Dragon Gate kicked off their third annual tour of the UK with Invasion 3 headlined by a double-main event as Shingo and Susumu Yokosuka selected each other’s opponents one night before their third and final match. Yokosuka would face Masato Yoshino while Shingo took on PAC. Elsewhere on the card the Blood Warriors faced Team UK in a 6-man tag, Akira Tozawa battled Dragon Kid and Gamma wrestled Naoki Tanazaki.
– Much like in Evolve, wins and losses began to matter in DG:UK, and thus each wrestler’s win/loss record was given before each match. Why are wins and losses important? Well, it was deemed if any wrestler reached 5 losses they would not be brought back in the future (I assume the level will be raised in future years). Interestingly Cima entered this tour with an 0-3 record, putting him dangerously close to the precipice. And what of those wrestlers who secure the best winning records? Well, a DG:UK Championship was mentioned in passing during the press release for the events, but who knows…
– And remember everybody, all of this took place last year, so Junction 3 still existed, while the Blood Warriors existed in a different form.
– The show begins with an awesome video package showing highlights from last year’s shows.
Dragon Kid (1-2) vs. Akira Tozawa (0-0)
Recap: Akira Tozawa managed to capture his first win in DG:UK by defeating Dragon Kid. Dragon Kid gained the early advantage thanks to one of his many headscissor variants but missed a dropkick in the corner and fell victim to Tozawa’s underhanded tactics, as well as a plethora of strikes and some submissions. Kid fought back with a springboard hurricanrana and the Bermuda Triangle and the two began to trade big moves, but in the end it was Tozawa’s persistence in trying to hit a german suplex that finally paid off as he shrugged off Bible and immediately hit a Dead-Lift German for a near-fall. Dragon Kid managed to kick out of that but could do nothing about the Package German that followed, giving Tozawa the win after about ten minutes.
Review: Tozawa is the undisputed champion of crowd interaction. The fans, wanting to play along with the show, booed Tozawa at the start, but couldn’t help themselves and were all cheering his antics by match-end. I normally find Dragon Kid’s matches a bit too samey to be entertaining, but working against Tozawa made things more interesting. I like that both stuck with their tried and tested strategies, with Dragon Kid taking to the air as often as possible while Tozawa constantly attempted to hit a german suplex, with the latter strategy winning out in the end as he ducked and dodged his way out of harm’s way and eventually caught DK unawares. I also can’t get enough of the dead-lift/package combo. Everyone survives the first, nobody survives the second. They both kind of ran through the same match structure they always use but a combination of the electricity of the crowd, the freshness of the match-up and how well they worked together made this one of the best openers to a tour in recent memory.
Gamma (0-0) vs. Naoki Tanazaki (0-0)
Recap: This match came about after Tanazaki had been masquerading as the Brave Gate champion in PAC’s absence and Gamma had taken exception to it, taking on Tanazaki in Japan in a 2-count rules match. However without those slanted stipulations to lean on, Tozawa was unable to best Gamma on British soil. Gamma got things started with his trademark spitting tactics, both regular and water-assisted. The two then went for a skirmish on the outside that nearly ended in a count-out after Akira Tozawa tried to prevent Gamma from getting back in the ring. Tozawa continued to interject himself, distracting the ref while Tanazaki choked Gamma with a rope and brought a chair into the ring. This would backfire though as Gamma reversed and sent Tanazaki head-first through the chair in the corner. Gamma enjoyed some continued offense but then stopped to pose for the crowd, allowing Tanazaki to fire back with several big moves in a row. Gamma would block the Implant though, spitting in his face and then knocking Tozawa off the apron and hitting a lariat and Blitzen for two. Gamma Special would get the job done though.
Review: I hate when interference and weapon attacks take place right in front of the referee and they are forced to let it slide because they weren’t aware they weren’t supposed to be looking. The crowd even chanted “this ref sucks”, but they were also enjoying Gamma’s antics so much that I don’t think it bothered them too much. I normally don’t find said antics entertaining but I couldn’t really deny how over he got here and he wrestled pretty well. I would have liked to have seen a little more out of Tanazaki, but this was fine. Not as good as their 2-count rules match in Japan, but who would expect it to be? Gamma blocking the Casanova and turning it into the Flashback was awesome.
Blood Warriors vs. Team UK
Cima (0-3), BxB Hulk (3-0) & Naruki Doi (3-0) vs. Mark Haskins (3-0), Marty Scurll (0-3) & Lion Kid (1-2)
Recap: With his future in DG:UK hanging in the balance, Cima selected a pair of undefeated wrestlers as his partners in this international challenge match. Unfortunately it would make no difference as Team UK managed the huge upset, with Scurll picking up arguably the biggest win of his career by pinning Cima. All six men brawled before the bell even rang with the Blood Warriors dominating early, hitting a nice triple-team on Haskins. Scurll fared better, besting Doi thanks to his speed and returning control of the match to Team UK. The trademark cheating ways of Blood Warriors eventually allowed them to isolate Lion Kid, repeatedly triple-teaming him. Team UK briefly fought back several times but the Blood Warriors suppressed them time and again. Haskins survived some of the Blood Warriors’ biggest moves, fighting hard to maintain his undefeated record. He would end up doing exactly that, countering a Schweinn before he and Scurll hit their individual finishing moves, allowing Scurll to get the victory with his torture rack backbreaker.
Review: Much like every other Dragon Gate 6-man, this was very disjointed but entertaining nonetheless. The Blood Warriors did a good job of making the UK team look credible, and all three Brits brought their A-Game to get a win that’s probably a little too unrealistic. Hulk and Doi kind of vanished at the end with Cima and Haskins battling it out and Scurll kind of picking the bones while Cima was busy. A logical finish as Scurll and Cima were both desperate to not get cut from the roster, so Scurll took advantage while Cima was busy with Haskins. Speaking of Haskins, if you’ve only seen him in TNA then you’ll be pleasantly surprised, as he naturally performs better on his native shores. He’s been built as the strongest Brit behind PAC, as the last few minutes of the match showed. In every 6-man somebody gets to kick out of moves that they shouldn’t, and that role fell to Haskins here as he survived a huge onslaught, out-dueled Cima and helped Scurll get the pin. The Brits performed well while the DG guys went through the motions, which kept this match from being too good, but given the sides I expected much less than I got. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of seeing the repeated double curb stomps Blood Warriors used to do, whereas I’d like to never see Scurll do a moonsault to the outside again as I like the guy and too many of those will result in serious injury.
– Based on the fact Lion Kid managed several near-falls over BxB Hulk and at one point seemed to have him beaten with a 450 Splash, a match between the two was made for the next night.
Masato Yoshino (2-1) vs. Susumu Yokosuka (2-1)
Recap: Ahead of their third and final confrontation the next evening, Shingo and Yokosuka selected each other’s opponents, hence this match. Yokosuka would rise to the challenge, defeating his fellow Junction 3 member with Jumbo no Kachi!gatame. Both men came out with the same strategy: work the arm. But as he tends to, Yoshino beat his opponent to it, working Yokosuka’s limb for several minutes. Susumu responded by instead attacking Yoshino’s back repeatedly. Yoshino persisted however, double stomping the arm and later hitting the Ude Yoshino onto it. Unfortunately, Yokosuka saw all of Yoshino’s biggest weapons coming, reversing or avoiding them while managing to drop his own bombs, including a Death Valley Driver, an avalanche exploder suplex and Mugen for near falls. Yoshino finally did hit the Lightning Spiral but was too tired to take advantage. Instead he went for the Sol Naciente but Yokosuka reversed into a pin attempt. Moments later he hit the Jumbo no Kachi!gatame and it was all over.
Review: Every time I see Yokosuka I remember him not being a great wrestler, and then every single time he’s awesome. I’m not sure why I always forget. Shame on me. Yoshino brought it too, throwing in some early-match stuff that he doesn’t typically use, as well as not hitting the Torbelino 27 times. I’ve made my feelings about him clear several times so I won’t go into it any further, but I’ll say I enjoyed his work more than usual. I liked that Susumu’s familiarity with Yoshino due to them both being in Junction 3 was the deciding factor, as Yoshino managed his mid-level stuff but Susumu always evaded the bigger moves. His brief back-work went nowhere, and the arm didn’t end up being a problem but it was all fine. Yokosuka heads into his deciding match against Shingo with momentum, but could Shingo do the same?
Shingo (1-2) vs. PAC (3-0)
Recap: Just as Shingo chose Yokosuka’s opponent in the previous match, Susumu was allowed to select PAC as Shingo’s opponent for the main event. Despite being undefeated in DG:UK and in his native land, PAC was unable to overcome the freight train that was Shingo, falling to two Made in Japans. The power vs speed dynamic was established right from the outset, and at first they were evenly matched, but PAC was the first to gain control after chaining several moves to ground Shingo. He would make a mistake eventually though, hesitating before attempting a Shooting Star Press from the second rope and instead crashing down onto Shingo’s knees. Shingo would then go to work trying to devastate PAC’s core, dropping his ribs across the top rope and standing on his chest. Shingo pummeled PAC, employing a trio of submission attempts but PAC reached the ropes. PAC exploited Shingo’s pride by suckering him into a strike exchange, avoiding a charge and hitting his snap german suplex, giving him the opening he needed to take to the air both in and outside the ring. Shingo eventually caught up to his faster opponent, driving his knee into PAC’s spine before hitting a buckle bomb and a huge senton from the top rope, continuing the abuse of PAC’s torso. Desperate, PAC unleashed a pair of kicks and the Shooting Star Knee Drop, leaving Shingo prone for British Airways, but the pain to PAC’s ribs was too great and he could not cover. With his biggest weapon already deployed, PAC didn’t know what to do, and walked right into a Death Valley Driver and a Pumping Bomber, leaving him defenseless against Made in Japan, and although he did manage to kick out, he could do nothing about the second.
Review: Well that was pretty damn good. I’m not sure if these two have ever faced each other, but it’s certainly their first meeting in recent memory and my word did they gel. But then again, PAC’s speed versus Shingo’s power was always going to work. I love that the briefest of hesitations by PAC before going for an aerial move ten minutes before the end of the match was his undoing. It gave Shingo a target every time PAC escaped his grasp, and it prevented him from going for a cover right away after dropping British Airways on him. I also like how Shingo matches are a lot like Tozawa matches; you can try all you like, eventually he’s going to hit one of his devastating high impact moves and even if you survive it, you’re at his mercy for follow-ups. Just a flat-out fantastic bout. Shingo and Yokosuka both head into the next evening’s event with momentum.
Overall Thoughts
– This was reviewed by a reputable publication as one of the best shows to ever take place in the UK, something DG:UK would proudly tout, and it’s quite hard to argue with that. Shingo/PAC was one of the best matches I saw last year… actually I didn’t see it until this year, but that just doesn’t sound as good. Tozawa vs Dragon Kid was a perfect opener, the crowd loved Gamma and Tanazaki’s nonsense, the 6-man was better than you’d expect and Yoshino/Yokosuka was a lot of fun too. When you start strong, show off a little bit of everything and then deliver a MOTY contender in your main event then you have yourself a fantastic event.
– The crowd were genuinely ecstatic to see every single wrestler on the card, erupting for every big move and giving every wrestler support. As we’ve learned, good crowd atmosphere can really elevate a show, and it’s hard to defy the energy the fans brought from start to finish.
– Quite honestly I enjoyed this more than the majority of the DGUSA shows. Why? Because 90% of the roster consisted of native Dragon Gate guys, rather than the 5 or 6 DGUSA are budgeted for. Did I miss the likes of Ronin and Ricochet? Yes. But getting to see the likes of Shingo, Yokosuka, Tanazaki and Gamma in addition to mainstays like Cima, Doi, Yoshino, Hulk and PAC made for a nice blend. And I’m genuinely depressed that I didn’t get to see Tozawa live. No controversial crowds or bad D.U.F. matches to deal with, just Dragon Gate wrestlers going out and having lengthy matches their way.
– A ridiculously easy recommendation. Go here and buy it.