(NOAH) NOAH WEEKLY NEWSLETTER VOL.184 ~ 30TH AUGUST 2022

NEWS

N-1 VICTORY Update: Shock losses and two finalists 

825 people attended NOAH’s traditional final show of summer at Kultz Kawasaki to see the final qualifying matches that would determine the two finalists. It was an evening of shocks; Takashi Sugiura was choked out by Masakatsu Funaki in 57 seconds (the referee stopped the match), Hideki Suzuki defeated Go Shiozaki and eliminated him from the contest, while Kazuyuki Fujita did the same to Kenoh. Kaito Kiyomiya defeated Satoshi Kojima with The Shining Wizard to win a spot in the finals. He will face Hideki Suzuki in Osaka on Sunday September 3rd. A concept that terrifies Kiyomiya as he remembers what it was like facing Suzuki last time, and he was nowhere near the wrestler he is now. But as he himself says, he has no time to look back or down, he can only look forward.

Katsuhiko Nakajima knocks out Kinya Okada

Unfortunately, Kinya Okada finished his first N-1 VICTORY with no points and an injury when Katsuhiko Nakajima kicked him in the face and fractured his jaw. Okada was stretchered out to the applause of the fans and backstage was well enough to travel to the hospital in a taxi. Nakajima has gotten a lot of heat from fans because of this, but personally I think it was just an accident. Nakajima did not go to the ring intending to injure his opponent.

Captain’s Fall Nowhere: Chris Ridgeway returns

The Captain’s Fall match between STINGER (Yoshinari Ogawa, HAYATA, Yuya Susumu & Kai Fujimura) vs Perros Del Mal De Japon (EITA, NOSAWA Rongai, Kotaro Suzuki & Super Crazy) lasted only eight minutes and forty seconds. With a melee brawl going on outside the ring, Yoshinari Ogawa was held in a submission hold by Eita. He had nowhere to go as he could not reach the ropes, and no one to help him. Chris Ridgeway ran in unexpectedly and took out all of Perros Del Mal De Japon for the save. Eita then challenged for the tag belts, to which Chris Ridgeway responded he would show Eita what a true GHC Junior Tag Champion looked like. Match has been set for the final night of the N-1 Victory/Great Muta’s Farewell to Osaka on September 3rd. This is also Yoshinari Ogawa’s 37th debut anniversary. Kotaro Suzuki has warned NOSAWA Rongai not to interfere in the match, something that NOSAWA most likely will not be able to do.

Naomichi Marufuji abroad

Naomichi Marufuji travelled to New York to face Eddie Kingston at House of Glory on the 28th August 2022. His brief stay in the USA was eventful, and not just because he lost to Eddie Kingston. As well as missing his stop en-route to the airport in Japan to fly out, he boarded the plane half drunk and then found himself in a hotel where he heard gunshots outside from the road, and was followed by shady people into the nearby convenience store, not to mention the man and the money when he was checking out. On the way back he managed to go to the wrong airport, and made a few hyper Tweets to the NOAH Junior Space Session between Atsushi Kotoge (talking a million miles an hour) and a bemused Seiki Yoshioka when he got back to Japan. Marufuji’s next trip abroad will be to San Francisco for King of The Indies in the winter.

Daisuke Harada injured

Following a routine MRI, it was discovered that Daisuke Harada has a neck injury that will keep him out of the ring at least until Osaka on the 3rd September. Harada is surprised as he has never had issues with his neck before. He says he will work with NOAH’s medical team on the way forward in the future.

Masakatsu Funaki’s plan

Masakatsu Funaki says he would like to defend the GHC National against the three wrestlers he lost against, namely Masa Kitamiya, Kaito Kiyomiya and Satoshi Kojima. Kojima and Kitamiya seem the most likely candidates for a title match, and fans in particular are hoping for a Masa Kitamiya title reign. Katsuhiko Nakajima is also hinting of something he should do, which is “right in front” of him.

Great Muta’s farewell to Osaka

The Great Muta will make his farewell to Osaka, the place he was born, on September 3rd. The Great Muta will have his final match in Yokohama in January 2023. Muta’s birth was not an easy one, and it took Mutoh reworking the material he had so to speak to make him a success. The Great Muta gimmick had been used successfully during his time in America, but there was not the same effect when he bought Muta to Japan in 1990. Fans felt he was no different from Keiji Mutoh, the only difference was the poison mist, the costume and the face paint. To make matters worse, Great Muta’s Osaka birth was against “Samurai Shiro”, which caused even more of a lead balloon as both guys were seemingly in costume. Mutoh then went back to the drawing board and came up with the idea of The Great Muta as his demonic alter-ego, he would do things in a match that Mutoh (at that point, although he did later and said he got a cup full of urine thrown at him when he walked backstage), would not do in a match. This involved a ferocious attack on Hiroshi Hase in September 1990, which involved weapons, bloodshed and even the referee being knocked down. The arena lit up with boos of disapproval, but the gimmick had worked and from thereon Mutoh combined elements of The Great Muta into his own matches.

The Great Muta will team with sharp toothed demon, The Great O-Khan and the man who says he sold his soul, NOSAWA Rongai. They will face Kongoh’s Tadasuke, Manabu Soya and the GHC Heavyweight Champion, Kenoh.

Cheering 

NOAH have announced that on the 30th October, fans will be able to cheer again at events. This does not apply to all events however, but NOAH fans are just happy to have the chance to make some noise again and there is no better place to unleash them after about two and a half years in the place that NOAH first set sail, Ariake.

Yasutaka Yano returns

Yasutaka Yano will return to NOAH on the 21st September at Shinjuku FACE. He has returned to ringside duties.

ELSEWHERE IN NOAH

– Great O-Khan has labelled NOAH “a bankrupt indie group”

– N-INNOVATION have changed their t-shirts from white to blue

– Timothy Thatcher has also returned to NOAH. Hideki Suzuki says they are planning to do a title defense once the N-1 wraps up. No challengers have either come forward or been nominated yet, although Go Shiozaki may be a contender.

– Hideki Suzuki was given a nasty bloodied eye following a botched move by Go Shiozaki from the top turnbuckle.

– NOSAWA hinted he may challenge HAYATA, but YO-HEY is also saying that he will “see the champion in Osaka”. He intimated that he may have challenged, had not Perros Del Mal De Japon interfered in the last match. He has also started using the word “Perron” again, which he has not done for a while, posting it randomly on Twitter.

– Keiji Mutoh was mistaken for Strong Kobayashi, while at the local gym. Mutoh said no, Kobayashi died at the age of eighty-one last year.

– Despite his complete meltdown at Kaito Kiyomiya going on a dating show, Kenoh went on exactly the same one, declaring that in love too he would be a champion.

– Manabu Soya will be heading to All Japan to rekindle the GET WILD tag team with Takao Omori to challenge for the heavyweight tag titles. Naomichi Marufuji said that although Soya will be fighting as Kongoh, to take the belt!

EVENT RECAPS AND POST MATCH PROMOS

– N-1 VICTORY 2022 (Saturday August 27th, Aichi-Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall)

Event recap

Post match promos

– N-1 VICTORY 2022 (Sunday August 28th, Kultz Kawasaki, semi finals night)

Event recap

Post match promos

CURRENT CHAMPIONS

• GHC Heavyweight Champion: Kenoh
  Challenger: Winner of the N-1 VICTORY 2022 (either Hideki Suzuki or Kaito Kiyomiya)
• GHC Junior Champion: HAYATA
  Challenger: TBA
• GHC Heavyweight Tag Champions: The Sugiura Army (Hideki Suzuki & Timothy Thatcher)
  Challengers: TBA
• GHC Junior Tag Champions: STINGER (Chris Ridgeway & Yoshinari Ogawa)
  Challengers: Perros Del Mal De Japon (Eita & Kotaro Suzuki), N-1 VICTORY 2022 GRAND FINAL (Saturday, September 3rd – Edion Arena Osaka First Stadium)
• GHC National Champion: Masakatsu Funaki
  Challenger: TBA

THIS WEEK IN NOAH

(September 2022 schedule)

Thursday, September 1st: N-1 VICTORY 2022 Press Conference (live on NOAH’s YouTube at 6pm JST)

Saturday, September 3rd

N-1 VICTORY 2022 GRAND FINAL – Edion Arena Osaka First Stadium

Time: 16:00 JST

Broadcast: WrestleUniverse (Live)

BIRTHDAYS & ANNIVERSARIES

Friday, 2nd September: Yoshiki Inamura debut anniversary (4)

Saturday, 3rd September: Yoshinari Ogawa debut anniversary (37)

LINKS

(All Japan) Soar! Young elites who will lead the future of All Japan (Goto, Kawada, Ogawa)

Behind the scenes of the promotional activities in Osaka

A look back to the time when the company was launched 22 years ago (by Pro Wrestling NOAH Referee, Shu Nishinaga)

Genichiro Tenryu talks about legendary wrestlers: Yoshinari Ogawa

“A big goal and a role model” Naomichi Marufuji who returns after two months, talks about Keiji Mutoh

BOOK CORNER

“Donmai, Donmai” – Mitsuharu Misawa’s diary

GIF taken from WrestleUniverse

Picture credit: NOAH GHC & Weekly Pro