NEW JAPAN PRO WRESTLING
THE NEW BEGINNING IN OSAKA
FEBRUARY 11, 2017
OSAKA PREFECTURAL GYMNASIUM, OSAKA, JAPAN

Watch: New Japan World

New Japan Pro Wrestling returned to a sold-out Osaka to close their first full-fledged tour of 2017.

Injuries are starting to pile up for New Japan: Lance Archer, El Desperado, David Finlay and Teruaki Kanemitsu are all currently sidelined. Hirai Kawato also came down with the flu, so the first two matches were changed at the opening bell.

TAKA MICHINOKU DEF.  HENARE

A basic, solid opener with a cool finish. After his third eye poke, TAKA won with a creative pin. **1/4

TENKOJI DEF. YOSHITATSU & KUSHIDA

I’m enjoying the third generation’s battles with YoshiTatsu more than anything since he’s returned from injury. Another solid outing that reinforced the tension between ‘Tatsu and his elders. Koji put YoshiTatsu away with a lariat in just under 7 minutes. **1/4

YUJI NAGATA, JUICE ROBINSON, JUSHIN THUNDER LIGER & TIGER MASK DEF. HIROOKI GOTO, YOSHI-HASHI, GEDO & JADO

The exchanges between Juice and Goto were good, but not truly the focus of the match. I’m not sure if Juice is getting another title shot right away, but he has definitely come out of this series looking stronger despite failing in his challenge. He ended up in the win column again, beating Jado with Pulp Friction. **1/4

MINORU SUZUKI, YOSHINOBU KANEMARU & TAICHI DEF. KAZUCHIKA OKADA & ROPPONGI VICE

Okada continued selling his injured leg; visibly limping during his entrance. Assuming the role of a franchise star “playing hurt,” his selling was great throughout. Trent and Minoru have some unexpectedly great chemistry. Trent’s selling has been great all tour, too. Kanemaru continued to impress and got the pin on Rocky. With Desperado injured, it looks like Taichi and Kanemaru will be the next junior tag challengers. **3/4

NEVER OPENWEIGHT 6-MAN TAG TEAM TITLES
SANADA, EVIL & BUSHI DEF. TAGUCHI JAPAN (C)

Commentary noted Taguchi has a toy scythe. Nevertheless, I refuse to accept EVIL’s scythe as anything but a toy. This was a very good match that also had some great comedy. Taguchi continued his confused baseball/soccer coach character, which seems to be a hit with the fans. Milano suggested BUSHI should get a yellow card for using his shirt as a weapon. Speaking of Milano, he threatened a copyright lawsuit when SANADA did a Paradise Lock.

In addition to the comedy, everyone worked hard. EVIL and Tanahashi continued their great exchanges. I really hope we get a singles match between them this year. After mist from BUSHI, SANADA trapped Nakanishi in Skull End to regain the titles. SANADA trapped Taguchi another Paradise Lock to provoke Milano. Milano seemed confused, proud and insulted all at once. Recommended. ***

RPW BRITISH HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE
KATSUYORI SHIBATA (C) DEF. WILL OSPREAY

I was really looking forward to this bout. Shibata and Ospreay’s intense interactions were the highlight of the Korakuen “Road to” shows. Both guys were coiled like sprinters in starting blocks at the bell, but started slow. On commentary, Gedo commented on Shibata’s proficiency in British-style grappling. On cue, Shibata did his best Zack Sabre, Jr impression.

Ospreay fired back with running kick to take control and then this happened:

After a sickening kick against the ring post, Ospreay did an impressive rolling lift to get Shibata back into the ring and avoid a countout. Commentary exclaimed “he can do anything he wants” before Ospreay landed a beautiful imploding 450 splash. Ospreay was presented as Shibata’s equal throughout the match; a good sign for his 2017 prospects in NJPW.

Ospreay went for the Os Cutter, but he was caught in Shibata’s sleeper. Ospreay’s facial expressions were superb. Shibata held onto the hold through a sleeper suplex and hit a PK to retain after about 14 minutes. This was a great sprint and a big step forward for Ospreay in New Japan; his biggest match since challenging KUSHIDA last June. This wasn’t a show-stealer, but it was perfect for its spot on the card. Strongly recommended. ***3/4

IWGP TAG TEAM TITLES
TORU YANO & TOMOHIRO ISHII (C) DEF. TAKASHI IIZUKA & DAVEY BOY SMITH, JR. AND GREAT BASH HEEL

This was originally supposed to be a rematch of the tag title match from Sapporo, but Lance Archer herniated a disc. In related good news, Archer reported a successful surgery during the show.

This was fine, but not as good as the Sapporo itteration. Honma was on the defensive for a lot of the match, which makes sense because he’s great in that role. Yano took the defensive role, but came back to roll up Smith after a errant Iron Finger from Hell. **1/2

IWGP JR. HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE
HIROMU TAKAHASHI (C) DEF. DRAGON LEE

By my count, tonight’s semi-main was the fifteenth singles meeting for Hiromu and Dragon Lee; their sixth title match. Hiromu’s only win was their sole NJPW encounter (at last year’s Fantasticamania).

Hiromu’s entrance was awesome. He came out with Lee’s ripped masks hanging from his neck like a punk-rock dragon hunter. We also saw the return of the Glastonbury balls bouncing in the crowd.

As expected, they tried to steal the show. The match was full of scary looking bumps and incredible spots that had either had me cringing or yelling.

Lee eventually gained control by grounding the champion with submissions, but Hiromu pulled off Lee’s mask as a panicked, last ditch defense.

In a callback to his win last year at Korakuen, Hiromu hit a Canadian Destroyer for a near fall. He followed it up with a Death Valley bomb into the corner and the Time Bomb to make his first defense of the junior title. After the match, Taguchi challenged Hiromu. This was a car-crash spectacle; another unique and exciting chapter in an all-time rivalry. Must-see. ****1/2

IWGP INTERCONTINENTAL TITLE
TETSUYA NAITO (C) DEF. MICHAEL ELGIN

Tonight’s main event was the third meeting between Naito and Elgin in New Japan. Naito had a distinct advantage going in; he won the previous two battles. A third encounter was originally supposed to headline last year’s Power Struggle, but Elgin’s eye injury prevented that from happening.

An excellent video package set the stage for the biggest match in Elgin’s New Japan career. They appropriately highlighted the aforementioned eye injury (which was caused by Naito).

The opening exchange established Elgin’s sneaky speed and agility. Slingshot back elbow, slingshot body press, flipping dive off the apron; Naito had to slow his challenger down. Like in their last two matches, Naito targeted and relentlessly attacked Elgin’s left knee. As expected, Elgin’s selling was world-class.

This pair has a special chemistry. Naito’s rag-doll bumping meshes seamlessly with Elgin’s power-based offense. Their blistering place made 36 minutes fly by. Elgin was on offense for most of the match, but that suits his style perfectly. Eventually Naito hit a dead-end with the leg work, so he went to went after Elgin’s eye. This pivot in strategy was a great way to get the crowd firmly behind “Big Mike.”

There were too many micro-callbacks to rattle off, but the most important one played into the finish. Naito won the previous two matches by hitting a pair of consecutive Destinos. Tonight, Elgin kicked out of the first and countered the second. At this point, I was convinced Elgin was winning. After survining Elgin’s remaining arsenal (including the Burning Hammer), Naito hit two more Destinos to make his third defense of the Intercontinental title.

On the biggest stage of his career, Elgin delivered a career-defining performance. Even though he lost, he was clearly elevated within the company. For his part, Naito put in perhaps his best straight-heel performance. This was amazing, but I’m confident they have an even better match in them. Must-see. ****3/4