NJPW: 5 Standout Performances From New Japan Cup 2019
#2: Tomohiro Ishii
It shouldn’t be unexpected that Ishii had some of the best matches of the entire tournament, but his inclusion on the list is due to the insane quality of matches he produced as well as the way he dragged others up to his level to make them look great even in defeat.
Make no bones about it – Ishii is one of my favorites in New Japan and my views may be entirely biased. But then, how could Ishii not be in your list of favorites? He constantly delivers and his placement on the card is akin to that of Chris Jericho’s WWE runs. He can go with anyone on the card and can instantly be believed as a championship contender with very little work.
Ishii’s path to the finals was a pretty unique one. In round one, he squared off with Yuji Nagata in a predictably fantastic match. These two were set to meet as part of the New Beginning USA shows but visa issues plagued the New Japan roster and they were unable to travel for the shows.
It always felt more sensible to me for this match to happen on Japanese soil anyway, so maybe there was a silver lining in the fallout of the US tour after all. Ishii/Nagata became an early favorite of mine and while some other matches may have eventually beat it out for my top 5 list it was right on the cusp.
Nagata is on a quest to prove that he can still go and has a dream of winning the IWGP Heavyweight Title at 50 years-old. Ishii is no spring chicken himself – at 43, he has just as much to prove as the Nagatas and Kojimas of the world. In their first round encounter, Ishii did just that.
There isn’t much else to be said about the Ishii/Taichi match that hasn’t already been said in this article, just that Ishii deserves so much credit for bringing Taichi up to his level. Taichi isn’t necessarily regarded as a workhorse the same way Ishii is, but if this was your first exposure to both men you wouldn’t have a reason to think otherwise.
In the quarterfinals, Ishii once again boosted the status of his opponent. While I am a YOSHI-HASHI hopeful and am aching to see him break out, it can’t be argued that many of his matches are just okay at best. He often isn’t as dynamic as his opponents and it’s easy for him to get lost in the shuffle.
Against Ishii, though, YH had something to prove. In a battle of CHAOS teammates, Ishii was out to not only make it to the semifinals but to win a fight against a YOSHI-HASHI who gave it his all. Out of the same desire many fans have to see YOSHI-HASHI step into another gear, Ishii antagonized his stablemate until something snapped.
Just as Taichi did in round two, YOSHI-HASHI fought back and even balanced on the line between victory and defeat. What’s more impressive, though, is that through Ishii’s handiwork, YH became a believable foil and someone who could conceivably spoil the tournament for the Stone Pitbull.
Ishii would, of course, make it to the semifinals where he would fall to Okada in a classic match. That those two had such a fantastic match is about as obvious an outcome as getting wet when going outside in the rain without an umbrella. You know it’s going to happen, so while it is a fun watch it’s not as much of a surprise. The curse of greatness strikes again!
Many doubt that Ishii will ever reach the top spot in New Japan Pro Wrestling. I’m still holding out hope that he’ll have an IWGP Heavyweight Title run at some point before he hangs it up. The value of an Ishii title chase and victory can’t be undersold, nor can the rising value of the person who could come along to dethrone him.