Steven and Jeremy discussed Strong Style Evolved, and how Mercedes Mone and Hazuki tore the house down. The Young Bucks, Jack Perry, Konosuke Takeshita and other AEW stars were also a part of the show, but does AEW respect New Japan? Is this partnership worthwhile? They also looked forward to the last two Korakuen Hall shows of the year, featuring a strange KOPW title match with Taichi and Great O-Khan.
World Tag League ended with a twist, as a three-way match determined the finalists. Steven and Jeremy talked about how Hiromu Takahashi carried a wounded Tetsuya Naito through the tournament and into an important Wrestle Kingdom 19 match. They also discussed Naito's surgery and Zack Sabre Jr.'s historic MVP award from Tokyo Sports. Plus a Strong Style Evolved preview, including the a main event of Mercedes Mone versus HAZUKI.
After a week off, the guys discussed World Tag League and its consequences, which may be severe after HENARE and Callum Newman seem to have been injured. They talked about SANADA's heel development and his team with Gabe Kidd, why it's sad to see Jado and Hiroshi Tanahashi, why Bishamon are so crucial to New Japan's tag team division and whether we've seen the peak of Mikey Nicholls and Shane Haste. Plus, does Shota Umino need to win at Wrestle Kingdom?
Steven Conway brings you this "Best of" episode with his career history of Hiroshi Tanahashi. Over the course of several episodes, Steven discussed the 20-plus year career of the Ace. Now, for the first time, that history is all in one place. A great show for historians!
Steven and Jeremy were joined once again by Scott Edwards to review Historic X-Over II, which included one of the best matches of the year, Mayu Iwatani versus Momo Watanabe. The discuss the show match-by-match and whether it was worth the PPV price. They also talked about why a Wrestle Kingdom match means so much to the champ. They also looked at the first two nights of World Tag League and went over the latest Wrestle Dynasty news.
This week, Scott Edwards from the Five Star Joshi Show and STARDOM Road joined Steven and Jeremy to talk about Fighting Spirit Unleashed and preview Historic X-Over. Will the surprise appearances by Merecedes Mone and Jack Perry help the big January shows? They also discussed the special meaning behind the Mayu Iwantani-Momo Watanabe match, and why the main event should be a lot of fun. Does New Japan have something special planned to boost ticket sales for Wrestle Kingdom and Wrestle Dynasty? P...
This week, Steven and Jeremy broke down a long, but excellent and eventful Power Struggle card. Zack Sabre Jr. and Shingo Takagi delivered, with Ricochet and Shota Umino putting themselves in the IWGP title picture. Are these the right moves to draw crowds for the Tokyo Dome? Plus, they covered David Finlay versus Taichi and SANADA's great betrayal, a title change and a tournament final. Did New Japan botch the post-match angle? They also previewed Fighting Spirit Unleashed and more.
This week, Steven and Jeremy discussed Kenny Omega's upcoming Power Struggle appearance and what it might entail, the health of El Phantasmo and Chris Bey, and newly-announced matches for Historic X-Over. Super Jr. Tag League is close to wrapping up, and the guys talked about the logjam in the B Block, with all six teams tied going into the final match of block play, and how it contrasts with the haves and have-nots in the A Block. Plus, a Power Struggle preview.
Steven Conway and Jeremy Finestone are back with Episode 133 of Speaking of Strong Style. This week, the pair discussed Zack Sabre Jr. and his TMDK faction's victory lap at Royal Quest IV, and looked at the first night of block action in the Super Junior Tag League tournament. They also talked about Shota Umino's future, David Finlay's possible path to Wrestle Kingdom and whether Sabre and the IWGP title will or should headline the big show in January. They also talked about Historic X-Over, Pow...
Jeremy Finestone and guest host Scott E. Wrestling return with Episode 132 of Speaking of Strong Style. With King of Pro Wrestling over, the pair review the card headlined by Zack Sabre Jr. versus Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP World Heavyweight title. They also discuss David Finlay's Global title match against Hirooki Goto, Shingo Takagi's NEVER Openweight title defense against Ryohei Oiwa, Hiromu Takahashi's match against Mistico, the TV Title three-way match featuring Yota Tsuji, Jeff Cobb and Re...
With King of Pro Wrestling coming, Steven and Jeremy previewed the card headlined by Zack Sabre Jr. versus Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP World Heavyweight title. They also discuss scenarios involving David Finlay's Global title match against Hirooki Goto, Shingo Takagi's NEVER Openweight title defense against Ryohei Oiwa, and more. Plus, Steven tells us about another chapter in the career of Hiroshi Tanahashi, who just celebrated his silver anniversary in the ring.
This week, Steven and Jeremy previewed the Blue Justice card, Yuji Nagata's annual show in Chiba with some intriguing preview matches. They also looked ahead to King of Pro Wrestling, headlined by Tetsuya Naito versus Zack Sabre Jr., and discussed recently-announced matches for Royal Quest. They also covered Clark Connors' appearance in STARDOM, Hiroshi Tanahashi's meeting with Kenny Omega and looked back at more of Tanahashi's history. Steven tells he was a kay player in the evolution of both t...
Steven and Jeremy are back with a special episode reviewing Destruction in Kobe 2024, featuring Tetsuya Naito's IWGP title defense against the Great O-Khan, David Finlay v YOSHI-HASHI for the Global title, DOUKI v Yoshinobu Kanemaru for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, and HENARE v Shingo Takagi for the NEVER Openweight title. Plus, we got a new member of TMDK.
With Destruction in Kobe coming up in a few days, Steven and Jeremy looked at each match, previewing the big card headlined by Tetsuya Naito v Great O-Khan. They also speculated who might win the Global title match between David Finlay and YOSHI-HASHI, and how Hirooki Goto's battle with Gabe Kidd earlier in the night might tip us off as to the winner. Plus, who's the new member of TMDK? Wrestling content on Netflix, Tanahashi's career and meetup with Kenny Omega and more.
This week, Steven and Jeremy discussed the recent show in Hokkaido, how Toru Yano was the man of the hour, and how a full house of excited fans made what might have been a pedestrian night of wrestling into a fun show. They also talked about some of their early shows as kids, kicked around ideas for Ryohei Oiwa, considered a Shota Umino heel turn, and spoke on why sometimes a multi-man tag can be a lot of fun for people who don't see wrestling live so often. They also looked ahead to the Destruc...
This week, Steven and Jeremy talked about four shows this past week, each of which provided an excellent main event. They discussed Shingo Takagi's 20th Anniversary Show, Jeff Cobb's TV title defense against Yota Tsuji, HENARE's NEVER Openweight title match with Hiromu Takahashi, and Taiji Ishimori's challenge of DOUKI for the Junior Heavyweight title. They also debated rematches, who might be the next challengers, and fretted about injuries to Jake Lee and Ren Narita. Finally, they looked back ...
This week, Steven and Jeremy discussed news regarding Yuya Uemura's injury, Jake Lee's contract status and Ryohei Oiwa wrapping up his NOAH run. What would be the best fit for Oiwa's return to New Japan? Should he slide back into a faction or create something brand new? They also talked about Shingo Takagi's 20th Anniversary show and previewed this week's title matches, including DOUKI versus Taiji Ishimori and Jeff Cobb versus Yota Tsuji. Jeremy and Steven looked at each match and its implicati...
Jeremy Finestone and Steven Conway are back with a special edition of Speaking of Strong Style, covering the Capital Collision event from Washington DC. The pair discussed each match on the card and picked the best and worst matches. They discussed how the crowd reacted to stars such as Zack Sabre Jr., Mercedes Mone, Lio Rush, Mustafa Ali, Tetsuya Naito and Hiromu Takahashi. They also wondered why NJPW Strong still has poor production values and talked about whether these shows truly deserve PPV...
This week, Steven and Jeremy were joined by special guest Larry Sternshein, host of the "Reel Early" podcast, who attended the G1 Semifinals and Finals in person. Larry shared his thoughts about seeing New Japan live, who got the best reactions and some highlights from his trip to Tokyo. He also told us about a former death match wrestler whose restaurant makes great food. Jeremy and Steven also previewed Capital Collision, including Mercedes Mone versus Momo Watanabe, TMDK versus Hechisero and ...
This week, Steven and Jeremy cover the semifinals and finals of the G1 Climax tournament. Zack Sabre Jr. got his well-deserved victory, and the pair discussed how New Japan used its own booking style against us to make us feel Zack was in jeopardy, what the future holds for finalist Yota Tsuji and how David Finlay has risen in the eyes of fans with his strong performances. They also talked about Shingo Takagi's sublime selling, why Jake Lee and Gabe Kidd make an intriguing tag team and why they ...
Steven Conway and Jeremy Finestone return with Speaking of Strong Style! Episode 121 looked back at the end of block action in the G1 Climax 34 tournament, along with the first round of playoffs. New Japan is down to its final four! Jeremy and Steven discussed the journeys of Zack Sabre Jr., Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji and David Finlay as they prepare for the semifinals. They also looked at why Konnosuke Takeshita should be in New Japan full time, where El Phantasmo could be headed and how Yuya Ue...
This week's episode reviewed a busy week of G1 Climax action. Zack Sabre Jr. punched his ticket to the playoffs, but he's the only one thus far. Steven and Jeremy also talked about the chances of other contenders in A Block, such as Shingo Takagi, EVIL, Great O-Khan. Will Shota Umino make an impact despite being eliminated? Can O-Khan take his comeback story all the way to the knockout rounds? They also looked at B Block, and how Jeff Cobb and Yuya Uemura have gone in opposite directions. They w...
This week, Steven and Jeremy discussed the G1 Climax tournament as it moves just past its halfway point. EVIL leads the field in the A Block, but the guys are skeptical that will continue. They discussed each participant in the tournament and their chances of advancing to the playoffs. They also wondered if Jake Lee will stay with the War Dogs, if Gabe Kidd will be turning babyface, and if Shota Umino is due for a late surge to take him to the knockout round with Zack Sabre Jr. They also looked ...
Jeremy and Steven discussed the first four nights of the G1 Climax tournament. They looked at each participant and how their individual stories unfolded into an intriguing tournament. They worried that things are going a little too well for Zack Sabre Jr., marveled at Konosuke Takeshita's early run, and spoke of how Yuya Uemura has been the surprise breakout star. They also looked at IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Tetsuya Naito and how his health has been woven into his storyline, why Gabe Kidd...
Chris Samsa from sportofprowrestling.com joins Steven Conway and Jeremy Finestone for Speaking of Strong Style! This week, the trio previewed the G1 Climax tournament. Chris told Steven and Jeremy all about his G1 Climax Pick 'Em pool, then they got down to business looking at each entry in the G1 tournament, their chances of making the playoffs and what their overall story arcs might be. They discussed tournament favorites such as Zack Sabre Jr., Yota Tsuji, Shingo Takagi, Shota Umino and David...
This week, Steven and Jeremy talked about Stephanie Vaquer's departure and the overall women's scene coming out of Mexico, and why it can have an impact on New Japan. They also broke down the New Japan Soul event from the Tokyo Budokan, why DOUKI's title win was a pleasant surprise, what Desperado's long-term story might be, and why the location of the show meant something to IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Tetsuya Naito and BUSHI. They also previewed the Fantasticamania event coming this weeken...
This week, Steven and Jeremy talked about the G1 Qualifying tournament. Steven spoke of his hesitation to declare anything a youth movement after seeing several potential ones cut off at the knees. They also pondered a G1 world without such mainstays and icons as Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomohiro Ishii, Taichi and more. They also discussed whether what we've seen lately from IWGP World Heavyweight champion Tetsuya Naito is due to effort or injury. They looked ahead to Friday's show at the Tokyo Budoka...
Steven and Jeremy are back with a special edition of Speaking of Strong Style covering a show that brought together talent from AEW, New Japan, CMLL and STARDOM. Topics covered include: An excellent main event between AEW Champion Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay. A pair of NJPW title changes as Tetsuya Naito regained the IWGP World Heavyweight title and Mercedes Mone picked up the NJPW Strong Women's title, which was created for her in the first place. How Stephanie Vaquer won over the Long I...
This week, Steven and Jeremy previewed Forbidden Door 2024. They discussed the angles on AEW Dynamite that added a few matches to the card and broke down the event match-by-match. They talked about the title matches, including Stephanie Vaquer versus Mercedes Mone, Jon Moxley versus Tetsuya Naito and why they feel it's time for the IWGP title to come home. They also looked at the Mina Shirakawa match with Toni Storm, and why the two of them along with Mariah May have made this one of the most co...
Jeremy Finestone and Steven Conway return with Speaking of Strong Style. This week, the pair looked at the lineups for the upcoming G1 Climax tournament and shared their early thoughts on how the blocks could play out. They also analyzed the two qualification tournaments to determine the final two entries. Will New Japan really have a G1 without Hiroshi Tanhashi or Tomohiro Ishii? What could their plans be if Shota Umino can't compete? Plus, they discussed New Japan Soul, why HENARE's NEVER Open...
