#kimihiko ozaki

[leaveharmony]

Awwwwww!

[josiahthegreat]

February 7th Korakuen Hall event saw NJPW bid farewell to ring announcer Kimihiko Ozaki, who made his final calls after over 19 years in the company.

[gdwessel]

NJPW New Years Golden Series Night 6 - 2/7/2022: Ozaki Signs Off, KOPW Stipulations, Cobb, Nakashima Injured; Muto & Marufuji Vacate GHC Tag Belts Due To Muto Hip Injury, Step Forward 2022 Night 1 & 2 Cards

New Japan Pro Wrestling

The New Years Golden Series rumbles on, although there will be some changes going forward, as detailed below. Yesterday’s show was streamed live on NJPWWorld.

- 2/7/2022, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (NJPWWorld)

Great O-Khan [United Empire] d. Yuto Nakashima (Elbow, 5:54) 

Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI [Los Ingobernables] d. Ryohei Oiwa & Kosei Fujita (Hiromu > Fujita, Boston Crab, 7:12)

Yujiro Takahashi & Gedo [Bullet Club] d. Tiger Mask IV & Tomoaki Honma (Yujiro > Honma, Big Juice, 10:08)

Minoru Suzuki, Taichi, TAKA Michinoku & DOUKI [SZKG] d. Toru Yano [CHAOS], Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima & Yuji Nagata (Taichi > Kojima, Black Mephisto, 10:24)

EVIL & SHO [Bullet Club] d. Tomohiro Ishii & YOH [CHAOS] (SHO > YOH, DQ, 12:00)

Tetsuya Naito, SANADA & Shingo Takagi [Los Ingobernables] d. Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS], Hiroshi Tanahashi & Togi Makabe (Takagi > Makabe, Last Of The Dragon, 15:40)

Master Wato & Ryusuke Taguchi d. El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru [SZKG] (Taguchi > Kanemaru, No.9, 23:16)

Master Wato gets a big win on his way to challenging Despy for the IWGP Juniorheavyweight title. He did not get a whole lot of time to celebrate, however, as post-main, the final farewell and send-off for ring announcer Kimihiko Ozaki happened. He was initially supposed to take his final bow at the 1/29/2022 Korakuen Hall show, however since that one got cancelled due to COVID concerns, it took place on this show instead. Best wishes for him.

Toru Yano brought a dog cage to ringside, and would end up locking TAKA Michinoku in it. Suzuki v. Yano’s KOPW2022 match is now being voted on, between a Handcuff Deathmatch (Suzuki) or a Dog Cage Match (Yano).

YOSHI-HASHI and Taiji Ishimori are still out of the lineups for fever concerns. Yuto Nakashima took a blow to the head during his match against Great O-Khan, so he is being concussion protocoled and will be out through 2/13/2022. This will be the second absence for Nakashima since he started due to injury; he must be starting to hate the month of February. Jeff Cobb is also out of the lineups, having had a torn left patella tendon since his match at Night 2 of WK16 against Tetsuya Naito. Needless to say there are lineup changes.

The tour continues tomorrow, which will not be streamed.

2/9/2022, Saitama Saiden Chemical Arena

Ryohei Oiwa v. Great O-Khan [United Empire]

Kosei Fujita v. Hiromu Takahashi [Los Ingobernables]

Tiger Mask IV & Yuji Nagata v. Yujiro Takahashi & Jado [Bullet Club]

Toru Yano [CHAOS], Togi Makabe & Hiroyoshi Tenzan v. Minoru Suzuki, TAKA Michinoku & DOUKI [SZKG]

Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto & YOH [CHAOS] v. EVIL, Dick Togo & SHO [Bullet Club]

Kazuchika Okada [CHAOS], Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tomoaki Honma v. Tetsuya Naito, SANADA & Shingo Takagi [Los Ingobernables]

Master Wato, Ryusuke Taguchi & Satoshi Kojima v. El Desperado, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Taichi [SZKG]

 Pro Wrestling NOAH

NOAH no longer have active GHC Heavyweight Tag Team champions. This after a press conference today, where Keiji Muto and Naomichi Marufuji vacated the titles, owing to a hip injury suffered by Muto. Muto claims he’s had this particular injury since NOAH’s The New Year show at Budokan, with discomfort in his hips since October, and also said he had to take a painkilling injection for his match in the main event at Night 3 of Wrestle Kingdom 16, the NJPW v. NOAH show, where he said he got through it, but couldn’t move after the painkillers wore off. No immediate plans for the fate of the tag titles for now that I’m aware of.

Tomorrow is the first night of Step Forward 2022, which will only be shown on ABEMA, live with full HD cameras. The following two nights at Korakuen Hall will be on Wrestle Universe, filmed the same way. There is a title match tomorrow, as well as a special singles match main event. Thursday has a title match main event, and Go Shiozaki continuing a singles series that also goes to Friday’s event.

Step Forward 2022 - 2/9/2022, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (ABEMA)

Kai Fujimura v. Yasutaka Yano

King Tany, Muhammad Yone & Akitoshi Saito [Funky Express] v. Masa Kitamiya, Yoshiki Inamura & Kinya Okada

Hajime Ohara & Nao v. Nio & ALEJA [Kongo]

Naomichi Marufuji [M’s Alliance], Atsushi Kotoge & Junta Miyawaki v. Kotaro Suzuki [Perros del Mal de Japon], Super Crazy [Perros del Mal de Japon] & Daiki Inaba

Kaito Kiyomiya v. HAYATA [STINGER]

Yoshinari Ogawa, Seiki Yoshioka & Yuya Susumu [STINGER] v. NOSAWA Rongai, YO-HEY & Eita [Perros del Mal de Japon]

GHC Juniorheavyweight Championship: Daisuke Harada © v. Tadasuke [Kongo]

Kenoh, Katsuhiko Nakajima & Manabu Soya [Kongo] v. Takashi Sugiura, Kazuyuki Fujita & Kendo Kashin [Sugiura-gun]

Go Shiozaki v. Masato Tanaka [M’s Alliance]

- 2/10/2022, Tokyo Korakuen Hall (Wrestle Universe)

Nio & ALEJA [Kongo] v. Kinya Okada & Kai Fujimura

Nao v. Tadasuke [Kongo]

Kenoh, Katsuhiko Nakajima & Manabu Soya [Kongo] v. King Tany, Muhammad Yone & Akitoshi Saito [Funky Express]

HAYATA & Seiki Yoshioka [STINGER] v. NOSAWA Rongai & YO-HEY [Perros del Mal de Japon]

Kaito Kiyomiya, Yoshinari Ogawa [STINGER] & Yasutaka Yano v. Eita, Kotaro Suzuki & Super Crazy [Perros del Mal de Japon]

Takashi Sugiura [Sugiura-gun], Kazushi Sakuraba [Sugiura-gun], Masato Tanaka [M’s Alliance], Daisuke Harada & Hajime Ohara v. Masa Kitamiya, Daiki Inaba, Yoshiki Inamura, Atsushi Kotoge & Junta Miyawaki

Naomichi Marufuji [M’s Alliance] v. Go Shiozaki

GHC National Championship: Masakatsu Funaki [Kongo] © v. Masaaki Mochizuki [M’s Alliance]

[yoshi-hashi]

♡

[frentique]

[njpwdaily]

Fantastica Mania 2017

[amisbro]

So Amisbro

You’re a fan of wrestling? YEP! WAAAAYYYYY BACK in about 1986 I started watching pro wrestling from the NWA/WCW/WWF days and my favorite tradition with my grandfather was watching NWA on Saturdays at 6:05 PM and we would sit down and watch the hour or two that it was on (an hour if the Braves were playing that Saturday Night) and it was SOOO MUCH fun! I used to love it when I would get up, have my cereal and then about 10 AM maybe watch some cartoons and then 12 Noon watch the WWF product followed by the 6:05 endeavors on Saturday and Sunday Nights! My favorite memories as a kid were to go to my local video store and I SWEAR I rented WWF Wrestlemania III, Starrcade 1986:  Night of the Skywalkers and Crockett Cup 1987 so many times I literally could tell you where those were supposed to be on the shelf each time I rented them!  The fact that we never were just GIVEN them is astounding but I guess the store still needed to make money. I have been through virtually every Era of wrestling in the “Modern Period” from the 1980s to now and NOW for the most part its the s**t and not in a good way! Now the product is so PG for the kids that you would think it was back in the Hulk Hogan period when guys weren’t allowed to bleed on WWE TV and other BS with characters that, when I look at them, I am EMBARRASSED by what I would see WWE trot out!  Its because of things like stupid gimmicks, matches that sucked as a whole and it didn’t matter the gender or the wrestlers and storylines that suck up and down that makes me cringe for the North American Audience who tries to separate the WWE product from NXT when they are one and the same! I have been through “Hulkamania” I have been through “The New Generation” with such great characters as T.L. Hopper, Mantaur and The Goon I have been through “The Attitude Era” which had the “Monday Night Wars between WWE and WCW I have been through the “Ruthless Aggression” period where we got John Cena from and so help me God they NEED to turn him heel because if they DON’T the fans will just mutiny at some point and WWE doesn’t need that I have ALSO been through when the WWF Women’s title (before the term “Divas” was a though) where Fabulous Moolah was supposed to end her reign and pass the torch to Wendy Richter but their division wasn’t all that up to snuff for a while with people like Leilani Kai and Velvet Macintyre when there was a squash in 3 minutes at WM II and eventually getting to the point where it was Alundra Blayze wrestling Bertha Faye and Bull Nakano (both beating her for the title so she could get it back at some point) and I have also seen when the division went in the trash (literally) and then eventually got resurrected but now...I worry about it honestly again! I AM a wrestling fan but not a fan of “Sports Entertainment”.  I gave up on WWE in 2013 and nowadays those three letters represent the WORST in the product for me. So what does Amisbro do? Well for a while I took a break and just STOPPED watching wrestling and then towards the end of last year a guy by the name of Jeff Jarrett came around and said he was opening his own company called “Global Force Wrestling” and they were starting with a show from “New Japan Pro Wrestling” called “Wrestle Kingdom” and I made damn sure to study about some of the wrestlers from the promotion and now I proudly say that I roll with this company and other places in Japan.  For me its always been more about the SPORT than the Storylines and I promies you this if you are on the fence: You DO NOT have to know the promos or what the announcers are saying because the energy and the passion they put forth in their matches and the introductions and commentary is literally the reason I became a fan of the Japanese product over the American.  Say what you want about me but when it comes to my ring announcers nowadays give me Kimihiko Ozaki and the NJPW ANY DAY over what crap WWE spits out.  The days of guys like Gordon Solie, Bob Caudle and Tony Schiavone might be over but if you give me Ozaki and the announce teams of NJPW or even Zero-1, Stardom, Ice Ribbon, Dragon Gate and others I will take them ANY DAY before you EVER see me talk about a WWE show ever again! I know for some this post is an unexpected one but its something I wanted to talk about and last night kind of sparked that for me when I FINALLY learned about who the Ring Announcer was for NJPW and GOD did that FEEL GOOD! My name is Amisbro and I am a PRO WRESTLING FAN! See ya in 17 minutes for Ceres

[leaveharmony]

Screaming

[leaveharmony]

Ozaki-san’s farewell present

In some companies it’s a gold watch; here it’s a gently used fuzzy lucha mask, a hug from Tana and a water bottle half-full of dried beans and nuts

[leaveharmony]

[leaveharmony]

I AM GOING TO MISS HIM

[leaveharmony]

“Dude what the fuck?” - Miho probably

[leaveharmony]

Kid’s never gonna live this down lol

[leaveharmony]

[leaveharmony]

“Oh jeez, we got a guy on the floor here”

Nurse Miho springs into action. 

Ozaki later tweeted RE he was ok because Miho asked if he was ok

[leaveharmony]

A gentleman to the end ;___;