By: Sonal Lad Along with New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Super Jr Tag League, ten of the top heavyweight tag teams will be taking part in World Tag League. The teams will all be battling for a chance to challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Championships at Wrestle Kingdom. With tag team champions FTR not participating, winning the tournament is even more important to get a shot at the titles and a match at Wrestle Kingdom. Here is a look at the teams participating in World Tag League 2022. 1. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI HASHI (CHAOS) Hirooki Goto and YOSHI HASHI were once at the top of the tag division, dominating the title picture alongside the NEVER division. After losing the titles, they were overshadowed by other wrestlers, even with their excellent in-ring chemistry. Goto and YOSHI HASHI have been together for years, and their styles complement each other perfectly. World…

By: Sonal Lad On the Road to Wrestle Kingdom, Super Jr. Tag League is back with ten junior heavyweight tag teams wrestling in a single block tournament for a shot at the Jr tag titles. With wrestlers from different countries, promotions, and factions, it’s one of the most diverse line-ups in a long time. Here is a look at all the teams participating in New Japan’s Super Jr Tag League 2022.        1. Francesco Akira & TJP (The Empire) IWGP Jr Tag Champions Francesco Akira and TJP are going into the tournament with momentum after two successful defenses. Despite their inexperience as a team, they’ve constantly impressed fans with their offense. By having veteran TJP teaming with a young Akira, the duo has influenced each other’s styles. With TJP’s more mat-based style and Akira’s more unpredictable Jr offense, they are a force to be reckoned with. Yet, by holding…

This week, we are looking at the 1,800-seat Tokyo Korakuen Hall. Known as the MECCA of Japanese Pro Wrestling, this venue is used by every Puroresu and Joshi promotion and is considered sacred ground for fans and wrestlers alike.

Tam Nakano and Natsupoi Perform at Belluna Dome, But Not in a Ring By: J. Curbelo Bushiroad, home to New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Wonder Ring STARDOM, celebrated 15 years in activity this year. Takaaki Kidani's beast of an entertainment corporation has launched and worked with some of the most popular franchises in mobile and trading card gaming as well as anime and, of course, professional wrestling in the last decade and a half. As part of the celebrations, an all star live show was announced in June including performers from said franchises such as BanG Dream!, Revue Starlight, Assault Lily, D4DJ and LoveLive! Some of these brands have already collaborated with STARDOM in their mobile games and, in the case of Assault Lily, had Cosmic Angels member Natsupoi as an actress for a theatrical adaptation. https://twitter.com/wwr_stardom/status/1448227924016988163 STARDOM's idol driven aesthetics meant that it was only a matter of…

Tension Boils Between Narita and Sabre Jr. Ahead of Wrestle Kingdom By: J. Curbelo New Japan Pro Wrestling returned to Anjo City in Aichi Prefecture today with an exciting card including NJPW World TV Championship Tournament finalists Ren Narita and Zack Sabre Jr. teaming up with their respective allies in a six-man tag team match that saw Narita getting the win over DOUKI with ZSJ's own Cobra Twist. The contenders and their mind games on each other were certainly the protagonist of this match. Suzuki-gun's master technician praised Narita's LA Dojo formation, but claimed that it couldn't match to his background in the United Kingdom and Japan. Sabre Jr. stated that he is the true heir to Strong Style wrestling since its roots are set in the Billy Riley Gym in England, as covered by Monthly Puroresu on Issue #10, available now. https://twitter.com/njpwglobal/status/1591483461537341440 To add insult to injury, Zack downplayed…

By: Syn Fritz The Ark has rolled back into Tokyo's Korakuen Hall for the 2nd day of Global2days for Global Dream. This time though, they're not alone. Dragon Gate (founded on July 5th, 2004 by Takashi Okumura) has teamed up with NOAH for this joint show. Let's see how the show went down. Madoka Kikuta & Ryu Fuda & Mochizuki Junior vs Yoshiki Inamura & Yasutaka Yano & Kai Fujimura This six man tag kicked off the show today with standing out the most as he was the biggest of the competitors in this match. The only person who seemed to at least try to meet him in power was Dragon Gate's own Madoka Kikuta who is one half of the Open The Twin Gate Champions (with Dragon Dia). The match itself wasn't very long, and once you are hit by Inamura's Oklahoma Slam, that is pretty much it for…

GHC Heavyweight Champion, Kaito Kiyomiya, is Ready for Change! By: J. Curbelo Kaito Kiyomiya, the GHC Champion, successfully defended the GHC Heavyweight Championship against Kazuyuki Fujita at Ariake Arena on October 30th, and then again on November 10th against an undefeated Timothy Thatcher at Korakuen Hall. This interview was conducted on 10.30 after Kiyomiya’s first successful title defense at the Ariake Arena show. Pro Wrestling NOAH spoke with Mr. Kiyomiya about his thoughts as GHC champion heading into the future. About THE RETURN Ariake Arena 10.30 ―It was the main title match in front of a packed audience at the 10.30 Ariake Arena show. Kaito Kiyomiya: Ariake is a special place for me. Moreover, with the grand opening of professional wrestling at such a large venue, many of the regular fans have returned, and new fans have also come. I could feel the new NOAH. ―Were you able to feel…

Yuji Nagata is Optimistic About Joining Yuma Anzai for AJPW Tag League By J. Curbelo After NJPW's Blue Justice welcomed AJPW's newest hot prospect at All Japan's 50th anniversary show in September, the seasoned veteran will partner up with Anzai for the company's Real World Tag League set to start this Sunday the 13th at Korakuen Hall. https://twitter.com/njpw1972/status/1590633951366111233 Nagata is in high spirits about the team, praising the newcomer for his talent and even looks, as he claimed that female AJPW fans won't leave Yuma alone. The 6'1", 231-pound former amateur wrestler has been compared to the legendary Jumbo Tsuruta. In light of this, Nagata asked Anzai to start mastering his suplexing capabilities and be able to perform four different variations of this move. Throughout the Tag League, Nagata hopes to absorb the energy of Anzai's relentless youthfulness and develop a mean streak himself. "If he messes up, I'll clean…

By: Abid Chowdhury 710 fans visited Korakuen Hall on October 30th, thrilled by a resurgent ACT Yasukawa, where Actrwez girl’Z has quietly made waves and begun to enjoy more drawing power. The two hour event comes after their last show, ACTwrestling in Osaka and found stories adding new chapters — with the main event putting fans on the edge of their seats with a 15 minute bout of near falls and surprises. On October 3rd, Wild Bunny, a character that ACT Yasukawa performs as, was in a 3 way match against Maru and Kyoka Iwai. After the match, Maru tried ripping off Wild Bunny's mask, but was refrained from other members of the roster. https://twitter.com/actwresgirlz/status/1576925394431016968?s=20&t=XYfoHFc_23AxOXkP1cTuiw Maru tries to rip off Wild Bunny's mask. Later on during the main event, Ayano Irie and Nene Arahata faced off against Natsuki and Nagisa Shiotsuki. Towards the end of the match, Natsuki was getting…

Welcome to Puroresu Gate, a weekly feature where we review attendance figures of Puroresu and Joshi promotions in the most well-known venues in Japan.

This week, we are looking at the 8,000-seat Osaka Prefectural Arena, This popular venue for Puroresu’s big-name players has been host to some amazing matches and moments over the years.