Second night of big Korakuen Hall triple header
As both blocks in Best of the Super Jr. hit the midway point, so too does our Korakuen Hall triple header. Who can set themselves up to be in final contention this Wednesday?
Watch ALL of Best of the Super Jr. 29 LIVE in English on NJPW World!
Main event- A Block: YOH (2-2) vs Hiromu Takahashi (3-1)
Singles record: 5-0 Hiromu
A rematch of the Best of the Super Jr. 28 finals headlines tonight in Korakuen Hall. After a flat start to the year, Hiromu called YOH out for a lack of fire and energy prior to BOSJ getting underway, and, criticising the CHAOS member for taking his tournament spot for granted, headed into a singles match with YOH at Wrestling Dontaku. Though YOH brought some of the energy Takahashi had been demanding, he did not bring a victory, and the result was more vitriol from Hiromu headed into this tournament matchup.
To his credit, YOH has amassed a respectable points, with wins over Clark Connors and Yoshinobu Kanemaru hinting at reclaimed aggression. YOH has given form to his motivation in the form of Takahashi, and badly wants a win over the Time Bomb tonight. No doubt assisting in YOPH’s quest will be the extreme damage dealt to Hiromu’s knee by Yoshinobu Kanemaru Tuesday. Could a hobbled Hiromu lead to a key step toward a second conescutive final for YOH?
9th Match- B Block: Master Wato (1-3) vs El Desperado (3-1)
Singles record: 2-1 Desperado
Another bitter war of words has developed between Master Wato and El Desperado over the years. Perhaps seeing some of his younger self in the hontai junior, or perhaps angry at what he perceives to be wasted potential, El Desperado has long been critical of Master Wato, who has been trying to put the pieces of his game together into a consistent gameplan over the last two years since returning from excursion. Though Wato brought his best to Desperado in his first challenge to the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship earlier in the year, the result was still a decisive defeat from the Suzuki-Gun member.
Wato’s tag team with Ryusuke Taguchi has steadily helped him find his footing and confidence, but that didn’t translate into results in his first three matches, before a flash pin victory over Robbie Eagles Tuesday night. Likewise Desperado suffered his first taste of defeat at the hands of El Lindaman Tuesday. With the winds at Wato’s back, can he secure a massive, and much needed statement win over the 3-1 Desperado in Korakuen Hall?
8th Match- B Block: Robbie Eagles (2-2) vs TJP (1-3)
A Filipino derby in the eighth match of the night sees Robbie Eagles take on TJP. Points and national pride make this sure to be a hard fought match in themselves, but fans can also anticipate a meeting of two incredibly well matches individuals with very similar blends of high flying and technical expertise. The Public Enemy is as adept at anyone at dictating the pace of a matchup, and to dissect his foes’ shoulders, while Eagles’ mastery at taking down his opponents’ knees is what has brought him IWGP Junior singles and tag gold, something the former WWE Cruiserweight and IMPACT X Division Champion cannot lay claim to. Who wins out tonight?
7th Match- A Block: Yoshinobu Kanemaru (1-3) vs Taiji Ishimori (4-0)
Singles record: 13-1-1 Kanemaru
If you defeat your eternal career rival, but there’s nobody in the arena to see it, have you really? That’s the question Taiji Ishimori has had to ask himself for the past two years. In the 2020 New Japan Cup, Ishimori finally broke his long standing ‘Kanemaru Curse’ and scored his very first win over the Heel Master. Yet while the NJPW World archive may remain, its empty arena nature leaves a niggling asterisk, and last winter Kanemaru again frustrated the Bone Soldier by stopping Ishimori’s momentum in Korakuen Hall. Tonight, here the two are again for their 16th singles meeting. Can Ishimori finally show a hall full of fans that he can beat his eternal nemesis to stay unbeaten?
6th Match- A Block: Ryusuke Taguchi (1-3) vs SHO (1-3)
Singles record: 2-1 SHO
Even as, he reels from a defeat at the hands (or the rump) of Clark Connors, Ryusuke Taguchi will be brimming in happiness at finding a kindred spirit in the Wild Rhino as he faces SHO tonight. Yet with the knowledge that the Coach hasn’t defeated the HOUSE OF TORTURE member since 2018’s tournament, is SHO firmly in Taguchi’s head? With only one win apiece, both are on the bubble heading into the second half of the league, and need a strong midway showing here tonight.
5th Match- B Block: El Lindaman (3-1) vs El Phantasmo (3-1)
After Tuesday’s main event with El Desperado, it’s another battle of the El’s against Phantasmo for El Lindaman. Lindaman admits he doesn’t think the shared name will be on the mind of either competitor, but what may be in the mind of ELP tonight are Lindaman’s harsh comments toward his competition before the tournament started. With the comment that he ‘doesn’t see what (Phantasmo’s) strengths are’, Lindaman is certainly pushing the BULLET CLUB member’s egotistical buttons. 24 hours after Lindaman handed El Desperado his first loss, and ELP was upset by DOUKI, will Phantasmo be extra dedicated to regaining a numerical advantage over Lindaman tonight?
4th Match- B Block: Titan (1-3) vs Wheeler Yuta (2-2)
Titan faces Wheeler Yuta in what’s sure to be an intriguing stylistic matchup. Titan prides himself on adopting different styles to add to his lucha libre background, and his hybrid approach to professional wrestling is absolutely matches by the Japanese/Mexican/European blend that Yuta presents. Yet for the two competitors, a great match for the Korakuen faithful is trumped in significance by the need for points. After Titan finally got his fist last night, and Yuta picked up a second win over BUSHI, both need two badly tonight. Who gets them?
3rd Match- A Block: Clark Connors (1-3) vs Francesco Akira (1-3)
Clark Connors faces Francesco Akira in the third match of the night. Before BOSJ kicked off, Connors was dismissive of Akira, vowing to use his power to ‘run right through’ the Nova Fireball. In practice though, his 1-3 record may have left Connors doubting his pre-tournament confidence. He picked up his first win over Taguchi, but can he do so against the similarly on the bubble Akira?
2nd Match- B Block: BUSHI (2-2) vs DOUKI ( 2-2)
Singles record: 2-1 DOUKI
Ever since coming into NJPW in 2019, DOUKI has railed against the idea of ‘lucha hipster’-ism; of wrestlers appropriating elements of lucha libre and acting like they know the style he lived and toiled through on the independent scene for a decade. BUSHI has been emblematic of that idea to DOUKI, a factor that motivated Japones Del Mal to two victories of LIJ’s masked member. Yet after two wins apiece, both are on a strong even run. Can DOUKI make it three in a row in singles matches over BUSHI?
1st Match- A Block: Alex Zayne (3-1) vs Ace Austin (3-1)
Starting the night’s action, the newfound friendship of Ace Austin and Alex Zayne will be put to the test in our opening bout. Zayne and Austin have become quite the tight duo as they’ve travelled the roads of Japan over the last couple of weeks, sampling local delicacies before wowing crowds with their in-ring performances. In BOSJ competition though, it’s every man for himself. Austin has proven a track record for forming and dissolving alliances when it suits him and him alone, but will he keep things on the level with Zayne tonight as both fight for a critical midway two points?
