Post by Agent Kev on Sept 1, 2004 21:02:56 GMT -5
Best of the Super Jr. Quarterfinals: Koji Kanemoto vs Ultimo Dragon
Good overall match that saw a big contrast of styles. Ultimo controlled the majority of the match. Finish came when Kanemoto locked in the ankle lock but Ultimo got out and tried a majestral cradle which Kanemoto reversed for the win. Good opener.
Best of the Super Jr. Quarterfinals: Heat vs Masahito Kakihara
I liked this a lot. Kakihara is really growing on me (he reminds me a lot of Rocky Romero but more shoot style oriented). Kakihara comes into this match with a bandaged knee and even though he dominated Heat during the first 3/4 of this match he still shows his knee is a weakness as Heat often gets in blows to soften him up. Match gets going when Heat gains the offense with a leglock and he clamps it on and keeps pulling Kakihara back to the center of the ring. Eventually Kakihara gets to the ropes but the damage was done. Finish comes when Heat goes for the Minoru Special (armbar takedown) but Kakihara locks his hands so Heat can't pull back and get the move into position for the submission. Heat counter this by keeping the arm and also hooking Kakihara in a pinning position by grapevining his leg and gets the 3 count to advance. Good stuff, this was better than Kanemoto/Ultimo.
Makai Ichiro, Mitsuya Nagai & Ryushi Yanagisawa vs Tatsutoshi Goto, Hiro Saito & Toru Yano
Ummm...yeah...next.
Rocky Romero & Minoru Suzuki vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Ryusuke Taguchi
Pretty good match but it was hella fun seeing Nakamura and Romero lock up and go at it. Good stuff. Romero is definitely in his environment in NJPW. He has looked tremendous in every match I've seen him in. Rocky! Rocky! Rocky!
Best of the Super Jr. Semifinals: Koji Kanemoto vs American Dragon
Really solid match here. Basic story of Kanemoto setting up Dragon by going after the legs and Dragon setting up Kanemoto by going after his neck. Dragon controls most of the match until he gets his leg caught in the ropes and Kanemoto makes him pay. Nice finish where Kanemoto blocks Dragon's New Japan suplex finisher and reverses it into his leglock finihser. Dragon then reverses into a standing leglock of his own which causes Kanemoto to reverse into a bad ass pimped out version of a leglock for the T-A-P. Good stuff.
Best of the Super Jr. Semifinals: Tiger Mask IV vs Heat
Another solid semi-finals match-up. TMIV brings the lucha esque offense and Heat brings the quick strikes and submission offense. Good overall match with a hot backslide ending that I didn't see coming. Good stuff and I'm sure Kanemoto vs. TMIV will deliver in the finals like they did in their title match last year.
Yuji Nagata, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Yutaka Yoshie vs Masahiro Chono, Manabu Nakanishi & Genichiro Tenryu
I liked this a lot. Nothing spectacular but just solid all around. Sometimes I get bored with the NJPW Heavyweight scene but they really seem to have freshened it up with Tenryu, Sasaki and MiSuzuki (and also the elevation of Nakamura and Tanahashi) as this gives them new and unique match-ups instead of the same ol same ol that it seems New Japan was doing in 2003.
Kazunari Murakami & Katsuyori Shibata vs Osamu Nishimura & Hiroyoshi Tenzan
Interesting clash of styles here between the old guard and the new guard. I'm still not sold on Shibata's push as I just haven't seen anything great from him (yet). Strange finish as Murakami and Shibata pepper Nishimura with offense and pin him as Tenzan watches from the outside.
Best of the Super Jr. Finals: Tiger Mask IV vs Koji Kanemoto
This was fun as sh*t. It was quite a simplistic match but worked very well. TM4 started on offense with a flurry hitting 2 dives to the floor mixed in with dropkicks, a top rope flying headbutt, and a powerbomb. Koji gained the advantage by attacking TM4's legs and grounded him for a short time with the ankle lock. Kanemoto then hit some boot scrapes, a second turnbuckle corkscrew senton, a top rope moonault for a very near fall and a falcon arrow. TM4 then went for a backslide but Koji used the momentum for a backslide of his own for a very near fall. TM4 then caught Koji in a cross faced chicken wing (at least that's what it looked like to me), then hit Koji with a sick German where Koji landed on his noggin. TM4 worked over Koji again with the cross faced chicken wing and this time turned it into a suplex (he calls it the Milenium Suplex) again dumping Koji on his noggin. TM4 then hit his patented standing backflip double knee drop on Koji and then KILLED him with a Tiger Suplex for the win and the BOSJ tournament crown. Good stuff. Check it out!
Good overall match that saw a big contrast of styles. Ultimo controlled the majority of the match. Finish came when Kanemoto locked in the ankle lock but Ultimo got out and tried a majestral cradle which Kanemoto reversed for the win. Good opener.
Best of the Super Jr. Quarterfinals: Heat vs Masahito Kakihara
I liked this a lot. Kakihara is really growing on me (he reminds me a lot of Rocky Romero but more shoot style oriented). Kakihara comes into this match with a bandaged knee and even though he dominated Heat during the first 3/4 of this match he still shows his knee is a weakness as Heat often gets in blows to soften him up. Match gets going when Heat gains the offense with a leglock and he clamps it on and keeps pulling Kakihara back to the center of the ring. Eventually Kakihara gets to the ropes but the damage was done. Finish comes when Heat goes for the Minoru Special (armbar takedown) but Kakihara locks his hands so Heat can't pull back and get the move into position for the submission. Heat counter this by keeping the arm and also hooking Kakihara in a pinning position by grapevining his leg and gets the 3 count to advance. Good stuff, this was better than Kanemoto/Ultimo.
Makai Ichiro, Mitsuya Nagai & Ryushi Yanagisawa vs Tatsutoshi Goto, Hiro Saito & Toru Yano
Ummm...yeah...next.
Rocky Romero & Minoru Suzuki vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Ryusuke Taguchi
Pretty good match but it was hella fun seeing Nakamura and Romero lock up and go at it. Good stuff. Romero is definitely in his environment in NJPW. He has looked tremendous in every match I've seen him in. Rocky! Rocky! Rocky!
Best of the Super Jr. Semifinals: Koji Kanemoto vs American Dragon
Really solid match here. Basic story of Kanemoto setting up Dragon by going after the legs and Dragon setting up Kanemoto by going after his neck. Dragon controls most of the match until he gets his leg caught in the ropes and Kanemoto makes him pay. Nice finish where Kanemoto blocks Dragon's New Japan suplex finisher and reverses it into his leglock finihser. Dragon then reverses into a standing leglock of his own which causes Kanemoto to reverse into a bad ass pimped out version of a leglock for the T-A-P. Good stuff.
Best of the Super Jr. Semifinals: Tiger Mask IV vs Heat
Another solid semi-finals match-up. TMIV brings the lucha esque offense and Heat brings the quick strikes and submission offense. Good overall match with a hot backslide ending that I didn't see coming. Good stuff and I'm sure Kanemoto vs. TMIV will deliver in the finals like they did in their title match last year.
Yuji Nagata, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Yutaka Yoshie vs Masahiro Chono, Manabu Nakanishi & Genichiro Tenryu
I liked this a lot. Nothing spectacular but just solid all around. Sometimes I get bored with the NJPW Heavyweight scene but they really seem to have freshened it up with Tenryu, Sasaki and MiSuzuki (and also the elevation of Nakamura and Tanahashi) as this gives them new and unique match-ups instead of the same ol same ol that it seems New Japan was doing in 2003.
Kazunari Murakami & Katsuyori Shibata vs Osamu Nishimura & Hiroyoshi Tenzan
Interesting clash of styles here between the old guard and the new guard. I'm still not sold on Shibata's push as I just haven't seen anything great from him (yet). Strange finish as Murakami and Shibata pepper Nishimura with offense and pin him as Tenzan watches from the outside.
Best of the Super Jr. Finals: Tiger Mask IV vs Koji Kanemoto
This was fun as sh*t. It was quite a simplistic match but worked very well. TM4 started on offense with a flurry hitting 2 dives to the floor mixed in with dropkicks, a top rope flying headbutt, and a powerbomb. Koji gained the advantage by attacking TM4's legs and grounded him for a short time with the ankle lock. Kanemoto then hit some boot scrapes, a second turnbuckle corkscrew senton, a top rope moonault for a very near fall and a falcon arrow. TM4 then went for a backslide but Koji used the momentum for a backslide of his own for a very near fall. TM4 then caught Koji in a cross faced chicken wing (at least that's what it looked like to me), then hit Koji with a sick German where Koji landed on his noggin. TM4 worked over Koji again with the cross faced chicken wing and this time turned it into a suplex (he calls it the Milenium Suplex) again dumping Koji on his noggin. TM4 then hit his patented standing backflip double knee drop on Koji and then KILLED him with a Tiger Suplex for the win and the BOSJ tournament crown. Good stuff. Check it out!
