DDT “DDT X ZEEKSTAR TOKYO SPECIAL PERFORMANCE ~ DDZT”, 26/04/2024 Tokyo Sumida Ward General Gymnasium
0. Dark Match – 3 Way Match: Yuni Vs Ilusion V Kazuma Sumi
1. DDT Universal Title: MAO (c) Vs Keigo Nakamura
2. Kazusada Higuchi & Yuya Koroku Vs Yukio Naya & Rukiya
3. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda, Takeshi Masada & Mecha Mummy (c) Vs Toru Owashi, Hiroshi Yamato, Tomomitsu Matsunaga, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Kawamatsu
4. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Sayaka Unagi (c) Vs Sanshiro Takagi
5. BURNING Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino Vs Shunma Katsumata & To-y
6. Special Single Match: HARASHIMA Vs Kazuki Hirata
7. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Yuki Ueno (c) Vs Akito
Last week Sanshiro Takagi hatched a plan to get the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title off of Sayaka Unagi. He no longer trusts Unagi to protect the belt after she lost it to an unknown person in America last month and risked it disappearing from DDT forever. Takagi’s plan was to attack Unagi with a pack of Grilled Unagi in her dressing room before a press conference. Takagi choked Unagi with the unagi and she tapped out. The referee was about to hand Takagi the belt when he instead told him to give it to the Grilled Unagi! Sayaka Unagi got revenge during the press conference when she opened the pack of unagi, filled it in a bowl with rice and began to eat it. After taking a few bites, the referee checked on the unagi for any movement and ruled it had been knocked out which means Sayaka Unagi is the champion again! She then promised to defeat Takagi on behalf of all kinds of Unagi.
Keigo Nakamura asked MAO to put the DDT Universal Title on the line in their match. MAO likes the idea because the story of a wrestler winning the title in his comeback match from injury hasn’t happened before with the Universal Championship. He wants to do unprecedented things in his title reign and that matches what he is looking for. Nakamura developed a desire to win that particular championship while he was rehabbing from his injury.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE TOUR 2024 SPRING”, 27/04/2024 Tokyo Kitazawa Town Hall
1. 3 Way Match: Rika Tatsumi Vs Nao Kakuta vs Chika Nanase
2. Mahiro Kiryu Vs Kira Summer
3. Maki Itoh & Uta Takami Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Toga
4. Mizuki & Shino Suzuki Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
5. Suzume, Arisu Endo & Haru Kazashiro Vs Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI & Runa Okubo
6. Miu Watanabe & Moka Miyamoto Vs Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino
This week Maki Itoh returns from America while Kaya Toribami will be travelling over to America.
BASARA “BASARA 246 ~UTAGE~”, 30/04/2024 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. SAGAT & Gouma Ryu Vs Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga
2. Ryuichi Sekine & Masato Kamino Vs Yasu Urano & Yuki Ishikawa
3. Ryota Nakatsu & Fuminori Abe Vs Takumi Tsukamoto & Judomaster
4. Isami Kodaka, Takato Nakano & Gaia Hox Vs FUMA, KUBITO & Daichi Kazato
5. Union MAX Title: Minoru Fujita (c) Vs Lil’ Kraken
Gaia Hox makes his BASARA debut.
The next challengers for the IRON FIST Tag Team Titles are Takumi Tsukamoto & Judomaster. They don’t have a date for the match yet so first Ryota Nakatsu will meet them in a prelim match with Fuminori Abe as his partner.
DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 1ST ROUND”, 05/05/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
0. Dark Match: Yuni, Keigo Nakamura & Yuya Koroku Vs Ilusion, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
0. Dark Match: Shunma Katsumata, Akito & Kazuki Hirata Vs Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1A: MAO Vs Poison Sawada JULIE
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1B: KANON Vs To-y
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1C: Yuki Ueno Vs Sanshiro Takagi
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1D: Yuki Iino Vs Daisuke Sasaki
5. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1E: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yukio Naya
6. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1F: HARASHIMA Vs Shuji Ishikawa
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1G: Tetsuya Endo Vs Danshoku Dieno
8. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1H: Chris Brookes Vs Takeshi Masada
The King Of DDT 1st Round takes up the entire main card lineup so the other matches have to take place on the pre-show.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “YES! WONDERLAND ’24”, 06/05/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Toga Vs Shino Suzuki
2. Mahiro Kiryu, Chika Nanase & Kira Summer Vs Moka Miyamoto, Kaya Toribami & Uta Takami
3. Yuna Manase Vs Runa Okubo
4. Maki Itoh Vs Haru Kazashiro
5. Rika Tatsumi & Yuki Aino Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
6. Yuki Arai & Yuki Kamifuku Vs Mizuki & Nao Kakuta
7. Princess Tag Team Titles: Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI
8. Princess Of Princess Title: Miu Watanabe (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima
This is the full card for this year’s Tokyo Joshi Pro Golden Week show. Rika Tatsumi & Yuki Aino are teaming up using the name Burning Dragon. Also coming in is Yuna Manase for her first appearance on a TJPW solo show since October 2022. Runa Okubo is her opponent for her return.
DDT “EARLY SUMMER BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING – DAY 2”, 17/05/2024 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Danshoku Dieno Birthday Eve Commemorative Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs X
2. DDT Extreme Title: Shunma Katsumata (c) Vs Antonio Honda
There have been so many ways Antonio Honda has left his mark in DDT over the years. Shunma Katsumata believes Honda left his biggest mark with his DDT Extreme Title reigns. So much so that Katsumata now sees it as his mission to make his current reign surpass all of Honda’s. He nominated Honda as his next challenger and will come up with a match stipulation that will fit the Beer Garden vibe.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “NAO KAKUTA GRADUATION COMMEMORATION ~KIMITACHIHA ISSHOUNO TAKARAMONO~”, 25/07/2024 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Nao Kakuta Graduation Match: Nao Kakuta Vs X
The end of July sees Nao Kakuta having her final match and graduating from TJPW.
DDT “SPOILER FREE BOX OFFICE VOL. 1”, 21/04/2024 Kanagawa Tsurumi Fruit & Vegetable Market 312 Fans – Super No Vacancy
1. No DQ Match: Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Bad Buddy Yuni & Pitochiko Sumi ended in a No Contest when it changed into Yuni Vs Kazuma Sumi.
1a. Bad Buddy Yuni defeated Pitochiko Sumi with a Sleeper Hold (7:50).
2. No Rope Survival 4 Way Match: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Yukio Naya, MJ Paul and Gota Ihashi (7:06).
2a. Yukio Naya eliminated MJ Paul by Ring Out (3:46).
2b. Kazusada Higuchi eliminated Yukio Naya by Ring Out (6:43).
2c. Kazusada Higuchi eliminated Gota Ihashi by Ring Out (7:06).
3. Special Tag Match ~ No Tag Rules: Yuki Iino & Yuki “Sexy” Iino (Rukiya) Vs Danshoku Dieno & Danshoku Dieno (Takeshi Masada) ended in a No Contest (12:55).
4. Different Martial Arts Special Tag Match ~ Rhythmic Gymnastics & Amateur Wrestling & Student Pro Wrestling Mixed Rules: Akito Nishigaki & Hayabucha defeated Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku when Hayabucha pinned Koroku with the Firebird Splash (R3 2:59).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tyrannosaurus Inoue, Super Hardcore Katsumata & To-y Vs Takagi Sanshirobo (w/ Mad Dr. Hige), Pakuri Muso & Super Hardcore Chris ended in a Double Countout (14:35).
6. No Tag Rules: Yuki Ueno, Yuki Ueno (MAO), Yuki Ueno (Shunma Katsumata) & Yuki Ueno (To-y) defeated Kazuki Hirata, Antonio Honda, Kazuki Hirata (Kazuma Sumi) & Antonio Honda (Kazusada Higuchi) when Ueno pinned Hirata & Honda with Double Crucifix Pin (27:24).
Today’s show had a stipulation for the audience to follow. Everything that happened had to be kept secret and not be posted on any social media sites until after midnight. DDT also kept the results to themselves until the same time too. To live up to expectations, every match had something unexpected happen unlong with the unusual lineup that was already advertised. Akito would explain after the show the concept was something new that DDT wanted to do in place of the BOYZ and YaroZ events they used to run.
The main event was advertised as a Handicap Match where Yuki Ueno had to fight Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda two on one. Ueno was able to fight them off but just when he was about to win, Kazuma Sumi entered the match as another Kazuki Hirata. Then Kazusada Higuchi climbed into the ring as another Antonio Honda. The numbers soon evened out when Shunma Katsumata & To-y joined the match both acting like Ueno. Tyrannosaurus Inoue showed up continuing its fight against Takagi Sanshirobo. When Inoue was done he stripped out of the dinosaur costume to evolve into MAO as Yuki Ueno! The four Yuki Uenos then danced with the two Hiratas and two Hondas. The match then ended when the real Ueno pinned both the real Hirata & Honda with a Double Crucifix. All four Uenos made comments after the match and Ueno said he felt like his soul was split into four.
Some of the wrestlers in Match #5 took on some unexpected personas. MAO as Tyrannosaurus Inoue and Sanshiro Takagi as Takagi Sanshirobo was already advertised. However Shunma Katsumata and Chris Brookes both showed up in Super Hardcore forms while Fuminori Abe turned into Pakuri Muso, his bootleg version of Jinsei Shinzaki. This left To-y embarrassed because he was the only one not to take up an alter ego for the match. The two teams ended up fighting outside the ring over to where the company truck was parkers. Yoshihiko appeared and jumped off the truck onto everyone below. Katsumata also dived off the truck to put To-y through a table. The match ended in a draw after both teams were counted out.
Match #4 was a mixed martial arts bout in that every wrestler taking part represented a different martial art and the rules of their sport would all be mixed together. This included Tetsuya Endo and his Rhythmic Gymnastics background for some reason. Akito and Yuya Koroku were bout amateur wrestlers while HARASHIMA came in using his student pro wrestling gimmick Hayabucha. The rules included 3 minute long rounds and an amateur wrestling 1 Count for pinfalls. However pins would not be counted until the wrestler scored 18 points for their Gymnastics performance. Also anyone who was knocked out of the ring had to return to the centre and place themselves in the Par Terre position. Hayabucha got the win for his team after giving Koroku the Falcon Arrow followed by the Firebird Splash.
At the beginning of the show an argument broke out among all of the wrestlers involved in Match #3 over Danshoku Dieno dying his hair pink. HARASHIMA calmed everyone down and told them to apologise. The four all bowed but also all banged their heads together. It caused a body swapping situation to happen, turning Takeshi Masada into another Danshoku Dieno while Rukiya became Yuki “Sexy” Iino. The real Yuki Iino finally got to experience what it was like to be a victim of Pheromones because his face was now getting shoved into the butts of other wrestlers. Just like in the old Pheromones matches, things got out of control. Hisaya Imabayashi tried to stop them from going too far but he wound up getting attacked too so the match had to be called off.
The ring ropes were removed for the 4 Way Match and the goal was to knock your opponents out of the ring to the floor. MJ Paul was the first eliminated when Yukio Naya knocked him to the floor. Naya then challenged Higuchi to a Sumo contest but blindsided him with a Knee Strike. Higuchi was knocked out of the ring at the corner but he grabbed onto the top of the post and pulled himself back into the ring without touching the floor. Higuchi then put Naya in the same situation. Naya almost saved himself the same way until Higuchi grabbed him in the Brain Claw and dropped him feet first onto the ground. That left Gota Ihashi as the other wrestler left but Higuchi easily dispatched of him to win.
Yuni & Kazuma Sumi showed up acting like heels and wanted to show DAMNATION T.A what it’s really like to be bad guys. Their match was turned into a No DQ bout. The new “heels” attacked Daisuke Sasaki & KANON with chairs. When they threatened Sasaki with a glass bottle, he pleaded for his life and offered to join their side. The three of them all attacked KANON together. KANON fought back which caused Sasaki to plead for his life again and swear he only joined the other heels as a spy. Yuni missed a chair shot and hit Sumi by accident. That caused the team to break down immediately and the two started fighting each other! KANON decided the match was now Yuni Vs Sumi with Sasaki as the referee. Sumi missed a chair shot, causing it to bounce off the ropes and hit him in the face. Yuni put him in a Sleeper Hold and Sasaki decided to end the match, declaring Yuni as the winner.
At the start of the show Keigo Nakamura approached MAO with a request. He wants his return match against MAO on 26th April to have the DDT Universal Title on the line. It is something he developed a desire to win while he was out recovering from his injury. MAO found the idea interesting. A guy like Nakamura winning the Universal Title in his comeback match? Nothing like this had ever happened before in DDT so MAO agreed to it.
Another title match was set up by Shunma Katsumata. He nominated Antonio Honda to be his next challenger for the DDT Extreme Title. According to Katsumata, Honda’s name is engraved in the title’s history and he must surpass him. Honda thinks not that many fans remember he was once an Extreme Champion. But he did treat the title with care when he held it and he would like to have it again. The title match will go ahead on 17th May. That is a Beer Garden show and Katsumata hopes to come up with a stipulation that will be appropriate for the venue.
Preview guides for this week’s American shows are coming right up. I will be travelling to America myself while the shows are going on but I’m not going to Philadelphia for my holiday. Results and any other updates will still be posted when I get the chance. It’s going to be an odd experience looking up highlights while I’m in the middle of a Knicks or Yankees game.
GCW/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GCW VS TJPW”, 06/04/2024 Penns Landing Caterers Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Suzume & Pom Harajuku Vs SAKI & Nao Kakuta
2. Session Moth Martina Vs Raku
3. Dark Sheik Vs Yuki Kamifuku
4. Steph De Lander Vs Hyper Misao
5. Shazza McKenzie Vs Arisu Endo
6. Allie Katch Vs Mizuki
7. Billie Starkz & Janai Kai Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
8. Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Rina Yamashita, Masha Slamovich & Maki Itoh Vs Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino
A broken hand prevents Sawyer Wreck from wrestling on the “GCW VS TJPW” show later this week. One small reshuffle later and we are now getting an Allie Katch Vs Mizuki match along with Nao Kakuta getting to team with SAKI so many years after they were last in the ring together over at Actwres girl’Z.
DDT “APRIL FOOL 2024”, 07/04/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. No Gamble FINAL!: Sanshiro Takagi, Akito & Toru Owashi Vs X
2. Yuni & Yuya Koroku Vs Ilusion & Munetatsu Nakamura
3. 4 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul Vs HARASHIMA, Yoshitatsu & Takeshi Masada Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Naya & Hideki Okatani Vs Danshoku Dieno, Kazuki Hirata & Kazuma Sumi
4. D GENERATIONS CUP 2024 – Final: To-y Vs Rukiya
5. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki Vs Chihiro Hashimoto
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino (c) Vs Jun Akiyama & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
7. Dramatic Dream Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & MAO Vs Zack Sabre Jr. & Chris Brookes
8. DDT Extreme Title – Good Luck!! Survival Deadly Weapon Omikuji Great Battle That Causes Pain: Shunma Katsumata (c) Vs Hi69
The DDT Extreme Title match will feature weapons placed in each corner of the ring determined by a lottery. It’s been hinted that the weapons are items that both Shunma Katsumata and Hi69 like to use. The match can only be won by pinfall or submission. Katsumata came up with the rules because he believes he has luck on his side. Hi69 intends to bring the Extreme Title back with him to NOAH if he wins it.
Hideki Okatani will be taking time off for injury after this show. He’s been wrestling while having a torn ACL in his left knee and needs reconstructive surgery for it. No timetable has been made for his return yet. His only message about the news is he will come back stronger.
DDT “DRAMATIC DREAM TOUR 2024 IN FUKUOKA”, 13/04/2024 Fukuoka Nishitetsu Hall
1. Sanshiro Takagi & Danshoku Dieno Vs Toru Owashi & Kazuma Sumi
2. Yukio Naya & To-y Vs Kazuki Hirata & Soma Takao
3. Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Yuya Koroku Vs Chris Brookes, Takeshi Masada & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
4. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Jun Akiyama & Rukiya
5. O-40 Title: Makoto Oishi Vs Azul Dragon
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Akito, HARASHIMA & Kota Umeda
This will be the last preview match for Yuki Ueno and Akito before their KO-D Openweight Title match takes place.
The opening 3 Way Match is now a tag team bout with the addition of Sanshiro Takagi to the mix.
BASARA “BASARA 245 ~YOKOHAMA STORY~”, 20/04/2024 Yokohama Radiant Hall
1. IRON FIST Tag Team Titles: Ryota Nakatsu & Kazusada Higuchi (c) Vs Isami Kodaka & Minoru Fujita
Both of The Brahman Brothers will be on the show. I mean, it would be weird at this point if only one of them got booked.
DDT “SPOILER FREE SHOW VOL. 1”, 21/04/2024 Kanagawa Tsurumi Fruit & Vegetable Market
1. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Kazuma Sumi & Yuni
2. 4 Way Match: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yukio Naya Vs MJ Paul Vs Gota Ihashi
3. Different Martial Arts Special Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku Vs Akito Nishigaki & Hayabucha
4. 1 Vs 2 Special Handicap Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda
5. Special Tag Match: Yuki Iino & Takeshi Masda Vs Danshoku Dieno & Rukiya
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match: MAO, Shunma Katsumata & To-y Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Fuminori Abe & Chris Brookes
It’s a Bonno Dai Shacho reunion! Sanshiro Takagi & Fuminori Abe are together again. What will they get up to with Chris Brookes on their side? We won’t know until hours after the show ends because no spoilers are allowed!
GANBARE☆PRO “SPRING BREAKERS 2024”, 27/04/2024 Tokyo Kitazawa Town Hall
It won’t be until the end of the month when Ganbare☆Pro holds their first show as an independent promotion. They have a new website up and one thing I like about it is they promote all of the different shows their wrestlers are booked for across the scene. I won’t be writing about most of them but at least it’s evidence that everyone will be keeping themselves busy inbetween shows.
As for the new freelancers they are making plans too. Shota is heading over to America and has bookings waiting for him when he comes back. Yoshiko Hasegawa and Riara announced they are putting together their own indie show at Takashimadaira Kumin Center on 11th May. They will put out more details later this week and if it features plenty of GanPro or CyberFight wrestlers I might have to go cover it. Same with Banny Oikawa’s 5th Anniversary show taking place on 1st May. HARUKAZE, Yuna Manase and YuuRI are being booked for that along with Moeka Haruhi as a special guest ring announcer.
“NEW YEAR’S EVE PRO WRESTLING 2023 ~TOSHIWASURE! SHUFFLE 6-MAN TAG TOURNAMENT~”, 31/12/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 778 Fans
1. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: HARASHIMA, Kota Sekifuda & Yuji Hino defeated Takeshi Masada, Akira & Koji Iwamoto when HARASHIMA pinned Masada with the Somato (7:06).
2. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: Kazusada Higuchi, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Kohei Kinoshita defeated Soma Takao, Kazumasa Yoshida & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi when Kinoshita pinned Hiroshi with the Blockbuster Hold (6:51).
3. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: Yukio Naya, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Minoru Suzuki Vs Danshoku Dieno, Daichi Hashimoto & Ikuto Hidaka ended in a Time Limit Draw (10:00).
3a. Overtime – 1 Count Fall Rules: Yukio Naya, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Minoru Suzuki defeated Danshoku Dieno, Daichi Hashimoto & Ikuto Hidaka when Suzuki submitted Dieno with the Sleeper Hold (4:45).
4. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sekimoto & Fuminori Abe defeated Hideki Okatani, Yuki Ishikawa & Brahman Shu (w/ Brahman Kei) when Abe submitted Shu with the Manjigatame (6:03).
5. So Daimonji, Ender Kara, Leyton Buzzard & Tempesta defeated Kazumi Kikuta, Kazuki Hashimoto, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya when Buzzard pinned Rukiya with the Firebird Splash (8:37).
6. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: HARASHIMA, Kota Sekifuda & Yuji Hino defeated Kazusada Higuchi, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Kohei Kinoshita when Sekifuda pinned Kinoshita with the Ironman (5:48).
7. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: Yukio Naya, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Minoru Suzuki Vs Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sekimoto & Fuminori Abe ended in a Time Limit Draw (10:00).
7a. Overtime – 1 Count Fall Rules: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sekimoto & Fuminori Abe defeated Yukio Naya, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Minoru Suzuki when Sekimoto pinned Kamitani with a Lariat (1:20).
8. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Takuya Nomura, Abdullah Kobayashi & Kankuro Hoshino defeated Yuki Ueno, Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda when Kobayashi pinned Honda with a Modified School Boy (13:32).
9. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Final: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sekimoto & Fuminori Abe defeated HARASHIMA, Kota Sekifuda & Yuji Hino when Endo pinned Sekifuda with the Burning Star Press (13:33).
On the final day of 2023 DDT, Big Japan and a scoop of the indies all joined together at Korakuen Hall to take part in the annual New Year’s Eve Shuffle Tag Team Tournament. This year was the third year in a row the tournament consisted of 6-Man Tag matches. Every team taking part consisted of a DDT wrestler, a BJW wrestler and a wild card independent wrestler. But before any of the matches began, Samurai TV presented the Japan Indie Grand Prix Awards for 2023. The full results for those can be found at the bottom of this report.
Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1
Smile Lizard King Kong Vs Lonely Hot College Students
The opening round began with HARASHIMA, Kota Sekifuda & Yuji Hino all joining forces to fight a team that no longer had an accurate team name. Yuya Aoki pulled out sick and had to be replaced with Akira who is not single like Takeshi Masada & Koji Iwamoto are. Although you could still argue he might have been feeling lonely anyway without being near his new friends anyway. They isolated HARASHIMA but Masada could not get the job done. Instead the tables were turned on him and HARASHIMA scored the pin with the Somato.
Team Katagi Returns Vs The Kind People
Style was the name of the game here. Team Katagi Returns all showed up wrestling in sunglasses and flashy shirts looking to boss around their opponents. Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi tried to settle them down with some karaoke, buying Soma Takao & Kazumasa Yoshida some time to regroup. Hiroshi tried it again to distract Kohei Kinoshita but ended up getting pinned with the Blockbuster Hold for his troubles.
Big Bombers Kai Vs Anal Destruction Hidaka
The big draw for this year’s tournament made his appearance in the third match. Minoru Suzuki showed up with no concern that Danshoku Dieno, Daichi Hashimoto & Ikuto Hidaka were all plotting to defeat him one way or another. It didn’t matter because whatever they threw at Suzuki, he just countered it and twisted them into submission holds. The match ended in a time limit draw so it went to 1 Count sudden death rules. Hidaka was convinced to settle himself on the top turnbuckle with his tights pulled down so Dieno & Hashimoto could throw their opponents face first into his rear end. The plan worked until it was Suzuki’s turn. He simply stopped in front of Hidaka and spanked him! Hashimoto then force fed Dieno the wasabi paste but the Lip Lock aimed for Suzuki was sent to Hashimoto instead! Suzuki used the Sleeper Hold on Dieno to squeeze the wasabi out of him until he gave up.
Go For It! The Three Inokori Brothers Vs Bati Bati F’N In The Sky
You can always count on The Brahman Brothers to come into this tournament with their partners already brainwashed into acting like them. It happened here with Hideki Okatani & Yuki Ishikawa. Together their obscene fighting styles left the opponents doubled over in pain due to where the attacks were targeted. However Fuminori Abe was able to trap Brahman Shu in the Manjigatame so his team could escape to the next round with enough of their collective dignity still intact.
Non-Tournament 8-Man Tag Match
There were two matches outside of the tournament. The first of which focused on PROJECT: HAVOC, the unit of wrestlers currently invading Big Japan led by So Daimonji. Facing them were the collective team of mostly young DDT and BJW wrestlers. Despite the best efforts of the combined home team, HAVOC overwhelmed them and won out in the end.
Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final
Smile Lizard King Kong Vs Team Katagi Returns
Over to the semi finals now where Smile Lizard King Kong continued to show their combined strength. The normally powerful Kazusada Higuchi & Yasufumi Nakanoue were instead powerless to save Kinoshita from getting flattened with Flying Body Press after Flying Body Press from their opponents, ending with Sekifuda folding him over with the Ironman pin for the 3 count.
Big Bombers Kai Vs Bati Bati F’N In The Sky
The other semi finals treated fans to a couple of important matchups. First was a preview of Tetsuya Endo against Yukio Naya in the D-Oh Grand Prix final happening on 3rd January. The other was Suzuki and Daisuke Sekimoto getting the rare chance to fight each other! Their battle ended in a stalemate because the time ran out. When sudden death began the match scrambled into Hideyoshi Kamitani trying to pin Sekimoto only to get defeated instead with Sekimoto’s Lariat. Endo and Naya had a staredown in the middle of the ring after the match.
Non-Tournament Special 6-Man Tag Match
The second non-tournament match was a straightforward DDT Vs Big Japan 6-Man Tag. Well I say straightforward but the match involved Antonio Honda and Abdullah Kobayashi both getting rope burn between their legs, the DDT team all dancing to “What Does The Fox Say”, then the Big Japan team dancing to “Tokyo GO!” until Takuya Nomura stopped them. But that was only because he wanted to lead the dance and use that power to overpower his opponents. Kobayashi ended up using Honda’s Gongitsune against him and rolled him up with a School Boy to get Big Japan the victory.
Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Final
Smile Lizard King Kong Vs Bati Bati F’N In The Sky
Sadly the show has not yet returned to running long enough that it reaches up to the clock striking midnight to bring in the new year. But the finalists were still able to take each other on without having to worry about a time limit. Sekimoto and Hino got into a big chop battle while HARASHIMA took out Abe with the Somato. Sekifuda almost pinned Endo with the Ironman but was then flipped upside down with the Tetsuya In the Sky. It was all there for Endo to take it and he finished Sekifuda off with the Burning Star Press, making Bati Bati F’N In The Sky the winners of this year’s tournament!
1. DDT @ Ryogoku Kokugikan, 12th November
2. Kakuto Tanteidan @ Shinjuku FACE, 12th October
3. Big Japan @ Yokohama Budokan, 4th May
4. Michinoku Pro @ Yahaba Townsmen Gymnasium, 15th October
5. 666 @ Korakuen Hall, 2nd, August
DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN KORAKUEN HALL”, 24/12/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
-. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Rei Saito (8) defeated Chris Brookes (2) by Forfeit.
1. Yukio Sakaguchi & Rukiya Vs KANON & MJ Paul
2. 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 Kazuma Sumi Vs Open Recruitment X
3. Special Single Match: Rei Saito Vs Hideki Okatani
4. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: MAO (6) Vs Yukio Naya (6)
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Daisuke Sasaki (5) Vs HARASHIMA (2)
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Ueno (5) Vs Yuki Iino (2)
8. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo (4) Vs Kazusada Higuchi (6)
Yusuke Okada is out sick and will have to miss tomorrow’s show.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW INSPIRATION”, 06/01/2024 Shinjuku FACE
1. Pom Harajuku Vs Kuishinbo Kamen
2. Max The Impaler & Yuki Aino Vs HIMAWARI & Toga
3. Battle Royal To Win The Right To Challenge The Princess Of Princess Champion: Mizuki Vs Rika Tatsumi Vs Shoko Nakajima Vs Maki Itoh Vs Yuki Kamifuku Vs Miu Watanabe
4. Death Match: Masha Slamovich Vs Hikari Noa
By the end of the first week in January we will know what the main event of “GRAND PRINCESS ’24” is going to be. Miyu Yamashita and Masha Slamovich are fighting over the Princess Of Princess Title on the 4th. Then two days later there will be a Battle Royal between the six biggest potential challengers remaining for the title. The winner will become the No. 1 Contender and gets to face the champion at Sumo Hall on 31st March.
Life is already a circus for Pom Harajuku so it was only a matter of time before she cross paths with Kuishinbo Kamen. She kicks shins and he sells them like Trevor Berbick. It’s like a match made in heaven!
BASARA “BASARA 239 ~UTAGE~”, 07/01/2024 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. KUBITO & Yasu Urano Vs Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino
2. Ryuichi Sekine & Ryota Nakatsu Vs Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga
3. Isami Kodaka Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
4. Takumi Tsukamoto, SAGAT & Lil’ Kraken Vs Daichi Kazato, Fuminori Abe & Takuya Nomura
5. Union MAX Title: FUMA (c) Vs Minoru Fujita
A little bit of Astronauts for you when BASARA holds their first show of 2024. Takuya Nomura is here to team with Fuminori Abe again but they also have Daichi Kazato on their side too.
“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: DDT X, Big Japan X & Dream Slot X Vs DDT X, Big Japan X & Dream Slot X
2. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1B: DDT X, Big Japan X & Dream Slot X Vs DDT X, Big Japan X & Dream Slot X
3. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1C: DDT X, Big Japan X & Dream Slot X Vs DDT X, Big Japan X & Dream Slot X
4. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1D: DDT X, Big Japan X & Dream Slot X Vs DDT X, Big Japan X & Dream Slot X
5. X Vs X
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. X Vs X
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)
Most of the wrestlers taking part in this year’s Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament got together for the lottery to determine who will team with who. Every trio in the tournament is made up of a DDT wrestler, a Big Japan wrestler and a “Dream Slot” wrestler from a group made up of freelancers and people from other promotions. The wrestlers in attendance all gave comments about the teams they ended up in along with their chances to do well.
Tetsuya Endo remembers teaming up with Daisuke Sekimoto in 2020 but they were eliminated in the semi final. He thinks with Fuminori Abe joining them they have no choice but to win this time. Abe told them he’ll do his best not to hold them back. Their team name is Bati Bati F’N In The Sky.
The big attraction this year is Minoru Suzuki competing in the New Year’s Eve tournament for the first time. He is in the same team as Yukio Naya & Hideyoshi Kamitani who teamed together last year as part of a trio called Big Bombers. So they are all called Big Bombers Kai this time around. Suzuki said if he wins three matches in one night then that means he gets paid for three matches so even thought he is here to have fun, he still wants to win.
In 2018 Kazusada Higuchi & Yasufumi Nakanoue were Team Katagi so for their reunion they get to be Team Katagi Returns! The third member Kohei Kinoshita was not here today so they will see him at the show.
Suzuki already has a target on his back. Or more like lower down below his back. Ikuto Hidaka is taking the Anal power of Danshoku Dieno with the Destructive power of Daichi Hashimoto and merging them together with him in the middle in order to defeat Suzuki’s team! Suzuki however threatened to destroy Hidaka’s anus first. Hashimoto has been on the tournament winning team for the last two years so he wants to make it three in a row.
A more calm energy is flowing through the next trio taking part. Kazumasa Yoshida is happy to be teaming with a bunch of kind people so it only makes sense to call themselves The Kind People. He hopes they can win without being rude. Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi is aiming to prove flexibility can defeat toughness. Chris Brookes is happy he doesn’t have to team with Kota Sekifuda.
I guess Lonely Hot College Students is an accurate name because Yuya Aoki was the only person on that team to show up today. He assured everyone he will hold a strategy meeting with Takeshi Masada & Koji Iwamoto to work out how they will win the tournament.
HARASHIMA & Sekifuda originally decided on calling their team Smile Lizard Gorilla. However when the absent Yuji Hino found out about it he asked them to change it to Smile Lizard King Kong. Sekifuda feels confident the three of them will develop a chemical reaction that will bring them to success.
The final team is made up of the remaining wrestlers who were not picked. That is not always a bad place to be because in 2021 a team called LEFTOVERS made up of the last picked wrestlers ended up winning the whole thing. Will it work out that way for Hideki Okatani, Yuki Ishikawa & The Brahman Brothers? Maybe not. Brahman Shu admitted he has no hopes or dreams over their chances. Ishikawa however wants to behave as wild as he can because it is his first time being with Okatani and the Brahmans.
September was looking to be more of a quiet month for looking at the overseas adventures of the DDT extended family until the last week showed up like an avalanche. You can always get a lot of news to cover during tournament weekends. It’s a shame that the current state of the independent scene means those tentpole super weekend events don’t get as much coverage like they used to. Can’t blame them when WWE and AEW dominates everybody’s attention. It’s only going to get tougher when those two companies increase their schedules and reach out even further. This week’s news of WWE getting an ABEMA deal and having NOAH promote it on social media does not thrill me. I’ve seen how this story goes before. Even if some kind of big crossover does happen with WWE it is never worth it for the other company in the long run. And any pundit who says a project like NXT Japan will work as a gateway for getting WWE fans into Japanese wrestling is only fooling themselves. The appetite that audience has for non-WWE wrestling is just not there anymore.
Heading into October we have Konosuke Takeshita deep into a feud with The Golden Lovers. The lack of actual wrestling from Takeshita last month annoyed me. I get holding some wrestlers back for PPV but his standard of ring work has been missing from AEW TV recently. His storyline is also pulling in other wrestlers who are never hurting for screentime which makes me worry he is getting pushed to the side. Maki Itoh has finished up her latest North American tour, Shoko Nakajima had a quick trip to the USA and Miyu Yamashita was in the middle of wrestling in UK and Ireland when the month began. The big chunk of news that completely passed me by until it happened was Mizuki Watase going over to wXw in Germany with Shigehiro Irie. Oh and Tokyo Joshi Pro squeezed in a visit to China right at the deadline.
A few years ago the idea of Yamashita wrestling in OTT would have had me overjoyed but nowadays I don’t want to give the company much of my attention because of how people attached to them handled and disregarded Speaking Out. Her Irish wrestling debut had a slight change in plan thanks to the other team. Debbie Keitel was advertised to team with Anita Vaughan but she instead surprised everyone by bringing along Emersyn Jayne to be her partner instead.
MLW “FURY ROAD”, 03/09/2023 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title No. 1 Contendership: B3CCA defeated Maki Itoh with the World Tour (7:42).
A singer showdown took place when Itoh made her first appearance in MLW. Itoh and B3CCA both love to be the centre of attention and literally fought over the microphone during their match. Itoh won that exchange and told B3CCA to “kiss my ass, bitch!” She also found a Singapore cane to beat up B3CCA with outside the ring. But Itoh made the grave mistake of missing the Flying Big Head, allowing B3CCA to give her a Death Valley Driver to the corner and then pin her with the World Tour 450 Splash.
AEW “ALL OUT”, 03/09/2023 United Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) defeated Kenny Omega with the Powerdrive Knee (22:30).
A few days after Takeshita pinned Kenny Omega in England, he did it again back in America this time in a singles match. The match carried history over from Omega’s time in DDT, wearing new green and yellows tights based on what he wore in the early 2010s. Don Callis got involved though and brought the dreaded screwdriver into the match for Takeshita to use. However this time the referee stopped it from being used. It turned out Takeshita wouldn’t have needed it because he went on to beat Omega anyway, pulling down his kneepad to hit a raw Powerdrive Knee for the victory. The match even got ***** from Dave Meltzer! Okay, that doesn’t mean as much as it used to but it’s still a good accomplishment to have. Also let’s face it, when the wrestlers who complain about star ratings actually do get ***** from Meltzer they all of a sudden do a 180 and become grateful for it.
MYSTERY WRESTLING “MYSTERY WRESTLING 3”, 08/09/2023 Centre Aydelu, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
1. Emi Sakura defeated Maki Itoh with La Magistral Cradle (?:??).
This year over in Canada Evil Uno has been running a Mystery Wrestling show on his Twitch channel every couple of months. The surprise headline match for the most recent event was a first time singles bout between Itoh and Emi Sakura. Itoh played a trick to escape from Sakura’s attacks by beginning to cry and then walking out of the match back to the locker room. She then reappeared from the opposite side of the room to attack a confused Sakura from behind. Sakura’s not someone you can beat with just one trick though. She ended up rolling Itoh into La Magistral Cradle to win the match.
GCW “CRUSHED UP”, 10/09/2023 Roulette Intermedium, New York City, New York, USA
1. Maki Itoh defeated Killer Kelly with a Tornado DDT (10:43).
Itoh’s current run with GCW ended here with a match against Killer Kelly. She’ll be back again later this year but what will be in store for her next? Her feud with Matt Cardona & Steph De Lander can be never ending but there has to be other stuff she wants to do in GCW next. Maybe she already found a new arch nemesis as you will see at the bottom of this post.
WXW “INNER CIRCLE”, 21/09/2023 wXw Wrestling Academy, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
1. Mizuki Watase defeated Danny Fray with a Diving Foot Stomp (7:23).
2. Shigehiro Irie defeated 1 Called Manders with a Roaring Elbow (8:57).
This was already announced earlier in the summer and I completely missed it. Irie & Watase reunited as RENEGADES to enter the annual World Tag Team Festival in Germany! But first the wrestlers took part in separate warmup matches the night before the tournament began. Watase’s first match ever in Germany was a win against Danny Fray. Irie also won his match by beating 1 Called Manders in a hoss fight.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 1”, 22/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. World Tag Team Festival 2023 – Round 1: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase defeated Aigle Blanc & Senza Volto when Irie pinned Blanc with the Beast Bomber (16:41).
Irie won wXw’s other premium tournament the 16 Carat Gold back in March so he had his heart set on winning WTTF with Watase. They eliminated The Frenchadors in the opening round. Aigle Blanc & Senza Volto are former wXw World Tag Team Champions so RENEGADES could not have gotten off to a better start.
1. Shigehiro Irie defeated Arez with the Beast Bomber (9:20).
The WTTF weekend also featured shows promoted by GCW as part of their September European tour. Only Irie was on the first of two GCW shows that weekend where he beat the luchador Arez. Normally I wouldn’t include entries for Irie by himself but since he was RENEGADES affiliated for the weekend, I’m adding it here.
FREELANCE “ONCE UPON A TIME IN FREELANCE”, 22/09/2023 Avondale Music Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Shoko Nakajima defeated Shazza McKenzie with the Diving Senton (12:19).
Nakajima did a quick trip to the United States near the end of the month. Her first stop was at Freelance where she got over big with the crowd during her win against Shazza McKenzie. Nakajima’s quickness and ability to hit the 619 from any height near the ropes were the key to victory here.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 2”, 23/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. World Tag Team Festival 2023 – Round 2: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase defeated Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe when Irie pinned Abe with a Roaring Elbow (16:14).
RENEGADES weren’t the only Japanese team taking part in WTTF weekend. Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe from Astronauts were there too! The two team crossed paths in Night 2 where the winners would advance to Sunday’s final.
GCW “GCW VS THE WORLD”, 23/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. Scramble Match: Gringo Loco defeated Mizuki Watase, The Rotation, Arez, Jimmy Lloyd and Aigle Blanc when Loco pinned Blanc with the Base Bomb (11:46).
2. Joey Janela defeated Shigehiro Irie with the Diving Foot Stomp (17:19).
Irie was in GCW again for their other show in Germany, losing to Joey Janela in the main event. Watase also showed up by taking part in one of GCW’s staples, the Scramble Match. Watase hit a big dive and also the Coast To Coast Dropkick but otherwise got lost in the action and did not factor into the finish.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 3”, 24/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. wXw World Tag Team Titles – World Tag Team Festival 2023 Final 3 Way Match: Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig defeated Robert Dreissker & Laurance Roman (c) and Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase (23:13). *Amboss fails in V1. Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig become the 64th wXw World Tag Team Champions!
RENEGADES made it all the way to the final. Had Irie & Watase won the match and the tournament they would have become the new wXw Tag Champions. Sadly for them they couldn’t pull it off. Instead Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig were the winners, taking the titles away from the defending champions Amboss.
PRESTIGE “THE RESPECT ISSUE”, 24/09/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Trish Adora defeated Shoko Nakajima with the Lariat Tubman (9:51).
Nakajima’s other US booking this month was with Prestige at the Globe Theatre, the same location TJPW will return to this December. Trish Adora was a tougher opponent for her and kicked out of the Northern Lights Suplex. Just when Nakajima thought he had another shot, she was caught off guard and pinned with the Lariat Tubman.
JFC “JINGWU TAN JFC EXOTIC FIGHTING EXHIBITION 2”, 30/09/2023 Rucker Park, Chaoyang, Shanghai, China
1. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Match: Maki Itoh defeated Yuki Aino with the Itoh Deluxe (?:??).
2. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Match: Mizuki defeated Nao Kakuta with the Cutie Special (?:??).
TJPW sent four of their wrestlers over to China for a martial arts expo taking place in Shanghai. They would be presenting two women’s pro wrestling matches to go along with a bunch of other martial art bouts provided by other groups. It is not the first time joshi wrestling has been part of the event. The same organizers had Sareee and Nanae Takahashi wrestle for them during the first expo in the summer. After a lot of searching through Chinese social media I was able to find a clip of Mizuki beating Nao Kakuta and Itoh locking in the Itoh Deluxe on Yuki Aino.
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Upcoming Appearances
AEW “WRESTLEDREAM”, 01/10/2023 Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. Chris Jericho, Kenny Omega & Kota Ibushi Vs Sammy Guevara, Will Ospreay & Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis)
Takeshita has spent the rest of the month either standing to the side Don Callis or wrestling back in Japan for DDT. Oh and he also invaded Kota Ibushi’s gym, attacking him with a kettlebell (and also getting Yumehito Imanari caught in the crossfire) because Callis understands how much Ibushi means to Omega. The big payoff it is leading to will happen later today when The Golden Lovers & Chris Jericho join forces to get revenge on The Don Callis Family. Takeshita is part of that family teaming with Sammy Guevara (newest member) and Will Ospreay (not a member). It is annoying to see what looked like a big push for Takeshita turn into him getting pushed aside so Jericho, Guevara and Ospreay can all squeeze into the spotlight instead.
WARRIOR “WARRIOR WRESTLING 31”, 06/10/2023 Bendix Arena, South Bend, Indiana, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Storm Grayson (w/ Frank The Clown)
One of the few American indies Takeshita wrestles for when he’s not busy with AEW is Warrior Wrestling. The next time he shows up there he takes on one of Frank The Clown’s clients, Storm Grayson.
SPARK “RISING HEAT WEST”, 11/10/2023 LA Dojo, Carson, California, USA
1. Spark Joshi World Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Billie Starkz
A familiar opponent challenges Yamashita for the Spark Joshi Title. She has a 1-1 singles record against Billi Starkz so this championship bout can also end up becoming a rubber match between the two.
SPARK “RISING HEAT EAST”, 14/10/2023 Engelwood Neighborhood Center, Orlando, Florida, USA
1. Miu Watanabe Vs KiLynn King
2. Miyu Yamashita Vs Jessie
A few days later Yamashita takes on Jessie, the former Jessi Kamea from NXT. That’s an interesting matchup because since leaving WWE, Jessie wound up doing a tour in Stardom. So we have a TJPW Vs Stardom match on a Spark show.
But Yamashita won’t be the only Tokyo Joshi there. Miu Watanabe is along for the ride too! She is getting to fight KiLynn King from Impact in what is sure to be a hoss fight. Or a hossette fight? Whatever, two strong women are going to fight each other. What more do you want?
LLL “THE HANDS OF FATE”, 20/10/2023 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Lilith Grimm Vs Miyu Yamashita
Are there Lucha Libra & Laughs to be found when Yamashita pays another visit to Denver? Her opponent Lilith Grimm is nicknamed “The War Hammer” and does an entrance where she sets off sparks with a grinder.
SETUP “SETUP EP.16”, 28/10/2023 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. Gatoh Move One And Only Title & SETUP Thailand Openweight Title: Paksa (G/c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi (S/c)
2. Dramatic Dream Match: Chris Brookes Vs Monomoth
Whenever CDK goes over to Thailand and shows up in SETUP they tend to take over the place. One of the local faces Monomoth tries his best to defend his home but Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi find ways to get the better of him. Monomoth now gets to fight Brookes in a big singles match the next time Brookes heads over.
Meanwhile Takanashi has been ruling the roost in SETUP as the SETUP Openweight Champion. He can increase his domination when he has a double title match against Paksa. Takanashi puts his SETUP Title on the line while Paksa is defending a Gatoh Move branded championship called the One And Only Title.
REPUBLIC OF LUCHA “ROL VI VI VI: LA NOCHE DE WALPURGIS”, 30/10/2023 Republic Of Lucha, South Pasadena, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita, Penta el Zero Miedo & Rey Fenix Vs Shun Skywalker, Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that nobody in The Lucha Brothers gets injured, company politics do not keep Takeshita and Shun Skywalker away from each other and Vampiro does not show up with La Rebelion.
DAIKAIJU PRO “VOL. 1 – THE KAPPAS WALK AMONG US”, 04/11/2023 White Eagle, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
1. Shoko Nakajima Vs X
Something new and monstrous is coming out of Massachusetts. Daikaiju Pro is holding their debut show and seems to have deep ties with SETUP and also the UMA Corps. The new promotion is promising a mixture of talent coming in to mix around with monsters and other strange creatures. A show like these requires a Big Kaiju so Nakajima will be there.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
Miu Watanabe has been added to the lineup.
PANDEMONIUM PRO “HOLIDAY IN LA”, 17/12/2023 Don Quixote, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Mike Bailey Vs Miyu Yamashita
Yeah this do quite nicely. Pandemonium Pro is doing Yamashita against Mike Bailey in a first time ever matchup.
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Other Appearances
GCW “SAY YOU WILL”, 01/09/2023 Grand Sports Arena, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA
Itoh did not wrestle on the first GCW show of the month. Instead she showed up to attack Frank The Clown with a pizza cutter much to everyone’s delight.
BASARA “BASARA 228 ~TAKAGARI 19~”, 17/09/2023 Tokyo Takashimadaira Kumin Center ??? Fans – Withheld
1. Daiki Shimomura defeated Takato Nakano with a Modified La Magistral Cradle (10:26).
2. Hardcore Tag Match: Takumi Tsukamoto & SAGAT defeated Isami Kodaka & Lil’ Kraken when Tsukamoto pinned Kraken with the Zudon onto the Chair and Cans (15:35).
3. Ryota Nakatsu defeated Hijo del Alebrije with a Back Roll Clutch Hold (10:50).
4. Ajikan International Police Vs Expendables Allied Forces: FUMA, KUBITO & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Kaminold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Uranone & Jason Abeham ended in a No Contest because peace has come to the world (15:01).
5. Enter Kazato The Road To The Death Game Of Anger: Choun-Shiryu defeated Daichi Kazato with the Project A (23:22).
Today’s show was all put together by Asian Kung Fu Revolution. Each member of the unit all promised the fans will never know what is going to happen in the matches. For example, Daichi Kazato challenged Choun-Shiryu to a match because he cannot stand the fact there is a person who is more Asian and Kung Fu than Asian Kung Fu Revolution. The two agreed to fight under Game Of Death rules. It featured a large rubber band attached to one of the ropes as well as a balance ball, an iron pot and a ladle for the wrestlers to use a weapons. Kazato held onto the balance ball while he did the Mad Splash but missed and bounced across the ring. Shiryu then gave him the Chinese Gory Special Bomb onto the ball and won the match by hitting the Project A (similar to the Coffin Drop) for the pin. After the match Kazato revealed that when he was a high school student he was invited by Shiryu to train pro wrestling with him. He thinks what he learned that day has helped him survive the business ever since and he wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for Shiryu.
Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi claimed he spent a lot of money to bring over a bunch of Hollywood stars for Asian Kung Fu Revolution to fight against. Sylvester Uranone wanted to show off his Rocky skills so he had a boxing showdown with Hiroshi. Kaminold Schwarzenegger spent the match posing in his underwear until it was discovered that his urine test came back positive for a banned substance so he was taken out of the match. FUMA then shot both Uranone and Jason Abeham with his hunting rifle before accidentally shooting KUBITO. Next up, Fuminori Abe came out dressed like The Rock and was followed by SAGAT dressed like Dude Love. FUMA shot them both. Schwarzenegger returned, this time as a Terminator to stop FUMA. With all of this chaos going on, Hiroshi began to sing in the hopes that everyone would get along. They did, even the people who were shot. Since everybody was now holding hands and bringing peace to the world, the match was declared a no contest.
Today was the first time Ryota Nakatsu wrestled against a Mexican luchador so he wanted to try and copy Hijo del Alebrije’s style. He himself admits he wasn’t very good at it but he was able to adjust and pin Alebrije with a Back Roll Clutch. It is a wrestling style he would like to try again.
I still don’t get why Match #2 was called a 6-Man Tag when there were only four wrestlers involved.
BASARA “BASARA 224 ~TAKAGARI 18~”, 17/07/2023 Tokyo Takashimadaira Kumin Center ??? Fans – Withheld
1. Daiki Shimomura & Minoru Fujita defeated Lil’ Kraken & Leo Isaka when Shimomura pinned Kraken with the Shimomura Hurricanrana (12:02).
2. Fuminori Abe defeated Takato Nakano with a Backslide Pin (13:03).
3. Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga defeated FUMA & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi when Senga submitted Hiroshi with an Ankle Hold (2:35).
3a. Rematch: Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga defeated FUMA & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi by Countout (8:39).
4. Ryota Nakatsu & SAGAT defeated Takumi Tsukamoto & Yasu Urano when SAGAT pinned Tsukamoto with the Goregrind (18:11).
5. Isami Kodaka defeated Daichi Kazato with a Body Slam (16:48).
The main event sounds like it was very weird and not just for the finish being a Body Slam. Daichi Kazato was at his most oddball and Isami Kodaka tried to figure out how to deal with that. When he did he Body Slammed him three times, taking so much wind out of Kazato that he couldn’t kick out of the pin.
FUMA & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi weren’t happy that they lost to Speed Of Sounds so quickly in a comedy match. They asked for an immediate rematch, one that would be treated more seriously and SOS accepted. FUMA ended up pulling out two hunting muskets and scared the other wrestlers out of the ring, Hiroshi included. Banana Senga found two coathangers and gave them to Tsutomu Oosugi to fight FUMA with. FUMA instead hunted down both SOS wrestlers around the room, shooting them as well as Hiroshi and also Fuminori Abe. Hiroshi recovered and revived SOS by singing a hymn. While all of this was going on, Hiroshi was still the legal man this whole time so he got counted out right before he finally returned to the ring.
1. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2023 – A Block Final: SAGAT defeated Daiki Shimomura with the Argentine Backbreaker (11:11).
2. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2023 – B Block Final: Ryota Nakatsu defeated Fuminori Abe with the V Slider (9:10).
3. Roundabout Pro Wrestling Trial: Shiori Asahi defeated Banana Senga and Gouma Ryu when Asahi pinned Senga and Ryu with a Flying Kendo Press (6:41).
4. Isami Kodaka & Minoru Fujita defeated Daichi Kazato & Tsutomu Oosugi when Fujita pinned Oosugi with the Tombstone Piledriver (10:40).
5. Takumi Tsukamoto, Takato Nakano & Yasu Urano defeated FUMA, Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Lil’ Kraken when Tsukamoto pinned Hiroshi with an Ouchi-gari (13:48).
6. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2023 – Final: SAGAT defeated Ryota Nakatsu with the Goregrind (17:57).
As a result of winning the Chouten ~Itadaki~ tournament this year SAGAT gets to challenge Takumi Tsukamoto for the Union MAX Title. He is willing to put his CCW Canadian Heavyweight Title on the line to make it a double title match at Korakuen Hall on 23rd July. Meanwhile Ryota Nakatsu talked to SAGAT suggesting it is time for Sparky to disband soon. He wants the full unit to get together one more time before it happens though.
After the show Nakatsu told reporters he wants to team up with Ryuichi Sekine at Korakuen. The two used to be part of a BASARA unit called Cavalry. Nakatsu’s request is not to reform the unit though. He is only asking for one time to team with Sekine again.
Masato Kamino appeared after the semi-main event and announced he is ready to come back from his knee injury on 23rd July. He called on Takato Nakano to immediately focus on winning back the IRON FIST Tag Team Titles they never lost. That means Aijin Tag will face the interim champions Sento Minzoku at Korakuen in a title unification match! Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura accepted the challenge to happen straight away because they want to be upgraded from interim champions to undisputed champions.
It was announced during the show that Isami Kodaka Vs SHO will happen on 23rd July. Kodaka wanted to do the match after his interactions with SHO at the “ALL STAR JR FESTIVAL 2023” back in March. Kodaka sent a message to SHO thanking him for accepting the challenge and said he is happy to hold the match under normal rules without the need for any weapons. He also wants to win the match as a independent wrestler taking on New Japan head on.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 