The Road to Destruction sees its second of three consecutive Korakuen nights on Thursday September 5, with another huge tag team main event.
Korakuen Hall ticket information here!
Road to Destruction will be broadcast LIVE on NJPW World!
Main event: Los Ingobernables De Japon (EVIL & Tetsuya Naito) vs BULLET CLUB (Jay White & Bad Luck Fale)
This tag team bout could be a sign of things to come in Kobe, when Jay White challenges Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. It also sees a pair of G1 rematches, with Naito and EVIL standing out as two of the biggest victories in the tournament for their respective BULLET CLUB opposite numbers.
Fale’s win over EVIL on the G1 opening day in Dallas was after a wild brawl that belied Fale’s later transformation into a ‘wrestling general’ under Jado’s keen instruction. Was Fale’s wrestling acumen a means to an end in Fale’s G1 campaign, or will Fale be keeping it clean in Korakuen? EVIL will likely go to any lengths to avenge his G1 loss, and Naito will look to make a statement before the September 22 Intercontinental Championship match.
7th match: CHAOS (Rocky Romero, Hirooki Goto & Kazuchika Okada) vs Los Ingobernables De Japon (BUSHI, Shingo Takagi & SANADA)
After Wednesday’s tag team Korakuen main, night two of the Road to Destruction sees tags become trios, Rocky Romero and BUSHI added to the CHAOS and LIJ teams. Goto and Okada are looking ahead to Kobe and Ryogoku, to matches with Shingo Takagi and SANADA respectively. Romero meanwhile, is often motivated to take on long-held nemesis BUSHI.
6th Match: SHO, YOH, Ryusuke Taguchi & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Suzuki-gun (DOUKI, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Junior)
In a rematch from Wednesday night, Suzuki-gun goes up against a CHAOS and Hontai combination. On Friday, it’ll be Suzuki and ZSJ against Taguchi and Tanahashi two on two, but this eight man should create the chaotic environment that Suzuki-Gun typically excel in.
5th Match: Tomoaki Honma, Robbie Eagles & Will Ospreay vs BULLET CLUB (Yujiro Takahashi, Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo)
An eight man tag match on night one becomes a more focused trios affair in night two, with Toa Henare and Chase Owens appearing earlier in the evening. This should allow for more time in ring for the Birds of Prey to pursue Ishimori and Phantasmo before facing the pair in Kagoshima for the IWGP Junior Tag Team Championships, while bad blood continues to bubble between Tomoaki Honma and Yujiro Takahashi.
4th Match: Toa Henare, YOSHI-HASHI & Tomohiro Ishii vs BULLET CLUB (Chase Owens, Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa)
The CHAO pair of YOSHI-HASHI and Tomohiro Ishii continue to advance toward their clash with GoD in Beppu on September 15. Another issue to look out for however is between Henare and Owens. Henare frequently tasted Owens Package Piledriver throughout the G1 tour, and has vowed he’ll find a way to victory against the Crown Jewel.
3rd Match: Yota Tsuji, Shota Umino & Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs Alex Coughlin, Clark Connors & Satoshi Kojima
just like on night one, Tenzan and Kojima each lead a trio, teaming with Young Lion Cup entrants. With the first league match in th ebooks, how will the Young Lions react?
2nd Match: Ren Narita (0-0) vs Karl Fredericks (0-0)
The Young Lion Cup continues in the second match of the evening as Ren narita takes on Karl Fredericks. Fredericks has been singled out by many as the top prospect in the LA Dojo camp, having the experience edge over his stablemates. Narita meanwhile has had more experience in high pressure tournaments than anyone else in the cup, having run the gamut of Best of the Super Junior opponents earlier this year. Can he apply that experience successfully here?
1st Match: Yuya Uemura (0-0) vs Michael Richards (0-0)
The night will kick off with Yuya Uemura and Michael Richards’ first Young Lion Cup matches. Richards is the biggest unknown quantity in the cup as far as New Japan fans are concerned, his work in the Fale Dojo only being shown to NJPW audiences at Southern Showdown in Melbourne back in June. He’ll look to show what he’s made of against the fiery Uemura, who is a promising dark horse pick for the league.
