By Chris Vetter, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@chrisvetter73)
New Japan Pro Wrestling “King of Pro Wrestling 2025”
October 13, 2025, in Tokyo, Japan, at Sumo Hall
Streamed live on New Japan World
The venue is a small arena; the crowd could be 2,000 or more. The lighting over the ring was good, while the crowd was in the shadows. Chris Charlton and Walker Stewart provided commentary.
1. Sareee vs. Syuri for the IWGP Women’s Title. Saree was in red; Syuri was in white-and-silver gear. They immediately tied each other up and targeted the left arm of their opponent. They traded rollups and had a standoff. Syuri hit a shotgun dropkick and a snap suplex for a nearfall at 2:00. Sareee hit a basement dropkick, and she kept Syuri grounded. Sareee applied a Muta Lock at 4:00. Walker said their all-time record is 1-1-1 in three prior meetings. Syuri hit some stiff kicks to the spine. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Sareee hit a dropkick at 6:00, then a doublestomp to the chest.
Sareee hit a basement dropkick as Syuri was in the ropes, and she was back in control. They got up and traded slaps to the face. Sareee hit some headbutts, and they both collapsed. Syuri hit some Yes Kicks to the chest. Sareee hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip and a second-rope stomp on the damaged knee at 8:30. Syuri applied a hammerlock on the top rope and flipped them both to the mat, with the submission hold still locked in. She switched to a cross-armbreaker, but Sareee quickly got to the ropes. Syuri hit a DDT out of the ropes at 10:00, then a Bulldog Powerslam for a nearfall. Sareee hit a standing powerbomb, and she mounted Syuri and repeatedly punched her.
Sareee hit a running stomp for a nearfall at 11:30, then a top-rope doublestomp to the gut for a nearfall. She hit some twisting uranages for a nearfall! Syuri hit a spin kick to the skull at 13:00, then some knee lifts to the gut. Sareee hit an Exploder Suplex for a nearfall. “We’re starting off hotter than ever!” Walker exclaimed. Syuri hit a running knee for a nearfall. She hit a buzzsaw kick to the side of Sareee’s head for a nearfall, then a second one. Syuri put her on her shoulders and hit a modified One-Winged Angel for the pin! New champion! An excellent match.
Syuri defeated Sareee to win the IWGP Women’s Title at 14:54.
2. Shingo Takagi, Titan, and Hiromu Takahashi vs. “Bullet Club War Dogs” David Finlay, Clark Connors, and Taiji Ishimori (w/Gedo). Finlay and Shingo opened. Hiromu battled Clark. Hiromu hit a shotgun dropkick that sent Connors flying backwards into Ishimori at 4:00. Titan hit a springboard dropkick on Connors, then a spin kick to David’s jaw. Shingo hti a double clothesline that sent two Dogs to the floor. Titan hit a flip dive onto all three War Dogs. In the ring, he hit a splash on Ishimori for a nearfall.
Finlay nailed the Northern Irish Curse backbreaker over his knee on Hiromu, then Oblivion (neckbreaker over his knee) on Titan for a nearfall at 6:30. Shingo jumped in and traded forearm strikes with Finlay; David hit a clothesline, and they were both down. Connors hit a spear on Hiromu. Titan hit a shotgun dropkick. Finlay nailed a Buckle Bomb on Titan, then the Overkill (pop-up knee strike to the sternum) to pin Titan. That match was an all-out sprint.
David Finlay, Clark Connors, Taiji Ishimori defeated Shingo Takagi, Titan, and Hiromu Takahashi at 7:57.
3. Sanada vs. Drilla Moloney in a “Riot in Ryogoku” street fight. This has been brewing for months. Drilla immediately clotheslined him over the top rope to the floor, and they brawled at ringside. Sanada picked up a fork, but Drilla grabbed it and struck Sanada in the forehead with it. Moloney jabbed a chair into the forehead. They went past the guardrails at 2:00 and into the crowd. Drilla set up to powerbomb Sanada on two tables at 4:00, but Sanada escaped. Drilla hit more jabs of the chair into the forehead, then a chair shot to the back. Sanada hit a back-body drop that flipped Moloney onto the sturdy, unbreakable tables at 5:30, but it didn’t break.
So, Sanada hit a uranage, throwing Drilla onto the table, and this time it broke. They got back into the ring. Sanada was dripping blood from his forehead but he was in charge. He hit a low blow and was booed. Moloney fired back with a dropkick, then a baseball slide dropkick to the floor at 7:30. On the floor, Sanada cracked a guitar over Drilla’s head at 9:00. Sanada hit some punches; his hand was covered in blood. They got back into the ring, and Sanada jabbed a fork or nail (or something similar to it) into Drilla’s forehead. Sanada hit a Shining Wizard at 11:00, but he missed a moonsault.
Drilla accidentally crashed into the ref! Moloney nailed the Drilla Killa (swinging piledriver) for a visual pin, but we had no ref! Dick Togo and Yoshinobu Kanemaru jumped in the ring and beat up Moloney. “This is a mockery of the stipulations!” Walker shouted. Sanada climbed on top but only got a nearfall at 13:00. Clark Connors ran into the ring and attacked Kanemaru and Togo. He got his car tire and hit them with it. Drilla broke a guitar over Sanada’s head, then hit a second Drilla Killa for the pin. I’ll reiterate that I’ve never seen anyone in NJPW kick out of that finisher. Charlton said a “six-month vendetta” has come to an end.
Drilla Moloney defeated Sanada at 14:27.
4. Yoshi-Hashi, Hirooki Goto, and Yoh vs. “The Mighty Don’t Kneel” Kosei Fujita, Ryohei Oiwa, and Hartley Jackson. This is the big return for Goto after getting injured just before the G1 Climax. We also haven’t seen TMDK in a few weeks. Goto and Oiwa opened and locked up. Oiwa hit some shoulder tackles that dropped Goto. Goto’s team beat up Hartley and dropped him on Oiwa. Oiwa hit a dropkick on Yoshi-Hashi at 2:30. Hartley tagged in and suplexed Y-H for a nearfall, then he bodyslammed Yoh. Fujita entered and hit a running Penalty Kick on Yoshi-Hashi for a nearfall at 4:00.
Yoshi-Hashi hit a suplex on Fujita. Yoh entered and hit some dropkicks on each opponent; Hartley didn’t budge on Yoh’s dropkick! Yoh and Kosei traded quick reversals, with Fujita hitting a flying spin kick to the chest, and they were both down at 6:00. Goto and Jackson tagged in, and they traded clotheslines, with Hartley getting a nearfall. Hartley hit a senton for a nearfall. Yoh hit a plancha to the floor. In the ring, Goto and Yoshi-Hashi hit the Shoto team slam on Hartley, then Goto hit the GTR neckbreaker over his knee to pin Jackson. Good action, and it’s really good to see Goto back in action.
Yoshi-Hashi, Hirooki Goto, and Yoh defeated Kosei Fujita, Ryohei Oiwa, and Hartley Jackson at 7:56.
* An announcement that “The New Beginning USA” will be held in Trenton, N.J., in February.
5. El Phantasmo (w/Jado) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the NJPW TV Title. A reminder, this bout has a 15-minute time limit. Standing switches early on and a standoff at 1:00. Charlton noted that Tanahashi has had 35 singles matches this year as they traded forearm strikes. They did some humor with the air guitar, with Tanahashi throwing it into the crowd. ELP hit a Lionsault for a nearfall. He went for a superkick, but Tanahashi blocked it, and he hit a Twist-and-Shout neckbreaker at 3:00. ELP hit an enzuigiri in the corner. ELP tied him in the Tree of Woe and did an ‘Oh Canada’ stomp on the groin! ELP went for a dropkick, but he wound up crotching himself around the ring post.
Tanahashi hit a running somersault cannonball from the apron onto ELP on the floor at 5:30. ELP hit a Dragonscrew Legwhip in the ropes, then a dive through the ropes and crashed onto Tanahashi on the floor. Phantasmo flipped Tanahashi into the crowd. ELP then went for a top-rope splash, going over the guardrail, but Tanahashi moved, and ELP crashed onto some chairs! Tanahashi rolled into the ring; ELP limped but got into the ring at 7:30 before a countout. Tanahashi hit a basement dropkick on the knee, and he applied a standing Figure Four leg lock and turned it into a Texas Cloverleaf at 9:00, but ELP reached the ropes.
Tanahashi set up for CR2 (ELP’s finisher!), but Phantasmo blocked it. The 10-minute call was spot-on. ELP got a rollup for a nearfall. Hiroshi hit a Sling Blade clothesline for a nearfall. ELP couldn’t hit a Frankensteiner, and he crashed to the mat. Tanahashi it a top-rope crossbody block, then he went for a High Fly Flow, but ELP got his knees up to block it at 12:30. ELP hit a Sudden Death superkick for a nearfall. Tanahashi got some rollups for nearfalls. ELP hit the CR2 (modified Styles Clash) for a nearfall. He nailed the Thunderkiss 86 (springboard frogsplash) for a believable nearfall. Phantasmo applied a Lion Tamer (vertical Boston Crab), but Tanahashi held on as the time limit expired right on at 15:00. That was well above my expectations.
El Phantasmo vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi went to a time-limit draw at 15:00; Phantasmo retains the TV Title.
6. Boltin Oleg vs. EVIL for the NEVER Openweight Title. EVIL carried Oleg’s title belt to the ring. Oleg came out second, got in the ring, and they immediately brawled. Walker reminded us that EVIL beat Oleg in this year’s G1 Climax in their only prior singles meeting. We had a bell at 00:37 to officially begin, but they brawled to the floor, and EVIL whipped him into the guardrail. EVIL shoved a mic in Oleg’s face and demanded he quit. In the ring, EVIL applied a half-crab, but Oleg grabbed the ropes at 2:30. On the floor, Yujiro Takahashi whipped Oleg into the guardrail, and Don Fale stepped onto Oleg’s chest. Back in the ring, EVIL targeted the left leg and twisted it, and kept Oleg grounded.
EVIL went for some pins, but Oleg forcefully kicked out. Oleg dropped EVIL with some shoulder tackles at 5:00. He flipped the big EVIL around in his arms and hit a gut-wrench suplex, then he nailed a Vader Bomb for a nearfall. The ref got bumped. Takahashi tried to throw powder, but it went into Dick Togo’s eyes. The ref got struck again, so Don Fale jumped in the ring; he went for The Grenade, but Oleg avoided it. Toru Yano and the Young Lions at ringside cleared out all of the House of Torture and sent them to the back! Both EVIL and Oleg were down at 8:30. EVIL hit some clotheslines, and he applied the Darkness Scorpion (Sharpshooter), but Boltin reached the ropes.
Oleg hit a standing powerbomb, then an F5 faceplant slam at 11:00. Sho now appeared at ringside, but Oleg grabbed him and hit the Kamikaze (forward Finlay Roll) on Sho. Oleg hit a Kamikaze on EVIL! Douki jumped in the ring and hit Oleg in the leg with a pipe! EVIL nailed the Everything is Evil (uranage) for the tainted pin. New champion! Stewart described the House of Torture “as the cockroaches of professional wrestling.”
EVIL defeated Boltin Oleg to win the NEVER Openweight Title at 12:32/official time of 11:55.
* Aaron Wolf, a gold medalist, jumped in the ring and flipped several of the HoT to the mat. EVIL got on the mic and told Wolf he’s going to “crush” him. Wolf is slated for his in-ring debut at Wrestle Kingdom on Jan. 4, and he may have found his first opponent!
7. “The Knock Out Brothers” Yuto-Ice and Oskar vs. Shota Umino and Yuya Uemura for the IWGP Tag Team Titles. All four brawled at the bell. Yuya immediately applied a hammerlock on Yuto-Ice, as Charlton talked about Yuto having a bad elbow. Yuto hit running double knees in the corner on Uemura at 2:00. Oskar caught Yuya in his arms and slammed him to the mat, and the champs worked Uemura over. Shota entered and hit a basement dropkick on Oskar’s knee. He hit a dropkick on Yuto-Ice at 4:30. Shota and Oskar traded forearm strikes. Oskar hit an elbow drop to the back for a nearfall at 6:00.
Umino hit a German Suplex, and they were both down. Yuya tagged back in and traded forearm strikes with Yuto-Ice. Yuto hit a delayed suplex for a nearfall at 7:30. Yuya went to a cross-armbreaker, but Yuto quickly got to the ropes. Oskar hit a double-noggin-knocker at 10:00, but Yuya and Shota hit a team back suplex on him. Shota hit a top-rope superplex on Yuto, and Yuya immediately hit a frogsplash for a nearfall on Yuto! They hit a team dropkick on Oskar at 11:30, and Yuya again tied Yuto-Ice in a hammerlock!
Yuya and Yuto traded headbutts as Yuya was trying to hit the Deadbolt Suplex. However, Oskar came up behind Yuya and put him in a sleeper and slammed Uemura to the mat at 13:00. Shota clotheslined Oskar to the floor. Yuto-Ice dropped Umino with a straight punch to the jaw! Yuya applied a cross-armbreaker on Yuto, but Oskar made the save. Yuto-Ice hit Yuya with another punch to the jaw. Oskar hit a Tombstone Piledriver, and Yuto covered Yuya for the pin. That was really, really good, too.
Yuto-Ice and Oskar defeated Shota Umino and Yuya Uemura to retain the IWGP Tag Team Titles at 14:53.
8. Gabe Kidd vs. Yota Tsuji for the IWGP Global Title. Walker asked, “If a mental hospital can’t contain Gabe Kidd, what can?” An intense lockup to open, and Yota slowed him down with a headlock on the mat early on. He dropped Kidd with a shoulder tackle at 2:00. Kidd hit a dropkick and celebrated. They brawled to the floor, and Kidd hit some chops along the guardrail. In the ring, Gabe draped Yota over the top rope and kicked him, and he was in charge. He hit a powerbomb for a nearfall at 5:30. Kidd missed a dropkick in the corner and crashed. Yota nailed a dive through the ropes onto Kidd.
In the ring, they traded forearm strikes, and Yota hit a gutbuster over his knees, and he applied a Boston Crab. Tsuji hit a hard knee strike and got a nearfall at 9:00. A loud chop dropped Kidd. Gabe hit a hard clothesline, and they were both down. Gabe now put Yota in a Boston Crab at 11:30, dragged him to the center of the ring, and sat deep on the lower back, but Tsuji eventually reached the ropes. Gabe hit a butterfly suplex for a nearfall; Charlton said Kidd hasn’t done that move in recent memory. Yota nailed a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker over his knee at 14:00, but he couldn’t hit the Marlowe Crash doublestomp. Kidd hit a piledriver for a nearfall.
Yota hit a Canadian Destroyer at 15:30! Charlton couldn’t recall Yota doing that before. He hit a jumping knee into the corner, but he again couldn’t hit a Marlowe Crash. He hit a Flatliner and a German Suplex, then a clothesline for a nearfall at 17:00. Kidd hit a sit-out powerbomb for a believable nearfall. Yota nailed the Gene Blaster (spear) at 18:30 but was slow to make a cover. Yota hit a top-rope reverse superplex, with Kidd crashing stomach-first to the mat. Tsuji set up for a Gene Blaster, but Kidd caught him and hit a piledriver, then a second piledriver, for a believable nearfall!
The ref checked on Yota and backed away Kidd for a moment. Gabe pulled Yota to his feet, but Tsuji hit a headbutt, and they both were down at 21:00. They got onto all fours and traded headbutts. They traded forearm strikes while on their knees, and more while standing. Kidd dropped him with a punch to the jaw at 23:00. Yota hit a Gene Blaster but only got a one-count! Yota hit a second Gene Blaster! He went back to the Boston Crab! Kidd tapped out! New champion! Some truly top-notch action. They bowed to each other and kissed the lion mark on the mat. They got up, shook hands, and hugged!
Yota Tsuji defeated Gabe Kidd to win the IWGP Global Title at 24:14.
* Charlton said he got word from backstage that Aaron Wolf has indeed challenged EVIL to a match on Jan. 4.
* David Finlay and the Bullet Club got into the ring. Finlay was clearly annoyed that Kidd just gave a hug and a handshake. However, Finlay then shook Yota’s hand! (I really thought Kidd was about to get ejected from the BCWD, but it went another direction.) All the Bullet Club members shook hands with the ‘Unaffiliated’ squad of Shingo, Hiromu, Titan, and Nagai. “This is a major shift,” Walker said. Stewart added, “I don’t know what to think about this.”
9. Zack Sabre Jr. (w/TMDK) vs. Konosuke Takeshita (w/Rocky Romero) for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. Standing reversals to open. Takeshita ducked a running penalty kick and rolled to the floor to regroup. In the ring, Sabre applied a cravat and kept Takeshita grounded. He twisted the left arm. Takeshita hit a flying back elbow at 4:00, then a second-rope flying senton for a nearfall. Sabre applied a cross-armbreaker in the ropes but let go before the five-count at 6:00. He stomped on the damaged right elbow and targeted it. (Takeshita does wear a pad over that right elbow.) They got up, and Sabre hit some European Uppercuts, and he went for a cross-armbreaker, but Takeshita got a rollup for a nearfall. Konosuke hit an Exploder SUplex for a nearfall at 9:00.
Takeshita hit another suplex, and Sabre rolled to the ropes. Takeshita hit a Mafia Kick that knocked Sabre from the apron to the floor, then Takeshita nailed a flip dive over the ropes onto Zack. Sabre again stomped on the damaged right elbow on the apron at 11:30, and Takeshita rolled to the floor and sold the pain in his limb. Konosuke got back in the ring, but Sabre snapped the right arm between his legs, and he was in control. Takeshita hit a Blue Thunder Bomb for a nearfall at 13:30, but Sabre immediately applied a Triangle Choke upon kicking out! Nice! Takeshita hit a hard forearm strike that dropped Sabre, then a clothesline for a nearfall at 15:00.
Takeshita hit a German Suplex and got an O’Connor Roll for a nearfall. They got up and traded Mafia Kicks. Takeshita hit another German Suplex, but Sabre hit a Zack Driver, and they were both down at 17:30. They got up and traded forearm strikes. Takeshita CLOCKED him with a forearm that dropped Sabre at 20:00. “Right through the skull, the brain rattling against bone,” Charlton said. Takeshita hit a running knee, but Sabre rolled through it and applied a double armbar, almost into a Rings of Saturn, and Takeshita teased tapping out. Romero shouted words of encouragement to Takeshita, telling him where the ropes were, and Takeshita finally got a foot on the ropes at 21:30.
Sabre hit some roundhouse kicks to the chest. Takeshita hit a Last Ride standing powerbomb, then a Power Drive (running knee to the head) for a nearfall. Sabre hit a sunset flip powerbomb out of the corner at 25:00, then a running Penalty Kick and a tornado DDT, but Takeshita hit the Raging Fire (twisting Falcon Arrow) and they were both down. Awesome. Takeshita applied a Crossface Chickenwing on the mat, but Sabre escaped at 27:00, and Zack immediately stomped on the right elbow again. Sabre charged, but Takeshita caught him with a knee. Sabre hit another Zack Driver for a nearfall.
They got up, and Sabre hit more European Uppercuts, as Takeshita looked out on his feet. Takeshita removed the pad over his right elbow, and he hit a stiff forearm strike that dropped Sabre. “Straight murder!” Walker said. Sabre went to a Fujiwara Armbar, but Takeshita hit a German Suplex at 30:00, then another one. Takeshita hit a Poison Rana, then another Power Drive knee! He hit another Power Drive for the pin! New champion! I didn’t expect that! “The standard has been redefined tonight!” Stewart said. Charlton chimed in, “History has been made; the world has changed.”
Konosuke Takeshita defeated Zack Sabre Jr. to win the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at 31:15.
* Takeshita told the crowd (according to Charlton’s translations!) that he will treat the belt “with the importance it deserves.” He knows there are wrestlers upset that he just won the belt, but he said those complaining wrestlers should make those comments directly to his face. Hirooki Goto walked to the ring! (I do recall Goto beating Takeshita in the 2024 G1 Climax.) Goto got on the mic and said, “You knew I was coming, right?” and that got some laughs. Goto said he wants next. Takeshita wondered where the young talent is. Takeshita noted, “There is a debt to be repaid” from that G1 loss I just mentioned. Goto turned and left with no punches thrown. Takeshita told the crowd, “If you cheer me, you’ll have a helluva fun ride.” The confetti cannons went off, and he was covered in golden streamers. Rocky jumped in the ring to celebrate with Takeshita.
Final Thoughts: A stellar show. A great main event, and I truly didn’t expect the title change. Kidd-Tsuji would be the best match on virtually any other show, but it can only take second here. The tag title match was fantastic. The opening women’s match was fantastic. ELP-Tanahashi was as good as Tanahashi can deliver. Really, the only complaint here was the EVIL win over Oleg, with all that HoT interference.
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