TOUKON ROAD: EUROPA RUSH! - Day 4

One bit of excitement was the presence of MAX Dojo signee Naoki “Go Go” Ojima, who we were originally hoping would be able to compete but for whom apparently VISA issues have caused to halt his debut. Nevertheless, he was ringside in the black shorts and orange shirt talking up with the other dojo students and seems to have a bright and noticeable presence.

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This match was virtually a no contest as Sakamoto quickly took the large man to the ground and had him begging for mercy once he applied a cross armbreaker. The “Hunter of Holds” seems determined to climb back into the Top 10 of the TOUKON Cup ranking.

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Originally, ZENKI had been booked to face Sakamoto. But KOSUKE boldly proclaimed he wanted a piece of the leader of the Demon Brigade to test his skills. This was a match filled with amateur wrestling delight. KOSUKE at one point nearly had the match in hand at the end of the first round with a guillotine choke but ZENKI was saved by the bell. In the second, ZENKI took over and score multiple takedowns on his opponent, quite a feat given that KOSUKE’s specialty is in amateur wrestling.

In the end, it was enough for ZENKI to pick up the unanimous decision victory, but because he did not earn a fall, will not collect any points in the TOUKON Cup.

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Nakama and Ishii’s partnership did wonders in the early going against Chris Ravenna and Falcon Hamada, with Nakama clinching with the latter and blistering his chest with numerous knee strikes and tossing him around like a rag doll. The Royal Road Champion let the veteran Ishii do a lot of the work here. This would go well until Chris Ravenna, looking to get back on track after his loss of the MAX Jr. title, used a blistering array of kicks to knock back Ishii and force in Nakama.

Nakama vs. Ravenna was for the most part a stalemate, an impressive feat given the size difference between the two. Ravenna adopted the “Inoki” strategy of staying near to the ground and pummeling Nakama’s large calves/shins with kicks, forcing him eventually to tag Ishii back in.

Eventually, Toru Ishii would catch Falcon Hamada with a rear naked choke to end the match. Nevertheless, the spirited performance from Ravenna had local analysts note that he’s a fearsome fighter against any weight class.

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Once again, the action centered on the two men who will fight on 3/23 with the MAX Heavyweight title on the line, the champion Mushigahara versus challenger Frank Dylan James. The bad blood between these two spans continents and it seemed so did the fury of their blows. FDJ at one point clotheslined Mushigahara over the top rope, sending the giant spilling to the outside with a thud!

Gensai jumped into the mix and after dispatching with Earth Warrior with his patented saka otoshi, he focused on David Troy, pummeling him with low kicks and then eating him alive in the corner with open-hand knife-edge strikes. Gensai would tag in Balloon Yamazaki as Troy would find a way to leap over to Earth Wariror. In the end, Yamazaki finished the match with a Falcon Arrow on Earth Warrior for the 1-2-3.

After the match, Gensai’s viciousness could not be contained as he once again went after “gaijin scum” David Troy! The two had to be separated by their respective teams as dojo students poured into the ring to try and maintain the peace. There seems to be more to this situation yet to unfold…

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The longest tenured tag team champions in the belts’ nearly three-year existence, GRIM and Tokyo Zombie used their teamwork to much success against the newly christened Jr. Heavyweight champion, James Edwards, and one-half of the current tag team champions, AJ Knight. GRIM and Zombie would frequently isolate their opponents with stomps, double-suplexes, and at one point Zombie applied the Vise of Virtue while GRIM locked on the GRIM clutch on AJ.

Later in the match, Zombie caught Edwards in the Vise of Virtue at one point, but Edwards’ series of low kicks broke the hold and AJ came diving off the second-rope with a tornado DDT! Edwards would cover but only get a 2.5 count.

The match would continue as AJ got some hot offense going against GRIM, hitting him with a superkick but only getting a 2.75 count. Once back on his feet, GRIM would reverse a Knightfall DDT attempt into a saito suplex, leaving both men laid out. Both would get to their respective corners and it would be Edwards who rushed in with a spinning backfist and then a Fisherman’s Buster!

He’d measure Zombie for the Violent Gospel, but the monk would get up the cross-block to absorb the blow and kick out Edwards’ plant leg and send him crashing to the mat. Zombie would hit a few soccer kicks to a prone Edwards before rebound against the ropes and hitting the Rising Zombie Moon! He’d hook the leg and go for the…

1…

2…

3!!!!

The bell sounds!

Zombie was stoic as he and GRIM exchanged a congratulatory bow and handshake. It was at this point that Demon Lord ZENKI came from backstage to the delight of nearly one-thousand zealot followers to address the fans. The three stood together as ZENKI told the fans through a translator that the Demon Brigade was stronger than ever and would quickly recover all of the championships in MAX-J.

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As the cage lowered down from the rafters, the fans ooooh’d and ahhhh’d. GM Sano and Competition Committee Chairman Rokurou Murakami stood on-hand to watch the first cage match in the history of MJPW. Alexander Irvine, one-half of the World Tag Team Champions, stalked down to the ring to a chorus of boos while Hammerstein, one-half of the All-Mediterranean Tag Team Champions, was greeted with a hero’s welcome. Irvine’s devilish smirk had a sinister quality as a serious and focused Hammerstein stared back at him as the cage finally lowered and was clamped down upon the ring.

PA Announcer Burton Fask announced the match had no time limit and could only end when one man exited the cage.

Who would be victorious?

There was little technical wrestling here. These two men have had bad blood that goes back for years it seems, recently culminating in a brawl during the MAX-J PUNCH + KICK Festival. Well, they did a lot of brawling here today. With no holds barred, Hammerstein and Irvine would trade closed-fist punches and elbow strikes, eventually locking up in the clinch and falling into the ropes and, by extension, the cage. An angry Hammer would rake Irvine’s face against the grating, but Irvine would break it off and slam Hammer’s head into the cold steel!

Irvine at this point would go after the legs, placing Hammer in a Nagata Lock. When Hammer grabbed one of the ropes, Irvine refused to let go as without a referee there was no disqualification in the match anyway! Doing so left Hammerstein’s leg a mangled mess which would cause him to limp around for the rest of the match.

Perhaps more importantly, it obstructed his ability to climb the cage. After surviving a chop-fest with Irvine and then scooping him up and dumping the Unnatural on his neck and shoulders with a Northern Lights bomb, he attempted to climb the cage, using the turnbuckle for assistance, but only made it halfway up before Irvine ran up behind him with a rear waistlock and a super release German suplex from halfway up the cage!

At this point, Irvine began his own climb and was nearly to the top when Hammerstein hit the cage with a POUNCE! that flexed the metal and caused Irvine to lose his grip and fall back into the center of the ring. As Hammer would try to pick him up, Irvine latched onto him with a triangle hold and began choking the life out of the American Monster! With no referee to stop him, Irvine kept the hold locked on until it seemed as though his opponent has passed out, causing the fans to avert their eyes at the scene.

But it seemed like Hammer may have played possum or somehow preserved his oxygen, as he recovered quicker than expected, jumping up and catching Irvine with a sleeper hold of his own! With Irvine wobbly and vulernable, Hammer locked in the front chancery, lifted him up, and spike him on the crown of his head with his patented Hammersteiner as the crowd cheered on!

With Irvine seemingly out cold, Hammer would once again pull himself up to the top of the cage. He would reach its apex as Irvine grabbed his boot to prevent him from going over and continued to climb up.

The two men now straddled the top of the cage, one leg in and one leg to the outside, and sitting across from one another…

Irvine would hit an elbow strike and then immediately grab the top of the cage to keep his balance! Hammer would respond with a closed fist to the ear! Irvine would grab Hammer by the hair and dump his face onto the top of the cage! Hammer would respond by headbutting Irvine! The two men were exhausted when…

… Irvine would respond by digging his foot between the cage’s wiring and then locking a guillotine on Hammer, choking the life out of him! Hammer was unconscious as Irvine tossed him from the top of the cage back in the ring ~ but Hammer had a grip on his arm and pulled him down as well! Whereas Hammer would crash into the canvas, Irvine’s foot would remain stuck and he would hang upside down from the inside of the cage! He also clutched at his shoulder and roared in pain as he remained suspended with Hammer laying unconscious.

But eventually Hammer would get up and begin to ascend on the other side, far from Irvine, who with his good arm was attempting to free himself without falling back to the canvas! Hammer would ascend and make it to the top, and lower himself to the outside of the ring with Irvine still suspended in midair, unable to free to his foot! The bell sounded and the dojo students split off to help both men recover after their perilous match with Hammer raising a fist in the air as the fans applauded him for the victory.

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Following the epic cage match, both fighters would end up in a Madrid hospital. Hammerstein had suffered bruising around his neck and an MRI revealed a partial tear of his PCL.

Compared to Irvine, Hammerstein seemed lucky. It seemed that when he threw Hammer back into the ring after the guillotine choke at the top of the cage, Hammer holding onto Irvine’s arm had dislocated the shoulder, debilitating Irvine so that he only had one arm to unsuccessfully attempt to free his foot from the cage. Doctors have reset the shoulder but are still evaluating him for a return timetable, hoping that the Unnatural lives up to his namesake and recovers quickly.

Doctors have ordered that both wrestlers be removed from the 3/20 show in order to rest and recuperate. They will both be evaluated at that time to determine if they are healthy enough to finish the tour. As a result, the Edwards vs. Hammerstein has been rescheduled. Edwards will take Irvine’s place on 3/20.

In other news, Ryan Henderson has been forced from the tour with a concussion. We are also sad to report that, as a result of Umetaro Sakamoto’s armbar on Sam Bass earlier this evening, it seems that the "Hunter of Holds" shredded the big man’s elbow, forcing him off the remainder of the tour as well. Sakamoto apologized for the injury but noted that it is a risk of competition. He will replace Bass on 3/20, joining Ravenna and Edwards against the Demon Brigade in the six-man tag.

Sakamoto, who was originally scheduled to go up against former MAX Heavyweight Champion and Demon Brigade leader ZENKI, said that he was excited to get an opportunity to go after the former champ and promised that he would bring him down! Will he achieve his ambition or will ZENKI prevail once more?

On a lighter note, Naoki Ojima will debut as he teams with David Troy against Go Gensai and Hiro Minamoto in tag team action. The newest dojo student is excited to make his debut but will have his work cut out for him against the Pale General and his disciple. Gensai and Troy brawled earlier this evening. Will Gensai get his chance to take out the "gaijin scum" or will Troy bounce back and show the GHOST ARMY member that he's not so easy to push around?

This means the final tag match in the buildup between Mushigahara vs. FDJ will feature only four competitors. Does this increase the likelihood that one of these competitors manages to gain an advantage going into the final show on 3/23?

Finally, the main event of 3/20 will see “Mountain” Shinjiro Nakama attempt his V2 defense of the Royal Road Championship against the challenger and one-half of the World Tag Team Champions, AJ Knight. Nakama’s representative Arnold Cunningham laughed off the idea that AJ could defeat his all-star caliber client, saying that he hoped that Shinjiro did not accidentally step on “baby AJ”. An intense but calm AJ Knight responded simply, “he’ll have to do better than that” in response to the comments.

At any rate, check the preview below for the updated card and join us in Paris on 3/20 as we reach the penultimate show in our EUROPA RUSH! tour as the TOUKON ROAD continues.

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TOUKON ROAD: EUROPA RUSH! - Day 4
Date: 3/17/2019
Location: Tomás Calderon Memorial Centre, Madrid, Spain
Attendance: 5,000 fans (73% capacity)

1. Sport Form Rules: Umetaro Sakamoto defeats Sam Bass (R1 2:15) via submission (cross armbreaker).
2. Sport Form Rules: ZENKI defeats KOSUKE (R2 8:00) via judges’ decision (unanimous).
3. Shinjiro Nakama and Toru Ishii defeat Chris Ravenna and Falcon Hamada (16:17) via submission when Ishii uses a rear naked choke on Hamada.
4. Frank Dylan James, Go Gensai, and Balloon Yamazaki defeat Mushigahara, David Troy, and Earth Warrior (14:45) when Yamazaki pins Earth Warrior after a Falcon Arrow.
5. GRIM and Tokyo Zombie defeat James Edwards and AJ Knight (14:29) via pinfall after Zombie uses the Rising Zombie Moon on Edwards.
6. Steel Cage Match: Jacob Hammerstein defeats Alexander Irvine (36:35) when Hammerstein climbs out of the cage.


TOUKON ROAD: EUROPA RUSH! - Day 5
Date: 3/20/2019
Location: Suivant Génération Free Stadium, Paris, France

1. ZENKI, GRIM, and Tokyo Zombie vs. Chris Ravenna, James Edwards, and Umetaro Sakamoto
2. David Troy and Naoki Ojima vs. Go Gensai and Hiro Minamoto
3. Mushigahara and KOSUKE vs. Frank Dylan James and Balloon Yamazaki
4. MAX Royal Road Championship: Shinjiro Nakama (c) vs. AJ Knight