| Destruction in Okayama (2015) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Promotional poster for the event, featuring various NJPW wrestlers | |||
| Promotion | New Japan Pro-Wrestling | ||
| Date | September 23, 2015[1] | ||
| City | Okayama,Japan[1] | ||
| Venue | Momotaro Arena[1] | ||
| Attendance | 3,160[1] | ||
| Event chronology | |||
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| Destruction chronology | |||
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| New Japan Pro-Wrestling events chronology | |||
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Destruction in Okayama (2015) was aprofessional wrestling event promoted byNew Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on September 23, 2015, inOkayama,Okayama at the Momotaro Arena.[1][2][3] The event featured nine matches, four of which were contested forchampionships. It was the tenth event under theDestruction name.
Destruction in Okayama featured nineprofessional wrestling matches that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds andstorylines. Wrestlers portrayedvillains,heroes, orless distinguishable characters in the scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.[4]
Destruction in Okayama as well asDestruction in Kobe, which took place four days later, were the first major events taking place after NJPW's annual premier tournament, theG1 Climax.[5] Destruction in Okayama was main evented byTogi Makabe defending hisNEVER Openweight Championship againstKota Ibushi.[6][5][7] The title match stemmed from the 2015 G1 Climax tournament, during which Ibushi defeated Makabe in a non-title match.[6][8] Ibushi, a former three-timeIWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion,[6] was looking for his first heavyweight title, having earlier in the year failed in his attempts to capture both theIWGP Heavyweight andIWGP Intercontinental Championships.[9][10] Ibushi has also previously wrestled for the NEVER Openweight Championship,[11] losing to then defending championTomohiro Ishii on May 25, 2014, during his last reign as the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion.[12] Part of the storyline heading into the title match in Okayama involved Ibushi trying to beat Makabe in his own game by moving away from his usual high-flying wrestling style to instead trying to match the champion with strikes.[13]
Another title match sawKushida defend his IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against previous championKenny Omega.[6] This was a rematch from July 5 and theDominion 7.5 in Osaka-jo Hall event, where Kushida, after winning the2015 Best of the Super Juniors tournament, defeated Omega to capture the title.[6][14] The event's third title match saw the returningNational Wrestling Alliance (NWA) representative Steve Anthony defend theNWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship againstTiger Mask.[6] Anthony made his NJPW on April 29, 2015, when he successfully defended the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship against Tiger Mask's tag team partnerJyushin Thunder Liger.[15] Tiger Mask promised to defeat Anthony for the title and then defend it against Liger atKorakuen Hall.[13]
Several matches at Destruction in Okayama served as a build-up to matches taking place at Destruction in Kobe and on October 12 atKing of Pro-Wrestling.[6][13] These includedIWGP Heavyweight ChampionKazuchika Okada and top contenderA.J. Styles facing off in a tag team match, 2015 G1 Climax winnerHiroshi Tanahashi and his Kobe opponentBad Luck Fale facing off in a six-man tag team match andKatsuyori Shibata andTetsuya Naito, whose rivalry started at the G1 Climax, facing off in the opening eight-man tag team match.[6][13] The event also featured the NJPW debut of formerDragon Gate andWWE performerMatt Sydal.[6][13] Sydal's NJPW debut follows aRing of Honor (ROH) event on August 21, where he defeated IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Kushida in a non-title match, after which Kushida agreed to a title match between the two.[16][17]
Originally it was announced that at Destruction in Okayama,IWGP Tag Team ChampionsDoc Gallows andKarl Anderson would be taking onHiroyoshi Tenzan andSatoshi Kojima in a non-title match. However, when Kojima pinned Gallows in an eight-man tag team match on the September 4 "Road to Destruction" event, he and Tenzan made a challenge for a title match.[18] The following day, NJPW announced that the match would now be contested for the IWGP Tag Team Championship. The match marked Tenzan and Kojima's first shot at the IWGP Tag Team Championship since November 2013.[19][20]
In the first title match of the event, Tiger Mask defeated Steve Anthony to win the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Championship for the second time,[1] nine and a half years after his first win.[21] Following the match, Tiger Mask nominated Jyushin Thunder Liger as his first challenger.[1][22] In the second title match,Bullet Club's Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson made their first successful defense of the IWGP Tag Team Championship against Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima.[1][23]
The third title match of the event saw Kushida defend the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against previous champion, Bullet Club's Kenny Omega. In the finish of the match, while Doc Gallows had the referee distracted, Karl Anderson entered the ring and hit Kushida with hisGun Stun finishing move. This allowed Omega to hit Kushida with his own finishing move, theKatayoku no Tenshi, to win the match and regain the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, ending Kushida’s reign in his second defense.[1] Following the win, Omega nominated Matt Sydal, who had debuted earlier in the show, as his first challenger.[1][24]
In the main event of the show, Togi Makabe made his second successful defense of the NEVER Openweight Championship against Kota Ibushi.[1] The show ended with Tomohiro Ishii entering the ring to challenge Makabe to a title match, which was promptly accepted by the champion.[1][25]