United Japan Pro Wrestling Is Announced

December 15, 2023

UJPW “UNITED JAPAN PRO WRESTLING”, 06/05/2024
Tokyo Nippon Budokan

I’m going to copy and paste the write up on New Japan’s official English site to explain what’s going on with this new thing called United Japan Pro Wrestling.

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December 15, Tokyo Japan

New Japan Pro-Wrestling today announces that it is one of nine organizations that will constitute United Japan Pro-Wrestling, a new industry group representing professional wrestling in Japan.

Without an industry wide group for professional wrestling in Japan, the unprecedented crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic made it all the more clear that there was a need to consolidate and express accurate information and best operating practices between promotions, as well as to communicate effectively with national and municipal governments. In a bid to better anticipate and adapt to societal changes in the future, nine Japanese promotions at the forefront of pro-wrestling in the country will be be part of a collective industry group (henceforth ‘the Group’).

The members of the Group will maintain their individual business identities and competition in the marketplace, but the Group will provide a space to discuss issues that concern the industry at large, and to exchange information with an interest in maintaining its growth. The formation of the Group will be marked by an event on May 6 2024 in Nippon Budokan under the banner of United Japan Pro-Wrestling.

Mission statement

To further the presence of pro-wrestling and its cultural merit in Japanese society at large, allow professional wrestling to contribute further to cultural and sporting sectors, and work toward continued health and prosperity of the industry.

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic made it apparent that there was a lack of communication and unified approach to event guidelines, and no common point of contact between the industry and national and municipal governments. There was also a desire to discuss issues surrounding wrestler health and safety (including in their online presence), to create a pipeline to other sporting organizations and to further the image of professional wrestling through issues of corporate social responsibility. There was a shared desire between members of the Group to continue existing competition within the marketplace while also sharing relevant information and know-how on these and other socio-economic issues.

Core tenets

Unity and integrity. The Group will be the representative spokesgroup for all of professional wrestling in Japan.
Representation. The Group will be the public facing symbol for the collective whole of professional wrestling in Japan.
Continuity. The Group will have a continuous presence and activity in the future.

As a result, the existence of the Group will be made known worldwide, and its members will be actively engaged in actions of merit.

Activities

Governmental communication and requests
Strengthening connections to other industries and sectors
Sharing resources and practices

Including those related to wrestler health and safety, such as the provision of financial support for wrestlers while injured, and to offer compliance training. Group members will also consolidate event data for historical archive purposes.

Monetization

Any proceeds from the monetized use of iconography shall be split among the Group members. Joint events and festivals will be held.

Group members

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co. Ltd.)
All Japan Pro-Wrestling (All Japan Pro-Wrestling Co. Ltd.)
Pro-Wrestling NOAH (Cyber Fight Co. Ltd.)
DDT Pro-Wrestling (Cyber Fight Co. Ltd.)
Ganbare ☆ Pro-Wrestling (Cyber Fight Co. Ltd.)
Big Japan Pro-Wrestling (Yotsuba Industries Ltd.)
DRAGONGATE (DRAGONGATE Co. Ltd.)
STARDOM (BushiRoad Fight Co. Ltd.)
Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling (Cyber Fight Co. Ltd.)

Further Group members will be considered in future.

Founding chair: Seiji Sakaguchi
Executive office: New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co. Ltd.
Executive chief: Naoki Sugabayashi (Chairman: New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co. Ltd.)

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So we’re giving this another go then. My immediate reaction to the news was memories of the Global Professional Wrestling Alliance from the mid 2000s. The GPWA was a similar concept to this, getting many of the wrestling promotions in Japan to co-operate with each other under one banner. It faded away pretty quickly. The only legacy it left behind was the 2007 Differ Cup tournament (and that isn’t even the 2005 one that was hyped by tape traders from that era). It also stayed around as a piece of trivia in wiki pages for each of the companies involved for years afterwards. So from the jump I’m feeling cynical over UJPW’s chances of establishing itself as an important benchmark for Japanese wrestling.

However the entire wrestling landscape is very different now than it was back then. The scene in Japan is not back to pre-pandemic levels of business and it’s only when times are toughest you will get companies willing to work together in order to spark up some kind of momentum again. I see some instant reaction online that this might be another attempt to close up Japan to WWE but I’m struggling to think that’s the main priority here. WWE’s global expansion plans do seem to be revving up again and their recent ABEMA deal has gotten them more coverage in Japan recently. And of course there’s suddenly more and more rumours about WWE trying to snap up Japan’s biggest names at the nearest opportunity. Yet as I see all this on the horizon I still don’t think it is an immediate threat. What’s happening here with UJPW seems to be the Japanese companies all trying to get their plans in order in regards to challenges much closer to home. It’s more like something to represent the majority of the industry when communicating with government bodies.

But hey, let’s give this thing a shot because at the very least what we’re getting out of it is nine promotions working together for a big show at Budokan Hall next May. Company alliances over the last year have been interesting to follow. New Japan and NOAH have been working together, All Japan and DDT have bee working together. Dragongate mostly keeps to themselves while Big Japan and Ganbare☆Pro are usually full of freelancers and wrestlers from other indies showing up at all times. The most surprising dynamic is Stardom and Tokyo Joshi Pro finally interacting with each other. Getting the isolated promotions like Dragongate and TJPW involved in this is significant. TJPW were not involved at all in the big Joshi show celebrating 60 years of Korkauen Hall that was held in 2022. What on earth kind of matchup are they going to put together if inter-promotional bouts are planned for the show?


Can KANON Steal The Block? GanPro Ready For The New Year, 5th Annual Shoko Vs Misao Match

December 14, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023
The Vermont Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Rika Tatsumi & Amira Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
2. Moka Miyamoto Vs Trish Adora
3. Mizuki Vs Sandra Moone
4. Shoko Nakajima Vs Taya Valkyrie
5. Miu Watanabe Vs Hyan
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta (c) Vs Janai Kai & Shazza McKenzie
7. Special Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly

There were a few speed bumps along the way but tonight is the night Tokyo Joshi Pro is back in America thanks to Prestige!

GANBARE☆JOSHI “GANJO BINARY LAND ’23”, 15/12/2023
Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall

1. GanJo Vs Evo Joshi: Riara Vs ZONES
2. GanJo Vs Evo Joshi: YuuRI Vs Chi Chi
3. Ram Kaichow & Alex Lee Vs Sumire Natsu & Marika Kobashi
4. Tae Honma & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Yuu & Banny Oikawa

Yoshiko Hasegawa gets to main event the final Ganbare☆Joshi show of 2023.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN FUKUOKA”, 16/12/2023
Fukuoka Nishitetsu Hall

0. Dark Match – Kyushu Sangyo University Pro Wrestling Research Department Offer Match: Ionazun Shirai & Tiger Nishiya Mask Vs Great Tamu & Occult Daimao
1. Special 6-Man Tag Match: MAO, Toy Kojima & Van Vert Jack Vs Azul Dragon, Akito & Kazuma Sumi
2. Yukio Sakaguchi & Soma Takao Vs Yukio Naya & Yusuke Okada
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi Vs Hideki Okatani, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno (2) Vs HARASHIMA (2)
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo (4) Vs Daisuke Sasaki (1)
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Kazusada Higuchi (4) Vs Yuki Iino (3)
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Chris Brookes (2) Vs Kazuki Hirata (0)
8. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: KANON (4) Vs Rei Saito (4)

It’s still a close race in the A Block but if KANON pulls off a second upset in a row he will suddenly find himself on top of the B Block! Rei Saito needs to win this or he will not be able to qualify for the final.

Kazuki Hirata’s last block match is against Chris Brookes. Lost this and Hirata ends the tournament with the wooden spoon award. A win though will save him some face, even if it’s just by a little bit.

BASARA “BASARA 238 ~UTAGE~”, 19/12/2023
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Takumi Tsukamoto & SAGAT Vs Yasu Urano & Masahiro Takanashi
2. 3 Way Match: Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Gouma Ryu Vs A.YAZAWA
3. Ryota Nakatsu & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino
4. FUMA, KUBITO & Daichi Kazato Vs Lil’ Kraken, Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga
5. Isami Kodaka & Minoru Fujita Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Munetatsu Nakamura

This is the last BASARA show of the year. The main event sees Sento Minzoku’s top two facing the visitors from Ganbare☆Pro. Just over a week later Isami Kodaka and Shuichiro Katsumura will fight at the main event of GanPro’s end of year Korakuen Hall show.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN KORAKUEN HALL”, 24/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal ~ Toru Owashi Return Match: The Great Koji (c) Vs Toru Owashi Vs Sanshiro Takagi Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Akito Vs Yusuke Okada Vs Yuki Ishida Va Kazuma Sumi Vs Rukiya Vs Open Recruitment X
2. Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs KANON & MJ Paul
3. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno Vs Yuki Iino
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo Vs Kazusada Higuchi
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Daisuke Sasaki Vs HARASHIMA
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Chris Brookes Vs Rei Saito
8. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: MAO Vs Yukio Naya

Toru Owashi admits he is more worried about the mental stress of being in the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title Battle Royal for his return match rather than the physical stress. He knows his best skill is managing traffic during chaotic matches but the appearance of this new guy called The Great Koji has him a little concerned the pressure will be too much to handle. Owashi thinks he can beat Koji to win the Iron Man Title but to be honest, he doesn’t really want it.

GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2023”, 27/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Yuko Miyamoto Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
2. Sumire Natsu, YuuRI & Riara Vs HARUKAZE, Makoto & Banny Oikawa
3. Special Single Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Arisu Endo
4. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Kuma Arashi
5. GanPro Vs GLEAT All Out Battle ~ GanPro’s Famous Elimination 10-Man Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari, Takuya Wada, Mizuki Watase, Shinichiro Tominaga & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Kaz Hayashi, Minoru Tanaka, Takanori Ito, Check Shimatani & Jun Tonsho
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Shota & Soma Takao (c) Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shuichiro Katsumura

During the week Ken Ohka & Keisuke Ishii travelled to the All Japan dojo in Yokohama so they could train for a few hours with Shuji Ishikawa. The three of them have ties going back to Union Pro. Ishii invaded the promotion and kicked Ohka out of Union by winning a Loser Leaves Town match. Ohka went on to form GanPro and started a war with Union and Ishikawa. A lot of time has passed since then and Ohka is proud to see how far all three of them have advanced since then. The training session included Ishikawa coming up with ideas to improve Ohka’s finisher the Fire Spear. The move has been countered a lot by Ohka’s current enemy Kuma Arashi in their recent matches. Ishikawa and Ishii instructed Ohka new ways to use the Spear so there will be less opportunities for it to be countered. By the end of the session Ohka can now hit the Spear with more accuracy, less momentum and also from a shorter range.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 THE FINAL”, 03/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. New Year’s GiFt Special Single Match: Kuroshio TOKYO Japan Vs Danshoku Dieno
2. Special Tag Match ~ Shunma Katsumata Return Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs Shunma Katsumata & Toy Kojima
3. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – Final: Winner Of A Block Vs Winner Of B Block

Shunma Katsumata revealed the reason why he wanted Eruption to be his opponents for his return match. 2024 is going to be Katsumata’s 10th year in wrestling and Yukio Sakaguchi was one of his opponents in his debut match. So Katsumata wants to kick off his tenth year by fighting his very first pro opponent again. He is impressed by how well Hideki Okatani performed in the Real World Tag League. And finally Katsumata appreciates all the hard work Toy Kojima did to protect The 37KAMIINA while he was recovering at home. Katsumata also has his eyes on winning back the DDT Extreme Title and KO-D Tag Team Titles in 2024.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’24”, 04/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Aja Kong Vs Wakana Uehara
2. Shoko Nakajima Vs Hyper Misao
3. Rina Yamashita Vs Maki Itoh
4. International Princess Title: Max The Impaler (c) Vs Yuki Arai
5. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Masha Slamovich

The Ittenyon tradition continues with the fifth annual Shoko Nakajima Vs Hyper Misao singles match! Nothing extra has been announced yet but there is always a wacky stipulation attached to these matches. The first two matches also had the winner change the loser’s name for a month but they stopped doing that for the third and fourth matches in order to keep the harmony within Kyoraku Kyomei for the upcoming Max Heart Tournament. Giving one of them an identity crisis right before the big tag team tournament is not a good idea.

Ryo Mizunami will be on the show.

GANBARE☆PRO “2024 GANBARE☆THE FIGHT BEGINS”, 04/01/2024
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. YuuRI & Riara Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa & Kaho Matsushita
2. Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE Vs Shigehiro Irie & Banny Oikawa
3. New Year Special 3 Way Match: Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Yuni Vs Ilusion
4. GanPro New Year Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Yumehito Imanari Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Soma Takao
5. GanPro New Year Special Tag Match: Ken Ohka & Mizuki Watase Vs Shota & Shinichiro Tominaga

The first GanPro show of 2024 features a new generation 3 Way Match reuniting several members of DDTeeeen!! It’s time for Munetatsu Nakamura, Yuni and Ilusion to all show each other how much they have learned since they were last in the ring with each other.

Also on the show is the return of Lethal Weapon! The duo of Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE have arguably been the top mixed tag team in GanPro. That makes them the perfect opponents for Banny Oikawa who is continuing down her path of intergender tag wrestling. She teams with Shigehiro Irie.

Kaho Matsushita is from Ice Ribbon. That company just announced a restructure with new investments attached to them so it might be an interesting story to see what they can do in 2024.

GANBARE☆PRO “GANPRO 2024 ROSIER”, 06/01/2024
Osaka 176BOX

1. Legendary Hostess Vs The Toughest Girl In Osaka: Riara Vs Momoka Hanazono
2. Banny Oikawa & YuuRI Vs HARUKAZE & Yoshiko Hasegawa
3. Yumehito Imanari & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Soma Takao & Mizuki Watase
4. Keisuke Ishii & Shota Vs Ilusion & Munetatsu Nakamura
5. GanPro New Year Special 6-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Ken Ohka & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Shuichiro Katsumura, Takuya Wada & Tsuyoshi Okada

HARASHIMA joins in with GanPro’s new year celebrations.

Warning, everybody involved in Match #3 all like to drink a lot of alcohol.


Toyonaka City Getting Represented, Explosion Match For All Asia Tag Titles

December 11, 2023

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024 TOUR IN OSAKA DAY 1”, 06/01/2024
Osaka 176BOX

1. Kazusada Higuchi Vs Rukiya
2. Special 3 Way Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Sanshiro Takagi Vs Shunma Katsumata
3. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles – DEAD OR ALIVE Contra DEAD OR ALIVE: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Bodyguard, Naruki Doi & Tsutenkakka

This will be Shunma Katsumata’s first match in Osaka since coming back from injury.

Osaka local Rukiya is showing some guts by challenging Kazusada Higuchi to a singles match.

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024 TOUR IN OSAKA DAY 2”, 07/01/2024
Osaka 176BOX

1. Special Single Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Danshoku Dieno
2. Special Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Rukiya Vs HARASHIMA & Kazuma Sumi

Both Sanshiro Takagi & Rukiya are from Toyonaka so they decided to try out as a team together while DDT is in Osaka.

DDT “NEW YEAR’S CURRENT BLAST! 2024”, 14/01/2024
Kanagawa Tsurumi Fruit & Vegetable Market

1. All Asia Tag Team Titles – Current Blast Death Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani (c) Vs Atsushi Onita & Toy Kojima

Toy Kojima came out and challenged Eruption for the All Asia Tag Team Titles over the weekend with Atsushi Onita planned to be his tag partner. Yukio Sakaguchi was not interested with the idea in the least but Hideki Okatani was open to it as long as Kojima could raise the stakes higher. Since Kojima & Onita were already planning to team together again next month for another Current Blast Death Match, Kojima decided that can be where the title bout takes place! Eruption agreed and the challenge was signed off by the PWF commission. The PWF still has Dory Funk Jr. as its president so I can only imagine he was asked to sanction an exploding death match for the belts and he replied “yeah, that makes a lot of sense.”


TJPW Title Defences In North America, Something By DISASTER BOX, An Unpaid Debt Between MAO & Keith

December 8, 2023

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN OSAKA”, 09/12/2023
Osaka Azalea Taisho Hall

1. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Iino & Rukiya
2. Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi Vs Akito & Kazuma Sumi
3. Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada Vs MAO, Toy Kojima & Ilusion
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Kazuki Hirata (0) Vs Rei Saito (2)
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Yukio Naya (6) Vs KANON (2)
6. All Asia Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani (c) Vs Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Kazusada Higuchi (2) Vs HARASHIMA (2)
8. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno (3) Vs Tetsuya Endo (2)

The D-Oh Grand Prix continues tomorrow. A Block still has everyone in the race so it’s only fair to have Yuki Ueno Vs Tetsuya Endo and Kazusada Higuchi Vs HARASHIMA be the top two matches of the show. But over in B Block Yukio Naya is one more step towards cleaning up the entire group if he beats KANON. The Kazuki Hirata Vs Rei Saito match is pretty much just for pride at this point. Not that Hirata has that much pride to begin with but you know what I mean.

Eruption are also back from the Real World Tag League looking to shake off their middle of the table finish. They might have a long line of challengers forming up in front of them so they need to retain the All Asia Tag Team Titles against BURNING if they have any intention of dealing with that.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’24”, 04/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Aja Kong Vs Wakana Uehara
2. Rina Yamashita Vs Maki Itoh
3. International Princess Title: Max The Impaler (c) Vs Yuki Arai
4. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Masha Slamovich

Last night in the space of about half an hour there were two Tokyo Joshi Pro title matches taking place in North America. Over in Quebec, Canada Max The Impaler had a surprise International Princess Title defence at the Mystery Wrestling show put together by Evil Uno. Max defeated Jody Threat in the semi-main event. Word of the match reached back to TJPW and they officially recognize it as Max’s third successful title defence. That now means if Max beats Yuki Arai on 4th January they will tie the current record for most IP Title defences in a single reign at four wins.

Then as soon as that match had finished Miyu Yamashita was entering the ring in New York, USA to defend the Princess Of Princess Title against Delmi Exo at an MLW show. She won that match to earn her second defence in this latest title run. Maki Itoh was also on the show but she lost to Janai Kai in a match for the MLW World Featherweight Title. I’ll write more about the matches on the next DDT Around The World article at the start of next month.

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024 TOUR IN SHINJUKU”, 05/01/2024
Shinjuku FACE

1. Something by HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata, etc.: X Vs X
2. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno, MAO, Shunma Katsumata, Toy Kojima & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda, Takeshi Masada & Mecha Mummy

The three main members of DISASTER BOX are all putting their heads together to book something for DDT’s first visit to Shinjuku FACE in 2024. Whatever it is the three of them will be involved along with others.

GANBARE☆PRO “GANPRO 2024 ROSIER”, 06/01/2024
Osaka 176BOX

1. Legendary Hostess Vs The Toughest Girl In Osaka: Riara Vs Momoka Hanazono

When Ganbare☆Pro heads to Osaka in the new year Riara takes on Momoka Hanazono. This joshi wrestler’s nickname may not match with all of the flowers and bubbles she surrounds herself with but it is still accurate. Hanazono has a background in rugby before becoming a pro wrestler.

HARASHIMA, Soma Takao, Ilusion, Tyson Maeguchi and Banny Oikawa will all be on the show.

DDT “NEW YEAR FAN APPRECIATION DAY!”, 20/01/2024
Tokyo Shinagawa Prince Hotel Club eX

1. Special 6-Man Tag Match: MAO, Shunma Katsumata & Toi Kojima Vs Bryan Keith, Soma Takao & Shota

Three days of DDT appearances await for Bryan Keith in the new year. He makes his Japanese wrestling debut here by teaming with ROMANCE DAWN against The 37KAMIINA. Keith was an opponent for Shota during Shota’s US excursion last year.

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024 TOUR IN SHINAGAWA”, 21/01/2024
Tokyo Shinagawa Prince Hotel Club eX

1. DDT Universal Title: MAO (c) Vs Bryan Keith

The next day Keith gets the match MAO has been demanding. The DDT Universal Title is on the line for this rematch from West Coast Pro during the summer. Keith won the first battle and MAO wants revenge! What happens to a bounty hunter when it’s time for them to repay a debt?

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024”, 28/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Naruki Doi

Keith’s third and last appearance on this tour will be at Korakuen Hall near the end of the month.


TJPW Lottery Line Up, New Year’s Eve 1st Round Matches, Ittenyon Updates, Bryan Keith Heading To DDT

December 7, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023
The Vermont Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Rika Tatsumi & Amira Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
2. Moka Miyamoto Vs Trish Adora
3. Mizuki Vs Sandra Moone
4. Shoko Nakajima Vs Taya Valkyrie
5. Miu Watanabe Vs Hyan
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta (c) Vs Janai Kai & Shazza McKenzie
7. Special Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly

Ok so now The Globe Theater actually is closed down. For real this time. Prestige announced the event is now taking place at The Vermont Hollywood. The show will airing as a PPV on Wrestle Universe with English commentary from Jordan Castle and Veda Scott.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~KASUKABE PERFORMANCE~”, 17/12/2023
Saitama Kasukabe Fureai Cube

1. 3 Way Match: Yuki Kamifuku Vs Shino Suzuki Vs Runa Okubo
2. Arisu Endo Vs Haru Kazashiro
3. Hyper Misao Vs Kaya Toribami
4. Mahiro Kiryu Vs Wakana Uehara
5. Suzume Vs HIMAWARI
6. Shoko Nakajima Vs Toga
7. Raku Vs Juria Nagano
8. Yuki Aino Vs Pom Harajuku
9. Miu Watanabe Vs Moka Miyamoto
10. Maki Itoh Vs Hikari Noa

The fan lottery was held yesterday to determine the matchups. Maki Itoh Vs Hikari Noa main events the show but the other match to take note of is Yuki Aino Vs Pom Harajuku. The two of them have spent the last year closely linked together along with Raku so that friendship needs to be pushed aside for up to seven minutes.

“NEW YEAR’S EVE PRO WRESTLING 2023 ~TOSHIWASURE! SHUFFLE 6-MAN TAG TOURNAMENT~”, 31/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1A: HARASHIMA, Kota Sekifuda & Yuji Hino Vs Takeshi Masada, Yuya Aoki & Koji Iwamoto
2. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1B: Kazusada Higuchi, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Kohei Kinoshita Vs Chris Brookes, Kazumasa Yoshida & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
3. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1C: Yukio Naya, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Minoru Suzuki Vs Danshoku Dieno, Daichi Hashimoto & Ikuto Hidaka
4. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1D: Hideki Okatani, Yuki Ishikawa & Brahman Shu (w/ Brahman Kei) Vs Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sekimoto & Fuminori Abe
5. So Daimonji, Ender Kara, Leyton Buzzard & Tempesta Vs Kazumi Kikuta, Kazuki Hashimoto, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
6. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: Winners Of Match 1A Vs Winners Of Match 1B
7. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: Winners Of Match 1C Vs Winners Of Match 1D
8. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda Vs Takuya Nomura, Abdullah Kobayashi & Kankuro Hoshino
9. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Final: X, X & X Vs X, X & X

Bati Bati F’N In The Sky: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sekimoto & Fuminori Abe
Big Bombers Kai: Yukio Naya, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Minoru Suzuki
Team Katagi Returns: Kazusada Higuchi, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Kohei Kinoshita
Anal Destruction Hidaka: Danshoku Dieno, Daichi Hashimoto & Ikuto Hidaka
The Kind People: Chris Brookes, Kazumasa Yoshida & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
Lonely Hot College Students: Takeshi Masada, Yuya Aoki & Koji Iwamoto
Smile Lizard King Kong: HARASHIMA, Kota Sekifuda & Yuji Hino
Go For It! The Three Inokori Brothers: Hideki Okatani, Yuki Ishikawa & Brahman Shu (w/ Brahman Kei)

The Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament is out. Round 1 has Smile Lizard King Kong versus Lonely Hot College Students first, Team Katagi Returns versus The Kind People second, Big Bombers Kai versus Anal Destruction Hidaka third and Go For It! The Three Inokori Brothers versus Bati Bati F’N In The Sky last.

There are two non-tournament matches. The big one is the DDT team of Yuki Ueno, Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda against the Big Japan trio of Takuya Nomura, Abdullah Kobayashi & Kankuro Hoshino. The other match has DDT and Big Japan joining forces to fight the international unit PROJECT: HAVOC. That group has been a thorn in Big Japan’s side for a couple of months now.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 THE FINAL”, 03/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. New Year’s GiFt Special Single Match: Kuroshio TOKYO Japan Vs Danshoku Dieno
2. Special Tag Match ~ Shunma Katsumata Return Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs Shunma Katsumata & Toy Kojima
3. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – Final: Winner Of A Block Vs Winner Of B Block

DDT’s gift for their fans to open up 2024 is a match between Kuroshio TOKYO Japan and Danshoku Dieno… Did they keep the receipt?

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’24”, 04/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Aja Kong Vs Wakana Uehara
2. Rina Yamashita Vs Maki Itoh
3. International Princess Title: Max The Impaler (c) Vs Yuki Arai
4. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Masha Slamovich

The two new matches announced for the Tokyo Joshi Pro Ittenyon show can all be traced back to this year’s Ittenyon show. Max The Impaler will defend the International Princess Title against Yuki Arai. This past January Max took the Princess Tag Team Titles from Arai. But now one year later the roles will be reversed and Arai has a chance to beat Max to take away their championship.

On the first anniversary of her pro debut, Wakana Uehara gets to fight Aja Kong! This is the Uehara’s reward for winning the Next Generation Tournament. The two have a little bit of history going back to before Uehara’s debut. When she was on the Youtube series Yume Pro Wrestling -dream on the ring- there was an episode with Kong as the special guest trainer. Then at “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV” in October Kong beat Uehara in a 6-Woman Tag match. Uehara is still excited for the match though and wants to show Kong how much she has grown as a wrestler.

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024”, 28/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Naruki Doi

DDT announced the first two dates for Konosuke Takeshita’s return in 2024. The first is a big singles match against Naruki Doi on DDT’s second Korakuen Hall show of the year. The second date is for “JUDGEMENT 2024” at Korakuen on 17th March.

Bryan Keith is coming to DDT in January! “The Bounty Hunter” will be at shows on 20th, 21st and 28th January. The announcement of his appearance immediately got MAO’s attention. They fought each other at West Coast Pro in America back in July with Keith coming out as the winner. MAO wants to avenge that loss and might use the DDT Universal Title as the reward to convince Keith into taking a rematch.


Yuka About To Say Goodbye, Princess Tag Title Match In LA, GanPro Vs GLEAT Teams

December 5, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO WRESTLING 10TH ANNIVERSARY PERFORMANCE ~YUKA SAKAZAKI GRADUATION SPECIAL~”, 06/12/2023
Tokyo Kitazawa Town Hall

1. Wakana Uehara, Shino Suzuki & Runa Okubo Vs HIMAWARI, Toga & Haru Kazashiro
2. Miu Watanabe, Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Yuki Kamifuku, Mahiro Kiryu & Kaya Toribami
3. Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta, Mizuki & Moka Miyamoto Vs Hyper Misao. Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
4. Yuka Sakazaki & Rika Tatsumi Vs Antonio Honda & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
5. Yuka Sakazaki Graduation Special 3 Way Match: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Shoko Nakajima

Tomorrow is the final day of Yuka Sakazaki as a Tokyo Joshi Pro wrestler and it is in the same venue where she had her debut match a decade ago.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Rika Tatsumi & Amira Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
2. Moka Miyamoto Vs Trish Adora
3. Mizuki Vs Sandra Moone
4. Shoko Nakajima Vs Taya Valkyrie
5. Miu Watanabe Vs Hyan
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta (c) Vs Janai Kai & Shazza McKenzie
7. Special Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly

The Princess Tag Team Champions want to defend the belts in America! Free WiFi made the request after their recent title defence last week and it’s been accepted. They were originally scheduled to face Janai Kai & Johnnie Robbie in Los Angeles but Robbie pulled out with an injury. Shazza McKenzie will now take her place and could become a TJPW champion in her first appearance with them.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~KASUKABE PERFORMANCE~”, 17/12/2023
Saitama Kasukabe Fureai Cube

1. 3 Way Match: X Vs X Vs X
2. X Vs X
3. X Vs X
4. X Vs X
5. X Vs X
6. X Vs X
7. X Vs X
8. X Vs X
9. X Vs X
10. X Vs X

Participants: Hikari Noa, Shoko Nakajima, Maki Itoh, Yuki Kamifuku, Hyper Misao, Yuki Aino, Miu Watanabe, Raku, Pom Harajuku, Mahiro Kiryu, Suzume, Moka Miyamoto, Arisu Endo, Kaya Toribami, Wakana Uehara, HIMAWARI, Shino Suzuki, Toga, Haru Kazashiro, Runa Okubo and Juria Nagano

A schedule conflict means Nao Kakuta will not be part of this show after all. So instead of 11 matches the show will have 10 with one being a 3 Way Match. It could be anywhere on the card. I’m just placing it as Match #1 for convenience sake.

GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2023”, 27/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Yuko Miyamoto Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
2. Sumire Natsu, YuuRI & Riara Vs HARUKAZE, Makoto & Banny Oikawa
3. Special Single Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Arisu Endo
4. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Kuma Arashi
5. GanPro Vs GLEAT All Out Battle ~ GanPro’s Famous Elimination 10-Man Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari, Takuya Wada, Mizuki Watase, Shinichiro Tominaga & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Kaz Hayashi, Minoru Tanaka, Takanori Ito, Check Shimatani & Jun Tonsho
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Shota & Soma Takao (c) Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shuichiro Katsumura

The KO-D Tag Team Champions also took control of where they wanted to defend their belts next. ROMANCE DAWN have used their title reign to have matches against other wrestlers from the Young Communication generation of the indies. It continues in Ganbare☆Pro because their match here against Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie now has the belts on the line! Ishii & Irie once held the titles together back in the winter of 2011.

Over the last few days videos were being sent in thick and fast to both GanPro and GLEAT from wrestlers volunteering to take part in the inter-promotional 10-Man Tag. Some were doing it out of pride for their home company while others were either calling out rivals from the other side or accepting challenges from them. Yumehito Imanari’s team includes Takuya Wada, Mizuki Watase, Shinichiro Tominaga & Tyson Maeguchi all ready to fight for GanPro’s burning spirit. The GLEAT visitors consists of Kaz Hayashi, Minoru Tanaka, Takanori Ito, former DDT wrestler Check Shimatani & Jun Tonsho. The match itself is Elimination rules where you are taken out of the match by either pinfall, submission or being thrown over the top rope and out of the ring.


D-Oh Halfway Point, Some Unique TJPW Shows, GanJo Vs Evo Joshi, 10-Man Titles Return

December 4, 2023

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN OSAKA”, 09/12/2023
Osaka Azalea Taisho Hall

1. Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada Vs MAO, Toy Kojima & Ilusion
2. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Iino & Rukiya
3. Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi Vs Akito & Kazuma Sumi
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno (3) Vs Tetsuya Endo (2)
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Kazusada Higuchi (2) Vs HARASHIMA (2)
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Yukio Naya (6) Vs KANON (2)
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Kazuki Hirata (0) Vs Rei Saito (2)
8. All Asia Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani (c) Vs Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada

We’re around the halfway point of the D-Oh Grand Prix. It’s too early to predict how the A Block is going to go. The B Block is a different manner. If Yukio Naya beats KANON then only MAO can potentially compete with him for the spot in the final. Rei Saito can also catch up on points but Naya already has the tiebreaker advantage over him. It’s a must win for KANON to remain in the race. Chris Brookes is teetering on the edge while Kazuki Hirata is the first wrestler who is already mathematically out of the tournament.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW AQUARIUM PRO WRESTLING IN YOKOHAMA HAKKEIJIMA SEA PARADISE”, 10/12/2023
Yokohama Hakkeijima Sea Paradise

1. X Vs X

Before the year ends Tokyo Joshi Pro has a surprise gift for everybody. They recently recorded a Street Wrestling match held inside the Hakkeijima Sea Paradise aquarium in Yokohama. Twelve TJPW wrestlers were split into two teams for the competition and the winners received “luxery prizes”. The participants were Yuka Sakazaki, Mizuki, Rika Tatsumi, Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao, Nao Kakuta, Miu Watanabe, Raku, Suzume, Arisu Endo, Yuki Arai and HIMAWARI. The video is being shown on Wrestle Universe as a PPV.

GANBARE☆JOSHI “GANJO BINARY LAND ’23”, 15/12/2023
Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall

1. Ram Kaichow & Alex Lee Vs Sumire Natsu & Marika Kobashi
2. Tae Honma & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Yuu & Banny Oikawa
3. GanJo Vs Evo Joshi: Riara Vs ZONES
4. GanJo Vs Evo Joshi: YuuRI Vs Chi Chi

A new challenge is coming to Ganbare☆Joshi. This year saw the launch of a new women’s wrestling group called Evolution. Three women debuted as pro wrestlers with Suwama from All Japan helping oversee the project. One of the three recently retired due to injury but the other two have kept at it and will soon visit GanJo. Chi Chi gets the bigger challenge by being put in the main event against YuuRI. The other match has the eye-catching ZONES taking on Riara.

Yuu returns to GanJo for the first time since 2020.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN FUKUOKA”, 16/12/2023
Fukuoka Nishitetsu Hall

0. Dark Match – Kyushu Sangyo University Pro Wrestling Research Department Offer Match: Ionazun Shirai & Tiger Nishiya Mask Vs Great Tamu & Occult Daimao
1. Special 6-Man Tag Match: MAO, Toy Kojima & Van Vert Jack Vs Azul Dragon, Akito & Kazuma Sumi
2. Yukio Sakaguchi & Soma Takao Vs Yukio Naya & Yusuke Okada
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi Vs Hideki Okatani, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno Vs HARASHIMA
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo Vs Daisuke Sasaki
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yuki Iino
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Chris Brookes Vs Kazuki Hirata
8. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: KANON Vs Rei Saito

A small change with Yuya Koroku being out injured. Since he can’t take part in a 6-Man Tag Match, Rukiya also gets removed to keep the teams even.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN KUMAMOTO”, 17/12/2023
Kumamoto Sakurajuji Hall Yatsushiro Multipurpose Hall

1. Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs Soma Takao & Kazuma Sumi
2. Danshoku Dieno, Makoto Oishi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Chris Brookes, Akito & Takeshi Masada
3. Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada Vs HARASHIMA, Yukio Naya & Rukiya
4. The 37KAMIINA Vs Harimao!: Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Iino
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: MAO Vs KANON

The first three matches on this show have been changed around too because of Koroku’s injury.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~KASUKABE PERFORMANCE~”, 17/12/2023
Saitama Kasukabe Fureai Cube

1. X Vs X
2. X Vs X
3. X Vs X
4. X Vs X
5. X Vs X
6. X Vs X
7. X Vs X
8. X Vs X
9. X Vs X
10. X Vs X
11. X Vs X

A special format is being used for TJPW’s final visit to Saitama this year. A fan lottery on 6th December will choose the entire card for this event. Every match will be a singles match with just a seven minute time limit. The 22 participants are Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta, Shoko Nakajima, Maki Itoh, Yuki Kamifuku, Hyper Misao, Yuki Aino, Miu Watanabe, Raku, Pom Harajuku, Mahiro Kiryu, Suzume, Moka Miyamoto, Arisu Endo, Kaya Toribami, Wakana Uehara, HIMAWARI, Shino Suzuki, Toga, Haru Kazashiro, Runa Okubo and Juria Nagano.

GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2023”, 27/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Sumire Natsu, YuuRI & Riara Vs HARUKAZE, Makoto & Banny Oikawa
2. Yuko Miyamoto Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
3. GanPro Vs GLEAT All Out Battle: Yumehito Imanari, Shinichiro Tominaga, X, X & X Vs Kaz Hayashi, X, X, X & X
4. Special Tag Match: Shota & Soma Takao Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie
5. Special Single Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Arisu Endo
6. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Kuma Arashi
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shuichiro Katsumura

Slowly but surely wrestlers are signing up for the Ganbare☆Pro Vs GLEAT match. Kaz Hayashi has answered Yumehito Imanari’s request for him to be involved in the match. Imanari has also added Shinichiro Tominaga to the GanPro team.

Munetatsu Nakamura is a fan of Yuko Miyamoto so GanPro is getting them together for a match.

Both YuuRI & Riara have been developing a sister-like relationship with Sumire Natsu in GanJo throughout this year. Let’s see how the three can work together as a “family” against HARUKAZE, Makoto & Banny Oikawa.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 THE FINAL”, 03/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Special Tag Match ~ Shunma Katsumata Return Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs Shunma Katsumata & Toy Kojima
2. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – Final: Winner Of A Block Vs Winner Of B Block

Jun Saito has been added to the show. So if Rei Saito doesn’t make it to the final expect The Saito Brothers to team up for a match instead.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’24”, 04/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Rina Yamashita Vs Maki Itoh
2. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Masha Slamovich

A rematch from GCW is happening at the Ittenyon show. Rina Yamashita beat Maki Itoh in America back in June. Will Itoh’s pizza cutter make its first appearance in TJPW?

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024 TOUR IN SHINJUKU”, 05/01/2024
Shinjuku FACE

1. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno, MAO, Shunma Katsumata, Toy Kojima & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda, Takeshi Masada & Mecha Mummy

Over the weekend SCHADENFREUDE International made it known they want to fight for the dormant KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles. They even have Mecha Mummy with them to be the fifth member of their team. The titles still belong to The 37KAMIINA & Shinya Aoki despite not being defended since June 2022. The match is booked for 5th January but DDT found out Aoki is currently unavailable because he is busy training for an MMA fight against Sage Northcutt. Luckily the championship has a rule where the champion team can temporarily replace up to two members and still be eligible to defend the titles. For this match Aoki is being replaced by Yoshihiko! For statistical purposes, should the champions win it counts as a successful defence for Aoki not Yoshihiko.


Pompaler Get Good Fortune, Sakazaki’s Graduation Match, Akito Jealous Of ROMANCE DAWN

November 30, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO WRESTLING 10TH ANNIVERSARY PERFORMANCE ~WE ARE TJPW~”, 01/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Juria Nagano, Shino Suzuki & Haru Kazashiro Vs Kaya Toribami, Toga & Runa Okubo
2. Hyper Misao & Mahiro Kiryu Vs Yuki Aino & Raku
3. Next Generation Tournament ’23 – Final: HIMAWARI Vs Wakana Uehara
4. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Viva Van
5. Princess Tag Team Titles: Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta (c) Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
6. 10th Anniversary Special 10-Woman Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima, Yuka Sakazaki, Rika Tatsumi & Mizuki Vs Miu Watanabe, Yuki Arai, Suzume, Moka Miyamoto & Arisu Endo

A press conference was held today for the two title matches taking place tomorrow. There was a contract signing for the Princess Tag Team Titles but Max The Impaler did not show up on time. Free WiFi and Pom Harajuku went ahead with signing the contract and giving their opinions about the match. Harajuku said this is her second time challenging for the title and she wanted to be stronger this time. She came up with an idea to buy an expensive pair of high heeled shoes to make her taller and feel bigger. At this point Max arrived at the building and stormed into the room looking to fight Nao Kakuta. Max then smeared ink onto the contract with their thumb (that counts as a signature) and left with Harajuku. Hikari Noa talked about her idea of taming Max the same way she tames her big pet dog at home. Kakuta thinks they shouldn’t leave their guard down against Harajuku so their plan should be to keep Pompaler apart from each other. Free WiFi are feeling the pressure of being the defending champions at the 10th Anniversary show. Meanwhile Pompaler went to the Kanda Myojin Shrine to get their fortune told. The fortune they got was a great one, predicting they will win easily tomorrow.

Yuki Kamifuku and Viva Van were also at the press conference to talk about the Queen Of Asia Title Match. Van spoke about being a Vietnamese-American wrestler coming to Japan to make history. While she is proud to be a part of Tokyo Joshi Pro’s 10th Anniversary show and got along with Kamifuku when they teamed together last weekend, she is also a belt collector and here to win. Kamifuku talked about wrestling in other Asian countries this year. She is steadily becoming fulfilled about what she wants to do as a wrestler. Her goal now is defending the Queen Of Asia Title as a proper champion in order to raise its value while spreading the word of TJPW across the continent. She thinks Van is gorgeous and is looking forward to the match because it will be between two beautiful Asian women. She is worried about damaging her nails though.

The 10-Woman Tag main event is Best 2-Out-3 Falls with a 60 minute time limit.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN SHINJUKU DAY 1”, 02/12/2023
Shinjuku FACE

1. Special 8-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, Toy Kojima, Takeshi Masada & Kazuma Sumi Vs Jun Akiyama, Yuki Iino, Yusuke Okada & Rukiya
2. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo (0) Vs HARASHIMA (0)
3. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Kazusada Higuchi (0) Vs Daisuke Sasaki (0)
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Chris Brookes (0) Vs KANON (2)
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: MAO (2) Vs Kazuki Hirata (0)
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Yukio Naya (2) Vs Rei Saito (2)
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Soma Takao & Shota (c) Vs Toru Sugiura & Akito

The KO-D Tag Team Titles have never been held by Akito and he wants to change that fact. Toru Sugiura is one of his longest known friends going back to their days in Nagoya where they got their starts at separate wrestling groups in the area. Seeing ROMANCE DAWN win the tag titles made Akito jealous because he is currently not in a unit or teaming with a close friend. That’s why he chose Sugiura to be his partner for the title match. If they become champions then Akito wants to do a tag title defence in a similar style to a DDT Extreme Title defence.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO WRESTLING 10TH ANNIVERSARY PERFORMANCE ~YUKA SAKAZAKI GRADUATION SPECIAL~”, 06/12/2023
Tokyo Kitazawa Town Hall

1. Wakana Uehara, Shino Suzuki & Runa Okubo Vs HIMAWARI, Toga & Haru Kazashiro
2. Miu Watanabe, Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Yuki Kamifuku, Mahiro Kiryu & Kaya Toribami
3. Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta, Mizuki & Moka Miyamoto Vs Hyper Misao. Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
4. Yuka Sakazaki & Rika Tatsumi Vs Antonio Honda & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
5. Yuka Sakazaki Graduation Special 3 Way Match: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Shoko Nakajima

TJPW will be saying goodbye to Yuka Sakazaki with not one but two matches on her graduation day. First Sakazaki teams with Rika Tatsumi for a tag match against Antonio Honda & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi. All four people used to be together in an entertainment group called DPG (Dramatic Perfect Group). The group were also involved with the TJPW launch show ten years ago so it is a fitting way to send Sakazaki off. However she will have a second match in the main event against the other two longest serving members of TJPW. It’s a 3 Way Match against Miyu Yamashita and Shoko Nakajima!

TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Rika Tatsumi & Amira Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
2. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Janai Kai & Shazza McKenzie
3. Moka Miyamoto Vs Trish Adora
4. Mizuki Vs Sandra Moone
5. Shoko Nakajima Vs Taya Valkyrie
6. Miu Watanabe Vs Hyan
7. Special Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly

Johnnie Robbie is out injured and has to miss the show next month. Shazza McKenzie is coming in as Janai Kai’s new tag partner against Free WiFi.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 THE FINAL”, 03/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Special Tag Match ~ Shunma Katsumata Return Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs Shunma Katsumata & Toy Kojima
2. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – Final: Winner Of A Block Vs Winner Of B Block

The last time Shunma Katsumata wrestled was in May when he defended the Extreme Title against Hideki Okatani. That was the match where he injured his ankle and was out of action for eight months. When Katsumata returns on 3rd January Okatani will be there waiting for him so they can continue where they left off. It’s a tag match though so Katsumata will be with The 37KAMIINA teammate Toy Kojima while Okatani is there as part of Eruption with Yukio Sakaguchi.

Rei Saito is guaranteed to be on the show whether he makes it to the D-Oh Grand Prix final or not.


Koroku Injured, Queen Of Asia Title Match, Baka Gaijin 1st Anniversary, Owashi And Shunma Return Dates

November 29, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO WRESTLING 10TH ANNIVERSARY PERFORMANCE ~WE ARE TJPW~”, 01/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Hyper Misao & Mahiro Kiryu Vs Yuki Aino & Raku
2. Juria Nagano, Shino Suzuki & Haru Kazashiro Vs Kaya Toribami, Toga & Runa Okubo
3. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Viva Van
4. Next Generation Tournament ’23 – Final: HIMAWARI Vs Wakana Uehara
5. Princess Tag Team Titles: Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta (c) Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
6. 10th Anniversary Special 10-Woman Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima, Yuka Sakazaki, Rika Tatsumi & Mizuki Vs Miu Watanabe, Yuki Arai, Suzume, Moka Miyamoto & Arisu Endo

Viva Van just got here and she already has a title match lined up. She challenged Yuki Kamifuku for her newly won Queen Of Asia Title after they teamed together for Van’s debut in Tokyo Joshi Pro. Kamifuku accepted the challenge but only because Van is good looking like she is. The championship belongs to Singapore Pro Wrestling and is supposedly meant to be defended between Asian wrestlers. SPW gave their approval for the title match when they found out Van is Vietnamese.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN SHINJUKU DAY 1”, 02/12/2023
Shinjuku FACE

1. Special 8-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, Toy Kojima, Takeshi Masada & Kazuma Sumi Vs Jun Akiyama, Yuki Iino, Yusuke Okada & Rukiya
2. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo (0) Vs HARASHIMA (0)
3. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Kazusada Higuchi (0) Vs Daisuke Sasaki (0)
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Chris Brookes (0) Vs KANON (2)
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: MAO (2) Vs Kazuki Hirata (0)
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Yukio Naya (2) Vs Rei Saito (2)
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Soma Takao & Shota (c) Vs Toru Sugiura & Akito

Yuya Koroku injured his left arm at Sunday’s show in Korakuen Hall. It has since come out that he has a torn triceps and an avulsion fracture in his elbow. That puts him out of action for a while and DDT has found replacements for him on their upcoming shows. Rukiya takes his place on the first day of the Shinjuku weekend doubleshot.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN SHINJUKU DAY 2”, 03/12/2023
Shinjuku FACE

1. Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi, Yusuke Okada & Rukiya Vs HARASHIMA, Akito, Toy Kojima & Takeshi Masada
2. Special Tag Match: MIKAMI & Kazuma Sumi Vs Demus & KANON
3. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno Vs Daisuke Sasaki
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo Vs Yuki Iino
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Chris Brookes Vs MAO
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Yukio Naya Vs Kazuki Hirata

Koroku is replaced by Makoto Oishi on the second day.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN OSAKA”, 09/12/2023
Osaka Azalea Taisho Hall

1. Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada Vs MAO, Toy Kojima & Ilusion
2. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Iino & Rukiya
3. Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi Vs Akito & Kazuma Sumi
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno Vs Tetsuya Endo
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Kazusada Higuchi Vs HARASHIMA
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Yukio Naya Vs KANON
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Kazuki Hirata Vs Rei Saito
8. All Asia Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani (c) Vs Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada

DDT were looking into what to do with the All Asia Tag Team Titles match due to Koroku’s injury. Yusuke Okada did not want to give up the title shot and asked Jun Akiyama step in as Koroku’s substitute. One of Okada’s lifelong goals in wrestling is to win a tag team championship with Akiyama. He agreed to take part. Akiyama will be leaving BURNING at the end of the year but he admits if he wins the titles with Okada it could lead to something continuing next year. I bet he’s just looking for any excuse to leave D.O.A for something else.

Meanwhile Eruption are currently finding themselves in the middle of the pack over at the Real World Tag League. They have 3 wins and 3 losses for a total of 6 points so far. They have two matches remaining in taking place in December and the All Asia Tag Titles defence is taking place smack dab in between them. Hideki Okatani used Saki Akai’s finisher the Quetzalcoatl to win two of those matches, which is sweet of him. If I find the time I’ll do a write up about their tournament run when it is completed.

Some of the non-tournament matches have been mixed around due to Koroku’s injury.

BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. TEN”, 12/12/2023
Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa

1. Special Single Match: MAO Vs Ram Kaichow
2. Special Single Match: Shigehiro Irie Vs Mad Dr. Ueki
3. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Masahiro Takanashi
4. Special Single Match: Chris Brookes Vs Munetatsu Nakamura

The Baka Gaijin are bringing in friends old and new for their 1st Anniversary show. Chris Brookes and Masahiro Takanashi are both taking part in important singles matches. Yuki Ueno, Shigehiro Irie and Munetatsu Nakamura get to join the party. What is Mad Dr. Ueki cooking up for the show this time and is it still Mecha Mummy related? Also Ram Kaichow returns for a one on one fight with MAO.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN KORAKUEN HALL”, 24/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal ~ Toru Owashi Return Match: The Great Koji (c) Vs Toru Owashi Vs Sanshiro Takagi Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Akito Vs Yusuke Okada Vs Yuki Ishida Va Kazuma Sumi Vs Rukiya Vs Open Recruitment X
2. Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs KANON & MJ Paul
3. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada
4. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno Vs Yuki Iino
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo Vs Kazusada Higuchi
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Daisuke Sasaki Vs HARASHIMA
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Chris Brookes Vs Rei Saito
8. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: MAO Vs Yukio Naya

Oishi making decisions by himself has put D.O.A in another KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles defence before their next scheduled one in January. SCHADENFREUDE International have skipped the line after Takeshi Masada pinned Oishi at Korakuen and threw down the challenge. Akiyama isn’t happy with Oishi for not consulting him before agreeing to it. Poor Danshoku Dieno just wants the team to get along and is getting stressed over the growing threats facing D.O.A in the next couple of months.

DDT is giving Toru Owashi nothing but the most important kind of match for his return to the ring… He’s getting put in a Battle Royal for the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title like he always is. The Great Koji has appeared in public again for the first time since winning the title so DDT has made sure he will be at Korakuen on Christmas Eve to defend it. DDT are also looking for wrestlers from outside the company to send in applications for entry into the Battle Royal.

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 THE FINAL”, 03/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Shunma Katsumata Return Match: Shunma Katsumata Vs X
2. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – Final: Winner Of A Block Vs Winner Of B Block

After being away with an ankle injury for eight months, Shunma Katsumata will return at the first DDT show of 2024.


Kamiyu Becomes Queen Of Asia, Combat Princess USA Full Card, GanPro Vs GLEAT

November 25, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~NAGOYA IPPONJIME~”, 26/11/2023
Aichi NGK Sports Plaza 3rd Stadium

1. Arisu Endo Vs Runa Okubo
2. Suzume Vs Haru Kazashiro
3. Hyper Misao Vs Raku
4. Shoko Nakajima & Kaya Toribami Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Viva Van
5. Miyu Yamashita, Mahiro Kiryu & Toga Vs Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & HIMAWARI
6. Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Shino Suzuki Vs Max The Impaler, Yuki Aino & Pom Harajuku
7. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Yuki Arai & Moka Miyamoto

Yuki Kamifuku is coming back to Japan as a champion. She was in Singapore Pro Wrestling yesterday to challenge Alexis Lee for the Queen Of Asia Title. Kamifuku won the match and the championship, becoming the second Japanese person to hold the title. Riho was the first.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Rika Tatsumi & Amira Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
2. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Janai Kai & Johnnine Robbie
3. Moka Miyamoto Vs Trish Adora
4. Mizuki Vs Sandra Moone
5. Shoko Nakajima Vs Taya Valkyrie
6. Miu Watanabe Vs Hyan
7. Special Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly

So false alarm, the Globe Theatre is not closing down after all and Tokyo Joshi Pro’s show there with Prestige is going ahead there as planned. Even more good news, the full card for the show is out. Shoko Nakajima takes on Taya Valkyrie, a non-title match sees Mizuki take on Sandra Moone, the first meeting of Moka Miyamoto and Trish Adora together, Free WiFi in tag action against Janai Kai & Johnnie Robbie plus the team now known as Pompaler taking on Rika Tatsumi & Amira.

GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2023”, 27/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. GanPro Vs GLEAT All Out Battle: Yumehito Imanari, X, X, X & X Vs X, X, X, X & X
2. Special Single Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Arisu Endo
3. Special Tag Match: Shota & Soma Takao Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie
4. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Kuma Arashi
5. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shuichiro Katsumura

One by one Isami Kodaka is vanquishing the Ganbare☆Pro roster as they take turns trying to take the Spirit Of Ganbare Title from him. Shuichiro Katsumura is next and wants the title match to take place in Korakuen Hall at the end of the year. Kodaka likes the idea because if he wins then that means GanPro has to keep booking him next year. Katsumura is currently one half of the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Champions so he is also fighting to become a double GanPro champion.

The one sided feud between Ken Ohka and Kuma Arashi with bigger stakes on the line. Arashi is getting bored of beating Ohka over and over. But he will do it one more time on the condition that when he wins he gets title shots for both the SOG Title and SOG Tag Titles.

We have more examples of the Young Communication generation interacting with each other when ROMANCE DAWN goes against Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie.

Earlier this year at “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV” there was a Ganbare☆Joshi Vs TJPW tag match that ended with Arisu Endo beating Yoshiko Hasegawa by submission. A singles rematch between the two is giving Hasegawa a chance to avenge that loss in her own promotion.

An inter-promotional 10-Man Tag Match sees Yumehito Imanari leading a GanPro team against a group of wrestlers from GLEAT. The GLEAT side has not decided on who they are sending yet but Imanari demanded that Kaz Hayashi be one of them. Also Takuya Wada has shown interest in being on the GanPro team because he has no SOG Tag Titles defence scheduled for the show.

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024 TOUR IN OSAKA DAY 1”, 06/01/2024
Osaka 176BOX

1. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles – DEAD OR ALIVE Contra DEAD OR ALIVE: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Bodyguard, Naruki Doi & Tsutenkakka

Naruki Doi fills out the challenger team fighting to stop D.O.A from calling themselves Dead Or Alive.