Category: New Japan Pro Wrestling

NJPW Dominion Results 6/9/18, Kenny Omega And Okada Wrestle A Classic, Naito Vs. Chris Jericho

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IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: (C) El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Roppongi 3K – Winners: El Desperado & Yoshinobu Desperado

David Finlay & Juice Robinson vs. YOSHI-HASHI & Jay White – Winner: Juice Robinson & David Finlay

Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Zack Sabre Jr. & Minoru Suzuki – Winners: Zack Sabre Jr. & Minoru Suzuki

NEVER Openweight Championship: (C) Hirooki Goto vs. Michael Elgin vs. Taichi – Winner: Michael Elgin via Pinfall to win the NEVER Openweight Championship

IWGP Tag Team Championship: (C) EVIL and SANADA vs. The Young Bucks – Winners: The Young Bucks via Pinfall to win the IWGP Tag Team Championship

Rey Mysterio, Jushin Thunder Liger & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Marty Scurll, Hangman Page & Cody – Winners: Cody, Marty Scurll & Hangman Page

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: (C) Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi – Winner: Hiromu Takahashi via Pinfall to win the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship

IWGP Intercontinental Championship: (C) Tetsuya Naito vs. Chris Jericho – Winner: Chris Jericho via Pinfall to win the IWGP Intercontinental Championship

https://twitter.com/MrLARIATO/status/1005389043302129666

IWGP Heavyweight Championship (No Time Limit/2 of 3 Falls): (C) Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega – Winner: Kenny Omega via 2 falls to 1 to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship

https://twitter.com/MrLARIATO/status/1005413619457290242

Post-match, Omega hugs the Young Bucks who are now in the ring and also Ibushi. Omega thanks the fans and wants to take NJPW to the next level. Omega says people told him to be different, take the pay check, be “tranquilo” (crowd pops for that), but he’s here to change the world with his best friends. He says goodbye and good night, but out comes Cody for a moment. Crowd boos. Cody heads towards the ring, turns around, and then heads to the back. Bucks lift Omega on their shoulders and Omega goes around to shake hands with some of the fans.

NJPW Dominion 6/9/18

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NJPW Dominion will take place this Saturday at 3am ET.

IWGP Heavyweight Championship (No Time Limit/2 of 3 Falls): (C) Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega

IWGP Intercontinental Championship: (C) Tetsuya Naito vs. Chris Jericho

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: (C) Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi

IWGP Tag Team Championship: (C) EVIL and SANADA vs. The Young Bucks

NEVER Openweight Championship: (C) Hirooki Goto vs. Michael Elgin vs. Taichi

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: (C) El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Roppongi 3K

Rey Mysterio, Jushin Thunder Liger & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Marty Scurll, Hangman Page & Cody

David Finlay & Juice Robinson vs. YOSHI-HASHI & Jay White

Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Zack Sabre Jr. & Minoru Suzuki

 

We probably will not have the results posted until some time Monday.

Xavier Woods And Kenny Omega To Battle In Street Fighter Showdown At E3

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WWE.com posted the following:

Xavier Woods and independent wrestling star Kenny Omega have been engaging in a heated war of words on social media over who’s better at Street Fighter. The two rivals will converge at the Capcom booth during the E3 video game conference next Thursday to settle the score in a battle for supremacy.

The two have engaged in arcade fighting showdowns in the past, but the heat turned up once again on their rivalry when “The Cleaner” posted a video to Twitter, showing off his Street Fighter skills while calling out The New Day’s resident trombonist.

Woods didn’t take Omega’s insults lightly, firing right back at his rival.

Though Woods had to put the war of words on the backburner Tuesday night – The New Day were victorious in a Six-Man Tag Team Match on SmackDown LIVE – the fine people at Capcom, the makers of Street Fighter, interjected that they would be more than happy to facilitate a battle between the two. Both Woods and Omega took part in a verbal contract signing on the Street Fighter Twitter, in which neither man pulled any punches:

After some choice words from “The Cleaner,” the ground rules have been laid down for this struggle for supremacy, and Woods and Omega won’t be alone in this battle. Each man will select two partners, making this a 3-on-3 showdown in Street Fighter V. Woods is extremely confident in his partners, who have yet to be revealed, while claiming that Omega won’t be able to find anybody to meet the challenge.

Who will Woods and Omega choose as their partners? Keep your eyes on social media to find out, then tune in to CapcomFighters next Thursday to see who will emerge as the elite Street Fighter player!

NJPW Star Tomoaki Honma Announces Return To Ring After Career-Threatening Injury

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In March of 2017, former IWGP Tag Team Champion Tomoaki Honma suffered a career-threatening injury after being the recipient of a draping DDT by Jado during a six-man tag team match. Following the move, the match was immediately stopped due to Honma being unable to move anything from the neck down. It was later reported that he had injured his cervical vertebrae, and had to stay in the hospital for nearly four months.

Following the injury, Honma was forced to forfeit his opportunity at the IWGP Tag Team Championship, and New Japan stated that his in-ring return is “tentative.” Thankfully, days after the injury, Nikkan Sports reported that he was able to regain movement of lower limbs, and “grasp objects on the upper extremities.” Still, it was reported that Honma was “recovering a lot,” and a return to the ring was undetermined. In November, Honma was training and taking bumps again in hopes for an in-ring return soon.

Fifteen months later, Honma has fully recovered, as he appeared at the block finals of the NJPW Best of the Super Juniors tournament and issued an open challenge for any tag team to compete against him and Togi Makabe at the Kizuna Road show on June 23rd in Yamagata.

With over 20 years in the pro wrestling business, the 41-year-old Honma has competed for various promotions in Japan, most notably Big Japan, All Japan, New Japan, and Pro Wrestling NOAH. In February of 2007, Honma joined NJPW’s G.B.H. (Great Bash Heel) faction, and stayed loyal to the group until it dissolved. G.B.H. reformed in 2013 with Honma and former leader Makabe, feuding with CHAOS and Bullet Club.

At Wrestle Kingdom 10, Honma won his first title in New Japan, as he and Makabe defeated Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows for the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. They retained the titles for three months before losing them to Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa at Invasion Attack.

Source: WrestlingINC

Kenny Omega To Be In Street Fighter V Video Game

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Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition is due out on June 26 and Kenny Omega will be playing as the live action actor of one of the characters in the game, Cody, the new mayor of Metro City. In the video above, you can see Omega involved as part of the video game’s promotion and what his character is like in the game.

On Twitter, Omega commented on the role that he kept very close to the chest.

Wrestling fans have been making jokes about Omega playing this character due to the name and somewhat similar resemblance to Cody Rhodes. It should be noted the “Cody” in Street Fighterhas been a playable character since the late 90s.

Source: WrestlingINC

NJPW “G1 Special In San Francisco” To Air Live On AXS TV

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AXS TV announced NJPW‘s “G1 Special in San Francisco” will air live on July 7.

The press release states:

“The event marks NJPW’s most ambitious foray into the U.S. market to date, with a crowd of over 10,000 expected at the historic Cow Palace in Daly City, California. Wrestling Hall of Famer Jim Rossand former UFC Heavyweight Champion and NJPW veteran Josh Barnett will call the action ringside as the best wrestlers in the world, including “The Rainmaker” Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega, Tetsuya Naito, Hiroshi Tanahashi, enter the ring …”

“G1 Special in San Francisco” begins at 8pm ET / 5pm PT.

“As New Japan Pro Wrestling continues their U.S. expansion, we are proud to provide a platform for NJPW and TV Asahi to bring their electrifying events to as many fans as possible through our live, primetime broadcasts,” said AXS TV Fights CEO Andrew Simon. “The Cow Palace has a rich history of major pro wrestling events and we are excited to continue that tradition with our presentation of the G1 Special in San Francisco.”

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

John Morrison Interested In Signing With NJPW

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New Japan Pro Wrestling is continuing to gain popularity as a promotion. Although the company has been in operation since 1972, it has only been the past few years that they have made such a strong American presence. For years, NJPW has partnered with American promotions such as the NWA and Ring of Honor, even featuring these promotions and the NWA and ROH World Championships on their annual Wrestle Kingdom pay-per-view.

However, due to the ongoing western popularity, New Japan had their first American independent event last year, G1 Special in USA, which crowned Kenny Omega as the inaugural IWGP United States Champion after winning an eight-man tournament. Since then, the promotion announced two more U.S. events, Strong Style Evolved which occurred on March 25, and G1 Special in San Francisco, scheduled for July 7.

With the influx of gaijin (non-Japanese, or “foreign”) wrestlers now frequently competing in New Japan, such as Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, Cody, Will Ospreay, Marty Scurll, Juice Robinson, Michael Elgin, Zack Sabre, Jr., Jay White, Bad Luck Fale, Killer Elite Squad, Beretta, and more, other names have become interested in joining the promotion. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, former Intercontinental Champion John Morrison has inquired to New Japan to compete for the company.

Morrison, 38, left WWE in 2011. Since then, he has competed for a number of promotions, primarily Impact Wrestling, Lucha Underground, and AAA. According to the Observer, Morrison’s relationship with AAA may cause a snag in being able to join New Japan. There had been some interest previously, but this same issue kept him from joining the New Japan roster. New Japan typically does not use anyone from the AAA roster, due to their working relationship with CMLL. However, New Japan executives have seemingly softened their restrictions on the AAA ban, since Rey Mysterio is competing for both promotions.

Source: WrestlingINC

Chris Jericho Cuts Foul-Mouthed Tirade Against Tetsuya Naito At NJPW BOTSJ

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Over the past couple months, Chris Jericho has attacked Tetsuya Naito twice from behind, first at New Year Dash and then at Wrestling Dontaku. Earlier today at NJPW BOTSJ (Night 4) IWGP Intercontinental Championship Tetsuya Naito and BUSHI defeated Tiger Mask and Toa Henare in a tag match. Afterwards, the lights went out and Chris Jericho popped up on the screen to cut a promo on his upcoming opponent at Dominion. Just a note, the video above is not safe for work.

“Naito, I read all of the things you’re saying about me,” Jericho said. “I know how you really feel and listen, you are one of the greatest performers in the world today. One of the biggest stars in NJPW, but to me you mean as much as this turtle.”

Jericho was outside and actually showed a turtle that he came across. He then continued on about taking Naito’s title away from him.

“Naito, I’m gonna f— you up! I’m going to take your Intercontinental Championship from you, not because you wanted it, you don’t want it, you’re too tranquilo. I’m not tranquilo,” Jericho scoffed. “I’m f—— crazy! I’m gonna show you just how crazy I can be at Dominion on June 9. I’ve been waiting for six months to get my hands on your stupid filthy head. Yeah, Los Ingobernables de Japon. Kiss my f—– ass!”

Naito had recently said in an interview he was, “superior” to Jericho, aside from name recognition, Jericho responded to that as well.

“You’re the best New Japan has to offer, but I’ve seen pieces of s— like you come and go, year after year, and guess what? Chris Jericho is still here,” Jericho continued. “The Alpha is still here. … I’m gonna make your famous Naito, when I beat your f—– ass at Dominion, take the Intercontinental Championship away from you, away from those filthy animals in Japan and take it back to the United States where it belongs. Be careful what you wish for junior because it’s going to come true. I’ll see you on June 9th at Dominion, f— face!”

When cameras cut back to Naito in the ring, he was relaxing on the mat (seemingly taking a nap) and cut a promo (translation by Chris Charlton).

https://twitter.com/reasonjp/status/998875727503097857

Source: WrestlingINC

NJPW President Wants To ‘Trouble WWE’

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As noted, New Japan Pro Wrestling has hired a new President, Harold Meij. At 54 years old, Meij (Dutch) will be the first NJPW President who is not Japanese. Previously, he held the role of CEO for TOMY, a Japanese toy company, and has lived in Japan for over 30 years. Meij began with TOMY in 2014 and took the company from its biggest loss year to the most profitable ever in 2017. In an interview (translation by Chris Charlton), Meij is looking to expand the company globally and said in three years he wants NJPW to bring in about $90 million in sales. In regards to WWE, “Long term, I want us to trouble WWE. If you just look at our product you’ll see that’s not out of the question.”

Source: WrestlingINC

New Japan Pro Wrestling Hires New President

According to Tokyo Sports (translation by @EvanDeadlySinsW), New Japan Pro Wrestling has hired a new President, Harold Meij. At 54 years old, Meij (Dutch) will be the first NJPW President who is not Japanese, replacing Katsuhiko Harada.

Previously, he held the role of CEO for TOMY, a Japanese toy company, and has lived in Japan for over 30 years. Meij began with TOMY in 2014 and took the company from its biggest loss year to the most profitable ever in 2017.

Bushiroad President (parent owner of NJPW) Takaaki Kidani decided to bring him into the wrestling fold and Meij is scheduled to begin his duties next month.

Source: WrestlingINC