GHC Heavyweight Title Match: Kenta Kobashi (c) vs. Yoshinari Ogawa - NOAH Navigation Against The Current 2003 - Day 11 01/11/2003
This is the type of match Ogawa gives you, no matter who he is wrestling, he always brings something different to an opponent's game. And this time, it's Kobashi. Loved when Ogawa nonchalantly moved out the way of the chop and went back to the cavet like nothing happened. Regular dickish stuff like attacking the knee of Kobashi makes him really angry and it leads to Kobashi beating the hell out of him. Busting him open and chopping the wound! Different type of match for Kobashi but it was excellent anyway. ****1/4
GHC Heavyweight Title Match: Kenta Kobashi (c) vs. Takuma Sano - NOAH The First Navigation 2004 - Day 9 25/01/2004
This was a decent B-Level title defence for Kobashi. Sano isn’t going to convince anyone that a potential victory is on the cards but he brought a decent enough performance. I dug how he’d hit a spinning heel kick to counter Kobashi’s chops during the strike exchange. Stuff like that to separate him from other title challengers that came before him. Kobashi pulled out all kinds of funky submissions which was a pleasant surprise, such as the split legged knee bar (think ZSJ or Volk Han). The finishing stretch was pretty standard with the big suplexes being dished out but It didn’t capture the heights of say a Misawa match or even the Nagata match. ***1/4
GHC Heavyweight Title Match: Kenta Kobashi (c) vs. Takeshi Rikio - NOAH Navigate For Evolution 2004 - Day 10 06/03/2004
I was kinda hesitant on what to expect going into the match. Rikio isn’t an impressive wrestler. But he delivered big time when the match needed to. The middle part of the match was kinda needless with Rikio working the legs for the Scorpion Deathlock. It went nowhere too. But the opening strike exchanges with the sumo slaps into the corner and the heavy bomb throwing in the closing stretch were all awesome. Perhaps it was hindsight and knowing that Rikio would beat Kobashi in the rematch but Kobashi felt like he was in genuine danger. Kobashi’s selling put Rikio over really well too. ****
GHC Heavyweight Title Match: Kenta Kobashi (c) vs Yoshihiro Takayama - NOAH Encountering Navigation 2004 - Day 14 25/04/2004
This was pretty insane. You have Takayama and Suzuki in one corner, looking like the most badass dudes in the world and the other side is Kobashi, Shiozaki and Honda with the most determined looks on their faces. The match was super intense with an epic atmosphere in Budokan Hall and very hard hitting in all aspects. Kobashi was in his element as the sympathetic babyface getting his ass kicked by Takayama who was not holding back with his strikes at all. Kobashi leveled Takayama with his chops himself but Takayama ruled the ring with his vicious knee strikes. The one where he catches Kobashi coming off the top rope and catches him with the knee in his stride was amazing. Takayama brutalised Kobashi’s arm with submissions and kicks. Anything he could to tourture Kobashi, he did it. Perhaps to his detriment as he eventually lost stamina giving Kobashi the opening to make his big comeback. Kobashi’s selling was excellent the entire match. Not just selling the arm. The selling in every little thing - his facial expressions, his comebacks, everything. Kobashi’s overall performance was amazing. The escalation made the match feel more grander. When Kobashi hit the Burning Lariat, the crowd went insane only for Takayama to still kick out. Kobashi then pulling that famous grimace and hitting the moonsault was a pitch perfect way to end the match. *****
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