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NJPW Young Lions Cup, March 1985


gordi

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NJPW Young Lions Cup Night One, March 8th, Tokyo Korakuen Hall

 

Black Cat and Enrique Vera vs The Cobras

This is my first time in Korakuen as part of the crew. You have to love the Korakuen crowds. Hard core fans. My kind of people. Black Cat and Enrique Vera are both under six feet tall, so the sight of Shunji Takano towering over them made them natural under-dogs. On the other hand, the hard core fans love Shunji’s brother George, AKA The Cobra, a lot. So, we got the strange spectacle of one member of a tag team being booed while the other was cheered. The Cobra took a great Quebradora Backbreaker from Vera for a near fall, but came back to win it with his Tombstone variation.

 

The Strong Machines vs Mr. Pogo, Kendo Nagasaki, and Umanosuke Ueda

The crowd’s loyalties weren’t nearly so torn in this one. Pogo, Nagasaki, and Ueda just cheated like crazy, even tearing SM#3’s mask up a bit. Eventually SM#1 got the hot tag and took some revenge on the heels before putting Ueda down for the count with the Majin Fusha Gatami.

 

YLC Round 1 - Steven Regal (AWA) vs Naoki Sano

The first match of the first round of our Young Lions Cup. Sano and Regal just tore into each other from the opening bell. Sano threw kick after kick and Regal answered back with a flurry of stiff European Uppercuts. Then they took it to the mat where they seemed to be legitimately trying to stretch each other. There were some nice counters and reversals and Sano caught Regal in a dangerous-looking Lotus Hold Can Opener. Regal made it to the ropes, however, and once the wrestlers were back on their feet the young Brit took over, nailing a Double Underhook Suplex followed by a Bridging Belly-to-Back for the pin.

 

YLC Round 1 - Masa Chono vs Hirokazu Hata

This match was basic, solid chain wrestling with Chono on offense for the majority of the eight minutes, wearing Hata down and eventually transitioning from a Stepover Toe Hold into a Sleeper Hold that put Hata away.

 

**BREAK**

 

YLC Round 1 - Owen Hart (MACW) vs Shunji Kosugi

The young second-generation Canadian only started training seriously in 1983, and he has had just a few months of experience working for his father in Canada and for Max Crabtree in England. In the ring against a fine carpenter like Kosugi, however, he looked like a seasoned veteran. The two worked a technical match that would have made Karl Gotch proud, trading holds and counters for almost fifteen minutes. Hart took the match with a gorgeous Northern Lights Suplex, bridging to hold Kosugi down for the pin.

 

YLC Round 1 - Keiichi Yamada vs 2 Cold Scorpio (MACW)

I gave these two the green light to go out there and steal the show, and they drove the crowd into an absolute frenzy with over fifteen minutes of non-stop fast-paced action. Both men bumped like crazy as they flew in and out of the ring. Yamada showed real flashes of the truly *GREAT* wrestler that he is destined to become, and the young American was with him every step of the way. Scorpio almost won by count-out after nailing Yamada with an insane Corkscrew Plancha, but the NJPW dojo graduate beat the count and then took the match after nailing Scorpio with three consecutive Abisegeri Kicks. After taking a moment to recover, the two wrestlers met in the middle of the ring for a show of mutual respect while the crowd showed their appreciation.

 

Tatsumi Fujinami, Kengo Kimura, and Shiro Koshinaka vs Canek, Dos Caras, and Fishman

Following their somewhat disappointing performance in the Tag Festival finals, Fujinami, Kimura, Dos Caras and Canek approached me to ask for a second chance. After discussing it with Yuka and consulting Doriya-mon’s Good Advice Doll I offered them a chance to wrestle a six-man tag on Night One of the young Lions Cup and – if that went well- an opportunity for a re-match on the Final Night.

Later, word got back to me that Inoki was furious that I had made this booking decision. He never said anything to me directly, and I never heard anything from any of the people that I know I can trust… but, still, I felt a lot of pressure as this match was about to start. There was a chance that, if they performed poorly again and Inoki was unhappy about it, I would have to face the consequences of his anger. The tension actually got to me, and I went backstage to avoid watching the match unfold.

From the dressing room, I listened to the crowd. They were quiet at first, but eventually there was scattered cheering and applause and a few people here and there calling out their favourite wrestler’s name. The crowd noise continued to build and around the 20-minute mark I could hear them stomping and cheering loudly. I popped back inside in time to see Canek and Kimura brawling on the floor and Koshinaka Holding Dos Caras back as Fujinami locked in the Dragon Sleeper and squeezed down on Fishman.

Yuka ran to my side. “They did well,” she told me, “Look at Inoki.”

He was smiling.

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Thank you, gentlemen!

NJPW Young Lions Cup Night Two, March 10th, Hiroshima Pref. Gym

Shiro Koshinaka and Kantaro Hoshino vs Black Tiger and Black Cat
A fast-paced, all-action opening match to fire up the crowd. Everybody got a near-fall, with Black Cat hitting a Bridging German on Koshinaka, Kosh hitting a Fisherman Driver on Black Tiger, Hoshino almost pinning Black Cat with a Diving Crossbody, and Rocco finally taking the win with a Black Tiger Bomb on Hoshino.

YLC Round 1 - Keiji Mutoh vs Akira Nogami
Both men worked the leg in this one, hitting Dragon Screws and Low Dropkicks in addition to the requisite mat work. Mutoh sold a lot for Nogami, but at around the 14 minute mark he took over with a Leaping Clothesline followed up by two more Dragon Screws and a Figure Four in the middle of the ring to earn the victory.

YLC Round 1 - Sting (Lutte Int.) vs Tatsutoshi Goto
Sting dominated the first five minutes of this match with his size and power, but Goto got his revenge in the middle section of the match after dodging a Splash in the corner. Goto hit a series of backdrops but was unable to keep the big man down for the count. Desperate to put Sting away, the blonde Japanese heel went up to the top corner, but Sting beat him to the punch and threw Goto half way across the ring with a huge Press Slam from the top. He nailed Goto with a Running Leaping Elbow Drop, then stepped through the ropes and stood on the ring apron, waiting. As Goto unsteadily got back to his feet, Sting flew at him with a Slingshot Crossbody for the one, two three!

**BREAK**


YLC Round 1 - Rick Steiner (AWA) vs Masakatsu Funaki
This match was short but intense. Funaki hit Steiner with a series of very stiff kicks, enraging the massive American. The Dog Faced Gremlin came back with a couple of huge suplexes, tossing Funaki around without any apparent care for his safety. The two men then traded stiff strikes in the middle of the ring. When Funaki started to get the better of the strike exchange, Steiner simply took him down to the mat. Funaki surprised his larger opponent, though, by working quickly from the bottom position to secure a Triangle Choke that nearly put Steiner away. As he was starting to fade, however, Steiner struggled to his feet, lifted Funaki high into the air, and slammed him to the mat with all his strength. The Triangle Choke was broken and Funaki had the wind knocked out of him. Steiner hooked the leg, and three counts later the match was finished.

YLC Round 1 - Shinya Hashimoto vs Anoaro Atisanoe
This bout went twice as long as Funaki vs Steiner, but was worked at nearly the same level of intensity. Hash and Atisanoe threw bombs at each other right from the opening bell Chops, kicks, head-butts, elbows, forearms you name it, they threw it. Atisanoe kept working Hashimoto into position for the Samoan Drop, but Hash kept fighting his way out of trouble with knees and elbows. After sixteen minutes of Big Man Bomb Throwing action, Atisanoe finally hit his big move but he was too close to the ropes and Hash managed to get his foot up to break the pin. As Atisanoe yelled angrily at the referee, Hashimoto got back to his feet. The moment Atisanoe turned around to face him, Hashimoto threw a devastating High Roundhouse Kick that put the big Hawaiian-born fighter down for the count.

Antonio Inoki and Seiji Sakaguchi vs Dave Taylor and David Morgan
With Inoki, Sakaguchi, and Taylor already in the ring, an announcement was made that David Morgan was unable to participate in this match and a substitute wrestler was going to take his place. All eyes turned to the entranceway as John Williams famous Main Theme to Star Wars played and a very stocky man wearing black trunks and boots, a leather biker jacket and cap, and mirrored shades sauntered into the arena.
アドリアンアドニスです,ね Adrian Adonis desu, ne!
NJPW's latest gaijin addition bumped and stooged and sold like crazy for Inoki and Sakaguchi, but he and Taylor kept interfering to save each other whenever the Japanese team got close to a pinfall or submission. After twenty minutes of this, the frustration got to be too much for Inoki and Sakaguchi and the match devolved into an out of control brawl. The action spilled out of the ring, where Adonis was able to grab a folding chair. He rammed it into Inoki's gut and when Inoki bent over he brought the chair down across his back, knocking the ace to the ground. He was about to bust Inoki again, but Sakaguchi dove on top of his tag team partner, sacrificing himself to protect Inoki.
Adonis paused for a moment as if to consider his options, then simply dropped the chair and walked backstage with Taylor like the two of them didn't have a care in the world.

Adrian-Adonis.jpg

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Appreciate the kind words, as always. I'm pretty excited to write scenarios for Adonis and Bigelow... and maybe one more...

 

Also: Keep it kayfabe, but:

 

Giant Baba has been coming to meet me, in Tokyo and on the road, the last couple of weeks.

 

babababa.jpg

 

It's still a little too early to say 100 per cent for sure, but the two of us (and - this is totally top secret: Tiger Mask Sayama) have been working on a plan that could change the entire landscape of pro wrestling in Japan.

 

I'll let you know more as soon as things are confirmed.

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NJPW Young Lions Cup Night Three, March 15th, Miyazaki Pref. Gym

 

2 Cold Scorpio and Shunji Kosugi vs Akira Nogami and Hirokazu Hata

For about eight minutes, Hata sold for Scorp and Kosugi sold for Nogami. Then Scorpio nailed Hata with a Superkick, tagged Kosugi, knocked Nogami off the ring apron and flew after him with a Spinning Plancha… allowing Kosugi to pick up a rare-for-him clean pinfall win after crushing Hata with an Oklahoma Stampede.

If there is a downside to the blockbuster deal with Giant Baba, it’s that good wrestlers like Nogami and Kosugi are going to be stuck down at the very bottom of the super-stacked roster we are going to build.

 

YLC Round 2 - Keiichi Yamada vs Owen Hart (MACW)

So, kind of a personal mark-out moment for me: The man who will become Jushin Thunder Liger vs the 20-year-old Owen Hart. Their selling and transitions will get better as these guys grow and develop, but their athleticism and energy are already at an early peak and they showcased that with an incredibly fast pace and several mind-blowing exchanges. The crowd was definitely into this match, but I wonder if anyone else watching was aware that they were getting a glimpse of the future of professional wrestling. Yamada went over with a Bridging Wrist-clutch Leg Hook Belly-to-back Suplex after 17 minutes of sublime action.

 

YLC Round 2 - Sting (Lutte Int.) vs Keiji Mutoh

Yamada vs Hart was a tough act to follow, but these guys seemed inspired by the challenge. This was a match of athleticism, strength and speed vs athleticism, strength and speed. Each guy busted out their complete arsenal of power moves. Sting came very close to taking the match when he hit a Jumping DDT then applied a Scorpion Deathlock on Mutoh, but the NJPW Young Lion managed to roll through the hold so that Sting was face-down in the middle of the ring and Mutoh was standing, with their legs still entangled. Mutoh then bridged over backward and applied a Reverse Facelock to the prone Sting, who could not power out of the hold and was forced to tap.

 

**BREAK**

 

YLC Round 2 - Steven Regal (AWA) vs Masa Chono

This was a good solid technical match with lots of mat work, reversals, and counters. Regal worked a lot of Half-nelson variations and kept trying to catch Chono in the Crossface Chickenwing. Chono worked over Regal’s legs and neck and eventually managed to sink in a Stepover Toehold Facelock to make it into the semi-finals.

 

YLC Round 2 - Shinya Hashimoto vs Rick Steiner (AWA)

Unsurprisingly, this was the stiffest and most violent of the second-round YLC matches. Hashimoto managed to fight his way out of most of Steiner’s suplex and powerbomb attempts. The big American had more success working headlocks and going from there into takedowns and other manoeuvres. After getting a 2.999 near-fall off of a Bulldog, Steiner went to the top corner to attempt a Diving Bulldog to finish off the dazed Young Lion, but Hashimoto caught him with a desperation Spinning Heel Kick as Steiner was in mid-air, giving Hashimoto a come-from-behind victory and setting up an all-NJPW dojo graduate Final Four.

.

Antonio Inoki, Tatsumi Fujinami, and Seiji Sakaguchi vs Adrian Adonis, Umanosuke Ueda, and Tatsutoshi Goto

Inoki was still furious after having been attacked with a chair. He went after Adonis from the opening bell and almost ended up disqualified or counted out a couple of times. Adonis took everything that the company ace could dish out and kept coming back for more, like some kind of unstoppable monster.

The rest of the match kind of played as background material for the developing Inoki vs Adonis feud. Ueda and Goto took frequent advantage of the distracted referee to attack Inoki’s partners with cheap shots and foreign objects. Fujinami got busted open fairly early in the match, but that only seemed to make him angry. Unlike Inoki, however, Fujinami managed to keep his cool, and in the end Sakaguchi hit Goto with an Atomic Drop and tagged in Fujinami, who finished things off with a Flying Cross Body.

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NJPW Young Lions Cup Semi-Finals, March 20th, Kagoshima Pref. Gym

 

Sting, Owen Hart, and 2 Cold Scorpio vs Shunji Takano, Black Cat, and David Morgan

 

Steven Regal and Masakatsu Funaki vs Rick Steiner and Naoki Sano

 

Kengo Kimura and Shiro Koshinaka vs Canek and Fishman

 

The Machines vs Adrian Adonis, Anoaro Atisanoe, and Mr. Pogo

 

** BREAK**

 

YLC Round 3 - Keiji Mutoh vs Keiichi Yamada

 

YLC Round 3 - Masa Chono vs Shinya Hashimoto

 

Tatsumi Fujinami vs Dos Caras

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NJPW Young Lions Cup Final Night, March 23rd, Fukuoka Sports Center

 

Akira Nogami vs Siva Afi

 

(YLC Tournament runners-up) vs Hirokazu Hata and Shunji Kosugi

 

Special Guest Referee: Rick Steiner and Naoki Sano vs Masakatsu Funaki and Steven Regal

 

Pat Patterson, Ray Stevens, Umanosuke Ueda and Tatsutoshi Goto vs Sting, Owen Hart, 2 Cold Scorpio, and Kantaro Hoshino

 

**BREAK**

Young Lions Cup Final Match: Participants TBD

 

Antonio Inoki, Seiji Sakaguchi, and Strong Machine #1 vs One Man Gang, Great Kokina, and Anoaro Atisanoe

 

IWGP Tag Titles First Defense: Canek and Dos Caras © vs Tatsumi Fujinami and Kengo Kimura

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Interesting Young Lions Cup you got going. Enjoyed the Sting-Mutoh match the most. I think it was smart to have all Japanese final 4. Makes the people of Japan think that their future is so bright.

 

 

Yep. That's exactly 100 percent my thinking behind booking it that way.

 

Also, I tried to give every visiting gaijin some good footage they could use "back home" Steiner, Regal, Sting, and Owen each got a win their promoters can show on TV if they want, and Scorp got to work a **** match with Liger... hopefully everyone is happy. (and there is a little more still to come).

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Zero complaints whatsoever with the Young Lions Cup. Everyone in the tournament has their chance to shine, even in the non-tournament matches. Really liked Yamada vs Owen and Sting vs Mutoh.

 

And Adrian Adonis will sure prove to be a powerhouse in New Japan very shortly!

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Young Lion cup isn't my biggest cup of tea but I like the movement and how New Japan is changing. If the rumors are true and change is on the horizon in the Orient... the wrestling world is going to be shaken to its very core.

 

 

On a side note, I am playing a 1988 mod of TEW 2016... In early 1989, Antonio Inoki dies... I had Misawa take over New Japan and they are still in the lead over All Japan...

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Zero complaints whatsoever with the Young Lions Cup. Everyone in the tournament has their chance to shine, even in the non-tournament matches. Really liked Yamada vs Owen and Sting vs Mutoh.

 

And Adrian Adonis will sure prove to be a powerhouse in New Japan very shortly!

Thanks. I'm learning from reading you and agentofenton's co-booked shows how to give visiting wrestlers the chance to shine.

 

 

 

Young Lion cup isn't my biggest cup of tea but I like the movement and how New Japan is changing. If the rumors are true and change is on the horizon in the Orient... the wrestling world is going to be shaken to its very core.

 

 

On a side note, I am playing a 1988 mod of TEW 2016... In early 1989, Antonio Inoki dies... I had Misawa take over New Japan and they are still in the lead over All Japan...

 

 

I love TEW. An All Japan legend taking over New Japan, eh? GIves me ideas...

 

Damn, looks like Misawa had a good business acumen even at a young age then!

I would bet he actually did. Just seems like that kind of guy. Giant Baba made a fortune in real estate. It wouldn't surprise me if some of the boys learned a thing or two about business from him.

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NJPW Young Lions Cup Semi-Finals, March 20th, Kagoshima Pref. Gym

 

Sting, Owen Hart, and 2 Cold Scorpio vs Shunji Takano, Black Cat, and David Morgan

A fun showcase for our visiting Young Lions. The 6’7” Takano sold and bumped all over the ring making Sting’s power moves look particularly awesome, and he paid tribute to Stu Hart by selling like crazy for his son Owen. David Morgan also brought out thoughts of The Dungeon as he and Owen took it to the mat and worked through a variety of submission holds and creative reversals. Then Black Cat and Owen picked up the pace with a little high-flying offense, and finally 2 Cold Scorpio took it into overdrive by working a crazy five-minute sprint against Black Cat that ended with a Flying Somersault Legdrop for the win.

 

Steven Regal and Masakatsu Funaki vs Rick Steiner and Naoki Sano

A stiff, nasty match that quickly grew out of control. Steiner seemed to lose his temper about nine minutes in, after Regal held him open and Funaki blasted him with several stiff kicks to the gut. The Dog Faced Gremlin started throwing closed-fist punches and when the ref tried to stop it, Steiner punched him, too. With the ref down things went absolutely bonzo gonzo, and Inoki, Sakaguchi, The Strong Machines, Sting, and Dave Taylor had to come to ringside to restore order. Inoki announced to the crowd that the two teams would meet again on March 23rd, at the Fukuoka Sports Center, with a special guest referee who Inoki *guarantees* will be able to keep control of the match.

 

Kengo Kimura and Shiro Koshinaka vs Canek and Fishman

About five minutes into this match, Kengo Kimura took a bad bump off of a Running Drop Kick and his shoulder popped grotesquely out of the socket. He bravely tried to continue the match, but it was obvious that something was seriously wrong. Referee Verne Siebert made an audible in the ring and called for the boys to go home early. Kimura tagged Koshinaka in, The Lucha Legends trapped Kosh in their corner, and a couple of minutes and one Dos Caras Clutch later they made their way backstage where Kimura could get some medical attention.

Fortunately, the dislocation won’t require surgery, but it looks like we are going to have to make a change in our main event on the 23rd, as there is no way Kimura will be good to go by then.

 

The Machines vs Adrian Adonis, Anoaro Atisanoe, and Mr. Pogo

A short, violent brawl that ended when Adonis nailed SM#3 with a DDT while the other four men were mixing it up on the floor. Atisanoe and Strong Machine #1 got into another heated exchange after the bell, drawing Seiji Sakaguchi down to ringside to help restore order. Atisanoe shoved Sakaguchi and demanded that he and SM#1 find a partner to face him and two BIG friends in Fukuoka on the 23rd.

 

** BREAK**

 

YLC Round 3 - Keiji Mutoh vs Keiichi Yamada

It was tough not to think of this as “Great Muta vs. Jushin Liger” but these are still two young boys, learning their trade. Through “I know what these guys will someday become” eyes, the match was OK but nothing too special. Through “These guys were still in the dojo a year ago” eyes, the match was amazing. Mutoh really is a lot bigger than Yamada, by about seven inches of height and thirty pounds of muscle. I think what they did best was keep the crowd believing that Yamada had a real chance to win it all, right up until the end. It was a pretty dammed good ending too: Yamada managed to get the larger man up into position for a power bomb, but Mutoh reversed it into a Head Scissors Take-down and from there grabbed a Double Leg Cradle for the pin.

 

YLC Round 3 - Masa Chono vs Shinya Hashimoto

This was the longest match in the tournament by several minutes. The match built and built, along classic NJPW lines: Starting with mat-work, which Chono got the best of, the progressing to strikes, where Hashimoto came out on top, the finally to the big power moves, which Hashimoto more or less dominated. Chono got a near-fall off of a Kenka Kick around 20 minutes in, and hooked in the STF about 5 minutes later, but they were too close to the ropes. After that, Hashimoto clubbed Chono around the ring, threw him into the corner and kicked him again and again, then put him down for three with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster.

 

Tatsumi Fujinami vs Dos Caras

A nice, twenty-minute, back-and-forth technical wrestling match. Like their thirty-minute draw in Nagoya back in January, they worked everything as a real struggle, with lots of defensive wrestling and a ton of interesting reversals. They stayed on the mat for the first two thirds of the match, and then spent the last seven minutes escalating through their big moves. Dos Caras got near falls off of a Quebradora con Giro and a Diving Cross-body. Fujinami returned fire with a Dragon Backbreaker and a Diving Cross-body of his own. In the end, it was the Dragon Suplex that put Dos Caras away.

 

carasfujinami2.jpg

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