Toru Yano vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. – New Japan Cup (Round 1)
On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do you think DBS hates Gedo’s guts? I’m going with 11. Unless they bring a new twist to the table, like last year’s Wrestling Yano gimmick in the G1, baseline Yano matches do nothing for me anymore. This was very baseline Yano and even the crowd could barely muster up any excitement for the rollup spots. Kinda felt bad for Davey who got a SICK TAN for this bullshit New Japan Cup run. *
Togi Makabe vs. Colt Cabana – New Japan Cup (Round 1)
Colt Cabana being in the New Japan Cup only as an excuse to finally run the elusive Cabana/Yano dream match is some wild shit. Him working Makabe felt like a weird glimpse at a parallel universe where old Togi got an Osaka Pro run and feuded with Ebessan, except not as good as that sounds. Colt’s shtick is a little tired, but he’s a likeable fellow and the crowd seems to be into his antics. Also, you could tell he scored a lot of points with Milano with that very pretty-looking Moonsault attempt. **1/2
Satoshi Kojima vs. Minoru Suzuki – New Japan Cup (Round 1)
Here’s your annual reminder that old man Satoshi Kojima can still go and have a damn fine match when called upon. These two have been hating each other’s guts since 2006 so this was all about forearms to the face, stiff chair shots and chop wars. I was into it is what I’m saying. I will never get tired of the look of sheer disgust on Suzuki’s face whenever Kojima dares to bust out the machinegun chops on him.
And that was just one of the many cool moments in this match that included Kojima busting out a GNARLY fucking Brainbuster and Suzuki swiftly countering the Koji Cutter into a sleeper. Kojima taking all of Suzuki’s stiffest slaps and bouncing back with a couple of monster lariats would’ve made Grandpa Choshu proud. Hell, this whole match would’ve made him proud. ***1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. SANADA – New Japan Cup (Round 1)
SANADA being the new Takamatsu local favorite because he main evented last year against CHUCKIE T of all people is both hilarious and amazing. The fact he debuted his SEE YOU NEXT TIME catch phrase there probably helped, but still. Anyway, I was a big fan of these guys’ G1 match last year and I thought this was even better. A lot more physical than the usual SANADA match, which was a welcome change of pace as it made SANADA come off as more than a guy with cool esthetics.
He looked like a proper New Japan main eventer, burning fighting spirit and all. The chemistry between both guys was another big plus. You wouldn’t expect Hirooki Goto to be the guy to keep up with SANADA’s super speedy reversals and crazy-ass rope running, but he is that guy. And good lord did Goto look like the most underutilized wrestler on the planet in this match.
The man has a ridiculously badass move-set, but everything seemed sharper than usual in this match. I think he hit the deadliest PRAYING KICK OF DOOM and hurtiest-looking GTR at some point. Some completely wild counters near the finish and SANADA’s beautiful Moonsault to cap it off – *CHEF’S KISS. A great match between two guys that deserve more love in the booking this year. ****
