Yuka Sakazaki Graduating From TJPW This December

May 8, 2023

A press conference was held by Tokyo Joshi Pro today with both Tetsuya Koda and Yuka Sakazaki in attendance. The big new coming out of the event is Sakazaki’s announcement that she will be graduating from TJPW on 1st December at the promotion’s 10th Anniversary show in Korakuen Hall. She will continue her pro wrestling career but it will happen overseas because she is also going to relocate to America in 2024. Sakazaki said it was a difficult decision to make but wanted it to happen during a big milestone which is why she picked the 10th Anniversary as her final match in the company. Koda said Sakazaki has several overseas tours scheduled for the rest of this year starting with an expedition to USA from 13th May to 4th June. These tours are being done to help Sakazaki prepare for her move to America next year so she will have limited appearances with TJPW for the rest of 2023.

Therefore Koda announced that The Magical Sugar Rabbits will defend the Princess Tag Team Titles against Daydream on the 11th June Korakuen show. This is going to be Sakazaki’s next match in Japan due to her busy schedule. Even though Sakazaki is leaving TJPW, she is still determined to hold onto the Tag Titles with Mizuki and continue their latest championship reign. When asked what caused Sakazaki to make this decision, she said she knew the day would come when she would have to leave the company and the last 10 years have gone in a blink of an eye. TJPW is special to her but she feels she could not stay there forever for that very reason. She loves pro wrestling and wants to continue doing it as she enters the next stage in her life. But if she was to continue wrestling in Japan for other promotions it would interfere with TJPW which is why she is choosing to relocate and wrestle in America instead. She is undecided if she will ever wrestle in Japan again but if she does it will 100% not be for another joshi promotion.

Sakazaki said there are still things she wants to do in TJPW before she finishes up there. She said there is one particular story she wants to finish up but did not explain what it is. Even though there are 7 months left in 2023, her busy schedule means it is more like three and a half months for her. When she consulted with Mizuki about her decision, Mizuki’s response was she didn’t want Sakazaki to leave her. But Mizuki supports the decision and the two intend to stay as Princess Tag Champions for as long as they can so they can bring the belts to Disneyland together. Sakazaki would also like to invite an AEW wrestler over for a match at “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’23” in Ota Ward Gymnasium on 8th July. She thinks it would be a good opportunity for Japanese AEW fans to see one of the company’s wrestlers up close and in person.

———————————————————————–

A day like this was always going to come eventually. Yuka Sakazaki is now the biggest name yet in TJPW’s history to leave the company after being there for almost the entirety of its lifetime. Really it’s just Miyu Yamashita and Shoko Nakajima left that are ahead of her seniority wise with Rika Tatsumi right behind her. What amazes me and keeps this story a positive one is Sakazaki’s decision to continue wrestling and to go do it in America. As TJPW approaches the 10th Anniversary of their launch event it is astounding to look back and see how it has grown. There’s a list a mile long of all the different DDT offshoots and spinoffs that only lasted a few years at best (heck DDTeeeen!! wasn’t even that long ago). When TJPW first started in 2012 I didn’t expect it to be any different. NOZOMI came and went. They replaced her with a bunch of young trainees and I thought they would only last a few years then vanish like so many wrestlers of any gender have done over the years. Instead we got Yamashita, Nakajima, Sakazaki & Tatsumi successfully holding up the fort as the company matured and the roster grew. Now TJPW has carved out a pretty nice spot for themselves in a wrestling landscape. It’s good enough to be the No. 2 women’s promotion in Japan and they’ve produced several wrestlers who are now able to make a name for themselves in America. Sakazaki will likely call AEW her home next year, Yamashita is in big demand on the US indies and Maki Itoh will have probably taken over GCW by the time she is done with them. All that’s missing now is for WWE to poach Hyper Misao so she can keep watch over the NXT parking lot.

So yeah, good news, feeling a bit emotional. I’m not looking forward to typing this all again whenever Yamashita, Nakajima and/or Tatsumi calls it a day.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “YES! WONDERLAND ’23 Results

May 5, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “YES! WONDERLAND ’23”, 05/05/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
774 Fans

1. HIMAWARI defeated Shino Suzuki with a Half Crab Hold (6:28).
2. Hyper Misao, Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo defeated Raku, Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko when Misao pinned Harajuku with the I Am A Hero (10:32).
3. Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara defeated Mahiro Kiryu & Toga when Kamifuku pinned Kiryu with the Famouser (9:40).
4. Ryo Mizunami, Moka Miyamoto & Kaya Toribami defeated Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Yuki Aino when Mizunami pinned Aino with the Hot Limit (12:55).
5. Miu Watanabe defeated Arisu Endo with the Tear Drop (13:26).
6. Yuki Arai Debut 2nd Anniversary Match: Yuka Sakazaki & Shoko Nakajima defeated Yuki Arai & Maki Itoh when Sakazaki pinned Arai with the Magical Merry-Go-Round (15:29).
7. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) defeated Suzume with the Missile Hip (13:28).
*V3 for Rika Tatsumi.
8. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) defeated Sawyer Wreck with the Cutie Special (11:24).
*V2 for Mizuki.

A Princess Of Princess Title defence unlike any other was the big match for Tokyo Joshi Pro’s annual Golden Week show in Korakuen Hall. The champion Mizuki faced that tall challenge of Sawyer Wreck, an American wrestler fond of having death matches. The massive height difference between the two resulted in Wreck throwing Mizuki around the ring and outside it too. A Diving Cross Body from Mizuki was caught and countered into a Power Bomb. But Mizuki found opening after opening to hit Diving Double Stomps, causing a lot of damage to the challenger. A ref bump led to Wreck bringing in several chairs but Mizuki fought her off and escaped from a Choke Slam attempt. She had the strength to throw Wreck with the Cutie Special and land one more Diving Foot Stomp before using another Cutie Special for the successful title defence.

The two hugged each other after the match and Wreck left ringside to a good ovation from the fans. Mizuki said on the microphone she was nervous to fight against a big opponent but she did it to give fans the full taste of TJPW. Suddenly Maki Itoh entered the ring to challenge Mizuki for the Princess Title! Mizuki said Itoh was late because she remembers a promise the two made years ago. They promised back then that when Mizuki became the champion she would have a title match with Itoh. She’s happy it will finally get to happen so she wants it to take place in Ota Ward Gymnasium on 8th July for “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’23”! Itoh didn’t say anything in response. She just gave Mizuki the middle finger and left the ring. Backstage Itoh said she will be going back to America from around 19th May. She is making the decision to stay there until the Fukuoka homecoming show on 25th June in order to train for the title match. In response to this, Mizuki wants to focus on defending the Princess Tag Team Titles until Itoh returns.

Rika Tatsumi is left looking for more challengers after her third defence of the International Princess Title. Her opponent Suzume went straight for the win from the start with Cradles and roll ups until Tatsumi took her outside the ring and used her Choking attacks. She also threw Suzume’s leg against the ring post. Suzume survived the use of Dragon Sleepers and Hip Attacks to use the Ring A Bell but she was too damaged to make the pin. Suzume then applied her own Sleeper but Tatsumi broke out of it to hit another Hip Attack. Firmly in control at this point, Tatsumi used the Twist Of Fate and then the Missile Hip to finish Suzume off. Tatsumi said afterward this win was an important one and she expects to be defending the IP Title for the rest of her life. There is one person she wants to have a title match with but she wouldn’t reveal who it is. All she said is when the time comes. the fans should not miss it. Backstage Suzume was in tears. She admires Tatsumi so much but she’s upset to let down the all the fans who wanted to see her win the championship. She won’t give up chasing after Tatsumi and hopes she will continue defending “the most beautiful belt in the world” until she gets to challenge her again.

Yuki Arai celebrated two years as a pro wrestler by asking her rival idol Maki Itoh to team together for the first time. Itoh claims she agreed to do this only because Miyu Yamashita isn’t around. Their opponents were Yuka Sakazaki & Shoko Nakajima, the two of them coming back together for a Miraclians reunion. Arai got to show how much she has progressed in the last two years but she still fell to Sakazaki’s Merry-Go-Round to take the loss. Arai said the last two years have gone by so quickly but she has high hopes for her next year. Sakazaki & Nakajima were happy to bring Miraclians back for the occasion. They originally came up with the team name because at the time they were two losers looking to create a miracle. Today they discovered they can still make miracles together.

The two members of Daydream and Daisy Monkey that weren’t in the IP Title match faced off against each other lower down the card. Arisu Endo tried her best to grab and stretch Miu Watanabe but the power difference was just too much for her to overcome. Watanabe powered out of the Camel Clutch and pinned Endo with the Tear Drop to win the match. With Tatsumi’s win later in the show it was a clean sweep for Daydream over Daisy Monkey.

Ryo Mizunami returned to TJPW for her fourth match in the company to team up with Moka Miyamoto & Kaya Toribami to take on Free WiFi & Yuki Aino. At first Mizunami’s team were the ones in danger when Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta wiped out her partners and left it up to Aino to finish the job. But the UVB was countered into an STO followed by a Short-Range Lariat. Mizunami then pinned Aino with the Hot Limit to take victory from the jaws of defeat. The two of them kept going after the match was over so this may not be the end of Mizunami’s visits to TJPW.

The friendship between Yuki Kamifuku and Mahiro Kiryu allows them to be somewhat cheeky towards each other whenever they are on opposite sides of the ring. When Kiryu was doing her Kneeling Apology spot on Wakana Uehara, Kamifuku kicked her off. Kiryu then grabbed Kamifuku and threw her on top of Uehara so she could apologise to everyone for her previous apology getting interrupted. Toga got involved with her Elbow Strikes but she ended up getting pinned with Kamifuku’s Famouser.

Today is Children’s Day in Japan so Hyper Misao had to team with the two teenagers Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo. They both showed up wearing similar superhero masks and promised to play fair with their opponents. The other team didn’t believe them and were eventually proven right. Kazashiro & Okubo choked Pom Harajuku with their cloaks and caused her to throw a tantrum. She thought she should get to celebrate the holiday too because she is “3 years old”. Haruna Neko also got into the antics by blinding Misao with her own spray. Misao fought back by putting Harajuku in the Crossface Chickenwing until Raku & Neko broke the hold. Kazashiro & Okubo cleared both of them from the ring so Misao could beat Harajuku with the I Am A Hero.

HIMAWARI was able to beat Shino Suzuki in the opening match between two rookies both in their first year. Suzuki went for a Sleeper but was pushed back into the corner to let go of the hold. HIMAWARI then locked in a Half Crab Hold and held it back until her opponent gave up.

The card for Hyper Misao’s own show “HYPE!” on 25th May will consist of three matches. One of them is a 6 Way audition to determine who will become Hyper Misao II. Also on the show Shoko Nakajima faces Yoshihiko in a first time ever match. There was also announcements for new shows taking place later in the year outside of Tokyo. Many of them will serve as homecoming events for different members of the roster. They include Nakajima’s show in Niigata on 5th August, Arai’s show in Kyoto on 10th September, Tatsumi’s show in Nagano on 16th September and Endo’s show in Aizuwakamatsu on 21st October.


Keigo Injured Again, Nivea Bracket, Wonderland Full Card, DDT At Takashimaya

April 25, 2023

DDT “MAX BUMP 2023 TOUR IN OSAKA”, 29/04/2023
Osaka 176BOX

1. Hideki Okatani Vs Rukiya
2. Yuki “Not Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Makoto Oishi & Kazuma Sumi
3. Yuji Hino & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs HARASHIMA & Yuki Ishida
4. Osaka Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Saki Akai & Tsutenkakka Vs Toru Owashi, Rayne Leverkusen & Kazuki Hirata
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Naruki Doi, Yuni & Takeshi Masada
6. Special Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada Vs Shunma Katsumata & Kazusada Higuchi
7. BURNING Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Tetsuya Endo Vs Yuya Koroku Vs MAO & Yuki Ueno

Keigo Nakamura aggravated his right knee injury and was diagnosed with a meniscus tear along with ligament damage. He was supposed to return to action this Saturday after a clearing a concussion scare but now will be out of action for a while longer. Makoto Oishi replaces him on the show, giving him another chance to judge Yuki Iino closely.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “PRECIOUS TIME”, 29/04/2023
Tokyo Shinagawa Prince Hotel Club eX

1. Nivea Presents Shinagawa 3-Woman Festival – Round 1A: Maki Itoh, Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
2. Nivea Presents Shinagawa 3-Woman Festival – Round 1B: Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & HIMAWARI Vs Mizuki, Yuka Sakazaki & Shino Suzuki
3. Nivea Presents Shinagawa 3-Woman Festival – Round 1C: Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao & Kaya Toribami Vs Yuki Kamifuku, Mahiro Kiryu & Toga
4. Nivea Presents Shinagawa 3-Woman Festival – Round 1D: Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Wakana Uehara Vs Suzume, Arisu Endo & Haruna Neko
5. Nivea Presents Shinagawa 3-Woman Festival – Semi-Final: Winners Of Match 1A Vs Winners Of Match 1B
6. Nivea Presents Shinagawa 3-Woman Festival – Semi-Final: Winners Of Match 1C Vs Winners Of Match 1D
7. Sawyer Wreck Vs Moka Miyamoto
8. Nivea Presents Shinagawa 3-Woman Festival – Final: X, X & X Vs X, X & X

A year’s worth of Nivea Body Wash goes to the winning team of the tournament.

DDT “MAX BUMP 2023 TOUR IN HAMAMATSU”, 30/04/2023
Shizuoka Create Hamamatsu Hall

1. Yusuke Okada Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Hideki Okatani & Rukiya
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & Mari Manji Vs Antonio Honda, Takeshi Masada & Rayne Leverkusen
4. BURNING Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yuya Koroku Vs MAO, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Ueno
5. Ω Vs Pheromones!: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Yuki “Not Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno
6. Hamamatsu Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Yukio Sakaguchi & Hiroshi Yamato Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Chris Brookes & Yuki Ishida

Nakamura is replaced with Rukiya for Sunday’s show.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “YES! WONDERLAND ’23”, 05/05/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. HIMAWARI Vs Shino Suzuki
2. Hyper Misao, Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo Vs Raku, Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko
3. Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara Vs Mahiro Kiryu & Toga
4. Ryo Mizunami, Moka Miyamoto & Kaya Toribami Vs Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Yuki Aino
5. Miu Watanabe Vs Arisu Endo
6. Yuki Arai Debut 2nd Anniversary Match: Yuki Arai & Maki Itoh Vs Yuka Sakazaki & Shoko Nakajima
7. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) Vs Suzume
8. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Sawyer Wreck

The other members of Daydream and Daisy Monkey face off before the International Princess Title takes place. Miu Watanabe will be a big challenge for Arisu Endo one on one.

Ryo Mizunami returns to Tokyo Joshi Pro once more. See fought Moka Miyamoto last time but now they are teaming up along with Kaya Toribami.

5th May is Children’s Day in Japan. For Hyper Misao she will be spending the day teaming with the two teenagers Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo.

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAM TAKASHIMAYA VOL. 1”, 13/05/2023
Tokyo Shinjuku Takashimaya 1st Floor JR Exit Special Venue

1. Sanshiro Takagi, Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Saki Akai & Yuki Ishida
2. Pokotan Vs X
3. Tetsuya Endo, Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs MAO, Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima

A free outdoor DDT event is taking place at the Takashimaya department store in Shinjuku. Three matches are scheduled for throughout the day along with talk shows and other experiences for the fans to see. Takashimaya contacted DDT to put the event together as something for their customers to enjoy while they visit the store. They also mentioned that DDT has a lot of female fans so they think this is a suitable cross-promotion for both companies. Sanshiro Takagi is hoping it will be such a success that they can turn it into an annual event. He warns that the wrestlers could get so heated up during their matches that they might bring the fighting inside the building. However Takashimaya management want to avoid those kind of incidents and any accidents that could happen alongside it.

DDT/ONLY WE “ONLY WE X DDT SPECIAL! ~YUJI HINO 20TH ANNIVERSARY EVENT~”, 14/05/2023
Chiba TKP Garden City

1. The 37KAMIINA Vs Ω!: MAO & Toy Kojima Vs Makoto Oishi & Shiori Asahi
2. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Shinya Aoki, Yuki Ueno & Super Sasadango Machine (c) Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Ryota Nakatsu & Yuki Ishida
3. Yuji Hino Debut 20th Anniversary Match: Yuji Hino, Jun Akiyama & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Tetsuya Endo, HARASHIMA & Yuji Okabayashi

The mystery man in the main event has been revealed to be Yuji Okabayashi! He has been a regular opponent for Yuji Hino around Japan for a lot of his career.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “WRESTLE UNIVERSE MEMBERS ONLY SHOW – PURE TOKYO JOSHI PRO WRESTLING 8” Results

April 23, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “WRESTLE UNIVERSE MEMBERS ONLY SHOW – PURE TOKYO JOSHI PRO WRESTLING 8”, 23/04/2023
Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall
219 Fans

1. Cooking Match ~ Spring Okonomiyaki: Yuka Sakazaki defeated Moka Miyamoto by Daisuke Kiso Decision.
2. Shoko Nakajima, Yuki Aino & Haru Kazashiro defeated Raku, Shino Suzuki & Runa Okubo when Nakajima pinned Suzuki with the Northern Lights Suplex (8:35).
3. Max The Impaler defeated Kaya Toribami with the Short-Range Lariat (2:57).
4. Vert Vixen & Hikari Noa defeated Maki Itoh & Toga when Noa pinned Toga with a Running Neckbreaker Drop (10:55).
5. Tetsuya Koda Seat King 5 Way Match: Arisu Endo defeated Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe, Hyper Misao and HIMAWARI
5a. No Touch Rope: Miu Watanabe eliminated HIMAWARI with a pin on the ropes.
5b. Illustration: Hyper Misao eliminated Miu Watanabe with a Seahorse drawing.
5c. TK Quiz: Arisu Endo eliminated Hyper Misao.
5d. Cheering: Arisu Endo eliminated Rika Tatsumi by Audience Decision (3:00).
*Arisu Endo becomes the 1st Tetsuya Koda Seat King champion.
6. Costume Change Match: Mizuki, Yuki Kamifuku & Pom Harajuku defeated Suzume, Mahiro Kiryu & Haruna Neko when Mizuki pinned Kiryu with the Diving Foot Stomp (13:21).

The wrestler costumes in the main event went as follows: Mizuki was dressed as Shoko Nakajima, Yuki Kamifuku was dressed as Mahiro Kiryu, Pom Harajuku was dressed as Yuki Kamifuku, Suzume was dressed as Nao Kakuta, Mahiro Kiryu was dressed as Haruna Neko and Haruna Neko was dressed as Raku. Kamifuku apologised during the match for acting like a more authentic Kiryu than Kiryu. After the match Mizuki admitted it’s difficult to become someone else. Suzume said she would be happy if her efforts made everyone feel like they say Kakuta wrestle today. Neko said she was nervous so she watched videos of Raku in order to become her. Kiryu said she has new respect for Neko because she isn’t able to behave as a catgirl like she does.

The show began with a Cooking Match between Yuka Sakazaki and Moka Miyamoto. The two were tasked with cooking up a Okonomiyaki but first they had to compete in mini-games with the winners getting to choose their ingredients. Miyamoto won the games of jump rope and building a card castle and another card game to receive cabbage and pork belly. Sakazaki was left with chocolate and marshmellow. However Sakazaki won the third game of cards but was convinced by the audience to pick coffee flavored jelly over seafood mix. They spent the rest of the show creating their meal to be served to Daisuke Kiso before the main event. Kiso enjoyed both dishes and unexpectedly chose Sakazaki as the winner. He liked Miyamoto’s dish because as a traditional Okonomiyaki but Sakazaki’s tasted so sweet and had the bonus of her improvising with unusual ingredients that it won him over in the end.

The 5 Way Match was held under Tetsuya Koda Seat King rules. Chairs were placed in the ring each with a stipulation attached to it. HIMAWARI sat down on the chair that said “No Touch Rope” so she had to play a game against Miu Watanabe where you had to pin your opponent against the ropes for 3 seconds to win. Watanabe overpowered HIMAWARI and held her down onto the middle rope to eliminate her from the match. Next, Watanabe sat on the chair that said “Illustration” so she had a drawing contest against Hyper Misao. Everytime somebody got a 1 Count pin they got to draw something in 30 seconds and it was up to Koda to guess what it is. Whoever got Koda to guess correctly would win. Watanabe drew a “Frilled Lizard” but Koda thought it was Kamen Rider. Misao drew a Seahorse and Koda correctly guessed it, eliminating Watanabe. The third game was a “TK Quiz” between Misao and Arisu Endo. They had to answer trivia questions about Koda after every 1 Count pin. They got questions about Koda’s birthday and what he ate for breakfast wrong but Endo correctly guessed his blood type is B so Misao was now out of the game. The final game was a Cheering Contest between Endo and Rika Tatsumi. If neither wrestler could beat each other in 3 minutes then Koda will choose the winner based on who got cheered more. When it was time to decide, Koda declared that Endo was the winner! Tatsumi got angry over the result and slapped Koda across the face, which got her more cheers than during the match.

Haru Kazashiro was welcomed into Tokyo Joshi Pro’s Tokusatsu Club by Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino. Kazashiro is taking Nodoka Tenma’s spot in the group so the other members expected her to be in the same base position for their standing stacked spot. She wasn’t strong enough to do it so Nakajima & Aino decided to carry her and charge into their opponents instead. That also didn’t work.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SHIZUOKA IDOL FESTIVAL IN TSUMAGOI” Results

April 16, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SHIZUOKA IDOL FESTIVAL IN TSUMAGOI”, 16/04/2023
Shizuoka Tsumagoi Resort Sai no Sato Multipurpose Plaza
??? Fans – Unannounced

1. Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku defeated Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino when Max pinned Aino with a Pop-Up Lariat (16:00).
2. Vert Vixen & Hikari Noa defeated Maki Itoh & Raku when Vixen pinned Raku with the Game Over (12:07).
3. Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe defeated Suzume & Shino Suzuki when Watanabe pinned Suzuki with the Tear Drop (17:42).

Rika Tatsumi spent some of the main event eating dorayaki and also force feeding Shino Suzuki some of it. She also ran off with Suzuki’s tour guide flag.

Vert Vixen picked up her first win in Tokyo Joshi Pro.

It seems that Pom Harajuku has gotten comfortable teaming with Max The Impaler. Max is still throwing her around whenever they get the chance to but the team has been working out for the two of them so far.

The Up Up Girls all performed songs at the event.

Hyper Misao was at the event providing live commentary for the crowd.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “STAND ALONE ’23” Results

April 15, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “STAND ALONE ’23”, 15/04/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
620 Fans

1. Moka Miyamoto defeated Kaya Toribami with the Korokan (7:31).
2. Suzume, Arisu Endo & Runa Okubo defeated Yuki Aino, Haruna Neko & Haru Kazashiro when Suzume pinned Kazashiro with the Ring A Bell (10:15).
3. Maki Itoh, Yuki Kamifuku, Wakana Uehara & Toga defeated Miu Watanabe, Hikari Noa, Raku & Shino Suzuki when Itoh submitted Suzuki with the Itoh Deluxe (13:22).
4. Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao defeated Yuki Arai & HIMAWARI when Nakajima pinned HIMAWARI with the Northern Lights Suplex (9:02). (Special Referee: Shiori Aoki)
5. Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku defeated Yuka Sakazaki & Mahiro Kiryu when
Harajuku pinned Kiryu after the Wasteland War Justice (9:02).
6. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) defeated Vert Vixen with the Torso Choke Dragon Sleeper (10:55).
*V2 for Rika Tatsumi.
7. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) defeated Nao Kakuta with the Modified Face Lock (15:45).
*V1 for Mizuki.

The brand new Princess Of Princess Title run for Mizuki is off to a good start with a successful defence against Nao Kakuta. Unlike previous Princess Title matches in the past, this one featured fighting at ringside with Kakuta throwing Mizuki into the front row of chairs. Kakuta also used the Avalanche Hair Whip to thrown Mizuki back into the ring from the top rope. However Kakuta took a beating throughout the match too and was too hurt to cover Mizuki when she gave her the Shiden Kai. She went for another version of the move but Mizuki countered it and Double Stomped onto Kakuta’s shoulder when she was left sitting on the canvas empty handed. Mizuki then landed a Flying Double Stomp before taking her opponent’s arm and applying a Modified Face Lock for the submission victory.

After the match Mizuki said she was really happy that she and Kakuta got to main event a Tokyo Joshi Pro show together. She had wanted Kakuta to show new sides she has never seen before but instead the opposite happened. It’s a kind of fighting relationship she wants to continue with her. Mizuki’s next Princess Title defence is against Sawyer Wreck on 5th May but before then The Magical Sugar Rabbits have a Princess Tag Team Titles defence on 22nd April. So Mizuki’s next priority is to focus on defending the Tag Titles with Yuka Sakazaki because she only wants to concentrate on one goal at a time.

Rika Tatsumi had a brand new opponent for her second International Princess Title defence. Vert Vixen was able to withstand the attacks to her legs and fire back with powerful moves like the Stunner and Blue Thunder Bomb. She also continued using Super Kicks and Big Boots to block Tatsumi’s Hip Attack. Tatsumi switched her attack over to the Dragon Sleeper and despite some resistance at first, she was able to lock in the Body Choke and make Vixen tap out. The two bowed to each other after the match.

Tatsumi praised her challenger and told the fans she wants her title reign to bring her on an even more interesting journey. Suddenly Suzume entered the ring. She said Tatsumi is the reason she became a pro wrestler and changed her life. And it’s because of Tatsumi that it may change again because Suzume is challenging her for the title on 5th May! Tatsumi accepted, bringing up her loss to Suzume at last year’s Tokyo Princess Cup. It’s time for her to avenge the loss and get her win back. Suzume admits it is almost impossible for her to become a champion given her previous attempts to get opportunities all ended in failure. But Tatsumi inspired her to do the impossible and become a wrestler so Tatsumi can make her do the impossible again and become a champion!

The odd couple of Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku might have something going for them after all. Harajuku was understandable scared of the experience, especially when Max lifted her above their head with the intention of throwing her onto the other team. Sakazaki used the team’s lack of cohesion to run circles around them while Mahiro Kiryu focused on beating Harajuku. However Max blew away both Sakazaki & Kiryu with attacks. They then grabbed Harajuku and threw her so she landed on top of Kiryu Pom de Justice style for the surprise three count. After the match Max raised a confused Harajuku’s hand in victory and then pulled her backstage shoulder to shouler. The two are facing The Magical Sugar Rabbits for the Princess Tag Titles on 22nd April. One thing for sure is Sakazaki didn’t figured out how to beat them today.

Being a pro wrestling referee can be a tough job. Shiori Aoki found that out first hand when the SKE48 idol was tasked with officiating a tag match. One with Hyper Misao in it. Misao immediately accused Aoki of bribery because she heard she had a meal with Yuki Arai that Arai paid for a couple of days ago. Misao then ordered her to give Arai a thorough inspection for illegal objects. Aoki did so and completely missed Misao blinding HIMAWARI with a spray can. Misao cradled HIMAWARI and Aoki counted to three. However Daisuke Kiso revealed the result did not count because Aoki never called for the ring bell to start the match. The match restarted with Aoki trying to catch up with Misao’s cheating. Misao’s spray ended up in Arai’s hands. When Aoki grabbed the can and took it away, she accidentally pressed it and sprayed into Aoki’s eyes! HIMAWARI and Shoko Nakajima tried to pin each other with flash moves so for some reason Aoki did a cartwheel before counting the pin. Aoki counted to three for the Northern Lights Suplex and correctly declared Nakajima the winner. Aoki said she felt comfortable in the role and would like to come back as an even stronger referee. HIMAWARI said she will bring her own referee next time so she can win. Meanwhile Arai is trying to figure out if buying a meal for her bandmate counts as bribary then does that mean she should stop eating dinner with her? Kyoraku Kyomei thought she did a good job and she can now be their referee friend. Nakajima encouraged her to go look up footage of Shiro Abe on Youtube so she can imitate him.

An 8-Woman Tag Match put all of the active members of The Up Up Girls together. Wakana Uehara was the unlucky girl to get the full fledge Oyasumi Express attack from all four opponents. She tagged in Toga to get out there but the other rookie didn’t fare much better. Yuki Kamifuku turned things around by resisting the Giant Swing from Miu Watanabe and putting her in a Manjigatame instead. Watanabe countered that into a Front Neck Lock Giant Swing. Kamifuku got her way back into the match by giving both Hikari Noa & Raku the Famouser at the same time. However Watanabe grabbed both her & Uehara in a Double Body Slam. The match came down to Maki Itoh pressuring Shino Suzuki into fighting back against her. Itoh countered a Sleeper Hold with a Chincrusher, landed a DDT and made Suzuki submit to the Itoh Deluxe.

The two youngest rookies Haru Kazashiro and Runa Okubo started off Match #2 against each other. They soon switched out to Haruna Neko and Suzume respectively. Yuki Aino and Arisu Endo then had their exchanges back and forth. Kazashiro tried beating Suzume with a Low Cross Body but Suzume turned things around with a Top Rope Facebuster. She then hit the Ring A Bell for the win.

 

A missed Overhead Kick may have been what cost Kaya Toribami the match against Moka Miyamoto. It was from that point when Miyamoto took control and kept the attacks up. Toribami was able to hit the Overhead Kick on another attempt but then she missed the Rolling Senton off the second rope. Miyamoto took back the advantage and pinned Toribami with the Korokan.

Hyper Misao is producing her own one-off event called “HYPE!” in Kitazawa Town Hall on 25th May. Misao cannot guarantee that all members of the TJPW roster will be on the show but she wants to create and exciting show for everybody.

A one day trios tournament sponsored by Nivea will take place in Shinagawa on 29th April. The winning team receives a year’s worth of cream care body wash as their prize. Moka Miyamoto Vs Sawyer Wreck will also be on the show in a non-tournament bout.

The Up Up Girls will be holding a solo event in Shinjuku FACE on 10th June.

The 10th annual Tokyo Princess Cup will take place across seven shows this year. The early rounds will be at Ryogoku KFC Hall on 15th, 16th, 17th & 22nd July. The Quarter Finals are at Korakuen Hall on 29th July, the Semi Finals in Korakuen on 12th August and the Final in Korakuen on the 13th.

Yuki Arai & Maki Itoh Vs Yuka Sakazaki & Shoko Nakajima was announced for 5th May to celebrate Arai’s 2nd anniversary of her wrestling debut.


DDT Around The World – WrestleMania Week 2023

April 1, 2023

So WrestleMania Week is not over yet by a long shot. The actual shows behind the namesake haven’t even taken place by the time I am posting this. But all of the DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro related wrestling shows are now finished by this point. The wrestlers will be spending the rest of the weekend as convention guests and as tourists enjoying the sights and sounds of Los Angeles.

The vacation hasn’t been entirely relaxing though. The hotel all of the DDT wrestlers were staying at had to be evacuated in the early hours of Friday morning because of a burst pipe flooding the building. It caused all of the DDT wrestlers to lose a lot of sleep before the GCW show. Funny thing is when Sanshiro Takagi explained what happened on Twitter a lot of Japanese fans didn’t believe him. It was already 1st April in Japan because of the time difference so some fans thought Takagi was pulling an April Fool’s Joke!

———————————————————————–

Videos


Video starts at 53:28 for the match
AEW “DARK”, 28/03/2023
Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Cole Karter


IMPACT “IMPACT WRESTLING”, 30/03/2023
St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Killer Kelly


AEW “RAMPAGE”, 31/03/2023
Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

1. Sammy Guevara (w/ Tay Melo) Vs Konosuke Takeshita

Video starts at 21:10 for the match
ROH “SUPERCARD OF HONOR 2023: ZERO HOUR”, 31/03/2023
Galen Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

0. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Willie Mack

———————————————————————–

Results


ROH “ROH ON HONORCLUB”, 29/03/2023 (Aired 30/03/2023)
Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Shazza McKenzie with the Skull Kick (4:45).

First Impact, now ROH. Is Yamashita keeps going at this rate she might show up at an MLW taping if she’s not careful. She kicked Shazza McKenzie’s head off to win her ROH debut.


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

1. Steph De Lander & Heather Monroe defeated Maki Itoh & Kidd Bandit (?:??).

What on earth happened here? The night started off well for Maki Itoh with her getting backup dancers for her entrance. But her tag partner Kidd Bandit ended up betraying her, costing them the match against Steph De Lander & Heather Monroe. Bandit’s only explanation to Itoh after the match was “There can be only one” and then they walked out on her. Itoh’s response to that was yelling “I hate everyone!”


AEW “RAMPAGE”, 29/03/2023 (Aired 31/03/2023)
Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

1. Sammy Guevara (w/ Tay Melo) defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the GTH (9:43).

Konosuke Takeshita’s week began with a match against one of AEW’s chosen pillars at Rampage. Victory was in his grasp until Tay Melo grabbed his leg in the corner for a distraction. That allowed Sammy Guevara to strike Takeshita from behind with a Jumping Knee and then hit the GTH to steal the win.

Yoshihiko took a detour to St. Louis on the way to LA so it could attend the AEW show. It was granted a visitor’s pass and got to enjoy catering while watching the matches. It also hung out with some of the staff like Bryce Remsburg. Since Yoshihiko brought along the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title it made sense to stay near a ref the whole time.


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

1. TJPW 10-Woman Tag Showcase: Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao, Yuki Kamifuku & Yuki Aino defeated Rika Tatsumi, Nao Kakuta, Miu Watanabe, Hikari Noa & Raku when Mizuki pinned Raku with the Diving Foot Stomp (14:21).

While Yamashita and Itoh were busy around the indies, the rest of the TJPW roster went to visit WrestleCon. 10 of them got together to put on a 10-Woman Tag match for the fans. Mizuki led a team consisting of Kyoraku Kyomei, Yuki Kamifuku & Yuki Aino to beat Rika Tatsumi, Nao Kakuta & The Up Up Girls.


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).

A report of the show can be found here.


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

1. 4 Way Match: Deonna Purrazzo defeated Masha Slamovich, Gisele Shaw and Miyu Yamashita when Purrazzo pinned Shaw with the Gotch-Style Piledriver (9:20).

Yamashita got off to a good start in Impact last week when she beat Killer Kelly in her debut. Her next challenge saw her get caught in the race for the future of the Knockouts World Title. If she had won the 4 Way match she would have qualified for a title match at Impact’s next PPV in April. Instead she was left out of the result because Deonna Purrazzo pinned Gisele Shaw to win that opportunity.


WPW “RUSSELL CROWE WRESTLING: RUSSEL MANIA III”, 30/03/2023
Burbank Moose Lodge, Burbank, California, USA

1. Mizuki Watase defeated Gregory Sharpe and Eli Everfly (?:??).

I can’t find much info about this match other than Mizuki Watase won using a new move. This is all according to Watase himself. He also had the Spirit Of Ganbare Title with him. Doesn’t sound like it was defended though.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES”, 31/03/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
665 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta defeated Suzume & Arisu Endo when Noa pinned Endo after the 5G (11:38).
2. Janai Kai defeated Yuki Kamifuku with the Tornado Kick (4:57).
3. Hyper Misao & Trish Adora defeated Yuki Aino & Raku when Misao pinned Raku with the I Am A Hero (9:03).
4. Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer defeated Shoko Nakajima & Miu Watanabe when Max pinned Nakajima after the Master Blaster (11:56).
5. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) defeated Billie Starkz with the Missile Hip (8:56).
*V1 for Rika Tatsumi.
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki defeated Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh (c) when Mizuki pinned Itoh with the Diving Foot Stomp (15:51).
*121000000 fails in V1. The Magical Sugar Rabbits becomes the 13th Princess Tag Team Champions!

A report of the show can be found here.


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

1. Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers, Dyln McKay & Jack Cartwheel defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & Takeshi Masada when Cartwheel pinned Masada with the Jack Arrow (10:42).
2. Dark Sheik defeated Saki Akai with a Wrist-Clutch Inside Cradle (7:20).
3. Jordan Oliver & Nick Wayne defeated MAO & Mike Bailey when Oliver pinned Bailey after the Combined Springboard Cutter (16:18).
4. Kazusada Higuchi defeated Starboy Charlie with the Brain Claw Slam (11:40).
5. Yuki Ueno defeated Joey Janela with the Rolling Guillotine Ace Crusher (10:21).
6. Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama defeated Homicide & Tony Deppen when Endo pinned Deppen with the Burning Star Press (12:18).
7. Matthew Justice, Mance Warner & 1 Called Manders defeated Chris Brookes, Shunma Katsumata & Mizuki Watase when Warner pinned Katsumata with a DDT (15:19).
8. Effy & Allie Katch Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno ended in a No Contest (13:37).
9. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Cole Radrick defeated Yoshihiko (c) with the Lil Sebastian’s Curse onto a Chair (14:49).
*Cole Radrick becomes the 1,570th champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Yoshihiko defeated Cole Radrick with a Cradle (5:47 pm).
*Yoshihiko becomes the 1,571st champion.

A report of the show can be found here.


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

0. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Willie Mack with the Zahi (9:36).
1. ROH Women’s World Title: Athena (c) defeated Yuka Sakazaki with the O-Face (11:38).
*V7 for Athena.

Before she headed over to the ROH PPV, Yuka Sakazaki regained the Princess Tag Team Titles at the TJPW show. Her hopes of ending the night as a double champion by also winning the ROH Women’s World Title did not come to fruition. Athena kicked out of the Magical Girl Splash and the Magical Merry-Go-Round. She then relied on her mean streak to push the referee into Sakazaki’s way when she climbed the ropes for another Splash. The distraction gave Athena time to climb up the turnbuckles beside Sakazaki and then catch her in the O-Face to retain her title. It was announced later in the night that Athena’s next defence will be against Miyu Yamashita on next week’s ROH show.

Takeshita showed up on Zero Hour for a bonus pre-show match against Willie Mack. Not to take anything away from it but news was broken by Fightful during the day that Takeshita had a different match planned for the PPV itself. His opponent? It was going to be Will Ospreay… Yep. We could have gotten Takeshita Vs Ospreay if it wasn’t for the latter’s injury… God damn it. Well at least now that is out in the open it could still happen down the road somewhere.


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

1. Taya Valkyrie defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Road To Valhalla (7:34).

It’s rare to see a day where Yamashita loses twice in a row but there’s going to be times in this tour where we all have to remember she isn’t the big fish in a small pond over here. Taya Valkyrie is on a hot run too that might be approaching its peak with her AEW appearances so the result shouldn’t be that much of a surprise.


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

1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh Vs Effy & Allie Katch when Itoh pinned Effy with the I.S.D (16:07).

The one and only time Maki Death Kill were teaming up was as chaotic as it sounds. Itoh & Nick Gage each had a pizza cutter and used them against Bussy, leaving Effy & Allie Katch both bleeding. Steel chairs were also brought into the match and Gage threw one in Effy’s face. Itoh then pinned Effy with the Flying DDT while Gage also pinned Katch with a One-Winged Angel. Their celebration was short lived when Matt Cardona and Steph De Lander ambushed them with chairs after the match. They did that because they had no match booked on the show. The segment then morphed into De Lander getting an impromptu GCW World Title match against Masha Slamovich.

Yoshihiko made an unexpected appearance during the show accompanied by a masked handler and even cut a promo. Or at least it nodded when asked if it wants to stick around in GCW. Suddenly Charles Mason and his bodyguard Parrow attacked Yoshihiko because Mason is sick of this kind of nonsense going on. Mason even pulled out a knife and threatened to slash Yoshihiko’s throat open! The handler came to Yoshihiko’s rescue but was overwhelmed and unmasked to reveal he was Jimmy Lloyd. Mason held LLoyd down so Parrow could finish the job until Yoshihiko fought back and slammed Parrow with a German Suplex! Mason had to flee the ring out of fear.


GCW “EMO FIGHT”, 31/03/2023
Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. 3 Way Tag Match: MAO & Mike Bailey defeated Miedo Extremo & Ciclope and Dyln McKay & Marcus Mathers when MAO & Bailey pinned McKay with the Michinoku Tornado Driver (13:47).

Moonlight Express must have been feeling depressed over losing the match after all because they showed up for the main event of GCW’s emo themed show. They fought Los Macizos (where the hell were they earlier?) and Wasted Youth in the early hours of the morning. There was also a bit of a sing song during the match. It might have been done to see if Los Macizos really were emo.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES” Results

March 31, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES”, 31/03/2023
Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
665 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta defeated Suzume & Arisu Endo when Noa pinned Endo after the 5G (11:38).
2. Janai Kai defeated Yuki Kamifuku with the Tornado Kick (4:57).
3. Hyper Misao & Trish Adora defeated Yuki Aino & Raku when Misao pinned Raku with the I Am A Hero (9:03).
4. Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer defeated Shoko Nakajima & Miu Watanabe when Max pinned Nakajima after the Master Blaster (11:56).
5. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) defeated Billie Starkz with the Missile Hip (8:56).
*V1 for Rika Tatsumi.
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki defeated Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh (c) when Mizuki pinned Itoh with the Diving Foot Stomp (15:51).
*121000000 fails in V1. The Magical Sugar Rabbits becomes the 13th Princess Tag Team Champions!

A big Princess Tag Team Titles change marked Tokyo Joshi Pro’s first visit to America. 121000000 are now the first champions to end their reign with zero successful defences. The Magical Sugar Rabbits are now on their third reign, argubly cementing themselves as the most dominant Princess Tag Champions in history. It all went wrong for the defending champions when their Sandwich High Kick/Headbutt attack missed, causing Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh to hit each other. Yuka Sakazaki got rid of Yamashita with the Magical Merry-Go-Round in the ring followed by going outside to give her a Brainbuster on the floor. She came back to hit the Magical Girl Splash on Itoh, setting up Mizuki to get the three count with the Diving Foot Stomp.

An overjoyed Mizuki told the American audience how “happy happy!” she was to become a double champion. Sakazaki invited the rest of the TJPW roster in the building to come out and join them in the ring so everyone could close out the show together. Backstage Yamashita tried to console Itoh over the result. Itoh kept telling her it’s over because she can’t do it anymore. Yamashita told her she didn’t lose the belt, it was only take from her. They will get their chance some day to get the belts back, Yamashita just doesn’t know when. It was enough to change Itoh’s mind. No matter how long it takes 121000000 will become tag champions again!

The giant rabbit head Billie Starkz wears for her entrance ended up getting used against her by Rika Tatsumi during their match. Tatsumi grabbed the head and shoved it onto Starkz before giving her a Dragon Screw. She then followed up with the Twist Of Fate and then the Missile Hip to score her first International Princess Title defence. Tatsumi wants to make the title more valuable and is anticipating getting to defend it against different opponents. She thinks Starkz is awesome and now that their match is out of the way, she wants to go out and take pictures of Hollywood with her.

The Wasteland War Party returned to TJPW but something wasn’t right. Max The Impaler couldn’t find Pom Harajuku anywhere! Never mind about that, the War Party had a match to win. Shoko Nakajima & Miu Watanabe did their best and put up a good fight. Nakajima hit some dives while Watanabe Body Slammed Max. She also slammed Heidi Howitzer onto Max before spinning Howitzer around in the Giant Swing. But the War Party regained control and pinned Nakajima with the Master Blaster. Howitzer told reporters afterwards that she has to go back to the Wasteland soon so she is leaving the joshi hunting duties to Max while she is away.

Before Match #3 began the fans were introduced to a new superhero by Hyper MisaoHyper Trish! Misao handed Trish Adora her own superhero mask so the pair can now go defend love and peace together. The mask did not provide any super powers though because Raku was able to send both of them to sleep briefly with a lullaby. Misao got her own back by spraying Raku & Yuki Aino in the eyes. Adora then took down Aino with a Lariat so Misao could pin Raku with the I Am A Hero. According to Misao, America has now been saved! Aino was frustrated to lose but also really happy she got paper streamers during her entrance.

Janai Kai defeated Yuki Kamifuku quick enough to surprise everybody. Right as the match was reaching the five minute mark, Kai dodged the Famouser and beat her opponent with the Tornado Kick. Maybe the match ended up that way because Kamifuku spent too much time daydreaming about finding the love of her life Zac Efron somewhere in LA. She also isn’t impressed with Kai’s toenails which is certainly caused by her fighting barefoot. She promises to take Kai to a nail salon the next time she visits Japan.

The wrestlers involved in the opening match could not have been happier with the crowd response. They were thrilled to hear Free WiFi and Daisy Monkey chants while they were fighting. The match ended with Hikari Noa throwing Suzume over with the Blizzard Suplex and then joining up with Nao Kakuta to finish off Arisu Endo with the 5G. Backstage Noa said when she went to wrestle in England last year she was anxious because she was by herself. But today she was with her important tag team partner along with the rest many other women from the roster.

Just like at every other TJPW show, The Up Up Girls performed their song “Upper Kick” at the start of the show. Also in the time between the venue doors opening and the show beginning, a playlist of entrance music for the wrestlers who weren’t able to come over played over the speakers.


Guide To TJPW In Los Angeles

March 29, 2023

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

It took three years of waiting but Tokyo Joshi Pro is finally landing in the USA! Originally they were supposed to make their American debut during the WrestleMania Weekend of 2020 but the global pandemic scrapped those plans. This year everything has fallen into place for the trip to go ahead with a new audience coming over to see what all the fuss is about. Maybe you know about TJPW from Yuka Sakazaki and Maki Itoh’s appearances in AEW or from the gifs of Miyu Yamashita kicking the heads off of other girls. Or maybe you just want to find out what is Raku’s Train Of The Day live in person. Whether you are a long time fan, a casual follower or an online reporter who thinks all joshi wrestling is Stardom there is something for everybody on this show.

Where can I watch it online?

The “TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES” show will be streaming live on FITE as a PPV costing $19.99. It is NOT included in the FITE+ subscription. The on-demand version of the show will be available to watch on Wrestle Universe two weeks after the live broadcast.

When and where are the shows taking place?

“TJPW LIVE IN LOS ANGELES” is taking place at the Globe Theatre, Los Angeles on Friday 31st March at 12pm pacific time.

Is this a proper TJPW show?

Yes, I’d say so. You’re not getting the entire roster over but the card to me looks like 3/4 of a lineup you would get for one of their Korakuen Hall shows held away from 4th January or Golden Week. Two title matches on one show is a big deal for them. All that’s missing are the low card and rookie wrestlers. The American wrestlers booked have all toured with TJPW this year so none of them are out of place. Plus Sayuri Namba will be there to do her ring announcing duties.

———————————————————————–

1. Yuki Kamifuku Vs Janai Kai

Glamour meets martial arts in the opening bout. Yuki Kamifuku is a model who entered TJPW as a party girl then over the years matured into a big sister role for many of the other women. Janai Kai has been making a name for herself across the indies as the “Kick Demon” and stepped into TJPW for the first time this past February.

Yuki Kamifuku: Sometimes called by her nickname Kamiyu, she is the tallest member of TJPW’s core roster. As much as she knows how to get under her opponent’s skin with harsh comments, she is loyal and sympathetic to her friends. Is proud of her modelling background because she has always been herself while proving you do not need to be a die hard pro wrestling fan to succeed in the business. Grew up in Ohio during her junior high school years so she knows the most English out of the bunch.
Moves To Watch Out For: Famouser (Jumping Leg Drop), Dropkick, Yahoo 83cm (Headscissors DDT), Manjigatame, Thumb To The Eye

Janai Kai: Looking straight out of a martial arts movie about a lethal fighting tournament, “Kick Demon” is a pretty accurate way to describe Janai Kai. She made her TJPW debut in February, achieving her goal of wrestling in Japan that took her 5 years to reach. She couldn’t bring any gold back home from that tour but will be even more determined to get another chance.
Moves To Watch Out For: Tornado Kick, Chaos Kicks (Speedball Kick Combo), Karate Kick to the back, Half Nelson Slam

2. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo

How are these for tag team names? Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta are Free WiFi because they think putting that name on the show poster will attract more customers. They also recently came up with a big tag team finisher called the 5G. Suzume & Arisu Endo are called Daisy Monkey because Suzume looks like a flower and Endo pulls her own face like a monkey. The two teams fill out the midcard in TJPW’s tag division although Kakuta does have a big championship match coming up in Japan pretty soon.

Hikari Noa: The first member of The Up Up Girls to have a match on the show. The Up Up Girls are an idol pop group that established a pro wrestling spin-off unit with TJPW. Noa is the member who loves death matches way more than idol music! The only reason she joined the project in the first place was to back door her way into a wrestling career. Her history with tag teams are a little bit cursed because her previous tag partners wound up either leaving the company or leaving pro wrestling entirely. Free WiFi is the first team of hers to last for a year.
Moves To Watch Out For: Blizzard Suplex, Thrust Kick, Blue Racer (Modified Cobra Twist)

Nao Kakuta: A member of the original class of Actwres girl’Z, Noa went freelance and jumped over to TJPW transforming herself from a rat chasing catgirl to a roll calling leader. She was previously a kindergarten teacher, a social welfare director and a camp instructor before becoming a stage actress and pro wrestler. She also got really into horse racing during the pandemic. Kakuta is currently gearing up for a big championship match next month so she’s looking to build her momentum here.
Moves To Watch Out For: Shiden Kai (Fireman’s Carry into a Stunner), Tarantula Headscissors, Kenka Kick

Suzume: Strong as a wasp, Suzume is the Daisy half of Daisy Monkey. She joined TJPW when a friend invited her to go see a show and went through 7 months of training before making her debut. Has been gradually climbing up the singles ladder and may only be a matter of time before she earns her first championship somehwere. Every time she’s entered the Tokyo Princess Cup tournament she’s reached one round further than the year before.
Moves To Watch Out For: Ring A Bell (RKO), Mikazuki Meteor Shower (Diving Cross Body), Twinkle (Twisting School Boy)

Arisu Endo: There was once a cheerleading idol unit called Cheer♡1 and their standout member Reika Saiki became a successful pro wrestler in TJPW. When she left Cheer♡1, her replacement in the group was Arisu Endo. She too wanted to follow in Saiki’s footsteps and eventually took the same path. It’s the reason why she uses the Camel Clutch as one of her signature moves because Saiki used it too. Endo also has a habit of regularly dying her hair into any colour on the spectrum you can think of. Away from wrestling she is a tourism ambassador for her hometown of Aizuwakamatsu City.
Moves To Watch Out For: Camel Clutch, Mt. Bandai (2nd Rope Missile Dropkick), Tsuruga Castle (Guillotine Knee Drop)

3. Hyper Misao & Trish Adora Vs Yuki Aino & Raku

A match that will send everyone who watches to dreamland and intentionally so. It’s a dream that could go off the rails though. You have Trish Adora teaming with Hyper Misao, a superhero who fights more like a super villain. The other team is TJPW’s spirit of burning love Yuki Aino fighting alongside Raku, The Up Up Girl who built her entire personality around trains and sleeping.

Hyper Misao: When love and peace is under threat in TJPW, you can always rely on Hyper Misao to come to the rescue. Just don’t be surprised if her battleplan turns out to be not as heroic as she looks. Before her matches begin she will get on the microphone and reveal to everyone what she is intends to achieve in the ring that day. She always greets the audience during these introductions with “Hello big children!” While she has the talent to win fair fights, she usually prefers underhanded tactics like blinding her opponents with cold spray, wrapping them up in tape and crashing the Hyper Mobile bicycle into them. You know, typical hero stuff.
Moves To Watch Out For: Hypami Returns (Final Cut), I Am A Hero (Diving Cross Body), Crossface Chickenwing, Vanitas (Double Arm Facebuster), Cold Spray Attack

Trish Adora: The current Pan-Afrikan World Diaspora Wrestling World Champion at the time of writing. Became a pro wrestler after serving for the US Army and has been all over the American indies ever since. The “Afro Punk” got to tour with TJPW in January and is often chosen as an opponent for one of their wrestlers or title matches whenever they come over to America. Away from TJPW she is currently building herself up in the rebooted ROH.
Moves To Watch Out For: Lariat Tubman (Short Range Lariat), Cattle Mutilation, Kneeling German Suplex

Yuki Aino: TJPW’s former ring announcer turned pro wrestler. Ever since her sister Nodoka Tenma graduated from wrestling, Aino found herself getting more attached to Raku & Pom Harajuku. The three of them are almost inseparable but sadly Harajuku is not coming over for the show. Aino also recently debuted a brand new look so she is currently trying to figure out where she stands on the roster. As much as she considered going singles, she seems to be most comfortable wrestling in tag matches.
Moves To Watch Out For: Venus DDT (Inverted DDT), UBV/Unlimited Burning Venus (Double Arm Side Buster), Full Nelson Of Love And Fire (Full Nelson Camel Clutch)

Raku: The second Up Up Girl you will see on the show. Raku’s entire personality can be summed down to naps and trains. Knows so much railway trivia she often tells fans her Train Of The Day on every show. Will the metro rail in LA meet her standards? Her moveset is built around sending her opponents to sleep with a lullaby so she can run over them with the Oyasumi Express. She also sometimes brings a pillow to her matches to use as a weapon and a shield. Somehow this entire package has made the fans and a good chunk of the roster absolutely adore her.
Moves To Watch Out For: Doctor Yellow (Jumping Neckbreaker), Hurricane Turn (Cross-Arm Backslide Pin), Oyasumi Express (running on top of the opponent over and over), Good Night Sleeper

4. Shoko Nakajima & Miu Watanabe Vs Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer

A pair of rampaging warriors called The Wasteland War Party invaded TJPW over the last year, causing havoc in a promotion that would never be associated with that word. Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer are on home turf this time ready for battle against a Big Kaiju and one of the more powerful pop idols you will ever see. Shoko Nakajima is one of the longest serving and most decorated wrestlers on the TJPW roster. Miu Watanabe always catches people’s eyes with her power spots.

Shoko Nakajima: Meet the Big Kaiju, all 147cm of her! Nakajima has almost done it all in the company. Usually a quick and speedy wrestler, she has the strength to put away opponents with the Northern Lights Suplex and her size does not make the Diving Senton any less effective. When put in Hardcore Match situations her favourite weapon is a pile of kaiju toys that she slams her opponents onto. Last time she was on American TV she pulled a gun on some detective in an episode of S.W.A.T. and got arrested. You can see why she gets along with Hyper Misao.
Moves To Watch Out For: Northern Lights Suplex, Diving Senton, Unmanned Local Train Hold, 619

Miu Watanabe: The third and last Up Up Girl on the show, also the most powerful. You need to see her doing the Giant Swing because she knows several ways to get opponents into the move. Unlike Noa, she adores idols and can’t keep her cool when she’s around them. Maybe the most improved wrestler on the roster last year, she picked up a ton of steam with her performances in the Tokyo Princess Cup. Uses big hand gestures to spell out L-O-V-E along with her music during her entrances. When she isn’t wrestling she likes to draw art. She has a knack of making every single thing she draws look like the Babadook.
Moves To Watch Out For: Tear Drop (Modified Flapjack), Laserbeam (Overhand Chop to the chest), Giant Swing, Canadian Backbreaker

Max The Impaler: When TJPW boss Tetsuya Koda struck a deal to bring the next great foreign wrestler into Japan, he didn’t quite understand who was coming over. Max The Impaler lived up to their name as “The Non-Binary Nightmare” by causing havoc in TJPW. They kidnapped members of the media and levelled anybody brave enough (willingly or otherwise) to stand against them. Oddly enough, some of the wrestlers quickly took a liking to Max and it didn’t take long for them to be welcomed into the family. Except for Pom Harajuku because Max continues to terrorize her at every opportunity. Maybe Max’s time in TJPW has softened them up a little. We found out that Max can get distracted by collecting any cute little objects they happen to come across. That’s where having a tag team partner comes in handy.
Moves To Watch Out For: Welcome To The Wasteland (Canadian Backbreaker Drop), Body Block, Short-Range Lariat

Heidi Howitzer: Whenever Max does lose concentration during their matches, Howitzer is there to snap the focus back into them. Brash and confident, she  is full of trash talk whether she’s in the ring or standing on the apron. We haven’t seen what Howitzer is capable of by herself in TJPW yet but she may not ever need to go in that direction. It looks like she’s having too much fun wrecking the place with Max!
Moves To Watch Out For: Master Blaster (Max carries Howitzer in an Electric Chair position and throws her onto the opponent lying on the mat), Stunner, Back Drop, Lifting Full Nelson Stretch

5. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) Vs Billie Starkz

The International Princess Title is TJPW’s secondary singles championship. It was originally created to be defended around the world against international talent but the pandemic held that idea back for a couple of years. It finally got to be used as intended last year when a title match was held in England and America is going to be the second foreign country to host a defence (the physical belt also briefly visited Mexico while Thunder Rosa was champion). Right now Rika Tatsumi is the champion gearing up for her first defence. Her challenger is America’s own Billie Starkz, a young prodigy with a growing influence on the indies.

Rika Tatsumi: The White Dragon takes her name and some of her moveset from Tatsumi Fujinami. Also has hips as hard of diamonds thanks to her training with Shiro Koshinaka. In recent years she has developed a psycho side which results in her trying to choke opponents. She claims its just her way of making friends. She recently won the IP Title, currently making her the only Grand Slam winner in TJPW history. She decided to behave more America-like in order to become an international champion. Her idea of “AmeRika” so far is wearing sunglasses and drinking cola.
Moves To Watch Out For: White Dragon Sleeper, Twist Of Fate, Hip Attack, “Let’s Go!” Elbow Drop

Billie Starkz: A lot of fresh faced wrestlers have come out of the US indies while the entire scene is crawling out of the pandemic. Perhaps none has won over so many fans in as little time as Billie Starkz. Her work has impressed TJPW as seen by her getting a main event title match on her very first tour! She just came back from another tour and wanted to be Tatsumi’s first challenger for the IP Title. Their singles match was already booked for this show so it was an easy decision to make it a title match. “Space Jesus” might just a level of crazy too high for Tatsumi. She’s definitely willing to put her body on the line to win.
Moves To Watch Out For: Swanton Bomb, Sugoi Driver (Double Legged One-Winged Angel sometimes on the ring apron), Tombstone Piledriver, German Suplex

6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh (c) Vs Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki

The main event pits two of the strongest tag teams in TJPW’s history against each other. 121000000 (pronounced “One To Million” because together their power increases from one to a million) consists of Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh. They recently won the Princess Tag Team Titles and are putting them on the line against The Magical Sugar Rabbits in their first defence. MagiRabi are Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki. Together they recently headlined TJPW’s biggest event ever against each other. Mizuki is currently the top wrestler in TJPW as the new reigning Princess Of Princess Champion.

Miyu Yamashita: The Pink Striker has officially been part of TJPW since Day 1 and has had the company built around her more often than not. Her Skull Kick is one of the most vicious looking finishers around. This week is the beginning of a three month expedition across North America with a few detours to England planned in between. She could find herself becoming the in-demand breakout wrestler on the indies with the schedule she has planned.
Moves To Watch Out For: Skull Kick (Backspin High Kick to the head), Crash Rabbit Heat (Running Knee Kick), Attitude Adjustment, Return Crash (Triangle Kick off the turnbuckles)

Maki Itoh: A disgraced idol who wasn’t considered good enough for the job reinvented into a foul mouthed psycho pro wrestler with an endless appetite for fame. For years Itoh struggled to progress in the ring because her skills could not match her ambition. Her fortunes changed by going to America to wrestle for AEW and GCW, gaining a brand new fanbase of simps cheering her on to succeed. Since then Itoh has racked up the wins and achievements in TJPW. When she’s about to punch her opponent in the corner she always shouts “Who is the cutest in the world?” and the audience respond with “Itoh-chan!”
Moves To Watch Out For: Itoh Special/Deluxe/Punish (Variations of the Texas Cloverleaf), Flying Big Head (Diving Headbutt), I.S.D/Itoh Suicide DDT (Flying DDT from the top rope), The Cutest Knuckle Punch In The World

Yuka Sakazaki: It can be argued that The Magical Girl is TJPW’s true ace instead of Yamashita. Always lights up the room with her entrance music that includes the lyrics “AYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY”. As much as her cheerful personality wins over new fans wherever she goes, do not take her lightly. She’s at the point in her career where she can be absolutely vicious against unsuspecting opponents. Almost unbeatable in TJPW, her regular excursions to AEW only make her come back even stronger.
Moves To Watch Out For: Magical Girl Splash (Swan Dive Diving Body Press, sometimes done with a rotation), Magical Merry-Go-Round (Spinning Fireman’s Carry into a Facebuster), Tea Time (Northern Lights Bomb), Toy Story 1-4 (Variations of Double Dives with Mizuki)

Mizuki: Right now Mizuki is top of the mountain as the Princess Champion. Her bond with Sakazaki is one of the strongest out there in wrestling, the two have stayed together through thick and thin even when they have to wrestle each other. Only wrestled in America once before and that only happened last year. Has gone viral for using the Whirling Candy in matches, a move that leaves those who see it in amazement. The Popping Sugar Rabbit might sound like a silly nickname but we’ll see who’s laughing once she starts Double Stomping people to oblivion. Here’s the answer, it’s going to be her.
Moves To Watch Out For: Cutie Special (Bridging Fall Away Slam), Whirling Candy (Spinning Cross Body Block), Diving Foot Stomp, Toy Story 1-4 (Variations of Double Dives with Sakazaki)

———————————————————————–

But wait there’s more! Several TJPW wrestlers will have busy schedules throughout the week. Not only will members of the roster be at WrestleCon doing meet and greets but a few of them will be wrestling matches at other shows. Below is a list of events where you will see TJPW wrestlers in action.

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

It all kicks off tonight with Maki Itoh heading over to Pandemonium Pro. She will be teaming with Kidd Bandit, who caught Itoh’s attention online a few years ago by showing off her own Maki Itoh cosplay. Heather Monroe was originally supposed to team with Taya Valkyrie but Valkyrie had to pull out due to new booking priorities. Instead Monroe will be teaming with Steph De Lander, a former NXT wrestler who is reinventing her career on the indies. Itoh previously fought and lost to De Lander at a show in Malaysia last December.

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

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

Ten TJPW wrestlers will get to do their thing in front of WrestleCon’s premier event of the week. Who they are will not be revealed until the match takes place.

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

1. 4 Way Match: Masha Slamovich Vs Deonna Purrazzo Vs Gisele Shaw Vs Miyu Yamashita

Yamashita’s North American excursion is going to take her everywhere. It was surprising enough to see her in Impact but by going there she is now technically showing up in New Japan too! The winner of the 4 Way will qualify for a Knockouts World Title match taking place on next month’s Impact PPV in Toronto. Masha Slamovich is a familiar opponent and there will be more matches between them in the future. Gisele Shaw also has history with Yamashita. Deonna Purrazzo will be a brand new experience for her. Will this be the only time we see Yamashita enter through the Forbidden Door or is there something even bigger on the horizon for her?

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

Not everyone feels joy and happiness when Sakazaki enters the room. Athena has grown to really dislike her ever since Sakazaki ran in to stop Athena from bullying her beaten opponents. It’s led to a couple of fights between the two during AEW shows. Athena thought she finally got rid of Sakazaki when she injured her leg in a post-match assault. Instead she found out Sakazaki fully recovered in Japan and went back to wrestling like nothing had happened. At the time of writing Athena is about to defend the ROH Women’s Title against Emi Sakura on ROH’s weekly show. If she wins then Athena will put the title on the line against Sakazaki at the PPV just so she can get her hands on her again.

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

1. Taya Valkyrie Vs Miyu Yamashita

Yamashita’s match with Valkyrie on Friday is not effected by the AEW wrestler’s new commitments.

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

1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh Vs Effy & Allie Katch

Last but not least we finally get to see Maki Death Kill team up together! The alliance between Itoh and Nick Gage is a GCW storyline that caught fire with Itoh adopting a lot of Gage’s attitude and violent tendancies. For one night only they put out an open challenge for any two wrestlers to face them. Effy & Allie Katch, the team affectionally known as Bussy made it to the front of the queue and will get the match. When Itoh found out who her opponents were her message to them was loud and clear: “WE WILL DESTROY YOUR BUSSY.”


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GRAND PRINCESS ’23” Results

March 18, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GRAND PRINCESS ’23”, 18/03/2023
Ariake Coliseum
1,513 Fans

1. Suzume defeated Arisu Endo with the Ring A Bell (8:48).
2. Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo Debut Match: Mahiro Kiryu, Wakana Uehara, HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki defeated Kaya Toribami, Toga, Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo when Kiryu pinned Toga with the Spinebuster (11:23).
3. Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Ram Kaichow defeated Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku when Noa pinned Harajuku after the 5G (10:23).
4. Ryo Mizunami defeated Moka Miyamoto with the Diving Guillotine Drop (11:46).
5. Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao defeated Andreza Giant Panda & Haruna Neko when Nakajima pinned Neko with the Northern Lights Suplex (10:25).
6. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel defeated Yuki Kamifuku & Billie Starkz when Saint-Michel pinned Kamifuku after La Revolucion (13:42).
7. Special Single Match: Aja Kong defeated Yuki Arai with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (13:00).
8. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi defeated Miu Watanabe (c) with the White Dragon Sleeper (18:31).
*Miu Watanabe fails in V4. Rika Tatsumi becomes the 10th International Princess Champion!
9. Princess Tag Team Titles: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh defeated Max The Impaler & Heidi Howitzer (c) when Itoh pinned Howitzer with the Flying Big Head (13:42).
*The Wasteland War Party fails in V4. 121000000 become the 12th Princess Tag Team Champions!
10. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki defeated Yuka Sakazaki (c) with the Cutie Special (21:02).
*Yuka Sakazaki fails in V3. Mizuki becomes the 12th Princess Of Princess Champion!

A clean sweep of title changes marked Tokyo Joshi Pro’s big day at Ariake Coliseum. In the main event Mizuki added her name to the short list of people to hold the Princess Of Princess Title, beating her closest friend Yuka Sakazaki. It was an emotional match for both Magical Sugar Rabbits because neither wanted to fight each other but knew it had to happen. Sakazaki used a top rope version of the Magical Merry-Go-Round before doing the regular kind but Mizuki was barely able to kick out. Mizuki missed the Whirling Candy the first time but eventually caught Sakazaki with the move. She landed the Diving Foot Stomp a few times but Sakazaki became dead weight that Mizuki struggled to roll over, giving her enough time to kick out of the pin. In the end it took one rolling strike to counter another with Mizuki stopping Sakazaki in her tracks with a Back Elbow. It then took two Cutie Specials for Mizuki to finally become the new champion.

The two hugged after the match and Mizuki received her title belt. She got on the microphone and told the audience how much she loves everyone in TJPW. She will hold onto the Princess Title and do her best to be like the previous champions who she all admires. Now that she is champion she promises to work with everyone to make TJPW even more exciting. She also won’t let anybody take Sakazaki away from her. In regards to any title defences she said backstage she wants to fight anyone but her tag partner.

The Princess Tag Team Titles have been rescued from The Wasteland War Party but it could be going on a new adventure around the world. 121000000 entered the arena with new ring costumes and an extra pep in their step. The contract signing for the title match only took place an hour before the show began. Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh got fired up during it after Heidi Howitzer called both of them weak. The match got off to a rough start for the challengers when Howitzer & Max The Impaler ambushed them. However the tide changed when Yamashita got Max with a High Kick and German Suplex combo. The champions targeted Itoh and had her set up for the Master Blaster when she got out of the way, giving Yamashita an opening to hit the Return Crash. Max was given the Skull Kick and Itoh landed the Flying Big Head on Howitzer to get the three count. Yamashita is about to embark on a three month expedition to America. She made it clear she wants 121000000 to defend the titles around the world. Backstage they again tried to get the media to join along in their “One To…” “…Million!” catchphrase but again they kept silent.

Rika Tatsumi can now call herself the one and only grand slam champion in TJPW! She defeated her Daydream partner Miu Watanabe to win the International Princess Title, becoming the only wrestler to have won that, the Princess Of Princess Title and the Princess Tag Team Titles in their career. She made her entrance sporting a new short haircut and focused on using submission holds like the Figure 4 and Dragon Sleeper. Watanabe countered it with her strength, lifting Tatsumi out of the Sleeper and spinning her around into a Neck Hanging Giant Swing! But the Dragon Sleeper came back as a way for Tatsumi to counter the Tear Drop. Tatsumi then switched it into the White Dragon Sleeper to make Watanabe submit. Backstage Tatsumi said she saw a version of Watanabe she never knew before and experienced a daydream she never knew existed. She went into this match thinking it could result in Daydream splitting up but she would rather stay together with Watanabe and continue teaming with her. Watanabe agrees and is looking forward to seeing how her tag partner’s title reign will go. Now that Tatsumi has the IP Title and the grand slam, she now wants to recapture the other belts so she can truly become the Triple Crown King!

It was a good effort from Yuki Arai but she just couldn’t beat Aja Kong. She took some risk by using a Missile Dropkick for the first time to rock her opponent. The size difference rendered both the Sharpshooter and the Full Nelson Buster uselss so Arai found ways to hit the Finally kick from higher ground, whether it was from standing on the ropes or standing on the ring apron while Kong was outside. The tactic almost got Kong counted out but she made it back by 19. Kong launced the counter attack with her steel can. Arai took a Piledriver and kicked out of a Back Drop. She dodged the Diving Back Elbow and started throwing kicks to fight Kong off. A Short-Range Lariat knocked Arai down and she was able to kick out at one but the Vertcial Drop Brainbuster brought her spirited performance to an end. Kong gave Arai some words outside the ring afterwards before leaving. Kong’s words were “Let’s do it again.”

Match #6 featured a few returns. Billie Starkz is back and she got to form an American Midwest tag team with Yuki Kamifuku. Their opponents NEO Biishiki-gun were not flattered by Starkz’s appearance. Sakisama stared her down while Mei Saint-Michel got annoyed by Starkz ignoring her. That didn’t last long especially at that moment when Starkz did a Swanton Bomb out of the ring towards Saint-Michel’s direction. NEO Biishiki-gun regrouped and scored the win when they got Kamifuku with La Revolucion. Backstage Sakisama said she isn’t sure how long she will be around TJPW this time. It all depends on what mood she and Saint-Michel are in. Also Saint-Michel wants to go visit Odaiba because she heard there’s a giant robot there.

Have no fear, citizens. The threat of a rampaging Andreza Giant Panda destroying Ariake Coliseum has been squashed by Kyoraku Kyomei! Andreza’s tag partner Haruna Neko made the mistake of entering the ring while the panda was still walking down the ramp at slow speed. Hyper Misao attacked Haruna while Shoko Nakajima stood on the top turnbuckle shooting at it with a laser cannon. When Andreza got to enter the ring Misao sprayed it with a fire extinguisher. Andreza fought back with massive Headbutts. Misao tried attacking it with a glowing Kyoraku Saber but it didn’t have any effect. Andreza missed a Headbutt, hitting Neko by mistake. Misao then crashed the Hyper Mobile in the panda outside the ring while Nakajima pinned Neko with the Northern Lights Suplex. Backstage Neko said she would like to team with Andreza again. She knows the rest of Andreza’s family have wrestled in matches before so they can join in too.

Ryo Mizunami was feeling the groove in her return to TJPW. She even surprised Yukinori Matsui with a hearty slap on the back during the in-ring inspection before the bell rang. Moka Miyamoto took some heavy hits from her before getting to make a comeback. Mizunami took her best shots though and held her guard. The gap in experience was too much for Miyamoto and she ended up getting pinned with the Diving Guillotine Drop. Backstage Mizunami praised Miyamoto for still having life in her eyes after getting beaten. She’d like to fight her again when Miyamoto gets stronger.

A new double team finisher called the 5G was shown off by Free WiFi, but it’s a move that comes from Hikari Noa’s past. Noa & Nao Kakuta both picked up Pom Harajuku in a Double Argentine Backbreaker and then flipped her over into a Facebuster for the pin. The move was used by Noa before when she was in Pandemic Boo-Boo but now it belongs to her & Kakuta. The match also showed some trouble in the relationship between Raku and Ram Kaichow. When they were in the ring together, Raku accused Kaichow of cheating on her! Kaichow got the last word in by hitting Raku with the Rainmaker before Free WiFi did their finish. Even though Kaichow was on the winning team, she couldn’t help but do the Goodnight Express pose to the cameras while leaving the ring. She stopped once she noticed Free WiFi saw her doing it. Backstage Kaichow tried explaining to everyone that she’s not cheating on Raku because she would never do that to a girl that cute. She also thinks Raku is a genius for bringing in a pillow to do her nap spots. This entire drama took all then attention away from Yuki Aino’s new outfit too. She doesn’t mind though. In fact she brought up an idea to team with Kaichow as The Raku Lovers Alliance!

The 2023 class was put on full display for Match #2. Both Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo made their debuts teaming with Kaya Toribami & Toga. Both Kazashiro and Okubo got to show off on HIMAWARI. Kazehiro hit a Shoulder Blow while Okubo did a Waterwheel Drop. Wakana Uehara & Shino Suzuki played their parts to cut off the other team while Mahiro Kiryu pinned Toga with the Spinebuster. Backstage Toribami apologised to the rest of her team because she wanted to give them all their first win. Okubo said she was nervous but had fun. She wants to become a cute and cool wrestler that people will admire. Kazashiro has been watching TJPW since primary school and felt honored when she heard Sayuri Namba announce her name. She wants to be the kind of wrestler who will inspire people to work harder.

The first match of the show was the Daisy Monkey showdown. Suzume and Arisu Endo fought their hearts out against each other, ending with Suzume hitting the Ring A Bell for the victory. Backstage Suzume said Endo is the girl she would like to be: bright, straightforward and loved by everyone. Suzume can see a future where the two of them are champions together. Endo thinks the two of them were able to convey their feelings for each other through wrestling.

The show began with a musical performance from The Up Up Girls. It included the debut of their brand new song “SHINING MARK”.

There will be three more “big match” TJPW events taking place later this year. “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’23” will be at Ota Ward Gymnasium on 8th July. Then “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV” will be held in Tama Mirai Messe on 9th October. Lastly, the 10th anniversary show “WE ARE TJPW” is happening in Korakuen Hall on 1st December.