Kengo Mashimo
"NEVER: Shodai NEVER Musabetsu Kyu Oza Kettei Tournament 1st Round" ("First Generation NEVER Openweight Championship Determination Tournament 1st Round") was held on November 15, 2012, in Tokyo at Shibuya-AX. The event featured the start of a tournament to determine the inaugural NEVER Openweight Champion. The event featured nine matches, which involved six outsiders; Hiro Tonai, Kengo Mashimo, Ryuichi Sekine, Shiori Asahi and Taishi Takizawa from Kaientai Dojo and freelancer Daisuke Sasaki. Technically, Masato Tanaka was an outsider, being signed to Pro Wrestling Zero1, but due to having been a regular for NJPW for several years, he was co-billed as a representative of the NJPW stable Chaos. The opening match of the event saw the professional wrestling debut of Sho Tanaka.