King Of DDT Final, Ring Removal Death Match, Super Japan Unlocks More WCW Lore

May 29, 2026

DDT “KING OF DDT 2026 FINAL!!”, 31/05/2026
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

0. Dark Match: Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Yuki Ishida Vs Rukiya & Hinata Kasai
1. King Of DDT – Semi Final: Minoru Suzuki Vs Shinya Aoki
2. King Of DDT – Semi Final: MAO Vs Danshoku Dieno
3. Hideki Okatani, MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs Jun Akiyama, Naomi Yoshimura & Junta Miyawaki
4. Special Tag Match ~ Kaisei Takechi Return Match: Yuki Ueno & Kaisei Takechi Vs Kazuki Hirata & To-y
5. FANTÔMES DRAMATIC Vs STRANGE LOVE CONNECTION!: Chris Brookes, HARASHIMA & Antonio Honda Vs KANON, Yukio Naya & Viento Maligno (w/ KIMIHIRO & YUZUKI)
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Takeshi Masada, Yuya Koroku & Daichi Sato (c) Vs Shunma Katsumata, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
7. King Of DDT – Final: X Vs X

The match order for this weekend’s King Of DDT final has been determined. The final of course will be the main event and the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match is put in the semi-headliner spot.

DDT/NJPW “ONE-ON-ONE CONFRONTATION PART 2 ~SASADANGO-GUN VS YANO-GUN 5-ON-5 ELIMINATION TAG BATTLE~”, 08/06/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
2. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
3. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
4. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
5. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X

Sasadango-gun: Super Sasadango Machine, MAO, Kazuki Hirata, Akito

Yano-gun: Toru Yano, El Desperado, Ryusuke Taguchi, Tomoaki Honma

Something fishy is going on with the latest additions to the DDT Vs New Japan show. Both Yuki Ueno and Aaron Wolf will be there but as guests for an autograph session rather than participants in the five match series. I mean what are the chances that something will happen during the show that will draw both wrestlers into the ring for some action?

DDT “YOKOHAMA NIGHT SPLASH 2026”, 13/06/2026
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Ilusion Vs Kazuki Hirata
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & MJ Paul Vs Junta Miyawaki, KANON & Yuki Ishida
3. Special 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Takeshi Masada, Yuya Koroku & Daichi Sato Vs Yuki Ueni, Naomi Yoshimura & Rukiya Vs Danshoku Dieno, Kazuki Hirata & Akito

There will be some time for Hideki Okatani and Junta Miyawaki to wrestle each other before they fight for the DDT Extreme Title next month.

DDT “THAT’S RIGHT! LET’S GO TO BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING 2026”, 17/06/2026
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. Special Single Match: Yuya Koroku Vs Kazuki Hirata
2. Special Single Match: Shunma Katsumata Vs Junta Miyawaki
3. Falls Count Anywhere 4 Way Tag Match: Chris Brookes & HARASHIMA Vs Yuki Ueno & To-y Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Jun Akiyama Vs MAO & KANON (w/ KIMIHIRO)

DDT are expecting the appearance of Jun Akiyama on a Beer Garden show to result in more chaos than usual.

DDT “LET’S GO! BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING 2026”, 18/06/2026
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. Yuki Ueno Vs Hinata Kasai
2. Crocodile Death Match BEYOND: Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion Vs MAO, Yukio Naya & Viento Maligno (w/ KIMIHIRO)
3. Ring Removal Death Match: HARASHIMA, Danshoku Dieno & Kazuki Hirata Vs Shunma Katsumata, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi

Okay so whenever Michinoku Pro does their Great Space War what usually happens is the ring gets deconstructed as the match progresses. There’s also been a couple of times when Big Japan have done a death match where the ring is stripped bare of all its padding so the ring is pretty much close to dismantled anyway. I think this is going to be the first time DDT is trying out the gimmick for a match and it’s going to be during a time when a lot people will be drunk. What could go wrong?

SUPER JAPAN “BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING”, 06/07/2026
Shinjuku FACE

1. Unpaid Rumble RETURNS!: X Vs X
2. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Hayabusa
3. Special Single Match: Yuji Nagata Vs CIMA

Welcome to 2026 where a Japanese company can book a rematch from a virtually unknown WCW bout that was held in Oakland 29 years ago. CIMA got to team up with Yuji Nagata at the last Super Japan show so now he wants to face him one on one for the first time since they met in WCW almost three decades ago.

The goal of Ken Ohka ever since he launched Ganbare☆Pro was to do his part in turning pro wrestling into a major sport. That includes livening up the wrestling scene whatever way he can. He currently thinks a lot of the other indies are not doing the same so he threw out a challenge to Hayabusa from ZERO1 to help create a spark.


UJPW “FACE THE NEXT” Results

May 12, 2026

UJPW “FACE THE NEXT”, 12/05/2026
Shinjuku FACE
460 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Tatsuya Matsumoto Vs Yuto Koyanagi ended in a Time Limit draw (10:00).
2. Sentaro Motojima, Hinata Kasai & Jiro Shinbashi defeated @KEY, Koyo Ume & Midori Takahashi when Motojima submitted Ume with a Crab Hold (10:05).
3. Katsumi Inahata, Shota Kawakami, Masatora Yasuda & Ryuma Sekimo defeated GuC, Rukiya, Reiya Igarashi & Taisei Nakahara when Yasuda submitted Nakahara with a Crab Hold (7:12).
4. Kazumasa Yoshida, Daichi Sato & Kazuma Kimura defeated Yuki Ishida, Koshiro Asakura & Hiroto Tsuruya when Sato pinned Asakura with the Mad Splash (9:16).
5. Yuya Koroku defeated Homare with the Modified Triangle Lancer (8:33).
6. Kazuma Sumi, Munetatsu Nakamura & Ryoya Tanaka defeated Ilusion, Daiki Nagai & Daiki Odashima when Tanaka pinned Ilusion with the Stardust Press Joker Strizer (12:26).

Two years after the ill-fated “ALL TOGETHER” revival, United Japan held its third show built on a much, much smaller scale. This event was focused solely on the next generation of wrestlers provided by eight of the promotions that are members of the federation. DDT and Ganbare☆Pro were well represented on the show especially in the main event. DDT had Kazuma Sumi and Ilusion involved while Munetatsu Nakamura was there on behalf of GanPro. Ilusion didn’t get along with his tag partners and turned on them when Daiki Nagai complained about him using a Low Blow. Ilusion went to Low Blow him too but Nagai blocked it and knocked him away. Sumi & Nakamura then wiped out Nagai & Daiki Odashima with dives while Ryoya Tanaka pinned Ilusion with his own version of the Stardust Press. Sumi was happy to main event the show with the DDT Universal Title over his shoulder. Nakamura was worried about the match because it was first announced while he was recovering from his neck injury. That he made it to the match and was on the winning team means he has recovered perfectly. If there is another event like this in the future, Nakamura said he would like to either challenge Sumi for the Universal Title or challenge Tanaka for the Open The Brave Gate Title. Ilusion called the whole event incomprehensible and blamed the two Daikis, although he thinks the “Red Daiki” treated him more kindly than the “Black Daiki”. Ilusion now hopes that Daisuke Sasaki and Daiki Nagai both reach the final of the Best Of The Super Jr in New Japan so it will be a match between DAMNATION T.A and Unbound Co.!

Yuya Koroku had a lot to handle by taking on an opponent who recently lost his hair in a cage match. Homare from Dragongate took him by surprise with a Topé con Hilo and he then dragged Koroku around ringside to throw into the front rows. Homare also found Bunbun in Koroku’s corner and stomped on it. Koroku tried to make comebacks but Homare would use eye pokes to stop him. He made a mistake by going for the 450 Splash, missing it so Koroku could find his opening to take control. Homare kickedo out of the Modified Northern Lights Bomb but was forced to give up when Koroku locked him into the Triangle Lancer. Koroku said it is insane that Homare has already accomplished so much with just a year and a half of experience under his belt. Homare found Koroku interesting enough to make him think he should maybe check out DDT sometime.

There was a second trios match that had DDT wrestlers on both teams. Match #4 saw Daichi Sato pick up the win for his side while Yuki Ishida was among those heading back to lick their wounds. Sato asked his teammates if they saw the strength of DDT today? Kazumasa Yoshida won the BJW World Strong Heavyweight Title last month and is looking for challengers, so he’d like Sato or Kazuma Kimura to challenge him. Sato said of course he would take on the challenge! Kimura had to stand between the two and explain to them that he just came back from an injury that kept him out of action for eight months. He would like to wrestle both of them someday so they can start building towards that for now. That calmed Yoshida and Sato down enough for them to get along again.

Shota Kawakami found himself on the winners side of his match while DDT’s Rukiya ended up on the opposite end. Neither of them were involved in the finish though. Backstage Ryuma Sekimo encouraged Kawakami to shout out his feelings, so he did. Kawakami said the match shows that the split between major wrestling companies and indie wrestling companies doesn’t matter. He is glad that the indie wrestlers got to show the major league wrestlers what they are made of. Sekimo agreed and pointed out he may be the only person on the show to have bowled inside Ueno Park. Rukiya did not feel fulfilled after the match. He wants to do more in order to find out what is missing. Maybe it’s all of the different wrestlers from different promotions that have gathered together. He wants to fight so many of them!

GanPro comes out of the show with three wins out of three matches. Not only was Nakamura victorious in the main event but Sentaro Motojima scored his first ever direct victory in Match #2 by making the Kyushu Pro wrestler Koyo Ume tap out! The result may be something of an upset given his tag team partners were Hinata Kasai and the Dragongate salaryman Jiro Shinbashi. Motojima said this win is a big deal for him and he will work even harder to be a GanPro wrestler.

NJPW’s Aaron Wolf was in the corner of Tatsuya Matsumoto for the young lion’s match against Yuto Koyanagi from NOAH.

The event also featured a talk show held in the ring by Kosei Fujita and Takeshi Masada. Fujita was looking forward to seeing Ilusion wrestle in the main event while Masada hyped up Hinata Kasai for stepping in as a last minute replacement for the injured Masami Inahata. One of the questions they unexpectedly got was from Hiroshi Tanahashi asking them what their type is? As the interview segment reached its close, Fujita and Masada were asked if they would ever wrestle each other one on one? They don’t expect it to ever happen but they would like to do it.


Updates From Across Golden Week 2026

May 7, 2026

NOAH “LINE YAHOO PRESENTS SPRING MAYHEM RYOGOKU 2026”, 02/05/2026
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
4,539 Fans

1. KENTA, Tetsuya Endo & HAYATA defeated Mohammed Yone, Kazuyuki Fujita & Daiki Odashima when KENTA pinned Odashima with the Go 2 Sleep (8:38).
3. 6-Man Tag 3 Way Match: Manabu Soya, Saxon Huxley & Yuki Iino defeated Kaito Kiyomiya, Harutoki & Alejandro and Masa Kitamiya, Takashi Sugiura & Tadasuke when Soya pinned Alejandro with the Passion IS (5:32).

The unit now known as Passion RATEL’S has hit a rough patch lately with some of their members being put on the shelf. They’ve been reduced to just two men but Manabu Soya claimed to have found a new member, someone who is just as filled with passion as he is. The new member is Yuki Iino and he now looks identical to Soya! How the hell did Iino find an even weirder group of people to wrestle with than the Strange Love Connection?

So far this year Tetsuya Endo has been working in NOAH as part of the White Raven Sqwad. The assumption was his excursion to the company from DDT was only for 2025 but he remained in NOAH without ever giving an update. Fans didn’t have to wait much longer because Endo teased an announcement he was going to give at the next day’s show.

NJPW “NUTS RV PRESENTS WRESTLING DONTAKU 2026”, 03/05/2026
Fukuoka International Center
2,477 Fans

5. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Shota Umino defeated Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi when Umino pinned Takahashi with the Second Chapter (11:43).

Over in New Japan the time has come for Konosuke Takeshita to start making new alliances. He recently fought Shota Umino to a draw over the NJPW World TV Title so there was some clear unfinished business for them to get to. They teamed up on night one of “WRESTLING DONTAKU 2026” and while they won the match, Takeshita rejected Umino’s handshake offer afterwards.

NOAH “AFTER MAYHEM 2026”, 03/05/2026
Shinjuku FACE
468 Fans – Super No Vacancy

5. Manabu Soya & Yuki Iino defeated Atsushi Kotoga & Hi69 when Soya pinned Hi69 with the Passion IS (3:56).
8. KENTA & Tetsuya Endo defeated Shane Haste & HAYATA when Endo pinned HAYATA with the Shooting Star Press (18:42).

Endo gave his announcement the next day. He is not leaving DDT to fully join NOAH but he is not about to go back to his home promotion anytime soon either. Endo wants to leave his mark in NOAH by winning as many of their championships and tournaments as he can so his name will be etched into the history of the GHC Championships. He will not return to DDT until he achieves the results that he wants!

NJPW “NUTS RV PRESENTS WRESTLING DONTAKU 2026”, 04/05/2026
Fukuoka International Center
3,603 Fans – No Vacancy

1. NJPW World TV Title: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (c) defeated Chase Owens with the Raging Fire (11:32).
*V3 for KONOSUKE TAKESHITA.

Back in New Japan, Takeshita successfully defended the NJPW World TV Title against Chase Owens, surviving a C-Trigger that probably made someone’s life flash before their eyes and having Umino plus others come out to help him fight off the House Of Torture. A masked man attacked Takeshita after the match and revealed himself to be SANADA returning from injury. Takeshita is willing to defend the TV Title against him since he thinks SANADA must by dying to fight him. He then met with several wrestlers from the Hontai unit and asked if he could fight alongside them from now on. Umino said he does not intend to become friends with Takeshita because they are rivals but since Takeshita is choosing to be with New Japan, he is happy to welcome him into the unit.

NOAH “LEGACY RISE 2026”, 05/05/2026
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,302 Fans – Super No Vacancy

3. Manabu Soya, Yuki Iino, Daiki Odashima & Super Crazy defeated Kazuyuki Fujita, Mohammed Yone, Atsushi Kotoge & Hajime Ohara when Soya pinned Ohara with the Passion IS (8:32).
5. Shane Haste & Tetsuya Endo defeated KENTA & Katsumi Inahata when Haste pinned Inahata with a Lariat (10:51).

Soya & Iino are quickly proving how much “Passion~!” they have together as a team. They are also currently sharing only one brain cell between them. I can’t argue with the results so far.

MARVELOUS “10TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION”, 05/05/2026
Kanagawa Yokohama BUNTAI
3,492 Fans

3. Miyu Yamashita defeated Senka Akatsuki with the Skull Kick (10:14).

We end with a sight of something that is very rare. Miyu Yamashita wrestling in another joshi company! She will wrestle for women’s companies all across the world but when it comes to Japan, it’s Tokyo Joshi Pro or bust for her. However she had a noteworthy appearance in Marvelous for their big 10th Anniversary show, taking on the promotion’s next big hope Senka Akatsuki. To say she was impressed with her opponent was an understatement. She loved fighting Akatsuki! She’s somebody almost custom built in a lab to take Yamashita’s kicks and keep on fighting. The match ended up meaning so much that Yamashita instinctively shook Akatsuki with her left hand instead of her right. There are different meanings to that (longtime readers of this blog may remember Shigehiro Irie doing this because your left hand is closer to your heart) but Yamashita thinks it represents the start of a new rivalry.


King Of DDT Round 2, Kamifuku’s Long Awaited Title Shot, Sasadango Vs Yano Update

May 5, 2026

DDT “KING OF DDT 2026 2ND ROUND”, 09/05/2026
Shinjuku FACE

1. Yuya Koroku, Daichi Sato & Yuki Ishida Vs Kazuki Hirata, Akito & Antonio Honda
2. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & Ilusion V Kumadori, Masami Inahata & Hinata Kasai
3. 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y Vs Kazuma Sumi, Junta Miyawaki & Rukiya Vs KANON, Yukio Naya & Viento Maligno
4. King Of DDT – Round 2: Danshoku Dieno Vs Takeshi Masada
5. King Of DDT – Round 2: Minoru Suzuki Vs Chris Brookes
6. King Of DDT – Round 2: HARASHIMA Vs Shinya Aoki
7. King Of DDT – Round 2: Hideki Okatani Vs MAO

One round down, the Quarter Finals are next. In just a few short days the King Of DDT will be reduced down to the final four.

Ilusion returns from injury and gets to rekindle his feud with Kumadori on the undercard.

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 13 ~MY SPIRIT GUARDS MY LORD IN THE EAST~”, 17/05/2026
Osaka City Sumiyoshi Community Center

0. Special Dark Match ~ Young Warrior Wrestling Summit: Takahiro Hirakimoto, Sora Fujikawa & Koki Fujimoto Vs Tetsuya Goto, Masaya Ishikawa & Hinata Kasai
1. Mixed Martial Arts Match – Irregular 2 Round System: Bushimasa Vs Tyson Maeguchi
2. Black Eagle In Danger! Against The Four Heavenly Kings Of DDT Comedy, 1 Vs 4 Handicap Match: Yuto Kikuchi Vs Danshoku Dieno, Kazuki Hirata, Antonio Honda & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
3. Kansai Vs DDT, A Battle For Freedom!: HUB, Tsubasa & Billy Ben Kid Vs Junta Miyawaki, Viento Maligno & Yuni
4. A 6-Man Tag Match That Tests How Far A Young Heel With 4 Years And 9 Months Of Experience Can Assert Himself When Surrounded By Seasoned Veterans: Magnitude Kishiwada, MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs CIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~STARTING NOW!~: Kazuma Sumi, Takeshi Masada & Yuya Koroku Vs To-y, Yuki Ishida & Rukiya
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Crush The Super Heavyweights!~: Naomi Yoshimura, Yukio Naya & Daichi Sato Vs Shigehiro Irie, Kazuaki Mihara & Masami Inahata
7. Special Tag Match ~ Laughter Brings Fortune: MAO & KANON (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs Kuishinbo Kamen & Kikutaro
8. Special Tag Match ~ Encounter With A Wrestling Master: Dick Togo & Hideki Okatani Vs Shunma Katsumata & Kohei Kinoshita
9. Double Main Event I – Special Tag Match ~ Infinite Stimulation Anniversary: Zack Sabre Jr. & Chris Brookes Vs HARASHIMA & Shinya Aoki
10. Double Main Event II – Special Tag Match ~ A Ruthless Giant That Blocks The World Guide Us To Our Dreams Blooming Flower: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Yuki Ueno Vs Jun Akiyama & Shuji Ishikawa

Two more matches are added to Yukinori Matsui’s special show. They do normally tend to balloon out to this size.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “STAND ALONE ’26”, 07/06/2026
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Princess Tag Team Titles: Miu Watanabe & Rika Tatsumi (c) Vs Mizuki & Uta Takami
2. Princess Of Princess Title: Yuki Arai (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku

It’s taken almost nine years for Yuki Kamifuku to challenge for the Princess Of Princess Title. It’s not because of a lack of merit or anything like that. She just doesn’t like taking part in important singles matches or cares that much about winning championships. But she’s not getting any younger and discovering her first signs of aging has kicked Kamifuku into finally fighting Yuki Arai for Tokyo Joshi Pro’s most important title. After all, winning wrestling championships is the greatest anti-aging technique you can find.

Daydream once again hold the Princess Tag Team Titles. Their first challengers are going to be the losing finalists from this year’s Max Heart Tournament. When Rika Tatsumi discovered that Mizuki found a new tag partner in Uta Takami, she wasn’t happy about it. She thinks beating them can bring that team to an end so she can keep Mizuki all to herself. Mizuki however wants to live in the present and continue her team with Takami. Maybe if they win the titles they can get an official tag team name. Miu Watanabe probably doesn’t have much of an opinion on the matter.

DDT/NJPW “ONE-ON-ONE CONFRONTATION PART 2 ~SASADANGO-GUN VS YANO-GUN 5-ON-5 ELIMINATION TAG BATTLE~”, 08/06/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
2. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
3. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
4. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
5. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X

Sasadango-gun: Super Sasadango Machine, MAO, Kazuki Hirata

Yano-gun: Toru Yano, El Desperado, Ryusuke Taguchi

Both Kazuki Hirata and Ryusuke Taguchi have been drafted into the DDT Vs New Japan battle. Super Sasadango Machine is trying to recruit Danshoku Dieno for the show but Dieno keeps turning him down in order to focus on his King Of DDT run.

Now here’s an interesting thought. Konosuke Takeshita over the weekend decided to join the Hontai unit in NJPW. Since Sasadango is under the assumption that Toru Yano is only going to pick wrestlers from Hontai, does that mean there’s a possibility of Takeshita joining Yano’s team?


UJPW Is Facing The Next Generation

May 3, 2026

UJPW “FACE THE NEXT”, 12/05/2026
Shinjuku FACE

1. Tatsuya Matsumoto Vs Yuto Koyanagi
2. Masami Inahata, Sentaro Motojima & Jiro Shinbashi Vs @KEY, Koyo Ume & Midori Takahashi
3. Katsumi Inahata, Shota Kawakami, Masatora Yasuda & Ryuma Sekimo Vs GuC, Rukiya, Reiya Igarashi & Taisei Nakahara
4. Kazumasa Yoshida, Daichi Sato & Kazuma Kimura Vs Yuki Ishida, Koshiro Asakura & Hiroto Tsuruya
5. Yuya Koroku Vs Homare
6. Kazuma Sumi, Munetatsu Nakamura & Ryoya Tanaka Vs Ilusion, Daiki Nagai & Daiki Odashima

Hang on. United Japan is running shows again and actually doing something interesting for their next card? Well okay then. Eight members of UJPW are sending their youngest and brightest wrestlers to Shinjuku FACE for a future generation showcase. We have wrestlers from New Japan, NOAH, DDT, Ganbare☆Pro, Dragongate, Kyushu Pro, Big Japan and FREEDOMS all getting involved. Not only are there matches taking place but there will also be a talk show happening with Kosei Fujita and Takeshi Masada as the guests.


Superstar Rumble, Hirata Replaces Takechi In King Of DDT, Super Japan Brings In N●tflix

April 28, 2026

GANBARE☆PRO “HATAAGE 13TH ANNIVERSARY – MAD MAX 2026”, 29/04/2026
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Munetatsu Nakamura, Shota Kawakami & Sentaro Motojima Vs PSYCHO, Choun Shiryu & Yuya Susumu
2. Moeka Haruhi Vs Ram Kaichow
3. Ken Ohka 25th Anniversary Match: Ken Ohka & Guts Ishijima Vs Masaaki Mochizuki & Ryota Nakatsu
4. Minoru Suzuki & Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Akira Shoji & Hideki “Shrek” Sekine
5. YuuRI Vs Utami Hayashihita
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Yumehito Imanari & Shinichiro Tominaga (c) Vs Takuya Wada & Tyson Maeguchi
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Mizuki Watase (c) Vs Keisuke Ishii

Match #5 has become a little more interesting because it will be the first time Utami Hayashishita will wrestle since she announced she is going to leave Marigold next month. YuuRI doesn’t want that to get in the way of her own journey to carry the flag for Ganbare☆Joshi.

DDT “ECHIGO LARIAT”, 29/04/2026
Niigata Higashi Ward Plaza

1. Kazuma Sumi & Yuki Ishida Vs HARASHIMA & Hinata Kasai
2. 3 Way Match: Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Akito
3. Jun Akiyama, Junta Miyawaki, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Masami Inahata Vs KANON, Yuki Iino, Yukio Naya & Viento Maligno (w/ KIMIHIRO)
4. FANTÔMES DRAMATIC Vs DAMNATION T.A!: Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda Vs Hideki Okatani, MJ Paul
5. paleyouth Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Yuya Koroku & Daichi Sato Vs Shunma Katsumata & To-y
6. Special Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & Super Sasadango Machine Vs MAO & Danshoku Dieno

This is the match order for tomorrow’s sold out DDT show in Nagoya.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “WRESTLE UNIVERSE MEMBERS ONLY SHOW – PURE TOKYO JOSHI PRO WRESTLING 10”, 29/04/2026
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. Sakura Hattori Vs Shion Kanzaki
2. Toga-kun Showdown 3 Way Match: Toga Vs Rika Tatsumi Vs Ren Konatsu
3. 5-Woman Superstar Time-Lag Rumble: The Mahirock Vs John Shino Vs The Ashidataker Vs Shinsuke Wakanakamura Vs Kira Ripley
4. Academic & Athletic Match: Miu Watanabe & Chika Nanase Vs Arisu Endo & Haru Kazashiro
5. Indian Poker Match: Miyu Yamashita Vs Shoko Nakajima Vs Hyper Misao Vs Yuki Aino
6. Costume Change Match: Yuki Arai, Mizuki, Yuki Kamifuku & Raku Vs Suzume, Pom Harajuku, HIMAWARI & Uta Takami

Tomorrow’s Tokyo Joshi Pro show is for their fan club and will be filled with different comedy matches. Everyone in the main event will be wrestling in another person’s costume. The international crew return to Japan all facing each other in a wrestling version of Blind Man’s Bluff. A Rumble match you would normally see on a “Premium Live Event” somewhere else has somehow ended up here. There will be a few other surprises in store. For example, Fumirin will be reading the pre-show announcements to everyone while speaking in a Kansai accent. There is also a secret musical segment scheduled for somewhere on the show.

DDT “KING OF DDT 2026 1ST ROUND”, 04/05/2026
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

0. Dark Match: Jun Akiyama, Yuni, Yuki Ishida & Rukiya Vs Naomi Yoshimura, Viento Maligno (w/ KIMIHIRO), Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Masami Inahata
0. Dark Match ~ 3 Way Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata Vs Daisuke Sasaki Vs MJ Paul Vs Antonio Honda & Hinata Kasai
1. King Of DDT – Round 1A: Danshoku Dieno Vs Kazuki Hirata
2. King Of DDT – Round 1B: To-y Vs Takeshi Masada
3. King Of DDT – Round 1C: Minoru Suzuki Vs Yukio Naya
4. King Of DDT – Round 1D: Chris Brookes Vs Junta Miyawaki
5. King Of DDT – Round 1E: HARASHIMA Vs Daichi Sato
6. King Of DDT – Round 1F: Shinya Aoki Vs KANON
7. King Of DDT – Round 1G: Hideki Okatani Vs Yuya Koroku
8. King Of DDT – Round 1H: MAO Vs Kazuma Sumi

A big change has already happened to the King Of DDT tournament with Kaisei Takechi having to pull out of the tournament. He is out of action with acute appendicitis so Kazuki Hirata is replacing him as Danshoku Dieno’s new Round 1 opponent. Hirata doesn’t think he can pull off a miracle this time but promises to try his best for everyone’s sake.

The match order has not been decided yet outside of the non-tournament bouts taking place on the pre-show.

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAM TAMAGAWA IN BOAT RACE TAMAGAWA”, 06/05/2026
Tokyo BOAT RACE Tamagawa

1. Yukio Naya Vs Hinata Kasai
2. Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & MJ Paul Vs Yuya Koroku, Viento Maligno & Yuki Ishida
3. MAO & KANON (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs Takeshi Masada & Junta Miyawaki
4. Yuki Ueno, Danshoku Dieno & Kazuki Hirata Vs Kazuma Sumi, Rukiya & Masami Inahata
5. Chris Brookes, HARASHIMA & Antonio Honda Vs Jun Akiyama, Shunma Katsumata & To-y

Here’s all of the wrestling matches taking place in between the boat races.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “BACK TO THE HIVE ~SUZUME HOMECOMING SHOW~”, 06/05/2026
Ibaraki Tsukuba International Congress Center Multipurpose Hall

1. 3 Way Match: Hyper Misao Vs Raku Vs HIMAWARI
2. Yuki Aino Vs Shion Kanzaki
3. Miyu Yamashita & Sakura Hattori Vs Wakana Uehara & Kira Summer
4. Shoko Nakajima Vs Pom Harajuku
5. Mizuki & Uta Takami Vs Haru Kazashiro & Chika Nanase
6. Yuki Arai & Shino Suzuki Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Toga
7. Suzume, Arisu Endo & Mahiro Kiryu Vs Miu Watanabe, Rika Tatsumi & Ren Konatsu

Suzume is the hometown hero for this show so the main event involved Daisy Monkey and Daydream facing each other as part of a trios match.

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 13 ~MY SPIRIT GUARDS MY LORD IN THE EAST~”, 17/05/2026
Osaka City Sumiyoshi Community Center

0. Special Dark Match ~ Young Warrior Wrestling Summit: Takahiro Hirakimoto, Sora Fujikawa & Koki Fujimoto Vs Tetsuya Goto, Masaya Ishikawa & Hinata Kasai
1. Mixed Martial Arts Match – Irregular 2 Round System: Bushimasa Vs Tyson Maeguchi
2. Black Eagle In Danger! Against The Four Heavenly Kings Of DDT Comedy, 1 Vs 4 Handicap Match: Yuto Kikuchi Vs Danshoku Dieno, Kazuki Hirata, Antonio Honda & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
3. Kansai Vs DDT, A Battle For Freedom!: HUB, Tsubasa & Billy Ben Kid Vs Junta Miyawaki, Viento Maligno & Yuni
4. A 6-Man Tag Match That Tests How Far A Young Heel With 4 Years And 9 Months Of Experience Can Assert Himself When Surrounded By Seasoned Veterans: Magnitude Kishiwada, MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs CIMA, Akito & Yasu Urano
5. Special Tag Match ~ Encounter With A Wrestling Master: Dick Togo & Hideki Okatani Vs Shunma Katsumata & Kohei Kinoshita
6. Special Tag Match ~ Laughter Brings Fortune: MAO & KANON (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs Kuishinbo Kamen & Kikutaro
7. Special Tag Match ~ Infinite Stimulation Anniversary: Zack Sabre Jr. & Chris Brookes Vs HARASHIMA & Shinya Aoki

Another match has been added to Yukinori Matsui’s Osaka extravaganza. Yuto Kikuchi is a late addition to the lineup but all that was left available were a bunch of DDT’s comedy wrestlers. So good luck Kikuchi, you have to deal with all of them by yourself!

SUPER JAPAN “A PRO WRESTLING SHOW WITHOUT A NAME”, 27/05/2026
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. Special Single Match: Pero Pero Oyakata Vs Da Pump Matsumoto
2. Special Tag Match: Yuji Nagata & CIMA Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Poison Sawada JULIE

The future of Super Japan is safe after its fans judged in favour of these shows continuing for the time being. Sanshiro Takagi is continuing to think up of alternate universe ideas regarding the early years of DDT. The latest is he now wants to team up with Poison Sawada JULIE after they’ve been enemies for years, decades even. Yuji Nagata is sticking around as the Super Japan ace and is even donating an event booking he had in his pocket to let this show take place in the same venue. He will team up with CIMA, forming “WCW’s Strongest Tag Team” for the occasion. Now that sounds like a WCW… Deep… Cut… in the making.

The newest match announced is straight out of N●tflix. It is the “Re●l American” Pero Pero Oyakata against “The Queen Of V●llains” Da Pump Matsumoto!

DDT/NJPW “ONE-ON-ONE CONFRONTATION PART 2 ~SASADANGO-GUN VS YANO-GUN 5-ON-5 ELIMINATION TAG BATTLE~”, 08/06/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
2. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
3. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
4. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X
5. Sasadango-gun Vs Yano-gun: X Vs X

Sasadango-gun: Super Sasadango Machine, MAO

Yano-gun: Toru Yano, El Desperado

Both Super Sasadango Machine and Toru Yano have chosen the first members of their teams. Sasadango has picked MAO from DDT while Yano is taking El Desperado from New Japan. Sasadango believes he has the advantage because he does not belong to any specific group in DDT. He’s under the impression that Yano will only choose wrestlers from New Japan’s Hontai unit.


DDT Around The World – WrestleMania Week 2026

April 25, 2026

Writing up this year’s WrestleMania Week report worked out sort of quicker than I expected in regards to the amount of matches to cover, yet some of them were very difficult to track down because of the lack of streaming options available to some of the indies this time around. Tokyo Joshi Pro felt their first burn from their overseas expansion with a low attendance number at Slam Fest. How much that will effect their USA plans for the rest of the year remain to be seen. The reduction of international fans travelling over to Las Vegas again could really be felt on some shows throughout the week. I’d be willing to argue that had just as much effect on the WrestleMania attendance itself rather than just the expensive ticket prices.

The only DDT presence of note in Vegas was Daisuke Sasaki wrestling a few matches. He had a particularly violent match on the New Japan/GCW joint show (that feels weird to type out) that must have left him with a few bruises afterwards. A few TJPW wrestlers spread out across the shows too but the one that sounded noteworthy hasn’t shown up online yet so I’m a little stuck trying to write about it. The week being what it is means some chance meetings happened at some shows, like Miu Watanabe finally meeting her fellow Giant Swing user Claudio Castagnoli.

One of the reasons this report is an incomplete one is thanks to our friend Mizuki Watase. He made the trip over to Las Vegas again after going through a love-hate affair with the city in previous visits for wrestling. He’s written blogs and articles of his past trips where he lost a lot of money but became smitten with the Venetian in particular, naming one of his finishing moves after the casino. This time his trip started off pretty badly with some hotel mishap but his gambling turned into a success this time and for once he left the casino with more money than he had before. Then he spent all the money on booze and got some tattoos while he was drunk. He also wrestled a few matches during the week but I have had no luck trying to find out what they are. That was until I saw a video he recorded of his entrance and it was at the one place I never thought of looking: MicroMania. He was advertised for their week long tour at The Nerd in Fremont Street and he ended up wrestling several matches there. All I could find out is he wanted to do a Spirit Of Ganbare World Title defence for one of his bookings but it was changed to a non-title tag match on short notice (excuse the pun).

————————————————————————

Videos


PRIDESTYLE “OUT OF THIS WORLD”, 17/04/2026
Bizarre Bar, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Special Single Match: Taniya Vs Miu Watanabe

————————————————————————

Results


PODER~! “PODERMANIA~!”, 15/04/2026
Horseshoe, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. International Tag Team Match: Toga & Jazzy Yang defeated Amira & Lil Marz when Toga pinned Marz with the Absolute Zero (8:47).

The first piece of TJPW action to find that week was when Toga went to “PODERMANIA~!”. The eighth annual women’s wrestling show put together by the man known to most as “Ed In San Antonio” saw Toga teaming up with Jazzy Yang in a winning effort against Amira & Lil Marz. Toga even scored the pinfall in a match that can be best described as not the worst thing to have happened on the show.


PANDEMONIUM PRO “WHATEVER, FOREVER”, 15/04/2026
Bizarre Bar, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Jiah Jewell defeated Daisuke Sasaki with the Gator Roll (?:??).

Sasaki’s schedule got off to an aggressive start when he went brawling with Jiah Jewell throughout the venue that Pandemonium Pro held their show in. Sasaki had the upper hand throughout a lot of the match because Jewell kept on telegraphing his finisher, the Gator Roll so Sasaki could block it. However things went wrong for Sasaki and he tried going after the ref for it, allowing Jewell to Gator Roll Sasaki for the three count and score the upset win.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN LAS VEGAS 2026”, 16/04/2026
Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
424 Fans

1. Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara defeated Toga & Uta Takami when Kamifuku pinned Takami with the Famouser (10:03).
2. Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku defeated Alexis Lee, HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki when Aino pinned Suzuki with the Venus DDT (14:36).
3. Special 3 Way Match: Miyu Yamashita defeated Mizuki and Miu Watanabe when Yamashita pinned Mizuki with the Crash Rabbit Heat (14:05).
4. International Princess Title: Suzume (c) defeated Sakura Hattori with the Ring A Bell (11:36).
*V1 for Suzume.
5. Princess Tag Team Titles: Jessie McKay & Cassie Lee (c) defeated Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao when Lee pinned Nakajima after the IIdolizer (12:59).
*V1 for The IInspiration.
6. Princess Of Princess Title: Yuki Arai (c) defeated J-Rod with the Finally (11:18).
*V1 for Yuki Arai.

A report of the show can be found here.


“DEATH VEGAS INVITACIONAL”, 16/04/2026
Horseshoe, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. The Rigged Roulette – House Rules Hardcore Match: Joey Janela & Gringo Loco defeated Gedo & Daisuke Sasaki when Janela pinned Gedo with the Diving Foot Stomp onto a Door (18:44).

Throughout the week Sasaki has been hanging out with an incognito El Desperado but he also got to spend some time with Gedo, particularly for a violent Hardcore Match that took place on Despy’s own show. Gedo took it extreme by bringing out forks to stab Joey Janela & Gringo Loco with. The opposition fought back by putting Sasaki and Gedo through doors along with some wicked chair shots. Loco used a one man Spanish Fly to smash Sasaki through one door only for Sasaki to recover and spin him into La Mistica Crossface Lock with Gedo giving the assist with a fork attack. Janela made the save though and ended up Double Stomping Gedo into oblivion among the wreckage for the three count. Sasaki’s post-match comments were all complaints about how violent the match was. If his upcoming matches are going to continue being like this then he won’t go back to Japan and will cancel his Best Of The Super Jr. appearance instead.


GCW “JOSH BARNETT’S BLOODSPORT XV”, 17/04/2026
Horseshoe, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Janai Kai by Knockout with the Skull Kick (5:29).

Finally a Bloodsport fight goes Miyu Yamashita’s way and right when Josh Barnett decides to end the whole thing. Janai Kai tried to submit her with the Demon Clutch but Yamashita grabbed her in a Cravate and gave her knee strikes to the head to get out of it. Kanai then switched to kicks leading to wild swinging misses from both wrestlers. Yamashita got the first big hit in with the Skull Kick that knocked Kai straight out. As a bonus for Yamashita, she ended up meeting Nattie Neidhart backstage again as well as Stone Cold Steve Austin!


PRIDESTYLE “OUT OF THIS WORLD”, 17/04/2026
Bizarre Bar, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Special Single Match: Miu Watanabe defeated Taniya with the Tear Drop (?:??).

I haven’t been able to find a result for the match yet but heard Taniya put on a great performance against Miu Watanabe. This will be updated once I do find out what happened.


DDT/Sasadango Vs NJPW/Yano Round 2 Announced

April 21, 2026

DDT/NJPW “ONE-ON-ONE CONFRONTATION PART 2 ~TEAM SASADANGO VS TEAM YANO 5-ON-5 ELIMINATION TAG BATTLE~”, 08/06/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Team Sasadango Vs Team Yano: X Vs X
2. Team Sasadango Vs Team Yano: X Vs X
3. Team Sasadango Vs Team Yano: X Vs X
4. Team Sasadango Vs Team Yano: X Vs X
5. Team Sasadango Vs Team Yano: X Vs X

A joint press conference was held on Monday between DDT and New Japan to announced a follow up event to last year’s “One Match” show that pitted Super Sasadango Machine against Toru Yano in Korakuen Hall. It was a show that helped heal a decade long rift between the two companies. This time around DDT and New Japan want to hold a similar event but have it be built around sportsmanship so the format is going to be a 5 Vs 5 Team Elimination Challenge. At the press conference Sasadango and Yano both talked about the respect they gained for each other after last year’s match and how much of a learning experience it was for the two companies to understand what they can each provide for the pro wrestling world.

Much like last year, the show will be held as a dual PPV broadcast airing on both NJPW World and Wrestle Universe with each feed being its own complete production. Just like the wrestlers, there was mutual respect earned among the production teams after last year’s show. Yano wants the match to have a definitive winner this time instead of the agreed upon double countout that happened last time. He is ready to call up wrestlers from New Japan’s Hontai unit to be on his team. When Sasadango heard that, he pointed out that he doesn’t currently belong to any DDT unit so he is free to pick whoever he wants in the company to join his team.

The two agreed that they need to be flexible over the rules of the match and they might organize a meeting leading up to the show to hammer out all the details. Sasadango suggested they may include some extra wrestlers placed in reserve should their original picks get injured or decide to leave their company before the match takes place. He also wondered if the 5 Vs 5 format just means five singles matches or if it will be possible to have tag bouts take place? Yano understands the idea and is open to it, again pointing out that the rules need to be flexible for this situation. They both seem to understand that the show will consist of five matches but some may end up being tag team matches instead of singles. The press conference ended with Sasadango saying he trusts New Japan will not betray DDT and Yano said the same vice versa.


Aijin Tag Being Scouted, J-Rod Gets Vegas Title Shot, Puroresu Nylon

March 20, 2026

BASARA “BASARA 302 ~TAKAGARI 33~”, 21/03/2026
Tokyo Takashimadaira Kumin Center

1. Takeru Inoue Vs SAGAT
2. FUMA & Seiya Morohashi Vs Daichi Kazato & Ayato Yoshida
3. Isami Kodaka & Takato Nakano Vs Takumi Tsukamoto & Tatsuya Hanami
4. Daiki Shimomura Vs Masato Kamino
5. Battle Royal: Ryota Nakatsu Vs Ryuichi Sekine Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Lil’ Kraken Vs Yasu Urano Vs Shuji Ishikawa

Let’s start up today with a rumour concerning Aijin Tag. Earlier this week, the Super J-Cast Patreon put out a report about New Japan looking into several pro wrestlers on the indies to bring onto their roster, particularly for the Junior Heavyweight division. Two of the names among them are Takato Nakano and Masato Kamino. There isn’t much extra info to that other than out of all the names the J-Cast heard about, the two BASARA wrestlers are the curveballs on the list. It’s something to keep in mind as we approach Best Of The Super Juniors season. Kamino in particular is a funny one because he is still being billed at weighing around 90kg but he’s looked larger than that for a while now.

GANBARE☆PRO “THERE WILL BE BLOOD 2026”, 28/03/2026
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title Next Challenger Determination – Round 1: Keisuke Ishii Vs Yuya Susumu
2. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title Next Challenger Determination – Round 1: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs PSYCHO
3. 3 Way Match: Moeka Haruhi Vs Taiwan Ramen Man Vs Hora-chan
4. Mizuki Watase & Shigehiro Irie Vs Shota Kawakami & Sentaro Motojima
5. Rin Vs YuuRI
6. Ken Ohka, Shinichiro Tominaga & Akira Shoji Vs Yumehito Imanari, Takuya Wada & Tyson Maeguchi
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title Next Challenger Determination – Final: X Vs X

The masked wrestler Taiwan Ramen Man is coming over from the Team DERA promotion in Nagoya. Now Moeka Haruhi has to deal with him along with returning opponent Hora-chan.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN LAS VEGAS 2026”, 16/04/2026
Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara (c) Vs X & X
2. Princess Of Princess Title: Miu Watanabe (c) Vs J-Rod

The winner of the Princess Of Princess Title match at “GRAND PRINCESS ’26” will go on to Las Vegas where they will defend the title against J-Rod. The returning American powerhouse has a lot going on lately. She is part of the series reboot of American Gladiators and the first episode will be released the day after this show takes place. Her Gladiator name hasn’t been revealed yet. She already fought Miu Watanabe for the Princess Title back in November but Yuki Arai could be a brand new opponent for her.

It was also announced that The IInspiration will be on this show. So it will be either them or Ober Eats who will be defending the Princess Tag Team Titles next month.

In regards to the previously announced International Princess Title match planned for the show, Tokyo Joshi Pro can no longer confirm that it will happen. They had intended to book MIRAI for the show but are unable to do so because of scheduling conflicts with Michinoku Pro. So for now there will just be two title matches happening in Las Vegas instead of three. That could change if Suzume beats MIRAI to win the IP Title but this news sure does feel like TJPW painted themselves into a corner and have to spoil the result of that match to get out of there.

BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “LOVE FIGHTER – NYLON JAPAN 22ND ANNIVERSARY PARTY”, 24/04/2026
Shinjuku ZEROTOKYO

1. Chris Brookes, MAO & Sayaka Vs Mr. Bueno, Mr. Malo & Ram Kaichow

A new opportunity has opened up for Baka Gaijin + Friends. The fashion magazine NYLON JAPAN is celebrating its 22nd Anniversary this year and will be throwing a party inside a nightclub at the Kabukicho Tower. Baka Gaijin gets to be part of the festivities with a one-off match taking place. Pro wrestling is familiar ground for NYLON because they have printed wrestling themed issues and photoshoots in the past under the label PURORESU NYLON.


Video – Kazuma Sumi Vs Daiki Nagai

March 13, 2026


DDT/NJPW “ONE-ON-ONE CONFRONTATION ~SUPER SASADANGO MACHINE VS TORU YANO~”, 09/06/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
??? Fans – Unannounced

-. Special Exhibition Match: Kazuma Sumi Vs Daiki Nagai