New Japan Pro Weekend (1/31) New Beginnings In USA & Japan

THE HAPPY WRESTLING FAN GIRL GOES TO TAMPA:
JAS OLAN AND NJPW’S  NEW BEGINNING  IN THE USA
By Jasmine Olan

For Wrestling fans, nothing is more fun than actually being in the crowd at a show.  It doesn’t get any better than getting to see your favorites compete live.  From the roar of their fellow fans to the fast paced, high octane action in the ring, it’s hard to top the feeling of actually experiencing that energy first hand.   This was most definitely the case when i got to attend my first official New Japan Pro Wrestling show a few days ago at the St. Petersburg Coliseum.  It was an amazing show, and here’s a little glimpse into my experience at the show.

My husband, Jeff got us tickets just weeks prior to show.  When NJPW announced that they were coming to the Tampa area for the NEW BEGINNING IN THE USA tour, there was no way around it.  We had to be there.  In the time leading  up to the event, we were super excited.  We couldn’t wait to go.  The night of the show we arrived at the St. Petersburg Coliseum ready for some serious fun.  We even had some company with us in the form of my Kota Ibushi manekuma bear, one of my christmas presents from Jeff.  I also themed my look after Ibushi even though he had to be pulled from the tour. The place was packed, and the first stop was the merchandise stand where we picked up a few things.

It was a great card filled with fun matches.  One of the best was Jeff Cobb’s match against Alex Zayne.  Cobb is one of the best big men in the industry today, and Zayne is definitely a talent to keep your eyes peeled for.  The New Japan young lions also had a great showing.  Clark Connors looked fantastic against new comer, Misterioso.  The pacing of their match was right on the money.  Karl Fredericks did not disappoint when he teamed with TJP to take on Colt Cabana and Toru Yano in a very entertaining match.

I was so happy to see Ren Narita who is currently on his learning excursion with the LA dojo.  He and Alex Coughlin were outstanding against Yuji Nagata and Satoshi Kojima of NJPW’s third generation.  The main event sent fans home happy when the Ace Of The Universe, Hiroshi Tanahashi teamed with Rocky Romero and FinJuice to defeat members of Bullet Club.  This match had to be altered due to Kota Ibushi being pulled from the tour due to illness but still turned out great.

In the end, my first official NJPW show was an absolute blast.  My next goal is to actually go see NJPW in Japan.  It was a fun adventure for this happy wrestling fan girl.  Now it’s time to get ready for the next one. One thing I can say for sure is that New Japan Pro Wrestling never disappoints.   Hopefully this will lead to them coming to Florida more often, because I’d most definitely go see them again.   NJPW is in the midst of a major boom period right now, and by the looks of how this tour has been shaping up so far, that momentum won’t be slowing down anytime soon.