On March 2nd 2014, TNA and WRESTLE-1 came together for a joint event at Ryogoku Sumo Hall. The following week, W-1 would be represented on the Lockdown PPV, with The Great Muta, Sanada and Yasu defeating Bad Influence and Chris Sabin. Beyond that, it even shaped the year’s bizarre Bound for Glory event as TNA lost their Spike TV deal. Speaking of bizarre, there are some fascinating matchups on this Outbreak event, including Abyss vs. Takayama and Magnus vs. KAI.
In that regard though, Bobby Roode vs. Masakatsu Funaki comfortably leads the way. I’ve always loved this wrestling tradition, as classical US workers represent their territory in Japan. With that being said, this feels like especially demented matchmaking, as that conventional approach is paired with Funaki’s famed shoot style. Nonetheless, they’re both masters of their respective crafts and so, maybe they’ll find a worthwhile middle ground. Probably not, but I’m here for the novelty regardless.
We have a standoff at the bell, with Roode evading some early kicks before informing the referee that this is not kickboxing. Ah, it appears that Bob has opted for some good old fashioned shtick here, can’t argue with that. His efforts earn a chuckle or two, with some wrestling exchanges coming next. Well, not exchanges really, they just sit in a headlock for a while. The pace momentarily increases, with Roode dropping Funaki via shoulder tackle before loosely targeting an arm.
Funaki returns the favour, earning his own side headlock and landing a shoulder tackle to boot. It’s like poetry, it rhymes. Now frustrated, Roode decides to throw a strike after all, eating a thudding kick for his troubles and bailing to ringside. Roode has some success on the floor, returning to that brief focus on the arm. His tactics are booed, which suggests that his direction has at least somewhat worked, I suppose.
He certainly has some fun with his control segment too, operating with intent and sprinkling in crowd work along the way. Eventually, Funaki rallies with many kicks, transitioning the match to a brief finishing stretch. That gives us some fun, as Roode plays ball with a fleeting chop exchange before snatching his crossface. There are some nice false finishes also, but not many, as Funaki soon forces a submission via ankle lock.
Sometimes, the circumstances are such that you will simply not be having a great match that evening. This is the most Bobby Roode handling of that situation imaginable, as he just safely strolls towards something totally inoffensive. It’s not really good, but it never threatens to fall apart either, as Roode mostly just plugs Funaki into his own house show match. It’s a real throwback in that regard, the kind of match that was worked without a single thought for anyone watching at home. Beast.
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