Empyrean Heaven
Member
On July 1 and 2, a new era of professional wrestling will begin in North America. This weekend, New Japan Pro-Wrestling crosses the biggest border in their history with their first ever self-promoted shows in the Western Hemisphere, emanating from the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, California. Needless to say, with the admiration New Japan has received this year, this is an incredible moment for both long-time fans of the company, and hopefully for puroresu newcomers as well. And with this entry into a new frontier, five New Japan championships will be on the line, including one that will see its first-ever champion.
Both events will be broadcast live, with Night 1 airing on AXS TV in the US and Fight Network in Canada starting at 8PM EST, while Night 2 will be available exclusively on New Japan's live streaming service, NJPWWorld.com, which you can sign up for at a price of just 999¥ (about $9 USD) a month. If you only have one or the other, don't worry Night 1 will be archived for on-demand streaming on NJPWWorld the morning after the event, while Night 2 will air via tape delay on AXS TV and the Fight Network on July 7. For those outside of the US, both events will air live on NJPWWorld. Live English commentary for both shows will also be provided, with the NJPW on AXS TV announce team of legendary wrestling announcer Jim Ross and MMA icon Josh Barnett calling the action.
Single Elimination Tournament for the Vacant IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
To mark the momentous occasion of NJPW's first shows in the United States, the company is introducing what will be its eighth active championship. Debuting during Ring of Honor's recent War of the Worlds tour (featuring numerous NJPW wrestlers), the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship will represent this new expansion, and be regarded as a symbol for this immense undertaking. The first round matches will take place on night 1, with the semifinals and finals to determine the champion occurring on night 2.
First Round Match
Jay Lethal vs. Hangman Page
The first matchup in the tournament will feature its first two entrants, as Ring of Honor's Jay Lethal battles Adam Hangman Page of Bullet Club. At the War of the Worlds event in New York, Lethal was announced as the first participant in the tournament, and with good reason, being the longest-reigning ROH World champion of the last ten years, as well as the only man ever to hold the ROH World and Television championships simultaneously. Meanwhile, Page quickly came out to protest Lethal's inclusion, and throw his own hat in the ring. As he has never held a major championship in his career and as one of the few Bullet Club members to primarily compete in the US, Page would be a tremendous first champion, but faces some stiff competition. However, he may have upside over his opponent, as at ROH's Best in the World event held last week, Lethal was taken out by a splash through a table by the Beer City Bruiser, leaving his status for this match questionable at best.
First Round Match
Juice Robinson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
The next tournament match features one of New Japan's top young stars facing an international independent icon. Juice Robinson, whose fighting spirit has taken him to a high-level in NJPW, has become nigh-unrecognizable from his time in NXT as CJ Parker, and has become one of the fiercest, most passionate competitors in the company with several huge victories over the last year, as well as opportunities at both the IWGP Intercontinental and NEVER Openweight championships and his first G1 Climax berth. The opposition is the man considered by many to be the best technical wrestler on Planet Earth today, Zack Sabre Jr. Making his New Japan debut with a gigantic win over Katsuyori Shibata to regain the Revolution Pro British Heavyweight title, to go along with his already-held EVOLVE and PWG championships, Sabre would join the sadistic heels of Minoru Suzuki's Suzuki-gun, which would get a giant boost if he could bring the US title back as the lone faction representative on this trip.
First Round Match
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Tetsuya Naito
The next bout pits two long-time rivals against each other, as CHAOS' Tomohiro Ishii takes on the leader of Los Ingobernables de Japon, Tetsuya Naito. Ishii has become one of the most popular and feared wrestlers on the planet, with relentless strength and power for his size, as well as an uncanny resilience to pain. Despite holding the record for most NEVER championship reigns, Ishii has strayed far from singles gold in the last year, so taking the US belt would be a major boon for the Stone Pitbull.
However, while Ishii is known for his fearsome intensity, Naito is known for anything but. Formerly considered the future ace of the company, the rejection of the fans led Naito to adopt a new attitude of Tranquilo - Just calm down, which has led him to turn his back on the company's fans, wrestlers, and even management. Coming off a long reign as IWGP Intercontinental championship where he was just as vicious to the title belt itself as he was to his opponents, Naito has openly resented the new US title's creation, even offering his place in the tournament to any takers. A Naito victory means he could very well be not only the US title's first champion, but its last.
First Round Match
Michael Elgin vs. Kenny Omega
The final first-round matchup pits two of New Japan's premier gaijin talent against one another, once again sparking the dulled flames of a tremendous rivalry. "Unbreakable" Michael Elgin, a long-time indy standout and former ROH World champion, made the jump to New Japan in 2015 and hasn't looked back, holding the IWGP Intercontinental championship a year later and proving himself to be one of the company's strongest warriors. However, "Big Mike" has mostly stayed away from New Japan this year, and hasn't found much success on his trips over, something being the first man to be US champion would certainly remedy.
However, Elgin faces fierce opposition against a man who has turned from an also-ran into a household name in just the last year. Taking over leadership of Bullet Club, Kenny Omega also held the Intercontinental championship (losing it to Elgin) and became the first-ever non-Japanese wrestler to win the prestigious G1 Climax tournament. But that was only a taste of his true abilities, leading to two legendary matches with IWGP champion Kazuchika Okada, losing an epic Tokyo Dome clash at Wrestle Kingdom 11 before topping it with an incredible 60-minute draw at Dominion in Osaka-Jo Hall just a few weeks ago. Once again denied the top prize in Japan, "The Cleaner" is certainly hungry for gold, and the new US title will do quite nicely.
IWGP Tag Team Championship
Guerrillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa) (c) vs. War Machine (Raymond Rowe and Hanson)
Coming to New Japan with one goal in mind, the massive duo of Raymond Rowe and Hanson, collectively known as War Machine, made good at Sakura Genesis in April by capturing the IWGP Tag Team championship from the legendary team of Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima. While they retained the title against them in a three-way match a month later, the other team in that match, the Bullet Club's Guerrillas of Destiny, made up of brothers "Bad Boy" Tama Tonga and "Silverback" Tanga Loa, were quick to lay a beating on War Machine after the match's conclusion.
At the later 2-on-2 title match at June's Dominion event, a steel chair helped the GOD put down War Machine, and earn their third tag title reign, but while the sons of the legendary King Haku rules Japan, it's a different story in America, where War Machine reigns supreme. Expect total warfare when these two teams go for broke for tag team gold.
IWGP Heavyweight Championship
Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. Cody
Night 1's main event will appropriately be for the top championship in New Japan, and also will appropriately feature the company's biggest star. Without hyperbole, Kazuchika Okada has been nothing short of the best wrestler in the world, defending his IWGP Heavyweight championship against all comers and putting together an absolutely transcendent CV, with matches against the likes of Minoru Suzuki, Tiger Mask W
AKA Kota Ibushi
Cody Rhodes left the WWE for the independent scene in 2016, and quickly found himself crossing paths with Bullet Club, joining the group towards the end of the year. Since then, Cody has faced and defeated names like Juice Robinson and Michael Elgin, before finally challenging an exhausted Okada following his epic 60-minute battle with Omega at Dominion. And just to add a bit more intrigue to the proceedings, Cody captured the ROH World Championship just this past weekend, meaning he has the chance to be the first man to hold both titles at the same time. Now, it's champion vs. champion, as the Rainmaker clashes with the American Nightmare in what should be an unforgettable challenge.
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) (c) vs. Roppongi Vice (Rocky Romero and Beretta)
Loud, brash, and with the skills (and superkicks) to back it up, the Young Bucks have become one of the most in-demand teams in the world. Card-carrying members of Bullet Club, the brothers Jackson currently hold the ROH World Tag Team titles to go along with their record-setting sixth reign as IWGP Jr. Tag Team champions, also possessing their own Superkick Party titles and a highly-rated YouTube show. It seems nothing can stop the Bucks, with the exception of one team that always proves to be a thorn in their side.
Roppongi Vice, made up of the veteran Rocky Romero and the high-flying Trent Beretta, have held the Jr. tag gold four times in their career as a team (with a record eight reigns for Rocky) and have had their destinies entwined with the Bucks for most of 2017. After losing the titles at Dominion, the CHAOS members quickly got a rematch for Night 2 of the G1 Special, but it will be in the Young Bucks' home turf of Long Beach, not far from their home in Rancho Cucamonga. And to add an interesting prelude, both teams have floated the possibility of adding some elevation to the bout in the form of a ladder match, which would be a first for their feud. Either way, expect plenty of extreme action in what promises to be a complete spectacle.
IWGP Intercontinental Championship
Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Billy Gunn
At Dominion in Osaka-Jo Hall, Hiroshi Tanahashi, the legendary ace of NJPW, did nothing short of save the IWGP Intercontinental title from oblivion, as he claimed what was left of the championship belt from Tetsuya Naito. Rebuilding the belt with nothing but some paint, polish, and elbow grease, Tanahashi has brought it back to its former glory, and now looks to defend it as a proud champion. However, his first defense will be against a surprising adversary.
Looking for a partner after his Hunter Club ally Captain New Japan defected to Bullet Club, becoming Bone Soldier (please, don't ask) former WWE star Yoshitatsu needed an expert in tag team wrestling, someone who knew all too well Bullet Club's style of debauchery harkening back to the days of Degeneration X, and someone who worked well with the Triple H cosplay he'd been trying to pull off. Enter Billy Gunn, the former 11-time WWE tag champion and Intercontinental champion, who proved to be a valuable partner in the 2016 World Tag League and still remains an incredible competitor despite being 53 years of age. Through Yoshitatsu, Gunn challenged Tanahashi to a match for his newly-won IC title, which will take place as the main event of Night 2. Can Tanahashi get his second reign as IC champion off to a good start? Or does the former Mr. Ass have two words for him?
