May 14, 2011 – Sapporo, Japan
Open the Dream Gate Champion: Masaaki Mochizuki
Open the Triangle Gate Champions: CIMA, Dragon Kid & Ricochet
Open the Brave Gate Champion: PAC
Open the Twin Gate Champions: Ryo Saito & Genki Horiguchi
Open the Freedom Gate Champion: YAMATO
Open the United Gate Champions: Masato Yoshino & PAC
Don Fujii vs. YAMATO {K} [Opening Round Match]
I really like both of these guys, but truth be told they typically have rotten chemistry against each other. We’re joined in progress with Fujii keeping YAMATO on the floor. He dives off the apron. They scrap on the floor a while and get counted out at 2:41 (we saw about thirty seconds of it). Fujii demands that the match be restarted. Referee Yagi is everyone’s favorite guy so he lets it happen. They trade elbows. YAMATO goes for a powder attack but hits Yagi by mistake. Fujii whips YAMATO into a table in the corner. He hits a chokeslam on the table but YAMATO rolls over. The roll up gets nothing because Yagi is still out. Fujii dumps the powder bag over YAMATO’s head (which takes forever because of all of YAMATO’s hair) and hits a lariat. He hits the Nodowa Elbow for 2. YAMATO hits a hurricanrana and rolls Fujii up for the win at 4:55 (of which we saw about 90 seconds). They played this for comedy, which was probably wise. Clipping it up was also wise.
CIMA {BW} vs. Susumu Yokosuka [Opening Round Match]
CIMA powers Yokosuka to the ropes to start. He hits a cheap shot. He gets a roll up for 2. He hits a chest kick. Yokosuka hits a knee to the gut. He hits a kneedrop. CIMA sends him into the corner, face-first. He hits a chest kick for 2. He hits a senton. He hits a boot to the face from the floor for 2. They need to pick it up because at this pace they’re losing me. Yokosuka counters the Venus to an exploder. Here we go! He blocks the Superdrol. CIMA hits a pair of kicks and a senton for 2. He bites Yokosuka and goes for the Tokarev. Yokosuka catches him up top and hits a super exploder for 2. He hit a lariat to the back. He starts going for the Yokosuka Cutter but hits a DDT instead. It gets 2. CIMA comes back with a double stomp. He hits a dropkick and the Perfect Driver for 2. He hits a superkick. Yokosuka hits the Yokosuka Cutter and the Jumbo no Kachigatame for 2. CIMA gets a roll up for 2. Yokosuka blocks the Schwein and rolls CIMA up for 2. He hits the Jumbo no Kachi. CIMA hits the Nakayubi for 2. He hits the Schwein for 2. He hits the Meteora for the win at 10:16 shown of 14:53. Not enough good is said about Yokosuka’s metaphysical style. He wrestles outside the confines of the laws of wrestling, but does it without turning matches into comedy or really even breaking kayfabe. For his part, CIMA just doesn’t have bad matches anymore, so this was a fun way to spend ten minutes. After the match the Blood Warriors attack Yokosuka.
Rating: ***¼
Genki Horiguchi {BW} vs. Ryo Saito {BW} [Opening Round Match]
I wonder how they’ll deal with this one. Horiguchi works the arm to start. Since they’re apparently going for a real match, Horiguchi should be the de facto babyface. Saito starts to overpower Horiguchi, so Horiguchi keeps it on the mat by attacking the leg. Saito hits a shoulder tackle. Horiguchi hits a head scissor takedown. The crowd doesn’t know what to do with any of this. Saito whips Horiguchi into the post. He hits a double stomp off the top for 2. Horiguchi dropkicks the knee and sends Saito to the floor. He hits Saito’s leg with a chair. The crowd is still silent. Maybe this wasn’t the smartest match to book
. Back in the ring Saito hits an overhead suplex that gets a respectful applause from the crowd. Horiguchi sweeps the leg but misses a moonsault. Saito hits the Fisherman Express for 2. He shrugs off the swinging DDT and climbs the ropes. Horiguchi crotches him. Saito blocks a superplex and goes for a Sunset Bomb. Horiguchi counters that with a hurricanrana. He rolls through Saito’s hurricanrana and gets a roll up for 2. Saito hits a German suplex. Horiguchi hits a brainbuster for 2. He hits a mule kick. Saito hits a dragon suplex. Horiguchi returns the favor. Saito gets a backslide for 2. He hits a dragon suplex for 2. Horiguchi blocks the Premium Bridge and gets the Backslide from Heaven for 2. Saito blocks a second attempt and hits the Premium Bridge for the win at 11:49 shown of 16:33. This is why MarahaIsappa in 2011 is so much better than they were in 2009. Back then there would have been a million people interfering only for one of the guys to lay down for the other. Here we get a quality match between two of the best midcarders in the business today, even though they are heel tag team partners. The crowd was bewildered by it, but they worked it out anyway and the finish was cool.
Rating: **¾
BxB Hulk vs. Naruki Doi {BW} [Opening Round Match]
I haven’t loved either of the two big matches these guys have had (for Doi’s Dream Gate title in 2009 and for Hulk’s Freedom Gate title in 2010), so I’m going in with low expectations. Doi won the tournament in 2008 and went on to win the title immediately afterwards. He hits a cheap shot to start. Hulk kicks his face. Shingo Takagi is shown cheering him on, which is just weird to see at this point. Hulk hits a roundhouse kick. He hits a senton for 2. Doi hits the Stun Gun and a neckbreaker. He hits a senton for 2. He whips Hulk into the post. He hits a vertical suplex for 2. He hits a powerbomb for 2. Hulk comes back with a missile dropkick. He hits an axe kick to the back for 2. He hits the BxB Star Press for 2. He hits an axe kick to the face and a flying leg lariat for 2. Doi rips him off the ropes to regain control. He hits the Dai Bosou. He hits a spinebuster for 2. Hulk blocks the Doi 555 but Doi catches him with a schoolboy for 2. Hulk hits the Mouse and a powerslam. He hits the EVO for 2. Doi hits leg kicks but cant find the Bakatare Sliding Kick. Hulk hits an enziguiri. He hits an overhead slam for 2. That move needs a name. Doi hits a reverse DDT and a spike DDT. He hits the Bakatare Sliding Kick. Hulk blocks the Muscular Bomb. Doi ducks an enziguiri and hits a tiger suplex for 2. Hulk hits the FTX but can’t make the cover. Doi comes back with a tiger superplex for 2. Now the crowd NEEDS Hulk to win. Doi hits the Doi 555 and the Bakatare Sliding Kick for 2. Hulk has a mini seizure. Doi readies for the Muscular Bomb but Hulk rolls through to hit a facebuster for 2. They trade strikes. Hulk kicks Doi’s face off. He hits the H Thunder For 2. He hits an axe kick and the First Flash. He hits the Phoenix Splash for the win at 14:17 shown of 18:31. Not much selling in this one, but they went balls to the wall and had the best match in their big-match series.
Rating: ***½
In the next round Masaaki Mochizuki will face Cyber Kong, Dragon Kid will take on Yasushi Kanda, YAMATO will fight CIMA and Hulk will square off against Saito. I’m foaming at the mouth to see YAMATO vs. CIMA again!
Gamma {BW}, Ricochet {BW} & Dragon Kid {BW} vs. Takuya Tomakomai, Super Shisa & PAC sees Ricochet win for his team after a 630 senton on Tomakomai. Mochizuki invites Tomakomai into his group after the match. Tomakomai says no because he’s not ready to be a part of the team. Mochizuki then invites Shisa, who says yes.
Later in the evening, after Masaaki Mochizuki & Masato Yoshino vs. Shingo Takagi {K} & Cyber Kong {K}, Mochizuki asks Takagi to formally join his group. Takagi does so and shakes Mochizuki’s hand. Kong’s allegiance still hasn’t been confirmed, but he’s fighting Mochizuki in the next round of the tournament, so it might be a trial by fire.