Many of our readers turned up for the incredible Wrestle Kingdom 9 pay-per-view this January, which was the first time New Japan Pro Wrestling was broadcast on U.S. television with English commentary. Anyone who has seen the event knows Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship went down as an instant classic, and is a front-runner for the 2015 Match of the Year.
I am beyond excited to inform you that their match may have been topped.
At this weekend’s New Beginning in Sendai pay-per-view, Tomohiro Ishii wrestled Tomoaki Honma for the vacant NEVER Openweight Championship, in a surprise match that was never supposed to happen.
Former champion Togi Makabe was unable to attend the show. It’s being reported that he came down with a severe case of the flu, resulting in New Japan stripping him of the title. What makes this scenario more interesting is that Makabe had just won the belt from Ishii in January at Wrestle Kingdom.
You can watch the entire show right now on New Japan World.
