By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “World Tag League – Night 13”
December 8, 2025, in Hiroshima, Japan, at Hiroshima Sun Plaza HallShizuoka North Building
Streamed live on New Japan World
Walker Stewart provided commentary. The lights were low, but the ring was well-lit.
* This is a round-robin tournament, and it’s the final night of action for the eight teams in the A Block. So, we’ll know which TWO teams advance to the four-team playoff later this week.
1. Katsuya Murashima, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and El Phantasmo vs. “House of Torture” Ren Narita, Sanada, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru. ELP and Kanemaru opened, but the HoT attacked Phantasmo from behind. ELP hit a huracanrana, and he tied Sanada in a Paradise Lock! They all brawled to the floor and into the crowd. The HoT ‘wishboned’ ELP’s legs and kept him grounded. Sanada then tied ELP into the Paradise Lock and struck his butt with the corner pad at 3:30. Tanahashi entered and hit a flying forearm on Sanada. Hiroshi hit his second-rope somersault senton on Sanada for a nearfall at 5:00.
Sanada hit a dropkick on Hiroshi’s knee, then a Dragonscrew Legwhip. Murashima tagged in, and the babyfaces took turns striking Ren in the corner. Murashima hit a Bulldog Powerslam on Narita for a nearfall, then a running shoulder tackle. He put Ren in a Boston Crab, but Narita quickly reached the ropes. Ren tied him in a modified Figure Four on the mat, and Murashima tapped out. Good opener.
Ren Narita, Sanada, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Katsuya Murashima, and El Phantasmo at 7:42.
2. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Zack Sabre Jr., Ryohei Oiwa, and Hartley Jackson vs. Zane Jay and “Monster Sauce” Alex Zayne and Lance Archer. Zayne and Sabre opened and twisted each other’s left arms. Zane Jay got in and also tied up Zack. Oiwa tagged in at 2:00 to battle Zane Jay, hitting a splash to the mat for a nearfall, then a dropkick. Archer tagged in and hit a running splash in the corner on Oiwa at 4:00, then he knocked Sabre down, too.
The massive Hartley entered, and he traded shoulder blocks with Archer, and Lance hit a Spinebuster! Oiwa dropkicked Archer. Lance hit a running crossbody block, and they were both down. Hartley and Zane Jay got back in. Hartley hit a short-arm clothesline for a nearfall at 5:30. Archer hit a Mafia Kick on Hartley, allowing Zane Jay to get a rollup for a nearfall. Zane applied a Boston Crab. Zayne and Sabre brawled on the floor. Hartley hit a clothesline on Jay, then the Jagged Edge (DVD) for the pin. Good energy.
Zack Sabre Jr., Ryohei Oiwa, and Hartley Jackson defeated Zane Jay, Alex Zayne, and Lance Archer at 7:47.
3. “Unaffiliated Bullet Club” David Finlay and Hiromu Takahashi and Gedo vs. “United Empire” Great-O-Khan and Callum Newman and Jakob Austin Young. Finlay and Hiromu have not gotten along in recent days. O-Khan and Hiromu opened. Finlay whipped Hiromu into O-Khan in the corner, then Finlay accidentally slammed Hiromu into the corner. On the floor, O-Khan threw Hiromu into the guardrail. In the ring, Jakob entered at 3:00 and kept Hiromu grounded. Hiromu hit a headscissors takedown, and he tagged in Finlay.
Finlay again whipped Hiromu as a rolling cannonball in the corner at 4:30. Finlay nailed the Irish Curse backbreaker over his knee on Callum. Callum hit an enzuigiri. Gedo entered for the first time and hit some jab punches on Jakob, then a Flatliner, and he got a Gedo Clutch for a nearfall. However, Newman hit a doublestomp on Gedo’s back, and Jakob quickly jumped on Gedo for the cover and pin. Decent.
Great-O-Khan, Callum Newman, and Jakob Austin Young defeated David Finlay, Hiromu Takahashi, and Gedo at 6:35.
4. “Unaffiliated Bullet Club” Daiki Nagai, Oskar, and Yuto-Ice vs. Yuya Uemura, Shota Umino, and Shoma Kato. Yuto-Ice and Ueumura opened and immediately traded forearm strikes. Oskar and Umino squared off at 2:00. Umino went for an STF, but Oskar immediately got to the ropes. Oskar hit a bodyslam. Umino hit a dropkick. The Young Lions entered at 5:30 and battled, as Walker pondered about these two heading on excursion in 2026. They traded forearm strikes, and Daiki hit a dropkick. Yuto-Ice and Uemura again brawled. Yuto-Ice hit a jumping knee to Shoma’s chest, then his roundhouse kicks in the corner on Kato. Yuto-Ice hit a running penalty kick for the pin.
Daiki Nagai, Oskar, and Yuto-Ice defeated Yuya Uemura, Shota Umino, and Shoma Kato at 8:21.
* David Finlay joined commentary.
5. El Desperado and Shuji Ishikawa (6) vs. “House of Torture” Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi (2) in an A Block tournament match. The HoT attacked, and we’re underway! On the floor, Yujiro shoved Despe into the guardrail. Chase and Shuji fought into the crowd and away from ringside. In the ring, Chase snapped Despe’s fingers, and the heels worked over Desperado in their corner. Despe hit a back suplex. Shuji got a hot tag at 5:00; he wedged Chase in the corner and hit a running knee on him for a nearfall.
Despe hit a second-rope doublestomp to the chest, then the bigger Shuji hit one. Finlay joked that he isn’t sure how the heels “don’t have an accident” from that. Owens hit a C-Trigger (running knee) on Shuji at 8:30. Yujiro got his cane and swung it, but Despe avoided it. The ref confiscated it. Chase had a handful of powder, but Despe kicked it into Owens’ face. Despe then rolled up Yujiro for the pin. Merely okay.
El Desperado and Shuji Ishikawa (8) defeated Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi (2) at 9:26.
6. Taichi and Satoshi Kojima (2) vs. “Unaffiliated Bullet Club” Yota Tsuji and Gabe Kidd (8) in an A Block tournament match. Finlay talked about the “business decision” to bring the Unaffiliated and the Bullet Club War Dogs together for this tournament. Kidd was going to start, but Yota tagged himself in, so their issues are continuing right at the bell! Kidd hit some chops on each opponent. Walker talked about the “accidental attacks” between Kidd and Tsuji. Taichi hit a DDT on the floor on Tsuji at 2:30! He got a nearfall in the ring. Finlay said Taichi babysat him as a toddler.
Taichi applied a Stretch Plum on Tsuji, but Kidd made the save at 5:00. Kojima finally entered, and he hit his rapid-fire chops in the corner on Gabe. They traded forearm strikes, and Satoshi hit a DDT. Kidd nailed a brainbuster for a nearfall at 7:30. Satoshi hit a Koji Cutter for a nearfall, then a clothesline for a nearfall. Yota hit a jumping knee on Satoshi and a spear, then he dove through the ropes onto Taichi. Back in the ring, Kidd hit a running knee to Kojima’s back and a jumping piledriver for the pin! Yota marched to the back alone, seemingly irritated at Kidd for not sharing the final blow and pin.
Yota Tsuji and Gabe Kidd (10) defeated Taichi and Satoshi Kojima (2) at 10:28.
7. “House of Torture” EVIL and Don Fale (w/Sho) (8) vs. Toru Yano and Boltin Oleg (6) in an A Block tournament match. Yano and Oleg came out first; the HoT attacked them in the aisle, and we’re underway! In the ring, Oleg hit a double suplex. Fale and Oleg brawled on the floor. Like the other day, EVIL handcuffed Yano to the guardrail. Fale did the same to Oleg! Yano somehow got himself free! (Did he bring a key with him?) Sho grabbed the key before Yano could free Oleg. In the ring, EVIL worked over Yano. Fale stood on Yano’s back at 4:30. Yoh showed up and attacked Sho and freed Oleg! Oleg tagged in and knocked EVIL down with shoulder tackles at 6:30.
Boltin hit a big splash to the mat for a nearfall, then his gutwrench suplex on EVIL. Fale tagged in, but Oleg splashed him in the corner. Yano tried but couldn’t lift Fale; Don bodyslammed Toru. Sho hit a Togo-style knife-edge chop to Yano’s groin at 9:00, and Fale hit a running elbow drop for a nearfall. EVIL went for a low blow, but Oleg blocked it, and Boltin hit a belly-to-belly suplex. Yano rolled up Fale, but the ref was distracted. Kanemaru sprayed whiskey in Yano’s eyes! Fale got a rollup for a nearfall, but Yoh pulled the ref from the ring. Yoh sprayed alcohol in Fale’s eyes; Yano and Oleg covered Fale for the pin! The House of Torture is eliminated! Somehow in the mix, EVIL had been handcuffed to the guardrail, so he wasn’t able to save Fale.
Toru Yano and Boltin Oleg (8) defeated EVIL and Don Fale (8) at 10:39.
* The result of that match means Kidd and Tsuji have advanced to the playoffs, and the winner of the next match will join them. It also means that six of the eight teams will finish with a winning record (either 4-3 or 5-2).
8. “War Dragons” Shingo Takagi and Drilla Moloney (8) vs. “Bishamon” Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi (8) in an A Block tournament match. Goto and Shingo opened. Drilla and Yoshi-Hashi traded chops. Moloney hit a dropkick on Goto at 5:00. All four fought on the floor and past the guardrail and into the crowd. Back in the ring, the WD worked over Goto and kept him in their corner. Drilla stomped on Hirooki and kept him grounded. Shingo hit a running neckbreaker for a nearfall at 9:00; they have set a pace to go long. Goto hit his neckbreaker over the knee on Shingo, and they were both down.
Yoshi-Hashi tagged in and hit a standing neckbreaker on Shingo. Bishamon set up for the Shoto team slam at 12:00, but Moloney made the save. Shingo hit a double clothesline. Y-H and Shingo traded forearm strikes. Moloney and Goto replaced them, and they traded a series of forearm strikes. Drilla hit a Spinebuster, then a Gore into the corner and a suplex for a nearfall at 15:30. Yoshi-Hashi hit Headhunter (running Blockbuster), but they again couldn’t hit Shoto. Shingo hit a DVD on Yoshi-Hashi for a nearfall. The WD hit stereo top-rope elbow drops for a nearfall at 17:30.
The War Dragons hit a swinging team powerslam on Goto for a nearfall, but Yoshi-Hashi made the save. (They have won other matches in the tournament with that.) Moloney hit a Gore on Goto for a nearfall at 19:00. Goto hit a hard Yes Kick to Moloney’s chest for a nearfall. Bishamon hit a team bulldog move on Moloney for a nearfall. They hit the Shoto team slam and pinned Moloney, as Yoshi-Hashi blocked Shingo from making the save. I feel the wrong team won here, but most people like Bishamon more than I do.
Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi (10) defeated Drilla Moloney and Shingo Takagi (8) at 21:28.
Final Thoughts: Sure, the House of Torture interference and cheating, day after day and match after match, gets really annoying. But it does create the ultra-satisfying moment at the end of the tournament when the cheating backfires, and they get eliminated. You could sense the joy in the arena when Fale got pinned. This is why I don’t do star ratings — I liked that match, largely for the outcome, so it’s my favorite match of the show. The main event was good, but as I noted, I’ve never found either Goto or Yoshi-Hashi particularly compelling to watch, so I feel the wrong team won.
Also, say what you will about Gedo’s booking, but the two teams no one wanted to see each finished 1-6. So, at least they weren’t winning matches against better, more deserving teams. So, we have half of our playoff field set! The B Block has its final night of round-robin action on Tuesday, featuring Oskar and Yuto-Ice vs. Umino and Uemura in the main event.
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