New IWGP Tag Team Champions Crowned in Atlanta

Photos courtesy of Corey Tatum From Larry Goodman: Guerillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa) defeated Juice Robinson ...

Photos courtesy of Corey Tatum

From Larry Goodman:

Guerillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa) defeated Juice Robinson & David Finlay to regain the IWGP Tag Team Championship Saturday night in Atlanta. Thus begins sixth title reign for G.O.D., tying them with Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima for most title reigns in NJPW history.

The show was extremely well received by the Atlanta fans. Hiroshi Tanahashi, the top star on the tour, was treated like a deity.

Official attendance at the Coca Cola Roxy Theater was 855. Not every seat was filled but there were many more standing room only general admissions than open seats. The first pro wrestling event at the venue drew an eclectic crowd, unlike any other wrestling crowd I’ve experienced in Atlanta. Impact Wrestling has the building booked for March 6 and 7 for A Town Beatdown.

Atlanta was the fifth and final stop on the New Beginning USA tour with PWX's Brian Kanabroski serving as the American promoter. All of the shows drew over 500. The Tampa show was reported as sold out at 863.

(1)Yuji Nagata & Satoshi Kojima defeated Alex Coughlin & Ren Narita in 10:56 when Nagata pinned Coughlin with his backdrop driver hold. Match featured a boatload of stiff strikes by Nagata and Kojima and some impressive power wrestling from Coughlin.

(2) Yoshi-Hashi defeated Misterioso via submission in 10:57. Nifty acrobatics from Misterioso. Hashi turned him inside out with a clothesline and applied the butterfly lock.

(3) Colt Cabana & Toru Yano defeated Jado & Yujiro Takahashi in 9:40. Yano was over huge. The crowd was deep into Yano and Cabana as a comedy team. Jado threatened to use the kendo stick so Yano pulled off one of the turnbuckle pads to defend.

The exposed turnbuckle came into play several times during the match. The finish was a bionic elbow by Cabana followed by low blow from Yano to pin Takahashi.

(4) Chase Owens defeated Rocky Romero in 17:37. I’ve never been a Chase Owens but he had first rate match with Romero here and got the most heel heat of anybody on the card. Owens was rocking a “Ibushi Fears Owens” t-shirt. Crowd was hating on him when he did double ax off the top and celebrated with Randy Savage mannerisms. Romero worked the arm to set up the cross armbreaker and had it applied multiple times. The counter wrestling was outstanding. At one point, Owens countered the cross armbreaker with a Styles Clash. Owens kept threatening with the package piledriver and eventually hit it for the win.

(5) Hiroshi Tanahashi & Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson defeated TJP & Alex Zayne & Clark Connors when Tanahashi pinned Connors with the High Fly Flow at 13:19. Tanahashi’s entrance received an extended standing ovation. Zayne cheated to start heat on Morton. Tag made after Zayne missed a top rope tornillo senton in spectacular fashion. Morton’s Canadian Destroyer got a big pop. Rock and Roll hung the heels out to dry when they tried for R & R’s signature double dropkick and leveled them with clotheslines in stereo.

Tanahashi did a sling blade then the High Fly Flow.

The postmatch was a lovefest between Tanahashi and the Atlanta fans. R & R Express joined in on the air guitar celebration. Gibson in particular really looked to be enjoying himself.

(6) Jeff Cobb pinned Lance Archer with Tour of the Islands in 17:55. This was the most easily accessible bout for American fans as they worked a typical US style. Not a criticism. They had the best singles match of the show, full tilt all the way. Archer was super impressive, quite the combination of mobility, athleticism and power in a 6-8 frame. They brawled into the crowd with Archer dominating the action and destroying a couple of the young boys along the way. Back inside, Cobb took a tremendous knockdown bump on an Irish whip. Archer intimidated the ref and told Cobb, “this ain’t ROH, bitch.” Archer did an old school ropes walk into an amazing springboard moonsault block.

Archer went for the EDB Claw but Cobb countered with Tour of the Islands for a great false finish. Archer got the Claw applied. With the crowd behind him huge, Cobb fought off the claw and hit a release german suplex to set up his finisher.

Cobb ended up with a bloody nose. They did a postmatch show of respect.

(7) Guerillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa with Jado) defeated Juice Robinson & David Finlay to capture the IWGP Tag Team Championship in 18:44. G.O.D. was the most over act on the show next to Tanahashi. Those dudes are beasts. Crowd was split between them and Robinson, Finlay not so much. Dueling chants for the guys with most charisma - Tonga and Robinson. Finlay and Robinson controlled the early going. G.O.D. isolated Finlay for awhile. The champions had Tonga in dire straits after the hot tag was made, so Jado blasted Finlay with the kendo stick. A series of splendid back and forth near fall ensued. Finlay inadvertently speared the ref. Jado again got involved with the kendo stick. Eventually, that backfired and Finlay gave Tonga a backstabber. The ref got knocked down again. Tonga laid Finlay out with belt shot and pinned him.

Great match. The crowd was stunned to where an IWGP title change on US soil didn’t get the explosive pop you would expect. It was more of a sustained delayed reaction.

NOTES: William Regal was at the show...Romero warmed up the crowd before the show and assured the fans New Japan would return to Atlanta...Guerillas of Destiny are the 85th tag team champions in NJPW history.