wrestling / Columns
Csonka Ranks the 2017 New Japan Cup Matches
WELCOME back, back to the column that makes lists and hopes that you enjoy them. This week’s column will look back at the NJPW New Japan Cup tournament. One of the reasons that I do columns like this is because I realize that not everyone can watch everything. And I always hear people saying that they can’t decide what to watch because they do not have enough time to follow everything, so maybe this will help those of you short on time find some stuff to check out. Consider this the New Japan Cup play list, Have fun, and always, thanks for reading…
15. NJ Cup 1st Round Match: Yuji Nagata defeated Tanga Roa @ 12:05 via pin [½*]: In no way was this a good match, Nagata worked hard but he felt as if he was wrestling himself at times. Roa looked lost at points, and simply has no idea how to fill in time, he has no concept of the little things and he constantly killed all momentum and any flow that the match had. For as much as he has improved as a tag worker, there’s a reason Roa is just now making his singles debut in NJPW. Keep him away from the G1, hell I’ll drop an extra 999 yen a month to make it happen. Slow, plodding, lackadaisical, select the word you like best and it works here. I wish that Roa had gotten paired with Yano so they could do the 90-second G1 special. This was one of the worst NJPW matches in a while. Bone Soldier thought that this was bad.
14. NJ Cup 1st Round Match: Toru Yano defeated Tama Tonga @ 4:03 via pin [*]: They did the Toru Yano G1 special as many expected. I hated that Tonga lost but I needed this to be quick.
13. Bad Luck Fale defeated Toru Yano @ 8:33 via pin [*]: Not good, as someone that is beyond over Yano’s antics, this did nothing for me. On top of all of that, it was painfully slow and boring. It felt like it lasted 18-minutes instead of just over 8. Moving on.
12. NJ Cup 1st Round Match: Bad Luck Fale defeated Michael Elgin @ 10:30 via pin [*]: This looked like a bad match up on paper, and was once they got in the ring. This pairing took away all of the great things that got Elgin over in NJPW, forcing him to work a long and boring back and forth, sloth like match with Fale. Elgin also suffered, because this is where NJPW feels that Fale needs a win to remain credible, and it always comes against someone it shouldn’t. there was nothing good about this, not even in the “two big dudes clubbering” sort of way.
11. NJ Cup 1st Round Match: Juice Robinson defeated Yujiro Takahashi @ 10:20 via pin [**½]: The beginning was a bit rough, and Takahashi’s heat segment really lacked but the counters down the stretch were really good and they kept the crowd, as they were really into Juice. Juice was great; Takahashi remains bad and is not believable in any way working on top. Add Yujiro to the list of guys banned from singles matches going forward.
10. NJ Cup Semifinal Match (3.19.17): Bad Luck Fale defeated EVIL @ 12:12 via pin [**½]: I felt that this started out rough, and while I would not call it good, they worked themselves into a solid and mildly fun match. Fale pick up the dominant victory heading into the finals.
9. NJ Cup 1st Round Match: SANADA defeated YOSHI-HASHI @ 13:50 via submission [***¾]: This was a very good match, worked in a G1 sprint style, which I love. They had good chemistry, and delivered a good finish but it was missing something to get it over the top into great territory; both guys are primed for a great year and seem to be constantly improving.
8. NEW JAPAN CUP 2nd Round Match (3.15.17): Katsuyori Shibata defeated Juice Robinson @ 11:23 via pin [***]: Juice was very cautious to begin, because he is fully aware that Shibata can kill him. Shibata easily out grappled him in the early portion, but Juice kept fighting back and avoided an early PK try by Shibata. Shibata then targeted the arm and laid in hard kicks. Very basic and deliberate offense from Shibata here, just punishing the arm and keeping Juice grounded. Juice has very good struggle spots as he works for the ropes, finally making them for the break but Shibata kept attacking; he went for the charging dropkick, and Juice cut him off with a lariat. This seemingly pisses off Shibata, who connected with two corner dropkicks and a suplex for the near fall. Shibata laid in more kicks, but Juice avoided the PK and they traded strikes. Juice then fired up, challenging Shibata to fire back. Shibata followed with kicks to the head and uppercuts, but Juice kept firing back and hit a leg lariat for the near fall. Juice then hit the cutter out of the corner followed by the cannonball for 2. Juice followed with the toss up gut buster and senton for 2. Juice teased pulp friction, but Shibata escaped and locked in the octopus hold. A German followed, but Juice popped up and worked strikes, but Shibata locked in the sleeper. The Pk followed and Juice was done. With Tanahashi and Omega bowing out early, you had to figure that Shibata would take the win here. This was a good match, with Juice showing great babyface fire, but was more of a showcase for Shibata. It was far from a squash, but was a strong and dominating win for Shibata; it was exactly what it needed to be.
7. NJ Cup Finals (3.20.17) – Katsuyori Shibata defeated Bad Luck Fale @ 18:53 via pin [***¾]: Shibata smartly attacked at the bell with running kicks and then kicked Fale to the floor. Fale blocked the PK of the apron and then posted Shibata. They brawled into the crowd with Fale tossing Shibata into the chairs and slowly beat him down. Fale slammed a piece of guardrail onto Shibata, leading to the Gedo special countout tease. Shibata beat the count, and Fale was waiting on him to continue the attack, this time in the ring. Fale works the neck pinch to ground Shibata, and then rips off the shoulder tape, before continuing the attack. Back to the floor and Fale posts Shibata again, continuing the focus on the arm. Six-minutes in and it’s been all Fale, he’s playing the monster role very well here and Shibata is also doing a great job of selling his offense. Shibata manages to hit a charging kick, but Fale cuts him off with the shoulder block. Shibata then hit the dropkick, and laid in strikes in the corner to Fale and followed with the hesitation dropkick. Shibata countered a slam and transitioned to a version of the octopus hold. Kicks followed, but Fale goozles him and then sends him to the floor. On the floor, Shibata sends Fale to the barricade and chokes out Fale with his own shirt. Back in the ring and Shibata has a chair. He tosses it to Fale and dropkicks it into his face. Sleeper by Shibata, but Fale escapes and hits the corner splash. Shibata escapes the grenade with a dropkick, but Fale answers back with the spear for a near fall. Fale then hits the Samoan drop for 2. Fale looks for the bad luck fall but Shibata counters into an arm bar. Fale powers out, so Shibata transitions into a triangle. Fale powers to his feet, but Shibata pulls him down with another arm bar. Shibata then starts to lay in kicks, but Fale catches him with the lariat. The running splash follows for a good near fall. The grenade connects and Shibata kicks out! The crowd is going wild, trying to will Shibata to victory. Shibata counters the bad luck fall into the sleeper, Fale falls to a knee but Shibata hops on his back and keeps the hold, only for Fale to hit a side slam. Shibata no sells and pops up and eats a lariat, pops up again and lays in kicks and the sleeper again. Fale fades and is going out. PK by Shibata and that is all. Fale’s heat was a bit bland at times, but I felt that they nailed the dynamic properly with Fale being the nearly unstoppable monster. The homestretch was great, and the crowd was into the Shibata comeback and victory big time.
6. From The NJPW New Japan 3.12.17 – NJ Cup 1st Round Match: Katsuyori Shibata vs. Minoru Suzuki [****]: They stared out with some standing holds as commentary was very quiet, I like to think they fear for their lives. Enough of that grappling shit, because they moved into beating the hell out of each other. Suzuki quickly went after the knee, but Shibata countered and locked in the figure four but Suzuki made the ropes. They then just started to straight up kick each other in the face. Suzuki worked the hanging arm bar in the ropes, and then slammed Shibata to the barricade. Suzuki is in full Suzuki mode, dragging Shibata up the ramp and beating on him with a chair; Suzuki just doesn’t give a fuck and works body shots before rolling Shibata back into the ring. Shibata slowly fought back, hitting the running corner kicks and then about 50 forearm strikes, MY GAWD THAT MAN HAS A FAMILY. Shibata followed with a suplex, and worked the abdominal stretch and transitioned into the octopus hold. Suzuki would escape, and hit a PK for a near fall, nearly pinning Shibata off of one of his favorite moves. Suzuki then locked in an octopus hold as he now wants to not only embarrass Shibata but also prove that he’s the better man. Suzuki worked strikes and head butts, but Shibata just fired back and they again did some Frye/Takiyama shit as they start to throw with reckless abandon. Suzuki finally started to fade a bit, finally leading to the big double down spot. Suzuki hit a bicycle kick, and locked in the sleeper. Shibata fades, as his fight keeps becoming less and less. Shibata dropped to the mat, but fought off the Gotch piledriver, hitting the STO and then a German. Suzuki avoids the PK, locks in the sleeper again, but Shibata escapes with the Death Valley driver and PK to pick up the win. Your mileage will vary on a match like this, you have to really like both guys and the style they’re working. They stuck to the style, they made it feel different than all the other matches the past few days and laid good groundwork for future matches in this meeting; this very much came off as “hey, it’s the first of many meetings and you’re not getting it all today.” The crowd was soft for it, but they’ve been that way all night. I loved the pure ass kicking nature of this; it was two guys saying that they want to be the best, were willing to take the other’s best and try to survive so that they could deliver the killshot.
5. From NJPW New Japan Cup 3.11.17 – NJ Cup 1st Round Match: EVIL defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi @ 23:20 via pin [****]: These two have had some great interactions on the recent shows, and I was hoping we’d get the match even before they announced it for the NJ Cup. Tanahashi looked to lock in his pace and work his match, as he outwrestled EVIL early. They quickly brawled to the floor, EVIL got a chair and wrapped it around Tanahashi’s head, grabbed another and swung at the first chair like a baseball bat. This of course gave us another Gedo special count out tease. EVIL took the heat, grounding Tanahashi using a cravat. Tanahashi tried to fire up, but EVIL just casually walked away from his high cross attempt. EVIL managed to fight back enough, targeting the knee of EVIL, hitting dropkicks and dragon screw leg whips. Tanahashi then missed the senton off the ropes, and EVIL hit the side slam to cut him off. EVIL then hot the fisherman buster, headed up top and hit the lariat, which got 2. They traded strikes as Tanahashi got sent to the apron, Tanahashi then hit the dragon screw leg whip in the ropes, and EVIL fell to the floor. Tanahashi up top, HIGH FLY CROSS BODY to the floor! Back in the ring, Tanahashi went up top, but EVIL shoved the ref into the corner and Tanahashi got crotched; EVIL then hit a press slam and went back after the chair. He laid into Tanahashi with chair shots to the back, but Tanahashi ain’t got time for that and fought back and beat down EVIL in the corner. The ref tried to pull Tanahashi off of EVIL, but Tanahashi shoved him away and then hit EVIL with a neck breaker onto the chair. EVIL countered the high fly flow with the knees, and as they fought to their feet, they traded forearm strikes and went crazy fists. Big lariat by EVIL, which got a really good near fall. He then got another great near fall off of the fireman’s carry into the sitout powerbomb. EVIL calls for the end, and locks in a hammerlock/crossface submission. Tanahashi fights, but starts to fade; EVIL covers and gets 2 again. Tanahashi counters the STO, they work thorough some nicely done counters and Tanahashi finally hits sling blade. The crowd loves Tanahashi, and is trying to will him to victory here. EVIL then mists Tanahashi and hits the STO for the win. This ended up being a great match. It started a bit slow, but I felt that they worked really well together and that the action layered well until Tanahashi decided to kick thing up a notch and try to make this a “Tanahashi-level” main event. It didn’t quite get to that level, but EVIL delivered a very good performance and the win for him is huge. Similar to the WrestleKingdom match with Naito, there were again hints at Tanahashi acting heelish, this time through complete frustration; shoving the ref and using the chair. In the Naito match, Tanahashi acted heelish, almost as if he felt that he was too good to be in the ring with Naito, especially in the co-main event spot, which like Naito was beneath him. His over confidence juxtaposed against Naito’s desire to prove himself worthy and take down the ace played perfectly off of each other. Here, it was Naito’s henchman proving himself against the Ace, doing anything and everything he could to pull off the big win. If I am reading all of this right, they are doing some serious character work with Tanahashi, really pushing the fall of the Ace angle, which is really something that can take them all the way through WrestleKingdom 2018.
4. NEW JAPAN CUP 2nd Round Match (3.13.17): Yuji Nagata vs. EVIL [****]: EVIL best the fallen Ace of NJPW, Hiroshi Tanahashi in a great match to get here. Nagata used his New Japan dad powers to overcome Tanga Roa; it was Roa’s first singles match in NJPW, and it was bad. Not even the power of Blue Justice could save us from the worst NJPW match since Bone Soldier was a regular. Nagata worked leg kicks early, trying to slow down the young hoss, but it only pissed off EVIL who beat him down and tossed him to the floor. Nagata had some fire here, and refused to just stay on the floor, especially since EVIL likes to attack with chairs. Nagata would drop to the floor and brawl with EVIL, but rolled him back in quickly and went right back to the kicks. EVIL cut him off and took him to the floor, where he utilized the chair and posted Nagata. I get that this is part of EVIL’s gimmick, but he does it every match and does it right in front of the ref; it annoys me. We got our Gedo special count out tease that is always a part of these tournament bouts. EVIL took the heat back in the ring, raking the eyes of Nagata and then hitting a standing senton. Nagata fired up and went back to the kicks, beating down EVIL in the corner. EVIL fought off the XPLODER; they traded strikes and then NAGATA HEAD DROPPED HIM on the rebound XPLODER. EVIL took control with a lariat and neck breaker for the near fall. EVIL then went high risk, going up top and Nagata cut him off, following him up and delivering forearms and a SUPER XPLODER for the near fall. EVIL fought off the backdrop driver and hit German for the double down. They fought to their feet, traded strikes, with EVIL gaining the advantage with the fisherman buster and EVIL bomb for a bear fall. But Nagata was not done and countered the STO into the arm bar. EVIL struggled, and managed to make the ropes. Nagata hit the corner knee strike and backdrop driver for a great near fall, but EVIL fought off the kicks, hit a head butt and then decapitated Nagata with a lariat. Another lariat followed and Nagata survived, but ate the STO and EVIL advanced. This was absolutely awesome, worked with a beautiful intensity that many of the tournament matches had lacked. The pacing was excellent, the work was stiff and crisp and it had the feel of a G1 match. Nagata is a guy that is still over enough and can deliver in big matches; making this match another big and important win for EVIL. This was one you should make time for.
3. NEW JAPAN CUP 2nd Round Match (3.17.17): Tomohiro Ishii defeated SANADA @ 14:02 via pin [****¼]: Ishii is coming off of a MOTY contender with Omega in the first round. SANADA is coming off of a very good outing against YOSHI-HASHI in the first round. Ishii used his power early, while SANADA uses his speed to create a really great opening sequence, finishing with a plancha by SANADA. They brawled on the floor, with SANADA whipping Ishii to the barricade and then choking him out for the Gedo special countout tease; never change Gedo. Back in, SANADA showed great aggression as he beat down Ishii in the corner. Good control by SANADA here, using his speed to keep Ishii off of his game. Ishii then walked through a dropkick because he’s had enough of this shit and connected with corner clotheslines and a suplex for a near fall. SANADA countered the powerbomb, laid in forearms and then hit the big dropkick for the near fall. SANADA followed up by beating down Ishii in the corner, but Ishii just got angry and fired up with chops and forearms. SANADA quickly fired back with a springboard dropkick to turn momentum in his favor. Ishii countered the cutter into a DDT, both men fired up and Ishii countered the cutter again into the reverse DDT. Ishii then hit the head butt and lariat, scoring the near fall. The powerbomb and jackknife cover by Ishii got a good near fall. They did a double down spot; SANADA hit another springboard dropkick for the near fall. Ishii fired up with strikes, and then SANADA answered back and finally hit the cutter for the near fall. The crowd loves this. SANADA look for skull end, but Ishii counters out with a dragon suplex. SANADA says fuck your suplex, pops up and locks in skull end and drops to the mat. Ishii struggles for the ropes, but SANADA rolls into a cover for 2. SANADA tosses off the shirt, hits the slam and MISSES the moonsault. SANADA favors his knee after the miss, allowing Ishii to work strikes and nearly decapitate SANADA with a pair of lariats for a great near fall. SANADA cuts off the sliding lariat, gets a backslide and another near fall. Ishii again escapes skull end, hits the sliding lariat but only gets 2. SANADA escapes the brainbuster, and they trade a great series of strikes. Ishii has finally had enough, hits the brainbuster and puts SANADA away. This was a great match, pitting the younger, stronger and faster SANADA against the grizzled veteran who takes no shit and is desperately seeking a title shot. This featured great work from both men and an invested crowd through out.
2. From The NJPW New Japan Cup 3.12.17 – NJ Cup 1st Round Match: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Kenny Omega [****¾]: It’s black tights Omega tonight, which means SERIOUS KENNY; he decided to try and strike with Ishii, they brawled to the floor and teased a one winged angel, Ishii escaped but Omega hit the reverse RANA. This only angered Ishii, but Omega cut him of right away, slamming him off of the edge of the ring apron. Omega kept beating on Ishii, again making him angry. Ishii went with the reliable striking game before using his power, hitting the delayed suplex for a near fall. Omega clipped the knee, trying to slow the powerhouse down and then hit the Finlay roll/moonsault combo for the near fall. They both fired up, trading chops center ring. Ishii chopped Omega in the throat, but Omega managed to hit a RANA as Ishii charged at him. Omega up top, cut off, and Ishii followed all the way up. Omega fought him off; they battled back and forth with Omega teasing a superbomb. Ishii stopped that bullshit and hit a RANA off the ropes. LUCHA FUCKING ISHII! Last ride by Ishii for the near fall, shit just got real there. Omega avoids a lariat, tries to flip out of a German but lands on his head, back to his feet and a big lariat by Ishii decapitates Omega. Omega then hits the brainbuster across the knee and Ishii has to roll to the floor. Omega then followed with the great div to the floor, leading to the countout tease. Omega up top, hits the missile dropkick to the back for a near fall. Ishii fights, Omega hits the snap dragon suplex but Ishii is a fucking zombie and keeps walking towards him, superkicks and knee strikes by Omega follow and then the gut wrench powerbomb gets another near fall. V Trigger countered, and Ishii fights off the one winged angel. German by Ishii and both men are down. They struggle to their feet, trade strikes but Ishii is having issues, grabbing at his arm, due to the neck damage suffered. Omega keeps firing away but Ishii hit V Trigger! The sliding lariat follows, but Omega survives! Omega fights off the lariats, hits V Trigger but runs into another lariat for a great near fall! Ishii looks for the brain buster, but Omega escapes; Ishii fights off the one winged angel, but Omega plants him with a German for another near fall. Snap dragon suplex by Omega, V TRIGGER! ONE WINGED ANGEL COUNERED, REVERSE RANA BY OMEGA only gets 2. Sweet baby Christ this is great. Ishii then counters the one winged angel into a stunner! LARIATOOOOOOOOOOOOO by Ishii gets 2. What in the fuck? BRAIN BUSTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA an Ishii pins Omega. My God that was fucking spectacular. I love the fact that they haven’t gone chalk with this and have made it truly interesting. The tease of Ishii winning this is great, he beat Okada in a classic G1 match last year, but since he’s CHAOS, never challenged for the title. This kicked all of the asses. I had extremely high hopes for this match and they lived up to all of them. I love that omega still didn’t hit the one winged angel, they are protecting that move and setting it up for something special when he does hit it. Omega will get all of the accolades, and I understand why, but there has not been a more consistent performer the last 4-5 years than Ishii; dude is amazing.
1. NJ Cup Semifinal Match (3.19.17): Katsuyori Shibata defeated Tomohiro Ishii @ 22:34 via referee stoppage [****¾]: Both guys were tentative to begin, they’ve battled before and know each other well. Shibata grounded Ishii with a top wristlock and attacked the arm early. Ishii struggled and made the ropes, and then fired away with chops by Shibata took him to the corner and beat him down. Ishii fire up and cut him off with the shoulder block and then went back to the chops. This finally took Shibata down, so he continued lighting Shibata up in the ropes. Shibata then fired back with chops, and they beat the hell out of each other center ring. Ishii delivered corner forearms, beating Shibata down to the mat. Shibata then cut him off with the running corner kick and forearm strikes. The running dropkick followed, and then a suplex for the near fall. Shibata then locked in an abdominal stretch, but Ishii powered to the ropes. Great struggle spot from Ishii, but all of that fight earned him a kick to the chest and more beating from Shibata. Ishii finally had enough of this shit and traded strikes with Shibata. They started to throw bombs center ring, beating the hell out of one another. Ishii was throwing so hard his elbow wrap started to come undone. Shibata staggered Ishii, and then kept throwing until Ishii fired up and dropped him. Ishii hit repeated corner clotheslines, and followed with a vertical suplex for 2. Shibata looked to fire up and fight back, but Ishii kept throwing strikes and slowing him down. Ishii hit the powerslam but Shibata popped back up and dropped him with a kick and the crowd is into this battle. It’s simply a matter of who can throw the hardest and most strikes as they are essentially daring the other to keep fighting. Shibata works a head crank, but Ishii makes the ropes. Ishii escapes the sleeper and then the kick, planting Shibata on the mat. Shibata then laid in kicks to Ishii, stomped on his head but that pissed Ishii off. Ishii then kicked Shibata in the head, delivered chops to the throat in the corner. German by Ishii as Shibata grabs at his throat, trying to catch his breath; Ishii connects with the powerbomb for 2. he followed with lariats, but Shibata is still standing. Ishii leveled him but Shibata pops back up because he’s a grown ass man! The sliding lariat by Ishii gets a near fall. My word they just keep throwing big time strikes, Ishii finally drops him again and both men struggle to their feet. Head butts by Ishii, but Shibata takes a seat and brushes it off. Ishii drops to the mat and they trade strikes from the sitting position. HIT ME FUCKER! Back to the feet, they trade suplexes and this crowd is INTO this big time. Ishii blocks the PK and locks in an arm bar. Shibata barely makes the ropes. Ishii now lays in kicks, but Shibata catches one and then drops Ishii with a jumping enziguri. They again struggle to their feet, sleeper by Shibata but Ishii works to fight out. Shibata keeps the hold, SLEEPER SUPLEX by Shibata, Ishii no sells the PK but runs into a dropkick and kicks out at one, hits the lariat and Shibata kicks out at 1! Sweet Jesus this match! Head butt by Ishii, but Shibata hits strikes and the sleeper. Ishii fades, BIG PK and then Shibata drops back for the sleeper with the body lock. Ishii fades, and the ref calls for the bell. I loved this, this was a battle of two bad ass dudes fighting with all they had to make this final. Ishii has been the MVP of this tournament, and is again killing it and he remains one of the most consistent high-level performers in all of wrestling. His fight spots to escape the chokes were so great, the back and forth strikes and those fight segments made this feel so raw and different than most matches. I love the wrestling. This kicked ass because it felt like a fight, like making the finals was THE most important thing and that they were willing to give their all to make it there.
Closing Notes:
* EVIL: may have bowed out earlier than most wanted, but he had two great matches, and victories, over Tanahashi and Nagata.
* Tomohiro Ishii: was the MVP of the tournament and one of the more under-appreciated performers today. He put on two MOTY contenders, but all of the puro elitists gave that sweet fellatio to Shibata and Omega.
* Katsuyori Shibata: winning was a bit of a surprise, I had hoped for him winning the G1 or picking up a win over the champion in the G1 to earn a title shot then. The ending to Shibata vs. Fale was tremendous; the crowd loved Shibata, they wanted him to win, they needed him to win and they loved it when he slayed the beast.
* SANADA: had a great showing, having kick ass match with Ishii and a very good match with YOSHI-HASHI; I originally thought that 2017 may be a big break out year for SANADA, but now it feels like it will be the year before the big year. He’ll continue to have good to great matches with everyone, and late 2018 should see the big push for him.
– End scene.
– Thanks for reading.
“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”
