NJPW Strong Style Evolved: Results, Grades, and Analysis

Hangman Page (Bullet Club) vs. Jay White (CHAOS) (c) IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship

These two being given the co-main event spot is a hard task, as neither man has been fully established as a main eventer in NJPW. Nonetheless, Page and White worked very hard to get the fans into it. The fans were clearly enjoying the match but were not as into it as the previous ones. That was kind of expected though, and they worked well.

One of the craziest spots in the match happened when Jay White hit a German Suplex to the floor, with Hangman Page backflipping and crashing to the mat. It looked far worse than it was, but one inch closer to the apron, and Page would have been seriously hurt. White hit a lot of hard strikes and chops. Page tried to stay on top with faster paced offense. Page then went for the right of Passage but couldn’t hit it.

White hit a half nelson suplex and followed it with the Kiwi Krusher but Page kicked out. After an exchange of finisher attempts, White reversed a Rite of Passage into the Blade Runner and got the pinfall!

Result: Jay White

Rating 3.5 stars out of 5

Both men worked very hard in this match, despite only a little heat. By the end of the match they had the crowd buying that Hangman Page was going to win. That is an absolute credit to them. Both men got to highlight all their major moves and came across as stars. That is exactly what you need to do to get over, and this bodes well for both men in NJPW. That is what it is all about.

David Finlay attacked White after the match and challenged for the IWGP US championship at the end of April! There’s the reason Finlay has been getting wins of late, as he build momentum to a title shot. Will Jay White’s respond to this attack be swift and violent?