THE MOSS COVERED THREE HANDLED FAMILY CREDENZA

ARTICLE #35
APRIL 22, 2002

New Japan vs Michinoku Pro

During the mid-90s many agree that the New Japan juniors product was the best of its genre worldwide. While that might have been true, they certainly had help along the way. New Japan�s association with Michinoku Pro Wrestling paved the way for numerous memorable interpromotional matches. This article takes a look at six such matches, including three matches featuring the series� cornerstone rivalry, Jushin Liger vs Great Sasuke.

Super J Cup 1ST Stage Semifinal: Jushin Liger vs Great Sasuke 4/16/94

Sasuke took Liger down by the leg but Liger quickly countered and asserted himself on the mat. Liger took Sasuke down, turned him over and applied what could best be called a reverse Romero special with Sasuke facing Liger instead of upwards. Sasuke tried to counter by stretching Liger�s legs outward. He grabbed Liger�s arm and attempted a cross armbreaker, which Liger repeatedly countered and eventually applied a more conventional surfboard. Liger then gave Sasuke a Romero special and actually applied what looked like an upside down Dragon sleeper while maintaining the hold. Liger gave Sasuke a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for an early near fall and applied a camel clutch. Liger scored with a koppo kick which Sasuke sold like he was knocked out. Liger scored with a palm strike (before it was called a shoda). Liger tombstoned Sasuke and applied a crossface chicken wing which drew a surprising pop. Liger then attacked Sasuke�s arm with two pumphandles before applying a rolling hammerlock. He applied a cross armbreaker on Sasuke as heat mounted for Sasuke. Liger appeared to go for another pumphandle but instead turned and gave Sasuke a back suplex. Liger slammed Sasuke and hit a top rope dropkick but Sasuke also met him with a dropkick in mid-air. Sasuke kicked Liger and hit his virtually uncatchable Asai moonsault for a huge pop. Sasuke tried to suplex Liger back into the ring but Liger blocked the attempt. Sasuke then rammed Liger into the corner. Sasuke then jumped off the top rope, over the ringpost and onto Liger with one of the most spectacular somersault planchas ever for another pop. Sasuke gave Liger a few kneedrops after Liger reentered the ring. Sasuke spin kicked Liger for a near fall and piledrove him for another near fall. Sasuke then gave Liger a splash mountain for a heated near fall. Sasuke legdropped Liger and tombstoned him. Sasuke missed a top rope somersault senton but bounced right up. Sasuke missed a lariat and Liger scored with one of his own for a near fall. Liger then gave Sasuke a Liger bomb for a heated near fall. Liger gave Sasuke a top rope huracanrana for a near fall but Sasuke then flipped him over and gained a near fall of his own. Liger gave Sasuke a great released German suplex for a great near fall. Liger kicked Sasuke and gave him a fisherman buster for another dramatic near fall. He then suplexed Sasuke out of the ring to the floor and hit a plancha for a pop. Sasuke got up to the ring apron but Liger met him with a koppo kick. Sasuke went for a springboard move but slipped on the rope and fell in what looked like an unplanned spot. Liger sold the spot perfectly as a miscue by the youngster Sasuke. Liger picked Sasuke up but Sasuke caught him off-guard with a huracanrana and pinned Liger at 18:09 to advance to the final. Fans popped absolutely huge for the upset, which had to go down as one of the biggest or at least most important upsets of the 1990s. ****3/4

Although many people look at the tournament final (Benoit vs Sasuke) as the best match of the tournament and maybe the best juniors match of the decade, I enjoyed this match more and felt it had more impact. You could point to Sasuke�s miscue as being the biggest drawback to this match, but Liger sold it so perfectly that it actually contributed to the story of the match. After all, Sasuke was almost like Misawa compared to Liger as the Jumbo Tsuruta-like star, so one would expect Sasuke to make a couple mistakes. Also, while the finish was somewhat sudden (due in part to the botched spot), it really worked out perfectly because not only did Sasuke win, Liger�s credibility didn�t suffer at all. Even with a Liger win, a new superstar would have been created because Liger was such a selfless worker. He gave Sasuke so much offense and even more importantly let Sasuke kick out of all his signature moves. Perhaps Liger realized that Sasuke�s offense was more spectacular than his own, and let that work to the match�s advantage. Liger carried the match seamlessly in between spots and structured the match superbly. Some of that matwork and counters early were simple, but worked so well that fans bought into some of the submissions around the 6-8 minute marks as if they could be the finishes. While Benoit vs Sasuke might have been more �technically flawless� than this match, the fact that this match had so much more long-term impact speaks volumes.

Jushin Liger, El Samurai, Shinjiro Otani & Tokimitsu Ishizawa vs Great Sasuke, Taka Michinoku, Sato & Shiryu 8/1994

Liger and Sato had a criss cross exchange ending with Liger scoring with a tilt-a-whirl headscissors. Sato then fought back with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. The Michinoku Pro team ganged up on Liger in their corner, including Sato climbing onto Liger�s back and displaying some of the charisma he would later become known for as Dick Togo. Shiryu gave Liger a spinebuster, Taka hit a top rope splash and Togo and Sasuke followed with slingshot somersault sentons on Liger. Togo and Shiryu kicked Liger, held him upside down and taunted the opposition. Taka missed a dropkick and Liger tagged Otani. Otani hit a sharp dropkick to the back of Taka�s head and pummeled him in the corner. Taka held his own and scored with a running elbow strike. Taka attempted a corner splash but Otani did a Flair-like flip to the apron and hit a great springboard dropkick. Taka belly to belly suplexed Otani and dropkicked him out of the ring. Taka teased a springboard plancha but flipped back into the ring. He turned his back and Otani caught him with a sharp springboard missile dropkick. Samurai suplexed Taka back into the ring and tombstoned him for a near fall. Samurai powerbombed Taka for a near fall. All four New Japan wrestlers took turns hitting top rope foot stomps on Taka. Ishizawa took down Taka and applied a chinlock. Liger gave Taka a released German suplex. Samurai continued to dominate Taka but Taka fought back with a running elbow strike. Sasuke and Samurai had a criss cross exchange ending with Samurai giving Sasuke a Mexican armdrag. Sasuke gave Samurai a cross bodyblock out of the corner and a spinning mule kick. Liger tagged in and Sasuke reluctantly accepted his challenge. Liger scored with a koppo kick and threw Sasuke out of the ring. Liger then powerbombed Sasuke on the floor. Back in the ring Liger and Otani gave Sasuke a back suplex/elbow combo. Otani dropkicked Sasuke and hit a spinning mule kick of his own. Samurai landed a couple chops but Sasuke fought back. Sasuke snap suplexed Samurai and kicked him. Samurai and Liger got the better of Shiryu but Shiryu held his own. In one sequence, Samurai held Shiryu, Liger charged but Shiryu backdropped him, then Shiryu armdragged Samurai. Samurai and Liger chopped Shiryu, who did his comedic kip-up routine. Ishizawa got the better of Shiryu and speared him in the corner. Ishizawa gave Shiryu a northern lights suplex for a near fall but Shiryu fought back with a lariat in the corner. Shiryu hiptossed Ishizawa and dropkicked him out of the ring. Shiryu then hit a great somersault tope through the ropes with such momentum that he landed on the ringside table. Samurai then hit a tope suicida on Shiryu, Sato a running springboard somersault plancha on Samurai, Liger a plancha on Sato, Taka a springboard plancha on Liger, Otani a majestic springboard plancha on Taka and Sasuke a tope con hilo on Otani in which he barely grazed Otani with his arm and landed on the ringside table. Just an exhausting, top-notch sequence. Back in the ring Shiryu gave Ishizawa a huracanrana for a near fall. Togo powerslammed Ishizawa for a near fall. Togo powerbombed Ishizawa as Sasuke and Taka gave him a nodowa. The Michinoku Pro guys went after their opponents as Togo gained a heated near fall. Sasuke hit an in-ring quebrada on Ishizawa for a near fall but Ishizawa fought back with an inverted DDT. Liger gave Shiryu a koppo kick and tombstoned him. The other three New Japan guys hit a triple top rope headbutt on Shiryu. A six-way fight broke out at ringside. Liger gave Shiryu a top rope fisherman buster and pinned him at 12:47. This could have been a bit better, but was by no means a disappointment. The opening minutes were paced perfectly with lots of cool moves and sequences, and the dive sequence was nothing short of spectacular, at least by 1994 standards. I found the idea to give Ishizawa ring time down the stretch interesting, but he was handled in a way that didn�t drag the match down. I would have liked the finish to be a couple minutes later than it took place, but it didn�t seem too sudden. Overall an excellent match that most fans could enjoy. ****

Shinjiro Otani vs Great Sasuke 9/1994

Otani dropkicked Sasuke before the bell and immediately hit a tope. Otani attacked Sasuke�s left arm, including using a pumphandle. Otani gave Sasuke a rolling hammerlock and displayed some heelish charisma. Otani briefly applied a modified Fujiwara armbar on Sasuke. Otani attempted a cross armbreaker but Sasuke blocked it and reached the ropes. After a few counters on the mat Otani applied a Fujiwara armbar. He threw Sasuke out of the ring and teased a dive but Sasuke walked out of range. Back in the ring Otani continued to go after Sasuke�s arm but Sasuke held his own on the mat. Sasuke applied an armbar but Otani reached the ropes. They had a criss cross exchange and Sasuke attempted a hiptoss but Otani countered with a lariat. Sasuke backdropped Otani and gave him a sharp spinning mule kick to the jaw after which Otani bailed out of the ring. Otani took Sasuke down by the legs and applied another armbar on his left arm but Sasuke quickly countered with a toehold. Otani then countered with a chinlock and attempted a cross armbreaker. Sasuke repeatedly countered, escaped Otani�s grip and surprised him by quickly applying a leglock. Otani countered by grabbing Sasuke�s leg and gained the advantage. Tempers began to flare as Sasuke took Otani down and choked him. Sasuke then attacked Otani�s left arm and applied a crossface chicken wing. Otani regained the advantage by going after Sasuke�s arm again. Otani spin kicked Sasuke and gave his left arm another pumphandle. Otani applied a cross armbreaker but Sasuke quickly reached the ropes. Sasuke took down Otani and applied a leglock but Otani countered with a leglock of his own. After both men reached the ropes Sasuke applied a sleeper on Otani. Sasuke landed a few kicks and tombstoned Otani. Sasuke missed a top rope somersault senton but bounced up. Sasuke missed a kick but knocked Otani out of the ring with a handspring elbow. Sasuke then hit an Asai moonsault at 16:31. Otani gave a charging Sasuke a shoulderblock and hit a springboard dropkick. Otani then hit a great springboard plancha on Sasuke. Otani then hit a top rope kneedrop on a prone Sasuke and went for a cross armbreaker but again Sasuke quickly reached the ropes. Sasuke German suplexed Otani for a near fall and gave him a small package for another near fall. Sasuke used a rollup with a bridge to gain a near fall. Sasuke hit a sharp springboard dropkick for a near fall. Sasuke German suplexed Otani for a near fall. He attempted a dragon suplex but Otani countered with a dragon suplex of his own for a near fall. Otani tombstoned Sasuke for a near fall. Otani attempted a powerbomb but Sasuke countered with a huracanrana for a dramatic near fall. Sasuke gave Otani a splash mountain and pinned him at 21:46. A �great� match, but not the excellent or world class effort they were capable of. Perhaps they were not yet comfortable in working with each other, but they had faced off in an 8-man tag team match not too long before this match. The opening was hot, but they cooled off too suddenly and took seemingly forever to pick up the intensity. Otani showed good heel charisma and the matwork was generally sharp, which helped crowd heat somewhat during the first 14 minutes or so. As for the closing stretch, it was great, no doubt, but not as complex or as dramatic as they might have been capable of. In fact, as a whole the moves and sequences were not as complex as one might expect, although Otani and to a lesser extent Sasuke were still growing as all-around workers. Give then 21 minutes two years later and they might have produced a classic. ***3/4

IWGP Jr. Title: Jushin Liger (c) vs Great Sasuke 4/29/96

Liger immediately missed a koppo kick and Sasuke missed a spin kick. Sasuke hit a spinning mule kick and followed with a spectacular (as usual) tope con hilo, all within the first 15 seconds. Sasuke slammed Liger and legdropped him before applying an armlock. Liger scored with a dropkick to Sasuke�s leg and a second dropkick to his right knee. Liger applied something of a rear leg grapevine while maintaining a headscissors on Sasuke. Liger gave Sasuke a koppo kick in the corner and went back to attacking Sasuke�s right knee. Liger trapped Sasuke�s right leg in the ropes and hit a running lariat. Liger landed a couple kneelifts as Sasuke reentered the ring but Sasuke knocked him out of the ring with a handspring elbow. Sasuke then kicked Liger and hit his uncatchable Asai moonsault, flying over the barricade and into the announcers� area in the process. Sasuke slammed Liger and hit a twisting splash, almost like Sayama�s version of the moonsault, for a near fall. Sasuke hit an in-ring quebrada on Liger for a near fall. After several German suplex counters back and forth, Sasuke rolled up Liger and bridged for a near fall. Sasuke jumped off the top rope seemingly going for a huracanrana but Liger caught him and powerbombed him. Liger knocked Sasuke out of the ring with a koppo kick and hit a plancha. Back in the ring Liger gave Sasuke a brainbuster. He then gave Sasuke a fisherman buster for a heated near fall. Liger hit a top tope huracanrana for a near fall but like the 4/16/94 match held out his arms and Sasuke flipped him over for a near fall of his own. Liger caught Sasuke on the top rope and gave him a top rope fisherman buster for a heated near fall. Liger gave Sasuke a backbreaker and climbed to the top rope but Sasuke met him with a dropkick. Sasuke headbutted Liger and attempted a top rope huracanrana but Liger held his ground and Sasuke flipped hard to the mat. Liger then came off the top rope with a Takako panic (knee to the head) on Sasuke. Liger then locked on his favorite submission hold, the crossface chicken wing, and Sasuke reached the ropes 30 seconds later. Liger dropkicked Sasuke�s knee but ran into a superkick from Sasuke. Liger responded with a shoda for a near fall. Sasuke gave Liger a huracanrana for a near fall. He powerbombed Liger and pinned him with a tiger suplex at 19:27 (10:46 aired) to win the title. Most ratings I�ve seem for this match have ranged from **** to ****1/2, and that�s a realistic range. This was a super match, maybe even a classic, but hardly their best match and clearly not as great as their J-Cup match. From what little aired if it the build looked pretty solid although not really dramatic. The closing 6 minutes or so were great with most of their big moves used. However, I thought the closing stretch lost a bit of steam near the end, although not enough to really hurt the match. The crowd heat, while not great was really good for a juniors match at the Tokyo Dome. The 9 minutes that were edited for TV might paint a clearer picture, but I am sure this was an excellent match. ****1/4

Koji Kanemoto vs Taka Michinoku 2/9/97

Taka scored with a running knee strike in the corner and hit a springboard Takako panic on Kanemoto as footage began. Taka dropkicked Kanemoto out of the ring, gave him a baseball slide kick through the ropes and hit his amazing springboard superquebrada over the barricade and into the front row. Back in the ring Taka dropkicked Kanemoto�s right knee. Taka whipped Kanemoto into the corner and hit a running elbow strike. Taka then stiffed Kanemoto with a kick to the face. Taka landed a couple kneelifts and a couple spinning kicks. Kanemoto blocked a tiger suplex attempt but Taka then blocked a German suplex attempt and gave Kanemoto a rolling legbar of sorts in a neat counter. Kanemoto gave Taka an overhead belly to belly suplex and a bunch of stiff kicks. Kanemoto slammed Taka but missed a moonsault. Taka then hit a springboard missile dropkick and a Michinoku driver for a heated near fall. Taka hit a second Michinoku driver and went for a moonsault bodyblock but Kanemoto dropkicked him in mid-air. Taka landed an elbow and attempted a German suplex but Kanemoto countered with a released German suplex. Kanemoto slammed Taka and moonsaulted him for a near fall. Taka missed a dropkick and Kanemoto gave him a sharp spin kick to the head. Kanemoto gave Taka a top rope brainbuster and made a nonchalant pin with his boot for a near fall. Kanemoto then gave Taka a tiger suplex and pinned him at 14:41 (6:22 aired). Tough match to rate because none of the first 8 minutes aired. My guess is that the build wasn�t too complex or as sharp as a Liger-Sasuke match, especially since this was the first meeting between the two. While the closing stretch was generally hot with both men busting out most of their signature moves, it lacked the drama and heat of a classic match. Still, what aired was excellent and by no means was this match a disappointment. Also keep in mind that a classic Liger-Otani match took place later on the show and Kanemoto and Taka might have held back a bit so as to not steal the thunder from the more important match. This looked like either a ***3/4 or **** match.

J-Crown Title: Jushin Liger (c) vs Great Sasuke 4/12/97

This was the much-anticipated rematch from their 4/29/96 match. Sasuke missed a spin kick, Liger missed a lariat and Sasuke dropkicked Liger out of the ring. Sasuke then hit his Asai moonsault and again bounced over the barricade. Very similar opening sequence to their previous match. Liger was in control as footage resumed and applied a chinlock. They had a criss cross exchange and Liger countered a German suplex attempt with a great released German suplex in which Sasuke was nearly launched into orbit. Liger tombstoned Sasuke and climbed to the top rope but Sasuke met him with a tackle. Sasuke attempted a top rope huracanrana but Liger knocked him to the mat with a series of palm strikes. Sasuke recovered and knocked Liger off the top to the floor with a dropkick. Sasuke then hit his spectacular version of the space flying tiger press on Liger for a pop. Sasuke then hit a modified ryder kick to the floor. Back in the ring Sasuke hit an in-ring quebrada for a near fall. Sasuke attempted a powerbomb but Liger escaped his grip. Sasuke spin kicked Liger and attempted a powerbomb but again Liger countered and gave him a koppo kick. Liger hit a plancha on Sasuke and followed with a flip dive off the apron. Liger superkicked Sasuke in the gut and gave him a fisherman buster for a near fall as heat picked up. Liger gave Sasuke a brainbuster and hit a frog splash for a near fall. Liger attempted a running Liger bomb but Sasuke countered with a huracanrana for a near fall. Sasuke ran towards Liger but ran into a shoda that knocked him for a loop. Liger then gained a near fall. In a neat spot that played off their 1996 match, this time Liger attempted a top rope huracanrana but Sasuke held his ground and Liger tumbled to the mat. Sasuke then gave Liger a Takako panic. Sasuke slammed Liger but missed what looked like a phoenix splash. Liger scored with a shoda and gave Sasuke a Liger bomb for a near fall. Liger then gave Sasuke a great top rope brainbuster and pinned him at 20:08 to retain the title (9:22 aired). Interesting match that in some ways complimented their 1996 match nicely. This seemed more carefully (albeit not slower) paced, and while the moves themselves were not quite as spectacular, the pacing down the stretch was more even than the closing minutes in 1996. However, the heat was definitely weaker as this crowd seemed tougher to please, although they did pop for all the big moves. From what aired, their 1996 match was better, although only slightly. Overall, an excellent match that was perhaps not as spectacular as 1996 because there was less emphasis on Sasuke�s role and offense and more focus on Liger. ****

Next Issue: WCW�s Forgotten Cruiserweight Classics

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