YOH remains IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion after defeating Taiji Ishimori in the main event of NJPW Battle Line Hokkaido on September 23, 2026.
The championship bout closed New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s latest stop at Kitagas Arena Sapporo 46 in Hokkaido, with YOH successfully turning back a challenge from one of the division’s most decorated veterans.
YOH defeats Taiji Ishimori in Sapporo
YOH entered the show with the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship on the line against Ishimori, a former multiple-time champion who has remained one of NJPW’s most dangerous junior heavyweights.
When the match was over, YOH had retained the title and left Sapporo still holding the championship. The result gives the champion another significant defense as NJPW continues its Road to Destruction tour.
The match was one of two championship contests that closed the September 23 card.
El Desperado and Místico also retain
In the co-main event, El Desperado and Místico successfully defended the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship against HOUSE OF TORTURE representatives SHO and DOUKI.
The champions had accepted the challenge during the previous night of the Road to Destruction tour, setting up a quick turnaround for the title match in Sapporo. Desperado and Místico ultimately survived the challenge to keep the belts.
That meant both junior heavyweight championships defended on the night remained with their existing holders.
NJPW Road to Destruction continues
Elsewhere on the card, Unbound Co. featured prominently. Robbie X and reigning IWGP Heavyweight Champion Yota Tsuji defeated Master Wato and Hirooki Goto, while Shingo Takagi and Drilla Moloney defeated YOSHI-HASHI and Boltin Oleg.
Jeff Cobb, OSKAR, Yuto-Ice and Daiki Nagai also picked up a victory for Unbound Co. against United Empire’s Great-O-Khan, HENARE, Callum Newman and Zane Jay.
The result involving Tsuji and Goto carries added interest as NJPW moves deeper into the Road to Destruction schedule, with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship picture continuing to develop around the champion.
HOUSE OF TORTURE had success earlier in the show when Shun Skywalker and Dick Togo defeated Shota Umino and Masatora Yasuda, but the group could not turn that momentum into championship gold later in the night.
Junior heavyweight champions leave Hokkaido with gold
For YOH, the victory over Ishimori is another important result in his reign. Ishimori’s experience and championship history made the Sapporo defense a meaningful test, but the title remains around YOH’s waist.
Desperado and Místico likewise leave the show still on top of the junior tag division after denying SHO and DOUKI.
With two championship matches headlining the card and both champions retaining, NJPW’s September 23 event kept its major junior heavyweight title pictures intact as the promotion continues toward the next major stops on its 2026 calendar.
WAW will continue to follow the Road to Destruction tour and the latest developments across NJPW.
