The headline match of day one of the New Japan Cup saw former IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champion (w/Togi Makabe) Tomoaki Honma face current IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi, in what was a sleeper and under talked about match going into tournament action.
Despite there not being a deep history between Hiromu and Honma, both suffered serious neck injuries over the past several years that kept them away from the ring for a significant amount of time. This was a rare opportunity for Honma to prove himself in singles competition since suffering his injury in March 2017.
On the other hand, Hiromu immediately became the ace of the New Japan Pro Wrestling Junior Heavyweight division upon his return in December 2019 and would go on to defeat Will Ospreay for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion on January 4, 2020, during Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night 1.
COVID-19 robbed Hiromu with an opportunity to face unit mate and Los Ingobernables de Japon (LIJ) leader, IWGP Intercontinental and Heavyweight ‘Double Champion’ Tetsuya Naito during the yearly anniversary show. Now, Hiromu must win the New Japan Cup for the opportunity to wrestle his mentor for both championships.
Despite Honma having been slowed due to his neck injury, the time off from ring action paid off for his body, as he moved around better and was more active against the fleet-footed junior champion. It was his best singles performance since he defeated Tomohiro Ishii on August 12, 2015, during G1 Climax 25.
Hiromu displayed his typical straight forward, pedal to the floor style that fans have come to appreciate since his return from an excursion to Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) in December 2016. His back and forth exchanges with Honma added drama to a match many thought Hiromu would easily win.
In the end, Hiromu would win with the Time Bomb in eighteen minutes and forty-five seconds, which is the third-longest singles match in Honma’s NJPW career. His August 1, 2016, G1 Climax 25 match against Naito went twenty minutes and thirty-eight seconds and his February 14, 2015, The New Beginning in Sendai match for the at the time vacant NEVER Openweight Championship against Ishii went twenty-four minutes and forty-six seconds.
Hiromu will face Toru Yano on June 24th in the second round of the New Japan Cup.
