The Natural Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr, 11th February at NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka. Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr at AEW WrestleDream 2023 was ***** and my 2023 MOTY. Same card will have United Empire vs. Bullet Club, first NJPW steel cage match in 20 years. 23rd February at the NJPW New Beginning in Sapporo sees Tetsuya Naito defend the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship vs. SANADA and TAFKA Dolph Ziggler first NJPW match vs. David Finlay for the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salads Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 The show with UE vs BC is the last match for Will as a New Japan contracted wrestler. If we take that to mean it's the cut off point for annual contracts then it's notable that the top three matches are ELP/Hikuleo defending their titles, ZSJ getting his 'home' soil rematch and a main event featuring ten(!) foreign talents. None have been announced for dates beyond this point, so chances are it'll be the last time to see some of those names in the company. I've been assuming the worst ever since Tony Khan singled Zack out for praise during Wrestle Kingdom. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt McGirt Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Time for our official Omega Replacement, BRUV. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sublime Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 I hope ZSJ and ELP aren’t leaving also, losing those two plus Ospreay and replacing them with Ziggler and Riddle would be a huge downgrade 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horangi Posted January 9 Share Posted January 9 Not fussed about ELP or the GoD guys leaving, I just hope they've been able to keep hold of Zack and War Dogs. I do worry about the possibility of ZSJ leaving though with his recent relocation to LA from Tokyo. I'm not reading too much into none of them being on any cards beyond Osaka as the majority of the shows between Osaka and Sapporo are Fantasticamania ones. Between the poor Japanese economy at the moment and the company nearly going broke through the pandemic it's not a surprise that they'll probably lose a fair number of their foreigners (especially the higher paid ones like Cobb). Part of me does hope that a number of them do go as it'll either make New Japan focus on their younger guys or look at some other options for potential foreigner talent (the Velocities would kill it in the junior tag division). I could be completely wrong and the majority will re-sign, it will be an interesting few months. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 Zack Sabre Jr gets his win back vs. Bryan Danielson but by submission. Bryan Danielson was permitted to tap out Kazuchika Okada at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door 2023. Since Okada returned from excursion as the Rainmaker at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 6 in January 2012, he's only done two submission jobs: to Shinsuke Nakamura in the NJPW G1 Climax 2015 and the aforementioned Bryan Danielson match. Zack Sabre Jr gimmick is the Submission Master but he's never submitted Okada. Next best thing is submitting the guy who made Okada submit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted January 10 Author Share Posted January 10 10 hours ago, Horangi said: Not fussed about ELP or the GoD guys leaving, I just hope they've been able to keep hold of Zack and War Dogs. I do worry about the possibility of ZSJ leaving though with his recent relocation to LA from Tokyo. I'm not reading too much into none of them being on any cards beyond Osaka as the majority of the shows between Osaka and Sapporo are Fantasticamania ones. Between the poor Japanese economy at the moment and the company nearly going broke through the pandemic it's not a surprise that they'll probably lose a fair number of their foreigners (especially the higher paid ones like Cobb). Part of me does hope that a number of them do go as it'll either make New Japan focus on their younger guys or look at some other options for potential foreigner talent (the Velocities would kill it in the junior tag division). I could be completely wrong and the majority will re-sign, it will be an interesting few months. I like ELP more than you. Don't care about the GOD. If indeed this is Tama Tonga's last NJPW match, terrifies me he's defending the NEVER Openweight Championship against EVIL and EVIL wins. Shingo Takagi should have defended the title and gone over Tonga at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18. Zack Sabre Jr would be a big loss, he should have been a multi time IWGP Heavyweight Champion/IWGP Intercontinental Champion/IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion/NEVER Openweight Champion. Bugs me he didn't get a bigger push. Concerned ZSJ gets lost in the shuffle with AEW's bloated roster like others have and there's only so much TV time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salads Posted January 11 Share Posted January 11 On 1/9/2024 at 11:25 PM, Horangi said: Not fussed about ELP or the GoD guys leaving, I just hope they've been able to keep hold of Zack and War Dogs. I do worry about the possibility of ZSJ leaving though with his recent relocation to LA from Tokyo. Between the poor Japanese economy at the moment and the company nearly going broke through the pandemic it's not a surprise that they'll probably lose a fair number of their foreigners (especially the higher paid ones like Cobb). Part of me does hope that a number of them do go as it'll either make New Japan focus on their younger guys or look at some other options for potential foreigner talent (the Velocities would kill it in the junior tag division). That's pretty much where I'm at regarding who to keep. I like ELP and it'd suck for him to go when he has just broke out in the heavyweight division like he has but with his background and age I can't begrudge him for cashing up considering his ceiling with the company. He turned down AEW last year so at least we can assume he's going to be doing what he wants to do. Your mention of Cobb was interesting to me because although I've always rated him and think he's valuable on account of being so unique among the roster, it made me realise that I'd close to forgotten about him which shows how he has been downplayed this last year. I assume he's going. I was actually under the impression that they'd already started focusing on younger guys / other foreign options since around 2022 in anticipation of future losses. Successfully, judging by the number of people who are of the same 'if the War Dogs stay then we're good' mentality. A lot of relatively unproven foreign names added to the midcard at the time for a company with no money so now if a group of the more established names leave it doesn't look too bad. On 1/10/2024 at 10:25 AM, The Natural said: I like ELP more than you. Don't care about the GOD. If indeed this is Tama Tonga's last NJPW match, terrifies me he's defending the NEVER Openweight Championship against EVIL and EVIL wins. Shingo Takagi should have defended the title and gone over Tonga at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18. Bad news: EVIL was favourite to win even before there was a mistake made on the company website showing him as the current champion.. Good news: They kayfabed it majestically: 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted January 19 Author Share Posted January 19 Kazuchika Okada to leave NJPW: https://www.njpw1972.com/168267 That's massive news. Kazuchika Okada is in my top three wrestlers of all time. Fan of Okada ever since he returned from excursion as the Rainmaker at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 6. Okada's had some of the greatest matches in wrestling history. Be interesting to see where he turns up and how he's used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted January 19 Author Share Posted January 19 Card changes: https://www.njpw1972.com/168269 Glad we're getting Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi going at it one last time on the 11th February. What a loaded card with that, Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr and United Empire vs. Bullet Club in the first NJPW steel cage match for 20 years. What a ticket for Gordi to hold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheVileOne Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 2 minutes ago, The Natural said: Kazuchika Okada to leave NJPW: https://www.njpw1972.com/168267 That's massive news. Kazuchika Okada is in my top three wrestlers of all time. Fan of Okada ever since he returned from excursion as the Rainmaker at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 6. Okada's had some of the greatest matches in wrestling history. Be interesting to see where he turns up and how he's used. He really is the Rainmaker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted January 19 Author Share Posted January 19 The Natural's top ten Kazuchika Okada matches: 10. Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito. NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 14. *****. 9. Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi. NJPW Dominion 2012. *****. 8. Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi. NJPW Invasion Attack 2013. *****. 7. Kazuchika Okada vs. Katsuyori Shibata. NJPW Sakura Genesis 2017. *****. 6. Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito. NJPW 40th Anniversary Show 2012. *****. 5. Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi. NJPW King of Pro-Wrestling 2013. *****. 4. Kazuchika Okada vs. Bryan Danielson. NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18. *****. 3. Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega. NJPW Dominion 2018. *****. 2. Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi. NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 10. *****. 1. Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega. NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 11. *****. --- I haven't seen any Kazuchika Okada vs. AJ Styles matches. Need to fix that. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoeCristyV.1.6 Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 They are really good. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted January 21 Author Share Posted January 21 4 hours ago, MoeCristyV.1.6 said: They are really good. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted February 1 Author Share Posted February 1 Preview for NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka: https://www.njpw1972.com/169036 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted February 4 Author Share Posted February 4 NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka is big next Sunday, seven days time. Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr II, Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the last time and the first NJPW Steel Cage match in 20 years as United Empire vs. Bullet Club. Think it's Will Ospreay's last NJPW match. Our very own Gordi will be in attendance. Enjoy, mate xxx. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lostinube Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 Henare and Kidd were just blasting each other last night. The Korakuen crowd was fully behind them. Good match. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted February 5 Author Share Posted February 5 The New Beginning in Osaka 2024 is the most I've looked forward to a NJPW show excluding co promoted shows like AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door in ages, 2018 maybe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Otto Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 2 hours ago, lostinube said: Henare and Kidd were just blasting each other last night. The Korakuen crowd was fully behind them. Good match. Haven’t seen it yet, but definitely looking forward to it. Heard the second half of the card was really solid overall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horangi Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 The main event was also quite good, especially, if true, Drilla Moloney was effectively working with one arm due to a bicep tear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Otto Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 You know, it's satisfying to have a hunch about a young prospect and be proven right as a wrestling fan. Sure, that's great. But I have to say, it is somehow even better to admit that you've been proven wrong. I can honestly say that I didn't have high hopes for Henare nor Gabe Kidd 2-3 years ago. Henare was good, but never great, for example. Since Gabe has made his "comeback", he's been nothing short of amazing. With the emergence of The War Dogs, Tsuji, Umino and the rest of the promising returnees, I think Henare was put in a bit of a sink or swim position. He decided to swim. Good for him. Glorious violence ensued. Beyond my expectations. Hooray for that! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted February 6 Author Share Posted February 6 NJPW confirm WarGames rules as expected for United Empire vs. Bullet Club: In a format similiar to team cage matches overseas, the match will begin as a singles contest, with a new member added to the match every two minutes. Finlay has declared that the War Dogs will have the advantage, his wrestlers making their entrance first and alternating until all ten men are in the match. From that point on, a pinfall or submission will decide the bout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted February 6 Author Share Posted February 6 Yota Tsuji vs Yuya Uemura at The New Beginning in Sapporo, 24th February is now officially a Hair versus Hair match. This show will feature Kazuchika Okada's final NJPW match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragonzombie Posted February 9 Share Posted February 9 (edited) The Strong belts are staying for now. Starlight Kid and Ruaka vs La Jarochita and Lluvia set for Fantastica Mania. Edited February 13 by Kang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted February 10 Author Share Posted February 10 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hMRTE8dxo1s Bryan Danielson/Zack Sabre Jr video package. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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