Yota Tsuji and Syuri Retain Their Titles at NJPW The New Beginning USA

By Noah Leatherland

NJPW made their first trip to the United States this year for The New Beginning USA in Trenton, New Jersey. There was plenty of gold on the line throughout the card, with Yota Tsuji and Syuri hanging onto their titles in the top two matches.

The night began with what many believe could be the final match in David Finlay’s NJPW career. Having seemingly bid farewell to the fans at The New Beginning in Osaka, Finlay faced off against Fred Rosser in New Jersey. Finlay ended up as the victor and took a microphone to address the crowd. However, he did not say a word before leaving the ring. Yuto-Ice and OSKAR met him at the curtain, with the three striking a pose before heading to the back.

In the first title match of the night saw Tomohiro Ishii defend the NJPW STRONG Openweight Title against Boltin Oleg. As expected, it was a hard hitting affair, with two sluggers both looking to leave as champion. In the end, Oleg managed to withstand Ishii’s battery and land a final Kamikaze, scoring a pin and crowning him as the new NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion.

AEW gold was on the line as Ricochet put up his AEW National Title against Taiji Ishimori. With both having decorated histories in the NJPW junior division, this was always bound to be a speedy, agile encounter. However, the quick action was brought to a halt when Ricochet nailed Ishimori with a Spirit Gun and scored a pinfall.

The next championship to be defended was El Phantasmo’s NJPW World TV Title. Across the ring from him was “The Alpha” Konosuke Takeshita. Just like at Wrestling Dontaku last year, the two wrestled to a 15 minute time limit draw. Unsatisfied with the result, El Phantasmo demanded a 5 minute extension. The champion’s pride would end up being his downfall, as the extra time allowed Takeshita to land a flurry of offence that decided the match. Konosuke Takeshita held his new title aloft, becoming the 10th NJPW World TV Champion.

The IWGP Tag Team Titles were also up for grabs, as the Knockout Brothers faced off against the Gates of Agony, Bishop Kaun and Toa Liona. The match marked both Yuto-Ice and OSKAR’s first match in the United States. Such an occasion proved to be fruitful, as they managed to hold off the sizeable force of the GoA and make successful fourth defence of their titles.

Syuri had a huge challenge at The New Beginning USA. She was set to defend her IWGP Women’s Title against Athena, the longest reigning champion in Ring of Honor history. Prior to the event, Athena had only lost 2 singles matches in the past 12 months. However, Syuri managed to notch a third line in that tally, defeating The Fallen Goddess and keeping a firm grip on the IWGP Women’s Championship. Following the match, a video message played on the screens. In it, AEW’s Alex Windsor laid out a challenge for Syuri’s NJPW STRONG Women’s Title. The match is set for March 8th at Pro Wrestling EVE’s Wrestle Queendom VIII event in London, England.

The main event of the evening saw Yota Tsuji defend the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship against Andrade El Idolo. The two stars battled for over 25 minutes for the white belt, giving it their all for the fans in New Jersey. In a repeat of WRESTLE KINGDOM, it was not a Gene Blast that got the job done for Tsuji, but a well-applied Boston Crab. El Idolo tapped out, maintaining Tsuji’s status as a double champion at the top of NJPW.

Here are the full results for NJPW The New Beginning USA, courtesy of purolove.com:

• David Finlay def. Fred Rosser (12:20)
• NJPW STRONG Openweight Title: Boltin Oleg def. Tomohiro Ishii (c) (14:02)
• AEW National Title: Ricochet (c) def. Taiji Ishimori (14:29)
• El Desperado & KUSHIDA def. Jordan Oliver & Alec Price (13:57)
• NJPW World TV Title: El Phantasmo (c) vs. Konosuke Takeshita – Time Limit Draw (15:00)
• NJPW World TV Title: Konosuke Takeshita def. El Phantasmo (c) (2:43)
• IWGP Tag Team Title: Yuto-Ice & OSKAR (c) def. Bishop Kaun & Toa Liona (17:58)
• IWGP Women’s Title: Syuri (c) def. Athena (17:56)
• IWGP Global Heavyweight Title: Yota Tsuji (c) def. Andrade El Idolo (26:44)