IWGP World heavyweight Champ records second defence
The main event of Wrestle Grand Slam in MetLife Dome saw Shingo Takagi wrestle his first match in three weeks after a bout with COVID-19, with the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at stake against EVIL.
The stack was obviously stacked against Shingo from the outset, as EVIL would be joined by his new subgroup within BULLET CLUB known as the ‘House of Torture’. Dick Togo, Yujiro Takahashi and SHO would be factors all the way through the match, and were immediately off the bat when new recruit SHO taunted Takagi with a chair and allowed EVIL to grab a side headlock.
EVIL’s advantage did not last long as Takagi blasted his challenger with a double chop and a tackle. A suplex saw EVIL bail to the sanctuary of ringside, and the champion’s pride saw Shingo pay the price as he followed his foe to the floor and quickly fell victim to the numbers game. SHO would hurl Takagi into the guardrail, and EVIL would twice send the champion into the timekeeper’s table, Makoto Abe and the World Heavyweight title belt along with it.
A home run swing with steel chair wrapped around Takagi’s neck followed as EVIL played referee Red Shoes Unno’s long leash to its maximum. The entire House of Torture would get their shots and assists in on Takagi, whose pride saw him withstand the pain of hitting an exposed turnbuckle and fire up with a DDT. When he was cast outside the ring once more, this time the Dragon fired up in the face of Togo and EVIL, forcing them into the timekeeper’s table before sending SHO and Yujiro into the pile.
Having finally seen enough, referee Unno ejected the other members of House of Torture, presenting an apparent one on one match 15 minutes into the bout. Noshigami quickly connected for Takagi, and a wheelbarrow German suplex followed up, but EVIL prevented Made In Japan, and used the referee to set up a one man Magic Killer.
A superplex followed, sending Takagi bouncing up into the air with immense force. The Darkness Scorpion applied further pain to the champion, but a submission was not forthcoming, nor was a three count after Darkness Falls. EVIL was not forthcoming either, but Takagi was out of the exposed buckle, with a lariat that sent the challenger crashing to the mat as Dick Togo slinked his way back to ringside.
The Made In Japan connected for Shingo, but Togo pulled the referee out of the ring before grabbing his Spoiler’s Choker. Takagi avoided the strangulation, but not Yujiro’s Pimp Juice, and as Unno was once again incapacitated, Togo again choked at the champion. Just as EVIL looked to finish the job with a chair, BUSHI rushed to the ring to try and even the odds, but even this had little affect as SHO made his presence felt.
A dropkick of the chair into EVIL and a backcracker to Yujiro took two men down, but SHO would deliver a German suplex and then a brutal chairshot to Shingo’s head. As BULLET CLUB held the advantage though, the odds were evened once more with Tetsuya Naito and SANADA hitting the ring, SANADA diving onto SHO and Naito dealing with Togo, but getting a low blow from former pareja EVIL in return.
EVIL looked to level Shingo with his world title belt, but the champion avoided contact, and blocked another low blow. A furious Pumping Bomber and Last of the Dragon later, and Takagi moved to V2, Los Ingobernables De Japon celebrating as a united force two weeks before the every man for himself environment of G1 Climax 31.
