Tag: New Japan Pro Wrestling

New Japan 2/4/24 Results

New Japan continued the Road To THE NEW BEGINNING tour today with the first half of a Tokyo doubleheader.

Today’s event was held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched on demand on New Japan World.

The announced paid attendance was 1433, a legit sellout.

There was a last-minute change to the card today because Jeff Cobb was removed a few hours before due to injury. Left thigh. He was to have faced Alex Coughlin. Great-O-Khan was the replacement. Cobb still was at a pre-event autograph session…and reportedly got a Bullet Club beatdown there.

Match 1: Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Yujiro Takahashi, Ren Narita, Sho & EVIL beat Boltin Oleg, Togi Makabe, YOSHI-HASHI, El Desperado & Shota Umino. EVIL pinned Makabe after EVIL. After the match, EVIL went nWo on the NEVER Openweight Championship, spraying the belt with black spray paint.

Match 2: Taiji Ishimori, Chase Owens & KENTA beat Tomoaki Honma, El Phantasmo & Hikuleo. Owens pinned Honma after a package piledriver.

Match 3: Kosei Fujita, Shane Haste, Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr. beat Yoh, Ryusuke Taguchi, Tomohiro Ishii & Hiroshi Tanahashi. Sabre beat Taguchi with a sleeper hold.

Match 4: TAKA Michinoku, DOUKI, Yuya Uemura, Taichi & SANADA beat BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito. Uemura beat Tsuji with an armbar.

Match 5: Great-O-Khan beat Alex Coughlin.

Match 6: HENARE vs. Gabriel Kidd went to a Double KO.

Match 7: David Finlay beat Callum Newman.

Main Event: Drilla Moloney & Clark Connors beat IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Francesco Akira & TJP to win the titles. Moloney & Connors become the 75th IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champions. Connors pinned Akira after Full Clip. Bullet CLub stands tall again and of course sends the crowd home very unhappy.

The next event is tomorrow. Live streaming on New Japan World will begin at 1:30 AM PT/4:30 AM ET, and you can watch live and on demand FOR FREE! This will be an ABEMA simulcast in Japan.

Injury Report: No Corn On The Cobb Today

New Japan has just announced an injury absence-Jeff Cobb is now off today’s event. Left thigh. He was to have faced Alex Coughlin. Great-O-Khan is the replacement. That was to have been the 6th match but will now be the 5th match. Gabriel Kidd vs. HENARE is now match 6. It’s not known if Cobb will miss any more time.

More as it becomes available.

BREAKING: New Japan Star Wins US Title

At tonight’s Major League Wrestling (MLW) event in the US, New Japan’s Satoshi Kojima added another notch to his legacy, winning the MLW World Championship for a second time by beating Alex Kane for the title. Naturally, fans made sure the Bread Club leader was feted appropriately with, of course, throwing of bread into the ring.

The event can be watched on demand on TrillerTV (fka FITE) with a TrillerTV+ subscription which is $7.99/month of $79.99/year.

DEVELOPING: Top New Japan Star Staying Put

The end of January is typically when New Japan wrestlers’ contracts expire (after Tokyo Dome and New Year’s Dash), and the promotion has lost 3 major names already this month but they have locked up one..according to translation of social media posts from a Tokyo Sports reporter, Hiromu Takahashi has signed a new contract with New Japan. Terms not disclosed but unless he gets injured he’ll be in Chicago for New Japan’s next US event in April.

TNA Impact 1/25/24 Results (Updated)

Here are the quick results from tonight’s TNA Impact Wrestling from Las Vegas, NV:

This episode was taped on 1/14 and continues the fallout from Hard To Kill.

Match 1: Chris Bey vs. Kevin Knight went to a no contest. GYV interference and beatdown on Bullet Club.

Ash By Elegance (fka Dana Brooke in WWE) promo.

Match 2: Dirty Dango & Oleg Prudius beat Dante Kong & Damian Drake. Squash.

Match 3: TNA Knockouts Champion Jordynne Grace beat Trinity to retain the title. Gisele Shaw & her entourage hit the ting for a post-match beatdown on both.

Match 4: Nic Nemeth beat Zachary Wentz.

Match 5: Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly beat Dani Luna & Jody Threat. Slamovich pinned Threat after a double-team powerbomb/piledriver. Slamovich & Kelly beat down Luna afterwards.

Main Event: Kazuchika Okada, Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin beat Moose, Brian Myers & Eddie Edwards. Shelley pinned Myers after Shell Shock.

Mustafa Ali promo after the “End Show” graphic.

Next week: Nic Nemeth vs. Trey Miguel, Frankie Kazarian explains his turning on Eric Young, Brian Myers vs. Kevin Knight and Grizzled Young Vets vs. Bullet Club in Match 1 of a Best-of-3 Series for the TNA Tag Team Championship.

UPDATE: After the show, TNA announced the return of the Xplosion weekly show. It will feature 2 matches each week and other segments. New episodes will premiere Fridays on TNA+, with the first one now available, then will be available Tuesdays on YouTube. Also, due to technical issues on some TV providers, this week’s episode of Impact will be replayed on 1/26 (tonight) at 7 PM ET on AXS TV. I had no notable issues with the YouTube Ultimate Insider version.

New Japan 1/24/24 Results (Updated)

New Japan ran the second half of the Road To THE NEW BEGINNING Tokyo doubleheader today, the final appearance for Kazuchika Okada in the capital.

Today’s event was held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched on demand on New Japan World. This was a Samurai! YV broadcast in Japan.

The announced paid attendance was 1506, a legit sellout.

Pre-Show Match: Shoma Kato & Boltin Oleg beat Katsuya Murashima & Toru Yano. Oleg pinned Murashima after Kamikaze.

Match 1: Zack Sabre Jr. beat Tiger Mask by submission.

Match 2: Taiji Ishimori, Chase Owens & KENTA beat Ryusuke Taguchi, Jado & Hikuleo. Ishimori pinned Jado.

Match 3: Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Sho, Yujiro Takahashi & EVIL beat Tomoaki Honma, Yoh, El Desperado & Master Wato. EVIL pinned Honma after EVIL. Afterwards, Sho attacked and unmasked Desperado.

Match 4: Drilla Moloney, Gabriel Kidd, Clark Connors, Alex Coughlin & David Finlay beat Callum Newman, Francesco Akira, TJP, HENARE & Great-O-Khan. Connors pinned Akira after No Chaser. (New Japan’s Japanese website incorrectly says Connors pinned Newman)

Match 5: BUSHI, Yota Tsuji & Shingo Takagi beat TAKA Michinoku, Yuya Uemura & Taichi. Takagi pinned TAKA after Dragon Soul Powerbomb.

Match 6: DOUKI & SANADA beat Hiromu Takahashi & Tetsuya Naito. DOUKI pinned Takahashi with Jorge Rivera Special.

Match 7: NEVER 6-Man Tag Team Champions Tomohiro Ishii, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada beat Kosei Fujita, Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls to retain the titles. Okada pinned Fujita after Rainmaker. V8 for the champs. And Final. Afterwards, because Okada is leaving New Japan and has only 3 dates left as a freelancer, he announced the titles are now VACANT. More as it becomes available.

Main Event: Shota Umino beat Ren Narita. They went almost 34 minutes. Afterwards, Umino with microphone to proclaim his time is now and he is the new ace of New Japan. Time will tell.

The next event is 2/1 at Nagano Prefectural Budokan in Nagano. There will be no live or on demand broadcast.

UPDATE: After today’s event, NEVER Openweight Champion EVIL vs. Shota Umino for the title was announced for 2/23 in Hokkaido.

New Japan 1/23/24 Results (Updated)

New Japan continues the Road To THE NEW BEGINNING Tour today with the first half of a Tokyo doubleheader.

Today’s event was held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched on demand on New Japan World FOR FREE! (Non-PC users will have to download the NJPW WORLD app to watch, a paid subscription is not required)

The announced paid attendance was 1510, a legit sellout.

Before the event began, Master Wato came out on crutches and announced he would be out of action due to a torn left ACL. He was then attacked from behind by Sho with a wrench until El Desperado made the save. Wato was to have faced Sho today.

Match 1: Katsuya Murashima & Ryusuke Taguchi beat Shoma Kato & Yoh. Taguchi beat Kato with Oh My & Gar Ankle.

Match 2: Callum Newman, Francesco Akira, TJP, HENARE & Great-O-Khan beat Drilla Moloney, Clark Connors, Gabriel Kidd, Alex Coughlin & David Finlay. Akira pinned Connors.

Match 3: Taiji Ishimori, Chase Owens & KENTA beat Jado, El Phantasmo & Hikuleo. KENTA pinned Jado.

Match 4: Match 4: Kosei Fujita, Shane Haste, Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr. beat Tomoaki Honma, Tomohiro Ishii, Hiroshi Tamahashi & Kazuchika Okada. Sabre beat Honma with an armbar.

Match 5: Yujiro Takahashi, Ren Narita & EVIL beat Togi Makabe, Shota Umino & Tama Tonga. Narita pinned Makabe.

Match 6: TAKA Michinoku, DOUKI, Yuya Uemura, Taichi & SANADA beat BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito. Taichi pinned BUSHI.

Main Event: IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion El Desperado beat Yoshinobu Kanemaru to retain the title. V1 for Desperado. Next up: Possibly Sho, although Desperado rejected his challenge.

The next event is tomorrow with a NEVER 6-Man Tag Team Championship match. Live streaming on New Japan World is scheduled to begin at 1:30 AM PT/4:30 AM ET, but may begin 30 minutes earlier for a scheduled pre-show match.

UPDATE: For tomorrow, with Wato now out indefinitely, Yoh is the replacement in an 8-man tag match

Injury Report: Much Longer Way To The GrandMaster

At the start of New Japan’s event today (results coming shortly), Master Wato came out on crutches and announced he was out due to injury. Left ACL tear. He was to have faced Sho. In an unusual move (for Japan anyway, they usually don’t do injury angles like the US does), that didn’t stop Sho from coming out to ambush Wato with a wrench until El Desperado made the save. Wato will probably be out long-term

New Japan 1/20/24 Results

THE NEW BEGINNING IN NAGOYA, New Japan’s first major post-Tokyo Dome event, went down today and it really did mark a new beginning for the promotion as it prepares to say goodbye to Tama Tonga, Kazuchika Okada and others over the next month.

Today’s event was held at Aichi Prefectural Gym in Nagoya and can be watched on demand on New Japan World.

The announced paid attendance was 2710.

Pre-show Match: Shoma Kato vs. Katsuya Murashima went to a 10 minute time limit draw.

Match 1: Yujiro Takahashi & Ren Narita beat Tomoaki Honma & Shota Umino. Narita pinned Honma after Double Cross.

Match 2: Drilla Moloney, Clark Connors, Gabriel Kidd, Alex Coughlin & David Finlay beat Callum Newman, Francesco Akira, TJP, HENARE & Jeff Cobb. Finlay pinned Newman after a powerbomb whip.

Match 3: Sho & Yoshinobu Kanemaru beat Master Wato & El Desperado. Sho pinned Wato after Shock Arrow.

Match 4: Kosei Fujita, Shane Haste, Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr. beat Yohi Makabe, Tomohiro Ishii, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada. Sabre beat Makabe with a modified leg lock. Afterwards, Okada stuck around to say goodbye to the fans following his final Nagoya match.

Match 5: TAKA Michinoku, DOUKI, Yuya Uemura, Taichi & SANADA beat BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito. SANADA beat BUSHI with Skull End.

Match 6: In a 10 Minute Ishimori Ring Fit Match, where the match was stopped at certain intervals for 30 seconds of high-intensity exercise, Great-O-Khan beat KOPW 2024 Champion Taiji Ishimori by surviving the entire 10 minutes to win the title. This was Ishimori’s chosen stip for the match as determined by fan voting.

Match 7: STRONG Tag Team Champions El Phantasmo & Hikuleo beat Chase Owens & KENTA to retain the titles. Phantasmo pinned Owens after CR 2. V5 for the champs. (This was only for the STRONG Titles and not the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship also held by Phantasmo & Hikuleo)

Main Event: NEVER Openweight Champion Tama Tonga vs. EVIL went to a no contest. Outside interference on both sides and out of control. Which led to…
Main Event (again): In a Lumberjack Death Match, EVIL beat NEVER Openweight Champion Tama Tonga to win the title. EVIL becomes the 43rd NEVER Openweight Champion. Officially this time. Tonga demanded the rematch after the initial no contest. This was Tonga’s final single match in New Japan before he leaves the promotion at the end of the month.

Next up is the Road To THE NEW BEGINNING 2024 Tour starting tomorrow at Nagahama Ika Twin Arena in Shiga. There will be no live or on demand broadcast.

BREAKING: Kazuchika Okada Leaving New Japan (Updated)

Breaking news that I had to break in from vacation to post: New Japan is losing Kazuchika Okada on January 31. Contract expiring and he is moving on. But he will work the 3 big February events on 2/11, 2/23 & 2/24.

Read New Japan’s English statement with comments from Okada below:
https://www.njpw1972.com/168267

More as it becomes available.

UPDATE: New Japan has begun announcing event lineup changes: The NEVER 6-Man Tag Team Championship match schedules for 2/11 in Osaka has been moved up to 1/24 at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo. It’ll be Okada’s last match at Korakuen for NJPW. Now on 2/11 it will be…One. Last. Time…Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi. 2/24 for Okada’s final match is TBA as is 2/23. Also now on 1/24 is Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tiger Mask and a planned Shoma Kato & Boltin Oleg vs. Katsuya Murashima & Toru Yano match will be a pre-show match.