News

This Day In Wrestling History – October 26th

The journey through wrestling continues for October 25 and 26, dates that include the birth of CM Punk and the wedding of Stephanie McMahon and Triple H!

Published

4 years ago

October 26, 2019

Liz Pugliese

The journey through wrestling continues for October 25 and 26, dates that include the birth of CM Punk and the wedding of Stephanie McMahon and Triple H!

Born On This Date

October 25

1942 – Rafael Nunez Contreras (El Scorpio)
1957 – Atsushi Onita
1965 – Charles Skaggs (2 Cold Scorpio, Scorpio)
1966 – Perry Alfred Satullo (Perry Saturn)
1967 – Victor Manuel Resendiz Ruis (Latin Lover)
1979 – Milena Leticia Roucka (Rosa Mendes)

October 26

1949 – Dennis McCord (Austin Idol)
1949 – Kevin Francis Sullivan
1964 – Nicole Bass
1969 – Robert Maillet
1973 – Takao Yoshida (TAKA Michinoku)
1978 – Phillip Jack Brooks (C.M. Punk)
1979 – Robert Anthony Fish
1987 – Jen Grattan (Portia Perez)

On This Day In Wrestling History

October 25

1910 – Henry Ordemann defeats Frank Gotch for the American Heavyweight Title, ending Gotch’s third reign.

1955 – Ronnie Etchison & Ray Stern defeat Gene Kiniski & Lord James Blears to win the San Francisco version of the NWA World Tag Team Title.

1958 – Jack Dempsey defeats Alan Colbeck in Newcastle, England for the European Welterweight Title.

1961 – Lord James Blears defeats Curtis Iaukea to win the NWA Hawaii Heavyweight Title in Honolulu, Hawaii.

1962 – El Rayo de Jalisco defeats Rene Guajardo for the NWA World Middleweight Title in Mexico City, Mexico.

1966 – Jose Lothario & Eddie Graham defeat The Infernos (Frankie Cain & Rocky Smith) to win the Florida version of the NWA World Tag Team Title in Tampa, Florida.

1969 – Bronko Lubich & Chris Markoff defeat Ciclon Negro & Sam Steamboat in Tampa, Florida for the NWA Florida Tag Team Title.

1972 – Jose Lothario defeat Stan Stasiak to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title in San Antonio, Texas.

1973 – Mike George & Jim Brunzell defeat The Great Togo & Tokyo Joe for the Central States version of the NWA World Tag Team Title.

1974 – Victor Rivera & Dino Bravo defeat Tonny Rocco & Raul Reyes for the vacant NWA Americas Tag Team Title.

1976 – Jesse “The Body” Ventura & “Playboy” Buddy Rose defeat Dutch Savage & Jimmy Snuka to win the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Title, ending Savage and Snuka’s fourth reign.

1978 – Ed Wiskoski & Buddy Rose defeat Dean Ho & Ron Starr to win the San Francisco version of the NWA World Tag Team Title in Sacramento, California.

1980 – Jay Youngblood & Joe Lightfoot defeat Rip Oliver & Fidel Cortez for the NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Title.

1981 – Kerry Von Erich & Terry Orndorff win the NWA American Tag Team Title.

1982 – El Satanico defeats Cesar Curiel to win the NWA World Middleweight Title in Mexico City, Mexico, beginning his second reign.

1982 – Paul Jones defeats Jack Brisco for the NWA Mid-Atlantic Heavyweight Title, ending Brisco’s fourth reign and starting his second.

1982 – In Memphis, Tennessee, The Fabulous Ones (Steve Keirn & Stan Lane) defeat Koko Ware & Bobby Eaton for the AWA Southern Tag Team Title.

1982 – David Schultz defeats Bob Armstrong in Birmingham, Alabama to win the NWA Southeastern Heavyweight Title.

1984 – Harley Race wins the NWA Central States Heavyweight Title from Hacksaw Higgins in Kansas City, Kansas, beginning his eighth reign.

1985 – Wayne Farris & Ron Starr defeat Kerry Brown and Hubert Gallant in a tournament final to win the vacant Stampede International Tag Team Title in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

1986 – Don Kent ends the fifth WWC Junior Heavyweight Title reign of Invader III in Caguas, Puerto Rico.

1992 – Dick Murdoch defeats Invader I in Bayamon, Puerto Rico to win the WWC Universal Heavyweight Title.

1992 – WCW Halloween Havoc took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1998 – WCW Halloween Havoc took place in Las Vegas, Nevada at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The show ran into a problem on many cable systems, as it went longer than usual PPV events, and some systems were not aware that WCW was going long with the event. As a result, the finish of Hogan-Warrior and the Goldberg-DDP match were not seen on some systems. Goldberg-DDP would be shown on Nitro the next night.

1999 – Ivory defeated Fabulous Moolah for the WWF Women’s Title in Providence, Rhode Island, ending Moolah’s seventh and final title reign and beginning her second.

1999 – Bret Hart defeats Bill Goldberg for the United States Heavyweight Title, ending Goldberg’s second run with the title and starting Hart’s fourth reign. On the same show, Konnan & Billy Kidman (The Animals) defeat Harlem Heat to win the WCW World Tag Team Title, ending Harlem Heat’s 10th reign. It’s the second straight Monday the Animals defeated Harlem Heat for the titles. It’s the fourth tag title change in eight days (the titles were vacated at Halloween Havoc the previous night) and the seventh since August 1.

1999 – Tamon Honda & Masao Inoue defeat Johnny Smith & Maunakea Mossman in a tournament final for the vacant AJPW All-Asia Tag Team Title in Nagaoka, Japan.

2000 – Todd Morton defeats The Suicide Kid to win the held up IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Title in Charlestown, Indiana.

2003 – Stephanie McMahon and Paul Levesque wed in Connecticut.

2003 – X #3 defeats Yasu Urano for the UWA World Middleweight Title in Chiba, Japan.

2003 – Eddie Colon defeated Jose Rivera, Jr. for the WWC Puerto Rican Heavyweight Title beginning his second reign and ending Rivera’s third.

2003 – Onyx defeats Hotstuff Hernandez for the NWA Wildside Heavyweight Title in Cornelia, Georgia.

2005 – MNM (Joey Mercury & Johnny Nitro) defeat Road Warrior Animal & Heidenreich to win their second WWE Tag Team Title .

2005 – Jeff Jarrett defeated Rhino to win the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. The win came just two days after Rhino won three matches—and the NWA title—at Bound for Glory.

2008 – Blue Demon, Jr. is the first Mexican and Masked Wrestler to ever win the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship in the six decades the National Wrestling Alliance has been in business.

2009 – WWE presented the first-ever Bragging Rights PPV.

In a preshow dark match, Christian defeated Paul Burchill to retain the ECW Championship.
The Miz defeated John Morrison.
Michelle McCool, Beth Phoenix and Natalya defeated Melina, Kelly Kelly and Gail Kim.
The Undertaker defeated CM Punk, Batista, and Rey Mysterio in a Fatal Four Way match to retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Team SmackDown (Chris Jericho, Kane, Finlay, R-Truth, Matt Hardy & The Hart Dynasty) defeated Team RAW (Triple H, Shawn Michaels, The Big Show, Cody Rhodes, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston and Mark Henry).
John Cena defeated Randy Orton 6-5 in an “anything goes” 60-minute Ironman match to win the WWE Championship. Cena scored the deciding fall by submission with five seconds remaining. Had Cena lost, he would have been forced to leave RAW.

2011 – WWE released Wrestling’s Greatest Grudges – Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart on DVD and Blu-Ray.

2011 – Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel defeat John Cena and David Otunga to win the WWE Tag Team Championship. David Otunga was forced by Wade Barrett to lay down for Slater and Gabriel.

2015 – WWE presented Hell in a Cell from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.

Dolph Ziggler, Cesaro, and Neville defeated Rusev, Sheamus, and King Barrett.
Alberto Del Rio defeated John Cena to win the WWE United States Championship. This was Del Rio’s first match with WWE since August 2014 when he was fired following a confrontation with an employee who had allegedly made a racist joke.
Roman Reigns defeated Bray Wyatt in a Hell in a Cell match.
The New Day (Big E & Kofi Kingston) defeated The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray & D-Von Dudley) to retain the WWE Tag Team Championship.
Charlotte defeated Nikki Bella by submission to retain the WWE Divas Championship.
Seth Rollins defeated Kane to retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Kevin Owens defeated Ryback to retain the WWE Intercontinental Championship.
Brock Lesnar defeated The Undertaker in a Hell in a Cell match.

October 26

1959 – Don and Luke Fields defeat Don and Al Greene for the Mid-America version of the NWA World Tag Title in Birmingham, Alabama, beginning their second reign.

1960 – Al Hobman defeats John DaSilva for the vacant New Zealand Heavyweight Title in Wellington, New Zealand.

1962 – El Medico II defeats Art Thomas in Houston, Texas to win the NWA Texas Heavyweight Title.

1964 – Pepper Martin and Luther Lindsay win their second NWA Pacific Northwest Tag Team Title, by defeating Pat Patterson and The Hangman.

1964 – Tony Borne defeats Killer Karl Kox for the NWA Texas Brass Knuckles Title in Fort Worth, Texas, ending Kox’s second reign and beginning his own third.

1968 – Mitsu Arakawa and Dr. Moto (Tor Kamata) defeat Wilbur Snyder and Pat O’Connor for the WWA Tag Team Title in Elkhart, Indiana, beginning their second reign.

1971 – The Wrestling Pro defeats Ken Lucas for the NWA Gulf Coast Heavyweight Title in Mobile, Alabama, ending Lucas’ fourth reign and beginning his own third.

1973 – Enrique Vera defeats Angel Blanco in Mexico City, Mexico for the Mexican National Heavyweight Title.

1976 – Mr. Wrestling II defeats Dick Slater to win his sixth NWA Georgia Heavyweight Title in Columbus, Georgia.

1976 – The Executioners (Killer Kowalski & John Studd) were stripped of the WWWF World Tag Team title when they had a third member (Nikolai Volkoff) participate in a title defense against Chief Jay Strongbow & Billy White Wolf in Hamburg, Pennsylvania. Strongbow & White Wolf would go on to win the belts in a three team tournament with the Executioners and, ironically, Volkoff & Tor Kamata.

1979 – Chavo Guerrero, Sr. and Al Madril defeat Allen Coage and Victor Rivera for the NWA Americas Tag Team Title.

1979 – Sweet Brown Sugar defeats Ernie Ladd to win the Florida version of the NWA Southern Heavyweight Title.

1979 – Tommy Rich defeats Killer Karl Kox for the NWA Georgia Heavyweight Title in Atlanta, Georgia.

1980 – Dusty Rhodes defeats Bobby Jaggers for the Florida State Heavyweight Title in Ft. Lauderdale. This was the start of Rhodes’ tenth, and final, reign with the belt.

1981 – Dutch Mantel defeats Dream Machine for the AWA Southern Heavyweight Title in Memphis, Tennessee.

1982 – Chief Jay & Jules Strongbow defeat Mr. Fuji & Mr. Saito for the WWF World Tag Team Title, ending Fuji & Saito’s second reign, and starting the second reign for the Strongbows.

1982 – Harley Race defeats Giant Baba for the PWF Heavyweight Title in Obihiro, Japan, ending Baba’s second reign.

1983 – The Junkyard Dog defeats Butch Reed for the Mid-South North American Heavyweight Title in Shreveport, Louisiana. This ended Reed’s third reign and began JYD’s fourth.

1986 – John Tatum and Jack Victory defeat The Fantastics (Bobby Fulton and Tommy Rogers) to win the UWF Tag Team Title in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

1987 – Two title changes take place on an AWA card in Memphis, Tennessee. Jerry Lawler and Bill Dundee win their second AWA World Tag Team Title, defeating Hector Guerrero and “Dr. D” David Schultz. Lawler & Dundee had lost the belts only a week earlier. Also, The Midnight Rockers (Marty Jannetty and Shawn Michaels) defeat The RPM’s (Mike Davis and Tommy Lane) for the AWA Southern Tag Team Title, ending the RPM’s fifth reign.

1987 – Tom Prichard ends Tony Anthony’s third NWA Alabama Heavyweight Title reign in Birmingham, Alabama.

1995 – Robby Royce defeats Vance Nevada for the Canadian Junior Heavyweight Title in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

1997 – WCW Halloween Havoc was held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Yuji Nagata defeated Ultimo Dragon via submission.
Chris Jericho defeated Gedo via submission.
Rey Misterio Jr. defeated Eddie Guerrero in a title versus mask match to win the WCW Cruiserweight Championship. Had Mysterio lost, he would have been forced to unmask.
Alex Wright defeated Steve McMichael. Jeff Jarrett, the originally scheduled opponent, had his contract expire just before the PPV, and was not renewed. On October 20, Jarrett returned to the WWF.
Jacqueline defeated Disco Inferno.
Curt Hennig defeated Ric Flair by disqualification to retain the WCW United States Championship.
Lex Luger defeated Scott Hall. Larry Zbyszko was the special referee.
Randy Savage defeated Diamond Dallas Page in a Sudden Death match. The match was conducted under last man standing rules.
Roddy Piper defeated Hollywood Hogan via submission in a steel cage match.

1998 – Diamond Dallas Page defeats Bret Hart for the WCW United States Heavyweight Title, ending Hart’s second run with the belt and beginning Page’s own second reign.

1999 – Davey Boy Smith defeats D’Lo Brown for the WWF European Heavyweight Title, ending Brown’s fourth reign with the belt, and starting Smith’s second reign (he was the first European champion ever in 1997).

2001 – World Wrestling All-Stars “Inception” PPV was held at the Superdome in Sydney, Australia. It was aired live on Australian Pay-per-view, and was shown in the United States on PPV on January 6, 2002. The feature attraction of the show was a tournament to determine the first WWA heavyweight champion, in which each match had a different stipulation.

2002 – WWE held their UK-only PPV, Rebellion, at the Evening News Arena in Manchester, England,

In a preshow dark match, Bill DeMott defeated Shannon Moore.
Booker T defeated Matt Hardy.
Billy Kidman and Torrie Wilson defeated John Cena and Dawn Marie.
Funaki defeated Crash Holly.
Jamie Noble defeated Rey Mysterio and Tajiri in an elimination match to retain the WWE Cruiserweight Championship.
Reverend D-Von and Ron Simmons defeated The Big Valbowski and Chuck Palumbo.
Rikishi defeated Albert.
Kurt Angle & Chris Benoit defeated Los Guerreros (Eddie Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero) to retain the WWE Tag Team Championship.
Brock Lesnar & Paul Heyman defeated Edge in a handicap match to retain the WWE Championship.

2002 – The NWA 54th Anniversary Show was held in Corpus Christi, Texas

2002 – CM Punk defeats MDogg20 to win his third IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Title in Clarksville, Indiana.

2008 – WWE presented Cyber Sunday from the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona.

In a WWE.com preshow match, Shelton Benjamin defeated R-Truth to retain the WWE United States Championship. R-Truth won the shot with 59% of the vote. Other choices were Festus (26%) and MVP (15%).
Rey Mysterio defeated Kane in a No Holds Barred Match. No Holds Barred was the winning choice (39%) over falls count anywhere (35%) and two out of three falls (26%).
Matt Hardy defeated Evan Bourne to retain the ECW Championship. Evan Bourne won the title shot via fan vote with 69% over Finlay (25%) and Mark Henry (6%).
John Morrison & The Miz defeated Cryme Tyme (JTG & Shad) (38%). Other possible tag team matches were a world tag title match between Legacy (Cody Rhodes & Ted Dibiase) and CM Punk and Kofi Kingston (35%) and an intergender match with William Regal & Layla vs. Jamie Noble & Mickie James (27%).
The Honky Tonk Man defeated WWE Intercontinental Champion Santino Marella by disqualification. Other challengers for Santino were Roddy Piper (34%) and Goldust (31%).
The Undertaker defeated The Big Show in a Last Man Standing match. Last man standing got 49%, followed by an I Quit match (42%) and a knockout match (9%).
Mickie James won a Divas Halloween Costume Contest. Other participants were Beth Phoenix, Michelle McCool, Brie Bella, Candice Michelle, Eve, Jillian Hall, Katie Lea Burchill, Kelly Kelly, Layla, Lena Yada, Maria, Maryse, Natalya, Tiffany, and Victoria.
Triple H defeated Jeff Hardy to retain the WWE Championship. Hardy won the right to challenge for the title alone with 57% of the vote, with a triple threat match including Vladimir Kozlov getting 38% of the vote. Kozlov alone got just 5%.
Batista defeated Chris Jericho to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Steve Austin easily won the referee spot with 74%, followed by Shawn Michaels (22%), and Randy Orton (4%).

2011 – Bobby Roode defeated James Storm to win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship.

2013 –Ring of Honor presented Glory by Honor XII from the Frontier Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge, Illinois. It was the annual “champions vs. all-stars” elimination match, pitting all the ROH champions versus a team of top contenders in a two-hour time limit match. If any member of the All-Stars team defeated the world champion (at the time, Adam Cole), they would receive a future world championship match.

Notes: From 2013 thru 2018 there were an additional 23 shows ran by a variety of promotions. The last major PPV to be held on this date was the 2014 Hell In A Cell.

Died On This Date

October 26

2008 – Conrad Efraim (SD Jones)

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

Related Topics:AWA CMPunk Featured Featured Big Harley Race NWA Ring of Honor Stephanie McMahon strongbow TNA Triple H WWF

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(NOAH) NOAH NEWSLETTER VOL.200 ~ 7TH MAY 2023

New alliances, MMA challengers and the return of a beloved tag team!

Published

5 months ago

May 8, 2023

Hi5ame

NEWS

AXIZ reunite

Go Shiozaki lost in his return match at MAJESTIC (4th May at Ryogoku Kokugikan) to Katsuhiko Nakajima’s Vertical Spike. While he was lying on the mat, with a worried Kaito Kiyomiya and Yoshiki Inamura looking on, Katsuhiko Nakajima got on the mic and said, “What is this, Go Shiozaki? This awkward state? Is this “I AM NOAH?” Where did that strong Go Shiozaki go? Shall we do it again? Stand up!”, Everyone, including Shiozaki, thought that Nakajima wanted to fight him again and so Shiozaki used Nakajima to pull himself up. Nakajima had his usual devilish smile on, and grabbed Shiozaki by the hair as if he was going to strike him.

What he actually did was offer him his hand, which Shiozaki took, and to the wild screaming of the crowd, AXIZ reformed and the two would not let go of each other.

Kenoh was outraged and demanded to know what was going on. Manabu Soya later left the ring shaking his head. Backstage, Nakajima confirmed that yes, AXIZ were back and the reason why he had left was because (and this sounds familiar) Kenoh didn’t need him, Kongoh didn’t need him, and he didn’t need them. Kenoh growled that he would destroy anyone who got in his way and that included All Japan, All Japan’s Suwama, Dragon Gate (probably the whole roster) and Katsuhiko Nakajima. Kenoh remarked that usually Kongoh didn’t punish people who left (he probably doesn’t mean the chaotic juniors), but it seems that he himself will have another singles match with Nakajima on the 31st May at Shinjuku FACE. Kenoh has also branded AXIZ as a “thief and traitor duo” and has warned elderly AXIZ fans not to make any bank transfers. He has also claimed that while he was injured, Go Shiozaki is a “salary thief” for doing nothing for NOAH during that time, and not even updating his Twitter.

Related articles

Kongoh’s leader, Kenoh, denounces Go Shiozaki and Katsuhiko Nakajima’s AXIZ reunion as a “thief and traitor duo”

NOAH promise more women’s matches

Following the four woman tag at MAJESTIC, Ryo Mizunami hinted afterwards that NOAH will be holding more and she (and others) want to be a part of this. Nothing more has been said about the possibility of a women’s GHC Championship though.

N-1 VICTORY 2023 Announced

NOAH have announced that the N-1 VICTORY 2023 will make a return in August 2023, and as is tradition, will have the final night held in Osaka in early September. No names have been announced as of yet, but the league will head up for a couple of dates in Sapporo, Hokkaido (NOAH have not been to Hokkaido since before the pandemic when they would traditionally share a ring with Big Japan and then get drunk together over a lost weekend). No names have been announced as of yet.

Masakatsu Funaki challenges Josh Barnett

Following his victory over Shinya Aoki at MAJESTIC, Masakatsu Funaki challenged Josh Barnett, who was sitting at ringside to a match. Barnett accepted, but NOAH are yet to state the date when the match will take place. Funaki also seems to be hinting that his career is now winding down, and he wants to tie up any loose ends; such as the Aoki match and the challenge to Barnett, who he has never faced before, but seems to have always wanted to. Mutoh told Funaki to keep going until he is sixty, but Funaki, who makes no pretense about the fact that he is approaching his mid fifties, seems to think that this is unlikely.

Eita alone, Daga joins “the new STINGER”. HAYATA not welcome either.

During the STINGER vs I guess the last of Perros Del Mal De Japon, Eita and Daga, Eita caught Daga with the Imperial Uno, which meant that Yoshinari Ogawa could capitalize, and he went to pin Eita. However, Ogawa broke the pin and got to his feet slowly, dragging Eita up by his hair. He looked across the ring to Daga, and Daga turned on Eita. Eita, now utterly alone, was beaten up after the match, and no one at all came out to help him as there is now no one left. Backstage, Eita on all fours, said that from now on he would be trusting no one and didn’t believe in friends (NOSAWA posted “…..” to this) and demanded a singles match with both Ogawa and Daga. As for STINGER, Chris Ridgeway said that from now on he, Daga and Ogawa were the new STINGER. Daga gave no reason for his turning on his old friend, STINGER rarely give reasons anyway, and Ogawa said that HAYATA and Eita were no longer considered “friends”. Eita will get his singles matches on the 14th May at Korakuen Hall, and with Daga on the 21st in Kobe. Fans are wondering if Eita and HAYATA will team up, but HAYATA seems to be more preoccupied with the GHC Junior at the moment.

Ring intruder at Korakuen Hall

At NOAH’s Korakuen Hall event on the 29th April, a young woman intruded into the ring at the start of Kaito Kiyomiya, Sean Legacy & AMAKUSA vs Kongoh, and started imploring Kiyomiya to “show us a stronger NOAH” because he was “the savior of NOAH”. She was gently expelled from the ring by Referee Nishinaga, Kiyomiya and the young rookie, Taishi Ozawa. No further information has come from NOAH or any news outlets as to who this young woman was or what the consequence of her intrusion was, and it is rare in Japanese wrestling that a fan should intrude into the ring, but NOAH took the precaution to check bags at their fan event and MAJESTIC, and extra wrestlers were seen at ringside, which fans said felt like security. The very real threat was that she could have had a knife. New Japan’s Toru Yano has also spoken out about fan behavior. He didn’t mention fan invasion specifically, but more wrestlers being harassed by fans when at baggage claim at airports, at convenience stores etc. Kenoh kind of saved the situation by telling Kiyomiya that if he was stronger, then strange people wouldn’t do things like this!

Shinjiro Otani

At an event held on the 6th May to help with his hospital bills, Shinjiro Otani made an appearance. Takashi Sugiura bought him some flowers and Otani thanked him for not giving up wrestling due to the injury that Otani sustained during the title match. He also warned Sugiura, that he would see him in the ring again. Sugiura said he was waiting for that day.

Voodoo Murders vs Kongoh

SUWAMA broke into NOAH’s event at Korakuen Hall on the 29th April and gave Kenoh, a massive Last Ride powerbomb. Shrieking that he was going to take the All Japan World Heavyweight Tag back to where it belonged, i.e. All Japan, he was prepared to come and have a match in NOAH (with Kono his partner) to retrieve them. There then followed a comical scene involving the infamous lifts, where a quaking old man appeared and was told by Suwama to hold the doors. The match has been set for NOAH’s Kobe event on the 21st May. The event will not be broadcast live, but I would imagine this match will be through NOAH’s official Instagram. Suwama got further revenge on Kenoh at All Japan’s show on the 7th when Kongoh and Voodoo Murders had a pre match. Kenoh was given another powerbomb, shoved into a body bag and Voodoo Murders posed with their boots on him, before carrying him backstage on their shoulders. Half in and half out of the bag and dumped on the floor, Suwama told him that now he was in hell, those titles were theirs.

TITLE NEWS

GHC Heavyweight

In a match that saw Naomichi Marufuji pull out old moves (Shiranui and Shiranui Pole Shift, plus a rope bounce that he hasn’t used for a while) and moves that he has worked on, Jake Lee retained the GHC Heavyweight at MAJESTIC. However, no challenger came forward, and fans were expecting to see Go Shiozaki come out. Jake thanked Marufuji and ran down what he had felt in his past title defenses; Kiyomiya was the future, Nakajima the strength and Marufuji the history. Jake wondered what was next and predicted that on the 14th May at Korakuen Hall, things would start to happen. Jake’s match then is himself teaming with Good Looking Guys (including YO-HEY and Tadasuke) against two NOAH Juniors (Seiki Yoshioka and Atsushi Kotoge) against Kaito Kiyomiya and Takashi Sugiura. Fans think that it will be Sugiura who challenges.

“Half the guys don’t think about it”, the real intention of outside invader Jake Lee’s cut down of the Ark warriors

“I can’t win in a direct match anymore”…Naomichi Marufuji aims to surpass his teacher, Mitsuharu Misawa, in recapturing the GHC

“It’s like a dream” – Jake, “Full speed for the first time in a while”, Marufuji

“Naomichi Marufuji must do his best here and now”, Mutoh speaks! 4th May Ryogoku Kokugikan, the direction of Jake vs Marufuji

GHC Junior Heavyweight

HAYATA was forced into doing some light comedy, when at the title match signing/press conference, Ninja Mack told him that he didn’t want him to be injured in their title match, and handed him a gift of bandages and athletic tape. HAYATA tried to keep a straight face. However, Ninja Mack found nothing to laugh about when HAYATA beat him and went to hand him his presents back. Apparently, HAYATA kept the bandages, as he only tried to give back the athletic tape. Ninja Mack knocked them to the floor and walked off. The GHC Junior Heavyweight is the only one with a challenger out of all the championships at the time of writing, as HAYATA has nominated Dante Leon as opponent. Dante Leon took the belt from Ninja Mack, but HAYATA feels he has to defeat everyone who held it while he was injured. Dante says he is coming back to take his belt back. Pre matches will take place, with the title match on the 17th June in Nagoya.

GHC Junior signing ceremony: Ninja provokes the champion with first aid supplies, HAYATA “excellent”

GHC National

El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr continues to cement himself as one of the greatest GHC National Champions, by defeating Hideki Suzuki at MAJESTIC to retain in an epic match. Suzuki was even booed as he knocked Wagner Jnr down with a punch early on after Wagner Jnr had yelled “Arriba Mexico!”. Suzuki didn’t look as if he was too bothered, and fought most of the match with a cool hard expression. El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr isn’t on any cards for the rest of May 2023, so it looks as if the title will probably be challenged for some time in June.

“Real” Suzuki emphasizes “Real Deal” to take over the GHC National, match signing ceremony

GHC Heavyweight Tag

Monster Taniguchi, which his seniors try so hard to awaken, sat dormant at the match signing as Saxon Huxley overturned the table, (which Takashi Sugiura, no stranger to trashing tables during press conferences, helped put back), but then turned his own over with a roar and made off with the tag belts. Sugi very politely helped the staff put the tables back. The team of Sugiura and Taniguchi gave very close to retaining, but they lost the belts when Saxon Huxley pinned Taniguchi with the Hanging Neck Bombs. The new champions celebrated by yelling loudly into the camera, and Huxley repeatedly head-butting his belt. Two new tags arose that night at MAJESTIC; AXIZ, and a new team of Masato Tanaka and Kazuyuki Fujita.

Huxley and Taniguchi go berserk overturning tables, Sugiura apologizes

GHC Junior Tag

YO-HEY and Tadasuke (Good Looking Guys Unit) defended the GHC Junior Tag against Alpha Wolf and DragonBane at Korakuen Hall on the 29th April. The lucha brothers came very close to taking the titles, but YO-HEY saved the team by pinning DragonBane. No challengers have come forward, but it does seem likely that they will be challenged by the people that YO-HEY dumped to join GLG; Atsushi Kotoge and Seiki Yoshioka at Korakuen Hall on the 14th May, which is NOAH’s next event. However, Kotoge and Yoshioka may not be the most stable team, as Yoshioka did catch him with a kick accidentally.

EVENT RECAPS & POST MATCH PROMOS

STAR NAVIGATION 2023

(Saturday April 29th, Korakuen Hall, Tokyo)

Event recap

Post match interviews

ABEMA PRESENTS MAJESTIC 2023

(Thursday 4th May, Ryogoku Kokugikan)

Event recap

Post match interviews

NOAH Fan Event Recap

ELSEWHERE IN NOAH

– Atsushi Kotoge posted a picture of himself when he came to NOAH eleven years ago. He says he is “slightly embarrassed” about seeing himself back then.

– Mohammed Yone and Super Crazy almost left via the wrong gate at MAJESTIC. The trainee standing there tried to tell them, but they seemed insistent, eventually he had to almost stand in their way before they realized.

– Xtreme Tiger returned to the NOAH ring following his concussion

– Most people down the old man VIPER tonic, Masato Tanaka opened it, poured it down his throat and chugged it.

– Keiji Mutoh told Kazushi Sakuraba that he should fight a bear on PPV. Sakuraba said no, he would be killed, and suggested that Mutoh do it. Mutoh said he was an old man who was enjoying retirement by sitting at home and watching historical dramas on NHK.

– Ray Escorpion made his NOAH debut, which involved heel tactics and stalking Dralistico.

– Jake Lee regretted his choice of costume, i.e. his gloves and cape, at the NOAH Fan Event. He said he felt like he needed an icepack under his armpits.

– Eita hid under the ring to jump Yoshinari Ogawa at Korakuen Hall on April 29th. When he crawled out he stretched and yawned, meaning that he fell asleep under there!

– Alejandro was sitting at the commentary table when it got trashed by the Luchadores at MAJESTIC.

CURRENT CHAMPIONS

GHC Heavyweight Champion: Jake Lee
Challenger: TBA
GHC Junior Champion: HAYATA
Challenger: Dante Leon, GREEN JOURNEY 2023 in NAGOYA (Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall – Saturday, June 17th)
GHC Heavyweight Tag Champions: REAL (Saxon Huxley & Timothy Thatcher)
Challengers: TBA
GHC Junior Tag Champions: Good Looking Guys (YO-HEY & Tadasuke)
Challengers: TBA
GHC National Champion: El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr
Challenger: TBA

THIS WEEK IN NOAH

(May 2023 schedule)

– STAR NAVIGATION 2023

Date: Sunday May 14th

Venue: Korakuen Hall, Tokyo

Start times: Doors 17:30 JST, Bell 18:30 JST

Broadcast: ABEMA

Birthdays & anniversaries

May 8th 1961: Akira Taue birthday (62)

May 13th 2000: Jumbo Tsuruta memorial (23)

*NOTE ABOUT ABEMA BROADCASTS

For the overseas fan a subscription to WrestleUniverse is recommended instead of a subscription to ABEMA. You can only watch ABEMA shows live (you cannot watch replays should you miss the show), but these always get uploaded to WrestleUniverse a few minutes after the broadcast finishes. I do not recommend that overseas fans subscribe to ABEMA due to the time consuming and expensive issues around finding a VPN that is compatible with their firewall, and ABEMA do not broadcast any other NOAH shows aside from the live broadcasts, they do not show much exclusive content and they do not show vintage or older events.

LINKS

“No matter how many times you fall down, you get back up, that’s pro wrestling” – Kaito Kiyomiya vs Reiwa’s “Pu-Girl”

“I want to fight” Aoki’s first NOAH participation, Funaki “challenge”. Press conference for the first showdown in six years

“Isn’t that a stupid question?” Shiozaki, returning for the first time in eight months, emphasizes “perfection” like AMAKUSA

26 year old wrestler Kaito Kiyomiya talks about the importance of the dojo and generational view

NOAH FROM THE VAULT

“Donmai, Donmai” – Mitsuharu Misawa’s diary….he’s being obscene!

With thanks to: Metal NOAH

Picture credits: NOAH.co.jp

Let us know what you think on social media @ChairshotMedia and always remember to use the hashtag #UseYourHead!

(NOAH) NOAH NEWSLETTER VOL.199 ~ 25TH APRIL 2023

Lots of Championship news! Does Jake Lee have what it takes to captain the ark?

Published

5 months ago

April 26, 2023

Hi5ame

NEWS

“I made you all wait”, Go Shiozaki announces his return

Go Shiozaki made a surprise appearance at NOAH’s Sendai event on the 16th April, and announced that he would return to the ring at “MAJESTIC” at Ryogoku Kokugikan on Thursday May 4th. In an interview done soon afterwards, Shiozaki said that of course his goal was to “get my belt back as soon as possible” and naturally, his target is the current champion, Jake Lee. He is very excited about NOAH now with the influx of foreign wrestlers, and of course, Jake Lee whom he knew from being in All Japan. Shiozaki’s return match will be against Kongoh’s Kenoh, Katsuhiko Nakajima and Manabu Soya. Shiozaki says he will not only be fighting against his opponents, but also the younger generation of NOAH, who he says are “a threat”. NOAH’s generational wheel continues turning.

The theme of return is “New Go Shiozaki”, “Fight with five people”, thrilled by the new NOAH scenery

“I have to get my belt back”, Go Shiozaki vows to return early to the title front

Junta Miyawaki returns from Mexico

Junta Miyawaki announced (bilingually as he also announced this in Mexican), that he would be returning from Ultimo Dragon’s training camp, and would make his first match back at Korakuen Hall at STAR NAVIGATION on the 29th April. His opponent will be HI69, who has been on a roll recently. Before he left, Junta Miyawaki said that he would “sip muddy water”, (which basically means to hit rock bottom and crawl you way back up), before he returned to NOAH. HI69 was unimpressed with this statement, saying that Junta had no idea what he was talking about, but he would soon make him realize it.

Women’s matches

NOAH continue to book women’s matches on their bigger shows. Sendai saw Maya Yukihi and Sumire Natsu fight in a singles match, and afterwards mention was made (even fleetingly) of a woman’s GHC championship. The next women’s match will be a four way at “MAJESTIC” on the 4th May between

Maya Yukihisa & SAKI vs Sumire Natsu & Ryo Mizunami.

Xtreme Tiger concussed & Luchadore’s trash the commentary table

Very sadly Xtreme Tiger sustained (probably) a concussion during the match in Sendai and was stretchered from the ring. Fortunately, he could still move as he was seen to be sitting up and sliding himself on to the stretcher. The remaining Luchadores (Doralistico, Dragon Bane, Alpha Wolf, Alejandro & Lanzelot) decided to continue the match, and as they are NOAH Juniors, didn’t bother to tell the ref. They just carried on and during this, Dragon Bane trashed the commentary table by moonsaulting through it. Then everyone else joined in, fighting in the wreckage. Akitoshi Saito (who had been sitting at the table) was seen looking on blankly. Later he made the comment that the table was not made of a material that was meant to be broken.

Yasutaka Yano and Kinya Okada taken off the Sendai card at the last moment

Yasutaka Yano and Kinya Okada were announced to have been taken off the Sendai card at the last moment, meaning that Anthony Green and Akitoshi Saito (who wrestled by taking his shirt off and in his normal clothes) had to fill in for them. NOAH have not announced the issue (illness, injury, etc) but fans think that they may have gone to Mexico for training, albeit why this should be so sudden is a mystery.

Title news

GHC Heavyweight

Jake Lee retains, Naomichi Marufuji challenges

Jake Lee retained the GHC Heavyweight against Katsuhiko Nakajima, and was challenged that same night by Naomichi Marufuji. The nautical references continued, as Marufuji said that Jake’s steering was making him “seasick” and used a term that he says he came up with before he made his challenge, by saying that “Even if it is rotten, it is Marufuji” (the full saying is “Even if it is rotten, it is still a sea bream”, which basically is like saying “white cat, black cat, as long as it catches mice, then it is a good cat” i.e. quality is quality). Title match has been made for “MAJESTIC” on the 4th May.

The two pre matches have taken place at shows not broadcasted live, Hamamatsu (which was put on WrestleUniverse on the 25th April) and Kyoto KBS Hall (which will be streamed on WrestleUniverse on the 26th April from 18:00 JST). Neither the champion or the challenger scored the direct win over the other, but Jake was seen to hold the belt over Naomichi Marufuji as he, Jake, stood on the turnbuckle and held it even higher.

The new champion gives NOAH a warning! Is it okay to stay as NOAH = Marufuji?

“After all, I’m the man who’s been with NOAH for a long time” – Naomichi Marufuji, on the 25th anniversary of his debut who named himself as the one to overthrow Jake, talks about his thoughts!

GHC Heavyweight Tag

Masa Kitamiya and Daiki Inaba lost the GHC Heavyweight Tag Championship to Takashi Sugiura and Shuhei Taniguchi in Sendai. Shuhei Taniguchi, much to his seniors delight, got the win but there was no chance to celebrate for very long as a new fearsome tag team, who were part of a new unit (and therefore a new power in the heavyweights) appeared on the scene to challenge. Hideki Suzuki announced that himself, Timothy Thatcher and Saxon Huxley, were breaking away from The Sugiura Army, which he said was “over” (fans have long felt that the unit simply fizzled out) and the three of them were breaking away on their own.

Suzuki challenged for the GHC Heavyweight Tag belts on behalf of his partners, whom both came across as having chemistry akin to an old school American tag team (Saxon I know is from England, but you know the vibe I am talking about). Backstage, Hideki Suzuki said their new unit was called “Real”. In their first pre match in Hamamatsu, Suzuki refused to shake hands with Takashi Sugiura and Sugiura was defeated by Saxon Huxley. The next night in Kyoto, Sugiura defeated Huxley, which was Huxley’s first NOAH loss, with the Olympic Slam and labelled himself as “Beastmaster”. There was also some slight friction appearing between Takashi Sugiura and Shuhei Taniguchi, as Taniguchi did the same “I heard you lost today?” kind of comment back to Sugiura, and once again refused to shake hands with him when Sugiura offered and just walked off when Sugi asked, “Did you win?”.

GHC National

In an epic match, El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr defended the GHC National against Jack Morris, and the two of them shook hands afterwards and patched up their friendship. Backstage, Hideki Suzuki appeared in the comments booth when Wagner Jnr was in it, clapping sarcastically and saying that he was coming for his belt. Suzuki also made a very poetic comment about the challenge.

“Because Wagner Jnr is the sun of Mexico, I will take him deep into the ocean. We will sink together, and only I will rise”

Their two pre matches so far have been inconclusive as they head towards the title match at “MAJESTIC” on the 4th May at Ryogoku Kokugikan.

GHC Junior

AMAKUSA did not do well in the pre matches against HAYATA, and HAYATA ran him into the ground in the title match in Sendai, winning in thirteen minutes and four seconds. In order to forestall anyone who thought they were going to challenge, he was picking up where he left off, and his next challenger would be Ninja Mack. Ninja Mack had challenged HAYATA in late 2022 for the belt, but he had won it when HAYATA was injured, and the belt was awarded to him. To HAYATA, he needed to defeat Ninja Mack first before dealing with anyone else. The two pre matches have not gone well for HAYATA, although Ninja Mack hasn’t got the win over him directly, he has still gotten the win for his team at one point, even if one of the matches was won by someone else, which for him counts as a victory over HAYATA.

GHC Junior Tag

Fans knew that Yoshinari Ogawa and Eita were going to fall apart. YO-HEY knew this too, but knew enough about his opponents, to be wary. In the end, a misfire by Eita, who caught Ogawa in the face with a kick, letting Tadasuke get the win, made the team implode. Ogawa might have come to the ring ignoring Eita’s very existence, but by the end of the match the two were brawling and the fight went backstage. After kicking Ogawa in the crotch, Eita announced that the only person he trusted was Daga. Daga will return to NOAH at “MAJESTIC”, with the one person who hasn’t turned on Ogawa (although he was wary of his aligning with Eita), Chris Ridgeway, who is returning to NOAH at Korakuen Hall on Saturday 29th April.

The new GHC Junior Champions, Good Looking Guy’s YO-HEY and Tadasuke, were challenged backstage by Dragon Bane and Alpha Wolf, who told them they were going to be taking the belts back to Mexico. The brothers have run riot on the junior tag champions, defeating them in the pre matches, Alpha Wolf in a singles against Tadasuke. Title match will take place this Saturday at Korakuen Hall.

EVENT RECAPS & POST MATCH PROMOS

ABEMA presents GREEN JOURNEY 2023 in Sendai (Sunday April 16th)

Event recap

Post match interviews

Act City Hamamatsu (Saturday, April 22nd)

Event recap

Post match interviews

Kyoto KBS Hall (Sunday, April 23rd)

Event recap

Post match interviews

ELSEWHERE IN NOAH

– Because they were both champions facing their challengers, YO-HEY offered HAYATA a handshake in Kyoto. HAYATA reacted in usual fashion (he refused) but the two were seen to work together…

– Kongoh appeared in a short Kenoh Channel video, where each of them ate one of Shuji Kondo’s financiers and talked about the merch table. Katsuhiko Nakajima very neatly put back a packet of Naomichi Marufuji’s curry, which Kenoh had thrown.

– Although he is no longer appearing in the ring, NOSAWA Rongai was seen watching at the Hamamatsu show. He’s not a member of the audience however, as he seems to be travelling with them – Kenoh said that he was glad Go Shiozaki had returned as he could not “wait to beat the shit” out of him.

– Atsushi Kotoge has revealed his beloved Shiba is called “Chikuwa”. When he left for NOAH’s weekend shows, he told him he was leaving him as watchdog to guard the family.

– Mercedes Monet said she wanted a match with “Marufugi”. “Marufugi” said he wanted one with her too.

– YO-HEY and Yoshiki Inamura will appear on “All-Star Chorus Battle” on May 14th for Fuji TV. The premise of the show is that they will team with five other people, sing the hit songs of the Reiwa era and compete as a chorus for a championship.

– A picture taken by NOAH’s official photographer in Kyoto was captured at precisely the moment that Seiki Yoshioka was diving off the top turnbuckle. The angle of his body made him look as if he was leaping out of the stained glass behind him. Ironically, he seemed to be leaping from the roof of the Ark. Also photographed against The Ark was Yoshiki Inamura, who put a Dove above his head.

CURRENT CHAMPIONS

GHC Heavyweight Champion: Jake Lee
Challenger: Naomichi Marufuji, ABEMA presents MAJESTIC 2023, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Thursday May 4th
GHC Junior Champion: HAYATA
Challenger: Ninja Mack, ABEMA presents MAJESTIC 2023, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Thursday May 4th
GHC Heavyweight Tag Champions: Takashi Sugiura & Shuhei Taniguchi
Challengers: REAL (Saxon Huxley & Timothy Thatcher), ABEMA presents MAJESTIC 2023, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Thursday May 4th
GHC Junior Tag Champions: Good Looking Guys (YO-HEY & Tadasuke)
Challengers: Dragon Bane & Alpha Wolf, STAR NAVIGATION 2023, Korakuen Hall, Saturday April 29th
GHC National Champion: El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr
Challenger: Hideki Suzuki, ABEMA presents MAJESTIC 2023, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Thursday May 4th