This is it: the big finale of the Destruction tour as NJPW comes to us from Kobe with the big Tanahashi vs. Okada rematch with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match at Wrestle Kingdom 13 on the line.
Here's the card:
Yota Tsuji vs. Yuya Uemura
Shota Unimo and Ren Narita vs. Roppongi 3K
El Desperado and Yoshinobu vs. Jushin Thunder Liger and Tiger Mask (non title match) **
Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, Ryusuke Taguchi, and Ayato Yoshida vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata, and Manabu Nakanishi
Best Friends vs. K.E.S. **
Jay White, YOSHI-HASHI, and Will Ospreay vs. Juice Robinson, David Finlay, and Toa Henare
LIJ vs. Suzuki-Gun **
KUSHIDA vs. BUSHI (Jr. Heavyweight Championship Tournament Match) **
NJPW Heavyweight Championship Title Shot at Wrestle Kingdom 13 on the line
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada**
** Getting full reviews
As I tend to do for NJPW shows, I'm going to choose my battles and provide full coverage for some matches, limited coverage for others. With that in mind, let's do this!
1) Yota Tsuji vs. Yuya Uemura
- Young Lions Match here. I need coffee.
- These guys were exchanging forearms like the Williams sisters: a lot of screaming with every move.
- Very good match between the two for a Young Lion's match. I do hate the fact that their moveset is limited to start off. I understand the mindset of NJPW: make sure they have the basics. But it doesn't mean that it makes an entertaining match. This is an exception.
- Lots of chops, forearms, and Boston Crabs in this one.
- The match ends with a draw with Tsuji having Uemura in the Boston Crab as the time expired. These guys are going to go get a shower and then come back out as security... likely to be massacred by a member of Suzuki-Gun.
Winner: Draw
Match Grade: D+. I really can't go too much higher on a Young Lion match. I don't like the fact that they are limited to such a rigid style of wrestling. And as it was, the match was a bunch of chops, forearms, screaming, and Boston Crabs. And I had little or no investment in either guy winning either. Whatever story they were selling, I wasn't buying.
2) Shota Unimo and Ren Narita vs. Roppongi 3K
- 3K dominates the early going. Romero encourages 3K on the outside to break the rules.
- Stereo Boston Crabs at one point with the Young Lions putting 3K in a world of hurt.
- YOH geets Narita in a DEEP Boston Crab at one point, but Unimo breaks it up. Then we get the typical close call near falls for the Young Lion Narita, but YOH ends up putting him away with a Falcon Arrow.
Winners: Roppongi 3K
Match Grade: D+. Again, this does nothing for me. The athleticism was there, but the drama was not. It was not an engaging match by any stretch of the imagination. It's hard to get invested in a match when the finish is never in doubt. Add to that the fact that the match itself underwhelmed given the amount of talent in the ring. 3K has done a lot better than this.
3) El Desperado and Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Jushin Thunder Liger and Tiger Mask (non title match)
- Desperado and Kanemaru are not putting their titles on the line.
- THIS PLACE GOES NUTS FOR LIGER AND TIGER MASK! Oh wait. Here comes Desperado and Kanemaru to attack the legends before they even get to the ring!
- They are throwing Tiger Mask and Liger into the rails. Desperado is choking Liger with a cable to the throat. Kanemaru is ripping at the mask of Tiger Mask in the ring. Double teaming now by Kanemaru and Desperado on Tiger Mask. Tiger Mask fights them off. It's been 2-1 the entire time with Liger continuously being kicked off the apron and being the honorable legend in the corner waiting for his tag.
- Now Desperado and Kanemaru decide to tag in and out. Desperado continues to rip at the mask of Tiger Mask. When Tiger Mask gets any offense in, they double team him. Backbreaker to Kanemaru.
- TAG TO LIGER! SHOTEI! SHOTEI!! Running Shotei! TOP ROPE HURRICANRANA!!!! Double team by Kanemaru and Desperado backfires! Desperado knocks off Kanemaru to the floor. Tilt-a-whirl backbreaker by Liger. Tiger Mask gets tagged in, but he eats a spinebuster by Desperado.
- Tag to Kanemaru, but Kanemaru gets caught in an armbar! Liger fights off Desperado, but Desperado sends Liger to the rails at ringside and breaks up the hold. Double-team on Tiger Mask. Dropkick/Sidewalk Slam. Moonsault Press by Kanemaru for a 2. Liger breaks it up.
- Reverse DDT by Kanemaru for a CLOSE 2. Kanemaru dives into a kick by Tiger Mask. Crucifix Pin by Tiger Mask. 1-2-3!!!!! Wow!
Winner: Tiger Mask and Jushin Thunder Liger
Match Grade: C. This wasn't great by any stretch of the imagination, but a story was at least told here. The heels acted like heels. The legend faces worked up the crowd and gained sympathy to get the heat on the match even more. Liger... I am continually in awe of him being as good as he is in his mid 50s.
After the match, Liger gets a microphone and challenges Kanemaru and Desperado for the tag titles.
4) Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, Ryusuke Taguchi, and Ayato Yoshida vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata, and Manabu Nakanishi
- I literally have 0 to no interest in this. I know: 0 is literally nothing. That's the point.
- Taguchi's team does the typical baseball "round the bases" spot where his hip attack gets countered in the end.
- Taguchi gets in his Funky Weapon. Kojima gets in his Mongolian chops.
- As much as I find this match boring, I get that it works for the live crowd to see these legends go at it (Yoshida being the exception at 25 years old).
- Nagata hooking that arm and rolling the eyes is awesome regardless of who you are and where you're from.
- Nagata's team wins with the high end back suplex on Yoshida for a 3.
Winner: Nagata, Kojima, Nakanishi, and Tenzan
Match Grade: D+. This is for the live crowd only. And if I was a long time NJPW fan, I'd probably be happy with this. But as a guy with very limited experience with NJPW, this was not my cup of tea. I found the action to be by-the-numbers and boring up until Nagata got his offense at towards the end.
5) Best Friends vs. K.E.S.
- K.E.S. attacks immediately after the bell rings. Archer and Bulldog both go after the Best Friends with chairs and shots against the rail.
Best Friends get the advantage and nail a hanging dropkick to the back of Smith. They now have Archer hanging over the apron and execute a double running dropkick to him. Smith and Archer get the advantage back with a pair of German suplexes in the ring.
- Smith tagged in and he attacks Baretta on the mat with kicks and stomps. Smith catches Baretta trying to get the tag, and he nails a Northern Lights Suplex. 2 count.
- Tag to Archer. Elevated Powerslam by KES for a 2. Archer puts in a headlock, but Baretta gets to the ropes.
- Tag to Smith. And he tags Baretta with a shot to the back. Rolling German Suplexes. Baretta escapes a 3rd one, and he avoids a Smith attack in the corner. Enziguri to Archer when he tries to stop Baretta.
- Tag to Chuckie T. Missile dropkick by Chuckie. Forearms by Smith. Midkicks by Smith. Back suplex countered into a Complete Shot Flatliner for a 2 by Chuckie. Blind tag by Smith to Archer. They go for the Hart Attack, but Chuckie ducks the clothesline and nails a DDT on Smith. The Best Friends dive at KES, but they both get hit with forearms coming down. KES tries to smash Best Friends together, but they end up getting smacked into each other instead. Running senton dive by Chuckie to the outside. Archer and Chuckie are in the ring. Moonsaults by both men miss. Chuckie gets on the top rope and hits a double stomp for a 2.
- Tag to Baretta. Running attacks into the corner. Sunset Flip blocked by Archer. Chokeslam avoided by Baretta. Dropkick to the knee of Archer. Double Suplex by Best Friends on Archer. POOOOOUNCE by ARCHER (misdirection shoulder tackle) to Baretta! Baretta though throws Archer into the knee of Chuckie T.
- Baretta gets a Springboard Tornado DDT on Archer, but Smith breaks up the pin. HART ATTACK by KES, but Chuckie T breaks up the pin attempt. Bulldog nails Chuckie into the rail and with a suplex. KES have a 2-1 advantage. Baretta fights them off, but he gets caught with a chokeslam by Archer. CLOSE 2 count.
- KILLER BOMB! Archer goes for the lack pin, but Baretta REVERSES INTO A CRUCIFIX PIN! 1-2-3!!!!
Winners: BEST FRIENDS!
Match Grade: B-. Best match at this point of the show. KES looked like monsters and great heels. Meanwhile, Best Friends looked like the resilient team who refused to die and caught the heels being cocky.
After the match, Shota Unimo gets chokeslammed by KES. As I said, the Young Boys must suffer tonight. And Suzuki-Gun is willing to dish out the punishment.
6) Jay White, YOSHI-HASHI, and Will Ospreay vs. Juice Robinson, David Finlay, and Toa Henare
- Finlay and Yoshi start off the match for each team. Juice runs in, but he gets caught for a double team by Ospreay and Yoshi. A few seconds later, Fin-Juice (Finlay and Juice) nail a double dropkick on yoshi-Hashi and a double bulldog a second later. Frequent tags by Juice's corner along with double teams. The sequence ends with a triple team sequence by the three men on Yoshi-Hashi. (By the way, Henare looks a lot like Barbarian with his ring gear.)
- Yoshi-Hashi finally gets away from the match with a tag to Ospreay. Ospreay is on an offensive flurry with multiple attacks. He hits a TOP ROPE 619 on Finlay. Then he hits a SPRINGBOARD SENTON DIVE TO THE OUTSIDE ON JUICE AND HENARE. Then he jumps right back up and hits another springboard forearm on Finlay in the ring for a 2!!! Wow. This guy is amazing.
- Uppercuts being exchanged by Finlay and Ospreay. Enziguri by Ospreay gets met with a LARIAT by Finlay. Tags to Juice and White now. Juice and White trade chops and jabs. Clotheslines by Juice. Ospreay gets slammed down after trying to run in. CANNONBALL to WHITE! White punches his way out of a powerbomb. Blind tag to Henare. Double Flapjack by Juice and Finlay. Flying Shoulder Tackle off the top by Henare on White. SPEAR SLAM by Henare for a 2. Pop-Up Samoan Drop for a 2 by Henare. Henare and White are left in the ring. Yoshi-Hashi gets back in and holds Henare up, but White hits him "by accident" with a flying forearm. Henare rolls up White for a 2. BLADE RUNNER by White. 1-2-3.
Winners: CHAOS (White, Ospreay, and YOSHI-HASHI)
Match Grade: C+. A fun match boosted up by a fun sequence by Ospreay who continues to shine whenever he is given any ring time. But the rest of the match was just there and basic 6-man tag action from NJPW.
7) Los Ingobernables de Japon (Naito, EVIL, and SANADA) vs. Suzuki-Gun (Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr., and Taka Michinoku)
-KAZE NI NARE! You have to love Suzuki's entrance.
- WELCOME TO ZACK SABRE TIME!- Taka Michinoku continues to be awesome as Sabre's hype man.
- SANADA and EVIL look like they're ready for Halloween a month early.
AND ONCE AGAIN, NAITO ENTERS THE RING AND DOES HIS USUAL BACK TURNING JUST KNOWING THAT SUZUKI IS GOING TO ATTACK. AND NAITO DOESN'T GIVE A DAMN. This is always awesome. The attack and the match are on, folks!
The bell rings. Suzuki gets thrown into the rail. Naito stomps on Suzuki's head. Meanwhile Taka and Sanada are colliding in the ring. Sanada puts Taka in the Paradise Lock. Can he? Will he? He does. Sanada kicks Taka out of the lock. Lol. Tag to EVIL! Hard chop by Evil to Taka. Another hard chop. And another. Tag to Naito. Things just got Tranquilo. Take strikes at Naito, but Naito gets him with an atomic drop. And the classic corner leg sweep into the jumping dropkick. Naito goes off the ropes, but Suzuki catches him with a kick to the back and the classic Suzuki armbar over the ropes.
Suzuki-Gun starts with the assault on LIJ. Naito whipped hard into the rail. Suzuki and Naito fight into the crowd. Suzuki attacks and assaults Naito, throwing him into the rows of chairs and striking him with several chair shots. Naito rolls back in the ring at about the 16 second mark. Taka attacks Naito and tags in Sabre. Sabre wrenches the arm. Tag to Suzuki. More strikes at the arm. Running boot in the corner by Suzuki followed by the PK! 1-2-Kickout. Heel hook by Suzuki now to Naito. He's twisting that ankle with everything he can. Naito gets to the ropes, and Suzuki lets go. But he goes back to work with mocking kicks. Strikes exchanged by both men. Naito spits in his face! Naito lets Suzuki hit him with these vicious forearms! Suzuki throws Naito into the ropes only to eat a flying forearm.
Tag to EVIL and Sabre. Shoulder tackle after a bunch of missed moves from EVIL. Side slam to Taka now. Evil gets a big lariat in the corner on Sabre. SENTON Splash by Evil for a 2. Evil gets caught with a big boot. But he reverses out of an Octopus Lock, but Sabre reverses Darkness Falls into a Triangle Choke. Evil get pulled down onto the mat. And he gets to the ropes. Tag to Taka. Suzuki-Gun goes for the triple team on Evil. PK by Sabre, Superkick by Taka. 2 count. LIJ and Suzuki-Gun are fighting outside while Taka and Evil go at it in the ring.
Taka gets caught in a double team by Evil and Sanada. Magic Killer blocked by Suzuki. Fast paced attacks by all men. Evil gets Sabre off of him with a suplex. KNEE by Taka. 2 count. Lariat by Evil. Evil hits EVERYTHING IS EVIL!!!!!! 1-2-3!
Winners: LIJ
Match Grade: C+. It's Suzuki-Gun vs. LIJ. Therefore, it was very entertaining, but it's also just another match between the groups at this point. There was nothing extraordinary about this, but it was fun nonetheless.
Young Boys get attacked by Suzuki after the match for daring to pull him away from the ring. Naito and the group walk up the ramp, and Naito feigns showing support for one of the Young Boys. Then, he kicks him down for good measure. LOL!!
8) IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Tournament Match
KUSHIDA vs. BUSHI
The bell rings. Both men collide in the center of the ring, exchanging forearms. Head scissors and dropkick by Bushi. Forearms again by both men. Bushi gets the advantage. Handspring kicks to the face by Kushida. Kushida with a running midkick from the apron to Bushi on the floor. Both men back in the ring now. Hammerlock with an arm bar on the other arm by Kushida. Leg-Assisted Hammerlock now twisting on both arms now. Bridge back by Kushida. Bushi gets up and fights off Kushida from the arm. But Kushida continues to grab at it and rolls Bushi on the mat, continuing to apply pressure. Bushi gets to the ropes.
Armwrench over the top rope and shoulder by Kushida. Both men on the apron now. Kushida grabs the arm, but Bushi reverses it into a Backstabber! Both men on the floor now with Bushi on the attack. Kushida thrown into the rail back first. Bushi is targeting the back now. Another throw into the rail back first. 5 minutes have passed.
Both men back in the ring with Bushi on the attack. Snapmare into a chinlock (knee to the back) by Bushi. Leg scissors lock by Bushi to the head of Kushida. Kushida rolls to the ropes to break it up. Kushida is placed over the top rope, and Bushi hits a midrope dropkick to Kushida. 2 count. Crossface by Bushi (the arm is not locked in however). He's pulling at Kushida's nose in the hold. Kushida gets to the ropes. Running knee strike into the corner followed by a missile mid-rope dropkick by Bushi. BUSHI-ROONI!
Forearms by Kushida, but Bushi catches him with a shirt choke. Kushida gets Bushi off and hits a cartwheel dropkick to Bushi's face. And both men are down. Kushida is trying to get himself hyped up. Kushida now has a flurry of offense. Roll up countered into a midkick by Kushida for a 2 count. Rolling DDT blocked by Bushi, but a backhand springkick meets Bushi on the top of the corner. Bushi and Kushida are on the top of the corner as 10 minutes have passed. Kushida gets on the top rope and HITS A BIG SUPERPLEX! He holds in the move and tries his finisher BACK TO THE FUTURE, but Bushi reverses it into a swinging neckbreaker!
The crowd is definitely into this match. Both men slow to get up. They get into each other's faces and continue the forearm strikes from earlier. The forearms become chops, and Bushi slaps Kushida in the face. Kushida answers with a series of kicks and a slap. A kick to the arm misses by Kushida. A rolling DDT attempt is countered into a Codebreaker by Bushi! Kushida rolls out. BUSHI HITS A BIG DIVE THROUGH THE ROPES, BUT KUSHIDA LOCKS IN AN ARMBAR! Bushi elbows him off. Red Shoes (the referee) tells both men he's about to count them out. The count is on. Both men get in around 13.
KICK to the arm by Kushida. Fast paced offense by Bushi leads to a kick to the face of Kushida. RUNNING CANADIAN DESTROYER BY BUSHI! 1-2-KICKOUT! Bushi goes off the middle rope and goes for the Codebreaker. But KUSHIDA catches him with the DOUBLE WRISTLOCK! Bushi is trying to get to the ropes. Bushi pulls Red Shoes, rolls both him and Kushida over into the middle of the ring, and while Red Shoes is down, SPRAYS THE MIST INTO KUSHIDA'S EYES! BACKSLIDE WITH A BRIDGE BY BUSHI! 1-2-KICKOUT! Kushida is blind. Codebreaker caught. BACK TO THE FUTURE x2 !!!! 1-2-3! KUSHIDA wins!
Winner: KUSHIDA
Match Grade: B+. This was a very good Jr. Heavyweight match and may be my favorite Bushi match to date. I joke a lot that he's the "job guy" of LIJ, but he proved to be a legit contender for this championship. Kushida continues to be a great performer in his own right. Well done by both men.
Main Event
**Wrestle Kingdom 13 IWGP Heavyweight Championship Shot on the Line**
Hiroshi Tanahashi (current holder) vs. Kazuchika Okada
The bell rings. Red Shoes is the referee. Lockup. Break by both men. Lockup. Both men jockeying for position. Okada works on the left arm, but Tanahashi returns the favor. Okada rolls through and trips up Tanahashi for a leg hold twisting at the ankle. Tanahashi flips over, but Okada holds on for a hammerlock. Tanahashi gets a headlock in. Okada trying to power out. But the Ace will not be denied. Tanahashi takes over Okada in the headlock and continues the pressure. Both men break. "Go Ace" chants from the crowd.
Tie up again. Okada takes Tanahashi to the ropes. Will he clean break? NO! He hits the forearm to the face. Tanahashi returns the favor. They're in each other's faces now! Forearms are flying!!!! FASTER AND FASTER!!!! Tanahashi gets the advantage, but a kick to the midsection stops it. Okada gets caught with a hip toss by Tanahashi. A little Air Guitar follows. Tanahashi grabs Okada's legs and pulls them over the apron on the outside. Elbows to the legs followed by a leg snap over the edge of the ring. Tanahashi rolls back in the ring. The count is on. He dropkicks Okada off the apron back to the floor! Tanahashi nails a slingshot dive over the top rope to the floor! Tanahashi is in pain on the floor! He's limping, but he rolls back into the ring. Okada is still down on the floor, but he rolls back in eventually.
Okada dropkicks Tanahashi's leg, sending The Ace falling to the mat. KNEE SMASH on the mat by Okada. Elbow drop to the knee by Okada. He now stands on Tanahashi's leg, and the crowd is BOOING him. Okada gets Tanahashi up and puts him in the corner. He continues to attack the leg with kicks to the knee. "Tanahashi" chants from the crowd. He wrenches the knee over the middle rope. Tanahashi catches Okada running into the corner with an elbow, but he misses a springboard back splash. And Tanahashi is grabbing the leg. 10 minutes have passed.
Okada has a heel hook variant on Tanahashi. "Tanahashi" chants continue. The Ace gets to the ropes, but Okada doesn't let go until about the 4 count from the referee. Tanahashi starts to fight back with punches and chops to Okada, but Okada is not selling a damn thing. Finally Okada sells a couple blows and kicks at Tanahashi. But Tanahashi grabs the leg, kicks the knee, and chop blocks Okada. Dragon Screw to the leg of Okada! "Tanahashi" chants continue! The Ace starts fighting back. Elbow drop and senton splash by Tanahashi. But he's slow to get back up. Forearms to the face of Okada. Slam by Tanahashi in the corner. Midrope Somersault Senton Splash for a 2.
RUNNING Elbow strike by Okada. He throws Tanahashi into the corner and rams his elbow into him. DDT by Okada which stands Tanahashi on his head. 2 count. Okada goes to pick up Tanahashi, but Tanahashi squirms out. After a series of counters, Tanahashi gets Okada eventually with a dropkick to the knee, but Okada catches him jumping in the corner and executes his elevated knee to the back of the neck of a falling Tanahashi. Okada sells the move as well as it hit his bad knee.
Running Shotgun Dropkick by Okada. Okada attacks Tanahashi with back elbows in the corner. He places Tanahashi on the corner. Dropkick to The Ace, sending him hanging off the corner. Okada goes to work on the knee of Tanahashi, and the crowd is booing him. The Young Boys come over and help elevate Tanahashi over the corner and back into the ring. Okada pulls Tanahashi up, picks him up, jams the knee with an atomic drop, and hits a Figure Four. (I've seen this about 4-5 times this weekend. It never gets old.) Tanahashi trying to pull Okada's leg up, but Okada will have none of it. Tanahashi is screaming in pain! Okada refuses to let him get to the ropes! The pain continues to be coarsing through Tanahashi. Tanahashi goes back to the leg of Okada and uses it to help him roll both over into the ropes. 20 minutes have passed.
Tanahashi collapses to the floor. Okada goes out after him. KNEE SMASH ON THE FLOOR by Okada. Tanahashi catches Okada AND TOMBSTONES HIM ON THE FLOOR!!!!!! Tanahashi gets back in the ring as the count is on. Tanahashi is climbing up to the top rope!!!! HIGH FLY FLOW OFF THE TOP ROPE TO THE FLOOR ONTO OKADA! AND HIS KNEE IS IN PAIN, BUT PAIN BE DAMNED!!!!! (These guys are magic. No other word for it.)
Tanahashi rolls Okada back in the ring. HE WANTS TO PIN OKADA! (Keep in mind: He hasn't pinned Okada since Wrestle Kingdom IX back in January 2015.) SLING BLADE countered. Rain Maker countered. TWIST AND SHOUT by Tanahashi! SLING BLADE! 1-2-KICKOUT BY OKADA! Tanahashi is limping, but he goes back to the top rope! HIGH FLY FLOW... INTO THE KNEES OF OKADA!!!!! This is incredible! (And that last sequence was excellent.)
Both men slow to get back up. Okada grabs Tanahashi and looks for the Tombstone. Tanahashi tries to get one of his own. Okada gets The Ace up, but Tanahashi gets out again. (25 minutes have passed.) Okada and Tanahashi exchange forearm strikes in the center of the ring. Uppercut by Okada now. Another one. And another one. Okada looks half out of it. He starts kicking at the head of Tanahashi which just angers The Ace. He starts striking at Okada, but Okada dropkicks the knee of Tanahashi to squash any offense. Tanahashi gets thrown towards the ropes, but he collapses. Sunset Flip by The Ace for a 2 count. DRAGON SCREW to the leg of a laying Okada.
Both men are fighting to get back up. Tanahashi runs for a Dragon Screw, but he gets met with a classic Okada dropkick. Rainmaker avoided. A Fireman's Carry by Okada gets countered by a neckbreaker by Tanahashi! Tanahashi runs the ropes, but he gets caught by Okada. They roll through Tombstone attempts. Okada goes for the Spinning Rainmaker, but Tanahashi slaps him for his troubles. Dropkick to the back of the head of Tanahashi! RAINMAKER....NO! SLING BLADE!!!! Tanahashi goes back up to the top rope!!!! HIGH FLY FLOW!!!!! BUT TANAHASHI'S KNEE IS IN SO MUCH PAIN THAT HE ROLLS OUT! He covers Okada, but Okada kicks out at 2.7! 30 minutes have passed.
Tanahashi is going back to the top rope! HIGH FLY FLOW INTO AN OKADA DROPKICK!!!! Tanahashi is rolling in pain!!! Okada picks him up and delivers a Tombstone! But Okada's knee is in pain. Rainmaker pose! He gets Tanahashi up. Rainmaker ducked! SPINNING RAINMAKER CONNECTS!!!!! Okada pulls Tanahashi back up! Rainmaker countered into a DRAGON SUPLEX FOR A 2.9!!!!!!
"Tanahashi" Chant from the crowd. Both men are struggling to get up. Tanahashi is crawling outside the ring to the apron and starts the slow climb up the top rope. This is great storytelling! And as I write that, Okada dropkicks Tanahashi on the top of the corner!!! Tanahashi is down on the top of the corner. Oh my God! Okada gets on the corner. He puts Tanahshi in position for a TOMBSTONE OFF THE CORNER! WILL HE HIT IT?! Tanahashi elbows out! They continue to fight. Okada climbs back up the top of the corner. He goes for a gutwrench on Tanahashi. Again Tanahashi fights him off. Okada climbs back up again. (This is TENSE!) Tanahashi starts punching and slapping Okada on the top of the corner. He pushes Okada down, JUMPS OFF THE TOP ROPE INSTANTLY, AND HITS HIGH FLY FLOW IMMEDIATELY ON OKADA THE SECOND HE HITS THE MAT!!!!
35 minutes have passed. Tanahashi is crawling back up the corner!!! HIGH FLY FLOW TO A STANDING OKADA! HE GOES BACK UP! HIGH FLY FLOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 1-2-3!!!!!! THE ACE BEATS OKADA FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 3.5 YEARS!!!!
Winner: Hiroshi Tanahashi (still contract holder)
Match Grade: A+!!! This was incredible by both men. Tanahashi sold that knee injury like an icon with every offensive and defensive maneuver! Okada kept coming at him time and time and time again! And Tanahashi had to pull a new trick out of his book by getting a unique combination of HIGH FLY FLOWS (while selling the knee every time). This is an instant classic again by NJPW and an example of how Tanahashi and Okada are the very best in the entire world. GO WATCH THIS MATCH.
After the match, the referee holds up Tanahashi's hand. But Jay White attacks Tanahashi and nails Blade Runner. Kevin Kelly: You son of a...
Jay White goes to Okada and starts attacking Okada and the Young Boys who come to his defense! Forearms to the head of Okada followed by stomps. White goes to the outside and attacks Rocky Romero! He grabs Rocky's chair and goes back to the ring with it. Yoshi-Hashi runs in to fight off Jay White. But White smacks him with a chair throw to the face! White goes back to attack Okada. But here comes Gedo. Gedo takes the chair from White. Okada gets back up. Gedo stands behind Okada. White: "I told you." White slits his throat with the finger gesture, and....
GEDO SMACKS OKADA IN THE BACK WITH A STEEL CHAIR! OH MY GOD! HE DOES WHITE'S SWITCH BLADE SLIT THROAT. BLADE RUNNER TO OKADA!!!!! Kevin Kelly is losing his mind. This is brilliant! An excellent way to change things up in NJPW.
Gedo gets on the mic and tells Okada that he's nothing. He's not worth wrestling in the Tokyo Dome. He's nothing now. Jay White's the new leader of CHAOS, and Jay White will take the championship shot from Tanahashi and go to the Tokyo Dome. BREATHE WITH THE SWITCH BLADE. NEW ERA COMING SOON!!!! Okada is OUT. Jay White NOW RUNS CHAOS!
_ _ _ _
Thoughts on Last Ten Minutes
That ending is incredible! It sets up so much for the future. For starters, this answers the question of "How Gedo would handle no longer managing the IWGP Heavyweight Champion Okada?" Secondly, it establishes Jay White as the new leader of CHAOS. Now, the question must be asked: Is Okada out of CHAOS? If he is, who will be joining him? Is he starting his own stable, or will Okada be joining one of the other established stables? IS CHAOS A HEEL FACTION NOW?
And that doesn't even cover the Tanahashi-White match that was set up here. Could White upset Tanahashi and get the championship shot? Or will Okada screw him over and set up a match at Wrestle Kingdom?
That whole last hour explains what I love about how NJPW handles their business. The storyline stuff was set up from the moment White joined CHAOS. He was the poison that Okada allowed to be swallowed into his faction, and now, all these months later, he's lost his title, his momentum, his manager, and his stable! He's now lower than he's been since TNA from a storyline perspective. As for the match, it told a ton of stories as well. 35 minutes of greatness in the ring. Tanahashi has finally vanquished the younger Okada for the first time in years in what might have been his final victory in the rivalry. And now, Tanahashi finds himself in the middle of this Okada-CHAOS skirmish, facing a newly empowered CHAOS leader in Jay White. Oh, and by the way, Jay White beat Tanahashi in the G1 using every underhanded tactic in the book to get it done. This spells trouble for Tanahashi, and that just adds more and more drama for us to sink our teeth into.
_ _ _ _
Show Grade: A. And that's based solely on the last hour and a half alone. There were some fun moments in the undercard (Liger and Tiger Mask getting the upset win for example), but the last two matches make this show. Bushi and Kushida provided some fun action in their match, and Okada-Tanahashi provided the instant classic that accompanies all of their matches. When this ends, there MUST be a DVD/Blu-Ray with all of these matches compiled for us. The last few minutes of the show provided even more incredible moments for us as White established himself as CHAOS leader, has converted Gedo to his cause, and has seemingly kicked out Okada, Yoshi-Hashi, and Rocky Romero. (Will Roppongi 3K and Will Ospreay follow suit or stay with Jay White?)
Check this show out if you get a chance folks.
Until next time, take care of yourselves. Spread some awesomeness.
**Note: NJPW is apparently showing the Fighting Spirit Unleashed show on NJPW World Live next Sunday. So, I will be covering that show next weekend**
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