Dragon Gate Pro Wrestling will be holding two sets of shows at Acros Fukuoka where there will be a one-day tournament for the vacant Open The Triangle Gate Championship. The belts were vacated when the former R.E.D. seemingly imploded and the belts were held up. In this piece, we will take a look at every team involved and analyze them. From there, we will piece together who will emerge from Fukuoka opening the Triangle Gate.
【2.20 アクロス福岡昼夜大会 直前情報】
昼の部12:00開場/13:00試合開始
夜の部16:00開場/17:00試合開始
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Open the Triangle Gate Championship Tournament Competitors
Dragon Gate Future (The Iihashi Brothers and Takuma Fujiwara)
Once General Manager Ryo Saito announced there would be representatives from Dragon Gate Future in this tournament, fans began to speculate. The Iihashi Brothers seemed like no-brainers, as they’re Japan’s first purebred pro wrestlers. Both their dad and mom were pro wrestlers. The question mark is who would join them, as this is a rather big position for rookies. Takuma Fujiwara, who had previous training in the Michinoku Pro Wrestling dojo, got the nod.
This not only shows big trust from higher-ups but shows that these three rookies are head and shoulders above the rest. While it would be easy to assume they’re here to lose, these three rookies are more than ready if the opportunity to cause a shocking moment presented itself.
Natural Vibes (KZY, U-T, and Jacky ‘Funky’ Kamei)
The team representing Natural Vibes will be leader KZY, U-T, and Jacky ‘Funky’ Kamei. KZY has had the Open the Triangle Gate titles on 6 occasions and U-T held the titles one time with Eita and T-Hawk early on in his career. KZY and U-T have tried for this belt within the past few months, as they tried with BIG BOSS Shimizu. However, they ultimately failed. Now, they try with Kamei hoping to bring the gold back to Natural Vibes.
Not only that, but this would build momentum for KZY and U-T’s challenge of the Ryukyu Dragon Pro Wrestling Tag Team Championship next month. Kamei is aiming for his first belt, so with all things considered, Natural Vibes will be going all out in this tournament. YAMATO and Shun Skywalker have questioned their desires to be champions, so maybe this will light a fire under the three.
Z-Brats (H•Y•O, Shun Skywalker, and BxB Hulk)
Dragon Gate’s newest unit Z-Brats are represented by H•Y•O, Shun Skywalker, and BxB Hulk. H•Y•O was part of the former champion team before the belts were vacated, and Skywalker was apart of the team they won it from. Thus, this team is a dangerous threat when it comes to recent history within the Triangle Gate division. Also, one can’t discredit the eight reigns as Triangle Gate titleholder that BxB Hulk has under his belt.
This is one of the strongest trios possible in current Dragon Gate. H•Y•O and Shun Skywalker are dojo mates, so they have a chemistry that’s second to none. One must also consider the teamwork Hulk and Skywalker have shown since the new unit has started, as this made them a team to keep an eye on. When it’s all said and done, this will be a hard team to keep away from the triangle gate belts.
HIGH-END (YAMATO, Ben-K, and Dragon Kid)
This is the most decorated Triangle Gate team in this entire field and perhaps the odds on favorites. Ben-K is a former two-time Triangle Gate Champion. YAMATO is a former five-time Triangle Gate Champion. Dragon Kid rounds out the team at eight Triangle Gate title reigns. YAMATO is fresh off a reign as Open the Dream Gate Champion, so he is ready to get back into the title hunt.
YAMATO now has that chance with two men who attempted to take the Triangle Gate belts last year but failed. This is the strongest possible trio from the HIGH-END unit, so if they’re all in peak form, it might spell trouble for the other teams involved.
Open the Triangle Gate Championship Tournament Prediction
Despite the HIGH-END team being incredibly stacked, and both the Future and Vibes teams posing great threats, Z-Brats is the new top heel unit, and they’re looking pretty weak right now outside of KAI as the top dog in Dragon Gate. All signs point to Z-Brats emerging victorious and getting on a roll. However, there might be a certain numero uno they need to keep their eyes on.
Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. Looking to watch Dragon Gate? All their live shows will be on their steaming service Dragon Gate Network.
