swannMarch 3, 2013 – Osaka, Japan

Open the Dream Gate Champion: CIMA
Open the Triangle Gate Champions: Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee., Ryo “Jimmy” Saito & Mr. Quu Quu Naoki Tanizaki Toyonaka Dolphin
Open the Brave Gate Champion: Dragon Kid
Open the Twin Gate Champions: BxB Hulk & Uhaa Nation
Open the Freedom Gate Champion: Johnny Gargano
Open the United Gate Champions: CIMA & AR Fox

Akira Tozawa {MB}, BxB Hulk {MB} & Uhaa Nation {MB} vs. Don Fujii {Z}, Dragon Kid {Z} & HUB {Z}
Mad Blankey attacks before the bell. Nation hits Kid with a dropkick. HUB whips everyone, but Nation absorbs it and hits a back elbow. Nation hits a snap suplex. Hulk and Tozawa hit a double shoulder tackle. Hulk puts on an abdominal stretch. HUB counters to an anklelock. Fujii works the leg. He slams Tozawa on the floor while Kid keeps the pressure on Hulk’s leg. Nation hits a legdrop. Fujii hits Hulk with a lariat. He throws Tozawa into the air. Kid hits a dropkick. Tozawa voids a dropkick and Blankey takes control. Hulk and Tozawa pepper Kid with kicks. Hulk hits a dropkick. Tozawa hits a senton. He hits a chair shot and another senton for 2. Kid hits Nation with a Frankensteiner. Fujii cleans house. Nation dropkicks him. HUB hits a knee kick and the Shining Wizard. Nation hits a powerslam for 2. Kid hits Tozawa with a stunner. Tozawa hits a German suplex. Hulk hits the uranage for 2. Nation hits a Superfly Splash for 2. Kid hits Tozawa with the Skyscraper Frankensteiner. Fujii hits a chokeslam for 2. Kid hits the Bible for 2. Kzy hits a yellow box attack and Nation hits the Uhaa CombiNation for the win at 12:35. This was just as fun as the opener from the night before, and Nation was less awkward while being just as scary as he was in his return match.
Rating: ***

After the match Kzy rips on Kid, so HUB dropkicks him. The whole thing leads to a Kzy & Mondai Ryu vs. HUB & Kid match being set up for the future. Then Stalker Ichikawa runs out and tries to attack Nation. Nation hits him with a bicycle kick. Cyber Kong tries to help Ichikawa, but gets beaten by Mad Blankey. The scheduled tag team match then begins.

Mondai Ryu {MB} & Kzy {MB} vs. Stalker Ichikawa {Z} & Cyber Kong
Ryu beats on Kong with a chair. Kong tries to fire back with clubbing forearms. He blocks the Beat Bomb and cleans house with lariats. Ichikawa hits a double Kancho and Kong hits a double suplex. Kong hits Ichikawa with an errant German suplex. Kzy hits a suicide dive. Ichikawa catches Ryu with la magistral for 2. Ryu salts Ichikawa and rolls him up for the win at 4:59. This was hardly a match.
Rating: *

YAMATO {A} vs. Jimmy Susumu {J}
There’s still some residual anger between these two from their match the night before, and they come out swinging. They do the long shoulder tackle exchange, which ends with Susumu hitting the Jumbo no Kachi. YAMATO hits the running dropkick. Susumu hits a lariat. He hits an exploder. He hits another lariat in the corner. He hits the super exploder. YAMATO hits an enziguiri. He hits a German suplex and a brainbuster for 2. Susumu blocks the Galleria and hits the move himself. He hits the Jumbo no Kachi for 2. They trade lariats until Susumu knocks YAMATO to the mat for 2. YAMATO blocks the Mugen and hits a hurricanrana for the win at 8:14. They really beat the crap out of each other, and that has me wanting a rematch. YAMATO points out that he’s now 1-0 over Susumu, which makes me want the rematch even more. Of course, they have wrestled before, in 2010 in Arizona in another (awesome) match that YAMATO won.
Rating: ***

Masaaki Mochizuki {Z} & Kotoka {MG} vs. Shingo Takagi {A} & Super Shenlong {A}
Shenlong and Kotoka start. They fight over a headlock. Kotoka blocks a dropkick and dropkicks Shenlong. Takagi and Mochizuki throw down. Mochizuki hits Shenlong with a back kick. Takagi hits Kotoka with a senton for 2. He hits a delayed slingshot suplex. Kotoka slams Shenlong. Mochizuki bullies the masked man. Kotoka hits a double stomp. He puts on a Boston crab. Takagi makes the save with a chop. Shenlong hits a dropkick. Takagi cleans house. Shenlong hits a dropkick on Mochizuki. He hits a plancha. Takagi slugs Kotoka. Kotoka hits a bulldog. Takagi throws him across the ring and hits the Sliding Bomber for 2. Mochizuki hits Shenlong with a chest kick. Shenlong counters the Ikkakugeri to a roll up for 2. Takagi hits a lariat on Kotoka. He hits a side suplex for 2. Shenlong hits the Skyhigh. Takagi cleans house with lariats. Mochizuki hits Shenlong with the Sankakugeri. He hits Takagi with a big boot. He and Kotoka take turns kicking Shenlong for 2. He hits the Ikkakugeri and a back heel kick. Kotoka hits the diving double stomp for the win at 13:04. More stiff madness here, and Kotoka continues to elevate his stock with gnarly performances. The Akatsuki young’uns won’t shake Kotoka’s hand after the match, so he attacks them.
Rating: ***¼

Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee. © {J}, Ryo “Jimmy” Saito © {J} & Mr. Quu Quu Naoki Tanizaki Toyonaka Dolphin © {J} vs. Naruki Doi {W1}, Shachihoko BOY {W1} & Rich Swann {W1} [Open the Triangle Gate Championship Match]
Horiguchi and BOY start. They fight over a wristlock. Swann hits Saito with a dropkick. Doi hits a neckbreaker and Swann hits a splash for 2 on Dolphin. BOY works Saito’s leg. Swann puts on a spinning toehold until Horiguchi makes the save. Horiguchi dropkicks Swann’s leg. Dolphin puts on a leglock. Doi dropkicks Dolphin in the ropes. He hits a vertical suplex for 2. Horiguchi and Saito hit a double back elbow. Horiguchi puts on an abdominal stretch. Doi whips him across the ring by his hair. Swann hits a diving elbow for 2. Doi hits the hanging senton for 2. Horiguchi takes the elastic band to the face. Everyone brawls on the floor. Saito hits BOY with an elbowdrop for 2. He puts on a chinlock. Horiguchi hits a basement dropkick. MARAHA! ISAPPA! Dolphin hits the facebusters and legsweep for 2. Saito hits a diving double stomp for 2. Horiguchi hits a back suplex and elbowdrop for 2. He puts on a half crab. BOY gets to the ropes. Horiguchi blocks the satellite head scissor takedown on Saito. BOY hits a facebuster and back elbow. Swann hits a double Ace Crusher. He hits a twisting quebrada. Doi hits Saito with the Dai Bosou to the back. Saito hits an overhead suplex. Dolphin busts Swann’s face. Swann hits a Rocker Dropper. Dolphin hits a kneelift. Swann hits a Frankensteiner. He hits Horiguchi with the Ace Crusher for 2. Dolphin cleans house. Horiguchi hits a swinging DDT on Swann for 2. Doi hits a dropkick for 2. BOY hits the standing Shiranui, Doi hits a senton, and Swann hits a running SSP for 2. Saito hits a German suplex and two dragon suplexes on BOY for 2. BOY gets la magistral on Dolphin for 2. Dolphin counters the Shiranui to a revere Implant for 2. He hits the regular Implant for 2. Doi and Swann double-team Horiguchi. Horiguchi blocks the Swann on Fire. Saito German suplexes BOY. Doi dropkick Saito. He hits the Doi 555 on Horiguchi. Horiguchi gets the Backslide from Heaven for 2. Doi hits the Bakatare Sliding Kick for 2. He and Swann hit the Die Fly (which I guess is called the Die Sky when Swann is a part of it) for the win and the titles at 24:09. That was the kind of crazy fun you’d expect from World-1 International vs. the Jimmyz. It didn’t set new standards of awesomeness, nor will I remember it come the end of the year, but it was a blast to watch while it was happening.
Rating: ****

CIMA © {Z} vs. Masato Yoshino {W1} [Open the Dream Gate Championship Match]
I believe this is the first time anyone has gotten a second shot at any Dream Gate champion during a particular reign. Yoshino hits a basement dropkick to start. He hits an overhand chop. He works the arm. CIMA has trouble even getting to his feet without Yoshino attacking his arm. Yoshino gets a roll up for 2. CIMA hits the X-Factor and a chest kick. He rams Yoshino’s torso into the apron and post. Yoshino barely beats the count back into the ring. CIMA stomps on his chest. He hits a double kneedrop. He puts on the body scissors. Yoshino gets to the ropes. CIMA hits a senton for 2. He puts on the body scissors and adds a leglock. Yoshino gets to the ropes. CIMA hits a slingshot Falcon Arrow for 2 when the Perfect Driver doesn’t work. Yoshino puts on the Coumori. He hits the Track & Field Dropkick and a moonsault press. He hits another dropkick. CIMA stretches him upside down and hits a senton for 2. He goes for the Neji to Hashi but Yoshino blocks it. CIMA settles for a short-range Superdrol. He hits a Tree of Woe dropkick, but misses the Tokarev. Yoshino hits the shotgun dropkick for 2. He hits a Michinoku Driver for 2. CIMA hits a gutbuster. He hits two double stomps for 2. He hits the Venus and drops Yoshino on his face with a modified Iconoclasm. He hits the Mad Splash for 2. Yoshino hits the avalanche Sling Blade. CIMA hits a superkick. Yoshino gets a roll up for 2. He hits the Ude Yoshino. CIMA cuts back on the Sol Naciente for 2. Yoshino hits the Lightning Spiral for 2. He hits the Torbellino. He hits it again. He puts on the Sol Naciente. CIMA stomps his chest but Yoshino won’t let go. CIMA gets to the ropes just as it looks like he’s going to pass out. Yoshino preps CIMA for the avalanche Lightning Spiral but CIMA blocks it and hits the Schweinsteiner. CIMA hits the Meteora to the back and to the front for 2. He hits the Crossfire for 2. A stomp on the chest and a diving double kneedrop is enough to put Yoshino away at 29:26. This blew every singles match these two have had away, including their 2008 classic and 2010 finisher-fest. It’s not even close. They took their stale formula and threw it in the garbage, replacing it with thirty minutes of tactical brilliance and dazzling moves. Matches like this keep this incredibly long title reign fresh.
Rating: ****½