News, results & more from Japanese Pro Wrestling & Sumo
With the titles vacant since Kazuchika Okada left the promotion, New Japan has just announced a one night tournament to crown new NEVER 6-Man Tag Team Champions. It will happen on 4/14 when they hold an event in Taipei, Taiwan. No further details revealed.
More as it becomes available.
New Japan ran Day 6 of the New Japan Cup today in Ehime.
Today’s event was held at Uwajima City Gym in Ehime and can be watched on demand on New Japan World.
The announced paid attendance was 838.
Match 1: Toru Yano, YOSHI-HASHI & Tomohiro Ishii beat Katsuya Murashima, Boltin Oleg & Tomoaki Honma. Ishii pinned Murashima.
Match 2: Francesco Akira & TJP beat Ryusuke Taguchi & El Desperado. TJP pinned Taguchi after 2/2.
Match 3: Yuya Uemura, Taichi & SANADA beat Callum Newman, Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb. Uemura pinned Newman with a Tannuki suplex hold.
Match 4: Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr. beat BUSHI & Yota Tsuji. Sabre beat BUSHI with STF.
Match 5: Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Yujiro Takahashi, Ren Narita, Jack Perry & EVIL beat Yoh, Togi Makabe, Shota Umino, El Phantasmo & Hikuleo. EVIL pinned Makabe after EVIL. The usual “Sho Switcheroo” here was not well-received in Sho’s hometown as the fans booed him mercilessly.
Match 6: Taiji Ishimori, Gabriel Kidd & KENTA beat Hiromu Takahashi, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito. Ishimoti pinned Takahashi.
New Japan Cup Round 2:
Match 7: David Finlay beat Tanga Loa.
Main Event: Hirooki Goto beat Chase Owens.
As a result, the second Quarterfinals match will be Finlay vs. Goto.
Day 7 is tomorrow at Zip Arena Okayama in Okayama. Live streaming on New Japan World will begin at 2:30 AM PT/5:30 AM ET.
New Japan began Round 2 of the New Japan Cup today with Day 5 in Ehime.
Today’s event was held at Item Ehime in Ehime and can be watched on demand on New Japan World.
The announced paid attendance was 668.
Match 1: Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr. beat Shoma Kato & Boltin Oleg. Nicholls pinned Kato after a lariat.
Match 2: DOUKI, Yuya Uemura & Taichi beat El Desperado, Tomoaki Honma & Tomohiro Ishii. Uemura beat Honma with an armbar.
Match 3; Chase Owens & KENTA beat Togi Makabe & Hirooki Goto. KENTA pinned Makabe.
Match 4: Jado, Shota Umino & Tanga Loa beat Gedo, Gabriel Kidd & David Finlay. Umino pinned Gedo after Death Rider.
Match 5: Yujiro Takahashi, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Ren Narita & EVIL beat Yoh, Ryusuke Taguchi, El Phantasmo & Hikuleo. Narita pinned Taguchi after Double Cross.
Match 6: Callum Newman, Franecsco Akira, TJP, Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb beat BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito. Khan beat BUSHI with Subaru Sheep Killer.
New Japan Cup:
Match 7: Jack Perry beat Toru Yano.
Main Event: SANADA beat YOSHI-HASHI.
As a result, the first Quarterfinals match will be Perry vs. SANADA.
Day 6 is tomorrow at Uwajima City General Gym in Ehime. Live streaming on New Japan World will begin at 3 AM PT/6 AM ET.
New Japan ran Day 4 of the New Japan Cup today, finishing up Round 1.
Today’s event was held at Baycom Gym in Hyogo and can be watched on demand on New Japan World.
The announced paid attendance was 2476.
Match 1: Taiji Ishimori, Chase Owens & KENTA beat Tomoaki Honma, YOSHI-HASHI & Hirooki Goto. KENTA pinned Honma.
Match 2: DOUKI, Yuya Uemura & SANADA beat Ryusuke Taguchi, Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii. SANADA pinned Taguchi with O’Connor Bridge.
Match 3: Jado, Hikuleo & Tanga Loa beat Gedo, Gabriel Kidd & David Finlay. Loa pinned Gedo after The Sacridice.
Match 4: Boltin Oleg, Yoh, El Desperado & Shota Umino beat Yoshinobu kanemaru, Yujiro Takahashi, Jack Perry & EVIL. Umino beat Takahashi with STF. House Of Torture again pulled the last-second “Sho switcheroo” as they continue replacing him with Perry.
Match 5: BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito beat Callum Newman, Francesco Akira, TJP & Great-O-Khan. Takagi pinned Newman after MADE IN JAPAN.
New Japan Cup:
Match 6: El Phantasmo beat Mikey Nicholls.
Match 7: Ren Narita beat Taichi.
Main Event: Yota Tsuji beat Jeff Cobb.
As a result, Phantasmo will face Tsuji in Round 2 and Narita will face Zack Sabre Jr.
Day 5 is tomorrow at Item Ehime in Ehime with the start of Round 2. Live streaming on New Japan World will begin at 3 AM PT/6 AM ET.
New Japan ran Day 3 of the New Japan Cup today, beginning the second half of Round q.
Today’s event was held at Ainesse Yamanashi in Yamanashi and can be watched on demand on New Japan World.
The announced paid attendance was 696.
Match 1: Ryusuke Taguchi, Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI & Hirooki Goto beat Gedo, Chase Owens, KENTA & David Finlay. Goto pinned Gedo after Shoto.
Match 2: Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr. beat Tomoaki Honma & El Phantasmo. Nicholls pinned Honma after Mikey Bomb.
Match 3: Yoh, El Desperado & Shota Umino beat Dick Togo, Jack Perry & EVIL. Yoh pinned Togo after Direct Drive. H.O.T. pulled what I am now calling the “Sho Switcheroo” last-second here, again replacing Sho in the match with Perry.
Match 4: DOUKI, Taichi & SANADA beat Yosjinobu Kanemaru, Yujiro Takahashi & Ren Narita. SANADA beat Takahashi with Skull End.
Match 5: Francesco Akira, TJP, Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb beat BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Yota Tsuji & Tetsuya Naito. Cobb pinned BUSHI after Tour of the Islands.
New Japan Cup:
Match 6: Hikuleo beat Boltin Oleg.
Match 7: Gabriel Kidd beat Callum Newman.
Main Event: Shingo Takagi beat Yuya Uenura.
As a result, Hikuleo will face EVIL in Round 2 and Kidd will face Takagi.
Day 4 is tomorrow at Baycom Gym in Hyogo. Live streaming on New Japan World will begin TONIGHT at 11 PM PT/2 AM ET.
New Japan officially began the New Japan Cup tour today with Day 2 of the tournament.
Today’s event was held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched on demand on New Japan World FOR FREE! (Mobile/tablet/TV users will need to download the New Japan World app to watch, it is a free download and a paid subscription is not required to use the app or access free content. PC users can watch via a web browser) This was an ABEMA simulcast in Japan.
The announced paid attendance was 1324.
Match 1: Boltin Oleg, YOSHI-HASHI & Hirooki Goto beat Jado, El Phantasmo & Hikuleo. Goto pinned Jado after Shoto.
Match 2: Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr. beat Toru Yano & Togi Makabe. Nicholls pinned Makabe after a sliding lariat.
Match 3: Callum Newman, Francesco Akira & Jeff Cobb beat Taiji Ishimori, Gabriel Kidd & KENTA. Cobb pinned Ishimori after Tour of the Islands.
Match 4: Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Ren Narita, EVIL & Jack Perry beat Yoh, El Desperado, Tomoaki Honma & Shota Umino. Narita pinned Honma after Double Cross. This was to have had Sho as part of the match but he weaseled his way out last-second in favor of Perry.
Match 5: BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito beat TAKA Michinoku, DOUKI, Taichi, Yuya Uemura & SANADA. Tsuji pinned TAKA after Gene Blaster. For those curious about Uemura sans hair, it’s now a short buzz cut painted in a shade of red.
New Japan Cup:
Match 6: Chase Owens beat Tomohiro Ishii.
Match 7: Tanga Loa beat Great-O-Khan.
Main Event: David Finlay beat TJP.
As a result, Owens will face Goto in Round 2 and Loa will face Finlay. The other left side matches will be SANADA vs. YOSHI-HASHI and Perry vs. Yano.
The next event is tomorrow at Aimesse Yamanashi in Yamanashi. Live streaming on New Japan World will begin at 1:30 AM PT/4:30 AM ET. This is the last event before the spring time change in the US, meaning events after (and including on the east coast) Sunday will start 1 hour later again.
In other news, the promotion announced this year’s installment of my favorite annual event, Best Of The Super Junior. The 31st installment of the prestigious Junior Heavyweight showcase will be in its usual May spot on the schedule, with the following schedule:
5/11-Yoha S Arena, Chiba
5/13-Korakuen
5/15-Legion Plaza Joetsu, Niigata
5/16-G Messe Gunma, Gunma
5/18-Esforta Arena Hachioji, Tokyo
5/19-Aichi Prefectural Gym, Nagoya
5/21-Atelier Himeji, Hyogo
5/22-Osaka Prefectural Gym B (2?), Osaka
5/26-Yoyogi National Stadium Gym 2, Tokyo
5/28-Kira Messe Numazu, SHizuoka
5/20-Korakuen
5/31-Korakuen
6/2-Korakuen (Semifinals)
6/9-Osaka-jo Hall, Osaka (Finals) (DOMINION)
The Finals this year will be at the annual June Osaka blowout event, DOMINION. Participants TBA at a later date.
March 6 is “Flag Raising Day” for New Japan, the date on which the promotion held their very first event in 1972. As they normally do today, they held their annual Anniversary Event to celebrate, today returning to where it all began-the site of that inaugural event. The event also kicked off the 2024 New Japan Cup Tournament.
Today’s event was held at Ota City General Gym in Tokyo and can be watched on demand on New Japan World.
The announced paid attendance was 3008.
Match 1: Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb beat Tomoaki Honma & Yanga Loa. Cobb pinned Honma after Tour of the Islands.
Match 2: Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr. beat El Phantasmo & Hikuleo. Nicholls pinned Phantasmo.
Match 3: Boltin Oleg, El Desperado, Tomohiro Ishii & Hirooki Goto beat BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Yota Tsuji & Shingo Takagi. Desperado pinned BUSHI after El Es Claro.
Match 4: Callum Newman, Francesco Akira & TJP beat Gedo, Gabriel Kidd & David Finlay. Akira pinned Gedo after 2/2.
Match 5: DOUKI, Yuya Uemura, Taichi & SANADA beat Dock Togo, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Ren Narita & EVIL. Uemura pinned Togo with a Kannuki suplex hold.
Match 6: New Japan Cup: Toru Yano beat Yujiro Takahashi by countout.
Match 7: New Japan Cup: YOSHI-HASHI beat KENTA.
Match 8: New Japan Cup: Jack Perry beat Shota Umino. Afterwards, Perry joined House Of Torture.
Main Event: Tetsuya Naito beat Sho. This was the traditional NON-TITLE match between the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion and IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion.
The next event is tomorrow at Korakuen Hall. Live streaming on New Japan World will begin at 1:30 AM PT/4:30 AM ET and you can watch live & on demand FOR FREE! This will be an ABEMA simulcast in Japan.
As they have done a few times in recent years, in particular with the comeback story of Hiromu Takahashi from his life-threatening neck injury and around other major events, New Japan has just released a new documentary video FOR FREE on YouTube, and it is also available on New Japan World for subscribers. This 42 minute video offers a behind the scenes look at the 1/4/24 Tokyo Dome event. The video is in Japanese but includes English subtitles. Check out the video below:
Video courtesy of the New Japan English YouTube channel.
New Japan has provided an update on Hiroshi Tanahashi’s ankle injury-originally expected to be back on a short period of time, after further examination that will not happen. Now out over a month to include the entire New Japan Cup and SAKURA GENESIS in April. As a result, the scheduled IWGP Global Championship match against Nic Nemeth on4/6 has been POSTPONED.
More as it becomes available.
With another major event and tour now in the books, it’s time for a big New Japan news dump to get ready for what’s next:
The entire New Japan Cup field has been unveiled. Traditionally a single-elimination bracket format tournament, that is again the case, this year with a field of 28 (down slightly from the last couple years). That means 4 will get a free pass to Round 2, and those 4 are prior Cup winners (SANADA, Hirooki Goto, EVIL and Zack Sabre Jr.). This is also an openweight tournament meaning Junior Heavyweights are entered as well. Not entered are the current IWGP Champions-World Heavyweight Champion Tetsuya Naito, Junior Heavyweight Champion Sho, and Global Champion Nic Nemeth. Also not in it this year is Hiroshi Tanahashi, possibly due to injury. SANADA is the defending tournament champion. NEVER Openweight Champion EVIL is in the field though. Also note the inclusion of (former?) All Elite Wrestling member Jack Perry, who hasn’t been seen in AEW since a backstage incident at their England event in August. He & Shota Umino have traded comments on the socials lately following Perry attacking Umino at Battle In The Valley in the US in January, and that’s led to a Round 1 match.
This year’s tournament begins on 3/6 and ends on 3/20, with every event available live and on demand on New Japan World. Below is a look at the entire bracket:
The winner will face Naito for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at SAKURA GENESIS on 4/6 at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, so if SANADA goes all the way we could very well get a trilogy match following Tokyo Dome and this past weekend, both won by Naito. In first looking at the bracket, scratch Boltin Oleg as the Young Lion entrant and Callum Newman has he’s mainly been a jobber for United Empire, otherwise everyone at least has a chance.
Besides Naito vs. the Cup winner, Nemeth-Tanahashi for the IWGP Global Championship is also set for SAKURA GENESIS. Tanahashi is expected to be back from injury by then, which is a sprained ankle suffered on Day 1 of THE NEW BEGINNING in SAPPORO. In fact, right now it sounds like he’ll be out less than 2 weeks based on below.
Finally, the full card has been announced for the traditional Anniversary Event on 3/6 at Ota City General Gym in Tokyo, returning to the venue where it all began-the site of New Japan’s very first event on March 6, 1972. Here’s the full lineup announced today:
Tomoaki Honma & Tanga Loa vs. Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb
Hikuleo & El Phantasmo vs. Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr.
El Desperado, Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. BUSHI, Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi & Hiromu Takahashi
Callum Newman, Francesco Akira 7& TJP vs. Gedo, Favid Finlay & Gabriel Kidd
Yuya Uemura, Taichi, DOUKI & SANADA vs. Dick Togo, Ren Narita, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & EVIL (the new-look Uemura following losing his hair last weekend)
New Japan Cup Round 1:
Toru Yano vs. Yujiro Takahashi
YOSHI-HASHI vs. KENTA
Shota Umino vs. Jack Perry
Champion vs. Champion Anniversary Match: IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Tetsuya Naito vs. IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Sho in a NON-TITLE match. This is an Anniversary Event tradition that was paused after 2020 due to the pandemic, but returns this year