Csonka’s NJPW Destruction in Kagoshima 2019 Preview

WELCOME back to column time with Larry! Today, I am going to discuss and preview the NJPW Destruction in Kagoshima 2019 event. The show will feature Kota Ibushi vs. KENTA with Ibushi’s right to challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at WrestleKingdom on the line, young lion’s cup matches, and more. So today I will breakdown and preview the event. Feel free to make your picks in the comment section. Thanks for reading! It’s wrestling, we love it and will disagree. The only rules are “have a take, be respectful, and don’t be a dick.”

Young Lion Cup Match: Yuya Uemura vs. Clark Connors: Yuya Uemura has developed very well as a young lion and is constantly improving. Clark Connors has a great look, and feels like a can’t miss prospect at this time, a testament to Shibata’s training. I like Connors in this one. WINNER: Clark Connors

Young Lion Cup Match: Ren Narita vs. Michael Richards: Ren Narita, along with Shooter Umino, is one of the senior NJPW lions and really grew during his run in the BOSJ tournament, even if his hair game is still shit. Michael Richards is from the Fale dojo and has proven to be really solid on the tour. This one should be good and I will go with Narita here. WINNER: Ren Narita

Yuji Nagata, Ryusuke Taguchi, Shota Umino, & Yota Tsuji vs. Manabu Nakanishi, Toa Henare, Karl Fredericks, & Alex Coughlin: This is our dads take your kids to work match for the card, a staple of NJPW undercards. They are usually are at worst solid, but oftentimes a lot of fun. I expect the same here, and while you can make the argument for either team to win, I’ll go with team Blue Justice to take this one. WINNER: Yuji Nagata, Ryusuke Taguchi, Shota Umino, & Yota Tsuji

Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI, YOH, & SHO vs. Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, Bad Luck Fale, & Chase Owens: The CHAOS vs. Bullet Club rivalry continues on here as this serves as part of the build to HASHI & Ishii challenging the Guerrillas of Destiny for the tag titles. That likely will and should be the focus of this match. It should be solid and maybe even good, and while either team could win, I think that the boys from CHAOS will take this one in the go home angle for the tag title match next week. WINNER: Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, Bad Luck Fale, & Chase Owens

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, & Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Zack Sabre Jr., Minoru Suzuki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, & DOUKI: This match will feature the continuation of the Liger vs. Suzuki & Tanahashi vs. Sabre feuds. The Tanahashi vs. Sabre stuff will be smooth and fun, while the Liger vs. Suzuki stuff will be dirty and raw in a good way. Mexican indie scum legend DOUKI is fun in these tags, and it’s always fun watching Makabe avoid taking bumps, he’s a legend in that regard. For me, it’s a toss up in terms of the winners go, but I’m feeling a babyface win here. WINNER: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, & Jushin Thunder Liger

Kazuchika Okada, Hirooki Goto, & Rocky Romero vs. SANADA, Shingo Takagi, & BUSHI: This is building to Shingo vs. Goto in Kobe on the 22nd, as well as Okada vs. SANADA at King of Pro Wrestling; plus Romero & BUSHI hate each other, so that’s fun. Plus this continues the always fun and long running LIJ vs. CHOAS feud, and they almost always deliver very good and fun matches. I think that the OKADA VS. SANADA stuff will be fun but a bit limited, while BUSHI & Romero get to work a lot here, also allowing Goto & Shingo to really get their feud rolling ahead of their match. I think that CHOAS will take the win here, and am honestly excited for Shinto & Goto to batter each other in hossy goodness. This is a rematch from the previous night, so I expect them to trade wins. WINNER: LIJ

Tetsuya Naito & EVIL vs. Jay White & Yujiro Takahashi: Variations on a theme here. Yujiro is here to take the pin, while continuing the build to White vs. Naito in Kobe on the 22nd. This is all about building to White vs. Naito, White will stall a lot, and I fully expect night off Naito in this one like at Royal Quest, with EVIL & Yujiro working most of the way. The boys from LIJ take this one, with White & Naito doing a post match angle. WINNER: Tetsuya Naito & EVIL

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions El Phantasmo & Taiji Ishimori defending against Will Ospreay & Robbie Eagles: Eagles also left Bullet Club following issues with Phantasmo, leading to him joining CHAOS. Eagles has been a strong and consistent performer for NJPW. He teams with Ospreay here, who was the man that helped get him into NJPW. Eagles previously teamed with Ishimori & Eagles and beat 3K, leading to his shunning, and Ishimori & Eagles winning the junior tag titles. There is a lot of beef here storyline wise, and it all comes together well in this match. The challengers won at Royal Quest in a great match that left a lot of meat on the bone for the rematch, which I expect to be even better this time around. But this time, the stakes are much higher, as the titles are on the line ad they are in the co-main event spot. I expect this one to be an absolute banger, with everyone busting their ass and looking to deliver. I wouldn’t rule out a title change, as it would freshen things up and give Eagles his first big NJPW accomplishment. But with the junior tag tournament still coming up, I think that the titles stay put as they build to new challengers, possibly 3K looking to win back the gold. WINNER: Champions El Phantasmo & Taiji Ishimori

Kota Ibushi vs. KENTA (Ibushi’s right to challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at WrestleKingdom 14 is on the line): This is a rematch fro night one of the G1 in Dallas, where KENTA won to got off to a hot start, which is why he is getting this shot at Ibushi’s WrestleKingdom championship opportunity. Their G1 was a great hard-hitting battle, and as long as KENTA is healthy and doesn’t get knocked the fuck out again, I feel that this also has the potential to deliver a great match. Hopefully, the Bullet Club bullshit is kept away or at the very least kept to a minimum, because if it becomes too much, it could obviously ruin things. The booking of this is simple, KENTA is a viable threat since he beat Ibushi clean, and the structure of the match needs to reflect that. But at the end of the day, Ibushi’s he guy and should overcome any obstacle to keep his championship shot intact at WrestleKingdom, and win this match. WINNER: Kota Ibushi

The 411 on Wrestling Podcast returns to the 411 Podcasting Network for episode 50. On the show, the good brother, Jeremy Lambert, joins 411’s Larry Csonka as the guys will preview WWE Clash of Champions 2019, NJPW Destruction in Kagoshima & Beppu, plus dive into the big WWE & Impact Wrestling news. The show is approximately 95-minutes long.

* Intro
* NJPW Destruction in Beppu Preview: 3:25
* NJPW Destruction in Kagoshima Preview: 16:25
* WWE Changes Royal Rumble 2020 Weekend Plans (Worlds Collide Replaces Takeover): 27.55
* Impact Parent Company Anthem Media Acquires Majority Interest in AXS TV: 37.55
* WWE Clash of Champions 2019 Preview: 1:05:35

You can subscribe and listen to the 411 on Wrestling Podcast via the above player on Transistor, or on the following platforms:

* iTunes
* Spotify
* Stitcher
* Google Play

– End Scene.

– Thanks for reading.