I’m going on holiday for the rest of the month so the blog might be a little quiet for the rest of the week. I’ll post results if I find the time but it might have to wait until I’m back next month. Same goes for the next DDT Around The World article. That might be delayed until I get home.
BASARA “BASARA 234 ~UTAGE~”, 24/10/2023 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Ryuichi Sekine, Minoru Fujita & KUBITO Vs Takato Nakano, Masato Kamino & Tsutomu Oosugi
2. Turnabout Pro Wrestling Trial: Yasu Urano Vs Gouma Ryu Vs Banana Senga
3. IRON FIST TAG TOURNAMENT – Round 2B: Takumi Tsukamoto & SAGAT Vs Lil’ Kraken & Leo Isaka
4. IRON FIST TAG TOURNAMENT – Round 2A: Ryota Nakatsu & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Daichi Kazato
5. FUMA Vs Isami Kodaka
The Union MAX Title match that was supposed to take place tomorrow has been cancelled because of Daiki Shimomura’s suspension. The new main event is FUMA against Isami Kodaka in a non-title match.
DDT “UTAN FESTA 2023”, 29/10/2023 Tokyo JR Omori Station East Exit Plaza
1. Danshoku Dieno Vs Rukiya
2. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul Vs Yusuke Okada, Yuya Koroku & Yuni
3. Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima Vs HARASHIMA, Makoto Oishi & Yukio Naya
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Chikara Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Akito & Kazuki Hirata
5. Omori Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Aja Kong, Takeshi Masada & Kazuma Sumi
6. World Omori Title: Soma Takao (c) Vs Antonio Honda
Antonio Honda has been chosen as Soma Takao’s next challenger for the World Omori Title. The match also serves as a preview for the KO-D Tag Team Titles bout at Sumo Hall next month.
One of Saki Akai’s early rivals meets with her one more time. Aja Kong was always a big challenge that Akai could never climb over.
Chikara returns so he can team up with BURNING.
DDT “ROAD TO ULTIMATE PARTY 2023 IN SHINJUKU”, 03/11/2023 Shinjuku FACE
1. Kazusada Higuchi & Toy Kojima Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
2. Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi Vs HARASHIMA & Kazuma Sumi
3. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul Vs Tetsuya Endo, Yukio Naya & Rukiya
4. Special Single Match: Soma Takao Vs Masahiro Takanashi
5. Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Final ~ Special Single Match: Saki Akai Vs Kazuki Hirata
6. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki Ueno & MAO
7. All Asia Tag Team Titles: Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani
The final warm up match between Chris Brookes and Yuki Ueno takes place here.
Takao is also getting a singles match with Masahiro Takanashi.
DDT “DDT PRO WRESTLING IN SHINGASHI”, 04/11/2023 Shingashi Station West Exit Ekimae Street/Takashina Elementary School
1. Rojo Pro Wrestling Match: X Vs X
2. X Vs X
3. X Vs X
DDT will be holding three matches at the Shingashi Waku Festival. The first match will be a Street Wrestling match a Shingashi Station. The next two matches will be held inside a ring set up at Takashina Elementary School. HARASHIMA, Sanshiro Takagi, Makoto Oishi, Yoshiko Hasegawa and Danshoku Dieno have been announced for the event so far.
DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023”, 12/11/2023 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
1. Staggered Entry Tag Rumble: KANON & MJ Paul Vs Naruki Doi & Kazuma Sumi Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Toy Kojima & Yuki Ishida Vs Yuni & Rukiya
2. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer 6-Woman Tag Match: Yuki Arai, Moka Miyamoto & Shino Suzuki Vs Suzume, Arisu Endo & Wakana Uehara
3. Special 8-Man Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi, Akito, Makoto Oishi & Shinichiro Kawamatsu Vs Yoshitatsu, Yoshihiko, Danshoku Dieno & Super Sasadango Machine
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~ DDT Vs VOODOO-MURDERS: Jun Akiyama, HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya Vs Jun Saito, Rei Saito & Toshizo
5. Special Single Match: Kuroshio TOKYO Japan Vs Takeshi Masada
6. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Tetsuya Endo
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Soma Takao & Shota (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi & Antonio Honda
8. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Hiromu Takahashi (c) Vs Kazuki Hirata
9. DDT Universal Title: Matt Cardona (c) (w/ Steph De Lander) Vs MAO
10. Saki Akai Retirement Match ~Strong, Noble, Beautiful~: Saki Akai, Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs Naomichi Marufuji, Kazusada Higuchi & Miyu Yamashita
11. Dramatic Dream Match: Chris Jericho Vs KONOSUKE TAKESHITA
12. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Yuki Ueno
A few slight changes to the card after what happened yesterday. Hiromu Takahashi is the new Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion so he should be defending the belt against Kazuki Hirata. Takahashi also asked Hirata to come up with special rules for the match.
Takeshi Masada has been taken out of the opening match because he was challenged by Kuroshio TOKYO Japan to a singles bout. Kuroshio heard from Konosuke Takeshita that Masada is really good in the ring so he wants to see it for himself.
The opening match is now a Tag Rumble instead of a 5 Way Tag Match. Yuni has been added to fill in Masada’s spot.
DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023 OFFICIAL AFTER EVENT IN RYOGOKU”, 13/11/2023 Tokyo Ryogoku Pier
1. X Vs X
Former New Japan director Katsuji Nagashima will be attending the show as a “special witness”.
DDT “GET ALIVE 2023 TOUR IN SHINJUKU”, 16/11/2023 Shinjuku FACE
1. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles 1-DAY Tournament – Round 1: Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Antonio Honda Vs Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi
2. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles 1-DAY Tournament – Round 1: Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima Vs Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul
3. DDT Extreme Title: Kazuki Hirata (c) Vs MIKAMI
4. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles 1-DAY Tournament – Final: X, X & X Vs X, X & X
Once Eruption vacates the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles a mini tournament will take place to crown new champions. The 37KAMIINA, DAMNATION T.A, CDK x The Iyasareru and the new trio D.O.A are all taking part.
The very first DDT Extreme Champion has come back wanting to reclaim the title! MIKAMI has challenged Kazuki Hirata and would prefer Hirata come up with a ruleset that involves ladders. MIKAMI loves to use ladders in his matches.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly
The first match for Tokyo Joshi Pro’s return to USA is a doozy. It’s 121000000 Vs MK Ultra! The pairing of Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly joined forces earlier this year after a short rivalry and currently hold the Knockouts Tag Team Titles in Impact. They’ve also fought Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh often in singles matches this year.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~SENDAI RE-LANDING~”, 21/10/2023 Miyagi Yume Messe Miyagi West Building Hall 215 Fans
1. Suzume defeated Runa Okubo with the Ring A Bell (5:45).
2. 3 Way Match: Mahiro Kiryu defeated Raku and Shino Suzuki when Kiryu pinned Suzuki with the Spinebuster (7:43).
3. Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao defeated Toga & Haru Kazashiro when Misao submitted Kazashiro with the Chickenwing Face Lock (11:59).
4. Regina defeated HIMAWARI with the Finnish (4:57).
5. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta defeated Moka Miyamoto & Kaya Toribami when Kakuta pinned Toribami with the Shiden Kai (10:59).
6. Max The Impaler, Yuki Aino & Pom Harajuku defeated Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & Wakana Uehara when Max pinned Uehara with the Short-Range Lariat (12:37).
7. Maki Itoh & Yuki Kamifuku defeated Mizuki & Arisu Endo when Itoh pinned Endo with the Flying Big Head (15:15).
It’s been four years since Tokyo Joshi Pro was last in Sendai. Maki Itoh & Yuki Kamifuku closed out the show by wishing everybody “Motherfucking peace!”
Moka Miyamoto continues to struggle fighting against Free WiFi without Juria Nagano there with her. Today was the final warm up match though. Miyamoto will be reunited with Nagano for the Princess Tag Team Titles match next week. They better be ready because Nao Kakuta said her teamwork with Hikari Noa has gotten even better ever since they became the new champions.
After beating HIMAWARI in under five minutes, Regina gave some comments backstage. She said she has come to TJPW not only to show she is the best female wrestler in Europe but she is also the best in the world! She does not know what kind of match she will have against Miyu Yamashita next week but nothing is going to stop her from conquering TJPW!
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GO GIRL 4 ~1ST TIME IN A YEAR, LIMITED TO FEMALE FANS~”, 15/10/2023 Tokyo Shinagawa Prince Hotel Club eX 149 Fans
1. Suzume defeated Haru Kazashiro with the Ring A Bell (7:02).
2. Mahiro Kiryu defeated Wakana Uehara with the Spinebuster (6:38).
3. Hyper Misao & Kaya Toribami defeated Yuki Aino & Runa Okubo when Misao submitted Okubo with the Chickenwing Face Lock (7:42).
4. Hikari Noa defeated Toga with the Blizzard Suplex (7:29).
5. Max The Impaler, Raku & Pom Harajuku defeated Nao Kakuta, HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki when Max pinned Suzuki with the Short-Range Lariat (10:35).
6. Mizuki & Yuki Arai defeated Moka Miyamoto & Arisu Endo when Mizuki pinned Endo with the Cutie Special (10:34).
7. Nivea Angel Skin Body Wash Presents Go Girl 4 Special Tag Match: Maki Itoh & Yuki Kamifuku defeated Shoko Nakajima & Rika Tatsumi when Kamifuku pinned Nakajima with the Famouser (16:02).
Maki Itoh & Yuki Kamifuku were rewarded with a year’s supply of Nivea Angel Skin Body Wash for winning the sponsored main event. After the match Itoh said she’s not usually that popular in places like this but she is whenever Tokyo Joshi Pro hold events in front of a women only audience. Kamifuku is also grateful for the audience because the roster get more compliments on how cute their costumes and make-up are. It gives the wrestlers a different kind of courage and enthusiasim. Shoko Nakajima & Rika Tatsumi were disappointed they couldn’t win the Nivea prize. Tatsumi said she was more fired up than usual because she was surrounded by cute girls.
Uta took Miu Watanabe’s place in show opening song performance with The Up Up Girls (Pro Wrestling).
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV”, 09/10/2023 Tokyo Tama Mirai Messe 868 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Runa Okubo defeated Haru Kazashiro with a Half Crab Hold (5:16).
2. Arisu Endo, Kaya Toribami & HIMAWARI defeated HARUKAZE, Yoshiko Hasegawa & Riara when Endo submitted Hasegawa with the Camel Clutch (12:07).
3. Moka Miyamoto defeated Juria Nagano with the Korokan (6:28).
4. Aja Kong, Raku & Shino Suzuki defeated Hyper Misao, Wakana Uehara & Toga when Kong pinned Uehara with a Back Drop (11:04).
5. Miu Watanabe & Yuki Arai defeated Ryo Mizunami & Yuki Aino when Arai pinned Aino with the Finally (13:10).
6. Sakisama, Mei Saint-Michel, Martha & Yukio Saint Laurent defeated Shoko Nakajima, Suzume, Pom Harajuku & Antonio Honda when Sakisama pinned Harajuku with the Academy Award (14:45).
7. Special Single Match: Nyla Rose defeated Maki Itoh with the Beast Bomb (12:20).
8. Princess Tag Team Titles: Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta defeated Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu when Kakuta pinned Kiryu with the Shiden Kai (13:37). *Free WiFi becomes the 14th Princess Tag Team Champions!
9. International Princess Title & NWA World Women’s Television Title: Max The Impaler (N/c) defeated Rika Tatsumi (I/c) with the Short-Range Lariat (15:19). *V3 for Max The Impaler. Rika Tatsumi fails in V5. Max The Impaler becomes the 11th International Princess Champion!
10. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita defeated Mizuki (c) with the Crash Rabbit Heat (21:24). *Mizuki fails in V4. Miyu Yamashita becomes the 13th Princess Of Princess Champion!
For the fourth time Miyu Yamashita has become the Princess Of Princess Champion! She was able to toughen out Mizuki’s Face Lock, Cutie Special and also the Whirling Candy as well as several Diving Foot Stomps. Mizuki also showed her determination by kicking out of the Skull Kick. Yamashita kept focus and landed a High Kick before finishing Mizuki off with the Crash Rabbit Heat. Yamashita wanted to shake Mizuki’s hand after the match but Mizuki hugged her instead. The title win makes Yamashita a worldwide triple crown champion! She now holds singles championships from Japan, Britain (EVE) and America (SPARK). Yamashita got on the microphone and said the belt still feels as extremely heavy as it did the previous times she won it. The reason she’s been able to have this success for the last decade is because she is strong but Mizuki is why the belt shines as bright as it does right now. She closed out the show by telling the fans not to set their own limits.
Backstage she repeated her praise for Mizuki, saying this match was the motivation that kept Yamashita going while she was wrestling in America for three months. She wants to defend the Princess Title overseas but also anticipates defending against wrestlers from around the world within Tokyo Joshi Pro. Mizuki said she couldn’t help but feel scared when she lost the match but so many fans in the audience and wrestlers backstage showed their support for her when it was over. It was another reminder of how blessed she is and it gives her another reason to become stronger. If she gets a chance she wants to win the title back but she realises there are more things she can do than just win belts. She’ll continue to be herself because she wants to become everyone’s princess forever.
A double championship match was in the semi-main event position, marking the first time in 8 and a half years an NWA championship was defended in Japan. Max The Impaler defeated Rika Tatsumi not only to retain the NWA Women’s TV Title but win the International Princess Title too! Max threw Tatsumi around the ring a lot early so Tatsumi came up with a plan. When they were both outside the ring Tatsumi threw some of the other wrestlers at Max! Miu Watanabe was easily knocked aside, Pom Harajuku was safely stopped in her place and Wakana Uehara was thrown right back at Tatsumi. Back in the ring Tatsumi changed tactics to target Max’s knee. It seemed to have paid off when Max favoured the knee after giving her opponent a Backbreaker. Tatsumi wore down Max and applied the Dragon Sleeper but it was power countered into a Fire Thunder Driver. Max then fired Lariats at Tatsumi until they got the 3 count. Max showed enough respect to shake Tatsumi’s hand after the match. Tatsumi is speechless by the result because she will now have to start her defence road all over again. She wants Max to hold onto the title so she can get revenge by winning it back from them.
The alleged curses that’s been following Free WiFi have now been extinguished because they are the new Princess Tag Team Champions! The vacant titles were on the line when Free WiFi took on Toyo Mates with both sides fighting to win the belts for the first time. Mahiro Kiryu tried to apologise for “disconnecting” Free WiFi but her opponents cut her off. Hikari Noa avoided the Famouser from Yuki Kamifuku and got rid of her with the Blizzard Suplex. Free WiFi then gave Kiryu the 5G and Nao Kakuta tried to use the Shiden Kai. Kiryu struggled to break out but Kakuta eventually hit the move for the victory. The title win means Kakuta can finally get rid of her “Uncrowned Queen” nickname while Noa is rewarded for being in a tag team that has not split up over time. Kamifuku said she hates that Toyo Mates have not been able to get good results despite being together for so long. She thinks if they take seperate paths she will be able to beat Aja Kong while Kiryu can go on to beat Miyu Yamashita. They can then reunite and use their massively increased salary to fund different improvements for Toyo University.
A little bit of AEW action was in the undercard when Maki Itoh faced off against Nyla Rose. Itoh was in trouble after taking a Power Bomb but she dodged Rose’s Diving Guillotine Knee Drop and stunned her with the Kokeshi Headbutt. Itoh caused more damage with a Swinging DDT but made the mistake of missing the Flying Big Head. Rose quickly took advantage and used the Beast Bomb to put Itoh away. Rose said Itoh has a hard head and thinks the expression “hard-headed” came from her. She sees similarities between herself and Itoh but admits Itoh is cuter. Itoh said she will do her best to beat Rose next time and this is to be continued.
Speculation over NEO Biishiki-gun’s future in TJPW spread across the fanbase leading into the show. The main four figureheads of the group gathered together once more to battle a ragtag bunch of misfits led by Shoko Nakajima. One of those misfits was Antonio Honda and he took the weirdest punishment by taking an injection in the backside from Yukio Saint Laurent. That injection turned out to be an unintentional energy boost, sending NEO Biishiki-gun packing until he tripped on the ropes before a dive. NEO Biishiki-gun regrouped to one by one take out the opposition. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel gave Nakajima the Tarte Tatin, Martha used her mop to stretch out Suzume and Saint Laurent tortured Honda some more. All that was left to do was for Sakisama to pin Pom Harajuku with the Academy Award.
After the match Sakisama spoke about NEO Biishiki-gun’s victory. She said she is done shining a light in TJPW and it is time for her to shine the light somewhere else. She is always travelling around the world but this time she is bringing the rest of NEO Biishiki-gun along with her. She told the audience that whenever they see a red rose, she wants them to think of her. All four members bowed and left the ring, perhaps for the final time.
Yuki Arai’s pro wrestling career has now introduced her to Ryo Mizunami. The two of them started off their tag match against each other with Arai taking the full brunt of the veteran’s attacks. Miu Watanabe kept things level by matching her power with Mizunami’s. That meant Arai now had to focus on Yuki Aino who has become a regular opponent of her’s. The Venus DDT only got Aino a 2 count and Arai slipped out of the UBV. She hit Aino from behind with the Finally to the back of the head. Arai then hit another Finally from the front to win the match. Watanabe praised her tag partner’s performance, describing her like a flower blooming from another flower. Mizunami also recognised the passion coming from Arai just for taking her Chops alone.
Hyper Misao has not forgotten about Aja Kong destroying the Hyper Cycle back at “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’23” in July. She declared she would get revenge today by defeating Kong directly. Although Misao was able to blind Kong with spray at the beginning, she wasn’t able to achieve her goal. Instead Kong performed the Oyasumi Express with Raku on top of poor Toga and then turn her attention to Wakana Uehara. Misao had brought up Uehara’s harsh experience of training with Kong on the Yume Pro Wrestling show last year. Today was Uehara’s chance to show her worth. She wore down Kong with the Sleeper Hold and avoided the Vertical Drop Brainbuster but Kong grabbed her in the Back Drop and that was all she needed to win. She then encouraged Uehara to slap her across the face after the match. Uehara did so and Kong pushed her back down.
In a match between two karate fighters, Moka Miyamoto came out on top against Juria Nagano. During the match Nagano got to show off a little bit of submission work by countering the Rashomon into an Arm Lock. When it came to strikes though, Miyamoto got the winning exchange by dodging the Hurricane Kick and hitting the Zero-Sen Kick in return. She then pinned Nagano with the Korokan. Miyamoto said she thinks she knows Nagano the best and could sense how much she has grown. For that reason she wants to continue teaming with Nagano and together fight for the Princess Tag Team Titles. Nagano likes the idea and agreed to go that direction next. Free WiFi accepted the challenge when they found out about it.
The last time TJPW fought against Ganbare☆Joshi in a multi-woman tag match was at “GRAND PRINCESS ’22” where they lost to the visiting team. This time however the TJPW team were victorious. Riara dealt the first blow by putting Arisu Endo in the Paradise Lock and getting the rest of the team to pose a toast over her. HIMAWARI reversed fortunes and Kaya Toribami did a number on Riara until HARUKAZE came in with the Spear Of Fire. Yoshiko Hasegawa tried her best to finish off Endo but Endo turned the tables and made Hasegawa submit to the Camel Clutch.
The first match of the day was between the two youngest members of TJPW’s active roster, both only six months into their wrestling careers. Runa Okubo scored the first win in her career by making Haru Kazashiro submit to a Half Crab Hold. Okubo said she doesn’t want anybody looking down on her. It will make her happy if she wins and make people think she is strong. Although Kazashiro was upset to lose she is still happy she got to wrestle Okubo in a singles match today because they train together. She has no choice but to look ahead and do her best so she can beat Okubo some day.
The first couple of big events for 2024 were announced during the show. The 9th annual Ittenyon is at Korakuen Hall on 4th January. The “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament begins in January and the final is taking place at Korakuen on 10th February. “GRAND PRINCESS ’24” will be held in Sumo Hall on 31st March. It will be the second time the event takes place there.
“The Nordic Monster” Regina will make her TJPW debut later this month. Regina is from Fight Club Finland and is currently the FCF Finnish Heavyweight Champion over there. She is wrestling in Aizuwakamatsu on the 20th, Sendai on the 21st and Korakuen on the 27th.
Yuki Arai, Moka Miyamoto & Shino Suzuki Vs Suzume, Arisu Endo & Wakana Uehara is the TJPW Offer Match booked for DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023” at Sumo Hall on 12th November.
September was looking to be more of a quiet month for looking at the overseas adventures of the DDT extended family until the last week showed up like an avalanche. You can always get a lot of news to cover during tournament weekends. It’s a shame that the current state of the independent scene means those tentpole super weekend events don’t get as much coverage like they used to. Can’t blame them when WWE and AEW dominates everybody’s attention. It’s only going to get tougher when those two companies increase their schedules and reach out even further. This week’s news of WWE getting an ABEMA deal and having NOAH promote it on social media does not thrill me. I’ve seen how this story goes before. Even if some kind of big crossover does happen with WWE it is never worth it for the other company in the long run. And any pundit who says a project like NXT Japan will work as a gateway for getting WWE fans into Japanese wrestling is only fooling themselves. The appetite that audience has for non-WWE wrestling is just not there anymore.
Heading into October we have Konosuke Takeshita deep into a feud with The Golden Lovers. The lack of actual wrestling from Takeshita last month annoyed me. I get holding some wrestlers back for PPV but his standard of ring work has been missing from AEW TV recently. His storyline is also pulling in other wrestlers who are never hurting for screentime which makes me worry he is getting pushed to the side. Maki Itoh has finished up her latest North American tour, Shoko Nakajima had a quick trip to the USA and Miyu Yamashita was in the middle of wrestling in UK and Ireland when the month began. The big chunk of news that completely passed me by until it happened was Mizuki Watase going over to wXw in Germany with Shigehiro Irie. Oh and Tokyo Joshi Pro squeezed in a visit to China right at the deadline.
A few years ago the idea of Yamashita wrestling in OTT would have had me overjoyed but nowadays I don’t want to give the company much of my attention because of how people attached to them handled and disregarded Speaking Out. Her Irish wrestling debut had a slight change in plan thanks to the other team. Debbie Keitel was advertised to team with Anita Vaughan but she instead surprised everyone by bringing along Emersyn Jayne to be her partner instead.
MLW “FURY ROAD”, 03/09/2023 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title No. 1 Contendership: B3CCA defeated Maki Itoh with the World Tour (7:42).
A singer showdown took place when Itoh made her first appearance in MLW. Itoh and B3CCA both love to be the centre of attention and literally fought over the microphone during their match. Itoh won that exchange and told B3CCA to “kiss my ass, bitch!” She also found a Singapore cane to beat up B3CCA with outside the ring. But Itoh made the grave mistake of missing the Flying Big Head, allowing B3CCA to give her a Death Valley Driver to the corner and then pin her with the World Tour 450 Splash.
AEW “ALL OUT”, 03/09/2023 United Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) defeated Kenny Omega with the Powerdrive Knee (22:30).
A few days after Takeshita pinned Kenny Omega in England, he did it again back in America this time in a singles match. The match carried history over from Omega’s time in DDT, wearing new green and yellows tights based on what he wore in the early 2010s. Don Callis got involved though and brought the dreaded screwdriver into the match for Takeshita to use. However this time the referee stopped it from being used. It turned out Takeshita wouldn’t have needed it because he went on to beat Omega anyway, pulling down his kneepad to hit a raw Powerdrive Knee for the victory. The match even got ***** from Dave Meltzer! Okay, that doesn’t mean as much as it used to but it’s still a good accomplishment to have. Also let’s face it, when the wrestlers who complain about star ratings actually do get ***** from Meltzer they all of a sudden do a 180 and become grateful for it.
MYSTERY WRESTLING “MYSTERY WRESTLING 3”, 08/09/2023 Centre Aydelu, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
1. Emi Sakura defeated Maki Itoh with La Magistral Cradle (?:??).
This year over in Canada Evil Uno has been running a Mystery Wrestling show on his Twitch channel every couple of months. The surprise headline match for the most recent event was a first time singles bout between Itoh and Emi Sakura. Itoh played a trick to escape from Sakura’s attacks by beginning to cry and then walking out of the match back to the locker room. She then reappeared from the opposite side of the room to attack a confused Sakura from behind. Sakura’s not someone you can beat with just one trick though. She ended up rolling Itoh into La Magistral Cradle to win the match.
GCW “CRUSHED UP”, 10/09/2023 Roulette Intermedium, New York City, New York, USA
1. Maki Itoh defeated Killer Kelly with a Tornado DDT (10:43).
Itoh’s current run with GCW ended here with a match against Killer Kelly. She’ll be back again later this year but what will be in store for her next? Her feud with Matt Cardona & Steph De Lander can be never ending but there has to be other stuff she wants to do in GCW next. Maybe she already found a new arch nemesis as you will see at the bottom of this post.
WXW “INNER CIRCLE”, 21/09/2023 wXw Wrestling Academy, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
1. Mizuki Watase defeated Danny Fray with a Diving Foot Stomp (7:23).
2. Shigehiro Irie defeated 1 Called Manders with a Roaring Elbow (8:57).
This was already announced earlier in the summer and I completely missed it. Irie & Watase reunited as RENEGADES to enter the annual World Tag Team Festival in Germany! But first the wrestlers took part in separate warmup matches the night before the tournament began. Watase’s first match ever in Germany was a win against Danny Fray. Irie also won his match by beating 1 Called Manders in a hoss fight.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 1”, 22/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. World Tag Team Festival 2023 – Round 1: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase defeated Aigle Blanc & Senza Volto when Irie pinned Blanc with the Beast Bomber (16:41).
Irie won wXw’s other premium tournament the 16 Carat Gold back in March so he had his heart set on winning WTTF with Watase. They eliminated The Frenchadors in the opening round. Aigle Blanc & Senza Volto are former wXw World Tag Team Champions so RENEGADES could not have gotten off to a better start.
1. Shigehiro Irie defeated Arez with the Beast Bomber (9:20).
The WTTF weekend also featured shows promoted by GCW as part of their September European tour. Only Irie was on the first of two GCW shows that weekend where he beat the luchador Arez. Normally I wouldn’t include entries for Irie by himself but since he was RENEGADES affiliated for the weekend, I’m adding it here.
FREELANCE “ONCE UPON A TIME IN FREELANCE”, 22/09/2023 Avondale Music Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Shoko Nakajima defeated Shazza McKenzie with the Diving Senton (12:19).
Nakajima did a quick trip to the United States near the end of the month. Her first stop was at Freelance where she got over big with the crowd during her win against Shazza McKenzie. Nakajima’s quickness and ability to hit the 619 from any height near the ropes were the key to victory here.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 2”, 23/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. World Tag Team Festival 2023 – Round 2: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase defeated Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe when Irie pinned Abe with a Roaring Elbow (16:14).
RENEGADES weren’t the only Japanese team taking part in WTTF weekend. Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe from Astronauts were there too! The two team crossed paths in Night 2 where the winners would advance to Sunday’s final.
GCW “GCW VS THE WORLD”, 23/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. Scramble Match: Gringo Loco defeated Mizuki Watase, The Rotation, Arez, Jimmy Lloyd and Aigle Blanc when Loco pinned Blanc with the Base Bomb (11:46).
2. Joey Janela defeated Shigehiro Irie with the Diving Foot Stomp (17:19).
Irie was in GCW again for their other show in Germany, losing to Joey Janela in the main event. Watase also showed up by taking part in one of GCW’s staples, the Scramble Match. Watase hit a big dive and also the Coast To Coast Dropkick but otherwise got lost in the action and did not factor into the finish.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 3”, 24/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. wXw World Tag Team Titles – World Tag Team Festival 2023 Final 3 Way Match: Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig defeated Robert Dreissker & Laurance Roman (c) and Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase (23:13). *Amboss fails in V1. Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig become the 64th wXw World Tag Team Champions!
RENEGADES made it all the way to the final. Had Irie & Watase won the match and the tournament they would have become the new wXw Tag Champions. Sadly for them they couldn’t pull it off. Instead Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig were the winners, taking the titles away from the defending champions Amboss.
PRESTIGE “THE RESPECT ISSUE”, 24/09/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Trish Adora defeated Shoko Nakajima with the Lariat Tubman (9:51).
Nakajima’s other US booking this month was with Prestige at the Globe Theatre, the same location TJPW will return to this December. Trish Adora was a tougher opponent for her and kicked out of the Northern Lights Suplex. Just when Nakajima thought he had another shot, she was caught off guard and pinned with the Lariat Tubman.
JFC “JINGWU TAN JFC EXOTIC FIGHTING EXHIBITION 2”, 30/09/2023 Rucker Park, Chaoyang, Shanghai, China
1. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Match: Maki Itoh defeated Yuki Aino with the Itoh Deluxe (?:??).
2. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Match: Mizuki defeated Nao Kakuta with the Cutie Special (?:??).
TJPW sent four of their wrestlers over to China for a martial arts expo taking place in Shanghai. They would be presenting two women’s pro wrestling matches to go along with a bunch of other martial art bouts provided by other groups. It is not the first time joshi wrestling has been part of the event. The same organizers had Sareee and Nanae Takahashi wrestle for them during the first expo in the summer. After a lot of searching through Chinese social media I was able to find a clip of Mizuki beating Nao Kakuta and Itoh locking in the Itoh Deluxe on Yuki Aino.
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Upcoming Appearances
AEW “WRESTLEDREAM”, 01/10/2023 Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. Chris Jericho, Kenny Omega & Kota Ibushi Vs Sammy Guevara, Will Ospreay & Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis)
Takeshita has spent the rest of the month either standing to the side Don Callis or wrestling back in Japan for DDT. Oh and he also invaded Kota Ibushi’s gym, attacking him with a kettlebell (and also getting Yumehito Imanari caught in the crossfire) because Callis understands how much Ibushi means to Omega. The big payoff it is leading to will happen later today when The Golden Lovers & Chris Jericho join forces to get revenge on The Don Callis Family. Takeshita is part of that family teaming with Sammy Guevara (newest member) and Will Ospreay (not a member). It is annoying to see what looked like a big push for Takeshita turn into him getting pushed aside so Jericho, Guevara and Ospreay can all squeeze into the spotlight instead.
WARRIOR “WARRIOR WRESTLING 31”, 06/10/2023 Bendix Arena, South Bend, Indiana, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Storm Grayson (w/ Frank The Clown)
One of the few American indies Takeshita wrestles for when he’s not busy with AEW is Warrior Wrestling. The next time he shows up there he takes on one of Frank The Clown’s clients, Storm Grayson.
SPARK “RISING HEAT WEST”, 11/10/2023 LA Dojo, Carson, California, USA
1. Spark Joshi World Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Billie Starkz
A familiar opponent challenges Yamashita for the Spark Joshi Title. She has a 1-1 singles record against Billi Starkz so this championship bout can also end up becoming a rubber match between the two.
SPARK “RISING HEAT EAST”, 14/10/2023 Engelwood Neighborhood Center, Orlando, Florida, USA
1. Miu Watanabe Vs KiLynn King
2. Miyu Yamashita Vs Jessie
A few days later Yamashita takes on Jessie, the former Jessi Kamea from NXT. That’s an interesting matchup because since leaving WWE, Jessie wound up doing a tour in Stardom. So we have a TJPW Vs Stardom match on a Spark show.
But Yamashita won’t be the only Tokyo Joshi there. Miu Watanabe is along for the ride too! She is getting to fight KiLynn King from Impact in what is sure to be a hoss fight. Or a hossette fight? Whatever, two strong women are going to fight each other. What more do you want?
LLL “THE HANDS OF FATE”, 20/10/2023 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Lilith Grimm Vs Miyu Yamashita
Are there Lucha Libra & Laughs to be found when Yamashita pays another visit to Denver? Her opponent Lilith Grimm is nicknamed “The War Hammer” and does an entrance where she sets off sparks with a grinder.
SETUP “SETUP EP.16”, 28/10/2023 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. Gatoh Move One And Only Title & SETUP Thailand Openweight Title: Paksa (G/c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi (S/c)
2. Dramatic Dream Match: Chris Brookes Vs Monomoth
Whenever CDK goes over to Thailand and shows up in SETUP they tend to take over the place. One of the local faces Monomoth tries his best to defend his home but Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi find ways to get the better of him. Monomoth now gets to fight Brookes in a big singles match the next time Brookes heads over.
Meanwhile Takanashi has been ruling the roost in SETUP as the SETUP Openweight Champion. He can increase his domination when he has a double title match against Paksa. Takanashi puts his SETUP Title on the line while Paksa is defending a Gatoh Move branded championship called the One And Only Title.
REPUBLIC OF LUCHA “ROL VI VI VI: LA NOCHE DE WALPURGIS”, 30/10/2023 Republic Of Lucha, South Pasadena, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita, Penta el Zero Miedo & Rey Fenix Vs Shun Skywalker, Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that nobody in The Lucha Brothers gets injured, company politics do not keep Takeshita and Shun Skywalker away from each other and Vampiro does not show up with La Rebelion.
DAIKAIJU PRO “VOL. 1 – THE KAPPAS WALK AMONG US”, 04/11/2023 White Eagle, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
1. Shoko Nakajima Vs X
Something new and monstrous is coming out of Massachusetts. Daikaiju Pro is holding their debut show and seems to have deep ties with SETUP and also the UMA Corps. The new promotion is promising a mixture of talent coming in to mix around with monsters and other strange creatures. A show like these requires a Big Kaiju so Nakajima will be there.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
Miu Watanabe has been added to the lineup.
PANDEMONIUM PRO “HOLIDAY IN LA”, 17/12/2023 Don Quixote, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Mike Bailey Vs Miyu Yamashita
Yeah this do quite nicely. Pandemonium Pro is doing Yamashita against Mike Bailey in a first time ever matchup.
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Other Appearances
GCW “SAY YOU WILL”, 01/09/2023 Grand Sports Arena, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA
Itoh did not wrestle on the first GCW show of the month. Instead she showed up to attack Frank The Clown with a pizza cutter much to everyone’s delight.
DDT “WHO’S GONNA TOP? 2023”, 24/09/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 967 Fans – No Vacancy
0. Dark Match: Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku defeated Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya when Koroku submitted Rukiya with the Triangle Lancer (8:42).
1. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul defeated Hideki Okatani, Yuni & Takeshi Masada when Sasaki pinned Yuni with the Vietnam Driver IV (7:43).
2. Pheromones Final Countdown In Korakuen ~ 3 Way Tag Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno defeated Kazuki “Magnum” Hirata & Naruki Doi and Akito & Antonio “FOXY” Honda when Iino submitted Akito with the Eiffel Tower (7:24).
3. Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama, Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya defeated Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi, HARASHIMA & Yukio Sakaguchi when Naya pinned Oishi with The World’s Largest Back Drop (13:39).
4. Special Tag Match ~ DDT Vs AJPW: Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima defeated Atsuki Aoyagi & Dan Tamura when Ueno pinned Tamura with the BME (10:12).
5. DDT Universal Title: Matt Cardona (c) (w/ Steph De Lander) defeated Maki Itoh by Pinfall (15:03). *V1 for Matt Cardona.
6. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated MAO with the Wagamama (11:28).
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) defeated Saki Akai by Referee Stoppage with the Modified Octopus Stretch (21:00). *V2 for Chris Brookes.
In the last ten years as a pro wrestler, Saki Akai had never competed for the KO-D Openweight Title before today. With retirement from the business around the corner, Akai was chosen by Chris Brookes to be his next challenger so they could have a rematch of their 2021 bout at Korakuen Hall, this time in front of an audience. Akai went into the match determined to show this opportunity was earned and wasn’t given to her out of charity. She fired with a Big Boot from the beginning but Brookes quickly turned things around by doing a Death Valley Bomb on the ring apron. The challenger had to pull out some deep moves to fight back, including her old Riemann Galaxy submission as well as the Takatonic. The two wrestlers found themselves fighting on the top rope where Akai dropped Brookes with the Avalanche Quetzalcoatl. However Akai wasn’t able to pin him afterwards, giving Brookes valuable recovery time. Brookes powered out of a Triangle Choke but was given the regular version of the Quetzalcoatl. To Akai’s surprise it only got a two count, marking it one of the rare times when her finisher did not end her opponent. Brookes fought back with a Piledriver, Double Knee Drop, Buzzsaw Kicks and the Praying Mantis Bomb but Akai kicked out of all of them. Brookes had to twist and pull Akai apart with the Octopus Stretch until Yukinori Matsui called for the match to end.
After the match Brookes reminded the fans he will face Akai again on 30th September, this time with the roles reversed because Eruption are defending the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles against CDK & Mei Suruga. He thanked Akai for doing her best and asked her to continue doing so until her retirement because we only live once. Brookes next wanted to talk about his next KO-D Title defence at “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023” on 12th November. Yuki Ueno walked out to the ring and appealed for the title shot. Brookes accepted and the two talked about being close friends for the last four years even though they hang out in seperate units. He wants the best challenger at the biggest stage so he’s fighting Ueno at Sumo Hall! Backstage Akai spoke about the pressure and responsibility she felt going into today’s main event. She is going to fight for herself as well as for everyone who supports her starting with the KO-D 6-Man Tag Title match taking place in Kyoto. She wants to pin Brookes in her hometown to clear up her regrets from today!
It turned out Konosuke Takeshita did not come back to DDT alone this time around. Midway during Takeshita’s match with MAO, his manager Don Callis walked down to ringside. MAO was taken aback by his appearance but kept his focus on the match. He tried to go big with the Avalanche Michinoku Driver but Takeshita blocked the move and turned it into an Avalanche Driver of his own. MAO tried to turn things around with a Palm Strike but Takeshita worn him down with Jumping Knee Strikes and the Zahi to get the win. Despite the recent differences between the two, Takeshita encouraged MAO after the match to take his own path because he is proving his style of pro wrestling can be successful around the world. They both joined DDT as teenagers and they are already in their late twenties so Takeshita thinks it is time for MAO to make decisions for himself.
Takeshita then introduced the DDT audience to Don Callis and spoke about how much they get booed in America. He said the Don Callis Family is only getting started so the entire pro wrestling world should pay attention to them from this point forward. Takeshita revealed his next appearance in DDT will be at “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023” where he would like to make everyone dream again. Suddenly the lights in the room went out and a video played on the screen. The video is sent by Chris Jericho and he is challenging Takeshita to a singles match at Sumo Hall! Jericho listed all of the Japanese wrestling legends he has fought over the years and swore to get revenge on Takeshita for his recent attacks over in AEW. Takeshita agreed to the match, calling it a “dramatic dream” to defeat him in a DDT ring. He promised to destroy everything about Jericho from “Lionheart” to “Y2J” to “The Painmaker”!
The GCW feud between Deathmatch Royalty and Maki Death Kill made its way over to Japan when Matt Cardona put the DDT Universal Title on the line against Maki Itoh. The champion was accompanied by Steph De Lander while Itoh went into the match alone. She had a plan to battle the number disadvantage though. Cardona made a big mistake by giving Itoh a Low Blow and being confused when it didn’t effect her. He then accidentally knocked out the referee Matsui with a missed Clothesline. Itoh’s plan came into play when she ducked De Lander’s attack with the title belt causing Cardona to get hit instead. Itoh took out a trolley at ringside, taped De Lander to it and pushed her away from ringside. She then took out a pizza cutter back in the ring and sliced Cardona’s forehead open with it! However De Lander freed herself from the trolley, returned to the ring with a chair and dropped Itoh onto it with a Modified Facebuster. Cardona pinned Itoh while De Lander revived Matsui so he could count to three.
Backstage Cardona complained about his match not being in the main event while De Lander said she wants DDT to put her in a match against Itoh the next time she shows up here. Itoh regretted not using more tape on De Lander. She knows this feud isn’t finished and there will be more matches against them when she goes back to America. She will chase after Cardona & De Lander to the depths of Hell in order to beat them one more time! Meanwhile MAO made the decision to challenge Cardona for the Universal Title at Sumo Hall. His thought process is if he can beat the indie wrestling god then he can become a puroresu god! Cardona accepted his challenge with a handshake but then attacked MAO with a belt strike from behind. When MAO recovered he warned Cardona that he just pulled out the Joker card.
The new DDT Vs All Japan rivalry continued with AJPW sending over Atsuki Aoyagi & Dan Tamura to take on The 37KAMIINA. The visitors entered the ring wearing sauna caps and then paired off against their opponents. Toy Kojima spent a lot of time fighting Aoyagi while Ueno went back and forth against Tamura. Ueno scored the win for the home team by pinned Tamura with the BME. He called the match fun and praised All Japan for being bright, intense and fun in a way that feels similar to The 37KAMIINA. Kojima then stole the All Japan team’s sauna cap and dared them to try and take it back. Aoyagi mentioned he will be wrestling MAO in AJPW on 5th October so his fight against The 37KAMIINA isn’t done yet.
Yuji Hino finished up his run with DDT by getting HARASHIMA & Yukio Sakaguchi to wrestle in Ω shirts. Makoto Oishi had his cane taken by Jun Akiyama while HARASHIMA went toe to toe with Tetsuya Endo. It wouldn’t have been Hino’s last match with DDT if he didn’t get into a chop battle with Kazusada Higuchi so one went down here. In the end though it was Yukio Naya who won the match for his team by pinning Oishi with The World’s Largest Back Drop. Hino thanked all the wrestlers after the match. He told the fans not to be said because today does not mean Hino will never wrestle in DDT again. He spoke about his children and how it is up to parents to protect their children. Backstage Hino said his wrestling future will be with Yasu Urano because apparently Urano is his mentor, not TAKA Michinoku. Oishi called him out for lying. Naya said the next time Hino will wrestle him will be when he is the KO-D Champion. Naya will even pick Hino as his first challenger.
A threat loomed over the 3 Way Tag Match when Danshoku Dieno announced that somebody among the other two teams was a traitor! Much to Akito and Naruki Doi’s horror it was gradually revealed that Kazuki Hirata and Antonio Honda were wearing O-backs, which means they are both with Pheromones! From there Yuki Iino, Dieno, Kazuki “Magnum” Hirata & Antonio “FOXY” Honda all joined forces to defeat Akito, giving Pheromones the victory. The effect on Hirata and Honda is only temporary but Dieno explained afterwards that even when Pheromones dies, it will never die!
Daisuke Sasaki unleashed a fourth version of the Vietnam Driver to win the opening match for DAMNATION T.A. While their match was against Hideki Okatani, Yuni & Takeshi Masada there were more people for them to fight when ROMANCE DAWN appeared. Shota & Soma Takao started a brawl at ringside when they stopped Minoru Fujita from interfering. KANON went over to help Fujita fight them while MJ Paul was there to stop anybody from breaking up Sasaki’s pin.
There was a Dark Match where Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku defeated Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya. The rookies team showed teamwork when Sumi Dropkicked Koroku into a Backslide Pin from Rukiya for a nearfall. Koroku took control by grabbing Rukiya’s arm and eventually grinded him into submission.
Before the main show began there was a contract signing for the KO-D Tag Team Titles match on 4th October. ROMANCE DAWN talked about how long they have known each other and their excitement of fighting for the championship together. Fujita didn’t find their story interesting while KANON started acting erraticly. He started crying at one point and then switched to shouting at people before excitedly posing for the group photo.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~YOKOHAMA PERFORMANCE~”, 23/09/2023 Yokohama Radiant Hall 270 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Kaya Toribami defeated Haru Kazashiro with the Bird Cage (8:10).
2. Yuki Aino defeated Runa Okubo with the Full Nelson Of Love And Fire (5:04).
3. 3 Way Match: Hyper Misao defeated Pom Harajuku and HIMAWARI when Misao pinned HIMAWARI with a Gedo Clutch (5:38).
4. Raku, Suzume & Arisu Endo defeated Moka Miyamoto, Wakana Uehara & Toga when Suzume pinned Toga with the Ring A Bell (10:33).
5. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel defeated Miu Watanabe & Shino Suzuki when Sakisama pinned Suzuki with the Academy Award (12:34).
6. Mizuki, Rika Tatsumi, Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta defeated Miyu Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu when Noa pinned Kiryu with the Blizzard Suplex (19:41).
“WRESTLE PRINCESS IV” is on the minds of everybody in Tokyo Joshi Pro as the big show is approaching closer. A mixture of wrestlers preparing for the event faced off in today’s main event, combining a few of the championship matchups. Free WiFi was the reason for their team winning against the Toyo Mates. They gave Mahiro Kiryu the 5G and would have won then if it wasn’t for Maki Itoh breaking the pin. Hikari Noa kept her nerve and pinned Kiryu with the Blizzard Suplex for the finish.
Mizuki told the audience afterwards nobody here wants to lose. Rika Tatsumi agreed and hoped Max The Impaler was watching on Wrestle Universe. Mizuki later admitted she was disappointed with her performance in the match because she cannot relax when she’s against Miyu Yamashita and her kick heavy offence. Nao Kakuta shared her frustration backstage, she believes she was the most useless person on her team today even though the team won. Noa assured her that their “curse” will end at Tama Mirai Messe. When Kakuta heard that she said she is ready to throw away her nickname of “Uncrowned Queen”. Over in the Toyo Mates camp Yuki Kamifuku said just trying hard is not enough these days. It reminds her of an audition she once took for a fashion show. The fashion designer rejected her because she lacked an overwhelming aura. She figured out she was missing something like a championship belt to display her power. She now wants to win the Princess Tag Team Titles with Kiryu to make that designer regret ever turning her down! Kiryu gained motivation when she heard that story.
Sakisama told the audience the next time they will see her and Mei Saint-Michel in the ring will be along with Yukio Saint Laurent & Martha at “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV”. She didn’t have any much of an opinion on Shino Suzuki. She did notice a fiery look in her eyes but she’ll probably forget it by tomorrow. Saint-Michel thinks “the pink muscular one” Miu Watanabe is so cool. Sakisama told her NEO Biishiki-gun doesn’t need a person like Watanabe in the group nowadays.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~RIKA TATSUMI LOCAL TRIUMPH~”, 16/09/2023 Nagano Kissei Bunka Hall Middle Hall 196 Fans
1. Suzume defeated Haru Kazashiro with the Ring A Bell (6:06).
2. Arisu Endo defeated Kaya Toribami with the Camel Clutch (6:15).
3. Hikari Noa defeated Pom Harajuku with the Blizzard Suplex (8:37).
4. Ryo Mizunami defeated Toga with a Spear (9:56).
5. Maki Itoh defeated Shino Suzuki with the Itoh Punish (10:12).
6. Aja Kong & Yuki Aino defeated Shoko Nakajima & Moka Miyamoto when Kong pinned Miyamoto with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (12:44).
7. Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe defeated Miyu Yamashita & Hyper Misao when Tatsumi pinned Misao with the Missile Hip (14:56).
For the first time Tokyo Joshi Pro went to visit Nagano for Rika Tatsumi’s homecoming show. Daydream won in the main event after they got rid of Miyu Yamashita with the Daydream Eternity. Tatsumi then got to pin Hyper Misao with the Missile Hip. After the match Tatsumi said her pro wrestling career will soon be 10 years old. She also told the audience her mother came to see her wrestle for the first time. Tatsumi didn’t know what her mother thought about the match and her mom in the crowd shouted it was great! Backstage Miu Watanabe said she loves how gorgeous Nagano is. Tatsumi said she would like to become a goodwill ambassador for Nagano as well as the mascot for her favorite restaurant here.
The show began with the announcement that Tatsumi will be facing Max The Impaler at “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV” on 9th October in a double championship match! Tatsumi will put the International Princess Title on the line against Max’s NWA World Women’s Television Title. Max is somebody Tatsumi wanted to face one on one but she never expected it to happen until now.
There were a lot of names absent from the show because of an illness going through the roster. Raku is one of them. Both Aja Kong & Yuki Aino performed the Oyasumi Express together in their match as a shoutout to her. They did their best and won their match but even then they felt like they needed their leader Raku with them. Kong also praised the TJPW roster for doing their best to run the show with so many people missing.
Maki Itoh revealed that while she was in America for her most recent tour, she took a taxi and got in a traffic accident when another vehicle hit the taxi from behind. Today for her first match back in Japan she beat Shino Suzuki. Itoh claims she didn’t even use 10% of her power to win because Suzuki is just a rookie. She was also honest and thought the fan reaction to her return was only so-so. She wants to get stronger and go her own way even if she doesn’t get full fan support.
Ryo Mizunami called Toga a young fighter with a lot of potential and a promising future. Toga got to hit her with the big Elbow Strike in their match. Mizunami said the strike really affected her body and even touched her heart. She knows Toga felt the same feeling and wants her to keep it while she does her best from now on. She would like to fight her again when Toga becomes stronger.
There was one more cancelled appearance a few hours before the show due to illness. Wakana Uehara was pulled from the event because she was showing symptoms of a fever last night and hadn’t recovered. Pom Harajuku was Hikari Noa’s opponent instead.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~RIKA TATSUMI LOCAL TRIUMPH~”, 16/09/2023 Nagano Kissei Bunka Hall Middle Hall
1. Mahiro Kiryu Vs Toga
2. 3 Way Match: Pom Harajuku Vs Haruna Neko Vs Shino Suzuki
3. Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Kaya Toribami & Haru Kazashiro
4. Maki Itoh vs HIMAWARI
5. Mizuki & Hikari Noa Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara
6. Aja Kong, Yuki Aino & Raku Vs Shoko Nakajima, Nao Kakuta & Moka Miyamoto
7. Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Miyu Yamashita & Hyper Misao
The return of Maki Itoh to Tokyo Joshi Pro from her latest American adventure sees her take on HIMAWARI first and foremost. Aja Kong is also back to say hello to everyone by bashing a steel can over their heads.
GANBARE☆JOSHI “GANJO MINEL VATON SAGA ’23”, 17/09/2023 Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall
1. Ice Ribbon Offer Match: Ibuki Hoshi Vs Arisa Shinose
2. Alex Lee Vs Echika Miyabi
3. Sumire Natsu & Riara Vs Miyako Matsumoto & Kaho Kobayashi
4. Miyuki Takase & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Tomoka Inaba & Azusa Inaba
5. YuuRI Vs Haruka Umesaki
The next Ganbare☆Joshi features a tag team of sisters for the first time. Tomoka Inaba & Azusa Inaba from JTO are sisters and they get to team together on a GanJo event before Yuna Manase & Ami Manase can.
There were a few times around five years ago when Kaho Kobayashi wrestled on Ganbare☆Pro shows. This will be her first time in GanJo.
Ibuki Hoshi shows up in GanJo for the first time since winning the ICEx∞ Title from YuuRI. Hopefully there’s no hard feelings between them.
BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. EIGHT: THE DIRECTOR’S CUT”, 20/09/2023 Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa
1. Special Single Match: Yoshihiko Vs Antonio Honda
2. Special Single Match: Mecha Mummy (w/ Mad Dr. Ueki) Vs HARASHIMA
3. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs MAO & Chie Koishikawa
The high energy tag team of MAO & Chie Koishikawa faces their biggest challenge yet. What ideas can they think of against CDK?
Mad Dr. Ueki is busy reprogramming Mecha Mummy to take on the mighty force that is HARASHIMA. No amount of feeding VHS tapes to Mummy will make up for all of the training HARASHIMA does to keep himself in top condition.
After getting thrown out of a window by Chris Brookes on the last show, Yoshihiko gets a less violent opponent on this show. Although I do remember that time Antonio Honda burst Yoshihiko’s head open with a basic Knee Drop.
GANBARE☆PRO “GIRI GIRI CHOP! 2023”, 01/10/2023 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Loser Haircut Tag Match: Ken Ohka & Shota Vs Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi
2. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada (c) Vs Hikaru Sato & Tyson Maeguchi
3. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Yumehito Imanari
Former champions Hentai Punch Drunkers get a rematch with Ground Absolute for the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Titles. If Punch Drunkers ever become the champions again they will get to hold the physical title belts that never existed during their first reign.
DDT “FIGHTING BEER GARDEN – DAY 1”, 16/08/2023 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Yusuke Okada Vs Rukiya
2. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Toy Kojima, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada
3. Blindfold Hidden Breast 4 Way Death Match: HARASHIMA Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Antonio Honda Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino
4. Special Tag Match: Manpuku Hirutaro & Yuki Ueno Vs MAO & Pokotan
5. The Scariest Event In History! Ghost Story New Numabukuro Death Match: Saki Akai Vs Yuni Vs Hideki Okatani Vs Kazuma Sumi (Ghost Story Reading Artist: Hisaya Imabayashi)
6. YOROKOBI BREWERY Infomercial Match: Yuji Hino, Yukio Sakaguchi & Soma Takao Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio naya & Yuki Ishida
7. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Shigehiro Irie & Jun Akiyama
The official mascot of the Fuji TV show “Poka Poka” is Yuki Ueno’s mystery tag team partner. Manpuku Hirutaro got a lot of attention after its first appearance on the show for having an “ugly cute” look and lazy behaviour. Chris Brookes tweeted “this thing is ugly as hell and I hate it” in response to the reveal but he may have also been talking about Pokotan.
Danshoku Dieno is taking the next couple of shows off to get surgery for a nasal bone fracture he suffered at the Yamagata show two weeks ago. So he will have to miss the Ghost Story Death Match.
DDT “SOMA TAKAO LOCAL TRIUPMH! MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023 TOUR IN OTA-KU”, 19/08/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Industrial Plaza PiO Small Exhibition Hall
1. 1 Vs 3 Handicap Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Akito, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
2. Jun Akiyama, Saki Akai & Antonio Honda Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Rukiya
3. DAMNATION T.A Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima
4. Special Tag Match: Masamune & Yukio Naya Vs Hideki Okatani & Kazuma Sumi
5. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Yuji Hino Vs HARASHIMA & Takeshi Masada
6. Special Single Match: Makoto Oishi Vs KANON
7. Special Tag Match: Soma Takao & Shota Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Kazuki Hirata
Recent opponents are now teaming up together. Brookes & Yuji Hino are pairing off for a match against HARASHIMA & Takeshi Masada while Yukio Sakaguchi & Kazuki Hirata join forces against ROMANCE DAWN.
With Dieno out of action and Yumehito Imanari being too busy at the moment to be “Fantastic”, Yuki Iino is all on his own for the time being. Akito sees this as the perfect time to strike Pheromones when the unit is at its weakest.
The next KO-D Tag Team Titles program begins its buildup with Makoto Oishi taking on KANON.
DDT “OSAKA BAY BLUES SPECIAL 2023”, 20/08/2023 Osaka Edion Arena #2
1. Makoto Oishi, Yuni & Rukiya Vs Yusuke Okada, Yuya Koroku & Ilusion
2. 3 Way Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Saki Akai
3. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya Vs KANON & MJ Paul
4. Osaka Specialty Special Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Tsutenkakka Vs Akito & Kazuma Sumi
5. BURNING Vs Harimao!: Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
6. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Shigehiro Irie & HARASHIMA
7. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno
8. Current Blast Bat & Board 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Hideki Okatani & Soma Takao
The latest turn of events over the upcoming Explosion Death Matches in DDT now involves the All Asia Tag Team Titles. The two male members of Eruption are demanding if they beat Atsushi Onita’s team in Osaka then he has to give them a title shot next month in Nagoya.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “HAPPY SUMMER VACATION! ~TJPW SUMMER VACATION 2023~”, 26/08/2023 Osaka Hanamizuki Hall
1. Kaya Toribami Vs Runa Okubo
2. 3 Way Match: Mahiro Kiryu Vs Haruna Neko Vs Shino Suzuki
3. Hyper Misao & Haru Kazashiro Vs Hikari Noa & Toga
4. Miu Watanabe, Suzume & Wakana Uehara Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Moka Miyamoto
5. Rika Tatsumi Vs Demonio Dos
6. Chu! Summer Party ~ Tides Match 2023: Mizuki & HIMAWARI Vs Shoko Nakajima & Pom Harajuku
There’s been several times over the years when the old indies gimmick Demonio Uno showed up on DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro shows held in Tsurumi. Rika Tatsumi defeated him one of those times. Well there is also a Demonio Dos and he’s coming to get revenge on Tatsumi for his tag team partner!
Runa Okubo gets to wrestle in Osaka for the first time because she is on summer vacation from school.
Several regulars will be missing this show. Miyu Yamashita will be wrestling in England that weekend, Yuki Kamifuku is attending an event in Taiwan, Nao Kakuta is performing in a stage play and Arisu Endo is out of action with a back injury.
DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023”, 27/08/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
0. Dark Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Akito Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
1. Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Rukiya Vs Minoru Fujita, KANON & MJ Paul
2. Kazusada Higuchi, Toy Kojima, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada Vs Yukio Naya, Yusuke Okada, Hideki Okatani & Yuya Koroku
3. Saki Akai Photobook “GRACIA” Infomercial Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Antonio Honda Vs Saki Akai Photobook “GRACIA”
4. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs MAO
5. HARASHIMA Debut 22nd Anniversary Match: HARASHIMA, Yasu Urano & Ken Ohka Vs Daisuke Sekimoto, Sanshiro Takagi & Yukio Sakaguchi
6. Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 3 ~ Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Saki Akai
7. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Yuki Ueno Vs Shigehiro Irie & Jun Akiyama
Dieno should be cleared in time to have his match with Saki Akai.
Akito came up with another idea to try and destroy Pheromones. He is going to team with Iino for one match in order to infiltrate Pheromones and investigate how they are preparing for the final battle between the two sides on 9th September.
GANBARE☆PRO “THE TRIPLE CROSS 2023”, 02/09/2023 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Sumire Natsu & Riara
2. GanPro 2 Big Singles Match: Shota Vs Kuma Arashi
3. GanPro 2 Big Singles Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Tyson Maeguchi
4. Ken Ohka, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Yumehito Imanari, Mizuki Watase & Munetatsu Nakamura
Kuma Arashi is back in Ganbare☆Pro after missing the previous event. Shota experienced his power first hand in his last appearance but now he wants to fight him one on one.
GANBARE☆PRO “KAMIKAZE TAXI 2023”, 02/09/2023 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Tae Honma & Yoshiko Hasegawa
2. Shuichiro Katsumura & Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Shota & Soma Takao
3. Secret Captain’s Fall Elimination 6-Man Tag Match: Ken Ohka, Mizuki Watase & Shingo Vs Keisuke Ishii, Yumehito Imanari & Takuya Wada
4. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shinichiro Tominaga
Shingo returns for his second GanPro appearance. The DEEP fighter finds himself facing Pancrase fighter Takuya Wada in a Secret Captian’s Fall Tag Match.
DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023”, 09/09/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Pheromones Vs Subjugation Final Match! Special Single Match ~ Dissolution Contra Vice President: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (w/ Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno) Vs Akito
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow
3. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada
4. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno & MAO
5. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Minoru Fujita & KANON
6. DDT Extreme Title & Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Kazuki Hirata (E/c) Vs Naruki Doi (I/c)
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie
This past weekend Naruki Doi won his third DDT championship, becoming the new Iron Man Heavymwetalweight Champion. He feels like he has immersed himself into DDT and wants to ingrain himself even more by adding the DDT Extreme Title to his collection. Kazuki Hirata’s current title reign best represents DDT in Doi’s eyes so a big stakes double title match is now on the cards. However Doi is at risk of losing the Iron Man Title anywhere, even outside of DDT because he has a bunch of bookings in other companies coming up. He is getting his Extreme Title match with Hirata no matter what but if he was to lose the Iron Man Title before that it would sour their match a little bit.
The new KO-D Tag Champions Hino & Oishi aren’t done with DAMNATION T.A just yet. KANON is calling on Minoru Fujita to help mentor him towards winning the belts off of them.
DDT “DRAMATIC EXPLOSION 2023”, 18/09/2023 Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall
1. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita & Yoshitatsu Vs X & X
If Eruption win the 6-Man Tag Explosion Death Match this weekend then Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani will be the team facing Onita & Yoshitatsu in Nagoya with the All Asia Tag Titles on the line.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~YOKOHAMA PERFORMANCE~”, 23/09/2023 Yokohama Radiant Hall
1. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel Vs X & X
The next time we see NEO Biishiki-gun will be in Yokohama at the end of September. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel are having a tag match there.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV”, 09/10/2023 Tokyo Tama Mirai Messe
1. Sakisama, Mei Saint-Michel, Martha & Yukio Saint Laurent Vs X, X, X & X
2. Special Single Match: Nyla Rose Vs Maki Itoh
3. Princess Tag Team Titles: X & X Vs X & X
4. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
Yamashita defeated Mizuki in the 1st Round of this year’s Tokyo Princess Cup. She decided she would not challenge her for the Princess Of Princess Title unless she went on to win the tournament. Yamashita did so, finally ending the one accomplishment in TJPW that’s been her Achilles Heel for her entire career.
The next Princess Tag Team Champions will be crowned on this show. They have been vacant since June because of Yuka Sakazaki’s injury. That it’s taken them this long to decide new champions makes me think the plan all along was for The Magical Sugar Rabbits to keep the belts all the way through to Sakazaki’s graduation.
Nyla Rose returns for a first time singles match against Maki Itoh. They’ve had a few AEW tag matches both against and teaming with each other.
The main foursome of NEO Biishiki-gun will appear for an 8-Person Tag Match.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 