NJPW returns to Long Beach, California for their third show in the USA this year following the successes of Strong Style Evolved in March and the G1 Special in San Francisco this past July. This show has been built around stories that began, or have began since the event, in the Cow Palace on July 7th and it’s very likely that most of the results will be important leading into King of Pro-Wrestling on October 8th.

IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Tournament Semi-Final

One result that will be very important going into the KOPW show in Tokyo is that of the match between British rivals Marty Scurll and Will Ospreay, who are fighting for the chance to face KUSHIDA and win the vacant IWGP Heavyweight Championship. This has came about following the injury suffered by former champion Hiromu Takahashi during his defence against Dragon Lee at the G1 Special in San Francisco, it’s a serious injury that’s going to keep him out of action for until 2019, and it’s a massive loss for NJPW. Scurll and Ospreay have raised the bar high for this one after their match of the year candidate against each other at April’s Sakura Genesis event and expectations will be high for a match of the same quality.

My only hope for this one is that both men, Ospreay in particular, don’t take as many risks as they did in April, as there were a few instances of Ospreay landing on his neck. It’s a broken neck that’s keeping Hiromu out of action for a year and I don’t want to see another top star of the Junior division – and New Japan in general – kept out of action with such a horrific injury.

Prediction: Ospreay advances to the final against KUSHIDA.

IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships – The Young Bucks vs GoD

The main story coming out of the G1 Special in San Francisco was the implosion of Bullet Club brought on by the attack of Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa and Haku on Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks and Cody. Professing themselves as The Firing Squad, Tama, Tanga and Bad Luck Fale then proceeded to taint this year’s G1 Climax 28 tournament by interfering in multiple matches that featured either Tama or Fale and even matches where neither was a participant such as Kenny Omega’s match against Toru Yano, which had a massive effect on Omega’s tournament, the final and the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 13.

On the final day of the G1 28 Tama, Tanga and Taiji Ishimori challenged and defeated The Young Bucks and Marty Scurll for their NEVER Openweight 6-man tag team titles and now the Guerrillas of Destiny are seeking to double up on the gold by defeating Matt and Nick for their Heavyweight Tag Team Championships.

I expect this match to be good, but I’m not expecting it to be on the level of other top NJPW tag matches this year like The Bucks’ matches with Golden☆Lovers and SANADA and EVIL, or the Lovers’ match against Ishii and Ospreay at the first Road to Destruction show. That being said, this will definitely be worth a watch based on interest of this Bullet Club story alone.

Prediction: Guerrillas of Destiny win the titles.

IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship Match – Juice Robinson vs Cody

Another interesting development that occurred during the G1 28 finals show was Cody’s challenge for Juice’s US title after pinning him in a tag match. Juice had a poor showing during the G1, only picking up three wins and finding great difficulty thanks to a broken hand courtesy of Jay White in the build up to their match for the US Championship at the G1 Special in July where Juice won the title. My interest here initially wasn’t is in the match will be – I’m expecting solid, but nothing out of this world amazing, but more so where the US title picture will go afterwards. That was until Juice, whose interview work this year has been nothing short of spectacular, cut an amazing promo comparing himself and Cody, noting how Cody was destined to be a wrestler whereas Juice wasn’t born into the business. I’m really intrigued as to how Cody will react to the US Champion’s comment that he may be The American Nightmare, but while Juice holds the title, he’s The American Dream, the “Son of a Machine Operator”. I feel that’s added something a bit more personal to this one.

This is Juice’s first defence, so it would be a shame to see him lose, however anything is possible. If he retains there’s a good chance he’ll next face one of the six men who beat him in the G1 – most likely Ishii or Zack Sabre Jr. Whereas if Cody wins, that’s going to be interesting going into Wrestle Kingdom assuming he holds on to the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship in that timeframe.

Prediction: Juice retains.

KUSHIDA + Hiroshi Tanahashi vs ‘Switchblade‘ Jay White + Gedo

This is an important one. After Tana successfully retained his place in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 13 this past Sunday against Kazuchika Okada, he was attacked, albeit expectedly, by Jay White. White was the only man to pin The Ace during the G1, so it was only a matter of time before the two came face-to-face with the briefcase on the line. What nobody expected to happen, however, was Gedo, the former corner-man of Okada to turn on his friend and align himself with Jay. I’m looking forward to seeing White and Gedo together as a team, and I’m interested in seeing the reaction of Tana following the attack and challenge made at the Destruction in Kobe show. While KUSHIDA isn’t involved in this story, it’s worth keeping an eye on him if you’re unfamiliar with his work leading into his Junior Heavyweight Championship match at King of Pro-Wrestling.

Prediction: Switchblade pins Tanahashi for the win.

Tomohiro Ishii + Kazuchika Okada vs Golden☆Lovers (Kenny Omega + Kota Ibushi)

When Golden☆Lovers faced Ishii and Ospreay at the first Road to Destruction show in early September, it was made very clear that when Omega and Ibushi team up, they are very focused on creating the best tag team match possible. I expect no different from this one, and I’m looking forward to seeing Okada once again in the ring with Kenny Omega, the man who broke Okada’s IWGP Heavyweight Championship reign at Dominion in an amazing hour long match that concluded their story for the meantime. We’ve seen in the G1 and at the Destruction in Hiroshima event what Omega and Ibushi can do in the ring with Ishii as well, so this one is bound to be an excellent match.

There’s also the possibility we’ll see Jay White and Gedo once more on the night in this one following their own, above-mentioned, match. Okada is likely to not be in the right state of mind after White’s beatdown and Gedo’s betrayal in Kobe, and I imagine we’ll be seeing a lot more of these three in the ring together leading up to Wrestle Kingdom 13.

Prediction: The Golden Lovers win.

What else is on the card?

There’s a few matches here with less importance to the ones above, however they’re a good opportunity to see some American stars who aren’t in NJPW all of the year. I’d suggest you keep an eye on ACH, Kazarian and Daniels, Chuckie T and Jeff Cobb in these matches alongside the likes of Naito, SANADA and ZSJ.

ACH, Taguchi + Jyushin Thunder Liger vs Roppongi 3K : I’m not expecting much here, but this should be fine. ACH, Taguchi and Liger together should gift some entertaining moments, and SHO and YOH of RPG3K always put on solid efforts in the ring. ( Prediction: Roppongi 3K win )

: I’m not expecting much here, but this should be fine. ACH, Taguchi and Liger together should gift some entertaining moments, and SHO and YOH of RPG3K always put on solid efforts in the ring. ( ) Frankie Kazarian + Christopher Daniels vs Chase Owens + Hangman Page : I have a lot more reason to be interested in this one after the fine work Kazarian and Daniels have done with their “SCU” schtick on The Young Bucks’ Being The Elite YouTube show. I’ve always been a fan of their ringwork, but charisma-wise, it’s only just in these past few months where they’ve grabbed my attention. Going up against two of the best up and coming talents in New Japan, Chase and Hangman, this has every right to be one of the matches people are talking about after the show. ( Prediction: Chase and Hangman win )

: I have a lot more reason to be interested in this one after the fine work Kazarian and Daniels have done with their “SCU” schtick on The Young Bucks’ Being The Elite YouTube show. I’ve always been a fan of their ringwork, but charisma-wise, it’s only just in these past few months where they’ve grabbed my attention. Going up against two of the best up and coming talents in New Japan, Chase and Hangman, this has every right to be one of the matches people are talking about after the show. ( ) Flip Gordon, Chris Sabin + Jeff Cobb vs CHAOS (Chuckie T, Berretta + Hirooki Goto) : There’s a lot to look forward to in this one. Jeff Cobb, Chris Sabin and Flip Gordon have made a few appearances in NJPW, and this is a good opportunity for them to make strong impressions going to into Wrestle Kingdom season, particularly Cobb as we’ve only seen a glimpse of what he can do in the company in comparison to Flip and Sabin, who did very well during the BOSJ earlier this year. Having lost the NEVER Openweight Championship in Beppu to the detestable Taichi, this is also a chance for Goto to get himself back in the title picture – or for someone to put themselves in it with a win over him. I’m also really looking forward to seeing Chuckie T and Berretta here, as Best Friends are one of my very favourite tag teams. Hopefully they’ll shine here leading into World Tag League in December. ( Prediction : CHAOS win )

: There’s a lot to look forward to in this one. Jeff Cobb, Chris Sabin and Flip Gordon have made a few appearances in NJPW, and this is a good opportunity for them to make strong impressions going to into Wrestle Kingdom season, particularly Cobb as we’ve only seen a glimpse of what he can do in the company in comparison to Flip and Sabin, who did very well during the BOSJ earlier this year. Having lost the NEVER Openweight Championship in Beppu to the detestable Taichi, this is also a chance for Goto to get himself back in the title picture – or for someone to put themselves in it with a win over him. I’m also really looking forward to seeing Chuckie T and Berretta here, as Best Friends are one of my very favourite tag teams. Hopefully they’ll shine here leading into World Tag League in December. ( : ) LIJ (Naito, EVIL + SANADA) vs Suzuki-gun (Zack Sabre Jr + Killer Elite Squad): This could be notable for many reasons coming out of the show. Given the focus on EVIL in Kobe and commentary’s talking about current IWGP Intercontinental Champion Chris Jericho, there’s really nothing to suggest we won’t be seeing the Alpha make an appearance during or after this match. As is the case for Best Friends in the six man match, this is also a chance for EVIL and SANADA and Killer Elite Squad to impress leading into World Tag League, as well as it is to make their claim for an IWGP Tag Team Championship match. This is also likely to be the conclusion of the Naito/ZSJ feud that has been ongoing since the Brit cost Naito his chance of getting into the G1 final. (Prediction: LIJ win)

There’s a lot of fascinating stories going into this show and I highly expect there to be some great matches on it, so make sure to check it out Sunday night live on NJPW World.