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Shingo Takagi Retains IWGP World Heavyweight Title At NJPW Power Struggle

Shingo remains champion

While Zack Sabre Jr. may have defeated Shingo Takagi during G1 Climax 31, ZSJ was unable to vanquish the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion when the gold was on the line. 

Shingo defended the world championship against Sabre Jr. in the main event of today's Power Struggle show. Both men fought back and forth for over 30 minutes but it was the champion who had his arm raised after he connected with a second Last Of The Dragon for the 1-2-3. 

Power Struggle marked Takagi's third successful defence of the IWGP World Heavyweight Title, having previously retained the championship in matches against Hiroshi Tanahashi and EVIL. 

Takagi's next challenger then revealed themselves after the match as G1 Climax 31 Champion Kazuchika Okada headed to the ring following the main event and both men agreed to find out who the better man was inside the Tokyo Dome on January 4. 

While Shingo may have retained his championship, three titles did change hands at Power Struggle. KENTA defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi to become the new IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion, El Desperado forced Robbie Eagles to tap out to Numero Dos to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title, and House Of Torture ended Tomohiro Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI and Hirooki Goto's reign as NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champions.

The full results from Power Struggle are as follows:

  • Yoshinobu Kanemaru & DOUKI def. Ryohei Oiwa & Kosei Fujita
  • Tanga Loa, Jado & Gedo def. Tiger Mask, Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma
  • SANADA, Hiromu Takahashi & BUSHI def. Yuji Nagata, Ryusuke Taguchi & Master Wato
  • EVIL, Yujiro Takahashi & SHO def. Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI - NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship
  • Toru Yano def. Great-O-Khan - KOPW 2021 Trophy
  • El Desperado def. Robbie Eagles - IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship 
  • KENTA def. Hiroshi Tanahashi - IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
  • Kazuchika Okada def. Tama Tonga - IWGP World Heavyweight Right To Challenge Contract
  • Shingo Takagi def. Zack Sabre Jr. - IWGP World Heavyweight Championship 

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KENTA Wins IWGP US Heavyweight Title At NJPW Power Struggle

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Aidan Gibbons

Written by Aidan Gibbons

Editor-in-Chief of Cultaholic.com Twitter: @theaidangibbons