Ariya Daivari debuts, TJP joins United Empire 

Philadelphia’s 2300 Arena is set for a stacked two nights of action on Ocrtober 16 & 17 as NJPW STRONG’s Showdown gets taped. With Chris Dickinson battling Minoru Suzuki, Suzuki and Archer facing Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley, the returning Alex Zayne taking on Will Ospreay and more, there’s already amazing action in store, with the following matches adding to the excitement!

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NIGHT ONE October 16: Will Ospreay & TJP team! Ariya Daivari debuts!

 As revealed by both on social media this week, Autumn Attack tapings in DFW Texas saw TJP enlisted as the United Empire’s newest member. With Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis) recently recruited in the UK, the three new members join Ospreay, Jeff Cobb and Great-O-Khan to make a formidable faction in any territory and any division. 

Yet TJP turned his back the LA Dojo graduates he had been mentoring to join the United Empire, and Clark Connors and Ren Narita both have questions they want answered by the Fil-Am Flash. On night one in Philadelphia, they seek those answers in tag team action opposite TJP and the ‘Real’ IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Ospreay. 

Making his NJPW debut in Philadelphia will be Ariya Daivari. The WWE alum will be looking to make a mark on the cerulean blue, and will be wrestling his first NJPW STRONG match against a man returning to STRONG after his own WWE stint in Alex Zayne. 24 hours before Zayne is set to face Will Ospreay on night two of Showdown, could a strong showing put Daivari on the Commonwealth Kingpin’s radar?

Night TWO: October 17- BULLET CLUB Tag Team Action!

Following on from his debut with Alex Zayne the prior night, Daivari will team with Lio Rush to face the BULLET CLUB duo of El Phantasmo and Chris Bey. The ‘Bey-F-Fs’ formed an alliance on IMPACT Wrestling that was solidifed during Autumn Attack tapings in Texas this past weekend. With Lio Rush starting a campaign against BULLET CLUB including taking on Taiji Ishimori in Texas, this tag battle will be as heated as it is spectacular. 

On the heavyweight BULLET CLUB front, Jay White and Hikuleo will be facing Wheeler Yuta and Fred Yehi. White wrestled Yehi this past week on STRONG in a singles match that saw Yehi push the Switchblade far harder than he would have normally liked. Meanwhile night one in Philly will see the NEVER Openweight Champion face Yuta’s partner, the Savageweight Fred Yehi in singles competition. How will Yehi and Yuta face in a tag team environment with White teaming up with BULLET CLUB’s huge Young Gun Hikuleo?

*After previously being announced for Showdown, Jake Atlas has since announced his retirement from professional wrestling, and will not be competing in Philadelphia. We apologise to fans who were looking forward to seeing Atlas wrestle, and appreciate your understanding and support of Atlas in his future endeavours.