IWGP World Heavyweight Title Match Official For NJPW Destruction In Ryogoku

Two former tag team partners will collide at NJPW Destruction in Ryogoku on October 9.

SANADA has not defended the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship since June's Forbidden Door pay-per-view due to his participation in the NJPW G1 Climax 33 tournament, but the Just Five Guys member is set to put the gold on the line again on October 9 against House of Torture's EVIL.

The match was expected to be made official for the second half of 2023 after EVIL eliminated SANADA from the G1 by defeating him in their quarter-final contest. EVIL and SANADA are former tag team partners in Los Ingobernables de Japon, although both have since left the faction.

Another title match official for Destruction in Ryogoku is David Finlay vs. Tama Tonga for the NEVER Openweight Championship. The two competitors have been feuding for much of 2023, with Finlay defeating Tama for the belt earlier this year. Tonga punched his ticket for a rematch during the G1, though, handing Finlay his first loss of the tournament.

Guerrillas of Destiny's newest member El Phantasmo will also be in action on October 9 when he teams with Hikuleo to challenge Bullet Club War Dogs' Gabe Kidd and Alex Coughlin for the NJPW STRONG Openweight Tag Team Championships. Coughlin and Kidd have been champions since they defeated YOSHI-HASHI and Hirooki Goto for the belts in early July.