12 Ups & 5 Downs From NJPW The New Beginning In Osaka 2019

11. G.O.D.'s Gonna Cut You Down

Tama Tonga Toru Yano
NJPW

Billed as a number one contendership scrap, the Guerrillas of Destiny/Most Violent Players tag match was more of a glorified angle than anything else. The Bullet Club affiliates battered Toru Yano and Togi Makabe as they made their entrance. No longer the 'Good Guy,' Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa gained an insurmountable advantage over the opposition, and were never in danger of losing after the bell had rung, surprising anyone who'd expected a straight-up tag between these two teams.

It wasn't any kind of "great match," but it worked. G.O.D. came off suitably dominant. Their mauling of Yano and Makabe was effective, particularly after the 'Good Guy' story, and that New Japan don't often book tags like this meant it felt fresh even after Tama's troublesome G1 Climax run in 2018.

Tonga and Loa should now go on to face EVIL and SANADA for the IWGP Tag Team Championships, having lost the straps to them inside the Tokyo Dome. With their current moment, and with what happened to other Bullet Club members on the show, they should be considered the favourites.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.