Tama Tonga Recaptures NEVER Openweight Championship At Wrestle Kingdom 18

Tama Tonga became a four-time NEVER Openweight Champion at Wrestle Kingdom 18, dethroning Shingo Takagi to recapture the title he lost in October last year. 

Tonga previously lost the title to Takagi in October less than a month after beating David Finlay for the title. Wrestle Kingdom 18 marked a year since he had also recaptured the title from Karl Anderson, to whom he had also lost the title earlier. 

The match at Wrestle Kingdom started with the pair testing one another's footing as they exchanged shoulder blocks. Tama won the exchange when he hit a dropkick and a pair of suplexes, but Takagi fired back with a shoulder tackle and a tope con hilo before a sliding lariat. Tama fired back into the match landing a Tongan twist and scoring a near-fall, but Shingo Takagi regained control until Tama Tonga landed his Gun Stun finisher and followed up with Bloody Sunday only for Takagi to kick out at one.

Takagi reversed another attempted Gun Stun and hit the move on Tama Tonga himself, followed by Made in Japan for a near-fall. Tama Tonga freed himself from an attempted Last of the Dragon to hit a Styles Clash, landing another Stun Gun for a two-count, before hitting DST to finally win the bout. 

Check out Wrestling Inc.'s live coverage of Wrestle Kingdom 18 here.