(NOAH CHRONOLOGY) GHC NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP: KATSUHIKO NAKAJIMA
Number of title reigns: 0
Number of defenses: 3
Lost: "NOAH, Departure Day 1" 4th August 2020 (Korakuen Hall)
Total number of days held: 87
Katsuhiko Nakajima sat staring at the belt when it was offered to him by the referee, and he didn't take it for a few moments. I half feared that he was going to throw it out of the ring like the W-1 belt, but Nakajima has an analytical mathematical brain, and he just wanted to think about it and what he was going to say and do. When he did take the belt, he put it down on the mat, sat down behind it, propped it up and then spoke on the microphone. He said that this belt opened up a chapter two and a new phase, and he could not wait to consider the possibilities that this belt would bring. Naturally, his first message on social media was to Go Shiozaki. Now they had two singles belts, were two singles champions, and they could stand together side by side.
Challengers
1. Masao Inoue
2. The "All Four Sides" Tournament and Manabu Soya
3. Kenoh
The one and only pre-match between them was held at ShinKiba 1st ring on the 2nd August 2020. Kenoh stood still and like a statue of an ancient Spartan with the scowl he had on his face. Their juniors stepping aside for their seniors, Kenoh and Nakajima started the match. Nakajima naturally thought that winding Kenoh up would be a lot of fun, and after a few kicks and lock ups, did the Misawa flash tag to Kinya Okada. Okada acted in surprise, which was how people reacted to Misawa, but Kenoh did something that no one ever would have done to Misawa, and that was to stalk over to Nakajima and the two of them faced off with Nakajima standing on the ring apron. They were eventually separated by a combination of the referee, and their respective partners. Kenoh went on to win the match, but he didn't defeat Nakajima, he pulled out some palm strikes which I don't think he has ever used before, and knocked out Kinya Okada. The referee stopped the match.
vs Masao Inoue
Masao Inoue made his challenge at "NOAH NEW HOPE DAY 2" on the 31st May 2020. He came to the ring during the short intermission, and with a handwritten letter in hand, he took his glasses out from inside his judo jacket and read out his short letter of challenge. Inoue's challenge, compared to his tag partner, Akitoshi Saito's, was simple and brief, and did not contain the word "HOMIES". It was very Showa era in terms of style, simplicity and language. Despite the giggling from the commentators, his challenge was accepted by Katsuhiko Nakajima and arranged for June 14th 2020.
Despite the bumbling that does often mark Masao Inoue matches, he managed to be half serious on June 14th, and came very close a couple of times to getting the pin over Katsuhiko Nakajima through fair means (sneak attacks and swift roll ups) and foul (groin shot). But as ever, because this is Inoue, there was the usual comedy antics such as slipping off the turnbuckle, his wind up punch, and his refusing to get in the ring with Nakajima, who was sarcastically holding the ropes open for him. Nakajima does have a tendency to lose title matches by being cocky, and after getting a fright today and realising how humiliating it would be to be defeated for a title by a man who gets photographed at the urinal by Takashi Sugiura, harrassed on long bus journeys by Naomichi Marufuji with his camera, and whose own senior questions why he wears a pink karate uniform to the ring when he has never done karate, and who also threatened him with divine punishment for defacing his face with his signature, Nakajima ended the match quickly via chokehold and retained the title.
I think Nakajima was a little disappointed that no challenger came forward straight away, but he had a idea to choose one, he said he wanted to create a tournament which would be openweight and which everyone was free to enter.
The "All Four Sides" Tournament & Manabu Soya
Seven heavyweights and seven juniors competed over the course of two days to become the number one contender to the GHC National Championship (Day 1, Day 2); among their number were three Kongoh members, with the rookie Yoshiki Inamura going out the first day. Nakajima had wanted to face Seiki Yoshioka most of all, as this would have been an entirely new experience for him, but Yoshioka lost to Shuhei Taniguchi on the second night.
Masa Kitamiya, driven by hatred of Nakajima, warned him to "prepare yourself, asshole", to which Nakajima said in true fashion about his younger brother, "he's so cute". The two finalists came down to Masa Kitamiya and Manabu Soya, both of who had gone through gruelling matches, wrestling four times over two days. Nakajima came down to the ring to watch the final, where Soya defeated Kitamita in 14 minutes, 27 seconds with The Ballistic. After Kongoh had shaken hands, Nakajima got into the ring to face Soya who told him that he was the perfect challenger after going through what he did. Nakajima agreed and admired his tenacity for going through what he acknowledged to be "a harsh tournament", but the route to the belt lay through him. Challenge was set for 21st June.
Kongoh, dressed in angry red and black, came out in force to support Manabu Soya who stood staring as Katsuhiko Nakajima came out smirking to the ring, his black eye from the tournament visible on the side of his face.
Although Manabu fought five matches over three days, he had the advantage over Nakajima in terms of power, but Nakajima had the advantage of being a lot more fresh and rested. Manabu used his strength to knock Nakajima down and making him roll out of the ring after an early shot and hold the side of his face, and then being evasive about getting back in the ring. However, Manabu refused to be wound up by him, and the fight became desperate with Nakajima forgetting all about winding him up as it became a matter of survival. As Kenoh yelled frantically at ringside, Nakajima got cocky and thought he would retain with a huge kick to the head, and with a huge grin he went for the pin, but this came with a huge kick out. Soya countered and went for The Ballistic, but Nakajima kicked out at two. Nakajima was not prepared to lie down that easily, and lured Soya into believing that he was dazed, which resulted in the terrible soccer ball kicks, which didn't win the match, and then the Vertical Spike which did.
After the match Nakajima laid the belt in the ring, and then spoke on the microphone in the usual sinister manner as he sat behind it, and thanked Soya for the match tonight and all the wrestlers who entered the tournament. He said that the belt was packed with stimuli, and to keep watching as he would fight anyone at all for it.
Vs Kenoh
Kenoh didn't actually challenge Katsuhiko Nakajima for the belt on the 19th July at "NOAH STAY TOGETHER FOREVER, DAY 2", the challenge was actually made for him by Nakajima, or maybe a better way of putting it would be to say that Kenoh was goaded into it.
Kenoh has always stated that his main goal is the GHC Heavyweight, he's not interested in the GHC National, but Nakajima decided that Kenoh had been looking at it with longing and so after the six man tag had ended (AXIZ teamed with Shuhei Taniguchi, Hajime Ohara, Atsushi Kotoge and Kaito Kiyomiya against all of Kongoh), and the obligatory kick war in the match between himself and Kenoh, he baited him by dangling the GHC National, and started goading him into challenging, saying that he could see how Kenoh was looking at the belt, didn't he want to put his name forward? Kenoh responded by asking him if he was only nominating him because no one else had come forward? Nakajima could keep the belt, he wasn't interested, anyway it was originally created by a company that Kenoh used to spit poison at (LIDET, who he now likes). But Kenoh is Kenoh, and he had a change of mind, what better way than to take a belt from someone he dislikes? Promising to do just that he set the challenge for the 4th August at the Yokohama Bunka Gym.
Afterwards, Kenoh started to speak on the microphone. This started off as a growl, that rose into a shriek, which he divided between yelling at the belt and yelling at Nakajima. Kenoh said that Nakajima's need for the belt was pure self aggrandisement and selfishness, and the belt was crying as a result, and he would make it smile again at the title match on the 4th. Nakajima told Kenoh that all he did was talk, which was why he had been nominated as challenger. The champion wanted to see Kenoh to put his money where his mouth was, and to not disappoint. Nakajima left then, Kenoh watched him go before turning to face the camera. Staring into the lens Kenoh vowed to take the belt on the 4th August, and to take Noah to the top of the pro wrestling world.
"The kick fight FROM HELL"
Kenoh came out seconded by ALL of Kongoh, except Yoshiki Inamura. Katsuhiko Nakajima came sauntering out, in usual fashion, part Velociraptor, part Cheshire Cat, reaching new heights of cockiness as he got on the apron near to Kenoh's corner to do his pose, Kenoh stared straight ahead angrily ignoring him.
After the bell rang in the tense silence of Korakuen, Kenoh and Nakajima circled each other. It was a very tense atmosphere which the intense Kenoh and the cocksure Nakajima had created skillfully between them, and it was going to serve them well for the title match.
Although the crowd had to remain silent, they could not help quietly groaning at the kicks that went on between Nakajima and Kenoh, which ranged a full spectrum from dull thuds to whip cracks to rifle shots. The Soccer Ball kicks volley, sounded even worse, as did the periodic slap war which sounded like lightning strikes.
If Katsuhiko Nakajima has a failing when it comes to title matches, it is that sooner or later he gets cocky, and it costs him. It also cost him today. Going for the cocky pin, it gave Kenoh time to get the wind in his sails back. Kenoh, half dazed, refused to be pinned that way, and rallied, fighting back with a top rope Dragon Suplex (I am of the belief that if Kiyomiya has the Tiger Suplex, then Kenoh will have the Dragon Suplex), and a massive PSF which Nakajima kicked out of.
Kicks from hell, lightning strike slaps, this match was only ever going to end one way...which was Kenoh taking the championship from Nakajima via a high kick which led to the referee stopping the match. Kenoh became the third ever GHC National Champion after 24 minutes, and 45 seconds.
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