Section 1- Results
On the undercard: Milano Collection AT cradled and unmasked Tiger Mask, signaling further feuding between them. Team Koshinaka beat Team Akebono to win the butt-battle. Takayama & Suzuki reunited in style by taking down Nagata & Yamamoto. Nakamura’s return was a success as he pinned Choshu in the big tag with some sort of fireman’s carry driver. It’s supposed to be a head drop but came off as an FU, which isn’t exactly a Japan-caliber finishing move.
Title bouts: Kanemoto fended off Minoru Tanaka in the longest IWGP junior title match to date. Tanahashi downed Tenzan in the main event with his newly-minted frogsplash finisher.
Section 2- Da Bizness
Much like with the G-1 final, attendance is hard to guess exactly. It doesn’t help that there was a steady flow of stragglers as the show progressed. Since the announced crowd of 10,000 was obviously inflated, we’re left with visual estimates of anywhere from 6500 to 8500. This would put it at about the level of the G-1 final show, and it tells us a few things. One, this would appear to be the upper range of what New Japan can expect to draw in Tokyo without the use of outside stars associated with dome shows. The G-1 Climax is the top tournament in Japanese wrestling by a long-shot, so between ‘prestige’ and ‘big matches’ New Japan has rolled out its best at the last two Sumo Hall events.
Two, Nakamura’s much-hyped return was not enough by itself to make a significant impact. He was gone eight months, he revamped his physique, he beefed up his moveset, and thus he’s supposed to now have the kind of power to move beyond his underdog-slash-shootfighter match psychology. I get the sense that New Japan was hoping for a situation akin to when Tenzan bulked up overseas and made a big splash in early 1995 by returning as a different man (literally; he shed his real last name for the Tenzan moniker). No dice. That doesn’t mean Nakamura is dead in the water, just that he isn’t an automatic meal-ticket.
Three, a main event with no outsiders can draw better than one with a ‘dream match’ on top. Last year’s March event at Sumo Hall was topped by Nakamura’s attempt to ‘bring home’ the IWGP title from Kojima, who at the time was both IWGP and Triple Crown champion. That show drew about the same amount. This year, Lesnar vs Akebono was supposed to be a cash cow but wound up being a disaster. Tenzan vs Tanahashi was as straightforward as any New Japan big-show main event since Tanahashi vs Nakamura at the 1/4/05 dome. The IWGP champ versus the G-1 winner is one of the company’s annual trademarks and it’s part of why the G-1 matters so much. This sort of match is good for the company both short-term (no big paychecks to cut) and long-term (more spotlight for wrestlers who tour full-time). It’s a lesson New Japan will hopefully take to heart.
Section 3- Even here, a shill
Section 4- What do you do with a Tanahashi?
No, he isn’t setting the world on fire. No, he isn’t a disaster. Tanahashi is somewhere in-between, able to get support from women and kids but not men, able to sell merchandise but not as much as Liger and Choshu, able to have solid matches but rarely bringing the house down. He’s like John Cena but with dramatically less revenue generation. Since he beat Tenzan this is obviously a ‘real’ title reign, and as such it wouldn’t be a bad idea at all for him to have one or more successful title defenses before he’s dethroned.
Three Na-names have surfaced as candidates for the next challenger: Nakamura, Nagata and Nakanishi. Nakamura, with new muscles and moves, has already demanded a shot. Nagata, who is overdue for a shot, beat Tanahashi during the spring NJ Cup tournament. Nakanishi has had just two title shots this decade, and his power would pose a kayfabe threat to Tanahashi. All are NJ loyalists, continuing the trend. It appears there won’t be a 1/4 Tokyo Dome show to disrupt booking plans so that helps the possibility of all three having a go in the coming months. Two shows that could have title bouts on them are left this year: the 29th at Kobe World Hall and 12/10 at Aichi Prefectural Gym. Throw in a probable Sumo Hall event in January or February and you’ve got three defenses spanning the next several months.
Nakanishi would be a token, throwaway title defense better suited for World Hall than Sumo Hall. A good way to pad Tanahashi’s record and boost his credibility as champion. Both Nagata and Nakamura deserve special attention, and either one will be seen as a serious threat to take the title. The chances of Tanahashi surviving both are slim to say the least, and I’d be hesitant to have Tanahashi beat either of them. Nagata deserves another title reign and has done his level best all year; Nakamura with his new hype and muscles can ill-afford to fall on his face right away. Nakamura as the more time-sensitive of the two is thus the person I’d select as the next champion, with long-term build towards Nakamura vs Nagata. Whether that’s what New Japan will actually do, only Choshu knows.
As it stands they have the chance to give the IWGP heavyweight title the most stability it’s had since Nagata’s reign. That would be a welcome change, and it would do plenty to stop the free-fall New Japan has suffered this decade.
