DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” Results

July 21, 2024

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024”, 21/07/2024
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
4,131 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Keigo Nakamura, Yuki Ishida & Kazuma Sumi defeated Yuni, Yuya Koroku & Ilusion when Nakamura pinned Yuni with the Running Diving Headbutt (7:37).
2. 6-Man Tag Match Featuring People Connected To Sanshiro Takagi: Toru Owashi, Hisamaru Tajima & Shinichiro Kawamatsu defeated Makoto Oishi, Soma Takao & Ippanjin Munenori Sawa when Kawamatsu pinned Oishi with the Axe Bomber (6:28).
3. Special Single Match: Super Sasadango Machine defeated Kazuki Hirata with a School Boy (11:53).
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Tomomitsu Matsunaga defeated Minoru Suzuki, Shuji Ishikawa & Hikaru Sato when Naya pinned Sato with the Wrist-Clutch Back Drop (12:18).
5. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Sanshiro Takagi Indefinite Rest Road FINAL ~ Weapon Rumble: Danshoku Dieno (c) defeated Sanshiro Takagi with the Gotch-Style Piledriver (20:54).
*V? for Danshoku Dieno.
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles – Survival 4 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul defeated HARASHIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano (c), Aja Kong, Shunma Katsumata & To-y and Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada (17:30).
6a. HARASHIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano (c) eliminated Aja Kong, Shunma Katsumata & To-y when Akito pinned Katsumata with a Step Over Toe Hold (8:40).
6b. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul eliminated HARASHIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano (c) when KANON pinned Akito after the Freedom Call (15:28).
6c. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul eliminated Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada when Paul Sasaki submitted Masada with La Mistica Crossface Lock (17:30).
*Smile Squash fails in V1. DAMNATION T.A becomes the 56th KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions!
7. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated Masato Tanaka with an Elbow Butt (14:42).
8. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino (c) defeated Go Shiozaki & Atsushi Kotoge when Endo pinned Kotoge with the Burning Star Press (20:37).
*V3 for BURNING.
9. Dramatic Dream Match – No DQ Match: El Desperado defeated Chris Brookes with the Pinche Loco on the Barbed Wire Board (22:12).
10. KO-D Openweight Title – Goodcom Assets Presents: Yuki Ueno (c) defeated MAO with the WR (29:44).
*V6 for Yuki Ueno.

The story of MAO running away from The 37KAMIINA has come to an end. He wasn’t able to win the KO-D Openweight Title from Yuki Ueno after all but it still became a happy ending for everyone involved with the group. The two went all out against each other both inside and out of the ring. Over on the ramp Ueno gave MAO the Canadian Destroyer only for MAO to fire back with the same move. Ueno rolled off the ramp afterwards so MAO reached out and helped him back to the ring so the match wouldn’t end by countout. Ueno dodged the Phoenix Splash and used the Jul.2 for a nearfall. Then there was a trade off between Ueno’s Blackout Sleeper and MAO’s Just Face Lock. There was then a battle of Dropkicks with both wrestlers using the move on each other again and again. MAO used the Iai Kick but only got a two count. Instead Ueno got him in the WR to pin him and retain the championship.

After the match Ueno gave MAO a hug. He said that whenever he feels exhausted or loses his confidence, he will look at MAO to become an even better man. He is sure MAO feels the same way about him. Today he is glad he put his life on the line in Sumo Hall to fight MAO for DDT’s greatest championship. However MAO declined to shake Ueno’s hand and he left the ring. Ueno still praised him for being a free spirit and if he can beat somebody like him then he can beat anybody. Ueno then called Shinya Aoki to the ring and nominated him as his next challenger for the KO-D Title. Aoki said that ever since his fight against Kazushi Sakuraba in 2015, the next opponent and place he wanted to get the most is Yuki Ueno in DDT. Hisaya Imabayashi endorsed the challenge and announced the title match will take place on 25th August.

Ueno closed out the day by telling the fans he and DDT will continue to show everyone their dreams in the ring. Ueno left the ring and walked up the ramp where he was suddenly greeted by MAO again. MAO has decided he is no longer running away from home and has returned to The 37KAMIINA! Shunma Katsumata and To-y also appeared alongside them and the four went backstage together. In the hallway they found Konosuke Takeshita waiting for them. He simply gave them a thumbs up and walked away.

Yesterday at a public press conference Chris Brookes and El Desperado agreed that their match today should be held under No DQ Rules. The ring was already armed with a barbed wire board, a fork board and a bunch of plastic cases lying around waiting for the chaos to start. It began with Desperado bringing out two bouquets of flowers and handing one over to Brookes. They then both attacked each other with the bouquets. As the fighting got more intense Desperado busted open Brookes and in return Brookes took out a pair of scissors to cut up his opponent’s mask. Desperado then decided to pull it off and wrestle the rest of the match fully unmasked! A stapler gun was brought in and the two of them stapled each other back and forth all over their bodies. The envelope used for the “DESPE-INVITACIONAL” was also stapled onto them. SCHADENFREUDE International interfered in the match to gang up on Desperado but he fought them off by spraying them with a fire extinguisher. Brookes did the Praying Mantis Bomb but only got a two count while Desperado hit the Mad Splash on top of the barbed wire board for a nearfall. The end came when Desperado gave Brookes the Lip Lock and then dropped him on top of the barbed wire with the Pinche Loco. Brookes said he is frustrated over losing but also happy because he feels so alive after the match. Desperado said he got a great taste of DDT. He does not know if he will ever get another taste but he hopes to do it again some day. However not long after the show New Japan announced that Desperado is taking a leave of absence to recover from injuries. Desperado made it clear on social media that Brookes and the match they had are not at fault for it.

The last few months have seen Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino from BURNING feud with Go Shiozaki across DDT and NOAH. It was all building up to the KO-D Tag Team Titles defence here with Shiozaki teaming with Atsushi Kotoge. Since both Endo & Iino were focused on solely beating Shiozaki, Kotoge became frustrated at being ignored. It was on full show here because Kotoge busted himself open from Headbutting Endo too much! Shiozaki was taken out by Iino’s Lariat leaving Endo to fight Kotoge. Endo gave him a Headbutt of his own before doing the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb for a nearfall. He then finished him off with the Burning Star Press for the victory. Iino said he knew how good Shiozaki’s Chops are with those big arms of his but that doesn’t matter because BURNING won in the end. Endo said they won today because of the support from their fans. He is now considering how interesting it would be if BURNING and TEAM NOAH would team up in the future. Iino wants to fight more opponents from more companies to increase the value of the KO-D Tag Titles.

The busy summer Takeshita is taking part in has gone off to a hot start. Yesterday he beat Yota Tsuji in the opening day of the G1 Climax and today he defeated Masato Tanaka in a battle of the Elbow Smashes. It was a rematch of their KO-D Title bout from March 2020 and this time it was Takeshita who was left standing tall. After duelling Elbow Smashes, Takeshita’s ones were the more powerful. He ended up using the move to break down Tanaka and pin him for the three count. With this result Takeshita will now bring this power with him for the rest of the G1. He wants DDT fans to follow him in the tournament with pride and confidence. Tanaka admitted that Takeshita now has the best elbow strikes in the world but he will take that title back from him soon!

After Smile Squash went through all the effort of rescuing the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles from DAMNATION T.A, they’ve only gone and lost the belts back to them! The belts were on the line in a Survival 4 Way Match with other teams of three looking to win the titles for themselves. The 37KAMIINA & Aja Kong beat up Yasu Urano but were the first eliminated thanks to Akito dodging their attacks and pinning To-y with a Stepover Toe Hold. The champions Smile Squash were then surprisingly next to go. HARASHIMA had MJ Paul pinned with the Somato when KANON pulled the referee out of the ring mid-count. Daisuke Sasaki then attacked everyone with a chair then used the Freedom Call with KANON to pin Akito. Antonio Honda had his working boots on today because he successfully performed a Suicide Dive onto everyone out of the ring. He & Masahiro Takanashi also aided Takeshi Masada until he had to go it alone against Sasaki. Paul gave Masada a German Suplex so Sasaki could pin him for a nearfall. Sasaki then used La Mistica Crossface Lock to make Masada give up.

While DAMNATION T.A were celebrating in the ring, Ryuichi “Fire” Kawakami appeared at ringside and climbed in to meet them. He had already caused trouble backstage earlier in the day by attacking Yukio Naya after his match. But Kawakami got into the ring to give Sasaki a hug because he is now joining forces with DAMNATION T.A! Kawakami is ready to bring “FIRE DAMNATION” to DDT and Naya is his first target. Sasaki thinks “FIRE DAMNATION” sounds a little lame but he’s happy to have Kawakami on his side.

After spending so many decades fighting for DDT inside and out of the ring, Sanshiro Takagi is finally ready to take an indefinite break so he can focus on his management duties within CyberFight while taking better care of his health. But first he had one more battle with Danshoku Dieno to get through. During the week he pinned Dieno to take the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title away from him but Dieno won it not too long afterwards. Their match here was a Weapon Rumble. One by one weapons selected by the two wrestlers would be brought down to the ring. Takagi’s first weapon was product placement for Yanekabe Shokunin Goods. Dieno countered that with Yoshihiko along with Muscle Sakai as its handler. Takagi then brought out the Dramatic Dream bike. Dieno shocked Takagi by setting up a retirement ceremony for him. Saki Akai came down to the ring and presented him with gifts as well as a heartfelt speech. Takagi was so touched by the gesture he considered to go ahead with retirement but interrupted the ten bell salute so the match would continue. MIKAMI and Poison Sawada JULIE then ran down to be Takagi’s latest weapons. Dieno had allies of his own in the form of Tokyo Joshi Pro! The group of Miyu Yamashita, Maki Itoh, Mizuki and Yuki Kamifuku all attacked Takagi with some of their signature moves. But when TJPW GM Tetsuya Koda wanted to get his digs in, Hisaya Imabayashi got mad and attacked him! With them out of the way Takagi brought out his golden ace up his sleeve. He brought in a big star from AEWMichael Nakazawa! He came out with his body painted completely gold. Who could Dieno have picked in response to this? It was the actual “Golden Star”, the return of Kota Ibushi to DDT! Ibushi gave Takagi the Kamigoye and Dieno waited for Takagi to get back up so he could finish him off with the Lip Lock and Gotch-Style Danshoku Driver.

After the match Dieno told Takagi that it does not matter if he takes a permanent break or is able to come back and wrestle again. DDT will be fine because Dieno will always be here. Takagi thanked Dieno because without him this dramatic situation would have never taken place today. He thought he would never meet Ibushi inside a DDT ring ever again! DDT went through some tough times after Ibushi left them in 2016 but Ibushi was able to rise higher and higher. Takagi believes if he can still get chances to be in the ring with Ibushi then he will never retire! His wish is to fight Ibushi in a singles match again. Ibushi has a request too. Can he come back to DDT some day? Takagi and Dieno both burst into tears and told him yes because he is family. Backstage Takagi told reporters he really wants Kenny Omega to get recover from his health problems too so he can call him again too.

As mentioned above, Naya’s day at Sumo Hall was ruined by a backstage attack by Kawakami after his match. Before that happened things were going great for Naya. He teamed with Jun Akiyama & Tomomitsu Matsunaga to beat the big name outsider trio of Minoru Suzuki, Shuji Ishikawa & Hikaru Sato. Naya also got the pinfall after he gave Sato the Wrist-Clutch Back Drop. The backstage attack happened during the post-match interview. Naya’s partners had already left the room and he was in the middle of talking about how it is up to him to carry DDT’s heavyweight division due to a number of injuries on the roster. That was when Kawakami burst out from behind the interview curtain and attacked Naya with a chair. He demanded to be booked for more DDT shows or else he will blow more people up!

With so much happening up and down the card, Kazuki Hirata and Super Sasadango Machine were determined to make their match stand out and become the most newsworthy. Sasadango used his PowerPoint presentation to tell everyone about how much social media coverage his recent tag match with Hirata, Takagi and Dieno got because so many shocking incidents took place during it. So he begged the audience to retweet everything that happened here and even made a competition where one lucky fan will win a sirloin steak, shrimp and red snow crab that he all bought with his own money! There were many “shocking incidents” that happened during the match. First there was a Thumb War that was won by Sasadango. Then there was a new finishing move that Hirata created called the Ryogoku Bomber except he couldn’t do it right because of a lack of practice. Sasadango also decided to give away Edameme he brought from Niigata because he wants everyone to know how delicious it is. After that, Hirata tried to turn heel and adopt Masahiro Chono’s theme song as his own. However he didn’t have the heart to attack Sasadango with a barbed wire bat along with some unknown masked lackeys so he went back to being a babyface. Sasadango then suggested they both turn heel together and form an nWo style faction. He pulled off his mask to reveal he had already shaved his head and painted on a beard plus forehead scars to look like Keiji Muto! He went to do the Shining Wizard but Hirata dodged it and pinned Sasadango with a School Boy. Backstage Hirata said he wants to continue doing things in pro wrestling that are unprecedented. Sasadango was angry over Hirata “betraying” him but admitted it felt so good to have a packed Sumo Hall chanting Muto’s name at him. He also credited Minoru Suzuki for giving him the haircut before the match.

During the same week where Hulk Hogan made a show of himself in America’s political landscape, his presence was also felt on a smaller scale in Japan thanks to Shinichiro Kawamatsu. The Japanese politician had the Axe Bomber passed down to him by Hogan earlier this year and today he used the move to win his match. Toru Owashi claimed this was the power of the impromptu tag team of himself, Kawamatsu and Hisamaru Tajima. It may not look like it but there is actually a deep bound between the three of them according to Owashi. He was Tajima’s opponent for Tajima’s debut match back in Toryumon. He has also spent a lot of his life living in Sumida Ward which is also the district Kawamatsu is elected in. The point of the match though is that they along with Makoto Oishi, Soma Takao & Munenori Sawa are all connected to Sanshiro Takagi.

The show kicked off with most of the D GENERATIONS class pitted against each other in a 6-Man Tag Match. It came down to Yuni almost beating Keigo Nakamura with a Moonsault. Nakamura recovered to hit Yuni with a German Suplex, John Woo Dropkick and then the Running Diving Headbutt to win the match for his team. Yuki Ishida & Kazuma Sumi both felt that they did their best to make the show start off on the right foot. Nakamura was also happy to win a match by himself in Sumo Hall for the first time. Yuya Koroku feels the need to start aiming higher since it is almost six months since he returned from injury. Ilusion thinks they should all be showing more energy because they are the future of DDT. Yuni said he wants to main event Sumo Hall one day so he will work hard to achieve that.

DDT returns to Sumo Hall on 28th December for “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024”. In previous years DDT’s last supershow on the calendar would take place in November. However the company wants to take a shot at holding a big arena show at the end of the year.

It was announced that Kaisei Takechi will be returning to DDT for his second pro wrestling match on 29th September. The star from THE RAMPAGE made his debut to much fanfare back in February. He sent a video message explaining his decision to compete in another match is because he believes he has the ability to do more in the ring the second time round. He would also like to continue participating more in wrestling after this match takes place.


DDT “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD” Results

March 31, 2023

DDT “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD”, 30/03/2023
Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
750 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Special Tag Match: MAO & Shunma Katsumata defeated Chris Brookes & Yoshihiko (c) when MAO pinned Yoshihiko after the Oretachi no Mad Max (17:29).
*MAO becomes the 1,567th champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Chris Brookes defeated MAO (c) with the Praying Mantis Bomb (8:24 pm).
*Chris Brookes becomes the 1,568th champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Yoshihiko defeated Chris Brookes (c) with 3 Canadian Destroyers in a row (8:25 pm).
*Yoshihiko becomes the 1,569th champion.
2. Pheromones Vs Takagi Army All Out Battle In HOLLYWOOD: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Michael Nakazawa ended in a No Contest (11:08).
3. Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada defeated Andrew “The Giant” Everett & Nick Wayne when Higuchi pinned Everett with the Brain Claw Slam (11:33).
4. Saki Akai defeated Vert Vixen with the Quetzalcoatl (6:09).
5. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo defeated Joey Janela with the Burning Star Press (15:28).
6. Dramatic Dream Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Eddie Kingston defeated Daisuke Sasaki & KANON when Akiyama pinned KANON with the Exploder Suplex (10:35).
7. Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Yuki Ueno with the Zahi (15:16).

It was a long time coming but DDT came back to America! With some help from GCW and The Collective, they arrived in Hollywood to hold their first show in Los Angeles. The main event was between the two top wrestlers in The 3KAMIINA with Konosuke Takeshita facing his longtime friend Yuki Ueno. It was a match originally scheduled as a bonus bout for the cancelled Tokyo Joshi Pro USA event in 2020. The two threw their best moves at each other with Takeshita hitting the Jumping Knee and Ueno pulling out the WR. But Takeshita caught a Moonsault and turned it into an Implant Bomb, putting Ueno in position to take the Zahi for the finish. After the match Takeshita told Ueno and the fans “This is DDT Pro Wrestling!” Backstage he said his performance shows what he’s been doing in America for about a year now. He will always carry a little bit of DDT in him when he wrestles for AEW. He is proud that DDT got to do this show because the only Japanese promotions running overseas at the moment are New Japan, DDT and TJPW. Ueno is taking the loss positively and is motivated to expand DDT even further.

When Jun Akiyama & Eddie Kingston were last in the ring together they were opponents in AEW. Kingston earned Akiyama’s respect from those matches so they got to team together today. Here their battle was against Daisuke Sasaki & KANON from DAMNATION T.A. Akiyama & Kingston meshed well as a team and had their opponents rattled. DAMNATION T.A had to start cheating in response. First Sasaki used the middle rope to give Akiyama a Low Blow as he climbed into the ring then KANON gave Akiyama a DDT on the floor. The momentum switched over with Akiyama & Kingston both using the Exploder Suplex on the other two. Akiyama followed up with a Knee Strike to KANON and then pinned him with another Exploder. After the match Akiyama thanked Kingston for teaming with him and is impressed by how much Kingston knows his movements. Kingston said he can go to sleep smiling tonight because he got to share the ring with a legend. Sasaki’s plan to leave Japan for a new life in Hollywood was ruined because now he hates this city! He swore revenge on Akiyama & Kingston if he ever crosses paths with them again in Japan.

A couple of the matches also served as a preview for tomorrow’s GCW Vs DDT show. Tetsuya Endo avenged last year’s D-Ou Grand Prix loss to Joey Janela by beating him here. It also made up for him forgetting to bring the DDT Universal Title belt to America. Big moves were done at the get go from Endo doing the Sasuke Special and Poison Hurricanrana to Janela landing a Package Piledriver and Avalanche Brainbuster. In the end Janela was taken for a spin with the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb. Endo then got the win with the Burning Star Press. Backstage Endo said he may not know how to fight in America like Janela does but he was always confident he was going to win. He promises not to forget his title belt the next time he goes overseas. A disgruntled Janela said backstage that GCW is his turf and tomorrow they will go to war against DDT!

Saki Akai was energized from seeing the big crowd who came to see the show. She also thought Vert Vixen gave her a good fight and showed great heart against her. Vixen got close to winning with a Stunner but Akai turned things around with the Quetzalcoatl to get the win. She said she would love to have a rematch with Vixen again. Vixen thinks if they face each other again it will be game over for Akai!

Another DDT Vs GCW tag match saw Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada beating Andrew Everett & Nick Wayne. The match was DDT’s introduction to Wayne who will be coming over for a tour in May. It also gave Wayne a chance to face off with Masada in a battle between the two young prospects. Meanwhile Everett tried to use his giant strength to overpower Higuchi’s Brain Claw. It turned out his agility was a way better skill to counter the move but Higuchi took him down with the Brain Claw Slam in the end. Masada and Wayne gestured to each other after the match that this won’t be the last time they’ll see each other.

If you want proof the LA crowd got a genuine crowd then look at the Pheromones match. It went exactly as you’d think it would go. They took care of Sanshiro Takagi & Michael Nakazawa the only way they know how and I wouldn’t be able to get away with describing it in detal. It set the stage for Danshoku Dieno to perform a magic trick he came up with called Pheromones du Soleil. The payoff involved Yuki Iino getting completely naked while pinning down Nakazawa so the match had to get thrown out. It is proof that even America is not big enough to contain how Sexy Iino is!

The show kicked off with ShunMao taking on Chris Brookes & Yoshihiko. The doll spent yesterday taking a detour over to AEW for a backstage visit and came to LA with extra energy, enough to fight both MAO & Shunma Katsumata at once. However Katsumata used a Kamigoye on Yoshihiko and then set MAO up to pin it with the Oretachi no Mad Max. Since Yoshihiko was coming into the match with the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title that means MAO became the new champion!

But wait! MAO was attacked by Brookes after the match and pinned with the Praying Mantis Bomb. Brookes now claimed the belt and celebrated with Yoshihiko until he too was attacked. Yoshihiko gave Brookes the Canadian Destroyer not once, not twice but three times to become the champion once again.


Guide To DDT In Los Angeles

March 28, 2023

DDT “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD”, 30/03/2023
Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Saki Akai Vs Vert Vixen
2. Pheromones Vs Takagi Army All Out Battle In HOLLYWOOD: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Michael Nakazawa
3. Special Tag Match: MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Chris Brookes & Yoshihiko
4. Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada Vs Andrew “The Giant” Everett & Nick Wayne
5. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Joey Janela
6. Dramatic Dream Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Eddie Kingston Vs Daisuke Sasaki & KANON
7. Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Yuki Ueno

So you got a ticket for DDT’s big return to America for the first time since 2019 but you’re looking for some guidance over what to expect. Maybe you’ve only seen the gifs or read about the crazy moments online. Or maybe you got a ticket to this because you couldn’t get a ticket for Tokyo Joshi Pro the next day. Whatever the reason, DDT is coming to Hollywood to put on the craziest wrestling show of the month and make some dollars out of it while the yen is still weak. Things are a little bit different from the card they produced in New York four years ago. Last time they put together a show that resembled a “Best Of” collection of gimmicks and rematches. This time around the show will highlight the relationships DDT has been building with certain parts of the American wrestling scene over the last while. Some of the guests showing up here have toured with DDT in Japan before or will be doing so in the near future.

Where can I watch it online?

Both “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD” and “GCW VS DDT” will be streaming live and on-demand as part of the FITE+ subscription. A month long subscription costs $7.99 and a 7-day free trial is available.

When and where are the shows taking place?

“DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD” is taking place at the Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles on Thursday 30th March at 8pm pacific time.

“GCW VS DDT” is taking place at the Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles on Friday 31st March at 3pm pacific time.

Will The Steiner Brothers be on either show?

No.

———————————————————————–

1. Saki Akai Vs Vert Vixen

DDT’s top female wrestler Saki Akai is the sole member of Eruption on this show. She takes on Vert Vixen, a rising name from Texas who is about to join Tokyo Joshi Pro for a tour in Japan next month.

Saki Akai: The supermodel is celebrating 10 years as a pro wrestler this year and her focus lately has been to keep Eruption focused as a unit. She developed her Quetzalcoatl finisher after playing the role of a character with the same name on a Fate/Grand Order stage show. She can be serious in the ring with the best of them or join in with whatever goofiness that takes place in front of her. She grew up in Kyoto, they take their comedy seriously over there.
Moves To Watch Out For: Quetzalcoatl (Cobra Twist flipped into a La Magistral pinning slam), Rookie Award (Double Step Face Kick), Diving Cross Body, Triangle Choke

Vert Vixen: This wrestler is currently the first and only DEFY Women’s Champion in the promotion’s history. She has also made appearances in AEW, Impact and Women Of Wrestling. Obsessed with video games, her ring gear is often inspired by something video game related. She is nicknamed Player One because Player One always wins!
Moves To Watch Out For: Ki Crusher, Blue Thunder Bomb, Complete Shot

2. Pheromones Vs Takagi Army All Out Battle In HOLLYWOOD: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Michael Nakazawa

If there is any risk of the show getting suddenly called off midway through it will be during this match. Pheromones are DDT’s most extreme gimmick with plenty of nudity and perverted moves up their arsenal just waiting to be unleashed on the world. The gimmick has always been Danshoku Dieno’s bread and butter but he became extra “Dandy” when he formed the unit. Yuki Iino joined in and upgraded into becoming “Sexy”. Together they became a PR nightmare for DDT president and active wrestler Sanshiro Takagi. He’s been at war with them for a while now, determined to destroy Pheromones once and all. When Takagi asked AEW to send him help to fight Pheromones the last person he needed was Michael Nakazawa due to their own long lasting feud that’s taken place in the past.

Yuki “Sexy” Iino: He is going to get naked at some point. An ex-rugby player who was a bit of a goofy heavyweight for his first few years in the ring. He is going to get naked at some point. Recently discovered his Pheromones side, turned “Sexy” and drove the goofiness levels up past its maximum limit. He is going to get naked at some point. I cannot stress this enough, he is going to get naked at some point! It is inevitable and trying to stop him will be like trying to stop the tide from coming in.
Moves To Watch Out For: Ketsugoye (Imagine the Kamigoye but Iino hits with his butt instead of his knee), Badonkadonk (Banzai Drop from the middle ropes), Sexy Elbow, Bubba Bomb

Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno: The heart and soul of DDT’s most perverse humour. Dieno has been around for twenty years now and he’s gone through character development that makes him more than just the extreme shock factor of kissing and groping his male opponents. It’s just that he always goes back to that sort of stuff. Last time he wrestled in America he got permission to kiss fans as long as they raised their hand to show consent. The entire crowd joined in by the end of the night.
Moves To Watch Out For: Danshoku Driver (Piledriver with the victim’s head stuffed into Dieno’s tights), Lip Lock (a paralysing kiss) Danshoku Nightmare (Dieno pulls down his tights and teabags his opponent), Hell Gate (Dieno positions himself over the top turnbuckle with his rear end exposed, victims get thrown face first into it)

Sanshiro Takagi: The president of DDT and its owner CyberFight. The company’s attempts to expand internationally along with its talent growing their own reputations worldwide keeps him motivated to continue wrestling. It makes him want to show the younger wrestlers he is still crazy in the ring. His entrance song gets the crowd chanting along to “1…2…3…Fire!”
Moves To Watch Out For: Sitdown Sunflower/Himawari Bomb (Electric Chair spun into a Sitdown Power Bomb), Stone Cold Stunner, Spicolli Driver (Power Slam lift into a Death Valley Driver)

Michael Nakazawa: Was with DDT until he joined Kenny Omega to work for AEW. Despite his poor win-loss record, he is considered by DDT veterans to be one of the toughest wrestlers around because he never gets injured no matter what his opponents do to him. He is also kind of a pervert due to his habit of using lotion oil as a weapon and finding ways to take off his underwear without removing his wrestling gear. Doesn’t get along with Takagi because he considers him to be a terrible boss.
Moves To Watch Out For: Ultimate Venom Arm (removes his tights, wraps them around his hand and applies an Iron Claw), Tombstone Slam, Hentai Slide (drags opponent crotch first along the top rope), Lotion Oil usage

3. Special Tag Match: MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Chris Brookes & Yoshihiko

The current KO-D Tag Team Champions take on an Englishman and a Dutch Wife. Believe it or not it won’t be as not as lewd as it sounds. Whenever Shunma Katsumata & MAO team up they are called ShunMao. They are also both part of DDT’s biggest babyface group at the moment, The 37KAMIINA (pronounced The Sauna Kamiina because 37 in Japanese (“san-na”) kind of sounds like “sauna”). Chris Brookes has called Japan his home for around four years now and earned a following for his devotion towards the entire puro scene. Yoshihiko is the wrestling doll that answers every question ever asked about who is good enough to get a four star match against an inanimate object.

MAO: Lives by the motto “Fucked up wrestling for a fucked up world!” The high flier is at his most liveliest when he is in Falls Count Anywhere situations. Also gets his most success in tag team matches and often finds himself across the ring from Brookes in that division. As shown by his recent appearance on a Prestige show, he should be a breakout talent for the US indies just waiting to happen.
Moves To Watch Out For: Cannonball 450 (450 Splash), Michinoku Driver, Marines Tornado Splash (Swan Dive Phoenix Splash), Tornado Kick

Shunma Katsumata: Nobody in DDT loves saunas as much as this guy. So much so he runs his own sauna on the side. Despite his cute appearance he also has a death match side to him. He’ll do the violent matches no problem but his favorite weapon to use in those situations is Lego. For example he often arms himself with a Lego covered baseball bat. Drive him too far over the edge and he becomes Super Hardcore Katsumata!
Moves To Watch Out For: ¡Hasta la vista! (Lightning Spiral), Totonou Splash (straight Diving Body Press), Aufguss (Diving Foot Stomp to a standing opponent)

Chris Brookes: A wrestler who has so many fingers stuck into so many pies. When not wrestling in DDT you can find Brookes causing trouble in ChocoPro, teaming with Masahiro Takanashi across Japan or running his own group of shows called Baka Gaijin + Friends. Recently got into a fight with the mascot Chiitan. Always has some extra tricks up his sleeves if you’re not careful around him.
Moves To Watch Out For: Praying Mantis Bomb (Double Arm Piledriver), Octopus Stretch, Death By Roll-Up

Yoshihiko: The Grave Digger Doll From Hell has been a mysterious force in DDT for many years now. It shows up whenever people least expect it and suddenly holding grudges with wrestlers from out of nowhere. This match here is an example of it because Yoshihiko has promised to destroy The 37KAMIINA in LA! It is also the current Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion and is bringing the belt over to Hollywood so don’t be surprised if we get a few title changes throughout not just the show but the entire weekend.
Moves To Watch Out For: Reincarnation (multiple rotation into a Hurricanrana), Choke Slam, Canadian Destroyer

4. Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada Vs Andrew “The Giant” Everett & Nick Wayne

A giant and a supernova rookie takes on… a “giant” and another supernova rookie. Kazusada Higuchi was the man to carry the flag for DDT last year when a crisis injury left the company without a champion. Higuchi took the ball after years of not meeting his potential and did a pretty darn good job with being the KO-D Openweight Title until he dropped it to Yuji Hino this past January. Takeshi Masada is the standout of DDT’s current rookie class. He got here by having to fight tooth and nail to earn a spot on this show. Andrew Everett came to DDT last year falsely advertising himself as being 223cm tall and weighing in at 190.5kg. Despite being nothing of the sort, his in-ring skills were impressive enough for DDT management to get past the lies and keep him onboard. Nick Wayne will be soon be going to Japan to wrestle on more DDT shows so this match gives him a taste of what to expect over there.

Kazusada Higuchi: The previous KO-D Champion and leader of Harimao, Higuchi is a former sumo wrestler with a strong foundation and an iron head. Do not throw him head first into the ring post because he absorb the hit and shake it off entirely. Often a highlight of DDT shows that make fans of NOAH wish he was in their promotion instead. Doesn’t mind showing off his goofy side every now and then but wherever he shows up he is going to be a tough opponent for anybody.
Moves To Watch Out For: Brain Claw Slam, Doctor Bomb, Buchikamashi (charging sumo tackle)

Takeshi Masada: The 21 year old made his pro debut only three months into his training, making him the fastest debut in DDT’s history. Has a background in Shorinji Kempo and he uses those skills to develop a kick heavy offence. He’s still only in his first year as a wrestler but showed a strong desire to get on this show. He eventually earned a spot on the card by winning the D GENERATIONS CUP, a tournament that pitted DDT’s current generation of young wrestlers against each other. Rookies have a bad habit of breaking easily but if Masada continues at the rate he’s going, DDT has a future star in their hands.
Moves To Watch Out For: Samurai Driver ’01 (Cross-legged Falcon Arrow), Triangle Kick (Running Enzuigiri off the turnbuckles)

Andrew “The Giant” Everett: I don’t know if I can believe the claims that Everett is not in fact a giant. He climbs over the top rope to get in to the ring like giants do. He wears a singlet like giants do. He does Choke Slams like giants do. He does Moonsaults like… well allegedly Paul White could do that move at one point in his life so that counts. That means Everett is a giant for sure! Deadlock Pro is where you can find him nowadays.
Moves To Watch Out For: 630, Shooting Star Press, Moonsault, Choke Slam

Nick Wayne: The world is this kid’s oyster and he’s not even 18 yet. A lot of excitement is following Wayne around especially after he was offered a deal with AEW last year. A dream match with Will Ospreay also bumped up his stock. The son of the late Buddy Wayne has wrestled in Japan before, not that long ago in fact. But DDT is where he’ll be going next starting with this match right here.
Moves To Watch Out For: Flying Cutter, Inverted Hurricanrana, Snap Dragon Suplex, Fisherman Suplex

5. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Joey Janela

A rematch from the 2022 D-Ou Grand Prix tournament. Joey Janela scored an upset win over Tetsuya Endo in their A Block match that took place in November. Endo’s big main event run last summer was tragically cut short when Katsuhiko Nakajima gave him a concussion. He has bounced back from that by bulking up towards becoming a heavyweight. It paid off with him recently winning the DDT Universal Title, which is DDT’s secondary singles championship. Janela’s antics and reputation made him highly sought after by DDT and he’s becoming one of their regular guest wrestlers back in Japan.

Tetsuya Endo: The man who was supposed to take the reigns as DDT’s top wrestler suffered a major setback when he got concussed last summer. Endo recovered and has been climbing back up the mountain since. He’s not back at the top spot yet but the leader of BURNING is still doing pretty well with where he is at the moment. You’d think by gaining weight and muscle he would dial back from high flying moves but you will still see him doing Springboards, the Spanish Fly and Shooting Star Presses. If it was up to me, this is the next DDT guy AEW should be looking at.
Moves To Watch Out For: Burning Star Press (Shooting Star Press), Tetsuya In The Sky (One Man Spanish Fly), Spinning Torture Rack Bomb

Joey Janela: The nutjob partly responsible for WrestleMania Week turning into what it’s become. So many of the shows that get added to the schedule are chasing the dragon that is “Joey Janela’s Spring Break”. Janela’s viral moments over the pandemic caught DDT’s attention and he quickly became a must have for them to bring over. He already has one singles win over Endo on Japanese soil. The rematch is still in DDT but maybe the American environment will provide Janela more chances to do some crazy things.
Moves To Watch Out For: Package Piledriver, Avalanche Brainbuster, Super Kick

6. Dramatic Dream Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Eddie Kingston Vs Daisuke Sasaki & KANON

One man’s dream came true last year when Eddie Kingston got to wrestle Jun Akiyama at AEW. The two earned each other’s respect that day and get to meet in the ring again, this time as tag team partners. Facing them are the two strongest fighters from DAMNATION T.A, DDT’s main heel faction. Daisuke Sasaki went through a whirlpool of emotions to make it to this show because of a recent eye injury. KANON is an upstart originally from JUST TAP OUT but he came to DDT and eventually joined the dark side with Sasaki.

Jun Akiyama: A long standing veteran who spent most of his 30+ year career with All Japan and NOAH. He was bound for a guest coaching gig at WWE’s Performance Center when the global pandemic cancelled those plans. So he found himself jumping to DDT instead where he keeps an eye over the young talent being developed. Currently holds the DDT Extreme Title that puts him in unusual gimmick matches but so far he has stood tall for every defence.
Moves To Watch Out For: Exploder Suplex, Front Neck Lock, Running Knee Strike

Eddie Kingston: What a week this guy has ahead of him. First he gets to team team with his hero Akiyama and a few days later will be headlining a ROH PPV. Often outspoken and always fighting with his heart in his sleeves, this match can be a rare chance for Kingston to step back and soak in the moment before things get heavy.
Moves To Watch Out For: Spinning Backfist, Stretch Plum, Exploder Suplex

Daisuke Sasaki: You’re not going to find anybody in LA as drunk or depressed as Sasaki this weekend. The wrestler has the talent and success to reach bigger heights but every setback sends him tumbling down into despair. A recent eye injury had Sasaki considering retirement from pro wrestling so he could run away to Hollywood and do whatever he wants. He does not have the most creative imagination though so his idea of doing whatever he wants in Hollywood was to go work at McDonalds. But the pull of pro wrestling is never far away and once he got cleared to compete, Sasaki came back and began to build up hype towards a singles match with El Desperado later this summer.
Moves To Watch Out For: Crossface Lock (includes La Mistica and Crossover variations), Sasaki Hurricanrana

KANON: When Sasaki suddenly vanished to take care of his injuries and other woes, KANON stepped up to lead DAMNATION T.A in his place. He is approaching the completion of his first year with DDT. Originally from JTO, KANON had an athletic moveset taken from his days playing volleyball but he’s grown slightly more sleazy and unhinged since joining DAMNATION T.A.
Moves To Watch Out For: Sleepy Hollow (Twisting Brainbuster), Just Cobra Twist

7. Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Yuki Ueno

This match was meant to take place in America back in 2019 as the bonus DDT match for Tokyo Joshi Pro’s USA show. Konosuke Takeshita and Yuki Ueno have been friends since high school. Takeshita was the wrestling fan and his work in DDT inspired Ueno to become a wrestler too. The two are part of The 37KAMIINA and always seem to get along. But Ueno has his hopes that one day he will surpass his classmate. The two unexpectedly had a singles match against each other at the start of the year before Takeshita left for AEW. It ended in a brief 10 minute draw but gave fans a taste of what to expect when they finally face off again in Hollywood.

Konosuke Takeshita: It takes ten years to become an overnight success. Takeshita has done it all in DDT but given the company’s place in the landscape not a lot of people outside of Japan knew about him. Then he shows up in AEW and wins over a wide new audience of fans with his performances. A fan of pro wrestling since childhood, he grew up following Osaka Pro and still shows that influence in his moveset to this day. The list of names he’s been in the ring over the years to get to this point would fill this article by itself. Watch this show and I promise you will see him going All Out.
Moves To Watch Out For: German Suplex, Zahi (V-Trigger style Knee Strike), Jumping Knee, Takeshita Line (Leaping Clothesline from the ropes)

Yuki Ueno: The talent Ueno has is clear to see but a bland personality is currently holding him back. Plus his friendship with Takeshita means he risks standing permanently in his buddy’s shadow. If you ignore those problems though, you’re going to see somebody who is really, really good in the ring. Maybe experiencing America will act as a spark and be that thing to send Ueno to his next level.
Moves To Watch Out For: WR (a Wrist-Clutch version of Kofi Kingston’s SOS), Best Moonsault Ever, Half Nelson Suplex, Konosaki Crunch (One Handed Bulldog)

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That’s not all DDT is up to this week. They have a second show the next day cross-promoting with GCW as part of The Collective. These two shows seem to be where all of the DDT action is happening in LA. Maybe a few names will pop up somewhere else. We’ll just have to wait and see if they surprise us.

DDT/GCW “GCW VS DDT”, 31/03/2023
Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Ciclope, Miedo Extremo, Gringo Loco & Alec Price Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & Takeshi Masada
2. Matthew Justice, Mance Warner & 1 Called Manders Vs Chris Brookes, Shunma Katsumata & Mizuki Watase
3. Effy & Allie Katch Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno
4. Dark Sheik Vs Saki Akai
5. Cole Radrick Vs Yoshihiko
6. Homicide & Tony Deppen Vs Jun Akiyama & Tetsuya Endo
7. Blake Christian Vs Kazusada Higuchi
8. Jordan Oliver & Nick Wayne Vs MAO & Mike Bailey
9. Joey Janela Vs Yuki Ueno

GCW is a promotion I like but don’t love. I’ve gotten to attend a variety of their events before from two of the WrestleMania weeks pre-pandemic as well as their Las Vegas show the day before AEW Double Or Nothing last year. They’re really fun to attend no matter where they go and I enjoy watching the iPPVs when they are live. Watching them on-demand a day or two later though and it becomes a different story. The energy doesn’t carry through on screen when I watch on delay. It’s a promotion that does not give its viewers a lot of time to let things soak in because as soon as one show ends they go full speed straight into promoting their next events. It can make following them online a bit of a blur at times and their booking can seem random even though they do come up with storylines and give people pushes.

That leads us to the GCW Vs DDT show. Whenever GCW do doubleshot weekends outside of their regular markets they usually co-promote one of those shows with another indy and label it as a Vs show. They also often come off as the lesser show of the weekend and it feels the same way here. Obviously both companies have their own more important shows from the previous day to worry about. The lineup they came up with here is shaky but I don’t know if I could come up with something better given who is available. The people I like most in GCW are not the core members of the roster and they would be saved for when GCW are running a show by themselves.

Here’s what I like. The East West Express versus The Moonlight Express is going to hit hard. I’m not as high on Jordan Oliver as I am with Nick Wayne but his faults do not come from a lack of effort. The agility and pain threshold everybody in that match has is going to create something impressive. Cole Radrick Vs Yoshihiko will entirely depend on what kind of sense of humour Radrick has. The two multi-man tag matches have the potential to both get crazy if everybody involved are given the go ahead to do whatever they want. Everything else I’m not as confident about.

Joey Janela Vs Yuki Ueno as the main event could get bogged down by the amount of big crazy spots Janela wants to do. Homicide & Tony Deppen Vs Jun Akiyama & Tetsuya Endo sounds like a Fire Pro match on paper but I don’t think BURNING’s opponents have been up to snuff recently. Kazusada Higuchi should not be losing to Blake Christian but Christian is one of the few heels who gets heavily booed by the GCW fanbase. He is likely getting pushed for a title run sooner rather than later for that reason (barring any conflicts with his AEW/ROH deal). Dark Sheik I prefer watching in Hoodslam because over there she does spotfest tag matches in front of a crowd of people that are feeling the effects of “blueberry pancakes”. That atmosphere somehow comes off better on screen than her matches in GCW do. Bussy Vs Pheromones will be going for the shock factor but was their thunder stolen by Sexxxy Eddy earlier this month? I do not want to predict if it will reach the point where somebody somewhere will need to write out a public apology when all is said and done.

WPW “RUSSELL CROWE WRESTLING: RUSSEL MANIA III”, 31/03/2023
Burbank Moose Lodge, Burbank, California, USA

1. Mizuki Watase Vs Gregory Sharpe Vs Eli Everfly

There’s a little bit of Ganbare☆Pro sprinkled in the weekend too. After Mizuki Watase is done with the GCW Vs DDT show he will be making his way over to Wrestling Pro Wrestling for his only other booking for the week. This is one of the more normal looking matches happening on the card.


DDT Around The World – March 2023

March 26, 2023

Welcome to the calm before the storm. I put together this month’s article earlier than usual because there are going to be separate posts covering all of the WrestleMania shows DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro are involved with next week. It’s going to be nuts, maybe not on the level of the New York shows from four years ago but still plenty to look forward to. So much will have to be talked about once the dust settles. I will be writing up preview guides for both “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD” and “TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES” so look forward to them whenever they are finished.

While Konosuke Takeshita and Yuka Sakazaki are getting the higher profile appearances lately thanks to AEW/ROH, the amount of bookings Miyu Yamashita and Maki Itoh are getting in America means the focus will be more on them for the next couple of months. Yamashita in particular is going to have a crazy looking 2023 Career tab on her Cagematch profile by the time she’s done. Plus we get to add some new names to this series. Mizuki Watase is heading over to America too and Daisuke Sasaki found an excuse to go wrestling in Mexico.

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Videos


AEW “DYNAMITE”, 01/03/2023
Cow Palace, San Francisco, California, USA

1. Face Of The Revolution Match Ladder Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Ortiz Vs Komander Vs Action Andretti Vs Sammy Guevara Vs Powerhouse Hobbs Vs Eddie Kingston Vs AR Fox


AEW “DARK”, 07/03/2023
Cow Palace, San Francisco, California, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Jack Cartwheel


AEW “RAMPAGE”, 10/03/2023
Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, California, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Preston Vance (w/ José The Assistant)


NORTHEAST WRESTLING “WRESTLEFEST XXVII”, 11/03/2023
Crosby High School, Waterbury, Connecticut, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs JT Dunn

Video starts at 2:36:23 for the match
SETUP “SETUP EP.12”, 18/03/2023
The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand

1. SETUP Thailand Openweight Title: Monomoth (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi

NEW “NEW 12”, 24/03/2023
Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, Canada


1. NEW Women’s Title: Nicole Matthews (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita


2. Maki Itoh Vs Cat Power

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Results


AEW “DYNAMITE”, 01/03/2023
Cow Palace, San Francisco, California, USA

1. Face Of The Revolution Match Ladder Match: Powerhouse Hobbs defeated Konosuke Takeshita, Ortiz, Komander, Action Andretti, Sammy Guevara, Eddie Kingston and AR Fox when Hobbs grabbed the Brass Ring (13:46).

So close and yet so far. Takeshita almost won the Ladder match after giving Komander a crazy looking Blue Thunder Bomb from a bridged ladder onto the ring canvas. He also fought off interference from Daniel Garcia who was there to help out Sammy Guevara. But as he climbed up the ladder and reached out to grab the literal brass ring, here came Powerhouse Hobbs charging into the ladder to knock Takeshita out of the ring. Hobbs then went on to grab the giant ring and win.

A few days later on Rampage, Takeshita spoke about his recent lack of success in AEW and considered it was time for him to go back to Japan. Don Callis stepped in and continued his push to become Takeshita’s manager. The argument he made is if Takeshita left all of the behind the scenes logistics to him, then Takeshita could put his entire focus just on wrestling in the ring and finally get the results his talent deserves. Ever since then Callis has continued trying to convince Takeshita to take on his services.


AEW “DARK”, 03/03/2023 (Aired 07/03/2023)
Cow Palace, San Francisco, California, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Jack Cartwheel with the Zahi (3:56).

An impressive performance from Jack Cartwheel made this match one to watch if you’re unfamiliar with him.


GCW “HOLY SMOKES”, 04/03/2023
The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA

1. GCW Extreme Title: Joey Janela (c) defeated VENY with an Avalanche Brainbuster (16:33).
*V2 for Joey Janela.
2. Maki Itoh defeated LuFisto with the I.S.D (10:44).

Itoh’s further run into GCW continued with her beating LuFisto, an inductee of The Indie Wrestling Hall Of Fame that the promotion is associated with. LuFisto wanted to give Itoh a Superplex but a bite to the face stopped her. Itoh gave her a Top Rope DDT and then got back up the ropes to do the I.S.D for the win. Itoh got to celebrate with Nick Gage after the match.

Joey Janela and VENY ended up going buck wild fighting around ringside for a lot of their match. Janela threw VENY into rows of seats, sending a lot of the GCW fans fleeing. VENY fought back with a Moonsault to the floor. Janela VENY in midair when she tried another Moonsault inside the ring and he countered it into a Tombstone. VENY went back to the Moonsault again and landed one onto Janela while he was laying on top of a door. That wasnt enough for Janela or the door so he smashed it to pieces and the two attacked each other with the remains. More big bomb moves were dropped and it took an Avalance Brainbuster for Janela to finally get the three count.


ENJOY “RITES OF SPRING”, 04/03/2023
Mr. Smalls Theatre, Millvale, Pennsylvania, USA

1. Princess Tag Team Titles: Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer (c) defeated Trish Adora & Jordan Blade (?:??).
*V3 for The Wasteland War Party.

The Wasteland War Party scored their third and what turned out to be their last successful defence of the Princess Tag Team Titles by beating Trish Adora & Jordan Blade at an Enjoy Wrestling show.


GCW “RANSOM”, 05/03/2023
The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA

1. Maki Itoh, Rina Yamashita & VENY defeated Sawyer Wreck, Billie Starkz & Janai Kai when Yamashita pinned Kai with the Splash Mountain (18:56).

Itoh & VENY got to have some fun with Rina Yamashita by faking out their opponents on a triple dive. Sawyer Wreck, Billie Starkz & Janai Kai all flinched and were left bracing for impact outside while Itoh and her team danced inside the ring. Yamashita went on to pin Kai with the Splash Mountain.


EVE “WOMEN BEHAVING BADLY”, 08/03/2023
229 The Venue, London, England

1. EVE Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) defeated Lizzy Evo with the Skull Kick (14:42).
*V3 for Miyu Yamashita.

A fully determined Lizzy Evo was ready to become the new EVE Champion on this night. But her hot streak came to an end thanks to the Skull Kick.


AEW “RAMPAGE”, 08/03/2023 (Aired 10/03/2023)
Golden 1 Center, Sacramento, California, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Preston Vance (w/ José The Assistant) with La Espalda (7:52).

Takeshita took out a trick from the Osaka Pro book to beat Preston Vance. La Espalda is the tricky looking Twisting Backslide Pin that Billy Ken Kid likes to use a lot.


EVE “RIOT! AT THE YARD THEATRE”, 09/03/2023
The Yard Theatre, London, England

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Miyuki Takase with the Skull Kick (14:46).

Apparently this will be the last time Yamashita and Miyuki Takase will face each other one on one. If that’s true then Yamashita ends the series with a 2-0 winning record.


NORTHEAST WRESTLING “WRESTLEFEST XXVII”, 11/03/2023
Crosby High School, Waterbury, Connecticut, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated JT Dunn with the Zahi (12:18).

A Rolling Elbow was used by JT Dunn to counter the Jumping Knee and the match also built up to how the Tombstone Piledriver was used. Takeshita kicked out of the move the first and and reversed a second attempt into a Reverse Implant. Takeshita held onto Dunn after that and threw him over with a Wheelbarrow German Suplex. Dunn was left in a heap after that so Takeshita got to finish him off with the Zahi.


SETUP “SETUP EP.12”, 18/03/2023
The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand

1. SETUP Thailand Openweight Title: Masahiro Takanashi defeated Monomoth (c) with the Takatonic (?:??).
*Monomoth fails in V?. Masahiro Takanashi becomes the ??th SETUP Thailand Openweight Champion!

Masahiro Takanashi adds another Asian championship to his collection after he took the SETUP Thailand Openweight Title from Monomoth. Takanashi didn’t do it clean either because Baliyan Akki was there to interfere on his behalf. Monomoth did what he could to fight against the 2-on-1 disadvantage, including diving onto both of them outside the ring. He had Takanashi beaten with a Northern Lights Suplex but Akki pulled the referee out of the ring to stop the pin count. Members of the SETUP roster had enough of the cheating and came to Monomoth’s aid. However Takanashi kicked out of a Tornado DDT and threw the ref towards Monomoth while the champion was standing on the top rope. Monomoth jumped over the ref but landed into a Thrust Kick, causing him to get pinned with the Takatonic.


AEW “DARK”, 24/03/2023 (Aired ??/??/2023)
Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida, USA

1. Michael Nakazawa defeated Baliyan Akki (?:??).

I don’t usually include Michael Nakazawa’s matches in AEW for these articles because he is a full time employee for them. But I bet somebody reading this will get a kick out of hearing he fought and beat Akki on Dark.


NEW “NEW 12”, 24/03/2023
Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, Canada

1. NEW Women’s Title: Nicole Matthews (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita by Referee Stoppage with a Dragon Sleeper (?:??).
*V5 for Nicole Matthews.
2. Maki Itoh defeated Cat Power with the I.S.D (?:??).

Mixed fortunes for 121000000 on the first night of their North American trip. Itoh was able to beat Cat Power but Yamashita got choked out by Nicole Matthews with a Dragon Sleeper. It’s a reminder that this three month expedition is not going to be a cake walk for Yamashita.


IMPACT “SACRIFICE FALLOUT”, 25/03/2023 (Aired 30/03/2023)
St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Killer Kelly with the Skull Kick (10:14).

I didn’t expect Yamashita to show up in Impact. There’s more to talk about it below but her first match with the promotion was a win against Killer Kelly. I think it was taped for TV too.

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Upcoming Appearances – WrestleMania Week


PANDEMONIUM PRO “BEST DAMN THING”, 29/03/2023
Don Quixote, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Maki Itoh & Kidd Bandit Vs Steph De Lander & Heather Monroe

Taya Valkyrie had to pull out of the show due to a change in schedule. That this show is taking place on a Wednesday and Valkyrie recently signed a deal with AEW, it’s easy to figure out what her priority is. Replacing her is Steph De Lander who has really stepped up and increased her presence around the indies recently.


WRESTLECON “THE MARK HITCHCOCK MEMORIAL SUPERSHOW”, 30/03/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. TJPW 10-Woman Tag Showcase: X, X, X, X & X Vs X, X, X, X & X

The lineup for the TJPW 10-Woman Tag is being kept secret until the show, Mystery Vortex style. Are all ten going to be from the regular TJPW roster or will a few guests be included?


DDT “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD”, 30/03/2023
Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Saki Akai Vs Vert Vixen
2. Pheromones Vs Takagi Army All Out Battle In HOLLYWOOD: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Michael Nakazawa
3. Special Tag Match: MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Chris Brookes & Yoshihiko
4. Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada Vs Andrew “The Giant” Everett & Nick Wayne
5. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Joey Janela
6. Dramatic Dream Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Eddie Kingston Vs Daisuke Sasaki & KANON
7. Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Yuki Ueno

Some of the guests being booked for the show now make more sense given recent announcements. Both Nick Wayne and Vert Vixen are heading to Japan for DDT and TJPW respectively in the next couple of months.


IMPACT/NJPW “MULTIVERSE UNITED”, 30/03/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Masha Slamovich Vs Deonna Purrazzo Vs Gisele Shaw Vs Miyu Yamashita

So not only is Yamashita wrestling for Impact but she is also technically getting a New Japan appearance out of it too, which is completely bizarre seeing a TJPW wrestler under that banner instead of somebody from Stardom. Originally this 4 Way Match was supposed to include Mickie James and her Knockouts Title was going to be on the line. But just a few days ago Impact announced that James is unable to wrestle because of a rib injury. So now the 4 Way Match has Masha Slamovich added to it and whoever wins will get to face Jordynne Grace in Toronto next month with the Knockouts Title on the line. If James is cleared to wrestle she will also be in that match as the defending champion, otherwise she will have to vacate it before the match begins.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES”, 31/03/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Yuki Kamifuku Vs Janai Kai
2. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo
3. Hyper Misao & Trish Adora Vs Yuki Aino & Raku
4. Shoko Nakajima & Miu Watanabe Vs Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer
5. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) Vs Billie Starkz
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh (c) Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki

Two of the matches are now title matches thanks to the results that happened at “GRAND PRINCESS ’23” earlier this month. The main event has the Princess Tag Titles on the line when the new champions 121000000 face The Magical Sugar Rabbits. There is also now an International Princess Title match between Rika Tatsumi (embracing a new “AmeRika” personality) and Billie Starkz.


DDT/GCW “GCW VS DDT”, 31/03/2023
Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Ciclope, Miedo Extremo, Gringo Loco & Alec Price Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & Takeshi Masada
2. Matthew Justice, Mance Warner & 1 Called Manders Vs Chris Brookes, Shunma Katsumata & Mizuki Watase
3. Effy & Allie Katch Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno
4. Dark Sheik Vs Saki Akai
5. Cole Radrick Vs Yoshihiko
6. Homicide & Tony Deppen Vs Jun Akiyama & Tetsuya Endo
7. Blake Christian Vs Kazusada Higuchi
8. Jordan Oliver & Nick Wayne Vs MAO & Mike Bailey
9. Joey Janela Vs Yuki Ueno

Nine matches on the card now. The latest addition is an 8-Man Tag Match mixing together a lot of people. DDT is relying on DAMNATION T.A to play ball with Sanshiro Takagi & Takeshi Masada. GCW are going the lucha route by letting Gringo Loco put together a squad. He chose Alec Price and Los Macizos. Prince is an up and coming name on the indies while Ciclope & Miedo Extremo are former GCW Tag Team Champions.

No idea what the match order is going to be for the GCW Vs DDT show. This might be the last of DDT’s involvement in shows for the week. Unless Takeshita shows up in ROH or Pheromones crash “Effy’s Big Gay Brunch” on Saturday.


ROH “SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023”, 31/03/2023
Galen Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. ROH Women’s World Title: Athena (c) Vs Yuka Sakazaki

After weeks and weeks of tension building up between Athena and Yuka Sakazaki, things finally blew up and Athena sent Sakazaki back to Japan with an injury. However when Athena found out Sakazaki was able to continue wrestling no problem, it only made her even madder. The grudge is going to get settled in LA with Sakazaki getting a shot at the ROH Women’s World Title.


PRESTIGE “NERVOUS BREAKDOWN”, 31/03/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Taya Valkyrie Vs Miyu Yamashita

Valkyrie will be in LA on the Friday evening for her Prestige match against Yamashita.


GCW “JOEY JANELA’S SPRING BREAK 7”, 31/03/2023
Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh Vs X & X

Well Nick Gage is no longer the GCW World Champion so my idea of him against Itoh has gone up in smoke. However they are going ahead with the next best idea and that is Maki Death Kill teaming up for one night only!


WPW “RUSSELL CROWE WRESTLING: RUSSEL MANIA III”, 31/03/2023
Burbank Moose Lodge, Burbank, California, USA

1. Mizuki Watase Vs Gregory Sharpe Vs Eli Everfly

Well Mizuki Watase did say he was going on an American excursion so he had to be somewhere other than a DDT show. He’s ended up going somewhere even weirder. Wrestling Pro Wrestling is a comedy promotion and is home to Cerealman, a pro wrestler with a box of cereal for a head. Would it surprise you to find out a lot of Hoodslam guys also work here? Let’s see how Watase can handle himself when he’s in the ring with Gregory Sharpe and Eli Everfly.

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Upcoming Appearances – Everywhere Else After WrestleMania


WRESTLING REVOLVER “REVOLVER THURSDAY”, 06/04/2023
Calumet Center, Dayton, Ohio, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Allie Katch

Looks like there’s going to be a week off for Yamashita to get over the WrestleMania hangover. After that it’s time to hit the road with her first stop being a match with Allie Katch at Wrestling REVOLVER.


LLL “MONSTER ISLAND”, 07/04/2023
The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA

1. Heidi Howitzer Vs Maki Itoh

One of the former Princess Tag Champions has a chance at revenge. Heidi Howitzer was already looking forward to kicking Itoh’s ass. Now there’s going to be some more hatred behind it after Itoh pinned Howitzer to cause the title change.


WEST COAST PRO “HOME OF THE KILLERS”, 07/04/2023
The State Room, South San Francisco, California, USA

1. West Coast Pro Women’s Title: Masha Slamovich (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita

The last West Coast Pro show crowned their first Women’s Champion. Masha Slamovich defeated Sandra Moone to win the title and now gets Yamashita for her first defence.


HOODSLAM “FALLEN IDOLS”, 08/04/2023
Continental Club, Oakland, California, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs Vipress

Itoh has fought Dark Sheik a bunch of times already so when she arrives in Hoodslam it will be Sheik’s current tag team partner Vipress waiting for her. Earlier this month Sheik & Vipress won the Intergalactic Tag Team Titles together.


DEFY “THE REALEST”, 08/04/2023
Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA

1. DEFY Women’s Title: Vert Vixen Vs Miyu Yamashita

Before Vixen travels to Japan for TJPW, she defends the DEFY Women’s Title against Yamashita. Heck of a warm up match to get ready for that tour.


CCW “DEAD-ZONE”, 15/04/2023
Houston Volunteer Fire Department, Houston, Delaware, USA

1. CCW Title & CCW Title Match Network Title – 4 Corner Survival Match: Kilynn King (c) Vs Killer Kelly Vs Steph De Lander Vs Miyu Yamashita

What was first advertised as a 3 Way Match is now a 4 Corner Survival with Steph De Lander added to the mix. Which makes me wonder did certain people signing contracts recently lead to a situation where nobody in the 3 Way politically can take the fall and a fourth person had to be used as a solution? Kilynn King is now signed to Impact and Killer Kelly is under contract to them too. Maybe I’m overthinking it.


LUCHA MEMES “???”, 15/04/2023
Arena Solis, Cuautlacingo, Puebla, Mexico

1. Raider Boy, Tormento & Fantasmin Vs Osiris, Garrobo Punk & Daisuke Sasaki

Alright we’re getting to talk about Mexico again. About time. Daisuke Sasaki will be making his Lucha Memes debut in April. The promotion is fond of bringing in independent talent from America. As far as I could find I think Ultimo Dragon and Satoshi Kojima are the only other Japanese wrestlers to have previously worked there. Lucha Memes is also running Arena Solis in Puebla for the first time.


DPW “DPW LIVE 2”, 16/04/2023
Phil Sheridan Building, Ridgefield Park, New Jersey, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

Is Yamashita still owed a title match in Deadlock Pro or did I misunderstand the stipulation of her previous match there? Also did you hear that news today about DPW going to Japan to do joint shows with Gatoh Move soon?


RIW “FIGHT UNTIL WE DIED”, 16/04/2023
Gimnasio Coliseo Arena, Toluca, Mexico

1. Daisuke Sasaki Vs X

The next day in Mexico, Sasaki is heading over to Revolution Indy Wrestling.


UWE “DAWN OF A NEW ERA”, 22/04/2023
Dauphin County Tech School, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA

1. Dani Mo Vs Miyu Yamashita

I was able to find more social media pages for Ultimate Wrestling Empire so it is indeed an actual show taking place.


PRESTIGE “ROSELAND 5”, 29/04/2023
Roseland Theater, Portland, Oregon, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Queen Aminata

Will Yamashita still be undefeated in Prestige by the time her match with Queen Aminata takes place?


REPUBLIC OF LUCHA “ROL IV”, 30/04/2023
Republic Of Lucha, South Pasadena, California, USA

1. Kidd Bandit Vs Miyu Yamashita
2. Daga Vs Konosuke Takeshita

Not sure if Takeshita’s match with Daga will still happen. Daga suffered a left knee injury at a show co-promoted by NWA and AAA at the start of the month. According to Konnan the injury is a fractured fibula and a torn miniscus that will take him out of action for two months. If that’s true then the timing could make this turn out to be Daga’s return match if his recovery goes better than anticipated.


EVE “LUCKY 13”, 05/05/2023
The Dome, Tufnell Park, London, England

1. EVE Title – Iron Woman Match: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Millie McKenzie

Yamashita’s international series with Millie McKenzie continues with McKenzie putting up a big challenge in the hopes of finally winning the EVE Title. Given the back and forth results the two wrestlers produce against each other, they will now face off in an Iron Woman match. Whoever scores the most falls within the 30 minute time limit will be the champion at the end.


MAW “VENDETTA”, 13/05/2023
2nd St. Depot, Hastings, Minnesota, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Sierra

Can’t find confirmation but it would make sense if this is a MAW Women’s Title match with Sierra putting the belt on the line.


AIW “GAUNTLET FOR THE GOLD 16”, 20/05/2023
Force Sports, Eastlake, Ohio, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

Just have to wait and see what her match is going to be.


GCW “THE WAY I AM”, 20/05/2023
Harpo’s Theatre, Detroit, Michigan, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs X

Itoh’s next appearance for GCW after Mania week will be in Detroit.


GCW “I CAN’T SAVE YOU”, 21/05/2023
Valley Dale Ballroom, Columbus, Ohio, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs X

Itoh will be in Ohio too.


ST. LOUIS ANARCHY “GIANTS WOKE, EYES OPEN”, 09/06/2023
The House of Anarchy, Alton, Illinois, USA

1. Billie Starkz Vs Miyu Yamashita

Yamashita was bound to get a match with Starkz somewhere during the tour. This also isn’t the last show on Yamashita’s schedule anymore.


ENJOY “???”, 17/06/2023
Mr. Smalls Theatre, Millvale, Pennsylvania, USA

1. Ray Lyn Vs Miyu Yamashita

The final booking of Yamashita’s tour seems to be her match with Rey Lyn at Enjoy Wrestling. Her first match back in Japan won’t be until 25th June so she can squeeze in at least one more match if she wanted to.

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Corrections


NORTHEAST WRESTLING “MARCH MAYHEM”, 18/03/2023
NEW Arena, Bethany, Connecticut, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs X

From what I could find online Takeshita was only on the show for a meet and greet, not to wrestle a match.


Everything Other Than The Big Show Lineups, Shino Suzuki Debut

February 27, 2023

A lot to get through here. I’ll save the “GRAND PRINCESS ’23” and “JUDGEMENT 2023” for the next post just to give the pages some breathing room. There will be so much to write about between the two “Big Match” events, Wrestlemania Weekend, a whole bunch of debuting wrestlers and all of the other international bookings to keep track of. Staying up to date with the all of the news and shows in the next month is probably going to kill me.

BASARA “BASARA 212 ~KOO~”, 28/02/2023
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Daichi Kazato Vs Lil’ Kraken & Tsutomu Oosugi
2. Turnabout Pro Wrestling Trial: Gouma Ryu Vs Banana Senga Vs Antonio Honda
3. FUMA & KUBITO Vs Masato Kamino & Yasu Urano
4. Takumi Tsukamoto Vs SAGAT
5. Ryota Nakatsu & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Daiki Shimomura & Fuminori Abe
6. Union MAX Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Takato Nakano

The lineup for the “ALL STAR JR FESTIVAL 2023~” was revealed over the weekend and it turns out Isami Kodaka is the only BASARA representative on the show. Takato Nakano was convinced he would be on it. Maybe winning the Union MAX Title away from Kodaka tomorrow will lead to a last minute change of plan.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT WINTER ~YOKOHAMA PERFORMANCE~”, 04/03/2023
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. 3 Way Match: Yuki Aino Vs Hikari Noa Vs Kaya Toribami
2. Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI
3. Mizuki Vs Pom Harajuku
4. Yuka Sakazaki Vs Raku
5. Miyu Yamashita & Moka Miyamoto Vs Shoko Nakajima & Mahiro Kiryu
6. Miu Watanabe, Yuki Kamifuku & Haruna Neko Vs Rika Tatsumi, Hyper Misao & Nao Kakuta

One more chance for Miu Watanabe and Rika Tatsumi to test themselves against each other before the International Princess Title match.

The “GRAND PRINCESS ’23” main event are in separate singles matches. Yuka Sakazaki has to fight Raku and her dreaded pillow. Mizuki continues going through a… um… well calling it a murderer’s row of opponents isn’t accurate given how little a challenge they’ve given her so far. More like a jaywalker’s path? That’s kind of the level of crime Pom Harajuku would commit I guess.

Daisy Monkey are back teaming up to take on the rookie pairing of Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI.

Maki Itoh is missing the show because she will be in America wrestling for GCW that day.

DDT “DDT YOKOHAMA UNLIMITED VOL. 2”, 04/03/2023
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Keigo Nakamura & Hideki Okatani Vs Toi Kojima & Yuya Koroku
2. MJ Paul & KANON Vs Soma Takao & Kazuma Sumi
3. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal: Yoshihiko (c) Vs Shunma Katsumata Vs Makoto Oishi Vs Chris Brookes Vs Akito Vs Antonio Honda Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Saki Akai Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno
4. DISASTER BOX Vs Harimao!: HARASHIMA & Toru Owashi Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
5. Special Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada Vs Tetsuya Endo & Kotaro Suzuki
6. Special Single Match: MAO Vs Ryota Nakatsu
7. Special Tag Match: Yuji Hino & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada

All aboard for the journey to DDT’s 26th Anniversary show! The top three matches in Yokohama are all building towards “JUDGEMENT 2023”. Yuji Hino and Yukio Naya have a few preview tag matches to get ready for.

The Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title is now safe and sound in the hands of Yoshihiko. The doll still has a big challenge coming up, defending the belt in a Battle Royal.

Yuki Ueno will be absent from a few DDT shows this month because he got a part in a stage show.

DDT “JUDGEMENT 2023 TOUR IN NAGANO”, 05/03/2023
Nagano City Art Center Act Space

1. Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs Soma Takao & Yuya Koroku
2. KANON Vs Yuki Ishida
3. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Gota Ihashi Vs Akito, Keigo Nakamura & Kazuma Sumi
4. Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada Vs HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada
5. Nagano Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yasushi Kanda, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs MAO, Shunma Katsumata & Toi Kojima
6. Special Tag Match: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Yukio Naya & Chris Brookes

Nagano is getting a Dragongate adjacent trio led by Yasushi Kanda taking on The 37KAMIINA.

GANBARE☆PRO “SHOOTING IN THE COLD RAIN, A GUN FOR PROMISE 2023”, 05/03/2023
Takashimadaira Ward Community Center

1. GanJo Special Tag Match: HARUKAZE & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Moeka Haruhi & Asahi
2. GanJo Special Single Match: YuuRI Vs Miyuki Takase
3. GanPro Three Big Singles Match: Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Takuya Wada
4. GanPro Three Big Singles Match: Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Shuichiro Katsumura
5. GanPro Three Big Singles Match: Shota Vs Soma Takao
6. GanPro Special 6-Man Tag Match: Mizuki Watase, Shinichiro Tominaga & Tatsuhito Takaiwa Vs Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Yumehito Imanari

Tatsuhito Takaiwa makes his first appearance in Ganbare☆Pro since November.

The ROMANCE DAWN rivalry ends here. Shota and Soma Takao want to settle their conflict once and for all before they team up to chase after the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Titles.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “THE NIGHT BEFORE GRAND PRINCESS ’23”, 06/03/2023
Shinjuku FACE

1. Toga Debut Match: Toga Vs X
2. Shino Suzuki Debut Match: Miu Watanabe & Hikari Noa Vs Raku & Shino Suzuki

Shino of The Up Up Girls (Pro Wrestling) will now be known as Shino Suzuki! The former bus guide had a dream of becoming an idol that she just could not give up so she auditioned for the unit last year. Suzuki is 157cm tall and was born in Shizuoka on 15th July, 1998. Her hobby is collecting stamps and her special skill is tourist information.

DDT “HANAMI PRO WRESTLING 2023”, 12/03/2023
Saitama Tokorozawa Aviation Memorial Park Outdoor Stage

1. Student Pro Wrestling Support Special 6-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Great-GO-Khan & “Mother’s Child” Mazakon Kid Vs Antonio Honda, Macho Gallows & Dopyu♡McIntyre
2. MJ Paul & KANON Vs Hideki Okatani & Yuya Koroku
3. Yuki “Sexy” Iino Produce Match ~ Pheromone Rumble: Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Shunma Katsumata Vs Chris Brookes Vs Yusuke Okada Vs Toi Kojima Vs Kazuma Sumi Vs Sacrifice X
4. Kazuki Hirata Produce Match ~ Bring Items Anywhere Falls Count Fair And Square Full Settlement Tag Team Match: Kazuki Hirata, Soma Takao, Gota Ihashi & Keigo Nakamura Vs Toru Owashi & Yukio Sakaguchi
5. Tetsuya Endo Produce Match ~ Shiraishi Castle Love Song: Tetsuya Endo & Keisuke Ishii Vs Akito & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
6. Special Challenge Match: Jun Akiyama Vs Takeshi Masada
7. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuji Hino, MAO & Makoto Oishi Vs Yukio Naya, Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida

Takeshi Masada gets to face Jun Akiyama one on one as a bonus prize for winning the D GENERATIONS CUP.

The student pro wrestlers Great-GO-Khan, “Mother’s Child” Mazakon Kid, Macho Gallows and Dopyu♡McIntyre have all been invited back for a special 6-Man Tag Match. Joining in the fun are HARASHIMA and Antonio Honda, two wrestlers who came from the same student wrestling scene long, long ago.

DDT “DDT GOES HOLLYWOOD”, 30/03/2023
Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Saki Akai Vs Vert Vixen
2. Pheromones Vs Takagi Army All Out Battle In HOLLYWOOD: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Michael Nakazawa
3. Special Tag Match: MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Chris Brookes & Yoshihiko
4. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Joey Janela
5. Special Single Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Yuki Ueno
6. Dramatic Dream Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Eddie Kingston Vs Daisuke Sasaki & KANON

Well… Sanshiro Takagi did promise he was getting somebody from AEW to help him fight Pheromones in Los Angeles. Michael Nakazawa is an AEW wrestler so where’s the lie?

Takeshi Masada will be on the show as his main prize for winning the D GENERATIONS CUP. He is demanding a first class ticket to get there too. Kazusada Higuchi is also booked for the show so if there’s room for one more match that pairing would be a good one.

DDT “APRIL FOOL 2023”, 09/04/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Rukiya Ikeda Debut Match: Rukiya Ikeda Vs X
2. KO-D Tag Team Titles: MAO & Shunma Katsumata (c) Vs X & X

Whoever wins the KO-D Tag Team Titles match between ShunMao and Harimao at “JUDGEMENT 2023” will next defend the belts on 9th April.

The third trainee in the recent class of five is ready to make his debut. Rukiya Ikeda is from Toyonaka City, Osaka and was born on 25th February, 2001. He is 177cm tall and weighs 80kg. His athletic background is in baseball and grappling.

Naruki Doi and Kotaro Suzuki will both be on the show.

DDT “DRAMATIC EXPLOSION IN NIIGATA”, 16/04/2023
Niigata Bandaijima Multi-Purpose Plaza

1. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Shinya Aoki, Yuki Ueno & Super Sasadango Machine (c) Vs Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku

Super Sasadango Machine had a plan to win the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles from BURNING in order to set up a big match in his hometown against Jun Akiyama. The plan worked perfectly! Akiyama has picked Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku to be his partners for the match. It means Sasadango, Ueno & Shinya Aoki now have to face BURNING again but if they win here then they will have beaten every member of the group!


AEW “TOKYO GAME SHOW 2022 EXHIBITION MATCH” Results

September 18, 2022

While AEW was over in Japan for the Tokyo Game Show, they put together several exhibition matches at the convention with DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro providing some extra talent. It was the first time AEW held public matches in Japan (their 2021 women’s tournament was behind closed doors). Before all of this happened, Christopher Daniels held a talk panel in the ring where he explained AEW to the audience and played a few single player matches of AEW Fight Forever. In the first game he played as Hikaru Shida and lost to Adam Cole. He apologised to Shida because he knows she would be watching the footage. He then played a second game as Thunder Rosa and lost to Shida. There was a mention that the game is aiming to launch next Spring.

For anyone wondering where Kenny Omega was, he had no involvement (at least publicly that I know of) with the promotion for AEW Fight Forever this weekend. However he was on a Capcom Youtube stream playing Resident Evil and Street Fighter games. Maki Itoh was also advertised to wrestle but she was in North America for indie bookings that were already set up ages ago. I have no idea how that double booking happened.

AEW “TOKYO GAME SHOW 2022 EXHIBITION MATCH”, 16/09/2022
Chiba Makuhari Messe Hall
27,614 Fans – Total Number Of TGS Visitors

1. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Christopher Daniels defeated Chris Brookes with the Best Moonsault Ever (10:17).
2. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Ryo Mizunami defeated Hikari Noa with the Hot Limit (8:47).
3. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Christopher Daniels with the Jumping Knee (9:39).

On Day 1 Daniels defeated Chris Brookes in the afternoon portion of the show to advance on to the evening match where Konosuke Takeshita was waiting for him. Daniels threw the referee in the way to get a cheap shot in, leading to him pinning Brookes with the Best Moonsault Ever. Michael Nakazawa held a post-match interview with Daniels that ended with Daniels attacking him, causing Takeshita to chase him off.

Whether it counts towards her official AEW record or not, Hikari Noa had her debut match for the promotion against Ryo Mizunami. Noa focused on her Thrust Kicks to find openings and saw the chance to go for the Blizzard Suplex. Mizunami blocked the move and rocked Noa with a Spear, setting her up for the Hot Limit finish. Mizunami said afterwards she has a hot passion to return to America.

The evening match saw Takeshita get his revenge on Daniels. He kicked out of the Angels Wings at one and also the BME at two. Looking for another way to win, Daniels put Takeshita on the top rope thinking about doing a Frankensteiner. Takeshita pushed him off and followed with a Jumping Knee from the top rope. He then hit another Jumping Knee for the win. After the match Takeshita talked about how happy he was to wrestle the person he remembers as Curry Man from Michinoku Pro two decades ago. Nakazawa joked he probably wasn’t supposed to say that out loud. Takeshita hopes to do a rematch in America.

AEW “TOKYO GAME SHOW 2022 EXHIBITION MATCH”, 17/09/2022
Chiba Makuhari Messe Hall
Approximately 47,000 Fans – Total Number Of TGS Visitors

1. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Chris Brookes with the Jumping Knee (10:46).
2. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Riho defeated Hikari Noa with the Somato (8:19).
3. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Yuki Ueno defeated Michael Nakazawa with a Half Nelson Suplex (10:29).
4. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuka Sakazaki defeated Christopher Daniels & Ryo Mizunami when Sakazaki pinned Mizunami with the Magical Magical Girl Splash (10:26).

Day 2 began with a singles match between Takeshita and Brookes. The match almost became dangerous for the audience at ringside when Brookes considered trying to Suplex Takeshita out of the ring. Instead Takeshita blocked it and ran the ropes only for Brookes to slingshot himself back into the ring to hit a Cutter. Brookes hit his own version of the Jumping Knee Strike but Takeshita bounced back with the strong version of the Jumping Knee to get the win.

Match 2 was Riho’s first match in an AEW ring since May. Noa gave her a fight that included the two exchanging Elbow Strikes up on the top turnbuckles. Riho threw her off with a Superplex and followed with the Diving Stomp for a close nearfall. Once she hit the Somato though it was all over.

The matches so far were all of the normal variety so the TGS crowd were caught off guard by Michael Nakazawa. They got to see his perverted wrestling style that built up to him pulling off his underwear without removing his tights. If that wasn’t wild enough, Yuki Ueno took the match outside the ring with a Plancha followed by a DDT onto one of the raised floor sections of the venue. Ueno then saw fit to end the match with a Half Nelson Suplex instead of one of his regular finishers.

The day ended with a mixed tag match. On one side was Takeshita and Yuka Sakazaki forming a team called The Magical Cinnabon Monsters. Their opponents were Daniels and Mizunami with Daniels looking to avenge his loss to Takeshita from the previous day. Perhaps in something of an upset The Magical Cinnabon Monsters won! Sakazaki hit the Magical Magical Girl Splash on Mizunami and Takeshita hit the Jumping Knee on Daniels. The two pins happened at the same time but the match result from both DDT and TJPW record it as Sakazaki getting the pinfall.

AEW “TOKYO GAME SHOW 2022 EXHIBITION MATCH”, 18/09/2022
Chiba Makuhari Messe Hall
40,291 Fans – Total Number Of TGS Visitors

1. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Yuka Sakazaki defeated Hikari Noa with the Magical Merry-Go-Round (12:07).
2. AEW Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Hagane Shinno defeated Michael Nakazawa with the Ranhei (7:59)

The third and final day was smaller in scale because DDT had a show in Korakuen Hall happening around the same time while Daniels had a booking with All Japan at Budokan Hall. The afternoon match pitted Sakazaki against Noa, making Noa the ironwoman of the weekend by being the only person to have a match on all three days as well as compete at a TJPW show. They fought outside around the other THQ Nordic booths where Sakazaki found Crypto 137 from Destroy All Humans! She got the alien to distract Noa so she could hit her opponent over the head with the Zap-O-Matic. Sakazaki happily gave the gun back to Crypto, telling him it was now broken. She later won the match with the Magical Merry-Go-Round to end her weekend undefeated at TGS. Sakazaki admitted she wasn’t sure if they were allowed to fight near the other booths. Nakazawa told her they weren’t and he expects they will be scolded later. He also heard that Sakazaki is planning to return to America soon and asked if it’s true? She said she wants to go back as soon as possible and joked it might not be tomorrow.

The very last match to close out the event was Nakazawa taking on Hagane Shinno. Nakazawa thought he was only coming out to do commentary and hastily stripped down into his wrestling gear. He asked Shinno to help him put on his kneepads but it was a trick to ambush him with a microphone shot to the head. Hagane fought back but missed a Moonsault giving Nakazawa the opening to set up the Ultimate Venom Arm. Shinno cut him off with a Kicking Combination and then climbed the top rope. Nakazawa grabbed him with the Ultimate Venom Arm and climbed up after him. However Shinno knocked him over to where Nakazawa was left hanging upside down. Shinno then hit a Diving Stomp off the corner followed by the Ranhei for the victory. Nakazawa complained that he should have won because he is an AEW employee while Shinno was never even associated with the promotion before today. However Shinno said if things go to plan he will be having an American expedition in mid-October so he may show up in AEW proper after all. He’d like to have a rematch with Nakazawa in America if they can do it.


TGS Exhibition Matches, Abadon Off TJPW Show, This Is Not Meant To Be An AEW Blog I Swear

September 15, 2022

AEW “TOKYO GAME SHOW 2022 EXHIBITION MATCH”, 16/09/2022
Chiba Makuhari Messe Hall

1. AEW: Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Christopher Daniels Vs Chris Brookes
2. AEW: Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Ryo Mizunami Vs Hikari Noa
3. AEW: Fight Forever Exhibition Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Winner Of Match #1

There’s the confirmation over what I was talking about from yesterday’s post. AEW are holding exhibition matches at the Tokyo Game Show with DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro also involved. There will be matches held over three days with a variety of wrestlers from the promotions already mentioned plus a few more names in store. On Day 1 the first two matches will be held at 1:00 pm. Match #3 will be at 3:00 pm.

Other names advertised to appear during the weekend are Riho, Michael Nakazawa, Yuka Sakazaki, Maki Itoh, Hagane Shinno and Yuki Ueno. Itoh I’m surprised by because she has a match in Canada on Friday and a match in America on Saturday. Does the time difference work out for her to make it back on Sunday? There are also a few big name omissions given who is also in the country this weekend. Earlier today Hikaru Shida starred in the latest Makai performance and Emi Sakura was running a Gatoh Move event. And of course there is all the talk surrounding Kenny Omega. He is currently suspended from AEW related business due to investigations over the incident that is now referred to online as “Brawl Out”.

The latest gossip is Omega will not be involved with the promotion for AEW’s video game at TGS. News has since come out that both Nakazawa and Christopher Daniels have been cleared of any wrongdoing so their suspensions have been lifted and they can go ahead with their duties. Omega however is over in Japan on his own volition working on personal projects with Sega and Capcom. He visited Sega’s office and posted pictures of himself getting scanned, presumably to become a character for one of the upcoming Yakuza/Like A Dragon games in production. The Capcom connection is an upcoming panel appearance to talk about Street Fighter 6. Oh yeah and he reunited with Kota Ibushi too. As much as that tugs on my heartstrings I won’t go any further with that unless The Golden Lovers reunion makes its way over to DDT. Don’t hold your breath with that one.

Once every match from all three days is completed I will gather them all together for a results post along with video links should they be filmed on any of THQ Nordic’s social channels. Normally I would save AEW results for my Around The World posts but this is all happening in Japan with more direct involvement from DDT and TJPW than usual. So I may as well give the results their own post.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW AUTUMN TOUR ’22”, 16/09/2022
Shinjuku FACE

1. 3 Way Match: Hyper Misao Vs Yuki Kamifuku Vs Haruna Neko
2. Moka Miyamoto Vs Mei Suruga
3. Rika Tatsumi Vs Mahiro Kiryu
4. Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Kaya Toribami Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
5. Shoko Nakajima & Arisu Endo Vs Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki
6. International Princess Title Next Challenger Match: Miu Watanabe Vs Suzume

Sadly Abadon could not get a visa ready in time to travel and cannot be in Japan this weekend. Their appearance at tomorrow’s TJPW show has been cancelled and Mei Suruga is being called in to be Moka Miyamoto’s new opponent. Abadon was meant to be at TGS first and foremost. The TJPW booking was made after the fact but visa troubles with the “event organiser” happened shortly afterwards. Attempts were made to solve the problem but the booking was cancelled in the end. This is not a problem exclusive to AEW contracted wrestlers (see Timothy Thatcher and NOAH last month) but I’m worried this happening so close to Willow Nightingale’s cancelled booking is revealing a trend.

DDT “STERNNESS 30TH ANNIVERSARY ~JUN AKIYAMA 30TH ANNIVERSARY~”, 18/09/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Yusuke Okada Vs Yuya Koroku
2. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari & Koju “Shining Ball” Takeda Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi, Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata
3. HARASHIMA & Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani & Soma Takao & Yukio Naya
4. Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida, Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Daisuke Sasaki, Minoru Fujita, MJ Paul & KANON
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toi Kojima Vs Cara Noir, Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi
6. Naomi Yoshimura Vs Takeshi Masada
7. Jun Akiyama Debut 30th Anniversary Match – Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Tetsuya Endo & Yoshinobu Kanemaru Vs Yuji Nagata, Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata

Jun Akiyama gave a few comments on the card for DDT’s website. He made some DDT to All Japan comparisons, saying Sanshiro Takagi is DDT’s Giant Baba. He also named Konosuke Takeshita, Tetsuya Endo, Kazusada Higuchi and Naomi Yoshimura as DDT’s Four Pillars. Because Takagi is like Baba, Akiyama describes Takagi’s tag match against Pheromones as something like the Family Gundan Vs Akuyaku Shokai comedy bouts that AJPW held throughout the 90s. Does that make Antonio Honda this generation’s Rusher Kimura?

Kenta Kobashi will be a special guest commentator on the show. He was Akiyama’s debut opponent.

GANBARE☆PRO “NERAWARETA GAKUEN 2022”, 02/10/2022
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. England x Makai x GanJo! Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Nightshade, Moeka Haruhi & HARUKAZE Vs Ram Kaichow, YuuRI & Yoshiko Hasegawa
2. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Hartley Jackson (c) Vs Yuna Manase

A big shift in Ganbare☆Pro’s main event scene was made after Hartley Jackson won the Spirit Of Ganbare Title from Yumehito Imanari. The first person to challenge him for the belt is Yuna Manase! The two have been in the ring together before over at ZERO1. Manase thinks Jackson does not know the meaning of Ganbare so she won’t let him extinguish its flame.

Nightshade won’t just be working with TJPW when she returns to Japan next month. She will be at Ganpro for the first time in 3 years too. Her match is a chaotic mix of joshi talent including the Ganpro debut of Ram Kaichow!

DDT “GET ALIVE 2022”, 12/10/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. 4 Way Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Yukio Naya & Hideki Okatani
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yuji Hino Vs HARASHIMA, Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi
3. Get Alive 4 Major Single Match! Yuki Ishida 1st Anniversary Match ~ Playfulness Series Act 4: Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Yuki Ishida
4. Get Alive 4 Major Single Match!: Koju “Shining Ball” Takeda Vs Toi Kojima
5. Get Alive 4 Major Single Match!: Toru Owashi Vs Kazuki Hirata
6. Get Alive 4 Major Single Match!: Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Takeshi Masada
7. Makoto Oishi 20th Anniversary Match ~ Men’s Club Vs The 37KAMIINA: Makoto Oishi, MEN’S Teoih & Shiori Asahi Vs Yuki Ueno, MAO & Shunma Katsumata
8. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura (c) Vs Daisuke Sasaki & KANON

The midcard is filled up with four significant singles matches. Yukio Sakaguchi is the latest veteran to put the super rookie Takeshi Masada to the test, Toru Owashi and Kazuki Hirata are finally facing each other in a regular one on one match, Koju Takeda has his first singles bout in DDT since joining Pheromones and Yuki Ishida celebrates his 1 year anniversary.


Next Month’s Korakuen Card, Complete Peter Pan 2022 Line Up

July 25, 2022

DDT “ROAD TO PETER PAN 2022 IN OSAKA”, 30/07/2022
Osaka 176BOX

1. Soma Takao Vs Kazuki Hirata
2. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Toru Owashi
3. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Akito, Yukio Sakaguchi & Antonio Honda
4. Tetsuya Endo Vs Yuya Koroku
5. Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura Vs MAO & Shunma Katsumata
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Bodyguard Vs Yuji Hino, Yukio Naya & Yuki Ishida
7. Osaka Specialty Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Gamma Vs Yuki Ueno & Makoto Oishi

Next Saturday’s show in Osaka is going through some changes because of covid. Both Hideki Okatani and Toi Kojima are out of action with positive cases so a bunch of matches are getting shuffled around. Both are expected to be back next month as you’ll see in the lineups below.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 31/07/2022
Tokyo Otemachi Mitsui Hall

1. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Miu Watanabe Vs Shoko Nakajima
2. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Rika Tatsumi Vs Suzume
3. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Nao Kakuta Vs Miyu Yamashita
4. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Hikari Noa

The Tokyo Princess Cup Semi Final matches will be drawn after the Quarter Final stage is finished.

Yuki Arai and Juria Nagano will both be on the show.

DDT “ROAD TO PETER PAN 2022 IN KORAKUEN ~LET’S SHOUT!~”, 14/08/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Takeshi Masada Debut Match: HARASHIMA Vs Takeshi Masada
2. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & X (w/ Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi & Soma Takao
3. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, MAO & Yuki Ishida
4. Masahiro Takanashi & Antonio Honda Vs Yuki Ueno & Toi Kojima
5. Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Battle Royal: Yuji Hino Vs Chris Brookes Vs Shinya Aoki Vs Shunma Katsumata Vs Makoto Oishi Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Yusuke Okada Vs Yukio Naya Vs Hideki Okatani Vs Yuya Koroku
6. Special Single Match: Asuka Vs Saki Akai
7. DDT Extreme Title – Fluorescent Lighttube IPPON Death Match: Akito (c) Vs Joey Janela
8. Road To WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022! Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama

The Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Gauntlet is back after a two and a half year absence. The match combines the Battle Royal with a Ladder match with the prize hanging above the ring. Usually there are several prizes on offer but for now DDT is saying there will be only one Gauntlet and the winner of the match is whoever retrieves it.

A new masked member of Pheromones showed up on yesterday’s show. There are guesses going around it is Michael Nakazawa because the mystery man pulled down his pants and used them to do the Ultimate Venom Arm. Pheromones are sort of denying it by saying it can’t be him because he should be doing his job in America. So either Nakazawa is getting a Pheromones style gimmick makeover or he is purposely being used as a red herring.

The new debut Takeshi Masada is having his first pro match after only three months of training. It will be the quickest amount of time any trainee has ever made their debut in DDT. The 21 year old from Osaka stands 180cm high and weighs in at 84kg. His athletic background is in both basketball and Shorinji Kempo.

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022”, 20/08/2022
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. Yusuke Okada, Yuya Koroku & Ilusion Vs Toi Kojima, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada
2. 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & X (w/ Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari) Vs Yuji Hino, Yukio Naya & Super Sasadango Machine Vs Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda
3. Shinichiro Kawamatsu Debut Match ~ Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly Member Vs Bunkyo Ward Assembly Member: Shinichiro Kawamatsu, Sanshiro Takagi & Soma Takao Vs Osamu Nishimura, Makoto Oishi & Akito
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Naomi Yoshimura, Kota Umeda & Keisuke Okuda Vs HARASHIMA, Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani
5. Special Mixed Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Saki Akai Vs Chris Brookes & Asuka
6. International Special Hardcore Match: Joey Janela Vs Shunma Katsumata
7. DDT 25th Anniversary Special 6-Man Tag Match: Dick Togo, Daisuke Sasaki & KANON (w/ MJ Paul) Vs Konosuke Takeshita, MAO & Yasu Urano
8. DDT Universal Title: Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs Yuki Ueno
9. KO-D Openweight Title: Kazusada Higuchi (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo

Now that Tetsuya Endo has recovered 100%, he is ready to give back to the fans for their support by reclaiming the KO-D Openweight Title. It is a match Kazusada Higuchi wanted more than anything else too.

No matter who came out of the DDT Universal Title match yesterday, Yuki Ueno is getting the next shot anyway. Yusuke Okada originally brought him up as the next challenger if he became champion. Masahiro Takanashi kept the belt instead but liked the idea enough to do the same. Takanashi’s reason though is because he is looking for challengers from the younger generation and Ueno may very well be the absolute best out of all of them. If Takanashi beats him then he will start looking outside of DDT for more young challengers.


DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022” Results

July 24, 2022

DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022”, 24/07/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
624 Fans

1. Makoto Oishi Return Match: Akito & Yasu Urano defeated Makoto Oishi & Kazuki Hirata when Urano pinned Hirata with a Cradle (0:14).
1a. Rematch: Akito & Yasu Urano defeated Makoto Oishi & Kazuki Hirata when Akito submitted Hirata with an Ankle Hold (5:54).
2. 2 Vs 3 Handicap Match: Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya defeated Antonio Honda, Saki Akai & Ilusion when Naya submitted Honda with the Torture Cobra Twist (7:29).
3. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi & Gota Ihashi when Iino submitted Ihashi with the Ketsugoye (9:46).
4. Shinya Aoki, Shunma Katsumata & El Unicorn defeated Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON by Disqualification when Sasaki unmasked El Unicorn (12:36).
5. Tetsuya Endo Return Match ~ Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Chris Brookes defeated HARASHIMA, Yukio Sakaguchi & Soma Takao when Endo pinned Takao with the Burning Star Press (16:24).
6. DDT Universal Title: Masahiro Takanashi (c) defeated Yusuke Okada with the Takatonic (10:55).
*V1 for Masahiro Takanashi.
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura defeated MAO & Asuka (c) when Higuchi pinned MAO with the Brain Claw Slam (20:07).
*VENIMAO fail in V1. Harimao become the 75th KO-D Tag Team Champions!

The new wind blowing through DDT now has a name. Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura started off the show announcing their tag team from this point forward will be called Harimao. In the main event they went on to beat MAO & Asuka to capture the KO-D Tag Team Titles! MAO wasn’t pleased to hear they came up with a name that sounds similar to his own, so he retroactively named his team with Asuka VENIMAO. The champions didn’t give up easily. They hit Higuchi with the Doomsday Shiranui only for Yoshimura to break the count. Harimao recovered to give Asuka an Assisted Razor’s Edge. Higuchi then grabbed MAO to do the Brain Claw Slam for the victory. The title change means Higuchi is now a double crown champion! He thanked MAO & Asuka after the match for taking Harimao’s challenge on short notice.

Higuchi then turned his attention to “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022” on 20th August. He knows he is going to defend the KO-D Openweight Title on the show but does not have an opponent yet. He will change that now because he wants to nominate Tetsuya Endo as his challenger! Endo came out and said he is grateful to Higuchi for carrying DDT in his absence along with everyone else in the company. Today Endo got back on his feet with his return match and wants to repay everyone for their support by returning to the top and becoming KO-D Champion again. He turned down Higuchi’s nomination but only so he can be the one to throw out the challenge instead. It will be Higuchi Vs Endo for the KO-D Title at Ota Ward Gymnasium!

A leg injury may have cost Yusuke Okada his only chance to win the DDT Universal Title. He hurt his leg early in the match and Masahiro Takanashi decided to target it from that point on. Takanashi bending the rules by physcially getting the referee in the way stopped Okada from building up any momentum. He finally got back on track but Takanashi avoided the Sudden Death, stunned Okada with a Super Kick and pinned him with the Takatonic. The audience showed their appreciation to Okada after the match but it seems like Takanashi is done with him and moving on. He is taking Okada’s idea of nominating Yuki Ueno as the next challenger. Ueno was not at the show due to having covid but he when he recovers he will get the title shot at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2022”. Takanashi thinks that out of all of the new generation wrestlers in DDT, Ueno may be the one and is a can’t miss opponent. If Takanashi can beat him then he will start to look outside of DDT for young wrestlers to defend the Universal Title against.

Endo’s return from his concussion was as part of a 6-Man Tag Match. He was supposed to be in full on BURNING trio with Jun Akiyama & Yuya Koroku but Koroku was a close contact suspect and pulled off the show. Chris Brookes replaced him and had no problems with being part of the team. Any worries about the state of Endo’s health went away after HARASHIMA slapped him across the head and Endo kept fighting. Soma Takao quickly congratulated Endo on his return while hitting his moves on him. Endo turned the tables by countering the Gin And Tonic with the Tetsuya In The Sky. A Torture Rack Bomb only got a 2 count so Endo went for the Burning Star Press to complete his comeback with a win. Endo said today was the happiest he felt since his debut match because when you get into the ring there is no guarantee you will get out of it in one piece. He will no longer apologise to the fans for what happened to him, instead he will tell them “thank you” for their support. Akiyama’s advice to him is he can turn what happened into an opportunity and then do his best with it. Even Endo’s opponents were positive over his return. Yukio Sakaguchi said there is no shame if Endo was fighting with himself over how far he fell because the only direction to go next is to climb up.

More covid problems affected the card. DAMNATION T.A was supposed to defend the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles against The 37KAMIINA but that was cancelled because Ueno and Toi Kojima were both absent. Shunma Katsumata is still here but now his tag team partners are Shinya Aoki and El Unicorn. The latter in particular was unexpectedly targeted by Daisuke Sasaki while MJ Paul & KANON dealt with the the others. Sasaki’s attempts to get a fall on Unicorn kept getting cut off so he ended up losing his temper and unmasked Unicorn for the disqualification! Backstage Unicorn demanded a match with Sasaki. Meanwhile Sasaki made a similar challenge but wants to take it one step further. His idea is to face El Unicorn in a Mask Vs Hair match, Mascara Contra Cabellera!

Just when you think Pheromones are all out of surprises, they pull another one out of their hats. Sanshiro Takagi thought he had them on the ropes after his involvement in getting Yuki Iino to lose the DDT Extreme Title. Today his plan was to destroy them once and for all with help from Toru Owashi & Gota Ihashi. Instead a masked man in a shirt and underwear ran out during the match. He then took off his underwear, wore it over his hand and gave Ihashi the Ultimate Venom Arm. Iino took over by putting Ihashi in the Ketsugoye until Ihashi gave up. Danshoku Dieno told everyone that Pheromones now has a new member. He may remind everyone of Michael Nakazawa but according to Dieno it may not be him! The masked man’s identity will remain a mystery for now until 14th August when he will be revealed for all to see.

A scheduled 3 Way Tag Match turned into a 2 Vs 3 Handicap Match because of covid related absences. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya were almost unmovable objects for Antonio Honda, Saki Akai & Ilusion to try and topple. Honda warned Ilusion not to get Chopped by Hino only to get Chopped himself. Akai tried to give Hino the Quetzalcoatl but he wouldn’t budge due to the massive size difference. Gongistune was the only move effective against the heavyweights but even that couldn’t stop Naya from submitting Honda for the win.

Endo was not the only wrestler returning from injury on this show. Makoto Oishi was out for a year with a hip injury and today was going to be the next chapter of his wrestling career. He was teaming with Kazuki Hirata and their opponents were meant to be Akito & Yuki Ishida. However Ishida was pulled off the show and replaced with Yasu Urano. Oishi made his big entrance with a brand new look but by the time he made it to the ring, Urano had already won the match by pinning Hirata with a Roll Up. Hisaya Imabayashi demanded an immediate rematch for Oishi’s sake. The same thing happened only this time Oishi broke the pin so the match could continue. It went on as normal until the ending when Oishi climbed the top rope wanting to do a cool move only to see Akito put Hirata in an Anklelock to win the match. Oishi stayed still on the top rope and had a microphone handed to him. He said he was able to come back thanks to everyone’s support. He wants to carry DDT on his shoulders and made it his goal to win a championship.

Right before the summer began, DDT introduced five new trainees under their development system. Imabayashi announced that one of them is about to make their pro debut! Takeshi Masada will take on HARASHIMA on 14th August in his first match after only three months of training. It will be the quickest pro wrestling debut in DDT history. Masada is 21 years old, from Osaka and has a background in basketball and Shorinji Kempo.

The Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Battle Royal will be return on 14th August.


DDT “DAY DREAM BELIEVER 2022” Results

March 27, 2022

DDT “DAY DREAM BELIEVER 2022”, 27/03/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
509 Fans

0. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Dark Match: Antonio Honda (c) defeated Pokotan with a Crushed La Magistral Cradle (7:16).
*V? for Antonio Honda.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Shinichiro Kawamatsu defeated Antonio Honda (c) by Pinfall (11:24 am).
*Shinichiro Kawamatsu becomes the 1,548th champion.
1. Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani defeated HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi, Naomi Yoshimura & Yuki Ishida when Okatani pinned Ishida with the Diving Knee Drop (6:30).
2. Pheromones Vs DAMNATION T.A!: Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari defeated Daisuke Sasaki & Minoru Fujita (w/ MJ Paul) by Disqualification when Sasaki attacked Dieno with a Chair (7:21).
3. Yuji Hino, Yukio Naya & Akito defeated Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Soma Takao when Naya submitted Takanashi with a Modified Torture Cobra Twist (9:03).
4. Quiz Showdown: Kazuki Hirata defeated Jun Akiyama when Hirata got 3 questions correct (10:18).
5. DDT Universal Title: MAO (c) defeated Michael Nakazawa with the Super Michinoku Driver II (9:26).
*V1 for MAO.
6. DDT Extreme Title – O-Back Ladder Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (c) defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Pheromone Magic (15:01).
*V1 for Yuki “Sexy” Iino.
7. After Judgement 2022 Special 6-Man Tag Match: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuki Ueno & Toui Kojima defeated Tetsuya Endo, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku when Kojima submitted Koroku with a Triangle Choke (22:11).

The 26th year of DDT has gone off to a hot start with plenty to talk about. The main event was the latest tag team battle between The 37KAMIINA and BURNING but this time with a brand new result. For months Toui Kojima has fought to try and beat his classmate Yuya Koroku. Every step of the way was met with failure until today when Kojima finally got his direct win over Koroku! The result didn’t look like it would happen when Koroku hit the Moonsault Press and then applied the Chickenwing Armlock he’s been using to beat his rival. But Kojima used the lessons he learned from Shinya Aoki to counter the move into a Triangle Choke for the tap out. He lived up to his promise of crying tears of joy over finally beating Koroku. Kojima admitted he is still weak and is not ready to be compared to the rest of his stable. He wants to keep training so he can becomes stronger.

Yuki Ueno threw in his support for Kojima along with the rest of The 37KAMIINA. He is so inspired by everyone in the unit doing their best to leave a mark on the world that he wants to do the same in DDT. So he is challenging Tetsuya Endo for the KO-D Openweight Title on 1st May! Endo said if Ueno is confident enough to beat the man who just became champion at Sumo Hall and carry the belt with 25 years of history attached to it then he will accept the challenge. Ueno told him he isn’t just fighting for that but also for the future of DDT. He wants to defeat Endo and lead the company as champion.

As ridiculous as the O-Back Ladder Match was there was a surprising amount of emotion to it. Shunma Katsumata walked out wearing an ALL OUT shirt hoping to remind Yuki Iino of their time together in that group. Iino briefly remembered and did a Haka pose with his old friend but in a flash that memory went away and they had to fight. Katsumata climbed the ladder and grabbed the O-Back but the winner had to wear it. He covered his waist in a towel to put it on but Iino attacked him with Danshoku Dieno & Yumehito Imanari’s help. Together they performed “Pheromone Magic” on Katsumata and he suddenly found out he was somehow now wearing nothing underneath his towel! He gave up to avoid further shame, resulting in a successful DDT Extreme Title defence for Iino. Dieno told Katsumata he previously agreed to wear the O-Back by itself if he lost. He is a man of his word so he did just that and shook Iino’s hand. Iino then blindsided him with a Brainbuster to humiliate him even more. Dieno asked who would want to challenge Iino for the Extreme Title after seeing this?

Sometime before the show, a desperate Michael Nakazawa went searching around town for MAO so he could ambush him. He was lured into a counter attack where MAO ran Nakazawa over with a van! Nakazawa did show up to the match wrapped head to toe in bandages. He looked like a physical wreck and couldn’t even stand up by himself. MAO decided to take advantage but it turned out to be a trick! The real Nakazawa ran down to the ring and attacked MAO with a crutch. He then used his signature tricks like rubbing his body in slippery lotion and applying the Ultimate Venom AEW Arm. However MAO fought back and pinned Nakazawa with the Super Michinoku Driver II for the win.

MAO called the DDT Universal Title defence an easy win. He wants to use his champion status to wrestle overseas so asked for his next challenger to be somebody with presence. Out walked Asuka! She just returned from wrestling in Italy and has a UK tour lined up this summer so she matches all of MAO’s requests. Asuka said the “VENY’s” of the world deserve that title. MAO accepted the challenge and wants it to be at the Yokohama Budokan on 1st May.

Kazuki Hirata knew just like everyone else that he has no chance of beating Jun Akiyama in a fair fight. He was moments away from losing easily to the Exploder Suplex when he grabbed the microphone and called a stop to the match. Hirata can’t win a wrestling match but he can beat Akiyama in a quiz! Suddenly the match turned into a trivia contest with chairs in the ring to sit on and a toy hammer to hit each other with when somebody got a question wrong. 1st Question: What tragedy happened to Hirata before a show in Yokohama Raidant Hall? Hirata answered he was bit by a Chihuahua. Correct! Question 2: Who was Hirata’s opponent in a fantasy card Keisuke Ishii once put together? Hirata answered Yuji Okabayashi. Correct! Question 3: On 4th January, 2002 the name of the defending GHC Heavyweight Champion is… Akiyama cut off the question to answer it was himself. That wasn’t the question thought so he was incorrect! The rest of the question asked who was the child who wanted to skip school to go see the match and got angry at his mother? Hirata answered it was himself. Correct! Hirata defeated Akiyama in the Quiz Showdown! Hirata hit Akiyama with the toy hammer to celebrate and Akiyama no sold it. DDT then announced that Akiyama’s 30th Anniversary show will be held in Korakuen Hall on 18th September. Akiyama thinks he will have a proper match against Hirata on that show.

The new KO-D Tag Team Champions are on shaky ground after finding out just how strong their opponents are. Yukio Naya showed off the power he has gained from teaming with Yuji Hino and made Masahiro Takanashi submit for the victory. Chris Brookes was also left in agony from Hino’s chops. Naya told the fans to look forward to them taking the Tag Titles from CDK.

A lesson we learned today is nobody messes with Hisaya Imabayashi except Pheromones! Their match against DAMNATION T.A was going the usual lewd direction with Imabayashi threatening to cancel the match. This time however Daisuke Sasaki came to defend Imabayashi from Pheromones, only to turn on him and attack all of them with a chair. Minoru Fujita & MJ Paul joined in on the beatdown and had to be disqualified. Sasaki complained that Imabayashi doesn’t have the right to cancel their matches. He threatened they will attack him again if he tries to stop the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match on 10th April. They will even attack his wife and kids to prove their point! Dieno was in tears over what happened to Imabayashi. He is an innocent person in that doesn’t deserve to get attacked this way. Pheromones claim they are all about justice and swore to get revenge on DAMNATION T.A!

A full force Eruption opened up the main show, beating a foursome made up of DISASTER BOX wrestlers and the rookie Yuki Ishida. Those four were all called “The Pig Brothers” by Hideki Okatani. He even scored the win in the end and told the fans to remember the Red Fight Spirit of Eruption!

On the pre-show Antonio Honda successfully defended the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title against Pokotan. Honda summoned the power of Triple H to aid him on his way to victory. After the match Shinichiro Kawamatsu from the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly was supposed to hand the belt over to Honda but Pokotan got into another fight with Honda. The two of them knocked each other out and it dawned on Kawamatsu that he could pin Honda. He did so after encouragement from the fans and became the new Iron Man Champion! Kawamatsu joked if this is really what the DDT fans wanted to see and he promised to defend the title for all 24 hours as hard as he can.

Away from all the matches, the biggest news to come from the show was Konosuke Takeshita announcing he is going on an indefinite expedition to the United States where he will wrestle for AEW! His final match in DDT before he leaves will be on 10th April. He is ready to take on the challenge of the world and begin Chapter 2 of his career. He also promised to do his best in DDT before he goes away and hopes when he comes back Ueno will be the KO-D Champion so he can challenge him.

Endo was presented with the brand new redesigned KO-D Openweight Title belt from Sanshiro Takagi at the start of the show. Endo said it is more brilliant looking than the previous belt he is happy to be the one to build up its history.

The next Korakuen Hall show on 10th April will feature Saki Akai & Maya Yukihi against Bambi & Cherry to celebrate DDT’s history with women’s wrestling. Akai is honored to face the two women from DDT’s past and also hopes to create something new with Yukihi.

A mystery wrestler who would like to wrestle in DDT is being promoted to appear at Yokohama Radiant Hall on 1st April.