NJPW Road to Destruction live results: Tanahashi/Juice vs. Okada/Beretta

NJPW returns to Korakuen Hall this morning as the build to the three Destruction shows taking place later this month continues.

In the main event, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada will square off again, this time in a tag team match. Tanahashi and Juice will team together to take on the returning Beretta and Kazuchika Okada.

Meanwhile, Tomohiro Ishii and Kenny Omega will face each other, but this time it will be in a trios match. Ishii will team up with Toru Yano and Will Ospreay to challenge Omega, Kota Ibushi and Yujiro Takahashi.

Ayato Yoshida, a Kaientai Dojo regular, continues his New Japan main roster run by taking on Chase Owens. We’ll also see a young lion tag team match, with Shota Umino and Yuya Uemura facing Ren Narita and Yota Tsuji.

Join us for live coverage starting at 5:30 a.m. eastern time. There will be no English commentary.

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YUYA UEMURA & SHOTA UMINO DEFEATED REN NARITA & YOTA TSUJI (8:49)

A nice little opener here. Everyone’s selling was top notch. 

Tsuji and Narita worked over Uemura’s lower back with strikes and stomps. Uemura hit a back bodydrop out of desperation, and made a hot tag to Umino. Umino and Tsuji traded palm strikes, and both hit dropkicks. 

Umino hit a spinebuster, then used a crab. After a long struggle, Tsuji made the ropes. Umino hit a top rope woo dropkick, then went back to the crab, and got the submission. 

CHASE OWENS DEFEATED AYATO YOSHIDA (8:33) 

Yoshida is a K-Dojo product. I’ve seen him on at least one Lion’s Gate Project show, and I really like him. He got some good offense in early. 

Lots of mat work early. Yoshida hit a hip toss and went for an armbar, but Owens made the ropes immediately. Yoshida targeted Owens’ left arm, hoping to work back to that armbar. 

Owens used an abdominal stretch. Owens got a nearfall off a roll-up, but Yoshida finally got the armbar. Owens made the ropes, then hit a backbreaker and a running knee, getting another two count. 

Yoshida was able to slap on a kimura, but Owens raked his eyes, and made the ropes. Owens hit the package driver, and got the pin. 

TAMA TONGA, TANGA LOA, BAD LUCK FALE & TAIJI ISHIMORI DEFEATED TOGI MAKABE, MICHAEL ELGIN, DAVID FINLAY & TOA HENARE (9:11) 

Good stuff here. All action. 

Elgin and Loa started out. Elgin lit Loa up with chops. Ishimori tried to attack from the apron, but missed on a seated senton, and hit Loa. Finlay tagged in for some spots with Ishimori, and they worked incredibly fast. 

Tonga and Fale cleared the babyfaces from the apron, and the OG’s went to work on Finlay in their corner. Ishimori hit a standing shooting star press. Fale missed a charge into the corner, and Finlay was able to tag Makabe. 

Makabe ran wild, and took Fale off his feet with a lariat. Tonga and Henare tagged in, and Tonga hit a sweet dropkick. The OG’s hit a series of moves on Henare in the corner, before the match broke down into chaos. 

Tonga went for the gun stun on Henare, but Henare blocked, then hit a samoan drop for a two count. Tonga popped up, then hit the gun stun on his second attempt, and got the pinfall victory. 

HIROOKI GOTO & YOSHI-HASHI DEFEATED TAICHI & YOSHINOBU KANEMARU (9:58) 

This was all about establishing Taichi as Goto’s next challenger for the NEVER title. It had its moments, but was the weakest match on the show to this point. 

Taichi attacked Goto with his mic stand before the bell. Goto made a comeback, and sent Taichi into the security fence. YH and Kanemaru did a couple of spots in the ring, but the action then went into the crowd, where Suzuki-gun took over. 

Back inside, Kanemaru worked over YH with stomps and elbows. Taichi tagged in and raked and gouged YH’s eyes. After Taichi taunted Goto and threw his title belt from the ring to the floor earlier, Goto finally got a hot tag, and the two faced off. 

Goto and Taichi traded kicks and right hands. Taichi tagged out after hitting an enziguri, and Kanemaru worked over Goto’s left leg. Taichi did his pants spot. Kanemaru went for the whiskey mist, but YH ducked it, and hit a superkick. 

Goto hit the ushigoroshi on Kanemaru, and Taichi jumped in with the mic stand for the DQ. 
Taichi hit a last ride on Goto after the match, and got a visual pinfall. 

TETSUYA NAITO, EVIL, SANADA & BUSHI DEFEATED MINORU SUZUKI, TAKASHI IIZUKA, EL DESPERADO & TAKA MICHINOKU (12:37) 

This was a wild brawl, and served its purpose quite well. 

Suzuki brutalized Naito, as Suzuki-gun attacked LIJ before the opening bell. He then turned his attention to EVIL, and used a series of chair shots on him, then took the referee, allowing his teammates to attack three on one in the ring. 

Suzuki used a heel hook on EVIL, but EVIL was able to make the ropes. Desperado took Iizuka’s muzzle off, and Iizuka bit EVIL’s head and foot. SANADA made the save, and tied up TAKA with the paradise lock. SANADA hit the Flair flip into the corner into a springboard dropkick on Iizuka, before Naito and Suzuki got tags. 

Naito hit a swinging neckbreaker and a dropkick to a seated Suzuki. Suzuki missed a yakuza kick, but was able to slide into a rear naked choke. He went for the Gotch piledriver, but EVIL broke it up. 

Naito hit his swinging dropkick in the corner, and tagged in BUSHI. BUSHI hit a missile dropkick, and a BUSHI-rooni, but fell victim to a four-on-one assault. LIJ made the save. BUSHI hit a codebreaker for a nearfall on TAKA, then hit the MX, and got the pinfall. 

Naito attacked Suzuki after the match, and choked him with a banner. Suzuki went after Naito with a chair, but the Young Lions held him back. 

TOMOHIRO ISHII, TORU YANO & WILL OSPREAY DEFEATED KENNY OMEGA, KOTA IBUSHI & YUJIRO TAKAHASHI (9:15) 

A fun sprint. They teased a lot that the people wanted to see with Omega/Ishii and Ibushi/Ospreay, but they saved a lot for their singles matches down the road. 

Pieter accompanied Yujiro to the ring, and got her own introduction from the ring announcer. As she should. 

Omega and Ishii started things off. Ospreay got a tag and hit an Ishii-assisted standing moonsault on Omega, but then demanded that Ibushi tag in. 

Ospreay and Ibushi went razy. Ospreay teased a Sasuke special, but Yujiro cut him off, and the Bullet Club went to work on him. Yano jumped in and tried to untie a couple of turnbuckle pads, but Omega and Ibushi stopped him, and Yujiro continued the assault on Ospreay. 

Ibushi tagged back in, and Ospreay hit him with a handspring kick. Omega tagged in and ate a cutter. Ospreay tagged Ishii, and Ishii and Omega teased their upcoming IWGP title match. Ishii blocked a V-trigger, stopped an interfering Ibushi, and hit a powerslam. 

Omega came back with a kotaro krusher, and tagged Yujiro. Yano got a tag from Ishii, and untied a turnbuckle pad. They did a comedy spot where everyone pulled the hair of the guy next to him. Omega went to do it to Ishii, but Ishii is bald, of course. That was awesome. 

Ibushi, Ospreay, and Omega all hit planchas, leaving Yujiro and Yano the legal men. Yano used a schoolboy on Yujiro for the pin. 

Omega and Ishii had a brief staredown after the match, but there was no physicality in the angle. 

HIROSHI TANAHASHI & JUICE ROBINSON DEFEATED KAZUCHIKA OKADA & BERETTA (21:35) 

This was a good main event. Not a mind-blowing match by any means, but it was a lot of fun. 

Beretta and Juice started off exchanging holds, with neither man gaining a clear edge. Tana and Okada tagged in. Tana did not break cleanly after an early grappling exchange. Okada teased a dropkick, but Tanahashi went low and took out his leg with a dropkick. 

Juice tagged in. He went up top, but Okada hit the ropes, and Juice crashed to the mat. Beretta made a tag and sent both Juice and Tanahashi over the top rope. Both teased skinning the cat, but Beretta dropkicked them to the floor. 

Back in the ring, Okada worked over Juice. Okada kicked Juice low. Okada claimed the kick hit the inside of the thigh, but Red Shoes was not so sure. Okada tagged out, and Beretta sent Juice to the floor, and hit a plancha. 

Juice was able to make a tag, and Tanahashi ran wild with dropkicks. He sent Okada to the floor with a dropkick, and hit another on Beretta. He hit the second rope senton, but Beretta popped right up, and took Tana down with a lariat. 

Okada tagged in, and hit Tana with a back elbow in the corner. He teased a DDT, but Tanahashi blocked it. Okada hit a shotgun dropkick. He went for a tombstone, but Tana slipped out and hit a dragon screw. Okada went for a rainmaker, but Tanahashi hit a palm strike, leading to a double down. 

Juice got a tag. He went for his series of jabs, but Okada cut him off after just one. Juice hit a sit-out lariat, and followed with a pair of clotheslines in the corner. He went for another, but Okada hit a flapjack, and tagged Beretta. Beretta hit a high cross for a nearfall. 

Beretta went for a tornado DDT, but Juice cut him off, and hit a series of jabs. Okada jumped in for the save, knocked Tana off the apron, and hit Juice with a neckbreaker. Beretta covered for a nearfall, while Okada and Tanahashi fought on the floor.

Beretta took a Ray Stevens flip into the corner, and Juice and Tana hit him with a combination Hart Attack/slingblade. Juice missed a cannonball. Tana hit a slingblade on Beretta. Okada hit a tombstone on Tanahashi, and all four men went down. 

Juice recovered and hit a cannonball on Beretta. He went to the top while Okada and Tana fought on the floor, but Beretta cut him off, and hit a top rope belly-to-belly. Juice hit a powerbomb for a two and a half count. 

Juice went for pulp friction, but Beretta reversed it, and hit a piledriver. He covered, but Tanahashi made the save for Juice. Juice went for pulp friction twice, and Beretta twice escaped with enziguris. 

Juice finally hit pulp friction, covered, and got the victory.