By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “Super Junior Team League – Night 2”
October 26, 2024 in Kanagawa, Japan at Culttz Kawasaki
Streamed live on New Japan World
The venue is another large gym and most fans are seated on the floor. There is a small balcony, and overall attendance is maybe 800. Walker Stewart and Chris Charlton provided commentary.
* This year’s SJTL is a 12-team tournament. There are two Blocks with six teams in each Block. It is a round-robin tournament, so each team has five matches. The winners of each Block will advance to the finals. This is Night 2 of the tournament, and the B Block is in action with three tournament matches.
1. Shoma Kato and Masatora Yasuda vs. Nagai Daiki and Katsuya Murashima. All four wore Young Lion black trunks. Kato opened against the thicker Murashima. Yasuda and Daiki entered and immediately traded forearm strikes. Nagai has shaven sides of his head; Kato tied up Nagai’s legs on the mat. Yasuda locked in a half-crab on Murashima, but Katsuya reached the ropes at 6:00. Katsuya applied a Boston Crab, then he hit a dropkick. He again applied a Boston Crab, and Yasuda tapped out.
Nagai Daiki and Katsuya Murashima defeated Shoma Kato and Masatora Yasuda at 8:03.
2. Toru Yano, Capitan Suicida, and Tiger Mask vs. “House of Torture” Sho, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, and Yujiro Takahashi. The HoT attacked from behind to open and they stomped on Tiger Mask. All six fought on the floor. Back in the ring, the HoT kept working over Tiger Mask. Suicida tagged in at 3:30 and hit a top-rope crossbody block, then a head-scissors takedown, then an impressive flip dive to the floor on Sho. In the ring, Sho hit a spear on Suicida for a nearfall.
Yano entered at 6:00 and fought Yujiro, but Yano crashed into an exposed corner. The babyfaces hit dropkicks, and TM hit a Tiger Driver. Suicida hit a second-rope trust-fall to the floor. Yano rolled up Yujiro for the flash pin. Decent.
Toru Yano, Capitan Suicida, and Tiger Mask defeated Sho, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, and Yujiro Takahashi at 7:23.
3. Tomoaki Honma, Dragon Dia, and Ryusuke Taguchi vs. “Los Ingobernables de Japon” Tetsuya Naito, Bushi, and Hiromu Takahashi. Taguchi and Bushi opened. Taguchi got crotched on the top rope with Bushi shaking the ropes, so Taguchi could have his exaggerated facial features to sell the pain. Naito entered and hit an Atomic Drop so Taguchi could continue his juvenile antics and over-selling. Honma got in but he missed his Kokeshi falling headbutt on Naito at 6:00. Moments later, Honma hit the Kokeshi, then a clothesline for a nearfall. Naito got a jackknife cover on Honma for a nearfall. Naito applied a leglock submission hold around Honma’s neck, and Honma eventually tapped out. Blah. Nothing good here at all.
Tetsuya Naito, Bushi, and Hiromu Takahashi defeated Dragon Dia, Ryusuke Taguchi, and Honma at 8:41.
4. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, and Robbie Eagles vs. “Bullet Club War Dogs” Gedo, Drilla Moloney, and Clark Connors. Eagles and Drilla opened. They brawled on the floor. Back in the ring, the heels worked over Oiwa in their corner. Connors hit some chops that leveled Oiwa. Fujita hit a springboard double dropkick at 6:30. Fujita hit a moonsault off the apron to the floor onto Connors. In the ring, Connors hit a powerslam on Fujita. Eagles and Kosei hit a team slam on Connors. Drilla hit a spinebuster on Fujita. Connors hit a spin kick, then a Pounce on Eagles, and everyone was down at 9:00. Gedo and Oiwa got hot tags. Oiwa hit a gutwrench suplex, then a suplex and he was fired up. He applied a sleeper, then hit a discus clothesline and pinned Gedo.
Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, and Robbie Eagles defeated Gedo, Drilla Moloney, and Clark Connors at 10:38.
5. Jado, Master Wato, and Shota Umino vs. “Just 5 Guys” Douki, Sanada, and Taka Michinoku. They are building a story of Wato challenging Douki for the title, and those two opened against each other. Wato hit some spin kicks to the chest. Shota hit a fisherman’s suplex on Sanada for a nearfall at 4:30, and Charlton talked about how “Sanada is struggling to find himself” since he lost the title. Wato hit a plancha to the floor on Douki at 6:30. Jado and Taka got in and brawled. Sanada hit a Shining Wizard on Jado, and he locked in Skull End, and Jado tapped out. Decent match.
Sanada, Douki, and Taka Michinoku defeated Shota Umino, Jado, and Master Wato at 6:56.
6. Rocky Romero and Yoh vs. “Velocities” Jude London and Paris De Silva in a B Block tournament match. London wears a bandana around his forehead. Yoh and De Silva opened with basic offense. De Silva hit a dropkick on Rocky at 3:00. Velocities hit stereo dives through the ropes. (No guardrails at ringside for this tournament.) London hit a 619 move on Rocky and he stretched Romero on the mat. Paris jumped in and also tied up Rocky in an Octopus Stretch. Rocky hit a double huracanrana at 6:00 and he got the hot tag to Yoh.
Yoh hit a flying forearm; he has some tape on his left shoulder today. London hit a springboard stunner. London hit a Lethal Injection on Romero. London hit a Blockbuster on Yoh, with De Silva getting the nearfall at 8:30. Rocky hit his Forever Clotheslines on both opponents, then a Lungblower. Yoh hit a Falcon Arrow for a nearfall at 10:00. Yoh and Romero hit a team Flatliner move to pin De Silva. Good action.
Yoh and Rocky Romero (2) defeated Paris De Silva and Jude London (0) at 10:29.
7. Ninja Mack and The DKC vs. “Bullet Club” Taiji Ishimori and Robbie X in a B Block tournament match. Mack and DKC were “not on the same page” during their preview tag on Thursday, and that’s the case today as they walked to the ring. DKC and Ishimori opened. Mack and DKC argued some more. Mack and Robbie traded quicker mat reversals at 2:00, and Robbie twisted the left arm, and they had a standoff. They traded spin kicks to the thigh. Robbie set up for a Sasake Special dive, but Ishimori and Robbie cut him off at 4:30. Suddenly all four were brawling on the floor, and Ishimori was choking Mack with a toy sword; Charlton said Mack was selling those at the merchandise table.
Stewart indicated that Mack has “walked away from NOAH” so he’s making it sound like Mack could permanently be here, which I’m all for. Back in the ring, the heels kept Mack grounded. Ishimori began removing Mack’s mask at 7:00 but Mack stopped him. He applied a crossface, but Mack reached the ropes. Robbie knocked DKC to the floor to stop a hot tag. Robbie tied Mack in an Octopus Stretch. Mack hit a German Suplex on Robbie, then a back suplex on Ishimori. DKC made the hot tag at 9:30. He hit a springboard senton on Ishimori, then a dive through the ropes to the floor on Robbie. DKC hit a top-rope flying kick on Ishimori in the ring for a nearfall at 11:00.
DKC leaned Ishimori backwards and hit a series of knife-edge chops to the collarbone. Ishimori fired back with a handspring-back-enzuigiri. Ishimori hit his sliding German Suplex on DKC. Mack hit his Sasake Special dive to the floor at 12:30. DKC hit his knife-edge chops on Robbie for a nearfall. Robbie hit an assisted mid-ring moonsault on DKC for a nearfall. All four fought in the ring. DKC accidentally kicked Mack! Robbie hit a top-rope Phoenix Splash and pinned DKC. Good match, and I think DKC and Mack are going to struggle to trust each other the whole tournament.
Taiji Ishimori and Robbie X (2) defeated DKC and Ninja Mack (0) at 14:19.
8. “Jet Setters” Kevin Knight and Kushida vs. “Catch 2/2” Francesco Akira and TJP in a B Block tournament match. Knight and Akira opened; they blocked each other’s offense early on. Akira hit a head-scissors takedown. Knight hit a bodyslam; Charlton noted that Kevin is the largest competitor in the tournament. C22 hit some team offense on Kushida. Akira tied Kushida in a Tarantula in the ropes at 4:30. Akira hit a senton off of TJP’s shoulders and splashed onto Kushida for a nearfall. Knight snapped TJP’s left arm around the ring post, and the JS began focusing on TJP’s left arm. Kushida hit a basement dropkick on the damaged arm at 7:00.
Akira got the hot tag and he hit a huracanrana on Kushida, then a plancha on Knight. Akira hit a top-rope crossbody block on Knight for a nearfall at 9:00, then a running dropkick into the corner. TJP hit his Facewash strike on Knight. Knight hit a Sky High powerbomb on TJP. Kushida applied a cross-armbreaker on Akira, with Francesco fighting it. Kevin hit a plancha to the floor on TJP. Akira finally reached the ropes at 10:30. Knight hit a dropkick on TJP. Kushida hit a Pele Kick on Akira and suddenly everyone was down. TJP hit a tornado DDT on Knight. Knight hit a jump-up Frankensteiner on TJP. He hit a splash on Akira for a nearfall at 12:30.
Knight hit a springboard flying double clothesline. TJP and Akira hit stereo kicks on Knight. Akira hit a German Suplex with a bridge on Knight or a believable nearfall. Knight ducked Akira’s Fireball knee strike! Akira blocked Knight’s leaping DDT! Akira hit a top-rope Doomsday Bulldog for a believable nearfall at 14:30 but Kushida made the save. Akira hit another German Suplex, then a twisting neckbreaker on Knight for a believable nearfall. TJP and Akira hit running front-and-back kicks, and Akira pinned Knight. That could easily wind up being the best match of the whole tournament. TJP and Akira posed with the IWGP Junior Tag Team titles, but gave them back to the Jet Setters. Stewart said this loss will “eat away” at the Jet Setters the rest of the tournament.
TJP and Francesco Akira defeated Kevin Knight and Kushida at 15:25.
Final Thoughts: Now that I’ve seen each Block in action, it is clear that the B Block is far superior to the A Block. My three least favorite wrestlers in this tournament — Taguchi, Tiger Mask and Kanemaru — are all in the A Block.
No rest for the wicked! This tournament heads to Korakuen Hall in Tokyo for shows on both Sunday and Monday, with BOTH the A and B Blocks in action. (Each show has six tournament matches and just one non-tournament match in the announced lineups.) So, this tournament will already be at the midpoint after Monday’s action.
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