Super J-Cup: 6th Stage
Tournament winnerKushida
Venue	Korakuen Hall Ariake Coliseum
Location	Tokyo,Japan
Start date	July 20, 2016 (2016-07-20)
End date	August 21, 2016 (2016-08-21)
Champion
Kushida
← Super J-Cup: 5th Stage Super J-Cup: 7th Stage →

Super J-Cup: 6th Stage was the sixthSuper J-Cupprofessional wrestlingsingle-eliminationtournament produced byNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). It was a two-night event, taking place on July 20, 2016 and August 21, 2016. The first round held on July 20 took place at theKorakuen Hall inTokyo,Japan, while the next three rounds took place on August 21 at theAriake Coliseum in Tokyo, Japan.^[1][2] The tournament featured interpromotional matches betweenjunior heavyweight wrestlers from various Japanese promotions as well as North American promotions.Kushida defeatedYoshinobu Kanemaru in the final round on August 20 to win the 2016 Super J-Cup tournament.^[3]

After a seven-year break, NJPW announced on March 3, 2016, that the Super J-Cup would return on August 21.^[4] The tournament was later expanded with an additional show on July 20, which featured all eight first round matches. The four second round matches, two semifinal matches and the final all took place on August 21.^[5]

Kaientai Dojo held first two qualifying matches at theClub K-3000 event on June 11, 2016 at the Blue Field inChiba, Chiba,Japan. The winners of the two matches advanced to participate in the qualifying tournament for the Super J-Cup on June 19.

Club K-3000 – June 11, 2016 (Chiba Blue Field –Chiba, Chiba,Japan)

Kaientai Dojo Super J-Cup 2016 Qualifying One Day Tournament – June 19, 2016 (Chiba Blue Field – Chiba, Chiba, Japan)

Tournament brackets

Pro Wrestling Noah held a qualification tournament with three finalists qualifying for the Super J-Cup. Two of the first round matches took place on June 16, 2016 and the next four matches of the first round took place on July 3 and three second round matches took place on July 5 and the winners of the second round matches qualified to represent Noah in the tournament.

June 16, 2016 – (Shinjuku Face –Tokyo, Japan)

July 3, 2016 – (Shibata, Niigata, Japan)

July 5, 2016 – (Korakuen Hall – Tokyo, Japan)

Suzuki-gun held around-robin tournament, in which four of its members competed inmatches of various stipulations to qualify for the tournament.Yoshinobu Kanemaru andTaichi qualified by scoring four points each.

Taka & Taichi Produce in Shin-Kiba – Suzuki-gun SUPER J-CUP 2016 Qualifiers – June 24, 2016 (Shin-Kiba, Tokyo, Japan)

¹In this match, thereferee counted to two instead of a three-count.

It was announced that the tournament would feature participants from promotions around the world; four from NJPW (with one spot designated to theChaos stable), one fromAll Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), three fromPro Wrestling Noah, one fromConsejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL),Dragon Gate,Kaientai Dojo (K-Dojo),Ring of Honor (ROH), and Ryukyu Dragon Pro Wrestling each, two from theSuzuki-gunstable and one surprise entrant. Originally it was also announced thatPro Wrestling Zero1 would be represented in the tournament, but they were replaced with AJPW.^[4][5] K-Dojo, Noah and Suzuki-gun announced their own qualifying tournaments to determine their representatives in the tournament.^[12][13][14] The full list of participants was revealed on July 6 with the surprise entrant spot filled byBushi, representing the NJPW stableLos Ingobernables de Japón.^[15][16]

Super J-Cup: 6th Stage (Day 1)
Korakuen Hall
Promotion	New Japan Pro-Wrestling
Date	July 20, 2016
City	Tokyo,Japan
Venue	Korakuen Hall
Attendance	1,606
Super J-Cup chronology
← Previous Super J-Cup: 5th Stage Next → Super J-Cup: 6th Stage (Day 2)

The first round of theSuper J-Cup: 6th Stage was held at theKorakuen Hall inTokyo,Japan on July 20, 2016. In the opening match of the tournament,Ring of Honor representativeMatt Sydal took onKaientai Dojo's representative Koji Tomato, who won a qualification tournament in Kaientai Dojo to qualify for the tournament as Kaientai Dojo representative. Tomato showed some quick offense during the match and gained control until Sydal made a comeback by kicking Tomato in the head while Tomato had applied anabdominal stretch but Tomato countered it into asmall package for anear-fall. Sydal hit acorner clothesline to Tomato followed by adiving double knee drop and then executed aShooting Sydal Press on Tomato to win the match.^[17][18][19]

Next,Pro Wrestling Noah's first representativeKenoh took on Ryukyu Dragon Pro Wrestling representative Gurukun Mask. Near the end of the match, Mask hit alariat to gain a near-fall on Kenou. Mask executed anelevated front powerslam to Kenoh and adiving moonsault for a near-fall. Kenoh recovered to receive a kick from Mask, who then attempted aDiver Suplex but Kenoh countered it with abackflip kick followed by adragon suplex and aKebou for a near-fall. Kenoh then finished Mask with aRagou.^[17][18][19]

Suzuki-gun's first representativeTaichi squared off againstAll Japan Pro Wrestling's sole representativeYuma Aoyagi in the third match.El Desperado constantly interfered on Taichi's behalf during the earlier portion of the match as he distracted the referee, allowing Taichi to hit Aoyagi with a bull hammer and gain momentum in the match. After controlling most of the match, Taichi attempted aTaichi-shiki Liger Bomb but Aoyagi countered it and got a few near-falls on Taichi until he kicked Aoyagi in the head and then hit him with ajumping high kick, followed by asuperkick and aTaichi-shiki Last Ride for the victory.^[17][18][19]

Two-time tournament winnerJushin Thunder Liger competed in the following match against Dragon Gate'sEita. Eita attacked Liger before the match by dropkicking him during his entrance to the ring and hit asuicide dive to Liger outside the ring. Eita further weakened Liger by throwing him into the ringpost and then tossed him into the ring to begin the match. Liger hit atilt-a-whirl backbreaker on a charging Eita and then executed abrainbuster outside the ring. Eita eventually returned to the ring and gained momentum on Liger. Near the end of the match, Eita applied aNumero Uno to Liger's injured arm until Liger reached the ropes and hit aShotei. Liger then charged Eita in the corner and Eita got him in anotherNumero Uno until Liger reached the ropes and hit aThesz press and anotherShotei and a brainbuster to win the match.^[17][18][19]

The match was followed byChaos memberWill Ospreay competing againstTitán. Titán applied afigure four leglock on Ospreay until Ospreay reversed it but reached the ropes, forcing the hold to be broken. Titán attempted to dive on Ospreay but Ospreay avoided the move and Titán hit the corner where Ospreay hit aCheeky Nandos Kick and then Titán rolled outside the ring where Ospreay hit aSasuke Special. The action returned to the ring where Ospreay hit aPip Pip Cheerio followed by ashooting star press and acorkscrew 450° splash, adiving spinning heel kick and then hit anOsCutter for the victory.^[17][18][19]

Suzuki-gun's second representative in the tournamentYoshinobu Kanemaru took onLos Ingobernables de Japón memberBushi. Bushi dropkicked Kanemaru before the match began and then dived onto him but Kanemaru hit him with achair shot. Kanemaru knocked out Bushi with a Brainbuster and then hit aDeep Impact to gain a near-fall. Bushi reversed Kanemaru's suplex attempt into abackslide until he attacked the referee and attempted to spitmist into Kanemaru but Kanemaru avoided it and kicked him in the groin and then hit aTouch Out to get the win.^[17][18][19]

Later,Daisuke Harada took onRyusuke Taguchi. After a back and forth action, Taguchi avoided aGerman suplex and rolled it to apply anankle lock until Harada countered it to apply the ankle lock. Taguchi rolled again for another ankle lock before leaving it and then hit aDodon, followed by aDodon's Throne for the win.^[17][18][19]

The last first round match of the tournament featuredTaiji Ishimori againstKushida in themain event of the show. Ishimori dropped Kushida onto the top turnbuckle but Kushida applied aHoverboard Lock until Ishimori hit aheadbutt to get out of the move and Ishimori followed with amoonsault slam. Ishimori attempted a450° splash on Kushida but Kushida raised his knees to block the move. Kushida then attempted aHoverboard Lock twice on Ishimori but Ishimori blocked both attempts. Kushida eventually hit a backflip kick and applied aHoverboard Lock to defeat Ishimori by submission.^[17][18][19]

Super J-Cup: 6th Stage (Day 2)
Ariake Coliseum
Promotion	New Japan Pro-Wrestling
Date	August 21, 2016
City	Tokyo,Japan
Venue	Ariake Coliseum
Attendance	3,041
Super J-Cup chronology
← Previous Super J-Cup: 6th Stage (Day 1) Next → —

The quarter-final, semi-final and final rounds of theSuper J-Cup: 6th Stage took place at theAriake Coliseum inTokyo,Japan on August 21, 2016.

The show kicked off with a non-tournamentsix-man tag team match, in which the team ofEita,Yuma Aoyagi and David Finlay took on Gurukun Mask, Koji Tomato andBushi, with five of them being eliminated from the Super J-Cup in the first round. After a back and forth match, Bushi hit aMX to Finlay for the win. After the match, Bushi attacked his partners as Tomato gifted tomatoes to his tag team partners but Bushi ripped off Gurukun Mask's mask and spitmist on Tomato.^[20][21][22]

The tag team match was followed by the quarter-final round of the Super J-Cup. In the first match of the tournament,Jushin Thunder Liger competed againstTaichi. Before the match started, Taichi distracted the referee by hugging him allowingEl Desperado to attack Liger from behind and Taichi began attacking Liger to begin the match. After a back and forth action, Taichi won the match by slipping into the ring while Desperado held Liger, preventing him from making it to the ring. As a result, Taichi won by count-out.^[20][21][22]

It was followed byKushida taking onKenoh. Kushida began working on Kenoh's arm as the match kicked off and then applied aHoverboard Lock. Kenoh made a comeback with a series of kicks including apenalty kick until Kushida gained control of Kenoh by making him submit to across armbreaker.^[20][21][22]

The third match of the quarter-final round was next asRyusuke Taguchi took onYoshinobu Kanemaru. Kanemaru gained control after planting Taguchi with aDDT on the floor outside the ring. After trading moves, Taguchi attempted aDodon but Kanemaru countered with a DDT until Taguchi made a comeback and hit aDodon for anear-fall. Kanemaru hit alow blow behind the referee's back and hit aninverted DDT and aDeep Impact followed by aTouch Out for the victory.^[20][21][22]

In the last match of the quarter-final,Matt Sydal competed againstWill Ospreay. After countering each other's moves, Ospreay got the momentum by hitting aPip Pip Cheerio to send Sydal outside the ring followed by aSasuke Special outside the ring. The action returned to the ring where Ospreay hit aCheeky Nandos Kick and attempted aRainham Maker but Sydal countered it with aSlice. Sydal attempted to pin but Ospreay attempted to counter it with aPowerbomb but Sydal countered it into aHurricanrana for a near-fall. Ospreay hit high-flying moves on Sydal until Sydal hit aFrankensteiner, followed by anAir Sydal to get the victory.^[20][21][22]

The match was followed by alucha libre six-man tag team match featuringwrestlers fromConsejo Mundial de Lucha Libre. The team ofTitán,Caristico andVolador Jr. took onGran Guerrero,Euforia andUltimo Guerrero. After a back and forth action, Volador hit aSpanish Fly to Gran Guerrero to pick up the victory for his team.^[20][21][22]

In the first semi-final match, Kushida took on Taichi. Taichi attacked Kushida before the match and gained the assistance of Ofune and El Desperado to gain advantage over Kushida. After bearing offense by Taichi, Kushida ultimately applied aHoverboard Lock by countering an attempt of aTaichi-shiki Last Ride by Taichi and Taichi tapped out the hold but Desperado distracted the referee and the referee was unable to see the submission and then Taichi hit Kushida with asteel chair. Taichi executed aTaichi-shiki Last Ride on Kushida to get a near-fall and then attempted aTensho Jujihou but Kushida ducked it and pinned him with asmall package to advance to the final round. After the match,Suzuki-gun attacked Kushida.^[20][21][22]

In the next semi-final, Matt Sydal competed against Yoshinobu Kanemaru. Sydal used quick strikes and aerial moves to keep momentum until Kanemaru blocked anAir Sydal attempt by raising his knees but Sydal managed to hit adiving knee drop to Kanemaru. He then attempted a Frankensteiner in the corner but Kanemaru countered with aDeep Impact followed by alariat and aTouch Out to advance to the final.^[20][21][22]

The match was followed by the first title match of the event asPro Wrestling Noah'sAtsushi Kotoge andDaisuke Harada defended theGHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship againstA. C. H. andTaiji Ishimori. After a back and forth action between the two teams, Harada executed aKatayama German Suplex Hold on Ishimori to retain the tag titles.^[20][21][22]

Next was the penultimate match of the event, in whichThe Young Bucks (Matt and Nick) defended theIWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship againstThe Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley andChris Sabin). Bucks knocked out Shelley with anIndytaker outside the ring, allowing Sabin to fend off himself alone. Bucks then hit aMeltzer Driver to Sabin in the ring to retain the titles.^[20][21][22]

Kushida took on Yoshinobu Kanemaru in the final round of the 2016 Super J-Cup tournament. Suzuki-gun interfered in the match on Kanemaru's behalf until NJPW wrestlers intervened and a brawl ensued between NJPW wrestlers and Suzuki-gun members. Taichi hit aBlack Mephisto to Kushida, allowing Kanemaru to gain momentum and hit aDeep Impact but still got a near-fall. He delivered anotherDeep Impact for another near-fall. Kanemaru attempted to hit aTouch Out but Kushida blocked it twice and applied aHoverboard Lock, making Kanemaru tap out to the hold. After the match, Kushida's former tag team partner Alex Shelley helped him in wearing his golden robe and awarded him with the Super J-Cup trophy.^[20][21][22]

Super J-Cup: 6th Stage received mixed reviews from the critics. The tournament was appreciated match-wise and performance-wise but most of the critics panned the event due to its NJPW-favoritebooking and much outside interference in several matches instead of competitive matches.

TJ Hawke of411Mania called the August 21 show "a rather sluggish show", rating it 5, with "The big tag matches did not deliver, and Taichi's involvement really dragged down the actual tournament. However, a handful of matches were quite pleasant, and those ***+ (three star plus) matches are worth checking out."^[20]

Kevin Pantoja of411Mania rated the first round of the tournament a score of 6.5 and considered it "a bit of a disappointment" in comparison to the previous Super J-Cup tournaments and criticized the booking of the tournament including the elimination of Bushi and Daisuke Harada from the first round and dominance of NJPW wrestlers in the first round.^[17] He rated the final show 5 and called it "not so good", citing "This show was long and it felt even longer. The tournament matches ranged from shitty to pretty good and nothing stood out. The multi-man tags were both pretty good, while the two Jr. Tag Title matches were split. The Bucks/MCMG was more of the same, but the NOAH one ruled and was the match of the night. The Super J-Cup was not only strangely booked but it was a severe disappointment and was extremely underwhelming."^[22]

Case Lowe ofVoices of Wrestling stated that the first round "wasn’t a Show of the Year Contender and there was at least one match with groan-inducing booking, that being Eita vs. Liger, but this show blew by and delivered two great matches. It delivered as much as it should have."^[18] His reviews on the August 21 show were even worse by stating "There’s no reason to sit through this entire show unless you’re a completist. Kenoh vs. KUSHIDA was fun, but Ospreay vs. Sydal and the two junior tag matches qualifies as the essential viewing for this show. I am an outlier on the lucha tag, so if that style floats your boat, give that a look also. Thumbs in the middle for this show. I’m glad KUSHIDA won and I think that’s the right decision, but Suzuki-Gun was such a key part of this show and it was so terribly frustrating."^[23]

Ian Hamilton ofBackBodyDrop considered the first round of theSuper J-Cup: 6th Stage, "a fantastic first round of tournament action."^[19]

Sean Radican ofPro Wrestling Torch gave the first round, a rating of 7.5. He appreciated the event but criticized the booking as the majority of NJPW wrestlers advanced to the quarter-final of the tournament, citing "this show featured a ton of great action" with "a lot of fun seeing talent I don’t normally get to see. Titan, Harada, and Ishimori were all impressive on this show."^[24]

Ioan Morris ofBlog of Doom wrote on the first round "an easy show to recommend, but I can’t help but feel they’ve wasted some of the better matches already. I would’ve preferred to see BUSHI, Ishimori and Eita go further, although I can understand why they didn’t. Still, this was an enjoyable two-and-a-half hours of wrestling, and if you have the time you should check it out."^[25] He then opined about the next three rounds "Fittingly, the final was the best match, and the tag title matches were good too, but this was too long and the crowd were quiet for most of it (although apparently that was due to the venue). As a whole, this fell flat for me, particularly after such an excellent G1 tournament." He further added "Either way, the Super J-Cup still has name value and this didn’t do it justice. To end on a positive, Kushida was as consistently good as we’ve come to expect, and was the right choice to win this."^[26]

• 2016 in Tokyo
• 2016 in professional wrestling
• August 2016 sports events in Japan
• Organized events in Tokyo
• July 2016 in Japan
• Professional wrestling in Tokyo
• Super J-Cup

• CS1 Japanese-language sources (ja)
• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata