Let’s not even pretend where the inspiration for this idea came from. The brand new Marigold joshi promotion is using a jersey number system for their roster (not a new idea from Rossy Ogawa, he used a similar gimmick for Arsion). All of a sudden Tokyo Joshi Pro has come up with new merchandise that is also based on jersey numbers. Fancy that! Almost everyone in TJPW were asked to pick a number for themselves. People noticed Yuki Arai and all of The Up Up Girls were left out. I guess that might be them being careful not to step into another idol group’s gimmick. Some of the numbers have deep meanings behind them, others are based on basic trivia about the women and some are just wordplay on their names.
Credit goes to @dweebyllo, @cmvenus_, @deesforta and @nampei1983 on Twitter for all taking the time to gather the names, numbers and explanations. I’m writing this post using all of the info they collected along with what the wrestlers tweeted out themselves.
1. Miyu Yamashita – She is the ace.
3. HIMAWARI – 3 means Sun, as in Sunflower.
04. Mahiro Kiryu – She is a FC Schalke 04 fan.
08. Suzume – 08 means Bee (8 = Hachi).
15. Rika Tatsumi – She changed her ring name to Rika Tatsumi in 2015.
25. Yuki Aino – Her birthday is 25th October.
39. Chika Nanase – Her birthday is 9th March.
46. Pom Harajuku – 46 means Pom (4 = Po, 6 = Mu).
70. Nao Kakuta – 70 means Nao (7 = Na, 0 = O).
82. Kira Summer – She hasn’t revealed her reason yet.
83. Yuki Kamifuku (Kamiyu) – Her inseam length is 83cm.
98. Arisu Endo – She was born in 1998.
110. Maki Itoh – 110 means Itoh (1 = I, 10 = To).
147. Shoko Nakajima – Her height is 147cm.
222. Haruna Neko – Nyan, Nyan, Nyan (2 = Nyan).
227. Toga – Her birthday is 27th February.
316. Mizuki – Her birthday is 16th March.
318. Moka Miyamoto – Her birthday is 18th March.
328. Haru Kazashiro – Her birthday is 28th March.
513. Wakana Uehara – Her birthday is 13th May.
615. Runa Okubo – Her birthday is 15th June.
708. Sayuri Namba – 708 means Namba (7 = Na, 0 = M, 8 = Ba).
810. Kaya Toribami – 810 means Bird (8 = Bir, 10 = Do).
1201. TJPW – The date of TJPW’s launch event was 1st December.
8183. Hyper Misao – 8183 means Hypami (8 = Ha, 1 = I, 8 = Pa, 3 = Mi).
Edit: In August TJPW released more jerseys for all of the idols who were left out of the first batch.
7. Shino Suzuki – She was born in July.
19. Miu Watanabe – Her birthday is 19th October.
42. Yuki Arai – 42 is Arai’s number from her junior high school exam.
329. Uta Takami – Her birthday is 29th March.
700. Raku – References the N700 Series Shinkansen train.
Even with WrestleMania Week out of the way there is so much to talk about what happened in April. It’s probably going to be a month Yuka Sakazaki will want to forget. She finally returned to TV screens only to possibly find her way back to the injury list. It only happened two weeks ago so there’s been no update to her condition. All she has tweeted since the match happened is a zombie emoji. She was being set up for a match with Serena Deeb in AEW but that seems to have gone to the wayside because Deeb is already moving ahead in the AEW Women’s Title picture. Just have to wait and see if it was just a knock to the knee or something worse.
In more uplifting news, Konosuke Takeshita is showing interest in taking the IWGP World Heavyweight Title from Jon Moxley. This is going to be facinating watching a DDT affiliated wrestler in an AEW storyline built around New Japan’s top championship. Does he have any realistic chance of becoming champion? Not unless Moxley gets legit knocked out during the match again. New Japan have clearly set their own story over Moxley’s IWGP Title reign. Their roster led by “The Reiwa Musketeers” are all showing frustration over their company playing second fiddle to AEW. Whether it is Moxley not taking part in the Japan tours or handing title matches out to undeserving challengers in America, the story New Japan is telling does not have Takeshita fitting in anywhere as an important player and I do not expect AEW to make booking decisions that will interfere with it. Still though, Takeshita versus Moxley has been good before and the addition of the IWGP Title is a novelty that got me more interested in the rematch.
Wrapping up the month is the Tokyo Joshi Pro portion of appearances. Maki Itoh finished up her latest American tour and got to defend the GCW Extreme Title. Not sure when she is due back in GCW other than we certainly won’t be waiting long to find out. Miyu Yamashita returned to a bunch of familiar promotions from last year’s excursion. The big one was a visit to TNA where she main evented their TV taping. Most important of all, Kaya Toribami stepped in for an injured Hyper Misao to help save the world from a kappa invasion. That’s a good bird.
Oh and there was also the crazy happenings that went on when Kazusada Higuchi and Mecha Mummy went to West Coast Pro. Let’s get to that.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 20/04/2024 Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki Vs Emi Sakura
PRESTIGE/PRIDESTYLE “PRIDE & PRESTIGE”, 26/04/2024 Meet Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Trish Adora
———————————————————————–
Results
WEST COAST PRO “CHRIS HERO’S PRO WRES MIXTAPE”, 14/04/2024 Don Quixote Event Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Chris Hero Vs Kazusada Higuchi ended in a No Contest (12:23).
2. Tornado Tag Team Match: Chris Hero & Bryan Keith defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Mecha Mummy when Keith pinned Mummy with the Emerald Tiger Driver (13:45).
This was not how I thought things were going to go between Higuchi and Chris Hero. I mean the first ten minutes, sure. They hit each other hard and Higuchi no sold hitting the ring post head first. That was all well and good. He even used his own head to block one of Hero’s Elbow Strikes. Unfortunately as they kept fighting in the corner the referee stepped in one too many times and got knocked out with a Lariat. Higuchi kept attacking Hero until Bryan Keith made his entrance and started squaring off with him. Hero & Keith joined forces so Higuchi now found himself needing help. Suddenly Mecha Mummy appeared!
There were plans for a Keith Vs Mummy match to happen on the show but now the fans got a Tornado Tag match between the four fighters instead! Mummy gave Keith an Atomic Drop onto the Mecha Fist but Keith returned fire by giving Mummy a Drop Toe Hold, destroying the fist on impact. Keith then challenged Mummy to a duel but it ended with them giving each other and the referee Low Blows. The ref also got impaled with the Mecha Drill by accident. Hero then fought Mummy all the way up to the balcony where Higuchi followed. Mummy fired the repaired Mecha Fist at Keith from the balcony and raced down to pin him for a nearfall. Hero returned with bottles of water but Higuchi stopped him from pouring it over Mummy. Keith however took a big drink of the bottle and spat it all over Mummy to make it go haywire. He then gave it the Emerald Tiger Driver to win a crazy match.
PRESTIGE “ROSELAND 8”, 14/04/2024 Roseland Theater, Portland, Oregon, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Kylie Rae with the Skull Kick (15:30).
Yamashita’s good run in Prestige continued when she beat Kylie Rae in a hard fought match. Hitting the Return Crash seemed to fire up Yamashita in particular. With that boost she broke out of Rae’s Crippler Crossface and kicked out of a Super Kick at one. She then rolled Rae into a Buzzsaw Kick for a nearfall before putting her down for the count with the Skull Kick.
ROH “ROH ON HONOR CLUB”, 17/04/2024 (Aired 25/04/2024) Indiana Farmers Coliseum, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki defeated Leila Grey with the Magical Girl Splash (4:44).
Oh yikes this was bad. There was an awkwardly timed replay segment too right before the finish which only makes me wonder what was cut out because what was left in is the kind of stuff those anti-AEW Twitter accounts would salivate over if people gave a shit about ROH. There was an Elbow Strike exchange that looked like both didn’t want to sell and then Sakazaki tried to do a rope-assisted German Suplex that did not work at all. She was able to beat Leila Grey with the Magical Merry-Go-Round followed by the Magical Girl Splash but that match was one to forget. Or at least it would be if she hadn’t gotten injured in her next match during the month.
UPRISING “UPRISING: WOMEN ATHLETES 2”, 19/04/2024 Knights of Columbus, LaSalle, Illinois, USA
1. Maki Itoh defeated Black Swan with the I.S.D. (9:22).
2. Hyan defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Glam Slam (11:27).
It looks like Hyan is one of the few opponents who seems to have Yamashita’s number whenever Yamashita goes over to America. This was their second singles match and there is a tag match to come later this summer. Hyan has beaten Yamashita both times now but it’s been no easy feat. This time Hyan was overwhelmed by Yamashita’s kicks but found ways to avoid the Attitude Adjustment. The last counter led to Hyan giving Yamashita the Glam Slam to win the match.
Itoh was given an opponent who is just as much of a dramatic attention seeker as she is in the form of Black Swan. They spent part of the match fighting outside where Swan threw Itoh into the barricade and then Itoh Body Slammed Swan onto the floor. After going back and forth in the ring, Itoh dropped Swan with a DDT and then got the win by hitting the I.S.D. off the top rope.
DREAMWAVE “ANNIVERSARY IX”, 20/04/2024 Knights of Columbus, LaSalle, Illinois, USA
1. Megan Bayne defeated Miyu Yamashita with a Tombstone Piledriver (9:52).
The next night Uprising’s main promotion DREAMWAVE put together the surprise matchup of Yamashita against Megan Bayne. She is one of the stronger booked wrestlers on the independents right now and her momentum continued here with a clean win over Yamashita. The result seemed to have put Yamashita in a bad mood afterward because she refused to shake Bayne’s hand after the match and left the ring with a sour look on her face.
AEW “COLLISION”, 20/04/2024 Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois, USA
1. Bunkhouse Brawl: Bryan Danielson & Claudio Castagnoli defeated Kyle Fletcher & Konosuke Takeshita when Danielson submitted Fletcher with the Chain Assisted LaBell Lock (16:03).
Add the Bunkhouse Brawl to the list of violent matches Takeshita is finding himself in over at AEW. He was all dressed up for the occasion too as one should be for a stipulation like this. Chairs and chains were used by everyone and things got even more chaotic with interference from Powerhouse Hobbs and Moxley. The presence of Hobbs tipped things in favour for The Don Callis Family even when Moxley came down to get rid of him. Things then went south when Bryan Danielson countered Takeshita’s top rope Power Bomb with a Hurricanrana onto a chair set up in the middle of the ring. Claudio Castagnoli then covered his arm with the chain and hit Takeshita with a Charging European Uppercut. Danielson won the match by hitting Kyle Fletcher with the Busaiku Knee followed by putting him in the LaBell Lock for the submission.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 20/04/2024 Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki defeated Emi Sakura with a Sliding German Suplex (9:31).
And here’s where Sakazaki’s return hit a big bump on the road. During her match with Emi Sakura, Sakazaki tried to do a cartwheel from the top rope onto the ring apron to avoid an attack. She missed landing on the apron and crashed onto the floor outside, hurting her knee in the process. Sakura bought some time with some improvised heel work ringside while Sakazaki tried to walk it off. They were able to continue the match but Sakazaki was still clearly shaken up and using the Sliding German Suplex for the finish was definitely not the original plan. Credit to her for gutting through it and still being able to do most of her moves but she couldn’t hide the upset look on her face after the match.
GCW “HOW HIGH”, 20/04/2024 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. GCW Extreme Title: Maki Itoh (c) defeated Sandra Moone with the I.S.D. (8:55). *V1 for Maki Itoh.
GCW is keeping us on our toes when it comes to Itoh defending the GCW Extreme Title. It wasn’t until the show took place when they announced her match with Sandra Moone would have the title on the line. No worries! Itoh beat Moone in her first defence and they left the ring together shoulder to shoulder.
TNA “IMPACT!”, 21/04/2024 (Aired 02/05/2024) Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Knockouts World Title: Jordynne Grace (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Juggernaught Driver (?:??). *V7 for Jordynne Grace.
Last year Yamashita got to wrestle in Impact for the first time. Now it’s a year later and Impact has gone back to being called TNA. No matter what name it’s under now, she was back to fight Jordynne Grace. The stakes were then made higher when TNA decided to make the match for the Knockouts World Title. Yamashita tried something a little bit new in the match when she hit the Skull Kick to the back of Grace’s head buzzsaw style but Grace recovered and used the Grace Driver to retain her title.
PRESTIGE/PRIDESTYLE “PRIDE & PRESTIGE”, 26/04/2024 Meet Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Trish Adora with the Skull Kick (10:33).
Yamashita’s next Prestige match was at an event co-promoted with PrideStyle Inclusive Pro in Las Vegas. She defeated Trish Adora in a match I haven’t seen the VOD of yet.
DAIKAIJU PRO “VOL. 2 – KAPPAS COUNTERATTACK”, 27/04/2024 White Eagle, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
1. Kaya Toribami defeated Ultramantis Black with the Sento Choryu (?:??).
This was originally supposed to be Hyper Misao coming back to America to protect the land from UltraMantis Black and his kappa army. Unfortunately an ankle injury forced a change of plans. Depending on who you ask she either got injured during her match against Steph de Lander at the “GCW VS TJPW” show or she was the victim of an ambush attack put together by the devious UltraMantis. Either way she sent Kaya Toribami to Daikaiju Pro in her place because they still needed a hero to fight for them. During the match Mantis called upon his kappa army for help but Toribami had backup from all of the other babyfaces to even the odds. In the end good prevailed over evil and Toribami successfully hit the Sento Choryu on Mantis to get the victory.
INSPIRE A.D. “THE EVIL WE DO”, 28/04/2024 Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Maya World (?:??).
The last time Yamashita was at Inspire A.D. she took a surprise upset loss to Killa Kate. That wasn’t going to happen again when she fought Maya World in her return to the promotion.
———————————————————————–
Upcoming Appearances
GCW “RATHER YOU THAN ME”, 03/05/2024 Egypt Shrine Center, Tampa, Florida, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Joey Janela
She got a taste of GCW earlier this month with the “GCW VS TJPW” show and is coming back for a proper go this time around. Yamashita is getting thrown into the deep end for her proper GCW debut. Joey Janela is chomping at the bit to break her into pieces so he can rub it in the faces of joshi fans afterwards.
Will Yuki Kamifuku beat Alexis Lee for the VPW Women’s Title so it can go along with her Queen Of Asia Title?
MLW “AZTECA LUCHA”, 11/05/2024 Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title – 4 Way Match: Janai Kai (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Zayda Vs Delmi Exo
Well Yamashita wasn’t able to win the Knockouts Title in TNA but she has another title match to look forward to in May. She returns to MLW where Janai Kai is defending the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title in a 4 Way Match. The other challengers are Zayda Steele and Delmi Exo but Kai’s previous title defences have mostly been against joshi wrestlers and TJPW wrestlers in particular. She’s beaten Yamashita before outside of MLW. Can she do it again when her MLW Title is on the line and she needs to have eyes on the back of her head?
DPW “LIMIT BREAK”, 19/05/2024 Durham Convention Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita & Lady Frost Vs Hyan & Vert Vixen
It’s back to Deadlock Pro! Yamashita’s first time in the ring with Lady Frost is as a team together and they are both familiar with their opponents. Hyan is now a regular presence in Yamashita’s US tours and Yamashita teamed with Vert Vixen the last time she was in DPW.
LLL “HIGH STRANGENESS – NIGHT ONE”, 24/05/2024 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Abadon Vs Miyu Yamashita
This isn’t the first time Yamashita will be fighting a zombie. She used to do that all the time when Maho Kurone was still wrestling. Abadon though is a bit more intense when it comes to that sort of stuff.
LLL “HIGH STRANGENESS – NIGHT TWO”, 25/05/2024 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
What else is Lucha Libre & Laughs going to throw at Yamashita?
SETUP “CLASH OF THE TITANS”, 25/05/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title: Matcha (c) Vs Monomoth Vs Mizuki
How possible is is that Mizuki wins the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title and then brings it along for her Queen Of Asia Title shot that is due anytime soon? Add the VPW Women’s Title then we end up with an Asian Triple Crown of women’s championships.
GCW “TOURNAMENT OF SURVIVAL 9”, 01/06/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Tournament Of Survival 9: Shunma Katsumata Vs X
One of the big death match tournaments of the year is held by GCW over in America. The 9th annual Tournament Of Survival will have Shunma Katsumata as one of the Japanese entrants along with Big Japan wrestlers Hideyoshi Kamitani and Yuki Ishikawa.
REPUBLIC OF LUCHA “ROL7: HIT THE LIGHTS”, 01/06/2024 The Temple, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs X
The first two seasons of Lucha Underground was a magical time. Season three was good too but the show suffered from taking a massive break mid-season but that’s a conversation for somewhere else. The warehouse that was used to house The Temple for the show tapings is going to host a wrestling show for the first time in seven years. I don’t expect it to look anything like it did in the old days because a lot of that setup was just a TV set but Takeshita getting to wrestle there is pretty neat nonetheless.
This is still for now the last date on Yamashita’s schedule before she goes back to Japan.
IWA JAPAN “HARDCORE FOREVER”, 27/07/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs X & X
This year is the 30th anniversary of IWA Japan’s launch. What a weird existence this promotion has had. To celebrate there will be a memorial show held by SETUP taking place in Thailand using the IWA branding. CDK will be there to defend the SETUP Tag Team Titles since those belts are also affiliated with IWA Japan. Will Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi have to defend the belts against a pair of kaiju or will they be fighting more normal looking opponents?
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE TOUR 2024 SPRING”, 27/04/2024 Tokyo Kitazawa Town Hall 223 Fans
1. Mahiro Kiryu defeated Kira Summer with a Crab Hold (5:07).
2. 3 Way Match: Rika Tatsumi defeated Nao Kakuta and Chika Nanase when Tatsumi submitted Nanase with the Dragon Sleeper (10:38).
3. Maki Itoh & Uta Takami defeated Yuki Kamifuku & Toga when Itoh submitted Toga with the Itoh Special (10:06).
4. Raku & Pom Harajuku defeated Mizuki & Shino Suzuki when Raku pinned Suzuki with the Doctor Yellow (8:42).
5. Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI & Runa Okubo defeated Suzume, Arisu Endo & Haru Kazashiro when HIMAWARI pinned Kazashiro after a Combined High Speed Brainbuster (13:18).
6. Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino defeated Miu Watanabe & Moka Miyamoto when Nakajima pinned Miyamoto with the Diving Senton (16:38).
It isn’t long now until Shoko Nakajima challenges Miu Watanabe for the Princess Of Princess Title during Golden Week. Today Nakajima’s message was load and clear. She hasn’t given anyone permission for the new era to take over Tokyo Joshi Pro yet! She countered Watanabe’s Giant Swing into a cradle and went on to pin Moka Miyamoto with the Diving Senton in the main event. Even Yuki Aino was impressed by her performance today. Nakajima wants to keep this up and be the kind of wrestler who can throw curveballs and fastballs at her unsuspecting opponents.
Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI were able to show their growing teamwork by using a Combined Brainbuster to win their trios match. They still have time left before they challenge Daisy Monkey for the Princess Tag Team Titles so they would like to focus even more on their teamwork. Runa Okubo wrestled the match with an eye patch because she currently has a stye in her left eye.
When TJPW were preparing for their American shows earlier this month, Miyu Yamashita strongly encouraged them to produce double the amount of the show’s T-shirts expecting them to be in high demand. Unfortunately the extra shirts did not sell and had to go with the crew back to Japan. TJPW are now trying to sell off the extra shirts at their events as well as their online store. They are encouraging fans who bought the shirts to tweet pictures of them with the hashtag #山下ありがとう (“Thank You Yamashita”).
GCW/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GCW VS TJPW”, 06/04/2024 Penns Landing Caterers Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA 672 Fans – No Vacancy
1. 3 Way Match: Suzume defeated SAKI and Pom Harajuku when Suzume pinned Harajuku with the Ring A Bell (7:54).
2. Session Moth Martina defeated Raku with the Codebreaker (5:56).
3. Arisu Endo defeated Shazza McKenzie with the Ju no Okite (7:29).
4. Steph De Lander defeated Hyper Misao with the Steph Five onto a bulk of Lipstick Cases (8:10).
5. Dark Sheik defeated Yuki Kamifuku with the Diving Leg Drop (7:43).
6. Mizuki defeated Allie Katch with the Cutie Special (7:35).
7. Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe defeated Billie Starkz & Janai Kai when Watanabe pinned Kai after the Daydream Eternity (13:27).
8. Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Rina Yamashita, Masha Slamovich & Maki Itoh defeated Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino when Itoh submitted Aino with the Itoh Deluxe (21:01).
Yesterday Tokyo Joshi Pro were welcomed into The Collective as esteemed guests of GCW getting to put on their own show. Today’s show had GCW as the home team taking on the visitors from TJPW. The main event showed just how much of a GCW show it was by placing Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino into a rare hardcore wrestling environment. For Maki Itoh it is home away from home at this point. The same can be said for Rina Yamashita and even Masha Slamovich. Nakajima tried to keep things familiar to TJPW by bringing out her large sack of kaiju toys from Japan (she claims it cost her an extra 10,000 yen in luggage fees to bring them over). She ended up getting Body Slammed onto them by Rina. Team GCW brought out a door to slam Aino through but in true GCW fashion the door collapsed on itself before that could happen. They found a replacement board to put Aino through instead. One by one each wrestler from both sides got their shots in until Itoh dropped Aino with a DDT and made her submit to the Itoh Deluxe.
Daydream made up for yesterday’s defeat by beating the GCW pairing of Billie Starkz & Janai Kai today. Miu Watanabe called it a clear and sunny victory. The result was just what Rika Tatsumi needed to forget about yesterday. She now wants Daydream to wrestle all over the world so they will now wait for any offers to do so. The feeling wasn’t so bright for Starkz & Kai. They argued with each other over who’s fault it was they lost. They teamed up today but they are not a tag team as far as Starkz is concerned.
I put in the warning in the preview that Mizuki likes to bite her opponents. Allie Katch found that out the hard way. She not only bit Katch’s arms to counter her moves but her thighs and stomach as well! It got Katch so mad she wrecklessly missed a Cannonball attack allowing Mizuki to pin her with the Cutie Special. Katch said she was looking forward to this match but now that she knows how Mizuki really fights she will prepare for her more properly next time.
Yuki Kamifuku claims Dark Sheik won their match today based on wrestling style but in terms of sexiness, Kamifuku was the real winner. With that said, Kamifuku learned a lot this week from people who are a bit crazy. She wants to bring that kind of culture back with her to Fujisawa City while putting her own sexy twist on it.
The match between Hyper Misao and Steph De Lander went hardcore with the use of bamboo skewers, chairs and even a box full of lipstick cases all being used as weapons. De Lander was able to win by giving Misao the Steph Five onto the remains that were left laying on the canvas. This may not be the last time TJPW will see De Lander too. If she does come back it won’t be to make friends or happy memories. She wants to win more championships. Sadly for Misao she seemed to have injured her ankle during the match.
Arisu Endo got to wrestle a foreign opponent one on one for the first time and came out of it with a win. Shazza McKenzine was on Team GCW for this show due to the promotion’s support for her in the past. She wants to work hard so she gets to fight more TJPW wrestlers and finally beat them.
Are pop idols usually allowed to drink alcohol during performances? Don’t let those in charge of The Up Up Girls hear about what happened to Raku when she fought Session Moth Martina then. Martina offered Raku a drink but she chose to take a nap on her pillow instead. Martina then decided to slowly pour the beer into Raku’s mouth, causing her to get into a drowsy level of drunk. She eventually sobered up and got her second wind but Martina countered the Doctor Yellow with a Headbutt and pinned Raku with the Codebreaker. Raku couldn’t tell if she was dreaming or if she was drunk. What she could notice is she now feels even stronger! She would like to team with Martina next time either in America or Japan.
The opening match was a 3 Way with no actual GCW wrestlers on it due to a lot of plans changing along the way. Suzume ended up defeating SAKI and Pom Harajuku. It is a result that makes Suzume very happy because she proved she is strong enough to win matches by herself. SAKI was disappointed she couldn’t team with Nao Kakuta when that was the reason why she was booked on the show in the first place. She feels like she has been deceived because of that. Harajuku is annoyed she lost because she thinks of herself as an expert in 3 Way Matches. She still had fun wrestling in America and will definitely win a match the next time she comes over here.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN PHILLY”, 05/04/2024 Penn’s Landing Caterers Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA 750 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Suzume & Arisu Endo defeated Yuki Aino & Zara Zakher when Suzume pinned Zakher with the Twinkle Twinkle (11:01).
2. Billie Starkz defeated Hyper Misao with the Swanton Bomb (5:57).
3. Yuki Kamifuku & Viva Van defeated Raku & Trish Adora when Kamifuku pinned Raku with the Famouser (8:53).
4. Mizuki & Vert Vixen defeated Aja Kong & Pom Harajuku when Mizuki pinned Harajuku with the Cutie Special (10:31).
5. Shoko Nakajima defeated Rhio with the Senton Bomb (13:24).
6. Special Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh defeated Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe when Yamashita pinned Tatsumi with the Skull Kick (19:04).
Third time’s the charm for 121000000. It took until the third Tokyo Joshi Pro show held in the USA for the team to win a main event tag match in America. That they beat Daydream only a couple of days after Miyu Yamashita lost the Princess Of Princess Title to Miu Watanabe shows that the former champion wasn’t letting that get to her. Maki Itoh was also fuelled up because she was among her GCW fanbase for the week in Philadelphia. Despite some trouble between 121000000’s teamwork, Itoh saved Yamashita from the Daydream Eternity. She then set up Rika Tatsumi with a DDT that flowed into Yamashita’s German Suplex, ending with Yamashita pinning Tatsumi with the Skull Kick to win.
As already mentioned, Itoh had her GCW fans in the venue so when it came time to promote tomorrow’s “GCW VS TJPW” show, she had no problem telling the crowd she is on Team GCW. Yamashita tried to combat the GCW chants by leading a TJP chant. It caused some tension to grow between Itoh and Yamashita but they hugged it out in the end. Itoh then gave her the middle finger and Yamashita raised her fist up to it in response. 121000000 have their own seperate plans going on in the immediate future but both of them are thinking about winning back the Princess Tag Team Titles if the timing works out for them. Meanwhile Tatsumi said a lot of swear words in English to complain about losing the match. Watanabe had to apologise to the viewers over it.
Shoko Nakajima was put to the test against the mighty power of Rhio. Her plan to combat against the Suplexes and slams was to keep it speedy and knock Rhio off base with Rider Kicks and 619s. She finally got Rhio down with the Double Arm DDT long enough to hit the Diving Senton for the victory. Nakajima described Rhio as a super ace from EVE who she has become good friends with. She was excited to have this match today and it made her even more ready to do her best at “GCW VS TJPW” tomorrow. Rhio said Nakajima has a small body packed with power and it took her beyond her limits.
Sadly there was no Pompaler reunion on the cards due to Max The Impaler suddenly falling ill. So instead Pom Harajuku was given Aja Kong as her new tag team partner! It led to a mixed bag of a challenge for Mizuki & Vert Vixen. They had to fight the undeniable power of Kong while also dealing with the childish antics of Harajuku. Mizuki’s solution was to steal Harajuku’s shoes from her feet and throw them out of the ring. Vixen gave Kong a Stunner and Mizuki followed up with a Diving Foot Stomp. She then hit Harajuku with her own shoe before pinning her with the Cutie Special. Kong tried to cheer Harajuku backstage by telling her she was more popular with the American fans than Mizuki. If they can get Max to team with them again then the trio will be unstoppable! Harajuku will have to be thrown like a weapon but she will accept that fate as long as she is the main character of the team.
There may be some longer legs to The Casual Vixens than first thought after they won their match today. Yuki Kamifuku & Viva Van focused on fighting Raku while Trish Adora did what she could to keep her team in the match. Van and Adora were left scrambling outside the ring giving Kamifuku clearance to beat Raku with the Famouser. No matter how the results went, both teams were happy to have been paired together. Kamifuku said she gets to be best friends with Asia’s sexiest wrestler while Raku was happy to bring Adora along on the Oyasumi Express.
There was an unexpected surprise in Billie Starkz’s corner. Athena walked out behind her during the entrances and was there to watch her minion do battle against Hyper Misao. She also saved the match for Starkz by pulling her foot on top of the rope while Misao had her pinned with the Hypami Returns. Misao dealt with Athena by blinding her with the spray can. But the distraction allowed Starkz to hit Misao with a Topé Suicida followed by the Swanton Bomb back in the ring to win the match.
The show began with the new Princess Tag Champs in action against one-half of the former champs. Daisy Monkey fought Yuki Aino again and this time Aino had Zara Zakher as her partner. It wasn’t the teamwork of Suzume & Arisu Endo that made them stand tall in the end. In fact the champions were in trouble when Aino gave Endo the Venus DDT while Zakher hit Suzume with a Jumping Knee. Suzume fought back with and used a series of Rolling Cradles called the Twinkle Twinkle that kept going and going until Zakher was pinned for the three count. Daisy Monkey admit they are still immature and would be happy if everyone around the world continues to support them.
The show began with a mini performance from The Up Up Girls who were in attendance. Watanabe & Raku sang “Upper Kick” together. Watanabe also broke one of the cameras at ringside, making it a true TJPW experience!
It’s time! The floodgates are open and there is loads of international wrestling to talk about in regards to our buddies in DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro. March was the busiest month Konosuke Takeshita had in ages with some big matches that can be added to his Best Of collection. Maki Itoh made up for lost time in GCW and hit it big by winning one of their championships. CDK went to wrestle in the Phillipines for the first time together. Daisuke Sasaki fitted in a late weekend trip to Mexico before he moves on to the DDT USA show. If that’s not enough, the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title even saw some action in America.
So next up comes the avalanche of wrestling that is Wrestlemania week. Both DDT and TJPW have shows going on in Philadelphia in the upcoming days. Full intro guides for their shows will be posted on this site tomorrow. A few wrestlers will be popping up here and there throughout the week. When that’s done there is even more stuff to follow. Kazusada Higuchi has a US booking coming up. Miyu Yamashita, now without a championship, will begin a two month tour of America. Itoh will always have trips with GCW to look forward to. Plus other joshi like Mizuki, Yuki Kamifuku and Hyper Misao have their own plans lined up as we head towards the summertime.
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) Vs Rocky Romero
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 27/03/2024 Centre Videotron, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) Vs Swerve Strickland (w/ Prince Nana)
Video starts at 1:24:45 MÁS LUCHA “NACCÍ PERRO, NACÍ PARA SER ELEGIDO”, 31/03/2024 Arena Azteca Budokan, Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico
1. Cirujano Jr. Vs Panic Clown Vs Halloween Jr. Vs Kundra Vs El Fiscal Vs Daisuke Sasaki
———————————————————————–
Results
GCW “PROJECT GCW”, 01/03/2024 Pop’s NightClub, Sauget, Illinois, USA
1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh defeated Ciclope & Miedo Extremo when Gage pinned Ciclope with a Top Rope Piledriver through a Door (9:55).
Maki Death Kill wasted no time at the start of the month. They fought Los Macizos in a chaotic match. Miedo Extremo gave Itoh a slap across the face early that made her start crying but it was only a trap so Itoh could hit him back. Ciclope also riled up Itoh by mimicking her poses. Los Macizos thought they were one step ahead by using forks to counter MDK’s pizza cutters but Nick Gage & Itoh were able to cut them up anyway. Gage was later able to give Ciclope a Piledriver off the top rope through a door for the win.
GCW “KEEP IN TOUCH”, 02/03/2024 Marriott East, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh defeated John Wayne Murdoch & Reed Bentley when Itoh pinned Bentley with the I.S.D. (14:07).
MDK then moved on to fight The Rejects on the next show. Again Itoh faked crying to get the jump on her opponent. This time it was John Wayne Murdoch who fell for it. Itoh ended up arming herself with a stapler and used it to great effect on both Murdoch and Reed Bentley. Murdoch got some revenge by hitting Itoh with a trash can over and over. Gage got rid of Bentley by using the Chokebreaker and then he tackled Murdoch through a table. That set up Itoh to hit Murdoch with the I.S.D. to win the match.
AEW “REVOLUTION”, 03/03/2024 Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA
1. Will Ospreay defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the Hidden Blade (21:57).
Did The Don Callis Family implode? Not really. Callis is feeling so good about his group wiping out all of their targets that he decided it was time for his two best wrestlers to fight each other on PPV just to rub it in. It was also going to be Will Ospreay’s first AEW match under his full time deal with the company. What followed was a classic match between him and Takeshita, surely one of the best of the year. Even though Takeshita lost he wasn’t out of the title chase yet. Ospreay has other plans on his mind for now and the performance gave Takeshita another path towards fighting for the No. 1 Contendership.
GCW “ASHES TO ASHES”, 09/03/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. GCW Extreme Title – Scramble Match: Maki Itoh defeated Joey Janela (c), Jack Cartwheel, Alex Zayne, Marcus Mathers and Broski Jimmy when Itoh pinned Mathers with a Spinning DDT (7:32). *Joey Janela fails in V7. Maki Itoh becomes the 10th GCW Extreme Champion!
Itoh’s next GCW appearance was revealed to be in a 6 Way Scramble match with Joey Janela putting his GCW Extreme Title on the line. The finishing stretch saw Marcus Mathers crushing Janela with a 450 Splash only for Itoh to run in and drop him with a Spinning DDT to get the pin out of nowhere and become the new champion!
GCW “SO MUCH FUN”, 10/03/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Nick Gage, Matt Tremont & Maki Itoh Vs Effy, Allie Katch & Dark Sheik ended in a No Contest when Mance Warner interfered (17:08).
The day after Itoh won her championship she teamed up with Gage & Matt Tremont to form Maki Death Kill Club. Their match against Thrussy ended up getting thrown out when Mance Warner interfered and attacked members of both teams. He is currently in a bloody feud with Effy so that storyline took precedence and Itoh had no involvement with the finish.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 13/03/2024 (Aired 15/03/2024) TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) defeated Komander (w/ Alex Abrahantes) with the Modified Falcon Arrow (9:39).
The next two weeks had Takeshita wrestling on Rampage to build up his win-loss record. First he defeated Komander, using a Spinning Falcon Arrow to win the match. It also looked like he shook the fallen luchador’s hand after the match. Was it a show of good sportsmanship at a time when Takeshita shies away from that sort of thing under his manager’s watch?
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) defeated Rocky Romero with the Modified Falcon Arrow (8:54).
The next week Takeshita defeated Rocky Romero, again using the Spinning Falcon Arrow. It’s a bit funny that Takeshita finally got to wrestle a few people connected to New Japan this month. Romero was with the company in 2016 perhaps he has some info on what actually happened between NJPW and DDT back then? Ha ha ha…
DEXCON “WRESTLE STORM”, 24/03/2024 Brawl Pit Bulusan, Quezon City, Philippines
1. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs Jake De Leon & Ravena when Takanashi pinned Ravena after the Thrust Kick & Praying Mantis Bomb Combo (?:??). *V1 for CDK.
A new month means a new place in Asia for Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi to wrestle in. They went over to the Philippines for a wrestling promotion called Dexcon. CDK put the SETUP World Tag Team Titles against the team known as Oro Plata Mata. CDK scored the win and successful defence so they were free to celebrate with some drinks after the show.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 27/03/2024 Centre Videotron, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
1. Swerve Strickland (w/ Prince Nana) defeated Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) with the Big Pressure (19:39).
No. 1 Contendership for the AEW World Title was up for grabs when Takeshita fought the highly fancied Swerve Strickland. It was another great match between two fantastic wrestlers. Takeshita almost had an answer for all of Swerve’s attacks. He even kicked out of the Swerve Stomp. However Strickland landed another Double Stomp when Takeshita tried to pop him up into the air. At a time when Takeshita adopted several of Naruki Doi’s moves to use in America, how ironic is it that he lost to Strickland’s version of the Muscular Bomb?
HAKUNA MATATA LUCHAS “HOMENAJE A REY BALSAS”, 30/03/2024 Unidad Habitacional de Fovissste, Puebla, Mexico
1. Karma I & Karma II (2) defeated Kurama & Daisuke Sasaki (1).
Just a few days before DDT reaches America, Daisuke Sasaki decided to travel a week early. He went to Mexico and got himself a couple of lucha libre bookings. I thought it would be impossible to find his first match at Hakuna Matata Luchas but it turns out I should have had no worries because a video of it appeared on Facebook. Sasaki an his tag partner Kurama beat Karma I & Karma II in the first fall with a Diving Body Press and Diving Elbow Drop. Then Karma II (I checked to make sure Karma I wore the golden boots and Karma II wore the silver) used a Llave Crucifix Hold to pin Sasaki for the second fall. The final fall went to the tecnicos when I vaulted II into Kurama & Sasaki like a cannonball into the corner. That resulted in Karma I & II pinning both of them for the victory.
MÁS LUCHA “NACCÍ PERRO, NACÍ PARA SER ELEGIDO”, 31/03/2024 Arena Azteca Budokan, Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico
1. Perros del Mal Light Heavyweight Title: Panic Clown defeated Cirujano Jr. , Halloween Jr., Kundra, El Fiscal and Daisuke Sasaki when Clown submitted Sasaki with a Modified Cross Hammerlock (?:??). *Panic Clown becomes the new Perros del Mal Light Heavyweight Champion!
Sasaki also took part in a show hosted by Más Lucha. He was put into a 6 Way match with the vacant Perros del Mal Light Heavyweight. The Luchawiki has 2016 as the last time the title was active but I’m not sure even The Cubs Fan himself believes if that is accurate. In a wild match with plenty of dives and some violence involving chairs, Sasaki ended up on the losing end. He did a Diving Cross Body onto Panic Clown but Clown rolled over on top of him and put Sasaki in a Cross Hammerlock kind of submission hold to make him tap out.
———————————————————————–
Iron Man Title In USA
WEST COAST PRO “MARVELOUS COAST”, 23/03/2024 United Irish Cultural Center, San Francisco, California, USA
1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Sayaka Unagi (c) defeated Hyan with the Dai Fuhen Mono Ki (9:55).
1a. Sparky Ballard defeated Sayaka Unagi (c) with a School Boy. *Sparky Ballard becomes the 1,616th champion.
1b. Ref Gil defeated Sparky Ballard (c) with a School Boy. *Ref Gil becomes the 1,617th champion.
1c. Hyan defeated Ref Gil (c) with the Spear. *Hyan becomes the 1,618th champion.
1d. Sayaka Unagi defeated Hyan (c) with the Dai Fuhen Mono Ki (9:55). *Sayaka Unagi becomes the 1,619th champion.
For the first time this year the Iron Man Title made its way over to America. It is one of the many championships currently being held by Sayaka Unagi and West Coast Pro decided Hyan would be a good challenger for her. Unagi struggled to beat Hyan and the growing frustration caused her to shove the referee Sparky Ballard after a disputed nearfall. In the heat of the moment Ballard decided to take things in his own hands so when Unagi turned her back on him he gave her a School Boy and counted to three. He was now the new Iron Man Champion! Then things went nutty when another official affectionately known as Ref Gil got into the ring with a third referee and he pinned Ballard with a School Boy to take the title off of him! Gil’s reign did not last long because Hyan gave him the Spear and pinned him to win the title. Her match with Unagi continued from there and Unagi won to ensure the championship went back to her. She continued to wrestle in America that week and did not lose any matches so there were no further title changes in America. At least none that DDT knows of. She lost a match to Janai Kai in MLW a few days ago but that company gets away with a lot of stuff because nobody likes paying attention to them. That forced Unagi and DDT to come up with a story that she lost the Iron Man Title to a “Strange Foreigner” before the match happened. She then allegedly found the “Strange Foreigner” some time after the match to win it back.
———————————————————————–
Upcoming Appearances
CIRCLE 6 “NEW FEAR CITY”, 03/04/2024 The Fire, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Chris Brookes Vs X
2. MAO Vs X
Let’s get started with Wrestlemania Week! Out of all the DDT wrestlers heading to Philadelphia it will be MAO who has the lion’s share of bookings. On the Wednesday night he and Chris Brookes are both going to a No Ring show held at a nightclub by Circle 6. It’s a dangerous way to begin one of the most schedule intense weeks of the wrestling calander.
Thursday is even nuttier. MAO has four bookings in one day! It begins with a DEFY show where MAO and Mike Bailey reunite as Moonlight Express to face another team getting back together. Chris Brookes and Kid Lykos get to wrestle together as CDK for the first time in a long while. A lot of things have changed since. Lykos now wrestles unmasked and he is currently the Progress World Champion.
SHP/LOL “EUPHORIA”, 04/04/2024 Attic Brewing Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Matt Makowski Vs MAO
When the DEFY match is done with MAO then goes over to another venue where he will wrestle Matt Makowski. On paper that sounds like a straight forward match but some really wacky things have happened at Sean Henderson Presents shows in the past. Don’t let your guard down.
1. Special Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Nick Wayne & Takeshi Masada
2. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Kid Lykos Vs Bryan Keith & Shota
3. Special Single Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Yoshihiko
4. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Andrew “The Giant” Everett
5. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Shunma Katsumata
6. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Mike Bailey
7. DDT Universal Title – No Rules Match: MAO (c) Vs Billie Starkz
As soon as the preview for this show is posted you can find it by clicking here.
GCW/JCW “GCW/JCW VS THE WORLD”, 04/04/2024 Penns Landing Caterers Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Shota Vs X
2. 4 Way Tag Match: Ciclope & Miedo Extremo Vs Robert Dreissker & Laurance Roman Vs Man Like DeReiss & Leon Slater Vs MAO & Yoshihiko
The final show of the day if you go by the starting time being in the very last minute (yeah right like it won’t be delayed). GCW and its sister promotion JCW have invited the world to take them on. MAO & Yoshihiko will be joining forces to enter a 4 Way Tag Match against GCW’s top team from Mexico Los Macizos, the wXw duo from Germany Amboss and Britain’s own Boisterous Behaviour from NORTH Wrestling.
Also on the show is Shota taking his first independent booking since going freelance from Ganbare☆Pro. His match has not been announced yet. Since this is a GCW show it will probably be a Scramble Match since there are a bunch of other wrestlers also advertised with no match yet.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN PHILLY”, 05/04/2024 Penns Landing Caterers Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Hyper Misao Vs Billie Starkz
2. Shoko Nakajima Vs Rhio
3. Yuki Aino & Raku Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Viva Van
4. Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Nao Kakuta & Zara Zakher
5. Mizuki & Vert Vixen Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
6. Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
As soon as the preview for this show is posted you can find it by clicking here.
GCW “JOEY JANELA’S SPRING BREAK 8”, 05/04/2024 Penns Landing Caterers Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh Vs Danhausen & Ram Kaichow
While Itoh went back to Japan to wrestle for TJPW again, Gage went and teamed with Danhausen to challenge for the GCW Tag Team Titles. They lost and Danhausen blamed the result on Gage. That caused Gage to come up with a challenge. He and Itoh will fight Danhausen and a partner of his choice at some point during The Collective. All signs pointed towards the annual Spring Break show as the destination for the match. Then Joey Janela broke the news that Danhausen chose Ram Kaichow to be his teammate! Itoh and Kaichow have never crossed paths in the ring before because Kaichow’s TJPW appearances are often contained within the Rakuverse.
GCW/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GCW VS TJPW”, 06/04/2024 Penns Landing Caterers Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. Suzume Vs Pom Harajuku
2. Session Moth Martina Vs Raku
3. Dark Sheik Vs Yuki Kamifuku
4. Steph De Lander Vs Hyper Misao
5. Shazza McKenzie Vs Arisu Endo
6. Sawyer Wreck & Allie Katch Vs Mizuki & Nao Kakuta
7. Billie Starkz & Janai Kai Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
8. Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Rina Yamashita, Masha Slamovich & Maki Itoh Vs Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino
As soon as the preview for this show is posted you can find it by clicking here. Expect a partial change to one of the matches because Sawyer Wreck broke her hand last weekend and won’t be able to wrestle.
I’m including this because there are apparently going to be 88 contestants entering this year’s annual Clusterfuck Match. Surely that means the odds are good for some DDT or TJPW entries showing up in it. Or maybe Itoh will have an Extreme Title defence? Either way this will probably be it for their involvement at WrestleMania Week.
WEST COAST PRO “CHRIS HERO’S PRO WRES MIXTAPE”, 14/04/2024 Don Quixote Event Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Kazusada Higuchi Vs X
West Coast Pro cards have been put together by Chris Hero for a while now but I wouldn’t call any of them vanity shows. I can with this one because it has his name on it right there.
PRESTIGE “ROSELAND 8”, 14/04/2024 Roseland Theater, Portland, Oregon, USA
1. Kylie Rae Vs Miyu Yamashita
After Mania Week is done and everyone in TJPW head back home to Japan, Yamashita will be staying behind. Her latest tour of America will last until June. The first match announced for her stay is a first time match against Kylie Rae. For Rae it will be a big match for her since she only just recently returned to pro wrestling.
UPRISING “UPRISING: WOMEN ATHLETES 2”, 19/04/2024 Knights of Columbus, LaSalle, Illinois, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Hyan
Can Yamashita get her win back from Hyan?
DREAMWAVE “ANNIVERSARY IX”, 20/04/2024 Knights of Columbus, LaSalle, Illinois, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
Yamashita will be at DREAMWAVE the next night. Her opponent will be somebody out of the Uprising lineup to be determined after that show takes place.
GCW “HOW HIGH”, 20/04/2024 Ukrainian Cultural Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Itoh will be bouncing back and forth between Japan and America again as Spring heads into Summer.
PRESTIGE/PRIDE STYLE “PRIDE & PRESTIGE”, 26/04/2024 Meet Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
The announcements for Yamashita’s matches in America are coming thick and fast.
DAIKAIJU PRO “VOL. 2 – KAPPAS COUNTERATTACK”, 27/04/2024 White Eagle, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
1. Hyper Misao Vs Ultramantis Black
The first Daikaiju Pro event featured Shoko Nakajima so it only makes sense for the second show to feature her Kyoraku Kyomei tag partner Hyper Misao! She was teased as being “Project M” being brought in to deal with the calamity that is seemingly going on over there. Her impending arrival has caused the great and devious Ultramantis Black to step forward and dare to meet her face to face on the battlefield!
Yuki Kamifuku will be heading over to Vietnam Pro Wrestling in a bid to become the company’s first Women’s Champion. Her opponent is somebody she’s become familiar with. She and Alexis Lee have fought each other for the Queen Of Asia Title a couple of times and in their last match Kamifuku beat Lee to become the champion. Will she do the same here or can Lee take this new title as revenge for losing the other one?
SETUP “CLASH OF THE TITANS”, 25/05/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title: Matcha (c) Vs Monomoth Vs Mizuki
Over in Thailand Mizuki has a chance to win a championship over there. She is part of a 3 Way Match with the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title on the line. Matcha is the defending champion and Monomoth is the other challenger.
Yamashita’s first match back in Japan will be on 15th June. So at the moment her match against Laynie Luck at Midwest All-Star Wrestling looks like it will be her last booking for the tour.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GRAND PRINCESS ’24”, 31/03/2024 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan 2,349 Fans
1. Haru Kazashiro, Runa Okubo & Uta Takami defeated Shino Suzuki, Chika Nanase & Kira Summer when Kazashiro pinned Nanase with a Fisherman Suplex (7:43).
2. Nao Kakuta & Ami Yumoto defeated Mahiro Kiryu & HIMAWARI when Kakuta pinned HIMAWARI with the Shiden Kai (8:52).
3. Raku & Pom Harajuku defeated Andreza Giant Panda & Kaya Toribami (w/ Haruna Neko) when Raku pinned Toribami with the Doctor Yellow (8:38).
4. Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano defeated Wakana Uehara & Toga when Miyamoto pinned Toga with the Korokan (11:11).
5. Masha Slamovich defeated Rika Tatsumi with the White Knight Driver (10:35).
6. Aja Kong & Max The Impaler defeated Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao when Kong pinned Misao with the Diving Back Elbow Drop (12:39).
7. Special Single Match: Minoru Suzuki defeated Maki Itoh by Referee Stoppage with the Sleeper Hold (18:01).
8. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki defeated Emi Sakura & Chris Brookes when Mizuki pinned Sakura with the Aquamarine (15:43).
9. International Princess Title: Yuki Arai (c) defeated Yuki Kamifuku with the Finally (11:28). *V2 for Yuki Arai.
10. Princess Tag Team Titles: Suzume & Arisu Endo defeated Ryo Mizunami & Yuki Aino (c) when Suzume pinned Aino with the Ring A Bell (15:57). *Yukiniki fails in V1. Daisy Monkey become the 16th Princess Tag Team Champions!
11. Princess Of Princess Title: Miu Watanabe defeated Miyu Yamashita (c) with the Tear Drop (20:07). *Miyu Yamashita fails in V4. Miu Watanabe becomes the 14th Princess Of Princess Champion!
Has the dawn of a new era finally begun up for Tokyo Joshi Pro? The big story coming out of “GRAND PRINCESS ’24” is the young generation of wrestlers surpassing the veterans in each of the three title matches. None was more newsworthy than the main event where Miu Watanabe defeated Miyu Yamashita for the second time in her career to become the new Princess Of Princess Champion! It was as loud of a declaration as she could make in a Sumo Hall main event, kicking out of the pin after taking the Skull Kick (first time that ever happened in TJPW) and pinning Yamashita clean with the Tear Drop. This title win also makes Watanabe the second ever Grand Slam champion in TJPW!
Watanabe was overcome with emotion after the match. She thanked everyone for their support and talked about how much she loves TJPW. The company is entering its 11th year of existence and from now on everyone in TJPW are going to have plenty of big dreams that she wants to see come true. She will do her best to make those dreams come true and hopes everyone will love TJPW forever! The show ended with the entire roster gathered together on the entrance stage and bowing to the audience in thanks for their support. All of the new champions then remained for a group photo together.
Backstage Watanabe told reporters she’s been with TJPW for 6 or 7 years and came into the company not knowing anything about pro wrestling. It was the kindness and love she found within TJPW that made her fall in love with the promotion. It is an important place for her which makes today’s championship win even more meaningful. She looks forward to being here for another 10, 20 and even 30 years so she can expand her dreams! In regards to Yamashita, Watanabe believes she has now caught up with her but it only takes a second for Yamashita to sprint back ahead with incredible speed. It will be the same for the rest of Yamashita’s generation so Watanabe wants to be a champion who can take them all on. Yamashita admitted it was frustrating to lose but she is happy to see Watanabe become the champion. It gives her another reason to keep getting stronger. If Yamashita is currently at her limit then she will now focus on exceeding it.
The other title change of the day was in the semi-main event. Daisy Monkey have now won the Princess Tag Team Titles that’s been out of their reach for so long! Yukiniki put up a good fight and had the plan to isolate Suzume late in the match. Yuki Aino gave her a Side Suplex and Ryo Mizunami followed with the Uranage for a nearfall. Suzume blocked the UBV attempt long enough for Arisu Endo to come back in and even the odds. Together Daisy Monkey used a double team Facebuster on Aino and Suzume finished her off with the Ring A Bell for the title switch.
Daisy Monkey were so happy to win they didn’t even know what to do with the title belts or the streamers that were thrown for them. Suzume said she knew there were always people who supported her and with Endo by her side they were able to fight at their most passionate and win. Endo cried because what makes Suzume happy makes her happy too. So many of the senpais that they admire have held the tag titles and now Daisy Monkey’s name is deservedly added to that lineage. Suzume said their team was missing a pink colour and Yukiniki gave it to them today. So from now on they want to defend the belts against a variety of challengers who will offer them something new. They will absorb all the different colours from them to become more colorful than the rainbow! Aino is upset to lose but feels she has moved to the next level thanks to Mizunami. She is ready to take on new challenges and fight for more championships. Mizunami explained wrestling is a dream-filled profession and seeing Aino become so motivated after losing makes her think she is ready to take her own next step too.
The International Princess Title match ended up having a big connection to Saki Akai thanks to both participants. Yuki Arai used to team with Akai as Reiwa AA Cannon until Akai retired from wrestling. Yuki Kamifuku wrestled the match wearing the costume top Akai gave to her the last time they were in the ring together. She also wanted to steal the spotlight knowing that a lot of SKE48 fans were in the audience today. However Arai went kick for kick against her, dodged the Famouser and beat Kamifuku with the Finally. Arai remembers the last time she wrestled in Sumo Hall two years ago she challenged for the IP Title and lost. Today she successfully defended the same title in the same venue, giving herself even more confidence. It makes her excited to see what she can do in another two years time. Kamifuku admitted her opinions on SKE48 changed today. She wanted to outshine them but when she watched their mini-concert during the show she realised they were too cute and she knew all of their songs. Now Arai is somebody she wants to go out for drinks with someday! Until that happens Kamifuku is considering going on another trip somewhere in Asia to brush up on her beauty tips.
The Magical Sugar Rabbits came back ready to fly all over Sumo Hall against the unusual team of TeaDK. That pair went off to an awkward start when Emi Sakura had to order Chris Brookes into helping her with double team moves that just didn’t work well because of their size difference. MagiRabi took advantage with big dive moves including a double dive that came off one of the aisleway entrances! Yuka Sakazaki also showed her strength by giving Brookes the Magical Merry-Go-Round as well as the Tea Time. TeaDK had more moments of bad teamwork but still overpowered Mizuki with their attacks. Mizuki wiped out Brookes with the Whirling Candy before facing off with Sakura once again. They had a back and forth exchange that ended with Mizuki pinning Sakura with the Aquamarine!
Backstage Sakazaki said the match hurt a lot but still felt so right. It was her first match since graduating from TJPW and she admitted her future turned out differently than what she imagined. She is feeling refreshed and excited because she hasn’t done anything in the last four months. It is still her plan to go to America this year but right now her schedule is undecided. Mizuki was happy to beat Sakura the way she did but admits it doesn’t feel like she won at all. Sakura is always ahead of her and Mizuki fears she can never catch up. Elsewhere TeaDK were at odds over why they lost. Sakura blamed Brookes while he tried to tell her she is not royalty. She wouldn’t listen and Brookes was left thinking he is better off going back to CDK.
Maki Itoh knew she was in for an impossible fight against Minoru Suzuki but she still gave it her best shot. She tried to get on his good side by acting cute and polite but they just made Suzuki ask what’s so cute about her? Suzuki grabbed Itoh by the hair, making her cry. He complained to Yukinori Matsui but took it too far and made him cry too. In Itoh’s case it was just a trap to get the jump on Suzuki. That didn’t work out because Suzuki hit her with a chair outside the ring. Itoh kept trying to fight back both in the fight as well as the war of words. She countered the Gotch-Style Piledriver into a Cradle for a few nearfalls until Suzuki caught her in the Sleeper Hold. Itoh fainted from the move and the match had to be stopped. When Itoh regained consciousness she refused to shake his hand, opting to give him the middle finger instead. Suzuki grabbed Itoh by the middle finger and dragged her backstage all the way to the interview desk. Itoh stuck up her other middle finger and Suzuki grabbed that too. He held on until Itoh apologised. Suzuki patted her on the head and left, promising he will be back. Itoh told the reporters it was fun to wrestle Suzuki. Next time she would like to team with him again.
With the new and improved Hypami Dramatic Dream combat bike fully completed, Kyoraku Kyomei were ready to take on the incoming rampage of Aja Kong & Max The Impaler. They had other tricks up their sleeve like Hyper Misao blinding Kong with a her spray so Kong would miss the Diving Elbow Drop. The match didn’t take long to move out of the ring. Misao tried to run over Kong with the Hypami DD but she dodged out of the way. However Shoko Nakajima caught Kong and kept her in place long enough for Misao to turn the bike around and crash it into her! Back in the ring Max came to Kong’s rescue and soon the two monsters were armed with steel cans. After beating up Kyoraku Kyomei with the cans, Kong & Max decided to give them Piledrivers together. Kong then copied Misao’s “I Am A Hero” catchphrase and hit the Diving Elbow Drop for the three count. Kong called it a forgone conclusion. The Princess Tag Team Champions should consider themselves lucky that Kong & Max aren’t the next challengers. As soon as Kong said that she began to wonder out loud what would happen if they did become the champions…
The reigning JCW Champion came to Sumo Hall and put down one of TJPW’s main stars. Masha Slamovich survived being strangled by Rika Tatsumi and also caught her Hip Attack. Tatsumi was left stunned with a Spin Kick to the head and was done for when Slamovich gave her the White Knight Driver. Slamovich said winning a match in Sumo Hall felt special and she is ready to fight more TJPW wrestlers in Philadelphia next week. Tatsumi hopes she will come back so they can have a rematch. If she doesn’t then Tatsumi will just go searching after her.
The new ring costumes worn by Wakana Uehara & Toga were not enough for them to beat Shinken Kusho. Instead it was the teamwork of Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano that made the difference. Nagano took care of Uehara allowing Miyamoto to beat Toga with the Korokan. With only a short time remaining until Nagano’s graduation, Shinken Kusho were happy to win in the same building where Nagano debuted and started teaming with Miyamoto two years ago.
It turns out that Raku’s lullaby is super effective against giant pandas. She was able to send Andreza Giant Panda to dreamland, thanks to some help from Pom Harajuku placing a pillow beneath his head. Andreza woke up when they tried to pin him with the Oyasumi Express. When Andreza became too powerful to fight directly, RakuPom turned their attention to Kaya Toribami. Andreza ended up Headbutting Toribami by accident, giving Raku the opening to give her the Doctor Yellow and win. Andreza took the result in his stride though and was happy he got along with both Toribami and Haruna Neko. He wants to make even more animal friends so they can all be part of an Animal Paradise. He also warned TJPW that some of the stuff that happened to him in the ring today counts as animal abuse and he will be calling the animal welfare centre later.
It was a successful debut match for Ami Yumoto. She started off the match against HIMAWARI and held her own. Things got difficult when HIMAWARI tagged in Mahiro Kiryu but Nao Kakuta was there to save the day. Yumoto did a dive onto Kiryu out of the ring while Kakuta beat HIMAWARI with the Shiden Kai. Yumoto wished she could have done more in training to be better prepared. She hopes this match will be a good opportunity to set up another one in the future. She said she has always been a tomboy since she was a kid and would like to do more high flying moves next time. Kakuta would like to team with her again but her advice to Yumoto is to prioritise her health and career.
The JK Trio of Haru Kazashiro, Runa Okubo & Uta Takami won in the opening contest. Does this make them the youngest pro wrestling team to ever win a match in Sumo Hall? The match went back and forth until the teenagers hit a Triple Dropkick to Shino Suzuki, Chika Nanase & Kira Summer. Kazashiro then used a Fisherman Suplex to pin Nanase.
Five members of SKE48 including Yuki Arai held a mini-concert after the third match. For one member Marika Tani it turned out to be her final live performance because today is her graduation from the idol unit. One thing she noticed is at SKE48 concerts the fans chant “Yuki-chan” for Yuki Arai but at wrestling shows the fans chant “Arai” for her instead.
Did April Fool’s come a day early? There was an announcement at the beginning of the show of a collaboration between TJPW and mecha franchise Armored Trooper Votoms. As part of the collaboration famed mecha designer Kunio Okawara created illustrations of existing Votoms robots with colour schemes and accessories related to TJPW wrestlers. The first revealed designs are Berserga Pink Striker based on Miyu Yamashita and Cat Shoulder based on Haruna Neko.
It was announced that “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’24” will be held at Korakuen Hall on 20th July. Normally that show would be held somewhere like Ota Ward Gymnasium. However that building won’t be available for a while because it is being renovated for the rest of the year.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GRAND PRINCESS ’24”, 31/03/2024 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
1. Shino Suzuki, Chika Nanase & Kira Summer Vs Haru Kazashiro, Runa Okubo & Uta Takami
2. Nao Kakuta & Ami Yumoto Vs Mahiro Kiryu & HIMAWARI
3. Andreza Giant Panda & Kaya Toribami (w/ Haruna Neko) Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
4. Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano Vs Wakana Uehara & Toga
5. Rika Tatsumi Vs Masha Slamovich
6. Aja Kong & Max The Impaler Vs Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao
7. Special Single Match: Minoru Suzuki Vs Maki Itoh
8. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Emi Sakura & Chris Brookes
9. International Princess Title: Yuki Arai (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku
10. Princess Tag Team Titles: Ryo Mizunami & Yuki Aino (c) Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo
11. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Miu Watanabe
The third annual “GRAND PRINCESS” supershow is taking place this Sunday. It is where Tokyo Joshi Pro will return to Sumo Hall after last year’s attempt at running Ariake Coliseum. The promotion’s three championships are all represented in the late side of the card but you will find some of the matches making the most headlines are right there underneath them. We have new faces that weren’t here a year ago, a few women who will soon be saying goodbye to wrestling, somebody who already said goodbye not that long ago but came back anyway and a few guests coming over to check things out as well. The three title matches will also end up answering a question that always follows TJPW’s biggest shows. Are they finally going to push the next generation? Let’s look through the matches one by one and see what’s on offer.
1. Shino Suzuki, Chika Nanase & Kira Summer Vs Haru Kazashiro, Runa Okubo & Uta Takami
It is up to the six lowest wrestlers on the tier list to open up the show. Three of the wrestlers only have a year of experience each. The other three have only debuted in the last month and only have around five matches under their belt! Shino Suzuki was the first of the six to make her debut and has been making strides in the ring lately. “She Know” might know how to lead her rookie partners Chika Nanase & Kira Summer to victory. Nanase has a pretty strong Shoulder Block she uses as her first move to build matches around. Summer was already no stranger to wrestling before she joined TJPW because her siblings back in Australia are wrestlers too. Facing them are the three youngest wrestlers on the roster. Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo debuted together at last year’s “GRAND PRINCESS” show. As the year progressed Kazashiro ended up getting more matches because Okubo needed to improve her school work. Kazashiro only just recently won her first singles match too by beating Suzuki. The newcomer on their side is Uta Takami, the newest member of The Up Up Girls. The best way I’ve seen her described so far is she has “bratty little sister energy”. So if you’re the kind of fan who gets drawn in by Mei Suruga’s personality then Takami is going to grab your attention. In terms of wondering which side has the advantage, it might actually go to the team of teenagers because they have more ring time combined than the adults!
2. Nao Kakuta & Ami Yumoto Vs Mahiro Kiryu & HIMAWARI
A match that was about a new beginning for someone when it was announced and has since added the story of the end approaching for someone else. Let’s start with the new beginning. Ami Yumoto is a former idol who was a member of the famous AKB48 troupe. She was part of group from 2013 until her graduation last year. You may have seen her before in that viral clip of the most highly produced Rock Paper Scissors tournament anyone outside of Japan has ever seen. In that time Yumoto participated in the Tofu Pro Wrestling series under the gimmick name Komanechi Yumoto so she has some familiarity with wrestling already. Since leaving AKB48 Yumoto became a stage actress and worked on a play with Nao Kakuta. The two of them became friends and Kakuta encouraged Yumoto to come see TJPW for herself. The reason is when Kakuta discovered TJPW she fell in love with the place and she thinks Yumoto will do the same. The two will be teaming together for the idol’s debut match. It may be a one off but if Kakuta’s plan is correct, Yumoto might end up sticking around afterwards.
That brings us to the point I made about the end approaching. Two weeks after Yumoto’s debut was announced, Kakuta dropped the news she will be graduating from TJPW and retiring from pro wrestling in July. It sounds like she’s ready to move on from being a performer in general because she said her next career step is going to be something that will not put her in front of an audience again. It’s a shame to see her leaving soon because I was hopeful there would be a chance for her to move up a spot this year. The success she finally earned last year got wiped out due to matters outside of her power. However given how roster advancement goes in this company that same success was probably the most she was going to get and she realised that herself. No shame in calling it a career when you’ve done everything you can do and know there is nothing else possible within your means.
Those stories above mean the match will be all about those two and not their opponents. Mahiro Kiryu got her day in the sun last year when she unexpectedly became the main character of the highly praised “HYPE!” show. HIMAWARI has fitted into the TJPW undercard so perfectly you’d think she was part of the company for years already. Either of them could very likely pick up the win just by targeting Yumoto but it is also a believable result if Kakuta just clears house and wins in her final Sumo Hall appearance instead without Yumoto having to do much for the finish.
3. Andreza Giant Panda & Kaya Toribami (w/ Haruna Neko) Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
If last year’s match was “Andreza Minus-One” then you can call this year’s match “Andreza x Kaya”. Last year Andreza Giant Panda teamed with Haruna Neko but it’s a little different this time around. The catgirl has been out of action with an injury for a long while now. She will still be at the panda’s side but won’t be able to wrestle in the match itself. That’s not a problem because you can just swap out the cat for a bird. Kaya Toribami will be Andreza’s partner here in what could be the second ever recorded interaction between a panda and a cassowary (TikTok beat them to the punch because of course TikTok would).
TJPW’s resident kaiju and superhero are busy dealing with a more demanding challenge later in the show so who gets the responsibility of containing Andreza within Ryogoku this time? It’s RakuPom that has to deal with it now. Raku makes sense the more I think of it because trains have been used to take down giant monsters before and the power of sleep can turn Andreza into a Snorlax. Pom Harajuku’s chances will depend on what happens when you kick a large inflatable thing over and over. Maybe she can kick Andreza at the right angle and cause it to burst from the shins. If none of that works Raku & Harajuku can always use the power of friendship to prevail. Or just focus on beating Toribami, that would be a lot easier.
4. Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano Vs Wakana Uehara & Toga
Another match where one of the participants will be wrestling in Sumo Hall for the final time. Juria Nagano has her finger in a lot of pies and sadly it’s reached the point where she no longer has the focus and energy to continue her pro wrestling career. This match is happening two weeks before her final bout and graduation from TJPW takes place. She said she wants to keep fighting as hard as she can until she burns out. That hard work paid off when she finally won her first singles match in February. She won’t have any championships or tournament wins under her name when she graduates but to her it was still all worth it. Teaming with Nagano is Moka Miyamoto, one of the current gen wrestlers who’s been climbing up the card and finding more opportunities along the way. As long as she keeps going the way she’s going now, I can see her getting eventually rewarded with some success in the future. It’s sad to see Shinken Kusho become such a short lived tag team because two karate girls working together like that was fun to watch.
Their opponents are two wrestlers who debuted TJPW almost a year after Nagano did and I’d say just about count as the next generation after her. Wakana Uehara has become noticeably more popular over 2023. She won the Next Generation Tournament to become the top prospect in her class, her social media numbers are going up and she has that one fan that constantly shouts “WAKANAAAAAA!” during her matches. Everything’s going up for the girl with the big appetite. Toga is getting more comfortable with herself in the ring and starting to show she has more to offer than just throwing a big Elbow Strike. Her finisher is one of the weirdest ways I’ve ever seen anyone do the Rock Bottom but it still looks like it hurts when she drives her opponent onto the mat.
5. Rika Tatsumi Vs Masha Slamovich
The antics of a certain “White Dragon” has been gradually getting more unhinged as time goes by. It’s one thing for Rika Tatsumi to always choke people during a wrestling match but when she’s scary enough to make Demonio Uno or Demonio Dos nervous then it’s probably time to put her in check. If only there was somebody out there with the pain tolerance to handle Tatsumi at her worst as well as being powerful enough to challenge Tatsumi at her best. Oh! Good to see you again Masha Slamovich, boy does TJPW have an opponent for you! Earlier this year Slamovich had a great performance in the main event of the annual 4th January show in Korakuen Hall. Meanwhile she is racking up Tatsumi has spent most of 2024 wrestling in the tag team division as part of Daydream. This is a good matchup for both women and I can see the result setting up a No. 1 Contender for either of the singles championships in the aftermath.
6. Aja Kong & Max The Impaler Vs Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao
Damn it, I should have saved the Godzilla x Kong joke for this match. Kyoraku Kyomei did such a great job handling a giant kaiju at last year’s “GRAND PRINCESS”. So much so they are now being counted on to fight the two meanest monsters TJPW can find! In a throwback to the days of Stan Hansen & Bruiser Brody teaming up as the Miracle Power Combination, TJPW have decided to put Aja Kong & Max The Impaler together on the same side. The previous times the two of them have been in the ring were as opponents. The wrestlers they teamed with were more concerned about protecting the venue from getting ripped apart than they were with winning the match. What hope does Sumo Hall have now that Kong & Max are going to team together? That’s when you call on the services of Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao to save the day.
Kyoraku Kyomei are well aware of the younger wrestlers in TJPW doing their best to catch up with the veteran generation. That kind of threat was what kept them motivated until this match was announced. Nakajima is looking forward to it because it is her chance to prove the Big Kaiju is also the strongest kaiju. Misao is not as enthusiastic. She only just recently built the second generation Hypami Dramatic Dream bike thanks to a successful crowd funding campaign. The original was destroyed by Aja Kong so there is no way Misao will let her or Max lay even a finger on the new one. Misao also warns the new bike has a secret weapon that was specially built in to deal with those two monsters. Maybe even three if Nakajima accidentally gets in the way.
7. Special Single Match: Minoru Suzuki Vs Maki Itoh
The cutest in the world is going to fight the meanest king of pro wrestling! A recurring story for a long time now is Maki Itoh becoming more and more disconnected from the rest of TJPW. She wrestles in America for GCW more often and whenever she does come back to Japan her matches in TJPW are in the middle of the card and she feels aimless despite still winning matches. Her wrestling career is still going great, it’s just that more and more of her highlights are happening away from TJPW. The big one that happened recently was Itoh winning the GCW Extreme Title. She’ll have the title belt with her coming down to the ring on the night but her match will have nothing to do with it. It is about something even more important.
In February Itoh went to the Piledriver clothing shop in Harajuku in search of its Minoru Suzuki. When she found him she pitched an idea for the two of them to team up at Sumo Hall. They have teamed up once before in DDT and Itoh thinks the cutest wrestler in the world teaming with the meanest person on the planet would draw fans to the show. Suzuki flipped the idea on its head and told Itoh it would be even more buzzworthy if the two of them fought each other in a singles match! Itoh was left speechless by the suggestion but pulled up the courage not just to accept the match but promise she will end Suzuki’s career too! Suzuki saw the funny side of the threat and isn’t intimidated. Itoh’s wrestling career is only the size of Suzuki’s little finger in comparison to his own legendary career.
In the leadup to the match Itoh had time to think over it. She wanted to send a message to Suzuki that she has no fear so she choked out Shino Suzuki with a Sleeper Hold backstage during a show. Then she went to Twitter and posted a long message about her wrestling life from the start up until now. She is now the best she has ever been but misses the desperation her younger self had back when she started out. She needs to feel true despair again and can only find it by fighting someone who can bring it out of her. The match against Suzuki is going to be exactly that. She knows he is going to beat her to a pulp but she cannot wait to feel that desperate energy again in order to take herself to the next level. For Suzuki this will just be another match. For Itoh it is going to be the only match in the world that matters.
8. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Emi Sakura & Chris Brookes
Okay tell me if I got this correct. Yuka Sakazaki graduated from TJPW in December, said her 2024 plans were to relocate to America and continue her wrestling career there. The graduation happened and since then Sakazaki hasn’t wrestled anywhere, might have stayed in Japan the entire time and her first match back in almost five months is going to be in… Tokyo Joshi Pro. I’m just as confused about this as you might be. Was she prevented from re-entering America to protect all the mascots at Disney World or something? In reality it’s either just a visa situation that is delaying her plans or she isn’t travelling overseas unless she has something ready to do.
Sakazaki coming back to TJPW is good news for Mizuki. Nobody is happier to be in the ring with her again than the other half of The Magical Sugar Rabbits. When Sakazaki’s return was first announced, Mizuki was nervous there would not be a reunion because the match wasn’t revealed at the time. Imagine the relief she must have felt when she found out followed by the surprise over who they are fighting against. MagiRabi are taking on a queen they both had battles with in the past along with a very tall new opponent for them.
Here’s the funny thing. Emi Sakura and Chris Brookes will both be wrestling in TJPW for the first time ever yet their appearances are not as random as they sound. Sakura was a mentor figure for Mizuki in the early parts of her career and they’ve been in plenty of matches together. She also fought Sakazaki a bunch in AEW on their Youtube shows. Brookes meanwhile is often at the announce desk doing English commentary for TJPW’s most important shows of the year. They are a suitable pairing to take on The Magical Sugar Rabbits. All they need now is a name. You can count on Sakura to come up with one because she is calling the team TeaDK!
9. International Princess Title: Yuki Arai (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku
The eventual takeover by the idol is moving along at a slow pace as planned. Yuki Arai won her second championship in January when she defeated the seemingly unbeatable Max The Impaler for the International Princess Title. It is only a matter of time before she moves on to chase after the biggest prize but we’ll cross that bridge whenever we get to it. Let’s stick to the present where Arai is the IP Champ and already has one successful title defence in her reign. A glamourous girl like her needs a glamourous opponent for such a big show. Luckily there is someone right here who fits the description.
Yuki Kamifuku has shown a lot more determination to win recently. Last year in the Tokyo Princess Cup she became fed up with her own excuses about never taking tournaments seriously because the younger wrestlers were using it against her whenever she lost. She proved all of them wrong by reaching the final round. While she did not win the tournament, her run of success getting there was the spark needed to figure out what she wanted to do next. She began searching for ways she could make TJPW more exciting. One of them was wrestling around Southeast Asia and winning the Queen Of Asia Title. Next on her list is challenging Arai for the IP Title because it is a match that can attract fans from their hometowns (Nagoya for Arai and Fujisawa for Kamifuku). She also thinks two beautiful women fighting over a championship sounds like an exciting way to draw in a crowd.
10. Princess Tag Team Titles: Ryo Mizunami & Yuki Aino (c) Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo
There have been many great super subs in sport throughout the years. Ole Gunnar Solskjear for Manchester United, Manu Ginobili for the San Antonio Spurs, Tadashi Yamaguchi for Karasuno High School and perhaps the most greatest of them all… Ryo Mizunami for Tokyo Joshi Pro! Whenever TJPW was in need of a last minute replacement, Aniki was there to step up for them. That kind of reliability was rewarded with a Princess Tag Team Titles run with Yuki Aino as her partner. It’s been a successful pairing that is taking them all the way to an important championship match at Sumo Hall.
The championship win was also a big boost for Aino. Tag Team wrestling has always been where her better performances come from but she keeps trying to break out into singles wrestling. This new team she formed with Mizunami was built upon their individual strengths rather than their teamwork so in a way it is kind of giving Aino the best of both worlds. The vacant titles went to Yukiniki when they won a 3 Way Match at the expense of Daisy Monkey. And wouldn’t you know it, Daisy Monkey are back looking to take those titles as revenge!
That 3 Way Match in January put Daisy Monkey in a disadvantage from the get-go. The original match was Suzume & Arisu Endo challenging the champions Free WiFi. That plan was thrown out the window because of Hikari Noa suddenly going on hiatus, causing WiFi to be stripped of the belts. While that match ended up being a big setback for Daisy Monkey, they were ready to start climbing from the bottom once again. In February they fought tooth and nail to win the annual Max Heart Tournament and become recognised as TJPW’s strongest tag team. They immediately called their shot and challenged Yukiniki for the titles. It is the one thing Suzume & Endo want more than anything else because becoming the champions will put them on the same level as all of the tag teams from TJPW’s history that they admire.
11. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Miu Watanabe
Memories of the 2022 Tokyo Princess Cup remain fresh in my mind. That was the year Miu Watanabe scored the upset semi-final win against Miyu Yamashita that planted the seeds to this weekend’s main event. The story today is similar to what it was back then. Watanabe believes she is ready to beat the veteran generation and surpass them to become the best wrestler in TJPW. The person who stands in her way though is the ace who has been on top of the company since day one. It’s Yamashita. It is always Yamashita. Watanabe got a reminder of that when she was pinned with the Skull Kick for the finish of the 10th Anniversary main event last December.
Yamashita’s 4th Princess Of Princess Title reign has so far been built around defences against foreign wrestlers. Regina, Delmi Exo (happened in MLW) and Masha Slamovich have all failed to dethrone her. She is also going on another tour of America this year that will last from April to June. If Yamashita wins at Sumo Hall she intends to bring the belt with her for more title defences overseas. It’s a situation all too familiar for TJPW fans. Yamashita has done it all on top and has become an even bigger fish in the small pond.
Watanabe’s talents make her the natural choice for a brand new champion yet TJPW always relies on the original generation to carry the top belt. The Princess Title lineage has been running through the same cycle of Yamashita, Sakazaki, Nakajima, Tatsumi and Mizuki since 2018. While it might be prestigious to book a championship lineage around an exclusive club, TJPW is long past the point of giving the ball to somebody new so they can run with it. The concern is they might miss the window and wait too long to crown the next ace. Do we really need another wrestling company that delays their coronation of a new star for a year again?
Tetsuya Koda’s management philosophy follows that of the idol industry. Over there the senior generation of idols graduate and open up new spots for the junior idols to take their place. That is how the business evolves. TJPW’s roster progression feels similar but moves at a much more glacial pace, perhaps surprisingly so. Not to jynx anything but it always amazes me the amount of wrestlers TJPW produced in its history that have stuck around for the long haul. Does it take losing main eventers like Sakazaki for the younger wrestlers to finally move up the ladder? Does that mean there is a permanent bottleneck on top for as long as Yamashita remains in TJPW competing at the level she always does? If she ever does leave would TJPW just resort to relying on the remaining former Princess Champions to carry the title scene again? Those are the questions on my mind if Yamashita beats Watanabe this Sunday. If Watanabe wins and becomes the champion instead then buckle up because TJPW will be stepping into fresh territory for the first time in a long time.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE TOUR 2024 SPRING”, 16/03/2024 Yokohama Radiant Hall 277 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House
1. Kaya Toribami defeated Kira Summer with the Bird Cage (6:41).
2. 3 Way Match: Rika Tatsumi defeated Mahiro Kiryu and Uta Takami when Tatsumi submitted Takami with the Dragon Sleeper (10:42).
3. Wakana Uehara & Toga defeated Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo when Uehara submitted Okubo with the Sleeper Hold (10:25).
4. Maki Itoh & Shino Suzuki defeated Moka Miyamoto & Chika Nanase when Itoh submitted Nanase with the Itoh Punish (8:30).
5. Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku defeated Suzume, Arisu Endo & HIMAWARI when Aino pinned Suzume with the UBV (13:43).
6. Miyu Yamashita, Mizuki & Shoko Nakajima defeated Miu Watanabe, Yuki Kamifuku & Nao Kakuta when Yamashita pinned Kakuta with the Skull Kick (15:42).
Today was the last preview matches for some of the upcoming title matches at “GRAND PRINCESS ’24” on 31st March. Miyu Yamashita picked up the win for her team in the main event. She hyped up the big show with Mizuki & Shoko Nakajima afterward. Mizuki said she is really, really happy to team up with Yuka Sakazaki again. She always knew to be careful around Emi Sakura but now she has to be careful of Chris Brookes too. Nakajima said working with large monsters like Aja Kong & Max The Impaler is a dream for a special effects otaku like her. Backstage Yamashita said Miu Watanabe is very strong but she isn’t going to lose to her. She and Nakajima also wished Mizuki a happy birthday. Mizuki and Nakajima then wished Yamashita a happy birthday because that is happening tomorrow.
The way the main event ended made it finally hit home for Nao Kakuta that she will be retiring soon. It is her first match since that announcement and she took the losing fall. All that did though was fire her up for her final months in wrestling. Yuki Kamifuku said she’s had a long morning because her father gave her a lift to the station, made a mistake while driving and got stopped. It reminded Kamifuku that even the slightest mistake can be fatal so she should live her life with the utmost care. Watanabe is familiar with the power of Yamashita’s kicks by now but she knows there is more to her opponent than just that. The way things stand now, Yamashita can see everything Watanabe has to offer but not vice versa.
There was an interview that Ryo Mizunami had on Shukan Puroresu’s website this week about her time in Tokyo Joshi Pro so far. One of the things she brought up is how her and Yuki Aino’s recent tag team success comes from their individual strength rather than their teamwork. An example was on show here when Aino was able to beat Suzume by herself. She had Raku & Pom Harajuku here today for support but when Sumo Hall comes around Yukiniki will be in perfect condition against Daisy Monkey! But things have changed for Daisy Monkey too. Arisu Endo said in the past a lost like this would probably make them cry but they aren’t crying anymore. HIMAWARI is also keeping herself motivated because she wants to do her best for Ami Yumoto’s debut match.
Maki Itoh returned to Japan carrying her newly won GCW Extreme Title with her. She will be fighting Minoru Suzuki at Sumo Hall but today she was teaming with Shino Suzuki. The two are not related and Itoh was disappointed with how plain Shino’s post-match comments were backstage compared to Minoru’s. So Itoh sent a message to Minoru by putting Shino in the Sleeper Hold! She promised she is going to be a woman Minoru Suzuki will never forget!
Now that Runa Okubo is back from her high school entrance exams, she got to see first hand how much all of her wrestling classmates have progressed while she was gone. She is getting a little anxious over seeing how much Haru Kazashiro is getting better than her. But even though she was gone for two months, Kazashiro thinks Okubo is as strong as ever. The two agreed to graduate from junior high and work hard together at Sumo Hall.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE TOUR 2024 SPRING”, 16/03/2024 Yokohama Radiant Hall
1. 3 Way Match: Rika Tatsumi Vs Mahiro Kiryu Vs Uta Takami
2. Kaya Toribami Vs Kira Summer
3. Maki Itoh & Shino Suzuki Vs Moka Miyamoto & Chika Nanase
4. Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku Vs Suzume, Arisu Endo & HIMAWARI
5. Wakana Uehara & Toga Vs Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo
6. Miyu Yamashita, Mizuki & Shoko Nakajima Vs Miu Watanabe, Yuki Kamifuku & Nao Kakuta
This will be the last proper Tokyo Joshi Pro show before “GRAND PRINCESS ’24” at the end of the month. There’s a few small scale sideshows coming up but this is pretty much the go home show. So it’s the final chance for Miyu Yamashita and Miu Watanabe to square off in non-title action as well as Yuki Aino against Daisy Monkey.
The show also has some returns. Maki Itoh will be back from America as the brand new GCW Extreme Champion. Also Runa Okubo has her first match since the start of January.
Hyper Misao is still out of action with a lower back injury. She hasn’t been booked for either of the side TJPW shows coming up so her return will be at Sumo Hall.
1. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Kid Lykos Vs Bryan Keith & Shota
2. Special Single Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Yoshihiko
3. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Shunma Katsumata
4. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Mike Bailey
Two more matches added to the DDT USA show. The big one is Konosuke Takeshita facing his old buddy Shunma Katsumata! Last year’s show was a chance for Takeshita to see what Yuki Ueno is like without him. Now it is Katsumata’s turn to step up to him.
A CCK reunion is on the card! Chris Brookes & Kid Lykos are back together for a match against the wild card pairing of Bryan Keith & Shota.
DDT “EARLY SUMMER BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING – DAY 2”, 17/05/2024 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Danshoku Dieno Birthday Eve Commemorative Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs X
Two Beer Garden shows will be happening right before Danshoku Dieno’s birthday. He is getting a special match on the second show to celebrate it.
GLEAT/DDT “GLEAT VER. &”, 06/06/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
This was announced earlier today during the GLEAT show at Korakuen Hall. Their 6th June show at the same venue will be a collaboration with DDT wrestlers. I’ll wait and see how much of the show will be built around GLEAT Vs DDT matches.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 