NJPW Road to Sakura Genesis 2018: Dates, Match Cards, Live Stream and Picks

On the heels of an extraordinary return to the United States with its Strong Style Evolved event, New Japan Pro-Wrestling presents Road to Sakura Genesis this Thursday and Friday.

Two events designed to set the stage for Sunday's enormous Sakura Genesis 2018 show from Tokyo, they will feature the top stars of the red-hot promotion in some gigantic tag team matches.

Chaos, Suzuki-gun, Los Ingobernables de Japon and Bullet Club will all be represented and the blossoming rivalry between IWGP heavyweight champion Kazuchika Okada and 2018 New Japan Cup winner Zack Sabre Jr. will be at the forefront of Night 2's main event.

Here is how you can gear up for Sunday's show with these two prelude spectaculars.

Dates and Times

Day 1: Thursday, March 29 at 5:30 a.m. ET

Day 2: Friday, March 30 at 5:30 a.m. ET

Live Stream

Available on New Japan World in both Japanese and English commentary

Match Card and Predictions (March 29)

• Tetsuhiro Yagi vs. Ren Narita (Prediction: Yagi)
• Shota Umina and Kushida vs. Hiromu Takahashi and Bushi (Prediction: Takahashi and Bushi)
• Manabu Nakanishi and Yuji Nagata vs. Killer Elite Squad (Prediction: Killer Elite Squad)
• Ryusuke Taguchi, Michael Elgin and Togi Makabe vs. Tomoyuki Oka, Tiger Mask and Hiroyoshi Tenzan (Prediction: Elgin, Taguchi and Makabe)
• Toa Henare, David Finlay, Juice Robinson and Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Hirooki Goto, Jay White, Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano (Prediction: Goto, White, Ishii and Yano)
• Sanada and Tetsuya Naito vs. Taichi and Minoru Suzuki (Prediction: Naito and Sanada)
• Roppongi 3K, Yoshi-Hashi and Kazuchika Okada vs. El Desperado, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Taka Michinoku and Zack Sabre Jr. (Prediction: Sabre Jr, Michinoku, El Desperado and Kanemaru)

Match Card and Predictions (March 30)

• Tetsuhiro Yagi vs. Ren Narita (Prediction: Narita)
• Yuji Nagata vs. Shota Umino (Prediction: Nagata)
• Ryusuke Taguchi, Michael Elgin and Togi Makabe vs. Tomoyuki Oka, Manabu Nakanishi and Hiroyoshi Tenzan (Prediction: Taguchi, Elgin and Makabe)
• Toa Henare, David Finlay and Juice Robinson vs. Tomohiro Ishii, Jay White and Hirooki Goto (Prediction: Finlay, Robinson and Henare)
• Tiger Mask, Kushida and Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Roppongi 3K and Toru Yano (Prediction: Tiger Mask, Kushida and Tanahashi)
• Hiromu Takahashi, Bushi, Sanada, Evil and Tetsuya Naito vs. El Desperado, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, Killer Elite Squad and Minoru Suzuki (Prediction: Takahashi, Bushi, Sanada, Evil and Naito)
• Yoshi-Hashi and Kazuchika Okada vs. Zack Sabre Jr. and Taichi (Prediction: Okada and Yoshi-Hashi)

Sabre's Path to Gold

Arguably the biggest story coming out of the Road to Sakura Genesis cards is the two tag team main events that will pit IWGP heavyweight champion Kazuchika Okada against Zack Sabre Jr., days before they battle in the main event of Sunday's extravaganza.

Sabre got the better of Okada at Strong Style Evolved, teaming with intercontinental champion Suzuki to defeated Okada and Ishii. He has momentum on his side, having tapped out some of the top stars in the industry, including Tanahashi, Ishii, Sanada and Naito.

If he can defeat Okada, ending his historic title reign and preventing him from tying the record for 11 consecutive successful title reigns, he will establish himself as one of the elite wrestlers in the world and the new face of New Japan Pro-Wrestling.

It is a tall task given everything Okada means to NJPW.

The Rainmaker has been the franchise of the promotion for two years now, delivering some of the most unforgettable matches in recent memory and staking his claim to the title of "world's best wrestler." He has star power and unfinished business with several top stars, including the aforementioned Tanahashi.

Sabre may win Thursday and Friday's tag matches, but wrestling the title away from Okada is another task the Brit may not be experienced enough to accomplish.