#ajpw worlds strongest tag league

[keepingthespiritalive]

[AJPW NEWS] All Japan held a press conference today as the full event cards have been filled out for the November tour of shows.

Among the major updates is Nomura & Aoyagi defending the Asia Tag belts against a LAND’S END Korea team of Kim Nan Seok & Dr. MONZ Jr. on November 3rd, TAJIRI will be putting the World Junior belt on the line against Yohei Nakajima on November 5th, and then Doering will be making his first defense of the Triple Crown against Yoshitatsu on November 9th at the Korakuen Hall. 

Though before Yoshitatsu has the scheduled match for the Triple Crown he is set to face Jun Akiyama on November 5th. Though this had led Akiyama to declare that if he wins that he will take the challengers spot in the following title challenge instead. With Yoshitatsu agreeing to the ultimatum that has been set. As Yoshitatsu himself noted that it is a quick challenge for himself as he knows he has much left yet to prove, but that being something he aims to do every time he steps in the ring going forward as a freelance wrestler.

TAJIRI managed to recapture the World Junior Heavyweight belt and is scheduled to make his first defense against Yohei Nakajima on November 5th in Nagoya. Yohei made a forceful declaration to be the challenger on the 10/21 show though during today’s press conference the champion showed nothing more than plain dissatisfaction for the challenger. TAJIRI stated that he has plans as champion and a match against Yohei was not among them. That after he won the belt he initially aimed to call out Atsushi Aoki to be his first defense, but if anything this will be the first notch on his claim to acquire the all-time defense record for the belt.

With Yuji Okabayashi being forced out of competition due to injury, this has left a major gap in the upcoming “World’s Strongest Tag League” which is set to begin on November 19th. Though BJW is going to receive the chance to fill the spot as it was announced that Daisuke Sekimoto and Takuya Nomura will be taking on the recent winners of BJW’s own tag league in Daichi Hashimoto and Hideyoshi Kamitani on the November 9th. The winning team with then move on to fill the current spot in the league.

Naoya Nomura and Yuma Aoyagi will be taking a step to bringing the “All Asia” part back to the Asia Tag belts as they are set to take on Ryoji Sai’s hand-picked Seoul, Korea team of  Kim Nan Seok & Dr. MONZ Jr. The two might not have the most recognition outside of their home country, but the two look to take this opportunity to get their names out there as a formidable team. Seok stats are 177cm, 90kg, with his favorite moves being a Package Piledriver and Lift Up Crash Bomb and the masked man MONZ is at 172cm, 85kg with his emphasis being on high-flying with a 450 Splash and Yoshitonic. The champions have opened the door for any challengers to come forward as they aim to prove themselves against any and all challengers.

Then lastly it was announced that Osamu Nishimura will be putting both the  !BANG! TV World Heavyweight & NKPWA World Heavyweight belts on the line against Atsushi Maruyama on November 19th. Maruyama stated that he holds much respect for Nishimura and all that he has achieved in the ring as a master technician. Maruyama aims to prove himself as well as he aims to to go step by step with the classical style that the champion brings to the ring.

Among some bad news, trainee Yuki Kanzaki was announced to have suffered an acute subdural hematoma (blood clot near the brain) and has been forced to pull out of his debut due to doctor’s recommendation. Though with that his entire career as a pro-wrestler might honestly be in jeopardy, Kanzaki stated that he does not want to give up as he was in tears. President Akiyama told the young man that his life is more important at this time and that should come before anything else. Kanzaki will be heading to his home in Hokkaido to discuss his future with his family. Akiyama stated that the door is open for him to work as a staff within the promotion if he so chooses to go that route.

The full upcoming shows can be viewed through the links below...

AJPW Event Cards for September & October 2017 http://puroresuspirit.net/2017/08/ajpw-event-cards-for-september-october-2017/

AJPW Event Cards for November & December 2017 http://puroresuspirit.net/2017/10/ajpw-event-cards-for-november-december-2017/

[wrestledate]

NEW SHIRT ALERT

This is an incredibly specific tee, a tribute to the perfect wrestling ring: The 1997 Sega Saturn x AJPW number that graced the world during the 1997 World’s Strongest Tag Determination League. Trust me, if you wear this to a wrestling show, people will be baffled. 

It’s going to be printed on a blue Next Level shell by my palz at LVAC. International shipping is prohibitively expensive, but if you’re game I’m game.

$15 | Pre-order ends March 31

[gdwessel]

Strong Style Story Podcast Episode 32 - The Not-So-Pleasant Hot Takes

We’re back once again with another one of those block rockin’ beats. Episode 32 of the Strong Style Story Podcast. There are some audio/feed issues, sorry. We hope it’s mostly intelligible tho.

In this 32nd edition of the Strong Style Story, hosts Geoffrey Wessel and Chris Damasceno welcome back fellow co-host Lawrence O'Brien to attempt and make sense of New Japan Pro Wrestling and in this edition, we've got quite a few things to go over, such as:

- King of Pro-Wrestling 2017 coverage - Lion's Gate Project 8 - Power Struggle/Road to Power Struggle + Super Jr. Tag Team Tournament - RevPro's Global Wars UK - Quick Hits: Glory Pro/Naito, K-DOJO shows, AJPW World's Strongest League aka Yoshitatsu & Kento Miyahara tag team - ROH Global Wars "highlights" + Bullet Club arguments - Plugs and plugs

Tune in and listen at Place To Be Nation / Pro Wrestling Only feed!

[wrestlingwiththoughts]

Joe Doering (c) vs. Zeus, AJPW New Year Wars 2018 Night 1, January 2, 2018

For a while, it seemed as though Zeus would be lost in the field of contenders for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship. While the title bounced from Shuji Ishikawa to Kento Miyahara to SUWAMA to Joe Doering, Zeus went unnoticed in his tag team with The Bodyguard. It seemed as though Zeus’s window as a serious contender closed when he was announced to be Doering’s second challenger. With no momentum, Zeus seemed like he was just another defense for Doering until a more serious challenge would arise out of the Champion Carnival. 

Zeus’s entrance reminded us that there is still plenty of enthusiasm for him, but there might just be more for Doering, who beat brain cancer and won the Triple Crown Championship from SUWAMA. He closed 2017 with a low key defense against Yoshitatsu, and he had a good run in the Real World Tag League. 

Zeus and Doering opened the match with contests of power, and Doering is able to use his height to force Zeus into an uncomfortable position where he is not the strongest one in the match. Doering’s attacks knock Zeus down, while Zeus is only able to stun Doering. When Doering lariats Zeus out of the ring with ease, he is able to follow up with a diving shoulder tackle from the apron and slams his elbow on Zeus, who is trapped under the bottom rope. A diving lariat gives Zeus some breathing room, but it takes an incredible suplex trade for Zeus to finally build momentum in the match. Zeus capitalizes with a sunset flip from the top turnbuckle and power bombs Doering for a two count. Doering comes back with a big spinebuster, and Doering gets a two count from a diving crossbody. Zeus shows how much of a struggle it is to hit offense on Doering when he is able to block a powerbomb and lifts Doering into an Air Raid Crash. Doering hits another diving crossbody, but Zeus survives to counter a Revolution Bomb attempt to borrow something from his tag team partner, The Bodyguard, and hits a high head kick. Considering the height difference between Zeus and Doering, the high head kick is especially impressive. A lariat stuns Doering long enough for Zeus to hit the jackhammer, but the strain required for Zeus to lift him up leads to an awkward landing, so Zeus is not able to stay on Doering for the pin. The delay results in a great two count. With nothing left, Doering and Zeus trade lariats. Zeus is drained enough for Doering to hit him with a short piledriver and the Revolution Bomb, which scores the victory for Doering.

By pitting Zeus, the man with the Nuclear Bicep Explosion and a standard bearer for power in All Japan, against Doering, Doering becomes an even more intimidating champion. Zeus hit Doering with some of his best offense, but it wasn’t enough to do more than daze Doering for moments at a time. Zeus emerges from his loss with a sense that he is a worthy challenger, but it’s clear that this loss was definitive, so it sends him to the back of the line for title contenders. 

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for November 21, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 11/21/2017 [Tue] 18:30 @ Aomori Industial Hall 420 Spectators (crowded) (1) Yohei Nakajima vs. Yusuke Okada ◆Winner: Yohei (6:40) with a Boston Crab. (2) Ryoji Sai (LAND’S END) & Koji Iwamoto vs. Hikaru Sato & Keiichi Sato (both FREE) ◆Winner: Iwamoto (5:56) with the Koko no Geijutsu on Keiichi. (3) Jun Akiyama & Takao Omori vs. Zeus &…

[keepingthespiritalive]

News Listings for November 13, 2017

News Listings for November 10, 2017

AJPW NEWS ~ With the inclusion of Daichi Hashimoto and Hideyoshi Kamitani added to the “World’s Strongest Tag League” the event card post has been updated for the tour. The league is set to begin on November 19 in Hokkaido. http://puroresuspirit.net/2017/10/ajpw-event-cards-for-november-december-2017/ BASARA NEWS ~ The event card was announced fro the November 26 show at the Seijo Hall. BASARA,…

[keepingthespiritalive]

News Listings for November 3, 2017

AJPW NEWS ~ All Japan announced some updated event cards and matches for the upcoming “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League” tour which begins on November 19th. I have updated the November tour of shows accordingly, but I shall update the December shows ASAP http://puroresuspirit.net/2017/10/ajpw-event-cards-for-november-december-2017/ BASARA NEWS ~ HUB was announced to be competing on BASARA’s…

[gdwessel]

King of Pro Wrestling - 10/9/2017; Yoshitatsu Returning to AJPW for World’s Strongest Tag League

Strong Style Story Podcast Episode 31 AND Strong Style History Episode 8 on Place To Be Nation!

The final megacard of the year for NJPW took place today at Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan. Quite a bit happened here, as we get some direction for the rest of the year, all in lead-up to Wrestle Kingdom 12. You can watch this now on NJPWWorld in Japanese and English. Results:

King of Pro Wrestling - 10/9/2017, Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan (NJPWWorld)

SANADA, BUSHI & Hiromu Takahashi [Los Ingobernables] d. Bad Luck Fale, Yujiro Takahashi & Leo Tonga [Bullet Club] (BUSHI > Fale, Schoolboy, 6:24)

Hirooki Goto & Toru Yano [CHAOS] d. Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr. [SZKG] (Yano > Suzuki, countout, 9:18)

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: Sho & Yoh [CHAOS] d. Ryusuke Taguchi & Ricochet [FREE] ©  (Yoh > Ricochet, Elevated Flatliner, 14:52) - Funky Future fail their 2nd defense - Roppongi 3K are the 54th champions

IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship 3-Way Tornado Elimination Match: Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. [SZKG] © d. Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa [Bullet Club] and Hanson & Raymond Rowe [ROH] - Archer > Loa, Killer Bomb, 12:43 - Smith > Hanson, Killer Bomb through table, 16:10 - Killer Elite Squad succeed their 1st defense

Kenny Omega, Cody Rhodes & Marty Scurll [Bullet Club] d. YOSHI-HASHI, Trent Beretta & Jado [CHAOS] (Scurll > Jado, crossface chickenwing, 13:42)

Kota Ibushi [FREE] & Juice Robinson d. Hiroshi Tanahashi & Togi Makabe (Robinson > Makabe, Pulp Friction, 10:26)

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: Will Ospreay [CHAOS] d. KUSHIDA © (OsCutter, 15:32) - KUSHIDA fails his 3rd defense - Ospreay is the 78th champion

IWGP Wrestle Kingdom Challenge Rights: Tetsuya Naito [Los Ingobernables] d. Tomohiro Ishii [CHAOS] (Destino, 23:56)

IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS] © d. EVIL [Los Ingobernables] (Rainmaker, 33:26) - Okada succeeds his 8th defense

With that, the main event for Wrestle Kingdom 12 is set: Kazuchika Okada will face Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship on January 4, 2018. The New Ace versus the Most Over Man In The Company. This might have been a little predictable, but it’s certainly the right call to make. This will be an incredible matchup, moreso than when they faced each other at Wrestle Kingdom 8, where they infamously played semi-main to an IWGP Intercontinental title match between champion Shinsuke Nakamura v. Hiroshi Tanahashi. Both Okada and Naito have redeemed themselves from that humiliation, and now they get to headline the show when they truly deseve to. The two of them had a staredown and smacktalk post-main. Okada also said EVIL needs to remember to wrestle at IWGP-caliber as well.

Also with this result, Okada will now most certainly pass the record single-reign length set by Shinya Hashimoto at 489 days, and will also quite possibly surpass Hiroshi Tanahashi’s combined days as champion as well. Incredible to think about.

Will Ospreay finally defeats KUSHIDA, on the 5th try all-time. And with it, the IWGP Junior Heavyweight title he so coveted. Hiromu Takahashi tried to make the first challenge, but was interrupted by an old nemesis of Ospreay’s, Marty Scurll. So look for that match to happen at Power Struggle. It’s OK. Ospreay v. Hiromu ought to be at WK12 anyway.

Roppongi 3K were revealed, and won the IWGP junior tag belts. They are of course Sho & Yoh, aka former Young Lions Sho Tanaka & Yohei Komatsu, aka Raijin & Fujin, aka The Tempura Boyz. Rocky Romero is acting as a manager for them. He also did their theme, and yeah it’s a banger. Them winning makes sense, as Ricochet may not be long for NJPW. It’s pretty well known that he’s been waiting for Lucha Underground Season 3 to end its broadcast, and, well, that’s this week. So expect Ricochet in NXT soon. It’s a shame IMO, but that’s where he wants to be right now, so here we go. 

It’s also no surprise that KES retained, as there are currently similar rumors about War Machine. I hope not. They really connected with the NJPW fans. But again, whatever makes them happiest. 

The first two matches were both ridiculous in the best way. Overall a great show. You should really watch it.

In other news, it was announced today at All Japan Pro Wrestling’s Korakuen Hall show that Yoshitatsu will be returning to the AJPW ring, for their World’s Strongest Tag League, which isn’t due to start until 11/19/2017. Yoshitatsu will be teaming with the man who defeated him in the Oudou tournament in September, the now-former Triple Crown champion, Kento Miyahara, who lost the title to Suwama in today’s main event. We will update when appropriate.

Also of note, at the same WSTL show, former NJPW legend and former AJPW owner Keiji Muto will be returning, in a special 8-man tag match teaming with Miyahara, Dory Funk Jr. & Ultimo Dragon facing off against  Daisuke Sekimoto, TAJIRI, Black Tiger VII & Dalton Drellich. But that’s just for my interests, haha.

The next NJPW show is Lion’s Gate: Project 8, which will begin the 11th Young Lions Cup. You will be able to see it on NJPWWorld.

Lion’s Gate: Project 8 - 10/12/2017, Tokyo Shinjuku FACE (NJPWWorld)

Kotetsu Yamamoto Memorial 11th Young Lions Cup: Hirai Kawato v. Ren Narita

Kotetsu Yamamoto Memorial 11th Young Lions Cup:Katsuya Kitamura v. Tetsuhiro Yagi

Kotetsu Yamamoto Memorial 11th Young Lions Cup:Tomoyuki Oka v. Shota Umino

Manabu Nakanishi v. Kotaro Yoshino [K-DOJO]

Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima v. Yuma Aoyagi [AJPW] & GO Asakawa [K-DOJO]

Yuji Nagata v. Daisuke Kanehira [HEAT-UP]

Strong Style Story Podcast Episode 31 AND Strong Style History Episode 8 on Place To Be Nation!

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for December 12, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 12/12/2017 [Tue] 18:30 @ Korakuen Hall in Tokyo 1,660 Spectators (overcrowded) (1) Masanobu Fuchi, Osamu Nishimura (FREE) & Ultimo Dragon (Toryumon MEXICO) vs. Koji Iwamoto, Atsushi Maruyama (FREE) & Fuminori Abe (Sportiva) ◆Winner: Dragon (6:56) with a La Magistral on Abe. (2) Atsushi Aoki, Hikaru Sato & Yusuke Okada vs. Yohei…

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for December 9, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 12/9/2017 [Sat] 18:00 @ Niigata City Gymnasium 1,024 Spectators (1) Atsushi Aoki, Hikaru Sato & Yusuke Okada vs. Masanobu Fuchi, Black Spider VII (FREE) & Atsushi Maruyama (FREE) ◆Winner: Fuchi (12:13) with a Small Package Hold on Yusuke. (2) 2017 World’s Strongest Tag League Match: TAJIRI & KAI (both FREE) vs. Ryoji Sai & Masakdo (both…

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for December 8, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 12/8/2017 [Fri] 18:30 @ Nagoya City Tsuyuhashi Sports Center in Aichi 505 Spectators (crowded) (1) Atsushi Aoki, Hikaru Sato & Takatoshi Matsumoto vs. Atsushi Maruyama, Konaka = Pale One (666) & Michio Kageyama (Team Dera) ◆Winner: Aoki (10:15) following a Backdrop on Konaka. (2) Jun Akiyama, Takao Omori, Yohei Nakajima & Yusuke Okada…

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for December 7, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 12/7/2017 [Thu] 18:30 @ Takamatsu Symbol Tower Exhibition Hall (1) Yohei Nakajima vs. Atsushi Maruyama (FREE) vs. Ultimo Dragon (Toryumon MEXICO) ◆Winner: Maruyama (6:00) with a School Boy on Yohei. (2) Joe Doering, Taiyo Kea & Kotaro Suzuki (FREE) vs. Hikaru Sato, Koji Iwamoto & Yusuke Okada ◆Winner: Kotaro (9:45) following a Running…

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for December 4, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 12/4/2017 [Mon] 19:00 @ Hakata StarLanes in Fukuoka 580 Spectators (crowded) (1) Masanobu Fuchi & Hikaru Sato (Pancrase MISSION) vs. Yohei Nakajima & Atsushi Maruyama (FREE) ◆Winner: Hikaru (9:09) following a Jumping High Kick on Maruyama. (2) Naoya Nomura, Yuma Aoyagi & Yusuke Okada vs. Ultimo Dragon, KING (Kageki) & Koji Shimizumi…

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for December 3, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 12/3/2017 [Sun] 17:00 @ Hiroshima Marina Hop 518 Spectators (overcrowded) (1) Atsushi Aoki & Rey Paloma vs. Yusuke Okada & Takeshi Okada (Kachofugetsu) ◆Winner: Aoki (9:20) with a Sleeper Hold on Yusuke. (2) Koji Iwamoto & Yuma Aoyagi vs. Ultimo Dragon & Atsushi Maruyama (FREE) ◆Winner: Maruyama (9:46) via pin-fall on Iwamoto. (3) Joe…

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for December 2, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 12/2/2017 [Sat] 18:00 @ EDION Arena Osaka, 2nd Stadium 656 Spectators (crowded) (1) Atsushi Aoki & Hikaru Sato vs. Koji Iwamoto & Yusuke Okada ◆Winner: Aoki (6:44) with a Boston Crab on Yusuke. (2) Yohei Nakajima & Shoichi Uchida (DOVE) vs. Billyken Kid & Atsushi Maruyama (both FREE) ◆Winner: Maruyama (6:52) with the Tigers Suplex Hold…

[keepingthespiritalive]

AJPW results for November 29, 2017

All Japan Pro-Wrestling “2017 World’s Strongest Tag League”, 11/29/2017 [Wed] 18:30 @ Joetsu Kanko Bussan Center in Niigata (1) Yohei Nakajima & Yusuke Okada vs. Ultimo Dragon & Seiki Yoshioka (W-1) ◆Winner: Yoshioka (9:09) following the S.K on Yusuke. (2) Zeus & Atsushi Maruyama vs. Ryoji Sai (LAND’S END) & Koji Iwamoto ◆Winner: Zeus (4:09) following a Chokeslam on Iwamoto. (3) Suwama, Shuji…