(NOAH) Event Recap ~ "NOAH NEW HOPE DAY 1", 24th May 2020

"The wall is large, but there are many dreams"
Kaito Kiyomiya 

The "NOAH NEW HOPE" shows are kind of like mini produce shows, which Kaito Kiyomiya seems to have put together to showcase the next generation of Noah. Naturally, Kenoh is disgusted by this, described it as "Bullshit programming", wondered how Kiyomiya even did this without being the champion, and said he wasn't going to watch (I think he must have forgot that Kongoh were on it), but he would watch the news later to hear all about the crisis that Kiyomiya had caused.

Go Shiozaki was on double duty (well, triple duty) as it turned out as both guest commentator and official Noah GHC reporter (their account has been hacked). This being Shiozaki, he started giggling after the first few minutes.

Noah filmed the event today at an ABEMA TV studio (4K people tuned in), it was smaller than usual and so the ring was smaller. The wrestlers, used to spartan conditions since they were trainees, quickly got used to it.

The event was broadcast free and worldwide on ABEMA, and will be available to view for seven days only.

MATCH ONE
Daisuke Harada & Tadasuke vs Kongoh (Nio & Hao)

Daisuke Harada came out looking angry, and for some reason patting the IPW belt.

Nio & Hao have a new entry where they stand and face each other their heads bowed, when their names are announced they lift their heads, then they strike the Kongoh pose. Kongoh in this sense means that they imitate the protector statues that flank shrine gates.

The two teams were well suited in terms of size and ability, although Hao found that he couldn't haul junior heavyweight heavyweight Tadasuke to his feet or hurricanrana him, which Tadasuke turned into a powerbomb. He was also thrown around the ring by Harada. 

A small ring was not doing to stop a crazy Tadasuke, and neither was the empty arena, and he managed to spook Hao, who I don't think is used to either crazy or sneaky Tadasuke (but knows enough not to shake his hand).

Fast paced opener with the new junior incentive of the warring states with Nio hitting a double Lionsault, Tadasuke lariating Harada by accident, and Hao coming so close to getting the win as he and Harada rolled around on the mat trying to pin each other as the clock ran out and the nostalgic old Noah Junior music played.

WINNER: Neither, time out draw after 20 minutes. 

Daisuke Harada stalked off frustrated, and punched the curtains as he went through them.

MATCH TWO
Hajime Ohara vs Kinya Okada

Hajime Ohara helped train Okada, so you could say that today was a teacher vs pupil match. Ohara has always looked toned, but today he looked really toned.

Although Okada is shaping up to be a good technical wrestler, the match was pretty much dominated by the far more experienced Ohara and he was outwrestled by him. He did get the upper hand at times though and managed to reverse a couple of moves, but he was frustrated by the referees count when he went for the pin.

It was a good fight, but Okada was no ultimately no match for Ohara.

WINNER: Hajime Ohara with the Mui Bien submission (10 minutes and 2 seconds) 

After the match, Go Shiozaki who has been missing for the whole of May due to acute appendicitis, came to the ring to announce that he would be returning on June 14th. His speech was interrupted by Akitoshi Saito who came to the ring waving the "Anti Wrestles Alliance" flag. In the ring Saito, in a very Heisei era gesture, produced a letter of challenge and read it out (it also included the word "Homies") to announce his intention. Go Shiozaki accepted his challenge, shook his hand and said (as Marufuji said to Sugiura) that they would put on a match "that only we can do". 

Backstage, Saito called this match very important for himself and Shiozaki, while Shiozaki called it "Destiny". The last time Shiozaki and Saito fought over the GHC Heavyweight was in 2009 a few weeks after Mitsuharu Misawa had died; the match was very sad, very difficult and was not auspicious for either Shiozaki's title reign, Saito's challenge and especially the circumstances it happened under. Like Sugiura & Marufuji having a match to make up for the one that happened under the Sugiura Army, this is their chance to put that particularly painful past to rest.

MATCH THREE
Shuhei Taniguchi vs Yoshiki Inamura 

Yoshiki Inamura came out looking toned, still big, but toned. I get the impression he has reached a weight he can work with, and has started working on himself around that.

The initial stages of the match was Shuhei Taniguchi working Inamura down to the a mat in a Greco-Roman style, which is not one of Inamura's strengths, but his skills in this department appear to have risen. Later things got back to more his style with a punch battle which led to a knock down war. During this Taniguchi got knocked outside the ring, and then refused to get back in until Inamura backed off. When he was on the apron he tried to lift Noah's tank over the ropes to the floor, but it was Inamura who reversed this and slammed him into the ring. Somehow the studio remained standing after Inamura came flying off the top turnbuckle and hit the mat like an explosion, and after he launched Taniguchi into the air during "GEKITOTZ". However, the match belonged, like the one before it, to the veteran.

WINNER: Shuhei Taniguchi with the Diving Body Press (13 minutes and 6 seconds)

Backstage, Shuhei Taniguchi said that he "would not lose to Inamura's growth", what this means is the equivalent of Cleopatra's saying, "I will not be triumphed over".

MATCH FOUR
Kaito Kiyomiya vs Rene Dupree

Kaito Kiyomiya's entry was very face of\I am Noah, as he made a point of looking at the Noah logo and then at the camera. Although he said he wasn't watching, Kenoh probably was screaming obscenities somewhere at the sight of it.

Both Kiyomiya and Dupree are well matched in size, (Dupree being one of the few people that Kiyomiya doesn't tower over), and in power. Only thing Kiyomiya doesn't have is the experience, but Dupree said after the match he predicted that Kiyomiya would become a superstar.

A good technical match to close out the show which ended with Kiyomiya avenging his Global Tag League loss.

WINNER: Kaito Kiyomiya with The Tiger Suplex (13 minutes, 37 seconds)

After the match, Kiyomiya spoke on the microphone and outlined a couple of his future dreams; not only did he want to take Noah to the next level, but he has two ambitions; to face Keiji Mutoh in a singles match and "I want The Rainmaker". "The Rainmaker" of course being New Japan's Kazuchika Okada. It may sound a little odd given all that has happened between New Japan and Noah a few years ago, but both companies three years later are not what they had been then, and the younger generation don't want to be hampered in their own future by the mistakes their seniors made in the past. 

"Part 2" of "NOAH NEW HOPE" will be broadcast on Sunday May 31st at 19.00 JST via ABEMA TV.

With thanks to Metal Noah
Picture credit: PKDX
GIF Credit: ABEMA TV