[2003-07-21-NJPW Summer Struggle 2003] Kazunari Murakami vs Shinsuke Nakamura

[Ma Stump Puller]

Oh how I'd love to have seen this with a Nakamura from a few years later. Not to say that he was bad here, just nowhere near seasoned enough to get the most out of a matchup like this. Match was still quite solid though.

Murakami runs in early for the rush of strikes and corner stomp spot. Mura shit-talks and the two exchange shots, with Nakamura's forearms and slaps winning out. Match slows as Nakamura and co get weary of the other, so we see lots of takedowns and sprawling to escape them. Smooth mat-work as Murakami effortlessly escapes multiple kneebar attempts, trying for a toe-hold and a head/arm choke. The sticker comes when he tries to pry the arms open for a armbreaker as Naka arches over and tries for his own toe-hold, but the pair roll into the ropes. We get more wrestling on the mat as Nakamura pulls out the Sakuraba cartwheel into mount trick, but he's way too slow doing it and so it looks like ass by comparison. He makes up with a cool rolling toe-hold so it's even. Naka applies his Triangle Choke (which was a killer move of his at the time) another rope break. His frustration on the mat leads him to instead go for risky bombs, throwing in a belly to belly and pretty dangerous looking powerbomb to counter a kick off his opponent.

The finish is pretty cheap, however I think it works into the dynamic well. Naka is in his Muay Thai clinch and throwing forearms and knees; he makes the mistake of going for more punishment instead of a conclusive final bomb, in doing so Mura manages to slip out and snap on a rolling cross armbreaker to steal the win. Murakami post-match is a huge dickhead as he goes for a handshake from the arm that's all messed up from the armbreaker lol. Anyway, if you dig Inoki-Ism stuff then this is enjoyable. It's nice to see a actual somewhat compelling technical wrestling bout from Murakami given most of his NJPW stuff leans into the more crazy brawling side of his arsenal as a performer, and Nakamura for his credit wasn't too bad at it either, even if it isn't something he really excels in working with. If you're looking for Battlarts-tier quality out of Murakami this will definitely NOT be satisfying despite being pretty robust in its own right.