May 14th, 1960 – December 30th, 2009

Two final matches and full card order for the biggest show of 2010 in Japan, “WRESTLE KINGDOM IV IN TOKYO DOME”, have been announced. Apollo 55, after doing so well in the J-CUP, face two assassins from CMLL in the form of Ultimo Guerrero & Averno with the IWGP Jr. Tag Team Title on the line. And Aogi-gun’s Machine, Wataru & Hirasawa battle Liger, Kanemoto & Okada in NJ’s first match of 2010.

NJPW “WRESTLE KINGDOM IV IN TOKYO DOME”, 1/4/10 (WPW/PPV)
Tokyo Dome

1. New Japan Pro-Wrestling 2010 Beginning: Super Strong Machine, Wataru Inoue & Mitsuhide Hirasawa vs. Jushin Thunder Liger, Koji Kanemoto & Kazuchika Okada
2. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Title ~Amistad combativa~: Ryusuke Taguchi & Prince Devitt (c) vs. Ultimo Guerrero & Averno
3. IWGP Tag Team Title - 3WAY Hardcore Rules Match ~Victim and Greed~: “Team 3D” Brother Ray & Brother Devon (c) vs. Giant Bernard & Karl Anderson vs. Yujiro & Tetsuya Naito
4. Wrestle Kingdom Special Tag Match ~Blood Stream Blue~: Yuji Nagata & Akebono vs. TAJIRI & Masato Tanaka
5. Wrestle Kingdom Special 8 Man Tag Match ~The legend never rots~: Terry Funk, Riki Choshu, Masahiro Chono & Manabu Nakanishi vs. Abdullah The Butcher, Toru Yano, Takashi Iizuka & Tomohiro Ishii
6. NJPW vs. NOAH Battle Effusions ~Wilderness~: Togi Makabe vs. Mohammed Yone
7. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title ~Highest sky~: Tiger Mask (c) vs. Naomichi Marufuji
8. NJPW vs. NOAH Battle Effusions ~Radiance~: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Go Shiozaki
9. GHC Heavyweight Title - NJPW vs. NOAH Battle Effusions ~Blast~: Takashi Sugiura (c) vs. Hirooki Goto
10. IWGP Heavyweight Title - The newest, The strongest: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Yoshihiro Takayama

Pro Wrestling NOAH’s Naomichi Marufuji today conquered the fifth Super J-Cup and in doing so earned the right to challenge New Japan’s strongest junior and IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion, Tiger Mask, at the Tokyo Dome on January 4th. Marufuji was the heavy favourite to win this tournament but the ever emerging Prince Devitt threatened to beat the odds by advancing to the final along with Marufuji. This was Devitt’s third junior tournament final of the year after narrowly missing out on the Super Jr. tournament and ZERO1’s own junior tournament. In what was described as a blockbuster finale, Devitt’s stock again rose in a big year for the Irishman but for the third time running he fell short, as Marufuji unleashed the Pole Shift to down him. Much like Makabe in the past, Devitt finds himself as a Mr. #2 but Makabe was able to go one better this year and Devitt will be hoping for likewise in 2010. Marufuji now marches on to the Tokyo Dome, his match with Tiger Mask entering the New Japan vs. NOAH series and creating an unrealized junior dream match between two of the biggest name juniors in Japan.

NJPW “SUPER J-CUP 5TH STAGE ~Land of Confusion Final~”, 12/23/09 (SXW)
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
2,020 Fans - Super No Vacancy Full House

1. SUPER J-CUP - Round 2: YAMATO beat Gedo (8:36) by referee stop.
2. SUPER J-CUP - Round 2: Prince Devitt beat Danshoku Dino (5:49) with a diving footstomp.
3. SUPER J-CUP - Round 2: Ryusuke Taguchi beat Koji Kanemoto (10:14) with an achilles tendon hold.
4. SUPER J-CUP - Round 2: Naomichi Marufuji beat Tigers Mask (6:39) with an Aussie suplex hold.
5. SUPER J-CUP - Semi Final: Prince Devitt beat YAMATO (8:41) with a vertical drop DDT.
6. SUPER J-CUP - Semi Final: Naomichi Marufuji beat Ryusuke Taguchi (10:57) with the Shiranui.
7. SUPER J-CUP Special 8 Man Tag: Jushin Thunder Liger, AKIRA, Taichi & Kota Ibushi beat Gedo, Atsushi Aoki , GENTARO & Fujita “Jr.” Hayato (17:41) when AKIRA used a la magistral on Gedo.
8. SUPER J-CUP - Final: Naomichi Marufuji beat Prince Devitt (18:06) with the Pole Shift.

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NJPW “WRESTLE KINGDOM IV IN TOKYO DOME”, 1/4/10 (WPW/PPV)
Tokyo Dome

- IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Tiger Mask (c) vs. Naomichi Marufuji

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Earlier today…

NOAH/Naomichi Marufuji Produce “SHIRANUI IKOTENYOKU IKI ~TEN NO KAN - I MISS YOU~”, 12/13/09
Tokyo Differ Ariake
1,800 Fans - Super No Vacancy

- NOAH vs. Machine-gun: Super Strong Machine & Super “S” Machine (Takashi Sugiura) beat Naomichi Marufuji & Atsushi Aoki (13:28) when “S” Machine used a Devil Windmill suplex hold on Aoki.

NJPW “SUPER J-CUP 5TH STAGE ~Land of Confusion~”, 12/22/09 (Samurai! TV)
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
2,020 Fans - Super No Vacancy Full House

1. SUPER J-CUP - Round 1: Tigers Mask beat Taichi (6:41) with a ground Octopus hold.
2. SUPER J-CUP - Round 1: Ryusuke Taguchi beat GENTARO (10:39) with the Dodon.
3. SUPER J-CUP - Round 1: YAMATO beat AKIRA (8:13) with a modified double kneelock.
4. SUPER J-CUP - Round 1: Danshoku Dino beat Jado (10:14) with a Gedo clutch.
5. SUPER J-CUP - Round 1: Gedo beat Kota Ibushi (14:15) with a Gedo clutch.
6. SUPER J-CUP - Round 1: Prince Devitt beat Atsushi Aoki (10:51) with a vertical drop DDT.
7. SUPER J-CUP - Round 1: Koji Kanemoto beat Fujita “Jr.” Hayato (13:45) with an ankle hold.
8. SUPER J-CUP - Round 1: Naomichi Marufuji beat Jushin Thunder Liger (16:21) with the Pole Shift.

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NJPW “SUPER J-CUP 5TH STAGE ~Land of Confusion Final~”, 12/23/09 (SXW)
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. SUPER J-CUP - Round 2: Gedo vs. YAMATO
2. SUPER J-CUP - Round 2: Prince Devitt vs. Danshoku Dino
3. SUPER J-CUP - Round 2: Koji Kanemoto vs. Ryusuke Taguchi
4. SUPER J-CUP - Round 2: Naomichi Marufuji vs. Tigers Mask
5. SUPER J-CUP - Semi Final: Winner of #1 vs. Winner of #2
6. SUPER J-CUP - Semi Final: Winner of #3 vs. Winner of #4
7. SUPER J-CUP Special 8 Man Tag: Jushin Thunder Liger, AKIRA, Taichi & Kota Ibushi vs. Gedo, Atsushi Aoki , GENTARO & Fujita “Jr.” Hayato
8. SUPER J-CUP - Final:

NJPW “NEW JAPAN LIVE IN USHIKU”, 12/20/09
Ushiku Movement Park Gymnasium
1,000 Fans

1. Jado & Gedo beat Tiger Mask & Nobuo Yoshihashi (10:50) when Jado used the Crossface of JADO on Yoshihashi.
2. Jushin Thunder Liger & Ryusuke Taguchi beat Koji Kanemoto & Taichi (14:24) when Liger used an air scissors drop on Taichi.
3. Takashi Iizuka beat Tomoaki Honma (9:01) by pinfall.
4. Super Strong Machine & Mitsuhide Hirasawa beat Riki Choshu & Kazuchika Okada (9:31) when Machine used a Devil Windmill suplex hold on Okada.
5. Special Tag Match ~ NJPW year-end gift: Manabu Nakanishi & Takao Omori beat Yuji Nagata & Wataru Inoue (15:09) when Nakanishi used an Argentine backbreaker on Inoue.
6. Special 6 Man Tag Match ~ USHIKU ONE NIGHT STAND: Hiroshi Tanahashi, Hirooki Goto & Togi Makabe beat Shinsuke Nakamura, Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii (17:28) when Tanahashi used the High Fly Flow on Yano.

New Japan held it’s annual tryout today for new dojo boys, featuring the usual brutal requirements necessary to even be considered for NJ’s famous dojo. Rather than list them all as I seem to have done a hundred times over the years, I’ll just write about a few noteworthy events at the tryout.

The first will be of interest to some. I’ve received lots of emails over time asking if it’s possible for Americans to get in on these tryouts. There was one there today, 24-year-old William Francis (pictured on left), who is 6′2″ and 225lbs and is a keen American Footballer. His way in involved some luck though, as at the Camp Zama show in October, he went right up to President Sugabayashi and asked for the chance to follow his dream of becoming a pro wrestler. He was given the chance today but as always results of the tryouts will be kept under lock and key, although the reports indicated he did well.

Yuji Nagata, who is known for his extremely strict standards and once dropped this man from tryouts, looked on and said his opinions varied on this year’s cast. At one point, a 22-year-old whose only experience is student professional wrestling tried a dropkick which lacked height. Nagata demanded more height and the young man achieved it, drawing warm applause in the dojo.

Others who tried out included judo fighters and a 15-year-old boy in the third grade of junior highschool.

Will any of these make it to the ring? Only time will tell as nowadays we see far fewer young lions debuting. New Japan has a wealth of young talent, from those leading the promotion nowadays - including Nakamura, Tanahashi, and Goto - to those emerging like NO LIMIT and Okada, so don’t seem in any dire need to mass recruit new ones.

The boys are back in town and ready to make an impact. “NO LIMIT” aka Yujiro and Tetsuya Naito re-landed in Japan today and made their way to New Japan offices to discuss what has been and what is to come. The 22nd generation IWGP Jr. Tag Team Champions lost the belts to TNA Wrestling’s Motor City Machine Guns and pursued them back to the U.S., but their excursion turned out to be far more fruitful and lengthy than anticipated. After some time in TNA, they headed to CMLL in Mexico where they became not only heavyweights but two of the biggest heels in Mexico.

Their growth has not been unnoticed by New Japan, who always look to push their young wrestlers into stars. NO LIMIT now challenge Team 3D, along with Bad Intentions, for the IWGP Tag Team Title at the Tokyo Dome on January 4th. Both are now bigger, stronger, and cockier, and spoke at the press conference after President Sugabayashi explained that their place in the three way match is a response to their demands.

Naito said they had reached the top of the mountain in Mexico to the extent that they couldn’t walk into town without being recognized. He said that four young men well known in Japan who have previously been to CMLL - Nakamura, Tanahashi, Goto, and Taguchi - had nothing on their level of stardom in Mexico and are obscure compared to them. Naito called himself a “super-celebrity” and said it would be a natural result if they win the IWGP Tag Team Title and show the effects of their expedition. Yujiro claimed that winning the title would raise the commercial value of NO LIMIT more worldwide and turn them into a famous tag team.

When answering questions, both men made it clear that they love being in Mexico and may even head back there even if they do win the belts. Naito said that everything after the Dome is a blank slate but that he hopes to return to CMLL. Yujiro also said that Mexico is very comfortable for them. President Sugabayashi admitted that their attitudes had changed and wordplay had improved a lot and that he wants them to win the tag belts in order to show they aren’t all talk.

Togi Makabe and Tomoaki Honma go to war in Pro Wrestling NOAH next January as one of eight teams involved in the Global Tag League. This will likely follow up in some way on Makabe vs. Yone at the Tokyo Dome as Yone is one half of the GHC Tag Team Champions with Takeshi Rikio. Makabe will take his GBH underling Honma with him and attempt to make an impact in NOAH, with Honma hopefully able to step up and take this big chance, and avoid being a liability for the Unchained Gorilla.

Competing teams, which will be split into two blocks, are:

- Takeshi Rikio & Mohammed Yone (GHC Tag Team Champions)
- Takashi Sugiura & Shuhei Taniguchi
- Kensuke Sasaki & Takeshi Morishima
- Go Shiozaki & Akitoshi Saito
- Yoshihiro Takayama & Takuma Sano
- Bison Smith & Keith Walker
- Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli
- Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma (New Japan)

New Japan will produce a show in conjunction with Gilco Power Pro next February, featuring a big main event! 2009 MVP Hiroshi Tanahashi and 2008 MVP Keiji Muto unite, teaming with the masked Power Pro Kamen against the sumo trio of Akebono, Yutaka Yoshie & Ryota Hama. Four more matches are scheduled as well as a bench press contest.

NJPW “GILCO POWER PRODUCTION DREAM MATCH”, 2/28/10
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Keiji Muto , Hiroshi Tanahashi & Power Pro Kamen vs. Akebono, Yutaka Yoshie & Ryota Hama

Eight matches are now confirmed for the Tokyo Dome, with the addition of three more today. As expected, Makabe vs. Yone becomes the third New Japan vs. NOAH match, while to follow up from the earlier story, gaijin legends Terry Funk and Abdullah The Butcher return in a special eight man tag, Abby teaming up with CHAOS and Terry with Choshu, Chono, and Nakanishi. Finally, the new Aogi-gun vs. TAJIRI war continues with Nagata bringing in his friend Akebono to battle the tandem of TAJIRI and Masato Tanaka.

This would seem to complete the card on the heavyweight side, unless a minor NJ vs. NOAH match or such is added. All of the top heavyweights are booked except Tenzan, who doesn’t seem ready to return from injury yet. There may be a couple of junior matches yet added but with the J-CUP yet to happen, it’s hard to announce them without giving away something about the tournament. The New Japan vs. NOAH series was touted as a 5 vs. 5 so it’s possible the last two matches could be that (Tiger Mask vs. J-CUP winner would enter the series if Marufuji or Aoki won the tournament).

NJPW “WRESTLE KINGDOM IV IN TOKYO DOME”, 1/4/10 (WPW/PPV)
Tokyo Dome

1. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Tiger Mask (c) vs. Super J-Cup 5th Stage winner
2. Wrestle Kingdom Special 8 Man Tag Match: Terry Funk, Riki Choshu, Masahiro Chono & Manabu Nakanishi vs. Abdullah The Butcher, Toru Yano, Takashi Iizuka & Tomohiro Ishii
3. Wrestle Kingdom Special Tag Match: Yuji Nagata & Akebono vs. TAJIRI & Masato Tanaka
4. IWGP Tag Team Title - 3WAY Hardcore Rules Match: “Team 3D” Brother Ray & Brother Devon (c) vs. Giant Bernard & Karl Anderson vs. Yujiro & Tetsuya Naito
5. NJPW vs. NOAH Battle Effusions ~Wilderness~: Togi Makabe vs. Mohammed Yone
6. NJPW vs. NOAH Battle Effusions ~Radiance~: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Go Shiozaki
7. GHC Heavyweight Title - NJPW vs. NOAH Battle Effusions ~Blast~: Takashi Sugiura (c) vs. Hirooki Goto
8. IWGP Heavyweight Title - The newest, The strongest: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Yoshihiro Takayama

Two of the most famous gaijin legends in Japanese pro wrestling history will return to Japan for the 1/4 Tokyo Dome show, according to Nikkan Sports. 68-year-old Abdullah The Butcher and 65-year-old Terry Funk will do battle in some form, possibly a match involving New Japan wrestlers. No word as yet what said match will be but the idea may be to bring in some old fans from the Showa era to watch the show.

GHC Tag Team Champion, Mohammed Yone, intruded on today’s show and trampled down Makabe after the the fifth match, answering Makabe’s call for someone from NOAH to stand up and challenge him. This match, or some form of it, looks to be one of the next added to the 1/4 Tokyo Dome show in the coming days.

NJPW “NEW JAPAN LIVE IN MAEBASHI ~YUTAKA YOSHIE 15TH ANNIVERSARY~”, 12/13/09 (Samurai! TV)
Green Dome Maebashi Sub Arena
1,115 Fans - Super No Vacancy Full House

1. Tiger Mask & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Jushin Thunder Liger & Koji Kanemoto went to a draw (15:00) when the time limit expired.
2. Jado & Gedo beat Riki Choshu & Nobuo Yoshihashi (9:26) when Jado used the Crossface of JADO on Yoshihashi.
3. Hirooki Goto beat Kazuchika Okada (10:06) with a modified camel clutch.
4. Wataru Inoue beat TAJIRI (8:49) by DQ.
5. Toru Yano & Takashi Iizuka beat Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma (10:27) when Yano used the Oni Koroshi on Honma.
6. Manabu Nakanishi & Takao Omori beat Yuji Nagata & Mitsuhide Hirasawa (12:43) when Nakanishi used an Argentine backbreaker on Hirasawa.
7. Yutaka Yoshie 15th Anniversary Match: Yutaka Yoshie & Hiroshi Tanahashi beat Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii (18:13) when Tanahashi used a Texas Cloverleaf hold on Ishii.

Yoshihiro Takayama returns to New Japan Pro-Wrestling on January 4th at the Tokyo Dome six years to the day after suffering a humiliating upset loss to the then “green boy” Nakamura in the main event of the 1/4/04 event. It is a very different Shinsuke Nakamura these days, then a trickster relying mostly on speed and instincts to win matches, now a conqueror much like Takayama himself who has become one of the kingpins of pro wrestling in Japan.

Shinsuke’s V4 defense was today confirmed at a special event that saw others on the show comment, as well as some pre-J-CUP hype. Takayama confessed that New Japan has changed since he was last there, becoming a much stronger and more orderly promotion that can stand on it’s own two feet again, and cited the growth of Tanahashi and Nakamura as two factors in that. Still, he is in New Japan to win the IWGP Heavyweight Title and hasn’t forgotten his defeat to Nakamura, who took the NWF Heavyweight Title off him back at the start of 2004 and sealed it. Whatever the result on January 4th, it is thought that Takayama has transferred his main attention to New Japan from All Japan and could be a regular fixture in the company come 2010.

Nakamura was complimentary of Takayama who in some ways he resembles now with his knee kicks and heavy strikes. Shinsuke called Takayama a unique individual in Japan and called him a “big wall” to get past even now. He pointed out that Takayama is very worthy having accomplished what he calls a “super-grand slam” of the IWGP Heavyweight & IWGP Tag (New Japan), GHC Heavyweight & GHC Tag (NOAH), and Triple Crown & AJPW World Heavyweight Tag (All Japan) titles. While New Japan vs. NOAH dominates a large part of the upcoming Tokyo Dome super-show, Nakamura said his fight with Takayama will be a personal battle unrelated, Takayama having become a freelancer a long time ago now after once belonging to NOAH.

No other matches were announced today, with much still undecided. Nagata and Nakanishi both said they are looking forward to whoever is thrown their way, while Makabe was a little less polite, saying he has introduced himself as a member of the NJ vs. NOAH feud but no one from “cowardly NOAH” has yet stepped forward to receive his challenge. Akira Taue, Takeshi Morishima, and Kenta Kobashi are just three possibilities to face the Unchained Gorilla at the Dome on 1/4.

NJPW “WRESTLE KINGDOM IV IN TOKYO DOME”, 1/4/10 (WPW/PPV)
Tokyo Dome

1. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Tiger Mask (c) vs. Super J-Cup 5th Stage winner
2. IWGP Tag Team Title - 3WAY Hardcore Rules Match: “Team 3D” Brother Ray & Brother Devon (c) vs. Giant Bernard & Karl Anderson vs. Yujiro & Tetsuya Naito
3. NJPW vs. NOAH Battle Effusions ~Radiance~: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Go Shiozaki
4. GHC Heavyweight Title - NJPW vs. NOAH Battle Effusions ~Blast~: : Takashi Sugiura (c) vs. Hirooki Goto
5. IWGP Heavyweight Title - The newest, The strongest: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Yoshihiro Takayama