By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “World Tag League”
November 26 2024 in Fukushima, Japan at Big Palette Fukushima
Streamed live on New Japan World
This is night six of the 15-show, month-long tournament. This year’s field features 16 teams in two eight-team Blocks. It is a round-robin tournament, so each team has seven matches in the Block round. Tonight, just the B Block is in tournament action. I’ll be blunt — the B Block has under-performed so far, and I’m not optimistic that there will be many ‘very good’ (read 3 stars or higher) matches coming from the eight teams here. EVIL and Ren Narita are the lone 2-0 team, with six at 1-1, while Jado and Hiroshi Tanahashi are in last place at 0-2.
This is a gym with bland, gray walls. The crowd is maybe 800. Walker Stewart, who has missed the past two shows with an illness, is back on solo commentary. Like the prior two shows, I anticipate an English-speaking wrestler will join him for the tournament matches.
1. Masatora Yasuda vs. Nagai Daiki. These two Young Lions have had 20 time-limit draws. Nagai applied a Fujiwara Armbar, but Yasuda reached the ropes at 5:00. Daiki stayed focused on the arm. Yasuda applied a Boston Crab, but Daiki held on until the bell rang, and we have reached their 21st draw.
Masatora Yasuda vs. Nagai Daiki went to a time-limit draw at 10:00.
2. Tiger Mask, Shota Umino, and Tomoaki Honma vs. Alex Zayne, Ryusuke Taguchi, and Katsuya Murashima. Honma and Zayne opened, and Alex hit the Cinnamon Twist corkscrew senton. Honma hit a Kokeshi on Taguchi at 3:00. Shota entered and hit a dropkick on Zayne. Taguchi hit an enzuigiri on Shota. Zayne hit his flipping axe kick on Honma. Tiger Mask and Murashima entered at 5:30, with Murashima hitting a dropkick. Tiger Mask applied a hammerlock move, and Murashima tapped out. That wrapped up quickly!
Tiger Mask, Shota Umino, and Tomoaki Honma defeated Alex Zayne, Ryusuke Taguchi, and Katsuya Murashima at 6:28.
3. Shoma Kato and “Bishamon” Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi vs. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Zack Sabre Jr., Ryohei Oiwa, and Kosei Fujita. Once again, Shoma got in Fujita’s face, and Kosei just ignored him. Oiwa and Goto opened. Kato hit a dropkick on Oiwa at 2:30. Sabre entered for the first time at 4:00 and he tied up Kato’s arm and snapped his fingers. Goto entered and hit some forearm strikes and a spin kick in the corner on Zack, then a back suplex for a nearfall. He hit the neckbreaker over his knee and they were both down. Fujita and Kato tagged back in at 7:00. Kosei hit a bodyslam, and he applied Jack Perry’s Snare Trap leglock while cranking back on Shoma’s arms, and Shoma submitted.
Zack Sabre Jr., Ryohei Oiwa, and Kosei Fujita defeated Shoma Kato, Hirooki Goto, and Yoshi-Hashi at 8:47.
4. “United Empire” Jakob Austin Young, Callum Newman, and Jeff Cobb vs. “Bullet Club War Dogs” Sanada, Gabe Kidd, and Gedo. Cobb and Kidd jawed nose-to-nose before the bell and they opened. They traded chops and Cobb hit a dropkick. Kidd whipped Callum into a guardrail. Gedo entered for the first time at 3:00 and he raked Jakob’s eyes, and BCWD worked Young over in their corner. Newman hit a top-rope crossbody block on Kidd at 6:00, then some Yes Kicks to the chest. Cobb hit a double crossbody block. Gedo got back in and he kept Callum grounded. Young hit a huracanrana on Sanada, then a mid-ring Sliced Bread. Newman hit a running knee and pinned Gedo.
Jakob Austin Young and Callum Newman and Jeff Cobb defeated Sanada and Gabe Kidd and Gedo at 8:18.
5. “Los Ingobernables de Japon” Bushi, Shingo Takagi, and Yota Tsuji vs. “Bullet Club” Taiji Ishimori, Chase Owens, and Kenta. Chase and Yota opened. The BC worked over Yota in their corner. Shingo got in at 5:30 and bodyslammed Ishimori, then suplexed Kenta. Bushi entered and hit a dive through the ropes on Kenta at 7:00. In the ring Bushi hit a DDT on Kenta for a nearfall. Kenta applied a crossface, and Bushi tapped out.
Taiji Ishimori, Chase Owens, and Kenta defeated Bushi, Shingo Takagi, and Yota at 8:35.
* Zack Sabre Jr. joined Walker Stewart in the booth. His Japanese is really good; will he serve as translator tonight?
6. “Bullet Club Rogue Army” Stevie Filip and Tome Filip (2) vs. Boltin Oleg and Toru Yano (2) in a B Block tournament match. The Filips attacked before the bell and all four fought to the floor. In the ring, Oleg hit some shoulder blocks on the Filips. (As I noted the other day, Tome has a much darker tan than his brother; it is the most noticeable difference between them.) They beat down Oleg in their corner. Yano entered at 4:00 and he shoved Stevie into an exposed turnbuckle for a nearfall, then Yano hit a belly-to-belly suplex for a nearfall. Funny, Zack just made a comment that they aren’t “sharing their tanning regiment.” (Okay, it’s not just me that sees it!) Oleg got back in at 6:00 and hit his gut-wrench suplex and a bodyslam and a splash to the mat for a nearfall. “It’s almost unfair what this man is capable of doing,” Stewart said.
Oleg and Tome traded loud chops. Stevie was limping after some blows, and the Filips hit a team delayed vertical suplex for a nearfall at 8:30. Oleg hit a double dropkick, then a belly-to-belly suplex for a nearfall, then an F5 faceplant on Tome. He nailed the Kamikaze (forward Finlay Roll) to pin Tome. Good action that topped expectations (let’s be honest, largely because Oleg was in the bulk of the match.)
Boltin Oleg and Toru Yano (4) defeated Stevie Filip and Tome Filip (2) at 10:01.
7. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Shane Haste and Mikey Nichols (2) vs. Jado and Hiroshi Tanahashi (0) in a B Block tournament match. Hiroshi and Nicholls opened in a lockup. Haste beat up Hiroshi on the floor, while Nicholls tied up Jado in the ring, and TMDK worked over Jado in their corner. Hiroshi hit his second-rope somersault senton on Nicholls at 7:00. He hit a top-rope double crossbody block and he tagged Jado back in. Jado hit a clothesline on Haste and he was fired up. Haste hit a rolling cannonball in the corner at 9:30. Jado hit a DDT to the floor on Haste, then another one in the ring for a nearfall. Haste hit a dropkick. Nicholls accidentally clotheslined Haste! Tanahashi hit a sling blade and a Twist-and-Shout. Jado and Tanahashi applied simultaneous submission holds. Nicholls hit a sliding clothesline on Jado, then he tied him in a modified Figure Four, and Jado tapped out. Decent match; the right team won.
Shane Haste and Mikey Nicholls (4) defeated Jado and Hiroshi Tanahashi (0) at 13:35.
8. “Los Ingobernables de Japon” Tetsuya Naito and Hiromu Takahashi vs. “Just 4 Guys” Taichi and Taka Michinoku (2) in a B Block tournament match. Naito and Taka opened, and Taka applied a modified crossface on the mat. LIJ worked over Taka. Hiromu hit a basement dropkick for a nearfall at 4:00. Taka hit a Mafia Kick on Naito. Taichi entered at 6:30 and hit some Kawada Kicks on Naito, then a Helluva Kick. Naito hit a twisting neckbreaker on Taichi. Hiromu tagged back in at 8:30. Taichi hit some clotheslines. Taka hit a superkick on Hiromu for a nearfall. Suddenly all four were down. Taka tied up Hiromu on the mat, and Hiromu teased tapping out, but he reached the ropes at 12:30. Taka hit a Michinoku Driver for a believable nearfall, but Naito made the save. Taka hit a jumping kick, but seconds later, Hiromu got a fluke rollup to pin Taka. Good match; Taka and Hiromu had some inspired exchanges here to carry the match.
Hiromu Takahashi and Tetsuya Naito (4) defeated Taka Michinoku and Taichi (2) at 14:01.
9. “United Empire” Great-O-Khan and Henare (2) vs. “House of Torture” EVIL and Ren Narita (4) in a B block tournament match. HoT attacked to start the match. Henare hit a senton on Narita. Narita hit a running boot on O-Khan at 3:00. They fought on the floor, and EVIL shoved a mic at O-Khan’s mouth (it’s not an I Quit match!) In the ring, the HoT grounded O-Khan. (The crowd is really quiet; O-Khan does not generate crowd sympathy.) Dick Togo and Yoshinobu Kanemaru are at ringside and helping to cheat. Henare got a lukewarm tag at 7:30 and hit some back elbows and a spin kick on EVIL. EVIL whipped Henare into an exposed corner. “It’s the same old song and dance,” Walker said of HoT’s cheating tactics. EVIL hit a suplex, then he applied the Sharpshooter at 11:00, but Henare eventually reached the ropes.
EVIL hit some loud chops. Henare hit a hard clothesline at 13:30 and they were both down, and the crowd came alive. O-Khan and Narita tagged in, with O-Khan hitting a belly-to-belly suplex for a nearfall, and he applied a Cobra Clutch-style sleeper on the mat. Narita applied a cross-armbreaker, but O-Khan reached the ropes at 15:30. Narita hit the Guillotine (flying knee to the throat) for a nearfall, and he applied a Fujiwara Armbar. Ren pushed O-Khan into Henare. O-Khan applied the Sheepkiller submission hold. The ref was knocked down, allowing Togo and Kanemaru to jump in the ring and stomp on O-Khan at 18:00. Togo hit his knife-edge chops on O-Khan for a nearfall. Ren hit a second-rope Guillotine on O-Khan for a believable nearfall. Ren swung and missed with his push-up bar.
Henare hit the Rampage football tackle on EVIL. O-Khan hit the Claw Slam to EVIL’s head, but EVIL rolled to the floor to avoid being pinned. Kanemaru tripped O-Khan. Ren again missed with his push-up bar. UE hit a team neckbreaker, and O-Khan pinned Narita. Good match; not a great match, but on the high end of what you would hope for from the HoT. The House of Torture is no longer undefeated!
Great-O-Khan and Henare (4) defeated EVIL and Ren Narita (4) at 20:39.
* The Young Bucks appeared on a video screen. Matt and Nick Jackson wore suits but were relaxing by a backyard pool. They are coming back to NJPW on Jan. 5! They want the IWGP Tag Team Titles back one more time. Sounds like an official challenge for O-Khan and Henare. Back to the venue, the crowd sat silently, and O-Khan spoke on the mic.
Final Thoughts: Still nothing must-see here, but a far better night of action than the last time the B Block was in action. Taka looks out of place against the bigger men in this tournament, but he and Hiromu had enough entertaining exchanges to carry that match. Naito still looks bored and disinterested; I know that’s his gimmick, but it means Hiromu has to carry the match. I’ll narrowly give main event best match over the LIJ match. The Filips have been solid but have yet to have a memorable moment, either.
This tournament is a non-stop grind. The A Block is back in action on Wednesday headlined by Yoshi-Hashi and Hirooki Goto vs. Ryohei Oiwa and Zack Sabre Jr. The B Block will be in action on Thursday.
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