Pro Wrestling NOAH N-1 Victory August 4th 2024

Hey everyone and welcome to Pro Wrestling NOAH’s big round-robin tournament, the N-1 Victory, it’ll be very exciting and I hope all of you are entertained by the happenings in it. If you missed it, I dropped a big recap of the roster and the show here but since then we’ve had some changes. Go Shiozaki apparently fractured his thoracic vertebrae and had to withdraw, so taking his place is quasi-junior, quasi-heavyweight Atsushi Kotoge, like Go he’s a giant goober babyface so I’m actually not too brokenhearted about this news, but I hope Go heals up well and gets right like I think he can. Anyway, we’re in the Yokohama Budokan with a bit under 1000 people which is actually pretty good for NOAH.

We get a very 90s style opening video with a club theme and every wrestler yelling VICTORY! It’s all pretty silly but still fun throwback.

El Hijo del Dr. Wagner Jr. vs. Alpha Wolf – B Block Match

Background: Both of them are luchadores, though obviously EHDDWJ has achieved more success in NOAH. Additionally Hijo recently beat Wolf in a tag-match, so there’s a bit of heat. Alpha Wolf has his leather jacket and a black and red singlet, while EHDDWJ has green, white, and red in tribute to his native Mexico. El Hijo is much more of a traditional lucha wrestler while Wolf is more of a hybrid lucharesu guy. Hijo is bigger/taller, but Wolf is a bit more cut and has tattoos all over his body.

The Match: They don’t start with a lockup and immediately jump to a lucha sequence with leapfrogs and armdrags and we get Alpha Wolf backflipping out of the corner and both guys kipping up in a stalemate. Hijo goes for a handshake and gets a kick out of it and then they do a monkey flip sorta deal and Wolf gets knocked outside and EHDDWJ gets a somersault senton off the apron. Back in and we get some whacky lucha submissions as EHDDWJ gets a grounded hammerlock/headscissors combo. Ropebreak and Alpha gets a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a breather and now come the strikes but EHDDWJ counters with another monkey flip to the outside with a nasty bump on the apron on the way and then another monkey flip onto the mats. They work the count and El Hijo continues the abuse with a flying elbow and a dropkick and Wagner heels it up a bit and calls Wolf a dog, and the younger wrestler fires up and gets a trio of tilt-a-whirl backbreakers and then reverses another monkey flip attempt by Wagner, tossing him outside and hitting an absolutely insane tope that ends with Alpha almost flying into the crowd…and there was a commentary desk in between the ring and the fans here. Crazy dive. Wolf drags Wagner back in and goes up for a moonsault for 2. We get a fun whacky lucha setup for an Indian deathlock as Wagner is in trouble. Ropebreak and Alpha sets up the Wolf Driver but El Hijo slips out and gets a back suplex to get a breather…and he pulls down the straps and calls for the Michinoku Driver but Wolf counters, EHDDWJ gets a springboard diving armdrag into a Japanese reverse cradle but Wolf reverses into his own rollup attempt, and then headbutts Wagner a few times.They throw more big strikes at each other but it’s a standstill until Wolf gets a delayed Fisherman’s Buster and loads up the Wolf Driver (by yelling WOLF DRIVER!!!) but El Hijo gets the cazadora and then does his “no-sell head strikes with the power of the mask” spot…but Wolf just suplexes him instead. Wagner is all wobbly and Alpha can’t get him up…but that was Hijo playing possum and gets the Michinoku Driver…for 2. Wolf fires back with another running headbutt and then a flipping Crucifix Bomb and that’s…3?

**¼

Not as much chemistry as I’d have hoped between these two, Wolf is still a junior and does more go-go-go stuff than EHDDWJ who just couldn’t match the pace. They did have some nice moments and it wasn’t bad at all, but it felt a bit…clunky at times. Still, Wolf is finding his place as a singles heavyweight so we’ll see how he expands as the tournament continues.

Atsushi Kotoge vs. Dragon Bane – A Block Match

Background: So these guys are both juniors who are now working as heavyweights here, but I’m sure they’ll definitely be wrestling a junior pace here. Dragon Bane is wearing a pretty awesome dragon skull outfit on his way to the ring and has white and red trunks. Kotoge has the pink hair, pink and white boxer shorts, and a big black and green NOAH flag on his way to the ring.

The Match: They shake hands to start up as commentary puts over Kotoge’s experience, noting he has more singles matches than Dragon Bane has career matches. They trade wristlocks and headlocks but quickly realize that’s not what people wanna see so we get Dragon doing a handspring over Kotoge’s head and Atsushi doing some ‘misdirection’ spots with a schoolboy and then a drop toehold as he cranks on an armbar as he’s trying to slow this down. Dragon is too fast though and gets a dropkick and then a gorgeous suicide dive as he just spears into Kotoge. Bane gets a monster chop next and they’re back in where DB keeps the chops and speed going and has a gorgeous basement dropkick into the ropes. DB with more strikes as Atsushi can’t deal with that and a standing moonsault gets 2 for the Mexican. And another whacky lucha submission with a hammerlock combined with a figure four with Kotoge balanced on Dragon’s knee. Kotoge slips out though and gets a leg lariat to buy himself some space as commentary puts over his toughness and durability. Jumping elbow strike and then a bulldog from Kotoge but DB turns a whip into a handspring back elbow and then another standing moonsault. They trade run and gun stuff with Dragon getting a jumping knee but Kotoge putting him down with a jumping cutter. But Bane gets a kitchen sink knee and a fake out thrust kick, but a third standing moonsault is countered with Kotoge’s knees and the Japanese vet goes up but the younger, faster Mexican cuts him off and goes for a superplex…but Kotoge slips out, teases a super German suplex, but instead gets a sunset flip powerbomb and then a running knee to the temple…for 2. Kotoge signals for his finish, the Killswitch, but Bane reverses into a Standing Spanish Fly and then a Made in Japan for…2.9. This doesn’t slow down Dragon who gets two head kicks and then a SSP…for 2.9. Kotoge looks dead but he can’t be pinned! But Dragon Bane decides it’s time to finish this and gets a Poison Rana and that…wins?

**¾

Very similar to the prior match with the younger guy beating the older opponent with their superior physicality and youth, and both winning with ‘transition’ moves for them helps expand their arsenals in a fun way. Fun stuff and it made me like the prior match more as well.

Titus Alexander vs. Tavion Heights – B Block Match

Background: Tavion is from NXT and is a pretty big guy with a mop of wild wild hair and shiny silver pants with a little USA design on one leg, he’s very new but he’s an Olympic-level wrestler and is fired up if doing pretty generic taunts and “lets go” type stuff. Titus Alexander is another American, he’s closer to a junior and has a buzz and a goatee with sky blue trunks with black and yellow designs on them. He’s a west coast indie guy and given NOAH is giving him the FUTURE FRANCHISE nickname methinks they’re high on him.

The Match: Lockup and Tavion easily wins it and gives a disrespectful break. And Titus reverses a lockup and does the same. So cheeky but friendly. It is VERY weird to have NOAH commentary teams talk about NXT booking in the middle of a tournament as they put over that Tavion had success in the Heritage Cup match but rounds are a different style than this. Seriously, NOAH commentary is so good and it’s the ‘sports based’ thing that a lot of people seem to ache for, Stu and Mark do a ton of research and really try their best to put over guys experience, they bring up stats, records, prior matchups, just really great stuff and hopefully Stu has already said his one really weird thing he says tonight so they’ll just be good. Anyway, /rant over. Tavion dominates with a headlock and amateur stuff and just ragdolls the Californian around. Titus seems pretty frustrated with this as he makes space with a back elbow in the ropes and then tries a tricky rollup but Tavion takes his head off with a lariat…and then another. A third misses though as Titus gets a dropkick and Heights powders and Alexander follows with a gorgeous flip dive over the top. Titus beats on the WWE guy outside as Tavion is trying to regain his breath. But Heights avoids a running charge by Titus who slams into the ring barricade. Back in and Tavion keeps the lariats coming as he runs Titus into the ropes with them, Tavion slaps away a dropkick and then gets a huge military press slam as Titus coughs up phlegm in a nice (if gross) spot. Tavion gets a Karelin lift and throws Titus across the ring. Alexander goes up and tries a crossbody but Tavion rolls through and gets a huge release fallaway slam. So uh…Olympic level wrestlers are apparently REALLY strong, huh? Tavion hammers away at Titus in the corner but misses a charge and Titus gets a few things going with his kip-up kick and a handspring cutter. This isn’t enough though and Tavion avoids more Titus stuff and gets a pretty brutal Death Valley Driver on the Californian. Another gutwrench is reversed into a rana by Titus though and gets a superkick but Tavion avoids Titus’s flying knee again and goes for a release German but Titus flips out, finally lands the knee, and then mostly messes up his Big Ugly finish (it’s supposed to be a Chaos Theory deal but Tavion kind of takes it like an O’Connor Roll so Titus has to kinda drag him up for a weird German suplex and a weak pin).

**

Man that finish sucked a LOT of the air out of the room for me, I get what they were going for, and it’s kind of been the story of the first three matches. One guy is a lot stronger/faster/more physical and their opponent has to figure out a way to outclever them. I don’t think that Titus is really that sort of wrestler yet, athletic as he is, and Tavion is clearly limited and needs to be run through his spots, still, both guys have tons of potential, it was just kind of an ugly match. A Big Ugly match maybe.

Josh Briggs vs. Ryohei Oiwa – A Block Match

Background: Josh is the other NXT guy, a big burly American who is VERY tall and has a country-western bar brawler gimmick. Ryohei of course is a New Japan young lion out on on excursion where somehow he’s in NOAH’s main-event…don’t worry about it. Josh has pleather baggy pants and a biker jacket and is bearded and he really does look like he could be singing songs about trucks and beer. Ryohei is a mountain of beef with a weird blonde-fringe mullet and sparkling gold tights. This match is also a NXT wrestler facing a New Japan wrestler in a Pro Wrestling NOAH ring…man wrestling is WEIRD right now.

The Match: Josh immediately kicks Oiwa down and hammers away at him in the corner and then gets a release sidewalk slam and a jumping frog splash. Oiwa powders and sneaks back in with a corkscrew uppercut and then works over Josh’s arm in the corner and then in ring, Josh tries a sleeper (?!) but Ryohei armdrags him as he continues to work over the American’s arm. Josh breaks with an one-handed body slam though and then gets the Bossman slide out of the ring into a punch and the ref admonishes him for the closed-fist strike. Ryohei actually sells the punch for a LONG time as Josh keeps talking junk. The New Japan man fires back up and does a mini-comeback but Briggs gets a flapjack, an elbow drop, and then a hard whip into the apron as he continues to talk noise and asks if Ryohei is a man or not. The American has an evil look on his face as he gets a huge backdrop suplex. Briggs continues to mock his smaller opponent and Oiwa cranks in some heavy forearms to knock the big American down. World’s Strongest Slam by Oiwa next who goes up and gets a falling splash for 2. Oiwa tries a gutwrench but Briggs gets a backdrop and then a Bossman Slam for 2. Chokeslam for 2! Briggs looks perplexed by this and Oiwa continues to lay on the mat and when the American drags up the New Japan wrestler who fires back with more forearms and finally lands the gutwrench suplex. Oiwa’s German suplex is stuffed, but he bounces Josh off the ropes and lands it for 2. Ryohei starts spamming rollups as he’s out-wrestling the big guy, but Josh gets a big boot and a chokeslam into the turnbuckle and he gets the Lariat from Hell for 3.

**¾

I called him Sham Hansen for a reason, and we got a bit of that tonight. Josh played the big bully American well and Ryohei was game as the underdog Japanese babyface. Fun throwback match even if it kinda hurts Ryohei’s “I will destroy everybody” proclamation. That said, Josh is probably going to be the monster to slay in this block and him aping all the great gaijin is not a terrible way to build an identity even if his trash talk could use some help. Fun stuff.

Hajime Ohara, Junta Miyawaki, Kai Fujimura & Shuhei Taniguchi vs. Eita, Naomichi Marufuji, Ninja Mack & Takashi Sugiura

Background: So this is mostly just a match, Hajime is a veteran junior, likes backbreakers, Junta and Kai are both rookie juniors, though Junta has real gear and isn’t a rookie anymore, Shuhei is a big Franenstein’s monster looking heavyweight. Eita is a tiny, bedazzled arrogant junior who is one half of the junior tag titles, Marufuji and Sugiura are heavyweight tag champs with Maru being the flashy one and Sugiura being the tough as nails amateur style guy, oh, and Ninja Mack is an American who is ALL the flip. Don’t think there’s much heat here other than having some champions in the match.

The Match: Hajime and Mack start and do an athletic sequence with Ohara avoiding the Ninja Splash to end it, and he bails and brings in Kai who calls out Mack. Kai gets some leg kicks and they do some athletic counters and man I didn’t realize Fujimura is Ninja Mack height. Odd. Mack cuts off the Japanese junior with a chop though but Kai gets a twisting slingshot splash. Junta comes in against Eita and the boisterous champion talks trash to the crowd and we get an international as Eita preens and poses. They trade armdrags but Miyawaki gets a dropkick and a slam and Ohara comes in with another slam and then Shuhei gets a slam…and slams Marufuji, and Sugiura onto Eita and Mack bails on running in. Fujimura back in and he gets a flip senton but Eita gets a brainbuster and we get Mack in with a Ninja Splash but Kai gets a flying elbow and Ohara back in with a John Woo dropkick and a pumphandle backbreaker. Ninja fires back with some kicks but eats a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and we get Shuhei and Sugiura next. We get some big shoulders and then Shuhei gets some clotheslines and an axehandle and he is just a weird looking man. Kitchen sink knee, big boot, and delayed superplex for Sugiura as he runs through the usual. Slugfest between the two ex-soldiers but Taniguchi tanks the spear and gutwrenches the 54 year old. But Sugi comes back with a lariat and we get Marufuji in to work over Shuhei. Marufuji gets the crafty kicks and flummoxes the lummox offense of Taniguchi but everybody runs in to break it up and brawl. Mack gets the Ninja Special to the outside. Hook kick and pump knee from Maru drop Shuhei but it only gets 2. Then Shuhei gets a grapevine Oklahoma Roll and that’s…3 on Maru?

**¼

Just sort of a big match but it had some nice moments and didn’t go too long. It did its job and that’s it.

Post-match Shuhei chokeslams Sugiura and then grabs a mic and says he wants a title shot. Sugiura says that Shuhei has no partner, so no dice, but Shuhei says he has a partner and it’s…Shuji Ishikawa dressed in the worlds largest white button down shirt. And my goodness, Shuji is so big he makes Taniguchi look small. Just a massive man.

Yoshiki Inamura vs. Ulka Sasaki – B Block Match

Background: So Yoshiki Inamura recently returned from a trip abroad where he was YOICHI as a retro throwback samurai archer deal, but now he’s back to the Yoshiki name and is wearing black and blue trunks with a gladiator chestplate so maybe his gimmick is now just being what 12 years old boys think are really cool. He’s a big beefy dude with a mohawk. His opponent is Ulka, much smaller and slimmer, he’s the GHC National Champion, he’s the Modern Day Tengu and is a tricky fighter as a former UFC guy who is in month 7 of his career, total super rookie and he has long curly hair and a red and gold outfit that is pretty fabulous. Both guys have a lot to prove as Yoshiki’s last N1 was winless and lead to him totally altering his look/gimmick/presentation. Props to them for having an actual big fight feel here as they feel like guys that could and should be big stars for NOAH in the future.

The Match: Big lockup to start and Yoshiki just tosses the smaller Ulka around. Sasaki tries for an ankle pick but gets stuffed and tossed around. Ulka gets a flying kneebar though and Yoshiki uses his strength to stop it being locked in totally but Ulka traps it in and Inamura gets the ropes instantly and bails. Ulka with a pescado and some strikes on the outside and then we go back inside. Ulka keeps kicking the left leg (the same one he got the kneebar on) and I believe that’s the leg Yoshiki has previously broken, so we got some psychology here. Yoshiki gets a lariat and some stomps as he uses power to work over the rookie. One-armed slam and then a pretty fun bodyscissors variation as he traps Ulka’s arms too. Sasaki gets a ropebreak but Yoshiki keeps stomping and clubbering. Gorgeous Stinger Splash from Yoshiki from almost the middle of the ring and he does the arrow taunt as he gets a massive slingshot splash. Ulka dodges another corner splash though and squeezes in a sleeper but Inamura breaks it. Jumping knee from Ulka sets up a brainbuster into a guillotine but Yoshiki breaks it with strength, Ulka gets a stunner and a jump kick and then he goes back to the legs with an Indian deathlock/calf slicer thing. Inamura powers that into a pin attempt and that sets up a ropebreak. Ulka goes for a cutter but Yoshiki reverses that into a powerslam and we get a double-down as Inamura’s leg is shot. Yoshiki gets some heavy forearms and a palm thrust that infuriates Sasaki who unleashes a flurry of slaps and then a kick to drop the big man and then some ground and pound and stomps, and then back to the sleeper. Inamura finally breaks it with the Vader/Cactus spot and we reset, Yoshiki gets the running two-handed toss, a running elbow, and a jumping splash, but when he picks up Ulka for the Musuo Ulka gets the guillotine and then a high kick but now Inamura comes back with a sky high spinebuster but Ulka gets his foot on the rope. Yoshiki gets the scoop lift into a powerbomb attempt but Ulka goes behind the back and gets the sleeper and Inamura is out.

***¼

Really fun match with the big man/little man dynamic, and the power wrestler versus the technician. They’re really doing an incredible job with Sasaki and selling ALL of his submissions as potential match enders. Ulka still has a lot to build on when it comes to selling and the notes between the notes, but that little flurry where he got fired up and unleashed a barrage of strikes shows that there is something beyond the cool, calm, and collected Tengu deal. Yoshiki honestly did carry this match, and it’s a shame to see him lose again, but I do hope and think he’ll do well in the tournament. Very fun stuff and I’m hyped for both guys, the match was fun, exciting, and it got both of their ‘styles’ over.

Masa Kitamiya vs. Jack Morris – A Block Match

Background: So Jack Morris is a singles act once again, having had his Good Looking Guys stable dismantled by the departing Jake Lee, he’s back to being a super babyface and is of course a very jacked up, very handsome, very long-haired Scot. Masa is a beefy brawler who is swearing that this is the year that he will leave the tag division and break out as a singles. He’s wearing the black capri tights and has a blonde mohawk. They’ve also split their prior N1 matches 1-1 so this is intriguing on that level.

The Match: Both guys posture and pose to the crowd for a while before meeting up. International to start and they trade some shoulders and poses and strikes. Masa gets a popeye punch of all things but gets lowbridged and Jack hits a tope and poses and preens some more. Back in and jack hits a springboard missile dropkick and Morris preens some more. Some stomps in the corner follow. Back outside again and it’s been all Jack. Jack whips Masa in the barricade so hard it breaks them and Kitamiya has actual metal on his back from it. They go in and Jack keeps at it, but Masa hulks up and no-sells it, and then no-sells a brainbuster and we get Masa with the Samoan Drop and the senton. And now Masa stomps away at Jack in the corner and then chops at him. We get some run and gun stuff and Morris twists out of a move and sets up an enzuigiri but Masa lariats him for a double-down. Reset to a slugfest. Morris gets a falcon arrow for 2.999. Jack goes up but he’s slow and Masa pops up and cuts him off and gets the Flair throw on Morris but Jack gets a few pump kicks but Masa no-sells and gets a piledriver. Saito suplex gets countered into a sunset flip by Masa who gets the Good Looking Knee and then a Tiger Driver attempt but Masa stuffs it and rams the Scot into the corner. Jack leapfrogs a charge though and a spinebuster gets 2. But Jack’s second attempt at a good looking knee is cutoff and Masa gets a kneebreaker and then a lariat for 2. Prison Lock by Masa follows and Jack throws forearms as he tries to scoot to the ropes and they have a slugfest while Jack is in the Prison Lock but Morris eventually breaks the hold in the ropes. Jack fights back from his…back but Masa gets a rope-assisted senton but when they get up Jack gets a desperation lariat but Morris back on his…back and is firing away with kicks as the match has ground to a total halt. Ugly lariat into the corner by Masa and Jack has some whiplash and then Masa fires away at Morris in the corner. Whip into the corner on Morris who dodges and tries a schoolboy but Masa gets a ropebreak. Masa is just dripping sweat here but he picks up Jack, runs him into the turnbuckle in another ugly spot and then Masa’s diving senton finishes.

*½

Ugly, ugly match, and of course now knowing that Jack got something at the end and the match continued afterwards is pretty gross. Beyond that, the match was…stodgy, they had moments where it looked like there was a plan, but Masa’s no-sell spam just throws off whatever rhythm a match has, and of course Jack isn’t like…all that good himself. He knows how to do moves and has charisma but he’s never been able to string them together into a story. Ultimately both guys are better dance partners than leaders.

Post-match it looks like Jack is displaying the fencing response and that’s just horrifying to see. He’s at least capable of speech as a ref is talking to him rapidly, Jack is at least capable of moving his upper body here, and when they bring out the stretcher Jack seems to have enough going to walk out of the ring. Whew.

AMAKUSA, HAYATA, Tadasuke & YO-HEY vs. Stinger (Daga & Yoshinari Ogawa), Super Crazy & Yu Owada

Background: So these are our juniors. AMAKUSA is of course champion and the top babyface in the division, HAYATA, Tadasuke, and YO-HEY are three guys with a TON of history and are teasing being back together once again as a stable. And now it’s the evil jerk Stinger stable with athletic rookie Yu Owada. AMAKUSA is the recent champion and he just beat Daga for the belt, so this match is probably about establishing a new challenger for the champ.

The Match: Yu and YO-HEY start…and YO-HEY immediately tags out to Tadasuke. Yu gets a dropkick and a corner backflip into some armdrags and dropkicks and Tady bails so HAYATA can come in and work over the rook. O’Connor Roll from Owada but HAYATA goes to a hammerlock and drives the arm into the turnbuckle. AMAKUSA in now and he continues the arm stuff. More technical stuff is traded but Owada gets AMAKUSA in the corner and Daga is in as we get a rematch for the belt here. Daga gets a headlock and a shoulder and he stomps away out of anger on the man who beat him for the belt. More armdrags from AMAKUSA but Daga gets a spinning heel kick and tries for one of his backbreakers but the champ escapes and we get Super Crazy and YO-HEY. YO-HEY gets the advantage with speed but as he sets up a dive Daga gets a cheapshot and Super Crazy calls YO-HEY an idiot and goes in with some slams and taunts and Daga is back in who distracts the babyface side and Ogawa destroys YO-HEY on the outside. Daga with some arm stuff and then Ogawa comes in for the first time to continue the arm abuse as only Rat Boy can. Super Crazy in with some arm offense that is uh…less sophisticated, but a leg drop on the arm gets the point across. Now Owada is in and HE goes at YO-HEY’s arm too. All the way back to Daga now as this is all YO-HEY as Ricky Morton. YO-HEY gets a desperation frankensteiner but that only goes so far before Ogawa comes in and rips more at YO-HEY’s arm. But YO-HEY leaps over the super veteran and gets a leg lariat and tag in Tadasuke. Tady Daddy gets strikes on everybody as he’s a house on fire and he even headbutts the turnbuckles and gets the feint punch into a DDT on Ogawa and it’s all breaking down as everybody flies in and hits stuff. HAYATA gets a gamengiri on Ogawa and calls in YO-HEY (still selling the arm!) for backup but we get babyface (?) miscommunication and YO-HEY superkicks HAYATA and he doesn’t seem to feel bad about it and HAYATA jaws at YO-HEY about this and Owada gets a dropkick on both of them and then tags AMAKUSA out of a springboard and ALMOST gets the champ in a backslide. AMAKUSA gets a spinning heel kick though and the corkscrew splash gets 3.

**½

Well this was a big mess of a match but it flew by and everybody got to do a bit. Absolutely fine.

Post-Match HAYATA dismisses YO-HEY and Tadasuke and goes BACK to Stinger. Okay now, like…they’ve teamed and betrayed each other like 50 times now, c’mon HAYATA.

Manabu Soya vs. Kenoh – B Block Match

Background: So there’s a ton of history here. Soya was the right-hand man of Kenoh in the now-defunct Kongoh stable, a stable Kenoh dismantled as he turned full-babyface and won the world title and now has become a pretty pro-company guy compared to his outlaw, renegade, militaristic heel Kongoh situation. So Soya, the loyal soldier got betrayed, and then he wrestled Kenoh for the title and lost, and got hurt and had surgery to fix nerve issues he’s had his whole career. Soya is back now, and he’s absolutely jacked out of his gourd, he once was a beefy, bearded big boy, and now he’s dropped like 20 pounds of fluff and is shredded, tan, clean-shaven and has a nice silver hair look to him. Kenoh remains the ridiculously haired loudmouth kenpo master of NOAH, he’s babyface now, but he’s still acerbic, still a troll, and still a guy who goes on ridiculous tangents, recently accusing his eternal frenemy and the current champ, Kaito, of not being confident enough to declare himself the best in the world. This match has a ton of history, and given Kenoh being a 2-time N1 Victory winner, and Soya’s recent glowup and his history as an upper-card guy, this is a big-deal match. Kenoh is in his silver and red tights, and Soya is in yellow and blue trunks.

The Match: Lockup and some wristlock stuff as they stalemate. Another lockup and we get a clean break from Soya who cranks on the headlock as Kenoh fires back with kicks and Soya shoots off forearms. Soya powders and baits out Kenoh and then attacks him on the outside, shoulder, whip into the barricade, and then a forearm into Kenoh on the barricade, and then…he does some hindu squats on Kenoh’s back on the outside in a pretty funny spot. Back in and Soya throws some forearms at Kenoh’s kidneys as he works over the back, as commentary explains that Kenoh’s nickname is Mr. Mendokusai (i.e. a pain in the tokhes). Soya gets some more strikes as he wears down the smaller Kenoh, mixing in a chinlock in between kneedrops, and then a headscissors as he is always doing something where other guys might just crank one thing on for a while. Kenoh tries some shots at Manabu’s stomach but the big guy shrugs it off and gets the corner whip into a bulldog…but Kenoh slips out and gets a kick flurry and the flying knee to the back of the head. PK and then Kenoh goes for his PFS (Professional Foot Stomp) but Soya rolls away and spears the loudmouth. And now Soya gets the bulldog and a brainbuster from his knees for 2. Good lord he’s strong. Kenoh slips out of a fireman’s carry and gets a suplex, but Manabut gets a back suplex into a backbreaker and it’s a double-down. We have officially hit the point of a match where both guys are sweaty enough that every strike leads to an explosion of water droplets and it’s just a fantastic visual. Kenoh’s kicks explode off of the beefy chest of Soya, and Soya’s chops create bursts of moisture. Soya’s flurry of chops followed by a headbutt knocks Kenoh down, but when Manabu goes for a brainbuster Kenoh slips out and gets a rolling ankle lock into a kick to the gut. Kenoh sets ups the dragon suplex but Soya breaks it…and then Kenoh reverses that into the Kenoh Special (omoplata crossface) but we get a ropebreak. Kenoh tries again but Soya just sits on him for a nearfall and then fires off his Ballstic Lariat and then a Death Valley Bomb, both for nearfalls. Soya goes up with Kenoh and gets a super Death Valley Bomb…and Kenoh kicks out at 2.1! Soya smells blood though and loads up another lariat…but Kenoh blocks with a kick, tanks a short-range lariat, and unloads some slaps, ducks another lariat, Pele, and then gets the Dragon Suplex. PK to follow but that only gets 2.7 and Kenoh is just dripping sweat. Another PK and Soya sits up! And another PK and Soya sits up! And another PK and Soya…catches the kick and gets a dragonscrew. Kneeling DDT from Soya for 2, and then Soya gets a fireman’s carry spun into a knee strike, and a Ballistic Lariat but that gets 2.999! Soya looks flabbergasted but fires up and tries loading up Kenoh for the jumping DDT and Kenoh collapses and the ref checks on him, Soya shoves the ref away and Kenoh gets the desperation high kick…that Soya ducks and grabs a sleeper (in the same way that Kenoh gets it). So when Soya drops Kenoh to his knees and taunts (just like Kenoh does it) Kenoh knows to immediately go for something and we get the Kenoh Special! But Manabu makes the ropes. Grotesque high kick from Kenoh and the PFS gets 3.

****

Yeah there were flaws with it (the back stuff never really lead anywhere and there’s some sludgy moments) but man this was one heck of a match. I was really expecting Soya to get the win here, but we got a real deal where Kenoh’s style plays out, yes he’s a ridiculous hothead, but his main thing is that he infuriates other people to a degree that they fall for HIS gameplan, and Soya trying to use Kenoh’s own moves against him and him losing because of that is fantastic. Really, really great stuff they had cooking here

Luis Mante vs. Kaito Kiyomiya – A Block Match

Background: So Luis is a top guy for DragonGate and the first Mexican to win the top DG belt. He’s in a gossamer white shirt and white tights and has long-ish black hair in a very romance novel model way. He used to be Diamante but that was him with a mask, he lost the mask and is now what he is. Kaito of course is our noble, dorky, pure-hearted young babyface champion.He’s in silver trunks and platinum blonde hair.

The Match: Hot-start as Luis dropkicks Kaito going through the ropes before the bell and then hits a massive springboard plancha that goes over the barricade and Kaito is selling big. Luis goes at Kaito’s arm here. Mante with some kicks and then back at the arm as Kaito hollers and beckons in pain, Kaito gets a desperate dragonscrew to catch a breather and both guys trade strikes and Luis gets a massive back body drop on Kaito. Kaito goes back at the knee though, but Luis gets a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and then goes, repeat after me, back to the arm. Slugfest and Kaito is selling the arm big. Flying clothesline gets space for Kaito though as he massages his limb. Kaito with a flurry and kips-ups and rubs the arm before flying over the corner ringpost to get a plancha on a hidden Luis. Back in and Kaito gets a missile dropkick on Luis. Kaito goes for the half-and-half setup for the modified Tiger Driver but Luis skips out and we get him hitting big stuff. Tilt-a-whirl into an Argentined backbreakder drop but Kaito gets a dragonscrew and then another. Missile dropkick to the leg and then a figure-four and Luis eventually makes the ropes. Kaito with the half-and-half suplex lift to a Tiger Driver next and Kaito gets the modified Shining Wizard but Luis blocks it. And gets his own dropkick. Mante up and he tries a superbomb but Kaito reverses. Luis with a big boot but Kaito gets the knee, and then misses the Wizard out of the corner and gets a jumping rana on the champ. Kaito with the modified Shining Wizard anyway though and that gets 2.8. Mante with a til-a-whirl Tombstone, but Kaito gets a Tiger Suplex afterwards. Mante with an Argentine rack…piledriver? But that just gets 2 (of course) and we reset I guess. Kaito gets a running Shining Wizard but Luis dropkicks and then lariats Kaito before getting a Vuelta Finale 2 (Military Press into a Facebuster) for 2 and then a Vuelta Finale (Military Press into a powerbomb) and that wins it for him.

**

Meh, the work was fine but unspectacular and then they did an uninspiring ending sequence. Not impressed at all. Also after pretty easy to predict booking, we got this, which was pretty predictable as well despite the ‘upset’ nature. This was my first time with Luis Mante and uh, I was not a fan, at all.

Mante cuts a very un-good promo to see us out and there we go.

Well, that was night 1. Not the best night 1 but it happened and here we go. I think it laid down the framework for matches to come and we got our flurry of upsets to set the stage for the rest of the tournament. I’ll be here with you and I hope you all enjoy it. These are always slowburns for me and I do think this tournament will be good, but it can be a bit rough just…setting the stage for us.