Four championship matches and the return of Kazushi Sakuraba highlight New Japan’s Road to Destruction cards in September.
The promotion rolled out multiple title match announcements on Monday stemming from angles shot over the weekend during the conclusion of the G1 Climax.
After ‘Capital Collision’ on August 30, NJPW returns to Japan for eleven Road to Destruction events throughout September in the lead-up to Destruction in Kobe on September 29.
The tour begins September 6 in Nagoya and will continue with back-to-back nights at Korakuen Hall on September 8 & 9 and includes seven shows throughout Hokkaido.
The September 8 show at Korakuen Hall will be highlighted by Jeff Cobb defending the Television Championship against Yota Tsuji. It is a rematch from the final night of the round-robin tournament where Tsuji pinned Cobb to clinch a playoff spot.
The next night features Hiromu Takahashi challenging HENARE for the NEVER Openweight Championship after the five-time Jr. Heavyweight Champion pinned HENARE in a tag match this past weekend.
In Sendai on September 11, DOUKI defends the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship against Taiji Ishimori.
The fourth championship match on the tour sees Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano & Oleg Boltin defend the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Titles against David Finlay, Jake Lee & Gabe Kidd on September 14. Yano is scheduled for two matches on this card as he will open the card teaming with Kazushi Sakuraba against Young Lions, Masatora Yasuda & Daiki Nagai.
Sakuraba has wrestled a limited schedule with Pro Wrestling NOAH over the past several years. He was a regular in NJPW from 2012 until; 2016. He last wrestled in June on Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport Budhido event against Santino Marella.
