Yota Tsuji and Gabe Kidd Push Out in Front of A Block in NJPW World Tag League

By Noah Leatherland

NJPW rolled into Yamanashi for the ninth night of World Tag League action. With A Block competition on the agenda for the evening, a tight race for first place has seen Yota Tsuji and Gabe Kidd push themselves out into the top spot on eight points.

Block matches for the night began with Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi still looking for their first points in the tournament. Their losing streak would continue however, as the duo of Oleg Boltin and Toru Yano managed to take the victory and the points.

As one of several teams walking into Yamanashi tied on six points, Don Fale and EVIL needed a win to separate themselves from the field. However, they came up against a defiant Bishamon. A win for Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI secured them two points, as well as some hope as they also reach the six point mark.

Two teams also with six points entered the next match, as El Desperado and Shuji Ishikawa clashed with Yota Tsuji and Gabe Kidd. The match descended into madness as both tables and chairs became involved in the quest for first place. Despite being bloodied in the battle, Kidd and his partner Tsuji emerged as the victors, with eight points putting them in first place in A Block.

The final match of the night saw Satoshi Kojima and Taichi take on Drilla Maloney and Shingo Takagi. It was an important match for both teams’ survival in the tournament. It would be Maloney and Takagi that kept their chances alive. The win drove them to six points, while Kojima and Taichi’s loss leaves them wallowing towards the bottom of A Block on two points.

Here are the full results for NJPW World Tag League Night 9, as well as the updated standings for A Block:

• El Phantasmo, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Katsuya Murashima def. Alex Zayne, Lance Archer & Zane Jay (8:26)
• Ren Narita, SANADA & Yoshinobu Kanemaru def. Callum Newman, Great-O-Khan & Jakob Austin Young (5:13)
• Hartley Jackson, Kosei Fujita & Ryohei Oiwa def. OSKAR, Yuto-Ice & Daiki Nagai (9:59)
• David Finlay, Gedo & Hiromu Takahashi def. Shoma Kato, Shota Umino & Yuya Uemura (5:24)
• A Block: Oleg Boltin & Toru Yano [6] def. Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi [0] (8:47)
• A Block: Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI [6] def. Don Fale & EVIL [6] (9:34)
• A Block: Gabe Kidd & Yota Tsuji [8] defeat El Desperado & Shuji Ishikawa [6] (17:15)
• A Block: Drilla Moloney & Shingo Takagi [6] defeat Satoshi Kojima & Taichi [2] (21:17)

A Block Standings:

1. Gabe Kidd & Yota Tsuji – 8 points
2. Oleg Boltin & Toru Yano – 6 points
3. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI – 6 points
4. Don Fale & EVIL – 6 points
5. El Desperado & Shuji Ishikawa – 6 points
6. Drilla Moloney & Shingo Takagi – 6 points
7. Satoshi Kojima & Taichi – 2 points
8. Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi – 0 points