New Japan’s biggest event of the year Wrestle Kingdom has now come and gone…however that is not the only show that you can expect from the company in January.

If you subscribed to NJPWWorld.com for the January 4th spectacular then you can catch the whole of FantasicaMania as well as some of the upcoming ‘New Beginning’ tour.

Some of the biggest matches on offer from January 27th to February 10th include IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay taking on the hugely popular Hiromu Takahashi, Kazuchika Okada and Hirooki Goto challenging SANADA and EVIL for the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships and Okada defending his IWGP Heavyweight Title against SANADA on February 10th live on NJPWWorld.com.

Here is the breakdown of the biggest matches on offer over the tour:

The New Beginning in Sapporo 2018 (Day 1)

January 27 (English Commentary Available) @ Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center, Sapporo

• Katsuya Kitamura 7-Match Proving Series (Match 2): Katsuya Kitamura vs. Michael Elgin
• NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship Match: Bad Luck Fale & Guerrillas of Destiny (c) vs. Togi Makabe, Toa Henare & Ryusuke Taguchi
• Jay White & Roppongi 3K vs. The Elite (Omega & Young Bucks)
• IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Minoru Suzuki

The New Beginning in Sapporo 2018 (Day 2)

January 28 (English Commentary Available) @ Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center, Sapporo

• Katsuya Kitamura 7-Match Proving Series (Match 3): Katsuya Kitamura vs. Juice Robinson
• IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match: The Young Bucks (c) vs. Roppongi 3K
• IWGP US Heavyweight Championship Match: Kenny Omega (c) vs. Jay White

Road to The New Beginning 2018

February 5 @ Korakuen Hall, Tokyo

• Katsuya Kitamura 7-Match Proving Series (Match 4): Katsuya Kitamura vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan
• David Finlay vs. Jay White
• Ten Man Elimination Tag: CHAOS (Okada/Goto/YOSHI-HASHI/Ospreay/Gedo) vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Naito/EVIL/SANADA/BUSHI/Hiromu)

Road to The New Beginning 2018

February 6 @ Korakuen Hall, Tokyo

• Katsuya Kitamura 7-Match Proving Series (Match 5): Katsuya Kitamura vs. Satoshi Kojima
• IWGP Tag Team Championship: SANADA & EVIL (c) vs. Kazuchika Okada & Hirooki Goto

The New Beginning in Osaka 2018

February 10 (English Commentary Available) @ EDION Arena, Osaka

• Katsuya Kitamura 7-Match Proving Series (Match 6): Katsuya Kitamura vs. Yuji Nagata
• Gedo vs. BUSHI
• Tetsuya Naito vs. YOSHI-HASHI
• IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: Will Ospreay (c) vs. Hiromu Takahashi
• NEVER Openweight Championship: Hirooki Goto (c) vs. EVIL
• IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. SANADA

Credit to r/njpw for the listings

It seems that every source going has confirmed Neville’s departure from WWE, except for the man himself and the company that he is likely still contracted to.

However, with the speculation being ramped up more and more by the minute we felt that it would be a good time to list three of the top stars outside of WWE that Neville should step in the ring with.

Will Ospreay

Will Ospreay (photo credit: Forbes)

The similarities between Neville and British sensation Will Ospreay cannot be overlooked. Besides their shared homeland both men have seen success throughout the British independent scene as well as Japan. Ospreay’s current performances for New Japan and Neville’s run on the japanese scene as PAC produced some incredible matches for Dragon Gate and NJPW, including the bout with Finn Balor that supposedly convinced Triple H sign both men.

The build to this encounter would write itself, who is the better British high flyer?  I can easily see this match happening on a Revolution Pro Wrestling card at some point in 2018 and it would be a blockbuster affair.

Hiromu Takahashi

Keeping with the theme of New Japan, Hiromu Takahashi is another name that should be given a shot against Neville.

While Hiromu has been taking time to establish his ‘therapy cat’ gimmick it is important to remember that he is one of the most explosive and dynamic performers in NJPW’s Juniors division.

Stylistically I believe that these two men would mesh well and Hiromu’s ‘dangerous’ character traits could lead to a bout that showcases technical proficiency as well as some outstanding high flying moments, hopefully Neville returns to Japan and the powers that be at NJPW make this bout happen!

Cody Rhodes

Ring of Honor World Champion Cody Rhodes

Finally, why not let Neville have a shot against the Ring of Honor Champion? Both men have a similar past with their shared experience in WWE and it would be a perfect opportunity for both to prove their worth to a company that seemingly let them fall between the cracks.

Cody has been building his reputation on the independent scene and is now the reigning World Champion in ROH, his platform as part of the Bullet Club has seen a division between fans of stable and New Japan in general, he is either loved or hated within the group.

Many fans of WWE lauded the abilities of Neville during his ‘King of the Crusierweight’ run and believed that he should’ve transitioned to a place higher on the card, this may well be his opportunity to break out on the heavyweight scene.

[td_smart_list_end]

Who would you like to see Neville face outside of WWE? Let us know in the comments.

Former IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi has issued a challenge to UK star Will Ospreay, he made the following comments after the G1 Climax finals this week:

“Ahhhh, I’m hyped up! Excited for some pain! You know who I mean! That son of a b*tch who ruined my fairytale story! Will Ospreay! Let’s do it again! Every time I think of you at night, I can’t get any sleep! Where are you Ospreay? You’re in my damn head! Get out of my mind and in the ring! So when you do, we can have more, more, more! More!!! MORE!!!! Fun together.”

Credit to @NewJapanProNewsFeed for the translation

Recently Hiromu called me out. I wouldn't mind another round. https://t.co/oIBR7YR8LI

— Will Ospreay • ????????? (@WillOspreay) August 16, 2017

The current plans call for Ospreay and Takahashi to meet at the Destruction shows in September, with the winner of the bout becoming the number 1 contender to KUSHIDA’s IWGP Junior title.

In the late 90s, the old NWO faction would release “paid advertisements” on Nitro. Bullet Club is now doing the same in NJPW.

The faction has been the focal point of NJPW’s marketing strategy for their July 1st and 2nd shows in L.A, and have now released the following video:

Bullet Club at NJPW G1 L.A Special

Somewhat surprisingly, Cody will receive an IWGP heavyweight title shot on night 1 of the 2-night event. At Dominion, Cody defeated Michael Elgin in what turned out to be a pretty important match.

The rest of the announced lineup so far:

NJPW July 1st 2017 Lineup

1. the Briscoes, Will Ospreay, & Roppongi Vice (CHAOS) vs. Bad Luck Fale, the Young Bucks, Yujiro Takahashi & Marty Scurll (Bullet Club)
2. Jushin Liger, Volador Jr., Dragon Lee & Titan vs. Sanada, Evil, Bushi & Hiromu Takahashi (Los Ingobernables)
3. IWGP U.S Championship Tournament (1st Round)
   Jay Lethal vs. Hangman Page (Bullet Club)
4. IWGP U.S Championship Tournament (1st Round)
   Juice Robinson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
5. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kushida, Jay White & David Finlay vs. Billy Gunn, Yoshi Tatsu, Sho Tanaka & Yohei Komatsu
6. IWGP U.S Championship (1st Round)
   Tomohiro Ishii (CHAOS) vs. Tetsuya Naito (Los Ingobernables)
7. IWGP U.S Championship (1st Round)
   Michael Elgin vs. Kenny Omega
8. IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match
   Kazuchika Okada (c)(CHAOS) vs. Cody (Bullet Club)

NJPW July 2nd 2017 Lineup

1. IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag-Team Championships
   the Young Bucks (c) (CHAOS) vs. Roppongi Vice (CHAOS)
2. IWGP Intercontinental Championship
   Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Billy Gunn
3. U.S Championship Tournament Semi-Finals & Finals

New Japan’s yearly Best of the Super Juniors tournament is now heading towards its conclusion….

The Best of the Super Juniors (also known as BOSJ) is essentially the Junior Heavyweight version of the G1 Climax tournament that takes place in July. Competitors are split into two Blocks and must compete with every wrestler in their block round robin style. Points are awarded for victories and the eventual winners of the two groups face off in a final match to determine the winner.

Here are the results from Day 12 of the tournament which is available to view on NJPWWorld.com.

BOSJ A Block Final Day Results

Jushin Thunder Liger b. Taichi – Liger FINALLY gets a win in the tournament to prevent Taichi from winning the block. Liger finishes his tally on 1-6 (2 Points). Taichi finishes on 4-3 (8 Points)

TAKA Michinoku b. Dragon Lee – TAKA takes the upset win with the Michinoku Driver II. TAKA ends his tournament run on 2-5 (4 Points), Dragon Lee is now out of the running on 4-3 (8 Points)

Marty Scurll b. Ricochet – Already eliminated Marty Scrull stops Ricochet from winning the block. Marty ends his tally on 4-3 (8 Points), Ricochet also ends on 4-3 (8 Points)

Will Ospreay b. Hiromu Takahashi – Ospreay hits the OsCutter to win A Block and advance to the final for the second year running in just over 15 minutes. His official tally is 5-2 (10 Points). Takahashi ends his tournament run on 4-3 (8 Points).

To confirm – Will Ospreay wins A Block and will be heading to the final on Saturday June 3rd, his opponent will be determined today at the final day of B Block matches. Any participant from B Block can advance to the finals, however our picks are KUSHIDA or Taguchi

New Japan will be heading to Long Beach, California on July 1st/2nd for the sold out G1 Climax Specials.

The two day event will be the first of its kind for New Japan and will be feature a tournament to crown the first ever IWGP United States Champion. Jay Lethal of ROH and Hangman Page of the Bullet Club have already been announced for the tournament and the remaining participants are set to be named in the coming weeks.

NJPW has however announced the full roster of talent that will be making their way to the United States for the tapings. ROH, CMLL, Bullet Club and New Japan roster members will all be on hand to perform on arguably the most important event in New Japan history as it kicks off their attempt at building a US territory.

Here is the full line-up for July 1st/2nd:

• Hiroshi Tanahashi
• Michael Elgin
• KUSHIDA
• Jushin Thunder Liger
• Juice Robinson
• David Finlay
• Sho Tanaka & Yohei Komatsu
• Jay White
• Billy Gunn
• Yoshitatsu
• Kazuchika Okada
• Tomohiro Ishii
• Will Ospreay
• Rocky Romero & Trent Barreta
• Tetsuya Naito
• Hiromu Takahashi
• SANADA
• EVIL
• BUSHI
• Zack Sabre Jr.

Ring of Honor

• Jay Lethal
• The Briscoes
• War Machine

CMLL

• Dragon Lee
• Volador Jr.
• Titan

Bullet Club

• Kenny Omega
• The Young Bucks
• Cody Rhodes
• Marty Scurll
• Bad Luck Fale
• Hangman Page
• Guerrillas of Destiny
• Yujiro Takahashi

New Japan’s Best of the Super Juniors tournament started yesterday with a bang. You can check out the complete results from Day 1 here.

The Best of the Super Juniors (also known as BOSJ) is essentially the Junior Heavyweight version of the G1 Climax tournament that takes place in July. Competitors are split into two Blocks and must compete with every wrestler in their block round robin style. Points are awarded for victories and the eventual winners of the two groups face off in a final match to determine the winner. Here are the results from Day 2:

Non Tournament Matches

Tiger Mask IV, Hirai Kawato & Tomoyuki Oka b. Katsuya Kitamura, Shota Umino & Tetsuhiro Yagi – Kawato made Yagi submit with a single leg crab

Yoshinobu Kanemaru & El Desperado b. Volador Jr. & ACH – Desperado took the win for his team after hitting a jumping crucifix hold on ACH

Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa & Yujiro Takahashi b. Raymond Rowe, Hanson & David Finlay  – Tama Tonga secured the win for Bullet Club when he hit the Gun Stun on Finlay

Tetsuya Naito, SANADA, EVIL & BUSHI b. Satoshi Kojima, Juice Robinson, Ryusuke Taguchi & KUSHIDA – Bushi used the Bushiroll on KUSHIDA to take the win in just over 9 minutes

The battle continues tomorrow! #njBOSJ Day02 The Live shows only on @njpwworld Sign up https://t.co/DtSLcoUJqT & Get ready for super actions pic.twitter.com/5GC5W9AAa8

— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) May 17, 2017

A BLOCK Results

Taichi b. TAKA Michinoku – Taichi took the win with his patented Gedo Clutch in a very entertaining DDT style ‘match’

Dragon Lee b. Marty Scurll – Dragon takes his second win in the tournament after hitting a Patellas en el Pecho on Scurll for the pinfall win

Hiromu Takahashi b. Jushin Thunder Liger – Hiromu defeated the legend Liger with his TIME BOMB finishing move. This was his first win and Liger’s second loss

Will Ospreay b. Ricochet – Ospreay took the win in a mesmerising match after hitting the OsCutter

@KingRicochet v @WillOspreay was awesome! Check the bout!#njbosj Day2 is now available on VOD! ?https://t.co/dcYZE1bmEp#njpw #njpwworld pic.twitter.com/JWBKuJcWAD

— NJPW WORLD (@njpwworld) May 18, 2017

Here are the current tournament standings:

A Block

• Dragon Lee – 4 Points
• Hiromu Takahashi – 2 Points
• Marty Scurll – 2 Points
• Ricochet – 2 Points
• Taichi – 2 Points
• Taka Michinoku – 2 Points
• Will Ospreay – 2 Points
• Jushin Thunder Liger – 0 Points

B Block 

• ACH – 2 Points
• El Desperado – 2 Points
• Ryusuke Taguchi – 2 Points
• Volador Jr – 2 Points
• BUSHI – 0 Points
• KUSHIDA – 0 Points
• Tiger Mask IV – 0 Points
• Yoshinobu Kanemaru – 0 Points

New Japan’s yearly Best of the Super Juniors tournament has now officially begun.

The Best of the Super Juniors (also known as BOSJ) is essentially the Junior Heavyweight version of the G1 Climax tournament that takes place in July. Competitors are split into two Blocks and must compete with every wrestler in their block round robin style. Points are awarded for victories and the eventual winners of the two groups face off in a final match to determine the winner.

Here are the results from Day 1 of the tournament:

A BLOCK Matches

TAKA Michinoku b. Jushin Thunder Liger – TAKA took his first win in the tournament after hitting the Heavy Killer #1

Ricochet b. Daichi – Ricochet took his first win of the tournament following the Shooting Star Press in just under 9 minutes

Marty Scurll b. Will Ospreay – ‘The Villain’ Marty Scurll took the win in his debut NJPW match after making Ospreay submit with the Crossface Chicken Wing

Dragon Lee b. Hiromu Takahashi – Lee takes the win over longtime rival Takahashi using the Phoenix Plex.

Tonight! Check the opening game of the #njbosj live on #njpwworld for FREE!!
?https://t.co/Tj7UBJ4PjP#njpw pic.twitter.com/Tu37JT6HAP

— NJPW WORLD (@njpwworld) May 16, 2017

B BLOCK Matches

Volador Jr b. Tiger Mask IV – Volador Jr took the win with an avalanche style Spanish fly in just under ten minutes 

ACH b. BUSHI – ACH takes the win in his first tournament match after hitting the Midnight Driver

El Desperado b. KUSHIDA – Desperado attacked KUSHIDA early and gained the win after hitting the Guitarra de Angel.

Ryusuke Taguchi b. Yoshinobu Kanemaru – Last year’s runner up Taguchi took the win with a small package

https://twitter.com/MartyScurll/status/864361191887429637

New Japan has announced that Day 1 of this year’s Best of the Super Juniors tournament will be airing live and for FREE on their NJPWworld.com streaming service.

The Best of the Super Juniors (also known as BOSJ) is essentially the Junior Heavyweight version of the G1 Climax tournament that takes place in July. Competitors are split into two Blocks and must compete with every wrestler in their block round robin style. Points are awarded for victories and the eventual winners of the two groups face off in a final match to determine the winner.

Here are the announced matches for Day 1 of the tournament:

May 17 (Live on NJPW World @ 2:30am PDT / 5:30am EDT / 10:30am BST / 6:30pm JST)

• A-Block: Jushin Thunder Liger vs. TAKA Michinoku
• B-Block: Tiger Mask IV vs. Volador Jr.
• A-Block: Ricochet vs. Taichi
• B-Block: ACH vs. BUSHI
• B-Block: KUSHIDA vs. El Desperado
• A-Block: Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll
• B-Block: Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
• A-Block: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Dragon Lee

For more information on how to watch the tournament please check out the tweet below from the English language NJPW Twitter account.

On May 17th, see the opening night of the Best of the Super Juniors 24 live on NJPW World for FREE!…https://t.co/HAzc2WbyZx

— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) May 16, 2017

New Japan Pro Wrestling has announced the full schedule for this year’s Best of the Super Juniors tournament. The tournament will be taking place from May 17th to June 3rd.

The two blocks for the opening round are as follows:

Block A

• Jushin Thunder Liger
• Ricochet
• Dragon Lee
• Will Ospreay
• TAKA Michinoku
• Taichi
• Marty Scurll
• Hiromu Takahashi

Block B

• Tiger Mask IV
• Ryusuke Taguchi
• KUSHIDA
• Volador Jr.
• El Desperado
• Yoshinobu Kanemaru
• ACH
• BUSHI

Best of the Super Juniors XXIV Schedule (May 17 – June 3)

May 17 (Live on NJPW World @ 2:30am PDT / 5:30am EDT / 10:30am BST / 6:30pm JST)

• A-Block: Jushin Thunder Liger vs. TAKA Michinoku
• B-Block: Tiger Mask IV vs. Volador Jr.
• A-Block: Ricochet vs. Taichi
• B-Block: ACH vs. BUSHI
• B-Block: KUSHIDA vs. El Desperado
• A-Block: Will Ospreay vs. Marty Scurll
• B-Block: Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
• A-Block: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Dragon Lee

May 18 (Live on NJPW World @ 2:30am PDT / 5:30am EDT / 10:30am BST / 6:30pm JST)

• A-Block: Taichi vs. TAKA Michinoku
• A-Block: Dragon Lee vs. Marty Scurll
• A-Block: Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Hiromu Takahashi
• A-Block: Ricochet vs. Will Ospreay

May 20 (Tape Delay – Tournament Matches Only)

• B-Block: ACH vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
• B-Block: KUSHIDA vs. Tiger Mask IV
• B-Block: BUSHI vs. El Desperado
• B-Block: Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Volador Jr.

May 21 (Tape Delay – Tournament Matches Only)

• A-Block: Will Ospreay vs. TAKA Michinoku
• A-Block: Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Marty Scurll
• A-Block: Dragon Lee vs. Taichi
• A-Block: Ricochet vs. Hiromu Takahashi

May 22 (Live on NJPW World @ 2:30am PDT / 5:30am EDT / 10:30am BST / 6:30pm JST)

• B-Block: Volador Jr. vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
• B-Block: ACH vs. Tiger Mask IV
• B-Block: Ryusuke Taguchi vs. El Desperado
• B-Block: KUSHIDA vs. BUSHI

May 23 (Tape Delay – Tournament Matches Only)

• A-Block: TAKA Michinoku vs. Marty Scurll
• A-Block: Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Will Ospreay
• A-Block: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Taichi
• A-Block: Ricochet vs. Dragon Lee

May 25 (Tape Delay – Tournament Matches Only)

• B-Block: Tiger Mask IV vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
• B-Block: Volador Jr. vs. El Desperado
• B-Block: Ryusuke Taguchi vs. BUSHI
• B-Block: KUSHIDA vs. ACH

May 26 (Tape Delay – Tournament Matches Only)

• A-Block: Marty Scurll vs. Taichi
• A-Block: Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Ricochet
• A-Block: Hiromu Takahashi vs. TAKA Michinoku
• A-Block: Dragon Lee vs. Will Ospreay

May 27 (Tape Delay – Tournament Matches Only)

• B-Block: ACH vs. El Desperado
• B-Block: Volador Jr. vs. BUSHI
• B-Block: Ryusuke Taguchi vs. Tiger Mask IV
• B-Block: KUSHIDA vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru

May 28 (Tape Delay – Tournament Matches Only)

• A-Block: Ricochet vs. TAKA Michinoku
• A-Block: Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Dragon Lee
• A-Block: Will Ospreay vs. Taichi
• A-Block: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Marty Scurll

May 29 (Live on NJPW World @ 2:30am PDT / 5:30am EDT / 10:30am BST / 6:30pm JST)

• B-Block: Tiger Mask IV vs. El Desperado
• B-Block: BUSHI vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
• B-Block: Volador Jr. vs. ACH
• B-Block: KUSHIDA vs. Ryusuke Taguchi

May 31 (Tape Delay – Tournament Matches Only)

• A-Block: Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Taichi
• A-Block: Ricochet vs. Marty Scurll
• A-Block: Dragon Lee vs. TAKA Michinoku
• A-Block: Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi

June 1 (Status Currently Unknown)

• B-Block: Tiger Mask IV vs. BUSHI
• B-Block: KUSHIDA vs. Volador Jr.
• B-Block: El Desperado vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
• B-Block: Ryusuke Taguchi vs. ACH

June 3 (Live on NJPW World @ 1:00am PDT / 4:00am EDT / 9:00am BST / 5:00pm JST)

• A-Block Winner vs. B-Block Winner

Credit to r/squaredcircle for the full breakdown of matches

New Japan posted a tweet today teasing some of the potential competitors in this year’s Best of the Super Juniors tournament.

The Best of the Super Juniors (also known as BOSJ) is essentially the Junior Heavyweight version of the G1 Climax tournament that takes place in July. Competitors are split into two Blocks and must compete with every wrestler in their block round robin style. Points are awarded for victories and the eventual winners of the two groups face off in a final match to determine the winner.

Several of NJPW’s biggest Juniors stars will be participating in the annual event:

• 2016 Winner – Will Ospreay
• Jushin Thunder Liger
• Ricochet
• Taguchi
• KUSHIDA
• Hiromu Takahashi
• BUSHI
• Dragon Lee
• Tiger Mask

https://twitter.com/newjapaneng/status/858136286208679936

WWE recently announced their newest Pay Per View/Network event taking place in July named ‘Great Balls of Fire.’ New Japan sent out a tweet today appearing to take a dig at WWE for their choice of name:

https://twitter.com/newjapaneng/status/858035817851367424

Revolution Pro have announced the final match for their sold out ‘Epic Encounter’ event that takes place on April 13th at the world famous York Hall in Bethnal Green, London.

New Japan Pro Wrestling star Hiromu Takahashi will be taking on one of the standout performers of the past year and Ring of Honor TV Champion Marty Scurll.

Other matches confirmed for the event are as follows:

– Zack Sabre Jr. Vs Kushida

– Hirooki Goto vs Zack Gibson

– Jay White vs Angelico

Plus: The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) & Kenny Omega will be performing on the night

The event will be up on RPW’s On Demand streaming service within 48 hors of the event and it is certainly one not to miss out on: rpwondemand.com

Clue is in the title. #EpicEncounter #TimeBombVsVillain show is SOLD OUT but you can catch it within 48 hours from https://t.co/vhLx7kP8wf pic.twitter.com/erfAuLNBEi

— Revolution Pro (@RevProUK) March 20, 2017