Date: January 18th, 2014
Location: Osaka, Japan
Announced Attendance: 1,800
I am finally getting back around to Dragon Gate. Dragon Gate events take the longest to review since their events are so action-packed, so I tend to procrastinate reviewing them. That isn’t a knock on the action; it just takes almost double the time because doing play by play on a Dragon Gate event isn’t easy. But I try to be fair. This event features an Open the Triangle Gate match in the main event, here is the full card:
– Don Fujii and Gamma vs. T-Hawk and U-T
– Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee!! vs. Yosuke Santa Maria vs. Super Shisa vs. Mondai Ryu
– BxB Hulk vs. Ryotsu Shimizu
– Kotoka vs. Shingo Takagi
– Jimmy Kanda and Jimmy Kagetora vs. Naruki Doi and Kzy
– Masato Yoshino and Akira Tozawa vs. YAMATO and Cyber Kong
– Open the Triangle Gate Championship: Jimmy Susumu, Ryo “Jimmy” Saito, and Mr. Que Que Naoki Tanizaki Toyonaka Dolphin vs. CIMA, Masaaki Mochizuki, and Dragon Kid
Don Fujii and Gamma vs. T-Hawk and U-T
Gamma and U-T start things off. Takedown by U-T to start and he hits a pair of armdrags. Gamma side-steps a dropkick attempt, he goes off the ropes but U-T hits the second dropkick. U-T tags in T-Hawk while Fujii comes in as well, and the two wrestlers trade chops. Punches by Fujii, Irish whip by T-Hawk and he hits a shoulderblock. Gamma runs in the ring but he gets a shoulderblock as well, U-T comes in and attacks Gamma in the corner. They throw Gamma into the corner, and hit running back elbows; T-Hawk puts Gamma in the corner again so that U-T can hit a dropkick from the floor. U-T comes in the ring and clubs Gamma in the back, but Gamma connects with a heel kick. Gamma picks up U-T and tags in Fujii, who chops U-T in the corner. Fujii picks up U-T and hits a scoop slam before kicking U-T in the back. Fujii twists U-T’s neck with his ankles and then does it a second time. Fujii picks up U-T, Gamma goes up to the top turnbuckle and spits water on U-T. Stomp to the head by Fujii as U-T gets back to his feet, slaps to the chest by U-T but Fujii chops him back. Irish whip by Fujii, reversed, but Fujii avoids the dropkick attempt. Fujii chops U-T into the corner, Irish whip, but U-T kicks Fujii back. Two more kicks by U-T, he goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits the missile dropkick. U-T tags in T-Hawk, and T-Hawk chops Fujii. Gamma runs in the ring and goes for a suplex, but T-Hawk reverses it and suplexes Gamma. Chop to the chest by T-Hawk to Gamma, Gamma fights back but T-Hawk gets the better of the exchange.
T-Hawk goes off the ropes but Gamma catches him with a kick to the head. Back bodydrop by Gamma, he goes off the ropes but T-Hawk knees him in the head. Cover by T-Hawk, but it gets a two count. U-T runs in the ring and starts elbowing Fujii, finally knocking him off the apron. U-T then charges Gamma in the corner and both men hit running elbows. Gamma catches U-T with a lariat and hits T-Hawk with one, T-Hawk goes off the ropes but Gamma hits a second lariat. Fujii comes in the ring, they throw U-T into the corner but he avoids both of their attacks, making Fujii hit a lariat onto Gamma. U-T goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a double missile dropkick, T-Hawk comes in the ring and chops Fujii but Fujii chops him back. Argentine Backbreaker by T-Hawk to Fujii but Fujii gets out of it and hits a backdrop suplex. Chops and elbows by U-T to Fujii, he goes off the ropes but Gamma hits him from the floor. Gamma then comes in the ring and goes off the ropes but U-T rolls him up for a two count. U-T goes back to Fujii and they trade strikes, but Fujii levels U-T with a lariat. Fujii picks up U-T and puts him up on the second turnbuckle; he then joins him and hits a second turnbuckle chokeslam. Cover, but U-T barely kicks out. Fujii grabs U-T and puts him in the HIMEI, and he has no choice but to submit. Your winners: Don Fujii and Gamma
Match Thoughts: An acceptable opener, even though the wrestling style of Gamma and Fujii isn’t my personal cup of tea. U-T looked really good here though as the young wrestler trying to overcome his elders, and even though he did not succeed, he got an A for Effort here. The rest was fine but just serviceable, lots of chop battles and not a ton of substance. Score: 5.0
Genki Horiguchi vs. Yosuke Santa Maria vs. Super Shisa vs. Mondai Ryu
This is a Four Way Match, first pinfall wins. They all circle each other to start, Ryu stomps down Maria while Shisa and Horiguchi trade submission holds. Ryu runs over to Horiguchi and Shisa, try all trade waistlocks until Maria joins them as well, but they let go when Maria starts grinding into Ryu. Double Irish whip by Horiguchi and Shisa to Maria, they both drop down, and Maria drops down between them. Shisa and Horiguchi roll away as Ryu returns to the ring and kicks Maria. Stomps by Ryu to Maria, Irish whip, reversed, and Maria dropkicks Ryu. Horiguchi attacks Maria from behind then gets into it with Shisa, uppercuts by Shisa to Horiguchi and he goes off the ropes, but Horiguchi delivers a dropkick. Shisa fires back with his own dropkick and he puts Horiguchi in the Mexican Surfboard. Maria then gets in the ring and while Horiguchi is in the hold, Maria goes go kiss Shisa but Shisa releases Horiguchi to get out of the way. Irish whip by Maria to Shisa to the corner, Shisa does a headstand in the corner but Maria comes over and grabs him low. Ryu returns to the ring, elbows by Maria to Ryu but Ryu drop toeholds Maria into the second rope and jumps down onto him. Ryu then gets some water and spits it into Maria’s face. Back in the ring Ryu rubs his hands onto Maria’s face and kicks him from behind. Chops by Ryu to Maria in the corner, Irish whip, reversed, Ryu drops Maria out onto the apron and goes off the ropes, but Maria hits a swandive missile dropkick.
Horiguchi comes in the ring but Maria catches him with a hip attack. Irish whip by Shisa to Maria into the corner, but Maria jumps up to the top turnbuckle and sails out of the ring with a plancha down onto Horiguchi. Ryu gets in the ring, strikes by Shisa to Ryu and he goes off the ropes, but Ryu catches him with an atomic drop followed by a lariat. Cover, but it gets a two count. Ryu Irish whips Shisa to the corner, reversed, but Ryu kicks Shisa as he charges in. Ryu goes up to the top turnbuckle but Shisa hits a handstand headscissors. Maria then runs in the ring and hits Ryu with a leg drop bulldog. Cover, but Horiguchi breaks it up. Horiguchi picks up Ryu and goes for a suplex but Ryu blocks it and kicks Horiguchi low. Maria charges Ryu but Ryu kicks him low as well. Maria sells it on a delay, giving Horiguchi a chance to slide a rod under Maria’s legs, which Maria then uses to ‘crotch’ Ryu. Shisa is back up and he goes for the Yoshi Tonic, but before he can hit the move, Maria plants him with a kiss. Shisa rolls out of the ring, kick by Ryu to Maria and he goes off the ropes, but Maria catches him with the Zona Rosa and picks up the three count. Your winner: Yosuke Santa Maria
Match Thoughts: A comedy match, obviously, since Maria was in it. Some of the comedy worked and some didn’t, I am not sure I can ‘suspend belief’ enough to think that a kiss hurts. I think if one dude kissed another dude it would make the kissed dude want to kick the guys ass, not act hurt and roll out of the ring. Plus there was no real set-up for the ending so it came across as a bit weak, Maria does have some real offense so it wouldn’t have hurt to make the ending a bit more definitive than it was. It did get a few chuckles out of me so far from worthless; you know what you are getting as soon as you see Maria is in the match. Short term it seems fine but since he is a skilled wrestler I hope at some point he finds a new persona so he isn’t typecasted the rest of his career. Score: 4.0
BxB Hulk vs. Ryotsu Shimizu
Hulk spits water in Shimizu’s face to start the match and hits a high kick, cover, but it gets a two count. Stomps by Hulk and he applies a reverse chinlock, he picks up Shimizu and delivers a capture suplex. Stomps by Hulk, he picks up Shimizu and kicks him in the leg and chest. Armbar by Hulk and he hits Shimizu’s hand while keeping him in the hold. Back high kick by Hulk, cover, but Shimizu gets a shoulder up. Hulk applies an elevated single leg crab hold and reverts it into an ankle hold before letting Shimizu go. Hulk toys with Shimizu before picking him up, snapmare by Hulk and he dropkicks Shimizu in the back of the head. Standing corkscrew senton by Hulk, cover, but it gets a two count. Hulk elbows Shimizu in the top of the head and then hits a scissors kick. Hulk charges Shimizu in the corner and hits a big boot, Irish whip by Hulk but Shimizu fires back with a pair of shoulderblocks. A third one finally sends Hulk to the mat, Shimizu charges Hulk but Hulk kicks him back. Hulk puts Shimizu in the corner but Shimizu kicks him when he charges in and hits a diving shoulderblock off the second turnbuckle. Shimizu picks up Hulk but Hulk kicks Shimizu in the leg, Shimizu picks up Hulk and delivers a swinging powerslam for a two count. Shimizu picks up Hulk and goes for a suplex but Hulk lands on his feet, waistlock by Shimizu, Hulk elbows out of it but Shimizu hits a chokebomb. Cover, but it only gets a two count. Shimizu grabs Hulk by the legs and delivers the Giant Swing, but Hulk hits a hurricanrana. Shimizu goes off the ropes but Hulk catches him with a trio of kicks. Scissors kick by Hulk, he goes out to the apron and hits a swandive missile dropkick. Cover, but it gets a two count. Hulk picks up Shimizu and kicks him in the stomach, he picks up Shimizu in a pump-handle but Shimizu gets out of it. Hulk drives Shimizu back into the corner and hits a front flip kick, he then puts Shimizu up on the top turnbuckle and hits a scissors kick. Hulk slams Shimizu down to the mat and hits a pair of Heel Drop kicks, cover, and he picks up the three count. Your winner: BxB Hulk
Match Thoughts: A fun rookie vs. veteran match, as Hulk gave Shimizu plenty of offense so it wasn’t just a squash. This followed a common but successful formula – veteran dominates for a few minutes, Shimizu gets in some good spots and near falls, veteran takes back over and wins. Hulk actually acted well as the grumpy veteran since it fits into his emo character anyway and while Shimizu looks goofy he doesn’t come across as a bad wrestler. I think Shimizu will have to wait until a gimmick change to break through to the next level but this was a very solid match. Score: 6.5
Kotoka vs. Shingo Takagi
Kotoka charges Takagi to start the match, kicks and knees by Kotoka in the corner and he chokes Takagi. Takagi walks out of the corner, elbows by Kotoka but Takagi knocks him back with an elbow of his own. Kotoka keeps fighting back, he goes off the ropes but is caught with a lariat. Takagi goes off the ropes but Kotoka delivers a kick followed by a running dropkick to a kneeling Takagi. Takagi falls out of the ring, Kotoka gets a running start but Takagi slides back in and hits a lariat. Cover by Takagi, but it gets a two count. Knee drop by Takagi, cover, but again it gets two. Takagi picks up Kotoka and hits a brainbuster followed by a senton, cover, but Kotoka kicks out. Stomp to the back by Takagi, Kotoka slowly returns to his feet and chops Takagi in the chest, but Takagi hits a Mongolian Chop and stomps on Kotoka. Takagi picks up Kotoka and hits a series of short arm lariats followed by a scoop slam. Takagi goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a falling elbow drop, cover, but it gets a two count. Takagi applies a front facelock to Kotoka and pushes him against the ropes, slaps by Takagi and he goes off the ropes, hitting a lariat. Takagi goes for a powerbomb but Kotoka reverses it with a back bodydrop. Kotoka charges Takagi in the corner but Takagi kicks him back, another kick by Takagi and he charges Kotoka but Kotoka knocks him back and hits a missile dropkick. Takagi doesn’t go down, he charges Kotoka but Kotoka flips away so Takagi runs into the turnbuckle. Missile dropkick by Kotoka, Takagi falls out of the ring and Kotoka sails out onto him with a tope suicida. Kotoka slides Takagi back into the ring, drop toehold by Kotoka and he hits a body scissors into a face crusher. Kotoka goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits the diving doublestomp, cover, but it gets a two count. Kicks to the chest by Kotoka as Takagi returns to his feet but Takagi catches one and hits a suplex. Takagi picks up Kotoka, Irish whip, and Takagi delivers a powerbomb. Cover, but it gets a two count. Takagi charges Kotoka in the corner and hits a lariat, he goes for a pump handle but Kotoka rolls him up for a two count. Takagi goes off the ropes, Kotoka goes for a body scissors but Takagi catches him and delivers a suplex. Sliding lariat by Takagi, cover, but Kotoka gets a shoulder up. Takagi goes off the ropes and hits a Pumping Bomber, cover, and he picks up the three count. Your winner: Shingo Takagi
Match Thoughts: A different format than the last match, which I think helped it since they had the same general theme. Here, since Takagi was quite a bit bigger than Kotoka they were able to do more of the ‘size’ spots, with Takagi going for power moves and Kotoka aiming for high flying moves. I never really felt Kotoka was about to win, since he wasn’t, but he got in some good shots against the larger veteran and it was far from a squash match. Another good singles match from Dragon Gate that got the point across without a lot of extra fluff. Score: 6.5
Jimmy Kanda and Jimmy Kagetora vs. Naruki Doi and Kzy
They brawl outside the ring to start the match, with Doi and Kzy getting the better of things. Kanda is thrown into the stands by Doi before he takes him to a different side of the ring to throw him into the chairs again. Elsewhere, Kzy picks up Kagetora and slides him back into the ring. Kzy picks up Kagetora and punches him in the back, side headlock by Kzy, Kagetora Irish whips out of it and grabs Kzy by his hair. Side headlock by Kagetora, Kzy Irish whips out of it but Kagetora shoulderblocks him down. Irish whip by Kagetora, reversed, and Kzy hits an arm drag. Kagetora follows with an armdrag of his own and a second one sends Kzy out of the ring. Kagetora gets a running start but does a fake dive, landing back inside of the ring. We get a shot of Kanda and Doi, whom have somehow got themselves up on the second floor of the building, with Kanda trying to throw Doi off of it. Kanda takes Doi to the back, while in the ring Kagetora has Kzy again and throws him to the mat by his hair. Stomp by Kagetora and he clubs Kzy in the back as Kanda makes his way back to ringside. Stretch hold by Kagetora, he picks up Kzy and clubs him in the back again. Kzy pushes Kagetora back and tags in Doi, but Kanda pushes Doi off the apron and takes him outside of the ring again, throwing Doi into the ring post. Doi gets the better of things and kicks Kanda down on the floor, scoop slam by Kzy onto Kagetora and Doi hits a slingshot elbow drop. Kzy follows with a slingshot senton, cover, but it gets a two count. Doi and Kzy throw Kagetora into the corner and both connect with running strikes. Kzy gets up on the top turnbuckle but Kagetora rolls out of the way of the splash attempt. Doi runs over to knock Kanda off the apron before Kagetora can tag him, Kzy pulls Kagetora back towards the middle of the ring and applies a single leg crab hold.
Kanda and Doi continue battling at ringside as Kagetora gets to the ropes to force a break. Kzy picks up Kagetora and puts him on his shoulders, but Kagetora slides off. Kick by Kagetora, Irish whip, reversed, and Kagetora hits a jumping lariat. Kanda runs in the ring and knocks Doi off the apron, and then sails out onto him with a tope suicida. Kanda slides Doi into the ring, elbows by Kanda but Doi rakes him in the eyes. Irish whip by Doi, reversed, and Kanda hits an atomic drop. Elbow by Doi but Kanda hits a second atomic drop, Doi kicks back Kanda and takes off the top turnbuckle. Kanda charges into the corner and runs into the exposed steel, then Doi hits Kanda with the turnbuckle pad. They go back outside the ring as Kzy and Kagetora get back in it, Kzy gets up on the top turnbuckle but again Kagetora rolls out of the way of the splash attempt. Kagetora charges Kzy, Kzy drops him out to the apron and he goes up top, but Kagetora flips off as Kzy charges him in the corner. Kanda comes in the ring and hits an exploder onto Kzy, Kagetora goes up to the top turnbuckle and delivers the diving elbow drop. Cover, but Doi breaks it up. Kagetora and Doi trade chops, Kagetora goes off the ropes but Doi catches him with an elbow. Doi goes for the Bakatare Sliding Kick but Kagetora moves out of the way and covers Doi for a two count. Back up, leg sweep by Kagetora and he kicks Doi in the head, he goes off the ropes but Kzy kicks him from the apron with the yellow box. Kzy slides the box into the ring, Kanda intercepts it but Doi kicks Kanda in the stomach and then hits him in the head with the box. Kagetora rolls up Doi from behind but it gets a two count. Kagetora charges Doi but Doi catches him with the Doi 555. Doi hits Kagetora in the head with the yellow box and then nails the Bakatare Sliding Kick. Cover, and he picks up the three count. Your winners: Naruki Doi and Kzy
Match Thoughts: This is in a nutshell the type of match I am not a big fan of. I can appreciate the ‘hate’ being shown here, emotion and passion are good things in general, but it just took too much away from the match. When there was battling outside the ring, the people in the ring were just doing rest holds and wasting time since they knew the crowd wasn’t watching them. Something seems off when at the same time one guy is trying to throw another guy off a balcony, and in the ring their team mates are trading headlocks. Since it was a short match they didn’t have much of a transition and it went straight from brawling to the end stretch of the match without giving the wrestlers a chance to calm things down any. This may have worked if the brawling was a little shorter or if the end stretch was a little longer, but as it was it was just too disjointed and all over the place for me. Score: 3.5
Masato Yoshino and Akira Tozawa vs. YAMATO and Cyber Kong
They brawl to start the match, with YAMATO staying in the ring with Tozawa. YAMATO picks up Tozawa but Tozawa elbows him off and they trade strikes. Eye rake by YAMATO, he goes off the ropes but Tozawa boots him in the head. YAMATO falls out of the ring and Tozawa goes to do a dive, but he swings himself back in the ring when YAMATO moves. Yoshino and Cyber Kong come in the ring as the legal men, chops to the chest by Yoshino, he goes off the ropes but Cyber Kong kicks him in the stomach and picks up Yoshino in a military press, but Yoshino slides off. Cyber Kong goes off the ropes but Yoshino hits a tilt-a-whirl headscissors. YAMATO comes in the ring, kicks by Yoshino to YAMATO and he tags in Tozawa. Tozawa kicks YAMATO in the corner and hits a series of rapid fire chops. Tozawa picks up YAMATO and tags in Yoshino. Yoshino kicks YAMATO in the corner, double Irish whip and YAMATO is hit with a double shoulderblock. Cover, but it gets a one count. Kick to the back by Tozawa, he picks up YAMATO and goes for a suplex but YAMATO blocks it. Waistlock by Tozawa but YAMATO kicks him low when the referee isn’t looking. Cyber Kong comes in the ring and knocks Yoshino off the apron, and Cyber Kong stomps on Tozawa. Tozawa crawls into the corner so Cyber Kong stands on his shoulders, using the ropes for extra leverage. Cyber Kong picks up Tozawa and hits a vertical suplex followed by a body press, but it gets a two count. YAMATO comes in the ring, Cyber Kong slams Tozawa in front of the ropes and both he and YAMATO stand on Tozawa. YAMATO and Cyber Kong continue stomping Tozawa, YAMATO picks up him up and hits a scoop slam near the ropes. Slingshot doublestomp by YAMATO and he stomps on Tozawa. Cyber Kong comes back in the ring and they stomp on Tozawa, Cyber Kong picks up Tozawa and slams him in the middle of the ring.
Cyber Kong goes up to the second turnbuckle and hits a diving elbow drop. YAMATO covers Tozawa but it gets a two count. YAMATO applies a crossface hold but Tozawa makes it to the ropes to force a break. YAMATO stomps on Tozawa, he picks him up in the corner and slaps him from the mounted position. Chop by YAMATO, Irish whip by YAMATO but Tozawa boots him as he charges in. Cyber Kong comes in the ring but Tozawa drops him with a backdrop suplex. Tozawa tags in Yoshino, Irish whip by Yoshino to Cyber Kong, reversed, and Yoshino hits the Sling Blade. YAMATO comes in the ring but Yoshino delivers a jumping kick to the chest. Cyber Kong and YAMATO fall out of the ring, and Tozawa sails out onto them with a pair of tope suicidas. Tozawa rolls YAMATO back in the ring, Yoshino stomps on him in the corner, Irish whip, reversed, but Yoshino moves when YAMATO charges in and slams YAMATO’s arm into the mat. Yoshino goes up to the top turnbuckle, YAMATO avoids the missile dropkick attempt and applies a waistlock, reversed by Yoshino but YAMATO throws him into the corner and delivers a running kick. YAMATO picks up Yoshino and goes for a suplex, but Yoshino lands on his feet and hits the From Jungle. Cyber Kong quickly breaks it up, Tozawa runs in the ring and elbows Cyber Kong but Cyber Kong doesn’t go down. Cyber Kong elbows him back hard, he goes off the ropes but Tozawa hits a boot. Elbows by Tozawa and he goes off the ropes but Cyber Kong drops him with the Cyber Cutter. Cyber Kong charges Tozawa in the corner and hits a body avalanche followed by an Olympic Slam. Cyber Kong goes up to the second turnbuckle and hits a diving lariat. Cover, but Tozawa gets a shoulder up. Cyber Kong goes up to the top turnbuckle but Yoshino runs over and grabs his leg.
Tozawa recovers, he springs up to the top turnbuckle and hits a superplex onto Cyber Kong. Tozawa covers Cyber Kong, but YAMATO breaks it up. Tozawa and Yoshino Irish whip YAMATO into the corner and both hit running strikes. Yoshino goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a missile dropkick/senton combination onto Cyber Kong and YAMATO. Yoshino picks up YAMATO, YAMATO fights back but Yoshino drops him with the Ude Yoshino. Crucifix pin by Yoshino, but it gets a two count. Tozawa picks up YAMATO and applies a waistlock, but YAMATO drives him into the corner and Cyber Kong hits a lariat. Cyber Kong grabs Tozawa, Irish whip to the corner, reversed, but Cyber Kong moves when Tozawa charges in and YAMATO delivers a dropkick. Cyber Kong goes up to the top turnbuckle, YAMATO slams Tozawa in front of the corner and Cyber Kong hits a diving elbow drop. Cover, but it gets a two count. YAMATO and Yoshino trade slaps to the chest, YAMATO goes off the ropes but Yoshino hits a chop. Cyber Kong punches Tozawa, eh goes off the ropes but Tozawa catches him with a back kick. Waistlock by Tozawa and he hits the delayed German suplex, but Cyber Kong kicks out at two. Tozawa picks up Cyber Kong and goes off the ropes but Cyber Kong levels him with the Pineapple Bomber. Cyber Driver by Cyber Kong, cover, but Tozawa gets a shoulder up. Cyber Kong picks up Tozawa and nails the Cyber Bomb, cover, and he picks up the three count. Your winners: YAMATO and Cyber Kong
Match Thoughts: This match took some time to get going but it was fun once it did. The first half of the match is really basic offense, lots of punch/kick/stomps, things that don’t impress me after 25 years of watching wrestling. Once they decided to really go at it though it got a lot better and they did more of the ‘fast paced’ offense you would expect. I liked the definitive win here, Cyber Kong left no doubt that Tozawa wasn’t getting up as he hit him with his three biggest moves in a row. A solid match after an uninspired start. Score: 6.0
(c) Susumu, Ryo Saito, and Tanizaki vs. CIMA, Mochizuki, and Dragon Kid
This match is for the Open the Triangle Gate Championship. CIMA and Tanizaki start things off. CIMA starts on Tanizaki’s arm but Tanizaki gets out of it, CIMA gets Tanizaki to the mat and applies a double underhook for a roll-up, but it gets a one count. Back up, armbar by Tanizaki but CIMA gets out of it and applies an inverted figure four. Tanizaki gets to the ropes to force a break, CIMA pulls Tanizaki back to the middle of the ring and goes back to the leg but Tanizaki gets out of it and applies a neck crank. Cover by Tanizaki but CIMA quickly gets out of it. Tanizaki tags in Susumu and CIMA tags in Dragon Kid, kick by Susumu to Dragon Kid but Dragon Kid flips out of the snapmare and goes for a tilt-a-whirl move but Susumu reverses it with a suplex. Saito and Mochizuki come in the ring as legal men and they trade strikes, Mochizuki goes off the ropes but Saito hits a drop toehold. Saito grabs Mochizuki’s arm but Mochizuki quickly gets to the ropes. Back up, snapmare by Mochizuki and he kicks Saito in the back. Mochizuki tags in CIMA, CIMA goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a doublestomp to Saito’s back. Snapmare by CIMA and he applies a body scissors. Dragon sleeper by CIMA and he rakes Saito in the face with his fist. CIMA throws Saito into Dragon Kid’s knee and then tags in Dragon Kid. Snapmare by Dragon Kid and he hits a jumping knee drop onto Saito followed by a handstand knee drop. Dragon Kid grabs Saito but Saito punches him and tags in Tanizaki. Tanizaki applies an armbar to Dragon Kid and goes for a cross armbreaker, but CIMA comes in and breaks it up. Tanizaki tags in Susumu, club to the back by Susumu to Dragon Kid, snapmare, and he applies a stretch hold. Irish whip by Susumu and he knees Dragon Kid in the stomach. Susumu tags in Saito, snapmare by Saito and he stands on Dragon Kid against the ropes with Susumu on his shoulders. Tanizaki is tagged in and he stomps Dragon Kid. Tanizaki twists on Dragon Kid’s neck and knees him in the face, Mochizuki and CIMA come in the ring but Tanizaki knocks them back as well. Tanizaki covers CIMA but it gets a two count. Tanizaki pulls Dragon Kid back into the ring and tags in Saito, Saito goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a diving doublestomp. Cover by Saito but it gets a two count.
Saito elbows Dragon Kid in the back and head but Dragon Kid fires back and the two trade blows. Dragon Kid takes Saito to his own corner and tags in CIMA, double Irish whip by CIMA and Mochizuki and they kick Saito in the chest. Senton by CIMA and he applies a stretch hold to Saito, but Tanizaki breaks it up. Dragon Kid throws Tanizaki out of the ring as CIMA picks up Saito and applies a wristlock. CIMA tags in Mochizuki, and Mochizuki kicks Saito in the arm. Mochizuki picks up Saito and throws him into the corner, face wash by Mochizuki in the corner and he goes for a suplex, but Saito blocks it. Crossface by Mochizuki as his teammates stand guard, but Saito gets a foot on the ropes to break the hold. Mochizuki picks up Saito and tags in CIMA. CIMA kicks Saito in the corner and hits a scoop slam, Dragon Kid then comes in the ring and CIMA throws Dragon Kid onto Saito. Senton by CIMA, cover, but it gets a two count. CIMA applies a stretch hold to Saito, but Saito again gets to the ropes. CIMA waits for Saito to get up and chops him in the chest, but Saito chops him back and they trade blows. CIMA goes off the ropes but Saito hits an overhead suplex and tags in Susumu. Susumu picks up CIMA but Dragon Kid and Mochizuki run into the ring. They throw Susumu into the corner but he lariats CIMA and Dragon Kid. Mochizuki gets a lariat as well and Susumu tags in Tanizaki. Tanizaki charges Dragon Kid but Dragon Kid kicks him back, Dragon Kid goes off the ropes but Tanizaki hits a step-up knee. Cross-legged brainbuster by Tanizaki, cover, but Dragon Kid kicks out. Tanizaki throws Dragon Kid into the corner, Irish whip, reversed, Tanizaki drops Dragon Kid onto the apron and then hits Dragon Kid as he goes for a swandive move. Dragon Kid falls out of the ring, Tanizaki goes off the far ropes but CIMA grabs him from the apron. Saito and Dragon Kid are now in the ring, Dragon Kid goes out to the apron and hits a moonsault down onto Tanizaki. CIMA and Saito are in the ring, and Saito hits a drop toehold onto CIMA. Saito grabs CIMA’s arm but CIMA quickly crawls to the ropes. Irish whip by Saito, reversed, kick by Saito and he hits a powerbomb when CIMA goes for a hurricanrana. Saito finally applies the Dancing Yahoo but Mochizuki quickly breaks it up.
Susumu comes in the ring, they knock Mochizuki and CIMA into different corners and Irish whip them towards each other but it is reversed. Dragon Kid comes in the ring but Saito drops him with a release German suplex. Dragon Kid gets up in the corner, and all of his opponents hit running strikes. Dragon Kid lands up on the top turnbuckle, Susumu joins him up there and suplexes him off. Tanizaki follows with the Casanova and Saito comes off the top turnbuckle with a diving splash. Cover, but Mochizuki breaks it up. Tanizaki stays in the ring with Dragon Kid, he goes up to the top turnbuckle but CIMA jumps in and hits Tanizaki before he can jump off. Punches by CIMA, he goes up to the second turnbuckle and puts Tanizaki on his shoulders. Dragon Kid then gets on the apron and hits a springboard hurricanrana, sending Tanizaki crashing to the mat. CIMA and Mochizuki set up Saito and Susumu in the corners, delivering running strikes on their opponents. Tanizaki grabs Dragon Kid and Tanizaki delivers a swinging knee, he gets Dragon Kid onto his back but Mochizuki hits a superkick. Cover by Dragon Kid, but it is broken up. Big boot by Mochizuki to Tanizaki, Susumu knocks Mochizuki out of the ring, CIMA goes off the ropes, lariat by Susumu but CIMA doesn’t go down. Ultra Hurricanrana by Dragon Kid to Susumu, but Susumu barely kicks out. CIMA picks up Susumu, snapmare, he goes up to the top turnbuckle and goes for the Meteora, but Susumu moves out of the way. Saito charges CIMA in the corner but CIMA moves, and Susumu hits Mochizuki with a lariat. Saito grabs Mochizuki and puts him up on the top turnbuckle, Saito joins him up top and he hits a fisherman superplex. Dragon Suplex Hold by Saito, but it only gets a two count. Saito picks up Mochizuki and goes for the Premium Bridge, but Mochizuki blocks it. Release dragon suplex by Mochizuki and he connects with one kick, but Saito ducks the second one and Susumu hits Mochizuki from the apron. Premium Bridge by Saito to Mochizuki, and he picks up the three count. Your winners and still champions: Jimmy Susumu, Ryo “Jimmy” Saito, and Naoki Tanizaki
Match Thoughts: Like the last match this one started a bit slow but it picked up quicker and ended up being a pretty good match. I did think it lacked a sense of importance for a title match, the wrestlers didn’t really act with any more urgency than the wrestlers did in the other matches. It just felt like another really solid Dragon Gate main event. Saito did the bulk of the work here and it was definitely far from an even distribution in terms of which wrestler was in the ring. But the match was fluid and exciting, how they keep track of what they are doing and when I have no idea but it keeps you on your edge of your seat. I also liked that they kept the ‘overkill’ to a minimum, the ending felt right when it happened, the match did not drag on unnecessarily. Good way to end the event. Score: 7.0
Final Thoughts:
Best Match: Jimmy Susumu, Ryo Saito, and Naoki Tanizaki vs. CIMA, Mochizuki, and Dragon Kid. This was a fun main event. I wish it had more of a sense of urgency since it was a title match, but they built it up slow into a frenzy to put on an entertaining show. I also liked that there was no ‘move overkill’ at all, Saito got his big move in and the match was over. Sometimes Dragon Gate tries too hard to be exciting to the point of being ridiculous but it was done right here.
MVP: Ryo Saito. In the main event, not only did Saito pick up the win but he controlled the match. Hardly any time went by during the match that Saito wasn’t either the legal man, or getting involved in some way. He was really crisp from start to finish and he built up well to him getting his big move in without any overkill. A really good effort by Saito.
Overall: Even though the event was lacking that super blow-away match, from start to finish it was an entertaining show. Over half of the matches were ‘solid’ or better and really only one match was bad as the rest served some purpose or another. This card had some variety, which Dragon Gate sometimes lacks, with singles matches, tag team matches, six man tag matches, a comedy match, some veteran vs. rookie matches….. just about any type of match that a fan could ask for. Recommendation to pick up, it was a really good show.
