Tag: El Phantasmo

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 results: Naito, Okada, Finlay win big

Who got their hand raised in Tokyo Dome? We’ve got you covered with full NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 results.

If the calendar has flipped to January and a few days have passed to let it sink in, that can only mean one thing: It’s time for NJPW Wrestle Kingdom. The annual Tokyo Dome show is the biggest event in Japanese wrestling each year, and it’s a pretty big deal for fans around the world provided they can set their schedules accordingly.

As is tradition, Wrestle Kingdom 18 is headlined by an IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match, this time with a bit of a student vs. teacher vibe as Sanada tries to fend off Tetsuya Naito. The final match on any Wrestle Kingdom card tends to set the direction for New Japan for months, but that may be true this time around more than ever.

U.S. fans will get to see two very familiar and accomplished faces from AEW. Bryan Danielson takes on Kazuchika Okada in a non-title match that could outshine even the main event, while Jon Moxley tangles with both Will Ospreay and David Finlay for a brand new championship.

More title bouts are up and down tonight’s card — seven in all out of 10 matches (plus the traditional New Japan Ranpo to kick things off). It should be a long but very exciting show.

We’ve got our sleep schedule rearranged and consumed our caffeine, and will be recapping the whole event right here.

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 results:

(please click on any match with a link for full details)

  • Great-O-Khan, Taiji Ishimori, Toru Yano and Yoh win the KOPW 2024 New Japan Ranbo, meaning they head to New Year Dash to compete for the Provisional KOPW 2024 Championship
  • Catch 2/2 (Francesco Akira and TJP/The Aswang) def. Bullet Club War Dogs (Clark Connors and Drilla Moloney) by pinfall to become the new IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions, aided greatly by TJP’s transformation into The Aswang
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi def. Zack Sabre Jr. by pinfall to become the new NJPW World Television Champion
  • Yuya Uemura def. Yota Tsuji by pinfall
  • House of Torture (Evil and Ren Narita) def. Shota Umino and Kaito Kiyomiya by pinfall, with the help of plenty of interference from the rest of House of Torture and a timely shot from a push-up bar
  • Tama Tonga def. Shingo Takagi by pinfall to become the new NEVER Openweight Champion
  • Nic Nemeth (known as Dolph Ziggler in WWE) and brother Ryan Nemeth are shown making their way to “VIP seats”
  • Guerrillas of Destiny (Hikuleo and El Phantasmo) def. Bishamon (Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi) by pinfall to become the new IWGP Tag Team Champions and retain the Strong Openweight Tag Team Championship
  • El Desperado def. Hiromu Takahashi by pinfall to become the new IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion
  • David Finlay def. Will Ospreay and Jon Moxley to become the inaugural IWGP Global Heavyweight Champion
  • On his way out, Finlay makes a point of stopping in front of Nic Nemeth, and after exchanging words, he shoves Nemeth; that touches off a brawl that continues until and even after they are pulled apart
  • Kazuchika Okada def. Bryan Danielson by pinfall
  • Tetsuya Naito def. Sanada by pinfall to become the new IWGP World Heavyweight Champion
  • After the match, Naito is attacked by EVIL and Dick Togo, but Sanada helps fight them off

Forbidden Door 2023 Zero Hour results: 4 matches on the pre-show

See who won on the Forbidden Door pre-show with live Zero Hour results.

Before one can step through the Forbidden Door, one must prepare for Zero Hour. Or something like that.

Scotiabank Arena in Toronto is preparing for the second AEW x NJPW supershow, which once again is so stuffed with action featuring the stars of both companies that some of it needs to happen on the pre-show.\

A total of four matches will air live for free on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook. One is an all-New Japan affair between United Empire and Los Ingobernables De Japon, while two are crossover bouts. There’s also a first round match in the Women’s Owen Hart Cup Tournament that pits ROH Women’s World Champion Athena against rising star Billie Starkz.

We’ll update this post live in real time as the matches unfold.

Forbidden Door 2023 Zero Hour results:

  • Mogul Embassy (Swerve Strickland, Toa Liona, Brian Cage and Bishop Kaun) def. Chaos (Rocky Romero, Chuck Taylor and Trent Beretta) and El Desperado when Strickland pins Romero
  • Athena def. Billie Starkz by pinfall in a Women’s Owen Hart Cup Tournament first round match
  • El Phantasmo def. Stu Grayson by pinfall
  • Los Ingobernables De Japon (Bushi, Hiromu Takahashi and Shingo Takagi) def. United Empire (Jeff Cobb, Kyle Fletcher and TJP) by pinfall when Takagi pins TJP

NJPW Dominion 6.4 in Osaka-jo Hall results: David Finlay snuffs out El Phantasmo’s bid for revenge

See how David Finlay was able to prevent El Phantasmo from getting revenge in the NEVER Openweight Championship match at NJPW Dominion 6.4.

The man who vowed to take down Bullet Club one member at a time, El Phantasmo, comes to the ring first. That task might be more difficult now, since BC leader David Finlay has added four more members to the group just tonight, and they flank the entranceway as he makes his ring walk.

ELP wastes no time taking it to his former teammate, flying to the floor and then over the barricade to crash into Finlay. The fans seem to enjoy that quite a bit.

Phantasmo lays in some chops and forearm shots before sliding the champ back into the ring. A springboard cross body and springboard moonsault lead to a two count for the challenger.

Some more fancy rope work has Finlay back on the floor, but when Phantasmo tries to run the ropes, the new Bullet Club recruits menace him into hesitation that Finlay uses to his advantage.

Finlay continues his assault on the outside, shares a Too Sweet salute with the others, then hurls ELP into the post before posing. The champ goes under the ring and gets out a table. He almost regrets it as Phantasmo tries for a move off the apron, but Finlay takes the fight back into the ring for a senton and a near fall.

A hard Irish whip into the corner racks ELP’s back with pain, and Finlay steps on the back of his neck as well. Finlay stays on the attack, grabbing a chinlock and forcing Phantasmo’s face into the mat.

The fans try to rally ELP as he’s hit repeatedly in the back of the head. A dropkick finally buys the challenger a breather, and the fans chant for him again. An atomic drop and a body slam score for Phantasmo, who comes off the middle rope with an elbowdrop.

The Bullet Club recruits get on the apron as a distraction, and Finlay charges into the corner to make him pay. The champ whips out an exploder suplex, but he’s caught rushing into the corner and hung in the tree of woe. ELP’s sliding kick connects, and he covers for another two.

A big springboard tornado DDT is on target, but Finlay kicks out again at two. ELP looks for CRII, but Finlay fights out and sets off an exchange of strikes. Phantasmo twists his foe’s nipples and bounces right back up after a suplex and stomps the champ into a corner.

ELP comes in a little too fast and is catapulted into the turnbuckle, and Finlay scores a couple of near falls in quick succession. Phantasmo replies with a series of kicks, then another two count. But Finlay powers him off the top rope into a Dominator, forcing the challenger to dig down to kick out before the three.

Finlay looks for Oblivion but gets caught with a pair of superkicks, and it’s a longer two count this time. ELP slams the champ down and ends up diving onto all four members of the BC on the outside. He superkicks Gedo too, but he’s now taken too long, so Finlay pushes him off the top rope and then sends him through a table on the floor.

They head back into the ring, where Finlay hits a powerbomb. He does the throat slash gesture and hits Oblivion, and that’s all she wrote for ELP.

Click here for full NJPW Dominion 6.4 results from Osaka.

Dominion 6.4 in Osaka-jo Hall results: Sanada holds off intriguing challenger, Bullet Club grows

Check out all of the action for NJPW’s start of the summer card with full Dominion 6.4 in Osaka-jo Hall results.

Is there change in the air? It’s always possible when eight championships are on the line on one pro wrestling card, which is the case for NJPW Dominion 6.4 in Osaka-jo Hall.

Except for one eight-man tag and one match to determine a No. 1 contender for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship — and even that bout is intriguing considering the man holding that particular title is Kenny Omega — every bout on this year’s card is a championship match.

With that much gold on the line, it’s tricky to pick the showdowns that stand out from the rest, but three figure to be measuring sticks for whether things will be shaken up across New Japan this summer. The first sees David Finlay, leader of the Bullet Club, take on former teammate El Phantasmo for Finlay’s NEVER Openweight Championship. Will this be a measure of revenge for ELP after he was unceremoniously booted from the group, or further validation of Finlay’s new direction for one of pro wrestling’s most famous stables?

Hiromu Takahashi defends his IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Master Wato, who made quite the impression by winning the 2023 Best of the Super Juniors tournament. A victory over Hiromu would give him the right to claim he’s the best junior heavyweight in the company.

And in the main event, Sanada will attempt to fend off a challenge to his IWGP World Heavyweight Championship from Yota Tsuji. While Sanada had to break free from Los Ingobernables de Japon  to take his game to the next level, Tsuji is attempting to do just the opposite, saying he wants to join LIJ while trying to bring home the top prize in NJPW.

It should be an exciting night with a title change or two and perhaps a couple of surprises before it’s all said and done, not to mention the reveal of the G1 Climax 33 lineups.

Dominion 6.4 in Osaka-jo Hall results:

(click on any match with a link for full details)

  • Will Ospreay def. Lance Archer by pinfall to become No. 1 contender for Kenny Omega’s IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
  • Ospreay gets on the microphone and says he’s out for revenge on Omega, and will walk into Canada to bring the title back … likely meaning at Forbidden Door in Toronto
  • Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, Bushi and Titán) def. Just 5 Guys (Taichi, Douki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru and Taka Michinoku) by submission
  • Catch 2/2 (Francesco Akira and TJP) def. Intergalactic Jet Setters (Kushida and Kevin Knight) by pinfall to become the new IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions …
  • … but the new champs are attacked right after the match by Dan Moloney, who cornered them during the bout, and Clark Connors
  • Zack Sabre Jr. def. Jeff Cobb by pinfall to retain the NJPW World Television Championship
  • Bishamon (Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi) def. House of Torture (Evil and Yujiro Takahashi) and United Empire (Great-O-Khan and Aaron Henare) by pinfall to become the new IWGP Tag Team Champions and Strong Openweight Tag Team Champions …
  • … but after their victory, they are laid out by the new Bullet Club War Dogs, Alex Coughlin and Gabriel Kidd
  • The G1 Climax 33 field will include Kazuchika Okada, Naito, Sanada, Ospreay, Hiroshi Tanahashi, David Finlay, Shota Umino, Takagi, Tomohiro Ishii, Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, Hikuleo, Goto, Yoshi-Hashi, Toru Yano, Kenta, ZSJ, Taichi, Eddie Kingston, El Phantasmo, Ren Narita, Evil, Chase Owens, Cobb, Great-O-Khan, Henare, Kidd, Coughlin, Shane Haste, Mikey Nicholls, Yota Tsuji, and Kaito Kiyomiya
  • David Finlay def. El Phantasmo by pinfall to retain the NEVER Openweight Championship
  • Hiromu Takahashi def. Master Wato by pinfall to retain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
  • Chaos (Kazuchika Okada and Tomohiro Ishii) and Hiroshi Tanahashi def. Blackpool Combat Club (Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli) and Shota Umino by pinfall, with Okada accepting a recorded challenge from Bryan Danielson after the match and suggesting “the Forbidden Door will be opened”
  • Sanada def. Yota Tsuji by pinfall to retain the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship

Wrestling Dontaku 2023 results: Sanada holds off Hiromu, faces new threat to end the show

The final five matches on the Wrestling Dontaku 2023 card are title bouts.

Sanada finally ascended to the top of the mountain in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, winning the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship for the first time last month. Now one of his former mates from his LIJ days wants to make his reign a short one.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi will be the first challenger for Sanada when the two meet tonight in the main event of Wrestling Dontaku 2023 in Fukuoka. The always colorful Hiromu will be attempting to also win the top prize in NJPW for the first time, making hima  double champ if he pulls it off.

That’s not the only title on the line. In fact the last five matches on this card are championship bouts, with the Strong Openweight Championship and NJPW World Television Championship among those being defended. Two others stand out, however; one pits former longtime Bullet Club member Tama Tonga against the group’s latest leader, David Finlay, looking to claim Tonga’s NEVER Openweight Championship and validate his status as BC’s top dog.

The other is a titanic battle for the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship. Reigning champs Strong Style (Minoru Suzuki, El Desperado and Ren Narita) will try to turn back a challenge from a star-studded trio composed of Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii and Hiroshi Tanahashi.

The opening matches on the card are a mix of six-man and eight-man tag matches that ensure as many different members of the NJPW roster as possible are in the show. It should be an exciting night of wrestling from the Fukuoka Kokusai Center, and it kicks off at 5 a.m. ET/2 a.m. PT.

Wrestling Dontaku 2023 results:

(click on any match with a link for more details)

  • Chaos (Toru Yano, Yoh and Bishamon (Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi)) def. House of Torture (Evil, Yujiro Takahashi, Sho and Dick Togo) by pinfall, after which Aussie Open came out to repossess their tag team title belts and propose a three-way match with Bishamon and House of Torture
  • United Empire (Aussie Open (Mark Davis and Kyle Fletcher) and Great-O-Khan) def. TMDK (Mikey Nicholls, Shane Haste and Kosei Fujita) by submission as Great-O-Khan taps out Fujita; afterward Great-O-Khan cuts a promo saying neither Bishamon or House of Torture stand a chance against Aussie Open and that Jeff Cobb would defeat Zack Sabre Jr. later tonight
  • Shota Umino and The Jet Setters (Kushida and Kevin Knight) def. United Empire (Aaron Henare and Catch 2/2 (Francesco Akira and TJP)) by pinfall when Kushida catches TJP with an inside cradle
  •  Just 5 Guys (Taichi, Yoshinobu Kanemaru and Douki) def. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi and Bushi) by submission as Taichi gets Bushi to submit
  • A video plays to promote Best of the Super Juniors and show off the cards for May 12-24
  • Hikuleo def. KENTA by pinfall to become the new Strong Openweight Champion
  • Jeff Cobb vs. Zack Sabre Jr. ends in a 15-minute time limit draw; Sabre retains the NJPW World Television Championship
  • Chaos (Kazuchika Okada and Tomohiro Ishii) and Hiroshi Tanahashi def. Strong Style (Minoru Suzuki, El Desperado and Ren Narita) by pinfall to become the new NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champions
  • Shota Umino reveals that Jon Moxley is returning at Dominion in June
  • David Finlay def. Tama Tonga by pinfall to become the new NEVER Openweight Champion …
  • .. but gets attacked by El Phantasmo after the match, and the two men need to eventually be pulled apart
  • Sanada def. Hiromu Takahashi by pinfall to retain the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
  • The Godzilla-esque video promo that’s been running for weeks pays off with a reveal of a returning Yota Tsuji, who clears the ring, spears Sanada and holds up the IWGP title before laying it back across Sanada’s chest