BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. FIFTEEN: SEHNSUCHT IST SO GRAUSAM”, 02/07/2024 Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa ??? Fans
1. Hyper Wasabi Cream Puff Death Match: Antonio Honda Vs Mad Dr. Ueki
2. Special Single Match: Mecha Mummy Vs Mr. Bueno
3. Special Single Match: Tam Higashinakano (MAO) Vs Sayaka Unagi
4. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Fuminori Abe & Takuya Nomura
BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. FIFTEEN: SEHNSUCHT IST SO GRAUSAM”, 02/07/2024 Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa ??? Fans
1. Hyper Wasabi Cream Puff Death Match: Antonio Honda Vs Mad Dr. Ueki ended in a Draw when Honda and Ueki both ate a Wasabi Cream Puff (11:02).
2. Special Single Match: Mr. Bueno defeated Mecha Mummy with a Cold Spray Assisted Cradle (11:47).
3. Special Single Match: Tam Higashinakano (MAO) defeated Sayaka Unagi with the Violet Screwdriver (9:05).
4. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Fuminori Abe & Takuya Nomura ended in a Time Limit Draw (20:00).
For the first time ever CDK took on Astronauts and the match took place inside the cramped confines of Baka Gaijin + Friends. Surprisingly given the number of people involved in the main event it was kept mostly on the mats in the middle of the room with actual tag rules kept in play. Chris Brookes and Takuya Nomura in particular got deep into the action leading to a double submission spot when Brookes put Nomura in the Octopus Hold and Fuminori Abe did the same to Masahiro Takanashi right beside him. CDK isolated Abe with double team moves but Nomura came to the rescue. Soon Takanashi and Abe were in a Figure 4 Leg Lock together with Brookes and Nomura rolling them back and forth to try and give their partners the leverage. Both teams then briefly paused to get drinks before getting back to fighting. With minutes left to go it turned into a scramble where neither team could get the win. The twenty minute time limit ran out while Astronauts held CDK in submission holds and the match ended in a draw right when Takanashi rolled Abe over for a nearfall.
Sayaka Unagi was introduced to the world of Baka Gaijin thanks to MAO. He was meant to be her opponent but Unagi was in for a shock when some familiar music from her past played instead. Instead of fighting MAO, Unagi was now going to fight Tam Higashinakano! It was MAO dressed in a full Tam Nagano costume doing all of her poses and catchphrases. Higashinakano encouraged Unagi to give everyone a fired up, passionate match. Unagi used some of her signature moves but Higashinakano got the win in the end, having enough space in the room to hit the Violet Screwdriver. Later at the end of the show Unagi became emotional because she thought she would never see “Tam” in the ring again. She suggested that they should team together some day for another cosmic encounter.
The mystery masked gentleman Mr. Bueno returned to Baka Gaijin for another match. It was explained that Bueno is not a fan of the growing trend of AI so this month he was going to fight Mecha Mummy. Bueno dodged the robot’s attacks like a matador but hadn’t the strength to move his heavy opponent. His attacks also fed into Mummy’s programming and it learned how to wrestle from Bueno’s attacks. With Ueki helping in the corner Mummy was getting the better of Bueno until Bueno pulled out cold spray to slow it down. Mummy missed the Rocket Punch and hit Ueki by mistake. Bueno then made fun of Mummy for being old tech, causing it to open up its body cavity, pull out its heart and rip it apart in sadness. Bueno had to apologize and cheered it up by talking about how expensive Mummy is. The match continued and Mummy gave Bueno a Sunset Flip. Bueno reversed the cradle and used the cold spray again, freezing Mummy so it couldn’t kick out of the pin. After the match Bueno bumped into To-y in the crowd. Tory greeted him with a NeppoWER!! pose and Bueno responded by giving him a glove slap across the face.
The show began with Antonio Honda and Mad Dr. Ueki agreeing to make their match a Hyper Wasabi Cream Puff Death Match! If there is a nearfall then the person who got pinned must one of five cream puffs, three of which contain wasabi in them. If they eat a wasabi cream puff then they lose. Ueki got the first nearfall but the cream puff Honda ate was safe. Honda tried to go high risk by climbing a stool but tripped over it and hurt his knee. He told a Gongitsune joke but Ueki blocked his sneak attack and pulled out his pistol! He pulled the trigger but Gongitsune caught the bullet and threw it back at him! Honda and Ueki then struggled to give each other a Backslide Pin, resulting in both of them pinning each other for a double two count. They both had to eat a cream puff afterward and they both chose ones that had wasabi in them! The match ended in a draw with Honda fleeing while Ueki called for help. Mecha Mummy came out with a drink for its master to wash out his mouth with.
Baka Gaijin’s next show will be “FUCKED UP FEST VOL. 1” on 24th August.
June was the most TV time Konosuke Takeshita has gotten in months for AEW. Turns out just sticking the guy in multi-man tag matches every week with other exciting wrestlers is a good idea. His entire month was spent being in the TNT Title picture getting ready for a chaotic Ladder Match against five other people. There was also the big reveal of him entering the G1 Climax later this summer, representing both AEW and DDT. It’s another step to show DDT and New Japan are getting along again. DDT has gotten El Desperado, Hiromu Takahashi and most recently Toru Yano involved in important matches at DDT shows. Takeshita in the G1 is the biggest move of a DDT wrestler doing something of note in New Japan since the days of The Golden Lovers.
The last few dates of Miyu Yamashita’s American tour took place in June. It looks like MLW might have a spot for her whenever she is goes back to America based on how her last match went there. However that’s a company that has a habit of just dropping things from taping to taping at the drop of a hat. Shunma Katsumata got to show GCW what DDT’s version of death match wrestling is like. He is willing to do some nutty things and there are plenty of GCW wrestlers there who would do the same. Maki Itoh has another long tour with them coming up soon. A few others from Tokyo Joshi Pro are lining things up for the summer. We even got a hint from Yuka Sakazaki that she is training again after getting injured back in April.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 12/06/2024 Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines, Iowa, USA
1. Mark Briscoe, Kyle O’Reilly & Orange Cassidy Vs Kyle Fletcher, Roderick Strong & Konosuke Takeshita
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 19/06/2024 EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
1. Mark Briscoe, Kyle O’Reilly, Orange Cassidy & Dante Martin Vs Kyle Fletcher, Roderick Strong, Konosuke Takeshita & Zack Sabre Jr.
Video starts at 1:27:05 MLW “ANNIVERSARY ’24”, 22/06/2024 Center Stage, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
1. Triple Threat Match: Miyu Yamashita Vs Jazzy Yang Vs Dani Jordyn
AEW “COLLISION”, 29/06/2024 KeyBank Center, Buffalo, New York, USA
1. Mark Briscoe, Lio Rush & Dante Martin Vs Jack Perry, Konosuke Takeshita & El Phantasmo
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Results
GCW “TOURNAMENT OF SURVIVAL 9”, 01/06/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Tournament Of Survival 9 – Round 1 – DDT Death Match: Brandon Kirk defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Psycho Driver onto Lighttubes and Chairs (12:45).
A big opportunity in the death match world opened up for Katsumata when he was invited to take part in GCW’s annual Tournament Of Survival. In the first round he crossed paths with the underdog fan favorite Brandon Kirk in a fight that was branded a DDT Death Match. That meant plenty of plastic cases and Lego were used in violent ways along with lighttubes. Katsumata thought he had things won when he hit the Totonou Splash but Kirk kicked out at one! From that point on no matter what Katsumata threw at Kirk he couldn’t pin him with it. Instead Kirk got the win by dropping Katsumata onto a row of folded out steel chairs with the Psycho Driver.
MLW “ANNIVERSARY ’24”, 01/06/2024 (Aired 22/06/2024) Center Stage, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
1. Triple Threat Match: Miyu Yamashita defeated Jazzy Yang and Dani Jordyn when Yamashita pinned Jordyn with the Attitude Adjustment (4:17).
After failing to win the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title last month, Miyu Yamashita stuck around in MLW for another taping to take on some new opponents. She was put in a 3 Way Match against Jazzy Yang and Dani Jordyn. Yang is the daughter of Jimmy Yang while Jordyn you might remember seeing on AEW Dark on a regular basis during the pandemic days. Compared to the title match Yamashita had an easier time this time around. Jordyn countered Yang’s Black Hole Slam into a Flatliner to roll her out of the ring and then Cradled Yamashita for a nearfall. Yamashita then gave Jordyn a High Kick and pinned her with the Attitude Adjustment, holding her up for an extra couple of seconds for emphasis.
BLACK LABEL PRO “FAMILY REUNION”, 07/06/2024 Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. BLP Title: Kevin Ku (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita with a Fisherman Buster (18:03). *V5 for Kevin Ku.
Yamashita’s last shot at winning a championship during her American tour was at a Black Label Pro show. There she found an opponent that hits as hard as she does, Kevin Ku. The two had a war of attrition over the BLP Title going strike for strike against each other. Yamashita used a well timed Leg Sweep to trip Ku onto his knees so she could give him the Skull Kick but Ku kept staying on his feet. Yamashita hit the normal Skull Kick but that only sent Ku falling out of the ring. He was dead weight to lift back into the ring and when he finally got back in, he fell again, dodging another Skull Kick in the process. But it was all a ploy to lure Yamashita into a trap. Yamashita went to pin Ku and Ku cradled her back into a Fisherman Buster that he held onto in order to pin her for the three count. The two paid respect to each other after the match.
1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Laynie Luck with the Skull Kick (?:??).
The next day was Yamashita’s last match of her tour and took place outdoors on a nice, sunny afternoon. She defeated Laynie Luck in the main event of a Midwest All-Star Wrestling show, overcoming some interference in the process.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 12/06/2024 Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines, Iowa, USA
1. Kyle Fletcher, Roderick Strong & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Mark Briscoe, Kyle O’Reilly & Orange Cassidy when Fletcher pinned Briscoe with a Kneeling Piledriver (13:03).
Last month Takeshita’s road to the IWGP World Heavyweight Title was cut off, at least for now. So in May he took a detour into the TNT Championship picture where he qualified for a big multi-man Ladder Match over the vacated title. It resulted in the most TV match time he’s had in ages as some of the wrestlers involved in the match were put into preview multi-man tags on AEW’s weekly programming. Although in the first tag match it was just Takeshita and Mark Briscoe connected to each other. Orange Cassidy, Kyle O’Reilly, Kyle Fletcher and Roderick Strong all have other things going on.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 19/06/2024 EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
1. All Star 8-Man Tag Match: Mark Briscoe, Kyle O’Reilly, Orange Cassidy & Dante Martin defeated Kyle Fletcher, Roderick Strong, Konosuke Takeshita & Zack Sabre Jr. when Cassidy pinned Strong with the Orange Punch (16:41).
Then a week later there was a rematch with Dante Martin and Zack Sabre Jr. joining in on the fun. Martin would become an entrant in the Ladder match too.
AEW “COLLISION”, 26/06/2024 (Aired 29/06/2024) KeyBank Center, Buffalo, New York, USA
1. Jack Perry, Konosuke Takeshita & El Phantasmo defeated Mark Briscoe, Lio Rush & Dante Martin when Takeshita pinned Martin with the Powerdrive Knee (10:52).
The go home show for “FORBIDDEN DOOR” would pit all six wrestlers in the Ladder Match in a final warm up 6-Man Tag. So at this point everyone knew Takeshita would be competing against Briscoe, Martin, Jack Perry, Lio Rush and one of his upcoming G1 opponents El Phantasmo. The G1 weren’t on their minds here though since Takeshita and ELP were able to tag along without any problems. Takeshita even scored the pinfall for his team. But once the match was over all hell broke loose. Perry attacked Takeshita from behind with the TNT Title belt and then one by one everyone started fighting each other, ending with Briscoe climbing a ladder inside the ring and diving onto everyone brawling at ringside below!
AEW/NJPW “FORBIDDEN DOOR 2024”, 30/06/2024 UBS Arena, Elmont, New York, USA
1. TNT Title – Ladder Match: Jack Perry defeated Konosuke Takeshita, Mark Briscoe, Dante Martin, Lio Rush and El Phantasmo when Perry grabbed the title (16:56). *Jack Perry becomes the 24th TNT Champion!
Takeshita came close to winning the Ladder Match but there was always someone in the way. Mark Briscoe, mainly. Takeshita gave Dante a Deadlift Brainbuster onto a Ladder placed on its side. But then Briscoe sandwiched Takeshita between a chair and table at ringside then hit a Rolling Senton out of the ring through them! Takeshita later put ELP through a table at ringside with the Blue Thunder Bomb from the ring apron. But then Briscoe got in the way again and put Takeshita through a ladder with the Jay Driller. That was the end of Takeshita’s presence in the match since Perry went ahead and won the title.
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Upcoming Appearances
DPW “DPW LIVE 7”, 06/07/2024 NC State Fairgrounds, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
1. Battle Of The Best – Round 1: Shoko Nakajima Vs Masha Slamovich
The next TJPW talent to show up at Deadlock Pro is Shoko Nakajima! She is one of the first entrants in their new tournament called Battle Of The Best. Her first round opponent is a familiar face. However Nakajima and Masha Slamovich have only fought each other once before and that was only just recently. They were on opposite sides of the “GCW VS TJPW” main event back in April.
NORTH WRESTLING “THUNDER STRUCK 2”, 13/07/2024 Walker Dome, Newcastle, England
1. Lizzy Evo Vs Miyu Yamashita
Lizzy Evo was one of the many women who failed to take the EVE Title from Yamashita during her big reign over there. They get to have a rematch over at NORTH Wrestling when Yamashita travels back over to England this month.
IWA JAPAN “HARDCORE FOREVER”, 27/07/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Hardcore Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs Mister Suchart & Anont Alonzo Vs Ultramantis Black & X
Not one but two teams are going to challenge CDK for the IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles. The first challengers are former champions THE GOOD DEAL looking to regain the straps from the team that beat them for it. The other team is a wild card. The UMA Corps are sending over Ultramantis Black and a mystery partner! Is it going to be someone from the Kappa World Order or do they have another monster waiting in the wings?
GCW “NOW AND FOREVER”, 02/08/2024 TempleLive Cleveland Masonic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
So begins Itoh’s next big tour of GCW. All of her dates for August have been announced but none of the matches yet.
GCW “CAN I TRUST YOU?”, 04/08/2024 House Of Independents, Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
I might have to spam the above poster for the rest of the page.
GCW “NO SIGNAL IN THE HILLS PT. 4”, 17/08/2024 Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Who will Itoh step up to in LA?
GCW “SAVE ME”, 18/08/2024 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
This will be a few days after GCW’s tour of Japan, which Itoh will be a part of.
EVE/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “EVE X TJPW”, 24/08/2024 London, England
No location announced as of the time of writing but we do know that Yamashita, Raku, Mahiro Kiryu and HIMAWARI will be heading over representing TJPW. Also Aja Kong will be part of the show too.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 1”, 24/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Time to start spamming.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 2”, 25/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Actually, the “HOMECOMING” shows are usually one of GCW’s big weekends of the year so maybe Itoh defends the GCW Extreme Title on one of the nights if she still has it by then.
GCW “LIVE FAST DIE YOUNG”, 31/08/2024 Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Maki Itoh Vs X
Yamashita will make her return to GCW during Itoh’s tour too.
MKW “CHAMPIONSHIP SUPERCARD FROM SHANGHAI”, 14/09/2024 Bandai Namco Shanghai Base, Shanghai, China
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Crystal
The next Queen Of Asia Title defence is going to be held in China for Middle Kingdom Wrestling. Over there Yuki Kamifuku will put the belt on the line against Philippines wrestler Crystal in a first time meeting between the two.
GCW “TBA”, 14/09/2024 Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Spamming again.
GCW “TBA”, 15/09/2024 Rochester, New York, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Spammy, spammy, spam.
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Cancelled Appearances
REPUBLIC OF LUCHA “ROL7: HIT THE LIGHTS”, 01/06/2024 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Mike Bailey
Card Subject To Change reared its ugly head. Takeshita did not wrestle on the show and I can’t find a reason why anywhere. Mike Bailey ended up facing Arez Strange instead.
DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2024”, 30/06/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 992 Fans – No Vacancy
1. 3 Way Match: Kazuma Sumi defeated Yuni and Ilusion when Sumi pinned Yuni with the School Boy (7:06).
2. Lucha Libre Rules: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul defeated Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda when KANON pinned Hirata after the Freedom Call (10:39).
3. Yukio Naya & Keigo Nakamura defeated Jun Akiyama & Makoto Oishi when Nakamura pinned Oishi with the Running Diving Headbutt (9:27).
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Takeshi Masada defeated HARASHIMA, Akito & Soma Takao when Masada pinned Takao with the Masada No Chikara KOBU Mukimuki (12:34).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~ BURNING Vs TEAM NOAH!: Go Shiozaki, Atsushi Kotoge & Hi69 defeated Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Yuya Koroku when Kotoge pinned Koroku with the Killswitch (15:25).
6. Sanshiro Takagi Indefinite Rest Road ~ Special Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Miyu Yamashita defeated Danshoku Dieno & Maki Itoh when Takagi pinned Dieno with the Stone Cold Stunner (13:21).
7. Road To PETER PAN 2024! Special Tag Match: MAO & To-y defeated Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata when MAO pinned Katsumata with the Michinoku Driver II (26:24).
It’s still another month to go until “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” but today was the last stop at Korakuen Hall before DDT returns to Sumo Hall. One that caused friction inside The 37KAMIINA thanks to the main event. The four members of the group paired off against each other to build up Yuki Ueno against MAO. Ueno teamed with Shunma Katsumata while MAO had To-y as his partner. Everyone looked to be having fun with the match, doing some good-natured poking at each other and the NeppoWER!! pose being used often. The fun then turned wreckless when chairs were set up at ringside and Katsumata crashed into them after MAO dodged his dive out of the ring. Both teams were able to hit synchronised dives to their opponents. MAO almost got the win when he hit Katsumata with the Iai Kick but Ueno broke the pin. To-y came in to hold Ueno back while MAO gave Katsumata the Michinoku Driver II to get the win.
MAO spoke a lot about the other members of The 37KAMIINA after the match because they do not all fight each other often. He now realizes just how great Ueno is after wrestling him today. He also sees how much Katsumata has grown because they’ve been working so hard together. Since MAO is facing Ueno at Sumo Hall for the KO-D Openweight Title he needs to make a decision. MAO is going to run away from home by temporarily leaving The 37KAMIINA! He was about to exit the ring when Ueno stopped him just for a moment. He understands MAO is taking the match seriously and knows just how much he also loves to be free. He does not know if MAO is fully quitting The 37KAMIINA, joining another unit or if somebody else will soon take care of him. But no matter what MAO is doing, The 37KAMIINA will always be there to make him shine!
Backstage Ueno said he understands the heavy weight that comes with leaving a unit because he himself did it before with DISASTER BOX. It is a sad feeling but MAO’s choice to leave also makes Ueno look forward to the KO-D Title match even more. All he wants MAO to do is not take this decision lightly. Katsumata said The 37KAMIINA will continue and will be a unit that MAO will want to come back to. MAO said he will always trust Ueno but does not want to rely on him. He wants to face Ueno in as many prelim matches as possible from now until Sumo Hall and does not mind who DDT will make him team up with. He is doing this because it will be the best way to raise Ueno’s motivation as well as his own. MAO said he will eventually go home after “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” because he loves everyone but does not know what will happen after that. Especially if he discovers a new life he really likes away from The 37KAMIINA.
Miyu Yamashita and Maki Itoh from Tokyo Joshi Pro both consider Sanshiro Takagi to be an important person in their lives because he was their entryway into pro wrestling. So it was fitting for Takagi to have them be part of one of his final matches before his indefinite break as a pro wrestler begins. Tetsuya Koda though thought otherwise. The inclusion of Danshoku Dieno in the match and his lewd moveset being performed on his talent was too much for the TJPW boss to bear so he interfered in the match. That caused the DDT GM and Koda’s part-time rival Hisaya Imabayashi to get involved. Both of them started fighting each other until they both got their faces shoved into Dieno’s backside. The scheduled match continued and Itoh gave Takagi a Stunner. Yamashita then picked up Itoh in the Electric Chair position and dropped her face first into Dieno’s Hell Gate. She then kicked Dieno in the butt and Takagi followed up by giving Dieno an Avalanche Brainbuster before pinning him with the Stunner.
Takagi told Yamashita and Itoh after the match how much he really wanted to wrestle them because TJPW is an important part of his career. Yamashita was the catalyst for TJPW and Itoh has spread it across the world. He will work closely with Koda to help grow TJPW even more. He also likes the idea of Itoh inheriting the Stunner from him. She says she is going to use the move more often in America. Takagi also had news for Danshoku Dieno. Takagi has thought long and hard about who he wants his last opponent to be at Sumo Hall. It has to be someone who embodies the “Dramatic Dream” and Dieno fits the image more than anyone else. Dieno agreed and has a match stipulation in mind. The Weapon Rumble! Takagi swears it is not a retirement but Dieno wants nothing more than to retire him at Sumo Hall!
In a preview for the KO-D Tag Team Titles match at Sumo Hall, TEAM NOAH paid a visit to face BURNING in a 6-Man Tag Match. Tetsuya Endo and Go Shiozaki started off but once Yuki Iino got into the match he and Shiozaki spent time beating each other’s chests raw. Atsushi Kotoge’s plan to focus on Yuya Koroku paid off when he pinned him with the Killswitch to give the visiting team the win. Iino and Shiozaki kept fighting afterwards and had to be pulled apart. Iino demanded a singles match against Shiozaki before the tag title bout happens. Shiozaki said he will do it anytime and promise to damage Iino’s chest twice as bad as he did today. Endo said today was the first time he saw something out of Kotoge. He told him not to hold anything back when he fights DDT.
The battle for the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles has gotten even more crowded than it’s already been. Two members of Smile Squash were at the show today without their belts because DAMNATION T.A stole them recently. With that on the minds of HARASHIMA & Akito things got even messier when they and Soma Takao lost to SCHADENFREUDE International. The consequence of that is now Masahiro Takanashi, Takeshi Masada & Antonio Honda wanted in on the title match at Sumo Hall! DAMNATION T.A came out with the stolen belts demanding to know what the match was going to be because it was already announced as a 3 Way Trios match. That caused Katsumata & To-y to enter the ring and finally reveal who their third member is supposed to be. It’s Aja Kong! After a lot of arguing between the teams, Imabayashi confirmed that the titles will be on the line in a Survival 4 Way Match on 21st July. That way only the strongest team will be left holding the three championship belts.
Keigo Nakamura scored a big win by pinning Makoto Oishi in a tag match. Jun Akiyama was a big challenge for him to overcome but Yukio Naya was there to block him off. Nakamura got the pinfall by placing Oishi seated between the ropes and then hitting the Running Diving Headbutt while Oishi was dangling in the air.
Match #2 was under Lucha Libre Rules as per Toru Owashi’s request. Honda tried to do a Rolling Sole Butt to fit in but only ended up injuring himself. He tried to tell a Gongitsune story only for Daisuke Sasaki to cut him off. Owashi, Honda & Kazuki Hirata all put on Hirata GO!! glasses and danced around KANON, dealing him psychological damage. However Sasaki & MJ Paul attacked them and soon Hirata was dancing alone unaware that DAMNATION T.A were surrounding him. The three of them destroyed Hirata from there and won the match.
Kazuma Sumi beat both Yuni and Ilusion in the latest show opener between their generation. He used the movement of a 619 to grab Yuni and roll him over into a School Boy for the three count.
DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2024 TOUR IN KYOTO”, 08/06/2024 Kyoto KBS Hall
1. Special Single Match: Yukio Naya Vs Hirakata Nii-san
2. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Toru Owashi & Ilusion
3. Special Single Match: Chris Brookes Vs Kazuki Hirata
4. MAO Vs Yuya Koroku
5. STI Co., Ltd. Presents Special 6-Man Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi, Akito & Shinichiro Kawamatsu Vs HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Kazuma Sumi
6. Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino Vs Takeshi Masada & Keigo Nakamura
7. The 37KAMIINA Vs D.O.A!: Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y Vs Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi
Look at Sanshiro Takagi wrangling in a last minute sponsor for his match. STI stands for Strategic Totalsystem Integrator and they’re a tech company.
DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2024 TOUR IN MATSUYAMA”, 09/06/2024 Ehime Matsuyama City General Community Center Special Exhibition Hall
1. Special Single Match: Yukio Naya Vs Matsuyama Warrior
2. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Yuya Koroku & Ilusion
3. Matsuyama Specialty Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Bonjin Pulp
4. Shunma Katsumata, Makoto Oishi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Sanshiro Takagi (w/ Cutie Elly The Ehime), Akito & Tsuruhimeka
5. Special Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Santaro Ishizuchi Vs HARASHIMA & Takeshi Masada
6. Special Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo & Imabari Taoru Mascaras Vs Chris Brookes & Kazuma Sumi
7. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, MAO & To-y Vs Yuki Iino, Kazusada Higuchi & Keigo Nakamura
No sponsored matches here though. Takagi is slacking.
UJPW “ALL TOGETHER IN SAPPORO”, 15/06/2024 Sapporo Hokkai Kitayell
0. Dark Match: Toru Yano & Tomoaki Honma Vs Tomoya & Andreza Giant Panda
1. Zack Sabre Jr., Robbie Eagles & Kosei Fujita Vs Ulka Sasaki, HAYATA & Yu Owada
2. AZM Vs Starlight Kid
3. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI Vs Daisuke Sekimoto & Daichi Hashimoto
4. Shota Umino, Ryohei Oiwa & Tetsuya Endo Vs Jeff Cobb, Great-O-Khan & Kazusada Higuchi
5. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Naomichi Marufuji & Kento Miyahara Vs SANADA, Taichi & Yuya Uemura
6. Tomohiro Ishii Vs Masa Kitamiya
7. Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, Hiromu Takahashi, BUSHI & Titan Vs Jack Morris, Anthony Greene, LJ Cleary, Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney
8. Kaito Kiyomita, Kenoh & Alejandro Vs Gabe Kidd, David Finley & YO-HEY
9. Tetsuya Naito Vs Jake Lee
A bonus match has been added to the next “ALL TOGETHER” show. Andreza Giant Panda gets to be part of the event by teaming with Tomoya as the “local” team taking on Toru Yano & Tomoaki Honma from New Japan.
DDT “DRAMATIC DREAM BATTLE”, 16/06/2024 TOKYO FM Hall
1. Chris Brookes, Takeshi Masada & Kazuma Sumi Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Naya & Yuni
2. Shunma Katsumata & To-y Vs Toru Owashi & Akito
3. DAMNATION T.A Vs BURNING!: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul Vs Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Yuya Koroku
4. Special Single Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Kazuki Hirata
5. Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Makoto Oishi
6. Special Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & Fuminori Abe Vs HARASHIMA & Keigo Nakamura
7. DDT Universal Title: MAO (c) Vs Shiryu
MAO used the GLEAT/DDT show to send a message to Kaz Hayashi. He wants to defend the DDT Universal Title against Hayashi’s masked alter ego from his Michinoku Pro days. That’s right he wants to wrestle Shiryu! MAO thinks it will be fitting for Hayashi to take up the gimmick again and fight for a championship with “Universal” in the name for old time’s sake.
BASARA “BASARA 251 ~UTAGE~”, 21/06/2024 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino Vs Lil’ Kraken & Leo Isaka
2. Iron Fist Tag Team Titles: Ryota Nakatsu & Kazusada Higuchi (c) Vs Fuminori Abe & Takuya Nomura
Perhaps the next challengers for the Iron Fist Tag Team Titles will be decided when Aijin Tag takes on the tag team from Tochigi.
DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2024”, 30/06/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Sanshiro Takagi Indefinite Rest Road ~ Special Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Miyu Yamashita Vs Danshoku Dieno & Maki Itoh
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~ BURNING Vs TEAM NOAH!: Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Yuya Koroku Vs Go Shiozaki, Atsushi Kotoge & Hi69
3. Road To PETER PAN 2024! Special Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata Vs MAO & To-y
The build up to “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” begins with The 37KAMIINA clashing against each other in tag matches as previews for the big KO-D Openweight Title match. BURNING and TEAM NOAH continue their growing feud too.
It is thanks to Takagi that both Miyu Yamashita and Maki Itoh entered the world of pro wrestling. They get to play a part in his final bunch of matches for the time being. Danshoku Dieno isn’t being left out of this either.
BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. FIFTEEN: SEHNSUCHT IST SO GRAUSAM”, 02/07/2024 Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa
1. Special Single Match: Antonio Honda Vs Mad Dr. Ueki
2. Special Single Match: Mecha Mummy Vs Mr. Bueno
3. Special Single Match: MAO Vs Sayaka Unagi
4. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Fuminori Abe & Takuya Nomura
More Astronauts matches to pay attention to in this side of the puro bubble. They are entering the cramped little space that is ARENA Shimokitazawa for what will certainly be a crazy match against CDK.
Sayaka Unagi also joins in the Baka Gaijin + Friends circle for the first time. Perhaps the hardest working self promoter in the business today gets to fight MAO too which is a pretty high profile matchup nowadays.
The newest regular to Baka Gaijin shows is the masked man Mr. Bueno. He impressed with a victory against Antonio Honda on the last show but how will he handle the mayhem that usually follows after Mecha Mummy? Speaking of Honda he takes on Mummy’s current handler Mad Dr. Ueki.
DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024”, 21/07/2024 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
1. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Masato Tanaka
2. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino (c) Vs Go Shiozaki & Atsushi Kotoge
3. KO-D Openweight Title: Yuki Ueno (c) Vs MAO
I’m glad to see we’re actually getting something out of DDT’s appearances on the NOAH Limit Break shows. So far on the shows both Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino have been wanting to fight and beat Go Shiozaki to no avail. Now Shiozaki is coming back over to DDT to help Atsushi Kotoge try and win the KO-D Tag Team Titles. Shiozaki has also been a member in past iterations of BURNING so what does he think of the current day version?
EVE/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “EVE X TJPW”, 24/08/2024 London, England
The four Tokyo Joshi Pro talents travelling over to England for the joint show with EVE are Miyu Yamashita, Raku, Mahiro Kiryu and HIMAWARI. Also taking part on the show is Aja Kong! Since the show is happening in between the final rounds of the Tokyo Princess Cup that means the four names mentioned above will not be taking part in the tournament this year. It’s also been confirmed that Maki Itoh will not be in the tournament either because she will be on her next tour of America during August.
DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2024 TOUR IN SHINJUKU”, 05/06/2024 Shinjuku FACE 344 Fans – Super No Vacancy
1. Yukio Naya & Keigo Nakamura defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Kazuma Sumi when Nakamura pinned Koroku with the Modified Crucifix Pin (7:09).
2. Special Tag Match: MAO & Shunma Katsumata defeated Danshoku Dieno & Kazuki Hirata by TKO when MAO knocked out Hirata with the Iai Kick (11:58).
3. Jun Akiyama, Atsushi Kotoge & Tomomitsu Matsunaga defeated Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Yuya Koroku when Kotoge pinned Koroku with the Killswitch (11:15).
4. Daisuke Kiso Referee 14th Anniversary Match ~ Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie defeated To-y & Yuni when Ishii pinned Yuni with the Double Arm Driver TURBO (10:49).
5. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles – CDK 5th Anniversary Match ~ Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi defeated Makoto Oishi & Shiori Asahi when Brookes pinned Oishi after the H.O.D (8:19). *V1 for CDK.
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: HARASHIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano defeated Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul (c) when Akito pinned KANON after the Somato from HARASHIMA (13:43). *DAMNATION T.A fails in V1. Smile Squash becomes the 55th KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions!
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Yuki Ueno (c) defeated Sanshiro Takagi with the BME (24:01). *V5 for Yuki Ueno.
Yuki Ueno had to take on a version of Sanshiro Takagi that no longer had any restrictions or responsibilities to worry about. Takagi is feeling the most freedom he has had in years and fought Ueno in the most unfiltered DDT match they could have for the KO-D Openweight Title. There was an out of the ring brawl, Dramatic Dream bike crashes and broken plastic boxes aplenty. Takagi used the regular Stone Cold Stunner as well as a top rope Stunner for nearfalls. Ueno countered another Stunner by Dropkicking Takagi in the back of the head. He then used one of Takagi’s own finishers against him by doing the Sit Down Himawari Bomb. Takagi kicked out of it but was a sitting duck for the BME, giving Ueno the win.
After the match Ueno told Takagi how much he loves DDT. His life changed when he met Takagi and discovered this company. Today his life changed again because he was able to fight Takagi in a KO-D Title match that left him feeling completely worn out. As the champion he will continue to take on the dreams of the people he beats so someday he and Takagi will bring DDT to the Tokyo Dome together! Takagi praised Ueno for being strong and becoming even stronger. He then called MAO into the ring to confirm the “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” main event on 21st July will be Ueno Vs MAO for the KO-D Title! DDT’s first show in Sumo Hall was 15 years ago and Takagi is confident those two will put on a main event worthy of the venue.
The Smile Squash reunion has achieved its goal when the unit became the new KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions! It is a significant achievement for the trio because both HARASHIMA and Yasu Urano have never held the title in their long careers while Akito wanted to win the belts with both of them. Akito scored the pin thanks to HARASHIMA hitting the Somato on KANON while KANON was trying to put Akito in the Cobra Twist. Akito gave a history lesson of the group after the match, explaining they originally broke up in a way that left bad tastes in their mouths but they got over it like adults. HARASHIMA said his generation will continue to do their best and he would like to defend the titles for 10 years! DAMNATION T.A however are made they lost another championship in their first defence. This keeps happening whenever they win a tag team title! Daisuke Sasaki blamed KANON and asked him if he’s trying to get into the Guinness Book of Records for having the most 0 defence title reigns? Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul all want a rematch right away.
CDK celebrated their 5th year anniversary as a team by having an impromptu defence of the IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles against Makoto Oishi & Shiori Asahi. After CDK won the match Masahiro Takanashi suggested they should hold their own show featuring different wrestlers from all of the different promotions he and Chris Brookes regularly appear in to celebrate their 5th anniversary even more.
Also celebrating his anniversary in wrestling today was the referee Daisuke Kiso. He put together a match between Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie against To-y & Yuni for the occasion. Both Ishii & Irie were thankful to Kiso for being invited to take part.
Recent events in NOAH led to Jun Akiyama inviting Atsushi Kotoge over to DDT to learn a new thing or two. Together with Tomomitsu Matsunaga they defeated BURNING when Kotoge pinned Yuya Koroku with the Killswitch. Everyone then discovered that Kotoge did not come here on his own. Go Shiozaki appeared after the match! He keeps hearing that Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino want to fight him so how about Shiozaki & Kotoge challenge them for the KO-D Tag Team Titles? Endo agreed and the match will take place at Sumo Hall on 21st July!
Most of May was spent going through what Miyu Yamashita got up to in America (plus a little stopover in Canada). She was quite busy away from shows too because a lot of social media activity revealed she’s been training with Mercedes Moné for her first match back from injury, working out in Ace Steel’s wrestling school and also sharpening her skills in the Dungeon 2.0 with Natalya from WWE. Away from the ring there was even whispers from a blog allegedly written by Kairi Sane that Yamashita and Yuka Sakazaki were guests at a surprise birthday party for Iyo Sky. Isn’t that a nice little thing to hear?
Things went kind of wacky for Konosuke Takeshita in AEW. He was built up for Jon Moxley as an important PPV opponent but things hit a rough patch over whether or not he is really allowed to go anywhere near the IWGP World Heavyweight Title. That situation along with a cartoonish attempt to stack the odds against Jon Moxley casted a shadow that spoiled what could have been an exciting match between the two and left Takeshita looking foolish. A kayfabe interview he did for DDT explaining the problems he is currently going through while adjusting to life as an AEW wrestler has not helped matters either.
Some interesting things are happening around in Asia for a few Tokyo Joshi Pro wrestlers. Yuki Kamifuku is now a double crown champion, Mizuki unexpectedly ended up fighting some kappa monsters in Thailand and Nao Kakuta got to wrestle in China for one last time. News is not going to stop there because we are hours away from Shunma Katsumata entering a death match tournament, Yamashita is finishing up her US tour, Takeshita has sights on a new championship and TJPW is heading over to England soon.
TNA “IMPACT!”, 02/05/2024 Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Knockouts World Title: Jordynne Grace (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
Video starts at 50:05 MLW “FURY ROAD”, 11/05/2024 Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title – 4 Way Match: Janai Kai (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Zayda Vs Delmi Exo
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 22/05/2024 Mechanics Bank Arena, Bakersfield, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) Vs Matt Sydal
LLL “HIGH STRANGENESS – NIGHT ONE”, 24/05/2024 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Abadon Vs Miyu Yamashita
SETUP “CLASH OF THE TITANS”, 25/05/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title: Matcha (c) Vs Mizuki
LLL “HIGH STRANGENESS – NIGHT TWO”, 25/05/2024 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Dulce Tormenta Vs Miyu Yamashita
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 31/05/2024 The Kia Forum, Inglewood, California, USA
1. TNT Title Eliminator Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Penta El Zero Miedo
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Results
GCW “RATHER YOU THAN ME”, 03/05/2024 Egypt Shrine Center, Tampa, Florida, USA
1. Joey Janela defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Package Piledriver (15:30).
The knee being targeted is what ultimately led to Yamashita losing to Joey Janela. He dealt big damage early on by picking Yamashita up at ringside and dropping her knees first into a chair in the front row. The attack paid off later when Yamashita’s leg gave out in the middle of her charging into Janela. She also took a Death Valley Driver onto the ring apron but kept on fighting. Janela though blocked the Skull Kick, hit her with a Palm Strike and attacked the knee again with a Dragon Screw. Yamashita’s last action was to give Janela the middle finger before he gave her a Thrust Kick followed by the Package Piledriver to win the match.
1. VPW Women’s Title: Yuki Kamifuku defeated Alexis Lee with the Diving Famouser (?:??). *Yuki Kamifuku becomes the 1st VPW Women’s Champion!
A new Asian Double Crown Championship has been formed thanks to Kamifuku! The reigning Queen Of Asia Champion has now also become the first ever Women’s Champion for Vietnam Pro Wrestling. Kamifuku even defeated Alexis Lee to win the belt just like she did with the QOA Title. Later in the month Kamifuku defeated Lee again back in Japan at a TJPW show to retain both titles.
MLW “FURY ROAD”, 11/05/2024 Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title – 4 Way Match: Janai Kai (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita, Zayda and Delmi Exo when Kai submitted Zayda with the Demon Clutch(6:45). *V5 for Janai Kai.
Next stop for Yamashita was an international 4 Way Match over in MLW for the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title. She represented Japan, Delmi Exo represented Mexico, Zayda represented Morocco and Janai Kai disregarded her nationality to fly the CONTRA Unit flag instead. Yamashita thought she picked the right spot when she hit Exo with the Skull Kick in the middle of Exo giving Zayda the Package Piledriver. But Kai knocked down Yamashita with the Tornado Kick and applied the Demon Clutch to her as well as Zayda. Yamashita wasn’t going to quit and had the awareness to grab Zayda’s hand so she wouldn’t tap out either. However Zayda couldn’t hold on for any longer and had to tap out to Kai.
MYSTERY WRESTLING “MYSTERY WRESTLING 8”, 12/05/2024 Centre Aydelu, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
1. Jordynne Grace defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Juggernaught Driver (?:??).
Yamashita made an unexpected trip up to Canada for a surprise rematch against Jordynne Grace over at the latest Mystery Wrestling show put together by Evil Uno. The result was not any different though. Grace scored the win again and went on to make more newsworthy headlines elsewhere later in the month.
SHINE “SHINE 78”, 18/05/2024 OCC Road House, Clearwater, Florida, USA
1. SHINE Title: Ivelisse Velez (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita with a Cradle (13:47). *V8 for Ivelisse Velez.
The SHINE Championship is a belt that Yamashita has held once before back in 2019. It was her first championship she won outside of Japan so how nice would it be to win it again almost five year later? It almost happened too. She got the three count on Ivelisse Velez by hitting the Skull Kick but Velez had her foot on the ropes during the pinfall. The match restarted and Velez was able to Cradle Yamashita for the successful defence. Yamashita took the result in her stride and the two bowed to each other afterwards.
DPW “LIMIT BREAK”, 19/05/2024 Durham Convention Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita & Lady Frost defeated Hyan & Vert Vixen when Frost pinned Hyan with the Temperature Drop (13:31).
A new face has appeared on Yamashita’s travels. Her return to Deadlock Pro was also the first time she got to be in the ring with Lady Frost. They make a pretty good team together as shown in their match against Yamashita’s regular rivals Hyan & Vert Vixen. Yamashita hit Vixen with two Skull Kicks and Frost hit her version of the Spiral Tap on Hyan for the victory.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 22/05/2024 Mechanics Bank Arena, Bakersfield, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) defeated Matt Sydal with an Elbow Butt (1:58).
Takeshita made quick work of Matt Sydal. The only thing that went wrong for him was Sydal countering the Blue Thunder Bomb into a Hurricanrana but Takeshita got him with the move on the second try. Don Callis then instructed Takeshita to knock out Sydal with an Elbow Strike, allowing Takeshita to pin him with only one hand on the chest. Takeshita then mocked Sydal by giving him a handshake after the match before turning him over with a German Suplex. Moxley then came down to the ring from the crowd looking to say something on the microphone. Instead he clocked Takeshita in the head with it and said he will see him at “DOUBLE OR NOTHING”.
LLL “HIGH STRANGENESS – NIGHT ONE”, 24/05/2024 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Abadon defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Cemetary Drive (?:??).
It was mixed fortunes for Yamashita for her weekend at Lucha Libre & Laughs in Denver. She lost to Abadon on the first show in a match that featured some out of the ring brawling.
LLL “HIGH STRANGENESS – NIGHT TWO”, 25/05/2024 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Dulce Tormenta with the Skull Kick (?:??).
The next night though Yamashita was victorious against the masked luchadora Dulce Tormenta.
SETUP “CLASH OF THE TITANS”, 25/05/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title: Matcha (c) Vs Mizuki ended in a No Contest (?:??). *V2 for Matcha?
The match was originally meant to be a 3 Way Match with Monomoth also involved. It was changed to just a singles between Matcha and Mizuki with the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title still on the line. Mizuki looked to be moments away from becoming the new champion when she climbed the top rope to deliver the Diving Foot Stomp. However the monsters from the Kappa World Order interfered in the match to attack both wrestlers. Poor Mizuki was even hit over the head with a chair which is something that usually never happens to her. Matcha and Mizuki were able to fight them off with Matcha giving one Kappa a Back Drop while Mizuki took out the other one with the Whirling Candy. The match had no winner but the two signaled to each other they can do it again sometime.
AEW “DOUBLE OR NOTHING”, 26/05/2024 MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. IWGP World Heavyweight Title Eliminator Match: Jon Moxley (c) defeated Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) with the Death Rider (17:24).
Well this turned into a bit of a mess. The day before this show on Collision Takeshita attacked Moxley and Pilmanized his arm with a chair. So now we had the scenario in place where Takeshita could beat a weakened Moxley to earn a shot at the IWGP Title. That didn’t happen. The finish had Takeshita listen to Callis and go bring chairs into the ring to cause even more damage. Moxely then took the opportunity to Curb Stomp Takeshita while his guard was down and then pin him with the Death Rider. So now there is no IWGP Title match in Takeshita’s future. Look, New Japan wasn’t going to let a DDT guy take part in an IWGP Title match of any sort this way. And it’s possible DDT would have wanted a say in the matter too. Wrestling politics can be weird in that way. I get the criticism of how overbooked the story became when you could have just done a straightforward non-title match but I think that argument is a little bit overblown too. Title Eliminator matches in AEW is just their way of calling it a non-title match because the phrase “Non-Title Match” means absolutely nothing to fans these days. You can then complain why do the match in the first place but I’ll argue the match is still worth doing for a big PPV.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 29/05/2024 (Aired 31/05/2024) The Kia Forum, Inglewood, California, USA
1. TNT Title Eliminator Match: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Penta El Zero Miedo with the Power Drive Knee (13:09).
So where to next for Takeshita? Time to take the path towards the vacant TNT Title perhaps? Adam Copeland was stripped of the championship due to injury so now the belt will be put on the line in a multi-man Ladder Match. Takeshita is the first person to qualify after he beat Penta El Zero Miedo. He even got under Penta’s skin a little bit by trying to unmask him midway through the match.
INFIN “PRO WRESTLING”, 31/05/2024 Shanghai, China
1. Yuki Kamifuku defeated Nao Kakuta with the Diving Famouser (?:??).
Right at the end of the month we go to China where TJPW sent over two wrestlers to an event held by INFIN and the Hong Kong group HKWF. The match was Kakuta’s last time wrestling outside of Japan before she retires. She couldn’t get the win here against Kamifuku. When she attempted to lift her up for the Shiden Kai, Kamifuku dropped back down and gave her the Famouser. Kamifuku then climbed the ropes and hit the Diving Famouser for the three count.
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Upcoming Appearances
GCW “TOURNAMENT OF SURVIVAL 9”, 01/06/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Tournament Of Survival 9 – Round 1: Brandon Kirk Vs Shunma Katsumata
We are hours away from Katsumata entering GCW’s annual Tournament Of Survival. He drew Brandon Kirk as his opening round opponent but his real battle seems to be against the airline he flew to America with because they lost his luggage along the way!
REPUBLIC OF LUCHA “ROL7: HIT THE LIGHTS”, 01/06/2024 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Mike Bailey
The original plan was for Republic Of Lucha to hold this show inside the same building that was used as The Temple in Lucha Underground. They got permits to use the building at first but midway during the month those permits were pulled because the building was declared to be unusable. So now the show is taking place in the Ukrainian Cultural Center which is where GCW normally holds their shows in LA. When that was sorted out ROL announced Takeshita’s opponent on the show will be his old buddy Mike Bailey.
BLACK LABEL PRO “FAMILY REUNION”, 07/06/2024 Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. BLP Title: Kevin Ku (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
Before Yamashita heads home she has a chance to win Black Label Pro’s main championship from Kevin Ku. Her opponent has a Karate background just like she does so fire will fight against fire.
I still can’t find anymore Yamashita matches taking place after this so it looks like her American tour ends here.
AEW/NJPW “FORBIDDEN DOOR 2023”, 30/06/2024 UBS Arena, Elmont, New York, USA
1. TNT Title – Ladder Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs X
The early story setting up this match is The Young Bucks wanted to just give the TNT Title to Jack Perry. So expect Perry to be one of the entrants for the match and perhaps even the favorite to win it.
NORTH WRESTLING “THUNDER STRUCK 2”, 13/07/2024 Walker Dome, Newcastle, England
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
Newcastle gets to experience Yamashita for the first time when she debuts for NORTH Wrestling.
IWA JAPAN “HARDCORE FOREVER”, 27/07/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs X & X
Still weird to me seeing IWA Japan being revived over in Thailand.
EVE/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “EVE X TJPW”, 24/08/2024 London, England
One day before AEW returns to Wembley there will be a few TJPW wrestlers heading over to London for a special joint show with EVE. The EVE promoters are currently finalizing the time and venue for the event because they might try to avoid clashing with Revolution Pro’s big show taking place on the same day. The other thing to take note is this show takes place slap bang inbetween the final two shows of the Tokyo Princess Cup. They won’t be able to announce right away which TJPW wrestlers are coming over because of that tournament. Also I cannot confirm this but I heard Maki Itoh won’t be among the talent going over because she will be in America that month.
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Cancelled Appearances
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 01/05/2024 Canada Life Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) Vs London Lightning
The dreaded curse of live TV production came for Takeshita at the start of the month. AEW aired Dynamite and Rampage back to back on the same night due to clashing schedules with the NBA. On Dynamite there was a match graphic promoting Takeshita against London Lightning for Rampage. Then Rampage came and went without the match ever happening. Some previous segments overran and Takeshita’s match was cancelled, apparently at the last minute if Takeshita’s interview on the DDT site is entirely honest.
DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ FINAL!!”, 26/05/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1,005 Fans – No Vacancy
0. Dark Match: Yuni & Keigo Nakamura defeated Ilusion & Kazuma Sumi when Nakamura pinned Sumi with the Diving Headbutt (8:51).
1. KANON & MJ Paul defeated HARASHIMA & Akito when KANON pinned Akito with the Ground Cobra Twist (7:59).
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Semi Final: MAO defeated Kazusada Higuchi with the Iai Kick (11:43).
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Semi Final – No DQ Match: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Chris Brookes with the El Es Culero (13:48).
4. 3 Way Tag Match: Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi defeated Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata and Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada when Oishi pinned Hirata with a Rock Bottom (0:05).
4a. Rematch: Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada defeated Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi and Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata when Naya pinned Hirata and Oishi with the Double Choke Slam (6:42).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Shuji Ishikawa, Masahiro Takanashi & Yuya Koroku defeated Poison Sawada JULIE, Tetsumamushi Endo & Yuki “Anaconda” Iino when Koroku pinned JULIE with a Moonsault Press (9:01).
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Tomomitsu Matsunaga when Ueno pinned Matsunaga with the WR (11:45).
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Final: MAO defeated Daisuke Sasaki with the 450 Cannonball (23:45).
On the 20th Anniversary a new King Of DDT has been crowned and it is MAO! He reached all the way to the final where Daisuke Sasaki was there standing in his way. MAO wanted to win quickly and busted out the Hollywood Star Press for a nearfall. Sasaki then started targeting MAO’s knees before taking him outside to do a Super Diving Elbow Drop while MAO was sitting in the front row. MAO fought back by biting his way out of the Crossface Lock, turning Sasaki over with the Michinoku Driver I and then applying the Just Face Lock. Sasaki took a big risk to get back into the fight by giving MAO a Superplex out of the ring onto members of The 37KAMIINA and DAMNATION T.A below. He then tried using flash pins including the Hurricanrana but MAO wore him down with Palm Strikes, the Iai Kick and the Cannonball 450 to win.
With this victory MAO thinks he now has a spot in the main event of “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” on 21st July. He called Yuki Ueno into the ring to tell him it could be those two fighting for the KO-D Openweight Title at Sumo Hall. However Ueno told everyone that he has to beat Sanshiro Takagi first on 5th June. Takagi entered the ring to congratulate MAO and tell him that he too is fighting to achieve his dream of being in a KO-D Title match at Sumo Hall. The closest he’s been to that position was the King Of DDT 2009 final but he lost to Kota Ibushi. MAO reminded Takagi he still had the Weapon Rumble match against The Great Sasuke that year and that match captured MAO’s heart. So much so that if Takagi becomes his opponent at Sumo Hall then they should have a Weapon Rumble match! But if he faces Ueno the match will just be held under normal rules. Ueno was relieved to hear that. The three of them all agreed by sharing a toast together in the ring.
Sasaki went through a war with Chris Brookes in the semi-finals. The two agreed to have a No DQ Match over expectations that both could cheat against each other. Instead it became a full blown hardcore match with tables, plastic boxes, chairs, a ladder, a stapler and even a fork board laid against the corner with “Fuck You Sasaki” painted on it. Brookes also had backup in the form of Mecha Mummy but Sasaki used a taser to make it short circuit and play no further part in the match. Sasaki was thrown from the ladder through a table and Brookes followed up by hitting a Diving Double Knee Drop onto the remains. Sasaki kicked out and then countered the Praying Mantis Bomb into El Es Culero cradle to steal the win from out of nowhere. A bloody Brookes threw everything he could get his hands on around the ring out of anger after the match.
The other semi-final had MAO beating a previous King Of DDT winner Kazusada Higuchi. He had to use Middle Kicks and Palm Strikes to try and match Higuchi’s Chops and Headbutt. The Doctor Bomb Higuchi used was kicked out of but so was the Green Tea Plunge that MAO pulled out. The match came down to duel between the two. Higuchi charged in looking to do the Buchikamashi but MAO blocked it with a Thrust Kick, stunned Higuchi with a Palm Strike, cut off a Lariat with a Hurricane Kick and finally put his opponent down with the Iai Kick. Higuchi had no problem admitting backstage that MAO is a really, really strong wrestler.
Ueno and Takagi used their 6-Man Tag as a preview for what to expect in the KO-D Title bout by brawling with each other in the crowd with the Dramatic Dream bike involved before taking the fight up to the balcony. They had more to offer back in the ring with Ueno doing a Dropkick and Takagi firing back with the Stunner. Tomomitsu Matsunaga used the opening to hit Ueno with the Tommy Bomber for a nearfall. Ueno recovered and Dropkicked Matsunaga in the face before pinning him with the WR. After the match Takagi said he does not care if Ueno is ready or not for the title match. Takagi is now free from responsibility and will be at his most immature on 5th June! Meanwhile To-y told Shunma Katsumata they will be enemies on 21st June because he wants to win the DDT Extreme Title from him in the 5 Way Sauna match. In fact, To-y accused Katsumata of not helping him during today’s match so they may already be enemies!
Plans for Match #4 changed when before the match Poison Sawada JULIE looking for his teammates to brainwash them with his Snake Magic. While this was going on, Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino asked Yuya Koroku in a nearby locker room to go find them something to drink. Koroku found some cans labelled “Modification Drink” in the room where JULIE was just in and gave them to his BURNING partners. What happened when they drank it scared Koroku out of the room while a returning JULIE was pleased with the results. It all became clear what happened when JULIE entered the ring with Endo & Iino both brainwashed into becoming Tetsumamushi Endo & Yuki “Anaconda” Iino! Koroku now had to team with JULIE’s original partners Shuji Ishikawa & Masahiro Takanashi in order to win the antidotes that would turn Endo & Iino back to normal. It was a tough challenge but a well timed dodge from Kuroku caused Iino to Spear Endo by accident. Koroku then gave JULIE a Back Drop and pinned him with the Moonsault Press. He then quickly fed his friends the cans of antidote to free them from JULIE’s snake magic. Whenever JULIE returns to DDT he promises to get revenge on Koroku for stopping him from turning BURNING into his new Snake Magic army.
The 3 Way Tag Match ended too quickly thanks to Makoto Oishi immediately pinning Kazuki Hirata with a Rock Bottom before one of the other teams even made it to the ring. It required a restart and the same result almost happened. Yukio Naya made it in time to break it up so the match could continue. A noticable trend then happened where Takeshi Masada became left out of all of the multi-man spots. Somehow Yukinori Matsui took his place! When Masada became upset over it, Hisaya Imabayashi paused the match and ordered everyone to let Masada be more involved because he is already a lonely college student. Most of them although Danshoku Dieno wasn’t really interested. Naya instructed Masada to climb the top turnbuckle and wait for the opportunity to do a big move while Naya took care of Dieno and Toru Owashi. Oishi and Hirata tried to give Naya the Double Miracle Ecstasy but it was countered into a Double Choke Slam. Naya decided to pin the both of them while Masada was still waiting on the top turnbuckle. The match ended with them as the winners but a sad and lonely Masada took his time to leave the ring.
DAMNATION T.A halted some of Smile Squash’s momentum in the opening match. HARASHIMA & Akito were doing well against KANON & MJ Paul until KANON caught Akito in the Cobra Twist. He then grounded the move and rolled Akito over to pin his shoulders to the mat for a 3 count. KANON bragged about beating Akito with a roll up style move, something that Akito is meant to be a master of. Fans like it when teams from the past reunite but he hates it and for that reason hates Smile Squash too. HARASHIMA & Yasu Urano weren’t angry over the result. They assured Akito that they now all learned KANON is capable of winning that way and they will have to be careful of it in the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match.
In the dark match Yuni hit Ilusion & Kazuma Sumi with a top rope Moonsault out of the ring. He then gave Sumi a Spinning DDT in the ring and Keigo Nakamura followed up with the John Woo Dropkick for a nearfall. Nakamura didn’t waste anytime and landed the Diving Headbutt to get the win.
A new singles match was announced for “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024”. Konosuke Takeshita will face Masato Tanaka in a rematch from March 2020!
There was an announcement during the show that DDT and GCW will be co-promoting a show together in Korakuen Hall on 12th August as part of GCW’s next tour of Japan. The show is called “NEVER ENDING NOISY SUMMER” and Effy sent in a video message to promote it. GCW talent currently announced for the show include Joey Janela, Effy, Allie Katch, Masha Slamovich, Mance Warner, Jordan Oliver, Dark Sheik, Alex Zayne and Rina Yamashita.
Before any of the matches began there was a special presentation held by Saki Akai. One of her first projects with DDT since retiring from pro wrestling last year was to set up a crowdfunding campaign to buy new training equipment for the company. The campaign succeeded and today Akai donated the new equipment to Takagi and DDT.
DDT will be launching a new photobook with Leslie Kee on 21st July. They previously worked together for a photobook called “Super DDT” back in 2013.
BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. FOURTEEN: NONE OF THEM KNEW THEY WERE ROBOTS”, 21/05/2024 Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa ??? Fans
1. Special Single Match: Chris Brookes Vs The Invisible Man
2. Special Single Match: Masahiro Takanashi Vs Ram Kaichow
3. Special Single Match: Mecha MAO (w/ Mad Dr. Ueki) Vs Takagi Sanshirobo (w/ Mad Dr. Hige)
4. Special Single Match: Antonio Honda Vs Mr. Bueno
BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. FOURTEEN: NONE OF THEM KNEW THEY WERE ROBOTS”, 21/05/2024 Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa ??? Fans
1. Special Single Match: The Invisible Man defeated Chris Brookes with a Frankensteiner (9:30).
2. Special Single Match: Masahiro Takanashi defeated Ram Kaichow with a Title Belt Attack (8:32).
3. Special Single Match: Mecha MAO (w/ Mad Dr. Ueki) Vs Takagi Sanshirobo (w/ Mad Dr. Hige) ended in a No Contest (11:52).
4. Special Single Match: Mr. Bueno defeated Antonio Honda with the Bueno Splash (15:58).
Slowly but surely Baka Gaijin + Friends have been growing a cast of characters you will rarely see anywhere else. The main event was the first appearance anywhere of a mariachi masked luchador named Mr. Bueno. His match against Antonio Honda had some serious background behind it. According to Mr. HAKU on commentary, Bueno’s parents were stung to death by bees so he has a hatred of hone. Honda really likes honey though which is where the conflict between them comes from. Bueno was able to hold back his anger and wrestle Honda like a gentleman. Both kept apologising to the fans they bumped into while fighting in the small venue. Bueno was able to beat Honda by climbing the bar counter and hitting the Bueno Splash. It took him two tries to do it because he hit his head off the ceiling the first time around.
The robots have taken over and more are coming! Two made scientists sent their greatest creations to battle when Mecha MAO fought Takagi Sanshirobo. It was an evenly fought match not just between the robots but between Mad Dr. Ueki and Mad Dr. Hige too. Things became even more dangerous when the match was interrupted by the emergence of a third robotic fighter known only as K-5000. Made out of liquid metal, K-5000 was resistant to all attacks that Mecha MAO and Sanshirobo could throw at it. Nothing could stop K-5000’s rampage so the other robots sacrificed themselves for one final chance at saving the world. Sanshirobo grabbed hold of K-5000 while MAO self destructed next to them. When the dust settled everyone was down and out… except for K-5000! The match was called off and there was no winner.
Masahiro Takanashi defeated Ram Kaichow in what was a pretty straightforward match until the finish. There was a lot of matwork until Kaichow gave Takanashi a Choke Slam. She then tried to give him the Rainmaker but Takanashi pulled the ref into her way to block it. He then grabbed one of the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Title belts from Chris Brookes and hit Kaichow over the head with it. The ref recovered after all of this and counted the pin none the wiser. After the match CDK tried to attack Kaichow again but she fought them off by giving Brookes a Tilt-O-Whirl DDT and then giving Takanashi the Rainmaker.
Brookes caused some trouble elsewhere earlier in the show. He fought The Invisible Man in the opening bout, losing to his unseen opponent thanks to a flash Frankensteiner out of nowhere. After the match Brookes showed respect to The Invisible Man by asking him to join his team for a big multi-person match taking place in Gatoh Move on 30th May. The match is going to be Baka Gaijin + Friends against New Beijing Pro Wrestling. Suddenly Sayaka walked over to them and complained about being left off the Baka Gaijin team despite always working on the shows behind the scenes. Brookes saw her point and announced she has been added to the team instead of The Invisible Man!
The next show will take place on 2nd July. After that Baka Gaijin and MAO will be holding an event called “FUCKED UP FEST VOL. 1” on 24th August that will feature music as well as wrestling matches.