The New Japan Cup is down to its final four after the quarterfinals wrapped up Thursday in Shizuoka featuring a significant upset.
In the most notable outcome, David Finlay pinned Jay White to advance to the semi-finals.
It was a standard match with most assuming it was a foregone conclusion that White would advance. Gedo constantly got involved, which ended when Juice Robinson removed him from ringside and neither returned.
White threw Finlay hard into the corner shoulder first, which calls back to Finlay’s torn labrum injury from two years ago. Finlay fought back attempting the stunner but was blocked.
White hit the sleeper suplex, set up for the Blade Runner and it was countered with the stunner and Finlay hit the Acid Drop for the surprise victory in 19:26.
White was stunned and sold the shock effectively as he walked to the back. Finlay is now the Cinderella story of the New Japan Cup and the ending came off well.
The match was well worked and peaked for the final minutes with the counters and reversals and felt like a genuine surprise when Finlay won.
In the main event, Will Ospreay defeated SANADA in a match centered around Ospreay’s nose.
Ospreay continually yelled that his nose was broken, and it became a target for SANADA. I have never seen someone sell their nose quite to the extent Ospreay did, and the entire match was focused on the injury.
Ospreay freaked out when SANADA finally grabbed the nose with Ospreay playing it to the tilt. Later, Ospreay did a face wash trying to injure SANADA’s nose.
The athleticism from each was stellar and so fluid in their movements, which stood out.
Ospreay removed his elbow pad, went for the OsCutter but was caught in Skull End. Eventually, SANADA went for the moonsault and landed on Ospreay’s knees. When Ospreay finally escaped Skull End, he grabbed his nose from the grip being applied for so long and was excellent detail.
Ospreay kicked out of the O’Connor roll, was sent into the air and came down with a poison ‘rana, and hit the OsCutter. It ended with Ospreay striking the neck and hitting the Storm Breaker in 18:57.
It wasn’t the best Ospreay or SANADA match of the tournament but a very satisfying main event, and the selling of the nose was very unique and Ospreay did it tremendously well.
Ospreay cut a promo assuming he was facing Jay White and was informed David Finlay won, and began laughing off this match and would end the Cinderella story in Sendai.
Backstage, Ospreay stated that Finlay once called him “stupid” and admitted he isn’t that smart about what’s going on in the world outside of wrestling but asked Finlay how it will feel to lose to someone you called stupid? He ended by telling Finlay after he wins, “you can piss off to whatever territory you’re doing after New Japan”.
The semi-finals take place on Saturday from Sendai with Will Ospreay vs. David Finlay and EVIL vs. Shingo Takagi with the winners meeting on Sunday to determine the New Japan Cup winner.
