Tag: shota umino

IWGP Tag Team title match official for NJPW New Beginning in Osaka

Posted on by Joseph Currier

IWGP Tag Team Champions OSKAR & Yuto-Ice now know the identity of their next title challengers.

A number one contender’s match took place on Monday with Shota Umino & Yuya Uemura prevailing over Tomohiro Ishii & Taichi. With their victory, it’s now confirmed that Umino & Uemura will challenge The Knock Out Brothers (OSKAR & Yuto-Ice) for the IWGP Tag Team titles at the New Beginning in Osaka on February 11.

Umino & Uemura’s match against Ishii & Taichi headlined NJPW’s Road to New Beginning event at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo today. A lariat and Second Chapter finisher from Umino put Ishii away as Uemura stopped Taichi from breaking up the pin.

Following the match, Umino & Uemura got on the microphone and praised Ishii & Taichi before then turning their attention to the champions. Umino & Uemura said they’re frustrated about losing to The Knock Out Brothers in the past — and the only way they can get over that pain is to claim the titles this time.

The Knock Out Brothers were one of pro wrestling’s top tag teams of 2025. WWE was interested in signing them at the start of the year and there were rumors the two could be on their way out of NJPW, but OSKAR & Yuto-Ice have declared that they are not going anywhere.

Edion Arena in Osaka is hosting the February 11 event, which will air live on NJPW World. Only two matches are official at the moment, but the full card is set to be announced imminently.

NJPW New Beginning in Osaka 2026 (Wednesday, February 11) —

  • IWGP Tag Team Champions The Knock Out Brothers (OSKAR & Yuto-Ice) defend against Shota Umino & Yuya Uemura
  • NEVER Openweight Champion Aaron Wolf defends against Ren Narita

NJPW wrestler announces he has re-signed with the company

Posted on by Ian Carey

Shota Umino is staying with NJPW.

The 28-year-old revealed on his social media on Friday that he has re-signed with the company for 2026, writing:

“I have signed a contract with New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co., Ltd. for the 2026 fiscal year. My beloved family is ‘New Japan Pro-Wrestling’ alone.”

Umino is coming off a difficult 2025. He started the year by losing to Zack Sabre Jr. in an IWGP World Heavyweight title match in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 20. In March, he lost to David Finlay in the finals of the New Japan Cup and the following month dropped an IWGP World title match to Hirooki Goto at Windy City Riot in Chicago. He finished second in the B Block during the G1 Climax, but was eliminated in the first knockout round by Yota Tsuji.

Umino is the son of NJPW referee “Red Shoes” Hiroyuki Umino and started in the company’s dojo system in 2017. His social media post announcing his re-signing is available below:

AEW star & NJPW legend among expected field for NJPW G1 tournament

Posted on by Josh Nason

With the full roster for this summer’s NJPW G1 Climax 35 tournament set to be announced during this weekend’s Dominion event, an early look at four entrants was revealed in a poster for the event.

First noted on Reddit, an event poster seen in NJPW’s Tokon Shop in Tokyo featured AEW star and NJPW Never Openweight Champion Konosuke Takeshita, NJPW president and soon-to-be retired legend Hiroshi Tanahashi, Shota Umino, and Ren Narita. The person that shared the news noted that it’s being billed as Tanahashi’s final G1 tournament as he will retire in 2026.

While the field will be announced this weekend, the bracket is expected to be announced at a later date.

The annual tournament will run from July 18 through August 17, meaning Takeshita will be gone from AEW action during that time. He will not miss All In Texas (July 12) and will then have a week before Forbidden Door in London on August 24.

Tanahashi did not compete in last year’s G1, but was part of the 2023 tournament. He’s won the tournament three times with the last coming in 2018.

Full card revealed for NJPW Windy City Riot

Posted on by Joseph Currier

The full nine-match card is now set for NJPW’s return to the United States this weekend.

Airing live as a pay-per-view on NJPW World, Windy City Riot 2025 takes place at Wintrust Arena in Chicago this Friday night. The show is being headlined by an IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match with Hirooki Goto defending his belt against Shota Umino

The Goto vs. Umino match was made official after being set up over the weekend at Sakura Genesis. Following his title defense against David Finlay, Goto said he already had his next challenger in mind, calling out Umino and saying that he wants to show the United States what true Japanese strong style is all about.

NJPW has been teasing a heel turn for Umino, though he remained babyface after his victory over Hiroshi Tanahashi at Sakura Genesis.

After successful defenses over Tanahashi, Yuji Nagata, and Finlay, this will be the fourth title defense of Goto’s IWGP World Championship reign.

The semi-main event at Windy City Riot is Tanahashi vs. Konosuke Takeshita — with the match being the final time that Tanahashi will ever wrestle in the United States. He’s set to retire as an in-ring competitor in January 2026.

A matchup between Tom Lawlor and TJP is among the new additions to the Windy City Riot card. Also added is a pre-show match between NJPW U.S. Academy graduates Zane Jay and CJ Tino.

The full lineup can be seen below:

NJPW Windy City Riot 2025 (Friday, April 11) —

  • IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Hirooki Goto defends against Shota Umino
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi’s last match in the United States: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Konosuke Takeshita
  • Zack Sabre Jr. vs. David Finlay
  • Tetsuya Naito & Titan vs. Rocky Romero & El Phantasmo
  • 30-minute Iron Man match: NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Gabe Kidd defends against Tomohiro Ishii
  • NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Champions Royce Isaacs & Jorel Nelson defend against KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight
  • Strong Women’s title number one contender’s match: Mina Shirakawa vs. AZM (winner challenges Mercedes Mone at Resurgence on May 9)
  • Tom Lawlor vs. TJP
  • Kickoff match: Zane Jay vs. CJ Tino

IWGP World title match set for NJPW Windy City Riot

Posted on by Ian Carey

The IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match at NJPW Windy City Riot is set.

Hirooki Goto will defend his title against Shota Umino at the April 11 pay-per-view in Chicago. Goto retained the championship against New Japan Cup winner David Finlay at NJPW Sakura Genesis on Saturday, then called out Umino for his next defense.

Goto promised that at Windy City Riot, “‘Two Japanese wrestlers will go and show America that it is true, Japanese Strong Style, not some imitation, that is the best pro-wrestling in the world.”

NJPW confirmed the match shortly after:

Umino is coming off a win over Hiroshi Tanahashi on today’s show. He previously lost in the finals of the New Japan Cup to Finlay after defeating Great-O-Khan, Jeff Cobb, and Shingo Takagi.

Goto has now successfully defended his title three times since beating Zack Sabre Jr. for it at The New Beginning in Osaka. He’s retained against Tanahashi, Yuji Nagata, and now Finlay.

Results from NJPW Sakura Genesis are available here.

NJPW Windy City Riot lineup for April 11, 2025:

  • IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Hirooki Goto defends against Shota Umino
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi’s last match in the United States: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Konosuke Takeshita
  • 30-minute Iron Man match: NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Gabe Kidd defends against Tomohiro Ishii
  • David Finlay vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
  • NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Champions Royce Isaacs & Jorel Nelson defend against KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight
  • Tetsuya Naito & Titan vs. Rocky Romero & El Phantasmo
  • Number one contenders match for Strong Women’s title: AZM vs. Mina Shirakawa

New Japan Cup finals live results: Shota Umino vs. David Finlay

Posted on by Corey Michaels

The finals of the 2025 New Japan Cup take place today, with a first-time winner guaranteed.

In the tournament finals, Shota Umino faces David Finlay with a shot a the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship hanging in the balance. It’s the first career finals for Umino, while Finlay made the finals in 2023 where he lost to SANADA.

The winner of today’s New Japan Cup finals earns a shot at Hirooki Goto and the IWGP World title at Sakura Genesis on Saturday, April 5.

An NJPW World TV title match kicks off today’s main card, with El Phantasmo defending against a mystery opponent in an open challenge.

Hiroshi Tanahashi’s road to retirement continues with a special singles match on today’s card, with Tana taking on Satoshi Kojima. It will be the tenth career singles meeting between the two, and the first since 2014. Tana holds a 5-4 career edge in singles competition over Kojima.

**********

Main Card

El Phantasmo defeated TJP for the NJPW World Television Championship

Starting with a headscissor hold, Phantasmo had immediate control. TJP sent him to the mat with a DDT from the second rope. After sneaking a comeback, Phantasmo attempted a moonsault from the ropes but couldn’t put TJP away. Spinning the challenger like a rinse cycle, Phantasmo slammed him to the mat with a UFO drop. TJP spiked the champion to the mat, bringing him in for a Pinoy Stretch. This caused Phantasmo to stretch his shoulder a bit too much, as trying a punch became too much for him to do. The pair traded pins with the last one granting Phantasmo a victory despite his shoulder.

— Post-match: TJP shook hands with Phantasmo. Great-O-Khan, who’d watched the sportsmanship from the outside, greeted TJP before assaulting the champion. He declared himself next to challenge for the title, attacked him again and left. Phantasmo struggled to the back.

Phantasmo had little time to make the shoulder angle effective, but he made the most of it. Fast-paced, this was a satisfactory opener.

Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Satoshi Kojima

Kojima’s strength lent him the early advantage, but Tanahashi earned it back as he tied his opponent’s leg to the rope and dropkicked it. Kojima chopped The Ace’s chest until sore, following up with a top rope elbow drop. Kojima laid out Tanahashi with a Koji Cutter but fell back down to a Slingblade. A stiff lariat from Kojima laid out Tanahashi. Enduring the force that is Kojima, Tanahashi won the match with a High-Fly Flow.

A fun short sprint, Tanahashi’s strengths have been neatly emphasized during this final run. As someone who’d love to see one of NJPW’s legendary top stars to ride off into the sunset go peacefully, this run has been a treat.

BULLET CLUB (Bad Luck Fale, Chase Owens & SANADA) defeated Just 4 Guys (Taichi, TAKA Michinoku & Yuya Uemura)

BULLET CLUB promptly took out their opponents before the bell with SANADA tossing Uemura to the chairs in the crowd. Meanwhile, Owens and Fale bullied Taichi in the ring. Uemura held the match in his hand, flattening Owens and SANADA, the latter of which suffered a back suplex. Teasing a Skull End, SANADA instead fell to Uemura’s dropkicks. Michinoku unleashed a flurry to Owens, but laid down for the 3-count courtesy of a Package Piledriver by Owens.

— Post-match: BULLET CLUB harassed their defeated foes, with SANADA teasing a guitar shot. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI, and El Desperado came to Just 4 Guys’ aid. Tanahashi shook hands with Uemura, having long mentioned that the latter being the current image of NJPW. The Ace then shook hands with Taichi and helped Michinoku to his feet.

The least exciting elements of this match were involved in the finisher. The ongoing beef between SANADA and Uemura is interesting, but wasn’t capitalized on. Tanahashi being all super wholesome in the post-match made up for any slogging.

Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi & Tetsuya Naito) defeated United Empire (Callum Newman, Jakob Austin Young & Jeff Cobb)

Cobb confronted Naito to start the match, only to be attacked by the present members of LIJ. Young worked on Naito’s infamously weak knees, Takahashi exploded onto the scene, meeting Newman’s speed with his own before agonizing from a roundhouse kick. Naito and Takahashi delivered karmic justice to Young by targeting his knees, the latter tapping Young out with a Maximum Beholding.

There was nothing in the way of storyline advancements to watch out for, but this was fun on its own and worth a watch.

BULLET CLUB War Dogs (Drilla Moloney, Gabe Kidd & Taiji Ishimori) defeated House Of Torture (Ren Narita, SHO & Yujiro Takahashi)

Ishimori twisted and cranked the arm of SHO. Kidd pummeled Narita in the corner, sending him to the mat with a forceful lariat. He then sent SHO and Takahashi to the same fate. Moloney unleashed a rage of forearms and chops to SHO, but lost his momentum by House of Torture interruption and a Spear from SHO. With the War Dogs intercepting any further interference, Moloney pinned SHO with a Drilla Killa.

— Post-match: Moloney fake laughed at House of Torture “kicking” the War Dogs out of BULLET CLUB. He then on behalf of Ishimori and Kidd challenged for the NEVER Six Man Tag Team Championship.

For anyone looking for a cathartic comeuppance for House of Torture, this is the fix you’re looking for. Each play made by the War Dogs was satisfying. SHO made the best of his moments, even in defeat.

Los Ingobernables de Japon (Shingo Takagi & Yota Tsuji) defeated House Of Torture (EVIL & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)

Tsuji endured Kanemaru and EVIL’s attempts to weaken his knee, with the latter’s Cloverleaf dramatically ended with a rope break. Takagi burst into action, bumping EVIL to the mat and proceeding to manhandle him. Kanemaru and EVIL returned once more to destroy Tsuji’s knees. They, combined with Dick Togo, unleashed a Dick-to-Dick Contact, with the referee distracted by Takagi’s endeavor to make the save. As Kanemaru saved his Whiskey Mist, it poured like a fountain after Tsuji found enough strength to power a Gene Blaster for the win.

— Post-match: House of Torture attacked Tsuji as EVIL held aloft the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship while he stood on the champ’s chest. Takagi again tried to help but Togo choked him out.

There wasn’t much to say about this bout, other than Tsuji’s selling was top notch. In a blink-and-miss-it moment, he maintained his kayfabe knee injury. That’s a level of professionalism I can appreciate.

El Desperado, Hirooki Goto & Oleg Boltin defeated TMDK (Hartley Jackson, Ryohei Oiwa & Zack Sabre Jr.)

Boltin overwhelmed Oiwa, and a chaotic brawl ensued. He and Goto pounded the back of Sabre Jr., before failing to do so on Oiwa. A helpless Desperado fell prey to the combined offense of TMDK, until he traded holds with Sabre Jr. Boltin’s might cancelled out Sabre Jr.’s technical prowess with his Flying Body Sausage maneuver. Jackson nearly had the match won over Goto with a Flying Crossbody and a team-up with Oiwa, to no avail. Jackson withstood the united front his opponents initiated, but ultimately lost to a GTR.

Featuring young acts like Boltin and Oiwa alongside the veterans adds enough fuel to position these future megastars for greatness. Now more than ever, this feels like a strong emphasis to trust tomorrow’s performers It certainly doesn’t hurt that they worked alongside the current and former IWGP World Heavyweight Champions.

New Japan Cup Final

David Finlay defeated Shota Umino

Finlay had the initial advantage in the early goings, but Umino got the better of him, working on his leg. This damage wore on, grounding Finlay’s later offense. A Fisherman’s Suplex gave Umino space to carve out control over the War Dogs leader. He continued to work the leg as Finlay screamed in dear agony. Umino combined this with a STF in the middle of the ring; Finlay desperately reached for a successful rope break. Umino flew through the air courtesy of Finlay’s uranage, sending him through a table on the outside.

Finlay broke the 20-count to seemingly help Umino to his feet. As it turned out, he used this time to slam his opponent into the ring post to earn even more time. Umino broke the count at 19. Finlay sought to damage Umino’s back more with a slam, but Umino countered into a DDT. Umino received a near count after a cacophonous vertical suplex from the top rope. He did so again after a bridging suplex. Finlay, almost running on fumes, survived lariats and a painful knee onto Umino, finally landing Oblivion. Kicking out of a reversal pin, Finlay slammed Umino with two resounding powerbombs. Umino tried an inside cradle, failing to do so. Finlay used this brief respite to crush him with an Overkill for the win. David Finlay is 2025’s New Japan Cup winner.

— Post-match: Finlay yanked the New Japan Cup away form the officials as he and Gedo celebrated. He helped Umino to his feet, harshly telling his old friend he has to work Finlay’s way to get these kinds of victories. He beckoned forth Hirooki Goto from commentary to the ring to claim his future shot. Goto responded that Finlay “can’t stop the Goto Revolution.”

The War Dogs joined their leader in jubilation. Finlay proudly carried his cup while his teammates drank in the ring.

Umino’s always been good in the ring, but his act hasn’t really stuck. However, his effort tonight gives this new baptised-in-white approach plausibility. Tremendous performance alongside Finlay still riding off of his 2024 rejuvenation. Finlay took a while to successfully reinvent himself as the War Dogs leader, and its paying off. This gives me hope for Umino.

As a whole, the show had some high points. Most of them didn’t add much in storyline but were still fun. Kojima/Tanahashi, LIJ/United Empire, and maybe even House of Torture/War Dogs are all worth watching, but the final is what will surely satisfy. Finlay denying Goto the win for the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship in Autumn 2024 is sure to add a much-needed threat to the current World Heavyweight Champion’s reign.

Daily Update: WWE Survivor Series fallout, Conor McGregor, Shota Umino

Posted on by Dave Meltzer

Latest News

Latest Audio

Latest Free YouTube Video

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter

This Week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter Back Issue

Sunday Update

  • Bryan and I did the weekend show covering Survivor Series last night. Garrett Gonzales and I were up Friday for a show which talked about the week in review, the Continental Classic, and a breakdown of AEW finances and exactly where the worst case scenario business would end up being.
  • As noted elsewhere Jimmy Uso suffered a broken toe from his dive off the top of the cage and Bronson Reed suffered an ankle injury also coming off the top of the cage in the War Games last night. Paul Levesque said it looked like Reed would be out for several weeks.
  • The show did 200,000 Google searches which would be right at expectations for such a show.
  • Just to confirm something from another show I did, the 12/14 Saturday Night’s Main Event is a two-hour show from 8-10 p.m. Eastern time. I expect they’ll get a lot of the key matches announced on tomorrow’s Raw.
  • We’re looking for your thoughts on Survivor Series so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected]
  • The BBC has updated the Conor McGregor story with more on just how badly his reputation was hurt in Ireland because of the guilty verdict in the civil trial with Nikita Hand.
  • Shota Umino suffered an ankle injury on Friday and missed today’s show, but at least as of yesterday was listed to be on tomorrow’s show in Kochi where he & Tomoaki Honma were to face KENTA & Chase Owens in a tag team tournament match. He was doing a running back elbow where he dropped to his knees for impact and his foot got caught in the canvas and twisted.
  • IWGP Junior Heavyweight champion Douki has issued challenges for Titan, Soberano Jr. and Sammy Guevara for the 1/5 show at the Tokyo Dome.
  • A note that ROH Final Battle at the Hammerstein Ballroom is 12/20. We had at one point this past week mentioned 12/19 as the date.
  • As far as best matches of the weekend, I haven’t seen Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich from the TNA show on Friday but did see Josh Alexander vs. Steve Maclin. The fight struggle was great but the crowd being so quiet hurt. Really it feels like that’s been the case for the actual matches in WWE & AEW as well of late. I talked about the Rampage matches with Mascara Dorada & Atlantis Jr. & Katsuyori Shibata vs Top Flight & Action Andretti and Komander vs. Hechicero, which had great wrestling but crowds now are less into great action from “non-stars,” very much like WWE has been and used to be. The WCW/NWA crowds and even AEW from two years ago if two guys who aren’t stars put on a great match and the crowd would get behind it big for the action is a lot less now.  Both Rampage matches did get the crowd by the end, but they took a long time to do so.  
  • The match to see of the weekend was Mistico’s Leyenda de Plata tournament win over Hechicero. Far less flying than you’d get from a usual Arena Mexico match and a Mistico match. It was a technical match, worked like a face vs. face world title match in the 70s or 80s and that in theory is a risk for a casual tourist crowd. The tourist crowd comes for the easier to be entertained stuff that the rest of the show had, but the main event still had the most heat by far even with little flying and such a long technical match. But it worked to say the least with at least three spots where the excitement was such the building was literally shaking.
  • Some AEW ratings notes. The Wednesday Dynamite number should be out tomorrow. It should be noted that with the West Coast airing at 5 p.m. instead of 8 p.m., that would mean a roughly seven percent drop over normal. Obviously the Saturday shows outside the normal time slot in the afternoon will be way below usual. Saturday will also be hurt because we heard (and experienced it ourself) that Direc V did not record on DVR Collision if you had a season pass. It did record Rampage. I have no idea why. I don’t know if this was every home but we heard from a number of people and I checked because DirecTV screws up with Collision every few weeks so I always check and it was not going to record again. With Rampage being a Lucha show with Hechicero vs. Komander as the main event (great match but no star power) going head-to-head with Survivor Series, it would be expected to be the lowest number a regular AEW wrestling show has gotten.
  • Karl Stern of this site has written a 692 page encyclopedia on pro wrestling in the U.S. from 1835 to 1900 called “DragonKingKarl’s Pioneer Era Pro Wrestling Omnibus: The Bible Of the Pioneer Era of Pro Wrestling.” It covers every significant match in that era, talks real vs. worked, and explores myths regarding the biggest stars of that era. For more info go to WhenItWasCool.com. We’ll do a show on that era soon.
  • Shinsuke Nakamura’s U.S. title win was pushed big in NOAH because Nakamura vs. Ulka Sasaki will be on the NOAH 1/1 show at Budokan Hall. The main event is  Kaito Kiyomiya defending the GHC title against Ozawa.
  • After today’s show, Gedo has booked has B block in the NJPW tag tourney as :
    • Great O’Khan & Henare (tag champs) 4-1
    • Evil & Ren Narita 4-1
    • Toru Yano & Oleg Boltin 3-2
    • Tetsuya Naito & Hiromu Takahashi 3-2
    • Mikey Nicholls & Shane Haste 2-3
    • Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jado 2-3
    • Tome & Stevie Filip 1-4
    • Taichi & Taka Michinoku 1-4
  • The Stardom tag tournament has finished round-robin play. The playoffs start 12/7 in Hamamatsu. That show has Maika & Hanako vs. Natsuko Tora & Ruaka with the winners facing Hazuki & Koguma. Also on the other side of the bracket, Starlight Kid & Suzu Suzuki face Hanan & Saya Iida with the winners facing Natsupoi & Saori Anou.  The winner of the two semifinals meet in the finals.
  • All WWE Network subscribers in Japan have gotten notice that it will be shut down in that market at the end of the year. (thanks to Jose Gonzalez and Mori Ono)
  • The family of Gran Hamada is looking for blood donors, particularly in the San Luis Potosi area.
  • Juggalo Championship Wrestling Spanksgiving last night in Wyandotte, MI, before a sellout 225 fans: The Wrath b Bryer Wellington, Brothers of Funstruction b Young Altar Boys, Colt Cabana b Cocaine, Dani Mo b Alice Crowley in a women’s title match, Kongo Konig & 7 Foot Tall Painful Paul b Tarzan & JJ Allen, Misfit (Matt Cross) b Roddy S, Backseat Boyz b Grim Reality in a tag team title match, Caleb Konley won three-way over Moshpit Mike and Alex Taylor & Kerry Morton & Silas Mason b Willie Mack & Matt Cross  & Mickie Knuckles.  They have dates coming 12/4 in Little Rock, AR, 12/5 in St. Louis, 2/19 in Detroit at the Majestic and 12/21 in Columbus, OH.
  • Kurt Angle will be doing a seminar for House of Glory on 1/25 as well as a Q&A at the NYC Arena at 91-12 144th Place in Jamaica, NY 11435.  For more info you can email [email protected]
  • Lane Boyle, aka longtime WI indy wrestler Jack Spade, lost his house in a fire and a Go Fund Me was started for him.
  • NWA announced for 12/14 in Dothan AL, a cage match with Natalia Markova vs Tiffany Nieves, Colby Corino vs. Kerry Morton,Silas Mason vs. Bryan Idol and a second cage match for an unannounced NWA title.

Shota Umino to miss NJPW World Tag League event due to ankle injury

Posted on by Ian Carey

Shota Umino has been pulled from tomorrow’s NJPW World Tag League 2024 event.

NJPW released a statement on Saturday notifying fans that Umino suffered an ankle injury during his tournament match on November 29 in Shizuoka. Umino and his partner, Tomoaki Honma, lost to Gabe Kidd and SANADA on the show. 

Umino had been scheduled to team with Tiger Mask against KENTA and Chase Owens tomorrow in a non-tournament match in Osaka. Honma will replace him in the match. NJPW writes that Umino is undergoing treatment and is expected to return for Tuesday’s show in Kochi when he and Honma are scheduled to wrestle KENTA and Owens in tournament action. 

After five matches, Honma and Umino have a 2-3 record.

“We apologise to fans looking forward to seeing Umino wrestle, and appreciate your understanding,” NJPW1972.com wrote. 

Following the World Tag League, Umino has scheduled matches for Wrestle Kingdom and Wrestle Dynasty in the Tokyo Dome. He’ll challenge IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Zack Sabre Jr. on January 4 before wrestling Claudio Castagnoli, acting in an emissary role for Jon Moxley the following night. 

Jon Moxley says he’ll send an emissary for Shota Umino at NJPW Wrestle Dynasty

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Jon Moxley isn’t pleased with Shota Umino.

A video aired during Fighting Spirit Unleased on Friday showed Jon Moxley upset at Umino and accused him of heading down a dark path, saying he’s not mad, he’s disappointed. Moxley said he would send an emissary to the Tokyo Dome and said they would continue to work on molding Umino to become the champion Moxley knows Umino can be.

Umino already has plans for January 4 at Wrestle Kingdom 19, where it was made official this week that he would challenge Zack Sabre Jr. for the IWGP World Heavyweight title. The two had a confrontation last weekend at Power Struggle with Umino issuing the challenge. Ricochet appeared in a surprise and attacked Sabre, setting up a match for Wrestle Dynasty. Umino attempted to help Sabre up to his feet, but Sabre ended up attacking Umino in response. Umino retaliated by laying out Sabre and posing over him with the IWGP World Heavyweight title.

Moxley has served as an inspiration for Umino since his young lion days, referring to him as ‘shooter’. Umino has adopted that nickname since returning to NJPW upon the conclusion of his excursion.

AEW star issues IWGP World Heavyweight title challenge for NJPW Wrestle Dynasty

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Zack Sabre Jr. has his hands full in January.

After Shota Umino issued a challenge to Sabre following his successful IWGP World Heavyweight title defense at Power Struggle, Ricochet’s AEW music suddenly played. From behind, Ricochet springboarded off the ropes and laid out Sabre. He then cut a promo saying it’s been six years since he’s been in New Japan and wanted a shot at Sabre’s title, issuing the challenge for January 5 at Wrestle Dynasty. 

Ricochet then said he was going to give Sabre a parting gift as he went to the corner. Umino, who had left the ring, came back and made the save for Sabre. He attempted to help Sabre back on his feet, but Sabre attacked Umino in response and turned his focus back on Ricochet. An unhappy Umino then attacked Sabre and posed with the IWGP World Heavyweight title as the Wrestle Kingdom theme played.

On social media, Ricochet responded to his surprise appearance, writing: “Had to remind the world that I’m still the f****** man around here.”

After leaving WWE earlier this year, Ricochet made his debut for AEW at All In back in August. In recent weeks, he has focused on Konosuke Takeshita and the AEW International Championship, making a surprise appearance at a Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling event last month. He and a mystery partner will face Takeshita and Kyle Fletcher this Wednesday on Dynamite.

Shota Umino confirms NJPW G1 Climax 34 in-ring return

Posted on by Bryan Rose

Shota Umino is returning to action.

NJPW posted a video on social media Monday confirming that Shota Umino will be back for the start of the G1 Climax 34 tournament that begins this weekend. He had been out of action since June from back and hip injuries suffered in a match against Rocky Romero that took place last month on AEW Rampage.

“I’m announcing that I will return to the ring for the G1 Climax,” Umino said in the video. “A lot of people have given me their support for the last month. And I put all I had into rehabbing and treatment to be in the G1.”

He said this wasn’t a decision he has taken lightly, and will use this determination to help him win the upcoming tournament.

“I will come out on top of the A Block, win the G1, and then stand on the Tokyo Dome stage,” he finished.

Umino’s first match will take place on opening day, July 20, when he faces Callum Newman. The winner crowned on August 18 will earn a contract for an IWGP World Heavyweight title match that will take place at Wrestle Kingdom 19 on January 4.

Shota Umino injury update, dealing with fractured hip

Posted on by Ian Carey

An injury update on Shota Umino is available.

On Sunday, NJPW announced Umino had a back injury and would miss New Japan Soul in Sapporo later that day. Umino then posted to social media on Tuesday noting that he is also dealing with a fractured hip but intends on returning in time for the G1.

“I had a hip fracture and a strained disc. It’s the L45 disc. I also had an MRI done. I’ll somehow get back to Tokyo tomorrow. I will definitely be back by G1. I’m going to take a break for a while. Sorry.”

Our own Dave Meltzer addressed Umino’s injury in Sunday’s Daily Update, noting that Umino is believed to have suffered the injury at last Wednesday’s AEW Rampage taping in his match against Rocky Romero.

“Shota Umino missed today’s New Japan show due to a back injury that it is believed he suffered on Wednesday in AEW against Rocky Romero,” Meltzer wrote. “We had been told the referee and Doc Samson were talking about an injury to Umino after the match, although Umino did walk out on his own.”

Umino was scheduled to team with Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI on Sunday against House of Torture but the match was changed to a two-on-two bout.

A translation of NJPW’s original message announcing Umino’s injury reads:

“Shota Umino, who was scheduled to participate in the “NEW JAPAN SOUL” Sapporo tournament held today, will also be absent due to a back injury. Due to this, there will be some changes to the fight card. We apologize for the sudden announcement and thank you for your understanding.”

NJPW’s Shota Umino dealing with back injury, misses New Japan Soul

Posted on by Ian Carey

Shota Umino is dealing with an injury.

Umino was scheduled to take part in NJPW’s New Japan Soul show on Sunday in Sapporo. However, it was revealed shortly before the show began that he is out of action with a back injury.

“Shota Umino, who was scheduled to participate in the “NEW JAPAN SOUL” Sapporo tournament held today, will also be absent due to a back injury. Due to this, there will be some changes to the fight card. We apologize for the sudden announcement and thank you for your understanding,” reads a translation of NJPW’s post.

Umino was to team with Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI against House of Torture’s EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi & Dick Togo on the show. Instead, Goto and YOSHI-HASHI defeated Dick Togo & EVIL in a two-on-two tag match.

Umino’s last match was against Rocky Romero on Wednesday during AEW’s Rampage taping at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.

Full results from today’s New Japan Soul show in Sapporo are available here.

NJPW Resurgence live results: Jon Moxley vs. Shota Umino IWGP World title match

Posted on by Chick Fritts

Jon Moxley defends the IWGP World Heavyweight title Saturday in Ontario, California.

The pay-per-view event will be headlined by Jon Moxley defending the IWGP World Heavyweight title against Shota Umino. Moxley took Umino under his wing when he started in the company as a young lion. Moxley has said that the final lesson for “Shooter” will take place Saturday.

Five other title matches will take place at Resurgence. Gabe Kidd will challenge Eddie Kingston for the Strong Openweight Championship, the final title Kingston holds that was part of the Continental Crown. Stephanie Vaquer, the Strong Women’s Champion, will defend against Alex Windsor. Shingo Takagi will defend the NEVER Openweight title against Yuya Uemura.

Other title matches have Jeff Cobb defending the NJPW World Television title against Lance Archer and TMDK defending the Strong Tag Team titles against Hikuleo and El Phantasmo. In a special singles match, Hiroshi Tanahashi will face Zack Sabre Jr.

Join us for live coverage starting at 10 pm ET.

Buy-In Results

Matt Vandagriff defeated Adrian Quest

Mustafa Ali defeated Lio Rush

House Of Torture (EVIL, Jack Perry & Ren Narita) defeated CHAOS (Rocky Romero & Tomohiro Ishii) & The DKC

As the match began, Perry received some “CM Punk” chants. These were short-lived, especially as the babyfaces took control.

The early babyface lead came to an end once DKC became legal. HoT worked together, isolating DKC and eventually forcing the hot tag to Ishii. Ishii had a short rally against HoT, but they retook the lead by taking advantage of a distracted referee and a rope.

The babyfaces rallied again once Rocky tagged in, but again, HoT used weapons to keep ahead. This forced all of the babyfaces into the ring. In order to clear the ring, Perry choked Ishii with a cord while Narita held DKC back with his torture bar. Evil then hit Rocky with Everything is Evil to win the match.

The West Coast Wrecking Crew (Jorel Nelson & Royce Isaacs) defeated Dirty Work (Fred Rosser & Tom Lawlor)

This match opened with a brawl on the floor. Once the match entered the ring, Lawlor tossed around Isaacs with towel-assisted drags.

Isaacs began to turn the match around once Rosser tagged in, utilizing strong throws and suplexes to establish a lead. From here, WCWC worked together to maintain this lead, isolating Rosser in the process.

A hot tag to Lawlor turned the match back around. He unloaded on Isaacs with punches before turning to kicks. A knee strike scored Lawlor a two-count before he tagged back to Rosser.

Again, as soon as Rosser was legal, WCWC retook the lead. Rosser survived the offense but was forced to take on both of his opponents. After hitting a double clothesline, Rosser tagged back to Lawlor.

Lawlor and Rosser hit tandem forearms. Rosser then Nelson into Lawlors knees, leaving Lawlor free to lock in a deep choke. Isaacs eventually broke up the hold, leading to a match breakdown.

WCWC emerged from the fog with momentum. They used their lead to unload on Rosser with tandem offense before throwing him to the floor. Isaacs then hit Lawlor with a piledriver, and Nelson followed up with a top rope elbow drop. Isaacs pinned Lawlor to win the match.

NJPW STRONG Openweight Tag Team Championship: Guerrillas Of Destiny (El Phantasmo & Hikuleo) defeated TMDK (Mikey Nicholls & Shane Haste) (c)

Early on, TMDK worked together to ground Hikuleo. Once ELP tagged in, TMDK continued their tandem offense to maintain the advantage. After dropping ELP with a DDT to the floor, Haste and Nicholls easily maintained their lead.

A hot tag to Hikuleo allowed GoD to gain control over TMDK. Hikuleo grounded Nicholls, setting up a moonsault from ELP. Once Nicholls kicked out, Haste hit the ring, leading to a short breakdown.

TMDK dropped Hikuleo, forcing him to roll to the floor. ELP then rushed TMDK, only to eat the power bottom. ELP kicked out, but TMDK maintained their lead long enough to hit another tandem finish; this time, Hikuleo broke up the pin.

With Hikuleo’s help, ELP gained control in the ring. Hikuleo then choke-slammed Haste, setting up ELP’s assisted Thunder Kiss. ELP landed the splash and pinned Haste to win the match. 

GoD are once again tag team champions.

NJPW STRONG Women’s championship: Stephanie Vaquer (c) defeated Alex Windsor

This was a fantastic match. Every single time Vaquer is in a New Japan ring, it ends with me thinking she’s the best in the world.

The match opened with a back-and-forth grappling sequence; Vaquer managed to take control of this exchange. In an attempt to maintain her lead, Vaquer climbed to the rope, but Windsor pulled her legs from underneath, sending Vaquer crashing to the mat. This opened the door for a strong stent of Windsor control.

Vaquer fired back with a flurry of headbutts. She followed up with a suplex before quickly slamming Windsor’s head into the mat. Vaquer landed a leg drop for a nearfall.

Windsor answered Vaquer with headbutts of her own. She then hit a clothesline and a massive DDT to establish a lead. A dropkick from the top rope scored Windsor a two-count.

Windsor landed a slam before locking in a sharpshooter in the center of the ring. Vaquer escaped to the bottom rope but fell to another clothesline moments later.

Vaquer fought her way back into the match with a sudden dragonscrew. She then landed a running knee strike and dropped Windsor across her knee to win the match.

Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito & Yota Tsuji) defeated BULLET CLUB (David Finlay & KENTA) 

The match kicked off with the LIJ pair working together to isolate Finlay. This prompted KENTA to get involved, turning the match around for BC after a short beatdown outside the ring. From here, BC would continue to cheat to maintain control of the match.

Tsuji tagged into the match and tried to turn the match around for LIJ. This led to a back-and-forth exchange between himself and Finlay, in which Tsuji used to take the lead momentarily. Finlay caught Tsuji with a lariat to reset the match.

KENTA and Naito rejoined the match, leading to another back and forth. KENTA managed to take control, prompting Finlay to join him in the ring. Together, Finlay and KENTA floored Naito. Tsuji joined the scramble, dropping Finlay with a stomp. KENTA was able to clear Finlay from the ring, but this gave Naito enough recovery time to land the DDT.

Naito tried for Destino, but KENTA avoided the finish. Looking to bring the match to an end, Tsuji hit KENTA with a knee strike and tossed him back to Naito. Naito attempted Destino again, and this time it connected. Naito then pinned KENTA to win the match.

Fantastica-Mania 2024 Lucha Libre USA

A short video package played to announce Fantastica-Mania would be coming to San Jose later this summer. On July 13th, CMLL and NJPW will run a joint show at San Jose Civic Auditorium.

Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi

The opening feeling-out sequence saw Tanahashi take control of the match with a crossbody. Once he stopped to play to the crowd, ZSJ attacked the leg, flipping the match on its head. ZSJ then brutalized the leg, taking the lead while keeping Tanahashi grounded.

ZSJ maintained control for quite a while, locking Tanahashi in a variety of holds. Eventually Tanahashi landed a dropkick to the leg, opening the door for a rally. Tanahashi landed a sling blade and a standing High Fly Flow. ZSJ rolled through and dropped Tanahashi with a PK to reset the match.

A rapid sequence of back-and-forth pins nearly ended the match. ZSJ landed a sling blade and a neck crank to ground Tanahashi once more. ZSJ then picked up Tanahashi, landed the Zack Driver, and pinned him to win the match.

NJPW World Television Championship: Jeff Cobb (c) defeated Lance Archer

The match opened with a sudden Spanish fly from Cobb. He tried to follow up with Tour of the Islands, but Archer escaped. Cobb kept up the pace, however, landing a suplex that forced Archer to the floor.

Archer used the ring crew to slow down Cobb, leading to a scrap on the outside. Archer landed a chokeslam against the apron to secure control.

Cobb eventually hit a suplex to reset the match. A back-and-forth strike exchange followed, ending with a standing moonsault from Cobb. After kicking out, Archer tried for the EBD claw, but Cobb escaped. Archer still managed to hit a slam, which he followed with Blackout for a convincing nearfall.

Jeff Cobb landed a spin cycle to put Archer back on the backfoot. Archer tried to answer with his ropewalk dive. Cobb pulled him down and into the Tour of the Islands to win the match.

After Cobb won, Tomohiro Ishii walked to the ring to challenge Cobb.

NEVER Openweight Championship: Shingo Takagi (c) defeated Yuya Uemura

I was not a fan of this match at all. Shingo tried, but all of Uemura’s work felt uninspired and completely lacked urgency.

This match opened with some basic grappling. Shingo won out before taking the fight to the floor. He dropped Uemura on the concrete before returning to the ring. Back inside, Takagi maintained his lead, wearing down Uemura with basic offense.

Uemura eventually hit a suplex to reset the match. He established a small lead of his own before Shingo met him on the top rope. Uemura managed to fight Shingo off and land a high cross body for a two count.

Shingo dropped Uemura on his face to retake control. He then threw Uemura into the corner before taking his head off with a quick lariat. The follow-up elbow drop and powerbomb scored a nearfall. A massive superplex from Shingo scored another.

A striking battle allowed Uemura to regain some footing. After a Euranage, Uemura managed to set up the deadbolt suplex. Shingo avoided the finish, reversing into a drop to reset the match once again. Shingo landed Made in Japan for a convincing nearfall. 

Shingo hit another lariat, but Uemura reversed the Last of the Dragon into a Deadbolt suplex for a nearfall. A frog splash from Uemura resulted in another. Uemura avoided a pumping bomber, which he followed with a quick pin to achieve a more convincing false finish. 

In the end, Shingo would go for a final pumping bomber. Uemura ducked, and both men ran at each other once more. This time, Shingo hit a partial lariat and fell into the cover, earning Shingo the pinfall victory.

NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship No Rope Last Man Standing Match: Gabe Kidd defeated Eddie Kingston (c)

This. Was. Wild.

Without any exaggeration, Gabe Kidd and Eddie Kingston are the two best wrestlers in the world today when it comes to having a hate-filled match. It really felt as if these men loathe each other’s existence.

Kidd started the match with an immediate flying knee. Eddie fired back with strikes. Kidd answered with some of his own, leading to a brief chop exchange.

A strike across the face sent Kidd crashing to the floor. Eddie tried to follow him only to eat a chair shot for trying to pursue Eddie. This busted Eddie open, only furthering Kidd’s excitement. 

Kidd dropped Kingston with a forearm wrapped in chain. As Eddie tried to return to his feet, Kidd unloaded on him before attacking him with the hook attached to the turnbuckle. 

Kidd tried for a suplex, but Eddie reversed, shoving Kidd into the post while busting him open. Eddie then grabbed the chain used by Kidd earlier, which he used to strangle Kidd. Eddie followed up by using a variety of weapons, from trashcans to stop signs.

Kingston tried for a suplex against the trashcan, but Kidd reversed into one of his own. Kidd then filled the ring with more furniture, from chairs to a ladder. Kidd then grabbed a barbed wire-wrapped chair which he piledrove Kingston on to.

With the match won, Kidd pulled Kingston to his knees to break the referee’s count. Kingston fired back with chops that sent Kidd into a barbed wire chair. Kingston followed up with a curb stomp and a ladder-based attack.

Kidd barley beat the count after being suplexed onto a ladder. Eddie then went to the floor, where he grabbed a table. Eddie destroyed the ringside area to set up his table. He then dropped Kidd with a pair of back fists but stopped the referee from counting to ten.

Eddie went to the floor, where he grabbed a pair of handcuffs. Eddie then handcuffed himself to Kidd and launched into an intense striking battle. Kidd then landed a horrific suplex through a table and into the barricade. Kidd beat the count to win the match.

Gabe Kidd, for the first time in his career, is a singles champion in New Japan.

After the match, Eddie struggled to return to his feet. He reached for his leg, which impacted the barricade.

Eddie eventually hobbled his way into the ring. With the ramp in shot, Jack Perry walked out. This distracted Kingston, allowing the AEW World Tag team champions, The Young Bucks, to attack Eddie.

For the first time in five years, The Young Bucks are in New Japan.

Matt Jackson cut a promo over Eddie before dropping him with an EVP trigger.

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Jon Moxley (c) defeated Shota Umino

I was pretty excited for this match going in, but I think it under delivered. The pacing was quite sluggish after the opening sequence, and they repeatedly played into strange tropes but were never really dedicated to them. Not great.

Umino attacked Moxley ahead of the opening bell, leading to a dive moments into the match. In the ring, Umino kept up the pace, connecting with a slew of strikes in the corner. 

The match worked its way to the floor, where Moxley drove Umino into the ramp. Back in the ring, Umino fired back, swearing at Moxley before dropping him with a forearm. Umino then hammered Moxley with the BCC’s signature elbows.

The pair fought into the corner. Moxley climbed to the top, but Umino caught him with a pair of kicks, one to the head and one to the right leg. Umino then began to work on Moxley’s leg on the outside. After landing a dropkick to the knee into the barricade, Umino pulled Moxley inside and worked over the limb on the mat.

In an attempt to fight back into the match, Moxley hit a tope that sent Umino crashing into the barricade. Moxley then launched into an attack on the outside, slamming Umino into the corner post and the barricade. It became clear here that Moxley would focus on Umino’s arm in response to Umino’s leg work.

Moxley worked Umino’s arm in the ring for quite a while before hitting a piledriver for a nearfall. Moxley then went to the outside and grabbed a table. Back inside, Umino hit a dropkick before driving Moxley into the apron. Moxley rolled onto the table to retreat. This left Umino free to land an elbow drop from the top rope through the table on the floor.

Moxley barely beat the count, only to eat a top rope drop kick and a suplex as soon as he entered the ring. Umino followed up with a number of his signatures, but Moxley held on, landing a cutter in response. 

Moxley tried for a choke, but Umino reversed into an STF. Moxley and Umino continued to go back and forth like this for a while before Umino hoisted Moxley to the top rope. Umino dropped Moxley with an avalanche driver but missed the blaze blade. Moxley responded with a DDT, but Umino followed with a forearm, knocking down both men.

Umino began to unload on Moxley with a barrage of strikes. Moxley fought back, leading to an intense back and forth, ending with a Moxley lariat right at the 30-minute mark. Moxley then hit a Death Rider, but Umino kicked out at two.

Umino began to fight back, hitting a satellite DDT and a brainbuster for a nearfall of his own. Umino then hit his own Death Rider for a convincing nearfall. Umino landed a Blaze Blade and pulled Moxley to his feet for another Death Rider of his own.

Moxley avoided Umino’s attempt for Death Rider, reversing into a curb stomp. He followed up with another Death Rider, which, this time, was enough to win the match.

After the match, EVIL and Ren Narita of House of Torture attacked Moxley and Umino. EVIL then challenged Moxley to a title match. EVIL then changed his mind, calling himself the real champion and Moxley would need to challenge him. EVIL then spray painted the IWGP belt black and stood over Moxley.

Oh boy.

NJPW Power Struggle live results: Ospreay vs. Umino, Moxley vs. Great-O-Khan

Posted on by Chick Fritts

Will Ospreay vs. Shota Umino for the IWGP US/UK Heavyweight Championship headlines NJPW Power Struggle today in Osaka. 

Ospreay will be looking for his third successful defense of the US/UK title, while Umino will aim for his first title victory in NJPW. 

Two more title matches, the Super Junior Tag League Finals, plus a special Jon Moxley singles match are also set for the show. 

Hiromu Takahashi will defend the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Taiji Ishimori in the semi-main event, and Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tomohiro Ishii will defend the NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team titles against TMDK’s Zack Sabre Jr, Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls. 

In the Super Jr. Tag League finals, TJP & Francesco Akira face SHO & Yoshinobu Kanemaru. 

Jon Moxley takes on United Empire’s Great-O-Khan in singles competition, while Tanga Loa faces David Finlay in another special singles bout., SANADA & Yuya Uemura take on Tetsuya Naito & Yota Tsuji in a tag team bout. 

Tama Tonga, KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight face Shingo Takagi, BUSHI & Titan in trios action. 

It will be El Desperado & Master Wato vs. YOH & MUSASHI vs. Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney vs. Robbie Eagles & Kosei Fujita in a four-way tag team bout. 

Jeff Cobb & Callum Newman vs. Yuto Nakashima & Oskar Leube kicks off the main card. 

Ryusuke Taguchi, Boltin Oleg & The DKC vs. Strong Machine J, Yoshiki Kato & Mochizuki Jr. in a Frontier Zone match is the 3:30 a.m. Eastern time pre-show bout.

**********

Ryusuke Taguchi, Boltin Oleg & The DKC (NJPW) defeated Strong Machine J, Yoshiki Kato & Mochizuki Jr. (Dragongate)

Oleg opened the match, gaining an advantage over Machine J and the rest of the Dragongate trio. Eventually, the match broke down, giving the Dragongate trio a chance to bounce back. The breakdown ended with a Taguchi ankle lock, resulting in a New Japan win.

Jeff Cobb & Callum Newman (United Empire) defeated Oskar Leube & Yuto Nakashima

This was a simple, effective tag match, and a good way to open the show.

Newman and Nakashima opened the match with a decent exchange, allowing the U.E. pair to gain an early lead. The Young Lion team fired back by isolating Cobb, but the strength of Cobb enabled him to buck off both men. Newman landed a tope, setting Cobb up for a match-ending Tour of the Islands on Leube.

El Desperado & Master Wato defeated YOH & MUSASHI, Kosei Fujita & Robbie Eagles, Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors

This match had its moments, but it was far too busy for me to enjoy.

This match opened with the War Dogs rushing their opponents, gaining a brief upper hand. A match breakdown followed, but again, the War Dogs emerged from the fog with a lead. Wato avoided a hit and run, allowing YOH and MUSASHI to hit the ring, clearing out the War Dogs for the first time.

YOH and MUSASHI were interrupted by TMDK, who gained control of the ring. While Eagles was working on MUSASHI, Desperado rolled up Fujita to score a sudden win.

Tama Tonga, KUSHIDA, Kevin Knight defeated Shingo Takagi, BUSHI, & Titan

The match opened with an athletic exchange between Titan and Knight. The pace was maintained after KUSHIDA tagged in, leading to everyone else in the match getting involved.

Shingo wore down KUSHIDA, opening Tama up for a hot tag. Tama hit the ring, taking a solid lead over Shingo. Shingo fired back with a strike exchange and a suplex before tagging out to BUSHI.

BUSHI took on Knight and KUSHIDA before hitting Tama with a tope. Back in the ring, Tama fired back with an uppercut, prompting Shingo to interrupt. This led to a match breakdown with all six men involved. Once the ring was cleared, Tama dropped BUSHI with a gun stun to win the match.

Tetsuya Naito & Yota Tsuji defeated SANADA & Yuya Uemura

Yuya and Tsuji started slow before SANADA tagged in. Tsuji then worked with Naito to isolate SANADA, establishing a strong lead. After prolonged LIJ control, Yuya received a hot tag, resetting the match.

Yuya and Tsuji worked a steady back-and-forth match for some time, selling the effects from the rest of the match. Yuya landed three suplexes, putting Tsuji on the backfoot. Naito answered Yuya’s advance by hitting the ring, prompting SANADA to follow. Naito was able to fight off SANADA but not Yuya, but his distraction was enough. Tsuji hit Yuya with a Gene Blast and pinned him to win the match.

David Finlay defeated Tanga Loa

Finlay opened the match by attacking Loa on the outside. This led to an extended brawl centered around environmental offense. After having a heaping pile of furniture placed on him, Loa beat the count and returned to the ring.

It didn’t take long for Loa to take the action back outside, where he utilized similar tactics to put Finlay on the backfoot. Finlay survived, leading to a back-and-forth strike exchange. Finlay held on again, this time landing a powerbomb to reset the match.

Finlay attempted to hit Loa with his shillelagh, but Loa avoided the attack. Loa followed up with a bossman slam for a nearfall, but Finlay bumped the referee to stop any further advance. Finlay then hit Loa with his shillelagh and Oblivion to win the match.

Jon Moxley defeated Great-O-Khan

This was a hoot.

As the match began, O-Khan threw Moxley to the floor and launched an attack on the outside. Moxley and O-Khan brawled outside long enough for the referee’s count to reach twenty.

After the double count out, Moxley grabbed a microphone and challenged O-Khan to a falls count anywhere match. O-Khan agreed by hitting Moxley with a barricade.

The fight immediately worked its way down the aisle, where O-Khan suplexed Moxley through a barricade. O-Khan followed up by placing Moxley on a cart and driving him through a sea of fans. O-Khan then wrapped Moxley up with a mat and slammed him with a stack of barricades.

Moxley, now pouring blood, fought back, throwing O-Khan into a section of empty chairs. Then, on the ramp, Moxley attempted a Death Rider, but O-Khan reversed into one of his own. O-Khan then locked in a choke, re-establishing his lead.

O-Khan attempted an eliminator off the ramp, but Moxley reversed, shoving him onto the floor. Moxley then revealed a pair of scissors that he used to cut off O-Khan’s signature braid. O-Khan, now enraged, leaped on Moxley, leading to a back-and-forth submission sequence on the floor.

Once both men returned to their feet, they engaged in a strike exchange that looked more like a Shoot Boxing tribute than a modern piece of puro. After connecting with a barrage of elbows, Moxley hit O-Khan with a lariat, leading to a more traditional pro wrestling back-and-forth. O-Khan won out and drove Moxley into the floor for a nearfall.

Moxley retreated to the top of the bleachers from where he shoved O-Khan, sending him toppling back to the floor. Back at the bottom, Moxley landed a Death Rider and locked in a choke, leading to the end of the match.

NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Championship: Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, & Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) defeated Zack Sabre Jr., Shane Haste, & Mikey Nicholls (TMDK)

No surprise here; this was great.

ZSJ and Ishii started with a slick back-and-forth, with neither man gaining a lead, forcing a double tag. Nicholls and Tanahashi then entered the ring, and with Haste’s help, TMDK took control of the match.

After a long period of isolation, Tanahashi tagged out to Okada, who ran through all of TMDK, taking complete control of the match. Eventually, TMDK rushed Okada in tandem to keep him from running away further. This tactic forced Okada to tag out, leading to another Ishii/ZSJ encounter.

ZSJ hit Ishii with a suplex, but Ishii answered with a lariat. ZSJ tried taking the match to the floor over and over, but Ishii responded with stiff strikes. It didn’t take long for both men to be knocked to the mat.

Tanahashi tagged in, gaining a quick lead on ZSJ. The rest of TMDK hit the ring, leading to a chaotic period of back-and-forths. ZSJ eventually dragged Tanahashi to the floor, where he locked in a hold that forced Ishii to interfere. This caused another match breakdown, even more chaotic than the last.

After a prolonged back-and-forth, ZSJ floored Tanahashi with a penalty kick; Tanahashi kicked out. ZSJ then attempted a Zack Driver, but Tanahashi reversed into a sudden pin, resulting in another successful dream team defense.

After the match, the lights cut off for a Bryan Danielson video package. Danielson challenged Okada to a one-on-one match, January 4th, Tokyo Dome. Okada answered with a “yes”, setting up the rematch at the biggest show of the year.

Super Junior Tag Leauge Final: TJP & Francesco Akira (Catch 2/2) defeated SHO & Yoshinobu Kanemaru (House of Torture)

Before the match could begin, HoT attacked Catch 2/2. Catch 2/2 held on, gaining a short lead as the match officially began. After the opening bell, HoT retook the lead by bringing the fight to the floor, using the barricades and concrete.

Back in the ring, HoT maintained their lead by any means necessary. After isolating TJP for some time, Akira hit the ring, leading a quick sequence to retake the lead, but it didn’t take long for HoT to steal the advantage back.

After hitting a superplex and a powerbreaker, Kanemaru locked Akira in a Boston crab. TJP made the save with a splash. TJP’s rally was shortlived as referee bump allowed the rest of HoT to hit the ring. Jeff Cobb ran to the aid of Catch 2/2, carrying HoT to the back after laying them out.

Back in the ring, Akira dropped SHO and Kanemaru with a pair of superkicks. Without the threat of interference, TJP and Akira were able to land their tandem knee, winning the match and Tag League. 

After the match, the junior champions hit the ring, laid out Catch 2/2, and cut a promo over their bodies. Before the War Dogs could inflict more punishment, United Empire hit the ring, sending the champs running.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: Hiromu Takahashi (c) defeated Taiji Ishimori

The match opened with both men attempting quick pins before spilling to the outside. On the outside, Hiromu drove Ishimori into the barricade with a dropkick. Ishimori answered by dropping Hiromu on the barricade, resulting in a near countout.

Back in the ring, Ishimori began to pick apart Hiromu. Hiromu sped the match up, using a DVD to put Ishimori on the backfoot. Hiromu followed up with a Timebomb 1.5. Hiromu attempted Victory Royal, but Ishimori reversed into a LeBell lock.

After escaping, Hiromu landed a lariat, but Ishimori responded by putting Hiromu in a bone lock. After a prolonged struggle, Hiromu reached the bottom rope. A brief back-and-forth followed, ending after Hiromu trapped Ishimori in a Hiromu roll to win the match and retain his belt.

After the match, Desperado came out to challenge Hiromu for his belt.

IWGP UK Heavyweight Championship: Will Ospreay (c) defeated Shota Umino

This match opened with a standard feeling-out process that favored Ospreay. The pair soon worked their way to the floor, where Ospreay set up a table. Umino avoided being driven through the table and returned to the ring.

Back in the ring, Ospreay maintained his lead. Ospreay was more than commanding, spitting on Umino before kicking him in the nose, drawing a stream of blood. The blood woke Umino up, prompting him to attack Ospreay before driving him into the apron. Umino took Ospreay to the floor himself, kicking him into a barricade before throwing him into a sea of chairs.

Umino hit Ospreay with a table before attempting a Death Rider. Ospreay avoided the DDT, saving the match. Back in the ring, Ospreay caught Umino with a powerbomb. Ospreay then attempted an OsCutter, but Umino answered with a dropkick. Umino followed up with a pair of cutters for a nearfall.

Ospreay hit a Spanish fly to reset the match. A follow-up boot and dive yielded Ospreay a nearfall. Umino tried escaping on the apron, but Ospreay pursued him. Ospreay lifted Umino on the apron, landing a Tiger Driver through two tables. Back in the ring, Ospreay hit an OsCutter; Umino kicked out. Ospreay hit a hidden blade; Umino kicked out.

Umino made his way to his feet, leading to a brief strike exchange. Ospreay dodged a punch, sending Umino to the floor. Umino stood up again, prompting Ospreay to kick him repeatedly. Once Umino fell, Ospreay hammered him with strikes on the ground. Instead of kicking out, Umino spit in his face.

With Umino on the edge of defeat, Jon Moxley came to the ring, encouraging him to hold on. Umino kicked Ospreay off and dropped him with a lariat. With Ospreay on the ground, Umino locked in an STF. Once Ospreay escaped, he attempted Storm Breaker, but Umino reversed into a DDT for a nearfall.

Another DDT kept Umino ahead of Ospreay late in the match. A spinning Death Rider scored Umino a nearfall. Umino then hoisted Ospreay to the top rope and landed a massive avalanche Death Rider; Ospreay kicked out.

Umino mounted Ospreay and clubbed him across the face. When Ospreay failed to defend himself, the referee initiated a standing ten count that Ospreay beat at nine. Umino hit him with another Death Rider, but Ospreay bounced back with an immediate hidden blade.

With both men grounded, they began trading headbutts. The pair worked their way to their feet, trading punches all the way up. Ospreay tried for a Storm Breaker, but Umino reversed into a flipping powerbomb. Ospreay hit another hidden blade, but Umino kicked out at one. Ospreay didn’t waste time, landing a death rider of his own, followed by a storm driver; Umino kicked out. To close, Ospreay landed another hidden blade and a Storm Breaker just past the 40 minute mark.

After the match, Ospreay and Moxley squared off, but they were interrupted by David Finlay. After Finlay laid them out, he cut a promo saying their belts were meaningless. He then took a large mallet and destroyed both the IWGP UK and US belts.