12 Ups & 6 Downs From NJPW Best Of The Super Juniors 2019

5. Underwhelming Debuts

El Phantasmo Bandido
NJPW

A mixed bag of newcomers entered this year's Best of the Super Juniors tournament, and while the likes of Shingo Takagi absolutely soared, others didn't fare so well.

The much-hyped El Phantasmo took several tournament bouts to truly get going, looking very much like he was struggling with the pace in an early match with Ring Of Honor standout Bandido. He came alive towards the end and eventually delivered bangers with Rocky Romero and Will Ospreay, and will play a big role going forward, but could have made a hotter start.

Bandido had a similar tournament. His Ospreay bout was one of the competition's finest, but the much-hyped prospect's other contests didn't jump off the screen. CMLL's Titan was disappointing as well, and looked like a decidedly ordinary luchador for the bulk of his BOSJ, though the Dragon Lee clash delivered.

Conversely, rubber-limbed innovator Jonathan Gresham had a great run. More of him, please.

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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.