NJPW: King of Puroresu

[Uncrewed]

NJPW Royal Quest Post-Show Press Conference:

 

PAC (in English): "ANOTHER BULLSH*T MOVE FROM NJPW MANAGEMENT. YOH! YOU COWARD, YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM ME. AND RICKY KNIGHT? I WOULD HAVE BEEN CHAMP IF IT WASN'T FOR HIM AND HIS ASS-BACKWARDS MESS OF A FAMILY TREE. MARK MY WORDS, I WILL BE CHAMP DAMN IT."

 

 

YOH: "What a night! PAC, my friend, turns out two times isn't the charm. Now go back to your ACE Entertainment buddies to cry! Ricky Knight Jr., you're one hell of an athlete. In fact, if you want to run this back one on one, it'd be an honor. But now, I've got some other things to worry about. Our 51st Anniversary Show is coming up shortly, so I thought I'd issue a challenge...

 

Hiroshi Tanahashi! You! Me! One on One! NJPW 51st Anniversary Show!"

 

 

Will Ospreay (in English): "Well, I was going to make this short because we've got the United Empire limo waiting out there for a good night on the town, but because that prick Zack Sabre Jr. decided to hide in his locker room like a crybaby instead of talking to the fine folks of the British press, I'm going to take my time here. I've got nothing good to say about Zack, so I'm going to follow the advice of my mother, who was sitting in the front row tonight by the by, and not say anything at all about him. Now, onto the New Japan Cup. All of you know damn well that I'm better than all 31 of the other men in that tournament and I KNOW I'm better than Hiroshi Tanahashi, so you might as well get use to calling me Champ Champ very soon. Anyway, if you need me, find a pub, I'll be buying rounds for the whole United Empire crew to celebrate this great night."

 

(51st Anniversary Show up tomorrow and New Japan Cup preview out Sunday!)

[Uncrewed]

NJPW 51st Anniversary Show- March 1st, 2023
Attendance: 10,000 at Nippon Budokan (Tokyo, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-ACE Entertainment's Claudio CSRO & PAC defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a good match to kick off NJPW's 51st Anniversary Show. CSRO & PAC completely dominated the young lions, finishing them off in just under 10 minutes after PAC made Oiwa tap to the Brutalizer. (76/B-)

-Sabre-gun's Lance Archer & Taichi defeated Togi Makabe & young lion Kosei Fujita in a dull match. Makabe was able to hold his own against the two Sabre-gun veterans, but once Fujita got in there, Archer & Taichi had their way with him. After just under 10 minutes, Archer scooped up Fujita and hit him with a devastating Blackout, which was later revealed to have broken Fujita's ribs, to get the win. (63/C)

-Team Filthy defeated Bullet Club's Bad Luck Fale, Hikuleo, & El Phantasmo in a good match to retain the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship. Tom Lawlor and co. have been dominant champions during their four-month reign as champs, but they had probably their toughest test tonight against the sneaky El Phantasmo and the monsterous Fale & Hikuleo. They were able to overcome those odds though as Lawlor made Phantasmo pass out to a Rear Naked Choke in just under 14 minutes to retain the titles. (80/B)

-Bullet Club's SHO & Taiji Ishimori defeated Bandido & Ryu Lee in a great match. SHO made his long-awaited return to the ring tonight after disappearing after losing the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship to YOH at Wrestle Kingdom 17. He was still up to his old tricks though as he won the match for Bullet Club after hitting Bandido with a wrench behind referee Marty Asami's back and hitting him with the Shock Arrow to secure the win. As medics attended to Bandido afterwards, Ryu Lee didn't even stick around to check on his partner! (86/B+)

-CHAOS's Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, & Hirooki Goto defeated Bullet Club's Jay White, Karl Anderson, & Doc Gallows in a good match. Okada and the rest of CHAOS desperately needed to regain some momentum after a rough start to 2023 and they got that tonight with a solid win over Jay White and the Good Brothers. After just under 16 minutes of action, Okada caught Gallows with the Rainmaker to get the win. (80/B)

-The IWGP Tag Team Champions DEATH RIDERS (Shota Umino & Karl Fredericks) defeated the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions United Empire (Francesco Akira & Mike Bailey) in a good match. Shota entered the match dealing with a bruised pec, which allowed the UE junior heavyweights to nearly get the win on a few occasions tonight in Tokyo. However, Shota & Karl's superior size and strength were ultimately the difference maker here as a spear from Fredericks onto Akira and a DEATH RIDER DDT from Shota to Bailey were enough to give the win to DEATH RIDERS after about 18 minutes. (81/B)

 

 

Champion vs Champion Match:

 VS 
Hiroshi Tanahashi (IWGP World Heavyweight Champion) vs YOH (IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion)
It's NJPW Anniversary Show tradition that the champions of the heavyweight and junior heavyweight divisions square off in the main event. Most of the time, the IWGP Heavyweight Champion comes out on top, but YOH stands probably the best shot out of any challenger in recent memory. He's riding a wave of momentum, having beaten PAC & Ricky Knight Jr. at Royal Quest in a great outing. Meanwhile, this is Tanahashi's first match in almost a month, so he's potentially rusty. This match was a good match and the crowd was solidly behind YOH. YOH started things off by offering a handshake to Tanahashi, telling the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion that it was an honor to share a ring with him. Tanahashi responded by booting him square in the face. Tanahashi then threw YOH into the corner and hit him with a barrage of knife edge chops. YOH stumbled to the middle of the ring as Tanahashi played a bit of air guitar before hitting YOH with a lariat. Tanahashi toyed with YOH after that, slapping him a few times before running off the ropes and attempting a Slingblade. That failed though, as YOH reversed it into a spinning back suplex. YOH then went to the top rope and hit Tanahashi with a diving elbow drop, quickly following it up by running off the ropes and hitting Tanahashi with a senton! YOH then hit Tanahashi with his own Dragon Screw Leg Whip, then another, then another! YOH then tried locking Tanahashi in the Stargazer, but Tanahashi kicked him away and hit him with a dropkick. Tanahashi then threw YOH off the ropes and hit him with a big back body drop. Tanahashi then scooped up YOH and attempted a military press slam, but YOH wiggled out of it and hit Tanahashi with a jumping neckbreaker. YOH ran off the ropes and hit Tanahashi with a high knee, before quickly following it up with a standing moonsault to the mogul of ACE Entertainment. The match came to an end when YOH locked Tanahashi with the Stargazer! Tanahashi desperately clawed for the ropes, but just when it looked like he was about to tap, the lights went out! When they came back on, the arena was basked in a red haze and Tanahashi & referee Red Shoes were nowhere to be seen. It was only YOH and...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AKUMA!

AKUMA stood in the apron, staring daggers through YOH. As YOH went to swing at AKUMA, AKUMA spit red mist in his eyes! YOH writhed in pain as the lights went back out. When they came back on, Tanahashi & Red Shoes were back. Tanahashi quickly took advantage of the downed YOH, going to the top rope and hitting him with the High Fly Flow! Tanahashi made the cover and got the three. The 51st Anniversary Show came to a close as Tanahashi played air guitar, getting in the way of medics trying to tend to YOH.
WINNER: Hiroshi Tanahashi

 

FINAL GRADE:

[Uncrewed]

NEW JAPAN CUP 2023 PARTICIPANTS:

 

'RAINMAKER'

KAZUCHIKA OKADA

Accomplishments:

New Japan Cup Winner- 2x (2013, 2019)

IWGP Heavyweight Championship- 5x

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship- 1x

 

 

'Time Bomb'

HIROMU TAKAHASHI

Accomplishments:

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship- 4x

Best of Super Juniors Winner- 3x (2018, 2020, 2021)

 

 

'The Commonwealth Kingpin'

WILL OSPREAY

Accomplishments:

NEVER Openweight Championship- 2x (CURRENT)

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship- 1x

G1 Climax Winner- 1x (2022)

 

 

'Switchblade'

JAY WHITE

Accomplishments:

IWGP Heavyweight Championship- 1x

IWGP United States Championship- 2x

 

 

'DEATH RIDER'

KUSHIDA

Accomplishments:

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship- 6x

Best of Super Juniors Winner- 2x (2015, 2017)

Super-J Cup Winner- 1x (2016)

 

 

'The Technical Wizard'

ZACK SABRE JR.

Accomplishments:

NEVER Openweight Championship- 1x

New Japan Cup Winner- 1x (2022)

IWGP Tag Team Championship- 3x

 

 

KENTA

Accomplishments:

IWGP United States Championship- 2x (CURRENT)

NEVER Openweight Championship- 1x

 

 

'STARGAZER'

YOH

Accomplishments:

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship- 1x (CURRENT)

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship- 5x

 

 

'Filthy'

TOM LAWLOR

Accomplishments:

NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship- 1x (CURRENT)

Strong Openweight Championship- 1x

 

 

'The Dragon'

SHINGO TAKAGI

Accomplishments:

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship- 1x

IWGP Tag Team Championship- 1x

NEVER Openweight Championship- 1x

 

 

'Shooter'

SHOTA UMINO

Accomplishments:

IWGP Tag Team Championship- 1x (CURRENT)

World Tag League Winner- 1x (2022)

 

 

'SWISS DEATH'

CLAUDIO CSRO

Accomplishments:

PWG World Heavyweight Championship- 1x

Sent Bryan Danielson back to AEW with a dominant win at Wrestle Kingdom this year

 

 

'Stardust☆Genius'

TETSUYA NAITO

Accomplishments:

IWGP Heavyweight Championship- 3x

IWGP Intercontinental Championship- 6x

G1 Climax Winner- 2x (2013, 2017)

New Japan Cup Winner- 1x (2016)

 

 

'The Wrath of the Gods'

JEFF COBB

Accomplishments:

NEVER Openweight Championship- 1x

IWGP Tag Team Championship- 2x

 

 

'COLD SKULL'

SANADA

Accomplishments:

IWGP United States Championship- 1x

IWGP Tag Team Championship- 4x

 

 

'Holy Emperor'

TAICHI

Accomplishments:

NEVER Openweight Championship- 2x

IWGP Tag Team Championship- 3x

 

 

OTHER PARTICIPANTS:

 

'Stone Pitbull'

 TOMOHIRO ISHII

 

'The Guerrilla of Destiny'

TAMA TONGA

 

'EVIL'

EVIL

 

'TSUNAMI'

JONAH

 

'The Murderhawk Monster'

LANCE ARCHER

 

'King of the World'

MINORU SUZUKI

 

'Celtic Prince'

DAVID FINLAY

 

'Alpha Wolf'

KARL FREDERICKS

 

'Dominator'

GREAT O-KHAN

 

'Rock Hard'

JUICE ROBINSON

 

'Murder Machine'

SHO

 

'The Ultimate Weapon'

Aaron Henare

 

'Sublime Master Thief'

Toru Yano

 

'Tokyo Pimp'

YUJIRO TAKAHASHI

 

'Blue Justice'

YUJI NAGATA

 

'HEAD HUNTER'

YOSHI-HASHI

 

The 2023 New Japan Cup kicks off with three straight days of action live from Korakuen Hall, exclusively on NJPW World!

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Japan Cup Night One- March 3rd, 2023
Attendance: 2,000 at Korakuen Hall (Tokyo, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Aussie Open defeated Yuji Nagata & young lion Yuto Nakashima in a good match to kick things off. Aussie Open turned some heads in NJPW management with their strong showing at Royal Quest a few weeks ago, so they may be getting another shot at the IWGP Tag Team Titles sooner rather than later. They certainly showed why they came so close tonight though, finishing off Nakashima with the Coriolis in just under 10 minutes. (72/B-)

-Six or Nine and Strong Machine J defeated Bandido, Ryu Lee, & young lion Ryohei Oiwa in a good match. Bandido and Lee haven't been seeing eye to eye that much since losing the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles and tonight was no exception. They just weren't able to muster up any sort of chemistry together, which left Ryohei Oiwa high and dry. The match came to an end when Oiwa tried tagging out to either one of them, but they were too busy arguing to notice! That allowed Strong Machine J to hit Oiwa with the Devil Windmill Suplex II to get the win. (79/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Jay White defeated Yujiro Takahashi in a good match. This Bullet Club battle saw the leader defeat BC's resident ladies man. That's not to say Yujiro didn't get his licks in though, as he almost hit the Tokyo Pimps on Jay on a few occasions. However, Jay clearly had the upper hand for most of the match and finished off Yujiro with the Blade Runner in just under 13 minutes. (78/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Shota Umino defeated Lance Archer in a good match. This one was a real David vs. Goliath matchup. That's not underselling Shota though, as he's 6'1, 220 pounds, but Lance Archer just towered above him tonight. Archer dominated most of the match, but Shota regained some momentum late in the match thanks to a well-timed back elbow smash. That allowed Shota to hit Archer with a jumping knee and hit the dazed 'Murderhawk Monster' with the DEATH RIDER DDT to get the win. (80/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Juice Robinson defeated YOH in a good match. YOH was looking to bounce back after nearly defeating Hiroshi Tanahashi a few nights ago at the 51st Anniversary Show (and he would have if it wasn't for AKUMA), but this new, more dangerous Juice Robinson gave him hell tonight in Tokyo. Juice tore into the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion for most of the match, but YOH regained the momentum with a well-timed spin kick. Just as it looked like YOH was going to lock Juice in the Stargazer, the lights went out! When they came back on...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AKUMA was standing in the ring!

AKUMA didn't even do anything, instead a bunch of blood just started seeping from his mouth in a very chilling image. YOH went to swing at AKUMA, but the lights went out and when they came back on, AKUMA was nowhere to be seen. That momentary distraction allowed Juice to spin YOH around and hit him with the Pulp Friction! Juice made the cover and got the three shortly thereafter. (79/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: KENTA defeated Great O-Khan in a good match. The IWGP United States Champion advanced to the next round of the New Japan Cup tonight in Tokyo, but that was despite a great showing from Khan, who nearly pinned the champ on a few occasions. Khan even had the Eliminator locked and ready for KENTA, but the champ was able to escape it and hit Khan with a stiff roundhouse kick. KENTA quickly followed it up with the Go 2 Sleep to get the win after about 16 minutes. (81/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Jeff Cobb defeated JONAH in a good match. This one was the probably the biggest hoss battle that NJPW has seen since the era of Vader. The two big men tore into each other, beating the living hell out of each other for nearly 17 minutes. Each man threw the other with the greatest of ease, but neither man could keep the other down. That was until JONAH tried going for the Tsunami, which failed after Cobb rolled out of the way and hit JONAH in the back with a big senton. Cobb then scooped up JONAH and hit him with the Tour of the Islands to get the win. (78/B)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

New Japan Cup First Round Match: KUSHIDA vs SHO
SHO defeated KUSHIDA in a good match to close the show. SHO's been looking for a solid win to get him over the hump since losing the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship and he got that tonight over the leader of DEATH RIDERS. KUSHIDA suffered only his second loss since returning to NJPW last year, mostly thanks to some sneaky tactics from SHO. After about 20 minutes of back-and-forth action, KUSHIDA looked to lock in the DEATH LOCK on SHO, but SHO thumbed KUSHIDA in the eye instead! That allowed SHO to scoop KUSHIDA up and hit him with the Shock Arrow to get the win and advance to the next round.

 

FINAL GRADE:

 

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Japan Cup Night Two- March 4th, 2023
Attendance: 2,000 at Korakuen Hall (Tokyo, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Flying Tiger defeated Bandido & Ryu Lee in a good match to kick things off. It was more of the same discension tonight in Tokyo between Bandido & Lee, with the two not really getting on the same page against Tiger Mask IV & Robbie Eagles. After about 14 minutes of back-and-forth action, Bandido tried hitting Tiger Mask with a flying forearm smash, but Tiger Mask ducked it and Bandido accidentally hit Ryu Lee! Tiger Mask took advantage of this and hit Bandido with the Tiger Driver for the win. (80/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Tom Lawlor defeated David Finlay in a good match. The leader of Team Filthy was absolutely vicious tonight, beating the living hell out of Finlay by throwing him around the ring like a ragdoll. Finlay, to his credit, did his best and nearly hit Lawlor with his finisher, the Prima Nocta (Jumping Stunner). However, when he went for the Prima Nocta, Lawlor caught him in the Rear Naked Choke! Finlay gasped for air, but eventually passed out, giving the win to Lawlor. (79/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Tetsuya Naito defeated EVIL in a dull match. This battle of the Los Ingobernables de Japon leader and the LIJ turncoat turned out to be a bit of a one-sided affair on the side of Naito. Naito beat the piss out of EVIL for nearly 13 minutes, with EVIL only getting a few shots in thanks to some well-timed cheating. In the end, Naito hit EVIL with the Destino to get the win. (64/C)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Aaron Henare in a good match. Sabre was pissed off tonight after losing the NEVER Openweight Championship to Will Ospreay and he took that out on Ospreay's United Empire stable-mate Aaron Henare. Henare did get a few licks in with his strength advantage over Sabre, but Sabre's surperior technical wrestling abilities won out in the end. Sabre finished off Henare by making him tap to the Orienteering with Napalm Death in just under 15 minutes. (82/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Kazuchika Okada defeated Yuji Nagata in a good match. Okada stated that he needed to win the New Japan Cup for his own sake before the tournament, but he didn't really seem to take Nagata seriously tonight. That nearly cost him the match, as Nagata broke out the form that made him a multi-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion. Nagata nearly finished off Okada by locking in the Nagata Lock, but Okada wiggled out of it and hit Nagata with the Rainmaker to get the win. (75/B-)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

New Japan Cup First Round Match: Claudio CSRO vs Minoru Suzuki
Claudio CSRO defeated Minoru Suzuki in a great match to close the show. In Suzuki's first match since losing in the UWFi Rules Match to Zack Sabre Jr. at Wrestle Kingdom, he beat the living hell out of CSRO. CSRO responded in-kind though and the two put on a brutal match for nearly 20 minutes. The match came to an end when Suzuki tried hitting CSRO with the Gotch-style Piledriver, but CSRO reversed it into the Neutralizer! CSRO then threw Suzuki off the ropes and hit him with the Swiss Death for the win.

 

FINAL GRADE: 

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Japan Cup Night Three- March 5th, 2023
Attendance: 2,000 at Korakuen Hall (Tokyo, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-United Empire's Francesco Akira & Mike Bailey defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a decent match to kick things off. The IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions completely dominated the two young lions in front of the Tokyo crowd, with Akira finishing off Oiwa with the Fireball after just under 10 minutes of action. (67/C+)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: SANADA defeated Tomohiro Ishii in a good match. In SANADA's first match since losing the IWGP Tag Team Titles at Wrestle Kingdom 17, he looked really good against the soon-to-be-retiring Ishii. Ishii did his best though, nearly getting the win on SANADA with a big overhead belly to belly suplex. However, SANADA had the last laugh when he made Ishii tap to the Skull End in just under 13 minutes. (78/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Taichi defeated Tama Tonga in a good match. This battle of NJPW veterans saw the more crafty Taichi emerge with the win, but that was despite a solid outing from Tama Tonga. Tama actually had the advantage for most of the match until he went for the Gun Stun. That was when Taichi shoved Tama into referee Red Shoes and hit Tama with a thumb to the eye! Taichi then hit Tama with the Taichi-style Last Ride to get the win and advance to the second round. (78/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Hiromu Takahashi defeated YOSHI-HASHI in a good match. YOSHI-HASHI was just not able to keep up with the 'Time Bomb' tonight in Tokyo, as Hiromu pretty much ran circles around the CHAOS veteran for nearly the entire match. YOSHI-HASHI did almost hit his Loose Explosion (Senton Bomb) finisher, but Hiromu rolled out of the way and finished him off with the Time Bomb in just under 14 minutes. (80/B)

-New Japan Cup First Round Match: Will Ospreay defeated Toru Yano in a good match. The newly-crowned NEVER Openweight Champion had control of most of the match against the sneaky Yano, but Yano was able to get a few near falls thanks to some underhanded tactics. Hell, he almost finished off Ospreay with a low blow and a small package, but Ospreay kicked out at two. Ospreay then quickly took Yano out with the StormBreaker and got the pin to advance to round two. (80/B)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

New Japan Cup First Round Match: Shingo Takagi vs Karl Fredericks

Shingo Takagi defeated Karl Fredericks in an amazing match to close the show. This battle of two men recently known as tag team stars was surprisingly physical. Fredericks brought the heat to Shingo, taking him down on multiple occasions with some devastating Spears. Shingo responded in-kind, taking Fredericks out multiple times with some brutal lariats. It all came to an end though after just under 18 minutes, with Fredericks' Manifest Destiny being reversed into the Last of the Dragon from Shingo! Shingo then made the cover and gave Fredericks his first singles loss in NJPW. 

 

FINAL GRADE:

 

 

New Japan Cup Bracket POST-ROUND ONE:

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Japan Cup Night Four- March 9th, 2023
Attendance: 5,000 at Edion Arena Osaka (Osaka, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Aussie Open defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a decent match to kick things off. The United Empire tag team completely dominated the two young lions tonight, not allowing any offense from them. After about 8 minutes, Fletcher & Davis mercifully finished off Nakashima with the Coriolis to get the win. (70/C+)

-Bullet Club's El Phantasmo & Taiji Ishimori defeated Bandido & Ryu Lee in a good match to become the number one contenders to the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles. Bandido & Lee demanded a shot at the tag titles, but they had to get through Bullet Club's Cutest Tag Team to get to them. However, their miscommunication issues were on full display tonight in Tokyo, as the two just couldn't get anything going against Phantasmo & Ishimori. After about 16 minutes, Phantasmo reversed the 21 Plex from Bandido into the CR2 to get the win. As the young lions tended to Bandido, Lee didn't even stick around and just left his partner in the ring! (79/B)

-New Japan Cup Second Round Match: Shingo Takagi defeated Juice Robinson in a great match. Juice did his best against the former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion, but the newest man to join Bullet Club just didn't have enough to stop Shingo tonight in Osaka. Juice did get control near the end though thanks to a well-timed thumb to the eye. After about 15 minutes of action, Juice's attempted Pulp Friction was reversed into a release German suplex! Shingo then hit Juice with the Last of the Dragon to get the win. (86/B+)

-New Japan Cup Second Round Match: Shota Umino defeated SHO in a good match. This battle of New Japan's brightest young stars saw SHO take an early advantage with his usual underhanded tactics. However, Shota regained control with a flurry of quick punches and devastating suplexes. The match came to an end after just under 15 minutes when Shota attempted the DEATH RIDER DDT. That failed though and SHO reversed it into a fisherman's suplex. SHO then reached into the turnbuckle pad and grabbed his hammer! SHO swung it at Shota, who ducked it and hit SHO with the DEATH RIDER DDT! Shota then made the cover and got the three. (79/B)

-New Japan Cup Second Round Match: Jeff Cobb defeated Jay White in a great match. White went into the match thinking that this was the same Jeff Cobb that middled along for the past year, but he was sorely mistaken. Cobb beat the hell out of White for nearly 17 minutes, with the Bullet Club leader only getting a few moments of offense against the Guamanian powerhouse. White did get to attempt the Blade Runner, but that was reversed into the Tour of the Islands, which secured Cobb the win. (83/B+)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

New Japan Cup Second Round Match: Kazuchika Okada vs SANADA

Kazuchika Okada defeated SANADA in an amazing match to close the show. Okada was pushed to his limit tonight in Osaka, with SANADA nearly getting the Skull End locked in on a few occasions and Okada failing to hit any of his signature moves. In the end though, SANADA was able to get the Skull End locked in! Okada flailed around, desperately clawing for the ropes. However, he was able to kick himself off the ropes, leap over SANADA and roll him up for the three! Afterwards, Okada offered a handshake to SANADA, which was accepted! 

 

 

FINAL GRADE: 

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Japan Cup Night Five- March 10th, 2023
Attendance: 5,000 at Edion Arena Osaka (Osaka, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Sabre-gun's El Desperado & Lance Archer defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a dull match to kick things off. The two young lions couldn't get anything going against Despy, let alone the damn 'Murderhawk Monster' Lance Archer. In the end, Despy finished off Oiwa with the Pinche Loco after just under eight minutes. (65/C)

-United Empire's Great O-Khan & Aaron Henare defeated Bullet Club's Bad Luck Fale & Hikuleo in a good match. With Khan's usual tag partner Jeff Cobb focused on the New Japan Cup, Khan has found the 'Ultimate Weapon' to team with and they certainly showed some great chemistry tonight in Osaka. The United Empire duo scored a solid win over the Bullet Club big men when Khan hit Hikuleo with the Eliminator after just under 12 minutes of action. (72/B-)

-New Japan Cup Second Round Match: Hiromu Takahashi defeated Taichi in a great match. Los Ingobernables de Japon's Time Bomb had the upper hand over Taichi for most of the match, but Taichi was able to keep himself in the match thanks to some well-timed cheap shots. Taichi's night came to an end though when his Taichi-style Last Ride was reversed into a hurricanrana from Hiromu! Hiromu then scooped up Taichi and hit him with the Time Bomb to get the win. (88/B+)

-New Japan Cup Second Round Match: Tom Lawlor defeated KENTA in a good match. The leader of Team Filthy was able to score a surprising win over the IWGP United States Champion tonight in Osaka, mostly thanks to his superior pure wrestling abilities. KENTA did get some good licks in though, hitting Lawlor with a few roundhouse kicks that sent Lawlor crashing to the outside. In the end, after about 16 minutes, KENTA hoisted up Lawlor for the Go 2 Sleep, but Lawlor wiggled out of it and locked KENTA in the Rear Naked Choke! KENTA desperately clawed for the ropes, but he couldn't before he passed out, advancing Lawlor to the quarterfinals. (76/B-)

-New Japan Cup Second Round Match: Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Claudio CSRO in a great match. This one was another brutal match, with Sabre using his technical expertise to take out CSRO's arms and legs and CSRO beating his raw power to nearly knock out Sabre on a few occasions. After nearly 20 minutes of back-and-forth action, CSRO threw Sabre off the ropes to attempt the Swiss Death, but when he tried throwing Sabre up, his arm gave out! Sabre then grabbed CSRO's arm, locked in in a cross armbreaker and got the submission win. (87/B+)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

New Japan Cup Second Round Match: Will Ospreay vs Tetsuya Naito
Will Ospreay defeated Tetsuya Naito in a great match to close the show. Naito brought the heat to the NEVER Openweight Champion to close this great show, nearly finishing off Ospreay with the Destino on a few occasions. Eventually, Naito decided the Destino wasn't happening and decided to pull out an old trick, the Stardust Press! That failed though, as Ospreay got his knees up at the last second as Naito flew off the top rope. Ospreay then scooped up Naito and hit him with the StormBreaker, made the cover, and got the win, finishing off the leader of Los Ingobernables de Japon after a 20 minute war. 

FINAL GRADE:

 

New Japan Cup Post-Round Two Bracket:

[MidKnightDreary]

Really enjoying Cobb's singles run. Long may it last!

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Japan Cup Night Six- March 14th, 2023
Attendance: 6,000 at Hiroshima Sun Plaza (Hiroshima, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-ACE's Claudio CSRO & PAC defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a good match to kick things off. The ACE Entertainment duo completely dominated the two young lions to kick things off in Hiroshima, with PAC finishing off Oiwa with the Brutalizer to secure the win. (73/B-)

-New Japan Cup Quarterfinals Match: Shota Umino defeated Will Ospreay in an amazing match. Ospreay seemed to not take the IWGP Tag Team Champion seriously, toying with 'Shooter' on multiple occasions instead of going for the win. Shota took advantage of this, taking out Ospreay with multiple devastating suplexes that sent the NEVER Openweight Champion crashing to the outside. Ospreay did take control near the end with the OsCutter, but when he went for the StormBreaker, Shota reversed it into a small package and got the three! A flustered Ospreay tried going after Shota, but he was long gone and on his way to the semifinals! (90/A)

-New Japan Cup Quarterfinals Match: Jeff Cobb defeated Zack Sabre Jr. in a great match. Sabre may have beaten Cobb at the New Beginning in Osaka, but that loss really set something off in Cobb, unleashing a more dangerous side that we've never seen from him. That was on full showing tonight in Hiroshima, as Cobb threw Sabre around like a ragdoll. Sabre kept himself in the match with his submission-based offense, but, in the end, Cobb was able to hit Sabre with the Tour of the Islands to get the win and advance to the semifinals. (87/B+)

-New Japan Cup Quarterfinals Match: Kazuchika Okada defeated Tom Lawlor in a great match. The leader of Team Filthy has had a stellar run in the New Japan Cup so far and it would have continued if it wasn't for the 'Rainmaker.' Lawlor still did push Okada to his limit though, nearly locking in the Rear Naked Choke on a few occasions. However, the end came for Lawlor when his final attempt at locking in the Rear Naked Choke was reversed into the RAINMAKAH!!! Okada then made the cover and got the three to advance to the semifinals. (85/B+)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

New Japan Cup Quarterfinals Match: Hiromu Takahashi vs Shingo Takagi

Hiromu Takahashi defeated Shingo Takagi in an amazing match to close the show. The two Los Ingobernables de Japon members tore into each other tonight in Hiroshima, with neither man holding anything back in their quest to reach the New Japan Cup semifinals. Shingo attempted the Last of the Dragon on a few occasions, but was always stopped by Hiromu. Likewise for Hiromu when he went to go for the Time Bomb. In the end, Shingo tried hitting Hiromu with a Falcon Arrow, but that was reversed into the Time Bomb II from Hiromu! Hiromu then made the cover and got the three. The two LIJ members shared a fist bump to end the night.

 

FINAL GRADE:

 

 

New Japan Cup Post-Quarterfinals Bracket:

[MidKnightDreary]

Looking like an incredible tournament. Will Okada take the win, or will someone claim an impressive scalp?

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Japan Cup Night Seven- March 17th, 2023
Attendance: 6,000 at Hiroshima Sun Plaza (Hiroshima, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Bandido & Ryu Lee defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a decent match to kick things off. Usually most teams dominate the young lions, but that wasn't the case tonight in Hiroshima. Oiwa & Nakashima showed some surprising amount of fire tonight against Bandido & Lee, who continued to just not be on the same page. In the end, Oiwa locked Lee in the Boston Crab and almost made him tap out! However, Bandido saved his ass by hitting Oiwa with a running shotgun dropkick and hit Oiwa with the 21Plex. Lee then covered Oiwa to get the three. Bandido didn't even stick around for the post-match celebration. (70/C)

-Bullet Club's Jay White & Juice Robinson defeated Los Ingobernables de Japon's SANADA & Shingo Takagi in a good match. White & Juice looked like the underdogs going into this contest and that was the case for most of the match, but never discount the power of cheating folks. Juice & Jay used enough cheating to make Toru Yano blush to keep themselves in this one and all it took was one well timed Blade Runner to SANADA to give Bullet Club the win tonight in Hiroshima. (80/B)

-United Empire's Will Ospreay & Aussie Open defeated Sabre-gun's Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, & Lance Archer in a good match. Sabre's latest attempt to one-up Ospreay and United Empire was unsuccessful tonight in Hiroshima, with Aussie Open looking like a well-oiled machine and Ospreay continuing to be just ever so slightly better than Sabre, who managed to keep Sabre-gun in the match with his technical wrestling skills. The match came to an end after about 15 minutes when Ospreay hit Taichi with the StormBreaker to secure the win. (80/B)

-New Japan Cup Semifinals Match: Kazuchika Okada defeated Shota Umino in a good match. Umino was like a house of fire tonight in Hiroshima, taking control of most of this nearly 20 minute-long match. Okada just wasn't able to keep up with the young DEATH RIDER for most of the runtime, but his veteran instincts were able to eventually allow him to take over. Shota should get credit for escaping the Rainmaker though, as he ducked it, ran off the ropes, and hit Okada with a running knee lift. The match came to an end when Shota attempted the DEATH RIDER DDT, but Okada wiggled out of it and locked Shota in the Money Clip! Okada then transitioned the Money Clip into a devastating RAINMAKAHHHHH!!!! Okada made the cover and got the three to advance to his fourth New Japan Cup Final. (81/B)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

New Japan Cup Semifinals Match: Hiromu Takahashi vs Jeff Cobb

Hiromu Takahashi defeated Jeff Cobb in an amazing match to close the show. Cobb and Hiromu tore into each other for nearly 25 minutes, with Cobb overpowering Hiromu for most of it, but Hiromu keeping himself in it with his explosive offense. Cobb did regain control near the end of the match though with a well-timed lariat that sent Hiromu flying inside out. Cobb then scooped up Hiromu and hit him with the Tour of the Islands! Instead of going for the surefire pin and the win, Cobb decided to attempt one more just to send a message. As Cobb went for it, Hiromu reversed it and rolled Cobb up for the three!

Hiromu celebrated his win, but that was quickly stopped by Cobb, who blasted Hiromu with a big boot! Cobb then picked up Hiromu and hit him with three consecutive Tour of the Islands! Cobb then grabbed a chair, placed Hiromu's arm in it, ran off the ropes, and hit Hiromu's arm with a big senton! Hiromu writhed in pain on the mat as Cobb gave him a throat slit and walked away. Night Seven came to a close as medics tended to Hiromu and they could be overheard on camera saying something about a broken arm at the very least. 

 

 

FINAL GRADE:

 

New Japan Cup Bracket Post-Semifinals:

[Uncrewed]

BREAKING NEWS: HIROMU TAKAHASHI SUFFERS BROKEN SHOULDER, OUT OF NEW JAPAN CUP FINAL

"Hiromu Takahashi is officially out of the New Japan Cup Final after X-rays revealed that the Los Ingobernables de Japon member suffered a broken shoulder from his attack from Jeff Cobb during the New Japan Cup semifinals. Hiromu will also be out an additional 4-5 months thanks to the injury, but he did undergo successful surgery that might shorten that recovery time. Jeff Cobb has been fined 10 million yen for the attack, which has seriously jeopardized the New Japan Cup Final.

 

NJPW officials have said that Kazuchika Okada's new opponent in the New Japan Cup Final will be revealed during the show."

Edited November 5, 2022 by Uncrewed

[Uncrewed]

NJPW New Japan Cup Final- March 19th, 2023
Attendance: 15,000 at Fukuoka PayPay Dome (Fukuoka, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-CHAOS's Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a dull match to kick things off tonight. It was recently announced that Ishii's final match will take place on April 30th in his home town of Kawasaki and it'll be for the IWGP Tag Team Championship. Ishii will team with Yano that night in his final attempt to win the gold, so tonight was a bit of a warm-up for the team. They showed some great chemistry (like always), with Yano's underhanded tactics and Ishii's power forming the perfect combo to destroy the two young lions. Ishii finished off Oiwa with the Brainbuster in just under eight minutes to get the win. (62/C)

-Sabre-gun's El Desperado, DOUKI, & Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated YOH & Six or Nine in a decent match. YOH and co. looked to be in the driver's seat for most of the match, though Despy and co. kept themselves in it with some well-timed shots behind referee Marty Asami's back. YOH regained control for his team near the end of the match with a big superkick on Despy. As YOH tried locking in the Stargazer, Despy kicked him away and sent him crashing into Asami! Suddenly, the Fukuoka PayPay Dome turned blood red and that could only signal the arrival of...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AKUMA!

AKUMA tried hitting YOH with the red mist once more, but YOH saw this coming and ducked it! However, as YOH turned back around, he was met with a damn fireball from the hand of AKUMA! The fire went right into his face and YOH started thrashing in pain on the ground. Taguchi and Wato tried going after the masked man, but he vanished almost as quickly as he arrived. Sensing opportunity, Despy picked up YOH and hit him with the Pinche Loco! Despy then made the cover and got the three. Afterwards, AKUMA appeared on top of the damn video board with a microphone. He simply said nine words...

"APRIL 9TH. HYPER BATTLE. YOUR TITLE IS MINE!"

(69/C+)

-Mixed Tag Team Match: KENTA & Jamie Hayter defeated Bullet Club's Jay White & Toni Storm in a good match. In NJPW's first mixed tag team match since 2015, it was the team of the IWGP United States Champion KENTA and the surprisingly super over Jamie Hayter who emerged on top over the Bullet Club duo of Jay White & Toni Storm. KENTA and White renewed their bitter rivalry from Wrestle Kingdom, while Hayter showed why she still might have it in her to take the IWGP Women's Championship off of Storm. In the end, Hayter hit Storm with the Southampton Sidewinder (Running Lariat) to get the win. (80/B)

-Los Ingobernables de Japon's Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, & SANADA defeated United Empire's Will Ospreay, Jeff Cobb, & Great O-Khan in a great match. LIJ were furious after what Cobb did to Hiromu Takahashi a few nights ago in Hiroshima and they brought the fire to him tonight. Cobb didn't back down though, as he tore through LIJ and even accidentally hit his United Empire brothers a few times like a true raging bull. After about 16 minutes, Ospreay and Shingo duked it out in the ring to end things, with Shingo ducking a lariat from Ospreay and turning it into the Last of the Dragon! Shingo made the cover and while Cobb could have broke it up, he instead threw his hands in the air, yelled that Ospreay was "TOO WEAK!" and left! Shingo's cover got the win shortly thereafter. Afterwards, Great O-Khan tried reasoning with Cobb, but Cobb was having none of it, instead grabbing Khan and launching him across the entrance ramp with a massive overhead belly to belly suplex! What has gotten into Jeff Cobb?!?!? (84/B+)

-IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match: United Empire's Francesco Akira & Mike Bailey defeated Bullet Club's El Phantasmo & Taiji Ishimori in a good match to retain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. Bailey and Akira showed some tremendous grit against the former 3-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions, though they had to in order to stand up against the underhanded tactics that Phantasmo & Ishimori used. Ishimori tried putting this one away by hitting Bailey with the Bloody Cross, but that was broken up by Akira, who hit Ishimori with the Fireball!!! That stunning move was quickly followed up by the Ultima Weapon from Bailey and a three count from referee Marty Asami. (79/B)

 

-Kazuchika Okada soon made his entrance for the finals of the New Japan Cup. Okada was expected to take on Hiromu Takahashi, but it was announced yesterday that Hiromu suffered a broken shoulder and couldn't participate. Instead of giving Okada the automatic win, a replacement would be announced before the match. Okada made his way to the ring and, after a pregnant pause, his opponent was revealed. The lights went out and...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctS_PUU-ab0&t=38s&ab_channel=TK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IT'S SHINSUKE NAKAMURA!!!

The Fukuoka PayPay Dome went berserk as Nakamura strutted his way down to the ring. A stunned Okada just stood there, jaw agape as Nakamura entered the ring and hit his pose on the ropes. The two former CHAOS brothers exchanged a quick handshake and we were off and running in the main event!

 

 

New Japan Cup Final:

 VS 
Kazuchika Okada vs Shinsuke Nakamura
Nakamura is making his first appearance back in NJPW since he left for America back in 2016. Seven years later and he's finally back home to potentially win his 2nd New Japan Cup! However, he first has to get through Kazuchika Okada, who's fresh off of a 365-day reign as IWGP World Heavyweight Champion and who's looking to win his 3rd New Japan Cup! This match was a great match and the crowd was solidly behind Nakamura. The two former CHAOS brothers started things off with a collar and elbow tie-up, in which Okada initially won out with an arm drag, but Nakamura quicky responded with a lariat! Okada recoiled back into the corner as Nakamura hit him with a taunt and played to the crowd. Okada then tried hitting Nakamura with an enzuigiri, but Nakamura caught him and hit him with a dragon screw leg whip! More playing to crowd from Nakamura followed that, which started to make Okada a little angry. Okada then tried hitting Nakamura with a dropkick, but Nakamura simply dodged that and hit Okada with an enzuigiri. One more time playing to the crowd was too much for Okada, who blasted Nakamura with a lariat and started unloading a barrage of punches onto him. Okada then threw Nakamura into the corner and hit him with a knife edge chop, quickly following that up with a back elbow smash. Okada then went to the top rope and hit Nakamura with a diving elbow drop. Okada made the cover, but Nakamura kicked out at two. Okada then tried locking Nakamura in the Money Clip, but Nakamura wiggled out of it and hit Okada with a German suplex. Nakamura then went to the corner, hit his pose, and tried hitting Okada with the Bomaye (Running High-Angle Knee Strike), but Okada rolled out of the way at the last second and hit Nakamura with a beautiful-looking dropkick. Okada then picked up Nakamura, grabbed the 'King of Strong Style,' and hit him with a tornado DDT. Okada then went to the apron and hit Nakamura with a diving crossbody. The match came to an end when Okada got Nakamura in position for the Rainmaker, but Nakamura wiggled out of it and hit Okada with a roundhouse kick! Nakamura then ran to the corner, hit his pose, and hit Okada with the Bomaye!!! Nakamura made the cover...

1!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3!

Shinsuke Nakamura has won the 2023 New Japan Cup! In the most unlikely of circumstances, Shinsuke Nakamura has returned to New Japan Pro-Wrestling and has won a shot at Hiroshi Tanahashi's IWGP World Heavyweight Championship in the process! The New Japan Cup Final came to a close as Okada and Nakamura shook hands one more time and Nakamura celebrated in the ring with his newly-won trophy.
WINNER: Shinsuke Nakamura

FINAL GRADE: 

 

 

Final New Japan Cup 2023 Bracket:

[MidKnightDreary]

WHAT? Whoa that was unexpected! Grats to Nakamura! Is hiromu actually hurt or just Kayfabe?

[Uncrewed]

New Japan Cup 2023 Final Post-Show Press Conference:

 

SHO: "HOW THE HELL CAN YOU HAVE A NEW JAPAN CUP FINAL AND NOT INVITE THE 'MURDER MACHINE?!?!' I SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN THAT FINAL TONIGHT REPLACING HIROMU, BUT NO, NEW JAPAN MANAGEMENT IS CLEARY AFRAI-"

 

 

*Suddenly, a beleaguered YOH bursted his way onto the scene!*

 

YOH: "HEY! I know that's you under that mask you little sh*t. Listen, I don't know what your deal is, but I beat you fair and square at the Tokyo Dome, so leave me the hell alone!"

 

SHO: "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!?!? YOU HONESTLY THINK I'M THAT DEMON DUDE?"

 

YOH: "Clearly, yes! It's the same mask you wore while we were in Mexico together and I know you'll never get over the fact that I took the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title off of you in front of nearly 50,000 people at the Tokyo Dome, so why shouldn't I believe it's you?"

 

SHO: "YOU REALLY THINK THAT I WOULD DO THAT?!?!? WELL, YOU'RE OUT OF YOUR MIND AND THAT'S COMING FROM ME!"

 

 

Jamie Hayter (in English): "Hey Toni, how'd that Southampton Sidewinder feel bud? You know you got away with a cheap win at Royal Quest and tonight proved it! So, now that I pinned you in front of your Bullet Club buddies, how about it, you vs me for that IWGP Women's Championship at Hyper Battle! Then we'll all know what time it'll be, that's Hayter Time baby!"

 

 

Jeff Cobb (in English): "ENOUGH! I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THE BULLSH*T FROM EVERYONE! NEW JAPAN MANAGEMENT, LOS INGOBERNABLES, ZACK SABRE JR., HELL EVEN MY SO-CALLED FRIENDS AT UNITED EMPIRE, ALL OF YOU WILL FEEL THE WRATH OF THE GODS, THE WRATH OF JEFF COBB!"

 

 

Kazuchika Okada: "Going into tonight, I vowed to win that New Japan Cup and sadly, I came up short. But, y'know, if I had to lose to anyone, I'm glad it was my good friend Shinsuke Nakamura. Shinsuke! Welcome back man! It's been a while since you stepped in the ring here, but you should know that you'll always have a place waiting for you in CHAOS. Just let it be known that I'm still the top dog here. Anyway, my main focus is taking that title off of that scumbag Hiroshi Tanahashi by any means necessary, so whatever Nakamura needs to neutralize the "ACE Effect," I'll be more than happy to provide it.

 

 

Shinsuke Nakamura: "YEAOH! It's good to back in New Japan Pro-Wrestling! Okada! You put up one hell of a fight my good friend, but in the end it just wasn't enough! Now, Hiroshi Tanahashi. You are... certainly different from how I remember you, but that doesn't matter. I'm going to do what I've done so many times in the past and that's pin you in the ring, 1. 2. 3! Thank you all and good night from the king of strong style! YEAOH!"

[Uncrewed]

NJPW Burning Spirit Night One- April 1st, 2023
Attendance: 2,000 at Korakuen Hall (Tokyo, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Los Ingobernables de Japon's Shingo Takagi & SANADA defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a decent match to kick things off. The former IWGP Tag Team Champions completely dominated the two young lions tonight, with Shingo finishing off Oiwa with the Last of the Dragon in just under nine minutes. (70/C)

-Bandido & Ryu Lee defeated Sabre-gun's Yoshinobu Kanemaru & DOUKI in a good match. Bandido & Lee were on surprisingly good terms tonight, with the two men showing the same chemistry that vaulted them to the top of the junior heavyweight tag division. In the end, Lee hit DOUKI with a superkick, which was quickly followed up by a 21 Plex from Bandido to get the win. (77/B)

-United Empire's Aussie Open defeated Bullet Club's Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson in a good match. Aussie Open have been having a hell of a year so far (bar a loss to the IWGP Tag Team Champions at Royal Quest), so a win over the 3-time IWGP Tag Team Champion Gallows & Anderson would be huge. Gallows & Anderson were in control for most of the match, but a well-timed double superkick to Gallows swung the momentum to Aussie Open. Davis & Fletcher got the win after about 15 minutes after hitting Gallows with the Coriolis. (74/B-)

-DEATH RIDERS's KUSHIDA, Shota Umino, & Karl Fredericks defeated United Empire's Will Ospreay, Great O-Khan, & Aaron Henare in a great match. UE were clearly shaken after what Jeff Cobb did to them at the New Japan Cup Final and that allowed DEATH RIDERS to take advantage and get the win tonight in Tokyo. That finish came when Henare looked to hit Shota with the Streets of Rage, but he was distracted by Jeff Cobb running out from the back and attacking Khan and Ospreay! Cobb beat the hell out of his former friends, which distracted Henare long enough for Shota to hit him with the DEATH RIDER DDT and cover him for the three. Afterwards, Cobb got in the ring, picked up Henare and hit him with the Tour of the Islands! (85/B+)

 

 

MAIN EVENT:

VS

CHAOS (Shinsuke Nakamura, Kazuchika Okada, & YOH) vs ACE Entertainment (Hiroshi Tanahashi, Claudio CSRO, & PAC)

CHAOS's Shinsuke Nakamura, Kazuchika Okada, & YOH defeated ACE Entertainment's Hiroshi Tanahashi, Claudio CSRO, & PAC in a great match to close the show. In Nakamura's first match reunited with his CHAOS bretheren, he looked amazing, taking the heat to Hiroshi Tanahashi and even nearly pinning him on a few occasions. ACE were able to keep themselves in the match mostly thanks to In the end, PAC was the unfortunate victim of the Bomaye, which got Shinsuke and the rest of CHAOS the win tonight.

 

FINAL GRADE:

[Uncrewed]

NJPW Burning Spirit Night Two- April 2nd, 2023
Attendance: 2,000 at Korakuen Hall (Tokyo, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Bullet Club's Bad Luck Fale & Hikuleo defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima in a dull match to kick things off. The two Bullet Club big men completely dominated the two young lions tonight, throwing them around the ring like ragdolls. In the end, Fale hit Oiwa with the Grenade to get the win. (59/C)

-Bandido & Ryu Lee defeated Flying Tiger in a good match. Bandido & Lee once again showed some chemistry that hadn't been seen since their reign as IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions, easily taking control of the match from Robbie Eagles and the legendary Tiger Mask IV. In the end, a Bandido spin kick and the Desnucadora from Lee to Tiger Mask was enough to get the win. (77/B)

-Bullet Club's Jay White, Juice Robinson, & SHO defeated Los Ingobernables de Japon's Shingo Takagi, SANADA, & BUSHI in a good match. The Bullet Club have had a mediocre start to 2023, though they have had their ups so far. Tonight was one of them, with Jay White and co. taking care of a trio of former NJPW champions. In the end, White finished off BUSHI with the Blade Runner to get the win after about 14 minutes. (76/B-)

-DEATH RIDERS's Shota Umino & Karl Fredericks defeated Sabre-gun's Taichi & Lance Archer in a great match. Taichi & Archer looked to potentially earn themselves a shot at the IWGP Tag Team Championships with a win over the current champs, but that didn't happen tonight in Tokyo. Shota and Karl maintained control for a good chunk of the match, which allowed Shota to finish off Taichi with the DEATH RIDER DDT in just under 17 minutes. (83/B+)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

ACE Entertainment (Hiroshi Tanahashi & PAC) vs CHAOS (Shinsuke Nakamura & YOH)

-ACE Entertainment's Hiroshi Tanahashi & PAC defeated CHAOS's Shinsuke Nakamura & YOH in a good match to close the show. Nakamura looked to continue his hot return to New Japan with another win over ACE Entertainment, but that wasn't the case tonight in Tokyo. PAC & Hiroshi Tanahashi held serve with Shinsuke & YOH for most of the match, but the CHAOS duo held the upper hand going into the final stretch. That all changed though when the familiar red lights that signalled the arrival of AKUMA bathed Korakuen Hall! However, there was no AKUMA to be seen and the distraction allowed Tanahashi to hit YOH with the Slingblade and the High Fly Flow to get the win. 

 

FINAL GRADE:

[Uncrewed]

NJPW Burning Spirit Night Three- April 5th, 2023
Attendance: 3,000 at Niigata City Gymnasium (Niigata, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-United Empire's Great O-Khan & Aussie Open defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima in a decent match to kick things off. The United Empire trio completely dominated the young lions tonight in Niigata, with Khan finishing off Oiwa with the Eliminator in just under nine minutes to secure the win. (70/C)

-Bandido & Ryu Lee defeated Bullet Club's El Phantasmo & Taiji Ishimori in a great match. This was once again the same great showing that earned Bandido & Ryu Lee the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships in the first place. They did great against the Bullet Club's premier junior heavyweight tag team, earning the win after about 14 minutes after Lee hit Phantasmo with Desnucadora, which was quickly followed up by a shooting star press from Bandido! (85/B+)

-Jeff Cobb defeated United Empire's Aaron Henare in a good match. Cobb just completely outclassed his former United Empire brother tonight in Niigata, with Henare barely getting any offense in for almost 14 minutes. Cobb had the match won on numerous occasions, but he kept prolonging the inevitable to get more damage on Henare. In the end, Cobb hit Henare with three consecutive Tours of the Islands and when he went for the fourth one, referee Daichi Murayama decided that he had seen enough and stopped the match. Cobb was declared the winner, but wasn't happy with Murayama stopping the match. Instead, he grabbed Murayama and hit him with the Tour of the Islands! (80/B)

-Team Filthy defeated KENTA, David Finlay, & Togi Makabe in a good match to retain the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championships. KENTA found two very competitive men to help him in his quest to win the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Titles, but it just wasn't enough to unseat Tom Lawlor and the rest of Team Filthy. In fact, Lawlor won the match for Team Filthy after wrapping his arm around KENTA's throat and choking him out with the Rear Naked Choke! Afterwards, Lawlor grabbed the IWGP United States Championship and just took it with him! Going up the ramp he called himself the "uncrowned" IWGP United States Champion. (82/B)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

ACE Entertainment (Claudio CSRO & PAC) vs CHAOS (Kazuchika Okada & YOH)

ACE Entertainment's Claudio CSRO & PAC defeated CHAOS's Kazuchika Okada & YOH in a great match to close the show. With Hiroshi Tanahashi & Shinsuke Nakamura doing a press tour for Hyper Battle tonight, it was up to their respective teammates to take care of business in Niigata and it was ACE who ended up on top in that battle. Okada & YOH kept themselves in it though thanks to Okada having an advantage over CSRO. However, in the end, a well-timed thumb to the eye from CSRO to YOH and one Swiss Death later, it was all over for CHAOS. 

FINAL GRADE:

[MidKnightDreary]

Good for Tom, he deserves the US belt!

[Uncrewed]

NJPW Burning Spirit Night Four- April 6th, 2023
Attendance: 3,000 at Niigata City Gymnasium (Niigata, Japan)
Commentary Team: Shinpei Nogami & Milano Collection A.T.

-Six or Nine & Strong Machine J defeated young lions Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima in a dull match to kick things off. The 69th IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions and the recently-debuted Strong Machine J easily dominated the three young lions tonight in Niigata, with Strong Machine J finishing off Nakashima with the Devil Windmill Suplex II in just under nine minutes. (63/C)

-Bandido & Ryu Lee defeated Sabre-gun's El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru in a good match. Bandido & Lee continued their hot streak over the NJPW junior heavyweight tag team division tonight in Niigata with a good win over the former 4-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Despy & Kanemaru. After about 15 minutes, Bandido hit Kanemaru with the 21 Plex, which was quickly followed up by the Desnucadora from Lee for the win. (79/B)

-Team Filthy defeated CHAOS's Bishamon & Tomohiro Ishii in a good match. Lawlor, who was still wearing the IWGP United States Championship that he stole from KENTA last night, was like a house of fire tonight against the CHAOS trio, taking care of them with ease. In the end, Lawlor was able to lock in the Rear Naked Choke and make Ishii tap out after just under 14 minutes. (80/B)

-United Empire's Aussie Open defeated Los Ingobernables de Japon's Shingo Takagi & SANADA in a good match. Fletcher & Davis pretty much cemented their status as number one contenders to the IWGP Tag Team Championships with a great win over the former IWGP Tag Team Champions SANADA & Shingo tonight in Niigata. After about 18 minutes of back-and-forth action, Davis & Fletcher hit SANADA with the Coriolis, which secured them the win tonight. (81/B)

 

MAIN EVENT:

 VS 

CHAOS (Shinsuke Nakamura & Kazuchika Okada) vs ACE Entertainment (Hiroshi Tanahashi & Claudio CSRO)

CHAOS's Shinsuke Nakamura & Kazuchika Okada defeated ACE Entertainment's Hiroshi Tanahashi & Claudio CSRO in a great match to close the show. In this preview of the two biggest matches taking place at Hyper Battle, it was CHAOS who emerged on top over ACE Entertainment. After just under 20 minutes of a very back-and-forth match, Nakamura was able to finish off CSRO with a devastating Bomaye that actually busted CSRO open! Nakamura then made the cover and got the three. 

 

FINAL GRADE:

[Uncrewed]

NJPW Hyper Battle 2023 Preview:

 

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 

Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Shinsuke Nakamura

These two men have competed in some of the most brutal wars in New Japan Pro-Wrestling history. From battling in the finals of the 2015 G1 Climax to main eventing Wrestle Kingdom on two different occasions, these two have pushed each other to the limit more times than anyone could ever imagine. But when Shinsuke Nakamura left for America back in 2016, no one thought we'd ever see these two square off ever again. However, that all changed when Shinsuke Nakamura entered the New Japan Cup this year as a last-minute surprise replacement for Hiromu Takahashi and won the tournament by defeating Kazuchika Okada. Now, Nakamura gets to square off against a much more arrogant Hiroshi Tanahashi than he's ever seen before. One that's willing to do anything to keep himself on top of New Japan Pro-Wrestling! Who will walk out of Okayama with the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship?

 

 

 VS 

Kazuchika Okada vs Claudio CSRO

With their respective stablemates squaring off in the main event for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship, Kazuchika Okada and Claudio CSRO have decided to square off in another CHAOS vs ACE Entertainment battle. However, this match means a little more than just simple faction dominance. Okada's been needing a big win to really shake off a less-than-good start to 2023, while CSRO is looking to get another impressive win in his NJPW career (which hasn't even lasted one year yet!). Will CHAOS or ACE reign supreme at Hyper Battle in Okayama?

 

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

 VS 

YOH (C) vs AKUMA

YOH has had a really good 2023 so far, but one, uh, entity? of some sort has been tormenting him since he won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship back at Wrestle Kingdom. The demonic AKUMA has done everything to torture YOH, from bloodying him, to spitting mist in his face, to throwing a damn fireball in his face! Now, AKUMA is looking to take one of the only things he hasn't taken from YOH yet, the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship! Can YOH exorcise his demons? Or will AKUMA finally break YOH once and for all? We'll find out in Okayama!

 

 

Other Matches:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter

 

Jeff Cobb vs Great O-Khan

 

Six or Nine vs Bandido & Ryu Lee

 

Bullet Club (SHO, Taiji Ishimori, & El Phantasmo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

 

All that and more live from Okayama exclusively on NJPW World!

 

 

Prediction Key:

 

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Shinsuke Nakamura

Comments:

 

Kazuchika Okada vs Claudio CSRO

Comments:

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs AKUMA

Comments:

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter

Comments:

 

Jeff Cobb vs Great O-Khan

Comments:

 

Number One Contender's Match:

Six or Nine vs Bandido & Ryu Lee

Comments:

 

Bullet Club (SHO, Taiji Ishimori, & El Phantasmo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

Comments:

[ColdBloodedSausageMaker]

Prediction Key:

 

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Shinsuke Nakamura

Comments: My hunch is that Shinsuke has too many miles on his legs to carry New Japan on his back. But, if you wanted to give Shinsuke a shot, now would be the time. 

 

Kazuchika Okada vs Claudio CSRO

Comments: Okada has more power in Japan.

 

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs AKUMA

Comments: I have to think the monster (AKUMA) won't take the belt here -- and my hunch is that Akuma also takes the loss. Maybe not clean. 

 

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter

Comments: Hayter would've won in the UK if she was going to win.

 

Jeff Cobb vs Great O-Khan

Comments: Cobb is getting that monster push, and Khan right now is just a monster.

 

Number One Contender's Match:

Six or Nine vs Bandido & Ryu Lee

Comments: Going with the team I think is more fun. 

 

Bullet Club (SHO, Taiji Ishimori, & El Phantasmo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

Comments: Bullet Club gets the win over a random pairing to get some much-needed momentum. 

[Uncrewed]

Hyper Battle will be out tomorrow, so 24 hour prediction warning for those who still want to predict!

[MidKnightDreary]

Prediction Key:

 

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match:

Hiroshi Tanahashi (C) vs Shinsuke Nakamura

Comments:

Shinsuke is good, but ACE is on another level.

Kazuchika Okada vs Claudio CSRO

Comments:

Okada needs to face off with Tana again.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match:

YOH (C) vs AKUMA

Comments:

He's in YOH's head now

IWGP Women's Championship Match:

Toni Storm (C) vs Jamie Hayter

Comments:

Bullet Club shenanigans incoming

Jeff Cobb vs Great O-Khan

Comments:

War Cobb is on another level.

Number One Contender's Match:

Six or Nine vs Bandido & Ryu Lee

Comments:

Miscommunication will likely cost the luchadores

Bullet Club (SHO, Taiji Ishimori, & El Phantasmo) vs Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, & Yuto Nakashima

Comments:

Young Lions are young lions