By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “Road to Wrestling Dontaku 2023”
April 23, 2023 in Tokyo, Japan at Edion Arena
Streamed on New Japan World
This is a large gym with maybe 800 in attendance, all seated on the floor. We have Japanese only commentary.
* The biggest news in New Japan is the rib injury to Hiroshi Tanahashi. So, Tomohiro Ishii will be teaming with Kazuchika Okada in tag matches on this tour. Also, NJPW did a celebration this week to mark Hirooki Goto’s 20th anniversary of his first match.
1. Ryohei Oiwa vs. Boltin Oleg went to a time-limit draw at 10:00. Basic Young Lions match. Oleg is thick, bald, and really promising. Oiwa applied a half-crab. Oleg applied his own half-crab, and Oiwa held on until the bell rang. My stop-watch was right-on, too. Adequate opener.
2. “The House of Torture” Sho, EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, and Dick Togo defeated Yoh, Yuto Nakashima, and “Bishamon” Yoshi-Hashi and Hirooki Goto at 9:40. The HoT attacked before the bell. YH and EVIL squared off early on, and they brawled to the floor. Yoh entered and hit a series of dropkicks at 5:00, and a basement dropkick on his former teammate Sho. Sho fired back with a spear. Yuto tagged in at 7:30 and beat down Yujiro, and Yuto applied a Boston Crab. Yuto hit a bodyslam on Togo and was fired up. Yuto hit some spin kicks on Yujiro’s chest. The ref was distracted, allowing Yujiro to hit a low blow kick, then the Pimp Juice jumping DDT for the pin out of nowhere.
3. “United Empire” TJP, Francesco Akira, and Aaron Henare defeated Kushida, Kevin Knight, and Hiroyoshi Tenzan at 10:25. The main storyline here is Knight and Kushida are challenging for the junior tag titles held by TJP and Akira on April 27. Knight and Akira opened with quick amdrags. Knight hit his impressive dropkick. The babyfaces began working over TJP in their corner. Henare hit a series of punches to Kushida’s gut at 3:00, and UE worked over Kushida.
TJP applied a leglock and leaned back for pressure. Knight made the hot tag at 5:30 and he brawled with TJP. Knight hit his running frogsplash for a nearfall, then a Stinger Splash on Akira. Tenzan tagged in and hit his Mongolian Chops on Akira. Knight hit a plancha to the floor on TJP at 9:00. Tenzan and Henare brawled in the ring, with Henare hitting a headbutt. Henare applied a Full Nelson, and Tenzan tapped out.
4. “United Empire” Jeff Cobb, Great-O-Khan, Mark Davis, and Kyle Fletcher defeated “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Zack Sabre Jr., Mikey Nicholls, Shane Haste, and Kosei Fujita at 13:39. Again, I am enjoying this mentor/apprentice storyline between Sabre and Fujita. Davis and Haste opened, with Davis hitting a big shoulder tackle and a senton. Cobb entered and surfed on Haste’s back. Nicholls hit a delayed vertical suplex on Fletcher at 4:00.
Nicholls hit a Death Valley Driver on Davis. Cobb hit a back suplex on Sabre at 8:00 and they traded forearm shots. Fujita entered at 10:00 and traded blows with Cobb. Fujita got an O’Connor Roll for a nearfall. However, Cobb hit the Tour of the Islands swinging powerslam to pin Fujita. Cobb and Sabre kept arguing after the match; they face each other May 3.
5. Jado, Tama Tonga, Master Wato, and Hikuleo defeated “The Bullet Club” David Finlay, Kenta, Gedo, and Taiji Ishimori at 10:52. All eight brawled at the bell. Hikuleo beat up the smaller BC guys. Ishimori and Jado locked up at 2:00. The BC began beating up Jado on the floor and in the ring. Tama finally made the hot tag at 7:00 and he beat up all the heels. He hit a T-Bone Suplex on Finlay for a nearfall. Tama went for the Stun Gun, but Finlay turned it into a Blue Thunder Bomb for a nearfall. Finlay stood behind Tama and hit some crossface blows.
Tama hit a spinning faceplant and they were both down. Master Wato entered for the first time to face Gedo at 9:30. Wato hit a top-rope flying forearm on Gedo. Wato went for a Tiger Suplex on Gedo, but Finlay cut him off. Hikuleo applied a bear hug on Ishimori. Wato tied up Gedo in a submission hold around the head and shoulders, and Gedo submitted. Really good interactions between Finlay and Tama Tonga, as expected. Hikuleo jawed at Kenta after the match; they face each other May 3 as well.
6. Shota Umino, Minoru Suzuki, Ren Narita, El Desperado, and Tiger Mask defeated Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Togi Makabe, Toru Yano, and Tomoaki Honma at 12:32. Shota came to the ring before his teammates. Okada and Narita started. Honma and Makabe worked together to beat up Narita. Suzuki entered and hit a Helluva Kick on Yano, bringing me joy. Tiger Mask hit a kneedrop on Yano’s face for a nearfall at 5:00.
Ishii and Desperado traded stiff forearm shots. Ishii hit a high back suplex at 8:30. Ren entered and he hit an overhead release suplex. He traded kicks with Ishii. Shota’s team began beating up Honma. Everyone is flowing in and out of the ring and this is nonstop action. Narita hit a Northern Lights Suplex on Honma for a believable nearfall. Narita applied a mid-ring Octopus submission hold, and Honma tapped out. Better than expected.
7. “Los Ingobernobles de Japon” Tetsuya Naito, Hiromu Takahashi, Shingo Takagi, and Bushi defeated “Just Five Guys” Sanada, Taichi, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, and Douki (w/Taka Michinoku) at 15:26. Hiromu and current rival Kanemaru opened and they traded hard chops. Suddenly, Shingo and Taichi were brawling on the floor. Sanada whipped Hiromu into the guardrail, then threw him back in the ring. Sanada hit a high back suplex for a nearfall at 4:30. J5G began working over Hiromu, with Bushi hitting a backbreaker over his knee.
Kanemaru kept stomping on Hiromu. Sanada entered and hit a snap suplex for a nearfall at 9:00. Taichi and Shingo entered for their respective teams, with Taichi hitting spin kicks to the thigh. Shingo hit a hard clothesline; Taichi responded with his own clothesline, and they were both down at 12:00. Douki and Naito entered for their respective teams and traded forearm shots; Douki recently challenged Naito to a singles match. Naito hit his slingshot dropkick into the ring, then a Blockbuster.
Kanemaru hit an inverted DDT on Naito, and Douki immediately hit a doublestomp to Naito’s chest, then he applied the ‘Douki chokey’ modified Triangle Choke. Bushi hit his Lungblower on Douki, and Naito got a rollup for a believable nearfall. Douki hit a springboard DDT on Naito at 15:00 and he was fired up. However, Naito got a rollup out of nowhere to pin Douki.
* Shingo Takagi spoke on the mic, directing his comments at Taichi, who he is facing April 29 for the KOPW title belt. I feel like this is a never-ending feud. Taichi got on the mic and responded. (I went to Chris Charlton’s Twitter feed, and he translated that Shingo “wants him to contemplate a Tagaki Style Triad Match.”) I assume this is what Shingo did with Aaron Henare, where you have to score a pin, win by submission, AND be the last-man-standing to win the bout.
Final Thoughts: A solid show. Nothing standout here, but viewers have a good sense of the top matches moving forward: Cobb-Sabre, Aussie Open-TMDK, TJP/Akira-Kushida/Knight all should be very good. While Kanemaru is No. 1 contender and did score a pin over Hiromu recently, I’m just not buying him as a threat to Takahashi’s reign.
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