Fans have chosen the stipulation for the KOPW 2021 trophy match between Toru Yano and EVIL at NJPW Wrestling Satsuma no Kuni, and it’s a doozy. NJPW has announced that the match will be a Creation of Darkness Blindfold Match by a vote of 51.58% to 48.42%.
The match will feature blindfold hoods on each of the ringposts, and a competitor wins by standard rules (pinfall, submission, knockout, countout) only after blindfolding their opponent.
The show takes place on April 28th. The full announcement reads:
Creation of Darkness Blindfold Match set after KOPW2021 vote
After 28,679 votes were cast worldwide in the KOPW 2021 match poll online, a winner has been determined, and rules now set for Toru Yano and EVIL’s clash on April 28 on night one of Satsuma no Kuni.
Quick Results
Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi & DOUKI submitted Jado, Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa in 10:38 ( ¾)
Hirooki Goto, Toru Yano, Hiroshi Tanahashi, YOSHI-HASHI & Tomohiro Ishii pinned Gedo, EVIL, KENTA, Yujiro Takahashi & Taiji Ishimori in 15:29 ( )
Will Ospreay & Jeff Cobb pinned BUSHI & Shingo Takagi in 12:41 ( ¼)
Aaron Henare & Great-O-Khan pinned SANADA & Tetsuya Naito in 20:01 ( ¼)
Yes. That first half of the card IS the same as we had on Thursday in Korakuen shakes fist at Gedo … and you wonder why they’re drawing crowds in the 300s these days at Korakuen. I get it, attendances aren’t the be-all and end-all of business in 2021, but it’s becoming a worrying indicator…