Suzuki emerges from brutal Summer Struggle night 4 main event
After demanding for weeks that a place and date be made for ‘Yuji Nagata’s public execution’ Minoru Suzuki and Yuji Nagata went face to face in the main event of Summer Struggle night four in Korakuen Hall on July 31.
No contact was made in the opening seconds. As tension built in the ring, fans clapped in a frenzy with Suzuki and Nagata staring one another down until the two men erupted into a furious exchange of elbows. With one blow to the face, Nagata had the upper hand in the first exchange, Suzuki staggered into the ropes.
Suzuki would attempt to change tact, looking to grapple Nagata, who came up with Suzuki’s arm. Nagata continued to have the upper hand when Suzuki took the fight to the floor, but a caught boot made the difference for the King, Suzuki placing Nagata’s leg over the guardrail and kicking the steel hard into the right kneecap.
While the right leg still troubled Nagata, the left found its mark, and got Blue Justice back into a standup game he appeared to have the upper hand in. Yelling ‘you’ve done it now!’ Suzuki would ask Nagata to bring more, reacting with a familiar sadistic grin. Sickening thuds of forearm and skull echoed through Korakuen Hall as both men struck with all they had at the ten minute mark before Suzuki followed through with one blow that sent both men to their knees.
Still the two kept fighting, driving their heads into one another from all fours. As they fought back to their feet, Suzuki looked for a sleeper and Gotch Style Piledriver, but his hands slipped on the sweat pouring from Nagata’s body, the hontai veteran landing a desperation exploder before striking with a heavy kick to the solar plexus that had Suzuki in serious trouble.
As the King writhed in pain, Nagata went for the finishing blow, Suzuki held on with a desperation headlock as the match hit the 15 minute mark, before getting some distance with a sickening headbutt. Driven to beat each other to hell and back, Suzuki and Nagata still traded, each inviting the other to throw as hard as they could in a twisted display of respect.
After five minutes of headbutts, forearms and open hand slaps, Suzuki finally scored a decisive blow at 20 minutes, sending Nagata to the canvas, and landing the Gotch Style Piledriver. A three count was the only possible outcome as Suzuki had his hand raised.
Post match, Minoru Suzuki, clearly still rattled, nevertheless declared that ‘not one of (Nagata’s) strikes hurt a bit’. The confident King went on to declare that he knew what was next for him, but declined to reveal what that was. Whatever his ‘secret’ is, we’re sure to find out in due time.
