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12/21 NEW JAPAN PRO WRESTLING ROAD TO TOKYO DOME AT KORAKUEN HALL REPORT

12/21/23 Results from New Japan's Road to Tokyo Dome from Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan:

Masked Horse, who was Ryusuke Taguchi under a mask, came to the ring to open the show to give New Japan merchandise away to the crowd.

The show began with a memorial to Osamu Kido, a wrestler that wrestled in New Japan in 1972.  Kido passed on December 11, 2023 due to cancer.   Hiroshi Tanahashi stood in the ring with a giant photo of Kido.  All the wrestlers, led by Okada, came out to surround the ring and made a 10 bell salute.  

1 - Masked Boltin and Masked Horse vs. Tiger Mask and Toru Yano

Boltin was dressed in a mask and red tights, not just Young Lion black trunks.

Masked Horse pinned Tiger Mask with the Kido Clutch.

2 - Oskar Leube and Yuto Nakashima vs. Kosei Fujita and Zack Sabre Jr.

ZSJ forces Oskar to tap out to a choke submission.

ZSJ showed his dominance in this match, sending a message to Tanahashi.

3 - Callum Newman, Francesco Akira and TJP vs. Gedo, Drilla Moloney and Clark Conners

War Dogs bring a coffin to the ring,  TJP and Akira have said that Catch 22 will never die.  War Dogs are playing mind games based on that statement and say they will bury Catch 22.

Akira and TJP hit 2X2 on Gedo and TJP pins Gedo.

After the match, Drilla and Conners beat down United Empire.   TJP grabs the mic and challenge War Dogs to a Coffin Match in Korakuen Hall tomorrow night.  War Dogs accepts.

4 - Master Wato, Tomoaki Honma and Shota Umino vs. SHO, Ren Narita and EVIL

Narita comes to the ring with a black robe looking like a Sith Lord.  

Narita immediately goes to the floor to avoid Umino.  They take the fight into the crowd.

Honma and EVIL are battling in the ring.   Narita hits Honma in the back with a wooden push up bar from the New Japan Dojo.   

EVIL hits Everything is Evil on Honma and gets the pin.

House of Torture attack the babyfaces and stomp on Umino.   Kaito Kiyomiya and Ryohei Oiwa make the save.   Narita and Umino continue their fight.  Umino hits a dropkick on Narita and goes for Death Rider, but Narita escapes.   Kiyomiya offers a handshake to Umino and he accepts.

Potential tease for a match between Kiyomiya, Oiwa and Umino against House of Torture at either Wrestle Kingdom or New Year's Dash.

5 - Satoshi Kojima and El Desperado vs. Shingo Takagi and Hiromu Takahashi

Takagi pins Kojima after a Pumping Bomber.

6 - DOUKI, Yuya Uemura and SANADA vs. BUSHI, Yota Tsuji and Tetsuya Naito

Uemura pins BUSHI with the Deadbolt Suplex.

7 - KOWP 2023 Provisional Match - Whiskey Bottle Ladder Match:   Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Taichi

A whiskey bottle will be in a bag hanging above the ring.   Whoever retrieves the bottle can use it on his opponent.

Kanemaru was able to get the bottle and spray Taichi in the eyes.   Taichi fought out of a figure four and hit a Dangerous Backdrop.  Lights go out and House of Torture hits the ring and they beat down Taichi.  Yujiro and Narita bring out bottles of whiskey and pour it into a bucket.   They dump Taichi's dead into the bucket, trying to drown him.   The rest of Just 5 Guys come to the ring.  

Taichi hits two Ax Bombers.  Taichi with another Dangerous Backdrop.   Two count.   Crowd is chanting for Taichi.   Kanemaru hits a low blow and follows with a brainbuster.  Kanemaru puts Taichi on a ladder and hits a moonsault.  Kanemaru goes for a pin but Taichi kicks out.  Kanemaru goes for Deep Impact off the ladder but Tachi gets his knees up and low blows Kanemaru.

Kanemaru goes for the whisky bucket, but Taichi kicks it into his face.   Taichi hits the Tensho Jujihou and follows with Black Mephisto.

Taichi pins Kanemaru.

Taichi retains the KOPW 2023 Provisional Title.

8 - NEVER Openweight 6-man Tag Team Championship Match:   HENARE, Jeff Cobb and Great O-Khan vs. Tomohiro Ishii, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada  

Good match.  HENARE looked great in this match.  A chunk of the match was HENARE and Ishii beating each other to a pulp.

Ishii pins HENARE after a brainbuster.

Ishii, Tanahashi and Okada retain the NEVER Openweight 6-man Titles.

The announcers were putting over Ishii, Tanahashi and Okada as the greatest singles wrestlers to hold the NEVER 6-man titles.    I still think United Empire should have won.   Tanahashi and Okada have their matches at Wrestle Kingdom.  United Empire and Ishii still have no matches on January 4 at the Tokyo Dome yet.  They will all be in a Rambo match at the start of Wrestle Kingdom to crown a new KOPW 2024 Champion.

Thank you for reading.

 

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