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NJW DOMINION 2023 - Osaka, Japan:
It was announced earlier this week that Yota Tsuji has joined Los Ingobernales de Japon.
1 - IWGP U.S. Heavyweight Number One Contender: Will Ospreay vs. Lance Archer
Ospreay has his injured shoulder taped up.
Archer immediately attacked and sends Ospreay to the floor. Ospreay hits a flying elbow and twisting moonsault off the top rope. Ospreay hits an Oscutter. Two count. Archer counters a Hidden Blade with lariat. They exchange strikes. Archer with a running cannonball off the apron to the floor.
Archer goes for a Black Out but Ospreay punches his way out and hits a Spanish Fly. Ospreay goes to the top rope but Archer hits a high knee strike and follows with a Black Out. Ospreay kicks out.
Archer goes for a moonsault but Ospreay hits a super kick. Ospreay tried lift Archer but his shoulder was hurting. Archer with a choke slam. Two count. Ospreay hits two quick kicks and a Hidden Blade. Archer kicks out at one. Ospreay follows with two Hidden Blades to the face. Ospreay hits a 4th Hidden Blade.
Ospreay pins Archer.
Will Ospreay is the Number One Contender to the IWGP U.S. Heavyweight Title.
Ospreay takes the mic and thanks Lance Archer. Crowd pops for Archer. Ospreay challenges Kenny Omega for the belt at Forbidden Door in Canada.
2 - BUSHI, Titan, Shingo Takagi and Tetsuya Naito vs. DOUKI, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, TAKA Michinoku and Taichi
Titan hit a double stomp on TAKA.
Titan forced TAKA to tap out after Inmortal.
With Just 5 Guys having momentum after SANADA’s World Title win, LIJ seems to get some buzz with Tsuji joining them. I hope Just 5 Guys do not become just jobbers.
3 - IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: TJP and Francesco Akira vs. Kevin Knight and KUSHIDA
Dan Moloney comes to the ring with Catch 22.
Fast paced match, both teams moving at full speed. Catch 22 hit a 2x2 on KUSHIDA. Knight breaks it up. They exchange near falls. Catch 22 hit a Leaning Tower on Knight. They followed with another 2X2.
Akira pins Knight.
Catch 22 win the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.
Clark Conners comes to ring. He teases a Bullet Club member to follow. Moloney attacks TJP and Akira. Conners hits a powerslam on Akira. Moloney hits the Drilla Killa on Akira. Conners hits No Chaser on TJP.
With Taiji Ishimori out with an injury, Bullet Club needed a new Jr. heavyweight in their ranks. So the turn makes sense.
4 - NJPW World Television Championship: Jeff Cobb vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
They begin with running attacks. Cobb tried power attacks. Zack going for submissions. Zack with a neck wrench and a dropkick. They trade strikes. Zack tried to tie up Cobb in knots but Cobb uses his power to escape. Zack would reverse out of Cobb’s moves and apply a submission hold and Cobb would toss him around the ring. Cobb caught Zack with an O’Conner Roll. Two count. Cobb hit a Spin Cycle. Then a Deadlift German. Cobb went for a Tour of the Islands, but Zack counters into a crucifix.
Zack pins Cobb.
Zack Sabre Jr. retains the NJPW World Television Championship.
This is the 10th successful defense of the Television Title since Zack Sabre Jr. won the title in January.
5 - IWGP Heavy Tag Team Championship and New Japan Strong Tag Team Championship: YOSHI-HASHI and Hirooki Goto vs. Yujiro Takahashi and EVIL vs. Aaron Henare and Great O-Khan
House of Torture attacks United Empire on the way to the ring. Fights everywhere. SHO and Dick Togo constantly interfering at ringside. EVIL and Yujiro take control of YOSHI-HASHI. No one is even tagging in and out. Too much plunder everywhere. Henare hit a high knee into EVIL’s face. O-Khan picks up EVIL in a back suplex and then throws him to Henare who hits a Bezerker Bomb. Two count. O-Khan and Henare trap Yujiro in a Sheep Killer. O-Khan drops an elbow and goes for a pin. Togo pulls the referee out of the ring.
Crowd goes ballistic on Togo. SHO hits a German suplex on Henare and hits a low blow on O-Khan. EVIL hits a Magic Killer on Goto. Two count. YOH hits the ring and takes out SHO. Togo hits Goto with a chair. Henare hits a running knee strike on Yujiro. Henare with a Rampage on Goto. Henare goes for Streets of Rage but YOSHI-HASHI hits a superkick. Yujiro throws YOSHI-HASHI to the floor and hits Pimp Juice on Goto. Two count. More chaos in the ring. Goto hits a bulldog from the top rope on Yujiro. Bishomon hits Shoto on Yujiro.
Goto pins Yujiro.
Bishomon win the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team and New Japan Strong Tag Team Championships.
A video plays for Bullet Club War Dogs. Alex Coughlin and Gabriel Kidd come to the ring wearing Bullet Club shirts. They attack Bishomon. Coughlin hits a Jackhammer on Goto. Kidd with a Tombstone on YOSHI-HASHI.
Lots of swearing and cussing by Kidd and Coughlin. Conners and Moloney did the same as well. David Finlay swears constantly at fans. This is the direction of Bullet Club now being overrun with dirty mouth gaijin. It is a cheap way to build heat in Japan where the fans will be respectful to wrestlers. These quick surprises are being done with no build or story development of these new talents. They are just being thrown into the mix.
This pattern sounds familiar. Especially on Wednesdays
They announce participants of G1 Climax 33:
1. Kazuchika Okada
2. Tetsuya Naito
3. SANADA
4. Will Ospreay
5. Hiroshi Tanahashi
6. David Finlay
7. Shota Umino
8. Shingo Takagi
9. Tomohiro Ishii
10. Tama Tonga
11. Tanga Loa
12. Hikuleo
13. Hirooki Goto
14. YOSHI-HASHI
15. Toru Yano
16. KENTA
17. Zack Sabre Jr.
18. Taichi
19. Eddie Kingston
20. El Phantasmo
21. Ren Narita
22. EVIL
23. Chase Owens
24. Jeff Cobb
25. Great O-Khan
26. Aaron Henare
27. Gabriel Kidd
28. Alex Coughlin
29. Shane Haste
30. Mikey Nichols
31. Yota Tsuji
32. Kaito Kiyomiya (Big pop from crowd)
6 - NEVER Openweight Championship: El Phantasmo vs. David Finlay
New music for the Head Banger.
Finlay comes to the ring with Gedo, Conners, Moloney, Kidd and Coughlin.
Finlay tries to attack and they fight to the floor. ELP hits a tope suicida and sends Finlay over the guardrail. ELP hits a plancha off the top rope over the guardrail on Finlay and into the crowd. They exchange strikes in the ring. ELP gets distracted by Bullet Club and Finlay beats him with punches.
Finlay gets a table. But is not able to use as they fight back into the ring. Finlay brutalized ELP with elbows, strikes and kicks. ELP fights back and they trade slaps and chops. Finlay with a Blue Thunder Bomb. Two count. ELP counters with a lariat. Finlay with a Dominator. Two count. ELP hits Sudden Death. Two count. ELP with an inverted Death Valley Driver. ELP hits a moonsault on half of Bullet Club. He hits a senton on the other half and hits Sudden Death on Gedo.
ELP goes back to the top rope but Finlay pushes him to the floor. Finlay powerbombs ELP through the table. Finlay hits another powerbomb and finally Into Oblivion.
Finlay pins ELP.
David Finlay retains the NEVER Openweight Championship.
7 - IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Master Wato vs. Hiromu Takahashi
They go to the floor and Hiromu bounced Wato off the guardrails. Fast paced start. Hiromu suplexes Wato on the ramp way. Wato beats to count back to the ring. Wato sends Hiromu to the floor and hits a tope con hilo. Wato throws him in ring and goes for Vendeval. Hiromu gets the ropes.
Hiromu hits a Falcon Arrow. Wato applies Vendeval. Hiromu gets the ropes. Pace picks up. Hiromu with a Dynamite Plunger. Two count. Wato with a TTD. Two count. Wato with Recientemente. Two count. Wato applies Vendeval. Hiromu gets the ropes. They trade kicks. Wato hits a high kick then the Tsutenkaku German. Hiromu kicks out. The crowd thought Wato won.
Hiromu surprises Wato with the Hiromu Roll. Two count. Hiromu hits Time Bomb. Two count. Hiromu hits a lariat and Time Bomb II.
Hiromu pins Wato.
Hiromu Takahashi retains the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship.
8 - NEVER Openweight 6-man Tag Team Championship: Shota Umino, Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli vs. Tomohiro Ishii, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada
This match should have been earlier in the card but Claudio Castagnoli had travel issues.
Crowd pops for Claudio and Tanahashi starting the match. Good wrestling between these wrestlers. The match quickly got out of hand as every one fights in all around ringside. Umino and Okada paired off and destroyed the guardrails. Crowd pops for everything that Claudio did in the ring. Barely any tags so the action was quick. Moxley and Ishii paired off and traded strikes. Ishii hit a head butt which busted Moxley open. Moxley hit a curb stomp on Ishii. Okada breaks it up. Action is everywhere. Moxley shows a double middle finger to the crowd and goes for Ishii. Tanahashi hits a Slingblade on Moxley and Ishii follows with a sliding lariat. Two count. Moxley hits a Cutter on Ishii but Ishii hits a lariat. Both make a tag finally to Okada and Umino. Okada locks the Money Clip on. Umino gets to the ropes and Okada starts slapping like he was child.
Claudio attacks Okada and puts him in the big swing. They hit a triple power bomb on Okada (just like the Shield used to). Ishii breaks it up. Moxley with a tope suicida to Ishii on. the floor. Umino with a running spinning neck breaker on Okada. Umino goes for Death Rider, but Okada escapes and hits a dropkick. Okada goes for the Rainmaker but Umino reverses and hits Death Rider II. Okada kicks out.
Everyone hits their moves in the ring. Okada hits an elevated DDT on Umino. Two count. Okada hits the Landslide and follows with the Rainmaker.
Okada pins Umino.
Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Tomohiro Ishii retain the NEVER Openweight 6-man Tag Titles.
Moxley takes the mic and says the Blackpool Combat Club brings a message. A video plays of Bryan Danielson who challenges
Okada to a match. The Osaka crowd starts chanting “Yes Yes Yes”.
Okada accepts the challenge and he will make it rain at Forbidden Door.
Another match is set for the dream match event of the summer.
9 - IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Yota Tsuji vs. SANADA
Both men have their factions at ringside. Big pop from the crowd for Tsuji.
They locked up and Tsuji grabbed a headlock. Tsuji moved very methodically in the ring. SANADA pushed him off into the ropes. SANADA tried a leapfrog but Tsuji hit a spear. Everyone popped as SANADA went to the floor. They popped louder as Tsuji hit a somersault press over the top rope to the floor. Tsuji tried another spear but SANADA hit a knee to the face. Tsuji charged but SANADA grabbed him in a front face lock. SANADA reverses into a Dragon Sleeper then Skull End. SANADA goes for a moonsault but Tsuji gets the knees up.
They trade strikes and chops. Tsuji with a tilt a whirl back breaker. Tsuji gets him in a Boston Crab. Tsuji goes for his own moonsault but SANADA moves. SANADA hits two dropkicks and a plancha to the floor. SANADA with another dropkick but Tsuji hits a super kick of his own.
They trade chops. Tsuji hits a stomp and picks up SANADA into a suplex powerbomb move. Two count. Tsuji hits a Spanish Fly from the top rope. Two count.
They blocked each others moves. SANADA went for Dead Fall, but Tsuji spun out of it. Tsuji with a super kick, high knee and a headbutt. Tsuji hits another curb stomp. Tsuji went for a spear but SANADA hit a dropkick in the face. SANADA hits a moonsault and a Shining Wizard. SANADA hits Dead Fall.
SANADA pins Tsuji.
SANADA retains the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship.
After the match, Los Ingobernales leave ringside without helping their new teammate. Hmmmm.
SANADA tells Tsuji to work hard and he will see him again soon. SANADA promises to win the G1 Climax.
The match was fine. Tsuji has promise. He is more athletic than when he was on New Japan World as a young lion. But he kept going for the spear so much. He cannot rely on that all the time.
Next month, the G1 Climax will begin.
Thank you for reading.
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