Oftentimes if a young lion is in a tag team match, there is a good chance they cost their team the victory. However, kicking off tonight’s big show in Sapporo, Kosei Fujita might have a chance to break this stereotype. He’s got former IWGP Heavyweight Champion Togi Makabe in his corner as they take on TAKA Michinoku & DOUKI of Suzuki-Gun – the bottom ranked members of the fearsome faction. It won’t be an easy fight, but he’s got a better chance than Oiwa who has Suzuki himself after this match.
Kosei Fujita Still Hasn’t Found His First Win In NJPW
Fujita absolutely rushed the ring while Makabe enjoyed his entrance, but thankfully this time around Suzuki-Gun weren’t looking to jump the brash young lion. Instead, Fujita rushed into TAKA and DOUKI before getting a pump kick right between the eyes. DOUKI threw Fujita outside and drove him into the barricade, while Makabe was driven into the ring post.
Fujita would take a headlock in the ring and was unable to push TAKA off, and just got absolutely outwrestled despite TAKA working a slower pace in 2022. DOUKI got the tag and hit the sliding dropkick to the head of Fujita. Fujita would go for a dropkick of his own, and nailed DOUKI.
The crawl to the tag allowed Makabe in, who ran DOUKI down with a shoulder tackle before the powerslam. Suzuki-Gun tried to double team Makabe, only to be hit with the Forever Lariats. DOUKI took the ten downward punches before getting his eyes raked. A lariat shut DOUKI down, but TAKA made the save. Makabe nailed the double lariat, before tagging Fujita back into the match.
He’d nail some spirited forearms before a shoulder tackle and a bodyslam, before applying that Boston Crab. DOUKI was able to get the bottom rope, before nailing a dropkick. Fujita blocked a suplex into the Inside Cradle – before TAKA & DOUKI hit a pair of kicks to Fujita before the DOUKI-CHOKEY got the submission victory.
Minoru Suzuki Is Ready For Toru Yano’s Nonsense
Tomorrow night, Toru Yano & Minoru Suzuki meet in a Dog Cage match for the KOPW 2022 trophy, which is as ridiculous as it gets for NJPW. Tonight however, Suzuki brings Taichi for a tag team clash, as Yano teams with spirited young lion – Ryohei Oiwa. Yano brought the dog cage to the ring once again, while Suzuki is still rocking some handcuffs – despite not getting his way in the fan vote.
Suzuki had the referee frisk Yano before the match, claiming he’s got something illegal on him, and the handcuff key was found. Yano was quickly taken to the mat and had his wrist tape removed by Suzuki (who found two more keys) while Taichi beat up Oiwa on the outside.
Suzuki hit some of his signature strikes before trying to push Yano into the dog cage, only to have Yano try to run him over with the cage. Yano would get back into the ring and pulled off a corner pad and whacked Suzuki with it, before Suzuki nailed the PK. Suzuki would apply a heel hook, and Yano got the ropes.
Yano would avoid the Gotch Style Piledriver and get the tag to Oiwa, who met Taichi in the middle of the ring. A few kicks would be enough to break Oiwa down, who would come back with a shoulder tackle and a dropkick in the corner. Hip toss would be blocked, but Oiwa would get that Boston Crab applied on Taichi who easily found the ropes.
Taichi would get the single leg crab and Yano made the save, before Suzuki handcuffed him to the dog cage. In the ring, Oiwa would be tapping out to the Cobra Twist – giving Suzuki-Gun two wins ahead of El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru going for Junior Tag Team Championships later tonight.
CHAOS Brawls It Out With House of Torture
Tomohiro Ishii was unable to take the NEVER Openweight Championship from EVIL recently, but successfully brought the fighting spirit of EVIL out by the end of their match. CHAOS will meet EVIL again tomorrow when the NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championships – albeit without Ishii in the mix, but tonight he works with YOH to try and get some damage on House of Torture to keep them away from tonights semi-main event.
YOH would kick things off with an attack on SHO, showing his dangerous side whenever he meets his partner turned rival. Into the ring, he’d stomp SHO before laying in a forearm shot. SHO would attack the hand of YOH, and YOH fought fire with fire. Dick Togo would pull YOH to the outside, before driving him into the barricade.
In the ring, Togo would throw some well placed strikes to YOH before dropping him to the bottom rope for a dropkick from SHO. SHO tried to send Ishii off the apron, and succeeded with a rake to the eyes – while Togo stretched YOH in the ropes. YOH would be choked with a turnbuckle cover – but was able to kick out the following pin at two.
Ishii got the tag and would run down both opponents with shoulder tackles before some chops to SHO, before being taken down. Togo got the tag and succeeded in pissing off Ishii with his strikes and an eyepoke, before being taken into a vertical suplex. YOH would get the tag, and nailed Togo with the Dragon Screw.
SHO would help Togo briefly before Ishii took him out of the ring. YOH would get the better of Togo and SHO with a dive to the outside, before finishing YOH with the Out of Print leg lock for the victory.
Will House of Torture be able to help EVIL become a triple champion later tonight? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
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