NJPW The New Beginning in Sapporo Night 1 2023 Results – Feb. 4, 2023 – Shota Umino vs. Tetsuya Naito

Feb 4, 2023

February 4, 2023
Sapporo, Japan – Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center Hokkai Kitayell
English Commentary: Kevin Kelly and Chris Charlton
Results via Chick Fritts of F4WOnline.com

Quick Match Results

Great-O-Khan defeated Oskar Leube via Oozora Subaru Sheep Killer (submission 7:25)
Ryohei Oiwa, Ren Narita, El Desperado, & Minoru Suzuki defeated Dick Togo, SHO, Yujiro Takahashi, & EVIL via Cobra Twist (submission 9:36)
TMDK defeated Yuto Nakashima, YOSHI-HASHI, Tomohiro Ishii, & Hirooki Goto via Kimura Lock (submission 11:28)
Master Wato, Hikuleo, Tama Tonga, & Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Bullet Club via Jackknife Pin (pinfall 12:48)
BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, SANADA, & Shingo Takagi defeated YOH, Ryusuke Taguchi, Toru Yano, & Kazuchika Okada via Last of the Dragon (pinfall 11:02)
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship – Catch 2/2 (c) defeated Just Four Guys via Fireball (pinfall)
Will Ospreay defeated Taichi via Stormbreaker (pinfall 22:47)
Tetsuya Naito defeated Shota Umino via Destino (pinfall 32:11)

Oskar Leube vs. Great-O-Khan

I’m enthusiastic about Leube’s future generally, and this match only adds to my excitement.

The match opened with a grappling sequence. Leube forced O-Khan into the ropes and gained the upper hand with some strikes.

O-Khan frustration with losing momentum to his underling triggered a quick comeback. O-Khan established control and maintained it for some time.

After withstanding O-Khan’s extended control, Leube bounced back with two massive slams. Leube locked in a deep Boston crab that nearly forced a submission. O-Khan survived the Leube submission attempt and locked in his finishing abdominal stretch/iron claw hold combination, forcing Leube to tap.

Winner: Great-O-Khan via Submission.

Ryohei Oiwa, Ren Narita, El Desperado, & Minoru Suzuki vs. Dick Togo, SHO, Yujiro Takahashi, & EVIL

For an HoT match, this was a ton of fun.

This match opened with Suzuki taking out HoT before passing the momentum to Oiwa. Oiwa failed to maintain this advantage, leading to an extended period of HoT control. The hot tag eventually came to Desperado, who nearly evened the score, even after a prolonged HoT beatdown.

Once Narita tagged in, he took control, forcing HoT to rush the ring. Togo tried choking Narita with a wire, but Suzuki made the save. Narita landed a beautiful suplex and locked in the abdominal stretch, forcing Togo to submit.

Winner: Ryohei Oiwa, Ren Narita, El Desperado, & Minoru Suzuki via Submission.

After the match, Suzuki told Narita he could take him to the top if he stuck by him.

Yuto Nakashima, YOSHI-HASHI, Tomohiro Ishii, & Hirooki Goto vs. TMDK (Kosei Fujita, Shane Haste, Micky Nicholls, & Zack Sabre Jr.)

The Young Lions were real standouts in this match.

An opening brawl left CHAOS with a short-lived lead, but TMDK fired back with an extended isolation segment on Goto. After a tag to Ishii, the CHAOS team began to turn things back around.

Goto and YH cleared the ring and tried for Shoto but failed to connect, leading to a double tag to each team’s Young Lion.

The Young Lions went back and forth before Nakashima locked in a deep Boston crab, forcing a save from ZSJ. Nakashima dropped Fujita with a nasty kick, but Fujita answered with a dropkick of his own. Fujita locked in a kimura and forced Nakashima to submit.

Winner: TMDK via Submission.

Master Wato, Hikuleo, Tama Tonga, & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Bullet Club (Taiji Ishimori, El Phantasmo, KENTA, & Jay White)

Bullet Club opened the match with a game of chicken, with no one wanting to engage with their opponents. After teasing the newly vocal crowd for some time, BC rushed the ring, stealing momentum before the babyfaces even had a chance.

After extended BC control, a hot tag to Hikuleo left the babyfaces with a chance. Hikuleo beat down White before a sequence of tags allowed the other participants in this match to have a moment in the ring. Once the back-and-forth tags wound down, the match broke down into a scramble for control. Then, in the chaos, Wato caught Ishimori in a bridging pin to win the bout.

Winner: Master Wato, Hikuleo, Tama Tonga, & Hiroshi Tanahashi via Pinfall.

YOH, Ryusuke Taguchi, Toru Yano, & Kazuchika Okada vs. BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, SANADA, & Shingo Takagi

Hiromu and YOH opened the match with a strike exchange before tagging out to Yano and SANADA. Yano removed the corner cover, and SANADA tied Yano in the paradise lock. This silliness continued for some time before a double tag left Shingo and Okada as the legal men for the first time.

Okada gained the upper hand initially, but Shingo was quick to step up to the champion. The pair traded blows, but Taguchi stopped the title match tease. CHAOS rushed the ring, isolating Shingo and forcing LIJ to hit the ring as well.

Shingo scored a nearfall with a pumping bomber, but YOH made the save. After surviving a pair of quick Taguchi pin attempts, Shingo dropped Taguchi with Last of the Dragon and secured the pinfall win for his team.

Winner: BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, SANADA, & Shingo Takagi via Pinfall.

After the match, YOH attacked IWGP Junior champion, Hiromu Takahashi, in an uncharacteristic show of aggression.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
Just Four Guys (DOUKI & Yoshinobu Kanemaru) vs. Catch 2/2 (Francesco Akira & TJP) (c)

This was one of, maybe, the best DOUKI outings I’ve ever seen. The consistent leg work added to this match immensely. Good stuff.

The challengers quickly took the lead, rushing the champions and landing a tope. J4G began to relentlessly target TJP’s leg, establishing a game plan for the rest of the match.

The tag to Akira allowed for a Catch 22 comeback of sorts. The leg work from earlier in the match allowed J4G to stay one step ahead, though, taking advantage anytime TJP stepped in the ring.

Kanemaru locked TJP in the figure four, nearly forcing the submission. A double-team facebuster kept Catch 22 in the running, but TJP’s leg failed during the leaning tour attempt. With TJP down, DOUKI locked Akira in a triangle arm bar. Once Akira escaped, Kanemaru hit a moonsault, setting up for Doton-no-Jutsu. TJP made the save, but DOUKI followed up with a Daybreak; Akira kicked out.

Now reaching desperation mode, DOUKI tried for Suplex de La Luna. Akira landed on his feet just in time for backup from TJP. Akira landed a double stomp, but Kanemaru made the save. TJP and Kanemaru fought to the floor, leaving Akira and DOUKI alone in the ring. Akira landed fireball and pinned DOUKI to retain the title.

Winner: Catch 2/2 via Pinfall to retain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship.

Will Ospreay vs. Taichi

The match opened with a heavy strike exchange that left Taichi with an early lead, Ospreay answered with a dive to the floor, taking control for the first time. Ospreay took his time, establishing a robust offensive foundation as the early match developed.

Taichi had a short comeback, complete with his pants rip spot, but Ospreay answered with a quick rebound and a springboard forearm.

Taichi blocked an OsCutter attempt, turning it into a sudden suplex for a mid-match reset. The pair traded kicks and chops, and again, Taichi won the strike battle. Taichi tried for a powerbomb, but Ospreay escaped; a high-stakes back-and-forth followed.

Ospreay landed a tiger driver to re-establish his lead. The follow-up OsCutter yielded an Ospreay nearfall. Ospreay attempted a top rope cutter to close, but Taichi caught him and landed a Triple Crown Bomb and a running elbow to the back of the head for a nearfall of his own. A backdrop scored Taichi another nearfall.

Another quick pin attempt almost left Taichi with the win, but Ospreay landed in the perfect position for a hidden blade. After a struggle, Ospreay hit a second, this time leaping, hidden blade, but Taichi kicked out.

Taichi and Ospreay traded strikes again. Ospreay dropped Taichi with a big elbow, leading to the referee counting Taichi down. Taichi barely beat the count, only to be hit with a hidden blade and storm breaker. Ospreay then pinned Taichi to win the match.

Winner: Will Ospreay via Pinfall.

Shota Umino vs. Tetsuya Naito

The match opened with an extended feeling out sequence, establishing both men as near equals. Umino eventually forced Naito to the floor before taunting his elder in the first control segment of the match. Naito responded by grabbing a handful of hair, sending Umino to the floor, and slamming him into the barricade.

On the floor, Naito established a strong lead. Back in the ring, he took the match to the mat, working the neck and furthering his control.

A quick rana and dropkick combination started a Umino comeback, Umino connected with multiple big moves but failed to land the death rider.

After a strike battle, Umino landed a giant dive to the floor, a dropkick from the top rope, and secured the STF, forcing Naito into the ropes. Once Naito escaped, Umino kept up the attack, but a sudden DDT left Naito back in control.

Naito landed Gloria, scoring a near fall. Naito then hit a spine buster and tried for Destino, but Umnio reversed, landing a pair of drivers. Umino followed up with another death rider attempt, but Naito answered with Valentía, resetting the match.

Naito tried working the neck after the pause in action, but Umino followed up with a pair of DDTs. After Naito kicked out, he landed Destino and scored a near fall of his own. Naito landed Destino a second time, this time leading to his victory.

Winner: Tetsuya Naito via Pinfall.

After the match, Naito cut a show-ending promo. He addressed the cheering crowd before signing off with the LIJ call. For the first time in a long time, chants of “Naito” and “Takagi” were heard in Sapporo.