DDT “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021”, 14/02/2021 Culttz Kawasaki 900 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani defeated Yusuke Okada & Toui Kojima when Watase submitted Kojima with a Crab Hold (8:30).
2. KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Titles: Shinya Aoki, Super Sasadango Machine, Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Danshoku Dieno, Toru Owashi & Makoto Oishi when Hirata pinned Takagi with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (12:49). *Shinya Aoki, Super Sasadango Machine, Antonio Honda become the 3rd KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Champions!
3. Super Joshi War ~Blooming Flowers~: Saki Akai & Maya Yukihi defeated Saori Anou & Miyako Matsumoto when Akai pinned Matsumoto with the Rookie Award (10:52).
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Super Delfin, Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh defeated MAO, Keigo Nakamura & Mirai Maiumi when Itoh pinned Nakamura with the Kanikani Flying Big Head (16:07).
5. Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Yuji Okabayashi defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya when HARASHIMA pinned Naya with the Somato (13:34).
6. Yuki Iino Return Match ~ DAMNATION Vs ALL OUT!: Konosuke Takeshita, Akito, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino defeated Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino when Iino pinned Paulie with the Spear (20:34).
7. DDT UNIVERSAL Title: Yuki Ueno (c) defeated Yukio Sakaguchi by TKO with a Rear Naked Choke Sleeper Hold (17:10). *V3 for Yuki Ueno.
8. KO-D Openweight Title – Yanekabe Presents: Jun Akiyama defeated Tetsuya Endo (c) with the Modifed Sternness Dust α (31:11). *Tetsuya Endo fails in V4. Jun Akiyama becomes the 76th KO-D Openweight Champion!
The first “Big Match” show for DDT in 2021 took place in Culttz Kawasaki where fans got to see Jun Akiyama climb back up to the summit and become the new KO-D Openweight Champion! With Kenta Kobashi watching from ringside, Akiyama defeated Tetsuya Endo to avenge the D-Ou Grand Prix loss to him back in November. Endo’s plan was to target Akiyama’s surgically repaired knee to immobilise him. Akiyama had to throw big moves like Piledrivers and different Suplexes to wear down the champion in return. Endo kept kicking out of Exploder Suplexes including one from the top rope. He went high risk with the Shooting Star Press but missed, giving Akiyama the opening to hit his Knee Strikes. Endo kicked out once more this time from the Wrist-Clutch Exploder. It took an open leg Sternness Dust α to finally put Endo down and out to cause the title change.
Kobashi presented Akiyama with the KO-D Title after the match. He wanted to wrap it around his waist but Akiyama refused him. Akiyama said Endo was the best and he was only able to beat him by a small margin today. He doesn’t know if he could do it again, so he is going to borrow this championship for a while. Endo shouted he will get it back and then left. Akiyama then said he cannot wear the title around his waist until he beats the other DDT wrestler he lost against in the Grand Prix. He wants his first defence to be against Kazusada Higuchi! Akiyama then referenced the WRESTLE UNIVERSE servers going down during the main event and joked about using Danshoku Dieno’s anal server to power it back up (that will be explained below).
In order to prepare for his DDT UNIVERSAL Title defence, Yuki Ueno went to train Jiu-Jitsu under Shinya Aoki so he could learn how to defend himself from Yukio Sakaguchi’s Sleeper Hold. The game plan he put together was to take out Sakaguchi’s left arm and strike first with counters. That was how he cut off the God’s Right Knee with a Dropkick. Sakaguchi wouldn’t die though even when Ueno gave him the WR. Sakaguchi instead tried to shake it off and go straight for the Sleeper Hold. But Ueno’s training paid off and he reversed the submission, choking out Sakaguchi until the match was stopped. Sakaguchi was woken up by medical staff and still had the power to hand the belt over to the champion. Ueno told him he doesn’t have any unpleasant feelings towards him. He was a little luckier today but little by little he is improving. Ueno then said in a few years time he wants to be as cool and scary as Sakaguchi is.
Yuki Iino made a triumphant return by leading ALL OUT to victory over DAMNATION. He immediately gave a Spear to Yuji Hino at the start of the match. ALL OUT all piled on top of Iino and Mad Paulie which was then broken up by a Diving Elbow from Daisuke Sasaki. A challenge of strength took place between Konosuke Takeshita and Hino when they both did Double German Suplexes to wrestlers on both teams. A ladder was bridged from the ring to the commentary table and Hino threw Shunma Katsumata onto it. Sasaki hit Iino with a chairshot behind the referee’s back but Iino shrugged it off and fought back. He got rid of Sasaki with a Lariat and then dropped Hino with a Back Flip. Paulie came in for a fight but missed the Reverse Splash. He kicked out of the Spear at one so Iino revved up for another Spear and that one got the three count. Iino and Hino had a staredown afterwards to hype up their singles match on 23rd February in Nagoya. Another story coming out of this match was Sasaki’s comments backstage. He said his goal for 2021 is to make Takeshita join DAMNATION! When ALL OUT heard that, Akito said he will make Soma Takao join the Young Communication Generation in return. Takeshita then joked that Mad Paulie will join the DDT Sauna Club.
If there is anything I will give Yukio Naya credit for, it is for getting into shape. He’s making good progress with losing weight in a bid to get into better in-ring condition. He still had a very difficult task today going with Higuchi up to fight against Smile Pissari. Naya came close to victory when he gave HARASHIMA a Back Drop. But it all fell apart when he charged right into a Somato. HARASHIMA got the space he wanted to recover and hit a second Somato for the win. HARASHIMA was happy to team with Yuji Okabayashi again and they may now have a claim to challenge for the KO-D Tag Team Titles.
The spirit of 90’s Michinoku Pro was felt throughout the Special 6-Man Tag Match. Super Delfin had a new era Delfin Gundan in the form of Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh going against the Tohoku trio of MAO, Keigo Nakamura & Mirai Maiumi. Itoh entered wearing a Gran Naniwa costume and mimicked the late wrestler’s moveset, doing Naniwa’s Crab Walk on the ropes spot to set up the Flying Big Head finish. Delfin said this match happened a day after an earthquake happened in the Tohoku region, almost a decade after the 2011 earthquake. He hopes it will be safe enough for them to do a rematch over there some day. Brookes said it was a dream come true to team with Delfin because he is a cornerstone of the innovative junior heavyweight style of the 90’s. Itoh said the rope walk is a lot more difficult than it looks.
It turns out Saori Anou was right to complain about having to team with Miyako Matsumoto. They had a few too many miscommunications that caused their tag team to fall apart. Anou got sick of getting knocked around by her own tag partner that she gave Matsumoto a Fisherman Buster and left her out to dry. Maya Yukihi hit Matsumoto with the Jumping Super Kick and Saki Akai finished her off with the Rookie Award. Akai, Yukihi and Anou then did a group pose together and left the ring when Matsumoto tried to join in.
New KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Champions have been crowned! Will we see a proper title reign for once? Hell if I know! But enough about that, it’s time to finally talk about Dieno’s anal server. Kazuki Hirata began dancing unconsciously before the match because he was suffering from withdrawal symptoms after spending some time away from the dance gimmick. When he got to do dance in the ring the enthusiasm was so high that it caused a power outage in the venue. Everyone agreed to use Dieno’s backside as a power supply but the cable was not long enough. The wrestlers agreed to form a human chain from Dieno’s butt to the power source. The plan worked but the power wasn’t enough to bring the electricity back to full surge. Shinya Aoki came up with the solution to do the Hell Gate on Dieno, giving the anal power source the energy Dieno needed to power up the building again. Hirata got to dance and pin Sanshiro Takagi to win the titles.
The new rivalry between Yusuke Okada and Mizuki Watase is heating up. The two got rough with each other during the opener. Watase even made it a point to make Toui Kojima submit to a Crab Hold in front of Okada while Okada was being held back by Hideki Okatani. Watase is looking forward to their singles match because he now has a burning heart that wasn’t there before.
DDT “CHRIS BROOKES PRODUCE SHOW 2 – WRESTLE BUTOKAN★DREAM”, 07/02/2021 Saitama Wrestle Butokan 0 Fans
1. Chris Brookes & Miyu Yamashita defeated Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata when Brookes pinned Katsumata with the Praying Mantis Bomb (21:25).
2. ROBOT Vs HERO: Mecha Mummy Vs Hyper Misao ended in a No Contest (8:53).
3. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Baliyan Akki with the German Suplex (16:48).
Just like last time, almost the entire show is already in English so I don’t know what you’re doing here. But don’t go, here’s a write up anyway! The show began with “CDK” walking out for a welcoming introduction. “Masahiro Takanashi” talked to the camera while “Chris Brookes” stood beside him flipping up the two fingers. The real CDK entered the ring behind them and scared “Brookes” off while “Takanashi” was still talking. The real Chris Brookes asked Shota what he was doing and Shota accused the real Masahiro Takanashi of being fake. Takanashi grabbed Shota by the nose and knocked him out with a punch. CDK then introduced the show properly.
Backstage the DDT Sauna Club declared their love for saunas in English. Brookes said he wants revenge on both of his opponents today. He wants revenge on Yuki Ueno for taking the DDT UNIVERSAL Title from him and he wants revenge on Shunma Katsumata for that time he got him banned from Twitter. His tag partner today Miyu Yamashita only had one thing to say about the upcoming match. “Don’t touch my chin!!” The Sauna Club ignored her warning with Ueno grabbing Yamashita in a Chinlock and Katsumata giving her a Chincrusher. Brookes cut him off with a Slingshot Cutter and Yamashita fired back with the Crash Rabbit Heat. She would have pinned Katsumata if Ueno didn’t break it up in time. Brookes got rid of Ueno outside the ring with a Running Knee Strike and tagged in. Yamashita hit Katsumata with the Skull Kick and Brookes immediately dropped him with the Praying Mantis Bomb to win the match.
The superhero Hyper Misao was in a Falls Count Anywhere match but she was confused over what her opponent was. What is a Mecha Mummy? It is probably an evil monster so she must kill it. Mecha Mummy did not give a pre-match comment. It only shook. In the ring, Mummy hit Misao with Rocket Punches and then attacked her with the Drill. Misao stalled Mummy with a spray attack so she could escape backstage to regroup. After a transformation, Misao returned to the ring as Mecha Pami! She attacked Mummy with her own drills then chased the robot around ringside on the Hyper Mobile. She found a Holy Sword at ringside but Mummy blinded her with powder when she tried to use it. Mummy connected the Jet Scrambler to its back to hit a Diving Attack for a nearfall. Misao escaped the ring again only to get both the Jet Scrambler and Rocket Fist thrown at her. The two fighters dueled at the entrance way and Pami threw Mummy into a nearby castle of chairs. Desperate, Pami grabbed two bottles of water knowing it was Mummy’s weakness. However, Pami was now a Mecha too so it was also her weakness. They both poured water over each other and short circuited. As smoke flowed through the arena from the two motionless robots, Daisuke Kiso called off the match.
When the risk of exploding mechas went away, it was time for the main event. It’s been a while since Baliyan Akki last wrestled on a DDT related show. He was motivated to do his best against Konosuke Takeshita. In return, Takeshita told Akki to bring it. There were big moves thrown when Takeshita gave Akki a Brainbuster on the entrance stage. Akki later hit the Firebird Splash for a two count. He tried to outmaneuver his opponent, flipping out of a German Suplex to set up a Modified La Magistral for another nearfall. But when Takeshita cut Akki off with the Blue Thunder Bomb, the end was near. Akki fired up but Takeshita hit the Zahi knee strike and pinned him with the German Suplex. The two wrestlers praised each other for a good match afterwards.
After the matches were over and everyone cooled down, some of the wrestlers sat down with Brookes and Mr. HAKU in the ring for post-show interviews. Katsumata, Yamashita and Misao took part so they could get the chance to talk to their overseas fans in English. Brookes was happy with the card that was put together because it was interesting and different. He wanted Katsumata and Yamashita on the card because they were on the first produced show. Drew Parker was unavailable because of a scheduling conflict. Ueno was brought in as a logical choice to be Katsumata’s tag partner. Also because Brookes wanted to see Yamashita kick Ueno in the head. Misao assured everyone she is not dead, her mecha form just broke down. Brookes remembered Mecha Mummy from the early days of DDT’s infamy on the internet and wanted to see Misao fight it because she is just as weird. For the main event, Brookes wanted to do Takeshita Vs Akki on the first show but couldn’t. He hates Akki but cannot deny he had a great 2020 so when he got the chance to produce a second show the match was definitely going to happen this time. Brookes and Katsumata then argued over the Twitter ban again. Katsumata apologised and Brookes joked he would be traded to Gake no Fuchi Joshi so Brookes won’t have to wrestle there anymore. For the 3rd produce show, Brookes wants to book everyone who was on this show against Katsumata in an 8 Vs 1 10,000 Thumbtacks Death Match.
GAKE NO FUCHI JOSHI PRO “GAKEPPUCHI INFINITE TRAIN 2021”, 05/02/2021 Saitama Wrestle Butokan 50 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Gake no Fuchi Joshi Vs Pocchari Joshi Full-Scale Competition – Gake no Fuchi Rules: Yumehito Imanari & Yuna Manase (3,003 pts) defeated Miyako Matsumoto & Chris Brookes (3 pts) when Manase pinned Matsumoto with the Suzuki Dynamic onto a chair (37:15).
The first Gake no Fuchi Joshi event of 2021 had big stakes attached to it. Miyako Matsumoto announced that the losing side in the only match of the show would be forced to disband their promotion. Ippanjin Munenori Sawa had promised the owner Sanshiro Takagi that Gake no Fuchi would continue for 1,000 years so he was here to support Matsumoto today.
Before the match took place, there was the matter of Gold Karen auditioning to join Gake no Fuchi as the promotion’s first trainee. She was nervous when she introduced herself but said her favourite wrestler is Himeka Arita from Stardom and then sang “Imitation Gold” by Momoe Yamaguchi. Afterwards, Matsumoto made her decision and rejected Karen’s audition because there was no heart in her performance. However every pro wrestler starts their career by losing so she’ll get another chance. After intermission Karen gave her audition another go and sang “Blue Coral Reef” by Seiko Matsuda. Matsumoto rejected her again and repeated her earlier reasoning word for word.
With that out of the way, it was time for Gake no Fuchi Joshi Vs Pocchari Joshi. The loser must disband stipulation was music to Chris Brookes’ ears because he would do anything not to team with Matsumoto again. He wanted to replace her with Toui Kojima who was perfoming tasks at ringside but Daisuke Kiso refused to allow it.
The two teams were told to each sing a song before the match began. Yumehito Imanari decided to sing Jushin Liger’s theme song for some reason. Next, Matsumoto sang her new song but didn’t notice Brookes laying down on his back behind her for Imanari to get an easy three count. Matsumoto wouldn’t accept the result and demanded a restart. Yuna Manase grabbed Brookes in a Wristlock and he instantly gave up for another quick finish. Matsumoto demanded another restart and told Brookes she would destroy his residence card if he doesn’t try to win. Brookes did what he was told and they attacked Pocchari Joshi to start the match properly.
Gake no Fuchi rules were in effect which means a bunch of minigames took place as the match progressed. It was also further explained that the winner of the match is whoever has the most points at the end, not from who pins who. Manase got a few points in a Ryogoku Style Sumo Match against both Matsumoto & Brookes. Matsumoto and Imanari then had a rap battle. Manase joined in and it somehow led to her and Matsumoto creating profiles for a dating app to see who would get more hits. Meanwhile Brookes beat Imanari in a game of Tetris that was being played on the big screen.
There was a comedy face-off which Imanari won using impersonations. A 4 Way Gake no Fuchi Boxing Challenge saw everyone don the gloves and punch each other out until Matsumoto accidentally punched Kiso in the face to get disqualified. One of the most regular games made a comeback when Brookes won the Gake no Fuchi Kiso Flag round. However he won it by Super Kicking Kiso so there was no referee to count any pins. Shota was forced to take Kiso’s place. He begun to count Matsumoto’s pin on Manase but stopped and Clotheslined her instead! He wants to destroy Gake no Fuchi! Suddenly, Sawa ran into the ring and delivered Dragon Screws to Shota, Imanari and Manase. He made a promise to Takagi that Gake no Fuchi Joshi would last for 1,000 years and he will live up to it!
The match went back on track with Brookes pressing Manase down on the ropes and holding a rubber strap to her mouth. Matsumoto pulled the strap and pulled it towards the back of the room. Manase was able to let go of the strap on her end causing it to snap into Matsumoto. They tried repeating the trick with Sawa taking Matsumoto’s place and this time Manase ducked and it snapped into Brookes instead. Brookes took out two tables and set them up at ringside as a launch pad for a plastic case attack with Matsumoto sitting in it. The plan didn’t work and Matsumoto crashed onto the floor. Imanari then threatened Brookes with a stapler and stapled a flyer for this Sunday’s DDT show onto Brookes’ head.
Shota and Sawa were still at ringside so the match kind of turned into a 6-Man Tag. Sawa blinded Shota with a party popper and placed him on one of the tables outside the ring. Matsumoto then climbed the ropes and, using Kiso to keep balance, put Shota through the table with a Diving Body Press. Sawa went for the Irabu Punch on Imanari but he ducked and Sawa knocked out Brookes instead. Determined to save Gake no Fuchi, Matsumoto continued fighting and hit Imanari over the head with a chair. He wouldn’t go down until he was kicked below the belt. Manase jumped in and hit Matsumoto with a Lariat. She then did the Suzuki Dynamic onto the chair to get the winning pinfall.
The result should have brought and end to Gake no Fuchi Joshi but Imanari & Manase had regrets over the decision. Pocchari Joshi wants to do more crazy matches against Gake no Fuchi because the two sides have a relationship like the moon and the sun. Matsumoto began to cry and said she surprisingly feels much better now despite losing. She will accept the stipulation and close down Gake no Fuchi. She thinks she might find a partner on the dating app she used earlier. Shota began to prepare a retirement ceremony for the promotion when suddenly Sanshiro Takagi appeared!
Takagi thanked Matsumoto for all of the hard work she did and admitted he thought she only had a 5% chance of winning today. However, he also reminded Matsumoto that she has a trainee now. Back in the 90s, Takagi was part of a company called PWC that closed down out of the blue. Out of desperation he created DDT. What if Gake no Fuchi Joshi closes down today and Gold Karen launches her own company to replace it? Then she would have her own DDT! It is Matsumoto’s responsibility to nurture her new student otherwise she is just running away from reality. Matsumoto said she wants to continue Gake no Fuchi and won’t split it up when it has so many new members. Brookes tried to protest being included but Takagi ignored him. Matsumoto promised Gake no Fuchi will be immortalized forever as long as there is still one of her still around! She asked for her theme music to play but instead got the Kamen Rider BLACK RX song instead. Shota sang along to it to close out the show.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW PPV SHOW 2 ~STARTING POINT~”, 30/01/2021 Twin Box AKIHABARA
1. The HERO Has Come To Protect The Peace Of Akihabara!: Shin Ultra Shoko & Hyper Misao Vs Sena Shiori & Arisu Endo
2. Yamato Nadeshiko Challenges The Charisma Of A New Era!: Maki Itoh Vs Moka Miyamoto
3. Majirabi Warning For Live Music Venues!: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Pom Harajuku & Mahiro Kiryu
4. Paripi Vs Gal Single Match: Yuki Kamifuku Vs Marika Kobashi
5. Bakuretsu Neko-chan Vs Up Up Girls (Pro Wrestling): Nodoka Tenma, Yuki Aino & Haruna Neko Vs Miu Watanabe, Hikari Noa & Raku
6. The Past, Present & Future Of Tokyo Joshi Pro Cross On The Mat!: Rika Tatsumi & Suzume Vs Miyu Yamashita & Mirai Maiumi
Miyu Yamashita visited Twin Box AKIHABARA during the week to rediscover her memories of the venue when Tokyo Joshi Pro held their first shows their eight years ago. Back then TJPW only consisted of three girls including Yamashita training to be pro wrestlers. This Saturday’s PPV will have 22 women involved. That is a roster over seven times bigger having a show in the same venue! Yamashita thinks it will be good for the rookies like Moka Miyamoto and Sena Shiori to experience mat wrestling. She hopes everyone will feel the history of TJPW in the building as the show goes on.
Yamashita admits she doesn’t remember much about the first show and her memories of those days might be mixed up with the shows that were held in Shibuya DESEO. She didn’t feel uncomfortable wrestling on a padded mat because her training was done on mats too. It only made her excited to wrestling inside a ring as soon as possible. She is more experienced now in fighting outside the ring so she is excited to see what she can do at the PPV this Saturday. The only worry she has is if Yuka Sakazaki does a high flying move from a strange place and accidentally breaks some equipment.
DDT “CHRIS BROOKES PRODUCE SHOW 2 – WRESTLE BUTOKAN★DREAM”, 07/02/2021 Saitama Wrestle Butokan
1. Chris Brookes & Miyu Yamashita Vs Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata
2. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Baliyan Akki
3. ROBOT Vs HERO: Mecha Mummy Vs Hyper Misao
Last year Chris Brookes booked his own little DDT show for a worldwide audience. That went down a treat so he’s doing it again this year! Brookes and his opponent back then Yamashita are this time joining forces to fight Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata from the DDT Sauna Club. A returning Baliyan Akki is coming over from Gatoh Move to challenge Konosuke Takeshita in a first time singles match. Then it’s the blockbuster battle of the summer. Hyper Misao takes on the greatest threat to peace and love yet. It’s the return of the Mecha Mummy! A special talk show with some of the participants will be held after the show so Mr. HAKU will have a busy day ahead of him.
GANBARE☆PRO “OVER THE TOP 2021”, 07/02/2021 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
1. GWC 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Katsuzaki Shunosuke, Moehiko Harumisawa & Shu Sakurai (c) Vs Keisuke Ishii, Kouki Iwasaki & HARUKAZE
2. Ganpro Vs Aka Rangers Full-Scale Battle: Ken Ohka & Shota Vs Takashi Sasaki & GENTARO
3. The Strongest Amateur Vs The Strongest Outside Enemy: Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Ikuto Hidaka
Is there anyone from Ganbare☆Pro who can beat Ikuto Hidaka? Maybe it will take a wrestler who isn’t signed to Ganpro to do that. Nobody is prouder of their student wrestling roots than Shinichiro Tominaga. Still, Hidaka is getting used to fighting the Ganpro spirit and senses it coming from his upcoming opponent.
The Aka Rangers of Takashi Sasaki & GENTARO were one of the early tag teams of note in DDT. When Ken Ohka was nothing more than a rookie, he got to second the team to ringside and always wanted to wrestle them. Sadly the opportunity never came. Almost 20 years later Ohka finally gets to achieve his dream and he is bringing in a white hot Shota along for the ride.
Ohka wanted to give a present to celebrate Keisuke Ishii’s birthday the day before the show as well as Kouki Iwasaki’s recent marriage. He offered them a GWC 6-Man Tag Team Titles match against THE HALFEE but they needed a third partner. HARUKAZE also has a birthday that week so she was chosen to complete the team.
BASARA “BASARA 150 ~KINKON ICHIBAN~”, 25/02/2021 Shinjuku FACE
1. Union MAX Title: Takumi Tsukamoto (c) Vs Yasu Urano
The double champion Takumi Tsukamoto is trying to rest whenever he can but the title defences are coming quick and fast. Just under a week after his next BJW Death Match Title defence, Tsukamoto will put the Union MAX Title on the line against an impatient Yasu Urano. The challenger has been acting greedy on the indies lately with demands for instant title matches as well as forcing wagers onto his opponents to make his matches more worthwhile. Tsukamoto accepted his challenge but wanted it for a big show like BASARA’s 150th chapter at Shinjuku FACE.
GANBARE☆PRO “LAST ACTION HERO 2021”, 24/01/2021 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
1. Shu Sakurai Trial Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Shu Sakurai Vs Kouki Iwasaki & Daisuke Kanehira
2. Ganpro 6 Men & Women Winter Story: Moeka Haruhi, Yuna Manase & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Asuka, HARUKAZE & Hagane Shinno
3. Special Tag Match ~Ganpro Alumni Association~: Ken Ohka & Yumehito Imanari Vs GENTARO & Chikara
4. Age Is Just A Number! 44 Year Old Vs 48 Year Old Full Scale Battle!: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Ikuto Hidaka
5. Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title: Shota (c) Vs Yasu Urano
When an impromptu title match between Shota and Yasu Urano ended in a short time limit draw, a rematch had to be scheduled. However, Shota still has an Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title defence against Arata taking place in JUST TAP OUT on 15th January. If he loses the title there then his rematch with Urano will become just a normal singles match. Urano wants his match to have consequences and is trying to get Shota to put his hair on the line if he no longer has the championship.
Ikuto Hidaka continues to blaze through the Ganbare☆Pro roster. Shuichiro Katsumura is next to face him, both because he is defending Ganpro’s honour and he wants to face strong opponents.
DDT “DRAMATIC 2021 JANUARY SPECIAL”, 28/01/2021 Shinjuku FACE
1. Akito & Chris Brookes Vs Mizuki Watase & Toi Kojima
2. Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao Vs Makoto Oishi, Hideki Okatani & Yusuke Okada
3. DDT Variety Team, Pentagram Ambition!: Danshoku Dieno Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Saki Akai Vs Mad Paulie Vs Gorgeous Matsuno
4. Eruption Vs DDT Sauna Club!: Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno
5. HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi & Antonio Honda Vs Shunma Katsumata, MAO & Keigo Nakamura
6. DDT Megatonweight Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs Yukio Naya
Yusuke Okada’s match with Jun Akiyama is just a few days short of Akiyama’s return from injury so sadly it has been cancelled. Instead he gets to team with Junretsu to fight DAMNATION.
DDT “NEW YEAR DRAMATIC ITABA SERIES 2021”, 31/01/2021 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
1. 3 Way Match: Toru Owashi Vs Antonio Honda Vs Keigo Nakamura
2. Yuji Hino, Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Chris Brookes, Yusuke Okada & Toi Kojima
3. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya Vs Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata
4. Yukio Sakaguchi & Mizuki Watase Vs Konosuke Takeshita & MAO
5. Young Communication Generation Vs DDT Legend Army!: Akito & Kazuki Hirata Vs HARASHIMA & Danshoku Dieno
6. DAMNATION VS Junretsu!: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao Vs Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi & Hideki Okatani
Akiyama’s return match is here. Tetsuya Endo is already getting impatient waiting for him to come back. Because of all the shows Akiyama will miss this month, this will be the only preview match he and Endo will have before “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021”.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “POSITIVE CHAIN”, 11/02/2021 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. International Princess Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Mirai Maiumi
2. Princess Of Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) Vs Miu Watanabe
The International Princess Title is making the Tokyo Joshi Pro roster aspire to spread their name overseas. Mirai Maiumi is stepping up to challenge Yuki Kamifuku for the title. Kamifuku is acting a little patronizing towards her over it because what would a rural girl know about going international? Maiumi wants to prove her wrong.
1. Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani Vs Yusuke Okada & Toi Kojima
2. Super Joshi War ~Blooming Flowers~: Saki Akai & Maya Yukihi Vs Saori Anou & Miyako Matsumoto
3. Yuki Iino Return Match ~ DAMNATION Vs ALL OUT!: Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino Vs Konosuke Takeshita, Akito, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Super Delfin, Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh Vs MAO, Keigo Nakamura & Mirai Maiumi
5. Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Yuji Okabayashi Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya
6. KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Titles: Sanshiro Takagi, Danshoku Dieno, Toru Owashi & Makoto Oishi Vs Shinya Aoki, Super Sasadango Machine, Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata
7. DDT UNIVERSAL Title: Yuki Ueno (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Jun Akiyama
Somebody tell Yuki Ueno not to poke the wolf. Yukio Sakaguchi made it clear he will choke out anyone who sides with Ueno up until the DDT UNIVERSAL Title match. So Ueno joking about Sakaguchi wanting to pose with the title belt whenever he wins is only going to make fighting him worse.
The full squads for the vacant KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Titles match have been decided. For once it looks like the whichever team wins can be relied on to appear on the same shows consistantly enough to defend the belts.
Smile Pissari will be fighting the heavyweight team of Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya. Naya’s progress (or lack of it) in the ring has been the story of his DDT run so far. HARASHIMA believes he is getting better and looks forward to fighting Naya at his strongest. If that doesn’t work at least we get Yuji Okabayashi and Higuchi in the same match out of this.
DDT “FRIENDSHIP, EFFORT, VICTORY IN NAGOYA 2021”, 23/02/2021 Nagoya Congress Center Event Hall
1. Hiroshi Yamato & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Yusuke Okada & Keigo Nakamura
2. Toru Owashi & Yukio Naya Vs Soma Takao & Mad Paulie
3. Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh Vs Antonio Honda & Saki Akai
4. DAMNATION Vs DDT Sauna Club!: Tetsuya Endo & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata
5. Junretsu Vs #STRONGHEARTS: Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi, Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani Vs CIMA, T-Hawk, El Lindaman & Shigehiro Irie
6. DDT Megatonweight Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs Yuki Iino
7. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Akito, Kazuki Hirata & Shota (c) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, HARASHIMA & Danshoku Dieno
8. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita & MAO
Some goofiness from Shunma Katsumata has led to the DDT Sauna Club getting the next crack at the KO-D Tag Team Titles. Katsumata wanted himself, Konosuke Takeshita & MAO to challenge the champions 3 on 2. That’s not allowed so he suggested only Takeshita & MAO get the title match instead. What a good friend. Too bad Sakaguchi knocked him out afterwards.
The #DAMNHEARTS business alliance between DAMNATION and #STRONGHEARTS is no more. CIMA and his associates are now no longer involved with DAMNATION’s activities. If they’re sticking around in DDT they will be going their own direction. Shigehiro Irie is coming back to DDT for a full scale 8-Man Tag against Junretsu.
Chris Brookes has had enough of Antonio Honda’s antics. So much so he is bringing Maki Itoh in to cause some trouble. Saki Akai has Honda’s back though.
DDT “ISN’T IT DRAMATIC! 2021”, 11/01/2021 Nagoya City Biwajima Sports Center 109 Fans
1. Hiroaki Ura defeated Toi Kojima with the Fisherman Suplex (6:11).
2. Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata defeated Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani when Hirata pinned Okatani with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (8:40).
3. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi defeated Yuki Ueno & Keigo Nakamura when Sakaguchi submitted Nakamura with the Sleeper Hold (12:09).
4. Young Communication Generation Vs DDT Legend Army! – Storage Cavity Sealing Rule: Akito & Shota Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Danshoku Dieno ended in a No Contest (8:16).
5. Makoto Oishi & Yusuke Okada defeated Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda when Okada pinned Honda with the Fisherman Buster (12:04).
6. Nagoya Specialty! Doerya Tag Match: Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino defeated HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya when Hino pinned Naya with the Fucking BOMB (14:11).
7. DAMNATION Vs DDT Sauna Club!: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao defeated Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata & MAO when Endo pinned Katsumata with the Torture Rack Bomb (17:13).
The absence of Jun Akiyama disappoints Tetsuya Endo. He asked where he was and thinks Akiyama will be back at the shows in Hakata next week. He will wait for him there so they can settle their differences before “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021” even takes place. Daisuke Sasaki said he knows the location of the hospital Akiyama is in.
HARASHIMA believes the good parts of Yukio Naya are starting to come out more and more. He found out Naya is one of his opponents at “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021” so he is looking forward to fighting a stronger version of him. Naya promised to do his best against HARASHIMA & Yuji Okabayashi. He will be teaming with Kazusada Higuchi in that match.
Yusuke Okada says he wants to absorb DDT’s style of pro wrestling. He is quickly proving it by studying Antonio Honda and knowing how to fight against Gongitsune. Whenever Honda tried to tell his joke, Okada ignored him and forced a confused Honda to continue wrestling instead. Honda got his trick to work though when he talked to Okada about their favorite Kamen Riders. He made an innuendo out of Takeshi Hongo’s name then poked everyone in the eyes with Gongitsune. Okada still had Honda scouted and blocked the Diving Fist Drop before winning his first DDT match with the Fisherman Buster. Chris Brookes wasn’t pleased with Honda’s antics. Makoto Oishi confirmed to Okada that he is beginning to understand DDT’s wrestling.
Strap yourselves in folks, Match #4 was weird. Shota hadn’t recovered from the Street Fight he wrestled in yesterday and was worried he wouldn’t last in the ring today. Akito assured him their match against Sanshiro Takagi & Danshoku Dieno would only be a test of mental strength and patience. He came up with a match where everyone wore “Super Mouth Cannons” over their faces that made loud honk noises if they breathe too hard. Both teams started with 10 points and would lose a point if the mouth cannon made a noise. This was meant to teach the wrestlers not to over exert themselves. But Yukinori Matsui got knocked down and everyone started a brawling, filling the room with honks. When Matsui got back up he called off the match for being too noisy. The two sides argued over their upcoming KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match afterwards but they still wore the mouth cannons so it was just more honking. Shota enjoyed being in a crazy DDT match but Dieno promised the fun and games are done. When the title match happens on 23rd February it will be simple professional wrestling!
Yukio Sakaguchi warned Yuki Ueno he is going to strangle everyone Ueno teams with until their DDT UNIVERSAL Title match in February. Ueno made fun of Sakaguchi by asking if he wanted to take a picture with the belt again because he won today. Sakaguchi told Ueno to be careful because he can attack him from behind again like he did at Korakuen Hall.
Today in Japan is the Coming Of Age Day, a holiday that celebrates the young people who reach adulthood at the age of 20 years old. For Hideki Okatani that means he is no longer has to be treated like a young boy at ringside by the other wrestlers. Eager to show off his new responsibilities, Okatani begged for Mizuki Watase to tag him in show no fear against Toru Owashi. This made Kazuki Hirata call on Owashi to tag him in too but he was ignored. When Hirata was finally tagged in he kicked out of the Northern Lights Suplex and pinned Okatani with the Miracle One Shot Cradle.
DDT “GO TO DDT! VOL. 1”, 09/01/2021 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 484 Fans
0. Under Match: Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Hideki Okatani defeated Keigo Nakamura & Toui Kojima when Okatani pinned Kojima with the Northern Lights Suplex (6:50).
1. Written By Hajime Takahashi & Masaki Inoue “Does Momotaro’s Kibidango Recognize As An Expense?” Infomercial Match: Akito, Kazuki Hirata, Antonio Honda & Super Sasadango Machine (3D Avatar) defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Danshoku Dieno, Toru Owashi & Saki Akai when Hirata pinned Takagi with a School Boy (?:??).
2. Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino defeated Chris Brookes & Shunma Katsumura when Hino pinned Katsumura with the Fucking BOMB (8:18).
3. Konosuke Takeshita & MAO defeated HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya when MAO pinned Naya with the Cannonball 450° (10:02).
4. DAMNATION Vs Junretsu!: Makoto Oishi, Mizuki Watase & Yusuke Okada defeated Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki & Nobuhiro Shimatani when Oishi submitted Shimatani with the Fujiyama Knee Lock (12:14).
5. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi (c) defeated CIMA & Soma Takao by TKO when Sakaguchi choked out Takao with the Sleeper Hold (16:26). *V1 for Eruption.
6. DDT UNIVERSAL Title: Yuki Ueno (c) defeated Shota with the WR (16:53). *V2 for Yuki Ueno.
DDT’s second visit to Korakuen Hall this year was headlined with a DDT UNIVERSAL Title defence. Yuki Ueno got a measure of revenge when he pinned Shota in a 6-Man Tag last week and firmly got the rest of it by beating him again today. Shota was over reliant on the Gannosuke Clutch and when that couldn’t get him a win he tried cheating instead. He used ropes for leverage on pins and gave Ueno a Low Blow when the referee was knocked away. But Shota went back to the Gannosuke Clutch which Ueno had figured out by then. Ueno avoided the move, stunned Shota with a Dropkick and pinned him with the WR for the successful title defence.
Ueno wanted to give Shota microphone time after the match but he declined and left the ring. Ueno joked that he would have to talk by himself for five minutes, then said he learned so much from Shota over the 5 years he’s known him. He was happy to face Shota in his first match of 2021 and he is both the most annoying and most entertaining opponent. Hisaya Imabayashi asked Ueno who he would like to defend the UNIVERSAL Title against next. Ueno said Yukio Sakaguchi! He learned a lot from Sakaguchi last year such as what it’s like to get choked out and why you always see worried faces above you when you regain consciousness. Sakaguchi accepted the match and asked to look at the title belt. When he held it he posed with it and told Ueno that is where the title should be. He handed it back to Ueno but warned nominating him was the biggest mistake he could make. Imabayashi decided the title match will happen at “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021” on 14th February.
In the backstage interviews, Sakaguchi said there are no grand slam champions in DDT since the creation of the UNIVERSAL Title. He is aiming to be the first new grand slam champion in DDT and to do that he has to go after both the UNIVERSAL Title and the DDT Extreme Title. When Ueno did his interview, Sakaguchi snuck up behind him and choked him out with the Sleeper Hold.
Sakaguchi still holds the KO-D Tag Team Titles with Kazusada Higuchi. The Eruption pair held on against a CimaSoma team with a lot of momentum behind them. CIMA & Soma Takao wore the same matching outfits from “ULTIMATE PARTY 2020” and had the same effort of teamwork from back then. There was also high risk like CIMA using the Meteora to break up Sakaguchi’s Sleeper Hold on Takao. However Sakaguchi clasped the Sleeper Hold back onto Takao and CIMA couldn’t rescue him again. Takao went motionless and the match was stopped, making Eruption the winners.
Shunma Katsumata, Konosuke Takeshita & MAO from the DDT Sauna Club approached Eruption after the match. Katsumata challenged them to put the KO-D Tag Titles on the line against all three of them. Sakaguchi called him stupid and Imabayashi told them it can’t happen that way. Takeshita & MAO tried to leave but Katsumata then said those two could face Eruption instead. Sakaguchi knocked out Katsumata with an Elbow Strike and accepted the challenge. Kazusada Higuchi & Sakaguchi Vs Takeshita & MAO for the titles will happen at the 23rd February Nagoya show and it will be the main event!
The #DAMNHEARTS group received major news when CimaSoma got back to the locker room. Daisuke Sasaki had apparently talked to #STRONGHEARTS before the match and agreed if CimaSoma didn’t win the tag titles then the business alliance will be dissolved. #DAMNHEARTS is splitting up! Takao said he heard nothing about this and CIMA doesn’t remember making this decision although he agreed it has been a while since DAMNATION and #STRONGHEARTS worked together. Sasaki promised both sides will do something together again when the pandemic is over.
With Jun Akiyama out of action for the rest of this month, the newcomer Yusuke Okada took his place and wasted no time in getting to wrestle Tetsuya Endo. There was still Junretsu representation in the match with Makoto Oishi & Mizuki Watase involved. Oishi overcame danger when he kicked out of a Standing Moonsault from Endo followed by a Standing Shooting Star Press from Nobuhiro Shimatani. Oishi pulled Shimatani to the mat and made him tap to the Fujiyama Knee Lock. Endo grabbed the microphone out of Oishi’s hands and said he is going to crush Akiyama on 14th February. As he was leaving, Oishi responded that he might crush Endo before Endo gets to face Akiyama! Backstage Sasaki revealed what he learned during his time off with injury. Pro wrestling is about love and romance, just like the movie Titanic. What’s missing in the ring right now is romance. He found it and will show it to everyone soon.
MAO dusted off the Cannonball 450° to win DDT Sauna Club’s tag match. First he got rid of HARASHIMA with a Plancha, then Takeshita took care of Yukio Naya with a Vertical Drop Brainbuster to set up the 450° finish.
Katsumata is an eager fellow but it got him into a lot of painful situations today. He tried jumping Yuji Hino & Mad Paulie at the start of their tag match but did so without Chris Brookes joining him. Brookes instead stayed in the corner and did “NeppoWER!!” chants with no other intention of fighting the heavyweight opponents. Hino caught Katsumata in mid-air and Brookes did a Missile Dropkick to them to get his partner a nearfall. There were blocks for both the ¡Hasta la vista! and Fucking BOMB but Hino ended up winning out in the end.
Heavy snow in Niigata prevented Super Sasadango Machine from travelling to Tokyo for today’s show. He was replaced by a “3D Avatar” of himself. In other words it was Keigo Nakamura in a Sasadango mask. Sasadango also provided a PowerPoint presentation on Zoom before the opening match explaining the importance of filing tax returns. His example was getting the wrestlers in his match to all wrestle in their own expensive clothing because they can treat it as tax deductible ring gear. This made a few people like Saki Akai uncomfortable because they did not want their personal belongings used in the match. She was proven right when Kazuki Hirata tried to steal her handbag and it got knocked out of the ring. Toru Owashi revealed he was wearing the O-40 Title underneath his hoodie. Danshoku Dieno pulled off Akito’s rare sneakers and shoved one of them into Akito’s mouth. He then threw them away causing Akito to chase after them. Sanshiro Takagi wore a watch that costs 1.1 million yen and used it to stop Antonio Honda’s Gongitsune joke. Hirata took the watch, grabbed a chair and tried to smash it. Takagi took the chair swung it at Hirata but missed and smashed the watch instead! He was in so much shock that Hirata easily pinned Takagi with a School Boy.
Nakamura was also in the pre-show match. He and Toi Kojima lost to Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Hideki Okatani. The match came down to Kojima and Okatani. A Running Neckbreaker was used to set up the Northern Lights Suplex for Okatani to win.
DDT “NEW YEAR’S DAY GIFT SPECIAL! ALL SEATS 3,000 YEN SPECIAL BOX OFFICE!! 2021”, 03/01/2021 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 713 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Keigo Nakamura defeated Hideki Okatani with a Cradle (7:42).
2. Antonio Honda 43rd Birthday & 16th Anniversary Debut Match: Antonio Honda defeated Choun-Shiryu with the Diving Fist Drop (9:14).
3. Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Gota Ihashi defeated Toru Owashi, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Toui Kojima when Sakaguchi pinned Kojima with the PK (9:37).
4. Mad Paulie, Nobuhiro Shimatani & Hiroshi Yamato defeated Makoto Oishi, Mizuki Watase & Yukio Naya when Paulie pinned Watase with the Reverse Splash (12:19).
5. 1 Vs 3 Handicap Match: Shinya Aoki, Danshoku Dieno & Super Sasadango Machine defeated Sanshiro Takagi when Aoki pinned Takagi with a Jackknife Pin (10:00).
6. Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata, MAO & Yuki Ueno defeated Akito, Kazuki Hirata, Shota & Keisuke Ishii when Ueno pinned Shota with the BME (14:34).
7. Tetsuya Endo, Soma Takao & Yuji Hino (w/ Daisuke Sasaki) defeated HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Chris Brookes when Endo pinned Brookes with the Shooting Star Press (17:18).
The first DDT show of 2021 was almost entirely a surprise card. The audience only knew what the matches were once they were ready to begin. For the main event HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Chris Brookes joined forces to fight DAMNATION. While all of DAMNATION were at ringside, Daisuke Sasaki got directly involved by grabbing Brookes by the leg. Yuji Hino brought it to both HARASHIMA & Higuchi. Soma Takao overheard Higuchi insult CIMA which spurred him on to fight through the Brain Claw. Tetsuya Endo got the win in the end by hitting Brookes with Tetsuya In The Sky, the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb and finally the Shooting Star Press. Endo looked over to Jun Akiyama at the commentary table while the pin was counted.
Shouting was heard over by the entrance after the match. It was Yuki Iino calling for Hino’s attention while the rest of ALL OUT tried to hold him back. Iino pushed his teammates back, entered the ring and demanded to face Hino in an arm wrestling contest on the canvas. Hino was confused but he accepted the challenge and won. Iino got mad over losing and had to be held back again while Konosuke Takeshita introduced him to Hino. He then explained that Iino’s return match from injury will be at “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021” on 14th February when ALL OUT takes on DAMNATION. He then suggested that Iino and Hino have a singles match at the next big event after that. Hisaya Imabayashi agreed to book Iino Vs Hino in Nagoya on 23rd February. ALL OUT dragged Iino away while Endo took the microphone and warned Akiyama that he is always ready. Endo closed out the show by saying this year he is aiming for more than just the Tokyo Sports MVP Award. He wants to make scandalous news stories with glamourous women in the tabloids too!
Another 8-Man Tag pitted the two new units that have unexpectedly taken over DDT in the last few months. All four members of the DDT Sauna Club came out first, followed by the Young Communication Generation. The latter team then surprised everyone by bringing out Keisuke Ishii! Akito warned him about the Sauna Club’s “Heat Wave WER!!” pose but he didn’t understand it. Kazuki Hirata did a Plancha to the outside while Ishii did his work. The Sauna Club isolated Shota and piled on the top rope moves to him. Shunma Katsumata, MAO & Yuki Ueno hit Diving Body Presses one after the other but Ueno’s pin was broken up. Shota caught Ueno in the Gannosuke Clutch but MAO was there to break that pin up. Ueno got to recover and beat Shota with the BME. Backstage Ishii said it was the first time in a long while he wrestled in DDT (not counting BOYZ) and he would like to appear more in 2021 to be with his friends in Young Communication again. Shota wants to make it a year where Ganbare☆Pro doesn’t lose to DDT. Meanwhile Katsumata wants to make 2021 the year of the Sauna Club!
One of the matches was supposed to be Sanshiro Takagi & Danshoku Dieno Vs Shinya Aoki & Super Sasadango Machine. But backstage before the match Dieno, Aoki & Sasadango were all complaining about Takagi’s tweets including one that where Takagi was showing off his calves. The three of them instead decided to gang up on Takagi in a Handicap Match and purposely target his calf. Aoki put him in a Jail Hold while Dieno & Sasadango brought out a bag containing some of Takagi’s personal belongings. Sasadango found Takagi’s wallet, pulled out 29,000 yen in cash and raffled it off to three fans in the audience. Dieno eventually thought things went overboard and he felt sorry for Takagi. It is thanks to Takagi that they get to wrestle this year so the best New Year’s gift is to give Takagi his first win of 2021. Sasadango agreed and with Dieno they both attacked Aoki. Dieno is still recovering from the fire extinguisher attack to his rear but Takagi forced to go into the Hell Gate position. That lost him Sasadango’s support and Takagi was thrown face first into the Hell Gate. Aoki kicked Takagi in the calf, Sasadango did the Vertical Drop Lehmann Shock and Aoki pinned him with a Jackknife. Backstage Sasadango offered to be on Aoki’s team at “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021” because they should be fighting for a better goal than satisfying Takagi’s desires. They like Takagi but will not be used by him anymore!
As Takagi was leaving the ring after his match, he was suddenly approached at ringside by Yusuke Okada! The former All Japan wrestler introduced himself to the audience and told them he wants to experience a new world of pro wrestling now that he became freelance. He asked Takagi if he could have a match in DDT. Takagi questioned his interest in DDT after seeing the match that just happened. He then passed the request over to Imabayashi, who wasn’t expecting that. Imabayashi told Okada he will book him on next week’s Korakuen Hall show on 9th January.
DAMNATION’s good run begun earlier in the show when Mad Paulie, Nobuhiro Shimatani & Hiroshi Yamato beat Makoto Oishi, Mizuki Watase & Yukio Naya. Paulie threw Yamato onto Watase with an X-Style Iconoclasm. Shimatani then hopped onto Paulie’s back and they jumped on top of Watase for a nearfall when Oishi & Naya broke it up. Paulie then hit Watase with a Lariat and won with the Reverse Splash.
Gota Ihashi didn’t get to wrestle in Korakuen Hall last year so he wanted to make up for lost time. This year he wants to join a unit and rampage all over DDT. There is only one unit he wants to join and that’s Eruption! He came out with his own custom entrance video wearing an Eruption coat made out of posters. He even drew his own version of the Eruption logo calling it Ihaption. Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai were bemused over this but it kind of worked out in the end. Akai gave Toru Owashi a Brainbuster and Ihashi went toe to toe with Tomomitsu Matsunaga. Eruption(?) then focused their attacks on Toui Kojima. Ihashi almost lost the match when he missed the Moonsault. Akai kicked Ihashi out of frustration and Sakaguchi tagged himself in to finish Kojima off. Sakaguchi & Akai had enough of Ihashi and walked off on him backstage. However he believes he can continue teaming with Eruption and together they can all go after the KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Titles.
Antonio Honda’s big day was almost ruined when he tripped on the ropes and hurt his knee. Choun-Shiryu knew what was coming and attacked Honda before he could tell his latest Gongitsune joke. Honda lived up to the big occasion though and hit a Topé Suicida and the Tenzan Tombstone Driver on route to victory.
The first DDT match of 2021 was Keigo Nakamura’s first ever singles victory! He defeated his generation rival Hideki Okatani by cradling his way out of the Double Arm Suplex. Nakamura currently has a 1-3 record against Okatani so he wants to reverse the numbers this year.
Some more matches were booked for “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021”. Akai will be teaming with Maya Yukihi from Ice Ribbon to take on Saori Anou & Miyako Matsumoto. Yukihi said she discovered DDT more than 10 years ago so she is deeply moved to be wrestling a match for them. She thought she was going to fight against Akai but Imabayashi corrected her. Akai always wanted to team with her because she is beautiful and strong. She is also excited to face Anou again. When Imabayashi asked Akai & Yukihi about Matsumoto, they both declined to answer. They were asked again backstage and Yukihi finally had something to say. “In terms of strength, beauty and glamour, Miyako-san will never the best.”
The New Year’s Shuffle Tag Tournament winners Smile Pissari will team again at the Culttz Kawasaki show. HARASHIMA & Yuji Okabayashi will face a team yet to be determined.
Takagi will return to the battlefield for his next DDT Extreme Title defence. He takes on Nabe Yakan from Best Body Pro Wrestling on 10th January. The match was made when earlier in the day Yakan led a bunch of soldiers armed with air guns into the locker room to steal the Extreme Title belt.
“NEW YEAR’S EVE WRESTLING 2020 ~TOSHIWASHURE! SHUFFLE TAG TOURNAMENT”, 31/12/2020 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 520 Fans
1. Shuffle Tag Tournament – Round 1: Yuji Okabayashi & HARASHIMA defeated Yuya Aoki & Yukio Naya when Okabayashi submitted Naya with the Argentine Backbreaker (8:53).
2. Shuffle Tag Tournament – Round 1: Akira Hyodo & Makoto Oishi Vs Takuya Nomura & Konosuke Takeshita ended in a Time Limit Draw (10:00).
2a. Overtime – 1 Count Fall Rules: Takuya Nomura & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Akira Hyodo & Makoto Oishi when Nomura pinned Hyodo with a Rollover Inverted Cross Armbreaker (2:32).
3. Shuffle Tag Tournament – Round 1: Yasufumi Nakanoue & Yuki Ueno defeated Drew Parker & Danshoku Dieno when Ueno pinned Dieno with a School Boy (7:35).
4. Shuffle Tag Tournament – Round 1: Daisuke Sekimoto & Tetsuya Endo defeated Hideyoshi Kamitani & Chris Brookes when Sekimoto pinned Kamitani with the German Suplex (7:04).
5. Fluorescent Lighttube Death Match: Ryuji Ito defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Dragon Splash (11:01).
6. Shuffle Tag Tournament – Semi Final: Yuji Okabayashi & HARASHIMA Vs Takuya Nomura & Konosuke Takeshita ended in a Time Limit Draw (15:00).
6a. Overtime – 1 Count Fall Rules: Yuji Okabayashi & HARASHIMA defeated Takuya Nomura & Konosuke Takeshita when HARASHIMA pinned Takeshita with a Jackknife Pin (0:26).
7. Shuffle Tag Tournament – Semi Final: Yasufumi Nakanoue & Yuki Ueno defeated Daisuke Sekimoto & Tetsuya Endo when Nakanoue pinned Sekimoto with the Lariat (8:10).
8. New Year’s Wrestling 2020 Special 8-Man Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Kazuki Hashimoto, Daichi Hashimoto & Kazusada Higuchi defeated Takuho Kato, Yuki Ishikawa, Keigo Nakamura & Hideki Okatani when Hashimoto pinned Okatani with the Falcon Arrow (13:35).
9. Shuffle Tag Tournament – Final: Yuji Okabayashi & HARASHIMA defeated Yasufumi Nakanoue & Yuki Ueno when Okabayashi pinned Nakanoue with the Golem Splash (17:50).
The annual New Year’s Eve show was a much smaller affair in 2020. Safety precautions meant the show took place earlier in the day and would not roll over into the end of year countdown. The Shuffle Tag Tournament between DDT and Big Japan was also reduced to 8 teams instead of the usual 16.
Shuffle Tag Tournament – Round 1
Smile Pissari Vs HOT Real JAPAN
Two super heavyweights collided when Yuji Okabayashi and Yukio Naya stood face to face from each other. HARASHIMA kept Yuya Aoki away so Naya spent most of the match in the ring. He got some good shots in with Knee Strikes but Okabayashi cut him off with a Lariat and made him submit to the Argentine Backbreaker. Naya said he wants to fight Okabayashi again. Aoki was apologetic for not getting to help his tag partner more.
170cm Vs Nomutake
It only took until the second match for overtime sudden death rules to kick in. Konosuke Takeshita and Makoto Oishi were scrambling over each other in the dying seconds of the match. When time expired, One Count Fall rules came into play for the restart. Takuya Nomura put Akira Hyodo in a Cross Armbreaker and rolled him onto his shoulders to get the pin. At least Hyodo thought he and Oishi worked well as a team given their age difference.
Nakanoueno Vs Sodomy & Scars
Things got cheeky in Match #3. Danshoku Dieno accidentally put Drew Parker in the Lip Lock. Parker later accidentally pulled down Dieno’s tights to reveal he was wearing a diaper underneath because he still has not recovered from the CO2 attack to his rear end last week. Still he went into the Hell Gate position but Yuki Ueno Dropkicked him in the butt. Yasufumi Nakanoue rushed over to give Parker the Lip Lock while Ueno pinned Dieno with a School Boy. Dieno said afterward there are two kinds of butts in the world. Those that are for entertainment and those that are not.
Daisuke In The Sky Vs LINE Tomodachi
Round 1 ended with Daisuke Sekimoto & Tetsuya Endo defeating Hideyoshi Kamitani & Chris Brookes. It went back and forth until Endo gave Brookes the Tetsuya In The Sky and Sekimoto pinned Kamitani with the German Suplex. Brookes threatened to remove Kamitani from their LINE group backstage but Kamitani convinced him to give him one more chance.
Fluorescent Lighttube Death Match
The first of two non-tournament matches was the long awaited lighttube death match between Ryuji Ito and Shunma Katsumata. Lighttubes, thumbtacks, Lego, a barbed wire bat and even sauna stones were used as weapons. Ito came out on top in the end but he praised Katsumata for keeping up with death matches, especially this week’s schedule. He doesn’t likes saunas though because they are too hot. Katsumata tells him everyone says that at first but they always end up liking it.
Shuffle Tag Tournament – Semi Final
Smile Pissari Vs Nomutake
The semi finals began and one of them went into extra time. Okabayashi came out wearing a similar entrance robe as HARASHIMA. Nomura wanted to get into a kick battle with HARASHIMA so that is what he got. In the final minutes, Okabayashi and Takeshita both went down from a Lariat but only Okabayashi got to tag out. HARASHIMA went for the Somato and Takeshita avoided it before the bell rang for a time limit draw. At the restart, HARASHIMA kicked Takeshita’s injured arm, followed with a Thrust Kick to the face and pinned him for the one count with a Jackknife. Nomura would like to team with Takeshita again but he doesn’t know if his regular tag partner Fuminori Abe would approve of it. Takeshita then suggested he could fight against Nomura & Abe.
Nakanoueno Vs Daisuke In The Sky
The tag synergy continued with Sekimoto & Endo wearing each other’s entrance robes. After a Double Torture Rack spot, Endo encouraged Sekimoto to German Suplex him and Ueno together. Ueno slipped out and landed on his feet while Endo took the full brunt of the move. Ueno hit Sekimoto with a Frog Splash and Nakanoue won with a big Lariat. Sekimoto apologised to Endo over and over backstage. He admits his wife tells him he is too careless all the time. Endo promised to improve his fingertip strength so his clutch will get stronger.
New Year’s Wrestling 2020 Special 8-Man Tag Match
The young boys were fed to the grizzly old veterans but they didn’t go down without a fight. Yuki Ishikawa stepped in as a last minute replacement for Kosuke Sato because of injury. Takuho Kato set Keigo Nakamura up to do the Exquisite Moonsault on Kazuki Hashimoto. A nearfall then came when Hideki Okatani gave Kazuki the Northern Lights Suplex. Eruption cut them off and Daichi Hashimoto took over. He resisted Okatani’s chops and pinned him with the Falcon Arrow.
Shuffle Tag Tournament – Final
Smile Pissari Vs Nakanoueno
The final turned out to be a preview of Big Japan’s 2nd January main event with Okabayashi and Nakanoue squaring off. The match started off with them and ended with them. Ueno wiped out HARASHIMA with a Tornillo leading to the Big Japan pair to take it home. Nakanoue hit the Diving Elbow but HARASHIMA broke the pin and hit a Somato into the corner. Okabayashi got a nearfall with a Power Bomb. He then had to use the Golem Splash to get the three count and win the tournament with HARASHIMA! He thanked HARASHIMA for teaming with him and also for the entrance robe. HARASHIMA hopes to keep up with Okabayashi in 2021. Nakanoue & Ueno were happy with their performances considering they never teamed together before today. Maybe they have Osaka Power of love and friendship.
Best Bout
1. Tetsuya Endo Vs Daisuke Sasaki (DDT, 3rd November)
2. Ryuji Ito Vs Minoru Fujita (Big Japan, 29th August)
3. Yuji Okabayashi Vs Daisuke Sekimoto (Big Japan, 23rd November)
4. Onryo Vs Yuko Miyamoto (666, 27th June)
5. Masashi Takeda Vs Daisuke Masaoka (FREEDOMS, 10th November)
Best Unit
1. Astronauts
2. Eruption
3. unchain
4. DAMNATION
5. Wataridori Rengo
Best Box Office
1. Big Japan at Yokohama Bunka Gymnasium, 29th August
2. Hiragana Muscle at Tokyo Korakuen Hall, 9th November
3. DDT at Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium, 3rd November
4. Big Japan at Yokohama Bunka Gymnasium, 30th August
5. Hiragan Muscle at Tokyo Shinagawa The Grand Hall, 21st September
Best Newcomer
1. Rina Yamashita
2. Shunma Katsumata
3. Jun Akiyama
4. Yuki Ishikawa
5. Hideki Okatani
Posted by JamieOD 
