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3/15/22 Results from Round 3 of the New Japan Cup 2022 from Okayama, Japan:
During the opening match, Kevin Kelly remembered Scott Hall and spoke of his influence on New Japan, specifically with Bullet Club.
Ryusuke Taguchi and Ryohei Oiwa vs. Tiger Mask and Tomoaki Honma
Honma forces Oiwa to tap out to a Boston Crab.
El Phantasmo and Taiji Ishimori vs. Master Wato and Kosei Fujita
ELP came strutting down the entryway like Scott Hall and had a toothpick in his mouth.
Ishimori hit a knee on Fujita who was on the shoulders of ELP. ELP spun Fujita in a UFO and dropped Fujita to the mat.
Ishimori pins Fujita
After the match, Bullet Club beats up Wato and Ryusuke Taguchi makes the save. ELP says "you stole this from us" referring to the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag titles. Taguchi and Wato attack ELP and Ishimori, who run back to the locker room.
This is a tease for a potential title match on the undercard during the New Japan Cup Finals in Osaka.
Gedo, Chase Owens and Bad Luck Fale vs. Jado, Tanga Loa and Tama Tonga
Bullet Club come to the ring first. G.O.D. attacks them from behind. Wild battle along the guardrails.
Gedo tries to hit Jado with brass knuckles. Tama goes after Gedo. Owens hits Jado with a V-Trigger.
Owens pins Jado
Bullet Club laughs and escapes back to the locker room, while Tama checks on Jado. Owen and Fale look at the camera and say "One more for the the Bad Guys" and pretend to flick a toothpick at the camera. Tama screams his revenge on them as Bullet Club retreats through the curtain.
Great O-Khan, Aaron Henare and Will Ospreay vs. El Desperado, TAKA Michinoku and Zack Sabre Jr.
O-Khan and ZSJ begin by grappling and attempting submissions. Wild and fun match.
Henare hits a Rampage Tackle and Streets of Rage on TAKA.
Henare pins TAKA.
ZSJ and O-Khan continue to battle on the floor going for submissions. They will meet later in Round 3, which should be awesome.
Yujiro Takahashi, SHO, Dick Togo and EVIL vs. BUSHI, Shingo Takagi, SANADA and Hiromu Takahashi
House of Torture attacks and EVIL immediately goes after Hiromu. House of Torture pulls out their shenanigans. LIJ fights back.
Takagi hits Togo with Pumping Bomber.
Takagi pins Togo.
DOUKI, Taichi and Minoru Suzuki vs. YOH, Hirooki Goto and Kazuchika Okada
Suzuki still carries the scars on his chest from his Round 2 match with Hiromu.
Solid match.
Goto pins DOUKI after hitting a GTW.
New Japan Cup 2022 Round 3 Matches:
Jeff Cobb vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Ospreay and O-Khan accompany Jeff Cobb to the ring.
YOSHI-HASHI uses his quickness to avoid Cobb's power and uses his speed for running attacks. Cobb gets angry and elbows YOSHI-HASHI in the face. Cobb stomps him and rides him like a surfboard. Ospreay tells Cobb to calm down. YOSHI-HASHI rallies back with a Dragon Screw on Cobb's left leg. YOSHI-HASHI goes for a plancha to the floor. Cobb catches him and runs him into the steel post. Cobb with a standing moonsault. Two count. YOSHI-HASHI hits a Destroyer. Two count. YOSHI-HASHI with a leg submission. Cobb gets to the ropes. They hammer each other with elbows. Lots of near falls. Good match. Cobb hits a pop-up headbutt. Brutal. Cobb hits Tour of the Islands.
Cobb pins YOSHI-HASHI.
Jeff Cobb advances to the next Round.
Kevin Kelly gets a comment from Ospreay at ringside. Ospreay praises Cobb and said he advances in the tournament, but more importantly he beat a current IWGP Tag Team Champion.
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito
Tanahashi even walked the entry way like Scott Hall and flicked at the camera. Very cool.
Naito had the advantage with his Lucha skills in the early moments. Tanahashi got the momentum with a Dragon Screw on Naito's left leg. Naito rolls to the floor. Tanahashi hits Aces High on Naito. Tanahashi hit a Straight Jacket German suplex. Naito landed on his head. Two count. Tanahashi goes for another Aces High. Naito throws the referee into the ropes which causes Tanahashi to fall and crotch himself on the top rope. Naito hits a Frankensteiner from the top rope. They trade a bunch of near falls. Tanahashi hits an Aces High. Tanahashi goes for a High Fly Flow but misses. Naito rolls up Tanahashi.
Naito pins Tanahashi.
Tetsuya Naito moves on to face Jeff Cobb in the next Round.
Solid match.
Naito thanks the crowd and gives the LIJ role call.
It was very cool to see New Japan wrestlers paying tribute to Scott Hall all night long. R.I.P to the Bad Guy.
The New Japan Cup continues on Thursday March 17.
Thank you for reading.
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