Hamilton’s New Japan New Japan Cup 2021 – Night Ten 03.16.2021 Review

NJPW New Japan Cup 2021 Night 10 Quick Results

Yuji Nagata, Satoshi Kojima & Hiroyoshi Tenzan submitted Gabriel Kidd, Yota Tsuji & Yuya Uemura in 10:10 (**¾)
Bad Luck Fale, Juice Robinson & Chase Owens pinned Toa Henare, David Finlay & Juice Robinson in 10:46 (**)
Jeff Cobb & Will Ospreay pinned BUSHI & SANADA in 8:34 (**¾)
New Japan Cup 2021 – Quarter-Final: EVIL pinned Toru Yano in 7:53 (*¾)
New Japan Cup 2021 – Quarter-Final: Shingo Takagi pinned KENTA in 23:49 (****)

— If you’re on Twitter, give me a follow over on @IanWrestling – and check out the GoFundMe that’s still open for Larry’s family.

Yep, we’re back at Korakuen Hall again – after today New Japan’ll have nearly a fortnight before they return here (on the Road to Sakura Genesis) as they’re actually running other venues more.

Yota Tsuji, Yuya Uemura & Gabriel Kidd vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Yuji Nagata
It feels like it’s been a while since we’ve had a kids vs. dads tag…

The Young Lion trio jump starts the match, with Tsuji and Uemura double-teaming Tenzan with dropkicks early on. A double-team suplex followed as Uemura rolls up Tenzan for an early two-count, before a Boston crab ended with Tenzan dragging his way to the ropes. Chops from Uemura lead to Tenzan reversing an Irish whip, then charging down the Young Lion before clearing the opposite apron.

New Mongolian chops from Tenzen drop Uemura, before Nagata came in to work over Uemura’s arm. An armbar ends in the ropes, as Kojima comes in to put the boots to the youngster. Uemura tries to clear the apron, but the dads stop him and corner him with elbows as Tenzan returned to headbutt Uemura into the corner.

A body attack keeps Uemura there ahead of a brainbuster, with Tsuji coming in to break up the pin. Kojima’s back with kicks but Uemura rolls past him for a pair of dropkicks before he finally got the tag out. Tsuji’s legal and charges down everyone, but Kojima ends up taking him to the corner for Machine Gun chops.
Tsuji shrugs them off to elbow Kojima before he could go up top, before a body slam and a dropkick led to a two-count. A suplex is blocked by Tsuji, but he can’t avoid a Koji cutter before Nagata came in and ate a spear. Kidd’s bellowing to be tagged in, which he gets as a shoulder tackle takes down Nagata.

Nagata sandbags on a suplex to block, but ends up being taken to the ropes for a dropkick. Triple-teaming leads to a splash, an elbow drop, and a back senton as the Young Lions pushed for the unlikely win, before Kidd’s attempt at a double underhook suplex was lifted away by Nagata.

Kidd runs back in and elbows out of an Exploder, then popped up from a kick to slap the taste out of Nagata’s mouth. A brainbuster followed for a two-count, but Nagata’s back with an Exploder for a two-count, before the Nagata Lock II crossface forces the submission. A good showing, but the expected result as the Young Lions continue their learnings. **¾

Bullet Club (Jay White, Bad Luck Fale & Chase Owens) vs. David Finlay, Juice Robinson & Toa Henare
We’re building up to one of Thursday’s quarter-finals here, and I think this was the debut of Fin-Juice’s new music from Impact. Still no sign of those Impact belts, which makes me think that reign may be a little short…

The bell rings as White was posing for the crowd, with Jado on commentary having sketched up a 10.0 score card. Wrestling already has a “ten guy,” right? When we do get going, we have a lock-up that ends in the ropes before White unloaded with some rights on Finlay. An Irish whip’s reversed, but Whtie clings onto the ropes before he blocked a Prima Nocta… but couldn’t avoid Juice Robinson flying in off the top with a double sledge.

Back elbows lead to a diving uppercut and a back senton, before Chase Owens took a double-team face crusher. Fale’s in too, but he blocks a suplex and just charged through FinJuice as the match resumed order. White charged Juice into the corner with shoulder charges to the back, before a stomp targeted Juice’s knee.

The Tongan Massage Parlour keeps Juice under Fale and Owens’ boots, before White again targeted tha flower back with forearms. Owens is back with a front facelock to Juice, before he busted out some Dusty punches. Juice pushes free as Owens and White tried ot stop him from tagging out, but eventually Finlay’s brought back in, landing European uppercuts as he goes to pick up a near-fall on White.

White escapes a uranage and comes back in with a DDT as he looked to push on. A uranage from White’s blocked, while a back suplex was countered out of as Finlay finally lands the uranage backbreaker. Tags bring us to Henare and Fale, with Henare landing a leaping chop for a two-count as Finlay and Juice come in to triple-team he big man.

Clotheslines in the corner lead to a spear from Henare for a two-count, before Owens broke up a suplex attempt. Henare elbows him away, then lands a kick to Fale as Owens comes back with a knee, then handed Henare to Fale for the Grenade to get the win. This one didn’t really click with me – the White/Finlay stuff was fine, but the rest of the match didn’t get going. **

United Empire (Will Ospreay & Jeff Cobb) vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (SANADA & BUSHI)
…and build for SANADA vs. Ospreay on Thursday now.

Ospreay asks SANADA not to hit him in the face, on account of the broken nose he looked to have picked up at the weekend. And of course, SANADA teases playing “got your nose” with him to break up a wristlock early on. Arm wringers from Ospreay comes to nought, so Ospreay pulls SANADA’s hair to take him to the mat.

The pair switch around in the ropes with Ospreay still nervous about his hooter. He tries to cheapshot his way out of a handshake as Cobb attacks SANADA from behind. SANADA recovers and tags in BUSHI, who quickly gets hung up in the ropes and booted to the outside.

Cobb’s waiting for BUSHI there as Ospreay instead goes for SANADA, throwing him into the railings. Back inside, Ospreay and Cobb double-team BUSHI, with a kick leading to a two-count for Cobb, before BUSHI got hurled into the corner again. Ospreay’s back to hit a stomp as BUSHI was hanging from the rope… then Cobb tagged back in as BUSHI desperately tried to get to the opposite corner.

More double-teaming traps BUSHI, but he escapes Cobb before a bulldog/dropkick combo took down the Empire duo. BUSHI ducks a Cobb clothesline so he could hit a tope suicida to Ospreay… SANADA’s in to help double-team Cobb as a back cracker from BUSHI nearly gets the win.

Ospreay takes SANADA back into the rails as BUSHI ends up falling to a springboard forearm that starts a Parade of Moves… including SANADA playing “got your nose” with Ospreay before Cobb blocks an inside cradle from BUSHI. That’s turned into a suplex, before BUSHI clings to the ropes to avoid a Tour of the Islands… he tries a roll-up for a near-fall, before a clothesline from Cobb dumped him to the mat. Pull-up, Tour of the Islands, and Cobb claims another win. A solid tag match, with Ospreay more upset over his nose than much else… you know there’ll be a lot of nasal-based offence on Thursday… **¾

Post-match, SANADA flips off Ospreay…

New Japan Cup 2021 – Quarter-Final: EVIL vs. Toru Yano
All three of these two’s prior meetings have come in G1 Climaxes, with Yano’s only win coming last year. They’ve also never crossed the five-minute mark.

We get going with Dick Togo starting on the apron for whatever reason… so Yano rolls outside to create some distance. Problem was, the referee starts his count-out, forcing Yano to return to the ring. A kick to the arse stops him from taking off the turnbuckle pad, as EVIL tosses Yano outside for Togo to get his kicks in.

Yano’s rolled back inside, but EVIL tosses him outside as the time-keeper gets wiped out, before they returned to the ring for arm wringers. The chained-up abdominal stretch followed, but with only Dick Togo at ringside there’s not much extra purchase, and they’re quickly caught in the act. Some two-counts from EVIL take us close to them beating their record, before Yano’s tossed into an exposed corner. Boots take Yano into the corner as they break that previous record-long, and go past the five-minute mark… before a hair pull from Yano had EVIL down. EVIL’s taken into the exposed corner next, before Yano undoes another turnbuckle pad.

A rebound belly-to-belly off the ropes also serves to knock Togo off the apron, before a Manhattan drop from Yano led to a slingshot into the corner. A roll-up nearly nicks Yano the win, before Yano bopped EVIL on the head. He’s taken outside with a low bridge as Yano chucks Togo back into the railings, before grabbing the garotte wire to choke out EVIL with.

Yano throws EVIL under the ring as the referee continued with his count… but the lights go out at the count of 18. The referee stopped his count, and the lights come back on with EVIL in the ring as he proceeds to land Everything is EVIL for the win. I think we’re meant to assume that Dick Togo hit the lights, as this was pretty much everything you expected, just minus the use of tape. *¾

New Japan Cup 2021 – Quarter-Final: KENTA vs. Shingo Takagi
Winner faces EVIL in the semis on Saturday, and one story leaps off the page there.

KENTA rolls outside at the bell, looking to pull a page out of the Larry Zbyszko playbook before we started with a side headlock as KENTA tried to keep Shingo at close quarters. Some hair-pulling sees things descend into elbows, before a slam from Shingo took KENTA to the outside hunting for respite.

He doesn’t get much as Shingo pulls him back inside for chops, forearms and punches in the corner. They head outside as KENTA’s taken into the railings… but while Shingo heads back inside, he’s distracted by KENTA on the floor who lays him out with the ring bell, before dragging him outside for more trips into the rails.

Heading back inside, KENTA just throws Shingo back to the floor as he breaks the count, then went back to the railings as KENTA threw himself through the gate as Shingo narrowly beats the count in time. A neck crank keeps Shingo down, as do a series of elbows, before Figure Four headscissors looked to force an unlikely stoppage.

Shingo forces the break, but KENTA stays on top of him with a slam before the mocking back heel continued the trip down KENTA’s past. Shingo elbows out of a side headlock, but just runs into a slam, before finally responding with a back elbow, jab and lariat to take KENTA down.

A shoulder block off the ropes keeps KENTA down, as does a knee drop before Shingo mocked KENTA’s back heel with a derisive kick to the head. KENTA plants Shingo with a DDT… but Shingo somehow blocks it as he wags the leg and powered up into a suplex instead. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before.

KENTA replies with a tornado stun gun in the corner, before going back up top for a Kane clothesline. That looks to be followed up with the Game Over, with KENTA grabbing Shingo’s locks to get the hold in, but Shingo got to the ropes to force the break. They trade elbows in the corner, before Shingo clobbered KENTA with a clothesline… only for KENTA to return with a running front kick and a hesitation dropkick in the opposite corner.

KENTA heads up for a stomp, but Shingo rolls away and ends up being taken onto the apron as a Green Killer DDT looked to put KENTA ahead. A release Fisherman suplex from KENTA keeps the momentum going, with the double stomp off the top landing as KENTA continued to control the majority of this match. He gets a near-fall from that, then looked for a Go 2 Sleep, but Shingo’s attempt to counter into Made in Japan sees him rolled to the mat for Game Over.

Shingo breaks it through the ropes, but KENTA stays on him with a Tiger Suplex… only for Shingo to pop back up and hit a clothesline as he was in desperate need of something to get back in it. The pair trade elbows again but Shingo hits a surprise Made in Japan to get himself a two-count against the run of play.

A Pumping Bomber from Shingo continues the comeback as KENTA’s strikes seemed to be losing steam. Shingo’s flurry ends with a punch as KENTA returns the favour, throwing in a backhanded chop and a knee to the face for a two-count. A Busaiku knee’s next as KENTA almost gets the win, before a Go 2 Sleep gets caught, with Shingo throwing in a headbutt.

KENTA tries to charge back, but gets popped up into a death valley driver, before a Pumping Bomber folded KENTA in half for a near-fall. From there, Shingo picks up KENTA for Last of the Dragon, and that’s enough to get the win for a heavily-resilient Shingo who maybe spent a little too much of that match on the defensive, but he’s fought his way through to the final four, and is now just two matches away from a title shot. Next up? EVIL… ****

After the match, EVIL appears at ringside to confront Shingo, but Dick Togo’s there too as they both jump him and leave him laying with a Magic Killer as EVIL stood tall to close out the night.

The tour takes Wednesday off, and returns on Thursday in Shizuoka for the remaining quarter-finals – David Finlay vs. Jay White and Will Ospreay vs. SANADA, before they head to Sendai for a weekender that features the semis on Saturday and the New Japan Cup final itself on Sunday.

7.4

The final score: review Good

The 411

For you cherry-pickers, this was another one-match show as the left hand side of the bracket was threatening to peter-out. I guess that’s the risk - for the most part, workrate matches and Toru Yano going deep in tournaments are mutually exclusive!