(NOAH) NOAH WEEKLY NEWSLETTER VOL.131 ~ 9TH MAY 2021

Yuya Susumu challenges for the GHC Junior Heavyweight, Atsushi Kotoge has terms. Yoshinari Ogawa not happy.

On the 3rd of May following the upheaval in the NOAH Juniors and the dissolution of FULL THROTTLE, after a typically wild NOAH Junior match (featuring brawls between all four units, including one that wasn’t even in the match, but only appeared to bait their enemies), Yuya Susumu challenged Atsushi Kotoge for the GHC Junior Heavyweight title. Kotoge, who will accept any challenge for anyone, told Susumu that he would do it on one condition; Ogawa and HAYATA put the GHC Junior Heavyweight titles on the line against Daisuke Harada and Hajime Ohara. NOAH went ahead and made both title matches for the 30th May at the Mitsuharu Misawa memorial show.

STINGER, who can always be relied upon to make things difficult, started making a fuss. Yoshinari Ogawa gave an interview to Pro Wrestling DX in which he said he had no problems putting the belts on the line against Daisuke Harada and Hajime Ohara, who he recognized as worthy opponents, but he didn’t see why Kotoge got to decide the title challenge for the junior belts and why NOAH did it without their permission, and therefore STINGER were going to refuse to defend them.

CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2021 NEWS

Takeshita invades NOAH

DDT’S Takeshita returned the favor to Kaito Kiyomiya, by turning up in NOAH. The two faced off in the ring on the 3rd May after Kiyomiya’s match against Ikuto Hidaka. Kiyomiya had been speaking on the microphone when Takeshita got into the ring. Takeshita reminded Kiyomiya of what was coming up and asked him if he was truly ready for it. He and his partner where, but he had hardly seen intensity from Kiyomiya recently. Backstage Takeshita said that his whole purpose of coming here today was to tell Kiyomiya that if he wants new scenery, then he needs to stop sulking, and show an intense fight, which he hadn’t seen for a while. Kiyomiya’s response backstage was typically polite, “I think it’s a difference in the way of thinking. We are not going to lose to the size of heat, and I hope we can interact that way in the ring.”

Kenoh was ruder about Takeshita, someone who he wasn’t even in a match with, when he described him to Sanshiro Takagi as wearing a “filthy t-shirt”. “Filthy” in Kenoh’s mind as it is associated with DDT.

Kenoh invades DDT to confront President Sanshiro Takagi

Now that he is feeling better and has a certain amount of strength back, Kenoh decided the time was right to confront Sanshiro Takagi over CyberFight Festival, by bursting into DDT on the 4th May. Kenoh, looking a lot better than he did on the 2nd May, started by apologizing for the trouble caused by his getting ill with Coronavirus. Takagi told him to look up, Kenoh didn’t, and when he did after repeated requests, got a stunner. Takagi told Kenoh to stop acting like a brat, he had read his column and seen his comments, and reminding him that like it or not he was his boss (Kenoh had said that Takagi was “President in name only” earlier), he was ordering him to appear at the event. Kenoh, (after a long rant, which included yelling at the DDT mat), said that there was NO ONE in DDT who was worthy of fighting him.

So Yukio Sakaguchi appeared and they had a stare off until separated by Takagi. Kenoh stamped off and it was announced later that a fourteen man tag had been arranged that would pit DDT vs Kongoh; Sanshiro Takagi, Akito, Kazusada Highuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi, Naomi Yoshimura, Yukio Naya & Hideki Okaya vs Kenoh, Katsuhiko Nakajima, Masa Kitamiya, Manabu Soya, Haoh & Nioh.

Sasadango and Dino demand a match against The Sugiura Army

On the 9th May, DDT’S Sasadango decided that he and Danshoku Dino should challenge The Sugiura Army to a match at CyberFestival. Dino didn’t seem as enthusiastic as Sasadango, who said that he didn’t know why he said it, but he wanted to do it. Takashi Sugiura’s response was to say that he was tied up with the title match against Kazushi Sakuraba, and these two “comedians” where not going to get a match against The Sugiura Army. He also threatened (probably somewhat tongue in cheek as knowing Sugi he will create a match with Kazuyuki Fujita and Kendo Kashin) that if such a match went ahead, heads would roll. Namely Narihiro Takeda’s and Sanshiro Takagi’s.

EVENT RECAPS & POST MATCH PROMOS

Post match promos: Day 1 (NOAH THE OVATION 2021, 2nd May 2021)

Event recap: Day 2 (NOAH THE OVATION 2021, 3rd May 2021)

Post match promos: Day 2 (NOAH THE OVATION 2021, 3rd May 2021)

ELSEWHERE IN NOAH

~ Yasutaka Yano did an early move of Kotaro Suzuki’s which involved a flip on an opponent when in the corner of the ring. Kotaro, his hero, encouraged him to do this more. Yano says he wants a singles match with Kotaro one day.

~ NOSAWA Rongai had a false tooth fall out before a match

~ Katsuhiko Nakajima was so demonic in the match against Funky Express on the 3rd May, he actually frightened fans watching at home.

~ With summer starting, the NOAH dojo is already reaching temperatures of 30 Degrees Celsius

~ Masaaki Mochizuki found himself given a bit of a cold shoulder when he refused to tell Naomichi Marufuji whose corner he would be in for Marufuji’s title match against Keiji Mutoh. Yuko Miyamoto said he would be in Marufuji’s.

~ Junta Miyawaki teases Kaito Kiyomiya and Yoshiki Inamura by pulling muscle poses in the mirror behind them when they use some of the weight machines at the NOAH dojo. Kiyomiya has named the mirror “Miyawaki’s mirror”.

~ Kenoh, Tadasuke, Haoh and Manabu Soya will return to the ring on the 15th May. Kenoh is in an eight man tag, which will hopefully mean he won’t do too much.

CURRENT CHAMPIONS

• GHC Heavyweight Champion: Keiji Mutoh
  Challenger: Naomichi Marufuji (6th June 2021, “CyberFight Festival”)
• GHC Junior Champion: Atsushi Kotoge
  Challenger: Yuya Susumi (Sunday May 30th, “Mitsuharu Misawa ~ Forever in Our Hearts 2021”)
• GHC Heavyweight Tag Champions: The AGGRESSION
  Challengers: TBA
• GHC Junior Tag Champions: STINGER (Yoshinari Ogawa & HAYATA)
  Challengers: Momo No Seishun (Daisuke Harada & Hajime Ohara) (Sunday May 30th, “Mitsuharu Misawa ~ Forever in Our Hearts 2021”)
•  GHC National Champion: Takashi Sugiura 
  Challenger: Kazushi Sakuraba (Sunday May 30th, “Mitsuharu Misawa ~ Forever in Our Hearts 2021”)

THIS WEEK IN NOAH

Thursday, May 13th: Hajime Ohara debut (17 years)

Saturday, May 15th: “ALL OUT ATTACK 2021” (17:00 JST)

“ALL OUT ATTACK 2021” will be broadcast via ABEMA. I know this will be a free stream, but I don’t know if it will be available worldwide. Please check on the day.

LINKS

Kenoh’s letter, written while infected with corona, aiming at returning on the 15th May at Korakuen