NJPW Summer Struggle in Jingu 2020 Results – Aug. 29, 2020 – Tetsuya Naito vs. EVIL

August 29, 2020
Tokyo, Japan – Jingu Stadium
English commentary: Kevin Kelly & Chris Charlton
Results via Ethan Renner of F4WOnline.com

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Quick Match Results:

1. Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Master Wato via Sunset Flip Roll-up (pinfall 7:31)
2. NJPW King of Pro Wrestling Championship Tournament Finals 4-Way match – Toru Yano defeated El Desperado, Kazuchika Okada, and SANADA via Schoolboy Roll-up (pinfall 7:01)
3. NEVER Openweight Championship – Minoru Suzuku defeated Shingo Takagi (c) via Gotch Style Piledriver (pinfall 14:56)
4. IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship – Taiji Ishimori defeated Hiromu Takahashi (c) via Yes Lock (submission 13:30)
5. IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship – Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi (c) defeated Kota Ibushi & Hiroshi Tanahashi via Zack Mephisto (pinfall 16:01)
6. IWGP Heavyweight & IWGP Intercontinental Double Championship match – Tetsuya Naito defeated EVIL (c) via Destino (pinfall 26:20)

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Master Wato vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru

They didn’t get much time and they botched a couple of spots. Not a smooth start to the show. 

Wato got some early offense with a back elbow. Kanemaru cut him off and hit a leg slice over the barricade. Wato got tied to the tree of woe and Kanemaru hit a sliding dropkick in the corner. 

Wato came back with a tornillo, springboard elbow and a monkey flip for a near fall. Kanemaru missed a moonsault but landed on his feet. Kanemaru shoved the ref down. They botched a spot. Kanemaru hit an inverted DDT. 

Kanemaru swung a whiskey bottle but Wato ducked it. Wato went for a facebuster but it looked as though they botched that one as well. 

Wato went for RPP but Kanemaru trapped him with a sunset flip and got the flash pin.

Winner: Yoshinobu Kanemaru via Pinfall.

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King of Pro Wrestling Championship Tournament Finals 4-Way Match
Toru Yano vs. El Desperado vs. Kazuchika Okada vs. SANADA

The other three guys started going at it while Okada was posing on the buckle during his entrance. 

They did some comedy spots with Yano. Yano exposed a buckle and Desperado and SANADA got sent into it. Yano teased a dive but Desperado pulled him out of the ring. 

Okada and SANADA teamed up to hit some offense on Desperado and Yano. SANADA locked Yano in the paradise lock and left him in the hold for a long time. Okada hit a shotgun dropkick and SANADA bumped Yano to break the hold. 

Desperado hit Guitara de Angel on Okada for a two count. Okada blocked a Pinche Loco attempt and slapped on the Money Clip. Desperado pulled the ref down by his shirt and the ref bumped. 

With the ref still recovering, Yano hit a low blow on Okada and used a schoolboy for the pin.

Yano pinned Okada. What?

Winner: Toru Yano via Pinfall to become the inaugural King of Pro Wrestling Champion.

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NEVER Openweight Championship
Minoru Suzuku vs. Shingo Takagi (c)

This was an awesome match. 

They began beating the hell out of each other right away and spent the first several minutes just trading strikes and chops. 

Suzuki got a sleeper applied. Shingo fought the hold forever. Suzuki switched to a Gotch-style piledriver attempt. Shingo hit a backdrop out of it. Shingo missed a sliding lariat. Shingo hit a DVD. 

Shingo missed a sliding lariat but hit Made in Japan for a near fall. He went for Last of the Dragon but Suzuki fought it off. Suzuki hit a series of headbutts. 

They did a couple of misdirection spots that ended with Suzuki hitting a dropkick. You know it’s a special match when Suzuki busts out the dropkick. 

They traded headbutts on the mat. They traded strikes as they climbed back to their feet. Suzuki hit another headbutt. They traded strikes again. 

Suzuki went back to the rear naked choke. Shingo teased passing out but Suzuki gave up the hold and went for another Gotch piledriver. Suzuki pointed to the sky, hit the piledriver and got the pin. 

Winner: Minoru Suzuki via Pinfall to become the new NEVER Openweight Champion.

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IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
Taiji Ishimori vs. Hiromu Takahashi (c)

This was a good match but not at the level of Hiromu’s best matches as he had to sell his shoulder a ton instead of doing his usual insanity. 

Hiromu’s left shoulder was taped and Ishimori went after it right away. Ishimori fought for a la Mistica. Hiromu blocked the first but Ishimori got it on his second attempt. Ishimori got the Yes Lock applied but Hiromu reached the ropes for an immediate break. 

Ishimori avoided a sunset bomb and sent Hiromu into the barricade. Hiromu came back with a shotgun dropkick off the apron and Ishimori flew into the barricade. Hiromu hit a falcon arrow for a near fall. 

Ishimori avoided a German into the buckle and hit a poison rana. Hiromu popped up and hit the German into the buckle. Hiromu hit a Dynamite Plunger for a near fall. Both hit German suplexes and both no-sold them. Hiromu hit a lariat into a double down. 

Ishimori blocked Time Bomb II. Hiromu blocked a Yes Lock attempt. Ishimori hit a lungblower into another double down. Ishimori blocked a flying headscissors and used the Yes Lock. Hiromu fought to the ropes to force a break. 

Hiromu blocked a Bloody Cross. Ishimori hit a buckle bomb and a lariat. Hiromu agaiin blocked the Bloody Cross and hit a DVD into the buckle. Hiromu hit Time Bomb but Ishimori kicked out. 

Ishimori hit an inverted Bloody Cross and used the Yes Lock. Hiromu fought the hold but Ishimori rolled him back to the center of the ring and kept the hold applied. Hiromu tapped out.

Winner: Taiji Ishimori via Submission to become the new IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion.

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IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
Kota Ibushi & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi (c)

This was a good match that didn’t have enough time to kick into high gear. With consecutive losses in title matches for Ibushi and Tanahashi this felt like the end of this program, which is fine. They’ve had a ton of matches this summer. 

Tanahashi sold for the first several minutes as this followed the pattern of the matches these teams have had all summer. Ibushi tagged in and ran wild. He hit a standing moonsault for a near fall.  

Ibushi had a lengthy exchange with Taichi. They traded high kicks into a double down. 

Tanahashi and Sabre tagged in and went after Sabre’s taped right knee. Tanahashi got a measure of revenge on Sabre and Ibushi and Tanahashi hit the assisted dragon screw on Sabre’s right leg that Sabre and Taichi have been hitting on Tana recently. 

Tanahashi and Ibsuhi hit Golden Blades on both guys. Ibushi blocked an iron glove shot from Taichi with a high kick. Ibushi and Taichi brawled to the floor, leaving Tana and Sabre in for the finish. 

Tanahashi hit a standing High Fly Flow. He went for a second High Fly Flow but missed. Taichi jumped in and Sabre and Taichi hit Tanahashi with Zack Mephisto. Taichi held Ibushi at bay while Sabre pinned Tanahashi.

Winner: Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi via Pinfall to retain the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.

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IWGP Heavyweight & IWGP Intercontinental Double Championship
Tetsuya Naito vs. EVIL (c)

These guys worked incredibly hard but all of the interference and a couple of key botches kept this from being the classic IWGP title match they were going for. EVIL is a good brawler but still not at the level of the best guys in the world. 

They built the match around going after each other’s necks. 

Naito and Togo started brawling before the bell. EVIL used the distraction to jump Naito. Togo exposed a buckle and Naito got sent into it. 

EVIL took Naito outside and hit him with a chair. He did his chair swing against another chair against the post spot. 

Back inside, EVIL hit a neckbreaker for a near fall. Naito came back with a swing DDT and a one-legged dropkick. Naito took out Togo with a baseball slide and hit a combinacion cabron on EVIL in the corner. Naito hit a neckbreaker for a near fall. 

Naito used a crucifix. Togo jumped on the apron with a chair and distracted the ref. Naito gave up the hold and went after Togo. EVIL used Red Shoes to assist in hitting a mid kick. EVIL hit a lariat to the back of the neck and a double stomp in the corner. 

EVIL went for Darkness Falls on the apron. Naito blocked and hit a neckbreaker off the apron. Naito hit a top rope frankensteiner for a near fall. EVIL blocked Gloria and sent Naito into the exposed buckle. 

EVIL hit a top rope superplex and Darkness Falls for near falls. Naito got sent into the exposed buckle but popped out of the corner and hit a tornado DDT into a double down. Naito hit a rolling kick in the corner and followed up with Gloria. 

Naito hit an inverted swing DDT out of the corner for a near fall. Naito went for Destino but EVIL blocked with an eye rake. EVIL took the ref and Togo hit Naito with a chair. Naito blocked Everything is EVIL and hit a series of elbow strikes to the back of the neck. 

Togo jumped on the apron. Naito sent EVIL into Togo. Togo took a bump off the apron. 

Things fell apart quickly here. EVIL pulled Red Shoes into Naito’s path as he came off the ropes. Naito didn’t bump Red Shoes but went down anyway and sold his head. EVIL then threw Red Shoes into the exposed buckle and Red Shoes rolled to the floor. 

Togo jumped in and EVIL and Togo hit a Magic Killer. BUSHI ran in for the save. Gedo ran in and raked BUSHI’s eyes. Gedo and BUSHI brawled to the floor. 

Naito blocked a chair shot from EVIL. Togo choked Naito out with a ligature. SANADA ran in and hit EVIL and Togo with dropkicks. SANADA hit a TKO on Togo. BUSHI hit a codebreaker on Gedo and SANADA hit a plancha to Togo. BUSHI and SANADA dragged Togo and Gedo to the back. 

Naito hit an enzuigiri and a flying forearm. Naito hit Destino. EVIL kicked out at two. Naito went for another Destino. EVIL grabbed the ref and hit a low blow on Naito. EVIL hit a lariat for a near fall. 

They did a series of counters and Naito flubbed a Valentia. Naito blocked a low blow, hit Valentia, hit Destino and got the pin.

Winner: Tetsuya Naito via Pinfall to become the new IWGP Heavyweight & IWGP Intercontinental Double Champion.

Naito closed the show with a promo and posed in the ring as fireworks went off in the background. That was a great visual.