The 2020 Train Does Not Stop!

January 4, 2020

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “NEW YEAR DISH PRO WRESTLING I DON’T KNOW”, 05/01/2020
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. Miyu Yamashita, Raku & Suzume Vs Natsumi Maki, Hikari Noa & Haruna Nako
2. 3 Way Match: Shoko Nakajima Vs Yuki Kamifuku Vs Mahiro Kiryu
3. Hyper Misao Vs Pom Harajuku
4. Mizuki & Sena Shiori Vs Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino
5. Yuka Sakazaki, Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Yuna Manase, Mina Shirakawa & Mirai Maiumi
6. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Thunder Rosa

So much to get through in so little time. Thunder Rosa challenged Maki Itoh to an International Princess Title on today’s show. Itoh had her own trick up her sleeve by asking for the match to take place tomorrow.

The Princess Of Princess Title and Princess Tag Team Titles currently have no challengers on the horizon. Maybe Yuna Manase, Mina Shirakawa or Mirai Maiumi can stake a claim if they can beat one of those champions in the 6-Woman Tag.

Hyper Misao has to change her ring name for a month after she lost to Shoko Nakajima today. Misao’s new name as decided by Nakajima will be revealed before her match tomorrow.

DDT “NEW YEAR DRAMATIC ITABASHI SERIES 2020”, 05/01/2020
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Hiroshi Yamato & Keigo Nakamura
2. Mad Paulie & El Lindaman Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Yukio Naya
3. O-40 Title: Gorgeous Matsuno (c) Vs Danshoku Dieno
4. HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi & Antonio Honda Vs Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Mizuki Watase
5. MAO Vs Makoto Oishi
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura (c) Vs Keisuke Ishii & Kazuki Hirata
7. New Year Is Good Pro Wrestling! Itabashi Specialty 8-Man Tag Match: Konosuke Takeshita, Akito, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino Vs Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao, Tetsuya Endo & T-Hawk

Yesterday’s DDT show revealed a new business relationship between DAMNATION and #STRONGHEARTS. We’ll get to see what that’s like when T-Hawk teams with DAMNATION’s big hitters to take on ALL OUT in tomorrow’s main event. There is also the big and little pairing of Mad Paulie & El Lindaman to look forward to.

DDT “WRESTLE SHIOKONBU! 2020”, 12/01/2020
Osaka City Suminoe Maikon Hall

1. Akito Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga
2. Mad Paulie & Hiroshi Yamato Vs Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata
3. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Yuki Iino & Yukio Naya
4. Saki Akai “Okibariyasu” 7 Match Series – 3rd Match: Saki Akai Vs Rina Yamashita
5. Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao & Tetsuya Endo Vs Chris Brookes, MAO & Antonio Honda
6. DDT Extreme Title: HARASHIMA (c) Vs Pokotan (w/ Danshoku Dieno)
7. Yuni Kid Wrestler Graduation Countdown! Osaka Specialty 6-Man Tag Match: Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata & Makoto Oishi Vs Yuki Ueno, Naomi Yoshimura & Yuni

Saki Akai has a new focus on changing the landscape of DDT with Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi. She still has her trial series to go through.

DDT “WRESTLE TOROROKOBU! 2020”, 13/01/2020
Osaka City Suminoe Maikon Hall

1. Saki Akai Vs Makoto Oishi
2. Hiroshi Yamato Vs Akito
3. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Chris Brookes & Mizuki Watase
4. Yuni Kid Wrestler Graduation Countdown! Special Tag Match In Osaka: Tetsuya Endo & Yuni Vs Toru Owashi & Yuki Ueno
5. Takoyaki! Kushikatsu! Like A Bowl 3 Way Match: MAO Vs Soma Takao Vs Yukio Naya
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino (c) Vs Kuishinbo Kamen, Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata
7. DISASTER BOX Vs DAMNATION!: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Mad Paulie

MAO is back in Japan and has his sights set on the KO-D Openweight Title. After the Pokotan stunt he pulled off against HARASHIMA and Masato Tanaka yesterday he looks to be the next in line after that match takes place.


GAKE NO FUCHI JOSHI PRO “GAKEPPUCHI SNOW WHITE 2020” Results

January 4, 2020

GAKE NO FUCHI JOSHI PRO “GAKEPPUCHI SNOW WHITE 2020”, 04/01/2020
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
114 Fans

1. Gake no Fuchi New Year Falls Count Anywhere Hardcore Match: Chris Brookes (3,007 pts) defeated Miyako Matsumoto (1 pt) with the Praying Mantis Bomb (55:45).

Who is crazy enough to run against the Tokyo Dome on 4th January. This year it turns out to be a lot of people, actually. One of them was Gake no Fuchi Joshi, running their second show after a successful debut. Miyako Matsumoto thanked the fans for coming to the show today, especially the one person who was watching wrestling for the first time.

The theme of today’s show was “Overseas Expansion”. There were fans  from around the world who came here to see Chris Brookes. Matsumoto threatened to kill all of them. The match was broadcasting on Youtube so English commentary was provided by Shota and Mr. Haku. A Spanish announce table was also set up but the one Spanish person who bought a ticket went to Suidobashi instead of this show so the Spanish commentary was no longer going ahead.

The Gake no Fuchi rules for Matsumoto Vs Brookes was Hardcore, falls count anywhere, no rope breaks and no time limits. The match would end after a pinfall, submission, referee stoppage or knockout. However the winner would be determined over who had the higher amount of points from the minigames. After the entrances, both wrestlers stood for each other’s national anthems. Brookes had the British anthem and Matsumoto sang the Gake no Fuchi anthem. Brookes then attacked Matsumoto to start the match.

The 1st minigame was “Gake no Fuchi Sumo Match Day 1”. Brookes easily threw down Matsumoto to win a point. “Gake no Fuchi Sumo Match Day 2” then began. This time Matsumoto took on Brooke’s ringside second Drew Parker. Matsumoto went to grab his leg but fell on her knees, giving Brookes a second point. Brookes and Matsumoto fought outside where Brookes gave Matsumoto a Back Body Drop onto the ring apron. He put her in a Romero Special when Kuishinbo Kamen suddenly appeared! Matsumoto called on him to help her. Kamen instead threw candy into the audience and walked off.

The 3rd minigame was “Gake No Fuchi Kiso Flag Race” where the first to attack Daisuke Kiso wins. Matsumoto stopped Brookes from entering the ring first but missed her attack on Kiso. Brookes booted Kiso in the face to win a point. Brookes then gave Matsumoto a Soccer Kick to the back but Kiso was too hurt to count the pin. That was when Sanshiro Takagi made his entrance and declared himself the special referee! He was too busy doing his “Fire!” entrance to count Brookes’ pin. When he did count it was slow enough for Matsumoto to kick out. Takagi kept slow counting Brookes. When Brookes complained about it, Takagi pushed him into a School Boy from Matsumoto for a fast count nearfall. Brookes gave Takagi a Stunner to make him go away.

Brookes put Matsumoto in another Romero Special, prompting another masked man to enter the room. Jushin Liger’s music played and out came Ohuchi Thunder Rider! However Shota attacked him, upset at the bait and switch. Ohuchi Rider left without doing anything.

The 4th minigame was “Gake no Fuchi Hagoita Showdown” based on a game that kind of looks like badminton. Matsumoto immediately missed her show so Brookes won the point. Brookes was then allowed write on Shota’s face as the other reward. “Gake no Fuchi Hagoita Showdown 2” then took place between Matsumoto and Parker. This time Parker missed his shot, giving Matsumoto her first point! Parker took his frustration out on Shota by doodling on his face. “Gake no Fuchi Hagoita Showdown 3” was then held but it was a repeat of the first game, giving Brookes another point. Shota’s face was covered in ink by this point.

Brookes began to light up Matsumoto’s chest with Chops, prompting her to cry for help. Kuishinbo Kamen came back and he got to fight Parker in the “Gake no Fuchi Boxing Match”. Kamen put on boxing gloves and was ready to fight until Parker started kicking him. Kamen sat down on a chair at ringside and refused to participate any further until there is proper boxing. He had to be lifted on the chair and carried out of the room. Brookes won the point by forfeit.

It was not time for the “Gake no Fuchi Drunkers Match”. A shot of sake must be drunk after every pin otherwise the wrestler is disqualified. Kamen returned and started wrestling with Brookes but he missed the announcement and did not understand the rules. Once he found out he asked Shota to take his place. After Shota drank a shot, Matsumoto took his place. She and Brookes had a bunch of nearfalls that resulted in both of them having to drink 5 shots. Matsumoto spat her second shot at Brookes and was disqualified.

Matsumoto found the boxing gloves and used them to punch Brookes a lot. They fought outside the ring where Brookes put her in an Octopus Stretch. The “Gake no Fuchi Sumo Match Final Day” came along this time with Matsumoto & Ohuchi Rider teaming up against Kamen. Matsumoto jumped on Rider and told him to charge. She fell off. Kamen was given a point.

The final minigame to take place was the “Gaki no Fuchi Darts Showdown”. Parker gave everyone some darts then took off his shirt to reveal a dartboard was drawn on his back! That’s right the wrestlers had to play darts with Parker’s back! Brookes was winning despite his friend being in a lot of pain. That was when Matsumoto pulled out a knife. This is the point of the match where things got out of control.

She said this is is a new year and everyone came to see pro wrestling, not this farce! She attempted to stab Brookes but he took the knife off her. When he approached Matsumoto with the knife, she told him they should wrestle instead. Without the knife. He agreed. Matsumoto then took out a “death bottle” and force fed it to Brookes on the ropes. Brookes pressed the knife up to her face to escape. Matsumoto then took out a stapler and stapled a NOAH flyer onto Brookes’ head. If that wasn’t enough, Matsumoto also bit his head and screamed “Blood!” when he finally got cut.

As the fighting went back and forth, Brookes was sent outside of the ring. Matsumoto dove onto him with an assistance from Metropoli-chan V. They then set up a ladder and moved the Spanish announce table up next to the ring. Brookes was placed on the table and Matsumoto put him through it with a dive from the ladder! Brookes was able to kick out and get back into the ring.

Brookes gathered together a bunch of plastic cases. He dived at Matsumoto but she dodged it and Brookes went through the cases. Brookes then took out a bag but Matsumoto kicked him and took it off him. She emptied the bag to reveal thumbtacks! However Brookes ended up Power Bombing her onto the tacks. He later did a Michinoku Driver II onto the tacks and Parker hit a Firebird Splash afterwards. Somehow Matsumoto kicked out of the pin!

Matsumoto was still fighting. She countered the Praying Mantis Bomb into a Cradle for a nearfall. She then kicked a chair into Brookes’ head with a Shining Gakezard. After that she did a Diving Foot Stomp from the top rope but Brookes kicked out.

Matsumoto then took out a bunch of bamboo skewers. She told Brookes “Thank you so much, goodbye!” before trying to push them into his scalp. Brookes blocked her and instead pushed the skewers into the top of Matsumoto’s head!

Finally the match ended when Brookes gave Matsumoto the Praying Mantis Bomb with the skewers still sticking out of her head. Brookes was rewarded with 3,000 points for getting the three count. The final score was Brookes: 3,007, Matsumoto: 1 and Kamen: 1.

Brookes had a lot to say about the match. He called it “fuckin’ stupid” but Matsumoto took it as a compliment. She told him this was going to be his best match for the year he stays in Japan. After today nothing in Japan will scare him. Brookes thanked Matsumoto but also said he won’t do this match again. When he left with Parker, Matsumoto said 2020 will definitely be a good year for her because she overcame such a fierce match today. She sang the Gake no Fuchi national anthem again and wished all the fans a happy new year.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’20” Results

January 4, 2020

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’20”, 04/01/2020
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,467 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Sena Shiori Debut Match: Haruna Neko & Suzume defeated Sena Shiori & Makoto Kiryu when Suzume submitted Shiori with a Sleeper Hold (7:02).
2. Hyper Misao Return Match – Loser Renamed For 1 Month: Shoko Nakajima defeated Hyper Misao when Nakajima grabbed the Renaming Rights Banner (9:05).
3. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Saki Akai (c) defeated Yuki Kamifuku with the Quetzalcoatl (9:09).
*V2 for Saki Akai.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Aja Kong defeated Saki Akai (c) with (12:13 pm).
*Aja Kong becomes the 1,462nd champion.
4. Aja Kong, Raku & Pom Harajuku defeated Yuna Manase, Mina Shirakawa & Mirai Maiumi when Kong pinned Maiumi with the Diving Elbow Drop (13:14).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Saki Akai defeated Aja Kong (c) with a Dustpan Strike (12:36 pm).
*Saki Akai becomes the 1,463rd champion.
5. Natsumi Maki Return Match: Sareee defeated Natsumi Maki with the Uranage (12:04).
6. Special Single Match: Thunder Rosa defeated Mizuki with the Thunder Driver (9:35).
7. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) defeated Hikari Noa with the Itoh Deluxe (11:53).
*V2 for Maki Itoh.
8. Princess Tag Team Titles: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe (c) defeated Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino when Watanabe pinned Aino with the Tear Drop (13:42)
*V1 for Daydream.
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Yuka Sakazaki (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Magical Magical Girl Splash (19:57).
*V1 for Yuka Sakazaki.

2020 has been wild already, huh? Tokyo Joshi Pro kicked off their year with the annual Ittenyon show at Korakuen Hall. In the main event Yuka Sakazaki was able to banish the ghost and finally beat Miyu Yamashita in a Princess Of Princess Title match. It took all of the champion’s creativity to get the job done. During an out of the ring skirmish, Sakazaki placed Yamashita on a flat table and slid her down the Korakuen steps. The challenger got her own back by throwing Sakazaki onto the ring apron with the Attitude Adjustment. Later Sakazaki went for the Magical Girl Splash but Yamashita was up on her feet and stopped the move with a High Kick. Sakazaki went for the Mil Clutch α that pinned Yamashita a week ago but this time it was countered into a German Suplex. Things were heading towards a familiar ending when Yamashita set up the Crash Rabbit Heat. But Sakazaki dodged it and used the Merry Go Round to put Yamashita in position for the match ending Magical Magical Girl Splash. Sakazaki thought she was going to die in the match but she was able to fly instead. With so many people here to watch Tokyo Joshi today, she can feel the company growing bigger. She wants everyone to continue following her and TJPW throughout the year.

Daydream had to go through one of the longest running teams in Tokyo Joshi to defend their Princess Tag Team Titles. They were in danger when The Bakuretsu Sisters had Miu Watanabe in place for the Bakuretsu Bulldog. Watanabe was rescued by Rika Tatsumi who gave Nodoka Tenma the Dragon Twist Of Fate and also the Hip Attack. Yuki Aino tried to fight off Watanabe but she fell to the Tear Drop.

Maki Itoh began the day’s clean sweep for Princess champions when she defeated Hikari Noa. A Body Slam on the floor outside the ring and also a crab hold wore down the challenger. There wasn’t much left in the tank for Noa when she was placed in the Itoh Special yet she still hung on. Itoh got her opponent to submit when she modified the Itoh Special into a new version called the Itoh Deluxe.

Itoh was thanking the fans for coming to support her when Thunder Rosa entered the ring. She said Itoh has not fought a challenger like her yet and she wants an International Princess Title shot. Itoh suggested they do the match in Itabashi tomorrow! They both agreed to it by sticking their middle fingers in each other’s faces.

Rosa earned her case for a title shot by beating Itoh’s former tag partner Mizuki. The plucky Mizuki did hit some high Cross Body Blocks but when Rosa hit a Double Stomp and the Thunder Driver, it was all over. Rosa has respect for Mizuki and is honored to have wrestled her. Her sights are set on winning a championship during her short tour. She tried this before and couldn’t capitalize. This time she won’t waste her chance.

According to Kero Tanaka during the introduction, today is the first time in 3 years and 4 months Natsumi Maki and Sareee got to wrestle a singles match against each other. It was Maki’s return match from injury so she could have blamed her ring rust for losing. But instead she had tears of joy for getting to wrestle again. All the pain she felt in the ring was worth it. Sareee was also happy to wrestle her too. I mean she should be because they are close friends outside of the ring.

We’ll take a detour here to talk about what happened backstage after Matches #3 & #4. After Saki Akai’s match, her post-match interview was cut short by an ambush from Aja Kong. Kong pinned Akai to win the Iron Man Heavyweight Title then ran off to make her entrance for the next match. Akai had to continue on with her interview like nothing happened. Then after Kong’s match, Akai snuck into her backstage interview disguised as a janitor. She attacked Kong with a dustpan to win back the Iron Man Title. A confused Kong was left asking her tag partners why they didn’t stop the cleaning lady from attacking her?

Anyway back to what happened in the ring. Kong came out parading the Iron Man Title around. She joined with Raku & Pom Harajuku for the Goodnight Express on Mina Shirakawa. However Shirakawa, Yuna Manase & Mirai Maiumi all got to show their power by getting the better of Kong at different moments. However Kong got the pin on Maiumi with the Backwards Diving Elbow Drop to end the match. Kong’s team won the match but Manase & Shirakawa still tried to get their hands on the Iron Man Title.

Akai’s match with Yuki Kamifuku became an Iron Man Title match because Akai won the belt in DDT yesterday. Kamifuku came close to winning with the Fame Asser but Akai got a rope break. Akai hit a Diving Cross Body followed by the Quetzalcoatl for the win.

In the build up to Hyper Misao’s return match against Shoko Nakajima, the two wrestlers dared each other to put their names on the line. So it was agreed that whoever lost the match will have to use a new name chosen by the winner for one month. A large pinata ball was hung above the ring with a banner inside. Whoever climbed the ladder, broke the pinata and pulled out the banner would be the winner. Also both wrestlers were allowed to bring a weapon with them. Nakajima brought along a collection of kaiju action figures. Misao announced that her weapon was Tokyo Joshi’s producer Tetsuya Koda! He agreed to help out because Misao offered him a ticket for a Hello! Project concert. However, Misao was knocked onto the kaiju toys, the Hello! Project ticket was ripped apart during a fight on the ladder and Nakajima got the banner out of the pinata to win. Nakajima will come up with Misao’s new ring name soon.

The opening match was Sena Shiori’s debut. Her and Suzume in particular shared plenty of time in the ring. Haruna Neko held Mahiro Kiryu back while Suzume submitted Shiori with a Sleeper Hold. Shiori said she wants to become a cool wrestler who can easily face against everyone.

It was announced during the show that the 2020 Tokyo Princess Cup will begin on 23rd May and the final will be held in Korakuen on 23rd July. Also Tokyo Joshi Pro’s biggest show in history will be at the Tokyo Dome City Hall on 7th November! This is the same venue where Bull Nakano held her retirement show back in 2012.


DDT “NEW YEAR SPECIAL GIFT! ALL SEATS 2,000 YEN BOX OFFICE!! 2020” Results

January 3, 2020

DDT “NEW YEAR SPECIAL GIFT! ALL SEATS 2,000 YEN BOX OFFICE!! 2020”, 03/01/2020
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,750 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Kagami Mochi defeated Toru Owashi (c) by Pinfall (6:37 pm).
*Kagami Mochi becomes the 1,458th champion.
1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Saki Akai defeated Kagami Mochi (c), Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata, Yuki Iino, Antonio Honda, Gorgeous Matsuno, Mizuki Watase and Keigo Nakamura (11:06).
1a. Mizuki Watase eliminated Kagami Mochi (c) by Pinfall (2:41).
*Mizuki Watase becomes the 1,459th champion.
1b. Kazuki Hirata eliminated Mizuki Watase (c) by Pinfall (4:22).
*Kazuki Hirata becomes the 1,460th champion.
1c. Kazuki Hirata (c) eliminated Yuki Iino by Ring Out (4:57).
*V1 for Kazuki Hirata.
1d. Kazuki Hirata (c) eliminated Gorgeous Matsuno by Ring Out (5:00).
*V2 for Kazuki Hirata.
1e. Kazuki Hirata (c) eliminated Toru Owashi by Ring Out (10:25).
*V3 for Kazuki Hirata.
1f. Kazuki Hirata (c) eliminated Antonio Honda by Ring Out (10:28).
*V4 for Kazuki Hirata.
1g. Saki Akai eliminated Kazuki Hirata (c) with a School Boy (10:46).
*Saki Akai becomes the 1,461st champion.
1h. Saki Akai (c) eliminated Keigo Nakamura with the Rookie Award (11:06).
*V1 for Saki Akai.
2. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi defeated Mad Paulie & Hiroshi Yamato when Higuchi pinned Paulie with the Doctor Bomb (10:46).
3. No Passcode Scramble Bunkhouse Account Takeover 3 Way Death Match: Super Sadadango Machine defeated Sanshiro Takagi and Danshoku Dieno when Sasadango pinned Dieno with the Vertical Drop Lehmann Shock (7:41).
4. HARASHIMA & Shinya Aoki defeated Masahiro Takanashi & Makoto Oishi when HARASHIMA pinned Oishi with the Somato (8:06).
5. MAO Triumph Match: MAO defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Avalanche Michinoku Driver II (8:08).
6. New Year! Special Worldwide Match: Masato Tanaka defeated Chris Brookes with the Sliding D (9:38).
7. Tetsuya Endo & T-Hawk defeated Konosuke Takeshita & Akito when T-Hawk pinned Akito with the Night Ride (11:44).
8. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura defeated Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao (c) when Ueno pinned Sasaki with the BME (27:28).
*DAMNATION fails in V10. Nautilus becomes the 67th KO-D Tag Team Champions!

The decade kicks off with new KO-D Tag Team Champions! For DAMNATION today ends their dominant title reign. Daisuke Sasaki’s dream of taking pro wrestling to outer space after achieving 10 title defences will not become a reality. For Naomi Yoshimura, his new year has been as far away from his calamitous injury twelve months ago as it could be. At first it looked to be over when Nautilus hit the Osaka Strad on Sasaki but Soma Takao broke the count. When Yoshimura got rid of him, Yuki Ueno hit the Best Moonsault Ever on Sasaki for the three count.

After the match Ueno told everyone that two young people from the Osaka countryside have become the Tag Champions! He thanked the fans for cheering them because it really helped them a lot. With DISASTER BOX becoming stronger today (more on that later), Nautilus looks forward to growing even bigger in DDT! Ueno & Yoshimura then asked the fans to cheer “Yes or Nautilus!” from now on.

So who was the mystery partner Tetsuya Endo chose for his match against ALL OUT? He came out alone carrying the DAMNATION signboard. Konosuke Takeshita poked fun at him, saying Endo couldn’t find a tag partner. But Endo assured him he found a great partner. It was T-Hawk! Takeshita had beaten T-Hawk at an OWE show in Korakuen Hall on 30th December so this was T-Hawk’s chance for revenge. The member of #STRONGHEARTS came out with El Lindaman by his side. He had to settle with pinning Akito with the Night Ride. After the match Lindaman got on the microphone. He said he and T-Hawk weren’t booked to wrestle today until Endo invited them to come over here. They found out DDT have a show in Itabashi Green Hall on 5th January. They want to have a match whether DDT wants them there or not! Endo said that DAMNATION and #STRONGHEARTS are now in a business relationship. Backstage Takeshita admitted he thought Endo was going to bring in Nobuhiro Shimatani to be his tag partner while Akito thought X was going to be Shiori Asahi.

Chris Brookes didn’t waste any time attacking Masato Tanaka before the bell. When Tanaka was introduced in the ring, Brookes blindsided him with a Swand Dive Dropkick. Brookes then hit a Topé Suicida while Tanaka tried to recover outside the ring. Back in the ring Brookes wore down Tanaka with the Octopus Hold. Tanaka took control with his Elbow Strikes, avoided the Praying Mantis Bomb and hit the Sliding D to win.

HARASHIMA approached Tanaka in the ring when his match was over. He told him he is looking forward to their match on 26th January. Tanaka promised he will train hard enough to win the KO-D Openweight Title from him. Then suddenly Pokotan came down to the ring. He was pointing at HARASHIMA but Tanaka noticed something. Instead of pointing at the DDT Extreme Title, Pokotan was instead pointing at the KO-D Title. Tanaka grabbed Pokotan and pulled its head off, revealing it to be MAO! He Dropkicked HARASHIMA and gave Tanaka a Frankensteiner. He then told HARASHIMA in English “I wanna challenge KO-D Openweight Championship. Just bring it!” He then ran off.

Speaking of MAO, his return match was a victory against Shunma Katsumata. He entered to a new entrance song and used what he learned from his excursion. Katsumata brought out his death match side by pouring out a box of Lego in the middle of the ring. That idea backfired when MAO slammed Katsumata onto the Lego with an Avalanche Michinoku Driver. After the match MAO apologised to the fans for Mike Bailey’s absence. Until his visa situation gets sorted, MAO will have to climb to the top of DDT on his own. Katsumata backstage said he will be getting an operation to remove metal plates from his cheekbone in February. He will be absent from DDT for a while after that but when he returns he will be DDT’s death match fighter!

The team of Makoto Oishi & Masahiro Takanashi pulled some foul play to weaken Shinya Aoki. But Aoki got into the swing of things after HARASHIMA helped him clear the ring. When HARASHIMA did a Swan Dive Body Press on Oishi, Aoki summoned up the courage to attempt the same move. Oishi still had some fight left in him when he dodged the Somato and went for the Jikiden Tornado Clutch. But HARASHIMA eventually did hit the Somato to give his team the win.

The rules for the Special 3 Way Match were revealed before the match began. It was Scramble Bunkhouse rules which meant the wrestlers had to stand at opposite ends of the room. Three phones were placed in the middle of the ring, each containing the Twitter accounts of the wrestlers, all logged in with no protection. When the match began whoever got to the phones would be able to tweet whatever he wanted on the other wrestlers’ accounts! The bell rang and everyone charged into the ring. While Danshoku Dieno and Sanshiro Takagi were grappling, Super Sasadango Machine grabbed Takagi’s phone and tweeted out a poll about a certain event happening at the Tokyo Dome this weekend. The tweet appeared on Takagi’s account and was shown on the arena screen, causing great harm to Takagi. Dieno took the phone and used Takagi’s account to promise a 100,000 yen new year giveaway to Takagi’s followers. Takagi got on Sasadango’s phone to complain about Kazuyoshi Sakai doing commentary for said event at the Tokyo Dome. He then used Dieno’s account to retweet Riki Choshu a lot. Dieno used Takagi’s account to invite girls looking for a sugar daddy to contact him. Takagi then used both Dieno and Sasadango’s account to threaten run-ins at the Tokyo Dome tomorrow (Bushiroad president Takaaki Kidani later responded that they will only get in if they have a ticket)! Sasadango used Takagi’s account to ask The Rock if he wants to wrestle at DDT’s Saitama Super Arena show this summer. Dieno ordered Sasadango to reveal personal information on Takagi’s account. Instead Sasadango posted a link to Dieno’s LINE account! Dieno was so distracted by this, Sasadango easily pinned him with the Lehmann Shock. Sasadango scorned Dieno for wanting to expose Takagi’s personal info. That kind of stuff crosses the line for a pro wrestler. They all agreed to do something as an apology. Dieno will leave his LINE account public for the month, Sasadango will send flowers to the Tokyo Dome tomorrow and Takagi will split 100,000 yen among 10 of the accounts that retweeted him. Now he just has to figure out how to choose them from the 5,000+ retweets.

The new team of Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi showed that they are not ones to mess around. After beating Mad Paulie & Hiroshi Yamato, they said that there is another person in DDT who shares their ambition. It is Saki Akai! She said she had always been watching from backstage but now she wants to do something big. Doesn’t matter if it is against men or women. So starting on 26th January Higuchi, Sakaguchi & Akai will be forming a new team together! They ordered Hisaya Imabayashi to set up a match for them on that date. Imabayashi tried to tell her the matches were already booked but Sakaguchi intimidated him into taking Akai’s request. This new trio want to show everyone a new landscape and shake things up in DDT!

While Kazuki Hirata was making his entrance, an odd situation happened backstage. A Kagami Mochi dish somehow fell on top of Toru Owashi, pinning him to become the new Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion. It was brought down to the ring by Yukinori Matsui and forced to enter the Battle Royal where Mizuki Watase eliminated it to win the title. Watase was incapacitated by Yuki Iino. But when Iino ran the ropes to do the Haka Elbow, Hirata pinned Watase to become the champion. Hirata went on to eliminate most of the field until it came down to him, Saki Akai and Keigo Nakamura. The rookie thought he could get a kiss from Akai but she shove Hirara into his lips instead. Akai pinned Hirata with the School Boy then pinned Nakamura with the Rookie Award to win the Battle Royal as the Iron Man Champ.

There were a couple of big announcements throughout the show. After intermission DISASTER BOX entered the ring. HARASHIMA was excited to show everyone the unit’s newest member. It’s Naomichi Marufuji!!! The NOAH wrestler was asked by HARASHIMA to join them for 2020. He didn’t know anything about DISASTER BOX before but a Google search got him up to speed. Marufuji’s first match as part of the group will be on 26th January.

Chris Brookes had a final message to give everyone at the end of the show. He said today was his last match in Korakuen Hall for this tour. He likes his time here in DDT and feels it has made him a better wrestler. So the next time he tours to Japan he will stay in the country for an entire year!

Last and certainly least, Kurochan will be at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” on 7th June.


Naya Ill, Parker Going to Gake no Fuchi, Enfants Terribles In Ganpro

January 3, 2020

DDT “NEW YEAR SPECIAL GIFT! ALL SEATS 2,000 YEN BOX OFFICE!! 2020”, 03/01/2020
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Toru Owashi (c) Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Yuki Iino Vs Antonio Honda Vs Saki Akai Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs Mizuki Watase Vs Keigo Nakamura
2. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Mad Paulie & Hiroshi Yamato
3. New Year! Special 3 Way Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Danshoku Dieno Vs Super Sasadango Machine
4. HARASHIMA & Shinya Aoki Vs Masahiro Takanashi & Makoto Oishi
5. MAO Triumph Match: MAO Vs Shunma Katsumata
6. New Year! Special Worldwide Match: Masato Tanaka Vs Chris Brookes
7. Tetsuya Endo & X Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Akito
8. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao (c) Vs Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura

Yukio Naya has caught a high fever and will not be taking part in the show. Since he was only in the Battle Royal there will not be a replacement.

GAKE NO FUCHI JOSHI PRO “GAKEPPUCHI SNOW WHITE 2020”, 04/01/2020
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. Miyako Matsumoto Vs Chris Brookes

Drew Parker, Metropoli-chan V and Ohuchi Rider will be in attendance. Due to the amount of foreign fans expected to attend the event, Shota will be there to provide English commentary and they are planning to have someone do Spanish commentary as well. Tickets can be purchased by foreign fans at the door for $30 or €30 in exact notes.

GANBARE☆WRESTLING “SARABA SEISHUN NO HIKARI 2019”, 12/01/2020
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. The Fifth Trial Singles Match Of Shuhei Washida: Yumehito Imanari Vs Shuhei Washida
2. Ken And Shin Collide At Itabashi! Hokuto Hyakuchiken Vs Nantogoku Sword!: Ken Ohka Vs Shin Suzuki
3. Someone Is Going To Miss You Special 3 Way Match: Choun-Shiryu Vs Moeka Haruhi Vs HARUKAZE
4. Ro & Ro Vs Hattoshite Good “β”: Shuichiro Katsumura & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Shota & Buffalo
5. New Year Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Kouki Iwasaki Vs Kuma Arashi & Yusuke Kodama
6. Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title Next Challenger Battle Royal: Ken Ohka Vs Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Yumehito Imanari Vs Kouki Iwasaki Vs Shota Vs Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Shuhei Washida Vs Haruhi Moeka Vs HARUKAZE Vs Shin Suzuki

The Enfants Terribles from WRESTLE-1 are entering Ganbare☆Wrestling! It’s up to Keisuke Ishii & Kouki Iwasaki to defend the home turf against Kuma Arashi & Yusuke Kodama.