I will text from various phones. You wont be able to stop them all Muhahahahaha
Kidding of course.
I will text from various phones. You wont be able to stop them all Muhahahahaha
Kidding of course.
You probably shouldn't. I'm not personally a no spoilers guy so there are times I just blurt shit out without thinking about it because if someone else did it I wouldn't be bothered.Originally Posted by Hero!
Has anyone been officially announced? Wiki says Liger, Tiger, Nagata & Nakanishi but nothing on the official site.
Those four, Captain, Desperado, TAKA, Taichi, Yoshi-Hashi, Gedo, Jado, Sho & Komatsu. Still not quite there. Hoping for a Super Strong Machine appearance.
Oh forgot Tama Tonga. Him and SSM and we're at 15.
I'm new to Japanese wrestling, how does one watch in the states?
NJPW World which costs less than 8 dollars. Dailymotion and youtube and xwt usually have stuff if you're looking.
youtube, dailymotion, watchwrestling
basically, the same places you'd watch American wrestling. New Japan also has a streaming service like WWE network called New Japan world. It isn't shit and actually works well.
Every aspect of NJPW World is better than the corresponding aspect of the Network.
One day into having NJPW World and I have cancelled my Network sub...going through the 1.5 Korakuen show right now and the quality is top notch (Wrestling and streaming obviously)
Apparently Meltzer said "Koslov isn't going to be retained"I really enjoy Forever Hooligans.
Rocky found someone new when Davey wasn't able to work anymore, hopefully he'll do the same now. Or move over to the singles division on his own?
Forever Hooligans are a good act, I'd rather they pay to keep Koslov than bring in CODY HALL to be the 7000th member of the Bullet Club.
So anyway continuing with my fantasy booking comment here's what I'd do long-term with NJPW:
Ibushi wins the Cup and beats Nakamura for the IC Title at Invasion Attack
Okada wins the IWGP Belt some time this year
Nakamura wins the G1
Nakamura/Okada at WK10, Nakamura wins
Nakamura holds the belt the whole year and Ibushi wins the G1 2016
Nakamura/Ibushi at WK11 where Ibushi goes over
With a Tanahashi/Okada co-main at 11 with Okada ending Tana's WK streak. Next year Tana can beat Ibushi. So you have a 2 year story where Okada and Ibushi can't quite get it done so when they get the big wins it's huge. Or maybe (to mix it up) have Tana vs. Shibata and Ibushi vs. Styles and have the former champs win. Then 11 is the big procession where Okada, Ibushi, Shibata and Naito get their big wins.
Fantasticamania results from Lucha Blog
CMLL (TUE) 01/13/2015 Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka, Japan [NJPW]
***Fantasica Mania 2015 (Day 1)***
1) Rey Cometa & Tritón b Bárbaro Cavernario & Mr. Niebla
5:59. Triton and Cometa went for a double tope con giro, but Triton caught his feet on the ropes on the way over and landed badly. He was strechered out. Rey Cometa still beat Cavernario with a 450 splash.
2) Ángel de Oro TLDRAW Okumura [lightning]
10:00. Okumura 20th Anniversary/10 Years in CMLL match. The two men were chopping each other as time ran out.
3) Gedo & Pólvora b Jushin Liger & Mistico
10:09. Polvora caught Mistico with the Polvora Driver.
4) Stigma, Stuka Jr., Tiger Mask b Mephisto, Shinsuke Nakamura, YOSHI-HASHI
11:39. Rudos ripped up Stuka’s gear. Stuka Jr. top rope splash on Mephisto.
5) Capitan New Japan, Kushida, Máscara Dorada b La Sombra, Ryusuke Taguchi, Tetsuya Naito
10:16. Sombra showed up in a suit, Taguchi in a Pharoah mask (??) and Naito in a mask with a wide eye. Naito beat Capitan New Japan with his Puma Blanca submission.
6) Atlantis, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Volador Jr. b Gran Guerrero, Kazuchika Okada, Último Guerrero
17:31. Ultimo Guerrero tried wearing his mask, but it was pulled off. He ran into Atlantida in the end.
Are any of Brock's New Japan matches any good?
No
Genuinely amazed that the Brock debacle didn't bury the company. Fuck him. Brock in New Japan is why I'm not arsed about Brock in WWE. Disrespectful oaf who has slid by on genetics.
I could not have said it any better.
From the newest ObserverApparently Meltzer said "Koslov isn't going to be retained"
Rocky found someone new when Davey wasn't able to work anymore, hopefully he'll do the same now. Or move over to the singles division on his own?
They were looking for a new partner for Rocky Romero. From what I’ve been told, several are under consideration with Trent Barreta being the frontrunner. Barreta went there in 2013 for both the Super Juniors singles and tag team (with Brian Kendrick) tournaments, but wasn’t used in 2014.
TRENT?!
Forever Dudebusters
Has he gotten deprogrammed from the WWE yet? Because he was pretty shitty when NJPW brought him in in 2013
Trent is pretty great. He did a run-through in TNA last year and put everyone in that X-division to shame.
More Trent? is heaven for me.
Brock Lesnar is a great entertainer who does what's asked of him these days. Maybe New Japan shouldn't have hitched their wagon to him if they didn't know what they were getting into. I've yet to get a solid account of that ordeal any way. "Slid by on genetics"? Oh, so he slid by on the thing that plays a huge part in the success of wrestlers and athletes?
Basically the last gasp of Antonio Inoki. Brock was brought in for an ungodly amount of money and wasn't drawing. As a matter of fact he is the worst drawing IWGP Champion of all time. His matches were terrible. It was obvious he didn't care and was just there for the paycheck. When the time came and they wanted him to drop the belt to Hiroshi Tanahashi he refused and kept the belt which he'd still have if Kurt Angle didn't pull a total carny job on him. Brock claims they breached his contract or there were visa issues. He's said both these things. NJPW refuted that. NJPW has basically washed their hands of that entire period to the point they commissioned a new belt because the previous one would be forever tainted by being held by Lesnar.
Didn't allege that New Japan owed him money? Brock has always been more about the money. It's never smart to go into business without doing some research first.
That's what I meant when I said he said they breached his contract.
I'll go sentence by sentence here:
- Lesnar is not a great entertainer; or, to put it accurately and inarguably, he doesn't entertain ME.
- Would NJPW have known he was going to pull a fast one? Sure they might have picked up that he wasn't that bothered but actively going to refuse to job? Stories abound of his famously taciturn nature. It's great for business these days along with his legit cred because he seems like the anti-Cena, but it does nothing for me.
- Yeah, slid by on genetics, I'm sticking with that. He's freakishly big and by all accounts natural, in Japan that is even more impressive because of the general biological differences between caucasians and Japanese. Japan is a workrate kind of place and I am a fan of workrate which is why I like guys like Daniel Bryan (who is shorter than me) and Tomohiro Ishii (who is a fire hydrant with limbs). I'm not saying Brock is terrible, but if we're naming top 50 guys active RIGHT NOW he doesn't get a look in.
Did he refuse to job before NJPW allegedly withheld money from him?
I was always curious as to why they ditched the IWGP3 title almost as soon as they'd gotten it back from Angle. Damn belt was brand new too.
Impossible to say. By that point he was on his way out and it's a chicken or egg thing.
The fact that the money thing was Lesnar's second excuse says a lot.
TONIGHT @ 9PM ET on on AXS TV (formerly "HD NET," available on DirecTV [Ch#340] and/or Dish Network [Ch#167] and/or Verizon FiOS [Ch #169])
-Okada vs. Tanahashi (from Wrestle Kingdom 7)
Odd question, but is there a difference between a no vacancy, a super no vacancy, and a super no vacancy full house? Because NJPW's last tour had shows that were described by each. I don't get how a show can be more sold out than being sold out.
Yeah those are increasing degrees of sold out. Really no rhyme or reason on what label gets applied either.
How can something be more sold out than sold out? Like, either it is or it isn't. I was assuming that it was based on capacity, but even then...
Well no vacancy is not a sell out. It is like 75% full. Super No Vacancy is like 95% full and Super No Vacancy Full House is like 100% full or even more if there is like open standing room or something.
Then why... fuck it I'm just going to assume that it's a translation issue.
TONIGHT on AXS TV: A special 2-hour block of "NEW JAPAN PRO WRESTLING"
MATCHES BEING SHOWN FROM 9PM ET to 10PM ET:
-Hiroki Goto vs. "Rainmaker" Kazuchika Okada (FINALS OF NEW JAPAN CUP 2013)
-Jado / Shinsuke Nakamura / Tomohiro Ishii vs. Lance Archer / Minoru Suzuki / TAKA Michinoku (6-MAN TAG)
MATCH BEING SHOWN FROM 10PM ET to 11PM ET:
-Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Kazuchika Okada (IWGP CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH, REMATCH FROM LAST WEEK'S SHOW, 2013)
that 10-11 show is supposed to be amazing. I know the match is great.
NJPW has started an English twitter
https://twitter.com/newjapaneng
Liger took off his mask! Holy shit!
What is this in reference to?
He took it off during an interview yesterday. Revealed his age, name, even showed his wig.
Can you really reveal things everyone already knows?
In Japan, yes.
Here's a horrifying story in the Observer from Fantasticamania
There was a report from Japan from the owner of a wrestling store saying that Mistico was in terrible pain the entire Japanese tour, and at the 1/18 Korakuen Hall show (the second to last show), he was in tears backstage. The wrestlers from New Japan told him he needed to go to the hospital, but his seniors in CMLL told him he would be okay if he just drank heavily (that is something of a Mexican protocol in some circles).
RE-AIRING TONIGHT @ 9PM ET on AXS TV: EPISODE 3 (Hiroshi Tanahashi defends the IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Kazuchika Okada in a classic bout voted the 2013 Wrestling Observer Newsletter Match of the Year.)
If you haven't seen this match, you need to.
Ibushi and Naito are now formerly a team with the name "Golden Stardust" (which is fun considering the very similarly named WWE team). All for that. Been thinking Naito should spend some time in the tag division for a while. Hopefully we'll get a good Meiyu/GS series.
I agree. It was a hell of a match...for anyone who appreciates pure wrestling. Thus far, I can't say I've seen a bad match aired on NJPW. Watching this really reminds me why I love pro wrestling
...YOSHITATSU
To tell the truth I have worn halo vest since 10 weeks.
And I have 4 holes on my skull. I was
bleeding from 2 of them last night.
So...
Poor Yosh. Finally gets his chance to break out and it's already looking like he might have to call it quits.
@YoshiTatsuIsm: It's 6 a.m. in Tokyo.
I finished emergency surgery last nite.
I took halo vest off.
l just took a step forward of coming back. Thank you.
TONITE @ 9PM ET on AXS TV:
-Okada (c) vs. Prince Devitt (IWGP CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH)
-6-MAN TAG TEAM MATCH (Featuring: Jushin Thunder Liger, Tanahashi, and more)
Okada vs Devitt will absolutely be a great match, as long as you appreciate pure, crisp wrestling. I'm excited to see this
What kind of drug testing does New Japan do? I was talking to a couple friends of mine on Facebook and we were wondering if there are any promotions aside from the WWE who actually have a solid drug testing policy in place. I mean I'm sure if it was someone getting caught doing cocaine or crack there'd be issues but we never really hear anything about wrestlers in other promotions being suspended for failing a drug test outside of the WWE.
None, really. It never really became a dramatic issue over there because steroids didn't blow up there the way they did here, (different physiques valued a different way.)
Right on. The discussion actually started when someone said that some of the UFC fighters failing drug tests should go to Japan and fight since Pride was extremely relaxed about steroid/PED usage which in turn brought up WWE's Wellness Policy v. the rest of the world. I mean we don't really hear anything from promotions like TNA, ROH, etc. either.
TNA I know for a fact doesn't test for anything.
But you guys know that PRIDE doesn't exist, right? There is no real MMA in Japan anymore.
Oh of course, but there's still MMA promotions that hold events in Japan like OneFC and I think DEEP is out of Japan as well. Again it was just a conversation that started out talking about PED users in the UFC that branched into what promotions outside of the WWE even test for illegal drugs.
I googled and found a couple of things of note:
Tanahashi talking about steroids in his book:
and a comment from some guy:What surprised me first when I entered NJPW (in 1999) was that almost none of the wrestlers consumed protein shakes. My seniors started taking them after seeing the effects of protein while I got bigger and bigger.
I weighed 90kg (198 lbs) when I came in and debuted six months later weighing 102kg (225 lbs). People asked me if I was taking drugs as they’ve watched me get remarkably bigger. Even to this day, when I wrestle in Mexico, people ask me “You’re anabolic (on steroids), right?” and I deny that saying that “I’m natural”. And honestly, those questions have been bothering me.
People with basic knowledge can easily tell that my body is natural. Your trapezius muscle is the most affected part of your body when taking testosterone. So if you see someone gain trapezius muscle in short period time, it is very likely that he or she has used steroid, but that’s not the case for me.
… To be honest, I have thought about wanting to use steroid. It is indeed a tempting forbidden drug for people who have worked on developing their body. … The temptation also comes from my love for Dynamite Kid.
… I’ve always loved Dynamite Kid, and when his autobiography Pure Dynamite was published, I got my hands on it right away. 80% of the book was about pranks and the rest was about steroids. He even wrote that he has used horse steroids.
If memory serves... I think Tom Zenk had an article up talking about a young Kawada serving one of those learning excursions to North America that Japanese wrestlers often do when they start out. It was here that Kawada was introduced to steroids in order to bulk up.
How about non-Japanese wrestlers though? Does it make it easier for a gajin to go to Japan and juice up because some still have that mentality of "bigger=better" and say Luke Gallows doesn't have to worry about it because he knows he's not going to gest tested?
Yeah, I just read a post about Rob Conway being quite happy in Japan because he can freely use and not get tested. I'm still looking for info and seeing the opposite generally - the notion that the traditional overseas excursions for young natives can essentially allow them to go abroad, start using and come back bulked up without the growth being so obvious to the Japanese audience.
Also the suggestion that Kobashi was an obvious user. I know little about steroids and body types so won't pretend I have any idea if that sounds right.
I think there's still that stigma that if you take steroids or PEDs in general that you're going to look like you belong on the cover of Muscle and Fitness and you're shredded but that's definitely not always the case. Again it's just wild to think the WWE out of all these promotions are the only ones with a set drug policy and they've had one for years. Not as strict as the Wellness post-Benoit, but I mean I remember reading in Shawn's book about how and why the whole WM 10 ladder match came about because he claims someone gave him a non-painkiller that was actually a steroid so he was popped for steroids even though he was never really a big dude, he just claims he ate a lot because he was always traveling with Razor and Diesel who were twice his size and he wanted to hang....
A lot of wrestlers in Japan do steroids. There is a reason New Japan was sending guys to Mexico and telling them to "bulk up" for a while. There has never been the culture of death around it that there is in America. Part of it is because the 1980s WWF guys took the steroid thing to a insane degree. They were bodybuilders not wrestlers.
Would it also be safe to say that in terms of the WWF/E, they work a lot more than any other promotion. I mean I don't see New Japan holding events every day of the year like the WWE does so it definitely takes a bigger toll on your body. I couldn't imagine wrestling the strong style 300 days a year.
There is a lot of time off between tours. Which is not always the benefit you'd think. Like there is a reason the 1990s All Japan roster is as bad or worse off than the WWF's. They thought it would be fine to go balls out every night because of the time off.
A+
Interesting note in the Observer
Michael Bennett & Matt Taven are expected to get a major push shortly here. Hiroshi Tanahashi is a big supporter of Bennett. The impression is that they may get a tag team push but that Bennett and Maria would eventually get a big singles push. You’ll be able to tell by the booking, as when Bennett & Taven team and lose, if they split who loses the falls, then that says one thing, but if Taven is the one asked to lose, that will confirm it as Gedo comes from the school where the winner and loser of the fall in tag matches are done for a reason.
Fucking hate Taven.
Taven is amazing.
TONIGHT @ 9PM ET on AXS TV: "New Japan Pro Wrestling"
FEATURED MATCH:
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tatsuya Naito (G-1 CLIMAX TOURNEY FINAL from AUG. 11, 2013)
Interesting post from enuhito on how impressive the attendance for WK9 actually was. Not entirely sure how accurate his assessment or Sugabayashi's quotes are, of course.
NJPW official book "NJPW Pia" has been published yesterday. I bought and finished to read it. There are long interview of Hiroshi Tanahashi, Shinsuke Nakamura, Kazuchika Okada, Kota Ibushi, and Katsuyori Shibata. They are really fun to read.
What I am impressed the most is the interview of the chairman of NJPW Naoki Sugabayashi. He revealed that the number of ticket sale at Tokyo Dome reached the golden era of NJPW. What he wan to say is at the golden era of NJPW which is Muto, Chono and Hashimoto era, a lot of tickets were pushed to sell to affiliated companies by sales people of NJPW. So real numbers of ticket sales for Tokyo Dome are almost same as now.
Wow, I did not know that. WrestleKingdom 9 drew 36,000 fans this year. But in 2005 at WK drew only 8,500(real number) fans. But they announced over 40,000 fans.
I can say it is great effort of sales people in NJPW including Sugabayashi. Sugabayashi grew as sales person in NJPW. He went to many companies and asked them to buy the tickets. and now he is the chairman of NJPW. He knows a lot about importance of sales people. So if they push many tickets to affiliated companies, it would be 50,000 or 60,000 fans at WK9.
Last edited by Ringo; February 28th, 2015 at 9:21 AM.
I think this last injury was the last straw for Alex Shelley; he's strongly hinting at retiring on his twitter.
Yeah, it would suck if that's how he goes out
He's said for ages that wrestling with KUSHIDA in New Japan is the only reason he still does it at all.
Show got picked up for a third season on Axs tv and will feature matches with only 3-4 months delay. They also mentioned multi-year tv deal with Axs.
I wish so badly that I had AXS. This show needs to be on a better channel and on Wednesdays.
Apparently their averaging 200k viewers and is considered a success. Ahead of Roh in dest america.
wrong thread
I'm watching the newest episode on AXS and I've been introduced to a wrestler I'm not familiar with. Big Daddy...Yum Yum? He reminds of a wrestler I would've created in WWF No Mercy back in the day. He's so bad, Ranallo and Barnett couldn't resist taking a few shots at his expense. Yum Yum wrestles a horrible match, but at the end he busts out a sweet looking moonsaultThe NWA has fallen very, very far.
Shibata has signed a contract with New Japan, says enuhito.
https://twitter.com/enuhito_eng/stat...29345200574464
Great news. It's a big hit they've taken but there are things they can do to rebuild at the top of the card and this is one of them.
And Michael Elgin has signed for 2 years as well. I like that. Not the biggest fan of his in ROH but in Japan he has a different aura. Reminds me of Scott Norton.
Oh and also, results from New Japan Cup first round:
Notes on return of the Super J and Ospreay there too.NJPW "NEW JAPAN CUP 2016", 03.03.2016
Ota Ward Gymnasium
2,938 Fans
1. New Japan Cup - Round 1: Toru Yano besiegt Yujiro Takahashi (1:13) via Count Out.
2. New Japan Cup - Round 1: Michael Elgin besiegt Hiroyoshi Tenzan (8:22) mit der Elgin Bomb.
3. New Japan Cup - Round 1: Tama Tonga besiegt Togi Makabe (7:40) mit dem Veleno.
4. New Japan Cup - Round 1: Satoshi Kojima besiegt Tomoaki Honma (11:50) mit einer Lariat.
5. Special Tag Match: Kazuchika Okada & Kazushi Sakuraba besiegen Katsuyori Shibata & KUSHIDA (11:25) nach dem Rainmaker von Okada gegen KUSHIDA.
6. New Japan Cup - Round 1: Hirooki Goto besiegt Yuji Nagata (11:28) mit dem Goto Shiki.
7. New Japan Cup - Round 1: Tetsuya Naito besiegt YOSHI-HASHI (13:42) mit dem Destino.
8. New Japan Cup - Round 1: Tomohiro Ishii besiegt "King of Darkness" EVIL (15:20) mit einem Vertical-Drop Brainbuster.
9. New Japan Cup - Round 1: Bad Luck Fale besiegt Hiroshi Tanahashi mit dem Bad Luck Fall.
Notes/Notizen:
- Before the show started Takaaki Kidani and Naoki Sugabayashi entered the ring to make 3 announcements.
- 1st: The new Lion's Gate Project will open up tryouts for young wrestlers from around the world.
- 2nd: Michael Elgin (2 years) and KATSUYORI SHIBATA (1 year) signed contracts with New Japan Pro Wrestling.
- 3rd: The SUPER J-CUP 2016 will take place on August 21st 2016 in the Ariake Colosseum in Tokyo. These promotions/groups will send participants: New Japan, Pro Wrestling NOAH, KAIENTAI DOJO, Dragon Gate, ZERO1, Ryukyu Dragon Pro Wrestling, Suzuki-gun, CMLL, ROH
- Following the tag match Kazuchika Okada annoucned WILL OSPREAY as the new member of CHAOS who will challenge KUSHIDA for the Jr. Heavyweight Title at Invasion Attack on April 10th.
Quarter Finals:
NJPW "NEW JAPAN CUP 2016", 04.03.2016
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
-. New Japan Cup - Round 2: Hirooki Goto vs. Tama Tonga
-. New Japan Cup - Round 2: Satoshi Kojima vs. Toru Yano
-. New Japan Cup - Round 2: Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishii
-. New Japan Cup - Round 2: Bad Luck Fale vs. Michael Elgin
Last edited by Ringo; March 3rd, 2016 at 9:09 AM.
And the newest member of CHAOS is:
OSPREAAAAAY OSPREAY OSPREAY OSPREAY OSPREAYYYYY
OSPREAYYYYY
OSPREAYYYYY
Your 2016 nj cup winner is
Bumped and stickied.
I believe Omega/Okada from the G1 is on AXS tonight.
I read someone say recently that Naito/Okada is the biggest match they could put on, but has the least heat on it of any WK main event this decade. Agree?
Nice. Glad I have it set to record.
Well, I haven't seen anything prior to Tanahashi/Suzuki, but I can easily say it's the likely main event of this year that has the least heat. For the simple fact that since Naito's brush with the title in 2016, there has been almost no relevance between Okada and Naito. Both of them have at least two other opponents that have way more going for it. That said, Okada/Naito at least have the history to play on. But they really need to kick it into high gear on this final stretch to make it feel like there's any fresh heat.
Completely disagree. The fans are getting antsy with Okada. Naito is beloved in Tokyo. Watch the promo from KOPW. When Okada interrupts Naito's catchphrase the crowd goes thermonuclear.
Okada is now the longest reigning IWGP Heavyweight Champion of all time.
Congratulations to the champ. He deserves every bit of praise he gets. Best pro wrestler on the planet.
well damn both tag tournament matches from this morning's show were awesome.
New Japan and ROH both have trios titles. How is KUSHIDA and the Machine Guns not a thing?
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