New Japan Pro Wrestling "Super Jr. Tag League"

October 25, 2025, in Saitama, Japan, at Kumagaya Citizen Gymnasium

Streamed live on New Japan World

This year's tournament features 12 teams in two six-team Blocks. It's a round-robin tournament, so each team will have at least five matches. This tournament plays out in an eight-day stretch with just two off-days. This show is in a large gym, and the lights were on. The crowd was maybe 800-1,000. Walker Stewart has arrived in Japan and provided commentary; Robbie X joined him for the three tournament matches.

* I didn't enjoy night 2 of the tournament. Taiji Ishimori was ill and his match was canceled. We had too much of Ryusuke Taguchi's juvenile comedy in the main event instead. But today's a new day, and maybe we'll have some better matchups. Just the A Block is in tournament action tonight. (Both Blocks competed on Nights 1 and 2.) Two teams are 2-0, two are 1-1, and two are 0-2.

1. Boltin Oleg and Toru Yano vs. Zane Jay and Tatsuya Matsumoto. Oleg replaced Katsuya Murashima, who is also sick. The Young Lions attacked before the bell, and we're underway. Oleg hit bodyslams on Jay for a nearfall at 3:00. Zane hit some dropkicks on Oleg. Matsumoto got in and also hit a dropkick, but he couldn't hit a bodyslam; Oleg easily bodyslammed Tatsuya, then a gut-wrench suplex at 6:30. He put Tatsuya in a Boston Crab, but Zane made the save. The Lions hit a team suplex on Oleg for a nearfall. Tatsuya put Oleg in a Boston Crab. Oleg nailed the Kamikaze (forward Finlay Roll) on Matsumoto for the pin. Solid.

Boltin Oleg and Toru Yano defeated Zane Jay and Tatsuya Matsumoto at 8:16.

2. "House of Torture" Dick Togo, Yujiro Takahashi, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. El Desperado, Yasuda, and Kuukai. The HoT attacked, and everyone immediately rolled to the floor. In the ring, Kuukai worked over Togo. Desperado hit a basement dropkick on Kanemaru's knee at 2:00. The HoT slammed Despe's knees into the mat and took control, targeting Desperado's left leg. Togo applied a half-crab at 3:30. Yujiro twisted the damaged leg in the ropes. Desperado finally hit a spinebuster on Kanemaru at 7:00.

Kuukai tagged in and hit a dropkick on Togo, then he dove through the ropes onto him. In the ring, Kuukai hit a top-rope crossbody block. Togo tried a sleeper, but Kuukai escaped. Yujiro's leg got caught on the top rope, and Kuukai kicked it. Yasuda entered for the first time at 9:30, and he worked with Despe to beat up Yujiro. Yujiro hit an inverted DDT for a nearfall, then the Pimp Juice implant DDT for the pin on Yasuda. Solid match.

Dick Togo, Yujiro Takahashi, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated El Desperado, Yasuda, and Kuukai at 11:19.

3. "Bullet Club War Dogs" Yuto-Ice and Oskar and Robbie X vs. Yamato and Tiger Mask and Shoma Kato. I'm not sure if Taiji Ishimori was supposed to be in action today, but either way, this gives him a day off to recover from his illness. Robbie and Yamato opened. Oskar entered and beat up Tiger Mask. Yuto-Ice entered and hit some gut punches as they kept Tiger Mask in their corner. Yamato entered and hit a dropkick in the corner on Yuto-Ice. He hit a suplex on Robbie for a nearfall at 6:00. Robbie missed a running Shooting Star Press.

Yamato hit a dropkick; Robbie hit a Pele Kick. Yuto-Ice tagged back in, but Yamato hit an enzuigiri, and he tagged in Kato for the first time. Kato hit a flying forearm on Yuto-Ice. Robbie hit a top-rope double missile dropkick at 9:30. Yuto and Shoma traded blows. Yuto-Ice hit a running Penalty Kick on Kato for the pin. Good match; good energy by everyone involved. (Will any of the tournament matches top that?)

Yuto-Ice and Oskar and Robbie X defeated Yamato and Tiger Mask and Shoma Kato at 10:33.

4. Kushida, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Yuki Yoshioka vs. "The Mighty Don't Kneel" Robbie Eagles, Kosei Fujita, and Hartley Jackson. Robbie and Kushida opened and traded good mat reversals. Yuki and Fujita tied up at 2:30, and they traded forearm strikes and chops. Tanahashi's team hit stereo baseball slide dropkicks to the floor at 4:30. In the ring, Hartley hit a bodyslam on Yuki, then a senton for a nearfall at 7:00. Fujita put Yuki in a half-crab. TMDK kept Yuki grounded and in their corner. Robbie hit some Yes Kicks. Yuki suplexed Robbie.

Kushida got a hot tag at 9:00 and hit a handspring-back-elbow on Eagles, and those two traded forearm strikes and were both down. Tanahashi and Hartley got hot tags at 11:00, and Hartley hit some shoulder tackles that sent Tanahashi flying. Eagles and Fujita hit stereo moonsaults from the apron to the floor. In the ring, Hartley hit a Death Valley Driver on Hiroshi for a believable nearfall. Tanahashi hit a Sling Blade clothesline and the High Fly Flow frogsplash to pin Hartley. Good action; this show is off to a much better start than night 2.

Kushida, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Yuki Yoshioka defeated Robbie Eagles, Kosei Fujita, and Hartley Jackson at 12:52.

5. "Unaffiliated Bullet Club" Clark Connors and Daiki Nagai (0) vs. Ryusuke Taguchi and Dragon Dia (0) in an A Block tournament match. Wow, we are guaranteed to have an elimination already! Any team that falls to 0-3 is eliminated. Taguchi and Nagai traded reversals on the mat early on. Dia entered at 2:30, and he tied Nagai in a pendulum, and because we can't have nice things, he pushed Daiki's head into Taguchi's butt for some 'humor.' Clark pulled Taguchi to the floor and threw him into the ring post, and he whipped the tiny Dia deep into the crowd.

Connors handed Nagai his car tire, and Nagai struck Taguchi with it at 4:30. In the ring, Nagai bodyslammed Dia, and they stayed in control. Clark tore at Dia's mouth in the ropes, and he hit some diving shoulder blocks. Taguchi got a hot tag and hit a mid-ring buttbump on Nagai at 8:30, then a plancha to the floor on Connors. In the ring, Taguchi hit some rolling suplexes on Connors, then a mid-ring buttbump. Connors hit a powerslam at 10:00. Dia applied a mid-ring Octopus Stretch on Nagai, but Nagai fell to the ropes to escape. The ABC hit a team suplex on Dia for a nearfall.

Connors hit a Pounce that sent Dia flying at 12:30. Nagai hit a dropkick on Dia. Nagai hit a spinebuster on Dia and applied a Boston Crab, while the other two were down on the floor! Taguchi tried to break it up, but Connors hit a spear on Taguchi. Dia finally reached the ropes. Dia hit a Crucifix Driver on Nagai, then a second-rope flying DDT for the pin. That was really entertaining; the threat that this was an 'elimination match' brought added energy to it. Also, Taguchi kept the juvenile comedy to a bare minimum, which really helped.

Ryusuke Taguchi and Dragon Dia (2) defeated Clark Connors and Daiki Nagai (0) at 15:28.

6. Yoh and Master Wato (4) vs. "The United Empire" Jakob Austin Young and Templario (2) in an A Block tournament match. Wato and Templario opened, and Wato hit a headscissors takedown. They avoided each other's big moves. Young and Yoh entered at 3:00. Templario dove through the ropes onto both opponents. Templario stomped on Wato's left arm and targeted it. Yoh hit a flying forearm. Wato hit a bulldog on Young at 7:30, then a grazing leg lariat on Templario. Wato hit a flip dive over the top rope to the floor onto both opponents. In the ring, Wato hit a top-rope missile dropkick on Templario for a nearfall.

Templario hit a superkick and a wheelbarrow German Suplex on Wato at 9:00. Yoh and Young tagged in, and Yoh hit a standing neckbreaker for a nearfall. Young fired back with a tornado DDT on Yoh for a nearfall at 11:00. Templario hit a Doomsday Clothesline to the back of Yoh's head. Wato hit a springboard back elbow. Wato and Yoh hit stereo superkicks on Young. Yoh hit a neckbreaker over his knee for the pin. Good action; I'm enjoying this show much more than a day ago. Yoh and Wato improved to 3-0.

Yoh and Master Wato (6) defeated Jakob Austin Young and Templario (2) at 13:27.

7. "Unaffiliated Bullet Club" Hiromu Takahashi and Gedo (2) vs. "House of Torture" Douki and Sho (4) in an A Block tournament match. Sho got on the mic but Hiromu hit a double shotgun dropkick, and we're underway! Sho stomped on Gedo on the floor. We finally got a bell to begin a minute in. The HoT picked him up and crotched Gedo around the ring post at 3:30, then they did the same to Takahashi. In the ring, the HoT kept Gedo grounded. The crowd was quiet; they weren't used to being expected to rally for Gedo. (It should be Hiromu getting worked over; he knows how to draw crowd sympathy.)

Hiromu finally got a hot tag at 7:00, and he hit some crossbody blocks. He whipped Gedo at each heel into crossbody blocks as well. In the ring, Sho hit a spear on Hiromu. Douki slammed Hiromu, who then tied Douki in a Triangle Choke at 10:00. The bell rang, but of course, it was just Sho hitting the hammer on the bell. Douki applied the "Darkness Stretch 32" (Triangle Choke) on Hiromu; the bell rang again, but this time it was Gedo trying to cheat! Hiromu hit a superkick on Douki. Douki hit a low blow mule kick on Gedo, and he reapplied the Darkness Stretch 32, but Hiromu made the save at 12:30.

Hiromu and Gedo hit stereo buzzsaw kicks. Gedo went to the top rope, but he was tripped and crotched. Douki accidentally hit Sho! Hiromu hit a Death Valley Driver on Douki, and Gedo hit a frogsplash on Douki for a believable nearfall at 14:30; the crowd wanted that pinfall so bad! Douki hit a pop-up low blow mule kick on Douki. However, Sho hit Gedo with a metal sheet across the head, and Douki rolled up Gedo for the flash, cheap pin.

Douki and Sho (6) defeated Hiromu Takahashi and Gedo (2) at 14:59/official time of 13:57.

Final Thoughts: Better matchups and better wrestling made for a much better show. I don't think I was wrong in my criticism of the night 2 show -- the matchups were flat and we had too much comedy in the tournament matches, particularly in the main event. So, a much better night 3. I'll go with Yoh/Wato vs. Templario/Young for best match, ahead of the TMDK six-man tag. Taguchi/Dia's win takes third, as that match had so much added urgency as an elimination match. The main event was merely okay; I'm not loving the comedy in main events, but the crowd was ready to explode if Gedo had won it with that frogsplash.

No rest for the wicked -- the tournament is in action for a fourth straight day on Sunday, with just the B Block in tournament action, with Kushida/Yoshioka vs. Eagles/Fujita as the headliner. Based on what we saw in the preview tag tonight, that may be the best tournament match so far.