Some new items are available worth mentioning from my kind hosts and the best tape service on the internet, Highspots. Before getting into the new tapes, I should mention that the Best of Japan 2002 Complete Edition deal is now even more appealing. Not only will you get thirteen tapes of Japan's top matches from 2002 for $99.99 (over $30 off what you would pay for them individually), Highspots is giving away a 2002 Nippon Sports Mook (worth $25) for free! I purchased a copy of this last year, and it's one of the best references for Japanese wrestling fans available. Nearly every Japanese (and major league American) wrestler is listed, male and female, with their name in Japanese AND English, with a colour photo included. So as a whole, you are saving $55 on this deal, and I personally helped select the matches for volume's 11 to 13. So if you don't want to get every TV show to see the best that the source of the best pro wrestling in the world had to offer last year, consider Best of Japan 2002 Complete Edition.


Already proclaimed by some as an all-time classic, Koji Kanemoto & Jushin Thunder Liger invaded Pro Wrestling NOAH in an attempt to take the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Title back from Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi. Now, on a two tape set, the entire, UNCLIPPED 1/26 NOAH convention from Kobe World Hall is available! This means all 27+ minutes of the match people in Japan and those elsewhere who have seen it are raving about, is available to purchase one click away! The show also had a very appealing semi final that shouldn't be forgotten either, as Misawa & Marufuji faced Kobashi & KENTA, some of NOAH's best heavyweights and juniors clashing. Elsewhere, after failing in their challenge to capture the GHC Tag Team Title, Tamon Honda and Masao Inoue met in singles action, with a quick and decisive outcome. Go grab yourself a copy of this!

NOAH, 1/26/03 (NTV) (Buy)
Kobe World Hall
3,800 Fans

1. Haruka Eigen & Masashi Aoyagi beat Rusher Kimura & Mitsuo Momota (8:33) when Aoyagi used a front cradle cutback on Momota.
2. Takeshi Morishima & Takeshi Rikio beat Daisuke Ikeda & Kishin Kawabata (9:22) when Morishima used a backdrop suplex on Kawabata.
3. Akira Taue & Jun Izumida beat Donovan Morgan & Ron Harris (8:33) when Izumida used the Mukado Domu on Morgan.
4. Scorpio & Michael Modest beat Yoshinari Ogawa & Kotaro Suzuki (9:07) when Modest used the Reality Check on Suzuki.
5. Tamon Honda beat Masao Inoue (2:00) by referee stop.
6. Takuma Sano, Kentaro Shiga & Takashi Sugiura beat Jun Akiyama, Akitoshi Saito & Makoto Hashi (19:06) when Sugiura used an Olympic slam on Hashi.
7. Kenta Kobashi & KENTA beat Mitsuharu Misawa & Naomichi Marufuji (16:18) when Kobashi used a lariat on Marufuji.
8. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Title: Koji Kanemoto & Jushin Thunder Liger beat Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi (c) (27:11) when Liger used a shotei on Kikuchi to become the 10th champions.

---

New Japan's final WPW taping of 2002 was a big event at Nagoya Rainbow Hall. Despite several changes to the lineup, "THE SPIRAL II" turned out to be a strong event. The "King & Queen" team of New Japan, Chono and Laurer, teamed for the first and maybe the last (Laurer had a big bust up with New Japan and may be gone) time, facing Murakami & Makai #2. In two veteran vs. youngster matches, Nakanishi faced Wolf and Nagata took on Makabe. The new junior feud took off on this show, with disagreements between the regular army leading to re-alignments in the near future. In a big and very good main event, Tenzan & Nishimura fought Takayama & Kenzo in one of Kenzo's most high profile New Japan matches, so soon before his departure.


NJPW "THE SPIRAL II", 12/15/02 (WPW) (Details) (Buy)
Nagoya Rainbow Hall
9,500 Fans - Super No Vacancy

1. Yutaka Yoshie beat Toru Yano (9:13) with a back blow.
2. Takashi Iizuka beat El Samurai (11:15) with a sleeper hold.
3. Ryushi Yanagisawa & Makai #1 beat Masahito Kakihara & Masayuki Naruse (13:02) when Makai #1 used a Makai Windmill suplex hold on Naruse.
4. Koji Kanemoto & Gedo beat Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask 4 (14:11) when Kanemoto used a moonsault press on Tiger.
5. Minoru Fujita beat Heat (7:21) with a Michinoku Driver II.
6. Masahiro Chono & Joanie Laurer beat Kazunari Murakami & Makai #2 (6:21) when Laurer used an STF on Makai #2.
7. Manabu Nakanishi beat Blue Wolf (10:26) with an Argentine backbreaker.
8. Yuji Nagata beat Shinya Makabe (11:21) with a backdrop suplex hold.
9. Yoshihiro Takayama & Kenzo Suzuki beat Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Osamu Nishimura (21:10) when Takayama used a knee kick on Nishimura.

---

The national TV version of "BOM-BA-YE 2002" is now available at Highspots. Running 2 1/2 hours, it features matches #4 to #8. Included in this set are two of the most highly anticipated MMA fights in a long time, Fujita vs. Cro Cop the rematch, and of course the main event between two slugfest fighters, Sapp and Takayama. Takayama's face is a horrific mess by the time this fight is over.

Antonio Inoki's "INOKI BOM-BA-YE 2002", 12/31/02 (PPV/TV) (Buy)
Saitama Super Arena
35,674 Fans

1. Jan Nortje beat Tadao Yasuda (R2 0:57) by TKO (towel throw).
2. Daniel Gracie beat Shinsuke Nakamura (R2 2:14) with a cross armbreaker.
3. Wallid Ismail beat Yasuhito Namekawa (R3) by decision.
4. Mike Bernardo beat Gary Goodridge (R1 2:12) by KO.
5. Quinton Jackson beat Cyril Abidi (R3) by decision.
6. Mirko Cro Cop beat Kazuyuki Fujita (R3) by decision.
7. Masaaki Satake Retirement Match: Hidehiko Yoshida beat Masaaki Satake (R1 0:50) with a front sleeper.
8. Bob Sapp beat Yoshihiro Takayama (R1 2:16) with a cross armbreaker.