New Japan Cup update, SANADA joins new faction

  • Ian Carey
  • By 

Two wrestlers have advanced to the semifinals of the 2023 New Japan Cup. 

SANADA defeated his stablemate, Tetsuya Naito, in the main event. He countered a Destino attempt into the DDT maneuver he first debuted in the tournament’s opening round for the win.  

Following the match, the members of Just Four Guys came to the ring. SANADA and Taichi shook hands and the rest of the faction embraced SANADA as well. This brought out Los Ingobernables’ Shingo Takagi, BUSHI, and Hiromu Takahashi. 

SANADA then cut a promo stating he was no longer in LIJ and motioned for them to get out of the ring. After LIJ left, TAKA Michinoku said that with SANADA now in the faction, they will be known as “Just Five Guys.” 

DOUKI, Michinoku, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, and Taichi formed the Just Four Guys stable the night after WrestleKingdom in January. 

Aussie Open’s Mark Davis also advanced in the tournament. He pinned former IWGP Heavyweight Champion EVIL in the night’s semi-main event. The finish saw a referee bump and interference from members of both House of Torture and United Empire. When everyone was finally cleared from the ring, Davis hit Water Slide from Dunkzilla and got the pin. 

Will Ospreay was ringside during the match with his arm in a sling. Davis was announced as Ospreay’s replacement in the tournament after Ospreay was forced to withdraw due to a shoulder injury. 

On Friday’s undercard, Minoru Suzuki pinned Strong Openweight Champion, KENTA, with a Gotch-style piledriver, perhaps setting up a future title match between the two. 

New Japan Cup 2023 on March 17, 2023, from Korakuen Hall results:

  • SHO & Yujiro Takahashi defeated Zack Sabre Jr. & Kosei Fujita
  • Aaron Henare, Great-O-Khan, Jeff Cobb & Kyle Fletcher defeated Oskar Leube, Ryusuke Taguchi, Tomoaki Honma & Togi Makabe 
  • Toru Yano, YOSHI-HASHI & Hirooki Goto defeated Satoshi Kojima, Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Tama Tonga
  • Lio Rush, YOH, Tomohiro Ishii defeated BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi & Shingo Takagi
  • Shota Umino, Ren Narita, El Desperado & Minoru Suzuki defeated El Phantasmo, Chase Owens, KENTA & David Finlay
  • New Japan Cup 2023 quarterfinal: Mark Davis defeated EVIL
  • New Japan Cup 2023 quarterfinal: SANADA defeated Tetsuya Naito

Upcoming New Japan Cup 2023 matches:

  • Hirooki Goto vs. Tama Tonga (March 18) (Quarterfinals)
  • David Finlay vs. Shota Umino (March 18) (Quarterfinals)
  • Mark Davis vs. SANADA (March 19) (Semifinals)
  • Tonga/Goto winner vs. Finlay/Umino winner (March 19) (Semifinals)
  • Semifinal #1 Winner vs. Semifinal #2 Winner (March 21) (Finals)