AJPW “GIANT SERIES 2023”, 03/09/2023 Niigata Aore Nagaoka 1,560 Fans
1. Special Single Match: Yoshitatsu defeated Super Sasadango Machine with the Yoshitatsu Fantasy (8:00).
2. AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles & KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani (c/c) defeated ATM, DASH Chisako & Black Menso~re when Sakaguchi pinned Menso~re with the God’s Right Knee (11:56). *V1 for Eruption with the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles. V2 for Eruption with the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles.
This week there was more DDT participation in All Japan for the company’s latest tour. In Niigata Eruption stepped foot in AJPW again to defend their double crown trios championships. With both the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles and KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles on the line Eruption successfully retained all of their belts against ATM, DASH Chisako & Black Menso~re. With no challengers left in AJPW for the time being that allows Eruption to defend the titles back in DDT tomorrow. Yukio Sakaguchi said the successful defence means the AJPW championship now completely belongs to them. Saki Akai agrees and thinks the AJPW belts are now like part of their costumes. Hideki Okatani calls out for any more challengers to step forward. That’s if there are any left.
Also on the show was Super Sasadango Machine, getting to wrestle in the AJPW ring at his hometown. He took on Yoshitatsu with the goal of winning in order to become a regular addition to AJPW shows. Unfortunately he lost and the result supposedly destroyed any hope he had of joining that roster.
AJPW “GIANT SERIES 2023”, 08/09/2023 Yoyogi National Stadium Gymnasium #2 1,675 Fans
1. Evolution Vs DDT: Jun Akiyama, Sanshiro Takagi & Yusuke Okada defeated Suwama, Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura by Referee Stoppage when Akiyama used the Front Neck Lock on Tamura (6:57).
Earlier today at All Japan’s big show in Yoyogi there was some DDT involvement on the undercard to continue the growing rivalry between the companies. Jun Akiyama, Sanshiro Takagi & Yusuke Okada defeated the Evolution stable of Suwama, Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura when Akiyama used the Front Neck Lock to choke out Tamura. Akiyama and Suwama got into each other’s faces after the match causing Yukio Naya to step in and start a fight with Suwama! The two had to be pulled apart.
There were also two Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title changes on the show. Naoki Tanizaki rolled up Naruki Doi right after they teamed together to become the new champion. A few other wrestlers tried to roll up Tanizaki until Doi succeeded and regained the title.
DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023”, 09/09/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Ilusion Vs Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
2. HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Soma Takao Vs Yukio Naya, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada
3. Pheromones Vs Subjugation Final Match! Special Single Match ~ Dissolution Contra Vice President: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (w/ Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno) Vs Akito
4. First Time In History! Time Difference Scramble Bunkhouse Current Blast 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshi Tatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada
5. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno & MAO
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Minoru Fujita & KANON
7. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles & AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani (c/c) Vs Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow
8. DDT Extreme Title & Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – All Humans Are Equal! Kazuki Hirata Death Match: Kazuki Hirata (E/c) Vs Naruki Doi (I/c)
9. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie
Tension continues to grow between Chris Brookes and Shigehiro Irie. They traded direct wins back and forth over each other in recent tag matches. It’s causing them to shove and strike each other even more after the matches had finished.
Kazuki Hirata is bringing back a match stipulation he used against Shinya Aoki in a DDT Extreme Title match two years ago. In a All Humans Are Equal Death Match Naruki Doi must wrestle on the same level as Hirata. If he does any moves or actions that the judges at ringside do not consider to be Hirata-like then the match will be paused until Doi corrects himself. Doi himself previously said he wants to be fully immersed into DDT so he now must prepare himself in both body and mind to be just like Hirata! He doesn’t understand the concept and is going to treat it like a regular match with normal rules.
Eruption have already defended their double trios championships in All Japan over the weekend. After dealing with ATM, DASH Chisako & Black Menso~re they are now cleared to put all of their belts on the line in DDT this weekend against the Triple Six team. It will be their third defence of the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles and their second defence of the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles.
What a night Konosuke Takeshita had last night! He is now returning to DDT on fire after beating Kenny Omega in AEW.
GANBARE☆PRO “GIRI GIRI CHOP! 2023”, 01/10/2023 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Loser Haircut Tag Match: Ken Ohka & Shota Vs Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi
2. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Yumehito Imanari
It is now up to Yumehito Imanari to try and bring the Spirit Of Ganbare Title back home. If he beats Isami Kodaka he will become the first two-time SOG Champion.
The feud between GanPro and DoiKuma is leading into a Hair Vs Hair Match! Ken Ohka & Shota lost to Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi back in July. Their rematch only got granted when they agreed to put their hair on the line. Whoever drops the fall in the match will get their head cut bald as punishment!
Mizuki Watase will not be at the show because he is booked for Dotonbori Pro in Okinawa that day.
GANBARE☆PRO “THE TRIPLE CROSS 2023”, 02/09/2023 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. GanPro 2 Big Singles Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Tyson Maeguchi
2. HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Sumire Natsu & Riara
3. GanPro 2 Big Singles Match: Shota Vs Kuma Arashi
4. Ken Ohka, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Yumehito Imanari, Mizuki Watase & Munetatsu Nakamura
The monthly tripleshot in Oji BASEMENT MONSTAR ran by Ganbare☆Pro is sticking to the recent change where the second show is more of a fan event instead of having any wrestling matches. So although there are three GanPro shows on the schedule tomorrow, I only have to cover two of them for the most part.
DDT “ROJO PRO WRESTLING IN IZUKOGEN GRANILLUMI”, 02/09/2023 Shizuoka Izu Granpal Park
1. Falls Count Anywhere 4 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, HARASHIMA & Saki Akai Vs Yuki Ueno, Toy Kojima & Kazuki Hirata (w/ Shunma Katsumata) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Shinya Aoki & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yuki “Pretty” Kamifuku
The match will be one fall to a finish.
GANBARE☆PRO “KAMIKAZE TAXI 2023”, 02/09/2023 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. Shuichiro Katsumura & Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Shota & Soma Takao
2. HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Tae Honma & Yoshiko Hasegawa
3. Secret Captain’s Fall Elimination 6-Man Tag Match: Ken Ohka, Mizuki Watase & Shingo Vs Keisuke Ishii, Yumehito Imanari & Takuya Wada
4. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shinichiro Tominaga
This is the third show of the tripleshot. However the middle fan event show will include a contract signing with Isami Kodaka and Shinichiro Tominaga for their Spirit Of Ganbare Title match.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~AUTUMN TOUR OPENING ROUND~”, 03/09/2023 Tokyo Otemachi Mitsui Hall
1. Toga Vs Shino Suzuki
2. Yuki Aino Vs Haru Kazashiro
3. Moka Miyamoto, HIMAWARI & Wakana Uehara Vs Haruna Neko, Kaya Toribami & Runa Okubo
4. Hikari Noa Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa
5. Mizuki Vs Juria Nagano
6. 8-Woman Tag Match: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe, Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao, Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu, Raku & Pom Harajuku
A few days ago Suzume tested positive for covid so she is unable to be at this Sunday’s show. Yoshiko Hasegawa from GanPro is now Hikari Noa’s new opponent.
1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Akito & Yukio Naya
2. Makoto Oishi & Takeshi Masada Vs Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul
3. Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
4. Special Tag Match: Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda Vs Naruki Doi & HARASHIMA
5. Special Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs KANON
6. Yuki Ueno Birthday Commemorative Match ~ Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Toy Kojima
7. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao
Public contract signings for both the KO-D Openweight Title match between Chris Brookes and Shigehiro Irie along with the double title match between Kazuki Hirata and Naruki Doi will take place before the first match.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~RIKA TATSUMI LOCAL TRIUMPH~”, 16/09/2023 Nagano Kissei Bunka Hall Middle Hall
The main event spot awaits for Rika Tatsumi in her hometown. She teams with Miu Watanabe as Daydream takes on the pair of Miyu Yamashita & Hyper Misao.
GANBARE☆JOSHI “GANJO MINEL VATON SAGA ’23”, 17/09/2023 Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall
1. YuuRI Vs Haruka Umesaki
Sadly YuuRI is no longer the ICEx∞ Champion. She lost it to Ibuki Hoshi in Ice Ribbon last week. Back over in Ganbare☆Joshi she will climb back to her feet for a match with Haruka Umesaki from Diana. Umesaki wrestled on a GanPro show back in June this year but this is her first time in GanJo.
DDT “SHINKANSEN PRO WRESTLING”, 18/09/2023 Nozomi No. 371 From Tokyo Station
1. Falls Count Anywhere Match: Minoru Suzuki Vs Sanshiro Takagi
A meeting was held between Minoru Suzuki and Sanshiro Takagi a few days ago to determine what can and cannot be allowed during their Falls Count Anywhere Match inside a moving bullet train. They were given a set of rules by the railway company telling them they cannot damage the train, cause any delays, disrupt the crew, use any weapons that could break apart into fragments, leave the inside of the train dirty, hit the floor and seating with considerable force, touch the ceiling at all or cause harm to other passengers. Suzuki brought up his previous calculations that he can punch Takagi at 400km/h in the train. He wanted to know if Takagi explodes into bits of meat flying everywhere would that count as making the train car dirty? Takagi answered that if he dodges that punch and Suzuki hits a piece of equipment instead then Takagi wins by DQ.
The railway line also handed out a list of wrestling moves they can permit on the train. They include Lock Ups, grounded submission holds, Chops, Kicks, Body Slams, Brainbusters and Piledrivers. Suzuki pointed out the list is pretty much his usual moveset so he accepts the terms. Takagi however was upset he is now allowed use his own moves like Power Bombs, Lariats and Dropkicks. Suzuki agreed that Takagi can use the Axe Bomber as long as he shouts “Axe Bomber!” beforehand. Last but not least, the two also discussed adding in lunch breaks and toilet breaks if the match goes on too long.
DDT “FIGHTING BEER GARDEN – DAY 1”, 16/08/2023 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Yusuke Okada Vs Rukiya
2. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Toy Kojima, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada
3. Blindfold Hidden Breast 4 Way Death Match: HARASHIMA Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Antonio Honda Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino
4. Special Tag Match: Manpuku Hirutaro & Yuki Ueno Vs MAO & Pokotan
5. The Scariest Event In History! Ghost Story New Numabukuro Death Match: Saki Akai Vs Yuni Vs Hideki Okatani Vs Kazuma Sumi (Ghost Story Reading Artist: Hisaya Imabayashi)
6. YOROKOBI BREWERY Infomercial Match: Yuji Hino, Yukio Sakaguchi & Soma Takao Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio naya & Yuki Ishida
7. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Shigehiro Irie & Jun Akiyama
The official mascot of the Fuji TV show “Poka Poka” is Yuki Ueno’s mystery tag team partner. Manpuku Hirutaro got a lot of attention after its first appearance on the show for having an “ugly cute” look and lazy behaviour. Chris Brookes tweeted “this thing is ugly as hell and I hate it” in response to the reveal but he may have also been talking about Pokotan.
Danshoku Dieno is taking the next couple of shows off to get surgery for a nasal bone fracture he suffered at the Yamagata show two weeks ago. So he will have to miss the Ghost Story Death Match.
DDT “SOMA TAKAO LOCAL TRIUPMH! MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023 TOUR IN OTA-KU”, 19/08/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Industrial Plaza PiO Small Exhibition Hall
1. 1 Vs 3 Handicap Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Akito, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
2. Jun Akiyama, Saki Akai & Antonio Honda Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Rukiya
3. DAMNATION T.A Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima
4. Special Tag Match: Masamune & Yukio Naya Vs Hideki Okatani & Kazuma Sumi
5. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Yuji Hino Vs HARASHIMA & Takeshi Masada
6. Special Single Match: Makoto Oishi Vs KANON
7. Special Tag Match: Soma Takao & Shota Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Kazuki Hirata
Recent opponents are now teaming up together. Brookes & Yuji Hino are pairing off for a match against HARASHIMA & Takeshi Masada while Yukio Sakaguchi & Kazuki Hirata join forces against ROMANCE DAWN.
With Dieno out of action and Yumehito Imanari being too busy at the moment to be “Fantastic”, Yuki Iino is all on his own for the time being. Akito sees this as the perfect time to strike Pheromones when the unit is at its weakest.
The next KO-D Tag Team Titles program begins its buildup with Makoto Oishi taking on KANON.
DDT “OSAKA BAY BLUES SPECIAL 2023”, 20/08/2023 Osaka Edion Arena #2
1. Makoto Oishi, Yuni & Rukiya Vs Yusuke Okada, Yuya Koroku & Ilusion
2. 3 Way Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Saki Akai
3. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya Vs KANON & MJ Paul
4. Osaka Specialty Special Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Tsutenkakka Vs Akito & Kazuma Sumi
5. BURNING Vs Harimao!: Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
6. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Shigehiro Irie & HARASHIMA
7. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno
8. Current Blast Bat & Board 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Hideki Okatani & Soma Takao
The latest turn of events over the upcoming Explosion Death Matches in DDT now involves the All Asia Tag Team Titles. The two male members of Eruption are demanding if they beat Atsushi Onita’s team in Osaka then he has to give them a title shot next month in Nagoya.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “HAPPY SUMMER VACATION! ~TJPW SUMMER VACATION 2023~”, 26/08/2023 Osaka Hanamizuki Hall
1. Kaya Toribami Vs Runa Okubo
2. 3 Way Match: Mahiro Kiryu Vs Haruna Neko Vs Shino Suzuki
3. Hyper Misao & Haru Kazashiro Vs Hikari Noa & Toga
4. Miu Watanabe, Suzume & Wakana Uehara Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Moka Miyamoto
5. Rika Tatsumi Vs Demonio Dos
6. Chu! Summer Party ~ Tides Match 2023: Mizuki & HIMAWARI Vs Shoko Nakajima & Pom Harajuku
There’s been several times over the years when the old indies gimmick Demonio Uno showed up on DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro shows held in Tsurumi. Rika Tatsumi defeated him one of those times. Well there is also a Demonio Dos and he’s coming to get revenge on Tatsumi for his tag team partner!
Runa Okubo gets to wrestle in Osaka for the first time because she is on summer vacation from school.
Several regulars will be missing this show. Miyu Yamashita will be wrestling in England that weekend, Yuki Kamifuku is attending an event in Taiwan, Nao Kakuta is performing in a stage play and Arisu Endo is out of action with a back injury.
DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023”, 27/08/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
0. Dark Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Akito Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
1. Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Rukiya Vs Minoru Fujita, KANON & MJ Paul
2. Kazusada Higuchi, Toy Kojima, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada Vs Yukio Naya, Yusuke Okada, Hideki Okatani & Yuya Koroku
3. Saki Akai Photobook “GRACIA” Infomercial Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Antonio Honda Vs Saki Akai Photobook “GRACIA”
4. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs MAO
5. HARASHIMA Debut 22nd Anniversary Match: HARASHIMA, Yasu Urano & Ken Ohka Vs Daisuke Sekimoto, Sanshiro Takagi & Yukio Sakaguchi
6. Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 3 ~ Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Saki Akai
7. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Yuki Ueno Vs Shigehiro Irie & Jun Akiyama
Dieno should be cleared in time to have his match with Saki Akai.
Akito came up with another idea to try and destroy Pheromones. He is going to team with Iino for one match in order to infiltrate Pheromones and investigate how they are preparing for the final battle between the two sides on 9th September.
GANBARE☆PRO “THE TRIPLE CROSS 2023”, 02/09/2023 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Sumire Natsu & Riara
2. GanPro 2 Big Singles Match: Shota Vs Kuma Arashi
3. GanPro 2 Big Singles Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Tyson Maeguchi
4. Ken Ohka, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Yumehito Imanari, Mizuki Watase & Munetatsu Nakamura
Kuma Arashi is back in Ganbare☆Pro after missing the previous event. Shota experienced his power first hand in his last appearance but now he wants to fight him one on one.
GANBARE☆PRO “KAMIKAZE TAXI 2023”, 02/09/2023 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Tae Honma & Yoshiko Hasegawa
2. Shuichiro Katsumura & Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Shota & Soma Takao
3. Secret Captain’s Fall Elimination 6-Man Tag Match: Ken Ohka, Mizuki Watase & Shingo Vs Keisuke Ishii, Yumehito Imanari & Takuya Wada
4. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shinichiro Tominaga
Shingo returns for his second GanPro appearance. The DEEP fighter finds himself facing Pancrase fighter Takuya Wada in a Secret Captian’s Fall Tag Match.
DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023”, 09/09/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Pheromones Vs Subjugation Final Match! Special Single Match ~ Dissolution Contra Vice President: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (w/ Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno) Vs Akito
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow
3. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada
4. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno & MAO
5. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Minoru Fujita & KANON
6. DDT Extreme Title & Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Kazuki Hirata (E/c) Vs Naruki Doi (I/c)
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie
This past weekend Naruki Doi won his third DDT championship, becoming the new Iron Man Heavymwetalweight Champion. He feels like he has immersed himself into DDT and wants to ingrain himself even more by adding the DDT Extreme Title to his collection. Kazuki Hirata’s current title reign best represents DDT in Doi’s eyes so a big stakes double title match is now on the cards. However Doi is at risk of losing the Iron Man Title anywhere, even outside of DDT because he has a bunch of bookings in other companies coming up. He is getting his Extreme Title match with Hirata no matter what but if he was to lose the Iron Man Title before that it would sour their match a little bit.
The new KO-D Tag Champions Hino & Oishi aren’t done with DAMNATION T.A just yet. KANON is calling on Minoru Fujita to help mentor him towards winning the belts off of them.
DDT “DRAMATIC EXPLOSION 2023”, 18/09/2023 Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall
1. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita & Yoshitatsu Vs X & X
If Eruption win the 6-Man Tag Explosion Death Match this weekend then Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani will be the team facing Onita & Yoshitatsu in Nagoya with the All Asia Tag Titles on the line.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~YOKOHAMA PERFORMANCE~”, 23/09/2023 Yokohama Radiant Hall
1. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel Vs X & X
The next time we see NEO Biishiki-gun will be in Yokohama at the end of September. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel are having a tag match there.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV”, 09/10/2023 Tokyo Tama Mirai Messe
1. Sakisama, Mei Saint-Michel, Martha & Yukio Saint Laurent Vs X, X, X & X
2. Special Single Match: Nyla Rose Vs Maki Itoh
3. Princess Tag Team Titles: X & X Vs X & X
4. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
Yamashita defeated Mizuki in the 1st Round of this year’s Tokyo Princess Cup. She decided she would not challenge her for the Princess Of Princess Title unless she went on to win the tournament. Yamashita did so, finally ending the one accomplishment in TJPW that’s been her Achilles Heel for her entire career.
The next Princess Tag Team Champions will be crowned on this show. They have been vacant since June because of Yuka Sakazaki’s injury. That it’s taken them this long to decide new champions makes me think the plan all along was for The Magical Sugar Rabbits to keep the belts all the way through to Sakazaki’s graduation.
Nyla Rose returns for a first time singles match against Maki Itoh. They’ve had a few AEW tag matches both against and teaming with each other.
The main foursome of NEO Biishiki-gun will appear for an 8-Person Tag Match.
DDT “SAKI AKAI 10TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR IN KORAKUEN!!”, 13/08/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 816 Fans
0. Dark Match: Yuya Koroku defeated Rukiya with the Modified Triangle Lancer (7:14).
1. Special Single Match: KANON defeated Hideki Okatani with the Vietnam Driver II (8:04).
2. Diya Diamond Presents 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Yusuke Okada defeated Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada when Naya pinned Masada with the World’s Best Back Drop (9:19).
3. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – marcheur Presents Battle Royal: Naruki Doi defeated Sanshiro Takagi (c), HARASHIMA, Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Antonio Honda, Akito and Kazuma Sumi (14:37).
3a. Naruki Doi eliminated Sanshiro Takagi (c) with a Cradle (6:58). *Naruki Doi becomes the 1,573rd champion.
3b. Antonio Honda eliminated Kazuma Sumi by Ring Out (11:41).
3c. Naruki Doi (c) eliminated Antonio Honda by Ring Out (11:59). *V1 for Naruki Doi.
3d. HARASHIMA eliminated Yuki “Sexy” Iino and Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno by Double Ring Out (13:24).
3e. Naruki Doi (c) eliminated HARASHIMA by Ring Out (13:54). *V2 for Naruki Doi.
3f. Naruki Doi (c) eliminated Akito with the Bakatare Sliding Kick (14:37). *V3 for Naruki Doi.
4. Jemile Fran Presents Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima defeated Kyusei Sakisama, Chris Saint Laurent & Martha when Ueno pinned Sakisama with a Cradle (9:58).
5. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi defeated Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (c) when Oishi pinned Paul with the Jikiden Tornado Clutch (11:13). *DAMNATION T.A fails in V1. Ω becomes the 78th KO-D Tag Team Champions!
6. DDT Extreme Title – Weakness Explosion!! Activation Conditions Are Up To You! Fall & Escape = Ghost & Balloon Explosion Death Match: Kazuki Hirata (c) defeated Yukio Sakaguchi with the Miracle One Shot Cradle from a huge balloon explosion (14:27). *V2 for Kazuki Hirata.
7. Nivea Body Wash Presents Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 2 ~ Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Saki Akai, Maya Yukihi & Asuka defeated Takumi Iroha, Rina Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima when Akai pinned Nakajima with the Quetzalcoatl (19:01).
It came a couple of days early but Saki Akai celebrated the 10th anniversary of her debut pro wrestling match in DDT. With her retirement coming up later this year, Akai is getting several matches dedicated to her decade in the business and today gathered together a lot of women she has attachments with. In the main event Akai teamed up with Maya Yukihi & Asuka, two women who have been her biggest opponents in DDT over the last two years. Their opponents were a trio of wrestlers who all debuted in the same year as Akai. It was the first time Takumi Iroha, Rina Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima all teamed together. Iroha & Yamashita quickly thought up a move where they gave Nakajima a Double Splash Mountain onto Akai. Asuka Moonsaulted onto Iroha & Yamashita outside the ring and Akai rolled out of the way from Nakajima’s Diving Senton. Akai then hit the Rookie Award and pinned Nakajima with the Quetzalcoatl.
Akai thanked the other wrestlers for accepting her invitation, knowing how busy all of their schedules are. She wanted to show the fans all of the wonderful friends she made outside of DDT over the years. She knows they will all continue to shine a light on pro wrestling when she’s gone so everyone should keep watching them. She isn’t sure how many more matches she has left until her retirement but she is going to hone her strength and run all the way to the end. Asuka said she wished the three of them had teamed together sooner and wonders if they could have chased after one of the KO-D championships together. Yamashita overheard that idea and told them they should do it anyway, even if it’s for the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles. Her advice to Akai is to be greedy from this point until the end because she isn’t finished yet. Yukihi feels lucky she got to do her rivalry with Akai in DDT because she didn’t expect Akai’s retirement announcement to come when it did. Akai described all of the women are a fun loving group of people with good hearts.
Kazuki Hirata’s bizarre ideas to even the playing field against his opponents are working for him. The DDT Extreme Champion is normally scared of having to fight Yukio Sakaguchi but this time he got to turn the tables against him. Hirata’s stipulation for the match was to add ghosts and balloons whenever there was a kickout or rope break. Sakaguchi hates the sound of balloons bursting and also fears ghosts so we got the unlikely sight of Sakaguchi being submissive to Hirata and fleeing in fear whenever a ghost chased after him! Sakaguchi tried to fight his fears and found his spots to kick the hell out of Hirata. But by this point there were three ghosts in the ring haunting him with one popping a gigantic balloon right in his face. The fright made Sakaguchi walk right into the Miracle One Shot Cradle and Hirata got the win.
Once all of the ghosts vanished, Sakaguchi calmed down and handed the Extreme Title over to Hirata. He then attacked him a little bit and walked off. Hirata got on the microphone, said he was feeling mentally exhausted and now wants to know who his next challenger is. Naruki Doi walked out carrying the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title he won earlier in the show. Doi said his title win makes him feel more absorbed into DDT and he now wants to win the Extreme Title to become fully immersed in the company. He especially wants to beat Hirata for the belt because Hirata is the DDT wrestler who best expresses what the company is all about. Hirata refused but Hisaya Imabayashi ignored him. A double title match between Hirata and Doi will take place on 9th September. If Doi loses the Iron Man Title before that date then the match will just be for the Extreme Title. Hirata then tried to pin Doi to win the Iron Man Title but only got a two count. Doi chased him back to the locker room.
The KO-D Tag Team Titles aren’t ready to settle down with a team yet. DAMNATION T.A’s reign ended in their first defence, losing the belts to Ω. The champions tried to isolate Makoto Oishi and also get KANON involved to interfere for them. Yuji Hino came in to make a difference but his attempt to Fuckin’ BOMB MJ Paul was cut off by Daisuke Sasaki. That left Oishi to deal with Paul by himself. Paul threw Lariats at him but Oishi caught him with the Jikiden Tornado Clutch for the flash pinfall and title change. Hino praised Oishi for winning the KO-D Tag Titles under his own strength, calling it a miracle. Oishi was too exhausted to respond so Hino encouraged the audience to give him a round of applause.
KANON then entered the ring demanding a title shot but not as a member of DAMNATION T.A. There is another wrestler out there he considers a mentor. Hino thought he meant TAKA Michinoku but KANON said it is actually someone else because TAKA is busy. KANON’s partner is going to be Minoru Fujita! Imabayashi granted the request and booked the title match for 9th September. KANON helped Oishi back up to his feet, shook his hand… and then gave him a Clothesline before leaving.
Before Match #4 could begin it was announced that Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi were not at the show because they were both too hungover to wrestle. Then “The Rose Of Versailles” began to play and what appeared to be NEO Biishiki-gun walked out. Martha was there but instead of Yukio Saint Laurent we got Chris Saint Laurent instead. Also Sakura Hirota was nowhere to be seen, seemingly replaced in the match by Kyusei Sakisama. Despite their appearance looking weirder than usual, they were still NEO Biishiki-gun through and through. The 37KAMIINA had to deal with the unit’s antics. “Saint Laurent” jabbed an injection needle into Yuki Ueno’s neck, Martha was a nuisance towards MAO and Toy Kojima ended up suffering a Kancho attack involving Martha’s mop. “Sakisama” used the Academy Award finisher on Ueno but her glamorous pin was reversed and Ueno posed on top of her for the three count instead. The 37KAMIINA celebrated with their sponsored prize after the match until all of NEO Biishiki-gun gave them Kancho attacks and took the prizes for themselves.
Doi won the Iron Man Title pretty early in the Battle Royal. In fact him pinning Sanshiro Takagi to become champion was the first elimination in the match. Doi then had to fight through the rest of the field to survive. He still got caught up in the Pheromones experience with Kazuma Sumi, fell for Antonio Honda’s Gongitsune joke and outsmarted HARASHIMA. All that was left for him was a battle with Akito that ended with the DOI 555 and the Bakatare Sliding Kick. Doi promised to raise the value of the Iron Man Title then immediately had to fight off Sumi. That was when he realised the title is defended 24/7. He will stick to his promise anyway even if there’s a risk of him losing it in another company. Rukiya then tried to pin him so Doi kicked him away.
The 2nd match was overshadowed by the appearance of Evolution from All Japan. During the week Suwama told Tokyo Sports he had tickets for this show and was going in order to confront Jun Akiyama over a grudge held going back to Akiyama’s time as AJPW president. Suwama sat in his seat along with other Evolution members Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura to see Akiyama’s team beat Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada. Then after the match Evolution approached the ring, throwing aside Yuya Koroku and Rukiya who were trying to block them. Naya then wanted to stand in Suwama’s way but Suwama said he isn’t here for him. Suwama asked “useless former president” Akiyama why he is going to do an Exploding Death Match soon when he hated the idea of Suwama doing one six years ago? He then challenged Akiyama to come to Yoyogi on 8th September when AJPW is running a show there. He can even bring along Takagi so they can do a big Evolution Vs DDT match! Akiyama called the idea crazy but agreed to do it. He then told Suwama to stop making decisions without the AJPW president’s approval! Backstage Sato told DDT to send their icons like Dieno or HARASHIMA because as a former KO-D Openweight Champion and winner of a DDT General Election himself, he thinks he should be a DDT icon too. Tamura said he wants Yusuke Okada to come over because they have unfinished business from Okada’s time in AJPW.
KANON is sticking with the Vietnam Driver II as his new finisher, using it to beat Hideki Okatani in their first singles match against each other. KANON said the match left him more tired than he expected but that’s probably because of the summer heat. Okatani didn’t like the result and warned KANON he will beat him the next time they meet.
Koroku and Rukiya probably thought their dark match was the only physicality they would both experience today. Then Evolution came along and beat them up later in the show. In the match itself Rukiya tried to win with a Running Elbow Strike but Koroku took him down into a Modified Triangle Lancer to win by submission.
Chris Brookes has been appointed as the sales manager for “DDT BIG BANG 2023” at Ota Ward Gymnasium on 9th September. Also announced was Mei Suruga being at the 30h September show in Kyoto KBS Hall. That show is part of Akai’s countdown towards her retirement.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 15/07/2023 Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall
1. Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI Vs Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo
2. Kaya Toribami Vs Shino Suzuki
3. Yuki Kamifuku, Mahiro Kiryu & Toga Vs Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Arisu Endo
4. Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe, Suzume & Haruna Neko Vs Shoko Nakajima, Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
5. Tokyo Princess Cup – Round 1B: Hyper Misao Vs Moka Miyamoto
6. Tokyo Princess Cup – Round 1A: Miyu Yamashita Vs Mizuki
The Tokyo Princess Cup begins this weekend. The plan for the undercard on these shows is to put wrestlers from upcoming tournament matches in preview tag matches. So for example Rika Tatsumi and Raku are on opposite teams in the same match, Suzume and Shoko Nakajima are on opposite teams, so on and so forth. Hikari Noa and Yuki Arai are the exception because Arai isn’t available to wrestle until their tournament match on 22nd July.
DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2023”, 30/07/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Yukio Sakaguchi 50th Birthday Match ~ Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Shuji Ishikawa, Thanomsak Toba & Masahiro Takanashi
2. DDT Extreme Title: Kazuki Hirata (c) Vs HARASHIMA
Yukio Sakaguchi is turning 50 years old on 26th July! So to celebrate it DDT is putting together a special match for him. Eruption are going to take on a team made up of wrestlers with some sort of connection to him. Shuji Ishikawa has been a rival of his in the past, Thanomsak Toba is a training buddy and Masahiro Takanashi is his little brother equivalent from Shuten-dōji.
Konosuke Takeshita will be on the show.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GARAFES ~DAIHONMEI!! TOTSUGEKI! SOMERSAULT DROP~”, 30/07/2023 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Hikari Noa & Toga Vs Raku & Moka Miyamoto
2. Miu Watanabe Vs HIMAWARI
Earlier this year Tokyo Joshi Pro held a couple of matches at an idol festival. They are doing it again at the end of this month. The two matches will take place on a mat placed on the concert stage instead of a wrestling ring.
DDT “SAKI AKAI 10TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR IN KORAKUEN!!”, 13/08/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal: Sanshiro Takagi (c) Vs X
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Sakura Hirota Vs Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima
3. Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 2 ~ Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Saki Akai, Maya Yukihi & Asuka Vs Takumi Iroha, Rina Yamashita & X
Sakura Hirota is invited to celebrate Saki Akai’s 10th Anniversary. Will she bust out the Akai cosplay again?
While Sanshiro Takagi has been recovering from injury he had been tempting fate on Twitter, talking about how vulnerable he is while as the current Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion. Stuff like asking the wrestlers not to even think about Low Kicking his injured leg when they meet up for example. Nobody has taken advantage of his perdicament and he remains the champion at the moment.
DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2023 TOUR IN HAKODATE”, 16/06/2023 Hakodate City General Wholesale Center Distribution Hall 212 Fans
1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno defeated Akito & Kazuma Sumi when Iino submitted Sumi after the Sexy Shampoo (11:30).
2. SILVER QUEEN Infomercial Match: MAO & Yoshihiko defeated Sanshiro Takagi & Kazuki Hirata when Yoshihiko pinned Hirata with the Reincarnation (11:39).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Sanshiro Takagi defeated Yoshihiko (c) with a School Boy (7:42 pm). *Sanshiro Takagi becomes the 1,572nd champion.
3. HARASHIMA & Hideki Okatani defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Yuya Koroku when HARASHIMA pinned Koroku with the Somato (12:38).
4. Hakodate Specialty Special Single Match: Yuki Ishida defeated Akinori Ariji with the Flame Palm (6:57).
5. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul defeated Toy Kojima & Rukiya when Sasaki submitted Rukiya with the Crossface Lock (8:16).
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada defeated Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Yukio Sakaguchi when Okada pinned Oishi with the Sudden Death (16:34).
One of the company trucks containing the ring canvas, aprons and turnbuckle pads never made it to the arena so the first half of the show took place on a partially constructed ring. The ring itself was stable but with no canvas that meant everyone was fighting on top of the bare wooden boards. DDT got in touch with one of Hokkaido’s local wrestling promotions Donan Pro Wrestling (ran by former Dragon Gate wrestler Katsuo) to rent out the missing equipment they needed. Donan Ring’s crew were able to arrive after Match #3 and intermission was spent completing construction of the ring.
DAMNATION T.A again attacked Toy Kojima with chairs during their match. Kojima had the chance to fight fire with fire when he grabbed hold of a chair but he chose to fight fairly instead. That didn’t work and MJ Paul attacked him with more chairs outside the ring while Daisuke Sasaki submitted Rukiya with the Crossface Lock.
Just when it looked like Yoshihiko had all the momentum going into the 3 Way DDT Extreme Title match, Sanshiro Takagi takes the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title away from it! Yoshihiko won a tag match by pinning Kazuki Hirata and then had to fight off MAO afterwards. Takagi saw an opening and pinned Yoshihiko with a School Boy to win the title. He said backstage that the value of the title stalled with Yoshihiko as champion. So Takagi put it upon himself to make it shine. He is ready to defend it against anyone (or anything) at anytime!
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “HYPER MISAO PRODUCE – HYPE!”, 25/05/2023 Tokyo Kitazawa Town Hall 202 Fans – No Vacancy
1. Hyper Misao II Audition: Suzume defeated Miu Watanabe by Ring Out (11:28). Order Of Elimination: Moka Miyamoto, Yuki Kamifuku, Raku & HIMAWARI and Miu Watanabe.
2. Special Single Match: Yoshihiko defeated Shoko Nakajima with s Cradle (12:26).
3. Miracle Heart Catch Shuffle Tag Tournament Final: Rika Tatsumi & Arisu Endo defeated Yuki Aino & Mahiro Kiryu when Tatsumi submitted Kiryu with the White Dragon Sleeper (11:46).
Today’s show came entirely from the mind of Hyper Misao. She was the producer so anything she said, goes. Proof of that was seen in the first match. It was a Battle Royal where the winner is rewarded with the right to become Hyper Misao II. Nobody booked for the match wanted to be a part of it so Misao gathered them all into a room before the show and brainwashed them into worshipping her. The result was everybody entering the Battle Royal wearing a different Hyper Misao costume from over the years and imitating her gimmick. Miu Watanabe and Yuki Kamifuku fought over the microphone, Raku wore Misao’s very first costume, HIMAWARI showed up as Akemi Daredasore and Moka Miyamoto did all of Misao’s superhero poses. Suzume ended up as the last Misao standing after all six of them sprayed each other in the face. Her full reward was an invitation to join the Hypami Lecture and it will only cost her 990,000 yen (discounted because Suzume already has a superhero costume). Suzume realised this whole thing was a scam and she snapped out of her brainwashing. She stopped Misao from brainwashing her again, took off her mask and told everyone she wants to do her best by being herself.
A first time ever matchup between Shoko Nakajima and Yoshihiko was next. It was a chance for Nakajima to win the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title, which she has only held once previously. Yoshihiko ignored a customary handshake before the match began. The two grappled with Yoshihiko getting the upper hand and sending his opponent out of the ring. It followed up with a big Topé Suicida but Nakajima used her big kaiju strength to lift Yoshihiko up with a Gorilla Press onto the ring apron. Back in the ring Nakajima targeted Yoshihiko’s legs with submission holds. Yoshihiko reached the ropes and the two started throwing blows back and forth. It led to a scramble of pins after a Hurricanrana ending with Yoshihiko keeping Nakajima’s shoulders pinned to the mat long enough for the three count.
The third and final match revealed that even though Hyper Misao produced this show, the hero of today’s story was actually Mahiro Kiryu. Her match teaming with Yuki Arai against Rika Tatsumi & Arisu Endo was suddenly revealed to be the final of the Miracle Heart Catch tournament, a previously unannounced competition shuffling random teams together. Endo had Kiryu trapped in the Camel Cluch late in the match when all of a sudden time froze and a masked woman who looks like Hyper Misao entered the ring. Only Kiryu was still conscious and the women told her she must win this match otherwise the world will collapse! She freed Kiryu from Endo’s frozen grip and the two travelled to another dimension where Kiryu will have another match and win it to save the world.
They found a dimension where Sanshiro Takagi and Tetsuya Koda were looking over resumes for Tokyo Joshi Pro’s new project, a unit of pro wrestling idols collaborating with The Up Up Girls. In this dimension Koda rejects the application from Hikari Noa because she is just a high school student from Hokkaido. Instead Mahiro was chosen as the mahjong loving blue member of The Up Up Girls, Mamamama Mahiro! In the ring she performed two songs with Watanabe & Raku then wrestled her match. Things suddenly went wrong and Mahiro was almost pinned by Tatsumi when time again froze and the masked woman sent her to another dimension to start their plan all over.
This time they entered a dimension at the point in time where Mahiro had not debut yet. Takagi came up with an idea to give TJPW a Takarazuka Revue gimmick and Mahiro was the perfect candidate. She was going to become the Romeo to Aino’s Juliet. However when it was time for the Miracle Heart Catch Final, she discovered that Tatsumi & Endo also had completely different gimmicks. They were now like the violent heels from 1980s joshi attacking their opponents with canes and chains! Mahiro tried her best to defend Aino but suffered the consequences. She was about to lose again when time froze once more. It was time to visit yet another dimension.
The masked woman decided to keep things simple this time and went to a dimension where she simply spiked Tatsumi & Endo’s drinks before the final. It caused the two of them to enter the match with stomach aches while Kiryu & Aino were in perfect condition. Then a twist nobody could see coming suddenly happened. The match was interrupted by the Chiisiki-gun, this dimension’s Biishiki-gun equivalent! Chiisakisama and her devoted maid (who looked a lot like Haruna Neko & Antonio Honda respectively) had crashed the tournament and were now Kiryu’s new opponents! Kiryu was once again going to lose the match when time froze once again. However they were about to reach the end of the road.
A voice from the Space-Time Police interrupted the proceedings and revealed to Kiryu that the masked woman’s real identity is Hyper Misao! They weren’t in fact travelling through different dimensions but were instead travelling back through their own timeline over and over in an effort to rewrite history. Misao defended her plan, asking Mahiro if she ever wanted to go back to the past and correct her mistakes? It is something Misao has been asking herself for the last eight years. As she was saying this she suddenly began to realize that she can’t change the world after all. Kiryu told Misao she used to be a recluse just like her. Kiryu only had her mother’s support to rely on and that helped her gradually become a member of society. However one day her mother’s health began to deteriorate and they soon learned she did not have long left to live. Kiryu could not figure out what to do and had no answer other than wishing it was just a dream. She felt emotionless about her own life until she came across a video of DDT doing their street pro wrestling matches. Just like Misao, she thought it looked so much fun and it made her decide to become a pro wrestler. Kiryu has many regrets but becoming a pro wrestler is not one of them. She cannot change her past but she can change her present and future. Misao understood and for one final time they travelled back to the past to right before today’s main event began.
The match began from the beginning and this time Kiryu was full of determination. She went toe to toe against her opponents, fighting her way out of Endo’s Camel Clutch and grabbing hold onto Tatsumi’s legs to cut off her mobility. She gave Tatsumi the Spinebuster but Endo broke the pin at two. Tatsumi caught her in a Sleeper Hold and transitioned it into the White Dragon Sleeper. Kiryu held on for as long as she could but had no choice but to give up in the end. Afterwards Tatsumi admitted she didn’t expect to see Kiryu be so good in the match today. Kiryu just taught her that whenever she falls down she should look forward and keep going. The two hugged and brought Misao into the ring to close out the show.
Misao told Kiryu she did a good job today and offered her the microphone to speak. Kiryu thanked the audience for coming to see the show and is surprised to see so many people here. Misao said this whole reckless match was her idea. As you can see from the show poster, she brought all these wrestlers together to fight inside her mind. She thinks everybody in TJPW are so incredibly talented that they can all handle her crazy ideas. She didn’t plan on a show closing catchphrase so she thought of one on the spot. In English she told everyone “I get hype! We get hype!”
So WrestleMania Week is not over yet by a long shot. The actual shows behind the namesake haven’t even taken place by the time I am posting this. But all of the DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro related wrestling shows are now finished by this point. The wrestlers will be spending the rest of the weekend as convention guests and as tourists enjoying the sights and sounds of Los Angeles.
The vacation hasn’t been entirely relaxing though. The hotel all of the DDT wrestlers were staying at had to be evacuated in the early hours of Friday morning because of a burst pipe flooding the building. It caused all of the DDT wrestlers to lose a lot of sleep before the GCW show. Funny thing is when Sanshiro Takagi explained what happened on Twitter a lot of Japanese fans didn’t believe him. It was already 1st April in Japan because of the time difference so some fans thought Takagi was pulling an April Fool’s Joke!
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Videos
Video starts at 53:28 for the match AEW “DARK”, 28/03/2023 Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Cole Karter
IMPACT “IMPACT WRESTLING”, 30/03/2023 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Killer Kelly
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 31/03/2023 Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
1. Sammy Guevara (w/ Tay Melo) Vs Konosuke Takeshita
Video starts at 21:10 for the match ROH “SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023: ZERO HOUR”, 31/03/2023 Galen Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
0. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Willie Mack
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Results
ROH “ROH ON HONORCLUB”, 29/03/2023 (Aired 30/03/2023) Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Shazza McKenzie with the Skull Kick (4:45).
First Impact, now ROH. Is Yamashita keeps going at this rate she might show up at an MLW taping if she’s not careful. She kicked Shazza McKenzie’s head off to win her ROH debut.
PANDEMONIUM PRO “BEST DAMN THING”, 29/03/2023 Don Quixote, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Steph De Lander & Heather Monroe defeated Maki Itoh & Kidd Bandit (?:??).
What on earth happened here? The night started off well for Maki Itoh with her getting backup dancers for her entrance. But her tag partner Kidd Bandit ended up betraying her, costing them the match against Steph De Lander & Heather Monroe. Bandit’s only explanation to Itoh after the match was “There can be only one” and then they walked out on her. Itoh’s response to that was yelling “I hate everyone!”
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 29/03/2023 (Aired 31/03/2023) Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
1. Sammy Guevara (w/ Tay Melo) defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the GTH (9:43).
Konosuke Takeshita’s week began with a match against one of AEW’s chosen pillars at Rampage. Victory was in his grasp until Tay Melo grabbed his leg in the corner for a distraction. That allowed Sammy Guevara to strike Takeshita from behind with a Jumping Knee and then hit the GTH to steal the win.
Yoshihiko took a detour to St. Louis on the way to LA so it could attend the AEW show. It was granted a visitor’s pass and got to enjoy catering while watching the matches. It also hung out with some of the staff like Bryce Remsburg. Since Yoshihiko brought along the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title it made sense to stay near a ref the whole time.
WRESTLECON “THE MARK HITCHCOCK MEMORIAL SUPERSHOW”, 30/03/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. TJPW 10-Woman Tag Showcase: Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao, Yuki Kamifuku & Yuki Aino defeated Rika Tatsumi, Nao Kakuta, Miu Watanabe, Hikari Noa & Raku when Mizuki pinned Raku with the Diving Foot Stomp (14:21).
While Yamashita and Itoh were busy around the indies, the rest of the TJPW roster went to visit WrestleCon. 10 of them got together to put on a 10-Woman Tag match for the fans. Mizuki led a team consisting of Kyoraku Kyomei, Yuki Kamifuku & Yuki Aino to beat Rika Tatsumi, Nao Kakuta & The Up Up Girls.
DDT “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD”, 30/03/2023 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA 750 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Special Tag Match: MAO & Shunma Katsumata defeated Chris Brookes & Yoshihiko (c) when MAO pinned Yoshihiko after the Oretachi no Mad Max (17:29). *MAO becomes the 1,567th champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Chris Brookes defeated MAO (c) with the Praying Mantis Bomb (8:24 pm). *Chris Brookes becomes the 1,568th champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Yoshihiko defeated Chris Brookes (c) with 3 Canadian Destroyers in a row (8:25 pm). *Yoshihiko becomes the 1,569th champion.
2. Pheromones Vs Takagi Army All Out Battle In HOLLYWOOD: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Michael Nakazawa ended in a No Contest (11:08).
3. Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada defeated Andrew “The Giant” Everett & Nick Wayne when Higuchi pinned Everett with the Brain Claw Slam (11:33).
4. Saki Akai defeated Vert Vixen with the Quetzalcoatl (6:09)
5. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo defeated Joey Janela with the Burning Star Press (15:28).
6. Dramatic Dream Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Eddie Kingston defeated Daisuke Sasaki & KANON when Akiyama pinned KANON with the Exploder Suplex (10:35).
7. Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Yuki Ueno with the Zahi (15:16).
IMPACT/NJPW “MULTIVERSE UNITED”, 30/03/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. 4 Way Match: Deonna Purrazzo defeated Masha Slamovich, Gisele Shaw and Miyu Yamashita when Purrazzo pinned Shaw with the Gotch-Style Piledriver (9:20).
Yamashita got off to a good start in Impact last week when she beat Killer Kelly in her debut. Her next challenge saw her get caught in the race for the future of the Knockouts World Title. If she had won the 4 Way match she would have qualified for a title match at Impact’s next PPV in April. Instead she was left out of the result because Deonna Purrazzo pinned Gisele Shaw to win that opportunity.
1. Mizuki Watase defeated Gregory Sharpe and Eli Everfly (?:??).
I can’t find much info about this match other than Mizuki Watase won using a new move. This is all according to Watase himself. He also had the Spirit Of Ganbare Title with him. Doesn’t sound like it was defended though.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES”, 31/03/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA 665 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta defeated Suzume & Arisu Endo when Noa pinned Endo after the 5G (11:38).
2. Janai Kai defeated Yuki Kamifuku with the Tornado Kick (4:57).
3. Hyper Misao & Trish Adora defeated Yuki Aino & Raku when Misao pinned Raku with the I Am A Hero (9:03).
4. Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer defeated Shoko Nakajima & Miu Watanabe when Max pinned Nakajima after the Master Blaster (11:56).
5. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) defeated Billie Starkz with the Missile Hip (8:56). *V1 for Rika Tatsumi.
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki defeated Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh (c) when Mizuki pinned Itoh with the Diving Foot Stomp (15:51). *121000000 fails in V1. The Magical Sugar Rabbits becomes the 13th Princess Tag Team Champions!
DDT/GCW “GCW VS DDT”, 31/03/2023 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA 551 Fans
1. Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers, Dyln McKay & Jack Cartwheel defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & Takeshi Masada when Cartwheel pinned Masada with the Jack Arrow (10:42).
2. Dark Sheik defeated Saki Akai with a Wrist-Clutch Inside Cradle (7:20).
3. Jordan Oliver & Nick Wayne defeated MAO & Mike Bailey when Oliver pinned Bailey after the Combined Springboard Cutter (16:18).
4. Kazusada Higuchi defeated Starboy Charlie with the Brain Claw Slam (11:40).
5. Yuki Ueno defeated Joey Janela with the Rolling Guillotine Ace Crusher (10:21).
6. Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama defeated Homicide & Tony Deppen when Endo pinned Deppen with the Burning Star Press (12:18).
7. Matthew Justice, Mance Warner & 1 Called Manders defeated Chris Brookes, Shunma Katsumata & Mizuki Watase when Warner pinned Katsumata with a DDT (15:19).
8. Effy & Allie Katch Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno ended in a No Contest (13:37).
9. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Cole Radrick defeated Yoshihiko (c) with the Lil Sebastian’s Curse onto a Chair (14:49). *Cole Radrick becomes the 1,570th champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Yoshihiko defeated Cole Radrick with a Cradle (5:47 pm). *Yoshihiko becomes the 1,571st champion.
ROH “SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023”, 31/03/2023 Galen Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
0. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Willie Mack with the Zahi (9:36).
1. ROH Women’s World Title: Athena (c) defeated Yuka Sakazaki with the O-Face (11:38). *V7 for Athena.
Before she headed over to the ROH PPV, Yuka Sakazaki regained the Princess Tag Team Titles at the TJPW show. Her hopes of ending the night as a double champion by also winning the ROH Women’s World Title did not come to fruition. Athena kicked out of the Magical Girl Splash and the Magical Merry-Go-Round. She then relied on her mean streak to push the referee into Sakazaki’s way when she climbed the ropes for another Splash. The distraction gave Athena time to climb up the turnbuckles beside Sakazaki and then catch her in the O-Face to retain her title. It was announced later in the night that Athena’s next defence will be against Miyu Yamashita on next week’s ROH show.
Takeshita showed up on Zero Hour for a bonus pre-show match against Willie Mack. Not to take anything away from it but news was broken by Fightful during the day that Takeshita had a different match planned for the PPV itself. His opponent? It was going to be Will Ospreay… Yep. We could have gotten Takeshita Vs Ospreay if it wasn’t for the latter’s injury… God damn it. Well at least now that is out in the open it could still happen down the road somewhere.
PRESTIGE “NERVOUS BREAKDOWN”, 31/03/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Taya Valkyrie defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Road To Valhalla (7:34).
It’s rare to see a day where Yamashita loses twice in a row but there’s going to be times in this tour where we all have to remember she isn’t the big fish in a small pond over here. Taya Valkyrie is on a hot run too that might be approaching its peak with her AEW appearances so the result shouldn’t be that much of a surprise.
GCW “JOEY JANELA’S SPRING BREAK 7”, 31/03/2023 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh Vs Effy & Allie Katch when Itoh pinned Effy with the I.S.D (16:07).
The one and only time Maki Death Kill were teaming up was as chaotic as it sounds. Itoh & Nick Gage each had a pizza cutter and used them against Bussy, leaving Effy & Allie Katch both bleeding. Steel chairs were also brought into the match and Gage threw one in Effy’s face. Itoh then pinned Effy with the Flying DDT while Gage also pinned Katch with a One-Winged Angel. Their celebration was short lived when Matt Cardona and Steph De Lander ambushed them with chairs after the match. They did that because they had no match booked on the show. The segment then morphed into De Lander getting an impromptu GCW World Title match against Masha Slamovich.
Yoshihiko made an unexpected appearance during the show accompanied by a masked handler and even cut a promo. Or at least it nodded when asked if it wants to stick around in GCW. Suddenly Charles Mason and his bodyguard Parrow attacked Yoshihiko because Mason is sick of this kind of nonsense going on. Mason even pulled out a knife and threatened to slash Yoshihiko’s throat open! The handler came to Yoshihiko’s rescue but was overwhelmed and unmasked to reveal he was Jimmy Lloyd. Mason held LLoyd down so Parrow could finish the job until Yoshihiko fought back and slammed Parrow with a German Suplex! Mason had to flee the ring out of fear.
GCW “EMO FIGHT”, 31/03/2023 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. 3 Way Tag Match: MAO & Mike Bailey defeated Miedo Extremo & Ciclope and Dyln McKay & Marcus Mathers when MAO & Bailey pinned McKay with the Michinoku Tornado Driver (13:47).
Moonlight Express must have been feeling depressed over losing the match after all because they showed up for the main event of GCW’s emo themed show. They fought Los Macizos (where the hell were they earlier?) and Wasted Youth in the early hours of the morning. There was also a bit of a sing song during the match. It might have been done to see if Los Macizos really were emo.
DDT/GCW “GCW VS DDT”, 31/03/2023 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA 551 Fans
1. Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers, Dyln McKay & Jack Cartwheel defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & Takeshi Masada when Cartwheel pinned Masada with the Jack Arrow (10:42).
2. Dark Sheik defeated Saki Akai with a Wrist-Clutch Inside Cradle (7:20).
3. Jordan Oliver & Nick Wayne defeated MAO & Mike Bailey when Oliver pinned Bailey after the Combined Springboard Cutter (16:18).
4. Kazusada Higuchi defeated Starboy Charlie with the Brain Claw Slam (11:40).
5. Yuki Ueno defeated Joey Janela with the Rolling Guillotine Ace Crusher (10:21).
6. Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama defeated Homicide & Tony Deppen when Endo pinned Deppen with the Burning Star Press (12:18).
7. Matthew Justice, Mance Warner & 1 Called Manders defeated Chris Brookes, Shunma Katsumata & Mizuki Watase when Warner pinned Katsumata with a DDT (15:19).
8. Effy & Allie Katch Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno ended in a No Contest (13:37).
9. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Cole Radrick defeated Yoshihiko (c) with the Lil Sebastian’s Curse onto a Chair (14:49). *Cole Radrick becomes the 1,570th champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Yoshihiko defeated Cole Radrick with a Cradle (5:47 pm). *Yoshihiko becomes the 1,571st champion.
An unlikely main event of the GCW Vs DDT show had Cole Radrick winning the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title from Yoshihiko in a brawl that went all around ringside. Radrick’s hard earned win was then rendered meaningless when Yoshihiko kicked him between the legs after the match. Yoshihiko then rolled Radrick up in a Small Package to reclaim the championship.
Counting through the match results, GCW ended the show with more wins than DDT. But if you ask Effy, everyone was a winner today! Why? Because Pheromones got to show that they are the sexiest and now they can also be part of Bussy too! The proof of that could be seen in their match. It had to be called off when Danshoku Dieno, Allie Katch and Yuki Iino caught the referee in a human centipede over in the corner of the ring.
The trio of Chris Brookes, Shunma Katsumata & Mizuki Watase were all ready to fight The Second Gear Crew in a brawl. Katsumata appeared in his Super Hardcore Katsumata form while Watase psyched himself up by bringing the Spirit Of Ganbare Title belt with him to the ring. That Ganbare spirit allowed him to absorb chairshots to the head for a while. Lego, plastic boxes, staplers, doors and more were used as weapons. The ring was left in a mess by the time 1 Called Manders threw his own partner Matthew Justice onto everyone outside the ring. That allowed Mance Warner to pin Katsumata with the DDT for the victory.
Jun Akiyama enjoyed his weekend with GCW and said he would work with them again if given the chance. Homicide showed him a similar amount of respect as Eddie Kingston did previously. Tetsuya Endo used the Burning Star Press to pin Tony Deppen and thinks he has proved he is good enough to take on the world.
Both of Joey Janela’s matches on the DDT shows this week were rematches from the D-Ou Grand Prix. Both of them ended in defeat. Yuki Ueno beat him for the second time in a row using his new Rolling Guillotine Ace Crusher. It makes Ueno want to spread DDT’s name as well as his own even further than Konosuke Takeshita did.
The card had a few changes for reasons that were not disclosed. Kazusada Higuchi was meant to face Blake Christian but instead got Starboy Charlie and his dungarees. Higuchi won the new match and was impressed with Charlie’s performance. It made Higuchi feel like he received the spirit of a young American and he will now carry it along with his own Yamato Spirit.
The Moonlight Express reunion was spoiled by The East West Express. It was a banner day for the young GCW team because Jordan Oliver & Nick Wayne later went on to win the GCW Tag Team Titles later in the night. MAO & Mike Bailey still had fun teaming together for the first time in 3 years. Speedball must have been exhausted from his schedule by this point.
For many years the Quetzalcoatl has been a reliable move for Saki Akai. But today the move was countered by Dark Sheik in a way Akai has never seen before. When Akai was in position to pull off her finisher, Sheik dropped down while grabbing Akai’s wrist, slid through her legs to get behind her and then rolled her up in a Cradle for the flash three count. Akai took the loss but doesn’t want to it end like that. She hopes Sheik will come over to Japan so they can continue their fight.
Another changes to the card happened for the opening match. The GCW team led by Gringo Loco replaced Alec Price and Los Macizos with Jack Cartwheel and the tag team called Wasted Youth. They all gave Takeshi Masada a beating with big high flying moves until he was pinned with Cartwheel’s Jack Arrow finisher. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON blamed both Masada & Sanshiro Takagi backstage for having DDT lose to GCW. When they left the room Takagi then blamed Masada for taking the fall after all of this build up for him finally earning a spot on the Hollywood shows.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 