Semifinal night in Fukshima
As the intense fortnight of New Japan Cup action draws to a close, Monday March 18 will see semifinal night in Fukushima. The last four become the last two as we determine who will be competing to be called the strongest of the spring, and compete against Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship April 6 in Ryogoku.
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Main event: New Japan Cup Semifinal- Hirooki Goto vs SANADA
Singles record: 3-2 SANADA
Winner faces Yota Tsuji or EVIL March 20
The other semifinal tonight sees three time New Japan Cup winner Hirooki Goto taking on SANADA. Though one cannot count Goto’s presence in the Final Four an upset owing to his tournament success, albeit several years ago, nobody expected the manner in which he’s made it this far. With a first round bye, Goto wrestled his first tournament match against Chase Owens, himself a surprise advancement into the second round, who pushed the Bishamon member to the brink in Uwajima. That put Goto into the quarterfinals where he was set to face David Finlay, but a last minute exit due to health concerns for the Rebel saw Goto advance due to forfeit.
That makes Goto the freshest of all the final four, but he is far from content with receiving an easy ride to the finals. With the potential for a fourth Cup win, and his first in 12 years on the table, Goto will be looking to sweat hard and will absolutely do so against SANADA. The 2023 Cup winner is driven to go back to back in his home town of Nagaoka, and carries with him the momentum gained from finally putting the brakes to HOUSE OF TORTURE when it comes to running wild in this tournament. It’s not been an easy path through YOSHI-HASHI and Jack Perry, nor will it be through Goto, but could he earn that third title match with Tetsuya Naito?
7th Match: New Japan Cup Semifinal- Yota Tsuji vs EVIL
Winner faces Hirooki Goto or SANADA March 20
It was a wild night in Shizuoka that saw Yota Tsuji and EVIL advance to the semifinals. In chaotic scenes, Tsuji was able to defeat on of the HOUSE OF TORTURE in Ren Narita to advance, but Shingo Takagi succumbed to the darkness in almost literal form when his eyes were sprayed by backfiring mist from BUSHI, then whiskey from Yoshinobu Kanemaru and powder from Dick Togo, eventually leading to EVIL. Now, Hamamatsu sees a clash between Los Ingobernables De Japon’s first pareja and its most recent. The only non NJC winner still remaining in this tournament, will a Gene Blaster see Tsuji shoot to the final, or will darkness again consume the crown?
6th Match: Los Ingobernables De Japon (BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi & Tetsuya Naito) vs United Empire (Francesco Akira, TJP & Jeff Cobb)
Six man action pits LIJ against United Empire. While UE have no vested interest in our Cup semifinals, LIJ certainly will be pulling for Yota Tsuji to take care of EVIL in the match directly following this one, and with all of H.O.T clearly looking out for their leader’s best interests, may want to be in good shape to stick around after this tag match is done. Tournament notithstanding, Sakura Genesis has historically seen big things happen for United Empire over the last three years. Can the group set themselves up for success in 2024?
5th Match: YOH, El Phantasmo, Hikuleo & Shota Umino vs HOUSE OF TORTURE (Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Yujiro Takahashi, Jack Perry & Ren Narita)
Ahead of YOH’s impending singles match with Yoshinobu Kanemaru Wednesday, and with Shota Umino continuing to campaign to get his hands on Jack Perry, Hontai and HOUSE OF TORTURE collide in Hamamatsu. Will this match change the complexion of Nagaoka Wednesday and beyond?
4th Match: Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Toru Yano & YOSHI-HASHI vs BULLET CLUB (Chase Owens, KENTA & Gabe Kidd)
While Hirooki Goto could be on his biggest singles run this decade, if he can get past SANADA in our main event tonight, he still has a legitimate claim to the IWGP Tag gold alongside YOSHI-HASHI. The Headhunter will be flying the Bishamon flag tonight, and looking to cement that claim in six man action tonight.
3rd Match: Ryusuke Taguchi & Tanga Loa vs United Empire (Callum Newman & Great-O-Khan)
After Tanga Loa knocked Great-O-Khan out of the New Japan Cup, the two have been back and forth in backstage comments over O-Khan’s KOPW 2024 title. With the Dominator looking to defend the KOPW title frequently moving forward, Loa might be a contender, and could solidify his claim in tag action tonight.
2nd Match: El Desperado, Togi Makabe & Tomohiro Ishii vs Just Five Guys (DOUKI, Yuya Uemura & Taichi)
As Yuya Uemura continues to be on a roll in multiman matches as of late, he, Taichi and DOUKI make quite an interesting trio to face Togi Makabe, Tomohiro Ishii and El Desperado. April 14 in Taiwan, new NEVER 6 Man Champions will be crowned, making every trios contest in NJPW something worth keeping an eye on ahead of announcements for the tournament brackets.
1st Match: Shoma Kato & Boltin Oleg vs TMDK (Mikey Nicholls & Zack Sabre Jr)
Another man on a roll is the huge Boltin Oleg, who teams with Shoma Kato tonight. After a string of wins, for Boltin, now this Noge pair faces a very difficult challenge indeed against TMDK. Can they set a strong pace in our opening contest tonight?
