Yuji Nagata vs Josh Barnett | January 4, 2003 NJPW Tokyo Dome
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00:00wrestling fans it's a flash from the past and it is time new Japan pro
00:06wrestling world 2003 in the Tokyo Dome January 4th my name is Walker Stewart
00:10alongside Chris Charlton singles match for the IWGP heavyweight championship
00:15there you see a young Yuji Nagata and an even younger Josh Barnett
00:19well this is certainly it was a turn up for the books here in Wrestle World 2003
00:27oh look at that a little funky weapon out there in the corner as Seiji Sakaguchi
00:34the legend takes away the IWGP heavyweight championship
00:57IWGP heavyweight championship, 60 minutes, one point. Josh Barnett!
01:15his first ever professional wrestling match and it's for the IWGP heavyweight
01:22Nagata Yuji!
01:34Matsuya Asami on the camera
01:39Chris first ever professional wrestling match for the IWGP heavyweight
01:43championship talk about pressure have you ever wrestled a match Walker I not
01:48that anyone's ever gonna know about I tell you what I have yes and it
01:53definitely was not in the main event for the IWGP I cannot imagine the
01:57butterflies going around Josh Barnett stomach even though he was at this point
02:05and the old fist of the north star Hokuto no ken coming you're already dead says
02:12Yuji Nagata the fact is Josh Barnett feels like death you can look at his
02:17chest and his face Josh Barnett wrestling this match with chicken pox as well
02:23quite the situation and Barnett trying to get a knockout very very early here
02:29there's a young red shoes in our applies the count Chris talk to me about this
02:35Josh Barnett I mean we're talking no stranger to pressure the youngest ever
02:38UFC heavyweight champion in history over in that neck of the woods but MMA very
02:43different from professional wrestling in a multitude of ways yeah had just
02:46defeated Randy Couture back in May that was his last UFC fight and leave the
02:52UFC under a bluster of controversy but this came about really because of
02:59Tsuyoshi Kosaka who was just in the semi main event lost in the finals of the
03:04NWF title tournament to Yoshihiro Takayama now Kosaka and Josh Barnett
03:10training buddies and Barnett had always had an eye on professional wrestling in
03:15Japan and said to his buddy Kosaka hey can you get me maybe a little booking
03:21maybe I can work in Corcoran something like that it would be pretty cool to go
03:24to New Japan all of a sudden a main event here you go in the Tokyo Dome for
03:28the IWGP heavyweight title but it does speak to the mentality at the time
03:34within New Japan pro wrestling and the desire to cultivate cross sport athletes
03:40as well as well hey if you are the youngest UFC champion in history and
03:46Yuji Nagata being a man who would take any fight to prove that the king of
03:51sports and professional wrestling is the ultimate martial art you know it's it's
03:54very definitive of our sport in a lot of ways it's a connection sports a
03:57connection industry and Josh Barnett connecting himself all the way into a
04:01Tokyo Dome IWGP heavyweight championship spot let's talk a little bit about Yuji
04:06Nagata as IWGP heavyweight champion 274 days and counting as of the time of this
04:11matchup six defenses in the middle of his first ring yeah defense number seven
04:15of course Takayama right here in the Tokyo Dome last May
04:20Kensuke Sasaki another mixed martial artist in Bas Rutten defeated by Yuji
04:26Nagata as well Fujita to a draw with Masahiro Chono and then defending
04:34against Murakami December the 10th so I mean he was keeping up a hell of a
04:39schedule was Yuji Nagata and yeah I mean that's the mentality he kept that he
04:44wanted to keep I guess that Inoki is philosophy you could say short Nokia's
04:53I'm alive and well in the year 2003 as Yuji Nagata leave that stump pulled
04:59right here out of Josh Barnett that right knee that right leg remaining the
05:03target and Barnett so easily capable of changing direction it's what allowed him
05:08to become UFC heavyweight champion in the first place youngest ever at the age
05:11of 24 years old Josh Barnett stands before it's 25
05:16Yuji Nagata 34 years of age and certainly having that advantage of age
05:22and experience when it comes to professional wrestling but to your point
05:29about Inoki about Antonio Inoki trying to test his athletes against the best
05:37in the mixed martial arts field so just a few days after Inoki Bomei ended the
05:43year of 2002 and it wasn't a great lineup of results for New Japan pro
05:50wrestling wrestlers Shinsuke Nakamori dropping a decision to Daniel Gracie
05:56Kazuyuki Fujita losing to Mirko Krokop and so there's a lot of pressure on
06:03Yuji Nagata here tonight and Abenaki Ishii as ever cheering on his buddy from
06:11ringside there that's a hard figure four walk up heel hook there as well very
06:17difficult sticks in tight Yuji Nagata rolls tries to reverse pressure bring it
06:23right back to the bottom row
06:30the tendency in those who compete in their first professional wrestling
06:35matchup we call it happy feet yeah conversation surrounding you know where
06:40am I going where am I moving to what am I doing next are you seeing that right
06:43now in Josh Barnett not necessarily you know and I think probably that UFC
06:47experience mixed martial arts experience has helped him in that
06:50standpoint really I think his game plan oh my goodness throwing off it there
06:58without injury I think the game plan would be for Josh Barnett to just keep
07:02hitting the gas but when you're already feeling the pressure of the spot as well
07:10as dealing with illness as Josh Barnett is that really makes that a very
07:17difficult situation for you
07:26five minutes have passed in this matchup massive belly-to-belly suplex there from
07:31Josh Barnett and if there's one thing that works in the favor hold on hold on
07:36trying to negotiate Camaro there double wristlock if he can get it a little bit
07:41try to hammer like that on behind now that's his back right now to the bottom
07:47rope they gotta makes it and hey this is smart play right here out of Josh
07:51Barnett
07:58keeping your posture keeping great control here
08:12I'm joined with red shoes you know I think Barnett I definitely war and
08:25certainly will be after this one he's got to be sucking wind you know how
08:30dangerous Josh Barnett strike game is just as well as using the gotta
08:41Oh
08:50now Barnett definitely struggling there it is exploders suplex out of Josh
08:59Barnett captured from Josh Barnett but I think now you're right maybe you know
09:06some of those shots a little bit loopy not really sure how to follow up but
09:10this is a good one I love what we're seeing right here out of Josh Barnett
09:16right out of the captured suplex brought right back into the front chance or in
09:21you can have got a good fade easily enough here nice half hatch there as
09:27well floats right over gonna go straight back look for that camera again maybe a
09:35little bit lack of pro experience there Walker could have gotten a two count at
09:40least out of that cover and that would have given him more opportunity to take
09:45the back of eugenic out of there with that Kimura how do you want to make
09:48eugenic energy and hey how about that energy expelled out of eugenic honor with
09:56that one
09:58sometimes running and gunning it's not the worst strategy and he caught him
10:09twice once with the initial knee and then just the momentum carrying his left
10:15knee right into the skull
10:20you she looks out of it nobody's getting back in justice me from blue justice
10:27himself
10:33and it's an exploder of justice and a cover here for eugenic gata and only to
10:39Josh Barnett stays alive see this is what I talked about earlier on by kicking
10:44out that's given the guy to an easier submission opportunity and now they got
10:49a lot to is there but they got a Josh has got to use his larger frame to try
10:57and get to the ropes here
11:02position more so into a sleeper position right now
11:07ah
11:13it's in the gutter fading Josh Barnett to the bottom rope creates the distance
11:27and is it distance that's gonna win Josh Barnett this match
11:38I'm gonna try for that exploder again wrist clutch this time
11:44of justice and a cover for eugenic gata to eugenic gata walked into it so kiddo
11:55main event January 4th 2002 a year earlier as a challenger to the GFC I
12:01don't think he's gonna walk out with the bat here if Barnett can crank in that front
12:06tatsu anymore could the youngest UFC heavyweight champion in history become
12:14the new IWGP heavyweight champion
12:31this for any athlete is a do-or-die situation one more time oh man you can
12:49see the back of Barnett skull ringing off the canvas impressing got him flush
12:56cover here for the gutter
13:04counting the guard set
13:08he can't believe it but that was the result and now Barnett congratulating
13:16Nagata in Japanese demo
13:21but still not done is Josh Barnett he would want another opportunity one day
13:34a formidable challenger for the IWGP heavyweight champion here tonight in
13:39Josh Barnett
13:43and eugenic gata the proud defender of New Japan the proud defender a
13:53professional wrestling still reigning as the IWGP heavyweight champion look at
14:03this down Oh Yoshihiro Takayama just won that NWF championship the old
14:11title Antonio Inoki once held was resurrected in the tournament on this
14:20night and it didn't take long for both champions to go nose-to-nose
14:29and remembering that this unfinished business between these two men as well
14:48NWF champion and IWGP heavyweight champion going face-to-face
15:00wrestling fans you're still IWGP heavyweight champion
15:05eugenic gata if you want more action like this do not forget go back into the
15:10archives special NJPW world.com for all your action for Chris Charlton I'm
15:15Walker Stewart this has been New Japan Pro Wrestling