NJPW Road to Tokyo Dome live results: Eight-man tag action
A big eight man tag team match will headline this morning’s Road to Tokyo Dome card at Korakuen Hall.
Kazuchika Okada, Will Ospreay, Robbie Eagles and YOSHI-HASHI of CHAOS will battle Tetsuya Naito, EVIL, Hiromu Takahashi and BUSHI of Los Ingobernables de Japon in tonight’s main event. The match will likely continue the storyline from last night where Hiromu was pinned by Robbie Eagles in Hiromu’s return match after being gone for well over a year due to a neck injury.
Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kota Ibushi will team in the co-main event, taking on the team of Jay White and Chase Owens. This could be a preview for January 5 if both Ibushi and White win their matches on January 4.
Hirooki Goto and KENTA will each captain an eight man tag team match in the undercard, while SANADA will team with Shingo Takagi to take on Taichi and Zack Sabre Jr.. Jushin Thunder Liger’s second to last match at Korakuen Hall will also take place, as he will be teaming with SHO and YOH to take on Tiger Mask, Ryusuke Taguchi and Rocky Romero.
Join us for live coverage starting at 4:30 a.m EST. You can watch for free tonight at this link.
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TOA HENARE DEFEATED YOTA TSUJI
They opened with a striking battle. After trading, Tsuji hit a dropkick. Henare cut him off with some chops and used a vertical suplex for a two count.
Henare continued to use chops. Tsuji fired up and hit a scoop slam out of the corner, then used another dropkick for a two count. Henare hit a Samoan drop for a two count. They traded strikes again. Tsuji hit a spear, then applied a full crab. Henare forced a rope break.
After another striking exchange, Henare hit a lariat for a two count. Tsuji used an inside cradle for a two count. Henare hit a tackle for a two count, then used Toa Bottom for the pin. A fundamentally sound opener.
EL PHANTASMO, TAIJI ISHIMORI & BAD LUCK FALE DEFEATED TOGI MAKABE, TOMOAKI HONMA & YUYA UEMURA
This was a nice showcase for Uemura, even in defeat.
Uemura and ELP started out with a nice mat wrestling sequence. Uemura hit a big tackle and tagged Honma. Honma missed a kokeshi and got cut off. Bullet Club used their comedy series of back rakes.
Honma managed a tag to Makabe. Makabe dropped Fale with a lariat. Fale hit a shoulder tackle and both tagged out. Uemura and Ishimori entered. Ishimori hit a backflip kick. Bullet Club tripled up on Uemura.
Uemura sent Fale over the top, then made his own comeback against Ishimori and ELP. Uemura blocked a Bloody Cross and used a cradle for a two count. Uemura hit a double underhook suplex and covered for another near fall. The crowd was super into this.
Ishimori recovered, hit the Bloody Cross and got the pin.
SHO, YOH & JUSHIN LIGER DEFEATED RYUSUKE TAGUCHI, ROCKY ROMERO & TIGER MASK
Tiger and Liger opened up with a great series. Tiger hit some kicks and a tope suicida. Liger hit a shotei on the floor. Tiger hit a Tiger bomb but could not make a cover. SHO and Romero tagged in.
Romero and Taguchi both missed with hip attacks on their first try. The NJPW coaches finally hit a stereo hip attack on SHO and cut him off. SHO is absolutely ripped to shreds. Taguchi hit two of three amigos on SHO. SHO hit a deadlift German and tagged Liger.
Liger ran wild on all three opponents with shoteis. He connected on a top rope rana on Taguchi for a two count. Liger blocked one hip attack but Taguchi hit one on his next attempt.
YOH got a tag and got cut off with a hip attack. The match broke down and everyone jumped in for a move. SHO and YOH hit stereo knees on Tiger, then a backstabber into a one-legged dropkick.
The finish saw YOH pin Tiger with a dragon suplex. Both teams celebrated together after the match. Liger and Tiger embraced and Tiger was in tears. This was a great moment.
ELP and Ishimori ran out after the match and posted both members of 3K ahead of their Wrestle Kingdom bout. ELP hit both YOH with a belt shot, then hit a low blow on SHO. Romero entered and Ishimori and ELP hit him with a 3K.
SANADA & SHINGO TAKAGI DEFEATED ZACK SABRE JR. & TAICHI
You can see SANADA and Sabre working out their Wrestle Kingdom match in these preview tags.
SANADA and Sabre started off. They did some grappling. Sabre used an armbar, then transitioned to a triangle. SANADA used the threat of a powerbomb to force a break. They rolled outside and Suzuki-gun turned this into a crowd brawl.
Back inside, Sabre and Taichi worked on SANADA”s left arm. SANADA managed a tag to Shingo. Shingo and Taichi exchanged some strikes. Shingo hit a Pumping Bomber but could not follow up, then it was back to the real focus of the match with Sabre and SANADA.
SANADA and Sabre traded some strikes, then used a series of cradles almost exactly like te oe they used last night. This time, though, SANADA used a European clutch to pin Sabre.
Sabre sold this big, like he couldn’t believe he was beaten with one of his own holds. Good match.
HIROOKI GOTO, TOMOHIRO ISHII, DAVID FINLAY & JUICE ROBINSON DEFEATED KENTA, YUJIRO TAKAHASHI, TAMA TONGA & TANGA LOA
Bullet Club isolated Finlay and worked him over in their corner for a long time. Juice got a hot tag and hit Tonga with a cannonball. He set up the Left Hand of God, but Loa jumped in to save Tonga.
Finlay entered to even the odds and Juice and Finlay hit stereo clotheslines before tagging out. Goto and KENTA tagged in. KENTA hit some hard strikes and used a draping DDT for a near fall. They traded corner clotheslines. Goto hit a bulldog for a near fall.
Goto tried for an ushigoroshi but KENTA blocked. Jado used a kendo stick shot from the floor. Everyone brawled on the floor. Yujiro and G.O.D. tripled up on Goto in the ring. Yujiro hit a basement dropkick and made a cover, but Ishii saved.
Yujiro teased Pimp Juice. Finlay saved. The match broke down and everyone jumped in. Goto hit Yuiro with an ushigoroshi. Ishii followed up with a sliding lariat on Yujiro. Goto then used the GTR to earn the pin.
KOTA IBUSHI & HIROSHI TANAHASHI DEFEATED JAY WHITE & CHASE OWENS
White and Owens gave Ibushi a half-hearted offer to join Bullet Club before the match. Ibushi declined and got jumped before the bell.
Ibushi did fine for himself in the early going. He hit a series of kicks and a dropkick. Tana tagged in and hit a second rope crossbody on Owens. Owens and Tana both used hair pulls. White joined in from the apron, pulling Tanahashi’s hair. This allowed Bullet Club to take over.
On the outside, Ibushi got whipped up and over the barricade. Tana got sent into the barricade. Back in the ring, White used a dragon screw on Tana. White and Owens continued to work on the left leg. Tana came back with a dragon screw on Owens, then tagged out.
Ibushi was the proverbial house of fire. He hit a springboard dropkick to Owens, then a pescado to White. Gedo held Ibsuhi’s ankles from the floor which allowed White to hit a DDT, then a DVD. White teased a sleeper suplex but Ibushi blocked. Ibushi hit a snap rana. White answered with an immediate snap suplex.
White tagged Owens. Ibushi came back with a backflip kick and made a hot tag to Tanahashi. Tana hit a flying forearm, a slam, a second rope somersault senton, and picked up a two count.
Owens blocked a slingblade attempt. White jumped in for a Blade Buster. Owens hit a shining wizard for a two count, then used the Jewel Heist for another.
Owens hit a jumping knee strike. Tana blocked a package piledriver and hit Twist and Shout. Tana hit slingblade. White jumped in and teased a Blade Runner but Ibushi saved.
Ibushi sent White outside, then hit a Bomaye on Owens. Tana followed with a High Fly Flow to Owens for the pin.
KAZUCHIKA OKADA, WILL OSPREAY, ROBBIE EAGLES & YOSHI-HASHI DEFEATED TETSUYA NAITO, HIROMU TAKAHASHI, EVIL & BUSHI
Okada broke cleanly after the opening lockup. Okada went for an early Rainmaker but Naito ducked it, then used a headlock takeover. BUSHI got a tag and Okada hit an elbow drop before tagging Ospreay. Hiromu then tagged in.
Ospreay and Hiromu had a crazy exchange of counters and reversals, similar to last night. Hiromu hit a flying headscissors. Ospreay hit a flip kick. Ospreay and Eagles doubled up on Hiromu. Ospreay hit some kicks near the neck to play on Hiromu’s injury.
YOSHI-HASHI entered to continue the CHAOS beatdown on Hiromu. I barely recognized YH without his shoulder tape. Okada tagged in and baited Hiromu into throwing some chops. Okada hit a neckbreaker.
Ospreay tried an Oscutter but Hiromu pulled him out of the air with a German suplex. hiromu finally managed a tag to EVIL, who used a fisherman buster on YH for a near fall. EVIL tried Everything is EVIL, but YH blocked.
EVIL and YH had a chop battle. EVIL tried a misdirection spot out of the corner, but YH hit a lariat. Okada tagged in and peppered EVIL with punches. Okada hit a running back elbow strike in the center, then another in the corner. EVIL hit a ref-assisted thrust kick and tagged out.
Naito hit a low dropkick and a neckbreaker on Okada, then stomped on his neck. They traded strikes. Okada hit a shotgun dropkick. He teased a tombstone, but Naito blocked and hit a flying forearm. Naito tried Destino, Okada blocked. Naito ducked a Rainmaker. Okada hit a flapjack.
BUSHI and Eagles got tags after a double down. BUSHI hit a neckbreaker for a two count. Eagles used a 619 to BUSHI’s legs. Ospreay blind-tagged in and Ospreya and Eagles hit tandem kicks on BUSHI.
BUSHI avoided Pip Pip Cheerio. EVIL hit Ospreay with a lariat. Naito hit a basement dropkick. BUSHI covered, but YH saved. BUSHI teased an MX. Everyone jumped in for their big move at the end, with Okada’s dropkick on Naito the highlight.
Ospreay hit Pip Pip Cheerio on BUSHI. He tried a Storm Breaker, but BUSHI reversed into a cradle for a two count. BUSHI hit a rewind kick. Ospreay hit a tiger wall flip kick, then a hook kick. Hiromu tried to save for BUSHI, but Eagles saved.
Ospreay hit Hidden Blade on BUSHI, then used Storm Breaker. While Eagles held Hiromu at bay, Ospreay pinned BUSHI.
This was a fun main event. Ospreay and Hiromu had a staredown after the closing bell, as did Naito and Okada.
Ospreay closed the show with a promo. He spoke some Japanese. As he did last night, he used some heel verbiage and mannerisms. He called himself unbeatable and said Hiromu did better tonight but will need to try harder to beat him at Wrestle Kingdom.