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06/03/24 Results from New Japan's Best of the Super Jr. 31, Finals are set, Preview of Dominion in Osaka from Korakuen Hall, Tokyo Japan:
1 - Kevin Knight, KUSHIDA and Shoma Kato vs. HAYATA, Ninja Mack and Blake Christian
This was a showcase of high flying Jr. Heavyweights.
HAYATA gets an submission win on Kato with a Hammerlock with a bridge.
2 - Kosei Fujita, Robbie Eagles and Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Clark Conners, Drilla Moloney and Gedo
Fujita pins Conners with an O'Conner Roll.
Conners is pissed and stomped on Fujita. Conners poses to the crowd. Fujita takes down Conners and applies the Indian Death Lock submission. Eagles traps Moloney in the Ron Miller Special. ZSJ takes down Gedo by the beard and grabs an ankle lock. Bullet Club is able to escape and Fujita poses with the IWGP Jr. Tag Belts. The new challengers are now established. TMDK celebrate by running through the Korakuen crowd and taking photos with fans.
3 - Yuya Uemura and TAKA Michinoku vs. Great O-Khan and Jeff Cobb
Cobb pins TAKA after a Tour of the Islands.
O-Khan attacks Uemura after the match, but Uemura fights him off. Uemura will defend the KOPW Title against Great O-Khan on June 9.
Tomohiro Ishii comes to the ring and faces off with Jeff Cobb. Both men will face each other for the NJPW World Television Title on June 9.
4 - Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano, Boltin Oleg and Dragon Dia vs. Yota Tsuji, Hiromu Takahashi, BUSHI and Titan
Tsuji pins Yano after hitting the Malo Crash (spring board double stomp off the top rope).
5 - Shingo Takagi and Tetsuya Naito vs. HENARE and Callum Newman
Naito pins Newman with a Destino.
After the match, Takagi and HENARE continue to fight. Both men will fight for the NEVER Openweight Championship.
6 - Ren Narita, Yujiro Takahashi, SHO, Yoshinobu Kanemaru and Dick Togo, with EVIL vs. Shoma Umino, and mystery partners.
EVIL takes the mic saying Umino has no friends. A video plays of Jon Moxley who talks a lot. Which means Moxley is not in the building.
Shota Umino's music plays and he comes to the crowd. Yuji Nagata, Tiger Mask, Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Togi Makabe come out with him.
Umino takes out Narita and Togo with Death Riders. Umino pins Gedo.
Umino takes the mic asks his partners for their support in the future. They all shake hands in the ring. The announcers speak on the older generation passing the torch to the newer generation.
The set up to the tag match made no sense. By advertising and making graphics that Umino had mystery partners, New Japan put out the idea that Jon Moxley could have been there. No disrespect to Umino's partners, but they are not in the main event picture, and are mid-card wrestlers at best. The reveal was a let down in some respect. This was a bait and switch and the match should have been advertised properly. I guess we can assume these men will be lumberjacks in the IWGP World Title match with Moxley vs. EVIL.
Best of the Super Junior 31: Semi-Final Matches:
7 - TJP vs. Taiji Ishimori
No Aswang gimmick for TJP tonight.
Good match. Lots of grappling and chain wrestling to start the match. Ishimori attacks the left arm. TJP hits his high moves. Ishimori goes for a Bloody Cross off the top rope. TJP gets out. Ishimori chops him off the top rope to the floor. TJP gets back in the ring and takes Ishimori off the top with a hurricanrana. TJP with a running knee to the back of the head. Two count. Ishimori hits a high knee strike. Ishimori with La Mistica and a Bone Lock. TJP reverses into Pinoy Stretch. They exchange reversals. TJP hits a lariat. They exchange kicks. TJP with a Thez Press. Two count. TJP hits a Tornado DDT and follows with a Mamba Splash. Ishimori kicks out and TJP applies the Pinoy Stretch. TJP goes for a Bone Lock, but Ishimori reverses into his own Bone Lock. TJP tries to counter out. Ishimori hits a reverse Bloody Cross. He picks up TJP and hits another Bloody Cross.
Ishimori pins TJP.
Taiji Ishimori reaches the Finals of the BOSJ 31.
Last year, Taiji Ishimori broke his neck in the BOSJ 30. This year, he will be wrestling for the BOSJ 31 Trophy.
8 - El Desperado vs. DOUKI
Both men goes for submissions. DOUKI works on Desperado's left arm. Desperado hit a knee breaker and applied an Indian Death Lock. Desperado applies the Stretch Muffler, and tries for Numero Dos. DOUKI counters and connects with strikes. DOUKI hits a Daybreak and applies Italian Stretch No. 32. Desperado gets the ropes. Desperado with a German suplex. They trade strikes. DOUKI applies Italian Stretch No. 32 again. Desperado counters with Jackknife pin. Two count. Desperado hits two Pinche Locos.
Desperado pins DOUKI.
El Desperado will face Taiji Ishimori in the Finals of the BOSJ 31 and the main event of Dominion in Osaka on June 9.
Arguably, the top four Junior Heavyweights in New Japan are Hiromu Takahashi, Master Wato, Taiji Ishimori and El Desperado. This Finals match up is not a surprise. However, DOUKI does deserve a chance at the top, but does not seem to break that top layer.
Preview of New Japan's Dominion in Osaka on June 9, 2024:
IWGP Tag Team Championship and Strong Openweight Tag Team Championship - Four Way Tornado Tag Elimination match: Chase Owens and KENTA vs. El Phantasmo and Hikuleo vs. Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI vs. Mikey Nichols and Shane Haste
This is a cluster match involving two titles. Guerillas of Destiny held both titles earlier in the year, then split it up again. All these men will probably be in the G1 Climax so the tag team titles will not be emphasized as much. Forbidden Door is coming up so El Phantasmo and Hikuleo would be the best team that would appeal to a New York audience.
NJPW World Television Championship: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Jeff Cobb
This is Jeff Cobb's first singles title in New Japan which he won in May 2024. He should not lose it in his first defense.
Provisional KOPW 2024 Championship: Yuya Uemura vs. Great O-Khan
This is also Uemura's first "title" in the company. He is getting pushed so I do not think he should lose this match. O-Khan has helped to build younger talent as they get established in New Japan. This will continue here.
NEVER Openweight Championship: Shingo Takagi vs. HENARE
This will be a fun match. HENARE has had good stiff matches with Takagi and this will be a good one. However, I do not see HENARE taking the title yet. He just came back from life threatening injury. G1 is also coming soon so both men will need to be healthy for that long grind. I see HENARE coming close against Takagi, performing well in the G1 and having another match with Takagi, perhaps at Wrestle Kingdom.
IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Jon Moxley vs. EVIL
The Moxley experiment is over. Roman Reigns caught flack for being World Champion and not being on TV. Same situation. Japanese fans deserve to have a champion being at live shows. EVIL will take the title and House of Torture will rule and create chaos throughout New Japan for the rest of the year, building their heat. Shota Umino is clearly being pushed hard by New Japan, and now by the previous generation of wrestlers. I see Umino winning the G1 Climax and going to Wrestle Kingdom to face EVIL. When Tama Tonga left New Japan early this year, Umino promised him that he would take the NEVER Openweight Title from EVIL. He never fulfilled that promise. They are now setting up Umino to fulfill that promise and finish his story.
Finals of Best of the Super Junior 31: El Desperado vs. Taiji Ishimori
The winner will get a title shot at the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title. Ishimori vs. SHO? Bullet Club vs. Bullet Club? Possible, but not necessarily a draw. El Desperado winning makes sense. El Desperado has an upcoming Pay Per View, the Despe-Invitacional, coming on June 10. Desperado lost the IWGP Jr. Title to SHO at New Beginning in February. Desperado wins the BOSJ 31 and gets his revenge against SHO and takes his title back.
Thank you for reading.
James Kurokawa
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