NJPW Best Of The Super Juniors Night 1 Results – May 12, 2023
Location: Tokyo Japan
Venue: Korakuen Hall
Block B Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion Kevin Knight (0) vs. Clark Connors (0)
Clark Connors launches Kevin Knight into the seating area but Knight manages to fight back & hits a standing frog splash for a near fall then a Sky High for another near fall.
Knight hits a springboard crossbody before Connors drills Knight to the mat with No Chaser to get the win.
Winner: Clark Connors (2) (9:20)
Rate: 6
After the match Connors wears out a chair over Knight’s back.
Block A Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Ryusuke Taguchi (0) vs. Taiji Ishimori (0)
Ryusuke Taguchi hits Taiji Ishimori with dropkicks early as he went to work on the knee, going for the Oh My & Garankle early on before Ishimori counters out with a Bone Lock.
Taguchi escapes & hits Dodon but him going for his big moves but Ishimori connects with Mistica before he makes Taguchi tap out with Bone Lock.
Winner By Submission: Taiji Ishimori (2) (3:54)
Rate: 4
Block B Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Bushi (0) vs. Dan Moloney (0)
Bushi dropkicks Dan Moloney to send him to the floor before he comes back inside & hits one on Bushi for a two count. He rips the shirt off of Bushi.
A blistering chop sinks Bushi before he ties Moloney up in the ropes for a back cracker.
Moloney clips the ropes as he caught Bushi with a baseball slide to the outside before a Fisherman buster, a spear then Drilla Killer gets the win.
Winner: Dan Moloney (2) (7:12)
Rate: 6
Block A Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion Kushida (0) vs. Douki (0)
Kushida looks to keep Douki grounded in the early going, forcing him into the ropes to break some headscissors follow by a cross armbreaker forces another rope break then he puts on a surfboard to stretch Douki out.
Douki is able to counter with one of his own but he couldn’t hold it due to the bad arm so Kushida is back to a double armbar stretch only for a rana from Douki to give him an opening.
They go back & forth with pinning attempts ending with some tight pulling from both men before he got Kushida in Jorge River Special gets the victory.
Winner: Douki (2) (8:32)
Rate: 8 (Recommend)
Block B Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Master Wato (0) vs. Francesco Akira (0)
Master Wato gets sent outside early, before switcheroos ended with Francesco Akira tope into the front row. Akira’s modified grounded Octopus hold ends in the ropes as Wato connects with a wheelbarrow German suplex.
Akira hits a DDT that almost got the win before Wato ducks Nova Fireball only to get wheelbarrowed into a stomp follow by Recientemente II gets the victory.
Winner: Master Wato (2) (7:20)
Rate: 7
Block A Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Lio Rush (0) vs. Sho (0)
As Lio Rush makes his down to the ring Evil blindsides him.
The bells ring & Sho lands a lariat then nails Power Breaker then goes for the pin but Rush kicks out at two Shock Arrow is next but Rush back body drops free prompting Evil to distract the referee with a chair. Sho unveils his wrench but ends up hitting Evil with it by mistake before Rush hits Evil with tope suicida on the outside.
We get a chase takes us back inside as a Rush keeps Sho down more interference from Evil knocks Rush off the top rope while a ref bump takes us back to the spanner. Rush introduces the spanner to House Of Torture then headed up top rope & nails Final Hour for the win.
Winner: Lio Rush (2) (4:20)
Rate: 3
Block B Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Yoh (0) vs. Robbie Eagles (0)
Match starts off with Yoh rolls up Robbie Eagles but he kicks out then Eagles try to slow things down as they went hold for hold on the mat. Eagles takes control with a low dropkick to Yoh as he looked to wear down Yoh’s knee before Yoh manages to fight back by taking Eagles to outside & hits a plancha before a corkscrew Vader Bomb back inside kept Eagles down.
Eagles was able to take Yoh down but misses a 450 splash to the leg then connects with a uranage/sitout spinebuster for a near fall then Ron Miller Special follows but Yoh escapes as they started trading forearm strikes before Eagles tried to go back to the knee.
Eagles gets slam onto the knee of Yoh to shut that all down but Eagles was able to respond with an Asai DDT then a 450 splash to the leg before the Ron Miller Special but it got countered into 5 Star Clutch then into a cradle.
Eagles goes back to the knee with a thrust kick as a missile dropkick to the knee and a Diving Kick puts Yoh away.
Winner: Robbie Eagles (2) (13:06)
Rate: 8 (Recommend)
Block A Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Titan (0) vs. TJP (0)
Match starts off with Titan & TJP trade some holds and escapes before Titan is baited into a dive before he connects with a tope. TJP wraps up one arm and snaps back on the other leaving Titan in a heap as TJP begins to loosen the laces on Titan’s mask.
Face washing boots from TJP but Titan is able to evade a senton atomico then land a crossbody coming back into the ring. Titan gets hung up in the ropes as TJP added a Mamba Splash to send them to the floor following up with a flying DDT for a near fall.
A Pele kick from Titan knocks TJP off the top rope and onto the apron for a flying stomp, before his leap off the top was caught and turned into a Pinoy Stretch but he makes it to the rope then he connects with a swinging DDT before the Muta Lock gets the submission win.
Winner By Submission: Titan (2) (11:12)
Rate: 7
Block B Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
El Desperado (0) vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (0)
Yoshinobu Kanemaru held the ropes open for El Desperado & he accepts it but he got jump from behind as we ended up outside with Desperado pops up Kanemaru into the side of the ring then we get a series of side headlocks before Kanemaru began to work over Desperado’s knee.
Desperado caught Kanemaru with a dropkick to the knee as he headed between the ropes before he cradled Kanemaru in almost a Banana Split before he locks in Numero Dos but Kanemaru’s able to escape and apply a Figure 4 in return.
More cracks at the Figure 4 are cradled out of before Pinche Loco was countered back into a Figure 4 with Kanemaru sinking in the hold & Desperado has no choice but to tap out.
Winner: Yoshinobu Kanemaru (2) (14:01)
Rate: 7
Non Title Block A Match Of The 2023 Best Of The Super Juniors
Junior Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi (0) vs. Mike Bailey (0)
Match starts off with a handshake then Hiromu Takahashi pulls Mike Bailey in after a handshake then we get some Scissor Kicks from Bailey take down Takahashi before a running kick on the floor left Takahashi laying. A switcheroo leads to Takahashi hits a shotgun dropkick off the apron before Takahashi & Bailey fight in the crowd.
Up in the stands Takahashi charges at Bailey with another running shotgun dropkick before a fairly rapid count out forced them back towards ringside. Bailey goes for the throat with some chops and got some in return before a diving boot knocks down Takahashi.
A series of kicks laid out Takahashi for a running shooting star press for a near fall before another handspring was turned into a German suplex on Bailey. Bailey got drilled into the corner pad, before Bailey shot back with the moonsault double knees then the Buzzsaw Kick almost gets the win for Bailey then he got launch into the corner with an overhead belly 2 belly suplex.
Bailey shrugs it off before they exchange blows, ending with Takahashi throwing Bailey onto the apron & Bailey escapes a sunset bomb’s escaped and met with the triangle moonsault on the floor.
A count out tease ends with Takahashi getting swept onto the apron for more moonsault knees but Takahashi rolls away then he hits a sunset bomb before see saw pins then Bailey with a crossbody fallaway slam gets a 2 count then we got battle of kicks had Takahashi eating a corkscrew kick in the corner.
Bailey heads up to the top rope & connects with Ultima Weapon gets the win.
Winner: Mike Bailey (2) (16:40)
Rate: 9 (Recommend)
Matches Of The Night
Non Title Match
Kushida vs. Douki
Yoh vs. Robbie Eagles
Titan vs. TJP
El Desperado vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru
Standings Of The Best Of The Super Juniors After Night 1
Block A
1st Place- Mike Bailey, Douki, Lio Rush, Taiji Ishimori & Titan (2 Points) (1-0)
Last Place- Junior Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi, Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion Kushida, Sho, Ryusuke Taguchi & TJP (0 Points) (0-1)
Block B
1st Place- Clark Connors, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Master Wato, Robbie Eagles & Dan Moloney (2 Points) (1-0)
Last Place- Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion Kevin Knight, El Desperado, Francesco Akira, Yoh & Bushi (0 Points) (0-1)
