gordi

That tournament is going to be absolutely sick. With that, WrestleMania, the Rougeau Cup, the Mid-South/CCW/USWA situation, Clash of the Champions... Not to mention the paradigm shift coming to Japan... This version of the world of pro wrestling in 1985 is on fire.

Do unto others *before* they can do unto you.

Fantastic. Thanks for the write-up.

Thanks. I'm learning from reading you and agentofenton's co-booked shows how to give visiting wrestlers the chance to shine. I love TEW. An All Japan legend taking over New Japan, eh? GIves me ideas... 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.

My mistake! I misread the post and thought this was a tag team tournament. For a singles tournament, we would like to send young up-and-comers Toshiaki Kawada, Nobuhiko Takada, Masa Chono, and Yoji Anjo

It's jumping the gun a little bit, but the (two weeks in the future) JWA would like to send The Cobras (George and Shunji Takano and Footloose (the young team of Toshiaki Kawada and Samson Fuyuki) to participate in the tournament. Neither team needs to be protected, particularly.

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).

I'm really getting excited for this. Just a couple of weeks away now!

I have to wonder how Benoit's career (and life) might have turned out if he'd got his start in the southern territories. "Rad Warriors" is the best typo ever! I'm imagining them in a Dynamic Dudes type of gimmick: carrying skateboards, wearing backwards caps, neon sunglasses, and Bermuda shorts... "...faster than a jack rabbit running away from a hungry bobcat" is perfect Jim Ross.

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

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

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.

Bret vs Austin, Savage vs Steamboat, Bret vs Owen, and Bret vs Piper are all among my favourite US matches of all time. Benoit's big win and the celebration with Eddie, and Bryan's big win and the crowd going mental with the "YES!" chants were both utterly tremendous in the moment.

It's so true. I always get a little weirded out when it seems like people would much rather fight about the stuff they like than share in the joy of the stuff they like. Not that arguing about stuff isn't also fun. It totally is... But shared joy is so much better. A writer I know once told me, "Shared joy is doubled. Shared sorrow is halved." I am quite sure that's basically correct. I'm not exactly the world's most informed lucha libre fan, but I do enjoy a little Mexican wrestling from time to time. That simple fact has helped me to form friendships with other people I have met here in Japan who also like lucha libre, including some professional wrestlers. I have a little green towel that I sometimes use when I go to the gym. It is a souvenir from a Dos Caras/Gran Hamada show that was held a few years ago. The guy who gave me the towel was one of the wrestlers on that show. I get a little kick of joy every time I use it. In some ways, and particularly when t comes to creating a sense of community, it' can also be nice when the things we like are niche or even unfashionable. I like Japanese sake (nihonshu) a lot. Even here in Japan, it's not super popular. If I meet someone else who enjoys seeking out and tasting rare sake, we can almost immediately form a bond over our mutual unfashionable passion. It's not the same if I meet someone who likes beer. I mean, sure, we might go for a beer together... but if you wanna go to a sake bar it's going to be more memorable for me. So... Maybe Dave and everyone else who may or may not underrate Mexican Wrestling is doing us lucha nerds an unintentional favour. Maybe if Mexican wrestling was all the rage, I never would have bonded with the friend who gave me that little green towel. It *is* nice when others like the same things we do, because it satisfies that beautiful human urge to share our joy... ... but it can also be nice to like good things that are under the radar of the zeitgeist. It allows us to connect with like-minded people.

I added El Canek to the cards in full force, hope you feel he was well represented.That Feb. 8th main event sounds like a barn-burner. I wouldn't mind reading a bit more about what happened in that match.

VERY exciting stuff, obviously. Can't wait to see how it all plays out.

I like where the tag tournament seems to be heading, and that brawl was the perfect way to end your show.

Looking forward to the tournament!

Having despicable heel champs like Honkey and the Platinum Club is a great way to heat things up quickly!

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. 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.

Some very intriguing news from overseas for those who are fans of Japanese Pro Wrestling: Antonio Inoki, who is arguably the biggest name and the biggest draw in all of Japanese wrestling, has been seen in several locations in Tokyo talking with Akira Maeda. Maeda left NJPW in 1984 to form a "Shoot Style" promotion, called the Universal Wrestling Federation, with Fujiwara, Sayama (the original Tiger Mask), and others. Rumor has it that Maeda and Sayama have been feuding over the direction of the UWF. It's also been rumored in the past that Maeda refused to work a potential big-money program with Inoki, so the two of them being seen in discussion now is big news indeed. Furthermore, it has been reported by reliable sources that Shohei "Giant" Baba (the other major superstar of Japanese wrestling, and the founder of NJPW's rival promotion, All Japan Pro Wrestling) has been meeting with the current NJPW booker, "gordi." It's impossible to confirm what these men have been talking about, but it seems safe to say that these covert meetings could have a profound impact on the entire puroresu scene.

The two ring set up sounds like a nice gimmick.

No need to apologize. Letting us fill in the blanks is an effective storytelling technique. Sometimes I wonder how you imagine it going, though.

Did Terry pin Jaques, or tap him out with the Spinning Toe Hold? Or was it a win by DQ or CO? Just curious how you'd book that. I'm sure they gave the crowd a good show, however it finished.

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.