NJPW World Tag League and Super Junior Tag League 2022 - November 21 - December 14, 2022

[Chris]

Super Jr. Tag League night 7 (December 4) Preview​

Action heats up in Yamaguchi’s KDDI Hall

It’s the final third for Super Junior Tag League, as the cheering fans in Yamaguchi will be putting their support behind ten teams looking to make Sendai’s final on December 14.

Watch Super Junior Tag League live or in English on demand on NJPW World!

Main event: Catch 2/2 (Francesco Akira & TJP) (5-1) vs Suzuki-Gun (Yoshinobu Kanemaru & DOUKI) (1-5)

Kanemaru & DOUKI are mathematically eliminated
Despite a blip at the hands of Titan and BUSHI, the IWGP Junior Tag Team Champions Catch 2/2 have resumed and continued their winning ways to a very strong league leading ten points. On the opposite end of the ledger, a 1-5 record is not something that DOUKI and Yoshinobu Kanemaru desired. yet after being knocked out of contention, they seemed to wrestle with renewed determination to their first win over Kevin Knight and KUSHIDA, and will look to double up under unlikely circumstances against the tag champions tonight.

7th Match: CHAOS (Lio Rush & YOH) (4-2) vs SAUCEHEARTS (Alex Zayne & El Lindaman) (5-1)

A tale of clashing confidence permeates the semi main event tonight. While YOH and Lio Rush seemed to have the stars aligning for themselves heading into Osaka Friday, a miriad of HOUSE OF TORTURE filthy tactics put paid to YOH getting a satisfying win over former partner SHO, instead a Shock Arrow ending his night after what was, officially, an 18 second match.

In the other corner, SAUCEHEARTS are riding high, a spectacular win over Titan and BUSHI putting the group in the league leading tie. Differnetly affected but equally motivated, how will both teams move on tonight?

6th Match Los Ingobernables De Japon (BUSHI & Titan) vs HOUSE OF TORTURE (SHO & Dick Togo)

SHO & Togo are mathematically eliminated
SHO and Dick Togo may have been mathematically eliminated from Super Junior Tag League in record time, but consolation would come in the form of an interference laden and weapon heavy assault on YOH and Lio Rush in Osaka Friday night. The two points on the board mattered not nearly as much as potentially spoiling CHAOS down the line for H.O.T, and their campaign of carnage will be set to continue tonight. BUSHI and Titan will be well advised to stay on their toes as EVIL and Yujiro Takahashi are likely not far behind SHO and Dick Togo either.

5th Match: Wild Hips (Ryusuke Taguchi & Clark Connors) (2-4) vs Flying Tiger (Tiger Mask & Robbie Eagles) (2-4)

Both teams are mathematically eliminated
With just five in the hunt of Super Junior tag League, both the Flyting Tigers and Wild Hips sides are eliminated from this year’s league. Yet on a personal level, they want to ensure their future in NJPW rings and the junior heavyweight division is far from an endangered one, and the resulting match will see them get wild tonight.

4th Match: KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight (1-5) vs BULLET CLUB (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) (5-1)

Kevin Knight and KUSHIDA went to another loss Friday in Osaka to DOUKI and Yoshinobu Kanemaru, but under the Timesplitter’s guidance, the Jet Kevin Knight continues to show massive improvements and gains in confidence. Their opponents tonight are certainly not lacking in either confidence or points, but pride could put Chris Bey and Ace Austin on the verge of a fall, and be the biggest result by far of KUSHIDA and Knight’s tag team spell.

3rd Match: Los Ingobernables De Japon (Shingo Takagi, Hiromu Takahashi & Tetsuya Naito) vs Suzuki-Gun (Minoru Suzuki, El Desperado & Lance Archer)

It’s been a while since Tetsuya Naito and Minoru Suzuki have squared off, but they will do so December 9 in Kochi when Naito and SANADA face Suzuki and Lance Archer. Before that, an intense preview will also see Hiromu Takahashi and El Desperado look to ramp up their road to Wrestle Kingdom.

2nd Match: YOSHI-HASHI, Tomoaki Honma & Master Wato vs BULLET CLUB (Bad Luck fale, Taiji Ishimori & Gedo)

The second match of the night will see Bishamon and BULLET CLUB picking up after battling in Osaka at the weekend, while Taiji Ishimori and Master Wato continue to collide ahead of Wrestle Kingdom 17.

1st match: Kosei Fujita & Yuto Nakashima vs Ryohei Oiwa & Oskar Leube

Four bright prospects continue to battle for Young Lion supremacy in the opening match of the night. Who will set the pace as action gets started in Yamaguchi?​

 

[Chris]

Junior standings after today:

NJPW Super Junior Tag League 2022 standings --

• Ace Austin & Chris Bey (12 points, 6-1)
• TJP & Francesco Akira (10 points, 5-2)
• Alex Zayne & El Lindaman (10 points, 5-2)
• BUSHI & Titan (10 points, 5-2)
• Lio Rush & YOH (10 points, 5-2)
• Ryusuke Taguchi & Clark Connors (6 points, 3-4)
• Robbie Eagles & Tiger Mask (4 points, 2-5)
• Yoshinobu Kanemaru & DOUKI (4 points, 2-5)
• KUSHIDA & Kevin Knight (2 points, 1-6)
• SHO & Dick Togo (2 points, 1-6)

 

[Chris]

World Tag League night 7 (December 5) Preview​

World famous Karatsu City gets big WTL event

Put on the tourism map by NJPW’s promotional efforts, New Japan hits the stunning Karatsu City in Saga, where cheering fans await the critical night seven of World Tag League.

Watch World Tag League live or in English on demand on NJPW World!

Main event: Be-Bop Tag Team (Hiroshi Tanahashi & Toru Yano) (3-3) vs TMDK (Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls) (5-1)

Tanahashi & Yano must win
With Aussie Open at the top of the table, and TMDK two points off the pace with one match in hand, it’s been an extremely impressive World Tag League for the Australians. If Hiroshi Tanahashi and Toru Yano want any chance of interrupting an all Australian final and having Be Bop in the top two mix, they have to get a win here tonight. Shane Haste and Mikey Nicholls’ five wins include what could turn out to be a very valuable tiebreaker over Tetsuya Naito and SANADA; should Yano and Tanahashi get two points tonight they might still be one win off the pace, but with a valuable tiebreak of their own.

7th Match: Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI)(4-2) vs Suzuki-Gun (Minoru Suzuki & Lance Archer) (3-3)

Suzuki and Archer must win
After a flash victory for TMDK, and then stolen glory by HOUSE OF TORTURE< Suzuki and Archer are now on the brink of mathematical elimination, a point that is druiving them to more frustrated violence by the night. That does not bode well for YOSHI-HASHI and Hirooki Goto, the 2021 WTL winners quietly racking up the points and approaching double digits tonight in Saga. Can they withstand Suzuki-Gun fury to get to ten, and push Archer and Suzuki out thew running in the process?

6th Match: United Empire (Aaron Henare & Great-O-Khan) (3-3) vs Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) (6-1)

O-Khan and Henare must win
Lord Gideon Grey has been making an insistent claim through his World tag League introductions of United Empire teams that we are headed for an all UE final on December 14. If he’s correct in that claim then we will see a preview tonight in Saga, but one that Great-O-Khan and Aaron Henare must win in order to have a chance of happening. This rare United Empire derby will likely not see team orders of any kind however, and Davis and Fletcher will be looking to retain their spot clear at the top of the table with two more points.

5th match: Alex Coughlin & Gabriel Kidd (0-6) vs HOUSE OF TORTURE (EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi) (1-5)

Both teams are mathematically eliminated
With both teams mathematically out of the running, hopes will be high for Alex Coughlin and Gabriel Kidd to finally seize their first points tonight against the similarly struggling HOUSE OF TORTURE pair, EVIL and Yujiro Takahashi. Yet H.O.T are no longer winless across either heavyweight and junior tag leagues, a parade of interference and weapon shots causing EVIL and Yujiro to steal their first points Saturday in Hyogo. Should Kidd and Coughlin be unable to deal with the dirt worst of tricks from H.O.T, the WTL heartbreak will continue tonight.

4th Match: Los Ingobernables De Japon (Shingo Takagi, Hiromu Takahashi, BUSHI & Titan) vs BULLET CLUB (Taiji Ishimori, Ace Austin, Chris Bey & Gedo)

Another preview of January 4 IWGP Junior Heavyweight action will also see Titan and BUSHI fighting for revenge for the blemish on their record dealt by Chris Bey and Ace Austin on night one of the Super Junior Tag League.

3rd Match: Master Wato, Ryusuke Taguchi & Kosei Fujita vs Suzuki-Gun (El Desperado, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & DOUKI)

Master Wato and El Desperado continue to battle ahead of Wrestle Kingdom tonight, while Desperado and DOUKI want to further boost their morale with a six man victory in our second match of the evening.

2nd match: Ryohei Oiwa & Tomoaki Honma vs Los Ingobernables De Japon (Tetsuya Naito & SANADA)

Tag action will see Tetsuya Naito and SANADA, freed up after Bad Luck Fale and Chase Owens withdrew from the league, battle Ryohei Oiwa and Tomoaki Honma. Naito has a long history of needling Honma; will the Kokeshi have revenge tonight in Saga?

1st Match: Bad Luck Fale vs Oskar Leube

Singles action will kick off the night, as Bad Luck Fale takes on Oskar Leube. Leube came into NJPW via Fale’s New Zealand Dojo, making this a rare chance for a master and student battle early in Leube’s career. Could the German surprise the Rogue General?​

 

[Kairi HoHo]

Eagles 11-1 now it's time to go through another day of Tag League Action. Yesterday Show to me was a snoozefest hopefully today's show is way better.

 

[Kairi HoHo]

It's Hiromu's Birthday hooray for him now buy me something for my birthday on the 30th of January because I'm broke.

 

[Kairi HoHo]

Suzuki is giving Hiromu birthday overhand chops awwh what a guy.

 

[Kairi HoHo]

Man what Knight can do is amazing to watch. He should be very good once he gets more experience under his belt.

Damn I hoping this Tag Match between the two Teams could of went longer because it was turning into a banger.

 

[Kairi HoHo]

Taguchi starting a Beer...BEER..BEEER chant to mock Eagles

 

[Kairi HoHo]

Douki pretty much said to Akira and TJP fuck your style of Tag Team Wrestling this is where it's at

 

[Chris]

Update after today:

NJPW World Tag League 2022 standings --

• Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) (14 points, 7-1)
• TMDK (Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls) (10 points, 5-2)
• Tetsuya Naito & SANADA (10 points, 5-2)
• Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI) (10 points, 5-2)
• Great-O-Khan & Aaron Henare (8 points, 4-4)
• Hiroshi Tanahashi & Toru Yano (8 points, 4-3)
• Minoru Suzuki & Lance Archer (6 points, 3-4)
• Bad Luck Fale & Chase Owens (4 points, 2-7) (forfeited their remaining matches after Owens withdrew from the tournament due to a death in his family)
• EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi (2 points, 1-6)
• Alex Coughlin & Gabriel Kidd (2 points, 1-6)

 

[Chris]

Bro what the fuck was that fucning House of Torture win vs Lio and Sho Kevin said they should be thrown out of wrestling

 

[Chris]

Super Junior Tag League night 8 (December 7) Preview​

Junior heavyweight league approaches the wire in Nagasaki

After battles across the country, the Super Junior Tag League hits its penultimate night of regular block action on Wednesday December 7 in Nagasaki. With five teams still in the running, this could be make or break for some when it comes to the finals in Sendai on December 14.
Watch Super Junior Tag League live or in English on demand on NJPW World!

Main event: SAUCEHEARTS (Alex Zayne & El Lindaman) (5-2) vs BULLET CLUB (Ace Austin & Chris Bey) (6-1)

The main event in Nagasaki will see two leading teams collide, BULLET CLUB’s Ace Austin and Chris Bey facing Alex Zayne and El Lindman. Two points ahead of the pack, Austin and Bey are in control of their own destiny. The duo have the security of being immune from mathematical elimination tonight; in fact, depending on how the other matches play out tonight, a win could see their spot in the December 14 guaranteed. Yet that requires defeating a very difficult and dynamic team indeed in Alex Zayne and El Lindaman. The SAUCEHEARTS pair have been electric through the tour, and now are fighting for survival, and a crucial tiebreaker over the top point scorers.

7th Match: Flying Tiger (Robbie Eagles & Tiger Mask) (2-5) vs Los Ingobernables De Japon (Titan & BUSHI) (5-2)

Eagles and Tiger Mask are mathematically eliminated
The semi main event will see Titan and BUSHI, needing a win to help secure their future in the final league night, against the already eliminated Flying Tiger duo of Tiger Mask and Robbie Eagles. While Eagles and Tiger Mask are nursing the disappointment of an early mathematical exit, the two will be motivated to finish strong, and after Eagles suffered a pair of losses to both his masked opponents during Best of the Super Jr. this year, this match is a chance for revenge.

6th Match: Suzuki-Gun (DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru) (2-5) vs HOUSE OF TORTURE (SHO & Dick Togo) (1-6)

Both teams are mathematically eliminated
DOUKI and Yoshinobu Kanemaru might have suffered the same fast elimination from contention in Super Junior Tag League that HOUSE OF TORTURE had, but the difference has been in how both teams reacted. While SHO and Dick Togo’s mugging of Lio Rush and YOH may well result in the CHAOS side having been spoiled at the end of the day, they quickly went back to their losing ways in Yamaguchi this weekend, while in contrast DOUKI and Kanemaru put on the performance of a lifetime to defeat Catch 2/2 in the main event that night. Fans in Nagasaki would certainly be delighted if that pattern continued, and if Kanemaru can remind SHO of his two minute victory during BOSJ earlier this year.

5th Match: Wild Hips (Clark Connors & Ryusuke Taguchi) (3-4) vs CHAOS (Lio Rush & YOH) (5-2)

Connors and Taguchi are mathematically eliminated
Clark Connors and Ryusuke Taguchi’s journey in ‘nommunication’ (communication through alcohol) has been a rocky one to 3-4 and six points, but at their peak they have been a dangerous team, and one that Lio Rush and YOH can not afford to look past. Other results can put teams on ten points on the brink here tonight, and Rush and YOH want to ensure they’re in the mix come the last night of league action on December 11.

4th Match: Kevin Knight & KUSHIDA (1-6) vs Catch 2/2 (Francesco Akira & TJP) (5-2)

Knight and KUSHIDA are mathematically eliminated
Before heading into this year’s Super Junior Tag League, KUSHIDA recruited Kevin Knight likely in full knowledge that the road to the trophies would be a very hard one, and that wins would be hard to find. Instead, the Timesplitter was devoted to ensuring his hugely talented partner Kevin Knight got reps under his belt and progressed through the series, something that ‘The Jet’ has achieved with aplomb. As Knight improves with every match, it isn’t long before that work the team has put in pays off; should it pay off tonight with an upset on the IWGP Junior Tag Champions, it would be a huge result, and one that could entirely transform the league.

3rd Match: Master Wato, Tomoaki Honma, Toru Yano & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Los Ingobernables De Japon (Hiromu Takahashi, SANADA, Tetsuya Naito & Shingo Takagi)

As Master Wato and Hiromu Takahashi’s long pre- Wrestle Kingdom campaign continues, Nagasaki will also see Be-Bop Tag Team looking to get a measure of revenge on Tetsuya Naito and SANADA for their defeat last week in our third match of the night.

2nd Match: Suzuki-Gun (El Desperado, Lance Archer & Minoru Suzuki) vs BULLET CLUB (Bad Luck Fale, Taiji Ishimori & Gedo)

Six man action will see Taiji Ishimori and El Desperado continue their preview series of the Tokyo Dome. Meanwhile Fale and Gedo colliding with Archer and Suzuki will be quite the spectacle to greet the fans in Nagasaki.

1st Match: Ryohei Oiwa & Yuto Nakashima vs Oskar Leube & Kosei Fujita

Young Lion action will kick off the evening. Who gets to set the pace in this collision of four bright future prospects?​

 

[Chris]

TMDK caught Suzuki slipping and now he's murdering young lions

 

[Chris]

This Connors/Taguchi team is killing me lol

 

[Chris]

The people's butthole