June 21, 2009 – Fukuoka, Japan
CIMA has been busy lately, and the Brave Gate championship is on the line again. Here’s the championship rundown:
Open the Dream Gate Champion: Naruki Doi
Open the Twin Gate Champions: Ryo Saito & Genki Horiguchi
Open the Triangle Gate Champions: Masato Yoshino, BxB Hulk & PAC
Open the Brave Gate Champion: CIMA
The show starts with a recap of last week’s Twin Gate title match, in which Shingo Takagi was taped to the ropes while Ryo Saito finished off Dragon Kid. They also show KAGETORA putting Taku Iwasa out of action in the process of taking the Triangle Gate belts from Kamikaze. Tonight Iwasa is back, and Kamikaze starts their road back to relevance.
Masato Yoshino {W1}, BxB Hulk {W1} & Naoki Tanisaki {W1} vs. Dragon Kid {K}, Taku Iwasa {K} & Akira Tozawa {K}
So I was under the impression that Tozawa’s victory over Tanisaki on the episode before this one meant this was going to be for the Triangle Gate titles. I apologize for my mistake. Tanisaki and Tozawa start but don’t do anything of note. Kid and Yoshino tag in and fly around the ring. Yoshino hits the Sling Blade. Iwasa and Hulk tag in and the crowd goes wild for Taku. Iwasa hits a big shoulder tackle. Tanisaki tags in and hits a side Russian legsweep. Tozawa rushes in and gets beaten down. Bulk and Tanisaki hit a double uranage. Yoshino hits a senton for 2. Tozawa comes back with a hurricanrana for 2. Yoshino hits the Torbellino and Tanisaki hits the Casanova for 2. Iwasa runs in and helps Kid hit the super hurricanrana on Tanisaki. He hits the Gouwan for 2. He hits the Noshigami for the win at 7:14 shown of 13:32. Takagi teamed with Kenshin Chikano to take on the Zetsurins earlier on this show, but I’d have preferred to see him in this match, because as is nothing all that spectacular was featured here. Still, it’s nice to have Iwasa back.
Rating: **
After the match Iwasa asks World-1 for a shot at the Triangle Gate belts at the Kobe PPV. It will be him and the duo he teamed with here. Yoshino agrees to the match. If I were Yoshino I would have said no since the guy who got pinned is the one guy on the World-1 team that isn’t a Triangle Gate champion.
Gamma {W1} vs. Akebono {Z}
I just don’t understand Dragon Gate’s obsession with this lard. Why do they bring in Akebono and Tokyo Gurentai so often when there is so much talent in Japan? Anyway, in the singles division Gamma is coming off of a failed Dream Key attempt. Akebono is blown up and covered in sweat from his walk to the ring. He wants a test of strength, so Gamma stands on the second rope to match his height. Gamma gets cheap with punches so Akebono slaps him to the floor. Gamma pulls his neck down on the top rope. He hits a dropkick off the top. KAGETORA holds the big man while Gamma gives him the Osuikougeki. Akebono swats KAGETORA away and clubs Gamma to the mat for 2. He pins Gamma down with his foot and gives him the Osuikougeki. He hits an avalanche in the corner. He hits an elbowdrop for 2. Gamma goes to the eyes. He grabs the cane but Akebono steals it away and breaks it. Gamma gets a second cane and nails Akebono with it. He goes for a sunset flip, and the dodges the inevitable Bonzai Drop. Gamma hits an enziguiri and a superkick. He spits in Akebono’s face and hits a facebuster for 2. He hits a low blow. Akebono gets a takedown for 2. He hits the big splash for the win at 5:53 shown of 7:58. What did that accomplish exactly? Now one-half of the Twin Gate challengers looks like a fool. Points only for nobody embarrassing themselves in this match.
Rating: ½*
CIMA © {W5} vs. Kenichiro Arai {RH} [Open the Brave Gate Championship No Ropes Match]
Arai pinned CIMA in a big elimination match a few episodes back, and thus became the only person to pin CIMA in 2009 to this point. That’s how he got this shot. Arai starts the match groggy and drunk on the mat. CIMA hits a high kick and Arai looks to be out. He presses Arai against the post and unloads kicks. Arai pivots and CIMA kicks the post. Arai quickly goes after the leg. He puts on a figure 4, and with no ropes to go to CIMA rolls to the floor. Saito attacks CIMA there. Cyber Kong tries to force whiskey down CIMA’s throat. Real Hazard tapes CIMA to the post and he gets counted out at 3:26. Real Hazard congratulates Arai as he celebrates with the belt. I didn’t know you could win Open the Brave Gate by count out. Arai goes to leave but Akebono comes out and physically forces him back into the ring. At least he’s good for something. CIMA thanks the fat lard and demands the match be restarted. Arai agrees to the restart.
CIMA attacks at the bell. He dumps Arai to the floor and hits a bodyslam there. Back in the ring he chokes Arai. He pulls a dolly out from under the ring. He hits Arai with a senton, knocks him onto the dolly and then rolls it to the floor. Back in the ring Arai hits a drop toehold and Yasushi Kanda hits a blue box shot. Arai puts CIMA on the dolly and rolls him to the floor. Real Hazard and the WARRIORS-5 all tart brawling. Arai chokes CIMA with part of the guardrail. He tapes a wrench to his arm and clubs CIMA around with it. He digs the wrench into CIMA’s face. Kanda crotches CIMA on the post. Arai props a ladder against CIMA’s shoulders and hits it repeatedly with a chair. He puts on a nerve hold. He makes a chair pile and whiplash spinebusters CIMA onto it. Kanda and Saito tie CIMA up with a rope and Horiguchi hits him with a chair. In response Yokosuka and KAGETORA clothesline Arai with a ladder. CIMA hits Arai with a superkick and the Schwein for 2. He grabs Arai’s sake bottle, demonstrates that it’s real by hitting it against the post, but then misses a shot and gets sake in his eyes. Arai does the Terry Funk ladder spin, into which CIMA blindly walks. He hits a tiger suplex for 2. He sets up a ladder and another chair pile. He slams CIMA on the pile. He climbs the ladder but CIMA pops up and suplexes him off of it onto the pile. CIMA brings a bigger ladder to ringside. He rams the small ladder into Arai’s chest. Now how to explain what happens next: The WARRIORS hold the ladder upside down on Arai’s chest and thread a table through the rungs. CIMA climbs the larger ladder and double stomps the table, shoving the ladder into Arai’s chest. That spot came off much better than I expected it to. CIMA hits the Schwein and the Meteora for the win at 15:15 shown of 22:45. This had all the overbooking you’d expect in a big heel vs. heel match. Most of the match was nonsense, including the finish, but I enjoyed it in a perverse sort of way. Though I would like to beg Dragon Gate not to have this kind of match again.
Rating: **¾
After the match CIMA calls out anyone in the world to challenge him for the Brave Gate title at the Kobe PPV. Naruki Doi walks out, presumably upset that nobody answered his own Dream Gate challenge on last week’s episode. He accepts CIMA’s challenge, and a title vs. title match is made for Kobe. I believe this is the first time such a match has happened in Dragon Gate.
So the Pro Wrestling Festival looks like this so far:
Open the Dream/Brave Gate Championship Match – Naruki Doi vs. CIMA
Open the Triangle Gate Championship Match – Masato Yoshino, BxB Hulk & PAC vs. Taku Iwasa, Dragon Kid & Akira Tozawa
Next week CIMA and Gamma get their shot at the Twin Gate belts. Also, YAMATO’s status in Dragon Gate, and more specifically Real Hazard, will be addressed when he returns from New Japan.
