wrestling / TV Reports
Hamilton’s New Japan World Tag League 2020 & Best of the Super Junior 27 – Night Fifteen 12.05.2020 Review
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Quick Results
Best of the Super Junior 27 – SHO pinned Yuya Uemura in 15:01 (***½)
Best of the Super Junior 27 – DOUKI pinned BUSHI in 11:00 (***½)
Best of the Super Junior 27 – El Desperado pinned Robbie Eagles in 14:47 (***¾)
SANADA, Tetsuya Naito & Shingo Takagi pinned Satoshi Kojima, Kota Ibushi & Tomaki Honma in 14:20 (***¼)
Best of the Super Junior 27 – Taiji Ishimori pinned Master Wato in 15:34 (***½)
Best of the Super Junior 27 – Hiromu Takahashi pinned Ryusuke Taguchi in 25:30 (***¾)
— 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.
The Sun Arena Sendai in Kagoshima’s the host for this round…
Best of the Super Junior 27 – Yuya Uemura vs. SHO
Uemura’s long-since been eliminated from contention – and SHO badly needs a win to keep up hope of finishing in the top two.
Uemura’s up for this one as he looked to grab a waistlock, but instead got wrestled down to the mat by SHO. A front facelock sees SHO take control, wangling his back top the mat, but Uemura somehow gets free and tries for a side Salto suplex, only for SHO to dive to the ropes to break the gutwrench hold. There’s a shot on the break as Uemura gets sent into the ropes for the obligatory shoulder tackles, but SHO hits back with an elbow before Uemura bulled through him. Uemura goes back to the gutwrench, but SHO counters with one of his own as the pair had neutralised each other, only for SHO to push ahead with a slam.
SHO grounds Uemura with a chinlock, then rolled the Young Lion into a camel clutch that quickly turned back into the chinlock as Uemura was being stretched… until he backed into the ropes. Staying on top of Uemura, SHO chokes him in the corner with his boots, following up with elbows as the Young Lion was looking weakened… and then of course Uemura escaped a suplex before he hit back with a dropkick.
A back elbow in the corner from Uemura continues the comeback, as does a dropkick in the corner, but SHO kicked out from that, and began to overwhelm Uemura once more with kicks. Uemura caught one of them and lifted SHO up for a single leg takedown, following that up with half crab that turned into a regular Boston crab, only for SHO to make it to the ropes anyways.
Back-and-forth elbows follow, but SHO rattles off a long string of shots that Uemura couldn’t answer, eventually knocking him down. SHO pulls him up for kicks, which leave him slumped ahead of more elbows before Uemura snapped back in and hit a release Kanuki suplex for a near-fall. That looked to be the final hope though, as he pulled SHO up for a second one, which gets countered as SHO came back with a new take on a back cracker, before Uemura had to endure a Boston crab, eventually making it to the ropes. My God, the way this crowd’s reacting to a simple submission in the opener!
SHO keeps going, but gets wheelbarrowed for a near-fall, before elbows from Uemura were snuffed out with a lariat, as a tired SHO then hauled up Uemura for a nasty Power Breaker that doesn’t get the win. He’s having to dig deeper than expected for these two points, is SHO, who then planted Uemura with a Shock Arrow for the win. A helluva opener, with Uemura proving more stubborn and resolute than expected as his career continues its formative years. ***½
Best of the Super Junior 27 – DOUKI vs. BUSHI
A battle of the underlings here, with DOUKI properly bending his pipe on the guard rails as he swiped at Milano Collection AT on commentary.
DOUKI jumped BUSHI before the bell, but gets sent outside with a tijeras as BUSHI’s slingshot ‘rana waited for him on the floor. An Irish whip takes DOUKI into the rails as BUSHI continued to disrobe, then return to the ring as he put the boots to DOUKI. A neckbreaker gets BUSHI a two-count, before DOUKI just threw him back outside to repay the earlier favour. Yep. Guard rails.
DOUKI chokes BUSHI with his own t-shirt, then crotched him against the ring post before rolling back inside to take the count-out. Of course BUSHI makes it back in, but got taken to the top rope as DOUKI looked to unmask him. It’s amazing how just threatening to count to five makes him stop… With the loosened mask, BUSHI’s slammed and stomped on, before an eye rake cut off BUSHI’s attempted comeback. A flying ‘rana out of the corner gives BUSHI some hope, then an overhead kick in the ropes and a missile dropkick as BUSHI began to pull ahead. He keeps going with a DDT for a near-fall, before he hung up DOUKI in the ropes for another dropkick.
BUSHI builds further as he dragged DOUKI into the ropes for the see-saw DDT onto the apron, but DOUKI snapped back in with the DOUKI choki. Sorry, the Italian Stretch #32… and that ends in the ropes pretty quickly. DOUKI goes for Daybreak, but that’s countered with a Codebreaker, before a back cracker out of the corner left him laying.
BUSHI tees up for a second Codebreaker, but DOUKI blocks and turns it into another DOUKI choki, stopping to roll BUSHI back into the middle of the ring for more effect. Again, BUSHI makes it to the ropes, but Daybreak waits for him as DOUKI nearly nicked a rare singles win.
Suplex de la Luna’s attempted, but BUSHI counters with a roll-up… then walked into a throat thrust. BUSHI hits back with an enziguiri, then takes one himself, but manages to flip DOUKI with a Codebreaker for a near-fall. From there all that’s left is MX, but DOUKI sidesteps it and shocks BUSHI with a seatbelt roll-up and nicks the win! That wasn’t a result I was expecting, but a well deserved first-win-not-over-a-Young-Lion for DOUKI, who’s really come into his own in this tournament. That loss eliminates BUSHI, who now cannot mathematically make the top two… ***½
Best of the Super Junior 27 – El Desperado vs. Robbie Eagles
Desperado needs a win to stay in contention here, and rolls outside at the bell so as to calm down the crowd. It largely didn’t work.
They trade wristlocks to start, with Eagles edging ahead as he took Desperado to the mat, only for the tag champion to slide through for a side headlock. The pair end up in the ropes for a break, before Eagles attempt at an early Ron Miller Special had Despy scrambling to the ropes. A stomp to the foot of Eagles delays things as the Aussie comes back with a springboard armdrag, then a tijeras before a diving leg lariat had Despy heading outside again… but he walks out of range as Eagles teed up for the tope con giro. Smart move. Eagles slides out to chop him in the aisle, but an eye rake stops things as Desperado then used a Corning hold to try and throw Eagles into the ring post… but Eagles just steps-up on the post and counters out with an armdrag.
Heading back inside, Desperado kicks the ropes into Eagles, and began to work over the left leg, stomping away on the knee before a leg spreader forces Eagles into the ropes for a break. Desperado keeps going, but a back suplex is escaped as Eagles clips the knee, then dove in with a clothesline to the back of the head. A leaping leg lariat from Eagles takes Desperado into the corner, before he’s knocked outside as Robbie finally gets in his tope con giro. Back inside, Eagles goes in with chops, taking Despy into the corner for the running double knees, but the 450 splash onto the knees misses, and seemingly damaged Eagles’ own knee in the process.
He recovers, but the knee gives out again as he went for the springboard dropkick, and there was no way Desperado was turning down that opening, as he stomped on the knee, before getting caught with roll-ups for near-falls. An Asai DDT’s blocked, with Eagles then having his knee kicked out again as Desperado then followed up with the Numero Dos, but Eagles countered with a roll-up for a near-fall.
Desperado tries for a roll-up of his own, but it just takes him back in for Numero Dos… again, ending in the ropes. Eagles tries to counter Pinche Loco with a suplex, getting a near-fall, before he ‘rana’d out of the move, following up with some head kicks as he looked to have turned the tables. He even blocks a spinebuster and a Guitarra de Angel before Eagles hit that wacky leg screw as a way of trapping Desperado into the Ron Miller Special.
Despite slapping the mat, Desperado lives on, raking the eyes to break the hold… but after ducking a leg lariat, Desperado unsights the referee to punch out Eagles, then finished off the Aussie with Pinche Loco for the win. That win-loss record is very unflattering for Eagles, who’s had an incredibly good tournament, but it’s Desperado who pushes on here after a cracker of a match in the undercard. ***¾
Kota Ibushi, Satoshi Kojima & Tomoaki Honma vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi & SANADA)
Some non-tournament action here, and it’s a tease of what’s likely to main event the January 4 Tokyo Dome show, with Kota Ibushi and Tetsuya Naito on opposite sides of this trios match.
The crowd go wild because those two started proceedings, but they calm down as Ibushi and Naito circled each other for the first minute, before a side headlock from Naito was broken in the ropes. There’s an eventual break, but Naito doesn’t do it cleanly as Ibushi heads into the ropes, before a sunset flip, armdrag and kip up gets us back to square one.
Tags bring in Kojima and Shingo for shoulder tackles and clotheslines, which Kojima wins out on, before Honma came in to land a Kokeshi on Naito. Honma stays in to elbow Shingo into the corner, but gets too ambitious as he went for a Kokeshi off the middle rope and misses it, allowing Shingo to take over. SANADA’s in to wring the arm of Honma, while some double-teaming with Shingo leads to a back senton for a near-fall. Naito wanders in to randomly kick Honma as Shingo unloaded with some Danielson elbows. A suplex is next for a two-count as LIJ were pushing on, with Naito then tagging back in to toy around with Honma some more.
Honma boots away SANADA in the corner, then avoids Shingo before landing a DDT/Flatliner combo to Naito and Shingo… which then opened the door for Ibushi to tag in. Kota lands a diving kick to Naito, then a standing moonsault for a two-count, before Naito came right back in with a neckbreaker and a low dropkick. Combinacion Cabron followed in the corner, with another neckbreaker getting a two-count on Ibushi.
Elbows keep Ibushi in the corner with Naito then lifting him up top but Ibushi gets free and hits a ‘rana. Tags get us to SANADA and Kojima, allowing Kojima to bust out the Machine Gun chops in the corner, even adding in the forearm and elbow drop off the top for a near-fall. SANADA hits back with a low dropkick to take Kojima outside, with the plancha following, before Kojima hit back with a DDT back inside as Ibushi had to negotiate traffic to knock Shingo off the apron.
Kicks from Ibushi led to a Koji cutter on SANADA for a two-count, before Kojima shrugged off a SANADA dropkick. A Cozy lariat is blocked, with SANADA quickly finding his way in with a Dragon sleeper… but Kojima counters out of that to hit a suplex for a two-count. Another Cozy lariat’s blocked as SANADA flips over into a Skull End, then handed Kojima off for some triple-teaming as a Pumping Bomber from Shingo and a back suplex from SANADA almost ended it.
The ring fills and clears, with SANADA then finishing off Kojima with a slam and a moonsault press. This was exactly what it needed to be – a preview of WrestleKingdom, with the crowd hyper appreciative of seeing the big time players here. ***¼
Best of the Super Junior 27 – Master Wato vs. Taiji Ishimori
With two already on twelve points, this really is win-or-bust for Wato, but Ishimori needs the win as well as he’d be out on tiebreakers if 12 ended up being the magic number.
Ishimori distracts Wato at the bell by beckoning after Tenzan, but it’s shrugged off as Wato took Ishimori outside early… but Ishimori avoids the tornillo and prompted a brief chase that ended with him kicking Wato in the head. An Irish whip takes Wato into the guard rails, before a second one sees Wato vault over the rails as he came back in with an uppercut instead.
Back inside, Wato lands some kicks for a two-count, before Ishimori lifted him onto the apron. A springboard attempt ends with Wato getting caught on the ropes, as Ishimori looked to take over with some elbows and an armbar. Ishimori keeps working over the arm, trapping him in a key lock by the ropes, before he dragged him away… prompting Wato to try and punch his way free, only to get rolled down again as the ropes saved him this time.
Wato gets thrown into the corners, before a levering armbar from Ishimori continued to do damage. Some kicks help Wato force his way back into it, with a dropkick taking Ishimori outside for the tornillo dive… which Wato almost overshoots. Heading back to the ring, a springboard uppercut drops Ishimori for a two-count, before Recientemente was blocked.
More kicks get Wato a two-count, before the pair traded roll-ups briefly. A tiltawhirl DDT from Wato’s countered into a shoulderbreaker as Ishimori then rolls into a Yes Lock, looking for a submission, but again Wato got to the ropes in time. A shotgun dropkick knocks Wato into the corner for some running double knees for a near-fall. Wato escapes Cipher UTAKI and nails a head kick, but his powerbomb’s countered into a DDT as the pair then went back-and-forth with more kicks. Ishimori runs into a tiltawhirl backbreaker, before Wato tried to bust out Anaconda vise… but Wato’s trying it standing up, and so Ishimori escapes. Wato replies with an enziguiri, before Recientemente – the Magistral driver – almost got the win.
Wato pulls up Ishimori for a Tenzan Tombstone Driver, but it’s countered out into Cipher UTAKI, before a Rings of Saturn from Ishimori was transitioned into the Bone Lock, and then a Bloody Cross as Ishimori stayed at the top – and formally eliminated Wato after another decent match that felt like it had real stakes attached. ***½
Best of the Super Junior 27 – Hiromu Takahashi vs. Ryusuke Taguchi
With Taguchui already eliminated, this ought to be a straight-forward win to keep Hiromu in joint top spot… but stranger things have happened.
Taguchi’s very light footed from the off as both men were teasing hip attacks, before they just did a merry jig in the ring. Riverdance, it ain’t. They criss-cross each other in the ropes next, but Taguchi puts on the breaks and keeps Hiromu going as the impromptu cardio test ends with Hiromu dropkicking Taguchi onto the apron. Hiromu goes for a sunset bomb, but of course Taguchi’s arse breaks it up, before he ran into the aisle for a hip attack that knocked Hiromu towards the entrance way.
Taguchi meets him there with an ankle lock, looking to wear him down for a count-out… but Hiromu makes it back onto the ring before a hip attack reset the count. We wash, rinse and repeat, with Taguchi having wedged himself in the ropes… which allowed Hiromu to take a free shot as he dropkicked Taguchi’s arse, then pulled him to the outside, where those guard rails came into play once more.
A shotgun dropkick knocks Taguchi into the rails, with the pair then returning for a corner clothesline and a low dropkick for a near-fall. Some headscissors on the mat trapped Taguchi some more, at least until he wriggled his way to the ropes, but his attempts at hip attack are countered into atomic drops… before a third one was merely side-stepped. Hiromu’s done his homework, clearly.
Eventually Taguchi lands one, taking Hiromu outside for a plancha, then a springboard hip attack back inside… sending Hiromu back to the outside for a tope con giro. Returning inside again, a front suplex from Taguchi has Hiromu down, as the Bummer-Ye lands at the second attempt, before a low dropkick knocked down Hiromu for another crack at the ankle lock.
Hiromu rolls free, before he faked out Taguchi in the corner, ahead of a powerbomb and a death valley driver in the corner. Taguchi escapes a Time Bomb by, erm, pancaking his way out of it… which seemed to be a decent enough plan, if you can put up with the drop. Hiromu tries for something else, but gets caught with the Three Amigos instead before he was rolled into the ankle lock.
The ankle lock’s escaped, so Taguchi goes for a Dragon screw before reapplying Oh My Garankle, but Hiromu manages to escape and gives Taguchi the D instead. Taguchi’s saved in the ropes, as the pair descended into a striking battle that had Hiromu down in the corner. Dropkicks keep Hiromu down as Taguchi looked to be building up for Dodon, but Hiromu counters out by pulling down Taguchi’s trunks… which in turn led to a wacky package tombstone for a near-fall. Taguchi’s not wearing normal underwear, shall we say, and gets applauded for putting his arse away. A rare attempt at Dodon the End is blocked, so he goes back to the ankle lock, keeping it on despite Hiromu’s attempt at an enziguiri, but another rope saves the day. Another Dodon’s escaped, so Taguchi goes in with hip attacks which are eventually countered into a German suplex. Except Taguchi pops right back up, with Hiromu finding his way back in with a wheelbarrow flatliner.
A lariat from Hiromu drops Taguchi for a two-count, while Victory Royal looked to set up for Time Bomb 2… but Taguchi countered out for a reverse DDT. They go back to the back-and-forth elbows, then superkicks, with Hiromu edging ahead, only to get caught with a clothesline as Dodon was turned into a Tiger suplex. Taguchi’s trying his damndest, even if it is too late for his campaign, as a Dodon would almost put Hiromu away.
Taguchi charges Hiromu into the corner with a death valley driver, then called for a Time Bomb… but Hiromu countered with a roll-up, and that’s enough for the win! For me, this went a little too long. With nothing riding on this for Taguchi, and this starting as a comedy match of sorts, the only tension around was “would Hiromu’s path to the finals be difficult?” – and for my money, Hiromu is already on the verge of being bigger than this division. ***¾
Standings
World Tag League 2020
Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI; Juice Robinson & David Finlay; SANADA & Shingo Takagi; Taichi & Zack Sabre Jr.; Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa; Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano (5-3; 10pts)
Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb (4-4; 8pts) * eliminated
EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi (3-5; 6pts) *eliminated
Bad Luck Fale & Chase Owens (2-6; 4pts) *eliminated
Toa Henare & Hiroshi Tanahashi (1-7; 2pts) * eliminated
Best of the Super Junior 27
El Desperado, Taiji Ishimori, SHO, Hiromu Takahashi (6-2; 12pts)
BUSHI, Master Wato (4-4; 8pts) * eliminated
Robbie Eagles, Ryusuke Taguchi (3-5; 6pts) * eliminated
DOUKI (2-6; 4pts) * eliminated
Yuya Uemura (0-8; 0pts) * eliminated
Tomorrow sees another super-show in Fukuoka, as both the World Tag League and the Best of the Super Junior plays out the final rounds ahead of next Friday’s final.
