DramaticDDT’s Questions For 2025

December 31, 2024

So instead of doing predictions for 2025 I am instead going to ask a few questions about the year ahead. What should we as fans of DDT, Tokyo Joshi Pro, Ganbare☆Pro or BASARA be paying attention to? How is the wrestling scene in Japan going to change in the next twelve months, if there is change at all? There are even stories happening elsewhere that could eventually relate to the CyberFight bubble in big or small ways. I have eleven questions to talk about and I want you to read them!


What will a new year of Akito’s DDT look like?

DDT is always going to be Sanshiro Takagi’s baby but a search for his successor is already under way. Akito is that guy and he has stepped up to the plate this year so Takagi could take a step back for health reasons. It looks like this will continue for a while next year and there are already signs of change in the air. A lot of the events on the 2025 schedule so far are using new naming conventions. Gone are the “SWEET DREAMS!” and “INTO THE FIGHT” tour names that have been used for over a decade. There is also no sign yet of the D-Oh Grand Prix returning after it skipped this year.

If there are new event concepts happening alongside the name changes then I wonder how many ideas are coming from Akito instead of Takagi? If Takagi’s 2025 is focused on management behind the scenes then how much of Akito’s influence will get to rise to the surface? Maybe it’s already happening and it’s not much of a difference. The winter feud between SCHADENFREUDE International and DAMNATION T.A being built around different multi-man stipulation matches was a nice change of pace to buildup a Sumo Hall main event. Definitely different from the last couple of big match programs DDT have booked.


Who is coming back from injury next year?

I’ve lost track of who is currently out of action so let’s remind ourselves. Shunma Katsumata got a torn ACL in November. Kazusada Higuchi took time off back in June to recover from a cervical hernia among other injuries. Naomi Yoshimura hasn’t wrestled since November 2022 because of a herniated disc. Sanshiro Takagi stopped wrestling in July to deal with general health problems. Hideki Okatani tore his ACL in April. Rukiya has been out of action since May because of a cervical sprain.

TJPW and BASARA are currently injury free. Runa Okubo is on an indefinite absence from TJPW to focus on her education and it kind of sounds like she has another career in mind for her future so who knows if she will ever come back. Over in GanPro, Mizuki Watase ruptured his Achilles tendon earlier this month. Shinichiro Tominaga also ruptured an Achilles tendon in May but he recently announced his return to the ring will happen on 13th January.


How much further is the ice wall surrounding TJPW going to melt?

TJPW has isolated themselves from other joshi promotions for the vast majority of its history. There was the time during the pre-launch days when NOZOMI flew the flag on Stardom and Ice Ribbon shows. Also Mizuki and Shoko Nakajima would make rare appearances in ChocoPro once in a blue moon. But actual inter-promotional programs between TJPW and another joshi company? Barely anywhere to be seen. They’ll work with companies overseas like EVE, GCW and DEFY but domestically Tetsuya Koda does not see much value or reward from interacting with other promotions.

But this year saw a little bit of change going on. Ryo Mizunami was a super sub for the company and reaped the benefits by winning the Princess Tag Team Titles along with the Tokyo Princess Cup. Also in that tournament Zara Zakher went on a strong run after coming in as a virtual unknown beforehand. Raku and Pom Harajuku paid a visit to 666 (although that’s because of a marriage thing Raku has going on with Ram Kaichow). And of course there was the big one during the summer. Nao Kakuta produced a show that included some Stardom talent, one of whom I thought would never want to step foot into a TJPW ring ever again.

Now there were clever decisions being made behind the scenes for that show in particular. For Stardom it was a positive attention grabbing news story happening at a time when they were reorganizing themselves from the Marigold split. Their president told media he is open for more cooperation between Stardom and TJPW if there’s a big enough demand for it. Koda is way more sheepish on the idea but at least admitted it wouldn’t be impossible. It lasted for a brief moment but this year was the first sign of the ice wall surrounding TJPW beginning to melt. It’s not much so far but that it even happened at all is noteworthy.

Oh yeah and there’s that whole UJPW thing. TJPW is a part of that along with Stardom and I think DIANA. The two UJPW shows bombed bad enough that I doubt we’re going to hear about them running a third one. I think it still exists as a behind the scenes alliance to have a unified voice whenever they want to communicate with government groups. Just don’t expect it to be the thing that will ever get TJPW and Stardom working together properly.


Have we hit the peak of Konosuke Takeshita’s AEW run?

Hang on, let me check if I can make some blue tick money off of this take. *click* Okay, let’s go. What a frustrating year it’s been to follow AEW. While Konosuke Takeshita’s matches for the company have been great, there’s been too much time in between where he’s either stuck standing next to Don Callis or not on TV at all. He beat Kenny Omega which on paper should result in a rocket-strapped push up the card but it felt like there’s been no follow up to it. Then he won his first championship in the company by winning the AEW International Title from Will Ospreay but the finish of that match was all about Kyle Fletcher’s heel turn. Since then Takeshita has taken on the travelling champion role defending the belt in other companies. It’s not a bad role for watching good matches but it’s also not a good sign that he currently doesn’t really matter as a major TV character. That the International Title is booked as one of several interchangeable midcard championships in AEW doesn’t help matters either. If anything the title reign is making Takeshita look more appealing as a New Japan wrestler than an AEW one.

Now maybe I should hold my horses and think this over. Of course someone like me wants Takeshita to be part of the AEW World Title picture more than anything else on the show. It’s been two years since Takeshita got the “All Elite” graphic and he’s been associated with the company for around three. He’s been in the ring with everybody who is currently considered a main eventer in AEW. And yet when I watch how the booking plays out over time I just worry we’re going to end up with wasted potential when all is said and done. Unless that potential gets picked up by another place if the time has come to move on… But that all depends on how long he’s going to be here for.


Will Wrestle Universe add even more promotions to their service?

This was the year that Wrestle Universe cemented itself as one of the best value streaming services in pro wrestling thanks to several different groups being added to the deal. Joining the service was Michinoku Pro, Sendai Girls, the REAL ZERO1 splinter group (which I think is now turning into ZERO1 HARD CORE), Marigold in its debut year and even Deadlock Pro on a delayed schedule. There were also sporadic uploads related to AEW, Osaka Pro, TAKAYAMANIA, Kakuto Tanteidan (the “Fighting Detectives” pair) and the CMLL shows in Japan promoted by LADY’S RING. It’s a lot of stuff with some variety among them if you’re ever looking for something outside of the CyberFight promotions.

As someone with an insatiable appetite for wrestling I would love the convenience of Wrestle Universe expanding its archive by adding even more promotions. However it seems like all of the main players in Japan are currently accounted for with their own services or third party dealings. I don’t think Big Japan wants to ditch their platform anytime soon for example. This is also where I have to admit I have no idea what the deals are like and how much they financially benefit the companies. Would it be worth it for BASARA or any of the other indies on the NicoNico Pro Wrestling Channel to jump over to Wrestle Universe? It would for me!


Are celebrities the answer for DDT to draw bigger crowds?

If there is an idol out there who wants to find a new path in life, Sanshiro Takagi wants to meet them. DDT stuck box office gold this year with the pro wrestling debut of Kaisei Takechi and their Korakuen Hall attendances since then have been pretty good. Plus we just had the debuts of the muscle actor Haruto Sakuraba and dancer Kumadori too. Sakuraba’s debut in particular is going down a treat on social media with women going gaga over his looks. And don’t get me started with TJPW. Throw a dart in that locker room and odds are good you will hit somebody who already had a taste of showbiz before they stepped foot into the wrestling ring. Whether it’s for DDT or TJPW, Takagi is one heck of a talent scout when it comes to celebrities becoming pro wrestlers in Japan.

There are a few ways this plan has worked out in the past. The famous people coming in stick around and become beloved members of the workforce like Saki Akai did. They do great business for DDT in the short term like Takechi (if he doesn’t ever come back). There’s also the likes of LiLiCo who was part of a few fun storylines during her time here and Shinichiro Kawamatsu whose current political position has definitely aided DDT recently in putting some of their more ambitious events together. And at worst it’s still a neat one time thing to see, like with Ami Yumoto when she teamed with Nao Kakuta for a match. If DDT it looking for more draws from outside the wrestling sphere, then training celebrities seems to be the answer. They better hope Makoto Oishi isn’t busy if that’s the case then.

(If anyone remembers the tweet where someone posted Kurt Angle’s entrance video from TNA to explain how good DDT & TJPW are at training idols, that’s what inspired this question. I can’t find it anymore.)


Is Yuki Arai ready to take over TJPW?

We are going to find out in 2025 if Yuki Arai’s commitment to SKE48 held her back from achieving even more in TJPW. When March comes to an end she will have graduated from the idol unit after spending over a decade of her life with them. From that point on pro wrestling will be her main priority. If you thought she was pushed before, get ready to see what they’ll do now she’s going to be on almost every show! She is in the midst of a record breaking International Princess Title reign. If it ends in a few days time then she would have lasted as champ for exactly one year. So if the reign finally comes to a close, what is next for her? Whether it’s in singles or tags TJPW will be ready to make her even more of a centerpiece than she was before. But is she going to be ready for it at her current level?

She already had a big tag team run with Saki Akai in 2022. She also usually performs well with other partners in the Max Heart Tournament. The 2025 tournament is happening before her graduation though so I don’t think the timing works out for her big push to happen there. The Tokyo Princess Cup however sounds like the perfect time for her to go on a big singles run, perhaps even all the way to the Princess Of Princess Title itself. She will have to step up for this scenario to work out. A lot of her matches especially those in her title reign feel samey to me. It’s fine with the IP Title but the Princess Title is held to a higher standard. With her star power (should it not vanish after she leaves SKE48) I can easily see her become the next first time Princess Champion, even within the next 12 months. It will be up to her to evolve into a better wrestler along the way.


What is going on with NOAH’s soft brand split?

We had some changes with CyberFight behind the scenes this year. In May there was a new company structure put in place that relegated Takagi from the President managing all of CyberFight to a Vice President in charge of just DDT and TJPW. Those two promotions remained the same but NOAH in particular went in some unexpected directions. The big one is establishing a working relationship with WWE. So far the pay offs have been Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles wrestling on NOAH’s biggest shows with Omos about to get involved too. There was also a talent swap that saw the likes of Yoshiki Inamura, Josh Briggs and Tavion Heights crossing companies. Oh and it’s probably no coincidence that The Great Muta benefitted from this as well. It’s not a coincidence his WWE Hall Of Fame induction took place this year. So for the big picture, things are going well for them.

However even before the management change took place, NOAH has had something of an identity crisis this year that I think has gone under the radar a little bit. The “MONDAY MAGIC” spin off series presented by NOSAWA Rongai ran for another two seasons and provided a lot of the company’s long term storylines. Meanwhile Go Shiozaki and the old guard called TEAM NOAH ran their own series called “LIMIT BREAK” that seems to exist as far away as it can from NOSAWA’s antics. That also became the place where NOAH and DDT finally crossed over on a semi-regular basis. I thought MONDAY MAGIC would have made more sense because NOSAWA booked the 2nd season like it was DDT’s ABEMA show “MAJI MANJI” anyway but nope! Limit Break wanted Jun Akiyama and saw that DDT has other heavyweights to butt heads with so the DDT guys went over there.

The whole thing comes off like there’s been a soft brand split in NOAH whenever these shows are on the schedule. MONDAY MAGIC carries on with NOAH’s main story continuity while showcasing a variety of different wrestlers from around the world, women included. Limit Break shows have been no nonsense affairs that is closer to traditional NOAH while also interacting with DDT heavyweights and the remains of ZERO1 that Tochigi Pro does not have control over. Is everyone over in NOAH happy with the roster being divided like this or are we going to be in for a shock when contract season rolls around?


Will TJPW dive into this year’s joshi free agency?

As a football fan the January and summer transfer windows are always something to follow even when they are not all its hyped up to be. Same goes for college football whenever I look over there and wonder what the Transfer Portal is all about. Even right now WWE sees how much of a useful tool the concept is to promote interest for their brand split. For wrestling in Japan these kind of dealings get noticed in January and then calms down for the rest of the year, save for one or two names. Joshi however is way more unstable, especially coming into 2025. A couple of renowned veterans are getting ready to retire, one company in particular has hit an iceberg and the landscape is as tumultuous as ever which means some women are off looking for greener pastures.

Stardom usually gets the pick of the litter when it comes to star power. TJPW will find a few freelancers to work with but prefers to rely on their homegrown talent. Marigold hasn’t lived up to expectations of becoming the joshi version of the original NOAH exodus but they did take a big chunk out of Actwres girl’Z on its very first day of existence. As the calendar turns over though the crosshairs are this time aimed squarely at Ice Ribbon. The company is in turmoil over ownership issues leaving talent with little pay for their hard work. Several wrestlers have already announced their intentions to leave when their contracts end while the company’s top champion Yuuki Mashiro is now hanging around there as a freelancer. But how long will that last for? Marigold management is not even pretending to hide their intention to hire a few of them alongside other potential signings throughout 2025. Pro Wrestling Evolution is suddenly popping up as another new place for women to wrestle in too.

Let’s get back to TJPW. As already mentioned they’ve become a regular stop for the likes of Aja Kong, Mizunami, SAKI and Kaichow (who is now married into the family of course). With Nao Kakuta leaving wrestling, Yoshiko Hasegawa was brought in to take her place in the midcard. TJPW also opened their doors for Kakeru Sekiguchi this year too (although it may be because everybody keeps mistaking her for Mahiro Kiryu). They’re not hurting for numbers in the locker room at the minute and there’s at least one debut on the horizon with Kana from The Up Up Girls still undergoing training. Still, I can’t help but get excited at the thought of seeing who will jump where and if TJPW will benefit from it. I should include Ganbare☆Joshi a lot more into this conversation too because of how much Yuna Manase and YuuRI have been booked by Ice Ribbon over the last three years. Hopefully Ice Ribbon won’t fall apart completely so that working relationship can continue.


Are visa problems going to rear their ugly head again when it comes to American bookings?

Oh dear, America voted Donald Trump to be their president again. If his second term is going to be as much of a shit show as his first then it’s going to effect everything, pro wrestling included. If you remember the US government shutdown back in 2019, New Japan was one of the companies affected by it because their Japanese roster was unable to get visas to wrestle in America. Dragongate also had visa disputes for some of their roster that year which cancelled a big planned appearance at WrestleCon. What’s also largely forgotten about was when OWE’s alliance with the newly launched AEW didn’t turn out the way they envisioned because the Chinese wrestlers couldn’t get their visas approved either. That’s why OWE’s only presence in AEW was from #STRONGHEARTS going over in their place.

DDT and TJPW have been doing well with holding international shows in America two or three times a year. Their plans for WrestleCon in Las Vegas in April are going to be their biggest shows yet if all things work out for them. Since their rosters have already been travelling to America on the regular they should be ok but who knows what is going to happen once Trump takes office again. Maki Itoh and Miyu Yamashita in particular better have everything already in place to continue travelling safely because those US excursions are regular money makers they won’t want to lose out on.


Does Hikari Noa come back to wrestling?

By the time this is posted it will be over a full year since Hikari Noa wrestled her last match in TJPW and vacated the Princess Tag Titles over “poor health”. Her absence at the time continued under “personal reasons” until she graduated from TJPW and The Up Up Girls in May. Those “personal reasons” were allegedly Noa becoming friends with a superfan and letting her in on private information as well as industry secrets. The two then had a falling out which resulted in the fan airing their dirty laundry on social media. Since then there’s been no sign of Noa in the wrestling world. Whether or not she will ever return is a question I’m wondering about because of how her situation went down.

The announcement of her graduation happened around the 6 month mark of her absence. With a full year now gone by could there have been a no-compete clause of some sort that’s ready to run out? It’s wishful thinking to hope at some point in 2025 the woman formerly known as Hikari Noa returns to wrestle again. Doesn’t matter for who. If not though then this is probably the last time I’m ever going to write about her as a topical person on this blog.

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Questions Submitted From Twitter

I wanted to write more than the ten topics above but ran out of ideas. So I went to Twitter asking if anyone out there had questions of their own. I only meant for questions to be about the CyberFight groups I cover but this article is already an excuse for me to ramble about AEW, NOAH and the joshi scene at large. So let’s take the chance to spread out the topics further. I also wrote most of these answers before Christmas so the first answer is not just me jumping on a bandwagon after it already left the station.

With the surge of younger stars in recent years, who do you think has the most upside coming into 2025?
– meepmeepmooper

It’s a two horse race between Keigo Nakamura and To-y. I’m giving To-y the lead only because of Nakamura’s injury history. Nakamura is more skillful than To-y in the ring but I worry that him getting two serious knee injuries within four years has reduced how long his career is actually going to be. To-y is just as likeable, benefits from being part of DDT’s top babyface unit, is coming off of a high profile Sumo Hall match and has the extra local hometown hero factor. Now if Hideki Okatani comes back from injury soon and still has an Eruption sized chip on his shoulder I’m going to change my pick.

Related to above, given a more active presence in South East Asia, which SEA stars do you think have a good chance of making an impression on DDT / Cyberfight?
– meepmeepmooper

We’re already seeing Alexis Lee and Matcha fitting in with TJPW during their brief tours in Japan even if it’s just going to be for a handful of appearances a year. Monomoth and Dr. Gore got a few bookings in Japan this year but haven’t surfaced above the level of Baka Gaijin + Friends and ChocoPro yet. Monomoth in particular was getting hyped up in the first half of the year but I haven’t heard the name as much in the second half. Andruew Tang is someone I’d like to see coming in as a DDT Universal Title challenger. If he doesn’t have the status for that then getting a shot in a place like GanPro or BASARA would be good enough. Might depend on if Masahiro Takanashi would be guiding him with the bookings. If I can include Taiwanese wrestlers in the answer then Gaia Hox’s stock on the indies is going to rise the longer he wrestles in Japan. That is somebody who would fit in with NOAH but probably not with the rest of F-SWAG.

Was Takeshita a loss for DDT in terms of business, and will he bring any value with his infrequent returns to DDT?
– Monkey_Buckles

You know I’m actually not sure because DDT’s Korakuen numbers rebounded pretty well this year without him. If anything, ever since the G1 happened Takeshita became more valuable to New Japan than to AEW or DDT. He will always be a good addition to any Korakuen or big arena show DDT puts on but what can DDT do with him at this point? His status means they won’t make him put over one of their own so he’s kind of in his own bubble whenever he shows up. But the special one-off matches he got against outsiders in 2024 were all really good so I won’t complain if DDT continues to book him that way. Unless this is the year his DDT contract finally ends and he decides to leave for good. That’ll make me sad.

Do DDT ever pull the trigger on MAO, or is his a permanent midcarder?
– Monkey_Buckles

He’s never getting the Yuki Ueno push, that’s for sure. A short lived KO-D Openweight Title run is always going to be on the table because DDT usually gives every main player in a generation their turn with the belt. I think he got his big chance with the “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” main event and his performance wasn’t good enough to convince DDT he is the answer to their problems. The Universal Title scene was perfect for him. His long title run helped mature him as a performer and he had the most confidence I’ve ever seen from him as a result. Problem now is he’s been there and done that. The thing with MAO as a singles act is he’s probably just best off being a small room wrestler rather than a company’s main eventer. You can always rely on him as a tag team wrestler though.

Who will be the future of njpw, and will Zack Sabre Jr and David Finlay carry the company until they create more stars?
– Cleop4tr4hla

Here’s the problem that I think is currently haunting the “Reiwa Musketeers” era of NJPW. This generation has not gotten enough big wins over veteran stars yet. Shota Umino is about to main event the Tokyo Dome but what are the tentpole victories that got him here? Zack Sabre Jr. at the G1 before Sabre became the champ and a lukewarm SANADA after that? Yota Tsuji at least got to win the New Japan Cup and he beat Hirooki Goto to do it. But that was before Goto caught on fire as the sentimental favourite of the fans for being a family guy. The timing of that meant David Finlay got more out of beating Goto than Tsuji did. Ren Narita to me still feels out of place as a House Of Torture heel. At least he has something that makes him more of an individual than being a Katsuyori Shibata clone but I enjoyed watching him more when he was the Shibata clone.

Sabre is in a good position and I’d like to see him stay there for a while. His wrestling style stands out in New Japan and that makes the times he shows up in other companies more appealing. Finlay is winning people over but as long as the Gedo heel finish follows him around it’s going to handicap him. I’m sorry but that stuff continues to come off like New Japan just copy and pasted the Jay White playbook into him. Gabe Kidd I think is a year or two away from jumping to one of the big American companies. The injury to Jake Lee happened at a bad time because his Mad Bastards team with Kidd was going to get over in the World Tag League. I like Ryohei Oiwa but don’t see him leap frogging over the “Musketeers” anytime soon. Young Blood might be fun for the tag division once they return but that part of New Japan relies too much on hot potato booking to get anyone ready for a singles push.

There is a wild card in the form of Oleg Boltin. He had a good G1 debut and he’s been booked strong in the Tag League with Toru Yano of all people as his tag partner. He is a unique homegrown wrestler that I think will stay under the radar from WWE or AEW for another while. But until he’s ready I can’t confidently pick who the next ace is. Hiroshi Tanahashi going on a year long journey to retirement might be what carries the company throughout 2025.

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I’m No Good At This Predictions Thing

December 31, 2024

That’s it. The crystal ball is going in the bin! I’m doing things a bit different this year because I’ve run out of unique predictions for this article. The only things I could think of were the usual ideas. Things like X wins a championship, Y jumps to another promotion, Z takes part in an angle and so on. But before I post my look into 2025 let’s get this out of the way.

DDT

X. Naomi Yoshimura returns from injury and gets a singles push.
X. Kento Miyahara will be at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024”.
X. Sanshiro Takagi fights Hiroshi Tanahashi in a battle of the presidents!
X. Somebody (or something) from WWE wins the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title.
X. Tetsuya Endo should go on an overseas excursion.

We did get to see Naomi Yoshimura hanging around DDT shows quite a bit this year but he’s still not ready to wrestle matches again. Hopefully next year we’ll hear how he is progressing with his rehab training. The DDT Vs All Japan rivalry disappeared after Springtime, right around the time DDT wrestlers started appearing at the NOAH “LIMIT BREAK” shows. So no Kento Miyahara appearance which I think is a missed opportunity. Sanshiro Takagi and Hiroshi Tanahashi teamed up instead of fighting with each other for “ALL TOGETHER”. The Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title didn’t go near the WWE at all unless the “Strange Foreigner” that attacked Sayaka Unagi before her MLW appearance turns out to be somebody who was under a WWE deal. Tetsuya Endo’s only match in America this year was in DDT anyway.

Tokyo Joshi Pro

✓. Somebody from the 2023 Class scores a pinfall on a TJPW veteran.
X. Mizuki Vs Rika Tatsumi finally happens… in the Tokyo Princess Cup.
X. Maki Itoh wins the GCW World Heavyweight Championship.
X. Aja Kong takes on a regular role in TJPW.
✓. Miyu Yamashita and Maki Itoh remain with TJPW for the year.

Take a bow Shino Suzuki for scoring a pinfall on Shoko Nakajima just days before the year ends. It was a 2 Count pinfall but I included that when I predicted it. I could also try to be cheeky and say Zara Zakher getting a few big wins counts as somebody from the 2023 Class beating a veteran but that would go against the spirit of the prediction. I just meant Tokyo Joshi Pro trained wrestlers, not anybody who started wrestling in 2023. No Mizuki Vs Rika Tatsumi match is a booking decision that still confuses me. Maki Itoh won the GCW Extreme Title instead of their World Title, so I was close with that one. Aja Kong still makes TJPW appearances here and there but not enough that I would call her a regular part of the company. The one thing I got right all year is Miyu Yamashita and Itoh staying with TJPW. I don’t think the timing is there for either of them to leave the company yet.

Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling

X. Ken Ohka Wins The Spirit Of Ganbare Title From Isami Kodaka.
X. The Ganbare☆Climax returns.
1/2✓. Yuna Manase returns from injury and feuds with YuuRI.
X. A mixed gender tag team wins the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Titles.
X. A Stardom wrestler appears on a Ganbare☆Joshi show.

The Spirit Of Ganbare Title went from Isami Kodaka to Shuichiro Katsumura, not Ken Ohka. There was no return of the Ganbare☆Climax tournament. I don’t think Ganbare☆Pro has the ability in their current position to pull off something like that unless it was on a smaller scale. Yuna Manase did return from injury but teamed up with YuuRI instead of feuding against her. The two of them also challenged for the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Titles together but failed to win them. The Ganbare☆Joshi branding hasn’t been used a lot lately so there was no chance of anyone from Stardom showing up. Kind of happened with TJPW though.

Miscellaneous

X. A DDT wrestler makes a full time jump over to BASARA.
X. Konosuke Takeshita wrestles in the main event of an AEW PPV.
X. Yuka Sakazaki becomes the first ROH Women’s TV Champion.
X. Baka Gaijin + Friends runs a show at Shin-Kiba 1st RING.
1/2✓. The 2024 New Year’s Eve Shuffle Tag Tournament lasts past midnight again.

Nobody made a full jump from DDT to BASARA. There were a couple of times Kazusada Higuchi and Masahiro Takanashi appeared but not enough to count as a regular. Konosuke Takeshita had a few AEW PPV appearances this year but none of them closed out the show. Yuka Sakazaki wasn’t part of the tournament to crown the first ROH Women’s TV Title. The only time Baka Gaijin + Friends went outside of ARENA Shimokitazawa was for “FUCKED UP FEST” and that was not at Shin-Kiba 1st RING. Last but not least, there was a show at Korakuen Hall on New Year’s Eve that went past midnight but it was not the Shuffle Tag Tournament. Big Japan instead did their own thing to take them into the new year. Screw it I’m giving myself half a point for that. Right, onto something new for 2025.

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Posted by JamieOD

Videos – Miu Watanabe & Yuki Arai’s 2024 Title Defences

December 31, 2024


– Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Miu Watanabe [31/03/2024 @ Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan]
V1. Miu Watanabe (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima [06/05/2024 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall]
V2. Miu Watanabe (c) Vs Vert Vixen [09/06/2024 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall]
V3. Miu Watanabe (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi [20/07/2024 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall]
V4. Miu Watanabe (c) Vs Ryo Mizunami [22/09/2024 @ Chiba Makuhari Messe International Exhibition Hall]
V5. Miu Watanabe (c) VS Zara Zakher [16/11/2024 @ Osaka Edion Arena #2]


– Max The Impaler (c) Vs Yuki Arai [04/01/2024 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall]
V1. Yuki Arai (c) Vs Juria Nagano [10/02/2024 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall]
V2. Yuki Arai (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku [31/03/2024 @ Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan]
V3. Yuki Arai (c) Vs LA Taylor [09/06/2024 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall]
V4. Yuki Arai (c) Vs Arisu Endo [08/09/2024 @ Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall]
V5. Yuki Arai (c) Vs Moka Miyamoto [22/09/2024 @ Chiba Makuhari Messe International Exhibition Hall]
V6. Yuki Arai (c) Vs Shazza McKenzie [22/11/2024 @ Shinjuku FACE]

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Starting 2025 in Korakuen, MAO Dealing With Idols Again, Muscle Vs Misao

December 30, 2024

DDT “NEW YEAR☆DRAMATIC PARADE 2025 ~ANSWERS WILL BE REVEALED ONE YEAR LATER~”, 03/01/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. To-y, Akito & Soma Takao Vs Toru Owashi, Super Sasadango Machine & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
2. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul, Demus & Ilusion Vs Yuni, Kazuma Sumi, Daichi Sato & Yuki Ishida
3. BZW Tag Team Titles: MAO & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Takeshi Masada Vs Shinya Aoki, Yuki Ueno & Keigo Nakamura
5. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Yuya Koroku
6. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Jun Akiyama Vs Yuki Iino & Yukio Naya
7. KO-D Openweight Title Next Challenger 4 Way Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Shuji Ishikawa Vs HARASHIMA Vs KANON

We’re kicking off 2025 with a pair of visits to Korakuen Hall this weekend. Chris Brookes will find out who his next challenger for the KO-D Openweight Title will be. Konosuke Takeshita will be wrestling in DDT again right before he goes wrestle in the Tokyo Dome. We’re also getting a singles match between Tetsuya Endo and Yuya Koroku straight away after BURNING was disbanded.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’25”, 04/01/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Aja Kong, Mahiro Kiryu & Haruna Neko Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
2. Ryo Mizunami, Kaya Toribami & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Matcha, Ivy Steele & Kira Summer
3. Yuki Kamifuku & Lei Ying Lee Vs Rika Tatsumi & Wakana Uehara
4. Yuka Sakazaki & Moka Miyamoto Vs Arisu Endo & Haru Kazashiro
5. Shoko Nakajima Vs Hyper Misao
6. International Princess Title: Yuki Arai (c) Vs Suzume
7. Princess Tag Team Titles: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh (c) Vs Masha Slamovich & Zara Zakher
8. Princess Of Princess Title: Miu Watanabe (c) Vs Mizuki

After a hard fought Asian Double Titles match, Yuki Kamifuku took a liking to Lei Ying Lee and decided she wants to team up with her.

We have an international trio of Matcha, Ivy Steele & Kira Summer teaming together.

During the Princess Rumble Raku accidentally eliminated Aja Kong from the match by hugging her and then having everyone else pile on top of them. Kong will now be facing Raku in a 6-Woman Tag Match but Raku has the rest of Love Triangle looking out for her. Or they should be as long as they’re not scared of fighting Kong.

This is not the full card for the Ittenyon show. Tokyo Joshi Pro want to have either 9 or 10 matches in total so expect one more update to announce the remaining bouts.

BASARA “BASARA 266 ~SOUEN~”, 10/01/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Isami Kodaka, Takumi Tsukamoto & Ryota Nakatsu Vs Takato Nakano, Masato Kamino & Lil’ Kraken
2. Ryuichi Sekine Vs FUMA

At the last BASARA show of the year Ryuichi Sekine made FUMA tap out to the Let’s Combine. That was in a 6-Man Tag Match so now they’re going to face off in a singles bout.

DDT “THE FORTUNE BATTLE 2025”, 18/01/2025
Tokyo Shinagawa Prince Hotel Club eX

1. KO-D Tag Team Titles: MAO & To-y (c) Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi

Even though Shunma Katsumata vacated the KO-D Tag Team Titles a while back he now finds himself stuck in the middle of the next title match! He is a part of NωA Jr. with Yuni & Kazuma Sumi and that pair want to challenge the new champions. The champions just so happen to be MAO & To-y from Katsumata’s main unit The 37KAMIINA. To-y is excited to fight them but the last thing MAO wants to do is get involved with idol wrestlers again.

“SANSHIRO TAKAGI 30TH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMERATION EVENT ~ NEVER SAY NEVER”, 03/02/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. Special Single Match: Muscle Sakai Vs Hyper Misao
2. Special Tag Match: Dump Matsumoto & Toru Owashi Vs Brahman Shu & Brahman Kei
3. Special Single Match: Yuji Nagata Vs Kuroshio TOKYO Japan

TJPW won the battle against DDT at Sumo Hall but another fight is coming out of it. Super Sasadango Machine is all of a sudden feeling defensive over how much Hyper Misao gets over for her crazy ideas. That’s meant to be his strength as a wrestler! He challenged her to a match at Sanshiro Takagi’s 30th Anniversary Match and also decided to go back to his roots. He will be unmasked and wrestling as Muscle Sakai once more!

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TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW YEAR-END PARTY 2024” Results

December 29, 2024

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW YEAR-END PARTY 2024”, 29/12/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
720 Fans

1. Ivy Steele defeated Chika Nanase with the Pumphandle Slam (5:50).
2. Dot Money Presents TJPW RUSH! Year End Special Red And White Team 5 Vs 5 Knockout Match: Mizuki, Suzume, Yoshiko Hasegawa, Shino Suzuki & Uta Takami defeated Shoko Nakajima, Arisu Endo, Moka Miyamoto, Haru Kazashiro & Toga.
2a. 2 Count Fall Match: Shoko Nakajima defeated Yoshiko Hasegawa with the Northern Lights Suplex (3:06).
2b. 2 Count Fall Match: Shoko Nakajima defeated Uta Takami with a Front Butterfly Lock (3:30).
2c. 2 Count Fall Match: Shino Suzuki defeated Shoko Nakajima with a Backwards Spinning Cradle (1:51).
2d. 2 Count Fall Match: Shino Suzuki defeated Toga with an Oklahoma Roll (4:54).
2e. 2 Count Fall Match: Moka Miyamoto defeated Shino Suzuki with the Zero Sen Kick (0:29).
2f. 2 Count Fall Match: Moka Miyamoto Vs Suzume ended in a Time Limit Draw (5:00).
2fa. Overtime 1 Count Fall: Suzume defeated Moka Miyamoto with a Headscissors Whip (0:36).
2g. 2 Count Fall Match: Arisu Endo Vs Suzume ended in a Time Limit Draw (5:00).
2ga. Overtime 1 Count Fall: Arisu Endo defeated Suzume with the Waterwheel Drop (0:51).
2h. 2 Count Fall Match: Mizuki defeated Arisu Endo with a Roll Up (1:54).
2i. 2 Count Fall Match: Haru Kazashiro Vs Mizuki ended in a Time Limit Draw (5:00).
2ia. Overtime 1 Count Fall: Mizuki defeated Haru Kazashiro with the Cutie Special (1:29).
3. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title: Pom Harajuku (c) defeated Matcha with the Pom de Justice (7:26).
*V1 for Pom Harajuku.
4. Queen Of Asia Title & VPW Women’s Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c/c) defeated Lei Ying Lee with the Famouser (10:03).
*V5 for the Queen Of Asia Title. V3 for the VPW Women’s Title.
5. WINTICKET Presents I Hope There Will Be Lots Of Fun And Exciting Things Next Year! New Year’s Japanese Pro Wrestling! 20 Wrestler PRINCESS RUMBLE 2024: Miu Watanabe defeated Yuki Aino with the Tear Drop (37:07).
Order Of Elimination: Yuna Manase, Poison Sawada JULIE, Hyper Misao, Antonio Honda, Miyu Yamashita, Kira Summer, Maki Itoh, HIMAWARI, Pokotan, Mahiro Kiryu, Wakana Uehara, Haruna Neko, Kaya Toribami, Aja Kong, Rika Tatsumi, Ryo Mizunami, Yuki Arai, Raku, Yuki Aino.

The final Tokyo Joshi Pro show of 2024 was like a big party to close out the year. The very last match TJPW put together this year was the first Princess Rumble. It a 20-person Rumble with eliminations by pinfall, submission or being thrown over the top rope and out of the ring. Yuki Aino and HIMAWARI drew the unlucky first two entries but Aino was able to last until the very end. Yuna Manase was eliminated first to continue the unlucky weekend she’s been having. Hyper Misao showed why heroes still wear capes by using hers as a shield from Poison Sawada JULIE’s snake magic. Mahiro Kiryu apologized for 2024 as a whole. Kira Summer was able to eliminate Antonio Honda because the language barrier between them meant she wouldn’t fall for the Gongitsune trick. Maki Itoh used a pile of other wrestlers as a podium so she could sing above everyone. She also betrayed Miyu Yamashita by pulling the top rope down so Yamashita could fall out of the ring and get eliminated. Rika Tatsumi crushed Pokotan’s head before she eliminated the mascot. Haruna Neko was eliminated by everyone piling on top of her. Aja Kong was one of the mystery entrants. She eliminated Wakana Uehara and also helped Raku eliminate Kaya Toribami. Raku then hugged Arai and everyone piled on top of them. That meant Raku accidentally pinned Kong to eliminate her. The other surprise was Ryo Mizunami but she almost got herself disqualified by taking too long to enter the ring because she was partying too much at ringside. The two singles champions Miu Watanabe and Yuki Arai tried working together until Aino & Raku got the better of Arai to knock her out of the match. Watanabe was able to fight on by herself and use the Tear Drop on Raku and then Aino to win the Rumble!

Watanabe was happy to win the match because she wins the prize which includes 10kg of rice cakes! She doesn’t actually know how many rice cakes that is but it doesn’t matter because winning the Princess Rumble is more proof that she is a princess, not a monster! Some of the other wrestlers got to say some words to close out the show. Arai said by spending the year as a champion, 2024 is the year that made her love pro wrestling. Yamashita is happy to have wrestled overseas a lot this year and she won a championship with Itoh. She then remembered Itoh eliminated her from the Rumble so she should be mad at her. Itoh quickly changed the subject by asking the fans who is the cutest in the world? Watanabe finished by saying how happy she is that so many people came to see TJPW this year. So let’s make next year even better!

A good chunk of the card was made up of championship matches featuring titles from wrestling companies around Southeast Asia. Yuki Kamifuku put her Asian Double Crown on the line against Lei Ying Lee from China in a match that was delayed since October. The vital point in the match was when Kamifuku countered a Power Bomb into the Famouser. She then dodged the Thunder Strike to hit another Famouser for the victory. She wondered why she had to spend the last show of the year taking part in a tough championship match when almost everyone else was being put in fun party matches. She didn’t like the vibe coming from Ying Lee but she does like her makeup so she wants to team up with her in the future. Ying Lee said this was her first title match since leaving WWE so she prepared a lot for it. She is disappointed she lost but thinks Kamifuku is a great opponent so she is also happy they had a great match against each other.

In a rematch from Thailand last month Pom Harajuku faced Matcha with the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title once again on the line. Harajuku wanted to win quickly but Matcha made sure they were going to have a challenging fight. Matcha thought she had the upper hand when she did the Saito Suplex but Harajuku immediately hit her back with the Pom de Justice. She then knocked Matcha off her feet with a Shin Kick to land another Pom de Justice for the three count and successful first defence. Backstage Harajuku thought defending once means the belt now belongs to her permanently. She got confused when everyone around her shook their heads. She admits the match was so crazy that she isn’t feeling right after it. Like she is no longer 3 years old but is now 18 months old. Matcha is sad she wasn’t able to win back the title but will not give up on her goal to be the SETUP champion again. She is also happy she got to wrestle in Korakuen Hall again nine years after her last match there.

The bulk of the undercard was made up of a 5 Vs 5 Team Gauntlet match called TJPW RUSH! Every match had a five minute time limit and could be won with a 2-Count Pinfall until one team lost all of its members. If time expired then it will go to Overtime with 1-Count Pinfalls needed to win. Shoko Nakajima was the Red Team captain and chose to enter first while the White Team captain Mizuki placed herself last in her team. Nakajima went off to a good start by beating Yoshiko Hasegawa and then Uta Takami. But the first upset of the match came when Shino Suzuki got a 2-Count pin on Nakajima to eliminate her! Suzuki continued the momentum by pinning Toga next but her underdog run came to an end thanks to Moka Miyamoto. The first time limit draw then happened between Miyamoto and Suzume. In Overtime Suzume scored the 1-Count pin to move on. She then went to another draw this time against her own Daisy Monkey partner Arisu Endo. This time Suzume lost in Overtime and was out. It was all up to Mizuki to save the White Team and she did it by beating Endo. The Red Team’s final entrant Haru Kazashiro fought her to a draw but Mizuki pinned her with the Cutie Special in Overtime to win the match outright. The White Team’s prize included a luxery set of beef and chicken (in other words, red and white meat). Mizuki revealed backstage their team order was Suzuki’s idea so she got the credit for the White Team’s victory.

Ivy Steele earned her first victory in TJPW by beating Chika Nanase in the opening match. She was able to get past the Inari Torii and use a Pumphandle Slam to win.

There was an announcement of two TJPW shows being held in Nagoya at the end of March right before Arai graduates from SKE48. There will be a full wrestling show at Chunichi Hall on 29th March. Then on the 30th there will be a show containing only three matches but will also include an SKE48 concert. Arai will wrestle and perform in the concert on the 30th. Her SKE48 graduation will then happen on the 31st.

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BASARA “BASARA 265 ~UTAGE~” Results

December 29, 2024

BASARA “BASARA 265 ~UTAGE~”, 29/12/2024
Shin-Kiba 1st RING
??? Fans – Unannounced

1. Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga defeated SAGAT & Antonio Honda when Senga pinned SAGAT after the Shining Gongitsune Mistaken Attack from Honda (8:07).
2. Takumi Tsukamoto defeated Gouma Ryu with a Front High Kick (9:10).
3. Takato Nakano & Shota Kawakami defeated Ryota Nakatsu & Takeru Inoue when Nakano pinned Inoue with the Ken Katabami (13:15).
4. Isami Kodaka, Ryuichi Sekine & Daiki Shimomuta defeated FUMA, KUBITO & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi when Sekine submitted FUMA with the Let’s Combine (13:38).
5. Iron Fist Tag Team Titles: Fuminori Abe & Takuya Nomura (c) defeated Daichi Kazato & Lil’ Kraken when Abe pinned Kazato after the Period. Misfire from Kraken (13:32).
*V4 for Astronauts.
6. Union MAX Title: Masato Kamino defeated Minoru Fujita (c) with the Lariat (18:32).
*Minoru Fujita fails in V8. Masato Kamino becomes the 22nd Union MAX Champion!

BASARA in 2024 began with Minoru Fujita winning the Union MAX Title and ends with him losing it. Masato Kamino was able to kick out after taking the SAYONARA twice and hit the Lariat only for Fujita to kick out of that too. Kamino fought hard to hit another Lariat and when he finally did he was able to win the match with it. He wished Fujita to rest well for the great job he did as champion and thanked the fans for supporting BASARA this year. Ten years ago in Chiba he never imagined he would ever win a singles championship and now he is the man on top for a company. He will treat the belt like it is a baton Fujita passed over to him and will not give it up easily. He then nominated his tag partner Takato Nakano to be his first challenger.

Some miscommunication at the worst time cost Daichi Kazato & Lil’ Kraken their chance to become the new Iron Fist Tag Team Champions. Kazato was switching positions back and forth with Fuminori Abe and they paused in front of Lil’ Kraken. Abe was in front so Kraken charged in to use his finisher called the Period. Abe ducked the move and Kazato took the blow, causing both of them to fall back with Abe landing on top for the pinfall. At least there is no anger between Kazato & Kraken over what happened. Abe thinks Kazato has evolved as a wrestler while Takuya Nomura thinks he is brainwashing everyone. Astronauts also noticed there were some foreign fans in attendance today. Abe wonders what those fans think BASARA wrestling is like compared to what they will see in the Tokyo Dome next week?

The match between Sento Minzoku and Asian Kung-Fu Generation was heated from the get go and continued after the match ended. Both sides continued fighting after the finish and had to be kept apart.

There was also continued fighting between Takeru Inoue and Shota Kawakami after Match #3. Both are rookies who debuted this year and wanted to see who was better. They started trading Elbow Strikes after the match and Inoue then chased Kawakami away from ringside.

Takumi Tsukamoto purposely dressed up like an office worker to throw shade at Gouma Ryu. He said before their match that Ryu is only good for doing trials. Ryu disagreed and wanted to prove he can wrestle too. Then when Tsukamoto took a breather outside the ring during the match Ryu taunted him for running away from pro wrestling. Tsukamoto got back in to finish the match and ended up winning with a couple of Front High Kicks. Ryu kicked out of the first one at the one count but was beaten with the second kick.

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DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024” Results

December 28, 2024

DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024”, 28/12/2024
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
3,579 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Yuni & Kazuma Sumi defeated Demus & Ilusion when Sumi pinned Demus with the School Boy (9:05).
2. Shuji Ishikawa, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Shinichiro Kawamatsu defeated Masahiro Takanashi, Daichi Sato & Yuki Ishida when Ishikawa pinned Ishida with the Fire Thunder (8:59).
3. Special Tag Match ~ O-MENZ Kumadori Debut Match: Makoto Oishi & Akito defeated Kazuki Hirata & Kumadori when Oishi pinned Hirata with a Northern Lights Bomb (0:06).
3a. Rematch: Kazuki Hirata & Kumadori defeated Makoto Oishi & Akito when Hirata pinned Oishi after the Air Double Helio from Kumadori (10:44).
4. TJPW Vs DDT Full-Scale 6-Man Tag Match: Rika Tatsumi, Hyper Misao & Pom Harajuku defeated Toru Owashi, Super Sasadango Machine & Antonio Honda when Tatsumi pinned Honda with the Missile Hip (12:17).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~ Haruto Sakuraba Debut Match: KANON, MJ Paul & Haruto Sakuraba defeated HARASHIMA, Yuki Iino & Soma Takao when KANON pinned Takao with the Vietnam Driver II (12:52).
6. Special Single Match: Jun Akiyama defeated Yukio Naya with the Front Neck Lock (13:24).
7. Special Tag Match: Kenoh & Yu Owada defeated Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura when Kenoh submitted Nakamura with the Kenoh Special (11:41).
8. Special Single Match: Invisible Man defeated Danshoku Dieno (w/ Tetsu Inada) with a Danshoku Driver Counter (11:13).
9. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno defeated Takeshi Masada with the WR (16:23).
10. 85th KO-D Tag Team Titles Decision Match: MAO & To-y defeated Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku when To-y pinned Koroku with the Kojima Impact (24:17)
*The 37KAMIINA becomes the 85th KO-D Tag Team Champions!
11. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) defeated Daisuke Sasaki with the Praying Mantis Bomb II (36:55).
*V1 for Chris Brookes.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Kazuki Hirata defeated HARASHIMA (c) by TKO with the Tegatana (6:35 pm).
*Kazuki Hirata becomes the 1,703rd champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Sanshiro Takagi defeated HARASHIMA with the Stone Cold Stunner (6:36 pm).
*Sanshiro Takagi becomes the 1,704th champion.

There’s still a few days left before the new year but DDT’s 2024 came to a close at Sumo Hall today. Daisuke Sasaki came over here looking to end Chris Brookes’s reign as the KO-D Openweight Title and bring DDT back to a more grimy atmosphere. However the feud between SCHADENFREUDE International and DAMNATION T.A coming up to this match showed Brookes is just as capable of fighting that way as he is with having a fair fight. So too was Yukinori Matsui of all people. The referee reached his breaking point from the constant interference from both sides that he grabbed a chair at ringside and was willing to attack any of them with it! Both units took his warning to heart and left ringside so the match could continue one on one. The violence still escalated with Brookes Piledriving Sasaki through a table at ringside. Sasaki fought back by seating Brookes onto a chair in the first row and hitting the Super Diving Elbow. DAMNATION T.A returned to pull Matsui out of the ring right when Brookes had Sasaki beaten with the Praying Mantis Bomb. SCHADENFREUDE also came back to cause another all out fight between the two sides. Brookes and Sasaki then attacked each other with staplers until Sasaki threw Brookes into the ref so he could Low Blow him and then hit a chair shot. But nothing he did could put Brookes away, not even El Es Culero which he took from El Desperado. Instead Brookes was able to slap Sasaki down, give him a Penalty Kick and pin him with an elevated version of the Praying Mantis Bomb.

With the battle finally over, Brookes offered to shake Sasaki’s hand after the match and Sasaki actually went through with it. Brookes told Sumo Hall he was able to win with love but he knows pro wrestling needs bad people like Sasaki to fight the good people like himself. Brookes then invited the DDT roster down to the ring to close out the show and comment on how the year went for them. Brookes told the fans he thought last year would be the final time he headlined Sumo Hall so he is happy to have done it again today. In 2025 he wants to achieve more dreams as the KO-D Champion. Backstage Sasaki told reporters he is going to take an extended break from wrestling for a while. He was asked when he plans to return and he said he’ll definitely be back on… 3rd January 2025.

The vacant KO-D Tag Team Titles were on the line in a match pitting two members of The 37KAMIINA against two wrestlers from BURNING. Due to Shunma Katsumata’s injury, the story turned into the growing rivalry between To-y and Yuya Koroku. The rivalry continued to be the focus here with Tetsuya Endo kept trying to fire Koroku up. Endo and MAO took each other out late in the match so it came down to the young pair. To-y avoided Koroku’s gameplan to target the arm and used a misdirection from running the ropes to catch Koroku off guard. His plan worked and after he pinned Koroku with the Kojima Impact, MAO & To-y became the new champions!

To-y said he is never going to forget the day he won this title. MAO also praised him because just when MAO thought he has done it all with The 37KAMIINA, along comes To-y to give him new things to do. MAO has experienced big victories in Sumo Hall before and he wanted To-y to experience the same to show how you get rewarded for your hard work. They were then approached backstage by Yuni & Kazuma Sumi. The two of them want a title shot on behalf of NωA Jr. To-y accepted the challenge but MAO had to be convinced because he doesn’t want to be associated with idols again. The title match will happen on 18th January.

A big change came from the losing side as a result of this match. BURNING is now splitting up! Endo made the decision but not for any negative reasons. While he was standing in the ring after the match he realized how much Koroku has grown as a wrestler and came to the conclusion that he does not need BURNING anymore. Koroku has fully become a pro wrestler and Yuki Iino has also reestablished himself as a strong fighter. Endo wants to keep growing to reach his own potential so the time is now for them to take their own separate paths. Koroku said the unit helped him grow a lot and he will no longer look down on himself anymore. Endo’s last piece of advice to him was it is ok to feel frustration.

Yuki Ueno took it upon himself to teach Takeshi Masada a lesson in wrestling. Masada always has high expectations to reach and pulled out a top rope version of his finisher to try and win. But Ueno couldn’t be beat and found an opening to twist Masada into the Body Choke Sleeper to wear him down. Masada started to crumble from there and Ueno kept up the attack until he could pin him with the WR. Ueno wants Masada to know he is here for him in DDT. He shouldn’t be listening to the people who give him high expectations about his future. Instead Masada should believe in himself in the present. He should get be more selfish, get even weirder and gradually he will round out his game more and more. In 2025 Yuki Ueno will enjoy being himself because only those who can express themselves will have a future.

Okay we didn’t realize just how cursed of an idea Danshoku Dieno Vs Great-O-Khan was going to be. First O-Khan gets pulled from the show by New Japan due to injury, then the only opponent DDT could find on short notice was The Invisible Man and now on the day of the show one of the special guests for the match Kentaro Kumagai could no longer make it due to illness. So it was all up to Dieno and Tetsu Inada to carry the match by themselves (with The Invisible Man of course). The referee and the commentary team all wore special glasses that would let them see The Invisible Man while Dieno wore special contact lenses that did the same thing. The match turned into a brawl up the entrance ramp that ended with The Invisible Man doing a dive off of the stage. Back in the ring he hit a Triple Moonsault and was shocked when Dieno kicked out of it. He tried hitting Dieno with multiple Axe Bombers but Dieno fired himself up by stripping off his costume piece by piece. But when he made his comeback, five other Invisible Men interfered! Then an Invisible Woman named See-Through came to Dieno’s rescue and fought them off for him. Dieno went back to give The Invisible Man the Danshoku Driver but it was countered into a sudden cradle for the three count.

After the match The Invisible Man gave Dieno credit for pushing him this far. He told Dieno that someday the ruler of the human world who should have fought him in the first place will reappear along with his loyal follower. He told Dieno to call their names out loud enough for them to hear. Inada apologized for not being to help Dieno more because he got caught up fighting the other Invisible Men. He promised to be by his side again whenever the match with O-Khan takes place. Dieno assured him they haven’t lost the battle because O-Khan and Kumagai are not here. The four of them will have their fated fight one day. Until then everyone should continue to go out and live their lives to the fullest.

It was a battle of pride between DDT and NOAH. The home team of Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura certainly felt it when they fought Kenoh & Yu Owada. They fought around ringside and beat lumps out of each other. Nakamura tried to do his own attempt at Aoki’s Full Nelson Hold to pin Kenoh but the NOAH wrestler kicked out of it and made him tap out to the Kenoh Special. Aoki and Kenoh then kept fighting after the bell until they were kept apart. Aoki’s in a good mood about it though. He thinks DDT got the moral victory today because of Nakamura’s performance. He also thinks Kenoh secretly had a lot of fun out there. Aoki would love to have a rematch or even a singles match with Kenoh. He says it is up to the fans to decide if it will happen. Kenoh spent his post-match interview backstage promoting NOAH’s Budokan Hall show on 1st January.

Over on the heavyweight side of the roster Jun Akiyama showed everyone that Yukio Naya still hasn’t met his potential yet. Naya Choke Slammed him onto the ring apron and hit other big moves like the Diving Elbow and The World’s Best Back Drop. But Akiyama kept kicking out and fought back with Knee Strikes and Exploder Suplexes. He went to finish him off with the Wrist-Clutch Exploder but Naya blocked it. So Akiyama switched over to the Front Neck Lock and made him give up. Akiyama admits that Naya is better than him at everything now but the difference is 33 years of determination. He will wait for Naya to come fight him again. Naya is now worried about a comment Konosuke Takeshita recently made. If this generation carries on like they are now then they will become the generation that left nothing behind. Naya swears he will get a rematch with Akiyama in 2025 and finally beat him.

The debut of “THE MONSTER” Haruto Sakuraba gave DAMNATION T.A their only victory of the show. His size and power left Yuki Iino shaken when they charged each other in the ring. With that taken care of, KANON & MJ Paul were able to pick off the rest of the other team ending with KANON using the Vietnam Driver II to pin Soma Takao. He praised Sakuraba’a overwhelming size and power while Sakuraba called out for more people to fight him. While HARASHIMA agrees with Sakuraba’a strengths, he pointed out that as a rookie he still has a long way to go. He hopes to see Sakuraba work even harder from now on and will be happy to fight him more anytime.

DDT lost their other inter-promotional match, this time to Tokyo Joshi Pro. Good thing they are all under the same CyberFight umbrella. The TJPW team actually met with the DDT team before the match offering a box of treats. But when Toru Owashi was about to accept it, Pom Harajuku hit all of the DDT wrestler over the head with the box. The match itself got so heated up that management even got involved! Hisaya Imabayashi and Tetsuya Koda fought each other in the ring at different points in the match. Super Sasadango Machine tried to give Hyper Misao the Vertical Drop Lehman Shock but Misao fought him off with her spray can. Antonio Honda tried telling a dirty Gongitsune joked but Koda stopped him for the sake of the TJPW wrestlers. Imabayashi ran in and hit Koda with the Uraken but fell over in the process, giving Koda the chance to hit him with the Finally kick before he collapsed. Misao brought in the Hyper Mobile and crashed it into Honda. The match slowed down and even included a flashback from Honda. The Hyper Mobile returned but Owashi & Sasadango accidentally crashed it into Honda. Rika Tatsumi then hit the Missile Hip to Honda for the victory.

Later backstage Imabayashi told the DDT team that as a result of this match, TJPW will get all of the profits made from today’s show. The wrestlers came up with the excuse that they are all freelancers so none of them are really effected by that. Honda promised to get revenge by winning the Princess Rumble tomorrow. Sasadango then confronted the TJPW team wanting to talk to Misao. He challenged her to a singles match but this time Sasadango will ditch the mask and wrestle as Muscle Sakai! Not only that but he wants the match to happen at Sanshiro Takagi’s 30th Anniversary show on 3rd February. Misao accepted so we are going to get a battle of who has the better sense of humour!

The other celebrity debut was over before it could even begin. Kumadori got to do his entrance with the rest of O-MENZ but seconds into the match Akito attacked him while he was posing while Makoto Oishi immediately pinned Kazuki Hirata. Kumadori complained by telling Akito he shouldn’t be ambushing him like that and Hirata should have practiced more. He didn’t have anything to say about Oishi because he doesn’t care about him. The teams agreed to an instant rematch and this time Kumadori got to put in a performance he was happy with. He landed a Cancun Torndao on Oishi and Hirata jumped on top to get the pinfall. Hirata and O-MENZ then celebrated all together with a victory dance. Kumadori thanked Hirata because the Hirata GO! glasses really were helpful when he needed them.

Shuji Ishikawa got his preparation in for the upcoming 4 Way No. 1 Contender match. He went toe to toe with Daichi Sato while Tomomitsu Matsunaga and Yuki Ishida were trying to sumo wrestle each other. Masahiro Takanashi and Shinichiro Kawamatsu got some ring time against each other too but the match was won by Ishikawa beating Ishida with the Fire Thunder.

The show opened with NωA Jr. performing their debut single “New! Wrestling! Idol!” before two of them went on to wrestle in the first match. Yuni & Sumi’s big day was close to being ruined because DAMNATION T.A almost beat them. But after Ilusion hit the Swanton Bomb on Yuni, Sumi finally found a way to counter Demus’s finisher. He turned La Valagueza into a School Boy to get the three count from out of nowhere. Sumi was so happy with the win he promised to work hard as an idol while also doing his best as a pro wrestler. He also wants to have another singles match with Demus in Mexico or DDT because he knows today’s win was just a fluke.

There were a couple of Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title changes that happened throughout the day. Before the show began Yuki Ishida attacked the champion Yoshihiko in a hallway. Yoshihiko fended him off but Makoto Oishi jumped in and pinned the doll to become the new champion. HARASHIMA saw it happen in the distance so he joined in the fight. Oishi did not want to take the Somato before his match so he gave up and forfeited the belt to HARASHIMA. There was no further title changes until the very end when after the credits, Hirata ambushed HARASHIMA and knocked him out with the Tegatana chop to the neck. Matsui couldn’t revive HARASHIMA so he declared Hirata the new champion.

Hirata then fled with the title but found himself in a dead end inside the shower room. There he found Sanshiro Takagi taking a bath by himself. The two started arguing over Takagi taking a bath while the show was still going on and it turned into a fight. Takagi gave Hirata the Stunner and pinned him in the bath water to end the show as the new Iron Man Champion!

There will be a merchandise collaboration between DDT and the anime “Brave Bang Bravern!” coming soon. DDT will announce more details on the 26th January Korakuen Hall show.

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GANBARE☆PRO “SOME DAY THE SUN WILL SHINE 2024” Results

December 27, 2024

GANBARE☆PRO “SOME DAY THE SUN WILL SHINE 2024”, 27/12/2024
Shinjuku FACE
380 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Yuki Kanzaki & Daisuke®️ defeated Tyson Maeguchi & Shota Kawakami when Kanzaki pinned Kawakami with the Fisherman Buster (12:37).
2. PSYCHO, YuuRI & Banny Oikawa defeated Choun-Shiryu, Moeka Haruhi & HARUKAZE when YuuRI pinned HARUKAZE with the Swanton Bomb (10:18).
3. Munetatsu Nakamura Debut 2nd Anniverary Match – Special Tag Match: Minoru Fujita & Isami Kodaka defeated Ken Ohka & Munetatsu Nakamura when Kodaka pinned Nakamura with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (10:30).
4. Kitsune World Title: MICHIKO defeated Yuna Manase (c) with the Tombstone Piledriver (12:24).
*Yuna Manase fails in V1. MICHIKO becomes the 3rd Kitsune World Champion!
5. Tatsuhito Takaiwa, Shigehiro Irie & Takuya Wada defeated Hartley Jackson, Kouki Iwasaki & Rekka when Wada pinned Rekka with the Assault Point (17:54).
6. Special Single Match: Dick Togo defeated Shuichiro Katsumura with a Jackknife Pin (16:44).
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari defeated Keisuke Ishii (c) with the Lariat (18:13).
*Keisuke Ishii fails in V5. Yumehito Imanari becomes the 8th Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Champion!

For the third year in a row a new Spirit Of Ganbare World Champion has been crowned at the promotion’s final show of the year! Keisuke Ishii had carried the title from the start of Ganbare☆Pro’s independence but today it finally ended by the hands of Yumehito Imanari. Or arms to be exact because Imanari kept hitting Lariat after Lariat until Ishii could no longer fight back. Eventually Imanari hit the move enough times to pin the champion and win the belt. Imanari couldn’t help but cry tears of joy and be thankful for what happened after such a challenging year for the company. GanPro will keep working hard on the road to their Korakuen Hall show celebrating their 12th anniversary on 11th April next year. Backstage Imanari named Yasu Urano as someone he wants to defend the title against. He wants to get revenge for Urano beating him with a Headlock back in 2017.

Dick Togo wasn’t here to pal around with anyone. When his match with Shuichiro Katsumura began he gave him the middle finger instead of a handshake. This wasn’t the House Of Torture version of Togo though. He and Katsumura gave everyone a wrestling match that went back and forth. Katsumura thought he got the upper hand when he rolled on top of a Crossface to pin Togo for a nearfall. But Togo kicked out, went on the counter attack and pinned his opponent with a Jackknife Pin. Katsumura was feeling both frustration and happiness after the match because he wrestled someone he looks up to. He didn’t win but he did feel like he returned to his route today. His goal now is to become the kind of wrestler young fighters will want to challenge. He also accepts that he can’t reach the same level of the main event anymore but he can be happy being a semi-main event wrestler from now on.

Yuna Manase had a grand vision in mind for her Kitsune World Title reign but sadly MICHIKO stopped it before it could even get off the ground. Manase ran in for a Lariat only to get knocked off her feet with an Elbow Strike. MICHIKO then dropped her with the Tombstone Piledriver to become the new champion. But before MICHIKO could leave the ring to celebrate, YuuRI approached her and signaled to everyone that she wants a title shot. MICHIKO told reporters that this is her first ever singles championship and she is happy to win it for GLEAT. She already knows Ganbare☆Joshi and Kitsune will be co-promoting a show in Shin-Kiba 1st RING on 13th January. She wants Manase to know they can have a rematch with or without the title sometime but she’s not sure if she will be available on that date yet. The result gave Manase bad memories because she also lost the International Princess Title in Tokyo Joshi Pro on her first defence. She promises to get the Kitsune Title back and won’t be happy if YuuRI wins it first!

Both Mizuki Watase and Shinichiro Tominaga greeted the fans at the start of the show. The two of them are currently out of action with the same injury but at opposite ends of recovery. Tominaga is almost healed from his ruptured Achilles tendon and will have his return match on 13th January. Watase only just recently suffered the same injury but according to his doctor he is recovering four times faster than a patient normally would.

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Video – Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Konosuke Takeshita From 2014

December 27, 2024


DDT “RYOGOKU PETER PAN 2014 ~MAYBE SUMMER WILL CHANGE MY LIFE~”, 17/08/2014
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
9,100 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

8. Special Single Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Konosuke Takeshita

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Is The New Year The Same As The Old Year?

December 27, 2024

DDT “KOTATSU FIGHTING 2025”, 11/01/2025
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. KOTATSU FIGHTING! Special 6-Man Tag Match: Danshoku Dieno, Yuki Ueno & Jun Akiyama Vs Kazuki Hirata, Soma Takao & Antonio Honda

There is a bit of a change with DDT’s early schedule for 2025. They are using a lot of new event names across the board. It might just be a cosmetic change because the locations and venues they are visiting look to be the usual cities they go to every January.

DDT “OTOSHI-NAGE 2025”, 12/01/2025
Osaka Yodogawa Community Center

1. Yuki Ueno, MAO & To-y Vs Jun Akiyama, Yuki Iino & Kazuma Sumi
2. Special Single Match: Demus Vs Kazuki Hirata
3. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Danshoku Dieno & HARASHIMA

The tag match announcement might foreshadow the first KO-D Openweight Title defence of the year if Chris Brookes is still the champion after this weekend. Both Danshoku Dieno and HARASHIMA are part of the No. 1 Contender 4 Way Match being held on 3rd January.

DDT “NEW YEAR’S☆DOTABA FESTIVAL 2025”, 13/01/2025
Osaka City Oyodo Community Center

1. 3 Way Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Akito Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Special Single Match: Chris Brookes Vs Kazuki Hirata
3. The 37KAMIINA Vs DAMNATION T.A!: Yuki Ueno & MAO Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Demus

This will be the last match of Demus’s current tour of Japan.

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