WE STARTED OFF WITH SIXTEEN MEN AND NOW ONE IS THE 2017 NEW JAPAN CUP CHAMPION AND THE NUMBER ONE CONTENDER TO THE IWGP HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP.
The entrance scene from #njcup finals! Live Now only on https://t.co/cEFFsYKcrQ #柴田勝頼 pic.twitter.com/AQanEO3PrW
— njpw_global (@njpwglobal) March 20, 2017
The 2017 New Japan Cup came to a close in Niigata, as Katsuyori Shibata defeated Bad Luck Fale in the finals of the New Japan Cup tournament, to not only win the trophy, but gain a future shot at Kazuchika Okada for New Japan’s biggest championship.
The man known simply as ‘The Wrestler’ was able to counter Fale’s Bad Luck Fall into a sleeper hold, incapacitating the big man before polishing him off with a PK for the win and the trophy.
He announced that would indeed challenge Okada for the Heavyweight Championship at Sakura Genesis on April 9th.