New Japan Pro Wrestling 6/18/2025 New Japan Soul 2025 Day 1

New Japan Pro Wrestling 6/18/2025 New Japan Soul 2025 Day 1

Zane Jay vs. Tatsuya Matsumoto

This is Tatsuya Matsumoto's debut and Zane's first NJPW match. TM takes him down and they trade basic holds on the mat. Zane side headlock takeovers him, gets headscissored and they stand off. 

TM wristlocks him and is reversed. Zane armdrags and armlocks him. Zane then shoulder throws him. TM waistlock takedowns him and goes for the armbar. Zane ties his legs up.

TM does a guillotine choke suplex then ane leglocks him. Zane leglocks him. TM armbars him. TM legdrags him then goes for the kimura. TM armbars him. Zane leglocks him then TM rolling armbars him. TM stomps on him and rolling kimura's him. TM armbars him.

TM stomps him then Zane leglocks him. They boot each other then forearm each other. Zane dropkicks him twice then crabs him. They then go to a draw.

Thoughts: It was a decent match here but it went a little long. They did a lot of fast paced mat wrestling in this one and the two worked well together doing the basics.

Daiki Nagai vs. Masatora Yasuda

They trade basic holds to start. Masa wristlocks him. Nagai hammerlocks him and side headlock takeovers him. Masa headscissors him and they stand off. Nagai side headlocks him then shoulders him over. Masa hiptosses him.

Masa hits another hiptoss then an elbow drop for 2. Masa hits slams. Masa pulls Nagai's arms backwards and Nagai ropebreaks. Masa hits forearms then he back body drops him. Masa crabs him.

Masa stomps on him. Nagai hits a nice dropkick. Naga hits another dropkick. Nagai spinebusters him for 2. Nagai then crabs him. Masa then submits.

Thoughts: What we got wasn't bad here with them doing the basics and Nagai eventually winning. It was the usual young lions offerings in this one.

Master Wato, Shoma Kato, Toru Yano & YOH vs. House Of Torture (DOUKI, Ren Narita, SHO & Yujiro Takahashi)

The heels attack before it starts. Yoh is sent into the post. Yujiro stomps on Yano then gets his eyes raked. Yano pulls his opponents down by the hair. Yujiro bites Wato's hadn. Wato bulldogs Douki.

Wato gets tripped by Ren. Wato's knee is banged off the floor. Sho chokes yoh with a chair outside. Everyone fights outside. Douki knee breakers Wato. Wato's eyes are raked. Wato hits a zig zag on Ren.

Yohgets in and hits shots on the heels. Yujiro takes an atomic drop then is sent into the exposed buckle. Sho pulls Yano down by the hair. Sho then spears Yoh. Douki takes a neckbreaker from Yoh.

Kato gets in and dropkicks Douki. Douki dropkicks Kato in the knee then bangs his knee off the mat. Douki does a figure four variation on Kato and submits him.

Thoughts: It was pretty standard stuff with the heels heeling it and and Kato taking the pin. It was short for how many people were involved and it wasn't much of note.

Great Bash Heel (Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma), Katsuya Murashima, Oleg Boltin & YOSHI-HASHI vs. House Of Torture (Chase Owens, Don Fale, EVIL, SANADA & Yoshinobu Kanemaru)

The heels attack before the bell. Katsuya is sent into the rails and Chase chokes Yoshi. Yoshi headhunters Chase. Evil is pushed into chase then takes a dropkick from Katsuya. Katsuya flying forearms Fale off the apron. Togi comes in and hits a double lariat on the heels.

Togi corner lariats Evil then hits mounted corner punches. Evil takes a double shoulderblock then he eye rakes Honma. Honma elbows him over and misses his falling headbutt. evil eye rakes Honma and Yoshi is sent into the announcers outside.

Honma hits chops on Fale then Fale hits him in the gut. Fale stand son Honma's back (and the bottom rope). Kanemaru comes in and bangs Honma's head off the buckles. Honmda headbutts Kanemaru over.

Oleg comes in and shoulders over Kanemaru. Oleg chops Chase then does karelin's lift on him. Oleg catches Kanemaru off the buckles then Fale bodyblocks both over. Fale hits a double shoulderblock. Oleg hits shots on Fale. Oleg then flying shoulders him off the buckles. Kato comes in and hits slams on the heels minus Fale.

Sanada takes a powerslam from Kato for 2. Kato crabs Sanada. Yoshi superkicks Chase then Honma falling headbutt drops Sanada. Kanemaru spits whiskey in Kato's eyes. Sanada shining wizards Kato. Sanada then does skull end on Kato and submits him.

Thoughts: It was pretty average face vs heel stuff here with the faces getting comebacks and short bursts of offense in before eventually being defeated.

Ryusuke Taguchi, Taichi & Yuya Uemura vs. United Empire (Callum Newman, Great-O-Khan & Jakob Austin Young)

RT = Ryusuki Taguchi

RT and Khan go at it and mat wrestle. RT wristlocks him and is tripped. Khan ankle locks him. RT bangs Khan's head into his butt. Khan catches a flying hip attack and does an ankle lock.

RT side headlocks Khan then flying hip attacks him. Khan takes more flying hip attacks from RT for 2. RT is slammed back first on the rails then Newman kicks Tai in the back in the seats. Khan sits on RT's neck on a chair.

Newman comes in and bangs RT's head off the buckles. Jake eye rakes RT with his feet then hits hip attacks on him. RT flying hip attacks Jake. Tai gets in and hits strikes on Newman. He facekicks him over then russian legsweeps him.

Newman hits forearms on Tai. Tai urakes him then Newman sweeps him into a double stomp on the back. Newman high kicks Tai. Newman then takes a high kick from Tai buzzaaw kicks him. Yuya gets in and hits shots on Newman. Newman facekicks him and step up enzugiri's him. 

Jake comes in and hits chops on Yuya. Jake tornado ddt's him for 2. Yuya backdrops Jake then armbars him. Khan clws Yuya while he does this. Khan punches Yuya in the gut. Then him and RT do karate poses at each other. RT hip attacks him. Newman jumping knees Tai then takes a running lariat. Jake rolls up Yuya for 2. Jake flying dropkicks Yuya then Yuya front suplexes him. Yuya top rope crossbodies Jake and pins him.

Thoughts: There was a bit too much of Taguchi in here for me. It was about average otherwise and no one did anything too special here.

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tiger Mask & Tomohiro Ishii vs. BULLET CLUB War Dogs (Drilla Moloney, Gabe Kidd & Gedo)

Gedo and Tiger go at it. Gedo eye pokes him then wristlocks him. Tiger reverses it. Tana gets in and wristlocks Gedo. Tiger rolls over Gedo's back and arm drags him. Tiger gets double teamed outside. Gabe and Tana trade shots outside and Gabe drops Tana.

Gedo shoves his elbow in Tiger's eye. Drilla knee drops Tiger for 2. Drilla sleepers Tiger and unties the laces on his mask. Tiger escapes a double team from Gabe and Drilla and rolls with a double back kick on Gabe. Tana gets in. Tana dragon screws Gabe then slams him. Tana 2nd rope swantons him for 2.

Gabe corner lariats Tana then hits a chop and headbutt combo. Gabe suplexes Tana for 2. Gabe and Tana trade forearms. Gabe rebound lariats him. 

Ishii and Drilla get in and trade forearms. Ishii backdrops him. Drilla hits a nice dropkick. Drilla hits a chop and forearm combo on Ishii then spinebusters him. Gedodoes the WAR Special on Ishii but it's quickly broken up. Gabe and Tana trade and Tana slingblades him. Tiger then topes Drilla outside. Tana sling blades Gedo then Ishii sliding lariats Gedo. Ishii brainbusters Gedo and wins.

Thoughts: Once Tiger and Gedo got out of there it got a little better but it was a low star power match, it didn't get a lot of time and it wasn't anyone's best work.

Tana and Gabe go face to face after.

El Phantasmo, Hirooki Goto & Shota Umino vs. TMDK (Hartley Jackson, Ryohei Oiwa & Zack Sabre Jr.)

ELP trips and surfboards Oiwa. Oiwa rolls out on top of him. Oiwa shoulders over ELP then he hiptosses him. Both stand off. ELP hurricanrana's Oiwa. ELP does rope tricks then flying headscissors him down.

Shota wristlocks Oiwa. Oiwa takes a double back elbow then a double basement dropkick for 2. Shota flipping sentons Oiwa's back. Shota corner euros Oiwa then fisherman suplexes him. Oiwa slams Shota.

Hart suplexes Shota for 2. Zack comes in and hits euros on Shota then foot chokes him. Zack heel hooks Shota. Oiwa stomps on Shota's knee then powerbombs him off a hurricanrana attempt. Shota dropkicks Oiwa.

Goto comes in and shoulders Oiwa over. Goto lariats him then suplexes Zack onto Oiwa. Goto spinning heel kicks him in the corner then backdrops him for 2. Goto and Oiwa trade forearms. Oiwa does a suplex on Goto.

Zack comes in and double underhook suplexes Goto, twists his neck and dropkicks him in the back of the head. Goto blocks Zack's PK then Zack ankle locks him. Zack euros Goto then upkicks him. Zack PK's him then Goto flips Zack with a lariat. 

Hart comes in and flying crossbodies ELP. Hart corner splashes him then hits a lariat. Hart death valley drivers him for 2. Hart takes a tornado ddt from Shota then ELP asai moonsaults Hart for 2.

ELP takes a double armwringer and a double arm stomp. Oiwa slams ELP then he and his buddies senton ELP for 2. Goto ushigoroshi's Zack. Shota lariats Oiwa then Hart takes offense from his opponents. Hart takes a GTR, a running lariat then a rope walk splash from ELP. ELP pins Hart to win.

Thoughts: It was an okay main. They didn't go all out or do anything special but they all worked together alright and it was enough.

ELP gets on the mic after. ELP talks about his team winning and kind of raps. He asks Jado to translate. Shota and Goto then talk to close the show.

Overall thoughts: It was a very average house show from NJPW. The main was fine and nothing was awful but it wasn't notable at all aside from the opener, which had a debut match and a Japanese debut for Zane. I wouldn't recommend this one and would give it a 5 out of 10.