ZIP JAPAN Archive Thread

A great opener with Mr Suplex really throwing everything he had at Jumbo's bulk, but ultimately the fat one proved too fat.

Super Scorpio X vs Minoru Hoshino O via 619 - 91%
This was just an OK match....both guys had some strong offense, but it seemed to me like it was just getting good when it ended suddenly with a 619 from Hoshino. Scorpio is capable of better, I hope to see him get more of his signature offense in during his next outing.


Nakajima started strong and eliminated Goro Jr, before getting bridged by Mickey Grinds. Then Kenji and Grinds went to war on each other, with both guys kicking out of multiple pin attempts that I thought were gonna be it for sure. Great finish with Kenji following up a double underhook suplex with a big Johnny Spike DDT for the win.


A fantastic ZIP JAPAN debut for Tsukamoto, he easily absorbed everything Katsu dished out, and then nearly killed Katsu by dropping him on his head with The Ice Pick (Burning Hammer). Not the greatest rating but Tsukamoto got instantly over as a legit heel.


A frankly incredible display of Fighting Spirit from Shimura in this match. These guys backdropped the shit out of each other. Shimura made an incredible comeback down the stretch, kicked out of a Demon Driver and COMPLETELY no-sold a sleeper suplex before tossing Otsu off the top with the Iconoclasm. Great stuff.


Another superb debut for two new Junior faces, this was a pretty surprising result. An evenly fought battle between the rookies and the veteran heels, with the victory coming via Hamada's finisher in the middle of the ring. Loved it.


Well, Thunder Fist wanted to square off against the best striker ZIP JAPAN had to offer, and he got his wish in spades. These two stood toe to toe and battered one another with brutal strikes/combos for 17 minutes. Thunder Fist actually managed to get FOUR 2.9s in this match, but eventually the ZIP Strikebot KO'd his opponent...like he ALWAYS does. Still, a great showing from Thunder Fist, he managed to look really strong despite getting KTFO.

Kaneshiro and Kiriyama X vs Jin Matsuda O and Maki Yoshida via Screw Bomb - 97% 29:54
So yeah, Jin Matsuda, the obviously smaller, weaker and less experienced member of Matsuda/Yoshida...PINNED the damn ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Champion in this non-title match! A superb finish sequence, check the video on YouTube. Matsuda's stock is definitely on the rise.

Mad Bomber O vs Akira Shinjo X via Triple Powerbomb - 87% 15:49
Who can stop Mad Bomber? Certainly not Akira Shinjo, not on this night anyways. He laid some vicious kicks into Mad Bomber, but The Living Nightmare is apparently impervious to mere pain. A brutal triple powerbomb and Mad Bomber becomes the #1 contender to Takeshi Kiriyama's Heavyweight Championship...

Shinjo and Shimura become #1 Contenders for the ZIP JAPAN Tag Team Titles.

Big upset here, LLB was one of my picks to go far. The match was solid, much better than the rating indicates.

Early contender for MOTN, Phobia busted out tons of crazy offense, but Marcus managed to survive the onslaught and catch Phobia in a sub.

Another very surprising result. This match was hot while it lasted, but Warrior ONE went for a 'rana when he shouldn't have...

Really impressive win for Kai Lo. The diving knee off the top -> Gator Roll combo was undeniably awesome.

This week's ZIP Classic match up featured a solid showing from both men, but a double dose of Doogan Hammers proved too much for Raiga.

A pretty evenly fought match until the last few minutes when Saint Magic went ballistic and hit an amazing sequence of moves, ending in a 619 -> Majistral. Pretty finish.

Another MOTN contender here, Dias survived two Fresh Drops and won it with a spectacular dive off the top rope.

Excellent back and forth action in this match with several near falls for both guys.

A killer match up to close out the first round of the Super Z Cup, Tlaloc flew halfway across the ring more than once in this one. It will take something special to defeat Tlaloc.

A result that surprised absolutely nobody, Mad Bomber has been absolutely unbeatable recently, and he thoroughly deserved this win...just wish Kiriyama had put up a little more of a fight lol. Now the question is: Who can possibly dethrone Mad Bomber?

First off the pre-show was a ton of fun, Lady V vs Z-Train, Human Hot Dog vs Amber Guesa, TheDenizen vs Tommy Tarantula, Tomas the Tiny Giant vs Fingers the Clown, and capped off by a stellar matchup between Senator and Geese. It usually pays to show up early for ZIP JAPAN events. :D

-Tetsuo K vs White Trash

White Trash doesn't jerk the curtain, he tore it down tonight. He and Tetsuo were both incredible in this, busting out multiple attempts at their deadliest high flying maneuvers and massive impact moves. White Trash kicked out of least 7 or 8 pin attempts that I thought were gonna be it FOR SURE. Tetsuo finally put Trash down with his second Boomerang Kick after more than 30 minutes of breathless action. Easily a contender for MOTN right out of the gate.

-Gorobei Jr vs Kenzo Kobayashi

These two had the unenviable task of following the fantastic opener, and they did an admirable job. It told a great story of the down on his luck Goro Jr, son of a legendary champ who is enduring a horrific losing streak, vs the tag team specialist clearly out of his element. Both guys gave their all, but when Gorobei hit that Olympic Slam and screamed out FINISH! the losing streak was finally broken. Has Gorobei Jr finally turned the corner in his career? Time will tell.

Junior 4-way elimination
-Justin Starr vs ECKO vs Shuji Tsukamoto vs Tora Katsu

Battle Royals are often a cluster, but this was a highspots filled cluster with more whiffed top rope dives than you can shake a stick at. There was also a hilarious spot where two whipped guys crashed together and both bumped, and then immediately after the other two guys ran at each other and did the exact same double bump, leaving all 4 guys in a dazed heap on the canvas. Tsukamoto, forever to be known as the guy who knocked Tlaloc out of the Super Z Cup, did the heavy lifting in this match, eliminating first ECKO and then Starr...before Tora Katsu hit the Katsu Valley Driver out of nowhere for his biggest victory since the return of ZIP JAPAN.

ZIP JAPAN Classic match from the archives - from 2001
-Kintaro vs Crusher Kodo

4th match, 4th 100% rating. This was probably the first time I've ever simmed a Crusher Kodo match that didn't end up a bloodbath. Still, that old man was force of nature in this one, taking everything Kintaro dished out and giving it all back. Kintaro was one of the legit toughest men to ever compete in ZIP JAPAN, but he was overwhelmed by Kodo's brutal forearm assaults. After getting dumped on his head from the ring to the floor twice, Kintaro couldn't answer when Kodo hit a big powerslam pin. A real classic out of the tape library.

-Takeshi Kiriyama/Asano Kaneshiro vs Mickey Grinds/Jimmy Nails

Classic heel tactics at play here. Poor Jimmy Nails got busted open quite early in this match, and then proceeded to get his ass beat. Grinds got into the match a few times, but Nails was largely isolated and bullied by his more experienced opponents. Asano powerbombed him on his head, and that was that.

-Wataru Nakajima vs Kenji Sawada

Nakajima can't seem to catch a victory recently despite having strong performances in almost every match. He used almost every trick in his playbook in this outing against Kenji Sawada, including his rarely seen Avalanche Waterwheel drop. Sawada came back with several powerbombs and piledrivers, but Nakajima was resolute. Nakajima blocked 2 or 3 dragon suplex attempts during the match. Finally it took Sawada hitting his rarely used top rope crossbody dive to keep Nakajima down for the three count. Then after the match, the evil mustachioed one kept up his attack and finally got to hit a dragon suplex lol.

-Super Scorpio vs Yutaro Ichikawa

I think the match rating here reflects the length of the match rather than its quality, as the action was solid from the opening bell. A bit of a contrast in styles, with Scorpio being a more ground based striker and Ichikawa the wild brawler/flyer. The Cannonball 630 senton is a devastating move, and when Ichikawa hits it, the match usually ends. And so it was tonight.

-Demon Otsu vs Mr Suplex

The "feeling out" stage of this match lasted about 5 minutes, and then these two guys just started going crazy, throwing each other everywhere. Otsu was hitting demon Drivers before the 10 minute mark and Mr Suplex did what Mr Suplex always does. Hard hitting action with both guys noticeably getting tired and starting to slow down a bit right before the end. Mr Suplex just couldn't handle the power of Otsu's snap powerslam. A sleeper potential MOTN.

ZIP JAPAN Tag Team Championship - rematch!
-Akira Shinjo/Daisuke Shimura (C) vs Maki Yoshida/Jin Matsuda

Yoshida and Matsuda were on a mission to prove that their loss to Shinjo and Shimura was a fluke, obviously using their more refined tag team skills to good effect for much of the match. First they isolated Shinjo, then Shimura, but both guys were tough enough to absorb the punishment and fight back to their corner without an interference from their partner. I thought Shimura was going to make a save once, but he just got in the ring, did his ROCK N ROLL taunt, and then got back on the apron lol. Shinjo hit a sickening kick to the face of Matsuda and it was all over, team Fighting Spirit with a successful title defense to end the string of hot potato matches with the tag belts being passed around like a cheese tray.

ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Championship
-Mad Bomber (C) vs Thunder Fist

Good lord. Mad Bomber has been an unstoppable force of nature for the past months...and Thunder Fist was the guy who survived a match with ZIP Strikebot. Something big was going to have to happen in his one, and boy did it ever. Force Straight Punch CRITICAL on Mad Bomber. Holy shit Thunder Fist is so legit. I was marking out in my chair, the chat was marking out, it was an amazing moment. Thunder Fist is the new ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Champion! After Mad Bomber got KTFO, who is going to want to face Thunder Fist now?

ZIP JAPAN Junior Heavyweight Championship
-Ichiro Katagiri (C) vs Saburo Hamada

I was admittedly a little worried that this Junior Title match wouldn't quite deliver a main event quality match, but man was I ever wrong about that. This was another excellent story told in the ring, the brash and cocky champion, supremely confident after a string of title defenses, vs the undefeated rookie who won the Super Z Cup, a tourney formed as a direct result of the champ's foolhardy open challenge to the world. This was a wild match with lots of brawling on the floor. There was even a killer spot where they traded finishers on the arena floor. Katagiri's experience won the match for him in the end, but both guys got over huge here. Katagiri gets another big notch in his belt for retaining his title after his open challenge, and Hamada got a huge rub by sharing the ring with someone of Katagiri's caliber and more than holding his own. Another MOTN contender.

BONUS "MATCH"
-King ZIP vs ZIP Strikebot

This was ostensibly some old dojo training footage from the early days of the Strikebot. King ZIP knew right from the get-go that creating the Strikebot was a grave error. King ZIP got a couple of close calls against the OP Robotic monster, but in the end Strikebot proved too much even for the mighty heel King ZIP. It amazes me to this day that King ZIP didn't just have him dismantled.

-Mr Suplex vs Donnie Doogan

A good match but the ending was hampered by the ground logic bug introduced with patch .9011. Doogan should not be winning a match with a Fig 4 :(

Junior Tag match
-ECKO/Satoshi Iguchi vs White Trash/Minoru Hoshino

This was great down the stretch, White Trash was in the middle of his hot babyface comeback (including Yardtard) when ECKO cut him off with a reversal and then nailed his rare top rope Tombstone finish. Devastation.

-Jumbo Jinzei vs Maki Yoshida

Yoshida looked like a million bucks in this match, winning it with his Blue Crush finisher was the icing on the cake.

Classic Matchup from the archives (2006)
-Wataru Nakajima vs Genki Raiga

Another excellent matchup out of the ZIP JAPAN tape library. Tough loss for Nakajima (again, lol), but both guys left it all in the ring.

-Tora Katsu vs Saburo Hamada

Hamada was out to get back in the win column after his disappointing loss to Ichiro Katagiri, but Katsu wasn't about to roll over for the rookie superstar. Katsu came out of the gate ferociously in this match, and kept up a blistering pace throughout. Hamada never had a chance.

8 man elimination tag match
-Asano Kaneshiro/Takeshi Kiriyama/Kenji Sawada/Kenzo Kobayashi vs Daisuke Shimura/Akira Shinjo/Mickey Grinds/Jimmy Nails

Nasty night for the babyfaces in this match, the current tag champs were the first eliminated, leaving Nails/Grinds to fight it out against two tag teams. It wasn't to be and the heels won this elimination match with a clean sweep.

No. 1 contender for ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Title
-Gorobei Jr vs Demon Otsu

Excellent matchup with loads of near falls down the stretch. Excellent to see Gorobei Jr finally stringing together some wins and getting a shot at the belt held by his father almost 12 years ago.

No. 1 contender for ZIP JAPAN Junior Heavyweight Title
-Tetsuo K vs Shuji Tsukamoto

MOTN right here, no question. Both these Juniors are more power based than most of the other competitors in the division, and they pounded the hell out of each other. Tsukamoto absorbed a tremendous amount of damage in this one, and couldn't respond after a huge top rope DDT from Tetsuo K. Tetsuo will face Ichiro Katagiri on the next show.

Non-title Match
Heavyweight Champion Thunder Fist vs Jin Matsuda

A result that left everyone stunned. Powerhouse champion ThunderFist was completely undone in this match by Jin Matsuda's speed and athleticism. This one wasn't even close and Matsuda has leapfrogged his way up the contender's ladder. No doubt Reiko ZIP will have some comments based on this result.

*camera fades in on Tomi ZIP's smiling face, she is standing in front of a ZIP JAPAN banner and holding a microphone*

Tomi: <Hello fans! As I'm sure you know, this Friday night, November 17th, the ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Championship will be on the line in a three way elimination match that Reiko has dubbed "Dance of Death". Champion Thunder Fist will be defending his title against both Jin Matsuda and Gorobei Jr. I'm here backstage at the illustrious ZIP JAPAN television studios with all three competitors.>

*the camera pulls back to reveal Gorobei Jr and Jin Matsuda standing on Tomi's right, and Thunder Fist on her left. Gorobei Jr and Jin Matsuda are dressed in smart business casual attire, but Thunder Fist is in his ring gear and mask, wearing his Heavyweight Championship belt around his waist*

Tomi: <Thanks for being here today, guys! Let's get some comments from the challengers first...Matsuda-san, you not only defeated Thunder Fist in a non-title match, you also pinned Takeshi Kiriyama in a tag match when he was Heavyweight Champion back at the Grand Voyage event. Some might say that your title match is over due.>

*Tomi sticks the mic in front of Matsuda's face*

Jin Matsuda: <Well, I don't know about that Tomi....I've had some good results recently but mostly I'm just excited to get a shot now. Like I've said previously, there is no greater feeling for a pro wrestler than having your hand raised in victory, especially when there is gold on the line. I'm honored that Reiko felt I was worthy of the opportunity, and I hope that Friday night I can perform at a level that proves her trust in me was not misplaced.>

*Matsuda bows very formally and steps back. Tomi looks slightly deflated by his vanilla comments*

Tomi: <Uh, OK thank you. Next up, Gorobei Jr, the chosen son of legendary ZIP JAPAN Champion Gorobei. This will be your first ever Heavyweight Championship match after your step up from the Juniors Division. Your thoughts?>

*Tomi moves the mic in front of Gorobei Jr, who has a look on his face like someone just shit on his shoes*

Gorobei Jr: <Yes it is, and I have to say I'm not entirely thrilled that Matsuda is involved in it. Sure he's won non-title matches, but I actually won the sanctioned #1 Contenders match. I've been fighting my way up and down the rankings ladder for years to get this chance at the ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Title. I've earned my shot with my own blood, sweat and tears, I didn't get it handed to me by Reiko.>

*Gorobei Jr glances quickly, almost imperceptibly, over at Jin Matsuda and lets a tiny sneer play across his features*

Gorobei Jr: <In any case, what's done is done and the match is booked. There's nothing left for me to do now but win it. This match is the culmination of years of toil, following in the footsteps of my father, and working to establish myself without being overcast by his immense shadow. This Friday both of my opponents had best be on their game...it's going to be the biggest and most important match of my career and I'll be out to win at all costs. I was born to carry the ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Championship, and I won't let anything or anyone stand in my way.>

*Gorobei turns away from the camera and addresses Thunder Fist directly, pointing at him for emphasis*

Gorobei Jr: <Your days are numbered, Champ! Destiny is on my side, and this Friday your brief reign will be over!>

Tomi: *nodding to Gorobei Jr* <Strong words for our Champion. Thunder Fist, do you have a response or any thoughts about this Friday's Dance of Death?>

*Tomi holds up the mic in front of Thunder Fist's mask, but Thunder Fist just stands there breathing heavily for a moment. Just as Tomi goes to move the mic away to say something further, Thunder Fist suddenly holds up both his gloved fists*

Thunder Fist: *he holds his left fist up* Matsoodah! *he holds his right fist up* Gorobayyyy! *he smashes his fists together with a loud smacking thud that is picked up by Tomi's microphone* FISSSSSSSSSST!

*Thunder Fist turns and stomps away off camera, leaving Tomi and his challengers behind him, looking slightly stunned and bewildered*

Tomi: <Very well, there you have it fans! Friday Night! Dance of Death! I'll be there, what about you? This is Tomi ZIP, signing off!>

*Tomi smiles and flashes a peace sign, and the camera fades*

The following was recorded immediately following the Dance of Death show.

*camera fades in on a smiling Tomi ZIP standing outside the locker room, boisterous celebrations can be heard coming from within*

Tomi: <Hello, fans! I'm backstage at Dance of Death, where Jin Matsuda has just won the main event and become the new ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Champion! Let's head inside and see if we can get a word from the new Champ!>

*Tomi pushes her way into the locker room, and the noises of celebration become louder. Several wrestlers are congratulating Matsuda, shouting and laughing. Maki Yoshida is beaming like proud father, clapping Matsuda on the back repeatedly. Akira Shinjo is fastening the title belt around Matsuda's waist, and Shimura and Nakajima are standing by wearing huge grins. They see Tomi as she approaches and increase the volume of their celebrations again. Tomi stands beside Matsuda with her microphone and the other guys eventually quiet down for the interview spot*

Tomi: <A fantastic performance tonight, Matsuda-san! Congratulations on your title victory in what some are already calling Match of the Year!>

Matsuda: (clearly excited and animated, struggling to keep his goofy smile under control) <Thank you Tomi. I knew it was biggest opportunity of my career, and I might never get another shot at the Championship if I wasted this chance. Hearing Reiko's hand hit the mat for the final three count gave me the most wonderful feeling I've ever had, and it will stay with me forever. I'm thrilled I was able to live up to the high expectations of Reiko, the fans, and of course, Yoshida-sensei.>

Yoshida: (clapping Matsuda on the back again) <I knew you had it in you, boy!> *there is a renewed burst of cheering from the other wrestlers*

Tomi: <You not only defeated Thunder Fist for the second time in two weeks, but you also pinned Gorobei Junior, a man who many thought was in prime position to fulfill his own destiny tonight. Your career has followed a similar path to Gorobei's....you both established yourselves as Junior competitors early in your careers before stepping up to the Heavyweight Division in search of the most prestigious championship ZIP JAPAN has to offer. Any thoughts on having achieved your goal ahead of Gorobei?>

Matsuda: <Well, I take nothing away from Gorobei's skills. He's an excellent wrestler and very tough opponent for anyone in ZIP JAPAN. Either one of us could easily have won tonight, and I hope he gets another chance to wrestle for the Heavyweight Title before long. He certainly deserves it. But tonight was my night, and I'm going to relish this feeling for as long as I can.>

*the wrestlers start cheering Matsuda again, and Akira Shinjo dumps two bottles of champagne over Matsuda's head. There is much shouting and laughter as Matsuda tries to wipe the liquid from his eyes. Suddenly the other wrestlers fall silent, all of them looking off camera to the right. Matsuda's laughter trails off as he clears his eyes and looks up to see Gorobei Junior step into the locker room. Gorobei has a blank expression on his face as he steps up in front of Matsuda in silence. Matsuda quickly adopts a serious look, and removes the ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Title from around his waist and drapes it over his right shoulder, his eyes locked to Gorobei's the whole time. The tension is unbearable as they stare at each other for a moment, with the others looking on. Suddenly Gorobei Junior extends his hand to Matsuda. Matsuda looks at it for a split second, then grasps Gorobei's hand firmly. Gorobei bows to Matsuda*

Gorobei Jr: <Congratulations, Matsuda-san. You were the better man tonight. Wear your Title with pride.>

*the tension immediately dissipates as the other wrestlers begin cheering again, and Matsuda returns Gorobei's bow. Matsuda and Gorobei Jr embrace each other, and the camera pulls close in on Gorobei's face. His expression remains totally blank and he stares directly into the camera. As the camera fades to black, for just an instant, a look of anger and disappointment crosses Gorobei's features*

The undercard had some great matches with the double main event of Kevin Wolfe vs dalton taylor and Orange Slush vs Tlaloc both delivering some breathtaking stuff.

-Satoshi Iguchi vs Minoru Hoshino

Some solid back and forth action to start things off,and another decisive victory for Satoshi Iguchi. Surely he'll be stepping up into the next echelon of ZIP JAPAN Junior wrestlers in the very near future.

-Saburo Hamada/Yutaro Ichikawa vs Tetsuo K/Shuji Tsukamoto

In the chat before this match started I said it had real sleeper potential, and it definitely delivered. The highest rated match of the night had some of everything: high flying, brawling, technical wrestling and some power based offense courtesy of Mr Tsukamoto. Great stuff.

-Wataru Nakajima vs Mr. Suplex

Don't say it too loud, but the Nakajima express is going full speed ahead. After enduring a humbling winless streak, Nakajima has now won back to back matches...and he did this one in style, deflecting most of Mr Suplex's throw attempts and dominating with his own unique offense. The win with his signature backdrop hold was the icing on the cake. This was the great match we all knew Nakajima was still capable of producing.

-ECKO vs Tora Katsu

Tora Katsu's roll continues to pick up speed with this strong performance against one of the top Juniors in ZIP JAPAN. Katsu has locked into a solid rhythm in recent weeks and could be on the verge of forcing his way back into the Junior Title scene.

-Demon Otsu vs Donnie Doogan

I feel a little bad for Demon Otsu, he's been super hot recently, and he really pulled out all the stops against Doogan early on in this match. But it was not to be, Doogan resolutely absorbed the best Otsu had to offer on this night, and then showed off why he is so feared. It took 2 Doogan Hammer II's to get the job done, but in the end, the job got done. For now, Doogan remains the embodiment of the glass ceiling separating the wannabe Heavyweight contenders from the real thing.

Archive match from 2009
- Super Scorpio vs Captain Insano Jr

A fun little match from the archives, from a couple of years before Scorpio left ZIP JAPAN to go to Mexico for an extended run. Scorpio showed off some rare aerial ability in this one, which seemed to surprise to usually unflappable Captain Insano Jr. Insano got a few of his signature spots in, but Scorpio cut off the ring and put him away.

-Jin Matsuda/Maki Yoshida vs Jimmy Nails/Mickey Grinds

The ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight champion Jin Matsuda and his partner Maki Yoshida showed in this match that they both have the technical skills required to compete against a pair of the toughest grapplers North America has ever exported to Japan. Some really great wrestling in this match, and the champ walked away looking strong even though it was Yoshida who scored the pinfall for his team.

3-way elimination match for the ZIP JAPAN Junior Heavyweight Championship
-Ichiro Katagiri (c) vs Justin Starr vs White Trash

Well it bound to end sooner or later, and sure enough Ichiro Katagiri's unbeaten run has been stopped just short of a full calendar year. This was an excellent match, with great psychology from Katagiri early on. All three men seemed to be still strong and in it with a legit chance until around the 20 minute mark. Then Justin Starr suddenly kicked into a higher gear that the other two couldn't hope to match. Starr forced Trash to tap out and then pinned Katagiri seconds later with a top rope diving huracanrana. Justin Starr is the new ZIP JAPAN Junior Heavyweight Champion! (Senator totally predicted this result in the chat)

ZIP JAPAN Tag Team Championship match
-Akira Shinjo/Daisuke Shimura (c) vs Takeshi Kiriyama/Asano Kaneshiro

The third tag team match of the night continued the trend of excellence, as the two top teams in ZIP JAPAN faced off for the Tag Team Championship. This match built slowly with great teamwork and fast tags from both duos...before eventually becoming a contest of headdrops. Huge Brainbusters, Steiner Screwdrivers, and Ganso bombs were delivered and duly no sold. In the end, Kiriyama did what he does best, picking his spot and locking in a deadly armbar submission. Takeshi Kiriyama and Asano Kaneshiro are the new ZIP JAPAN Tag Team Champions!

No 1 Contenders match for the ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Championship
-Gorobei Jr vs Thunder Fist

Gorobei Jr came right out of the gates in this match like he had something to prove to both the fans and himself. He brought the fight to Thunder Fist, putting himself in harm's way with seemingly little regard for his personal well-being. Fist never got much momentum going, and Gorobei took advantage hitting Thunder Fist with a series of Package German suplexes, the third resulting in victory. Amazingly, many fans could be heard booing as Gorobei Jr's hand was raised in victory, and after the show ended and Gorobei had retreated backstage, fans chanted FIST FIST FIST as Thunder Fist regained his composure and walked up the ramp towards the locker room. Gorobei Jr is the #1 contender to Jin Matsuda's ZIP JAPAN Heavyweight Championship! (Senator got this one totally wrong lol)