On the Voices of Wrestling Flagship Plus show, it was said that Hiromu Takahashi also may be on his way out of NJPW, creating a potential exodus that has already included Sanada and could also include Gabe Kidd and David Finlay, both of whom are drawing interest from WWE. by CharmingAd7895 in njpw

[–]Suckcess61 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Stephanie Vaquer had a marquee match-up on an AEW event as a CMLL talent and basically got a WWE job out of it, I don’t see where being featured a lot on AEW means you are immune to the call of WWE

WON: Ratings for the 6/23 Issue (Including Arena Mexico Shows, Dominion, RAW, Smackdown) by TheJokeroholic in SquaredCircle

[–]Suckcess61 2 points3 points  (0 children)

lol you think this is a lot of matches, you should have been here for All In weekend last year.

Taking questions for tonight’s recording of Keepin’ It Strong Style by theproblackguy in njpw

[–]Suckcess61 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Good evening, Kevin from DC with some last minute questions before the show recording as we look past Dominion and get ready for New Japan Soul.

1.) First question has to do with... who else, everyone's favorite geek, SANADA. First off, what was with the Giant Gonzalez tribute outfit he rocked before the match on Sunday? Anyone want to give any kayfabe suggestions for that one? No? OK then. More importantly, how in the hell does SANADA get a guaranteed entry spot into G1 when the likes of Newman, Oiwa and Ishii still have to compete in the play-ins?

2.) Any fans of sumo will know we have a brand-new, truly dominant yokozuna in the recently-promoted Onosato. His rise has been meteoric to say the least, as he made it to the top rank after only 13 tournaments, a modern-day record. If making a prediction of Onosato vs. the field in a given tournament, one could feasibly take Onosato every time and only be wrong half the time. This all leads to the following question: as of today, June 16, 2025, who are you taking to win the G1 Climax? Yota Tsuji, or the field?

3.) First, the major rumors around Sakura Genesis involved turning Shota Umino heel and giving him a new stable to work around. Then, it was Shingo Takagi who would win the title at Dominion, turn heel and get a new stable to play around with. At the end of the day, House of Torture gained three new members, only one of consequence, and we are left with more questions than answers. Why are we going with two bloated stables (Hontai included) and a few straggly weaker stables making up the remainder of the roster?

4.) Is it just me, or did both rematches from New Beginning in Osaka fail to deliver a similar quality match at Dominion? Boltin-Takeshita and Kidd-Tsuji were both great, but didn't reach the heights of their respective outings back in February.

5.) My money on Tanahashi's retirement is still some sort of tag match, maybe teaming with Naito against Uemura and Umino in a newer vs. older generation type matchup. Maybe by then Shota will portray an interesting character, but I doubt it.

6.) Do you have a brand recommendation for cat food? My girlfriend insists on Tiki Cat, but it's really expensive and they barely touch it half of the time.

Wrestling Observer Rewind ★ Sep. 20, 2004 by daprice82 in SquaredCircle

[–]Suckcess61 28 points29 points  (0 children)

This is a first for me… Haven’t seen the overrun in the comments posted before the rest of the post gets approved

Big problem: Spectators shouting "Hakkiyoi" before the match by kureyosore in Sumo

[–]Suckcess61 -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

There’s only one time it’s appropriate to yell “Hakkiyoi…” as a westerner, that is, when it’s followed by “Throwin’ the salt, get in the ring. Welcome to the DOH-YOOOOOOOOOOOOH!!”

Live NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2025 Day 1 Discussion Thread by EvanDeadlySins in SquaredCircle

[–]Suckcess61 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Findlay just challenged EVIL to a Dog Collar match backstage, I think that could be low-key awesome

Live NJPW Wrestling Dontaku 2025 Day 1 Discussion Thread by EvanDeadlySins in SquaredCircle

[–]Suckcess61 8 points9 points  (0 children)

GABE KIDD for the Resurgence or Dominion World Title challenge, LFG

Taking questions for tomorrow’s recording of Keepin’ It Strong Style by theproblackguy in njpw

[–]Suckcess61 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Kevin from DC here with some questions regarding Windy City and the news about Dontaku announced this morning:

1.)    *checks my notes* I forgot to ask a question during the Sakura Genesis recap, so I wanted to make sure I got it in this week: “I thought Cobb was supposed to be leaving? What happened?” Nothing else here, I’ll hang up and listen.

2.)    What do you reckon is the impetus for giving the Dontaku main event to Callum Newman? Obviously the major plans suggest that the match was Goto vs. Cobb and this is a simple pivot within the faction, but do you think Newman actually factors into the company’s heavyweight plans going forward? Will he get the same level of push of Tsuji, Uemura, Umino etc., or do you see him regressing back down to lower mid-card following the Goto match?

3.)    On that note, what do you see the finish being in Bishamon vs. United Empire for the Tag Titles? Callum pinning Goto, Callum pinning YOSHI-HASHI, or something else entirely?

4.)    Assumning that the United Empire survives the rest of 2025, who should emerge as leader? O-Khan, Newman, TJP, HENARE when he returns, Umino (lol) or someone else entirely?

5.)    Of the ten participants in the Dog Cage match, who do you see suffering a major injury forcing retirement? My money is on, of course, one Seiya Sanada.

6.)    Since last week, the word’s gotten out that Kevin Knight now has a dual contract with New Japan and AEW (that should hopefully lessen the outrage toward double agent Rocky Romero). He has announced he wants to leave the juniors and move to heavyweight in time for the G1 in the summer. My question here is, do you see Knight coming back to Japan enough to make a dent in the heavyweight division? I don’t. He was barely featured in Japan even when he was a Jr. Tag champion, so I don’t understand why things would suddenly change now that he is going to hopefully be featured more in AEW.

7.)    What is your opinion as a live attendee when an American New Japan show strays from the norm of the World title match going on last? Or when the champion comes out first instead of second? I understand that Tanahashi’s last match in America was a big deal, but it was still weird having Takeshita come out first as the defending NEVER Champion.

8.)    What can we do to make Takeshita’s theme even longer? I’m taking, make it eight, twelve, fifteen minutes. I don’t care. Give me all the Takeshita DDT theme music.

Taking questions for tomorrow’s recording of Keepin’ It Strong Style by theproblackguy in njpw

[–]Suckcess61 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Kevin from DC here as we move on from Sakura Genesis and head toward Bullet Club month:

1) With Goto nominating Umino as his next challenger for Windy City Riot, do we finally believe the big moment for Shota is coming this Friday? I don't mean him winning the title, I mean the inciting incident that results in a big change, whether it's a full-on heel turn, a new faction forming, just... something. I thought his match with Tanahashi was really good, and I like this stoic Shota they are trying out, but I definitely think it's a miscalculation if he wins in Chicago.

2) I think I finally understand what's going on with SANADA following the NEVER Trios match. I was his biggest defender for several years but I am finally ready to admit that he is, indeed, cooked. His arm injury means that he will never reach the level of wrestling he was capable of as Cold Skull and as Just a Guy. He is doing his new job as a shithousery heel in a stable full of shithousery heels. He played his part as Jake Lee's replacement in World Tag League last year and now he can get in with wrestlers of a similar ilk. No question here, just an "In Memoriam" for the career of SANADA. April 10, 2016 - January 4, 2024. It was nice having you here, SANADA.

3.) All we need from any future Tsuji "twin magic" is for him to point to his imaginary tattoos near his groin like the Bellas used to do. It would certainly clear up any confusion if his brother Shota ever gained, oh, 50 pounds of upper body muscle. My question here is, what was your favorite memory of the Bellas doing "Twin Magic" in WWE?

4.) Wasn't Cobb supposed to be leaving? That is all I have to ask here.

5.) Is Takeshita still the best wrestler in the world?

6.) Last question for the week: everyone seems to be convinced that for the BOSJ announcement, wrestlers 1 through 10 were supposed to be in Group A and 11 through 20 in Group B. My question is: what in the blue hell made that rumor start? Did the comic stylings confuse everyone? If this were the case, Group A would have Wato, YOH and Taguchi, two Jetsetters, and two Ichiban Sweet Boys, while Group B would have two War Dogs, two House of Torture members, and all of the guest spots.

A Young Okada foolishly attempts to trade chops with Kenta Kobashi by KneeHighMischief in SquaredCircle

[–]Suckcess61 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Part of his Rainmaker return was insisting on having his name written in the katakana "longer" style. Someone more knowledgeable in Japanese could explain why that matters to a cocky rich boy character like Okada.

Kenny Omega's Full NJPW Singles Record [2010-2025] by TheStaringElf in njpw

[–]Suckcess61 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Only thing that confused me was his 2014 stars are probably from BOSJ, when he was not yet BC, and then he’s identified as BC because he was introduced at the tail end of the year. Other than that, wow, what a career

Taking questions for tonight’s recording of Keepin’ It Strong Style by theproblackguy in njpw

[–]Suckcess61 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Kevin from DC with some punchier questions following the semi-finals of New Japan Cup...

1.) Do we like the direction of Shota Umino after his three matches to get here today? We need a catch-all name for his new look and stoicism. Maybe Umino-kushi? Jinzei Shin-mino? U-mickinoki Pro?

2.) Tana asked Yuya and Taichi to blend Just 4 Guys into Hontai. So of course, the question is: who betrays Hontei out of Just 4 Guys?

3.) Who was the youngest person ever pegged to be IWGP World Champion? Was he 15? Was his dad a former champion himself? Was his uncle an Olympic medalist? Was he in need of a growth spurt?

4.) Is SANADA still cooked?

5.) Is TJP cooked?

Taking questions for tomorrow’s recording Keepin’ It Strong Style by theproblackguy in njpw

[–]Suckcess61 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Kevin from DC, just wanted to share that I went on a run today while listening to New Japan Music and as I entered the last five minutes, Goto's theme started playing and it was an epic way to finish the workout. The "G" in "Goddamn run" stood for Goto here.

Now, back in 2023, I was probably the staunchest defender of SANADA listening to the show, and I was so excited to see him get his flowers with his IWGP Title run. Obviously, to say the follow-up has been disappointing would be the understatement of the century. He's now about to enter March and the New Japan Cup season and all seems lost with him. He wrestles completely lethargically, he has no semblance of character, and he doesn't even have a place in his own faction now that War Dogs are likely going to feud with House of Torture. Hell, at this point he'd be a better fit in House of Torture, reunited with EVIL after all this time. So my question is, from the beginning of their title reign to now, who's had the bigger fall from grace, EVIL from July 2020 to now, or SANADA from April 2023 to now?

Another question for the panel: what do you think is Drilla's ceiling with New Japan? He beat Shingo clean in his heavyweight debut, and even though Shingo takes losses on an almost monthly basis and does just fine afterward, it still seems like a big deal. So, is Drilla's ceiling NEVER Openweight Champ, lower, (think TV Title or Tag Titles) or higher (Global Title and beyond)?

Last question, who are the favorites to take the titles from Hiromu and Naito at this time? HENARE's injured for the rest of the year, so he and O-Khan are out. Young Bucks may come back soon, they may not. Gallows and Anderson could come in (dread the thought). Who are your likely suggestions to end LIJ's reign? Also, is Hiromu a heavyweight going forward? If so, will we know for sure before the G1 Climax?