00:28You don't strike me as the shaking hands, kissing babies kind of type.
00:37Really?
00:38No.
00:39I mean, like, you're hardly out there in the playgrounds, meeting and greeting, you know,
00:44all of that stuff.
00:45Well, I've been turning new leaves all year, Chris.
00:48Yeah, let's not, you know.
00:49Let's see.
00:50A new year, a new you.
00:51You know, I mean, am I new making all the rounds?
00:54I said in the G1, I did some commentary throughout the G1.
01:04Around the same time, that new Superman film came out.
01:07Right.
01:08And I couldn't help but think that, you know, Tanahashi is obviously our current Superman.
01:13But I couldn't help but think more as a little bit of a beacon of hope.
01:18Like, he's got all the skill.
01:21He's got equal or maybe more skill in that room than anybody on this roster.
01:26Like, getting it done the right way.
01:28I think you hit the nail right on the clip with Yu Yu Romero.
01:32Romero has always seen himself.
01:34He's said in a documentary that came out a little bit ago, he sees himself as literally
01:41like Superman.
01:42Clark Kent, when he's outside the ring, very mild-mannered.
01:45Maybe a little bit withdrawn here, a little bit shy.
01:48And then when the bell rings, it's game time.
01:50And I think he's brought the best out of Shota Umino thus far.
01:54I think so, but I think there's a reason for this.
01:58I think that Shota Umino had, by his own admission, a disappointing year in so many ways last year.
02:08He was right in the top echelon of his company.
02:11Main event in the Tokyo Dome.
02:12But when it came down to crunch, the facts are there.
02:15Like, he couldn't quite get it done in those moments.
02:17He didn't always have the people on his side.
02:19I don't even think he was on his own side half the time.
02:21That pressure, you know, that pressure's heavy.
02:24I haven't felt half that pressure in his company yet.
02:27And the half that I have felt, man, that keeps you up at night, Chris.
02:30Main event in the Tokyo Dome, we're the same age.
02:33Main event in the Tokyo Dome against somebody like Zack Sabre Jr.
02:36That's pressure, right?
02:38And then I think he sees Umura coming up.
02:41And Umura being an eligible candidate to be in similar positions.
02:45And the word's not jealousy, but maybe it's made him worry for his spot a little bit.
02:49Maybe it's made him want to get on the same page.
02:51And rather than turn his back to Umura and kind of resent Umura,
02:55maybe have a look at what he's doing.
02:57Maybe get in his head, what is Umura doing?
02:59What mistakes is he not making that you are?
03:01What can you learn from this guy?
03:03And big respect to Shota for that, because as a man, we're in a macho business
03:06to be able to look at another man who's kind of threatening his spot
03:09and not resent him and not hate him and get on the same page with him.
03:13That's pretty cool.
03:14And I think it's paid off in dividends for Shota because he's back on his climb.
03:17We have 43 days left in the career of Hiroshi Tanahashi.
03:25Last time Tanahashi will ever wrestle here in Fujisawa.
03:30And it's kind of wild. I mentioned it earlier on just about 20 years or so ago.
03:37It was the first time I ever saw Tanahashi wrestle live right here in this building.
03:43And here we are full circle Tanahashi saying hi to Fujisawa for one more time alongside El Phantasma.
03:54I said a lot of good props about Yuya Umura, but right now that's Superman.
03:59Superman is not changing the mantle for at least 43 more days. That is Superman.
04:10Kazuchika Okada has been equipped tonight to Hiroshi Tanahashi on more than one occasion,
04:16but only one occasion in the Tokyo Dome.
04:18They've wrestled one another several times, 14 overall.
04:23And Okada has the edge, but when it comes to the Tokyo Dome, and you know as well as I do,
04:29Tanahashi is a different beast, a different animal.
04:32That's Tanahashi's house, bro.
04:34For all of us it's this big arena, high pressure, high stakes.
04:39That's where Tanahashi is his most Genki, Chris.
04:42That's where that man is ageless, that's where that man is timeless,
04:45that's where that pain he's got all through his body.
04:47We see him, we see him backstage, we see him getting ready for his match.
04:50He's given everything to his business, and it's took just as much away from him,
04:53from his health.
04:54Get him in that Tokyo Dome, dude, he's a spring chicken.
04:57I got it, baby.
04:58Thanks.
04:59Who would want Tanahashi over Okada?
05:01The last time being, well, it will be January the 4th, 2016,
05:05to January the 4th, 2026.
05:07One more time, in the Tokyo Dome, Tanahashi and Okada.
05:14And it's a toss up on who's going to finish that card out right now, huh?
05:17I mean, it's...
05:19You could cut it any which way, and he would make very, very solid arguments, right?
05:24We always think that the IWGP title should go on last, but Tanahashi retiring,
05:28that should go on last.
05:30Yeah, it's a bit of a conundrum, because do we have the IWGP title,
05:35and do we have it at the prestigious that it's at?
05:38If not for Tanahashi's body of work?
05:40That's exactly right.
05:43Because Chico Okada would say, would you have it at the status without my body of work?
05:49And I think you're divided in that Tokyo Dome.
05:51A lot of people would say that Okada is the greatest IWGP champion of all time,
05:54and a lot of people would say Hiroshi Tanahashi is.
05:59I think...
06:00Get a good call here.
06:02El Fantasmo has...
06:04Talking about Uemure bringing the best out of Shota Uemure.
06:06When Uemure was really on the brink of collapsing mentally,
06:11under the pressure early in this year, El Fantasmo was the one to consult.
06:15Now El Fantasmo has helped the mental of Shota Uemure.
06:21I think he wants this matchup just as much as Umino does, an exchange of holds there and no one's up on that.
06:34What do you want, what do you want, what do you want, how do you want, what do you want, how do you want, how do you want to be here for all the time, how do you want to be here for all the time.
06:48Now fontes my currently in the NJPW world TV champion Tanahashi of course retiring in the Tokyo Don just because you win poorly doesn't mean necessarily you would then have a shot at
07:02Tanahashi and Al Fintesma win this whole thing if, if, if they would have to have their tag team championship match before WrestleKing.
07:11And then vacate them at WrestleKing.
07:13And then vacate them at WrestleKing.
07:14Well, it's Tanahashi, bro, that's a pretty aura move. I wouldn't be surprised.
07:20I wouldn't be surprised unless he ends up in the final against the War Dragons.
07:24Well, with anything that could be a work, that's it.
07:32He changes her all the way behind Tanahashi. Tanahashi, Yuya Uemura, 1- 1 over the course of the year.
07:38It was Dominion Osaka, Joe Hall, where Tanahashi just snuck once, squeezed a roll up out
07:44over the Heat Storm. Yuya Uemura, got the win back later on during G1 Climax this year in Fokoka
07:52Oh! Hey!
07:56Wiggins, wiggins fingers!
07:58Tanahashi has won, of course, the G1 Climax on three occasions.
08:03He has won New Japan Cups. He's never won World Tag League.
08:07And Tanahashi, even he is, you know, self-acknowledging enough to say,
08:13well, I've often had so much of an ego to me that tag team wrestling just never really worked out.
08:18Yeah, a bit of a diva, huh?
08:23A bit of a rock, though.
08:28What do you got, Yuya?
08:31What do you got?
08:33And maybe you could say, I mean, do you think, have we really seen that ego come out for Uemura or Uemura, Justin?
08:46Maybe not, but I think we've been very close a lot of times.
08:50Like I said in the previous match, it's just going to take the right person to piss them off on the right there, Chris.
08:56And then in their tag team match, it was a different, a frightening side of Yuya Uemura, so we know that it's in there.
09:14We're going to play the hits here in Fujisawa.
09:20Spinboard, the classic of the second open, we're going to play the hits here in Fujisawa.
09:25We're going to play the drills.
09:28Come on, Uemura!
09:29Come on, here!
09:31Come on!
09:31Come on!
09:38Yes!
09:39Yes!
09:40Yes!
09:41Yes!
09:42Yes!
09:43Yes!
09:43Yes!
09:44Yes!
09:44Yes!
09:45Yes!
09:46Yes!
09:47Yes!
09:48Yes!
09:48Yes!
09:49Yes!
09:49Yes!
09:50Yes!
09:51Reversal out into the corner, Omer makes some motion here.
09:55There's that classic contract, and well down to the knee goes Zoumer.
10:10And now it seems like we're going to be trying to isolate Tanahashi, isolating the older,
10:18the more physically damaged of the two, when it comes to Tanahashi over El Phantasma.
10:43I mean, he's got a side to him.
10:45Yeah, I mean, you're seeing that little bit out of him.
10:47Shoto Umino saying this is the last chance that I get to tangle with Hiroshi Tanahashi.
10:53They did do so in Ryogoku earlier in April, and Umino saying it's been a stewing in me ever since.
11:01There was a question at one point, I mean, Shoto Umino faced Tanahashi in Ryogoku in the spring
11:06on the back of the New Japan Cup Final, where he lost to David Finlay, and there was an invitation
11:13extended, or at least somewhat of one, towards Shoto Umino when it came to the warboats at one point in time.
11:19Get the rope, get the rope!
11:21Yeah, I'm not sure how that would have worked out.
11:23Get the rope, get the rope!
11:25Yeah, I'm not sure how that would have worked out.
11:27Order, come on, look!
11:29I think there was something in there where Umino
11:33was left with a lot of questions after that match with David Finlay and found some answers when he battled Hiroshi Tanahashi.
11:47There were so many times where Tanahashi would have been tempted to follow a darker path perhaps,
11:54and chose instead to stay with Hentai and stay with one team.
12:00I mean, already for yourself, since you've been in New Japan Pro Wrestling, relatively short time,
12:05but in two separate teams, I mean, sometimes there are guys that have the itchy feet, that want to move,
12:12that want to pick the best spot to keep themselves moving up the ladder.
12:16And then you have someone like Tanahashi, who for 26 years, who would have been 26 years on the same bus.
12:22He was like, oh, I hate these guys.
12:24There must have been some thought of that at one point in time.
12:27I think so, but I think he is a testament that, you know,
12:30maybe these guys can just do it the right way the whole time.
12:33You can have a career long as being Superman.
12:36You don't pass the term, you don't have...
12:39I'm wired a little different, I don't really care about him.
12:41Neither do any of the dark side.
12:44Well, I think it is not unheard of, but very, very rare.
12:52And there's...
12:52And that was a harsh boot from El Phantasmo to the back, it showed to Urumura.
12:56I'm sure Urumura has been tainted from time to time.
12:58He knew Urumura.
13:00I mean, Urumura is someone that models himself on another sort of classic guy,
13:04that's always brought the straight and narrow.
13:05And Urumura, an idol and a big devotee of Ricky the Dragon's Steamboat,
13:10I mean, you always see a lot of Ricky Steamboat in Urumura.
13:19I think a lot of people, you know, maybe a year and a half, two years ago,
13:24saw Shota as maybe the one to take that Tanahashi Superm mantle.
13:28Well, I think the person that's going to take that mantle has got Tanahashi in a single leg Boston.
13:35I think there is the argument as well that both of those two prospects need one another,
13:41and as well as they need Yodeh Suju for example,
13:46as well as they need Hey Keith, for example,
13:48as well as they need Angela Maloney for example.
13:50Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go!
13:52Go!
13:52never always, while Tanahashi might have been the Caval-T, Caval-G, the guy,
13:58there are always countless others that need that hunger, that drive, that determination, and those rivalries.
14:05There's a big note down there.
14:08Everybody's down, but Primino and El Fantasmo are up.
14:17LP up to the top. Over we go, down goes.
14:26Shota, Uminov, Fantasmo.
14:34That flow, and that ceaseless flow, and over the top goes, man, to Shota Uminov as well.
14:43And that liquid motion on the Swanson is going to keep going.
14:48He's going to keep going.
14:51Here we go.
14:53That's what happens when you take your lion mains and your coffee, man.
14:57You get in that flow state.
14:58My God.
14:59Well, I remember the match you had with him in the G1, and it was one of those shorter matches,
15:04and it was motion, motion, motion, motion, motion.
15:06Oh, man. I couldn't tell if I was concussed or if I was dizzy.
15:09I don't even remember if I won that one.
15:12Well, dizzy is going to be the operative word for Yuya Umura in this position,
15:17or sometimes it is, but UFO denied.
15:20Yuya Umura hangs on.
15:22He gets free.
15:27Nice, pulled him right back in, and down with a splat.
15:35Win the World TV Champion.
15:37There's a couple of ways you can throw a backdrop, Chris.
15:40You know, you see, you can either dump someone back and throw the momentum backwards,
15:43or you can do what Yuya just did, send him up to the heavens and just pull him straight down.
15:48Exactly where gravity wants him.
15:53Yeah, it shows up.
15:55And then Yuya.
15:57Trying to get a little bit of double-team work here.
16:01A little bit of double-team work here.
16:03A little bit of double-team work here.
16:05A little bit of serving up Fantasma.
16:07A crack of the elbow, a crack of the chop.
16:11Gravity wanted Fantasma on his feet right there.
16:17And...
16:18Nice misdirection, and just not enough on the crawl.
16:23Yeah, a little Johnny-Safe right there.
16:26A little bit.
16:28He spent a lot of time in the UK, Independence himself.
16:32That's how it showed to Umino.
16:35But Umino collided with Umino.
16:37Now's the tag.
16:38Here comes the ace.
16:39Uh-oh.
16:53Uh-oh.
16:54Yeah!
16:55Oh, we don't know.
16:56Uh-oh.
16:57I mean, I don't like that.
16:58Who's going to get the worst in this one, man?
17:00I don't like the look of this at all.
17:01Oh, no.
17:02Oh, that sucks.
17:03Oh, my God.
17:05Oh, good Lord.
17:06Dude.
17:07That's on par with Shuji Ishikawa just Super Mario with me, man.
17:10There is some moves that Tanahashi does that, with age, have got a more painful look in.
17:19That flick has sent on.
17:22Baby, Tanahashi is not that green core here.
17:25Oh, my God.
17:26Uh-oh.
17:27Oh, my God.
17:28Oh, my God.
17:29Uh-oh.
17:30Yeah!
17:31Uh-oh.
17:32Yes!
17:33Yeah!
17:34Oh, my God.
17:35Yeah!
17:36Uh-oh.
17:37Yeah!
17:38It's a six hit.
17:39Well, the Dragonscrew tonight.
17:41Ah!
17:42Uh-oh!
17:43Uh-oh!
17:44Uh-oh!
17:45Uh-oh!
17:46Uh-oh!
17:47It is time.
17:48Uh-oh!
17:49inbound if he can turn it oh oh they're double
18:04oh they're double i see the angle time actually it's his activity yeah everything from your neck
18:12to your ribs to your lower back and now look at him throwing a squat deeper and deeper a very
18:18very painful hole to be in but also down a very painful hole to apply
18:24yeah it's bone on bone dude like you look at how tanahashi's got that butcher lock on through the
18:29legs to show to umana that's the edge of his forearm i've got quite a lot of muscles chris but you
18:33can't grow muscles over that edge of his forearm though he's got his grip gonna fade you know what's
18:38gonna happen oh my goodness umana was on the brink of fading it had the clarity of vision to find the
18:47rope right there okay
18:56all of the play there the tag being made
19:00tanahashi to fantasma this is semi-main event here in fujisawa okay first match of b block
19:08critical to get a good start in this tournament in any tournament meeting of the minds there though
19:13it's not being not loose and then the sling wave from tanner
19:23i know there's one play that fantasma and tanahashi really want to hit and it's this one
19:28well right dead center is showed to umana a long way from either corner and umura there to make
19:37the save
19:38look at this now yeah tanahashi just dumped off the top i don't think elp is going to get brought down
19:47as easily and look at shots up going to hoist up superplex there is the power and here is the glory
19:57oh an old tag team classic the cover umana on top
20:10every second is going to count in this last 43 days
20:17making every single one of these four arms back elbows count back against the wall
20:22and it's the ropes
20:3215 minutes halfway down in the time limit but we will not need all of them strike me out the corner
20:38and here we go
20:42you know sizing fantasma
20:47there's the cover
20:52we'll see if we can get closer
21:00we'll see if we can get closer
21:02we'll see if we can get closer
21:04we'll be three a hell of a larry on show to umana
21:05and he's looking to uncork it
21:09the friend is senpai arrival but he's going down to him and i know no cross
21:14the crucifix there nearly got it
21:18going to try again
21:19maestro
21:23even closer third time
21:27the charm
21:36no i'm not going to go the other way
21:38well hoisted in position second
21:53downstairs to the bread basket wins fantasma and going to hook up the arms tries to see
21:59what's this now
22:16for nelson for murray murray the cracker the wicked dragon suplex
22:20suplex
22:24and that leaves fantasma
22:28the rumor flies but fantasma falls the second chapter
22:34umino on top and that is all two points on the board
22:40the show
23:01you
23:02rumors
23:02shot
23:03umino you show you show is japanese for victory
23:06And we'll see whether it connects to Walt's Aggie victory, but two points on the board
23:13right now.
23:14Lost in future right there in one frame.
23:21Tana has his last goodbye to Fujisawa, not a successful one.
23:49Tana and Umino might well be the next to carry the torch for Hontai.
23:56And there is still a long way to go in World Tag League competition for both of these teams.
24:02Only one match down of seven league matches to come.
24:07And Umino is saying leave Hontai to me.
24:14And Tana actually looking at Urumura, what's Urumura gonna have to say?
24:22I don't know what to make of that.
24:29Maybe we're about to see that edge that you were asking if they got.
24:36Well, I mean, there was a lot in that little clip right there.
24:44So soon it all sends it, trying to ask the outback, Tasma leave Hontai to me, a very humble bow to his two senpai.
24:51And Urumura didn't dip his head.
24:53Huh?
24:54Maybe it's something, maybe it's nothing, but there was, there was a lot of smellness to that.
25:09We'll see him on Tuesday, El Fantasma and Tallahassee will take on Naomi Takahashi and David Finlay.
25:29Speaking of, David Finlay and Naomi Takahashi, they'll be up next against the Holt Cup Brothers.
25:37Now the main event coming up next.
25:42Whoever wins, your boys win.
25:45Oni Takahashi, Sheikawa.
25:47Oni Takahashi, she'll be up next to the Holt Cup f vent, he'll be up next to the Holt Cup.
25:51Come on, over here!
25:52Oni Takahashi, Sheikawa!
25:56Oni Takahashi, Sheikawa!
26:00Oni Takahashi, El Hansekkunior, and Oni Takahashi, are one of the best players whoидs from the URESA team.
26:04I think a lot will be made of that little clip of that post-match scene right there.
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