Best of the Super Juniors 26 is the first Juniors Tournament I have attempted to watch all of. It's been fun! Challenging, but Fun. The main reason for my attempt was the fact New Japan are making more use of their on demand service and are now showing all group matches not only with Commentary but with their normal camera production.
Past tournaments have switched to a Hard Cam with no Commentary for the middle section of the Blocks and in this guys opinion, trying to watch wrestling that way is an endurance Sport. I've therefore taking the commitment to watching all matches, therefore confirming my Nerd status. So below are my thoughts about how the field is shaping up so far.
BLOCK A
DRAGON LEE - The IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion has suffered a couple of set backs on his journey to win Block A. Despite 4 victories so far, including a stormer against SHO, he slipped to defeats against Taiji Ishimori and Shingo Takagi, the latter would be in my top 5 matches of the Tournament so far. One of 3 people in the running to win the group but realistically it will be about picking up wins to stop future challenges to his title.
JONATHAN GRESHAM - In his debut Juniors run, Gresham has been steady. Providing plenty of wrestling accumen without achieving any truly stand out moments. One of 3 guys currently holding a 50/50 record in the tournament and mid table security beckons for the ROH regular.
MARTY SCURLL - The Villain's run in this years edition has been a slow burn. The key factor has been the increased volume at which his heater Brody King has been involved in his matches. King interfered several times when Scurll faced SHO and attempted to cost Kanemaru victory in Scurll's latest outing by blocking his run to the ring during a 20 count. Both occasions he failed in his task but having a monster like that on the outside could see Marty finish strong. Another with a 50/50 record which a betting man might say would improve over the next 3 matches.
SHINGO TAKAGI - The Man who has steamrolled his way to the only perfect record across both Blocks, and also a Man yet to be pinned in NJPW. His opener against SHO was a MOTY contender in my opinion and his outing with Lee came close to that level too. He has to be the biggest dude in the tournament and my penchant for Muscles means I'm rooting completely for him. At this point a shoe in for the final unless he chokes, he ends the groups with Ishimori in the match that will surely decide the person who qualifies for the final.
SHO - Probably my MVP of Block A. His first 2 nights saw him take Dragon Lee and Takagi right to their limit but unfortunately he came up short. A 50/50 record so far doesn't tell the story of a man who has only improved his already high reputation. Maybe my favourite Dude in the Junior division and even though this year has come too soon for him, he can drop back into the Tag Division and continue to tear it up.
TAIJI ISHIMORI - The Bone Soldier has been fairly consistent so far, his one blemish being a surprise defeat to Kanemaru. He hasn't quite ripped into 5th Gear yet but has far from phoned it in and his encounters with Lee and Scurll have received praise. His match with Takagi is surely going to get all the stars from Meltzer.
TAKA MICHINOKU - Winner of best Theme in the Block. Unfortunately there are no points for that and it's been only defeats so far for the man who competed in the original tournament. It appears he will repeat his score of 0 if things carry on but he took Takagi as close as anyone has so far and the hope would be that his devious attitude will reap the rewards of at least 1 win.
TIGER MASK - Much like last year's tournament, Tiger Mask started with 2 victories and was dreaming of a famous run to the final. Reality has set in though and the veteran has since slumped to 4 defeats. Being able to pick up at least one more victory from his remaining outings will be the aim.
TITAN - Titan has been another also ran in this group. Victory on the opening night is one of only 2 victories for him. He's sporting a nasty scar across his chest that would give the impression he is well hard and hopefully he can muster a win or two to take back to Mexico and tell the Grandchildren about.
YOSHINOBU KANEMARU - A vital component of Block A. Although TAKA/Scrull and Ishimori have drifted on the Heel spectrum, Kanemaru has remained a solid Dick. His cheating has consisted of the standard spitting of whisky to the face, pushing a Young Lion into SHO to cause a countout and the involvement of the sleazy Taichi interfering. Kevin Kelly regularly refers to him as underrated on commentary and I for one completely agree. Only 2 wins though, so another year towards the bottom end of a Block.
BLOCK B
BANDIDO - He would of expected to maybe have more points built up at this stage of the tournament but Bandido has left everything in the ring. His outing with Ospreay received huge plaudits and his adaptability to work matches with a number of different styles in this block has been displayed clearly. His 50/50 record masks the quality of his displays and I hope we see a lot more of him in future NJPW shows. Also, Juice Robinson putting over his good looks on commentary have made me want him to whip his mask off and get more Ladies in the building.
BUSHI - He has slipped a bit into the background of this tournament. Not everyone can be the star and a run of 3 defeats from 3 early on is part of the reason why maybe I feel that. He has since starting putting wins together and whilst the Black Mist is available at any moment, it will be no surprise to see more W's come BUSHI's way.
DOUKI - A late addition to the Block and a guy I had not previously heard of. One victory, that coming on opening night against Narita, has seen him languishing near the bottom. He has aligned himself with the Villainous Suzuki Gun and to his credit, has tried his best to be a dick and get the unfair advantage. Him coming into the tournament as a guy with a chip on his shoulder has been a nice wrinkle in the story of Block B, but he will need to pick up a few wins to cement himself in some fans minds.
EL PHANTASMO - It's been an impressive debut run for ELP. He started the Block with a 5 out of 5 record , including a great match against Ospreay in Round 5. His latest outing with Rocky Romero did end in defeat but at over 28 minutes it was the longest bout so far and the emotion in Korakuen Hall made it a Must see encounter. He has tapped into Vintage Bullet Club Tomfoolery and attained a good level of heat for a man with such Impressive flips. Seeing him reach the final at this stage wouldn't surprise many.
REN NARITA - The last minute inclusion of Young Lion Narita has been a good decision. His matches have been brief and he has been looking up at the lights alot but he has made this writer believe on 1 or 2 occasions that he has achieved an upset and that is the maximum that can be expected from a guy of Narita's experience. Eagles/Bandido and Ospreay in particular gave him a strong workout and the future is bright. Any points would be a miracle though.
ROBBIE EAGLES - For a man named "The Sniper of the Sky" Eagles has been a far more proficient wrestler than I was expecting. Also, for a Bullet Club member he has played things straight most, if not all, of the time. No stand out displays but also nothing close to a bad one. 4 wins leaves him with an outside chance of progression here and although that is probably still unattainable it has been a very good run for The Aussie.
ROCKY ROMERO - The surprise of the tournament has been the romantic run of Rocky Romero. His latest effort against ELP had Korakuen Hall on their feet and his losing effort to Ospreay was a 25 minute stunner, packed with so much emotion. Probably as good a reason as any to say that the Juniors tournament has been pushed to 20 as a marginalized talent like Rocky has been able to shine brighter than he has in years. 4 points on the board but his performances have been above wherever he finishes in the table.
RYUSUKE TAGUCHI - One of my absolute favourites and to see him pull out 4 wins so far has me dreaming of a unexpected run to the final. We will be getting a re-run of his Magnificent match against Ospreay which Finished the 2016 tournament and "The Gooch" will be hoping for a different result this time out as last time saw maximum effort but heartbreaking defeat. I could talk all day about his seamless transitions from Comedy to Chain wrestling to Nonsense to Intense but just go and watch him.
WILL OSPREAY - I'll admit I have been in the minority that has been a take it or leave it guy with Ospreay over his NJPW career but this bulky version he seems to be settling on these days is a bit of me. Various ways to end a match which keep me guessing and an ability now to bully the smaller Juniors because of his Mass. There are still flips, beautiful and crisp I'll admit, but pretty much all his matches have been worth watching so far. Particularly his Rocky contest although him and Bandido might of broke GIF twitter with their match.
YOH - It's been unfortunate for YOH that his tag partner SHO has put on such stellar outings in Block A as YOH has been very capable himself so far. Heading into night 2 against Taguchi and joining the ever growing list of dudes to have a corker with Ospreay. 6 points from 12 leave him mid table but I'm pulling for some wins late on for him.
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