New Japan Pro Wrestling 5/1/2022 - Wrestling Dontaku 2022

New Japan Pro Wrestling 5/1/2022 - Wrestling Dontaku 2022

I saw 4 of the 9 matches. It wasn't a great looking card.

IWGP Tag Titles - Great O'Khan and Jeff Cobb vs Bad Luck Fale and Chase Owens vs Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI

Everyone goes at it as soon as intros finish. Yoshi and Goto do a weird neckbreaker onto a knee that looked bad and probably missed then Fale lariated Goto for 2. Goto hiptosses Yoshi onto Chase. Cobb holds up Goto then Khan sideslams him. Cobb then standing moonsaults Yoshi for 2.

Chase shotgun dropkicks Cobb then Fale slams Yoshi onto Chase's knees for 2. Chase hits a hard knee to Yoshi's face then Goto spinkicks Chase and bulldogs him. Goto then suplexes Khan onto Chase. Goto russian legsweeps Khan then Yoshi running neckbreakers him.

Fale gets tripped onto Chase then Goto and Yoshi all dogpile on top of them. Fale pulls Goto and Yoshi into a Cobb lariat then Cobb and Fale go face to face. They trade forearms and Fale shoulders him then gets body slammed. Khan and yoshi lariat battle then Khan neckbreakers him.

Goto neckbreakers Khan over his knee then Yoshi and Goto lift Khan and Goto slices him. Goto and Chase trade forearms then Chase tope con hilos Khan and Yoshi outside. Cobb gets a neckbreaker over the knee from Goto then Cobb pulls Goto into a swinging slam.

Cobb dropkicks Fale then lariats him off the apron to the floor. Fale chokeslams Goto and hits him with a thumb then helps Chase for a top rope elbow on Goto for the win.

It was around 9:40, it was fast paced and it was fine for what it was. Not a lot of logic in it and just people trying to get stuff in and hit some moves.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title - El Desperado (c) vs. Taiji Ishimori

It's been a long time since I've ever really liked an Ishimori match. We'll see if that changes here.

Taiji cartwheels and kips up out of a wristlock. They evade each other then Taiji eye rakes him. Taiji then gets slammed against the mat hard by his hair. They go outside and Despy gets TKO'd on the rail. Taiji takes off a turnbuckle pad then pushes Despy into it.

Taiji works his arm then does some kind of side triangle. Despy tries to fight back with chops then Taiji gets dragon screwed in the corner. Despy backdrops him then is thrown hard shoulder first into the post. Taiji then shoulderbreakers him.

Taiji misses a 450 then gets speared. Taiji picks him up for a tombstone but then drops his chest on his knees. Despy hits a pumphandle bomb at 10 minutes and Taiji high knees him. Despy does a stiff forearm then Taiji comes back with a la mistica into a crossface. Despy gets out  then ends up putting on a stretch muffler. Taiji does a nice reversal of it into an octopus stretch variation then Despy reverses that into a peach sunrise for 2. Despy then sitout pedigrees him and tries for another but Taiji does a border city stretch on him and wins via submission.

I thought it was good overall. Taiji worked the arm/shoulder throughout and wended up winning with a submission on it. 

IWGP United States Title - Tomohiro Ishii (c) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi

Ishii slaps him against the ropes early then Tana gives it back. Tana twisting crossbodies him off the 2nd rope then gets kicked in the back as he poses. They trade forearms for a while and Tana gets dropped. Ishii then brainbusters him for 2. Ishii chops him in the corner and Tana tries some forearms but Ishii isn't bothered by them. Tana then gets shouldered over.

Tana flying forearms him then flipping sentons him off the 2nd rope. Tana then dragon screws him then gets a dragon screw from Ishii. Ishii then backdrops him and kicks him in the back. Tana gets up and hits some forearms then fires up after a clothesline with more forearms. They trade more forearms.

Tana goes up top and they trade forearms up there. Tana dragon screws him from up there. Tana then dragon screws him again and puts him in the texas cloverleaf but Ishii hits the ropes. Tana dragon screws him again then Ishii comes back with a powerslam. Tana hits some slaps then dragon suplexes him. Ishii then gives him one right back.

Ishii takes a sling blade and struggles to get up then Tana hits another one for 2. Tana straightjacket germans him for another 2. Ishii superplexes him from the top for 2 then sliding lariats him for 2. Ishii goes for a brainbuster but gets two twists and shouts instead. Tana then dragon suplexes him for 2. Tana high fly flows him on his back then misses a 2nd attempt. Ishii rolls him up for 2.

Tana hits some lariats but can't drop Ishii then Ishii enzugiri's him. Ishii hits a stiff lariat for 1 then hits another. Ishii then brainbusters him for a close 2. Tana hits a reverse slingblade. They headbutt each other a couple times and Ishii gets dropped. Ishii then hits a cool slingblade on him then Tana hits a stiff brainbuster. Tana slingblades him for 1 then does a crossbody high fly flow from the top. Tana then does a normal high fly flow to win it.

I liked them stealing each others moves and I liked the move trading they did. They got a little too happy in the 2nd half with the kickouts and the suplexes/brainbusters and didn't sell it enough. It was still a good effort and they did try to do something special here.

IWGP Havyweight Title - Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Tetsuya Naito

Slow start here and Naito hits some forearms and foot slap. Okada clubs his back and they bump chests then trade forearms. Okada hits a running back elbow then plants him with a ddt. Okada the neckbreakers him and chinlocks him. Naito rolls out then Okada is thrown into the rail. Niato then neckbreakers him on the floor.

Naito hiptosses him and baseball slides him as he comes in. Naito drops his throat over the top rope then neckbreakers him on the apron. Naito then hits a hanging neckbreaker-esque move inside while Okada is on the 2nd buckle. Naito is then forced ot break on a submission to the neck and shoulder. They trade shots and Naito pounds on him then runs into a giant boot. Okada then flapjacks him and neckbreakers him over his knee.

Naito goes up top and is dropkicked to the floor. Okada then throws him into the rails outside then crossbodies him over the rail. Okada then top rope dropkicks him and puts him in the money clip, but Naito ropebreaks. Okada then hits a top rope elbow. Naito then comes back with a spinebuster.

Naito hits his slingshot swinging dropkick in the corner then hits his flying forearm. Naito then puts him in the Koji clutch and Okada ropebreaks. Naito pounds on him in the corner then Okada hits a huge 2nd rope sitout powerbomb out of nowhere. Naito really bounces on the landing of it.

Okada hits a short arm lariat. Okada then shotgun dropkicks him. Naito hits a lightning spiral at 25 minutes. Naito hits a destino then Okada spinning tombstones him on the 2nd attempt. Okada spinning clotheslines him. Naito recovers and germans him then hits a spinning heel kick. Okada then recovers with a dropkick.

Naito destino's him for 2 then misses a sky twister press. They trade hard forearms then Okada germans him. Naito slaps him and they start slapping each other at the same time. Okada enzugiri's him then hits a pumphandle into an emerald flowsion then rainmakers him for the win.

It went around 37 minutes. If you've seen one big Okada match, you've seen them all with a lot of the same spots. It wasn't bad but it didn't need to go as long as it did and I really didn't think it was super special.  They did an okay job filling the time but they could have chopped off some time here without an issue and could have picked up the pace at times. The 2nd rope powerbomb was the big highlight here and was pretty cool.