Double Title Match This Sunday!

October 18, 2013

DDT “SPECIAL 2013”, 20/10/2013
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
DDT48 General Election Ranking In Parentheses

0. Dark Match – 2 Vs 1 Handicap Match: Yukio Sakaguchi (#23) Vs Michael Nakazawa (#14) & DJ Nira (#25)
1. 3 Way Match: Cherry (#10) Vs KUDO (#14) Vs MIKAMI (#15)
2. Konosuke Takeshita (#13) Vs Hiroshi Fukuda (#16)
3. Masa Takanashi (#12) Vs Daisuke Sasaki (#20)
4. Soma Takao (#7), Keisuke Ishii (#18) & Shigehiro Irie (#20) Vs Isami Kodaka (#2), Cherry (#6) & Yasu Urano (#11)
5. Kota Ibushi (#3) & Kenny Omega (#8) Vs Hikaru Sato (#5) & Akito (#17)
6. DDT Extreme Title: Antonio Honda (c) (#19) Vs Super Sasadango Machine (9th)
7. KO-D Openweight Title & Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: HARASHIMA (c) (#4) Vs Danshoku Dino (c) (#1)

The entire reason the DDT48 General Election exists finally pays off with this show on Sunday. Everyone on the card was voted in by the results of the election.

The main event is now a double title match. Danshoku Dino won the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title from KUDO in Sapporo last week. He promises to defeat HARASHIMA so he can hold both the KO-D Openweight Title and Iron Man Title at the same time. The last time both titles were defended in the same match was Kota Ibushi Vs Yoshihiko in 2009, one week shy of it being exactly four years ago. Ibushi won that match but Yoshihiko won back the Iron Man Title almost immediately afterwards. So yeah, don’t be surprised if something like that happens again.

The stipulations for the DDT Extreme Title match between Antonio Honda and the instantly popular Super Sasadango Machine will be announced during the show.


DDT48 General Election 2013 Results

October 2, 2013

ddt48-2013

DDT “DDT48 GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS ANNOUNCEMENT”, 02/10/2013
Shinjuku FACE
520 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. Isami Kodaka & Hiroshi Fukuda defeated Cherry & FUMA when Kodaka submitted FUMA with an Arm Lock (7:03).
2. Keisuke Ishii, Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao defeated Masa Takanashi, Akito & Konosuke Takeshita when Irie pinned Akito with the Flying Sausage (9:11).

DDT48 General Election 2013 Final Standings

1. Danshoku Dino (428 votes)
2. Isami Kodaka (419 votes)
3. Kota Ibushi (417 votes)
4. HARASHIMA (344 votes)
5. Hikaru Sato (330 votes)
6. Makoto Oishi (225 votes)
7. Soma Takao (221 votes)
8. Kenny Omega (200 votes)
9. Super Sasadango Machine (185 votes)
10. Cherry (182 votes)
11. Yasu Urano (174 votes)
12. Masa Takanashi (171 votes)
13. Konosuke Takeshita (170 votes)
14. KUDO (158 votes)
15. MIKAMI (156 votes)
16. Hiroshi Fukuda (150 votes)
17. Akito (149 votes)
18. Keisuke Ishii (147 votes)
19. Antonio Honda (146 votes)
20. Shigehiro Irie (144 votes)
– Daisuke Sasaki (144 votes)

22. Mio Shirai (143 votes)
23. Yukio Sakaguchi (131 votes)
24. Michael Nakazawa (92 votes)
25. DJ Nira (90 votes)

26. Yoshihiko (89 votes)
27. Toru Owashi (51 votes)
– Mitomi Masayuki (51 votes)
29. Shuji Ishikawa (45 votes)

Total Votes Cast: 5,728 votes

Danshoku Dino wins the DDT48 General Election and becomes the first two time winner of the competition, his previous victory being the very first election in 2010. This was the closest result yet with Dino winning by just 9 votes. As the winner, Dino receives a KO-D Openweight Title shot against HARASHIMA in Korakuen Hall and also a ¥1,000,000 cash prize, which funnily enough is exactly what he won four years ago.

The top 20 fills up the main card at the 20/10 Korakuen show while spots 21-24 will compete in a dark match. Shigehiro Irie and Daisuke Sasaki tied together in 20th place so they both qualify for the main card. This opened up a dark match spot for the person who finished 25th. That person is DJ Nira, who just beat out Yoshihiko by a single vote! On the other end of the single vote spectrum, Mio Shirai must be feeling a little salty by missing out of the main card by one vote.

Isami Kodaka was this year’s dark horse by finishing in second place and coming so close to Dino. He may wind up like Hikaru Sato and receive good fortune for his performance. Sato benefited from strong showings in the first two elections, winning the second one and eventually winning the KO-D Title because of it. Kodaka is in a similar spot as a long time member of the Union roster who recently became the face of the promotion.

Maybe the biggest surprise is Super Sasadango Machine finishing 9th. The Niigata wrestler has only wrestled twice in DDT this year. Maybe the fans really like sasa dango food. Or maybe he reminds them of Muscle Sakai. Who knows?


DDT “WHO’S GONNA TOP? 2013” Results

September 29, 2013

DDT “WHO’S GONNA TOP? 2013 ~DDT48 GENERAL ELECTION LAST POLLING DAY~”, 29/09/2013
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
2,052 Fans – Super No vacancy Full House

0. Dark Match: Guanchulo Vs Gorgeous Matsuno ended in a Time Limit Draw (5:00).
1. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Isami Kodaka & Yuko Miyamoto (c) defeated Keisuke Ishii & Soma Takao when Kodaka pinned Takao with a Cradle (12:14).
*V1 for Yankii Ni Cho Kenju.
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Scramble Battle Royal: KUDO defeated Akihiro (c) with the Diving Double Knee Drop (9:54).
Order of Elimination: Masa Takanashi, Tomomitsu Matsunaga, Kazuki Hirata, Hoshitango, Cherry, Mio Shirai, Michael Nakazawa, DJ Nira, Akihiro.
*KUDO becomes the 975th champion.
3. MIKAMI & Tanomusaku Toba defeated Hikaru Sato & Akito when MIKAMI pinned Akito with a Modified School Boy (10:36).
4. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi & Akebono defeated Kota Ibushi, Kenny Omega & Gota Ihashi when Akebono pinned Ihashi with the Body Press (13:04).
*V1 for Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi & Akebono.
5. Antonio Honda, Daisuke Sasaki & Yuji Hino defeated Danshoku Dino, Makoto Oishi & Super Sagadang Machine when Honda pinned Machine with the Diving Fist Drop (15:48).
6. Shigehiro Irie defeated Konosuke Takeshita with a Package Piledriver (10:50).
7. KO-D Openweight Title: HARASHIMA (c) defeated Yasu Urano with the Somato (21:18).
*V1 for HARASHIMA.

It was an emotional main event between two friends over the KO-D Openweight Title. But Yasu Urano was determined to do anything to win the title from HARASHIMA, even if it meant targeting the champ’s injured leg. However, HARASHIMA stayed strong and was able to defeat Urano to record the first defence of his latest title reign. Urano admitted feeling ashamed for going after HARASHIMA’s injury but he was forgiven. Next for HARASHIMA is the winner of the DDT48 General Election.

Shigehiro Irie has added the Package Piledriver to his arsenal. That move might come in handy when he and Keisuke Ishii travel over to All Japan in the coming weeks.

The KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Title being defended under Falls Count Anywhere rules guaranteed a crazy match. Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi & Akebono were able to defeat the Golden Rendezvous in a match that went all over Korakuen Hall. Afterwards, Takagi asked Akebono if he could return on 4th November in Osaka Bodymaker Colosseum for the next title defence. Akebono said he would be there and he thanked the fans for their support. In a backstage interview Takagi bragged that his team is unbeatable. He also told Akebono they should go to a tiny place where a grand sumo champion has never fought before, like Chiba.

KUDO was absolutely dominant in the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title Battle Royal. He even survived an ambush by Gorgeous Matsuno & Guanchulo after winning the title.

Yankii Ni Cho Kenju bragged about winning their first of 100 planned defences of the KO-D Tag Team Title. Keisuke Ishii took the defeat in his stride and swore he will bring the All Asia Tag Team Titles to DDT!

Grogeous Matsuno was impressed with Guanchulo after their time limit draw. He requested to team with him sometime in the future.

Saki Akai will return to wrestle her second ever match at the 4th November Osaka show.

Sanshiro Takagi announced that he wants DDT to perform at the Saitama Super Arena. He said it will be possible because they were able to do shows at Sumo Hall and Budokan Hall.

Union will soon become a separate company from DDT. The spin-off has been financed by DDT ever since its rebirth in 2005. It will now be its own independent company but will continue its relationship with DDT. Union will also debut a new rookie at the 23rd October Korakuen Hall show. The name I get from translation is Suru Kawamura but that will be corrected as soon as I get the proper name.

Tokyo Women’s Wrestling will hold its first official show in Kitizawa Town Hall on 1st December. It will be the second half of a doubleshot with DDT held that day.


Gorgeous Card, Hino Pulls Out Of DDT48 Election

September 21, 2013

DDT “GREAT EAST JAPAN EARTHQUAKE RECOVERY ~GORGEOUS NIGHT~”, 05/10/2013
Fukushima Gymnasium

1. Tokyo Women’s Wrestling Offer Match: Miyu Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima Vs KANNA & Chikage Kiba
2. Hikaru Sato & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs MIKAMI & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
3. Antonio Honda & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Gota Ihashi & Michael Nakazawa
4. Yasu Urano Vs Soma Takao
5. Kota Ibushi & Masa Takanashi Vs Shigehiro Irie & Keisuke Ishii
6. Gorgeous Matsuno, HARASHIMA & KUDO Vs Danshoku Dino, Makoto Oishi & Akito

Yuji Hino has gone in for surgery on his right elbow and will take time off for the time being. Since he was currently involved in the DDT48 General Election, he has now pulled out of the contest.


DDT48 Update

September 5, 2013

The DDT48 General Election standings as of 29th August.

1. Isami Kodaka (36 votes)
2. Kota Ibushi (33 votes)
3. Danshoku Dino (32 votes)
– Cherry (32 votes)
5. MIKAMI (29 votes)
6. Akito (26 votes)
7. Super Sagadang Machine (23 votes)
8. Kenny Omega (21 votes)
9. Makoto Oishi (20 votes)
– Takao Soma (20 votes)
11. Yukio Sakaguchi (18 votes)
12. HARASHIMA (15 votes)
– Mio Shirai (15 votes)
– Mitomi Masayuki (15 votes)
15. Yasu Urano (14 votes)
– Keisuke Ishii (14 votes)
17. DJ Nira (13 votes)
18. Hikaru Sato (12 votes)
– Shigehiro Irie (12 votes)
– Antonio Honda (12 votes)
– Shuji Ishikawa (12 votes)
– Daisuke Sasaki (12 votes)


2013 DDT48 General Election

August 27, 2013

The DDT48 General Election returns for a fourth year. The election allows fans to vote for who will compete at the 20th October Korakuen Hall show. The grand prize for the winner is 1,000,000 Yen and also a KO-D Openweight Title shot for 20/10. If the KO-D Champion (currently HARASHIMA) wins the election, he will get to choose the No. 1 Contender. The rest of the card will be filled with wrestlers who make up the Top 20. Wrestlers who finish between 21st and 24th will compete in a tag team dark match. People are eligable to vote when they buy merchandise at DDT and Union shows, gaining one voting slip for every 3,000 yen they spend. There are actually 49 names on the ballot this year due to Tetsuya Endo being injured. He is currently expected to be cleared to wrestle at 20/10 but the extra entry is there to fill in the gap should he not recover in time. The polls opened at the 24/8 Korakuen show and will end on the 29/9 Korakuen show. Results will be announced at Shin-Kiba 1st RING on 2nd October.

1. Kota Ibushi
2. Danshoku Dino
3. HARASHIMA
4. MIKAMI
5. Hikaru Sato
6. Isami Kodaka
7. Shigehiro Irie
8. Kenny Omega
9. KUDO
10. Makoto Oishi
11. Masa Takanashi
12. Antonio Honda
13. Mio Shirai
14. Yasu Urano
15. Keisuke Ishii
16. Cherry
17. Konosuke Takeshita
18. Takao Soma
19. DJ Nira
20. Yukio Sakaguchi
21. Hiroshi Fukuda
22. Michael Nakazawa
23. Gorgeous Matsuno
24. Rion Mizuki
25. Tomomitsu Matsunaga
26. Akito
27. Kazuki Hirata
28. Gota Ihashi
29. Tetsuya Endo
30. Daisuke Sasaki
31. Hoshitango
32. Yuji Hino
33. Toru Owashi
34. Yoshihiko
35. Guanchulo
36. Shuji Ishikawa
37. Seiya Morohashi
38. FUMA
39. Daichi Kazato
40. Ryu Gouma
41. SAGAT
42. Mitomi Masayuki
43. Menso~re Oyaji
44. Madoka
45. Kaori Yoneyama
46. Kengo Takai
47. Tanomusaku Toba
48. Yoshiaki Yago
49. Super Sagadang Machine


DDT “DDT SPECIAL 2012” Results

October 21, 2012

DDT “DDT SPECIAL 2012”, 21/10/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,424 Fans – Super No Vacancy
DDT48 General Election Ranking In Parentheses

0. Dark Match: Yuji Hino (#26) defeated DJ Nira (#20) with a Rear Naked Choke (4:28).
0. Dark Match: Michael Nakazawa (#24) & Yoshihiko (#25) defeated Yukio Sakaguchi (#21) & Hiroshi Fukuda (#22) when Yoshihiko pinned Fukuda with a Small Package (7:04).
1. Masa Takanashi (#12) & Cherry (#15) defeated Makoto Oishi (#9) & Mio Shirai (#11) when Takanashi pinned Oishi with the Bacchus (7:41).
2. Hikaru Sato (#5) defeated Antonio Honda (#12) by KO (9:33).
3. Danshoku Dino (#2) defeated Konosuke Takeshita (#17) by KO with the Lip Lock (9:03).
4. Kenny Omega (#8) defeated Keisuke Ishii (#16) with the Croyt’s Wrath (12:56).
5. Hardcore Tag Team Match: Shigehiro Irie (#6) & Takao Soma (#18) defeated Isami Kodaka (#6) & Sanshiro Takagi (#18) when Irie pinned Kodaka with an Elbow Smash (12:44).
6. HARASHIMA (#3) defeated MIKAMI (#4) with the Somato (10:25).
7. KO-D Openweight Title: El Generico (c) defeated Kota Ibushi (#1) with an Inside Cradle (19:27).
*V1 for El Generico.

El Generico snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, countering Kota Ibushi’s Phoenix Splash into an Inside Cradle to successfully defend the KO-D Openweight Title. According to the DDT website, this is Generico’s first official defence of the title. His match with El Ligero for Revolution Pro Wrestling in England last week has not been recognised as a KO-D Title match. Ibushi was very disappointed to lose to Generico for the third time in a row this year. He is convinced that he will someday beat Generico but for now his focus will be developing his new stable with Kenny Omega and Gota Ihashi.

A 7 Way match to determine the next challenger will take place on 28/10. It will be HARASHIMA Vs Shigehiro Irie Vs Antonio Honda Vs Gota Ihashi Vs Isami Kodaka Vs MIKAMI Vs Hikaru Sato. Kenny Omega was supposed to be included in this match but he will be spending the rest of the year in Canada after that show, so Ihashi takes his spot instead.

After Shigehiro Irie pinned Isami Kodaka in the Hardcore Tag Team match, a singles bout between the two was set up for the 23/11 Union show.

Poison Sawada JULIE mentioned that there was no shortage in opponents for his retirement match. Some of his suggestions included a 60 minute Ironman Match against Ultraman Robin and a 60 minute Ironman Viper Death Match against one of his old alter egos. However, he decided to share the spotlight with younger generation. Sawada will team up with two mystery partners to face Hiro Tsumaki, Tetsuya Endo & Konosuke Takeshita for his retirement on 25/11.

Tetsuya Endo gave some advice to Konosuke Takeshita before his match with Danshoku Dino. Takeshita was told to protect his lips from Dino. He should have listened.

Antonio Honda spent his entire match Hikaru Sato targeting his opponent’s hair. Sato’s hairline is getting rather thin and Honda helped speed up the balding process. However, Sato got the last laugh when he instructed the Samurai TV cameraman to get a close up on Honda’s head, showing that Honda himself has a bald spot. Honda was so shocked at the revelation he lost consciousness and collapsed. The referee called for the bell and declared Sato the winner of the match.

Dick Togo was in attendance to receive the award for Best Indie Match of 2011 from Samurai TV. Togo never actually received the plaque due to his busy travelling schedule at the time. The award was for Togo’s match with Kota Ibushi from March 2011.

KUDO and Yasu Urano both appeared to update everyone on their injuries. KUDO said he is aiming to return in the new year but Yasu is still going through tests and does not know when he can return. They both decided to temporarily disband Ura-Shima-Kudo. However, Hiro Tsumaki interrupted and pleaded with them to reconsider their decision. He wants the unit to continue under the name ShimaHiro, since himself and HARASHIMA are the only active wrestlers in the group.

Yoshihiko wore a pumpkin mask for his match. It and Michael Nakazawa beat Yukio Sakaguchi & Hiroshi Fukuda when it countered Fukuda’s Perfect Plex into a Small Package.


Urano Pulled From “DDT SPECIAL 2012”

October 18, 2012

DDT “DDT SPECIAL 2012”, 21/10/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
DDT48 General Election Ranking In Parentheses

0. Dark Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Hiroshi Fukuda Vs Michael Nakazawa & Yoshihiko
0. Dark Match: Yuji Hino (#26) Vs DJ Nira (#20)
1. Makoto Oishi (#9) & Mio Shirai (#11) Vs Masa Takanashi (#12) & Cherry (#15)
2. Kenny Omega (#8) Vs Keisuke Ishii (#16)
3. Hardcore Tag Team Match: Isami Kodaka (#6) & Sanshiro Takagi (#18) Vs Shigehiro Irie (#6) & Takao Soma (#18)
4. Hikaru Sato (#5) Vs Antonio Honda (#12)
5. HARASHIMA (#3) Vs MIKAMI (#4)
6. Danshoku Dino (#2) Vs Konosuke Takeshita (#17)
7. KO-D Openweight Title: El Generico (c) Vs Kota Ibushi (#1)

Yasu Urano has not recovered from his injury and has been taken off the show. A reshuffling of the card now has Keisuke Ishii facing Kenny Omega on the main show and Yuji Hino Vs DJ Nira as a dark match.


Cards For October

October 5, 2012

DDT “BLUE LIGHT YOKOHAMA 2012”, 13/10/2012
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Antonio Honda, Daisuke Sasaki & Hoshitango Vs MIKAMI, Masa Takanashi & Tetsuya Endo
2. Akito Vs Yukio Sakaguchi
3. Kenny Omega & DJ Nira Vs Danshoku Dino & Michael Nakazawa
4. Sanshiro Takagi Vs Hiroshi Fukuda
5. Takao Soma & Shigehiro Irie Vs Hikaru Sato & Makoto Oishi
6. HARASHIMA & KUDO Vs Kota Ibushi & Gota Ihashi
7. Yasu Urano Vs Keisuke Ishii

Keisuke Ishii goes for revenge after Yasu Urano pinned him at last week’s show in Korakuen Hall.

DDT “PLATEFUL FESTIVAL WRESTLING”, 14/10/2012
JR Omori Station

1. Daisuke Sasaki Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga
2. Shigehiro Irie & Takao Soma Vs Kenny Omega & Gota Ihashi
3. HARASHIMA, KUDO & Yasu Urano Vs MIKAMI, Makoto Oishi & Masa Takanashi
4. No. 1 Contendership For Omori World Title – Battle Royal: Kota Ibushi Vs Sanshiro Takagi Vs Michael Nakazawa Vs Hoshitango Vs Antonio Honda Vs Tetsuya Endo
5. Omori World Title: Danshoku Dino (c) Vs Tanomusaku Toba

Danshoku Dino dusts off the Omori World Championship for a rare title defence. DDT has even gone far enough to set up a Battle Royal to determine the next challenger after Tanomusaku Toba.

DDT “DDT SPECIAL 2012”, 21/10/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
DDT48 General Election Ranking In Parentheses

0. Dark Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Michael Nakazawa Vs DJ Nira & Hiroshi Fukuda
1. KUDO (#9) Vs Keisuke Ishii (#16)
2. Makoto Oishi (#9) & Mio Shirai (#11) Vs Masa Takanashi (#12) & Cherry (#15)
3. Kenny Omega (#8) Vs Yasu Urano (#14)
4. Hardcore Tage Team Match: Isami Kodaka (#6) & Sanshiro Takagi (#18) Vs Shigehiro Irie (#6) & Takao Soma (#18)
5. Hikaru Sato (#5) Vs Antonio Honda (#12)
6. HARASHIMA (#3) Vs MIKAMI (#4)
7. Danshoku Dino (#2) Vs Konosuke Takeshita (#17)
8. KO-D Openweight Title: El Generico (c) Vs Kota Ibushi (#1)

As the winner of the 2012 DDT48 General Election, Kota Ibushi wins a shot at the KO-D Openweight Title he recently lost to El Generico.


Ibushi Defeats Truman – DDT48 Election Results

October 3, 2012

DDT “DDT48 GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS”, 03/10/2012
Shin-Kiba 1st RING
570 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. HARASHIMA & Hikaru Sato defeated Seiya Morohashi & Ken Ohka when HARASHIMA pinned Ohka with the Somato (7:53).
2. Keisuke Ishii, Takao Soma & Shigehiro Irie defeated Masa Takanashi, Hiro Tsumaki & Akito when Soma pinned Akito with the Boma Ye (6:56).

DDT48 General Election 2012 Final Standings

1. Kota Ibushi (372 Votes)
2. Danshoku Dino (215 Votes)
3. HARASHIMA (203 Votes)
4. MIKAMI (198 Votes)
5. Hikaru Sato (197 Votes)
6. Shigehiro Irie (164 Votes)
– Isami Kodaka (164 Votes)
8. Kenny Omega (147 Votes)
9. Makoto Oishi (141 Votes)
-. KUDO (141 Votes)
11. Mio Shirai (138 Votes)
12. Masa Takanashi (116 Votes)
– Antonio Honda (116 Votes)
14. Yasu Urano (111 Votes)
15. Cherry (102 Votes)
16. Keisuke Ishii (101 Votes)
17. Konosuke Takeshita (99 Votes)
18. Takao Soma (86 Votes)
– Sanshiro Takagi (86 Votes)

20. DJ Nira
21. Yukio Sakaguchi
22. Hiroshi Fukuda
23. El Generico
24. Michael Nakazawa

25. Yoshihiko
26. Yuji Hino
27. Akito
28. Shuji Ishikawa
29. Daisuke Sasaki
30. Mr. #6

Total Votes Cast: 3,894 votes.

Kota Ibushi wins by a landslide and gets and does not have to wait long to get a rematch with El Generico for the KO-D Openweight Title. They will face each other in Korakuen Hall on 21st October.

This is the first election where the final spot is shared by two wrestlers. Sanshiro Takagi and his former protege Takao Soma both qualify to wrestle at the 21/10 show along with the top 17.

Originally, the wrestlers who finished between 20th and 23rd place qualified to compete in a dark match for the Korakuen show. But since El Generico finished 23rd and is already booked for the main event, his pre-show spot will be taken by Michael Nakazawa, who finished 24th. This is the second year in a row that Nakazawa qualified for the show by default.

The women continue their 100% qualification for the elections, which sounds impressive if you ignore the fact that Cherry and Mio Shirai are the only women who ever participated.