(taped 1.20.89) 4 - Masa Fuchi vs. Joe Malenko (PWF Jr. Title) - They structured this similarly to their later matches, working on the mat most of the way but trading suplexes and roll-up attempts in the faster-paced finishing run. I found the matwork a little less interesting in this one and see no reason to nominate it given that we have the other two.

 

(taped 3.8.89) 5 - Giant Baba/Rusher Kimura vs. Abdullah the Butcher/Kimala - They worked a lot of comedy in this one, with Abby drawing a big grin from Baba by breaking clean on the ropes and holding a conference with Kamala on the apron (on romantic poetry? colonial African history?) It didn't amount to anything we'd put on the set, but I was amused, at least.

 

(taped 9.15.89) 6 - Jumbo Tsuruta/Yoshiaki Yatsu vs. Kabuki/Kenta Kobashi - They produced exactly the match you'd expect given the guys involved. Kobashi worked most of the way for his team, taking a lot of punishment but popping the crowd with his comebacks. They especially loved his nearfalls on Jumbo. Kabuki was fun in short bursts, using his uppercut chops and crescent kicks to bail out his younger partner. And of course, Jumbo took over in the end. I can't complain about the lack of surprises, because it was an effective formula, and the crowd was way into Kobashi. I'll toss it a low-end nomination.

PWF Jr. Heavyweight Title: Masa Fuchi © vs. Joe Malenko (1/20/89)

 

This had some good matwork but the fans weren't into any of this and it came off a little dull at times. The stretch run would the action pickup with some good nearfalls and Malenko would get the win. This was a good match but not enough for a nomination.

 

Giant Baba & Rusher Kimura vs. Abdullah the Butcher & Kamala (3/8/89)

 

Baba & Rusher are friends again and fun seeing Abby teaming with his African brethren. This had some good comedy in it with Budokan loving it but this isn't a nomination.

 

Jumbo Tsuruta & Yoshiaki Yatsu vs. The Great Kabuki & Kenta Kobashi (9/15/89)

 

Kobashi makes his AJ Classics debut here and the Korakuen fans get behind him here. The psychology for this is simple as Kobashi is the spunky youngster who takes it to the veterans and takes punishment as well with the fans wanting him to do well. Jumbo is pumped up here to beat on the youngster with Kabuki coming in as a change of pace. The Jumbo/Kobashi exchanges were very fun with him showing that he can hang with the big guns but isn't ready to be there yet. This is the type of match that Korakuen loves and works better here than almost any other arena which is a big plus. The stretch run was really fun as well with the fans chanting for Kobashi after the match and I think this will be fun to have on the set.