NJPW Destruction in Kobe: New champions crowned, future challengers emerge, NOAH stars appear

September 28, 2025 Neal Flanagan NEWS, Show Reports
Image Courtesy: NJPW

Bruce Lord & Karen Peterson will host a full review of Destruction in Kobe for POST Wrestling Café members later on Sunday.

Titles changed hands and several big matches were set up at New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Destruction in Kobe event on Sunday.

The show from Kobe World Memorial Hall saw Zack Sabre Jr. successfully defend the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship against Ren Narita.

Elsewhere on the card, The Knockout Brothers captured the IWGP Tag Team Championships from Tomohiro Ishii & Taichi.

The event also featured multiple challenges that set up key bouts for NJPW’s King of Pro-Wrestling and Pro Wrestling NOAH’s Wrestle Odyssey events in October.

Ten-man tag match opens the show

The show opened with a ten-man tag team match that saw the team of Shota Umino, Yuya Uemura, YOSHI-HASHI, El Desperado & YOH defeat a House of Torture contingent of EVIL, SANADA, DOUKI, SHO & Dick Togo. Yuya Uemura secured the pinfall victory over Dick Togo with a Frankensteiner. 

Following the bout, DOUKI indicated his desire to challenge El Desperado for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship.

Tanahashi defeats Great-O-Khan, accepts offer from NOAH’s Kiyomiya

In a special singles match, Hiroshi Tanahashi was victorious against Great-O-Khan. Great-O-Khan focused his offense on Tanahashi’s knees for much of the contest, but Tanahashi secured the win with a victory roll for the pinfall. 

After the match, Tanahashi was confronted by Pro Wrestling NOAH’s Kaito Kiyomiya. Kiyomiya invited Tanahashi to team with him at NOAH’s Wrestle Odyssey event on October 11, an offer which Tanahashi accepted.

Boltin retains, EVIL challenges

In the first title match of the evening, Boltin Oleg defeated Don Fale to retain the NEVER Openweight Championship. Fale used his size advantage early, but Oleg fought back with impressive feats of strength, including suplexing the 170 kg challenger. After Oleg overcame interference from House of Torture, he hit the Kamikaze for the pinfall victory.

Following the match, EVIL attacked Oleg and laid him out with Everything is Evil, signaling his intention to challenge for the title.

Knockout Brothers win IWGP Tag Team titles

The IWGP Tag Team Championships changed hands as OSKAR & Yuto-Ice, The Knockout Brothers, defeated Tomohiro Ishii & Taichi. The challengers, who recently returned from excursion, withstood an initial onslaught from the veteran champions in a hard-hitting affair. The match concluded when OSKAR and Yuto-Ice hit their double-team finisher, the KOB, on Ishii for the victory.

Afterward, Shota Umino and Yuya Uemura confronted the new champions and issued a challenge.

Takahashi retains GHC Jr. title, attacked by NOAH’s Eita

In an inter-promotional championship match, Hiromu Takahashi made his first successful defense of Pro Wrestling NOAH’s GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship against Taiji Ishimori. The fast-paced bout saw both men target specific body parts, with Ishimori working over Takahashi’s shoulder and Takahashi capitalizing on an apparent rib injury to Ishimori. Takahashi ultimately secured the win with the Time Bomb.

His celebration was cut short by NOAH’s Eita, who ambushed the champion with a superkick and declared himself the challenger for the title at Wrestle Odyssey on October 11.

Tsuji defeats Finlay

Yota Tsuji was victorious over David Finlay in a special singles match. The physical contest spilled to the outside multiple times and saw both men trade high-impact offense. Finlay appeared to injure his knee during the bout, which hampered his attack. Tsuji weathered the storm and put Finlay away with the Gene Blaster.

Kidd survives Takagi in chaotic defense

In the semi-main event, Gabe Kidd retained the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship in a wild brawl against Shingo Takagi. The match began before the bell and featured extensive brawling around the arena with chairs and barricades. A key moment saw Takagi drive Kidd through two tables at ringside with a Made in Japan, but Kidd narrowly beat the 20-count. After a frantic closing stretch, Kidd pinned Takagi after a Drill-A-Hole Piledriver.

Following his victory, Kidd was challenged by Yota Tsuji for a title match at King of Pro-Wrestling on October 13.

Zack Sabre Jr. overcomes Narita to retain world title

Zack Sabre Jr. defeated Ren Narita in the main event to retain the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. The match started as a technical showcase before Narita began to ruthlessly target Sabre’s taped knee, using chairs at ringside to inflict damage.

The bout was marked by repeated interference from Narita’s House of Torture stablemates, but Sabre fought off the distractions. In the end, Sabre pinned Narita with the Zack Driver.

The win makes his previously announced title defense against Konosuke Takeshita at King of Pro Wrestling official.

Full results:

  • Shota Umino, Yuya Uemura, YOSHI-HASHI, El Desperado & YOH def. EVIL, SANADA, DOUKI, SHO & Dick Togo
  • Hiroshi Tanahashi def. Great-O-Khan
  • NEVER Openweight Championship: Oleg Boltin (c) def. Don Fale
  • IWGP Tag Team Championships: Yuto-Ice & OSKAR def. Tomohiro Ishii & Taichi (c)
  • GHC Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Hiromu Takahashi (c) def. Taiji Ishimori
  • Yota Tsuji def. David Finlay
  • IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship: Gabe Kidd (c) def. Shingo Takagi
  • IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. (c) def. Ren Narita
About Neal Flanagan 1627 Articles
Based in Northern Ireland, Neal Flanagan is a former newspaper journalist and copy editor. In addition to reporting for POST Wrestling, he co-hosts The Wellness Policy and Book Club podcasts.
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