NJPW New Japan Cup 2019 Results: Predictions for Semifinals Bracket

The final four competitors in the 2019 New Japan Cup have been determined following a quarterfinal round that featured some of the best wrestling of the entire tournament, including a high-profile showdown between a former IWGP heavyweight champion and the current NEVER openweight champion. 

Which wrestlers advanced in the third round of competition and who can you expect to make it to the finals of the prestigious tournament, inching closer to a shot at "Switchblade" Jay White's IWGP Heavyweight Championship?

Quarterfinal Results

Tomohiro Ishii defeated Yoshi-Hashi

Kazuchika Okada defeated Will Ospreay

Sanada defeated Colt Cabana

Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Zack Sabre Jr.

Semifinal Round Predictions

Okada defeats Ishii

Sanada defeats Tanahashi 

Yoshi-Hashi's Strikes Have No Effect on Tomohiro Ishii

Will Ospreay Stuns Kazuchika Okada with Two Shooting Star Presses

Sanada and Colt Cabana Cut a Furious Pace

Okada Grounds Aerial Assassin Ospreay

One of the better matches of the tournament to date saw Okada defeat Ospreay in just over 20 minutes.

A back-and-forth match between two of the elite stars in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, the contest saw neither man garner a sustained advantage. Each cut the other off, preventing them from gaining momentum while trying to negate their strengths.

Despite trying to keep Ospreay from soaring through the air and utilizing his full arsenal of high-flying abilities, The Rainmaker found himself on the receiving end of a Shooting Star Press late that nearly cost him the match.

The ever-alert Okada, though, was able to counter out of Ospreay's famed Oscutter with a nasty dropkick and a tombstone piledriver. The NEVER openweight champion stunned, Okada finished with the Rainmaker to cash his ticket to the semifinals.

Okada continued his rebound from WrestleKingdom 13 earlier this year, shaking off a loss to Jay White at that event. He now finds himself just two wins away from challenging his rival for the top prize in NJPW.

He will battle Tomohiro Ishii in what should be an intensely physical semifinal round math next.

Ospreay, though, was the real winner here.

The British-born competitor continued to establish himself as one of the faces of New Japan in the wake of the recent departures of Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks and Kushida. He looked on-par with the great Okada and would not have surprised anyone if he had upset The Rainmaker.

That is the sign of a star gaining momentum, establishing his own credibility and setting himself up for greatness in the months to come.

Yes, the loss is a disappointing one from a character standpoint, but Ospreay will be back in many high-profile, marquee matches for many shows to come if he decides to hang around the promotion.

Sanada Continues Impressive Run, Defeats Colt Cabana

With his victory over Colt Cabana Thursday, Sanada advanced to the semifinals of the New Japan Cup for the second, consecutive year.

In 2018, he knocked off Chuckie T and Toru Yano before running into the buzzsaw that is Zack Sabre Jr. Like so many others over the course of that competition, he tapped out to the relentless Brit and saw his dreams of an opportunity at the top singles title in Japan disintegrate.

Primarily a tag team wrestler, he spent the next year partnering with Evil and winning the IWGP Tag Team Championships. Whenever the opportunity presented itself, he competed in singles matches, including the G4 Climax, in which he scored a huge upset over Kota Ibushi.

Hellbent on proving last year was not a fluke, Sanada finds himself in the midst of another run through the New Japan Cup and return to the semifinals.

It was fun watching Colt Cabana stun Togi Makabe, then entertain the masses against Yano in lighthearted round 2 bout but his unlikely journey through the tournament came to an appropriate end against a wrestler who was better than him.

Sanada now advances to the semifinals, where he will battle Hiroshi Tanahashi, who ended Zack Sabre Jr.'s remarkable run in consecutive New Japan Cups Thursday, in the semifinals.

It figures to be the most significant singles match of Sanada's career given the fact that Tanahashi is the beloved hero, grizzled veteran and former IWGP heavyweight champion.

He is the measuring stick for wrestlers in New Japan, and a win over Ace would instantly establish Sanada as the most prominent young star on the roster not named Jay White.

Given how much effort has been put into making him look as strong as he has through two of these New Japan Cups, do not be surprised if (and when) Sanada pulls the massive upset.