Jake Lee Promises Chaos in NJPW on the Road to The New Beginning Day 9

By Noah Leatherland

The ninth leg of the NJPW Road to The New Beginning brought the action to Habikino in Osaka. Ahead of challenging Yota Tsuji for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, Jake Lee built some momentum in the main event, and promised to unleash chaos in NJPW.

Lee led his United Empire teammates Great-O-Khan and Zane Jay into battle in the main event. Unbound Co. stood opposite, with Tsuji being backed by Drilla Maloney and Daiki Nagai. Lee secured the win for his team, scoring a pinfall on Nagai. As Lee basked in the victory, he took to the microphone and NJPW President, Hiroshi Tanahashi:

President Tanahashi, I wish you wouldn’t look so stern. This event was a complete success. There’s no need to keep that frown etched between your brows. Right? Eh? You might not be able to see it clearly from the audience, but you’ve had that frown there the whole time.

Maloney unplugged Lee’s microphone, but Lee soon resumed his post-match comments, turning his attention to the champion, Tsuji:

Hey, champ? The president’s got that look on his face, eh? What’s the “Next Generation Ace” gonna do!? You can’t be that badly hurt, can you!? You were moving about so much, you’re a con man too! Hey, right? Hey, champ. You’ve got something to say too, don’t you? Not backstage, but right here on this ring!

Tsuji responded to his challenger, saying:

Quite sharp, Lord Jake. That’s right. I’m not revealing everything in my heart either. To put it bluntly, just like you, I might be hiding something deeper inside. We’re alike, you see. How much of that will show in Osaka? Which of us can delve deeper into the heart? I’m looking forward to it, Jake.

Lee concluded the show with a final address to the crowd, promising to change the wrestling landscape:

When I become champion, I’ll show you a more chaotic New Japan Pro-Wrestling—no! A more chaotic Japanese pro-wrestling industry! What the fans want isn’t safety, security, stability. In pro-wrestling, it’s chaos! What will be born in such a chaotic world!? That’s what the fans want to see, right!? Eh!? I’ll show you that chaotic world! Enjoy the bitter and the sweet!

(Quotes translated via DeepL)

Lee is set to challenge Tsuji for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship on February 11th at The New Beginning in Osaka.

Here are the full results for NJPW Road to The New Beginning Day 9, courtesy of purolove.com:

• Katsuya Murashima def. Masatora Yasuda (9:06)
• El Desperado & Ryusuke Taguchi def. Tiger Mask & Shoma Kato (10:03)
• Zack Sabre Jr., Ryohei Oiwa, Hartley Jackson & Kosei Fujita def. Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI, Boltin Oleg & Tatsuya Matsumoto (11:55)
• Aaron Wolf, Toru Yano, YOH & Master Wato def. Ren Narita, Yujiro Takahashi, DOUKI & Dick Togo (11:08)
• Yuto-Ice, OSKAR & Robbie X def. Shota Umino, Yuya Uemura & Tomoaki Honma (12:11)
• Callum Newman, HENARE, Francesco Akira & Jakob Austin Young def. David Finlay, Hiromu Takahashi, Taiji Ishimori & Gedo (10:45)
• Jake Lee, Great-O-Khan & Zane Jay def. Yota Tsuji, Drilla Moloney & Daiki Nagai (14:07)