New Japan TV 9-30-93 Hogan & Muta vs Hansen & Spivey!
Oct 14, 2023 16:47:19 GMT
Post by Chitohausen on Oct 14, 2023 16:47:19 GMT
Sanctioned by International Wrestling Grand Prix; Seiji Sakaguchi, president
Airs across Japan on Saturday, September 30, 1993 on:
TV Asahi
Taped on September 23, 1993 at the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
Announcers: Kenji Wakabayashi and Kotetsu Yamamoto
Ring Announcer: Hidekazu Tanaka
Referees: Red Shoes Unno, Tiger Hattori and Kyohei Wada
KENJI WAKABAYASHI and KOTETSU YAMAMOTO open the show.
They welcome us to this week’s episode of Asahi TV’s “World Pro-Wrestling”!
This week, we’ll see Jushin Thunder Liger defend the IWGP junior heavyweight title against Ultimo Dragon!
Tatsumi Fujinami will square off with All Japan’s Toshiaki Kawada!
The first of two big main events will see Hulk Hogan return to Japan, to team up with Keiji Mutoh’s demonic alter-ego, the Great Muta, to face the team of Stan Hansen and Dan Spivey!
And, in the other part of the double main event, Riki Choshu looks to defend the honour of New Japan against the ace of All Japan Pro Wrestling, Mitsuharu Misawa!
Before we get to the first match, we see highlights of some of the earlier matches on the card. The card began with Satoshi Kojima teaming up with England’s Johnny Saint to defeat El Samurai and Yuji Nagata, when Saint forced Nagata to submit to a leglock.
Great Sasuke makes his NJPW in-ring debut, beating Tiger Mask III in about 10 minutes with a diving DDT.
The Jurassic Powers beat the J-J-Jacks in a non-title match when Norton pinned Iizuka after a thunderous powerslam.
The All Japan team of Akira Taue and Kenta Kobashi beat Masahiro Chono and Manabu Nakanishi when Taue pinned Nakanishi after the Nodowa Otoshi.
IWGP JUNIOR HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP:
JUSHIN THUNDER LIGER (champ, 3rd defence) defeats ULTIMO DRAGON (AJPW). These two men have had some classic matches, and the fans in the Yokohama Arena are treated to another one here today! Liger starts off with some technically sound mat wrestling, as he often does, and it’s Dragon who first takes to the air, dropkicking Liger through the ropes and to the floor, then connecting with a dive over the top rope onto the champion!
Both champion and challenger kick things up a few notches after that, and they fly around at a lightning-quick pace, both men hitting some impressive offensive moves, but neither really getting a clear cut advantage.
Late in the match, Dragon has things in hand, he seems to have figured Liger out, and has been able to counter pretty much everything the champion has thrown at him for the past few minutes. However, when Liger’s on the mat, and Dragon goes for the Asai Moonsault, the champion gets his knees up, knocking the wind out of the challenger! Liger pulls Dragon up, but the challenger surprises him by firing off some forearm shots! Liger responds with a flurry of palm strikes that leave Dragon stunned, and Liger follows it up with a Rolling Koppu Kick. Liger connects with a Liger Bomb, but Dragon gets a shoulder up! Liger hits a second Liger Bomb, and again the challenger gets a shoulder up at the last second!
From there, Liger sets Dragon up on the top turnbuckle . . . and delivers a top-rope Frankensteiner! That’s all she wrote, and Liger gets the 1, 2, 3 to successfully retain the IWGP junior heavyweight title for the third time!
After the match, the two men shake hands, and Liger asks Dragon to be his tag team partner for the upcoming Super Grade Tag League in October! Dragon accepts, and the two men shake hands again, with Dragon raising the champion’s arm before leaving the ring.
The commentary team notes that the SG Tag League will kick off on October 8 at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo.
They run down the teams that will compete in the tournament:
IWGP tag team champs the Jurassic Powers, Scott Norton & Hercules Hernandez!
Keiji Muto & Hiroshi Hase!
Masahiro Chono & Kensuke Sasaki!
Tatsumi Fujinami & Osamu Kido!
Stan Hansen & Dan Spivey!
Shiro Koshinaka & Kengo Kimura!
The J-J-Jacks, Takayuki Iizuka & Akira Nogami!
Masa Saito & The Barbarian!
Jushin Thunder Liger & Ultimo Dragon!
Ken Shamrock & Minoru Suzuki!
“THE DRAGON” TATSUMI FUJINAMI defeats TOSHIAKI KAWADA (AJPW). These two men crossed paths a few times last week in the big 10-man tag team match, but they go one on one here this week. Fujinami keeps the match on the mat early, with Kawada responding with his strikes, including some vicious kicks to the head that leave Fujinami stunned!
As the match goes on, Fujinami wears Kawada down, stretching him on the mat, especially focusing on Kawada’s leg, looking to take some of the power out of his Dangerous K’s kicks. Fujinami methodically wears Kawada down and eventually hits two Dragon Suplexes, with the second being enough to get the pin.
Before we get to the first of our two main events, we see a highlight video of Hulk Hogan, showing him wrestling both in the US and here in Japan.
HULK HOGAN & THE GREAT MUTA defeat STAN HANSEN & DAN SPIVEY. This one isn’t pretty, as Hogan, Hansen and Spivey would rather brawl than wrestle, and the demonic Great Muta is more than happy to join them!
The action is wild and woolly here, as both teams pummel each other! Late in the match, Muta brawls with Hansen on the floor. Hansen gets the upper hand . . . until Muta sprays the green mist in Hansen’s face!!!!
That takes Hansen out of the match, and also distracts Dan Spivey inside the ring. When Spivey turns his attention back to Hulk Hogan, the Hulkster is waiting. He nails Spivey with big rights and lefts, then bounces off the ropes . . . AXE BOMBERRRRRR!!!!!!! Spivey goes down, and Hogan quickly covers him for the 1, 2, 3!
Before the final match, the commentators talk about Inoki challenging Mitsuharu Misawa at the end of last week’s show. They say that match will be the first in Inoki’s Retirement Countdown series, and it will take place on November 20 at Korakuen Hall!
MITSUHARU MISAWA (AJPW) (w/ Kenta Kobashi & Akira Taue) defeats RIKI CHOSHU (w/ Masahiro Chono & Kensuke Sasaki). This match is a stark contrast to the last one, where the two teams were more interested in just pummeling each other than actually wrestling. Here, Misawa and Choshu put on a clinic, and show why they’re considered two of the very best. Choshu has been around for many years, but he shows here that he’s still got it!
After almost 20 minutes and fast-paced, hard-hitting action, Choshu attempts the Scorpion Lock, but Misawa kicks him off. Choshu keeps on the attack, but Misawa continues to fight back. Misawa turns the tide, and then nearly takes Choshu’s head off with the Rolling Elbow, before hitting the Tiger Suplex for the 1, 2, 3!
Mitsuharu Misawa has pinned Riki Choshu in the middle of the ring! He looks ready for his showdown with Antonio Inoki on November 20!
Wakabayashi and Yamamoto wrap things up and hype next week’s show, which will see the Jurassic Powers defend their IWGP tag team titles against Keiji Mutoh and Hiroshi Hase, as well as a battle of the generations, between longtime ace Tatsumi Fujinami and one of the faces of the future here in NJPW, Masahiro Chono!
Credits Roll
© 1993, New Japan Pro Wrestling
Working on it now.