New Japan Cup night 11 results: Shingo Takagi vs. KENTA

The quarterfinals of the New Japan Cup started during today’s show from Korakuen Hall. Here are the results of the preliminary matches and a full report of the Cup matches.

Yuji Nagata, Satoshi Kojima, & Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeated Yota Tsuji, Yuya Uemura, & Gabriel Kidd (10:08)

Nagata won via submission over Kidd with the Nagata Lock II.

Jay White, Bad Luck Fale, & Chase Owens defeated Juice Robinson, David Finlay, & Toa Henare (10:46)

Fale pinned Henare with the Grenade. White faces Finlay in two days in the Cup quarterfinals.

Will Ospreay & Jeff Cobb defeated SANADA & BUSHI (8:34)

Cobb pinned BUSHI with the Tour of the Islands. Ospreay faces SANADA in two days in the Cup quarterfinals.

New Japan Cup quarterfinal: EVIL defeated Toru Yano (7:54)

This was about as compact and focused as a Yano match gets. It wasn’t a classic or anything, but it was entertaining.

Dick Togo was out there with EVIL as always. Yano demanded that Togo leave ringside, but was nearly counted out while he waited. EVIL attacked when Yano made his way back to the ring, then distracted the official as Togo attacked on the floor. EVIL then sent Yano into the barricade, knocking down the timekeeper in the process.

Back in the ring, EVIL used various nefarious means to beat down Yano. Togo consistently got involved. Yano nearly got the upper hand through a whip into an exposed turnbuckle, but EVIL turned the tables and resumed the beatdown.

Yano finally made his comeback by yanking EVIL down by his hair and sending him into the exposed turnbuckle. He sent Togo packing and hit a belly-to-belly suplex on EVIL.

Yano sent EVIL face-first into the exposed buckle and rolled him up for a near fall. He then sent EVIL to the floor and choked him with Togo’s wire before tossing EVIL underneath the ring. The count almost reached 20, but then the lights suddenly went out. EVIL appeared back in the ring, hit Everything is EVIL, and pinned Yano to advance to the semifinals.

New Japan Cup quarterfinal: Shingo Takagi defeated KENTA (23:47)

This match was disappointing. The final five minutes were excellent, but the crowd was dead silent for KENTA’s heat segment, which took up half the match’s duration. 

KENTA immediately powdered to the floor and stalled. After a minute or so, he came back into the ring and they locked up. KENTA kept pulling Shingo’s hair so they transitioned into exchanging forearms. After a snapmare, KENTA laid in kicks, but Shingo hit a body slam. Shingo laid in repeated strikes in the corner before his attack moved to the floor.

Shingo attempted to bring KENTA back into the ring, but KENTA rolled to the outside and attacked Shingo with the bell in the same manner he had been attacking people with his briefcase. He hit a DDT on the floor, forcing Shingo to make his way back in the ring to beat the count. KENTA resumed his beatdown in the ring, cranking on Shingo’s neck and laying in more kicks. This heat segment went a long time, almost ten full minutes.

The crowd was behind Shingo as he fired up and hit his signature strike combo. He downed KENTA with a shoulder block and followed it up with repeated knee drops. KENTA hit a DDT, but Shingo just pressed his way right out of it and hit a big vertical suplex. KENTA hit his twisting DDT into the top rope followed by a diving clothesline for two. He then went for Game Over, but Shingo was too close to the ropes.

They traded forearms before KENTA caught a boot and hit the Shibata corner dropkick. Shingo rolled out of the way of the double foot stomp and hit a DDT. KENTA avoided the sliding lariat and hit a draping DDT of his own before following it up with a fisherman’s buster. He landed the diving foot stomp for two. Shingo went for Made in Japan, but KENTA fought out and locked on Game Over, but Shingo reached the ropes again.

KENTA hit a tiger suplex, but Shingo popped up and flattened him with a Pumping Bomber. The crowd finally got really into it at this point, 20 minutes into the match. They traded forearms before Shingo caught one and turned it into Made in Japan for two. They had a great stiff strike exchange where KENTA baited Shingo into forearms before catching him with repeated backhands and a knee lift for two. The Busaiku knee followed for two.

After KENTA pulled his knee pad down, Shingo countered the Go To Sleep and hit a Death Valley driver. A Pumping Bomber followed for two, and the Last of the Dragon followed for three. 

Shingo will face EVIL in the New Japan Cup semifinals.

Before the show went off the air, Shingo cut a promo on EVIL, who emerged to stare his former stablemate down. Dick Togo attacked Shingo from behind, and they beat him down with a Magic Killer. EVIL stood tall to end the show.