Tonight’s show is part 2 of Tokyo Dome coverage, this time featuring heavyweight matches. Both matches aired in full.

First up we have Tetsuya Naito taking on AJ Styles. This seems so weird as it really isn’t too long ago that Tetsuya Naito was a babyface New Japan wrestler. Now he’s a total heel and really excelling at that role, so much this version of Naito seems like ages ago.

This match was very, very good. Obviously not the best match on the show, as we’ll see in the next few weeks, but I forgot just how good it was. AJ working the leg to eventually get to the calf killer was great. Well build match with everything clicking on all fronts. New Japan matches sometime take a while to get used to because they work slow at the start then go all out at the end. But this was consistently good throughout. I also love the big time Styles Clash off the top rope that led to the finish. Great match that you should rewatch when considering Observer Awards in a couple of months. Not because this match is among the best of the year, which it isn’t, but when you think about it WrestleKingdom 9 had a whole had a bunch of terrific matches and this was one of them.

AJ Styles is interviewed. Says that he used Naito as a stepping stone towards becoming the IWGP champion again. You get laid out with the Styles Clash, you’re finished. No matter what counter you have, he has the counter for it. He’s the best wrestler in the world today, and he is a part of the best unit in pro wrestling, the Bullet Club.

Togi Makabe is interviewed, looking back at his NEVER title match against Tomohiro Ishii. Says that the NEVER title is one of the newer titles in New Japan, so he wanted to give the title prestige and value by holding it. He considered Tomohiro Ishii similar to him. They both debuted in 1996 and have their resemblances in terms of in-ring style.

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Tomohiro Ishii then took on Togi Makabe for the NEVER openweight championship. I know what kind of match this is, and it’s not going to be a fun one physically for both men. As I see Tomohiro Ishii walk to the ring, though, it kind of seems like a given that in ten or twenty years he’s going to have major problems moving around. The last few years of him having all of these great matches is great for us, the viewer, but they have taken a major toll on his body and it’s already obvious.

Anyway, I’ve seen these two have at least four matches this year over the NEVER title; it’s been a year long program. It’s never been a bad program, and they’ve had some really great matches, as evidenced by this one. But it’s getting to the point where I’ve kind of seen it all with them. It doesn’t help that it’s been a year long feud over the same title that’s never really evolved past what we saw here. Makabe won with a king kong knee drop to the back of the head of Ishii, which probably wasn’t fun. It’s one hell of a brawl, and probably one of the better matches that they’ve had.

Togi Makabe says after the match that he’s shown his skills many times, just like tonight. He says that the NEVER title can be defended in different ways, so if you wanted a clean match tonight, he apologizes. It’s not the same as the other titles so it can be defended that way. When asked what kind of matches we’ll see from him as NEVER champion, he says his style of real pro wrestling will rule. He takes on title matches because he likes the idea of two men fighting for a title. He goes on to talk about Riki Choshu, who trained him and Ishii, and says that you get a certain type of match when he competed, and Makabe felt the same in his match tonight against Ishii. You rarely find wrestlers like him and Ishii because they aren’t good looking, but the kind of reactions they get from the fans are from the heart and that’s what matters.

In his reflective interview he says that he was going to go for the Intercontinental title,  and if he won all titles he’d be invincible! But then he got the influenza virus and was stripped of the NEVER title (that’s what led to Ishii vs. Honma, which is a surefire contender for match of the year), so he had to go win it back. He says that only he and Ishii can have the kind of matches they have. While his flower has bloomed, Makabe says, Ishii’s potential has only blossomed in the last couple of years. But as time goes on, Ishii’s flower will continue to bloom.

Good episode this week. The Styles/Naito match was way better than I remember it being. But then again, WrestleKingdom 10 was a stacked show, and you can only remember so much from a show that aired at 3 in the morning. Makabe/Ishii has been run so many times this year I found this match to be a bit stale looking at it now, but it’s not a bad match by any means. If you haven’t seen these two go at it, I highly recommend that you give this show a look.