Yota Tsuji (c) vs Jake Lee- IWGP Heavyweight Championship

New Beginning in Osaka may occur in a storm of turbulence for New Japan, but they have an ever reliable champion at the top of the card in Yota Tsuji. Since submitting the outsider Konosuke Takeshita to win his first IWGP Heavyweight Championship Tsuji has been a busy man, reintroducing the classic V4 Heavyweight Belt. His defence against the polarising Jake Lee will mark the first time that belt has been defended since 2021 when it was merged with the Intercontintal Belt at that years Wrestle Kingdom. Like Sugiura in NOAH, it seems unlikely Lee will pose much threat to Tsuji’s gold, but he has certainly been a menace, being a huge thorn in Tsuji’s side, attacking him and his new faction Unbound Company every chance possible and even placing Tsuji ally Shingo Takagi on the shelf. The enigmatic yet aloof villain may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but he has certainly been built as a solid adversary to an initially dismissive Tsuji, wreaking enough destruction that Tsuji has acquiesced to a match. I expect a Tsuji retention, but the strong build for this should land it an interesting encounter at the very least. 

Knockout Brothers (c) vs Yuya Uemura and Shota Umino- IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships

Elsewhere, the future of New Japan do battle for the Heavyweight Tag Championships as The Knockout Brothers put their gold on the line against Yuya Uemura and Shota Umino. Having been previously unsuccessful at prying the gold from Yuto-Ice and OSKAR back in October at King Of Pro Wrestling, Uemura and Umino fought back, defeating Taichi and Tomohiro Ishii in a superb match to get another shot at the champions. These two teams are perhaps New Japan’s most consistent acts, and with an already great match in October and exceptional work from both teams since, expect another stormer of a match here. If you go out of your way to watch just one match from either of these shows, make it this one.

Unbound Company vs United Empire

Over the last few weeks New Japan has been hit with a deluge of confirmed and rumoured departures of some of their biggest stars, and this show is littered with its consequences. The clearest is the final New Japan match of Hiromu Takahashi after 16 years with the promotion. He teams with former rival Taiji Ishimori against United Empire’s Francisco Akira and Jacob Austin Young. This is one of five matches on the card to feature bouts between UE and Unbound Co., though it is not just Takahashi that may be on his way out. There have also been rumours of exits for David Finlay, Drilla Moloney and Gabe Kidd, all of whom have high profile matches on the show. David Finlay faces UE leader Callum Newman, Drilla Moloney teams with a returning Shingo Takagi against HENARE and Great O Khan, and Gabe Kidd battles UE’s financial backer Andrade El Idolo in a number one contenders match for Tsuji’s Global Championship in the USA. While all of these matches I expect to be good to great, the uncertainty around so many of the talents makes this a fascinating show from a results perspective. I expect a strong showing from the United Empire on this night, particularly from Callum Newman who is teasing a feud with AEW’s Will Ospreay upon Will’s return. 

Aaron Wolf (c) vs Ren Narita- NEVER Openweight Championship

Another faction heavily affected by departures is House Of Torture, who lost their leader EVIL upon the expiry of his contract at the end of January. Without their leader and following a 2026 of heavy defeat, the odds don’t appear to be in Ren Narita’s favour as he tries to take the NEVER Openweight Championship from NJPW’s biggest new celebrity Aaron Wolf. Wolf defeated EVIL in a very entertaining affair at Wrestle Kingdom, and has been largely protected in multi man tags ever since. It remains to be seen how Wolf does in a match with fewer smoke and mirrors, but Narita is a capable grappler and will provide Wolf a stern test, even if the result seems little in doubt.

Bishamontin (c) vs TMDK- NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag Championships

Another match sure to provide some good graps is an anticipated rematch for the 6 Man Tag Titles as Bishamontin (Bishamon and Boltin Oleg) take on TMDK. Bishamontin rather surprisingly dethroned TMDK for the gold on the first Tour Road show of the year and the teams have entertainingly feuded since, including a series of fun singles matches between the participants. Expect a great payoff here with some top quality action.

Katsuya Murashima’s Graduation

Finally, one final farewell, albeit a temporary one, as New Japan presents the graduation of Young Lion Cup winner Katsuya Murashima preceeding an excursion yet to be announced. For those unaware, this is a common practise for those graduating New Japan’s dojo system, allowing its talents to gain experience and find an identity overseas. Wherever Murashima goes, the company clearly have high hopes for him, demonstrated by the victory over Shoma Kato in the Young Lion cup final in what I can honestly say is one of the best Young lion matchups I have ever seen. He teams with Shoma here against veterans Togi Makabe and Toru Yano, giving the rookies an unusually high chance of victory over the established stars.  

But what do you think? What match are you most looking forward to? Let me know in the comments below and make sure to read my NOAH Legacy Rise preview right now!

Photo Credit- New Japan Pro Wrestling- February 2026

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