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Best of the Super Juniors Night Six – Results and Report

MAY.20.2019

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Best of the Super Juniors Night Six – Results and Report

As the first leg of the tour drew to a close in Yamagata, the athletes of B Block were eager to enter into Korakuen Hall on a high. In the end three men stood tall at the top of the block, but with the most intensive part of the tour coming up, it would be imperative to make sure as many points as possible were on the board.

 

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Match 9 – Ryusuke Taguchi tapped out BUSHI with an “Oh My & Garankle”

Taguchi started out in typical Taguchi fashion – by parodying his opponent’s signature ring entrance, substituting BUSHI’s famous X pose with a T pose (standing for, we assume, “Taguchi”). BUSHI was having none of it however, and went for the funky weapon, targeting his posterior with a series of atomic drops. Taguchi fought back admirably, but despite inital sucess with dives to the outside, Taguchi found himself on the end of a vicious DDT at the 7-minute mark. However, it was when BUSHI went for a rewind kick that the wily Taguchi was able to employ his trademark ankle-lock “Oh My & Garnakle.” In a fit of desperation, once he had managed to escape the hold, BUSHI sprayed Taguchi with mist, blinding the funky weapon at around 13 minutes in.

A blackened Taguchi was not only able to dodge a follow-up MX, but able to land a Dodon as well as another “Oh My & Garankle,” finally tapping out his opponent. Taguchi had managed to equal his point total from last year. Once again, Taguchi made light of his somewhat desperate situation with a series of dirty jokes, thanking the fans in attendance and breaking out into a celebratory dance.

 

Match 8 – Will Ospreay defeated YOH with a Storm breaker

Starting out in a traditional display of grappling, the match transitioned into a sustained period of offense from YOH at the 3 minute mark, putting Ospreay onto the back foot. The tables were soon turned however, when Ospreay managed to land a series of chops on the “High and mighty” one. YOH fought hard and by the 8th minute he had returned to being the one in a position of dominance, baiting Ospreay before landing a dragon screw leg whip before landing a beautiful tope con hilo. After Ospreay landed on his knees in an offensive move gone awry, YOH took immediate advantage, putting him in a figure-4 leg lock. The tactic worked and Ospreay would continue to struggle with his knees for the rest of the match, whilst YOH would continue to take advantage of his Chaos team-mate’s predicament.

YOH may be an IWGP champion, but he came into this match as the underdog. The match looked like it was heading towards an upset victory for him by the 15 minute mark due to his technical nouse. It was his use of these strategies that allowed him to slip out of Ospreay’s power moves such as his shooting star press. When Ospreay once again went for a shooting press at the 18 minute mark, he landed on his knees again. Upon which YOH employed a calf-crusher, torturing the aerial assassin. Ospreay’s stamina was intense and whilst YOH’s fire grew, Ospreay’s resilience strengthened to match him. Something was beginning to change and YOH and his moves started to become more and more vicious, employing brutal knee strikes. Finally Ospreay spotted an opening and finally broke YOH’s will with a storm breaker.

 

Match 7 – El Phantasmo defeated Robbie Eagles with a CR II

El Phantasmo has not been one for pre-match niceties this tour, but against his BULLET CLUB brother, Robbie Eagles, he agreed to a fraternal “too sweet”. ELP soon reverted to form however, using every underhanded trick in his book, in a manner that Eagles took issue with. The match would be born out in a display of technical ability vs. brutality, as the sniper of the skies would take to the air time and again, at one point breaking out a blistering sequence of moves going from a top-rope hurricanrana to a 619, followed by a springboard that wouldn’t have looked out of place in arena Mexico. By the 10 minute mark, the match was heating-up with Eagles managing to pull-off his 450 splash. Before he could land his Turbo Backpack however, Phantasmo pulled Eagles’ bandanna over his eyes, kicked him in the face and struck him with his finishing move. Eagles was not impressed by his brother’s antics to say the least, but finally conceded to share a reluctant “too sweet.”

 

Match 6 – Bandido defeated DOUKI with a 21-plex

Both men came into this match with a history of resentment and hatred bourne out over years of wrestling on the independent scene. The former master and apprentice had turned into bitter enemies following a humiliating unmasking backstage the previous night. No quarter would be asked and none given. The match got off to a flying start, literally, with a suicide dive from Bandido, followed by a spectacular “tope con hilo” a few minutes later. The stakes were set for a butter grudge match and every strike from DOUKI carried with it a sense of malice. Bandido had been trying in vain to pull-off his 21-plex to no avail all tournament. Finally, against DOUKI, he was successful.

 

Match 5 – Rocky Romero tapped-out Ren Narita with an armbar

The two competitors came into the match needing a win to stay competitive in B-block. It was a fight between youthful fire and veteran experience. Whilst a young lion had never won the Best of Super Juniors, Narita was un-deterred by the challenge. Romero came into the match looking for a strategy to use against the Young Lion and he ended-up making use of his wealth of experience in technical grappling to get an advantage over Narita. Whilst Narita was a stronger challenger than he imagined, in the end it was a relatively comfortable victory for Romero, who has now got his campaign off the starting blocks.

 

Match 4 – Tetsuya Naito & Shingo Takagi defeated Brody King & Marty Scurll when Naito pinned King after a Destino

Ahead of their semi-main event on Wednesday, Takagi (3-0) and Scurll (2-1) scouted each other out in this match-up. The Villain and the Dragon had never met in the ring before, making this match all the more crucial in trying to find each other’s weakness. In the end though, it was Scurll’s partner, Brody King who took much of the offense and put-up a very good fight against L.I.J until a Destino from Naito ended the match

 

Match 3 – Taichi, TAKA Michinoku & Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Jado, Gedo & Taiji Ishimori when Taichi pinned Jado after a Tensho Jujiho

Ishimori (3-0) and TAKA (0-3) have had very different tournaments so far. The Bone soldier is on course to getting a shot at his title back and entering the final bout for the second year in a row, whereas TAKA is still trying to get his first points on the board. The two will meet in the opening match on Wednesday, whilst Kanemaru (0-3) will take on SHO (1-2) later in the night. The match itself was never going to be a paragon of fair play, considering the participants, but the level of viciousness on display was shocking for even the most ardent New Japan fan. As it was, Taichi ended the bout with his super kick variant.

 

Match 2 – Juice Robinson & Tiger Mask defeated Toa Henare & Dragon Lee when Juice pinned Henare after a Pulp Friction

Tiger Mask (2-1) and Lee (2-1) will be meeting on Wednesday and whilst Lee, as champion, will be coming into this match as the firm favourite, but their interactions during the match would suggest that the match would not be as easy for him as first thought. Tiger Mask has typically done well in the start of tournaments, only slowing down when Tiger Masks injuries start to weigh on him. Juice’s condition ahead of the reveal of his mysterious challenger on the 5th June has been rapidly improving and ended-up being able to pin Henare with ease.

 

Match 1 – Yota Tsuji, SHO & Titán defeated Yuya Uemura, Shota Umino & Jonathan Gresham when Umino pinned Tsuji with a Fisherman’s suplex

SHO (1-2), Titán (1-2) and Gresham (1-2) have all had slightly disappointing starts to the tournament, but were able to use this match to scout out each other’s weaknesses. Joining them were three young lions and it was a credit to Umino’s skill and ability that even when in the ring with more experienced opponents, it was he that got the pinfall.

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