Ibushi V1 In NJPW, Masa & Tango In Thailand

September 7, 2012

NJPW “NJPW 40TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR ~ ROAD TO DESTRUCTION”, 07/09/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,950 Fans – Super No Vacancy

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Kota Ibushi (c) defeated KUSHIDA with the Sit Down Last Ride (25:10).
*V1 for Kota Ibushi.

Kota Ibushi’s first defence of the IWGP Jr. Title took place today against the man he was originally supposed to face during his first title reign a year ago. Despite what was described as a spirited challenge by the young KUSHIDA, Ibushi was the last one standing. Now he is being challenged for the championship by both Ryusuke Taguchi and Low Ki.

When asked about his thoughts on the match after the show, Ibushi’s first reply was “My arm is sore” (in reference to KUSHIDA targeting his arm during the match). The interviewer asked him about Taguchi and Low Ki, Ibushi said he will “win more and more” and said that the 25 minute match was a “short-term battle.” When asked if he would rather face Taguchi or Low Ki, Ibushi said Taguchi because Low Ki has a scary voice. However, Ibushi hasn’t made his decision yet and he will defend his title at anytime.

GATOH PRO, 07/09/2012
Sakura Dojo, Bangkok, Thailand

1. Masa Takanashi defeated Golem Thai with a Knee Bar (9:57).
2. Hoshitango & Emi Sakura defeated EK Baki & Kaori Yoneyama when Sakura pinned Baki with a La Magistral Cradle (11:45).
3. Madoka defeated Ken Chan with a Lariat (9:02).

Meanwhile in Thailand Masa Takanashi, Hoshitango and freelancer Madoka took part in the debut Gatoh Pro Wrestling event. Masa submitted rookie Golem Thai while Hoshitango teamed with Gatoh Pro founder Emi Sakura to win their tag match afterwards. The visit took place during Hoshintago’s 47th birthday.


Ibushi And Omega Train For Budokan

August 14, 2012

Both Kota Ibushi and Kenny Omega have been keeping DDT fans up to date on their preparations for their KO-D Title match at the 15th Anniverary Show in Budokan Hall this Saturday. Both of the Golden Lovers held seperate public practice sessions over the last two days to demonstrate their progress.

First up was Kota Ibushi’s session held yesterday inside a dojo in Chiba. With a mountain of crash pads piled up inside the ring, Ibushi used Gota Ihashi as a crash test dummy and found numerous ways to spike Ihashi onto his head and neck. The most deadly moves used were the 24 Years Old (Orange Crush), a Razor’s Edge and a Top Rope Piledriver. Unsurprisingly, Ibushi eventually broke Ihashi and had to drag a discouraged Ken Ohka into the ring to finish off the session. And he finished it off with a Top Rope Phoenix Plex, breaking Ohka in the process.

Afterwards, Ibushi took some questions from the press in attendence. When asked about the moves he demonstrated, Ibushi said none were ever used on Omega and it will be quite a challenge to pull them off in the match. They are also moves he either rarely uses or haven’t used regularly at matches in years. However, since he is able to perform such powerful moves on a heavy wrestler like Ihashi, then he will be able to do them on the smaller wrestler like Omega. Ibushi feels the pressure being in the main event and does not expect a short and decisive battle. However, Ibushi has a lot of moves in his arsenal, some of which he is keeping secret from the public.

When Ihashi and Ohka finally regained conciousness the press asked them how painful the moves felt. Ohka said they will be much more dangerous without the mats in the ring. When asked where he feels the most damage, Ohka exclaimed “You know! The neck.” Ihashi complained about his body feeling numb and said it was not the first time he was rendered unconcious by Ibushi during his training. When asked who will win the match, both men said Ibushi.

Kenny Omega’s public session was held today in a Saitama gym. Omega was accompanied by professional fighters Isamu Sugiuchi and Jason Geiger. Omega said he took up Jiu-Jitsu specifically to target Ibushi’s weak shoulder along with developing a good ground defence and a counter for Ibushi’s leg sweeps. Omega and Sugiuchi sparred in the ring where Omega was able to outwrestle his partner and put him in a Cross Armbreaker.

When the sparring ended, Omega then talked about building up his body and his stamina with weight training. He lifted weights in a similar way to lifting opponents for the Croyt’s Wrath and followed that with the Barbell Curl and the Clean & Press. Omega said his abs were his weakness so he did these exercises to strengthen his abs and back.

Omega also took questions from the press when the session came to an end. He said he originally began training in Jiu-Jitsu back in 2004 but took a break in 2008. Today was the first time in a long time he got to train Jiu-Jitsu again. He wanted to train with Geiger because he is a champion from Canada. When asked if this style of training was only being done for the match against Ibushi, Omega said his days of training back in Canada during the summer has conditioned him to tough sessions like this and he could go on for 60 minutes. Omega also said that although he has strong moves like the Croyt’s Wrath and One-Winged Angel, he is thinking of adding all sorts of submissions to win rather than just throw out his usual techniques. Omega isn’t feeling any pressure and doesn’t find the position he is in scary at all. However, Ibushi is his friend and he does not want to injure him. He dedicates the match to all fans of DDT and promises to win the belt and have the best match.

Isamu Sugiuchi said that he met Kenny for the first time when he wrestled at a DDT just over one year ago. He called Omega an amazing talent and was surprised at how powerful he is in the ring. Jason Geiger said that Omega has been focused for a long time and is filled with more power and stamina than he has ever seen. He also said that Ibushi better have trained hard.


Ibushi Wins IWGP Jr. Title Again

July 29, 2012

NJPW “40TH ANNIVERSARY LAST REBELLION”, 29/07/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
2,040 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title: Kota Ibushi defeated Low Ki (c) with the Phoenix Splash (19:30).
*Low Ki fails in V2. Kota Ibushi becomes the 64th IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion!

Kota Ibushi returned to New Japan today to challenge Low Ki for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship, the title he had to vacate back in September 2011 after a shoulder injury. With Kenny Omega, Daisuke Sasaki and Michael Nakazawa in his corner, Ibushi fought tooth and nail with Low Ki. The champ dodged Ibushi’s Quebrada outside the ring and later applied an upside down Dragon Sleeper hanging from the top rope. Ibushi recovered and hit the Quebrada a second time. Feet were flying from both wrestlers as their kick heavy offence came into play. Low Ki avoided the Sit Down Last Ride and tried to finish the match with the Phoenix Splash. But Ibushi rolled out of the way and struck Low Ki with the Cartwheel Overhead Kick. Ibushi landed his own Phoenix Splash to pin Low Ki and win the IWGP Jr. Title for the second time. Afterwards, KUSHIDA came out to challenge the new champion.

The big victory continues Ibushi’s path of success since returning from injury. His next big challenge is Kenny Omega at the DDT 15th Anniversary Show in Budokan Hall.


HARASHIMA Vs Irie Goes Hardcore, Ibushi Vs Kotoge In NOAH, Budokan Card Almost Complete

July 12, 2012

DDT “ROAD TO BUDOKAN 2012”, 22/07/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. MIKAMI Return Match: MIKAMI Vs Tatsumi Fujinami
2. Sanshiro Takagi, Takao Soma & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Hikaru Sato, Michael Nakazawa & Tanomusaku Toba
3. Hardcore Match: HARASHIMA Vs Shigehiro Irie
4. KO-D Tag Team Title: KUDO & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie & Keisuke Ishii
5. Kota Ibushi & Kenny Omega Vs Danshoku Dino & YOSHIHIKO

The rivalry between HARASHIMA and Shigehiro Irie has been bubbling up the last couple of months. The two had to be seperated after HARASHIMA’s victory over Irie at the April Korakuen Hall show. Then a rematch in the King Of DDT tournament saw HARASHIMA win again, this time by knockout. Now the grudge will go a step higher when the two meet in a Hardcore match later this month. That won’t even be the last time these two will face each other. As you will see below.

NOAH “GREAT VOYAGE 2012 IN RYOGOKU”, 22/07/2012
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. Starting Point Revolution ~ Classmates Confrontation: Taiji Ishimori Vs Masa Takanashi
5. Special Singles Match – NOAH Vs DDT: Atsushi Kotoge Vs Kota Ibushi

Kota Ibushi’s opponent for his return to Pro Wrestling NOAH has been confirmed to be Atsushi Kotoge. The former Osaka Pro wrestler now calls NOAH his home promotion and this match will be one of his biggest challenges since making the switch.

DDT “BUDOKAN PETER PAN 2012 ~ DDT 15TH ANNIVERSARY”, 18/08/2012
Tokyo Nippon Budokan

0. Special Dark Match: Muscle Sakai Vs X
1. Konosuke Takeshita Debut Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs El Generico
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Royal Rumble: Choun-Shiryu (c) Vs Toru Owashi Vs Mio Shirai Vs Batten Tamagawa Vs X
3. Tag Team Gauntlet:
4. 5 Vs 5 Soccer Match: X, X, X, X & X Vs X, X, X, X & X
5. Special Singles Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Minoru Suzuki
6. Special Tag Team Match: HARASHIMA & X Vs Shuji Ishikawa & Shigehiro Irie
7. KO-D Tag Team Title: KUDO & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs X
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Kota Ibushi (c) Vs Kenny Omega

HARASHIMA will have to face Irie again when the 15th Anniversary Show rolls around. This time Irie will have Shuji Ishikawa by his side for a big tag team match. HARASHIMA will have to spend a long time thinking who will be the best wrestler to fight BIG “G” BANG with him.


DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2012” Results

June 24, 2012

DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2012”, 24/06/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,517 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Yasu Urano, Antonio Honda & Keita Yano defeated Hikaru Sato, Keisuke Ishii & Tetsuya Endo when Hoda pinned Tetsuya Endo with the Diving Fist Drop (10:54).
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal: Tsukasa Fujimoto (c) defeated Danshoku Dino, DJ Nira, Gorgeous Matsuno, Hoshitango, Akito, Gota Ihashi, Hiroshi Fukuda, Choun-Shiryu and Tanomusaku Toba (10:00).
2a. Hiroshi Fukuda defeated Tsukasa Fujimoto (c) with a Belly-To-Back Suplex (2:33).
*Hiroshi Fukuda becomes the 916th champion.
2b. Tanomusaku Toba defeated Hiroshi Fukuda (c) with a Buzzsaw Kick (4:56).
*Tanomusaku Toba becomes the 917th champion.
2c. Tsukasa Fujimoto defeated Tanomusaku Toba (c) with a School Boy (5:16).
*Tsukasa Fujimoto becomes the 918th champion.
Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Choun-Shiryu defeated Tsukasa Fujimoto (c) by Pinfall (12:35 pm).
*Choun-Shiryu becomes the 919th champion.
3. Special Single Match: HARASHIMA defeated Shigehiro Irie with the Somato (8:44).
4. GM Army Vs Dissidents: Sanshiro Takagi, Takao Soma, Hero Amon & Yoshiaki Fujiwara (w/ Katsuji Nagashima) defeated Michael Nakazawa, Kenny Omega, Batten Tamagawa & Tomomitsu Matsunaga when Takagi pinned Nakazawa with the Sit Down Himawari Bomb (8:34).
5. KO-D Tag Team Title: KUDO & Makoto Oishi (c) defeated Masa Takanashi & Daisuke Sasaki when KUDO pinned Takanashi with the Diving Double Knee Drop (13:16).
*V1 for KUDO & Makoto Oishi.
6. KO-D Openweight Title: Kota Ibushi defeated Yuji Hino (c) with the Phoenix Plex (21:12).
*Yuji Hino fails in V2. Kota Ibushi becomes the 42nd KO-D Openweight Champion!

The Golden Star has completed his climb back to the top of DDT! After a 20 minute battle with the K-DOJO powerhouse Yuji Hino, the KO-D Openweight Title is now around the waist of Kota Ibushi for the second time in his career. Ibushi dug deep and defeated Hino with the Phoenix Plex, a move Ibushi had only previously used once before against HARASHIMA at Sumo Hall back in 2009. Now he waits for the KING OF DDT 2012 winner to meet him in Budokan Hall.

Or maybe not. Someone had to come in and spoil the party and that someone was DJ Nira. As Ibushi was celebrating with his title belt, DJ Nira stepped into the ring and told Ibushi that he is not the only person who is eligible to compete in the main event of Budokan Hall. Nira showed his “Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere” contract to Ibushi, shook his hand and then left the ring. Will Nira really cash it in at Budokan Hall?

This defeat continues the recent bad period Yuji Hino has had with championship matches. Not only has Hino lost the KO-D Title and the KO-D Tag Team Title, he also lost the STRONGEST-K Tag Team Title earlier this month in K-DOJO. Just goes to show how fickle a pro wrestler’s fate can be.

The nWJ shocked everyone when the fourth man turned out to be Yoshiaki Fujiwara! Tsurumi Amon could only watch on helplessly while his team were getting destroyed by Sanshiro Takagi and his group. After the mtch, Amon considered quitting his role as DDT General Manager. However, Katsuji Nagashima stepped in and encouraged Amon to stay in the job. With the war against Tsurumi Amon seemingly won, Takagi now gets to focus on his upcoming match against Minoru Suzuki in Budokan Hall. Takagi asked Fujiwara to coach him for the time being and Fujiwara accepted the offer.

Takagi was then joined in the ring by Masayuki Sato, the editor in chief of Weekly Pro-Wrestling to announce a special issue of the magazine will be released during the run up to the big show to celebrate DDT’s achievements.

A special opening video will be created for DDT’s 15th Anniversary show. DDT will be teaming up with manga artist Yoichi Takahashi, the creator of the famous football series Captain Tsubasa to make an animated video to open up the big event. If my translation is correct, the video will be about the DDT roster playing a game of football that leads them over to Budokan Hall. So imagine those Nike and Addidas advertisements but with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo replaced with Danshoku Dino and Michael Nakazawa.

Tensions are mounting between HARASHIMA and Shigehiro Irie. Even though HARASHIMA won the latest match between the two, they continued fighting after the bell. Fans won’t have to wait long for their next encounter as you will see below.

The joshi tour is over for the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title. Now it is going over to China. Tsukasa Fujimoto was able to make it to today’s show despite losing the belt yesterday to Tsukushi in Ice Ribbon, who then lost it to a ring mat. The title then went back to Fujimoto and after a few more title changes she survived the Battle Royal as champion. At least until Choun-Shiryu snuck up on her, pinned her and then ran off with the belt.

That wasn’t the only story coming out of the Iron Man Title match. Before it began, video footage was shown of Danshoku Dino entering a bar owned by former DDT and Toryumon wrestler Toru Owashi. Dino met with Owashi and pleaded him to return to DDT. Owashi refused and kicked Dino out. The Battle Royal would then be interrupted by further video footage of Owashi looking depressed over his decision. Owashi’s mother slapped some sense into him and off he went to Korakuen Hall. When Owashi finally arrived, everyone in the ring gave him a Rocket Punch. Owashi then announced he will return to the DDT ring at Budokan Hall.

MIKAMI will return to action at DDT’s next Korakuen Hall show on 22nd July. DDT is also hoping to bring in Tatsumi Fujinami.

The lottery to determine the first round for KING OF DDT 2012 was held at the end of the show. The matches are as follows:

Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Masa Takanashi
Kenny Omega Vs Daisuke Sasaki
Michael Nakazawa Vs Hikaru Sato
Shigehiro Irie Vs HARASHIMA
Keisuke Ishii Vs Takao Soma
KUDO Vs Antonio Honda
Yasu Urano Vs Makoto Oishi
Akito Vs Danshoku Dino

No unexpected match-ups there. Each of the pairings are very familiar with each other by now. Akito was quick to leave a message on Twitter saying as much as he admires Dino, his goal is to win the tournament not just as a DDT wrestler but as a Sportiva Entertainment wrestler too.


Hino Vs Ibushi – Sneak Peak

June 20, 2012

DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2012”, 24/06/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Yasu Urano, Antonio Honda & Keita Yano Vs Hikaru Sato, Keisuke Ishii & Tetsuya Endo
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal: Tsukasa Fujimoto (c) Vs Danshoku Dino Vs DJ Nira Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs Hoshitango Vs Akito Vs Gota Ihashi Vs Hiroshi Fukuda Vs Choun-Shiryu Vs Tanomusaku Toba
3. GM Army Vs Dissidents: Michael Nakazawa, Kenny Omega, Batten Tamagawa & Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Takao Soma, Hero Amon & X (w/ Katsuji Nagashima)
4. Special Single Match: HARASHIMA Vs Shigehiro Irie
5. KO-D Tag Team Title: KUDO & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Masa Takanashi & Daisuke Sasaki
6. KO-D Openweight Title: Yuji Hino (c) Vs Kota Ibushi

With this show taking place just two months before the 15th Anniversary show, chances are that whoever walks out of the main event as the winner will most likely be the KO-D Openweight Champion defending the belt at Budokan Hall. You could make comparisons between Yuji Hino and Daisuke Sekimoto. Both are powerful wrestlers who entered DDT as outsiders and usurped the KO-D Title. Hino could move one step further by main eventing the Budokan. All he has to do is defeat Kota Ibushi and he will be all clear.

Well, except for DJ Nira and his “Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere” contract. He still has that. He would have cashed it in too last month if Ibushi didn’t leap into the ring and Rocket Punch him.

Meanwhile Kota Ibushi has quickly got back on track after returning to the ring in May. He has developed the Sit Down Power Bomb into his latest finishing move and he now has two title matches coming up. Not only is Ibushi facing Hino for the KO-D Title in DDT on 24th June, he will also face Low Ki for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title in New Japan on 29th July. It may be possible that by the time Budokan rolls around, Ibushi will have not one but two belts being carried over his shoulders.


Max Bump Card, Nature Pro Wrestling

April 23, 2012

DDT “MAX BUMP 2012”, 04/05/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

0. Dark Match: Gorgeous Matsuno Vs Shota
1. Keisuke Ishii Vs KAI
2. 10-Man Tag Team Match: Antonio Honda, Keita Yano, Poison JULIE Sawada, Hoshitango & Michael Nakazawa Vs Daisuke Sasaki, Tomomitsu Matsunaga, Shigehiro Irie, Akito & Tetsuya Endo
3. Sanshiro Takagi, Takao Soma & X Vs Danshoku Dibo, Makoto Oishi & Masao Inoue
4. Hikaru Sato Vs DJ Nira
5. Kota Ibushi Return Match: Kota Ibushi Vs El Generico
6. 3 Way KO-D Challenger Playoff Match: Yasu Urano Vs HARASHIMA Vs KUDO
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Masa Takanashi (c) Vs Yuji Hino

The winner of the Triple Threat No. 1 Contender match challenges the KO-D Champion in Sapporo on 27th May.

If Sanshiro Takagi cannot find a third tag team partner for New World Japan, he and Takao Soma will have to face the Homoiro Clover Z trio in a 3-On-2 Handicap match.

DDT “NASU NATURE SCHOOL WRESTLING”, 06/05/2012
Nasu Nature School

1. 5 Way Match: Kota Ibushi Vs El Generico Vs HARASHIMA VS Gota Ihashi Vs Ken Ohka

El Generico gets his first taste of DDT’s patented Anywhere Pro Wrestling style with a 5 Way match taking place in a nature park.


Road To Budokan, Triple Tails Vs Do Hentai Dan, Village Pro Wrestling

April 5, 2012

DDT “ROAD TO BUDOKAN IN YOKOHAMA ~D.D. HIGH SCHOOL DELINQUINTS~”, 22/04/2012
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Akito
2. Kana & Mio Shirai Vs Hikaru Sato & Michael Nakazawa

DDT’s promise to produce more shows throughout Japan will come to fruition with the Road To Budokan tour starting in April. So far there are six shows that are part of the tour.

The Triple Tails.S team of Kana & Mio Shirai have a nasty surprise ahead of them in Yokohama. Hikaru Sato & Michael Nakazawa, aka Do Hentai Dan will be waiting for them. Last time Nakazawa was in the ring with Kana he tried all he could to get his hands on her. Last time he was in the ring with Mio Shirai, she and her sister stripped him naked. So yeah, this match could get perverted real quickly.

DDT “ROAD TO BUDOKAN IN OYAMA ~DRAMATIC DREAM TOCHIOTOME~”, 29/04/2012
Oyama City Culture Center

1. HARASHIMA & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Danshoku Dino & KUDO
2. Masa Takanashi Vs Antonio Honda

DDT “ROAD TO BUDOKAN IN NIIGATA ~DRAMATIC DREAM TOCHIO NO ABURAAGE~”, 03/05/2012
Niigata City Gymnasium

1. Yasu Urano Vs DJ Nira
2. Shigehiro Irie Vs Antonio Honda

DDT “MAX BUMP 2012”, 04/05/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Kota Ibushi Return Match: Kota Ibushi Vs El Generico
2. KO-D Openweight Title: Masa Takanashi (c) Vs Yuji Hino

Masa Takanashi has a very difficult challenge ahead of him for his first defence of the KO-D Openweight Title. Yuji Hino has been unstoppable in his DDT run as part of the Crying Wolf stable. With a KO-D Tag Team Title run already under his belt, he is now looking to add the KO-D Championship to his list of accomplishments.

DDT “VILLAGE PRO WRESTLING ~BACK IN TIME TO EDO!~”, 26/05/2012
Noboribetsu Date Open Air Theater

1. Falls Count Anywhere Match: Kota Ibushi Vs Sanshiro Takagi Vs Tomoya Vs Michael Nakazawa

Noboribetsu Date is a village in Hokkaido that features a lot of samurai and ninja themed tourist spots. Even though the match will begin inside the local theatre, it will certainly break out to other parts of the village. Maybe it will wind up inside the cat templt, the ninja maze or the ghost house.


DDT “APRIL FOOL 2012” Results

April 1, 2012

DDT “APRIL FOOL 2012”, 01/04/2012
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,277 Fans – No Vacancy

0. Dark Match: Shota defeated Gota Ihashi with a Crucifix Pin (3:53).
1. Tetsuya Endo Debut Match: Hiroshi Fukuda & Akito defeated Keisuke Ishii & Tetsuya Endo when Akito submitted Endo with a Modified Figure Four Leg Lock (9:22).
2. Antonio Honda defeated Nico Valentine with a School Boy (9:02).
3. Takao Soma & Genba Hirayanagi defeated Hikaru Sato & Michael Nakazawa when Soma pinned Nakazawa with the Boma Ye (8:18).
4. AJPW Jr. Heavyweight Title: Kenny Omega (c) defeated Shigehiro Irie with the One Winged Angel (16:34).
*V5 for Kenny Omega.
5. Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Contract Battle Royal: Yuji Hino defeated Yasu Urano with a German Suplex (23:56).
5a. Right To Challenge Tag Anytime, Anywhere: Tomomitsu Matsunaga (6:09).
5b. Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere 1: Masa Takanashi (9:49).
5c. Performance Rights Anytime, Anywhere: Keita Yano (12:35).
5d. Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere 2: DJ Nira (13:13).
5e. Ken Ohka Anytime, Anywhere: Makoto Oishi (14:46).
6. KO-D Openweight Title: Sanshiro Takagi defeated Danshoku Dino (c) with the Sit Down Himawari Bomb (19:17).
*Danshoku Dino fails in V3. Sanshiro Takagi becomes the 39th KO-D Openweight Champion!
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Masa Takanashi defeated Sanshiro Takagi (c) with the Takatonic (2:04).
*Sanshiro Takagi fails in V1. Masa Takanashi becomes the 40th KO-D Openweight Champion!

The big stories coming from today’s show in Korakuen Hall may sound like something out of an April Fool’s joke, but DDT really does have some big plans in store for the future. Not only that but we got two surprising title changes, both involving the came championship.

The main event saw Sanshiro Takagi lift the KO-D Openweight Title for a record sixth time. But after defeating Danshoku Dino in a hard fought battle, he was in no way, shape or form ready for the sudden cashing in of the Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere contract won by Masa Takanashi earlier in the night. Masa told Takagi he would make him the shortest champion in history and when the show finally ended,  Masa Takanashi was left standing as the most unlikely KO-D Champion in recent memory. But now that Masa has the gold, a huge threat already has him in his sights.

Yuji Hino won the Battle Royal portion of the Right To Challenge series. He now gets to face Masa for the KO-D Title on 4th May. Masa won the first of two Right To Challenge contracts for the KO-D Title. He is the first wrestler in DDT to cash it in successfully. The other KO-D Title contract was won by DJ Nira of all people! Tomomitsu Matsunaga has the KO-D Tag Team Title contract and will get to choose whoever he wants to cash it in with. Keita Yano has the contract that allows him to set up a DDT show wherever and whenever he likes (DDT still gets a big cut of the earnings). That left the Ken Ohka Anytime, Anywhere contract as the last prize to be fought over. Except nobody wanted it. However, Makato Oishi didn’t keep track of which contracts were taken and he dashed up the ladder when the opportunity arose. Everyone else just stood around the ladder and let him grab the contract. So now Makoto can become the next Ken Ohka whenever he wants.

Kota Ibushi returns to the ring on May 4th and his big comeback match is against the lucha phenom that has taken DDT and Union by storm over the last year… El Generico!!! With both wrestlers famed for their high action matches that often spill outside the ring, this match could be insane.

Kyohei Wada was the referee for the AJPW Jr. Title match. Shigehiro Irie made his entrance wearing Road Warrior shoulder pads that matched his wrestling gear. Even though he could not defeat Kenny Omega, he was highly praised by the champion. Kenny said that Irie will someday be the biggest star in DDT. Kenny also asked the audience to support himself and Michael Nakazawa when they enter the All Japan Jr. Tag League in April.

Hard Hit will hold its next show on 3rd June.

Kana will return to DDT on 8th April along with the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title.

DDT’s strategy presentation for the rest of the year included several pieces of information:

1. DDT wants to add more local shows to their schedule. They will now go to Sopporo twice a year, Hakata three times, hold a big show in Osaka in September, hold two Street Pro Wrestling events and have the annual Beer Garden series take place from 29th July to 4th August. There will also be other shows in smaller towns.

2. Kota Ibushi, HARASHIMA & KUDO are now on Twitter. You can follow them at @ibushi_kota, @HARASHIMA_DDT and @KUDO_DDT.

3. DDT will also be releasing their own video app for the iPhone in the coming months. First release will be a trilogy of Bookstore Pro Wrestling matches which will be available in April.

4. The Budokan Hall show will feature the debut of their latest rookie, a 16 year old high school student named Konosuke Takeshita (竹下幸之介). He is from Osaka, born 15th May 1995, height is measured at 186cm and he participated in shot put at high school.

5. DDT will also begin streaming their shows online with a service called Nico DDT Live and DDT Wrestling Hour. They will have a bi-weekly live broadcast and also air recorded footage every other Thursday with the videos available to watch over two days. First live broadcast will be the 8th April event in Shin-Kiba 1st RING. The streams will be free to watch, at least for the first few shows.

6. Last but not least, a pro wrestler audition has been set up by DDT with Seiya Morohashi (aka Big Rude from Union) in charge. He hopes to see a wide range of applicants coming through.

One last thing, there was an announcement for the official DDT 15th Anniversary theme song being created by J-Dance acts Sunplaza Nakano and DJ Yosshi. The song will be called “Under The Big Onion” and a music video will be created to go along with it. You know how Tokyo Dome is nicknamed the Big Egg? Well Budokan Hall is nicknamed the Big Onion.


Merry Christmas!

December 25, 2011

Credit for the picture goes to Extreme Party.