Monday October 7 saw the last stop on the New Japan Road tour before king of Pro Wrestling on October 14, with a big tag team main event.
Watch the event on NJPW World!
Match 7: Los Ingobernables De Japon (EVIL & SANADA) defeated Kazuchika Okada & Kota Ibushi when EVIL pinned Ibushi.
Ibushi and EVIL would start off the match and charged at one another with shoulder tackles, before a dropkick took EVIL off his feet. SANADA would have more control on Okada, Cold Skull doing well with persistent offense while the IWGP Heavyweight Champion relied on big maneuvers as a Flapjack at the five minute mark brought Ibushi back in to trade hard strikes with EVIL.
As EVIL and Ibushi threw bombs, Okada and SANADA traded holds. Okada seemed to have the match sewn up with his bigger holds, a reverse neckbreaker and elbow seeming to set the table for a full Okada Korakuen course. EVIL broke off the ensuing Rainmaker attempt however. SANADA would try to get Skull End on Okada but Ibushi returned EVIL’s favour.
The match would come down to Ibushi and EVIL. A Boma Ye for Ibushi was countered by a thunderous EVIL lariat, and a Darkness Falls followed for a nearfall before Okada made the save. As the match broke down, Okada tried to connect with Ibushi for a double dropkick, but EVIL evaded the four boots, and instead hit EVIL to Okada himself.
Ibushi would land a Boma Ye to EVIL in the confusion, but SANADA re-entered for a pop-up TKO to Ibsuhi. Soon after, the EVIL shrouded Ibushi in darkness for the second time in as many weeks. Post match EVIL promised he would make history and suggested that he and SANADA would have a hot main event in the Tokyo Dome.
Match 6: Taguchi Japan (Ryusuke Taguchi, Togi Makabe & Toru Yano) defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomoaki Honma & YOSHI-HASHI when Yano pinned Honma to retain the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championships
Taguchi and Tanahashi had a sportsmanlike start, but Yano muddied the waters when tagged in opposite YOSHI-HASHI, taking over with an eye rake. Makabe came in next and asked for Honma, as GBH partners faced off.
Neither was willing to give in before Tanahashi got involved, slamming Taguchi and Yano to set up for a double Kokeshi which the champions avoided; Taguchi’s would then get ahead of himself trying his own Kokeshi but Honma got out the way.
Honma couldn’t avoid an exposed turnbuckle, which also brought steel pain to Tanahashi. Honma got distance with a suplex to Makabe though, and YOSHI-HASHI scores a big powerbomb to the former IWGP champ.
Ace and Arse collided in ring as Taguchi and Tanahashi came in. Taguchi almost scored all three Amigos before being caught with a Twist and Shout and Slingblade; luckily his partners delayed Tanahashi enough to prevent a High Fly Flow ending the match.
As the match broke down, Honma brought Yano into Chekov’s Turnbuckle before a Kokeshi to Yano. As bodies flew everywhere it seemed as if the challengers had it, but a series of lariats, hip attacks and low blows before a schoolboy gave Yano the pin and the champions their record fourth defence.
Match 5: Los Ingobernables De Japon (Tetsuya Naito & BUSHI) defeated Suzuki-Gun (Taichi & DOUKI) when BUSHI pinned DOUKI.
Though BUSHI and Naito took control of DOUKI at the start, Taichi consistently tried to get involved from the apron, eventually drawing a frustrated Naito to the floor where the Holy Emperor took over.
Taichi and DOUKI proved an effective combination that shit down Naito almost completely before a neckbreaker and dropkick finally created some space. BUSHI scores a missile dropkick on entry, but he too was shut down by heavyweight Taichi’s strength, and DOUKI would land the Sunrise DDT for a two count.
BUSHI blocked Suplex De La Luna however, and with Naito preventing Taichi’s entrance from the floor, an MX soon followed. Taichi had words for Naito off mic, and seemed to be inviting Naito to leave a comment backstage.
Match 4: CHAOS (Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, SHO & YOH) defeated BULLET CLUB (Jado, Gedo, Yujiro Takahashi & Taiji Ishimori) when Goto pinned Gedo.
Yujiro would start with Ishii, with forearm shots and biting Ishii’s finger not taking effect, but Gedo’s knee from the apron slowing the Stone Pitbull slightly. Ishii still stayed standing however, and Gedo bore the brunt of all four of his opponents. As is BULLET CLUB’s MO, it was out on the floor that progress was made, dealing damage to Ishii that was made worse when his head went into an exposed turnbuckle more than just once.
Ishii eventually caught an Ishimori handspring elbow to bring in YOH. Roppongi 3K brought the offense to BULLET CLUB, but Jado brought his kendo stick. In the tradition of the World Class Tag Team, Gedo would continue the dirty offense with thumbs to eight eyes on the opposing team.
When Jado brought the kendo stick into the ring to use on Goto, the Fierce Warrior put a stop to proceedings by catching the weapon and tossing it aside. Gedo tried to capitalize as the match broke down with a roll-up attempt on Goto, but a kick out was followed by an Ushigoroshi and GTR for the win.
After the match, Goto took to the mic to say he was in top form, and that he wasn’t finished with Jay White by a long shot.
Match 3: Suzuki Gun (Minoru Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru) defeated Jyushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask when Liger was disqualified for striking the official.
Liger and tiger mask were booted off the apron by Suzuki and Kanemaru as the match started, the bell sounding with all four outside the ring. There, Suzuki drove an umbrella into Liger’s throat ringside and attempted to remove his mask back inside. This causing Liger to stand and go blow for blow with Suzuki, a battle he could not win. Even as Suzuki tagged out, he punished Liger, almost breaking his arm over the ropes before Kanemaru maintained the assault.
Eventually, a Fisherman’s Buster from Liger brought Tiger Mask into the ring. Here the match regained a sense of order, Kanemaru landing a gorgeous moonsault to Tiger for two, before Tiger Mask evaded Deep Impact and hit a Tiger Driver. Then Liger came back in to charge at Suzuki once more.
Both eventually rolled to the floor where Suzuki grabbed a pair of chairs. Tossing them in the ring, he challenged Liger to a duel. Liger complied as clashing steel echoed through Korakuen. The match was a long way out of control by this point, but when referee Marty Asami tried to step in for the safety of all concerned, Liger incredibly struck the official, drawing the DQ.
Post match, Liger grabbed the microphone and addressed Liger by his real name, yelling ‘how longer are you going to wear that (mask)? Yamada! You OK with that? Your wrestling life is going to end right here’, before being cut off by a furious Liger. As Suzuki finally bailed from the ring, Liger told Suzuki that their match at King of Pro Wrestling would be a fight ‘to the death’ and apologized to fans expecting to see a wrestling match on Monday night in Sumo Hall, because it will be a murder instead.
Match 2: Shingo Takagi defeated Toa Henare via pinfall.
Neither man backed down from elbows and hard shoulder charges in the opening moments before Henare bowled over Takagi with a lariat out of the corner. Takagi, right shoulder taped from over exertion on Pumping Bombers last tour, would take Henare out of the ring, and attempt to send the Maori Warrior into the guardrails, but this alone wasn’t enough to stop the Kiwi, a left armed lariat eventually doing the job on the floor.
The Dragon would fire up Henare with shots to the head, but quickly regained control with a brutal double chop. A flying tackle from Henare would put paid to a Takagi follow-up however, and gave Henare an opening on offense, a mammoth suplex connecting at the five minute mark. From here, Henare continued to show his awesome power, a Noshigami from Takagi being blocked with a massive headbutt, and a Rampage Tackle scoring a nearfall.
Still, Shingo kept coming. Henare ate forearm combination after combination, but stayed standing; it was a Pumping Bomber that finally put the Warrior on his back for two, and Made In Japan that led to the three.
Match 1: Satoshi Kojima, Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Yuya Uemura defeated Yuji Nagata, Manabu Nakanishi & Yota Tsuji when Tenzan submitted Tsuji.
Uemura had eyes on his Manabu Nakanishi rather than Young Lion opposite number Tsuji before the bell rung, but as the match got underway, it was Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Yuji Nagata in the ring and trading blows. Tsuji and Uemura would tag in, and weren’t about to lose out to their seniors in terms of violent strikes as both tried to establish themselves as senior Dojo members. Tsuji would power Uemura into the corner though, and his team worked over the young man.
After sustained punishment, Uemura caught Nagata’s boot and managed to land a dropkick, bringing in Kojima; he and Nagata would have a thrilling exchange including a Koji Koji Cutter from Kojima, but a Lariat attempt was countered by a Nagata Exploder. Nakanishi would suplex both Kojima and Tenzan, and tagged in Tsuji who hit a massive dropkick on Tenzan. A powerslam followed for two, and Tsuji continued to battle both Tenzan and Kojima, but a Tencozy Cutter would be followed by an Anaconda Vice for the finish.
