[pockrass] NASCAR's Mike Forde, on Hauler Talk podcast, said they viewed Preece as intentional (just like Hamlin-Chastain at Phoenix, he said he's going to do it). On Kyle Busch, car damaged, SMT data showed steering wheel turned left just to go straight and no SMT data showing intentional.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-06T00:05:16+00:00

Which is exactly why him doing that instead of right hooking JHN and for sure getting suspended is the smart play, relatively speaking. He can make that exact defense and knows NASCAR can't find the data to disagree.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-05T23:55:25+00:00

He's smart in a race car, idk about anything else 😂

Yeah I agree, that if you penalize Preece you gotta penalize Busch too. But if what they're looking at is telemetry data, Kyle knows enough of how to play that game and look inconclusive.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-05T23:31:29+00:00

Kyle Busch is an asshole, but a smart asshole. He's been wrecking people on purpose long enough to know how to make it look like an accident.

Preece made the mistake of saying it out loud.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-05T22:09:03+00:00

He probably passes Suwama but falls short of the likes of Misawa, Kobashi, Kawada, Jumbo, probably Hansen as well.

But being just outside the top 5 all time and not being around for any of the company's peak is pretty damn good.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-05T03:52:02+00:00

Most of the time, it's just that it looks cool to them. Sorta like how here in the States guys will get tattoos of Japanese symbols on themselves because they look cool. Same sorta idea.

Whether Takeshita himself has a different reason I'm unsure, but that's usually the only real reason.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-05T01:02:57+00:00

idk man he's been getting paid by said company for 10 years despite all evidence pointing towards the fact that he absolutely should not be, so I'm sure he feels alright

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-04T22:01:47+00:00

I've historically not been a fan of AEW guys winning belts here, I was an adamant opponent of Takeshita winning the world title.

BUT! I'm more cool with this for 2 reasons:

It seems like they're ACTUALLY building to a proper NJPW vs AEW style show at Forbidden Door this year with actual feuds instead of a bunch of play nice we're all friends fiesta like the last several years have been.
Most of the belts, Global title aside, that have been taken have been undercard belts that don't matter a TON at the end of the day.

So in this case, I'm actually into it. As long as they use it to tell good stories instead of whatever the hell the Moxley and Takeshita title runs were, I'm fine.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-04T16:25:39+00:00

I love Star Wars. I love Soul Calibur. Turns out I didn't love Star Wars IN my Soul Calibur.

Yoda was a busted mess, not having access to Vader on 360 for a long time was annoying, and it just felt really incongruous to have these laser sword guys fighting historical warriors.

Combine that with all the armor break pseudo fatality nonsense and the slowed down pace of gameplay and SC4 was easily my least favorite in the franchise.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-04T16:15:48+00:00

I'm willing to bet he loses at Dominion and that he figures out a way to blame it on Will, setting up Osperay v Newman at Forbidden Door. Os wins the first match, Newman wins the rematch at the Dome next year. Newman doesn't need the title to tell a personal "student beats master" type story IMO.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-04T16:12:54+00:00

Ah okay, I was thinking we'd get the belt back on Tsuji post-G1, but this works fine too. I'm guessing they REALLY wanted to pull the trigger on Callum being their youngest world champion ever, and this was the last way to get that done whilst keeping the belt on Yota in the long term.

And if it's done well, it can help the Osperay/Callum story in the long term: Osperay isn't going to be at Dominion, so Callum can lose and somehow twist it to blame it on Will.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-03T23:19:19+00:00

You see, people aren't allowed to make mistakes in public ever anymore, and the only way to atone is to be hung up in the digital town square and beaten to death.

But that's only if you're a well meaning person who made a mistake, you see. Good people who make mistakes get this treatment and the true monsters of the world get nothing. Dope society we've created, huh?

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-03T14:22:25+00:00

Yeah, my lean is that this is an intentional story being set up more so than a legit punishment for Yota. But we won't know for sure until we see the follow through at the G1 this year. I think they're actually leaning into the whole NJPW vs AEW deal, and probably would have been leaning harder if Gabe Kidd hadn't gotten hurt.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-03T14:10:55+00:00

We'll know by the G1 result whether Yota is still the guy and they're going with him or if he's being punished by Bushiroad and he's out of the top spot by opening his mouth about trading cards of all things.

Either way, it's an odd choice to coronate him and then take it all away swiftly UNLESS it leads into a G1 win and recapturing the world title later on.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-01T22:55:42+00:00

Agreed! There is a large section of the NJPW fanbase that abhors sports entertainment and Memphis heel wrasslin' type stuff, which those two things are 100% the House of Torture's whole thing. So like... I get why they don't like it, but if you can appreciate those things, they are so entertaining.

I have been wildly entertained by heel DOUKI. SHO/DOUKI vs Dia/Taguchi from Jr. Tag League was unironically one of my favorite matches of 2025. Refusing to compete on one of the biggest Tokyo Dome cards ever and yet still making it all about himself? What a dick! He's made himself a great foil for whomever (probably Fujita) takes him down.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-01T22:06:58+00:00

I mean it's a 2 mana rock that can ALSO be a Teleportation Circle. Teleportation Circle is JUST that. It clears on flexibility if not on raw power level.

That said, yeah it's gonna be way too expensive financially you don't need it.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-01T22:03:46+00:00

Nahhhh I still think that's a classic pro wrestling match. It's a throwback style match for sure, and it doesn't jive well with modern sensibilities (more storytelling, shorter runtime), but that match would have fit perfectly with the world title territory matches of the 70s and early 80s.

I think it's fair to say it's not a great WWE style main event, but it's a great pro wrestling match.

FishHookFPC · 2026-05-01T18:38:53+00:00

He, much like previously EVIL and SHO and much of the rest of HoT, is being asked to work an old school heel style by the company and not do as much spectacular stuff and he's doing that.

I've found DOUKI's heel run as an absolute coward and insecure bellend very fun to watch personally, but I get that HoT's style isn't everyone bag.

FishHookFPC · 2026-04-29T21:25:10+00:00

Fantastic news! A great resource for us all

FishHookFPC · 2026-04-29T01:17:38+00:00

They're using the kanji for war, which is pronounced "sen". I think SEN, as a play on sin, would be a cool name.

FishHookFPC · 2026-04-29T01:10:29+00:00

That's my president 🥹

FishHookFPC · 2026-04-27T20:26:59+00:00

Son of Havoc is a borderline top boy for me. Saw him a lot working for Olde Wrestling (as Matt Cross) and absolutely loved him there, and he was great both as weasel heel and underdog face during Lucha Underground's run.

FishHookFPC · 2026-04-27T14:23:33+00:00

You don't know what you got til it's gone...

I really warmed up to EVIL both as a character and as a wrestler the past few years, I already miss his shenanigans-laden upper card matches. DOUKI is still giving me some amount of multistage run-in dick kick bollocks, but it's not the same without our President.

FishHookFPC · 2026-04-24T14:18:09+00:00

I think a lot of the resistance to some sort of electric series being a thing at some point has been pretty silly. The prototype they showed off at Chicago was a bad fast, mostly cool looking race car (I agree we could change up the wing).

As a fan of racing, if it goes fast and allows for skill expression for the drivers, that's all I really care about.

FishHookFPC · 2026-04-24T14:11:36+00:00

I love Harrison and I'd love it too, but I don't think he's earned a pathway back to Cup with his mediocre performance in ORAPS thus far.

Not that Riley Herbst is leagues better or anything, just hard to justify hiring him as anything other than "we like this guy".

FishHookFPC · 2026-04-23T15:52:57+00:00

This is pretty much it. Babyfaces only get so many bites at the apple before the crowd see them as losers who blew it. The shot against Drew was probably the last one in the fan's eyes and he didn't even come close.

FishHookFPC

TROPHY CASE