Visit Prowrestling.net for live coverage of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s G1 Special in California events on Saturday and Sunday night. Jason Powell will cover Saturday’s show live as it airs on AXS, and Will Pruett, who is attending both shows, will provide updates from the building on Sunday.
By R.W. Andrews
First, a not-so quick intro. I was, for well over a decade, done with pro wrestling. It was a combination of things actually – the bad taste left from the backwash that was early 2000’s WCW, the Cena era not quite connecting with me, and finally being able to throw away my fake ID and booze like a gentleman. There were a few unsuccessful attempts to get back into wrestling, all resulting in a channel change within less than an hour. All interest in pro wrestling was all but dead. That is, until a random flip to AXS TV landed me on a replay of Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi from Wrestle Kingdom 9. That one match – luckily caught from bell to bell – was all it took to help me realize that wrestling is still very much capable of achieving extremely lofty heights. Of course, I was lucky. Not everyone gets that quality of match as their comeback to pro wrestling. What if it was Bad Luck Fale vs. Anyone Else?
I’ve been watching NJPW since about October of last year, even reviewing NJPW on AXS and various events for PWTorch.com. Oh, and before I forget, when at an office party don’t literally stick your dick in the mash potatoes, but do head on over and dig through the crates at PWTorch.com – if anything to catch up on the glossary I’ve come up with to this point. Anyways, after that fateful office party and the subsequent banning, I managed to con Dot Net’s BSD into letting me spew my nonsense on this site. So far there isn’t a lemon law for writing, so this series can officially serve as a self-indulgent ball washing session where I take a look at old feuds/events from the past involving guys on the current roster and ramble on about what I see fit, all under the guise of learning more about each wrestler’s history. I go at these things fresh, shying away from googling everything under the sun in order to sound like an expert. Where’s the fun in me pretending to be the oracle of wrestling? This is Dot Net, the place where bottles get slung at the chicken wire separating reader from writer. Sure, I’ll make my mistakes – tons actually – dodging shrapnel while I strum my BS along the pages. At least you know it’s coming from an honest, long-winded place of learning as I go.
Oh, please allow a moment for me to heap praise on the great Chopper Nick Jones – the eye in the sky of the series I started at the old site. I love a good Batsu Game, which if you don’t know what that is, it’s when both men set up shop in the middle of the ring and exchange shots for an extended period of time. I thought I was watching the very best in Batsu with Suzuki/Shibata and Ishii/Makabe until I received a message from the man himself. That message contained a link to Kenta Kobashi vs. Kensuke Sasaki from 2005. I know, I know: “Who hasn’t seen that match?” Remember, it’s still new to me, dammit. Now I’m not entirely sure how the whole “linking videos that aren’t necessarily company approved” goes, but I think a simple search of said match will put you right in the sweet spot. The marathon begins at the 13-minute mark, but if you’re like me and enjoy the lead-up to the game, just sit back and revel in its entirety. Either way, it’s a spectacular watch. Thanks, Chopper.
And now…
Part I: Greetings From Tokyo: The Six Year Summit of Minoru Suzuki and Yuji Nagata
So why Suzuki vs. Nagata? Well, it all began by reminiscing about by second favorite wrestler on the planet, Katsuyori Shibata. And yes, his spot is safe with me, especially within the premise of this series. I was thinking about how much I enjoyed his feud with Nagata and the fantastic match he had with Suzuki in this year’s New Japan Cup. So, naturally that led me to wonder if Nagata and Suzuki have ever had a match. I took to NJPW World to find out, excavating its cavernous library to unearth the answer. F- yes they had a match! Four of them actually, three of which taking place at the Tokyo Dome. Hell, I don’t even need to frame that grand of a story around it. All I need to know is who won the overall series, and who won the Batsu games no doubt played between the two.
With that said, let’s tear the wrapping off this f—er and see what they decided to give us.
Match 1: Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata
Wrestle Kingdom II in Tokyo, Japan at the Tokyo Dome
January 4, 2007
Coverage on The World picks up with both men already in the ring – Nagata staring down the then All Japan Triple Crown champion smirking back from across the ring. I obviously have no idea about All Japan, but Suzuki holding the honor sounds above board to me. The champion is attired as you’d come to expect – his trunks and boots pitch black, his haircut hacked from a madman’s fever dream. Nagata on the other hand is far from the Blue Justice we’ve all come to know and love. He’s wearing a black and white trunk/boot get-up, a most unfamiliar look to these eyes. The referee, a chubby middle-aged stump wearing a Red Shoes certified baggy shirt, calls for the bell, assuring me right off the bat that I’ve selected the right feud to christen this ship.
The photo finish of a mad dash to the center of the ring is edged out by Nagata’s boot, a sole to skin impact absorbed and returned with a forearm to the temple. A mini-Batsu breaks out quickly, with Nagata bowing out after Suzuki catches his thrust kick and trips him to the mat. Suzuki leaps into the air off of a successful corner whip, landing just within arm’s reach to slap Nagata across the cheek. He chuckles at Nagata’s unamused expression, a hearty tone snuffed out by a quick hand seasoned from pickpocketing G-strings.
Nagata zips three swift kicks with pinpoint accuracy, all three tagging Suzuki on the outer thigh and causing him to hop-skip to the apron. Nagata steps in close, glancing a forearm off Suzuki’s skull, but leaving his arm dangling too close to the cage. Suzuki snags it, spinning upside-down with an armbar as cameras flash in his face to the beat of his self-congratulatory cackle. He’s forced to release the hold, the camera catching his eyes dancing with delight as he flips to the floor to drag Nagata out with him.
The ref’s attempt at restoring order is brushed aside by Suzuki in order to smoosh Nagata into the ring post. An already sadistic smile broadens as he eyes up a vacated chair in the crowd. He grabs it and measures his shot, winding back for a home run cut of Ruthian proportions, absolutely leveling Nagata in the face! Suzuki isn’t messing around here. Nagata’s cheeks ballooned out from the impact, his body slowly slumping below the camera’s horizon, leaving only the sight of Suzuki’s sneer. With his sweet tooth for violence satisfied, Suzuki chases the photographers from his personal space before rolling in the ring and relaxing on the mat to digest.
That smile returns upon seeing the blood dribbling from Nagata’s forehead when he groggily tries climbing back on the apron. Suzuki shoos him away, banishing his foe to the guardrails with a boot to the face. The blood on Nagata’s forehead has trailed from the exit wound down the bridge of his nose, the blunt force trauma rendering him defenseless against repeated stomps to the chest. Suzuki spots another chair, swiping it to put Nagata out of his misery, but the ref leaps in to clamp down on the backswing. Suzuki chucks him into the rails, turning back around to a boot bashing the chair against his skull.
Nagata sneaks in a combo of kicks and forearms, closing the gap quickly to hit a brainbuster on the floor! Damn! Suzuki comes up bloody as he’s rolled back into the ring, his slow rise allowing Nagata to limp into position and kick him so hard that it rearranges the blood on his face to a Rorschach blot. Nagata sucks in a second wind, unleashing a fierce kick to the chest followed by a boot to the face. Suzuki counters a whip attempt into a sleeper, but Nagata powers his arm from tightening the hold and bangs it backwards over his shoulder.
Nagata strings together another combo of kicks that causes Suzuki to double over. The whites of his eyes tremble as he sets the hook on a seated armbar, but his positioning wilts as Suzuki slithers backwards to hang a foot on the bottom rope. Nagata flicks blood from his forehead before burying a kick into Suzuki’s chest, his feet swiftly repositioning to send another that connects straight into his face! F—ing brutal! Nagata swoops in for a backdrop suplex, but the kill shot proves elusive as Suzuki slips away and counter strikes with a running knee to the face, sending both men falling to the canvas.
They recover and crawl center stage, the camera positioned over Suzuki’s shoulder to catch Nagata scowl at him before delivering a headbutt. Suzuki laughs it off, blood-brothering Nagata right back with a headbutt of his own. A Batsu slap parade breaks out, each man swiping with full force smacks that end when Suzuki’s knees buckle. But like damn E. Honda, a storm of open palms by Suzuki puts Nagata on the defensive. By the fifth strike, he’s stunned. By the ninth, he’s shaky. By the eleventh, he’s down.
Suzuki smirks while putting Nagata in position for the Gotch Piledriver, the toils of war leaving his prey powerless to block it as his spine compacts upon impact! But Suzuki is slow to cover, a pit stop for oxygen netting him only a two. His hands are ready for the desperate kick Nagata sends out, transitioning straight into an Octopus Hold. Nagata tosses him over his back, gaining a swell of excitement from the crowd as his bloody face is imprinted on the screen.
Nagata disengages from another slap-Batsu in order to shuffle into position and stomp Suzuki in the gut. Suzuki sends a boot right back at him, caught and countered with a leaping knee to the face. Nagata follows up with a brainbuster, but refuses to cover! He hoists Suzuki up and plants him back to the mat with an ungodly backdrop suplex that sends a loud thud throughout the arena! He covers. 1, 2, Nagata pulls Suzuki off the mat! He uncorks a kick that blasts Suzuki in the chest, sending him crashing to the mat. Nagata covers, but is immediately thrown off by Suzuki! Incredible!
Suzuki’s dazed expression is replaced with a furious glower as he hits eleven – yes, eleven – undefended slaps before Nagata cuts him off with the Fale Special a.k.a. a club to the back. Suzuki, succumbing to exhaustion, slaps the air before dropping to one knee. Nagata charges up again, cementing his boot to the side of Suzuki’s head! Sick! He moves in for another backdrop suplex, but Suzuki counters with a knee to the face, landing unscathed as Nagata slips out of range. Nagata reemerges, his boot breezing over Suzuki’s head. Suzuki goes for the sleeper, shifting his hips and flipping Nagata to the mat with a tamper proof seal on the lock. Nagata fights to his feet, once again trying to hyperextend Suzuki’s arm. His eyes begin to flutter, the grip around Suzuki’s wrist loosening before his arms fall to his sides and his eyes slam shut. The ref calls for the bell as Suzuki releases the hold, his body collapsing to the canvas in a fit of exhaustion.
Winner: Minoru Suzuki
Impressions: What a war! What an absolute war. Both men worked their asses off, telling an amazing story of Nagata trying to overcome a champion at the top of his game. This was final boss type stuff, with the cocky champion peacocking with his actions as much as he was punishing with his assault. But Nagata kept coming, constantly having to climb out of the hole dug by that wicked chair shot early in the match.
Suzuki was fantastic, smirking and snickering at Nagata’s attempts to go toe to toe with him. Stuff like that makes him so different from any other wrestler. Whenever it looks like he’s even in the slightest bit of trouble, he just has a laugh about it before unleashing a deluge of strikes to put him right back in control. And damn if those strikes don’t come with evil intentions. He slapped Nagata hard…a lot. And it wasn’t one-sided by any stretch. For as much as he was laying them in, he was more than game to take an equal share of abuse. Could you ask for a better partner given the style in which both men work?
Nagata, much like Suzuki, was dead set on laying those shots in. Those kicks are not to be toyed with. Hell, I’ll put one of his kicks up against the Dim Mak and see which move could break the bottom brick with cleaner results. Now, to be honest, when I first saw Nagata I was ho-hum on the backdrop suplex. After seeing it a few more times, I have fallen in love with it. The one he hit in this match was out of this world. He just swooped in, gobbled up Suzuki, and drove him to the canvas hard. Awesome stuff!
The crowd loved the match. I loved the match. And I can’t wait for the next installment to see if they can top this.
Next Week: Nagata rumbles with Masato Tanaka and a legion of tracksuits; Suzuki vs. Nagata II in Tokyo.
I don’t tweet, but feel free to sling those bottles via @RWAndrews0. I’m sure all feedback will be positive and constructive.
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