Welcome to this POST Wrestling report on New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Power Struggle. The event took place in Osaka Prefectural Gym in Osaka on 7th November 2020.
- King of Pro Wrestling 2020, no corner pads match: Toru Yano (c) vs Zack Sabre Jr – Turnbuckle based comedy and drama, not as good as their G1 match.
- NEVER Openweight Championship: Minoru Suzuki (c) vs Shingo Takagi – Probably the match of the night. Suzuki targets Takagi’s lower back, limiting Takagi’s options. Possibly the weakest of their 3 matches. – RECOMMENDED
- Great O-Khan vs Kazuchika Okada – A basic, uninspiring Okada. The post-match promos set up a match for Wrestle Kingdom.
- IWGP US Heavyweight Right to Challenge Contract match: KENTA vs Hiroshi Tanahashi – A good match with a very different finishing stretch for a modern New Japan match. – RECOMMENDED
- IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Double Championship Right to Challenge Contract match: Kota Ibushi vs Jay White – A good match where White focused on Ibushi’s midsection. The finishing counter sequences are well balanced. – RECOMMENDED
- IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Double Championship Match: Tetsuya Naito (c) vs EVIL – My favorite of the post heel turn Naito vs EVIL matches. Slightly faster paced with more variety in the interference and a hot crowd. Very overbooked but much more entertaining than I expected. – RECOMMENDED
King of Pro Wrestling 2020, no corner pads match: Toru Yano (c) vs Zack Sabre Jr
Sabre Jr defeated Yano during the G1 Climax in one of the better Yano matches in the last few years. After multiple matches on the Road to Power Struggle shows involved Yano removing corner pads and Sabre Jr replacing them it was decided that this would be a no corner pads match.
The match started with bickering while the corner pads were removed by the Young Lions and New Japan staff. Yano promises to not use the exposed turnbuckles. That promise lasted about 30 seconds. Yano got whipped into the turnbuckles repeatedly, so he tried to put the turnbuckle pad back on. Both wrestlers used their own brand of tricks to catch their opponent off guard. Yano finally replaced a corner pad and then whipped Sabre Jr into it which got a big laugh from the crowd.
Sabre Jr worked over Yano’s left leg on the mat until Yano hit a belly to belly Suplex and finally sent Sabre Jr into an exposed turnbuckle. Yano got some roll-up pins before Sabre Jr caught 2 attempts at a low blow and turned it into the European clutch for a near fall. That was transitioned into a kneebar, but Yano fought and eventually reached the ropes. Sabre Jr used the guardrail to apply a kneebar on the outside. As the referee counted Yano tied Sabre Jr’s shoelaces together while he was in the hold. When Sabre Jr released the hold to run back to the ring he was trapped, and Yano managed to make it back in to win by count-out.
Toru Yano defeated Zack Sabre Jr by count-out (12:11)
This was a lot of comedy based around bickering and exposed turnbuckles that evolved into some decent near falls and some nice drama around the heel hold. The finish was well done and logical, but their G1 Climax match was superior. This was an okay opener and a decent match, but it lacked much of what made their G1 match fresh. The gimmick with the exposed turnbuckles did not lead to anything interesting.
NEVER Openweight Championship: Minoru Suzuki © vs Shingo Takagi
Their match at Summer Struggle was many people’s favorite match from that show. The rematch took place during the G1 Climax, where Takagi beat Suzuki to earn this match for the NEVER Openweight Championship.
The match started with multiple forearm exchanges before Suzuki and Takagi graduated to headbutts. Suzuki eventually locked in his armbar in the ropes and used the guard rails and a chair to punish Takagi’s lower back. Back in the ring, Suzuki continued to target the back with kicks and submissions. Takagi eventually fought back with a backdrop suplex, but he felt the damage to his back. Takagi gained control and even used a Genichiro Tenryu style top rope elbow drop but the damage to his back hampered everything. Takagi mocked Suzuki with cheeky strikes before they traded hard forearm shots. Suzuki stole an advantage by grabbing the hair and the pace suddenly increased.
Takagi countered a Gotch Style Piledriver into a Death Valley Driver but Suzuki no-sold that and a big Lariat, although he would collapse soon after. Takagi hit an opportunistic DDT and went for Made in Japan but his bad back let Suzuki escape. After trading their signature strikes Suzuki nailed Takagi with a dropkick and locked in the Boston Crab, where Takagi eventually grabbed the ropes. Suzuki locked in a sleeper and Takagi tried to counter the Gotch Style Piledriver but his back gave out. Takagi fought back with a headbutt and a shoulder tackle. Suzuki just about managed to absorb a trio of standing Pumping Bombers. The strike exchange that followed felt a little awkward and Takagi repeatedly nailed Suzuki with Pumping Bombers while being unable to run the ropes due to his back. Takagi managed to wear down Suzuki enough to hit the Last of the Dragon to regain the NEVER Openweight Championship.
Shingo Takagi pinned Minoru Suzuki (18:56)
This was a very good match, although it could be seen as the weakest of the three Suzuki vs Takagi singles matches. The story of Suzuki working the back was really well done and Takagi’s selling of the back was great. The finish, with Takagi using all his power and spirit to beat Suzuki while being essentially immobile was a great idea. It worked well but it also felt a little clunky at times. Part of that may have been Suzuki’s selling. The early strike exchanges felt a little by the numbers and your enjoyment of the match will rely on how much you like the drama around Takagi’s back.
Great O-Khan vs Kazuchika Okada
Road to Power Struggle matches has shown that Great O-Khan looks more comfortable than he was during his excursion in Revolution Pro Wrestling. This was O-Khan’s first singles opportunity since his return, and this is the only match on the card that is not a rematch from this year’s G1-Climax. O-Khan was accompanied by Will Ospreay in a suit.
O-Khan jumped Okada during his entrance and O-Khan quickly used Mongolian Chops, although the last one was more of a Mongolian Push. O-Khan dominated Okada on the outside. O-Khan continued this in the ring with uninspiring offense until Okada hit a flapjack. The match was quite even with a back and forth structure as both wrestlers found chances to hit big moves. O-Khan followed up a head and arm choke with more Mongolian Chops, but Okada countered with the dropkick and a Tombstone Piledriver. The Money Clip was applied but The Great O-Khan broke it up with an Iron Claw. Okada used an arm drag to escape the Eliminator Iron Claw slam, but he was cut off. O-Khan followed with his stalling reverse suplex and looked for the Eliminator. After a series of counters, Okada nailed the rolling clothesline and locked in the Money Clip which caused O-Khan to pass out.
After the match, Ospreay got on the microphone. He claimed that he used Okada to become popular. His focus is on being the best wrestler in the world. He boasted about his expensive purchases and claimed that he wants to end Okada’s career at the Tokyo Dome. Okada accepted the challenge.
Kazuchika Okada submitted Great O-Khan (12:58)
This was O-Khan’s opportunity to show what he could do and sadly he did not up his game here. There were some decent counters, but O-Khan’s pacing and execution were uninspiring. This was a basic, by the numbers Okada match. It was an okay match but easily one of the blandest Okada matches in recent memory. It did not inspire hope for O-Khan’s next year in New Japan. Ospreay’s promo felt like someone who watched a lot of Ric Flair promos, which would explain him using the Figure Four recently. The promo felt quite cringe at times.
IWGP US Heavyweight Right to Challenge Contract match: KENTA vs Hiroshi Tanahashi
Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated KENTA in the G1 Climax and then challenged for the IWGP US Championship right to challenge contract. KENTA started by repeatedly messing up Tanahashi’s hair. There were a lot of mind games early on, including a repeat of the briefcase spot from their G1 match which saw KENTA gain control. He worked over Tanahashi’s neck, sprinkling in some mocking kicks and some “air piano”. Tanahashi hit a Dragon Screw in the corner and gained control. KENTA fought back with a tornado neck snap and a flying clothesline but Tanahashi reached the ropes before GAME OVER could be locked in. Tanahashi kicks out of a cover and KENTA uses the momentum to take out the referee.
KENTA grabbed the right to challenge briefcase and KENTA got hit in the struggle. This briefcase might be one of the World’s most ineffective foreign objects, which is fitting since it seems to be made of cardboard. They fought back to their feet with strikes, both blocking big strikes before Tanahashi landed a big slap. Tanahashi countered the first Go to Sleep attempt into a series of Twist and Shouts. A second Go to Sleep attempt was countered into a Sling Blade. Tanahashi locked in the Texas Cloverhold but KENTA managed to transition into the GAME OVER. Tanahashi managed to struggle out and fought for the Texas Cloverhold but KENTA again transitioned into the GAME OVER. Tanahashi tried to reach the ropes but KENTA rolled away from them and Tanahashi tapped out.
KENTA submitted Hiroshi Tanahashi (19:57)
This was a good match with a great but different finish. It is rare for a modern New Japan finishing stretch to be built around fighting to counter submissions, but it worked really well to add variety. In many ways, this was a typical New Japan KENTA match but these two have good chemistry. Ultimately this does feel a bit forgettable, but it was still good.
IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Double Championship Right to Challenge Contract match: Kota Ibushi vs Jay White
Jay White earned this opportunity as Kota Ibushi’s contract by being 1 of only 2 wrestlers to defeat Ibushi in this year’s G1 Climax. White stole the right to challenge briefcase to create an opening for a cheap shot. Ibushi quickly cut White off with a running kick and started kicking away at the back. White used Ibushi’s hair to pull him down onto the ring apron and followed up with a front suplex onto the apron. The Kiwi controlled the match before Ibushi hit a dropkick and a Plancha. Ibushi was back on top with kicks and a standing Moonsault as the crowd got behind him. White rolled out of the way of a Moonsault but Ibushi landed face-first on Whites back.
After recovering, White used a gutbuster and another front suplex, clearly targeting Ibushi’s midsection. Ibushi won a short forearm exchange and hits a snap release Frankensteiner. White escaped a lawn dart attempt but got caught with a German suplex. The favor was returned when White hit Ibushi with a deadlift German suplex and a Uranage suplex. White uses a series of body blows but Ibushi managed to use the Bastard driver. White dodged a Boma Ye but Ibushi landed a head kick. A Kame-Go-Ye attempt was blocked as White attacked Ibushi’s exposed gut. After a short counter sequence Gedo got on the apron. Ibushi kicked Gedo and seemed to have the match won but White used a backslide with his feet on the ropes to pin Ibushi and steal the victory. For the first time since its inception, someone has lost the Wrestle Kingdom right to challenge briefcase.
Jay White pinned Kota Ibushi (18:47)
This did not live up to their best match against each other but again, this was a good match. White has had a good 2020 in New Japan and this was another good showing. His selling was good, and he did a great job with the strategy of targeting the midsection, which makes a lot of sense due to how exposed it is during the Kame-Go-Ye. What I appreciated was that this felt tighter and less excessive in the finishing stretch. The finish was a big shock and White using the Backslide with the feet on the ropes was a great choice that also leads to Ibushi wanting to get revenge on White.
IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental Double Championship Match: Tetsuya Naito (c) vs EVIL –
This was the fourth match between these two in the last 6 months. This was also the third consecutive match on this show with a Bullet Club member in it. Tetsuya Naito controlled the early goings with submissions targeting the neck. Naito stopped Dick Togo from interfering on the outside but EVIL capitalized, wiping out the New Japan ring announcer at the same time. Naito fought back in the ring, but it was met with an Irish whip into an exposed turnbuckle. The match went back outside, and EVIL again wiped out the ring announcer by ramming Naito into the guard rail. This gave Togo the opportunity to hit Naito with a chair.
Naito made his comeback and it felt like this was being wrestled at a faster pace than their previous matches. This was an injection of energy that the match sorely needed, so of course, Naito applied a neck lock on the mat. Togo remonstrated on the apron, which gave EVIL the opportunity to clothesline Naito over the top rope and use his signature convoluted chair spot. EVIL hit a Fisherman Buster for 2 but Naito countered the Darkness Falls into a swinging DDT. The exposed turnbuckle was used to let EVIL regain momentum, with a big superplex setting up the Sasorigatame as the crowd woke up and clapped for Naito to reach the ropes. Naito did so and the crowd was really hot in this match. EVIL shrugs off a German suplex but got nailed by Naito’s Spinebuster. Naito had all the momentum with a top rope Frankensteiner and the Gloria but the first Destino was countered by a German Suplex. That got no sold and Naito used two consecutive Destino’s only for Togo to drag the referee out of the ring!
In the ring, Togo used the garotte on Naito and the crowd was audibly angry. Yujiro Takahashi ran in and hit Naito with the Pimp Juice DDT, only for SANADA to run in. SANADA wiped out Togo and Yujiro, dragging them both to the back. Evil swung Naito’s leg into the referee and both wrestlers hit low blows. Jay White came down to the ring and teased hitting the Switchblade on EVIL before he attacked Naito instead. Kota Ibushi ran in and chased off White. Naito struggled and forced EVIL into the exposed turnbuckle with the crowd firmly behind him. The referee ducked to avoid another ref bump, which allowed EVIL to hit a low blow and a Lariat. Naito avoided the Evil and hit a big slap, Valentina, and Destino to win the match.
After the match White came out and challenged Naito for the IWGP Double Championship at Wrestle Kingdom Night 2 on January 5th. That is a rematch from last year’s Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night 1 semi-main event. Naito mocked White during this promo and Ibushi returned to chase White off. Naito ended the show with a promo of his own.
Tetsuya Naito pinned EVIL (33:08)
I have found the Naito vs EVIL matches a struggle this year. I would easily call this my favorite of the four. It had many of the flaws of their previous encounters; It was too long, Dick Togo got involved a lot, there were multiple ref bumps, and it was very overbooked with the multiple run-ins.
On the other hand, the middle of the match felt like it had a faster pace and the positioning of the spots worked well. They mixed up Togo’s interference and I bought the near fall when Togo pulled the referee out of the ring. The overbooking was excessive, but it also kept my interest and got massive crowd reactions. I loved that SANADA made the save and the intrigue with Jay White worked great. Ibushi coming out to make the save was a good bit of story continuity. While it slowed down at points during the finishing run Naito won clean. I will not call this a great main event, but personally, I felt that this was the best way to book this match if it had to go over 30 minutes.
Show Summary
This was one of the longest New Japan cards for a while. The match general quality was up there with a good (but not great) G1 Climax show. The Okada vs Great O-Khan match was what I should have expected but it led to the first official announcement for Wrestle Kingdom. You could say that three or four of the five rematches were not as good as the G1 Climax 30 version. Despite that, Suzuki vs Takagi is well worth watching, if just for how they told the story of Takagi’s back. All three of their matches had had a different story. New Japan deserves credit for the way that Takagi vs Suzuki, KENTA vs Tanahashi, and even White vs Ibushi felt like they had different finishes that stood out. As I have said earlier, EVIL vs Naito was the best of their 4 matches and if you need to see one then make it this one. The goal for this show was to set up programs for the Tokyo Dome and this show achieved that.
