By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “Road to The New Beginning”
February 3, 2025 in Tokyo, Japan at Korakuen Hall
Streamed live on New Japan World
It always feels like everyone steps up their game when they are back at Korakuen Hall, so here’s hoping for more of the same here. Walker Stewart was back on solo commentary.
1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Daiki Nagai. Tanahashi is continuing a stretch here of facing each of the current class of Young Lions in singles matches. Nagai got in some loud chops but he couldn’t get Tanahashi up for a bodyslam. Nagai hit a nice dropkick at 3:30. He finally hit the bodyslam, and he applied a Boston Crab; Tanahashi is giving him a lot of offense here. Tanahashi dropped him with a slap. Tanahashi applied a Boston Crab, sat down on the lower back for added pressure, and Nagai tapped out. Highly watchable.
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Daiki Nagai at 8:36.
2. “United Empire” Great-O-Khan, Jakob Austin Young, and Francesco Akira vs. Shota Umino, Master Wato, and Ryusuke Taguchi. Taguchi and Wato held hands on the way to the ring; what’s that about? O-Khan and Umino bumped chests before the bell. Wato and Akira opened and traded quick reversals, and Wato hit a dropkick. Taguchi entered and hit some forearms on Akira. Umino and O-Khan fought on the floor, with O-Khan cracking a chair across the back at 2:30. Meanwhile, Young was working over Taguchi in the ring. Taguchi hit a Mongolian Chop on O-Khan! O-Khan, um, jabbed his thumb into Taguchi’s rectum at 4:30, and of course, Taguchi did his exaggerated facial expressions.
Taguchi hit a flying buttbump and they were both down. Shota tagged in for the first time at 6:00 and he hit a basement dropkick on Akira, then a regular dropkick on O-Khan, then a fisherman’s suplex on O-Khan for a nearfall. He hit an enzuigiri at 8:00, but O-Khan hit a Mafia Kick. Shota hit a head-capture suplex and this crowd was hot. Wato entered and hit a bulldog on Young. Young hit a back suplex. Taguchi entered and hit a flying buttbump. Umino hit a tornado DDT on Young. Young went for a Sliced Bread, but Wato avoided it, and they traded rollups. Wato applied Vendeval (submission hold around the head; Naomi called it “Star Struck” in her TNA run), and Young tapped out. Really good undercard match. O-Khan had scissors, and it appears he wants to cut Umino’s hair. (Walker dropped some hints in this match that now makes me think Umino’s hair will once again be on the line in an upcoming singles match against O-Khan.)
Shota Umino, Master Wato, and Ryusuke Taguchi defeated Great-O-Khan, Jakob Austin Young, and Francesco Akira at 10:47.
3. “Los Ingobernables de Japon” Hiromu Takahashi and Tetsuya Naito vs. Togi Makabe and Tomoaki Honma. Again, LIJ have a title rematch coming up against the Young Bucks next week. Hiromu and Makabe opened, with Takahashi hitting some chops. Honma and Naito fought on the floor, with Naito shoving him into the guardrails. In the ring, Tanahashi unloaded some chops on Honma and hit a basement dropkick for a nearfall at 4:00. Makabe entered and hit a clothesline in the corner on Naito and some punches. Naito hit a basement dropkick to Togi’s back. Honma and Tanahashi got back in and traded chops. This match feels like it’s going in slow motion.
Honma missed a Kokeshi falling headbutt at 8:00. He hit a leaping headbutt on Takahashi for a nearfall. Togi hit a double clothesline. Honma hit the Kokeshi on Hiromu and got a nearfall. He hit another stiff headbutt. Hiromu hit a clothesline. Naito badly missed on an enzuigiri that Honma sold anyways. Hiroshi hit a modified Death Valley Driver and pinned Honma. Oof that was not good, but what do you expect with three of the guys over the age of 40? Hiromu sure is trying hard but there’s only so much he can do.
Hiromu Takahashi and Tetsuya Naito defeated Tomoaki Honma and Togi Makabe at 10:42.
4. “Bullet Club War Dogs” Sanada and Clark Connors vs. “Just 4 Guys” Taichi and Taka Michinoku. I’ve noted this Sanada-Taichi feud is three months late and is as appetizing as cold leftovers. All four fought at the bell, with Sanada pairing off with Taichi as they fought at ringside. We finally had a bell at 0:45 to officially begin. Taichi and Sanada fought up to the landing half-way up the seating at Korakuen Hall, and I can see this is not a sellout tonight, as the corner sections are empty. In the ring, Taka tied up both opponents at 2:30. Connors hit a powerslam on Taka, and the BCWD worked over Taka in their corner. Taichi hit a Russian Leg Sweep on Sanada at 5:30, then some Kawada Kicks. Sanada grabbed Taichi’s foot and pulled it up into his groin, and pretended like Taichi had hit him with a low blow! The ref was fooled and called for the bell! Walker Stewart was irate at this trickery. This was as flat as the prior match.
Sanada and Clark Connors defeated Taichi and Taka Michinoku via DQ at 8:45/about 8:00 even official time.
5. “Bullet Club War Dogs” Gabe Kidd, Drilla Moloney, and Taiji Ishimori vs. “Los Ingobernables de Japon” Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, and Bushi. The BCWD attacked at the bell and all six brawled and this was instantly better than the prior two matches. Shingo and Moloney were alone in the ring and traded forearm strikes, and Drilla hit an enzuigiri. Shingo knocked him down with a shoulder tackle. Moloney hit a dropkick at 3:00. Kidd tagged in and chopped Tsuji, then a senton for a nearfall. Kidd hit a suplex. Ishimori and Bushi entered at 6:30. Bushi nailed the Rewind Kick to the jaw. Ishimori hit his double knees shot to the chest. Kidd clotheslined himself and Tsuji to the floor. Ishimori rolled up Bushi and got a clean pin. That was fast-paced and energized; exactly what was needed after the prior two dull bouts.
Gabe Kidd, Drilla Moloney, and Taiji Ishimori defeated Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, and Bushi at 8:16.
* Clark Connors joined Walker Stewart on commentary.
6. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Zack Sabre Jr., Kosei Fujita, Ryohei Oiwa, Hartley Jackson, and Robbie Eagles vs. Tomohiro Ishii, Yoh, El Desperado, and “Bishamon” Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi. Fujita and Desperado opened and they traded LOUD chops and they kept going! Robbie entered at 3:00 and immediately twisted Yoh’s left leg. Yoshi-Hashi entered and hit his Headhunter flipping overhead neckbreaker on Oiwa, and those two now took turns trading chops. Hartley entered for the first time at 5:30 and suplexed Yoshi-Hashi for a nearfall. Sabre tagged in and applied a cravat. Goto tagged in and traded forearm strikes with Goto. Sabre snapped Goto’s neck between his ankles at 7:30.
Sabre applied a Fujiwara Armbar and cranked on Goto’s arm, and he twisted the wrist! This crowd was hot! Goto got a foot on the ropes at 9:00. Sabre got a rollup for a nearfall; Goto hopped up and hit a clothesline and they were both down. Hartley and Ishii tagged in at 10:00 and traded shoulder blocks, and Hartley hit a short-arm clothesline for a nearfall. Kosei hit a springboard dropkick. Eagles hit several quick kicks on Yoh; You nailed a superkick. Hartley hit a running crossbody block on Yoh at 11:30. Ishii hit a German Suplex on Hartley that POPPED the crowd. Oiwa hit a double clothesline.
Oiwa hit a dropkick on Ishii, then a back suplex. Hartley nailed a Death Valley Driver on Ishii for a believable nearfall! Hartley hit a powerbomb for a nearfall. Goto hit his neckbreaker over his knee on Sabre. Ishii hit a clothesline on Hartley for a nearfall, then a brainbuster on Hartley for the pin. That was insanely good. “This commentary stuff is fun!” Clark Connors said. Walker responded, “Front-row seat, best in the house.”
Tomohiro Ishii, Yoh, El Desperado, and “Bishamon” Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi defeated Zack Sabre Jr., Kosei Fujita, Ryohei Oiwa, Hartley Jackson, and Robbie Eagles at 13:42.
7. El Phantasmo (w/Jado) vs. Jeff Cobb for the IWGP TV Title. A reminder these title matches have 15-minute time limits. Walker said they are 1-1-1 all-time. ELP hit a dropkick; Cobb hit a shoulder tackle that sent Phantasmo flying, then a big hip-toss. ELP flipped Cobb to the floor, and he dove through the ropes onto him at 2:30, and he tossed Jeff over the guardrail. ELP hit a top-rope moonsault, going over the guardrail and taking out the two Young Lions; Cobb avoided being struck. Cobb and ELP fought into the crowd and up the stairs. Walker said this is a no count-out match. Cobb held ELP upside down and walked up several steps to the landing area. ELP leapt off the entrance area and onto Cobb on the landing at 5:00. “These guys are giving it all for the TV title,” Clark Connors said.
They brawled back down the stairs and returned to ringside, where Cobb shoved El Phantasmo into the ring post, then slammed him on the apron at 6:30. In the ring, ELP hit a powerbomb for a nearfall. Cobb captured a leg and hit an overhead release suplex at 8:00. He hit the Spin Cycle swinging back suplex for a nearfall. ELP hit an enzuigiri. Cobb hit a decapitating clothesline and they were both down at 10:00; the time-check was spot-on. Cobb missed a springboard frogsplash. Cobb nailed a superkick. He went for a Tour of the Islands (swinging powerslam) but ELP escaped and got a Crucifix Driver for a nearfall. He nailed a superkick for a nearfall. A 12-minute call was spot on, and ELP hit a DDT. Cobb was bleeding from his nose. ELP hit a top-rope crossbody block, then the Thunderkiss (springboard frogsplash) for the clean pin. That was really good. Cobb got up and put the title belt on Phantasmo’s shoulder in a sign of respect.
El Phantasmo defeated Jeff Cobb to retain the NJPW TV Title at 12:43.
* ELP spoke in Japanese and thanked the crowd, then he switched to English, and had Jado translate for him. He gave an extended promo, thanking all the commentary teams, the bus drivers, and all the people behind the scenes who make these shows possible. I kept waiting for someone to come out and immediately challenge him, attack him, whatever, but that didn’t happen.
Final Thoughts: A really good main event, with a more decisive outcome than I expected. A really good showing by both men. The 10-man tag was an absolute blast and nearly topped the main event. And while it was short, the LIJ-BCWD six-man tag was really good, too. Overall, I enjoyed five of the seven matches, and it was a really good event.
I defended Sanada’s IWGP Title run more than most, but I have consistently said it made no sense for him to leave the Just 5 Guys faction that he led to become a lackey in the Bullet Club War Dogs. Taichi and Sanada should have immediately fought upon Sanada’s betrayal. Now, it just feels so flat and uninteresting. Maybe their singles match will be better but these preview tags have not been good. I don’t think Taichi is doing a good job at all in portraying any rage he has at his former teammate. And I know I’m repeating myself, but Naito is really flat right now, too. Hopefully he can take some time off and recharge his batteries.
Be the first to comment