Date: August 5th, 2014
Location: Shin-Kiba 1st RING in Tokyo, Japan
Announced Attendance: Unknown
During the summer, Tenryu decided to throw a little “tag team” tournament together. I am not going to bother post the brackets since I have no idea how many matches took place in the tournament and if they were all taped, but all the tag team matches on this card are part of the Mizuchi R Tag Team League. Only the wrestler that gets the pin gets the points and it looks like they are teamed together randomly. That’s all I got. There were six matches, but one was won via forfeit. Here is the card:
– Mitsunobu Kikuzawa vs. Ricky Fuji
– BUKI and Winger vs. Kengo and NOSAWA Rongai
– Arashi and Kazuki Hashimoto vs. Classic Kid and Masao Inoue
– Genichiro Tenryu and Kengo vs. Great Kojika and Ryuichi Kawakami
– BUKI and YASSHI vs. Dragon JOKER and TARU
This shouldn’t take too long.
Mitsunobu Kikuzawa vs. Ricky Fuji
Kikuzawa is Kikutaro, not sure why he wrestled here under his real name. They dance around to start the match, but Kikuzawa hits Fuji from behind. Kikuzawa puts his foot against Fuji’s throat and kicks Fuji, chops by Kikuzawa in the corner but Fuji switches positions with him and elbows Kikuzawa in the head. Kikuzawa switches things back and punches Fuji in the head but Fuji blocks one and punches him back. Kikuzawa distracts Fuji and punches him in the head, stomp by Kikuzawa and he clubs Fuji in the back. Fuji punches Kikuzawa back and hits a series of mounted punches in the corner. Kikuzawa switches positions with him, he straddles Fuji in the corner and shakes the ropes. Kikuzawa picks up Fuji, snapmare, and Kikuzawa rakes Fuji in the eyes before hitting a kneedrop. Side headlock by Kikuzawa, Fuji gets out of it and they trade hammerlocks. Fuji pushes Kikuzawa into the ropes and he gives a clean break. They lock knuckles, wristlock by Kikuzawa and he hits an armbreaker. Snapmare by Kikuzawa and he hits a rolling senton. Cover, but it gets a two count. Kicks to the leg by Kikuzawa and he applies a figure four leglock. Fuji gets to the ropes, and Kikuzawa kicks Fuji in the leg. Punches by Kikuzawa and he hits a shoulder tackle in the corner. Kikuzawa mounts Fuji in the corner and hits a series of punches, Irish whip by Kikuzawa but Fuji kicks him as he charges in. He tries again with the same result, he then throws the referee into Fuji and that works. Kikuzawa charges in but Fuji kicks him back, punches by Fuji and Kikuzawa falls to the mat. Fuji picks up Kikuzawa, he puts him on his shoulders but Kikuzawa slides off and dropkicks Fuji in the knee. Shining Wizard by Kikuzawa, cover, but Fuji kicks out. Kikuzawa picks up Fuji and goes for a vertical suplex, but he talks too much and Fuji reverses it into a suplex of his own. Fuji puts Kikuzawa on his shoulders and hits a rolling fireman’s carry followed by a trapped DDT. Cover, and he picks up the three count. Your winner: Ricky Fuji
Match Thoughts: A typical Kikutaro match. Kikutaro has been doing this for a long time, and his matches generally start the show and gets the crowd into the event. He used the same cute spots he always does and Fuji of course played along because that is what you do when you are against Kikutaro. So it wasn’t bad but it wasn’t anything new either, one day Kikutaro is going to do something that surprises me but today was not that day. Score: 5.0
BUKI and Winger vs. Kengo and NOSAWA Rongai
BUKI and Kengo start things off. BUKI and Kengo tie-up but they break cleanly. Tie-up, waistlock by BUKI but Kengo gets into the ropes but BUKI clubs him in the chest. BUKI and Kengo trade elbows and BUKI hits a double chop. BUKI and Kengo trade chops, and BUKI knocks Kengo into the corner. BUKI kicks Kengo against the ropes but Kengo kicks him back. BUKI kicks Kengo into the corner and he applies a front facelock, and BUKI tags in Winger. Winger applies a wristlock to Kengo but Kengo gets a foot on the ropes. Kengo rolls out of the ring but returns after a moment, and Kengo locks knuckles with Winger. Wristlock by Kengo to Winger but Winger reverses it into an armbar. Winger gets in the mount, Kengo gets back up and Winger tags in BUKI. Club to the ribs by BUKI to Kengo and he rakes him in the eyes. Kicks by BUKI and Kengo elbows him back as they trade blows. Side headlock by Kengo, BUKI Irish whips out of it and they trade unsuccessful shoulderblocks. Elbow by Kengo, he goes off the ropes but BUKI knocks him down with a shoulderblock. BUKI goes off the ropes but Rongai knees him from the apron. Kengo tags in Rongai, double Irish whip and they hit a drop toehold/dropkick combination. Cover by Rongai but the referee doesn’t count as he never saw the tag (if there was one). Rongai and Kengo tag in and out, and Rongai chops BUKI against the ropes. Snapmare by Rongai and he kicks BUKI in the back of the head. Headbutts by Rongai and he hits BUKI in the back of the head. Cover, but it gets a two count.
Rongai applies a wristlock to BUKI and applies an arm submission hold, with Kengo coming in to help. Stomps by Rongai and he tags in Kengo. Snapmare by Kengo to BUKI and he kicks him in the back. Kengo applies a facelock, cover, but it gets a two. Kengo picks up BUKI and throws him into Rongai’s boot. Rongai is tagged in and he kicks down BUKI in the corner. Rongai chokes BUKI in the corner, wristlock by Rongai and he headbutts BUKI in the arm. Rongai applies a keylock, cover, but it gets a two count. Rongai picks up BUKI and hits a vertical suplex, cover, but it gets a two count. Rongai tags in Kengo, and Kengo hits a kneedrop. Headscissors by Kengo, he picks up BUKI, snapmare, Kengo goes up to the top turnbuckle but BUKI avoids the diving doublestomp. BUKI punches down Kengo and tags in Winger. Winger clubs Kengo and knocks Rongai off the apron before hitting a vertical suplex on Kengo. Winger picks up Kengo and he hits a backdrop suplex. Cover, but it gets a two count. Winger picks up Kengo and applies a wristlock before putting Kengo in a stretch hold, but Rongai breaks it up. Irish whip by Rongai, reversed, and Winger hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker before kicking Rongai out of the ring. Winger picks up Kengo and hits a side Russian leg sweep. Winger tags in BUKI, BUKI picks up Kengo and hits a vertical suplex. Cover, but it gets a two count. BUKI throws Kengo into the corner and hits a jumping elbow smash. Dropkick by BUKI, he picks up Kengo, snapmare, and BUKI kicks Kengo in the back. Lariat by BUKI, cover, but Kengo gets a shoulder up. Irish whip by BUKI and he hits a superkick, cover, but Rongai breaks it up. Rongai holds BUKI for Kengo, but BUKI ducks and Kengo hits Rongai by accident. Winger comes in and throws Kengo out of the ring, BUKI and Winger kick Rongai but Kengo trips Winger from the floor. Rongai applies La Magistral onto BUKI and he picks up the three count. Your winners: Kengo and NOSAWA Rongai
Match Thoughts: Guess the referee lost track of the legal man but it made sense as basically Rongai stole the win from his partner so he could score the points. None of these wrestlers are very good which naturally hurt the match quality, but it wasn’t a bad match. Nothing special about the structure or the action itself, just middling throughout. I can’t point to one moment that was poorly done, the wrestlers just didn’t stand out. A thoroughly average match. Score: 5.0
Arashi and Kazuki Hashimoto vs. Classic Kid and Masao Inoue
Hashimoto and Classic Kid start things off. Waistlock by Hashimoto but Classic Kid reverses it into a hammerlock. Hashimoto reverses it back, wristlock by Classic Kid and they trade submissions. Wristlock by Hashimoto, snapmare, and he applies a side headlock. Classic Kid quickly gets out of it and applies a hammerlock, punches by Hashimoto and he applies a side headlock, Classic Kid Irish whips out of it but Hashimoto shoulderblocks him down. Backslide by Classic Kid, but it gets a two count. Side headlock takedown by Hashimoto, they jockey for position but neither can get an advantage so both tag out. Arashi and Inoue circle each other, Arashi pushes Inoue into the ropes and he gives a clean break. Tie-up, side headlock by Inoue, Arashi Irish whips out of it and they collide with no result. Inoue tries to shoulderblock Arashi, but it doesn’t work. Arashi goes off the ropes and he shoulderblocks Inoue, sending him staggering. Irish whip by Inoue and Arashi shoulderblocks him to the mat. Scoop slam by Arashi and he hits an elbow drop. Cover, but it gets a two count. Stretch hold by Arashi and he tags in Hashimoto. Hashimoto and Inoue circle each other, kick by Inoue and he elbows Hashimoto in the back of the head. Inoue tags in Classic Kid, and Classic Kid elbows Hashimoto in the back of the head. Irish whip by Classic Kid and he hits a lariat, cover, but Hashimoto kicks out at two. Classic Kid picks up Hashimoto and throws him into the corner before tagging in Inoue. Inoue kicks Hashimoto down in the corner, he picks him up and applies a side headlock. Punches by Inoue and he elbows Hashimoto, but Inoue rakes him in the eyes.
Inoue tags in Classic Kid, and Classic Kid kicks Hashimoto in the stomach. Chop by Classic Kid but Hashimoto elbows him back and they trade shots. Classic Kid goes off the ropes and hits a sliding kick, cover, but it gets a two count. Kicks by Classic Kid in the corner and he tags in Inoue. Inoue stomps on Hashimoto and elbows him in the back of the head. Eye rake by Inoue and he elbows Hashimoto in the back of the head. Hashimoto throws Inoue into the corner but Hashimoto kicks him back and hits a lariat. Hashimoto tags in Arashi, Arashi picks up Inoue and clubs him in the side of the head. Irish whip by Arashi and he lariats Inoue in the corner. Uranage by Arashi, cover, but it gets a two count. Arashi applies a chinlock to Inoue but Classic Kid breaks it up. Inoue tags in Classic Kid, Classic Kid elbows Arashi repeatedly but Arashi punches him to the mat. Arashi picks up Classic Kid and he tags in Hashimoto. Hashimoto throws Classic Kid into the corner and hits a jumping kick followed by a front suplex. Cover, but it gets a two count. Reverse chinlock by Hashimoto and he applies a sleeper, but Classic Kid gets into the ropes. Classic Kid and Hashimoto trade elbows, Hashimoto goes off the ropes but Classic Kid hits a jumping kick. Backdrop suplex by Classic Kid, cover, but it gets a two count. Vertical suplex by Classic Kid, he goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a diving headbutt. Arashi and Inoue get in the ring but Arashi hits them with a double shoulderblock. Arashi charges them both but Classic Kid dropkicks him out of the ring. Inoue hits a lariat onto Hashimoto, Classic Kid grabs Hashimoto and he hits a Blue Thunder. Cover, and he picks up the three count. Your winners: Classic Kid and Masao Inoue
Match Thoughts: Oddly I enjoy Arashi now that he is in the grumpy fat veteran phase of his career, I find it amusing, and I like the match ended with a real finish as so many matches I have watched the last few days have just had flash pins instead of a definite winner. When Inoue and Arashi were in there it slowed down, but Hashimoto and Classic Kid looked fine even if neither are memorable. I have a feeling all these tag matches are going to be a bit dull, but this one was a bit better as Arashi was fun and Hashimoto/Kid kept the match going at a decent pace. Certainly a watchable match, might have been better without Inoue. Score: 5.5
Genichiro Tenryu and Kengo vs. Great Kojika and Ryuichi Kawakami
Kengo and Kawakami start things off. Tie-up, Kawakami pushes Kengo into the ropes and he gives a clean break. Tie-up again, Kengo gets Kawakami into the ropes this time and he elbows him in the face before backing off. They lock knuckles, Kawakami pushes Kengo to his knees but Kengo breaks out of it and elbows Kawakami. Kawakami chops him back and they trade shots, side headlock by Kawakami, Kengo Irish whips out of it but Kawakami shoulderblocks him down. Kawakami goes off the ropes but Kengo hits an armdrag. Kengo tags in Tenryu, Tenryu wants Kojika so Kawakami tags him in. Kojika pushes Tenryu into the ropes and he chops him in the chest. Tie-up, Tenryu pushes Kojika into the ropes this time but he lets him go. Tie-up, side waistlock by Tenryu but Kojika gets into the ropes to force a break. Tie-up, wristlock by Tenryu but Kojika rolls out of it. Kojika punches Tenryu against the ropes and chops him, but Tenryu punches him back. Kojika tags in Kawakami as he has had enough, chops by Tenryu to Kawakami but Kawakami hits him back. Hard elbow by Kawakami, Kawakami tags in Kojika and Kojika knees Tenryu in the ribs. Knee drops by Kojika to Tenryu and he clubs Tenryu in the chest. Kojika tags in Kawakami, Kengo comes in the ring but Kawakami elbows him. Kawakami kicks Tenryu and chops him in the chest. Kawakami tags in Kojika, and Kojika chokes Tenryu with his knee. Kojika chokes Tenryu against the ropes, Kawakami comes in the ring and stomps on Tenryu. Kawakami chops Tenryu in the chest, he goes off the ropes but Tenryu chops him and hits a lariat. Tenryu tags in Kengo, and Kengo stomps on Kawakami. Kengo picks up Kawakami, Irish whip, and he hits a back elbow. Cover, but it gets a two count. Kengo applies a reverse chinlock but Kawakami gets a foot on the ropes. Elbows by Kawakami and he tags in Kojika.
Kojika picks up Kengo and chokes him in the corner. Kojika picks up Kengo, punches by Kojika and throws Kengo into the corner. Kojika tags in Kawakami, and Kawakami punches Kengo down into the corner. Scoop slam by Kawakami, cover, but it gets a two count. Stomps by Kawakami, he picks up Kengo and throws him into the corner. Kawakami tags in Kojika, double Irish whip to Kengo and they hit a double chop. Cover by Kojika, but it gets a two count. Kojika picks up Kengo and throws him into the corner. Kojika tags in Kawakami, Kawakami picks up Kengo and clubs him in the back. Kawakami picks up Kengo and they trade elbows. Kawakami tags in Kojika, Kojika picks up Kengo, Irish whip, and Kojika connects with a knee. Kojika picks up Kengo and they roll around the ring, Kengo gets close to his corner and he tags in Tenryu. Tenryu chops Kojika but Kojika chops him back. Eye rake by Kojika, double underhook by Kojika and he pushes Tenryu into the ropes. Tenryu chops Kojika and punches him, but Kojika chops him back. Punches by Tenryu, and Kojika falls to the mat. He slowly gets back up, punches to the stomach by Kojika as Tenryu continues punching him. They trade chops for a bit longer before tagging in Kengo and Kawakami. Kengo goes for a suplex on Kawakami, Kawakami blocks it but Kengo hits a DDT. Big kick by Kengo, he goes up to the second turnbuckle and hits a diving double kneedrop. Kengo goes up top again, but Kawakami grabs him and throws him off the top turnbuckle. Single leg crab hold by Kawakami but Kengo makes it to the ropes. Kawakami picks up Kengo, Irish whip by Kawakami and he hits an elbow. Knee by Kojika to Kengo, Irish whip, and Kojika hits another knee. Kawakami goes off the ropes and he hits a hard elbow, cover, but it gets a two count. Kawakami picks up Kengo but Kengo hits a dropkick. Lariat by Tenryu to Kawakami, roll-up by Kengo but it gets a two count. Punches by Kengo, he goes off the ropes but Kawakami hits a hard elbow. Kawakami picks up Kengo but Kengo rolls him up and gets the three count. Your winners: Genichiro Tenryu and Kengo
Match Thoughts: Speaking of things slowing down, I have no idea why a 72 year old wrestler is wrestling so much this year. I just have trouble getting into a match with a senior citizen in it, his offense didn’t look good and other wrestlers were afraid to hit him too hard in case he would break. Not quite at Giant Baba levels, but too close for comfort. The match was also way too long, the longest on the card when it probably should have been the shortest. Kengo and Kawakami did what they could but they couldn’t make this match entertaining, and while I respect Tenryu as a legend he didn’t do a lot for me here. Just too long and too slow without enough interesting action. Score: 3.5
BUKI and YASSHI vs. Dragon JOKER and TARU
TARU and YASSHI knock their own teammates out of the ring to start the match, so they can face off against each other. Tie-up, and TARU trades elbows with YASSHI. They both go off the ropes but their teammates trip them from the floor and beat them up. Now BUKI and Dragon JOKER are facing off, waistlock by Dragon JOKER, reversed by BUKI and BUKI elbows BUKI in the arm. Side headlock by Dragon JOKER but BUKI gets out of it. Stomps by Dragon JOKER, he picks up BUKI and drives him back into the corner. YASSHI applies a neck crank to Dragon JOKER and hits a snapmare before hitting a rolling neckbreaker. Cover by YASSHI, but it gets a two count. YASSHI drives Dragon JOKER back, and TARU tags himself in. TARU punches YASSHI, kicks by TARU and YASSHI falls out of the ring. YASSHI rolls back into the ring, and TARU throws YASSHI into the corner. Dragon JOKER tags in, and Dragon JOKER hits an armbreaker to YASSHI. Stomps by Dragon JOKER, but YASSHI rakes him in the eyes. Dragon JOKER knees YASSHI in the arm, elbows by YASSHI and he goes off the ropes but TARU hits him from the floor. YASSHI falls out of the ring and TARU hits him repeatedly with a pole. TARU picks up YASSHI and throws him into the crowd, and they battle around the ring. TARU throws YASSHI back in the ring, cover by Dragon JOKER but it gets a two count. YASSHI is bleeding everywhere while Dragon JOKER stomps him in the face. Dragon JOKER tags in TARU, and TARU kicks YASSHI in the corner. TARU applies a chinlock to YASSHI before kneeing him in the arm. Elbow to the arm by TARU, he picks up YASSHI and twists on his fingers. Armbar by TARU but YASSHI gets a foot on the ropes. TARU picks up YASSHI, Irish whip, YASSHI kicks TARU when he charges in but TARU plants him with a chokebomb for a two count.
TARU gets a steel chair but YASSHI ducks the swing and hits TARU in the head with it. Another chair shot by YASSHI but the referee fights him for it and gets the chair out of the ring. YASSHI picks up TARU, who is bleeding now too, and elbows him in the head. YASSHI goes off the ropes and hits a lariat, he goes off the ropes again and hits another one but TARU stays up. He tries a third time but TARU hits a lariat of his own. Headbutt by YASSHI, and both men are down. YASSHI tags in BUKI while TARU tags in Dragon JOKER, kick by Dragon JOKER to BUKI and he hits a DDT. Cover by Dragon JOKER, but it gets a two count. Dragon JOKER elbows BUKI but BUKI elbows him back and they trade shots. Vertical suplex by BUKI, cover, but it gets two. BUKI picks up Dragon JOKER, snapmare, and he kicks Dragon JOKER in the back. Lariat by BUKI, cover, but YASSHI breaks it up. TARU comes in the ring and lariats Dragon JOKER, he then punches both BUKI and YASSHI. TARU goes off the ropes but he eats a double chop, YASSHI then kicks BUKI in the corner and tags himself in. YASSHI pulls TARU into the ring, he picks him up and goes off the ropes, but he is kicked in the chest. Scissors kick by TARU and he hits a Buzzsaw kick. Cover, but Dragon JOKER breaks it up. Dragon JOKER throws TARU in the corner and tags himself in, BUKI comes in the ring, Dragon JOKER and BUKI Irish whip TARU and hit a double elbow. They then do the same to YASSHI, Dragon JOKER picks up YASSHI and hits a jumping knee followed by a running knee. Cover, but it gets a two count. Falcon Arrow by Dragon JOKER, cover, but it gets another two. Dragon JOKER goes out to the apron and goes for a swandive splash, but YASSHI gets his knees up. YASSHI goes off the ropes but Dragon JOKER connects with a jumping kick, waistlock by Dragon JOKER but YASSHI sneaks in La Magistral for a two count. German suplex by YASSHI but Dragon JOKER rolls through it, Dragon JOKER goes off the ropes but TARU hits him with the metal pipe from ringside. German suplex hold by YASSHI, and he picks up the three count. Your winners: BUKI and YASSHI
Match Thoughts: This was a really entertaining brawl and what more of the matches should have been. These aren’t real teams, they are just paired together to make the matches more interesting (in theory). TARU and YASSHI were the only ones on the card that really demonstrated that, and immediately beating up their own partners set the tone. Any time the match started to fall into a rut of feeling like a normal tag team match, TARU or YASSHI would do something to remind you that it wasn’t, whether it be attack their own teammate or start using various weapons on anyone within reach. I am not sure at the end why TARU decided to help YASSHI but I saw it as TARU just didn’t like anyone in the match and cared more about causing carnage than getting two points. After the first four matches this was a breath of fresh air, it won’t hold up compared to matches on other cards but it was just what this event needed. Score: 7.5
Final Thoughts:
Best Match: BUKI and YASSHI vs. Dragon JOKER and TARU. As I just said above, and will say below, this was far and away the best match on the card. Not only was it different but it was smarter, if the Voodoo Murderers came in and just wrestled a normal tag match it would have come across as incredibly silly as that just isn’t their style. Brawls with blood and creating random madness is what the Voodoo Murderers are all about, and that is what they did here. BUKI and Dragon JOKER were game but this was about TARU and YASSHI, and they delivered here.
MVPs: TARU and YASSHI. I couldn’t separate these two as they both contributed about the same to the main event. Immediately attacking their own teammates quickly showed where they stood in this match, and even though they were friends before and after the match, during the match they just tore into each other. It really made the tournament feel important that these two attacked just about anyone to try to win the match. BUKI and JOKER played their roles but it was TARU and YASSHI that made the main event so fun.
Overall: The card was just limping along until the main event came around, but that was a great brawl which really helped the card. I was worried that Tenryu Project was just going to keep being simple tag matches, like the other event I have reviewed so far was, but then TARU rolled in and mixed things up a bit. If you miss Voodoo Murderers and their brand of matches, you will likely enjoy the main event, but the rest is just middling indy stuff that doesn’t require anyone’s attention.
