It is time for the real March Madness New Japan Cup 2026 Right Bracket. It is time for the 22nd annual New Japan Cup!
The 2026 tournament has the makings of a fun one. This year’s tournament is a loaded field with 24 of the best in New Japan Pro Wrestling.
They will be facing each other in single-elimination tournament action over the course of two grueling weeks. The New Japan Cup winner will get a title shot for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at Sakura Genesis on April 4th. Who will face Yota Tsuji in the Tokyo Ryogoku Sumo Hall?
Let us look at the New Japan Cup 2026 First Round match-ups on the Right Side of the Bracket. These matches will occur on March 6th and 8th. Let the New Japan Cup begin!
New Japan Cup 2026 Right Bracket
YOSHI-HASHI vs. Jake Lee
It is the classic veteran-versus-newcomer match-up in the First Round of the New Japan Cup. YOSHI-HASHI is entering his 13th New Japan Cup.
While YOSHI has had a lot of success in the 6 Man Tag team division, singles success has eluded him. Can he improve on his best result of the quarterfinals in the New Japan Cup?
Jake Lee will be his opponent in the first round. This will be Lee’s first-ever New Japan Cup, but he is certainly no stranger to tournament wrestling.
He has been a past winner of AJPW’s Champion Carnival. He has competed in Pro Wrestling Noah’s N-1 Victory and NJPW G1 Climax tournaments.
Lee did however miss the entirety of 2025. Can he use his tournament experience to his advantage in his first New Japan Cup?
The winner will face Hirooki Goto in the second round. Goto is a former three time winner of the New Japan Cup. He is looking to get back into the title hunt yet again. Will he have to go through his tag-team partner, YOSHI-HASHI, to do so?
New Japan Cup 2026 Right Bracket
OSKAR vs. Callum Newman
OSKAR, the young 27-year old German wrestler, is certainly becoming quite the tag team specialist. One half of the Knock Out Brothers, he and Yuto-Ice have held the IWGP Tag Team Championships for over 150 days now. Can OSKAR, in his first New Japan Cup, succeed in singles action?
His opponent will be Callum Newman. Newman is certainly riding some success. He picked up his biggest ever singles victory over David Finlay at New Beginning in Osaka.
Finlay was the man that brought OSKAR back to New Japan. Will OSKAR get revenge over Newman in the first round?
The winner of OSKAR/Newman will face Hartley Jackson on March 13th. Jackson, the 45-year-old veteran, has primarily been in the 6 Man division in NJPW. Can he take advantage of his first-round bye and defeat his surely wounded opponent?
New Japan Cup 2026 Right Bracket
Shota Umino vs. Chase Owens
Shoto Umino has certainly been facing a lot of heartbreak in New Japan in recent years. He lost in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 19, he lost in the finals of the 2025 New Japan Cup, and recently lost his IWGP Tag Team Title match at New Beginning. Can Umino, in his 5th New Japan Cup, finally break through?
Chase Owens will be his opponent in the first round. Owens is entering his 7th New Japan Cup. He had never made it past the Round of 16. But he is now part of the House of Torture. It is quite likely he will attempt to cheat his way to victory on March 8th.
The winner will face Yujiro Takahashi on March 14th in the second round. Takahashi is also a member of House of Torture. Could we have an all House of Torture Round of 16 match-up? I am sure they will use every underhanded tactic to make it happen.
New Japan Cup 2026 Right Bracket
Yuto-Ice vs Ryohei Oiwa
Yuto-Ice has had a lot of success in the tag team division. He is part of the Knock Out Brothers that have held the IWGP Tag Team Championship for over 150 days now.
This will be his second-ever New Japan Cup. The last time was in 2022, when he was a Young Lion. What will happen in 2026?
His opponent will be Ryohei Oiwa. Oiwa has quickly become one of the best technical wrestlers in New Japan. Most of his success has been as part of the Tag Team Division. Can he improve on his Round of 16 appearance from 2025 in singles action?
The winner would face Zack Sabre Jr. on March 14th. Sabre Jr. is a former two-time champion of the New Japan Cup.
Could we possibly have a Round of 16 match-up between two members of the TMDK stable? It was Sabre Jr. who ended both of Oiwa’s previous New Japan Cups. We could have some revenge in 2026.
Read about the left bracket here
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