Elite Eight lineup set
Osaka saw the last matches in round two for the New Japan Cup March 15, as the quarterfinal bracket was set.
El Phantasmo and Yota Tsuji was first of the night’s two title bouts. After waiting out Phantasmo’s display of showmanship, Tsuji went hold for hold with his foe before outpowering ELP with a tackle. Tsuji combined his lucha style take downs with a distinctly heavy boot and elbows, but was baited into a strike exchange by Phantasmo, who used an escalada to take his opponent down and set for a tope suicida, only to be met with a Tsuji dropkick through the ropes. Now in full control, Tsuji took his time to pick apart ELP, who withstood the assault to land a stunning swinging DDT.
When Tsuji thought he could stall Phantasmo’s momentum by going to the floor, he instead found himself in the clutches of another swinging DDT through the ropes to the outside, and then an aerial combination that got two from the referee. Creating distance from the corner, ELP looked to close it with Sudden Death, but was stopped with a backbreaker and then a face stomp from Tsuji. The match continuing to swing back and forth, Phantasmo hoisted Tsuji for a potential Burning Hammer, but the LIJ member landed on his feet from the move, and after a hard boot to the face brought the Canadian to the apron, the two stood precariously on the ring frame. A hard pump knee from Tsuji saw Tsuji look for a Curb Stomp, which he got on the second time of asking from apron to floor.
Phantasmo made a miraculous return to the ring underneath referee Marty Asami’s twenty count, but was met with another Curb Stomp for his troubles. Now on dream street at the 15 minute mark, ELP was crumpled with a chop, a hammer throw and splash in the corner, and with spaghetti legs lost his balance on a potential corner counter, instead dropped hard with a Spanish Fly off the top for two. With the crowd now chanting for ‘Yota’ to finish the job, Tsuji readied for the Gene Blaster spear, but was instead met with a leapfrog and Sudden Death for a near fall.
Phantasmo got even closer with some incredible flash pins, but Tsuji regained control with a brainbuster bomb. Tsuji went again for Gene Blaster but was stopped mid motion with a Pedigree into the CRII for an incredible 2.9 as an incredible bout continued. The two athletes reset with elbows before a tilt a whirl powerbomb into a reverse Curb Stomp from Tsuji, and a two step version for three to close a sensational bout.
The main event of the evening pit Ren Narita against Zack Sabre Jr. ZSJ headed to the ring with Mikey Nicholls at his side, in a clear number disadvantage against Ren Narita who was seconded, thirded, fourthed fifthed and sixthed by HOUSE OF TORTURE members. Still all outside forces headed to the back as the match started clean, Sabre gaining an advantage in the standup before being caught with the kitchen sink and thrown outside. There, after Narita’s attempts to control Sabre were thwarted at first, a massive beal over the guardrail and into the English announce table was followed by a guillotine knee into the outside steel.
Narita now had a commanding lead in the match until a boot put Narita down to the mat where he fell into a bow and arrow submission. Favouring his left eye, Sabre still had clear sights set on the arm and shoulder of Narita with brutal kicks and then a Romero Special before a double stamp across the hamstrings, taking care of all four limbs. It was the arms Sabre wanted more as he torqued away in a brutal submission that drove Narita to the ropes, but there was enough in Narita to surprise Sabre with a right hand snap and running neckbreaker drop.
ZSJ was just as effective in the standup as he unloaded snap elbows that broke Narita’s nose; firing back, the H.O.T member unleashed a boot that matched ZSJ’s and both went down. As he felt the flow of his own blood, Narita was furious, rocking Sabre with a Guillotine knee, but the Briton refused to stay down. Sabre would look to his technical pinning expertise but couldn’t hold Narita down for three with a European styled clutch or Tiger Suplex, but when he went for Zack Driver he was caught into a Cobra Twist by Narita. In a gutsy back and forth war, the two went submission for submission with Sabre finally getting an arm triangle.
As Narita faded, the HOUSE OF TORTURE were quick to head to the ring; Mikey Nicholls was there for backup but there was a huge numbers disadvantage. As the invaders were turned aside, the referee didn’t see a shot with the Narita pushup bar, only witnessing the Double Cross for the three.
Now, Shizuoka’s quarterfinals will see Narita face Yota Tsuji. Quarterfinal action begins in Nagoya March 16, where Jack Perry will meet SANADA and Hirooki Goto takes on David Finlay.
