NJPW's World Tag League Lineup

New Japan Pro Wrestling is giving us two tag team tournaments' back-to-back! Here's the lineup for World Tag League that starts in November and ends in December!

New Japan Pro Wrestling loves their tournaments and this year we have World Tag League. Yes, Super Jr. Tag League and World Tag League are running at the same time from November to December. We are on the road to Toyko Dome for Wrestle Kingdom 17.

Conspicuous by their absence are Dax Hardwood and Cash Wheeler. They are our NJPW IWGP Heavyweight Champions. FTR showed up at Osaka on November 5th to face United Empire members Jeff Cobb and Great-O-Khan. FTR won and left Japan and aren’t in this tournament.

Why does Catch 2/2 — the team of TJP and Akira Francesco, our IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Champs — have to wrestle during Super Jr. Tag League while FTR gets an easy road to the Tokyo Dome for Wrestle Kingdom 17?

Let’s jump into the lineup.

Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI

Goto and YOSHI-HASHI are members of Chaos. They are a great tag team. Unstoppable too. Goto and YOSHI-HASHI proved they were the main tag team of Chaos when they fought Guerrillas of Destiny in 2021. They won World Tag League in 2021 and became one-time IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions by taking it from Dangerous Tekkers in 2021. Goto and YOSHI-HASHI are a smart working tag team.

Can they become two-time World Tag League winners?

HOUSE OF TORTURE (EVIL & Yujiro Takahashi)

House of Torture isn’t a fan favorite but can’t be denied that they are dominate in the tag division. It’s all a numbers game and shenanigans through and through.

Are they still Bullet Club?

Evil and Yujiro Takahashi were 2021 World Tag League finalists. Evil is a two-time IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champion and two-time World Tag League winner. Yujiro is a one-time IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champion. Collectively, Evil, Yujiro, and SHO are the six-man NEVER Openweight Champions.

Evil has the experience to play the long game for this tournament with his partner Yujiro. I expect cheating.

Los Ingobernables De Japon (Tetsuya Naito & SANADA)

Tetsuya Naito is coming off of two major losses. He recently lost to Will Ospreay for the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship. Naito failed to win the G1 Climax 32. So, a tag team win with Los Ingobernables De Japon stablemate Sanada for World Tag League can revitalized both of their star power.

Sanada is no longer in the NJPW TV Championship tournament. He recently lost to Ren Narita.

Both wrestlers are great as singles and a tag team. Naito is a one-time IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champion with Sanada. Naito is a two-time IWGP Tag Champion. Sanada is a three-time IWGP Tag Champ along with a two-time World Tag League winner.

Maybe it’s time for Sanada to lead and for Naito to follow in this tournament.

United Empire (Aaron Henare & Great-O-Khan) 

Originally, it was supposed to be former two-time IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Great-O-Khan and Jeff Cobb entering World Tag League this year. However, during the match with FTR at Battle Autumn, Jeff Cobb got hurt. Great-O-Khan said in his backstage comments about the many times The United Empire comes so close to victory, and it falls apart, and that’s unacceptable. The United Empire is super beloved and really over with the fans of Japan and America. Cosplayers dressed as Great-O-Khan was a treat to see when The United Empire journeyed to America to fight for NJPW Strong’s Capital Collision event. American fans welcomed all of the United Empire members.

Aaron Henare offered to be Great-O-Khan’s partner for World Tag League. After a passionate pep-talk from Henare, a simple handshake between them solidifies a fearsome team and World Tag League better worry. Henare has a total of seven entries into World Tag League. Before joining United Empire, Henare was teamed with Main Unit members such as Tanahashi, Makabe, and others. That experience mixed with O-Khan's wrestling technique can sweep the competition.

Can Henare and O-Khan make it to the finals of World Tag League? How will they fair against their United Empire stablemates, Aussie Open when they meet on December 5th?

Be-Bop Tag Team (Toru Yano & Hiroshi Tanahashi)

Last year at World Tag League, the duo of Tanahashi and Yano gained a total of fourteen points. How? Tanahashi is the angel of light, a warrior of justice and all things good. Yano is a dastardly thief and cheater to win battles. This is the ultimate combination of good and evil working together in…harmony? It’s a winning recipe when done right.

They were also named Be-Bop from the popular anime due to their difference in style of good and bad.

Yano is a three-time IWGP Tag Team Champion. Tanahashi is a three-time IWGP Tag Team Champion.

Can Be-Bop take World Tag League by storm again?

Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher)

Mark Davis and Kyle Fletcher of Aussie Open are the breakout tag team of the year and a fantastic addition to the United Empire. Aussie Open were the first ever NJPW Strong Tag Team Champions. While they aren’t entering World Tag League as the Strong Tag Team Champions, they still have the momentum and support behind them. They are quickly becoming a fan favorite and wrestling for multiple promotions such as GCW, RPW, AEW, IMPACT, and NJPW Strong.

This will be Aussie Open’s first entry into World Tag League. Can they make it all the way to the finals?

Suzuki-Gun (Lance Archer & Minoru Suzuki)

Suzuki-gun are no strangers to tag team wrestling. This combination will be difficult to beat. Size, power, and killer instincts can have the other teams ready to cheat to survive the match rather than win it. Lance Archer is skilled at intimidation and can move like a cruiserweight in the ring. He had a wonderful match against Okada during this years G1 Climax 32. Speaking of the classic G1 name, back in 2011, NJPW had the G1 Tag League. Minoru Suzuki and Lance Archer won the G1 Tag League back then. NJPW then changed it to World Tag League.

Archer is a three-time IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champion.

Suzuki is a one-time IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champion.

Can Suzuki and Lance Archer capture the magic again by destroying all the other teams and making it to the finals?

BULLET CLUB (Bad Luck Fale & Chase Owens)

Bad Luck Fale and Chase Owens are former IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions. They won the titles at Dontaku and lost them to Jeff Cobb and Great-O-Khan of the United Empire. They are the most experienced tag team for World Tag League.

Can they use that combined experience to go straight to the finals?

TMDK (Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls)

TMDK: The Might Don’t Kneel

This is Mikey Nicholls and Shane Haste’s first entry into World Tag League. Previously, they saw major success in NOAH as the GHC Heavyweight Tag Team Champions. They won those titles twice. They then got signed to NXT but not much happened with them there. After getting released, they reunited with Jonah and Bad Dude Tito in NJPW, thus TMDK.

Can they be the surprise final winners of World Tag League?

Gabriel Kidd & Alex Coughlin

Undoubtably my favorite wild card tag team entrant in World Tag League. “The Android” Alex Coughlin made his return to NJPW Strong during Rumble on 44th Street. A small injury sidelined him for a bit but that didn’t stop him from passionately proclaiming he’s putting the whole NJPW roster on notice. Gabriel Kidd has returned to NJPW after taking a healthy mental and physical break from the draining world of social media and wrestling. I’m glad he’s back in wrestling and doing well. It was awesome to see him back in a NJPW ring, competing at Royal Quest II and NJPW Strong against Tanahashi. I’m going to love reviewing his matches again!

Alex Coughlin and Gabriel Kidd are my pick for underdog tag team for World Tag League.

Can they win World Tag League on their first go?