Best of the Super Juniors 2016 Blocks

[Papa Pillman]

Coming out of Wrestling Dontaku(a show which failed to live up to its show of the year potential, but nonetheless was very fun) we got some not up to expectation tag encounters with some head scratching booking(namely the further hotshotting of the Jr. tag and NEVER 6-man belts) but some solidly worked singles matches that also featured some intriguing booking(especially EVIL beating Goto and the ageless Nagata claiming Shibata's title). But, what we also got as part of what has become tradition here is the unveiling of the Blocks for this year's edition of Best of the Super Juniors.

Here is the line-up:

Block A:

KUSHIDA
Ryusuke Taguchi
Kyle O'Reilly
Matt Sydal
Rocky Romero
Gedo
BUSHI
Matt Jackson

Block B:

Jushin Liger
Tiger Mask
Bobby Fish
Trent Beretta
Nick Jackson
Ricochet
Volador Jr.
Will Ospreay


Interesting notes on these blocks...

First, they're loaded. It obviously remains to be seen, yet could clearly be speculated, that NJPW is perhaps trying to really go all out more than normal with the tourney this year to set a high bar for the soon following WWE Cruiserweight Classic.

Next, along the same line of the loaded field observation, is that there are no young lions in this year's field to take the clear falls, and aside from Gedo there is no one who is an obvious pushover to eat pins throughout the tour.

Also, while the Blocks aren't as lopsided as last year's G1 blocks were(where the A Block featured the three or four worst competitors in the field, leaving the B Block to steal the tourney buzz), its clear that the A Block is the stronger block, including the Jr. champ KUSHIDA, as well as the stronger worker from almost all respective tag teams represented in the field(O'Reilly, Matt Jackson, and Romero). Yet the B Block possesses the two workers(and by proxy one matchup) whose inclusion are creating the most pre-tourney buzz- Ricochet and Ospreay.

Does anyone else have any thoughts or comments on this year's field?

As for predictions; I'm guessing that BUSHI actually edges KUSHIDA on the final night of the round robin to win Block A, while Ospreay formally announces his entrance among the elite wrestlers anywhere on the planet, claiming the B Block. This sets up Ospreay/BUSHI in the final, furthering the CHAOS/Los Ingobernables de Japon stable war that has come to full brew in the wake of the Dontaku tour. From there it could go either way, but Ospreay likely wins to set up an Invasion Attack rematch with KUSHIDA at Dominion.

Predictions of your own?

 

[Bagpipes]

Can't wait to see another Ospreay/Ricochet match. The one from Mania week was great.

I got a agree that Ospreay probably takes Block B (and the whole tourney) with either Bushi or O'Reilly coming out of A Block. Bushi makes the most sense, but NJPW is so high on O'Reilly you just never know.

 

[Papa Pillman]

Bushi makes the most sense, but NJPW is so high on O'Reilly you just never know.

I totally see where you're coming from, and I don't expect any of the three between KUSHIDA, BUSHI, or Kyle to lose more than two matches along the way(and probably only against each other unless Sydal steals a pin from one of them); however, I'm tempted to think that the fact that BUSHI and KUSHIDA are scheduled to face off on the last show(6/6 in Sendai) before the finals, while Kyle has a likely anticlimactic matchup with Romero that evening, is an indication that the former referenced match will decide that block's victor.

 

[Bagpipes]

I totally see where you're coming from, and I don't expect any of the three between KUSHIDA, BUSHI, or Kyle to lose more than two matches along the way(and probably only against each other unless Sydal steals a pin from one of them); however, I'm tempted to think that the fact that BUSHI and KUSHIDA are scheduled to face off on the last show(6/6 in Sendai) before the finals, while Kyle has a likely anticlimactic matchup with Romero that evening, is an indication that the former referenced match will decide that block's victor.

Good point, I hadn't looked at the schedule yet. Definitely makes more sense that the BUSHI/KUSHIDA match would determine a winner than O'Reilly/Rocky.

I am a bit surprised that all the Young Lions were snubbed from the tourney.

 

[Papa Pillman]

I am a bit surprised that all the Young Lions were snubbed from the tourney.

I was a little surprised as well, especially considering that White and Finlay are both parts of this tour and booked on the undercards throughout.

I'd speculate that the reasons for their exclusion is mostly two-fold; first, once they were able to get all of the fulltime ROH guys that were expected to participate(The Bucks and reDRagon) as well as get the commitment to bring in Volador Jr., it left a numbers crunch that kept the lions out of the tourney. Those two young boys were likely the back-up plan in case the company wasn't able to secure Ricochet and Sydal as part of the field(it seems clear by the company's move to take the Jr. tag titles off the pair at Invasion Attack that there was a possibility that NJPW were skeptical of the ongoing access they would have to them as talents going forward, especially in wake of the rumors that both were at one point talked about as being in play for WWE's Cruiser tournament, but those fears were put to bed when Sydal/Ricochet regained the belts and were announced for this field at Dontaku).

The second reason would be that NJPW simply wanted to eliminate the forgone conclusions that would have been 7-8 losses by each man during the tour, and create a more competitive environment every night for all of the competitors who are included. Once again I feel that this is a further indication that New Japan plans to push the wrestlers to go all out more than typical during this year's BotSJ due to it occurring right on the eve of WWE's planned inaugural showcase for similar sized talent.