Okayama sees start of second round
After an electric start to the New Japan Cup on March 8, and the round of 16 seeing completion the next night in Hyogo, it's off to Okayama on March 11 for night three. Three second round matchups will see the first three entrants into the elite eight, and there is plenty of intrigue surrounding al the bouts on deck.
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Main event: New Japan Cup Second Round- EVIL vs David Finlay
Singles record: 1-0 Finlay
EVIL advanced to the second round of the New Japan Cup March 8 in Korakuen, but as expected, it was far from a deserved victory. Everything from Dick Togo's liberal interference to a downed referee, a low blow and powder to the eyes was needed for EVIL to advance past the current IWGP Global Heavyweight Champion, but now he has to contend with the prior champion in David Finlay.
On EVIL's return to action at New Beginning in Osaka, he 'ousted' the War Dogs from BULLET CLUB, barking to an indignant Gabe Kidd that he should 'make sure Finlay gets the message'. The actual leader of BULLET CLUB ever since the New Japan Cup of 2023, Finlay hadn't been seen in NJPW since New Year Dash himself, after his Global title was taken from him by Tsuji, but it was clear EVIL's ludicrous comments had pressed the buttons that the King of Darkness had wanted to press. A tag team bout in Hyogo on Sunday saw EVIL high tailing away from Finlay, Gabe Kidd and Gedo, but will he have a plan up his sleeve in our main event tonight?
7th Match: New Japan Cup Second Round- Ryohei Oiwa vs Zack Sabre Jr.
Singles record: 3-0 Sabre
After Ryohei Oiwa advanced past Chase Owens in Korakuen Hall Saturday night, his first ever time in the second round of the New Japan Cup sees him up against the man who eliminated him in his debut tournament, and faction Frontman, Zack Sabre Jr.
It was that test in the 2022 tournament that allowed ZSJ to recognise the potential in the young man, and to forge a link with Oiwa that later saw him join TMDK on return from loan to Pro-Wrestling NOAH. At the very start of that domestic excursion, Oiwa got another shot at the Briton, this time for the NJPW World TV title as a late substitution for an injured Boltin Oleg. Each time the two men faced off, Oiwa's progression was evident, but so was his inferiority to the man who would become IWGP World Heavyweight Champion. Now, in a New Japan Cup where Oiwa has been very vocal about needing to go deep and show he's capable of getting big results, the Grip has declared he will be wrestling 'as if we're on different teams', and there'll be no love lost between the teammates tonight.
6th Match: New Japan Cup Second Round- Yuya Uemura vs YOSHI-HASHI
A first time singles matchup sees Yuya Uemura opposite YOSHI-HASHI in the second round. After defeating SANADA in the first to advance with an impressive Superman pin, Uemura will feel somewhat closer to 'tidying up' the past of Just Five Guys, and moving on with the now four man group with himself at the forefront. Uemura wants to keep his momentum going, having now had wins over current and former IWGP World Heavyweight Champions as well as the current IWGP Global and NEVER champs in the last seven months alone.
Yet Uemura's opponent certainly has his own motivation at an all time high. With best friend Hirooki Goto having finally captured IWGP World Heavyweight gold, YOSHI-HASHI will want to challenge his Bishamon tag team partner, and winning the New Japan Cup will be the perfect way to do just that. Last May, Uemura and then ally SANADA challenged Bishamon for the IWGP tag team Championships in Taiwan; tonight, it's a singles environment that sees the Heat Storm and Headhunter battling to move closer to Goto and Ryogoku Sumo Hall.
5th Match: Tomohiro Ishii & Shota Umino vs United Empire (Jakob Austin Young & Great-O-Khan)
A very highly anticipated tag bout sees the return to action after one month away for Shota Umino. Back at New Beginning in Osaka, it seemed as if Umino couldn't sink any lower, defeated in short order by Great-O-Khan. Acknowledging his own position, Shota shaved his own head, and has been radio silent ever since. One has to wonder in what state he will appear Tuesday in Okayama, knowing full well he has a matchup with the very man who put him in this position barely 24 hours later in the New Japan Cup. For Umino tonight might be the first step to redemption, or it might be the further unravelling of the Roughneck.
4th Match: Just 4 Guys (TAKA Michinoku & Taichi) vs War Dogs (SANADA & Gabe Kidd)
A battle denied by the block draws in World Tag League last year, the TAKA Taichi team of Michinoku and Taichi face off with SANADA and Gabe Kidd tonight. Kidd and Taichi's battle Wednesday night in the second round of the New Japan Cup is likely to be more sportsmanlike than that between SANADA and the Holy Emperor back in Osaka last month, but that doesn't mean we'll get a clean fight bell to bell, and neither will we in this tag encounter. Both sides will be taking a liberal approach to the rules, and that's a situation nobody involved minds a bit; least of all when that means Taichi can get his hands on SANADA once more.
3rd Match: Jado, Toru Yano, El Phantasmo & Boltin Oleg vs Los Ingobernables De Japon (Shingo Takagi, Tetsuya Naito, Yota Tsuji & BUSHI)
Eight man action will see a preview of Wednesday's battle between Boltin Oleg and Shingo Takagi. Boltin was hugely impressive in his first round Cup outing, able to lift the mammoth Bad Luck Fale and drop him with the Kamikaze to advance to the final 16. Shingo will have to respect Boltin's mighty power, and will be eager to test his own against the Big Man From Kazakhstan.
2nd Match: United Empire (TJP, Jeff Cobb & Callum Newman) vs BULLET CLUB (Drilla Moloney, Chase Owens & Bad Luck Fale)
A preview of second round action sees TJP square off with an opponent he knows very well indeed in the form of Callum Newman. Both will look to set the pace for round two, while Jeff Cobb wants to assert himself ahead of his own second round fight with Tetsuya Naito- he just might do that if he can give the huge Bad Luck Fale a little Tour of the Islands...
1st Match: Hirooki Goto, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Katsuya Murashima vs Yuji Nagata, Satoshi Kojima & Daiki Nagai
We get started with another double preview of big matches to come, as IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Hirooki Goto meets his challenger Saturday in Nagoya in Yuji Nagata, and Satoshi Kojima looks to get licks in on Hiroshi Tanahashi before their singles match on Cup final day March 20. Sunday in Hyogo, it was Goto and Tanahashi on top, but will the same be the case with their Young Lion partners also involved Tuesday?
