Earlier today, there was not only a major NJPW event in Japan – but also the 2022 CyberFight Festival event. All of the companies owned by CyberFight came together in a huge way, for a card jam packed with action and spectacular entrances. However there are two major stories coming out of the show, with an injury – and NJPW legend Satoshi Kojima claiming an amazing career highlight.
Tetsuya Endo Gets Knocked Out – Suffers Concussion After Brutal Shot From Katsuhiko Nakajima
During the six man tag team match, we’d see a showdown between the ace of DDT Pro Wrestling Tetsuya Endo, and former GHC Heavyweight Champion Katsuhiko Nakajima. Things came to an abrupt end just five minutes into the fight. Endo would get legitimately knocked out by an open palm strike to the jaw, which brought the match to a sudden end.
Jun Akiyama would step into the ring to ensure nothing else happened to Endo, cornering Nakajima and exchanging words. After the match, Endo would be rushed to the hospital and diagnosed with a concussion. He will not be hospitalised, and DDT are expected to give him time to heal before making a choice on if they will strip the KO-D Championship from Endo.
Satoshi Kojima Makes History
In better news, the main event of the show went off without a hitch. Go Shiozaki would defend the GHC Heavyweight Championship against 51 year old Satoshi Kojima. Part of the ‘third generation’ of NJPW, Kojima is a legend of the industry. AEW fans might remember him from his battle with Jon Moxley at All Out 2021.
Kojima has been determined in recent years to show that despite his age, he’s as good as ever. So when Pro Wrestling NOAH gave him a chance to headline this massive show, he would take it – as in NJPW he’d have been lucky to get into an undercard tag team match. In a 21 minute war, Kojima would take the best blows of Shiozaki, and eventfully nail the lariat passed down to him by Stan Hansen – claiming the win and the gold.
This was huge, as it makes Kojima just the fourth man to complete an incredible task. He has now claimed the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, Triple Crown Championship, and GHC Heavyweight Championship. The three others who have done this are Keiji Mutoh, Yoshihiro Takayama, and Kensuke Sasaki. Minoru Suzuki is close to this goal as well, but needs the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship.
It’s unclear how long Kojima will reign for, but his match quality is equal to that of some wrestlers 15 years younger than him – making him a better pick for champion in 2022 than Kazuyuki Fujita or Keiji Mutoh. Is Satoshi Kojima a good pick for champion in 2022? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kFeisaCKOs
