May 20, 2017
published on NJPW World
(taped May 20, 2017)
City: Matsusaka, Mie, Japan
Venue: Mie Sangin Arena (Matsusaka City General Gymnasium)
Attendance: 1,063
Series: Best of the Super Jr. 24
Commentary: none
Ring Announcer: Makoto Abe, Kimihiko Ozaki
Notes: Stationary camera, only the tournament matches are available on NJPW World
Match 1
Tomoyuki Oka & Hirai Kawato vs Shota Umino & Katsuya Kitamura
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Tomoyuki Oka pins Shota Umino
Time: 7:21
Match Thoughts
This match was not aired on NJPW World.
Match 2
Jado & Will Ospreay vs TAKA Michinoku & Taichi
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Taichi pins Jado
Time: 7:27
Match Thoughts
This match was not aired on NJPW World.
Match 3
Best of the Super Junior 24 B Block Match
Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs ACH
(referee: Marty Asami; ring announcer: Makoto Abe)
Result: Kanemaru wins via pinfall after Deep Impact (diving DDT)
Time: 10:26
Match Thoughts
Good match. Kanemaru waa all over ACH to start the match. Kanemaru kept ACH either on the mat or out of the ring for what seemed like the entire first half of the bout. Eventually ACH started to mount a comeback and hit a few big, impactful moves. Kanemaru would respond with a few big moves of his own which led to a pretty good finish.
Match 4
Best of the Super Junior 24 B Block Match
KUSHIDA (ROH TV Champ) vs Tiger Mask
(referee: Marty Asami; ring announcer: Makoto Abe)
Result: Tiger Mask wins via pinfall with a bridging Tiger Suplex
Time: 10:41
Match Thoughts
Very good match. KUSHIDA started the match on complete control, making Tiger Mask feel a bit like the underdog. Tiger Mask hit a few impactful moves here and there (mostly from counters) to keep himself in the fight, but KUSHIDA felt like the aggressor for much of the match. There was a really nice sequence where Tiger Mask hit a diving cross body but KUSHIDA transitioned into a double wristlock before transitioning again into a cross arm-breaker. As the match went along, Tiger Mask would find a way to keep hitting big moves which led to a nicely exciting finish.
Match 5
David Finlay & Jushin Thunder Liger & War Machine (IWGP Tag Champs) vs Marty Scurll & Yujiro Takahashi & Tanga Roa & Tama Tonga
(referee: Marty Asami)
Result: Yujiro Takahashi pins David Finlay after Pimp Juice (kneeling snap DDT)
Time: 8:19
Match Thoughts
This match was not aired on NJPW World.
Match 6
Best of the Super Junior 24 B Block Match
BUSHI (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Champ) vs El Desperado
(referee: Red Shoes Unno; ring announcer: Makoto Abe)
Result: El Desperado wins via pinfall after removing BUSHI’s mask
Time: 9:47
Match Thoughts
Good match. El Desperado started the dirty tactics right away, going under the ring for a chair which he managed o use early in the match. El Desperado kept the dirty tactics going throughout the entire match, forcing BUSHI to wrestle as a babyface (which makes sense because tons of people like him and Los Ingobernables). There was some brawling at ringside and the match only got into the ring for an extended amount of time towards the end. I liked the finish as well. It wasn’t spectacular, but it worked for the tone of the match and for both of the characters.
Ring Area
After the match, BUSHI attacked El Desperado at ringside. They brawled for a few seconds before El Desperado again removed BUSHI’s mask. BUSHI went down and the young boys at ringside covered his face. El Desperado took BUSHI’s mask, as well as the mask BUSHI used during his ring entrance, and wiped his shoes with them. El Desperado threw both of BUSHI’s masks down before leaving the ring area.
Match 7
Best of the Super Junior 24 B Block Match
Volador Jr. vs Ryusuke Taguchi
(referee: Red Shoes Unno; ring announcer: Kimihiko Ozaki)
Result: Ryusuke Taguchi wins via pinfall after a Dodon (chickenwing facebuster)
Time: 9:58
Match Thoughts
This started out as a but of a comedy match. Volador ran the ropes and Taguchi couldn’t keep up, then Volador forced Taguchi to run the ropes and he tired out quickly. The match then nicely transitioned into a somewhat competitive match. Taguchi was dominant for a while, breaking out a dive over the ropes and a few submission holds. Volador came back and hit some big moves, but Taguchi never seemed to stay down long. This was a nice match, and it was somewhat surprising for me.
Match 8
Dragon Lee & Ricochet & Juice Robinson & Satoshi Kojima vs Hiromu Takahashi (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champ) & Tetsuya Naito (IWGP IC Champ) & EVIL & SANADA (NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Champs)
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: Tetsuya Naito pins Satoshi Kojima after Destino
Time: 10:54
Match Thoughts
This match was not aired on NJPW World.
Show Impressions
I was only able to see the half of the show published on NJPW World, but I thought all of those matches were good. I like how NJPW shows always seem to have a good variety of matches. It’s usually the same people on the shows, but the matchups are different and on any given night any of the wrestlers might have a different type of match. For example, on this night Volador Jr. did a little comedy and BUSHI wrestled as a babyface. I like how the mix things up like that.
Match of the Night
KUSHIDA vs Tiger Mask
Of the matches I saw, this was my favorite. I liked some of the transitions and I liked the pace of the match the most.
Standings After Night 3
Block A
| Wrestler | Win | Loss | Draw | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dragon Lee | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Hiromu Takahashi | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Marty Scurll | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Ricochet | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Taichi | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Taka Michinoku | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Will Ospreay (defending champ) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Jushin Thunder Liger | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Block B
| Wrestler | Win | Loss | Draw | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Desperado | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Ryusuke Taguchi | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| ACH | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Tiger Mask | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Volador Jr. | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Yoshinobu Kanemaru | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Bushi | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| KUSHIDA | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |