NJPW The New Beginning In Osaka 2023 Results

New Japan Pro-Wrestling finished up their New Beginning tour today as The New Beginning in Osaka emanated from EDION Arena Osaka. 

The show featured multiple title matches and Kazuchika Okada defended the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship against Shingo Takagi in the main event. The two competitors were tied at one win apiece in their previous world title matches and Okada emerged victorious on this occasion. Shingo repeatedly blocked the Rainmaker throughout the contest, even countering one attempt from Okada into Last of the Dragon for the nearest of near falls. Takagi couldn't hit his finishing move again, however, and Okada blocked a Pumping Bomber before he followed up with the Landslide and Rainmaker for the victory. 

After the match, Okada set up his next IWGP World Heavyweight Title defence as he invited Hiroshi Tanahashi - who had defeated KENTA earlier in the night - to challenge him for NJPW's top prize. Tanahashi obliged, setting up their first title clash in five years at Battle in the Valley in San Jose, California on February 18. 

While two runs in Japan continued, one came to an end as former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Jay White suffered defeat in his Loser Leaves Japan Match against Hikuleo. White came close at one point with a Blade Runner but Hikuleo avoided being pinned. The big man then later decked White with a Powerbomb and Chokeslam after they shared a Too Sweet to score the 1-2-3. White's future with New Japan is obviously uncertain, with reports having noted his NJPW contract is set to expire and there is interest in Switchblade from WWE and All Elite Wrestling. He will have another NJPW match first, though, against Eddie Kingston at Battle in the Valley. 

A title change also took place at The New Beginning in Osaka as Minoru Suzuki, El Desperado, and Ren Narita defeated House of Torture's EVIL, SHO, and Yujiro Takahashi to win the NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Championships. House of Torture were told ahead of the show that they would have to defend the belts or be stripped of them. 

The faction gained an early advantage once the match got underway as they took out Ren Narita while Suzuki and co. made their entrances. Narita soon recovered, however, and The Son of Strong Style, Suzuki and El Desperado applied simultaneous submissions to their opponents, with Narita picking up the win after Yujiro Takahashi tapped out. 

Following the match, Suzuki embraced Narita and announced the trio would be named Strong Style. 

The next challenger for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship was revealed at The New Beginning in Osaka too. Following an eight-man tag team match with Los Ingobernables de Japon, Lio Rush interrupted their post-match celebrations with a pre-taped promo. The Man of the Hour noted that his tag team partner YOH had failed to defeat Hiromu Takahashi, before he challenged Hiromu to an IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title bout. Takahashi accepted but it was not revealed when the match would take place.

Elsewhere, Tama Tonga retained the NEVER Openweight Title with a Jay Driller against El Phantasmo, and Taiji Ishimori looked to reassert himself within the junior heavyweight division with a win over Master Wato. 

Check out the full results from The New Beginning in Osaka below:

• Aaron Henare & Great-O-Khan def. Oskar Leube & Toru Yano
• Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito, SANADA, & BUSHI def. Ryusuke Taguchi, Shota Umino, Tomoaki Honma, & Tiger Mask
• Taiji Ishimori def. Master Wato
• Hiroshi Tanahashi def. KENTA
• Ren Narita, Minoru Suzuki, & El Desperado def. Yujiro Takahashi, EVIL, & SHO (c) - NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Championships
• Hikuleo def. Jay White - Loser Leaves Japan Match
• Tama Tonga (c) def. El Phantasmo - NEVER Openweight Championship
• Kazuchika Okada (c) def. Shingo Takagi - IWGP World Heavyweight Championship