{"id":9462,"date":"2020-10-02T21:00:02","date_gmt":"2020-10-03T03:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?p=9462"},"modified":"2020-10-09T22:49:01","modified_gmt":"2020-10-10T04:49:01","slug":"njpw-strong-episode-9-lions-break-crown-round-semifinals-recap-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/njpw-strong-episode-9-lions-break-crown-round-semifinals-recap-review\/","title":{"rendered":"NJPW Strong (Episode 9: Lion\u2019s Break: Crown Round Semifinals) Recap &#038; Review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-9246\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/lionsBREAKcrown-300x168.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"168\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/lionsBREAKcrown-300x168.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/lionsBREAKcrown.jpg 577w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>NJPW Strong<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Episode 9<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Lion&#8217;s Break: Crown &#8211; Semifinals<\/strong><br \/>\n#njpwstrong<\/p>\n<p><strong>Original Air Date: October 2, 2020<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Event Date: ?<\/strong><br \/>\n(uploaded to NJPW World)<\/p>\n<p><strong>City: <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=port-hueneme-ca\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Port Hueneme<\/span><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=california\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">CA<\/span><\/a><\/strong> (unconfirmed)<br \/>\n<strong>Venue: <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=oceanview-pavilion\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Oceanview Pavilion<\/span><\/a><\/strong> (empty arena) (unconfirmed)<br \/>\n<strong>Series: <a href=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/?tag=lions-break-crown\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Lion&#8217;s Break: Crown<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Commentary<\/strong> (English)<strong>: Kevin Kelly, Alex Koslov<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Ring Announcer: Adnan Kureishy<\/strong> (ringside)<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Intro Video<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Ring Area<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nKevin Kelly and Alex Koslov welcome us to the semifinals of Lion&#8217;s Break: Crown.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Video<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nA look at the competitors in the Lion&#8217;s Break: Crown tournament.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 1<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Lion&#8217;s Break: Crown Semifinal Match<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Logan Riegel vs Clark Connors<\/strong><br \/>\n(referee: Sparky Ballard)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5eae45fabf','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5eae45fabf\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5eae45fabf\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Clark Connors wins via submission with a Boston crab<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Time: 7:51<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nGood match. As always, Clark Connors was very aggressive in this match. Riegel looked pretty good early on, but he seemed to be feeling the effects of the first round way more than Connors was. Connors started to get on a roll after the first few minutes of the match, and Riegel couldn&#8217;t do much of anything to stop Connors&#8217; attacks. This was another nice performance from Connors.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Backstage<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nVia video from his position at the commentary table, Kevin Kelly asks Blake Christian (who is backstage) about his health. Christian says his ribs are hurting, but he&#8217;s won tournaments hurt before.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 2<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Lion&#8217;s Break: Crown Semifinal Match<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Blake Christian vs Danny Limelight<\/strong><br \/>\n(referee: Justin Borden)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5eae45fbe6','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5eae45fbe6\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5eae45fbe6\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Danny Limelight wins via pinfall after a small package driver<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Time: 7:54<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nVery good match. Christian&#8217;s ribs were clearly hurting and slowing him down throughout the match, but he still looked good here against Limelight. For his part though, Limelight fought confidently, and he fought well. Limelight had the best and most impactful moves throughout the match, and he kept a good pace as he worked on Christian&#8217;s back. Limelight hit a particularly brutal-looking sit-out powerbomb partway throught the match that seemed to signal the end of hope for Blake Christian.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><em>Intermission<\/em><\/span><br \/>\nThe ring is cleaned and sanitized during a brief intermission.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 3<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Brody King &amp; Flip Gordon vs TJP &amp; Karl Fredericks<\/strong><br \/>\n(referee: Justin Borden)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5eae45fc22','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5eae45fc22\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5eae45fc22\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Flip Gordon pins TJP after a TKO<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Time: 11:06<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nVery good match. TJP started the match against Flip Gordon, and TJP&#8217;s experience and technical prowess helped him get an early advantage for his team. Then Karl Fredericks and Brody King tagged in, and Fredericks did well to avoid some of Lee&#8217;s power moves while dealing some damage to the biggest guy in the match. Fredericks did struggle with King&#8217;s size, and so did TJP when he got tagged back in. King was the dominant force in this match, and his size combined with Gordon&#8217;s speed made them an impressive team. Fredericks and TJP looked very good together as well, but the tag history with King and Gordon helped them mesh much better as a tandem. This was a fun match.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match 4<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Hikuleo &amp; Chase Owens &amp; KENTA &amp; Jay White vs Misterioso &amp; Rocky Romero &amp; Jeff Cobb &amp; David Finlay<\/strong><br \/>\n(referee: Jeremy Marcus)<\/p>\n<!-- Content Reveal v2.3.1 -->\n<div class=\"scrhead\" onmouseover=\"document.body.style.cursor='pointer'\" onmouseout=\"document.body.style.cursor='default'\" onclick=\"acr_swap_display('ran_69e5eae45fc58','0','','')\">\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/simple-content-reveal\/images\/image1.gif\" class=\"scrimg\" id=\"scrimg_ran_69e5eae45fc58\" alt=\"Reveal content\" title=\"Reveal content\"\/>');<\/script> Show\/Hide Results\n<\/div>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<div style=\"display: none\" class=\"scrdiv\" id=\"scrdiv_ran_69e5eae45fc58\">');<\/script>\n<\/p>\n<p><strong>Result: Chase Owens pins Misterioso after Gunslinger<\/strong> (from Hikuleo)<br \/>\n<strong>Time: 11:28<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\">document.writeln('<\/div>');<\/script>\n<!-- End of Content Reveal -->\n\n<p><strong>Match Thoughts<\/strong><br \/>\nVery good match. One of the main story lines within this match was Jeff Cobb wanting to get his hands on KENTA again after their troubles that started back in the tournament to determine a contender for the IWGP US Title. Cobb did go on the offensive against KENTA in the match, but for the most part KENTA was able to neutralize Cobb by repeatedly going after Cobb&#8217;s injured knee. Other than that rivalry, the match was pretty open with everyone fighting everyone. I think both teams worked very well as four-man units, and everyone pitched for their team throughout the match. This was an evenly fought and entertaining main event.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Show Impressions<\/span><\/strong><br \/>\nThis was a pretty good show. I&#8217;m really looking forward to the finals of the Lion&#8217;s Break: Crown tournament. That match has the potential to be great. I also liked tonight&#8217;s tag matches. I think the TJP\/Fredericks vs King\/Gordon match has the potential to build some nice rivalries (particularly TJP vs Gordon and Fredericks vs King). I also liked how the main event helped make Hikuleo look strong without requiring him to do too much in the ring. Hikuleo is pretty inexperienced when compared to everyone else he was in the ring with, and that match was a good way of hiding any weaknesses he might have while allowing him to be a difference-maker with his size and power.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Match of the Night<\/strong><\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Brody King &amp; Flip Gordon vs TJP &amp; Karl Fredericks<\/strong><br \/>\nI think this had the better in-ring story than any other match tonight. They way it flowed back and forth between the two teams drew me in the most out of all of tonight&#8217;s matches.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Official Results: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.njpw1972.com\/tornament\/80718?showResult=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">https:\/\/www.njpw1972.com\/tornament\/80718?showResult=1<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The semifinals of the Lion&#8217;s Break Crown tournament deliver two more good matches, and two fun tag matches make this a nice episode of NJPW Strong.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8584,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[620,297,6635],"tags":[6565,235,6653,2532,723,1555,1389,1587,2681,6585,581,1246,2793,597,2349,6564,6641,2680,2679,637,6741,6768,6650,6592,577,576,6567,6568,714,6640,6636,1332],"class_list":["post-9462","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-njpw","category-show-results","category-strong","tag-adnan-kureishy","tag-alex-koslov","tag-blake-christian","tag-brody-king","tag-bullet-club","tag-california","tag-chaos","tag-chase-owens","tag-clark-connors","tag-danny-limelight","tag-david-finlay","tag-flip-gordon","tag-hikuleo","tag-jay-white","tag-jeff-cobb","tag-jeremy-marcus","tag-justin-borden","tag-karl-fredericks","tag-kenta","tag-kevin-kelly","tag-lions-break-crown","tag-lions-break-crown-semifinal-match","tag-logan-riegel","tag-misterioso","tag-new-japan-pro-wrestling","tag-njpw","tag-oceanview-pavilion","tag-port-hueneme-ca","tag-rocky-romero","tag-sparky-ballard","tag-strong","tag-tjp"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9462","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9462"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9462\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9467,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9462\/revisions\/9467"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9462"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9462"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cnjradio.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9462"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}