New Japan TV 1-13-94 Choshu vs Tenryu!

[Chitohausen]

Sanctioned by International Wrestling Grand Prix; Seiji Sakaguchi, president


Airs across Japan on Saturday, January 13, 1994 on:


TV Asahi


Taped on January 4, 1994 at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, 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.

We’re back in the world-famous Tokyo Dome for this week’s episode of Asahi TV’s “World Pro-Wrestling”!

This week, we’ve got four big matches:

Hiroyoshi Tenzan has been on a roll since returning from a learning excursion in Europe, and today he’ll face a tough youngster in Manabu Nakanishi!

Super Strong Machine meets his former stablemate in Raging Staff, Tatsutoshi Goto!

Hiroshi Hase and Kensuke Sasaki meet the Jurassic Powers, Scott Norton and Hercules Hernandez!

And, the feature bout will see Genichiro Tenryu, representing All Japan Pro Wrestling, square off with Riki Choshu, representing New Japan Pro Wrestling!


HIROYOSHI TENZAN defeats MANABU NAKANISHI. Tenzan returned in the later part of 1993 from his learning excursion in Europe, and he’s come back with a new, and very bad, attitude! Tenzan and Nakanishi are around the same size, and both are powerful young men, though Tenzan has more experience of the two.

Early on, they both try to show that they are the stronger of the two. Tenzan gets the upper hand, driving Nakanishi into the mat with a powerslam as Nakanishi comes off the ropes, then Tenzan follows it up with a running clothesline that sends Nakanishi over the top rope and to the floor!

Tenzan dominates the first few minutes, Nakanishi catches a break when Tenzan charges at him, and Nakanishi delivers a belly to belly suplex. Unfortunately for Nakanishi, he follows it up with forearm shots that seem to have little effect, as Tenzan drops him with some vicious shots, then puts the boots to Nakanishi! Tenzan works over Nakanishi’s leg while Manabu is on the mat, but he kicks Tenzan off and gets back to his feet. Nakanishi stuns Tenzan with some clubbing forearms down across Tenzan’s back, and then hits some elbow strikes and chops, but again Tenzan just absorbs them and fires back with strikes of his own!

Tenzan methodically wears Nakanishi down, but when he goes for a sleeperhold, Nakanishi drops forward, driving the top of his head right into the chin of Tenzan, breaking the sleeper. Nakanishi finally gets some offense in, he gets Tenzan down on the mat, and puts the boots to him! Nakanishi runs the ropes and delivering an elbowdrop for a 2-count. When Nakanishi goes for a Scorpion Lock, Tenzan kicks him off, sending Nakanishi into the corner, and Tenzan then clobbers him with a clothesline. With Nakanishi down on the mat, Tenzan charges, and hits a front flip, landing right on Nakanishi’s midsection, and knocking the wind out of him.

Tenzan then heads to the top rope and connects with a diving headbutt for a very close nearfall! Tenzan then drives Nakanishi into the mat with the Sitout Tombstone Piledriver, which no doubt would have been enough for the win, but Tenzan isn’t finished, he heads to the top rope again, and hits a Moonsault! Still not satisfied, he pulls Nakanishi up by the hair, and delivers a big Mongolian chop, then whips Nakanishi into the ropes, and delivers the Mountain Bomb! Tenzan covers Nakanishi, and gets the 3-count!

Tenzan clearly wanted to show the Tokyo Dome fans what he learned on his excursion, and he certainly sent a message here, as Nakanishi is still down and out on the mat, and Tenzan heads to the locker room.


SUPER STRONG MACHINE (w/ Akira Taue, Jun Akiyama and Kenta Kobashi) defeats TATSUTOSHI GOTO (w/ Hiro Saito, Kengo Kimura and Masashi Aoyagi). There’s nothing pretty about this one, as these two former partners and now bitter rivals square off! They tear into each other before the bell even sounds, both men swinging away at the other! Machine gets the better of the exchange. They separate, and Machine looks like he wants to lock up, but when Goto goes to lock up, Machine kicks him in the stomach and starts pummeling him again!

We get some mat wrestling from both men during the middle part of the match, though both men are quick to throw a punch if they can do so without the referee seeing it. Machine locks on a sleeperhold, but Goto manages to struggle to the ropes to force the break. Machine continues on the offensive, but Goto turns the tables, hitting him with some vicious kicks. Machine takes control again though, when Goto whips him into the ropes, and Machine responds with a running clothesline that leaves Goto flat on the mat.

Machine has Goto in the corner, and delivers a running Bulldog out of the corner, but that only gets 2. A German suplex into a bridge gets another nearfall. Machine drops Goto to the mat with another suplex, then goes to the top rope and hits a Diving Headbutt for the 1, 2, 3!

After the match, Machine continues to attack Goto, which brings Goto’s seconds from Heisei Ishingun into the ring to help Goto. The All Japan wrestlers that came to the ring with Machine also rush into the ring, and we get a big brawl until several wrestlers and referees separate them and force them from the ring.

Machine may have got the pinfall victory here, but this rivalry between him and his former stablemates is far from over!


We see footage of Mitsuharu Misawa defending the IWGP title, along with his All Japan Triple Crown championship, on an All Japan show at Korakuen Hall on January 2.

The announcers talk about the video we just saw. Wakabayashi says that seeing the IWGP title on an All Japan show isn’t going to sit well with the wrestlers or management here in New Japan Pro Wrestling!


We see footage of Hiroshi Hase and Kensuke Sasaki defeating Keiji Mutoh and Masahiro Chono for the IWGP tag titles in November 1990. We then see them lose the titles to Super Strong Machine and Hiro Saito on December 26, but they regain them in March 1991, only to lose them a few days later to the Steiner Brothers.

Wakabayashi says that Hase is once again co-holder of the tag titles, this time with Keiji Mutoh, but Hase will rejoin Sasaki here today for a match against the men that Hase and Mutoh beat for the belts, the Jurassic Powers, Scott Norton and Hercules Hernandez!


HIROSHI HASE & KENSUKE SASAKI defeat THE JURASSIC POWERS: SCOTT NORTON & HERCULES HERNANDEZ. Hase finds himself at a distinct disadvantage here, the other three wrestlers are big power wrestlers, while Hase is more of a mat technician. Despite being smaller than both his opponents, Hase shines in the underdog role here, he takes a beating, but somehow manages to make it to his corner, and tags in Sasaki, who then tears into both Norton and Hercules! As the match progresses, the Jurassic Powers again have Hase in the ring and they take turns wearing him down.

At one point, they send Hase out onto the ramp with a clothesline over the top rope. However, Hercules takes the time to taunt the crowd, instead of following up, and when he turns his attention back to the ramp, Hase springboards off the top rope with a dropkick that sends Hercules to the mat! Hase tags in Sasaki, and he comes in and pummels Hercules! Hercules tries to grab the chain that he wears to the ring, but Sasaki clotheslines him out of the ring and to the floor!

As Hercules gets back up onto the ring apron, Sasaki drags him back into the ring, hits a Dragon Suplex, then follows that up with a vicious Lariat! With Hercules in trouble, Sasaki scoops him up, and drives him into the mat with the Northern Lights Bomb!

Sasaki covers Hercules, and Hiroshi Hase breaks up Scott Norton’s attempt to break up the cover. Hercules is out, and Sasaki gets the 1, 2, 3 to give the former 2-time IWGP tag champs the victory!


RIKI CHOSHU (w/ Antonio Inoki, Tatsumi Fujinami and Masahiro Chono) defeats GENICHIRO TENRYU (w/ Toshiaki Kawada, Kenta Kobashi and Akira Taue). These two men are no strangers to each other, they battled many times when Choshu and his Ishingun group invaded All Japan in the mid-80s, and they’ve battled several times in recent months after All Japan invaded New Japan!

Things start off hot, as Tenryu SLAPS Choshu before they even lock up! That only serves to piss off Choshu, and he tears into Tenryu, battering him from pillar to post!

The commentary team talks about how both men have taken on leadership roles for their respective promotions, and the pride of each promotion is at stake in this match! Wakabayashi says that the NJPW team won the recent 5-on-5 elimination Total War match, and if Choshu wins here, he feels that would really give New Japan the upper hand in this rivalry. Yamamoto agrees, but reminds Wakabayashi that Mitsuharu Misawa, an All Japan wrestler, still holds the biggest prize in NJPW . . . the IWGP title!

Both men rely on strikes, and seem pretty evenly-matched, neither man really has much of an advantage in the early going. As the match progresses, Choshu slows things down, and starts working on Tenryu’s leg, looking to soften him up for the Scorpion Lock. Tenryu realizes this, and does everything he can to keep Choshu from applying the hold.

Tenryu soon gains the upper hand, and after taking Choshu down to the mat, Tenryu scrapes the sole of his boot across the face of Choshu, showing complete disdain for his opponent! This fires Choshu up, and he starts to fight back, but Tenryu hits him with a Powerbomb for a VERY close nearfall! Choshu rolls out to the floor, but Tenryu comes out on the apron, charges towards Choshu, then dives off the apron with a big elbowsmash! When Choshu gets back to his feet, he’s got blood running down his face!

Back inside, Tenryu keeps up the assault on Choshu. Tenryu goes for an Enziguri, but Choshu ducks it, and then hits Tenryu with a Lariat and backdrop suplex for a nearfall. Choshu sits Tenryu on the top turnbuckle, and delivers a Superplex for another nearfall. Choshu heads to the top rope, and delivers a kneedrop on his fallen opponent, but again can only get a 2-count! Tenryu again goes for the Enziguri and this time he connects, then follows it up with a Powerbomb, but only gets 2. Tenryu goes for his top-rope back elbow, but Choshu rolls out of the way, and Tenryu crashes to the mat!

Choshu hits a Lariat, but Tenryu kicks out at 2. Choshu hits a DDT, then three consecutive Lariats for the 1, 2, 3!


Wakabayashi and Yamamoto wrap things up and hype next week’s show, which will feature more action from January 4 at the Tokyo Dome! We’ll see the J-J-Jacks, Nogami and Iizuka, against the Heisei Ishingun team of Shiro Koshinaka and Masashi Aoyagi! Jushin Thunder Liger squares off with Tiger Mask III! And the feature bout will see Stan Hansen and Dan Spivey battle another American team, Rick and Scott Steiner!


Credits Roll



© 1994, New Japan Pro Wrestling