TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 29/07/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
437 Fans
1. Juria Nagano & Kaya Toribami defeated Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI when Nagano pinned HIMAWARI with the Whirlwind Kick (7:47).
2. Hyper Misao, Nao Kakuta & Yuki Aino defeated Mahiro Kiryu, Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko when Misao pinned Kiryu with La Magistral Cradle (0:42).
2a. Rematch: Hyper Misao, Nao Kakuta & Yuki Aino defeated Mahiro Kiryu, Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko when Kakuta submitted Harajuku with the Kamitaka (6:02).
3. Hikari Noa, Raku, Suzume & Shino Suzuki defeated Mizuki, Toga, Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo when Noa pinned Toga with the Blizzard Suplex (12:31).
4. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Yuki Arai defeated Arisu Endo with the Finally (13:01).
5. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Yuki Kamifuku defeated Miu Watanabe with the Famouser (12:22).
6. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Miyu Yamashita defeated Moka Miyamoto with the Skull Kick (12:55).
7. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Rika Tatsumi defeated Shoko Nakajima with the White Dragon Sleeper (19:10).
The final four has been decided. Not only is this year’s Tokyo Princess Cup going to give us a first time winner but we are also going to get two first time finalists out of who is left in the race. Rika Tatsumi continues her strong year of performances with a big victory over Shoko Nakajima in the main event. The Princess Cup has always been good to Nakajima but she has now been eliminated in the Quarter Final stage for the second year in a row. Tatsumi is full of praise for her though, saying she is very happy to fight somebody as amazing as Nakajima today. Nakajima shook her hand and gave her support towards Tatsumi winning the entire tournament. What’s motivating Tatsumi is an unnamed opponent she hasn’t fought yet and she wants to fight that person with a championship on the line. Hmmm. Is she talking about the International Princess Title or something else?
Dare I say it but is this finally the year? Miyu Yamashita is through to the semi-finals, cutting off any hope Moka Miyamoto had of developing a Cinderella run through the tournament. Miyamoto threw everything she had including the Zero-sen Kick to the back of the head as well as a big Neckbreaker. But Yamashita avoided the Korokan, threw her opponent over with the Attitude Adjustment and pinned her with the Skull Kick. Yamashita backstage said Miyamoto still has a long way to go until she can beat her but she still looks forward to fighting her again. Yamashita has her sights set on finally winning the Princess Cup with her ultimate goal being to challenge Mizuki for the Princess Of Princess Title. She already beat her clean in Round 1 but it seems like Yamashita is not satisfied with using that as a reason to deserve a title shot. Miyamoto said today reminded her of how big a wall Yamashita is for her to climb over. She wants to do her best so she will surpass her someday.
Miu Watanabe’s dramatic summer last year will not be repeated. Instead 2023 is for Yuki Kamifuku to prove her doubters wrong! She hates competing in tournaments but what annoys her even more is when people say she doesn’t try hard enough. Giving Watanabe a Superplex and cutting off the Tear Drop by hitting the Famouser twice for victory should get that message through loud and clear. Also using Mahiro Kiryu as a human shield outside the ring early in the match helped a bit. Watanabe said she trained hard as always but she already learned years ago that training isn’t enough to win wrestling matches. She wonders if her mistake is she thought too hard about wanting to win this year. Even though Kamifuku hates tournaments she knows there are fans and people close to her cheering her on. She also wants to inspire new women and girls to join Tokyo Joshi Pro so she can have more friends to drink with.
The first Quarter Final of the day was a battle between two wrestlers both born in 1998. Arisu Endo’s use of the Camel Clutch ultimately failed when Yuki Arai reached the ropes. She kept trying to find an opening to hit the Finally but Endo kept her guard up. Arai switched plans and used the Rookie Award to break through Endo’s defence, opening her up for the Finally and a three count. Arai said she was happy to fight Endo for the first time because they are good friends outside of wrestling and they both represent the same generation. She thinks getting to fight her is a good test to see how far both have come. Endo is open to the friendly competition because she now has a new target to overtake. Despite losing today she is pleased with the improvement from last year’s tournament run.
The Semi Final draw took place hours after the show had finished. The four remaining wrestlers all randomly chose an envelope in front of them and then pulled out the cards inside. Whoever pulled the same colours would face each other in the next round. The result we got is Miyu Yamashita Vs Yuki Arai and Rika Tatsumi Vs Yuki Kamifuku! Yamashita said it will be her first singles match against Arai since December 2021. Arai told her she isn’t afraid. What’s funny is both Tatsumi and Kamifuku are relieved they don’t have to fight Yamashita next! They are both rooting for Arai to knock her out of the tournament.
At least the rest of The Up Up Girls had fun today. Hikari Noa, Raku & Shino Suzuki all did their thing with Suzume in tow to beat Mizuki and the trio of rookies Toga, Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo. The match came down to Noa against Toga. The big Elbow Strikes from Toga weren’t enough to win. Noa showed her toughness against those strikes and hit back with a Thrust Kick. The Blizzard Suplex then finished Toga off.
Match #2 began with Hyper Misao pointing out that everybody on the opposing team has nothing in common with each other. Mahiro Kiryu tried to make up for it by saying she can bring herself together with Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko no matter how strange they are. Harajuku & Neko took exception to her phrasing and stomped her! That led to the trio falling apart with bad teamwork and Misao pinned Kiryu in quick fashion. Kiryu apologised to her partners and asked for a rematch. Everyone agreed and this time things went a little bit better for them. But Misao’s teamwork with Nao Kakuta & Yuki Aino was still too strong for them. Kakuta used a new Front Neck Lock finisher called the Kamitaka to submit Harajuku.
Due to Juria Nagano being injured for most of the year, today is her first win since January. She spent most of her match fighting against HIMAWARI while Kaya Toribami dealt with Wakana Uehara. Nagano’s strike offence overwhelmed HIMAWARI until she finished her off with the Whirlwind Kick.
Two new trainees introduced themselves to the fans at the start of the show. Chika is 19 years old and from Osaka. Kirra is 26 years old and from Australia. She spoke to the audience in Japanese.
It was announced that the 18th September show in Nagoya will be the last time Reiwa AA Cannon is teaming together before Saki Akai retires from pro wrestling. Their opponents are to be announced.
Dramatic DDT 