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It took not one but two Gene Blaster spears from Yota Tsuji at New Beginning to retain his IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Jake Lee, the challenger, was content to play mind games throughout their main event match clowning around like a madman.
At the start, when Tsuji released Lee in the ropes without striking him he bowed. Lee waves a finger in his face and then bowed in return. Tsuji kicked him in the gut for that.
Lee bows again. Tsuji misses a knee strike. Lee strikes a comedic “Oopsie!” pose. Arm dragged, Lee rolls to the floor. Tsuji dives through the ropes. Lee slides back into the ring and out the other side. Tsuji dives into him on the floor.
Lee clobbered Tsuji with a big boot to the face knocking him off the top rope and to the arena floor. Lee applauded himself. He then put on a black glove so he could rake and maul Tsuji’s mouth and face. Lee ran off the ropes kicking Tsuji in the chest then danced around as a lunatic jester.
Fed up with Lee’s nonsense, Tsuji chopped him over and over in the ropes but Lee fired back with a DDT, Lee drapes Tsuji over the top rope alternating between forearms to the back and knees to the stomach and chest. His final knee smash sends Tsuji over the ropes and to the floor. Tsuji blocks a penalty kick off the apron. He slams Lee’s knee to the apron and targets it again with a Dragon Screw. Lee finds it difficult to stand and make his way back into the ring. He does by sixteen though.
Lee and Tsuji battle on the top rope. Tsuji dumps Lee with a Guerrero Special off the second rope. He goes for the spear but Lee knees him in the face instead. Tsuji kicks out of a chokeslam. Lee attempt his running kick to the face. Tsuji stops that with a series of head butts and then a short range Gene Blaster. Lee kicks out. Tsuji curb stomps him twice. Lee gets up laughing smashing his head into a turnbuckle. Another Gene Blaster finally pins Lee.
Before leaving the ring after celebrating his victory, Tsuji called Hiromu Takahashi into the ring with the rest of Unbound. Hiromu had made it known that he is leaving NJPW and tonight was his last NJPW match for some time.
“No matter what happens you have my heart and my support,” said Tsuji to Hiromu.
Unbound led the crowd in cheers for Hiromu.
Hiromu said he was “fired up” by Tsuji and maybe he should “speak his mind”.
Hiromu disagreed that he had accomplished it all as a junior heavyweight in NJPW. He wants to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship as a junior heavyweight.
“Right now, I don’t think that I can and I hate myself for that. Just as I was thinking that, I thought of something else. I felt that I could leave here now with no regrets,” he said.
“I have one more belt that I want,” said Hiromu. “This isn’t goodbye. It is see you later until we meet again…More, more, more, more, more! Let’s enjoy life without regret and NJPW!”.
In what was essentially a co-main event, Knockout Brothers (Yuto-Ice & OSKAR) put the IWGP Tag Team Championships on the line against challengers Shota Umino and Yuya Uemura.
Things breaks down really quickly as Yuya and Ice square off in the ring and Oskar and Umino head to the floor. Ice lays in machine gun kicks to Yuya in a corner. Yuya just collapses to the mat to take a running knee strike and haymakers to the head. Oskar has to pull Ice off of Yuya.
Even with Oskar now in the ring, Yuya still goes after Ice knocking him off the apron. Oskar chops Yuya down to the mat. Umino tags in but misses a sliding drop kick on Oskar. Oskar stomps the crap out of him. Umino uses his agility leaping over Oskar DDTing his head on the apron before drop kicking him right over a barricade.
Umino laid Oskar over the guard rail then clocked him with a running knee and a draping DDT. In the ring, Umino just battered Oskar with one clothesline after another for a two count. Ice came to Oskar’s rescue though. Oskar blocked Umino and Yuya’s finisher slamming Umino to the mat. Umino barely kicked out. Oskar is holding his neck after all the damage he received. Oskar halts Umino’s attempted Tornado DDT trying for a stalling suplex but gets DDTed on his neck again.
Ice blocks the Deadbolt suplex on Oskar. Ice kicks Yuyu into oblivion. He is about to throw him into Oskar but Umino pushes Yuyu out of the way. Umino gets KOBed though. He is out.
The crowd weirdly chants:
KOB! KOB!
Yuyu fights off The Knockout Brothers on his own. He Deadbolt suplexes Ice but Oskar sneaks up from behind with a sleeper hold. Yuyu end that with a Jaw Breaker. Yuyu fails to hold down Oskar with two great roll-ups. Oskar kicks out of a German Suplex. Yuyu gets tossed into the knee of Ice. KOB to Yuyu. The champs retain.
Ricochet and Gates of Agony appeared on the video screen. Ricochet wants a AEW National Championship match against Taiji Ishimori for whatever reason at New Beginning USA while Bishop Kaun and Toa Liona want a shot at the titles the Knockout Brothers hold.
New Beginning in Osaka Results
Togi Makabe, Toru Yano versus Katsuya Murashima, Shoma Kato
This is Murashima’s send-off match as he heads off to excursion. Makabe pins Murashima with his King Kong Knee Drop.
Winners: Togi Makabe, Toru Yano
NJPW then held a 10 bell tribute for Tadao Yasuda
Unbound Co. (Hiromu Takahashi and Taiji Ishimori) versus United Empire (Francesco Akira and Jakob Austin Young)
On Hiromu’s wrist tape he has written “See You Later, NJPW”. Hiromu is leaving the company. This is his last match in NJPW for now. The crowd cheers loudly for Hiromu. Hiromu and Taiji double-team Young to start things off. Young is on the receiving end of a double drop kick. Akira grabs Taiji’s leg from the floor so Young can give him a running elbow in a corner. Young hangs up Taiji in a corner so that Akira can nail him with a Fireball knee strike. Akira takes Hiromu’s place in a corner, holds out his hand for Taiji to tag, mocking him. Hiromu is hot-tagged in bulldozing both members of United Empire with double cross body off the ropes. Hiromu picks up the official using him to give Akira a hurricanrana. Hiromu gives the official a thumbs-up. Taiji makes Young submit to the Bone Lock Crossface.
As Hiromu says goodbye to the crowd he is attacked from behind by Akira. Akira puts a chair around Hiromu’s neck. Before he can hit it with another steel chair Robbie X interferes ripping the chair out of his hands. He hits Akira with a springboard stunner off the ropes. Hiromu flattens him with a running clothesline as well.
Winners: Unbound Co. (Hiromu Takahashi and Taiji Ishimori)
War Dragons (Drilla Moloney and Shingo Takagi) versus United Empire (Great-O-Khan and Henare)
The Empire attacks before the bell can even ring. With Henare thrown to the floor, the Empire works over Shingo in the ring. Shingo fights back taking out Khan with a shoulder tackle and Henare with a scoop slam. Drilla and Henare trade chops in the middle of the ring. Henare wins that contest with a chop that brings Drilla to his knees. Khan ends up wrapping Drilla’s arm around the chain, apparatus that connects the turnbuckle to the ring post. Khan puts a chair over Drilla’s arm hitting it with another chair. With Henare distracting the official, he hits Shingo over the back with the chair as well. Drilla exits the trouble he is in with a drop kick on Khan and a tag to Shingo. Shingo takes on both members of The Empire. The Empire though returns to double-teaming Drilla until Shingo halts Henare’s attempted piledriver with a head butt and a haymaker. Drilla spears Henare. As Khan is taken out with a Drilla Killer, Shingo drops Henare with a Pumping Bomber. Shingo and Drilla pin Henare with a War Dragon finisher.
After the match is over Drilla addresses the crowd. He announces that he has resigned with NJPW. The crowd cheers.
Winners: War Dragons (Drilla Moloney and Shingo Takagi)
Bishamontin (Boltin Oleg, Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI) versus TMDK (Ryohei Oiwa, Hartley Jackson and Zack Sabre Jr.) – NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag Team Championship Match
Ugh. A ZSJ match? Bishamontin squash Jackson and retain with their double-team body splash, Shoto combination.
Winners: …and still NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag Team Champions, Bishamontin (Boltin Oleg, Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI).
Gabe Kidd vs Andrade El Idolo
The winner of this match will get a title shot against Yota Tsuji for the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship at New Beginning USA.
Kidd flips off Andrade before the bell rings. They do the shoulder tackle duel but that turns into a forearm duel. Kidd throws Andrade off the ropes. Andrade rests in them as he does taunting Kidd. In response, Kidd sits cross-legged in the middle of the ring. Kidd catches Andrade in a powerbomb for a quick two count. Kidd knocks Andrade to the floor and then imitates Naito’s “tranquillo pose” in the middle of the ring.
Kidd tries to piledrive Andrade on the apron but Andrade back drops him. Andrade leans Kidd up against the barricade and chops him hard. Andrade slams Kidd down hard on the ring apron. Andrade dives off the top rope with his springboard corkscrew senton deal. A two count for Andrade’s split-legged moonsault.
Andrade rushes into a corner. There is nobody home. Kidd gets a two count with a running clothesline. Kidd tries to lift up Andrade but Andrade just falls to the mat. Andrade catches Kidd with a drop kick off the ropes and is rewarded with another two count after running knees in a corner. Andrade kicks out of a piledriver. Andrade lands a back elbow smash and pins Kidd with his Hammerlock DDT.
Winner: Andrade El Idolo
David Finlay versus Callum Newman
The two charge at each other just swinging and wailing on each other. The furious fight goes to the floor where Finlay throws Callum into one barricade after another. They fight into the crowd. Callum is whipped into a wall. Back in the ring, Callum suplexes Finlay into a corner as he charged in. A running drop kick sends Finlay back down to the canvass. Callum chokes Finlay in a corner and has to be pulled off by the official.
Callum is clocked with a reverse Irish Curse from Finlay. The crowd begins cheering for Finlay. Finlay backs Callum into a corner and starts gnawing his forehead. Finlay lifts up Callum and then just heaves him to the mat.
Back on the floor, Finlay slams Callum on the ring apron. Zane Jay steps up to Finlay running interference. Finlay throws him into a barricade and spears him into the same barricade. Finlay running powerbombs Callum into a steel post. In the ring, Finlay gets a two count with a Dominator.
Let’s go King! Let’s go King! (Woof! Woof!)
Finlay gives Callum a buckle bomb. Callum bounces back with a drop kick. Finlay hits back with a clothesline to the back of the head. Another powerbomb gets Finlay a two count.
Gedo yells from the floor…
FINISH HIM!
Callum stuns Finlay with a couple of punches. Callum lands Finlay’s own Overkill and Excalibur. Callum hesitates to make the pin. He has Finlay pinned with another Excalibur. Callum lifts Finlay up. Callum removes the tape from his arm. He has a crown tattoo. Callum clotheslines Finlay with that arm, lands the Prince’s Curse for the win.
Finlay bows to the crowd and hugs Gedo. He even says goodbye to Hiromu who is on guest commentary. Is this his last match? Dunno.
Winner: Callum Newman
President Tanahashi’s music plays. He comes down to the ring all suited up to make an announcement.
Dominion on June 14th in Osaka Jo Hall will be broadcast on network TV in Japan.
Aaron Wolf (c) versus Ren Narita – NEVER Openweight Championship Match
Dick Togo comes down with Narita, the assumed leader of The House of Torture. Douki and Sho jump Wolf from behind as he makes his way out to the ring as Togo distracts the official. Wolf is thrown into one barricade after another and then into a steel post before he is tossed into the ring.
And, the official starts the match??
Wolf dodges Hell’s Guillotine and slams Narita. Wolf lifts up Narita again but he grabs the official and then kicks the official as he is Angle Slammed. There is no official to count. House of Torture swarms Wolf as the official lays stunned. Wolf fights them off though pitching and throwing them around. Togo distracts Wolf so that Narita can hit him in the “lower abdomen”. Wolf kicks out of a Double Cross. Narita distracts the official so Togo can choke out Wolf. Narita pins Wolf with Hell’s Guillotine for the win. The crowd boos.
Narita clobbers Wolf in the head with the belt as The House stomps him. The House is run off by Master Wato and others.
Winner: …and new NEVER Openweight Champion, Ren Narita
The Knockout Brothers (Yuto-Ice and OSKAR) (c) versus Shota Umino and Yuya Uemura – IWGP Tag Team Championship Match
Winners: …and still IWGP Tag Team Champions, The Knockout Brothers (Yuto-Ice and OSKAR).
Yota Tsuji (c) vs Jake Lee – IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match
Winner: …and still IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Yota Tsuji.
