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NEW JAPAN PRO WRESTLING DELIVERS ANOTHER THRILLING CARD AT RYOGOKU KOKUGIKAN

Tokyo, Japan - In front of a packed crowd at the historic Ryogoku Kokugikan, New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) presented its latest offering on April 9th, and it did not disappoint. The evening's main event saw Kazuchika Okada successfully defend his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Katsuyori Shibata in a thrilling contest that stole the show.

But before we get to the main event, let's take a look at the rest of the card. The night opened with a six-man tag team match featuring David Finlay, Jushin Thunder Liger, and Manabu Nakanishi taking on Hirai Kawato, Katsuya Kitamura, and Tomoyuki Oka. In a relatively quick encounter, Finlay's team emerged victorious in 7:00.

Next up was an eight-man tag team match pitting BULLET CLUB against Tiger Mask, Tiger Mask W, Togi Makabe, and Yuji Nagata. This one featured some great teamwork from both sides, with the eventual winners, BULLET CLUB, securing the pin in 8:40.

The third match of the evening saw CHAOS take on Suzuki-gun in a six-man tag team contest. Beretta, Rocky Romero, and YOSHI-HASHI proved too much for El Desperado, Minoru Suzuki, and TAKA Michinoku, as they picked up the win in 6:50.

The first title match of the night saw Suzuki-gun's Taichi and Yoshinobu Kanemaru defend their IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles against World Class Tag Team's Gedo and Jado. The champions retained their gold in a hard-fought contest that clocked in at 10:26.

BULLET CLUB was back in action next, as Bad Luck Fale and Kenny Omega took on CHAOS' Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano in a tag team match. In another exciting encounter, the BULLET CLUB duo came out on top in 10:15.

The penultimate match of the evening saw Hiroshi Tanahashi, Juice Robinson, Ricochet, and Ryusuke Taguchi face off against Los Ingobernables de Japon's BUSHI, EVIL, SANADA, and Tetsuya Naito in an eight-man tag team contest. This one was all about high-flying action and technical grappling, with the winners emerging victorious in 11:30.

The main event of the evening saw War Machine (Hanson and Raymond Rowe) challenge TenKoji for the IWGP Tag Team Titles. In a great match that saw both teams give it their all, War Machine emerged as the new champions.

But the real main event of the evening was the NEVER Openweight Title match between Hirooki Goto and Zack Sabre Jr. This one was an absolute war, with both men giving it their all in a contest that clocked in at 16:16.

The night's final two matches saw Hiromu Takahashi successfully defend his IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title against KUSHIDA in just 1:56, and Kazuchika Okada retain his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Katsuyori Shibata in a thrilling contest that went the distance at 38:09.

Overall, this was another great show from NJPW, with plenty of exciting matches and memorable moments to go around. If you're a fan of professional wrestling, then you owe it to yourself to check out the action from the Ryogoku Kokugikan on April 9th. 4.5/5

Match Ratings:

  1. Finlay/Nakanishi/Liger vs. Kawato/Kitamura/Oka - 2.75
  2. BULLET CLUB vs. Tiger Mask/Tiger Mask W/Makabe/Nagata - 3.25
  3. CHAOS vs. Suzuki-gun - 3.5
  4. Taichi/Kanemaru (c) vs. Gedo/Jado for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles - 3.75
  5. Fale/Omega vs. Ishii/Yano - 3.25
  6. Tanahashi/Robinson/Ricochet/Taguchi vs. BUSHI/EVIL/SANADA/Naito - 4.0
  7. War Machine (c) vs. TenKoji for the IWGP Tag Team Titles - 4.0
  8. Goto vs. Sabre Jr. for the NEVER Openweight Title - 4.5
  9. Takahashi (c) vs. KUSHIDA for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title - 4.25
  10. Okada (c) vs. Shibata for the IWGP Heavyweight Title - 4.75

Overall Rating: 4.2/5

This article was written by [Your Name] for zohash.com.

Card Details

  • Date: 09 Apr 2017
  • Promotion: New Japan Pro Wrestling
  • Arena: Ryogoku Kokugikan
  • Attendance: 10231
  • Type: TV-Show
  • Broadcast Type: Live
  • Broadcast Date: 09 Apr 2017

Matches

  1. David Finlay, Jushin Thunder Liger and Manabu Nakanishi defeat Hirai Kawato, Katsuya Kitamura and Tomoyuki Oka in a Six Man Tag Team Match
    Match Time: 07:00

  2. BULLET CLUB (Chase Owens, Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa and Yujiro Takahashi) defeat Tiger Mask, Tiger Mask W, Togi Makabe and Yuji Nagata in a Eight Man Tag Team Match
    Match Time: 08:40

  3. CHAOS (Beretta, Rocky Romero and YOSHI-HASHI) defeat Suzuki-gun (El Desperado, Minoru Suzuki and TAKA Michinoku) in a Six Man Tag Team Match
    Match Time: 06:50

  4. Suzuki-gun (Taichi and Yoshinobu Kanemaru)(C) defeat World Class Tag Team (Gedo and Jado) in a IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Title Match
    Match Time: 10:26

  5. BULLET CLUB (Bad Luck Fale and Kenny Omega) defeat CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano) in a Tag Team Match
    Match Time: 10:15

  6. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Juice Robinson, Ricochet and Ryusuke Taguchi defeat Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, EVIL, SANADA and Tetsuya Naito) in a Eight Man Tag Team Match
    Match Time: 11:30

  7. War Machine (Hanson and Raymond Rowe)(C) defeat TenKoji in a IWGP Tag Team Title Match

  8. Hirooki Goto(C) defeat Zack Sabre Jr. in a NEVER Openweight Title Match
    Match Time: 16:16

  9. Hiromu Takahashi(C) defeat KUSHIDA in a IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title Match
    Match Time: 01:56

  10. Kazuchika Okada(C) defeat Katsuyori Shibata in a IWGP Heavyweight Title Match
    Match Time: 38:09

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