ALL JAPAN PRO WRESTLING
7TH ŌDŌ TOURNAMENT NIGHT 5
SEPTEMBER 22, 2019
EDION ARENA OSAKA #2
OSAKA, JAPAN

7TH ŌDŌ TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS
JAKE LEE DEF. KAI

This started with some mat wrestling that was not very good and at times sloppy looking. Then there was some brawling on the outside for a bit. Things finally got a bit more interesting once KAI started working over Lee’s right leg. Lee managed to sell his leg throughout the match which always gets extra points in my book. KAI was solid here but relied on way too many Enziguris. Match was also plodding at times though it picked up in the last couple of minutes with each wrestler getting a couple near falls before Lee put away KAI with a Backdrop in 17:27. These guys both have limitations and this match could have benefitted by being more of a sprint than trying to tell and peak a story. ***1/4

7TH ŌDŌ TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS
ZEUS DEF. NAOYA NOMURA

When it became clear we would be getting this match in the tournament, I was hyped. These guys did some much better grappling and chain wrestling at the beginning of this than in the last match. The brawling on the outside was better here too. Though Zeus is the veteran wrestler here, from the beginning of the match it was established that Nomura could go toe-to-toe with him, and had considerable control periods early on in the match. One awesome spot was Zeus hitting his delayed Overhead Belly-to-Belly Suplex to Nomura on the outside that Nomura sold like death. Nomura also hit a nasty looking Lancer (Spear) that Zeus sold beautifully, crumpling on the ground like his stomach had been ripped out. Nomura is quickly becoming a master of the closing stretch like Miyahara is. Nomura got a flurry of offense in, including hitting a Maximum that got kicked out of that I bought as the finish. Zeus eventually fought back, hit a Short-Arm Lariat, Running Lariat, and a Jackhammer for the win at 22:45. Awesome stuff, and my match of the tournament so far. ****1/4

FINAL THOUGHTS

The quarterfinals were a step up from the first round of the tournament.

This show drew 563 which was less than either of the double-header of shows that AJPW ran at EDION Arena Osaka #2 back in July. Though we only knew we were getting Zeus vs. Nomura as the main event six days before the show. That being said, despite how awesome of a worker that Zeus has become, he has trouble drawing, even in his hometown.

The final show of the tournament on 9/23 in Nagoya will see Zeus vs. Kento Miyahara in one of the semi-final matches and Jake Lee vs. Shuji Ishikawa in the other, with the finals as the main event of the show. If I had to guess, I still think Lee is winning this, but I think we’re getting Zeus making it to the finals.