All Japan Pro Wrestling: World’s Strongest Tag Determination League 2025 December 10th

Okay, so tournament finals for the World’s Strongest Tag Determination League…and we got 1300 in Korakuen, we got big dudes, we got little dudes, the crowd is either electric or banana and we’re off to the races!

Well we’re off to the gentle strolls as Rei Saito is here to an entrance after a long-time away with injury and the crowd is hot as he cuts a promo. Given the lack of tape or slings on him, I think he might be healthy here! Hurrah! If there is one Rei Saito fan, I am one, if there are no Rei Saito fans, I am dead. I miss the big lug and so does All Japan.

Hikaru Sato, MUSASHI, Seigo Tachibana & Seiki Yoshioka vs. Atsuki Aoyagi, Rising HAYATO, Ryo Inoue & Shota Kofuji

Background: Oh boy this is…a match. So MUSASHI and Seiki are coming off a run in the tag tournament that didn’t go great for them, but they had some scrappy wins and as juniors in a heayvweight tournament they did well! They are also the All-Asia tag champs which is sort of an openweight thing, anyway, scrappy champs. Sato is also junior-sized but has a nasty shooter edge to him but is mostly a JTTS. The final member is comedy goof Tachibana who does a Yakuza boss ripoff thing despite being 5’4” and often eats a lot of silly comedy wrestling pratfalls. Atsuki and HAYATO are a real-deal team of juniors, Atsuki is junior champ, they’ve held Seiki and MUSASHI’s belts before, they’ve all been butting heads about who is the man in that division. Ryo is a guy who has just graduated total rookie status and is a long-haired kick-devil who is definitely borrowing some undersized bravado from KENTA and Kawada. Shota is…well he’s the new young guy. Kofuji is a blonde, handsome young fellow who gets beat up a lot.

The Match: Sato and Ryo start and do their kickboxing dance before they trade standing grapples and do some armbar reversals. Headlock/headscissors reversals and they standstill with missed kicks and we get a double-tag to MUSASHI and Shota. The vet outsmarts the blonde rookie and gets a few kicks…but Kofuji turns on the jets and outspeeds MUSASHI into a flying clothesline, but Seiki comes in for some double-team kicks and then the entire squad clears the apron and all four guys put the boots to Kofuji and get a series of assisted corner strikes, before Tachibana gets booted and then accidentally hits MUSASHI and then gets tossed by his teammates. MUSASHI keeps the abuse on Shota in the ring and gets chopped in the corner and takes in Yoshioka for real. Seiki gets his own series of kicks and some covers before Shota tries a desperate comeback that’s easily foiled. Seiki heels it up with a corner choke but hotdogs too much, eats boots in the corner and then a rolling dropkick which lets Shota tag in Rising HAYATO. Our goth babyface gets a lionsault press for 2 and a corner dropkick/bulldog combo for another 2 count on Seiki. A low thrust kick is blocked by Yoshioka and both juniors trade elbows off the ropes before Seiki gets his scissor kick and brings in Seigo. Tachibana with a Manhattan drop and a running boot and he plays to the crowd before trying for a waterwheel slam that HAYATO counters into a sunset flip, leg lariat by the goth and it’s a tag to Atsuki who dazzles with some backflips and springboards to set up a dropkick and then a fisherman’s buster set up that gets countered into a Seigo STO. Shota flies in with a missile dropkick and Ryo clears the apron and Tachibana is our Yakuza in peril and now its his turn to eat a bunch of assisted corner strikes before HAYATO and Aoyagi hit their assisted codebreaker into a back suplex/neckbreaker combo for a pin that’s broken up by MUSASHI. It breaks apart with everybody getting a big move until they clear the ring and MUSASHI follows with a flip dive onto the outside. Reset to Seigo and Atsuki and Tachibana drops the junior champ with a big elbow and both guys trade shots…before Seigo demolishes him with a combo, but Atsuki wills himself up for a 540 kick…and Seigo responds with a desperate lariat and then an Olympic slam for 2.7. Tachibana tries for 12-6 northern elbow but he whiffs and HAYATO runs in for a superkick, Atsuki with his own, and then stereo superkicks and and a double fisherman’s bomb that gets broken up.Ryo gets a spin kick on Hikaru, MUSASHI and Seiki try to double-team Shota but he evades and knocks both out of the ring with dropkicks, HAYATO gets a springboard plancha on the entire crowd and then Atsuki finishes off Seigo with a 450.

**¾

Well, I’ve seen basically all of these sequences before, but they realized the trick to a good 8-man tag and that’s just constant motion and movement, there are times to take it slow, but with 8 juniors they kept things going and definitely tried a bit harder in front of 1300 in Korakuen than 300 in Kobe. Fun stuff and the champ got a clean pin to end the night.

Kuroshio TOKYO Japan & Takashi vs. Hokuto-gun (Hokuto Omori & Kuma Arashi)

Background: So Takashi is technically part of Hokuto-Gun and their dirtiest, goofiest, and most bumbling member, but he’s just off a run teaming with Kuroshio and they’ve legitimately had fun being goofballs together. Kuroshio has had beef with Omori in the past as well. It’s somewhat notable that KTJ’s jacket tonight is a gorgeous maroon Ribera set up, which I’m shocked I haven’t seen him rock before.

The Match: KTJ of course does his exceedingly long entrance dancing through the crowd, and then spends like a solid minute hugging a fan. Look, you can’t say he doesn’t entertain the crowd.This extended pre-match celebration seems to have legitimately blown up Takashi who is huffing and puffing as he jumps and poses pre-match. Takashi and Kuma start and the crowd is just electric for Takashi who is smiling his behind off. We finally get contact with a gentle lockup that Kuma wins and gives the clean break on. Headlock, shoot off for a shoulderblock…and Takshi rakes the eyes. Kuma gets another shoulder and howls and then tags in Hokuto and both deliver some LIGHT boots before Takashi spams throat thrusts and gets a double throat-thrust and a double lariat. Kuroshio tags in, and Takashi sets up a splash by KTJ…but he snapmares Omori too far away…Kuroshio asks Hokuto to be places closer…and Takashi puts him basically in the ropes. Takashi asks Omori to be moved again, and this time he’s just right…but Takashi won’t move out of the way as he’s in front of Hokuto. Kuroshio hops down and argues with Takashi which allows Omori to hit a cutter that KTJ takes an absurd Scott Hall-esqu bump on before Takashi gets another throat thrust. Takashi does his running corner throat thrust deal before accidentally thrusting the buckle, and when Kuroshio tries to fix his partners fingers Kuma runs in with a crossbody on both of them. Arashi gets a double senton and then a torture rack on Takashi, KTJ breaks with a nutshot to the bear man but accidentally superkicks Takashi when the later sets up Kuma for a superkick. Then when Hokuto grabs Kuroshio we get a spot where Kuma accidentally lariats Omori. KTJ yells at Takashi some more and prods him, and Takashi has had enough and starts attacking his partner! Kurosho responds and both guys slug it out before Kuma breaks it up! Kuroshio goes to the top rope…and Kuma and Takashi share a look and then set up KTJ for their patented “both these guys powerbomb Hokuto who gets a superplex on the other guy” spot…which ends as it always does with the guy getting suplexed hanging on and Kuma/Takashi powerbombing poor Omori. Kuroshio follows with a missile dropkick on both guys, a rope-assisted gamengiri into a springboard somersault headscissors (that looked beautiful) before Takashi pops up…to throat thrust his partner into an Omori schoolboy for 3.

**½

That was silly as it sounded! Mostly just a bunch of goofy comedy spots but they made me laugh. Oh I guess at the end of it Hokuto-Gun are are reunited.

We get Seigo running out post-match to back up his long-time buddy KTJ, but Hokuto-Gun beat him down, Takashi throat thrusts Kuroshio once again, and they set up a big top-rope senton by Kuma…who whiffs as the Tokyo Yankees powder. Methinks this feud will continue.

Daisuke Sekimoto & Dan Tamura vs. HAVOC (Go Shiozaki & Shotaro Ashino)

Background: Okay on what is likely to be a completely different scale of goofy to serious, we got living cube of muscle Daisuke Sekimoto teaming with a scrappy rookie he had previously beaten the tar out of (but in a respectful, we are men who fight way) in Dan Tamura, a solidly built oversized junior who likes bludgeoning people. HAVOC of course are a nominally heel group of aggressive guys but they seem to really like each other and are sorta fun jock types that the fans cheer them regardless. The two representing their team today are incredibly decorated veteran Go Shiozaki, and Master of Suplex Shotaro Ashino…he likes suplexes.

The Match: Go and Sekimoto start with a big chant and we the monster lockup that Daisuke wins and gives a break on. Go grabs a headlock and they go for the shoulders and that goes towards Daisuke…so Go unleashes chops but Sekimoto responds with his own and wipes out Go with a shoulder before wiping out Shotaro and bringing in Dan for a cover. Tamura slugs away at Go in the corner, and Shiozaki takes the chance to fire back…at a chop against Daisuke, ha. Sekimoto grabs an arm and sets Go up for a bludgeoning from Tamura before tagging in and delivering some monster chops against Go, and Go is like “oh I like chops” and is just grimacing and smiling through it before he unleashes his own and Sekimoto sells big and these are just nasty sounding before Daisuke breaks it up with a dropkick and then goes for a brainbuster but Go stuffs it and reverses to his own and in comes Shotaro with uppercuts. Shotaro mixes it up with a Karelin lift fo 2 and then tries for a German but Daisuke elbows out and it’s a slugfest. Sekimoto finally drops him with a shoulder and gets a powerslam for 2.5 before Shotaro comes back with strikes before Daisuke drops him with a big lariat, and then when Sekimoto rebounds we get a big Shotaro lariat~! And now I see all the press tacks on Shotaro’s back before Daisuke pops up for a German, and Shotaro masters his suplex into his own German and we have a double-tag to Go and Tamura and the rookie gets a flying shoulder and a Samoan drop for 2. Some knees set up some brawling in the corner and Tamura is on total control as Daisuke come in for some assisted corner attacks and then Sekimoto hits a back suplex before setting Go up for a diving Dan shoulder. Shotaro tries to interfere but is immediately tossed and Sekimoto follows and it’s back to Go and Dan with Tamura beating the vets behind before Go gets some boots up in the corner, unleashes a monster chop, and gets his inside-out superplex. We now focus on Shotaro and Daisuke duking it out and Go recovers to hit HAVOC’s uppercut/chop into a German/overhand chop combo on Sekimoto we get a fistbump and Go is back on Dan with chops before the rookie gets some short-range lariats, but Go is like “I do that too” and blasts Tamura down with his own before a VERY loose Fisherman’s buster gets 2.8 and Go takes the elbow pad off and it’s Gowan Lariato time for 3.

***¼

A bit truncated for what it could be, but all the pieces worked and it’s four good to great guys doing their thing in a tag. I uh…really want to see Go vs. Daisuke? And Tamura is absolutely improving working with these dudes.

Post-match Daisuke and Shotaro push and shove a bit and we have a big brawl between the two. WILL THIS FEUD CONTINUE??!

Anyway we have an intermission now.

Saito Brothers (Jun Saito & Naruki Doi) & Yuma Anzai vs. Gaja Dokuro (ISHIN, Madoka Kikuta & Yoshiki Kato)

Background: So the Saitos are a sort of cool guy 80s villain group that are totally heroic at this point but Naruki Doi is their smallest and most jerky member. Jun is a former champ and a legit top-contender who has clicked with heroic future stud Anzai in an odd couple partnership with both their regular pairs out at the moment. They’re facing Gaja Dokuro (or Gajadokuro) which apparently is a reference to a Yokai that is a rattling skeleton or a shaking skeleton or a snake skeleton given their imagery. Anyway, they’re a DragonGate stable and we have Yoshiki Kato who is bulky with dyed hair and wears scale-patterned trunks, ISHIN with a shoulder strap piece, a jitte, and a weak goatee while Madoka who has had Champion Carnival success before is holding the Open the Dream Gate Title, he’s the Hip Bomb Kid and he’s a hard-hitting striker and it’s weird to see this endearingly doofy dude as the leader of this apparently evil stable of evil snake skeleton guys.

The Match: Hot start and we got some brawling and we all go outside and we be bludgeoning. We go back in with Madoka stepping on Yuma before Anzai fires up and Kikuta keeps up the disrespect and unleashes a hard chop before Yuma gets space with a dropkick and brings in Jun and Kato. Yoshiki makes a big show and Saito is sorta perplexed, but Jun runs into a drop toehold to MASSIVE boos but Jun gets a shoulder and brings in Doi (who is also a DG ex-pat). The Saitos all get a flurry of offense on Yoshiki who powders and throws a tantrum before sliding back in and asks Doi to do a dive on him? Well they yap, Naruki goes outside and then when he reenters the ring he gets nailed with a kick to the ropes. ISHIN clears out the Saitos in the corner and Yoshiki goes to work on Naruki before bringing Madoka in to just sorta pose before beating Naruki down and slugging away in the corner before ISHIN tags in with a boot choke with Kato helping from the outside. Blockbuster slam by ISHIN as he taunts Doi’s partners and its back to Kato with a rope choke lifted from Ryuki Honda. The ref finally breaks this up and Kato gets a falling headbutt to the groin, and then another before a cover. Kato clears out the apron again and all of Gaja Dokuro run in for a triple body avalanche on Doi, but Yoshiki takes too much time hotdogging before whiffing his jumping splash and it’s hot tag…Jun, as Doi notably pulls his hand away from Anzai with hesitation and brings in his boss. Jun takes out Yoshiki but Madoka and ISHI run-in…but they eat a double clothesline and Saito gets to work on Kato. Yakuza kick, delayed brainbuster for 2, arrogant cover and Jun UNLEASHES THE HAIR! Chokeslam attempt but Kato slips out, rakes the eyes and hits a DDT before tagging in Madoka. The Open the Dream Gate champ goes for a piledriver but Jun backdrops out finally tags in Yuma. Flying forearm! Evade a charge! Flying knee! Belly-to-belly! Kikuta kicks out at 2 and they slug it out. Madoka with a chop, Yuma with a pop-up knee, but Kikuta ducks the flying knee and drops Anzai with a lariat. Yuma with the big fired-up no-sell and he drops Kikuta with a German…and Madoka pops up and unleashes one of his patented hip checks to crush Yuma and we have a double-down before stereo tags to ISHIN and Doi. Naruki with a low dropkick immediately but Kato trips him up and Gaja Dokuro take over with more cheating and double-teams and Anzai breaks up a pin after a double-boot but Madoka drops Yuma with another hipcheck. Madoka’s discus lariat is blocked with Yuma’s flying knee and now it’s Yoshiki’s turn, him and Anzai counter each others stuff before a mule kick to the groin breaks up a German suplex. Saito runs in and Yoshiki tries the same trick but Jun blocks it and boots him down. ISHIN runs in, him and Jun trade chops and ISHIN gets the former champ with a fireman’s carry takeover. We’re back to Doi and ISHIN as Naruki tries to steal it with a schoolboy but ISHIN kicks out, flying lariat drops the vet, and a cutthroat torture rack facebuster gets 3.

**½

Mostly just a teaser for future stuff, but it got over that Gaja Dokuro cheat a lot and have actual teamwork. The bits with Madoka and Yuma (who clashed in the last Carnival) showed they still have chemistry. A bit weird having Jun play a straight-up face, and him and Doi probably are going to need to work on their sympathetic selling to make it work.

Gaja Dokuro cut a promo to pretty good heat. At some point MUSASHI and Seiki come out and I guess we’re getting a match for the All-Asia Tag Team Championships.

Davey Boy Smith Jr., Kengo Mashimo & Naoya Nomura vs. Hideki Suzuki, Kento Miyahara & Ryuki Honda

Background: So this is the teams that finished high in the tournament but didn’t make the finals, having a match with one partner on each side. As these are basically the uppercard, there’s a ton of history between all of them.

The Match: We start with partners Ryuki and Naoya, we get a lockup, Nomura wins, clean break. Honda wins the next lockup and gives a clean if somewhat cheeky break and Naoya fires off some elbows before they trade shoulderblocks with Honda coming out the winner. Ryuki brings Naoya to the corner and we get a tag to Hideki and Davey. Handshake of respect before they trade wristlocks with Smith in control until Suzuki grabs the ankle and gets a cartwheel evasion (?!). Back to the mat and Davey kips up and pumps his fists and Kento tags in as we see the former partners explode! Or not as DBSJ brings in Kengo, who has had a pretty lengthy mini-feud with Kento over the last feud, trading wins in tournaments and for tag gold. Mashimo grabs the arm but Kento speeds it up with a boot, but gets caught in the corner and The Assassin gets a kick to the leg and then a dragonscrew and Miyahara is in peril as all his opponents run-in to beat him in the corner and it’s back to Kengo with an armbar but Kento gets a foot on the ropes. More wristlocks from Kengo until we hit a miscommunication spot as Miyahara is sent into the corner we he inadvertently elbows his partners. Hideki doesn’t take this well and he tags in with a slap and then starts trading slaps with his Baka No Jidai teammate in Kengo before Hideki baits Kengo in for an abdominal stretch. Naoya breaks it but Kengo is still in peril as Honda tags in for some running strikes and the rope choke as Hideki distracts the ref to let Honda continue the choke for longer. Spinebuster by Ryuki gets 2 and he calls for the lariat but Kengo blocks with a kick and then gets a flying kick before it’s Nomura time. Naoya with a dropkick and his own shoulderblock before a Northern Lights suplex gets 2.5. Naoya sets up Maximum (Death Valley Driver) but Honda slips out and both guys slug it out before Honda finally drops Naoya with a lariat. Nomura comes back with a flying forearm and tries for his spear…but Honda stuffs it and brainbusters his partner but Naoya hangs on and lands his own before Honda gets another lariat and it’s a double-down to a double-tag and we finally get Kento and Davey. Miyahara takes Smith down with his dropkick combo but Davey gets a jumping knee, Kengo slips in for a kick, and Naoya gets his diving splash. Davey tries for a German, Kento reverses and his partners run in…only for Hideki to ‘accidentally’ kick Kento and Ryuki ‘accidentally’ lariats Miyahara. Davey is like “ah sweet” and loads up the powerbomb…only for Kento to roll through for a sunset flip and a 3.

**¾

Kind of just a capper on the angles/storylines of the tournament, but we had some good star vs. star stuff and some stuff for the future. Davey continues to kinda look like a chump with some weird losses, but hey, he got his gold watch title run last year so I assume he’s cool with it.

Post-match we get Yuma Anzai coming out to challenge Kento at the New Year’s show.

Titans Of Calamity (Ren Ayabe & Talos) vs. HAVOC (Oddyssey & XYON – 2025 World’s Strongest Tag Team Determination Finals

Background: Okay, I have uh…been dreading this match a bit. So these are basically two unstoppable physical monster teams going at each other, just steamrolling the tournament, the Titans went 4-1 but their loss was a countout, while HAVOC went 5-0 (though one loss was a forfeit). They’re two teams that are made up of big guys that don’t really sell…okay XYON and Ren sell a bit. Ren is the only Japanese member of the match and he’s tall but sorta lean, Talos is taller and thicker, and is an American, Oddyssey is a big American who is thick and powerful but has a limited gas tank, XYON is an Australian-Samoan former rugby guy who sorta is the workhorse (of sorts) of the team. HAVOC are the current tag champs, and despite being outsider invader types, are pretty popular with the crowd and have an over chant and taunt, Titans are more dominant and more aloof and are the erstwhile heels.

The Match: Ren and XYON start, the ‘speedsters’ of each team. We get the main-event lockup with XYON winning but Ren reversing in the ropes, and Ayabe messes up the hair and gives the break. Another lockup and Ren wins but XYON reverses and gives a taunt out of the clean break. Next the Aussie calls for a shoulderblock war that ends with a double-down. Double tag and it’s Talos and Oddyssey in the battle of the giants. Crowd is firmly behind Oddyssey’s dancing and posing and the two bulls lockup and just sorta tussle around the ring before a stalemate. They both push and shove a bit before settling on a test of strength…and Talos does his “too tall” taunt before they finally engage in the Greco-Roman knucklelock of DOOM! Talos gets Oddyssey down to one knee before fights back and Talos starts throwing clotheslines, a kitchen sink knee, and some clubbing blows, but Oddyssey fights back, gets Talos in the corner, starts throwing hands, and gets on the second-rope to continue the abuse…but Talos picks him up and drives him into the opposite buckle. Talos follows with a sidewalk slam (that looked like it tore a muscle in Talos back) for a sloppy cover. Talos follows with a charge but Oddyssey uses speed (?!) to evade and clotheslines Talos over the top and XYON and Ren immediately follow to support their partners and end up brawling in the stands as Talos and Oddyssey fight ringside. After a long fight where XYON and Ren slam each other against every object in Korakuen, HAVOC reunite ringside to whip the Titans against each other and it’s back to Oddyssey and Talos, and the Odd-one is in control with a few elbow drops. Also I learned doing research (I swear I do research!) that Jack Talos real name is Zechariah Smith…how do you not go with THAT as a name over Jack Talos, which is a discount airport novel protagonist written by Brad Thor. Oddyssey fires up and gets a jumping splash for 2.5 and he starts talking trash. XYON runs in for a back suplex/neckbreaker combo which gets 2.7 on Talos and the big guy is breathing heavy as XYON sets up his fireman’s carry slam…but Talos slips out, gets a kidney shot, and brings in Ren for a double boot and Ayabe starts beating the Samoan down in the corner and then a big slam gets an arrogant cover for 2 before it’s back to Talos. We be clubbering! XYON tries a float-over evasion but he’s caught and eats snake eyes and a Talos big boot gets 2.4. Back to Ren and a short double boot choke in the corner sets up an Ayabe hard whip and then a yakuza kick for 2.6. Ren goes for a crab but XYON immediately scampers out and eats a stomp from Ren who then tags in Talos. The American gets a sorta…standing camel clutch in the ropes and after the break gets a kneeling version that XYON sells huge and it’s back to Ren and the Titans get their lifted goozle slam for 2 (Heart Attack but Talos gets a running goozle) and then Ayabe goes back to the crab. Oddyssey runs in to break it up and then it’s Talos to go after the Odd-one but Oddyssey once again uses his superior evasive techniques (?!??!) and gets a running crossbody to take out Talos, but Ren gets a shotgun dropkick on Oddyssey (that the big guy takes a great bump for) and XYON flies in with the spinnin elbow to wipe out Ayabe and we have a quadruple down. In the credit to these performers, we’re about 20 minutes in and these guys are not really known for their gas tank and they’ve worked a pretty solid pace. All are back up to their feet trading blows and the Titans look like they’ve taken over before Oddyssey explodes with a double flying lariat and XYON spears Ren for 2.8. Oddyssey and Talos, and once again the HAVOC member out maneuvers Talos…but this time the Titan is here with a big boot to drop him regardless. Ren and Talos isolate XYON but the former rugby star fights back before running into a double chokeslam for a cover…but Oddyssey breaks it up. The Odd-one beats down Ren, but that lets Talos get a DIVING CLOTHESLINE (?!??!) and that wipes out Oddyssey and Talos follows outside. It’s Ren and XYON and Ayabe loads up Death Roulette (spinning falcon arrow) but XYON slips out the back and gets his strike combo into a spinning Samoan drop and then he takes out an interfering Talos. Oddyssey is back in while XYON goes up, but Ren drops the Odd-one with a flying crooked lariat and Talos cuts off XYON on the top, letting Ayabe hit a superplex and Talos once again goes airborne with a diving crossbody off the apron onto Oddyssey. It’s back to Ayabe and XYON and Death Roulette gets 3.

**

I am both impressed and dismayed. Good on these guys for working through a nigh-twenty five minute main-event heavyweight match…at the same time, why are you having THESE GUYS work a nigh-twenty five minute main-event heavyweight match! THe cardio issues were…notable. I will say that Ren looked ready for the task and had a yeoman’s job holding a lot of this together, Talos and Oddyssey were not as rough as I feared and dare I say XYON has turned into a pretty solid hand? Still, it wasn’t quite the freakshow appeal I think these two teams should have had, 12 minute sprints are probably a better fit for these guys gimmicks and would have worked better, but hey, we got to see Talos sell some splashes for a while…

Well that was the World’s Strongest Tag Determination league and my goodness I took way too much time getting this out. I’ll probably be caught up on the All Japan year end stuff in time for the Carnival…oy vey. Well thank you to anybody reading this, I honestly mean it. AJPW is mostly fun even if sometimes these reviews don’t make it seem that way.