#82: Kenta Kobashi vs. Yoshihiro Takayama, Pro Wrestling NOAH Encountering Navigation (4/25/2004).
This is for Kobashi’s GHC Heavyweight Championship.
Yoshihiro Takayama presented a different kind of challenge for Kenta Kobashi here. Thanks to an all time barn burner with Don Frye in the Pride MMA organization, Takayama was a favorite among fans, and was considered a legitimate badass who could not only take a ton of damage, but he could dish it as well. That, along with his unusual size for a Japanese wrestler, would give Kobashi one hell of a time during his title run.
The bell rings, and Takayama avoids a lock up early. Takayama with a thigh kick to throw Kobashi off his game. They lock up and Takayama tosses Kobashi aside. They lock up again, and Takayama gets Kobashi against the ropes. Kobashi transitions and takes control. Takayama takes control again, and rakes his hands across Kobashi’s face. In the corner now, Kobashi misses a spinning back chop, but hits two more consecutively.
He goes for a Half Nelson suplex, but Takayama fights out of it with elbows. Kobashi launches himself at Takayama, who responds with a boot to the midsection. A running penalty kick follows, and Kobashi just walks it off. He tosses Takayama across the ring, then chops his chest. Takayama with forearms to the jaw. They go back and forth, with Kobashi using the back chops to Takayama’s head. He stretches the challenger’s arms behind his back, and drives his knee into the spine.
Takayama gets to his feet, and reverses it for a moment, until Kobashi returns to control. Takayama stomps Kobashi’s foot, and takes control, stretching his arms now. He uses his long legs (hey, Nicolas Cage) to stretch Kobashi even more. The champion reverses into a side headlock onto the mat, until Takayama gets to his feet. He tries to send Kobashi into the ropes, but he tightens his grip more. Takayama gets to the ropes to break the hold, and Kobashi chops him. Now he gets a leg scissors in on the tall challenger.
Kobashi with chops to the back and chest of Takayama, followed by clubbing blows to the back. He tosses Takayama to the outside next. Kobashi with another chop, and Takayama with a forearm to the head. Kobashi irish whips Takayama into the barricade, then removes the padding on the floor. He hits a DDT right on the exposed concrete! Kobashi brings Takayama back to the ring, and gets a nearfall off of that shot.
Another big chop to the chest, followed by a barrage of side chops to the neck. Kobashi lifts the big man up for a suplex, but Takayama counters into a guillotine choke. Kobashi moves his body around enough to get his foot on the bottom rope. Big kick to the chest by Takayama, followed by a leg drop, and that gets 2. He irish whips Kobashi to the corner, and hits a running knee and a full nelson suplex for another nearfall. Takayama puts the sleeper hold on Kobashi next.
He drops a few elbows directed onto Kobashi’s face. Another hard kick by Takayama to the back, followed by another to the chest. He sends his knee into the chest of Kobashi in the corner, and follows with a running boot to the chest. Kobashi tries to block Takayama with a boot, but Takayama bends the leg and kicks it at will on the mat. Takayama knows how fucked Kobashi’s legs have become. He lifts Kobashi and hangs him upside down on the turnbuckle. He rushes and sends his knee into Kobashi’s midsection.
Kobashi fights back with chops to the chest, but Takayama drives his knee into the ribs again, and follows with an elbow to Kobashi’s dominant arm. The champion rolls to the outside. After giving his arm a breather, he rolls back into the ring. Takayama immediately locks a Kimura in, and Kobashi gets his foot on the ropes, but Takayama is slow to break the hold. He kicks Kobashi, and dropkicks him to the outside again.
Takayama irish whips Kobashi into the steel barricade, but the champion rebounds with a huge clothesline! He’s only adding more damage to his hurt arm though. Kobashi tries to enter the ring, but Takayama grabs him on the apron and hits a German Suplex right to the floor! That looked awful. Back in the ring, Kobashi chops Takayama, and the challenger tries to fight back with punches. Snap mare by Takayama, and his PK is blocked by Kobashi, who hits a spinning back chop.
Kobashi pops off several headbutts, followed by a diving clothesline. He tries for the Half Nelson, but Takayama counters with a Double Arm Suplex. He goes right into an armbar attempt, one which Kobashi tries valiantly to fight against. Takayama is able to apply it completely! The crowd are losing it, as Kobashi tries somehow to roll out of this. He does, and he barely gets his foot on the bottom rope. Takayama hyper extends the arm several times, and Kobashi applies a sleeper hold.
The challenger forces Kobashi back first into the turnbuckle. Kobashi scales the top and comes down, only to meet a Takayama kick to the chest. Takayama with a Half Nelson Suplex, dropping Kobashi on his head! Running knee to the back of the head follows, and then a Bridging German Suplex that gets a close nearfall! Takayama gets a dropkick off on Kobashi’s back, then crushes him in the corner. More kicks and stomps against the champion’s face follows.
Takayama hits the Running Knee in the corner, and Kobashi blocks a big boot and unloads with chops. He hits the Half Nelson Suplex to Takayama now. Kobashi hits the Michinoku Driver next, and gets a nearfall. Takayama blocks a Lariat, and sends his knee into the gut of Kobashi! Dragon Suplex follows, and that gets a 2 count. Another running knee to the chest, followed by hard stomps to the body of the Iron Man.
Takayama rushes Kobashi, who comes firing out of the corner with a huge lariat that decks the challenger! Both are up and level each other with perfectly timed lariats, but only Kobashi is still standing! He slaps Takayama to get up, and the challenger unloads with kicks to the thigh, and some hard strikes right to the face! Another hard kick to the leg, and a stomp right to the head. Takayama will not let up. A knee to the face!
He hits the Helluva Kick, but Kobashi is able to latch onto him and hit a Half Nelson Suplex. Kobashi lifts Takayama straight in the air and drops him with a Brainbuster, and somehow, he’s able to kick out. Kobashi signals for Burning Hammer, but Takayama escapes and kicks away at him. The champion explodes with a lariat, and Takayama kicks out again. Power Slam connects, and Kobashi goes to the top rope. He hits a beautiful moonsault to Takayama, and that’s enough for the 3!
Given who was involved here, this was a slower style of match than I expected, but I didn't mind it! They built the match slow in the beginning, and as it went on, it escalated to a full blown war. Takayama had all the advantages going for him, but Kobashi's will to win was way too great here. He took Takayama's best, and gave it right back, and in the end, Takayama wasn't enough to put the Iron Man down. A nice, hard hitting affair between two real life warriors.