DramaticDDT’s Predictions For 2023

December 24, 2022

Merry Christmas to you all! There are a lot of things I’m not good at. Making predictions for pro wrestling is one of them. It’s what happens when the crystal ball I look through was bought in Lidl. But I like doing it anyway. The Christmas and New Year period is very busy for covering pro wrestling so I never really have the time to do something like this in previous years. To solve that problem I’ve been jotting down predictions in my free time this month so I could finally put out the article. I came up with 20 predictions for 2023 spread across four categories. Five for DDT, five for Tokyo Joshi Pro, five for Ganbare☆Pro and five guesses for anything even slightly related to DDT or CyberFight. I’m also listing them in order from easy to hard, likely to unlikely, mild to spicy, etc. Some are guesses based on past booking patterns, going with gut feelings, going the opposite of gut feelings and in some places just straight up fantasy booking. None of these are hints or teases of the little inside info I do know about. Will any of them come true? Nah, probably not. But let’s take a stab at it anyway?

DDT


Brass Monkey, That Funky Monkey
Prediction: Mike Bailey wrestles a match in DDT again.

My evidence supporting this prediction is Mike Bailey’s profile on the DDT roster page is still there. They never took him off the website even though he hasn’t wrestled for the company since April 2020. The man has had a well deserved breakout year in America for 2022 splitting his time between Impact and the indies. I bet he’ll be in the area when DDT are doing their Hollywood shows in April. Also if he has the time to come back to Japan, I think it will be for DDT over anywhere else. There’s a whole new class of guys for him to kick the crap out of. Also a Moonlight Express reunion would be sweet.


Have A Drink And Watch The Die Get Cast
Prediction: KANON outperforms Daisuke Sasaki.

The top prospect from JTO jumped to DDT back in April and has been all in with the company ever since. KANON was rewarded pretty quickly by being added to DAMNATION T.A while Minoru Fujita was out with injury. He had a rough go at the tournaments though, getting eliminated in the King Of DDT 1st Round and only winning one match in the D-Ou Grand Prix. But I’ve been impressed with his work and he is often the one who picks up the wins in DAMNATION T.A tag matches. I think he performs way better in 2023 and racks up a few achievements. In fact, I think he will achieve more in the next 12 months than his leader Daisuke Sasaki will! I’m talking the number of title matches he gets, the better performances he puts in tournaments and a higher amount of significant singles victories. KANON is going to claim some scalps this year that will leave Sasaki looking jealous. That’s if Sasaki is sober enough to register what’s going on.


365 Degrees, Burning Down The House
Prediction: Yuya Koroku becomes the next wrestler from DDT’s new generation (debuted 2020 onwards) to win a championship.

The first draft of this was slightly different. I had Yuya Koroku down as the first new gen wrestler to win any championship. Then I remembered Toi Kojima is currently one of the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Champions and Hideki Okatani once held the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title a year ago. Oh and Keigo Nakamura held both if he counts (debuted 2019 before the pandemic so eh?). As a result this prediction isn’t turning out as sharp as I thought it would be. But I’m sticking with the general idea. There’s a new wave of fresh blood coming into DDT and the highlight for me so far was Koroku and Kojima’s rivalry found within the BURNING Vs The 37KAMIINA tag matches. Eyes will be on Yuki Ishida for becoming a bigger part of a diminished Harimao out of necessity, Takeshi Masada as the hot prospect and Kazuma Sumi for his athleticism. There’s still three more trainees yet to debut plus the short term future of El Unicorn and Ilusion is currently unknown. With that said Koroku has the advantage of seniority over most of the other rookies to make this prediction come true. Even if it’s just as the third man holding the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles, I think Koroku has the best odds of getting belted up next year.


Where’s Your Head At, At?
Prediction: Tetsuya Endo struggles to reclaim the top position in DDT.

This is a cruel one. Tetsuya Endo had everything in place before the summer to finally be the flag bearer for DDT. Then Katsuhiko Nakajima knocked him out and left him concussed, taking all of that away. I wouldn’t say he is a shadow of his former self since coming back but a bit of shine has disappeared in him becoming the leading man again. He has given himself a new goal of winning all of the singles championships. That’s going to be a long journey if it does work out that way. For 2023 I do not see Endo winning back the KO-D Openweight Title and I don’t think he will win any of the singles tournaments. The DDT Universal Title and DDT Extreme Title can be in his grasp but neither of them will bring him back to the number one main eventer spot in the next 12 months. To take a positive stance for this, think of 2023 as his rebuilding year for 2024. He’s already spent the last few months bulking up to become more a bigger heavyweight. Maybe the key to getting over this will be to confront his demon at “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2023”


Loan Me A Dragon, I Wanna See Space
Prediction: Dramatic Dream Gate is revived.

Remember this unholy alliance? There were three occasions when DDT and Dragongate worked together and promoted shows under the name Dramatic Dream Gate. Once in 2007, again in 2008 and the final one taking place in 2012. Then the relationship between the two companies went icy for a long time after that. Things began to defrost a few years ago thanks to Toru Owashi getting DG bookings and in return bringing one of their wrestlers from his generation over whenever DDT goes to Kobe or Nagano. Now that Naruki Doi is bouncing back and forth between the two companies as a freelancer without pissing anybody off I’d like to think everyone’s now cool with each other. What a way to show it by bringing DDG back for another show! It would be worth it just to see Kazuki Hirata do his Magnum Tokyo parody in front of all the DG wrestlers who weren’t even born when the gimmick first existed. I know, I know, DG currently has a working relationship with NOAH. They’re probably all CyberFight’d out at this point. Doesn’t matter, DDT will continue taking their dojo dropouts anyway…

Tokyo Joshi Pro


It Ain’t My Fault That I’m Out Here Making News
Prediction: At least 3 women who originally came from Actwres girl’Z will appear in TJPW and at least 1 of them becomes a regular roster member.

It’s kind of a running joke at this point. Actwres girl’Z constantly turn dozens of idols into newly trained joshi at a time then whoever emerges as top of the class ends up leaving them for greener pastures. It’s probably one of the more successful development programs in modern pro wrestling when you think about it. AWG’s lossese end up being another company’s gain and TJPW are usually in that group. Yuna Manase, Natsupoi and Nao Kakuta all came from there. Even just recently we have HIMAWARI pulling off a speed run in how to go from AWG to TJPW in record time. I think it’s only going to increase from here. My prediction is not one, not two but three joshi who were associated with AWG at some point in their lives will appear on TJPW shows throughout 2023. I’m giving myself a little bit of rope here because I am not saying they will all be full time roster additions. Somebody like Saori Anou or Miyuki Takase having one or two guest matches like SAKI did this year would count towards this. But yeah, I can at least guarantee there will definitely be one woman on the active AWG roster who will be showing up at Korakuen Hall wearing a TJPW shirt in the next 12 months.


Pull Up With A Zelda And A Peach And A Daisy
Prediction: An outsider wins the Princess Of Princess Title

In the almost seven years the Princess Of Princess Title has been around its lineage has belonged entirely to the TJPW roster. In Japan it’s rare for a men’s company to have their main championship stay within their walls for this long but in joshi it’s a little more common. However the scene opened up again to the rest of the world this year and there is a wave of new faces we can all look forward to seeing. The risk is they have their eyes on the gold just as much as the regulars do. I think the time has come for somebody outside of TJPW to become the Princess Champion. Whether they are a Japanese freelancer, an invader fans associate with another company or somebody from overseas I bet the top prize will be taken by an outside force sometime in 2023.


It’s All Around The World, Just La La La La La
Prediction: Maki Itoh gets to No. 1 on a iTunes or Spotify chart somewhere in the world.

Hikari Noa unexpectedly showing up in the Canadian iTunes J-Pop chart at the end of November inspired this one. Some domino is going to fall that will kickstart a chain reaction resulting in Maki Itoh’s music going viral and being discovered by a new audience. She ends up getting a song to No. 1 on one of the digital music services. It doesn’t matter how obscure this gets. It could be No. 1 in Zimbabwe’s chart for the Chamber Psych genre due to input error for all I care.


Once I Ran To You, Now I Run From You
Prediction: A woman from Sakisama’s past comes back to haunt her.

It is inevitable that NEO Biishiki-gun will come back to terrorize TJPW again. They always do. Sakisama will return to grace TJPW fans with her glamourous presence while rubbing it in about how perfect she is. She makes it look easy. There has to be a reason for that, right? You don’t become that much of a narcissist without having something, or someone, that’s been out of your reach for your entire life. Like a rival perhaps? That one person who no matter how good you are at something, they are always better. Like what if there was somebody in Sakisama’s life who always stole her thunder whether it was in their private classes, on the badminton court or even at an extravagant gala? What if that woman with a familiar looking face from somewhere else suddenly shows up in TJPW and begins to waltz through the roster, tempting NEO Biishiki-gun away from their leader in the process. What if Sakisama finds herself in a position she has never experienced before, becoming the underdog? It would be a big change of pace for the gimmick that’s for sure.


Cause A Girl Gonna Push It All Out The Way
Prediction: Sasha Banks appears at Grand Princess ’23.

Am I being cheeky with this one? I dunno, something about the Sasha Banks odyssey still sounds kind of murky to me. I don’t think somebody with her leverage is going to settle down with a contract to just one corporation again. I believe she’s aligning with New Japan/Stardom no doubt about that. But why stop there? Something tells me she isn’t going to be exclusive to them in Japan. Not with the people she’s been meeting and spending time with these last few months. TJPW needs something massive if they want to fill up Ariake Colosseum on 18th March. They won’t be doing that by keeping to themselves. Aim big, play big, win big.

Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling


I Get By With A Little Help From My Friends
Prediction: Some of the wrestlers Shota worked with in America get booked for Ganpro.

Shota accomplished a lot during his three month stay in America. Among the most important during his excursion was connections. He made friends, met new people and whether intentional or not scouted talent. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see some of the people he wrestled across the United States get invited over to Ganpro in the coming year. The likes of Ryan Davidson and Phil Shark have been to Japan before but could we see a wrestler like Clay Roberts or Aaron Mercer get the chance to come over thanks to their links with Shota?


All The Way (Keep Going, You Got This)
Prediction: Keisuke Ishii wins the Spirit Of Ganbare Title.

Ganpro has been a good home for Keisuke Ishii ever since he came over from DDT in 2018. Maybe it’s because he’s in a smaller pond but he’s been able to stay more consistent up the top of the card. 2023 will be the right time for Ganpro’s resident “Puwota” to challenge for the Spirit Of Ganbare Title and win it. I’m not confident he will be the man to dethrone Hartley Jackson but if Mizuki Watase or Ken Ohka can’t do it, it may have to come down to him anyway.


Swing Your Partner ‘Round And ‘Round
Prediction: Ganpro creates a tag team championship and builds it around mixed tag wrestling.

This should have been done when they held the Mixed Tag Tournament in 2021! At the moment the Spirit Of Ganbare Title is the only championship being defended in the promotion. Tag Team Titles should be next on the list for Ganpro to grow into a bigger company. They regularly book mixed tag matches anyway and it would be a good way to differentiate the belts from other company’s tag titles. I’m not even calling for it to be a mandatory rule, just have most of the teams competing in title matches be mixed gender.


Sunshine, Lollipops And Rainbows
Prediction: Ganbare☆Joshi runs their own show in Korakuen Hall.

The Ganbare☆Joshi division took a step back in 2022. Gone were the Ganpro doubleheaders with GanJo running the afternoon shows. It would be nice if they came back with a vengeance in 2023. Not only could they promote their own shows again but they should take a shot at the big time by having an event at Korakuen! It would be a challenge. Maybe Yuna Manase calls in some favors from Ice Ribbon and Gatoh Move or picks a fight with Prominence to build up a headline match. Moeka Haruhi has worked hard all year too so she deserves a spotlight like this too.


Shine On You Crazy Diamond
Prediction: Kota Ibushi wrestles a match in Ganpro.

The aftermath of what happens in January could be either a rising flame of a phoenix or an absolute trash fire. There is plenty of gossip online about Kota Ibushi being done completely with New Japan when his contract is allegedly expected to expire during the month. So if he is going to become a free agent you’d think there will be a lot of suitors out there looking for his services. That might not happen if the guy decides to let loose and produce an exposé on his time with NJPW. If he instead behaves and decide against that then there should be nothing to be worried about, right? Hmmm, can’t be too sure on that one. Ibushi made it clear on Twitter he has no interest in ever going back to DDT. He also sounds bullish about doing work with NOAH when rumours of that surfaced online. Money doesn’t sound like it’s a big motivation for his future plans. If that’s true then wouldn’t a place like Ganpro be more his vibe? It’s where you can wrestle with your heart on your sleeve and a fire in your belly. It would be a wild move to see Ibushi do one match in Korakuen for Ganpro while he is sorting out the Ibushi Wrestling Institute or whatever crazy project he’s been thinking about during his time away from the ring.

Miscellaneous


You Know That I Would Love To See You Next Year, I Hope That I Am Still Alive Next Year
Prediction: Gake no Fuchi Joshi crosses over with Baka Gaijin + Friends.

It’s been a while since we last heard from Gake no Fuchi Joshi. Seems like Miyako Matsumoto has moved on to other priorities. The spirit of insanity we see in those shows could easily fit in with the newly formed Baka Gaijin + Friends. Matsumoto’s chaotic energy is not something Chris Brookes & Drew Parker want to be responsible for but what power do they have to stop it if she ever steps foot inside one of their shows?


Are You Ready To Meet And Defeat The Elite?
Prediction: AEW will host another event in Japan with DDT & TJPW involvement.

AEW held half of a women’s tournament in Japan during 2021 and produced exhibition matches at the Tokyo Game Show in 2022. They have it in them to do something in Japan for a third year in the row with DDT/TJPW along for the ride. I’m thinking it will be something on a similar scale as the first two events. A project separate from the TV shows and instead taking place on Youtube. That’s if it is intended for broadcast at all. But hey, if they want to go full blown Dynamite taping in Korakuen Hall with Konosuke Takeshita in a title match I’ll take that any day of the week.


Back To The Family, I Guarantee Emergency
Prediction: CyberFight adds another promotion to their portfolio.

CyberFight’s recent financial losses don’t concern me. In fact I think they’re due for a slight expansion and will add a fifth wrestling promotion to their collection. In past interviews Sanshiro Takagi talked about ideas to launch a new death match group or present another joshi company separate from TJPW. If this happens it can be something brand new or maybe there’s going to be a smaller company that’s finally at the end of their rope and needs to be sold to survive. The recent power shift in WWE kind of winds the clock back to 2019 with their desire to launch spin-offs around the world returning to the surface. The last attempt at that resulted in Stardom selling to Bushiroad and NOAH selling to CyberFight. I could see a repeat happening with another company if WWE wants to go shopping in Japan again. But that’s the cynical prediction. CyberFight might create something brand new to fill in a gap that none of their existing properties can reach. Like what if a certain star who has crazy ideas for his own wrestling company strikes a deal with CyberFight to make it a reality in return for making a few dates with the other promotions? What a golden scenario that would be.


Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, When I Was Dead Broke, Man I Couldn’t Picture This
Prediction: A brand new puroresu console game gets announced.

Come on, what’s the freaking hold up? I love Fire Pro Wrestling World but I have squeezed every last drop of blood out of that stone. Time for something new. I think this prediction is possible but it all hangs on whether or not AEW: Fight Forever becomes a success. I’m really looking forward to that game and you all know the first thing I’m going to do is pick Yuka Sakazaki but I still have my worries it will turn out to be a bumpy AA title at launch. If it does take off then my hope is for Yuke’s re-using the assets to make a Japan only wrestling game get one step closer to coming true. One where they strike a deal with Bushiroad or CyberFight (or hopefully both). For this prediction Fight Forever releasing “Forbidden Door” DLC doesn’t count, Makoto being added to The Wrestling Code doesn’t count and phone games do not count. I am looking for a full fledged console game here. If it works on the Steam Deck then that would be cool too.


Same As It Ever Was
Prediction: BASARA does something new and different.

Please? Things have been stale with BASARA for a long time. Even the summer series with Dove Pro I always look forward too is the same old stuff. Probably harsh of me to say that because I hear they are more or less happy with the way things are. They have their regular schedule with their regular crowd always showing up. Sometimes that’s all you need to keep a good thing going. I still wish they showed more ambition though.


Don’t Shoot Me Santa Claus

December 23, 2022

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SE-NO, MERRY CHRISTMAS! 2022”, 24/12/2022
Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall

1. Haruna Neko Vs Kaya Toribami
2. Pom Harajuku Vs Arisu Endo
3. Yuki Kamifuku Vs Mahiro Kiryu
4. Hikari Noa Vs Yuki Aino
5. 3 Way Match: Miu Watanabe Vs Raku Vs Juria Nagano
6. TJPW Year End Special 8-Man Tag Match: Yuka Sakazaki, Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima & Suzume Vs Miyu Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Hyper Misao & Moka Miyamoto

The card has been changed because of two absences. Nao Kakuta tested positive for covid and Rika Tatsumi caught a stomach bug. Both of their matches are cancelled and their opponents will now face each other. By coincidence the new match is Yuki Kamifuku Vs Mahiro Kiryu, the battle of the Toyo Mates!

GANBARE☆PRO “GIRI GIRI CHOP! 2022”, 27/12/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Munetatsu Nakamura Debut Match: Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
2. GanJo x TJPW Special Tag Match: Suzume & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Yuki Kamifuku & YuuRI
3. Shota Triumphant Return Match: Shuichiro Katsumura & Shota Vs Soma Takao & Shigehiro Irie
4. GanPro Vs Pheromones: Ken Ohka & Yumehito Imanari Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno
5. GanJo Vs Ice Ribbon: Yuna Manase, Moeka Haruhi & HARUKAZE Vs Nao Ishikawa, Yuki Mashiro & Kaho Matsushita
6. Kouki Iwasaki Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Last Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Kouki Iwasaki
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Hartley Jackson (c) Vs Mizuki Watase

A press conference was held during the week featuring the participants of the Ganbare☆Joshi Vs Ice Ribbon match. The visiters all spoke of their happiness to wrestle in GanJo. Yuki Mashiro in particular is excited to be part of a hot inter-promotional match before she retires on New Year’s Eve. Nao Ishikawa spoke of how her previous matches against Yuna Manase in Ice Ribbon left her frustrated. Kaho Matsushita feels proud she gets to represent her company and hopes the match will attract Ganbare☆Pro’s audience to Ice Ribbon. HARUKAZE said the Ganjo team are united by their passionate bonds and wants to deliver a great match that they will win. Moeka Haruhi described why winters have short daytimes and said their burning desire comes from the Earth being closest to the sun at this time of year. Manase is grateful to Ice Ribbon for getting to wrestle there and wonders what it would be like if she could combine the “Happy” pro wrestling of Ice Ribbon with the “Burning” pro wrestling of Ganpro.

DDT “NEVER MIND 2022”, 29/12/2022
Tokyo Dome City Hall

0. Dark Match: Hideki Okatani & Toi Kojima Vs Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi
0. Dark Match: Minoru Fujita, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Soma Takao & Antonio Honda
1. Sanshiro Takagi Vs Takeshi Masada
2. HARASHIMA & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Yuji Hino & Yuki Ishida
3. Pheromones Vs “Miyako & Ward” Pheromones Subjugation Allied Forces ~ Dissolution & Pet Dogs Contra One Day Experience: Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari & Koju “Shining Ball” Takeda Vs Akito, Osamu Nishimura, Shinichiro Kawamatsu & Shunma Katsumata
4. Special Tag Match: Saki Akai & Yuki Arai Vs Saori Anou & Riko Kawahata
5. Special Tag Match: Konosuke Takeshita & Yukio Naya Vs Daisuke Sekimoto & RSP
6. International 4 Way Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Chris Brookes Vs MAO Vs Cara Noir
7. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki Vs Chihiro Hashimoto
8. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo, Kotaro Suzuki & Yusuke Okada
9. DDT Extreme Title: Jun Akiyama (c) Vs Super Sasadango Machine
10. KO-D Openweight Title: Kazusada Higuchi (c) Vs Yuki Ueno

The KO-D Openweight Champion is taking things one match at a time going into the new year. Kazusada Higuchi is not thinking too far into the future until he beats Yuki Ueno next week. This will be the first time the KO-D Title will be defended in a match between former DNA wrestlers. Higuchi is deeply moved by how far he and Ueno have come from that sub-brand.

Jun Akiyama is still set on changing the DDT Extreme Title belt from purple straps to white straps. The purple colour reminds him of bitter memories. Changing it to white will remind people of the GHC Hardcore Title. He originally created that belt in 2004 to provoke Kenta Kobashi, who held the GHC Heavyweight Title at the time. It was made white to represent the idea that the title would be dyed in the champion’s colours and white is Akiyama’s colour.

DDT “HATSUYUME 2023”, 03/01/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Akito & Antonio Honda
2. Makoto Oishi & Shiori Asahi Vs Hideki Okatani & Toi Kojima
3. New Year Special 8-Man Tag Match: Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata, Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya Vs Shinshun Pokotan, Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Kazuma Sumi
4. Special 10-Man Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi, HARASHIMA, RSP, Soma Takao & Yuki Ishida Vs Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama, Kotaro Suzuki, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
5. Special Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & Cara Noir Vs MJ Paul & KANON
6. Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Takeshi Masada
7. DDT Universal Title Next Challenger Decision Battle: Naruki Doi Vs Daisuke Sasaki
8. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs MAO & Shunma Katsumata

The man who was once called “The Future” is taking on the next DDT wrestler who is being described with that label. Takeshi Masada still has a long way to go and can learn plenty wrestling against Konosuke Takeshita.

Former opponents Yuki Ueno & Cara Noir now get to be tag partners.

With the addition of Kotaro Suzuki to the unit, all five members of BURNING are teaming together in one match for the first time.

The undercard matches may change if Pheromones are forced to disband on 29th December.

DDT “ALL SEATS ARE 3,000 YEN! DDT NEW YEAR PRO WRESTLING FESTIVAL!”, 05/01/2023
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs HARASHIMA & Antonio Honda
2. 3 Way Tag Match: Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Yukio Naya & Yusuke Okada
3. Yuki Ueno & Yuya Koroku Vs Makoto Oishi & Ilusion
4. MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Toi Kojima & Kazuma Sumi
5. New Year Special Challenge Match I: Tetsuya Endo Vs Hideki Okatani
6. New Year Special Challenge Match II: Chris Brookes Vs Takeshi Masada
7. New Year Special Challenge Match III: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yuki Ishida

Current DDT against future DDT is the theme used again a few days later. Harimao collides when Higuchi takes on Yuki Ishida. Higuchi has put it upon himself to raise Ishida on his own while Naomi Yoshimura is injured. Masada faces his pro wrestling “dad” Chris Brookes and Tetsuya Endo puts Hideki Okatani through his paces. If that’s not enough, Toi Kojima & Kazuma Sumi test their mettle against ShunMao.

There will be an autograph session at the show with Takeshita and Jun Akiyama among the guests.

Again, Pheromones splitting up may change around the card a little bit.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT WINTER ~KOBE PERFORMANCE~”, 07/01/2023
Kobe Art Center

1. Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & Pom Harajuku Vs Max The Impaler, Heidi Howitzer & Trish Adora

Japan versus The World, Daydream versus The Wasteland War Party and most important of all Pom Harajuku Vs Max The Impaler once again!

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT WINTER ~OKAYAMA PERFORMANCE~”, 08/01/2023
Okayama Convention Center

1. Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino Vs Rika Tatsumi & Yuki Kamifuku

This is Yuki Aino’s homecoming show.

The Wasteland War Party and Trish Adora will also be on this show.

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2023 TOUR IN SENDAI”, 14/01/2023
Sendai City Miyagino Ward Bunka Center

1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Kazuki Hirata & Kazuma Sumi
2. Jun Akiyama & Toru Owashi Vs Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada
3. Special Challenge Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Yuya Koroku

BURNING has some friendly competition taking place within it. Yuya Koroku has challenged Endo to a match!

Once more, the card can change if Pheromones splits up.


Christmas Fan Lottery Matches, Iwasaki & Ishii Reminisce, New Year’s Eve Trios Bracket

December 13, 2022

DDT “DDT FREE -DECEMBER-”, 14/12/2022
Shinjuku FACE

1. 2 Vs 3 Handicap Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Akito, MAO & Kazuma Sumi
2. Tryout Match: Shunma Katsumata Vs Anarko Montaña
3. Road To NEVER MIND 2022! Special Tag Match: Saki Akai & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Saori Anou & Riko Kawahata
4. Sanshiro Takagi, Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Soma Takao, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada
5. Special 8-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata Vs Yukio Naya Vs Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama, Kotaro Suzuki & Yusuke Okada
6. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Chris Brookes & Hideki Okatani
7. Road To NEVER MIND 2022! Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida Vs Yuki Ueno & Toi Kojima

Before the show takes place there will be a press conference announcing details for some of the matches taking place at Korakuen Hall on 3rd January. We will find out who the teams competing in the vacant KO-D Tag Team Titles match are and also the No. 1 Contendership for the DDT Universal Title.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SE-NO, MERRY CHRISTMAS! 2022”, 24/12/2022
Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall

1. Fan Lottery 3 Way Match: X Vs X Vs X
2. Fan Lottery Singles Match: X Vs X
3. Fan Lottery Singles Match: X Vs X
4. Fan Lottery Singles Match: X Vs X
5. Fan Lottery Singles Match: X Vs X
6. Fan Lottery Singles Match: X Vs X
7. TJPW Year End Special 8-Man Tag Match: Yuka Sakazaki, Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima & Suzume Vs Miyu Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Hyper Misao & Moka Miyamoto

Fan Lottery: Miu Watanabe, Rika Tatsumi, Yuki Aino, Yuki Kamifuku, Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta, Raku, Pom Harajuku, Mahiro Kiryu, Haruna Neko, Arisu Endo, Kaya Toribami and Juria Nagano

A fan lottery taking place on the 15th December show will determine who faces who at the Christmas show.

GANBARE☆PRO “GIRI GIRI CHOP! 2022”, 27/12/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Sotatsu Nakamura Debut Match: Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Sotatsu Nakamura
2. GanJo x TJPW Special Tag Match: Suzume & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Yuki Kamifuku & YuuRI
3. Shota Triumphant Return Match: Shuichiro Katsumura & Shota Vs Soma Takao & Shigehiro Irie
4. GanPro Vs Pheromones: Ken Ohka & Yumehito Imanari Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno
5. GanJo Vs Ice Ribbon: Yuna Manase, Moeka Haruhi & HARUKAZE Vs Nao Ishikawa, Yuki Mashiro & Kaho Matsushita
6. Kouki Iwasaki Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Last Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Kouki Iwasaki
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Hartley Jackson (c) Vs Mizuki Watase

Kouki Iwasaki credits Keisuke Ishii’s knowledge of pro wrestling for helping him gain confidence over the years. For example, Ishii can remember off the top of his head he has a record of 3 wins and one draw against Iwasaki in singles matches. He also has fond memories of them challenging for the GHC Jr. Tag Team Titles together back in 2018. Iwasaki wants to repay that kindness and is open to continue teaming with Ishii around the wrestling scene. Ishii identifies that this match is not just happening to give Iwasaki one last happy memory when he leaves Ganbare☆Pro. Iwasaki is looking to win and create momentum for himself when he steps out into the world. Ishii thinks the last year in Ganpro has been competitive within the roster and he wants to show he can be also competitive going into 2023.

A trio from Ice Ribbon are coming over to face Ganbare☆Joshi. It is a special match for Yuki Mashiro in particular because she will be retiring from pro wrestling a few day’s later on New Year’s Eve. Nao Ishikawa & Kaho Matsushita have been recent opponents of Yuna Manase in Ice Ribbon too.

When Yumehito Imanari is in DDT, he is part of Pheromones. But in his home promotion he is his own man! He is ditching the bowtie to fight against his pervert friends Yuki Iino & Danshoku Dieno with Ken Ohka along to help him.

“NEW YEAR’S EVE PRO WRESTLING 2022 ~TOSHIWASURE! SHUFFLE 6-MAN TAG TOURNAMENT~”, 31/12/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1A: MAO, Yuya Aoki & Yuko Miyamoto Vs Yukio Naya, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Kikutaro
2. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1B: Kazusada Higuchi, Kota Sekifuda & MUSASHI Vs Chris Brookes, Daisuke Sekimoto & Isami Kodaka
3. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1C: Tetsuya Endo, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Brahman Kei (w/ Brahman Shu) Vs Yuki Ueno, Daichi Hashimoto & Yuma Aoyagi
4. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1D: Takeshi Masada, Takuya Nomura & Masato Tanaka Vs HARASHIMA, Yuki Ishikawa & Masashi Takeda
5. Danshoku Dieno, Antonio Honda, Kazuki Hirata & Shunma Katsumata Vs Ryuji Ito, Abdullah Kobayashi, Jaki Numazawa & Kankuro Hoshino
6. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: Winners Of Match 1A Vs Winners Of Match 1B
7. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: Winners Of Match 1C Vs Winners Of Match 1D
8. Special 8-Man Tag Match: Konosuke Takeshita, Drew Parker, Cara Noir & RSP Vs Yuji Okabayashi, Kazumi Kikuta, Takuho Kato & Kazumasa Yoshida
9. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Final: X, X & X Vs X, X & X

Ika Ra Takeshi Ki Asu Manji Hai (Driver’s High) – MAO, Yuya Aoki & Yuko Miyamoto
Team 2023 – Chris Brookes, Daisuke Sekimoto & Isami Kodaka
Zero Hyaku – Yuki Ueno, Daichi Hashimoto & Yuma Aoyagi
Big Bombers – Yukio Naya, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Kikutaro
Emi Chichichi (Wara Chichichi) – HARASHIMA, Yuki Ishikawa & Masashi Takeda
Bara No Ue In The Sky With Diamonds – Tetsuya Endo, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Brahman Kei (w/ Brahman Shu)
Team Kansai – Takeshi Masada, Takuya Nomura & Masato Tanaka
Super J Cups – Kazusada Higuchi, Kota Sekifuda & MUSASHI

The New Year’s Eve teams are picked and the bracket is ready. Now all that’s left to do is wrestle during the final hours of 2022.


Baka Gaijin Show, Shota Coming Home, Never Mind 2022 Complete Card

December 5, 2022

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT AUTUMN ~HAMAMATSU PERFORMANCE~”, 10/12/2022
Shizuoka Entetsu Hall

1. Suzume Vs Kaya Toribami
2. Hyper Misao Vs Mahiro Kiryu
3. Hikari Noa Vs Haruna Neko
4. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
5. Shoko Nakajima, Yuki Aino & Arisu Endo Vs Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & Moka Miyamoto
6. EVE Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Rhio

Maki Itoh & Yuki Kamifuku are both missing from this Saturday’s show because they will be wrestling in Malaysia. Nao Kakuta is also absent because of her stage work.

“BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS”, 13/12/2022
Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa

1. Interdimensional Kaiju Vs Fucked Up Warfare: MAO Vs Death Worm
2. Gatoh Move Tag: Mei Suruga & Miya Yostuba Vs Masahiro Takanashi & Chie Koishikawa
3. Double Anniversary Special: Chris Brookes Vs Drew Parker

A mat pro wrestling show is taking place at ARENA Shimokitazawa to celebrate Chris Brookes’ 15th Anniversary as well as Drew Parker’s 10th Anniversary. Guests from Gatoh Move and IWA Japan are involved on the undercard and there is also going to be a solo acoustic performance by Antonio Honda.

DDT “DANSHOKU DIENO 20TH ANNIVERSARY BOOK PUBLICATION COMMEMORATION”, 21/12/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. DDT Tradition 6-Man Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Thanomsak Toba Vs Tesuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & DJ Nira
2. Novelty Single Match: Naruki Doi Vs Shunma Katsumata
3. Selfishly For The 2nd Time In 20 Years, A Single Match That Danshoku Dieno Just Wants To See: Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari
4. Selfishly For The 1st Time In 20 Years, Danshoku Dieno’s Self-Satisfaction Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Muscle Sakai

A first time ever match between Naruki Doi and Shunma Katsumata is one of the matches Danshoku Dieno made for his book launch event. He also put together a standard 6-Man Tag match between Harimao and BURNING with Thanomsak Toba and DJ Nira also sprinkled in.

GANBARE☆PRO “GIRI GIRI CHOP! 2022”, 27/12/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Munetatsu Nakamura Debut Match: Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
2. GanJo x TJPW Special Tag Match: Suzume & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Yuki Kamifuku & YuuRI
3. Shota Triumphant Return Match: Shuichiro Katsumura & Shota Vs Soma Takao & Shigehiro Irie
4. Kouki Iwasaki Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Last Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Kouki Iwasaki
5. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Hartley Jackson (c) Vs Mizuki Watase

Shota’s American excursion is coming to and end and he will be back home in Japan before the year is over. His big return match for Ganbare☆Pro sees him teaming with Shuichiro Katsumura against the Team Drift pair of Soma Takao & Shigehiro Irie.

We’re getting a collaboration between Ganbare☆Joshi and Tokyo Joshi Pro. Previous opponents Suzume & Yoshiko Hasegawa are excited to be teaming together. Their opponents Yuki Kamifuku & YuuRI not so much. I mean, YuuRI is thrilled because she looks up to Kamifuku. Shame that Kamifuku thinks little of YuuRI in return.

The Ganpro rookie Munetatsu Nakamura gets Shinichiro Tominaga as his first opponent. As long as he doesn’t take any of Tominaga’s advice on how to spend time with the opposite sex he’ll be fine.

DDT “NEVER MIND 2022”, 29/12/2022
Tokyo Dome City Hall

0. Dark Match: Hideki Okatani & Toi Kojima Vs Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi
0. Dark Match: Minoru Fujita, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Soma Takao & Antonio Honda
1. Sanshiro Takagi Vs Takeshi Masada
2. HARASHIMA & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Yuji Hino & Yuki Ishida
3. Pheromones Vs “Miyako & Ward” Pheromones Subjugation Allied Forces: Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari & Koju “Shining Ball” Takeda Vs Akito, Osamu Nishimura, Shinichiro Kawamatsu & Shunma Katsumata
4. Special Tag Match: Saki Akai & Yuki Arai Vs Saori Anou & Riko Kawahata
5. Special Tag Match: Konosuke Takeshita & Yukio Naya Vs Daisuke Sekimoto & RSP
6. International 4 Way Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Chris Brookes Vs MAO Vs Cara Noir
7. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki Vs Chihiro Hashimoto
8. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo, Kotaro Suzuki & Yusuke Okada
9. DDT Extreme Title: Jun Akiyama (c) Vs Super Sasadango Machine
10. KO-D Openweight Title: Kazusada Higuchi (c) Vs Yuki Ueno

DDT’s 25th year comes to a close at Tokyo Dome City Hall. The main event is Kazusada Higuchi putting the KO-D Openweight Title on the line against Yuki Ueno, the winner of this year’s D-Ou Grand Prix. Going back to the summer the main event scene in DDT has been built around who is the most capable to carry the company on their back. Higuchi ended up standing head and shoulders above everyone else and getting to fly the flag (in some cases literally) was his reward. Ueno has one of the loudest claims to being the rightful leader of DDT, purposely adding more pressure to himself in order to reach his goal. He just won the Grand Prix and is still the reigning DDT Universal Champion. He is going to get what he wants and stand toe to toe against DDT’s current symbol of strength Higuchi. Ueno’s plan if he becomes the double crown champion is to defend the Universal Title overseas. He also wants to defend both championships on a monthly basis as long as his body can take it.

Jun Akiyama is keeping himself busy going into the new year by coming up with a bunch of suggestions for DDT to work on. He is the new DDT Extreme Champion and already has a challenger lined up for him. Super Sasadango Machine asked for a title shot to make up for how little he wrestled this year. Akiyama agreed to it but thinks Sasadango has become overweight. He strongly advised Sasadango to lose 20kg in time for the match. In order to do this Akiyama suggested DDT should create the DDT Health Club which he can be president of. There used to be a NOAH Health Club so he got his idea from there. As champion Akiyama can also choose the match stipulation but he will consult with Kenta Kobashi before making that decision. He would rather Sasadango come up with the rules if it is allowed because the champion having that power gives him too much of an unfair advantage. In fact, Akiyama wants to form a committee for the Extreme Title and Kobashi to be the chairman. Akiyama also isn’t comfortable with holding a purple championship because he has a bad history with that colour. He asked DDT if they can change the Extreme Title to a white belt in tribute to the retired GHC Hardcore Openweight Title he was originally responsible for creating.

Well, Naruki Doi said he wanted a match with Tetsuya Endo so he’s getting one. Endo made it known during the Grand Prix his goal in DDT is to win all of the championships and right now his target is the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles. The match gives Yusuke Okada some sorely needed spotlight after spending the last few months on the undercard. Kotaro Suzuki adds a lot of firepower to the team as well. Can Doi rely on DISASTER BOX to carry their share of the work? Toru Owashi won’t let him down but Kazuki Hirata can go from completely useless to the luckiest man in the ring on a coin flip.

Time for Yukio Naya to dust himself off and move on to the next challenge. The D-Ou finalist gets to team with Konosuke Takeshita against the unusual pairing of Daisuke Sekimoto & RSP in an all heavyweight tag battle.


GANBARE☆PRO “GUNHED 2022” Results

November 19, 2022

GANBARE☆PRO “GUNHED 2022”, 19/11/2022
Chiba 2AW Square
84 Fans

1. GanJo Three Big Singles Match: Moeka Haruhi defeated Yoshiko Hasegawa with the 79.5MHz (8:59).
2. GanJo Three Big Singles Match: YuuRI defeared HARUKAZE with a Locomotion School Boy (8:53).
3. Soma Takao & Tyson Maeguchi defeated Shuichiro Katsumura & Shinichiro Tominaga when Takao pinned Tominaga with a Cradle (11:10).
4. GanJo Three Big Singles Match: Yuna Manase defeated Echika Miyabi with the Lariat (7:47).
5. Original GanPro Tag Vs Last Teacher-Student Tag: Keisuke Ishii & Kouki Iwasaki defeated Ken Ohka & Yumehito Imanari when Ishii pinned Imanari with the Double Arm Driver TURBO (18:34).
6. Gunhed 2022 Special Tag Match: Hartley Jackson & Seiya Morohashi defeated Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Mizuki Watase when Jackson pinned Watase with the Jumping Piledriver (16:41).

It could not be any more obvious how much of an underdog Mizuki Watase is going against Hartley Jackson. The size and power difference is bad enough but Watase also had to fight against Seiya Morohashi and his cheating ways. Tatsuhito Takaiwa did what he could to even the odds but when it came down to Watase versus Jackson, Jackson won. After the match Jackson asked Watase if he still wants to fight him for the Spirit Of Ganbare Title? Jackson has beaten him in two tag matches now and can do it a third time. Instead Jackson wants to defend the belt against the boss of Ganbare☆Pro if there is one. He thought he wanted to be part of the Ganpro family but fuck that! He now realises he is better off being on his own. Watase blamed himself for losing not because of skill or size but because he isn’t carrying the Ganpro spirit.

Yuna Manase feels the need to take the lead of the Ganbare☆Joshi division in order to make it more active. She described Echika Miyabi as being talented and wants to make more new friends like Miyabi to liven up Ganpro even more. Miyabi said she wants to compete here and get stronger so is hoping to get invited back.

A can of Chuhai was placed in the middle of the ring for Match #3 for everyone to fight over. Late in the match Shinichiro Tominaga stepped on the can and slipped, causing Soma Takao to roll him up for the pinfall.

YuuRI scored her first victory in Ganpro today due to HARUKAZE being over eager. HARUKAZE targeted YuuRI’s arm and was determined to beat her with a Cross Armbreaker. YuuRI found a way to counter the move by rolling HARUKAZE over locomotion style until she finally got to pin her shoulders to the mat for a three count. YuuRI said the win comes close to her entering the third year of her wrestling career. It was frustrating to lose so much but that time in her life helped her gain self-confidence. Winning for the first time today is not YuuRI’s end goal so it is still only the beginning of her journey.

A new trainee will be making his debut for Ganpro soon. Munetatsu Nakamura is a 21 year old college student from Chiba with a background in both Wrestling and Judo. He is 168cm tall and weighs 65kg. In 2021 he was part of the DDT Teenage Project (now called DDTeeeen!!) and has spent the last year and a half training. This year he began training with Ganpro and will make his pro debut under their banner on 27th December.


Chouten Final, Echika Miyabi In GanPro, World Omori Title Returns

November 7, 2022

BASARA “BASARA 203 ~GLITTER~”, 08/11/2022
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Chouten ~Itadaki~ – A Block Final: FUMA Vs Fuminori Abe
2. Chouten ~Itadaki~ – B Block Final: Masato Kamino Vs Yasu Urano
3. Turnabout Pro Wrestling Trial: Gouma Vs Banana Senga Vs X
4. Takumi Tsukamoto, Takato Nakano & Lil’ Kraken Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi, Daichi Kazato & Tsutomu Oosugi
5. Isami Kodaka, Daiki Shimomura & Minoru Fujita Vs Ryota Nakatasu, SAGAT & Akiyori Takizawa
6. Chouten ~Itadaki~ – Final: Winner Of A Block Vs Winner Of B Block

Either FUMA, Fuminori Abe, Masato Kamino or Yasu Urano will come out of the show as this year’s Chouten ~Itadaki~ winner. There is also the return of the Turnabout Pro Wrestling Trial too. The last one of those that happened in BASARA was back in July 2020.

DDT “D-OU GRAND PRIX 2022 IN OSAKA”, 12/11/2022
Osaka Edion Arena #2

0. Dark Match: Shunma Katsumata & Kazuma Sumi Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
1. MJ Paul & KANON Vs Hideki Okatani & Takeshi Masada
2. Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Produce Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Aja Kong & HARASHIMA
3. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Shiori Asahi (c) Vs Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata
4. D-Ou Grand Prix 2022 – A Block: Yuki Ueno (4) Vs Naomi Yoshimura (0)
5. D-Ou Grand Prix 2022 – A Block: Daisuke Sasaki (1) Vs Joey Janela (4)
6. D-Ou Grand Prix 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo (3) Vs RSP (4)
7. D-Ou Grand Prix 2022 – B Block: Kazusada Higuchi (3) Vs MAO (2)
8. D-Ou Grand Prix 2022 – B Block: Chris Brookes (2) Vs Yukio Naya (2)

Mixed fortunes all around in the D-Ou Grand Prix so far. A Block is all to play for at the moment. Everyone is still in the running so wrestlers like Naomi Yoshimura and Daisuke Sasaki have to start their comeback now before it’s too late. The B Block matches on this show is giving those involved the chance to catch up with the leader Yuji Hino.

GANBARE☆PRO “GUNHED 2022”, 19/11/2022
Chiba 2AW Square

1. Soma Takao & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Shinichiro Tominaga
2. Original GanPro Tag Vs Last Teacher-Student Tag: Ken Ohka & Yumehito Imanari Vs Keisuke Ishii & Kouki Iwasaki
3. Gunhed 2022 Special Tag Match: Hartley Jackson & Seiya Morohashi Vs Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Mizuki Watase
4. GanJo Three Big Singles Match: HARUKAZE Vs YuuRI
5. GanJo Three Big Singles Match: Moeka Haruhi Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa
6. GanJo Three Big Singles Match: Yuna Manase Vs Echika Miyabi

It’s time for Ganbare☆Joshi to finally do those big series of singles matches that shows are built around sometimes. Most of the division are taking on each other but Yuna Manase is getting a brand new opponent making her Ganbare☆Pro debut. Echika Miyabi is a trans joshi wrestler who made her pro wrestling debut with P.P.P. Tokyo in September. Miyabi is 21 years old, 178cm tall and weighs 75kg. She had a background in baseball and judo before she transitioned during her college years. She worked at a muscle girls themed bar where she was introduced to pro wrestling by her workmate, Chanyota and began training with her.

It will be a few weeks until the next Spirit Of Ganbare Title defence so until then Hartley Jackson and Mizuki Watase will have plenty of time to prepare for it. Former champion Tatsuhito Takaiwa is coming back to give Watase some help in his preparation. Jackson will be teaming with Seiya Morohashi for this match.

Kouki Iwasaki’s final match in Ganpro will be against Keisuke Ishii but before that happens, he wants to team with him one last time. Their friendship will be put to the test against Ganpro’s original best buddies, Ken Ohka & Yumehito Imanari.

DDT “UTAN FESTA 2022”, 27/11/2022
Tokyo JR Omori Station East Exit Square

1. World Omori Title: Chikara (c) Vs Soma Takao

2018 was the last time the World Omori Title was defended outside the JR Omori Station. It’s been years since DDT held a show there but they are finally going back. It was determined four years ago that Chikara would defend the title against Masahiro Takanashi next but Takanashi will be busy wrestling in Singapore. So instead Soma Takao has been chosen to challenge for the belt even though he does not want to. The next No. 1 Contender for the following year’s event is usually determined on this show too.


GANBARE☆PRO “DIRTY HERO 2022” Results

November 3, 2022

GANBARE☆PRO “DIRTY HERO 2022”, 03/11/2022
Yokohama Radiant Hall
167 Fans

1. Tsuyoshi Okada defeated Yuki Kanzaki with an Omoplata (6:03).
2. GanJo Special Tag Match: Willow Nightingale & Moeka Haruhi defeated Yuna Manase & Yoshiko Hasegawa when Nightingale pinned Hasegawa with the Gutwrench Power Bomb (8:40).
3. Mixed Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari & HARUKAZE defeated Ken Ohka & YuuRI when HARUKAZE pinned YuuRI with the Fire Spear (12:03).
4. Dirty Hero 2022 Special Tag Match: Mizuki Watase & Toi Kojima defeated Keisuke Ishii & Soma Takao when Watase pinned Takao with the Back Drop (13:38).
5. Kouki Iwasaki Send-Off Special Singles Match: Kouki Iwasaki defeated Shinichiro Tominaga with a Ground Cobra Twist (11:41).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Hartley Jackson (c) defeated Shuichiro Katsumura with the Jumping Piledriver (21:50).
*V2 for Hartley Jackson.

The “Real Tiger Mask” had his hopes to become the new Spirit Of Ganbare Champion dashed in front of his home crowd. Shuichiro Katsumura tried luring Hartley Jackson into a grounded battle of submissions with some kicks inbetween. But Jackson was just too physically big for the plan to work. Katsumura could not fully apply his new Triple Three 3 Lock finisher so had to make do with a Double Two 2 Lock instead. The Ninja Choke also didn’t work and Jackson threw the challenger off of himself. A big Lariat was the beginning of the end and Jackson landed the Jumping Piledriver for the victory.

The two shook hands after the match and Jackson admitted to everyone he was pushed to the limit. When he first entered Ganbare☆Pro he thought he would rampage over everybody. Instead he found out everyone here has fighting spirit and he has come to like the place instead. Now he thinks Ganpro is like a big family and he can become a part of it. Ken Ohka came out and approached Jackson until Mizuki Watase also appeared and took the microphone from him. Watase said it’s been a year since he joined Ganpro and he kept the promotion’s fire burning everywhere he went. If he does not work for Ganpro now then when will he ever? That means he is next in line to challenge Jackson for the championship! If Watase wins then he will be the one to welcome Jackson into the Ganpro family. Jackson accepted the challenge on the condition that he gets some time to rest. He wants to be at 100% for this match so it will happen at Korakuen Hall on 27th December.

Kouki Iwasaki thanked Shinichiro Tominaga for agreeing to his selfish request for a singles match before he leaves Ganpro at the end of the year. Iwasaki only has two more matches left in Ganpro and promises to put his soul into them. He has one more selfish request and that is to team with Keisuke Ishii one more time.

Today is HARUKAZE’s mother’s birthday so she promised to win the Mixed Tag Match for her before heading out to the birthday party. She lived up to her word and did just that.

It’s understandable for a wrestler to feel down after failing to win a championship. Yuna Manase has been that way but today’s match with the Ganbare☆Joshi divison cheered her up. She’s now filled with super energy thanks to Willow Nightingale and the two have become purple friends. Yoshiko Hasegawa is happy she got to wrestle somebody from AEW and hopes to become stronger so they can fight again. Moeka Haruhi came up with cheerful nicknames for everyone in the match. Manase is Ganpro’s Sun, Hasegawa is Ganpro’s Moon and Nightingale is International Sunshine. What does that make Moeka? Ganpro’s Rainbow of course!


GANBARE☆PRO “ULTRA SOUL 2022” Results

August 13, 2022

GANBARE☆PRO “ULTRA SOUL 2022”, 13/08/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
313 Fans

1. Yoshiko Hasegawa Re-Debut Match: Moeka Haruhi & YuuRI defeated Yuna Manase & Yoshiko Hasegawa when Haruhi submitted Hasegawa with the 79.5MHz (14:07).
2. Black Ships Attack! Non-Standard Tag Vs Tenori Drunkers: Hartley Jackson & Max The Impaler defeated Mizuki Watase & Tyson Maeguchi when Jackson pinned Maeguchi with the Jumping Piledriver (11:02).
3. HARUKAZE 5th Anniversary Match: Makoto defeated HARUKAZE with the Seien no Uneri (10:02)
4. ROMANCE DAWN for the new world: Soma Takao defeated Shota with the Gin And Tonic (11:21).
5. Tatsuhito Takaiwa 30th Anniversary Match: Tatsuhito Takaiwa, Ken Ohka & Shuichiro Katsumura defeated Keisuke Ishii, Kouki Iwasaki & Shinichiro Tominaga when Takaiwa pinned Tominaga with the Death Valley Bomb (12:59).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) defeated Shigehiro Irie with a Sleeper Hold (27:44).
*V2 for Yumehito Imanari.

Quite possibly Ganbare☆Pro’s match of the year took place in the main event. Yumehito Imanari wanted to earn Shigehiro Irie’s respect the hard way and by God he definitely did in the end. For almost half an hour the two beat the hell out of each other as hard as they could. Irie gave Imanari a Piledriver on the floor, a Cannonball Attack into Imanari’s spine while he was leaning on the ropes as well as Beast Bombers and heavy Elbow Strikes. Imanari kept his resolve by hitting his own Lariats as well as getting nearfalls with the Tiger Driver and Lou Thesz Press. When all else failed, Imanari locked in a Sleeper Hold and would not let go no matter how hard Irie fought. The Back Flip looked like it would free him but Imanari took the blow and reapplied the hold, forcing Irie to finally give up.

An exhausted Imanari thanked Irie after the match but his next challenger then immediately stepped forward. Hartley Jackson stepped into the ring and praised Imanari for becoming the soul of Ganpro. However Hartley thinks it is now his time to be in the spotlight and he challenged Imanari for the Spirit Of Ganbare Title. When he left, Ken Ohka complained about not understanding English at all. He congratulated Imanari and promoted Ganpro’s next show in Korakuen Hall taking place this December. Imanari had to be helped out of the ring so the rest of the roster closed out the show without him. Backstage Hartley said sometimes in life you have to be the bad guy to get what you want. He does not mind being the bad guy in order to get that championship.

Ganpro got to host Tatsuhito Takaiwa’s 30th Anniversary Match with a large chunk of the roster also involved. Takaiwa got to spend in-ring time against previous opponents Kouki Iwasaki and Shuichiro Katsumura. But it is Keisuke Ishii in particular he was most interested in because they’ve not had a singles match against each other yet. He told the audience he still has 35 or 40 years left in his career so don’t call him a legend yet. He is still aiming to reach the top as a mid-level wrestler. Both Ohka and Shuichiro Katsumura said they were honored to team with him for the special occasion.

The two wrestlers making up ROMANCE DAWN fought each other as they are about to go their separate ways. Shota will be moving to America soon so he took on Soma Takao as part of his farewell series of matches in Ganpro. Takao kicked out of the Gannosuke Clutch and won with the Gin And Tonic. Backstage Shota said a new chapter is beginning for both of them. Takao agreed and added that the team is not breaking up. Their friendship will never disappear and some day they will reunite for another romantic battle as a team.

For a match this important, HARUKAZE went all out against Makoto. Unfortunately her best was not good enough and Makoto got the better of her in the end. Afterwards Makoto said she is really happy that HARUKAZE nominated her for her 5th Anniversary match. In return HARUKAZE thanked her for being the impetus for her return to wrestling five years ago. She wants to continue wrestling and also wants to fight Makoto again in the future.

Jackson showed how much of a dominant force he is along with Max The Impaler earlier in the show. Together the two of them defeated Mizuki Watase & Tyson Maeguchi. Jackson got the pin on Maeguchi and he bragged about destroying Ganpro’s spirit. Watase was so amazed by the power of his opponents today that he is inspired to follow them back to America. He thinks it is a waste if today was the only time he could fight them.

The re-debut of Yoshiko Hasegawa saw the newest signing of Ganbare☆Joshi team up with Yuna Manase to take on Moeka Haruhi & YuuRI. Just because Hasegawa’s return was a cause for celebration did not mean her opponents would go easy on her. Instead she was put through a tough fight that ended with Haruhi making her submit. Once the match was over though, Haruhi was much nicer and had plenty of advice to give. She told Hasegawa that Ganpro is about doing your best in every single match. It is about always trying harder to surpass yourself. And it is about being a pro wrestler that people cannot take their eyes off. Hasegawa said she will become stronger and promised to aim for the top of the Ganjo division. Backstage Manase said her ring boots were damaged so she had to borrow Ken Ohka’s boots for the match. In a way that meant the two of them were fighting together to carry Ganpro! That was her lesson she wanted Hasegawa to learn today.


GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA” Results

July 10, 2022

GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA”, 10/07/2022
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
804 Fans

1. Four Beasts Of Fate Gathered In Sekigahara ~Special Tag Match~: Isami Kodaka & Shuji Ishikawa defeated Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie when Ishii pinned Kodaka with the Isamiashi Zan (13:42).
2. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Takaiwa Army: Kouki Iwasaki & Tyson Maeguchi defeated Tatsuhito Takaiwa & 5th Black Tiger when Maeguchi pinned Tiger with the Tyson Splash (14:00).
3. Ganpro Specialty 6-Man Tag Match Match: Ganbare Tamagawa, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE defeated Onryo, YuuRI & Lingerie Muto when HARUKAZE pinned YuuRI with the Flame Spear (9:13).
4. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Eruption: Mizuki Watase, Moeka Haruhi & Shinichiro Tominaga defeated Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani when Watase pinned Sakaguchi with an Elbow Butt (15:22).
5. Special Single Match: Sayaka Unagi defeated Yuna Manase with the Jomon Toppa (12:59).
6. Special Single Match: Minoru Suzuki defeated Shuichiro Katsumura with the Gotch-Style Piledriver (21:45).
7. Special Tag Match ~ CDK Vs ROMANCE DAWN: Shota & Soma Takao defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi when Shota pinned Brookes with the Gannosuke Clutch (23:09).
8. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) defeated Ken Ohka with the Lariat (19:25).
*V1 for Yumehito Imanari.

Today Ganbare☆Pro reached Ota Ward Gymnasium to hold the biggest event in its nine year history. The two men most important to the promotion faced off in the main event. On the one side is Ganpro’s founder Ken Ohka, the man who created the company in the hopes of making his own major sports league. His opponent is the first person to stand by him during Ganpro’s creation. Yumehito Imanari was just a member of DDT’s video team who wrestled on a part time basis. Today he was headlining Ota Ward Gym as the defending Spirit Of Ganbare Champion. The two fought each other knowing it was the most important match of their lives. Ohka relied on the Flame Spear but it was Imanari’s use of the Lariat that ended the match with his arm raised in the air and a successful first title defence.

After the match Imanari said when he became a pro wrestler he embarrassed himself a lot. But it is that shame that led him to the treasure he has now. He said Ganpro is necessary in the wrestling world because there is nowhere else where you can put your life on the line in such a muddy atmosphere. If you ever have a hard time, look at Ganpro! Ohka didn’t cry when he lost. He laughed instead. He doesn’t understand why because it should be the opposite. At 45 years of age he believes he still has room to grow. He wants to work hard with the younger wrestlers and continue his work to make pro wrestling into a major sport. The attendance of 804 fans today is considered a success and is going to inspire Ganpro when they decide on their next big goal.

The other important matches on the show were built around matches where Ganpro wrestlers fought outsiders. The tag team battle between ROMANCE DAWN and CDK was Ganpro’s top tag team taking on the notorious duo found in DDT and ChocoPro. CDK did some cheating throughout the match. Early on Chris Brookes taped Soma Takao to a dolly and rolled him away from ringside, leaving Shota fighting in a 2 on 1 disadvantage. Takao was able to get freed and return to the ring. Brookes also grabbed HARUKAZE and Gorilla Pressed her out of the ring onto everyone below. Later Masahiro Takanashi pulled the referee out of the ring to break up Shota’s Frog Splash on Brookes. Shota was then hit over the head with the Asia Dream Tag Team Title belt but he kicked out of the pin. ROMANCE DAWN was able to get the win out of nowhere when Shota countered the Praying Mantis Bomb into the Gannosuke Clutch, pinning Brookes for the victory. Shota said he is ready to go for a rematch while Takao was happy to win in his hometown with his friend. Brookes is making demands for a singles match. He wants to go one on one. But not against Shota, he is demanding a match against HARUKAZE! Takanashi backs up the idea and suggested they do a tag match if HARUKAZE has a tag partner.

Fans were allowed to cheer which meant everyone got to shout “Kaze Ni Nare!” during Minoru Suzuki’s entrance. But when it was time for his match to begin, the cheers and chants were for Ganpro’s own Shuichiro Katsumura. The match was filled with strikes and submission holds with a little bit of chair usage from Suzuki. He broke out of the Ninja Choke and dropped Katsumura with the Gotch-Style Piledriver to win the match. In a rare act of sportsmanship, Suzuki shook Katsumura’s hand and left to ring to give his opponent the spotlight. He even later admitted to enjoying the match! Katsumura said getting the match he always wanted is no big deal and he will continue to wrestle for Ganpro.

Emotions ran high for Yuna Manase’s match against Sayaka Unagi. The two have history together that recently mutated into Unagi holding a grudge. Their only previous singles match happened early in Unagi’s career and the loss to Manase has haunted her ever since. She showed erratic behavior at a press conference for the match by biting Manase’s chest. She did the same here when the match began. The match continued to heat up with Manase throwing Lariats. But Unagi broke through her defences and got the three count after hitting the Jomon Toppa. After the match Unagi confessed that she does not hate Ganpro and she does not believe Manase is on her last run. She learned about the fun and freedom of pro wrestling from Manase so she’s not going to let her quit so easily. They also now have a 1-1 record against each other. Unagi believes she will one day become the top wrestler in Stardom and the world of pro wrestling. When she does she will look for Manase so they can have the rubber match.

Ganpro’s previous experiences with Eruption have ended with the DDT unit bullying them. Yukio Sakaguchi in particular has been a pain in the back for Mizuki Watase to deal with. It ended up causing Watase to shave his own head after he dropped the fall to Sakaguchi in a Ganpro Vs Eruption match at “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2022”. Today was Watase’s shot at redemption when he teamed with Moeka Haruhi & Shinichiro Tominaga against the same trio of Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani. He finally got his day in the sun when he pinned Sakaguchi with an Elbow Butt to the face. Once Sakaguchi got over the shock of defeat, he gave Watase a congratulatory pat to the body and left him to celebrate with his team.

The advertised 3 Vs 2 Handicap Match turned into a 6-Man Tag Match on short notice. Munenori Sawa wasn’t around so in his place was Lingerie Muto as an active participant in the match! Ganbare Tamagawa thought he was going to get a hero’s welcome for his first Ganpro appearance in years. He even created a new move for the occassion called the Ganbare☆Pro Elbow. Instead he got booed. YuuRI on the other hand got loads of streamers thrown at her, leaving her in tears of joy because she debuted during the pandemic and never experienced an audience response like this. The ring was also filled with ecto dust whenever Onryo did something with Nobuhiro Shimatani. In the end, HARUKAZE was the one to win the match when she pinned YuuRI with the Flame Spear.

After nine months wrestling for Ganpro, Tyson Maeguchi finally gets his first direct win! The opportunity came when Tatsuhito Takaiwa accidentally hit 5th Black Tiger with a Lariat. Kouki Iwasaki then gave Tiger a Vertical Drop Brainbuster and left him for Maeguchi to finish off. Maeguchi did so with a Diving Body Press taught to him by Kota Ibushi. He now believes this is the end of Taison Maeguchi: the weak pro wrestler. From this day forth he is Taison Maeguchi: the strong pro wrestler! Next up he would like to aim for a championship. Takaiwa said this is not the end of him or his Takaiwa Army because he is still looking to understand the Ganbare Spirit.

The show opened with a barnburner between four wrestlers linked together through a time before Ganpro even existed. Keisuke Ishii, Shigehiro Irie, Isami Kodaka and Shuji Ishikawa smashed each other to pieces until somebody reached their breaking point. That came when Kodaka hit Ishii with the Isamiashi Zan. Even when the match was over tempers were flaring. Kodaka said he is the top wrestler of BASARA and Ishikawa is the top wrestler of All Japan. He thinks Ishii and Ganpro haven’t grown at all in the decade that passed since Union Pro closed down. Ishikawa was in a happier mood and congratulated Kodaka on his 20th anniversary in wrestling. He explained he can’t be at Kodaka’s 20th Anniversary show because he has a booking with AJPW on the same day.

The new Ganbare☆Joshi signing is Yoshiko Hasegawa! The former Actwres girl’Z wrestler left the business at the end of last year after dealing with a neck injury. However after a year and seven months since her last match, she will re-debut for Ganpro on 13th August. She calls it her re-debut because she is starting again from scratch. Part of the reason is because Ganpro does mixed gender matches and she wants to take part in them to get stronger. She is also currently still getting treatment on her neck but assures everyone she will be ready to wrestle again on 13th August.


Ota Ward Lineups, Kanda Back To DDT, Endo & Oishi’s Return Matches

July 6, 2022

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’22”, 09/07/2022
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. Moka Miyamoto Vs Juria Nagano
2. Aja Kong, Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku Vs Hyper Misao, Nao Kakuta, Haruna Neko & Kaya Toribami
3. Ryo Mizunami Vs Miu Watanabe
4. Hikaru Shida & Hikari Noa Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu
5. Riho & Arisu Endo Vs Mei Suruga & Suzume
6. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Alex Windsor
7. Special Single Match: Thunder Rosa Vs Miyu Yamashita
8. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Saki Akai & Yuki Arai
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi

The match order has been decided.

GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA”, 10/07/2022
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. Four Beasts Of Fate Gathered In Sekigahara ~Special Tag Match~: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Isami Kodaka & Shuji Ishikawa
2. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Takaiwa Army: Kouki Iwasaki & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Tatsuhito Takaiwa & 5th Black Tiger
3. Ganpro Specialty 3 Vs 2 Handicap Match: Ganbare Tamagawa, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE Vs Onryo & YuuRI (w/ Ippanjin Munenori Sawa)
4. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Eruption: Mizuki Watase, Moeka Haruhi & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani
5. Special Single Match: Yuna Manase Vs Sayaka Unagi
6. Special Single Match: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Minoru Suzuki
7. Special Tag Match ~ CDK Vs ROMANCE DAWN: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Shota & Soma Takao
8. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) Vs Ken Ohka

A new joshi wrestler has joined Ganbare☆Pro and will introduce herself to the fans at the show. Yuna Manase is looking into doing Ganbare☆Joshi shows again soon and wants to know if this wrestler will be a new companion or a new rival?

DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022 TOUR IN NAGOYA”, 16/07/2022
Aichi Nippon Gaishi Sports Plaza 3rd Stadium

1. DISASTER BOX Vs Eruption!: Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai
2. HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yuji Hino & Yuki Ishida
3. Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani Vs MAO & Yukio Naya
4. The 37KAMIINA Vs BURNING!: Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & Toi Kojima Vs Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
5. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda
6. DDT Extreme Title – 3 Vs 1 Handicap Rule: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (c), Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Akito

The dramatic Handicap Match for the DDT Extreme Title looks to be headlining the show. It is in Akito’s home region after all.

DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022 TOUR IN NAGANO”, 18/07/2022
Nagano City Art Center Act Space

1. Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada Vs Chris Brookes & Yuki Ishida
2. The 37KAMIINA Vs Eruption!: Yuki Ueno & Toi Kojima Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani
3. Nagano Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yasushi Kanda, Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata

The Nagano shows booked by Toru Owashi are responsible for patching up the relationship between DDT and Dragongate in recent years. Owashi is continuing it by inviting Yasushi Kanda back for another appearance. Kanda accepted the deal on the sole condition that he does not fight against Pheromones again. Owashi understands the request and wants to protect the friendly relationship between both companies. So he is booking Kanda to team with Pheromones instead!

DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022”, 24/07/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Makoto Oishi Return Match: Makoto Oishi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Akito & Yuki Ishida
2. Tetsuya Endo Return Match ~ Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yuya Koroku Vs HARASHIMA, Yukio Sakaguchi & Soma Takao
3. DDT Universal Title: Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs Yusuke Okada

Both Tetsuya Endo and Makoto Oishi have their return matches set up and ready to go.