TOKYO JOSHI PRO “BEYOND THE ORIGINS, INTO THE FUTURE”, 30/01/2023 TwinBox AKIHABARA 0 Fans
1. Princess Of The Decade – Round 1 – 2 Count Rules: Miyu Yamashita defeated HIMAWARI with a Middle Kick (2:21).
2. Princess Of The Decade – Round 1 – 2 Count Rules: Suzume defeated Kaya Toribami with the Mikazuki Meteor Shower (2:35).
3. Princess Of The Decade – Round 1 – 2 Count Rules: Hyper Misao Vs Miu Watanabe ended in a Time Limit Draw (5:00).
3a. Rock-Paper-Scissors: Hyper Misao defeated Miu Watanabe when Rock beats Scissors.
4. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2 – 2 Count Rules: Rika Tatsumi defeated Pom Harajuku with the Sliding Hip. (3:03).
5. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2 – 2 Count Rules: Hikari Noa defeated Moka Miyamoto with a Missile Dropkick from a Chair (2:52).
6. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2 – 2 Count Rules: Mahiro Kiryu Vs Maki Itoh ended in a Time Limit Draw (5:00).
6a. Rock-Paper-Scissors: Mahiro Kiryu defeated Maki Itoh when Rock beats Scissors.
7. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2 – 2 Count Rules: Haruna Neko defeated Yuki Aino with a Crucifix Pin (4:06).
8. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2 – 2 Count Rules: Nao Kakuta defeated Arisu Endo with a Wrist-Clutch Complete Shot (2:46).
9. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2 – 2 Count Rules: Miyu Yamashita Vs Raku ended in a Time Limit Draw (5:00).
9a. Rock-Paper-Scissors: Miyu Yamashita defeated Raku when Paper beats Rock.
10. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2 – 2 Count Rules: Shoko Nakajima defeated Suzume with a Rotating Leg Hold (3:12).
11. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2 – 2 Count Rules: Mizuki defeated Hyper Misao with a Casadora (3:04).
12. Princess Of The Decade – Round 3 – 2 Count Rules: Rika Tatsumi defeated Hikari Noa with the Twist Of Fate (2:19).
13. Princess Of The Decade – Round 3 – 2 Count Rules: Mahiro Kiryu defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Houtei Raoyui (0:31).
14. Princess Of The Decade – Round 3 – 2 Count Rules: Shoko Nakajima defeated Haruna Neko with the Northern Lights Suplex (4:01).
15. Princess Of The Decade – Round 3 – 2 Count Rules: Nao Kakuta defeated Mizuki with a Rollover Pin (2:26).
16. Princess Of The Decade – Semi Final – 2 Count Rules: Rika Tatsumi defeated Mahiro Kiryu with the Torso Dragon Sleeper (2:24).
17. Princess Of The Decade – Semi Final – 2 Count Rules: Shoko Nakajima defeated Nao Kakuta with a Crucifix Pin (4:18).
18. Princess Of The Decade – Final – 2 Count Rules: Rika Tatsumi Vs Shoko Nakajima ended in a Time Limit Draw (5:00).
18a. Overtime – 1 Count Rules: Rika Tatsumi defeated Shoko Nakajima with the Sliding Hip (0:36).
It’s been ten years to the day where Tokyo Joshi Pro held their first exhibition show in TwinBox AKIHABARA. A one night tournament on PPV featuring 19 of TJPW’s regular roster was put together to celebrate the 10th anniversary. Due to the small venue and large amount of matches on the schedule, every match had a 5 minute time limit. The matches that went to a time limit draw in the first three rounds used Rock-Paper-Scissors as a tiebreaker. The rules led to some unlikely upsets like Mahiro Kiryu eliminating both Maki Itoh and Miyu Yamashita. There was also Haruna Neko scoring a rare singles win when she beat Yuki Aino. The semi final and final got rid of the games and instead used 1 Count Pinfalls for any tiebreakers. That only came into effect for the final where Rika Tatsumi pinned Shoko Nakajima, avenging her loss to her on yesterday’s show. In her victory speech, Tatsumi said the history of Tokyo Joshi Pro will continue so please keep your eyes on them!
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “THE 3RD “FUTARI WA PRINCESS” MAX HEART TOURNAMENT”, 29/01/2023 Saitama Kasukabe Fureai Cube 251 Fans – No Vacancy
1. Mahiro Kiryu defeated HIMAWARI with the Spinebuster (6:50).
2. Mizuki defeated Wakana Uehara with the Face Lock (9:07).
3. 3 Way Match: Raku defeated Yuki Aino and Haruna Neko when Raku pinned Neko with the Doctor Yellow (7:17).
4. Yuki Arai, Suzume & Arisu Endo defeated Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Kaya Toribami when Suzume pinned Toribami with the Ring A Bell (12:44).
5. “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Semi-Final: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh defeated Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano when Itoh submitted Nagano with the Itoh Punish (14:34).
6. “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Semi-Final: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao defeated Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe when Nakajima pinned Tatsumi with the Diving Senton (16:55).
The semi-finals of the Max Heart Tournament was the focus of today’s show. In the main event last year’s winners Daydream were taken out of the tournament by Kyoraku Kyomei! It accomplished the goal Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao set out to achieve which was getting revenge for losing to Daydream in last year’s tournament. It could have gone the other way if Nakajima couldn’t have gutted through a leg injury that became a target for Rika Tatsumi to focus on. Misao played her part by facing off against Miu Watanabe and saving her partner from the Daydream Eternity. Nakajima recovered enough to hit Watanabe with a Topé Suicida and pin Tasumi with the Diving Senton. Backstage Tatsumi said she is treating the result as a point of reflection because she wants to follow her dreams and Watanabe has another dream she wants to chase. Watanabe told her she will still be daydreaming while she does that.
The other semi final had 121000000 advance at the expense of Karate Tag. It was a spirited effort from Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano. They both trapped Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh in submission holds then Miyamoto used the Zero Fighter Kick on Yamashita to get her out of the way. Nagano switched to using Karate kicks on Itoh but Itoh dodged the Senpukyaku, fired back with a Headbutt and locked in the Itoh Punish for the victory. Nagano said afterwards she gave 100% and was at the limit of what she could do. Karate Tag lost today but she wants to continue working with Miyamoto so they can become a stronger team. Miyamoto agrees that they have grown a lot as a team in the tournament.
At the end of the show 121000000 entered the ring to confront Kyoraku Kyomei. Nakajima told them that today she learned Hero + Kaiju equals an unbeatable combination! Misao asked if Yamashita & Itoh have the guts to fight a hero and a monster? Itoh’s response was to ask the audience who the cutest in the world is but Misao cut her off. Kyoraku Kyomei won the main event so they should be the ones giving the show closing speech. After 121000000 left the ring, Nakajima told the fans she lost her championship last year but she didn’t lose today because she has a superhero next to her. Misao in return said she trusts Nakajima more than anyone else and Kyoraku Kyomei will win the Max Heart Tournament on 11th February!
Pom Harajuku was unable to be on the show today. Her tag match was turned into a 3 Way Match with the remaining competitors.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “BEYOND THE ORIGINS, INTO THE FUTURE”, 30/01/2023 TwinBox AKIHABARA
1. Princess Of The Decade – Round 1A – 2 Count Rules: Miyu Yamashita Vs HIMAWARI
2. Princess Of The Decade – Round 1B – 2 Count Rules: Kaya Toribami Vs Suzume
3. Princess Of The Decade – Round 1C – 2 Count Rules: Hyper Misao Vs Miu Watanabe
4. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2A – 2 Count Rules: Pom Harajuku Vs Rika Tatsumi
5. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2B – 2 Count Rules: Hikari Noa Vs Moka Miyamoto
6. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2C – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 1A Vs Raku
7. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2D – 2 Count Rules: Mahiro Kiryu Vs Maki Itoh
8. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2E – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 1B Vs Shoko Nakajima
9. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2F – 2 Count Rules: Yuki Aino Vs Haruna Neko
10. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2G – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 1C Vs Mizuki
11. Princess Of The Decade – Round 2H – 2 Count Rules: Nao Kakuta Vs Arisu Endo
12. Princess Of The Decade – Round 3A – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 2A Vs Winner Of Match 2B
13. Princess Of The Decade – Round 3B – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 2C Vs Winner Of Match 2D
14. Princess Of The Decade – Round 3C – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 2E Vs Winner Of Match 2F
15. Princess Of The Decade – Round 3D – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 2G Vs Winner Of Match 2H
16. Princess Of The Decade – Semi Final – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 3A Vs Winner Of Match 3B
17. Princess Of The Decade – Semi Final – 2 Count Rules: Winner Of Match 3C Vs Winner Of Match 3D
18. Princess Of The Decade – Final – 2 Count Rules: X Vs X
All matches will take place on a mat because the venue is too small to hold a wrestling ring. Every match in the tournament has a 5 minute time limit and 2 Count Pin Rules. If there is a time limit draw in any match during the first three rounds, a game of Rock-Paper-Scissors will be used as the tiebreaker. Time Limit Draws in the semi final and final will go to overtime under 1 Count Pin Rules. The bracket was randomly drawn and the tournament winner will receive a luxurious prize.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “THE 3RD “FUTARI WA PRINCESS” MAX HEART TOURNAMENT”, 15/01/2023 Tokyo Otemachi Mitsui Hall 310 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Shoko Nakajima defeated Wakana Uehara with the Northern Lights Suplex (7:00).
2. 3 Way Match: Hyper Misao defeated Mizuki and Pom Harajuku when Misao pinned Harajuku with La Magistral Cradle (7:48).
3. Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & HIMAWARI defeated Suzume, Arisu Endo & Kaya Toribami when Watanabe pinned Toribami with the Tear Drop (11:34).
4. “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Round 1: Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano defeated Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu when Nagano pinned Kiryu with the Senpukyaku (11:04).
5. “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Round 1: Saki Akai & Yuki Arai defeated Yuki Aino & Raku when Akai submitted Raku with the Extreme Triangle Choke (13:46).
6. “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Round 2: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh defeated Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta when Yamashita pinned Kakuta with the Skull Kick (11:41).
And we’re off with that start of the 3rd annual “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament. Ten teams are taking part and in order to fit them all into a single elimination bracket the opening round was a short one. In fact the main event of today’s show was a 2nd Round match where 121000000 knocked out Free WiFi. It was a close call because Free WiFi threw everything that had at them. There was a moment where Free WiFi got Miyu Yamashita with a Thrust Kick Sandwich. Nao Kakuta then put Yamashita in a Crucifix Pin while Hikari Noa applied the Rotating Leg Hold for a double pin attempt. Maki Itoh broke the pin and put Noa in the Itoh Deluxe. That gave Yamashita the opening to strike Kakuta with the Skull Kick and get the victory.
After the match Yamashita said she is feeling fine coming back from her concussion and the result proved it. Itoh agreed and said Yamashita behaved like a demon in the ring today. Yamashita wants to win the tournament because she thinks it is about time she wins the Princess Tag Team Titles with Itoh. Backstage Noa is frustrated over losing but there is something positive coming out of it. Free WiFi is the first tag team she’s been a part of that’s lasted longer than a year! The longer it lasts the more important it becomes. Kakuta pointed out that in almost every Tokyo Joshi Pro tournament she’s been a part of, she’s been eliminated by Yamashita. She agrees with Noa that their team should stick together, stay positive and become unbreakable.
Back in November Yuki Aino & Raku were supposed to face Reiwa AA Cannon for the Princess Tag Titles but Raku had to pull out with covid. Today was their chance to beat one of the top teams in TJPW but the challenge was just too great to climb over. They were able to block the Double Rookie Awards with a pillow but Saki Akai stopped Raku’s Doctor Yellow with a High Kick. Akai then put Raku in a Triangle Choke while Yuki Arai kicked Aino away. Raku gave up after Akai grabbed her arm and put it in a Kimura while still applying the Choke. Akai said her team’s thought process going into the match was very different than what it would have been if they were still the champions. They are back to square one and recognised they were fighting against strong opponents. Raku said with Pom Harajuku cheering them on she felt like her team had a 3-on-2 advantage. They are standing at the foot of the mountain after today but she still wants to climb that mountain.
The Karate Tag duo of Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano kicked off the tournament with a loud message by eliminating Toyo Mates in an upset. Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu were in control and even hit their Big Boot/Spinebuster combo on Nagano. Kiryu then put her lesser experienced opponent in a Crab Hold but Nagano fought her way to reach the ropes. Kiryu tried to finish her off with the Spinebuster but Miyamoto cut her off with the Zero Fighter Kick. Immediately after that Nagano got Kiryu with the Senpukyaku kick to get the win. Kamifuku took her frustration out on Kiryu backstage, blaming her for getting eliminated in the 1st Round. She then realised her insults was making her tag partner upset and took those comments back.
Today’s results mean Reiwa AA Cannon and Karate Tag both advance to the 2nd Round matches on 19th January while 121000000 go straight through to the semi-finals. Reiwa AA Cannon takes on Daydream in Round 2. Arai remembers losing to them in last year’s tournament so she wants to get revenge with Akai as her partner this year. Karate Tag meets Daisy Monkey in their 2nd Round bout. It is the rematch of Nagango’s debut from last March. Nagano’s bond with Miyamoto is getting stronger so she wants both of them to crush Daisy Monkey together. The winners of that match will face 121000000 in the semi-final on 29th January.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT WINTER ~OKAYAMA PERFORMANCE~”, 08/01/2023 Okayama Convention Center 284 Fans
1. Moka Miyamoto defeated HIMAWARI with the Rashomon (5:33).
2. Mizuki defeated Kaya Toribami with the Diving Foot Stomp (6:39).
3. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta defeated Raku & Pom Harajuku when Noa pinned Raku with the Blizzard Suplex (10:30).
4. Trish Adora defeated Hyper Misao with a Short-Range Lariat (6:50).
5. Miu Watanabe & Suzume defeated Maki Itoh & Mahiro Kiryu when Watanabe pinned Kiryu with the Tear Drop (13:38).
6. Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer defeated Yuka Sakazaki & Arisu Endo when Max pinned Endo after the Master Blaster (9:46).
7. Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino defeated Rika Tatsumi & Yuki Kamifuku when Aino pinned Kamifuku with the Venus DDT (14:03).
Yuki Aino’s home of Okayama was the next stop for Tokyo Joshi Pro this weekend. She was the big winner of the show, scoring the pinfall in the main event. After the match Aino spoke about how much she loves her family and TJPW is just as important to her. Shoko Nakajima said that Aino is the strongest, her sister Nodoka Tenma (who was in attendance) is the strongest farmer in the mountains and TJPW is the strongest too. Altogether that makes them the strongest family. Their opponents Rika Tatsumi & Yuki Kamifuku weren’t as kind with their post-match comments. They blame losing today on not being able to eat Tenma’s rice before the match. They threatened to burn her rice field in retaliation next time they come to Okayama.
The Wasteland War Party are taking the Princess Tag Team Titles with them away from Japan. Heidi Howitzer even said she & Max The Impaler are looking forward to defending them overseas before they come back. Howitzer called Yuka Sakazaki strong but not as strong as The Wasteland War Party. Sakazaki’s impromptu team with Arisu Endo couldn’t beat them today but she is confident there is a team in TJPW that can bring the Tag Titles back.
Maki Itoh may have caught a cold because her voice was raspy today. She still shouted out her catchphrases during her match though.
In an unusual start to her match Hyper Misao shook Trish Adora’s hand, promised to fight fair and did not attack her with any cheap shots. She kept to the promise until it was clear that Adora was a stronger wrestler than her in every way. That was when she finally pulled out her spray can and sprayed it in Adora’s face. Adora countered the Vanitas though and pinned Misao with a Short-Range Lariat to win her final match on this tour. According to Misao they made peace backstage after the match and exchanged T-shirts.
According to Nao Kakuta, Okayama is a hotspot for Free WiFi! This was the same place where they won their 1st Round match in last year’s Max Heart Tournament. They won their match today as well with Hikari Noa pinning Raku to avenge yesterday’s loss to her.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT WINTER ~KOBE PERFORMANCE~”, 07/01/2023 Kobe Art Center 237 Fans – No Vacancy
1. Nao Kakuta defeated HIMAWARI with the Shiden Kai (7:05).
2. Yuki Kamifuku defeated Kaya Toribami with the Famouser (6:15).
3. Yuki Aino & Raku defeated Maki Itoh & Hikari Noa when Raku pinned Noa with the Doctor Yellow (11:30).
4. Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao defeated Yuka Sakazaki & Mahiro Kiryu when Nakajima pinned Kiryu with the Northern Lights Suplex (10:42).
5. Max The Impaler, Heidi Howitzer & Trish Adora defeated Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & Pom Harajuku when Max pinned Harajuku after the Master Blaster (13:59).
6. Suzume & Arisu Endo defeated Mizuki & Moka Miyamoto when Suzume pinned Miyamoto with the Ring A Bell (13:40).
The latest homecoming for Mizuki was spoiled by Daisy Monkey. In the main event Suzume scored the win for her team by pinning Moka Miyamoto. She was happy to see so many people turn up for the show. Arisu Endo said she was able to do her very best because of the fans cheering. Suzume later said her courage boosts up to 200% whenever she teams with Endo. With the Max Heart Tournament coming around the corner, Daisy Monkey have their eyes on the prize. According to them, 2023 won’t be the year of the rabbit. It’s going to be the year of Daisy Monkey! Miyamoto was upset over the result and blamed the loss on herself. Mizuki encouraged her, saying she is tough enough to rely on whenever the match comes down to her.
Today was a nightmare for Pom Harajuku. She had to face her fears once more and be in the ring with Max The Impaler. When the match began she kept trying to escape until Daydream physically put her back into the ring. The match finish had Heidi Howitzer & Trish Adora hold back Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe while Max destroyed Harajuku. After the match Max picked up Harajuku’s prone body and carried her away. Backstage Howitzer told Max to let her go because The Wasteland War Party are here to win matches, not kidnap people.
Hyper Misao gave Mahiro Kiryu some treats before their match as a new year’s gift. When Kiryu said she did not have any gifts to give back, Misao attacked her. The incident forced Kiryu to apologize while kneeling on top of both Misao & Shoko Nakajima. Meanwhile Yuka Sakazaki stood in the corner eating all of the treats by herself. She ended up choking on them which briefly took her out of the match. Nakajima took some of the treats back after winning the match so as far as she’s concerned everyone is even. Misao decided that winning the match today is Kyoraku Kyomei’s gift for the new year.
Raku missing the Princess Tag Team Titles match last month due to illness is still on her mind. She & Yuki Aino ended up getting the win on today’s show when the pair beat Maki Itoh & Hikari Noa in an upset. Raku hopes that by itself will make Aino happy going into tomorrow’s show in Aino’s home region of Okayama. Aino reminded her that their 1st Round opponents in the Max Heart Tournament are Reiwa AA Cannon, the team they were supposed to fight for the Tag Titles.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO ’23”, 04/01/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1,111 Fans – Super No Vacancy
1. HIMAWARI Debut Match: Yuki Aino defeated HIMAWARI with the Venus DDT (6:05).
2. Wakana Uehara Debut Match: Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano defeated Arisu Endo & Wakana Uehara when Miyamoto submitted Uehara with the Rashomon (9:15).
3. Nao Kakuta, Mahiro Kiryu & Kaya Toribami defeated Raku, Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko when Kakuta pinned Neko with the Shiden Kai (8:36).
4. New Year Special Match: Shoko Nakajima and Hyper Misao both win when they grabbed the “Hit” (14:53).
5. Princess Of Princess Title Next Challenger Decision Battle Royal: Mizuki defeated Rika Tatsumi, Maki Itoh, Yuki Kamifuku, Hikari Noa and Suzume (16:58).
5a. Yuki Kamifuku eliminated Hikari Noa by Ring Out (4:52).
5b. Maki Itoh eliminated Yuki Kamifuku by Ring Out (6:20).
5c. Mizuki eliminated Rika Tatsumi with an Assisted School Boy (8:02).
5d. Maki Itoh eliminated Suzume with the Itoh Punish (10:40).
5e. Mizuki eliminated Maki Itoh with the Cutie Special (16:58).
6. International Princess Title: Miu Watanabe (c) defeated Trish Adora with the Tear Drop (10:34). *V2 for Miu Watanabe.
7. Princess Tag Team Titles: Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer defeated Saki Akai & Yuki Arai (c) when Max pinned Arai after the Master Blaster (11:29). *Reiwa AA Cannon fails in V4. The Wasteland War Party becomes the 11th Princess Tag Team Champions!
8. Princess Of Princess Title: Yuka Sakazaki (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Magical Girl Chicken Dude (16:08). *V2 for Yuka Sakazaki.
On this date three years ago, Yuka Sakazaki successfully defended the Princess Of Princess Title against Miyu Yamashita at the annual 4th January Korakuen Hall show. Three years later and the result repeated itself. Sakazaki had to pull out her most dangerous moves to beat her most dangerous opponent and expect the same to be given to her. She did a Brainbuster outside the ring only for Yamashita to fire back with a German Suplex on the floor. Yamashita also did the Avalanche Attitude Adjustment and hit the Skull Kick clean. Sakazaki kicked out though and also survived the Crash Rabbit Heat aimed at the back of her head. She fought back using the Magical Merry-Go-Round. A strike exchange caused Yamashita’s kick and Sakazaki’s elbow strike to clash with each other. Sakazaki got the upper hand by using a Rolling Elbow, keeping Yamashita down long enough for the Magical Girl Chicken Dude to find its target and end the match.
While Yamashita was being taken out of the ring with Maki Itoh’s help, Sakazaki said she can do the match again. Yamashita responded by bowing and sticking her fist out with a scream before leaving. Sakazaki then thanked everyone for coming to see the show on a busy 4th January. She now has to talk to her next challenger. It’s the other Magical Sugar Rabbit and her closest friend Mizuki! It’s a match that Sakazaki admits she does not want to do. Mizuki said she felt like she was being left behind while watching Sakazaki get stronger. But she spent the last year working hard and gaining confidence in herself. She is emotional about the match but wants to surpass Sakazaki and be the one who wins the Princess Championship from her. Sakazaki accepts her challenge and wants the match to happen at “GRAND PRINCESS ’23” in Ariake Coliseum on 18th March!
A monster team have defeated Reiwa AA Cannon and taken the Princess Tag Team Titles for themselves! Max The Impaler left a big impact when they invaded Tokyo Joshi Pro last year. Their returning presence is now further strengthened with Heidi Howitzer joining along and together The Wasteland War Party can call themselves champions in Japan! The champions found their usual attacks ineffective with Saki Akai’s Triangle Choke not being strong enough along with the Double Rookie Award not being enough to put down the challengers. The most dread filled moment came when Yuki Arai’s Finally kick was caught by Max and the SKE48 idol was blown away with a Lariat. The end came when the War Party joined up and hit a combined body press called the Master Blaster to get the pinfall. There is still hope left for Reiwa AA Cannon. Akai said shen she looked into Arai’s eyes after the match she could see the fire was not gone from her. Arai said she wants to do her best with Akai in the Max Heart Tournament so they can challenge for the titles again. Backstage Howitzer said the result went exactly how she expected. She also thinks the pink belts look good on her & Max. They will look forward to seeing who TJPW throws their way to try and get their championship back.
Things went better for Miu Watanabe in her title defence. She was able to beat Trish Adora to retain the International Princess Title. Adora twisted the champion several ways including with a Cattle Mutilation. But Watanabe powered out of it and found a way to use the Giant Swing. Adora caught a second wind until it was knocked out of her with a Double Sledgehammer strike and the Laserbeam. The Tear Drop came afterwards and Watanabe achieved her second title defence. She was happy to win against a foreign opponent who is unlike anyone she has fought before. As long as she has the championship, she thinks it will be her ticket towards wrestling in America. Now she just has to learn English. Adora praised Watanabe for being a wonderful champion and the better fighter today. She is confident she will return to TJPW someday.
Mizuki earned her No. 1 Contendership by beating five opponents in a mini Rumble. Hikari Noa and Maki Itoh started off slow until Yuki Kamifuku entered the ring. The three of them stopped fighting each other and all ganged up on Rika Tatsumi after she joined the match. That alliance ended when Noa climbed the top rope and was Dropkicked out of the ring by Kamifuku for the first elimination. Tatsumi finally got some help when Mizuki made her way into the fight but again it was a short lived pairing. Kamifuku then turned on Itoh but made the mistake of charging her near the ropes. Itoh made sure that Kamifuku went over the top rope to the floor to knock her out of the match. Suzume was the last entrant and she helped Mizuki and Itoh pin Tatsumi by piling on top of them. Itoh dodged the Ring A Bell from Suzume and trapped her in the Itoh Punish for the next elimination. That left Itoh and Mizuki as the final two. They went back and forth until Mizuki hit Itoh with a Spinning Back Elbow. That allowed her to do the Cutie Special, pinning Itoh and making Mizuki the next in line for a Princess Title shot.
The annual Shoko Nakajima Vs Hyper Misao match is always an oddity but this time it may have gotten its oddest finish yet. Three toy rabbits were left hanging above the ring with a piece of paper included in each of them. Only one of them was the correct rabbit and grabbing that would win the match. The other two included stipulations that would come into effect if either wrestler grabbed them. Nakajima placed a ladder on top of Misao and climbed up to grab a rabbit. She picked the wrong one and the match turned into Rabbit Lumberjack Rules. Several wrestlers came down to the ring wearing rabbit ears and armed with hammers to attack anyone who left the ring. Both Nakajima and Misao felt their wrath. Misao then climbed the ladder but the rabbit she grabbed turned the match into Hardcore rules where dangerous weapons are now allowed. Nakajima brought in a box of kaiju toys and emptied it in the ring. She later paid the price when Misao slammed her on top of the pile of toys. Misao also crashed her Hyper Bike into her outside the ring. Both of them climbed back up the ladder and grabbed the one rabbit left at the same time. Yukinori Matsui couldn’t decide who won the match so instead of calling it a tie he declared both of them the winners! Misao couldn’t understand if that was possible until Nakajima explained they got three cute rabbit toys out of it. Both of them are happy to win their first match of the year before the Max Heart Tournament begins. Too bad they spent the rest of the day being chased after by the Rabbit Lumberjacks.
Raku began her new year leading Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko in the Goodnight Express on their opponents. Harajuku tried to continue that momentum by hitting Mahiro Kiryu 108 times only to lose count, allowing Kiryu to escape. Raku & Harajuku cleared the ring of Kiryu & Kaya Toribami. It was all up to Haruna Neko but victory slipped away from her paws. Nao Kakuta got the win for her team after pinning Neko with the Shiden Kai.
Two wrestlers made their pro debuts on the show. Idol Wakana Uehara had already wrestled before on the Yume Pro Wrestling show last year. She decided to go pro and teamed with Arisu Endo on the 2nd anniversary of Endo’s debut. Uehara used Body Slams, Sleeper Holds and Dropkicks during her time in the ring. Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano used double team kicks to get rid of Endo. Miyamoto then put Uehara in the Rashomon to make the rookie give up. Miyamoto praised both of her opponents for their growth while Nagano said Uehara showed great guts. Uehara said she admires Shoko Nakajima the most and hopes to have a high flying battle against her someday.
The other debut was HIMAWARI who took on Yuki Aino in the opener. HIMAWARI repeatedly tried to knock down her opponent with Shoulder Blocks. Her momentum was stopped with a Side Suplex and Aino then finished her off with the Venus DDT. Aino hadn’t seen HIMAWARI train before this match so did not know what to expect from her. But she saw HIMAWARI has passion and enjoyed doing the back and forth Shoulder Blocks with her. HIMAWARI said her debut felt special because it happened at the start of TJPW’s 10th year. She wants to help the company grow from here on out by being a wrestler who makes fans laugh and feel moved.
Five announcements were given out by Sayuri Namba at the beginning of the show. The biggest one is that TJPW will be going to America this Spring! “TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES” will take place at the Globe Theater in LA on 31st March as part of the WrestleCon end of the week’s festivities. Around 12 to 15 women from the roster along with foreign talent will be taking part on the show. TJPW was originally meant to have their US debut in Florida back in 2020 but the trip was cancelled because of the Covid pandemic.
The second biggest announcement was the introduction of a new trainee. Toga is a 19 year old from Kanagawa. She promised to do her best and make her debut in a TJPW ring.
All four members of The Up Up Girls performed a musical number together before the opening match. They announced the unit will be holding another audition for new members this year.
The other two announcements were merchandise related. Miu Watanabe and Suzume are the next two wrestlers to collaborate with Idolmaster Cinderella Girls. Watanabe’s costume will be given to Aya Kirino and Suzume’s costume will be given to Aki Yamato. The other merch announcement is the publication of a TJPW fan book releasing nationwide in Japan on 30th March. Early copies will be available to buy at “GRAND PRINCESS ’23”.
The annual vote for the best matches in Tokyo Joshi Pro was completed over the holidays and the results were announced today. This year TJPW received over 350 votes on Twitter including an increase of responses from fans overseas. Only matches held on TJPW shows and “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2022” were eligible for votes. In the end more than 110 matches received votes and two tied for 20th place.
TJPW Best Bouts 2022
1. Tokyo Princess Cup – Semi Final: Miyu Yamashita Vs Miu Watanabe 13th August @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
195 pts
2. Princess Of Princess Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) Vs Yuka Sakazaki 9th October @ Tokyo Dome City Hall
162 pts
3. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Saki Akai & Yuki Arai 9th July @ Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
153 pts
4. Princess Of Princess Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi 9th July @ Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
143 pts
5. Tokyo Princess Cup – Final: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Miu Watanabe 14th August @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
119 pts
6. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Mizuki 4th January @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
111 pts
7. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe 19th March @ Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
105 pts
8. Pom Harajuku Vs Max The Impaler 13th August @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
88 pts
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima 19th March @ Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
86 pts
10. Mizuki Vs Arisu Endo 27th November @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
62 pts
11. Princess Tag Team Titles: Saki Akai & Yuki Arai (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu 4th September @ Aichi Nagoya Congress Center Event Hall
52 pts
12. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Shoko Nakajima Vs Miu Watanabe 31st August @ Tokyo Otemachi Mitsui Hall
50 pts
13. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Rika Tatsumi Vs Suzume 31st August @ Tokyo Otemachi Mitsui Hall
47 pts
14. Falls Count Anywhere Match: Hyper Misao Vs Sanshiro Takagi 19th March @ Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
44 pts
15. EVE Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Millie McKenzie 27th November @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
38 pts
16. Nodoka Tenma Vs Yuki Aino 19th March @ Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
35 pts
17. Sakisama, Mei Saint-Michel, Martha & Yukio Saint Laurent Vs Marika Kobashi, Raku, Pom Harajuku & Ram Kaichow 19th March @ Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
pts
18. Falls Count Anywhere 5 Way Tag Match – Special Rules: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Hyper Misao & Nodoka Tenma Vs Marika Kobashi & Raku Vs Hikari Noa & Yuki Arai 28th February @ WRESTLE UNIVERSE
31 pts
19. Princess Tag Team Titles: Saki Akai & Yuki Arai (c) Vs Yuki Aino & Pom Harajuku 27th November @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
30 pts
20. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Yuki Arai 19th March @ Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
22 pts
20. Suzume Vs Ryo Mizunami 9th October @ Tokyo Dome City Hall
22 pts
Honorable Mentions
These four matches just missed out on making the Top 20.
22. 2nd “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Final: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino 11th February @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
23. Suzume Vs Yuki Arai 11th February @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
23. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta 3rd May @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
23. International Princess Title: Alex Windsor (c) Vs Miu Watanabe 9th October @ Tokyo Dome City Hall
It’s all over for Shota’s American adventure. He’s now back in Japan wrestling for Ganbare☆Pro with a fresh pep in his step. For me it’s going to make writing these articles a lot more easier now I’m no longer searching for some of the most obscure wrestling shows on the US indies. Although looking at where the winds are blowing, I’ll have to start learning Asian geography next year.
January has a few eventful things lined up. Getting out worldwide is a priority for DDT this Spring. The yen is weak so any chance to make a lot of American dollars at wrestling shows will be taken. A few DDT wrestlers are going over Stateside. Yuka Sakazaki will be going back too but whether or not it is just for a few AEW matches in unknown right now. Miyu Yamashita has a chance to add more international gold to her collection, Maki Itoh is starting to treat America as a second home and Yuki Kamifuku is beginning to spread her wings more.
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Videos
Video starts at 45:25 for the match PWL “PRO WRESTLING LEGACY”, 02/12/2022 Toma Gallery, El Paso, Texas, USA
1. Cosmo Orion Vs Shota
GRAPPLE MAX “GOLD STANDARD”, 03/12/2022 GymKraft, Tampines Street, Singapore
1. Hotshot Wilson Vs Masahiro Takanashi
Video starts at 47:16 for Match #1. Go to 1:39:01 for the Premier Rumble and 1:57:20 for Shota’s entrance PWF “PREMIER RUMBLE”, 03/12/2022 Houston Premier Arena, Houston, Texas, USA
1. Caine Carter Vs Shota
2. Premier Rumble: Shota enters at #9
Video starts at 55:39 for the match AEW “DARK ELEVATION”, 06/12/2022 Indiana Farmers Coliseum, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Aaron Solo
Video starts at 1:12:40 for Match #1. Go to 1:50:06 for Match #2 NEW TEXAS PRO “TEXAS CONTENDERS SERIES 9”, 08/12/2022 Houston Premier Arena, Houston, Texas, USA
1. Shota Vs Shawn Hendrix
2. Mysterious Q Vs Shota
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 09/12/2022 H-E-B Center, Cedar Park, Texas, USA
1. Jon Moxley Vs Konosuke Takeshita
Video starts at 8:35 for the match GLORY PRO “DECEMBER 2 RIZZMEMBER”, 18/12/2022 South Broadway Athletic Club, St. Louis, USA
1. Shota Vs Ethan Price
Video starts at 10:27 for the match AEW “DARK ELEVATION”, 19/12/2022 Curtis Cullwell Center, Garland, Texas, USA
1. Ethan Page, Matt Hardy, Isiah Kassidy, Dante Martin, Darius Martin & Konosuke Takeshita Vs Sonny Kiss, Slim J, Jeeves Kay, Peter Avalon, Cezar Bononi & Ryan Nemeth
Video starts at 10:08 for the match AEW “DARK ELEVATION”, 26/12/2022 Freeman Coliseum, San Antonio, Texas, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Frankie Kazarian
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Results
PWL “PRO WRESTLING LEGACY”, 02/12/2022 Toma Gallery, El Paso, Texas, USA
1. Shota defeated Cosmo Orion with the Frog Splash (?:??).
Shota had already visited El Paso on his travels but didn’t get to wrestle there until the final weeks of his excursion. It was an emotional match for him. Not only did he win but he did so using his hero Eddie Guerrero’s finisher in Eddie’s hometown. He also gave a speech thanking Eddie after the match for making his dream come true.
GRAPPLE MAX “GOLD STANDARD”, 03/12/2022 GymKraft, Tampines Street, Singapore
1. Masahiro Takanashi defeated Hotshot Wilson with a Cradle (12:27).
The master of roll-ups was at risk of losing to such a move. Hotshot Wilson kept trying to find ways to pin Masahiro Takanashi’s shoulders to the mat, turning to a reliance on using La Magistral Cradle. Takanashi found a way to counter the move, roll on top of Wilson and keep him pinned down to take the victory.
PWF “PREMIER RUMBLE”, 03/12/2022 Houston Premier Arena, Houston, Texas, USA
1. Shota defeated Caine Carter with the Frog Splash (?:??).
2. Premier Rumble: Chris Carter defeated AWOL and Shota by Ring Out (?:??).
The fruits of Shota’s labour was on show with his performance at his last Premier Wrestling Federation event. First he defeated Caine Carter then he entered the 30-Man Premier Rumble at #9. He lasted until the final three and finished in 3rd place (no way am I writing out all 30 entrants for the result).
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 07/12/2022 (Aired 09/12/2022) H-E-B Center, Cedar Park, Texas, USA
1. Jon Moxley defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the Bully Choke (14:30).
Takeshita’s second crack at Jon Moxley ended much like the first. A well fought match that ended in defeat thanks to the Bully Choke. The one difference this time around is Takeshita did not submit, instead he passed out to the hold.
NEW TEXAS PRO “TEXAS CONTENDERS SERIES 9”, 08/12/2022 Houston Premier Arena, Houston, Texas, USA
1. Shota defeated Shawn Hendrix with a Backstabber (?:??).
2. Shota defeated Mysterious Q with the Gannosuke Clutch (?:??).
Shota’s final appearance in the Houston Premier Arena was probably his most eventful. First he was unexpectedly called out by Shawn Hendrix for eliminating him at the Premier Rumble. Shota wasn’t aware of who Hendrix was because Hendrix wears a mask in PWF but wrestles unmasked in New Texas Pro, so he didn’t recognise him. An impromptu match began and Shota won it in seconds, ending the disupute before it ever really got started.
Perhaps the second match was Shota’s biggest win of his entire stay. Mysterious Q is one of the big boys of the Texas scene and he took Shota for a beating. Shota was able to kick out of everything Q could do to him but he hadn’t a hope of winning. That was until Q was distracted by the entrance music of Rudy Garza. Nothing came of it so Q turned his attention back to Shota. His finisher was then countered into the Gannosuke Clutch giving Shota the upset win! Q figured out that Shota was not on Garza’s side (Garza cheated to beat Shota a month earlier) and congratulated Shota on the win.
APAC “RISE – DAY 1”, 10/12/2022 Spacerubix, Puchong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
1. APAC Women’s Title Tournament – Round 1: Steph De Lander defeated Maki Itoh (?:??).
2. APAC Women’s Title Tournament – Round 1: Nor “Phoenix” Diana defeated Yuki Kamifuku (?:??).
Both Maki Itoh and Yuki Kamifuku lost their 1st Round matches in the APAC Women’s Title Tournament. I can’t find much info on what happened other than that.
DFW ALL PRO “SEASONS BEATINGS”, 10/12/2022 Haltom Theater, Haltom City, Texas, USA
1. Triple Threat Match: Shota Vs Rook Tyler Vs Eddie Martinez
Shota’s penultimate match of his excursion took place in DFW All Pro against some of the promotion’s alumni Rook Tyler and Eddie Martinez.
DPW “1ST ANNIVERSARY”, 10/12/2022 Winston-Salem Fairgrounds, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Colby Corino with the Zahi (14:22).
Now we’re cooking! Takeshita came back to Deadlock Pro and had a fight on his hands against Colby Corino. It was a match that got “That shit fucked!” chants after it ended. It was one of Corino’s last matches before news came out that he is WWE bound.
APAC “RISE – DAY 2”, 11/12/2022 Spacerubix, Puchong, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
1. Maki Itoh Vs Yuki Kamifuku
I was able to find out Itoh and Kamifuku had a match against each other on the second day of APAC’s weekend. Other than that I don’t know the result. Nor “Phoenix” Diana beat Steph De Lander in the final to win the championship.
AEW “DARK ELEVATION”, 14/12/2022 (Aired 19/12/2022) Curtis Cullwell Center, Garland, Texas, USA
1. Ethan Page, Matt Hardy, Isiah Kassidy, Dante Martin, Darius Martin & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Sonny Kiss, Slim J, Jeeves Kay, Peter Avalon, Cezar Bononi & Ryan Nemeth when Page pinned Avalon with the Twist Of Fate (7:45).
So Takeshita, The Firm, Top Flight, The Trustbusters and The Wingmen all walk into a bar. Stop me if you heard this one before.
AEW “DARK”, 17/12/2022 (Aired 31/01/2022) Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Angelico with the Zahi (7:39).
This match hasn’t aired yet. Did Angelico get any help from the other members of the Spanish Announce Project? Did the SAT crash the match in an angry shoot? Would Angelico even want Luther & Serpentico to help him in this case?
GLORY PRO “DECEMBER 2 RIZZMEMBER”, 18/12/2022 South Broadway Athletic Club, St. Louis, USA
1. Ethan Price defeated Shota with the Package DDT (?:??).
And he we are at Shota’s final match in America. He couldn’t end it with a win unfortunately. Ethan Price rolled out of a Sunset Flip, hooked Shota in the Fisherman Suplex position and dropped him with a Package DDT to win the match.
AEW “DARK ELEVATION”, 21/12/2022 (Aired 26/12/2022) Freeman Coliseum, San Antonio, Texas, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Frankie Kazarian with the German Suplex (5:01).
Takeshita’s biggest win in AEW so far happens here. Beating Frankie Kazarian is a small step up the ladder.
GCW “TIL INFINITY 2022”, 31/12/2022 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh defeated Allie Katch with the I.S.D (11:36).
Hikari Noa is going to be so jealous when she finds out that Itoh got to do death match spots before her. Just like last month Itoh confronted Nick Gage in the middle of the ring to ask him “Where’s my fucking gang at?!?” Then during her match against Allie Katch, Itoh grabbed a pizza slicer and sliced it across Katch’s forehead! If that wasn’t enough, Itoh blased a lighttube over Katch’s head before pinning her with the I.S.D flying DDT.
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Upcoming Appearances
GCW “56 NIGHTS”, 01/01/2023 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. 4 Way Match: Dark Sheik Vs Maki Itoh Vs Billie Starkz Vs Sawyer Wreck
The match will be happening hours after I posted this. Too bad, I’m leaving the result out until next month. Itoh has been in the ring with Dark Sheik and Billie Starkz before. Sawyer Wreck though is a new one and she’s just as bloodthirsty as Itoh if not more.
EVE “EVE 100”, 07/01/2023 229 The Venue, London, England
1. EVE Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Lizzy Evo
Yamashita’s new year goal is to become an international Triple Crown holder. If she can win the Princess Of Princess Title from Sakazaki in Tokyo on 4th January then the next step is to defend the EVE Title against Lizzy Evo in London. EVE picked Evo as the next contender because she has beaten multiple former EVE champions including the woman Yamashita dethroned, Alex Windsor.
PWG “BATTLE OF LOS ANGELES 2023”, 07/01/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Battle Of Los Angeles 2023 – Round 1: Michael Oku Vs Konosuke Takeshita
One to scratch off the bucket list. The Battle Of Los Angeles is the premier pro wrestling tournament on the American indies. Simply being included in one is often considered to be a career highlight. Takeshita’s appearance in the 2023 edition was expected and there is excitement brewing over his 1st Round opponent Michael Oku. It will be months before the show will be watched by people who didn’t attend so we all need an ungodly amount of patience to see how he fares. Also fingers cross Sakazaki makes a surprise appearance for a non-tournament match.
WARRIOR “WARRIOR WRESTLING 27”, 21/01/2023 Bendix Arena, South Bend, Indiana, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Zachary Wentz
Takeshita’s debut for Warrior Wrestling has him facing Zachary Wentz of The Rascalz. Strength versus agility will be happening here for sure.
PRESTIGE “VENDETTA”, 21/01/2023 The Glass House, Pomona, California, USA
1. Anything Goes: Shunma Katsumata Vs Sonico
2. Kevin Blackwood Vs MAO
3. ROH Women’s Title: Athena (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
The third and final part of Yamashita’s plan is to take the ROH Women’s Title from Athena in California. Prestige was able to get permission from ROH/AEW/Tony Khan to make the already announced match for the championship.
SPW “CHAMPIONS NEVER YIELD”, 27/01/2023 Foochow Building, Singapore
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Alexis Lee (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku
The Queen Of Asia Title that Alexis Lee currently holds previously belonged to Riho for four years. Lee won it in a 3 Way Match last month and her first defence is against Kamifuku.
SETUP “SETUP EP.11”, 30/01/2023 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. International Single Match: Matcha Vs TJPW X
The next day a wrestler from TJPW will be at a SETUP show to face Matcha, Thailand’s first female pro wrestler. She is also known online as the fan artist Tapla. Who TJPW is sending over will be decided on short notice because the show is happening during the Max Heart Tournament. They won’t be able to send someone over if they are still in the tournament. Is Kamifuku’s Singapore booking just a coincidence?
DDT “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD”, 30/03/2023 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
Latest update with this show is the winner of the D GENERATIONS CUP will be booked for it. So Takeshi Masada still has a chance!
DDT/GCW “GCW VS DDT”, 31/03/2023 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
Merry Christmas to you all! There are a lot of things I’m not good at. Making predictions for pro wrestling is one of them. It’s what happens when the crystal ball I look through was bought in Lidl. But I like doing it anyway. The Christmas and New Year period is very busy for covering pro wrestling so I never really have the time to do something like this in previous years. To solve that problem I’ve been jotting down predictions in my free time this month so I could finally put out the article. I came up with 20 predictions for 2023 spread across four categories. Five for DDT, five for Tokyo Joshi Pro, five for Ganbare☆Pro and five guesses for anything even slightly related to DDT or CyberFight. I’m also listing them in order from easy to hard, likely to unlikely, mild to spicy, etc. Some are guesses based on past booking patterns, going with gut feelings, going the opposite of gut feelings and in some places just straight up fantasy booking. None of these are hints or teases of the little inside info I do know about. Will any of them come true? Nah, probably not. But let’s take a stab at it anyway?
DDT
– Brass Monkey, That Funky Monkey Prediction: Mike Bailey wrestles a match in DDT again.
My evidence supporting this prediction is Mike Bailey’s profile on the DDT roster page is still there. They never took him off the website even though he hasn’t wrestled for the company since April 2020. The man has had a well deserved breakout year in America for 2022 splitting his time between Impact and the indies. I bet he’ll be in the area when DDT are doing their Hollywood shows in April. Also if he has the time to come back to Japan, I think it will be for DDT over anywhere else. There’s a whole new class of guys for him to kick the crap out of. Also a Moonlight Express reunion would be sweet.
– Have A Drink And Watch The Die Get Cast Prediction: KANON outperforms Daisuke Sasaki.
The top prospect from JTO jumped to DDT back in April and has been all in with the company ever since. KANON was rewarded pretty quickly by being added to DAMNATION T.A while Minoru Fujita was out with injury. He had a rough go at the tournaments though, getting eliminated in the King Of DDT 1st Round and only winning one match in the D-Ou Grand Prix. But I’ve been impressed with his work and he is often the one who picks up the wins in DAMNATION T.A tag matches. I think he performs way better in 2023 and racks up a few achievements. In fact, I think he will achieve more in the next 12 months than his leader Daisuke Sasaki will! I’m talking the number of title matches he gets, the better performances he puts in tournaments and a higher amount of significant singles victories. KANON is going to claim some scalps this year that will leave Sasaki looking jealous. That’s if Sasaki is sober enough to register what’s going on.
– 365 Degrees, Burning Down The House Prediction: Yuya Koroku becomes the next wrestler from DDT’s new generation (debuted 2020 onwards) to win a championship.
The first draft of this was slightly different. I had Yuya Koroku down as the first new gen wrestler to win any championship. Then I remembered Toi Kojima is currently one of the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Champions and Hideki Okatani once held the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title a year ago. Oh and Keigo Nakamura held both if he counts (debuted 2019 before the pandemic so eh?). As a result this prediction isn’t turning out as sharp as I thought it would be. But I’m sticking with the general idea. There’s a new wave of fresh blood coming into DDT and the highlight for me so far was Koroku and Kojima’s rivalry found within the BURNING Vs The 37KAMIINA tag matches. Eyes will be on Yuki Ishida for becoming a bigger part of a diminished Harimao out of necessity, Takeshi Masada as the hot prospect and Kazuma Sumi for his athleticism. There’s still three more trainees yet to debut plus the short term future of El Unicorn and Ilusion is currently unknown. With that said Koroku has the advantage of seniority over most of the other rookies to make this prediction come true. Even if it’s just as the third man holding the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles, I think Koroku has the best odds of getting belted up next year.
– Where’s Your Head At, At? Prediction: Tetsuya Endo struggles to reclaim the top position in DDT.
This is a cruel one. Tetsuya Endo had everything in place before the summer to finally be the flag bearer for DDT. Then Katsuhiko Nakajima knocked him out and left him concussed, taking all of that away. I wouldn’t say he is a shadow of his former self since coming back but a bit of shine has disappeared in him becoming the leading man again. He has given himself a new goal of winning all of the singles championships. That’s going to be a long journey if it does work out that way. For 2023 I do not see Endo winning back the KO-D Openweight Title and I don’t think he will win any of the singles tournaments. The DDT Universal Title and DDT Extreme Title can be in his grasp but neither of them will bring him back to the number one main eventer spot in the next 12 months. To take a positive stance for this, think of 2023 as his rebuilding year for 2024. He’s already spent the last few months bulking up to become more a bigger heavyweight. Maybe the key to getting over this will be to confront his demon at “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2023”…
– Loan Me A Dragon, I Wanna See Space Prediction: Dramatic Dream Gate is revived.
Remember this unholy alliance? There were three occasions when DDT and Dragongate worked together and promoted shows under the name Dramatic Dream Gate. Once in 2007, again in 2008 and the final one taking place in 2012. Then the relationship between the two companies went icy for a long time after that. Things began to defrost a few years ago thanks to Toru Owashi getting DG bookings and in return bringing one of their wrestlers from his generation over whenever DDT goes to Kobe or Nagano. Now that Naruki Doi is bouncing back and forth between the two companies as a freelancer without pissing anybody off I’d like to think everyone’s now cool with each other. What a way to show it by bringing DDG back for another show! It would be worth it just to see Kazuki Hirata do his Magnum Tokyo parody in front of all the DG wrestlers who weren’t even born when the gimmick first existed. I know, I know, DG currently has a working relationship with NOAH. They’re probably all CyberFight’d out at this point. Doesn’t matter, DDT will continue taking their dojo dropouts anyway…
Tokyo Joshi Pro
– It Ain’t My Fault That I’m Out Here Making News Prediction: At least 3 women who originally came from Actwres girl’Z will appear in TJPW and at least 1 of them becomes a regular roster member.
It’s kind of a running joke at this point. Actwres girl’Z constantly turn dozens of idols into newly trained joshi at a time then whoever emerges as top of the class ends up leaving them for greener pastures. It’s probably one of the more successful development programs in modern pro wrestling when you think about it. AWG’s lossese end up being another company’s gain and TJPW are usually in that group. Yuna Manase, Natsupoi and Nao Kakuta all came from there. Even just recently we have HIMAWARI pulling off a speed run in how to go from AWG to TJPW in record time. I think it’s only going to increase from here. My prediction is not one, not two but three joshi who were associated with AWG at some point in their lives will appear on TJPW shows throughout 2023. I’m giving myself a little bit of rope here because I am not saying they will all be full time roster additions. Somebody like Saori Anou or Miyuki Takase having one or two guest matches like SAKI did this year would count towards this. But yeah, I can at least guarantee there will definitely be one woman on the active AWG roster who will be showing up at Korakuen Hall wearing a TJPW shirt in the next 12 months.
– Pull Up With A Zelda And A Peach And A Daisy Prediction: An outsider wins the Princess Of Princess Title
In the almost seven years the Princess Of Princess Title has been around its lineage has belonged entirely to the TJPW roster. In Japan it’s rare for a men’s company to have their main championship stay within their walls for this long but in joshi it’s a little more common. However the scene opened up again to the rest of the world this year and there is a wave of new faces we can all look forward to seeing. The risk is they have their eyes on the gold just as much as the regulars do. I think the time has come for somebody outside of TJPW to become the Princess Champion. Whether they are a Japanese freelancer, an invader fans associate with another company or somebody from overseas I bet the top prize will be taken by an outside force sometime in 2023.
– It’s All Around The World, Just La La La La La Prediction: Maki Itoh gets to No. 1 on a iTunes or Spotify chart somewhere in the world.
Hikari Noa unexpectedly showing up in the Canadian iTunes J-Pop chart at the end of November inspired this one. Some domino is going to fall that will kickstart a chain reaction resulting in Maki Itoh’s music going viral and being discovered by a new audience. She ends up getting a song to No. 1 on one of the digital music services. It doesn’t matter how obscure this gets. It could be No. 1 in Zimbabwe’s chart for the Chamber Psych genre due to input error for all I care.
– Once I Ran To You, Now I Run From You Prediction: A woman from Sakisama’s past comes back to haunt her.
It is inevitable that NEO Biishiki-gun will come back to terrorize TJPW again. They always do. Sakisama will return to grace TJPW fans with her glamourous presence while rubbing it in about how perfect she is. She makes it look easy. There has to be a reason for that, right? You don’t become that much of a narcissist without having something, or someone, that’s been out of your reach for your entire life. Like a rival perhaps? That one person who no matter how good you are at something, they are always better. Like what if there was somebody in Sakisama’s life who always stole her thunder whether it was in their private classes, on the badminton court or even at an extravagant gala? What if that woman with a familiar looking face from somewhere else suddenly shows up in TJPW and begins to waltz through the roster, tempting NEO Biishiki-gun away from their leader in the process. What if Sakisama finds herself in a position she has never experienced before, becoming the underdog? It would be a big change of pace for the gimmick that’s for sure.
– Cause A Girl Gonna Push It All Out The Way Prediction: Sasha Banks appears at Grand Princess ’23.
Am I being cheeky with this one? I dunno, something about the Sasha Banks odyssey still sounds kind of murky to me. I don’t think somebody with her leverage is going to settle down with a contract to just one corporation again. I believe she’s aligning with New Japan/Stardom no doubt about that. But why stop there? Something tells me she isn’t going to be exclusive to them in Japan. Not with the people she’s been meeting and spending time with these last few months. TJPW needs something massive if they want to fill up Ariake Colosseum on 18th March. They won’t be doing that by keeping to themselves. Aim big, play big, win big.
Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling
– I Get By With A Little Help From My Friends Prediction: Some of the wrestlers Shota worked with in America get booked for Ganpro.
Shota accomplished a lot during his three month stay in America. Among the most important during his excursion was connections. He made friends, met new people and whether intentional or not scouted talent. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see some of the people he wrestled across the United States get invited over to Ganpro in the coming year. The likes of Ryan Davidson and Phil Shark have been to Japan before but could we see a wrestler like Clay Roberts or Aaron Mercer get the chance to come over thanks to their links with Shota?
– All The Way (Keep Going, You Got This) Prediction: Keisuke Ishii wins the Spirit Of Ganbare Title.
Ganpro has been a good home for Keisuke Ishii ever since he came over from DDT in 2018. Maybe it’s because he’s in a smaller pond but he’s been able to stay more consistent up the top of the card. 2023 will be the right time for Ganpro’s resident “Puwota” to challenge for the Spirit Of Ganbare Title and win it. I’m not confident he will be the man to dethrone Hartley Jackson but if Mizuki Watase or Ken Ohka can’t do it, it may have to come down to him anyway.
– Swing Your Partner ‘Round And ‘Round Prediction: Ganpro creates a tag team championship and builds it around mixed tag wrestling.
This should have been done when they held the Mixed Tag Tournament in 2021! At the moment the Spirit Of Ganbare Title is the only championship being defended in the promotion. Tag Team Titles should be next on the list for Ganpro to grow into a bigger company. They regularly book mixed tag matches anyway and it would be a good way to differentiate the belts from other company’s tag titles. I’m not even calling for it to be a mandatory rule, just have most of the teams competing in title matches be mixed gender.
– Sunshine, Lollipops And Rainbows Prediction: Ganbare☆Joshi runs their own show in Korakuen Hall.
The Ganbare☆Joshi division took a step back in 2022. Gone were the Ganpro doubleheaders with GanJo running the afternoon shows. It would be nice if they came back with a vengeance in 2023. Not only could they promote their own shows again but they should take a shot at the big time by having an event at Korakuen! It would be a challenge. Maybe Yuna Manase calls in some favors from Ice Ribbon and Gatoh Move or picks a fight with Prominence to build up a headline match. Moeka Haruhi has worked hard all year too so she deserves a spotlight like this too.
– Shine On You Crazy Diamond Prediction: Kota Ibushi wrestles a match in Ganpro.
The aftermath of what happens in January could be either a rising flame of a phoenix or an absolute trash fire. There is plenty of gossip online about Kota Ibushi being done completely with New Japan when his contract is allegedly expected to expire during the month. So if he is going to become a free agent you’d think there will be a lot of suitors out there looking for his services. That might not happen if the guy decides to let loose and produce an exposé on his time with NJPW. If he instead behaves and decide against that then there should be nothing to be worried about, right? Hmmm, can’t be too sure on that one. Ibushi made it clear on Twitter he has no interest in ever going back to DDT. He also sounds bullish about doing work with NOAH when rumours of that surfaced online. Money doesn’t sound like it’s a big motivation for his future plans. If that’s true then wouldn’t a place like Ganpro be more his vibe? It’s where you can wrestle with your heart on your sleeve and a fire in your belly. It would be a wild move to see Ibushi do one match in Korakuen for Ganpro while he is sorting out the Ibushi Wrestling Institute or whatever crazy project he’s been thinking about during his time away from the ring.
Miscellaneous
– You Know That I Would Love To See You Next Year, I Hope That I Am Still Alive Next Year Prediction: Gake no Fuchi Joshi crosses over with Baka Gaijin + Friends.
It’s been a while since we last heard from Gake no Fuchi Joshi. Seems like Miyako Matsumoto has moved on to other priorities. The spirit of insanity we see in those shows could easily fit in with the newly formed Baka Gaijin + Friends. Matsumoto’s chaotic energy is not something Chris Brookes & Drew Parker want to be responsible for but what power do they have to stop it if she ever steps foot inside one of their shows?
– Are You Ready To Meet And Defeat The Elite? Prediction: AEW will host another event in Japan with DDT & TJPW involvement.
AEW held half of a women’s tournament in Japan during 2021 and produced exhibition matches at the Tokyo Game Show in 2022. They have it in them to do something in Japan for a third year in the row with DDT/TJPW along for the ride. I’m thinking it will be something on a similar scale as the first two events. A project separate from the TV shows and instead taking place on Youtube. That’s if it is intended for broadcast at all. But hey, if they want to go full blown Dynamite taping in Korakuen Hall with Konosuke Takeshita in a title match I’ll take that any day of the week.
– Back To The Family, I Guarantee Emergency Prediction: CyberFight adds another promotion to their portfolio.
CyberFight’s recent financial losses don’t concern me. In fact I think they’re due for a slight expansion and will add a fifth wrestling promotion to their collection. In past interviews Sanshiro Takagi talked about ideas to launch a new death match group or present another joshi company separate from TJPW. If this happens it can be something brand new or maybe there’s going to be a smaller company that’s finally at the end of their rope and needs to be sold to survive. The recent power shift in WWE kind of winds the clock back to 2019 with their desire to launch spin-offs around the world returning to the surface. The last attempt at that resulted in Stardom selling to Bushiroad and NOAH selling to CyberFight. I could see a repeat happening with another company if WWE wants to go shopping in Japan again. But that’s the cynical prediction. CyberFight might create something brand new to fill in a gap that none of their existing properties can reach. Like what if a certain star who has crazy ideas for his own wrestling company strikes a deal with CyberFight to make it a reality in return for making a few dates with the other promotions? What a golden scenario that would be.
– Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, When I Was Dead Broke, Man I Couldn’t Picture This Prediction: A brand new puroresu console game gets announced.
Come on, what’s the freaking hold up? I love Fire Pro Wrestling World but I have squeezed every last drop of blood out of that stone. Time for something new. I think this prediction is possible but it all hangs on whether or not AEW: Fight Forever becomes a success. I’m really looking forward to that game and you all know the first thing I’m going to do is pick Yuka Sakazaki but I still have my worries it will turn out to be a bumpy AA title at launch. If it does take off then my hope is for Yuke’s re-using the assets to make a Japan only wrestling game get one step closer to coming true. One where they strike a deal with Bushiroad or CyberFight (or hopefully both). For this prediction Fight Forever releasing “Forbidden Door” DLC doesn’t count, Makoto being added to The Wrestling Code doesn’t count and phone games do not count. I am looking for a full fledged console game here. If it works on the Steam Deck then that would be cool too.
– Same As It Ever Was Prediction: BASARA does something new and different.
Please? Things have been stale with BASARA for a long time. Even the summer series with Dove Pro I always look forward too is the same old stuff. Probably harsh of me to say that because I hear they are more or less happy with the way things are. They have their regular schedule with their regular crowd always showing up. Sometimes that’s all you need to keep a good thing going. I still wish they showed more ambition though.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 