September 16, 2011 – Tokyo, Japan
Open the Dream Gate Champion: Masaaki Mochizuki
Open the Triangle Gate Champions: Naruki Doi, Naoki Tanisaki & Kzy
Open the Brave Gate Champion: PAC
Open the Twin Gate Champions: CIMA & Ricochet
Open the Freedom Gate Champion: YAMATO
Open the United Gate Champions: CIMA & Ricochet
PAC © {J3} vs. Naoki Tanisaki {BW} [Open the Brave Gate Championship Match]
The delusional Tanisaki of course thinks that he’s coming into this match as the champion, and he only needs a 2-count to win. Tanisaki attacks at the bell. They trade roll ups, PAC getting 2 and Tanisaki getting 1. PAC misses a dropkick and Tanisaki gets 1. On the floor Brodie Lee beats up PAC. On the floor Tanisaki hits a suplex on a chair pile. PAC beats the count at 19. Tanisaki chokes him with a chain. PAC sends Tanisaki headfirst into a chair in the corner. He blocks the DH and slams Tanisaki. He hits the Ace Crusher. He hits the springboard 450 splash but Tanisaki rolls him up for 1. Tanisaki gets a sunset flip for 1. He hits a kneelift. PAC counters the Casanova to the Implant for 2. Tanisaki gets a sunset flip for 1. Yasushi Kanda goes nuts with the blue box while Kzy mists and powders PAC. That all leads to a Tanisaki roll up for 1. PAC hits a Gemran suplex and an enziguiri. He hits the sit-out powerbomb for 2. He hits the 360 Shooting Star Press for the win and his belt back at 7:07 shown of 9:17. The only problem with this gimmick is it makes Tanisaki look really weak. He controlled most of the match and wisely (from a booking standpoint) never hit any of his big moves to only get 1, like he did in the match against Gamma. I could have stood to see this in full.
Rating: ***
After the match the Metal Warrior attacks PAC and hits the Beach Break. He unmasks to reveal himself as Genki Horiguchi. Horiguchi challenges PAC for the title at the Gate of Destiny. He politely translates the challenge into English for PAC, “I’m next! Go to Hell!”
CIMA {BW}, Ricochet {BW}, Ryo Saito {BW} & Genki Horiguchi {BW} vs. Susumu Yokosuka {J3}, K-ness, Kenichiro Arai & Taku Iwasa
Our heroes attack before the bell. Everyone brawls around ringside. In the ring K-ness and Yokosuka hit CIMA with the SukaDora Knee. Arai and Iwasa hit Horiguchi with the double wheelbarrow suplex. Arai double stomps Iwasa by mistake. Ricochet hits a missile dropkick. He and CIMA hit stereo dives. Horiguchi hits Yokosuka with a swinging DDT and Saito hits the Superfly Splash for 2. MARAHA! ISA… Arai hits Saito with a DDT. Saito and Arai outsmart K-neSuka. CIMA hits the Iconoclasm on K-ness and Ricochet hits a running SSP. Saito hits a double stomp for 2. CIMA hits the elevated double stomp for 2. K-ness hits Horiguchi with a DDT. Yokosuka cleans house with lariats and exploders. Arai kneedrops CIMA. Rich Swann takes out an interfering Kzy and helps our heroes hit a massive suplex on the Blood Warriors. But why was Swann there in the first place? Iwasa splashes Horiguchi and helps Arai hit a big double stomp. K-ness hits the Shouryuukyaku. Yokosuka hits the Jumbo no Kachi for 2. Arai hits a tiger suplex. Iwasa hits the Noshigami for 2. Saito hits Yokosuka with a German suplex. Ricochet hits Iwasa with a dropkick. He hits Arai with a spin kick. He hits K-ness with a back flip kick. CIMA hits a superkick and the Perfect Driver for 2. He and Ricochet hit the double Tokarev. CIMA hits the Schwein for 2. He hits the Meteora for the win at 9:41 shown of 11:27. Jesus they packed a lot into this match. This was a lot of fun, and again I would have loved to see it in full (every second is gold).
Rating: ***½
CIMA gets on the microphone and runs down his opponents. He tells Kotoka to stop buddying up to them and aspire to be a great wrestler like the Blood Warriors.
Kzy {BW} & Brodie Lee {BW} vs. Masaaki Mochizuki {J3} & Gamma {J3}
The match is joined in progress with Lee hitting Mochizuki with the Truck Stop for 2. He tries to help Kzy hit KZ Time but Mochizuki blocks it. Gamma helps Mochizuki hit Lee with the apron kick. Gamma hits Kzy with the Gamma Special for the win. The Blood Warriors swarm and attack after the match.
Naruki Doi {BW} & Yasushi Kanda {BW} vs. Masato Yoshino {J3} & Dragon Kid {J3}
The match is joined in progress with Yoshino blocking the Muscular Bomb and getting a roll up for 2. He hits the Torbellino and Kid hits the Ultra Hurricanrana for the win. Junction Three was rocking it on this night. It’s been a pretty dominant night for Junction Three.
YAMATO {J3} vs. Akira Tozawa {BW} [No Rope No Disqualification Match]
YAMATO is very used to this environment. Kzy and Tanisaki attack YAMATO before Tozawa even touches him. Tozawa joins in. The crowd is flipping out furious until Referee Yagi ejects the two of them. We skip ahead to YAMATO being in control. Tozawa dodges a charge and YAMATO spills to the floor. Tozawa goes for a suicide dive but misses YAMATO and falls into the crowd. They brawl around the building. Tozawa hits chest kicks. He hits the bicycle kick. Back in the ring he hits a chair shot. YAMATO, impervious to chairs as always, asks for another. He grabs the chair and smacks Tozawa with it. He hits an exploder for 2. He brings a table into the ring but Tozawa kicks it into his face. Tozawa sets up the table and puts YAMATO on it. He climbs the post but YAMATO meets him up there and hits a brainbuster through the table. That gets 2. YAMATO slams Tozawa onto the broken table and climbs the post. He misses a frog splash. Tozawa ducks an enziguiri and hits a German suplex for 2. YAMATO blocks the arm-trap German suplex and hits an enziguiri. He hits the Galleria on the broken table but he’s too hurt to make the cover immediately. Eventually he gets 2. He puts on the sleeper hold and hits the sleeper suplex. He hits the punt. Tozawa hits a German suplex onto the table for 2. He hits the arm-trap German suplex near the apron after feeling for something with his foot and gets the win at 11:00 shown of 21:33. That finish was awesome. I’m willing to wager that had this Korakuen event been spread out over two episodes of Infinity and we been allowed to see more of the match this might be one of my favorite matches of the year. As it is it’s just an awesome thing of which I’ll always wish I’d seen a lot more. After the match Tozawa reveals he had hidden a metal plate under the ring to REALLY mess YAMATO up. That is AWESOME!
Rating: ****
After the match Mochizuki tells Tozawa that he’ll give him a shot at the Dream Gate title. Tozawa reminds him that he’s in the cage match at Gate of Destiny, so it’s not an honorable offer. Mochizuki says he can have the shot a couple days earlier on the next Korakuen Hall show. Tozawa spits in his face. It’s a real solid shnork too, and I kind of want to vomit looking at it. Tozawa. CIMA gets in the ring and addresses Shingo Takagi. He challenges him to a match against Brodie Lee at the same Korakuen Hall show to decide who is the strongest man in Dragon Gate.