The Ticking Timebomb or 44 Caliber?

With A Block already past 8, it’s time for B Block to catch up! Hiromu still has a chance, will he again be Best of the Super Juniors?

OFFICIAL RESULTS

• Robbie Eagles & Kosei Fujita VS Shoma Kato & Katsuya Murashima; Eagles & Fujita win.
• Clark Connors & Gedo VS Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Yujiro Takahashi; Kanemaru & Yujiro win.
• El Desperado & Tiger Mask VS HAYATA & Blake Christian; Hayata & Blake win.
• Titan & Yota Tsuji VS TJP & Callum Newman; Titan & Tsuji win.
• BUSHI & Tetsuya Naito VS Kevin Knight & Tomoaki Honma; Bushi & Naito win.
• Best of the Super Juniors 31 B Block: Dragon Dia VS Ninja Mack; Mack wins.
• Best of the Super Juniors 31 B Block: KUSHIDA VS DOUKI; Douki wins.
• Best of the Super Juniors 31 B Block: Taiji Ishimori VS SHO; Taiji wins.
• Best of the Super Juniors 31 B Block: Hiromu Takahashi VS “Drilla” Dan Moloney; Hiromu wins.

PLAY BY PLAY

Here are the current B Block standings!

Taiji Ishimori: 5-2, 10 points
Hiromu Takahashi: 5-2, 10 points
Robbie Eagles: 5-3, 10 points
SHO: 5-3, 10 points
“Drilla” Moloney: 4-3, 8 points
KUSHIDA: 4-3, 8 points
DOUKI: 4-3, 8 points
Ninja Mack: 3-4, 6 points
Francesco Akira: 2-3, 4 points [FORFEIT]
Dragon Dia: 0-7, 0 points [ELIMINATED]

Best of the Super Juniors 31 B Block: Dragon Dia VS Ninja Mack!

The Infinity Carat Diamond has lost much of his luster as he has lost every match so far. But there is always a chance for an upset victory! Will Dia be a spoiler for the American Shinobi? Or is there still a sliver of hope for Ninja Mack?

The bell rings and the two run up! Dia dodges Mack, dodges him again, then snapmares. Mack gets up to snapmare back! Dia headlocks for the takeover! The fans rally, Mack fights up and powers up, but he can’t power out as Dia holds tight! Mack rolls Dia to a cover, ONE, and Dia holds on. The fans rally more, and Mack hooks a leg. Dia grinds the hold, Mack powers him all the way to ropes, then powers out. Mack then catches Dia for a headlock of his own. Dia powers out, drops, but Mack handstand walks over! Then he handsprings back to RANA, but Dia handsprings through! Dia wheelbarrows, but Mack back suplexes him!

Dia lands on his feet, waistlocks, but ducks Mack’s elbow! Mack gut wrenches Dia, but Dia arm-drags free, only for Mack to handspring through! The fans fire up as Dia is stunned! The two reset, approach, and Dia fires a forearm! Mack comes back to forearm! Dia comes back with another forearm, so Mack fires back! They go back and forth, the fans fire up, and Mack fires KICK after KICK! Dia ducks the roundhouse! Dia jumps to RANA! Mack tumbles out, the fans fire up, and Dia builds speed! Dia DIVES into a forearm! Mack has Dia stuck in the ropes, drags him out, and DOUBLE CHOPS! Dia staggers away but Mack pursues.

Mack has Dia against the post and DOUBLE CHOPS again! The ring count starts but Mack stands Dia up. Mack winds up, but Dia ducks the chops and fires forearms! Mack shoves Dia away, pops him up, but Dia is on the apron! Only for Mack to YANK him down! We’re at 10 of 20, but Mack puts Dia in at 12. The fans applaud and Mack FALLING CHOPS! Cover, TWO! Mack pushes Dia around, clamps onto an arm and CLUBS away on it! Mack then drags Dia up, wrenches and CHOPS! And CLUBS! And snapmares, to then KICK! Mack goes to the apron and the fans rally for the TORNILLO SPLASH! Cover, TWO!

Dia stays in this and Mack is a bit surprised. Mack says if Dia doesn’t wanna quit, then he asked for this. Mack CHOPS Dia in the corner, CHOPS again, then whips corner to corner. Dia reverses, runs up, but Mack BOOTS him! And SUPERKICKS! And fires body shots and CHOPS! Mack puts Dia in the corner to HELL STAB! The fans fire up and Mack puts Dia up top. Dia kicks Mack away, but Mack jumps up to SUPER SPANISH FLY! And then CROSSFACE! Dia endures as Mack pulls way back! The fans rally, Dia crawls, reaches out, but Mack rolls him away! CROSSFACE! Dia endures more, claws at the mat, then rolls Mack! TWO!

Dia ghost pins, TWO! Mack gets up, into the wheelbarrow, somersault clutch! TWO!! Mack escapes, Dia aims, and the fans rally up. Dia runs and trips Mack, returns and 619! Mack tumbles, the fans rally up again, and Dia takes aim from the apron. Dia trips Mack and he TORNILLO SPLASHES! The fans fire up and Dia sees Mack stagger around outside. Dia goes out to ASAI MOONSAULT! Direct hit and the fans fire up! Dia fires up now and he goes into the ring. Dia watches for Mack as the ring count starts. Mack drags himself up at 10 of 20, rolls in at 11, and the fans applaud. Dia sits Mack up to fire forearm after forearm!

Dia runs up but Mack gets under! Electric Chair Lift, knuckle locks, but Dia goes up!? FALLING DOUBLE STOMP!! Cover, TWO!! Mack survives but Dia takes aim! Dia runs in, rolls and REPTILIAN KAI!! Cover, TWO!! Mack survives the Double Cork but Dia goes up the corner! Mack rises into the D D D D- SUPERKICK!! LION’S BARRAGE!! Cover, Mack wins!!

Winner: Ninja Mack, by pinfall (gains 2 points; Dia earns 0)

Dia keeps trying but he keeps on failing! Mack encourages him and shows respect with a handshake. Will Dia just have to try that much harder to win in the ninth? Will Mack still have a chance of getting in on the semifinals?

Best of the Super Juniors 31 B Block: KUSHIDA VS DOUKI!

There’s still time for The Timesplitter to move up the block, and the same goes for Japones Del Mal! But there can only be one, so who makes it up the block and leaves the other behind?

The bell rings and the two circle. They feel things out, knuckle lock, then they each break one! Kushida steps over first to cravat and snapmare. Douki slips out of the chinlock to go for the arm. Kushida rolls Douki, but they both go for a HEEL HOOK! They both roll and have the ROPEBREAK! The fans cheer as the two let go and reset. The two circle again, go back to knuckle locks, but now Douki wrenches and hammerlocks. Douki headlocks, but Kushida pops out the back to hammerlock. Kushida then hits a headlock takeover, but Douki headscissors. Douki puts on the squeeze but Kushida rolls and bridges out.

Kushida has Douki’s legs tied up, then floats to a facelock. Douki tries to roll away but Kushida keeps on him. Douki arm-drags free but Kushida bails out. The fans cheer, and Douki waits on Kushida as he paces on the outside. Kushida slides in, the two circle again, and Douki avoids Kushida’s leg trap. Douki then goes for a lateral press, ONE! They knuckle lock on the mat, and Douki pushes the arms down. ONE as Kushida gets an arm up. Douki pushes it down, ONE as Kushida gets the other arm up. Douki pushes that down, TWO as Kushida bridges! Kushida then blocks Douki hopping on by jumping up for the MONKEY FLIP!

The knuckle locks are still in so it’s a double cover! TWO as Kushida rolls back and brings Douki up, only for Douki to wheelbarrow, step over, and have the SEATED SURFBOARD! The fans applaud while Kushida endures. Kushida works to turn things over, and slowly, slowly, he gets the SEATED SURFBOARD onto Douki! The fans rally as Kushida pulls on the arms! Douki endures, wriggles around to rock the boat, and he tips things over! But Kushida tips things back over and has the SEATED SURFBOARD! Douki rolls things again, and again, and into the ROPEBREAK! Kushida lets go, and he WRECKS Douki with a dropkick!

Kushida goes out, drags Douki up, hammerlocks an arm and POSTS it! Douki falls over, Kushida refreshes the count, and scoop SLAMS Douki on the floor! Kushida leaves Douki behind for the ring count to start. Douki sits up at 8 of 20, stands up at 12, and rolls in at 13. The fans cheer but Kushida TOSSES Douki back out! Kushida then goes out to scoop and SLAM again! Kushida puts Douki in, but Douki blocks the scoop to scoop SLAM Kushida! The fans fire up, Douki runs in but Kushida ELBOWS him away! Kushida goes up to FLYING KNEE the bad arm! Douki falls as he clutches the elbow but the fans rally up.

Kushida drags Douki up to snapmare, tie up the arms, and he sits on the cross arm hold! Kushida SNAP LOCKS it! Douki endures, rolls and rolls, and has the ROPEBREAK! The fans cheer, Kushida lets off, and then Kushida drags Douki up. Kushida wrenches the arm to an ELBOW BREAKER! Douki is in the corner, Kushida runs up, but Douki blocks the shotei! Douki fires forearms, but Kushida KICKS the bad arm! Kushida eggs Douki on, Douki fires off forearms! Douki whips, Kushida reverses, but Douki arm-drags! Douki then spins Kushida to arm-drag again! Douki RAMS Kushida, runs and springboards to FLYING BACK ELBOW!

Both men are down and the fans fire back up! Douki shakes out the bad arm, drags Kushida up, but Kushida swings. Douki blocks, drops down, ITALIAN STRETCH #32! But Douki’s bad arm can’t hold on, and Kushida gets free. Kushida comes back to KICK Douki’s bad arm, then he KICKS a leg out! Kushida whips, Douki reverse, but Kushida handsprings, into the Gory Especial! DODON NO JUTSU! Cover, TWO!! Kushida is still in this and the fans rally up! Douki slashes his throat and vows to end this. Douki wheelbarrows Kushida for the full nelson! But the bad arm won’t hold! Kushida victory rolls, steps through and turns Douki over, but then PENALTY KICKS the bad arm!

Douki writhes, Kushida drags Douki up and whips, to then hip toss, handspring and basement dropkick! The fans fire up and Kushida takes aim. Kushida watches Douki rise, runs up, but Douki gets around to ripcord and straitjacket, then arm-drag! Then the SEATBELT, but Kushida’s right out, into the KIMURA! Douki fights, reaches out, powers up, they go around and around, into a cradle by Douki! TWO!! Kushida escapes, the fans fire up again, and he runs up, but into BOOTS! Douki is on the apron, he RAMS Kushida, then slingshots, into the FASTBALL! The fans fire up while Douki falls back down!

Kushida goes up, he drags Douki from the apron, and then clamps on the KIMURA! The ref reprimands but Kushida drags Douki to the top like that. But Douki fires body shots! Kushida drops back, runs back in, HANDSPRING KICK! Douki tumbles to the apron then the floor! Kushida takes aim, builds speed, but Douki ducks the slide! Douki waistlocks, Kushida wrenches to get the arm! Douki RAMS Kushida into the apron! Douki runs up, Kushida pops him up, but Douki rebounds off ropes to DDT to the floor!! The fans fire up with Douki and he drags Kushida back into the ring. Douki aims from the apron, Kushida rises, into DAYBREAK!!

And then ITALIAN STRETCH #32!! Kushida endures, powers his way over, reaches out, but Douki pulls on the hold! KUSHIDA QUITS, DOUKI WINS!!!

Winner: Douki, by submission (gains 2 points; Kushida earns 0)

Incredible! Douki has truly reached another level if he was able to make Kushida submit! Will Douki prove he IS the Best of the Super Juniors? Can Kushida still make it to the semifinals in time?

Best of the Super Juniors 31 B Block: Taiji Ishimori VS SHO!

The Bone Soldier leads the block but The Murder Machine is the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion. Will Taiji have a golden ticket in his back pocket while aiming for the trophy? Or will Sho stack the deck and sail right into the semifinals?

Surprisingly, Sho doesn’t try any tricks or even talk trash, the match starts clean with the bell. Wait, Sho bails out and now he gets the mic. He wants us all to hold on. While he is the champion, Sho respects Taiji’s time with the title. And he certainly doesn’t wanna be here in Shizuoka longer than he has to. The fans boo, so much for no trash talk. But Sho says they can just wrap this up by Sho giving Taiji the win. Sho gets in the ring, he and Taiji throw up the Too Sweet, and then Sho rolls Taiji up! TWO!! Taiji escapes, Sho argues with the ref but Taiji is the one that’s upset! Sho failed and now he’s apologetic!

Sho goes out to join Taiji but Taiji slides into the ring. Sho apologizes again, slides in, but Taiji gets him for a NECK TWIST! Taiji goes out to fireman’s carry and LAWN DART POST Sho! The fans cheer, but then Taiji grabs the bell hammer! Taiji HAMMERS Sho, then leaves him behind. And while the ref is checking on Sho, Taiji unties the red buckle pad! It’s a remix on the Bullet Club Special, and he waits on Sho to return. Sho slides in, is still apologizing, but Taiji CLUBS him. Taiji cravats for a neck wrench, then puts Sho in the ropes. The ref counts, Taiji lets off at 4, and the fans rally up. Taiji wrenches Sho, hammerlocks, and heads for the red corner!

Sho stops from hitting buckles, CLAWS Taiji’s eyes, and then FLAPJACKS him onto the bare buckles! Taiji writhes, clutching ribs, and Sho says Taiji’s the one who removed the padding! Sho then TOSSES Taiji out, gets him up, and RAMS him into the apron! Sho grins as he stalks Taiji, then steps on Taiji’s ribs! The ref reprimands, Sho lets off, and Sho puts Taiji in the corner. Sho pulls Taiji against the post! The fans boo, the ref counts, but Sho lets off at 4. Sho steps inside the ring, grins as he storms over to Taiji, but Taiji kicks back from below. Sho stomps Taiji and digs his boots into the ribs! Taiji has ropes, the ref counts, so Sho lets off at 4.

Sho gets Taiji up to whip and kitchen sink knee! Cover, TWO! Sho digs a knee into Taiji’s ribs while pulling him in! Taiji endures, the fans rally, and Taiji reaches out. But Sho sits Taiji up to really dig that knee in! Taiji still fights, and he has the ROPEBREAK! Sho stands on Taiji, but lets off as the ref counts. Sho drags Taiji back up, brings him around, hangs him out to dry, and then drags him off the ropes to a Canadian Rack. And from there, GUTBUSTER! Cover, TWO! The fans rally as Taiji stays in this but Sho grins. Sho steps on Taiji, drags him back up, and whips him to a corner. Sho runs up and RAMS into Taiji!

Taiji sputters, Sho laughs, and Sho puts Taiji up top. Sho has Taiji stuck up there, runs in, and TOP SHELF KNEES! Cover, TWO! Taiji toughs it out and the fans rally up, but Sho still grins. Sho paces around, digs his boots in again, but Taiji kicks from below. Sho steps away, Taiji CHOPS! And CHOPS! And CHOPS! Sho kicks low, then whips Taiji at the red corner! Taiji stops himself, dodges Sho and now Sho hits bare buckles! Taiji whips, Sho reveres but Taiji NEURALIZERS! Both men are down and the fans fire up! Taiji and Sho go to white corners, stand up, and Taiji runs in to DOUBLE KNEE! Then he wrenches and whips, to FLIP Sho, and WRING the arm!

Sho writhes but Taiji goes after the arm again, in a COBRA CLUTCH! Sho endures, fights up, but Taiji ripcords to RAM, cobra clutch, and he drags Sho down into the COBRA TRIANGLE! Sho endures, reaches out, kicks around, and ROPEBREAK! The ref counts, Taiji lets go in frustration, and he takes aim. BANG and he drags Sho up. BLOODY- NO, Sho bends Taiji’s fingers! The ref reprimands, Taiji CLUBS Sho then runs, but the ref is used as a shield! Sho runs, but Taiji uses the ref, too! Sho SPEARS the ref!! Marty Asami is down and Sho is stunned! This still works out how he wanted and he grabs for his Torture Tool!

But Taiji drags Sho from the corner and stands him up! LOW BLOW!! The fans cheer as Sho tastes his own medicine! Taiji then takes the Torture Tool for his own! Taiji wants Sho to get up, but here comes YUJIRO! Tokyo Pimp uses the CANE SHOT to take Taiji down! The fans boo but Yujiro hurries to fetch Marty. Yujiro puts Marty in, Sho covers, but the ref is still out of it! Sho is upset, he shakes Marty to wake him up, but it doesn’t work! Sho is furious so he just shoves Marty back out. Yujiro brings Red Shoes out here! Red Shoes sees Marty is down, Sho wants Red Shoes to get in the ring already.

Sho drags Taiji up, reels him in and STRAITJACKET PILEDRIVERS! Cover, TWO!! Taiji survives and Sho is shocked! The fans fire up but Sho says he’ll end this now! Sho drags Taiji back up, back in, gut wrench, but Taiji slips out! LA MYSTICA! BONE LOCK!! Sho endures, but YUJIRO rings the bell!! Not this crap again! Red Shoes explains to Taiji and Taiji can’t believe it! Sho grabs at Red Shoes to distract him, but Taiji HANDSPRING KICKS Yujiro! Sho shoves Red Shoes at Taiji, Taiji shoves Red Shoes aside, but Sho LOW BLOWS!! Taiji falls over, the fans boo, but Sho grins as he aims his bow!

Sho drags Taiji up, reels him in, and double pump handles, for the SHOCK- NO, Taiji slips free! BLOODY CROSS!! Cover, TAIJI WINS!!

Winner: Taiji Ishimori, by pinfall (gains 2 points; Sho earns 0)

The House of Torture stacked the deck but they could not cheat The Bone Soldier! And now, Taiji stands tall as the first man to reach 12 points! Will nothing stop Taiji from making sure #ItsReborn?

Best of the Super Juniors 31 B Block: Hiromu Takahashi VS “Drilla” Dan Moloney!

The Ticking Timebomb has been chasing not just the top of the block but a chance at redemption! Can he take that next step forward on his path back to the top? Or will he get shot down by the 44 Caliber?

Hiromu already finds himself in a conundrum. Naito is on commentary, so who receives Hiromu’s framed picture? Naito and Milano Collection AT-san both hold out their hands, and Hiromu chooses… Milano Collection AT-san! Hard to say if Naito feels a little awkward after that but it is what it is. The bell rings and Drilla runs up! Hiromu dodges him, the two circle, and Hiromu avoids being cornered. Drilla still tries but Hiromu slips away again. They keep going around, then Hiromu slides out. Hiromu eggs Drilla on, slides back in, but Drilla knew he would! Drilla stomps Hiromu then has him against ropes.

Drilla stands on the leg, Red Shoes reprimands so Drilla steps off. Drilla whips, Hiromu reverses then follows, and Hiromu RANAS! Drilla tumbles to a corner, Hiromu runs up, and Hiromu clotheslines! Hiromu snapmares, runs, but Drilla hurdles! Drilla then drops down to dropkick the legs out on return! The fans rally for Hiromu but Drilla drags him around, and DDTs the foot! Drilla then SLAMS the leg down, then stands on it at the ropes. Red Shoes reprimands, Drilla steps off at 4, and Hiromu bails out. Drilla goes out after Hiromu, stomps him, then SMASHES the knee on the floor! Hiromu writhes, but Drilla takes a fan’s, well, fans.

Drilla stomps Hiromu, then SLAPS Hiromu with the hand fans! Drilla grabs the bad leg, eggs Hiromu on, and Hiromu tries to hit him but can’t reach! Drilla DDTS the foot, then KICKS Hiromu in the leg! Drilla even slaps Naito’s hat off the table! Naito says tranquilo, big man, but Drilla runs to CHOP BLOCK Hiromu’s leg! Drilla stands on the bad leg, has a single leg deathlock, then leans back! Hiromu endures, Drilla steps away, and Hiromu clutches the knee. The fans rally as Hiromu rises, but Drilla pushes him into the ring. Drilla drags Hiromu to a cover, ONE! But Drilla steps through for a toehold!

Hiromu fights by pulling at Drilla’s hair but Drilla is ripping away at the tape! Red Shoes reprimands but Drilla digs his elbows right into the knee! Hiromu reaches out for the ROPEBREAK! Red Shoes counts, Drilla lets off, then he SPLASHES the bad leg! Hiromu glares at Drilla in defiance, so Drilla stomps the bad leg. Hiromu KICKS Drilla’s bad arm! Drilla stands on Hiromu’s leg, but Hiromu KICKS the arm again! Drilla steps away, but comes back to KICK the leg! Drilla drags Hiromu to a corner, and has a very Hitman style HANGING FIGURE FOUR! Red Shoes reprimands and counts, Drilla lets off at 4. Drilla then SLAMS the bad leg into the post!

Drilla scowls as he paces, then he drags Hiromu out to SLAM the leg on the apron! Hiromu writhes and flounders away but Drilla grins. Drilla stomps Hiromu’s hand, stomps his leg, then stomps the leg again! Drilla drags Hiromu around, clamps on with a toehold, but Hiromu grabs the ROPEBREAK! Drilla holds on so Hiromu kicks at the bad arm! Drilla lets off, but he storms back up. Hiromu KICKS the arm again, but Drilla steps through for a KNEE JAMMER! Hiromu hobbles away, Drilla stalks him, and then Drilla HEADBUTTS Hiromu to a corner. Drilla puts the bad leg around rpoes and pulls!

Red Shoes reprimands, Drilla lets Hiromu go, but then kicks ropes to jam Hiromu up! Drilla brings Hiromu around to snap suplex! Hiromu flounders, Drilla covers, TWO! Drilla goes back to the toehold and traps the leg. The fans rally as Hiromu endures and reaches out. Hiromu crawls, drags Drilla along, and has another ROPEBREAK! The fans cheer but Red Shoes counts, Drilla lets go at 4. Drilla huffs and puffs, kicks Hiromu again, and eggs him on. Drilla stands to CHOP! Drilla snarls, Hiromu CHOPS again! Drilla kicks Hiromu’s leg! Hiromu throws elbows! Hiromu whips, ROCKS Drilla, then puts him on ropes!

Hiromu KICKS the ropes, runs, and SHOTGUNS Drilla down! The fans fire up while both men stir. They go to corners, Hiromu runs up and clotheslines! Snapmare and basement dropkick! Cover, TWO! Drilla’s tougher than that but Hiromu keeps his cool. Hiromu hobbles his way over to Drilla, drags him up by the bad arm, and fireman’s carries. Drilla slips free, ripcords and CHOPS! Hiromu sputters, but he comes back to CHOP! Drilla CHOPS again, Hiromu CHOPS again, and the fans rally up! Drilla CHOPS, Hiromu CHOPS, and CHOPS, and CHOPS again! But Drilla kicks the bad leg!

Drilla snarls, runs, but Hiromu gets around to spin Drilla, but Drilla GOURD BUSTERS! DOUBLE STOMP and SPLASH! Cover, TWO! Drilla drags Hiromu into a HEEL HOOK! Hiromu endures and the fans rally up as he reaches out. Drilla scuffs Hiromu again and again, but that just motivates Hiromu! Hiromu drags Drilla along, but Drilla HEADBUTTS him! Hiromu still fights to the ROPEBREAK! Drilla thrashes the leg, but he lets off as Red Shoes counts 4. Drilla gets in Red Shoes’ face about it, but then goes back for Hiromu, Hiromu drags him into a cradle! TWO, and Drilla runs up, but into an ELBOW!

Hiromu mule kicks, front kicks, fires up, but Drilla ducks the superkick! Drilla fires boxing elbows then an ENZIGIRI! But Hiromu SUPERKICKS after all! Drilla wobbles, the fans fire up, and Hiromu roars! Hiromu runs, HIROMU-CHAN BOMBER! But Drilla stays up! Drilla eggs Hiromu on, dodges, but the HIROMU-CHAN BOMBER finds him! Drilla stays up, and he LARIATS Hiromu down! The fans fire up as Hiromu rises! Drilla GORES!! But he’s not done, Drilla gets Hiromu up! DRILLA- SUNSET FLIP BOMB! But Hiromu is too tired to pin! Both men stir while the fans rally up. Hiromu clutches his leg but he still rises up.

Hiromu hobbles over to Drilla, drags him up by the bad arm, then fireman’s carries, for the TIME- NO, Drilla slips free! But Hiromu back drops him away! Drilla rises, goes to corner, and Hiromu runs up. Drilla ELBOWS him away, then CHOP BLOCKS the bad leg! Drilla drags Hiromu into the KNEE KILLA!! This is what took Akira out! Hiromu endures, fights around, reaches out, and the fans rally up! Hiromu drags Drilla with him, but Drilla pulls on the leg! The fans rally as hard as they can as Hiromu continues to endure and fight forward! But Drilla drags Hiromu back! KNEE KILLA!! Hiromu endures all over again!

Hiromu claws his way forward, but Drilla brings him back again! Hiromu grabs at Red Shoes as he suffers more! The fans rally harder and harder as Hiromu fights for every inch of mat he can! Drilla puts on all the pressure he can, but Hiromu continues to fight forward! But Drilla drags him back once again! Hiromu still flails and fights to the ROPEBREAK! The fans cheer while Drilla lets in frustration. Drilla storms over to Hiromu as Hiromu drags himself up. Drilla drags Hiromu up, reels him in, and slashes his throat. Gut wrench, Canadian Rack, DRILLA- NO! HIromu lansd out! But the bad leg jams up!

Drilla rises, runs in, but Hiromu BOOTS him! Hiromu goes up and CANADIAN DESTROYERS!! Cover, TWO!! Drilla survives but Hiromu fireman’s carries! TIMEBOMB 1.5!! Cover, TWO!! Drilla is still in this but Hiromu grits his teeth. Hiromu rises, runs, HIROMU-CHAN BOMBER! Down goes Drilla and Hiromu roars! The fans are thunderous as Hiromu rises again and drags Drilla up. Hiromu dragon sleepers, but Drilla powers up to lift Hiromu! But Hiromu fights that to dragon sleeper! Inverted suplex, but Drilla slips free! Drilla ripcords and spins, but into TRIANGLE D! Drilla flails as he reaches out, but Hiromu squeezes tight!

The fans rally, but Drilla powers up! Drilla deadlifts, but Hiromu drags him back down! Drilla claws at the mat, deadlifts again, and he POWERBOMBS Hiromu! Drilla then drags Hiromu right up, for the DRILLA KILLA!!! Cover, ROPEBREAK!!! Hiromu survives by a foot! Drilla is furious, and he drags Hiromu to cetner. Cover, TWO, and into a HIGH STACK! HIROMU WINS!!

Winner: Hiromu Takahashi, by pinfall (gains 2 points; Drilla earns 0)

Drilla almost had him, but Hiromu finds a way to win! Did 44 Caliber just take his last shot at the semifinals?

Wait, Drilla’s being a sore loser! He drags Hiromu to the corner, and he goes back to that HITMAN FIGURE FOUR on the corner!! Red Shoes reprimands, Young Lions hurry over, but Drilla just slaps them away! They still get his leglock undone to free Hiromu, and Drilla snarls as he leaves it at this.

After Hiromu catches his breath and is allowed to recover, he gets the mic. Hiromu apologizes for doing this lying down, but he’d love to hear more “Hiromu” chants. Maybe he’ll have energy after that. The fans rally for “HI-RO-MU!” just like he asked and he thanks them. He can feel some of that energy soaking in. It isn’t enough for him to stand, but he’ll do his best standing up. The fans applaud as he does sit up, and he continues with, “I want to do my best with my skills and win, but hey, I can’t say things like that.” In a round robin match, losing isn’t really the end, but he can’t lose again or he’ll be out, y’know?

The fans applaud, and Hiromu says that’s why he’s doing his best, with a winning attitude, no matter what. He thanks everyone here for their support. The fans applaud again, and Hiromu says a lot of this is because of Robbie. Robbie Eagles is on English commentary so Hiromu points him out. Yesterday was a terrible day, and there was no way his beat up leg was gonna get better in just 24 hours. Robbie smiles and shrugs. Hiromu asks for confirmation: he has 12 points, right? Abe-san, please confirm, Hiromu at 12 points, with six wins and two losses, but that just means he’s tied with Taiji, and things haven’t been decided, right?

Abe-san nods, and Hiromu says that he’s heard, “No matter how hard you try, it’s still not decided.” How many points does he need then? Well, Hiromu just knows his next and final opponent in the round robin IS “Ishimori-kun.” The fans applaud that! Hiromu knows that whoever wins there is guaranteed a spot in the semifinals, but why? Is it points? Abe-san confirms, and the fans applaud. Hiromu remembers back to just last year, their match in the middle of the BOSJ, and Hiromu won by referee stoppage because Taiji was really hurt. It was a strange way to win, but Hiromu vows that this year, on May 31st, he will win 1-2-3 and be announced as a semifinalist.

Hiromu again thanks everyone for their support and the fans cheer again. Hiromu finally has energy to stand again, and he says it isn’t just the final showdown in Korakuen! He will be in the main event of Dominion in Osaka-Jo Hall on June 9th! That, and Hiromu will be celebrating his FIFTH BOSJ championship. The fans like the sound of that! Hiromu then says that the show is just about over. It sounds like there’s a typhoon going on outside, but it’ll be okay. He doesn’t mind going home in the rain. He again thanks everyone for coming, and says the BOSJ is far from through! Hiromu promises to give them “Moto…” The fans echo “Moto!”

Moto. MOTO! Hotter! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! Yes, as he moves on in the BOSJ, it’ll be MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! MOTO! FUN~ with everyone~! The fans cheer and the Timebomb gets just a few days’ reprieve. Will he be ready to battle the Bone Soldier in the most critical match of this whole round robin?

Here are the NEW B Block standings!

Taiji Ishimori: 6-2, 12 points
Hiromu Takahashi: 6-2, 12 points
Robbie Eagles: 5-3, 10 points
SHO: 5-4, 10 points
DOUKI: 5-3, 10 points
“Drilla” Moloney: 4-4, 8 points [ELIMINATED]
KUSHIDA: 4-4, 8 points [ELIMINATED]
Ninja Mack: 4-4, 8 points [ELIMINATED]
Francesco Akira: 2-3, 4 points [FORFEIT]
Dragon Dia: 0-8, 0 points [ELIMINATED]

My Thoughts:

Another great round for BOSJ, even with it being all about B Block. Outside of TMDK of course beating Young Lions, the series of tune-up tag matches had an obvious theme: the Junior Heavyweights didn’t get in on the finishes, their heavyweight partners did. That way, no one has gained momentum nor lost it going into the final rounds of the round robin phase. But then, what great action in the BOSJ competition, though a real shame Dia couldn’t get the win on Mack here. Maybe Dia wins over Kushida as Kushida is also out of the running. Douki getting the upset over Kushida was wild, probably the best thing Douki’s down so far. Douki VS Eagles in the final round is one to watch, that could be for the second of the B Block semifinals.

As such, great stuff with Taiji getting one over on Sho, and then an awesome match from Hiromu VS Drilla. It is a good move for them to bring us Hiromu VS Taiji in the ninth to bring things full circle from the unfortunate finish last year. Hiromu VS Taiji is therefore the one to watch in this block, because Douki beat Hiromu but lost to Taiji. Taiji beat both Douki and Eagles, so if Taiji wins, hard to say if either of them get in. But if Hiromu wins, Douki can get in but not Eagles. This is complicated, but that means it’s gonna be a lot of fun.

My Score: 8.9/10