Shingo Takagi Vs Jeff Cobb (NJPW Wrestle Kingdom Night 2 05/01/2021)

I make no secret of my current distaste for New Japan. I’ve not enjoyed what I’ve seen of them this year, to the point where I can’t even muster the motivation to watch the matches I see get praised. There’s not a lot of the promotion on my end year watch list because, for the most part, I’m fine missing out on New Japan. It’s not for me anymore.

But this match here, between Jeff Cobb and Shingo Takagi for the Never Openweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom, stood out in my mind as something I should watch again. When I think of these 2 days of shows, I think of bloated matches that I was far too easy on at the time. But not this. This felt like a beautiful piece of meat among all the fat.

Meat is the operative word here, as the most obvious appeal of this match is the fact it’s a big boy bomb show. Both men hit hard and move fast and it makes for a spectacle befitting of the Tokyo Dome setting. There are some incredible feats of strength and agility here, as neither man held back in this match.

This is far from just a Never bomb show. Both men had defined roles that they played incredibly well. We’ll start with Cobb, who was the monster on top. He was unimpressive in his initial NJPW run in 2019, but his improvement post-2020 return was incredible and it’s on full display here. He gains control early on with a beautiful belly to belly on the outside and spent a lot of the match man handling Shingo. Feeling like a legitimate beast, overpowering Takagi at nearly every turn. The moment he buckled after hitting Tour of the Islands felt like a beast being wounded.

Shingo worked incredibly well from underneath. The sense of desperation when he was given the opportunity to attack was palpable as he did not waste a time whenever Cobb gave him an inch. Momentum didn’t swing here with one big move, it was a slow climb for Shingo to get back to Cobbs level and a constant struggle to stay there. It’s a great narrative that fits the style of this title very well.

A common issue with New Japan main events is the extended run time and the adherence to a fairly strict main event style. This match shows the potential of this roster when not affected by this. When he’s unshackled from the suffocating main event formula of NJPW there is no one better in Japan than Shingo. When he can have matches like this he’s a must-watch talent, which is shown throughout his never run in 2020. But unfortunately, he spent a lot of his time after this reign having “epics” with Ospreay.

That fact makes this match frustrating in hindsight, but that’s not the matches fault. This is great, go seek it out if you haven’t seen it.

****1/2