5 NJPW matches you must watch as a new viewer
When people think of wrestling, they think of WWE. Vince McMahon’s global brand is easily the most popular wrestling company in the world, and many fans are WWE-exclusive, giving no other wrestling promotions a chance to show what they can do. However, wrestling fans are missing out on some incredible action in other wrestling promotions.
New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) is currently dishing out the best wrestling in the world, with their most recent big shows receiving a ton of praise with a bunch of amazing matches. This hasn’t just been the case recently either as for years, NJPW has been producing some of the best matches you’ll see.
This is obvious when looking at the star rating system of Dave Meltzer (from the highly respected Wrestling Observer), with Meltzer giving eleven matches from NJPW the highest possible rating of 5 stars since 2013, and one match a special 6-star rating (we will get to that).
Unsure on which matches to watch first? Here are 5 NJPW matches you must watch as a new viewer.
#5 Katsuyori Shibata vs Tomohiro Ishii, G1 Climax 23, Day 4
One of the best aspects of NJPW is the variety of styles they bring to their matches. Most WWE matches feel the same, using a very similar style. In NJPW, there is a unique style for every big match, and for this particular match, it was strong style.
Ishii and Shibata attempt to kill each other in this all-out war, a brutal and insanely hard-hitting contest that had the crowd losing their minds. Both men are known for their incredible matches, and they definitely did not disappoint in this absolute battle.
This is just simply a unique match, something you will not see outside of NJPW. This bout is almost guaranteed to amaze you, and it is the perfect place to start as a new viewer of the promotion.