By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “Best of Super Juniors, Night 6”
May 23, 2026, in Hyogo, Japan, at Arcrea HIMEJI
Streamed live on New Japan World
Walker Stewart provided English commentary. This is a large room with black walls and a high ceiling. The crowd is maybe 800-1,000, all seated on the floor.
* This year’s field has 20 competitors, divided into TWO blocks. Thus, each wrestler has nine tournament matches in a round-robin format. Wins are worth two points, and a (rare) tie is one point for each wrestler. The top TWO point-scorers in each Block will advance to a four-man playoff. For the first time, we have just the B Block in tournament action.
* As is tradition, there are no guardrails for the BoSJ.
1. “The Unbound Co.” Gedo and Daiki Nagai vs. “United Empire” Zane Jay and Francesco Akira. Gedo attacked the UE, and we’re underway! The UE worked Gedo over in their corner. Daiki got in and hit a basement dropkick in the corner on Akira at 5:00. He dropped teammate Gedo onto Akira. Nagai dove through the ropes onto Young. In the ring, Akira rolled up Gedo with the Gedo Clutch (How dare he?!) for the pin. Basic. Nagai and Akira brawled after the bell and had to be separated.
Zane Jay and Francesco Akira defeated Gedo and Daiki Nagai at 6:16.
2. Kosei Fujita, Ryohei Oiwa, and Hartley Jackson vs. Ryusuke Taguchi, Master Wato, and Tatsuya Matsumoto. Taguchi told his teammates he would start … only to turn around and see the massive Hartley Jackson across the ring from him. (This never fails to humor me.) Seconds in, all six were brawling on the floor. Kosei threw Taguchi into the rows of chairs. He rolled Ryusuke into the ring and got a nearfall at 2:00. Oiwa hit a senton. Oiwa and Hartley hit a team delayed vertical suplex on Taguchi, and Hartley splashed onto Taguchi for a nearfall.
Wato entered at 4:00 and hit some Yes Kicks to Fujita’s chest. Fujita hit a German Suplex. Matsumoto got his version of an Air Raid Crash on Hartley! Impressive! He put Hartley in a Boston Crab in the center of the ring. Fujita hit a springboard dropkick. Taguchi hit an enzuigiri on Kosei, but Kosei hit a mid-ring buttbump on Taguchi. Hartley had a running crossbody block that flattened Matsumoto. Matsumoto got some rollups on Hartley, but Hartley hit a clothesline and a senton for the pin. Yes, he won with a senton. That was actually a pretty good preview tag.
Kosei Fujita, Ryohei Oiwa, and Hartley Jackson defeated Ryusuke Taguchi, Master Wato, and Tatsuya Matsumoto at 9:12.
3. “The Unbound Co.” Robbie X and Titan vs. Nick Wayne and Tiger Mask. Wayne and Titan opened. Titan hit a double stomp to the back. Robbie entered and hit a missile dropkick on Tiger Mask. Titan and Robbie worked over Tiger Mask in their corner. Robbie and Nick traded forearm strikes at 2:30, and Wayne hit a flying back elbow, then a Dragon Suplex for a nearfall. Wayne hit a mid-ring Sliced Bread. Titan hit the springboard frog splash on Tiger Mask, but Wayne made the save.
Robbie hit a plancha to the floor on Wayne at 5:30. Tiger Mask hit a top-rope double-underhook suplex on Titan, and he hit the Tiger Bomb for a nearfall! Wayne hit a corner moonsault to the floor on Robbie. Titan hit a top-rope double stomp to Tiger Mask’s chest. Rather than go for the pin, he applied a Muta Lock, and Tiger Mask tapped out. That was pretty action-packed.
“The Unbound Co.” Robbie X and Titan defeated Nick Wayne and Tiger Mask at 7:16.
4. Jun Kasai (6) vs. Valiente Jr. (2) in an A Block tournament match. Since Jun was unavailable on night 1 of the tournament, this is also the fifth tournament match for both wrestlers. Valiente came out first; Jun charged into the ring, and they immediately traded forearm strikes. Valiente hit a plancha to the floor. Jun whipped him head-first into the ring post at 1:00. Jun opened several chairs on the floor and created a double-decker chair bridge! He struck Valiente Jr. across the back with one. Walker called it a “pyramid of steel.” Jun hit a DDT on the floor at 3:00. He went to the back and returned with a chair cart. He put Valiente on the cart, ran down the ramp, and pushed the cart into the chair structure. (It looked like he was going bowling with a human!)
They got back into the ring. Jun ran the ropes to build up speed, and he hit a clothesline, then a suplex for a nearfall. He ripped at Valiente’s mask at 5:00, and he shoved the ref aside. Jun got a bundle of cooking skewers, but the ref stopped him. Valiente got the skewers and jabbed them into Jun’s head at 6:30, then he got a backslide for a nearfall. He hooked Jun’s arms, rolled him over, and got the pin. Entertaining. Valiente Jr. got a win he needed to stay in the hunt.
Valiente Jr. (4) defeated Jun Kasai (6) at 7:06.
5. Hyo (2) vs. Kushida (2) in a B Block tournament match. The loser will be 1-4 and be all but mathematically eliminated. (With two competitors reaching the playoffs in each Block, we’ve seen wrestlers reach the playoffs at 5-4, including last year’s winner, Fujita, so they technically would still be alive with the loss.) They immediately tied up on the mat. Kushida kept him grounded in a headlock. He hit a baseball slide dropkick to the floor at 4:00. In the ring, Hyo hit a slingshot stunner for a nearfall, and he was fired up. Kushida grabbed Hyo’s stuffed cat, and they fought over it for some silliness.
Kushida hit a basement dropkick, and he applied a cross-armbreaker. Walker wondered if the stuffed animal would “throw in the towel” for Hyo. (This is why I could never be a pro wrestling announcer. I don’t have this funnybone.) Hyo finally got a foot on the ropes at 8:30. Kushida applied a Hoverboard Lock. They traded rollups. Kushida switched to an ankle lock. Hyo hit a leaping DDT at 10:30. He hit a second-rope flying stunner for the pin! Again, Kushida isn’t technically eliminated, but he’s on the verge.
Hyo (4) defeated Kushida (2) at 11:14.
6. Jakob Austin Young (w/Zane Jay) (2) vs. Daisuke Sasaki (6) in a B Block tournament match. Sasaki threw his jacket at Young and attacked him, and we’re underway! Zane pulled Sasaki to the floor. Jakob hit a basement dropkick. Sasaki got a chair and jabbed Jakob in the ribs with it. He put the chair over Young’s head and pushed him into the ring post at 2:30. Back in the ring, he hit a top-rope flying clothesline and a swinging neckbreaker for a nearfall. Young hit a Lungblower to the back and a sideslam for a nearfall at 4:30.
Young went for “Jakob’s Ladder” (Sliced Bread) but Sasaki blocked it, and Daisuke hit a Pedigree, then a Buzzsaw Kick to the jaw. He spun Jakob to the mat and applied a crossface. Zane hopped on the apron to distract the ref! Jakob tapped out but the ref didn’t see it! Sasaki got a chair. Jakob hit a basement dropkick, and Sasaki fell head-first onto the chair he brought into the ring! Young hit a DDT onto the folded chair for the pin. An entirely skippable match.
Jakob Austin Young (4) defeated Daisuke Sasaki (6) at 7:07.
7. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (4) vs. Taiji Ishimori (4) in a B Block tournament match. Kanemaru has an insanely high 13-1-1 record against Ishimori over their careers. Kanemaru attacked as Ishimori entered the ring and applied a Figure Four, but Ishimori reached the ropes at 1:00. Ishimori dropped Kanemaru across his knees and hit a rolling DVD for a nearfall. Kanemaru got some rollups. (All these rollups feel like potential pins because Kanemaru just “has Ishimori’s number.)
The ref got bumped! Kanemaru again applied a Figure Four. Kanemaru got a swig of whiskey, but Ishimori hit a jumping knee to the chin, with the alcohol flying everywhere! Ishimori hit a low-blow kick and got a Gedo Clutch rollup for the pin! (Two Gedo Clutches in one show!) Wisely kept short; no one really wants to see Kanemaru have a long match.
Taiji Ishimori (6) defeated Yoshinobu Kanemaru (4) at 3:47.
8. El Desperado (4) vs. Sho (6) in a B Block tournament match. Desperado came out second. Dick Togo attacked from behind. Sho ran over and attacked Desperado, and I started the stopwatch as Sho touched him. Desperado whipped Sho into the rows of chairs. They got chairs and clanged them together. Togo struck Desperado across the back with a chair. Sho put a chair over Desperado’s back and repeatedly struck it with a chair at 3:00. They got in the ring, and we got the bell at 4:04! Sho applied a hammerlock; Desperado was in the ropes, and the ref nearly disqualified Sho for not letting go of the hold. Togo struck Desperado again.
Sho targeted the left arm and was in charge. Desperado applied a sleeper and hit a basement dropkick to Sho’s knee at 7:30. Desperado worked over the left knee and twisted the leg. Desperado hit a spinebuster at 11:00 and applied a Stretch Muffler. Sho applied a Triangle Choke. Desperado re-applied the Stretch Muffler, and the bell rang, but it was just a Dick Togo ruse. Sho hit a low-blow uppercut. Togo slid a wrench to Sho! Sho swung and missed. Desperado punched Sho. He crotched Togo in the ropes. Sho blocked the Pinche Loco (Angel’s Wings), and he applied a cross-armbreaker. Desperado again got a Stretch Muffler, and Sho submitted. Good action.
El Desperado (6) defeated Sho (6) at 14:27/official time of 10:23.
9. Robbie Eagles (2) vs. Yoh (6) in a B Block tournament match. These two have certainly fought a lot over the years, too. They circled each other before locking up. Like Kushida, a loss here would all but eliminate Robbie. Eagles hit a huracanrana at 3:00, and a leg lariat, and Yoh rolled to the floor and stood behind Toru Yano, who was on commentary. In the ring, Eagles tied up the left arm. This is clearly going long. Yoh got up and hit some slaps. Eagles applied the Ron Miller Special (Trailer Hitch) leg lock, but Yoh reached the ropes at 7:30. Eagles hit some Yes Kicks.
Yoh hit a standing neckbreaker and a suplex. He hit a Falcon Arrow for a nearfall at 10:00. Eagles again applied the Ron Miller Special, but Yoh reached the ropes at 12:00. Yoh hit a neckbreaker over his knee. Eagles hit a mid-ring Sliced Bread, and they were both down. Yoh hit a Poison Rana. Yoh hit a Dragon Suplex for a nearfall at 16:00. Eagles flipped Yoh to the mat. He hit a 450 Splash onto Yoh’s injured leg. Yoh hit a clothesline at 18:00 and was fired up. Yoh went for the Direct Drive double-arm DDT, but Eagles escaped and hit his own DDT. Robbie hit a Shining Wizard running knee for the pin.
Robbie Eagles (4) defeated Yoh (6) at 18:35.
Final Thoughts: A merely okay main event. It sure felt like they stayed in first gear a long time — they told a 12-minute story that somehow went 18 minutes. The biggest problem with Gedo’s booking is nearly everyone has to finish 5-4 or 4-5. So, I fully expect the guy (in this case, Yoh) sitting on 2 points to lose to the guy who has 6 points. It happens all the time, to make sure almost everyone is mathematically still alive until the last day. The problem with this is that if everyone is 5-4 (again, Kosei won this last year while going 5-4!), no one really stands out above the rest and gets over.
Desperado vs. Sho was the best match of the night. I’ll take Hyo vs. Kushida for second, ahead of the main event. The A Block will be back in action on Sunday with Nick Wayne vs. Jun Kasai as the headliner.
Be the first to comment