Masahiro Chono met with New Japan for 3 hours again, resulting in him declaring free agency. It seems that Chono just did this to get out of working the tours. He's talking about how he kept working through this injury and that injury and now he needs to rest and refresh his body. He's going to work the 2/3 & 2/4 Sapporo shows and 2/18 PPV since the card was already announced. In other words, he's on all the shows that "matter" and off all the shows that "don't." It sounds like he'll be off after 2/18 until he returns to NJ rings for the 4/9 Osaka Dome show.

Masahiro Chono met with New Japan for 3 hours, but once again suspended his contract renewal. He realizes he was the key to New Japan drawing last year since he continued to wrestle even though he was injured the whole year and the other draws like Muto & Hashimoto only fought on a couple big shows after the beginning of the year. At least in his mind, New Japan's offer isn't compensating him accordingly. He said he may declare free agency as soon as tomorrow, a statement that at the very least puts pressure on New Japan to up their offer.

Keiji Muto renewed his contract with New Japan. They agreed to a 50 match limit and to help him start up his own wrestling school.
Tatsuhito Takaiwa "didn't renew" his contract with New Japan. Instead, he joined Hashimoto, Yasuda, & Kazuyuki Fujita in a meeting with Inoki at Narita Airport where they all pledged to back Inoki up. These guys will fight against New Japan and the promotions New Japan has a working agreement with.
Shinjiro Otani "hasn't renewed" his contract yet, but may still do so. Hashimoto is trying to convince him to "join ZERO-ONE." Otani is happy because he's in the heavyweight title match, so he'll probably "stay," but he's might win might win the title (okay, there's like 0 chance of that) and then bring it to ZERO-ONE. Right now the New Japan guys who don't have contracts (at least in angle) are Chono, Liger, Nakanishi, Iizuka, Otani, Takaiwa, & Kashin.

Antonio Inoki has decided that New Japan needs a 21st century reformation. This reformation would be a combination of puroresu and kakutogi like the show Inoki promoted on 12/31/00.
Inoki is going to have his guys fight against Hashimoto/ZERO-ONE, so more guys may be added to his group.
Tadao Yasuda "left" New Japan after a 30 minute meeting. One would think this is because he's going to "join" ZERO-ONE, but he may join Antonio Inoki's team instead. He's going to Los Angeles on the 29th to meet with Inoki.
Kendo Kashin has put off resigning and may wrestle overseas or join Inoki.
Satoshi Kojima put off resigning, but may "change his mind."

Keiji Muto's opponent for the 2/18 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan PPV will be Shiro Fukumen (white mask). This is the guy that seconded Naoya Ogawa on 5/5/00. On that day it was Antonio Inoki. If it's Inoki again than it's either so Inoki can wrestle again without officially unretiring or so Inoki can lose without really losing (still unlikely).

Masahiro Chono also failed to renew his contract after a 2 hour meeting with New Japan officials. Unlike Muto, it seems like Chono plans on renewing, it's just that they need to iron out a few details.

The result of the initial contract renewal talks between Keiji Muto & New Japan was that Muto decided not to renew. He's still going to wrestle for New Japan, but since his knees are shot he wants to be able to pick and choose his matches. Also, he's going to open up his own wrestling school. What will they call this one, ZERO-TWO? This looks like another situation like what we have with Shinya Hashimoto where he's really still with New Japan, but they conjure up all these angles to make it look like he's an outsider so they can have something major for the big shows. It's much more understandable with Muto since he still has a lot left if he only wrestles a few times a month. Still, the main reason New Japan has declined over the past year is the continued deemphasis on their house show business. It's starting to look like WCW with the younger guys like Kojima & Nagata busting their ass but still being kept at the same basic level while Muto, Hashimoto, Ogawa, & now Choshu sit on the sidelines and hog all the press and glory (well, Hashimoto hasn't gotten much glory, but he's made a lot of money per match to sit back and watch his career go down the drain). Fujinami could be in there as well except he's been good about putting people over and is only the center of attention in the angles since he's the "president."

There's some goofy angle where Keiji Muto says he'll boycott all future matches against All Japan if he's unhappy with the content of his match against Taiyo Kea. Supposedly, he's using this match to "judge" All Japan.

Yuji Nagata is going to compete in PRIDE sometime(s) this year. Nagata, whose brother Katsuhiko won a silver medal in amateur wrestling at the most recent Olympics, was an All Japan champion in Greco-Roman wrestling at 82 kg prior to turning pro.

NEW CENTURY DASH 2001 1/19 Okinawa Kenritsu Budokan 4,500 sellout
Kensuke Sasaki & Manabu Nakanishi & Yuji Nagata & Yutaka Yoshie defeated Masahiro Chono & Satoshi Kojima & Tatsutoshi Goto & Michiyoshi Ohara 2 falls to 1. Kojima pinned Yoshie at 8:43 following a lariat, but then Sasaki's team won 2 straight. Nagata pinned Kojima in his backdrop hold at 10:09 then Nakanishi made Goto submit to his Argentine backbreaker at 3:14. Sasaki is now looking for a quadruple title match where the IWGP Heavykyu Senshuken would be unified with All Japan's Sankan Heavykyu Senshuken. It seems like if they were going to do this, they should have done it already (or rather on the 1/28 Tokyo Dome show), but if they do this and sellout another Dome then it'll be hard to fault them for holding it off.
Although it was only Hiro Saito, Shinjiro Otani did defeated a heavyweight. The finish came when Otani used a powerbomb then cobra hold at 8:44.
Junji Hirata & Jushin Thunder Liger beat Shiro Koshinaka & Tatsuhito Takaiwa when Liger used his suichoku rakka shiki no brainbuster on Takaiwa at 12:31.
El Samurai & Kendo Kashin defeated junior tag champs Minoru Tanaka & Koji Kanemoto in a non-title match when Samurai used his suichoku rakka shiki no reverse DDT on Koji at 15:15.

Shinjiro Otani making his first challenge for the IWGP Heavykyu Senshuken held by Kensuke Sasaki headlines the major show/PPV of the upcoming tour, 2/18 at Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan. This seems to be Otani's "reward" for gaining a lot of weight so he could play the role of a heavyweight. Obviously, Otani will lose and it will be the worst title match of his career.
The other top matches are Muto vs. against and opponent that's yet to be announced (the talk seems to be that it will be one of Inoki's "assassins" or Hashimoto, only Sasaki would get the benefit of a Muto vs. Hashimoto match under his not particularly interesting title match) and Tenzan & Kojima vs. Choshu & Suzuki. Tenzan & Kojima should get a win over Choshu by pinning Suzuki, but I'd never want to bet a lot of money on Choshu losing. Although Choshu is supposed to be back full time, 2/4 is the only other show he's wrestling on this series, not that I'm complaining. The only matches that could be really good are the lone interpromotional match, Iizuka & Nagata vs. Kakihara & Nagai, and the opener, Tanaka & Kanemoto & Takaiwa & Makabe vs. Samurai & Kashin & Wagner & Silver King.

Junior 2 Crown King Minoru Tanaka officially joined New Japan. He had been a free agent since leaving Battlarts later last year, but was only wrestling for New Japan.

Tatsumi Fujinami & Masa Saito are going to go to the US to meet with Eric Bischoff about future relations between New Japan and recently sold WCW.
Masahiro Chono fractured a bone in his chest during the 1/4 match against Kensuke Sasaki. He thinks he'll be able to return in time for the 2/3 Sapporo show (they only have 2 before this).

Shinjiro Otani wants a shot at Kensuke Sasaki's IWGP Heavykyu Senshuken. Which heavyweight has he beaten?
2/3 at Hokkaido-ken Sogo Taiiku Center has Sasuke & Liger vs. Tenzan & Kojima, Muto & Otani vs. Chono & Frye, Tanaka & Kanemoto defending the IWGP Junior Tag Senshuken against the new (to New Japan) team of Dr. Wagner, Jr. & his brother Silver King, Iizuka & Nakanishi & Nagata vs. Kawada & Fuchi & Araya, & Fujinami vs. Fujiwara in the main event (more than a decade after it should be a big show main event) as the third match in Fujinami's final countdown.
2/4 at the same arena has Otani & The Sledge Hammer vs. Chono & Ohara, Sasaki & Nagata vs. SS Machine & Liger, Muto vs. Iizuka, & a weak main event of Nakanishi & Nishimura challenging Tenzan & Kojima for the IWGP Tag Senshuken.
The final show of the FIGHTING SPIRIT 2001 tour, 2/18 at Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan, will be the next PPV.

Manabu Nakanishi got married to 33-year-old actress Tsuneko (this combination of kanjis could also be Tenko, Tomoko, or Noriko, so I'm not really sure) Kondo in Tokyo Prince Hotel. 400 people attended the wedding including Fujinami, Choshu, & Sasaki. Jun Akiyama, who knows Nakanishi going back to their days as amateur wrestlers, sent a letter of congradulations.

Riki Choshu is interested in having a match with Toshiaki Kawada. In light of yesterday's debacle, President Tatsumi Fujinami is considering putting together a Choshu vs. Shinya Hashimoto rematch where you have to win by KO. He agrees that Choshu vs. Kawada should be the top priority though.

WRESTLING WORLD 2001 1/4 Tokyo Dome 62,001 sellout
Kensuke Sasaki unfortunately came out on top once again, becoming the 27th IWGP Heavyweight Champion in the process. In the first round of the tournament, Sasaki forced Satoshi Kojima to submit to a gyakuebigatame (Boston crab) at 16:33. Given that Masahiro Chono had a first round bye, Sasaki came into the semifinal as the underdog. Chono attacked Sasaki's right (lariat) arm and had him caught in the STF twice, but Sasaki was able to get rope escapes. Sasaki took out Chono at 11:28 with his strangle hold gamma. In the other bracket, Hiroshi Tenzan stopped Nagata from finally getting a break and a chance to follow up on the 12/14 tag draw with Kawada, pinning him in the moonsault press at 16:45. Tenzan fell to Toshiaki Kawada's powerbomb at 10:45, resulting in one of the biggest matches of 2000 being a rematch of the biggest pro wrestling match of 1999. Kawada winning the title would have been the best thing for business, but once Sasaki got to the final you knew he was doomed because Choshu isn't going to have Choshu #2 lose to Kawada twice in a row. Sasaki pinned Kawada with his northern lights bomb at 10:30, a little more than half the length of their previous match although as a whole Sasaki did work close to 40 minutes. The fans were so pissed about the Choshu vs. Hashimoto match that the ones who stayed for the main event just kept on booing. Sasaki said he'd like to team with Kawada, which means we probably won't see a deciding match between the two anytime soon.
I wouldn't have had Sasaki & Chono in the same bracket. That way Nagata & Kojima could have eliminated one each and Kawada could have eliminated them both so Kawada wins to set up business, but without putting him up 2-0 on Sasaki or wasting his first match with Chono in the tournament. Nagata, who loses to Kawada in a great final, & Kojima, who takes out one of the big two, are both elevated, which makes for better matches and eliminates some of the stagnation because it's just been the same big matches over and over with the exception of Nakanishi getting some undeserved bones. A big problem for New Japan is they have no one behind the Nakanishi, Tenzan, Nagata, & Kojima group, but Nakanishi will never be more than a paper champion like Sasaki and the others that can actually wrestle seem stuck at the same level below the top forever to the point they'll never seem credible as top guys if something doesn't give very soon.
Riki Choshu technically went to a draw with Shinya Hashimoto. Hashimoto didn't exit his corner to start the match. Once he started fighting, Hashimoto looked good throughout the early stages, using his hard chops and stiff kicks. He took the referee Tayama out with a chop 3 minutes into the match. Tiger Hattori hurried in to ref in his place. Choshu took over at the 6 minute mark, using his Riki lariats and backdrops, of course. Choshu took Hattori out with a lariat at 13 minutes. Fujinami let the match go on. Choshu and Hashimoto were exchanging punches and chops. Since this was a grudge match, they just wanted to beat on each other and didn't go for pins or submissions. Choshu was fighting, but he was in a "half groggy state." Hattori looked to Tatsumi Fujinami, who was sitting at the broadcast table. Fujinami signalled for the match to be stopped, so both referees stopped the match at 15:20. Similar to the Hashimoto vs. Ogawa match from 1/4/99, the match was stopped for the safety of the performers, mainly Hashimoto, but here it was Choshu's rep that was blemished. The fans booed this bizarre screw job unmercifully and some idiots threw pet bottles, beer cans, and whatever else they had at the ring, resulting in fear that they were going to riot .Hashimoto had to have 10 people around him to protect him from the debris as he left the ring. The addition of this match was a key to getting so many people in the building so it was just the wrong match for them to pull a stunt like this with, especially in light of all the crap that's gone on with Hashimoto the last few years. After the match, Choshu, who was having problems with his foot and arm, said victory and defeat are irrelevant. He gained confidence in himself by beating on Hashimoto, and he's now fully revived (from the near 2 year layoff) and ready to take on Rickson Gracie (of course, there's almost no chance he ever will).
Keiji Muto & Shiniro Otani were victorious in their return to New Japan, defeating respective rivals Manabu Nakanishi & Jushin Thunder Liger in just 5:44 when Otani made Liger submit to a cobra hold. Otani's contract is up at the end of the month, so if they are going to have some angle where he "leaves" and joins Hashimoto, it will be soon. Otani said he doesn't want to become anyone's subordinate though.
In a match billed as Technical Wrestling, Takashi Iizuka made Kendo Kashin submit to a hadakajime at 6:12. Iizuka said his goal this year was to win the (heavyweight) title. Good luck.
In a match billed as Super Jr. 21Version, Minoru Tanaka & Koji Kanemoto beat Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Shinya Makabe in 18:02 when Kanemoto used his kakato otoshi on Makabe.

Sydney Olympic wrestling silver medalist (Greco, 69 kg) Kazuhiko Nagata recieved his puroresu special prize for superb amateur wrestler. He's turning pro this year, and certainly doesn't have small goals. He wants to win the IWGP Heavykyu Senshuken...this year.

Heavyweight Shinjiro Otani is supposed to weigh 104.5 kg (230 pounds), about 25 pounds more than when he wrestled in New Japan's junior division.

The card for WRESTLING WORLD 2001 on 1/4 at the Tokyo Dome is:
IWGP Tournament final
Riki Choshu vs. fired Shinya Hashimoto. Choshu comes out of retirement again to face the guy he fired last month
Keiji Muto & Shinjiro Otani return to Japan to face Manabu Nakanishi & Jushin Thunder Liger
IWGP tournament semifinal Toshiaki Kawada vs. Tenzan/Nagata winner
IWGP tournament semifinal Masahiro Chono vs. Sasaki/Kojima winner
Technical Wrestling: Takashi Iizuka vs. Kendo Kashin
Super Jr. 21Version: Minoru Tanaka & Koji Kanemoto vs. Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Shinya Makabe
IWGP tournament 1st round: Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Yuji Nagata
IWGP tournament 1st round: Kensuke Sasaki vs. Satoshi Kojima

11/19 Tokyo Differ Ariake 1,200 "sellout"
G1 Tag League matches:
Takashi Iizuka & Yuji Nagata beat Manabu Nakanishi & Yutaka Yoshie when Nagata used his Nagata lock II on Yoshie at 18:28.
Masahiro Chono & Scott Norton defeated Super Strong Machine & Jushin Thunder Liger when Norton jackhammered Liger at 16:36.
Kensuke Sasaki & Shiro Koshinaka beat T2000 Machine 1 & 2 when Koshinaka powerbombed 1 at 12:36.

Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka defeated Kendo Kashin & Kid Romeo when Kanemoto pinned Romeo in his Tiger suplex hold at 13:31.
El Samurai pinned Shinya Makabe in his Samuraibomb at 9:15.

Tatsumi Fujinami went to the US to talk to Antonio Inoki about the Shinya Hashimoto dismissal and the 3/02 30th Anniversary dome show.

Due to the angle that Team 2000 won match making rights for this show, the 12/10 BATTLE FINAL 2000 show at Nagoya Aichi-ken Taiikukan will have undisclosed Team 2000 members in all the big matches. Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima will defend the IWGP Tag Senshuken against 2 members, while Minoru Tanaka will defend the IWGP Junior Senshuken against some member that probably hasn't been wrestling in New Japan as a junior. They've already announced matches for the rest of the junior division, Koji Kanemoto vs. Kendo Kashin and Jushin Thunder Liger & El Samurai vs. Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Shinya Makabe, so that seems to leave AKIRA unless someone like Shinjiro Otani or Dr. Wagner, Jr. are back as BLACK. Kensuke Sasaki will also face a member in a singles match

NJ is interested in a tag title unification match with All Japan as the main event of their 12/14 PPV. This increases current IWGP tag champions Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima's chances of winning the G1 Tag League because that way it could be the winner of All Japan's tag league (which is for the vacant titles) against the winner of New Japan's tag league.
Since Mike Rotundo never officially left Team 2000, it's possible that he'll get Steve Williams to "join" Team 2000 in the fight against All Japan.

The Great Muta, will return to wrestling in New Japan within a year. He'll probably be on the 1/4/01 Tokyo dome show. So much for him saving WCW.:)