New Japan Pro-Wrestling General Discussion Thread

[Testify]

If Tana retains, he'll actually be ahead of Nakamura in their wins/losses against each other for the first time ever. And if Nakamura wins it back, then what happens with Tana? He cannot go back to challenge Okada anymore until Okada wants him to basically, and he's too big of a star to just leave in midcard matches. I personally think Nakamura to be free as a challenger for Okada and setting up Chaos eventual downfall is much fresher for the product than Tana going back to being the challenger.

Ahh, you might be right. I'm a biased Shinskay mark since Shinskay > Tanahashi

 

[Stopspot]

Ahh, you might be right. I'm a biased Shinskay mark since Shinskay > Tanahashi

Your talking to another shinskay mark. And I think it would do Shinskay some good to have a singles run chasing a belt for awhile. Plus if it wasn't for Goto Shinsuke would be my go to guy to topple Okada. Plus the story to follow writes itself with Chaos crumbling and one of the two possibly going face.

 

[Testify]

Your talking to another shinskay mark. And I think it would do Shinskay some good to have a singles run chasing a belt for awhile. Plus if it wasn't for Goto Shinsuke would be my go to guy to topple Okada. Plus the story to follow writes itself with Chaos crumbling and one of the two possibly going face.

Imagine Okada vs. Nakamura main eventing Dome 2015

:mog::

I'd flew myself to Tokyo to see it

 

[Stopspot]

Imagine Okada vs. Nakamura main eventing Dome 2015

:mog::

I'd flew myself to Tokyo to see it

I'd be tempted to go to that as well if it was on the card. Would be cool to see if New Japan could be able to pull of having two legit main event belts, I do see that happening if Tana is supposed to have a long run with the IC belt, and how they'd distribute talent to feud for them.

 

[B.Dazzle]

WK8 was all I needed to get into New Japan.

I'm already a big fan of Nakamura, Ibushi, Devitt, Shibata, and Nakamura.

I can't wait to keep learning more and more about New Japan Pro Wrestling.

 

[Stopspot]

WK8 was all I needed to get into New Japan.

I'm already a big fan of Nakamura, Ibushi, Devitt, Shibata, and Nakamura.

I can't wait to keep learning more and more about New Japan Pro Wrestling.

You should go back and watch the G1 Climax from this summer. It's a 9 day tournament featuring some really good matches. All 9 days should be up on youtube.

The next ppvs coming are the fantasticamania tour (a yearly tour they do together with Mexican promotion CMLL) and the two New Beginning ppvs.

 

[Stopspot]

@Snowman second half of WK review please.

 

[Snowman1]

Spoiler

Sorry for the delay, Mr. Spot. It's just that I wanted to save this for a day that didn't have the NFL Playoffs on it. Saw the first three matches of Part 2 on Friday but figured it wasn't right to review them... more on that later.

Another thing that stuck out to me on this one was the entrances. Everyone had their own unique entrance that made them actually accomplish the old cliche of "larger than life". Big thumbs up on that.

Anyway, going into this one I was coming off what was a couple of lackluster matches. There was the Gracie one, looking at other peoples' thoughts that thing was hated by everyone and not just me, and the Muta showcase that was merely fine for what it was. With the ridiculously high expectations people set with NJPW and just how cool everything else was, that did kinda put a damper on me watching the rest of this... then Togi Makabe vs Bad Luck Fale in what I believe was a Last Man Standing match happened. It was the basic Last Man Standing formula which only works when you have a devastating powerhouse who can entertain you for a good 15 minutes. Sadly, Bad Luck Fale wasn't up to the task. This match really dragged and it was not something to come back to. Sadly, I blinked and missed the finish. This was a downer...

...then Goto and Shibata came out. Not much to say about this, it was just a couple of dudes who the crowd loved (even by Japanese standards) going out there and beating the shit out of each other. Great! Awesome stuff here, although it was evident that both guys were capable of more "exciting" matches than this. Nothing to criticize here, though!

Boy, I'm glad I don't give star ratings to this show, because I can't properly grade Ibushi vs Devitt. I watched the first 3 of these matches after watching Impact to wash the taste of idiotic main event out of my mouth. So since that already put me in a bad mood, seeing the Bullet Club interfere a whole bunch of times felt extra sour. After they got booted though, this match kicked ass. Ibushi is one hell of a high-flyer and kept me entertained throughout the match, while Devitt proved he was no slouch this wasn't exactly a good showcase from him. But now I know to keep an eye on Kota Ibushi during future NJPW shows, he has a new fan in me.

Speaking of Impact, boy is seeing Kazuchika Okada bittersweet. They had Okada under contract for 2 years, literally forgot about him, then saddled him with a dated as hell Kato gimmick as Samoa Joe's cameraman as he was exposing the Pope in a feud that nobody cared about. Okada. Pope. Joe. Nobody cares. I take back any good thing I've ever said about Russo.

Back on topic: Okada vs Naito felt like a HUGE match. Again, the well established internet darling (Okada) looked good here, but it was the other guy grabbed my attention. Naito is a really cool guy, guess being an NJPW casual has it's benefits.This match disappointed me at first when it was a big feeling-out process and a bunch of stalling, but when the match picked up this thing got awesome... Another match I can't try to recap because the action was so intense at times. This match had a real big-fight atmosphere to it and the crowd couldn't stay in their seats, just awesome, awesome stuff. Go out of your way to see this match...

..although if you only have to watch one, Nakamura vs Tanahashi is the one for you! This was fucking awesome! Hell, this whole show was really cool despite that massive gaping lull in the middle. Knowing the storylines would have helped with a lot of the matches, and the Japanese language barrier preventing me from watching the video packages and stuff was a bother. Didn't really hurt THIS show, but may keep me from watching a New Japan show in the future. This on it's own was an ironic 8/10 PPV... why are you still reading this! Go watch that main event!

 

[Stopspot]

In Kayfabe interview with Bruce Tharpe of the NWA regarding NJPW. Pretty fun read.

On February 9th and 11th, the NWA is set to invade New Japan Pro-Wrestling yet again. This time, NWA President Bruce Tharpe brings in tow Michael Tarver and Byron “Big Daddy Yum-Yum” Wilcott as they look to recapture the NWA’s crown jewel and prevent TenKoji from becoming number one contenders to the NWA World Tag Team Championship.

We caught up with NWA President Bruce Tharpe and he was kind enough to answer a few questions ahead of The New Beginning:

NJG: How did this new relationship between the NWA and New Japan come about? Before the NWA came to New Japan in 2013 it had been a while since the NWA had such a major presence in Japan.

Bruce Tharpe: The NWA has long been respected in Japan and unfortunately that
relationship had been damaged over the past few years. After we assumed
control of the NWA I reached out to some contacts that I had in Japan and we
were able to book a World Heavyweight Title defense in Japan. That first
match was successful and we are happy to be returning to Japan soon.

Tharpe expressing discontent at Kojima’s victory

NJG: You seemed fairly upset after Satoshi Kojima beat Rob Conway to win the
NWA World Heavyweight Championship. How do you feel about Kojima holding
the title right now?

BT: Although we have a great deal of respect for Satoshi Kojima as a wrestler, we were very upset at losing the Tokyo Dome match and leaving the Ten Pounds of Gold in Japan. And no matter how much we respect Kojima as a wrestler we, want the NWA World Heavyweight Title back in the U.S. where it belongs!

NJG: What were you saying to Harley Race before he threw that punch at Wrestle Kingdom 8?

BT: Typically, in a World Heavyweight Title bout after the Champion removes
the belt [it's] handed to the NWA President who shows it to both the
champion and challenger then shakes hands with the competitors. On this
occasion the referee handed the belt to Harley Race. I was simply pointing
out to him the well-established protocol of handing the belt to the NWA
President first… and he sucker punched me!

Tharpe explaining NWA protocol to Race

NJG: A Japanese fan wanted to know where you learned to speak Japanese like
you have been in some of the speeches you’ve given to fans over there.

BT: I am an attorney in the U.S. and a student of many languages, not just
Japanese. I have studied Japanese for many years.

NJG: Big Daddy Yum-Yum and Michael Tarver are the NWA’s representatives for The New Beginning. As a team they’ll be facing TenKoji to determine the next number one contender for the NWA Tag Team Championship, and Yum-Yum will be facing Kojima for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.

For fans who haven’t been able to see any of Big Daddy Yum-Yum in the NWA, what can they expect from him? It’s definitely one of the wilder ring nicknames I’ve heard.

BT: Big Daddy Yum-Yum is the nickname of Byron Wilcott, a very experienced and well respected wrestler who is former NWA North American Champion. Fans
in Japan can expect Wilcott to go on the offensive–to bring the match to
Kojima–and to defeat him for the NWA World Heavyweight Title.

NJG: Fans of WWE will remember Tarver as the scariest dude in the original
Nexus. What’s he been up to lately?

BT: Scaring people. Seriously Michael Tarver is one scary dude and that’s one
of the reasons why I’m bringing him to Japan, not only are we there to
intimidate people and bring home the Ten Pounds of Gold, we’re also going
to Japan to hurt people. And Michael Tarver is capable of exactly that!

Michael Tarver & Byron “Big Daddy Yum-Yum” Wilcott

NJG: Can we expect a clean match from you and your NWA wrestlers during The
New Beginning?

BT: Of course you can expect a clean match from my NWA wrestlers! When you’re as skilled and technically sound as we are you never need to resort to breaking the rules!

NJG: So far Rob Conway, Jax Dane, Byron Wilcott, and Michael Tarver have represented the NWA in Japan. Any hints as to who else you’re considering
bringing to New Japan?

BT: We are planning on bringing a lot of NWA talent to Japan in the very near
future. Exactly when and who will be invading Japan will be announced when
the time is right.

Promotional material for the 2013 NWA/NJPW Invasion event in Houston

NJG: Lastly, New Japan sent wrestlers to NWA Houston and NWA-BOW in San Antonio last year for a couple shows. Can we expect more New Japan wrestlers in America in 2014?

BT: We’re hoping to see a New Japan/NWA Supershow in the U.S. sometime in the Spring/Summer of 2014.

NJG: Thanks, Mr. Tharpe. Best of luck.

BT: My pleasure!

 

[Bort]

That was fun indeed.

Unrelated, El Desperado sucks.

 

[Stopspot]

NJPW “THE NEW BEGINNING IN OSAKA”, 2/11/14 (WPW/PPV/iPPV)
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
6,400 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Title: Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson (c) beat KUSHIDA & Alex Shelley (13:05) when Matt pinned Shelley after the More Bang For Your Buck (2nd defense).
2. Katsuyori Shibata beat YOSHI-HASHI (5:21) with a PK.
3. Special 6 Man Tag Match: Minoru Suzuki, Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. beat Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows & Tama Tonga (7:53) when Smith used the Killer bomb on Tonga.
4. Special Tag Match: Togi Makabe & Ryusuke Taguchi beat Prince Devitt & Bad Luck Fale (9:53) when Taguchi pinned Devitt.
5. NWA World Tag Team Title #1 Contender Match: Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima beat Big Daddy Yum Yum & Michael Tarver (12:54) when Tenzan used the Anaconda Vice on Tarver.
6. Special Tag Match: Daniel Gracie & Rolles Gracie beat Yuji Nagata & Kazushi Sakuraba (9:28) when Rolles used a gi choke attack on Sakuraba.
7. Special Tag Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jushin Thunder Liger beat Shinsuke Nakamura & Yujiro Takahashi (12:43) when Tanahashi used the High Fly Flow on Takahashi.
8. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Kota Ibushi (c) beat El Desperado (13:34) with a Phoenix splash (1st defense).
9. NEVER Openweight Title: Tomohiro Ishii beat Tetsuya Naito (c) (23:41) with a brainbuster to become the 3rd champion.
10. IWGP Heavyweight Title: Kazuchika Okada (c) beat Hirooki Goto (22:51) with the Rainmaker (8th defense).

 

[THG?]

I didn't even know NJPW were having a PPV lol.

 

[Stopspot]

I didn't even know NJPW were having a PPV lol.

They've had two in the last days, one on the 9th and one today. Both sold out

 

[THG?]

They've had two in the last days, one on the 9th and one today. Both sold out

Damn

 

[Pop Tatari]

Ishii vs Naito was awesome, MOTY so far for me. Really good story told and just a war. Intercontinental bout was very enjoyable too way better then the WK encounter. Okada vs Goto did nothing for me. Really digging EL Desperado, he has pretty good moveset and is decent worker from the few matches i have seen of his.