NJPW – Road to THE NEW BEGINNING
Event Date: February 5, 2020 (18:30 JST)
aired live on NJPW World & Samurai TV
#njnbg #samuraitv
City: Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan
Venue: Korakuen Hall
Attendance: 1,260
Tour: THE NEW BEGINNING
Commentary (English): Kevin Kelly, Gino Gambino, Chris Charlton
Commentary (Japanese): Milano Collection AT, Haruo Murata, Togi Makabe (6 – 7)
Ring Announcer: Kimihiko Ozaki (1 – 3), Makoto Abe (4 – 7)
Video
The opening video tells us about THE NEW BEGINNING tour and some of the big matches we’ll see along the way.
Match 1
Gabriel Kidd vs Yuya Uemura
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Yuya Uemura wins via submission with a Boston crab
Time: 8:57
Match Thoughts
This was a very good young lion opening match. Kidd was representing the LA Dojo while Uemura was representing the Tokyo Dojo, and that gave this the feeling of a grudge match. Both guys were hitting hard and putting all their weight into submission attempts, and I really enjoyed it. I think both of these guys are young lion standouts.
Match 2
Yota Tsuji vs Ryusuke Taguchi
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Ryusuke Taguchi wins via submission with Oh My & Garankle
Time: 7:33
Match Thoughts
Good match. Taguchi is such a smart wrestler. He’s known for being a goofy, fun-loving wrestler, but tonight he showed us something a little different. He’s also a coach in the NJPW Dojo, and he approached this match with a harsher attitude. It was like a teacher showing some tough love for a student. Taguchi stretched Tsuji on the mat, and he wouldn’t break contact even when Tsuji reached the ropes. By being so harsh towards Tsuji, he set the crowd up to get behind Tsuji much more than they would have had Taguchi done all of his goofy antics and hip attacks. This was very nicely done.
Match 3
Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Manabu Nakanishi vs Tomoaki Honma & Togi Makabe
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Togi Makabe pins Manabu Nakanishi after the King Kong Knee Drop
Time: 8:42
Match Thoughts
Good match. Nakanishi again looked like he was having fun, and he seemed to have more ring time tonight. He dished out as much punishment as he took, and it was fun to watch. He doesn’t move around much, but everything he does looks like it hurts immensely.
Match 4
Robbie Eagles & Tomohiro Ishii & Will Ospreay vs Douki & Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr. (RPW British Heavyweight Champ)
(referee: Marty Asami)
Result: Robbie Eagles submits Douki with the Ron Miller Special
Time: 11:36
Match Thoughts
Very good match. Ospreay had earned another RPW British Heavyweight Title match with his performance in last night’s eight-man tag elimination main event, so Zack Sabre Jr. came into this match angry. ZSJ wanted to hurt Ospreay, and his attacks started before the opening bell. So in the match, Sabre paired off with Ospreay for the most part, Suzuki battled Ishii, and Eagles fought Douki. There were some breakdowns where everyone attacked anyone one the opposing team, but for the most part these three pairings were adhered to throughout the match. This was a very fun match with tons of energy. Plus, as much as it built up Ospreay versus Sabre, it did a really good job of giving Eagles some momentum heading into his NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Title match tomorrow night.
Match 5
Toa Henare & Hirooki Goto vs EVIL (NEVER 6-Man Champ) & Shingo Takagi (NEVER 6-Man & NEVER Openweight Champ)
(referee: Marty Asami)
Result: Shingo Takagi pins Toa Henare after the Pumping Bomber
Time: 12:57
Match Thoughts
Good match. Toa Henare wanted to fight Shingo Takagi, but Takagi made him wait. Shingo paired off with Goto at first, and EVIL fought Henare after that. There was an outside-the-ring brawl where Shingo punished Henare out in the crowd, and that put Henare in a bad position back in the ring. Henare eventually got his wish and took on Shingo in the ring, but it didn’t go so well for him. Shingo continued to establish his dominance in this match.
Match 6
Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado & Taichi vs Roppongi 3K (IWGP Jr. Tag Champs) & Kazuchika Okada
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: Taichi pins Sho after a Last Ride powerbomb
Time: 14:28
Match Thoughts
Good match. This was a preview of the Jr. Tag Title match coming up between Roppongi 3K and El Desperado & Kanemura, but the six men didn’t stay exclusively in their pairings like you might expect. Taichi and Okada did continue their feud by facing each other one on one in this match, but the fight to end this six-man tag was Taichi versus Sho. Desperado and Kanemaru ran all sorts of interference and helped Taichi cheat, and that set up Suzuki Gun for a dominant performance tonight.
Ring Area
After the match, Suzuki Gun continues to attack Roppongi 3K. Sho’s leg is heavily targeted, with El Desperado and Kanemaru hitting his knee repeatedly with a chair.
Match 7
Tag Team Elimination Match
El Phantasmo (RPW British Cruiserweight Champ) & Taiji Ishimori & Jay White w/ Gedo & KENTA vs BUSHI (NEVER 6-Man Tag Champ) & Hiromu Takahashi (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champ) & SANADA & Tetsuya Naito (IWGP IC & Heavyweight Champ)
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: Bullet Club wins (KENTA is the sole survivor)
Time: 24:12
| Elimination Order | Wrestler Eliminated | Team | Eliminated By | Time Eliminated | Elimination Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jay White | Bullet Club | SANADA | 17:10 | Top Rope |
| 2 | SANADA | LIJ | Jay White | 17:10 | Top Rope |
| 3 | BUSHI | LIJ | Taiji Ishimori | 18:16 | Top Rope |
| 4 | Taiji Ishimori | Bullet Club | Hiromu Takahashi | 20:00 | Top Rope |
| 5 | El Phantasmo | Bullet Club | Hiromu Takahashi | 22:25 | Pinfall with a small package |
| 6 | Hiromu Takahashi | LIJ | KENTA | 22:39 | Top Rope |
| 7 | Tetsuya Naito | LIJ | KENTA | 24:12 | Top Rope |
Match Thoughts
Good match. Like last night’s elimination main event, it took a while for the eliminations to start happening. The fight before any elimination was good and entertaining. Then the eliminations started to come very quickly one after another. The best bits were probably between Hiromu Takahashi and El Phantasmo. They created some fun tension with fake-out eliminations and some nice exchanges in the ring. The final elimination was fine, but it wasn’t nearly as good as last night’s final few minutes. Still, it was well done for how they wanted to end tonight’s show (which was for KENTA to build some momentum while depriving the crowd of a fun time).
Show Impressions
Last night’s show left me with a better overall feeling, but this was still a fun show. Matches four, five, and six in particular stood out to me as very entertaining.
Match of the Night
Eagles & Ishii & Ospreay vs Douki & Suzuki & ZSJ
This was easily the most fun match of the night for me. It had tons of energy, plus there was a good mix of strong style and high-flying. This one had it all.
Official Results (Japanese): https://www.njpw.co.jp/tornament/222320?showResult=1