Section 1- Results
All Japan: Two title matches, two defenses. Sasaki & Nakajima beat Bull & D-Lo to keep the All Asia titles, while TAKA extended his reign to 12 title defenses by beating PSYCHO. TAKA’s next opponent is Kondo, and Kaz Hayashi is lined up to face the winner. The Dudleys got a ‘We Want Tables’ chant from the Korakuen crowd in their debut.
Dragon Gate: TAKA got a non-title win over CIMA on Wednesday.
New Japan: Tanahashi & Nakamura defended the tag titles in Mexico, though it was against Bucanero & Olympico instead of GDI. The junior tag titles were also defended, though Anzawa did well in his first title match.
WRESTLE-1: Their second show drew just 8,000 for a fairly loaded (and VERY expensive) card. In the second round of the tournament Muta beat Sasaki, Sapp beat Akiyama, and Suzuki and Jamal also advanced. Misawa & Ogawa beat Akebono & Scorpio, but surprisingly it was Akebono who did the job to the elbow of death.
Section 2- News
All Japan: Steady yourselves, the next Triple Crown challenger is the almighty A-Train! That match happens on 10/18. TAKA vs Kondo will be on 10/22.
Dragon Gate: The trios belts will be on the line at the cross-promotional juniors show on the 15th. CIMA, Magnitude & Yoshino defend the titles against TAKA, Dick Togo & Gamma (formerly of Osaka Pro). Meanwhile, Magnitude is in line for a title shot in Osaka, most likely on 11/4.
New Japan: A flurry of matchmaking has taken place over the last week for the Tokyo Dome show on Saturday. The junior tag titles will be defended against lucha legend Negro Casas and his partner Felino. Team Muga (Fujinami & Nishimura) go to war with Team Lariat-Ism (Choshu & Ishii). Finally, two NJ vs Zero-One matches are in the works. The juniors start things off with Kanemoto & Inoue vs Takaiwa & Yoshito Sasaki. Then a big heavyweight 8-man of Tenzan, Yoshie, Iizuka & Naofumi ‘Job Fodder’ Yamamoto against Otani, Sato, Sai & Kamikaze. Kanemoto versus Sasaki was also signed for Zero-One’s show on Monday. Nakamura & Tanahashi won’t be defending the titles when they take on Kawada and Yoji Anjo.
NOAH: Four title matches have been signed. Yone’s next openweight title match is against Scorpio on 10/22. KENTA’s junior title will be up for grabs against Mushiking Terry (aka Kotaro Suzuki) on 10/28. The tag titles are at stake twice, much like two years ago. On 10/28, Suzuki & Marufuji have their defense against Morishima & Yone. Then at the 11/5 Budokan show, the winners take on Shibata & KENTA! That’s the one I’m looking forward to.
Section 3- Shin Nihon Promess
It’s not that NOAH’s card was one hit after another, because it wasn’t. It’s not that NOAH’s card packed the house completely, because it didn’t. And it’s not that NOAH’s card has been used as a springboard for the future, because it completely hasn’t (Sasaki and Kawada haven’t returned yet). But on every level, from ticket sales to booking continuity to fan interest to probable quality to long-term prospects, NOAH’s 7/18 show was miles ahead of what New Japan is presenting in just three short days. Two and a half when you account for time zones.
Where to begin? How about the junior titles. Negro Casas is a legend, but he’s done next to nothing in Japan for the last decade. Clearly there won’t be a title change, there was no buildup at all, and there’s very little chance that these four wrestlers can mesh enough to have a good bout. Tiger Mask versus Black Tiger got essentially no response five months ago, and with Black Tiger using the long-dead (in Japan) tombstone as a finisher there’s not much chance that they can build drama. Tiger Mask has been a lackluster champion in every respect and has been incredibly bland since joining NJ full-time.
How about the Zero-One feud? That’s wonderful, New Japan is going to take on a promotion that struggles to sell out Korakuen and hasn’t drawn 5,000 with its current roster *ever*. Zero-One was Hashimoto and Naoya Ogawa during its main run, with other guys as also-rans. They never elevated Otani or Tanaka during the first four years of the promotion, so when it re-started it was a C-level fed. This feud made nice flashy headlines at the onset but won’t get serious heat outside Korakuen and won’t add significant ticket sales anywhere. Otani can be phenomenal as a performer but he’s no better for drawing in a main event than NJ midcarders like Nakanishi or Nishimura.
Speaking of Nishimura, he’s in a tag with Fujinami against Choshu and Ishii (who has essentially zero name value; I’d bet you don’t know him). Choshu isn’t a draw anymore, Fujinami is a mediocre novelty act, and Nishimura is floundering. This is yet another match that doesn’t add to the draw, won’t be particularly good, and won’t produce any interest in upcoming tours. And I can only imagine how much Choshu cost, because he had to be brought in last-minute when Misawa refused to work the show (NOAH’s tour opener is next door at Korakuen the same night). Nakamura and Tanahashi are facing Kawada and Anjo, and having a match like that announced last-minute is total amateur-hour stuff. Plus Anjo is worthless on every level but comedy.
The Team Japan vs ex-WWE bouts are flat-out pathetic as part of a Dome card. Jindrak, Morgan and Haas were mid-card in WWE at best, and jobbers at their worst, and not even on TV for very long. Team Japan is a heel stable, so having them in the ‘native’ role goes against the last few months of booking. Haas can work a match, but Jindrak and Morgan will need to be carried. None of Nakanishi, Kashin and Nagata are able to ‘carry’ at this point. Maybe these three will become regular gaijin, so building them might be somewhat worth it, but not in such a featured role when dealing with unestablished stars. Knowing New Japan they’re just as likely to never be seen again.
And then there’s the main event. Why isn’t it drawing? Well for starters, Fujita’s drawing power is mostly spent after the IWGP debacle last year with Sasaki and the emotional G-1 final with Chono. A Fujita/Chono match might sell out Sumo Hall, but it’s a really weak Dome main event. Lesnar is worthy of a title match, and is the type of WWE star they can push as a headliner, but he’s been out for the last year and has had very little exposure in Japan. The 3-way concept isn’t over in Japan, and to the extent that it’s used to protect the loser it diminishes fan interest. The total is less than the sum of its parts, like most 3-ways over the years. Put this on top of a solid card and it isn’t so bad, but when it’s yet another match that falls short of efficiently utilizing high-price non-regular wrestlers it comes off as one last bit of incompetence.
With the same amount of money being shelled out, New Japan could have gotten a nice mix of headline-grabbing and tour-building matches that when taken in full would be considered a top-tier card by Japanese wrestling fans. As usual New Japan gets too cutesy, too conceptual, and forgets too much about their own product to come close to a sell-out. Maybe they had that luxury a few years ago, but with NOAH’s July show getting rave reviews this sort of card could cost New Japan its image as the top dog in Nippon.
They haven’t even sold enough tickets to fill Sumo Hall at this point, and are giving them away left and right. According to Zach Arnold, only 7,000 tickets were sold as of a week ago. If they can get 25,000 people in attendance between paid and free it will be a miracle. It isn’t even out of the question that New Japan’s three dome shows this year won’t sell as many tickets as NOAH’s one. Such a situation would have been unthinkable ten years ago. Then again, Shinya Hashimoto leaving New Japan and dying at age 40 would be unthinkable as well.
I ain’t deciphering this disasterpiece.
