By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “New Japan Cup”
March 14, 2025 in Osaka, Japan at Kanaoka Park Gymnasium
Streamed live on New Japan World
Like on Tuesday and Wednesday, the venue is a gym, and the attendance was maybe 500-600. The lights were on and it’s easy to see. Walker Stewart provided solo commentary as the show began. Rumors have circulated in the past 24 hours that Jeff Cobb has signed with WWE, and Stewart acknowledged that rumor early in the show.
* This year’s New Japan Cup is a 24-man field. We are at the round of 16; five competitors have already advanced to the quarterfinals, and we have the final three second-round matches here.
1. Yuji Nagata, Tomohiro Ishii, Satoshi Kojima, and Toru Yano vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hirooki Goto, Yoshi-Hashi, and Katsuya Murashima. At age 42, Yoshi-Hashi is the second-youngest man in this match. Goto and No. 1 contender Nagata opened. Yoshi-Hashi fought Yano, then he hit some chops on Ishii. Ishii hit a suplex on Yoshi-Hashi. Tanahashi entered and hit his second-rope somersault senton on Kojima for a nearfall at 4:30. Kojima hit his rapid-fire chops on Tanahashi. We got back to Nagata vs. Goto, and Yuji’s left thigh is entirely wrapped so hopefully he doesn’t have an injury there. Nagata hit an Exploder on Goto, and they were both down. Katsuya entered for the first time, and he hit a Bulldog Powerslam on Nagata. Nagata applied his Crossface on the mat, and Murashima tapped out. Basic.
Yuji Nagata, Tomohiro Ishii, Satoshi Kojima, and Toru Yano defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hirooki Goto, Yoshi-Hashi, and Katsuya Murashima at 7:34.
2. “United Empire” Great-O-Khan, Jakob Austin Young, and Callum Newman vs. Shota Umino, El Phantasmo, and Jado. Shota and O-Khan opened. O-Khan hit his Mongolian Chops on Jado, and the UE worked Jado over in their corner. Phantasmo tagged in at 3:30 and hit a Lionsault on Callum. Callum fired back with a huracanrana and an enzuigiri. ELP hit a running boot and they were both down. O-Khan knocked Shota off the ring apron to block a tag, and the UE worked over ELP. Umino jumped in and hit some clotheslines. Phantasmo hit a handspring-back-clothesline. ELP put Young on his shoulders, did an airplane spin and dropped Jakob to the mat and pinned him. Good action.
Shota Umino, El Phantasmo, and Jado defeated Great-O-Khan, Jakob Austin Young, and Callum Newman at 6:28.
3. “House of Torture” Sho, Yujiro Takahashi, Ren Narita, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. “Bullet Club War Dogs” Sanada, Gabe Kidd, Bad Luck Fale, and Chase Owens. The HoT emerged from the back and were immediately attacked from behind; I started my stopwatch at first contact. They looped the outside of the building and brawled. Sanada chased Sho. Walker Stewart talked about how Sanada hasn’t been present in helping the War Dogs this week. Kidd got in the ring and we have a bell at 2:32 to officially begin, as Gabe beat down Narita in a corner. EVIL and Dick Togo appeared and attacked Kidd, and the ref called for the bell!
Sanada, Gabe Kidd, Bad Luck Fale, and Chase Owens defeated Sho, Yujiro Takahashi, Ren Narita, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru at 3:06/official time of 00:34.
* Kidd got on the mic and shouted at the HoT. Everyone started brawling again and we heard a bell. Walker and I are confused about if we have a new match underway but I cleared and restarted my stopwatch. El Phantasmo joined Stewart on commentary.
4. House of Torture vs. Bullet Club. David Finlay was in the ring now and brawled with EVIL. There are perhaps six guys on each side and it was never clear who was all legally in this. EVIL and Togo hit a Magic Killer and EVIL pinned Gedo, so at least it’s finally over.
House of Torture defeated Bullet Club at 6:57.
5. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Zack Sabre Jr., Hartley Jackson, and Ryohei Oiwa vs. “Just 4 Guys” Taka Michinoku, Taichi, and Yuya Uemura. Former teammates Taichi and Sabre opened, as they will be opponents in the quarterfinals. Sabre hit some European Uppercuts. Yuya tagged in at 2:30, so Hartley also got in. Oiwa hit a splash on Yuya for a nearfall. Hartley hit a senton on Yuya for a nearfall. Taka tagged in at 6:00 and battled Ryohei, hitting a running knee for a nearfall. Oiwa applied a top hammerlock but it was broken up. Sabre hit a Pele Kick on Taichi’s shoulder. Taka blocked a discus clothesline and hit an eyepoke and a kick to the shin! Seconds later, Oiwa nailed the discus clothesline and pinned Taka. Decent action; just too short.
Zack Sabre Jr., Hartley Jackson, and Ryohei Oiwa defeated Taka Michinoku, Taichi, and Yuya Uemura at 8:02.
6. TJP vs. Drilla Moloney in a New Japan Cup second-round tournament match. They immediately brawled to the floor. In the ring, TJP hit some kicks in the corner. Drilla backed him into a corner and hit some chops. He stomped on TJP and kept him grounded. TJP snapped off a huracanrana at 4:00. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Drilla hit a suplex but TJP popped up and they traded more forearm strikes. TJP hit a DDT; Drilla hit a Gore for a nearfall at 7:00. Drilla hit a Spinebuster. TJP applied an Octopus Stretch in the middle of the ring, but Moloney got to the ropes at 8:30.
TJP hit a top-rope flying forearm. He hit a Facewash kick in the corner; the 10:00 call was nearly 30 seconds late. TJP hit a top-rope doublestomp as Moloney was tied in the Tree of Woe, then he hit a Shining Wizard. Drilla nailed a brainbuster, then a Gore, for a believable nearfall, and they were both down at 12:30. TJP hit a Falcon Arrow for a nearfall. He hit a Mamba Splash for a nearfall, and he tied Drilla in the Pinoy Stretch (modified STF). He re-applied the Octopus Stretch. TJP hit his Detonation Kick (pop-up Pele Kick). Moloney nailed the Drilla Killa (swinging piledriver) for the pin. No one has kicked out of that yet.
Drilla Moloney defeated TJP at 15:04 to advance to the quarterfinals.
7. Shingo Takagi vs. Boltin Oleg in a New Japan Cup second-round tournament match. They traded quick reversals on the mat to open. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Oleg hit a splash to the mat for a nearfall at 2:30. They brawled to the floor, and Shingo hit a suplex onto the thin mat, and the 5:00 call was spot-on. In the ring, Shingo hit a senton and he went to a cross-armbreaker, but Oleg got a foot on the ropes. Oleg hit a dropkick. He flipped Shingo in his arms and hit a gut-wrench suplex at 8:00, then a running splash in the corner and a Vader Bomb for a nearfall.
Takagi hit a DDT, then a snap suplex. He hit a top-rope superplex for a nearfall at 11:00. Oleg applied a sleeper but Shingo escaped. Oleg hit a Samoan Drop and a Landslide (modified Death Valley Driver) for a nearfall at 13:00. Shingo hit a sliding clothesline then a Made In Japan pump-handle powerslam for a nearfall, and they were both down at 15:00. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Oleg nailed the Kamikaze (forward Finlay Roll) for a believable nearfall, and the crowd was really hot now. Shingo hit another DDT and they were both down. They hit simultaneous clotheslines. Shingo hit a Pumping Bomber clothesline for a nearfall at 17:30.
Shingo hit some elbow strikes to the side of the head. Oleg again set up for Kamikaze, but Shingo escaped and hit a Pumping Bomber for a believable nearfall! “What is it going to take?” ELP asked. Shingo nailed the Last of the Dragon (modified Death Valley Driver) for the pin. That was really, really good.
Shingo Takagi defeated Boltin Oleg at 18:45 to advance to the quarterfinals.
8. Tetsuya Naito vs. Jeff Cobb in a New Japan Cup second-round tournament match. Cobb came out first, and Walker and ELP talked about the “controversy” surrounding Cobb. (Is he really WWE-bound?) As always, it took Naito forever to disrobe. Neither man moved on a shoulder tackle. Naito is 4-1 lifetime in singles matches against Cobb, with Jeff’s only win coming in a G1 match a few years ago. Cobb whipped him into a guardrail at 3:00. In the ring, Cobb stepped on Naito’s chest. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Cobb hit a shoulder block into the gut in the corner at 5:00 and got a nearfall, and he ‘surfed’ on Naito’s back.
Cobb hit Naito’s slingshot dropkick in the corner, and the crowd reacted to that. He missed a standing moonsault. Naito hit a springboard tornado DDT for a nearfall at 8:00. They fought on the ropes in the corner, and Cobb blocked a Frankensteiner, but Naito eventually hit it, and they crashed to the mat right at the 10:00 call. Naito hit his Esperanza (flipping DDT move). Cobb hit a Tombstone Piledriver, then a Spin Cycle twisting back suplex and a diving forearm for a nearfall. He hit the standing moonsault for a nearfall. He set up for a Tour of the Islands, but Naito turned it into a reverse Destino and they were both down at 12:00.
Naito pushed off the ropes and got an inside cradle for a nearfall. He went for a Destino but Cobb blocked it and hit a Tour of the Islands at 13:30, and they were both down. Naito hit a rolling Koppo Kick! Cobb hit a clothesline and another Spin Cycle but only got a one-count. Cobb hit another of the Islands and scored the pin. Very good match. In fact, that is probably Naito’s best singles match since he lost the IWGP Title to Moxley in Chicago last April. (Yes, I’d say that was better than any of his G1 matches last fall.)
Jeff Cobb defeated Tetsuya Naito at 15:03 to advance to the quarterfinals.
* Cobb got on the mic and ordered the ‘young boys’ to get Naito out of the ring. He asked the crowd who thought Naito was beating him today.
Final Thoughts: Oleg-Shingo was really good and takes best match, and a very good Cobb-Naito takes second. That’s a strong double main event to close a decent show. TJP-Drilla was good, and I’ll reiterate that the Drilla Killa looks so devastating, it should be protected — if he hits that, he better get the pin. Or at the very least, whoever does kick out better really sell the devastation it caused.
The undercard was fine. But, if you were watching this show with a wrestling fan who had never seen NJPW before (and without the commentary on) and asked them after it was over, “who is the current NJPW champion?” they would not get it right, even with 10 guesses. I’ve already said it… but everyone else than me is a bigger fan of putting the belt on 45-year-old Hirooki Goto. He isn’t being presented as a champion at all.
No rest for the wicked, as the quarterfinals kick off on Saturday!
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