DDT “HANAYORI NEPPA ~TOTONOU IN THE MIDDLE OF SHINJUKU~” Results

February 15, 2022

DDT “HANAYORI NEPPA ~TOTONOU IN THE MIDDLE OF SHINJUKU~”, 15/02/2022
Shinjuku FACE
213 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Shinya Aoki defeated Toui Kojima with a Crucifix Pin (5:35).
2. Sea Sauna Shack Presents SSS Cup Special Gauntlet Tag Match ~Beyond Totoi~: Hyper Misao & Mecha Mummy defeated Soma Takao & Shota, Akito & Kazuki Hirata, Naomi Yoshimura & Yukio Naya, Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida and Antonio Honda & Yoshihiko.
2a. Soma Takao & Shota defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida when Shota pinned Ishida with a Cradle (3:29).
2b. Soma Takao & Shota defeated Naomi Yoshimura & Yukio Naya by Ring Out when Takao threw out Naya (2:00).
2c. Akito & Kazuki Hirata defeated Soma Takao & Shota when Hirata pinned Shota with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (5:46).
2d. Antonio Honda & Yoshihiko defeated Akito & Kazuki Hirata when Yoshihiko pinned Hirata with a Cradle (3:34).
2e. Hyper Misao & Mecha Mummy defeated Antonio Honda & Yoshihiko when Misao pinned Honda with the I Am A Hero (3:29).
3. Hardcore Judo: MAO defeated Takayuki Ueki by Ippon with a Table Crash (13:10).
4. Vihta JP Presents Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Into The Light~: HERO! (Yuki Ueno), HERO! & Sanshiro Takagi defeated Toru Owashi, Danshoku Dieno & Masahiro Takanashi when HERO! (Ueno) pinned Dieno with the HERO! Splash (11:34).
5. Hokuo Presents Special Tag Match ~WE GOTTA NeppWER!!~: Yuko Miyamoto & Isami Kodaka defeated Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata when Kodaka pinned Katsumata with the Ikkitousen (18:36).

Today’s heavily sponsored show was put together by The 37KAMIINA. There were many sauna related endorsements attached to the event such as a big gift voucher for a popular sauna shop in Tokyo as the prize for whoever won the main event. Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata really wanted to win that prize put couldn’t defeat Yankee Two Kenju to get it. Instead Takeshita was dragged outside to fight with Yuko Miyamoto while Isami Kodaka pinned Katsumata with the Ikkitousen. Takeshita was still happy to wrestle against one of the most established tag teams in Japan. He asked if they could give him a lend of the voucher but Kodaka refused. Takeshita then asked the sponsor if he and Katsumata deserved a voucher of their own for their performance today. The sponsor agreed and promised to get them one. Kodaka is already familiar with Katsumata through their death matches in Big Japan but he showed interest in having a singles match against Takeshita some day.

It’s the distant future, the year 20XX. Toru Owashi, Danshoku Dieno & Masahiro Takanashi formed a new evil unit called SHOCK CHOOSE DOG to take over everything. Desperate for help, Sanshiro Takagi used a time machine to bring HERO! over and save the day! Things were looking bleak when Dieno stripped Yuki Ueno out of his wrestling gear, causing Ueno to leave the match out of protest. Even worse, SHOCK CHOOSE DOG unmasked HERO! to reveal it was HARASHIMA! Takagi screamed for help and all of a sudden, another HERO! appeared! HARASHIMA put the mask back on and the two HERO!’s worked together to stop SHOCK CHOOSE DOG once and for all. HARA-HERO! explained that the time machine must have grabbed a HERO! from two or three years before his own time, like maybe the Club ATOM era of DDT. That is going to create a time paradox so the two HERO!’s must return to their own timelines immediately. Takagi asked where Ueno went during all of this and the other HERO! said he saw him crying in the waiting room.

Meanwhile MAO had big plans for his portion of the show. Today he established the All Japan Hardcore Judo Association! He defeated Takayuki Ueki in a Hardcore Judo match that mixed judo throws with chair shots, ladder bumps and table crashes. This stipulation was used once before when MAO challenged Shinya Aoki for the DDT Extreme Title. So it is a natural choice for MAO to choose Aoki as the association’s chairman! Ueki will also be involved as an Exectuive Director while MAO himself is the President. MAO would like Naomi Yoshimura and Kazusada Higuchi to get involved too so it can grow big enough to hold two Hardcore Judo matches per event.

Hyper Misao & Mecha Mummy were the last team standing in the SSS Cup Gauntlet Match. They then found out that Katsumata is the general manager of the sauna shop that was sponsoring the match. When he presented the team with their prize, Misao suddenly sprayed him in the face! She still holds a grudge with him over their Hardcore matches that took place in Nagoya and the Tokyo Dome last year where she felt humiliated losing to him. She will still go to the sauna with Mecha Mummy though because the steam will help clean up the robot’s body.

Poor little Toui Kojima is feeling sorry for himself lately. After he lost to Aoki in the opener he apologised to him for being the weakest wrestler in DDT right now. Aoki lifted his spirits by telling him he only has room to grow. During the match Kojima tried to give Aoki a Triangle Choke which Aoki described as a good attempt. He left him with encouragement to get stronger.


DDT “DDT FREE -FEBRUARY- ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN SHINJUKU!!” Results

February 14, 2022

DDT “DDT FREE -FEBRUARY- ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN SHINJUKU!!”, 14/02/2022
Shinjuku FACE
233 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

-. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (2) defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2) by Forfeit.
0. Dark Match: Yusuke Okada defeated Yuya Koroku with the Sudden Death (8:27).
1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – You Cannot Leave Without Defending For 2 Minutes 5 Way Match: Antonio Honda defeated Toru Owashi (c), Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Masahiro Takanashi and Shunma Katsumata (7:28).
1a. Antonio Honda defeated Toru Owashi (c) with a School Boy (1:12).
*Antonio Honda becomes the 1,531st champion.
1b. Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno defeated Antonio Honda (c) with a School Boy (1:19).
*Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno becomes the 1,532nd champion.
1c. Masahiro Takanashi defeated Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno (c) with a School Boy (1:27).
*Masahiro Takanashi becomes the 1,533rd champion.
1d. Toru Owashi defeated Masahiro Takanshi (c) with a School Boy (1:43).
*Toru Owashi becomes the 1,534th champion.
1e. Antonio Honda defeated Toru Owashi (c) with a School Boy (1:50).
*Antonio Honda becomes the 1,535th champion.
1f. Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno defeated Antonio Honda (c) with a School Boy (1:56).
*Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno becomes the 1,536th champion.
1g. Masahiro Takanashi defeated Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno (c) with a School Boy (2:03).
*Masahiro Takanashi becomes the 1,537th champion.
1h. Foot Acupoint Mat defeated Masahiro Takanashi (c) by Pinfall (2:50).
*Foot Acupoint Mat becomes the 1,538th champion.
1i. Antonio Honda defeated Foot Acupoint Mat (c) by Pinfall (3:52).
*Antonio Honda becomes the 1,539th champion.
1j. Toru Owashi defeated Antonio Honda (c) with a Figure 4 Head Lock (4:33).
*Toru Owashi becomes the 1,540th champion.
1k. Masahiro Takanashi defeated Toru Owashi (c) with a Figure 4 Head Lock (4:42).
*Masahiro Takanashi becomes the 1,541st champion.
1l. Shunma Katsumata defeated Masahiro Takanashi (c) with a Figure 4 Head Lock (5:03).
*Shunma Katsumata becomes the 1,542nd champion.
1m. Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno defeated Shunma Katsumata (c) with a Figure 4 Head Lock (5:11).
*Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno becomes the 1,543rd champion.
1n. Antonio Honda defeated Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno (c) with a School Boy (5:28).
*Antonio Honda becomes the 1,544th champion.
2. Special Tag Match: Maya Yukihi & Yukio Naya defeated Saki Akai & Toui Kojima when Naya pinned Kojima with the Back Drop (7:10).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Lingling defeated Antonio Honda (c) with a Handshake (7:26 pm).
*Lingling becomes the 1,545th champion.
3. Daisuke Sasaki, Minoru Fujita & MJ Paul defeated Akito, MAO & Yuki Ishida when Paul pinned Ishida with the Death Valley Bomb (10:01).
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Kasai, Yuji Hino & Yukio Sakaguchi defeated HARASHIMA, Naomi Yoshimura & Soma Takao when Kasai pinned Takao with the Vertical Drop Reverse Tiger Driver (10:04).
5. DDT Extreme Title – Turkish Wrestling Rules: Yuki “Sexy” Iino defeated Shinya Aoki (c) by Countout (7:58).
*Shinya Aoki fails in V6. Yuki “Sexy” Iino becomes the 53rd DDT Extreme Champion!
6. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama (6) defeated Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata (0) when Akiyama pinned Hirata with the Exploder Suplex (12:10).
7. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani (4) defeated Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno (4) when Higuchi pinned Ueno with the Brain Claw Slam (19:51).

A Block

1. Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama (6)
2. Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno (4)
3. Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani (2)
-. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya (2)
5. Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata (0)

B Block

1. HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (4)
-. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (4)
3. Shunma Katsumata & MAO (2)
-. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (2)
-. Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2)

Eruption are now on the board, scoring their first win in the Ultimate Tag League. They also deal a blow to The 37KAMIINA’s chances of reaching first place in the A Block. Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani ended up focusing their teamwork on Yuki Ueno, hitting the Diving Knee Drop and Doctor Bomb on him. Konosuke Takeshita kept breaking as many pins as he could but in the end Higuchi finally got the three count on Ueno with the Brain Claw Slam.

Okatani was pleased with getting his first league win in Eruption even though he did not directly get the pin. They have two more group matches left so he is certain he can get a direct win on the way to the final. There is also something else on his mind. He was recently given the nickname “Red Super Comet”. He doesn’t think it suits him and also doesn’t want to use a name created by someone else. He instead wants to be called “The Red Fighting Spirit” of Eruption!

It is BURNING who leads the A Block uncontested and they now just need to win their last match to reach the final. You could argue they had it easy today because one of their opponents was Kazuki Hirata. He would have been quickly beaten by Jun Akiyama had he not pleaded for mercy when Akiyama set him up for the Exploder Suplex. Shuji Kondo had to do the heavy lifting until he was blocked off by Tetsuya Endo. Hirata did what he could to steal a win but Akiyama got him with the Exploder anyway. Hirata surprisingly kicked out so Akiyama gave him another one to get the win. Endo said there would be no miracle today while Akiyama thinks Hirata wants a one on one match against him. Hirata definitely does not agree, even with Kondo encouraging him to do it!

Yuki “Sexy” Iino is the new DDT Extreme Champion but Shinya Aoki got to get oiled up by Yumiko Hotta, so who really won today? The answer is Iino because he now has a championship belt, duh. The more oil that covered Iino and Aoki, the slippier they became. There is no justice I could do to describe a match so lewd it caused DDT to delete the video from Youtube after it aired. Pheromones eventually attacked Aoki outside the ring until Hotta came to the rescue. Unfortunately for Hotta, Danshoku Dieno Slingshotted her face into Iino’s butt while he held Aoki in the WAR Special. The referee was near the 20 count when both wrestlers ran back to the ring. Iino got back in time but Aoki slipped and stumbled, causing him to lose by countout. That result is still eligible for a title change so Iino is the new champion! On the bright side, Aoki got a box of Valentine’s day chocolates from Hotta.

Dieno got on the microphone and said that match is the part of pro wrestling Pheromones are here to do. Iino then nominated Shunma Katsumata to be his first challenger. Katsumata doesn’t want to get involved but reluctantly appeared when Dieno threatened Hisaya Imabyashi to take his place. He refused the nomination but Imabayashi booked the title match for 27th March anyway. Pheromones then attacked Katsumata and left him laying. Backstage Katsumata said the Iino he knew from ALL OUT is gone. He also accused Imabayashi of possibly being the secret mastermind behind Pheromones! Why else would he put him into this match against his wishes?

The visiting Jun Kasai had a lot on his plate today. First he was victorious in a 6-Man Tag Match with Yuji Hino & Yukio Sakaguchi. After his partners got wiped out along with HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura, Kasai was left alone with Soma Takao. Seemingly looking frustrated, Kasai yelled for DDT to get him more excited before he pinned Takao with the Vertical Drop Reverse Tiger Driver. Kasai didn’t want to celebrate the win though and called for his music to stop.

Kasai said after being a long time away from DDT he was looking forward to seeing who in the company would inspire him. He found the experience today lacking and can only think of one person that interests him. Daisuke Sasaki! He walked out but was followed by MAO behind him. Earlier in the show MAO had finally convinced Sasaki to give him the DDT Universal Title shot at Sumo Hall on 20th March. But now Kasai is making the same challenge because he wants a rematch of their Saitama Super Arena war from five years ago! MAO butted in to remind them he already has the title shot. Sasaki agreed to make it a Hardcore 3 Way Match at Sumo Hall so MAO would finally shut up.

Sasaki is full to the brim with confidence now that Minoru Fujita is with DAMNATION T.A. After accepting the 3 Way Challenge, Sasaki said Fujita is like his spy because Fujita knows Kasai in the ring very well. When DAMNATION T.A had their match, they quickly attacked MAO first. MAO recovered and had some help with Akito to clean up the opposition but that left Yuki Ishida alone with MJ Paul. A Lariat and the Death Valley Bomb gave Paul the win. Sasaki then hit Ishida with a chair and gave Daisuke Kiso the Michinoku Driver II. That was when MAO challenged Sasaki for the title shot and finally got it.

The Mixed Tag match ended with Yukio Naya pinning Toui Kojima but the attention was all on Saki Akai and Maya Yukihi as their rivalry grows further. Yukihi can see that Akai is becoming more emotional in their matches. She thought Akai was always looking down on her but maybe Akai is starting to see her for who she is. Akai at least approves of Yukihi being ready to fight her in all of their matches so far. The differences between them means they will have a match unlike anything else at Sumo Hall.

Toru Owashi came up with a new match format to try out with the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title. He wanted the 5 Way Match to go on until the defending champion survives for two minutes without losing the belt. It’s a task that is easier said than done because there were loads of title changes within five minutes. Owashi, Dieno, Katsumata, Masahiro Takanashi and Antonio Honda all got to win the title during the match. A Foot Acupoint Mat also briefly became the champion because it covered Takanashi while Katsumata was pinning him. Honda was finally able to last the two minutes as champion and be declared the winner.

The Iron Man Title returned later in the show when Honda was chased into the ring. Everyone stopped when they saw special guest Lingling from BiSH in the ring. She all shook their hands, unaware that she has an incredibly strong grip that left each wrestler in pain. When she shook Honda’s hand, a loud crack was heard and Honda screamed he was giving up. That means Lingling is now the Iron Man Champion! She didn’t think she was this powerful but she is happy to win a championship.

Yusuke Okada beat Yuya Koroku in the dark match. Koroku missed a Moonsault and was made to crawl over to the ropes in a Crab Hold. His attempt to regain momentum was cut off with the Kitchen Sink and Okada pinned him with the Sudden Death.

It was announced that Akiyama will team with Takao Omori at Sumo Hall! This is being done to celebrate Akiyama’s 30th Anniversary in wrestling. He is happy with the news because it’s been a long time since he’s been in the ring with Omori. Their opponents are to be announced.


Brookes Off This Week’s Shows, New Grand Princess Matches, LiLiCo Retirement Match, Genki In DDT

February 13, 2022

DDT “DDT FREE -FEBRUARY- ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN SHINJUKU!!”, 14/02/2022
Shinjuku FACE

-. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (2) defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2) by Forfeit.
0. Dark Match: Yusuke Okada Vs Yuya Koroku
1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – 5 Way Match: Toru Owashi (c) Vs Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Masahiro Takanashi Vs Antonio Honda Vs Shunma Katsumata
2. Daisuke Sasaki, Minoru Fujita & MJ Paul Vs Akito, MAO & Yuki Ishida
3. Special Tag Match: Saki Akai & Toui Kojima Vs Maya Yukihi & Yukio Naya
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Naomi Yoshimura & Soma Takao Vs Jun Kasai, Yuji Hino & Yukio Sakaguchi
5. DDT Extreme Title – Turkish Wrestling Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino
6. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama (4) Vs Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata (0)
7. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno (4) Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani (0)

B Block

1. HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (4)
-. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (4)
3. Shunma Katsumata & MAO (2)
-. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (2)
-. Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2)

What an utter disaster the Ultimate Tag League has become for CDK. First Masahiro Takanashi had to pull out of a match because of covid forcing the team to forfeit against Pheromones and now Chris Brookes has been pulled from tomorrow’s show due to illness (so far not confirmed to be covid related), forcing them to forfeit another match. This time DAMNATION T.A are getting the free two points and their first win in the tournament.

The card is changes several matches as a result of this. DAMNATION T.A are now in a non-tournament match but on the plus side have Minoru Fujita with them again. The trio demolished their opponents yesterday and made it clear they want to dominate DDT. However Sasaki is being targeted by MAO because of his DDT Universal Title challenge, which Sasaki has declined over and over. Takanashi now has to take MAO’s place in the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title 5 Way Match. Another change is Yusuke Okada and Yuya Koroku becoming opponents in a dark match instead of teaming together in the opener.

DDT “HANAYORI NEPPA ~TOTONOU IN THE MIDDLE OF SHINJUKU~”, 15/02/2022
Shinjuku FACE

1. Shinya Aoki Vs Toui Kojima
2. Hardcore Judo: MAO Vs Takayuki Ueki
3. Sea Sauna Shack Presents SSS Cup Special Gauntlet Tag Match ~Beyond Totoi~: Soma Takao & Shota Vs Akito & Kazuki Hirata Vs Naomi Yoshimura & Yukio Naya Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida Vs Antonio Honda & Yoshihiko Vs Hyper Misao & Mecha Mummy
4. Vihta JP Presents Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Into The Light~: Yuki Ueno, Sanshiro Takagi & HERO! Vs Toru Owashi, Danshoku Dieno & Masahiro Takanashi
5. Hokuo Presents Special Tag Match ~WE GOTTA NeppWER!!~: Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata Vs Yuko Miyamoto & Isami Kodaka

Brookes also has to miss teaming with Yoshihiko in the wacky sauna sponsored Gauntlet Match. Antonio Honda is filling in for him there.

The winners of Match #4 will be rewarded with 365 bags of bath salts from the match sponsors. Sounds relaxing… I hope?

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GRAND PRINCESS ’22”, 19/03/2022
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. Juria Nagano Debut Match: Juria Nagano Vs X
2. Special Single Match: Hikaru Shida Vs Hikari Noa
3. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Yuki Arai
4. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
5. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima

Fresh off of the Max Heart Tournament we are left with the two strongest teams in Tokyo Joshi Pro fighting over the Princess Tag Team Titles. On one side are the champions, The Magical Sugar Rabbits. Their pride was bruised after an early elimination from the tournament so they feel the need to defend the belts against the Max Heart winners. That team is Daydream. They made one dream come true, now they have an even bigger one. They want to win the Tag Titles at Sumo Hall!

The growing history shared by Maki Itoh and Yuki Arai reaches another chapter. Arai is cashing in on her supernova rookie year by challenging Itoh for the International Princess Title. It wasn’t long ago that Itoh dared Arai to try and beat her with as many attempts as she wants to use. Arai thinks the time is now to strike and she has earned every strength needed to win against her fellow rival idol.

Hikaru Shida Vs Hikari Noa is definitely happening, no mistranslation here (why yes, I am one to talk). Excluding her recent MAKAI work and the AEW tournament she produced last year (empty arena), this will be Shida’s first pro wrestling match in front of a Japanese audience in over two and a half years.

Yuna Manase, Ram Kaichow and NEO Biishiki-gun will all be on the show. Manase is looking for an opponent to step up and face her in the ring. Nao Kakuta has shown interest in doing so given their history from Actwres girl’Z.

DDT “JUDGEMENT 2022 ~DDT 25TH ANNIVERSARY~”, 20/03/2022
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. LiLiCo Retirement Match: LiLiCo, Ryohei Odai & Akito (w/ Junretsu) Vs Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari
2. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Toru Owashi, Antonio Honda, Kazuki Hirata & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Poison Sawada JULIE, Takashi Sasaki, GENTARO, MIKAMI & Tanomusaku Toba (w/ Naomi Susan)
3. DDT 25th Anniversary Special Single Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Michael Nakazawa
4. Special Single Match: Saki Akai Vs Maya Yukihi
5. KO-D Openweight Title: Konosuke Takeshita (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo

So when LiLiCo asked for her retirement match to be filled with handsome men, it only made sense to include her husband in it. Ryohei Odai is a Kamen Rider actor and former member of the pop band Junretsu (which the DDT unit was also named after). He has little athletic experience but his inclusion in the match will be very important for LiLiCo. Speaking of Junretsu, they will be in the married couple’s corner while Akito takes up the last spot on the team.

It was LiLiCo’s decision to make Pheromones her opponents. She has had many unforgettable experiences with Danshoku Dieno so it is fitting for him to be one of her final opponents. Unfortunately for Odai, he got a, um, taste of Pheromones when they crashed the press conference announcing this match. They attacked Odai and Dieno shoved one of the Junretsu member’s face into Yuki Iino’s crotch while Yumehito Imanari filmed it.

DDT “MAX BUMP 2022 TOUR IN KOBE”, 24/04/2022
Kobe Art Center

Has Open The Forbidden Gate been used by DRAGONGATE yet? I’m sure it’s been used by them before. Let’s use it anyway. Genki Horiguchi is the latest name from the promotion coming over for a DDT appearance. The previous ones all worked on DDT shows booked by Toru Owashi in Nagoya but here it is for a show happening in Kobe. It’s slap bang in the middle DG territory but still progress in a seemingly growing relationship between the two companies. It’s another small step towards Kazuki Hirata jumping over and forcing them to play “Tokyo GO!” again.


BASARA Back To Full Strength, Dieno And Takanashi Cleared To Return, Ganpro Mixed Hardcore Match, Mega Max Bump

February 8, 2022

BASARA “BASARA 183 ~TAKAGARI 8~”, 11/02/2022
Takashimadaira Ward Community Center

1. Takumi Tsukamoto & Tsutomu Oosugi Vs Yusuke Kubo & Lil Kraken
2. 3 Way Match: Daiki Shimomura Vs Masato Kamino Vs Akiyori Takizawa
3. Isami Kodaka & Takato Nakano Vs Fuminori Abe & Banana Senga
4. Daichi Kazato Vs Minoru Fujita
5. Ryota Nakatsu & SAGAT Vs FUMA & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi

It looks like the BASARA roster is back to full strength after their covid breakout last month. All of those who missed the last show are cleared to wrestle again and will be at this Friday’s show.

DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN OSAKA!!”, 12/02/2022
Osaka Suminoe Maikon Hall

1. Yuya Koroku Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata
3. Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada Vs Toru Owashi, Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani
4. Daisuke Sasaki, Minoru Fujita & MJ Paul Vs Chris Brookes, Akito & Toui Kojima
5. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (2) Vs Shunma Katsumata & MAO (2)
6. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block – Maikon no Kohara Presents: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno (2) Vs Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya (2)

There are clearances over in DDT too. Danshoku Dieno will be back in action on Saturday. He is allowed to re-enter the Ultimate Tag League, taking back his spot on the Pheromones team that Yumehito Imanari kept warm while he was out of action. But first he has a non-tournament match to get his wind back.

DDT “DDT FREE -FEBRUARY- ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN SHINJUKU!!”, 14/02/2022
Shinjuku FACE

1. Special Tag Match: Saki Akai & Toui Kojima Vs Maya Yukihi & Yukio Naya
2. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani
3. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama Vs Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata
4. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul
5. DDT Extreme Title – Turkish Wrestling Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino

Masahiro Takanashi will also return to action two days later teaming up with Chris Brookes again. CDK had to forfeit their league match to Pheromones which is a minor setback after winning their opening bout. They are still in the running for first place in Block B but as things stand right now that forfeit might come back to haunt them.

BASARA “BASARA 184 ~GLITTER~”, 22/02/2022
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Union MAX Title: Ryota Nakatsu (c) Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi

The postponed Union MAX Title match between Ryota Nakatsu and Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi has been rescheduled to 22nd February.

GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2022”, 27/02/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Katsumura-gun Vs Hitodenashi BLUES: Shuichiro Katsumura & Tsuyoshi Okada Vs Nobuhiro Shimatani & Tyson Maeguchi
2. BAD COMMUNICATION 2022 Special Bout: Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Shota, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga
3. Ganjo Special Tag Match: Yuna Manase & YuuRI Vs Moeka Haruhi & Maya Yukihi
4. Ganpro’s Famous Mixed Tag Match: Mizuki Watase & HARUKAZE Vs Shunma Katsumata & Akane Fujita
5. Unleash The Curse Of The Great Prophecy!: The Great Sasuke Vs Yumehito Imanari
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Tatsuhito Takaiwa (c) Vs Kouki Iwasaki

A dangerous request was put in HARUKAZE for Ganbare☆Pro’s return to Korakuen Hall. She demanded a Hardcore Match and threw the challenge out to both Shunma Katsumata and Akane Fujita! Those two already have tension between them over accusations of weapon plagiarism but they have to team together for this match. HARUKAZE found Mizuki Watase to be her partner and make the match an intergender tag.

There has been little follow up to the rumours of CyberFight wanting to sign Maya Yukihi to a contract. She has her story with Saki Akai in DDT going on until March so once that finishes up we may find out what she wants to do next. But before that, she will show up in Ganpro again for a tag match highlighting the Ganbare☆Joshi division.

Seeing Ken Ohka positioned this low on a major Ganpro card is weird. I welcome it because the rest of the group has stepped up over the last two years but it’s still weird.

DDT “MEGA MAX BUMP 2022 TOUR IN YOKOHAMA”, 01/05/2022
Yokohama Budokan

1. KO-D Openweight Title: Konosuke Takeshita (c) Vs X

The next KO-D Openweight Title defence will be held at DDT’s next big show after their 25th Anniversary celebration. Either Konosuke Takeshita or Tetsuya Endo will defend the title at the Yokohama Budokan against an opponent to be determined.

Also on the show will be the return of Hikaru Sato to DDT for the first time since 2019. Sato was a DDT mainstay from 2008 to 2014 and even held the KO-D Title one time. He makes some one-off appearances here and there but those times were for spin-off shows or special occasions.


DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN NUMAZU!!” Results

February 6, 2022

DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN NUMAZU!!”, 06/02/2022
Shizuoka Kira Messe Numazu
121 Fans

-. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (4) defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2) by Forfeit.
1. Kazusada Higuchi defeated Toui Kojima with the Brain Claw (9:54).
2. Akito & Hideki Okatani defeated Toru Owashi & Yuki Ishida when Okatani pinned Ishida with the Diving Knee Drop (9:36).
3. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari defeated Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda when Iino submitted Honda with the Badonkadonk (13:47).
4. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya (2) defeated Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata (0) when Naya pinned Hirata with the Back Drop (11:26).
5. The 37KAMIINA Vs BURNING!: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & MAO defeated Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku when MAO pinned Koroku after the Oretachi no MADMAX (22:54).
6. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (2) defeated Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (0) when HARASHIMA pinned Paul with the Somato (21:52).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: 100,000 Subscribers To The Official Youtube Channel defeated MAO (c) by Pinfall (3:34 pm).
*100,000 Subscribers To The Official Youtube Channel become the 1,529th champions.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Toru Owashi (c) defeated 100,000 Subscribers To The Official Youtube Channel by Pinfall (3:36 pm).
*Toru Owashi becomes the 1,530th champion.

A Block

1. Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama (4)
2. Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno (2)
-. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya (2)
4. Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani (0)
-. Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata (0)

B Block

1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (4)
2. Shunma Katsumata & MAO (2)
-. Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2)
-. HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (2)
5. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (0)

The former KO-D Tag Team Champions get their first win of the Ultimate Tag League. It became a dangerous match for HARASHIMA when Daisuke Sasaki began targeting his leg including some chair strikes to it outside the ring. Naomi Yoshimura tried to carry the match by himself but had to rely on double team moves with a less than 100% HARASHIMA. They were able to isolate MJ Paul and wear him down with big moves until HARASHIMA pinned him with the Somato. HARASHIMA told his tag partner there are more challenging teams to fight against in their group but they can beat them all, reach the final and reclaim the KO-D Tag Titles. Sasaki complained about the result backstage and threatened to boycott the rest of the tournament. He also won’t accept MAO’s challenge for the DDT Universal Title.

Tetsuya Endo’s big entrance performed live by Osamu Suzuki ended up spoiled when BURNING lost to The 37KAMIINA. Endo was disappointed he couldn’t win and get another live performance of his theme song. Jun Akiyama told him the tension between the two units is rising but when the Ultimate Tag League reaches the finish, all teams will be in the same condition. Endo said Konosuke Takeshita has a lot of crazy moves that are difficult to counter. One of them was even inherited from Akiyama! There is still a month to go until the KO-D Openweight Title match so Endo has time to come up with a plan.

The other Tag League match that went ahead was Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya beating Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata in the A Block. Hirata had the impossible task of trying to hurt Hino. It was up to Kondo to take the big man out, leaving Hirata to deal with Naya. Hirata almost got the win out of nowhere by countering the Choke Slam into a Small Package but Naya kicked out. Naya then hit a Running Knee Strike and pinned Hirata with the Back Drop. Hino is pleased with Naya’s growth and wants the two of them to win their remaining matches. Kondo tried to keep Hirata’s spirits up by telling him he is getting stronger day by day. Hirata isn’t sure if he should believe him, especially since he will have to fight Jun Akiyama next.

The Tag League match between Pheromones and CDK was cancelled because Masahiro Takanashi tested positive for covid last week. CDK forfeits the match, giving Pheromones an extra two points. A non-tournament replacement match took place instead with Chris Brookes teaming with Antonio Honda. A duel between Honda and Yuki Iino left Honda physically unable to continue fighting so he was put on a stretcher. However, Iino intercepted the stretcher and held it up so Yumehito Imanari could tape Honda to it! Honda was in a helpless state and verbally gave up when Iino was about to hit him with the Badonkadonk. Brookes swore revenge on Pheromones once Takanashi is cleared to return.

Today’s show was streamed live on Youtube to celebrate the DDT channel reaching 100,000 subscribers. At the end of the show MAO made his way over to the tripod to thanks all of the viewers. He got too excited though and the tripod ended up toppling over and falling on top of him. Yukinori Matsui saw the iPad resting on MAO’s chest and counted to three. After some deliberation, Matsui declared that all 100,000 Youtube subscribers had just won the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title! After that Toru Owashi then laid the iPad onto the ground, took off his shirt and laid on top of it. That prompted Matsui to do another three count and declare Owashi the new champion. Owashi waved goodbye to all of the viewers as the stream ended.


Covid Changes To This Weekend’s Lineups

February 4, 2022

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI 2022 WINTER ~YOKOHAMA PERFORMANCE~”, 05/02/2022
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Nao Kakuta Vs Kaya Toribami
2. Shoko Nakajima & Haruna Neko Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo
3. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
4. Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & Mahiro Kiryu Vs Hyper Misao, Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino
5. Miyu Yamashita Vs Marika Kobashi

A bunch of covid positives is throwing this weekend’s lineups out of whack. Tokyo Joshi Pro is missing Yuki Kamifuku, Hikari Noa, Moka Miyamoto and Maki Itoh. Kamifuku, Noa and Miyamoto all tested positive while Itoh was identified as a close contact. This prompted the rest of the roster to take fresh PCR tests and they have since all come back negative.

DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN OYAMA!!~”, 05/02/2022
Tochigi Oyama City Cultural Center

1. Yukio Naya Vs Yuki Ishida
2. 3 Way Match: Chris Brookes Vs Antonio Honda Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino
3. Yuji Hino & Akito Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
4. The 37KAMIINA Vs DISASTER BOX!: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuki Ueno & Toui Kojima Vs HARASHIMA, Naomi Yoshimura & Kazuki Hirata
5. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (0) Vs Shunma Katsumata & MAO (0)
6. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama (2) Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani (0)

The newly nicknamed “Red Super Comet” Hideki Okatani has called his shot. He is going after Jun Akiyama in the main event! And don’t forget the rivalry between Kazusada Higuchi and Tetsuya Endo. The names BURNING and Eruption are fitting to describe this main event.

GANBARE☆PRO “FALLING DOWN 2022”, 05/02/2022
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Ganpro Vs Takaiwa Army Full-Scale Battle: Ken Ohka Vs Kenya Maeda
2. Special Tag Match “Furimukeba Yokohama”: Shigehiro Irie & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Jun Tonsho & Takahiro Katori
3. HARUKAZE Birthday & Triumph Memorial Special 6-Man Tag Match: Moeka Haruhi, HARUKAZE & Shota Vs Yuna Manase, YuuRI & Shinichiro Tominaga
4. Road To Korakuen! GanPro Vs Takaiwa Army Full-Scale Battle: Tatsuhito Takaiwa & 5th Black Tiger Vs Kouki Iwasaki & Mizuki Watase
5. Ganpro Yokohama First Landing Commemorative Match ~Team Reversal Gym Yokohama Grand Slam Vs Wrestle Drunkers~: Shuichiro Katsumura, Tsuyoshi Okada & Yumehito Imanari Vs Keisuke Ishii, Tanomusaku Toba & Tyson Maeguchi

Referee Daisuke Kiso tested positive and won’t be at the Ganbare☆Pro show. None of the Ganpro roster are close contacts so the card remains unchanged.

DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN NUMAZU!!”, 06/02/2022
Shizuoka Kira Messe Numazu

-. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (4) defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2) by Forfeit.
1. Kazusada Higuchi Vs Toui Kojima
2. Toru Owashi & Akito Vs Hideki Okatani & Yuki Ishida
3. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda
4. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya (0) Vs Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata (0)
5. The 37KAMIINA Vs BURNING!: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & MAO Vs Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
6. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (0) Vs Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (0)

B Block

1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (4)
2. Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2)
3. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (0)
-. Shunma Katsumata & MAO (0)
-. HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (0)

Masahiro Takanashi tested positive after showing symptoms of a fever during the week. CDK’s match against Pheromones in the Ultimate Tag League has been forfeited. Instead Chris Brookes will team with Antonio Honda to take on Yuki Iino & Yumehito Imanari in a non-tournament match. CDK’s next league match is scheduled for 14th February so Takanashi could be cleared in time for that.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “POSITIVE CHAIN ’22”, 11/02/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Moka Miyamoto Vs Arisu Endo
2. Hyper Misao, Nao Kakuta & Mahiro Kiryu Vs Asuka, Haruna Neko & Kaya Toribami
3. Suzume Vs Yuki Arai
4. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
5. Miyu Yamashita, Hikari Noa & Marika Kobashi Vs Shoko Nakajima, Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki
6. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku
7. 2nd “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Final: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino

Itoh will be able to return at the 11th February Korakuen Hall show and Kamifuku is aiming to be cleared in time to be on the show too. So for the moment their International Princess Title match is still on the schedule. However the match will get called off if Kamifuku’s condition does not improve by then. The timing of Noa and Miyamoto getting their positive results back might prevent them from being on the show depending on when they started their isolation periods. The easy solution if they can’t show up is to replace Noa with Miyamoto’s opponent Arisu Endo and just do six matches instead of seven.

DDT “DDT FREE -FEBRUARY- ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN SHINJUKU!!”, 14/02/2022
Shinjuku FACE

1. Special Tag Match: Saki Akai & Toui Kojima Vs Maya Yukihi & Yukio Naya
2. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani
3. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama Vs Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata
4. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul
5. DDT Extreme Title – Turkish Wrestling Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino

The DDT Extreme Title match will be held under Turkish Wrestling Rules. Both Shinya Aoki and Yuki Iino will have oil rubbed all over their bodies before the match. They are also allowed to have one ringside attendant each to apply more oil to them whenever they ask for it. Danshoku Dieno believes Aoki came up with the stipulation because a greased up body is difficult to grab. In reality, Aoki picked the match because he wants Yumiko Hotta to be his attendant and rub his body down.


DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2022 ~ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 OPENING ROUND~” Results

January 30, 2022

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2022 ~ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 OPENING ROUND~”, 30/01/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
516 Fans – No Vacancy

0. Dark Match – 3 Vs 2 Handicap Match: Antonio Honda & Yusuke Okada defeated Toru Owashi, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Yuki Ishida when Okada pinned Ishida with the Sudden Death (6:46).
1. Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani defeated Akito, Soma Takao, Toui Kojima & Yuya Koroku when Okatani pinned Kojima with the Diving Knee Drop (10:32).
2. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (2) defeated Shunma Katsumata & MAO (0) when Imanari pinned MAO with the Pheromone Clutch (9:35).
3. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno (2) defeated Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata (0) when Ueno pinned Hirata with the BME (14:10).
4. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama (2) defeated Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya (0) when Endo pinned Naya with the Shooting Star Press (14:40).
5. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2) defeated HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (0) when Takanashi pinned HARASHIMA with a Pedal-Style Uwabami (19:13).
6. DDT Universal Title: Daisuke Sasaki (c) defeated Minoru Fujita with La Mistica Crossface Lock (19:27).
*V4 for Daisuke Sasaki.

A Block

1. Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama (2)
-. Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno (2)
3. Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani (0)
-. Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata (0)
-. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya (0)

B Block

1. Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (2)
-. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (2)
3. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (0)
-. Shunma Katsumata & MAO (0)
-. HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (0)

The main event saw two rule-breakers try to be dirtier than the other in the ring. Daisuke Sasaki called upon MJ Paul to get in and help him but Fujita had backup from his friends from ChocoPro. Sasaki hit a Low Blow on Fujita and also a chairshot but Fujita got even with a supposedly inadvertent Low Blow to Sasaki as he fell to the canvas. Fujita did an Avalanche SAYONARA Tombstone but Sasaki kicked out at two. The champion then overcame Fujita’s Cradles and trapped him in La Mistica Crossface Lock for the submission win.

In a surprising moment after the match, Fujita went to shake Sasaki’s hand despite protests from the ChocoPro wrestlers. Fujita then offered to shake Baaliyan Akki’s hand but instead kicked him low and gave him an Implant DDT. Fujita told his friends their kindness will make them lose at the most crucial moments and they should wake up! If they don’t win then there is no justice. Fujita was about to leave when Sasaki called him over and asked him to join DAMNATION T.A. Fujita accepted and said he will give all of him to the unit. They then attacked the ChocoPro wrestlers and Sasaki told them to go back to Ichigaya. The show ended with Sasaki saying finally DAMNATION T.A is ready to bring destruction and chaos to DDT!

The bulk of the show was dedicated to the opening matches of the Ultimate Tag League 2022. The big match saw CDK scoring an upset win over DISASATER BOX, causing an immediate dent to the former KO-D Tag Team Champions plan to regain the belts. Some clever maneuvers from Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi included putting the ref on top of HARASHIMA and flipping them over into an unintentional Takatonic. When that misfired, HARASHIMA used Naomi Yoshimura as a stepping stone to hit a Flying Double Knee to Takanashi. Brookes was wiped out with the Somato but Takanashi caught HARASHIMA in a roll up to snatch the win out of nowhere. Brookes called DISASTER BOX their strongest opponents in the group, everybody else is all B teams.

BURNING started their campaign with a good win against the heavyweight duo of Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya. Near the end Jun Akiyama threw his Exploder Suplexes but Hino fired his own back at him. Naya’s big move on Tetsuya Endo was an Avalanche Brainbuster but Akiyama caught him with a Running Knee to the face and then another Exploder. Endo dropped him with the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb and picked up the win with the Shooting Star Press. Akiyama thinks Naya is beginning to develop into a better wrestler but BURNING was not going to lose to anyone today. Hino encouraged Naya to explode even more at their next match.

It was a mixed start for the two teams representing The 37KAMIINA. The Osaka duo of Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno won their match against the odd couple of Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata. There were times when Hirata was reminded not to start dancing because Kondo wants him to get serious. When they were put in Double Crab Holds, Kondo had to physically stop Hirata from tapping out by grabbing his arm before he could tap out. Kondo got his chance to square up against Takeshita but the match came down to Ueno and Hirata. Ueno blocked the Mad Splash and pinned Hirata with the Best Moonsault Ever. Takeshita admitted to being 1% afraid his team would lose the match. He is also interested in wrestling Kondo again. He thinks it would be fun if The 37KAMIINA goes over to the place where Kondo regularly wrestles and fight him there.

Things did not go as well for Shunma Katsumata & MAO when they took on Pheromones. They surprised their opponents with immediate Dropkicks and dives for an attempted quick win. But Yuki Iino & Yumehito Imanari got their chance to do Pheromone things. MAO got a face full of Iino’s backside while Imanari rolled up Katsumata in the Pheromone Clutch to steal the win. Imanari said that even when Danshoku Dieno isn’t here, they are still Pheromones! He didn’t think they could win but the inherited Dandy spirit of Dieno helped them push through with their goal to explore the true DDT essence of DDT.

Now Eruption is complete. A fresh start for Hideki Okatani means a fresh look too. Elsewhere in that generation, Yuya Koroku & Toui Kojima had a tense moment tagging each other in. Akito & Soma Takao tried working together to take out Kazusada Higuchi but Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai were there to even the odds. Eruption all got together to pick apart the opposing team and Okatani used a Diving Knee Drop to pin Kojima. Afterwards backstage, Okatani said he will absolutely beat Akiyama when Eruption has their first Tag League match on 5th February.

Sanshiro Takagi was pulled from the show due to a fever. There was no replacement for him so the dark match was turned into a Handicap Match. The trio of Toru Owashi, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Yuki Ishida were all unified by their sumo backgrounds. However Yusuke Okada avoided their Sumo Illusion triple team and Antonio Honda launched a Bionic Elbow counter attack. Okada ended up pinning Ishida with the Sudden Death.

A string of announcements were made for DDT’s 25th Anniversary show at Sumo Hall on 20th March. LiLiCo announced she be retiring from pro wrestling. She has knee problems that prevent her from wrestling but would like to have one more match. Hisaya Imabayashi decided she will get a retirement match at Sumo Hall. LiLiCo requested her match to be against men, handsome ones in particular.

Several wrestlers from DDT’s past are being gathered together by Poison Sawada JULIE to challenge for the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles at Sumo Hall. JULIE will lead the DDT Legend Army consisting of himself, Takashi Sasaki, GENTARO, MIKAMI & Tanomusaku Toba with Naomi Susan also in their corner.

A wrestler from AEW was heavily teased to be announced for Sumo Hall so there was a lot of excitement when a video was sent to DDT. It turned out to be from Michael Nakazawa. He wants to challenge Sanshiro Takagi to a Special Singles Match to celebrate the 25th Anniversary.

Two more big arena shows were added to the 2022 schedule. “MEGA MAX BUMP 2022” will be held at the Yokohama Budokan on 1st May. “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022” is happened at Ota Ward Gymnasium on 20th August.


Ultimate Tag League Begins This Weekend, Raku Misses Tomorrow’s Show

January 28, 2022

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI 2022 WINTER”, 29/01/2022
Shinjuku FACE

1. Yuka Sakazaki Vs Mahiro Kiryu
2. 3 Way Match: Mizuki Vs Nao Kakuta Vs Pom Harajuku
3. Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao & Marika Kobashi Vs Suzume, Arisu Endo & Kaya Toribami
4. Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Hikari Noa & Haruna Neko
5. 2nd “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Semi-Final: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Moka Miyamoto & Yuki Arai
6. 2nd “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Semi-Final: Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Asuka

There is a change in the card after Raku was suspected of getting in close contact with a covid carrier. She tested negative from a PCR test but will not be at the show tomorrow just to be safe. Raku will keep an eye on if she shows any sign of illness but is likely to be back at the next show. The trios match will now be a tag match with Nao Kakuta moving over to Match #2 to turn that into a 3 Way.

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2022 ~ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 OPENING ROUND~”, 30/01/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

0. Dark Match: Sanshiro Takagi, Antonio Honda & Yusuke Okada Vs Toru Owashi, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Yuki Ishida
1. Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Akito, Soma Takao, Toui Kojima & Yuya Koroku
2. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Shunma Katsumata & MAO Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari
3. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno Vs Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata
4. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama Vs Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya
5. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi
6. DDT Universal Title: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Minoru Fujita

After getting a fever during the week, Danshoku Dieno got a covid test and received a positive result. No DDT wrestler or staff were identified a close contacts so he is the only absence from the show (knock on wood). It was already announced that Yumehito Imanari will replace Dieno in the Ultimate Tag League and he will likely be a permanent fill in for the rest of the tournament.

Some of the teams got to give their thoughts going into the opening day. Konosuke Takeshita wants to show everyone his bond with Yuki Ueno. Ueno wants to win the league so they can become KO-D Tag Team Champions and defend them in Osaka. Tetsuya Endo wants to win as part of his journey to Sumo Hall in March. Jun Akiyama says he can kill two birds with one stone by helping Endo become a champion again and getting a title for himself in the process. Former champions HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura will make a massive statement about their dominance in the division by winning the titles they gave up, not lost. Yoshimura in particular will be very angry if another teams wins it.

Eruption have gained new energy with Hideki Okatani joining them. Okatani wants to use other teams as a stepping stone and Kazusada Higuchi wants the entire unit to leap forward this year. Yuji Hino sent in a message saying he wants to evolve with Yukio Naya. A message was also sent by Shuji Kondo listing all the wrestlers he is looking forward to fighting. He is also aware his partner Kazuki Hirata will get targeted for being weak. Now is the time for Hirata to get serious so Kondo prohibits him from dancing!

CDK as a team have mostly worked together in ChocoPro rather than DDT. Because of this, Masahiro Takanashi thinks the team will be fighting on behalf of ChocoPro in the tournament. He wants to win the Tag Titles and bring them over there. Chris Brookes adds his goal is to win all matches and kill Shunma Katsumata. On the other hand, MAO has figured out that his previous attempts to destroy Katsumata prevents them from achieving anything together. So instead of saying “Crush Shunma Katsumata” he will now say “I Love Shunma Katsumata!” Daisuke Sasaki is getting fed up with DDT putting on so many tournaments every year to determine who the best is. He doesn’t care as long as everyone watches him in the ring.

DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN OYAMA!!~”, 05/02/2022
Tochigi Oyama City Cultural Center

1. Yukio Naya Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Yuji Hino & Akito Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
3. 3 Way Match: Chris Brookes Vs Antonio Honda Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino
4. The 37KAMIINA Vs DISASTER BOX!: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuki Ueno & Toui Kojima Vs HARASHIMA, Naomi Yoshimura & Kazuki Hirata
5. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Shunma Katsumata & MAO
6. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani

The Pheromones Vs The Iyasareru tag match will now be a 3 Way with the remaining wrestlers after Dieno was removed.

GANBARE☆PRO “ICE SMILE 2022”, 13/02/2022
Osaka City Suminoe Maikon Hall

1. Tiger Vs Dragon In Osaka: Mizuki Watase Vs Ryuya Matsufusa
2. Ganjo Special Single Match: Yuna Manase Vs YuuRI
3. Ganpro Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Tsuyoshi Okada & Tyson Maeguchi
4. Koshi Enjo Vs Harukatsu Shoot: Yumehito Imanari & HARUKAZE Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Moeka Haruhi
5. Ganpro Osaka Winter Team: Ken Ohka, Kouki Iwasaki & Katsumi Oribe Vs Shota, Soma Takao & Rapid

A couple of guests from Dotonbori Pro will be at Ganbare☆Pro’s next visit to Osaka. Rapid is a masked wrestler with a motif based around bullet trains. Ryuya Matsufusa is a newcomer who has been wrestling for the promotion since 2020.

Ganpro is hyping up the tag team of Tsuyoshi Okada & Tyson Maeguchi as an exciting MMA/Kickboxing combo.

YuuRI’s very first match in Ganpro was against Yuna Manase last September. It was all very abrupt because of her unexpected appearance on the show. Now it’s time for the rematch and both will be prepared for each other this time.


Ultimate Tag League 2022

January 3, 2022

The second annual Ultimate Tag League has grown massively in size with 10 teams competing in the 2022 tournament. The prize for the winners is the newly vacated KO-D Tag Team Titles. The previous champions DISASTER BOX opted to go into the tournament without the belts so they can fight everyone else on an even playing field and grow even further as a tag team. Not the best excuse I’ve heard for a company putting their tag titles up for grabs if I’m being honest here.

Tournament rules will be fully announced on a later date but DDT have confirmed there will be multiple blocks. Judging from the lineup I think we’re getting two blocks of five teams each. The participating teams are:

– HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (DISASTER BOX)
– Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno (The 37KAMIINA)
– Shunma Katsumata & MAO (The 37KAMIINA)
– Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama (BURNING)
– Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (CDK)
– Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (DAMNATION T.A)
– Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya
– Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani (Eruption)
– Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata
– Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yuki “Sexy” Iino (Pheromones)

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DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2022 ~ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 OPENING ROUND~”, 30/01/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

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DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN OYAMA!!~”, 05/02/2022
Tochigi Oyama City Cultural Center

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DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN NUMAZU!!”, 06/02/2022
Shizuoka Kira Messe Numazu

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DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN OSAKA!!”, 12/02/2022
Osaka Suminoe Maikon Hall

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DDT “DDT FREE -FEBRUARY- ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN SHINJUKU!!”, 14/02/2022
Shinjuku FACE

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DDT/ONLY WE “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN CHIBA!!”, 20/02/2022
Chiba 2AW Square

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DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN FUKUSHIMA!!”, 23/02/2022
Will Fukushima

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DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 THE FINAL!!”, 27/02/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall


DDT “DDT 25TH ANNIVERSARY OPENING SPECIAL!” Results

January 3, 2022

DDT “DDT 25TH ANNIVERSARY OPENING SPECIAL! ALL SEATS 3000 YEN BOX OFFICE!!”, 03/01/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
725 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Toru Owashi, Antonio Honda, Kazuki Hirata & Yoshihiko (c) defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Akito, Soma Takao, Gota Ihashi & Yuki Ishida when Hirata submitted Ihashi with a Jumping Cross Armbreaker (10:23).
*V1 for the The DDT Variety Team.
2. No Tag Rule: Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari defeated Yuji Hino, Toui Kojima & Yuya Koroku when Dieno pinned Kojima after the Sexy Invader Danshoku Driver (11:33).
3. Special Mixed Tag Match: Masahiro Takanashi & Maya Yukihi defeated Shunma Katsumata & Saki Akai when Takanashi pinned Katsumata with an Oklahoma Roll (11:00).
4. Special Single Match: Chris Brookes defeated Pokotan by TKO with the Diving Foot Stomp (13:57).
5. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Yuki Ueno ended in a Time Limit Draw (15:00).
6. Kazusada Higuchi defeated Hideki Okatani by TKO with the Torture Canadian Backbreaker (12:02).
7. Tetsuya Endo & Naomi Yoshimura defeated HARASHIMA & MAO when Endo pinned MAO with the Shooting Star Press (13:52).
8. DDT 25th Anniversary Opening Memorial Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Shinya Aoki ended in a Time Limit Draw (15:00).
8a. Overtime: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Shinya Aoki with a Kimura Lock (2:16).

It’s a new year and a very important one for DDT. They are spending 2022 celebrating their 25th anniversary beginning with today’s event in Korakuen Hall. Every match on the card was given a 15 minute time limit to cram in as many matches as they could. In the main event it was the KO-D Openweight Champion and the DDT Extreme Champion battling to a stalemate. Konosuke Takeshita went hold for hold against Shinya Aoki with the match being kept on the ground for most of the fifteen minutes. When the match ended Takeshita asked for a restart and five more minutes were added when Aoki agreed to it. That was when Aoki changed his game plan and attempted a Suicide Dive out of the ring! Takeshita caught him and dropped him onto the floor with a Brainbuster. Back in the ring Takeshita tried to apply the Plus Ultra but couldn’t go through with it. He switched over to a Kimura Lock and that made Aoki submit.

Aoki praised Takeshita for being really strong and Takeshita asked him for a rematch down the road. It is this kind of support that made 2021 Takeshita’s greatest year in his decade long career. The nostalgia DDT is celebrating this year made him think about his debut match at Budokan Hall for DDT’s 15th Anniversary and his championship main event at Saitama Super Arena for the 20th Anniversary. Right when he began saying he would take on any challenger for the 25th Anniversary show, Tetsuya Endo walked down to the ring. He wasted no time and said he is the only one who can face Takeshita in the main event of Sumo Hall. Takeshita simply stuck his hand out and accepted the challenge. It will be Takeshita Vs Endo for the KO-D Title on 20th March!

Some of the tag matches mixed together teams and units as part of the festive mood. HARASHIMA and Naomi Yoshimura were put on opposite sides with HARASHIMA teaming with MAO and Yoshimura teaming with Endo. The finish saw Endo catch MAO with the Tetsuya In The Sky for a nearfall so Endo finished him off with the Shooting Star Press. HARASHIMA thinks the match was a good way to judge how much stronger Yoshimura has gotten. Then a bombshell was dropped. Yoshimura made a request to vacate the KO-D Tag Team Titles! He wants his team with HARASHIMA to advance further and win the Ultimate Tag League 2022 without being champions. HARASHIMA liked the idea and suggested the Tag Titles can be the prize for the tournament winners. That way if DISASTER BOX wins the tournament they will get the belts back and prove they are the absolute best team in DDT! Their request was granted and the KO-D Tag Team Titles were later declared vacant.

Hideki Okatani went through his big test to join Eruption, taking on Kazusada Higuchi. What may have looked like a mismatch was instead a chance for Okatani to show everything he’s got, not just to Higuchi but to the rest of Eruption standing at ringside. Okatani wouldn’t give up even when Higuchi bent him backwards with the Torture Canadian Backbreaker. The bell rang but not because Okatani submitted. Instead Yukio Sakaguchi threw in his hoodie as a stand-in for a towel to forfeit the match on Okatani’s behalf. The three members of Eruption quickly agreed that Okatani had proven himself and he is now the newest member of the group! Sakaguchi said he thought Okatani was just all talk but today he showed guts, determination and the desire to keep climbing. Higuchi said he will be here for when Okatani wants to challenge him again. The rookie achieved his goal of joining Eruption but his story is only just beginning.

There was another time limit draw on today’s show when Sakaguchi teamed with Yuki Ueno to take on DAMNATION T.A. Sakaguchi saw to it to fight against MJ Paul while Ueno reignited his feud with Daisuke Sasaki from last year. Sasaki fought for the Crossface Lock and then the Crossover Facelock to Ueno when the bell rang for the draw. Both sides weren’t thrilled with the result but Sakaguchi did flash Ueno a cheeky NeppoWER!! pose before leaving the ring.

Down, Set, Fight! I think Chris Brookes hates mascots judging from how his day went today. He didn’t know what to make of Pokotan’s antics especially when the mascot kept getting its head stuck between the ropes. It threw Brookes for a loop even further when it began stealing New Japan finishing moves like the Rainmaker, Kamigoye and Sling Blade. When Brookes had finally gotten enough he gave Pokotan an Avalanche Double Arm Suplex, the Praying Mantis Bomb and then crushed its head with a Diving Double Stomp. That last move was so devastating Yukinori Matsui had to call off the match and get Pokotan medical help.

Brookes continued to attack the injured Pokotan after the match until the room went dark and “Darkside” began playing over the speakers. Brookes walked back to the entrance unaware of what was going on until he looked up at the balcony. Suddenly there was Yoshihiko and the doll hit a balcony dive onto Brookes! The two brawled around ringside and when they were pulled apart, Brookes demanded a singles match against Yoshihiko as soon as possible. Hisaya Imabayashi booked the match for 7th January. Yoshihiko later attacked Brookes again backstage during his post-match interview.

Maya Yukihi became a topic of interest a few days ago when Tokyo Sports reported on CyberFight’s determination to sign her to a deal. Today was her first match as a freelancer since leaving Ice Ribbon and she already has several dates with DDT lined up this month. Masahiro Takanashi pinned Shunma Katsumata to get the result but all of the attention was on Yukihi and Saki Akai when they were together. Yukihi reintroduced herself to the DDT fans and said it was an honour for her first freelance match to be here. She’s looking forward to being in the ring with Akai more often both as opponents and as tag team partners. Akai said she is looking forward to seeing what kind of stage awaits Yukihi after her welcoming visit to DDT today. Even though Akai was polite, Yukihi sensed maybe a little bit of jealousy coming from her now that an outsider has appeared to share the spotlight with her. Akai’s point of view is if Yukihi wants to change things for the better then she will support it. But if Yukihi is doing something wrong then Akai will step in and destroy her plans!

A new warning has come from Pheromones. There is an Uber Pheromone among us! Danshoku Dieno can sense it. It can’t be Yuji Hino because he doesn’t like wrestling against Pheromones and was scared off by their behavior in the ring. Hino hardly took any physical damage in the match but the psychological damage stopped him from helping Toui Kojima & Yuya Koroku have any chance to win the match. Not while Yuki Iino propped himself on the ropes calling Hino’s name with Yumehito Imanari filming the entire thing. Pheromones won the match while Hino fled ringside. Afterwards Dieno bragged about Pheromones winning the Best Unit category at the recent Japan Indie Grand Prix Awards. That means Pheromones have a sign of endorsement from Samurai TV! Dieno’s goal for 2022 is Pheromones appearing on Samurai TV and using their lewd material to get the channel kicked off the air!

The KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles are serious business so the challenging team all decided to wrestle in typical salaryman outfits. Kazuki Hirata however wanted to dance because it is the new year and a lot of people bought tickets to see the show. He attacked all of his opponents with the Tegatana Chop until Yuki Ishida blocked it. Hirata won out and started dancing until Sanshiro Takagi put him in an Armbar. Hirata wanted to quit but Toru Owashi wouldn’t let him. Yoshihiko was thrown in to deal with the likes of Akito and Soma Takao. The Gongitsune from Antonio Honda was foiled by Gota Ihashi and his big belly. Hirata then grabbed Ihashi’s arm and made him submit to a Cross Armbreaker. Owashi called the title defence a miracle because the champion team only has 2.5 people on it (Owashi: 1, Honda: 1, Yoshihiko: 0, Hirata: 0.5). Takao didn’t like teaming with the others and never wants to team with them again. However he perked up when Akito suggested he fight Yoshihiko in a first time ever singles match.

Miyako Matsumoto promoted tomorrow’s Gake no Fuchi Joshi show at the beginning of today’s announcements. El Unicorn and Ilusion also promoted the DDTeeeens!! show on the 5th. HARASHIMA opened the show by joking about his old age. He said he is 24 years old.

The entries for Ultimate Tag League 2022 were announced. The 10 teams entering are HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura, Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & MAO, Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama, Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi, Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul, Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya, Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani, Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata and Danshoku Dieno & Yuki Iino. As mentioned above the winners will become the new KO-D Tag Team Champions.