#158: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada, NJPW Destruction in Kobe (9/23/2018).
This is for Tanahashi's Tokyo Dome Rights Certificate.
Tanahashi used his new found momentum and drive to win the G1 Climax 28, setting the all time block points record, as well as having the greatest match of all time (in my opinion) by winning the final against Kota Ibushi. Since his match with Okada went to a 30 minute time limit draw, a rematch was guaranteed, and the stakes were high with a shot at Wrestle Kingdom 13 on the line.
This was a big match for both men. Okada had been in every IWGP Heavyweight Championship match at Wrestle Kingdom since 2013. If he loses here, it'll be the first time he's missed it since his return from excursion. For Tanahashi, a chance to prove he still is a top guy is on the line, but in order to go to the Tokyo Dome, he must beat Okada - something he hasn't been able to do since 2015.
Unlike the G1, Tana can't rely on the time limit as a backup plan. He must beat Okada, or there's no chance of his comeback story finishing on a high note.
Red Shoes shows the Certificate to both competitors, as Okada is barely able to hide his smile. He knows he has the upper hand here. Tana won’t give in so easily though. The bell rings, and the crowd is white hot for this already. Japan’s greatest modern day rivalry takes center stage once again. They lock up, and both men look to take the first advantage. Okada ties up the arm, and Tana quickly ties his up next. Okada brings Tana to the mat, and goes for the leg. Tana breaks out of it and looks for a chin lock to the Rainmaker, and a side headlock takedown.
Both men are back to their feet, as a stalemate ensues. They lock up once again, and Okada gets Tana into the ropes, and hits a nice forearm to the face. He kicks at Tana, who gets right in his face. They exchange forearms now, and Tana eventually survives it enough to hit a hip toss to Okada. He brings Okada to the apron, and slams his leg off of the hardest part of the ring. He goes to get back into the ring, and Tana kicks him off the apron and into the ringside barricade. Tana dives out of the ring onto Okada, but he hits his knee off the floor in doing so.
Both men are back in the ring, and Okada hits a shotgun dropkick right into the injured leg of Tana. He drives it down to the mat knee first. For seemingly the first time in months, we’re seeing the old Rainmaker back, cocky and all. Okada drives his foot into the knee, without a care in the world. Okada sends Tana into the corner and continues his assault of the leg. He twists the leg around the ropes, causing even more pain. Tana looks to springboard off the turnbuckle, but Okada moves out of the way and Tana once again lands on his knee awkwardly.
Okada locks in what looks like a sitting variation of the Texas Cloverleaf in the middle of the ring. Tana makes it to the ropes, but Okada keeps the hold on for a few seconds longer. This is the Okada of Dontaku. Tana looks to fight back with punches to the midsection and face, but Okada just stands there and takes it. Tana eventually catches him and chop blocks his leg, and hits the Dragon Screw Leg Whip.
Tana hits a standing elbow drop and a senton onto Okada, and hits a powerslam. He scales the turnbuckle and hits a flying senton to The Rainmaker. Tana runs the ropes, and Okada catches him with a back elbow strike. Okada hits a DDT for a 2 count. After a series of reversals, Tana kicks at the leg of Okada, but he’s able to catch Tana in a neckbreaker across his knee – the injured knee. Okada is back up and hits the Shotgun Dropkick on Tana, sending him crashing into the corner.
Okada has Tana in the corner with back elbow strikes, and he places him up on the turnbuckle. He attempts to dropkick him off, but Tana’s injured leg gets tied up in the turnbuckle pad, so Okada just goes crazy in punching at it. The crowd does not like that. Red Shoes has the Young Lions at ringside assist in getting Tana free from that predicament. Okada drops Tana’s knee across his own, and then locks in the Figure Four Leglock in the middle of the ring. Tana’s natural leg problems are worsened by the attack on the knee during this match.
Tana is in absolute agony, and Okada is almost smiling at all of this. The Ace won’t give up though, as he attempts to get to the ropes. After a struggle, Tana finally rolls himself over and gets to the bottom rope. He rolls to the outside and Okada is quick to follow, driving the knee into the ringside mat – which itself is very thin. Tana catches Okada though, and drops him with a Tombstone on the outside area! That only added to the damage done to Tana’s leg!
Red Shoes is counting Okada out, but Tana insists on scaling the top rope, and he hits the High Fly Flow to the outside on Okada! Again, more damage to his knee! Tana just can’t help himself. He’s going to pin Okada, and he’s going to do it his way. Back in the ring, Okada catches Tana with a Rainmaker attempt, but Tana reverses into a Twist and Shout, and a Sling Blade for a 2 count. Tana hobbles to the turnbuckle, and scales it. He goes for the High Fly Flow, but Okada gets his knees up in time and drives them into Tana’s midsection.
Each man takes turn in attempting a Tombstone on the other, and neither man is able to succeed. Now they stand face to face in the middle, each hitting a hard forearm to the other. Okada hits a hard uppercut that drops Tana, and now he’s swiftly kicking away at Tana’s head. The Ace is back up though, hitting an uppercut of his own, but Okada drops him with another kick to the knee. He goes to whip Tana into the ropes, but he collapses under his bad knee. Okada looks to drop Tana on his knee again, but Tana counters into a sunset flip pin that gets a 2 count. Tana hits another Dragon Screw Leg Whip to the fallen Rainmaker.
Tana runs the ropes, and Okada is up with a dropkick. He goes for the Rainmaker, and Tana looks to counter with a Tiger Suplex. Okada slips out and goes for the Heavy Rain, and Tana counters out of that with a variation of the Sling Blade. Tana is back up and he runs into a Tombstone attempt from Okada. He slips out, and Okada attempts the Discus Rainmaker, and Tana just bitch slaps him! I love when he does that. Okada is quick to get back up and he kicks at the leg of Tana. He goes for the Rainmaker again and Tana counters with Sling Blade!
Tana goes to the top rope and hits the High Fly Flow, but he lands awkwardly right on his knee! This small miscalculation leads to a close 2 count. Tana is back on the apron, and he scales the top once again. He goes for the High Fly Flow, but Okada lands a dropkick right to the midsection! Tana is in incredible pain. Okada brings him to his feet and hits the Tombstone. He goes for the Rainmaker, and Tana counters into one of his own. Okada avoids it and hits the Discus Rainmaker instead!
Now he sets him up for the proper Rainmaker, and Tana counters into a Tiger Suplex for a razor thin 2 count! Both men are down, and Tana slowly crawls out to the apron. He wills himself back to the top rope, and Okada meets him with another dropkick. Okada scales the turnbuckle and tries to set up a fucking Tombstone off the top! That’s true desperation. Tana holds onto the ropes, doing his best to avoid this horrible fate. After some struggling, Tana bitch slaps Okada again. Then, with Okada standing on the middle rope, Tana knocks him back slightly and comes down with a High Fly Flow! Amazing!
Tana is back up and hits another one to Okada as he tries to stand! He’s up again, and he hits the High Fly Flow proper! The crowd roars along with the count as Tana finally defeats Okada! His road to Wrestle Kingdom will continue on!
My fucking God, what an amazing match. This may not be the best of their series, but it is certainly one of my personal favorites. The amount of drama presented here made this match incredibly hard to predict, as you could make a case for either man to move on. But here, it was Hiroshi Tanahashi, who despite all the odds, overcome and finally stuck it to the one man who had succeeded at his expense.
The singular thing that makes this match so damn good is the urgency. With no time limit present, these two had nothing to fall back on. It was either win or bust. That’s pretty easy for Kazuchika Okada, who dominated the win/loss coming into this. But for Tanahashi, it made his journey throughout this even more engrossing. Here was a man, quickly approaching the twilight of his career, looking to push through no matter what and get the win.
In most other organizations, this type of story wouldn’t work. But in New Japan, it was done to perfection. Even with all his glimmers of cockiness and confidence coming through for the first time in ages, Okada wasn’t able to dig deep enough and find the Rainmaker of the past who would’ve likely streamrolled Tanahashi here. Instead, it was flashes of greatness overshadowed by a man who was still trying to find himself.
Or maybe it was simply because on this night, Okada was up against a version of Tanahashi who refused to accept anything over than a win. He was obliterated throughout this match – Okada’s work on the leg, along with several hard shots to the midsection – but even through the pain, Tana would not give up. It wasn’t in his vocabulary. The times were passing him by, and Tana was on full speed in an attempt to keep up. In Kobe, he stayed course.
The crowd added a lot to this match as well, as they were red hot all match long, and that’s because the winner was not telegraphed before hand. This was as unpredictable a situation as there had ever been in the long running feud between Tanahashi and Okada. Neither man was on the up, and both were fighting from the bottom. It made the dynamic that much more intriguing, and in the end, the world was treated to an absolutely incredible match.