Coverage
Mitchell’s NJPW Report: AXS TV New Beginnings in Sapporo Part 2!
This review of NJPW: New Beginnings in Sapporo Part 1 will be as broadcasted by AXS TV.
Therefore, all images are courtesy of AXS TV.
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- From January 27th, 2018- NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championships: The Bullet Club’s Bad Luck Fale & Guerillas of Destiny VS Taguchi Japan’s Ryusuke Taguchi, Toa Henare & Togi Makabe; Bullet Club wins and retains the NEVER Openweight 6MTTC.
- From January 28th, 2018- 10 Man Tag: Chaos VS Los Ingoblernables de Japon; LIJ wins.
- IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships: The Young Bucks VS Roppongi 3K; RPG3K wins and become the new IWGP Jr. HTTC.
PLAY BY PLAY
AXS TV & NJPW take a look at what led to tonight’s main event.
Formerly known as “The Tempura Boyz”, Sho & Yo reinvented themselves and captured the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championships. They would defend them at Wrestle Kingdom 12 against Matt & Nick Jackson, but the newly minted Roppongi 3K were no match for the Young Bucks. The Bucks became record-setting 7-time Jr HTTCs, but that was not the end of the rivalry.
Rocky Romero, after being attacked by the Bucks himself, coached up his new team to be ready for this rematch. Can Sho & Yo gain back what Matt & Nick took from them?
From January 27th, 2018-
NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championship: The Bullet Club’s Bad Luck Fale & Guerillas of Destiny VS Taguchi Japan’s Ryusuke Taguchi, Toa Henare & Togi Makabe!
We join this match just as Tama Tonga hits a corner to corner stinger splash, then covers, TWO. He drags Henare over and tags in the Underboss. Fale brings Henare to a corner and bumps him off buckles. Fale sucker punches Makabe, then Taguchi. He returns to Henare and unloads body shots. He whips Henare corner to corner, then runs in, but Henare dodges! Henare crawls, hot tag to Makabe! The fans fire up as Makabe rallies on Bullet Club. The Gorilla corner clotheslines then whips Fale for another clothesline. Makabe climbs up and rains corner punches on Fale, then tries the northern lights. Fale is too big and strong for that, he clubs Makabe and grabs his throat with both hands. Makabe breaks free of that, but Fale rocks him with a body shot.
Fale runs, but Taguchi runs in to hit a hip attack. Makabe runs Fale over, but Tonga Loa breaks the pin. Taguchi goes after Loa, throws him out, then keeps on Loa while the fans rally. Makabe tries to bring Fale down but Fale only stumbles. Makabe runs again, but into Fale’s Samoan Drop! Both Fale and Makabe are down, but the fans rally for them. They roll, hot tags to Tonga and Henare. They speed up, Henare fakes Tonga out then runs for a BIG shoulder tackle! Henare is all fired up as he gives forearms to Tonga. He whips but Tonga reverses, Tonga reverses but Henare dodges. Henare runs in but Tonga puts him on the apron. Tonga gets away but Henare climbs up to the top, for a flying shoulder tackle! Cover, TWO!
It was close, and he fires up again. Taguchi returns to kick Fale out, and Makabe does the same to Loa. Taguchi’s trio targets Tonga, putting him in a corner. Taguchi & Makabe double whip Tonga corner to corner, then they begin the corner train: Taguchi whips Makabe in for the corner clothesline, then Henare in, then Makabe again, and Henare again. Taguchi does a Running Man Dab while he directs his men in the clotheslines.
Henare, then Makabe, then Tonga is fed to Taguchi’s hip attack. Henare hits a spear, covers, but Loa and Fale break the cover just in time. Taguchi throws Fale back out and Makabe brawls with Loa. Henare returns to Tonga, headbutt after headbutt, then fireman’s carry. Tonga slips out and shoves Henare to ropes, fireman’s carry on the rebound for a Samoan Flapjack! Cover, TWO!! That was so close, the Bullet Club is shocked. Tonga keeps on Henare, single-leg crossface, the Cobra Twist!
Henare taps out, The Bullet Club wins!
Winners: The Bullet Club’s Bad Luck Fale & Guerrillas of Destiny
It is rare that the champions successfully retain, even in the short track record of the NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championships. Is this Too Sweet combination just right for reigning supreme over the entire division?
From January 28th, 2018-
10 Man Tag: Chaos VS Los Ingoblernables de Japon!
There has been a grudge growing between these two NJPW stables. It reached a new level when Chaos leader Kazuchika Okada wanted Sanada to speak for himself in relation to the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. However, Cold Skull wouldn’t do what Okada wanted, so the Rainmaker decided to show the “punk” now to disrespect him, in the form of a Tombstone piledriver and a mouth full of cash. Thus, we now have this star-studded, title-loaded 5v5 match for stable supremacy!
The teams stand in the ring together, but before a bell rings, a brawl erupts! They all pair off and spill out of the ring, leaving Yoshi-Hashi in with Tetsuya Naito. Hashi clubs Naito in a corner while things continue on the outside. He rips Naito’s shirt off then stomps on it, disrespecting #Tranquilo. Hashi stands Naito up for chops and forearms, not letting up until Naito is on the ground! He then grinds a foot into Naito, but stops with the ref’s count. Hashi drags Naito up, whips him corner to corner and hits a running chop. He then hangs Naito up, Goto holding him in place, for Hashi’s running dropkick!
Hashi keeps stomping Naito, showing no mercy. He chops Naito, then chops again, before running, but into Hiromu’s cheap shot. Hiromu gets a forearm for that, then Hashi blocks and counters the kick from Naito with an elbow to the knee. Hashi keeps on Naito with forearms, then runs, but into a kick. Bushi sunset flips outta nowhere, and sits Hashi up for Naito’s low dropkick. Evil and Sanada come in to go after the other members of Chaos, with Hiromu tripping up his rival, Will Ospreay. LIJ and Chaos brawl past ringside and into the crowd!
Meanwhile, Naito chokes Hashi with what’s left of his shirt! The referee sees this and reprimands him while Evil bumps Goto off chairs. Okada and Sanada are interrupted by Bushi. Naito puts Hashi in a Tree of Woe, and he stomps away. He even shoves the referee so he can keep going. Naito backs off, baseball slide dropkick to Hashi’s face. He tags Bushi in, then drag Hashi up and out. Okada protests but Bushi still missile dropkicks Hashi. While Bushi gives us the Bushi-roonie, Naito hits Hashi with his own dropkick in the corner. Naito sweeps Hashi’s legs, then gives him a wrecking ball dropkick!
Bushi brings Hashi up, snapmares and stretches him back before stomping him. Bushi puts on the STF and the rest of LIJ stands guard. Hashi endures, then crawls for ropes, but he’s still so far away. Bushi changes his mind and gives Hashi a neckbreaker. Cover, but Okada breaks it. Evil goes right after Okada and throws him out, Bushi tags in Hiromu. Hiromu stomps Hashi, then brings him up. Hashi fights back on Hiromu and Naito but dividing his attention allows Hiromu to attack from behind. Hiromu drags Hashi up and chops him to a corner. He whips Hashi corner to corner and hits a corner clothesline. Hiromu rolls Hashi out but Hashi evades the running dropkick. Hashi flip kicks Hiromu down, and they both head for their corners.
The fans rally, Hashi tags in Ospreay! The Aerial Assassin goes after the Ticking Timebomb with a blasting dropkick, then fires up for a corner to corner flying elbow! He goes around the world but Hiromu dodges. Hiromu gets the waistlock, German Suplex but Ospreay lands on his feet. Ospreay hits another running elbow, then tries again, big basement dropkick! Standing shooting star, TWO! Ospreay stays focused as he drags Hiromu up. Dragon sleeper and lift but Hiromu knees out. Hiromu runs but Ospreay pursues, Ospreay slips out of the pop-up to whip Hiromu but Hiromu reverses. Ospreay handsprings, but Hiromu catches him in a German Suplex!
Fans applaud while both men are down, we go to break.
NJPW on AXS returns with hot tags to Goto and Evil! They go right at each other, colliding with clothesline after clothesline. Evil fires up and runs but Goto follows. Goto swings but Evil deflects, then tries again, only for Goto to deflect his lariat. Goto kicks but Evil passes that off to the ref, to then mule kick out the other leg. Evil calls for the finish, fisherman lift but Goto resists. Goto wrenches the arm but Evil forearms back, but Evil’s spinning strike is countered with a pull of the hair into a neckbreaker across the knee! Both men are down, and the NEVER Openweight Champion tags in the Rainmaker!
Okada goes after Evil with forearms, then whips but Evil reverses. Okada runs Evil over with a back elbow, then stalks him. He Alabama lifts but Evil resists, Evil goes for neckbreaker but Okada elbows out. Okada runs, but into the sidewalk slam! Now Evil tags in Sanada! Sanada runs in, but into a flapjack! Okada stalks Sanada to a corner while the fans chant. He whips Sanada corner to corner, then hits a back elbow. He kicks and DDT’s, covers, TWO! Okada keeps his cool while he toys with Cold Skull. This only angers Sanada, and he gets up to stare the IWGP WHC down. Sanada throws a forearm, so Okada responds with a forearm, and back to Sanada. They go back and forth, picking up speed, and the fans get into it.
Every forearm Okada gives, Sanada immediately responds. Okada gives a forearm with extra mustard, so Sanada gives him a European Uppercut. Okada gives more forearms, then runs, but Sanada jumps up and over to then dropkick Okada down! The fans applaud while Sanada drags Okada up, big back suplex. Cover, TWO. Naito and Bushi intercept Hashi and Gedo, then Ospreay and Goto. Sanada scoops Okada for a side backbreaker, then hurries to the top rope. Moonsault but he has to land on his feet when Okada isn’t there. Sanada’s legs slow him down, Okada catches him into a scoop. Sanada slips out to avoid the Tombstone, kicks low and whips. Okada reverses the whip, and dropkicks Sanada down! They’re both down from exhaustion but the fans rally. Okada and Sanada head for their corners, tag to Gedo!
Gedo takes out Bushi to leave Sanada with no one, then mule kicks Sanada. Gedo Clutch cover, but Naito breaks that. Hashi comes in, dodges Naito’s enziguri, then retaliates with a mule kick. He gets Naito out while Gedo grabs Sanada. Sanada counters, dragon sleeper but first a feed to Bushi’s Code Breaker! Then Sanada lifts Gedo up for the TKO!
Cover, but Ospreay and Goto break it! It’s more chaos as Bushi, Evil and Hiromu work to clear out Chaos, leaving Sanada to bring Gedo up. Naito whips Hashi into barriers while Sanada drags Gedo up in the dragon sleeper. When that isn’t enough, Sanada drops down into the body scissors, Skull End!
Gedo taps, LIJ wins!
Winners: Los Ingoblernables de Japon
Cold Skull may not have defeated the Rainmaker, but he just submitted his right hand man. Will Sanada and Okada meet again for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship?
Yoshi-Hashi goes after Naito!
Chaos has to pull him off of Naito, not wanting their teammate to be a sore loser. Naito doesn’t sweat it, he is truly Tranquilo. When will he start to worry about this growing list of opponents who want to tear him limb from limb?
However, Sanada is not done with Okada.
Like Okada did before, Sanada calls Okada out. “You really want to hear my voice?” Sanada vows that “In Osaka, I’m gonna end you.” Strong words from the strong silent Sanada, but will the Rainmaker make him eat those words?
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships: The Young Bucks VS Roppongi 3K!
A new look, a new name, and a new attitude for Sho & Yo, but will it mean they become the new IWGP Jr. HTTCs? Or will they end up in another SUPERKICK PARTY hosted by Matt & Nick Jackson?
Matt Jackson starts against Yo the silver, and the bell rings. Rocky Romero rallies the fans with a chant of “R P G!” Matt and Yo get in each other’s face then start brawling with haymakers. Yo slowly backs Matt down but Matt gets the headlock. Yo powers out but Matt runs him over, only for Yo to kip-up. Matt runs but catches Yo into the sharpshooter, Yo keeps it rolling to push Matt away. Yo rolls Matt into a half-crab, but Matt scrambles to the ropes for the break. The fans applaud while Yo waits, but Matt stays close to the perimeter. He tags in Nick, so Yo tags in Sho. Nick mocks the “young boy” and shoves him, then says “I’m a superstar.” Sho trash talks back, but Nick kicks low then speeds things up.
Nick cartwheels over Sho, then rolls off his back before dropping Sho with a dropkick. Sho gets to a corner while Nick embraces the cheers. He tags in Matt, they double whip Sho and catch him into the gutbuster. Matt says “You’re dead, young boy!” before giving him the swinging neckbreaker backbreaker! Sho writhes before Matt covers, TWO. Matt drags Sho up to rock him with a right hand. He whips but Yo tags in, RPG3K catch Matt with the drop toehold to basement dropkick. Nick comes in, but RPG3K is ready for him. They double whip to a corner, then forearm smash and back elbow in the corner before the bulldog gutbuster combo.
Nick staggers back but they double clothesline him out. Matt returns, he gets double dropkicks. Matt slips back out and regroups with Nick while the fans rally for RPG3K. RPG3K build speed, but the Bucks come in to stereo SUPERKICK them!
The Bucks fire up while Sho & Yo roll out of the ring. Matt runs to hit them both with a wrecking ball dropkick, then he holds the ropes for Nick to FLY!
Nick wipes RPG3K out, then high-fives Matt. They see Rocky now, and Rocky wants them to “take it easy.” The Bucks chase Rocky up the ramp, then behind the curtain. They bring Rocky back out by force, then decide to powerbomb Rocky again. However, as they get him up and walk him back, Rocky is saved by his team! Sho & Yo go after Matt & Nick, even dumping Nick off the ramp onto barriers. Sho ends up down there with Nick, and Matt throws Yo onto Sho. Matt gets space for a running start, and now he FLIES!
He takes Sho & Yo out within that narrow margin, and follows Nick as he brings Yo over. Nick has “an idea”, and feeds Yo to Matt. They lift Yo, and hit him with an apron powerbomb! Yo writhes, but the Bucks aren’t done with him. Matt brings Yo up and into the ring, then covers, TWO! Matt brings Yo up and puts one out on him. He lifts Yo but that battered back gives out. Matt crawls and covers, TWO. The fans cheer, Nick comes in to stop Yo from tagging Sho. Nick tags in, then stomps out Yo. He lifts Yo to club him down, then stomp him some more. He whips Yo corner to corner hard, and Yo goes down from his own back pains.
Sho shows concern but Nick keeps on Yo, tagging Matt back in. The Bucks double whip, then double hip toss, but only Nick can back flip into the double dropkick. Matt covers, TWO, but Matt puts Yo in a chinlock. He keeps Yo grounded, but Yo flails and works against the hold.
Fans cheer and rally, and Yo gets to his feet. Matt elbows Yo in the back, then tags Nick. Nick brings Yo up, then whips him into the corner. Nick runs in but Yo boots him away. Matt runs in but ends up thrown out and bumps off the apron! Nick goes after Yo, but Yo enziguris him down. Yo leaps for the tag but Matt trips Sho down just before! Nick and Yo stand up, Nick runs corner to corner and tackles Yo into the corner. Nick keeps going, rolling Yo out for the running Penalty Kick! Cover, ONE, and Nick is pissed while we go to break.
NJPW on AXS returns once more, and Nick clubs Yo to keep him grounded. Nick focuses his attack on Yo’s hurting back, and Matt returns. The Bucks wait for Yo to stand up. Nick throws in a kick but Yo deflects it, Matt ducks it, so Nick tries again. Yo blocks it again and this time catches Matt with it! Then Yo dragon screws Nick, and reaches for his corner. Tag to Sho, and golden Sho rallies on Nick. Nick reverses the whip but Sho knocks him down. Matt kicks and whips Sho, but Sho holds ropes to then put Matt on the apron. Sho sweeps the legs, runs, and baseball slides Matt down off the apron! Nick returns but misses the clothesline, Sho headscissors Nick to a corner. The fans fire up while Sho runs in, big corner clothesline!
Sho whips, Nick reverses but Sho reverses back, kicking front and back to then mule kick Nick down. Cover, TWO! Sho keeps his cool as he grabs Nick in the waistlock. Nick elbows his way out, then tags in Matt. Matt slowly walks over to Sho, but Sho standing switch to German Suplex once, twice, then both Bucks for the hat trick!
Sho stands Matt up and hits a backstabber, to feed Matt into Yo’s shotgun dropkick! The fans rally while Yo suplexes Matt up for Sho, then Yo runs for the dominator cutter combo!
Cover, TWO! Sho & Yo keep their cool while Matt clutches his back. They wait for Matt to stand but Nick comes in to rally on them. Nick throws Yo out, then baits Sho to dump him out. He cartwheels to moonsault but Sho & Yo get clear. Nick turns around to run at them again, but ends up taking a flapjack onto the apron! Sho & Yo fire up and target the wounded Matt. Sho drags Matt up but Matt fires off forearms. Matt turns around but Sho reels him into a forearm to the back. Sho stomps that bad back while Yo gets in position. Tag to Yo, and Yo climbs up. Sho brings Matt up in the torture rack, Yo flies in for flying knee into reverse Michinoku Driver! Cover, TWO!
RPG3K can’t believe it, but the fans applaud. Yo drags Matt for the Crab, and gets it in! Matt’s back endures the bend, but he drags himself to ropes. Yo drags him back while Sho stands guard. Matt holds on to crawl again, and gets that ropebreak! Yo fires himself up and Sho comes over, they bring Matt up and to the top rope. RPG3K climb up together, but Matt resists. He fights them off, then fires himself up, but they trip him up. RPG3K climbs up again, they have him now, DOUBLE SUPERPLEX!
Cover, TWO! Matt somehow survives, but RPG3K rallies the fans for the finish. Sho kicks Matt, Yo stomps him, and back again. Sho then Yo, and Matt fires up! Yo kicks Matt back down, then holds him for Sho’s stiff kick to that back. Sho drags Matt up, Yo takes aim, but Matt fights out, letting that SUPERKICK hit Sho! Matt then SPEARS Yo, and heads for his corner. The fans rally, and Matt tags Nick! Nick climbs up, and hits Sho & Yo with a double missile dropkick. Nick fires up, and he rallies on Sho & Yo with right hands. He roundhouses Yo then back elbows Sho before rocking Yo with a tornado kick. Nick keeps going, joining Sho on the apron for a roundhouse, and a German suplex! Yo comes in but Nick knocks him away, then slingshot facebuster, and right into a tornado DDT for Sho!
Nick fires up and so do the fans. He brings Yo in before climbing up top. Nick takes aim, frog splash but into knees! Yo rolls him up, TWO! Yo’s frustration boils over, but Rocky coaches him back into it. Nick and Yo stand up, and trade forearms back and forth. Yo fires off several at once, then runs, but into a SUPERKICK! Yo yo-yo’s but into another SUPERKICK! Sho returns, but Nick catches him with an elevated Shining Wizard. Matt returns, and as tender as his back is, he drags Sho in position on the apron. Nick coordinates, going up top, for a SUPER draping swanton!!
Sho goes down, Matt helps Nick into the ring. Matt tags in, and the fans chant for “Young Bucks! Young Bucks!” Matt hobbles over to Yo, and drapes him now. Nick climbs up again, for a draping 450 splash! Matt covers, TWO!! The Young Bucks are shocked, but Yo still lives. Matt drags Yo up while Nick gets on the apron. That bad back won’t let Matt powerbomb lift Yo, so Nick comes in to help him out. Matt holds Yo up, and the buckle bomb kick! That’s not the end, as Matt goes for the “Cease” Sharpshooter! He gets it, but his back is still bugging him.
Nick keeps Sho down on the outside with another SUPERKICK! But Yo still powers up to crawl for ropes! Matt drags him away again, and sinks it in deeper! Yo powers up again and heads for ropes, and gets the ropebreak! But Matt doesn’t let go, Nick comes in for another swanton! Nick flattens Yo, then keeps Sho down while Matt drags Yo away again. It’s back pain versus back pain, but it’s Matt’s back that loses. He lets go of the hold, just as he was about to get Yo to quit. Nick coaches his brother while Rocky coaches his team. The fans rally for them both as they crawl for space. Matt stands up first, and hobbles back to Yo. He tries again, but small package counter! RPG3K WIN!!
Winners: Roppongi 3K (Sho & Yo)
What a shocking turn of events! Sho & Yo take advantage of Matt’s bad back, and now RPG3K is back on top of the Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Division. As for The Young Bucks, will Matt’s back recover so that he and Nick can come back for a tag title comeback?
Rocky Romero & RPG3K have a press conference backstage.
“That match was insane!” It was a crazy, crazy, crazy match. Tonight, Rocky and the boys are gonna party. One night only in Sapporo, RPG3K is gonna celebrate being champions again. They’re gonna party now, but this rivalry is only 1-1. Will Sho & Yo be able to party again after their inevitable rematch with The Young Bucks?
My Thoughts:
Great surprises were all over this edition of NJPW on AXS. For starters, I didn’t expect them to fit as much into this as they did. The partial coverage of the NEVER Six Man Tag Team Championships was fun, gives the American audiences some exposure to the almost NJPW exclusive members of the Bullet Club, Bad Luck Fale & the GoD. For being original members, Fale and Tama Tonga hardly do anything outside of NJPW, so this will help some fans learn a bit about them. Then we got to see the entirety of a great 10 Man Tag match, LIJ is rapidly growing in popularity and therefore strength as a stable. It was fitting that they defeat Chaos, but not through pinning a champion member like Goto, Ospreay or Okada. The champions stay strong even though the stable of LIJ goes over.
There are also a lot of stories stemming from that match, like Naito VS Yoshi-Hashi as a grudge match, Hiromu VS Ospreay for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship, and Sanada VS Okada over the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. All those matches promise to be competitive and entertaining, in both styles and stories. And of course, the tag team main event was also competitive and entertaining from styles to story. Matt’s back is a concern, as it has been in ROH, and it really added to how it made things tough for the Bucks in terms of pulling off their arsenal of signature combo attacks. And in the end, it all was too much, and the Bucks lost, a rare occurrence regardless of what’s on the line. The story really benefits Sho & Yo in power rankings, and can lead to a lot down the line for them and The Bucks.
My Score: 8.8/10
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Will The Man be the Last Woman Standing?
Becky Lynch and Nia Jax want to finally put this to an end, so tonight on Raw, it will be a Big Time Last Woman Standing match! Will the Irresistible Force force the WrestleMania 40 match to change?
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: #DIY VS The Creed Brothers; DIY wins and advances to WrestleMania.
- Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell VS Kayden Carter & Katana Chance; Candice & Indi win.
- Dominik Mysterio w/ JD McDonagh VS Ricochet; wins.
- Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The New Day VS The Alpha Academy; wins and advance to WrestleMania.
- Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: The Awesome Truth VS Indus Sher; win(s) and advance to WrestleMania.
- Last Woman Standing: Becky Lynch VS Nia Jax; wins.
PLAY BY PLAY
Jey Uso is here!
North Carolina State University fires up and bounces along with Main Event Jey, and Pat McAfee plays a dangerous game standing on the armchairs! From Bret VS Owen to Matt VS Jeff, we’re about to get Jey VS Jimmy in the third-ever Brother VS Brother WrestleMania grudge match! Jey gets the mic as fans chant “YEET! YEET! YEET!” Jey welcomes us to Monday Night Raw, and wants us to check this out. He knows his brothers are somewhere in the building. He knows The Bloodline’s in the building. He knows how the Bloodline rolls! SO Big Brother Jimmy, where you at?! Where you at, Uce!?
Jey waits for someone to show up somewhere, and the crowd spots them first! Fans boo as Jimmy & Solo make their way from the back of the stands. Jimmy gets a mic and goes to the apron while Solo paces around the outside. Fans chant “YEET! YEET! YEET!” again as Jey puts the sunglasses aside. The Usos stare each other down, the fans now chant “UCE! OH! UCE! OH!” Jey wants to say something, hesitates, but then says these two would always get to it but they always knew how to shake right back to this. But now it’s different. Regardless of what happened, the bad blood between them, Jey misses his brother. He does.
Jey knows Jimmy will say what he wants, but Jey doesn’t talk to him no more, doesn’t ride with him no more, doesn’t even see him no more! Jimmy can just come back. Jimmy says he never left! He protected Jey! Jey’s so dumb, he can’t see it! Jimmy is protecting Jey! It was Jey’s idea to leave The Bloodline, but Jimmy helped because he is Jey’s brother. So yeah, Jey leaves, and what happens? Lil’ Bro becomes the BIGGEST star on the Raw roster! Lil’ Bro becomes the top merch seller! Lil’ Bro goes off to become a tag team champion without Jimmy, but with CODY RHODES!? Who left who, Uce?
Jey forgot Jimmy! Everything Jey did that was big was cuz of Big Bro Jimmy! Everything! So listen loud and clear. The biggest moment in Jey’s career, the BIGGEST moment, is because of Jimmy! Jimmy stares Jey down, but Jey says no. Jey’s biggest moment in his career is going to be his dream match at WrestleMania 40: Jey VS Jimmy, and Jey knocks the yeet out Jimmy’s ass! Jey DECKS Jimmy, DECKS Solo off the apron, but then Jimmy SUPERKICKS Jey down! The fans boo but now Solo storms in and looms over Jey. Solo drags Jey up so Jimmy can look him in the face and tell him that Jey needs to get it right! JIMMY made Jey!
But here comes Cody Rhodes! The fans fire up as Cody DECKS Jimmy, then gets in to springboard and CODY CUTTER Solo!! The American Nightmare said he was gonna be a Bloodline Hunter, and he made sure they didn’t take out Jey! Cody tells The Bloodline it is only a matter of time before they lose it all at WrestleMania! Will Jey prove that younger or older doesn’t matter when he is the BETTER brother?
Adam Pearce is on the phone.
He’s telling Nick Aldis to stop being a hypocrite, telling Pearce to keep his roster in check when this is happening. But then Paul Heyman walks over and Pearce says he’ll call Aldis back. Pearce then asks Heyman what was all that, and Heyman says he owes Pearce an apology. He is sorry. That was not authorized by The Final Boss nor The Tribal Chief, and certainly not by Heyman. Jimmy & Solo went into business for themselves so Heyman apologizes. But listen, Pearce knows that there have been flight delays all day. Even private jets like theirs. Heyman is barely even dressed for TV, let alone has his make-up!
Pearce says those two were ready. Yeah, well, they got in on a different flight. But Roman Reigns is a chief of his word. Those two are already gone, out of the arena, and Pearce has Roman’s word. Call his bluff, put out a search party. Pearce knows Heyman is here on official business, which Heyman will handle, and then be gone. That is it. But when Heyman does his official business… everyone will be caught off guard. “And Mr. Pearce, sir, that’s not a prediction. That’s a spoiler.” The Wise Man heads out and calls Roman, but just what is Heyman teasing?
Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship Ladder Match Qualifier: #DIY VS The Creed Brothers!
Unlike SmackDown’s mini-tournament, Raw and Adam Pearce say it’s win and you’re in! Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano want one more shot at Judgment Day, but so do Julius & Brutus! Will the Sicilian Psycho & Johnny Wrestling prove that when it comes to Mania Moments, you gotta do it yourself? Or will the Creeds be bringing golden tickets to the Diamond Mine?
Raw returns as The Creeds make their entrance. The teams fist bump to show respect, then the teams sort out. Julius starts against Ciampa, they circle and tie up. They’re in a deadlock, Ciampa goes for a waistlock but Julius facelocks. Julius wrangles Ciampa to the mat, flips him over, ONE, and Ciampa keeps moving. They trade facelocks, gator roll, and Julius gets another lateral press. ONE, but Julius gator rolls Ciampa around. Ciampa fights up, puts Julius on ropes, and the ref counts. Ciampa lets off, then CHOPS! Julius shoots in for the takedown! Julius has a leg, Ciampa fights but Julius turns him for the ANKLE LOCK!
Ciampa scrambles to the ROPEBREAK, and Julius lets off cleanly. Ciampa bails out, shakes it off, and he gets back in. They go again, Julius hits a fireman’s carry takeover! Tag to Brutus, and Julius feeds Ciampa to another fireman’s carry takeover! Brutus cording holds but Ciampa endures. Ciampa fights up, but Brutus facelocks. The fans rally as Brutus switches and rolls Ciampa. Ciampa fights up, headlocks, then ROCKS Brutus! Brutus DECKS Ciampa, then whips him to ropes. Ciampa ducks ‘n’ dodges, tag to Gargano! Ciampa slides, CHOPS, Gargano LARIATS and Ciampa JAWBREAKERS! Wrench and LARIAT!
Julius runs in, Gargano kicks and Ciampa gives him the boost for SLICED BREAD! The Creeds bail out, but DIY DOUBLE PLANCHA! Down go the Creeds, and DIY applaud and pat themselves on the back. The fans fire up and Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Ciampa has Julius in a chinlock. The fans rally, Julius fights up to throw body shots, but Ciampa hits a back suplex! Julius lands out of it, but Ciampa elbows him away. Ciampa drop toeholds Julius, gets legs, but Julius BOOTS Ciampa away! Hot tags to Gargano and Brutus! Brutus rallies on DIY, TOSSES Gargano, then blocks Ciampa’s kick to get under and POWERBOMB him! Brutus sees DIY regroup, then he runs in to SPLASH them both! O’Conner on Ciampa, but Gargano runs up! NORTHERN LIGHTS! Brutus has a DOUBLE BRIDGE, TWO!! Tag to Julius and he gut wrench SLAMS Brutus on Ciampa!
Brutus helps Julius flip up and over to SPLASH onto Ciampa! Cover, TWO! The fans rally up as Julius drags Ciampa up. Ciampa throat chops! A bit dirty but Ciampa wants that win! Ciampa storms up on Julius, but Julius basement stalling suplexes!! The fans are thunderous, Gargano runs in, but Brutus intercepts! Brutus suplexes Gargano now, stalls, and then the Creeds SLAM and kip up! Then they both STANDING MOONSAULT! Cover, TWO! Ciampa stays in this for DIY but the Creeds keep cool. Julius stomps Ciampa, tags Brutus, and they KNEE Ciampa around! Then they DOUBLE GUTBUSTER! Ciampa sputters but Brutus tags Julius in.
Julius drags Ciampa up, tags Brutus back in, and Brutus climbs. Julius Electric Chair Lifts, but Gargano makes the save! Gargano ROCKS Julius, Brutus ROCKS Gargano! Ciampa BOOTS Brutus, Gargano swings on Julius but is sent into Ciampa! Ciampa pushes Gargano back so he can ELBOW Julius! DIY set up again but Brutus stops the Sliced Bread! Julius DECKS Ciampa, KNEE into the WIDOWMAKER! Julius scrapes Gargano out, Brutus POUNCES Ciampa over the desk! Pat fires up with Brutus and so do the fans! The Creeds say they run this now, and then Brutus drags Ciampa up while Raw goes to break.
Raw returns again and Julius has Ciampa in a chinlock. Ciampa fights up, and he JAWBREAKERS free! Ciampa ELBOWS Brutus down, BOOTS Julius, then runs up, only for Julius to catch him and toss him back! But then Ciampa catches Julius for a REVERSE DDT! The fans fire up while both men are down and crawling! Hot tag to Gargano! Gargano slingshots to KICK Julius, then he CLOBBERS Brutus! ENZIGIRI for Julius, then he runs to DOUBLE KNEE Brutus! BULLDOG LARIAT COMBO! The fans fire up with Gargano while Julius ends up in another corner. Gargano runs in but is put on the apron!
Gargano GAMANGIRIS Julius, SUPERKICKS Brutus, then SLINGSHOT SPEARS Julius! Cover, TWO! Julius survives but Gargano puts him in a corner. Gargano CHOPS, then hoists Julius up top. Tag to Ciampa, Ciampa CHOPS Julius while Gargano DIVES onto Brutus! Ciampa CHOPS Julius again, goes up top, and fireman’s carries! Ciampa then tucks Julius in for the SUPER AIR RAID CRASH! Cover, TWO!! Julius survives again and shocks Ciampa! The fans are just as stunned, but Ciampa and Julius sit up. Ciampa stands, and he CHOPS! And CHOPS! Julius sits back up as Ciampa puts some stank on the CHOP!
Julius brings the straps down! Julius fires a forearm, Ciampa hits back, and the fans fire up as the shots keep going! They go faster and faster, harder and harder, meaner and meaner! The fans fire up as this just turns into a brawl of haymakers and SLAPS! Ciampa then gets around, ripcord and HAYMAKER! ROLLING- TACKLE from Julius! And then the ANKLE LOCK!! Ciampa reaches out, moves around, but Gargano runs up! Julius kicks him, then gets him up with one arm to POWERBOMB! Then it’s back to the ANKLE LOCK on Ciampa! Brutus gets in to get Gargano for an ANKLE LOCK of his own!
The fans are thunderous as DIY endures! Ciampa and Gargano fight, turn things over, SICILIAN CROSSFACE and GargaNO Escape!! The fans are thunderous as The Creeds power up and lift both DIY! They fireman’s carry, then TOSS DIY into each other!! The fans are thunderous as Julius goes up to MOONSAULT onto Ciampa! Brutus MOONSAULTS, too! Cover, TWO?!?! Ciampa survives and the fans are loving this! Julius tags back in, Brutus climbs up! “This is Awesome!” as Julius Electric Chair Lifts Ciampa! But Ciampa VICTORY ROLLS to get under the Brutus Ball!! Cover, Brutus tips it! Gargano TOSSES Brutus then SUPERKICKS Julius!! Ciampa has the cover, DIY WINS!!
Winners: DIY, by pinfall (advance to WrestleMania)
Julius can’t believe it! He kicked out at 3.1, but a loss is a loss! And for the first time ever, DIY is going to Mania! Will Philadelphia soon be historic for a DIY championship victory?
Judgment Day meets backstage.
Rhea Ripley is with Dominik Mysterio, Finn Balor & JD McDonagh, but also Andrade. Dom says he’s always liked Andrade’s style, but things have changed since the last time he was in the WWE. The Judgment Day runs Raw now. Rhea says yeah, and they don’t extend invitations to just anyone. Judgment Day is very exclusive. JD says very exclusive. But if Andrade continues to impress them, they’ll see about making things happen. And Finn says he just heard that Andrade has a match next week, so the Judgment Day will be watching him. Sounds good. See you next week. But then in steps Damian Priest.
The Punisher says hello to El Idolo, and El Idolo says hello to Senor Dinero. Andrade heads out, will he quite literally win his way into the club? But as for Priest, Finn asks him what he was up to. Priest was getting a closer look at that DIY VS Creeds match. DIY won, but whatever, they can handle those guys. But JD, they thought he could handle Ricochet last week, and run the gauntlet, and then go to WrestleMania to bring even more gold back to Judgment Day. JD says he did he belonged in there. But also, he battered Ricochet, who got lucky at the end there. Right, Finn? Finn hesitates, and Rhea says Priest is right on this one.
Ricochet made a fool out of JD! A fool? Yes. A fool? Yes. That’s why tonight, Dom will make it right. Right, Dom? Yeah, Mami. Let’s go talk to Pearce to make it official. Dom & JD head out, and the others are confident Dom’s got this. But does he, though? Or will the One and Only have two wins over Judgment Day in as many weeks?
Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell VS Kayden Carter & Katana Chance!
The Poison Pixie certainly lived up to that name last week when she bullied Maxxine Dupri as part of beating her and Ivy Nile last week. Will Candice’s toxic tongue strike again? Or will the party not be stopped by her harsh vibes?
The teams sort out and Candice starts against Kayden. Candice rushes up, Kayden gets around and O’Conner Rolls, TWO! Kayden springboards to basement dropkick! Cover, TWO! Kayden stalks Candice, Candice ELBOWS her away then tags Indi. Kayden dodges Candice to SUPERKICK, but Indi BOOTS Kayden! Cover, TWO! Indi drags Kayden up, tags Candice back in, and they mug Kayden. Candice CLUBS away on Kayden, fires off furious fists, then covers. TWO, and Candice grows frustrated already. The fans rally, Candice steps up but Kayden avoids the senton! Tags to Katana and Indi! Katana blasts past Indi, comes back and BULLDOGS!
Katana keeps moving, ducks ‘n’ dodges, then SHOTGUNS Indi to a corner! The fans fire up as Katana stomps away on Indi! Indi shoves Katana, Katana runs corner to corner to A-LIST LARIAT! Katana shoves Indi down, runs up, but into a back suplex! Katana lands out, but her leg jams! The ref and Kayden check, then the ref keeps Indi back. Indi says okay, and she stays by Candice. But Candice tags in to WRECK Kayden! And she SLAMS Katana’s leg into the post!! HALF CRAB and DEEP! Katana taps, Candice & Indi win!
Winners: Candice LeRae & Indi Hartwell, by submission
Candice smiles and celebrates with Indi, but Indi doesn’t want to. Candice says a win is a win, but just what is going on in her toxic mind?
Cody Rhodes makes his way to the ring.
NC State fires up again as The American Nightmare walks down the ramp, and this time the fans can sing along with the song, “WHOA~ OH~!” Cody gets his pyro then gets the mic. “In less than three weeks time, I will stand opposed for the second year in a row, in the main event, with the lights on brightest, I will challenge for the WWE Undisputed Championship, against the greatest champion in all of sports, The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. And this Friday on SmackDown, Roman and I are going to have a little conversation, if you will. But there are… complications. Factors, elements, combustible elements, namely… The Rock.”
Fans boo but Cody says The Rock took to Instagram on Friday, and followed it up with “extremely entertaining” concert. Too bad The Rock didn’t wanna be here tonight. Something Cody took from the Instagram post: The Rock referred to himself as “Our Favorite Heel.” A bit of an inside term, but we’re not dumb, we know that means he’s the “bad guy.” Cody has known Heels. Bobby Heenan, Arn Anderson, Michael Hayes, “Superstar” Billy Graham, “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair! Fans “WOO~” and Cody says he doesn’t think The Rock is a Heel. He’s just an assh*le. The fans go nuts hearing that!
Cody doesn’t want Rock getting upset, he doesn’t want the “seven bucks team” to get upset, he doesn’t want anyone getting emotional. Cody knows how Rock feels about emotions, he poked fun at Cody tearing up at discussing “finishing the story” with good friend, Michael Cole. There’s no crying in pro-wrestling, Jimmy Dugan, we get it. But hasn’t The Rock been crying behind the scenes this whole time? Once that hashtag came out, once fans chanted something else, The Rock cried to his buddies on the TKO board and said “Hey, this is gonna be some good PR for The Rock! I need to save WWE!” God knows, look at this house. They sure needed “saving,” huh?
The fans cheer but Cody says Rock wanted great PR. Until it wasn’t. TKO said OMG yes, put on the Gucci shirt, get those muscles looking big. It’s because they are Yes People, they are enablers, they won’t dare tell The Rock like it is, so Cody’s going to. Cody tells The Rock, “You’re a lot of things. You’re a lot of wonderful things. You are the Braham Bull, you are The Great One.” Cody still has shoes with The Rock’s logo on it! The Rock is the only guy Cody honestly feels is a Mount Rushmore wrestler. But he is also a terrible salesman, a carny succubus, and for those who don’t get what that means, The Rock is “a whiny b*tch!”
Fans lose their minds again but Cody says The Rock has been convinced otherwise. But don’t think that for two seconds this locker room needs The Rock more than The Rock needs it! That’s a rule of wrestling, nobody is bigger than the business! And sure, Cody brought up his mom, so it is fair game for The Rock to use that. But Cody knows The Rock’s mom. Here’s what Cody will tell us about The Rock’s mom. She is a wonderful lady, salt of the earth, she helped Cody chop Kevin in a dark match. Cody has nothing but respect for The Rock’s mom, something The Rock should’ve echoed back towards Cody’s mom.
But see, The Rock was talking about whipping Cody, handing a bloody weight belt to Cody’s mom, and normally someone as powerful as The Rock, Mama Rhodes would tremble. But The Rock doesn’t know Cody’s mom. Cody was more scared than she was, because she ain’t scared of nothing. This is the same woman who once jumped out of her chair at a Willie Nelson concert and beat up an undercover cop! She ain’t afraid of The Rock! Cody has been asked, April 6th, biggest tag match of all time, Rock & Roman VS Cody & Seth. Seth Rollins, the World Heavyweight Champion, a man The Rock should respect because that man has carried The Rock’s company!
How will Cody get past that match? How will April 7th look? Will it be a fair fight? Cody can tell us honestly… He doesn’t know. Cody does not know if it will be Bloodline Rules or not. Hell, he might not #FinishTheStory. “But Dwayne… What do you know? How can you be so sure of your own self, right?” The Rock hasn’t been in the ring in real action in years! April 6th, the bell is gonna ring, and what happens then? Is The Rock gonna bring The Great One, the hero we all had growing up? Is he bringing that #BigDwayneEnergy? Or is it gonna be LDS, Little D*ck Syndrome?! The fans chant “L D S! L D S!”
Cody says The Rock has referred to himself as The Final Boss. Kudos for that nickname, maybe he really is that. Maybe Cody is too naive to see it. But at WrestleMania, Cody doesn’t think The Rock will be The Final Boss. At WrestleMania, he’s just Roman’s side chick. But then ladies and gentlemen, his name is Paul Heyman, and he serves as The Wise Man to Your Tribal Chief, the reigning! Defending! Undisputed! WWE Universal Heavyweight Champion, Roman… Reigns! And as Special Counsel to the Bloodline, Heyman is here to say to Cody that the ideals that Cody and Heyman share are far greater than the interests on which they conflict.
By example, don’t you hate it when someone comes out to demand an apology? Not that Cody’s done that, but Heyman is still going to do that. Heyman came out here with some “friends” of his, and he apologized. For a Wise Man, that was pretty freakin’ stupid. One: because it didn’t work. Two: because it was just dumb. And for that, Cody, to you and the fans, Heyman humbly apologizes. Cody says whoa, whoa, whoa. He didn’t ask for an apology, and he certainly knows Heyman wants permission to be in the ring. Heyman is a Hall of Famer starting this year, if he wants into the ring, be Cody’s guest.
Heyman thanks Cody for that but he’s fine on the apron. He carries with him a message from The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns. Talk about Heels… You may think of Heyman anything negative you want, and that might be understanding the obvious. Heyman is not trustworthy, but Roman is a chief of his word. Heyman assures that this Friday on SmackDown, Roman will be face to face with Cody. American Nightmare, Tribal Chief, challenger and champion. And when they are face to face, there will not be a single other member of The Bloodline in sight. Except for Heyman, but he is no physical threat.
Heyman holds the title belt, the beads, whispers things in Roman’s ear, such as his love and respect. But Cody has Roman’s word that if he shows up on SmackDown, Roman will show up alone. Cody says Roman shows up alone, no Bloodline outside of Heyman, it’s a deal. They good? Heyman has some jet lag, he forgot one little point. And don’t boo him, he’s talking to Cody! Cody says yes they’re booing, and he’s about to go full Homelander and rip Heyman’s throat out if he doesn’t get to the point. Fans like the reference. Heyman composes himself and says if Roman Reigns shows up alone this Friday on SmackDown, then Cody must show up to SmackDown alone, too.
Cody steps closer to Heyman and Heyman is a bit nervous. Cody tells Heyman, “Deal!” They shake hands, and Heyman smiles. The Wise Man negotiated a purely one-on-one meeting between his Tribal Chief and American Nightmare, but can we trust Heyman was telling the truth about Roman telling the truth?
Nia Jax speaks.
“You know what I’ve realized? Becky Lynch has never beaten me. And after tonight, she never will. Because after I break her face again, I will be taking her spot at WrestleMania. I will finish business with Rhea Ripley, and not only will I walk out the Last Woman Standing, but I will become Women’s World Champion.” The Irresistible Force is ready for the Big Time, but will she A-Nia-late her?
Cody Rhodes returns backstage.
And Jey says there he go! But real quick, Cody can’t be going to SmackDown alone. Cody says he gave them his word. But The Bloodline isn’t gonna play fair! They’re all gonna be there! If Cody needs Jey, Jeys’ got him. Cody hears that, but he knows what he’s dealing with. They shake hands and Jey heads out. Will Cody be able to have that fair, one-on-one meeting? Or does Jey have a point about The Bloodline?
Dominik Mysterio w/ JD McDonagh VS Ricochet!
It seems Pearce agreed to the idea that Dirty Dom should try and clean up The Irish Ace’s mess. Will Dom be able to get revenge on Ricochet? Or will Ricochet be the One and Only person holding their head high tonight?
Raw returns and Dom has made his entrance. The bell rings, Dom and Ricochet circle, and they tie up. Ricochet waistlocks, Dom fights the lift and grabs ropes. The ref counts, Ricochet lets off, but Dom ELBOWS him away! Dom fires hands, soaks up the heat, then storms up, but into haymakers! Ricochet CHOPS, kicks then flexes on Dom. Ricochet whips, Dom reverses, but Ricochet goes up and over. Ricochet ducks ‘n’ dodges to then handspring back elbow! The fans fire up while Dom bails out! JD is there to coach Dom up, but Ricochet runs in! JD gets Dom to safety, but Ricochet handsprings to hero land!
The fans fire up, Ricochet then goes to ropes to TORNILLO PLANCHA! Direct hit on Dom and Ricochet tells JD to back off. Ricochet puts Dom in, Dom distracts the ref, but JD grabs Ricochet’s leg! Ricochet kicks JD away, but then Dom WRECKS Ricochet with a dropkick! Dom soaks up the heat and Raw goes to break.
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We’re just one step away from the Cup!
Cold Skull faces The Fierce Warrior, and Gene Blast faces The King of Darkness, and when the smoke clears, we will have our New Japan Cup finalists!
OFFICIAL RESULTS
- Boltin Oleg & Shoma Kato VS Zack Sabre Jr. & Mikey Nicholls; ZSJ & Mikey win.
- Six Man Tag: El Desperado, Tomohiro Ishii & Togi Makabe VS Just5Guys; Just5Guys win.
- Tanga Loa & Ryusuke Taguchi VS Great-O-Khan & Callum Newman; Loa & Taguchi win.
- Six Man Tag: YOSHI-HASHI, Toru Yano & Hiroyoshi Tenzan VS Bullet Club; Bullet Club wins.
- 8 Man Tag: Shota Umino, El Phantasmo, Hikuleo & YOH VS The House of Torture; Shota, ELP, Leo & Yoh win.
- Six Man Tag: Los Ingobernables de Japon VS The United Empire; LIJ wins.
- 2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: Yota Tsuji VS EVIL; Tsuji wins and advances to the finals.
- 2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: SANADA VS Hirooki Goto; Goto wins and advances to the finals.
PLAY BY PLAY
2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: Yota Tsuji VS EVIL w/ Dick Togo!
The Gene Blast overcame the tricks Ren Narita tried, but that’s because the House of Torture was saving all the good stuff so they could slay the Rampaging Dragon. Will the deck be even more stacked to make sure Everything is Evil’s? Or will Yota be one step away from LIJ VS LIJ at Sakura Genesis?
Well, Dick is making his way out here, but where is Evil? Oh, there he is. No tricks just yet it seems. But then Yota DIVES onto Evil! The fans fire up but Dick attacks Yota! Dick whips, Yota stops himself, and then scoops Dick for a BACKBREAKER! The fans fire up and Yota wants the bell. The ref says yes, ring the bell, and this is on the record! Yota stomps and CLUBS Evil, then whips, but Evil reverses! Yota hits railing, and then Evil whips him into more railing! Evil CHOKES Yota against the railing, Yota fights back, but the ref gets knocked aside! Evil puts Yota in so he and Dick can stomp away!
The fans boo but here comes the rest of the House already! Narita, Yujiro, Kanemaru and Jack all stomp away on Yota, but here come Bushi & Hiromu! It’s a replay of yesterday as LIJ fights off the House, but the numbers are still against them! The ref rushes in to tell everyone to stop! Evil shoves the ref out of the ring, Yota fires off on him, but Evil CLAWS Yota’s eyes! The House CHOKES LIJ, but the ref says stop! The bell rings, but what is the decision!? NO CONTEST!?
No Contest
What does this mean!? Someone has to advance, right? The finals aren’t until the 20th, how can there be a no contest? The House started this, where’re the consequences?! Yota gets up but Evil TOSSES him back out! LIJ regroups and Yota asks for a mic. Yota tells Evil that he’s sick and tired of this! They ARE gonna finish this match! The fans like the sound of that! All the refs come out, including Red Shoes, to discuss how this will be handled. For starters, they tell all the extras to get outta here! LIJ is cool with that, and Hiromu tells the House to come along. Evil says fine, and Jack, Kanemaru, Narita, Yujiro and even Dick reluctantly exit.
The announcement is officially made, and the bell rings! Yota and Evil rush in, Evil kicks low but Yota CLUBS away on Evil! Evil CLAWS the eyes! Evil kicks, runs, RAMS, but Yota rebounds to run Evil over! Then run and SPLASH! Cover, TWO! Yota fires up and the fans are with him! Evil bails out but the fans rally for Yota. Evil wants Yota to stay back, then he slides in, only to slide right out! Yota runs out after Evil, but Evil kicks him! Evil RAMS Yota into the timekeeper! Abe-san and his table go flying! Evil gets the mic to tell Yota that this is what he gets! The fans boo but Evil tells them off, too! Evil stomps Yota then soaks up the heat.
Evil unties the blue buckle pad himself, then waits in the ring. The ref checks Yota and the fans rally up again. The Young Lions help Abe-san while Yota drags himself up. Yota slides in, the fans cheer, but Evil pulls on Yota’s hair! Evil wrenches the hair, then wrenches it again! And again! Evil CLUBS the hair! The ref reprimands but Evil just dusts off his hands. Evil covers, but the ref refuses to count! Evil is furious but he’s the one up to no good! The ref still says no, so Evil stands on Yota’s head. The fans rally up, Yota rises, and he grins as he winds up to ROCK Evil with a forearm! And ROCK him with another!
Yota ROCKS Evil again, but Evil whips him into the bare buckles! Yota falls and the ref reprimands about the missing buckle pad. Evil stomps Yota, covers, TWO! The fans cheer but Evil is annoyed. Evil scuffs Yota, taunts him, and drags him up. Evil CHOPS, Yota drops to his knees, but Evil stands him back up. Evil CHOPS again and Yota grits his teeth as he drops to his knees! Evil stands Yota up again, to fake the chop to CLAW the eyes! The ref reprimands, Evil lets off, and then Evil stands on Yota in a corner. The ref counts, Evil lets go of the ropes but that’s not the problem! Evil steps away, drags Yota up but claims he’s dead weight.
The ref checks, Evil stands Yota up and wrenches an arm. Evil whips Yota into a corner, runs in, but into a BOOT! Evil runs in again, blocks the boot, but Yota brings Evil in for the STOMP! The fans fire up while Yota rests on the mat. The fans rally up and Yota rises again. Evil’s in the corner, runs out, but into the BACKBREAKER! COMPLETE SHOT! STOMP! The fans fire up again as Yota stands back up. Yota runs, to CURB STOMP!! Yota roars and the fans fire up again! Evil flounders while Yota aims. Yota runs in, but the ref is used as a shield! Evil kicks Yota low, then uses the ref in MAGIC KILLER!
All three men are down while the fans rally up again. Evil stands, he brings Yota up, and the ref also rises. Evil whips Yota into the bare buckles, then clotheslines him in! Then FISHERMAN BUSTER! Cover, but Evil lets off?! Evil wants to torture Yota but it’s hard to say if Yota is still even in this. Yota opens his eyes, rises up, but Evil fireman’s carries! DARKNESS FALLS! Cover, TWO!! Yota survives, the fans fire up, but Evil is furious! Evil slashes his throat and vows to end this now! Evil drags Yota up, spins him around, but Yota fights the STO with elbows! Evil kicks low, whips again, but Yota stops from hitting buckles!
Evil runs in, Yota dodges and Evil hits the buckles! SUPERKICK!! Both men are down again and the fans fire back up! We’re only ten minutes into this new match but this is on top of the madness from earlier. Evil drags Yota up, but Yota ROCKS Evil! Evil fights Yota’s fireman’s carry and CLUBS him, but both men wobble. Evil LARIATS, but Yota stays up! The fans fire up but Evil swings to LARIAT again! Yota drops to a knee, but he grins through the pain! Evil says alright, and he throws off his elbow pad. Evil runs to LARIAT! Yota grits his teeth to stay up! V-TRIGGER! Yota brings Evil in, suplexes, ORANGE CRUSH! Cover, TWO!!
Evil is still in this but the fans rally behind Yota again. Yota rises, drags Evil up, and then goes to the corner. Yota goes up and up and Evil moves the ref into the way! The ref takes the FLYING CURB STOMP!!! And now the House returns! The fans boo as Kanemaru, Dick, Yujiro, Narita & Jack all stomp away on Yota again! The fans tell them to go home, again, but these guys don’t care! They just put one out on Yota. They whip Yota to a corner, then DIck runs in to ELBOW! Kanemaru ELBOWS! Yujiro BOOTS! Jack SPLASHES! Narita ELBOWS! Then they snapmare and set Yota up! Dick climbs for the DICK CHOP!!
The fans boo but the House applauds their own dirtiness. But here come Bushi & Hiromu again! But they just get mugged again! They set Hiromu up for the DICK CHOP, while Bushi gets a JACK CHOP! The House then slithers away before a replacement ref rushes out here. Evil drags Yota up, winds up and runs, to LARIAT!! Cover, TWO!!! Yota survives and the fans are thunderous! Evil is at a loss for words, but he slashes his throat! He vows to end it for real, and he reels Yota in. EVERYTHING IS- Yota flips through!? And HEADBUTTS!! The fans fire up as Yota reels Evil in for a fireman’s carry! 70 CROSS!! Cover, TWO!!
Evil survives the swinging spinebuster and the House cheers! Yota drags himself to a corner, drags himself up with the ropes, and roars as he takes aim! Evil rises, but Yujiro distracts! Dick runs in, but gets a V-TRIGGER! The ref sees Dick, but misses the LOW BLOW! Then Evil RAMS Yota into the ref! That’s the second ref this match! Narita gets his push-up bar! The others set Yota up, but here comes SHINGO TAKAGI! The Rampaging Dragon has seen enough, and he’s still pissed from yesterday as it is! He dodges Narita to PUMPING BOMBER! Kanemaru & Yujiro kick Takagi, double whip, but he DOUBLE PUMPING BOMBERS!!
Jack gets in, but he gets ELBOW, JAB and YUKON LARIAT! Evil runs up but Takagi SWATS Evil’s lariat to JAB! Then feed to Hiromu’s SUPERKICK! Hiromu & Takagi set Evil up for Bushi’s BLACK MIST!! Evil can’t see, the PUMPING BOMBER turns him inside-out!! The fans are thunderous as LIJ helps Yota up! Red Shoes hurries out here, and Yota aims at Evil! GENE BLASTER!!! Cover, Yota wins!!!
Winner: Yota Tsuji, by pinfall (advances to the finals)
The House of Torture ran out of tricks, and now there is light at the end of the tournament! Will Yota do LIJ proud and bring home the Cup?
2024 New Japan Cup Semifinals: SANADA VS Hirooki Goto!
One down, one to go. Yota Tsuji has made it through, now we see who joins him in the finals! Will the Cold Skull or Fierce Warrior be the one that steps closer to former glory?
The bell rings and the fans duel between “GO-TO-O!” and “SA-NA-DA!” Red Shoes measures the levels, and it seems to slightly favor Goto. Goto and Sanada circle, tie up, and are in a deadlock. Goto gets some leverage to put Sanada against ropes, but he lets off slowly. Goto pats Sanada on the shoulders and the fans cheer. The two reset, circle again, and tie up again. It’s another deadlock, but again Goto finds a way to put Sanada on ropes. Sanada turns things around, lets off slowly, and also pats Goto on the shoulders. The fans applaud and the two reset again. They feel things out, knuckle lock, then move to a clinch.
They fight for control, Sanada starts pushing Goto towards a corner but Goto slips away. They feel things out, knuckle lock again, then break. They tie up collar ‘n’ elbow, Goto waistlocks, but Sanada wrenches to wristlock. Goto rolls, wrenches, wristlocks, but Sanada spins, wrenches, only for Goto to roll! Goto gets a leg to trip Sanada up, and he has a toehold. Sanada fights back with a chinlock but Goto pulls on the leg. Sanada uses his free leg to hook Goto into an ARMBAR, but Goto clasps hands! Goto moves around, pops free, then headlocks. Sanada fights up, Goto grinds the headlock, but Sanada throws body shots.
Sanada powers up and out, but Goto runs him over! The fans rally as things speed up, and Goto counters hip toss with hip toss! Goto runs and he clotheslines Sanada up and out! The fans fire up and Goto slides out after Sanada. Goto stomps Sanada, drags him up, then CLUBS him on the neck! Sanada staggers, Goto CHOPS him, then kicks him, then CLUBS him! Goto whips but Sanada stops himself from hitting railing! Goto runs in but Sanada drop toeholds him into the railing! Goto goes down in a heap, but Sanada opens the gate. Sanada brings Goto through, then to the crowd! PILEDRIVER to the bare floor!
The fans are stunned but Red Shoes reprimands. Sanada leaves Goto behind and slides into the ring. The fans rally for Goto as the ring count begins. Goto crawls at 5 of 20, finds his way to ringside at 10, but still hobbles and crawls. He stands at 17 to slide in! The fans cheer, but Sanada stomps Goto. Sanada drags Goto up, CLUBS him on the neck, then brings him back up to CLUB him again. Goto CHOPS! And CHOPS! Sanada eggs Goto on so Goto CHOPS again! Goto whips, Sanada reverses to RUSSIAN LEG SWEEP! Cover, TWO! Sanada keeps cool and sits Goto up into a chinlock. Goto endures and the fans rally again.
Goto kicks forward, reaches out, but Sanada cranks on the hold! Goto keeps fighting, and has the ROPEBREAK! Sanada lets go cleanly, but then he stomps Goto while he’s down. Sanada then stands Goto up to CLUB him on the neck. Goto CHOPS in return! And CHOPS, and CHOPS, and has Sanada in a corner! Goto CHOPS again, then whips corner to corner. Goto runs in, but Sanada BOOTS first! Sanada runs, Goto follows, and Goto LARIATS Sanada down! The fans fire up and Goto rises, clutching his neck. Goto stands Sanada up to fire off forearms, then he whips corner to corner. Goto runs in, MURAMASA!
Sanada wobbles, into the SAIDO! Cover, TWO! The fans fire up while Goto grits his teeth. Goto drags Sanada up, fireman’s carries, but Sanada fights free! Sanada waistlocks, Goto throws elbows, then runs. Sanada hurdles, hurdles, and DROPKICKS! Goto tumbles out of the ring, Sanada PLANCHAS him down! The fans fire up and Sanada encourages them to get louder. The fans get louder and Sanada appreciates it. Sanada then goes back for Goto, brings him up and puts him in the ring. Sanada fireman’s carries but Goto throws elbows! Sanada turns around into Goto’s fireman’s carry, but then slips out into the dragon sleeper!
But Goto arm-drags free! Sanada kicks low, runs, but Goto follows! Sanada dodges this time, runs again, but Goto still follows! Sanada sidesteps this time, but Goto holds ropes to avoid the hurdle! Goto runs in, but Sanada fireman’s carries! T K O! Cover, TWO! Goto is still in this and the fans rally up! Sanada goes up the corner, ROUNDING BODY- NO, Sanada has to land out as Goto moves! Sanada runs in, but into the fireman’s carry! USHIGOROSHI! Both men are down and the fans fire up again! They cheer on “GO-TO-O!” but the “SA-NA-DA!” chants are still there. Red Shoes checks them both, and both men slowly rise.
The two crawl towards each other, and Goto fires a forearm! Sanada shakes his head, eggs Goto on, so Goto throws another! Goto eggs Sanada on, so Sanada fires a forearm! Goto fires a forearm back, and the two stand. Sanada UPPERCUTS! Goto comes back to forearm! Sanada UPPERCUTS again, and Goto drops back to a knee! The fans rally, Goto stands again, and he forearms! UPPERCUT, forearm, repeat! Goto growls, fires a flurry of forearms, and he ROCKS Sanada! Sanada drops to his hand and knees but Goto powers up! Goto KICKS but Sanada blocks! Goto fires more forearms, then waistlocks, but Sandaa fights free!
Sanada runs, but Goto fireman’s carries! And he throws Sanada into the dragon sleeper! But Sanada turns around and suplexes, for MAGIC SCREW! Both men are down again and the fans fire back up! Sanada roars as he rises up, and he aims from a corner. Sanada wants Goto to get up, and Goto sits up, into the SHINING WIZARD! Sanada then dragon sleepers, for the SKULL END!! Goto endures, flails, reaches out, but he’s caught in the body scissors! Goto fights around but he’s fading! The fans rally, Goto’s hand drops! Sanada lets him go to then climb! ROUNDING BODY PRESS! Cover, TWO!!
The fans fire up as Goto survives but Sanada storms around. Sanada drags Goto up, reels him in and clinches, but Goto slips free to shove Sanada away! Sanada forearms, ROLLING- HEADBUTT from Goto! The fans fire up and duel, and Goto drags Sanada up. But Sanada breaks free! Goto HEADBUTTS again! Sanada falls back down and Goto steadies himself. Goto roars, the fans are with him, and Goto sits Sanada up. Goto runs to PENALTY KICK! Shoutout to Shibata and the fans fire up more! Sanada grits his teeth as he sits back up but Goto takes aim! BUZZSAW! And then he hauls Sanada up to dragon sleeper! G T- BACKSLIDE COUNTER! TWO!!!
Sanada and Goto hurry up, Sanada dodges to O’Conner BRIDGE!! TWO?!!? Goto escapes and shocks everyone! Sanada resets, runs in, SHINING WIZARD!! The fans are thunderous as Sanada roars and drags Goto back up! Clinch and DEAD- NO, Goto slips around to ripcord and fireman’s carry! G T W!! Cover, TWO?!?!? Sanada survives but Goto is all fired up! The fans are thunderous as Goto dragon sleepers for G T R!!! Cover, GOTO WINS!!!
Winner: Hirooki Goto, by pinfall (advances to the finals)
Don’t call it a comeback, Goto’s been here for years! Sanada’s hopes of being IWGP World Heavyweight Champion again have been delayed, how long must he wait for another chance?
As for Goto, he’s going back to the New Japan Cup Finals for the first time since 2016, and his seventh overall! But before he can get the mic to speak, Yota makes his way back out here. Yota steps into the ring and he gets the mic first. Yota tells Goto, “In order to open the door to a new era, we must do this.” The fans applaud that, and Yota continues by asking Goto, “Are you ready?!” Yota drops the mic at Goto’s feet, and Goto stands up to speak. “I also have something I want to show you. As a three-time New Japan Cup Champion, I will show you my strength.” The fans like the sound of that!
The Fierce Warrior stares down with Gene Blast, a true generational showdown on the horizon! Will Goto return not juts to former glory, but finally ascend to top of NJPW? Or will Yota make it LIJ VS LIJ for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship?
My Thoughts:
A great semifinal round for this tournament, with quite a surprising main event. Sanada VS Goto was great stuff, and while I felt Sanada wasn’t winning the Cup, I didn’t think he’d be out this round. Yota VS Evil was rather creatively put together, too. I did not think the House would get so involved that at first it was a No Contest but then they restart under a ringside ban. Takagi making sure Yota won was good stuff, too, maybe we can get Takagi VS Evil for the NEVER Openweight Championship if they’re not gonna circle back to more Shota Umino VS House of Torture stuff.
Goto VS Yota is going to be great stuff, and Goto is clearly a top utility guy. He’s had so many New Japan Cup finals appearances, certainly among the most ever, but I don’t think he gets a fourth Cup win against Yota, one of the “new era Musketeers” that NJPW clearly loves. Yota VS Naito is definitely the title match for Sakura Genesis.
My Score: 8.9/10
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