I just feel they want Okada to face Tanahashi with the all-time most successful title defense record possibly being broken if he win. Hope I’m wrong.

This final is hugely unpredictable. Arguments could be made for either guy winning it. Zack Sabre Jr. is certainly the freshest possible opponent for Okada, but Tanahashi vs Okada is also intriguing. We haven't seen that match in a while and it's the first time these two have faced with Okada as the huge favourite.

Another possible angle is Tanahashi winning the Cup and going after Suzuki, the man who humiliated him and tried to end his career a couple of months ago. Perhaps that leaves the door open for Sabre vs Okada anyway.

Zack Sabre Jr vs. Kazuchika Okada, here we come!!

Really glad to be wrong. ZSJ vs. Okada will be incredible.

Shit, didn't mean to open this thread. Well, the cat's out of the bag now. I'm curious: did you guys watch the match or did you just read the result and come on PW to post?

As amazing as Zack Sabre is, I'm not optimistic about this match. I have flashbacks to Suzuki vs Okada, where Suzuki stretches Okada out for 20 minutes, he doesn't tap because Okada, there's no drama at all because obviously he will never tap, then Okada wins by hitting a million Rainmakers. Everyone gave it *****, I thought it sucked. I can't help but feel this is going to be the same, just with more interesting submission holds. And Okada will win by tapping ZSJ with the Cobra Clutch :lol:

I haven’t watched it yet. Plan on watching it later tonight. ZSJ is a better wrestler (right now) than Suzuki, so I expect the match to be better. I did like the Okada/Suzuki matches though.

Why do you look up the result before watching? I don't get that at all. Especially if you're planning to watch it the same day.

Mar 21, 2018 18:32:11 GMT Emperor said:

Why do you look up the result before watching? I don't get that at all. Especially if you're planning to watch it the same day.

Came across it on Twitter. Spoilers don’t really bother much in wrestling though. Knowing who is going to win doesn’t change my enjoyment of a match. 

Sabre Jr. is on track to have a Bryan Danielson like year in terms of standard of matches.

It's only March but bloody hell, and Wrestlemania weekend is on the horizon.

Haven't cared for ZSJ in the ring, but man those post-match press promos have been great.

If you try and moonsault off a balcony... I'll just move!

Even references Okada's 17-year reign. :lol:

He's such a good heel. I'd not be against he and Marty getting the band back together at some point in NJPW. That would be fun. Sabre is so technically good and does the little things well and is adding to his game in the past 12 months, he has a lot more variety now, but has really pulled off the arrogant know-it-all that knows he's good and lets people know it. He is obviously not going to win, but hey ho. I do wonder at this point who will dethrone Okada. Perhaps Tanahashi will be the man NJPW trusts most to do it?

NJPW is ran by businessmen now though and I can't see them letting Okada drop the title until they have bled the cash cow dry.

Besides, they probably know that once his reign ends, he will probably be off to the WWE as it'll be tough to see where he slots in once he's lost the title after such a mammoth reign.

Mar 21, 2018 19:56:50 GMT SM said:

Mar 21, 2018 18:32:11 GMT Emperor said:

Why do you look up the result before watching? I don't get that at all. Especially if you're planning to watch it the same day.

Came across it on Twitter. Spoilers don’t really bother much in wrestling though. Knowing who is going to win doesn’t change my enjoyment of a match. 

It rarely does for me, but if there's a really unpredictable match and I care about the result, then spoilers suck. If I'd have known the winner of Okada/Omega I in advance, that would have sucked and I doubt I'd have enjoyed the match anywhere near as much. It's a shame I'll have a lesser experience of Tanahashi/Sabre, but I'm sure it will still be great.

I want to know Big Pete's perspective on this topic. You were the first to report the result. Did you watch the match before?

Mar 21, 2018 20:51:10 GMT kemis said:

Besides, they probably know that once his reign ends, he will probably be off to the WWE as it'll be tough to see where he slots in once he's lost the title after such a mammoth reign.

I find this very hard to believe. I see Okada as an NJPW lifer, just like Tanahashi and most of the other native wrestlers. This might be Okada's greatest title run, but it won't be his last.

I heard similar things about Nakamura though to be fair.

Nakamura has always been an oddball. Different from the norm. Always eager to explore new opportunities even if it means starting from the bottom. Plus he is far more of a showman than Okada, so he would be much more likely to succeed in WWE.

That's not to say it wasn't surprising when Nakamura left for WWE, because he was one of NJPW's top stars, but it would be significantly more surprising if Okada (or Tanahashi or Naito or others) left for WWE.

Zack Sabre Jr. vs Tanahashi is one of the best matches I have ever seen. Even knowing the result in advance didn't impact it one bit. My MOTY for sure, and it will be very hard to top.

Sorry Emp, I should have been more careful.

As far as wrestling is concerned, I'm so used to spoilers that it doesn't faze me. I grew up logging into WCW.com on a Tuesday and Thursday evening, reading what went down on the show and deciding whether it was worth my time. Those Thursday Thunder reports were basically a necessity, especially in 2000 when some actor I had never heard of was now the champion of the entire promotion.

It's an old habit I need to fix. My thought process was to check out Puroresu Spirit just to see when the final would be on, realising it was on, logging onto /woo only to find the match had ended. Then since I was on a posting frenzy, I thought I'd bump the thread up with my marky response.

I still haven't seen the match yet. It's in a logjam of matches I need to catch up on, including Ibushi/ZSJ which for me is the meeting of two of my favourite wrestlers.

The other news from this tour is that Los Ingobernables de Japón and Suzuki-gun are finally feuding after being kept apart since the latter stable rejoined NJPW around this time last year. Takahashi and BUSHI are due a title match with Kanemaru and Desperado. Killer Elite Squad want a rematch with EVIL and SANADA (EVIL is injured, not sure when he's due back). And the big one: Naito vs Suzuki. Naito's been ducking Suzuki throughout this tour in his usual tranquilo manner. They had little physical contact until the finals show, where Suzuki brutalised him during and after the match.

I'd like to give special credit to Lance Archer who has really been stepping up his game on this tour. He's clearly having a blast messing with the audience. On his entrance he brings a bunch of water bottles, repeatedly takes gulps and spits it all on the front rows, making a special effort to drench those who try to cover up. He's been doing that for a while, but now he's making an extra effort. On one of the shows he made a young child cry by roaring in his face. That's going too far, you might say, and perhaps so, but the father didn't seem to mind, and it's a heat-getting tactic you don't see anymore. He looked absolutely killer on the final show, where him and Davey Boy Smith Jr. faced Yano and Ishii. The match is worth watching just for his performance. Among other things, he stared down a group of women holding a CHAOS towel. After some teasing, he grabbed the towel, wiped his nether regions with it, and threw it on the floor.

It's been a real resurgence from Suzuki-gun. Last year they thought they could waltz in and take over like they did in NOAH but they were given the rudest shock. It was a year of frustration for Minoru and his men, but it seems like after WrestleKingdom they've decided enough is enough and put the New Japan roster on notice. It took a superhuman effort from Okada to prevail against Suzuki, he had to rely on every piece of tape he could and lesson he learned to get one over the living legend. In ZSJ he comes up against the best technical wrestler in the world, who works a style he isn't as familiar with and I think there's every reason to believe there's going to be an ambush. ZSJ doesn't work like most guys, if he senses an opportunity, he will tear your body apart and Okada is going to have to go hold for hold if he wishes to retain. I think Okada's big match experience maybe enough to get him home, but you can never sleep on a guy who has beaten AJ Styles & Hiroshi Tanahashi - guys who both managed to beat Okada.

So we're probably looking at...

IWGP Championship
Zack Sabre Jr vs. Kazuchika Okada (c)

IWGP Intercontinental Championship
Tetsuya Naito vs. Minoru Suzuki (c)

IWGP Tag Team Championship
Killer Elite Squad vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (SANADA & EVIL)(c)

NEVER Openweight Championship
Juice Robinson vs. Hirooki Goto (c)

IWGP Junior Tag Team Championship
Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi) vs. Roppongi 3K (SHO & YO) vs. Suzuki-Gun (El Desperado & Kanemaru) (c)

A very solid line-up.

I'm not sure if EVIL will be back in time for April 1st, so the tag team championship might be off the table. That would be a shame, because stable vs stable shows are pretty cool. The triple threat junior tag and Okada vs Sabre are the only matches that have been confirmed for Sakura Genesis. I'm kinda thinking they might save Naito vs Suzuki to main event a future show (with EVIL/SANADA vs KES and BUSHI/Takahashi vs Desperado/Kanemaru).

Before Sakura Genesis comes Strong Style Evolved this Sunday. Golden Lovers vs Young Bucks main events. Jay White vs Hangman Page. ZSJ and Suzuki vs Okada and Ishii. Liger vs Ospreay (Mysterio's injured, right?). Guerrillas of Destiny vs Cody/Scurll. Not sure why that last match is happening. Guess it's part of the Bullet Club implosion storyline I haven't really been following.

Anyone watching SSE live? Apart from Omega/Jericho I haven't seen any NJPW so forgive me if I make some noob comments but I'm looking forward to this show.

Young Bucks vs. Golden Lovers was incredible!

Rest of the show was good, but nothing else really special.

Mar 26, 2018 4:09:51 GMT SM said:

Young Bucks vs. Golden Lovers was incredible!

Rest of the show was good, but nothing else really special.

Glad it wasn't just me. I probably shouldn't have started so early because 3-4 hours of wrestling I wasn't overly emotionally attached too was probably going to be a stretch, but I tapped out after the Ospreay vs Liger match because it annoyed me a bit and I couldn't stand the JR/Josh Barnett commentary any longer. It was kinda interesting to see ex-WWE guys that I had completely forgotten about like Camacho and CJ Parker though.

I'll check out the main event when it's available online and report back.

Watched the Japanese feed so I wouldn't have to deal with the English commentary and that appears to have been a wise move. Thoroughly enjoyed the show, with the last 2 matches being fantastic.

The crowd was hot for the early matches which enhanced the experience. You rarely get that kind of reaction in Japan, especially not for the undercard.

Yano and Chuckie T were massively over, and they had a really solid tag match with Killer Elite Squad.

Cody/Scurll vs GOD was a lot of fun. The crowd loved Scurll and hated Cody, something they played up throughout the match. It also has me questioning Scurll's place in the world, because it's very confusing. I don't subscribe to belief that he has to be a heel just because his nickname is "villain", but in this match alone his character was inconsistent. He was content to revel in the crowd at the expense of Cody getting booed, but then he would suck up to Cody and Brandi, then go back to showboating. I don't get it. Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa were more interesting/over than they have been in a long time. Gotta give credit to Cody for that one. I still think he's a mediocre wrestler, but he's one of the most hated heels on the planet, so good for him.

Ospreay vs Liger was the same trite Liger exhbition match we've been seeing for a while. Didn't care for it. Ospreay vs Mysterio should be interesting though.

ZSJ/Suzuki vs Okada/Ishii was very good. Ishii and Suzuki lit up the crowd with their super duper strong style antics. Ishii in particular was on fire, at maximum levels of...Ishii-ness. I enjoyed the Okada/Sabre interactions, but the crowd weren't really into either guy. ZSJ's style hasn't caught on in this area, and Okada has never been a particular crowd favourite in the states.

White/Page worked really hard, but it was obvious that both guys are a bit out of their depth to be working a semi-main event at such a show. In the end they relied on Page doing a bunch of crazy spots to get the crowd into it. It's a bit of a shallow way to get the crowd into the match, but it worked, and they are hardly the first wrestlers to do that, so good for them. Both guys have a ton of potential to grow, and this match serves as valuable experience.

Golden Lovers vs Young Bucks was a real thrillride. Really nice interplay of the expected high flying action and the psychology of best friends going to war with one another. The storytelling lulls in the action prevented this from becoming the intolerable spotfest we're used to seeing from the Bucks, and instead turned it into an exciting match which gave the audience room to breathe at the right moments. Of course with these four guys, they spared no expense and threw absolutely everything at each other. While there were a few spots/moments that were excessive, they didn't have too much negative impact on what was otherwise a fantastic bout. ****1/2

Sakura Genesis Card (4/1/18)

Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi vs. The Young Bucks

CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano) vs. Suzuki-Gun (Taichi & Takashi Iizuka)

NEVER Openweight Championship
Ryusuke Taguchi & Michael Elgin & Togi Makabe vs. Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa) (c)

Hiroshi Tanahashi & Juice Robinson & David Finlay III vs. CHAOS (Hirooki Goto & Jay White & YOSHI-HASHI)

Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito & EVIL & SANADA) vs. Suzuki-Gun (Minoru Suzuki & Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr.)

IWGP Junior Tag Team Championship
Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi) vs. Roppongi 3K (SHO & YO) vs. Suzuki-Gun (El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru) (c)

IWGP Junior Championship
Marty Scurll vs. Will Ospreay (c)

Golden Lovers vs. Cody & Hangman Page

IWGP Heavyweight Championship
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Kazucuka Okada (c)

So as Emperor said, a few of the matches that were set up at the New Japan Cup will happen at a later date. I'm really looking forward to the main event, I think ZSJ has been a real success story for New Japan and has helped breathe some life into Suzuki-Gun. Hell of a trade off to go from Shelton X Benjamin who wasn't working out to ZSJ who brings a new dynamic to the company.

I'm curious to see where the Golden Lovers storyline goes. If they continue to tag through out the year, they will be the best tag team in 2018 and they could even revitilise the tag team scene in Japan. I'd love to see a show where Okada teams up with Goto or Ishii to try and beat them and comes up short. Or have guys like Naito & Tanahashi try their hands. It could take New Japan's biggest weakness and turn it into a real strength if it's done right. On paper that sounds fantastic, but what about the IWGP Heavyweight Championship? Does Okada just continue doing what he's doing until people get tired of the reunion? Unless they take a chance on ZSJ, I can't see anybody else beating him for the title other than Omega or Ibushi.

It'd be interesting what would happen if Okada suffered an injury. Would they break up the Golden Lovers? Or would they just go all-in on the Naito babyface run and make him the champion? I think the latter would make more business sense, but I can't see it happening without Okada being out of the picture.

Sakura Genesis a.k.a. Bloody Sunday.

What a show so far!

Not watching Sakura Genesis at the moment. I came in to post this.

www.njpwuk.com/news/2018/3/31/strong-style-evolved-uk-is-coming-this-summer

Strong Style Evolved in the UK! Holy shit!

Holy shit:

I'm reminded of the CM Punk podcast. Someone's gonna die in there. Barbaric!

What that gif doesn't show is Ospreay bleeding everywhere for the rest of the match due to a big cut on the top of his head. He still worked the rest of the match fine, and the blood only added to the drama. Still though, one of the craziest bumps I've seen.

Cody also got busted open in his match against the Golden Lovers. I think it was a kick that did it. He was bleeding pretty hard. A crimson half-mask.

Then, incredibly enough, Zack Sabre somehow cut Okada while applying an Octopus Stretch. His boot may have scraped his head or something.