DDT/DEFY “DDT IN UTERO”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA 447 Fans – No Vacancy
1. Gringo Loco defeated Yuni with the Base Bomb (10:32).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Randy Myers defeated Danshoku Dieno with a School Boy (8:26 pm). *Randy Myers becomes the 1,691st champion.
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Danshoku Dieno defeated Randy Myers (c) with the Gaydo Clutch (8:01). *Danshoku Dieno becomes the 1,692nd champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Yoshihiko defeated Danshoku Dieno (c) by Referee Stoppage with a Sleeper Hold (8:36 pm). *Yoshihiko becomes the 1,693rd champion.
3. Nick Wayne defeated Jack Cartwheel with the Wayne’s World (11:49).
4. DEFY Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Tag Match: Cody Chhun & Guillermo Rosas (c) defeated Bryan Keith & Shota and Eddie Pearl & Ricky Gibson when Rosas pinned Shota after the Combined Pop-Up Power Bomb (10:19). *V2 for C4.
5. DEFY Women’s Title: Marina Shafir (c) defeated Danika Della Rouge with the Mother’s Milk (7:35). *V3 for Marina Shafir.
6. Special Tag Match: Gurv Shira & Harv Shira defeated Daisuke Sasaki & Artemis Spencer when Gruv pinned Spencer after a Combined Diving Elbow Drop (15:54).
7. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated Kohei Kinoshita with an Avalanche Falcon Arrow (12:41).
8. DDT Universal Title – 3 Way Match: Miyu Yamashita defeated MAO (c) and Mike Bailey when Yamashita pinned Bailey with the Skull Kick (21:25). *MAO fails in V1. Miyu Yamashita becomes the 15th DDT Universal Champion!
The packed weekend in Seattle continued on Saturday night when DDT and DEFY worked together for a collaborative show with a shock title change in the main event. Miyu Yamashita has become the first woman to win the DDT Universal Title! The belt was on the line in a 3 Way Match with Yamashita being the third wheel against The Moonlight Express. However MAO and Mike Bailey both fought the match all against each other, which is probably why it costed MAO his championship in the end. He had given Bailey the Avalanche Michinoku Driver II when Yamashita cut him off and then hit Bailey with the Skull Kick to win the match and become champion.
Yamashita already has a match against Gringo Loco scheduled for tomorrow and he quickly challenged her to put the Universal Title on the line. Yamashita accepted until Nick Wayne got in the ring and challenged her too. Yamashita also accepted his challenge and said she will crush both opponents tomorrow in a 3 Way Match! Backstage Yamashita said now is the time not to set her own limits and she wants to defend the titles as many times as she can. Bailey called Yamashita and MAO two of the best wrestlers in the world. He is grateful he got to main event a DDT show again. MAO said he only wanted to defend the title against people he wouldn’t regret losing too and Yamashita is one of those people. He is also happy he got to have a title match against Bailey. He is interested in seeing what Yamashita will do with the Universal Title so he is moving on from that championship for the time being.
Konosuke Takeshita wrestled at an American New Japan show yesterday and an American DDT show today. His opponent Kohei Kinoshita is someone he has known since they were kids so this match meant a lot to those two. Takeshita said matches like these make him feel like a candle in his heart is being lit. If he keeps getting matches like these then a big dream will be waiting for him. Kinoshita was influenced by Takeshita to fall in love with American pro wrestling so it motivated him to pursue it.
Normally it is Daisuke Sasaki who likes being the heel but he got a taste of his own medicine against The Bollywood Boyz when he was given a Low Blow. Gurv Shira & Harv Shira went on to beat Artemis Spencer. The Boyz hope this win will open the door for them to go wrestle in Japan. They are even eager to have a rematch against Sasaki & Spencer in front of the Japanese fans.
Marina Shafir’s appearance on the show was to defend the DEFY Women’s Title against Danika Della Rouge. She won without too much of a threat so Shoko Nakajima came out and challenged her to a title match on tomorrow’s show! She told Shafir she will become the champion because she is the Big Kaiju! Shafir’s response is Nakajima has a small brain and will go home tomorrow in a bag!
The emotions coming out of the DEFY Tag Team Titles match were both high and mixed. The champions C4 retained the belts and called themselves the “Dramatic Dream Team” that wants to come to Japan! Midnight Heat were furious over losing the match without dropping the fall. They had plenty of bad things to say about DDT and Japan. The team that did drop the fall was Bryan Keith & Shota. Keith blamed Shota for losing the match and demanded a singles match against him tomorrow to settle their differences! They’re still friends but Keith warns Shota not to bring out Keith’s new side tomorrow.
High flying action was on the menu for what could be the very first match between an AEW wrestler and a WWE ID wrestler since the reveal of WWE’s new scouting initiative. Wayne ended up winning the match but it wasn’t without a big scratch on his face. He is feeling energized to wrestle in DDT and DEFY again which is what encourage him to challenge for the Universal Title later in the show. Jack Cartwheel wants DDT fans to know that he is the king of cartwheels and they only look funny until they come at your face!
There was an Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title change between Danshoku Dieno and Randy Myers before their match even began. Myers made the smart move of ambushing Dieno during his entrance and pinning him on the floor to win the belt. What Myers didn’t count on was for the match to go ahead anyway and Dieno won the belt back with some unexpected help from Yoshihiko. However Yoshihiko then turned on Dieno after the match and choked him out with a Sleeper Hold to win the title from him!
Gringo Loco thinks Yuni has a great future ahead of him but the present belongs to the “Base God”! He has higher mountains to climb, as shown when he challenged Yamashita for the Universal Title at the end of the show. Yuni is pleased that his dream of wrestling in America came true and Loco is an opponent he had always wanted to face. He is pumped to fight Takeshita tomorrow and even more pumped to beat him!
Pop the champagne bottles because this month Konosuke Takeshita won his first AEW championship! The first of many I hope. After he finally achieved his crowning glory he… didn’t wrestle again in AEW for the rest of the month. Typical, eh? But he did wrestle elsewhere, up north in fact. And those were some pretty good matches too. His performances this month was enough to have Dave Meltzer call him one of the best wrestlers in the world. Other than that it was kind of a quiet month for everyone else I cover for this article. Yuka Sakazaki had a match in ROH then fantasized about murdering RJ City for Halloween, Shoko Nakajima was in DPW for a tournament final, Yuki Kamifuku continues being the Queen of Asia and Miyu Yamashita went to Canada.
Things are going to pick up in November though. DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro are having their shows with DEFY in Seattle, MAO and Yoshihiko are going on another European adventure together, Takeshita has stuff lined up with New Japan for the promotion’s next couple of USA shows, Yamashita will be paying GCW another visit and Pom Harajuku is going to be let loose in Southeast Asia. If that’s not enough we even have a peak at what to look forward to in 2025.
After turning on Ospreay, the Don Callis Family hold a press conference! | 10/16/24, AEW Dynamite
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 1”, 19/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Gisele Shaw Vs Miyu Yamashita
2. Mike Bailey Vs Konosuke Takeshita
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 2”, 20/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Laynie Luck & Harley Cameron Vs Miyu Yamashita & Kylie Rae
2. AEW International Title: Konosuke Takeshita (c) Vs Josh Alexander
Yuka Has Fun! | Hey! (EW) 10/27/24
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Results
ROH “ROH ON HONOR CLUB”, 08/10/2024 (Aired 17/10/2024) Spokane Arena, Spokane, Washington, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki defeated Viva Van with the Magical Girl Splash (5:44).
Sakazaki’s move over to ROH this month involved a tricky challenge against Viva Van. She was kept on her toes by Van bridging out of a pin and making Sakazaki flinch with a fakeout attack from the ropes. Sakazaki got her own back by also bridging out of a pin and doing her own Sliding Lariat, no fake out needed. She went on to win by using the Magical Merry-Go-Round as well as the Magical Girl Splash.
AEW “WRESTLEDREAM”, 12/10/2024 Tacoma Dome, Tacoma, Washington, USA
1. AEW International Title: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Will Ospreay (c) and Ricochet when Takeshita pinned Ospreay with the Powerdrive Knee (20:42). *V3 for Will Ospreay fails in V3. Konosuke Takeshita becomes the 10th AEW International Champion!
What a wonderful sight this was. Takeshita was part of a great match with Will Ospreay and Ricochet where everyone went balls to the wall. Takeshita took Ricochet out of the match by putting him through a table at ringside with the Reverse Implant. He also kicked out of Ospreay’s Hidden Blade but looked to be finished when Ospreay hit him with another one. That was when Don Callis pulled the referee out of the ring mid-count. Ospreay got his hands on Callis but just when he was about to give him the Tiger Driver ’91, Kyle Fletcher ran in and hit him over the head with a screwdriver. Takeshita then hit Ospreay with the Powerdrive Knee to win the AEW International Title. Even with the dirty finish the match got a *****1/2 rating from Meltzer.
DEXCON “JAM OF THE JOSHIS”, 13/10/2024 Brawl Pit Bulusan, Manila, Philippines
1. Queen Of Asia Title & VPW Women’s Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c/c) defeated Chelsea Marie with the Diving Famouser (?:??). *V4 for the Queen Of Asia Title. V2 for the VPW Women’s Title.
The Philippines is where Yuki Kamifuku had her next defence of the Asian Double Crown. She had a close match against Chelsea Marie in what was just as much a battle of beauty as it was wits and skill. Marie almost won by putting Kamifuku in the Code Of Silence submission hold but the champ’s leg was long enough to reach over for a rope break. Marie climbed the ropes but was left vulnerable after Kamifuku reached out and poked her in the eye. Kamifuku Dropkicked her opponent off the turnbuckles then climbed up the same corner to hit the Diving Famouser and win the match.
DPW “SUPER BATTLE”, 13/10/2024 Grady Cole Center, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
1. Battle Of The Best – Final: Dani Luna defeated Shoko Nakajima with a Fireman’s Carry Bomb (13:17).
The winner of the Battle Of The Best tournament would be given a shot at the DPW Women’s World Title so Nakajima was on the cusp of getting that title shot. It wasn’t meant to be unfortunately. Dani Luna kicked out of the Northern Lights Suplex and prevented Nakajima from doing the Diving Senton by kicking her off the top rope. Nakajima didn’t expect Luna to then grab her on the apron from the ropes and throw her back into the ring with a Slingshot German Suplex. It was stunning enough for Luna to pin Nakajima with a Fireman’s Carry Bomb to win the tournament.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 1”, 19/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Gisele Shaw defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Denoument (12:36).
2. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Mike Bailey with the Raging Fire (24:39).
The debut weekend of Maple Leaf Pro had both Takeshita and Yamashita taking part in featured matches. The main event of Night 1 was Takeshita and Mike Bailey showing North America what they were missing when Speedball spent most of his time in Japan for DDT. It was already a cross-promotional match between AEW and TNA that became an even bigger deal because it was also the AEW International Champion against the X Division Champion! Bailey kicked out of the Powerdrive Knee but was put away with the Raging Fire. It was another match of Takeshita’s that Meltzer gave the ***** to this month.
History will look back on Miyu Yamashita Vs Gisele Shaw as the buffer match that was placed in between one of the best matches of the year and one of the worst. I admit that’s an unfair way to look at things so seek this out because it was a pretty good match. Had Yamashita won she would have been added to the ROH Women’s World Title match on Night 2. But Shaw wasn’t going to let her get in the way and won this match with her own Running Knee Strike.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 2”, 20/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita & Kylie Rae defeated Laynie Luck & Harley Cameron when Yamashita pinned Luck with the Skull Kick (9:26).
2. AEW International Title: Konosuke Takeshita (c) defeated Josh Alexander with the Raging Fire (29:31). *V1 for Konosuke Takeshita.
The last time Takeshita fought Josh Alexander one on one it ended in a time limit draw. For the rematch he was putting the AEW International Title on the line. Just like the night before, Takeshita almost won with the Powerdrive Knee and had to use the Raging Fire to put away his opponent. But after the match he and Don Callis decided to continue the attack on Alexander until Ricochet made a surprise appearance to fight Takeshita. The two of them would butt heads again in AEW later in the month so this looks to be Takeshita’s AEW program for November.
On Night 1 Kylie Rae was attacked by Laynie Luck & Harley Cameron so Yamashita’s role here was to even the odds for a tag match. While Rae took care of Cameron outside the ring, Yamashita pinned Luck with the Skull Kick inside the ring.
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Upcoming Appearances
BZW “FRIDAY NIGHT BANGER”, 01/11/2024 Salle Jacques Brel, Faches-Thumesnil, France
1. MAO Vs KURO
Once the calendar flips over to November MAO will be travelling around the world once more with the DDT Universal Title back in his possession. First destination is in France for a weekend of Banger Zone Wrestling events. KURO will be his opponent on Night 1.
BZW “ALCATRAZ”, 02/11/2024 Salle Jacques Brel, Faches-Thumesnil, France
1. BZW Tag Team Titles: Jack Sans-Nom & Paul Robinson (c) Vs MAO & Yoshihiko
On Night 2, MAO will be joined by Yoshihiko to cause more international trouble. One of MAO’s goals for his overseas tour this time is to win a foreign company’s championship so the two of them will face Jack Sans-Nom & Paul Robinson for the BZW Tag Team Titles.
Pom Harajuku is travelling to Singapore by herself without supervision! Is she going to be a sitting duck for Alexis Lee to tear apart limb from limb?
NJPW “FIGHTING SPIRIT UNLEASHED 2024”, 08/11/2024 Lowell Memorial Auditorium, Lowell, Massachusetts, USA
1. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs X
What is going to be in store for Takeshita when he goes back to New Japan next month for their next American show? Maybe Ricochet will show up looking for a fight again.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TJPW BRIGHT EYES”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. Rika Tatsumi & Amira Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo
2. Yuki Kamifuku Vs Wakana Uehara
3. Moka Miyamoto Vs Rebel Kel
4. Mizuki Vs Liiza Hall
5. Miu Watanabe & Shoko Nakajima Vs Yuki Aino & Zara Zakher
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh (c) Vs Vert Vixen & Nicole Matthews
All shows from the DDT/TJPW/DEFY weekend will be airing on Triller via the TrillerTV+ subscription.
DDT/DEFY “DDT IN UTERO”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. 3 Way Tag Match: Cody Chhun & Guillermo Rosas Vs Bryan Keith & Shota Vs Eddie Pearl & Ricky Gibson
2. Danshoku Dieno Vs Randy Myers
3. Gringo Loco Vs Yuni
4. Special Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Artemis Spencer Vs Gurv Shira & Harv Shira
5. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Kohei Kinoshita
6. DDT Universal Title – 3 Way Match: MAO (c) Vs Mike Bailey Vs Miyu Yamashita
More news for this show has been announced while I’ve been writing this with more still to come. Marina Shafir and Nick Wayne will both be there to wrestle.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TRIANGLER DTD”, 10/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. Special Single Match: Gringo Loco Vs Miyu Yamashita
2. Special Tag Match: MAO & Mike Bailey Vs Judas Icarus & Travis Williams
3. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Yuni
I think some of the remaining card will not be decided until the other shows have taken place first.
GCW “CHAOS IN KENTUCKY”, 14/11/2024 Headliners Music Hall, Louisville, Kentucky, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Brooke Havok
Three GCW matches for Yamashita coming up in November. She faces Brooke Havok in a first time ever meeting between the two.
GCW “GATEWAY TO THE DEATH”, 15/11/2024 Pop’s Nightclub, Sauget, Illinois, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Mike Bailey
If this match is anything like their Pandemonium Pro bout from last December then the GCW fans will be in for a treat. Just make sure to use a better camera angle for the finish this time…
GCW “NICK GAGE INVITATIONAL 9”, 16/11/2024 Level 13 Event Center, Orlando, Florida, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
Is GCW going to keep that tournament name even though they’re currently on the outs with Nick Gage? Does that mean Maki Itoh has to drop the Maki Death Kill stuff the next time she goes back there or can she take over the gimmick like Kazuki Hirata did with Magnum TOKYO?
SETUP “YEAR END CLIMAX”, 30/11/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title – No DQ Match: Matcha (c) Vs Pom Harajuku
When Harajuku was in a 3 Way Match against Matcha and Raku a month earlier, Matcha was the winner but she pinned Raku and Harajuku was left as the odd one out. Matcha and Harajuku then got into a fight and had to be kept apart. This unexpected grudge is coming to a head in November because SETUP is booking the two of them in a No DQ Match with the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title on the line!
NJPW “STRONG STYLE EVOLVED”, 15/12/2024 Walter Pyramid, Long Beach, California, USA
1. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs X
Takeshita will also be at NJPW USA’s December show. With two dates here for the rest of 2024 one of them would surely be a good place to defend the AEW International Title.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “AEX32 SANTIAGO 2025”, 08-09/02/2025 Mapocho Station Cultural Center, Santiago, Chile
Both Yamashita and Itoh have filmed videos promoting their matches at the AEX convention. It sounds like there might be matches featuring local wrestlers as well as whoever else TJPW sends over. At least Yamashita and Itoh said they would like to fight whoever Chile can throw at them.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “THE COLLECTIVE 2025”, 17-19/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
The actual shows haven’t been officially announced yet but The Collective tagged DDT and TJPW in their tweet announcing next year’s edition of Wrestlemania Week in Las Vegas. I’ll be there for sure!
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE TOUR 2024 AUTUMN”, 19/10/2024 Miyagi Yume Messe Miyagi West Building Hall
1. Next Generation Tournament ’24 – Round 1B: Shino Suzuki Vs Kira Summer
2. 3 Way Match: Mahiro Kiryu Vs Kaya Toribami Vs Haru Kazashiro
3. Moka Miyamoto Vs Chika Nanase
4. Maki Itoh, Toga & Uta Takami Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
5. Mizuki Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa
6. Shoko Nakajima & Wakana Uehara Vs Rika Tatsumi & Suzume
7. Miu Watanabe & Arisu Endo Vs Yuki Kamifuku & HIMAWARI
Tomorrow Tokyo Joshi Pro heads over to Sendai. Both Miu Watanabe and Sayuri Namba are celebrating their birthdays too.
DDT “DDT PRO WRESTLING IN IKEBUKURO FULL MOON FESTIVAL 2024”, 19/10/2024 Tokyo Ikebukuro Nishiguchi Park Outdoor Theater
1. Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino Vs Soma Takao & Kazuki Hirata
2. Special Tag Match: Akito & Pokotan Vs Danshoku Dieno & Yoshihiko
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul Vs HARASHIMA, MIKAMI & Gota Ihashi
4. Yuki Ueno, MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
5. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi, Munetatsu Nakamura, Takeshi Masada & Mecha Mummy (c) Vs Keigo Nakamura, To-y, Yuya Koroku, Yuki Ishida & Kazuma Sumi
Before DDT heads to Korakuen Hall on Sunday they have a little matter of having a KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles match in Ikebukuro on Saturday. The last defence happened at a YMZ show back in June.
DDT “GOD BLESS DDT 2024”, 20/10/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Yuki Ueno, MAO, Shunma Katsumata & To-y Vs Soma Takao, Yukio Naya, Keigo Nakamura & Yuya Koroku
2. Super Sasadango Machine & Kazuki Hirata Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
3. DAMNATION T.A Vs SCHADENFREUDE International!: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON, MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada
4. Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino Vs Jun Akiyama & Yuki Ishida
5. DDT Extreme Title – nobodyknows+ Rules: Akito (c) Vs Danshoku Dieno
6. KO-D Openweight Title: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs HARASHIMA
The nobodyknows+ Rules were used once before, in a DDT Extreme Title match between Akito and Danshoku Dieno in fact. However Dieno has no memory of it, which is something that Akito anticipated. The rule is nine mystery victory conditions and banned moves will be given to the referee before the match. The ref will then secretly choose the one condition that must be met in order to win or lose the match. It will then be up to the wrestlers to discover for themselves what that condition is. Dieno was allowed to suggest one of the options, which is that you can win the match if you can get his pet dog Haku to place his paw in your hand. Will the referee choose that to be the winning condition or will it be something else?
Only six matches for a Korakuen show is unusual for DDT. They usually put down seven on the card previews. Is this where we’re going to get the next Right To Challenge Shield cash in? Both Shunma Katsumata and Soma Takao are there, they are in the same match and there sure are a couple of notable names in there with them. Could it be that, the DAMNATION T.A Vs SCHADENFREUDE International match turns into a war or Shinya Aoki Vs HARASHIMA goes close to an hour?
The soon to debut Haruto Sakuraba will be in attendance.
DDT/DEFY “DDT IN UTERO”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. Danshoku Dieno Vs Randy Myers
2. Gringo Loco Vs Yuni
3. Special Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Artemis Spencer Vs Gurv Shira & Harv Shira
4. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Kohei Kinoshita
Right after I posted this article, DDT went and announced their first bunch of matches for the DEFY weekend in Seattle next month. Kohei Kinoshita is an unexpected addition to the show and an unexpected opponent for Konosuke Takeshita for that matter. Daisuke Sasaki teams up with Artemis Spencer to face The Bollywood Boyz. Also Gringo Loco and Randy Myers are on the card representing the DEFY side.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TRIANGLER DTD”, 10/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Yuni
DDT “CAMPSITE PRO WRESTLING 2019 ~THE PROMISED NATURE LAND~”, 19/09/2019 Yamanashi Natureland Om 80 Fans
1. Falls Count Anywhere 5 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Konosuke Takeshita, MAO & Yuki Ueno Vs HARASHIMA, Antonio Honda & Makoto Oishi Vs Isami Kodaka, FUMA & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Yumehito Imanari Vs Yuna Manase, Yuki Kamifuku & Mina Shirakawa
God it feels like it’s been forever since I wrote so much about AEW in this series of articles. Konosuke Takeshita is getting more screen time with the one and only Kazuchika Okada becoming his new main target. Also Yuka Sakazaki returned to the ring and had several matches surrounding the AEW Women’s World Title. It even ended with an unusual reunion with somebody she used to know from Tokyo Joshi Pro. Sakazaki’s story did not end with her achieving gold and glory. It looks like she’s able to stick around this time though. She might end up taking a back seat in AEW from here on out or maybe she’ll drop down to Ring Of Honor but fingers crossed at least we all get to see her again.
Speaking of TJPW, a good few of the women there spent a lot of time travelling this month. Maki Itoh went back to America to finish off what was left of her disrupted tour. Shoko Nakajima reminded everyone she is quite the tournament wrestler by reaching yet another final. Yuki Kamifuku is continuing to prove why she deserves to be called the Queen Of Asia Champion. Plus in a change of pace we also got Raku & Pom Harajuku going on an adventure together in Thailand. As shown above Kenoh from NOAH was there too but he’s not important.
AEW “COLLISION”, 06/09/2024 NOW Arena, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA
1. Continental Contenders Challenge: Konosuke Takeshita Vs The Beast Mortos
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 13/09/2024 Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) Vs Action Andretti (w/Lio Rush & Leila Grey)
MKW “CHAMPIONSHIP SUPERCARD FROM SHANGHAI”, 14/09/2024 Bandai Namco Shanghai Base, Shanghai, China
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) defeated Crystal (w/ Chairman Al)
AEW “COLLISION”, 14/09/2024 Nutter Center, Dayton, Ohio, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki Vs Serena Deeb
GCW “BAD ONE”, 14/09/2024 Harpos Concert Center, Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kylie Rae
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 18/09/2024 Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki & Queen Aminata Vs Mariah May & Serena Deeb
2. Kazuchika Okada, Matthew Jackson & Nicholas Jackson Vs Will Ospreay, Konosuke Takeshita & Kyle Fletcher
AEW “DYNAMITE – GRAND SLAM”, 25/09/2024 Arthur Ashe Stadium, New York City, New York, USA
1. AEW Women’s World Title: Mariah May (c) Vs Yuka Sakazaki
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 27/09/2024 MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Angelico
SETUP “CHAOPHRAYA VOYAGE: 12TH ANNIVERSARY OF THAI WRESTLING”, 28/09/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title – 3 Way Match: Matcha (c) Vs Raku Vs Pom Harajuku
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Results
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 04/09/2024 UW Panther Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
1. Dark Match: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Komander (w/ Alex Abrahantes) (?:??).
Not much to talk about Takeshita’s first match of the month. He beat Komander in a post-Dynamite dark match that followed up on the 4 Way they were both a part of the week prior. The result was pretty much the same here as it was in the 4 Way. Don Callis ordered Takeshita to give Komander another beating after the match but The Beast Mortos ran down to stop him. Takeshita and Mortos then got into a pull apart brawl.
AEW “COLLISION”, 06/09/2024 NOW Arena, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA
1. Continental Contenders Challenge: Konosuke Takeshita defeated The Beast Mortos with the Raging Fire (12:00).
So a few days later Takeshita and Mortos faced off with a little something extra on the line. The winner would qualify for a 4 Way Match at “ALL OUT” that also includes Okada putting the AEW Continental Title on the line. Takeshita discovered it would take a lot more than just using his big Elbow Strike to knock the minotaur down and out. Mortos was hard headed enough to keep standing after taking a German Suplex that made him land on the top of his dome. The two of them also fought up to the top rope where Mortos lifted Takeshita up in a Gorilla Press and threw him down from such a high height. Things went to even more of a standstill after a Double Heabutt spot but Takeshita survived the trampling and got in a critical hit by using a Busaiku Knee Strike. After that he used the Raging Fire on Mortos and that won him the match.
F1RST “SATURDAY NIGHT NITRO”, 07/09/2024 Mall Of America, Bloomington, Minnesota, USA
1. Allie Katch & Effy defeated Danhausen & Maki Itoh when Effy pinned Danhausen with a Cradle (?:??).
The famous Mall Of America was the location where Itoh met up with Danhausen again. This time they were teaming up as Very Cute, Very Evil Makihausen and that meant Itoh showed up in face paint! Their match against Bussy started off as a contest to see who was cutest between all four of them. Danhausen & Itoh both poured a jar of teeth down their opponents’ mouths and then kicked their faces. But things went wrong for them when they both tried to curse their opponents. Effy & Allie Katch both ducked the curse, leaving Danhausen & Itoh to curse each other! They started arguing leading to Danhausen giving Itoh a shove. Katch didn’t like what she was seeing and pushed Danhausen away from Itoh, unintentionally tripping him over Effy. Effy then pinned down Danhausen for the three count while Itoh got a comforting hug from Katch.
AEW “ALL OUT 2024”, 07/09/2024 NOW Arena, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA
1. AEW Continental Title – 4 Way Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) defeated Mark Briscoe, Orange Cassidy and Konosuke Takeshita when Okada pinned Cassidy with the Rainmaker (14:59). *V5 for Kazuchika Okada.
Okada is as big of a target that Takeshita could ask for in all of pro wrestling let alone AEW or Japan. But he had two other bodies to contend with because Orange Cassidy and Mark Briscoe were also in the match aiming to win the Continental Title. He needed eyes in the back of his head and that was proven by the finish. Takeshita almost beat Briscoe with the Powerdrive Knee but Cassidy broke the pin. Takeshita then countered the Orange Punch with an Elbow Strike and tried to set up the Raging Fire only for Okada to stop him. Okada then gave Briscoe the Rainmaker, Dropkicked Takeshita from the apron to the floor and after a small scare from Cassidy, he pinned Cassidy with the Rainmaker to remain champion. The cameras made sure to stay on Takeshita while Okada left to celebrate his victory. Things aren’t over between them yet.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 11/09/2024 (Aired 13/09/2024) Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) defeated Action Andretti (w/Lio Rush & Leila Grey) with the Raging Fire (11:53).
Things at the PPV didn’t go Takeshita’s way so it was time to bounce back. Action Andretti turned out to be more of a challenge than the match-up suggested on paper. However Andretti missed a Springboard 450 and also jumped right into an Elbow Smash. Takeshita then used the Powerdrive Knee but held up Andretti at a 2 count. That was just so Takeshita could use the Raging Fire to end things on an even more painful looking note.
AEW “COLLISION”, 12/09/2024 (Aired 14/09/2024) Nutter Center, Dayton, Ohio, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki defeated Serena Deeb with the Magical Girl Splash (10:38).
Guess who returned after being sidelined with an injury for the last five months? Sakazaki was back and her first AEW match in a long time was going to be against Serena Deeb. That was a matchup AEW were building up to anyway before Sakazaki got hurt so it seemed like whatever was planned back then was held aside all this time until Sakazaki was ready again. But first she introduced herself to Mariah May backstage and told her she is coming after the AEW Women’s Title. May didn’t take too kindly to that idea but her violent threats were no sold by Sakazaki. Later in the show Sakazaki went on to not only beat Deeb but also fend off a post-match attack from May. Sakazaki celebrated a good night by holding up the title belt.
MKW “CHAMPIONSHIP SUPERCARD FROM SHANGHAI”, 14/09/2024 Bandai Namco Shanghai Base, Shanghai, China
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) defeated Crystal (w/ Chairman Al) (?:??). *V3 for Yuki Kamifuku.
The reigning Queen Of Asia Champion travelled to China for her latest title defence. Kamifuku headlined a Middle Kingdom Wrestling show in Shanghai, beating Crystal to retain one of the Asian Double Crown belts. She gave a speech to the fans in both Chinese and English after the match.
GCW “BAD ONE”, 14/09/2024 Harpos Concert Center, Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Maki Itoh defeated Kylie Rae with the Stunner (9:23).
Maki Itoh’s GCW dates in August got cut short due to injury but she was able to come back this month to get through the second half of her latest tour. Nobody was happier to see her than Kylie Rae because they were meant wrestle each other on one of Itoh’s cancelled dates. It didn’t take long for the fun and games to turn into slaps and strikes though. In fact Rae started losing her cool and started pulling cheap tricks to try and win like using the ropes to leverage a pin. The ref caught her doing it though and stopped his count. Itoh’s hard head gave her the defensive advantage and she was able to beat Rae with the Stunner. Itoh forgave Rae for playing dirty and the two made up after the match.
GCW “THA G-CODE”, 15/09/2024 Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA
1. 4 Way Match: Sawyer Wreck defeated Maki Itoh, Brooke Havok and Dark Sheik when Wreck pinned Havok with a Neck Hanging Bomb (7:54).
The next night Itoh found herself in a 4 Way Match with opponents old and new. She’s been in the ring with both Sawyer Wreck and Dark Sheik a bunch of times while Brooke Havok was a new face for her to wrestle. Itoh was taken out by a Tornado Kick from Shiek, Havok dropped Sheik with a Pumphandle Drop and Wreck then pinned Sheik with a Neck Hanging Bomb. Itoh was too far away to break the pin before the three count.
DPW “CAROLINA CLASSIC”, 15/09/2024 Durham Convention Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
1. Battle Of The Best – Round 2: Shoko Nakajima defeated Jada Stone with the Diving Senton (?:??).
The Big Kaiju returned to Deadlock Pro to compete in the next round of the Battle Of The Best tournament. However plans had to change when her scheduled opponent Trish Adora was unable to compete. Jada Stone grabbed the opportunity to fill in for Adora by winning a pre-show match held to determine Nakajima’s new opponent. She put up a good fight but in the end Nakajima booked her place in the final using the Diving Senton to win.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 18/09/2024 Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki & Queen Aminata defeated Mariah May & Serena Deeb by Disqualification when May attacked Sakazaki with the AEW Women’s World Title Belt (7:57).
2. Will Ospreay, Konosuke Takeshita & Kyle Fletcher defeated Kazuchika Okada, Matthew Jackson & Nicholas Jackson when Fletcher pinned Matt Jackson after the Coriolis (21:05).
Things are getting a little more tense with Takeshita now. He had another chance to face Okada in the ring but had to team with other members of The Don Callis Family. There’s a little “family” rivalry brewing between him and Will Ospreay so some jealous looks during tags were hard to hide from everybody. Okada also had The Young Bucks backing him up to be a pain in everyone’s sides. Ospreay & Kyle Fletcher pulled out the win in the end but the aftermath only showed there are more signs of infighting between Takeshita and Ospreay.
It was now clear that Sakazaki will be facing May for the AEW Women’s Title near the end of the month. A preview tag had Sakazaki dealing with both May and Deeb again. Her tag partner Queen Aminata had also been spending the month so far in a similar position so they became a team with common enemies. Sakazaki had was about to beat Deeb with the Magical Girl Splash again for the second time in a row when May ran into the ring with her title belt and hit Sakazaki behind the head with it. The match ended in a DQ but May continued to attack Sakazaki with the title to get her own back for what happened a week earlier.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 21/09/2024 (Aired 27/09/2024) MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Angelico with the Raging Fire (9:09).
Due to AEW’s taping schedule this match was kept in the bag for a week and didn’t air until near the end of the month. Just like with the Andretti match, Angelico made the grave mistake of going high risk and jumping his way right into an Elbow Smash to the jaw. The Blue Thunder Bomb and then the Raging Fire ended Takeshita’s month with a win.
AEW “DYNAMITE – GRAND SLAM”, 25/09/2024 Arthur Ashe Stadium, New York City, New York, USA
1. AEW Women’s World Title: Mariah May (c) defeated Yuka Sakazaki with the Storm Zero (6:11). *V2 for Mariah May.
Sadly for Sakazaki her long delayed quest to win the AEW Women’s Title ended in failure over at Arthur Ashe Stadium. May beat her clean by blocking the Magical Girl Splash with her knees and then using the Storm Zero for the three count. May wanted to continue attacking Sakazaki after the match but Willow Nightingale ran down to make the save. Then in an interesting reunion Mina Shirakawa made her entrance with the intention of protecting her close friend by evening the odds. However her “incredible live show charisma” was such a distraction that Nightingale dropped her guard allowing May strike her from behind with the title belt. May ran off to celebrate with Shirakawa, Shirakawa was confused by her actions and Sakazaki tried to chase after May before stopping in front of her old workmate.
SETUP “CHAOPHRAYA VOYAGE: 12TH ANNIVERSARY OF THAI WRESTLING”, 28/09/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title – 3 Way Match: Matcha (c) defeated Raku and Pom Harajuku when Matcha pinned Raku with the Stunner (?:??). *V3 for Matcha.
Both Raku and Harajuku made their way over to Thailand to be part of a big SETUP show. The event also included Kenoh as one of the headline stars but I’m not here to write about him. Raku got to perform for the crowd at the start of the show and then returned later to fight for a championship. Matcha put her SETUP All Asia Women’s Title on the line against her and Harajuku in a 3 Way Match. Raku took a bried nap in the middle of the ring, forcing Matcha and Harajuku to wrestle each other over her. Raku and Harajuku went on to have some fun at Matcha’s expense until the champion reached her limit and put a stop to it all. Harajuku gave Raku the Pom de Justice but Matcha then threw Harajuku out of the ring. She then gave Raku a Stunner and went for the pin. The ref stopped himself at two thinking there was a kickout (there clearly wasn’t) so Matcha gave Raku another Stunner and this time got the three count. Afterward Matcha and Harajuku got into an argument and began to fight, forcing the ringside officials to pull them apart. You read that right, Pom Harajuku was in a pull apart brawl!
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Upcoming Appearances
DEXCON “JAM OF THE JOSHIS”, 13/10/2024 Brawl Pit Bulusan, Manila, Philippines
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c/c) Vs Chelsea Marie
If Kamifuku can successfully defend the Double Asian Crown against Xiz Zhao in TJPW then she will next bring the Queen Of Asia Title over to the Philippines. “The Pinay Vixen” Chelsea Marie won a match at the last DEXCON show to become Kamifuku’s challenger for this joshi themed event.
DPW “SUPER BATTLE”, 13/10/2024 Grady Cole Center, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
1. Battle Of The Best – Final: Shoko Nakajima Vs Dani Luna
A future shot for the DPW Women’s World Title is within reach for Nakajima. All she has to do is beat Dani Luna in the Battle Of The Best final.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 1”, 19/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Mike Bailey Vs Konosuke Takeshita
A familiar friend and foe will be Takeshita’s first opponent at Maple Leaf Pro’s opening weekend. It will be the first time he wrestles Mike Bailey in Bailey’s home country of Canada.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 2”, 20/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Josh Alexander Vs Konosuke Takeshita
The Takeshita Vs Bailey match announcement also cleared up which night the Josh Alexander match would take place. It looks like it will be the main event of the entire weekend.
With Thailand checked off, Pom Harajuku’s next trip will be to Singapore Pro Wrestling for a match against Alexis Lee. She is going to try and avoid being bitten while Lee will try to avoid her shins getting kicked off.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TJPW BRIGHT EYES”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
I bet we’ll start getting some more announcements soon. TJPW are sending over Miu Watanabe, Suzume, Arisu Endo, Yuki Kamifuku, Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima, Rika Tatsumi, Mizuki, Maki Itoh, Yuki Aino, Moka Miyamoto and Wakana Uehara. The DEFY side will be using 6-8 local/American wrestlers and the card is expected to have 6 or 7 matches.
DDT/DEFY “DDT IN UTERO”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
The DDT show later that day is advertising Konosuke Takeshita, Daisuke Sasaki, Dansoku Dieno, MAO, Gringo Loco, Shota, Yuni and Yoshihiko to all appear.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TRIANGLER DTD”, 10/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
The next day will bring everyone together for one big finale.
GCW “CHAOS IN KENTUCKY”, 14/11/2024 Headliners Music Hall, Louisville, Kentucky, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
Once the DEFY shows are over Yamashita will be sticking around in the US for one of GCW’s big tentpole weekends of the year.
GCW “GATEWAY TO THE DEATH”, 15/11/2024 Pop’s Nightclub, Sauget, Illinois, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
There was a piece of an interview with Yamashita from a Japanese site I saw during the month. She said something like this has been the first year in her career where she hasn’t worried about the pressure of being the company ace or the headline champion for another promotion. It allowed her to learn how to just enjoy wrestling without carrying the weight of a company on her shoulders (the interview was before she won the Princess Tag Team Titles with Itoh so so much for that break). That could explain why she’s drawn to GCW. She gets to do things she wouldn’t normally do in TJPW, like smack someone over the head with a steel chair.
GCW “NICK GAGE INVITATIONAL 9”, 16/11/2024 Level 13 Event Center, Orlando, Florida, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
Yamashita’s not going to enter the Nick Gage Invitational tournament, is she? There’s already another Yamashita taking part in it.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “AEX32 SANTIAGO 2025”, 09/02/2025 Mapocho Station Cultural Center, Santiago, Chile
Next February TJPW will be making its first mark in Chile. They are sending over a few wrestlers to have matches at the AEX Santiago anime convention. Yamashita and Itoh are the first names announced. The event graphics hints at least two other people from the roster will join them. Apparently Chiitan is going to be there too so 121000000 can have a reunion with the mascot.
The end of the summer turned out to not go as planned for a few people. Maki Itoh suffered a hand injury that cut short her latest GCW tour. Yuna Manase had some travel problems get in the way of her first time visit to America but at least her story ended happily for her. She ended up winning a championship over there! Things went smoother for Tokyo Joshi Pro as their co-promoted show with EVE in England was a big success. The EVE promoters have their own stories to tell about searching for venues, dealing with the ticket operators and having last minute changes with their production team but once the show began it could not have gone any better in the venue s far as I could tell. Miyu Yamashita also had time to wrestle in a few other places before she heads back to Japan.
The end of the month also had Konosuke Takeshita return to AEW. After his performance in the G1 Climax reminded everyone of his talents (not that we should need any reminding), there is understandably a lack of enthusiasm online to see him go back to AEW where his main role is to stand behind Don Callis’ shoulder week after week. That his first match back happened on Rampage doesn’t do much to quell those worries. With that said though it was a cracking match anyway. If the second Continental Classic happens this year we’re probably still over a month or to away from it.
Heading into September we’re going to see Itoh go back to America. It does not sound like she’s at 100% but she isn’t going to say no to making some more money over there if she’s in any way able to. Some TJPW wrestlers will be spreading their wings around Asia with championships there for the taking. There is a new company opening up in Canada that Takeshita and Yamashita will appear in. Wrestling fans in general might do well to pay attention to that place in regards to whether or not it will effect TNA in the long run given who has been associated with it so far. But if you don’t care about that and want to keep talk to just DDT and TJPW, there is the road to Seattle coming up. We’ll be there before you know it!
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 28/08/2024 (Aired 30/08/2024) State Farm Arena, Champaign, Illinois, USA
1. 4 Way Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs The Beast Mortos Vs Komander Vs Lio Rush
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Results
GCW “NOW AND FOREVER”, 02/08/2024 TempleLive Cleveland Masonic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
1. GCW Extreme Title: Maki Itoh (c) defeated John Wayne Murdoch with a School Boy (5:51). *V2 for Maki Itoh.
Itoh’s first GCW appearance of her tour was against one of the promotion’s death match specialists John Wayne Murdoch. It was also made into a GCW Extreme Title defence. Murdoch got under Itoh’s skin early when he grabbed a “Respect Maki Itoh Or Die” sign and stomped on it in the ring. He then tried to win her over by allowing Itoh to sing for the fans but that was only so he could attack her from behind. Murdhoch brought in a steel chair and tried to Suplex Itoh onto it. Itoh avoided the move and gave Murdoch a Stunner, making him land back and head first into the chair. She then rolled him up with a School Boy to win the match and retain the Extreme Title.
GCW “CAN I TRUST YOU?”, 04/08/2024 House Of Independents, Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA
1. GCW Extreme Title: Maki Itoh (c) defeated Allie Katch with a Mouse Trap (8:32). *V3 for Maki Itoh.
Later in the weekend Itoh had another Extreme Title defence, this time against Allie Katch. The two get along and have teamed together in the past so their match was all trying to outdo each other. Itoh tried to trick Katch with crocodile tears so Katch decided to lie down and let Itoh do a Kokeshi Headbutt. Except Katch got back up and cut her off to take control of the match. Itoh fired up when her head hit the turnbuckle and she hit a Draping DDT onto the ring apron. The fight came down to duelling strikes and then Itoh trying several different pinning combinations. She finally got the three count on Katch by giving her the Mouse Trap cradle.
SPW “HARDCORE ISLAND 2: A FINE CITY”, 16/08/2024 Foo Chow Building, Singapore
1. 3 Way Match: Alexis Lee defeated Miyu Yamashita and Kaya Toribami when Lee pinned Toribami after the Skull Kick from Yamashita (?:??).
Over in Singapore both Yamashita and Kaya Toribami were flying the flag for TJPW in a 3 Way Match against Alexis Lee. It was every woman for herself and Lee took advantage of that. Yamashita knocked down Toribami with the Skull Kick only for Lee to steal the pin.
KITSUNE “YABAI!”, 18/08/2024 1110 Bates Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Kitsune World Title: Yuna Manase defeated Megan Bayne and J-Rod when Manase pinned J-Rod with a Lariat (10:11). *Yuna Manase becomes the 2nd Kitsune World Champion!
It was a long journey for Manase to get to America (more details at the end of the report) but she finally got there and ended up winning a championship! Due to circumstances with her visa, Sayaka Unagi couldn’t make the show and had to vacate the Kitsune World Title. It was now up for grabs in the 3 Way Match that Manase was booked in against J-Rod and Megan Bayne. At one point Manase and Bayne worked together and gave J-Rod the Doomsday Device. Bayne was then taken out of play by J-Rod’s Spear. J-Rod went for the same move on Manase but missed and hit the corner. Manase knocked her down with the Lariat and got the three count to win the title! She celebrated by getting the fans to shout “We are Ganbare!” along with her.
EVE/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “EVE X TJPW: JAPAN & UK WRESTLING UNITE!”, 24/08/2024 Conway Hall, London, England ??? Fans – Unannounced
0. Triple Threat Match: Skye Smitson defeated Anita Vaughan and Kasey when Smitson pinned Vaughan with the Smitson Effect (7:49)
1. Mahiro Kiryu defeated HIMAWARI with the Spinebuster (11:15).
2. Alex Windsor defeated Lena Kross with a Sharpshooter (11:46).
3. Raku defeated Session Moth Martina with the Hurricane Turn (6:18).
4. Zizi & Safire Reed Vs Aja Kong & Max The Impaler defeated Zizi & Safire Reed when Kong pinned Reed with the 2nd Rope Diving Elbow Drop (11:06).
5. EVE Title: Nina Samuels (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Starstruck (19:39). *V5 for Nina Samuels.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 28/08/2024 (Aired 30/08/2024) State Farm Arena, Champaign, Illinois, USA
1. 4 Way Match: Konosuke Takeshita defeated The Beast Mortos, Komander (w/ Alex Abrahantes) and Lio Rush when Takeshita pinned Komander with the Raging Fire (13:53).
Takeshita’s first appearance in AEW since returning from the G1 was for a wild 4 Way Match against The Beast Mortos, Komander and Lio Rush. He was back to using his actual AEW theme and Callis kept himself to the commentary table. The match was wild as you had the power and speed of Takeshita and Mortos along with the speed and agility of Komander and Rush all mixing up together. Mortos soon wiped out Rush with a Spear and broke Komander over his knee. Takeshita then hit Mortos with the Powerdrive Knee to get rid of him. Komander tried to roll up Takeshita but got a nearfall. Takeshita spun him into the Blue Thunder Bomb and used the Raging Fire to get the win.
MLW “SUMMER OF THE BEASTS”, 29/08/2024 Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York, USA
1. Delmi Exo defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Delmi Driver (6:15).
In an MLW rematch from last December, Delmi Exo got her win back from Yamashita. By winning the match Exo declared herself the No. 1 contender for the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title.
GCW “LIVE FAST DIE YOUNG”, 31/08/2024 Thalia Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Megan Bayne defeated Miyu Yamashita by Disqualification when Broski Jimmy attacked Bayne with a Chair (15:38).
The rematch between Yamashita and Bayne from DREAMWAVE earlier this year took place in GCW but was ruined by outside interference. Bayne gave Yamashita a Choke Slam and was about to use the Tombstone Piledriver when Broski Jimmy ran into the ring with a chair and hit Bayne with it. Yamashita stopped the attack and gave Jimmy the Skull Kick. Bayne got her hands on him too with a Choke Slam and Yamashita followed up by hitting Jimmy over the head with the chair! Bayne then finished him off with the Tombstone. After that was done the two women had a stare down before deciding to shake each other’s hands.
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Upcoming Appearances
F1RST “SATURDAY NIGHT NITRO”, 07/09/2024 Mall Of America, Bloomington, Minnesota, USA
1. Allie Katch & Effy Vs Danhausen & Maki Itoh
The second half of Itoh’s American tour is going ahead despite her injury. One of her next matches will be to team with Danhausen to take on Bussy. That does not sound like the most physically demanding of matchups so even if her hand is not at 100% she’ll be find going out there. The F1RST show is also noteworthy because it is their annual visit to the Mall Of America were the first episode of WCW Nitro was famously taped. This is the third year in a row F1RST are running a show there.
MKW “CHAMPIONSHIP SUPERCARD FROM SHANGHAI”, 14/09/2024 Bandai Namco Shanghai Base, Shanghai, China
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Crystal
The next Queen Of Asia Title defence is taking place in China next month. Crystal believes Yuki Kamifuku is not ready to take on an opponent with her kind of wrath, tenacity and power.
GCW “BAD ONE”, 14/09/2024 Harpos Concert Center, Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kylie Rae
Even after Itoh pulled out of her August dates, GCW continued to promote her September appearances so they already knew how long her recovery would take. Her match with Kyle Rae that was meant to happen on 31st August will now take place on 14th September.
GCW “THA G-CODE”, 15/09/2024 Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
This will be the weekend before “WRESTLE PRINCESS V” back in Japan so she will at least get some ring rust off her before heading back to TJPW.
DPW “CAROLINA CLASSIC”, 15/09/2024 Durham Convention Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
1. Battle Of The Best – Round 2: Shoko Nakajima Vs Trish Adora
Another visit to Deadlock Pro for Shoko Nakajima as she continues the inaugural Battle Of The Best tournament. She faces Trish Adora in Round 2 and the winner advances to the final scheduled for 13th October.
SETUP “CHAOPHRAYA VOYAGE: 12TH ANNIVERSARY OF THAI WRESTLING”, 28/09/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title – 3 Way Match: Matcha (c) Vs Raku Vs Pom Harajuku
Fresh back from visiting England, Raku is going to travel again this time to Thailand and with Pom Harajuku following her. The travel buddies will be opponents though as they both take on Matcha for the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title in a 3 Way free for all.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 1”, 19/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Josh Alexander Vs Konosuke Takeshita?
Some interesting news coming out of the Canadian scene. Scott D’Amore was fired as president of TNA back in February and in the meantime went about establishing a new venture called Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling. Takeshita will be there for the debut weekend of shows. The first match announced for the weekend is Takeshita against Josh Alexander in a rematch of their 20 minute draw from Garden State Pro Wrestling back in July 2022. Maple Leaf Pro haven’t made clear yet if the match is happening on Night 1 or Night 2.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 2”, 20/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Josh Alexander Vs Konosuke Takeshita?
Yamashita will also be booked for both shows that weekend.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “BRIGHT EYES”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
The twelve wrestlers from TJPW making the trip are Miu Watanabe, Suzume, Arisu Endo, Yuki Kamifuku, Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima, Rika Tatsumi, Mizuki, Maki Itoh, Yuki Aino, Moka Miyamoto and Wakana Uehara. There will be around 6-8 local or American wrestlers also on the card for a total of 6 or 7 matches.
DDT/DEFY “DDT IN UTERO”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
Takeshita is the first DDT wrestler announced to be on the show.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TRIANGLER DTD”, 10/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
Both Takeshita and the dozen TJPW wrestlers will also be at the weekend finale.
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Cancelled Appearances
KITSUNE “LOVE MY SHOW!”, 17/08/2024 Brick X Brick, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Aspyn Rose & Yuna Manase Vs Aria Perkins & Delmi Exo
As mentioned above Manase had a hell of an ordeal to go through just to make it to America. Travel from Japan was heavily effected by an incoming typhoon that week and her flight was delayed by many hours. So her first match for Kitsune the day before her title match had to be changed into something without her. Then when she finally made it to America it still took a few more hours to get through immigration customs.
GCW “NO SIGNAL IN THE HILLS PT. 4”, 17/08/2024 Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh Vs Mance Warner & Broski Jimmy
Itoh’s injury cancelled not one but two matches against Mance Warner this month. She would have faced him for the GCW World Title in Japan and then a tag match in America a few days later.
GCW “SAVE ME”, 18/08/2024 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
No appearance at Salt Lake City for Itoh either.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 1”, 24/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kerry Morton
I think Kerry Morton lost his booking because he didn’t wrestle on the show from what I could find.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 2”, 25/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Itoh probably missed out on a few extra Extreme Title defences because of her injury. She is still the champion as far as I’m aware.
GCW “LIVE FAST DIE YOUNG”, 31/08/2024 Thalia Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kylie Rae
Kylie Rae ended up facing Brooke Havok instead.
INSPIRE A.D. “MAY THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN”, 01/09/2024 Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA
The hottest and most grueling pro wrestling tournament of the year has just finished and Konosuke Takeshita was a featured part of it. His entry into this year’s G1 Climax was done as representation for both AEW and DDT. It makes him the second wrestler with a DDT contract to compete in the tournament after Kota Ibushi in 2013 and 2015. With nine other wrestlers to compete against in his block and a couple extra non-tournament matches to deal with in between, Takeshita did not waste any opportunity to get his name out there in a New Japan ring. This was a tour where he got to experience so much of NJPW’s current form and he left plenty of options open if he ever gets to come back and wrestle for the company more often. His performances definitely had wrestling fans look at him and wonder why AEW hasn’t been treating him the same way. Let’s take a look at how things went for him.
9. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (2) defeated Yota Tsuji (0) with the Raging Fire (17:16).
Takeshita jumped off to a great start on day one by beating this year’s New Japan Cup winner Yota Tsuji. The lead up to the match had both wrestlers talking about how it was up to them to take lead of the current generation of wrestling in Japan. Takeshita used the Jumping Knee as a counter block for Tsuji’s Gene Blaster finisher. After hitting the Blue Thunder Bomb he then used the Spinning Falcon Arrow to get the win. He has renamed that move the Raging Fire and you are going to see it often from here. Takeshita warned the rest of the block that he sees the wrestling world differently from the rest of them.
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 23/07/2024 Hiroshima Sun Plaza Hall 1,972 Fans
4. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (4) defeated Jeff Cobb (2) with the Raging Fire (10:28).
Takeshita’s second match was delayed by a day because he had to go fight Masato Tanaka in DDT. Turns out that match was just the warm up he needed to take on Jeff Cobb, the reigning NJPW WORLD TV Champion. The strength and size of Cobb made it more difficult for Takeshita to use the Raging Fire on. But one good Elbow Smash weakened Cobb enough for Takeshita to nail the move and win his second match. Takeshita used the same Elbow Smash to beat Tanaka one day earlier so he declared his right elbow will take over the world!
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 25/07/2024 Sun Messe Kagawa 1,219 Fans
9. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: Yuya Uemura (6) defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (4) with the Kannuki Suplex (23:11).
The first road block to stop Takeshita in his tracks was Yuya Uemura. The two were both unbeaten going into the main event and had seen each other at points in America during their excursions. They gave fans a wild back and forth match. No matter what Takeshita did, Uemura took it and kept on fighting. He got the win over Takeshita by using the Kannuki Suplex, a move that trapped Takeshita’s shoulders down into the mat for the three count. An angry Takeshita told reporters he wants to see Uemura reach the end of the tournament so he can repay this loss to him.
1. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & HENARE defeated Katsuya Murashima & Shoma Kato when TAKESHITA pinned Murashima with an Elbow Butt (6:53).
This was the first non-tournament match Takeshita got to take part in during the tour. New Japan decided to have him team with United Empire wrestlers starting with his next block opponent HENARE. Together they took on and handily defeated two young lion wrestlers Katsuya Murashima & Shoma Kato. Things were tense between Takeshita & HENARE for the entire match and they continued glaring at each other afterwards. HENARE complained to reporters that as the NEVER Openweight Champion he should not be put in the opening match with rookies and an outsider. He doesn’t like Takeshita acting like he is better than New Japan. If Takeshita actually likes NJPW then why did he go to AEW instead of here? Kato had nicer things to say about Takeshita because they are both from Osaka. If they ever fight each other again, he will remember everything Takeshita did to him today.
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 28/07/2024 Fukuoka International Center 1,780 Fans
7. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (6) defeated HENARE (4) with the Raging Fire (13:19).
The next day Takeshita and HENARE had their battle, tearing lumps out of each other. Whenever one took the lead, the other had an answer to it. Takeshita hit the Jumping Knee only for HENARE to fire back with a Jumping Headbutt. HENARE went for the Streets Of Rage but Takeshita countered it into a Fisherman Buster. Takeshita continued on with the attack and kept HENARE down for the count with a Vertical Drop Brainbuster followed by the Raging Fire. The two fist bumped each other after the match, showing everyone they had earned each other’s respect. Takeshita said HENARE has unwavering strength but still is not as strong as “The Alpha”. He then dropped a major hint that he’s been learning from a special mentor over in America. This mentor has entrusted him with the “Strong Style” NJPW is famous for. Who is this mentor? Takeshita won’t say anything about him other than “YeaOh!”
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 29/07/2024 Fukuoka International Center 1,757 Fans
5. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Francisco Akira defeated David Finlay & Gedo when Akira pinned Gedo with the Fireball (7:14).
The next chapter of Takeshita’s tournament had him interact with the Bullet Club WAR DOGS for the first time. By this point Takeshita seemed to be getting along with the United Empire and had no trouble teaming with Francisco Akira. The two of them won their match when Takeshita Clotheslined David Finlay out of the ring and Akira pinned Gedo with the Fireball, which is very much like the Somato except the move is done from behind aiming at the opponent’s back and shoulders. Finlay tried to provoke Takeshita after the match by holding up the IWGP Global Heavyweight Title. He then made accusations backstage that Takeshita has no loyalty towards anybody. Is he with DDT, AEW or New Japan? He should ask his friends in AEW just how dangerous Finlay is because Finlay is about to destroy another one of Tony Khan’s favorite toys!
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 31/07/2024 Yamaguchi KDDI Ishin Hall 1,021 Fans
9. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: David Finlay (6) defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (6) with the Overkill (18:23).
The good old Bullet Club style of cheating that everybody knows and absolutely loves took its toll on Takeshita here. Gedo distracted the referee a lot and pulled him out of the ring during a moment when Takeshita had the match won. Finlay hit Takeshita with a shillelagh but that wasn’t enough to beat him. Takeshita finally got rid of Gedo but his Raging Fire was countered into Finlay’s finisher the Overkill. Finlay got the three count with it while Takeshita kicked out a second too late. Finlay bragged about AEW being the place where the wrestlers who are not as good as him go and listed the former NJPW talent one by one. Takeshita said he will not accept the result. Being the Global Champion means Finlay will one day be standing at the center of the world. The next time they meet should be there so they can fight to see who is at the top.
1. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA, Jeff Cobb, HENARE & Francisco Akira defeated Hirooki Goto, Tomoaki Honma, Shoma Kato & Katsuya Murashima when Akira pinned Murashima with the Fireball (8:18).
Another day of non-tournament action gave Takeshita a chance to scout his next opponent Hirooki Goto. He was teaming with the familiar faces from United Empire again while Goto was with Tomoaki Honma and the two young lions. Plus the match was in Osaka, Takeshita’s home. He got into a few exchanges with Goto but the finish came down to Akira pinning Murashima. Takeshita admitted Goto is the one wrestler he is looking forward to fighting most. He will be ditching his nicknames and go into the match only as himself so the fans will see who is stronger, Goto or Takeshita?
7. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: Hirooki Goto (6) defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (6) with the GTR (14:20).
During this year’s G1, Goto turned into the sentimental favorite of the fans thanks to him delivering high level performances while being the oldest contestant in the tournament. His match with Takeshita here is considered one of the highlights. Takeshita was able to kick out of the Shoten Kai but ran into a Headbutt and was put away with the GTR. Goto said he got a sense of Takeshita’s spirit and came up with an idea. If Takeshita wants to continue wrestling in New Japan then he should join CHAOS! Goto will welcome him into the unit that might just so happen to have a deep connection with Takeshita’s mysterious mentor. Takeshita doesn’t sound too keen on the idea. After all he wants to bring in a new era of pro wrestling and it’s coming just around the corner. When that era arrives he will stand in front of Goto once more.
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 06/08/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1,503 Fans – Super No Vacancy
2. Jeff Cobb, KONOSUKE TAKESHITA, HENARE & Francisco Akira defeated Oleg Boltin, Toru Yano, El Phantasmo & Jado when HENARE submitted Jado with the Ultima (3:51).
It was back to hanging out with the United Empire for another non-tournament bout. Two of his opponents from the other team were people he hadn’t faced in his block yet. There was also Toru Yano & Jado there but El Phantasmo and Oleg Boltin became the targets of Takeshita’s focus. ELP still remembers Takeshita putting him through a table in violent fashion at “FORBIDDEN DOOR” a few months ago. He threatened to pull one out from under the ring so he could settle the score. Takeshita promised to destroy ELP again and warned Boltin he will soon fight against an Olympic level athlete.
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 07/08/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1,504 Fans
5. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (8) defeated El Phantasmo (4) with the Raging Fire (17:22).
Depending on who you hear from, this is being considered one of the best matches of the tournament. It even got the ol’ five star treatment from Dave Meltzer. ELP was on the brink of elimination so he threw everything he had against Takeshita and Takeshita responded in kind. Just like at “FORBIDDEN DOOR” Takeshita put ELP through a table, this time by using the Inhuman Driver. ELP narrowly avoided being counted out but collapsed during an Elbow Strike exchange. He had enough fight in him to keep kicking out of Takeshita’s signature moves but he was finally defeated with the Raging Fire. Takeshita has been friends on a first name basis with ELP for a while and always wanted to wrestle him one on one. People like the two of them want to move the audience and get them excited. Takeshita then made some comments to the media about Hiroshi Tanahashi. He remembers the trouble he caused in DDT when he wrestled on their shows back in 2015. Once the G1 is over Takeshita warns Tanahashi not to run away from him!
2. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & HENARE defeated Ren Narita & Yoshinobu Kanemaru when HENARE submitted Kanemaru with the Ultima (4:41).
As we head towards the closing stretch, Takeshita now had to experience the other side of Bullet Club, the House Of Torture stable. With HENARE on his side again the two of them defeated Ren Narita & Yoshinobu Kanemaru. Narita was an upcoming opponent for both Takeshita and HENARE so the two of them made sure to get his attention and show what they have in store for him. However Takeshita also admitted that he is still feeling sore from his match with ELP. This is the challenge everyone in the G1 faces as they reach closer to the end. What kind of injuries do they build up match by match and can they tough it out until the end?
4. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: Oleg Boltin (6) defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (8) with the Kamikaze (12:07).
What an upset! By this point Boltin was already considered out of the running but that didn’t stop him from scoring a massive victory that also put Takeshita’s hopes of reaching the playoff at risk. Boltin used his own German Suplex to go against Takeshita’s, then dropped him with the Verdict followed by the Kamikaze for the victory. Takeshita was impressed and said when he reaches the top he will add Boltin’s name to the list of the strongest wrestlers ever. He wants to see Boltin do his best so they can fight again some day.
3. Ren Narita, Yujiro Takahashi, SHO & Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA, Jeff Cobb, HENARE & Francisco Akira when Kanemaru pinned Akira with a Jackknife Pin (8:48).
The final days were leaving Takeshita in a dire situation. He was back in the ring for another non-tournament tag against the House Of Torture. This time Narita had a plan and attacked Takeshita’s increasingly injured leg. By the end of the match it was clear Takeshita was not going into his final block match in good condition. Narita rubbed it in by telling him not to let his guard down otherwise he will only get hurt.
7. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (10) defeated Ren Narita (10) with the Elbow Butt (16:47).
So it came down to this. The way Block B worked out on its last night meant that victory for either Takeshita or Narita would send them through to the playoff rounds. A draw would be good enough for Narita too but for Takeshita it was win or go home. House Of Torture made sure he had to fight through hell because EVIL and Dick Togo attacked Takeshita during his entrance. They would also interfere during the match but Takeshita heroically fought all of them off before dealing Nartia with a knock out blow to get the three count. Takeshita knows the fans don’t want to see hi G1 end yet so he invited them to all dream together with him because he will make to the final at Sumo Hall no matter what!
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 15/08/2024 Makuhari Messe International Exhibition Hall #9 1,111 Fans
1. G1 CLIMAX 34 – B Block Playoff: Yota Tsuji defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA with the Gene Blaster (21:30).
Yeah about that. Yota Tsuji had other ideas. The two of them made it to the first part of the B Block playoff. Now they had to face each other again in a rematch from Night 1. Sadly for Takeshita his G1 ended here. The Gene Blaster from Tsuji was the difference maker and Takeshita kicked out of it one second too late. Tsuji complimented Takeshita by telling him he is a better wrestler in New Japan than he is in AEW. Takeshita said he entered the tournament carrying expectations from both AEW and DDT. Then as it progressed he also ended up carrying expectations from New Japan fans and the Japanese wrestling world at large. He hoped to go to the finals so he could tell all of DDT’s wrestlers that there is nothing wrong with their style of wrestling. He will now go back to America and stand in an AEW ring again but there are many people in New Japan he will want to face somewhere in the future.
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 17/08/2024 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan 5,340 Fans
3. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA, Jeff Cobb & Callum Newman defeated Shota Umino, El Phantasmo & Jado when TAKESHITA pinned Jado with the Elbow Butt (8:33).
It’s not quite the end of Takeshita’s tour yet. He has a couple of bonus matches to go through on the final nights at Sumo Hall. He got to be in the ring with Shota Umino and Callum Newman for the first time in this tour because the two of them were busy over in the A Block until now. ELP and Jado were having teamwork problems which left Jado as easy pickings for Takeshita and his mighty Elbow Strike. With his time at NJPW coming to an end, Takeshita is starting to think about what to do if he ever comes back. CHAOS and United Empire are both showing interest in letting him join their units. But what if he decides to come back and bring The Don Callis Family with him instead?
NJPW “G1 CLIMAX 34”, 18/08/2024 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan 8,056 Fans
3. Mikey Nicholls & Robbie Eagles defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Francesco Akira when Eagles pinned Akira with the Hyperion (9:32).
Here is where we end things. Takeshita ended his tour by teaming with Akira one final time. Their opponents were Mikey Nicholls & Robbie Eagles from TMDK and that team’s victory helped set the tone for their front man Zack Sabre Jr. to win the tournament at the end of the night. Takeshita said this was the end of his tour with New Japan and he has no reason to look down on anything that happened to him during it. He leaves New Japan with his head held high knowing that their fans will continue watching over him. He will repay them by becoming a champion over in America.
Summer is here and everyone has either gone travelling or are getting their all their plans in order. Funny thing is the people usually being covered for their overseas matches spent most of July wrestling back in Japan. Konosuke Takeshita had a few AEW matches over and done with before he got ready for the G1 Climax. Then Maki Itoh was wrestling in Tokyo Joshi Pro finishing off her latest dates with them before she goes on another GCW tour. So most of the results below are filled up by Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima and CDK related matches.
It’s the rest of the summer that’s going to get busy. A lot of Itoh matches in GCW with Yamashita popping up here and there along the way. Also some TJPW appearances in Southeast Asia and the USA debut of Yuna Manase are all coming up soon. Then there is the matter of DDT and TJPW holding shows abroad with local promotions in places like London and Seattle. Grab some water and stay hydrated because it’s going to be a busy summer of wrestling everywhere.
Video starts at 2:27:50 for Match #1. Go to 2:52:58 for Match #2. IWA JAPAN “HARDCORE FOREVER”, 27/07/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Hardcore Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs Mister Suchart & Anont Alonzo Vs Ultramantis Black & Dr. Gore Black (w/ Kappa Kozo & Kappa Jr.)
2. IWA Japan SETUP World Title: Ultramantis Black (c) (w/ Dr. Gore Black, Kappa Kozo & Kappa Jr.) Vs Chris Brookes (w/ Masahiro Takanashi)
GCW “JOSH BARNETT’S BLOODSPORT XI”, 28/07/2024 Roulette Intermedium, New York City, New York, USA
1. Shayna Baszler Vs Miyu Yamashita
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Results
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 03/07/2024 (Aired 05/07/2024) Wintrust Arena, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita & Kyle Fletcher defeated Isiah Kassidy & Marq Quen when Fletcher pinned Quen with the Kneeling Piledriver (10:10).
Takeshita had bigger stuff to prepare for this month but still got some ring time in AEW before heading back to Japan. He and Kyle Fletcher fought against Private Party, surviving a close call against them. Isiah Kassidy joked around to promote Shark Week and then landed the Swanton Bomb on Fletcher. Marq Quen’s 450 Splash afterwards though was blocked by Fletcher’s knees and Takeshita came in to German Suplex him away. Private Party fought back with a Top Rope Frankensteiner into the Cutter to Takeshita followed by the Silly String to Fletcher. Takeshita kicked out of Quen’s 450 Splash, took out both members with Lariats and then gave Kassidy the Blue Thunder Bomb. Fletcher then got to finish off Kassidy with the Kneeling Piledriver.
DPW “DPW LIVE 7”, 06/07/2024 NC State Fairgrounds, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
1. Battle Of The Best – Round 1: Shoko Nakajima defeated Masha Slamovich with the Diving Senton (16:16).
Shoko Nakajima touched down on DPW and left North Carolina with a big victory against Masha Slamovich despite taking some heavy hits from her. Slamovich used a Sit Down Power Bomb and also countered the Unmanned Local Train Hold into a Running Air Raid Crash that landed right into a bottom turnbuckle. But Nakajima used the top ropes against Slamovich in order to use a Power Bomb of her own. Slamovich tried using the Power Bomb again but Nakajima slipped down and pulled her into the Double Arm DDT. After that it took a Diving Senton to finish her off and make Nakajima advance to the next round of Battle Of The Best.
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Tommy Billington with the Powerdrive Knee (13:29).
Takeshita’s last AEW appearance for the month was a noteworthy one because his opponent was Tommy Billington, the nephew of the late Dynamite Kid! The new generation Dynamite Kid gave Takeshita a good challenge but fell to the Powerdrive Knee. Don Callis then attempted to recruit Billington to The Don Callis Family by bringing up his family’s heritage. But that was just a trap for Takeshita and the rest of The Family to attack Billington from behind until FTR ran down to save him.
NORTH WRESTLING “THUNDER STRUCK 2”, 13/07/2024 Walker Dome, Newcastle, England
1. Lizzy Evo defeated Miyu Yamashita with an Inside Cradle (13:45).
This was a case of defeat being snatched from the jaws of victory here. Yamashita seemed to have a lot of the match under control until Lizzy Evo saw an opening to hit her with a Knee Strike to the face and then roll her into a Small Package for the three count out of nowhere. For Evo the result is payback for Yamashita beating her in EVE last year.
IWA JAPAN “HARDCORE FOREVER”, 27/07/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Hardcore Match: Mister Suchart & Anont Alonzo defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (c) and Ultramantis Black & Dr. Gore Black (w/ Kappa Kozo & Kappa Jr.) when Alonzo pinned Gore after a Choke Slam/Power Bomb Combo through the Table (?:??). *CDK fails in V2. THE GOOD DEAL becomes the 2nd IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Champions!
2. IWA Japan SETUP World Title: Ultramantis Black (c) (w/ Dr. Gore Black, Kappa Kozo & Kappa Jr.) defeated Chris Brookes (w/ Masahiro Takanashi) with a School Boy (?:??). *V1 for Ultramantis Black.
Whenever CDK goes over to Thailand for SETUP Pro Wrestling that’s enough trouble to handle by itself. This however was not just a SETUP show. It was an event using the IWA Japan banner to celebrate 30 years of the promotion’s existance. CDK came over to defend the IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles in a Hardcore 3 Way Match. They had to fight the previous champions THE GOOD DEAL as well as the UMA Corps pairing of Ultramantis Black and Dr. Gore Black. Things went crazy as everybody fought outside the ring. Mister Suchart even got on a motor scooter and crashed it into everyone at ringside! A stapler gun was brought into the ring for Brookes and Ultramantis to staple each other with. Ultramantis then took advantage of miscommunication between CDK to put Brookes through a mini ironing board with a Back Drop. Masahiro Takanashi was also taken out by Dr. Gore attacking him with a toilet seat. From that point on CDK were too hurt to do anything and THE GOOD DEAL put Gore through a table. Anont Alonzo pinned him afterwards to win the belts.
It did not end there though. Earlier in the show the brand new IWA Japan SETUP World Title was introduced to the world. However Ultramantis and the UMA Corps launched an attack to steal the belt. Brookes was so mad to lose the tag titles in the main event without being pinned that he challenged Ultramantis for a World Title match straight away! Ultramantis refused but then attacked Brookes with the belt, causing the impromptu match to begin. Brookes fought back from the disadvantage and Takanashi was still there to cut off interference from the UMA Corps. But Dr. Gore threw a chair into Brookes’ face at ringside allowing Ultramantis to roll him up and escape with his first successful title defence. The UMA Corps continued to attack CDK until THE GOOD DEAL returned to save the day.
GCW “JOSH BARNETT’S BLOODSPORT XI”, 28/07/2024 Roulette Intermedium, New York City, New York, USA
1. Shayna Baszler defeated Miyu Yamashita by TKO (8:37).
If there is any big story to talk about in this month’s article it is this one. Yamashita taking part in GCW’s Bloodsport event is notable in itself. She gave shoot boxing a go pretty early into her pro wrestling career and has the kind of martial arts cred that would get you booked for a show like this. The big news though was who they chose to be her opponent. In the main event she took on Shayna Baszler from WWE! It’s the latest move from WWE to open themselves up and show they are willing to work with other wrestling companies. It’s been noted online that the Bloodsport show featured talent from WWE/NXT, TNA, AEW/ROH, NJPW’s American arm, MLW and TJPW. Baszler ended up beating Yamashita by catching her Skull Kick, turning it into a Tombstone and then beginning to ground and pound her until the referee stepped in to stop the fight.
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Upcoming Appearances
GCW “NOW AND FOREVER”, 02/08/2024 TempleLive Cleveland Masonic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs John Wayne Murdoch
August is going to be a GCW month for Maki Itoh both in America and Japan. Her next tour begins with an unexpected opponent. She’s taking on one of their most violent wrestlers John Wayne Murdoch. He won the Tournament Of Survival back in June but his win-loss record in the company since then hasn’t been great.
GCW “CAN I TRUST YOU?”, 04/08/2024 House Of Independents, Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Itoh does not have a match announced for the show yet. This date was on her list of advertised bookings last month. The full card seems to have been shown since then and Blake Christian just so happens to have a “Pick Your Poison” style mystery opponent to be announced that day… I don’t see where else she will fit if she is still going to be there.
GCW “THE SKY IS THE LIMIT”, 13/08/2024 Shinjuku FACE, Tokyo, Japan
1. Broski Jimmy Vs Miyu Yamashita
2. The Great Sasuke Vs Maki Itoh
Itoh is also representing GCW for their Japan tour that is going on with some help from DDT. In a matchup that only sounds more mind bending the more I think of it, Itoh is going to fight The Great Sasuke! Yamashita will be on one of the shows too facing Broski Jimmy. That’s another match that I would never expect but more for head scratchy reasons.
GCW “YOU ONLY DIE ONCE”, 14/08/2024 Shinjuku FACE, Tokyo, Japan
1. Allie Katch & Dark Sheik Vs Kaya Toribami & Shoko Nakajima
2. GCW World Title: Mance Warner (c) Vs Maki Itoh
I made a prediction for this year that Itoh is going to win the GCW World Title. If it ever comes true then this will be the show to do it! It won’t though because GCW are all in on Mance Warner as their top champion while Itoh already holds the GCW Extreme Title but just imagine if they did.
Also added is a GCW Vs TJPW tag match. The visitors (or are they the home team because it’s GCW?) Allie Katch & Dark Sheik take on Kaya Toribami & Shoko Nakajima. I’ll probably make a separate post for the GCW Japan results since those matches are happening in Japan and DDT is involved with promoting the whole tour.
SPW “HARDCORE ISLAND 2: A FINE CITY”, 16/08/2024 Foo Chow Building, Singapore
1. 3 Way Match: Alexis Lee Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Kaya Toribami
Now that Alexis Lee got to wrestle in Japan and fully integrate herself into TJPW it’s time to send more people back over to Singapore Pro Wrestling. This time Lee will be in a 3 Way Match against two TJPW wrestlers. Yamashita and Toribami are on board to go face her in her home country.
KITSUNE “LOVE MY SHOW!”, 17/08/2024 Brick X Brick, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Yuna Manase Vs X
I was wondering how long it was going to take until I get to write about more of the American “Joshi” promotions that are currently around. Kitsune emerged around the same time period as SPARK Joshi and Sukeban. This one though has actually been able to run a show in Japan thanks to a lot of help from Marvelous. Their next shows in California is where Yuna Manase will be making her American wrestling debut.
GCW “NO SIGNAL IN THE HILLS PT. 4”, 17/08/2024 Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Itoh will be following GCW back to America after the Japan tour ends.
GCW “SAVE ME”, 18/08/2024 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
More Itoh in GCW here.
KITSUNE “YABAI!”, 18/08/2024 1110 Bates Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Kitsune World Title: Yuna Manase Vs Megan Bayne Vs J-Rod
The original plan was for Manase to be in a 3 Way Match with Sayaka Unagi and J-Rod for the Kitsune World Title. However Unagi is unable to get her visa approved in time and won’t be able to travel to America anytime soon. Since she was the champion, Kitsune made the decision to vacate the belt. It will now go to the winner of a new 3 Way Match between Manase, J-Rod and Megan Bayne.
EVE/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “EVE X TJPW: JAPAN & UK WRESTLING UNITE!”, 24/08/2024
Conway Hall, London, England
Finally we got a venue for the show. Yamashita, Raku, Mahiro Kiryu and HIMAWARI along with Aja Kong are the Japanese talent coming over to TJPW’s joint show with EVE. The EVE wrestlers being promoted for the show so far include Alex Windsor, Nina Samuels, Lena Cross and Session Moth Martina.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 1”, 24/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kerry Morton
The match is in GCW but Itoh gets a little taste of NWA with Kerry Morton as her opponent here. Kerry is the son of Ricky Morton and has been spending a lot of time in NWA as part of The Southern Six. He was even on the winning team at The Crockett Cup a few months ago.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 2”, 25/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
None of her GCW matches next month have been announced as Extreme Title defences yet.
MLW “SUMMER OF THE BEASTS”, 29/08/2024 Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York, USA
1. Delmi Exo Vs Miyu Yamashita
MLW wrote a really long passage about this match on their Twitter page but we don’t need to go through all that. Yamashita beat Delmi Exo last December, next month is time for the rematch. The difference here is Exo now has the support of MLW’s main authority figure Cesar Duran by her side.
GCW “LIVE FAST DIE YOUNG”, 31/08/2024 Thalia Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Megan Bayne
2. Maki Itoh Vs Kylie Rae
Prepare for cute smiles everywhere when Itoh is in the ring with Kylie Rae. Things might get ugly though if Itoh ends up feeling threatened by Rae’s cheerfulness. Yamashita getting another match with Megan Bayne is something she might not want to smile about either. They wrestled each other at a DREAMWAVE show back in April. Bayne won clean and Yamashita was in a pretty bad mood about it afterwards, rejecting her post-match handshake.
INSPIRE A.D. “MAY THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN”, 01/09/2024 Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Devin Carter
One of the non-GCW bookings Itoh is taking after the summer is over at Inspire A.D. in Texas. “The Fashionista” Devin Carter is her opponent. They have only been wrestling for a couple of years, mostly around the Texas scene.
MKW “CHAMPIONSHIP SUPERCARD FROM SHANGHAI”, 14/09/2024 Bandai Namco Shanghai Base, Shanghai, China
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Crystal
Still another while until Yuki Kamifuku defends the Queen Of Asia Title against Crystal. Kamifuku has been stepping her game up over the last twelve months and it’s really been paying off for her lately.
GCW “BAD ONE”, 14/09/2024 Harpos Concert Center, Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
This will be the last weekend of Itoh’s current tour.
GCW “THA G-CODE”, 15/09/2024 Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
And Itoh’s last American booking as of now is here.
SETUP “CHAOPHRAYA VOYAGE: 12TH ANNIVERSARY OF THAI WRESTLING”, 28/09/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title – 3 Way Match: Matcha (c) Vs Raku Vs Pom Harajuku
TJPW sent a video message to SETUP announcing the next opponents for Matcha and the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title she currently holds. Both Raku and Pom Harajuku are coming to Thailand to wrestle there for the first time!
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “BRIGHT EYES”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
A big weekend is going down in Seattle during November. TJPW is teaming up with DEFY for a show. Expect around 10-12 TJPW talent to be coming over. That was already announced a while ago…
DDT/DEFY “DDT IN UTERO”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
What turned out to be new news about the event is DEFY will be bringing over DDT for an evening show too! DDT has not said yet how many people they are going to bring over.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TRIANGLER DTD”, 10/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
The weekend ends with DDT, TJPW and DEFY all joining forces for a triple promotion show.
DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024”, 21/07/2024 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan 4,131 Fans – Super No Vacancy
1. Keigo Nakamura, Yuki Ishida & Kazuma Sumi defeated Yuni, Yuya Koroku & Ilusion when Nakamura pinned Yuni with the Running Diving Headbutt (7:37).
2. 6-Man Tag Match Featuring People Connected To Sanshiro Takagi: Toru Owashi, Hisamaru Tajima & Shinichiro Kawamatsu defeated Makoto Oishi, Soma Takao & Ippanjin Munenori Sawa when Kawamatsu pinned Oishi with the Axe Bomber (6:28).
3. Special Single Match: Super Sasadango Machine defeated Kazuki Hirata with a School Boy (11:53).
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Tomomitsu Matsunaga defeated Minoru Suzuki, Shuji Ishikawa & Hikaru Sato when Naya pinned Sato with the Wrist-Clutch Back Drop (12:18).
5. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Sanshiro Takagi Indefinite Rest Road FINAL ~ Weapon Rumble: Danshoku Dieno (c) defeated Sanshiro Takagi with the Gotch-Style Piledriver (20:54). *V? for Danshoku Dieno.
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles – Survival 4 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul defeated HARASHIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano (c), Aja Kong, Shunma Katsumata & To-y and Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada (17:30).
6a. HARASHIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano (c) eliminated Aja Kong, Shunma Katsumata & To-y when Akito pinned Katsumata with a Step Over Toe Hold (8:40).
6b. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul eliminated HARASHIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano (c) when KANON pinned Akito after the Freedom Call (15:28).
6c. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul eliminated Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada when Paul Sasaki submitted Masada with La Mistica Crossface Lock (17:30). *Smile Squash fails in V1. DAMNATION T.A becomes the 56th KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions!
7. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated Masato Tanaka with an Elbow Butt (14:42).
8. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino (c) defeated Go Shiozaki & Atsushi Kotoge when Endo pinned Kotoge with the Burning Star Press (20:37). *V3 for BURNING.
9. Dramatic Dream Match – No DQ Match: El Desperado defeated Chris Brookes with the Pinche Loco on the Barbed Wire Board (22:12).
10. KO-D Openweight Title – Goodcom Assets Presents: Yuki Ueno (c) defeated MAO with the WR (29:44). *V6 for Yuki Ueno.
The story of MAO running away from The 37KAMIINA has come to an end. He wasn’t able to win the KO-D Openweight Title from Yuki Ueno after all but it still became a happy ending for everyone involved with the group. The two went all out against each other both inside and out of the ring. Over on the ramp Ueno gave MAO the Canadian Destroyer only for MAO to fire back with the same move. Ueno rolled off the ramp afterwards so MAO reached out and helped him back to the ring so the match wouldn’t end by countout. Ueno dodged the Phoenix Splash and used the Jul.2 for a nearfall. Then there was a trade off between Ueno’s Blackout Sleeper and MAO’s Just Face Lock. There was then a battle of Dropkicks with both wrestlers using the move on each other again and again. MAO used the Iai Kick but only got a two count. Instead Ueno got him in the WR to pin him and retain the championship.
After the match Ueno gave MAO a hug. He said that whenever he feels exhausted or loses his confidence, he will look at MAO to become an even better man. He is sure MAO feels the same way about him. Today he is glad he put his life on the line in Sumo Hall to fight MAO for DDT’s greatest championship. However MAO declined to shake Ueno’s hand and he left the ring. Ueno still praised him for being a free spirit and if he can beat somebody like him then he can beat anybody. Ueno then called Shinya Aoki to the ring and nominated him as his next challenger for the KO-D Title. Aoki said that ever since his fight against Kazushi Sakuraba in 2015, the next opponent and place he wanted to get the most is Yuki Ueno in DDT. Hisaya Imabayashi endorsed the challenge and announced the title match will take place on 25th August.
Ueno closed out the day by telling the fans he and DDT will continue to show everyone their dreams in the ring. Ueno left the ring and walked up the ramp where he was suddenly greeted by MAO again. MAO has decided he is no longer running away from home and has returned to The 37KAMIINA! Shunma Katsumata and To-y also appeared alongside them and the four went backstage together. In the hallway they found Konosuke Takeshita waiting for them. He simply gave them a thumbs up and walked away.
Yesterday at a public press conference Chris Brookes and El Desperado agreed that their match today should be held under No DQ Rules. The ring was already armed with a barbed wire board, a fork board and a bunch of plastic cases lying around waiting for the chaos to start. It began with Desperado bringing out two bouquets of flowers and handing one over to Brookes. They then both attacked each other with the bouquets. As the fighting got more intense Desperado busted open Brookes and in return Brookes took out a pair of scissors to cut up his opponent’s mask. Desperado then decided to pull it off and wrestle the rest of the match fully unmasked! A stapler gun was brought in and the two of them stapled each other back and forth all over their bodies. The envelope used for the “DESPE-INVITACIONAL” was also stapled onto them. SCHADENFREUDE International interfered in the match to gang up on Desperado but he fought them off by spraying them with a fire extinguisher. Brookes did the Praying Mantis Bomb but only got a two count while Desperado hit the Mad Splash on top of the barbed wire board for a nearfall. The end came when Desperado gave Brookes the Lip Lock and then dropped him on top of the barbed wire with the Pinche Loco. Brookes said he is frustrated over losing but also happy because he feels so alive after the match. Desperado said he got a great taste of DDT. He does not know if he will ever get another taste but he hopes to do it again some day. However not long after the show New Japan announced that Desperado is taking a leave of absence to recover from injuries. Desperado made it clear on social media that Brookes and the match they had are not at fault for it.
The last few months have seen Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino from BURNING feud with Go Shiozaki across DDT and NOAH. It was all building up to the KO-D Tag Team Titles defence here with Shiozaki teaming with Atsushi Kotoge. Since both Endo & Iino were focused on solely beating Shiozaki, Kotoge became frustrated at being ignored. It was on full show here because Kotoge busted himself open from Headbutting Endo too much! Shiozaki was taken out by Iino’s Lariat leaving Endo to fight Kotoge. Endo gave him a Headbutt of his own before doing the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb for a nearfall. He then finished him off with the Burning Star Press for the victory. Iino said he knew how good Shiozaki’s Chops are with those big arms of his but that doesn’t matter because BURNING won in the end. Endo said they won today because of the support from their fans. He is now considering how interesting it would be if BURNING and TEAM NOAH would team up in the future. Iino wants to fight more opponents from more companies to increase the value of the KO-D Tag Titles.
The busy summer Takeshita is taking part in has gone off to a hot start. Yesterday he beat Yota Tsuji in the opening day of the G1 Climax and today he defeated Masato Tanaka in a battle of the Elbow Smashes. It was a rematch of their KO-D Title bout from March 2020 and this time it was Takeshita who was left standing tall. After duelling Elbow Smashes, Takeshita’s ones were the more powerful. He ended up using the move to break down Tanaka and pin him for the three count. With this result Takeshita will now bring this power with him for the rest of the G1. He wants DDT fans to follow him in the tournament with pride and confidence. Tanaka admitted that Takeshita now has the best elbow strikes in the world but he will take that title back from him soon!
After Smile Squash went through all the effort of rescuing the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles from DAMNATION T.A, they’ve only gone and lost the belts back to them! The belts were on the line in a Survival 4 Way Match with other teams of three looking to win the titles for themselves. The 37KAMIINA & Aja Kong beat up Yasu Urano but were the first eliminated thanks to Akito dodging their attacks and pinning To-y with a Stepover Toe Hold. The champions Smile Squash were then surprisingly next to go. HARASHIMA had MJ Paul pinned with the Somato when KANON pulled the referee out of the ring mid-count. Daisuke Sasaki then attacked everyone with a chair then used the Freedom Call with KANON to pin Akito. Antonio Honda had his working boots on today because he successfully performed a Suicide Dive onto everyone out of the ring. He & Masahiro Takanashi also aided Takeshi Masada until he had to go it alone against Sasaki. Paul gave Masada a German Suplex so Sasaki could pin him for a nearfall. Sasaki then used La Mistica Crossface Lock to make Masada give up.
While DAMNATION T.A were celebrating in the ring, Ryuichi “Fire” Kawakami appeared at ringside and climbed in to meet them. He had already caused trouble backstage earlier in the day by attacking Yukio Naya after his match. But Kawakami got into the ring to give Sasaki a hug because he is now joining forces with DAMNATION T.A! Kawakami is ready to bring “FIRE DAMNATION” to DDT and Naya is his first target. Sasaki thinks “FIRE DAMNATION” sounds a little lame but he’s happy to have Kawakami on his side.
After spending so many decades fighting for DDT inside and out of the ring, Sanshiro Takagi is finally ready to take an indefinite break so he can focus on his management duties within CyberFight while taking better care of his health. But first he had one more battle with Danshoku Dieno to get through. During the week he pinned Dieno to take the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title away from him but Dieno won it not too long afterwards. Their match here was a Weapon Rumble. One by one weapons selected by the two wrestlers would be brought down to the ring. Takagi’s first weapon was product placement for Yanekabe Shokunin Goods. Dieno countered that with Yoshihiko along with Muscle Sakai as its handler. Takagi then brought out the Dramatic Dream bike. Dieno shocked Takagi by setting up a retirement ceremony for him. Saki Akai came down to the ring and presented him with gifts as well as a heartfelt speech. Takagi was so touched by the gesture he considered to go ahead with retirement but interrupted the ten bell salute so the match would continue. MIKAMI and Poison Sawada JULIE then ran down to be Takagi’s latest weapons. Dieno had allies of his own in the form of Tokyo Joshi Pro! The group of Miyu Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Mizuki and Yuki Kamifuku all attacked Takagi with some of their signature moves. But when TJPW GM Tetsuya Koda wanted to get his digs in, Hisaya Imabayashi got mad and attacked him! With them out of the way Takagi brought out his golden ace up his sleeve. He brought in a big star from AEW… Michael Nakazawa! He came out with his body painted completely gold. Who could Dieno have picked in response to this? It was the actual “Golden Star”, the return of Kota Ibushi to DDT! Ibushi gave Takagi the Kamigoye and Dieno waited for Takagi to get back up so he could finish him off with the Lip Lock and Gotch-Style Danshoku Driver.
After the match Dieno told Takagi that it does not matter if he takes a permanent break or is able to come back and wrestle again. DDT will be fine because Dieno will always be here. Takagi thanked Dieno because without him this dramatic situation would have never taken place today. He thought he would never meet Ibushi inside a DDT ring ever again! DDT went through some tough times after Ibushi left them in 2016 but Ibushi was able to rise higher and higher. Takagi believes if he can still get chances to be in the ring with Ibushi then he will never retire! His wish is to fight Ibushi in a singles match again. Ibushi has a request too. Can he come back to DDT some day? Takagi and Dieno both burst into tears and told him yes because he is family. Backstage Takagi told reporters he really wants Kenny Omega to get recover from his health problems too so he can call him again too.
As mentioned above, Naya’s day at Sumo Hall was ruined by a backstage attack by Kawakami after his match. Before that happened things were going great for Naya. He teamed with Jun Akiyama & Tomomitsu Matsunaga to beat the big name outsider trio of Minoru Suzuki, Shuji Ishikawa & Hikaru Sato. Naya also got the pinfall after he gave Sato the Wrist-Clutch Back Drop. The backstage attack happened during the post-match interview. Naya’s partners had already left the room and he was in the middle of talking about how it is up to him to carry DDT’s heavyweight division due to a number of injuries on the roster. That was when Kawakami burst out from behind the interview curtain and attacked Naya with a chair. He demanded to be booked for more DDT shows or else he will blow more people up!
With so much happening up and down the card, Kazuki Hirata and Super Sasadango Machine were determined to make their match stand out and become the most newsworthy. Sasadango used his PowerPoint presentation to tell everyone about how much social media coverage his recent tag match with Hirata, Takagi and Dieno got because so many shocking incidents took place during it. So he begged the audience to retweet everything that happened here and even made a competition where one lucky fan will win a sirloin steak, shrimp and red snow crab that he all bought with his own money! There were many “shocking incidents” that happened during the match. First there was a Thumb War that was won by Sasadango. Then there was a new finishing move that Hirata created called the Ryogoku Bomber except he couldn’t do it right because of a lack of practice. Sasadango also decided to give away Edameme he brought from Niigata because he wants everyone to know how delicious it is. After that, Hirata tried to turn heel and adopt Masahiro Chono’s theme song as his own. However he didn’t have the heart to attack Sasadango with a barbed wire bat along with some unknown masked lackeys so he went back to being a babyface. Sasadango then suggested they both turn heel together and form an nWo style faction. He pulled off his mask to reveal he had already shaved his head and painted on a beard plus forehead scars to look like Keiji Muto! He went to do the Shining Wizard but Hirata dodged it and pinned Sasadango with a School Boy. Backstage Hirata said he wants to continue doing things in pro wrestling that are unprecedented. Sasadango was angry over Hirata “betraying” him but admitted it felt so good to have a packed Sumo Hall chanting Muto’s name at him. He also credited Minoru Suzuki for giving him the haircut before the match.
During the same week where Hulk Hogan made a show of himself in America’s political landscape, his presence was also felt on a smaller scale in Japan thanks to Shinichiro Kawamatsu. The Japanese politician had the Axe Bomber passed down to him by Hogan earlier this year and today he used the move to win his match. Toru Owashi claimed this was the power of the impromptu tag team of himself, Kawamatsu and Hisamaru Tajima. It may not look like it but there is actually a deep bound between the three of them according to Owashi. He was Tajima’s opponent for Tajima’s debut match back in Toryumon. He has also spent a lot of his life living in Sumida Ward which is also the district Kawamatsu is elected in. The point of the match though is that they along with Makoto Oishi, Soma Takao & Munenori Sawa are all connected to Sanshiro Takagi.
The show kicked off with most of the D GENERATIONS class pitted against each other in a 6-Man Tag Match. It came down to Yuni almost beating Keigo Nakamura with a Moonsault. Nakamura recovered to hit Yuni with a German Suplex, John Woo Dropkick and then the Running Diving Headbutt to win the match for his team. Yuki Ishida & Kazuma Sumi both felt that they did their best to make the show start off on the right foot. Nakamura was also happy to win a match by himself in Sumo Hall for the first time. Yuya Koroku feels the need to start aiming higher since it is almost six months since he returned from injury. Ilusion thinks they should all be showing more energy because they are the future of DDT. Yuni said he wants to main event Sumo Hall one day so he will work hard to achieve that.
DDT returns to Sumo Hall on 28th December for “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024”. In previous years DDT’s last supershow on the calendar would take place in November. However the company wants to take a shot at holding a big arena show at the end of the year.
It was announced that Kaisei Takechi will be returning to DDT for his second pro wrestling match on 29th September. The star from THE RAMPAGE made his debut to much fanfare back in February. He sent a video message explaining his decision to compete in another match is because he believes he has the ability to do more in the ring the second time round. He would also like to continue participating more in wrestling after this match takes place.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 