# Wrestling World 2003

Wrestling World 2003 was a professional wrestling event held by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event took place on January 4 in the Tokyo Dome. It was the twelfth January 4 Tokyo Dome Show promoted by NJPW. The show drew 30,000 spectators.
The show featured the semi-finals and the finals of the "Young Generation Cup", an NJPW tournament for relative newcomers who have yet to establish themselves as top level wrestlers, which saw Ryushi Yanagisawa defeat Yutaka Yoshie to win the cup. The show featured a total of eleven matches, including a match for the vacant NWF Heavyweight Championship that Yoshihiro Takayama won by defeating Tsuyoshi Kosaka in the finals of a four-man tournament. The main event was a successful defense of the IWGP Heavyweight Championship as champion Yuji Nagata defeated Josh Barnett.

## Production
### Background

The January 4 Tokyo Dome Show is NJPW's biggest annual event and has been called "the largest professional wrestling show in the world outside of the United States" and the "Japanese equivalent to the Super Bowl".

### Storylines

Wrestling World 2003 featured professional wrestling matches that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and storylines. Wrestlers portrayed villains, heroes, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.

## Results

| No. | Results | Stipulations | Times |
| 1 | Osamu Nishimura defeated Tatsumi Fujinami | Singles match | 08:10 |
| 2 | Yutaka Yoshie defeated Shinya Makabe | Singles match: semifinal of the Young Generation Cup | 13:20 |
| 3 | Ryushi Yanagisawa defeated Kenzo Suzuki | Singles match: semifinal of the Young Generation Cup | 09:23 |
| 4 | Dai Majin and Makai #1 defeated Hiro Saito and Tatsutoshi Goto via disqualification | Tag team match | 07:50 |
| 5 | Makai #4 and Makai #5 defeated Masahito Kakihara and Takashi Iizuka | Tag team match | 10:54 |
| 6 | Jushin Thunder Liger, Koji Kanemoto and Takehiro Murahama defeated Heat, Masayuki Naruse and Tiger Mask | Six-man tag team match | 16:10 |
| 7 | Ryushi Yanagisawa defeated Yutaka Yoshie | Singles match: Finals of the Young Generation Cup | 06:48 |
| 8 | Michiyoshi Ohara and Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Kazunari Murakami and Tadao Yasuda via referee stoppage | Tag team match | 07:12 |
| 9 | Satoshi Kojima and Hiroyoshi Tenzan defeated Masahiro Chono and Manabu Nakanishi | Tag team match | 23:18 |
| 10 | Yoshihiro Takayama defeated Tsuyoshi Kosaka | Singles match; Tournament final for the vacant NWF Heavyweight Championship | 10:19 |
| 11 | Yuji Nagata (c) defeated Josh Barnett | Singles match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship | 10:40 |
| (c) – the champion(s) heading into the match ||||

### NWF Heavyweight Championship tournament bracket

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| Cross Road | Yoshihiro Takayama | Pin | | | |
| 08/29/2002 | Kazuyuki Fujita | 08:28 | | | |
| 08/29/2002 | Kazuyuki Fujita | 08:28 | Wrestling World | Yoshihiro Takayama | Pin |
| | | | 01/04/2003 | Tsuyoshi Kosaka | 10:19 |
| The Spiral | Tsuyoshi Kosaka | Sub | 01/04/2003 | Tsuyoshi Kosaka | 10:19 |
| 10/14/2002 | Tadao Yasuda | 02:15 | | | |

### Young Generation Cup tournament bracket

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| Shinya Makabe | Shinya Makabe | Pin | | | |
| Yutaka Yoshie | Yutaka Yoshie | 13:20 | | | |
| Yutaka Yoshie | Yutaka Yoshie | 13:20 | Yutaka Yoshie | Yutaka Yoshie | Sub |
| | | | Ryushi Yanagisawa | Ryushi Yanagisawa | 06:48 |
| Kenzo Suzuki | Kenzo Suzuki | Pin | Ryushi Yanagisawa | Ryushi Yanagisawa | 06:48 |
| Ryushi Yanagisawa | Ryushi Yanagisawa | 09:23 | | | |