TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SAYURI NAMBA’S DREAM COME TRUE SPECIAL” Results

June 14, 2025

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SAYURI NAMBA’S DREAM COME TRUE SPECIAL”, 14/06/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING
284 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. Yoshiko Hasegawa defeated Ren Konatsu with the Muffler Hold (8:32).
2. LEONA defeated Antonio Honda with the Figure 4 Leg Lock (11:08).
3. Moka Miyamoto & Ivy Steele defeated HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki when Miyamoto submitted Suzuki with the Rashomon (9:36).
4. Rounds-Based Special Match: Hideki “Shrek” Sekine defeated Kazuki Hirata by Knockout with a Sleeper Hold (R1 0:24).
4a. Rounds-Based Special Match: Hideki “Shrek” Sekine defeated Kazuki Hirata by Knockout with a Sleeper Hold (R3 4:59).
5. Mahiro Kiryu & Toga defeated Shoko Nakajima & Chika Nanase when Kiryu pinned Nanase with the Spinebuster (10:45).
6. Mizuki & Suzume (w/ Sayuri Namba) defeated RIKADEVIL & YUKIDEVIL (/w TORIDEVIL) when Mizuki pinned YUKIDEVIL with the Cutie Special (14:23).

In just over one week’s time Sayuri Namba will be graduating from Tokyo Joshi Pro and starting a new chapter of her life in Canada. Before that could happen she got to put together her own special show in order to make some of her dreams come true. But her dreams became under threat when a mystery trio known as BABYDEVIL suddenly emerged promising to crash her show. They weren’t messing because RIKADEVIL was armed with a whip and YUKIDEVIL carried a baseball bat with her. It was up to Mizuki & Suzume to save the day while Namba cheered them on but there was even more trouble caused by TORIDEVIL who was interfering from ringside. The group even got their hands on Namba a couple of times and didn’t hesitate to put her in harm’s way. With BABYDEVIL in complete control, Namba got on the microphone and told everyone she wants to help but she cannot fight pro wrestlers. What she can do though is call out the names of wrestlers with all of her heart to push them forward. With all her might she called out the names of Mizuki and Suzume, giving them the motivation needed to fight back. They caused BABYMETAL to misfire their attacks and hit each other by accident and then wiped them out with Cross Body Blocks. Mizuki then got the pinfall on YUKIDEVIL with the Cutie Special.

Mizuki thanked Namba for all she did to give her team the courage to stand up no matter how scary the situation had gotten. Namba always had the most respect for the wrestlers in TJPW and in return they had the same for her. Suzume said just having Namba around is enough to make her feel safe. She never thought the day would come where they would fight together but she’s happy it happened today. Namba is sure the wrestlers have felt a thousand times more pain than she did today but something about being in the ring today made her feel it even more. With only two more shows left she isn’t going to cry until the end. The moisture coming from her eyes is only sweat.

One of Namba’s dreams was to be a Round Girl one more time so she booked Kazuki Hirata to fight Hideki Sekine in a match that is supposed to have three minute rounds. Sekine ended up choking out Hirata in under 30 seconds. This happened the last time Namba was a Round Girl and she was furious. She told Hirata he hadn’t learned a thing since last time and also told Sekine to read the room. The fight restarted and they purposely paced themselves so a round could end and Namba could do her spot. In the 2nd Round Sekine picked up the Hirata GO! glasses but didn’t understand what they were for so he handed them over to Yukinori Matsui. Namba got angry again, telling Sekine it’s no fun to win normally so he should wear the glasses and dance! Sekine tried but then Namba scolded him for being bad at dancing. Hirata got fed up with Namba’s attitude and decided to side with Sekine and go after her. But Namba ended up slapping everyone to the mat and decided to wear the glasses and dance by herself. The match continued in the background and by the time Namba’s dance had finished, Sekine had again choked out Hirata with a Sleeper Hold.

Namba’s other dream was to announce her high school classmate LEONA for a match so she booked him to take on Antonio Honda. LEONA blocked Gongitsune and hit Honda with one of his own before twisting him over with a Dragon Screw and making him give up to the Figure 4 Leg Lock. After the match LEONA introduced himself to the TJPW audience and explained his history with Namba. He said due to Tatsumi Fujinami being his father and Dradition being a promotion with not a lot of young wrestlers involved, he always felt like he was alone in the pro wrestling industry. So when he found out Namba became a ring announcer in TJPW and another acquaintance of theirs got a job with Shukan Puroresu he was really happy to finally have some friends from his generation working in the same industry. LEONA told Namba that the next time they meet no matter what ring it is in he wants her to call his introduction again.

Part of the show’s selling point was seeing several TJPW wrestlers each take the role of ring announcer for a match while wearing one of Namba’s outfits from over the years. Arisu Endo called Match #1, Namba called Match #2, Raku called Match #3, Pom Harajuku called Match #4, Yuki Arai called Match #5 and Miu Watanabe called the main event. They all got to learn firsthand just how hard Namba’s job is.


A Little Extra Info For This Weekend, “Shrek” In TJPW

May 9, 2025

GANBARE☆PRO “YOUNG GANBARE SUMMIT”, 10/05/2025
Tokyo Takashimadaira Kumin Center

1. Tyson Maeguchi Vs MASA☆TAKA
2. Shota Kawakami & Shota Kofuji Vs Kazumasa Yoshida & Ali Najima
3. YuuRI, Nanami Hatano & Kirari Wakana Vs Chanyota, Honoka & Saran
4. Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Mochizuki Jr.

I only found out now that a few weeks ago Nanami changed her ring name to Nanami Hatano.

DDT “KING OF DDT 2025 2ND ROUND”, 10/05/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi
2. Danshoku Dieno, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Shunma Katsumata, Soma Takao & To-y
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Akito & Antonio Honda Vs Jun Akiyama, Shinya Aoki & Daichi Sato
4. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 2: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Takeshi Masada
5. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 2: HARASHIMA Vs Hideki Okatani
6. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 2: Yukio Naya Vs KANON
7. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 2: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno

There will be a public contract signing at the show between Minoru Suzuki and Danshoku Dieno for their upcoming DDT Universal Title match.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW SPRING TOUR 2025 IN SHINAGAWA VOL. 1”, 17/05/2025
Tokyo Shinagawa Prince Hotel Club eX

1. Maki Itoh Vs Uta Takami
2. Suzume, Arisu Endo & Haru Kazashiro Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa, HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki

Two weeks before Suzume and Yoshiko Hasegawa have their International Princess Title match, the two will meet in a 6-Woman Tag Match.

Maki Itoh is already expected back this weekend but next weekend she will be used to test out how much Uta Takami is progressing by herself.

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 12 ~GIVE IT TO THE CLOUDS THE MOUNTAIN CUCKOO~”, 17/05/2025
Osaka City Sumiyoshi Civic Center

1. The Anthem Of Geniuses ~The Battle To Decide The Strongest Variety Warrior~: Danshoku Dieno, Billy Ken Kid & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & Soma Takao
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 ~Laughter Leads To Hell~: Kuishinbo Kamen, Shunma Katsumata & Ram Kaichow Vs Kikutaro, Antonio Honda & No Name
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match Tecnico Vs Rudo Osaka War! ~The Code Of Justice, The Pride Of Evil~: Tsubasa, Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi Vs HUB, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion (w/ MJ Paul)
5. 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 Vs To-y & Yuki Ishida
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Heavyweight Super Carnival~: Jun Akiyama, KANON & Daichi Sato Vs Shuji Ishikawa, Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada
7. 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
8. Koyo Daiichi Consultants Presents Special Tag Match ~Head-To-Head Battle! One-Hit, Soul-Filled Attack!! Frontal Breakthrough!!!~: HARASHIMA & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Shuji Kondo & Shigehiro Irie
9. Shosho Kogyo Co., Ltd. Presents Special Tag Match ~Sakuyakonohana Dramatic Dreams Vs Superhuman Teacher & Student Wrestling Masters~: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Yuki Ueno Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Dick Togo

Other than the main event, the match order for Yukinori Matsui’s show has not been decided yet.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SAYURI NAMBA’S DREAM COME TRUE SPECIAL”, 14/06/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Special Rounds Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Hideki “Shrek” Sekine
2. LEONA Vs Antonio Honda
3. Mizuki & Suzume (w/ Sayuri Namba) Vs X & X

This will not be your normal Tokyo Joshi Pro show. Sayuri Namba’s in charge before she leaves the company and she is using her powers to do things she always wanted but never got the chance to. One is to do the ring announcements for a LEONA match because the two have known each other going back to their university days. LEONA’s opponent has now been chosen and it is Antonio Honda.

Another thing Namba wants is to be a ring girl one more time. TJPW doesn’t really do round based combat sports so after some out of the box thinking the company decided to make Kazuki Hirata fight against the jacked up hybrid fighter Hideki “Shrek” Sekine. He will become maybe the most unlikley looking wrestler to ever get booked by TJPW. He also doesn’t know who Hirata is but will be happy to beat him up. Is Hirata even going to last past the first round?


Meanwhile Back In Japan, TJPW Golden Week Title Matches, Namba’s Dream Coming True

April 14, 2025

I’m going to be travelling to Las Vegas tomorrow and it’s going to be a long trip ahead. You will know I have arrived safe and sound when the guides for the DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro shows get posted. That should be on Tuesday night Vegas time but if more things get announced or even changed it will have to wait until Wednesday morning. I’ll try to at least stay up to date with the show results for the rest of the week but show reports may take a while because I’m still meant to be on holiday. Enjoy the week and let it all seep in!

DDT “KANDA MYOJON CULTURAL EXCHANGE CENTER PRESENTS LAS VEGAS SERIES ~JITSUGETSU~”, 19/04/2025
Tokyo Kanda Myojin Hall

1. KANON Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Kazusada Higuchi & Akito Vs Yuya Koroku & Keigo Nakamura
3. Hideki Okatani & MJ Paul Vs Toru Owashi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
4. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs HARASHIMA & Daichi Sato
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, To-y & Mikosee Vs Danshoku Dieno, Soma Takao & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
6. DDT Extreme Title: Super Sasadango Machine (c) Vs Kazuki Hirata

The cards for the DDT shows going on in Japan while the Las Vegas tour is going on have been finalized. The local mascot Mikosee joins forces with The 37KAMIINA to complete the lineup.

DDT “KANDA MYOJON CULTURAL EXCHANGE CENTER PRESENTS LAS VEGAS SERIES ~NESHIN~”, 20/04/2025
Tokyo Kanda Myojin Hall

1. 3 Way Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Toru Owashi Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Hideki Okatani & MJ Paul Vs KANON & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
3. Special Single Match: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Soma Takao
4. Special Single Match: HARASHIMA Vs Keigo Nakamura
5. Twilight Rouge Cup Battle Royal: Chris Brookes Vs Yuki Ueno Vs Akito Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs To-y Vs Yuya Koroku Vs Takeshi Masada

Seven people will take part in the Twilight Rouge Cup. Meanwhile HARASHIMA and Keigo Nakamura have their last singles match together for a while.

DDT “DDT HARU NO KEN FESTIVAL ~STILL GOING ON IN UENO~”, 23/04/2025
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion Vs Yukio Naya, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Yuya Koroku
2. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Jun Akiyama & Daichi Sato
3. O-40 Title: Toru Owashi (c) Vs Antonio Honda
4. Staggered Entry Tag Rumble: Shunma Katsumata & Yuni Vs MAO & KANON Vs HARASHIMA & Kazuma Sumi Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida Vs Akito & Kazuki Hirata Vs Danshoku Dieno & To-y
5. Keigo Nakamura Send Off Match ~ Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Keigo Nakamura

Once the American trip is done it’s back to work with another show at Ueno Park. It includes a rare defence of the O-40 Title that Toru Owashi won last October. He hasn’t defended it yet so he has to put it on the line against Antonio Honda.

The winners of the Tag Rumble will apparently get a wish granted as their prize.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GOLDEN WEEK FAN APPRECIATION DAY 「EAST」”, 03/05/2025
Saitama Kasukabe Fureai Cube

1. VPW Women’s Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Viva Van

In December 2023 Viva Van came to TJPW as a challenger for Yuki Kamifuku to defend the Queen Of Asia Title against. Next month the rematch will happen this time with the VPW Women’s Title on the line. Van is a Vietnamese-American wrestler so it will mean a lot to her to win a championship from Vietnam Pro Wrestling.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GOLDEN WEEK FAN APPRECIATION DAY 「WEST」”, 05/05/2025
Osaka Edion Arena #2

1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title: Raku (c) Vs Nor ‘Phoenix’ Diana
2. Princess Tag Team Titles: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao (c) Vs Matcha & Alexis Lee

When Matcha and Alexis Lee both come back to Japan they will team up as an “All Southeast Asian Team” challenging for the Princess Tag Team Titles. I also heard Sayuri Namba refer to them as SEA Storm but I don’t know if it will be their official team name. They will face either Kyoraku Kyomei or Ober Eats for the belts depending on which team wins the title match this week in Vegas.

GANBARE☆PRO “SUICIDE SQUAD 2025”, 05/05/2025
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Moeka Haruhi, Yuna Manase & Banny Oikawa Vs YuuRI, Nanami & Kirari Wakana
2. Shuichiro Katsumura & Hartley Jackson Vs Toru Sugiura & Dragon Libre
3. Yumehito Imanari, Keisuke Ishii & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Yuki Kanzaki, Munetatsu Nakamura & Daisuke®️
4. Shota Kawakami 1st Anniversary Match: Shota Kawakami Vs Shota
5. HARUKAZE’s Last Match Before Her Hiatus: Ken Ohka Vs HARUKAZE
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase (c) Vs Yasu Urano & PSYCHO

The SOG World Tag Team Titles haven’t been defended since last November because of Mizuki Watase’s injury. Both he and Shigehiro Irie want to make up for lost time and start fighting in tag title matches again. Yasu Urano & PSYCHO have stepped up to be their first challengers. They believe Watase is not being honest about his recovery and is not wrestling at 100%. The sooner this match happens, the better their chances are to win the tag titles.

There is only one person HARUKAZE believes she can beat in a fair fight and she is desperate to finally win one match before her wrestling career is put on hiatus. So she’s breaking the emergency glass and picked Ken Ohka to be her final opponent!

The Ganbare☆Joshi match will feature Nanami from Diana and Kirari Wakana from Ice Ribbon.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SAYURI NAMBA’S DREAM COME TRUE SPECIAL”, 14/06/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. LEONA Vs X
2. Mizuki & Suzume (w/ Sayuri Namba) Vs X & X

Namba is starting to put her special show together. She has opted to be in the corner for Mizuki & Suzume in the main event tag match. The opponents as well as the ring announcer for the main event have not been decided on yet.

The show will also have LEONA from Dradition taking part in a match. He and Namba were classmates in the same university so they both know each other from before they entered the pro wrestling industry. One of Namba’s dreams was to announce LEONA for a match so it will come true after all.

DDT “CHARISMANIA II”, 18/06/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. GREATEST WRESTLING MATCH EVER: Dick Togo Vs Daisuke Sasaki

For the second “CHARISMANIA” show Daisuke Sasaki most wants to have a singles match against his mentor Dick Togo.

The rest of DAMNATION T.A will be on the show. That means Hideki Okatani, MJ Paul and Ilusion.


DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.33 ~KILL THE KING~” Results

May 10, 2017

DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.33 ~KILL THE KING~”, 10/05/2017
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
796 Fans

1. Conflict Settlement! Thoroughbred Vs Mad Dog: LEONA defeated Mizuki Watase with a Running Elbow Bat (5:55).
2. 1st DNA Spring Character Festival: Royce Isaacs, Rekka & Naomi Yoshimura defeated Yuji Okabayashi, Daiki Shimomura & Nobuhiro Shimatani when Yoshimura pinned Shimatani with the Throwaway Power Bomb (9:42).
*Naomi Yoshimura wins Nobuhiro Shimatani’s Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Contract.
3. Awake Your Eyes, Dai Suzuki! Seven Match Trial 3rd Battle: Go Shiozaki defeated Dai Suzuki with the Strong Lariat (5:28).
4. Spaceman Plancha Confrontation: TAKA Michinoku defeated MAO with the Just Facelock (9:19).
5. Osaka City Blooming Flower High School Classmate Confrontation: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Yuki Ueno with the German Suplex (6:58).
6. Third Degree Honesty: Kazushi Sakuraba defeated Kouki Iwasaki with the Perfect Yurikamome Hold (6:58).
7. PREMIUM GIG – I Will Get The DNA Of Junior: Kotaro Suzuki defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Mass Driver (9:50).
8. MAIN GIG – DNA Strongest Decision: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Mike Bailey with the Goten (18:57).

How does that saying go, “If you come at the king, you best not miss?” Well, Mike Bailey didn’t exactly miss but Kazusada Higuchi was there ready and waiting for him with a bang. The main event of DNA’s first show in Korakuen Hall ended when Bailey went for the Shooting Star Double Knee Drop. While he was in the air Higuchi got up to his feet and caught Bailey on the way down with a Lariat. It was such a big hit that nothing could stop Higuchi from hitting the Goten afterwards to win.

The end of the show had Sanshiro Takagi come down to the ring for an announcement. Today Higuchi is graduating from DNA and from tomorrow he will be fully affiliated with DDT! Higuchi thanked Takagi but had one favour to ask in return. He wants to help DNA fill up Korakuen Hall when they return on 4th July so he asked if he could stay affiliated with DNA until then. Takagi accepted the request. Higuchi’s final match as a DNA wrestler takes place on 4th July.

For the last few months in DNA, Shunma Katsumata has bonded with Kotaro Suzuki as both an opponent and a teammate. He got to put everything he learned into one more test with Suzuki but sadly could not beat him. Suzuki countered the Swan Dive X Factor with a Rolling Elbow then hit the Blue Destiny. Katsumata kicked out but it was all over when Suzuki did the Mass Driver. Katsumata wishes he could have done more to win but if he relived the last two months in DNA he would not have changed a thing.

It’s not everyday you get to see Kazushi Sakuraba hit a Plancha but he did one to Kouki Iwasaki. He also twisted Iwasaki in knots but Iwasaki wouldn’t give up. Sakuraba eventually got bored so held Iwasaki’s shoulders down to the match for the three count. Iwasaki was left frustrated by the loss.

From the high school classroom to the wrestling ring, Yuki Ueno got to face his buddy Konosuke Takeshita one on one for the first time. Even though they are the same age the gap in experience is huge and Ueno faced an uphill battle throughout. Takeshita encouraged him to continue but the end result was of no surprise to anyone. What was surprising was Ueno slapping Takeshita’s hand away when he was offered a handshake after the match.

High dives out of the ring was promised in the match between MAO and TAKA Michinoku. MAO delivered with a Spaceman Topé Con Hilo. However a missed Cannonball 450 gave TAKA control of the match and MAO could never get back into it. He kicked out of the Super Kick but ultimately failed to fight off the Cross Facelock. TAKA was impressed with MAO’s dives. He really thought it looked like an alien was flying towards him. He also thinks MAO has the kind of body that can let him become a heavyweight without losing his agility. The match was important for MAO because he is from Tohoku, the home of Michinoku Pro. Plus he was a fan of TAKA when he was a kid.

Dai Suzuki came out with new gear and new music for the big occasion. Now he needs a new chest after Go Shiozaki obliterated it with Machine Gun Chops. A few Lariats and Brainbusters made the five minute match feel like an eternity for poor Suzuki. For the rest of his trial series Suzuki will got through a 4 Vs 1 gauntlet match. However to give him a decent chance to survive the seven minute time limit will apply to the four matches combined. Surely Suzuki can’t lose four times in seven minutes.

Naomi Yoshimura got his hands on a Right To Challenge Contract! He blocked a Tornado DDT from Nobuhiro Shimatani and countered a Cradle into a Power Slam. A painful landing from the Throwaway Power Bomb ended the match. Rekka said Yuji Okabayashi’s Chops hurts so much but he still wants to take them. He hopes to have a singles match with Okabayashi soon.

In a battle of Running Forearms and Elbow Smashes, LEONA came out on top against Mizuki Watase. As much as he tried to tough it out, one clean Elbow Bat put Watase down for the three count. He accepted the result and shook LEONA’s hand afterwards. Today was LEONA’s day but next time, Watase will get his!

DNA returns to Korakuen Hall on 4th July. DNA will also hold their own Beer Garden show in Shinjuku FACE on 5th August. That show is being advertised as the beginning of Chapter 3 for DNA.


DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.32 ~COME TOGETHER~” Results

April 21, 2017

DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.32 ~COME TOGETHER~”, 21/04/2017
Shinjuku FACE
317 Fans – No Vacancy

1. DNA Tag League Assessment Match: Daiki Shimomura & Nobuhiro Shimatani defeated Guanchulo & Rekka when Shimatani pinned Guanchulo with a School Boy (9:52)
2. For Tomorrow Part 1 ~ GO FOR BROKE: Naomi Yoshimura & Yuki Ueno defeated Shogun Okamoto & Royce Isaacs when Yoshimura pinned Isaacs with the Throw Away Power Bomb (9:34).
3. Awake Your Eyes, Dai Suzuki! Seven Match Trial 2nd Battle: Masato Tanaka defeated Dai Suzuki with the Sliding D (4:46).
4. PROVE YOUR DNA: Kotaro Suzuki & LEONA defeated Mizuki Watase & MAO by Referee Stoppage when LEONA used the Figure Four Leg Lock on Watase (13:35).
5. PREMIUM GIG – Young Hunters Vs Father Hunters: Kazushi Sakuraba & Kendo Kashin defeated Kouki Iwasaki & Mike Bailey when Kashin pinned Iwasaki after the Shooting Star Double Knee Drop from Bailey (7:18).
6. MAIN GIG – The Main Eventer Of NEXT: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Goten (20:28).

In the latest battle to determine who is on top of the DNA mountain, Kazusada Higuchi defeated Shunma Katsumata. Higuchi had to fight off every inch of fight his much smaller opponent threw at him. Katsumata tried to wear him down with a Sleeper Hold in between several Swan Dive attacks. Even a Firebird Splash was done but Higuchi was too tough to be put down. He countered the Swan Dive X Factor with a Big Boot, hit a Lariat, then a big German Suplex and won the match with the Goten. As the winner, Higuchi now faces “Speedball” Mike Bailey in the main event of DNA’s Korakuen Hall debut on 10th May. Higuchi lost to Bailey in the DNA Grand Prix final last October. He will prove he is the strongest in DNA when he finally beats Bailey.

There was more masked shenanigans between Kazushi Sakuraba & Kendo Kashin for their match against Kouki Iwasaki & Mike Bailey. In the opening ceremony the man who was allegedly Kashin wearing a Sakuraba mask had a different body type. Then for the match entrances Sakuraba and Kashin were accompanied by two other masked men. The cornermen interfered by spraying Iwasaki and Bailey in the eyes when the ref was distracted. During the confusion, Kashin took off his own mask and placed it over Iwasaki’s face. He then hit Bailey from behind with a chair and exited the ring. Bailey turned around and thought Iwasaki was Kashin so he attacked him, finishing him off with the Shooting Star Double Knee Drop. Sakuraba then put Bailey in a Sleeper while Kashin pinned Iwasaki for the three count. Iwasaki challenged Sakuraba to a match at Korakuen and it was accepted. Backstage Bailey explained to Iwasaki that he had only seen Kashin’s previous matches on smartphones and the bad video quality meant he couldn’t tell who the real Kashin was supposed to be.

An emotional Mizuki Watase refused to tap out of LEONA’s Figure Four Leg Lock leading to Yukinori Matsui stopping the match for safety reasons and awarding the victory to LEONA & Kotaro Suzuki. Watase crawled over to the microphone and yelled at Matsui for stopping the match because he never gave up. Matsui challenged LEONA to a match at Korakuen to settle their differences. He will not lose to LEONA even if his legs break!

Dai Suzuki tried to ambush Masato Tanaka with a chair before their match began. The plan didn’t work and Tanaka was able to beat him easily in under five minutes. Suzuki was left feeling down over his lack of progress. He was then told his next opponent on 10th May will be Go Shiozaki! Suzuki promises to do his best because he can’t afford to lose the remaining matches in his trial series.

The rookie team of Naomi Yoshimura & Yuki Ueno scored a big win over Shogun Okamoto & Royce Isaacs. Yoshimura’s power has caught Okamoto’s attention. Okamoto felt disgusted that he and Isaacs lost the match. He thinks Isaacs is a wonderful wrestler but doesn’t share the same feelings for Yoshimura. Okamoto wants Yoshimura for a singles match and promises to crush him! Yoshimura looks forward to it and said it will be him crushing Okamoto instead!

Nobuhiro Shimatani successfully defended his Right To Challenge contract by pinning Guanchulo in the opening tag match. Sadly this was Guanchulo’s final match in DNA for the time being. He is returning home to Chile for a while. Rekka says he will continue fighting with Guanchulo in his heart.


DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.31 ~LET’S SPEND THE NIGHT TOGETHER LET’S SPEND THE NIGHT~” Results

March 14, 2017

DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.31 ~LET’S SPEND THE NIGHT TOGETHER LET’S SPEND THE NIGHT~”, 14/03/2017
Shinjuku FACE
315 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Gran MilliMeters Team Leader Decision Battle: Daiki Shimomura defeated Nobuhiro Shimatani with a Running Elbow Smash (6:17).
2. Awake Your Eyes, Dai Suzuki! Seven Match Trial 1st Battle: Kohei Sato defeated Dai Suzuki with a Running Elbow Bat (2:48).
3. Road To The Best Tag Manager In 2017 ~ One Nominated Bout Without Permission: Atsushi Aoki & Hikaru Sato defeated Guanchulo & Rekka when Sato submitted Guanchulo with the Cross Armbreaker (16:12).
4. Our DNA ~ Six Men Full Of Grudges: Akebono, Shogun Okamoto & LEONA defeated Mizuki Watase, Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura when Akebono pinned Ueno with an Elbow Drop (9:27).
5. PREMIUM GIG TOP OF THE NEXT: Kouki Iwasaki defeated MAO with a Verical Drop Brainbuster (9:53).
6. “THE RIVALS” Each Stand By Me: Shunma Katsumata & Kotaro Suzuki defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Mike Bailey when Katsumata pinned Higuchi with the Kasadora (16:32).

Shunma Katsumata got the surprise pin on Kazusada Higuchi, beating the big man for the first time in his career. Katsumata thanked Kotaro Suzuki for giving him the power in their singles match at “DNA EP.30” to beat Higuchi. He wants to make DNA more exciting by collaborating with Suzuki more in the future. But Higuchi is still in the way. Earlier in the show it was announced that Mike Bailey will main event the DNA Korakuen Hall show on 10th May. Higuchi wants to be Bailey’s opponent so he can avenge his defeat to from last year’s DNA Grand Prix final. Katsumata wants that spot too so he challenged Higuchi to a match on 21st April. The winner will face Bailey at Korakuen.

Kouki Iwasaki got the victory over MAO by rolling out of the way of the Cannonball 450. MAO kicked out of a Soccer Kick but the Vertical Drop Brainbuster afterwards had him beat. Iwasaki said afterwards that he will fight any big names that come to DNA. Suddenly Kazushi Sakuraba appeared. He said he likes to tease people and bully the younger wrestlers in the ring so he’s coming back to DNA on 21st April to bully Iwasaki again. The Gracie Hunter is now the DNA Hunter! He is also bringing somebody to team up with, Kendo Kashin! After the announcement a mystery man in a lion mask ran into the ring and sprayed Iwasaki in the eyes with the cold spray. He then saluted to Sakuraba and ran out of the ring.

Mizuki Watase and LEONA were at each other’s throats for most of the 6-Man Tag. They brawled up to the stage while Akebono took care of Naomi Yoshimura and Yuki Ueno inside the ring.

The YOUNG DONUTS were picked apart by Atsushi Aoki & Hikaru Sato. Guanchulo is happy just to be teaming with Rekka and show off YOUNG DONUTS to the world. In the backstage interview Sato pointed at the DNA logo. He doesn’t know what the D, N, A or GIG stand for but FIGHTING is at the beginning and that means everything to him. Don’t you forget it!

The first match in Dai Suzuki’s 7 bout series ended in failure. Kohei Sato was too scary for Suzuki to stand up to and he was clobbered in under 3 minutes. It’s only going to get worse because opponent #2 is Masato Tanaka!

The match to determine the team leader of Gran MilliMeters ended a bit rougher than intended. Nobuhiro Shimatani suffered a bloody nose after being hit with a Running Elbow Smash from Daiki Shimomura.


DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.30 ~Starting Signal Run!~” Results

February 23, 2017

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DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.30 ~Starting Signal Run!~”, 23/02/2017
Shinjuku FACE
450 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. FIGHTING GIG STARTING SIGNAL Run!: Guanchulo & Rekka defeated Daiki Shimomura & Nobuhiro Shimatani when Guanchulo pinned Shimatani with the DVD (9:52).
2. Youth’s Esperanza 2017: MAO defeated Yuki Ueno with the Cannonball 450 (9:52).
3. Dai Suzuki Which Way Is Your Tomorrow?: Shogun Okamoto defeated Dai Suzuki with a Back Drop (4:14).
4. Stand By The Sky: Kotaro Suzuki defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Tiger Driver (14:27).
5. Running Without End: Kazushi Sakuraba & LEONA defeated Kouki Iwasaki & Mizuki Watase when Sakuraba submitted Iwasaki with the Perfect Yurikamome (10:50).
6. FIRST GIG MAIN EVENT “THE POWER”: Kazusada Higuchi & Akebono defeated Naomi Yoshimura & Yuji Okabayashi when Higuchi pinned Yoshimura with the Goten (15:18).

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DDT New Attitude is now Fighting Gig DNA! The development brand for DDT took a big step towards establishing themselves as its own product. With S.P.E. Entertainment managing the events, DNA redesigned its logo and now has its own new theme song. Also some of the wrestlers came out with new gear and entrance music. The show began with all 18 wrestlers lining up while the guest ring announcer Masahiro Ehara announced the beginning of DNA’s next story.

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In the build-up to the relaunch, the least experienced wrestler on the roster was building up the most ego. Naomi Yoshimura was eager to start the main event by charging past his partner Yuji Okabayashi and towards Kazusada Higuchi to catch him off guard. The match turned around when Akebono tagged in to absorb all of the chops and Shoulder Blocks his opponents could throw at him. Yoshimura was a glory hog throughout the match and refused to tag out even though he was overwhelmed. Okabayashi angrily reminded him it was a tag match and finally got to tag in and clean house. Yoshimura tagged back in and with Okabayashi gave Akebono a Double Brainbuster. He wanted to finish off Higuchi with a Lariat but Higuchi stopped him with a Lariat of his own. Yoshimura kicked out of the Doctor Bomb but Higuchi ended up putting him away with the Goten.

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After the match Akebono thanked Higuchi and Okabayashi for the match. He then turned to Yoshimura and complimented him on a good job. Akebono said he would like to come back and then left the ring. Higuchi thanked the fans for coming to see DNA’s relaunch. He told Yoshimura to watch his attitude a little but other than that he would gladly fight him again and again. A representative from one of the show sponsors Premium Water Shop then came out. He thought it was a wonderful show so he wanted to make a donation to DNA. He announced that DNA will have a show in Korakuen Hall on 10th May! Higuchi was excited by the news until Shunma Katsumata grabbed the microphone from him. Katsumata declared that he will main event the Korakuen show, not Higuchi. Higuchi said he is on top of DNA and he won’t give up his throne to anyone. If it is a new era for DNA, he will be leading the charge.

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While Mizuki Watase and LEONA fought each other outside the ring, Kouki Iwasaki had the displeasure of being twisted apart by Kazushi Sakuraba. Watase and LEONA continued fighting after the match ended. LEONA apologised in his backstage interview and blamed it on himself feeling a bit off. Sakuraba said Iwasaki has a strong Low Kick and he’d like to wrestle him again.

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Kotaro Suzuki was full of praise for Shunma Katsumata, describing their match as a wonderful contest. Suzuki said when he was three years into his career he did not have the movement and technique that Katsumata currently has. However a key difference maker in this match was stamina. Suzuki had more of it and Katsumata can’t hit his big moves without it. Suzuki then suggested that Katsumata should team with him so he can steal all his moves… er I mean learn more by watching.

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Dai Suzuki tried to shake off his loss to Shogun Okamoto with as much dignity as he could muster. He then broke down while failing to convince the audience he is still undefeated. The show sponsor then came out accompanied by an MC named MEGA-G. They informed Suzuki he will be going through a 7 match series with every match having a 7 minute time limit. If he loses all 7 matches then he must retire! However a win and even a draw will save Suzuki’s career. His first match in this series will be against Kohei Sato on 14th March.

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MAO’s Screw Kick was the deciding factor in him beating Yuki Ueno. Afterwards Ueno said he can’t figure out where that kick came from so he couldn’t defend against it. Ueno will now focus on more training to make sure he won’t lose his next match. As for MAO, he is just going to keep doing what he is doing in DNA and see where it takes him.

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Guanchulo & Rekka claim that they too have been reborn along with DNA. Together they are calling themselves the YOUNG DONUTS! They aren’t the only wrestlers thinking up team names. Daiki Shimomura & Nobuhiro Shimatani are thinking about calling themselves Gran Millimeter because they are small but strong like Gran Hamada.

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On the same week NASA discovered seven new planets, DNA introduced seven new trainees. Kento Namatame (生田目研人) is a 26 year old from Tokyo who has experience training with CMLL. Ryota Kimoto (木本凌太) is a 19 year old from Hokkaido and comes from Sapporo Amateur Pro Wrestling. Daisuka Kurahashi (倉橋大亮) is a 23 year old from Akita and was trained by Animal Hamaguchi. Kazuki Yoshida (吉田和樹) is a 20 year old from Niigata and has baseball experience. Mago-ichi (孫一?) is a 30 year old bodybuilder from northern China. Yuki Iino (飯野雄貴) is a 22 year old rugby player from Tokyo. Finally Kenichi Ito (伊藤健一) is a 41 year old MMA fighter from Tokyo.


Sakuraba And LEONA In DNA

January 17, 2017

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DNA “FIGHTING GIG DNA EP.30 ~Starting Signal Run!~”, 23/02/2017
Shinjuku FACE

1. Stand By The Sky: Shunma Katsumata Vs Kotaro Suzuki
2. Running Without End: Kouki Iwasaki & Mizuki Watase Vs Kazushi Sakuraba & LEONA

The new look DNA welcomes Kazushi Sakuraba and LEONA to its relaunch next month. The two will take on Kouki Iwasaki & Mizuki Watase. The four of them appeared at a press conference with Sakuraba wearing a white jiu-jitsu belt over his suit. Sakuraba explained he wore it to represent his first time in DNA because it is the first belt you earn in jiu-jitsu. Iwasaki is only focusing on Sakuraba and hopes to fight him one on one at some point. Watase is thrilled to fight the man he watched on TV back in elementary school. However he and LEONA had a war of words over whether or not LEONA is worthy of being in the match. Sakuraba admitted he hasn’t seen LEONA wrestle but he thinks they can work together as a team.

Kotaro Suzuki was impressed by what he saw at the last DNA show and said he would be happy to come back. Shunma Katsumata took him up on that offer. Katsumata wants DNA to fight as fierce as Suzuki does.


DDT “JUDGEMENT 2016 ~DDT 19th ANNIVERSARY~” Preview

March 19, 2016

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DDT “JUDGEMENT 2016 ~DDT 19th ANNIVERSARY~”, 21/03/2016
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

0. King Of Dark Title: Seiya Morohashi (c) & Hoshitango Vs DJ Nira & Dai Suzuki
0. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Battle Royal: Miyu Yamashita Vs Shoko Nakajima Vs Yuka Sakazaki Vs Nonoko Vs Rika Tatsumi Vs Hyper Misao Vs Azusa Takigawa Vs Yuu Vs Nodoka-onesan Vs Marika Kobashi Vs Ai Shimizu Vs Poison Miura Vs KANNA
0. DNA Offer Match – Mao Inoue Comeback: Shunma Katsumata, Guanchulo & Mao Inoue Vs Kouki Iwasaki, Rainbow Kawamura & Nobuhiro Shimatani
0. Pro Wrestling BASARA Offer Match: Takumi Tsukamoto, Daichi Kazato & Ryu Gouma Vs FUMA, Yusuke Kubo & SAGAT
1. Ryogoku First Appearance! Next KO-D Openweight Title Challenger Decision And Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Battle Royal: Toru Owashi Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Masa Takanshi Vs Soma Takao Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Kazusada Higuchi Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs Cherry Vs Ryuichi Sekine Vs Ryota Nakatsu Vs Yoshihiko Vs Ken Ohka
2. 3 Way Tag Match: Joey Ryan & Candice LeRae Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Akito & Yasu Urano
3. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Special 6-Man Tag Team Match: Saki Akai, Makoto Oishi & Lady Beard Vs LiLiCo (c), Kota Umeda & Mizuki Watase
4. Special Tag Match: Antonio Honda & Hiroshi Fukuda Vs Tatsumi Fujinami & LEONA
5. DDT Extreme Title – Ultimate Royal Barbed Wire PowerPoint No Power Blast PWF Rules: Kendo Kashin (c) Vs Super Sasadango Machine
6. Kota Ibushi Comeback & Ibushi Wrestling Institute 1st Leg – East & West Toward The Front Over The Entire Surface Falls Count Anywhere Weapon Treasure Hunt Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Jun Kasai Vs KENSO & Michael Nakazawa Vs Kota Ibushi & Gota Ihashi
7. Dramatic Dream Match: Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Minoru Suzuki
8. Dramatic Dream Match: Danshoku Dino Vs Akebono
9. KO-D Tag Team Titles – Uchicomi! Presents: Konosuke Takeshita & Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Shuji Ishikawa
10. KO-D Openweight Title – Good Com Asset Presents: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs HARASHIMA

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DDT celebrates the 19th year of its existence with the first of two visits to Sumo Hall in 2016. After drawing a disappointing number back in August, they have packed this card with everything they have in their arsenal. Spin offs BASARA, DNA and Tokyo Joshi Pro all have spots on the pre-show so there is a sense of DDT getting everybody they can on their rosters onto the show in a WrestleMania kind of manner. Things to look forward to this year are the aces of DDT and BASARA facing off, one man and his dog chasing after tag team gold, sumo being challenged by the power of asses, two grumpy fighters being grumpy to each other, the return of a Golden Star to shine over the least wanted feud in wrestling, the presence of a Dragon and his son and the most extreme PowerPoint presentation known to mankind.

0. King Of Dark Title: Seiya Morohashi (c) & Hoshitango Vs DJ Nira & Dai Suzuki

Seiya Morohashi has the unwanted honour of defending the King Of Dark Title at one of DDT’s biggest shows of the year. The belt has been in existence for over a year now and has been a nightmare for everyone who held it. Morohashi needs to pin either DJ Nira or Dai Suzuki to transfer the belt to them and escape from dark match hell.

0. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Battle Royal: Miyu Yamashita Vs Shoko Nakajima Vs Yuka Sakazaki Vs Nonoko Vs Rika Tatsumi Vs Hyper Misao Vs Azusa Takigawa Vs Yuu Vs Nodoka-onesan Vs Marika Kobashi Vs Ai Shimizu Vs Poison Miura Vs KANNA

The girls from Tokyo Joshi Pro take the stage with a Battle Royal. Miyu Yamashita is currently leading the brand as the first and only TOKYO Princess Of Princess Champion. She doesn’t have a No. 1 Contender at the moment so the winner here might grab that spot.

0. DNA Offer Match – Mao Inoue Comeback: Shunma Katsumata, Guanchulo & Mao Inoue Vs Kouki Iwasaki, Rainbow Kawamura & Nobuhiro Shimatani

The rookie brand DDT New Attitude has been a highlight for DDT throughout the year. The shows are uploaded to DDT’s official Youtube channel and are a great showcase for the younger and newer talent. In fact two thirds of the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions are captaining the two teams in this match. Shunma Katsumata is teaming with his Chilean amigo Guanchulo and the returning Mao Inoue. Inoue debuted at “RYOGOKU PETER PAN 2015” and is one of the more flashier wrestlers in DNA. But a jaw injury at “OSAKA OCTOPUS 2015” in November put him on the shelf. On the other side, one-third champ Kouki Iwasaki has the now more colourful Rainbow Kawamura and recently debuting Nobuhiro Shimatani to partner with.

0. Pro Wrestling BASARA Offer Match: Takumi Tsukamoto, Daichi Kazato & Ryu Gouma Vs FUMA, Yusuke Kubo & SAGAT

It’s been go, go, go for Pro Wrestling BASARA since its first show earlier this year. As a replacement for Union, BASARA put together a much busier schedule than its predecessor and the shows held so far have been a success. One of the main storylines going on right now is FUMA’s obsession for heavy metal music resulting in the creation of Kotetsu Gundan. FUMA wants to spread around his love of heavy metal and convinced the now masked Yusuke Kubo and a slightly confused Madoka to join his cause. FUMA won’t shut up and it’s starting to annoy the rest of BASARA. Takumi Tsukamoto has a massive hammer to smash FUMA’s mouth shut, Daichi Kazato has a megaphone to drown out the noise and Ryu Gouma has his lawbook so surely he can find something to declare FUMA’s antics as noise pollution.

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1. Ryogoku First Appearance! Next KO-D Openweight Title Challenger Decision And Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Battle Royal: Toru Owashi Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Masa Takanshi Vs Soma Takao Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Kazusada Higuchi Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs Cherry Vs Ryuichi Sekine Vs Ryota Nakatsu Vs Yoshihiko Vs Ken Ohka

The show starts off proper with the annual Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere match appearing in Sumo Hall for the first time. It is a combination of a Money In The Bank Ladder Match and the Royal Rumble. The winner of the Rumble itself gets a guaranteed KO-D Openweight Title shot at Korakuen Hall on 24th April. However the competitors can instead try and claim one of several contracts held high above the ring. Those who grab a contract then leave the match with a prize. This year the prize is a MITB style title shot for any show from 26th March to 28th August, the date of the next Sumo Hall event. But this being DDT things are not always that simple. Rules can change but based on previous years the contract holder is forced to defend the contract in every single match they appear in until the contract is cashed in. This way the contract holder cannot just rest on their laurels and accept defeat after defeat knowing that they can claim an easy title shot whenever they want (see WWE booking). Plus it’s a bit unfair for the champion to have up to 4 or 5 people waiting to ambush him at any time so this concept keeps the roster scrambling amongst themselves for a few months.

After a string of wins including a Battle Royal victory, Kazuki Hirata offered to take the No. 1 entry spot in the match. He originally demanded to enter last but was convinced all of the contracts would be gone by the time he enters. So he’s entering first to grab a contract as soon as possible. He also has new heart shaped HIRATA GO! glasses on sale at the event. The rest of DDT’s misfits fill up the field. Masa Takanashi is aiming to win a title shot so he can become a double champion, one in Japan and one in Singapore. Toru Owashi is currently battling a flu but he also wants to snap every pair of HIRATA GO! glasses he sees. He also wants to flush Hirata down a toilet in the sumo locker room. Kazusada Higuchi held one of the contracts last year during his impressive rookie unbeaten streak. This time he wants to get a successful cash in. Tomomitsu Matsunaga and Cherry both want to finally achieve their goal of becoming KO-D Champion. Cherry wants to defend the title 41 times, one for every year she’s been alive. She believes this will end with her becoming reborn into an even more beautiful woman. Ryota Nakatsu is ready to get into a baseball dugout brawl if he has to. Ryuichi Sekine calls himself the best orthodox wrestler in BASARA and him getting a title shot will guarantee the belt either stays or comes back to his home company. Ken Ohka who briefly became KO-D Champion last year thanks to the Right To Challenge concept, sees himself as the outsider of the match due to being a representative of Ganbare☆Wrestling. At the press conference he challenged everybody to fight him one on one. Higuchi then gave him a Headbutt and he backed off, instead complimenting everybody for being so enthusiastic for the match. The other wild card is Yoshihiko. It probably just wants to watch the world burn.

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2. 3 Way Tag Match: Joey Ryan & Candice LeRae Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Akito & Yasu Urano

It’s safe to say DDT has fallen in love with The World’s Cutest Tag Team. Last year’s video of Joey Ryan overpowering Danshoku Dino with his dick made him famous and the DDT roster fell head over heels for Candice LeRae, one of them even going so far to propose to her almost immediately. For their return to Japan they have two mainstay tag teams thrown in their way. Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie are former KO-D Tag Team and All Asia Tag Team Champions. Yasu Urano & Akito are busy working their strategy for the match. They understand that communication is key to winning and both of their opposing teams have strong bonds. However the one thing Ryan & LeRae have over Ishii & Irie is the language barrier. Ishii & Irie are terrible at English! Urano & Akito however understand English and can work out what Ryan & LeRae will be saying to each other. They don’t speak it themselves but they still understand it. Ishii tried to prove them wrong at the press conference by having Irie translate his message to both teams in English.

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3. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Special 6-Man Tag Team Match: Saki Akai, Makoto Oishi & Lady Beard Vs LiLiCo (c), Kota Umeda & Mizuki Watase

The Kawaii Connection reunite to deliver their cuteness to the entire world. Cute model Saki Akai, cute wrestler Makoto Oishi and cute crossdresser Lady Beard are ready to get revenge on LiLiCo for what she did to Akai. Back in December Akai finally achieved her goal and won the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title for the second time in her career. But a few weeks later LiLiCo made a surprise return to choke out Akai with a steel chain and win the title. Now they will finally meet in the ring properly but LiLiCo has some back up. She recruited DNA wrestlers Kota Umeda & Mizuki Watase. mostly based on their looks, to protect her and her championship. They’ve been living a lavish lifestyle in the run up to the show. LiLiCo’s been bragging about eating delicious meat with her handsome men. Umeda thinks the full stomach he has from the meat puts him in peak physical condition. Meanwhile a war of words has erupted between Akai and Watase over each other’s appearances. It’s gotten so bad that the two had to be pulled apart from each other during the press conference.

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4. Special Tag Match: Antonio Honda & Hiroshi Fukuda Vs Tatsumi Fujinami & LEONA

The latest puroresu legend to step into DDT’s ring is WWE Hall Of Famer Tatsumi Fujinami! He’s been looking for a new challenge for himself and his son LEONA to overcome so DDT gave them a call and here they are. Antonio Honda spent the last few months chasing after the DDT Extreme Title and trying to get Kendo Kashin to notice him. The experience left him in a bad state of mind so when he heard he will be teaming with Hiroshi Fukuda it cheered him up. He said he always had fun when he’s in the ring with Fukuda. That it’s against Fujinami & LEONA is icing on the cake for both. Fukuda claims he recently received a WWE tryout and he wonders if Fujinami gets a Legends discount for the WWE Network because he’s in their Hall Of Fame.

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5. DDT Extreme Title – Ultimate Royal Barbed Wire PowerPoint No Power Blast PWF Rules: Kendo Kashin (c) Vs Super Sasadango Machine

And now we go to whatever the hell this is. Kendo Kashin’s DDT Extreme Title run has been complicated in ways that should not be so. He created rulesets for his title defences that turn out to be exactly like normal match stipulations. Instead of a normal match it is an Amateur rules bout with 3 count pins, submissions allowed and 20 count ring outs. Instead of a tag team match it is a single match but both wrestlers have partners they can swap places with. Instead of a Triple Threat it is a singles match but with three wrestlers involved. And so on and so forth. Add in Super Sasadango Machine who is a master of bizarre match stipulations and you have a recipe for a beautiful disaster.

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So what exactly is an Ultimate Royal Barbed Wire PowerPoint No Power Blast PWF Rules match? Does it have anything to do with that stupid 4 Way MMA Gauntlet match New Japan did for its 2005 Tokyo Dome show? Actually yes it does but there’s only two wrestlers involved this time. Also Kashin has never seen the match so he’s not entirely sure what the rules for that are. Does it have anything to do with the Barbed Wire Explosion matches FMW was famous for? Again yes it does but explosions of that size are banned in Sumo Hall so they won’t be included. Instead barbed wire will be wrapped around the laptop Sasadango uses for his PowerPoint presentations and it will be rigged to explode after 5 minutes.

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6. Kota Ibushi Comeback & Ibushi Wrestling Institute 1st Leg – East & West Toward The Front Over The Entire Surface Falls Count Anywhere Weapon Treasure Hunt Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Jun Kasai Vs KENSO & Michael Nakazawa Vs Kota Ibushi & Gota Ihashi

There are two stories surrounding this match. First is the feud that no one wanted resurfaced last year and has lingered in DDT ever since. Sanshiro Takagi and KENSO had a feud in 2006 that ended with a No Rope Exploding Barbed Wire Match on a show where everything just fell apart. How bad was it? There were power outages during the match caused by the barbed wire ruining the explosions. KENSO showed up in DDT last year wanting to rekindle the feud. It was the most alive he ever felt and he wanted to experience it again. It turned smarky on social media with Takagi tweeting about KENSO’s failures in wrestling including losing to an actor when he wrestled in HUSTLE. KENSO’s response was usually just linking a picture of Takagi’s election poster, an embarrassing part of his past. A dark match 60 minute Ironman Match couldn’t decide a winner of the feud so it’s off to Sumo Hall for another final battle. Jun Kasai is coming to bring back his Crazy & President tag team with Takagi. KENSO has to rely on Michael Nakazawa who is returning from Singapore just to do this match. The stage is set for an out of control Falls Count Anywhere Match that will spread all over Sumo Hall. What could possibly take the spotlight from that?

Oh hey there, Kota Ibushi. How’s it going?

So get this. Last October Ibushi starts dropping out of shows including him missing a KO-D Title Match. Turns out he was diagnosed with a herniated cervical disc. So that’s him gone for God knows how long. Months pass and he’s all quiet until all of a sudden videos appear on Twitter of Ibushi working out and taking bumps with a training dummy. The herniated disc wasn’t as bad as expected and he was getting close to a full recovery. DDT and New Japan fans get excited for what will surely be his inevitable glorious comeback for both companies. Then in February he drops a bombshell. Ibushi decided to quit both DDT and New Japan. The double schedule took its toll on his body and he also felt he wouldn’t be able to do the kind of pro wrestling he wants to do while tied down to both companies. So he “graduates” from DDT and New Japan and then creates the Ibushi Wrestling Institute. What that is we still don’t know. What we do know is Ibushi’s first match back will be in this clusterfuck. He gets to wrestle Takagi and Nakazawa again, two men he has the deepest respect for and he gets to do a Falls Count Anywhere Match in Sumo Hall, which he has never done before.

What he does after the next few weeks is anyone’s guess. Maybe the WWE fans get their wish and he enters the Global Cruiserweight Series. Maybe NJPW fans can still get their wish of Ibushi Vs Kenny Omega at the Tokyo Dome next year. Or maybe he’s just going to do what he thinks is fun even if it means hardcore fans tearing out their hair because his big goal is to fight in Kaiju Big Battel. I mean fair play to EVOLVE and all but it has to be a bit embarrassing when everyone hears that the main reason a big star took your booking is because he wants to fight a devil monkey, a dust bunny, a murderous can of soup and a giant waffle in the same town that weekend.

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7. Dramatic Dream Match: Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Minoru Suzuki

The last time Yukio Sakaguchi was in Sumo Hall for DDT he won the KO-D Championship. The last time Minoru Suzuki was in Sumo Hall for DDT he was part of some nonsense with Takagi, Kasai and Nakazawa. Both are grumpy hybrid wrestlers so it’s only natural for a showdown between the two. Sakaguchi isn’t in the mood to talk about the match. Suzuki cares a little more but he’s rather enjoying teasing Sakaguchi over his public reputation for being a bad guy. Expect this match to get physical.

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8. Dramatic Dream Match: Danshoku Dino Vs Akebono

Danshoku Dino is an ass man. This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. What could be a surprise is Dino might not be able to handle the next ass he’s in the ring with. Akebono was last in DDT for “SAITAMA SUPER DDT” at the Saitama Super Arena. Since then he’s won some titles, created his own wrestling company Odo and got punched in the back of the head by Bop Sapp. You know, the usual stuff Akebono likes to do. For this match Dino has been trying to hunt down the asses of various wrestlers as some sort of power up but the plan hasn’t been a success. He’ll need to pull out every trick he can think of to win but it’s possible. Dino once defeated Bob Sapp. He can do the same to Akebono!

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9. KO-D Tag Team Titles – Uchicomi! Presents: Konosuke Takeshita & Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Shuji Ishikawa

The New Generation Combination are currently DDT’s top tag team. Konosuke Takeshita & Tetsuya Endo are the leading examples that DDT’s future is in good hands. But for the last month they’ve had a duo barking up their tree and snapping at their heels. Daisuke Sasaki is a crafty veteran who has had success in the past. However his luck changed when he fell in love with Candice LeRae. After teaming with her he bent down on one knee and proposed. She turned him down and he had a mental breakdown when he found out she got engaged to someone else immediately afterwards. Unable to handle rejection Sasaki started bringing a dog leash with him. When he demanded a tag team title shot without having any tag partners he went out and got a dog named Adrien. The “dog” then showed up and attacked the New Gen Combo. He unmasked and was revealed to be Shuji Ishikawa! Sasaki now has a partner and together they want the tag titles. Takeshita & Endo believe they are the future of pro wrestling and they’re not going to drop the titles to a dumped man and his pet dog.

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10. KO-D Openweight Title – Good Com Asset Presents: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs HARASHIMA

The KO-D Openweight Championship has been around Isami Kodaka’s waist since November. Things have been great for him. His new promotion BASARA is doing well, he’s a tag team champion in All Japan and he’s been unbeatable in DDT. If there is anyone who has the best shot at winning the title from him it’s good old Mr. Reliable himself, HARASHIMA. For the 5th time in his career HARASHIMA is in the headline match for DDT at Sumo Hall. The last time was in 2014 in a 3 Way Match with Kodaka and Kenny Omega. HARASHIMA got the pin on Kodaka to keep the title. This time he’s going in as challenger and he aims to leave with the belt. Kodaka equates this match to the rivalry between Kenshiro and Raoh in Fist Of The North Star. Isami is Kenshiro, HARASHIMA is Raoh. Isami is desperate to win and he’ll even use the Muso Tensei if he has to!