The open secret is finally made public! With Konosuke Takeshita about to turn 30 years old later this week, he posted on his Instagram account today that he is indeed married to Yuka Sakazaki. Following that announcement, Sakazaki posted a similar message on her own Instagram. The two also revealed that they have a pet dog named Kenshiro. To quote DDT’s congratulatory message to the pair: “We hope that your dreams will forever remain dramatic!”
So this has been an open secret for quite a while. Although the fun thing about open secrets is they are still secrets to some people. I’ve been entertained by the general response to the news today because half of it is people saying finally it’s been confirmed and the other half is people saying they never had a clue the two of them were ever together in the first place.
Neither Takeshita nor Sakazaki said in their messages when they got married or how long they have been together for but there’s been some careless evidence left out there about Takeshita’s relationship status over the years. There was one time years ago (I want to say pre-pandemic but I’m not certain) when Konosuke’s mother Keiko Takeshita showed a photograph of Konosuke where he had a wedding ring visible on his finger. It had to be edited out but I can’t remember if it was from video footage for something or a social media post that got deleted.
Then two years ago there was a podcast dedicated to another puroresu company that had a conversation over the growing trend of Japanese wrestlers moving their careers to America. The guest listed a bunch of wrestlers during the conversation who had left Japan and mentioned “Takeshita and his wife” among them. I’m omitting the podcast and guest’s names simply to spare them from getting further grief over the subject. They were stunned at the time because to them it was just a throwaway comment but they ended up getting so many inquiries about it afterwards, far more than for any of the actual content on their episode.
But the loudest hints came from the couple’s co-workers in AEW. If there is any lesson to learn about this story it’s this. Should you ever want to know the family status of a Japanese wrestler just wait for a foreign wrestler to tweet about how great they are behind the scenes. When Takeshita tweeted about moving to America in 2022, Dax Harwood let it slip in his response that Takeshita had a wife. Also Sammy Guevara & Tay Melo weren’t shy about sharing photos online of their baby meeting Takeshita & Sakazaki together a while ago. It’s kind of like how we all found out Asuka is a mother because other women in WWE always bring it up whenever they get the chance to talk about her in interviews.
But anyway, congratulations to the happy couple. They certainly made this the most romantic Dragon Quest Day ever.
DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 12 ~GIVE IT TO THE CLOUDS THE MOUNTAIN CUCKOO~”, 17/05/2025 Osaka City Sumiyoshi Civic Center ??? Fans
1. Naomi Yoshimura’s Osaka Return Match ~REGGAE TOWN is back in OSAKA!~: Ryota Nakatsu & Naomi Yoshimura defeated Yasu Urano & Akito when Yoshimura pinned Urano with the Harai Goshi (10:21).
2. The Anthem Of Geniuses ~The Battle To Decide The Strongest Variety Warrior~: Danshoku Dieno, Billy Ken Kid & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi defeated Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & Soma Takao when Dieno pinned Hirata with the Gay-do Clutch (0:08).
2a. Rematch: Danshoku Dieno, Billy Ken Kid & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi defeated Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & Soma Takao when Kid pinned Hirata with La Espalda (10:24).
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match Tecnico Vs Rudo Osaka War! ~The Code Of Justice, The Pride Of Evil~: HUB, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion (w/ MJ Paul) defeated Tsubasa, Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi when HUB pinned Sumi with the Moudoku Hub Kuubaku (9:44).
4. Special Tag Match – Muscle Buraikan Vs D GENERATIONS ~You Guys, You’ll Know It When You See It! It’s Me!~: Magnitude Kishiwada & Naruki Doi defeated To-y & Yuki Ishida when Doi pinned Ishida with the Bakatare Sliding Kick (9:29).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Laughter Leads To Hell~: Kuishinbo Kamen, Shunma Katsumata & Ram Kaichow Vs Kikutaro, Antonio Honda & No Name ended in a No Contest (12:12).
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Heavyweight Super Carnival~: Jun Akiyama, KANON & Daichi Sato defeated Shuji Ishikawa, Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada when KANON pinned Masada with the LONELY DEZIRES (12:45).
7. Koyo Daiichi Consultants Presents ~Break Through The Top Of DDT! From Osaka To The World, A Terrifying Challenge For The Real Life Crowd!~: Chris Brookes defeated Kohei Kinoshita with the Praying Mantis Bomb (12:19).
8. Special Tag Match ~Head-To-Head Battle! One-Hit, Soul-Filled Attack!! Frontal Breakthrough!!!~: HARASHIMA & Kazusada Higuchi defeated Shuji Kondo & Shigehiro Irie when HARASHIMA pinned Irie with the Swan Dive Somato (13:52).
9. Shosho Kogyo Co., Ltd. Presents Special Tag Match ~Sakuyakonohana Dramatic Dreams Vs Superhuman Teacher & Student Wrestling Masters~: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Yuki Ueno defeated Daisuke Sasaki & Dick Togo when Ueno pinned Sasaki with the WR (26:59).
The annual Osaka show put together by referee Yukinori Matsui took place today with Konosuke Takeshita’s return to DDT as the headline match. He teamed up with his friend and rival Yuki Ueno to fight the master and student pairing of Dick Togo & Daisuke Sasaki. Togo acted like his normal self for the match rather than his House Of Torture persona and while Sasaki did fight a little dirty at points it was mostly a clean and competitive match between the two sides. An exposed turnbuckle made the most impact by coming into play late in the match. Togo & Sasaki both put their opponents in the Crossface Lock only for Takeshita & Ueno to grab each other by the hands and power out of the holds. Takeshita blocked Togo from doing the Diving Senton onto Ueno and when Togo gave him a Dropkick, Takeshita hit back with a Knee Strike that led to both of them going out of the ring. Sasaki tried to finish off Ueno himself but got a Dropkick to the face and was then pinned with the WR.
Ueno welcomed Takeshita back after the match, reminding him it’s been three years since they last teamed together. Takeshita thinks a lot of people who came to the show today know him more for his New Japan matches than his DDT career so he explained his backstory with Ueno to the fans. He doesn’t know if or when there will be a next time they are in the ring together so he told Ueno they will always be each other’s classmates. Matsui said the match was so amazing that it made him laugh. Togo wanted to shake Matsui’s hand but it was just a trap and he gave him the Pedigree before leaving. Ueno then thanked the fans for coming to the show.
Could we be seeing more of Kohei Kinoshita in the future? He recently announced he will be leaving Dove Pro in August but hasn’t said what his plans are going to be after that. Chris Brookes beat him today in a non-title match but could he be sending some signals out by having a good performance against the KO-D Openweight Champion?
Match #5 went off the deep end because of No Name. She took both Kikutaro and Kuishinbo Kamen away from the ring backstage and after a few moments some screaming could be heard coming from their direction. No Name then returned to the ring carrying their decapitated heads! Everyone else in the match fainted from shock including Matsui. No Name ran off with the heads and Daisuke Kiso had to call off the match. Antonio Honda, Shunma Katsumata and Ram Kaichow all recovered afterwards and helped Matsui regain consciousness by kicking him.
Takeshita’s mother Keiko Takeshita was in attendance and even interrupted the opening speeches. When Matsui tried to stop her she gave him a Lariat and the Rainmaker.
What a month. Felt like the moment WrestleMania Week ended the wrestling world just kept going. Konosuke Takeshita was involved with the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament in AEW and when that came to an end he very quickly established a new tag team with Josh Alexander. Then in Japan some DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro wrestlers took part in Deadlock Pro’s weekend in the country’s capital. There was also some lucha libre action happening in Tokyo a few days later. Back in America Maki Itoh got her face painted again in a very nice and very evil manner. Then the very busy month came to an end with Miyu Yamashita stepping foot back inside AEW after a two or three year absence.
Yamashita is going to have a packed schedule in May. Itoh has a few things coming up but she will be back in TJPW in the middle of the month. Yamashita though has plenty on her plate and the AEW appearance came about at a good time to replenish some interest in her. What’s included below is not the complete schedule she posted on her Twitter account. There are plenty more dates coming up over the next few months but some haven’t been announced by the promotions yet so I left them out just to save some space. Our old pal Yuka Sakazaki got her first booking on the indies in quite a while too. Another thing to keep an eye on is just where will Keigo Nakamura land for his indefinite overseas excursion. Apparently wherever he’s going he is has gone travelling over there already. If he is indeed still going to wrestle I’ll do my best to keep track of it in these articles.
AEW “DYNAMITE – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 16/04/2025 MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Semi Final: Will Ospreay Vs Konosuke Takeshita
AEW “COLLISION – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 17/04/2025 MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
1. Josh Alexander & Konosuke Takeshita Vs Rocky Romero & Tomohiro Ishii
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 23/04/2025 Lakefront Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
1. Will Ospreay & Brody King Vs Josh Alexander & Konosuke Takeshita
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 30/04/2025 Chartway Arena, Norfolk, Virginia, USA
1. AEW Women’s World Title Eliminator Match: Toni Storm (w/ Luther) Vs Miyu Yamashita
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Results
AEW “DYNAMITE – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 16/04/2025 MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Semi Final: Will Ospreay defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the Stormbreaker (21:43).
A highly anticipated rematch in the Owen Hart Cup saw Takeshita clash with Will Ospreay once again. Ospreay looked to have had Takeshita’s number until Takeshita purposely collapsed to avoid taking the Hidden Blade. Takeshita even caught Ospreay in mid-air with an Elbow Strike only for Ospreay to kick out at one and hit the Hidden Blade from out of nowhere. Takeshita kicked out at one as well leading to a role reversal where Ospreay used the Bastard Driver into the German Suplex and Takeshita responded with a Hidden Blade of his own. More counters came with Ospreay turning the Raging Fire into a Hurricanrana that then switched into the Styles Clash. Takeshita countered another Hidden Blade with a Backslide into a Powerdrive Knee but Ospreay flipped over a Lariat and lifted Takeshita into the Stormbreaker, winning a hard fought match that booked his spot in the final.
AEW “COLLISION – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 17/04/2025 MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
1. Josh Alexander & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Rocky Romero & Tomohiro Ishii when Alexander pinned Ishii with a Power Bomb (10:18).
There wasn’t much time for Takeshita to lick his wounds but The Don Callis Family are already regrouping with a new addition to the unit. AEW’s newest signing Josh Alexander has taken on Don Callis’s management services and made to team with Takeshita. They won their first match as a tag team but one of the reasons it happened was because Rocky Romero ended up abandoning Tomohiro Ishii and left him to the wolves. Alexander & Takeshita rocked Ishii with a Double Roaring Elbow then Alexander finished him off with a Power Bomb. There was then more drama when Trent Beretta made his return after the match and attacked Ishii with Romero. Callis gave a wrench to Beretta and he used it to knock Ishii out.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 23/04/2025 Lakefront Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
1. Josh Alexander & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Will Ospreay & Brody King when Alexander pinned King after the Assisted C4 Spike (13:08).
Winning ways continued for The Don Callis Family when they took on Takeshita’s two opponents from the Owen Hart Cup. It was a heck of a task getting there though. Brody King ran through them like a tank while Ospreay and Takeshita had unfinished business from their match last week. The Family needed Lance Archer to distract the ref in order to turn the tables. Even then it took a lot fo Alexander & Takeshita to put King away. It eventually took Takeshita helping Alexander lift King up for the C4 Spike to finally put the big boy away.
DPW “SPIRIT RISING – NIGHT 1”, 24/04/2025 Shinjuku FACE
1. Chris Brookes & HARASHIMA Vs LaBron Kozone & Calvin Tankman ended in a Draw (?:??).
2. DPW Women’s World Title: Dani Luna (c) defeated Rika Tatsumi (?:??). *V3 for Dani Luna.
I couldn’t get any proper results from DPW’s two shows in Japan since they’re usually pretty good at keeping things under wraps until the matches get uploaded to their streaming service. But some scraping through Twitter I was able to piece together some things. Rika Tatsumi failed in her bid to win the DPW Women’s Title from Dani Luna. Also the DPW Vs DDT match went to a draw, I assume of the time limit kind. One of the big spots was HARASHIMA going to do the Somato on LaBron Kozone only to get ran over in midair with the Pounce from Calvin Tankman.
DPW “SPIRIT RISING – NIGHT 2”, 25/04/2025 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Calvin Tankman & Kazuma Sumi defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida (?:??).
2. Emi Sakura, Chris Brookes, Mei Suruga & Baliyan Akki defeated Miyuki Takase, Kevin Ku, Dominic Garrini & Ryo Mizunami (?:??).
On Night 2 Chris Brookes was part of a ChocoPro team against a USA/Japan alliance representing DPW. Meanwhile Tankman got thrown in with some DDT wrestlers for a tag match between two pairs of big man and little man. Tankman is remaining in Japan for a ZERO1 tour but who knows, maybe DDT will come calling while he’s there.
HOG “ISOLATION”, 25/04/2025 NYC Arena, New York City, New York, USA
1. HOG Heavyweight Title: Mike Santana (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita ended in a No Contest when Charles Mason interfered (15:57). *V14 for Mike Santana.
Well that kind of felt like a waste of time. The HOG Heavyweight Title was on the line and neither Mike Santana nor Takeshita were in a position to take a loss. So Charles Mason came out and ruined the whole thing. Santana had Takeshita pinned with the Spin The Block Roaring Lariat but Santana pulled the ref out of the ring mid-count and attacked Santana to stop the match. Takeshita tried to come to the rescue but Mason fled the ring unharmed. Santana and Takeshita raised each other’s hands to everyone afterward.
BLACK LABEL PRO “BLP AT SCX III”, 25/04/2025 The Wyndham, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Leyla Hirsch with the Skull Kick (?:??).
2. Danhausen & Maki Itoh defeated Davey Bang & August Matthews when Danhausen pinned Matthews and Itoh pinned Bang with the Double Kokeshi (?:??).
The latest American tours for Itoh & Yamashita kicked off over in Black Label Pro. Itoh joined forces with Danhausen once again to reunite Very Cute, Very Evil Makihausen. Itoh had the face fully painted to match her tag partner and be battle ready to go against Bang And Matthews. Itoh was in grave danger when Davey Bang & August Matthews combined to hit the Spears Tower on her but Danhausen broke the pin. When they tried the same move on Danhausen he paused them with a Curse that resulted in Itoh tripping them over. The two then filled their opponents’ mouths with jars of teeth before kicking them in their faces. Itoh & Danhausen then finished them off with Stereo Kokeshi Headbutts.
This month saw Leyla Hirsch return to action, now as a freelancer. Yamashita got to be one her of first opponents back and didn’t show much ring rust with her performance. She tried wearing down Yamashita with an Ankle Lock but Yamashita fired back with strikes that took a lot out of her opponent. Hirsch then missed a Moonsault and charged right into the Skull Kick for the finish.
1. Mexican Tourist Belt – The Road To Studying In Mexico 6 Way Match: Yuki Mashiro defeated Honoka, YuuRI, SONYA, CoCo and Yoshiko Hasegawa when Mashiro pinned Hasegawa with a Modified Suplex Hold (?:??). Order Of Elimination: SONYA, CoCo, Honoka, YuuRI, Yoshiko Hasegawa.
2. Octagon & El Hijo del Octagon Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Pantera Jr. ended in a Draw when El Hijo del Octagon and Pantera Jr. pinned each other from a Romero Special (?:??).
The warm vibes of lucha libre were in the air surrounding Sumo Hall for a sponsored show put together by the Mexico Kanko tourism company. Daisuke Sasaki was thrown in with some luchadors for a tag match. Naturally Sasaki was on the rudo side teaming with Pantera Jr. to take on the supposedly family pair of Octagon & El Hijo del Octagon. Sasaki stepped in to stop Octagon from doing dive from the top turnbuckle. But the match ended up going to a draw when Pantera put El Hijo del Octagon in the Romero Special. The move leaned both luchadors back onto their shoulders resulting in a double pinfall. After some arguing over the finish, all four wrestlers raised each others hands in the ring.
A sixth woman was added to the Mexican Tourist Belt match. Yoshiko Hasegawa may be retiring from wrestling soon but she didn’t want to miss a chance to win a holiday to Mexico! She came close to winning too, eliminating YuuRI and making it to the final two with Yuki Mashiro. She tried to win using the Fisherman Buster but Mashiro got the better of her and won the match with a Modified Suplex.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 30/04/2025 Chartway Arena, Norfolk, Virginia, USA
1. AEW Women’s World Title Eliminator Match: Toni Storm (w/ Luther) Vs Miyu Yamashita
Right at the end of the month Yamashita wound up in a familiar place. She came back to AEW for the first time since 2022 (or maybe 2023 if you want to count ROH). She was here to repeat what she did back then and that was to fight the AEW Women’s World Champion and beat her to get a title shot. We’re far past the days of Thunder Rosa though. It’s Toni Storm’s time now, which also happens to rewind the clock back one century thanks to her Timeless gimmick. Yamashita got into the swing of things by literally kicking Storm’s ass around the ring as well as kicking away the loyal butler Luther. She also hit the Skull Kick but was too fatigued to make the pin in time. I couldn’t tell if she broke the pin herself or if Storm kicked out of it because both looked like they happened at the same time. Storm made a comeback and avoided the Crash Rabbit Heat to throw Yamashita over to the corner with a German Suplex. She then landed the Running Hip Attack and pinned Yamashita with the Storm Zero. The booking sounds like it was a one time thing for Yamashita during this latest stay in the States. But she promised if she ever comes back to AEW she will kick someone else’s head in!
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Upcoming Appearances
TOP TALENT “LIVE AT MIDWAY MUSIC HALL”, 02/05/2025 Midway Music Hall, Edmonton, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Ava Lawless
May starts off with Yamashita and Itoh going in separate directions for a while. Yamashita will be in Canada to face Ava Lawless in her Top Talent Wrestling debut.
HOODSLAM “PHANTASMAGORIA”, 02/05/2025 Continental Club, Oakland, California, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Meanwhile Itoh returns to a Hoodslam that is currently in chaos. But when is it ever quiet over there?
GCW “CRAZY SCARY SPOOKY HILARIOUS”, 03/05/2025 Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Miyu Yamashita
The next day 121000000 are back together but this time as opponents. Can Itoh finally beat Yamashita one on one for the first time ever?
GCW “WE STILL DON’T TRUST YOU”, 04/05/2025 Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, Oregon, USA
1. JCW World Title: Masha Slamovich (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
2. GCW World Title: Effy (c) Vs Maki Itoh
Then soon after that the two of them have the chance to both become champions in the GCW sphere on the same night. While Itoh faces Effy for the GCW World Title, Yamashita gets in the ring again with Masha Slamovich in a bid to take away her JCW World Title. Slamovich just recently pinned Yamashita at the “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW” show which seems to be what set this title match up. At the moment this looks to be Itoh’s last booking before she goes back to Japan. Her TJPW return will be on 11th May.
HOG “WAGING WAR”, 09/05/2025 Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Indi Hartwell Vs Miyu Yamashita
Yamashita gets another match with someone who knows what it’s like to wrestle in WWE. This time it is the Indi Hartwell, the former NXT Women’s Champion (bet some of you forgot she held that title for a month) turned TNA’s latest signing.
NJPW “RESURGENCE”, 09/05/2025 Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA
1. NEVER Openweight Title: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (c) Vs El Phantasmo
It’s now been confirmed that Takeshita will defend the NEVER Openweight Title against El Phantasmo at New Japan’s next USA show. This is also happening a week after they face each other in Japan with the NJPW World TV Title on the line. Does Rocky Romero get involved after the ambush he committed on ELP last month?
MAPLE LEAF PRO “NORTHERN RISING”, 10/05/2025 Mattamy Athletic Centre, Toronto, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Serena Deeb
Yamashita is just bouncing back and forth between Canada and America during this trip. Serena Deeb will want to be the road block that stops her.
MLW “AZTECA LUCHA”, 10/05/2025 Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois USA
1. Shoko Nakajima Vs X
After winning the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title earlier this month, Shoko Nakajima is set to return to MLW for their next “AZTECA LUCHA” taping. Nothing has been announced yet for what her match is going to be. Could it be a title defence against a luchadora from CMLL?
GCW “BIG TIME”, 17/05/2025 RJ Meyer Arena, Joppa, Maryland, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Tony Deppen
Itoh will be long gone home by this time so GCW could become Yamashita’s for the taking in her absence. Beating the promotion’s gatekeeper Tony Deppen would send her in the right direction.
GCW “RUN FOR IT”, 18/05/2025 Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA
1. Billie Starkz Vs Miyu Yamashita
What kind of momentum will be following Yamashita by the time she fights Billie Starkz again?
MKW “BATTLE OF THE DECADE”, 24/05/2025 Dongxin Plaza, Beijing, China
1. Yuki Kamifuku & Chen Wenbin Vs Alexis Lee & Big Sam
Could this be the penultimate chapter of the rivalry between Yuki Kamifuku and Alexis Lee?
SAJ “HUNTER’S NET”, 24/05/2025 Via Dante 72, Sporting Cesate, Milan, Italy
1. Irene Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Session Moth Martina
A change of venue for Yamashita’s debut in Italy due to an electrical problem in the original building. She is also finally going to face Session Moth Martina after their scheduled match in EVE back in March got cancelled. One week later Martina got to team with Italian wrestler Irene at the most recent SAJ Wrestling show. I haven’t seen it so I don’t know if anything happened as a reason to make them opponents here or if this is just three wrestlers who want to have some fun in the ring.
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Alexis Lee
If all goes wrong for Kamifuku in May she could end up losing both the VPW Women’s Title and the Queen Of Asia Title!
NEW TEXAS PRO “BAT CITY”, 01/06/2025 Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki Vs X
Finally Sakazaki gets to wrestle somewhere again! I don’t know if her lack of ring time lately is AEW/ROH not wanting to book her or if there’s an undisclosed injury of some sort holding her back but she’s making a reappearance on the American indies with New Texas Pro as her first stop.
KITSUNE “GOING BACK TO SAN DIEGO”, 07/06/2025 Primal Compound, San Diego, California, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Zara Zakher
2. Vipress & Hudson Envy Vs Nagisa Nozaki & Yuna Manase
The first singles meeting between Yamashita and Zara Zakher. They fought each other once before in a Princess Tag Team Titles match back in January. Yamashita pinned Zakher in that match. Will she do it again?
KITSUNE “8888”, 08/06/2025 South Gate, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Kitsune World Title: Yuna Manase (c) Vs Tae Honma
This October Tae Honma is going to retire from pro wrestling. One of her last big singles matches will be in America when Yuna Manase defends the Kitsune World Title against her.
LLL “BUT THE TICKET, TAKE THE RIDE NIGHT 2”, 14/06/2025 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Dark Sheik Vs Miyu Yamashita
Yamashita returns to Lucha, Libre & Laughs for two nights but only one of them has a match announced so far. She faces Dark Sheik on Night 2. Nothing yet on what match she will get on Night 1.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 1”, 10/07/2025 POST, Houston, Texas, USA
Four wrestlers are currently confirmed for TJPW’s big tripleshot in Texas.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 2”, 11/07/2025 POST, Houston, Texas, USA
Yamashita and Itoh will be there as will Miu Watanabe and Suzume. So far that’s all of the official announcements.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN DALLAS”, 13/07/2025 The OC, Forney, Texas, USA
Psst… the English website promoting the show also lists Yuki Arai, Mizuki, Hyper Misao, Shoko Nakajima, Pom Harajuku, Moka Miyamoto, Shino Suzuki, Raku and Arisu Endo as all “awaiting confirmation” to be on the show. I guess they could go and confirm them all but as we saw with Harajuku this month they might be making sure everything is absolutely ready for them all to travel first.
DDT “SAPPORO NIGHT CRUSH”, 26/04/2025 Hokkaido Sapporo Sun Plaza
1. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Shunma Katsumata, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi (c) Vs Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion
2. Sapporo’s Famous Trial Singles Best Of Two Matches – First Round!! ~ Sapporo Marathon Style Death Match: Akito Vs Kazuki Hirata
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Noriyuki Yoshida & Daichi Sato Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Tomoya & Yuki Ishida
4. MAO & KANON Vs Yukio Naya & Yuya Koroku
5. Special Single Match: HARASHIMA Vs Danshoku Dieno
6. SCHADENFREUDE International Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki Ueno & To-y
Now that the American shows are nothing more than a distant memory it’s back to having matches in Japan for everybody.
A special points system will be put in place for the two Akito Vs Kazuki Hirata matches happening this weekend. There is a ten minute time limit for each match. You gets 2 Points for every 3 count pin or submission victory. You also get 1 Point if the opponent gets counted out of the ring for 20 seconds. Wrestlers are deducted 2 points if they are caught cheating or committing a foul. Akito thinks he has too much of an advantage with these rules so he allows Hirata to score 1 Point every time he puts on Hirata GO! Glasses and 5 Points if he can complete his dance during the match. The scores from both matches will be combined and whoever has the higher score is the winner.
DDT “MENKOI DAY SMASH”, 27/04/2025 Hokkaido Sapporo Sun Plaza
1. Yuni Vs Ilusion
2. Sapporo’s Famous Trial Singles Best Of Two Matches – Second Round!! ~ Sapporo Marathon Style Death Match: Akito Vs Kazuki Hirata
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Tomoya & Noriyuki Yoshida Vs Danshoku Dieno, Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi
4. SCHADENFREUDE International Vs DAMNATION T.A!: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Hideki Okatani & MJ Paul
5. Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y Vs Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Daichi Sato
6. STRANGE LOVE CONNECTION Vs Harimao!: MAO & KANON Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
There is a new member of the Strange Love Connection but he is not available just yet. KIMIHIRO will only be accompanying MAO & KANON whenever they can afford him to travel and the airfare to Sapporo is not cheap. So KIMIHIRO won’t be joining them until next month when the travel will be a little easier on the wallet.
The Sapporo Marathon Match between Akito and Hirata gets decided here.
DDT “HELLO☆DRAMATIC DREAM 2025”, 03/05/2025 Yokohama Radiant Hall
1. Special Single Match: MJ Paul Vs Kazuki Hirata
2. Special Tag Match: MAO & KANON Vs Yukio Naya & Yuki Ishida
3. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs HARASHIMA & Soma Takao
Another preview tag for Chris Brookes and HARASHIMA before they face each other at the King Of DDT 1st Round.
1. Yuni & Kazuma Sumi Vs Toru Owashi & Danshoku Dieno
2. SCHADENFREUDE International Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y
3. Special Tag Match: MAO & KANON Vs HARASHIMA & Daichi Sato
And right before King Of DDT begins, DDT heads over to MAO’s home region of Miyagi.
DDT “KING OF DDT 2025 1ST ROUND”, 06/05/2025 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
0. Dark Match – 4 Way Tag Match: Yuni & Kazuma Sumi Vs MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs Toru Owashi & Yuki Ishida Vs Soma Takao & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
0. Dark Match: Jun Akiyama & Danshoku Dieno Vs MAO & Kazuki Hirata (w/ KIMIHIRO)
1. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1A: Antonio Honda Vs Yuki Ueno
2. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1B: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Akito
3. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1C: KANON Vs Shunma Katsumata
4. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1D: Yukio Naya Vs Daichi Sato
5. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1E: Hideki Okatani Vs To-y
6. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1F: Chris Brookes Vs HARASHIMA
7. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1G: Takeshi Masada Vs Yuya Koroku
8. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1H: Shinya Aoki Vs Kazusada Higuchi
Two dark matches get added to the King Of DDT opening round. It will be KIMIHIRO’s first appearance since joining Strange Love Connection.
DDT “EARLY SUMMER BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING 2025 – DAY 1”, 13/05/2025 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Danshoku Dieno Produce Match ~ Woof Woof Paradise: Danshoku Dieno (w/ Haku) Vs Shunma Katsumata (w/ Ponta & Komachi) Vs Yuki Kamifuku (w/ Zac) Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa (w/ Qoo)
Here is how DDT is getting use out of Danshoku Dieno’s pet dog Haku. Dieno is booking a 4 Way Match with himself and three other devoted dog owners. So joining Dieno and his shiba inu is Shunma Katsumata with his two pugs, Yuki Kamifuku with her chihuahua Zac and Yoshiko Hasegawa with her Pomeranian.
DDT “D GENERATIONS 2 ~THERE’S NO LIMIT TO GROWING PAINS~”, 14/05/2025 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Yuni Vs Ali Najima
2. Hideki Okatani & Ilusion Vs Munetatsu Nakamura & Shota Kawakami
3. Special Single Match: Ryoma Tsukamoto Vs To-y
4. Special Single Match: Soma Takao Vs Kazuma Sumi
5. Special Single Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Yuki Ishida
6. Special Tag Match: Shigehiro Irie & Shota Vs Takeshi Masada & Yuya Koroku
The rivalry between Young Communication and D GENERATIONS moves on into a Best Of Three singles match series. Meanwhile the two young troublemakers from DAMNATION T.A take on Ganbare☆Pro’s two childhood friends Munetatsu Nakamura & Shota Kawakami.
To-y was originally supposed to face Daichi Sato on the show but Sato has high school exams happening around the same time and will not be available to wrestle. To-y’s new opponent is Ryoma Tsukamoto from JTO.
DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 12 ~GIVE IT TO THE CLOUDS THE MOUNTAIN CUCKOO~”, 17/05/2025 Osaka City Sumiyoshi Civic Center
1. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Laughter Leads To Hell~: Kuishinbo Kamen, Shunma Katsumata & Ram Kaichow Vs Kikutaro, Antonio Honda & No Name
2. Naomi Yoshimura’s Osaka Return Match ~REGGAE TOWN is back in OSAKA!~: Ryota Nakatsu & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yasu Urano & Akito
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Heavyweight Super Carnival~: Jun Akiyama, KANON & Daichi Sato Vs Shuji Ishikawa, Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada
4. Special Single Match ~Break Through The Top Of DDT! From Osaka To The World, A Terrifying Challenge For The Real Life Crowd!~: Chris Brookes Vs Kohei Kinoshita
5. Special Tag Match ~Head-To-Head Battle! One-Hit, Soul-Filled Attack!! Frontal Breakthrough!!!~: HARASHIMA & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Shuji Kondo & Shigehiro Irie
6. Special Tag Match ~Sakuyakonohana Dramatic Dreams Vs Superhuman Teacher & Student Wrestling Masters~: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Yuki Ueno Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Dick Togo
God damn look at the card Yukinori Matsui has put together so far! Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno reunited to fight Daisuke Sasaki & Dick Togo. A heavyweight tag clash featuring HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi, Shuji Kondo and Shigehiro Irie. The return of Naomi Yoshimura to Osaka as well. Plenty to look forward to here. Naruki Doi will be at the show too.
DDT “EARLY SUMMER BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING 2025 – DAY 2”, 21/05/2025 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Takeshi Masada Produce Match – Hardcore Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Shunma Katsumata & To-y
Uh oh. DDT let Takeshi Masada put together a match and the idea he came up with is a Hardcore Tag bout with Brookes, Katsumata & To-y? That’s just asking for trouble.
DDT “KING OF DDT 2025 FINAL!!”, 25/05/2025 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. King Of DDT 2025 – Semi Final: X Vs X
2. King Of DDT 2025 – Semi Final: X Vs X
3. DDT Universal Title: Minoru Suzuki (c) Vs Danshoku Dieno
4. King Of DDT 2025 – Final: X Vs X
After coming out of Las Vegas with the DDT Universal Title and most of his dignity still intact, Minoru Suzuki’s match with Danshoku Dieno is now confirmed to be a title match. Can Dieno make it through another month without using his Danshoku moveset?
DDT “KIRANAH BBQ STREET PRO WRESTLING 2025 ~MEAT! BEER! FESTIVAL!~”, 28/05/2025 Tokyo Kiranah Garden Toyosu
1. Falls Count Anywhere 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Takeshi Masada & Mecha Mummy Vs Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y Vs HARASHIMA, Danshoku Dieno & Kazuki Hirata
Speaking of asking for trouble. A BBQ Street Fight involving SCHADENFREUDE International (with Mecha Mummy), The 37KAMIINA and a DDT all star trio? Are they trying to burn the place down?!?
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/GCW “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW”, 19/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA ??? Fans – Unannounced
1. Mizuki, Hyper Misao, Yuki Aino, Raku & Jada Stone defeated Miu Watanabe, Suzume, Arisu Endo, Yuki Arai & Shino Suzuki when Mizuki pinned Suzuki with the Cutie Special (10:13).
2. Kidd Bandit & Shota defeated Rika Tatsumi & Antonio Honda when Bandit pinned Honda with the Hidden Lotus (10:02).
3. Gringo Loco & Arez defeated Starboy Charlie & Yuni when Loco pinned Yuni with the Base Bomb and Arez pinned Charlie with the Made In Mexico (11:23).
4. Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara defeated Brooke Havok & Sandra Moone when Kamifuku pinned Moone with the Diving Famouser (7:01).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Super Crazy, Marcus Mathers & Shoko Nakajima defeated Daisuke Sasaki, Ilusion & Dark Sheik when Crazy submitted Ilusion with La Guitarra (8:48).
6. Special Tag Match: Yukio Naya & Microman defeated 1 Called Manders & Maki Itoh when Microman pinned Itoh with a Naya Assisted Body Press (11:27).
7. Hardcore Tag Match: John Wayne Murdoch & Matt Tremont defeated Mance Warner & Shunma Katsumata when Tremont pinned Katsumata with the Death Valley Driver (9:37).
8. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Masha Slamovich defeated Shinya Aoki & Miyu Yamashita when Slamovich pinned Yamashita with the White Knight Driver (11:10).
9. BZW Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Match: MAO & Yoshihiko (c) defeated Jimmy Lloyd & Alec Price and Jack Cartwheel & Kazuma Sumi when MAO pinned Sumi with the Ultra Big Tone (13:48). *V5 for MAO & Yoshihiko.
On the final day of The Collective series of shows and just hours before the first night of WrestleMania began, a triple threat collaboration took place between DDT, Tokyo Joshi Pro & GCW. And just to add another promotion to the mix, the main event was for a Banger Zone Wrestling championship. MAO & Yoshihiko defended the BZW Tag Team Titles in a 3 Way Match and came out of it with the belts still in their grasps. Yoshihiko was all bandaged up from the night before and took more abuse today, this time at the hands of Jimmy Lloyd & Alec Price. Meanwhile Kazuma Sumi got along well with Jack Cartwheel but had a bad end to the afternoon when MAO used his AI created finisher the Ultra Big Tone to beat him. MAO’s busy week finally came to an end and while he was now feeling tired, he isn’t satisfied because DDT wasn’t able to fill out the venue either today or yesterday.
The show was filled with one of a kind matches that never happened before and likely will never happen again. The semi-main event highlighted this most with Konosuke Takeshita teaming with Masha Slamovich to take on the pair of Shinya Aoki & Miyu Yamashita. Takeshita against Aoki and Slamovich against Yamashita have happened before but Takeshita against Yamashita is very rare. Yamashita was able to hit Takeshita with the Skull Kick that stunned him rather than knocked him out. But Slamovich hit Yamashita with her own Skull Kick, allowing Takeshita to give her the Blue Thunder Bomb. With Aoki unable to make the save, Slamovich then pinned Yamashita with the White Knight Driver. Takeshita admitted backstage he doesn’t remember anything that happened after getting hit with the Skull Kick. He also wants to team with Slamovich again because they had good chemistry as a team.
All through the weekend 1 Called Manders entered the ring to “Wanted Dead Or Alive” by Bon Jovi so today Maki Itoh walked out wearing a cowboy hat and lip-synced along to the song for their entrance. Yukio Naya’s big entrance was carrying Microman out to the stage. Itoh and Microman got into a fight over who is cuter. Naya wouldn’t actually fight Itoh but kept trying to scare her into submission with his size. Itoh began to cry and when Microman went over to comfort her, Naya knocked him down and made him cry too. Manders confronted Naya over it and after a shove couldn’t help but cry along with the others. Naya joined in too when the weight of guilt became too much for him to bare. When they all got it out of their system the action continued. Manders missed a Lariat and hit Itoh by mistake. Naya gave Manders The Best Back Drop In The World. He then picked up Microman and dropped him on top of Itoh for the pin.
DDT “DDT GOES LAS VEGAS!”, 18/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA ??? Fans – Unannounced
1. Starboy Charlie defeated Yuni with the Shooting Starboy Press (8:58).
2. 3 Way Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Ilusion defeated Mizuki Watase & Shota and Dan The Dad & Kody Lane when Sasaki submitted Dan with the Crossface Lock (13:07).
3. Special Single Match: Santana Jackson defeated Antonio Honda with the Moonwalk DDT (9:37).
4. wXw Unified World Wrestling Title: 1 Called Manders (c) defeated Yukio Naya with the Lariat (9:33). *V3 for 1 Called Manders.
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Nick Wayne, Shunma Katsumata & Kazuma Sumi defeated Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers & Tyler Bateman when Wayne pinned Bateman with the Wayne’s World (13:37).
6. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki defeated Timothy Thatcher with the Aoki Clutch (9:20).
7. DDT Universal Title: Minoru Suzuki (c) defeated Yoshihiko with the Gotch-Style Piledriver (15:10). *V1 for Minoru Suzuki.
8. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated MAO with the Raging Fire (17:24).
With all of the wrestling going on in Las Vegas this week, DDT were in the thick of it holding their latest USA show with The Collective. The lineup was not DDT at its fullest with half the roster remaining in Japan to continue running shows over there. What Vegas did get though was still a mix of the weird and wonderful you can find in pro wrestling. DDT still gave fans something they weren’t going to get anywhere else in Vegas this week.
In the main event Konosuke Takeshita returned to DDT to test out just how much MAO has grown without him. MAO has recently made a similar decision that Takeshita went through a few years ago and that is to leave The 37KAMIINA to move in a new direction. MAO’s path is a little different though and he used what tricks he could to go against Takeshita’s world class abilities. At one point he hit Takeshita square with the Iai Kick but Takeshita collapsed out of the ring. Takeshita did big damage back by dropping MAO on the ring apron with the Wicked Driver. MAO gambled it all by going for a Phoenix Splash but Takeshita got out of the way. He moved so quick that he got in position to throw an Elbow Stike at MAO in midair but the wild shot missed. It didn’t matter though because Takeshita remained on the attack and pinned MAO with the Raging Fire.
After the match MAO got to give a speech but felt bad about it because losers shouldn’t talk. However he has a dream to tell the fans and it is to “Make DDT Dramatic Again”. He invited everyone back out to end the show but had more to say backstage. He is going to follow in Takeshita’s footsteps by attacking New Japan! To give more back to DDT his goal is to win the Best Of The Super Jr. and then take the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title! Meanwhile Takeshita told reporters about all of the opponents he has fought this week with more to come tomorrow. He cannot go back on his triple contracts now. He also gave advice to MAO and that is to cherish the people who support you because they are the ones who will protect you in the end. With that, he will look forward to seeing how MAO will do in May
Las Vegas got to witness the fight of the century! In the middle of what is part of the most bizarre schedule of matches anyone has taken for WrestleMania Weekend ever, Minoru Suzuki fought Yoshihiko with the DDT Universal Title on the line. All throughout the buildup Suzuki didn’t believe in Yoshihiko’s powers and thought the match was a joke. So when the match began he had fun kicking and throwing the doll around while the audience reacted in horror to the violence put on display. Yoshihiko even produced a crimson mask, getting blood gushing from its face. However things took a turn when all of a sudden Yoshihiko grabbed Suzuki and fought back with submission holds. Suzuki was at the risk of getting outgrappled and soon found himself getting bumped around the ring. But in the end he countered Yoshihiko’s Reincarnation into the Gotch-Style Piledriver, spinning around in circles before hitting the move to make it more powerful. After winning the match, Suzuki shook Yoshihiko’s hand before throwing it out of the ring. Backstage he asked the reporters if Americans are stupide because they made such a big fuss over a doll. He then brought up his singles match with Danshoku Dieno happening on 25th May, insinuating that he wants it to be a Universal Title match. Yoshihiko made no comment backstage.
Something that was completely different from the rest of the card could be seen in Match #6. Shinya Aoki and Timothy Thatcher kept most of their match to the mat with grappling exchanges and submission holds. When the action brought them back to their feet, Aoki hit a dive out of the ring but Thatcher returned fire back inside with a Piledriver. Aoki got the better of him in the end though when he applied the Full Nelson and pulled Thatcher down into the pinning manoeuvre that is now called the Aoki Clutch. Thatcher had no answer to it and was counted for three.
People were flying everywhere in the 6-Man Tag Match. Gringo Loco threw his body around with high risk moves and Marcus Mathers did the same. Kazuma Sumi got to stretch his feet out a little bit and do some more high flying of his own than we’re used to seeing him on regular DDT shows. Nick Wayne was also chomping at the bit to get things done but at times it put him at odds with Sumi & Shunma Katsumata. That was only a blip though and the trio remained strong, ending with Wayne pinned Tyler Batemen with the Wayne’s World.
Big beefy brutes collided over the wXw Unified Title. It’s a belt that 1 Called Manders recently won in Germany and brought with him to Vegas for a few title defences. Yukio Naya got to be one of the challengers but couldn’t knock the cowboy off his throne with strikes and Choke Slams. Instead Manders took Naya’s best shot and took him down with the Lariat to keep his championship. The two earned each other’s respect and Manders raised Naya’s hand as he was heading to the back.
Anton, are you okay? Are you okay? Are you okay, Anton? Antonio Honda couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Just the sight of Santana Jackson moving like Michael Jackson was enough to make his knees quiver and his mind unfocused. It must have been why he injured his knee again when trying to do a dive. Honda had the courage to tell everyone a Gongitsune story in English about the time Gone went to Vegas to see Caesars Palace but wound up at Caesars Penis instead. It was all a trick to cheap shot Jackson, who fled beneath the ring. When he returned he had become the werewolf from Thriller and he gave Honda the Moonwalk DDT for the victory.
A 3 Way Match pitted DAMNATION T.A against two teams that were very different from each other. Mizuki Watase & Shota were teaming up as a Ganbare☆Pro adjacent pair while Dan The Dad & Kody Lane were along for what sounded like a fun vacation the whole family could enjoy. Too bad Daisuke Sasaki wanted to drink beer and Ilusion kept swearing at everybody. Dan also lost his temper at Shota for standing on the top turnbuckles for too long like a bold boy. Dan & Lane hit some big moves including a Topé Suicida Doomsday Device onto a pile of wrestlers outside the ring. But Ilusion caught Dan with the Swanton Bomb and Sasaki ran in to give him the Crossface Lock for the submission win.
It was like a mirror match in the opener. Both Yuni and Starboy Charlie tried to match each other flip for flip to impress the fans. Charlie won out on the contest thanks to the Standing Corkscrew Moonsault and also the Shooting Starboy Press.
DDT “DDT GOES LAS VEGAS!”, 18/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Yuni Vs Starboy Charlie
2. 3 Way Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Ilusion Vs Mizuki Watase & Shota Vs Dan The Dad & Kody Lane
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Nick Wayne, Shunma Katsumata & Kazuma Sumi Vs Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers & Tyler Bateman
4. Special Single Match: Antonio Honda Vs Santana Jackson
5. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki Vs Timothy Thatcher
6. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs MAO
7. wXw Unified World Wrestling Title: 1 Called Manders (c) Vs Yukio Naya
8. DDT Universal Title: Minoru Suzuki (c) Vs Yoshihiko
Bright lights, the sound of money being lost everywhere and of course there’s an impersonator nearby. DDT has come to Las Vegas for WrestleMania Week! Things really feel different with the show this year as many of DDT’s main roster are not making the trip out of Japan. Instead they are going to run more shows side by side with the group going to America. It means a lot of big names you come to expect from DDT are missing and the people brought in to fill those gaps seem a bit random at first. Some start to make sense the more you think about it but if you look at the card above it kind of looks like bits and pieces from other shows all being grouped together into something else. I still bet it will be a good time and if you want to know what’s going on with everything, you’ve come to the right place. You won’t get any gambling tips from me though. I’m already gambling my Switch 2 money to the Fortune Cup machines as you read this.
When and where is the show taking place?
The two shows will be held at the Pearl Theater found inside Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. “DDT GOES LAS VEGAS!” is taking place on Friday, 18th April at 3pm local time. “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW” is taking place on Saturday, 19th April at 2pm local time.
Where can I watch it online?
Both “DDT GOES LAS VEGAS!” and “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW” will air live on Triller TV with English commentary through the TrillerTV+ subscription service. The on-demand versions of both shows will be available to watch on Wrestle Universe a few weeks after the live broadcast.
Is this a proper DDT show?
Ehhhhhhh…… There’s a lot missing. When it comes to expanding into the USA, CyberFight thinks Tokyo Joshi Pro has become the better bet. I don’t think you will get the full DDT experience compared to their shows in Japan or even their recent previous American shows. It will be entertaining and mostly looks unique compared to anything else happening this week but I can’t say this looks like a complete DDT experience. Maybe treat it as a sampler if this is your first time watching the product.
Look at it this way. I’m playing Promoter Mode on Fire Pro Wrestling and I’m trying to remake DDT. A lot of the roster I want too book isn’t unlocked yet and I spent so much money on the couple of star wrestlers I love that I have to make do with who’s available in the Freelance section to fill out the rest of the card. I might end up discovering some new wrestlers I like in the process but the whole package just never seems right. This show kind of feels like that. DDT is always open to becoming a mish-mash of different styles and philosophies which is probably why some of the matches here look like they could have been booked on some of the other prominent shows happening in Vegas.
Got any non-wrestling tips for visiting Las Vegas?
Every casino looks closer to each other than they appear so be prepared to walk a lot. Even in real life The Sphere looks like it is CGI’d into the background when you see it from a distance. I like Secret Pizza in The Cosmopolitan but would not rely on it at all for a full meal. Pin-Up Pizza on the strip is the same quality as Sbarro so only go near it if you really want the novelty of eating a gigantic slice. If you’re going to see Penn & Teller at the Rio Casino, get there early to get a close up look at an old timey magician’s stage while Penn plays jazz music with his band. You might also get to be part of an inside joke that happens during the show. Tape Face is a really fun show to loosen up at. BattleBots Destruct-A-Thon is enjoyable but a little too Medieval Times for my tastes. It is also closer to pro wrestling than some of the actual pro wrestling shows happening this week.
Will The Steiner Brothers be at the show?
No.
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1. Yuni Vs Starboy Charlie
We open up with two heartthrobs in the making being pitted against each other. Yuni is part of NωA Jr. (New Wrestling Idol Jr.), a pop idol unit that’s been given the task by DDT to go and win a Best Newcomer category at a famous music awards ceremony by the end of the year. All three members of the group will be at this show so you may get a singing performance from them. Starboy Charlie isn’t singing yet but it might be in his future if The Crush Boys project he is involved in with Chigusa Nagayo ever decides to take the musical route. These two boys might just end up being two peas in a pod.
Yuni – See this 17 year old? Yuni made his pro wrestling debut at 8 years old when he and his mom convinced Sanshiro Takagi to let him try out for DDT. How did DDT get away with this at the time? Well it turns out the mom is a retired dancer from a popular idol group in the 90’s so the family is already in show business. Yay nepotism! Now fully ingrained in the business and at an age where DDT won’t get into trouble when he takes a bump, Yuni wants to live his dream of becoming a cool wrestler with loads of high flying moves in his arsenal. Moves To Watch Out For: Phoenix Splash, Sky Twister Press, Moonault, Spinning Headscissors
Starboy Charlie – Currently making waves on the indies as one half of The Crush Boys with Titus Alexander. Charlie is more familiar with the other side of CyberFight where he has wrestled several tours in NOAH and once challenged for the GHC Jr. Heavyweight Title. Yes, he still wrestles in the denim dungarees. I still remember Jim Ross joking that the kid thinks he’s like Jerry Lawler in Memphis when he pulls the straps down. Moves To Watch Out For: Shooting Star Press, Standing Corkscrew Moonsault, Kip Up into an Overhead Kick
2. 3 Way Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Ilusion Vs Mizuki Watase & Shota Vs Dan The Dad & Kody Lane
A 3 Way Tag Match like this always looks like it’s thrown together but it makes a little bit of sense here. Two of the three teams are more likely to appear in Ganbare☆Pro rather than DDT. DAMNATION T.A is the odd one out although a previous version of the group did get into a feud with GanPro in 2017 that nearly put the promotion’s entire existence in jeopardy. Mizuki Watase has travelled to Las Vegas before and has gone through the problems such a trip would give anyone. Hopefully he’s better prepared this time. Dan The Dad & Kody Lane have toured in GanPro before so this isn’t unusual territory for them. They are also already an accomplished tag team called Home Cookin’.
Daisuke Sasaki – Here is the grimiest heel you’re ever going to find in DDT. Dirty, drunk and depressed, Daisuke Sasaki is the leader of DAMNATION T.A because this way of life is a “Total Addiction”. He has the talent to reach bigger heights and has achieved success in DDT but every time there is a setback it sends him tumbling back down into despair. Despite putting himself in a self-fulfilled cycle of destruction you can never really count him out of the running. Moves To Watch Out For: Crossface Lock (sometimes set up with La Mistica), Crossover Face Lock (Gargano Escape), Sasaki-Style Hurricanrana, Diving Elbow Drop
Ilusion – This young masked wrestler started off his career leaning as a heel but showed traces of babyface behaviour when he wanted to join SCHADENFREUDE International. It all turned out to be a ruse he planned with DAMNATION T.A to betray his new friends and leave them with broken hearts. Now Ilusion is just a prick to everyone outside of DAMNATION T.A, flipping off his opponents and cheating like hell. Moves To Watch Out For: Swanton Bomb, RE:VISION1 (Modified Angels Wings), Missile Dropkick, Giving everyone middle fingers
Mizuki Watase – A former comedian turned pro wrestler and he is freshly back from a ruptured Achilles tendon. He speedran his rehabilitation and made it back to the ring in only 4 months which sounds absolutely crazy when you think about it. He wants to make up for lost time which is why he is putting in four times the amount of effort needed. Moves To Watch Out For: Venetian (Wrist-Clutch Michinoku Driver), Running Elbow Butt, Back Drop, Hanori Tiger Suplex
Shota – A reliable handyman both inside and out of the ring. Shota has spent the last few years working as a freelancer to do what’s best for himself after spending so many years putting other people in the business first. He still helps out from time to time and likes to wrestling across the indies scenes in both Japan and America. I’m under suspicion that he still helps out CyberFight as a talent scout of some sort from time to time. Moves To Watch Out For: Gannosuke Clutch, Frog Splash, Sharpshooter
Dan The Dad – Your father’s favorite wrestler. He sometimes has to wrestle the match while drinking his morning cup of joe from his World’s No. 1 Dad mug. He also isn’t afraid to dish out punishment the old fashioned way by whipping the opponent’s behind with his belt. He got involved at last year’s DDT show in Philadelphia where his open challenge was answered by the psycho mascot Chiitan. Moves To Watch Out For: Baby On Board (Backpack Stunner), You’re Grounded (rope draping Flatliner)
Kody Lane – Wherever Dan The Dad goes, “The Southern Flamingo” is never that far behind him. Although usually they just see each other all the time in Glory Pro anyway. The two travelled together to Japan for a GanPro tour two years ago and they are familar with each other either as partners or opponents. In the ring though Lane loves nothing more than to springboard or slingshot himself off of the ropes. Moves To Watch Out For: Diving Senton to a bent over opponent, Jay Driller, Top Rope Springboard Moonsault, Waffle Stomp (Elevated Double Stomp to a bent over opponent in the corner)
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Nick Wayne, Shunma Katsumata & Kazuma Sumi Vs Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers & Tyler Bateman
Not much to say here other than throw a few high flyers into the ring with a couple of bases and let them all do their thing. Nick Wayne is calling over from AEW to get some ring time before he heads over to New Japan for the summer. Shunma Katsumata & Kazuma Sumi are the other two members of NωA Jr. Maybe they can convince Wayne to be their fourth man. Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers & Tyler Bateman are all going to try and ruin the other team’s day.
Nick Wayne – It’s been said before that Nick Wayne is a young wrestler who has the world at his feet. That’s all well and good but he really needs to get moving because maybe his father figure in AEW doesn’t have what’s best in mind for him. The son of the late Buddy Wayne toured with DDT in the past to get himself ready for his move to the big leagues. Now the next time he returns to Japan it will be for the Best Of The Super Jr tournament. There will come a day when Wayne is watching over the wrestling scene as a grizzled veteran with hundreds of matches under his belt while still only being in his mid twenties. But he needs to start making his moves sooner rather than later. Moves To Watch Out For: Wayne’s World (Sprinboard Flying Cutter), Inverted Hurricanrana, Snap Dragon Suplex, Fisherman Suplex
Shunma Katsumata – Nobody in DDT loves saunas as much as this guy. Don’t let his hobby or his eternally youthful looks fool you though. Katsumata can get crazy violent whenever he wants even when his weapons of choice turn out to be Lego and party poppers. That kind of behaviour took its toll and put him on the shelf for a year. So when he came back he traded in the Lego for a microphone to become part of NωA Jr. Moves To Watch Out For: ¡Hasta la vista! (Lightning Spiral), Totonou Splash (straight Diving Body Press), Aufguss (Diving Foot Stomp to a standing opponent)
Kazuma Sumi – Where does DDT find so many young wrestlers to train and debut quickly? Well the quiet part is they usually attract trainees who dropped out of other company dojos. Kazuma Sumi is one such example because he originally trained with Dragongate before bouncing over to DDT. One year after his debut he was taken under the wing of former DDT mainstay MIKAMI and adopted one of his most successful moves… the School Boy! There’s an alternate reality where he should be doing Swanton Bombs off of ladders instead but we don’t live in it. Moves To Watch Out For: Lionsault, Standing Moonsault, School Boy
Gringo Loco – Do you need an opponent to be the yin to your high flyer’s yang? Then go get “The Base God”. Gringo Loco left his mark in DDT last November when he unexpectedly won the DDT Universal Title during a series of shows in Seattle. He defended the belt around North America a little bit before losing it once he actually had a title match in Japan. This match will be Loco’s return to DDT, doing what he does best. Moves To Watch Out For: Base Bomb (Spinning Sit Down Power Bomb), Olympico Slam (Inverted Angle Slam), Gorilla Press Driver, Gringo Cutter
Marcus Mathers – It’s looking like Marcus Mathers is one of the early standouts among the WWE ID class. IWTV is also currently counting on him as their Independent World Wrestling Title. He made one previous appearance in DDT as part of GCW’s Japan tour last August. His big viral spot was crying crocodile tears with Maki Itoh during their match. That might not work here. The guy’s a pretty good spot monkey but that stuff doesn’t get over with WWE’s online fanbase unless it happens inside a WWE ring. Moves To Watch Out For: 450 Splash, Cutter, Blue Thunder Bomb, 999 (Diamond Dust)
Tyler Bateman – Vegas is a familiar haunt for Tyler Bateman so you may see him a couple of times throughout the week, particularly in the Shooting Star Fest series of shows. He thinks pretty highly of himself and is often introduced as “The God Damn Man”. He finds his moments to strike when the opponent’s guard is down. The big move to watch out for is when he goes for Death From Above, a falling Forearm Smash he usually hits immediately after his opponent kicks out of a pin. Moves To Watch Out For: Death From Above (Falling Forearm Smash to a grounded opponent), This Is A Kill (Tombstone Piledriver), Love Kill (Northern Lights Bomb)
4. Special Single Match: Antonio Honda Vs Santana Jackson
This is it! Antonio Honda’s love of classic American pop culture has brought forward the perfect opponent for him. Why is he Wanna Be Startin’ Something’ to get into a fight with a living, breathing Michael Jackson impersonator? It will be kind of like fighting The Man In The Mirror. If you think a match like this is going to be Bad then I advise you can go Beat It over to the concession stand…… Thriller.
Antonio Honda – He has almost two decades of experience under his belt while his knees behave like he’s gone through four. Antonio Honda went through several phases of an unlikely pro wrestling career, settling into this weird mix of tranquil slapstick with hints of Memphis wrestling hidden beneath. Honda is the poster child of high risk equals high failure because he injures his knee in a clumsy way in almost every match he’s in. The pain is so bad he threatens to retire every time unless he gets to tell the story of Gon The Little Fox, a child’s tale that he then turns into a filthy joke. But it’s all a ruse so he can poke people in the eyes while his hand is in the shape of Gon. Honda loves classic American pop culture too so DDT went and found him the perfect opponent for his visit to Vegas. Moves To Watch Out For: Octopus Hold, Diving Fist Drop, Bionic Elbow, Gongitsune/Gon The Fox (makes a fox out of his hand, says a lewd joke and pokes people in either the eyes or the nipples).
Santana Jackson – How’s this for a double life? A Michael Jackson tribute act in Vegas who moonwalks moonlights as a pro wrestler with the same gimmick. Genius! Santana Jackson usually goes viral for doing Moonwalk DDTs or replicating the baby balcony spot in Hardcore Matches. Think of an MJ cliche and he’s probably done it in the ring. Honda is going to have the time of his life against this guy. Although believe it or not, Santana is not the first Michael Jackson impersonator to wrestle in DDT. Someone by the name of Michael Okamoto beat him to the punch around 17 years ago. Moves To Watch Out For: Sleepwalk DDT, King Of Pop Elbow Drop, Rope Walk Arm Drag, Dancing like Michael Jackson
5. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki Vs Timothy Thatcher
Are we sure this wasn’t meant to be booked for Bloodsport? I mean are we really, really sure? Okay then. DDT has somehow become the pro wrestling home for MMA fighter Shinya Aoki. He certainly made the most of it so far. His opponent is someone you couldn’t find in DDT at all yet is still a fitting match for him. If Timothy Thatcher is going to feel a thrill from going hold to hold against Aoki, we’re not going to see it on his face. He’s there to win or accept total defeat from trying.
Shinya Aoki – If you were never around for even the immediate post-glory years of Japanese MMA then you missed a magical time. Shinya Aoki played a role in it as this little asshole who would come out to the Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo theme song and then rip his opponents apart with submission holds. It was wonderful. He unexpectedly turned to DDT in 2018 and gradually made himself at home by winning several championships including DDT’s main belt, the KO-D Openweight Title. Thankfully for everybody and their arms his personality had mellowed out by then and he has found wrestlers to get along with. His skills on the mat are still unmatched to this day and his mind for fighting is his most valuable weapon. Even his biggest doubters in wrestling couldn’t help but be impressed to see him develop the humble little Full Nelson Hold into a nigh-on unbreakable pinning manoeuvre. Moves To Watch Out For: Sleeper Hold, Full Nelson Hold, European Clutch, Topé Suicida
Timothy Thatcher – In Europe he was once the housewive’s favourite but nowadays you can find him tangling with WWE ID recruits. No nonsense to a fault, Timothy Thatcher takes to the mat like no one else and braces for his opponent’s strikes the same way a brick wall would. You may think DDT would be the most uncharacteristic place for a guy like Thatcher to wrestle in but the company has always embraced wrestlers with catch style or MMA related backgrounds. It goes all the way back to their very beginning with the late Koichiro Kimura. So there’s sort of a legacy he can fit into. Moves To Watch Out For: Fujiwara Armbar, Butterfly Suplex, Enzuigiri, European Uppercut
6. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs MAO
Nothing is stopping the Konosuke Takeshita hype train! The man has been on a roll lately and he may not be done just yet. He has some old business to deal with back in DDT where he tests how much his former allies in The 37KAMIINA have grown without him. MAO has certainly found ways to progress up the card and make himself feel a level above what he was before. But he might be in for a rude awakening if Takeshita doesn’t budge to his antics anymore.
Konosuke Takeshita – No matter where his career in AEW and now New Japan will take him, Takeshita will always have a home in DDT. He is gradually taking over the wrestling world while holding contracts with those three companies. Once he was part of a unit of sauna loving wrestlers called The 37KAMIINA until he left to chase his biggest dreams. That journey so far has evolved him into “The Alpha” you see today. He has done everything there is to do in DDT and only comes back to fight opponents he wants to fight. So you know this match matters to him when you see who his opponent is. Moves To Watch Out For: Raging Fire (Spinning Falcon Arrow), Powerdrive Knee/Wagamama (V-Trigger style Knee Strike), German Suplex, Blue Thunder Bomb, Takeshita Line (Leaping Clothesline from the ropes)
MAO – Lives by the motto “Fucked up wrestling for a fucked up world!” so you can’t say he’s out of place in 2025. He was scouted by DDT as a teenager when they found his Youtube videos of him doing wrestling moves at home and outdoors. Just like Takeshita, MAO was part of The 37KAMIINA but very recently decided to leave the unit to move in a fresh direction. He has been immature for his entire career but in recent times developed an unshakeable confidence in his abilities and wrestling philosophy. MAO feels at his most alive during Falls Count Anywhere style situations. Putting him in an environment like Las Vegas is just asking for trouble. Moves To Watch Out For: Iai Kick (Powerful Thrust Kick), Cannonball 450 (450 Splash), Michinoku Driver, Whirlwind Kick
7. wXw Unified World Wrestling Title: 1 Called Manders (c) Vs Yukio Naya
All of a sudden we’ve got an extra title match on our hands! Straight from Germany the wXW Unified World Wrestling Title will be defended in Las Vegas a few times this week. If all goes to plan, 1 Called Manders will put the belt on the line against his scheduled DDT opponent Yukio Naya. Manders is having a breakthrough year, one that I can’t help but wonder if Naya could have gotten in the past if things had turned out differently for him.
1 Called Manders – Previously known for being part of The Second Gear Crew in GCW and the surrounding indies, Manders went his own way and his hard work over the last few years is now paying off. His feud on the indies with Mad Dog Connelly consisting of Dog Collar and Texas Bull Ropes matches found its audience and received great acclaim online. Then a lengthy trek to Europe this year rewarded him with more success, particularly in Germany where he won the fabled 16 Carat Gold tournament and soon after that took the vacant wXw Title. He’s your man if you like your wrestling to be hard hitting with a bit of grit. Moves To Watch Out For: Lariat, Stampede Slam, Chops
Yukio Naya – The Heavyweight division is something DDT has been trying to boost up for the last few years. Yukio Naya is someone they’ve had high hopes for in the past due to his lineage coming from a famous family of sumo wrestlers. His grandfather was the 48th yokozuna, his father was kicked out of the sport in disgrace and his three younger brothers are all currently active up and down the divisions. Sumo was never the road that Naya wanted to take though and instead he was directed towards pro wrestling by Satoru Sayama. Development was slow but when DDT became his home he eventually started to piece things together. He is in no way a finished product but through sheer determination it may someday finally all click into place for him. Watch out if he does because he can run you over easy. Moves To Watch Out For: The World’s Best Back Drop, Choke Slam, Knee Lift
8. DDT Universal Title: Minoru Suzuki (c) Vs Yoshihiko
There’s going to be a few bruised egos in Vegas this week over a sex doll getting more bookings than some of the wrestlers coming to town. I’m not even making a crass joke at someone’s expense, Yoshihiko really has a couple of non-DDT matches going on as well as possibly getting the main event of this show! It is facing the one man who isn’t playing along with the joke though. Minoru Suzuki currently holds the DDT Universal Title and wants to travel the world defending it against all comers. So a sex doll suddenly appearing nearby wherever he goes is just an unfunny prank to him that is better off ignoring. With that being said have you seen what Suzuki’s schedule for this week looks like? This genuinely will end up being one of the more entertaining matches. Yoshihiko just needs to figure out how to make its dark power have an effect on Suzuki even a little bit. It’s almost as if it’s just an inanimate object…
Minoru Suzuki – The “Pirate King” of pro wrestling recently returned to DDT when Yuki Ueno used the Universal Title as a piece of treasure to lure him into a match. Ueno’s plan backfired spectacularly and now Suzuki holds DDT’s second most important championship. Since it is an international title, Suzuki now comes to America looking for anyone brave enough to challenge him. He has seen it all in his travels across the wrestling world but even he cannot believe who was first to answer his call. He’s going to show up to the event expecting to fight somebody because he isn’t buying that he’ll be headlining a wrestling show against a Dutch Wife. Moves To Watch Out For: Gotch-Style Piledriver, Rear Naked Choke, Heel Hook, Slaps
Yoshihiko – The Grave Digger Doll From Hell has been a mysterious force in DDT for almost two decades now. It first showed up as the brother of Muscle Sakai, constantly replacing him in matches whenever Sakai suffered gun-related injuries backstage (it’s a long story). Yoshihiko vanished after that only to reappear years later as Danshoku Dieno’s surprise tag team partner. Over time the doll’s powers have only gotten stronger. It gained the ability to transform into powerful wrestlers such as The Great Muta, The Undertaker and Hulk Hogan. You can rip it limb from limb and it will survive. You can drive over it with a car and it will survive. You can throw it off a building and it will survive. To fight Yoshihiko is almost like fighting yourself. Only then can you discover your true talent as a pro wrestler. Moves To Watch Out For: Reincarnation (multiple rotations into a Hurricanrana), Canadian Destroyer, Yoshihiko Destroyer (multiple Canadian Destroyers in a row)
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DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/GCW “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW”, 19/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Mizuki, Hyper Misao, Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku Vs Miu Watanabe, Suzume, Arisu Endo, Yuki Arai & Shino Suzuki
2. Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara Vs Brooke Havok & Sandra Moone
3. Rika Tatsumi & Antonio Honda Vs Kidd Bandit & Shota
4. 3 Way Match: MAO & Yoshihiko Vs Jimmy Lloyd & Alec Price Vs Jack Cartwheel & Kazuma Sumi
5. Special Tag Match: 1 Called Manders & Maki Itoh Vs Yukio Naya & Microman
6. Special Tag Match: Mance Warner & Shunma Katsumata Vs John Wayne Murdoch & Matt Tremont
7. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Ilusion & Dark Sheik Vs Super Crazy, Marcus Mathers & Shoko Nakajima
8. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Masha Slamovich Vs Shinya Aoki & Miyu Yamashita
I made the Fire Pro comparison earlier but holy hell does this card look like I random selected everything on my save. Now don’t get me wrong, the lineup we have so far is so nutty looking that I’m looking forward to it. This isn’t even the full line up yet. Out of all the shows happening this week this may end up being the one with the most amount of never seen before and never seen again matches ever. I can’t do a proper preview of this justice so just join me in confusion at the sight of Super Crazy and Shoko Nakajima are doing double team moves together, Manders punting Microman into the third row and Yoshihiko taking Jack Cartwheel’s WWE ID deal away from him.
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There will be other chances to see a few DDT wrestlers in action across Philadelphia that week. Mainly MAO. You are going to get a lot of MAO. Yoshihiko is in demand quite a bit too.
PANDEMONIUM PRO “THE HOUSE ALWAYS WINS”, 17/04/2025 Fremont Country Club, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Masha Slamovich Vs MAO
MAO is taking on the crazy schedule of wrestling 8 matches in just over 48 hours. He first match of the trip at Pandemonium Pro is already putting the pedal to the metal because his opponent is Masha Slamovich! The woman is one of the toughest people you will find in either TNA or GCW and just the kind of person who likes to match crazy with crazy.
CIRCLE 6 “MAYHEM AT THE MUSEUM”, 17/04/2025 The Punk Rock Museum, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Bestia 666 Vs MAO
Around the same time MAO is fighting Slamovich he also has a match with Bestia 666 at a Circle 6 show. They’re only like a 10 minute drive away from each other so which will happen first?
WEST COAST PRO “VEGAS VACATION”, 17/04/2025 Meet Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. MAO Vs Jiah Jewell
Forget about LSU Vs Ole Miss. Louisiana Vs Osaka? Now there’s a real sports rivalry! Although I can’t find Modesto on the map of Louisiana and any cajun I ask tells me the only place I’ll find a Modesto over there would be in the craft beer aisle. Jiah Jewell is another crazy opponent for MAO to fight.
GCW “JOSH BARNETT’S BLOODSPORT XIII”, 17/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Charlie Dempsey Vs Shinya Aoki
Look, I’m not saying I want to see Aoki break Charlie Dempsey’s arm and flip him off afterwards. It’s just that if you’re going to call this Bloodsport then give us a bloodsport. Dempsey’s dad would understand that.
BZW “VIVA LAS VEGAS”, 17/04/2025 Swan Dive, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. BZW Tag Team Titles: MAO & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Marcus Mathers & Alec Price
If you haven’t heard, MAO & Yoshihiko have a side story going on where they are the tag team champions of Banger Zone Wrestling in France and Belgium. BZW are among the more obscure wrestling companies that decided to run a show in Vegas this year but at least they’re taking a good swing at it. The champs were originally meant to face The Gahbage Daddies for the belts but Cole Radrick is unfortunately out of action. Alec Price was able to get Marcus Mathers in as a substitute so wacky times are still a go-go.
PRIDESTYLE “OUT OF THIS WORLD”, 18/04/2025 Swan Dive, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
0. Yoshihiko’s Super Special Open Challenge: Yoshihiko Vs X
1. G-Sharpe Vs MAO
MAO is also taking in favours from the Nevada based promotions during the week. There is a heel unit in PrideStyle named The Cartel de Los Villanos who have called MAO in to deal with one of their enemies G-Sharpe. While that is going on, Yoshihiko will also be there on the pre-show looking to put out an open challenge.
GRAPHOUSE “FOR VEGAS, BY VEGAS”, 18/04/2025 Fergusons Downtown, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Lazarus Vs MAO
By the looks of things MAO ends his run of Vegas shows with one of the local promotions called GrapHouse. His opponent Lazarus is being advertised as the W4TN Champion but I’m not sure if the title will be on the line. Lazarus is also nicknamed “The Cannibal Cryptid”. Sounds about right. Also I think the venue is near Fremont Street so MAO should find a way to do a Moonsault off of Vegas Vic.
GCW “CLUSTERF*CK FOREVER”, 19/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Clusterfuck Match: Yoshihiko Vs X
Almost anyone and anything could show up at GCW’s annual Clusterfuck match that usually draws the non-WWE side of the week to a close. Yoshihiko has been confirmed to take part in the match for a second year in a row. Last year it made it all the way to the final three. Former TJPW wrestler Sayaka Unagi is also being advertised to take part. Can you imagine the kind of eye opening things Unagi would do in Vegas?
What a month it’s been already and we’re not even halfway through yet. It’s the busiest time of the year for American wrestling with WrestleMania coming up next weekend and the carnival of shows that exist around it. DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro will be deep in the mix with shows held under The Collective banner along with some outside bookings scattered around the Paradise of Las Vegas. Then there is no rest for the wicked afterwards because the months leading into summertime will be very busy for the likes of Miyu Yamashita and Maki Itoh. The international exchange will even be seen in Japan with Deadlock Pro running a tour over there and YuuRI getting involved in a big lucha libre show. Plus one of the big rivalries happening in Southeast Asia may finally come to an end if Yuki Kamifuku defeats Alexis Lee one more time.
But I’m burying the lede here. Shoko Nakajima won a championship in MLW! She has become the latest TJPW wrestler to win a title belonging to a foreign company and we may possibly add another person to that somehow growing list at the end of the month. Meanwhile Konosuke Takeshita is already turning April 2025 into a memorable period. He squashed an age old beef with one of Japan’s modern legends and has started a tournament run that will at least produce a few great matches if he doesn’t make it all the way.
Video starts at 22:53 for Match #1. Go to 1:12:00 for Match #2. MLW “BATTLE RIOT VII”, 05/04/2025 Thunder Studios Arena, Long Beach, California, USA
1. HIMAWARI Vs Janai Kai
2. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title: Delmi Exo (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima
8th match Backstage 4/11/25 | Windy City Riot 2025
AEW “COLLISION”, 12/04/2025 MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA
1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Quarter Final: Brody King (w/ Julia Hart) Vs Konosuke Takeshita
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Results
AEW “COLLISION”, 02/04/2025 (Aired 05/04/2025) Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois, USA
1. Kyle Fletcher & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Powerhouse Hobbs & Tomohiro Ishii (w/ Rocky Romero) when Fletcher pinned Ishii with the Sheer Drop Brainbuster (13:47).
Takeshita had to miss the “DYNASTY” PPV because he had other priorities with New Japan that weekend but he was able to fit in an AEW tag match right before he left. He and Kyle Fletcher are really catching on as a tag team lately and they were really put through the grinder against Powerhouse Hobbs & Tomohiro Ishii. They tried to give Ishii a Super Bomb from the corner but Ishii countered it into a Frankensteiner on Fletcher. Takeshita came to help Fletcher give Ishii a Sheer Drop Brainbuster for a nearfall and then clashed with Hobbs. Ishii’s face was bloody at this point but he was still fired up to fight. Fletcher didn’t care though and he used a Tombstone Piledriver followed by another Brainbuster for the victory.
MLW “BATTLE RIOT VII”, 05/04/2025 Thunder Studios Arena, Long Beach, California, USA
1. Janai Kai defeated HIMAWARI with the Tornado Kick (7:28).
2. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title: Shoko Nakajima defeated Delmi Exo (c) with the Diving Senton (9:17). *Delmi Exofails in V2. Shoko Nakajima becomes the 5th MLW Women’s World Featherweight Champion!
Well would you look at that, MLW went all the way with Nakajima and made her their women’s champion! The 619, Double Arm DDT and Diving Senton put Delmo Exo away and now Nakajima can add the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title to her collection.
Also HIMAWARI did not in fact get abducted or murdered by CONTRA Unit. She made it back to Japan in one piece. Janai Kai still beat her pretty handily but I’d still call it a successful MLW excursion.
NJPW “WINDY CITY RIOT”, 11/04/2025
Wintrust Arena, Chicago, Illinois, USA
4,674 Fans – No Vacancy
1. Hiroshi Tanahashi Last Match In The USA Final Road ~Kinship~: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi with the Raging Fire (20:37).
It was an emotional battle that’s been over a decade in the making. Takeshita was not only fighting Hiroshi Tanahashi in a rematch from their DDT bout from 2014 but he was defending DDT’s honour over the disrespect Tanahashi gave to them in 2015. Due to the added importance that this will be Tanahashi’s final wrestling match in America before he retires it was made the main event of the show ahead of the IWGP World Heavyweight Title bout. The two had counters for each other’s finishers but Takeshita surprised everyone by doing his own High Fly Flow. Everyone was then in even more shock when Tanahashi kicked out at one! Takeshita nailed Tanahashi with several Wagamama knee strikes before giving a big shout to HARASHIMA by hitting the Somato. After that he used the Raging Fire to get the win.
Backstage Takeshita said he was all anger before this match but now that it is over, his revenge on Tanahashi has ended and he now for the first time respects him. There is one thing that Takeshita couldn’t do to Tanahashi and that was take away the last of his light. He wishes to see Tanahashi keep that light shining until his retirement. He was then interrupted by El Phantasmo who complained about Takeshita not showing respect until now. He still remembers their match at last year’s G1 Climax and he wants to challenge him to a rematch, this time with the NEVER Openweight Title on the line. Suddenly Phantasmo was then attacked from behind by Rocky Romero. Whatever it is that’s going on between them has nothing to do with Takeshita. At least for now.
AEW “COLLISION”, 12/04/2025 MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA
1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Quarter Final: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Brody King (w/ Julia Hart) with the Powerdrive Knee (12:18).
The 4th annual Owen Hart Cup is packed this year on both the men’s and women’s tournaments. Count Takeshita among them on the men’s side. His opening round match was against Brody King from The Hounds Of Hell. Even a guy like Takeshita gets a bit worried when he hears King barking nearby. It took several Powerdrive Knee strikes to break down King and the final two needed Takeshita to pull his kneepad down for extra damage to finally put his opponent down for the count.
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WrestleMania Week Appearances
PANDEMONIUM PRO “THE HOUSE ALWAYS WINS”, 17/04/2025 Fremont Country Club, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Masha Slamovich Vs MAO
2. Maya World Vs Miu Watanabe
Let’s get crazy. The first piece of involvement in Wrestlemania Week from DDT and TJPW both take place at the same show. Miu Watanabe makes a rare outside appearance from TJPW to take on Maya World while one of her later upcoming opponents Masha Slamovich takes a trip on MAO’s wild ride. Or maybe it’s MAO going on Slamovich’s wild ride.
WRESTLECON “MARK HITCHCOCK MEMORIAL SUPERSHOW”, 17/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Mickie James Vs Maki Itoh
Who knows what else WrestleCon has in store for their big event of the week and if it applies here. They have a mystery 10-Man Tag Match on the card which was used to promote TJPW in a previous year. Itoh might meet her match in more ways than one when she faces off against Mickie James. But the worst thing James could do is go in their and underestimate Itoh.
WEST COAST PRO “VEGAS VACATION”, 17/04/2025 Meet Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. MAO Vs Jiah Jewell
It will be the second match of the day for both MAO and Jiah Jewell.
GCW “JOSH BARNETT’S BLOODSPORT XIII”, 17/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Charlie Dempsey Vs Shinya Aoki
2. Nattie Neidhart Vs Miyu Yamashita
This year’s Bloodsport went through a slight overbooking problem with some fighters but it hasn’t affected the two matches here that I care about. Bless GCW and Josh Barnett for having conflicting stories over who is actually booking the show when it was time to explain why previously announced talent were being left off the final card. Friendship aside, Nattie Neidhart doesn’t want to be used as a stepping stone by Yamashita but Yamashita doesn’t want Neidhart to take her lightly either. Are we going to get MMA Shinya Aoki or DDT Shinya Aoki when he fights Charlie Dempsey?
BZW “VIVA LAS VEGAS”, 17/04/2025 Swan Dive, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. BZW Tag Team Titles: MAO & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Marcus Mathers & Alec Price
Alec Price has found a replacement partner to challenge MAO & Yoshihiko for the BZW Tag Team Titles. With Cole Radrick out of action, Marcus Mathers is going to take his place.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “QUERI PRESENTS TJPW LIVE IN LAS VEGAS”, 18/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Rika Tatsumi, Shino Suzuki & Vert Vixen Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Viva Van
2. Yuki Arai Vs Arisu Endo
3. Maki Itoh & Zara Zakher Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
4. Special Single Match: Masha Slamovich Vs Miu Watanabe
5. International Princess Title: Suzume (c) Vs Jada Stone
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara
7. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
I’ll aim to have my guide for the TJPW Las Vegas show posted either late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning Las Vegas time.
DDT “DDT GOES LAS VEGAS!”, 18/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Nick Wayne, Shunma Katsumata & Kazuma Sumi Vs Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers & Tyler Bateman
2. Special Single Match: Antonio Honda Vs Santana Jackson
3. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki Vs Timothy Thatcher
4. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs MAO
5. wXw Unified World Wrestling Title: 1 Called Manders (c) Vs Yukio Naya
6. DDT Universal Title: Minoru Suzuki (c) Vs Yoshihiko
Same with my guide for the DDT Las Vegas show. You’ll pretty much know I arrived safe and sound when the articles get posted.
WRESTLECORE “FEAR & WRESTLECORE IN LAS VEGAS”, 18/04/2025 Swan Dive, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. ELP Vs Maki Itoh
Well so much for El Phantasmo and Maki Itoh joining forces as The Cutest Tag Team In The World. They’re not getting along so they’re going to fight each other instead.
PRIDESTYLE “OUT OF THIS WORLD”, 18/04/2025 Swan Dive, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
0. Yoshihiko’s Super Special Open Challenge: Yoshihiko Vs X
1. G-Sharpe Vs MAO
A new booking for MAO over at PrideStyle. If his opponent G-Sharpe looks a little familiar it may be because you might recognize him when he wrestles under a mask as Hyperstreak. There is a group called The Cartel de Los Villanos who have been feuding with G-Sharpe over in PrideStyle and they are the ones who hired MAO to fight him.
A bonus attraction will be happening before the show officially starts. That’s right, Yoshihiko is throwing out an open challenge! Who will dare step foot against “The Grave Digger Doll From Hell”?
GRAPHOUSE “FOR VEGAS, BY VEGAS”, 18/04/2025 Fergusons Downtown, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Lazarus Vs MAO
MAO’s Friday night comes to a close with a brawl against Lazarus near Fremont Street. Someone convince MAO to Moonsault off of the Vegas Vic neon sign.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/GCW “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW”, 19/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Rika Tatsumi & Antonio Honda Vs Kidd Bandit & Shota
2. 3 Way Match: MAO & Yoshihiko Vs Jimmy Lloyd & Alec Price Vs Jack Cartwheel & Kazuma Sumi
3. Special Tag Match: Mance Warner & Shunma Katsumata Vs John Wayne Murdoch & Matt Tremont
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Ilusion & Dark Sheik Vs Super Crazy, Marcus Mathers & Shoko Nakajima
5. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Masha Slamovich Vs Shinya Aoki & Miyu Yamashita
What the hell kind of Fire Pro random card is this?
GCW “CLUSTERF*CK FOREVER”, 19/04/2025 Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Clusterfuck Match: Yoshihiko Vs X
Yoshihiko is among the many, many competitors announced for the Clusterfuck so far but nobody else from DDT or TJPW has declared they will be in it. It’s likely a bunch of the talent will already be flying home by the time this show takes place.
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Upcoming Appearances After WrestleMania Week
AEW “DYNAMITE – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 16/04/2025 MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Semi Final: Will Ospreay Vs Konosuke Takeshita
Ok this is during WrestleMania Week but isn’t actually part of it so let’s stick it here. It’s now on to the semi finals for Takeshita where is next opponent is quite a doozy. It’s the rematch against Will Ospreay!
DPW “SPIRIT RISING – NIGHT 1”, 24/04/2025 Shinjuku FACE
1. Chris Brookes & HARASHIMA Vs LaBron Kozone & Calvin Tankman
2. DPW Women’s World Title: Dani Luna (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi
The hype train’s not stopping once WrestleMania is done. The schedule is going to get even more packed heading into the summer! DPW is heading back to Japan and has some familiar wrestlers taking part on their shows. Rika Tatsumi is getting a shot at the DPW Women’s World Title on the first night. The champion Dani Luna is coming out of a violent feud with Hyan over the belt which included title defences in Street Fights and Dog Collar matches. Sounds like she’ll be ready to handle Tatsumi’s madness. Meanwhile Chris Brookes & HARASHIMA are teaming up to take on two of DPW’s mainstays. LaBron Kozone is currently the DPW National Champion which just so happens to be the first DPW championship that his teammate Calvin Tankman won in the company.
DPW “SPIRIT RISING – NIGHT 2”, 25/04/2025 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida Vs Calvin Tankman & Kazuma Sumi
2. Emi Sakura, Chris Brookes, Mei Suruga & Baliyan Akki Vs Miyuki Takase, Kevin Ku, Dominic Garrini & Ryo Mizunami
Then on the second night Brookes joins team ChocoPro to fight a mix of joshi and Violence Is Forever… Joshi Is Forever? Violence Is Joshi? Miyuki Takase & Ryo Mizunami Plus Two?
Tankman finds himself in the ring surrounded by DDT wrestlers. It will be a match of big man and little man teams when Tankman teams with Kazuma Sumi to fight the Harimao pair of Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida.
HOG “ISOLATION”, 25/04/2025 NYC Arena, New York City, New York, USA
1. HOG Heavyweight Title: Mike Santana (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita
Will Takeshita bring an end to Mike Santana’s 16 month reign as House Of Glory’s champion?
BLACK LABEL PRO “BLP AT SCX III”, 25/04/2025 The Wyndham, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Leyla Hirsch
2. Danhausen & Maki Itoh Vs Davey Bang & August Matthews
You know, this is one of those shows that feels like it just takes forever to get to.
MEXICO KANKO/CMLL/LADYS RING “LUCHA FIESTA ESPECIAL”, 27/04/2025 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
1. Mexican Tourist Belt – The Road To Studying In Mexico 5 Way Match: Yuki Mashiro Vs Honoka Vs YuuRI Vs SONYA Vs CoCo
2. Octagon & El Hijo del Octagon Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Pantera Jr.
I heard this show has a Street Fighter 6 product placement match. Makoto and Hikaru Shida are cosplaying as R. Mika & Yamato Nadeshiko to fight a pair of masked Zangief wrestlers. It would be funny if The Gief #1 and The Gief #2 were other members of DAMNATION T.A.
I missed that YuuRI was booked for this show a month ago. She’s taking part in a 5 Way match where the winner will be crowned the second Mexican Tourist Belt Champion. Whoever holds possession of the belt is given the right to go study in Mexico thanks to the show sponsors. YuuRI’s opposition in the match are the freelancer Yuki Mashiro, Honoka from WAVE, SONYA from the Costa Rica Wrestling Embassy (CWE) and CoCo from MY WAY.
TOP TALENT “LIVE AT MIDWAY MUSIC HALL”, 02/05/2025 Midway Music Hall, Edmonton, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
Yamashita is going to be visiting Canada a few more times during this excursion. Top Talent Wrestling is the latest promotion over there to book her.
HOODSLAM “PHANTASMAGORIA”, 02/05/2025 Continental Club, Oakland, California, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Itoh is getting her ass back to Hoodslam!
GCW “CRAZY SCARY SPOOKY HILARIOUS”, 03/05/2025 Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Miyu Yamashita
Itoh believes she cannot lose to Yamashita in GCW. Anywhere but over there!
GCW “WE STILL DON’T TRUST YOU”, 04/05/2025 Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, Oregon, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. GCW World Title: Effy (c) Vs Maki Itoh
One day later she gets her chance to win the GCW World Title from Effy. Only one person missing from making it a full Maki Death Bussy reunion.
HOG “WAGING WAR”, 09/05/2025 Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
Just have to wait and see who House Of Glory wants to put Yamashita against. It didn’t work out so well for her there last time.
NJPW “RESURGENCE”, 09/05/2025 Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA
1. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs X
It hasn’t been made official at the time of writing but it’s looking like Takeshita will defend the NEVER Openweight Title against El Phantasmo at this show. Unless Romero does something else to ELP and changes the situation.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “NORTHERN RISING”, 10/05/2025 Mattamy Athletic Centre, Toronto, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Sereena Deeb
North American promoters really have a type of opponent in mind for Yamashita this time around, eh? She’ll have to deal with the wrestling expertise of Serena Deeb for her return to Maple Leaf Pro.
GCW “BIG TIME”, 17/05/2025 RJ Meyer Arena, Joppa, Maryland, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Tony Deppen
Yamashita’s journey through GCW continues.
GCW “RUN FOR IT”, 18/05/2025 Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA
1. Billie Starkz Vs Miyu Yamashita
Once again, they meet at last.
MKW “BATTLE OF THE DECADE”, 24/05/2025 Dongxin Plaza, Beijing, China
1. Yuki Kamifuku & Chen Wenbin Vs Alexis Lee & Big Sam
The end of May will be a dramatic period for Yuki Kamifuku and Alexis Lee. This match in Middle Kingdom Wrestling has now become the warmup for what happens in Singapore Pro Wrestling one week later.
SAJ “HUNTER’S NET”, 24/05/2025 Magnete, Milan, Italy
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Alexis Lee
The stakes have been risen to the extreme. Lee is wagering her pro wrestling career to get one last chance at winning back the Queen Of Asia Title from Kamifuku. If she loses this time then she is done for!
KITSUNE “GOING BACK TO SAN DIEGO”, 07/06/2025 Primal Compound, San Diego, California, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Vipress & Hudson Envy Vs Nagisa Nozaki & Yuna Manase
Hey since Darkness Revolution are now down a member in Marigold maybe Nagisa Nozaki will consider replacing Bozilla with Yuna Manase.
KITSUNE “8888”, 08/06/2025 South Gate, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Yuna Manase Vs X
Yamashita’s match on this show will be a singles match with an opponent yet to be determined.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 1”, 10/07/2025 POST, Houston, Texas, USA
Does the T in TJPW now stand for Texas? On the weekend when AEW runs “ALL IN TEXAS” TJPW will be holding three shows in the Lone Star State.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 2”, 11/07/2025 POST, Houston, Texas, USA
Two of the shows are going to be in Houston.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN DALLAS”, 13/07/2025 The OC, Forney, Texas, USA
The third show is happening… not in Dallas but they’re calling it Dallas anyway. Is this like years ago when WWE would be in New York State and only mention on air that they’re somewhere near New York City?
1. Ilusion defeated Kazuma Sumi with with the Swanton Bomb (8:59).
2. Toru Owashi, Akito & Yuki Ishida defeated HARASHIMA, Azul Dragon & Kazuki Hirata when Akito submitted Hirata with an Overturned Figure 4 Leg Lock (0:11).
2a. Rematch: HARASHIMA, Azul Dragon & Kazuki Hirata defeated Toru Owashi, Akito & Yuki Ishida when HARASHIMA pinned Ishida with the Raging Fire (9:42).
3. Special Single Match: Hideki Okatani defeated Keigo Nakamura with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (9:16).
4. Jun Akiyama, Yuya Koroku & Daichi Sato defeated Kazusada Higuchi, Soma Takao & Yukio Naya when Akiyama pinned Takao with an Inside Cradle (11:35).
5. Special Tag Match: MAO & KANON defeated Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul when MAO pinned Paul with the Iai Kick (13:27).
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Danshoku Dieno & Takeshi Masada defeated Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y when Dieno submitted To-y with a Strong Arm Bar (18:46).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Kazuki Hirata defeated Shunma Katsumata (c) with a Hammer Attack (6:50 pm). *Kazuki Hirata becomes the 1,742nd champion.
Danshoku Dieno was having a bad day. First he missed his flight to Fukuoka and had to pay 53,000 yen to change his travel plans and get to the show on time. Then when he arrived at the venue he overheard Shunma Katsumata, To-y and Kazuma Sumi all making fun of him in the hallway. Dieno got so mad that he ran in during the show opening NωA Jr. performance to attack Katsumata and Sumi. Yuki Ueno & To-y ran out to save Katsumata and attack Dieno. That then caused Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada to come out and chase away The 37KAMIINA. In the main event Dieno told everyone he would not use his Danshoku style during the match in order to prepare for Minoru Suzuki. Instead he fought more seriously and even made To-y submit to a strong style Arm Bar. He had finally calmed down once the match was over and told the fans that from here on out he will be gathering information to use in his upcoming match with Suzuki next month. Dieno then named his team today as Analfreude International.
It is now confirmed that the tag team of MAO & KANON is called STRANGE LOVE CONNECTION (I’m going to write it with regular caps from this point forward). They entered to the song “You Know How It Is” by Kero Kero Benito and successfully delivered their first blow on DAMNATION T.A by beating Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul cleanly. They already have a tag move too where MAO does the Whirlwind Kick to the opponent while KANON sweeps their leg with a low Lariat. MAO is so confident this team is going to work out he is already making shirts that he will give out to fans without KANON’s knowledge.
Last night in America, Konosuke Takeshita defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi on a New Japan USA show and used the Somato en route to winning the match. HARASHIMA found out about it and returned the favour back in Japan today. After he hit the Somato on Yuki Ishida he used the Raging Fire to get the win.
Ilusion has his sights on bringing the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles back to DAMNATION T.A. He said they only gave them up in the first place because of an “unwanted child”. Ilusion wants to challenge NωA Jr. for the titles with Sasaki & Hideki Okatani as his partners.
In the aftermath of the main event Kazuki Hirata snuck up behind Katsumata, knocked him out with a hammer and pinned him to win the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 