WAR - One Month Only!

[Jaded]

This is my attempt at a Japanese dynasty. As mentioned in the diary preview thread, it’s only intended to last 3 weeks or so ‘real time’ – because after January 25th, I think I’ll probably be glued to TEW 10. It’s hopefully going to have 9 shows – 2 a week for 4 weeks, then the big show at the end.

 

Data is from the draft that’s just been done over in the mods forum, which can be got at

http://www.sendspace.com/file/qfz5zj

 

The draft was done using Genadi’s superb 2002 mod – the original data for that can be found in this thread.

http://67.19.230.90/~arles/forum/showthread.php?t=38305

 

Thanks go to Genadi, Kobe, and to everyone involved in the draft.

 

Here goes…

 

April 2002, Monday Week 1

From http://www.pwjapan.com

 

Many industry insiders and fans are excited about the level of Japanese talent being collected in Antonio Inoki’s WAR federation. Legends Masa Chono, Keiji Mutoh, Mitsuhara Misawa, Jun Akiyama and Masato Tanaka are all on board, and have been joined by possibly the world’s greatest tag team, Satoshi Kojima and Hiroyoshi Tenzan.

 

Inoki will give a press conference tomorrow giving more specifics about the new federation, and Pro Wrestling Japan will be there to report…

 

 

April 2002 Tuesday Week 1

 

From http://www.pwjapan.com

 

Interesting stuff from Inoki’s conference.

 

• As expected, Kenta Kobashi – currently recovering from knee surgery – and Ultimo Dragon, who’s still out for another six months or so, HAVE signed. Kobashi will be in for the second tour, Dragon hopefully for the third.
   
  
• He’s not looking for any more long term signings, but is expected to bring in several guys on short-term deals and tours. To that end, working agreements have been signed with American promotions KANZEN Pro and MLWA. While he wouldn’t be drawn on which wrestlers from the two federations were likely to turn up in WAR, MLWA’s Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, and Shinja Hashimoto all have extensive experience in Japan, with Shinja being one of the very few top Japanese wrestlers not to be signed up. From KANZEN’s much younger roster, Silver King stands out as experienced in this country, while ‘American Dragon’ Bryan Danielson has done some shows and is believed to be keen on working more. Finally, youngsters Jay and Mark Briscoe are highly rated and could be a good bet to turn up as Inoki’s talking a lot about focusing on tag wrestling.
   
  
• Following on from that last point, Inoki also announced that each tour would last 3 months, featuring 2 shows a week building up to a big show at the end of each month, and a huge show to end each tour. He said that every match would be important, and that there would be 8 groups of 4 wrestlers each, with a scoring system for stables – further details to come; he did say more but it was too complicated to make much sense of my notes.
   
  
• When asked about gaijin, Inoki said that he’d be happy to bring in more American wrestlers but that most of the top names he’d be interested in were currently tied to contracts with the 10 new feds in North America. He DID confirm, however, that Jim Ross is on board, having decided to move to Japan anyway, and is currently trying to bring his Japanese up to scratch – he’ll be the focal point of a TV highlights show if a deal is reached for one, as expected.
   
  
• If that wasn’t surprising enough, the first two foreign wrestlers to sign contracts are the much-derided Brian Adams and Bryan Clark, Kronik. Inoki refused to be drawn on how long he was expecting them to stick around, but was extremely defensive of them, pointing out that they were a vastly experienced team who were instantly recognizable to Japanese fans. Hard to argue with, but notable that he wasn’t saying anything about their wrestling skills.
   
  
• One final note – whereas many of the American federations have signed relatively few written deals, bulking up their roster with PPA contracts, Inoki confirmed that he has signed just over 20 wrestlers to exclusive written deals. The interesting exception here is Kaz Hayashi, who apparently turned down a written deal and has signed a PPA contract which allows him to also work in America for KANZEN Pro – Inoki is believed to be extremely high on the 28 year old.
  

Check in tomorrow for the official WAR press release of the stable scoring system.

 

 

April 2002, Wednesday Week 1

 

WAR – The Climb To The Top

 

Wrestle Always Rightfully are proud to announce the rules for their Climb To The Top system, which will ensure that every match in the federation matters to the competitors and their stablemates.

 

The 32 wrestlers currently signed to complete the upcoming Battle Begins tour have formed 8 stables, each consisting of 4 men.

 

Over the 8 shows leading to May’s WAR Unstoppable Thunder big show, representatives of the stables will face off in a series of matches. Each card on the leadup to the show will involve a two six-man tag matches, two tag matches, and three singles matches. Over the 8 shows, every stable will face off against every other stable twice. The winning side in each match will score 2 points for their stable. In the event of a time limit draw, both sides will score 1 point.

 

As WAR expects each and every competitor to fight with honor, in the event of a disqualification, the disqualified side will LOSE 1 point.

 

At Unstoppable Thunder, the first champion will be crowned in WAR. All wrestlers from the two stables with the most points will face off in an 8-man tournament for the WAR World title.

 

Check back tomorrow for more news on who we have signed so far.

 

[Jaded]

Introducing the 8 WAR Stables…

 

Team Thunder: Jushin Liger, Genichiro Tenryu, Shoichi Funaki, Taka Michinoku.

 

Team Thunder’s captain is Jushin Liger, the 37 year old who many would call the greatest junior-heavyweight wrestler to ever live. Alongside him fight Mr Puroresu Genichiro Tenryu, who even at 52 is a dangerous opponent, and, back from the USA, tag team Kaientai.

 

Team Elite: Akira Taue, Naomichi Marufuji, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Osamu Nishimura.

 

Taue believes himself to be one of the world’s best puroresu wrestlers. Marufuji, Nishimura and Tanahishi claim to be three of the best super juniors. Together, they believe they are the Elite.

 

Team nWo: Masa Chono, Keiji Mutoh, Bryan Clark, Brian Adams

 

Four years or so after the end of nWo Japan, Masa Chono and Keiji Mutah are back together. They’re backed up by Brian Adams, formerly of the nWo in WCW, and his regular tag partner Bryan Clark.

 

Team Gaijin: Vader, Scorpio, Dustin Rhodes, Steve Williams

 

15 years after causing a riot when he beat new WAR owner Antonio Inoki in New Japan, the 47-year old Vader is ready to have one last push for glory. To help him, he’s brought in tag partner Scorpio, Dustin Rhodes – who’s finally made it to Japan after years of wrestling only in the States – and one of the most famous Americans to wrestle in Japan, ‘Dr Death’ Steve Williams.

 

Team Fire: Yuji Nagata, Mitsuya Nagai, Kaz Hayashi, Jimmy Yang

 

Nagata backs down from no one, and is one of the toughest men in the federation – as is another former MMA fighter, Mitsuya Nagai. Joining their team is the man who many claim is Inoki’s handpicked new superstar, Kaz Hayashi, and his long time tag partner Jimmy Yang.

 

Team Ice: Jun Akiyama, Yoshihiro Tajiri, Masato Tanaka, Shinjiro Otani

 

Jun Akiyama, former amateur wrestling standout, has teamed up with Yoshihiro Tajiri, who returns to Japan after several years in the States, and the young up-and-coming tag team of Team Emblem.

 

Team Excellence: Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, Koji Kanemoto, Minoru Tanaka

 

Tenzan and Kojima are currently the best tag team in the world, in the eyes of many. Teaming up with the former Tiger Mask III, Koji Kanemoto, and Kanemoto’s former partner and IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Champion with him, Minoru Tanaka, these four are amongst the favourites.

 

Team Puroresu Perfection: Mitsuhara Misawa, Yoshiniri Ogawa, Manabu Nakanishi, Shinya Hashimoto

 

Misawa, like Kanemoto a former Tiger Mask, has recruited three of the other best puroresu wrestlers in the world today. Ogawa is Misawa’s protégé, Nakanishi is a former Olympic wrestler, and Hashimoto – on loan from Canada’s MLWA – is a former amateur judoka who was one of NJPW’s ‘Three Musketeers’ with Mutoh and Chono.

 

Climb to the Top Tour, Wednesday Week 1 May 2002

 

Coming up this week…

 

Our main event sees Hiroyoshi Tenzan is in singles action, taking on the legendary Genichiro Tenryu!

 

Also, Dustin Rhodes makes his debut in Japan, going against Keiji Mutoh, while two Japanese workers best known for their American careers go up against each other – it’s Yoshihiro Tajiri against Kaz Hayashi.

 

In tag action, Vader pairs up with Scorpio to go against Jimmy Yang and Mitsuya Nagai, while Akira Taue and Osamu Nishimura will face the much smaller Kaientai.

 

And in six-man action, two established teams each pair up with a singles star, as the nWo trio of Kronik and Masa Chono go up against Emblem and Jun Akiyama of Team Ice. In our last announced match, Koji Kanemoto, Minoru Tanaka, and Satoshi Kojima will face off against Yoshinari Ogawa, Manabu Nakanishi and Shinya Hashimoto.

 

Quick picks:

Jun Akiyama and Emblem vs Kronik and Masa Chono

Kanemoto/Minoru/Kojima vs Ogawa/Nakanishi/Hashimoto

Vader and Scorpio vs Mitsuya Nagai and Jimmy Yang

Akira Taue and Osamu Nishimura vs Kaientai

Kaz Hayashi vs Yoshihiro Tajiri

Keiji Mutoh vs Dustin Rhodes

Genichiro Tenryu vs Hiroyoshi Tenzan

[SWF Fan]

Jun Akiyama and Emblem vs Kronik and Masa Chono

Kanemoto/Minoru/Kojima vs Ogawa/Nakanishi/Hashimoto

Vader and Scorpio vs Mitsuya Nagai and Jimmy Yang

Akira Taue and Osamu Nishimura vs KaientaiKaz Hayashi vs Yoshihiro Tajiri

Keiji Mutoh vs Dustin Rhodes

Genichiro Tenryu vs Hiroyoshi Tenzan

[jesushat902]

How do you have Shinya if I drafted him to written?

 

Kronik and Masa Chono

Ogawa/Nakanishi/Hashimoto

Vader and Scorpio

Akira Taue and Osamu Nishimura

Kaz Hayashi

Keiji Mutoh

Hiroyoshi Tenzan

[Jaded]

How do you have Shinya if I drafted him to written?

 

Talent trade via our working agreement.

[SWF Fan]

Talent trade via our working agreement.

 

Touche

[Rayelek]

Jun Akiyama and Emblem vs Kronik and Masa Chono

Kanemoto/Minoru/Kojima vs Ogawa/Nakanishi/Hashimoto

Vader and Scorpio vs Mitsuya Nagai and Jimmy Yang

Akira Taue and Osamu Nishimura vs Kaientai

Kaz Hayashi vs Yoshihiro Tajiri

Keiji Mutoh vs Dustin Rhodes

Genichiro Tenryu vs Hiroyoshi Tenzan

[randomfreeze]

I'm ignorant to wrestling in this part of the world, but here are some picks you can laugh at.

 

Jun Akiyama and Emblem vs Kronik and Masa Chono

Kanemoto/Minoru/Kojima vs Ogawa/Nakanishi/Hashimoto

Vader and Scorpio vs Mitsuya Nagai and Jimmy Yang

Akira Taue and Osamu Nishimura vs Kaientai

Kaz Hayashi vs Yoshihiro Tajiri

Keiji Mutoh vs Dustin Rhodes

Genichiro Tenryu vs Hiroyoshi Tenzan

[Infernalmiko]

Wow, that's a really loaded roster. And plenty of goofy 6man tags, in the finest WAR tradition.

 

 

Jun Akiyama and Emblem vs Kronik and Masa Chono

Big difference in the level of talent between these teams. Chono is a legend but one of Kronik take the fall.

 

Kanemoto/Minoru/Kojima vs Ogawa/Nakanishi/Hashimoto

This'll tell us how you look at the juniors. Traditionally Kanemoto and Minoru would not have a shot against Hashimoto's team and Kojima would not be big enough in 2002 to pick up the slack.

 

Vader and Scorpio vs Mitsuya Nagai and Jimmy Yang

Vader smash!

 

Akira Taue and Osamu Nishimura vs Kaientai

Dynamic T and the lord of MUGA FTW. Kaientai are fun but not high enough profile.

 

Kaz Hayashi vs Yoshihiro Tajiri

Toss up. So I'll go with Tajiri, I like him more. Doubly so if this is Green Mist Tajiri.

 

Keiji Mutoh vs Dustin Rhodes

Keiko Mutoh easily. Rhondes is not remotely on that level.

 

Genichiro Tenryu vs Hiroyoshi Tenzan

It's WAR, I have to go with Tenryu.

[1234]

Jun Akiyama and Emblem vs Kronik and Masa Chono

Kanemoto/Minoru/Kojima vs Ogawa/Nakanishi/Hashimoto

Vader and Scorpio vs Mitsuya Nagai and Jimmy Yang

Akira Taue and Osamu Nishimura vs Kaientai

Kaz Hayashi vs Yoshihiro Tajiri

Keiji Mutoh vs Dustin Rhodes

Genichiro Tenryu vs Hiroyoshi Tenzan

[Jaded]

Big thanks to everyone for predictions, and especially Miko for the comments on each match. I'll post standings in the Climb To The Top, along with the next card, either later tonight or tomorrow morning.

 

From Yoyogi National Stadium Gym #2, WAR: Marathon Tour Night 1.

 

• KAZ HAYASHI vs YOSHIHIRO TAJIRI

This was a contest between two men who haven’t wrestled that much in their native country recently, and they’d clearly been given instructions to go out there and impress the crowd. They certainly managed to do that in a high-octane bout which, after five or six minutes of feeling each other out, saw both of them bust out lots of big aerial maneuvers. Highlights included Tajiri backdropping Hayashi over the top rope to the outside and hitting a springboard moonsault on him, before dragging him back in for a nearfall, Hayashi getting two and seven eights with a senton bomb, and Tajiri sitting down on the Jung Dragon as he tried a victory roll, coming close to getting the victory there. However, it would be Hayashi who emerged triumphant after nearly 14 minutes, hitting a Moonsault Press for the pin.

 

Result: Hayashi pins Taijiri, 13:56. (C+)

 

 

• LEGACY VIDEO

After the opening match, a short video played showing footage of Japanese wrestling through the last few decades, culminating in the message “WAR: Legacy of Japan”

 

Rating. (B-)

 

 

• KOJI KANEMOTO, MINORU TANAKA and SATOSHI KOJIMA vs YOSHINARI OGAWA, MANABU NAKANISHI and SHINYA HASHIMOTO

This was a fast paced affair, with Kojima wrestling most of the time for his team, tagging in Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka fairly infrequently – and always looking keen on getting back in. Ogawa, Nakanishi and the on-loan Hashimoto appeared to be much more comfortable as a team, and indeed Ogawa twice came close to pulling off a victory out of the blue, first with a small package on Tanaka, and secondly with a crucifix cradle on Kojima. Kojima eventually got triple teamed for a few minutes by the opposing trio, but was able to dive through them to make the tag to Kanemoto – only for Ogawa to come in and pin Koji with a Backdrop Hold.

 

Result: Ogawa pins Kanemoto, 12:31. ©

 

 

• VADER and SCORPIO vs MITSUYA NAGAI and JIMMY YANG
  

Many insiders expressed surprise when this card’s matches were announced, pointing out that it would surely have made more sense for Team Fire to have put the Jung Dragons up against Vader and Scorpio, and allowed Nagai to fight Tajiri in solo action, rather than team up Nagai and Yang for the first time ever. Hindsight suggests that that would definitely have been a smarter thing to do, as Nagai and Yang never got things going against the more experienced team. After Scorpio started off against Nagai, Yang and Vader tagged in and Vader just brutally destroyed Yang, flinging him around and finishing off with a quite incredible display of athleticism for a man of his age, taking down his opponent with a dropkick and then getting the Vader Crush for the win.

 

Result: Vader pins Yang, 5:46. (D)

 

 

• JUN AKIYAMA and EMBLEM vs MASA CHONO and KRONIK

The two main eventers here, Chono and Akiyama, had the crowd worked up into a frenzy with some superb classic puroresu. The differenc in the end, however, came down to their partners – while the oft-derided Kronik got lots of offense, Shinjiro Otani, in particular, struggled. He was worked over by the American duo, who isolated him and planted him nearly through the mat with the Total Meltdown, before Brian Adams, looking rather tired, tagged in Masa Chono to finish him off with the Yakuza Kick.

 

Result: Chono pins Otani, 18:57. (B-)

 

 

• AKIRA TAUE and OSAMU NISHIMURA vs KAIENTAI

Kaientai are fast, agile and quick-thinking. However, they were at a serious weight disadvantage here, and as much as they tried to wear down Taue and Nishimura with quick attacks, they were never able to inflict any serious damage. After Funaki tried a desperation diving crossbody and Taue caught him, then put him down with a massive powerslam, there was never any doubt as to who’d win this one. The sitout powerbomb Akira calls the Dynamic Bomb finished things at just under quarter of an hour.

 

Result: Taue pins Funaki, 14:43. (C-)

 

 

• STABLES HYPE VIDEO

A video played showing the stables in WAR.

 

Rating. (B)

 

 

• KEIJI MUTOH vs DUSTIN RHODES

Dustin Rhodes, while familiar to virtually any fans who’d watched US wrestling in the 1990’s, was making his Japanese debut in this match, and this led to the bout’s major problem. While Mutoh sold well for the Team Gaijin wrestler, and Rhodes got two counts after a second rope bulldog and a sitout rear mat slam, there was practically no-one in the building who thought the legend had any chance of losing this one. They were proved completely correct, with Mutoh taking control after ten minutes or so and showcasing some devastating moves, nearly winning the fight with a top rope frankensteiner before hitting his famed Shining Wizard for the victory.

 

Result: Mutoh pins Rhodes, 16:42. ©

 

 

• GENICHIRO TENRYU vs HIROYOSHI TENZAN

The crowd were buzzing for this match, as the 52 year old Tenryu took on Hiroyoshi Tenzan, more than 20 years his junior but establishing himself as one of the best wrestlers in the country. This match solidified that reputation, as the pair fought a supremely open match for over half an hour, with a host of nearfalls, amazing reversals, and broken submission holds. In the end, though, it was Tenryu’s age which proved the decisive factor, as he was left so exhausted that Tenzan was able to finally hit the TTD, which the veteran had countered several times earlier in the match. Post match, the two men shook hands as the crowd cheered.

 

Result: Tenzan pins Tenryu, 34:22. (B)

 

B- rating overall for the card.

[Jaded]

Standings after the first ever WAR: Climb To The Top Show are as follows.

 

• Team nWo, 4 points
  
• Team Excellence, 2 points
  
• Team Fire, 2 points
  
• Team Puroresu Perfection, 2 points
  
• Team Gaijin, 2 points
  
• Team Elite, 2 points
  
• Team Ice, 0 points
  
• Team Thunder, 0 points
  

 

Standings for the predictions are below.

• Jesushat902, 7 points
  
• SWF Fan, 5 points
  
• Randomfreeze, 5 points
  
• 1234, 5 points
  
• Infernalmiko, 4 points
  
• Rayelek, 3 points
  

 

Coming up on Friday’s Climb to the Top Tour show, we have a big main event, as Jun Akiyama, of Team Ice – one of the only two teams to have scored zero points on the first show – goes up against Team Elite’s Akira Taue, who looked dominant as he teamed with Osamu Nishimura to defeat Kaientai.

 

In our semi-main, it’s again a collision of an American star with a homegrown wrestler, but whereas Dustin Rhodes was making his Japanese debut, ‘Dr Death’ Steve Williams is an established name in the country. His opponent is Satoshi Kojima, whose regular partner Hiroyoshi Tenzan scored a great victory on Wednesday against the legend Genichiro Tenryu.

 

Also in solo action, we see Kaz Hayashi against Mitushara Misawa. Hayashi is coming off a good win against Yoshihiro Tajiri at Wednesday’s show, but Misawa is at a completely different level to Tajiri – and he’s also fresh, having not competed himself on Wednesday.

 

Also in action, the team of Kronik, who impressed when paired with Masa Chono, take on the much smaller Koji Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka. Manabu Nakinishi and Yoshinari Ogawa go up against the pairing of Emblem. Yuji Nagata makes his WAR debut, teaming with Mitsuya Nagai and Jimmy Yang to go against the trio of Hiroshi Tanahashi, Naomichi Marufuji and Osamu Nishimura. In our final announced match, the American Team Gaijin trio of Vader, Scorpio and Dustin Rhodes will take on Jushin Liger and Kaientai.

 

Quick picks

Nagai, Yang and Nagata vs Tanahashi, Marufuji and Nishimura

Vader, Scorpio and Rhodes vs Liger and Kaientai

Kronik vs Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka

Nakanishi and Ogawa vs Emblem

Kaz Hayashi vs Mitsuharu Misawa

Satoshi Kojima vs Steve Williams

Jun Akiyama vs Akira Taue

[Infernalmiko]

Nagai, Yang and Nagata vs Tanahashi, Marufuji and Nishimura

Nagata is awesome. He easily overshadows anyone on the other team. Tanahashi and Marufuji are the future but they are still young at this point. I have to go with Nagata but Nishimura could steal a win on Yang or Nagai.

 

Vader, Scorpio and Rhodes vs Liger and Kaientai

This is a tough one. Rhodes is nobody in Japan. Scorpio had a bit of a AJPW run. But Vader is a monster. I hav e to go with Liger and Kaientai. Kaientai have great teamwork and Liger is an all time great as well. They'll find a way to isolate Scorpio or Rhodes to get the pin.

 

Kronik vs Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka

Gaijin push continues against the juniors.

 

Nakanishi and Ogawa vs Emblem

Two world caliber guys against two guys who could not beat Kronik.

 

Kaz Hayashi vs Mitsuharu Misawa

Misawa. Do I ever need to say why?

 

Satoshi Kojima vs Steve Williams

Kojima is world title material at this point. Williams was well past his prime. Kojima all the way.

 

Jun Akiyama vs Akira Taue

Former golden boy of AJPW against Dynamic T. I have to go with Jun, he's simply better, but Taue will make it close.

[Rayelek]

Ouch, got smoked. I don't know jack about foreign wrestling though, so hopefully I'll pick up who's over.

 

Nagai, Yang and Nagata vs Tanahashi, Marufuji and Nishimura

Vader, Scorpio and Rhodes vs Liger and Kaientai

Kronik vs Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka

Nakanishi and Ogawa vs Emblem

Kaz Hayashi vs Mitsuharu Misawa

Satoshi Kojima vs Steve Williams

Jun Akiyama vs Akira Taue

[SWF Fan]

Nagai, Yang and Nagata vs Tanahashi, Marufuji and Nishimura- Tanahashi and Marufuji are two names I know today and are still not too old now so I doubt in 2002 they would've been big names. Nagata was a huge name in 2002 so I'll go with his team

 

Vader, Scorpio and Rhodes vs Liger and Kaientai- Kaientai and Liger just seem like the more over Team. Rhodes has no Japanese experience so therefore little popularity and Scorpio has never really been a name either, wheras Taka and Liger both have some name value over there.

 

Kronik vs Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka- Think Kronik are 'going to use their tag experience' in this encounter, also I have a soft spot for how poor their run was in WWF

 

Nakanishi and Ogawa vs Emblem- I'm not too knowlegeable with Japanese Wrestling (unless the names include Prince Devitt, Liger, Tiger Mask, KENTA, most of DragonGate and so on) so figured I would go with the team that has their own tag name

 

Kaz Hayashi vs Mitsuharu Misawa- Because of how the draft made him significantly a better worker in a lot of ways and how he's Inokis golden boy, he could steal one here.

 

Satoshi Kojima vs Steve Williams- I feel like his popularity itself should carry him through this and give some hope to the Gaijin's.

 

Jun Akiyama vs Akira Taue- Seems like hes coming off a loss from Chono and beating Taue would bring some momentum back to the main eventer.

 

P.S Jaded any chance I could get updates on how KANZEN is going through a PM or something? Interested to see how the 2 promotions play off each other.

[jesushat902]

Nagai, Yang and Nagata

Liger and Kaientai

Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka

Emblem

Mitsuharu Misawa

Steve Williams

Jun Akiyama

[randomfreeze]

Nagai, Yang and Nagata vs Tanahashi, Marufuji and Nishimura

Vader, Scorpio and Rhodes vs Liger and Kaientai

Kronik vs Kanemoto and Minoru Tanaka

Nakanishi and Ogawa vs Emblem

Kaz Hayashi vs Mitsuharu Misawa

Satoshi Kojima vs Steve Williams

Jun Akiyama vs Akira Taue

 

If I have to be wrong on one of these...please let Kaz beat Misawa. Would be amazing.

[Jaded]

Predictions standings, stable standings, and next card up later on. Hope people enjoy this - thanks again for the predictions and comments!

 

From Tokyo Budokan Hall, WAR: Marathon Tour Night 2.

 

• KAZ HAYASHI vs MITSUHARU MISAWA

Kaz Hayashi is being positioned to be the new superstar in WAR, if reports are to be believed, and this was a breakout singles performance for the man still better known as half of the Jung Dragons. While Misawa tried to slow him down, Hayashi wrestled a high-energy, high impact style, and pulled off some phenomenal reversals, notably an incredible backflip out of a release German suplex, followed up by a massive Yakuza kick which left Misawa reeling in the corner, then a handspring elbow. However, Misawa was equally hard to put down, and just kicked out of the Moonsault Press which had put away Tajiri 2 days earlier. Gaining control, the veteran managed to hit the Tiger Suplex… only for Hayashi to somehow, from somewhere, find the fortitude to kick out! With both men looking weary, and the match going past the half hour mark, Hayashi went for an incredible senton bomb, but Misawa rolled out of the way, and hit the Tiger Driver ’91 for the victory in an incredible match.

 

Result: Misawa pinned Hayashi, 31:24. (B+)

 

 

• JIMMY YANG, YUJI NAGATA and MITSUYA NAGAI vs HIROSHI TANAHASHI, NAOMICHI MARUFUJI and OSAMU MATSUDA

While it could never live up to the previous match, this was a fairly enjoyable spotfest, as everyone got the chance to show off a few big moves. Jimmy Yang pulled off a sweet corner backflip kick, followed by a springboard moonsault, to get a nearfall on Marufuji, while Marufuji himself wowed the crowd with a beautiful corner to corner dropkick on Nagai. Nagata was clearly the star in the match, though, and the end came when he hit an Exploder on Hiroshi Tanahashi for the victory.

 

Result: Nagata pinned Tanahashi, 9:50. (C-)

 

 

• MANABU NAKINISHI and YOSHINARI OGAWA vs EMBLEM

While Emblem are a fairly established team, and Manabu Nakinishi and Yoshinara Ogawa were pairing up for the first time tonight, the experience advantage was offset by Masato Tanaka looking fairly sluggish and ineffective here, notably when he clearly misjudged a frog splash completely, landing short of Ogawa and leaving the quick-thinking Ogawa to drape an arm over him and get two. It was Tanaka’s partner Otani who ended up doing the job, though, being pinned by Ogawa after a Backdrop Hold.

 

Result: Ogawa pinned Otani, 9:35 (C+)

 

 

• VADER, SCORPIO and DUSTIN RHODES vs JUSHIN LIGER and KAIENTAI

Scorpio and Funaki started this one out fairly slowly, feeling each other out, and Rhodes and Michinoku moved the pace up a bit when they tagged in. It was clear that none of those four were capturing the attention of the crowd as much as their partners, though, and there was a huge pop for the massive Vader as he tagged in to take control of the match, hitting an incredible double chokeslam on Kaientai, then covering Taka after a Vader Bomb, only for Funaki to hurl himself in from the top turnbuckle to break up the pin. Vader flung him out over the top rope, and continued to beat on Michinoku, but when he whipped him to the ropes, Liger made a blind tag and hit a springboard headscissors to enter the right to an even bigger cheer from the crowd. From there, we had some good action as Liger dodged the bigger man fairly successfully, then Scorpio came in and the pair exchanged some good counter moves. The finish, though, came out of nowhere, as Funaki tagged in and quickly snatched a crucifix cradle for the victory.

 

Result: Funaki pinned Scorpio, 7:52. (D+)

 

 

• WAR VIDEO

A video played, showing highlights of the previous show.

Rating: (B-)

 

 

• KRONIK vs KOJI KANEMOTO and MINORU TANAKA

Kanemoto and Tanaka would win a lot more marks for artistic merit than the big pair of Americans, but Adams and Clark have been a successful team over the past few years and they were fairly quick to isolate Tanaka after the first few minutes, then work him over. The end came in just under ten minutes when they hit the Total Meltdown on him.

 

Result: Clark pinned Tananka, 9:53. ©

 

 

• SATOSHI KOJIMA vs STEVE WILLIAMS

Satoshi Kojima is about 30 pounds lighter than his American opponent in this match, but it didn’t stop the popular hometown wrestler from standing up and brawling hard with Dr Death. The pair laid into each other with stiff, high-impact shots, and it was a good ten minutes or so before either of them gained control. Eventually, however, Kojima began to dominate, and finished off Williams with a pair of huge lariats for the victory.

 

Result: Kojima pinned Williams, 13:32. (B-)

 

 

• JUN AKIYAMA vs AKIRA TAUE

The crowd were pumped for this one from the start, and neither of the two main-eventers disappointed. Akiyama was coming off a six-man loss to Kronik and Chono, while Taue had a good victory over Kaientai in his match two days previously. The pair gave it their all in a stunning contest, and both men had plenty of chances to win. Taue’s Dynamic Bomb and Chichibu Cement both got agonizingly close to winning it for him, as did Akiyama’s bridging German suplex and his Blue Thunder Driver. With the clock approaching 45 minutes, it was looking like this one would be a time-limit draw – but then Akiyama went for a King Crab Lock, only for Taue to show amazing power to lift him up before it was applied, take him down with a Samoan drop, and follow up with the Tsukuba Makiwari for the victory at a minute or so shy of the time limit!

 

Result: Taue pinned Akiyama, 43:56. (B+)

 

 

B- overall.

[Jaded]

Standings after the second ever WAR: Climb To The Top Show are as follows.

 

• Team Puroresu Perfection, 6 points
  
• Team nWo, 4 points
  
• Team Excellence, 4 points
  
• Team Fire, 4 points
  
• Team Gaijin, 4 points
  
• Team Elite, 4 points
  
• Team Thunder, 2 points
  
• Team Ice, 0 points
  

 

Standings for the predictions are below.

• Jesushat902, 10 points
  
• Infernalmiko, 10 points
  
• SWF Fan, 8 points
  
• Randomfreeze, 8 points
  
• Rayelek, 7 points
  
• 1234, 5 points
  

 

Coming up next on the Marathon Tour – a superb double main event, as Akira Taue, fresh from a victory over Jun Akiyama, takes on Mitsuhara Misawa, while Akiyama tries to rebound against the legendary Genichiro Tenryu!

 

Also, Keiji Mutoh collides with Yuji Nagata in what is set to be a stunner, Kronik takes on Emblem, and TenKoji will go up against Ogawa and Nakinishi!

 

In six-man action, Mitsuya Nagai and the Jung Dragons will face off against Jushin Liger and Kaientai, while Team Gaijin’s Vader, Scorpio and Dustin Rhodes will go up against Naomichi Marufuji, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Osamu Nishimura

Quick Picks

 

Nagai and Jung Dragons vs Liger and Kaientai

Williams, Rhodes, Scorpio vs Marufuji, Tanahashi, Nishimura

Kronik vs Emblem

Ogawa/Nakanishi vs TenKoji

Jun Akiyama vs Genichiro Tenryu

Keijih Mutoh vs Yuji Nagata

Akira Taue vs Mitsuhara Misawa

[SWF Fan]

Nagai and Jung Dragons vs Liger and Kaientai

Williams, Rhodes, Scorpio vs Marufuji, Tanahashi, Nishimura

Kronik vs Emblem

Ogawa/Nakanishi vs TenKoji

Jun Akiyama vs Genichiro Tenryu

Keijih Mutoh vs Yuji Nagata

Akira Taue vs Mitsuhara Misawa

[jesushat902]

Liger and Kaientai

Marufuji, Tanahashi, Nishimura

Kronik

TenKoji

Jun Akiyama

Keijih Mutoh

Mitsuhara Misawa

[randomfreeze]

I can't believe how much of a stud Kaz turned into with the boxes. Hilarious.

 

Nagai and Jung Dragons vs Liger and Kaientai

Williams, Rhodes, Scorpio vs Marufuji, Tanahashi, Nishimura

Kronik vs Emblem

Ogawa/Nakanishi vs TenKoji

Jun Akiyama vs Genichiro Tenryu

Keijih Mutoh vs Yuji Nagata

Akira Taue vs Mitsuhara Misawa

[SWF Fan]

I can't believe how much of a stud Kaz turned into with the boxes. Hilarious.

 

 

I know I find it utterly brilliant tbh

[1234]

Nagai and Jung Dragons vs Liger and Kaientai

Williams, Rhodes, Scorpio vs Marufuji, Tanahashi, Nishimura

Kronik vs Emblem

Ogawa/Nakanishi vs TenKoji

Jun Akiyama vs Genichiro Tenryu

Keijih Mutoh vs Yuji Nagata

Akira Taue vs Mitsuhara Misawa

[Jaded]

Standings and next line-up out soon, thanks again for reading.

 

From Sakata City Gymnasium, WAR: Marathon Tour Night 3

 

• KEIJI MUTOH vs YUJI NAGATA

Mutoh and Nagata are two guys who you can always rely on to put on an impressive match to get things going, and this was no exception. The pair fought well for just over twenty minutes, with plenty of close calls, and the end came when Mutoh hit a beautiful Moonsault Press on his opponent.

 

Result: Mutoh pinned Nagata, 21:38. (B+)

 

 

• STEVE WILLIAMS, DUSTIN RHODES and SCORPIO vs NAOMICHI MARAFUJI, HIROSHI TANAHASHI and OSAMU NISHIMURA

This was a fairly one-sided match, with the three Japanese wrestlers shining and the Team Gaijin trio struggling to make any sort of impact. Rhodes, in particular, is not looking good on this tour, and while Scorpio hit a few high flying moves on Nishimura, he was quickly overwhelmed by the good teamwork of his opponents. The end came when Scorpio tapped out to an abdominal stretch by Nishimura.

Result: Marufuji pinned Scorpio, 6:46. (D)

 

 

• KRONIK vs EMBLEM

Kronik have been the surprise success story of the first few shows of WAR, and there was no change here, as the pair immediately isolated Shinjiro Otani and completely brutalized him. In just a few minutes, they worked him over and hit the High Times, with Clark then cutting off Tanaka as he tried to make the save, while Adams got the three-count.

Result: Adams pinned Otani, 4:05. (C-)

 

 

• MITSUYA NAGAI and JUNG DRAGONS vs JUSHIN LIGER and KAIENTAI

Kaz Hayashi may be the hardest working man in wrestling at the moment. After spending April feuding with Vampiro and American Dragon in America’s KANZEN Pro promotion, he’s rapidly making a name for himself in Japan, with a good win over Tajiri followed by a great losing effort against Mitsuharu Misawa. He made even more progress today in being accepted as a top level competitor, as he and Jushin Liger took each other on for the majority of this bout, with Hayashi looking just as good as the legend. However, after Hayashi took out Liger with an incredible flying headscissors over the top rope, Michinoku sneaked a quick pin on Nagai with a quick roll-up.

 

Result: Taka pinned Nagai, 7:12. (C-)

 

 

• YOSHINARI OGAWA and MANABU NAKANISHI vs TENKOJI

While Tenzan and Kojima were the experienced team in this contest, Ogawa and Nakanishi looked unbelievably fluent for a team who’d never paired up before, pulling off some great double-team moves and always being in a good position to make the save when necessary. TenKoji, as you’d expect, were equally excellent in pairing up, and although there were slow parts in what was a very long match, there was a huge amount of good action in there as well. The end came with Ogawa getting his signature bridging leg hook belly to back suplex on Tenzan, only for Kojima to come in, break up the pin, and hit the Koji Cutter. From there, Nakanishi in turn ran in for the save, and took down Kojima with the Hercules Cutter – only for the match to reach its 45 minute time limit! The first draw in WAR, earning each team 1 point.

 

Result: Time limit draw, 45:00. (C+)

 

 

• JUN AKIYAMA vs GENICHIRO TENRYU

Both of these competitors came into this one winless, with Akiyama finishing up on the losing side of a six-man tag in his first match, and then dropping a close singles contest to Akira Taue, while Tenryu’s only fight so far resulted in a defeat at the hands of Hiroyoshi Tenzan. It was clear that both of the wrestlers were desperate to win here, although Tenryu, the wily veteran, was willing to go further than Akiyama, being warned on several occasions about using closed fists and other borderline tactics. Akiyama fought valiantly to get back into the game, but in the end it was the 52-year old veteran who pulled off the victory with a scoop brainbuster.

 

Result: Tenryu pinned Akiyama, 20:56. (B+)

 

 

• AKIRA TAUE vs MITSUHARA MISAWA

Unlike the previous competitors, these two were both riding momentum into the match, with Taue coming off the victory against Akiyama and Misawa beating Kaz Hayashi in what was probably the best match of the first 2 shows. At 40 years old and 39, respectively, they’ve been around a long time and know each other extremely well, having wrestled on opposite sides of several 5 star classics in the 1990’s. It was clear from the handshake at the start that they have much respect for each other, but it was equally clear from the following match that there was no way they’d hold back when fighting. Each man gave it their all in an incredibly stiff contest which, if anything, was even better than Misawa’s victory over Hayashi. After Misawa kicked out of pinfall attempts after the Dynamic Kick and the Dynamic Bomb, and Taue kicked out of them after the Emerald Flowsion and Tiger Driver, Misawa once more got the Tiger Driver ’91 for the victory.

 

Result: Misawa pinned Taue, 27:32. (B+)

 

 

B+ overall.