Match Card for Sakura Genesis 2018
Down below is the official match card for Sakura Genesis 2018 which will take place this Sunday (April 1st) on NJPW World at 3 AM Eastern (4 PM Japan Time) from Ryogoku Sumo Hall highlighted by Kazuchika Okada defending his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against NJ Cup 2018 winner, Zack Sabre Jr of Suzuki-gun.
Now, there is a chance that the card for Sakura Genesis 2018 could change due to the injuries that the Golden☆Lovers (Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi) sustained in their match against The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) at Strong Style Evolved back on March 25th in Long Beach at the Walter Pyramid.
In a post-match conference which you can watch down below (courtesy of Will Pruett on YouTube) Omega reveals that he sustained an eye injury while at the same time Ibushi sustained a concussion. He also reveals where the injuries took place in his opinion and what the prognosis was at the time of this press conference video below.
Now, usually, New Japan announces matches at 1 PM Japan Time on Tuesdays or the day after a major show and if there are any injuries to the competitors preventing them from competing, those are announced the very next day. So, it’s possible that with these match announcements, that the injuries are not serious and that both Omega and Ibushi should be okay for Sunday. But we can’t be too sure until New Japan makes any announcement changes within the next couple of days. So, for the time being, the Golden☆Lovers will be in the penultimate match at Sakura Genesis 2018 as they face the team of “The American Nightmare” Cody and Hangman Page in a preview for Ring of Honor’s Supercard of Honor XII which takes place on April 7th in New Orleans where Kenny is slated to face Cody while Kota is slated to face Hangman Page.
Also two more title matches have been announced and they are: the NEVER Open-weight 6-man Tag Team Championship and the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. Lastly, this card will be most notable for the return of Los Ingobernables de Japon member and 1/2 of the IWGP Tag Team Champions, EVIL who has been out since the end of February with a eye injury of his own.
A total of nine are scheduled for Ryogoku on April 1st but remember that we could have eight matches instead if the injuries to the Golden☆Lovers are serious to the point they won’t be able to compete this Sunday. Anyway, here’s the official match card and be sure to enjoy Sakura Genesis 2018 on April 1st only on NJPW World where you must be a member to watch the show.
Tag Match with a 20-Minute Time Limit: Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi [Bullet Club] vs. Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson [The Young Bucks/Bullet Club]
Tag Match with a 20-Minute Time Limit: Toru Yano and Tomohiro Ishii [Chaos] vs. Taichi and Takashi Iizuka [Suzuki-gun]
6-Man Tag Match with a 60-Minute Time Limit for the NEVER Open-weight 6-Man Tag Team Championship: [Challenger Team] Ryusuke Taguchi, Michael Elgin, and Togi Makabe vs. [Champion Team] Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, and Bad Luck Fale (Bullet Club)
Special 6-man Tag Match with a 30-Minute Time Limit: David Finlay, Juice Robinson, and Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. YOSHI-HASHI, Jay White, and Hirooki Goto [Chaos]
Special 6-man Tag Match with a 30-Minute Time Limit: Seiya Sanada, “King of Darkness” EVIL, and Tetsuya Naito [Los Ingobernables de Japon] vs. Minoru Suzuki, Davey Boy Smith Jr, and Lance Archer [Suzuki-gun]
3-Way Match with a 60-Minute Time Limit for the IWGP Junior Tag-Team Championship: [Challenger Team #1] Sho Tanaka and Yoh Komatsu (RPG 3K/Chaos) vs. [Challenger Team #2] Hiromu Takahashi and BUSHI (Los Ingobernables de Japon) vs. [Champion Team] El Desperado and Yoshinobu Kanemaru (Suzuki-gun)
Singles Match with a 60-Minute Time Limit for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: [Challenger] Marty Scurll (Bullet Club) vs. [Champion] Will Ospreay (Chaos)
Special Tag Match with a 30-Minute Time Limit: Kenny Omega [Golden☆Lovers/Bullet Club] and Kota Ibushi [Golden☆Lovers] vs. “The American Nightmare” Cody and Hangman Page [Bullet Club]
Singles Match with a 60-Minute Time Limit for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship: [Challenger] NJ Cup 2018 Winner Zack Sabre Jr. (Suzuki-gun) vs. [Champion] Kazuchika Okada (Chaos)
















