Takagi and Ibushi go nose to nose while Taichi goes pen to paper for Naito
24 hours after he demanded to face Kota Ibushi one on one on the ‘biggest possible stage’, Shingo Takagi did battle with the Golden Star as part of an eight man tag team main event in Korakuen Hall on June 15, the IWGP World heavyweight Champion leading Los Ingobernables De Japon to the ring to face Ibushi, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Master Wato.
Naito was more interested in playing mind games with future IWGP Tag Team Championship opponents Dangerous Tekkers at the start of the bout rather than the match at hand; while Naito ‘requested an autograph’ from Taichi on the announce desk ringside, Shingo and Ibushi were left sharing the ring. After strength was tested in a snug knuckle lock, it was Ibushi landing the first strikes with mid kicks before Takagi responded with elbows in the corner; the pace quickened, but neither gained the upper hand, and a stand off led to tags to Wato and Naito.
BUSHI would try to through the young master off his game, but Wato remained composed, with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker to Naito and a running mid kick to SANADA before bringing Tanahashi inside to school El Ingobernable with bodyslams and a senton. Tenzan kept the momentum in the hontai corner with ‘new’ Mongolian Chops, but the balance of power would shift with a knee from the apron by SANADA, and Naito seized the opportunity to disrespect a veteran with a handful of Tenzan’s famous mullet.
The toughness of Tenzan’s skull, and the associated collateral damage to SANADA’s knuckles notwithstanding, Tenzan was stuck in the wrong part of town and was unable to make a tag until Takagi got too overconfident against the legend, a suplex from Tenzan to the champion bringing Tanahashi back inside.
The Ace built momentum on the LIJ side, but allowed a tag to Ibushi to show what he could do against Shingo. Ibushi was more than up to the task, a blistering running mid kick and standing moonsault finding their mark, but Takagi responded with a dragon screw to his pending challenger, before a sliding lariat and another crunching blow in the corner. The corner clothesline woke up Ibushi, who brought a stinging combination and swatted away a Ryukon Lariat, but Pumping Bomber scored on the rebound, and Shingo and Ibushi both tagged out, bringing their junior heavyweight teammates in.
BUSHI and Wato quickened the pace with BUSHI landing a signature missile dropkick to put his blue haired opponent down, but Wato responded with a flying European Uppercut, and as his partners cleared the apron, set up for a train of attacks to BUSHI that scored two for the hontai team.
A neck screw would get BUSHI space to tag SANADA in, but although a Moonsault attempt was premature on Wato, it sparked a rush of offense on both sides, bodies flying with the match breaking down. Wato resisted Skull End and an O’Connor Roll, locking a schoolboy for two, but with Naito’s assistance, Wato could not last forever. A Skull End was locked in tight, and Wato was forced to tap.
Post match, Takagi and Ibushi each promised one another to bring even more fire to every night before their match together is made official. Meanwhile Naito and SANADA finally persuaded Taichi to come into the ring and deliver his autograph. Naito’s unique psychological warfare is sure to continue while he and SANADA’s own IWGP challenge is yet to be made official.
