DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2019! DDT GROUP BIG GATHERING!”, 03/11/2019 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan 5,869 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
0. Under Match: Tomomitsu Matsunaga, Mizuki Watase & Keigo Nakamura Vs Daichi Kazato, Masato Kamino & Shuhei Washida
0. Under Match – Tokyo Joshi Pro 8-Woman Tag Match: Hikari Noa, YUMI, Mahiro Kiryu & Suzume Vs Raku, Pom Harajuku, Haruna Neko & Mirai Maiumi
0. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Chair (c) Vs Shota Vs Toru Owashi Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs HARUKAZE Vs SAGAT Vs Yuki Kamifuku Vs Mina Shirakawa Vs Pokotan Vs Yoshihiko
1. 100 Plastic Cases Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Isami Kodaka
2. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Danshoku Dieno, Asuka, Yuki Iino, Mizuki & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Super Sasadango Machine, Yuna Manase, Jiro Kuroshio, Hiroshi Yamato & Makoto Oishi
3. Gauntlet Tag Match: Yukio Naya & Cody Hall Vs Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Ryota Nakatsu Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Kouki Iwasaki Vs Maki Itoh & Chris Brookes Vs Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino
4. Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title: Keisuke Ishii (c) Vs Fuminori Abe
5. UWA World 6-Man Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Match: Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano & Takato Nakano (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo, Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Ken Ohka, Yumehito Imanari & Miss Mongol
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Sakisama & Misao (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles – 4 Way Hardcore Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao (c) Vs Akito & Shunma Katsumata Vs FUMA & Yusuke Kubo Vs Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura
8. Union MAX Title: Ryuichi Sekine (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) Vs Yuka Sakazaki
10. Souken Holdings Presents Dramatic Dream Match: Kenny Omega & Riho Vs Antonio Honda & Miyu Yamashita
11. BLACK OUT Presents KO-D Openweight Title & DDT Extreme Title: Konosuke Takeshita (K/c) Vs HARASHIMA (E/c)
DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2019! DDT GROUP BIG GATHERING!”, 03/11/2019 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan 5,869 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
0. Under Match: Daichi Kazato, Masato Kamino & Shuhei Washida defeated Tomomitsu Matsunaga, Mizuki Watase & Keigo Nakamura when Kazato pinned Nakamura with the Explosive Axe Bomber (6:58).
0. Under Match – Tokyo Joshi Pro 8-Woman Tag Match: Hikari Noa, YUMI, Mahiro Kiryu & Suzume defeated Raku, Pom Harajuku, Haruna Neko & Mirai Maiumi when Noa pinned Harajuku with the Uranage (8:22).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Chair defeated Shota (c) by Pinfall (2:30 pm). *Chair becomes the 1,433rd champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Chair defeated Chair (c) by Pinfall (2:31 pm). *Chair becomes the 1,434th champion.
0. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Kazuki Hirata defeated Chair (c), Shota, Toru Owashi, Gorgeous Matsuno, HARUKAZE, SAGAT, Yuki Kamifuku, Mina Shirakawa, Pokotan and Yoshihiko (15:20).
0a. Shota, Kazuki Hirata and Yoshihiko eliminated Pokotan by Ring Out (3:57).
0b. Shota eliminated Yoshihiko by Ring Out (4:41).
0c. Yuki Kamifuku eliminated Chair (c) with the Gravure Pin (5:51). *Yuki Kamifuku becomes the 1,435th champion.
0d. SAGAT eliminated Yuki Kamifuku (c) with a School Boy (8:55). *SAGAT becomes the 1,436th champion.
0e. Gorgeous Matsuno eliminated SAGAT (c) by Pinfall (13:29). *Gorgeous Matsuno becomes the 1,437th champion.
0f. Toru Owashi eliminated Mina Shirakawa by Ring Out (13:56).
0g. Shota eliminated HARUKAZE by Ring Out (13:57).
0h. Gorgeous Matsuno (c) and Kazuki Hirata eliminated Toru Owashi and Shota by Simultaneous Ring Outs (14:21). *V1 for Gorgeous Matsuno.
0i. Kazuki Hirata eliminated Gorgeous Matsuno (c) by Pinfall (15:20). *Kazuki Hirata becomes the 1,438th champion.
1. 100 Plastic Cases Match: Isami Kodaka defeated Sanshiro Takagi with the Isamiashi Zan (5:49).
2. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Danshoku Dieno, Asuka, Yuki Iino, Mizuki & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi defeated Super Sasadango Machine, Yuna Manase, Jiro Kuroshio, Hiroshi Yamato & Makoto Oishi when Iino pinned Sasadango with the Spear (13:43). *Danshoku Dieno, Asuka, Yuki Iino, Mizuki & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi become the 2nd KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Champions!
3. Gauntlet Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura defeated Yukio Naya & Cody Hall, Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura, Yukio Sakaguchi & Ryota Nakatsu, Shuichiro Katsumura & Kouki Iwasaki, Maki Itoh & Chris Brookes and Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino.
3a. Yukio Sakaguchi & Ryota Nakatsu defeated Shuichiro Katsumura & Kouki Iwasaki when Sakaguchi pinned Iwasaki with the God’s Right Knee (3:55).
3b. Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino defeated Yukio Sakaguchi & Ryota Nakatsu by Ring Out (1:52).
3c. Maki Itoh & Chris Brookes defeated Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino when Itoh pinned Aino with the Flying Big Head (2:56).
3d. Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura defeated Maki Itoh & Chris Brookes when Ueno pinned Itoh with a Crucific Pin (2:35).
3e. Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura defeated Yukio Naya & Cody Hall when Yoshimura pinned Naya with a Lariat (4:29).
4. Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title: Keisuke Ishii (c) defeated Fuminori Abe with the Pink Kneel Kick (7:26). *V1 for Keisuke Ishii.
5. UWA World 6-Man Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Match: Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano & Takato Nakano (c) defeated Tetsuya Endo, Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani and Ken Ohka, Yumehito Imanari & Miss Mongol when Tsukamoto pinned Shimatani with the Dragon Kicker (9:09). *V1 for Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano & Takato Nakano.
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe defeated Sakisama & Misao (c) when Tatsumi pinned Misao with the Missile Hips (13:46). *NEO Biishiki-gun fails in V4. Daydream becomes the 6th Princess Tag Team Champions!
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles – 4 Way Hardcore Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao (c) defeated Akito & Shunma Katsumata, FUMA & Yusuke Kubo and Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura when Sasaki submitted Shimomura with the Cross Facelock (13:24). *V8 for DAMNATION.
8. Union MAX Title: Masahiro Takanashi defeated Ryuichi Sekine (c) with the Takatonic (9:59). *Ryuichi Sekine fails in V3. Masahiro Takanashi becomes the 13th Union MAX Champion!
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Yuka Sakazaki defeated Shoko Nakajima (c) with the Magical Magical Girl Splash (14:12). *Shoko Nakajima fails in V4. Yuka Sakazaki becomes the 7th Princess Of Princess Champion!
10. Souken Holdings Presents Dramatic Dream Match: Kenny Omega & Riho defeated Antonio Honda & Miyu Yamashita when Omega pinned Honda with the One-Winged Angel (21:22).
11. BLACK OUT Presents – KO-D Openweight Title & DDT Extreme Title: HARASHIMA (E/c) defeated Konosuke Takeshita (K/c) with the Somato (25:38). *V1 for HARASHIMA. Konosuke Takeshita fails in V3. HARASHIMA becomes the 73rd KO-D Openweight Champion!
HARASHIMA fought past his limit to win the KO-D Openweight Title for the 10th time in his career! His win against Konosuke Takeshita today is also revenge for their Sumo Hall match back in March 2017, the last time HARASHIMA held the title. Takeshita focused on HARASHIMA’s weakened back like he did in the matches leading up to today. He used the Walls Of Takeshita and dared the DISASTER BOX wrestlers in HARASHIMA’s corner to throw in the towel. But HARASHIMA persisted and swung momentum to his favour in a big way with a Reverse Frankensteiner from the top turnbuckle. He struggled to capitalise but found an opening when he maneuvered himself out of the Cross Arm German Suplex and then pulled Takeshita into a Short Range Somato. HARASHIMA hit a full force Somato for the victory and the title change.
Wrestlers from HARASHIMA’s generation came out and congratulated him after the match. HARASHIMA thanked them all from Ken Ohka to KUDO to Isami Kodaka to Yasu Urano and also to everyone else who came to Sumo Hall today. Since this was an Ultimate Party, HARASHIMA wanted everyone in the DDT family to join him in the ring for a celebration including Kenny Omega and Riho. When Omega & Riho came out HARASHIMA then called for Takeshita and the rest of ALL OUT to come back. As Takeshita stood on the apron, HARASHIMA thanked him for not holding back. Today he won but next time he might not so they should wrestle against each other again some day. After a little bit of hesitation, Takeshita shook HARASHIMA’s hand and they embraced.
Takeshita left the ring with ALL OUT but the rest of the roster continued the party. HARASHIMA said he could see everyone’s smiles. The DDT groups will continue to work together to create more wonderful wrestling, this time in Saitama Super Arena next June! As the party went on, DJ Nira walked down the aisle and entered the ring. He shook HARASHIMA’s hand then tried to steal the DDT Extreme Title. He played dead when he failed and was carried out of the ring. That was the sign for the wrestlers to leave the ring one by one until only HARASHIMA and Omega were left. Omega shook HARASHIMA’s hand but he sure was staring at the KO-D Title a lot when the new champion wasn’t looking…
Omega returned to DDT so he could go back to his roots. He proved this by switching his AEW theme to the Dr. Wily remix he used during his DDT days. He also wore the AAA Mega Title belt around his waist during his entrance while Riho had her AEW Women’s Title. Their opponents were ready for a big match. Miyu Yamashita wore new wrestling gear and Antonio Honda even attempted a Suicide Dive. Unfortunately he tripped in the middle of the canvas and hurt himself. He told his story and asked for a “Too Sweet!” but it was a trap to unleash Gongitsune on Omega! Yamashita pushed Omega back with her kicks until Omega carried her to the top rope in a Fireman’s Carry position. Riho climbed on top of them and hit a Super Diving Double Stomp onto Honda. Riho later dived out of the ring onto Yamashita leaving Omega alone to finish off Honda. However Honda still had life left in him and he fought out of the One-Winged Angel. Honda’s comeback was cut short with a V-Trigger and Omega finally pinned him with the One-Winged Angel.
Omega spoke to the fans in Japanese after the match. He said the match took longer than he expected so he would keep this message short. Honda was as strong as ever and Omega found out that Yamashita is strong too. He doesn’t know what will happen between himself and DDT in the future but of course he would like to come back again. He was happy to see so many people choose to see this show today during a very busy week for pro wrestling in Japan. He said his goodbyes then quickly remembered to finish off his “Goodbye & Goodnight” catchphrase. A few comments from the post-match interview include Omega feeling nostalgic the moment he stepped into the ring. Enough so that he did the STOP! Enzuigiri during the match but he forgot to do a Hadouken. He feels embarrassed at falling for Honda’s Gongitsune trick. He was expecting the move but thought Honda was giving him the “Too Sweet!” because he used to be the leader of Bullet Club. Omega and Riho said Yamashita is unlike anyone else in the AEW women’s division. Riho admitted she doesn’t have the authority to get Yamashita in AEW but maybe if Yamashita challenges her to a title match, maybe something could happen. Part of the reason Omega wants to do more mixed tag matches is so he can find a rival for Riho.
Tokyo Joshi Pro had a newsworthy day across the show, the biggest of which is a Princess Of Princess Title change! Yuka Sakazaki kicked out of Shoko Nakajima’s Northern Lights Suplex then resisted a repeated attempt of the move. She was able to give Nakajima the Merry-Go-Round and won with the Magical Magical Girl Splash. Sakazaki was so overcome with emotions over the match that she couldn’t say much during the post-match interview. She just wanted to go home and eat hamburgers. Nakajima is sorry that she lost but still feels like she achieved her dream today. She hopes everyone will still support her when she goes on her tour of Mexico.
The big BASARA match also involved a major title change. Masahiro Takanashi won the Union MAX Title from Ryuichi Sekine! Takanashi targeted Sekine’s left arm from the start. It paid off because Sekine was never really able to apply the Let’s Combine. Takanashi was able to roll out of the submission set up and hit the Takatonic from out of nowhere to become the new champion. Isami Kodaka confronted Takanashi after the match but did not say a word to him. After a tense moment Kodaka left and helped Sekine to the back. Backstage Takanashi said he is ready to defend the belt against BASARA and singled out Kodaka as his preferred first challenger. He knows Kodaka will not refuse him.
The most chaotic match of the night was the KO-D Tag Team Titles 4 Way. Hardcore rules meant that there were plenty of weapons about and it did not take long for the ring to fill up. Shunma Katsumata came out dressed as the Joker. That was his first mistake. Soma Takao piled chairs on top of Akito then Double Stomped onto them. A large board with Lego blocks stuck to them was propped between chairs and steel cans. FUMA & Yusuke Kubo slammed Katsumata onto the board. Minoru Fujita helped position two different towers of ladders with tables bridged between them on opposite corners of the ring. Akito & Katsumata later moved them together to be one big tower. Katsumata wanted to dive off of it but Daisuke Sasaki knocked him off instead by throwing chairs at him. Fujita gave Akito the SAYONARA then instructed Daiki Shimomura to climb the tower. Takao blinded Fujita with red Poison Mist then tied his arms to the ring ropes. Sasaki joined Shimomura on the top of the tower and broke a guitar over his head. He gave Shimomura the Pedigree onto the tables then made him submit to the Cross Facelock at the top of the tower. With 8th defences in a row, DAMNATION now wants the KO-D Tag Titles to be considered the top championship in DDT. When they reach 10 defences, they will take the title “to the next stage.” What does that mean? We’ll find out if they can defend the belts two more times.
NEO Biishiki-gun had been unstoppable during their reign as Princess Tag Team Champions. That ended today thanks to Daydream! It was an uphill battle for the challengers. But that all changed when Miu Watanabe got rid of Sakisama with the Tear Drop. From there Rika Tatsumi was pitted with Misao. She countered the Vanitas with a Forward Dropkick then hit the Missile Hips for the three count. Backstage Sakisama was outraged and demanded Misao to tell her why they lost today. Misao stayed silent and took the abuse. Obviously the new champions are in a much better mood. Watanabe said she will cherish her new championship. Tatsumi cannot wait to wear her first title belt around her waist.
The action for the UWA World 6-Man Tag Team Titles match was frantic from the get go. Yumehito Imanari found himself getting separated and outnumbered. Tetsuya Endo used Mad Paulie as a launcher for some of his high flying attacks. Paulie also turned out to be a difficult wall for Urano and Miss Mongol to break but Ohka helped out with the Fire Spear. Nobuhiro Shimatani and Takato Nakano faced off. Shimatani got the advantage thanks to Endo. However DAMNATION’s chance at winning the titles went pair shaped when the champions got back into the match. Takumi Tsukamoto stunned Shimatani with the Thrust Kick and got the win for his team with the Dragon Kicker. Shimatani feels so crushed by the loss he told the others he may leave DAMNATION and go some place new.
Keisuke Ishii is filled with confidence going into the D-Ou Grand Prix. It took a Tiger Suplex into the turnbuckles, the Double Arm Clutch Driver and the Kneel Kick for Ishii to put Fuminori Abe away. His goal today was to both defend the Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title and spread awareness of Ganbare☆Wrestling. He succeeded in both. Abe admits that maybe he wasn’t mentally prepared for today after going through a 60 minute Ironman Match with Naoshi Sano yesterday. However he also thinks the more you wrestle, the better your condition gets so they cancelled each other out. He is afraid today was the final chapter of him getting to wrestle against the Ganpro roster. He hopes it won’t be.
Nautilus came out on top in the Tag Gauntlet. It begun with a strike heavy battle between Yukio Sakaguchi & Ryota Nakatsu against Shuichiro Katsumura & Kouki Iwasaki. Sakaguchi pinned Iwasaki for the elimination. The Bakuretsu Sisters surprisingly eliminated Sakaguchi & Nakatsu by having Nakatsu bump Sakaguchi out of the ring. The NEO Itoh Respect Army came out with a questionable dance performance to “Setsunairo”. Chris Brookes and Nodoka Tenma faced off, showing everyone the massive height difference between them. Tenma then gave Brookes a Fall Away Slam. Brookes gave Yuki Aino the Praying Mantis Bomb and Maki Itoh pinned her with the Flying Big Head. Nautilus were out next and Naomi Yoshimura attempted to do the World’s Cutest Knuckle Punch to Itoh. Brookes gave Yuki Ueno a Cutter and Itoh hit a Falling Headbutt. But when Itoh went for a pin Ueno rolled her into a Crucifix Pin for the three count. Yukio Naya & Cody Hall were the final team to enter. Ueno & Yoshimura had the advantage of more tag team experience together and were able to beat them and win the Gauntlet. Both of them will now focus on the D-Ou Grand Prix.
In the dying moments of the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles match Yuki Iino led Danshoku Dieno, Asuka, Mizuki & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi into doing the Haka then sent them out to keep the opposing team away. He hit the Haka Elbow to Makoto Oishi and went for the pin but time froze just before the three count. “Etupirka” played and we got Oishi giving a monologue about him trying to pick a name for his unborn child. Time slowly passed as Oishi kicked out. Jiro Kuroshio, Yuna Manase, Hiroshi Yamato & Super Sasadango Machine slowly attacked Iino, ending with the Lehmann Shock. Sasadango went for the pin but time froze again. This time we got a monologue from Iino’s father! His father never wanted Iino to become a pro wrestler but he doesn’t him to be a loser even more. That was enough motivation for Iino to slowly kick out. The two teams collided and paved the way for Iino to Spear Sasadango so hard his mask came off. That was what it took for Iino’s team to win the 10-Man Tag Titles!
It took about 30 seconds for Sanshiro Takagi and Isami Kodaka to regret wrestling inside a ring filled with plastic cases. They began with standard opening match moves but even they were dangerous because of the cases breaking beneath them. Takagi hit the Sit Down Himawari Bomb onto some cases but Kodaka kicked out. Takagi missed a Diving Body Press and crashed onto more cases. Kodaka was able to beat him with the Isamiashi Zan from that point on. Kodaka celebrated by piling together more cases then he dove onto them from the top rope.
The Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title changed hands several times on the pre-show. Two chairs fell on top of Shota backstage. Yukinori Matsui found Shota unconscious and counted to three, declaring one of the chairs as the new champion. He then immediately noticed the other chair on top and counted the pin again, meaning another chair won the title. Then in the Battle Royal Yuki Kamifuku did a sexy pose on the chair during her entrance. Matsui counted it as a pin and gave the title to her. SAGAT won the belt with a Backslide Pin on Kamifuku. Gorgeous Matsuno sang while everyone did a train attack on SAGAT. Matsuno pinned him while singing with everyone piled on top to win the title. He continued singing as the field whittled down to just him and Kazuki Hirata. Matsuno pretty much no sold Hirata’s attacks but was pinned when he missed the Gorgeous Superstar Elbow. Hirata celebrated with the Iron Man Title until Michiaki Nakano from Souken Holdings tried to win the belt from him. Hirata left as champion while Nakano complained to Hisaya Imabayashi. If he really wants to win the Iron Man Title he should face Hirata at Korakuen Hall on 24th November!
Tokyo Joshi had an 8-Woman Tag take place in the pre-show. Hikari Noa took the win for her team by pinning Pom Harajuku with the Uranage.
The very first match of the day had the recently debuted Keigo Nakamura determined to be a big factor. Tomomitsu Matsunaga was a bit annoyed by his behavior and slapped him across the face for the tag. Despite the rookie’s enthusiasm, he was cut down by Daichi Kazato’s Explosive Axe Bomber.
The president Of CyberAgent, Susumu Fujita has been appointed the Executive Chairman of “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” in Saitama Super Arena. A street wrestling match inside (or around?) the venue is being planned. This was all announced during one of Sasadango’s PowerPoint presentations. Takagi also promoted his new book about pro wrestling company management.
DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2019! DDT GROUP BIG GATHERING!”, 03/11/2019 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
0. Under Match: Tomomitsu Matsunaga, Mizuki Watase & Keigo Nakamura Vs Daichi Kazato, Masato Kamino & Shuhei Washida
0. Under Match – Tokyo Joshi Pro 8-Woman Tag Match: Hikari Noa, YUMI, Mahiro Kiryu & Suzume Vs Raku, Pom Harajuku, Haruna Neko & Mirai Maiumi
0. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Shota (c) Vs Toru Owashi Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs HARUKAZE Vs SAGAT Vs Yuki Kamifuku Vs Mina Shirakawa Vs Pokotan Vs Yoshihiko
1. 100 Plastic Cases Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Isami Kodaka
2. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Danshoku Dieno, Asuka, Yuki Iino, Mizuki & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Super Sasadango Machine, Yuna Manase, Jiro Kuroshio, Hiroshi Yamato & Makoto Oishi
3. Gauntlet Tag Match: Yukio Naya & Cody Hall Vs Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Ryota Nakatsu Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Kouki Iwasaki Vs Maki Itoh & Chris Brookes Vs Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino
4. Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title: Keisuke Ishii (c) Vs Fuminori Abe
5. UWA World 6-Man Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Match: Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano & Takato Nakano (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo, Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Ken Ohka, Yumehito Imanari & Miss Mongol
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Sakisama & Misao (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles – 4 Way Hardcore Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao (c) Vs Akito & Shunma Katsumata Vs FUMA & Yusuke Kubo Vs Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura
8. Union MAX Title: Ryuichi Sekine (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) Vs Yuka Sakazaki
10. Souken Holdings Presents Dramatic Dream Match: Kenny Omega & Riho Vs Antonio Honda & Miyu Yamashita
11. BLACK OUT Presents KO-D Openweight Title & DDT Extreme Title: Konosuke Takeshita (K/c) Vs HARASHIMA (E/c)
100 plastic cases, 81 wrestlers, 53 men, 26 women, 14 matches, 9 championships, 4 promotions (maybe make it 5), 2 non-human wrestlers and 1 Ultimate Party to hold it all inside Sumo Hall! Welcome to one of the largest shows DDT has ever put together. There are so many people booked that they could hold it in an empty arena and still outdraw ROH. Thanks to a lot of help from BASARA, Tokyo Joshi Pro and Ganbare☆Wrestling this show will have tons and tons of variety. It will probably last an eternity too so you should get comfortable.
The big family reunion is a little bittersweet. On the bright side we get a big star return. But BASARA will become a completely independent company from DDT at the end of the year and they have already begun the transition process. The BASARA wrestlers all have the same goal in mind for this show. Win and steal as many championships as they can from DDT before they leave! Tokyo Joshi and Ganpro have their own spots on the card where they will aim to steal the show.
0. Under Match: Tomomitsu Matsunaga, Mizuki Watase & Keigo Nakamura Vs Daichi Kazato, Masato Kamino & Shuhei Washida
It’s always fun to see a trainee come in and grow from show to show. The abandoned DNA brand was great for that. The first newcomer to appear in DDT since DNA’s disappearance is Keigo Nakamura. For months before his debut Nakamura was made visible on shows by being dragged into the wacky antics DDT is known for. From the swimming pool to the campsite Nakamura always had a side role to play so he became a familiar face when he finally began wrestling in matches. For his first bout in Sumo Hall he is tagging with Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Mizuki Watase to form a DDT team against a combined BASARA & Ganpro team. Daichi Kazato leads that side with the young bloods Masato Kamino & Shuhei Washida. Kazato may still be carrying the spirit of Best Stretchman V3 inside him.
0. Under Match – Tokyo Joshi Pro 8-Woman Tag Match: Hikari Noa, YUMI, Mahiro Kiryu & Suzume Vs Raku, Pom Harajuku, Haruna Neko & Mirai Maiumi
The new generation of Tokyo Joshi is in full effect here. The most experienced women are Hikari Noa and Raku and they only debuted back in January 2018! Then you get the HiSPC class of YUMI, Mahiro Kiryu, Pom Harajuku and Haruna Neko who all debuted over the last twelve months or so (poor Himawari Unagi is left out because of injury). Mirai Maiumi and Suzume are bringing up the rear as the newest girls on the roster.
0. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Shota (c) Vs Toru Owashi Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs HARUKAZE Vs SAGAT Vs Yuki Kamifuku Vs Mina Shirakawa Vs Pokotan Vs Yoshihiko
The promise of an Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title defence has been fulfilled. The belt made its way across the world to Mexico and the United States thanks to Puma King. Luckily for DDT, Kikutaro now lives in America and was able to bring the title back to Japan. Unfortunately Kikutaro already has a booking that conflicts with the date of “ULTIMATE PARTY 2019!” He can only make it to Sumo Hall in time if his match is placed in the semi-main event! Thankfully Hisaya Imabayashi came up with a solution. He knocked out Kikutaro and told Shota to pin him and become the new Iron Man champion. Problem solved. Now Shota has to defend the title in a Battle Royal and Kikutaro isn’t getting booked at all. Everyone who matters wins!
Let’s look at the rest of the field that Shota has to deal with. Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata have been doing the usual stuff in DISASTER BOX. Gorgeous Matsuno’s wrestling career gained a new lease of life when he won the O-40 Championship, a belt exclusively fought for between wrestlers over the age of 40. HARUKAZE has been a staple of Ganpro’s joshi division. SAGAT is the violent yet at times plucky BASARA brawler. Yuki Kamifuku has found her groove in the wrestling ring and is now capable of racking up wins on a consistent basis. Her Pink Ready team with Mina Shirakawa is a big reason for that and Shirakawa herself won a championship in a wresting group ran by Best Body Japan. She also discovered a talent for rap. Then we are left with the mascots of DDT. Pokotan does its best to spread cheer until the head comes off and it violently malfunctions. And never underestimate Yoshihiko.
1. 100 Plastic Cases Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Isami Kodaka
Big Boss against BASARA Boss! The very first match announced for this show pits Sanshiro Takagi against Isami Kodaka in a rare singles bout between the two. This was placed in the proper opening spot because Takagi believes the curtain jerker is the second most important match after the main event. Kodaka wanted a crazy match to mark his goodbye from DDT so they decided on placing 100 plastic cases around ringside. Takagi has grown really fond of using them as weapons lately and they make satisfying noises when they break (take note American indies once the inevitable door shortage happens).
2. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Danshoku Dieno, Asuka, Yuki Iino, Mizuki & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Super Sasadango Machine, Yuna Manase, Jiro Kuroshio, Hiroshi Yamato & Makoto Oishi
Bloody Hell they brought back the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles. Why? Back in 2017 the first champions were crowned right here in Sumo Hall. DDT immediately discovered how difficult it was to book all members of the champion team on a regular basis so the belts quietly disappeared after the first defence. Two years later DDT stripped the champions of the belts under what I will now call the 770 Day Rule. So now we need new champions. I don’t know why but let’s go along with it. Two of the former champs Danshoku Dieno and Super Sasadango Machine were given the task of drafting separate teams to fight for the vacant titles. Dieno chose the fearless Asuka, the rugby fueled Yuki Iino, the Sugar Rabbit Mizuki and the weirdest advertisement for yoga Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi. Sasadango’s choices are the face (and body) of the Pocchari Joshi spin-off Yuna Manase, the soon to be co-opted by the Yanks Jiro Kuroshio, the always first at karaoke Hiroshi Yamato and the left until last Makoto Oishi. With the talent on offer the belts have a second chance at life no matter which team wins. Or maybe it will fall into obscurity until the 770 Day Rule kicks in again.
3. Gauntlet Tag Match: Yukio Naya & Cody Hall Vs Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Ryota Nakatsu Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Kouki Iwasaki Vs Maki Itoh & Chris Brookes Vs Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino
When DDT is in Sumo Hall you can always expect a Tag Team Gauntlet match in the undercard. Some newly established teams have filled out the ranks along with a couple of power duos. Yukio Naya & Cody Hall have spent several weeks feuding with each other. When Naya defeated Hall in a singles match the two put their differences behind them and formed a team together. Their thought process is nobody can stop their heavyweight size and power when it gets combined together. Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura begun teaming together when Yoshimura joined DISASTER BOX but took a step to the next level when they named their team Nautilus in September. Yukio Sakaguchi & Ryota Nakatsu are the two premier strikers in DDT and BASARA joining forces. Ganpro are represented by Shuichiro Katsumura & Kouki Iwasaki. The big wild card is the NEO Itoh Respect Army of Maki Itoh & Chris Brookes. Itoh is at a career high as the reigning International Princess Champion and Brookes is back in DDT for a run in both the tag team division and the upcoming D-ou Grand Prix. Last but certainly not least is the Tokyo Joshi team. Year after year DDT has told fans that The Steiner Brothers are not booked for their major shows. Well The Bakuretsu Sisters are sick of it! The Steiners won’t bother showing up so Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino have taken their place!
4. Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title: Keisuke Ishii (c) Vs Fuminori Abe
I feel bad for Shuichiro Katsumura. When he held the Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title it was he who established the goal of defending it in Sumo Hall. He held onto the belt one match after another until Keisuke Ishii killed his dream just over a month before the show. So instead it is Ishii in the champion’s spot for Ganpro’s featured match on the card. When Ishii declared his intentions to make Ganpro more appealing than the other brands, Fuminori Abe answered his challenge. He also revealed a sinister plan the entire BASARA roster has put together for this show. Since BASARA is becoming independent, they want to win as many championships as they can from the DDT family and claim them as their own once they have completed the split! The Independent Jr. Title has called Ganpro its home for the last two years. Will it make the jump over to BASARA?
5. UWA World 6-Man Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Match: Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano & Takato Nakano (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo, Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Ken Ohka, Yumehito Imanari & Miss Mongol
The UWA World 6-Man Tag Team Titles have been in DDT before. Around 9 years ago in fact. I even have an incomplete title history page written up back when it was abandoned. WRESTLE-1 revived the belts in 2015 only to give up on them in 2018. Then Big Japan brought them back and they quickly jumped over to BASARA. So now we have a mishmash of teams fighting for the titles. Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano & Takato Nakano are the current champions going for their second defence. DAMANTION are one of the two challenger teams. Tetsuya Endo has noticeably fallen down the pecking order ever since his failure to claim the headline spot on this show. He at least has Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani keeping him company. The third team is the alliance of Ken Ohka’s Ganpro and the pervy Pocchari Joshi sub-brand ran by Yumehito Imanari. Former FMW women’s wrestler Miss Mongol has been teaming regularly with those two throughout the year.
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Sakisama & Misao (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
Friendship. Betrayal. Strength. Beauty. Championships. Roses. This match has it all. One of the biggest stories to watch in Tokyo Joshi this year was the transformation of Hyper Misao from a superhero to the Royal Guardswoman for Sakisama. Sick of failure and feeling weak, Misao gave up the mask so she could learn to become strong under Sakisama. Say what you want about her mysterious methods, Sakisama has gotten results from every woman who joined her side. Since Misao’s transformation in March, her personality completely changed along with her win-loss record. The NEO Biishiki-gun team have been nigh on unbeatable and have held the Princess Tag Team Titles for almost 5 months. Along the way they picked on those they feel are below them. Sure that’s everybody but the two most who have received the brunt of it are Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe. In fact this whole storyline began when Misao betrayed Tatsumi during a failed attempt to rescue Watanabe from Sakisama’s attacks. It all comes full circle with Tatsumi & Watanabe joining forces. Tatsumi believes that deep, deep down Hyper Misao is still alive and the evil version of Misao is only a cover. Misao has resisted all attempts to bring back the hero but maybe losing the tag titles could make her snap out of it.
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles – 4 Way Hardcore Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao (c) Vs Akito & Shunma Katsumata Vs FUMA & Yusuke Kubo Vs Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura
Four teams charging into a chaotic Hardcore Match for the KO-D Tag Team Titles. The DAMNATION duo of Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao are currently having the most successful KO-D Tag Title run in years. They are one win away from tying the record for the second most title defences. They most recently defended the belts against ALL OUT so they already have a win over Akito. The difference here is this time Akito is teaming with Shunma Katsumata and he is the closest thing to a hardcore wrestler in the group. BASARA provides the two other teams. The IRON PRIEST team of FUMA & Yusuke Kubo are possibly the biggest threat to the champs. They regularly wrestle the hardcore style and also hold the brand new IRON FIST TAG Titles. A double crown tag championship is in their sights. Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura are also into hardcore wrestling and want to win the belts for Sento Minzoku. The winners won’t have much time to recover. The next KO-D Tag Title defence will be in a week when the champions take on The Calamari Drunken Kings.
8. Union MAX Title: Ryuichi Sekine (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi
On paper this looks like a match between BASARA and DDT but it is anything but. Ryuichi Sekine has been confidently holding his own as the Union MAX Champion ever since he won it back in May. He has earned the respect of the BASARA roster so who could he defend the belt against next? Out comes Masahiro Takanashi. The DDT wrestler said he wanted to take a different direction when he turned down the offer to compete in the D-Ou Grand Prix again. It turns out he wants to fight a strong champion in a match where both men are wrestling for themselves, not their companies. Takanashi will be on his own and Sekine won’t have the other members of Sento Minzoku getting involved. Only the strongest will leave Sumo Hall with the MAX Title.
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) Vs Yuka Sakazaki
Two of the most important figures in Tokyo Joshi’s existence face off for the big prize. The third one is a bit busy but we’ll get to her later. When Shoko Nakajima won the (TOKYO) Princess Of Princess Title in May, it begun the reign of the BIG KAIJU! With the belt getting redesigned, every defence has felt to her like she won the title again for the first time. Thunder Rosa compacting her spine on the ring apron couldn’t stop her, Mizuki’s Double Stomps coulddn’t stop her and Misao’s newfound strength couldn’t stop her. It might take a miracle to beat her. Or a comedian. How about a Miraclian? Well we’ll find out because Nakajima chose Yuka Sakazaki to be her opponent at Sumo Hall!
Sakazaki has gone through some highs and lows during the summer. She lost the Princess Tag Titles but charmed a brand new audience overseas with her appearances in All Elite Wrestling. Her and Nakajima have been testing just how much they have both leveled up in tag matches over the last month. Evenly matched, the champion and the challenger are ready to show everybody the best of Tokyo Joshi!
10. Souken Holdings Presents Dramatic Dream Match: Kenny Omega & Riho Vs Antonio Honda & Miyu Yamashita
And now we get to the big draw of the show. It’s the DDT return of Riho!
(featuring Kenny Omega)
It’s been five years since Omega said his goodbyes and left DDT for greener pastures. A new generation grew up in DDT while he worked his magic in New Japan and turned the wrestling world upside down. Now representing AEW, the doors opened for a return to his original Japanese home. A match at Sumo Hall was certain but Omega had requests for the other participants. He wanted Riho to be his tag team partner. Riho was the first person Omega ever established a tag team with in Japan (before “Him”). The opposition picked were Antonio Honda because Omega thinks of him as one of his biggest rivals and Miyu Yamashita because he wants to see for himself how talented she is. I’m not saying AEW is in her future but I find it hard to believe she will be left out after Nakajima and Sakazaki wrestled there. Both teams have had practice matches away from each other. Omega & Riho reconnected fine but Honda & Yamashita took a few tries. Yamashita couldn’t understand Honda’s Gongitsune trick and kept believing his fake injuries. Eventually they found their groove but will it be enough to beat the AEW side?
11. BLACK OUT Presents KO-D Openweight Title & DDT Extreme Title: Konosuke Takeshita (K/c) Vs HARASHIMA (E/c)
And after all of that we reach the main event. The current ace of DDT against the previous ace with two championships on the line. Konosuke Takeshita had a rollercoaster run with the KO-D Openweight Title this year. He won it at Sumo Hall in February, lost it in New York two months later then regained it at Ota Ward Gymnasium in July. Since then he has had successful defences against Chris Brookes and Shinya Aoki to show that his style is the one that best represents DDT. The only way he can prove this further is to win the DDT Extreme Title.
HARASHIMA came into play when he, Tetsuya Endo and Jiro Kuroshio got into a 3 Way feud over that championship in the autumn. HARASHIMA pinned both of his opponents in a Survival 3 Way Match to win the title and cement his spot in the Sumo Hall main event. He still feels the sting of Takeshita beating him for the KO-D Title in Saitama Super Arena two years ago. Even worse is he still feels the sting in his back that Takeshita’s been giving him all month long. The Walls Of Takeshita has been used plenty of times to weaken and defeat HARASHIMA. He has lost matches both by having DISASTER BOX throw in the towel as well as outright tapping out to the hold. Takeshita meanwhile feels like he is in perfect condition going into the match. But despite his opponent being hurt, Takeshita knows that HARASHIMA is at his best after he has been defeated. Training doesn’t make him stronger, in fact it is losing. Whoever the strongest really is they will be leaving Sumo Hall a double champion!
DDT “IT IS DRAMATIC YEAH 2019”, 18/08/2019 Aichi Nagoya City Kashiwajima Sports Center
1. Hiroshi Yamato Vs Nobuhiro Shimatani
2. Toru Owashi & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Mizuki Watase
3. Shunma Katsumata Marunage Match – Toy Block Hardcore Match: Shunma Katsumata Vs MAO
4. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito Vs Antonio Honda & Intelligence Sensational Grand Passion Mask #4
5. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Biwajima Specialty! Kishimen, Hitabushi, Doteni, Miso 4 Way Match: Yuki Ueno (c) Vs Mad Paulie Vs Makoto Oishi Vs Masahiro Takanashi
6. Nagoya Specialty! Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao & Tetsuya Endo Vs HARASHIMA, Kazuki Hirata & Kazusada Higuchi
Tomorrow’s 4 Way Match now includes the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title. Recent antics has led to Yuki Ueno making it his mission to win and defend the belt. It’s gotten to the point where he is using low blow kicks to win the title from others.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “BRAND NEW WRESTLING 2019 ~STRONGER THAN ANYONE!~”, 25/08/2019 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Yuki Aino Vs Hikari Noa
2. Himawari Unagi & Pom Harajuku Vs YUMI & Mahiro Kiryu
3. Rika Tatsumi, Nodoka Tenma & Raku Vs Yuna Manase, Yuki Kamifukue & Mina Shirakawa
4. Special Single Match: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Su Yung
5. Special Single Match: Maki Itoh Vs Mizuki
6. Suzume Debut Match: Shoko Nakajima & Riho Vs Mirai Maiumi & Suzume
7. International Princess Title – 1st Champion Decision Battle: Natsumi Maki Vs Gisele Shaw
8. Princess Tag Team Titles: Sakisama & Misao (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita & Miu Watanabe
The Princess Tag Team Titles match is the confirmed main event for the show. The challengers Miyu Yamashita & Miu Watanabe are now called Momoiro Sparkling. They asked for fan suggestions on Twitter and picked that name out of 180 candidates.
BASARA “BASARA 104 ~BANQUET~”, 27/08/2019 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Takato Nakano Vs Masato Kamino
2. Turnabout Pro Wrestling Trial: Gouma Ryu Vs Banana Senga Vs Fuminori Abe
3. 4 Way Tag Match: Ryota Nakatsu & Naoki Tanizaki Vs Takumi Tsukamoto & Yasu Urano Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Trans-Am ★ Ryuji Vs Daichi Kazato & Best Stretchman Amazon
4. Sento Minzoku Vs Sakigake!! Iron Family: Ryuichi Sekine, Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura Vs FUMA, Yusuke Kubo & SAGAT
5. Hardcore Match: Isami Kodaka Vs G-Raver
The American death match wrestler G-Raver makes his BASARA debut! He is part of the GCW contingent touring Japan next week. G-Raver defeated Kodaka in the 1st round of the Nick Gage Invitational last year in their only previous bout together.
A few relationship situations to look out for on this show. Has The Iron Family truly put their differences aside now that FUMA is on Team Dove Pro? How will Daichi Kazato gel with Best Stretchman Amazon now that he is only partially possessed by Best Stretchman V3? Last, the opener is between Takato Nakano and Masato Kamino who regularly team together.
Team Isami defeated Team Fujita in “Banquet Fight 2019”. In the main event Minoru Fujita promised a surprise for his mystery partner and it turned out to be Antonio Honda making his BASARA debut. Naoki Tanizaki got the pin to give Isami Kodaka’s team the victory but after the match everyone found out Nakatsu was only in it for himself. Tanizaki is a Dove Pro wrestler at heart and Dove Pro will be going to war with BASARA in August. He noticed Kodaka won the UWA 6-Man Tag Team Titles recently so he wants to fight for them on 3rd August. Kodaka accepted. When that was done Fujita shifted the attention back to his guest Honda. He said he was really happy to wrestle here today. The show ended with the remaining wrestlers wishing “PEACE & F**k” to everybody.
Takumi Tsukamoto used a Gory Special on FUMA to slide him into a Modified Backslide Pin.
Fujita chose from a hand of playing cards to pick the participants and match stipulations for the early bouts. The submission match prohibited strikes and the wrestlers encouraged each other to fight barefoot.
The Drunker match had wrestlers drinking a glass after every kickout and rope break. Daichi Kazato didn’t want to drink so he wore the Best Stretchman V3 hood whenever he had to take a cup. Masato Kamino grabbed the bottle and forced Yusuke Kubo to drink it from the Camel Clutch position. However Kubo spat the drink back in Kamino’s face and pinned him with the Samson Clutch.
BASARA “BASARA 100 ~TENKA ISHIN~”, 07/07/2019 Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall 365 Fans – Super No Vacancy
1. SAGAT defeated Daiki Shimomura with the Zero Distance Goregrind (8:49).
2. Aiseki Tag Vs Speed Of Sounds!: Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga defeated Fuminori Abe & Ikuto Hidaka when Oosugi pinned Abe with a Cradle (7:44).
3. 3 Way Tag Match: Ryota Nakatsu & Akiyori Takizara defeated Takumi Tsukamoto & Yasu Urano and Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino when Nakatsu pinned Nakano with the V Slider (11:20).
4. Special Single Match: Daichi Kazato defeated Best Stretchman V3 (Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi) with the Explosive Axe Bomber (10:58).
5. Double Dragon Vs Sakigake!! Iron Family ~ Hardcore Tag Match: Ryuichi Sekine & Ryuji Ito defeated FUMA & Yusuke Kubo when Sekine submitted FUMA with the Combine (14:47).
6. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Final: Isami Kodaka defeated Minoru Fujita with the Isamiashi Zan (18:59).
The all Sento Minzoku final in the Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ was won by Isami Kodaka! In the semi-finals both Kodaka and Minoru Fujita won their matches with the Samson Clutch so the move was expected to show up here. Kodaka used it first but Fujita was able to kick out of it. The same result happened when Fujita used the same move. Fujita went for the Fire Spear but Kodaka cut it off with a Knee Strike and won the match with the Isamiashi Zan. Kodaka called Fujita his master thanked him from the bottom of his heart. And since the 500,000 yen prize originally belonged to Kodaka anyway, he decided to give the money over to Fujita so he can put together his own BASARA show on 24th July. Fujita accepted the money but admitted there isn’t much time for him to prepare his plans. The show ended with all of Sento Minzoku standing together wishing everyone “PEACE & Fxxk!”
Ryuji Ito’s visit to BASARA had him and Ryuichi Sekine facing FUMA & Yusuke Kubo in a Hardcore match. Chairs, steel cans and a ladder were used by both teams to pummel each other. Ito hit FUMA with a chair so hard across the back that the chair’s frame bent. FUMA & Kubo gave Sekine the Crucifixion Of Death onto the ladder. Sekine Superplexed FUMA onto the steel cans. He finally put FUMA away by blocking a chair attack and applying the Combine to make FUMA give up.
The transformation of Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi into Perfect Best Stretchman V3 meant that Daichi Kazato had to fight his own creation. Kazato used his stretching submission moves but found out that Stretchman was able to withstand them. Stretchman took out a spare Best Stretchman hood and forced it onto Kazato’s head. However Kazato’s will was too strong and he was able to rip it off. He went to hit an Axe Bomber when Stretchman suddenly removed his own hood, turning himself back into Hiroshi. He told Kazato he was now free from the Stretchman’s power but it was a trap! When Kazato dropped his guard, Hiroshi put the hood back on and struck Kazato with a Trigger Point strike. He went for the Stretch Bomber but Kazato countered it with the Rider Kick. He unmasked Stretchman again and hit the Explosive Axe Bomber for the three count.
Kazato said he finally surpassed Best Stretchman V3 but he could still hear V3’s voice in the hood. He leaned in to listen closer and the hood one again found its way onto Kazato’s head! V3 said he can die many times but will always return. But there is nothing to fear. It turns out Kazato has passed V3’s challenge! His reward is the ability to use the power of Best Stretchman without the need to wear the hood. Kazato tested it out by stretching the referee to great effect. Excited with his newly gained powers, Kazato chose the next person he must surpass. Hiro Tsumaki, aka FUMA!
The 3 Way Tag was used by Ryota Nakatsu to prepare for the annual BASARA Vs Dove Pro summer series. The team of Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino did well together despite their lack of experience compared to everyone else. But in the end Nakatsu pinned Nakano with the V Slider.
It will take more than a Rabbit Punch to take out Banana Senga. He still had the wherewithal to block Fuminori Abe and set up Tsutomu Oosugi to Cradle him. Speed Of Sounds also did a good job keeping Ikuto Hidaka at bay.
SAGAT was able to counter the Orange Sunset into a short range Goregrind to beat Daiki Shimomura. With this result SAGAT avenged the pin he took from Shimomura at last month’s tag match.
BASARA’s annual tournament the Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ will be held under a single elimination for the second year in a row. So far there has been no mention of a prize but a Union MAX Title shot is usually the direction taken for the winner.
BASARA “BASARA 97 ~BANQUET~”, 29/05/2019 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
BASARA “TAKATO NAKANO LOCAL TRIUMPH ~TRIBUTE TO THE FUTURE~”, 09/06/2019 Okayama Saint Inn Kurashiki
1. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Round 2: X Vs X
2. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Round 2: X Vs X
BASARA “BASARA 98 ~ASUKAYAMA~”, 16/06/2019 Tokyo BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Round 2: X Vs X
2. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Round 2: X Vs X
The 2nd round of the tournament will be played out over two shows. A decision will be made later over the match schedule but the playoff bracket will go in the order below.
1. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Round 2A: Winner Of Match 1A Vs Winner Of Match 1B
2. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Round 2B: Winner Of Match 1C Vs Winner Of Match 1D
3. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Round 2C: Winner Of Match 1E Vs Winner Of Match 1F
4. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Round 2D: Winner Of Match 1G Vs Winner Of Match 1H
———————————————————————–
BASARA “BASARA 99 ~BANQUET~”, 25/06/2019 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Semi Final: Winner Of Match 2A Vs Winner Of Match 2B
2. Heaven Summit ~Itadaki~ – Semi Final: Winner Of Match 2C Vs Winner Of Match 2D
———————————————————————–
BASARA “BASARA 100 ~TENKA ISHIN~”, 07/07/2019 Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall
DDT “SHUTEN-DOJI 5TH ANNIVERSARY ~DRINKING TURNS YOUR LIFE AROUND~”, 17/04/2019 Shinjuku FACE
1. Ebisuko Tavern Presents Tag Gauntlet Match: Poison Sawada JULIE & Hoshihebi Vs Danshoku Dieno & Kappa Kozo (w/ Miyako Haru) Vs Brahman Shu & Brahman Kei Vs Gorgeous Matsuno & X Vs Emi Sakura & Riho Vs Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Yasu Urano & Antonio Honda Vs Ryuichi Sekine & SAKAI (w/ Sayaka Obihiro)
2. The Final Battle Of The Last Order Of Peace! Group Drama Of Human Beings Born In Showa And Heisei! Which Is Tomorrow! ☆Saki Akai Styling Match☆: Saki Akai & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Rina Yamashita & Naomi Yoshimura
3. KUDO & HARASHIMA Vs MIKAMI & Tanomusaku Toba
4. Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Masahiro Takanashi
Saki Akai will be creating costumes for everyone involved in her match. The designs will be based on the Showa era of fashion for her team and the Heisei era of fashion for her opponents.
Kazusada Higuchi was missing from this past weekend’s shows because of an infection. He has been given permission from his doctor to take part in tomorrow’s Shuten-dōji farewell show.
Poison Sawada JULIE and one of his creations Hoshihebi have been added to the tag gauntlet. JULIE warns everyone that he will burn down Shinjuku FACE with glowing lotus flames!
Kazuhiko Ogasawara has a left knee injury and will be unable to wrestle. Gorgeous Matsuno will now have a mystery partner for the tag gauntlet.
BASARA “BASARA 94 ~BANQUET~”, 23/04/2019 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Daiki Shimomura & Tsutomu Oosugi Vs Naoki Tanizaki & Akiyori Takizawa
2. Takumi Tsukamoto, Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Yasu Urano Vs Takato Nakano, Masato Kamino & Jun Masaoka
3. Aiseki Tag Vs Turnabout Pro Wrestling Trial Combination!: Fuminori Abe & Ikuto Hidaka Vs Gouma Ryu & Banana Senga
4. Yokohama Shopping Street 6-Man Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Match: Isami Kodaka, Minoru Fujita & Ryuichi Sekine (c) Vs FUMA, Yusuke Kubo & SAGAT Vs Abdullah Kobayashi, Hideki Suzuki & Yoshihisa Uto
5. Union MAX Title: Ryota Nakatsu (c) Vs Best Stretchman V3
For years now Gouma Ryu and Banana Senga have been rivals in the court. They get along when they are away from the criminal justice system so let’s see how they work as a tag team.
Jun Masaoka doesn’t want to get along with anybody but he is pretty much a part of the current BASARA rookie generation. Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino have been teaming together anyway. A third partner for them wouldn’t hurt.
DDT “SOUKEN HOLDINGS PRESENTS MAX BUMP 2019”, 28/04/2019 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Masahiro Takanashi & Pokotan (w/ Danshoku Dieno)
2. Keisuke Okuda Farewell Match: Keisuke Okuda, Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Kota Umeda, Mizuki Watase & Yuki Iino
3. Saki Akai & Asuka Vs Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani
4. Legendary Wrestler Yoshiaki Yatsu First Match In DDT: Yoshiaki Yatsu, Sanshiro Takagi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Akito, Kazusada Higuchi & Hiroshi Yamato
5. DDT Extreme Title: HARASHIMA (c) Vs Antonio Honda
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles – 4 Way Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki (c) & Soma Takao Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata (?) Vs MAO & Mike Bailey Vs Ricky Starks & Mike Rollins
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Makoto Oishi
For his first KO-D Openweight Title defence, Tetsuya Endo has chosen Makoto Oishi to be his opponent because he is guaranteed to beat him. That was proven over the weekend when Endo submitted Oishi in the main event of Sunday’s show. Oishi thinks he has a chance because he could outsmart Endo with his wrestling knowledge. Endo thinks he has everything in his arsenal to beat Oishi anyway no matter how Oishi uses his head when they wrestle.
There is a lot of craziness surrounding the KO-D Tag Team Titles match. Konosuke Takeshita challenged the new champions DAMNATION because he wants to get revenge for losing the KO-D Title to Daisuke Sasaki in New York. The Moonlight Express want to get their rematch because they are the former champions. Newcomers Ricky Starks & Mike Rollins saw an opportunity to get involved in the title picture and also want to be in the match. So we are getting a 4 Way Match for the belts. Now there is a new bump in the road for ALL OUT because it was announced today that Shunma Katsumata is out of action for an undetermined amount of time with a left ankle injury.
The mascot Pokotan wrestles in a DDT ring for the first time since its debut at “JUDGEMENT 2019”.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “HEISEI 31 YEARS “AH” IT’S BUSY!”, 29/04/2019 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
1. Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu Vs Haruna Neko & Pom Harajuku
2. Raku Vs Mina Shirakawa
3. Natsumi Maki & Hikari Noa Vs Yuna Manase & Himawari Unagi
4. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Yuki Aino & Thunder Rosa
5. Sakisama & Misao Vs Nodoka Tenma & YUMI
6. Miyu Yamashita, Reika Saiki & Marika Kobashi Vs Shoko Nakajima, Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
With Marika Kobashi taking a break from wrestling soon to focus on her education, this may be the last time the Muscle JK Strikers will team together for a while.
Thunder Rosa makes her Tokyo Joshi Pro debut here.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “YES! WONDERLAND 2019 ~OPPORTUNITY IS THERE~”, 03/05/2019 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Reika Saiki & Marika Kobashi Vs Riho & Raku
2. Sakisama & Misao Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
3. Special Single Match: Aja Kong Vs Maki Itoh
4. TOKYO Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Natsumi Maki & Hikari Noa
5. TOKYO Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima
With 10 defences under her belt and two championships over her shoulders, Miyu Yamashita has been looking mighty unbeatable lately. Yuka Sakazaki has been the same and both of them have more overseas bookings they’re looking forward too. Sadly for Shoko Nakajima when it comes to the most established power trio of Tokyo Joshi she’s been feeling left out. Well no more! Nakajima has challenged Yamashita for the TOKYO Princess Title at Korakuen Hall. Will Anguirus topple Godzilla?
Misao is constantly telling everyone that Hyper Misao is dead and never coming back. Rika Tatsumi doesn’t believe her and is willing to fight her to prove the superhero is still alive in there somewhere. Miu Watanabe has been constantly fighting and losing to NEO Biishiki-gun ever since Misao joined the unit. With the Up Up Girls now down one member and her other partners currently taking separate paths, she gets another chance to stand up to Sakisama.
1. Gongitsune Vs US Freelance Special Single Match: Antonio Honda Vs Kikutaro
2. Super Space Time Wars Kaientai DX Vs Kishiwada Brigade ~ Special Tag Match: Dick Togo & MEN’S Teioh Vs Magnitude Kishiwada & Buffalo
3. Special Tag Match ~Dramatic Dream~: Konosuke Takeshita & HARASHIMA Vs Shigehiro Irie & Kazusada Higuchi
Kikutaro’s original opponent Kuishinbo Kamen cannot compete because of an injury so the match has been cancelled. Antonio Honda has asked to be Kikutaro’s new opponent because it is what he wants more than anything else in his life.
BASARA “BASARA 93 ~OJI GONGEN~”, 06/04/2019 Tokyo BASEMENT MON☆STAR 150 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. All Star East Vs West: Isami Kodaka Vs Fuminori Abe
2. All Star East Vs West: FUMA Vs Akiyori Takizawa
3. All Star East Vs West: FUMA Vs Banana Senga
4. All Star East Vs West: Ryuichi Sekine Vs Takato Nakano
5. All Star East Vs West: Ryuichi Sekine Vs Masato Kamino
6. All Star East Vs West: Ryuichi Sekine Vs Tsutomu Oosugi
7. All Star East Vs West: Yasu Urano Vs Tsutomu Oosugi
DDT “JUDGEMENT 2019 ~DDT RAISING AN ARMY 22ND ANNIVERSARY~”, 17/02/2019 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
0. Pro Wrestling BASARA Offer Match: Ryuichi Sekine & Daiki Shimomura Vs Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino
0. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Match: Yuna Manase, Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino Vs Natsumi Maki, Hikari Noa & Miu Watanabe
1. Shunma Katsumata Return Match: Shunma Katsumata, Yuki Ueno & Space Monkey Vs Antonio Honda, Jason Kincaid & Naomi Yoshimura
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Asuka (c) Vs Super Sasadango Machine Vs Makoto Oishi Vs Keisuke Okuda Vs Saki Akai Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs Hoshitango Vs Gota Ihashi Vs Yuni Vs Yasu Urano Vs El Lindaman Vs Scorpio X2 Vs Yuka Sakazaki Vs Mina Shirakawa Vs Chinsuke Nakamura Vs Maku Donaruto
3. Taiho Koki’s Grandson Yukio Naya Ryogoku Kokugikan First Participation!: Go Shiozaki, Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya Vs Daisuke Sekimoto, Toru Owashi & Yuki Iino
4. Special Single Match: Akito Vs T-Hawk
5. Danshoku Dieno Produce Yuru-chara “Pokotan” Debut Match: Danshoku Dieno, Pokotan & KUDO Vs Keisuke Ishii, Kota Umeda & Mizuki Watase
6. Special Hardcore 6-Person Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi, Chigusa Nagayo & Ryuji Ito Vs Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & Takumi Iroha
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Match: Mike Bailey & MAO (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Masahiro Takanashi Vs CIMA & Seiki Yoshioka
8. DDT Extreme Title – Souken Holdings Presents – Each Other’s Pride Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs HARASHIMA
9. Dramatic Dream Match: Naomichi Marufuji Vs Tetsuya Endo
10. KO-D Openweight Title – RAGE Presents: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita
The first pre-show match will begin at around 12:10pm JST/3:10am GMT. The main show begins at 1:00pm JST/4:00am GMT. For America that means the show begins at 11:00pm EST/8:00pm PST on Saturday.
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Hey there. Back again to see what DDT is up to at Sumo Hall this time? Cool. The time between Ryogoku visits has been short for this one. Usually DDT books the venue every six or seven months. “JUDGEMENT 2019” is taking place only four months after “RYOGOKU PETER PAN 2018” so it kind of feels like this weekend has snuck up on me. As I’ve written in a previous blog post I see this period of the entire wrestling scene as the final chapter of this current era. You can thank Kenny and his buddies for some of the reasons why. The landscape is changing, DDT is establishing new relationships around the world and there’s bound to be more surprising twists to come in the future.
But let’s not worry any further about that stuff. Ryogoku is set for a double header weekend from the DDT family. On Saturday the Muscle brand is back from the dead. What it has come back to do exactly I have no idea. Then on Sunday DDT is bringing together a packed card of matches that only they can provide.
0. Pro Wrestling BASARA Offer Match: Ryuichi Sekine & Daiki Shimomura Vs Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino
One of the big movements happening in BASARA lately is several wrestlers banding together to form the Sento Minzoku unit. Formed by Isami Kodaka and taking inspiration from Dragon Ball Z, each member has grown a monkey’s tail to represent their power. Ryuichi Sekine & Daiki Shimomura are the two guys from BASARA’s main roster to join Kodaka and Minoru Fujita in the group. Facing them are the two freshest faces on the BASARA roster Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino. Nakano has mostly been improving his skills while staying out of trouble. Kamino joined BASARA in December after DNA closed down. Injuries kept him out of action for almost the entirety of DNA’s run so his jump to BASARA so his career has more or less started all over again.
0. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Match: Yuna Manase, Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino Vs Natsumi Maki, Hikari Noa & Miu Watanabe
Some new girls from Tokyo Joshi Pro get to wrestle in Sumo Hall for the first time. Yuna Manase, Nodoka Tenma and Natsumi Maki have wrestled there before. Manase and Tenma were there for a Battle Royal during “RYOGOKU PETER PAN 2017”. Maki wrestled there for All Japan’s 45th Anniversary show only one week later. Yuki Aino, Hikari Noa and Miu Watanabe however are all wrestling their first Ryogoku match.
Manase has quietly been one of the more protected wrestlers in Tokyo Joshi, regularly winning her matches with the Neck Screw Hold. Nodoka Tenma is weeks away from challenging for the TOKYO Princess Title and has a recent pinfall win over the champion Miyu Yamashita. Aino is there supporting her sister as always. Over on the other side Noa and Watanabe have shown the most progression out of the Up Up Girls (Pro Wrestling) unit. Their recent name and costume changes have allowed them to express their personalities more. Watanabe has added a Laser Beam baseball swing into her chops while Noa has become more enthusiastic in the ring. She took the most out of the opportunity to train with Shinjiro Otani when the Up Up Girls visited the ZERO1 dojo in December. Noa also happens to be wrestling the day before her 21st birthday. Last but certainly not least there is Maki. Her arrival in Tokyo Joshi was surrounded in controversy thanks to a burned bridge with Yumiko Hotta and Actwres girl’Z. But once she started wrestling it became clear that she has moved on. Maki has yet to be pinned or submitted in Tokyo Joshi and she currently finds herself in a feud with Maki Ito over who is cuter. The match hasn’t happened yet but if Hotta is still pissed off with Maki she might spoil the result of that too.
1. Shunma Katsumata Return Match: Shunma Katsumata, Yuki Ueno & Space Monkey Vs Antonio Honda, Jason Kincaid & Naomi Yoshimura
A right orbital and cheek bone fracture has kept Shunma Katsumata out of action for almost three months. When he went under surgery in December his goal was to come back in February and here he is. While he was gone ALL OUT went out of this world to find a new member. They found one with Space Monkey who has been winning everyone in DDT over with his antics, bananas and all. Yuki Ueno has been stepping his game up as a member of DISASTER BOX. He’s also been scouting one of his opponents here in the hopes of forming a new tag team. Antonio Honda & Jason Kincaid are already teaming together as Gon Gift so that leaves Naomi Yoshimura. When he unexpectedly returned to DDT in December he was aiming straight for the top and gunning after the championship. In a scary moment right near the end of 2018, Yoshimura took a Pedigree wrong and was left needing medical attention inside the ring. He ended up getting a cervical sprain and made a full recovery, returning to the ring two months later. With his chance at the main event now far away from his reach he is beginning the climb all over again. Maybe Ueno’s idea for them to team up will get him back on track. Or how about Power Bombing him instead? Yoshimura usually likes to do that given their history together.
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Asuka (c) Vs Super Sasadango Machine Vs Makoto Oishi Vs Keisuke Okuda Vs Saki Akai Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Gorgeous Matsuno Vs Hoshitango Vs Gota Ihashi Vs Yuni Vs Yasu Urano Vs El Lindaman Vs Scorpio X2 Vs Yuka Sakazaki Vs Mina Shirakawa Vs Chinsuke Nakamura Vs Maku Donaruto
DDT has spent the last few months searching for fresh blood and obscure talent from across Japan to diversify their roster. Heading the pack is Asuka. No not the one who hasn’t been booked on TV since the Royal Rumble despite being a champion and tapping out the current big star of the company. I mean the one that’s been blazing through the puroresu scene over the last twelve months as “Japan’s First Genderless Wrestler”. When Asuka left WAVE to go freelance, DDT jumped at the chance to bring her back and promote her as a next generation star. Since then Asuka has won the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title and became so attached to it she now calls it her boyfriend. So far the relationship has worked out better than the last one she had in DDT, even though it’s made her a target for jealous eyes down in Roppongi.
(Sidenote: Most English speaking fans write down ASUKA in all caps to differentiate her from the other Asuka. Out of preference I only do this when the wrestler also spells their name in all caps. Asuka’s name in Japanese is written as 朱崇花 so that’s why I prefer writing it in the lower case).
There is a full field of different faces out to take the title from Asuka. Saki Akai has a new finishing move inspired from her current role in the Fate/Grand Order stage play. The move is called Quetzalcoatl and it is a Twisting Crucifix Bomb similar to Kaji Tomato’s Red Eye finisher. Keisuke Okuda has been settling into DDT by fighting at an outdoor sauna and hate-teaming with Makoto Oishi. Who knows what Super Sasadango Machine will be up to the day after his latest Muscle show takes place. OWE is represented by both El Lindaman and Scorpio X2. Tokyo Joshi are sending in Yuka Sakazaki and Mina Shirakawa. Sakazaki in particular will have a lot of eyes on her after it was announced she will be appearing at All Elite Wrestling soon. Chinsuke Nakamura will no doubt be all up to date on whatever his inspiration is currently doing. And then there’s the rest of the usual low card DDT roster. That’s it. Nobody else. I’m not missing anybody…
… Sigh… Okay there’s one more. You know who I’m talking about. Behold the Twitch chat come to life, the one creation that makes Arby “The Meathead” McDonald look pure and wholesome, he’s ruined seven Valentine’s Days but saved two, it’s Maku Donaruto! This walking cease and desist waiting to happen was found in UDON Pro Wrestling and made an impression on DDT management. However his lewd wrestling style and obscene personality is making DDT a little unsure how often they want to continue booking him after Sumo Hall. A lot? A little? A seven match series with Kazuki Hirata? Here’s his biggest chance to leave an impression on everyone.
3. Taiho Koki’s Grandson Yukio Naya Ryogoku Kokugikan First Participation!: Go Shiozaki, Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya Vs Daisuke Sekimoto, Toru Owashi & Yuki Iino
Let’s move on to some history, some legacy that is attached to Sumo Hall. Yukio Naya is only around a year into his wrestling career. He is getting attention because his late grandfather was a legendary sumo wrestler named Taiho Koki. Naya’s grandfather was one of the youngest wrestlers to become a yokozuna and he also earned many accomplishments throughout his distinguished career. Naya has said he is proud to wrestle in the same building where his grandfather achieved much of his success. Teaming with him is DDT’s sumo turned pro Kazusada Higuchi as well as D-Ou Grand Prix finalist Go Shiozaki. Facing them are a trio of big beefy boys! Daisuke Sekimoto, Toru Owashi and Yuki Iino are the opposition in a match that I bet will have many, many chops. And probably a Haka dance from Iino too.
4. Special Single Match: Akito Vs T-Hawk
The #STRONGHEARTS love to cause some commotion wherever they go but what do they do when somebody successfully stands up to them? During their feud with ALL OUT, they were able to get pinfall wins over every member except one. The one guy they haven’t been able to beat is Akito. In order to right this wrong T-Hawk is set to face Akito one on one. As the current WRESTLE-1 Champion, T-Hawk feels on top of the world. It would be nice to see Akito pull him down. Akito is confident wrestling on his own and is convinced that T-Hawk hasn’t watched any of his singles matches. Akito has a reason of his own to win other than keeping #STRONGHEARTS at bay again. He is looking into the idea of wrestling in other companies on behalf of DDT. A win over the WRESTLE-1 Champion can open some doors for him.
5. Danshoku Dieno Produce Yuru-chara “Pokotan” Debut Match: Danshoku Dieno, Pokotan & KUDO Vs Keisuke Ishii, Kota Umeda & Mizuki Watase
You know what’s big these days? Mascots. Put somebody in a big wacky costume, make them do stupid shit, put it online and watch those social media numbers shoot up. Most likely inspired by the popularity of such characters like Chiitan, Nyango Star and you can also include Andreza Giant Panda in that list, Danshoku Dieno now wants a piece of the pie. So he has created his own mascot and went through several names before picking something suitable for everyone. Or at least I assume it’s suitable. It’s probably not but whatever. Anyway the mascot is called Pokotan and it looks like a seal. Dieno himself was planning to be under the costume during the build up to the show. Unfortunately the costume has not been finished as of a week ago. Dieno only has the head ready and he is very upset over it. Will Pokotan be complete in time for his grand reveal?
6. Special Hardcore 6-Person Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi, Chigusa Nagayo & Ryuji Ito Vs Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & Takumi Iroha
Around 14 years ago Sanshiro Takagi, Chigusa Nagayo & Ryuji Ito teamed up for a 1,000m Barbed Wire And 100 Fluorescent Lighttube Death Match in Differ Ariake. They’re back together again to fight DAMNATION! Nagayo’s involvement in the show was already announced when the story of her saving a woman from an assault made the news in November so yay good publicity! What’s even more interesting is Nagayo’s protege Takumi Iroha is against her on the DAMNATION side. Since she is the Ikemen Joshi she might be there to take up the handsome looking role in the trio. Then again Mad Paulie is still on the team so that’s probably not the reason. Iroha is thrilled to face her mentor but is a little nervous that it’s in a Hardcore Match.
On a more serious note, Soma Takao is going into this match holding a grudge. For weeks leading into the show, Takagi has been poking Takao and questioning the current state of his career. Years ago Takao had the potential to become one of DDT’s best and yet he has never really attempted to take the torch. Maybe he’s gotten too comfortable being the mid-level guy in DAMNATION. Takagi wants to light a fire under Takao and see if he has any real ambition. Takao acts like he is angry at the world and everything around it. Now is his time to prove it.
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Match: Mike Bailey & MAO (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Masahiro Takanashi Vs CIMA & Seiki Yoshioka
#STRONGHEARTS have a reason for sticking around in DDT despite losing their feud to ALL OUT. After they lost the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles, CIMA and his crew admitted defeat and wanted to head home to the OWE headquarters in Shanghai. OWE told them not to come back until they get revenge on DDT. The best way to do that is to win one of the DDT championships again. This time CIMA is setting his sights on the KO-D Tag Team Titles and he is bringing along one of his newer partners Seiki Yoshioka to get them.
They aren’t the only ones who want the belts. Shuten-dōji challenged for the belts before #STRONGHEARTS did. The solution was to give both of them a shot in a 3 Way Match. Yukio Sakaguchi doesn’t care as long as he fights somebody strong (and El Lindaman provoking him with spitting and insults only resulted in Sakaguchi kicking him half to death). Masahiro Takanashi is interested though since he’s been able to cross paths with CIMA again. The two are linked through the Toryumon system but split off into two completely different paths. Takanashi wants to show CIMA that his unpolished way of wrestling is just as effective as CIMA’s state of the art abilities.
The scenario leaves the champions looking like a third wheel. But maybe that gives The Moonlight Express the advantage. MAO & Mike Bailey are currently ruling the tag team divisions in DDT and K-DOJO, holding both the KO-D Tag Titles and STRONGEST-K TAG Titles. MAO is as comfortable as ever in chaotic situations and Bailey always looks happy to go along for the ride, the crazier the better. MAO also feels the need to beat Shuten-dōji because they have beaten him so many times back when he was a part of NωA. He wants to move on from that part of his life but can’t if Shuten-dōji beats him again. The 3 Way stipulation being used is only one fall so a title change can happen without the Express being directly involved.
8. DDT Extreme Title – Souken Holdings Presents – Each Other’s Pride Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs HARASHIMA
The rematch for the DDT Extreme Title sees HARASHIMA trying to win the belt back from Shinya Aoki. During his brief time in DDT, Aoki has defended the title in a Boxing Glove match and also got challenged into a fight at an outdoor sauna. This is what bad financial decisions can do to some people. But at least Aoki still has his pride. HARASHIMA has pride too so the two of them agreed to let their prides bring the best out of both of them. So that’s it. Nothing complicated, just a battle to see who is the best. Unless DDT decides to pipe in the Pride FC music during the match as a joke there isn’t much else that needs explaining. Well there is that one thing where HARASHIMA isn’t entirely sure what the exact ruleset for the match is. Aoki just keeps talking about pride and he hasn’t been the best at understanding the general pro wrestling rules. Is there even a three count?
9. Dramatic Dream Match: Naomichi Marufuji Vs Tetsuya Endo
Here we go! DDT usually has a dream match saved for Sumo Hall and they picked a good one this time round. Naomichi Marufuji returns to DDT and Tetsuya Endo is there waiting for him. You’d think Endo would see this as an opportunity to make a huge statement to the wrestling world but he’s a little distracted by his diet. No matter where he is or what he is doing Endo has been eating his handmade meals and drinking his protein shakes on a very strict timetable. This has interrupted several press conferences that were meant to promote this match. Marufuji doesn’t mind. There’s no bad blood between the two and Marufuji is looking forward to discovering Endo’s current potential. The match is also happening so soon after Marufuji’s return from injury so he gets to figure out what his own condition is like. We should get a nice, clean and competitive match out of this right. I mean it’s Marufuji in a DDT dream match. Nothing has ever gone wrong in a situation like that before. Right, Kenny?
10. KO-D Openweight Title – RAGE Presents: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita
After vanquishing Dieno at “RYOGOKU PETER PAN 2018” in October, Daisuke Sasaki is headlining Sumo Hall for the second time in a row. This time he is going in as the KO-D Openweight Champion rather than the challenger. That role goes to Konosuke Takeshita for winning the 2019 D-Ou Grand Prix. In the build up to the match something strange happened. Sasaki started acting friendly, wrestled clean and prohibited the other DAMNATION wrestlers from cheating. He even shook his opponent’s hand after matches. Takeshita wasn’t convinced by this new attitude at first but Sasaki behaved for long enough that Takeshita eventually bought into it. Of course it was at this point when Sasaki could not resist temptation any longer and went back to his usual dirty tactics.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 