NJPW reveals bracket for New Japan Cup 2025
The full field has been revealed for New Japan Cup 2025, a tournament where the winner receives an IWGP World Heavyweight Championship shot.
In total, the tournament consists of 24 entrants. Sixteen of those wrestlers have to compete in first-round matchups, while the other eight participants have randomly been selected to receive a first-round bye. David Finlay, YOSHI-HASHI, Zack Sabre Jr., Taichi, Shota Umino, Jeff Cobb, TJP, and Shingo Takagi are the wrestlers getting byes.
Here is the full bracket:
Left side —
- Yota Tsuji vs. EVIL (winner faces David Finlay in next round)
- Yuya Uemura vs. SANADA (winner faces YOSHI-HASHI in next round)
- Ryohei Oiwa vs. Chase Owens (winner faces Zack Sabre Jr. in next round)
- Gabe Kidd vs. Ren Narita (winner faces Taichi in next round)
Right side —
- El Phantasmo vs. Great-O-Khan (winner faces Shota Umino in next round)
- Tetsuya Naito vs. Callum Newman (winner faces Jeff Cobb in next round)
- Tomohiro Ishii vs. Drilla Moloney (winner faces TJP in next round)
- Oleg Boltin vs. Bad Luck Fale (winner faces Shingo Takagi in next round)
The tournament begins on March 7 and runs through March 20. At Sakura Genesis on April 5, the winner gets their match for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. Hirooki Goto — the newly crowned IWGP World Heavyweight Champion — has one title defense before Sakura Genesis, facing Hiroshi Tanahashi at NJPW’s 53rd Anniversary show in March.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.