NJPW New Beginning in Sapporo 2019 Day 2 Results and Review

After a packed day one of The New Beginning In Sapporo, NJPW brought an even bigger card for day two. Along with three title matches, including Naito versus Taichi, this card had five other matches. Let’s look at the second night.

Yota Tsuji vs. Toa Henare

The first match was a Young Lion versus Toa Henare match. Yota Tsuji nearly fell over when running down the ramp in this venue. To be fair, the ramp has tons of level changes. Henare’s first big move in the match was a Samoan Drop, with a kickout at two afterwards. Tsuji started to get on a roll, landing a dropkick and then a Boston Crab. Henare escaped, making it to the ropes. Henare reversed a move from Tsuji, landing a takedown. They traded slaps, ending with Henare giving Tsuji a headbutt. Henare did a clothesline off the ropes for a close kickout. Henare finally put away Tsuji with a Rock Bottom. Not a bad match. I wonder when Henare will finally escape these Young Lion matches.

Shota Umino & Ayato Yoshida vs. Tiger Mask & Manabu Nakanishi

The next match was a classic Young Lions versus veterans bout. Nakanishi gave Shota a Standing Splash for a two count. Umino got a big pop from the crowd when he landed a slam on Nakanishi. As everyone else was outside the ring, Tiger Mask had a leg move on Yoshida. Luckily he reached the ropes. Mask landed a Tiger Driver, but Umino broke up the count. Tiger Mask did a Superplex onto Yoshida to end the match.

TAKA Michinoku & Takashi Iizuka vs. Ren Narita & Hiroyoshi Tenzan

Before the next match, Iizuka and TAKA made their chaotic walk to the ring from through the crowd. They faced Ren Narita and Hiroyoshi Tenzan. The match started outside the ring, with Iizuka putting chairs on Tenzan. Narita and TAKA battled in the ring until Tenzan got the hot tag after Narita landed a Slam. Tenzan was on a roll until his brainbuster was reversed. Iizuka tried taking out his iron glove but Narita stopped it from happening. Tenzan went to the top, but got kicked off by TAKA. Iizuka had the iron glove slid to him and landed it, making the ref end the match via DQ. Iizuka got a mic after the match and strangled Tenzan with it. The crowd popped for him grabbing the mic because they thought he would speak. Tenzan passed out from the microphone. The crowd applauded afterwards, I assume because Iizuka will retire on the 21st.

Tomoaki Honma, Toru Yano, Togi Makabe & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Yujiro Takahashi, Tanga Loa, Tama Tonga & Bad Luck Fale w/ Jado

The next match worked as a preview for Taguchi versus Ishimori, which will happen later down the line. Why does the NEVER Openweight Title look so comically small? We’ll never know the answer. Taguchi and Ishimori got separate entrances from their teams. Tonga kept doing his comedy gimmick of being the good guy. This is a good gimmick but I feel there’s no progression with it, just the same thing every match. Honma landed his Kokeshi on Takahashi, and then gave Makabe a hot tag. He did his punches and laugh in the corner on Yujiro. Later on, Taguchi put Taiji in an Ankle Lock that got broken up. He put it back in once everyone cleared out. The ref got taken down, letting Jado hit Taguchi in the head with a kendo stick. Yano got tagged in and undid a corner pad. Of course he was the one who ended up going into it. Tonga protested this. Against his will, Tonga was thrown into Yano while being the illegal man. Jado got on the apron, distracting the ref. Tonga stopped a kendo stick spot, which leg Yano hit a low blow and a roll-up to win the match.

Chase Owens, Bad Luck Fale & Jay White w/ Gedo vs. YOSHI-HASHI, Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi

This match was an extended version of last night’s main event, with Chase Owens and YOSHI-HASHI being added to the match. Okada had a good exchange with Fale, landing a slam. He then tried for a Tombstone Piledriver, but couldn’t land it. He did land a Back Body Drop though. He called for a Rainmaker but didn’t get it, getting hit with a Samoan Drop. HASHI got a close count on White after a Neckbreaker. White also got a kickout with a Death Valley Driver. Okada stopped a Blade Runner attempt. HASHI landed a clothesline on White and then a Fisherman Buster for a very close pinfall attempt. The crowd was unglued for this. He went to the top for a move but White put his knees up. White put in the reverse Figure Four to win the match. He calls it the TTO (Tanahashi Tap Out). HASHI tapped out to end the match. Everyone brawled after the match. Gedo got slapped by Tanahashi. White kicked Tanahashi’s injured knee once and then landed a Blade Runner. White walked out with Tanahashi’s belt. This Jay White build has been truly amazing.

El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Shingo Takagi & BUSHI (IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match)

The first of three championship matches on this card was for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team titles. Kanemaru and BUSHI were defending their belts. They came out very dressed up for this bout. Togi Makabe joined the Japanese commentary team. The match had some pretty good moves throughout. They kept a pretty quick pace. BUSHI and Desperado traded blows at one point, with BUSHI getting the upper hand then then tagging in Kanemaru. Kanemaru and Takagi fought each other. Kanemaru landed a DDT after pushing the ref out of the way. Kanemaru landed a Moonsault for a two. He went to the second rope and tried for a Deep Impact, but it got reversed into a Belly-to-Belly German Suplex. Takagi landed another after. He landed an impressive Death Valley Driver, catching Kanemaru mid-move. He then tried for Last of the Dragon, but it got reversed into a Sunset Flip. Takagi landed a clothesline for a count but then Desperado pulled the ref out. Desperado tried to use a chair but instead was hit with it. Kanemaru tried for a Satori Surprise but was blocked by the chair. BUSHI then gave Kanemaru his mist. BUSHi did a Suicida to Desperado, letting Takagi do a Pumping Bomber which Kanemaru kicked out of. BUSHI and Takagi landed the double team move “Rebellion” to win the match and retain. Great work in this contest by all of them. This reign can really help Takagi as he has only been with the company for a short amount of time. I hope they get a few more months out of this reign at least. Desperado was unmasked after the match by BUSHI, with his mask being thrown into the crowd.

Zack Sabre Jr. & Minoru Suzuki w/ TAKA Michinoku vs. SANADA & EVIL (IWGP Tag Team Championship Match)

The second Suzuki-gun versus Los Ingobernables match was ZSJ and Suzuki challenging SANADA and EVIL for their tag belts. As EVIL was getting his name announced, they were attacked. Suzuki attacked EVIL with a barricade and chairs in the first few rows of the crowd. SANADA made it in at the 19 count. ZSJ had SANADA in the ring in a submission move that he escaped, but he had no help since Suzuki was targeting EVIL at ringside. Suzuki and ZSJ tried for dual piledrivers but both got reversed into big moves from LIJ. The duo hit a Magic Killer on Suzuki, but ZSJ broke up the pin. SANADA tried for a Skull End but Suzuki got out of it. Suzuki got hit with another Magic Killer, and then SANADA did a Moonsault off the top to win the match. Wow, it looks like no belts are moving on this show. This was a good match, with a little less exciting of a finish compared to the match before. Not going to lie, I was starting to get a little burnt out at this point. We were approaching the three hour mark, and we were watching the second of three long matches.

Taichi w/ Miho Abe vs. Tetsuya Naito (IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match)

The main event of the evening was Taichi versus Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP IC title. As Naito was making his walk down the ramp, Takashi Iizuka came and hit him with a ladder. Taichi acted innocent as if he didn’t expect that this would happen. On the ramp Taichi landed Black Mephisto on the ramp. Naito was down on the ramp for a long time, getting checked out by doctors and Young Lions. Taichi got on the mic and got some boos. They carried Naito through the corner aisle, and disappeared. Taichi went up to the Japanese commentary team, where Makabe got up and considered fighting him. There was a few awkward few minutes where Taichi walked around doing bits. I thought maybe he was improvising. After a while the announcer told the crowd that the doctor was checking on Naito. Referees and NJPW employees came out and delegated. Eventually we saw a limping Naito be helped out by BUSHI. The match became official, and it started.

Five minutes into the match, Taichi gave Naito a great Clothesline on the apron that made him go upside down. Taichi took out a table and set it up at ringside. Taichi tried for a move onto it but Naito stopped it. Naito did a great piledriver through the table. Taichi got in the ring at the 18 count. Naito went to the top rope to land a Huricanrana that got a two count. Taichi did a side-suplex and then did the tear off of his long pants. He landed a Clothesline after an exchange. Naito landed a Gloria for the two count. Naito tried for the Destino, but then Iizuka came back. He attacked BUSHI, and then got on the apron. Naito threw him into a guardrail at ringside. Taichi picked up the IC title in the ring and tried to hit Naito with it but couldn’t. Naito put down the title and picked up Taichi’s microphone stand. He hit him with the microphone. Naito tried using the mic for the third time but was hit with a chair from Taichi. Naito was hit so hard with a chairshot to the head that it scared me. I didn’t catch what happened to the ref that made him absent this whole time. Naito kicked out once again after Taichi hit a side suplex.

Taichi attempted another Black Mephisto but it got reversed into a move. Naito tried for a Destino but it got stopped. Taichi pushed the ref and then kicked Naito in the groin. He tried for a roll-up but wasn’t successful. This was an spectacular combo. Taichi did a Superkick for a very late kick out. Taichi tried for a Powerbomb but Naito slipped out. He shoved the ref, kicked Taichi in the groin, then did a Destino that got kicked out of. Yes, I said that right. A Destino was kicked out of. Another Destino got reversed, but then Naito did a Reverse Huricanrana. Naito did a Brainbuster for a two count. For the last time, Naito landed a Destino to end the match.

This was a truly great main event. You know, I didn’t know how I’d feel about this match. I thought the gap between Naito and Taichi wouldn’t make this match believable. And while there was that gap, the attack at the start made it all make sense. The attack made it so that Taichi actually had a chance. Taichi came out of this match looking better than he did before, in my opinion. This was a great main event, and a not bad show overall. NJPW returns on the 9th for their next Road to show.

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NJPW Road to The New Beginning Day 4 2019 Results and Review

The third and final taped night of The New Beginning nights moved locations and included a title match. Let’s get into night four.

Day 2 Recap (With Day 1 Results)

Day 3 Recap

Shota Umino & Ayato Yoshida vs. Yota Tsuji & Toa Henare

The first match was a Young Lion contest set for fifteen minutes. Umino and Henare got hot tags early in this match. Tsuji gave Umino a Boston Crab but Yoshida broke it up. Shota put Tsuji in a Boston Crab of his own, but Tsuji made it to the ropes. He then landed a Missile Dropkick off the top rope, and then a Fisherman Suplex for the win.

Tiger Mask & Manabu Nakanishi vs. Ren Narita & Hiroyoshi Tenzan

The next match was three veterans and a Young Lion in a tag match. Narita jumped his opponents before the bell. At one point Narita had a Boston Crab in and was getting hit with chops, yet enduring and keeping the hold. Tiger Mask gave Narita a leg lock that Tenzan got him out of. After a kick to the head from Tiger Mask, Nakanishi landed a chop off the top rope, and Tiger landed a Tiger Driver to end the match.

Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Shingo Takagi

We had the third singles match of the tour next. Yoshinobu Kanemaru faced Shingo Takagi. Or, as I like to call it, the battle of the two guys in their factions with normal names that aren’t the faction’s leader. Very quickly in the contest, the fight went outside the ring. Takagi was given a reverse DDT on the ramp. He was also given a kick to the head on the apron. Takagi tried for a Satori Surprise but Takagi dodged and then hit a Samoan Drop. He landed a clothesline after. As Tagaki was looking for another move, the match ended with a DQ after El Desperado did a run-in. BUSHI came in to even the odds.

El Desperado vs. BUSHI

The next scheduled match was BUSHI versus Desperado, so we went right into the next match. Kanemaru got involved when the referee wasn’t looking, pushing BUSHI off the apron and slamming him on the floor. Desperado took BUSHI and threw him into barricades and rows of chairs. BUSHI just barely made the count, getting in at 19. BUSHI did a Tope Suicida on both Desperado and Kanemaru with the help of Takagi. The match also ended in a DQ after BUSHI was unmasked. In a brawl afterwards, El Desperado was unmasked as well. I didn’t like these two matches, they felt sort of lame.

Chase Owens, Yujiro Takahashi, Bad Luck Fale & Jay White w/ Gedo vs. YOSHI-HASHI, Tomoaki Honma & Hiroshi Tanahashi

Our next eight-man tag match was CHAOS versus Bullet Club. Hiroshi Tanahashi was sporting new red hair. White jumped Tanahashi before the bell and hoisted his IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Early in the match Honma failed at landing a Kokeshi. Owens tried a package piledriver on Honma but couldn’t land it. After being isolated for minutes upon minutes, Honma tagged out. Later on, Tanahashi got some shots in on White after he interrupted KUSHIDA’s goodbye match the show before. White landed a Rock Bottom after a combo of reversals. Okada gave Takahashi one of his great dropkicks, and then did a Tombstone Piledriver. Tanahashi gave Takahashi a Styles Clash and then Okada did an Elbow Drop. Tanahashi did a High Fly Flow to end the match. I loved this finishing combo, very well done.

Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi w/ TAKA Michinoku vs. SANADA, EVIL & Tetsuya Naito

Before this next match started, EVIL and ZSJ were in each other’s faces. Naito faced off with Taichi since they will face each other soon. There was no chaotic start to this match. Both teams civilly waiting for the bell to ring. The politeness would only last so long as the fight eventually made it’s way into the crowd. Naito was thrown over maybe three or four rows of chairs. SANADA at one point had Suzuki in a hold but he escaped it by holding onto the ref. It was EVIL and ZSJ who ended the match, with ZSJ reversing an Everything is EVIL into a bridged pinfall. Suzuki-gun walked off with all of the titles that LIJ brought in. I thought it was good that ZSJ got the finish to put the focus on the tag match while showcasing the Taichi match a little. The match itself wasn’t anything to write home about, but wasn’t bad either.

Ryusuke Taguchi, Togi Makabe & Toru Yano vs. Taiji Ishimori, Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa w/ Jado (NEVER 6-Man Openweight Championship Match)

Togi Makabe’s copyright free music was cranked up extra loud for this main event. So much so that Kevin Kelly’s commentary was just a vibration in the background. The main event of the show was a NEVER 6-Man Openweight Tag Team Match. Taguchi got the hometown pop when starting the match. Just like in the matches before, Tonga was playing up his good guy gimmick. Taguchi landed a move on Taiji which would have been a three count, but Jado pulled the referee out. Chase Owens then came in and tried to give Taguchi a Package Piledriver, but then was given a low blow from Yano. When Taguchi had Taiji in an Ankle Lock, he rolled out, making Taguchi hit the referee. Then Bad Luck Fale came in, with Kazuchika Okada coming in for the save. Jay White made a run-in as well, with Tanahashi making yet another save. This could have been done without Okada and Fale. Taguchi did an O’Connor Roll and was hit with a kendo stick by Jado when Taiji kicked out. Taguchi kicked out of a pin attempt from Ishimori. Taguchi did another Ankle Lock, which got turned into a different hold which made Ishimori tap. We have new 6-man champs.

I don’t like this. I thought this was really going time for Ishimori to be pushed. I thought he could really look like a star. Sure, he can lose the belts, but all of this? Tapping out? Taiji looked completely weak by the end of this. He still has his other belt, but it’s the man who makes the belt, not the belt who makes the man. Taguchi cut a promo to finish the show.

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NJPW Road to The New Beginning 2019 Day 3 Results and Review

While Road to The New Beginning isn’t a huge tour, day three was a special event. In the main event, KUSHIDA faced Hiroshi Tanahashi. This match was his send-off match for NJPW, before he heads to WWE. Let’s look at the show.

Day 2 Recap (with Day 1 Results)

Yuya Uemura vs. Ren Narita

The first match was a battle between Yuya Uemura and Ren Narita, two Young Lions. On this tour Uemura is 0-1-1, while Narita is 1-1. Early in the match, Narita put in a Boston Crab. Uemura escaped since he was close to the ropes. Uemura landed two impressive dropkicks which gave him a two count. Uemura landed a Backbody Drop and then tried for a Boston Crab of his own. He was really bending Narita. Narita escaped the hold eventually. The match ended after Narita landed a very good looking Belly-To-Belly German Suplex bridged into a pinfall.

Ayato Yoshida & Shota Umino vs. Manabu Nakanishi & Hiroyoshi Tenzan

The next match was a Young Lions versus veterans match. Umino landed a slam on Nakanishi during this match which got a big reaction. Umino went off the ropes but was hit with a Spear. White Umino was in a Torture Rack, Tenzan put in an Anaconda Vice to end the match.

Ryusuke Taguchi & Toa Henare vs. Taiji Ishimori & Yujiro Takahashi

The Young Lions were done for the show, as the next match was Taguchi and Henare teaming with Ishimori and Takahashi. The crowd was chanting for Taguchi when the match started. Taguchi and Ishimori started the match. They had a good combo of attacks that concluded with Taguchi hitting a hip attack that sent Taiji to the outside. Henare and Takahashi got tagged in right after. Henare was on a roll with an Armdrag, Slam and Shoulder Tackle which got him a two count. Takahashi took control of the match and got to double team Henare because Ishimori took out Taguchi and then came in the ring. Henare and Yujiro traded chops, and then Yujiro landed a kick to the head against the ropes. Taiji was tagged back in and was controlling Henare, but then Henare fought out and gave Taguchi a hot tag. He did a dive off the second rope to the outside onto Ishimori. Taguchi did a Springboard Hip Attack for a two count. Ishimori did a good spot where he dipped in-between ropes to juke Taguchi and eventually land a move off the top. Taguchi put in an Ankle Lock that Ishimori escaped. Ishimori landed a kick which gave him time to tag out. Henare and Takahashi came back in. Henare landed a Shoulder Tackle off the ropes and then a Samoan Drop for a two count. Taguchi brought his rugby ball into the ring. Taguchi did a Hip Attack in the corner onto Takahashi. Henare did a Spear for a pin attempt that Ishimori broke up. Ishimori was taken out of the ring by a Hip Attack, and then Henare did a type of Spear for a two count. Yujiro landed a Fisherman Buster for a kickout. He then landed a DDT with Henare on his knees to end the match.

I really enjoyed this match. I’m slowly becoming a fan of Henare. I don’t really know his gimmick but he’s a good wrestler. After the match Taguchi was on the apron and spoke to Ishimori. Taiji stole Taguchi’s rugby ball and kicked it into the crowd. This made Taguchi look sad. He got his ball back and left.

Tomoaki Honma, Toru Yano & Togi Makabe vs. Chase Owens, Tonga Loa & Tama Tonga w/ Jado

The Guerillas of Destiny fought in this next match before they were set to defend their NEVER Openweight 6-Man Championships on the next night with Taiji Ishimori. Tonga Loa and Togi Makabe started off, fighting for a minute or so. When Tama Tonga and Tomoaki Honma came in, Tonga tried to shake Honma’s hand to continue the good guy gimmick. He shook hands and hugged, but couldn’t get a shake for the other two members of Honma’s team. Owens and Loa came in and attacked the two other members, which Tonga didn’t like. He apologized while continuing to fight. The Bullet Club trio had frequent tags, isolating Honma in their corner. Tonga refused to participate in certain antics with his team. Commentator Kevin Kelly has stayed vigilant about if the good guy gimmick is genuine. Honma gave Loa a clothesline which finally let him tag in Toru Yano. Yano undid a corner, but Tonga tried putting it back on. While he did this, Yano took apart another corner and tried using it. He tossed it to Tonga, who then gave it to the referee. Yano gave Tonga a neckbreaker of some sort and then tagged in Makabe. Makabe did his punches in the corner which are always followed by a evil laugh. Owens tagged himself in on Makabe. The trio picked on Makabe in the corner. Owens tried for a Package Piledriver but couldn’t land it. Owens shoved Makabe into the referee, which let the group do a double team spot. Yes, it let them, but they didn’t because Tonga hesistated. Yano and Honma came in, with Honma trying for a Kokeshi which Jado stopped with his kendo stick. Jado tried for a draping DDT on Homna which would have been ultimate disrespect, but it was stopped. Makabe landed a King Kong Kneedrop on Owens to end the match after his teammates help take out other members. I can assume the referee spot done tonight was planned for the match the night before, but didn’t work. Not a bad match. I liked the callback when Jado tried landing the draping DDT.

Jay White & Bad Luck Fale w/ Gedo vs. YOSHI-HASHI & Kazuchika Okada

White and Fale faced YOSHI-HASHI and Okada next. The Bullet Club team jumped Okada and Hashi. Fale tried for a Bad Luck Fall on the floor but Okada escaped it. Everyone fought outside the ring at the start. After YOSHI-HASHI was picked on for a long time, Okada finally got tagged in. Okada slammed White and then went to the top, but White got up. Okada was hit with a Side Suplex, and then tagged in Fale. Okada was given a huge Back Body Drop. After that, HASHI was taken off the apron. Fale landed a standing Elbow Drop for a kickout. He tried for a Bad Luck Fall but Okada reversed it into a Back Body Drop. HASHI got the hot tag, taking out White and finally taking down Fale. He landed a top rope Blockbuster, but then White came in. White tried for a Blade Runner but Okada came in and gave him a Dropkick. Fale took out Okada and then did a standing Frogsplash for a two count. YOSHI did lariats off the ropes, but the third time around was hit with one instead. Fale gave YOSHI-HASHI a Grenade to end the match. I thought there wasn’t enough focus on Okada in this match, since White versus him is what’s next. Okada tried saving HASHI but was given a Grenade. The Young Lions stopped a Bad Luck Fall attempt. Fale gave Uemura a Grenade as well. Gedo was sort of invisible during this whole match. YOSHI-HASHI came off as real dead weight in this match for Okada.

El Desperado, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Zack Sabre Jr., Minoru Suzuki & Taichi w/ TAKA Michinoku vs. Shingo Takagi, BUSHI, SANADA, EVIL & Tetsuya Naito

We got a rematch from the night before, except it is normal stipulations for this match. All of Suzuki-Gun came out to Taichi’s music. Taka Michinoku cut a short promo before the match. The main program being built out of this match is Taichi versus Naito. Taichi held the ropes open for Naito, and then Naito jumped Taichi seconds after. As expected the fight went all over the place at the start. SANADA and Minoru Suzuki had a good exchange of slaps and moves in the ring. Taichi went after Naito. He hit his head against the “WEST” sign in Korakuen Hall. Suzuki hit SANADA with a chair and barricades. After SANADA and Suzuki battled more in the ring, Naito and Taichi got tagged in. Both guys tried doing Suplexes but got it stopped by holding onto the referee. BUSHI was hit with a Deep Impact by Kanemaru, but teammates came in to break the pin attempt that followed it. BUSHI tagged in EVIL who took out ZSJ on the apron and then went to Kanemaru. EVIL landed a Clothesline and then a Darkness Falls for a two count. He tried for an Everything is Evil but ZSJ stopped it. Tons of people came in and out of the ring. Taichi did his pants pull off spot. The ref was distracted when Naito kicked Taichi in the groin and hit a Destino. Takagi landed a Clothesline and then EVIL hit the Everything is EVIL to win the match. The middle of the match lost me but the finishing combo was good. Naito taunted Taichi after the match, teasing that he would snap his microphone.

KUSHIDA vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

The main event of the evening was the goodbye match for KUSHIDA. The crowd all had orange KUSHIDA signs that they held up during his entrance. There was a “Thank You KUSHIDA” flag on the balcony. During Tanahashi’s theme, KUSHIDA laid on his back in the ring. This match started slowly with lots of technical wrestling. KUSHIDA landed a Cartwheel Dropkick and then tried for a DDT which got turned into a Cloverleaf from Tanahashi. A knee of KUSHIDA’s was targeted by Tanahashi throughout the match. KUSHIDA put Tanahashi in a Hoverboard Lock for quite some time, but eventually, KUSHIDA tried turning it into a Back to The Future. The move was turned into a Twist & Shout. Tanahashi followed it up with a Swingblade for a two count. Tanahashi went to the top for a Crossbody and then a High Fly Flow, except KUSHIDA put his knees up. He followed it up with a Back to The Future for a two count. KUSHIDA put in another Tanahashi landed a Bridging German Suplex for a two count. Tanahashi put in a Boston Crab which made KUSHIDA tap out. This was a slow paced match but an enjoyable one. It’s sad to see KUSHIDA go, but he has other things in his career to do. As Tanahashi was sitting over a hurt KUSHIDA, Jay White came in and hit Tanahashi with a chair. This was amazing because White got some real boos from this crowd. He wedged a chair in between his right leg, and then smashed it with another chair. After the attack Tanahashi and KUSHIDA hugged outside the ring. Tanahashi was helped backstage and KUSHIDA went back into the ring to talk to the crowd.

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NJPW Road to The New Beginning 2019 Day 2 Results and Review

After the collaborative Fantastica Mania tour between NJPW and CMLL, New Japan has returned to their regular roster. The three Road to The New Beginning shows acted as the finale for January. The first day wasn’t televised, here are the results of that card:

Yota Tsuji vs. Yuya Uemura (Draw)
Toa Henare def. Ren Narita
Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Manabu Nakanishi def. Ayato Yoshida & Shota Umino
Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa def. Tomoaki Honma & YOSHI-HASHI
Togi Makabe & Toru Yano def. Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi
El Desperado, Minoru Suzuki, Taichi, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Zack Sabre Jr. def. BUSHI, EVIL, SANADA, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito
Bad Luck Fale, Gedo, Jay White & Taiji Ishimori def. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kazuchika Okada, KUSHIDA & Ryusuke Taguchi.

Source: cagematch.net

Let’s look at day two now.

Yuya Uemura & Yota Tsuji vs. Ren Narita & Manabu Nakanishi

The first match on the show was a Young Lion battle, with Nakanishi teaming with Narita to face Uemura and Tsuji. Narita was put in a Boston Crab my Uemura while Tsuji kept Nakanishi out of the ring. Narita made it to the ropes to escape the move. Narita took a double dropkick and then a double team suplex for a pin attempt that Nakanishi broke up. The team tried to do a double team suplex on Nakanishi but both go suplexed instead. Narita and Uemura were back in the ring with Narita looking impactful with shoulder tackles. He did a belly-to-belly for a pinfall that Tsuji broke up. Nakanishi took Tsuji to the outside, and then Narita did a Boston Crab to end the match. I enjoyed the ending sequence of the match.

Shota Umino & Ayato Yoshida vs. Toa Henare & Hiroyoshi Tenzan

This is a good time to point out that Ayato Yoshida has an amazing theme. Henare was getting in the face of Umino before the match. At the start of the match Umino knocked down Tenzan after landing many moves kept him standing. Yoshida and Henare traded chops, and later on Henare landed a combo of a clothesline in a corner and then a Samoan Drop. Umino did a Missile Dropkick off the second rope onto Tenzan for a two count. After that Tenzan landed a move that gave him time to tag in Henare. Umino reversed a Vertical Suplex into one of his own and then gave Yoshida a hot tag. While Henare was put in a Rear Naked Choke, Tenzan was put in a Boston Crab. Henare made it to the ropes to escape the hold. Henare landed a bad looking Spear, with the pin afterwards being broken up by Umino. Yoshida did a roll-up that Henare kicked out of, and then Henare landed a Rock Bottom to end the match. Henare and Yoshida had a good battle, although the finish felt sort of unceremonious.

Tomoaki Honma, Toru Yano, Togi Makabe & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Chase Owens, Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa & Taiji Ishimori w/ Jado

In this next match, Ryusuke Taguchi was still running with his rugby gimmick. He had gotten rid of the pharaoh outfit that he wore during Fantastica Mania. Makabe and Loa started in the match. After Makabe took down Loa with a clothesline he tagged in Yano. Yano got big chants from the crowd. Tama Tonga got tagged in as well. Tonga tried to tell Yano that he is now a good guy, but Yano didn’t buy it. Yano took off a corner pad, but then Tonga tried putting it back on to show that he is a good guy. This might be the most comedy I’ve seen Tama Tonga do. Tonga was thrown into a corner but Chase Owens held up the pad that was taken off. When Yano went into the corner Owens took off the pad, letting him hit the exposed corner. After that everyone brawled into the crowd. At ringside Yano was hit in the head with a corner pad by Owens. Yano made the count back into the ring at 14, and then Ishimori got tagged in. For what it’s worth, Ishimori got a separate entrance from other Bullet Club members on this show. Yano was thrown into the exposed corner once again when Owens was tagged in. Tonga even avoided doing a double team when Loa wanted him to. Tonga got thrown into the exposed corner and then stopped Yano from tagging in Taguchi. Moments later Taguchi and Ishimori got hot tags. Ishimori and Owens were both given hip attacks. He did his B-Triggers off the ropes for a minute. Taguchi put Ishimori in an Ankle Lock which he rolled out of, knocked down the referee as well. The referee bump seemed to have no significance in the match. Honma finally got tagged in and missed a Kokeshi after a Running Bulldog. Loa got tagged in, and then all of Bullet Club picked on Honma while others were out at ringside. After the Guerillas of Destiny hit a combo of moves on Honma everyone started coming in. Honma landed a Kokeshi on Tonga, took out Jado on the ring apron, and then gave Loa a Shoulder Tackle for a two count. Honma gave Loa two clotheslines but the third one got reversed. Going off the ropes Honma was hit with a Kendo Stick from Jado, and then was given Loa’s finishing move to end the match. This match was pretty good besides the unnecessary referee bump.

Yujiro Takahashi & Bad Luck Fale vs. YOSHI-HASHI & Kazuchika Okada

The next match was a traditional tag team match with “The Tokyo Pimp” Yujiro Takahashi and Bad Luck Fale facing YOSHI-HASHI & Kazuchika Okada. Okada got a lesser than first time, but still audible pop when showing his wrestling shorts. Okada and Fale started, with Okada being thrown around the ring. When Yujiro got tagged in he threw Okada off the ropes, which made Okada fly at Fale and take him off the apron. Okada gave Takahashi a big boot and then tagged in YOSHI-HASHI. The fight went outside the ring after this. Fale choked out Okada with a microphone cord. Back in the ring, Takahashi slammed HASHI and then tagged in Fale. This match was a real slowing down of pace compared to the one before. Yujiro landed a good kick when he got tagged in, and go a two count on HASHI. The Bullet Club members frequently tagged each other in. HASHI finally worked his way out out of the situation, giving Okada the hot tag. Fale got taken down with a DDT, taking his first bump of the match. Okada tried slamming him but did not land it. Fale tried for a slam which Okada escaped, and then Okada got his slam in. Okada landed an Uppercut but when going off the ropes was given a Clothesline. Takahashi came back in and gave Okada a Fisherman Buster for a near fall. Fale came in and charged at Okada in a corner. HASHI broke up a pin after Yujiro landed a kick. Yujiro landed a good Tour of the Islands type of move for a two count. HASHI came in again, this time giving Yujiro a clothesline and Fale a Superkick. Okada clotheslined Fale out of the ring, and then gave Yujiro a dropkick. Okada landed an Elbow Drop and then a Rainmaker to win the match. This match did what it was meant to do. After the match Fale attacked Okada and YOSHI-HASHI. He tried to give Okada a Bad Luck Fall on the floor, but Okada escaped with the help of the Young Lions.

Jay White & Gedo vs. KUSHIDA & Hiroshi Tanahashi

On the way to the ring before the next match, Jay White clutched the face of a Young Lion, asking him if he’ll beat Tanahashi. This was Jay White’s first match back since the start of Fantastica Mania. In this match KUSHIDA teamed with Hiroshi Tanahashi. They will face each other on the next show, which will be KUSHIDA’s New Japan send-off. Tanahashi and White started the match. Ryusuke Taguchi joined the Japanese commentary team at this point. They barely did any moves on each other, and then KUSHIDA was tagged in. KUSHIDA called White “Dojo Boy” at some point. The two CHAOS members tagged in and out frantically. KUSHIDA was on a roll against White but Gedo kept getting in his way. White did a Belly-to-Belly Suplex on KUSHIDA, sending him over the ropes. Outside the ring Gedo had KUSHIDA up against a barricade. White slammed a Young Lion onto Tanahashi. Gedo used a chair on KUSHIDA. Outside the ring White bashed KUSHIDA into the barricade and ring apron. He’s not going easy on him at all before he goes to WWE. After KUSHIDA was fighting an uphill battle for quite some time he tagged in Tanahashi. There was a good combo where Tanahashi landed a Twist & Shout, and then got set up for a Blade Runner but was hit with a Rock Bottom instead. Gedo put Tanahashi in a roll-up for a two count and then landed a few kicks for another close count. Gedo took brass knuckles out of his jacket which distracted the referee. White came in with a chair but KUSHIDA gave him a Springboard Dropkick. KUSHIDA did a Crossbody to the outside, letting Tanahashi hit a Swingblade and a High Fly Flow for the win. I really liked this match. Good that Gedo took the pin since he isn’t involved in the Tanahashi and White program. Out of frustration, White attacked a Young Lion on the way out. KUSHIDA embraced the crowd after the match.

Yoshinobu Kanemaru, El Desperado, Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi w/ TAKA Michinoku vs. Shingo Takagi, SANADA, EVIL, BUSHI & Tetsuya Naito (Elimination Tag Team Match)

Minoru Suzuki unveiled a new haircut at this show. This match was done in an elimination tag format, except eliminating someone of the top rope counted as well. The fight spread throughout Korakuen Hall very quickly. During this match there was a spot where Naito gave Taichi a kick to the back of the head and then spat on him repeatedly. Suzuki went wild around the ring, using a chair on SANADA in a hallway of the venue. It felt like this match was really testing my attention span with how little happened at the start. Suzuki tried for a Piledriver but SANADA escaped and tried throwing him over the ropes. Suzuki did a Guillotine but SANADA got out and went over the ropes with Suzuki. This eliminated both of them, making them the first eliminations, fifteen minutes into the match. They fought to the back. Takagi and Desperado were the next two in the ring. Desperado was thrown over the top by a strong clothesline from Shingo. Takagi tried for a second rope move but Desperado stopped it. He escaped near elimination, but then got eliminated because BUSHI was thrown into him, knocking him off the ring apron. BUSHI did an arched pin to eliminated Kanemaru. ZSJ nearly got pinned as well but kicked out. ZSJ reversed a Huricanrana into an Ankle Lock into an STF which made BUSHI tap out. EVIL gave ZSJ a Darkness Falls but he kicked out. EVIl tried tossing ZSJ over the top, but was instead given an Arm hold through the ropes. EVIL got pulled over the top and onto the apron. ZSJ kept cranking on the arm hold until he let go, and got hit with an Everything Is EVIL which eliminated both of them. The final two were Taichi and Naito. After Taichi threw the referee into Naito, he picked up Naito’s Intercontinental Championship and tried to hit him with it. This didn’t work, with Taichi getting hit with a kick instead. Naito shoved the referee once again, which let Taichi kick Naito in the groin. Naito was thrown over onto the apron and given a kick which nearly eliminated him. Another kick gave Taichi and his team the win. The kick felt sort of lame but I liked this finish. The match was way too long, especially at the start, but not horrible. Taichi cut a promo after the match.

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NJPW Fantastica Mania 2019 Day 7 Results and Review

The Fantastica Mania tour is nearing its end as the second of three Korakuen Hall shows happened on Sunday. This was the first show on the tour that offered English commentary on NJPW World. Let’s go through the card.

Ryusuke Taguchi & Flyer vs. Gedo & Taiji Ishimori

The first match was a tag team battle between the team of Ryusuke Taguchi and Flyer and the team of Gedo and Taiji Ishimori. At the start of the match, Gedo and Taiji ambushed Taguchi and Flyer. Flyer was fighting a two-on-one battle, taking both Bullet Club members to the outside and then delivering a dive. Taguchi tried for a follow-up Crossbody but only landed on his teammate, Flyer. Taguchi did a Double Springboard Hip Attack and then did a B-Trigger many times. After Flyer seemingly was mounting some offence onto Ishimori, Taiji turned a roll-up pin attempt into an Ankle Lock to end the bout. After the match, Ishimori beat up Taguchi and took off his mask.

Templario & El Cuatrero vs. Angel de Oro & Titan

The second match had all CMLL wrestlers involved. Templario and Titan had a good starting combo of moves against each other. Templario delivered a nasty Powerbomb on the floor to Titan. All four guys were going fast from start to finish in this match. Angel de Oro landed a Springboard Moonsault for a two count on El Cuatrero. Templario and Titan had an impressive exchange of slaps, which made Templario land a Powerbomb afterwards. A second rope Powerbomb from Templario was reversed into a Huricanrana for a two count. El Cuatrero gave Angel de Oro a Crucifix Powerbomb for a close pinfall attempt. Angel de Oro put Cuatrero in a submission move to end the bout. What an exciting one this was!

Fujin, Raijin (RPG3K) & Toa Henare vs. Shingo Takagi, BUSHI & Tetsuya Naito

The next match was all NJPW talent if Fujin and Raijin count. As Naito was still in the process of being introduced, Los Ingobernables jumped their opponents. Henare was sent into the third row, crashing through chairs because of Naito. Naito and Henare also had some time in the ring against each other as that is the next IC title program. Henare hit a Samoan Drop on Naito for a two count. Naito landed a Draping corner Neckbreaker. Henare fought out of a two-on-one predicament against Naito and BUSHI and then tagged in Fujin. Raijin came in shortly after to join Fujin. They tried for the 3K on BUSHI but Tagaki and Naito came in to break it up. BUSHI and Takagi gave Fujin a Backcracker, and then a double team Codebreaker to win the match. After the match, Fujin and Raijin were unmasked, showing the crowd that they were SHO and YOH. BUSHI cut a short promo after the match. Henare also wanted to come back into the ring and go up to Naito but chose not to since Takagi and BUSHI were present. This felt like one of the only matches we’ve seen on the tour so far that had real storyline progression. We should have sensed that since CMLL had no involvement in this one. Naito called out commentator Milano Collection A.T. to take Naito’s hat and put it on his head. Very cautiously, Milano did this.

OKUMURA, Forastero & Sanson vs. Jushin Thunder Liger, Atlantis & Atlantis Jr.

In a six-man match, Liger and both Atlantis’ fought OKUMURA, Forastero and Sanson. During the match, OKUMURA’s manager came into the ring and got suplexed by Liger. This match had tons of moments with more than two wrestlers in the ring. OKUMURA did a back body drop DDT type of move to win the match. This match went a little too long in my opinion. After the match, OKUMURA, Saanson and Forastero cut a promo on Atlantis Jr. A brawl broke out afterwards where both Atlantis’ was unmasked.

Namajague, El Barbaro Cavernario & Caristico vs. Audaz, El Soberano Jr. & Volador Jr.

This next six-man tag match included El Barbaro Cavernario, who the crowd really likes. Volador Jr. also got a big reaction. He wore a Spiderman themed outfit for this match. Early in the match, the team of Audaz, Soberano and Volador did triple dives to the outside. There was a five-person Superplex followed right up by a Springboard Frogsplash by Volador. Caristico was unmasked while doing a Sunset Flip, and it seemed like maybe one side of the venue got to see his face for a good second. Caristico put in his submission on Volador Jr. to win. This match had the crowd absolutely amped up. I thought this was one of those fun matches where nobody seemed to ever relax.

El Terrible vs. Satoshi Kojima

Before the main event, we saw a singles match between El Terrible and Satoshi Kojima. I liked a spot in this match where both guys exhausted each other from trading chops. Kojima landed a Superplex for a two count. After clotheslining Terrible to the outside, Kojima did a Crossbody to the outside. After a Frogsplash, Terrible tried for a move but Kojima fought out of it. Kojima hit a Brainbuster for a two count. He took off an elbow pad and went for a Lariat but was met with a strike by Terrible. Terrible did nasty looking slaps in a corner and then did a Styles Clash for the win. This was a good match and a good change of pace with so many lightning fast tag matches on this tour. After the match, the Los Ingobernables de Japon trio from earlier came out to celebrate with Terrible.

Gran Guerrero & Ultimo Guerrero vs. Dragon Lee & Mistico

The main event was Gran Guerrero and Ultimo Guerrero facing Dragon Lee and Mistico. Mistico duped everyone during the match by taking off his mask to reveal a second, identical mask. Mistico also did a wild spot where he ran off of the first elevated row of Korakuen and did a Huricanrana. Lee and Mistico did Tope Con Hiro’s at the same time. In another great double team move, both of the Guerreros did double baseball slides to Lee and Mistico, who were on the apron. Ultimo did a jump off the top rope to the outside after Gran Guerrero went over all three ropes. Ultimo Guerrero did a face-first Superplex off the second rope for a close two count. The crowd was red hot at this point. Lee tried for a Huricanrana off the top but was reversed into a Powerbomb by Ultimo. Sitting at the top rope, Lee and Ultimo traded blows. Lee hit his Draping Double Stomp but Gran Guerrero came in to break the count. Lee hit a Tope Suicida to Ultimo Guerrero, and Mistico came in. Mistico was hit with a Powerbomb and kicked out at the pinfall afterwards. Mistico hit a top rope Huricanrana for a close count. Mistico put on the arm submission move to win the match. This was a truly great match, with a real main event feel. Great way to wrap up what was one of the better Fantastica Mania shows on this tour.

NJPW Fantastica Mania 2019 Day 6 Results and Review

NJPW returned to Korakuen Hall for the sixth night of Fantastica Mania. Besides the exhibition matches on this card, we also saw the finals of the CMLL Family Tournament. Let’s dive in.

Jushin Thunder Liger, Ryusuke Taguchi & Audaz vs. Gedo, Taiji Ishimori & Templario

At first glance, it felt like there was a front row of Korakuen taken out for this show. Something about it looked odd. Late into this match Audaz and Templario had a good battle while everyone else was laid out. What was a pretty quick match was ended by Audaz after he put Templario in an arm submission move. After the match, Taguchi taunted Ishimori, which seemed to get on his nerves.

OKUMURA & Forastero vs. Angel de Oro & Titan

The second match was a two on two tag match between OKUMURA, Forastero, Angel de Oro and Titan. Titan was hit before the bell by Forastero. Titan did an amazing move where he tried a Moonsault over the ropes to the outside but landed on his feet perfectly on the floor instead. At one point Angel de Oro was being hit outside the ring while sitting on a table until a table leg gave out on him. After Titan and Forestero were out on the outside, Angel de Oro did a Springboard Moonsault for a two count. OKUMURA hit a Draping DDT for a two count of his own. After a dropkick, Angel did a dive to the outside onto OKUMURA. Titan and Forastero got back in the ring, with Titan putting on some complex roll-up pin for the win. While the finish wasn’t exactly exciting, the match was very fun to watch.

Fujin, Raijin, Toa Henare & Satoshi Kojima vs. Shingo Takagi, BUSHI, Tetsuya Naito & El Terrible

The next match was a memorial match for Black Cat. Henare and Naito fought each other for a significant amount of time in this match. It was Kojima and El Terrible who got the hot tag late in this match. Kojima did his chops in the corner, and then tried for a top rope move but got stopped. El Terrible threw him off the top rope, and then with the help of Naito, landed a Frogsplash. The pinfall that followed was broken up. El Terrible tried for a Powerbomb but Kojima fought out of it and landed a Cutter. Kojima landed a Lariat to end the match. What caught my eye about the match was the finish and the battle between Naito and Henare early on.

Gran Guerrero & Ultimo Guerrero vs. Atlantis & Atlantis Jr.

We had a rematch from the last show with Gran Guerrero and Ultimo Guerrero fighting Atlantis and Atlanis Jr. There was a point in this match where both Atlantis and Atlantis Jr. did dives together. After Atlantis did a Crossbody to the outside, Gran Guerrero landed a fancy Powerbomb to win the match.

Namajague & Caristico vs. Volador Jr. & Flyer

This next match was a tag between Namajague, Caristico, Volador Jr. and Flyer. Flyer lived up to his name early on and did a dive to outside the ring. He gave Namajague a Huricanrana on the floor minutes after. On the top rope, Volador Jr. gave Caristico a Huricanrana for a pinfall broken up by Namajague. Caristico ended the match with the arm move he’s been using all tour. This was after he was hit with an only okay looking Canadian Destroyer by Flyer.

El Barbaro Cavernario vs. El Soberano Jr.

Before the main event, we got a rare singles match. El Barbaro Cavernario faced El Soberano Jr. Cavernario did an amazing Codebreaker onto Soberano, who was hung on the ropes in a corner. After a lengthy battle on the apron, Cavernario did a drive through a corner and onto Soberano. Both of these guys were really putting on a show. Soberano had a good combo in the match where he went off the ropes with a very spinny move, and then a Springboard Moonsault for a close pinfall attempt. He did that same spinny move later on, but this time to outside the ring. What was by far the craziest thing in this match was Cavernario’s Frogsplash to outside the ring, onto the floor. All I can say is it looks like a hard landing. Soberano tried for a Piledriver but Cavernario flipped and landed a Piledriver of his own. For a second I was worried that Soberano might have died. The finish of the match was Cavernario reversing a flipping move from Soberano into a submission. This match was pretty good but I felt the finish could have been something else since we had already gotten so many submission finishes on this show.

El Cuatrero & Sanson vs. Dragon Lee & Mistico (CMLL Family Tag Team Tournament)

In the main event, we had the finals of the four-team CMLL Family Tag Team Tournament. Before the bell, El Cuartrero and Sanson dove onto Dragon Lee and Mistico. They absolutely trashed the ringside chairs, hitting Lee and Mistico in the head with the chairs. All four of these guys put on an amazing match. El Cuatrero was on the ropes with Mistico. Cuatrero was in control, but then Dragon Lee came in to disrupt. As Mistico did a Moonsault to outside the ring onto Sanson, Lee did a double stomp on the ropes for a two count. He did a knee strike and then a slam to end the match. I loved this main event. It was a good way to close the show.

NJPW Fantastica Mania 2019 Day 5 Results and Review

Let’s look at night five of the NJPW Fantastica Mania tour. A full review of the first night can be found here. Here are the results of the four non-televised nights of the tour:

Night 2 – 1/12/19 – Imabari, Ehime, Japan:

Audaz, KUSHIDA & Ryusuke Taguchi def. Gedo, Taichi Ishimori & Templario
Flyer & Titan def. Forestero & Taichi
Okumura, Sanson & Yoshinobu Kanemaru def. Atlantis, Atlantis Jr. & Tiger Mask
El Barbaro Cavernario, El Cuatrero & Ultimo Guerrero def. Andel de Oro, El Soberano Jr. & Mistico
Dragon Lee, Jushin Thunger Liger & Volador Jr. def. Caristico, Gran Guerrero & Namajague
BUSHI, Shingo Takagi, Tetusuya Naito & El Terrible def. Fujin, Raijin, Satoshi Kojima & Toa Henare

Night 3 – 1/13/19 – Kyoto, Japan:

Gedo, Taichi Ishimori & Templario def. Audaz, Jushin Thunder Liger & Ryusuke Taguchi
Angel de Oro & KUSHIDA def. El Cuatrero & Taichi
Atlantis, Atlantis Jr. & Flyer def. Okumura, Sanson & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
El Soberano Jr., Mistico & Titan def. El Barbaro Cavernario, Forastero & Ultimo Guerrero
Caristico, Gran Guerrero & Namajague def. Dragon Lee, Tiger Mask & Volador Jr.
BUSHI, Shingo Takagi, Tetsuya Naito & El Terrible def. Fujin, Raijin, Satoshi Kojima & Toa Henare

Night 4 – 1/14/19 – Gifu, Japan:

Audaz, Ryusuke Taguchi & Tiger Mask def. Gedo, Taichi Ishimori & Templario
El Cuatrero & Taichi def. Angel de Oro & Flyer
Atlantis, Atlantis Jr. & KUSHIDA def. Okumura, Sanson & Yoshinobu Kanemaru
Dragon Lee, El Soberano Jr. & Titan def. El Barbaro Cavernario, Forastero & Gran Guerrero
Jushin Thunder Liger, Mistico & Volador Jr. def. Caristico, Namajague & Ultimo Guerrero
BUSHI, Shingo Takagi, Tetsuya Naito & El Terrible def. Fujin, Raijin, Satoshi Kojima & Toa Henare

KUSHIDA, Ryusuke Taguchi & Titan vs. Taichi Ishimori, Gedo & Sanson

The first match had four NJPW wrestlers and two CMLL luchadors. Taguchi is still wearing his emperor outfit, and KUSHIDA is still walking out with a huge robot head. Very early on Titan did an impressive dive to the outside onto Sanson. KUSHIDA and Taguchi tried following suit, but both came up short. Sanson being the rudo he is, tried unmasking Sanson only minutes deep into the contest. Sanson put Titan in his finishing move to end the bout. This was a very short bout with no real substance besides the diving spot early on. After the bell Ishimori and Gedo continued their submission moves outside the ring. Taguchi had a face-off with Taguchi after the bout as well.

Fujin & Raijin (RPG3K) vs. BUSHI & Shingo Takagi

While at first glance this match seems like it has a crossover in it, it doesn’t. SHO and YOH from RPG3K are masked and under the aliases of “Fujin” and “Raijin” for this tour. They faced BUSHI and Shingo Takagi at this event. Late in this match, Fujin and BUSHI got hot tags, with RPG3K trying for the 3K but not landing it. BUSHI did a double Huricanrana to fight off RPG3K. BUSHI and Takagi picked on Fujin, with BUSHI delivering a Backbreaker at the end of a combo. While BUSHI was laid out Takagi gave both RPG3K members a Clothesline and then took Raijin out of the equation. Fujin gave BUSHI a roll-up to end the match. This match felt disappointing from start to finish.

Namajague, OKUMURA, El Barbaro Cavernario vs. Audaz, El Soberano Jr. & Angel de Oro

This six-man tag was one where I wasn’t too familiar with anyone in it. I thought that Namajague’s mask looked very pretty. Soberano Jr. delivered a Huricanrana at one point where he got so much air that it was amazing. Soberano Jr. did a Springboard Moonsault onto OKUMURA who was hanging on the ropes to end the match. The time that he got in this match really made him stick out. The match kicked into it’s highest gear around 10 minutes in, and then just went full speed to the finish. I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Toa Henare & Satoshi Kojima vs. Tetsuya Naito & El Terrible

In the next match, El Terrible teamed with Tetsuya Naito to face Toa Henare and Satoshi Kojima. Naito took this fight into the crowd quickly. Naito hit Henare with a chair. Henare and El Terrible had a good spot where they traded slaps. El Terrible ended the match with a Styles Clash on Henare. This was a fun match with Naito and El Terrible working well together.

Templario, Gran Guerrero & Ultimo Guerrero vs. Tiger Mask, Jushin Thunder Liger & Caristico

This was the final match before the two tournament matches. We saw quite a bit out of Tiger Mask in this matchup, with him doing a Crossbody to the outside at one point. Caristico did his Armbar move to win the match. The stock music he was given for this broadcast was horrible.

El Cuatrero (Horseshoe) & Sanson vs. Atlantis & Atlantis Jr. (CMLL Family Tag Team Tournament Semi-Finals)

The two final matches on this card were part of a four-team tournament running on two shows of the tour. The tournament is for families from CMLL. The newly debuted Atlantis Jr. teamed with Atlantis to face El Cuatrero and Sanson. Sanson did a dive to the outside onto Atlantis Jr. early into the match. The match ended in the corner when Atlantis Jr. and Sanson were on the top rope. Sanson reversed whatever Atlantis Jr. was planning and turned it into a slam of some type. Like I said in the first report, Atlantis Jr. looks very good despite being only days into his debut.

Flyer & Volador Jr. (Blue Spider) vs. Dragon Lee (White) & Mistico (Gold & Silver)

In the main event, Flyer and Volador Jr. faced Dragon Lee & Mistico. Dragon Lee and Flyer had a good exchange at the start. Flyer did a Moonsault off the ropes, and Volador Jr. did a Tope Suicida right after. Minutes later, Dragon Lee and Mistico returned the favour, delivering dives of their own. Dragon Lee gave Volador Jr. a double stomp in a corner of the ring, and then took a DDT from Flyer. Mistico and Volador Jr. both landed Canadian Destroyers like it was nobodies business. Dragon Lee was going to do another double stomp, but Flyer came up to the top and turned it into a Spanish Fly. This got a two count which was broken up by Mistico. Mistico got a close count by doing a Huricanrana off the second rope onto Volador Jr. He followed it up with a Moonsault outside the ring. Flyer landed a Canadian Destroyer in the ring on Dragon Lee for a two count. Flyer also kicked out of a Powerbomb from Lee. Lee landed a knee strike and then another Powerbomb to end the match. This was a very fun main event, and I have no complains at all.

NJPW Fantastica Mania 2019 Night 1 Results and Review

The first night of the Fantastica Mania tour took place on Friday at the Osaka Prefectural Gym #2 in Japan. Let’s go through the card which included CMLL and NJPW talent.

Ryusuke Taguchi, Tiger Mask & Audaz vs. Taiji Ishimori, Gedo & Templario

For the first match, Ryusuke Taguchi was wearing some sort of Egyptian emperor outfit. Taguchi and Tiger Mask teamed with Audaz to face Gedo, Taiji Ishimori and Templario. Ishimori was sporting his NEVER Openweight 6-man belt along with his NJPW Jr. Heavyweight Championship. Tiger Mask and Gedo started the match. Gedo was wearing a Jay White t-shirt. Very early into the match, Audaz did an impressive dive to the outside onto Templario. This made both of them crash into a commentary table. Audaz and Templario were of course given a pretty big spotlight in this match. There was quite a bit of time where both guys were specifically battling each other. Templario landed a Powerbomb onto Audaz to give his team the win. Taguchi also had some pretty good spots on this match, doing a Crossbody of some sort to Ishimori at one point.

Taichi, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Forastero vs. Jushin Thunder Liger, Flyer & Titan

The next segment started off amazing because we were treated to a live performance from Taichi. If you aren’t a fan of how you can’t heat Togi Makabe’s music, you would hate this show. A chunk of the songs on the program was muted because they were CMLL songs. The CMLL fighters weren’t used to Suzuki-gun’s attack before the bell tactic and fell victim to it. Taichi took his fight against Liger to the ringside seats. Fly did a Springboard Moonsault to the outside onto Kanemaru during this match. Forastero was trying for a Powerbomb off the second rope, but Titan reversed it into a Huricanrana for a two count. The match finally came to a stop after Forastero put Titan in an Armbar of some sort for the submission. This match felt a little too short since all of these guys were really pulling off some pretty good stuff.

Okumura & Sanson vs. Atlantis & Atlantis Jr.

This match was a big one, as Atlantis Jr. made his pro wrestling debut. It was the original Atlantis that started in the match against Okumura. Jr. seemed to have a good amount of experience, being able to do moves, including dives. His second dive was followed up by a crossbody from Atlantis. His moves inside the ring seemed a little rough around the edges, but it felt like a good debut. In the ring, Atlantis did another Crossbody off the top. He then had to fight off both of his opponents at once. He tagged in Atlantis Jr., who traded chops and strikes with Sanson. Atlantis Jr. got hit with a reverse Cross-Rhodes from Okumura for the win. This was because he was distracted pleading the ref to count three when hit in the back by Okumura. I guess he has some more to learn about turning his back on opponents. After the match, Sanson and Okumura unmasked their opponents and flaunted the masks to the crowd. This was a pretty good match to be quite honest.

El Cuatrero, Gran Guerrero & Ultimo Guerrero vs. Angel De Oro, Dragon Lee & Mistico

After the last match, we saw something that we haven’t seen a while in NJPW, an intermission. The first match back was an all-CMLL wrestler match. Out of all of the six, it sounded like Dragon Lee got the biggest reaction. Although it’s hard to tell for sure since Mistico’s reaction couldn’t be heard over the broadcast’s very loud altered music. The match started with Mistico and Ultimo Guerrero. There was an interesting move where both of the Guerrero’s slammed Mistico from the top rope. Angel De Oro, Lee and Mistico all faked dives to the outside at one point. At some point I lost track of all of the dives and other crazy moves that were done in this match. It was an absolute ball. Angel De Oro and El Cuatrero were in the ring with everyone else outside the ring. Cuatrero did a Powerbomb to end the match.

Namajague, El Barbaro Cavernario & Caristico vs. KUSHIDA, El Soberano Jr. & Volador Jr.

In the next match, KUSHIDA was fighting. KUSHIDA will be leaving NJPW at the end of the month. Soberano Jr. and Barbaro Cavernario started the match with a good exchange. After a few dives from both parties, Caristico put Volador Jr. in an Armbar for the win. This, like another match earlier was way too short. I felt that Kushida didn’t get much time to shine.

Fujin (SHO) & Raijin (YOH) (RPG3K), Toa Henare & Satoshi Kojima vs. Shingo Takagi, BUSHI, Tetsuya Naito & El Terrible

The main event of the show was CHAOS versus Los Ingobernables in an 8-man match. El Terrible started in the ring against Kojima. SHO and YOH were dressed as Fujin and Raijin, the characters they played when working for CMLL. At one point in the match, Takagi was on a roll against RPG3K, giving one of them a Rock Bottom, throwing him on their teammate. Kojima did a crazy amount of chops to El Terrible then went to the top but got stopped. Fujin and Raijin both worked on BUSHI, giving him a Double Knees, but not being able to follow up with the 3K. After that, it was a wild amount of people who came in the ring and did a move. BUSHI got the win with a roll-up to end the match. While it was a decent match, the roll-up felt somewhat disappointing, especially for the main event. It felt like it was missing one more exchange that would have given the match a truly grand finale. After the match, Takagi and BUSHI had a face-off with Fujin and Raijin. BUSHI spoke as well.

NJPW New Year Dash 2019 Results and Review

After such a big show yesterday at the Tokyo Dome, New Japan goes to the more intimate environment of Korakuen Hall for New Year Dash, the promotion’s RAW after Wrestlemania. We aren’t looking for a match of the year, but some stories are set to be told. I’m no Korakuen expert, but the venue looks extra packed since there is no projector on the wall. I could be wrong though. I’ve heard how much of a hot ticket this show is, which only makes sense since you can only put so many of those 30 something thousand from the Tokyo Dome into this small building.

Lance Archer and Davey Boy Smith Jr. (Great Bash Heel) & Takashi Iizuka vs. Rocky Romero, SHO & YOH (RPG3K)

The first fight of the evening was RPG3K versus Suzuki-gun members. Right off the bat, the heels took RPG3K to outside the ring. Rocky started off against Archer in the ring. He got him outside the ring but when going for a dive was caught and thrown down. When Archer tagged in Iizuka he took off his mask, which made him go around and bit everyone. Of course, the ref had no real authority over this. Later on, Rocky was getting pummeled by Smith Jr., until he made a hot tag after doing the BUSHI kick. Both SHO and YOH came in to fight Smith Jr. The three members of Suzuki-gun got rid of SHO and then singled out YOH. YOH was Powerslammed off the second rope, but SHO broke it up. YOH escaped a Killer Bomb with the help of SHO once again. Smith Jr. was given triple stereo knees and then reversed a move into a Double Belly-to-Belly Suplex. Iizuka was tagged in once again, biting everyone. While trying to bite SHO he reversed it into a roll-up to win the match. They ran to the back to avoid possible death from their opponents. Smith Jr. beat up a ringside member, Powerslamming him onto the floor. The commentary team told us about how in their first meeting they also won via fluke, so this is a good way to continue the trend.

Yujiro Takahashi w/ Pieter & Chase Owens vs. Toa Henare & Tomoaki Honma

It was a surprise to me that we were getting a two on two match here. Although I guess it is three guys who are pretty fresh since they weren’t fighting last night. Early on Honma tried for a Kokeshi but Owens rolled out of the ring. When Henare and Takahashi were in, Henare was the most dominant wrestler. Honma got the hot tag late in the bout against Takahashi. He tried for a Kokeshi after a combo, but Yujiro dodged it. Takahashi hit a Fisherman Buster for a close count. On the second attempt, he finally landed the Kokeshi. Owens and Henare were tagged in next. Henare hit a Shoulder Tackle and then lifted Owens for a Samoan Drop, not before hitting Yujiro with him. Owens gave Small Package Piledriver for the win after giving him a mini-Superkick, countering a roll-up. Not a bad match, with some really good wrestling from Owens at the end.

Chuckie T & Berreta (Best Friends) vs. David Finlay & Juice Robinson (FinJuice)

This match was Juice’s first match after winning the US Heavyweight Championship. He seemed eccentric in his entrance. Early on in the match Berreta went into the stands and hugged his mother. Heading back to the ring the self-proclaimed “Best Friends” had some pushing and shoving before Berreta got back in the ring. Both members of FinJuice did a Crossbody to the outside. Finlay got hung on the guardrail at ringside, letting Berreta do a double stomp off the apron. When it was Juice and Berreta in the ring, Juice escaped a Dude-Buster but got hit with a kick to the head. He couldn’t connect with the Pulp Friction and got hit with a Shotgun Knee for all his troubles. Finlay got the tag against Berreta. Finlay hit a backbreaker for a close count. Chuckie T came in with a chair against Finlay to throw away the match. The storyline that Kevin Kelly was pushing was that Chuckie T has lost his mind. Juice came in to attack Chuckie T. Once Juice got hit with a chair as well, Berreta was shouting at Chuck, trying to figure out what happened. As they were leaving Chuck went back in and did a Piledriver to Finlay on a chair.

KUSHIDA, Jeff Cobb & Yuji Nagata vs. Will Ospreay, Hirooki Goto & Tomohiro Ishii

This next match is Ospreay’s first one after becoming the new NEVER Openweight Champion. There was a good spot late in this match where Nagata and Ishii were trading blows. Those two battled it out in the ring where everyone else stayed at ringside. When Cobb got tagged in he had a great combo of moves with Goto. They both clotheslined each other to set up for another hot tag. KUSHIDA and Ospreay came in next. KUSHIDA landed a dropkick after some counters and took out both of Ospreay’s teammates. Will hit a Springboard Forearm. He tried for the Os-Cutter, but Cobb came in to catch him and take him down. KUSHIDA got suplexed onto Will by Cobb for a two count. That spot was very cool. After numerous reversals, KUSHIDA gave Ospreay a DDT. A Back To The Future was reversed by Ospreay, and he did a flippy move off of Ishii’s back. Ospreay gave KUSHIDA a Storm Breaker to end the match. This match was some real fun. Just wild stuff being done by KUSHIDA and Will, with the help of everyone else. Nagata and Ishii slapped each other after the belt, making others pull them apart. A similar thing happened with Goto and Cobb.

Ryusuke Taguchi, Toru Yano & Togi Makabe vs. Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa (Geurillas of Destiny) Taichi Ishimori w/ Jado (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Championship Match)

The only title match on this card was Taguchi Japan challenging three Bullet Club members for their 6-man belts. They won the opportunity on the pre-show of Wrestle Kingdom last night. Just like last night, Yano got distracted because he would wait for Taguchi to call a play. Yano untied a corner pad while in there with Tama Tonga. GoD claims that they are no longer cheats. Tonga proved this by putting Yano into a normal corner instead of the corner with the exposed buckles. When Taguchi was tagged in he tried for a Three Amigos, getting two of the three suplexes. Jado hit Taguchi with a kendo stick when he went on the ropes. I guess Jado doesn’t share the same philosophy as GoD. As the ref was counting a pin on Tonga Loa, Ishimori dragged the ref out. Jado came into the ring to try to hit Makabe with a kendo stick, but Yano came behind and gave him a low blow. Makabe fought off both GoD members, bringing it back to just him and Tanga Loa. He slammed Loa and then went to the top rope, but Yujiro Takahashi and Chase Owens came out. Takahashi pushed him off the ropes, and Owens gave him a Small Package Piledriver. Loa hit his finishing move to let the team retain. I love this gimmick. That the Guerillas of Destiny don’t cheat, but their buddies do. All of the guys too sweeted after the match, so I guess all is good with them. Though really, it shows that Bullet Club is really bad at cheating. Jado couldn’t give them an advantage, so two more were needed.

El Desperado, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Taichi, Zack Sabre Jr. w/ Taka Michinoku & Minoru Suzuki vs. Shingo Takagi, BUSHI, SANADA, EVIL & Tetsuya Naito

In a 10-man match, Suzuki-gun faced Los Ingobernables de Japon. There was lots of gold carried into the ring, as all LOS members have belts. As Naito was still getting ready for the match, Taichi clubbed him in the head with a chair. The camera shot was perfect so that you didn’t see this coming. Right off the bat, this match turned into chaos. Taichi and Naito started the match. Naito was really selling the chair shot. Naito was thrown into a press table, and Suzuki took SANADA into the hallway of Korakuen. Naito somehow got the hot tag later against Taichi, despite being beaten to a pulp. Taichi hit Naito with his IC title while the ref was distracted, and then hit his finishing move to win the match. It looks like that will be the next program for Naito. After the match, Taichi called out Naito and threw his belt. I liked this segment. It’s obvious that Taichi won’t actually become champ, but it’s a fun angle to do in the meantime.

Gedo, Bad Luck Fale & Jay White vs. YOSHI-HASHI, Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi

In the main event, we got the return of YOSHI-HASHI. Along with that, we also saw the new IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Hiroshi Tanahashi. Early on Gedo took a chair to Yoshi. He was in no way given a slow return. Okada was given a hot tag and had a face-off with Gedo. Okada fought off Bad Luck Fale before tagging in Tanahashi against Jay White. White gave Tanahashi a Snap Side-Suplex but got hit with a Swingblade after talking to the crowd. YOSHI-HASHI got the tag against White, hitting a Huricanrana. Moments later White hit a Rock Bottom and then called for the Blade Runner. Okada came in to stop it. White tried again for a Blade Runner but it got reversed into a Twist & Shout. YOSHI-HASHI came back in to do a clothesline and a suplex for a two count. He picked up White again and tried for a move but White escaped by hurting the ref. YOSHI-HASHI did a Superkick but got his move reversed into a German Suplex. White hit the Blade Runner to win the match. Welcome back, YOSHI-HASHI. After the match, White called out Tanahashi. This made him come back to the ring. He got jumped but the Bullet Club once he was in the ring. Okada came in to try to save Tanahashi but got hit with a Grenade from Bad Luck Fale. White did his Blade Runner move to Tanahashi. As the show was ending he hoisted the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Pretty good promo from White.

In general, this show was short and sweet. No huge surprises on the show, but I left satisfied. It’s obvious based off who was left off this show that a lot of people are either gone or still in question. We got two solid angles set up from this show, with other smaller ones also being showcased. New Japan returns on the 11th for the first televised event of the NJPW/CMLL Fantasticamania tour.

Wrestle Kingdom 13 Results and Review

It is time to look at one of the biggest days of the year on the wrestling calendar: Wrestle Kingdom! This show will be an interesting one as it might be the last time we see such a stacked card, as a ton of talent will be soon leaving for new promotion “All Elite Wrestling.” What this card will be like a year from now will likely be wildly different.

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Title #1 Contender’s Match Gauntlet

1st Pairing: Yujiro Takahashi, Adam Page & Marty Scurll vs. Yuji Nagata, Jeff Cobb & David Finlay w/ Chase Owens

Starting off the pre-show match, which is replacing the New Japan Rumble this year, was a gauntlet match to find the new NEVER Openweight 6-man title #1 contenders. Starting the match was Yujiro Takahashi, Adam Page and Marty Scurll versus Yuji Nagata, Jeff Cobb and David Finlay. I’ve seen some people mention how this match seems to be a way to just pack as many dudes on this show as possible. Finlay tried for a Generation Finlay but got stopped by Chase Owens who was at ringside. Owens held onto Finlay for a kick, but Finlay dodged and it was Page who kicked Owens. Page was angry so he pushed Yujiro unintentionally into a roll-up that cost them the match. Not the most elaborate spot, but hey, it’s the pre-show.

2nd Pairing: Yuji Nagata, Jeff Cobb & David Finlay vs. Chuckie T, Beretta & Hirooki Goto

Goto got the jump on the already warm team. Chuckie did a dive over all three ropes onto Finlay and Cobb, and then Beretta followed it up with a Springboard Moonsault. The two veterans Nagata and Goto fought in the ring. Cobb did an amazing combo off Tour of the Island and a Standing Moonsault onto Goto. Chuckie T tried for a Moonsault that Finlay dodged, and then David landed the second roll-up in the match.

3rd Pairing: Yuji Nagata, Jeff Cobb & David Finlay vs. Lance Archer, Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Minoru Suzuki

A loud “Kaze Ni Nare” echoed through the Tokyo Dome as Suzuki and his trio hit before the bell. Suzuki apparently was attacking Nagata with a chair while Cobb and Smith fought in the ring. The Killer Elite Squad hit a Killer Bomb to get rid of the long-standing team in this match, in quick time.

4th Pairing: Lance Archer, Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Minoru Suzuki vs. Togi Makabe, Ryusuke Taguchi & Toru Yano

The final pairing of the matchup was the Killer Elite Squad and Suzuki versus Togi Makabe, Ryusuke Taguchi and Toru Yano. In the ring, Makabe and Suzuki traded blows, with it ending with a clothesline. Yano and Smith got the hot tag. Yano didn’t fight because he waited for Taguchi to give him a play call with arm signs. Yano removed a turnbuckle, but then got hit with two double team moves. Archer held down the ref and pleaded him to count to three. Taguchi came in to break up the pin and then everyone else in the match followed. Suzuki tried for a Gotch Style Piledriver but Taguchi broke it up with his hip attacks. Yano escaped a double team move and then stopped himself from doing double low blows. As Makabe was fighting KES, Yano hit his low blows from behind and then hit a roll-up for the win. It’s wild to think that Minoru Suzuki is on the pre-show of this card. It was lame that there were three roll-up spots in this match, but like I said before it’s not the end of the world since it’s the pre-show. Personally, I would want Suzuki in the title picture, but maybe they have something else for him. Did I like this match more than the New Japan Rumble? Not really, because the Rumble felt like a more fun way to start the show. While the Jeff Cobb impressed me the most out of everyone in this match. He’s the right mix of agile and strong.

Before the pre-show ended they showed the 2019 schedule for big shows. This included an announcement of the G1 at the American Airlines Center on July 6th and a show at the Copper Box Arena on August 31st. The biggest announcement of all was that Wrestle Kingdom will be a two-day event in 2020, on the 4th and 5th of January.

Will Ospreay vs. Kota Ibushi (NEVER Openweight Championship Match)

What started off the main card was Will Ospreay challenging for Kota Ibushi’s NEVER Openweight Championship. Like Don Callis said at the start, this match was too quick to call. Ospreay countered a Moonsault the outside with a kick, and then landed a dive of his own. Ospreay landed a great move on the ropes called the “Cheeky Nandos Kick.” There was an amazing spot where both fighters countered each other for a long time before Ospreay landed a Spanish Fly. Ibushi got a close count with the Last Ride Powerbomb. On the ground, Ibushi and Ospreay traded slaps. Ospreay put Ibushi on the top rope as Ibushi’s head snapped forward and hit the ring post. Ibushi landed a Double Stomp on Will’s back on the top rope. Ibushi was bleeding at this point, which might have been from the post. Ibushi Deadlift Suplexed Ospreay off the second rope, but Will landed on his feet. Ibushi hit a Bridged German Suplex for a two count. Will got hit with a Piledriver for another close count. As Ibushi was getting up, Will nearly took his head off with an Running Elbow. Ospreay hit a Storm Breaker for the win.

Will Ospreay is the new NEVER Openweight Champion. It looked like Ibushi got knocked out from the elbow, as he was stretchered off. If that’s the case, they shouldn’t have done another move afterwards. Besides that, the match was good. In the replays, you could see Ibushi got hit hard with the elbow. The match was good before that, but to me, that didn’t seem safe at all.

SHO & YOH (RPG3K) vs. BUSHI & Shingo Takagi vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado (IWGP Jr. Tag Team Championship Match)

The next match was the first of two three-way matches this evening. SHO did a double German Suplex early on. BUSHI did a great dive to the outside onto YOH. Takagi hit SHO with a Last of The Dragon for the win, which looked like death. This match was very short but not bad.

Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tomohiro Ishii (RevPro British Heavyweight Championship Match)

Now, this match is an interesting one because it’s for the RevPro title, and we don’t usually see defences of that belt in NJPW. Never have we seen it in the Tokyo Dome. They even brought in a RevPro referee to sanction this bout! Ishii hit a Superplex but ZSJ no-sold it into a move where he stomped on Ishii’s arm. There was a great chain of moves between these two that ended with Ishii being put in a standing submission move. ZSJ turned it into a powerbomb. ZSJ himself got Powerbombed minutes later. As usual, ZSJ put in a submission move that I can’t name and became the new champion. This was a good match, I like how these two made the crowd really get behind all of the submission moves. With the win, Zack was given the new RevPro title, as the old one was retired after this match.

Matt Jackson & Nick Jackon (The Young Bucks) vs. SANADA & EVIL vs. Tanga Loa and Tama Tonga (Guerillas of Destiny) w/ Jado & Bad Luck Fale (IWGP Tag Team Championship Match)

The next match was the second of the two three-way tag title matches. Nick and Tonga started the fight, with Loa offering a handshake. Nick didn’t buy the handshake and tagged in Matt instead. Loa shook EVIL’s hand, but also tagged himself out. After that, the match lost all order, with EVIL slamming mat on the ramp. EVIL then ran all the way down the ramp for a fast clothesline. GoD tried for stereo Frogsplashes but the Bucks stopped the second one from happening. The Bucks did a great combo of moves, with most of them targeted on the legal man, EVIL. SANADA got a hot tag, attacking everyone, including four Crossbodies to outside the ring. Loa got hit with a top rope Huricanrana, then both of the Bucks did a Superkick onto SANADA, who was coming off the ropes. A Meltzer Driver was ended by a Stun Gun by Tonga. SANADA and EVIL hit a Magic Killer, and then SANADA hit a Moonsault off the top rope to win the match. SANADA and EVIL are the new champions. They clanked their belts and their Tag League trophies after the bout.

Out of the two three-way matches, this one was way better. I thought that the finish for this bout was really clever. It was predictable that The Bucks wouldn’t win this one, but it’s nice that SANADA and EVIL are the champs.

Juice Robinson vs. Cody w/ Brandi Rhodes (IWGP US Heavyweight Championship Match)

For this next bout, Brandi Rhodes was at ringside and had lots of involvement in the match. Both guys blocked their finishers from happening on the apron, and then Cody pushed Juice into a ring post. As the ref was distracted, Brandi landed a Spear and beat up Juice. The referee kicked out Brandi because he saw the last few punches she landed. She shoved a ringside member on the way out. As this was happening Cody hit a Cross Rhodes for a two count. Minutes later Juice hit a Cross Rhodes of his own for a close pin attempt. Cody stole Juice’s move, Pulp Friction for an even closer count. Juice got on a roll and did a Forearm and Pulp Friction. Instead of going for a pinfall he picked him up for another Pulp Friction. This gave Juice the win, to make him the new IWGP US Heavyweight Champion. This was a very short match, but was the expected outcome. It was a good match, but I was hoping would be a little quicker.

Taiji Ishimori vs. KUSHIDA (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match)

Before this match, KUSHIDA had a special entrance, with a small, child-size KUSHIDA being turned into the real one with the help of Ryusuke Taguchi as the doctor from Back to the Future. Both of these guys were doing some great stuff. Ishimori did some German Suplex that I have never seen before, sliding out of the ring while throwing KUSHIDA. Frequently KUSHIDA would reverse moves into submissions. KUSHIDA hit a Small Package Suplex and then a punch that took down Taiji. Off the ropes, Taiji gave KUSHIDA double knees. Ishimori ended the bout with a Bloody Cross. Ishimori is the new IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion. I didn’t know who would win this one, but I guess it makes sense that they want to boost Ishimori by giving him a belt.

Jay White w/ Gedo vs. Kazuchika Okada

The video package leading up to this next match was very well done. The old Okada is finally back, as he came out to his old theme, has blonde hair, and is wearing shorts again. Shorts! Finally! Early on in the bout, Okada showed off his amazing vertical when delivering a dropkick to Jay White, who was sitting on the top rope. Gedo tried jumping Okada but got beaten up instead. Okada did a Crossbody to both White and Gedo over a guardrail. Okada landed a picture perfect Elbow Drop off of the top rope and then called for the Rainmaker. He did not get the move, with White landing a DDT and a German Suplex instead. White also hit a Rock Bottom for a two count. He tried for the Blade Runner but Okada escaped. Instead, he hit a clothesline. Gedo put a chair on the ring mat for White and then distracted the ref. Okada dodged a chair shot and then pushed White into Gedo. He landed two Dropkicks but couldn’t connect on the rainmaker. White hit another German Suplex, then hit a Kiwi Crusher for a close count. He tried again for a Blade Runner but it did not work. Okada got a Tombstone Piledriver, which put them both down. A chain of reversed moves ended with Okada landing a dropkick and calling for the Rainmaker. Both guys reversed many moves, including finishers, with Okada landing a Clothesline. He tried for the Rainmaker but White finally landed the Blade Runner to win the match.

I was very surprised that Okada wouldn’t win this match because it felt like this would be Okada’s return back to his old self. I was hoping it would be that way, but it wasn’t. But despite this, it was still an amazing match. The ending combo was a work of art, especially when you take into account that this was all thought through.

Tetsuya Naito vs. Chris Jericho (IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match) (No DQ Match)

This is probably the match that I was the most excited for. This match is a No Disqualification match with the IC title on the line. Before Jericho entered the ring Naito jumped him, which I saw coming since they announced Jericho while he was walking down the ramp. The brawl immediately went around the arena. Jericho got his head bashed on a table, then brought to the ramp for a Piledriver. The piledriver looked either deadly or good. Back in the ring, Naito took off a corner pad. Jericho was thrown outside the ring, and as Naito came to the ropes he got hit with a Kendo Stick. He continued to use it for the new couple of minutes. Jericho did a Dropkick to Naito who was on the apron, which Naito sold incredibly, landing on his head. Jericho picked up a camera but didn’t really use it. Over to a commentary table, Jericho did a DDT which did not make the table break. It looked truly brutal. Jericho did a Crossbody off the top rope for a two count.

Naito started to finally get offense after being down for a while. Naito’s corner kicks got reversed into a Walls of Jericho. Once Naito got out a Codebreaker was reversed into a Swinging DDT. He followed it up with a Gloria for a two count. A Destino got reversed into another Walls of Jericho. Naito escaped the move by hitting Jericho with the kendo stick over and over. Naito threw Jericho off the ropes and swung the kendo stick at him like a baseball bat. He tried to do it again but Jericho avoided it and hit a Codebreaker. Jericho went under the ring to get out numerous chairs. Jericho tried for a Powerbomb but Naito turned it into a DDT into the pile of chairs. Naito did a Codebreak of his own but couldn’t win the match with it. Naito went to the second rope but was slowed down by Jericho, who threw a chair at him. Naito did a German Suplex and then tried for a Destino but Jericho dodged it, shoved the ref and then kicked Naito in the crotch and did a Codebreaker for a two count. I mean, it’s no DQ, but okay. Jericho then took the IC title into the ring and was going to hit him with the belt. Naito put Jericho into the corner with an exposed turnbuckle and hit a Destino, but Jericho kicked out! Naito hit him with the belt, threw the belt off into the distance, and then hit Destino for the win. After the match, Jericho angrily left.

This match was, as I expected, lots of fun. I thought that Naito had a high chance of winning the match coming in, but didn’t know. I love the storytelling of Naito still having a disdain for the belt, as he threw it far out of sight after using it on Jericho. I would say that they used the No DQ rules to their full potential, but they didn’t since Jericho still felt the need to shield the ref’s eyes from a move that was fully allowed.

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kenny Omega (IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match)

Finally, it’s time to discuss the main event. Kenny Omega’s entrance was great, especially with the attire he was wearing. As the two were getting close at the start, Tanahashi slapped Omega. Omega gave him a light slap on the ropes, which Tanahashi followed with an even harder slap than before. Tanahashi early on almost got caught in a One Winged Angel as he was on Omega’s shoulders. Both guys traded hard slaps again when in a leg move on the ground. Early on both of these guys were hitting each other hard. Outside the ring, Tanahashi was thrown into a guardrail but came back with a Dropkick. Omega picked up Tanahashi and slammed him onto the edge of a commentary table, making him plummet to the floor. Kenny went on the guardrail and did a Moonsault. He picked up Milano Collection A.T., who went down when Tanahashi first went through the table. Kenny raised his arm. Omega brought out a table and put it at ringside. Back in the ring now, the two wrestlers were trading blows once again. Tanahashi did a Summersault Senton that looked good. Later on, Omega did a dive over the ropes onto Tanahashi, absolutely slapping onto the ramp. Kenny gave Tanahashi a V-Trigger in the ring. When he went to the middle rope for a move Tanahashi grabbed onto his right leg and did a Dragon Screw. Tanahashi landed a Twist & Shout and then did a Boston Crab. Tanahashi gave up the move and did a Styles Clash. Off the top rope, he tried for a High Fly Flow, but Kenny put his knees up. A V-Trigger was dodged in the corner, making Omega smash his leg into the corner. Through the ropes this time, Tanahashi delivered another Dragon Screw.

Tanahashi put Omega on the table that has been on the outside for some time now. He tried for a High Fly Flow off the top rope and through the table, but Omega got out of the way. Omega did a double stomp off the top rope to Tanahashi, who was draped on the ropes. A kickout came three times, after each powerbomb that followed the move before. After a combo of moves, Kenny hit a Swingblade and a High Fly Flow of his own. Kenny hit a V-Trigger which made both of them fall onto all fours. Kenny hit another V-Trigger, then tried for a One Winged Angel but Tanahashi turned it into a Reverse Huricanrana. After a close count, Tanahashi hit two High Fly Flow’s for a very close pin attempt. A very tired Tanahashi went to the top rope but was hit with a V-Trigger while getting up. Omega did a German Superplex off the top rope, with Tanahashi landing on his stomach. Yet another V-Trigger was hit. Kenny tried ending it all with the One Winged Angel, but Tanahashi escaped once again. He hit a Swingblade and then went to the top rope for a final High Fly Flow, to win the match.

This match, and the whole show, in general, was amazing. I always worry with shows this long that they will drag, but I didn’t sense that at all with this show. Would I consider this match the as good as the years before? Probably not, but it was still very good. In my heart, I still consider Okada vs. Omega 1 as the best Wrestle Kingdom match that I’ve seen.

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