NJPW Best of the Super Juniors 29 night one live results: The tournament begins

By Chick Fritts
Published: 15 May 2022, 00:30

Best of the Super Juniors 29 kicks off today in Aichi at Nagoya Congress Center Event Hall with five A Block matches.

In the main event, IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Taiji Ishimori faces 2021 BOSJ runner-up YOH.

In the semi-main, 2021 winner Hiromu Takahashi faces 2012 winner Ryusuke Taguchi.

Bullet Club’s SHO takes on NJPW newcomer Francesco Akira in another A Block contest.

Alex Zayne faces Yoshinobu Kanemaru in the second tournament bout of the night.

Kicking off the tournament, Impact Wrestling’s Ace Austin will face Clark Connors.

A series of tag matches featuring talent from the tournament’s B Block will round out the undercard:

Titan, El Lindaman & Jado vs. El Desperado, DOUKI & TAKA Michinoku
BUSHI & Shingo Takagi vs. El Phantasmo & Dick Togo
Robbie Eagles, Master Wato, Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Tiger Mask vs. Wheeler Yuta, Yuto Nakashima, Ryohei Oiwa & Kosei Fujita

Our live coverage begins at 4 a.m. Eastern time.

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Master Wato, Tiger Mask, Hiroyoshi Tenzan, and Robbie Eagles defeated Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita, Yuto Nakashima, and Wheeler Yuta

This was a fine little showcase tag before Yuta and Eagles come to blows on the opening night of B Block.

Yuta and Eagles opened the match with a quick sequence ahead of their block match on Tuesday. The pair tagged out before either could get much in, letting the Young Lions take turns against their seniors.

Eventually, things cycled back to Yuta and Eagles. This time, both men got in heavy offense before tagging back to their partners. Yuta ultimately hit a tope to write off Eagles until the finish. In the ring, Wato landed La Caratera to bring this match to a close.

BUSHI and Shingo Takagi (Los Ingobernables de Japon) defeated El Phantasmo and Dick Togo (Bullet Club)

Meh.

BUSHI and ELP had a short exchange before Shingo tagged in to take control for LIJ. However, Bullet Club took advantage from LIJ moments later after Togo and ELP took the action to the floor. Bullet Club continued to make advances with underhanded tactics until Shingo launched a rally that broke down into a four-man brawl. BUSHI hit a dive; Shingo hit a sad pumping bomber and pinned Togo.

El Lindaman, Titan, and Jado defeated El Desperado, TAKA Michinoku, and DOUKI (Suzuki-gun)

I loved this⁠—a perfect introduction for both Lindaman and Titan for the unfamiliar.

Desperado and Titan opened the match with a fantastic little sequence before Suzuki-gun rushed the ring to take control. Lindaman managed to turn things back around with an offensive flurry that took out Suzuki-gun, but DOUKI cut it short by catching Lindaman in his signature choke.

Titan and Desperado were tagged back in for another impressive sprint. After trading moves with Titan, Desperado tagged out to TAKA, and the rest of Suzuki-gun helped him maintain his control. Titan withstood the assault long enough for Lindaman to take out Desperado and DOUKI with a dive. Titan was then free to close the match with a springboard double stomp.

BOSJ A Block: Ace Austin defeated Clark Connors

This was surprisingly great.

The match opened with a reasonably typical back and forth. Connors found a lead, but failed to do anything with it, allowing Austin to slip into control. Austin eventually took things to the mat before using a playing card to cut the webbing of Connors’s fingers.

Austin tried striking Connors down with some slaps but was met with a pounce. Connors then led a short sequence punctuated with a brutal elbow drop from the top rope; Austin kicked out.

Austin dodged a spear, sending Connors to the floor. Austin followed up with a beautiful dive and springboard kick for a near fall. Austin looked to close only to run into a perfect spear from Connors. Connors tried for Trophy Kill, but Austin fought free. Austin used this space to turn things around long enough to connect with The Fold. Austin pinned Connors to start his BOSJ with a win.

BOSJ A Block: Alex Zayne defeated Yoshinobu Kanemaru

This was okay.

I’ve seen a variation of this exact match from Zayne about a dozen times; the man just loves getting his leg worked and doing a dozen flips in response.

Kanemaru gained a lead early, turning his attention to Zayne’s leg. Kanemaru maintained control, using a variety of holds, strikes, and drops to ground Zayne while setting him up for the figure four.

Once Zayne freed himself from Kanemaru’s clutch, his leg seemed to be fine enough to launch a flip-based rally. Kanemaru retook the lead with a leg-sweep after Zayne landed on his feet from missing a 450. Kanemaru then locked in a figure four, forcing Zayne into the ropes.

After escaping, Zayne landed a lariat but couldn’t connect with the taco driver. Kanemaru took advantage with two quick pin attempts, but Zayne answered with a thrust kick. Zayne hit Baja Blast and Cinamon twist to bring this match to a close.

BOSJ A Block: Francesco Akira defeated SHO

This was a SHO match. Luckily the rest of House of Torture wasn’t involved, but there was still a ton of blatant cheating.

SHO jumped Akira before the opening bell. Akira fought back with a head-scissor takedown, which he followed with an extended period of control.

SHO used a Young Lion to block a tope attempt before slamming Akira’s arm into the top rope. SHO then grabbed a chair and led Akira all the way to the arena wall. SHO then dropped the chair and slammed Akira into the wall. SHO used the chair while the referee put away another weapon, forcing Akira to crawl back to the ring to prevent a count-out loss.

Back in the ring, SHO continued to focus the arm. Akira started to turn things around with a wheelbarrow facebuster and a dropkick that sent SHO to the floor. Akira landed a moonsault to the outside and a corkscrew neckbreaker for a near fall.

Akira looked to close with a fireball, but SHO blocked the move with the referee; this let SHO land a spear and lock in an armbar. SHO then bumped the referee, hit a German suplex, and went for his wrench, but TJP pulled it away before he could take advantage. Akira then hit a suplex, the last round, and fireball to win his New Japan debut.

BOSJ A Block: Hiromu Takahashi defeated Ryusuke Taguchi

This was a silly match through and through.

Before the match, Taguchi promised there would be “no butt stuff”; there was.

Taguchi opened the match with a flying hip attack but missed by a mile; he broke his promise. Taguchi laid down in defeat, offering a free pin to Hiromu. When Hiromu tried taking the offer, Taguchi grabbed his leg, attempting a quick submission.

Hiromu rolled to the outside, and Taguchi began chasing him. After running a few laps, Taguchi decided to hide under the ring. Taguchi failed in catching Hiromu, and the pair returned to the ring.

Back in the ring, Taguchi tried for another ankle lock, and Hiromu rolled back to the floor. Taguchi and Hiromu ran more laps around the ring. Hiromu tried holding down Taguchi with the mat, but Taguchi caught him in another ankle lock, this time on the outside. As the referee’s count grew higher, the pair had to sprint back between the ropes.

Taguchi continued to fight for the ankle lock. After a bunch of roll troughs and reversals, Taguchi tried for a trio of hip attacks; he missed them all. At this point, Taguchi had revealed his underwear.

After another attempt, Taguchi finally landed a hip attack, only for Hiromu to secure a rollup and a first-round win.

BOSJ A Block: Taiji Ishimori defeated YOH

This, on paper, is very comparable to the SHO/Akira bout from earlier in the night; in reality, this was a much different match. The selective cheating and its consequences felt less intrusive while still being impactful, but the pacing was sluggish, and at times, this was just boring. The dead crowd didn’t help this one either.

YOH’s early lead came to an early end as Ishimori brought the action to the floor. On the outside, Ishimori slammed YOH’s arm into the turnbuckle post with an assist from a chair. Back inside, Ishimori continued to focus YOH’s arm.

YOH launched a comeback with a single-leg dropkick. YOH’s rally lasted until Ishimori rammed him into an exposed set of buckles. YOH held on, however, eventually turning things back around with a dragonscrew leg whip. YOH then started working the leg on the mat with a variety of holds.

Ishimori eventually caught YOH with a knee strike, but YOH answered with a headbutt and DMV. YOH tried to bring this to an end, but Ishimori blocked direct-drive and slammed YOH back into the exposed corner. Ishimori secured the bone lock and forced YOH to tap out.

After his win, Ishimori cut the show-closing promo. Ishimori claimed he’d win the tournament as the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion and reform the division in his own image.