First ever New Japan double champion!
Back in January, New Japan Pro Wrestling kicked off the year in their usual fashion – with a banger of a card on January 4 at the Tokyo Dome. Little did we know back then, though, that they’d have just a few more shows before shutting down for the majority of the first half of 2020.

It’s now June, and NJPW is back, baby! The New Japan Cup 2020 bracket has been released, and we are here for it.

Josh and Neo spent the last week or so (re)watching Wrestle Kingdom and catching (back) up on the storylines, rivalries, and top contenders as we head into the second half of the year. They break down some of the matches from the January show and share their hype over what’s to come.

If you’re looking for alternatives to WWE, or even just have a general curiosity about New Japan – we’d be glad to take you along on this journey with us!

In the meantime, add these to your watch list:

Featuring: Joshua Schlag (@thesteelcage / @schlizzag) and NeoEcks (@theneoecks)

Music by The Black Furies, courtesy of Music Alley

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Joshua Schlag

For most of the last 30+ years of my life, I've been watching WWE. As a kid, Monday Night Raw hooked me from the start. From Bret Hart and Razor Ramon, to Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock, to CM Punk and Daniel Bryan.. I've witnessed the ups and downs and I'm proud to have enjoyed pro wrestling through the years.

Though I now watch in a much different fashion than I did when I was a kid (finding out Vince McMahon was the owner and Jack Tunney no more than a figurehead was like finding out Santa Claus did not exist), I feel like I have a much greater appreciation for the hard work pro wrestlers do and the things they sacrifice to entertain us.

It's still real to me, dammit!