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A sold out crowd in Osaka-Jo announced at 11,400. The crowd was hot all show long.
Dark match:
Mascara Dorada, Yuji Nagata, Manabu Nakanishi, Ryusuke Taguchi & Sho Tanaka defeated Yohei Komatsu, Satoshi Kojima, Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask IV Dorada pinned Komatsu with the Dorada Screwdriver.
IWGP Jr Tag Team Championship: The Young Bucks defeated ReDRagon & RPG Vice. It was all the craziness you'd expect. Lots and lots of superkicks. The Bucks did all their silliness including one funny spot where they superkicked RPG Vice half way up the ramp and tried to get them counted out only for ReDRagon to throw Romero back in the ring. Romero was fantastic in this match, proving just how good he is again. We had another cool spot when the Bucks hit 450 splashes while Fish had the Fish Hook on Romero & O'Reilly had a guillotine on Beretta. The Bucks won with More Bang for Your Buck. It was an awesome opener.
Tomoaki Honma & Tetsuya Naito defeated Yujiro Takahashi & Bad Luck Fale. Honma was jumped before the bell, but Naito was in no hurry to help him as he strolled to the ring. Honma fought on his own playing the underdog role like only he calm until Naito eventually tagged in. When he did the Osaka crowd were all over him. He did a corkscrew dive to the floor, which even the crowd boo'd. Yujiro was a mess again here, falling over as he tried Tokyo Pimps on Honma. Honma eventually won with a top rope Kokeshi on Yujiro as Naito stood and looked on. After the match Naito strolled off on his own. It was a good win for Honma as he heads into the G1 as the ultimate underdog again.
Katsuyori Shibata defeated Kazushi Sakuraba. This was awesome! Just an incredible shoot style wrestling match. Shibata was the guy to bring the absolute best out of Sakuraba and this was the best match Sakuraba has had in NJPW since his match with Nakamura a few years ago. There were so many sick looking stiff strikes from Shibata and so many submissions and counters from Sakuraba. Shibata at one point had to grab to rope with his teeth because he was so tied up and it was shot beautifully. Sakuraba hit a plancha at one stage too. Shibata got the win with a sleeper followed by a PK. You don't want to miss this match, just awesome. A match where you believe every single thing they did.
IWGP Jr Heavyweight Championship: KUSHIDA defeated Kenny Omega. This was absolutely incredible. Another amazing match and KUSHIDA is the new IWGP Jr champion. These two guys are on top of their game right now. Omega viciously worked over the knee of KUSHIDA after suplexing him knees first into the ring apron. KUSHIDA eventually began to break down the arm of Omega as the match went on. We had some incredible feats of strength from Omega. At one point he powerbombed KUSHIDA using only one arm. Yes, you read that correctly, he used one arm. I can't say enough good things about this match. The way they both sold the body parts and made them matter for everything they did, such as KUSHIDA being unable to bridge and Omega being unable to lift. It was just another incredible match to add to the list of incredible KUSHIDA matches this year. KUSHIDA won when he countered the One Winged Angel into the Hoverboard Lock for the submission win. KUSHIDA is finally the top guy in the NJPW junior division and will next defend against Ricochet.
NEVER Openweight Championship: Togi Makabe defeated Tomohiro Ishii. This was ridiculous. The punishment Ishii took in this match became uncomfortable to watch after a while. The match started with Ishii doing a somersault dive to the floor, almost completely missing Makabe. From there it was a war of slaps, forearms, lariats and stuff suplexes with neither man going down. Mid way through the match it became pretty obvious that Ishii had dislocated his shoulder to the point where he could barely do anything. The match continued and the punishment continued with everything you can imagine. The ringside doctor came close to stopping the match several times until Makabe eventually got the win with the Spider German Suplex and King Kong knee drop. An absolute war!
IWGP Tag Team Championship: Karl Anderson & Doc Gallows defeated Mike Bennett & Matt Taven. Bullet Club are once again IWGP tag champions. The crowd didn't care about this at all unfortunately. There wasn't as much Maria related silliness, but she was involved with Amber Gallows taking her out on the floor as Anderson chased her. Doc Gallows superkicked her off the apron later on in the match. Taven looked really good, and it's strange seeing The Kingdom as the babyfaces. Gallows tossed Taven up in the air as Anderson caught him with a Gun Stun, followed up by the Magic Killer to get the win and the championships.
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Toru Yano. This feud has been far better than it had any right to be. With the way Yano has been stealing wins it made every near fall in this believable. Yano tried every trick in the book. Low blows, pulling the tights, exposed buckles. The ref was knocked down at one point so Yano countered a High Fly Flow by holding up a chair. He then powerbombed Tanahashi onto the Sam chair. Tanahashi did some hair pulling and underhanded tricks of his own. He eventually won after a Slingblade and High Fly Flow. It was what you expected. Tanahashi needed the decisive win heading into the G1.
IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Hirooki Goto defeated Shinsuke Nakamura. This was another awesome match. Nakamura made his entrance dressed as a ninja, just confirming that he is the coolest man on the planet. Nakamura was on fire in this one. Everything he did was great. The story was that Nakamura was using his wackiness to get inside the head of the more serious Goto. They came at each other with everything. Nakamura hit all sorts of knee and kick variations. Nakamura beautifully countered a discus lariat into an armbar and then an triangle choke. Goto kicked out of a Boma Ye which sent the place crazy. Goto then caught Nakamura as he attempted a second Boma Ye and countered in into an Ushikiroshi. Goto headbutted Nakamura's hand as he went for a straight right hand hit another headbutt and the Shouten Kai for the win. This was outstanding, particularly the last few minutes and finishing stretch. Goto should have won and he did. Now Nakamura can move on as a favorite in the G1, while Goto can create a title run of his own.
IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada defeated AJ Styles. We have a new IWGP Heavyweight champion! This was absolutely sensational. The finishing stretch of this match was out of this world. The match started with lots of Bullet Club interference, until referee Red Shoes crotch chopped AJ Styles & BC and told them to suck it, ejecting them from ringside. From there it was a clean one on one match and my god it was incredible. Both guys pulled of moves they have never done before. This was a big time title match with a big atmosphere and it lived up to it. We had some awesome near falls and the last couple of minutes are something everyone needs to see. Okada eventually won after a Rainmaker, a German suplex, holding on to hit another Rainmaker. It might be the most exciting finishing stretch I've ever seen to a match. Just awesome.
This is the best show I've seen all year. Definitely the best NJPW show of the year. There were four or five matches that could be on any match of the year list. So many guys are on top of their game and at their absolute peak as we head into the G1 Climax in a couple of weeks. The show is available now on NJPW World, and now is the time to sign up for it if you have not already.
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