| Ultimate Crush | |||
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 Official DVD cover | |||
| Promotion | New Japan Pro-Wrestling | ||
| Date | May 2, 2003 | ||
| City | Tokyo,Japan | ||
| Venue | Tokyo Dome | ||
| Attendance | 55,000 (total) | ||
| Event chronology | |||
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| New Japan Pro-Wrestling events chronology | |||
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Ultimate Crush was a majorprofessional wrestling andmixed martial arts event promoted byNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on May 2, 2003, at theTokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan. The card contained a mixture of pro wrestling matches and mixed martial arts fights. The show was headlined byYoshihiro Takayama defending theNWF Heavyweight Championship againstYuji Nagata, who also defended theIWGP Heavyweight Championship in a unification match.
The show also featured participation fromPro Wrestling Noah, asKenta Kobashi defended theGHC Heavyweight Championship againstMasahiro Chono. The only other title match on the show featuredJushin Thunder Liger andKoji Kanemoto defending theIWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship againstHeat andTiger Mask IV. Ultimate Crush featured 6professional wrestling matches and 5mixed martial arts fights contested underVale Tudo rules, with a total of 11 matches on the card.
In April 2002,Yoshihiro Takayama re-debuted inNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) by attackingYuji Nagata after he had won theIWGP Heavyweight Championship fromTadao Yasuda inNippon Budokan and began a long running feud with Nagata. Takayama quickly skyrocketed up the card and became one of the most well-known pro wrestlers in Japan. Thanks to his fights inPride Fighting Championship. In the same year,Antonio Inoki declared theNWF Heavyweight Championship would return, and a tournament was set up throughout later part of 2002 and early 2003. AtWrestling World 2003, Takayama defeatedTsuyoshi Kosaka in the final of the tournament to win the vacant title.[1] While Takayama was NWF Champion, Nagata had held the IWGP Heavyweight Championship for over a year. A unification match was later set up for Ultimate Crush, where the winner would get both belts.
On January 10, 2003,Masahiro Chono debuted forPro Wrestling Noah, teaming withMitsuharu Misawa in a loss toKenta Kobashi andAkira Taue in what was called a "dream match", pitting All Japan's top stars of the 1990s against New Japan's top villain of the 1990s. On April 13, Chono was in attendance to watch Kobashi successfully defend theGHC Heavyweight Championship againstTamon Honda at Ariake Coliseum, and after the match, was invited to ringside by Kobashi. Chono expressed his wish to challenge for the GHC Heavyweight Title in the Tokyo Dome on May 2, in what he called a "Mr. Pro Wrestling vs Mr. Pro Wrestling" match.
In early 2003,Kazunari Murakami and theMakai Club began a feud withMichiyoshi Ohara's Crazy Dog's stable, with the two exchanging wins throughout the start of the year. On January 4, Ohara teamed withShinsuke Nakamura to beat Murakami andTadao Yasuda atWrestling World 2003, and on March 21 Makai Club beat Crazy Dogs. However, Masahiro Chono came to their aid during a post match beatdown and helped the Crazy Dogs stuff Makai Club presidentKantaro Hoshino into adoghouse, something that would become a trademark of the Crazy Dogs. During this time, Crazy Dogs recruited MMA fighterEnson Inoue to join the group and combatKazunari Murakami, and a match was later set up to pit Murakami against Inoue in the Tokyo Dome.
Ultimate Crush featuredprofessional wrestling matches that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds andstorylines. Wrestlers portrayedvillains,heroes, orless distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.[2]
| No. | Results | Stipulations | Times | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeatedHiroshi Tanahashi | Singles match to determine the #1 contender for theIWGP Heavyweight Championship | 10:24 | ||
| 2 | Ken Shamrock defeatedTakashi Iizuka | Singles match | 11:44 | ||
| 3 | Jushin Thunder Liger andKoji Kanemoto (c) defeatedHeat andTiger Mask IV | Tag team match for theIWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship | 19:50 | ||
| 4 | Lyoto Machida defeated Kengo Watanabe byunanimous decision | Vale Tudo rules | 5:00 | ||
| 5 | Tsuyoshi Kosaka defeatedDolgorsürengiin Sumyaabazar by TKO | Vale Tudo rules | 2:58 | ||
| 6 | Shinsuke Nakamura defeatedJan Nortje by submission | Vale Tudo rules | 3:12 | ||
| 7 | Josh Barnett defeated Jimmy Ambriz by TKO | Vale Tudo rules | 3:05 | ||
| 8 | Kazuyuki Fujita defeatedManabu Nakanishi by TKO | Vale Tudo rules | 1:09 | ||
| 9 | Enson Inoue defeatedKazunari Murakami | Singles match | 6:33 | ||
| 10 | Kenta Kobashi (c) defeatedMasahiro Chono | Singles match for theGHC Heavyweight Championship | 28:27 | ||
| 11 | Yoshihiro Takayama (c ─ NWF) defeatedYuji Nagata (c ─ IWGP) | Singles match for theIWGP Heavyweight Championship andNWF Heavyweight Championship | 18:17 | ||
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After beating Nagata,Yoshihiro Takayama overcame both theIWGP Heavyweight Championship andNWF Heavyweight Championship separately throughout the rest of 2003. He successfully defended the NWF title againstShinsuke Nakamura,[5]Tadao Yasuda[6] andMinoru Suzuki,[7] and successfully defended the IWGP title againstHiroyoshi Tenzan[8] andMasahiro Chono twice, including in a cage deathmatch.[9][10] Takayama dropped the IWGP title to Tenzan on November 3,[11] but retained the NWF title until January 4, 2004, when he lost to IWGP Heavyweight Champion Shinsuke Nakamura in a unification match, effectively retiring the NWF Heavyweight Championship once again.[12]
Enson Inoue andKazunari Murakami would face off once more in June, with Inoue once again winning by referee stoppage.[8] After the Crazy Dogs began to break up, Inoue primarily aligned himself withYuji Nagata and the rest of the New Japan sekigun before leaving New Japan in early 2004.