(NOAH) NOAH WEEKLY NEWSLETTER VOL.157 ~ 19TH JANUARY 2022

Kicking off 2022 with well received matches and determination, covid mixes things up but doesn’t detract from the main title match! Hisame gives us all the adjustments and how NOAH decided to pivot up the stairs!

NEWS

Major COVID outbreaks hits NOAH

A major COVID outbreak hit NOAH on the 14th January causing ten wrestlers (Kaito Kiyomiya, Yoshiki Inamura, Yasutaka Yano, Yoshinari Ogawa, Tadasuke, Daiki Inaba, Junta Miyawaki, Super Crazy, Kinya Okada and Masato Tanaka) to be absent. In Tanaka’s case he tested negative for the virus, but was generally unwell. Yoshinari Ogawa was positive, and aside from a high temperature and a feeling of discomfort in his throat had generally mild symptoms. Ogawa credits getting the jabs for this. Added to the absent wrestlers were the trainees and one of the referees. The outbreak seems to be prevalent among those who habitually use the NOAH dojo. Due to the large amount of absences, the card for BUMPER CROP 2022 in Sendai was massively changed. The roster all pulled together with Daisuke Harada (“the backstage MVP” according to Mohammed Yone) organizing everything that the trainees normally would do i.e. bus duties, hotel duties and cleaning up the locker room and arena before leaving. Perros del Mal De Japon also did their part. Fans thought they were coming down to the ring to announce something before the title matches began, but to applause, they had come to clean the ring and surrounding area.

The outbreak and the missing roster wasn’t the only thing on NOAH’s mind in Sendai. The eruption of the Hunga Tonga volcano and subsequent tsunami had caused an alert to be triggered for Japan’s east pacific coast, with Miyagi prefecture, where NOAH were that night, on full alert. Both Manabu Soya and Keiji Mutoh hinted that the roster probably didn’t get much sleep as everyone’s phones were pinging with alerts, plus people had family in coastal areas to worry about. Fortunately, the danger was over by 2pm, (although Japan did see some sea swell in some areas and small waves in Kanagawa), and the show went off much changed, but without a hitch. NOAH had asked that people stay at home and watch on WrestleUniverse and not put themselves in danger by coming out, and in the event of things they did an attendance of 633.

Yoshinari Ogawa & HAYATA vacate the tag belts, but not by choice

Despite Yoshinari Ogawa giving an interview on his condition, and saying that he felt better and was ready to wrestle as soon as possible, the issue does not seem as clear as that and on the 19th January NOAH announced they were stripping STINGER of the tag belts. Fans are upset as it makes Ogawa look like he’s done something wrong and that it is punishing HAYATA for no reason.

The tag title match was due to take place on the 22nd January in Osaka, but as Yoshinari Ogawa cannot compete, NOAH have made it a fight for the vacant titles between STINGER (Seiki Yoshioka and Yuya Susumu) and The NOAH Junior Regulars (Atsushi Kotoge and Hajime Ohara). Atsushi Kotoge had defeated Yuya Susumu for the right to challenge in Sendai. The defeat had led Susumu to mutter that they would be challenging the winners, but the new title match has led him to say that regardless of whether the belts were taken from STINGER, this was a championship match and he would be going for it. Like Ogawa, Susumu wants a “STINGER vs STINGER showdown”.

With the tag belts now taken from them, fans are wondering if Ogawa will seize this opportunity to challenge for the GHC Heavyweight tag belts with HAYATA. The belts are currently being held by Keiji Mutoh and Naomichi Marufuji (M’s alliance), and Ogawa has been saying for a while that he wants to challenge one day. The M’s alliance are also without challengers having retained the belts in Sendai against Kongoh’s Kenoh and Manabu Soya.

Haoh defects to The NOAH Junior Regulars

Haoh’s New Year statement was “to have my own words”, which everyone (including Kenoh no doubt) thought was another example of Kongoh’s stance against authority. It turned out there was a different meaning. In Sendai after a catalogue of errors in a tag match, the usual missed spots and accidental strikes on tag partner, Haoh shoved Nioh away rudely and left the ring. Fans thought it was only a build to a defection at a later date, but the NOAH Juniors can move quickly. After Daisuke Harada had defeated Seiki Yoshioka, Haoh came to the ring. It was thought he had come to challenge for the title to redeem himself after the issues in his own match, but no, Haoh came to announce he was quitting Kongoh and asked Harada if he could fight with him in the NOAH Junior Army. To show his resolve he removed his Kongoh t-shirt, and dropped it on the floor. Haoh said he wanted to rise and change his environment. Harada seeing his resolved welcomed him.

Nioh wasn’t going to be so accommodating and he asked Haoh if he had gone mad? Was he really going to leave Kongoh and join Harada? It’s true others had left Kongoh and not had reprisals, Masa Kitamiya, Yoshiki Inamura (who joined up with Kaito Kiyomiya right in front of Kenoh of all people) and Atsushi Kotoge had all left and not suffered for it. But Haoh is a NOAH Junior. They do things differently there. Usually involving fights. After a scuffle had broken out (and kept breaking out) an impromptu tag match was formed between Harada and Haoh and Nioh and Aleja which Harada won. Nioh cannot believe that Haoh would do this, and bitterly assessed him as having no belief in Kongoh. He also says he will never forgive him.

Nakajima’s next challenger

Katsuhiko Nakajima retained the belt against Masa Kitamiya in a title match that was built around things only Nakajima and Kitamiya knew as Naomichi Marufuji put it, and was challenged by none other than Kazuyuki Fujita. Since the epic stare off with Go Shiozaki at Korakuen Hall during the height of the pandemic, Fujita has used this for both comedy purposes and as a threat. In Sendai it was a threat as he came to the ring after the main event, and stared down Nakajima who was holding up the belt. Title match has been set for February 23rd at “GAIN CONTROL 2022 in NAGOYA”.

Go Shiozaki photobook

To celebrate the man who carried NOAH at great personal cost through the pandemic, NOAH are releasing a photobook to celebrate his achievement covering the period from winning the title (2020) to his being absent for surgery in March 2021. It will also contain some pictures of his rehabilitation and return at the Nippon Budokan on the 1st January 2022. You can pre order the book at the official NOAH site. It will cost ¥ 4,400 including tax. Please note that NOAH sadly cannot deliver internationally, and so you will need to order through a carrier like White Rabbit. Please see my guide to ordering here. The book will be on sale until midnight JST 24th January. (23:59 pm). Shipping time is estimated to be mid March 2022.

EVENT RECAPS AND POST MATCH INTERVIEWS

BUMPER CROP 2022 IN SENDAI – Sunday January 16th, Sendai Sunplaza Hall

Event recap Post match interviews

ELSEWHERE IN NOAH

– In Sendai Kendo Kashin provoked that wild rage in King Tany by carrying the weapon of Maybach Taniguchi (the violent monster and King Tany’s alter-ego) the Sasumata* to the ring. Tany went wild as The Sugiura Army all joined in trapping him and the poor ref in the corner, driving them back and then chasing Kashin around the arena.

– YO-HEY joked that Perros came to Sendai to clean. The sight of Perros rushing around with disinfectant spray and cloths has given rise to a lot of fan art on the subject.

– Takashi Sugiura posted a picture of a suggestive looking sushi piece, and then told everyone at 5.30am the next morning what it was. Sugi normally posts these kind of things if he’s had to behave at some point during the day, so this means that he was in one long meeting…

– Go Shiozaki had to purse his lips to try to not laugh at King Tany and Mohammed Yone when he teamed with them in Sendai. They asked if he wanted to be funky. He refused.

– Nothing has been said yet as to whether Haoh will change his name back to Yuki Sato, but it seems likely that he probably will.

– KENTA has been trolled by Takashi Sugiura. Who he has been ignoring.

– YO-HEY probably gave Nioh flashbacks to Osaka Mixture. I dare you to look that up on YouTube at 2.15/2.25.

*The Sasumata is a prong that was used by the Edo era Samurai police force to apprehend criminals.

CURRENT CHAMPIONS

• GHC Heavyweight Champion: Katsuhiko Nakajima
  Challenger: Kazuyuki Fujita- “GAIN CONTROL 2022 in NAGOYA”, February 23rd
• GHC Junior Champion: Daisuke Harada
  Challenger: No challenger as of yet
• GHC Heavyweight Tag Champions: The M’s alliance (Naomichi Marufuji and Keiji Mutoh)
  Challengers: No challengers as of yet
• GHC Junior Tag Champions: Vacated
  Challengers: Either The NOAH Junior Regular Army (Atsushi Kotoge & Hajime Ohara) or STINGER (Seiki Yoshioka and Yuya Susumu). The title match will take place on Saturday January 22nd at the EDION Arena 2nd Stadium in Osaka.
• GHC National Champion: Kenoh
  Challenger: Masakatsu Funaki- “HIGHER GROUND 2022”, EDION Arena Osaka 2nd Stadium, Saturday 22nd January

THIS WEEK IN NOAH

(Full January schedule)

Friday, January 21st: Go Shiozaki (40)

Saturday, January 22nd: HIGHER GROUND 2022

Start time: 17:30 JST

Broadcast: WrestleUniverse 

LINKS

Kaito Kiyomiya is defeated by direct attack, Okada & Tanahashi on the 8th January…thoughts on tears from the bottom of the heart

Even with Corona, Ogawa’s ironic “healthy” sarcastic barrage; “Not Qualified” for Kotoge, “Carbon Copy” for Harada

“Beast” Kazuyuki Fujita challenges for the GHC on the 23rd February, ally Kashin gives urgent warning “NOAH will collapse”

Costume research: Katsuhiko Nakajima

GIF taken from WrestleUniverse

Picture credit: NOAH GHC