NJPW SOUL IN IBARAKI REPORT (6/23) – Lansdell’s report on TJP vs Kojima, Oleg vs Yano, and LIJ vs House of Torture!

NJPW SOUL REPORT
JUNE 23, 2024
KAMISU BOUSAI ARENA
IBARAKI, JAPAN
AIRED LIVE ON PPV ON NJPW WORLD

No English commentary again today. At least I am getting to practice listening to Japanese!

(1) EL DESPERADO & SHOMA KATO vs. DOUKI & YUYA UEMURA

It struck me during his entrance that this version of El Desperado would be an absolutely perfect fit for Los Ingobernables de Japón. He’s just so laid-back and tranquilo. That stable does not need another junior heavyweight so it won’t happen, but it would be a good fit.

There was a Young Lion in this match, so the result was never in doubt. Kato made a beeline for Uemura to start the match, and managed to wrestle him to a stalemate. Of course the real reason this match was happening was as a preview of the Douki-Desperado title match that’s coming up. If this was an indication of what those two can do together, we are in for a treat. Their exchanges were smooth, fast, and crisp. Can something be smooth AND crisp? Apparently yes.

Kato give it his all, really standing up to Uemura, before succumbing to the Deadbolt suplex.

WINNERS: Just Five Guys via pinfall in 10:00. (***1/4)
(Lansdell’s Analysis: One of the better openers of this kind I have seen in a while. Uemura have Kato a lot, possibly because he was so recently a Young Lion. Desperado and Douki have great chemistry and that title match will be a treat. You actually should not skip this match.)

(2) HIROSHI TANAHASHI & KATSUYA MURASHIMA vs. TOMOHIRO ISHII & TOMOAKI HONMA

Tanahashi and Ishii had tension when they were six-man champions with Okada a few months ago. They started off against each other and let some of that tension out by hitting each other a lot. Murashima tried to take a shot at Ishii, but it wasn’t very effective. Ishii’s look of minor inconvenience as he left the ring was a highlight for me. The moment a little later when they faced off and Ishii absorbed a dozen shots only to level the poor kid with one chop might have surpassed it though. Honma was also in this match.

Ishii tapped out Murashima for the win.

WINNERS: Ishii & Honma via pinfall in 9:00 (**)
(Lansdell’s Analysis: Even more than Sato in the previous match, Murashima was allowed to put on an exhibition of his learning here. Ishii sold for him, which says a lot. I think it is time for people to let Honma retire though. The guy battled back from a lot and it’s a miracle he could get back in the ring, but maybe he shouldn’t have stayed this long.)

(3) JUST FIVE GUYS (Sanada & Taichi & Taka Michinoku) vs. UNITED EMPIRE (Jeff Cobb & Great-O-Khan & Francesco Akira)

Taichi is scheduled to face the winner of tonight’s TJP-Kojima match in the G1 qualifier. The crowd was firmly behind O-Khan before the bell, something we had not heard for a while.

Somewhat surprisingly, Sanada took the bulk of the beating here before making the hot tag to Taichi. Not that long ago, the prospect of Taichi and O-Khan facing off would have sent fans into a tizzy. Both men have fallen pretty hard down the card, and now it’s as though they never got themselves over.

Akira got the win with Nova Fireball on Taka.

WINNERS: United Empire via pinfall in 10:00. (**1/4)
(Lansdell’s Analysis: This seemed to be building to a Sanada and O-Khan showdown. They are both in B Block for the G1 so it will happen. I can’t see that being an ongoing feud, with O-Khan already having plummeted down the card and Sanada ostensibly trying to avoid doing so. When the G1 schedule comes out, we should be able to tell if that pairing carries any significance. This match was decent, but uneventful.)

(4) UNITED EMPIRE (Callum Newman & Henare) vs. HOUSE OF TORTURE (Yujiro Takahashi & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)

Oh man, two nights in a row with a Yujiro match? You shouldn’t have. House of Torture pulled their usual pre-bell blindside, but Newman is very fast and showed it. He took some nasty bumps into the barricade on the floor in this match, which will almost certainly leave a mark.

Newman spent the better part of five minutes selling the largely pedestrian offence of House of Torture. Sadly the selling was way over the top considering how soft the attacks seemed to be at times. Not quite HBK at SummerSlam 2005, but still excessive.

Speaking of excessive, Henare needs to chill with the guttural yells on every move. I’m sure the family thought I was watching some questionable content. Henare pinned Kanemaru after screaming at him. Oh he also hit Streets of Rage, I suppose.

WINNERS: United Empire via pinfall in 10:00. (**)
(Lansdell’s Analysis: The players in this match meant it would always struggle to capture my attention. Kanemaru can be OK, Yujiro cannot, and the screaming of Henare is grating. At least Newman is coming along nicely!)

(5) YOSHI-HASHI & HIROOKI GOTO vs. CHASE OWENS & GEDO
Last time Owens and Yoshi-Hashi faced off I was pleasantly surprised. I don’t really rank either man very high, especially as singles talents. They gave us a match that was actually good, and hopefully the addition of Goto would improve that again. Interesting to note that Bishamon came out to Yoshi-Hashi’s theme and not their team theme.

Nothing really notable to talk about here. Yoshi-Hashi pinned Gedo following a Shoto, pretty much as expected.

WINNERS: Bishamon via pinfall in 8:00. (*1/2)
(Lansdell’s Analysis: Space filler. With Ishii being the next opponent for Yoshi-Hashi, it didn’t make much sense to have a Chaos civil war as a preview tag. Instead we got a quick, by-the-numbers win for Bishamon where they played the hits and got out of dodge.)

(6) TORU YANO vs BOLTIN OLEG – G1 B Block Qualifier

Oleg came out to the Young Lion theme and without his title, both of which seemed strange to me. Yano also did not have his title so that at least helped, but having a current champion still using the Young Lion theme is jarring. Taichi, who is on the other half of the B block qualifier bracket, joined the announce team for this one.

Both men shook hands and comically jockeyed for position. Yano backed into the ropes and there was a clean break. Oleg managed to take Yano down with an amateur wrestling move, but Yano scrambled to the ropes. They locked up again, Yano backed into the ropes again, and again they broke clean…albeit after a protracted hugging moment.

Oleg grabbed a gut wrench and went for the Boltin Shake, but Yano scrambled to the ropes in fear and self-preservation. Yano did Yano things, gently pushing the referee out of the way and grabbing his trademark red chair. That gentle push was apparently enough to send the referee to all fours, needing some time to recover. Yano is so strong!

Yano took his chair up the aisle and sat on it, inviting Oleg to come get him. Poor Oleg, never having seen a Yano match before, fell for it and was greeted with a pair of chair shots. Yano then ripped the ring skirt off and rolled Oleg up in it. An innovative spot even for Yano. Oleg was stuck on the outside but managed to free himself and get back in the ring at the count of 16. Imagine what Yano the Super-Strong would do to someone who isn’t his tag partner!

Meanwhile Yano had taken the corner pad out of one corner, and he whipped Oleg into it. After choking Oleg with his wrist tape and arguing with the ref about it, Yano again whipped him to the exposed corner. He followed with a hip toss and a nonchalant cover for two as we reached the five-minute mark. Yano raked Oleg’s eyes and tried to whip him to the exposed corner a third time. Oleg reversed it, but Yano stopped short of the buckles and avoided a charging Oleg. Oh that wily veteran. Not wily enough to avoid a shoulder tackle apparently, which turned the tide.

Oleg slammed Yano and hit a running splash for a two-count. He used the Boltin Shake successfully this time, but Yano blocked the follow-up move and hit a belly-to-belly suplex to leave both men down. As they got to their feet Boltin fired back with forearms, but Yano hit an inverted atomic drop and catapulted Oleg head-first into the exposed corner. Yano powered Oleg up onto his shoulders, but could not hold him. Oleg hit an impressive drop kick, sending Yano into a corner. Oleg charged and hit a Stinger splash, a body slam and a Vader Bomb for a near fall.

Oleg went for Kamikaze, Yano escaped out the back with a schoolboy for a near fall of his own. A back slide got Yano another two-count. He distracted the ref long enough to hit a low blow, then chop-blocked Oleg for another near fall. Yano went for a fireman’s carry, Oleg spread his weight and reversed into a clutch pin for the surprise victory!

WINNER: Boltin Oleg via pinfall in 9:00. (**1/2)
(Lansdell’s Analysis: Every now and then Yano reminds us that he used to be pretty darn good. He managed to mix his normal antics with some mat wrestling and in the end put the young guy over. For his part, Oleg has some impressive spots but he’s still got a long way to go before he is a polished article. Right now he feels a bit like Brian Cage: lots of flash but not enough substance. He’s got time and is in a good place to learn, so I won’t be hard on him. Yet. Oleg going through both his tag partners to make the finals of the play-in would be a great story.)

(7) TJP vs. SATOSHI KOJIMA – G1 B Block Qualifier

Who among you had this match on their 2024 New Japan bingo card?

The early exchanges showed how this match would progress: TJP using speed and athleticism but Kojima stopping him cold with size. That said, TJP scored the first knockdown with a shoulder tackle, and then ran into a hip toss from Kojima. After a hip toss, TJP rolled to the floor while Kojima did the pec dance. Kojima went to the outside but ended up getting whipped into a barricade and eating a running boot.

TJP rolled Kojima back into the ring, blistered him with a couple of chops, then used Kojima’s own machine gun chops in the corner. This angered Kojima, who floored TJP with one open-handed smack to the chest. He choked TJP over the middle rope before hitting a neckbreaker for a two-count. Kojima continued his assault with stomps and forearms. He tried an Irish whip but TJP used a tiger feint to land on the apron, then slid through the legs of a charging Kojima and tripped him. TJP wrapped up his arm and snapped the other arm back at the five-minute mark, sending Kojima rolling to the outside.

TJP did not give him time to recover, hitting a triangle dropkick to the outside and a cannonball senton off the apron. TJP tried to pull Kojima up on to the apron, but Kojima clotheslined his leg out of his leg and DDTd TJP on the apron instead. I have heard that’s the hardest part of the ring. TJP barely made it back to the ring at 19. Kojima pounced and hit his machine gun chops in the corner. You had to know it was coming. A whip and a corner clothesline followed, but as Kojima called to the crowd TJP mustered up the energy for a dropkick.

TJP facewashed Kojima in the corner and hit a running kick to a seated Kojima. He tied to do it again but Kojima recovered and hit a roaring elbow and a DDT. TJP blocked a Kozi Cutter and locked in an Octopus Hold. Kojima carried TJP to the ropes for a break. From the apron, TJP hit a springboard DDT for a two-count at the ten-minute mark. He set up for a basement dropkick, Kojima blocked it…Kozi Stunner! TJP cartwheeled through the impact! I have never seen that counter before. Shining Wizard! Basement dropkick to the back of the head! 1…2…Kojima kicked out!

TJP went to the top rope for the Mamba Splash…nothing but canvas! Kozi Cutter!1…2…no! Off came the elbow pad…TJP blocked the lariat with a kick! Spinning back kick by TJP! Yukon lariat by Kojima! It was only enough for a near fall, as was the follow-up brainbuster. Kojima signalled for the lariat again, but ran into a superkick. He tried again…rolling prawn hold! 1…2…3!

TJP was overcome with emotion as the bell rang.

WINNER: TJP via pinfall in 12:00. (***1/2)
(Lansdell’s Analysis: An undertold story in New Japan recently has been that TJP has been the United Empire member with the least success since taking up the leadership mantle. The result is what we saw here, a big win for TJP to give him a chance at the biggest tournament of his career. I could honestly see three of the four remaining men in the B block qualifier making the main draw, Tanahashi being the odd man out.)

(8) LOS INGOBERNABLES DE JAPÓN (Tetsuya Naito & Yota Tsuji & Bushi & Titan vs. HOUSE OF TORTURE (Evil & Ren Narita & Sho & Dick Togo)

In what was essentially a repeat of the previous night’s main event, LIJ emerged the expected winners with Dick Togo eating the pin after a Destino.

Before the match, Sho again got on the mic to trash talk LIJ, and also beat up poor Young Lion Murashima. Turns out, they were in his home town. Is Vince booking New Japan?

For some reason, House of Torture decided to go after Titan’s mask. It didn’t work. Tsuji also almost ended Evil’s career with an under-rotated headscissors, but fortunately Evil tucked his shoulder and avoided being spiked on the crown of his head. Otherwise, they basically copy-pasted the previous night’s match.

WINNERS: LIJ via pinfall in 12:00. (**)
(Lansdell’s Analysis: I know these shows are just house shows with a couple of relevant matches. I get that the main event of this show and the previous one were pure fan service, and that house shows often repeat the same match from night to night, but that doesn’t mean it was GOOD. It just means I won’t eviscerate it. Passable, but skippable.)

Final thoughts: TJP and Oleg were the correct winners for the big matches on the card. If there really is going to be a shift to start putting new names at the forefront, we really need to see Oleg beat Tanahashi next. Taichi or TJP would both be fine in the main draw, and I expect whoever wins that match will be the final B block participant. Oleg is just not quite ready, and losing at the final hurdle might be enough to send him on a rampage.

Aside from a couple of strong Young Lion showings, there’s not much else to say here. The Soul tour takes a break while some of the roster is in the US for Forbidden Door, and will resume on July 3. We’ll be back then. You can contact me at lansdellicious@gmail.com or on Twitter @lansdellicious . Thanks for joining us!