The New Beginning Tour recently ended for New Japan Pro Wrestling, with the major moment of the tour being Kota Ibushi defeating SANADA to retain the IWGP Double Championship. We now look into our next tour with the brand new Castle Attack, which will be headlined by two shows in Osaka Jo-Hall. Let‘s get into the news
IWGP Junior Tag & IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Matches Set
After Hiromu Takahashi defeated Sho to retain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, one half of the brand new IWGP Junior Tag Team Champions El Phantasmo would come out and attack Hiromu Takahashi and challenge him for the championship. It is confirmed that Hiromu Takahashi will team with his partner BUSHI to challenge El Phantasmo and Taiji Ishimori for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships on the final “Road To Castle Attack Show.“ Hiromu Takahashi will also face off against El Phantsamo on the second night of Castle Attack. This is one of the three Wrestle Kingdom 15 Rematches set for the show.
IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Gets New Challengers
In a very controversial match, The Guerillas of Destiny would retain the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships by defeating Zack Sabre Jr. and Taichi by DQ. After the trios championship match which was won by CHAOS, YOSHI-HASHI and Hirooki Goto would challenge Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa for the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Championships. On Night One of Castle Attack YOSHI-HASHI will face Tanga Loa, and Tama Tonga will face Hirooki Goto in singles action. On Night Two, we will see the tag title match between these two teams. This will mark the second defense for Guerillas of Destiny.
KOPW 2021
Toru Yano has been the KOPW holder since winning the trophy at Summer Struggle In Jingu, for a little while now he has faced off against many weird opponents and will to face off against Chase Owens in the next bout. These two have a history going back to Wrestle Kingdom 15, with Yano defeating Owens, Bad Luck Fale, and BUSHI to retain his trophy. They will face off on Night One of Castle Attack, with an as yet unknown stipulation.
Jay White wants Tomohiro Ishii
At New Year Dash, Jay White would lose in a five-five match by getting pinned by Tomohiro Ishii. Jay White would leave NJPW for three weeks and come back to go after Tomohiro Ishii. This was because White wanted the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Championships, which Ishii currently co-holds. At New Beginning, Bullet Club was unsuccessful in their challenge. Jay White will now challenge Tomohiro Ishii to a singles match in the semi-final of Night One of Castle Attack.
OKADA vs. EVIL.
For the past month, Kazuchika Okada could be described as a person trying to right his wrongs,. At Wrestle Kingdom he defeated Will Ospreay to gain revenge, but as of recently, he started taking notice of EVIL. EVIL and Okada‘s story goes all the way back to the first tour NJPW had when they returned from the pandemic which held the New Japan Cup. Okada vs. Evil was the final of that tournament, with Evil defeating Okada to win the tournament. Okada and Evil face each other in a special singles match on Night One’s main event of Castle Attack. It could be said that this match could a preview of things to come for the IWGP Double Titles.
O-KHAN vs. TANAHASHI TWO!
At Wrestle Kingdom 15, Hiroshi Tanahashi would defeat Great O-Khan in a singles match, this singles match would become a catalyst to challenging Shingo Takagi for the NEVER Openweight Championship. At New Beginning In Nagoya, Hiroshi Tanahashi would defeat Shingo Takagi to become the new NEVER Openweight Champion. After the match, however, Great O-Khan would come back and attack Tanahashi. Setting his sights on the NEVER Openweight Championship on Night Two of CASTLE ATTACK.
IWGP Intercontinental Championship Bout
On the first night of Wrestle Kingdom 15, Tetsuya Naito would lose both his titles to Kota Ibushi. While Kota would become “GOD” by defeating Jay White on Night Two, after that match Kota Ibushi showcased thoughts on possibly unifying the IWGP Intercontinental and IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Tetsuya Naito didn’t like the idea. After SANADA vs. Ibushi, Tetsuya Naito would challengefor the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. This is the first time since the two titles merged that a person has challenged for just one title. Naito will face off against Kota Ibushi on Night Two’s main event of Castle Attack.
Stay tuned to 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. Make sure to watch New Japan Pro Wrestling on NJPW WORLD.
Looking to talk wrestling, pro football, or any number of sports? Head on over to the LWOS Boards to engage in conversation with fellow fans!
