New Japan Pro-Wrestling presented NJPW Battle in the Valley on January 13.
In the main event, Will Ospreay faced Kazuchika Okada. Plus, Jon Moxley battled Shingo Takagi. Elsewhere on the show, Matt Riddle and a mystery partner clashed with Zack Sabre Jr. and Bad Dude Tito.
The results are as follows:
Pre-Show
- Matt Vandragriff def. Goldy in a STRONG Survivor Match.
- Stephanie Vaquer def. Viva Van
Main Show
Shota Umino, Fred Rosser & Jacob Fatu vs. Team Filthy (Tom Lawlor, Royce Isaacs & Jorel Nelson)
Rosser and Lawlor start the bout and battle back and forth. Team Filthy gains the upper hand. They isolate Rosser and keep him grounded. Rosser rallies, but Team Filthy takes control again. Fatu taggs in and clears house with a flurry of offense. He dies onto Team Filthy at ringside. Umino tags in and keeps gaining momentum. Team Filthy seizes control again and triple-teams Umino. Umino drops Isaacs with a Death Rider for the win.
Winners: Shota Umino, Fred Rosser & Jacob Fatu
Team Filthy stops Lawlor from shaking Rosser’s hand, but he decides to anyway. Lawlor walks out on his stablemates.
A masked man hops the barricade and attacks Shota Umino. He unmasks and reveals himself to be Jack Perry. He continues to assault Umino, as he drops him with a knee strike. Perry rips up his AEW contract and puts on an armband that has “scapegoat” written on it.
Mascara Dorada & Volador Jr vs. Rocky Romero & Soberano Jr.
The two teams feel each other out early on. Volador Jr. and Soberano Jr. go back and forth. Soberano Jr. superkicks Volador Jr. Romero tags in and takes control. Romero and Soberano Jr. double-team Dorada. Volador Jr. and Dorada rallies with some fast-paced offense. Romero hits some clotheslines in the corner. Soberando drills Dorada with a kick and gets a two-count. Romero and Volador Jr. continue to go back and forth, and Volador Jr. scores the pin.
Winners: Mascara Dorada & Volador Jr.
David Finlay def. TJP
TJP takes the fight to Finlay right away. He follows him out of the ring and chokes him with his shirt. They brawl on the ramp, and Finlay suplexes TJP onto the floor. Back in the ring, Finlay unloads on TJP with a series of strikes. Finlay continues to control the action. He grounds TJP, but TJP rallies with some explosive offense. TJP hits a splash while Finlay was hung up on the ropes. He plants Finlay with a springboard DDT. Finlay floors him with an Irish Curse backbreaker. TJP fires back by misting Finlay and hitting him with a knee to the face. Finlay hits a piledriver. He scores the win with a knee to the face.
Winner: David Finlay
Guerrillas of Destiny Battle BULLET CLUB War Dogs
NJPW STRONG Openweight Tag Team Championships: Guerrillas of Destiny (El Phantasmo & Hikuleo) (c) vs. BULLET CLUB War Dogs (Alex Coughlin & Clark Connors)
The BULLET CLUB War Dogs attack the champions right away. The champions fight back, and the brawl continues. Coughlin and Connors take control and isolate Hikuleo. They target his leg, but Phantasmo tags in and clears house. Phantasmo hits an acrobatic moonsault, and he keeps rolling with a tornado DDT. Coughlin takes Hikuleo down with a German suplex. He slams Phantasmo to the mat with a Dreadnought Driver. Connors hits Hikuleo with a Spear. Coughlin and Connors hit the Hit and Run for a two-count.
Coughlin and Connors continue to double-team Hikuleo. Hikuleo fires up with a slam. He s;ams Phantasmo onto Coughlin for the win.
Winners and still NJPW STRONG Openweight Tag Team Champions: Guerrillas of Destiny (El Phantasmo & Hikuleo
Giulia Defends The Gold AT NJPW Battle In The Valley
NJPW STRONG Women’s Championship: Giulia (c) vs. Trish Adora
Giulia and Adora shake hands. They feel each other out, and the match is a stalemate in the opening minutes. Giulia traps Adora in a modified triangle submission. Adora chops Giulia and catches her with a back-breaker. Giulia gains momentum with a suplex. Adora drills the champion with some stiff shots. Giulia trips her and locks in an STF, but Adora escapes. She hits a missile dropkick.
They trade German suplexes. Both women are down after a senton. Adora traps Giulia in the Cattle Mutilation, but the champion reaches the ropes. They head to the outside, and Adora slams Giulia onto the floor. Giulia fires back with a suplex of her own. Back in the ring, Giulia slams Adora off the top with a double underhook suplex. Adora rocks her with a boot. Giulia gets the win with the Northern Lights Bomb.
Winner and still NJPW STRONG Women’s Championship: Giulia
Giulia and Adora shake hands after the match.
In a video message, Mustafa Ali announces that he is bringing his campaign to NJPW. He calls out Hiromu Takahashi and challenges him to a match at NJPW Windy City Riot.
Matt Riddle & X vs. TMDK (Bad Dude Tito & Zack Sabre Jr.)
Riddle’s partner is revealed to be Jeff Cobb. Riddle and Sabre Jr. go back and forth, and they’re evenly matched. Tito and Cobb tag in, and the two powerhouses square off. They trade blows. Cobb catches him with a dropkick. Cobb and Riddle double-team Tito. Sabre Jr. tags in and takes control with some strikes. He targets Riddle’s leg. TMDK isolates Riddle. Riddle rallies and tags Cobb, who gains the upper hand and slams Sabre Jr.
Sabre Jr. takes Cobb down and gets a two-count with a crucifix. Riddle drills Tito with a kick but gets slammed. TMDK double-teams Cobb. Sabre Jr. dumps Cobb over the ropes. Riddle and Tito trade counters. Tito slams Riddle with a modified powerbomb. Riddle and Sabre Jr. trade blows. Cobb and Riddle take Sabre Jr. out with a double-team. Riddle pins Tito for the win with the Bro-Derek.
Winner: Matt Riddle and Jeff Cobb
Sabre Jr. gets up on the apron and talks some trash. Riddle and Cobb celebrate.
Eddie Kingston Defends The Gold At NJPW Battle In The Valley
AEW Continental Crown: Eddie Kingston (c) vs. Gabe Kidd
Kidd attacks Kingston during his entrance. They brawl at ringside. Kidd plants Kingston with a German suplex on the floor. He pulls Kingston into the ring post. They get into the ring and trade blows. They keep going back and forth with stiff chops. Kidd bites Kingston’s head and backs him into the ropes, forcing the referee to separate them. Kingston dumps Kidd with an overhead throw. Kingston chops Kidd in the corner. Kidd fires back with a brainbuster.
Kingston drops Kidd with a back fist and gets a two-count. Kidd rallies and gets a two-count with a Tombstone piledriver. Kingston and Kidd keep battling. They trade blows again. Kidd spits in Kingston’s face. Kingston fires up and unloads on Kidd with some strikes. A back fist sends Kidd rolling out to the floor. They continue to battle at ringside. Kingston slams Kidd with an overhead throw on the floor. Kidd grabs a microphone and calls Kingston a “fat bitch.” Kingston attacks him, and the match ends in a countout.
Match Result: Double Countout; Eddie Kingston retains
Kingston and Kidd keep brawling, and officials separate them. They break free, and the fight continues. The Bullet Club War Dogs attack Kingston and gang up on him. Kidd drops Kingston with a piledriver onto the title and poses with the gold. Officials check on Kingston, and he gets to his feet, but they help him to the back.
Jon Moxley Battle Shingo Takagi
No Disqualification: Jon Moxley vs. Shingo Takagi
Moxley and Takagi trade strikes right away. They exchange shoulder blocks, and they’re evenly matched. The bout spills out of the ring, and Takagi brings out some kendo sticks. Moxley slams Takagi into the barricade with a White Russian Legsweep and shoves the kendo stick into his mouth. He blasts Takagi with a trash can lid. Back in the ring, Takagi suplexes Moxley and takes control.
Moxley hits Takagi with a trash can lid again. Takagi is busted open, and Moxley punches the wound. Moxley puts a trash can over Takagi’s head and hits it with a kendo stick. He breaks a kendo stick and jabs Takagi with the jagged edge. He floors Takagi with a piledriver. Moxley gouges Takagi with the kendo stick shard again. Takagi rallies with a lariat. He suplexes Moxley and maintains the advantage. Moxley clotheslines Takagi over the ropes. Takagi hits Moxley with a trash can lid. Moxley gets busted open as well.
Takagi superplexes Moxley. They headbutt each other. The two stars trade suplexes. Moxley hits the Death Rider, but Takagi drills him with a strike, and both men are down. Takagi wraps a chain around his arm and hits a lariat. Moxley chokes Takagi with a steel chain. Moxley sends Takagi through a table with an elbow drop.
He goes to put Takagi through another table, but Takagi mists him. Takagi slams Moxley through a table. Moxley kicks out of the Made in Japan. Moxley fires up with a cutter, a stomp, and a Death Rider for a two-count. A Death Rider through a chair earns Moxley the win.
Winner: Jon Moxley
Moxley shows his respect to Takagi after the match, and they bump fists. Moxley calls for a microphone and calls out Tetsuya Naito.
A video package hypes up the main event.
Kazuchika Okada vs. Will Ospreay
Ospreay and Okada square off and feel each other out. They are evenly matched early on. They trade counters, and Okada drops Ospreay with a DDT on the floor. He slams Ospreay on the floor and gets back in the ring. Ospreay rallies and dives onto Okada at ringside. Okada plants Okada with a flapjack. Ospreay counters a German suplex. They trade counters, and Okada catches Ospreay with a dropkick. Ospreay hits the Os-Cutter for a two-count.
Okada hits a shotgun dropkick. He plants Ospreay with a Tombstone on the floor. He hits an elbow drop and signals for the Rainmaker, but Ospreay has it scouted. Okada counters the Os-Cutter. Ospreay counters the Os-Cutter into a Spanish Fly. Ospreay gets a two-count with a Styles Clash. Okada stuns Ospreay with a dropkick. They trade counters. Okada hits the Storm-Breaker for a two-count. He hits the Rainmaker for a two-count. Okada gets frustrated and seemingly flips off the crowd. Ospreay catches Okada with a powerbomb.
Okada and Ospreay exchange blows. Ospreay nails Okada with a forearm. He hits a dropkick and floors Okada with the Rainmaker for a two-count. Ospreay hits the Storm-Breaker for a two-count. Okada counters the Hidden Blade and slams Ospreay. Okada hits the Rainmaker for the win.
Winner: Kazuchika Okada
Okada extends his hand to Ospreay and helps him up. They embrace in an emotional moment. The Bullet Club War Dogs come out, and David Finlay attacks Okada from behind. The stable gangs up on Ospreay, but United Empire makes the save. Eddie Kingston joins the fight and attacks Gabe Kidd. The Bullet Club War Dogs leave. Ospreay and United Empire, alongside Eddie Kingston, stand tall. He grabs a microphone and hypes up United Empire’s match against Bullet Club War Dogs on February 11.
Ospreay thanked the fans and reflected on his time with NJPW. He calls Okada the best wrestler ever. Ospreay expresses his gratitude for the journey he has been on. He says the fans in the United States will get to know him in the coming years, as it will be his new home. Ospreay says this chapter is closing, but he has one more date on February 11. He says the match will be violent and bloody and vows to bury Bullet Club.
