By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “Yuji Nagata’s Blue Justice XVIII”
June 20, 2026, in Chiba, Japan, at Minowa Sports Park
Streamed live on New Japan World
The venue is a large gym. The lights were on, and it was easy to see. The crowd was maybe 1,200. There was Japanese-only commentary for this show.
1. Togi Makabe, Toru Yano, and Tatsuya Matsumoto vs. Satoshi Kojima, Hiroshi Yamato, and Taisei Nakahara. I watched this while eating lunch and didn’t take any notes. Fairly basic action with the Young Lions being far more interesting to watch wrestle than the aging veterans. Makabe hit a second-rope knee strike to the forehead of a Young Lion for the pin. Meh.
Togi Makabe, Toru Yano, and Tatsuya Matsumoto vs. Satoshi Kojima, Hiroshi Yamato, and Taisei Nakahara at 7:22.
2. “House of Torture” Douki and Sho vs. Master Wato and Masatora Yasuda. The HoT flipped Yasuda to the floor, and they immediately beat up Wato. They ‘wish-boned’ his legs. Wato hit a dropkick on Sho. Sho speared Wato at 2:00. Douki jumped back in and stomped on Wato. On the floor, Yasuda whipped Sho into the guardrail. In the ring, Yasuda hit a headscissors takedown and a dropkick on Douki for a nearfall. Douki applied the Darkness Stretch (triangle choke) on Yasuda. Sho struck Yasuda in the back with a chair. Douki re-applied the Darkness Stretch, and this time, Yasuda tapped out. Decent; it didn’t overstay its welcome.
“House of Torture” Douki and Sho defeated Master Wato and Masatora Yasuda at 4:46.
3. “United Empire” Zane Jay and Jake Lee vs. Shota Umino and Ryusuke Taguchi. Shota and Lee opened, but they just circled each other, and Jake finally tagged out 80 seconds in without ever locking up. Taguchi and Zane ran the ropes, and Taguchi hit a mid-ring buttbump at 3:30. Taguchi ran the ropes until he got winded for some comedy. Lee tied Taguchi in the Paradise Lock and kicked him in the butt to break it. Lee hit some Atomic Drops so Taguchi could make his juvenile, exaggerated facial expressions. (Eye roll).
Shota tagged back in at 6:30 and hit some back elbows. He hit a dropkick on Zane and was fired up. Lee hit a spin kick to Shota’s chest. Zane tagged back in at 8:30 and hit some chops on Shota. The heels hit a team fallaway slam on Shota, and Zane got a nearfall. Lee tied Taguchi in a Paradise Lock on the floor. In the ring, Shota hit a decapitating clothesline and pinned Zane! Lee wasn’t paying attention and was shocked that his team lost!
Shota Umino and Ryusuke Taguchi defeated Jake Lee and Zane Jay at 10:57.
4. “United Empire” Great-O-Khan, Henare, and Jakob Austin Young vs. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Hartley Jackson, Ryohei Oiwa, and Kosei Fujita. Obviously, no Sabre Jr. here today. Hartley and Henare charged at each other like massive bulls and traded shoulder blocks. O-Khan and Oiwa brawled to the floor, and O-Khan whipped Ryohei into the rows of chairs. Oiwa got back into the ring and brawled with Henare. Oiwa hit a vertical suplex on Jakob at 4:00.
Kosei tagged in and battled Young. He hit a springboard dropkick for a nearfall. Kosei tied the left arm behind Young’s back, and Jakob screamed in pain. Oiwa hit a back suplex on O-Khan at 6:30. Jakob hit an enzuigiri. Kosei hit a German Suplex with a high bridge and pinned Young. That wrapped up suddenly.
“The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Hartley Jackson, Ryohei Oiwa, and Kosei Fujita defeated “United Empire” Great-O-Khan, Henare, and Jakob Austin Young at 7:35.
5. Daiki Nagai and “The Knockout Brothers” Oskar and Yuto-Ice vs. Yuya Uemura, Taichi, and El Desperado. Taichi and Yuto-Ice opened, and they immediately traded forearm strikes. Taichi hit some kicks to the back and stomped on Yuto-Ice. Desperado entered, and he applied a Stretch Muffler on Yuto-Ice, but Yuto-Ice reached the ropes at 4:00. Daiki entered and hit some forearm strikes on Desperado. Yuto-Ice and Taichi brawled to the floor and into the crowd.
Oskar and Yuya brawled up the entrance ramp. In the ring, Nagai stomped on Desperado. He hit a hard back elbow and got a nearfall on Despe at 6:00. Oskar entered and hit some chops on Desperado, then a big back-body drop. He tied Desperado in a Camel Clutch, but Yuya immediately made the save. Desperado tagged in Yuya at 8:00. Yuya couldn’t armdrag the bigger Oskar. Oskar whipped him into a corner.
Oskar hit a bodyslam on Yuya. Nagai entered and hit a dropkick, then a basement dropkick in the corner on Uemura. Nagai hit a Pounce for a nearfall at 11:30. Yuya twisted Nagai’s left arm, but Yuto-Ice made the save. Yuya cranked on Nagai’s arm in a top hammerlock until Daiki submitted. I enjoyed the match, but that’s a lame finish.
Yuya Uemura, Taichi, and El Desperado defeated Daiki Nagai and “The Knockout Brothers” Oskar and Yuto-Ice at 12:55.
6. Yoh and “Bishamon” Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi vs. “Unbound Co.” Shingo Takagi and Yota Tsuji and Gedo. All six brawled early on, and they are all basically babyfaces. Yota hit a backbreaker over his knee on Yoh at 2:00. The Unbound Co. took turns working over Yoh, who finally hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip on Tsuji at 4:30. Goto got the hot tag, and he battled Tsuji. Goto hit a back suplex on Tsuji.
Yota stomped on Goto’s head, and they were both down. Shingo entered and hit a suplex on Goto for a nearfall at 6:00. Shingo and Goto traded forearm strikes. Gedo entered and traded offense with Yoshi-Hashi. Gedo got a Gedo Clutch for a nearfall at 8:00. Bishamon hit the Shoto team slam and pinned Gedo. Just so-so; it feels like light years ago that Goto was champion here; it was a year ago, but he’s “just another guy on the roster” now.
Yoh and “Bishamon” Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi defeated “Unbound Co.” Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, and Gedo at 8:51.
7. Josh Barnett, Yuji Nagata, and Aaron Wolf vs. “House of Torture” Ren Narita, Yujiro Takahashi, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru. The HoT attacked, and we’re underway! They immediately all brawled to the floor. In the ring, Nagata flipped Yujiro overhead. Wolf hit a running splash in the corner on Yujiro and an elbow drop for a nearfall at 1:30. Barnett suplexed Yujiro and locked in a cross-armbreaker. Kanemaru applied a leg lock around Nagata’s neck at 4:00. Yujiro hit some kicks and got a nearfall.
Ren grapevined Nagata’s leg on the mat at 6:30. Yuji hit a suplex, and he tagged in Barnett. Josh hit a spin kick to Ren’s jaw. Barnett hit a gutwrench suplex for a nearfall at 8:00. Yujiro hit a falling headbutt to Wolf’s groin at 9:30, and the heels worked over Aaron. Wolf slammed Kanemaru for a nearfall. He hit an Angle Slam on Kanemaru for the pin. Well, it didn’t overstay its welcome.
Josh Barnett, Yuji Nagata, and Aaron Wolf defeated “House of Torture” Ren Narita, Yujiro Takahashi, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru at 10:47.
Final Thoughts: I avoid posting star ratings because people focus too much on them. I would rather speak in general terms. If I write that a match is a “good match,” it would probably be between 2.5 stars and 3.25 stars. Point being… none of these seven matches reached a “good match” level. The show was adequate, but there is no compelling reason to check out any of the matches here. I applaud the decision to have Yuji in a six-man tag so he wasn’t asked to carry an entire match on his own. NJPW remains all-in on Wolf, but I am just so utterly unimpressed with him. How is a former Olympian so out of shape and so easily winded?
Desperado’s six-man tag was easily the best action of the night, even though the finish was flat. United Empire vs. TMDK was fine but far too short.
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