Courtesy of www.puroresufan.com

NJPW “NEW DIMENSION”, 2/28/09 (SXW)
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,600 Fans

Yuji Nagata’s eyes are back on the IWGP Heavyweight Title and today’s main event result was his declaration of intent. Like at Sumo Hall recently, Nagata pinned upstart Hirooki Goto, this time while teaming with Tanahashi against Chono & Goto. Nagata promised to win the New Japan Cup and meet the winner of Tanahashi vs. Angle on 5/3 at the Fukuoka International Center. Nagata has a bone to pick with both Tanahashi and Angle, who he lost big matches to, dropping the IWGP belt to Tanahashi on 10/8/07 at Sumo Hall then falling short against Angle on 1/4/08 at the Tokyo Dome. RISE’s Shinsuke Nakamura and Milano Collection AT make their first advance on Pro Wrestling NOAH today and with Wataru Inoue, defeated the GBH trio of Makabe, Yano & Ishii today, Milano cradling Ishii in what is his biggest result in a while. Nakamura fully intends to follow up on his and Goto’s win over Misawa & Sugiura by leading Milano into enemy territory tomorrow and
winning. He promised to “engrave” Strong Style on the NOAH ring.

Former JJ Jacks tag partners, Takashi Iizuka and AKIRA, squared off in singles action today. AKIRA entered to the old JJ Jacks theme music and wore their jacket in what may have been an attempt to make Iizuka turn away from the dark side. Iizuka responded by trampling the jacket, beating AKIRA to a bloody pulp, and choking him out with a sleeper hold. Tomoaki Honma won a place in the New Japan Cup by pinning young lion Hirasawa today. Since they were fighting for the right to face Iizuka in the NJC, many suspected a Hirasawa upset here over Iizuka’s GBH cohort, but it wasn’t to be.

Akira Maeda looks set to return to forbidden territory - New Japan. New Japan announced that it will run a “NJPW Greatest Wrestlers” ceremony back at Korakuen on 3/6 for the 37th anniversary show. This sounds similar to WWE’s Hall of Fame concept and the four initiates will be Maeda, the late Black Cat, Kuniaki Kobayashi, and Katsuji Kai (a very old school NJ heel who joined Inoki in forming the company).

1. Ryusuke Taguchi beat Nobuo Yoshihashi (8:06) with a crab hold.
2. New Japan Cup Participant Match: Tomoaki Honma beat Mitsuhide Hirasawa (10:29) with a diving headbutt.
3. Jushin Thunder Liger & Koji Kanemoto beat Tiger Mask & Kazuchika Okada (11:17) when Kanemoto used an ankle hold on Okada.
4. Manabu Nakanishi & Taichi Ishikari beat Jado & Gedo (15:48) when Nakanishi used an Argentine backbreaker on Jado.
5. Takashi Iizuka beat AKIRA (12:38) by referee stop.
6. New Japan Cup Special 6 Man Tag Match: Shinsuke Nakamura, Wataru Inoue & Milano Collection AT beat Togi Makabe, Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii (14:48) when Milano used a jackknife hold on Ishii.
7. NEW DIMENSION Special Tag Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi & Yuji Nagata beat Masahiro Chono & Hirooki Goto (16:27) when Nagata used a backdrop hold on Goto.