The concepts of Senpai and kohai are important in the Japanese culture. The Senpai is the person senior to the kohai. The kohai is expected to show respect and perform duties seen beneath the Sempai. Meanwhile the Sempai is expected to take something of a mentor role. When Hiroshi Tanahashi graduated from the New Japan dojo in 1999 he was often seen seconding Mutoh as a young boy. Keiji Mutoh along with Shinya Hashimoto and Masahiro Chono were called the Three Musketeers. When Hashimoto left and Mutoh and Chono old and starting to break down NJPW looked to the future. They dubbed Hiroshi Tanahashi, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Katsuyori Shibata as the New Three Musketeers with Tanahashi in the Mutoh role.

2002 was an important year for both. That was the year Keiji Mutoh jumped from New Japan to All Japan after being a major cog in the All Japan/New Japan feud following the NOAH split. It was also the year that Hiroshi Tanahashi was literally stabbed in the back by his girlfriend as described in this NY Times article. From that point on their careers went along with Mutoh trying to keep All Japan afloat and Hiroshi Tanahashi being pushed sometimes beyond where he should have been sometimes not.

At the point in time of the first match Hiroshi Tanahashi had just come off losing the U-30 title in the main event of the 1/4 Toyko Dome show against Shinsuke Nakamura which on paper was the weakest dome main event NJPW ever ran. New Japan was a sinking ship at the time due in large part to years of mismanagement from the Inoki office. Tanahashi was seen as a hot commodity. He was a huge part of this show for All Japan. A few months later he would challenge for the GHC Heavyweight Title on the biggest show Pro Wrestling NOAH ever ran in front of 55,000 in the Tokyo Dome. A match where going in most people thought he was taking that title. Meanwhile, Keiji Mutoh was fat. Like really fat. I’m not sure why. I checked to see if there was an injury issue at the time and found nothing. I mean his knees have been shot for years, too many moonsaults, but that has not stopped him from being in great shape before or since. 6 years later with even worse knees he is in great shape. So it’s not that. I have no idea why he was so fat.

Tanahashi was not at the peak of his powers in 2005. He was very hit or miss at the time. This really made Mutoh’s lack of conditioning in the first match an issue. Mutoh blew up quick. Tanahashi did everything he could to save it. He starts diving out of the ring, and dropping Mutoh on his head with suplex after suplex like a old King’s Road style match. It wasn’t enough. There are long stretches of rest holds. At least Tanahashi’s Dragon Sleeper was over, but by the third time it is grating. Mutoh gathers enough energy for a few Shining Wizards and a moonsault and that is that.

By 2008 Tanahashi had reached the peak of his powers. His rise coincides with New Japan hitting rock bottom. And by rock bottom I mean Brock Lesnar. Brock Lesnar won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in his first match in. The match blew, All of his matches in New Japan blew. Not only that there was no interest in him either. So you had lightly attended shit matches thanks to Brock and Inoki. The light at the end of this tunnel was to come on July 16, 2006 when Tanahashi was scheduled to beat Lesnar for the title. Lesnar refusing to job no showed and kept the belt. Tanahashi won the title in a tournament final against Giant Bernard and would hold the title for 9 months before embarking on an epic trilogy of matches with Yuji Nagata in 2007 that ended with him regaining the title in the blow off. He would again main event the 1/4 Dome Show against Nakamura losing again and dropping the title. Meanwhile, Mutoh was not fat and was still chugging along running his company.

This match is a great lead in to their third and final match. Mutoh was less than three weeks away from taking the IWGP Title from Nakamura, and once that happened it was basically a given that he’d be dropping it to Tanahashi going into the Dome. So going into this match everyone involved knew where everything was headed. Given that I think a perfect place to start is actually the end. The finish of their match during the Champion’s Carnival, an annual tournament held by All Japan Pro Wrestling, was Mutoh poised on the top rope ready to come off with the moonsault when the bell rang signaling the 30 minute time limit was up giving the impression that Tanahashi was saved by the bell. Fast forward 8 months to their title match. At 30 minutes in Mutoh comes off the top with the moonsault. The moonsault that won the first match and was thought to be moments away from winning the second. Tanahashi moves out of the way. He goes to the top and nails the High Fly Flow. He goes back to the top. A second High Fly Flow. New Champion of the World. Great set up there. Making it seem one way in the draw only to be shown to be something else in the biggest match of the year. Beautiful subtle stuff. It gets the big thumbs up here at DRS2EBRaSAGG.

Keiji Mutoh is one of the greatest draws in wrestling history. His biggest match was his defense of the IWGP Title in the Tokyo Dome against Nobuhiko Takada on October 9.1995. The show broke the record for the largest gate, money made on ticket sales, in wrestling history and drew a monsterous TV rating for a live special. PPV was a non entity in Japan at the time. The major theme of the match was Keiji Mutoh, pro wrestler, using Dragon Screws and the Figure Four Leg Lock to defeat Takada, faux shooter the ace of UWFi. Mutoh went to WCW in 2000 doing wacky Russo shit under his Great Muta guise with Vampiro and Sting. When he came back he had shaved his head and because of his knees worked a different style including inventing a new finisher the Shining Wizard. Mutoh is king of doing a little and making it look like a lot. In his matches with Tanahashi there are a ton of dragon screws, figure fours, and shining wizards. Yet it seems so substantive. Mixing this with Tanahashi who is great and dong his thing everything clicked in these two matches. There are like whole ten minute chunks of Dragon Screws, Shining Wizards, and Sling Blades, Tanahashi’s float around Baba Lariat, and nothing else and it is awesome. Masters at work.

The last subject of interest is the different crowds they worked in front of. All the matches did take place in Tokyo, but different buildings in Tokyo have very different feels to them. For instance Differ Ariake and the Ariake Colisuem are known for dead crowds meanwhile Korakuen Hall is known to have the hottest crowds in all of Pro Wrestling. First of all you have the attendances for the matches. The first match was in front of about 6,000 fans, the second in front of about 1,500 fans, and the third in front of about 30,000 fans. The first two matches were in front of All Japan crowds that were not fond of Tanahashi and the third in New Japan where Tanahashi was ace, but Mutoh was an all time legend. The crowds were good for all three. The best crowd was Korakuen which is a given. The Tokyo Dome had really good noise for a half full stadium. The fans in Yoyogi were not given much to work with which is fine given the fact Kawada and Kojima followed them with a MOTYC.

In the end you can see the praise I have heaped on the second third of the three matches here. Once Tanahashi came into his own he could have great matches with anyone and Mutoh is an old master who was in shape for those.

Keiji Mutoh defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi via Pinfall with the Moonsault Press at 18:49.

Star Rating **

Keiji Mutoh fought Hiroshi Tanahashi to a draw at 30:00 when the time limit expired.

Star Rating ****

Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated IWGP Heavyweight Champion Keiji Mutoh via Pinfall with the High Fly Flow at 30:22. Hiroshi Tanahashi won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.

Star Rating ****1/4

Cewsh Reviews Rating: 94 out of 100

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