NJPW: King of Puroresu

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Year's Golden Series Night Three- January 26th, 2023
Attendance: 5,000 at Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center (Sapporo, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Bandido & Ryu Lee defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Kosei Fujita in a good match to kick off the show. Bandido & Lee dominated most of the match, but some more miscommunication between the two nearly allowed Oiwa to roll Bandido up for a three. Bandido kicked out at 2.9 and hit Oiwa with the 21-Plex to get the win shortly thereafter. The former IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions continued to argue afterwards. (80/B)

-House of Torture's EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi defeated Togi Makabe & young lion Yuto Nakashima in a dull match. The legendary Makabe did pretty well against the treacherous House of Torture, but the same could not be said of his young lion teammate. EVIL & Yujiro pretty much had their way with the young lion, with EVIL finishing off Nakashima with the EVIL in just under 10 minutes to get the win. (60/C)

-Aussie Open defeated Team Filthy in a good match. In a preview of the upcoming United Empire/Team Filthy NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship match at the New Beginning in Osaka, Aussie Open took care of Alex Coughlin & Clark Connors tonight in Sapporo. This was despite some good MMA-esque moves from Team Filthy, which still wasn't enough to stop the United Empire team. After about 14 minutes, Fletcher & Davis hit Coughlin with the Correalis to get the win. (80/B)

-Bullet Club's El Phantasmo, Bad Luck Fale, & Hikuleo defeated CHAOS's YOH, Hirooki Goto, & YOSHI-HASHI in a good match. PhantAsmo continued to kicK YOH's ass tonight, a rUnning theMe in recent mAtches. DespIte that, the CHAOS did their beSt tonight against Phantasmo and the Bullet Club big men. Despite that, it was aCtually PhantasmO and co. who caMe out on top tonIght. After nearly 15 miNutes, Phantasmo finished off YOSHI-HASHI with a devastatinG CR2 to get the win for Bullet Club. (75/B-)

-ACE's PAC & Claudio CSRO defeated CHAOS's Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano in a good match. The ACE Entertainment tag team got their first win in NJPW with a solid win over the two CHAOS veterans. PAC & CSRO finished off Yano in just under 16 minutes with an interesting maneuver. CSRO hit Yano with the Swiss Death, which PAC followed by hitting Yano with a straight-jacket German suplex and immediately transitioned it into the Brutalizer (Crossface/Armbar Combo) to get the submission win. (81/B)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Jeff Cobb) vs Sabre-gun (Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi)

United Empire's Will Ospreay & Jeff Cobb defeated Sabre-gun's Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi in a great match to close the show. In Ospreay's first match since Wrestle Kingdom Night One, he looked great, teaming with the number one contender to the NEVER Openweight Champion in a solid effort over Sabre and Taichi. After nearly 20 minutes of back-and-forth action, Cobb hit Taichi with the Tour of the Islands and Ospreay followed it up with the StormBreaker to get the win.

FINAL GRADE: 

[Uncrewed]

BREAKING NEWS: TOMOHIRO ISHII TO RETIRE

"The 'Stone Pitbull' Tomohiro Ishii announced that he would be retiring in three months today at an emotional press conference in his home town of Kawasaki. Ishii thanked his fans, his family, and his friends during the press conference and promised to show the most dangerous side of the 'Stone Pitbull' over the next three months! NJPW have also announced a retirement show to be held in late April in Kawasaki to honor Ishii."

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Year's Golden Series Night Four- January 29th, 2023
Attendance: 2,710 at Sendai Sun Plaza (Sendai, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-DEATH RIDERS's KUSHIDA, Shota Umino, & Karl Fredericks defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima in a good match to kick things off tonight. DEATH RIDERS completely dominated the three young lions tonight, with Shota finishing off Oiwa with the DEATH RIDER DDT in just under 10 minutes to get the win. (72/B-)

-Master Wato defeated Yoshinobu Kanemaru in a standard match to retain the Provisional KOPW Trophy. Wato wanted a standard, one-on-one match here, and Kanemaru reluctantly obliged. That didn't mean Kanemaru didn't try to cheat, but Wato managed to outsmart the Sabre-gun veteran throughout the entire match. Wato finished off Kanemaru with the RPP in just under 12 minutes to get the win. Afterwards, Kanemaru grabbed his bottle of whiskey and smashed it over Wato's head! DOUKI then ran down to the ring and the two started beating the hell out of Wato! That was until Ryusuke Taguchi ran down to the ring and ran off the Sabre-gun duo. (68/C+)

-Bullet Club's El Phantasmo & Juice Robinson defeated CHAOS's YOH & Hirooki Goto in a good match. This one was feistY. PhantasmO really wanted to get one last sHot in on the IWGP Junior HeavyWeIght Champ tonight and he certainLLy diD tonIght in SEndai, mostly thanks to cheating from JuIce RobiNsOn. After about 15 minuteS, PhAntaSmo finished Goto with a devAstating superKick, quickly following it up with A CR2 to get the win. (78/B)

-ACE's PAC defeated CHAOS's Robbie Eagles and Bullet Club's Taiji Ishimori in a good triple threat match to determine the next challenger for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. PAC earned the opportunity to face either YOH or El Phantasmo at the New Beginning in Los Angeles with a great performance over two former IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champions tonight in Sendai. After about 16 minutes, PAC made Eagles tap to the Brutalizer to get the win. (75/B-)

-Sabre-gun's Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer defeated United Empire's Jeff Cobb, Great O-Khan, & Aaron Henare in a great match. Sabre finally got a win over United Empire tonight in Sendai, mostly thanks to the 'Murderhawk Monster' Lance Archer completely destroying anyone who crossed his path. After about 16 minutes, Archer hit Henare with the Blackout to get the win. Afterwards, Sabre continued to taunt Cobb from the ramp, while hiding behind Archer. (85/B+)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

ACE (Hiroshi Tanahashi & Claudio CSRO) vs CHAOS (Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii)

ACE's Hiroshi Tanahashi & Claudio CSRO defeated CHAOS's Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii in a great match to close the show. Tanahashi scored one final win over Okada going into their Wrestle Kingdom rematch at the New Beginning in Osaka, with him & CSRO taking care of Okada & (in his first match since announcing his pending retirement) Tomohiro Ishii in just under 18 minutes. That was when Tanahashi finished off Ishii with the High Fly Flow to secure the win for ACE Entertainment. 

FINAL GRADE:

[Uncrewed]

BREAKING NEWS: SANADA GIVEN TEMPORARY SUSPENSION

"NJPW wrestler SANADA was given a temporary suspension from the company for bullying a fan online this week. In a now-deleted Tweet, SANADA called the fan a "f*cking fool" and challenged the fan to meet him in an alley late at night for a fight. The fan was later revealed to be 12-years old. SANADA apologized and NJPW suspended him for a few weeks, citing their anti-bullying policy."

 

(New Beginning in Osaka preview up tomorrow!)

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Beginning in Osaka Preview

 

 

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 

Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Kazuchika Okada

After being gone for four months, Hiroshi Tanahashi made his triumphant return to NJPW at Wrestle Kingdom 17 Night One, challenging Kazuchika Okada to an IWGP World Heavyweight Title match for Night Two. Tanahashi surprisingly won that match, mostly thanks to a kick to the groin behind the ref's back. Since then, Tanahashi has brought the wonders of ACE Entertainment to NJPW, recruiting Claudio CSRO & PAC to join the ranks. But now he faces his biggest challenge, a rematch with a man who's had his number at numerous New Beginnings, Kazuchika Okada! Who will walk out of Osaka with the gold?

 

 

NEVER Openweight Championship Match:

 VS 

Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Jeff Cobb

Sabre successfully defended the NEVER Openweight Title at Wrestle Kingdom, defeating Minoru Suzuki in a hard-fought UWFi Rules match. Following that, Jeff Cobb and the rest of United Empire began a heated feud with the Sabre-led Sabre-gun, with Cobb himself pinning Sabre to earn a NEVER Openweight Championship here at the New Beginning in Osaka. An added wrinkle for Sabre here, he can't use his technical skills to his advantage, as Cobb was an Olympic wrestler in his own right! Who will win this battle for the NEVER Openweight Gold?

 

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 

YOH (C) vs El Phantasmo

YOH won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship from his former tag partner-turned-heated rival SHO last month at Wrestle Kingdom. We haven't seen SHO since, but another Bullet Club member has stepped up to reclaim the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship in his place, El Phantasmo. Phantasmo has scored some impressive wins over YOH in the leadup to tonight, but can he do it when it really matters?

 

 

Other Matches:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs United Empire (Aaron Henare & Aussie Open)

 

Great O-Khan vs Taichi

 

Six or Nine vs Sabre-gun (DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)

 

Bullet Club (Juice Robinson, Bad Luck Fale, & Hikuleo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

 

All that and more live exclusively on NJPW World!

 

 

Prediction Key:

 

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Kazuchika Okada

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight Championship Match:

Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Jeff Cobb

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs El Phantasmo

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs United Empire (Aaron Henare & Aussie Open)

Comments:

 

Great O-Khan vs Taichi

Comments:

 

Six or Nine vs Sabre-gun (DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)
Comments:

 

Bullet Club (Juice Robinson, Bad Luck Fale, & Hikuleo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima
Comments:

[Wrestling Machine]

NJPW New Beginning in Osaka

 

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Kazuchika Okada
Comments: expect some shenanigans from ACE Ent.

NEVER Openweight Championship Match: Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Jeff Cobb

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match: YOH (C) vs El Phantasmo
Comments: don't see YOH losing the title so early after winning it at WK

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match: Team Filthy (C) vs United Empire (Aaron Henare & Aussie Open)

Great O-Khan vs Taichi

Six or Nine vs Sabre-gun (DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)

Bullet Club (Juice Robinson, Bad Luck Fale, & Hikuleo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

[Uncrewed]

New Beginning in Osaka will be up on Monday, so this is a 48 hour prediction warning for those wanting to predict!

[Uncrewed]

24 hour prediction warning for those who want to predict! New Beginning in Osaka will be up tomorrow, post-show press conference the day after, and the card for the New Beginning in Los Angeles will be up on Wednesday!

[Martel123]

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Kazuchika Okada

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight Championship Match:

Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Jeff Cobb

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs El Phantasmo

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs United Empire (Aaron Henare & Aussie Open)

Comments:

 

Great O-Khan vs Taichi

Comments:

 

Six or Nine vs Sabre-gun (DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)
Comments:

 

Bullet Club (Juice Robinson, Bad Luck Fale, & Hikuleo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima
Comments:

[SonOfSharknado]

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Kazuchika Okada

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight Championship Match:

Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Jeff Cobb

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs El Phantasmo

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs United Empire (Aaron Henare & Aussie Open)

Comments:

 

Great O-Khan vs Taichi

Comments:

 

Six or Nine vs Sabre-gun (DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)
Comments:

 

Bullet Club (Juice Robinson, Bad Luck Fale, & Hikuleo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima
Comments:

[Uncrewed]

NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka- February 4th, 2023
Attendance: 16,000 at Osaka-jo Hall (Osaka, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

The New Beginning in Osaka kicked off with a quick rundown of some of the more important matches tonight. From the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship match between YOH & El Phantasmo, the NEVER Openweight Title Match between Zack Sabre Jr. & Jeff Cobb, and the main event IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match between Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada, Osaka-jo Hall may not be able to hold all the hot action in the fallout from Wrestle Kingdom 17! After a brief pyro show around Osaka-jo Hall and a quick rundown of the card from the commentary team, we went straight into our opening contest...

 

 

VS

 
Bullet Club (Juice Robinson, Bad Luck Fale, & Hikuleo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima
Ever since he turned on his best friend David Finlay and joining Bullet Club at Wrestle Kingdom, Juice Robinson has shown a more brutal side of himself. Teaming him up with the dangerous Bad Luck Fale & Hikuleo is a recipe for disaster for whoever stands in their way. This match was nothing more than a squash match that Bullet Club completely dominated. After just under 10 minutes of action, Juice hit Fujita with the Pulp Friction to get the win.
WINNERS: Bullet Club

 

 VS 
Six or Nine vs Sabre-gun (DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)
This one came about when both DOUKI & Kanemaru challenged Master Wato for the Provisional KOPW Trophy. Both failed in their attempts, but they got the last laugh when Kanemaru cracked a bottle of whiskey over Wato's head! Wato's tag partner Ryusuke Taguchi came to the rescue and later challenged the two Sabre-gun junior heavyweights to a match here at the New Beginning in Osaka. This match was a decent match and the crowd was solidly behind Six or Nine. Ryusuke Taguchi and DOUKI started things off with Taguchi hitting a running hip attack. Taguchi then threw DOUKI off the ropes and hit him with another flying hip attack. Taguchi then went for a third flying hip attack, but DOUKI rolled out of the way and hit the veteran with a dropkick that sent Taguchi flying out of the ring. DOUKI taunted Wato while Taguchi recovered on the outside. As Taguchi got back in the ring, DOUKI tagged out to Kanemaru, and the two hit Taguchi with a double lariat. Kanemaru then threw Taguchi into the corner, told the crowd to shut up, and hit Taguchi with a loud knife edge chop. Kanemaru then grabbed his bottle of whiskey, took a swig of it, and tried spitting it in Taguchi's face, but Taguchi ducked and whiskey went flying around the ring. Taguchi then hit Kanemaru with a flying hip attack and tagged out to Wato! Wato went wild on Kanemaru, hitting him with a few quick dropkicks before finishing with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Wato then tried getting the crowd behind him before DOUKI distracted him by calling him a "wannabe cosplayer." This distracted Wato long enough for Kanemaru to hit Wato with a spinning heel kick. The match came to an end when Kanemaru grabbed the bottle of whiskey, took another swig, and tried spitting it in Wato's eyes. However, that failed when Wato ducked and the whiskey went right in DOUKI's eyes! Wato took advantage of a distracted Kanemaru and hit him with a double-knee backbreaker! Wato then went to the top rope and hit Kanemaru with the RPP, made the cover, and got the win for Six or Nine!
WINNER: Six or Nine

 

 

 VS 
Great O-Khan vs Taichi
This feud is part of the bigger United Empire/Sabre-gun feud which has sort of enveloped NJPW as of late. Khan's tag team partner Jeff Cobb will challenge Taichi's on-again, off-again tag partner/Sabre-gun leader Zack Sabre Jr. for the NEVER Openweight Championship, so these two are going at it in the name of stable supremacy! This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind Khan. Taichi started things off by immediately ripping off his pants and throwing them at Khan, which distracted the Mongolian giant long enough for Taichi to hit him with a flying forearm smash. Taichi then threw Khan off the ropes and hit him with a spinning heel kick. Taichi then went to the top rope to attempt a diving double axe handle, but Khan caught him by the throat and hit him with a chokeslam! Khan made the cover, but Taichi kicked out at two. Khan then hit Taichi with a running powerslam, quickly following it up with a running knee drop. Khan then whipped Taichi into the corner sternum-first. When Taichi recoiled from the corner, Khan caught him with a big German suplex. Khan called for the Eliminator after that, but Taichi rolled out of the ring instead. Taichi tried getting back in the ring, but Khan ran off the ropes and hit him with a baseball slide. Khan then went to the outside, grabbed Taichi by the head, and tried throwing him into the ringside barrier, but Taichi reversed it and sent Khan head-first into it! Taichi then reached under the ring and grabbed a pair of handcuffs! Taichi grabbed Khan's hands and cuffed him to the barricade! Taichi cackled his way back to the ring as referee Marty Asami started counting Khan out. As Asami reached 18, Khan somehow mustered up enough strength to break out of the cuffs! A stunned Taichi started quivering in fear as Khan got back in the ring and blasted him with a lariat. The match came to an end when Khan grabbed Taichi by the head and hit him with the Eliminator! Khan made the cover and got the three.
WINNER: Great O-Khan

 

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

VS

Team Filthy (C) vs United Empire (Aaron Henare & Aussie Open)
Henare & Aussie Open won this shot at the Never Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Titles by defeating the CHAOS team of Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto, & YOSHI-HASHI. It's no rest for the wicked though, as United Empire has to face the dangerous team of Team Filthy, who defended their titles in dominating fashion at Wrestle Kingdom by defeating TMDK. This match was a great match and the crowd was solidly behind United Empire. Kyle Fletcher and Alex Coughlin started things off with Coughlin trying to take the high-flying Australian down with some chain-wrestling, but Fletcher was having none of that and hit Coughlin with an enzuigiri. Fletcher then jumped off the middle rope and hit Coughlin with a jumping back elbow smash, which sent Coughlin crashing into his corner. Clark Connors tagged himself in after that and took Fletcher out by clipping his left knee. Connors continued to target Fletcher's left knee with a kneebar before hitting it with a bevy of stomps. Connors may have gone to the well one too many times though, as another attempted kneebar was reversed by Fletcher into a monkey flip! A hobbling Fletcher tagged out to Mark Davis, who blasted Connors with a lariat before launching him across the ring with a release belly to belly suplex. Davis started to get the crowd into the match before hitting Connors with a discus lariat. Davis then attempted a military press slam, but Connors raked his eyes to get out of it and hit Davis with a big spear! The match came to an end when Connors tagged out to 'Filthy' Tom Lawlor and Davis tagged out to Henare. Lawlor immediately tried locking Henare in a sleeper hold, but Henare quickly wiggled out of it and hit Lawlor with a German suplex. Henare then lifted up Lawlor and hit him with a chokeslam! Henare then went to the top rope, but before he could attempt anything, Coughlin and Connors snuck up from behind and tossed him off the top rope! Lawlor immediately locked Henare in the Rear Naked Choke after that and he eventually had no choice but to tap out.
WINNERS: Team Filthy

 

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 
YOH (C) vs El Phantasmo
YOH won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship from his former tag partner-turned-heated rival SHO last month at Wrestle Kingdom. We haven't seen SHO since, but another Bullet Club member has stepped up to reclaim the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship in his place, El Phantasmo. Phantasmo has scored some impressive wins over YOH in the leadup to tonight, but can he do it when it really matters? This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind YOH. YOH started things off with a running shotgun dropkick to Phantasmo, which knocked the Bullet Club member square into the middle turnbuckle. YOH then picked up Phantasmo, hit him with a knife edge chop, and quickly followed it up with an enzuigiri that sent Phantasmo crashing to the outside. YOH then ran off the ropes and attempted a suicide dive, but Phantasmo rolled out of the way at the last second. Phantasmo openly laughed at YOH's failed suicide dive for a few seconds before picking him up and throwing him into the ringside barricade. Phantasmo then threw YOH headfirst into the ring post before throwing him into the ring. Phantasmo then grabbed a chair and tossed it in the ring. He went to swing it at YOH, but referee Daichi Murayama caught it and stopped Phantasmo from hitting YOH with it. As Murayama threw the chair away and with his back turned, Phantasmo thumbed YOH in the eye! Phantasmo then hit YOH with the Sudden Death superkick and made the cover, but YOH kicked out at two. Phantasmo then tried ending it entirely with the CR2, but YOH fought out of it and hit Phantasmo with an Alabama Slam! YOH then went to the top rope and looked like he would hit a moonsault onto Phantasmo, but instead he landed on his feet and hit Phantasmo with a jumping double foot stomp! YOH then hit Phantasmo with a Dragon suplex and immediately transitioned it into the Stargazer! Phantasmo clawed for the ropes, but YOH kept the Stargazer locked in. Eventually, Phantasmo had no choice but to pull one last trick from his sleeve as he grabbed Daichi Murayama by the leg and threw him into YOH to break up the hold! The match came to an end as Phantasmo kicked YOH square below the belt as Murayama recovered in the corner! Phantasmo then rolled YOH up and grabbed the tights, but YOH somehow kicked out at two! As Phantasmo argued with Murayama, YOH snuck up from behind, grabbed his leg, and locked in the Stargazer! Phantasmo couldn't go anywhere this time and eventually had no choice but to tap out.
WINNER: YOH

 

 

After the match ended, YOH celebrated his victory in the ring until the lights started flickering. YOH didn't notice it at first, but the flickering soon got more intense and eventually, the whole building went dark. After a few moments, the whole arena was filled with an eerie red light and smoke started bellowing...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Suddenly, YOH was attacked from behind by a masked man! The man beat the living hell out of YOH, hitting him with a bevy of punches before finishing off with a devastating-looking Codebreaker! The man then grabbed the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship and cracked it over YOH's head, busting him open! As a pool of blood formed around YOH's head, the lights started flickering again and eventually cut out. When the lights came back on, the masked man was nowhere to be seen and YOH was left alone in the ring as a bloody mess.

 

After that creepy attack, we cut to a video hyping up the upcoming NEVER Openweight Championship Match between Zack Sabre Jr. & Jeff Cobb. The video shows how Sabre successfully defended the NEVER Openweight Title at Wrestle Kingdom, defeating Minoru Suzuki in a hard-fought UWFi Rules match. Following that, Jeff Cobb and the rest of United Empire began a heated feud with the Sabre-led Sabre-gun, with Cobb himself pinning Sabre to earn a NEVER Openweight Championship here at the New Beginning in Osaka. An added wrinkle for Sabre here, he can't use his technical skills to his advantage, as Cobb was an Olympic wrestler in his own right! Who will win this battle for the NEVER Openweight Gold?

 

 

NEVER Openweight Championship Match:

 VS 
Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Jeff Cobb
This match was a great match and the crowd was solidly behind Cobb. Sabre started the match off by trying to take Cobb down by shooting for the legs. Cobb responded by grabbing Sabre by the shoulders and tossing him across the ring with a Biel throw. Cobb then threw Sabre into the corner, ran to to the opposite corner, and hit him with a running body splash. Cobb then picked up Sabre and hit him with a powerslam, quickly following it up with a running senton. As Cobb went to finish this one early with the Tour of the Islands, Sabre wiggled out of it and started taking Cobb down with a series of calf kicks. That worked, as the kicks eventually knocked Cobb down to one knee, which allowed Sabre to run off the ropes and hit Cobb with a bicycle kick. Sabre then continued working over Cobb's legs, eventually switching it up to start working on his right arm. Sabre went to lock in the Orienteering with Napalm Death, but Cobb was able to power out of it and hit Sabre with a fallaway slam. Cobb then went for a military press slam, but his leg started to give out, which allowed Sabre to wiggle out and lock in a sleeper hold! Cobb clawed for the ropes, but he couldn't reach them as Sabre continued to cinch in the hold. Eventually, Cobb had no choice but to fall flat on his back hard enough to knock Sabre off of him! The plan worked as Sabre rolled away in pain and Cobb used the time to catch his breath. Eventually, Cobb exploded out of the corner and sent Sabre flying inside out with a lariat. Cobb picked up Sabre and once again attempted the Tour of the Islands, but this time it actually worked! However, Cobb's leg was still shaky, so he wasn't immediately able to make the cover. That allowed Sabre to roll out of the ring just as Cobb reached for the cover. A frustrated Cobb banged the mat in frustration as referee Marty Asami started counting Sabre out. Sabre used the count to his advantage, catching his breath on the outside, strategizing his next move, and purposefully not getting back in the ring until the 19 count. The match came to an end when Sabre decided to charge at Cobb, who caught him and attempted the Tour of the Islands! However, that didn't come to fruition as Cobb's legs once again gave out on him! That allowed Sabre to take Cobb down with the Penalty Kick and lock in the Orienteering with Napalm Death! Cobb desperately clawed for the ropes, but Sabre kept the hold locked in. Cobb did not want to tap out and in the end, he didn't. However, he did eventually pass out from the pain, giving the win to Sabre.
WINNER: Zack Sabre Jr.

 

After that match ended, we cut to a video hyping up our main event of the evening, the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match between Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada. The video shows how Tanahashi, after being gone for four months, made his triumphant return to NJPW at Wrestle Kingdom 17 Night One, challenging Kazuchika Okada to an IWGP World Heavyweight Title match for Night Two. Tanahashi surprisingly won that match, mostly thanks to a kick to the groin behind the ref's back. Since then, Tanahashi has brought the wonders of ACE Entertainment to NJPW, recruiting Claudio CSRO & PAC to join the ranks. But now he faces his biggest challenge, a rematch with a man who's had his number at numerous New Beginnings, Kazuchika Okada! Who will walk out of Osaka with the gold?

 

 

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 
Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Kazuchika Okada
This match was an amazing match and the crowd was solidly behind Okada. The two men got right into business here, with the two exchanging a quick barrage of punches. Tanahashi came out on top in that exchange thanks to a discus forearm smash. Tanahashi couldn't celebrate for long though, as an attempted Slingblade was caught by Okada and reversed into a spinning back suplex. Okada then signalled for, and attempted the Rainmaker, but Tanahashi easily ducked it and hit Okada with the Slingblade. Tanahashi then threw Okada into the corner and hit him with a knife edge chop before running to the opposite corner and attempting a running high knee. That failed though, as Okada rolled out of the way and hit Tanahashi with a high knee of his own. Okada then whipped Tanahashi out of the ring with an Irish whip before running off the ropes and hitting the champ with a baseball slide. Okada then got a little excited and decided to attempt a suicide dive. That failed, as Tanahashi caught him and sent him flying up the ramp with a release belly to belly suplex! Tanahashi then threw Okada shoulder-first into the ring steps before throwing him back in the ring. Tanahashi went to the top rope following that and decided to attempt an early High Fly Flow! That missed, as Okada rolled out of the way and hit Tanahashi with a running knee drop. Okada decided to go to the top rope now and attempted a diving crossbody, but Tanahashi caught him, lifted him up on his shoulders, and hit Okada with a fireman's carry slam. These two men know each other so well, they pretty much know what the other is going to do before they even do it! Tanahashi decided to test this theory by trying to lock in a Texas Cloverleaf, which Okada kicked out of before getting up and hitting Tanahashi with a beautiful-looking dropkick. Okada then pulled out something we haven't seen from him in a while, the Red Ink (STF)! Tanahashi was caught off-guard by this and he struggled to reach for the ropes. Okada continued to wrench on the hold, but Tanahashi was able to muster up enough energy to roll over and roll Okada up in a pinning predicament. Okada managed to kick out at two, but walked right into a Slingblade from Tanahashi. Tanahashi then went to the top rope and hit Okada with the High Fly Flow! He didn't get all of it, as Okada moved slightly out of range at the last second, but he still got a lot of it. Tanahashi made the cover...

 

1!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

No!

Okada kicked out at two! The match came to an end when Tanahashi decided to go for another High Fly Flow, but, once again, Okada prevented it, this time by getting his knees up at the last second! As Tanahashi favored his ribs, Okada kipped up and hit Tanahashi with a running neckbreaker! Okada then called for and attempted the RAINMAKAH!!!, but Tanahashi slipped out of it, shoved Okada into referee Red Shoes, and kneed the 'Rainmaker' in the groin! Okada riled in pain on the ground as Tanahashi went to the top rope and hit him with the High Fly Flow! Not content with that, Tanahashi flipped Okada onto his back, went back to the top rope, and hit him with another High Fly Flow! Tanahashi made the cover...


1!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2!





 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3!

Hiroshi Tanahashi, albeit using some sneaky tactics, has retained the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. After the match ended, the crowd began once again to throw trash in the ring, all the while Tanahashi played the air guitar, rocking out to his theme. However, this time, the trash was stopped by four big ACE Entertainment banners dropping from the ceiling and blocking the fans! Tanahashi continued to celebrate as the show came to a close.
WINNER: Hiroshi Tanahashi

FINAL GRADE: 

Popularity: Increased in 14 Regions

[Uncrewed]

The New Beginning in Osaka Post-Show Press Conference:

 

 

Jeff Cobb

Cobb (in English): "Well, Sabre, congrats. You were the better man tonig-. You know what, no. Enough of this "good for you, aw congrats" bullsh*t! I've had it with people overlooking me, I'm a damn Olympic wrestler for god's sake! Starting now, the Jeff Cobb era begins, not just in the United Empire, not just in NJPW, but in the entire wrestling world!"

 

 

Zack Sabre Jr.

Sabre (in English): "That oaf really thought he could do it eh? To teach you fools a lesson in British politics, Cobb and the rest of the NJPW roster is like Liz Truss, terrible! While I'm like old school British Labour, strong, powerful, and can't be stopped. Now if you need me, I think I'm going to prove once and for all why they call the New Japan Cup the Zack Sabre Cup!"

 

 

Kazuchika Okada

Okada: "I never thought I'd say this, but Hiroshi Tanahashi is a rotten bastard. Whatever happened to him in the last four months clearly changed him for the worse. This "ACE Entertainment" garbage got to his head in a way I've never seen before. Listen, I'm one to boast, mostly because I'm the 'Rainmaker!' But I've never seen someone with their own head up their ass more than Tanahashi. So, Hiroshi, listen to me. I'm going to win that New Japan Cup and I'm coming for that IWGP World Heavyweight Championship!"

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Beginning in Los Angeles Preview:

 

 

IWGP United States Championship Match:

 VS 

KENTA (C) vs Chris Jericho

After Wrestle Kingdom 17, KENTA said he was looking for serious competition for his title at the New Beginning in Los Angeles. That challenge was accepted by none other than the legendary Chris Jericho. Jericho accepted the challenge on an episode of AEW Dynamite, saying that while the 'Painmaker' was enough to take the IWGP Intercontinental Championship once, he had to go one step beyond to win the IWGP United States Championship. He needed to bring out the 'Lionheart!' Will the 'Lionheart' walk out of Los Angeles with the IWGP US Championship? Or will KENTA defeat one of the most legendary wrestlers of all time?

 

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

 VS 

DEATH RIDERS (C) vs FTR

FTR were one of the most dangerous tag teams in the whole world during their brief reign as IWGP Tag Team Champions, only losing the belts to Shingo Takagi & SANADA after a war. Since then, Shota Umino & Karl Fredericks of DEATH RIDERS have emerged as one of the top tag teams in NJPW, defeating everyone who's stood in their way, including FTR back at the World Tag League Final and Shingo & SANADA at Wrestle Kingdom to win the belts. But their win over FTR came when Dax & Cash were at their low point, having just lost their AEW Tag Team Titles to The Young Bucks. Now that they've won them back, they're ready to capture the one piece of gold that's been eluding them since they lost it back in October, the IWGP Tag Team Titles! Who will walk out of Los Angeles with the gold?

 

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 

YOH (C) vs PAC

YOH successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship last week at the New Beginning in Osaka against El Phantasmo, but that wasn't the big story coming out of that night. The bigger story was that YOH was brutally beaten down by a masked man who called himself AKUMA! YOH was left a bloody mess at the Osaka-jo Hall, but he has vowed to compete tonight against 'The Bastard' PAC of ACE Entertainment, who won this shot by defeating Robbie Eagles and Taiji Ishimori in a triple threat match. Who will walk out of Los Angeles on top of the junior heavyweight division?

 

 

Inaugural IWGP Women's Championship Match:

 VS  VS  VS 

Toni Storm vs Thunder Rosa vs KAIRI vs Mayu Iwatani

KAIRI & Mayu Iwatani of STARDOM won their way into this match by defeating Syuri & MIRAI at Wrestle Kingdom 17 Night One. Meanwhile, Toni Storm and Thunder Rosa of AEW won their way into this match by defeating Britt Baker & Jamie Hayter at Wrestle Kingdom 17 Night Two. These four women are among the best women's wrestlers in all the world and now they'll meet in Los Angeles to determine the first ever IWGP Women's Champion!

 

 

Other Matches:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs House of Black (Malakai Black, Brody King, & Buddy Matthews)

 

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open) vs Sabre-gun (Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer)

 

CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, & Hirooki Goto) vs Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi, Shingo Takagi, & Tetsuya Naito)

 

All that and more live exclusively on NJPW World!

 

 

Prediction Key:

 

IWGP United States Championship Match:

KENTA (C) vs Chris Jericho

Comments:

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

DEATH RIDERS (C) vs FTR
Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs PAC

Comments:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm vs Thunder Rosa vs KAIRI vs Mayu Iwatani

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs House of Black

Comments:

 

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open) vs Sabre-gun (Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer)

Comments:

 

CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, & Hirooki Goto) vs Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito, & Shingo Takagi)

Comments:

[Uncrewed]

New Beginning in Los Angeles will be up tomorrow! Post-show presser up the following day and the preview for our final international show for a bit (Royal Quest in Britain!) will be up on Tuesday!

[SonOfSharknado]

IWGP United States Championship Match:

KENTA (C) vs Chris Jericho

Comments:

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

DEATH RIDERS (C) vs FTR
Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs PAC

Comments:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm vs Thunder Rosa vs KAIRI vs Mayu Iwatani

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs House of Black

Comments:

 

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open) vs Sabre-gun (Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer)

Comments:

 

CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, & Hirooki Goto) vs Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito, & Shingo Takagi)

Comments:

[Wrestling Machine]

Prediction Key:

IWGP United States Championship Match: KENTA (C) vs Chris Jericho

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match: DEATH RIDERS (C) vs FTR (absolutely marking out with this vote)

 IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match: YOH (C) vs PAC

 IWGP Women's Championship Match: Toni Storm vs Thunder Rosa vs KAIRI vs Mayu Iwatani 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match: Team Filthy (C) vs House of Black

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open) vs Sabre-gun (Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer)

 

 

CHAOS  vs Los Ingobernables de Japon

[MidKnightDreary]

IWGP United States Championship Match:

KENTA (C) vs Chris Jericho

Comments:

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

DEATH RIDERS (C) vs FTR
Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs PAC

Comments:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm vs Thunder Rosa vs KAIRI vs Mayu Iwatani

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs House of Black

Comments:

 

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open) vs Sabre-gun (Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer)

Comments:

 

CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, & Hirooki Goto) vs Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito, & Shingo Takagi)

Comments:

[DyllanK17]

IWGP United States Championship Match:

KENTA (C) vs Chris Jericho

Comments:

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

DEATH RIDERS (C) vs FTR
Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs PAC

Comments:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm vs Thunder Rosa vs KAIRI vs Mayu Iwatani

Comments:

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

Team Filthy (C) vs House of Black

Comments:

 

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open) vs Sabre-gun (Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer)

Comments:

 

CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, & Hirooki Goto) vs Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito, & Shingo Takagi)

 

[Uncrewed]

Quote

PRE-SHOW:
In a New Japan Rambo match to determine the number one contender for the IWGP United States Championship, Daniel Garcia last eliminated Jeff Cobb to win the 20-man battle royale. Garcia will face the winner of the KENTA/Chris Jericho match tonight on a future episode of NJPW STRONG for the championship. (71/C+)

 

NJPW New Beginning in Los Angeles- February 11th, 2023
Attendance: 10,000 at Galen Center (Los Angeles, California)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T. (Japanese), Kevin Kelly & Chris Charlton (English)

The New Beginning in Los Angeles started with a bunch of pyro exploding around the arena. When the smoke cleared, our commentary teams welcomed the audience to the show before quickly running down tonight's card. After that, we went straight into tonight's action...

VS

CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto, & Toru Yano vs Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi, Shingo Takagi, & Tetsuya Naito)
LIJ had a mixed showing at Wrestle Kingdom, with Hiromu coming out on top over Naito, who said the 'Ticking Time Bomb' was finally ready to take the next step in his career. However, Shingo & SANADA (who's not here tonight) lost their IWGP Tag Team Championships to the upstart DEATH RIDERS the same night, so a very mixed bag. This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind LIJ. Ishii and Naito started things off with Ishii getting a nice "THANK YOU ISHII!" chant from the Los Angeles crowd. The two men then locked up, with Naito getting the upper hand thanks to a discus lariat. Naito then threw Ishii into the corner and hit him with a knife edge chop. Naito then went to the top rope and hit Ishii with a diving elbow drop. Naito then tried a lariat, but Ishii stopped him dead in his tracks with a headbutt! Ishii then scooped up Naito and hit him with an overhead belly to belly suplex. Naito rolled over to his corner and tagged out to Shingo, while Ishii tagged out to Goto. Goto blasted Shingo with a big boot before picking him up and hitting him with a powerslam. Goto then threw Shingo off the ropes and hit him with a big back body drop. Goto then went for an Ushigoroshi, but Shingo reversed it into a swinging neckbreaker. Shingo then tagged out to Hiromu, who went to the top rope and hit Goto with a missile dropkick. The match came to an end when Yano tagged himself into a huge pop from the Los Angeles crowd. Yano immediately hit Hiromu with a shoulder tackle and went to untie the turnbuckle pad. Yano succeeded and swung wildly, narrowly missing Hiromu. Yano swung again, this time hitting the ropes and himself inadvertently! Hiromu then picked up Yano and hit him with the Time Bomb! Hiromu made the cover and got the three!
WINNERS: Los Ingobernables de Japon

 

 

VS

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open) vs Sabre-gun (Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer)
Sabre successfully defended the NEVER Openweight Championship against United Empire's Jeff Cobb last week at the New Beginning in Osaka, but that didn't slow down the feud between United Empire and Sabre-gun in any way. Now, United Empire leader Will Ospreay looks to take his shot against Sabre-gun! This match was a great match and the crowd was solidly behind United Empire. Mark Davis and Lance Archer started things off with the 'Murderhawk Monster' blasting Davis with a big boot. Archer then threw Davis into the corner and started choking him out with his boot until referee Red Shoes broke the hold. Archer then scooped Davis up and hit him with a running powerslam. Archer then attempted the Blackout, but Davis wiggled out of it and clipped Archer's right knee. Davis then tagged out to Kyle Fletcher, who ran off the ropes and hit a kneeled Archer with a shotgun dropkick. Davis then springboarded off the ropes and hit Archer with a springboard spinning heel kick. Archer fled back into his corner following that, where Taichi decided to tag himself in. Taichi hit Fletcher with a lariat before throwing him off the ropes and hitting him with a back body drop. Taichi then quickly tagged out to Sabre and the two men hit Fletcher with a double suplex. Sabre then started methodically working over Fletcher's legs before hitting him with a Tanahashi-esque Dragon Screw Leg Whip. Sabre then toyed with Fletcher a bit, slapping him a few times, but that only set Fletcher off. Fletcher hit Sabre with a stiff forearm smash before hitting him with a hurricanrana. Fletcher then tagged out to Will Ospreay, who hit Sabre with a flying forearm smash before quickly following it up with a standing moonsault. The match came to an end when Ospreay attempted the StormBreaker, but Sabre wiggled out of it and tagged back out to Taichi. Ospreay charged at Taichi, who responded by ripping off his pants and throwing them in Ospreay's face. Taichi then tried a sneaky quick roll-up, but Ospreay kicked out and hit Taichi with a superkick. Ospreay then scooped up Taichi and hit him with the StormBreaker, made the cover, and got the three.
WINNERS: United Empire

 

 

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match:

VS

Team Filthy (C) vs House of Black (Malakai Black, Brody King, & Buddy Matthews)
The House of Black haven proven themselves to be one of the most dangerous forces in both AEW and NJPW America, with both King and Matthews currently holding the STRONG Openweight Tag Team Championships and both have held the STRONG Openweight Championship in the past year. Now the chilling group has to face their most difficult challenge yet, the current NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champions, Team Filthy. This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind House of Black. As soon as the House of Black finished their chilling entrance, Team Filthy immediately jumped them from behind and beat the living hell out of them. All six men brawled all around the ring, with a few people even getting bloodied up. Eventually, Buddy Matthews broke out from the pack, made his way to the top rope, and hit everyone with a diving splash to the outside! Eventually, things settled down and Brody King and Clark Connors started things off in the ring. King blasted Connors with a lariat before launching him across the ring with an overhead belly to belly suplex. King then threw Connors into the corner and hit him with a knife edge chop. King then picked up Connors and hit him with a military press slam. King then attempted a running senton, but Connors rolled out of the way at the last second and hit King with a knee drop. Connors tagged out to Alex Coughlin following that and the two men hit King with a double back suplex. King then rolled over to his corner and tagged out to Malakai Black, who hit Coughlin with a running bicycle kick. Black then threw Coughlin off the ropes and hit him with a lariat. Black then tried hitting Coughlin with the Black Mass (Roundhouse Kick), but Coughlin ducked it and hit Black with a belly to belly suplex. The match came to an end when Coughlin tagged out to 'Filthy' Tom Lawlor and Black tagged out to Buddy Matthews. Matthews hit Lawlor with a running high knee and attempted the Lights Out (Pumphandle Death Valley Driver), but Lawlor wiggled out of it and locked Matthews in the Rear Naked Choke! Coughlin and Connors held Black and King at bay long enough for Matthews to pass out, giving the win to Team Filthy.
WINNERS: Team Filthy

 

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

 VS  VS  VS 
Toni Storm vs Thunder Rosa vs KAIRI vs Mayu Iwatani
KAIRI & Mayu Iwatani of STARDOM won their way into this match by defeating Syuri & MIRAI at Wrestle Kingdom 17 Night One. Meanwhile, Toni Storm and Thunder Rosa of AEW won their way into this match by defeating Britt Baker & Jamie Hayter at Wrestle Kingdom 17 Night Two. This match was a good match and all four women had some support from the crowd. Before we began, each woman was given ceremonial bouquets to honor the historic nature of this match. Storm and Rosa teamed up to start the match by taking out KAIRI and Mayu with a double dropkick that sent the two STARDOM stars crashing to the outside. Toni went to continue the fight on the outside, but Rosa snuck up behind her and attempted a quick roll-up! That only got a two and Toni responded in-kind with a discus lariat. Before Toni could do anything else, KAIRI went to the top rope and hit her with a missile dropkick. KAIRI did a celebratory taunt, but was quickly interrupted by Mayu, who hit her former tag team partner with a flying shoulder tackle. Mayu then picked up Rosa and hit her with a brainbuster before attempting a pin. That was broken up at two by Toni with a senton! As the three women laid on the ground in pain, KAIRI tried taking advantage by locking Rosa in a single-leg Boston Crab! Rosa was able to kick KAIRI away however and hit her with a high knee. Rosa then picked up KAIRI and sent her flying into the turnbuckle pads with a running snake eyes. As KAIRI rebounded off the turnbuckle, Rosa grabbed her and hit her with a German suplex. Rosa made the cover, but it was once again broken up by Toni. Toni threw Rosa out of the ring and tried covering KAIRI, but KAIRI kicked out at two. A frustrated Toni picked up KAIRI and attempted the Storm Zero, but Mayu broke it up with a flying crossbody. With all four women down, the fans started chanting "THIS IS AWESOME!" but that was quickly broken up by something much more interesting...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrW5cpH8Q9o&t=25s&ab_channel=NEWJAPANPRO-WRESTLING

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bullet Club leader Jay White came down to the ring with a Bullet Club jacket in tow!

The match came to an end when White seemingly signaled to Thunder Rosa to take the jacket, but when she tried to, Toni Storm stomped her hand! Rosa flopped around in pain as White handed the jacket to Toni Storm, who put it on and threw up the "Too Sweet!" Toni was almost rudely interrupted by Mayu Iwatani, who tried hitting the newest member of Bullet Club with a flying crossbody from the top rope, but Toni caught her and hit her with the Storm Zero!!! Toni made the cover and got the three! Toni Storm is the first ever IWGP Women's Champion!
WINNER: Toni Storm

 

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 
YOH (C) vs PAC
YOH successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship last week at the New Beginning in Osaka against El Phantasmo, but that wasn't the big story coming out of that night. The bigger story was that YOH was brutally beaten down by a masked man who called himself AKUMA! YOH was left a bloody mess at the Osaka-jo Hall, but he has vowed to compete tonight against 'The Bastard' PAC of ACE Entertainment, who won this shot by defeating Robbie Eagles and Taiji Ishimori in a triple threat match. This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind YOH. YOH started the match by hitting PAC with a flying forearm smash. YOH then threw PAC off the ropes and hit him with a hurricanrana that sent 'The Bastard' crashing to the outside. YOH then ran off the ropes and hit PAC with a suicide dive that sent PAC crashing into the commentary table! PAC tried recovering, but YOH kept at him, hitting him with a big forearm smash that sent him crashing over the table. YOH then ran a few feet and charged at PAC with a running shotgun dropkick, but PAC rolled out of the way at the last second, sending YOH crashing onto the commentary table. PAC then went to the top rope and sent YOH crashing through the commentary table with a diving elbow drop! After a few moments of recovery, PAC picked up YOH and sent him back to the ring. PAC tried locking YOH in the Brutalizer, but YOH was able to kick him away and hit him with a nice kip-up hurricanrana. PAC scuttled to the corner, where YOH hit him with an enzuigiri and quickly followed things up with a Christopher Daniels-esque Best Moonsault Ever! YOH made the cover, but PAC kicked out at two, surely making the 'Fallen Angel' mad somewhere. YOH then tried locking PAC in the Stargazer, but PAC kicked him away and hit him with a lariat. PAC picked up YOH and hit him with a brainbuster, quickly following that up by going to the top rope and hitting YOH with a diving double foot stomp. The match came to an end when PAC locked YOH in the Brutalizer! PAC cinched the hold in deep, even dragging YOH back to the middle of the ring when he almost reached the ropes. Eventually though, YOH was able to get a foot on the ropes. PAC kept the hold locked in, almost getting a disqualification from referee Daichi Murayama. PAC eventually relinqushed the hold, but quickly sought to get it back in. However, YOH managed to catch him with a surprise small package and got the three! A stunned PAC quickly went after YOH, but he was gone by then, celebrating in the crowd with his adoring fans in Los Angeles.
WINNER: YOH

 

After that match ended we cut to a video hyping up the upcoming IWGP Tag Team Championship Match between DEATH RIDERS's Shota Umino & Karl Fredericks and FTR. The video showed how FTR were one of the most dangerous tag teams in the whole world during their brief reign as IWGP Tag Team Champions, only losing the belts to Shingo Takagi & SANADA after a war. Since then, Shota Umino & Karl Fredericks of DEATH RIDERS have emerged as one of the top tag teams in NJPW, defeating everyone who's stood in their way, including FTR back at the World Tag League Final and Shingo & SANADA at Wrestle Kingdom to win the belts. But their win over FTR came when Dax & Cash were at their low point, having just lost their AEW Tag Team Titles to The Young Bucks. Now that they've won them back, they're ready to capture the one piece of gold that's been eluding them since they lost it back in October, the IWGP Tag Team Titles! Who will walk out of Los Angeles with the gold?

 

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

 VS 
DEATH RIDERS (Shota Umino & Karl Fredericks) (C) vs FTR
This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind FTR. Dax Harwood and Karl Fredericks started things off with Dax hitting Fredericks with a running shoulder tackle. Dax then threw Fredericks off the ropes and hit him with a big back body drop before locking him in an Indian Deathlock. Fredericks was able to break out of the hold relatively easily and hit Dax with a stiff forearm smash for his troubles. Fredericks then tagged out to Shota and the two hit Dax with a double dropkick. Shota picked up Dax and hit him with a swinging neckbreaker before attempting an early DEATH RIDER DDT. That failed as Dax reversed it into a release German suplex that sent Shota flying across the ring. Dax then tagged out to Cash Wheeler and the two hit Shota with a legsweep/flying European uppercut combo that sent Shota crashing to the outside. Cash went to the outside, grabbed Shota, and sent him headfirst into the turnbuckle post before throwing him back into the ring. Cash then locked Shota in the Figure-Four Leglock! The homage to Ric Flair quickly turned into a homage to Bret Hart as Cash transitioned the hold into a Sharpshooter! Shota desperately clawed for the ropes and just as it seemed like he would tap out, Fredericks got in the ring and hit Cash with a big boot to break the hold. Referee Marty Asami admonished Fredericks, but he didn't really care. Anyway, Cash tried locking in the Sharpshooter again, but Shota caught Cash by surprise and rolled him into a small package! That only got a two, but Shota was able to hit Cash with a pop-up hurricanrana afterwards. Shota then tagged back out to Fredericks, while Cash tagged back out to Dax. Fredericks ducked a lariat from Dax, bounced off the ropes, and hit Dax with a discus lariat. Fredericks then went for and hit the Manifest Destiny on Dax! Fredericks made the cover, but Cash broke up the cover with a double axe handle smash. While Asami admonished Cash, Dax was able to hit Fredericks with a legsweep and lock in the Sharpshooter! Fredericks clawed for the ropes and was eventually able to reach them. However, Dax kept the hold locked in until Asami threatened to disqualify him. The match came to an end when Dax tagged out to Cash and the two attempted the Big Rig on Fredericks. That failed though as Fredericks was able to rake Dax's eyes when he lifted him up for the move! Fredericks then tagged out to Shota, who hit a blindside Cash with a shotgun dropkick, sending him crashing into the corner. He then scooped Cash up and hit him with the DEATH RIDER DDT! One cover later and DEATH RIDERS had successfully retained the IWGP Tag Team Titles.
WINNERS: DEATH RIDERS

 

 

Ater that match ended, we cut to a video hyping up our main event of the evening, the IWGP United States Championship match between KENTA & Chris Jericho. The video shows how after Wrestle Kingdom 17, KENTA said he was looking for serious competition for his title at the New Beginning in Los Angeles. That challenge was accepted by none other than the legendary Chris Jericho. Jericho accepted the challenge on an episode of AEW Dynamite, saying that while the 'Painmaker' was enough to take the IWGP Intercontinental Championship once, he had to go one step beyond to win the IWGP United States Championship. He needed to bring out the 'Lionheart!' Will the 'Lionheart' walk out of Los Angeles with the IWGP US Championship? Or will KENTA defeat one of the most legendary wrestlers of all time?

 

 

IWGP United States Championship Match:

 VS 
KENTA (C) vs Chris Jericho
This match was a surprisingly drab match and the crowd was split between KENTA & Jericho. The two men started things off with a collar and elbow tie-up, in which the 'Lionheart' emerged on top following a forearm smash. Jericho then ran off the ropes and hit KENTA with the Judas Effect (Spinning Back Elbow)! Jericho made the cover, but KENTA kicked out at two! A frustrated Jericho pounded on the mat and then went for the Codebreaker, but KENTA caught him and hit him with an overhead belly to belly suplex. Jericho rolled into the corner, but KENTA decided to run to the opposite corner and hit him with a running big boot! KENTA made the cover, but Jericho kicked out at two. KENTA then lifted up Jericho and attempted the Go 2 Sleep, but Jericho wiggled out of it and hit KENTA with a swinging neckbreaker. Jericho then threw KENTA into the corner and hit him with a knife edge chop before quickly following it up with a back elbow smash. Jericho then tried locking KENTA in the Liontamer, but KENTA quickly kicked him away and hit him with a spinning heel kick. KENTA then threw Jericho out of the ring, ran off the ropes, and attempted a baseball slide, but Jericho caught his legs and sent him crashing to the ringside mat on the back of his head. Jericho then threw KENTA head-first into the ring post, busting the IWGP United States Champion wide open. Jericho grabbed a bloodied KENTA, threw him into the rebuilt commentary table and then set him up on it. Jericho then went to the apron and ran off of it, attempting a diving elbow drop! However, that failed and KENTA rolled out of the way at the last second, sending Jericho through the table! KENTA got back in the ring as Jericho started favoring his bicep. Eventually, Jericho got back in the ring and attempted the Judas Effect, but KENTA ducked it and hit Jericho with a roundhouse kick! KENTA then picked up Jericho and hit him with the Go 2 Sleep! KENTA made the cover...

 

 

1!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2!


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3!

KENTA scores an impressively early win in the main event! It only took KENTA 15 minutes to defeat the legendary Chris Jericho, who may have gotten injured as medics tended to him afterwards. Either way, KENTA is still your IWGP United States Champion and he celebrated to close the show.
WINNER: KENTA

 

FINAL GRADE:

[Uncrewed]

New Beginning in Los Angeles Post-Show Press Conference:

 

Will Ospreay (in English): "Zack! Good to put you in your place tonight you bellend. You know something though, tonight wasn't enough. You have something that should belong to United Empire. You have that NEVER Openweight Title and I want it! So, here's an offer. In two weeks, at Royal Quest, I'll put my Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship on the line and you can put that NEVER Openweight Title on the line! Maybe then when I beat you, you'll finally shut that big mouth of yours."
 

Toni Storm (in English): "You know, every woman wants to claim they're the best wrestler in the world, but they can all kiss my ass, because I'm the best damn it! Thunder Rosa? Just someone who thinks way too highly of herself. KAIRI? Should have stayed with her Kabuki friends clearly. And Mayu Iwatani? There's a reason why the big leagues never wanted you kid! I'm the best in the world and no woman on the whole globe or hell even the entire universe can even compete on my level!"

 

Jay White (in English): "Toni, you're exactly right and that's why I couldn't be prouder to welcome you to Bullet Club. Y'know, the past few months haven't been the best for Bullet Club, but now that we have Toni in the fold and with the New Japan Cup coming up next month, things are looking up for us. And hey, maybe we still have a few aces up our sleeves. Stay tuned..."

 

PAC (in English): "THAT WAS BULLSH*T! I'M THE RIGHTFUL IWGP JUNIOR HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION! YOH, WATCH YOUR BACK YOU LITTLE SH*T."

 

KENTA: "Chris, Chris, Chris, you may be one of the best wrestlers to ever step inside the ring, but you're still no match for KENTA! Now, I still have some unfinished business here in America. So, Daniel Garcia! You may have won that New Japan Rambo tonight and you may be the Ring of Honor World Heavyweight Champion, but you still can't outwrestle KENTA. Next week, AEW Dynamite, KENTA! DANIEL GARCIA! FOR THE IWGP UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP! I'm looking forward to it, I hope you're prepared..."

 

(sorry for the delay folks, back on track now. Royal Quest preview up tomorrow!)

[Uncrewed]

NJPW Royal Quest Preview:

 

 

NEVER Openweight/Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 

Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Will Ospreay (C)

Sabre & Ospreay have defined British wrestling over the past decade, with each man becoming the most successful wrestlers to come out of the British Isles since probably the late great British Bulldog! But now, they square off on their home soil for both Sabre's NEVER Openweight Title and Ospreay's Undisputed British Heavyweight Title! Will Sabre continue his dominant run over United Empire by defeating their leader? Or will Ospreay defend the glory of United Empire and win the NEVER Openweight Title in the process? We'll find out in London!

 

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

 VS 

DEATH RIDERS (Shota Umino & Karl Fredericks) (C) vs Aussie Open

Shota & Karl had their first defense of the IWGP Tag Team Titles a few weeks ago at the New Beginning in Los Angeles, defeating FTR in a great match. Now they have to square off against the United Empire team of Aussie Open, who made waves in British wrestling before jumping over to NJPW last year. In fact, they were the British Tag Team Champions until a few months ago when they were forced to vacate their titles to spend more time in Japan. Who will walk out of London with the gold?

 

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS  VS 

YOH (C) vs Ricky Knight Jr. vs PAC

YOH successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against PAC at the New Beginning at Los Angeles a few weeks ago. PAC wasn't scheduled to receive another shot at the title, but ACE Entertainment personally put their thumb on the scales to get PAC inserted into another title match. Him & YOH will be joined by an up-and-coming British wrestling star, Ricky Knight Jr., who has turned heads with some impressive performances in RevPro against Zack Sabre Jr. & Will Ospreay. Will YOH be able to defend the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title against two of Britain's best?

 

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

 VS 

Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter

Toni became the first ever IWGP Women's Champion a few weeks ago at the New Beginning in Los Angeles, defeating Thunder Rosa, KAIRI, & Mayu Iwatani and joining the Bullet Club in a great match. Now she makes her first defense against Britain's own Jamie Hayter, who has picked up a lot of momentum recently in AEW after turning to the good side against Britt Baker. Will Storm's reign end before it even had the chance to begin?

 

OTHER MATCHES:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match:

United Empire (C) vs Lykos Gym (Kid Lykos & Kid Lykos II)

 

Sabre-gun (Lance Archer, Taichi, & El Desperado) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

 

RPW ON DEMAND EXCLUSIVE PRE-SHOW MATCH:

Yota Tsuji vs Yuji Nagata

 

All that and much more live from London and exclusively on NJPW World!

 

 

Prediction Key:

 

NEVER Openweight/Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship Match:

Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Will Ospreay

Comments:

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

DEATH RIDERS (C) vs Aussie Open

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs Ricky Knight Jr. vs PAC
Comments:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match:

United Empire (Francesco Akira & Mike Bailey) (C) vs Lykos Gym (Kid Lykos & Kid Lykos II)
Comments:

 

Sabre-gun (Lance Archer, Taichi, & El Desperado) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

Comments:

[Uncrewed]

Royal Quest will be up tomorrow, so if anyone wants to predict, 24 hours to do so!

[DyllanK17]

NEVER Openweight/Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship Match:

Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Will Ospreay

Comments:

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

DEATH RIDERS (C) vs Aussie Open

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs Ricky Knight Jr. vs PAC
Comments:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match:

United Empire (Francesco Akira & Mike Bailey) (C) vs Lykos Gym (Kid Lykos & Kid Lykos II)
Comments:

 

Sabre-gun (Lance Archer, Taichi, & El Desperado) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

[MidKnightDreary]

NEVER Openweight/Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship Match:

Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Will Ospreay

Comments:

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

DEATH RIDERS (C) vs Aussie Open

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs Ricky Knight Jr. vs PAC
Comments:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match:

United Empire (Francesco Akira & Mike Bailey) (C) vs Lykos Gym (Kid Lykos & Kid Lykos II)
Comments:

Love seeing Lykos Gym!

 

Sabre-gun (Lance Archer, Taichi, & El Desperado) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

Comments:

The young lion sacrifice

[Uncrewed]

Quote

PRE-SHOW:
-In a brief return match, former young lion Yota Tsuji defeated Yuji Nagata in a decent match. Tsuji has been making a solid name for himself in RevPro since he graduated from being a young lion and that definitely showed tonight against the NJPW legend Nagata. Tsuji eventually finished off Nagata with his finisher, the Hellbound Lariat (Running Lariat) in just under 10 minutes. Afterwards, Tsuji said he still had much to accomplish in England, but said NJPW would know his name soon enough. (63/C)

NJPW Royal Quest- February 25th, 2023
Attendance: 6,000 at Copper Box Arena (London, England)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T. (Japanese), Kevin Kelly & Chris Charlton (English)

Royal Quest kicked off with a quick video hyping up our important matches tonight, eventually culminating with the winner-take-all NEVER Openweight/British Heavyweight Championship match between Zack Sabre Jr. & Will Ospreay! With six hard-hitting contests on the cards for tonight and five of them for titles, this one is sure to be electric! Pyro then went off around the Copper Box Arena while our commentary teams quickly ran down the card. After that, we went right into our opening contest...

 

VS

Sabre-gun (Lance Archer, Taichi, & El Desperado) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima
Sabre-gun have been really hot as of late, with Archer in particular looking like a monster since returning at New Year's Dash!!. Taichi is looking to rebound off of a loss to Great O-Khan at the New Beginning in Osaka, while Despy is looking to get some momentum in the junior division. This match was nothing more than a squash match that Sabre-gun completely dominated. The three veterans had their way with the young lions, completely dominating them. Though the Young Lions did show some fight, with Nakashima even using some sneaky tactics to almost get a three on Despy. That wasn't enough though and Despy finished off Nakashima with the Pinche Loco in just under 10 minutes.
WINNERS: Sabre-gun

 

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match:

 VS 
United Empire (Francesco Akira & Mike Bailey) (C) vs Lykos Gym (Kid Lykos & Kid Lykos II)
Kid Lykos has had an up-and-down career in British wrestling. He was on top of the world teaming with DDT star Chris Brookes as CCK, but injuries forced him to retire in 2019, handing the Kid Lykos moneker to his protege, Kid Lykos II. However, Lykos came out of retirement in early 2021 and has since formed a tag team with Lykos II. Together, the two have become one of the most dominant tag teams in all of British wrestling and now they have a shot to win NJPW gold against the newly-crowned IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions, Francesco Akira & Mike Bailey! This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind Lykos Gym. Kid Lykos and Mike Bailey started things off with a bit of an acrobatic showcase, with both men pulling off some impressive flips, but neither really getting any offense in on the other. The gymnastics show ended when Lykos hit Bailey with a hurricanrana that sent Bailey crashing to the apron. Lykos then ran off the ropes and sent Bailey crashing to the outside with a running shotgun dropkick! Lykos then tagged out to Lykos II and the two hit stereo suicide dives to Bailey and Akira! While Lykos and Akira brawled on the outside, Lykos II and Bailey made their way back into the ring. Lykos II tried hitting a standing Bailey with a springboard moonsault, but Bailey caught him and hit him with a powerslam. Bailey then tagged out to Francesco Akira, who went to the apron and hit Lykos II with a springboard dropkick. The match came to an end when Akira attempted the Akirasault, but Lykos II reversed it into a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker! Lykos II then tagged out to Lykos and the two hit Akira with a double frog splash! Lykos made the cover, but Akira kicked out at two. Lykos then went for a belly to belly suplex, but Akira pushed him away and cracked him in the jaw with a superkick! Akira then went to the top rope and hit Lykos with the Fireball! Akira made the cover and got the three to retain the titles.
WINNERS: United Empire

 

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

 VS 
Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter
Toni became the first ever IWGP Women's Champion a few weeks ago at the New Beginning in Los Angeles, defeating Thunder Rosa, KAIRI, & Mayu Iwatani and joining the Bullet Club in a great match. Now she makes her first defense against Britain's own Jamie Hayter, who has picked up a lot of momentum recently in AEW after turning to the good side against Britt Baker. This match was a decent match and the crowd was solidly behind Hayter. The two women started things off with a collar and elbow tie-up, in which Storm came out on top thanks to a sneaky eye poke to Hayter. Storm then threw Hayter off the ropes and hit her with a back body drop. Storm then threw Hayter into the corner and started choking her out with her boot. Storm then tried hitting Hayter with a belly to belly suplex, but Hayter wiggled out of it and sent Storm flying with a fallaway slam. Hayter then threw Storm into the corner and hit her with a knife edge chop. Hayter scooped up Storm after that and hit her with a military press slam. Hayter then tried hitting Storm with her finisher, the Running Lariat, but Storm rolled out of the way and to the floor at the last second. Storm tried recovering on the outside, but she was interrupted by a baseball slide from Hayter! Hayter then went to the outside and threw Storm into the ringside barricade. Hayter then threw Storm back in the ring, went to the top rope, and hit Storm with a diving elbow drop. Hayter made the cover, but Storm kicked out at two. Hayter lifted up Storm and hit her with a running powerslam before once again going for the Running Lariat. This time though, Storm was able to dodge, sending Hayter shoulder-first into the turnbuckle post! The match came to an end when Storm tried hitting Hayter with the Storm Zero, but Hayter reversed it into a release German suplex! Hayter once again tried the Running Lariat, but Storm reversed it this time into a flying hip attack. Storm then picked up Hayter and hit her with the Storm Zero! Storm made the cover and got the three.
WINNER: Toni Storm

 

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS  VS 
YOH (C) vs PAC vs Ricky Knight Jr.
YOH successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against PAC at the New Beginning at Los Angeles a few weeks ago. PAC wasn't scheduled to receive another shot at the title, but ACE Entertainment personally put their thumb on the scales to get PAC inserted into another title match. Him & YOH will be joined by an up-and-coming British wrestling star, Ricky Knight Jr., who has turned heads with some impressive performances in RevPro against Zack Sabre Jr. & Will Ospreay. This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind Knight. Knight got a pretty solid "RICKY! RICKY! RICKY!" chant from the London crowd, but that quickly stopped when PAC kicked him square in the face with a big boot. PAC then went after YOH, hitting him with a flying Thesz press. PAC then unloaded a barrage of punches onto the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion before following things up with a standing double foot stomp. PAC then threw YOH into the corner, ran to the other corner, and attempted a running big boot, but Ricky Knight got back in the ring and interrupted PAC with a high knee strike! Knight and YOH then started going at it, with Knight attempting a running hurricanrana, but YOH reversed it into a sitout powerbomb. YOH then tried locking in the Stargazer, but Knight kicked him away, nearly sending him into a recovering PAC on the apron. PAC dodged it though and threw YOH off the apron and to the ringside mat. PAC then hit Knight with a springboard missile dropkick, sending the upstart Englishman into the corner. PAC then hit Knight with an enzuigiri before going to the top rope and hitting Knight with the Black Arrow (Corkscrew Shooting Star Press)! PAC made the cover, but YOH broke it up with a flying senton! YOH and PAC started going after each other after that, with YOH getting the upper hand thanks to a stiff back elbow smash. YOH then hit PAC with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker before locking PAC in the Stargazer! Just as it looked like PAC was going to tap, Ricky Knight ran off the ropes and broke up the hold with a shotgun dropkick. The match came to an end when YOH rolled to the outside, leaving PAC & Knight in the ring. Knight went to grab PAC, but 'The Bastard' kicked him square below the belt! It's legal in this match and you know what else is legal? Weapons! PAC went to the outside and grabbed a cricket bat, pointing it square at Knight. Just as PAC tried to swing away at Knight, a hooded figure grabbed the bat! PAC screamed bloody murder at the hooded figure, who revealed themselves to be...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SARAYA!

Ricky Knight's family ties paid off as Saraya distracted PAC long enough for Knight to hit PAC with a flying lariat! Knight then picked up PAC and hit him with the Fire Thunder Driver! Knight made the cover, but before he could get the three, YOH snuck up from behind him, broke the cover, and locked Knight in the Stargazer! Knight desperately clawed for the ropes, but eventually he had no choice but to tap out!
WINNER: YOH

 

 

IWGP Tag Team Championship Match:

 VS 
DEATH RIDERS (Shota Umino & Karl Fredericks) (C) vs Aussie Open
Shota & Karl had their first defense of the IWGP Tag Team Titles a few weeks ago at the New Beginning in Los Angeles, defeating FTR in a great match. Now they have to square off against the United Empire team of Aussie Open, who made waves in British wrestling before jumping over to NJPW last year. In fact, they were the British Tag Team Champions until a few months ago when they were forced to vacate their titles to spend more time in Japan. This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind Aussie Open. Kyle Fletcher and Shota Umino started things off with Fletcher hitting Umino with a flying high knee, quickly following things up with a standing moonsault. Fletcher then threw Shota into the corner, ran to the opposite corner, and hit Shota with a running big boot. Fletcher then went to the top rope and hit Shota with a shooting star press! Fletcher made the cover, but Shota kicked out at two. Fletcher then tagged out to Mark Davis and the two attempted the Coriolis on Shota, but Shota wiggled his way out of it and sent Fletcher out of the ring by shoving Davis into him. Shota then hit Davis with a spinning heel kick before hitting a deadlift German suplex on the big Australian. Shota then tagged out to Karl Fredericks and the two hit Davis with a double suplex. Fredericks then ran off the ropes and hit Davis with a running senton! Fredericks scooped up Davis and attempted a running powerslam, but Davis wiggled out of it and sent Fredericks head-first into the turnbuckle pad. Davis picked up Fredericks and hit him with a military press slam before tagging out to Fletcher. Kyle Fletcher took Karl Fredericks out with a top-rope missile dropkick, sending Fredericks into his corner. Shota tagged himself in as Fletcher hit Fredericks with an enzuigiri. Fletcher then went to the top rope, but Shota shoved him off and sent him crashing to the outside! Shota then ran off the ropes and hit Fletcher with a suicide dive! Shota sent Fletcher back in the ring and tried grabbing the United Empire member, but he was caught by a surprise jumping knee strike! The match came to an end when Fletcher tagged out to Davis and the two went to hit Shota with the Coriolis. Shota, however, had other plans and sent Fletcher crashing out of the ring with a mule kick. Shota then hit Davis with a surprise DEATH RIDER DDT! Shota made the cover and got the three. DEATH RIDERS celebrated their win as the crowd chanted "BULLSH*T! BULLSH*T!"
WINNERS: DEATH RIDERS

 

After that match ended, we cut to a video hyping up our main event of the evening, the NEVER Openweight/British Heavyweight Championship match between Zack Sabre Jr. & Will Ospreay. Sabre & Ospreay have defined British wrestling over the past decade, with each man becoming the most successful wrestlers to come out of the British Isles since probably the late great British Bulldog! But now, they square off on their home soil for both Sabre's NEVER Openweight Title and Ospreay's Undisputed British Heavyweight Title! Will Sabre continue his dominant run over United Empire by defeating their leader? Or will Ospreay defend the glory of United Empire and win the NEVER Openweight Title in the process? We'll find out tonight in London!

 

 

NEVER Openweight/Undisputed British Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 
Zack Sabre Jr. (C) vs Will Ospreay (C)
This match was an amazing match and the crowd was split between both men. Ospreay started the match off by offering a handshake to Sabre, who initially responded by accepting it. However, Sabre transitioned the handshake into a takedown and locked Ospreay in an armbar! Ospreay quickly escaped it and took Sabre down with a dropkick, sending the NEVER Openweight Champion crashing to the outside. Ospreay then ran off the ropes and took Sabre out with a big suicide dive! Ospreay then went to the apron, ran off of it, and hit a downed Sabre with a diving double foot stomp. Ospreay then threw Sabre into the ringside barricade. Ospreay then took a beer from a fan in the front row, took a swig of it, and cracked the cup over Sabre's head. Ospreay then threw Sabre back in the ring, went to the top rope, and hit Sabre with a moonsault. Ospreay then jumped off the ropes, attempting the OsCutter, but Sabre caught him and locked in a sleeper hold! Ospreay clawed for the ropes, but Sabre kept dragging him back to the middle of the ring. Eventually, Ospreay decided to use all his momentum to run to the corner, kick off the turnbuckle pad, and flip over Sabre to get out of the hold. Sabre tried locking the hold back in, but Ospreay hit him with a Superkick instead! Ospreay then went to the top rope and hit Sabre with a Phoenix Splash! Ospreay made the cover, but Sabre kicked out at two. Ospreay tried grabbing Sabre by the head, but Sabre grabbed Ospreay's right knee and locked in a kneebar! Ospreay clawed for the ropes, but Sabre kept wrenching the hold. Ospreay was eventually able to get to the ropes, but Sabre kept the hold locked in, only breaking it when referee Red Shoes threatened to disqualify the NEVER Openweight Champion. Sabre then hit Ospreay with a Dragon Screw Leg Whip, sending Ospreay into the corner. Sabre then ran to the opposite corner of Ospreay, ran at him, and hit him with a running big boot. Sabre then decided to toy with Ospreay for a bit, calling him "Billy B*tch" and slapping him around. Ospreay then ran off the ropes and tried hitting Ospreay with the Penalty Kick, but Ospreay ducked it at the last second and hit Sabre with a Pele kick! Ospreay then threw Sabre off the ropes and hit him with a hurricanrana. Ospreay then attempted the StormBreaker, but Sabre reversed it into a neckbreaker! The match came to an end when Sabre scooped up Ospreay and hit him with the Sabre Driver! Sabre made the cover...

 

 

1!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NO!

Will Ospreay kicked out at two! No rest for the wicked though as Sabre immediately transitioned into the Orienteering with Napalm Death! Ospreay clawed for the ropes, eventually reaching them, but the damage may have already been done. Maybe not though, as Sabre tried putting the hold back in, Ospreay hit Sabre with a spin kick! Ospreay then picked up Sabre and hit him with the StormBreaker!!! Ospreay made the cover...

1!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3!

Will Ospreay is your new NEVER Openweight Champion! Ospreay has just ended the dominant reign of Zack Sabre Jr. while also continuing his 1,100+ day reign as British Heavyweight Champion! The rest of United Empire (sans Jeff Cobb) came out to the ring to celebrate, hoisting Ospreay on their shoulders as confetti fell from the rafters. Royal Quest came to a close as Ospreay stood tall in front of his home country.
WINNER: Will Ospreay

 

FINAL GRADE: 

Popularity: Increased in 22 Regions.