New Japan Pro Wrestling continued their annual New Japan Cup tournament. Since the show aired at 5:30am EST on NJPWWorld.com, here’s a spoiler-free summary for the non-nite owl New Japan fans. Each match receives a Need To Watch Rating of 0.0-10.0
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FIRST MATCH: Tetsuhiro Yagi & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Suzuki-gun (El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)
Fun opener that saw Yagi show some expert ring awareness against the dastardly IWGP Jr. Tag Champs. Taguchi continues to coach effectively, Desperado & Kanemaru continue to be grade-A heels.
Need To Watch: (1.5)
SECOND MATCH: Shota Umino, Tomoyuki Oka & Yuji Nagata vs. Ren Narita, Toa Henare & David Finlay
A frantic, wild six-man tag. David Finlay was the veteran of the group, and played the part well. Everyone fought to prove themselves as the future of the company. Reccommended viewing for fans of Henare.
Need To Watch: (3.0)
THIRD MATCH: Bullet Club (Tanga Loa & Yujiro Takahashi) vs. Killer Elite Squad (Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Lance Archer)
Easily the slowest match that either KES member has had all tour. Tanga Loa and Yujiro are a fun, thrown together team in HIKULEO’s absence. Nothing really essential here.
Need To Watch: (1.0)
FOURTH MATCH: Suzuki-gun (TAKA Michinoku & Zack Sabre Jr.) vs. Kota Ibushi & Chase Owens
Kota continues to team well with his in-laws. TAKA continues to play Gedo to Zack Sabre Jr.’s Okada. Definitely a fun, if inessential match. If this match is any indication, Ibushi & Sabre will murder each other in their quarter-final matchup.
Need To Watch: (3.1)
FIFTH MATCH: CHAOS (Toru Yano, Chuckie T & Tomohiro Ishii) vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, BUSHI & SANADA)
A fun six-man tag, that saw SANADA and Toru Yano give fans a preview of their quarter-final matchup. If Naito every wanted to, he’d make a great NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Champ.
Need To Watch: (4.5)
SIXTH MATCH: CHAOS (Yoshi-Hashi, Hirooki Goto & Kazuchika Okada) vs. Suzuki-gun (Taichi, Takashi Iizuka & Minoru Suzuki)
A great undercard six-man tag match. Okada and Suzuki continue to have great chemistry. Okada also had fun exchanges with Taichi. Another fun and wild six-man tag match.
Need To Watch: (4.9)
SEVENTH MATCH: New Japan Quarter Final Match: Michael Elgin vs. Juice Robinson
A solid contest between two young gaijins with plenty to prove. This match’s only fault is that it doesn’t live up to the lofty standards of both men’s first round matches. Recommended viewing for the wild, out-of-nowhere finish.
Need To Watch: (7.5)
MAIN EVENT: New Japan Cup Quarter Final: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Bad Luck Fale
A spectacular main event. Fale continues to be a dominant giant around tournament season. Much better than Tanahashi’s first round match with Taichi, but there’s still the feeling that Tanahashi is holding back. It is not crazy to ask if Tanahashi came back from injury too soon.
Need To Watch: (9.0)
