DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 2”, 07/06/2020 DDT TV SHOW Studio 0 Fans
1. Super Sasadango Machine Remote Produce Match – Chop Up Challenge: Toru Owashi Vs Antonio Honda
2. Tokyo Joshi Pro 6-Woman Tag Match: Yuka Sakazaki, Miyu Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima Vs Rika Tatsumi, Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino
3. DDT Extreme Title – Celebration! Release Outdoor Restriction Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs Yukio Naya
4. Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai Vs Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh
5. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Danshoku Dieno (c) Vs Makoto Oishi
6. HARASHIMA & Naomichi Marufuji Vs MAO & Asuka
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura (c) Vs T-Hawk & El Lindaman
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Masato Tanaka (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo
DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 2”, 07/06/2020 DDT TV SHOW Studio 0 Fans
1. Super Sasadango Machine Remote Produce Match – Chop Up Challenge: Toru Owashi Vs Antonio Honda ended in a Draw (72:45) (1,000 Chops Thrown).
2. Tokyo Joshi Pro 6-Woman Tag Match: Yuka Sakazaki, Miyu Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima defeated Rika Tatsumi, Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino when Sakazaki pinned Aino with the Magical Magical Girl Splash (15:31).
3. DDT Extreme Title – Celebration! Release Outdoor Restriction Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) defeated Yukio Naya with a European Clutch (10:49). *V3 for Shinya Aoki.
4. Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai defeated Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh when Sakaguchi pinned Itoh with the PK (12:01).
5. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Danshoku Dieno (c) Vs Makoto Oishi was a No Contest.
6. HARASHIMA & Naomichi Marufuji defeated MAO & Asuka when HARASHIMA pinned Asuka with the Somato (17:24).
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura defeated T-Hawk & El Lindaman when Ueno pinned Lindaman with the WR (22:13). *V4 for Nautilus.
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Tetsuya Endo defeated Masato Tanaka (c) with two Shooting Star Presses (26:19). *Masato Tanaka fails in V5. Tetsuya Endo becomes the 75th KO-D Openweight Champion!
Tetsuya Endo’s path to reclaim the KO-D Openweight Title ends with success and maybe a few extra scars. Masato Tanaka put him through a table twice in their match, bringing back memories of their D-Ou Grand Prix final last December. The first table crash had Tanaka throw Endo through one from the turnbuckles. But the second happened when Endo used his knees to block the Diving Body Press. Damage to Endo’s leg prevented him from doing the Handspring Overhead Kick until late in the match. He could barely stand after kicking out of the Super Fly but Tanaka dared him into doing so. Tanaka hit the short range Sliding D after Endo missed the Shooting Star Press but Endo was close enough to grab the ropes for a pin break. Tanaka ran to the ropes for another Sliding D but Endo countered it with Testuya In The Sky. He hit a Package Canadian Destroyer for a two count then dragged Tanaka to the corner. Endo hit the Shooting Star Press not once but twice to get the three count and become the new KO-D Champion!
Tanaka grabbed the title belt from Yukinori Matsui after the match but it was just so he was the one to hand it to Endo. Tanaka left the ring when Endo called out to him. Endo promised to hold onto the title long enough for them to have a rematch at Saitama Super Arena! He looks forward to standing across the ring from him again. For now there is no No. 1 Contender set in place so Endo wants all potential challengers to know he is the one who beat Masato Tanaka when nobody else in DDT could. He then gathered DAMNATION together for a their first group pose in months. Together they are the symbol of strength in DDT and they have most of the championships to prove it. Not just DAMNATION but all of #DAMNHEARTS too!
The only miss on #DAMNHEARTS’s record this weekend was in the KO-D Tag Team Titles match. The challengers T-Hawk & El Lindaman failed to beat the champions Nautilus. At points the #STRONGHEARTS team ran circles over their opponents, cutting Yuki Ueno away from Naomi Yoshimura. But the tables turned when Ueno used a Hurricanrana to throw T-Hawk into Lindaman, knocking him off the top rope. Ueno gave Lindaman an Avalanche Uranage and then the Osaka Trad for a nearfall. Ueno then hit the Frog Splash but didn’t go for the pin. Instead he used a new finisher, a forward flipping DDT called the WR to win the match. Ueno said he was happy to have a title match like this today. They twice couldn’t win the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles from #DAMNHEARTS but today’s win shows how much progress Nautilus has made because of those matches. Maybe they’ll have another match and this time do it in OWE.
This wasn’t their original match for the show but HarashiMarufuji reunited for the first time in ages. MAO & Asuka proved to be a lot for them to handle. They hit Double Moonsaults out of the ring and Asuka threw both HARASHIMA & Naomichi Marufuji around with German Suplexes. The momentum shifted when HARASHIMA blocked Asuka’s Moonsault with his knees. Marufuji got rid of MAO with the Tiger King knee strike then stunned Asuka with a Trace Kick. HARASHIMA then crushed Asuka with the Somato to win. After the match they offered handshakes but Asuka slapped Marufuji across the face before leaving the ring. HARASHIMA told Marufuji he isn’t satisfied by today’s match. He wants to team with him again and go against the pair they were originally meant to fight: CIMA & Soma Takao!
All throughout the week, Danshoku Dieno and Makoto Oishi tried to have their Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title match over at the Ochanomizu Dojo. However one setback after another prevented the match from happening. Either Dieno forgot to turn off his stove, the referee never turned up, Oishi was busy babysitting or both wrestlers forgot their gear and weren’t allowed wrestle in the nude. After so many cancellations today was finally the day. Dieno waited in the ring for his opponent but Oishi never appeared. A text message came saying Oishi had to mind his baby again but he promised he would still make it. Yukinori Matsui and Hisaya Imabayashi couldn’t wait and wanted to cancel the match because it was eating into their ABEMA broadcast time. Dieno begged them not to. All he needed was three minutes and Oishi will be here. Memories of Dieno and Oishi together filled the screen when suddenly Oishi appears at the entrance! He sprints down to the ring but tripped over the steps, knocking himself out. Matsui then called off the match as Dieno looked on stunned.
Eruption defeated the NEO Itoh Respect Army in the intergender tag match. Maki Itoh avoided getting into the ring with Yukio Sakaguchi unless she was certain she had the advantage. Chris Brookes tried to help out but was met with a short range God’s Right Knee. Saki Akai then got rid of him with the Quetzalcoatl. Itoh showed one last act of defiance by giving Sakaguchi the middle finger. She got a Penalty Kick for her troubles before getting pinned.
The DDT Extreme Title match had no countouts to celebrate the relaxation of Tokyo’s outdoor restrictions. Shinya Aoki and Yukio Naya fought around the hallways of Shinjuku FACE, dragging Keigo Nakamura along for the ride. At one point they all moved past Maki Itoh who was warming up for her singing entrance. Aoki, Naya and Nakamura ended up back in the ring with Nakamura getting most of the beating. Aoki countered Naya’s Back Drop into a European Clutch to score his third successful defence.
The Tokyo Joshi Pro offer match saw Yuka Sakazaki, Miyu Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima defeat Rika Tatsumi, Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino. The result was almost the opposite when Tenma & Aino gave Sakazaki the Bakuretsu Bulldog. Nakajima came in to even the numbers and with Sakazaki did a Double 619 to Aino. Yamashita knocked Aino silly with the Backspin Kick and Sakazaki got the three count right afterwards with the Magical Magical Girl Splash.
The longest match of the show by far was the opening contest between Antonio Honda and Toru Owashi. Before the match, Super Sasadango Machine sent a video message from Niigata announcing he would donate 100 yen to a medical workers charity for every Chop that happens in the match. Both Honda and Owashi promised to put their power and soul into their Chops for such a noble cause. They then spent the match lightly chopping and slapping each other’s chests while Shota kept count. The left the venue still chopping so the show moved on to Match #2. When that was over we saw Honda & Oishi chopping each other in the locker room. They decided to go get something to eat. After Match #4 they made it to Ebisuko Tavern but Ken Ohka refused to give them entry over social distancing guidelines. The Tavern is doing everything it can to run business safely so the last thing they want to do is let in two sweaty naked men slapping each other. Honda and Owashi agreed to get a take out meal but they also dragged Ohka along with them back to the venue. After Match #5 Honda and Owashi ate their take out meal in the locker room with a captive Ohka bound and gagged behind them. KUDO entered the room demanding money because nobody paid the 3,100 yen bill! KUDO agreed to chop Ohka 31 times instead, bringing the total number of Chops thrown to 1,000! Everyone agreed to end the match there resulting in 100,000 yen being donated to charity in Sasadango’s name.
First let’s get the bad news out of the way. Even though Japan is entering the second phase of lifting their Coronavirus restrictions, the DDT Group are following requests from venues to cancel the following shows in June and July:
DDT “BLACK OUT PRESENTS KING OF DDT 2020 THE FINAL!!”, 28/06/2020 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
DDT “ROAD TO PETER PAN 2020 ~DRAMATIC DREAM TAKESHI~”, 02/07/2020 Tokyo Hanayashiki Asakusa Flower Theater
MUSCLE “HIRAGANA MUSCLE 3”, 09/07/2020 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
DDT “KAZUKI HIRATA 10TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW! 10 YEARS OF HIRATA GO!!”, 18/07/2020 Tokyo Belle Epoque Beauty School 2nd School Hall
DDT “DATE CITY 2ND ROUND! 1 YEAR UNTIL THE 60TH BIRTHDAY! ~GORGEOUS NIGHT~”, 19/07/2020 Fukushima Date City Hobara Gymnasium
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Now here’s the good news. The DDT Group can run shows in front of audiences again! They have to put in safety precautions of course such as limiting the number of seats at the venues (either around 100 fans or 50% capacity looks to be deal across the board depending on the venue size). Fans going to shows will need to wear medical masks, get their temperatures checked and have their hands disinfected as they enter. New shows in June have been announced today across the different promotions. They will be held in venues that provide a lot of open air and ventilation. That means Shin-Kiba 1st RING, Shinjuku FACE, Itabashi Green Hall and Tsurumi Vegetable Market for those not paying attention. DDT TV SHOW episodes #7 & #8 will also continue to take place as planned. DDT can now advertise the worst kept secret that they were taped in Shinjuku FACE. The revised schedule for June is as follows.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “KOKO NI IRUZEE!”, 13/06/2020 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
DDT “WITH DRAMATIC DREAM TEAM”, 14/06/2020 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
GANBARE☆WRESTLING “COMEBACK ANYTIME 2020”, 14/06/2020 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “KOKO NI IRUZEE!”, 20/06/2020 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 1”, 06/06/2020 DDT TV SHOW Studio
1. Soma Takao & Mad Paulie Vs Keigo Nakamura & Hideki Okatani
2. Keisuke Ishii & HARUKAZE Vs Hiroshi Yamato & Saori Anou
3. DDT Yuru-chara No. 1 Battle In Niigata: Super Sasadango Machine Vs Pokotan
4. Singles Match Between Wrestlers Who Want To Participate In DDT Regularly: Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Seigo Tachibana
5. Jun Akiyama & Mizuki Watase Vs Akito & Yuki Iino
6. DDT UNIVERSAL Title – Hardcore 3 Way Match: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Isami Kodaka Vs Shunma Katsumata
7. DDT Vs Kongoh All Out Battle!: Sanshiro Takagi, Kazusada Higuchi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Kenoh, Masa Kitamiya & Hao
8. TOKYO 2020 LAST MAN STANDING: Yoshihiko Vs Konosuke Takeshita
Before the audiences can come back, “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” will hopefully be the bookend for DDT’s empty arena era (fingers crossed). I don’t think I’ll write a full blown preview for these shows due to the short amount of time most of the matches were put together. So this will do for now.
The big feud of DDT TV SHOW has been between Konosuke Takeshita and Yoshihiko. A hatred led to warning messages of “ALL OUT All Dead” where Yoshihiko defeated each member of the unit one by one. It even brought back another battle doll named Akihiro to join the fight. Yesterday ALL OUT reached their breaking point and launched a vicious counter attack where Takeshita ripped off Akihiro’s arm. Alone again, Yoshihiko has to fight Takeshita one more time in a Last Man Standing match!
Kongoh popped by to visit Sanshiro Takagi on yesterday’s DDT TV SHOW. They seem like nice lads. Well if you ignore the leader Kenou threatening violence on Takagi if he doesn’t leave NOAH alone. That’s difficult because Takagi is NOAH’s president. And as president Takagi is ordering Kenoh, Masa Kitamiya & Hao to fight him, Kazusada Higuchi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga in a DDT ring!
Daisuke Sasaki originally chose Shunma Katsumata to be his next DDT UNIVERSAL Title defence because he thinks it is a match he can easily win. Then two things happened that he did not expect. One, Isami Kodaka came in wanting to win a title that didn’t exist back when he was a DDT employee. And two, Katsumata went into his Super Hardcore form to attack the champion. A Hardcore 3 Way Match will solve those problems.
Mizuki Watase has shown some progress by wrestling with coach Jun Akiyama. This is the first time they are teaming together.
Both Nobuhiro Shimatani and Seigo Tachibana want regular bookings in DDT. The company isn’t big enough for the both of them.
DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 2”, 07/06/2020 DDT TV SHOW Studio
1. Super Sasadango Machine Remote Produce Match: Toru Owashi Vs Antonio Honda
2. Tokyo Joshi Pro 6-Woman Tag Match: Yuka Sakazaki, Miyu Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima Vs Rika Tatsumi, Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino
3. Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai Vs Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh
4. DDT Extreme Title – Celebration! Release Restriction Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs Yukio Naya
5. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Danshoku Dieno (c) Vs Makoto Oishi
6. HARASHIMA & Naomichi Marufuji Vs MAO & Asuka
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura Vs T-Hawk & El Lindaman
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Masato Tanaka (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo
On Day 2, Tetsuya Endo reaches his destination. There was a setback here and there but now nothing is stopping him from facing Masato Tanaka for the KO-D Openweight Title. Endo’s big goal for #DAMNHEARTS is to monopolize DDT’s championships so T-Hawk & El Lindaman are challenging Nautilus for the KO-D Tag Team Titles.
MAO will return from injury one day too late. The last active Right To Challenge Gauntlet has expired and he was too hurt to use it. So he has to take a detour and will chase after the UNIVERSAL Title. MAO will also team with Asuka for now because the Coronavirus measures prevent Mike Bailey from entering Japan. They get a big challenge in the form of HarashiMarufuji!
Danshoku Dieno is finally moving away from his Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title defences against Antonio Honda. He still hasn’t beat him but another figure decided to get in his way. Makoto Oishi has a decade of history with Dieno and he will let it all out for the big clash.
DDT “DDT TV SHOW! #5”, 30/05/2020 DDT TV SHOW Studio 0 Fans
1. Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai defeated Chris Brookes, Mizuki Watase & Yukio Naya by TKO when Sakaguchi used the Modified Sleeper Hold on Watase (9:41).
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Antonio Honda defeated Danshoku Dieno (c) by Disqualification when Dieno gave the referee a Low Blow (8:11). *No title change due to Disqualification.
3. DAMNATION VS ALL OUT!: Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao defeated Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino when Takao pinned Iino with a Running Elbow Butt (13:18).
4. Jun Akiyama defeated Hideki Okatani with a Crab Hold (4:24).
5. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito defeated Yoshihiko & Akihiro by Referee Stoppage when Takeshita ripped Akihiro’s arm off (9:35).
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Tetsuya Endo, T-Hawk & El Lindaman (c) defeated HARASHIMA, Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura when Endo pinned Ueno with the Shooting Star Press (16:17). *V2 for #DAMNHEARTS.
One week to go until “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” and everything is set for the big weekend. Tetsuya Endo is now all clear to challenge for the KO-D Openweight Title. Today’s main event was changed into an official KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles defence when DISASTER BOX asked for it. Yuki Ueno wanted the most motivation possible for his first match back in two months. El Lindaman accepted on his team’s behalf but only DISASTER BOX understood that challenging twice in a row means there is also a big risk attached. #DAMNHEARTS had already beaten them once before and they wouldn’t agree to a second chance under normal circumstances. T-Hawk dodged the Somato from HARASHIMA but was Clotheslined out of the ring by Naomi Yoshimura. Lindaman got rid of Yoshimura with a German Suplex and then held Ueno up for Endo to hit him with the Handspring Overhead Kick. Endo got a nearfall with the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb then hit the Shooting Star Press while his teammates held the rest of DISASTER BOX back.
#DAMNHEARTS got an extra few shots in on DISASTER BOX after the match. Lindaman reminded them about the big risk they accepted. Now it’s time for the other tag belts to be defended. T-Hawk & El Lindaman want to challenge for the KO-D Tag Team Titles at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020”! Yoshimura accepted the challenge. Meanwhile Endo got confirmation that he is guaranteed to face Masato Tanaka for the KO-D Title on 7th June. He promised #STRONGHEARTS will take the KO-D Tag Title belts from Nautilus and he will take the KO-D Title from Gold’s Gym! Endo wants everyone to know that Saitama Super Arena is not his end goal. His end goal is for #DAMNHEARTS to monopolize all of the championships and make pro wrestling even hotter!
If having #STRONGHEARTS around wasn’t enough for DDT to handle, now there’s another invading force coming in, one a little more closer to home. The Kongoh stable from Pro Wrestling NOAH entered the ring before the main event and their leader Kenoh demanded to see Sanshiro Takagi. Kenoh hates Takagi! He hates that Takagi is the president of NOAH. He believes Takagi wants DDT to take over NOAH so Kenoh swears to protect NOAH from him. Takagi came out and told him they are in a DDT ring. He can complain all he wants but if it bothers him that much they should fight over it. As the president of NOAH, Takagi orders Kenoh to fight him in DDT! Kenoh shouted that he will! DDT and Kongo will face off at “WRESTLE PETER PAN” next weekend.
An eye for an eye. An arm for an arm. ALL OUT came out for revenge on Yoshihiko & Akihiro in a violent clash. The battle dolls were ambushed by Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino during their entrance. Konosuke Takeshita & Akito joined the beating and brought Yoshihiko into the ring to finish it off. Akihiro came to the rescue and the dolls gave Takeshita a Double Canadian Destroyer. They then went to German Suplex Akito but he switched positions with Katsumata’s help. Takeshita then grabbed onto them to deliver a quadruple stacked German Suplex! Akito dragged Yoshihiko over to the stage and tied him in knots before hanging the rolled up doll from the banners. Akito then forced Yoshihiko to watch on as Takeshita ripped off Akihiro’s arm! The referee stopped the match by TKO and Takeshita celebrated with his new trophy. He blamed Yoshihiko for all of the physical and mental anguish ALL OUT has suffered over the last month. Now it has suffered like they have. Takeshita challenged Yoshihiko to one more match next week to settle the score. It will be a Last Man Standing match!
The younger generation of DDT wrestlers have shown themselves eager to get in the ring with Jun Akiyama. The rookie Hideki Okatani jumped out of the starting blocks hitting Running Elbows. Akiyama took the wind out of his sails with a Body Slam onto the floor outside. Okatani tried to regain ground with more Elbow Strikes and even went for a Northern Lights Suplex but Akiyama cut him off with a Guillotine Choke. Akiyama let go just to knee Okatani in the head. There was enough in the rookie to kick out of the pin but when the Crab Hold was locked in it was all over once Akiyama moved it to the centre of the ring.
Soma Takao pinned Yuki Iino in the DAMNATION Vs ALL OUT tag match but the story to focus on was what happened afterwards. Daisuke Sasaki’s interview was interrupted by an attack from Shunma Katsumata in his Super Hardcore form. A confused Sasaki shouted about how Katsumata looked like he came from a wedding while he was being attacked. He then called for the police or Batman to save him. Katsumata beat him up with chairs and gave him a Pedigree onto the chair covered with toy blocks. He then raised the DDT UNIVERSAL Title over his head.
Let’s try this Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title match again! Early in the bout, Antonio Honda put Danshoku Dieno in a tight Hammerlock. Dieno sounded like he was about to say “Give Up” but instead said different phrases that rhymed with it. Honda then tried palm reading to see Dieno’s fortune. He found out Dieno’s pro wrestling luck is the worst! Dieno put Honda in a Sleeper Hold and almost made him pass out. Honda’s arm fell two times but on the third it popped up with a Gongitsune puppet on his hand. The match suddenly paused and the WRESTLE UNIVERSE audience were given time to vote on Twitter what they wanted to happen next. Either a) Dieno could listen to Gongitsune, b) Dieno told his own story or c) the referee gets attacked for some reason. The audience voted for b) and Dieno told his own Gongitsune story. But when he went for the Sweet Chin Music sneak attack, Honda dodged it and it hit Yukinori Matsui in the groin instead! For some reason Dieno and Honda agreed to attack Matsui together. Matsui fought them off with a Double Lariat but when he went to leave, Dieno gave him a Low Blow. A badly hurt Matsui disqualified Dieno but he remains the champion.
More antics happened straight away when Makoto Oishi entered the ring and gave Stunners to Dieno and Matsui. He demanded an Iron Man Title match because he can give Dieno a lively challenge. Dieno told Oishi he’s been waiting for him all this time and on 7th June they will settle 10 years of history between them. He went for a handshake but Oishi spat in his face instead.
Unfortunately due to a right ankle injury he suffered during training, MAO is currently out of action. The good news is he will recover in time to wrestle on 7th June. The bad news is the Right To Challenge Gauntlet he currently possesses expires before that date. Today’s show was the last chance it could be used. MAO threw a hissy fit over the decision and said he wants to give the Gauntlet to Mike Bailey if he can’t use it. Hisaya Imabayashi told him that was impossible. MAO has no other friends so he doesn’t know what to do. Imabayashi then struck him a deal. He gives up the Gauntlet and it becomes invalid. In return a new Gauntlet will be active after “WRESTLE PETER PAN”. When MAO comes back he will be put in the match where the new Gauntlet is on the line. MAO agreed to the deal. He then found out he will team with Asuka to take on HARASHIMA & Naomichi Marufuji for his return match! MAO likes that idea. Since Bailey can’t be in DDT for now, maybe MAO teaming with Asuka will be the next best thing.
Eruption are now bouncing back from their failed plan to take over DDT’s main event scene. Their win in the opener was also a preview of their tag match against the NEO Itoh Respect Army next week. Chris Brookes got to tangle with both Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai. A motivated Mizuki Watase went after Sakaguchi but his Back Drop was countered into a Sleeper Hold. Brookes & Yukio Naya were taken out by the rest of Eruption while Sakaguchi sent Watase to sleep.
After last week’s setback, Seigo Tachibana returned at some point during the show again demanding to be booked. Imabayashi told him he wouldn’t because he couldn’t beat Okatani last week. Tachibana threatened him into giving another match. Suddenly Nobuhiro Shimatani entered the room also demanding to be booked! He lost 15kg in weight since his last DDT appearance and thinks he deserves to be here more than Tachibana does. The two were about to fight when Imabayashi told them they can have a match on Day 1 of “WRESTLE PETER PAN”. Tachibana then admitted he thought that show was today.
Wrestlers representing several pro wrestling companies visited Japan’s House Of Representatives today to meet with Hiroshi Hase. He is a former pro wrestler and more importantly the current Minister For Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The wrestlers requested medical kits to test for Coronavirus as well as compensation towards contracted pro wrestlers for cancelling all of their shows over the epidemic. According to Bushiroad president Takaaki Kidani, pro wrestlers are currently unable to receive the compensation benefits that were created in response to the current crisis. Pro wrestling contracts are handled differently compared to other careers so adapting it to the current laws is difficult. Up to now it was left to the companies employing these wrestlers to handle compensation pay and they cannot continue if there are no shows taking place to bring in the money.
Among the wrestlers making the visit were Hiroshi Tanahashi (New Japan), Suwama (All Japan), HARASHIMA (DDT), Naomichi Marufuji (NOAH), Mayu Iwatani (Stardom), Yuka Sakazaki (Tokyo Joshi) and Kyoko Inoue (Diana). Also included were management from the same companies including Kidani, Naoki Sugabayashi (New Japan), Takenori Fukuda (All Japan), Masashi Ishiguro (NOAH), Akira Takahashi (DDT), Katsuhiko Harada (Bushiroad), Tetsuya Koda (Tokyo Joshi) and Taishi Fuwa (Diana).
HARASHIMA said that having testing kits on site can give everyone enough peace of mind to begin holding pro wrestling shows again. Sakazaki explained that in the early days of Corona, DDT and Tokyo Joshi were able to hold empty arena shows in their dojo. But the building the dojo is located in also has a nursery school in one of the upper floors above it. That along with using trains as the form of transportation to get there makes the idea of using the dojo for matches more dangerous.
Hase thanked the wrestlers for giving him their views on the matter and agreed on the measures along with further consultation. He told the wrestlers to continue working hard when the time comes for pro wrestling shows to be held again.
DDT “JUDGEMENT 2020 ~DDT 23RD ANNIVERSARY~”, 20/03/2020 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 916 Fans
0. Exhibition Match: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Jordan Heatley with the Canadian Backbreaker (3:50).
1. Hideki Okatani Debut Match: Naomi Yoshimura & Keigo Nakamura defeated Shunma Katsumata & Hideki Okatani when Yoshimura pinned Okatani with a Lariat (6:01).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Masahiro Takanashi defeated Toru Owashi (c) with a School Boy (11:51 am). *Masahiro Takanashi becomes the 1,474th champion.
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal: Kazuki Hirata defeated Masahiro Takanashi (c), Toru Owashi, Danshoku Dieno, Antonio Honda, Mizuki Watase, Yukio Naya and Hiroshi Yamato (7:42).
2a. Toru Owashi & Hiroshi Yamato eliminated Masahiro Takanashi (c) with a Double Lateral Cradle (2:06). *Toru Owashi & Hiroshi Yamato both become the 1,745th co-champions.
2b. Danshoku Dieno, Yukio Naya, Antonio Honda & Mizuki Watase eliminated Toru Owashi (1/2 c) & Hiroshi Yamato (1/2 c) with Simultaneous Pinfalls (2:40). *Danshoku Dieno, Yukio Naya, Antonio Honda & Mizuki Watase all become the 1,746th co-champions.
2c. Kazuki Hirata eliminated Mizuki Watase (1/4 c) with a School Boy (5:13). *Kazuki Hirata becomes 1/4 of the 1,476th champions.
2d. Kazuki Hirata (1/4 c) eliminated Yukio Naya (1/4 c) with a School Boy (5:54). *Kazuki Hirata becomes 2/4 of the 1,476th champions.
2e. Kazuki Hirata (2/4 c) eliminated Antonio Honda (1/4 c) by Pinfall (6:54). *Kazuki Hirata becomes 3/4 of the 1,476th champions.
2f. Kazuki Hirata (3/4 c) eliminated Danshoku Dieno (1/4 c) with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (7:42). *Kazuki Hirata becomes the unified 1,477th champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Toru Owashi defeated Kazuki Hirata (c) with a School Boy (12:01 pm). *Toru Owashi becomes the 1,478th champion.
3. CIMA, Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & El Lindaman defeated Shinya Aoki, MAO, Mike Bailey & Makoto Oishi when Takao pinned Oishi with the Mad Splash (9:24).
4. HARASHIMA, Naomichi Marufuji & Yuki Ueno defeated Akito, Yuki Iino & Royce Chambers when HARASHIMA pinned Akito with the Somato (10:33).
5. Business Alliance Vs Eruption!: Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai defeated Tetsuya Endo, T-Hawk & Nobuhiro Shimatani when Sakaguchi pinned Shimatani with the God’s Right Knee (9:15).
5a. Emergency Decision: Tetsuya Endo defeated Royce Chambers with the Shooting Star Press (4:42). *Royce Chambers cashed in his Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Gauntlet.
6. DDT UNIVERSAL Title: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Chris Brookes (c) with the Crossover Facelock (20:35). *Chris Brookes fails in V1. Daisuke Sasaki becomes the 2nd DDT UNIVERSAL Champion!
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Masato Tanaka (c) defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the Rolling Elbow (22:56). *V2 for Masato Tanaka.
Heck if I know if it was a good idea to do this but DDT’s monthly Korakuen Hall show went ahead today in front of an audience. The main event to celebrate DDT’s 23rd anniversary saw the face of the company attempt to regain the KO-D Openweight Title. The champion Masato Tanaka used chairs to great effect, using them to attack Konosuke Takeshita’s knees as well as hit a direct chairshot to the head. A Splash from the top rope through a table outside also caused great damage to Takeshita. However Takeshita used the chair against Tanaka by Corner To Corner Dropkicking it into his face. Takeshita hit an Avalanche Air Raid Crash but Tanaka kicked out of the pin. The Fable was countered into a Power Bomb. Tanaka kept using Elbow Strikes to cut off Takeshita’a offence. He would hit short range Sliding D’s but Takeshita would find a way to prevent Tanaka from hitting the move at full force. Takeshita threw his own Elbow Strikes but Tanaka stood tall at the end when he pulled off his elbow pad and struck Takeshita raw with an unprotected Rolling Elbow. There was no kicking out after that.
Tanaka said he was so happy to fight Takeshita today because of the struggle he gave him. When Takeshita left ringside, Yuki Iino approached the ring threatening to cash in his Right To Challenge Gauntlet. However it was only a threat and he left without doing anything. Tanaka had an opportunity to choose his next challenger again but he wasn’t sure who to pick. Suddenly, Yukio Sakaguchi sprung into the ring! He wants the next title shot in April. The match was accepted with Tanaka standing on the middle rope so he could look down on Sakaguchi. The final words went to Sakaguchi. In April will win the KO-D Title and Kazusada Higuchi will win the Saitama Super Arena Sword. That will mean when June comes around, the main event of Saitama Super Arena will be occupied entirely by Eruption! Sakaguchi then thanked the fans for coming out today. He works a regular job along with his pro wrestling career so he is grateful that the fans continue to support DDT. In return everybody in DDT is encouraged to do their best.
Easy come, easy go. The first DDT UNIVERSAL Champion loses the belt in his first defence. An out of ring brawl made up the early part of the match with Chris Brookes attempting to put Daisuke Sasaki through some chairs with the Praying Mantis Bomb. Instead Sasaki dropped both Brookes and himself into the row of chairs with a Russian Leg Sweep. Sasaki also hit a Diving Elbow Drop from the ring corner to a seated Brookes outside the ring. DAMNATION interfered once Brookes regained some ground. Sasaki intentionally used Brookes to take out Daisuke Kiso. Tetsuya Endo’s Overhead Kick hit Sasaki by mistake and Brookes hit the Praying Mantis Bomb. Kiso counted the pin until Mad Paulie pulled him out of the ring. Brookes wiped out DAMNATION with a dive then made Sasaki submit to the Octopus Hold but there was no referee to call the match. Nobuhiro Shimatani came in to attack Brookes with the DAMNATION signboard but Masahiro Takanashi came out to get rid of him. Kiso got back up to count some nearfalls like Sasaki’s Diving Elbow and Brookes’ Tombstone Piledriver. Brookes went for the Praying Mantis Bomb once more but Sasaki countered it into the Cross Facelock. He then switched it into the Crossover Facelock to make Brookes submit.
Sasaki’s first words as the new champion was “Old dog never die!” He said all beer from the UK is soft with no carbonation so he will not take on any challengers from Britain anymore. Antonio Honda entered the ring to challenge Sasaki but he tripped over the ropes. He got back up and said Sasaki has a filthy heart. Sasaki began to meditate to fix that problem but Honda told him to get back up. Honda challenged Sasaki to a title match but he was turned down.
As briefly mentioned earlier, Eruption has the main event of “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” in their sights. Sakaguchi is going straight after the KO-D Title while Higuchi is now targeting Endo for the SSA Sword. Higuchi threw Endo for a loop by using a Package Power Bomb but it was Sakaguchi who won the match by pinning Shimatani. T-Hawk was earlier taken out with a Higuchi Lariat so it was a rough match for the Business Alliance.
When the match ended, El Lindaman promoted the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match he, Endo & T-Hawk will be a part of in two days time. ALL OUT interrupted the Business Alliance because Royce Chambers had something to say. He will be going back to Australia tomorrow so he is using his Right To Challenge Gauntlet to win the SSA Sword right now! Chambers went for the kill by using his own high flying moves to counter Endo’s. They both used Canadian Destroyers on each other but Endo took it one step further by doing a Double Arm Canadian Destroyer. Chambers kicked out of the pin after that but was down and out when Endo hit the Shooting Star Press. Endo got on the mic and said as long as he is in the ring, nobody else will get the chance to be at the top! He told Chambers to study more Japanese if he ever comes back. He then joked about wrestling in saunas before warning ALL OUT that the Business Alliance will win the KO-D 6-Man Tag Titles! Whoever comes out as the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions after 22nd March will defend the belts against DISASTER BOX on 4th April.
Naomichi Marufuji was back to team with DISASTER BOX and his partnership with HARASHIMA in particular had not lost a step. When Yuki Ueno dove out of the ring onto Iino & Chambers, it left HARASHIMA & Marufuji alone with Akito. Together they hit a Double Thrust Kick, Marufuji did the Shiranui and HARASHIMA won with the Somato.
After the match, HARASHIMA thanked Marufuji for reforming HarashiMarufuji after a long time apart. They brought up the idea of tagging together at “WRESTLE PETER PAN”. That caused CIMA & Soma Takao to come out. CIMA made fun of the HarashiMarufuji team name. It isn’t an easy name to say. CimaSoma is easy to say which means it is a better name. CIMA could have confronted Marufuji back on the 3rd January DDT show but he was occupied with Business Alliance stuff. In the end CimaSoma challenged HarashiMarufuji to a match at “WRESTLE PETER PAN”. Marufuji isn’t interested in fighting Takao but he can’t turn down the chance to wrestle CIMA for the first time since their Budokan tag match in NOAH way back in 2007!
A Mad Splash from CIMA followed by a Mad Splash from Takao gave the Business Alliance the victory in the 8-Man Tag Match. The bout was Shinya Aoki’s first 8-Man Tag Match and also the return of Mike Bailey to DDT. Aoki found out after the match that his next DDT Extreme Title defence is on 5th April. An opponent has not been decided yet but he would like to face Makoto Oishi in a matchup between Sambo and Judo. Meanwhile The Moonlight Express want to win the KO-D Tag Team Titles so they can claim the shiny new championship belts.
The Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title lineage was fractured into multiple co-champions during the Battle Royal. Before the match even begun, Takanashi pinned Toru Owashi during his entrance to win the belt. Everyone chased Takanashi into the ring so the Rumble style entries were thrown out and a regular Battle Royal began. Owashi & Hiroshi Yamato pinned Takanashi at the same time to they became co-champions. The two of them were then all pinned by Danshoku Dieno, Yukio Naya, Antonio Honda & Mizuki Watase at the same time creating 4 co-champions! Kazuki Hirata had to eliminated each of the 4 co-champions to unify the title back into one whole piece. All of that hard work was taken away when Owashi pinned Hirata after the match to become the champion again.
The debuting Hideki Okatani was pinned in his first match as expected. He was mostly on the defensive against Naomi Yoshimura and also Keigo Nakamura. He was able to do a Northern Lights Suplex after Shunma Katsumata softened Yoshimura up. But a Lariat put Okatani down for the three count. Just like Nakamura, Okatani’s goal is to beat a senior wrestler as soon as possible.
The trainee Jordan Heatley faced Higuchi in the pre-show exhibition match. Heatley tried to put on a Tazzmission but Higuchi instead submitted him with the Canadian Backbreaker. Heatley will make his official debut against Honda on 2nd April.
Yoshiaki Yatsu appeared to introduce the show and also promote his return match at “WRESTLE PETER PAN”.
The 5th opponent in Saki Akai’s “Okibariyasu” trial is Syuri. Akai knows Syuri is a powerful kicker so she is looking forward to comparing them with her own kicks. Their match is on 2nd April.
DDT is holding a Falls Count Anywhere Match inside the Saitama Anzukai Clinic to protect the elderly from the COVID-19. The match on 30th March will be Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata & Gorgeous Matsuno Vs Shinya Aoki, Makoto Oishi & Gabai Ji-chan.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “STAND PROUD”, 01/03/2020 Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall
1. Yuna Manase, Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko Vs Nodoka Tenma, Mina Shirakawa & Mahiro Kiryu
2. Hikari Noa Vs Sena Shiori
3. Yuki Kamifuku Vs Yuki Aino
4. Mizuki Vs Hyper Misao
5. Miyu Yamashita Vs Natsumi Maki
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe (c) Vs Maki Itoh & Raku
7. International Princess Title: Thunder Rosa (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima
The contract for the Princess Tag Team Titles match was signed at the beginning of yesterday’s show. Raku is excited to have a title match and wants to be taken to a world she has never seen before. Maki Itoh is happy to have somebody as pure as Raku teaming with her. She will bring the colour of Itoh out of Raku. Miu Watanabe is still feeling frustrated over losing to Raku recently. The result makes her want to spring into defending the tag titles. Rika Tatsumi started a fight with Itoh which is stronger, Tatsumi’s “diamond hips” or Itoh’s “big head”. Tatsumi is also still bitter over losing a singles match to Itoh last year.
DDT “SHIMOKITAZAWA FIGHTING THEATER 2020”, 03/03/2020 Kitazawa Town Hall
1. Daisuke Sasaki, Tetsuya Endo & Mad Paulie Vs Toru Owashi, Masahiro Takanashi & Keigo Nakamura
2. Special No DQ Match With Spicy Curry: Shunma Katsumata Vs Maku Donaruto
3. Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai Vs Mizuki Watase & Thunder Rosa
4. Worldwide Match: Chris Brookes Vs Royce Chambers
5. Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Time Difference Battle Royal: Soma Takao Vs Yuki Ueno Vs Naomi Yoshimura Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Kazusada Higuchi Vs MAO Vs Yuki Iino Vs Antonio Honda Vs Makoto Oishi Vs Yukio Naya
6. Special Tag Match: Masato Tanaka & Takuya Sugawara Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Akito
7. DDT Extreme Title: HARASHIMA (c) Vs Shinya Aoki
Masato Tanaka is bringing over more of his outsider friends for his match against future challengers. Now Takuya Sugawara from ZERO1 is coming in to team with Tanaka and take on ALL OUT.
Not sure if having a No DQ Match against Maku Donaruto is a suitable welcome back gift but Shunma Katsumata is getting it anyway.
DDT “DRAMATIC DOKU GANRYU 2020”, 07/03/2020 Miyagi Yume Messe West Wing Hall
1. Akito Vs Keigo Nakamura
2. Masahiro Takanashi & Makoto Oishi Vs Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata
3. Sendai Specialty! 3 Way Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Toru Owashi Vs Gorgeous Matsuno
4. 3 Way Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Soma Takao & Hiroshi Yamato Vs Mizuki Watase & Yukio Naya
5. HARASHIMA, Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata & Royce Chambers
6. Born In Osaki City, MAO Triumph! Miyagi Specialty Special Tag Match: MAO & Chris Brookes Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Mad Paulie
7. Born In Shiraishi, Tetsuya Endo Triumph! Miyagi Specialty Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Yuki Iino
Nothing unusual has been added to complete the Miyagi card.
DDT “DRAMATIC PASSION OF MOBARA! 2020”, 08/03/2020 Chiba Mobara City Gymnasium Main Arena
1. Toru Owashi & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Akito & Keigo Nakamura
2. Actwres girl’Z Offer Match: Nao Kakuta Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa
3. 3 Way Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Mizuki Watase
4. Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda Vs Soma Takao & Mad Paulie
5. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Makoto Oishi & Yukio Naya
6. DAMNATION Vs DDT Sauna Club!: Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo Vs Shunma Katsumata & MAO
7. Mobara City Reconstruction Support Special 6-Man Tag Match: Hiroshi Yamato, HARASHIMA & Yuki Ueno Vs Konosuke Takeshita, Yuki Iino & Royce Chambers
The DDT Sauna Club continues their tour across Japan.
GANBARE☆WRESTLING “SILVER CHARIOTS 2020”, 08/03/2020 Kitazawa Town Hall
1. Ganpro & Ganjo Special Mixed Match: Moeka Haruhi & Washi Sakurai Vs Gota Ihashi & HARUKAZE
2. Ganpro Battle Without Honour! Special Tag Match: Shota & Heijitsu Mask Vs Kuishinbo Kamen & Space Galaxy Warrior Andros
3. Strike While The Iron Is Hot! Ganpro Vs BASARA Battle: Ken Ohka Vs Tetsuo Usui
4. Toyama Vs India Full Battle: Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Baliyan Akki
5. Yesterday’s Enemy Is Today’s Friend! Indie Jr. Title Preliminary Battle Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Yumehito Imanari Vs Kouki Iwasaki & Shigeyuki Kawahara
There are a few changes to this card. Keito Murota pulled out due to ill health. Tetsuo Usui is now Ken Ohka’s opponent, continuing the permanent rivalry between Ganbare☆Wrestling and BASARA. Also missing is Shuichiro Katsumura. He will be producing a ZST mixed martial arts event on the same day so he is unable to appear here.
1. Danshoku Dieno & Antonio Honda Vs Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata
2. Yuki Ueno Vs Makoto Oishi
3. Yamanashi Specialty! Wild Forest Volcano Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Royce Chambers
The current DDT ring announcer Inoue Mic is bringing along someone to join him as a special guest for the show. It his wife, former pro wrestler Ai Shimizu!
DDT “JUDGEMENT 2020 ~DDT 23RD ANNIVERSARY~”, 20/03/2020 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Hideki Okatani Debut Match: Shunma Katsumata & Hideki Okatani Vs Naomi Yoshimura & Keigo Nakamura
2. CIMA, Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & El Lindaman Vs Shinya Aoki, MAO, Mike Bailey & Makoto Oishi
3. Business Alliance Vs Eruption!: Tetsuya Endo, T-Hawk & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai
4. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Time Difference Battle Royal: Toru Owashi (c) Vs Danshoku Dieno Vs Masahiro Takanashi Vs Antonio Honda Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Mizuki Watase Vs Yukio Naya Vs Hiroshi Yamato
5. HARASHIMA, Naomichi Marufuji & Yuki Ueno Vs Akito, Yuki Iino & Royce Chambers
6. DDT UNIVERSAL Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Daisuke Sasaki
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Masato Tanaka (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita
After being away from the KO-D Openweight Title scene for a while, Konosuke Takeshita is excited to be chosen as the next challenger. He remembers his dad once renting an FMW video tape with Tanaka’s matches on it. Ever since then Takeshita has followed Tanaka’s career. Now his name will be written into the Reiwa era of Tanaka’s wrestling history. Tanaka was honored to hear this but he still thinks he will beat Takeshita. He is from the land of athletes worthy of being athletes because of his background with Gold’s Gym. When the match takes place, Tanaka will make the fans think he is still strong. He named the four wrestlers he thinks are the symbols of DDT: HARASHIMA, Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki and Konosuke Takeshita. Tanaka is one win away from having a clean sweep against all of them.
Sasaki briefly stole the DDT UNIVERSAL Title right after Chris Brookes became the first champion. He gave the belt back and apologised for his thievery. He promised to reflect on his actions and will only claim the title belt by winning it as an athlete. Brookes does not believe Sasaki is being honest. He thinks Sasaki is strange like an old dog. His promise is to put Sasaki out of his misery and maybe even stab him. Brookes warned that their match for the UNIVERSAL Title will not be a true representation of his ring skill. It will be a dirty match on both sides.
A lot more is happening on this show. Naomichu Marufuji returns to wrestle for DISASTER BOX, the Business Alliance of DAMNATION & #STRONGHEARTS are pitted against the newest DDT unit Eruption and 19 year old Hideki Okatani has his debut match.
GANBARE☆WRESTLING “HERMIT PURPLE 2020”, 21/03/2020 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
1. Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title: Keisuke Ishii (c) Vs Kouki Iwasaki
Sometimes having a dominant champion can be boring. Kouki Iwasaki thinks that way about Keisuke Ishii and the Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title. Iwasaki wants to be the strongest wrestler in Ganpro. Beating Ishii and winning the title will make him just that.
GANBARE☆WRESTLING “MIZUMOTO GENERAL SPORTS CENTER GYM 4TH ANNIVERSARY POOL PRO WRESTLING”, 22/03/2020 Tokyo Mizumoto Sports Center Gymnasium Heated Pool
1. Falls Count Anywhere 6-Man Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii, Yumehito Imanari & Shota Vs Hiroshi Yamato, Cherry & Gota Ihashi
This show has been cancelled. The match was supposed to be held as part of the venue’s 4th anniversary celebrations but management has called off all public events over concerns of the Coronavirus epidemic.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW IS COMING TO AMERICA WITH DDT”, 03/04/2020 The Ritz Ybor City, Tampa, Florida
1. DDT Pro Wrestling Offer Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Yuki Ueno
2. Princess Of Princess Title: Yuka Sakazaki (c) Vs Su Yung
Tampa’s main event will be a rematch from last August’s Korakuen Hall show. Yuka Sakazaki and Su Yung fought to a double knockout when they choked each other out with Mandible Claws. This time around the Princess Of Princess Title is on the line so a winner must be determined!
DDT “INTO THE FIGHT 2020”, 23/02/2020 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1,194 Fans – No Vacancy
1. 3 Way Match: Mad Paulie defeated Yukio Naya and Keigo Nakamura when Paulie pinned Nakamura with a Flying Body Scissors Drop (2:35).
2. Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai defeated Toru Owashi, Naomi Yoshimura & Mizuki Watase when Higuchi pinned Watase with the Doctor Bomb (8:20).
3. All Human Beings Are Brothers Vs We Are Family 6-Man Tag Match: Dansoku Dieno, Super Sasadango Machine & Yasu Urano Vs Shinya Aoki, Hiroshi Yamato & Kazuki Hirata ended in a No Contest when a stranger broke in (8:58).
4. 3 Way Tag Match: CIMA & Soma Takao defeated HARASHIMA & Yuki Ueno and Masahiro Takanashi & Makoto Oishi when Takao pinned Oishi with the Mad Splash (9:22).
5. 8-Man Tag Team Elimination Match – No Tag Rules: Daisuke Sasaki, Tetsuya Endo, T-Hawk & El Lindaman defeated Akito, Shunma Katsumata, Yuki Iino & Chihiro Hashimoto (15:30).
5a. El Lindaman eliminated Shunma Katsumata after the AKACHOCHIN (4:41).
5b. El Lindaman and Chihiro Hashimoto eliminated each other by Double Ring Out (12:09).
5c. Daisuke Sasaki eliminated Yuki Iino with the Sasaki Hurricanrana (14:04).
5d. Akito eliminated Daisuke Sasaki with an Inside Cradle (14:10) *Akito wins Daisuke Sasaki’s Right To Challenge At Saitama Super Arena Sword.
5e. Tetsuya Endo eliminated Akito with the Yurikamome (15:30). *Tetsuya Endo win Akito’s Right To Challenge At Saitama Super Arena Sword.
6. DDT UNIVERSAL Title: Chris Brookes defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the Death By Roll-Up (19:26). *Chris Brookes becomes the 1st DDT UNIVERSAL Champion!
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Masato Tanaka (c) defeated MAO with the Sliding D (21:49). *V1 for Masato Tanaka.
Today MAO welcomed Masato Tanaka into his world of fucked up wrestling. The challenger used a lot of what he learned in Europe to keep Tanaka on his toes early in the match. A out of the ring battle had Tanaka take control with a Brainbuster on the floor. MAO got a lucky break when Tanaka accidentally knocked Yukinori Matsui out of the ring with a Lariat. MAO’s friends from the DDT Sauna Club gave him plastic cases and rubber ducks to attack the champion with. He did a Spaceman Plancha out of the ring just to smash a box over Tanaka’s head. MAO then set a table up next to the ring but Tanaka regained control with a Death Valley Driver on the ring apron. Tanaka then put MAO through the table with a Diving Body Press. MAO kept on fighting and even hit the Ultima Weapon as a shoutout to Mike Bailey for a nearfall. MAO did a backflip to avoid the Sliding D but was caught out with a Lariat. Despite his spirited attempt to get back up, Tanaka finished MAO off with the Sliding D.
After the match Tanaka said he enjoyed MAO’s weird wrestling style. He also explained that he won the match today because he hid some of the rubber ducks in his tights, guarding his waist from MAO’s attacks! It turns out Tanaka was inspired by MAO’s weirdness to try something weird himself and it worked. Tanaka wants to do more weird wrestling with MAO some day. The two shook hands and MAO left the ring while Tanaka waited to find out what he’s doing next.
None of the Right To Challenge Gauntlet holders came out so Hisaya Imabayashi decided the next KO-D Openweight Title defence will be on 20th March. He asked Tanaka if there was someone he wanted to fight. Tanaka did. He called out Konosuke Takeshita! When Tanaka entered DDT he had three wrestlers in particular that he wanted to fight. He already went through HARASHIMA and Tetsuya Endo. Now Takeshita is next, it doesn’t matter that he lost his match earlier in the show. Tanaka has won the D-Ou Grand Prix, became the KO-D Champion and just now defended it. If Takeshita thinks he is at the top of DDT then he should fight Tanaka. If he doesn’t have the confidence then he should get out of here. Takeshita accepted the challenge. He respects Tanaka as both a wrestler and a trainer at Gold’s Gym so he would like to fight him for the title.
Takeshita’s defeat that Tanaka mentioned was of course the DDT UNIVERSAL Title match. The allure of being the first champion of this brand new title pushed Takeshita and Chris Brookes to take bigger risks. Brookes laid Takeshita across two railings near the entrance and Double Stomped Takeshita through the gap. Later Takeshita hit an Avalanche Air Raid Crash onto the turnbuckle. Brookes kicked out of the Fable and went into a back and forth with his opponent. It ended with Brookes all of a sudden pinning Takeshita with Death By Roll-Up, that Figure 4 Backwards Bridge pin that’s been used more and more across the wrestling scene lately. Brookes is now the 1st DDT UNIVERSAL Champion!
Sadly Brookes did not get much time to celebrate. His victory speech was cut short by an ambush from Daisuke Sasaki! He had lost that Saitama Super Arena Sword earlier in the show and figured that he should get a title belt to replace it. So he stole the UNIVERSAL Title from Brookes! However Sasaki handed the title to a reporter backstage because he doesn’t want to be a thief. This little stunt was just a warning. Sasaki said that Brookes never got his permission to come live in Japan! When Brookes got his belt back he called Sasaki a stupid wrestler.
The Saitama Super Arena Sword did leave Sasaki’s grasp but it still belongs to a DAMNATION wrestler at the end of the day. The Business Alliance between DAMNATION and #STRONGHEARTS was victorious over ALL OUT and Chihiro Hashimoto in the Elimination Tag Match. Hashimoto was eliminated along with El Lindaman when Yuki Iino Speared the both of them off the ring apron. Sasaki lost the Sword to Akito when Akito pinned him right after Sasaki pinned Iino. But Endo and T-Hawk stood tall together and had Akito beaten. Endo made Akito submit, meaning that Endo now holds claim to the Sword and the Saitama Super Arena main event spot! That’s not all. We were told that the alliance between these two units will spread all across the world from Japan to America to Mexico to Europe. Puma King is partnering with them in Mexico for example. But there is one place where #STRONGHEARTS have not been in yet. Saitama Super Arena! They asked Imabayashi to book them for “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020”. He eventually agreed to it after some back and forth about keeping their schedules good and proper.
The DAMNATION/#STRONGHEARTS alliance had a good day across the card with CIMA & Soma Takao also winning a 3 Way Tag Match. The crowd gave Takao “BIMA” chants, referencing his gimmick from his college club wrestling days. Some of his opponents even called him that as a joke. Takao got the last laugh by using the Mad Splash to pin Makoto Oishi. CIMA even used the Venus & Iconoclasm combo to set it up.
For the safety of the audience during the Coronavirus epidemic, all of the wrestlers in Match #3 were given special protective masks to wear while they wrestled. The masks were used specifically for this match because it would also stop Danshoku Dieno from doing the Lip Lock. The protective masks were all Super Sasadango Machine masks which led to the wrestlers getting confused and losing track over who they were supposed to fight. During the confusion, Dieno noticed that there were more people in the ring than a 3 Vs 3 Match is supposed to have. Everyone took off their mask and found out the man in the middle of the ring was a complete stranger. They asked who he was and the lights went out. When they came back on the ring was empty and the show continued like nothing happened.
Saki Akai was surprised to find out that Miranda Gordy was in attendance. She came out after the Eruption match and interrupted Akai’s promotion for their match in Nagoya tomorrow. Gordy asked for a handshake but then kicked Akai and attempted to Power Bomb her. Kazusada Higuchi and Yukio Sakaguchi came to the rescue and Gordy fled the ring, saying “See you tomorrow” to Akai as she walked away. Akai complained that Gordy does not know Japanese courtesy.
The opening 3 Way Match did not last long. Keigo Nakamura was able to get Yukio Naya out of the ring but he was quickly flattened by Mad Paulie afterward.
Shunma Katsumata had his first match back from surgery today. Imabayashi gave him a welcome back gift. It is a No DQ Match against Maku Donaruto on 3rd March!
Sakaguchi & Iino were revealed as the new producers for YaroZ. Their first message is they will accept any wrestlers who want to graduate from BOYZ because YaroZ is the more exciting place to be.
The newest DDT trainee to make his debut is Hideki Okatani. The 19 year old will have his first match on 20th March. He said he will do his best to get his first win over a senior wrestler as soon as possible.
Another fresh face to show up today is DDT’s new ring announcer Kazunori Kosuge.
A bunch of special guest names were announced for “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” on 7th July. Kenny Omega, Naomichi Marufuji and Meiko Satomura will all be there!
As a preview for “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020”, a special Street Wrestling match will be held at Saitama Super Arena on 11th March.
A press conference was held by CyberAgent today to announce it has acquired 100% of Pro Wrestling NOAH, making it the company’s newest subsidiary. Sanshiro Takagi, the current President and Representative Director of DDT Pro Wrestling will now also serve as the President and Representative Director of NOAH. Naomichi Marufuji is now the Executive Vice President of NOAH. The previous owners LIDET Entertainment will remain involved as a corporate sponsor.
Takagi says that DDT and NOAH will co-exist and prosper under the same CyberAgent umbrella. They will form a partnership that will create a new landscape for the pro wrestling industry. Takagi’s role in NOAH will only focus on the company’s business side. Everything related to NOAH’s current in-ring product will not be altered. It will still be ran by the NOAH staff who were there before the sale. While there will be interactions between the two companies, NOAH will still be NOAH and DDT will still be DDT.
The interactions include NOAH wrestlers being added to DDT’s “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” card at Saitama Super Arena on 7th June. There will also be two Sumo Hall shows held on back to back days in November. DDT will have a Ryogoku show on the 21st and NOAH will have their show on the 22nd.
Another decision made as part of the deal is the broadcast of NOAH shows on DDT UNIVERSE. A live broadcast of tomorrow’s “GLOBAL JR LEAGUE 2020” event will be shown free on UNIVERSE. The plan is to have one or two live showings and VODs added to the service every month. NOAH’s previous TV deals with G+ and Samurai TV remain as they are. There is also AbemaTV available to them now as well.
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Well isn’t this a shocker! Tokyo Sports broke the news 24 hours before the announcement. With this being the third time the company changed ownership since 2016 it was a strong reminder that it was still struggling financially despite on the surface looking like it had stabilized itself with the 2019 rebrand. We can now see in hindsight that Marufuji’s entry into DISASTER BOX was a sign of things to come. People on Twitter are even joking that Miyako Matsumoto stapling a NOAH flyer onto Chris Brookes’s forehead was galaxy brain level foreshadowing.
There is a lot to be excited about. The big one is NOAH broadcasts being added to DDT UNIVERSE. No mention yet of past events going up but if NOAH’s relationship with G+ still stands then the potential back catalogue would be a wonderful addition to the service, even if it only goes back to the REBORN era. And it’s nice to see a sinking ship get saved (sorry, had to use the pun).
But what is the effect this has on the wider wrestling world? Gossip about WWE entering the territory with some sort of NXT Japan project has been coming and going over the last few years. Events during that time gave strong hints of NOAH and WWE dabbling together over something. With NOAH siding with CyberAgent that takes another piece off of WWE’s board for world domination. The first piece was Stardom shrugging off their advances in favour of Bushiroad. If WWE wants to involve themselves in the Japanese scene like they are doing with Europe, then that task was just made harder with today’s news.
Anyway, one last thing. If there turns out to be plenty of DDT involvement happening in NOAH, I’ll write about it. Otherwise I’m taking their word that NOAH will still be its own promotion and I won’t be adding a NOAH section to the site. I have my hands full with the DDT groups. I recommend following @Hi5ame on Twitter to get NOAH news.
DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2020”, 26/01/2020 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 1,278 Fans – Super No Vacancy
1. Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & Nobuhiro Shimatani defeated Masahiro Takanashi, Mizuki Watase & Keigo Nakamura when Takao pinned Nakamura with a Running Elbow Butt (5:00).
2. Gamo & L’Oréal Presents Hair Arrange Tag Match: MAO & Hiroshi Yamato defeated Toru Owashi & Super Sasadango Machine when MAO pinned Sasadango with the Cannonball 450 (7:18).
3. Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai defeated Konosuke Takeshita, Akito & Shunma Katsumata when Higuchi pinned Akito with the Doctor Bomb (8:06).
4. Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Time Difference Battle Royal: Daisuke Sasaki, Shinya Aoki and Yasu Urano defeated Tetsuya Endo, Danshoku Dieno, Makoto Oishi, Yukio Naya and Antonio Honda (12:26).
4a. Right To Challenge At Saitama Super Arena Sword: Yasu Urano grabbed the envelope (5:26).
4b. Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Contract: Daisuke Sasaki grabbed the envelope (9:24).
4c. Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Contract: Shinya Aoki grabbed the envelope (12:26).
-. Right To Challenge At Saitama Super Arena Sword: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Yasu Urano by Pinfall (1:59). *Daisuke Sasaki wins Yasu Urano’s Right To Challenge At Saitama Super Arena Sword. Sasaki cashes in his Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Contract.
5. Special Single Match To Have Naomichi Marufuji Remember Your Name: Naomichi Marufuji defeated Kazuki Hirata with the Ko-oh (11:01).
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura (c) defeated Chihiro Hashimoto & Yuki Iino when Yoshimura pinned Iino with the Shonenba (11:27). *V2 for Nautilus.
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Masato Tanaka defeated HARASHIMA (c) with the Sliding D (20:18). *HARASHIMA fails in V2. Masato Tanaka becomes the 74th KO-D Openweight Champion!
There is now no doubt about it, Masato Tanaka is the strongest in DDT! He went through the D-Ou Grand Prix undefeated and today wiped out the only blight in his record from that tournament to become the new KO-D Openweight Champion! It wasn’t easy though. HARASHIMA threw everything he had against Tanaka from the Somato to the Firebird Splash. The ace up Tanaka’s sleeve as always was the Sliding D. He used it to great effect, finding even the smallest of openings to use the move. The climax of the match saw HARASHIMA go for the Swan Dive Somato. Tanaka avoided the move and popped his opponent with the Sliding D, then hit the finisher two more times from behind and from the front to finish him off.
When the KO-D Title was wrapped around Tanaka’s waist, he told HARASHIMA he does not know how many defences he will last but he is looking forward to finding out. Hisaya Imabayashi informed Tanaka that his first defence is against MAO on 23rd February. Suddenly Pokotan came down but the mascot costume was only partially completed. Imabayashi pulled Pokotan’s head off to reveal it was MAO in disguise! MAO told Tanaka “Just bring it, bitch!” He tried to attack Tanaka with a Hurricanrana but Tanaka countered it into a Power Bomb. Tanaka warned MAO that there is a lot of things to be done between themselves and HARASHIMA before the next title match. Tanaka promised he will wear the KO-D Title with pride in any ring he climbs into while he is champion.
Tension between Yuki Iino & Chihiro Hashimoto was so bad that the team couldn’t even decided whose entrance music to use, so the sound guy had to mash their songs together. They both went for the Haka Elbow early on Yuki Ueno but got in each other’s way. The champions Nautilus took control until Hashimoto got the better of Ueno, leaving Iino facing off with Naomi Yoshimura. Unfortunately for the challengers, Yoshimura wore down Iino with the Drill-A-Hole Piledriver and ultimately won with the Shonenba. Ueno thanked Iino & Hashimoto for the match then said Nautilus’ goal is to defend the KO-D Tag Team Titles at Saitama Super Arena this summer.
There was confusion when Kazuki Hirata’s music played but nobody stepped through the curtain. Keigo Nakamura eventually made his way down to ringside to tell Yukinori Matsui that Hirata had gone missing. Naomichi Marufuji then made his entrance carrying Hirata over his shoulders! It turned out Hirata tried to ambush Marufuji backstage but failed in a major way. Hirata apologised to Marufuji and promised he was now Reborn. He offered a handshake but it was a trap for another sneak attack to start the match. Marufuji easily took control, forcing Hirata to bring out the Hirata GO! glasses. Marufuji knocked off the glasses and broke them over his knee. Just when he was about to finish the job, Hirata begged for a break so he could tell him something important. Hirata wrote a letter telling Marufuji how seeing him wrestle on TV gave him hope to live at a time when he had nothing. His one wish is to dance with Marufuji! Two Hirata GO! glasses found their way into the ring and Hirata convinced a hesitant Marufuji to dance with him. Then he hit an Enzuigiri and tried to Cradle Marufuji for a near fall. Marufuji stayed calm, danced with Hirata again and knocked him out with the Ko-oh knee strike. When Hirata came to, Marufuji stuck out his hand and asked him his name. This isn’t the reason he came to DISASTER BOX and DDT but after today, Marufuji will remember Hirata’s name.
The Right To Challenge series returned with three prizes on the line in a Ladder Match. Yasu Urano, Daisuke Sasaki and (a bare assed) Shinya Aoki all grabbed an envelope that hung above the ring. After the match Imabayashi told them to open their envelopes because one of them was different than the others. Sasaki and Aoki just has the regular Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Contracts but Urano found out he held a Right To Challenge At Saitama Super Arena Contract! Imabayashi gifted Urano with a decorative sword that represented the KO-D Title shot at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” in June.
Imabayashi explained that the rules for the sword are the same as the regular Right To Challenge Contract. If Urano loses to another wrestler then he loses the sword and the title shot to that wrestler. Sasaki asked if he could use his own contract to challenge Urano for the cool looking sword? Imabayashi figured he could. Sasaki shouted he was cashing in his contract and he immediately attacked Urano to start the match. They scrambled for two minutes until Sasaki rolled through Urano’s Hurricanrana to pin him for the three count. Sasaki celebrated with the sword by doing the Fire Festival pose. Backstage Sasaki said he wants to win the KO-D Title at Saitama Super Arena then propose to Candice LeRae at NXT or Raw or Smackdown or AEW or wherever it is she works.
The trio of Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai are now called Eruption. They entered together with matching white entrance gear and a unit video. Their debut as a new force in DDT saw them defeat ALL OUT. Sakaguchi & Akai took out Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata with Apron PKs while Higuchi pinned Akito with the Doctor Bomb. When asked what the meaning of Eruption is, Sakaguchi told reports to just look at the name and their entrance video. Higuchi believes DDT as it is now is not the DDT he likes so Eruption will go on a rampage. Akai said they will create something new with DDT, something that is fun for the three of them.
A stylist from the Gold Shibuya hair salon worked on the hairstyles for every wrestler involved in Match #2. Yes even Super Sasadango Machine. The fans chanted “ikemen” at the wrestlers during the match. Sasadango was unmasked when MAO grabbed his “hair” and gave him a Snapmare. It turned out Sasadango’s real hair underneath the mask was also styled. Toru Owashi got some hairspray to freshen it up. They then helped the stylist live out his dream of being a pro wrestler by having him do The People’s Elbow on MAO. Hiroshi Yamato broke the pin and put Sasadango in position for MAO to hit the Cannonball 450.
Soma Takao has really taken a liking to using Elbow Smashes lately. He used a bunch of them followed by a Rolling Elbow on Keigo Nakamura for a nearfall. When Nakamura got back up, Takao took him out with a Running Elbow Butt.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 