Hi guys,
With the largest Best of Super Jr line up ever on the cards and all of the events being broadcast live and with English subtitles, May is going to be a damn good month of wrestling. Obviously, as the line up is so big, I'm going to split this preview into two and this post will focus on the participants in Block A!
Dragon Lee
As the IWGP Jr Heavyweight Champion, Dragon Lee has probably the biggest target on his back. Even though everyone is gunning to pick up as many wins as possible, the main win they will all want is against Lee because it guarantees a title shot in the future. However, Lee stands in good stead against his competitors because of his perfect combination of speed and agility in the ring. Even though he's one of the youngest competitors in the field, with the title around his waste, he's already one step above all his opponents. Within this block alone, I am looking forward to another match between him and Taiji Ishmori and his fellow CMLL wrestler and 2017 Jr tag league partner Titan. These matches will be dangerous and 110% making them exciting and scary as Dragon Lee shares the trait of fearlessness as his long time rival Hiromu Takahashi!
Shingo Takagi
Takagi is probably the favourite going into this tournament considering he is currently unpinned since he was introduced to NJPW fans last Autumn. He has already had some amazing matches and is going to be one of the biggest threats in the tournament, considering he's been an issue for quite a few heavyweights. Without a shadow of a doubt, what the people are probbaly most excited for is the first night match up between him and Sho. Both are power houses in their division and, when they get in the ring together, they always produce some sort of magic in the form of an extremely brutal match. There's also the first time singles match between Takagi and Taiji Ishimori, because people forget that Ishimori is also part of that team of super strong heavyweights!
SHO
Sho is one of my favourites going into this tournament and, with fellow powerhouse Shingo Takagi in the same block, the Gold Standard of Roppongi 3k has even more to prove this year. With the perfect combination of strength, speed and agility, Sho is going to be a tough opponent for many because of his versatility. Of course everyone's main focus for Sho will be the match with LIJ's Shingo Takagi. However, with match ups also including the veterans Taka, Tiger Mask and Kanemaru as well as match ups with Taiji Ishimori, there is no shortage of possible tournament stealers. It is a shame though that we might have to wait until the final to get a Roppongi 3k v Roppongi 3k match involving Sho! He's also hoping to build on his points from last year and even finally get a pin on Dragon Lee for a future title shot!
Tiger Mask
This will be Tiger Mask's 18th consecutive BOSJ tournament and this makes him the most experienced of the bunch. Although a lot of people probably don't see Tiger Mask doing very well against this new crop of Jr heavyweights, you've got to remember that this guy is still in amazing shape. Alongside the likes of Jushin Thunder Liger, they are continuing to prove that the oldies still have a damn lot of fight within them which showed at last years Jr Tag League where a win over Kanemaru and Desperado led to a tag team title shot. With years of experience under his belt, Tiger Mask will have some tricks up his sleeve and everyone in his block should be wary.
Taiji Ishimori
After narrowly missing out on winning BOSJ last year in that amazing match against Hiromu Takahashi, Ishimori will be coming back to this tournament with a vengeance. It's even more important for Ishimori to do well in BOSJ after losing his title to Dragon Lee and failing to win it back in the rematch at Dontaku. We know that Ishmori can put on some of the best matches possible with his unrivalled speed and agility combined with his strength and precision. With the focus beingon Shingo and Sho, people seem to forgot how much of a threat Ishimori is going to be. Also, with another shot at Dragon Lee, we could see the Bone Soldier with another title shot regardless of the outcome of the tournament.
TAKA Michinoku
Like Romero, TAKA is back in the BOSJ after a few years off and what a pleasure it is having the legend and no.1 hype man in the game! With Taka mainly being seen supporting ZSJ and being the one getting pinned in tag matches, it's easy to forget how amazing Taka is in the ring and what a legend he is. Although he does a lot less of the high risk stuff, Michinoku still perfectly blends this more mat based offence with a good bit of Suzuki Gun sneaky style. Alongside a highly anticipated match against Kanemaru, the possibilities of matches are amazing!
Yoshinobu Kanemaru
Kanemaru is probably one of the most underrated athletes in the company and I think people sometimes forget actually how long he's been in the business and the belts he's won across Japan. A few years ago, Kanamaru had a belter of a match against his tag partner El Desperado so, with two members of Suzuki Gun in the tournament, I'm super excited for these matches. His style is definitely one of the most diverse with his high risk leg drops combined but the mat style offence that Suzuki Gun are known for. Although I'm gutted not to see another Kanemaru/ Despy match, with TAKA in the same block, I'm just happy with a Suzuki Gun/ Suzuki Gun match which will be nothing but brutal and chaotic on the 31st May.
Jonathan Gresham
After Gresham's amazing showing at Honor Rising, I was literally praying that The Octopus was going to be part of the Best of Super Jr. Gresham is one of those amazing hybrid athletes who can not only fly like a Jr but also possesses these amazing submission skills that are on par with the likes of Zack Sabre Jr and Minoru Suzuki. This is what's going to make him such a threat in this tournament: his versatility is unlike anyone else and this is going to give him the edge, especially considering most of these guys have never wrestled Gresham before. It also means that the possibility for matches are endless and there is anticipation for every single match Gresham is having, especially against fellow mat specialist and legend Taka.
Titán
After a really good showing in this years Fantastica Mania at the start of the year, it was nice to see that NJPW brought back one of the CMLL guys to take part in the tournament. As is the case with the CMLL guys, they always fit in perfectly in New Japan show, particularly the Jr tournaments. Titán, like many others from Mexico, have this amazing fearless mentality when they're in the ring and they put everything on the line to put on an amazing show for the fans. It will be good to get to see a lot more of Titán in singles matches and hopefully make a name for himself amongst the Japanese fans and those across the world.
Marty Scurll
Without his former Bullet Club brethren, our favourite British Numpty Hunter is back in the Best of Super Jr for the third time. I can say that I've missed Marty in NJPW since WK13 and it'll be nice to have him back for longer than just the few days of the Honor Rising tour. I think that coming back alone means that the Villain has even more to prove to show that he can still be a forced to reckon with even without his usual band of brothers behind him. There's also no doubting that Marty is one gifted Jr heavyweight with his varied British style learnt from years in the business and training from the very best. Although it's a shame he's not in the same block as Will Ospreay (because 3 things are inevitable: being born, dying and Marty Scurll beating Will Ospreay *mostly*), there will be some great matches ups across the board.
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