TOUKON ROAD: EUROPA RUSH! - Day 1

In front of a crowd of 4,400 fans in Stockholm, Sweden, MAX-J’s second tour on the TOUKON ROAD, aptly named EUROPA RUSH, lived up to its billing. There were significant pyrotechnics and the taiko drums roared throughout as the fighters took the stage and were individually announced to the fans. The pyrotechnics were extravagant as the Baltic Sea stood in the background of the open-roof Cobblestone Civic Centre on a clear night.
Let’s take you to the results.

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In a stunning opener, it was the newcomer Sam Bass versus the MAX Dojo student Genji Ikeda. It was a surprising back-and-forth bout, but in the end it was Ikeda who surprised Bass with a cross armbreaker to pick up a submission win and his first fall in the tournament! His fellow dojo students not on the card doing their mandatory ringside service entered to congratulate him on this major milestone.

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This was a back-and-forth that saw Zombie and Yamazaki struggle with their teamwork early against Troy and Earth Warrior. Warrior flew with aplomb and gymnastic attacks, at one point hitting a top-rope hurricanrana on Zombie and got a two-count.

Tagging Troy into the ring, he went for the Flash Bang but Zombie ducked and hit a spinning roundhouse kick and tagged in Yamazaki, who had already ascended to the top rope and leapt for a frog splash! It connected and he covered for the 1-2-3! Yamazaki pumped a fist into the air as he celebrated, but the attention turned back to Troy who had not yet gotten up. Apparently, the frog splash from the massive 350 lb fighter had done significant damage and Troy had to be helped from the ring by medical staff.

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Fans didn’t have to wait long to see the two men who will fight at tour’s end with the MAX Heavyweight title on the line. Mushigahara and FDJ began a wild brawl that saw numerous craziness, with Irvine taking out Knight with a flying elbow smash and Gensai hitting a saka otoshi on Edwards! It was 3-on-1 versus Mushigahara, but the champ would not be kept down as he battled with his sumo strikes. But it wasn’t enough, as the combined assault would do its damage, allowing Irvine and Gensai to grab his massive tree trunk legs and FDJ hit a big boot!

Once things settled out, the match slowed down and it was Irvine and Edwards turned the match into a pseudo-shootfighting affair with Edwards kicks being countered by Irvine’s takedown attempts. It was the Unnatural One who got the better of Edwards, pushing him into a corner. Irvine would go for a running elbow smash but Edwards got the boot up and then rushed forward and caught him with a Northern Lights Bomb and got a 1-2-2.5 count!

It was Gensai who made the save and dragged Edwards away with an ankle lock! After a confusing sequence of who was the legal man, with Edwards attempting a backfist that hit Irvine, knocking him into Gensai which resulted in AJ catching the Pale General with a Knightfall DDT and picking up the 1-2-3!

After the match, Irvine, FDJ, and Gensai stood in the ring to hash out what happened. They seemed to be on good terms afterwards, with Irvine visibly noting that tomorrow night he would be coming for them in the World Tag Team Championship tomorrow with David Troy. FDJ and Gensai smirked and seemed genuinely excited for their next defense.

AJ Knight slapped hands with a few fans and gave a nod to Edwards, wishing him good luck in the Jr. Heavyweight championship on 3/15.

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The two Demon Brigade teammates used their superior teamwork against a frazzled team of Jacob Hammerstein and Chris Ravenna. It took nearly ten minutes into the match before the duo got any momentum, but when Ravenna hit a discus big boot~Artikulo Uno on ZENKI, the place nearly exploded when he got a 1-2-2.999 count!

As Ravenna got up, GRIM stalked him down with a boma-ye from behind that sent him face-first into eating turnbuckle! Apparently KO’d, GRIM rushed over to Jacob Hammerstein on the apron and leapt at him, the two spilling to the outside. ZENKI snatched up a virtually unconscious Ravenna with a ZENKI Bomb for the pin and victory.

Afterward, doctors would assess Ravenna with a possible concussion. We would await an update until after the show as to his status. As of right now, we remain uncertain whether he’ll be able to compete against James Edwards on 3/15. We’ll stand by.

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The match began with stiff strikes from both men, trading roundhouse kicks to the chest. Nakama would win this exchange and set Minamoto on the top rope early, going for a superplex. But it was Minamoto who kicked him away and jumped off the second-rope with a diving lariat!

From there, the match stayed on the ground for several minutes. Minamoto would eventually apply a stretch plum that would contort the Mountain ways that made his BRO fans in the audience groan. But eventually Minamoto would become gassed out and give up on the hold. He’d hit two jumping high kicks before Nakama hit a flash running knee strike for a two-count!

Nakama’s offense carried over with belly-to-belly suplexes and then a series of elbow strikes. He’d go for another knee strike, but Minamoto would preempt him with a running face kick and then a “dangerous” backdrop driver! He’d cover for the pin and get the…

1…

2…

3!!!!

WAIT!! FOOT ON THE ROPE BY NAKAMA!

Arnold Cunningham, Nakama’s manager, slapped his tennis racket and applauded his champion client. Back in the ring, Minamoto would go for a brainbuster, but Nakama would preempt it and hit a snap powerbomb! He’d back up and as Minamoto got to his feet hit a running knee strike and get the 1-2-3 to mark his first defense of the title! Nakama would pose in the ring with the title belt over his shoulder, point to his BRO fans, and then to the rest of the fans he sliced a thumb across his throat, pointed to the title, and raised a fist.

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The injuries mounted after this evening and we got both good news and bad news. In good news, Chris Ravenna cleared concussion protocol and is scheduled to defend his title tomorrow night. In bad news, David Troy has been ruled out for tomorrow night’s World Tag Team Championship. When word reached Irvine, he said he would go up against the GHOST ARMY alone if necessary. GM Masaaki Sano said that he would find a suitable replacement. Who will it be? One way to find out!

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TOUKON ROAD: EUROPA RUSH! – Day 1
Date: 3/9/2019
Location: Cobblestone Centre, Stockholm, Sweden
Attendance: 4,400 fans (95% capacity)

1. Genji Ikeda defeats Sam Bass (10:13) via submission with a cross armbreaker.
2. Tokyo Zombie and Balloon Yamazaki defeat David Troy and Earth Warrior (11:48) via pinfall when Yamazaki uses a frog splash on Troy.
3. Mushigahara, AJ Knight, and James Edwards defeat Alexander Irvine, Frank Dylan James, and Go Gensai (15:19) via pinfall when Knight uses the Knightfall DDT on Gensai.
4. ZENKI and GRIM defeat Jacob Hammerstein and Chris Ravenna (13:20) via pinfall when ZENKI uses a ZENKI Bomb on Ravenna.
5. MAX Royal Road Championship: Shinjiro Nakama (c) defeats Hiro Minamoto (15:59) via pinfall after a running knee strike (1st defense).