(NOAH) CARD: NOAH the BEST 2022 (Wednesday November 23rd, National Yoyogi Stadium 2nd Gymnasium)

Tonight's big end of month event comes to you live on WrestleUniverse (subscribers only) and ABEMA (free, but you can only watch live and the commentary will be in Japanese) from the Yoyogi National Stadium 2nd Gymnasium where we will see Yoshiki Inamura make his singles main event debut when he challenges for his first singles title, one unit emerge victorious after a bitter war, and perhaps elsewhere on the card, a few more title challenges to build up for New Year at the Nippon Budokan. Event starts at 3pm JST. Strap yourself in. 

MATCH ONE

Funky Express (Mohammed Yone & Akitoshi Saito) vs Kongoh Juniors (Tadasuke & Hi69)

If this was a relationship, both teams would be meeting on the rebound following failed title challenges; Funky Express failed to capture the GHC Heavyweight tag titles, while Tadasuke and Hi69 failed to capture the GHC Junior. This is going to be a three and a half heavyweight clash, as we all know that Tadasuke with his heavyweight strength, loves fighting that division. 

MATCH TWO

Hideki Suzuki vs Shuhei Taniguchi

Akitoshi Saito likened this match to a "silent movie" between a "taciturn craftsman and a researcher, who makes decisions silently" and like a masterpiece he wishes to enjoy something unique. 

MATCH THREE

PERROS DEL MAL DE JAPON FINAL

STINGER (Yoshinari Ogawa, Yasutaka Yano & Kai Fujimura) vs STINGER (NOSAWA Rongai, Eita & Super Crazy)

This is the ultimate grudge match of the evening. Since his arrival in Noah, NOSAWA has been getting on Yoshinari Ogawa's nerves, and then Kotaro Suzuki, (who got kicked out of STINGER) joined the Perros Del Mal De Japon unit, which was something Ogawa could not forgive. With the addition of Eita, things got even worse as Ogawa was humiliated, mainly by having water poured on him, and even being duct taped to the ropes at one point as Yasutaka Yano was beaten up on, and a title match intruded on. With NOSAWA'S retirement looming in a couple of months or so, he has declared that this match will be the match to end everything. 

The cards are not evenly stacked. Perros Del Mal De Japon have three veterans fighting, plus two at ringside (Kotaro may or may not be relevant here, but I am tending to think he will) while due to injury (HAYATA and Yuya Susumu) and absence (Chris Ridgeway), Yoshinari Ogawa must fight this while relying on his own skills as his partners are two young boys. Kai Fujimura and Yasutaka Yano have both learned a lot fighting Perros, but neither of them are the partners that HAYATA, Susumu or Ridgeway would have been.   

MATCH FOUR

Daiki Inaba vs Jack Morris

Jack Morris and Daiki Inaba have unfinished business stemming from The N-1 VICTORY. Tonight will either worsen that feud or perhaps together they will find something in common and build on it. 

MATCH FIVE

The Sugiura Army (Takashi Sugiura, Kazuyuki Fujita & Timothy Thatcher) vs Naomichi Marufuji, Masaaki Mochizuki & Masato Tanaka

Takashi Sugiura is one half of the GHC Heavyweight Tag Champions, who have not yet received a challenge, so the outcome of this match is going to be interesting as to who may challenge. Masato Tanaka is being challenged for the ZERO-1 Heavyweight by Masa Kitamiya so it might not necessarily be him, but could we see a resurrection of the M's alliance? 

MATCH SIX

Dante Leon & YO-HEY vs AMAKUSA & Alejandro

Dante Leon became the GHC Junior Heavyweight Champion when he defeated Ninja Mack. He has not had a challenger so far, but fans have been wondering if good friend YO-HEY(and tonight's partner) may challenge him, this would be a perfect symmetry for the GHC Junior Tag challenge later. 

MATCH SEVEN

Kaito Kiyomiya, Satoshi Kojima & Masa Kitamiya vs Kongoh (Kenoh, Katsuhiko Nakajima & Manabu Soya)

The GHC Heavyweight Champion, Kaito Kiyomiya, and his challenger, Kenoh, take the upper card (but not main event) tonight, although they are fighting at the end of the card before the title matches begin. The last time Kenoh and Kiyomiya clashed was at the Noah vs DragonGate event which was the night after Kenoh made his challenge, and he humiliated Kiyomiya by not only defeating him, but staring into the press cameras in a picture which wound up on the cover of Weekly Pro of the pin. As ever, Kiyomiya says nothing about this, but you can bet that he will do his talking in the ring. As for the returning Katsuhiko Nakajima, who has been in America, he says he is looking for one of his opponents to wake him up. 

MATCH EIGHT

GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match

Kongoh Juniors (Shuji Kondo & Hajime Ohara) vs Noah Junior Regulars (Atsushi Kotoge & Seiki Yoshioka)

The battered Noah Junior Regulars lost the GHC Junior Heavyweight tag titles to the Kongoh Juniors when Seiki Yoshioka couldn't take anymore and tapped to Hajime Ohara. The loss was a huge blow to the Noah Junior Regulars but for different reasons, for Yoshioka it was humiliation, for Kotoge it was the loss of the momentum he wanted to build up in the Noah Junior Regulars without Daisuke Harada's presence, which is part of the reason why he begged for a rematch. Shuji Kondo is one of the most terrifying junior wrestlers, and there is not a single person in this match who is not scared of him (including his perpetually quaking partner), Kotoge and Yoshioka seemed to have worked out how to get past him with Yoshioka saying he has a secret plan. I think both teams will be "fighting facing heaven or hell" 

MATCH NINE

GHC National Championship Match

El Hijo Del Dr Wagner Jnr vs Yoshiki Inamura 

Whatever has gone before, whatever the outcome, tonight belongs to Yoshiki Inamura who after five years of career (and who is the record holder of shortest debut to title challenge, which was for the heavyweight tag titles in 2019) makes his main event and his singles title debut. This match is about the younger generation of Noah, and despite a difference in experience, the two are well matched -similar ages, similar size, and similar power. Although Inamura has said that he wants this belt to stand next to Kaito Kiyomiya, there is also the unspoken hint of should he win, Inamura creating his own Noah, which would run contrary to Kiyomiya's Noah. The GHC National and the GHC Heavyweight have always been rivals, a win tonight for Inamura could kickstart a new feud between two singles champions, and not necessarily over a belt. 

Picture credit: WrestleUniverse, Weekly Pro