Yearbook - NJPW - 1995 - Final

OK we're back in New Japan proper this time! That last batch of matches were outstanding though. Check that post out if you haven't done so.

December

Keiji Muto vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan (12/10) - And that's how you do it!! Finally doing legwork just right! This was a badass bout. Muto's had Tenzan bugging him all year. He starts quickly and tries to eliminate the big headed baddie. Tenzan doesn't get beaten so easily and really takes it to Muto. It's a 10 minute bout and it's great! No overwrought drama or bullshit where they have to kill time. Great stuff! 

From the 12/11 show:

Dean Malenko & Wild Pegasus vs. Hiro Saito & Sabu - Haha! Yes Sabu & Big boy Hiro Saito are a great team! Malenko & Benoit have their hands full with them. If Saito isn't raking the eyes or hitting someone in the nuts, Sabu is flying at them like a riderless dirt bike at an outlaw motocross race. I loved this match. Benoit and Dean have no sense of humor and try to be technical and shit. Sabu & Saito are unorthodox. It's a great mix and a great match. 

Yuji Nagata & Kensuke Sasaki vs Kazuo Yamazaki & Takayuki Iizuka - Seems like Kazuo is with NJPW now...I thought this was a inter promotional match at first. Sasaki didn't get the memo. He & Kazuo are going at it. This is under 10 minutes but its a lot of fun. Kensuke is like a big animal in a match with guys trying to wrestle 🙂 It's an enjoyable dynamic.

Riki Choshu, Akira Nogami, Osamu Nishimura VS Kengo Kimura, Michiyoshi Ohara, Akitoshi Saito - This was a fun rumble between two rival teams. Nishimura and Saito were the best of their teams. Nogami wasn't far behind. I like these kind of matches.

Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Koji Kanemoto - I couldn't get into this. Liger was channeling Muto and much of this was one sided legwork. Every Koji match that I've seen for '95 is more interesting than this. There's Keiji Muto vs. Shiro Koshinaka on this show too. I think I'm going to skip it. I'm just not in the mood for it.

Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Masahiro Chono vs. Junji Hirata & Shinya Hashimoto - Hash is tired of Tenzan's shit! Let him have it!!! This was a great match. Hirata/Super Strong Machine was excellent in this match. Hashimoto let him handle himself in this match. It was two of the toughest teams of New Japan facing off again. The post match stuff is entertaining as well. 

Chris Benoit vs. Jushin Liger (12/27 WCW Starrcade '95) - I'm including this since both were performing in New Japan and I wanted to watch this 😋 Very good match! Lots of fireworks from Liger early in the bout. Things settled into a good groove where both guys were getting in entertaining offense. Not much depth or anything ground breaking but I'm glad to have a enjoyable Liger match on here!

Hiroshi Hase vs. Yoji Anjo (Inoki Festival 12/30) - This was an independent super show but I've included it for obvious reasons. It is the type of match I wish Hase would have done more of. He, with his amateur wrestling background, is a perfect fit for the UWFi style. He and Anjo were going back & forth on the mat. They exchanged stiff slaps and knees. Eventually suplexes came into play as the match continued. When I saw that this bout took place, I had to see it. Very good stuff!

And that's how I'm closing the 1995 New Japan Yearbook. It's a heck of a year of pro wrestling. The UWFi was really exciting. The rise of Hiroyoshi Tenzan seems like the big story to me. He was great in singles matches and outstanding in tags with Chono. In fact, they are probably frontrunners for the best tag team that I have seen in 2025. Muto had a very good year and there's quality wrestling from him this year. Sabu had some excellent matches in NJPW despite reviews I've read saying otherwise. The UWFi feud was excellent for the most part and you definitely want to check some of that out even if you're not interested in shoot style wrestling. Yoji Anjo is a talent worth watching.

Thanks for reading!