The third night of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Best of the Super Juniors 33 tournament on Sunday featured an early stoppage after Valiente Jr. suffered an apparent knee injury.
The referee halted the A Block encounter against Ryusuke Taguchi after just 49 seconds at the Yoyogi National Stadium 2nd Gymnasium in Tokyo.
Valiente Jr. hit a bad landing during an early exchange, prompting the official to wave off the contest. It is not currently known how much time the CMLL representative will miss or how the injury affects the remainder of his tournament schedule. Taguchi earned two points via the referee stoppage to maintain his undefeated record.
Later in the show, Robbie Eagles secured a major victory over El Desperado in the B Block main event. Desperado controlled the pace early and targeted Eagles’ knee to set up the Numero Dos submission. Eagles survived the leg work and a top-rope superplex before mounting a comeback. He ultimately escaped the submission, hit an Asai DDT, and finished Desperado with the Hyperion.
The rules went by the wayside as Jun Kasai handed Kosei Fujita his first loss of the tournament in a violent semi-main event. The referee struggled to maintain control as the competitors brawled outside the ring, leaving Fujita bloodied. Kasai later used a fork to escape a powerbomb attempt and sent Fujita crashing through a table. The hardcore veteran eventually scored the pinfall with an inside cradle.
Elsewhere, YOH earned his second victory of the tournament by defeating Taiji Ishimori. Ishimori aggressively targeted YOH’s injured shoulder by driving him into an exposed turnbuckle. YOH survived a Bone Lock submission and a Bloody Cross attempt before connecting with the Direct Drive to secure the win.
Francesco Akira defeated Nick Wayne in A Block action. Akira took advantage of a distraction from Zane Jay at ringside before the opening bell. He later countered a Wayne’s World attempt into a roll-up, grabbing a handful of tights to steal the pinfall.
SHO remained undefeated by utilizing the usual House of Torture interference to overcome KUSHIDA. He tricked his opponent into wrestling barefoot and then attacked the exposed ankle. Following a referee bump, SHO used his wrench and an iron plate before locking in the Snake Bite submission.
Daisuke Sasaki also moved to six points in the B Block by submitting Hyo. The DDT Pro-Wrestling representative slowed his opponent’s high-speed offense with technical holds and a mid-match chair attack. Sasaki eventually trapped Hyo in a crossface to force the tap.
Master Wato picked up his first points of the tournament by pinning Robbie X with the Recientemente II. Titan maintained his undefeated record by submitting Daiki Nagai.
Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated Jakob Austin Young following a botched ringside distraction by Zane Jay and a low blow.
The tournament continues with night four on Wednesday, May 20, at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo.
BOSJ 5/17 results
- A Block: Titan def. Daiki Nagai
- B Block: Yoshinobu Kanemaru def. Jakob Austin Young
- A Block: Ryusuke Taguchi def. Valiente Jr. [Injury stoppage]
- B Block: SHO def. KUSHIDA
- A Block: Francesco Akira def. Nick Wayne
- B Block: Daisuke Sasaki def. Hyo
- A Block: Master Wato def. Robbie X
- B Block: YOH def. Taiji Ishimori
- A Block: Jun Kasai def. Kosei Fujita
- B Block: Robbie Eagles def. El Desperado
Updated standings
A Block:
- Ryusuke Taguchi (3–0): 6 points
- Titan (3–0): 6 points
- Kosei Fujita (2–1): 4 points
- Francesco Akira (1–2): 2 points
- Jun Kasai (1–1): 2 points
- Master Wato (1–2): 2 points
- Nick Wayne (1–2): 2 points
- Robbie X (1–2): 2 points
- Valiente Jr. (1–1): 2 points
- Daiki Nagai (0–3): 0 points
B Block:
- Daisuke Sasaki (3–0): 6 points
- SHO (3–0): 6 points
- YOH (2–1): 4 points
- El Desperado (1–2): 2 points
- Hyo (1–1): 2 points
- KUSHIDA (1–2): 2 points
- Robbie Eagles (1–2): 2 points
- Taiji Ishimori (1–2): 2 points
- Yoshinobu Kanemaru (1–1): 2 points
- Jakob Austin Young (0–3): 0 points
