El Desperado vs. Taiji Ishimori

[7.0] "Not as good as their last match from this year's Battle in the Valley, unfortunately. Although, far from being a bad match on its own. Ishimori getting his win back from that event was interesting, as well, particularly considering that Desperado's only won just one match in the tournament thus far."

[6.0] "This match had some decent work in it, but it's also very clearly not a match that either man went into wanting to steal the show with."

[6.0] "This match was clearly a lesser entry in their series but in its shortness it featured a lot of hate by Ishimori and some really clever technical wrestling. Despy got trapped in one of Taiji's pin and finally lost to him after the BOSJ final and US show bouts. ***1/4"

[7.0] "Largely dull first half as Ishimori controlled things, but the second half was very good, particularly the closing sequence with the dueling submissions. ***1/2"

[6.0] "This made for an interesting match. Shorter than you'd normally see from these two, but very much a fun semi. SINGLES RECORD: El Desperado 4-3"

[6.0] "[3.0*] I understand why some might enjoy it, but I didn't think the match would end up being as dull as it was. Considering the names involved, I ended up feeling disappointed."

[5.0] "***1/2 Interesting match, could have been better, it was disappointing, this match should have been reserved for the short nights of the tournament, as they deserved more time, good chemistry, good limbwork by Ishimori on Desperado's arm, interesting selling by Despe, short duration for the pace and intensity they were taking, normal ending very anticlimactic for what they were building"

[7.0] "A good addition to the two's rivalry. Was a nice complement to the other matches on the card by having a slow(ish) bout that really builds towards the great finish from El Desperado."

[6.0] "These two work very well together and even when it's very apparent that they are holding a lot back they are still capable of working a very good match. 3.25 stars"

[7.0] "Not the brightest of their encounters but surely a solid match for the card, probably the best not considering the main event. Very interesting ending, huge win for Ishimori."

[8.0] "Really good match. Taking a little twist to the juniors title and not going for speed, but more technical. It fits since both guys are not the fastest, but more strategic/ strong"

[6.0] "Solid match between two great wrestlers. Ishimori especially showed that he is still one of the best junior heavyweights in New Japan."

[8.0] "Very good match, these two have a lot of history and this is another good match in their series. Loved the limb work from both, the reversals from knowing each other so well too."

[8.0] "Awesome match between these two (as expected from their previous encounters) and this was no exception. Good action, good technical wrestling and an exciting finishing stretch. Not their best match but still really fun and enjoyable."

[6.0] "Alright, none of them are the fastest juniors, and decided to pace the match more like a heavyweights match (so, pacing the moves, more submissions, etc). Not bad, but that kind of match needs more combinations and at least 5 more minutes to shine."