(NOAH) Event recap ~ Korakuen Hall (29th March, "Spring Navigation 2019" ~ Final night)

The streaming service was not as flawless as last time sadly, there were some minor issues with lag to begin with, but these soon sorted themselves out.Believe me, this was a minor price to pay for actually getting to see a Noah show streamed live. Naturally (and I hear like other promotions with streaming services), the sound was cut for music of which they don't have the broadcast copyrights to.

Noah had a new trainee who was at ringside today.
It has been reported that three new boys have apparently joined the dojo. I don't know much about them, although it is said that one was a Rugby player.

In the interval Noah announced that they would be holding Global Junior League again this year, and they would also be holding Global League, albeit under a different name and at a different date in the calendar.
From now on Global League will be known as "N1 Victory" and held in the late summer\early Autumn (in this case starting in August and finishing in September). No one is quite sure what the "N" stands for though.

Go Shiozaki & YO-HEY were on autograph duty, with Kaito Kiyomiya doing a special fanclub photo op for fans.

Noah will be back next on the 6th April for the start of Global Tag League, which kicks off in Osaka.

MATCH ONE
The Backbreakers (Hajime Ohara & Hitoshi Kumano) vs RATELS (Daisuke Harada & Tadasuke)

Hitoshi Kumano has come a million miles from his last title match with Daisuke Harada.

Tadasuke and Hajime Ohara worked well together too. There was one moment where they crashed into each other repeatedly and kept making motions as if they were brushing the dust off of their shoulders. Soon afterwards, Ohara started pawing the ground as if he was a wild bull about to charge.
I think Tadasuke might have reacted as if invisible dirt was being kicked up by it.

It is always a pleasure to see Daisuke Harada (who had his "shark smells blood face" on at times during the match) and Hajime Ohara face off against each other, but Hitoshi Kumano can be thrown into that mix too as he's now progressed to the point where he can go toe to toe with Harada, and not be told that he is "out of your league", which Harada told him the last time they feuded. Kumano is turning into a very clever wrestler, while Tadasuke has also evolved and is bringing more aerial moves into his skillset.

WINNER: Daisuke Harada with the Katayama German Suplex on Hajime Ohara (11 minutes and 7 seconds)

After the match (with Ohara lying on the floor), Kumano pointed at Daisuke Harada's IPW Junior Heavyweight belt and made the challenge motions. Afterwards, he scooped up Ohara and left the ring.
Later he said that it was up to Harada to name the stipulations for the title challenge.

MATCH TWO
Akitoshi Saito & Masao Inoue vs Mitsuya Nagai & Kinya Okada

Kinya Okada (like all the other rookies on the card) came zooming to the ring. He is over with the crowd, and there were a lot of calls for him (and an applause for his dropkick).

Inoue didn't bumble around today, and Saito didn't screw him over and deny it, but he did tell him to basically buck up when he broke the pin.

WINNER: Akitoshi Saito with the pin on Kinya Okada (10 minutes and 49 seconds)

After the match, Nagai, furious at losing, wrapped the chain he carries around his fist and went to punch Okada with it.
But then Atsushi Kotoge, the self proclaimed "Revolutionary Hero", came bouncing into the ring and put the cape round Nagai's shoulders.
Kotoge (still with a bandaged elbow) told him that "heroes did not use chains", and when Nagai turned to yell at a woman in the crowd, Kotoge told him that from now on he wasn't to yell at women that they were "noisy old bags".
Nagai looked cross.
Kotoge considered it a victory.
Naomichi Marufuji (whose own hair has the red washing out of it) later said he wondered if "the bald octopus has become a petty thief" (Nagai had commented that the cloak Kotoge had given him looked as if it was used for robberies).

MATCH THREE
Takashi Sugiura & KAZMA SAKAMOTO vs Maybach Taniguchi & Junta Miyawaki

Maybach Taniguchi came out to sinister music clutching his Sasumata, of which a piece of Junta Miyawaki's orange streamers wrapped itself around.
The music (U2'S "When Love Comes To Town") was muted, so I played the theme from "The Terminator" over Takashi Sugiura's entrance.
Needless to say, it worked.

The fight got going right away with both teams attacking the other as soon as the bell rang.
Miyawaki was trying to brush off Sugiura (who imitated KAZMA'S loud scream), but it didn't work, and naturally being the youngest and a rookie, he got the worst from the opposition in this match, although it was the slap from Sugiura on Taniguchi who got the loudest reaction from the crowd in this match.

WINNER: Takashi Sugiura with the Olympic Slam on Junta Miyawaki (11 minutes and 32 seconds)

After the match, Taniguchi (who does this once in a Blue Moon), got on the microphone and told KAZMA that in Global Tag League, he was basically going to fuck his shit up.
Miyawaki rolled out of the ring.
Sugiura and KAZMA left under KAZMA'S umbrella.

MATCH FOUR
Naomichi Marufuji & 50 Funky Powers (Mohammed Yone & Quiet Storm) vs Masaaki Mochizuji, Masa Kitamiya & Yoshiki Inamura

50 Funky Powers entered to Naomichi Marufuji's music, and it was odd to see them do their pose to "Hysteric".

This is Masaaki Mochizuki's first appearance in Noah. He and Marufuji of course had faced off against each other at the Giant Baba memorial show. There was no serious rivalry between them, it was more of a friendly rivalry.
Noah didn't start off with Marufuji and Mochizuki first, instead Mochizuki firmly moved Inamura out of the way by putting him in the corner. However, Marufuji stood on the ring apron, bouncing around to be tagged in against him, and the crowd showed sympathy when he didn't.

As he is the rookie in the match, Inamura got thrown repeatedly into the iron barriers (like what Marufuji did to Kiyomiya in Yokohama), and he also "dog eared" him too (i.e. he picked him up by his ears), and naturally he also got chopped too.

When Marufuji and Mochizuki did get into the ring, there was kick chop battle between them.

Masa Kitamiya wasn't much in the match, I think he wanted to take a backseat to let Inamura shine, and shine Inamura did as he more than held his own against 50 Funky Powers. 

WINNER: Mohammed Yone with the Funky Buster Bomb on Yoshiki Inamura (17 minutes and 11 seconds)

Nothing was said after the match about Marufuji and Mochizuki teaming together, although it was hinted afterwards when Marufuji motioned for him to get into the ring and they shook hands.

MATCH FIVE
Stinger (Kotaro Suzuki & Yoshinari Ogawa) vs Minoru Tanaka & Hi69

Surprisingly, Stinger did not insist that Hi69 have a public weighing, but Hi69 (who did look slimmer and more toned) came to the ring carrying electric scales, which he weighed himself in front of some fans (one whom took a picture).
Seiya Morohashi came out to second Hi69 & Minoru Tanaka.

There was tremendous energy in this match from all competitors, but it was Hi69 who stole the show tonight, especially with his backwards somersault from the top turnbuckle outside the ring.

WINNER: Kotaro Suzuki with the Requiem on Minoru Tanaka (16 minutes and 44 seconds)

After the match, Kotaro Suzuki took a look at Minoru Tanaka, picked up the microphone and said simply that he was going to challenge for the GHC Junior Heavyweight title.

MATCH SIX
Kaito Kiyomiya, Kenoh & YO-HEY vs AXIZ (Katsuhiko Nakajima & Go Shiozaki) vs HAYATA

Katsuhiko Nakajima came to the ring looking sinister.
He was going to get even more sinister as the match went on, such as when he was thrown at the ropes, and he slipped under them and smirked.

The tension was crackling in this match, YO-HEY & HAYATA didn't really figure much in it, but the tension was between the two heavyweight teams (and Kenoh was the one who got the machine gun chops). The match started with Kenoh getting Kiyomiya out of the ring to, in order to face Nakajima. Halfway through their start, Nakajima sauntered over and tagged HAYATA in, HAYATA didn't look too thrilled to be in the ring against Kenoh.
When YO-HEY & HAYATA did lock up, YO-HEY did his usual confusing movements, and his former wife wasn't too impressed and stood there with his hands on his hips.

It was the GHC Heavyweight champion who got the brunt of AXIZ, kicked and chopped by them in tandem, the soccer ball kicks from Nakajima, and then there came the head kick (or "the punt") which when it connected made this thudding sound that the camera audio picked up loudly and the audience reacted to.
Nakajima, then struck with the Vertical spike for the win.

There was a touching moment when Kenoh rolled Kiyomiya out of the ring, and YO-HEY hung around to help.

WINNER: Katsuhiko Nakajima with the Vertical Spike on Kaito Kiyomiya (20 minutes and 57 seconds)

Picture credit: Noah GHC, PKDX