NJPW Dominion 2023 Results

NJPW’s Dominion event took place today, with the promotion's second biggest show of the year once again delivering on all cylinders. Titles changed hands, with Catch 2/2 winning the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles and Bishamon winning the IWGP and NJPW STRONG tag belts. Other important notes included Will Ospreay earning a shot at the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship against Kenny Omega and Bryan Danielson challenging Kazuchika Okada, with both matches set for what looks to be a major Forbidden Door PPV. The Bullet Club also recruited some new members on the show, strengthening their ranks with three new names.

The match results are as follows.

Will Ospreay def. Lance Archer - Number One Contender for IWGP US Title 

Ospreay and Archer met in the tournament finals in the opening bout on the card, with Ospreay picking up the win in under 10 minutes. Archer used his physical advantage early on, with Ospreay playing the underdog. Archer nailed a blackout from the top rope, but it wasn’t enough to put down Ospreay, who would turn things around with a Hidden Blade for the win. Ospreay called out Kenny Omega after the bell.

Los Ingobernables de Japon def. Just 5 Guys 

A chaotic multi-man brawl kicked off proceedings for this match, before the match developed into a back and forth encounter between the warring factions. Ultimately, it was LIJ whose teamwork shone through, picking up the victory following a Titan making TAKA tap out.

Catch 2/2 def. Intergalactic Jet Setters (c) - IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships

The first title match of the night saw a title change, as Francesco Akira and TJP found a way to overcome KUSHIDA and Kevin Knight. The match developed in a typical manner, with Catch 2/2 issuing a beatdown of Knight, only for KUSHIDA to rally back with a hot tag. Catch 2/2 were dominant though, and even with a late comeback from the IJS, Knight fell to a double knee to give the new champions their second reign with the hold. Their next challengers were decided almost immediately after the bell when Clark Connors and Dan Mahoney attacked them.

Zack Sabre Jr (c) def. Jeff Cobb - NJPW World Television Championship 

The first match of the night contender took place between ZSJ and Jeff Cobb, with the pair going back and forth in a fluid, technical and hard-hitting TV title match. They both threw each other around with suplexes, but it was a piece of ingenious reversing that brought ZSJ the win. Whilst Cobb was attempting his signature Tour of the Islands, ZSJ reversed into a fight pinfall to retain his belt.

Bishamon def. United Empire & House of Torture - IWGP & NJPW Strong Tag Team Championships 

House of Torture started this match hot by issuing an early ambush on their opponents, but this didn’t last long with all teams getting involved in the match with spells of dominance. It looked at one stage like the United Empire were going to win, but interference from Dick Togo prevented this from happening. Amidst the chaos it was Bishamon who won back the gold. Following the bell, Bullet Club added two more members - Alex Coughlin and Gabriel Kidd.

David Finlay (c) def. El Phantasmo - NEVER Openweight Championship

The former allies came to blows here as the leader of the Bullet Club managed to overcome his old friend by retaining the NEVER Openweight Championship. The pair brawled on the outside initially before finding their way into the ring. Finlay dominated for some time before El Phantasmo had a comeback, until the Bullet Club led a distraction. In the end, the face was put through a table, allowing Finlay to win.

Hiromu Takahashi (c) def. Master Wato - IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship 

This was a fast-paced encounter which started hot as Takahashi kicked things off with a big suplex on the ramp. Dives, submissions and suplexes were exchanged between the two, though it was mostly the champion in control. Near-falls were exchanged at the end of the match with each man hitting big moves, though it was Takahashi who hit the Timebomb for the pin and the win.

Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii & Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) def. Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli & Shota Umino - NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championships

This was a brutal clash between six incredible performers. Both teams took turns isolating their opponents with spells of control. Okada managed to escape and prompt a hot tag, which led to all out brawling in the ring. Notable moments include Moxley and Ishii beating the soul out of one another, perhaps a Shield nod with a triple powerbomb and eventually Okada hitting Umino with a Rainmaker to win the match. After the bell, Bryan Danielson appeared via video to set up a dream match with Okada for Forbidden Door.

SANADA (c) def. Yota Tsuji - IWGP World Heavyweight Championship 

The main event of Dominion 2023 was a hot one with the two men trading a lot of offense. There were dives, slams and strike exchanges with some big near falls spread throughout the contest. Towards the end of the bout, Tsuji failed to get the job done with a diving headbutt, allowing SANADA to hit a moonsault, shining wizard and then Deadfall to come out on top in the match and retain his title.