NJPW New Japan Cup Night Four: Results and Analysis

Toru Yano (CHAOS) vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (Suzuki-gun)

Yano started the match with some usual shenanigans, throwing his jacket into Davey’s face and attempting to tape him to the top rope. Davey would have none of that though, as every time Yano tried to cheat, Davey seemed to be one step ahead. After the action spilled to the outside of the ring, Davey almost succeeded in getting Yano counted out, but Yano made it back in.

Back in the ring, Davey locked in a headscissors, grabbed Yano’s hand, and made him tap out. The ref saw through this charade and did not ring the bell. Davey hit the ropes, and Yano threw the ref at him. Davey threw the ref to the mat. Yano threw the ref to the mat again and went for a chair but Davey used it against Yano. Davey locked in a crossface on Yano, but Yano refused to tap out. Yano made it the ropes, but just barely.

Yano managed to slingshot Smith into the exposed turnbuckle. He also managed to hit a low blow while distracting the ref and rolling up Smith. Davey kicked out and hit a powerslam, but he couldn’t cover Yano. Yano attempted to tape Smith’s legs to the ropes, but Smith was too powerful and sent Yano flying halfway up the entrance aisle. Yano and Davey brawled for a little while outside. Davey went to hit Yano, but Yano dodged, and Davey crashed crotch first into the guardrail. Yano rolled back into the ring and got the count out win!

Result: Toru Yano (5 out of 7 predictions correct for round one)

Rating: 2.25 stars out of 5

Don’t let the star rating fool you. This was fun. It was not a particularly good match, but it was a ton of fun. NJPW does that well with Yano, as he is always entertaining. While his matches are never that great, they always prove to be fun. Sometimes that means a lot more than having a 5 star match. Yano knows his role, and NJPW is great at booking him in it.