By Colin McGuire, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@McGMondays)
NJPW Strong
Taped November 20, 2022 in Los Angeles, California at The Vermont
Streamed December 17, 2022 on New Japan World
Ian Riccaboni checked in with Alex Koslov to run down the card. We are on the Detonation Tour and this is the third week of it. Bateman interrupted the opening spot and asked if there is love in Young’s violence. Bateman went on about how his Stray Dog Army is in the hunt for titles. We then got the new video.
1. Jakob Austin Young vs. Bateman. The two took their time while locking up and Bateman worked a wrist-lock until Bateman tried to choke Young via grabbing his mouth. Young got to the ropes for a break. Bateman worked Young’s arm and it continued into his wrist. Young made it to the ropes for a break. Young fired up with some chops and rolled Bateman up for a two-count. Bateman came right back with a strike to the back. Young fired up and hit a leg lariat.
Young tried to throw Bateman into the corner, but Bateman blocked it and landed an elbow to Young’s face. Bateman eventually slammed Young on his face and kicked him for a two-count. Bateman landed a forearm to take Young to the mat. Bateman did it again. Young fired up and hit a ton of punches own Bateman. Young then landed a tornado DDT on Bateman and Bateman sold it like hell. Young rolled up Bateman for a two-count.
Bateman hit Young and then lifted him, but Young powered out and worked a crucifix. Bateman countered out of it and hit a forearm before hitting his finishing Tombstone for the win.
Bateman defeated Jakob Austin Young via pinfall in 7:49.
McGuire’s Musings: Very standard. Bateman gave Young some spots, but it wasn’t enough to fool anybody. Young looks good for being the fodder for the bigger names, but I do wonder when Young might graduate into a more substantial position. He deserves it. His work is good. He’s obviously a good sport. Why not give him some shine? Anyway, Bateman got out with a win, which was needed in some form or another (Stray Dog Amy hasn’t been world-beaters thus far), and that will hopefully move him and his faction up the card in some fashion. The match itself was forgettable.
2. Bad Dude Tito vs. Kenta. Kenta made his way to the ring with everyone chanting his name. After some stalling, the two locked up and Tito took Kenta down. They locked up again and Kenta worked a head-lock after a stomp on the feet. Kenta kept trying to shoulder-block Tito down, but Tito never moved. As a result, Kenta did some push-ups and taunted Tito. Tito ran the ropes because of it and Kenta rolled outside to play mind games. None of it mattered because once they got back in the ring, Tito slammed Kenta for a two-count.
It wasn’t long before Kenta hit a chop block on Tito and then went to work on Tito’s leg. Kenta worked an ankle lock before slamming Tito’s leg onto the mat. Tito tried to fire up and the wrestlers traded blows until Kenta kicked Tito in the leg, which took Tito down. Still, Tito fired up and landed some strikes before hitting a suplex and an enzuigiri/German Suplex for a two-count. Kenta went for a spinning DDT, but Tito caught him and stalled everything, Kenta came back with a dragon-screw leg-whip to take back control.
Kenta dropkicked Tito’s face a few times and went for the GTS, but Tito worked his way out and hit a Blue Thunder Bomb for a good near-fall. “F– CM Punk” chants happened when Kenta got Tito up. As the two were wrestling to gain position, the ref was hit briefly and as a result, Kenta kicked Tito in the junk. Kenta then rolled Tito up and got the win.
Kenta defeated Bad Dude Tito via pinfall in 7:51.
After the match, we got an interview with Fred Rosser backstage. Rosser was asked about his strategy when it comes to taking on JR Kratos next week. Rosser said he will run Kratos until his tank is empty. Rosser said next week, it’s time to go to work. It looks like we’re getting the Kratos vs. Rosser match next week.
McGuire’s Musings: You forget about Kenta. Or, well, OK. Maybe you don’t forget about Kenta, but I do, at least. After all this time, he could be someone who slips your mind. But I think back to the days when I first started covering New Japan Strong for this website and I remember how heavy a name Kenta was. Then, I remember how he worked with Jon Moxley and how good that short-lived program was. Anyway, this was a fine match with Tito getting all the love he deserved and needed in that he physically dominated a lot of it, but he didn’t come out the victor. Even so, these are two guys who I really think have a lot to offer New Japan Strong and here’s hoping both guys get more opportunities on this program soon. Tito, it seems like a no-brainer, but who knows how long Kenta might stick around. My hope is that he does for a while because he elevates everything he’s involved with when it comes to NJPW Strong.
3. “Motor City Machine Guns” Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin vs. “Stray Dog Army” Barrett Brown and Misterioso for the NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Titles. Brown and Sabin began the match. Brown asked for a test-of-strength, but Brown kicked Sabin in the midsection. Brown took control with some dropkicks and then he hit a modified neck-breaker. Shelley tagged in and MCMG hit a double PK on Brown. Shelley kneed Brown’s midsection. Sabin tagged in and the two hit a couple double-team moves, including a stomp, for a two-count.
Sabin kept control and stretched Brown. Brown worked his way out with a back-fist. Still, the MCMG kept control with a series of double-team moves, which ended with a splash and a two-count from Shelley. Misterioso tagged in and hit a splash onto Sabin on the outside. From there, Misterioso kept control while working on Shelley. Brown tagged in and they two hit Shelley in the face a lot for a two-count. Brown chopped Shelley and tagged in Misterioso. Stray Dog Army hit stereo kicks before Misterioso pinned Shelley for a two-count.
Shelley tried to fire up, but Misterioso cut him off and went for a moonsault, but Shelley got the knees up. Brown tagged in, but Shelley planted Brown’s face into a corner. Sabin got the hot tag and hit a series of elbows on Brown. Sabin landed a Tornado DDT for a two-count. The MCMG landed a dropkick/Flatliner combo for another good near-fall.
Sabin went for a strike, but Brown moved and the heels hit Sabin with a super-kick. From there, Brown hit a splash and Misterioso landed a moonsault splash. Brown landed a brain-buster and Misterioso followed that with a leg-drop from the top for a near-fall. Stay Dog Army went for a double-team move, but it was countered to the point where Brown kicked Misterioso. It wasn’t long after that when the MCMG hit their finisher for the win.
“Motor City Machine Guns” Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin defeated “Stray Dog Army” Barrett Brown and Misterioso to retain the NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Titles via pinfall in 12:07.
The MCMG played to the crowd as they left ringside and that was the end of the show…
McGuire’s Musings: The outcome was never in doubt and that worked against both teams. They worked hard and they put on a pretty good match, all things considered, but there was no way the MCMG were going to drop those belts the first time we see them on Strong airwaves after winning the titles (which, to be fair, was finally addressed on this episode of Strong in full). Even so, the Stray Dog fellas have been elevated because of this and I think that’s a good thing. Where they go from here is anyone’s guess, but at least they aren’t thrown into the “you will always lose” pile.
That said, this wasn’t the best NJPW Strong episode I’ve seen in recent months. It probably wasn’t the worst, but it was closer to that than it was the best. Next week, we get Bobby Fish debut in the ring and we get a Strong Openweight Title match as the tour concludes, so here’s hoping all of that delivers. For now, this was a nothing-happening episode of the show. I’ll have more to say in my weekly NJPW Strong audio review for Dot Net Members (including our Patreon patrons).
Be the first to comment