & Yoh
Nick Jackson hit a dive off the apron on to Yoh and Romero, and The Elite did some innovative triple-team spots. And, of course, a million superkicks. Sho got a tag and ran wild on the Bucks. They did an awesome six-way suplex spot in the ring, and the Roppongi team claimed the advantage.
Omega fired back with dragon suplexes on Sho and Yoh, then The Elite hit a triple superkick on Romero. Sho and Yoh hit stereo dives to the outside on the Bucks, leaving Romero and Omega to fight it out in the ring. Omega hit a One Winged Angel on Romero for the pin, setting the stage for the post-match angle with Jericho.
Naito and Okada started things off, and there were chants for Naito. They teased locking up forever — until Okada briefly got the best of their first exchange. Naito teased a dive to the outside but slid into his pose in the middle of the ring instead, which got a big pop.
Takahashi and Ospreay tagged in and went a million miles an hour before brawling to the outside, while Naito slammed Okada on the stage before attacking Gedo. Okada fired up and briefly laid out Naito in the ring, but Naito fired back with a neckbreaker on the apron. He followed up with a missile dropkick, but Okada countered with a dropkick of his own, then briefly applied a Cobra Clutch before teasing a tombstone. Naito recovered and planted Okada with a tornado DDT, which led to a double down and tags to Ospreay and Takahashi.
Takahashi scored a near fall, but Okada broke up the pin and hit a dropkick on Takahashi. Ospreay went for the OsCutter, but Takahashi countered it with a suplex. After an assist from Naito, Takahashi hit the Time Bomb for the pin.
SANADA & EVIL defeated Guerrillas of Destiny to win the 2017 World Tag League
The Guerrillas took the early advantage, taking the action outside. They worked over EVIL, though at a significantly slower pace than the matches that preceded this one. EVIL made his own comeback and hit a sidewalk slam on Loa, enabling a tag to SANADA. SANADA and EVIL worked over Tonga, but a ref bump enabled the Guerrillas to use a chair to regain the advantage. BUSHI ran in and misted Loa to even the odds, but Fale lumbered his way in to chase BUSHI to the back.
EVIL survived two near falls as the ref recovered, and SANADA went to work on the Guerrillas. EVIL hit a lariat for a near fall. EVIL and SANADA put Loa through a table that had been set up outside the ring earlier by the Guerillas, then scored a near fall on Tonga. Tonga kicked out of Darkness Falls and a Magic Killer, but EVIL put him down with an STO for the win.
The IWGP Tag Team Championship match for the Tokyo Dome is seemingly set after this morning’s World Tag League finals.
After both won their respective blocks, SANADA & EVIL defeated Guerrillas of Destiny to win this year’s World Tag League tournament. There was involvement from Los Ingobernables de Japon and Bullet Club during the match, with BUSHI’s interference bringing out Bad Luck Fale before Fale eventually chased him to the back. SANADA & EVIL took out Tanga Loa with a Magic Killer through a table on the outside, then Tama Tonga was hit with Darkness Falls, a Magic Killer, and an STO before being pinned by EVIL.
The team that wins the tournament usually gets a shot at the IWGP Tag Team titles at Wrestle Kingdom, and SANADA & EVIL called out champions Killer Elite Squad and challenged them after their win. Lance Archer got on the microphone to accept the challenge, with Davey Boy Smith Jr. saying the titles will stay with KES forever.
Along with BUSHI, SANADA & EVIL also currently hold the NEVER Six-Man Tag Team Championship. Those belts will apparently either not be on the line at Wrestle Kingdom or will be changing hands before then. NJPW has two road to the Tokyo Dome shows at Korakuen Hall later this month before Wrestle Kingdom 12 takes place on January 4th.
Minoru Suzuki and Hirooki Goto have been building up a match for the NEVER Openweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom. That took another step forward at the Tag League finals as NJPW appeared to set up that Suzuki’s title and Goto’s hair will be on the line when they face off.
The full card for the Tokyo Dome show will either be finalized or close to finalized at a press conference late tonight.
New Japan Pro Wrestling has announced its lineup for tomorrow morning’s show at the Fukuoka Convention Center, which features SANADA & EVIL vs. Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa in the finals of the World Tag League 2017 tournament.
The show will air at 4:30 a.m. Eastern time Monday morning in the United States on New Japan World, or 1:30 a.m. Pacific time late tonight.
The winning team is expected to face Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. for the IWGP Tag Team Championship on the January 4th Wrestle Kingdom show at the Tokyo Dome.
The Young Bucks, Cody, and Marty Scurll are flying from Dublin to London to Narita to Fukuoka and are scheduled to arrive shortly before the start of the show.
The nine-match show, which will be broadcast in English with Kevin Kelly and Don Callis as announcers, is:
Katsuya Kitamura, Hirai Kawato, Henare, David Finlay & Togi Makabe vs. Jushin Thunder Liger, Yuji Nagata, Manabu Nakanishi, Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan
War Machine, Michael Elgin & Jeff Cobb vs. Leo Tonga, Chase Owens, Yujiro Takahashi & Hangman Page
Bad Luck Fale vs. BUSHI
Juice Robinson & Sami Callihan vs. Beretta & Chuck Taylor
Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Lance Archer, Davey Boy Smith Jr., Minoru Suzuki & El Desperado
Kota Ibushi & KUSHIDA vs. Cody & Marty Scurll
Sho, Yoh & Rocky Romero vs. The Young Bucks & Kenny Omega
Kazuchika Okada & Will Ospreay vs. Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi
SANADA & Evil vs. Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa in the World Tag League 2017 finals
Kanagawa was home to the last G1 show before the Sumo Hall events this weekend. After everything that went on tonight, we now have a clearer picture of how the winner of the B Block will be decided.
Prelim matches —
– Chase Owens defeated Tomoyuki Oka with the package piledriver.
– Zack Sabre Jr. & El Desperado defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Shota Umino when Desperado submitted Umino with the stretch muffler.
– Bad Luck Fale & Yujiro Takahashi defeated Yuji Nagata & Katsuya Kitamura when Takahashi pinned Kitamura with the Pimp Juice DDT.
– Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI defeated Kota Ibushi, Togi Makabe & Hirai Kawato when Ishii submitted Kawato with a Boston crab.
– Hiroshi Tanahashi, Ryusuke Taguchi & David Finlay defeated Tetsuya Naito, BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi when Taguchi submitted BUSHI with the ankle lock. Naito focused on Tanahashi’s bicep as well as a leg, which may be the story heading into their match at the A Block finals.
B Block matches —
Tama Tonga defeated Satoshi Kojima
Tonga attacked Kojima at the bell, putting on his entrance coat and laying a beating. There was standard back-and-forth stuff from there. Tonga gained control until Kojima started to make a comeback.
Kojima gave Tonga a lariat that sent him to the floor. Kojima continued to gain control until Tonga dodged two lariat attempts and hit the Gun Stun for the win. Not a bad match by any means, but it was just there.
Juice Robinson defeated Toru Yano
This was a match mostly filled with comedy. There was one spot where Yano tied Robinson’s braids on the guardrail, causing him to nearly lose via countout until he rolled in just in the nick of time…and ran right into the exposed turnbuckle that Yano had just undone.
Yano did his usual grabbing the ref/low blow spot, but Robinson fired back with a big punch and laid him out with the Pulp Friction for the win.
Michael Elgin defeated EVIL
They had a pretty good match that turned great towards the last few minutes of it. The crowd was molten for every counter they did, which made it pretty damn exciting.
EVIL dominated early, jumping Elgin right at the bell and unleashing a torrent of offense. He went to do something off the top rope, but Elgin caught him and turned it into a falcon arrow.
Elgin went to the top rope, stood on top, and hit a giant superplex. EVIL blocked a buckle bomb attempt, and from there they had a super hot back-and-forth exchange. Elgin hit a Razor’s Edge powerbomb. He followed that with a lariat and an Elgin bomb to pick up the win.
Kenny Omega defeated SANADA
This was good, but it felt like they were just starting to go somewhere when the match ended rather abruptly. Good, but not great.
There was a scary spot early where Omega tried to lay out SANADA with a moonsault DDT off the guardrail but landed on his head on impact. He seemed fine after, but it looked scary.
Omega was in control until SANADA took him out with a crossbody to the floor. Omega went for the One Winged Angel, but SANADA countered with a hurricanrana. Omega escaped from a Skull End attempt and fired back with a dragon suplex and a V-Trigger, but SANADA kicked out.
The two went at it, escaping each other’s moves. Omega escaped another Skull End attempt. SANADA went to counter by floating over Omega, but instead Omega grabbed him, transitioned into the One Winged Angel, and pinned him.
Kazuchika Okada and Minoru Suzuki went to a 30-minute time limit draw
This was an incredible match, in my opinion much better than the match they had back in February. An absolutely intense battle with Suzuki playing his role super well as the tough veteran exposing Okada’s weakness (his bandaged neck) and never relenting, causing the youthful warrior Okada to continue to fight back. Just a fantastic back-and-forth match.
Okada’s neck was all taped up. He took control early until, as the theme has been for the last year, Desperado and Taichi got involved. The young lions at ringside took them away, leaving it just between Suzuki and Okada, with the former ripping off the bandage on Okada’s neck and working on it instantly.
Suzuki went for a penalty kick, but Okada blocked it and started to trade punches. Suzuki went for the sleeper, but Okada countered with a suplex. Okada went for the Rainmaker until Suzuki countered with a guillotine choke. Okada tried to fire back with a tombstone, but Suzuki escaped and then nailed him with a dropkick.
Okada nailed a dropkick to the back of Suzuki’s head and hit a cradle tombstone piledriver. Suzuki dodged the Rainmaker, then escaped the tombstone and hit one of his own. Suzuki continued the assault, grinding down Okada and pelting him with kicks.
Suzuki followed up with an octopus hold. He tried for the Gotch piledriver, but Okada blocked it. Suzuki hit the ropes, but Okada fired back with a dropkick, then another one off the top rope.
He went for the Rainmaker, but Suzuki countered with a sleeper suplex and kept him down on the mat. Okada struggled to make it to the ropes, but Suzuki got him on his back. Eventually, Okada did escape, grabbing the ropes.
Suzuki unleashed his fury on Okada with a barrage of punches. He picked up a prone Okada, only to get blasted with a Rainmaker. He slowly got back up and landed a second. Okada went for a third, but Suzuki again blasted him with a ton of open hand slaps. Okada started to fire back with some of his own.
Suzuki, putting his hands down, invited Okada to slap him some more. He stuffed Okada’s attempt at a tombstone and tried for the Gotch piledriver, but again Okada blocked him. Suzuki went for the sleeper again. Okada quickly countered with a Rainmaker and tried to make a cover, but couldn’t reach Suzuki in time as the time limit expired.
As far as who’s alive, it’s relatively simple. Tied at twelve points each, whoever wins between Tanahashi and Naito on August 11th wins the A Block and makes it to the finals.
It also boils down to Kenny Omega vs. Kazuchika Okada in the B Block on August 12th. With this morning’s draw, Omega needs the win, but Okada would advance with a win or a draw.
A day’s rest brought us to the sixth morning of G1 Climax 27 action as Fukushima was home to this morning’s B Block show.
Prelim matches —
– Togi Makabe & Ryusuke Taguchi defeated Kota Ibushi & Shota Umino when Taguchi submitted Uminowith the ankle lock.
– Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI defeated Tomoyuki Oka & Katsuya Kitamura when YOSHI-HASHI submitted Kitamura with the butterfly lock.
– Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi defeated Yuji Nagata & Hirai Kawato when Takahashi submitted Kawato with a Boston crab.
– Bad Luck Fale, Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens defeated Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi & El Desperado after Takahashi hit Taichi with the Pimp Juice DDT.
– Hiroshi Tanahashi & David Finlay defeated Hirooki Goto & Jado when Finlay pinned Jado with the stunner. Jado looked to injure his knee during the final minutes of the match.
B Block matches —
Michael Elgin defeated Satoshi Kojima
They started off fast, with both wrestlers hitting their signature moves, such as Kojima’s clothesline in the corner. They brawled to the apron, where Kojima tried to go for something, but Elgin overpowered him. Kojima shot back, laying out Elgin with a DDT on the apron.
Elgin avoided a plancha and responded by powerbombing Kojima on the apron. Tenzan, who was seconding, tried to revive Kojima and eventually did, with him beating the 20 count. Elgin followed with the Falcon Arrow but blocked a lariat attempt, with Kojima hitting one of his own instead. Elgin came back and blasted Kojima with a lariat, but only got two.
Kojima escaped the buckle bomb, but couldn’t get the Koji cutter. Elgin went for a top rope lariat, but Kojima responded with a shot to the face. Elgin went for the buckle bomb, but somehow Kojima managed to lay him out with a shot.
They met at the top rope, where Elgin laid out Kojima with a sunset flip bomb, then followed with the Elgin bomb for the win. This was a fantastic, heated match with great hard-hitting offense.
EVIL defeated Tama Tonga
This was great. Tonga is developing a penchant in this tournament for high-speed, frenetic matches, especially towards the end of matches, and this was no different. There was a great brawl to start, along with a strong last few minutes of the match.
They began out in the crowd as Tonga got the early advantage. He threw EVIL into the wall and beat him with various equipment laying around them, all while shoving the ref and abusing him. He dragged the referee back in the ring, but EVIL beat the count. Tonga completely abusing the referee somehow didn’t equate to a DQ.
EVIL got the advantage and returned the favor, brawling around the outside and going for his infamous neck chair spot. He looked to go for the STO, but Tonga countered with the waistlock DDT for a near fall. A bunch of crazy transitions followed, each trying to go for their finish but neither getting anywhere until finally EVIL laid out Tonga with the STO for the win.
Minoru Suzuki defeated Juice Robinson
This was also great. They worked a nice story with Robinson trying to get the win with the bad leg from their tag match a couple of days ago. Robinson looked so good in losing with his selling, offense, and comebacks.
Suzuki jumped Robinson before the bell even rang. He took Robinson to the outside and whipped him into the barricade, then took him into the crowd and threw him into some more barricades, now working on one of Robinson’s legs. Suzuki grabbed a chair and rammed it into Robinson’s leg as he looked to beat the count.
Suzuki continued the assault, wrapping Robinson’s leg against the barricade and slamming a chair into it. They got back to the ring, where Robinson showed signs of momentum. He hit the cannonball into the corner and followed with a blue thunder bomb.
Suzuki honed his focus back on the leg, working on submissions. Robinson managed to escape after a long struggle. He tried for the Pulp Friction, but Suzuki fought it and laid him out. He got the sleeper in, and after pausing for some time, landed the Gotch piledriver for the win.
Kenny Omega defeated Toru Yano by countout
This was so much fun. It was one of those matches where wrestling purists are going to hate it because of the comedy and unbelievability of some aspects of the match, but you know what? It was fun.
All the spots worked and made sense. It also helps that people buy into Yano’s pinfalls because in previous years he has pinned people in record fashion. Add all of this together and it equates to a match that was way better than it had any right to be.
Yano had his DVD, and politely asked Omega to open it. He obliged, revealing it to be salt. Yano threw it in Omega’s eyes and rolled him up for a near fall, then tried a low blow while Omega had Red Shoes in the One Winged Angel position (he was blind), also for a two count.
They took turns teasing exposed turnbuckles and ripping out each other’s hair. Omega went for a V-Trigger, but Yano escaped onto the floor. He came out from under the ring, revealed that he had a bucket, and hit Omega with it. He also had wrist tape, and ended up taping Omega’s legs together. Omega got to his feet and attacked Yano, doing the same.
They got up and hopped around, doing spots involving the tape. Omega laid out Yano with the snap dragon suplex as Chase Owens came out with scissors. Yano momentarily stole the scissors, but Omega took the opportunity to lay him out with another V-Trigger, sending him out of the ring. With no way of getting up, the referee counted to twenty, giving the win to Omega.
Kazuchika Okada defeated SANADA
They started off hot, avoiding each other’s moves. SANADA jumped off the top rope, apparently injuring his leg. Of course, it was all a ploy as the minute Okada turned his back SANADA threw him to the outside and hit a plancha.
SANADA missed a standing moonsault, allowing Okada to counter with a neckbreaker. SANADA went for a springboard, but Okada grabbed him and laid him out with a neckbreaker on the knee. He hit the elbow and did his pose, but SANADA started fighting back. He flipped over a resurgent Okada and went for the Skull End, but Okada quickly made it to the ropes.
SANADA hit a TKO as Okada tried to counter. SANADA went to the ropes and latched on with the Skull End, but Okada took it to the middle and hit a tombstone. After a few reversals, SANADA hit the tombstone and applied the Skull End. Okada struggled, but still managed to make it to the ropes.
SANADA landed a moonsault and locked on the Skull End again, but Okada popped out, floated over, and in desperation hit a Rainmaker, then another. He went for a third, but SANADA reversed and tried to get one of his own. Okada ducked, but walked into what looked like a Destino attempt. Finally, Okada pinned SANADA with the third Rainmaker for the win.
Okada cut a promo to finish the show. This was one of the better cards of the tournament as every match on the show was fun in its own way and worth going out of your way to watch.
After announcing that the show would be broadcast on iPPV, it didn’t take long for Ring of Honor to reveal the main event of War of the Worlds UK: Liverpool.
It will be Cody Rhodes defending his ROH World Championship against Los Ingobernables de Japon member SANADA. Rhodes won the title at ROH’s Best in the World pay-per-view last month when he defeated Christopher Daniels.
SANADA will be coming off of his run in this year’s G1 Climax, which ends on August 13th. The War of the Worlds UK iPPV will take place at the Olympia in Liverpool on August 19th, with SANADA’s Los Ingobernables stablemates (Tetsuya Naito, EVIL, BUSHI, and Hiromu Takahashi) also scheduled to appear.
A four-corner survival match with KUSHIDA putting his ROH Television title on the line against Marty Scurll, Dalton Castle, and Hiromu Takahashi is the only other match announced for the Liverpool show as of now.
The first of three Kizuna Road shows aired earlier this morning at Korakuen Hall. The show had a big main event as Los Ingobernables de Japon defended their NEVER Six-Man tag titles against KUSHIDA, Ryusuke Taguchi & Juice Robinson. We also found out who will be in this year’s G1 Climax.
Korakuen Hall looked particularly empty this morning — some visible empty seats could be seen in wide shots.
Tomoyuki Oka defeated Tetsuhiro Yagi
Oka worked over Yagi a ton of the match. Yagi did a good job in playing the babyface in peril. He kicked out of a running powerslam, but Oka immediately locked in the Boston crab and submitted him.
El Desperado, Taka Michinoku & Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Shota Umino, Tiger Mask IV & Jushin Thunder Liger
Umino worked a lot of this match and looked pretty good — the crowd got into him and he was great in his selling and execution of moves. Really good performance from him. Desperado submitted him with the stretch muffler.
Liger and Tiger Mask posed for fans after the match.
This was just there. Kitamura is very green, but he’s perfectly decent for his experience level. Nakanishi seems to move slower and do less the more I see him in the ring. Nagata controlled Kitamura for a lot of the match and ended up pinning him with the backdrop driver.
This was a solid six-man bout. There was a lot of brawling outside of the ring and through the crowd early. Ishii worked a lot of the match and looked good, so did everyone else here really.
Kojima and Tenzan hit the 3D on Jado, then Makabe followed with the King Kong knee drop for the win.
The participants in this year’s G1 Climax tournament were then announced. The field is:
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe, Michael Elgin, Kazuchika Okada, Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, YOSHI-HASHI, Kenny Omega, Bad Luck Fale, Tama Tonga, Tetsuya Naito, SANADA, EVIL, Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata, Juice Robinson, Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr., and Kota Ibushi.
The blocks will be announced on June 26th, with matches revealed the next day.
Takahashi came to the ring with a stuffed cat doll. He treated it like it was a living thing. Naito even fist-bumped it. His name is Darryl, if you were wondering.
This was Kawato’s big test, being in a more higher profile match than usual and he ended up scoring pretty well. He did great in his selling and has such great natural intensity that it resonated with the fans, so they got into him early, especially when he ran out and jumped Naito before the bell.
He still lost the match for the team, with Takahashi submitting him with the Boston crab.
A female interviewer talked with Taguchi Japan before their title match. Taguchi talked about the team and their match tonight for a bit.
YOSHI-HASHI, Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto defeated Minoru Suzuki, Taichi & Davey Boy Smith Jr.
YOSHI-HASHI jumped Suzuki right at the bell and kept hammering at him until the ref had to pull them apart. It then turned into a solid back-and-forth match. I think this is Smith’s first time on a tour in ages and he looked really good both physically and in the ring.
Suzuki and YH had a great back and forth towards the end of the match. Suzuki laid him out as Taichi went to get a chair, but Okada broke it up. YH came back and locked in the butterfly lock for the submission.
Suzuki-gun tried to clear house after the match, but Okada and YH fought back, enabling YH to apply the butterfly lock on Suzuki for a long time until Okada finally broke it up.
The interviewer tried to talk to the NEVER Six-Man tag champs, but none of them seemed all that chatty. BUSHI did end up saying a few words.
NEVER Six-Man Tag Team Champions SANADA, EVIL & BUSHI defeated Ryusuke Taguchi, KUSHIDA & Juice Robinson to retain their titles
This was good, and it was easily the best match on the show. It wasn’t out of this world, but for a Korakuen Hall house show main event it delivered.
BUSHI and KUSHIDA started the match. They looked really good against one another, a positive sign for their match on the 27th. There was a cool spot where KUSHIDA struggled to get the armbar on BUSHI, so Robinson responded by headbutting BUSHI to execute it properly.
Everyone cleared each other out of the ring as Robinson cleared house. Taguchi did a Doomsday hip attack from the top rope. Robinson then went for the Pulp Friction, but when SANADA countered he hit a powerbomb instead. He went for it again, though SANADA kept escaping.
SANADA tripped him on the rope, which allowed EVIL on the outside to wallop him with a steel chair shot. SANADA threw him into BUSHI, who hit the MX, with SANADA following with his Skull End submission and leaving Robinson no real alternative but to tap.
Here are this morning’s results for the final Road to Sakura Genesis show before the PPV itself takes place on Sunday morning. This aired live from Korakuen Hall on New Japan World.
– El Desperado, Takashi Iizuka & Taka Michinoku defeated Hirai Kawato, Jushin Thunder Liger & Manabu Nakanishi when Michinoku submitted Kawato with a crossface.
Kawato jumped the heels at the bell. He scored a ton of near falls towards the end as he battled with Michinoku.
– Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens defeated Tomoyuki Oka & Yuji Nagata when Owens pinned Oka with the package piledriver.
This was a hot match with a lot of fast-paced action.
– War Machine & David Finlay defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Tiger Mask when Rowe pinned Tenzan after hitting Fallout.
This was another solid match with a lot of heat. The finish was interesting as it gives War Machine the advantage heading into the IWGP tag title match at Sakura Genesis.
– Toru Yano, Hirooki Goto, Jado & Gedo defeated Taichi, Minoru Suzuki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Zack Sabre Jr. when Yano pinned Taichi following a cane shot to the groin.
Yano’s usual antics led to the finish. It was fine, but not as interesting as the last few matches. Suzuki beat up some of the young lions with chairs after the match.
– Kenny Omega & Bad Luck Fale defeated Tomohiro Ishii & Baretta when Fale pinned Baretta with the grenade.
Baretta looked really good here. It was a good tag team bout overall with solid heat.
– Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi defeated KUSHIDA & Juice Robinson when Naito pinned Robinson following a low blow and the Destino.
Early in the match there was a wild brawl where KUSHIDA did a running missile dropkick onto Takahashi that sent him through the guardrail. This set the tone of the match, as it was all action and by far one of the best matches of the night.
– Kazuchika Okada & YOSHI-HASHI defeated Togi Makabe & Katsuyori Shibata when Okada pinned Makabe following the Rainmaker.
They had a good, standard tag team match.
Shibata and Okada had a staredown after the match. As Shibata started to leave, Okada sat down and did Shibata’s pose, mocking him. Shibata didn’t like this one bit, dashing to the ring and kicking Okada square in the back. He went for the penalty kick, but Okada countered with the tombstone. He cut a promo on Shibata before leaving.
– Ryusuke Taguchi, Ricochet & Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated EVIL, SANADA & BUSHI to win the NEVER six-man tag titles when Ricochet pinned BUSHI after hitting a lifting DDT.
This was a long, very good main event that built well and had some great action, especially towards the finish. Tanahashi had it won with the High Fly Flow, but the heels ganged up on him. BUSHI went to mist Ricochet but it hit SANADA instead. After an assist by Taguchi, Ricochet hit the benadryller but BUSHI kicked out. Ricochet finally won it with the lifting DDT.
We’re getting closer to the finals, but there are still a few shows to go as we recap this morning’s matches held in Kanagawa.
Katsuhiko Nakajima defeated David Finlay with the brainbuster.
Kenny Omega & Yujiro Takahashi defeated Satoshi Kojima & Captain New Japan when Yujiro pinned CNJ with the Pimp Juice DDT.
Tetsuya Naito, EVIL, & BUSHI defeated Toru Yano, YOSHI-HASHI, & Gedo when BUSHI pinned Gedo after a Codebreaker off the top rope.
Katsuyori Shibata, Michael Elgin, KUSHIDA, Ryusuke Taguchi & Juice Robinson defeated Yuji Nagata, Tomoaki Honma, Manabu Nakanishi, Jushin Liger & Tiger Mask when KUSHIDA submitted Tiger Mask with the Hoverboard Lock.
Naomichi Marufuji defeated Tama Tonga
Solid match. These two had some pretty good exchanges throughout. Marufuji was pelting him with kicks when Tonga evened the score with a reverse Gun Stun. Tonga tried going for another but Marufuji kept stopping him. Marufuji then got the win with the Sliced Bread.
SANADA defeated Tomohiro Ishii
Awesome match! The crowd got really into it towards the end and the action was super throughout. SANADA is really showcasing himself as a future star, and Ishii is becoming the MVP of this tournament like he has in other years.
Really good back and forth. They were doing some great exchanges when SANADA started to get the upper hand with a hurricanrana out of nowhere and a dropkick from the top rope. SANADA kept trying for the Skull End submission, but Ishii avoided it and hit the sliding D.
Crowd picked up at this point. They did some great suplex counters until SANADA laid Ishii out with a TKO (after a great exchange) and put on the Skull End. Ishii fought it for a bit, but eventually couldn’t fight anymore and submitted.
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Hiroyoshi Tenzan
Good match. Tenzan worked as the babyface with Tanahashi doing the subtle heel role. He even did the Mongolian chops for heat. Tanahashi did a great job in carrying Tenzan as he did a good bulk of the work.
Tanahashi missed the High Fly Flow, which allowed Tenzan to come back with a lariat to the back of the head. Tenzan hit the moonsault but Tanahashi started fighting back, hit the Sling Blade and the High Fly Flow for the win.
Bad Luck Fale defeated Kazuchika Okada
Another solid match. After days of being beaten up by Fale, the ring announcer finally got smart and bolted from the ring before Fale could do any more damage.
Okada and Fale ended up brawling around the arena. Fale went for the Grenade but Okada turned it into a dropkick. He tried the tombstone but couldn’t get Fale up. He tried the Rainmaker but Fale gave him a lariat instead, then hit the grenade and the Bad Luck Fall for the win.
Hirooki Goto defeated Togi Makabe
Good match, but these two have had better. They hit each other hard early. Crowd got into it as they started to exchange punches. Makabe fought for the Spider German on the top rope and got it, but didn’t connect with the King Kong knee drop.
More back and forth. Makabe hit Goto with a lariat so big that they both ended up falling to the floor. Makabe went for a lariat but Goto hit the neckbreaker on the knee, then finished Makabe with the GTR.
