Wait a minute! This isn't NJPW! Paul and I felt we'd be remiss to not talk about the biggest weekend of the year for North American wrestling. In this episode you'll find our full rundown of not only Wrestlemania, but what may be the best WWE super card ever produced in NXT Takeover: New Orleans. We've got a lot to say, but naturally mentions of our favorite promotion aren't too far behind. Especially considering Okada and Tanahashi were at the Super Dome and Nakamura wrestled in one of the main events... Ok, ok, Wrestle Kingdom it was not, but we hope you enjoy this special bonus episode. We'll be back very soon with an all NJPW episode discussing Road to Dontaku! ...
Paul & Sam are joined by Wilfred for news, notes, & night 1! Sam has to step away to be a new dad & Wilfred fills in on 2-6 with Paul. But keep listening after the outro music for a quick burst of G1 thoughts from Sam, recorded after a few days of 4 hours worth of sleep... It's the most wonderful time of the year and there's a lot to cover in this year's very deep tournament, not only in terms of in-ring action, but long-term storytelling too! Find us on the web at [kopw72.podiant.co](http://kopw72.podiant.co) Don't forget to visit the home of the [NJPWUS blog](http://njpw-us.com)! And, of course, special thanks to the Hails for intro & outro music. Check them out on iTunes to pick up their newest EP or visit their [site](http://thehailsofficial.com) for more information on touring and releases. ...
It's finally here. Any longtime followers of KOPW are aware of my love of 90s AJPW and my desire to chart the decade in podcast form. I have finally taken the plunge and present to you the first part of a series diving deep into the King's Road. In this episode we journey through the beginnings of puroresu, the major players at the genesis of AJPW, and the lead up to the pivotal matches that set the table for the 1990s in All Japan. Names like Rikidozan, Lou Thesz, the Destroyer, Giant Baba, Stan Hansen, and, of course, Jumbo Tsuruta and Genichiro Tenryu. In addition to the prologue we also take a look at three matches: * Tsuruta v Hansen 4/18/89 “The Triple Crown” * Tsuruta v Tenryu 4/20/89 "First Defense" * Tsuruta v Tenryu 6/5/89 "The Blueprint" I hope you will join me for this ride through one of the finest decades in the history of professional wrestling. Missing Pieces - I want to take a moment to discuss some of the pieces left out of the episode. Toyonobori is a name that western audiences may not recognize as much as Rikidozan, but he was a star in the early days of puro - second only to Rikidozan. His team with the JWA founder and battles against him propelled him to the number 2 spot in Japan. After Rikidozan's death, he would lead the promotion as it's top star until a schism that saw him depart to form Tokyo Pro Wrestling. He took along with him one of the hottest young talents of the promotion and promised to make him a star - Antonio Inoki. Within a few years TPW failed and they left ...
