By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “Blue Justice XVII”
January 18, 2026, in Chiba, Japan, at Sakura Civic Gymnasium
Streamed live on New Japan World
There was Japanese-only commentary. The venue is a large gym, and it was packed; there are maybe eight rows in the second deck, and those are filled, too. Overall, the crowd must be 1,200 or so. Lighting is good. No on-screen graphics today, which is just bizarre to me.
* This is the first NJPW show since New Year’s Dash on January 5. The “Bullet Club” and “The Unaffiliated” have officially merged and are now the “Unbound Company.”
1. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Robbie Eagles and Kosei Fujita vs. Tiger Mask and Zane Jay. TMDK wore their Junior Tag Team Title belts, but it didn’t appear to be a title match. (I’m not convinced Jay is a junior anymore; he’s put on some size!) Zane and Robbie opened. Fujita entered and traded forearm strikes with Zane. Zane hit a dropkick at 3:30. Tiger Mask entered and hit some Yes Kicks on Fujita. Robbie and Tiger Mask traded kicks, and TM hit the Tiger Driver.
Jay hit a Thesz Press and some punches on Eagles, then applied a hammerlock on the mat, but Robbie got a foot on the ropes at 6:30. Robbie slammed Zane for a nearfall, and he applied a reverse Boston Crab. Tiger Mask jumped in, but Fujita cut him off before he could make the save. Robbie leaned forward for added pressure, and Jay tapped out. That was on the high end of expectations.
Robbie Eagles and Kosei Fujita defeated Tiger Mask and Zane Jay at 7:48.
2. Yoh, Katsuya Murashima, and Master Wato vs. “Unbound Company” Yuto-Ice, Oskar, and Daiki Nagai. The Young Lions opened, with Daiki hitting a shotgun dropkick. The thicker Murashima scooped Nagai up and ran him back-first into the corner at 1:30. Wato tagged in; Oskar tagged in; Wato looked terrified and did a couple of quick push-ups before hitting some forearm strikes. Funny. Oskar hit a spinning bodyslam on Wato. Yuto tagged in and hit his roundhouse kicks to Wato’s chest, then his running knees to the face at 4:00.
Wato hit a leg lariat on Yuto-Ice, and they were both down. Yoh entered for the first time and hit a top-rope cannonball splash on Yuto-Ice, then he nailed a Dragonscrew Legwhip and was fired up. Oskar and Murashima tagged back in at 7:00, with Oskar dropping him with a shoulder tackle. Mursahima hit a rolling senton. He hit a flying shoulder block, but it only staggered Oskar. He applied a Boston Crab at 8:30. Oskar applied a sleeper on Murashima, and he spun Murashima by the neck before they went to the mat. The ref checked on Katsuya and called for the bell. Good action.
Yuto-Ice, Oskar, and Daiki Nagai defeated Yoh, Katsuya Murashima, and Master Wato at 9:54.
3. “House of Torture” Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Douki, and Sho vs. Ryusuke Taguchi, El Desperado, and Masatora Yasuda. Sho spoke on the mic before the bell, then the HoT attacked. Taguchi hit a mid-ring buttbump on Sho, while the other four brawled on the floor. Yasuda and Despe took turns hitting moves in the corner on Sho as Taguchi played third base coach.
Taguchi got crotched around the ring post at 2:00 so he could make his exaggerated facial expressions. Sho then dropped Taguchi crotch-first onto the guardrail for more juvenile ‘humor.’ Kanemaru rolled Taguchi into the ring for the heels to keep working him over. Douki splashed onto the left leg at 4:00. Despe entered and hit a back suplex on Douki. He went for a Stretch Muffler but Douki quickly escaped, and Douki hit an enzuigiri at 6:00, then a clothesline.
Desperado nailed a spinebuster, and they were both down. Yasuda and Kanemaru tagged back in, with Yasuda hitting a dropkick at 7:30. Yasuda blocked a Kanemaru suplex and hit his own suplex for a nearfall, then he applied a Boston Crab, but Sho made the save. Kanemaru slammed Yasuda’s knee into the mat and applied a Figure Four, and Yasuda tapped out. Decent action.
Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Douki, and Sho defeated Ryusuke Taguchi, El Desperado, and Masatora Yasuda at 8:58.
4. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Zack Sabre Jr., Ryohei Oiwa, and Hartley Jackson vs. Tatsuya Matsumoto and “Bishamon” Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi. Like earlier, the six-man tag belts held by TMDK are not on the line. Goto and Oiwa opened, with Ryohei dropping him with a shoulder tackle. Bishamon hit a team shoulder tackle, and they hit blows to Sabre’s back. Oiwa tied Yoshi-Hashi in an Octopus Stretch at 2:30. TMDK began working over Yoshi-Hashi in their corner. Sabre tied him in a cravat.
Yoshi-Hashi hit a basement dropkick on Sabre’s knee and they were both down. Goto got a hot tag at 4:30 and cleared the ring. Sabre hit a pump kick; Goto dropped him with a shoulder tackle; Sabre hit a Penalty Kick and they were both down. Hartley entered, but Goto dropped him with a clothesline. Matsumoto got a hot tag at 6:30 and tried some forearm strikes on the massive Hartley, who no-sold the offense. Matsumoto tried to get a bodyslam, but Hartley turned it into a suplex.
Hartley hit a running splash in the corner, but he missed a senton. Matsumoto hit a bodyslam! He applied a Boston Crab, but Hartley powered out. Hartley hit a senton for a nearfall. Oiwa hit a back suplex on Y-H. Goto hit his neckbreaker over his knee on Sabre. Matsumoto got some rollups on Hartley, but Jackson dropped him with a clothesline. Hartley then hit the Jagged Edge (DVD) for the pin. The undercard matches have been really good today.
Zack Sabre Jr., Ryohei Oiwa, and Hartley Jackson defeated Tatsuya Matsumoto, Hirooki Goto, and Yoshi-Hashi at 9:33.
5. Satoshi Kojima, Taichi, and Tomohiro Ishii vs. Yuya Uemura, Shota Umino, and Shoma Kato. Ishii still has tape on his right shoulder. Ishii and Umino opened with an intense lockup. Umino unloaded a series of chops in a corner. Ishii shoved the ref aside while he stomped on Umino. Taichi entered and hit a stiff kick to Umino’s spine at 3:00. Kojima entered and hit a standing neckbreaker on Umino, then his rapid-chops in the corner at 4:30. Umino hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip, and they were both down.
Yuya entered for the first time, and he dropkicked Satoshi. Satoshi fired back with a Koji Cutter. Taichi tagged back in at 7:00 and playfully kicked Yuya. Yuya hit a dropkick, and they were both down. Kato entered for the first time and hit some forearm strikes on Taichi, then a huracanrana. He hit a dropkick on Ishii. Umino hit a dropkick on Kojima. Shoma hit a suplex on Taichi for a nearfall at 9:00, and he got some rollups. Taichi hit a hard clothesline for a nearfall, then a Saito Suplex for the pin.
Satoshi Kojima, Taichi, and Tomohiro Ishii defeated Yuya Uemura, Shota Umino, and Shoma Kato at 10:28.
6. “United Empire” Callum Newman, Great-O-Khan, Jakob Austin Young, Francesco Akira, and Jake Lee vs. “Unbound Company” Hiromu Takahashi, Gedo, Taiji Ishimori, Shingo Takagi, and Yota Tsuji. It’s worth reiterating that Lee is perhaps 6’4″, and he towers over everyone here. Yota entered last with his title belt over his shoulder. He hit a running Mafia Kick on Lee at the bell! He hit a few more boots to the sternum and jaw. While on the apron, Callum kicked Yota. Newman tagged in and playfully kicked Yota.
Yota and Callum traded chops. Hiromu tagged in at 2:00 and battled Callum. Lee and Yota brawled past the guardrails and into the crowd. O-Khan and Shingo were brawling in the crowd, too. Callum and Hiromu brawled at ringside, and Callum whipped him into the guardrails at 4:30. Back in the ring, Callum got a nearfall on Hiromu. Lee put a glove on and choked Hiromu with it at 7:00. O-Khan dropped him ‘snake-eyes’ in the corner, and he hit his Mongolian Chops, then he bit Hiromu’s forehead.
Hiromu hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip on O-Khan, and they were both down. Shingo tagged in at 9:30 and hit some bodyslams. He hip-tossed Callum, then clotheslined him over the top rope to the floor. Shingo hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip on Lee and a clothesline on O-Khan for a nearfall. O-Khan applied a Claw on the mat, but Shingo got a foot on the ropes at 11:30. Shingo hit a clothesline, and they were both down.
Ishimori entered for the first time and battled Akira, hitting an enzuigiri for a nearfall. Akira hit a clothesline, and they were both down at 13:30. Jakob entered, and he battled Ishimori. Taiji hit a Flatliner onto the middle turnbuckle. Gedo entered for the first time and fought Jakob. The UC took turns hitting moves on Young in a corner, and Yota hit a Stomp to his head. Young hit a twisting suplex on Gedo, and he applied a modified Figure Four, and Gedo tapped out. That wrapped up suddenly, but it was a fun match.
Callum Newman, Great-O-Khan, Jakob Austin Young, Francesco Akira, and Jake Lee defeated Hiromu Takahashi, Gedo, Taiji Ishimori, Shingo Takagi, and Yota Tsuji at 15:03.
* Lee hit some post-match moves on Yota and did some silly dancing.
* Hiroshi Tanahashi sat down in the front row, sporting a new haircut. All that flowing hair is gone!
7. “House of Torture” EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, Ren Narita, and Dick Togo vs. Boltin Oleg, Toru Yano, Aaron Wolf, and Yuji Nagata. Wolf has a long way to go on improving that physique. All eight brawled, and we’re underway! Yuji dropped EVIL with a Mafia Kick. EVIL and Wolf hit a team suplex on EVIL. The HoT began working over Yano and stomped on him. EVIL and Togo hit a team shoulder tackle at 2:00. Narita whipped Wolf into the guardrail. In the ring, Yujiro and Yano brawled.
Oleg got a hot tag and hit a series of chops on Yujiro at 5:00. He flipped Yujiro around in his arms and hit a gutwrench suplex for a nearfall. Sho tried to hop on Oleg’s back, but they all collapsed. Nagata entered at 6:30 and hit a Mafia Kick on Yujiro, then an Exploder Suplex for a nearfall. He cranked back on Yujiro’s arm, but EVIL made the save. Yujiro hit a fisherman’s suplex on Nagata for a nearfall at 8:00. Nagata hit a belly-to-belly suplex.
Wolf, sporting his ‘dad bod,’ tagged in and hit a Michinoku Driver on Narita, then an elbow drop for a nearfall. Ren applied a Figure Four, but Wolf reached the ropes at 10:00. The HoT took turns hitting blows in the corner, and Togo hit his knife-edge chop to Wolf’s groin. Togo hit one on Nagata at 12:00. Togo got his wire, and he choked Wolf with it. Wolf powered out and did his Judo Throw on Togo. Nagata put Yujira in a Crossface on the mat. Wolf tied up Togo in a leg lock around the neck, and Togo tapped out. Acceptable.
Boltin Oleg, Toru Yano, Aaron Wolf, Yuji Nagata defeated EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi, Ren Narita, and Dick Togo at 12:45.
* Wolf spoke on the mic. Nagata got on the mic, and he asked Hiroyoshi Tenzan to join them in the ring. (Tenzan was in a suit in the front row. The last time I saw him wrestle, maybe early last year, he seemed especially wobbly. I hope he considers himself officially retired.)
Final Thoughts: A really strong show, top to bottom. No, the main event didn’t work for me, but everything else did. Everyone seemed focused and fresh after two full weeks off since the last show.
NJPW desperately wanted Aaron Wolf to be the next Kurt Angle. Based on what we’ve seen this month, he’s closer to the next Cain Velaquez. I don’t know how anyone can honestly say they are pleased with his matches and his overall look, his pacing, and his conditioning. Can he turn it around? Sure. But he clearly wasn’t ready for TV when he debuted.
NJPW returns to Korakuen Hall on Monday, and the wrestlers always seem to step up their game for those events. The main event is Ishii and Taichi vs. Umino and Uemura in a No. 1 contender’s match for the IWGP Tag Team Titles.
Be the first to comment