[2019-03-09-NJPW-New Japan Cup: Day Two] Kazuchika Okada vs Michael Elgin

[paul sosnowski]

First round match of the 2019 New Japan Cup.   Talk about it here

[nivvad]

Elgin rarely gets to have great singles matches nowadays, but he certainly still has the skill to put one on when given the chance. The first half of the match was a bit lukewarm because the crowd didn't think Elgin had a chance of winning, but by the end they were second guessing. Elgin put on a great performance as he countered almost everything Okada threw at him, including moves and sequences that had beaten him before. Once again, it was one mistake that cost him the match, ****1/2.

[WingedEagle]

While this didn't approach their 2017 G1 match in Korakuen Hall, it was another worthy outing from these two.  Unlike that affair the first 10-15 minutes here were solid but unspectacular and highlighted by Elgin's stiff chops and arm work.  Unfortunately the latter didn't play a factor down the stretch but they built to some major bombs and near falls that made for a pretty great finishing stretch.

***3/4