By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “Power Struggle”
November 4, 2024 in Osaka, Japan at Edion Arena Osaka
Streamed live on New Japan World
This is a small arena and the crowd could easily be 3,000. Walker Stewart and Chris Charlton provided commentary. This show features the finals of Super Junior Tag League; many of the teams who didn’t reach the finals are packed into the first couple of matches here.
1. Katsuya Murashima and “Velocities” Paris De Silva and Jude London and “Jet Setters” Kevin Knight and Kushida vs. “Bullet Club” Taiji Ishimori, Robbie X, Clark Connors, Drilla Moloney, and Gabe Kidd. Everyone brawled at the bell. The Velocities traded blows with Clark and Drilla. Kevin hit a double Pele Kick at 2:00. Connors hit a Gore on Knight. Robbie hit a Pele Kick. London hit a mid-ring Spanish Fly. Murashima tagged in for the first time and traded forearms with Kidd at 4:30. Kidd hit a hard clothesline. Robbie hit a twisting top-rope dive to the floor. He then hit a top-rope corkscrew splash on Murashima. Clark hit the No Chaser spike DDT on Murashima, and Moloney nailed the Drilla Killa on Murashima. Kidd hit a jumping piledriver on Murashima and pinned him. The poor Young Lion took everyone’s finisher!
Taiji Ishimori, Robbie X, Clark Connors, Drilla Moloney, and Gabe Kidd defeated Katsuya Murashima, Paris De Silva, Jude London, Kevin Knight, and Kushida at 6:30.
2. Ryusuke Taguchi, Dragon Dia, Toru Yano, and and Tomoaki Honma vs. “Los Ingobernables de Japon” Tetsuya Naito, Yota Tsuji, Bushi, and Hiromu Takahashi. Hiromu and Yano opened. We had the juvenile Taguchi humor where he got crotched on the top rope and sold the pain with his over-the-top expressions. Dia entered at 3:00 and hit a dropkick on Naito. Naito hit a Spinebuster on Dia, then an enzuigiri. Honma entered and missed a Kokeshi. Hiromu hit a superkick on Honma; Honma hit the Kokeshi on Hiromu. Hiromu tied Honma in his standing Figure Four Leglock, and he turned it over into a Texas Cloverleaf, and Honma tapped out.
Tetsuya Naito, Yota Tsuji, Bushi, and Hiromu Takahashi defeated Ryusuke Taguchi, Dragon Dia, Toru Yano, and Tomoaki Honma at 7:02.
3. “House of Torture” EVIL and Ren Narita vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi and Bolten Oleg. Again, Oleg is replacing El Phantasmo. HoT attacked from behind as Hiroshi and Oleg walked to the ring and I started my stopwatch at first contact. Dick Togo, Sho and Yoshinobu Kanemaru attacked, too. They got in the ring and the bell rang at about 1:00 to officially begin. EVIL immediately hit Darkness Falls and locked Hiroshi in a Sharpshooter. Ren entered and applied a half-crab; he grapevined the leg on the mat and kept Tanahashi grounded. Tanahashi hit a second-rope crossbody block on Ren at 5:00. Oleg got the hot tag and hit some shoulder tackles. Ren held the ref, allowing the other HoT guys to jump in the ring, but Oleg hit shoulder tackles on them, too. Oleg hit a Vader Bomb on Ren for a nearfall.
Oleg set up for the Kamikaze (forward Finlay Roll) but Ren escaped. The heels all took turns beating up Oleg, and Togo hit his knife-edge chop to Oleg’s groin for a nearfall at 7:00, but Tanahashi made the save. Hiroshi hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip, then a Twist and Shout neckbreaker, then a Sling Blade clothesline on Ren. Oleg hit a splash for a nearfall. Ren got a rollup and pinned Oleg. The heels continued to beat down Oleg and Tanahashi after the match. EVIL pulled out a pair of scissors! However, Jado made the save. HoT dragged Hiroshi to the back.
EVIL and Ren Narita defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi and Bolten Oleg at 8:21/official time is about 7:28.
* Ren hit the Double Cross (X-Factor) on Oleg and posed with one foot on his chest. Ryohei Oiwa jumped in the ring and spoke to Ren; he wants Ren’s title! Jeff Cobb also jumped in the ring and he too shoved Ren! However, Oiwa and Cobb started shoving each other! Ren fled, but Oiwa and Cobb kept shoving each other. Three-way dance? Intriguing post-match segment.
4. Sanada vs. Shota Umino. These two have been fighting nearly every night of the Super Junior Tag League tournament. Shota hit a flying back elbow to open. Sanada hit a dropkick at 1:30. Shota hit a Shotgun Dropkick on the floor. Sanada nailed the Magic Screw neckbreaker onto the thin mat at ringside. They brawled past the guardrails and Sanada shoved Shota into rows of chairs at 4:00. They got back into the ring, where Sanada hit a high back suplex for a nearfall, and he kept Shota grounded. Shota got up and they traded forearm strikes. Shota hit a tornado DDT at 8:00 and they were both down.
Shota hit a DDT onto the apron and they both rolled to the floor. In the ring, Shota set up for a Hidden Blade, but Sanada ducked it. Sanada hit another Magic Screw off the ropes at 11:00. Sanada locked in a standing Skull End dragon sleeper, and he fell to the center of the ring with it locked in. Sanada let go, and he hit a top-rope moonsault. Shota hit a fisherman’s brainbuster and they were both down. They got up and traded European Uppercuts. Sanada hit a Shining Wizard; Shota hit a Hidden Blade to the jaw. Shota hit a Bulldog powerslam at 16:00. Sanada got an O’Connor Roll for a nearfall, then a second Shining Wizard. Sanada went for Deadfall, but Shota escaped and he hit the Death Rider double-arm DDT for the clean pin! A very good match.
Shota Umino defeated Sanada at 16:40.
5. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Shane Haste and Mikey Nicholls vs. “United Empire” Great-O-Khan and Henare for the IWGP Tag Team Titles. O-Khan and Haste opened. Henare hit a Yes Kick to Shane’s chest, and O-Khan worked over Shane’s left arm. Henare hit a senton for a nearfall at 2:00. Nicholls entered and traded blows with Henare. (These two had a memorable G1 match where Nicholls dumped Henare on his head in a finishing move I haven’t seen him use since.) Henare hit some roundhouse kicks; Nicholls hit some chops. Henare hit a headbutt that staggered Nicholls and he fell down at 4:00; Nicholls got up and hit a spinebuster and a sliding clothesline for a nearfall. Henare applied a Full Nelson; Nicholls has a trickle of blood on his forehead, and I think it’s from that headbutt! NIcholls hit another sliding clothesline and they were both down at 5:30.
Haste and O-Khan tagged back in, and O-Khan applied a cross-armbreaker on the mat. TMDK hit a team suplex on O-Khan out of the corner for a nearfall at 8:30. TMDK hit the Tank Buster team faceplant for a nearfall, but Henare made the save. Nicholls hit a Blue Thunder Bomb on Henare and kicked him to the floor. Henare applied Claws to the head of each opponent, but Nicholls hit a standing powerbomb on Henare for a nearfall. Henare hit a running team neckbreaker and pinned Nicholls! New champions! I didn’t expect that.
Henare and Great-O-Khan defeated Mikey Nicholls and Shane Haste to win the IWGP Tag Team Titles at 11:12.
* Kenny Omega came to the ring, wearing a suit jacket and blue jeans. He spoke in Japanese. Charlton said Omega said he wasn’t sure he would be here. He recently sat down with Tanahashi and they had a good talk. Tanahashi suggested that if Omega is ready to wrestle, he should wrestle a young wrestler on the NJPW roster. Omega said he’s been sick but is getting better, and in just a little bit, he will be able to wrestle again. (Huge pop.) If he’s able to come back, he wants to come back here in NJPW (Huge pop.) He isn’t able to say right now when that will be, but how about Jan. 5? He finally switched to English and said he wants to come back here to NJPW and test himself against a young star. He said NJPW is still one of his favorite places to wrestle, and NJPW is still home. (I am in awe of how fluent Omega is.)
6. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Robbie Eagles and Kosei Fujita vs. “Catch 2/2” TJP and Francesco Akira in the finals of Super Junior Tag League. Kosei and Akira opened. Kosei hit a top-rope flip dive onto everyone on the floor. Akira hit a flip dive to the floor on the opponents at 2:30. In the ring, TJP slammed teammate Akira onto Fujita, and TJP tied up Kosei’s legs and applied a Muta Lock. TJP hit a running Facewash kick in the corner on Kosei at 5:00. Kosei caught TJP with a flying kick and they were both down. Eagles entered and hit some kicks on Akira, then his Meteora running double knees in the corner for a nearfall. TMKD hit a team slam on Akira for a nearfall at 7:30, but TJP made the save.
Akira nailed a Poison Rana on Eagles and a sit-out powerbomb on Kosei. TJP hit a doublestomp to the chest as Kosei was tied in the Tree of Woe and he got a nearfall. TMDK hit stereo spin kicks to TJP’s head. Kosei hit a German Suplex with a high bridge for a nearfall on TJP. TJP hit a Falcon Arrow for a nearfall at 10:00. They traded forearm strikes while on their knees, then while standing. Akira hit an Asai Moonsault on Eagles. Kosei got an O’Connor Roll or a nearfall on Kosei. C2/2 hit their team X-Factor on Kosei. Eagles hit a Frankensteiner on Akira. Eagles hit a springboard dropkick on TJP’s knee at 12:30. Kosei hit a DDT on TJP for a nearfall. Kosei hit a flying stunner on TJP for a believable nearfall, but Akira made the save!
Eagles accidentally collided with Fujita, sending Kosei to the floor. Akira hit his Doomsday stunner for a nearfall on Eagles, but Fujita made the save. Akira accidentally superkicked TJP! Eagles got a rollup for a nearfall on TJP. TJP got a rollup for a nearfall; Eagles rolled up TJP for the pin. This was fast-paced and non-stop action. What a match. Eagles and Fujita were presented with their winged trophies. C2/2 got to their feet and shook hands with the winners. Eagles got on the mic and shouted “We did it!” in Japanese. Fujita took the mic and said they proved tonight that the TMDK era has arrived, and he thanked Eagles. He said it also means they get to challenge Kushida and Kevin Knight to a title match. Kushida and Knight walked to the ring. Kushida said he accepts their challenge. Kushida called TJP and Akira back to the ring. Knight said “we’ll see you at Wrestle Kingdom.” Drilla Moloney and Clark Connors jumped in the ring, chairs in hand, and beat up all six guys.
Robbie Eagles and Kosei Fujita defeated TJP and Francesco Akira to win Super Junior Tag League at 15:20.
* Chris Charlton said that Gabe Kidd has attacked Kenny Omega backstage! (No footage of this assault. But that is a match that would definitely make sense for Omega.)
7. Douki vs. Master Wato for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title. Wato is 0-3 in title matches. (Wato just came back and demanded a title match; shouldn’t he have to earn it?) An intense lockup to open and they traded forearm strikes. Charlton noted how Wato has dropped the blue tint in his hair and no longer looks like a boy. Wato hit a huracanrana. Douki dove through the ropes onto Wato at 3:00. He hit a doublestomp to the chest, and Wato remained down on the mat at ringside. In the ring, Douki applied a leglock around Wato’s neck and kept him grounded. Wato hit a high back suplex and they were both down at 7:00. Wato hit a dropkick that sent Douki to the floor, then he hit a flip dive to the floor on him. Wato hit a springboard flying forearm in the ring for a nearfall at 8:30.
Wato applied the Vendeval submission hold around the neck, but Douki immediately got his feet on the ropes. Douki set up for Daybreak (slingshot DDT), but Wato blocked it. Douki hit a baseball slide dropkick, sending Wato crashing into the guardrail at ringside. Douki hit a DDT on the ring apron at 10:30. Douki hit a top-rope flying splash onto Wato on the floor. In the ring, Douki hit a top-rope doublestomp to the gut, then he locked in the Douki Chokey triangle choke, but Wato reached the ropes. Douki again went for Daybreak, but Wato caught him and hit a Snow Plow driver for a nearfall at 13:00, and they were both down. Wato mouse-trapped the arms and got a Seatbelt double-armbar cover for a nearfall.
They traded rollups, and Wato went back to the Vendeval! Douki eventually reached the ropes, and they were both down at 16:00. Douki hit a snap Dragon Suplex but couldn’t make a cover. They traded forearm strikes while on their knees, then while standing. Wato hit a Mafia Kick; Douki hit a hard clothesline. Wato hit an inverted Samoan Drop, with Douki crashing stomach-first to the mat at 19:00. Wato hit a series of right-and-left kicks and got a nearfall. Wato hit a flying spin kick and he was fired up. Wato hit a German Suplex with a high bridge for a nearfall. Douki applied the Douki Chokey! They rolled around on the mat with Wato flailing to escape. Douki hit a leaping DDT and reapplied the Douki Chokey, and we could see Wato slowly pass out, and the ref called for the bell. A fantastic match; I’ll say this is Wato’s best singles match, even better than last year when he beat Titan to win BoSJ.
Douki defeated Master Wato to retain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title at 22:04.
* El Desperado walked to the ring! He’s been out of action all summer. (In NJPW, you either have to win a strenuous tournament to get a title shot, or get injured, miss a bunch of time, and walk right back in and immediately get a title shot.) Desperado got on the mic and said (in Japanese with Charlton’s translation) that he’s proud of this weight class, and he loves junior heavyweight wrestling, and he’s challenging Douki to a match at the Tokyo Dome in January. Desperado said “this is about you and me.” He said everyone here wants to see it. Douki got on the mic and noted he has beaten four challengers now. He agreed that facing Desperado in the Tokyo Dome is a great situation.
8. David Finlay (w/Gedo) vs. Taichi for the IWGP Global Title. Basic offense early on, and Taichi hit a backbody drop at 3:00. Finlay dropped him throat-first on the top rope and hit some punches. They brawled to the floor, with Finlay in charge. They got back into the ring, and Finlay did some push-ups. They got to their feet and traded punches. Taichi dumped Finlay over the top rope to the floor at 6:00, and Finlay crashed jaw-first against the guardrail. Taichi now whipped Finlay into the guardrails. They got into the ring and Taichi hit some more kicks. He hit an awesome spin kick to the jaw that dropped Finlay for a nearfall at 9:00. Taichi hit an enzuigiri and they were both down.
Finlay nailed the Irish Curse backbreaker over his knee. They traded blows on the ring apron; Finlay set up for a piledriver, but Taichi escaped. Instead, Finlay shoved Taichi into the ring post at 11:30, and Taichi crashed to the floor. In the ring, Finlay hit a Dominator swinging faceplant at 14:00. Taichi hit a huracanrana and a high back suplex, and they were both down. Taichi hit a spin kick and a short-arm clothesline. He hit another back suplex for a nearfall. Finlay nailed the Oblivion neckbreaker over his knee for a believable nearfall, then a release powerbomb for a nearfall at 18:00. Finlay hit an Air Raid Crash for a nearfall, and the crowd rallied for Taichi. Finlay went for Overkill, but Taichi blocked it and got a rollup. Taichi hit a side slam for a nearfall. FInlay hit a discus forearm and a Buckle Bomb; Taichi popped up and hit a superkick.
Gedo distracted Taichi, but Taichi hit a Black Mephisto (Air Raid Crash) for a visual pin, but Sanada pulled the ref from the ring! “What is Sanada doing??” Stewart shouted. Taichi thought Gedo did it, but the crowd knew it was Sanada. Sanada removed his jacket and he has a “Release the War Dogs” T-shirt on! “I can’t believe this!” Stewart shouted. Finlay hit Taichi with a shillelagh strike to the head, then he hit the Overkill (pop-up kneestrike to the sternum) for the tainted pin. Sanada got in the ring and celebrated with Jado and David Finlay. I guess this essentially ends the Just 5 Guys faction. Sanada pulled Taichi to his feet, hugged him, but hit the Deadfall (Jay White’s Blade Runner) for good measure.
David Finlay defeated Taichi to retain the IWGP Global Title at 23:19.
* Finlay got on the mic and boasted about winning as he showed off the title. He said he didn’t go online and bitch and moan like other people did. No, he waited, watched and schemed. He said he tried to warn Taichi. Finlay said this match only happened because Yuya Uemura “is too scared to face me.” (Yuya, of course, is injured and out for the rest of the year.) Finlay called out Yota Tsuji! Tsuji walked to the ring in his street clothes. Finlay offered Yota a title shot at Wrestle Kingdom. Tsuji got on the mic and accepted.
9. Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Shingo Takagi for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. They traded mat holds at the bell, with Sabre going for the left arm. They traded shoulder tackles at 4:00 with neither going down. Sabre went for an Octopus Stretch, but Shingo shrugged him off. Shingo snapped Sabre’s left arm over the top rope; Sabre hit a neckbreaker in the ropes, and Shingo fell to the floor. They brawled on the floor at 6:00, with Sabre hitting some European uppercuts, then he snapped Shingo’s neck between his ankles, and Shingo was slow to get back into the ring. Sabre immediately went to work on the damaged neck. Shingo missed a senton at 8:00, and Sabre immediately hit another snap of the neck between his ankles.
Shingo hit a clothesline to the back of the head at 9:30. Shingo hit a suplex, and this time he hit the senton for a nearfall. Sabre bent Shingo’s arm and stomped on the left elbow. Sabre snapped the left arm across his shoulder. Shingo snapped Sabre’s neck between his knees at 11:30. Shingo hit a suplex. Sabre finally locked in the Octopus Stretch; Shingo escaped and hit a Death Valley Driver, then a sliding clothesline. However, Zack rolled through it and tied up both arms behind Shingo’s back at 13:30. Shingo hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip out of the ropes, but he sold pain in his left arm. Shingo hit a back suplex; Sabre hit a German Suplex and a Pele Kick. Shingo popped up and hit a clothesline and they were both down at 16:30.
They got up and Sabre hit some European uppercuts. Shingo hit a Tiger Suplex and a clothesline. Shingo picked up Sabre but his arm gave out, and Sabre immediately tied him up on the mat. Shingo nailed the Made In Japan pumphandle powerbomb for a believable nearfall at 19:30. Sabre stomped on the back of Shingo’s thighs. Sabre nailed the Zack Driver but couldn’t make a cover. Shingo hit a twisting suplex. They traded blows and Shingo hit a headbutt and a diving forearm. He hit some Moxley-style elbow strikes to the side of Sabre’s head, and he applied a sleeper on the mat at 23:30. Sabre hit a tornado DDT and another Zack Driver for a nearfall, and he immediately tied up Shingo’s legs. Shingo eventually got to the ropes at 26:00.
Sabre again snapped the neck between the ankles, but Shingo hit a Michinoku Driver and a Death Valley Driver, but Sabre rolled to the ropes to avoid being pinned. They traded blows and Shingo nailed the Pumping Bomber clothesline for a nearfall at 28:30. Zack hit a German Suplex and a Penalty Kick for a nearfall. Zack hit one more Sabre Driver and scored the pin. While I never really thought Shingo was winning here, this was a pretty epic match.
Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Shingo Takagi to retain the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at 29:27.
* Zack spoke in Japanese, saying it is really hot in here. He wondered who would be the next challenger. Shota Umino walked to the ring to a surprising number of boos! Shota said he needs the world title and he challenged Sabre. Zack said anytime is fine with him. They shook hands and Shota left, with another smattering of boos. Sabre said he met his first goal of winning G1, met his second goal of winning the title, and now he’s getting his third goal of wrestling in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom. The confetti cannons went off and he was covered by gold streamers. BUT wait!!! Ricochet’s music played! Ricochet came in through the crowd, dressed in a suit, and hit a springboard clothesline on Sabre! Ricochet got on the mic and said he hadn’t had a chance to congratulate him on his wins, so he did that now. Ricochet said whoever holds that title is recognized as the best wrestler on the planet, and has a lot of power. Ricochet said he wants that power! He said he wants to show “that I’m still the f—en man around here!” He challenged Sabre to a match on Jan. 5 at Wrestle Dynasty. Ricochet set up to hit Sabre again, but Shota rolled back in for the save, and Ricochet bailed. Sabre kicked Shota; Shota hit a Death Rider on Sabre and more LOUD boos at Shota! Ricochet stood on the entrance ramp and watched this all unfold in the ring.
Final Thoughts: Certainly a very newsworthy show. Ricochet wants a title shot. Sanada turned heel, and I certainly didn’t see that coming. It feels like Sanada JUST left LIJ to form Just 5 Guys, and now he’s walking away from that. We had several matches set up for Wrestle Kingdom, from Finlay-Tsuji to presumably Kidd-Omega to Douki-Desperado. So many good matches to choose from here, but I’ll go with Sabre-Shingo for best match, Wato-Douki for second, and Catch 2/2-TMDK for third. But that feels like it shortchanges how good Sanada-Shota and Finlay-Taichi were! Some incredible action.
A very long show. If I had a complaint, one of those opening multi-man matches could have been cut, and I’m not usually one to suggest a show is long, but this did clock in at more than four and a half hours.
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