[Tim Budong]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJBK16Ye9aM

give the title back to her..
i lol'd "It's a cup"
ahha

[Ch28]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2Sz2aZ6uuc

[Tim Budong]

Y2J Y2J
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRSS6GtgeIE

[Tim Budong]

y2j vs naito june 9th
what a shitty ppv WWE just put on.. though do check out miz vs rollins

they also muted the mics... u can hear the we want enzo chants just die

https://streamable.com/p2cdd

[SkinnyPupp]

Awful, terrible show. Miz got carried to a decent match but aside from that, what a bunch of shit.

I think nia jax might be the worst babyface other than reigns. Her promo was possibly one of the worst in WWE history.

Waste of time

And I know I've harped on this enough by now, but she's my favourite wrestler right now so I have to say... Asuka's streak gets broken on WM in a midcard match

She goes to Smackdown, and loses her first match (tag match)

Charlotte, who broke her streak immediately lost the title

And then lost CLEAN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE RING in her first match after that.

What bullshit

[Tim Budong]

this is one of the worst stretches in wwe for awhile. its very disappointing.

NJPW Best of Super Jrs tournament is goin on right now and its fantastic stuff

also..

angry jericho is best jericho lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSGAxuW-Cd0

[SkinnyPupp]

Was that the best Brawn StrowMan match ever? :considered:

[Berzerker]

Smackdown moving to Friday nights on FOX and will be the focus show for WWE. Look for stars to possibly change brands now. On a side note raw had its Lowest Viewership since 2012 this past Monday.

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

writing has been horrible as of late
can't see it improving anytime soon either

shit is getting stale real fast.
im still hoping for a classic between aj and nakamura at a wwe show..
hoping its this upcoming ppv

[SkinnyPupp]

Talk about shitty writing.. remember 2 weeks ago when Nia Jax was the poor victim of bullying?

But I guess Alexa was right all along?

Does that mean she's a face now?

:fulloffuck:

[Tim Budong]

Ricochet vs Velveteen Dream is set for NXT Takever Chicago

[SkinnyPupp]

Not the biggest Ricochet fan... His moves are impressive but he looks more like a gymnast than a wrestler. All his high rated matches are just lots of moves

Still athletically impressive though

[Tim Budong]

Not the biggest Ricochet fan... His moves are impressive but he looks more like a gymnast than a wrestler. All his high rated matches are just lots of moves

Still athletically impressive though

https://streamable.com/x0q3x

its insane

[SkinnyPupp]

Yeah that was cool and unique, I loved it

The wrestling though... It will have to grow on me. Other stuff has!

[Tim Budong]

NJPW has put up Okada vs Omega 2 from last years dominion as this weeks free match

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZIGbS1GRTE

Omega vs Okada is set for dominion again

[Tim Budong]

do all yourselves a favour and watch okada vs omega 4
This is the modern day Bret Hart vs HBK

[SkinnyPupp]

Watching Dominion right now... I think after this I am going to look for a bunch of Minoru Suzuki matches! Love that guy

[Tim Budong]

Watching Dominion right now... I think after this I am going to look for a bunch of Minoru Suzuki matches! Love that guy

Minoru Suzuki is one of the toughest dudes out there.

also has beaten ken shamrock in the 90s twice in mma via submission

[SkinnyPupp]

do all yourselves a favour and watch okada vs omega 4
This is the modern day Bret Hart vs HBK
No hyperbole, that was the best match I have ever seen in my life. And I don't know if I'll ever see one better. Damn near brought me to tears at some of those near falls. Just so good! God I wish I was there!

[Tim Budong]

okada omega 5 will happen at some point.. i don't know how they can just keep topping the previous one.. jeezzzz

WINNIPEG

Bj1CColFwlg


the bucks vs evil/sanada was good. them spotfest monkeys know how to work a match

[SkinnyPupp]

Yeah that was the first YB match I really liked. The broken foot angle was so well done

[SkinnyPupp]

Is NJPW World worth subscribing too? Like is there weekly content in English to be able to keep up with storylines etc? Or should I just keep DLing the big shows

[Tim Budong]

Is NJPW World worth subscribing too? Like is there weekly content in English to be able to keep up with storylines etc? Or should I just keep DLing the big shows

most shows have both english and japanese commentary now
all the "storyline" stuff like press conferences/interviews etc are free on njpw and youtube.
A good time to subscribe would be during the G1, thats their "king of the ring" and its a month long of big shows

The bulletclub story line can be followed on Being the Elite youtube.

it may be worth while paying for one month and watching all the past matches though.

The New Day vs The Elite is happening this week in LA... for Street Fighter V, cuz Kenny and Xavier are the ambassadors for Capcom
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U_BUFd8Tbw

2 years in the making lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLjLZohJouk

[SkinnyPupp]

God I love NXT squash matches

WAR! SwiftRage WAR! SwiftRage WAR! SwiftRage WAR! SwiftRage WAR! SwiftRage

[Tim Budong]

Gargano vs Ciampaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
The Velveteen Dream vs Ricochet.
Alister Black vs Lars Sullivun

this gonna be a good NXT

[SkinnyPupp]

NXT is so fucking good! Easily the best product WWE has had in years. If I only had time to watch one show a week, it would be NXT. Unfortunately I have enough time to watch Raw and get annoyed at how bad it can be :(

And now after a few matches and promos, I can say that Bianca Bel Air will be the next big womens star. SHE IS SO FUCKING GOOD OMG

[SkinnyPupp]

I don't know why, but I just can't get into the Gargano vs Ciampa feud... Maybe because I started watching halfway through it... There's SO MUCH HEAT but I just can't get invested. Also I hate hardcore matches so this is kind of boring

[SkinnyPupp]

How about Lars? Remember how bad Strow Man was when he first joined the main roster? Lars goes and has a 4* match (albeit with one badly botched spot). Lars needs to be Smackdown's Strowman or something.

And god it must suck to be Aleister Black's opponent, dude does not care one bit about kicking you right in the FACE LUL Lars looks like he was in a real kickboxing match

[SkinnyPupp]

ok I take it back THAT MATCH WAS SO FUCKING GOOD OH MY GOD

[SkinnyPupp]

I thought Johnny's wife would turn on him during this match but they're really working towards that slowly! OK I am into this now SeemsGood

[Tim Budong]

i'll catch up later haha.
looks like another fantastic show tho eh

[SkinnyPupp]

I started late, so saw the Baszler match (kind of disappointing), Black vs Sullivan (great!), and Gargano vs Ciampa (contender for MOTY if not for Omega vs Okada last week)

Going to watch the rest now! Also not a huge fan of the Undisputed Era, though the O'Reilly vs Pete Dunne match on NXT last week was fantastic.

[SkinnyPupp]

OH MY FUCKING GOD THAT TAG MATCH WAS SO GOOD

Just goosebumps non stop for the last 5 minutes!

Crowd tried their best to ruin it by cheering for the heels most of the match, but once they clued in on the story being told, they got into it and it became one of the best tag matches WWE has put on in quite a while

Fucking god is this show better overall than Dominion? PogChamp

[SkinnyPupp]

Watching MITB now... Rollins with the win holding the tights... Heel turn coming soon?

Oh and The Drifter was just carried to a good match! SeemsGood

[SkinnyPupp]

What the fuck was that... Ellsworth? bullshit DansGame

WWE is so lame when they make their babyfaces look like complete idiots

[Tim Budong]

finished mitb

mehhh

but a decent styles vs nakamura match
definitely enjoyed the finish to that

rousey can hold her own in the ring. we got a new womens champ! haha

[SkinnyPupp]

I can't believe how good Rousey is already... Obviously green in many ways but still! If her MMA trainer was as good as her WWE trainer, she'd still be UFC champ

Oh and Nia Jax just had the best match of her career, vs someone in their debut singles match. Unbelievable.

Both ladder matches were fun, but I preferred the womens match. A bit sloppy but very fun to watch. I still don't know how Sasha hasn't killed herself yet... Maybe the crowd was just too dead for the mens match after Rousey vs Jax.

AJ vs Nakamura was good, but again why can't they live up to the hype? The AJ nut shot had me laughing out loud and cringing LUL

Speaking of cringe, every fucking time Coach opens his mouth I want to tell him to shut the fuck up. He was always bad but he is getting WORSE EVERY SINGLE WEEK. They need to get rid of him, he just doesn't get how wrestling works, and says the stupidest fucking shit every single time he opens his mouth. Fucking Otunga is better than him, bring him back. GOD he sucks

[Tim Budong]

Here's what I'm looking forward to. Good time to grab a NJPW subscription for July and August to watch the G1. Winner gets a match against the IWGP champ at Wrestle Kingdom, or if Kenny Omega wins, he picks his challenger.

This is their King of the Ring tournament and its gruelling.

too long of a list for matches

https://www.njpw1972.com/30048

Jay White vs Okada
Omega vs Kota Ibushi

Speculation is Ibushi will win and take on Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 13. Out of the participants. Minoru Suzuki has not won this tournament.

Kota Ibushi was previously banned from the Nippon Bodukan for doing this in a match against Kenny Omega
https://68.media.tumblr.com/671a2b36f2123d000f04850b91f2f657/tumblr_olp335WiOp1uvyu9yo6_400.gif

ban is lifted and will face Kenny in august as one of the matches

[Ch28]

Big Cass got fired

[SkinnyPupp]

Yeah I noticed the Ibushi build during the Omega/Okada match. Very very subtle but cool to see.

Big Cass sucks so bad... if you can't have at least a "good" match with Daniel Fucking Bryan, you deserve to be fired. He can't even suplex, he just picks guys up and drops them FailFish

Apparently his trouble first started when he beat up the midget dressed like Daniel Bryan.. he was just supposed to give him a Big Boot, but he punched him around first which pissed off Vince.

Just no talent at all, doesn't belong on the roster

[Ch28]

People that watched the MITB match of DB/Cass said there were a few spots where DB had to basically tell and physically do the spot himself cause Cass had no idea what was going on

[SkinnyPupp]

Yup Bryan had to literally place Cass's hand to where it should be to make it look like he was fighting a submission

He was never any good, but went way downhill after the injury

[Ch28]

Kind of weird thinking that Carmella is the only one left standing. She looked like she'd amount to nothing more than a glorified manager in NXT. Now she's the champ and the most successful of the trio

[SkinnyPupp]

Yeah but she's horrible too unfortunately

But she's blonde + tits, so will be pushed

Womens Revolution right? LUL

[Tim Budong]

Yeah but she's horrible too unfortunately

But she's blonde + tits, so will be pushed

Womens Revolution right? LUL

Asuka needs that title NOW

though I feel like Ellsworth and Asuka could be some good comedy.

Seeing Ellsworth dressed up was pretty funny

[SkinnyPupp]

I dunno I think Asuka shines as a total ass kicker. Maybe give her opponents a little bit of heat so she can do her insane comebacks (seriously nobody in WWE does fired up comebacks as well as her, except DB and Gargano)

She should have absolutely destroyed Carmella, THEN maybe do a DQ or something with Ellsworth so she retains. Set up a cage match or something to prevent interference. It's not that hard. Imagine the look on Asuka's face as they lock her in a cage with Carmella? Talk about HEAT!

Anything, just don't make Asuka look like a complete moron by being SCARED of someone in her mask, and then STILL SCARED when she sees that it's just some geek. So disappointing FeelsBadMan

[GS8]

https://twitter.com/itsvadertime/status/1009447703418408960

WWE star Vader dead at 63 | Fox News (http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2018/06/20/wwe-star-vader-dead-at-63.html)

I know he had health issues but still shitty to read...

[Berzerker]

His days were numbered. He got told awhile back that he only had a couple years to live. Heart wasn't gonna carry the big man much longer. RIP to one of the true Legends of Wrasslin' Was amazing how athletic he was.

Berz out.

[Ch28]

I still remember watching WWF and WCW back in the day and seeing him destroy guys. He was probably one of the most agile big men out there back in the day. RIP

[SkinnyPupp]

Yup one of the fastest big men out there in his time, and one of the best ever. He'd been in rough shape for a while. RIP

Do yourself a favour and watch some of his recent interviews on the WWE Network. Dude is well spoken, entertaining, and seems like a sweet guy. Very cool to listen to his stories

[Tim Budong]

The Vader Bomb is impressive for the dude
RIP

[SkinnyPupp]

I'll post Wrestling Observer's obituary of Vader, leaving it here for a couple days. It's so sad that he wasn't inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame while still alive :(

Leon White, who was the best and most versatile 400-pound pro wrestler in history, passed away on 6/18 at the age of 63.

Best known as Vader, or Big Van Vader, White was a college football star, a powerhouse who could bench press nearly 600 pounds, and shocked people in the early 1990s when he started doing moonsaults in his biggest matches. He worked very physical, but he was a major star in companies all over the world, a major drawing card on multiple continents and one of the major figures worldwide during the decade of the 90s.

White himself was most proud of the fact that he was the only wrestler to have held the most recognized world championships in as many major markets, being a top drawing superstar in the U.S., Japan, Mexico and in Europe.

During his career he held All Japan’s Triple Crown twice, at the time when it was still a major promotion and selling out Budokan Hall on a regular basis. He held the CWA world heavyweight title in Europe three times and is generally remembered as the greatest rival of that area’s legend, Otto Wanz, which is where he got his first superstar break. He held the IWGP heavyweight title three times, the most of any non-Japanese wrestler in history. He held the UWA world heavyweight championship once, which at the time was the leading heavyweight title in Mexico. He held the UWFI world heavyweight title once, in a shoot style organization, and once sold out Jingu Stadium in Tokyo with 46,148 fans for a match with Nobuhiko Takada. He held the WCW world title three times. He was also scheduled to win the WWF championship in 1996 and do a program with Shawn Michaels, but Michaels nixed the program and that program instead went to Sycho Sid, scheduled with Vader winning the title at the 1996 Survivor Series and losing to Michaels in his home town at the 1997 Royal Rumble in San Antonio at the Alamodome.

He was voted 1993 Wrestler of the Year and an easy pick for the Hall of Fame.

His son, Jesse, wrote, “It is with a heavy heart to inform everyone that my father, Leon White, passed away on Monday night (6/18/18) at approximately 7:25 p.m. Around a month ago, my father was diagnosed with a severe case of pneumonia. He fought extremely hard and clinically was making progress. Unfortunately, on Monday night his heart had enough and it was his time.”

White was told by doctors in November 2016 that he had congenital heart failure and only had about two years left to live. He didn’t last that long. He did have a better diagnosis that he believed gave him more time from another doctor months later. He had serious heart surgery on 3/12 which he said left him in the most pain of his life. He developed the pneumonia in May after a second surgery.

White came into pro wrestling when he wasn’t able to overcome knee injuries that plagued him during an NFL career with the Los Angeles Rams.

White was gigantic from birth, being 11 pounds. He was a football star at Bell High School in Los Angeles, was a two-time All-American center at the University of Colorado and made Denver his home after college.

At 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds, he was a third round draft choice of the Los Angeles Rams. He suffered a knee injury in training camp and was on injured reserve for the 1978 and 1979 seasons. Although the 1979 team only went 9-7, they won the Western Division of the NFC and went all the way to the 1980 Super Bowl, where they lost 31-19 to the Pittsburgh Steelers. White was technically on an NFC championship winning and Super Bowl team, but actually never played a down in an NFL regular season game.

He had gotten very heavy after his football career ended, but was a remarkable athlete for his size. He was put in contact with Brad Rheingans, the former Olympian who headed the training of wrestlers for the AWA. The AWA was on its downslide when White started, at the time called Leon “Baby Bull” White. While understandably green, because of his size and athletic ability, they tried to push him from the start. He debuted in October, 1985 in a Battle Royal in Schofield, WI. There is no record of him losing any matches cleanly in his AWA rookie run other than several AWA title matches with Stan Hansen, who would go on to become one of his most well-known rivals due to a match at the Tokyo Dome, and Bruiser Brody.

Otto Wanz, who weighed about 389 pounds himself, was the promoter and world champion of the Catch Wrestling Association, that promoted in Germany and Austria. He favored using big, thick, powerful opponents, and physically, White, fit the mark. Called “Bull Power,” Wanz found out about White from the AWA, and on March 22, 1987, in Denver, before 2,000 fans, the former University of Colorado football star beat Wanz for his championship.

Bull Power was brought to Europe as the man who defeated the unbeatable local hero, as Wanz had held the promotion’s world heavyweight title since beating Don Leo Jonathan on July 15, 1978, ending a nearly nine-year run.

Wanz himself had gained mainstream fame in Germany and Austria by going on television and tearing thick telephone books. White was brought in and local television stations were brought to the gym to watch the heavily steroided up White bench press close to 600 pounds. The storyline is that the old powerhouse now had a younger and more powerful rival. The two traded the championship back-and-forth over the next four years, including Wanz winning what was billed as his retirement match over Bull Power on June 30, 1990, in his home town of Graz. Borrowing from the Verne Gagne booking, when Wanz then retired, the CWA gave the title to the top contender, Bull Power. In 1981, when Gagne did his first retirement, as champion, it was announced that a tournament would take too much time and the title was given to the top contender, Nick Bockwinkel.

The idea is that the company’s new top local star, Rambo (Luc Poirier) would gain credibility as world champion by beating Wanz’s greatest rival, which took place on July 6, 1991 in Graz. But the promotion’s popularity declined greatly with a combination of Wanz no longer the top star, and with WWF television gaining more of a foothold and like everywhere, made the local promotion look secondary by comparison.

But while his first big break was in Germany and Austria, his biggest break came later in 1987 in Japan.

At first, White was scheduled to start with All Japan Pro Wrestling in 1987, and would likely have been given a decent push, but not a major one due to his not being a major U.S. star and being green at the time.

New Japan, however, offered him a top position.

New Japan in 1987 made a deal with Takeshi Kitano, who at the time was one of the country’s most famous comedians and considered the Johnny Carson of Japan. Kitano would become a heel manager on big shows and feud with Antonio Inoki, with the idea of him being the Lou Albano to Bruno Sammartino.

Kitano’s first protégé was to be a muscular masked foreigner, Big Van Vader, with headgear that blew steam out of it. Jim Hellwig was chosen for the role. They wanted a monster who would do short matches and blow through everyone. But in June, Hellwig signed with the WWF, and shortly after that, became the Ultimate Warrior, and pulled out of the gig. There are a number of original artist sketches of Big Van Vader, with the same outfit, but with the bodybuilder look as opposed to the 350 or so pound look. Sid Eudy, who became Sid Vicious, was also considered, but the decision was to go with White for the role.

In hindsight, it was a great decision, as while Warrior or Sid would have gotten over at first with their size in New Japan, they could have never had the lasting appeal that White had once it was time to do longer matches.

The debut of Big Van Vader, managed by Takeshi Kitano, was announced for a December 27, 1987, show at Sumo Hall. The main event on the show was scheduled as Inoki vs. Riki Choshu, a rare singles match between New Japan’s legend and its most popular wrestler to the younger crowd, drawing a sellout of 11,097 fans. The night was a disaster.

Inoki beat Choshu via a cheap DQ in just 6:06 of a nothing match, and fans were furious. Vader, Kitano and handler Masa Saito came to the ring to challenge Inoki, and Vader pinned Inoki with a powerslam in just 2:49 in a one-sided match. Inoki almost never lost in that era, and never in that type of squash match style. The idea was to create an instant larger-than-life monster. But the fans, unhappy with the show, rioted, doing so much damage that Sumo Hall refused to allow any more pro wrestling shows (the ban was rescinded in early 1989). Kitano didn’t like being involved in such a negative situation and immediately backed out of the gig. Saito accompanied Vader as his manager early on.

Vader and Inoki became the headline program in New Japan, with matches ending without a clean-cut winner. After Inoki suffered a broken foot, he vacated his IWGP championship.

On May 8, 1988, Vader, who had yet to be pinned, wrestled Tatsumi Fujinami for the vacant title, with Fujinami winning via DQ.

While not talked about as much as some of the others, it was the Fujinami program that was really the key to Vader’s long-term success in Japan. The green monster would have had a short shelf life at the top. But in 1988, Fujinami was the equal of any pro wrestler in the world. Fujinami was able to have great matches with Vader, and in doing those matches, Vader’s own work improved rapidly. There was a negative, in that in working that style and having those matches, Fujinami’s back gave out and by the end of the program, he was never the same as a wrestler. Vader, on the other hand, could add great worker to go along with his massive size and unique steamed headpiece gimmick.

Fujinami’s back injury flared up to the point he vacated the title. This led to an eight-man tournament for the title on New Japan’s biggest show in its history up to that point, an April 24, 1989, show at the recently-opened Tokyo Dome. It was the first pro wrestling event ever held in the new home of the Yomiuri Giants, and would go on to become most famous wrestling venue in Japan.

Vader scored wins over Masahiro Chono, Fujinami, and beat Shinya Hashimoto in the finals, in a match with Lou Thesz as referee, to become the first foreigner to hold the title in this form. Hulk Hogan was actually the first IWGP tournament winner in 1983, but at the time the title was something defended once a year, and Hogan lost it to Inoki in 1984. Inoki retained in 1985 and 1986, and then in 1987, after Inoki beat Saito in the IWGP tournament final, it was changed to being New Japan’s version of the world heavyweight title, replacing the International title which had been the lead championship.

When Vader defeated Canek in November, 1989, before a sold out crowd of 18,000 fans at El Toreo in Naucalpan, he became the first pro wrestler to hold major world titles (IWGP, CWA and UWA) simultaneously on three different continents at the same time. He was especially proud of being able to do this.

Perhaps Vader’s most famous match was on February 10, 1990, when he faced Stan Hansen at a sold out Tokyo Dome. The show was built around the first major match-ups of All Japan vs. New Japan, the traditional big two companies. There were two tag team matches that would be split in results, and then each company put its top foreigner against each other in the dream match.

Vader was in his second, and eventual record-breaking run as champion. The match was brutally stiff, with Vader suffering a broken nose, and then, with punches exchanged, it was believed that Hansen accidentally thumbed Vader in his eye which caused his eye to pop out of its socket. Vader unmasked himself and pushed his eye back in its socket and tried to hold it in place with his eyelid. The match continued to its planned double disqualification finish. The visual of Vader voluntarily unmaking and his eye popped out is one of the most memorable images of that era of Japanese wrestling. Vader needed eye surgery.

While news traveled slower in those days, the story of the Hansen vs. Vader match became well known. Vader had wrestled mostly in Japan, taking a few dates in Mexico and more in Europe in between tours.

While fans who watched Japanese tapes in particular were aware of Vader and talked him up from his match quality and the gimmicked headpiece, it was the Hansen match that led WCW to make a big play for him.

Jim Ross and Jim Cornette were on the WCW booking committee and pitched hard for Vader, especially after Ross saw the Hansen match. WCW offered him what at the time was a huge money guaranteed contract where he would split time between WCW and New Japan starting in the summer of 1990. The first-ever G-1 Climax tournament took place over three nights, August 8-10, 1990, at Sumo Hall in Tokyo, all nights sold out.

I can vividly recall getting a phone call from Japan on the second night from Brian Pillman, who told me that the match that had just ended a few hours earlier where Keiji Muto pinned Vader was the greatest match he had ever seen. Worse, he noted, it was not taped for television. A few months later, a handheld tape of the match did appear, and the match was incredible for its time. In those days, because of the box seats at Sumo Hall being uncomfortable, they would sell pillows to sit on. The euphoric feeling that enveloped Sumo Hall when Muto pinned Vader, a result nobody would have thought possible, led to what was called pillow-mania, with fans throwing their pillows, thousands of them in the air in celebration. The next night, when Chono beat Muto to win the first G-1 tournament, fans also threw pillows, but Pillman noted that the Muto-Vader match it was a spontaneous insane reaction, while for Muto-Chono, they were just trying to do what was done, similar to copying certain chants that meant something the first time and then just became routine reactions.

Until 1992, Vader worked primarily New Japan, but WCW upped its offer and got more dates on Vader, and put Harley Race with him as manager. Vader’s biggest U.S. program came at that time with Sting, battling over the WCW title.

While Sting, like almost everyone, had great matches with Ric Flair, he was never able to consistently reach that match level after Flair left the promotion. Vader was a completely different style of opponent, but Vader, after all the years working with top guys in Japan, had turned into the best worker for his size of anyone in pro wrestling history. He and Sting meshed well and this would generally be remembered alongside the Flair matches as the best of Sting’s career. Business wasn’t good, as this was a down period for the industry in general.

But like with Fujinami, Vader’s style hurt Sting. He broke some of Sting’s ribs and fractured his spleen early in their 1992 program. Vader beat Sting on July 12, 1992, to become the WCW champion for the first time, which was part of a Bill Watts plan to get the title on Ron Simmons as the “first black world champion,” a few weeks later.

While Vader was tremendous as far as making matches, his stuff style caused numerous casualties. He injured Nikita Koloff, who then retired with his Lloyd’s of London insurance policy. The Simmons experiment as champion didn’t work, so they went back to Vader, who went back to feuding with Sting over the top spot.

He broke the back of Joe Thurman with a stiff power bomb. Mick Foley suffered a concussion from a sick power bomb on the floor from Vader which led to the infamous Mick Foley amnesia angle, which was one of the worst angles of its time. Foley also suffered a broken nose and bled heavily in a television match that ended up heavily edited before it aired due to the amount of blood. But Foley was actually asking for Vader to hit him in the face with almost full force in those matches to bring out the realism. The matches were some of the best bouts of the time period and were keys to Foley being perceived as a likable mid-carder to being a serious star who could work on top. Although this had nothing to do with Vader, Foley also lost his right ear in a match with Vader in 1994in Munich, Germany when his head was tied up in the ropes.

20 years to the day, Foley wanted to do something to commemorate it. He found out White was booked in Lexington, KY, that day at a convention, so he got himself booked there so they could spent the day together.

“I got myself booked on the show just so we could do a panel together and take some photos together,” said Foley. “I was hoping we could do something similar to that for the 25th anniversary in 2019.”

“Leon played a big role in my career,” said Foley. “At the time of our Halloween Havoc match, I absolutely believed that my career had reached its peak. So I approached every match with Leon like it was going to be the greatest match I’d ever had. A few months ago, a fan from the U.K. told me he was front row for a match with me and Leon in either Birmingham or Manchester, I can’t remember which one. He said he couldn’t believe the intensity of the match, given that it was not televised,. It would not mean much in the bigger scheme of things, but I was so glad he mentioned it, because we went all out every time we were in there together. I specifically remember that match a being one of my favorites. It was nice to get that kind of feedback from a fan.”

Vader also debuted his moonsault during this period. The moonsault, which was probably first used as a body block by Chavo Guerrero Sr., was popularized by Muto in the U.S. and became even bigger when Muto became a true national superstar in Japan.

Vader, whose weight probably ranged from 350 to 430, practiced the move in his swimming pool. At first it was used when he was going to lose, with the idea he’d miss a moonsault and then lose, but that nobody would be talking about his loss, and everyone would be talking about the idea that he did a moonsault, which at the time was move almost nobody did, and certainly nobody within 100 pounds of him. It worked. Of course such a move done by a guy of that size can give significant wear-and-tear on the knees. Vader did limit his usage of the move to major events. In time, the sight of Vader at his size doing a moonsault became one of people’s most vivid memories of him.

In 1993, Vader signed what was at the time a landmark deal with UWFI in Japan. He would get $200,000 for eight dates plus a $50,000 bonus. Those kind of numbers were unheard of in pro wrestling at the time for anyone not named Hulk Hogan.

It was a major coup. Vader was not only WCW champion, meaning he was the champion of the No. 2 promotion in North America, but had been New Japan’s top foreign star.

UWFI was proclaiming itself as real, and with the backing of Thesz, who UWFI had signed as a face of the company, he went back to the 1920s and said that their champion, Nobuhiko Takada, was the real world champion. Thesz used his world title belt from the 1950s when he was as close to an undisputed world champion as there was, and was even bigger in Japan because it was the belt Thesz and Rikidozan battled over in a series of outdoor stadium shows in 1957, including one that nearly everyone who had a television set in Japan watched.

Thesz in particular has singled out New Japan, and their top stars like Masahiro Chono, who at the time was IWGP champion, to face Takada. New Japan of course ignored it as best they could (New Japan later got revenge when UWFI ran into financial problems and needed help and New Japan set business records with the feud but also squashed UWFI in the end). But suddenly Vader, the star they felt they made, had signed with UWFI, for the obvious reason of putting over Takada.

There were legal issues, but Vader was able to make the contract, but had to change his name to Super Vader. Much to the consternation of WCW officials who looked at their world title as what older promoters did, Vader, as WCW champion, did the match with Takada at Jingu Stadium, and submitted to an armbar in a champion vs. champion match. As part of the deal, Vader did get to beat Takada in a rematch and get the UWFI title, only to lose the third match with Takada. The relationship fell apart when UWFI started having serious money issues.

Vader was proud of the physical style in these matches which he said were the closest thing to a real fight without being real, and his being able to pull the matches off in a convincing style, labeling the action as 70 percent fight with a predetermined finish.

Business in 1993 was terrible for WCW. They were building for a big showdown where Sid Vicious would beat Vader at Starrcade and become the promotion’s champion and face of the company. But Vicious got into a hotel hallway brawl with Arn Anderson in England, and was fired. It ended up for the best for the promotion.

Having to redo the top match in Starrcade, which was scheduled for Charlotte, the promotion went to the Ric Flair card, where Flair, as a babyface, would put his career on the line for one last shot at the title that he dominated. Flair won the match, which did WCW’s biggest attendance (8,200 of which 5,500 were paid) and gate ($62,000) and PPV number of the year, which was more of just how bad a year it was.

Vader continued as a top star with WCW, but the big matches were mostly Flair, who went back heel, against the debuting Hogan. But everyone knew that after that ran its course, the natural match-up was Hogan vs. Vader, a match between two of the biggest worldwide stairs of the era that had never taken place.

Still, this was not good for Vader. Hogan wasn’t going to put Vader over at the time as his mentality was still about running through new opponents rather than long programs. The Hogan vs. Vader feud did big PPV numbers by WCW standards, along the lines of what Hogan vs. Flair did. In the first meeting, which Vader lost via DQ due to interference by Flair (who had lost a retirement match to Hogan a few months earlier), Vader kicked out of the leg drop at one. Then, in a strap match, Hogan won, but he was declared the winner by dragging Flair, who was dressed up in drag, around all four corners. The idea was Hogan still hadn’t beaten Vader. Finally this led to a cage match at the Bash at the Beach show in Los Angeles, which Hogan won by escaping the cage.

However, Vader was always mad because Hogan insisted on popping up and no selling his power bomb that had been used as a killer move in WCW, hurting people both legit and in storyline. There was always the feeling that Hogan should have put Vader over at one point, and also that Vader should have put Hogan over via pinfall after that.

Vader ended up being fired from his lucrative WCW contract after a backstage brawl with Paul Orndorff, acting as an agent. There are numerous versions of the story, as Vader always claimed he was not beaten up in the fight while almost every onlooker told a different version.

Orndorff told Vader to come in to do an interview, and Vader ignored him. The two started yelling it started getting physical. Orndorff dropped Vader with a punch and started kicking him with his feet, wearing sandals. Vader got up and wanted to go after Orndorff but was held back. But due to Vader’s behavior in precipitating the fight, even as big a star as he still was, he was let go.

While Vader was largely respected for his ability to have great matches and his agility for a man his size, he had a mixed reputation. He drank a lot. He was often looking for sympathy or a sympathetic ear to the point some labeled him as a big baby. While nobody denied his standing as one of pro wrestling’s biggest stars and that he drew well everywhere he went on top except for the disaster that was WCW until 1996, in a WWE-centric world, to many fans he’s no longer viewed at the level of stars who were not even considered at his level in his prime because his lone WWF run was not a success.

Vader did some acting, including playing Goliath in the 1995 movie “Fist of the North Star,” and playing himself in an episode of “Baywatch,” but was most known for recurring appearances in the 1995 and 1996 season of the TV show “Boy Meets World,” playing the pro wrestler father, doing his Vader character, of one of the friends of the lead cast members.

On January 4, 1996, Vader lost to 52-year-old Antonio Inoki at the Tokyo Dome in what most remember as Inoki’s last truly great match.

Vader had avoided WWF for his entire career because between his high-end WCW contract and his various deals in Japan and other countries, he was one of the highest money earners in the sport and his deals were guaranteed.

But WCW was done, and New Japan would use him, but not at the level he had been at the past, so 1996 was the right time to go to WWF, which was in a business slump. Ross, by this point the head of talent relations in WWE, was the conduit to the new deal.

Vader, called The Man They Call Vader, did a major angle where he gave Gorilla Monsoon, the figurehead president of the WWF, a Vader bomb. Vader was suspended, giving him time off for shoulder surgery. It was also the last physical angle Monsoon was ever in.

Vader returned, being managed by Jim Cornette. The plan was for him to go through a newly-turned face Yokozuna, form a tag team with Foley and then split up, and build to a WWF title program with Shawn Michaels.

The Foley program was teased, with the idea that the demented babyface Mankind was going after the man who caused him to lose his ear. Foley and Vader wanted to do the program in WCW, since Foley knew that Killer Kowalski and Yukon Eric had one of the biggest feuds of the 50s that went all over North America, coming off Eric losing his ear in Montreal.

They teased in commentary a secret that would be revealed, which was going to be revealed as the ear, and started teasing a split between the two, and then Vince McMahon nixed the idea.

“I don’t really know,” Foley said. “It was talked about at one point, and I don’t know what happened.”

But Michaels wanted out of the program quickly, and Vader’s run was not a success. In WWF, he was labeled as a crybaby, knocked for having smelly ring gear and with the mentality by some in the company that WWF was the big leagues and nothing else counted, and that he was both washed up and overrated.

At one point his weight was high and WWE was afraid that his blood pressure would cause one of the athletic commissions that still regulated pro wrestling to give him a medical suspension. Ross sent both Vader and Yokozuna to the Duke Weight Loss Clinic in North Carolina. It wasn’t a success. Ross noted that after the first week both were there, each had gained weight because they were sneaking out at night to eat more food.

By the end, after he lost a mask vs. mask match to Kane, they were using him as a big name jobber, losing cleanly to the likes of Mark Henry, Edge and Bradshaw (John Layfield), especially when he gave his notice as Giant Baba felt he could resurrect his career.

He was battling depression at the time due to his lack of success and once on television referred to himself as a fat piece of shit. After the Kane loss, in an interview he did, whether scripted or not, he buried himself further saying, “Maybe Vader time is over. I’m a fat piece of shit. A big fat piece of shit.”

Away from the WWF structure, Vader, tabbed as washed up, since he was 43 years old, debuted with All Japan Pro Wrestling in 1998 for the final big run of his career.

While past its peak of a few years earlier, All Japan was still very successful and its main events were still arguably the best in the world, with a roster that included Mitsuharu Misawa, Kenta Kobashi, Stan Hansen, Toshiaki Kawada and Jun Akiyama.

Vader & Hansen were pushed as the unbeatable foreign tag team, something of a recreation of the Hansen & Bruiser Brody team. They dominated everyone in the 1998 World Tag League, but lost almost by a fluke in the finals to Kobashi & Akiyama, with Hansen as the one being pinned because even though Hansen was their historical top foreigner, Vader was the money for 1999 and Baba knew it.

He was clearly wrestling’s comeback story of 1999, beating Akira Taue for the Triple Crown, winning the Champion Carnival tournament with a win over Kobashi, trading the title with Misawa before losing to Kobashi.

From December 1998 to February 2000, Vader headlined five sold out Budokan Hall shows with the tag team tournament finals and singles matches with Misawa and Kobashi twice and one with Taue. He also headlined the Tokyo Dome on May 2, 1989, with Misawa, on a show that drew 50,000 fans and $5 million.

He left All Japan with almost all the crew in 2000 to join Pro Wrestling NOAH. But it was clear that 1999 was his last big run. He had a major altercation with the Yakuza while in Japan as well where he was stabbed all over his body, which was the beginning of the end of his stay with NOAH. He was with the promotion full-time through 2002, mostly as a tag team with Too Cold Scorpio, a wrestler he started the career of years earlier, which was the last full-time major promotion run of his career.

Vader bounced around the U.S. and Japan on indies and nostalgia comebacks to All Japan, New Japan, WWE, TNA and other places after that point but it was clear he was no longer the same.

He had a number of health problems stemming from injuries from such a hard bumping style, years of heavy drinking, being so heavy and usage of steroids. He was divorced in 2007, had both knees replaced and was bedridden for six months after an infection from surgery. Later he was in a coma for 33 days. He was in a terrible auto accident in 2016 which left his face badly contorted although it went back to its usual shape.

In 2016, he got into a Twitter war when he knocked a match with Will Ospreay vs. Ricochet from Tokyo, saying it wasn’t wrestling. Revolution Pro tried to turn that into an angle, and the August 12, 2016, match at York Hall in London between Vader and Ospreay had unreal heat. However, when Vader got to London, he reneged on his agreement to put Ospreay over. For the good of the show, Ospreay put him over, but it left a bad taste in a lot of people’s mouths. Wrestling had changed had Vader didn’t understand the idea of a guy the size of Ospreay beating Vader, even though it was the only finish that made sense. Vader had then said he’d put him over in a tag team match that was set up, but they couldn’t trust Vader after that.

In November of 2016, he was told by his doctors that he had congenital heart failure and that he probably was only going to live about two more years. He released that information, but later regretted doing so. He had one health issue after another in recent years, but still went to Japan in April of last year for the Dradition promotion to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the debut of Fujinami. In a match on April 20, 2017, at Korakuen Hall, with Fujinami & Riki Choshu & Shiro Koshinaka vs. Vader & Muto & AKIRA, Vader collapsed right after the match ended. He claimed on Twitter that he was dropped on his head during the match which caused a momentary blackout after the match was over, and that it had nothing to do with his heart. He wrestled the next two nights of his tour.

His final career match was three days later in Osaka, teaming with Fujinami & Choshu to beat Yoshiaki Fujiwara & Koshinaka & Takuma Sano.

He had been really hopeful of being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this year. Foley in particular had both publicly and privately pushed for it.

“I have no idea what happened with the Hall of Fame,” said Foley. “I’m sure he is someone who is considered every year. I asked Vince to consider him sooner rather than later, considering his health. I talked to Leon on a fairly regular basis, probably every other month since his diagnosis. The Hall of Fame meant so much to him. My last conversation with him was about a month ago, and he was wondering if he might get in following the open heart surgery. He really wanted to return to the ring. He wanted to be a feel good story that could inspire people.”

Because he traveled to so many parts of the world and his career hit every major promotion in the world at one time or another, and almost always as a top star, probably nobody of his era faced more of the biggest names of different eras in headline matches.

A list of Hall of Fame or major star level opponents he worked with would include Choshu, Sting, Fujinami, Taue, Misawa, Simmons, Akiyama, Kobashi, Saito, Michaels, Undertaker, Goldust, Sid Vicious, Chono, Hashimoto, Muto, Kane, Yoshihiro Takayama, Takada, Davey Boy Smith, Inoki, Foley, Big Bossman, The Rock, Nikita Koloff, Takeshi Morishima, Hansen, Takashi Sugiura, Bret Hart, Seiji Sakaguchi, Jim Duggan, Hiroshi Hase, Shiro Koshinaka, Flair, Larry Zbyszko, Brody, Ultimate Warrior, HHH, Yokozuna, Steve Austin, Ken Shamrock, The Steiner Brothers, Gary Albright, Michael Hayes, Kensuke Sasaki, Owen Hart, Wanz, Bam Bam Bigelow, Jushin Liger, William Regal, Nick Bockwinkel, Jake Roberts, Scott Norton, Greg Gagne, Hogan, The Road Warriors, Curt Hennig, Arn Anderson, Kazuo Yamazaki, Jeff Jarrett, Larry Hennig, Jerry Blackwell, Tiger Jeet Singh, The Mongolian Stomper, Iron Sheik, Bob Orton Jr., Jimmy Snuka, Salman Hashimikov, Barry Windham, Rick Rude, The Head Hunters, Terry Funk, Steve Williams, Jerry Lawler, Ray Stevens, Jose Lothario, Paul Orndorff, Sgt. Slaughter, Baron Von Raschke, Masato Tanaka, Don Frye, Dick Murdoch, Samoa Joe, Ospreay, Tony Atlas, El Satanico, Canek, Lizmark, Kiyoshi Tamura, Shuji Ishikawa, Sabu, Kevin Nash Ricky Morton, Lex Luger and Layfield.

[Tim Budong]

This week's NJPW free match is Vader vs Stan Hansen from 1990. These two guys were big big stars there

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6zlCpRAFt0

[SkinnyPupp]

And here's the match vs Mutoh mentioned in the obituary, which Bryan Pillman called the best match he's ever seen up until then

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2saq7a

It was a great match! Well worth watching. Just don't expect them to work the same way they do now

[GS8]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKS5emuhwIQ

[Tim Budong]

G1 Climax begins with a USA Special on July 7th, headlined by Cody vs Omega for the IWGP Champion. Also MENG will be teaming up with his sons. There should be a tease near the end of show. Expect a turn as Bullet Club continues to evolve.

Then the G1 Climax 28 begins middle of the month with shows every other day all the way into August

Now is the time to subscribe to NJPW World :D.

This week's free match is Cody/Adam Page vs Omega/Ibushi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OC1o3y2nzK8

[Tim Budong]

The G1 USA show this weekend will now be for the IWGP Heavyweight Title and to crown the TRUE leader of BULLET CLUB

https://twitter.com/KennyOmegamanX/status/1014338577570910208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

[SkinnyPupp]

Nice I'll be subbing for this

Also how great was it to see Asuka beat up that geek EleGiggle They're having a lumberjack match next week so he can't get away

[Berzerker]

22 Years ago today. The greatest Heel turn ever happened and ushered in one of the best Heel factions ever. Their popularity skyrocketed. Eventually IMO it got stupid with the amount of people in NWO, the LWO, and the chaos that followed.

https://youtu.be/3hILCw66sLU

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

22 Years ago today. The greatest Heel turn ever happened and ushered in one of the best Heel factions ever. Their popularity skyrocketed. Eventually IMO it got stupid with the amount of people in NWO, the LWO, and the chaos that followed.

https://youtu.be/3hILCw66sLU

Berz out.

it is wrestling history :D

G1 special was decent. The Bullet Club.. inspired by the above NWO.. well the story just got more interesting and the seed was planted months ago!

Great to see HAKU can still go!

Hiromu broke his goddamn neck on this spot.. jeezzz

https://twitter.com/BulletClubItal/status/1015788747504476161

[SkinnyPupp]

Halfway through the G1 special. I am kind of disappointed at the NJPW World website's streaming quality

So far nothing spectacular

I also don't really understand the factions... It seems like every faction (Bullet Club, Chaos, that Spanish named one) can have babyfaces and heels on them... I really don't like it when heels play to the crowd for cheers rather than instigate boos (the ONE thing I hate about Scurll)

Haven't gotten to the Hiromu match yet, almost don't want to WutFace

[Tim Budong]

Halfway through the G1 special. I am kind of disappointed at the NJPW World website's streaming quality

So far nothing spectacular

I also don't really understand the factions... It seems like every faction (Bullet Club, Chaos, that Spanish named one) can have babyfaces and heels on them... I really don't like it when heels play to the crowd for cheers rather than instigate boos (the ONE thing I hate about Scurll)

Haven't gotten to the Hiromu match yet, almost don't want to WutFace

Streaming quality is alright on my end. It ain't as good as WWE, but WWE has MLBAM handling their shit and it is 100x better.

Treat factions in NJPW like sports teams.. thats usually how it is used. They go as far as putting factions in their own dressing rooms to keep it "real".

NJPW is treated like a real sport in Japan. thus the presentation with press conferences and post match comments exists.

There is some backlash over the G1 show for being too dangerous. Cody just announced he is taking time off to heal before ALL IN.

either way.. G1 Tournament begins next week. Some dude on SC wrote a preview.. lol

https://josephchaplin.wordpress.com/2018/07/08/njpw-g1-climax-28-preview/

[SkinnyPupp]

Streaming quality is alright on my end. It ain't as good as WWE, but WWE has MLBAM handling their shit and it is 100x better.

Is it me or does the HD button not really do anything? LUL

[Tim Budong]

Is it me or does the HD button not really do anything? LUL

yea doesn't work lol


the service is lacking and broken for English...this is why the wrestling community is awesome.

A list of the back catalog with direct links.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZsZCBTpKjHzdbCpKZ1No1KAdpmOd2OcgSMfC1-oa7pI/edit#gid=0

[SkinnyPupp]

yea doesn't work lol


the service is lacking and broken for English...this is why the wrestling community is awesome.

A list of the back catalog with direct links.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZsZCBTpKjHzdbCpKZ1No1KAdpmOd2OcgSMfC1-oa7pI/edit#gid=0
omfg that list is GOLD! Thanks!

[SkinnyPupp]

I marked out when Josh Barnett stood up to defend JR... God please let them have a match so Barnett can stretch the fuck out of that fucker! PogChamp

[Tim Budong]

I marked out when Josh Barnett stood up to defend JR... God please let them have a match so Barnett can stretch the fuck out of that fucker! PogChamp

It will never happen, I was waiting for Barnett to chase Jay White and legitimately punch him in the face on live tv.

As for that move that fucked Hiromu. Shouldn't have let go.. Here's Ibushi and Ricochet doin the same move

http://pa1.narvii.com/6081/865ec7aaacf6f35df3c9d435b64a403165b64c02_00.gif

[SkinnyPupp]

It will never happen, I was waiting for Barnett to chase Jay White and legitimately punch him in the face on live tv.

As for that move that fucked Hiromu. Shouldn't have let go.. Here's Ibushi and Ricochet doin the same move

http://pa1.narvii.com/6081/865ec7aaacf6f35df3c9d435b64a403165b64c02_00.gif
Watching Hiromu matches, it just feels like you are waiting for him to break his neck. I have only seen like 3 or 4 of his matches, and sure enough it happened. I hate it.

BTW why don't you think they'd do Barnett vs White in NJPW? Barnett is free of his UFC obligations and is basically a free agent rn

Oh and he'll be on JRE today! PogChamp

[Tim Budong]

Watching Hiromu matches, it just feels like you are waiting for him to break his neck. I have only seen like 3 or 4 of his matches, and sure enough it happened. I hate it.

BTW why don't you think they'd do Barnett vs White in NJPW? Barnett is free of his UFC obligations and is basically a free agent rn

Oh and he'll be on JRE today! PogChamp

Watch Ospery, that shit is scarier.

Barnett? if that whole spot was a work, than i eat my words, but so far seems like a real accident and barnett just snapped

[Ch28]

Watch Ospery, that shit is scarier.

Barnett? if that whole spot was a work, than i eat my words, but so far seems like a real accident and barnett just snapped

https://twitter.com/iamjohnpollock/status/1016337570622472192

[SkinnyPupp]

Watch Ospery, that shit is scarier.

Barnett? if that whole spot was a work, than i eat my words, but so far seems like a real accident and barnett just snapped
I assume they planned to involve the announcers in some way, which is why I also assume it's to build up a match between the two. The thing that gave it away for me was Josh went straight for the confrontation rather than checking on JR first. That was the first thing to came to my mind when I saw the spot.

Especially now with word coming out that JR got really hurt, it is going to be HOT

Please be OK JR

He specifically asked them not to do any spots around him, as they usually do something like that on every show. Dude is 66 and is a partially paralyzed Bell's Palsy victim. Now he has to worry about contracting pneumonia and in his condition that can easily lead to death.

Oh and yes, Ospery was even scarier but has toned it down a bit lately I think.

[Tim Budong]

they will deny this is a work. or NJPW will never revisit it again.

Either way, Jay White with the heel heat knowing it works with the American audience.

JR will be fine, he sounded uninterested in the product and after taking the bump, sounded pissed off, but yea I would be too haha.

[SkinnyPupp]

they will deny this is a work. or NJPW will never revisit it again.

Either way, Jay White with the heel heat knowing it works with the American audience.

JR will be fine, he sounded uninterested in the product and after taking the bump, sounded pissed off, but yea I would be too haha.
He seemed fine at the show but since then has gone to the hospital with broken ribs, and is now at risk for pneumonia. And he specifically told them not to involve him in spots, which is why he was so pissed

[Tim Budong]

G1 begins tomorrow :D
Scheduled as follows.

https://i.imgur.com/TdSFaYq.jpg

[SkinnyPupp]

5:30pm tomorrow! PogChamp

[Tim Budong]

https://twitter.com/njpw1972/status/1017623180326780928

Rey Mysterio Jr will have a match on the final day of the G1(aug 12)

[Tim Budong]

jeebussss

we are only two nights in and we have had 2 amazing main events already...

https://twitter.com/totaldivaseps/status/1018420462299369474

O_O

[SkinnyPupp]

All caught up with the singles matches for days 1, 2. Day 3 is live now, but I don't have the time to watch all the tag matches. If some turn out to be really good I'll check them out later.

Definitely liked day 2 better... Day 1 the crowd was pretty dead. Like they didn't give a shit about Okada at all.

Also has Ibushi won the G1 before? He seems to be the most over guy other than Naito. I could see him winning, that would be fun as hell.

Also I really like Zack Sabre Jr. Just so fun to watch that catch-as-catch-can style with hard hitting. I wish Shayna would use more of it as well, but maybe that wouldn't fit in WWE matches

[Tim Budong]

All caught up with the singles matches for days 1, 2. Day 3 is live now, but I don't have the time to watch all the tag matches. If some turn out to be really good I'll check them out later.

Definitely liked day 2 better... Day 1 the crowd was pretty dead. Like they didn't give a shit about Okada at all.

Also has Ibushi won the G1 before? He seems to be the most over guy other than Naito. I could see him winning, that would be fun as hell.

Also I really like Zack Sabre Jr. Just so fun to watch that catch-as-catch-can style with hard hitting. I wish Shayna would use more of it as well, but maybe that wouldn't fit in WWE matches

Ibushi has not won
Naito is very very over with the fans
And no way ZSJ style fits well with the WWE haha. He was in the cruiserweight tournament along with Juice Robinson(CJ Parker) and Ibushi.
Kenny vs Naito from Day2 was FANTASTIC

Juice actually went through WWE dev after dojo work in NJPW.

If Jay White keeps on slaying giants, i can see him winning or at least making the final.

Ibushi vs Kenny at WK? oh boy
but Jay White vs Omega II?

This Minoru/Makabe match is awesome right now.

[SkinnyPupp]

Not saying anyone should go "full ZSJ" but incorporate more of her catch wrestling. I think she was learning that even before getting into MMA. Just be the ass kicker that Asuka was supposed to be but they fucking ruined.

[Tim Budong]

Caught up to the show.
Last night's zsj vs Yano in the tag matches really sets up for a fun match on Thursday.

Elgin vs Page stole the card followed closely by Suzuki vs Makabe.

Jay White is gonna win Block A. NJPW is pushing him to the moon as a monster heel. BREATHE WITH THE SWITCH BLADE.

If he gets a match with Naito and pins him, then that's getting a win against the top 4 guys in new japan

[Tim Budong]

Kenny Omega doesn't put on a bad match.. dude is insane..

https://twitter.com/totaldivaseps/status/1019916831514128385?s=21

[SkinnyPupp]

Too much wrestling! I can't keep up! WutFace

[Tim Budong]

Awesome finish between Tanahashi and Bad Luck Fale,
Elgin vs Jay White definitely stole the spot light, even though Hangman vs Okada delivered.

[SkinnyPupp]

Just caught up to 7/20, I agree on all those matches! Hangman vs Okada was so good, and I really like Big Mike

[Tim Budong]

Fatigue from the wrestlers has begun to kick in as I just finished 7/22

Goto vs Ishii from 7/21 was fucking fantastic though.

Also loved the ending to those Fale matches.

next show is 7/26 for another 3 straight days

Must be hell to work this schedule

[SkinnyPupp]

Most impressive for me so far has been Ibushi. He has adapted so well to everyone's style, and has great matches every time. Hope he wins!

[Tim Budong]

Most impressive for me so far has been Ibushi. He has adapted so well to everyone's style, and has great matches every time. Hope he wins!

he absolutely can make anyone look good

https://youtu.be/LeINMAJ4yAI

i've read in the past WWE has tried countless times to court him over

[SkinnyPupp]

Yeah he won't sign with anyone right now apparently, which is the one thing that makes me doubt his chance of winning the G1

BTW NXT has been on fire as well, back to back great main events the last couple weeks! So much good wrestling now! Pretty much everything except Raw is good to great.

[Tim Budong]

Don't thnk NJPW cares all that much about Kota as a freelance or not. Especially not the way he is booked.
The guy draws.


Its definitely a pro wrestling renaissance. I'm all for it :D

[SkinnyPupp]

OMG just watched Gotoh vs Ishii, and it has to be one of my favourite matches I've ever seen! OMFG they went SO HARD and SO FAST the entire time. JFC! I love the strong Big Guy matches, as long as they're not doing shoot headbutts, so this was just fucking FANTASTIC

[Tim Budong]

two scary dudes beating the shit out of each other.
its so great haha

[SkinnyPupp]

Yes! They hit fucking HARD, but always in a safe place. No dumb head shots or shoot headbutts. Even the Saito suplex was perfect, which you rarely see anymore.

I have watched this match 3 times now, I swear it's my favourite match ever

[Tim Budong]

Ibushi vs Sanada could be a very good one tonight.
Kenny is working with a fractured heel as he confirmed on Youtube.

even as a viewer, the fatigue is settling in hahaha.

[SkinnyPupp]

Yes it's too much, especially if you also still watch WWE. Do you watch the tag team matches? I have skipped every one.

Ibushi vs anyone will be very good LUL

TBH I wasn't too hot on Sanada but he has won me over.

The only guy I really don't like watching is EVIL. God he is lame

Speaking of WWE, so James Ellisworth is gone... Asuka never got a chance to get revenge. Just jobbed out to them and the feud is over. At least she gets to beat the shit out of that annoying tag team LUL

And is it just me or is Lacey Evans is getting hotter each week, damn. That back! Kreygasm

[Tim Budong]

Crazy thought. Saw the seat sale for HKexpress. But no Tokyo for August... Or else I'd go to the final two nights to see ibushi vs kenny

Usually have the tag matches on background if at work. Or else I skip em.

Ellsworth should have stuck around to finish the fued. Imo him and asuka can work a great comedy match... Too bad that's too PG for wwe

[Tim Budong]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb7D5QMC_WE

puttin njpw on the map.. lol

Watched Ciampa vs Black from NXT.. man... this story moving forward.. going to get fun.
Im glad NXT is it's own thing with their own style. No need to answer to big networks and have so much more control.

It's going to be interesting to see what the E does with their Billions from FOX. How many more hours of TV will they produce weekly. It's at 8hours right now... thats a lot of time to write for

[SkinnyPupp]

NXT is great because they went back to the basics. Instead of trying to get ratings (because ratings are literally irrelevant) they try to sell the PPVs instead. Just like old wrestling. This gives them the time and freedom to develop the storylines, and they do both old school and new school storylines.


Also the wrestlers are freer (not totally free) to incorporate their own style in terms of both work and promos (for better or worse). The result is great matches even on weekly TV.

It is just so damn good. I like it better than NJPW.

The problem is, the "goal" is to make it to the main roster (to get paid) and almost nobody succeeds up there. Some do, but only if they are lucky. No matter how good you are, if the WWE writers decide to give you a shit angle (Finn and Asuka being the latest examples), you are FUCKED.

Others seem to do well, like Kevin Owens and Shinsuke Nakamura most recently. I think Cien Almas will be the next guy to actually succeed on the main roster. MAYBE Ember Moon. But those are few and far between. The rest go the way of Chad Gable, Appollo Crews, etc

Hopefully the new contract allows them to make NXT the destination, where people can stay and just do the old school hourly weekly shows and build to world class PPVs. On the other hand, I do like how new people come in all the time, there's a lot more room to succeed. If Finn Balor, Samoa Joe, and Nakamura were still there, there's no way we'd be enjoying the Black vs Ciampa match.

Speaking of Black, dude is so good but man he has to get his body figured out. There's no way he'll get over on the main roster looking like that, no matter how good he is. Also needs to develop his promos more, he kind of sounds like a geek when he talks.

[Tim Budong]

if the WWE ever decides that NXT isn't their farm system, then sure.. but i highly doubt it... unfortunately, it is true that not every call up to the big leagues is gonna make it. I believe that Finn was on to great things if it wasn't for that freak accident that stripped him from the title.

Meltzer is saying the WWE have "great interest" in bringing back Juice... lol.

[SkinnyPupp]

Juice has no interest in going though

I remember him now too, he left just after I started watching NXT. I remember he was SO FUCKING BAD. I couldn't stand that stupid gimmick. Can't believe it's the same guy LUL

[Tim Budong]

Juice was a guy who was a standout when dusty Rhodes ran the promo classes. Yet the writers couldn't give him a proper gimmick nor could he deliver anything scripted.

The guy is a NJPW dojo grad. So there was always a place for him in Japan

[SkinnyPupp]

Matt Riddle in NXT PogChamp

[Tim Budong]

LimpingCriminalFugu

HOLY SHIT....Ibushi vs Ishii
and that spot isn't even what the highlight of this match was...

WOW

[Tim Budong]

RIP to brian christopher

Grandmaster SEXY :(

Jerry Lawler tried to get his kid clean a few years back. didn't work out

[GS8]

RIP to brian christopher

Grandmaster SEXY :(

Jerry Lawler tried to get his kid clean a few years back. didn't work out

I wonder if Bryan's fall into the darkness was indirectly brought on by Jerry himself. I mean he didn't exactly scream role model material back in the day what with his womanly affairs and all.

Also I can't remember if it was kayfabe or not but I remember Jerry saying he was glad that Brian never used the Lawler name because he didn't want to be associated with Brian.

Not that the wrestling business is sugar drops and candy plums anyway.

Also RIP to Nikolai Volkoff.

[Vansterdam]

man I remember him from the 2 cool Attitude Era days. RIP

[SkinnyPupp]

Also I can't remember if it was kayfabe or not but I remember Jerry saying he was glad that Brian never

A lot of people had very bad things to say about him, even after his death. Years back there were rape allegations going around. A LOT of them.

So yeah... Entertaining guy for wrestling, no well liked otherwise. Hate to say anything bad about the dead so I'll just leave it at that. I feel bad for King more than anything

[Berzerker]

Too Cool got huge pop. Scotty 2 Hotty and BC had a great gimmick that the fans loved. Throw in Rikishi and they were hilarious and fun to watch. They were just that though fun to watch for the gimmick and once it died off so they they.

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

Very true. They fizzled out so fast thanks to the rise of TLC matches.

[Tim Budong]

Nakamura's autobiography has been translated and will release in English this month. Titled "King of Strong Style: 1980 to 2014"

Here's his take on facing Brock Lesnar in 2006. Further proving Brock is clearly in the entertainment business for money.

Another excerpt from Shinsuke Nakamura’s book:

You had no choice but to do what the company wanted. But then Kazuyuki Fujita refused to accept a match with Brock Lesnar for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship which was scheduled to be the main event. Given your previous track record, you were selected to take his place and be the challenger.

“Part of that was luck. But that match was seriously rough. First, Lesnar was saying all this stuff about how he respected New Japan, but it felt to me like that was just for show, that he didn't really respect the promotion. Like, somewhere, he was looking down on Japanese people. I lost the match, and that was the first time I cried at pro wrestling after a match.”

Why did you cry?

“It was the main event at Tokyo Dome. This was a pretty hallowed stage, and I knew I hadn't fought the way I imagined I would. And there was, like, this temperature difference between me and Lesnar. I didn’t get the sense he had any love for pro wrestling. It felt like he was just doing his job.”

Another match to defend the title was later canceled because of contract trouble with Lesnar. He was stripped of the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, but be never returned the belt itself; he ended up running off with it.

“I felt like this was too much; he was seriously scoffing at us. Lesnar won the championship and took the belt home, I told Simon if the company didn't get it’s shit in order, that belt was definitely going to get nicked. I didn't honestly believe that when we fought. But it ended up just like I feared. He has the physical stuff, plus a straightforward strength and a certain amount of flexibility, so there was a bit of the monster to him. But I didn't like his personality, you know? He might have made a real mark in UFC, but he didn't even seem to notice the audience booing. I was like, "Oh, this guy's a heel to the core."”

here's the match

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rWJBtolMq4

[GS8]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RC68lyf3-vw

Congrats to Glenn for winning the mayoral race

Final Fight reboot with Glenn doppleganger?

[Tim Budong]

The G1 is in the final stretch!

This week's free match is Naito vs Omega from last year's final.

https://youtu.be/0ppClIKTnOU

6 potential winners for this year. Kenny, Ibushi, Naito, Tanahashi, Okada and Jay White

[SkinnyPupp]

Totally behind in G1 since I was on vacation... Going to try to avoid spoilers and watch it throughout the week.

[Tim Budong]

Gedo fucking did it
Heading into the final 3 shows... many scenarios can play out and have everyone guessing who's gonna win it.

Ibushi, Omega, ZSJ, Okada, Naito Tanahashi and Jay White can all make the finals.... jesussss

[SkinnyPupp]

Still haven't watched in a week. G1 is just too much all at once for me. I mean when I watch it, it's FUCKING GREAT but it's just too much. Especially if I still follow WWE and NXT.

I might just look up Dave Meltzer's star ratings and watch select matches once it's over. I heard Kenny got injured and Tama Tonga got fired? What was that about?

[Tim Budong]

Tama didn't get fired, NJPW had to apologize cuz he littered at a train station and filmed it for social media. Bullet Club storyline continued last night(August 8th show). Ibushi got a good match out of Tama Tonga. and great comedy wrestling between Yano and Omega


Omega vs Ishii
Ibushi vs Goto
Ibushi vs Sanada
Ibushi vs Naito
Ibushi vs Ishii

do you see a trend? hahahahaha

[SkinnyPupp]

Tama didn't get fired, NJPW had to apologize cuz he littered at a train station and filmed it for social media. Bullet Club storyline continued last night(August 8th show). Ibushi got a good match out of Tama Tonga. and great comedy wrestling between Yano and Omega


Omega vs Ishii
Ibushi vs Goto
Ibushi vs Sanada
Ibushi vs Naito
Ibushi vs Ishii

do you see a trend? hahahahaha
Yes I saw the trend after the second Ibushi match! Dude is insanely good

[Tim Budong]

Okada vs Tanahashi... That my friends... Is how you tell a story. What a match

[Tim Budong]

goddamnnnnn

https://i.imgur.com/SEEG7Rj.jpg

[SkinnyPupp]

Top 25 G1 Climax 28 Matches according to CageMatch ratings (self.SquaredCircle)

Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Day 14) - 9.79
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi (Final) - 9.74
Kota Ibushi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Day 10) - 9.69
Kenny Omega vs. Kota Ibushi (Day 18) - 9.57
Kenny Omega vs. Tetsuya Naito (Day 2) - 9.56
Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Day 6) - 9.55
Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (Day 17) - 9.48
Kota Ibushi vs. Tetsuya Naito (Day 14) - 9.44
Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Day 4) - 9.15
Kota Ibushi vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 2) - 8.99
Kota Ibushi vs. SANADA (Day 8) - 8.97
Tomohiro Ishii vs. SANADA (Day 18) - 8.88
Tetsuya Naito vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 18) - 8.86
Kenny Omega vs. Hirooki Goto (Day 4) - 8.83
Tetsuya Naito vs. Juice Robinson (Day 6) - 8.79
Kazuchika Okada vs. EVIL (Day 15) - 8.71
Kenny Omega vs. SANADA (Day 10) - 8.69
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 8) - 8.60
Kenny Omega vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 12) - 8.39
Kazuchika Okada vs. Hangman Page (Day 5) - 8.36
Juice Robinson vs. Kota Ibushi (Day 4) - 8.15
Kota Ibushi vs. Hirooki Goto (Day 12) - 8.14
Kazuchika Okada vs. Michael Elgin (Day 11) - 8.13
SANADA vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 6) - 8.06
Kazuchika Okada vs. YOSHI-HASHI (Day 9) - 8.04

I'll start with these LUL

[Tim Budong]

Top 25 G1 Climax 28 Matches according to CageMatch ratings (self.SquaredCircle)

Kenny Omega vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Day 14) - 9.79
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi (Final) - 9.74
Kota Ibushi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Day 10) - 9.69
Kenny Omega vs. Kota Ibushi (Day 18) - 9.57
Kenny Omega vs. Tetsuya Naito (Day 2) - 9.56
Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Day 6) - 9.55
Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (Day 17) - 9.48
Kota Ibushi vs. Tetsuya Naito (Day 14) - 9.44
Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Day 4) - 9.15
Kota Ibushi vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 2) - 8.99
Kota Ibushi vs. SANADA (Day 8) - 8.97
Tomohiro Ishii vs. SANADA (Day 18) - 8.88
Tetsuya Naito vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 18) - 8.86
Kenny Omega vs. Hirooki Goto (Day 4) - 8.83
Tetsuya Naito vs. Juice Robinson (Day 6) - 8.79
Kazuchika Okada vs. EVIL (Day 15) - 8.71
Kenny Omega vs. SANADA (Day 10) - 8.69
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 8) - 8.60
Kenny Omega vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 12) - 8.39
Kazuchika Okada vs. Hangman Page (Day 5) - 8.36
Juice Robinson vs. Kota Ibushi (Day 4) - 8.15
Kota Ibushi vs. Hirooki Goto (Day 12) - 8.14
Kazuchika Okada vs. Michael Elgin (Day 11) - 8.13
SANADA vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (Day 6) - 8.06
Kazuchika Okada vs. YOSHI-HASHI (Day 9) - 8.04

I'll start with these LUL

damn
8 of Ibushi's 10 matches from this G1 is on here.

only because his match against Yano is a comedy match.. and Ibushi vs Tama Tonga... for storyline purposes and set up the curveball at the end of Block B
lol

Okada wrestled Rey Mysterio yesterday, but in multi man tag matches.. kinda fun

[GS8]

RIP Jim Neidhart

Apparently he fell in his home and hit his head. Terrible news.

[Tim Budong]

RIP indeed

Bret's the only Hart foundation member left

I don't rmb much of The Anvil though. too young

[SkinnyPupp]

Yup only one left... This image is so sad (not just for the fashion sense)

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DkgCLCgUUAU9TO6.jpg

[Tim Budong]

Though I don't have too many memories of the Hart foundation aside from Bret vs Shawn.

Just seeing that pic. It was either accidents or a heart attack and Bret survived.

From seeing the few total Divas clip that showed up today, looks like Jim was healthy enough even though he had slight health problems.

The Hart family has just gone from tragedy to tragedy. Very sad

[Berzerker]

He had seizures and early onset Alzheimer's. I'm curious if results will be posted as from what was described it almost seemed like a seizure or stroke.

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

Caught up to the G1 finals... what a match.

It's too bad that the WWE doesn't want to run a tournament like this cuz I could use a prestigious tournament like king of the ring again and use it to showcase all the talent on the roster...and if booked correctly, you can build intriguing stories from it. Use it to launch into Survivor Series where u can do a smackdown vs raw thing with the winner getting a title shot at the rumble. Or even just I get to pick my own entry number into the final.

[Berzerker]

Apparently Jericho pitched a champion vs. champion angle for the IC titles but was shot down for summerslam. That could have been big but I think Vince may be getting wary of of these other promotions gaining fandom.

Berz out.

[SkinnyPupp]

Caught up to the G1 finals... what a match.

It's too bad that the WWE doesn't want to run a tournament like this cuz I could use a prestigious tournament like king of the ring again and use it to showcase all the talent on the roster...and if booked correctly, you can build intriguing stories from it. Use it to launch into Survivor Series where u can do a smackdown vs raw thing with the winner getting a title shot at the rumble. Or even just I get to pick my own entry number into the final.
Especially since the Cruiserweight and MYC were both big successes... Come on!

Really looking forward to NXT Takeover, especially Shayna vs Kairi.. even made some tweets LUL

https://twitter.com/skinnypupp/status/1030395924374204416

Their feud is SO GOOD. I don't even know who to cheer for! Pretty sure Shayna is going to win, especially based on Kairi looking strong on the go-home show.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dkyx01zV4AE5EL9.jpg

[Ch28]

Big Dave saying again that Vince gonna do a 4 horsewomen fued, so that means Shayna would drop the title and move up.

[SkinnyPupp]

They have been hinting at that on social media, Jess even called the other group the fake version LUL

But they have yet to even introduce the other two on TV, so it might be too soon for that. Also Ronda is in the middle of a program

But maybe!

[Tim Budong]

yes give kairi the title
i like her, but i unno where else she has to go. she doesn't speak english.. and neither does Shirai(which will probably be winning the MYC)

Looking forward to Kairi beating the shit out of Blazer hahaha. Here's an interesting match from the past tho.. Kairi, Shirai and Iwatani vs Pentagon

https://youtu.be/zD-nGhN_YmI

here's the weekend long read on the history between AJ and Samoa Joe

SummerSlam 2018 - The match and the rivalry that made the careers of AJ Styles and Samoa Joe (http://www.espn.com/wwe/story/_/id/24385270/summerslam-2018-match-rivalry-made-careers-aj-styles-samoa-joe)

[SkinnyPupp]

Kairi needs to chase. Her biggest strength is her fiery comebacks. She should ALWAYS be against adversity. Way too soon to win the title IMO, and if Shayna is moving up, they should pass it on to another face and transition it to a strong heel (Bianca should be ready, or Lacey Evans) for Kairi to chase.

But there are literally no strong women babyfaces in NXT anymore, as they have booked the top two (besides Kairi) so poorly. Candice LeRae is DEAD and Dakota Kai is DEADER THAN DEAD EleGiggle

If Kairi does win, someone needs to go out there and beat the shit out of her, and then jump her over and over again every week.

[Tim Budong]

can they wait for toni storm and or io shirai?
nxt womens division has been lacking i guess

[SkinnyPupp]

They're great on the heel side.. Lacey is improving every week it seems, and Bianca is a megastar in the making. Next big womens star, wait and see... And the two faces I mentioned are actually quite good, they are just booked horribly (especially Kai, the "captain of team kick" who never kicks, except when she's getting her ass kicked by Shayna LUL )

[SkinnyPupp]

So UE vs Mustache stole the show again...

I laughed out loud at the Ciampa/Gargano finish. Just too funny. I loved it when Ciampa started apologizing EleGiggle

The booking of this feud has to be some of the best of all time.. The work too of course! Ciampa coming out to no music just makes it all perfect too. Talk about "getting it"

Sane won he title with a quick rollup (ala Hart vs Austin)... So the feud continues! I loved that rope break out of the RNC. Perfect! I wish the match was longer though, with Shayna picking her apart piece by piece before the comeback and rollup.

Is Kairi finally going to get some merch? Come on! They released a fucking Lacey Evans shirt this weekend, but not their new champion?

Dream sold way too much. Not a great match. I don't know why people like EC3 so much either.

And Ricochet could have a 4 star match with a sack of potatoes he's so good... God damn!

[Tim Budong]

seeing Ciampa vs Gargano makes me question why there isn't slow burn rivalries on the big shows because this could easily be done on the main shows...

Kairi <3 lolol

Ricochet is a fucking machine.
I noticed the WWE does a lot of camera pans of the crowd, but the moment a Bullet Club shirt appears, the camera cuts right away.

[SkinnyPupp]

Can't really cut out BC shirts since 20% of the crowd wears one LUL

If they really wanted to, they could do really good slow burn feuds. They're just too busy changing their minds 5x a week, so nothing gets over. It's sad, because NXT shows that if they want, they CAN do good things with their roster. And to think, they don't even get the benefit of big stars! It's mindblowing really.

I think Kairi will lose the title back to Shayna at the next event, if not sooner.

[Tim Budong]

....pathetic SummerSlam.. tho AJ/Joe and Rollins vs Ziggler were great....
Hated the finish to both the woman's raw champ and the universal champ..

NJPW announced whats coming up in September...


Road to Destruction (9/7)

Shota Umino & Ren Narita vs. Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens

Juice Robinson, Michael Elgin, David Finlay & Ayato Yoshida vs. Bad Luck Fale, GOD & Taiji Ishimori

Toa Henare vs. Beretta

Hirooki Goto & Gedo vs. Taichi & TAKA Michinoku

LIJ vs. Minoru Suzuki, Takashi Iizuka, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano & YOSHI-HASHI

Tomohiro Ishii & Will Ospreay vs. Kenny Omega & Kota Ibushi


Road to Destruction (9/8)

Shota Umino & Yuya Uemura vs. Ren Narita & Yota Tsuji

Ayato Yoshida vs. Chase Owens

Bad Luck Fale, GOD & Taiji Ishimori vs. Togi Makabe, Michael Elgin, David Finlay & Toa Henare

Taichi & Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI

LIJ vs. Minoru Suzuki, Takashi Iizuka, El Desperado & TAKA Michinoku

Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi & Yujiro Takahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano & Will Ospreay

Kazuchika Okada & Beretta vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi & Juice Robinson

Road to Destruction (9/9)

Yota Tsuji vs. Yuya Uemura

Bad Luck Fale, GOD & Taiji Ishimori vs. Michael Elgin, Ayato Yoshida, Shota Umino & Ren Narita

Hirooki Goto & Gedo vs. Taichi & El Desperado

LIJ vs. Minoru Suzuki, Takashi Iizuka, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & TAKA Michinoku

Hiroshi Tanahashi & Toa Henare vs. Kazuchika Okada & YOSHI-HASHI

Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi, Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens vs. Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, Beretta & Will Ospreay

Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, Juice Robinson & David Finlay vs. Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata, Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Manabu Nakanishi

Destruction in Hiroshima (9/15)

Jushin Thunder Liger, Tiger Mask & KUSHIDA vs. Rocky Romero, SHO & YOH

Bad Luck Fale vs. Toa Henare

Michael Elgin & Ayato Yoshida vs. KES

Beretta, Chuckie T & Will Ospreay vs. Kota Ibushi, Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens

GOD & Taiji Ishimori © vs. Juice Robinson, David Finlay & Ryusuke Taguchi-NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship

Hirooki Goto, Toru Yano & Gedo vs. Taichi, Takashi Iizuka & Yoshinobu Kanemaru

LIJ vs. Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr., TAKA Michinoku & El Desperado

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. Kazuchika Okada, YOSHI-HASHI & Jay White

Kenny Omega © vs. Tomohiro Ishii-IWGP Heavyweight Championship

Destruction in Beppo (9/17)

Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Yota Tsuji vs. Yuji Nagata, Manabu Nakanishi & Yuya Uemura

David Finlay & Ren Narita vs. Toa Henare & Shota Umino

Takashi Iizuka vs. Ayato Yoshida

Jushin Thunder Liger, Tiger Mask, KUSHIDA & Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Will Ospreay, Rocky Romero, SHO & YOH

Super Best Friends vs. KES

EVIL, SANADA & BUSHI vs. Zack Sabre Jr., Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma & Juice Robinson vs. Kazuchika Okada, Toru Yano, YOSHI-HASHI & Jay White

Hirooki Goto © vs. Taichi-NEVER Openweight Championship

Tetsuya Naito vs. Minoru Suzuki

Destruction in Kobe (9/23)

Yota Tsuji vs. Yuya Uemura

Shota Umino & Ren Narita vs. SHO & YOH

Jushin Thunder Liger & Tiger Mask vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado

Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma, Ryusuke Taguchi & Ayato Yoshida vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi Super Best Friends vs. KES

Juice Robinson, David Finlay & Toa Henare vs. Jay White, YOSHI-HASHI & Will Ospreay

Tetsuya Naito, EVIL & SANADA vs. Minoru Suzuki, Zack Sabre Jr. & TAKA Michinoku

KUSHIDA vs. BUSHI-IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Tournament Semi-Final

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada-IWGP Championship Certificate Match

[SkinnyPupp]

I thought SS was pretty good. The main was exactly as expected.

I liked how they put over Balor's Demon character as something extra special and powerful. Corbin sold it well. Coach didn't, asking "why doesn't he just always come out as the demon?". Seriously. What a fucking moron.

Joe vs AJ was really good. I thought the finish was fine to set up a HIAC match. Since the match was so back and forth and really good, I didn't mind the DQ at all. A good feud can have a DQ!

Unlike the lame tag match, which is a lame feud, and a lame DQ.

Miz still can't get heat on offense, because his offense looks so sloppy and fake. He is just such a shitty wrestler, I wish he'd switch to announcing or just retire. I remember the promo he cut on DB, and this is what we got... Talk about dropping the ball with Bryan. They have completely screwed up on his comeback.

So now that we see Ronda's matches, we know why they have basically given up on Asuka. She is Asuka, right down to the armbar finish (which Asuka had to stop doing when they signed Ronda). Anyway it's fun seeing people kick fucking ass, so I am all for it. I just hope they turn Asuka soon and do something interesting with her.

Nakamura Hardy I just ignored. Pretty much same for the Smackdown womens match. Kind of dozing off as I listened to it. I really liked the angle at the end. Becky has always been a hugely popular underdog, and they played to that perfectly. Anyone else would have been the heel doing what she did.

Rollins vs Ziggler was a good match, but I hate how Rollins just stops selling.. It's not like Kairi where she "hulks up" for a short time, then sells again. He just stops, does "his shit" and continues the match. To make matters worse you have Coach pointing it out. Seriously, how the fuck is this guy still employed?

So yeah, not as good as Takeover, but still a fine show. WAAAAAY too long, but they all are now.

[Tim Budong]

the length for these WWE shows can burn out a viewer

its ridiculous.

[SkinnyPupp]

In this case, I think the right matches were long and short. For instance can you imagine if Finn vs Corbin was a long back and forth match? ResidentSleeper

AJ and Joe, Rollins and Ziggler, were all able to have nice slow-build matches. Bryan and Miz too, but Miz sucks so their match wasn't very good.

[Tim Budong]

im glad all the good interesting stuff i was looking forward to happened first

and yes.. i think the balor thing was booked to perfection

[SkinnyPupp]

Becky has always been a hugely popular underdog, and they played to that perfectly. Anyone else would have been the heel doing what she did.

Well turns out I was wrong, and they actually wanted her to be a heel. They continued the heel role on Smackdown FailFish

God WWE sucks

[Tim Budong]

Well turns out I was wrong, and they actually wanted her to be a heel. They continued the heel role on Smackdown FailFish

God WWE sucks

she cut a great promo though :fullofwin:

i hate the whole locker room comes out to break out fights schtick.

[SkinnyPupp]

Yup, everyone forget about your angles, it's time to break up a fight! FailFish

[SkinnyPupp]

https://streamable.com/b84fl

:ahwow:

[Berzerker]

Holy Fuck. Super Cena with no Wellness Policy holding him back.

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

looks like he "slimmed" down but is now shredded.

Must be the Jackie Chan training seeing as he has been training at his "stunt school"

excited for this

NXT pulled hte trigger early

https://twitter.com/KairiSaneWWE/status/1033552342900195331

[SkinnyPupp]

Jessamyn Duke made her in ring debut in a house show

4 Horsewomen getting ready to go! I am guessing Wrestlemania maybe? Or even Royal Rumble?

People are talking like Shayna is going to get called up right away, but IMO it's too soon. She has unfinished business in NXT as well!

[Tim Budong]

When a big man can work, its fantastic. Thus why many people see Vader and new NXT signee Keith Lee as entertaining.

Nakamura vs Bad Luck Fale from 2014

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2Yla-lrhFQ

[Ch28]

Jessamyn Duke made her in ring debut in a house show

4 Horsewomen getting ready to go! I am guessing Wrestlemania maybe? Or even Royal Rumble?

People are talking like Shayna is going to get called up right away, but IMO it's too soon. She has unfinished business in NXT as well!

I don't think any NXT women's champ that has lost has gone on to get a rematch. They've all pretty much been moved up to main roster when dropping the belt.

[SkinnyPupp]

I don't think any NXT women's champ that has lost has gone on to get a rematch. They've all pretty much been moved up to main roster when dropping the belt.
Yup there have only been 8 champs so far, a couple haven't even lost it, just vacated after being called up.

Shayna will be the first I think. She currently has the shortest reign of any former NXT Womens champ

I hope so at least. I want to see Kairi get screwed over and go for REVENGE, not be the happy champion that just beats challengers

[Tim Budong]

excellent. No need to pirate haha

https://twitter.com/njpwglobal/status/1034615524812972033

[Tim Budong]

https://www.si.com/wrestling/2018/08/31/kenny-omega-career-njpw-future-wwe

the weekend long read... easily a 2-3 page spread on SI if they wanted to.

a great article with Kenny Omega, and comments from many peers in WWE

[Tim Budong]

....so this is what cross promotions look like.. All In..
Wrestling legends past and present.

- Cody in tears, hommage to dusty rhodes
- Flip Fucking Gordon
- That Pentagon vs Omega match, then the surprise
- Okada vs Skurll, a match NJPW will never book becuz Marty is not heavyweight.'
- This Joey Janela dude is supposedly the next big hardcore thing and he proved it all tonight
- Stephen Amell can work, he isn't just some normal celebrity who's gonna stand in the corner, his match vs Christopher Daniels is legit
- Seeing Rey Mysterio and looking like he never lost a step, Fenix and Bandido are fucking stars..

All In showed the mainstream world what small promotions can do and in the process, showcased some talent to the world.

and oh yea Brandi Rhodes and Pharroh, their dog. so cute

[Berzerker]

It's to bad a couple matches ran long and the main had to be called short. Long Long event though. We thought SS was a long one....

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

It's to bad a couple matches ran long and the main had to be called short. Long Long event though. We thought SS was a long one....

Berz out.

Okada vs Skurll ran 12minutes longer
I'm going to guess the penis druids bit ran long

and possibly Omega vs Pentagon

I thought the Okada vs Marty match was excellent. It was comedy, it was athletic and told a "story"

[Tim Budong]

I love this big match feel, what a video this was.
https://youtu.be/ck4LnU7a3dQ

[SkinnyPupp]

Haven't watched All In yet, but I will. Probabaly this weekend. I've been watching as much 4K and HDR content as I can on my new TV LUL

I did watch the first day of the Mae Young Classic

Meiko Satomura is so good! Surprise right? Great match, worth checking out if you haven't yet.

Also Lacey Lane is probably going to be a pretty big star in NXT at least

[Ch28]

All In was amazing

[Tim Budong]

Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi vs Tomohiro Ishii and Will Ospery

... for what is considered a "house show", and the very obvious "who is pinning who" outcome... they absolutely entertained.

Kenny and Kota do not know what a bad match is

[Berzerker]

No comments on Hell in a Cell? Lesnar made a cameo and destroyed Reigns and Stroman. This was the only real outcome they could do though. They couldn't let Stroman cash in his briefcase and become champion, and they didn't want him cashing it in and losing and making him look weak so they do a "im cashing in match" This lets Lesnar come and give Roman the win and makes it so Stroman doesn't lose face.

Berz out.

[SkinnyPupp]

HIAC was a garbage PPV. Absolute shit. Lesnar smashing people is always cool though so it had a good ending

The Orton Hardy match was pretty nasty.. But all it did was set expectations way too high for the rest of the show to be violent like old school HIAC LUL

[Tim Budong]

hard to see Jeff Hardy go out there and try to kill himself.

Brock is back for that 2nd Saudi event. prob getting buckets of money.

on the other hand.. Omega vs Ishii for IWGP HW was alright. Tough sons of bitches there.

Rey Mysterio has reportedly signed with the E

hopefully they have good things planned..(doubtful)... and not fed to the BIG DAWFGGGGGGGG

[SkinnyPupp]

Not only is Brock back, but Shawn Micheals as well. After being truly retired for all those years, he is going to wrestle again, in front of... Well let's just say I don't agree with their politics.

And the event takes place right after the womens "Evolution". The event which women are not allowed to be on. Oh and Sami Zayn.

I wonder how many dump trucks filled with money they are delivering to him?

These Saudi events are like 5X Wrestlemanias in one, and they just have them a few times a year. It's insane how much money WWE is making right now. Remember when Marks were dumb poor rednecks? Now they are literally the richest people on the planet, and Vince is fleecing them for billions LUL

[Tim Budong]

Not only is Brock back, but Shawn Micheals as well. After being truly retired for all those years, he is going to wrestle again, in front of... Well let's just say I don't agree with their politics.

And the event takes place right after the womens "Evolution". The event which women are not allowed to be on. Oh and Sami Zayn.

I wonder how many dump trucks filled with money they are delivering to him?

These Saudi events are like 5X Wrestlemanias in one, and they just have them a few times a year. It's insane how much money WWE is making right now. Remember when Marks were dumb poor rednecks? Now they are literally the richest people on the planet, and Vince is fleecing them for billions LUL

HBK back inthe ring for a 7 figure payout. thats what I'm guessing.

there is rich...and then there is OIL rich

[Tim Budong]

NJPW in USA show was good
JR and Kevin Kelly on commentary is a very good combo

Marty Scrull vs Will Osprey
Bucks vs Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa with Haku(Meng)
Cody vs juice
Golden Lovers vs Okada and Tomohiro Ishii

Scheduled for next week
Omega vs Ibushi vs Cody for the IWGP HW champ

[SkinnyPupp]

Hoping to catch it this week

Will be in Japan later this month, definitely going to see if there's a show I can go to!

Edit: So all the events this month are build for the POWER STRUGGLE ppv. Is that a tag team event? TBH I don't really like the NJPW tag matches.

[Berzerker]

Raw viewership was the lowest its ever been last week. And it still beat Smackdown lol

What's going on with ratings?

Berz out.

[SkinnyPupp]

Overall lower audience (and more people PVRing rather than tuning in live) combined with Monday Night Football

They're still making money hand over fist so...

For me Raw is watched mostly out of ritual. If you really like WWE wrestling, you should watch NXT. It's better in every single way.

[Ch28]

NXT & NJPW >>>>>>>>>> WWE

[Tim Budong]

Hoping to catch it this week

Will be in Japan later this month, definitely going to see if there's a show I can go to!

Edit: So all the events this month are build for the POWER STRUGGLE ppv. Is that a tag team event? TBH I don't really like the NJPW tag matches.

looks like its the jr heavyweight tag league.

[Tim Budong]

a much rare Mark Calloway interview. A good watch/listen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mcd8BAjU0c

[SkinnyPupp]

looks like its the jr heavyweight tag league.
So it's basically an undercard tournament? FeelsBadMan

I'll probably check out a Korakuen show, but I probably won't be going down to Osaka for the event

Maybe check out some Pro Wrestling Noah, since that's what I was watching during my 6 month stay in Japan 5 years ago... That's where I discovered KENTA, he was so awesome back then. He's a shell of his former self in WWE.. even NXT :(

[Tim Budong]

So it's basically an undercard tournament? FeelsBadMan

I'll probably check out a Korakuen show, but I probably won't be going down to Osaka for the event

Maybe check out some Pro Wrestling Noah, since that's what I was watching during my 6 month stay in Japan 5 years ago... That's where I discovered KENTA, he was so awesome back then. He's a shell of his former self in WWE.. even NXT :(

undercard tournament yes? jr tag titles haven't been prominent since the young bucks went heavyweight.

but it won't be G1 like crazy schedule where everything is jr. heavyweight. prob still get to see some of the regular njpw guys.

This is also where CMLL guys come work.. Dragon Lee is an example of a guy who has competed.

[SkinnyPupp]

I said it before but I'll say it again! Damn Satomura is SO FUCKING GOOD!

Hope you guys aren't missing the MYC, round 1 ep 1 already had 2 really good matches on it!

Also Kacy Catanzaro is kind of like a female version of Rey Mysterio.. Still very green but I love her 'little guy' offense. She will be very fun to watch once she is developed. The chase will be fantastic

[Tim Budong]

There is so much wrestling nowadays it's hard to watch everything. But will check out the MYC when I got time. I've only seen tidbits of Iowa Shirai.

I did however just finished the WWE super Show down.
AJ vs Joe was fantastic.
Buddy Murphy vs Cedric Alexander was great.
And the Taker vs HHH match was all kinds of nostalgia.

The attitude era guys really know how to deliver on their limited working abilities. Hard to match, but only because of the nostalgia

[Tim Budong]

NJPW king of pro wrestling ppv
I am exhausted lol. Wrestle Kingdom is going to be epic

[SkinnyPupp]

There is so much wrestling nowadays it's hard to watch everything. But will check out the MYC when I got time. I've only seen tidbits of Iowa Shirai.

I did however just finished the WWE super Show down.
AJ vs Joe was fantastic.
Buddy Murphy vs Cedric Alexander was great.
And the Taker vs HHH match was all kinds of nostalgia.

The attitude era guys really know how to deliver on their limited working abilities. Hard to match, but only because of the nostalgia
I agree on the first two, great matches

Not really into HHH nostalgia or even UT really. And Shawn I wish he would just stay retired

I think I'm one of the few wrestling fans who wants to keep nostalgia in the past... If I want to watch some good HBK matches, there's tons of them on the WWE Network.

[Tim Budong]

Not really into HHH nostalgia or even UT really. And Shawn I wish he would just stay retired

I think I'm one of the few wrestling fans who wants to keep nostalgia in the past... If I want to watch some good HBK matches, there's tons of them on the WWE Network.

For whatever buckets of money Shawn is going to get... can't fault the dude.
WWE put the taker vs shawn from wm25. that will be the greatest wwe match ever. Also the last time taker put on a decent showing.

[SkinnyPupp]

Can't fault him, but I'm not going to watch anymore.

UT is just sad to watch now. He's been past his prime for years, but usually comes in decent shape for his age and history, and is "fine". But now it's officially sad when he doesn't have time to shape up and get back to a reasonable speed.

And now HBK with the glued on hat that finally comes off... FeelsBadMan I mean we all lose our hair at some point but when it goes from your signature look to a sick old man, it's just kind of shocking. Something we don't need to see.

At least Cena went and got a hair transplant so he will look OK for a few more years LUL Not sure why he went with a Ken Doll haircut though.

HHH is still fine, but that's because he has worked the same safe boring style for decades.

[Tim Budong]

like taker's hairline. seeing that thing "evolve" is sad

NJPW is telling a great story with Jay White..
and Kenny, Cody, and Ibushi put on one hell of a match

check it out!

[SkinnyPupp]

Yeah I'll start catching up while doing cardio

I wasn't going to go down to Osaka, but then

https://twitter.com/njpw1972/status/1049559485088378881

[Tim Budong]

that entire power struggle card looks pretty good now.

naito vs zsj
ospery vs taichi
golden lovers vs tanahashi and david finley(LOL)
okada and trent berreta vs jay white and fale

sounds fantastic already

[SkinnyPupp]

Naito vs ZSJ will be fucking AWESOME

getting even more stoked now!

[Tim Budong]

there is some BAD BAD BLOOD being spilled over from King of Pro Wrestling. This show will settle some, or carry it over to Wrestle Kingdom.

Kenny Omega also verbally wrecked Tanahashi at the press conference.

He's asking me if Ibushi should be free. Look, I exposed myself. I exposed my relationship and my deep love and trust for Ibushi in front of the world. We wanna work together and change wrestling for a bright future.

But hey, one of us should be heel and one of us should be babyface, because that's pro wrestling, right? No. We are all human beings. It's time to tell human stories. Stories we relate to and stories that are true to our hearts.

This guy is playing the role of a hero. But it's all fake. The real man behind Tanahashi isn't a hero. He's a piece of shit.

I have things about me that I dislike. I'm not a perfect human being. I am flawed. But at least I can admit it. At least Kenny Omega, Tyson Smith, is exposed to every single one of you every single night I perform in the ring. And the relationships that I have in my life with the fans, they're all with me. We're all family.

Ibushi isn't going anywhere. He's staying with me. And I support his success 100%. But we will continue our success as the Golden Lovers, both as a tag team and as single performers. That's it.

[Tim Budong]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xa49TEWE-aI

[SkinnyPupp]

Got my POWER STRUGGLE tickets SeemsGood

Section A sold out fast! I think I probably got the last pair of seats that were together

BTW anyone watching MYC yet? Xia Li is impressing me considering she's a grounds up WWE talent with only like 1 year of experience. I don't think anyone has ever done the Chinese Kung-Fu gimmick right, but she is definitely doing it right. Especially considering she has legit credentials and does real moves. Gear is a bit tacky but tasteful at least.

Very cool to see some more unique characters and true diversity in wrestling SeemsGood

[Tim Budong]

Got my POWER STRUGGLE tickets SeemsGood

Section A sold out fast! I think I probably got the last pair of seats that were together

BTW anyone watching MYC yet? Xia Li is impressing me considering she's a grounds up WWE talent with only like 1 year of experience. I don't think anyone has ever done the Chinese Kung-Fu gimmick right, but she is definitely doing it right. Especially considering she has legit credentials and does real moves. Gear is a bit tacky but tasteful at least.

Very cool to see some more unique characters and true diversity in wrestling SeemsGood

I've only seen clips here and there to the MYC, no WWE sub :awwyeah:

Lucky you! Power Struggle looks like a great card even without the draw of Omega or Okada!

I'm looking forward to WK13 myself. Sadly, thats a bad travel time due to super high costs of accommodation :( would make a great birthday trip tho :P

[SkinnyPupp]

Have you considered capsule hotels? Super cheap (the one I am staying at in Kyoto (https://ninehours.co.jp/en/kyoto/) is $15 USD per night and the one in Osaka (https://www.hotelwbf.com/shell-nell/en/) is $20 and is a 5 minute walk away from the arena) but if you go to a newer one, accommodations are still totally fine. All you need to do there is sleep and shower anyway. First Cabin (https://first-cabin.jp/en/)'s capsules are big enough to stand up in, and no more than $30 a night.

The only other major difference is sometimes (though not always), you have to check out each morning and check back in later (they can keep your luggage though). But it's not liek you have a room to keep stuff in anyway LUL

They're perfect for shorter trips, for when you go to see a show. So you could fly to Tokyo and back from HK for like $100 USD, stay 2 nights for $30 USD, and it's totally fine for a weekend trip to see wrestling IMO

But I bet WK13 is sold out anyway right?

[Tim Budong]

Have you considered capsule hotels? Super cheap (the one I am staying at in Kyoto (https://ninehours.co.jp/en/kyoto/) is $15 USD per night and the one in Osaka (https://www.hotelwbf.com/shell-nell/en/) is $20 and is a 5 minute walk away from the arena) but if you go to a newer one, accommodations are still totally fine. All you need to do there is sleep and shower anyway. First Cabin (https://first-cabin.jp/en/)'s capsules are big enough to stand up in, and no more than $30 a night.

The only other major difference is sometimes (though not always), you have to check out each morning and check back in later (they can keep your luggage though). But it's not liek you have a room to keep stuff in anyway LUL

They're perfect for shorter trips, for when you go to see a show. So you could fly to Tokyo and back from HK for like $100 USD, stay 2 nights for $30 USD, and it's totally fine for a weekend trip to see wrestling IMO

But I bet WK13 is sold out anyway right?

true capsules are the way to go. I've done it before for weekend trips.

WK13 is mostly sold out in the Ablocks.

i unno about sitting up in the seats. Will have to see.
Will see though. want a longer trip, beggers can't be choosers. HAHA

[SkinnyPupp]

Hell you could fly to Osaka via HKExpress for $238 HKD right now and make it for POWER STRUGGLE LUL

[Tim Budong]

the pull of y2j isn't enough to pull me to osaka, however, i've never been to osaka hahaha
I just may look into it. it's a much smaller venue too!

[SkinnyPupp]

Y2J is an all time world great, IMO. Glad I get to see him again while I can!

[SkinnyPupp]

Ronda's promo PogChamp

[Tim Budong]

Bautista's was better lolol

[SkinnyPupp]

Not fair he got to go unscripted! Nice hint at a WM match

Seriously though, I wish they would all go unscripted... But as far as scripted promos, hers was great. And then she got to beat up some geeks it was great! It wasn't without some really dumb lines of course, but it's one of the better promos in a while on WWE

Also how great was it seeing Flair after that scare a while back

[SkinnyPupp]

https://www.f4wonline.com/sites/www.f4wonline.com/files/field/image/ishiisuzukipowerstruggle.jpg

:awwyeah:

[Tim Budong]

ric flair looks fantastic for all the health issues of late

wk13 tickets for overseas goes on sale oct25 :D

[GS8]

Love him or hate him, this totally sucks.

https://www.cbssports.com/wwe/news/wwe-star-roman-reigns-announces-he-has-leukemia-relinquishes-universal-title-on-raw/

[Euro7r]

^Sad to see such a hard working guy having to give up what he loves doing due to illness. Prayers to him and his family, he will back. Beat the leukemia!

[GS8]

^Sad to see such a hard working guy having to give up what he loves doing due to illness. Prayers to him and his family, he will back. Beat the leukemia!

He lost his brother Rosey (from 3 minute warning and his tag team with Hurricane Helms) last year to congestive heart failure. That must have been tough to deal with too.

I never hated Reigns. I hated what the WWE was doing with him. It's easy to tell when someone is forced into upper card levels without sufficient training.

[Tim Budong]

that speech was great
sucks to hear, cuz the dude actually was a fighting champion.

company man, did what is asked, definitely improved a lot over the year

[Berzerker]

So RR lays that all down and then Ambrose does a heel turn on Rollins? Wow. I guess without RR The Shield is pretty much dead anyways.

Berz out.

[Ch28]

Dean was slated for a heel turn for awhile, so by doing it on the same night RR leaves makes sense to draw mega heat

Crown Jewel looks to be going on but WWE is apparently scrambling to find another venue right now outside of SA. Big Dave confirmed that creative was told that Cena wasn't going if it was in SA.

[OnTheRun]

I meant to write something different here. Right when I was ready to post, I happened to catch the trending hashtags on Twitter. This is when I found out RR has leukemia. And not only that, but it's been in remission since he was 22. Fuck cancer. He's so goddamn young too, not even 35 yet. While I didn't like how Roman was booked in the ring, or his promo delivery, and I'll definitely miss The Shield, all that is secondary now. I hope the Big Dog sends cancer to the doghouse (sorry)

[GS8]

Dean was slated for a heel turn for awhile, so by doing it on the same night RR leaves makes sense to draw mega heat

I'd actually be surprised if it lasts longer than Rollin's heel turn

[Tim Budong]

WK13 tickets A and B all sold out so fast :(

WWE is confirmed Saudi event is gonna happen.

[SkinnyPupp]

Ishii vs Suzuki went exactly how I wanted it to!

Oh and before the show I bought a Suzuki shirt and got to meet him and get him to sign it ��

[Tim Budong]

Ishii vs Suzuki went exactly how I wanted it to!

Oh and before the show I bought a Suzuki shirt and got to meet him and get him to sign it ��

u lucky bastard lol

that match was definitely my favourite from the night.

Jericho look a lot less bloated compared to some pictures from his cruise, he was gettin into Axl Rose territory of fat for a moment hahahah

Im lookin forward to see how Jay White vs Okada plays out

[SkinnyPupp]

I thought Jericho was going to keep the shirt on, but he actually looks ok. Actually he moves incredibly well, and his lion saults looked amazing in person. It's effortless for him at this point.

Overall a fantastic show. I had a lot of fun and will go back for more for sure.

Most over was Naito by far. Tanahashi of course, and pretty much anyone in LIJ. When EVIL lost, people were legitimately upset. They did NOT send the crowd home happy at all. Not they'll want to see Naito get revenge for sure.

What I don't understand is why they like Taichi do much. He's so obviously a heel, but not lovable the way Yano is. But they like gone SO MUCH. He had the heat the entire match, but whenever Gotoh made a comeback, they started cheering support for Taichi. I just don't get it.

[Berzerker]

Crown Jewel went off yesterday. Lesnar is champ again. Shawn Michaels fucked up a moonsault and almost brained himself. Apparently Saudi's want to buy WWE for 7 Billion.

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

I thought Jericho was going to keep the shirt on, but he actually looks ok. Actually he moves incredibly well, and his lion saults looked amazing in person. It's effortless for him at this point.

Overall a fantastic show. I had a lot of fun and will go back for more for sure.

Most over was Naito by far. Tanahashi of course, and pretty much anyone in LIJ. When EVIL lost, people were legitimately upset. They did NOT send the crowd home happy at all. Not they'll want to see Naito get revenge for sure.

What I don't understand is why they like Taichi do much. He's so obviously a heel, but not lovable the way Yano is. But they like gone SO MUCH. He had the heat the entire match, but whenever Gotoh made a comeback, they started cheering support for Taichi. I just don't get it.

Naito and Tanahashi are super over...I want them to keep the belt on kenny tho and setup the ibushi title fight..

I also do not get taichi...

Crown Jewel went off yesterday. Lesnar is champ again. Shawn Michaels fucked up a moonsault and almost brained himself. Apparently Saudi's want to buy WWE for 7 Billion.

Berz out.

Crown Jewel was so bad... but props to HBK. If he didn't retire and only took a break or do much fewer dates, I think he could still be performing.

Jericho is a prime example of working select dates and (attempt) to be in shape ahahah

[Tim Budong]

Harold Meij, the new boss of NJPW gave his first press interview in english, a good read.

https://uproxx.com/prowrestling/njpw-president-ceo-harold-meij-interview-2018/6/

[Berzerker]

Anyone catch Nia Jax destroying Becky Lynch's face? Pretty hard shot and a great job by Lunch to finish the invasion and leave like a boss. It was an accident but the WWE is playing it up now and building heat with Jax for it. Sucks because I think that would have been a great match with RR on Sunday but now its Flair standing in.

Berz out.

[Ch28]

https://twitter.com/BeckyLynchWWE/status/1062799029325778944

[Euro7r]

When are they going to get rid of Bobby Lashley. That guy is so damn boring, the crowd doesn't react to anything he says or do in the ring.

[Tim Budong]

goddamn..

Becky could of easily been in the same position as Charlotte did to finish the match with Ronda.. I can't believe Ronda agreed to those bumps. holy shit.

as for the show.

Rollins vs Nakamura was decent.. Rollins can't seem to have a bad match in the WWE
Buddy Murphy vs Mufasta Ali was great.
Charlotte vs Ronda was EXCELLENT.
Brock vs DB was meh... Brock can still go, DB definitely provides a much different type of match to brock.


rest of the card was shit.

AJ Styles 365 is a fantastic documentary that aired right after. Mentioned everything from Bullet Club to TNA, but wont say NJPW hahah

a good chunk of time is spent talking about his past experience in Japan though

[Berzerker]

Oddly enough I thought the RR vs. Flair match was the best of the show. I mean when the women are pretty much as big and athletic as today's roster (bring back big men) gender really doesn't play a factor anymore. RR still looks a bit sloppy but is coming along great. That chair stomp was fantastic.

DB took a nasty first suplex from Brock and I'm pretty sure there was a collective "oh shit" from everyone who saw it. Might have been planned for effect but he did take some awesome bumps.

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

https://twitter.com/BeckyLynchWWE/status/1062799029325778944

Ronda got rag dolled by Flair :awwyeah:

guess nothing will hit her head as hard as holm's kick

either way, RR vs Flair was match of the night.
closely followed by the 205 match

[Ch28]

The Buddy Murphy/Mustafa Ali match was so damn good. It's a shame that the WWE doesn't get behind the 205 Live brand because they're all smaller dudes. Reminds me of the UFC and their 135/125 division (which they're killing off)

[Tim Budong]

The Buddy Murphy/Mustafa Ali match was so damn good. It's a shame that the WWE doesn't get behind the 205 Live brand because they're all smaller dudes. Reminds me of the UFC and their 135/125 division (which they're killing off)

Its a shame the WWE doesn't put this stuff more on the big shows.

Seeing this makes me want to see guys like Osprey wrestle with them. And then there is Neville haha

[Tim Budong]

Skimmed through some of the world tag league from NJPW
It's good stuff

There was a Suzuki and that dude vs Taichi and zsj. What a match

However. For story purposes. Watch the Okada/Tanahashi/kushida vs Jay/fale/ishimori match.

Kuroken hall lost their shit seeing the first ever Tanahashi Okada team up haha

[Tim Budong]

NJPW released their own Bullet Club history video...part 2 focuses a lot on AJ Styles. good watch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9Kv4EaP4zg

[Berzerker]

RIP Dynamite Kid and Kerry Hennig.

Berz out.

[Tim Budong]

We getting Will Osprey vs Kota Ibushi at Wrestle Kingdom now...

if I could afford to go.. or even get decent tickets... I would be there

[Tim Budong]

Full Wrestle Kingdom 13 card. STACKED
Weird that Suzuki and Goto are on the preshow.


Pre Show: Never openweight gauntlet for no1 contender

1) NEVER Openweight Championship match: Will Ospreay v Kota Ibushi

2) IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship, Junior three way Tag: Yoshinobu Kanemaru and El Desperado vs Bushi and Shingo Takashi vs Roppongi 3K

3) Rev Pro British Heavyweight Championship match: Zack Sabre, Jr. vs Tomohiro Ishii

4) IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match, three way: Guerrillas of Destiny vs The Young Bucks vs EVIL and Sanada

5) IWGP U. S. Championship Match: Cody v Juice Robinson

6) IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship match: KUSHIDA v Taiji Ishimori

7) Special singles match: Kazuchika Okada v Jay White

8) IWGP Intercontinental Championship match: Chris Jericho v Tetsuya Naito

9) IWGP Heavyweight Championship match: Kenny Omega v Hiroshi Tanahashi

[SkinnyPupp]

Goto was probably the least over when I was in Osaka :(

But then you never know wtf the crowd is thinking when Taichi is wrestling

I think the real main event for most people in the crowd will be the Naito match. Tanahashi isn't super over either, and their feud doesn't seem to have much heat (yet at least)

[Tim Budong]

just flippin through the WTL from Sunday...

Ibushi and Naito are super super over with the crowd.

Kenny feels like a part time champ and Tanahashi will always be the super hero guy.

[Vansterdam]

WWE road to wrestlemania

Feb 2 Saturday @ Rogers Arena

presale today weds, regular sale friday

[Tim Budong]

Tokyo Sports Match of the Year, and most likely Match of the Year for 2018 overall is free this week on NJPW

Okada vs Kenny best 2/3 falls match. its a 70minute marathon, but its fantastic

https://njpwworld.com/p/s_series_00485_2_09

[SkinnyPupp]

That's the match that practically brought me to tears.. Watch it if you haven't! Even if you're not a fan of NJPW, you have to watch it. It helps to know the history of the feud though, and Okada's amazing title reign

[Tim Budong]

seeing Lesnar in the video of past iwgp champions always gets a chuckle out of me.
cuz shinsuke nakamura says brock is the worst wrestler he ever faced lol

history for okada vs kenny, simple yet such elegance to it all. Kenny and Okada puts on best matches time after time... all revolves around how Kenny has never put Okada in the One Winged Angel finisher

[SkinnyPupp]

seeing Lesnar in the video of past iwgp champions always gets a chuckle out of me.
cuz shinsuke nakamura says brock is the worst wrestler he ever faced lol

history for okada vs kenny, simple yet such elegance to it all. Kenny and Okada puts on best matches time after time... all revolves around how Kenny has never put Okada in the One Winged Angel finisher
Not sure what he'd consider the "worst wrestler" but Brock probably isn't in the top 1000 worst wrestlers he faced. In terms of getting a match over,etc

[Tim Budong]

No necks were broken, do this again tomorrow night, then they open Wrestle Kingdom lol

30477

[Tim Budong]

Ibushi/Omega vs Tanahashi/Osprey might be legit best tag match this year, only knock is that it doesn't seem like Tanahashi could keep up...

Ibushi and Osprey is gonna kill each other and their match is opening Wrestle Kingdom...

https://streamable.com/0dd93

r/SC recommended I check out Osprey vs Ricochet and Ibushi vs Ricochet. both from NJPW

Flippy wrestling shit is entertaining lol

[SkinnyPupp]

I hear it has potential for match of the year! Will check it out tomorrow. That spot was great

[Tim Budong]

I hear it has potential for match of the year! Will check it out tomorrow. That spot was great

Osprey is a legit starr. This match put him over the moon. Ibushi and Osprey could very well steal the entire wrestle Kingdom and they are the opening match.

[SkinnyPupp]

Wow Osprey definitely put on some weight during his time off, and with it a lot of gross bacne DansGame

[SkinnyPupp]

OH MY FUCKING GOD THAT MATCH WAS SO GOOD

My wife came to check on me because I was going crazy watching it LOL laughing, screaming, I had goosebumps for the last 5 minutes

I can't believe how good wrestling can be.

Now time to watch TLC

[SkinnyPupp]

Did NOT expect this (spoiler for me, unfortunately)

What a day for wrestling for me! PogChamp

And the Ravens won! PogChamp

https://twitter.com/WWEJapan/status/1074517601533992962

[Tim Budong]

https://twitter.com/WWEJapan/status/1074517601533992962

well deserved. and what a showcase by the women.

but i think the wwe wrote themselves against the wall here.
Ronda interfered and Asuka won... what are they going to feed to Asuka now?

[SkinnyPupp]

Think about how fucking awful Nia Jax has been since being called up. Legit one of the worst wrestlers on the roster.

And think about how new Ronda Rousey is... Been wrestling on TV for a couple months.

And then they go have a match like that.

Mind = blown :fulloffuck:

[SkinnyPupp]

And that main event! If you can get that much heat from a WWE audience, you're doing something right.

That desk spot with Charlotte and Becky looked nasty.. like one of the nastiest desk spots I can think of. She landed on her stomach/hips with FULL bodyweight from that ladder WutFace Liv Morgan's table spot was pretty nasty too, looks like it knocked the wind out of her. Right after recovering from the concussion too

TLC was great, RAW is going to be hilarious with Vince promising "shakeups" lol

As for who does Asuka feud with now, not sure. Hopefully they came to their senses and she can dominate the division for a long time. I bet we'll see some roster moves tomorrow.

It's kind of crazy that legit the 2 biggest stars in WWE are Becky Lynch and Ronda Rousey

Kind of disappointed by the Bryan/AJ match. Because it was only "good" it didn't live up to expectations. Weird that this seems to happen a lot with AJ... You expect these amazing matches, and they are just "good" or "great"

Seth vs Dean was crap

Ruby Riott vs Natalya went on WAY too long. They didn't look comfortable working with props at all.

Balor vs McIntyre could have been good, but had a dumb finish with the "babyfaces" teaming up on Drew once again to defeat him.. Only to have Ziggler turn heel again... what's the point of any of this?

Overall good show though! Because of the main event, and Ronda

[Tim Budong]

Ronda has to let those training wheels go and they have written her to do just that.

I only saw 3 matches from tlc...

Ambrose and Rollins mailed it in... Old man Meltzer reports that Vince was NOT HAPPY backstage

AJ vs Bryan was alright. They got more to give for sure

Main event completely blew expectations for me. I'm surprised Flair doesn't have a broken rib from the table failing to break to break the fall. I watched it live and she screamed OMG FUCKKKKKKK pretty loud lol

[Tim Budong]

OH MY FUCKING GOD THAT MATCH WAS SO GOOD

My wife came to check on me because I was going crazy watching it LOL laughing, screaming, I had goosebumps for the last 5 minutes

I can't believe how good wrestling can be.

Now time to watch TLC

NJPW put Osprey/Tanahashi vs Golden Lovers match on Youtube for free

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXO5L5MW26s

[SkinnyPupp]

Go watch it everyone! (whoever else reads this LUL )

[Tim Budong]

having watched a lot of Ibushi matches just from 2018, I can confidently say that his Wrestle Kingdom match with Osprey can steal the entire show.

It's a shame that they are opening the match

[Tim Budong]

Kenny Omega has said on a Japanese interview that TSN is doing a documentary about him to be released in Feb/March. Speculation is that it is his coming out

Some Canadian content for what I consider thr next best Canadian in pro wrestling after Jericho