The 29th Best of Super Juniors had its first bonafide classic on Thursday. The main event of night 9 saw longtime rivals Robbie Eagles and El Phantasmo battle for nearly-30 minutes, in a breathless, frantic war. Eagles overcame the ever-successful Phantasmo, winning his first NJPW singles main event since he debuted with the company in 2018.
Another shocking upset occurred earlier in the night. IMPACT X-Division Champion Ace Austin bested IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Taiji Ishimori, putting the young upstart at the top of A Block. Austin vs. Ishimori wasn’t the only champion vs. champion clash, as G-Rex Champion EL LINDAMAN got the better of ROH PURE Champion Wheeler Yuta in a thrilling display of grappling.
Alex Zayne put his adventurous palate to the test on Thursday. After eating his way across Japan, Zayne -for lack of a better term- ate the ass of Ryusuke Taguchi in the middle of their match. A creative counter to a hip attack, Zayne’s mid-match snack helped him get the upperhand in defeating the IWGP Jr. Tag Team Champion.
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United Empire’s Francesco Akira is finally finding his footing. The young Italian defeated YOH on Thursday, only his second win this whole tournament. All of the stumbling at the beginning of the tournament has lit a fire under the Empire’s latest member. There is still time for Akira to climb to the top of A Block, but he will need to make no mistakes from here on out.
EVIL made a surprise return, helping SHO win his match against Hiromu Takahashi. Takahashi brought some serious fight to the House of Torture members, but ended up forced to submit to a creative leg lock from SHO. As SHO continues to climb the rankings, his tactics get more and more desperate.
Elsewhere on the show, Master Wato earned some more points, Clark Connors bested Jr. Heavyweight legend Yoshinobu Kanemaru, and BUSHI upset the statistical-favorite El Desperado in an amazing match.
READ MORE: Night 1 results, Nights 2-4 results, Nights 5 & 6 results, Night 7 results, Night 8 results
Here are the full results and standings:
5/26
NJPW Best of Super Juniors 29: Night 9
Available on NJPWWorld.com
- B Block: Master Wato (4) def. Titán (2) by pinfall via RPP. (8:16)
- B Block: TJP (6) def. DOUKI (6) by submission via Pinoy Stretch. (8:39)
- A Block: Clark Connors (6) def. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (4) by pinfall via Trophy Kill. (4:50)
- A Block: Alex Zayne (8) def. Ryusuke Taguchi (2) by pinfall via Cinnamon Twist. (6:15)
- A Block: Francesco Akira (4) def. YOH (6) by pinfall via Fireball. (9:38)
- B Block: EL LINDAMAN (8) def. Wheeler Yuta (6) by pinfall via Tiger Suplex. (9:17)
- A Block: Ace Austin (10) def. Taiji Ishimori (8) by pinfall via Ace In The Hole. (11:24)
- B Block: BUSHI (6) def. El Desperado (8) by pinfall via MX. (11:11)
- A Block: SHO (6) def. Hiromu Takahashi (6) by submission via leg lock. (11:30)
- B Block: Robbie Eagles (6) def. El Phantasmo (8) by submission via Ron Miller Special. (24:43)
A Block:
- Ace Austin- 10 points
- Alex Zayne, Taiji Ishimori- 8 points
- Clark Connors, SHO, Hiromu Takahashi, YOH- 6 points
- Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Francesco Akira- 4 points
- Ryusuke Taguchi- 2 points
B Block:
- El Phantasmo, EL LINDAMAN, El Phantasmo- 8 points
- BUSHI, Robbie Eagles, Wheeler Yuta, TJP, DOUKI, Master Wato- 6 points
- Titán- 2 points
NJPW Best of Super Juniors 29 will resume on May 28th at 5am ET on NJPWWorld.com
