The undercard matches of the New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) Together Special foreshadowed upcoming first-round New Japan Cup matches. While the NJPW Together Special was the return to wrestling for the company, the in-ring product didn’t look as if the roster had a 110-day absence from in-ring competition.
The second match of the event displayed a tag match featuring first-round New Japan Cup opponents. Tomohiro Ishii and NJPW Noge Dojo Young Lion Yuya Uemura teamed up against former IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Yoshinobu Kanemaru and El Desperado. Ishii faces Desperado tomorrow in the tournament, which Kanemaru and Uemura clash on Wednesday.
The Suzuki-Gun tandem was able to defeat Uemura and Ishii when the former submitted to Desperado’s Numero Dos hold. Despite the loss, Uemura retained the fire that gained him momentum before COVID-19 forcing NJPW into an over three-month hiatus from wrestling. Ishii and Desperado could surprise several viewers with how competitive Desperado is likely to be as the New Japan Cup commences tomorrow morning.
The third match of the NJPW Together Special saw a team of Hontai and CHAOS square off against Bullet Club as Hirooki Goto, Yoshi-Hashi, Toru Yano, and Tomoaki Honma faced Yujiro Takahashi, Taiji Ishimori, and Complete Players (Gedo/Jado).
Yano/Jado along with Takahashi/Goto face one another in the first round of the New Japan Cup. Despite there being numerous antics present, the match was solid and highlighted the narratives going forward. Takahashi getting the fall over Honma gives him momentum moving forward. He looks for his first major singles victory in quite some time when he faces Goto on June 23rd.
The fourth match of the event saw TenKoji (Satoshi Kojima/Hiroyoshi Tenza) and Ryusuke Taguchi face the Los Ingobernables de Japon (LIJ) team of Sanada, Evil, and Bushi. In what was a high-level match, TenKoji looked well-rested and had impeccable timing throughout the contest, as Taguchi broke out his Best of the Super Junior form during several exchanges with Sanada.
Kojima and Evil meet on June 23rd in the New Japan Cup, while Sanada and Taguchi wrestle the day before. Taguchi was able to submit a game Bushi with the Oh My & Garankle. The victory gives Taguchi a semblance of hope to catch Sanada with an upset in the first round, but it’s likely Sanada remains the heavy favorite.
