New Japan Pro Wrestling just wrapped their 46th Anniversary event. Headlined by Kazuchika Okada vs. Will Ospreay, the show was a brisk, fun celebration of the current era of NJPW stars. Since the show began at 5am EST, here’s a spoiler free list of matches with “Need To Watch” rating of 1-10, for all the non-nite owl NJPW fans.
RELATED: NJPW 46th Anniversary Show Results. Okada vs. Ospreay. Intercontinental Title Match. More.
Ryusuke Taguchi, Jushin “Thunder” Liger, Tiger Mask, KUSHIDA & Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Ren Narita, Tetsuhiro Yagi, Shota Umino, Tomoyuki Oka & Yuji Nagata.
This was a classic Young Lions vs. Third Generation match. Yuji Nagata led the Young Lions valiantly. Nothing essential, but a solid match from all around.
Need To Watch Rating: (1.0)
Toa Henare, David Finlay & Juice Robinson vs. CHAOS (Toru Yano, Tomohiro Ishii & Hirooki Goto)
A fast-paced, hard hitting contest. Especially recommended for fans of the young New Zealander, Toa Henare. He had plenty of offense in this match, and is already set to out pace his tag partner David Finlay. Yano, Ishii & Goto continue to be a fun use of these three heavy hitters.
Need To Watch Rating: (3.5)
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match: Champions Roppongi 3K vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI) vs. Suzuki-gun (Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado)
A wild three way tag that helped cement the pecking order in the Jr. Heavyweight Tag Division. BUSHI & Hiromu continue to work very effectively together. Kanemaru & Desperado played the role of wily veterans. Sho & Yoh have definitely not healed from their war with The Young Bucks. Really great match, with a must see finish.
Need To Watch Rating: (9.0)
Yoshi-Hashi vs. SANADA
This match benefitted greatly from Katsuya Kitamura’s injury. With Kitamura’s match with Nakanishi shelved, this match was given time to breathe. It led to both men proving their place in the main event scene. SANADA already proved that against Okada but Yoshi-Hashi showed a fire that he seemed to lack in his battle with Tetsuya Naito. Definitely recommended viewing.
Need To Watch Rating: (8.9)
Tetsuya Naito vs. Taichi
This was a fun match, with all of the usual Taichi shenanigans. It mainly served as Taichi’s heavyweight warmup, as he’ll be facing Hiroshi Tanahashi in the New Japan Cup first round. While not essential, this is a fun match, if a bit long.
Need To Watch Rating: (7.5)
IWGP Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship Match: Champion Minoru Suzuki vs. Togi Makabe.
Togi Makabe has not had a match this good since the G1. In fact, Makabe has not had a non-G1 Climax match as good as this one in a very long time. Minoru Suzuki continues to be a terrifying shark, hungry for peoples’ limbs. This is another match that benefitted from having so much time to breath. This is a Must See.
Need To Watch Rating: (9.5)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Will Ospreay
Easily a contender for Match of The Year. Should Will Ospreay decide to leave the Jr. Heavyweight division, he proved that he can put on a breathtaking, believable main event against arguably the greatest wrestler of the modern era. Seek. Out. This. Match. It is truly something special.
Need To Watch Rating: (10.0)
