DDT “ROAD TO PETER PAN 2022 IN OSAKA”, 30/07/2022 Osaka 176BOX
1. Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Kazuki Hirata
2. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Toru Owashi & Soma Takao
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Bodyguard Vs Yuji Hino, Yukio Naya & Yuki Ishida
4. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Akito & Antonio Honda
5. Osaka Specialty Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Gamma Vs Yuki Ueno & Makoto Oishi
6. Tetsuya Endo Vs Yuya Koroku
7. Harimao Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura Vs MAO & Shunma Katsumata
Some more last minute changes for tomorrow’s show. Sanshiro Takagi is feeling ill and won’t be at the venue. MJ Paul will also not be there because he suddenly went into a summer hibernation due to the heat. A few undercard matches have been changed around because of the two absences.
1. GanJo Special Single Match: Cherry Vs YuuRI
2. GanPro Specialty! Mixed 6-Man Tag Match: Shuichiro Katsumura, Tsuyoshi Okada & HARUKAZE Vs MAO, Tyson Maeguchi & Yuna Manase
3. ROMANCE DAWN Vs DDT: Shota & Soma Takao Vs Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Ishida
4. GanPro Sanada Maru! Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Kazuaki Mihara & Kouki Iwasaki
5. GanPro Osaka Summer Team! Special Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari & Magnitude Kishiwada Vs Mizuki Watase & Shinichiro Tominaga
Everything is ready for Ganbare☆Pro to have their show take place later in the evening.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 31/07/2022 Tokyo Otemachi Mitsui Hall
1. 3 Way Match: Mizuki Vs Yuki Kamifuku Vs Haruna Neko
2. Maki Itoh & Arisu Endo Vs Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano
3. Yuki Arai, Raku & Pom Harajuku Vs Hyper Misao, Mahiro Kiryu & Kaya Toribami
4. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Miu Watanabe Vs Shoko Nakajima
5. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Rika Tatsumi Vs Suzume
6. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Nao Kakuta Vs Miyu Yamashita
7. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Hikari Noa
Miyu Yamashita is back in Japan after her appearance on AEW Dynamite this week. She lost the rematch to Thunder Rosa, failing to win the AEW Women’s Title in the process.
Yuki Aino will not be on the show due to a leg injury.
BASARA “BASARA 197 ~ZENRYOKU SHISSO~”, 07/08/2022 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
1. KUBITO & Daichi Kazato Vs Ryota Nakatsu & SAGAT
2. Jacket Match: Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Jet Bar
3. FUMA Vs Masato Kamino
4. Isami Kodaka, Takato Nakano & Lil’ Kraken Vs Fuminori Abe, Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga
5. Daiki Shimomura Vs Masahiro Takanashi
Lately Masahiro Takanashi has said he wants to look outside of DDT to find wrestlers from the younger generation to fight. He has been in the ring with Daiki Shimomura many times before, even recently in BASARA. But this is the first singles match between the two since 2018.
GANBARE☆PRO “ULTRA SOUL 2022”, 13/08/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. ROMANCE DAWN for the new world: Shota Vs Soma Takao
2. Yoshiko Hasegawa Re-Debut Match: Yuna Manase & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Moeka Haruhi & YuuRI
3. HARUKAZE 5th Anniversary Match: HARUKAZE Vs Makoto
4. Tatsuhito Takaiwa 30th Anniversary Match: Tatsuhito Takaiwa, Ken Ohka & Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Keisuke Ishii, Kouki Iwasaki & Shinichiro Tominaga
5. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie
Ganpro have put together the match to celebrate Tatsuhito Takaiwa’s 30th Anniversary and they received approval from the man himself. Takaiwa said even though anniversary matches usually look to the past and bring in old names connected with the person being celebrated, he is glad to see his match is putting Ganpro’s future into the forefront. He thinks Keisuke Ishii, Kouki Iwasaki & Shinichiro Tominaga are three opponents worth crushing and he looks forward to knocking them all down to celebrate his 30th Anniversary. He is so eager Ken Ohka & Shuichiro Katsumura might not even need to do anything!
Let’s start off with some good news. When we last heard about Gorgeous Matsuno, he was taking a leave of absence from pro wrestling to become a kidney donor for his partner Junko Tashiro. The treatment is scheduled for the end of August which gave Matsuno a chance to compete in one last Best Body Japan bodybuilding contest. This week he entered the Legend Class (60+ year old) of the Model Japan 2022 Sendai Tournament and won it!
DDT “ROJO PRO WRESTLING IN HANDMADE IN JAPAN FES 2022”, 23/07/2022 Tokyo Big Sight West Hall 1 & 2
1. Falls Count Anywhere Match: X Vs X
Toi Kojima tested positive for covid today and has been pulled from this weekend’s shows. The HandMade In Japan Fes match is going to change because of his absence and will be revealed at the event.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 23/07/2022 Shinjuku FACE
-. Tokyo Princess Cup – Round 2A: Shoko Nakajima defeated Mizuki by Forfeit.
1. Mahiro Kiryu Vs Haruna Neko
2. Maki Itoh & Yuki Kamifuku Vs Yuki Aino & Raku
3. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Hyper Misao & Kaya Toribami
4. Moka Miyamoto Vs Arisu Endo
5. Shoko Nakajima & Yuka Sakazaki Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
6. Tokyo Princess Cup – Round 2D: Pom Harajuku Vs Suzume
Mizuki will also not be wrestling this weekend. She has a fever and is currently waiting on results of her PCR test. She was not in close contact to anyone else from the Tokyo Joshi Pro roster. Mizuki’s 2nd Round match against Shoko Nakajima in the Tokyo Princess Cup has been forfeited. Nakajima now receives a bye into the Quarter Final. The undercard matches have also been changed around. We are now getting Miraclians against Daydream!
DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022”, 24/07/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Makoto Oishi Return Match: Makoto Oishi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Akito & Yuki Ishida
2. 3 Way Tag Match: Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya Vs Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda Vs Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani
3. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi & Gota Ihashi
4. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Shinya Aoki, Shunma Katsumata & El Unicorn
5. Tetsuya Endo Return Match ~ Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yuya Koroku Vs HARASHIMA, Yukio Sakaguchi & Soma Takao
6. DDT Universal Title: Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs Yusuke Okada
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: MAO & Asuka (c) Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura
The KO-D Tag Team Champions are ready to defend the belts against all challengers. MAO wants this title reign to start an era where weight class and gender division do not matter. Asuka has been absent from the warm up matches but wants to win the match with her usual groove and vigor. Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura are planning to announce the name of their new tag team on the show. They continue to talk about a “new wind” blowing through DDT which may be a hint.
Yusuke Okada promises that if he wins the DDT Universal Title, he will defend it against Yuki Ueno in a rematch from last January to show how much he has changed since then. Masahiro Takanashi wants this title reign to be different from the previous champions. At first his plan was to defend it against the new generation of DDT wrestlers but now that international travel is possible, he now also wants to defend the belt overseas like it was originally meant to be.
Whenever Tetsuya Endo is about to have an important match he goes to visit Kenta Kobashi for advice. He did the same yesterday looking for words of wisdom so he can get back on his feet. Endo told Kobashi he has completely recovered from his concussion and is back to training with the same intensity as he did before. Kobashi’s opinion is he thinks Endo lacks anger and brings up the story of the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu. As the legend goes, when Ieyasu was defeated in battle and escaped with his life he immediately got a portrait painted of himself looking defeated to fuel his anger. Kobashi asked Endo to re-watch the match where Katsuhiko Nakajima knocked him out so he can draw out his anger. Kobashi also told him when the time comes it will be necessary for Endo to get his revenge.
Yuki Ueno is off the show with covid. The KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match was cancelled during the week along with that news. A non-title match with Shinya Aoki substituting Ueno was the replacement match. But now Kojima is sick too so he is getting replaced by El Unicorn.
One year after his back injury, Makoto Oishi is now about to return to the ring. He had a metal fitting removed in June and wanted to go through his rehab as quick as possible so he could wrestle again. He is looking forward to his match but is worried newer fans who hadn’t seen him wrestle before will think he is copying Shunma Katsumata & MAO with his moveset. Oishi also wants to do his best so his two year old daughter Akari will say he looks cool.
1. GanJo Special Single Match: Cherry Vs YuuRI
2. GanPro Specialty! Mixed 6-Man Tag Match: Shuichiro Katsumura, Tsuyoshi Okada & HARUKAZE Vs MAO, Tyson Maeguchi & Yuna Manase
3. ROMANCE DAWN Vs The 37KAMIINA: Shota & Soma Takao Vs Shunma Katsumata & Toi Kojima
4. GanPro Sanada Maru! Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Kazuaki Mihara & Kouki Iwasaki
5. GanPro Osaka Summer Team! Special Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari & Magnitude Kishiwada Vs Mizuki Watase & Shinichiro Tominaga
Covid also made its way into the Ganbare☆Pro locker room. Ken Ohka tested positive and won’t be able to recover in time for Ganpro’s visit to Osaka. Mizuki Watase takes his place in the main event. A picture made its way online recently showing Watase working out with Thanomsak Toba and Kota Ibushi.
MAO is also added to the show to make up for Ohka’s absence.
YuuRI sent out a challenge to face Cherry to a rematch of their bout from last September.
DDT “ROAD TO PETER PAN 2022 IN YOKOHAMA”, 06/08/2022 Yokohama Radiant Hall
1. Special Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Yuya Koroku Vs Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi
Oishi collides with his former Junretsu teammate Jun Akiyama! He has a lot of history with his tag partner for this match Yuji Hino too. They were part of a stable in K-DOJO called Omega for a few years.
DDT “ROAD TO PETER PAN 2022 IN MIYAGI”, 07/08/2022 Miyagi Tagajo City Cultural Center Small Hall
1. Miyagi Specialty Special Single Match: MAO Vs Makoto Oishi
It’s an NωA reunion for MAO and Oishi. This match was requested by Oishi to take place in Miyagi because it is where he suffered his back injury one year ago. MAO showed some disrespect to Oishi by putting on a Miyagi accent and telling him he never considred Oishi to be his senpai. MAO gave him a challenge. If Oishi can sell 50 more tickets than MAO and also beat him in the match then MAO will show respect and be called his disciple again.
DDT “ROAD TO PETER PAN 2022 IN KORAKUEN ~LET’S SHOUT!~”, 14/08/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Special Single Match: Asuka Vs Saki Akai
2. DDT Extreme Title – Fluorescent Lighttube IPPON Death Match: Akito (c) Vs Joey Janela
A classic stipulation makes its return. Akito will defend the DDT Extreme Title against Joey Janela in a single lighttube death match! There will only be one lighttube in the ring. If you smash it over your opponent or if they break it by mistake then you win the match! Akito treats the match stipulation like it is his family heirloom. He considers Janela to be a creative wrestler which is why he chose his “masterpiece” to be the match type. However he noticed Janela never said Akito’s name when he tweeted about his desire to become the Extreme Champion. Akito is trying to look on the bright side. If world class wrestlers are coming to DDT, this is his chance to make a name for himself around the world! Akito also keeps notes on his phone whenever he comes up with a new idea for a match. He currently has 18 different ideas for future title defences.
GANBARE☆PRO “SANGERIA 2022”, 21/08/2022 Takashimadaira Ward Community Center
1. Sangeria 2022 Special Single Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Shota
2. GanJo Special Tag Match: Yuna Manase & Moeka Haruhi Vs Miyuki Takase & Yoshiko Hasegawa
This will be Yoshiko Hasegawa’s second match as a Ganpro wrestler. Miyuki Takase will be by her side when they take on Yuna Manase & Moeka Haruhi, the first two big names of Ganbare☆Joshi.
Shota continues his farewell series from Ganpro with a match against Keisuke Ishii.
Onryo, Shinichiro Tominaga and Nobuhiro Shimatani will all be on the show.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 23/07/2022 Shinjuku FACE
1. 3 Way Match: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Mahiro Kiryu Vs Haruna Neko
2. Maki Itoh & Yuki Kamifuku Vs Yuki Aino & Raku
3. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Hyper Misao & Kaya Toribami
4. Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Moka Miyamoto & Arisu Endo
5. Tokyo Princess Cup – Round 2D: Pom Harajuku Vs Suzume
6. Tokyo Princess Cup – Round 2A: Shoko Nakajima Vs Mizuki
The remaining Tokyo Princess Cup 2nd Round matches take place here. Shoko Nakajima and Mizuki are the two names that have become most attached to success in the tournament so we are going to see a rare early elimination in the main event. Suzume versus Pom Harajuku is a first time singles match up between the two.
Miyu Yamashita will be in America during the same weekend as this show.
1. GanPro Sanada Maru! Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Kazuaki Mihara & Kouki Iwasaki
2. ROMANCE DAWN Vs The 37KAMIINA: Shota & Soma Takao Vs Shunma Katsumata & Toi Kojima
3. GanPro Osaka Summer Team! Special Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari & Magnitude Kishiwada Vs Ken Ohka & Shinichiro Tominaga
Ganbare☆Pro visits Osaka so Yumehito Imanari can team with the region’s strongest pro wrestler Magnitude Kishiwada! He has a little bit of history with Ken Ohka. The last time he was in Ganpro was in 2018 where he faced Ohka one on one. Kishiwada won the match but Ohka convinced him to do an immediate rematch. Kishiwada won that too but Ohka again demanded another rematch to prove he could still fight over and over until he wins. Maybe that kind of fire will reappear here.
The 37KAMIINA are showing up in Ganpro and ROMANCE DAWN are waiting to meet them in the ring.
A challenge was thrown out by Kouki Iwasaki towards Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie. He wants a tag match against them and is bringing in his local buddy Kazuaki Mihara to be his partner.
Tsuyoshi Okada and Tyson Maeguchi will be on the show.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 31/07/2022 Tokyo Otemachi Mitsui Hall
1. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Miu Watanabe Vs Winner Of Match 2A
2. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Nao Kakuta Vs Miyu Yamashita
3. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Hikari Noa
4. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Rika Tatsumi Vs Winner Of Match 2D
The field of eight is almost completed. The bracket gets mixed up after this point and the semi-final pairings will be decided via lottery at the end of the show.
GANBARE☆PRO “ULTRA SOUL 2022”, 13/08/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. ROMANCE DAWN for the new world: Shota Vs Soma Takao
2. Yoshiko Hasegawa Re-Debut Match: Yuna Manase & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Moeka Haruhi & YuuRI
3. HARUKAZE 5th Anniversary Match: HARUKAZE Vs Makoto
4. Tatsuhito Takaiwa 30th Anniversary Match: Tatsuhito Takaiwa Vs X
5. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie
A comment made in the past is motivating Imanari to prove his doubter wrong. When he was part of a main event in Korakuen Hall back in October 2020, Shigehiro Irie singled him out as the only person in the match underserving of that spot. Now that Imanari has the Spirit Of Ganbare Title, he wants to defend it against Irie in Korakuen to prove him wrong. Irie was surprised to hear the challenge because they haven’t crossed paths that often since that show almost two years ago. He is impressed with Imanari’s new found confidence but warns when you fight Irie, you will lose both your confidence and your championship!
Tatsuhito Takaiwa is celebrating his 30th year as a pro wrestler. His anniversary match has not been decided yet.
There is another wrestling anniversary being celebrated on the show, although it is a lot shorter than Takaiwa’s. Haruka Kato has been wrestling for over a decade but it is her alter ego HARUKAZE who recently reached the 5 year milestone. She asked Makoto to be her opponent for the special occasion. The reason is because after Kato left Stardom, Makoto was the first person to get her a booking despite having never known her previously. Ever since then Kato credits Makoto for keeping her in pro wrestling.
The re-debuting Yoshiko Hasegawa was born in Saitama on 28th February, 1987. She is 150cm tall and weighs 47kg. She originally wrestled for Actwres girl’Z from 2019 to 2020 until a neck injury took her out of action for almost the entirety of 2021. She officially left Actwres right at the end of last year and made her wrestling reappearance at “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA” earlier this month, signing with Ganbare☆Pro.
Shota will be going on an American excursion this September with not concrete plan on when to return. He decided to take a massive gamble and see if he can make it from scratch as a pro wrestler in America until he is all out of options. He has connections over there but right now has nothing guaranteed for him once he makes the trip. Ganpro is giving him a send off match against his own ROMANCE DAWN partner Soma Takao.
DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022”, 20/08/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Shinichiro Kawamatsu Debut Match ~ Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly Member Vs Bunkyo Ward Assembly Member: Shinichiro Kawamatsu, Sanshiro Takagi & Soma Takao Vs Osamu Nishimura, Makoto Oishi & Akito
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Naomi Yoshimura, Kota Umeda & Keisuke Okuda Vs HARASHIMA, Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani
3. Special Mixed Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Saki Akai Vs Chris Brookes & Asuka
4. International Special Hardcore Match: Joey Janela Vs Shunma Katsumata
5. DDT 25th Anniversary Special 6-Man Tag Match: Dick Togo, Daisuke Sasaki & KANON (w/ MJ Paul) Vs Konosuke Takeshita, MAO & Yasu Urano
6. DDT Universal Title: Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs X
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Kazusada Higuchi (c) Vs X
For one night only Naomi Yoshimura is bringing together a DNA reunion! He asked DDT to give him a match teaming with Kota Umeda and Keisuke Okuda, saying long time fans will understand why. In DNA Yoshimura led a faction called the Naomi Kingdom. Okuda was a member of the unit and Umeda was their biggest rival. DDT agreed to Yoshimura’s request and gathered together a suitable trio of opponents. It’s Yoshimura’s old tag partner HARASHIMA as well as Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani from Eruption!
GANBARE☆PRO “BAKURETSU TOSHI BURST CITY 2022”, 17/07/2022 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR 78 Fans – Super No Vacancy
1. GanPro Summer Festival! MakoHaruka Vs YuriMoeka Full-Scale Battle: Makoto & HARUKAZE defeated Moeka Haruhi & YuuRI when Makoto pinned YuuRI with the Seien no Uneri (14:11).
2. GanPro Summer Festival! Lari Pro Army Vs Knee Pro Army Full-Scale Battle: Shuichiro Katsumura & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shota ended in a Quadruple Knockout (16:40).
3. GanPro Summer Festival! GanPro Survival 8-Man Tag Match ~Ohka Army Vs Imanari Army Full-Scale Battle~: Ken Ohka, Kouki Iwasaki, Mizuki Watase & Sayaka Obihiro (3) defeated Yumehito Imanari, Soma Takao, Tyson Maguchi & Sayaka (2) (49:56).
3a. Mizuki Watase & Sayaka Obihiro defeated Yumehito Imanari & Soma Takao when Obihiro knocked Takao out of the ring (18:56).
3b. Mizuki Watase & Sayaka Obihiro defeated Yumehito Imanari & Sayaka when Obihiro pinned Sayaka with the Obihiro Magic (10:29).
3c. Yumehito Imanari & Tyson Maguchi defeated Mizuki Watase & Sayaka Obihiro when Imanari pinned Obihiro with a Gedo Clutch (3:56).
3d. Yumehito Imanari & Tyson Maguchi defeated Kouki Iwasaki & Mizuki Watase when Maeguchi knocked Iwasaki out of the ring (4:05).
3e. Ken Ohka & Mizuki Watase defeated Yumehito Imanari & Tyson Maguchi when Watase pinned Maeguchi with a Vertical Drop Brainbuster (12:30).
During the beginning of the show, Yumehito Imanari nominated his next challenger for the Spirit Of Ganbare Title. He told everyone about something that somebody said to him on 6th October 2020. It was for the main event at Korakuen Hall when this person said Imanari was the only person who did not deserve to be in that spot. Imanari has never forgotten those words or who said it to him. He wants to defend the title in a Korakuen main event against Shigehiro Irie! The next Ganbare☆Pro show in Korakuen is scheduled for 13th August so now Imanari must wait to hear Irie’s response.
The spotlight at the end of the show was shining on someone else. Mizuki Watase came off his momentous win against Eruption at Ota Ward last week to be the deciding factor in today’s Survival Tag Match. Ken Ohka praised him afterward and Watase said he can feel the momentum surrounding Ganpro. He noticed however that Ohka isn’t speaking as much as he normally does and could tell he has a lot he wants to say. Ohka explained he is saving those words for when he wins the Spirit Of Ganbare Title from Imanari.
The Lariat Pro Wrestling Vs Knee Pro Wrestling match featured a montage of songs from famous wrestlers synonymous with Lariats and Knee Striking moves. The action became too much to handle for Shuichiro Katsumura, Shinichiro Tominaga, Keisuke Ishii and Shota because all four were left knocked out by the end of the match resulting in a draw.
Backstage Shota announced he is going on excursion to America this September with no timeframe on when he will return to Japan. While he already knows where he can go looking for bookings over there, nothing is set in stone and there is no guarantee he will be successful. But he is willing to put his life as a pro wrestler on the line for a few months. So for that reason he is taking a one way flight to the USA with the goal of wrestling there until he is exhausted. Until then he will spend August wrestling his remaining matches in Ganpro before going off to chase his dream in America.
Everyone got to learn about HARUKAZE’s history with Makoto when HARUKAZE got on the microphone after their match. She told a story about how she became a recluse after getting injured and leaving Stardom. Then suddenly one day Makoto, who she had never met previously, got in touch and invited her to take part in a show she was on. HARUKAZE said that was the beginning of her rehabiliation and the match she had on that show felt like she was making her debut all over again. Makoto is why HARUKAZE is still a pro wrestler so she asked Makoto to have a singles match together. Makoto admitted she didn’t expect to hear this story and called it a great honour for another wrestler to want a match with her. She accepted the challenge and the match will happen on 13th August. However Makoto warned that she is stronger than HARUKAZE thinks.
GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA”, 10/07/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium 804 Fans
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 6-Man Tag Match Match: Ganbare Tamagawa, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE Vs Onryo, YuuRI & Lingerie Muto
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
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.
DDT “DDT FREE -LET’S ALL SPEAK UP!-”, 07/07/2022 Shinjuku FACE
1. KANON Vs Yuya Koroku
2. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Akito & Kazuki Hirata
3. Jun Akiyama, Yuji Hino, Yukio Naya & Yuki Ishida Vs HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani
4. Masahiro Takanashi & Shunma Katsumata Vs Asuka & Yusuke Okada
5. DAMNATION T.A Vs The Iyasareru!: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda
6. Special Single Match: MAO Vs Andrew “The Giant” Everett
7. Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yuki Ueno & Toi Kojima
A press conference was held today for Kazusada Higuchi to address the King Of DDT aftermath. The new KO-D Openweight Champion thanked the fans for their support because he doesn’t think he won the tournament by himself. He praised both of his recent opponents Jun Akiyama and Naomi Yoshimura. He would be fine with Akiyama being one of his title challengers. He also suggested teaming with Yoshimura in a tag match because they did not interact often in DNA and it would be something new. DDT accepted his request for the tag match. They chose Yuki Ueno & Toi Kojima for their opponents because Ueno was also in the semi-finals and Kojima is from after the DNA generation.
Questions have been asked about Andrew Everett’s true size ever since his DDT debut took place. He was given a surprise height measurement during today’s press conference after he was told he would face MAO in a singles match this Thursday. Hisaya Imabayashi tried to measure him but Everett kept trying to cheat. He jumped in the air, stood on a chair and then accidentally pulled the measuring tape off the wall before Choke Slamming it. Imabayashi finally got to measure him when he wasn’t looking and discovered he is really only 170cm tall! Everett has been exposed as a fraud! However his high flying abilities during yesterday’s match was so impressive that DDT still wants to book him. So his match with MAO will go ahead.
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. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Alex Windsor
6. Riho & Arisu Endo Vs Mei Suruga & Suzume
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
Unfortunately Willow Nightingale is unable to get her visa in time to travel to Japan for the show. Tokyo Joshi Pro are trying to arrange a new schedule for her to wrestle in Japan as soon as possible. Miu Watanabe’s new opponent is Ryo Mizunami making her first appearance in TJPW!
GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA”, 10/07/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Ganpro Specialty 3 Vs 2 Handicap Match: Ganbare Tamagawa, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE Vs Onryo & YuuRI (w/ Ippanjin Munenori Sawa)
2. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Takaiwa Army: Kouki Iwasaki & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Tatsuhito Takaiwa & 5th Black Tiger
3. Four Beasts Of Fate Gathered In Sekigahara ~Special Tag Match~: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Isami Kodaka & Shuji Ishikawa
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 Tag Match ~ CDK Vs ROMANCE DAWN: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Shota & Soma Takao
7. Special Single Match: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Minoru Suzuki
8. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) Vs Ken Ohka
An autograph session for Ken Ohka and Shota was held at the Champion shop in Suidobashi yesterday. Yumehito Imanari crashed the event and taunted Ohka by offering him a choice of chicken salad or sweetbread. Ohka chose the salad and took a bite out of it to prove he is taking his diet for the match seriously. Imanari approved and said he can see the shine in Ohka’s face returning. But then he tried to stuff the sweetbread into Ohka’s mouth. Ohka resisted and said he wouldn’t break his promise to be the best Ken Ohka he can be. Imanari backed off and again gave approval to Ohka’s serious attitude toward their match.
BASARA “BASARA 196 ~ITCHI DANKETSU~”, 10/07/2022 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
1. Lil’ Kraken Vs Banana Senga
2. Daichi Kazato & Tsutomu Oosugi Vs Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino
3. Daiki Shimomura Vs Yasu Urano
4. FUMA, KUBITO & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Ryota Nakatsu, SAGAT & Akiyori Takizawa
5. Isami Kodaka 20th Anniversary Special Tag Match: Isami Kodaka & Takumi Tsukamoto Vs Fuminori Abe & Ikuto Hidaka
This is KUBITO’s first match under his new ring name.
“SUPER HARDCORE GIRLS BOX OFFICE ~ SUPER HARDCORE GIRLS VS PROMINENCE”, 14/07/2022 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. DDT Offer? Match: Yuki Ueno & Sakura Hirota Vs Akito & Kazuki Hirata
2. Special TLC Match: DASH Chisako Vs Hideki Okatani
3. Super Hardcore Girls Vs Prominence ~ Falls Count Anywhere Match: SenoSister Mao Inoue Vs Mochi Natsumi
4. Super Hardcore Girls Vs Prominence ~ Bring In 1 Item Hardcore Match: Elizabeth❤️Toy & Sylvania❤️Catherine Vs Risa Sera & Akane Fujite
5. Super Hardcore Girls Vs Prominence ~ Special Hardcore Match: Carousel❤️Shun Vs Suzu Suzuki
All matches for the one-off Super Hardcore Girls Vs Prominence show have been decided. Carousel❤️Shun & Elizabeth❤️Toy aren’t the only members of Super Hardcore Girls, there are two more coming in. SenoSister Mao Inoue is a familiar face on Gake no Fuchi Joshi shows. Sylvania❤️Catherine is apparently related to indie wrestler Takahiro Katori.
DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022 TOUR IN NAGOYA”, 16/07/2022 Aichi Nippon Gaishi Sports Plaza 3rd Stadium
1. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda
2. DDT Extreme Title – 3 Vs 1 Handicap Rule: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (c), Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Akito
The match stipulations for DDT Extreme Title defences are usually decided by the champion so it is a little odd how little those rules get abused. This is one of those times. Yuki Iino is teaming with Danshoku Dieno AND Yumehito Imanari to face Akito in a 3 Vs 1 Handicap Match. However the rule may backfire because it is a one fall match and Akito will become the champion if he beats any member of Pheromones.
DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022”, 24/07/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Makoto Oishi Return Match: Makoto Oishi Vs X
2. Tetsuya Endo Return Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs X
3. DDT Universal Title: Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs Yusuke Okada
Yusuke Okada is tired sitting on the sidelines while the rest of BURNING gets to do their thing. He is finally taking initiative for himself and challenging Masahiro Takanashi for the DDT Universal Title. Takanashi is fighting to keep the title so he can bring it with him when he begins wrestling around the world after the summer.
42 days after his concussion, Tetsuya Endo will be cleared to wrestle again. He accepts the result of the DDT Vs NOAH match from “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2022” and wants to move on with a fresh start. Whether or not he quickly returns to the title picture remains to be seen but the path to take it would begin here.
DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022”, 20/08/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Shinichiro Kawamatsu Debut Match ~ Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly Member Vs Bunkyo Ward Assembly Member: Shinichiro Kawamatsu, Sanshiro Takagi & Soma Takao Vs Osamu Nishimura, Makoto Oishi & Akito
2. International Special Hardcore Match: Joey Janela Vs Shunma Katsumata
3. DDT Universal Title: Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs X
4. KO-D Openweight Title: Kazusada Higuchi (c) Vs X
Higuchi wants to nominate Endo as his opponent for “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022”. It will all depend on how well Endo does in his return match on 27th July. If DDT or Endo himself does not think he is up to the task then Higuchi may have to nominate someone else.
The debut match of Shinichiro Kawamatsu is going to be more political than he anticipated. One of his opponents is Osamu Nishimura! The legendary wrestler is currently a Councilor on the Bunkyo Ward Council.
Konosuke Takeshita will be on the show. He is coming back to Japan for a little while before continuing his international excursion.
DDT “DRAMATIC EXPLOSION 2022”, 04/09/2022 Aichi Nagoya Congress Center Event Hall
1. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita Vs X
It’s the return of Atsushi Onita and the Explosion Death Match to DDT!
DDT “JAPAN BAKERY MARKETING PRESENTS KONOSUKE TAKESHITA 10TH ANNIVERSARY ~NISHINARI BAY BLUES~”, 10/09/2022 Osaka Nishinari Kumin Center
1. Japan Bakery Marketing Co., Ltd. Presents Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Daisuke Sasaki
Takeshita will also be in his hometown to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of his debut match. He was asked to choose his opponent and he picked Daisuke Sasaki. He decided nobody else can bring out all of himself in the ring like Sasaki can. He also doesn’t know how many more times they will have singles matches against each other so now is the time to do it again.
DDT “KING OF DDT 2022 FINAL!!”, 03/07/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 703 Fans
0. Dark Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani defeated Toru Owashi, Soma Takao & Toi Kojima when Okatani pinned Kojima with the Double Arm Suplex (7:55).
0. Dark Match: Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON defeated Yuji Hino, Yukio Naya & Yuki Ishida when KANON pinned Ishida with the Sleepy Hollow (6:51).
1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari defeated Akito, Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata by TKO when Iino used the Pheromone Judgement on Akito (7:16).
2. King Of DDT 2022 – Semi Final: Naomi Yoshimura defeated Yuki Ueno with the Osaka Pride (10:46).
3. King Of DDT 2022 – Semi Final: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Jun Akiyama with the Brain Claw Slam (14:28).
4. Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku defeated Masahiro Takanashi & HARASHIMA when Okada pinned Takanashi with the Sudden Death (10:09).
5. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Andrew “The Giant” Everett defeated MAO & Shunma Katsumata when Everett pinned Katsumata with the Choke Slam Spanish Fly (14:59).
6. KO-D Openweight Title – King Of DDT 2022 – Final: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Naomi Yoshimura with the Brain Claw Slam (18:55). *Kazusada Higuchi becomes the 79th KO-D Openweight Champion!
There is a word that has been following around Kazusada Higuchi, particularly recently. “Kuronin” (苦労人). It’s a word that describes a person who works hard because they struggle so much in their life. For Higuchi that struggle was his failure to win the KO-D Openweight Title throughout his 8 year career. Five chances that spread across from his super rookie days in DNA up to his current standing in Eruption all ended in failure. Today he finally reached the top and claimed the belt by winning King Of DDT! The vacant KO-D Title was on the line in the final when Higuchi faced a red hot Naomi Yoshimura. The two heavyweights had an even battle of strength with Yoshimura using a Choke Slam to counter Higuchi’s Brain Claw. Lariats were thrown back and forth. Yoshimura’s key moves the Harai Goshi and Osaka Pride were both blocked so he reverted to his original finisher, the Throwaway Power Bomb. Higuchi grabbed him in the Brain Claw once more and this time hit the Brain Claw Slam, pinning him for the victory.
Higuchi is now the champion and he needed to have his belt. Suddenly, Jun Akiyama entered the ring and volunteered to wrap the title around Higuchi’s waist. It was over a year ago when Akiyama established his authority in DDT by ordering a rebellious Higuchi to wrap the belt around his waist after beating him in a title match. To see Akiyama now present the title to Higuchi shows how much respect has been earned. Sanshiro Takagi then brought out the DDT flag that Higuchi carried to the ring at “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2022”. He told Higuchi he is now entrusting the flag to him as a symbol of DDT’s strength for him to lead the company with. Higuchi thanked the other members of Eruption as well as Akiyama for their support. He went through a lot to reach this point and is now putting a lot of thought into who he wants his first challenger to be. He wants to defend the title against Tetsuya Endo! He will wait for him at Ota Ward Gymnasium on 20th August.
Endo himself confirmed his return to the ring by announcing 24th July as his comeback date. He apologised to the fans causing worry with his absence while he recovered from his concussion. He was also sorry for showing a side at Saitama Super Arena that no champion should ever show. He received permission from his doctor to resume his in-ring training again last week and no longer feels any discomfort from moving around. He and DDT agreed to set 24th July as the target for his return. He is half excited, half anxious over it but will push himself hard over the next 3 weeks to regain any trust he lost from the fans. In his backstage comments, Endo said he lost to Katsuhiko Nakajima because he could not withstand his slap even if it was an accidental knockout. Everything that happens in the ring is reality and Endo accepts that reality. He will move on with his wrestling life on 24th July.
DDT’s latest foreign attraction has arrived but has the company been sold a bill of goods? Andrew “The Giant” Everett built hype to his DDT debut by claiming to be 223cm tall while weighing 190.5kg. When he finally showed up, people became skeptical because he looked to be around 175cm tall. Not even Chris Brookes kneeling down next to him could make “The Giant” look any taller. Everett also struggled to give MAO a Choke Slam. However as the match started speeding up, Everett’s aerial skills begun to be highlighted. A Shooting Star Press to MAO out of the ring wowed everyone. He then placed Shunma Katsumata up on the top rope and delivered the Choke Slam Spanish Fly to get the win. MAO is now a believer. He thinks Everett will become a tourist attraction in Japan once he stabs a spike onto his head and turns him into a second Sky Tree. Backstage, Everett mocked ShunMao for being small opponents and said he wants to fight the biggest guy in DDT… Yoshihiko?!?
The tricky wrestling style of Masahiro Takanashi has its benefits but the weakness is what happens once his opponents finally catch up to him. That was what happened today. Some wacky redirections from Takanashi caused Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku to bundle up together so HARASHIMA could hit a Swan Dive Body Press to the both of them. However Okada got his breath back and avoided the Takatonic. Instead he got to do the Intercept DDT and Diving Headbutt on Takanashi. Some cradle attempts were used from Takanashi but it couldn’t stop Okada’s momentum. In the end Okada got Takanashi’s shoulders on the mat for three with the Sudden Death. After the match Okada challenged him for the DDT Universal Title. He had to miss “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2022” and King Of DDT. He also couldn’t do anything but watch the rest of BURNING to their thing during that period. It’s driving him crazy so he wants the title match. Takanashi accepted the challenge and the match will take place on 24th July. Takanashi also said he is the one about to travel the world so the Universal Title rightfully belongs to himself.
Higuchi and Yoshimura bought went through important opponents in their King Of DDT semi-final bouts. As mentioned already, Higuchi’s history with Akiyama is one with plenty of disrespect and trust issues. Even putting that aside you are always in a fight for your life against Akiyama. Higuchi was almost counted out when he was given an Exploder Suplex on the floor. He was also almost pinned with exposed Knee Strikes from Akiyama. Higuchi almost got his big win earlier in the match with an Avalanche Brain Claw Slam but he took too long to go for the pin. Akiyama also tried a rate top rope attack but his Flying Knee Strike was countered in mid-air with a Lariat. Higuchi got to apply the Brain Claw again and turned it into the Brain Claw Slam to advance to the final.
Yoshimura continues to be unbeaten against Yuki Ueno in singles matches but don’t let that fool you into thinking it was an easy match. Some well timed Dropkicks kept giving Ueno an advantage but he could just not get his big moves to count when it mattered. Yoshimura blocked the BME and avoided the WR. Ueno however couldn’t stop the Throwaway Power Bomb and was done for when he was given the Osaka Pride. Ueno is obviously disappointed he lost but the experience made him excited to spread the word of how fun and strong DDT is.
Akito’s desire to regain the DDT Extreme Title is taking him through Pheromones hell. Before their match today began, Danshoku Dieno warned that he was lifting a banned torture technique that was handed down from generation to generation since the Edo Period. This was Pheromones way of judging Akito for the Extreme Title shot on 16th July. The torture move was eventually shown to be Akito getting his head sandwiched between Yuki Iino’s backside and Dieno’s crotch. Any rescue attempt from Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata was cut off by Yumehito Imanari. Akito was stuck in the hold for such a long time that the match was eventually stopped for his safety and Pheromones were declared the winners. After the match Dieno said Akito was not going to fight Iino on his own for the Extreme Title. The match will be a 3 Vs 1 Handicap match where Akito has to fight all of Pheromones by himself! Dieno reminded everyone the rule of the Extreme Title is the champion gets to pick the stipulation so Akito has to accept it.
A new referee named Yusho Nakata (son of the late NOAH executive and ring announcer Ryu Nakata) debuted on this show by working the opener and the dark match. That meant the poor guy had to deal with DAMNATION T.A. He tried to show control by warning Daisuke Sasaki over illegal usage of the ropes. But when Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya looked to be on the road to victory Nakata was pulled down and held back by MJ Paul. That gave KANON the chance to regroup and give Yuki Ishida a Modified Brainbuster that is now called the Sleepy Hollow for the win.
The dark match saw the other three members of Eruption beat the trio of Toru Owashi, Soma Takao & Toi Kojima. There was an exchange between Saki Akai and Takao where Akai tried applying a Triangle Choke only to get slammed out of it. Kojima almost pinned Hideki Okatani with the Full Nelson Buster but Yukio Sakaguchi broke the count. Eruption took control with Sakaguchi & Akai giving Kojima a Sandwich PK. Kojima had enough strength to kick out of Okatani’s Northern Lights Suplex but the follow up Double Arm Suplex couldn’t be beaten.
Konosuke Takeshita is temporarily returning to Japan in August. He sent a video announcing he will be part of “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022” on the 20th.
Also revealed for the show was news of Shinichiro Kawamatsu’s debut match. He will team with Sanshiro Takagi & Soma Takao in a 6-Man Tag Match. Their opponents are Makoto Oishi, Akito and another pro wrestling politician Osamu Nishimura! Takagi wants to answer the question of who will win a fight between Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly and the Bunkyo City Council! Kawamatsu thought he wouldn’t be bringing politics into the ring for his match but he looks forward for the chance to wrestle Councilor Nishimura.
At the beginning of the show several wrestlers promoted a bunch of upcoming events. Katsumata promoted the upcoming Super Hardcore Girls Vs Prominence event taking place on 14th July.
Akiyama will be holding his 30th Anniversary show on 18th September. Two special guests were announced for it today. They are Yuji Nagata and Yoshinobu Kanemaru from New Japan! Akiyama has a deep history with both wrestlers so it was important for them to be involved in the show.
Ken Ohka was at the show promoting Ganbare☆Pro’s biggest show in their history “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA” at Ota Ward Gym on 10th July. He was joined by Yuki Aino & Raku who both promoted Tokyo Joshi Pro’s event in the same venue, “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’22” on the 9th.
Last but not least, Atsushi Onita returns to DDT on 4th September for a Current Blast Death Match in Nagoya.
DDT “KING OF DDT 2022 FINAL!!”, 03/07/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
0. Dark Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Toru Owashi, Soma Takao & Toi Kojima
0. Dark Match: Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Yuji Hino, Yukio Naya & Yuki Ishida
1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Akito, Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata
2. King Of DDT 2022 – Semi Final: Yuki Ueno Vs Naomi Yoshimura
3. King Of DDT 2022 – Semi Final: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Jun Akiyama
4. Masahiro Takanashi & HARASHIMA Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
5. Special Tag Match: MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Chris Brookes & Andrew “The Giant” Everett
6. KO-D Openweight Title – King Of DDT 2022 – Final: X Vs X
Another prize is on the line in the main event. The King Of DDT winner will not just get the KO-D Openweight Title but also 1,000,000 from the match sponsor BLACK OUT.
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. Miu Watanabe Vs Willow Nightingale
4. Hikaru Shida & Hikari Noa Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu
5. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Alex Windsor
6. Riho & Arisu Endo Vs Mei Suruga & Suzume
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 Magical Sugar Rabbits went skydiving in Tochigi as part of their preparations for the Princess Tag Team Titles match. Mizuki said afterwards she now feels invincible. Yuka Sakazaki agreed and is certain they will successfully defend the titles at Ota Ward Gymnasium next month. Sakazaki is now currently in America, appearing at AEW last night and scheduled for PWG this weekend.
Mei Suruga & Suzume have decided on what to call their tag team. Their name is MeiBee Surprise!
GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA”, 10/07/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Ganpro Specialty 3 Vs 2 Handicap Match: Ganbare Tamagawa, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE Vs Onryo & YuuRI (w/ Ippanjin Munenori Sawa)
2. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Takaiwa Army: Kouki Iwasaki & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Tatsuhito Takaiwa & 5th Black Tiger
3. Four Beasts Of Fate Gathered In Sekigahara ~Special Tag Match~: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Isami Kodaka & Shuji Ishikawa
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 Tag Match ~ CDK Vs ROMANCE DAWN: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Shota & Soma Takao
7. Special Single Match: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Minoru Suzuki
8. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) Vs Ken Ohka
Nine years ago Ganbare☆Pro was created by Ken Ohka. Standing next to him was Yumehito Imanari, who wasn’t even a full fledged pro wrestler at the time. Now Imanari has become a strong wrestler and also a champion. Ohka knows his friend has already surpassed him but he really, really wants to win the Spirit Of Ganbare Title. Imanari says neither of them make a living from pro wrestling alone but he does not feel guilty about it. This has been his way of life for a decade and he will put everything into it at Ota Ward. He also remembers their last singles match against each other 4 years ago. There was no winner then because of outside interference so he wants the result to be clear on 10th July.
Shuichiro Katsumura met face to face with Minoru Suzuki for the first time since their brawl earlier this month. Since then Katsumura changed his attitude over the match. At first he was excited to finally wrestle Suzuki but after meeting him he is now determined to beat him. He’s been studying Suzuki trying to find any weaknesses he can take advantage of. Suzuki accused Katsumura of holding onto past glories from his MMA career which makes him want to smash Katsumura to pieces! He also told Katsumura not to disappoint him.
The war of words between Yuna Manase and Sayaka Unagi took a bizarre turn during the press conference. Manase talked about having no regrets in her career that brought her from Stardom to Actwres girl’Z to Tokyo Joshi Pro to Ganpro. So she knows Unagi but is unsure if her behavior now is out of confidence or insecurity. However she will not underestimate her opponent because she wants to prove Ganpro is amazing. Unagi said her problem is when she lost the singles match against Manase in 2019 she lost to a woman who is in the late stages of her wrestling career. Unagi needs to get her win back so she can move on to working her way up in Stardom and collect all of their championships. The bizarre moment was when the two stood next to each other for the photo op. Unagi suddenly attacked Manase and bit her on the chest! Unagi told her she is sick of seeing Manase acting so kind hearted. She wants to see Manase fighting for her life and go crazy in the ring!
“SUPER HARDCORE GIRLS BOX OFFICE ~ SUPER HARDCORE GIRLS VS PROMINENCE”, 14/07/2022 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Super Hardcore Girls Vs Prominence ~ Special Hardcore Match: Carousel❤️Shun Vs Suzu Suzuki
The grudge between Shunma Katsumata and Suzu Suzuki from Prominence isn’t over yet. Katsumata’s little idea of introducing Super Hardcore Girls to the feud has taken a life of its own. Now we’re getting a stand alone show pitting the two sides against each other! Carousel❤️Shun returns to the ring by taking on Suzuki in a Hardcore Match. Shun’s BFF Elizabeth❤️Toy is expected to return too while more members of Prominence are yet to be announced. Katsumata & Toi Kojima are selling tickets to the show on behalf of Super Hardcore Girls.
BASARA “ISAMI KODAKA 20TH ANNIVERSARY”, 18/07/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Lil’ Kraken Vs Raimu Imai
2. 3 Way Jacket Match: Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Gouma Vs Shiori Asahi
3. Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano & Kengo Mashimo Vs FUMA, Yusuke Kubo & Daichi Kazato
4. Daiki Shimomura, Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino Vs Tsutomu Oosugi, Banana Senga & Masahiro Takanashi
5. Elimination 8-Man Tag Match: Ryota Nakatsu, SAGAT, Naoki Tanizaki & Akiyori Takizawa Vs Fuminori Abe, Takuya Nomura, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Daichi Hashimoto
6. Isami Kodaka Vs Yuko Miyamoto
Kosuke Sato is out of action for a month to recover from injury. Daichi Hashimoto takes his place in the Elimination Tag Match.
GANBARE☆PRO “KINDERGARTEN COP 2022”, 29/06/2022 Shin-Kiba 1st RING 112 Fans
1. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Dotonbori Pro Wrestling: Kouki Iwasaki defeated Ryuya Matsufusa with a Texas Cloverleaf (10:15).
2. Ganpro Special Mixed 6-Man Tag Match: Mizuki Watase, Moeka Haruhi & HARUKAZE defeated Shuichiro Katsumura, Yuna Manase & YuuRI when Haruhi submitted YuuRI with the 19.5MHz (11:47).
3. Spirit World Drunkers Vs Dragon Beast Bombers: Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Shigehiro Irie defeated Onryo & Tyson Maeguchi when Takaiwa pinned Maeguchi with the Death Valley Bomb (11:34).
4. Ishii-gun Vs Pro Wrestling BASARA: Keisuke Ishii & Nobuhiro Shimatani defeated Isami Kodaka & Daiki Shimomura when Ishii pinned Shimomura with the Kneel Kick (16:52).
5. Road To SEKIGAHARA Special 6-Man Tag Match: Ken Ohka, Masahiro Takanashi & Chris Brookes defeated Yumehito Imanari, Shota & Soma Takao when Ohka pinned Imanari with the Flame Spear (20:32).
The third and final preview match for “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA” saw Ken Ohka finally pick up a win against Yumehito Imanari. The same match also had CDK leave ROMANCE DAWN frazzled with their tag team moves. However Ohka credited himself for winning the match because he was able to beat such a strong opponent. He not only wants to win the Spirit Of Ganbare Title but also make sure the biggest show in Ganbare☆Pro history will be a success. He gathered round the Ganpro roster after the show and gave a motivating speech promoting the Ota Ward Gymnasium show on 10th July.
Later backstage Ohka said in an interview he has caused unthinkable miracles throughout his life. He has wrestled Jushin Liger, won a tag team match against Hiroshi Tanahashi, very briefly became the KO-D Openweight Champion. Meanwhile Imanari has in the last couple of years won matches against Shinjiro Otani and Tatsuhito Takaiwa. On 10th July there will be another miracle no matter who wins the main event!
Another preview of Ota Ward had Keisuke Ishii on the winning team against Isami Kodaka. An attack from Ishii early in the match resulted in Kodaka getting his forehead busted open. Ishii pinned Daiki Shimomura to win the match but continued brawling with Kodaka after the match was over. Later Ishii talked about memories good and bad from his short time wrestling in Union Pro with Kodaka and Shuji Ishikawa. He expects to have a great match when he & Shigehiro Irie face Kodaka & Ishikawa. Kodaka promises to give it his all in the match despite also having another important match in BASARA that same day.
Some of the other Ganpro wrestlers are now ready and waiting for “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA” to begin. Yuna Manase wrestles to be happy and wants Sayaka Unagi to be honest with her in the ring when their match takes place. Shuichiro Katsumura is feeling in good condition from all of the matches he’s done lately and has confidence he can beat Minoru Suzuki. He is ready to fight him in any style whether it is brawling, ground work or trading submission holds. Moeka Haruhi sees how aggressive Mizuki Watase has become and promises to stand with him against Eruption. She will improve her skills and cherish every minute before then.