8 Major Talking Points From NJPW Dominion In Osaka

4. There Is A Place For Suzuki-Gun, After All

Kenny Omega Dominion
njpw1972.com

The Suzuki-Gun stable angered Pro Wrestling NOAH fans over the past two years as a result of their total domination. That trend has continued in New Japan this year. Taichi, in particular, drew the ire of fans everywhere with his cheap heat exploits in the recent Best Of The Super Juniors Tournament.

Faction boss Minoru Suzuki’s match with Hirooki Goto proved that their cartoonish shortcuts do have a (context-dependent) place in the straight-laced league.

The Lumberjack Death match - with Suzuki-Gun and CHAOS providing the ringside henchmen - made perfect use of the one-dimensional stable by incorporating them in an entertaining fusion of strong style and sports entertainment. A great early spot saw Suzuki-Gun hold Goto in place before Suzuki ran the length of the entrance ramp to kick him square in the face before launching a guardrail at his prone body.

Suzuki, a fantastic heel, surveyed the subsequent beatdown by sitting in the ring, almost bored, propping his face up with his hand before d*mn near dislocating Goto’s hand with some sick contortion work.

The objective had been achieved; the already molten Osaka crowd went nuts for Goto’s comebacks and the crazed ringside brawling.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!