DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ FINAL!!” Results

May 26, 2024

DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ FINAL!!”, 26/05/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,005 Fans – No Vacancy

0. Dark Match: Yuni & Keigo Nakamura defeated Ilusion & Kazuma Sumi when Nakamura pinned Sumi with the Diving Headbutt (8:51).
1. KANON & MJ Paul defeated HARASHIMA & Akito when KANON pinned Akito with the Ground Cobra Twist (7:59).
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Semi Final: MAO defeated Kazusada Higuchi with the Iai Kick (11:43).
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Semi Final – No DQ Match: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Chris Brookes with the El Es Culero (13:48).
4. 3 Way Tag Match: Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi defeated Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata and Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada when Oishi pinned Hirata with a Rock Bottom (0:05).
4a. Rematch: Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada defeated Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi and Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata when Naya pinned Hirata and Oishi with the Double Choke Slam (6:42).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Shuji Ishikawa, Masahiro Takanashi & Yuya Koroku defeated Poison Sawada JULIE, Tetsumamushi Endo & Yuki “Anaconda” Iino when Koroku pinned JULIE with a Moonsault Press (9:01).
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Tomomitsu Matsunaga when Ueno pinned Matsunaga with the WR (11:45).
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Final: MAO defeated Daisuke Sasaki with the 450 Cannonball (23:45).

On the 20th Anniversary a new King Of DDT has been crowned and it is MAO! He reached all the way to the final where Daisuke Sasaki was there standing in his way. MAO wanted to win quickly and busted out the Hollywood Star Press for a nearfall. Sasaki then started targeting MAO’s knees before taking him outside to do a Super Diving Elbow Drop while MAO was sitting in the front row. MAO fought back by biting his way out of the Crossface Lock, turning Sasaki over with the Michinoku Driver I and then applying the Just Face Lock. Sasaki took a big risk to get back into the fight by giving MAO a Superplex out of the ring onto members of The 37KAMIINA and DAMNATION T.A below. He then tried using flash pins including the Hurricanrana but MAO wore him down with Palm Strikes, the Iai Kick and the Cannonball 450 to win.

With this victory MAO thinks he now has a spot in the main event of “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” on 21st July. He called Yuki Ueno into the ring to tell him it could be those two fighting for the KO-D Openweight Title at Sumo Hall. However Ueno told everyone that he has to beat Sanshiro Takagi first on 5th June. Takagi entered the ring to congratulate MAO and tell him that he too is fighting to achieve his dream of being in a KO-D Title match at Sumo Hall. The closest he’s been to that position was the King Of DDT 2009 final but he lost to Kota Ibushi. MAO reminded Takagi he still had the Weapon Rumble match against The Great Sasuke that year and that match captured MAO’s heart. So much so that if Takagi becomes his opponent at Sumo Hall then they should have a Weapon Rumble match! But if he faces Ueno the match will just be held under normal rules. Ueno was relieved to hear that. The three of them all agreed by sharing a toast together in the ring.

Sasaki went through a war with Chris Brookes in the semi-finals. The two agreed to have a No DQ Match over expectations that both could cheat against each other. Instead it became a full blown hardcore match with tables, plastic boxes, chairs, a ladder, a stapler and even a fork board laid against the corner with “Fuck You Sasaki” painted on it. Brookes also had backup in the form of Mecha Mummy but Sasaki used a taser to make it short circuit and play no further part in the match. Sasaki was thrown from the ladder through a table and Brookes followed up by hitting a Diving Double Knee Drop onto the remains. Sasaki kicked out and then countered the Praying Mantis Bomb into El Es Culero cradle to steal the win from out of nowhere. A bloody Brookes threw everything he could get his hands on around the ring out of anger after the match.

The other semi-final had MAO beating a previous King Of DDT winner Kazusada Higuchi. He had to use Middle Kicks and Palm Strikes to try and match Higuchi’s Chops and Headbutt. The Doctor Bomb Higuchi used was kicked out of but so was the Green Tea Plunge that MAO pulled out. The match came down to duel between the two. Higuchi charged in looking to do the Buchikamashi but MAO blocked it with a Thrust Kick, stunned Higuchi with a Palm Strike, cut off a Lariat with a Hurricane Kick and finally put his opponent down with the Iai Kick. Higuchi had no problem admitting backstage that MAO is a really, really strong wrestler.

Ueno and Takagi used their 6-Man Tag as a preview for what to expect in the KO-D Title bout by brawling with each other in the crowd with the Dramatic Dream bike involved before taking the fight up to the balcony. They had more to offer back in the ring with Ueno doing a Dropkick and Takagi firing back with the Stunner. Tomomitsu Matsunaga used the opening to hit Ueno with the Tommy Bomber for a nearfall. Ueno recovered and Dropkicked Matsunaga in the face before pinning him with the WR. After the match Takagi said he does not care if Ueno is ready or not for the title match. Takagi is now free from responsibility and will be at his most immature on 5th June! Meanwhile To-y told Shunma Katsumata they will be enemies on 21st June because he wants to win the DDT Extreme Title from him in the 5 Way Sauna match. In fact, To-y accused Katsumata of not helping him during today’s match so they may already be enemies!

Plans for Match #4 changed when before the match Poison Sawada JULIE looking for his teammates to brainwash them with his Snake Magic. While this was going on, Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino asked Yuya Koroku in a nearby locker room to go find them something to drink. Koroku found some cans labelled “Modification Drink” in the room where JULIE was just in and gave them to his BURNING partners. What happened when they drank it scared Koroku out of the room while a returning JULIE was pleased with the results. It all became clear what happened when JULIE entered the ring with Endo & Iino both brainwashed into becoming Tetsumamushi Endo & Yuki “Anaconda” Iino! Koroku now had to team with JULIE’s original partners Shuji Ishikawa & Masahiro Takanashi in order to win the antidotes that would turn Endo & Iino back to normal. It was a tough challenge but a well timed dodge from Kuroku caused Iino to Spear Endo by accident. Koroku then gave JULIE a Back Drop and pinned him with the Moonsault Press. He then quickly fed his friends the cans of antidote to free them from JULIE’s snake magic. Whenever JULIE returns to DDT he promises to get revenge on Koroku for stopping him from turning BURNING into his new Snake Magic army.

The 3 Way Tag Match ended too quickly thanks to Makoto Oishi immediately pinning Kazuki Hirata with a Rock Bottom before one of the other teams even made it to the ring. It required a restart and the same result almost happened. Yukio Naya made it in time to break it up so the match could continue. A noticable trend then happened where Takeshi Masada became left out of all of the multi-man spots. Somehow Yukinori Matsui took his place! When Masada became upset over it, Hisaya Imabayashi paused the match and ordered everyone to let Masada be more involved because he is already a lonely college student. Most of them although Danshoku Dieno wasn’t really interested. Naya instructed Masada to climb the top turnbuckle and wait for the opportunity to do a big move while Naya took care of Dieno and Toru Owashi. Oishi and Hirata tried to give Naya the Double Miracle Ecstasy but it was countered into a Double Choke Slam. Naya decided to pin the both of them while Masada was still waiting on the top turnbuckle. The match ended with them as the winners but a sad and lonely Masada took his time to leave the ring.

DAMNATION T.A halted some of Smile Squash’s momentum in the opening match. HARASHIMA & Akito were doing well against KANON & MJ Paul until KANON caught Akito in the Cobra Twist. He then grounded the move and rolled Akito over to pin his shoulders to the mat for a 3 count. KANON bragged about beating Akito with a roll up style move, something that Akito is meant to be a master of. Fans like it when teams from the past reunite but he hates it and for that reason hates Smile Squash too. HARASHIMA & Yasu Urano weren’t angry over the result. They assured Akito that they now all learned KANON is capable of winning that way and they will have to be careful of it in the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match.

In the dark match Yuni hit Ilusion & Kazuma Sumi with a top rope Moonsault out of the ring. He then gave Sumi a Spinning DDT in the ring and Keigo Nakamura followed up with the John Woo Dropkick for a nearfall. Nakamura didn’t waste anytime and landed the Diving Headbutt to get the win.

A new singles match was announced for “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024”. Konosuke Takeshita will face Masato Tanaka in a rematch from March 2020!

There was an announcement during the show that DDT and GCW will be co-promoting a show together in Korakuen Hall on 12th August as part of GCW’s next tour of Japan. The show is called “NEVER ENDING NOISY SUMMER” and Effy sent in a video message to promote it. GCW talent currently announced for the show include Joey Janela, Effy, Allie Katch, Masha Slamovich, Mance Warner, Jordan Oliver, Dark Sheik, Alex Zayne and Rina Yamashita.

Before any of the matches began there was a special presentation held by Saki Akai. One of her first projects with DDT since retiring from pro wrestling last year was to set up a crowdfunding campaign to buy new training equipment for the company. The campaign succeeded and today Akai donated the new equipment to Takagi and DDT.

DDT will be launching a new photobook with Leslie Kee on 21st July. They previously worked together for a photobook called “Super DDT” back in 2013.


DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 2ND ROUND” Results

May 11, 2024

DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 2ND ROUND”, 11/05/2024
Yokohama Radiant Hall
270 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. 3 Way Tag Match: Yuki Iino & Akito defeated KANON & MJ Paul and Kazuki Hirata & Soma Takao when Akito submitted Hirata with the Ankle Lock (9:31).
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Poison Sawada JULIE, JARASHIMA & Danshoku Dieno defeated Takeshi Masada, Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi when JULIE submitted Sumi with the Cattle Mutilation (8:45).
3. Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata defeated Yukio Naya & Keigo Nakamura when Katsumata pinned Nakamura with the Totonou Splash (12:23).
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Chris Brookes defeated Tetsuya Endo by Referee Stoppage with a Heel Hook (14:58).
5. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Sanshiro Takagi with the Crossover Face Lock (7:18).
6. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Shuji Ishikawa with the Buchikamashi (16:16).
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: MAO defeated To-y with the Iai Kick (17:36).

Some of the stories built up for this year’s King Of DDT have come to an end in Round 2. To-y was able to make it past the opening round but fell to MAO after a spirited performance against him. He kicked out of the Michinoku Driver II and Senpukyaku. He also did his best to shrug off an Iai Kick but MAO finally kept him down with a second Iai Kick. To-y said he has watched many of MAO’s matches from ringside and when it comes to fighting him he found out MAO is actually ten times stronger. MAO described To-y as a weird guy. He will suddenly go mad then go dead then come back to life and go mad again. Maybe that is the Kojima Wonderland experience.

A battle of the heavyweights was promised when Shuji Ishikawa entered the tournament. Kazusada Higuchi and Yukio Naya both targeted him and had to fight each other for the opportunity to fight Ishikawa next. Higuchi won that match and made the most of his opportunity by beating Ishikawa in Round 2! The match had heavy blows from both guys and Higuchi even kicked out of the Fire Thunder at 1. Ishikawa followed up with the Kamigoye and Running Knee Lift but Higuchi kicked out of them as well. Higuchi then took over with a Throwaway German Suplex and ran over Ishikawa with the Buchikamashi for the victory. Ishikawa praised Higuchi for the win and said he had a great time in the tournament with the exception of losing this match. Higuchi thinks he has not surpassed Ishikawa just yet. The battle between them will continue to move back and forth.

Sanshiro Takagi made a mistake early in his match by accidentally hitting the referee with a Lariat. Daisuke Sasaki took Takagi out of the ring for a fight that involved both of them crashing the Dramatic Dream bike into each other or into MJ Paul. The referee took more bumps leading to more cheating by Sasaki including a Low Blow and a chairshot to the head. Takagi relied on using Stunners to fight back until Sasaki caught him in the Crossover Face Lock, forcing him to give up. Sasaki criticised Takagi for being so satisfied with beating Yuki Ueno in Round 1 that he had no motivation to win today. Backstage Takagi said he is disappointed with the result and is still aiming to get a KO-D Openweight Title shot before he takes his break from wrestling. Ueno told reporters he would like to defend the title against Takagi because he owes him for so much. Even though Takagi has not earned a shot, Ueno wants it to happen in order to express his feelings to Takagi in the ring before it is too late.

An injured heel has ended Tetsuya Endo’s chances of advancing further into the tournament. Even though he was cleared to wrestle today, the heel wasn’t in 100% condition and Chris Brookes knew to target it. Endo still tried some high risk moves but he missed the Burning Star Press. Brookes made him pay for it by hitting a Diving Double Stomp to the foot. He then applied a Heel Hook and the referee had to stop the match when it was clear Endo couldn’t escape it and was at risk of getting even more injured. Endo was angry with the finish because he never gave up. Brookes isn’t sure if he could have won if Endo was at 100%. The news of the injury was all over social media leading up to the show so even if Brookes wanted to ignore it for the sake of having a fair fight he couldn’t.

The show ended with a lottery between the remaining wrestlers to determine who faces who in the semi-finals. It will be MAO Vs Higuchi and Brookes Vs Sasaki on 26th May. Higuchi has lost count of how many times he reached the final four (this will be his 7th time) and knows this is where the biggest walls are blocking him. Brookes said both Higuchi and MAO are strong but Sasaki is not at all. However, Sasaki is sneaky and Brookes would have preferred not to worry about fighting somebody like that next.

Poison Sawada JULIE was up to his old tricks by transforming HARASHIMA into JARASHIMA for one night only!

A contract signing for the next DDT Extreme Title match took place during the show. Shunma Katsumata revealed he will defend the title in a 3 Round Pokkiri Strategy Match against Antonio Honda. It a Best 2 Out Of 3 Round match and each round will use different rules that will be announced before the match begins. Both Katsumata and Honda will come up with rules they want to use. The reason why Honda is also allowed to come up with rules too is because Katsumata likes to gamble and wants to be put in a position where the odds can be against him.


Endo’s Not Injured! Kamiyu Is Now A Double Crown Champion, Tominaga Finds A CWP Tag Partner

May 8, 2024

DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 2ND ROUND”, 11/05/2024
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. 3 Way Tag Match: KANON & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Iino & Akito Vs Kazuki Hirata & Soma Takao
2. Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata Vs Yukio Naya & Keigo Nakamura
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Poison Sawada JULIE, HARASHIMA & Danshoku Dieno Vs Takeshi Masada, Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: To-y Vs MAO
5. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Sanshiro Takagi
6. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Shuji Ishikawa Vs Kazusada Higuchi
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Chris Brookes Vs Tetsuya Endo

A minor left heel injury suffered on Sunday’s DDT show took Tetsuya Endo off of the “ALL TOGETHER” show that happened the next day. Thankfully after getting it examined Endo found out his heel has not been fractured and he is cleared to continue competing in the King Of DDT this weekend.

Even though Poison Sawada JULIE was eliminated from the tournament, he will be hanging around for a little while longer. He gets to form a DDT Legend team with HARASHIMA & Danshoku Dieno to take on the young blood.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE TOUR 2024 SPRING”, 11/05/2024
Osaka Azalea Taisho Hall

1. Mahiro Kiryu Vs Chika Nanase
2. Rika Tatsumi Vs Shino Suzuki
3. Yuki Aino Vs Toga
4. Yuki Kamifuku & Uta Takami Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
5. Shoko Nakajima, Wakana Uehara & HIMAWARI Vs Maki Itoh, Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo
6. Miu Watanabe, Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Mizuki, Moka Miyamoto & Kaya Toribami

The new champions cleared their first defences over the weekend and will be teaming up in Osaka. Also Shino Suzuki is rewarded for earning her first singles win by getting to wrestle Rika Tatsumi one on one.

Nao Kakuta is not at the show because she will be performing in a stage play. Kira Summer has been feeling unwell lately so she will not be at the show either.

BASARA “BASARA 248 ~TAKAGARI 24~”, 11/05/2024
Tokyo Takashimadaira Kumin Center

1. FUMA, KUBITO & Yasu Urano Vs Lil’ Kraken, Leo Isaka & Takahiro Katori
2. Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino Vs Chicharito Shoki & Daiju Wakamatsu
3. Ryuichi Sekine & Ryota Nakatsu Vs Takumi Tsukamoto & Judomaster
4. Minoru Fujita Vs SAGAT
5. Union MAX Title Next Challenger Match: Isami Kodaka Vs Daichi Kazato

No. 1 Contendership is on the line when Isami Kodaka and Daichi Kazato fight for who gets the next Union MAX Title shot. Kodaka has built up his case but Kazato hit a speed bump at the most recent BASARA show when he lost his match. Can he get the job done without the momentum that took him up to this point?

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAM TOUR 2024 IN MIYAGI”, 12/05/2024
Miyagi Yume Messe West Building Hall

1. Akito & Yuya Koroku Vs Makoto Oishi & Yukio Naya
2. Danshoku Dieno, Kazusada Higuchi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Chris Brookes, Takeshi Masada & Kazuma Sumi
3. Yuki Ueno & To-y Vs Jun Akiyama & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
4. Special Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino Vs HARASHIMA & Keigo Nakamura
5. Special Single Match: Yoshitatsu Vs MJ Paul
6. The 37KAMIINA Vs DAMNATION T.A!: MAO & Shunma Katsumata Vs Daisuke Sasaki & KANON

Rukiya is still out injured so Tomomitsu Matsunaga will be replacing him in Match #3.

A year ago Keigo Nakamura teamed with HARASHIMA to challenge for the KO-D Tag Team Titles. They reunite this weekend to face the current champions BURNING in a non-title match.

DDT “EARLY SUMMER BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING – DAY 1”, 16/05/2024
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. Soma Takao Vs Ilusion
2. Sanshiro Takagi & Jun Akiyama Vs Yukio Naya & Keigo Nakamura
3. Early Summer Beer Garden Specialty NG Behaviour Penalty Match: Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Yuya Koroku Vs Shunma Katsumata, Toru Owashi & Makoto Oishi
4. Early Summer Beer Garden Specialty Doki Doki! Special Rules Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Danshoku Dieno & Kazuki Hirata
5. Yuki Ishida Return Match ~ The 37KAMIINA Vs Harimao!: Yuki Ueno, MAO & To-y Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Ryota Nakatsu & Yuki Ishida
6. Smile Squash Vs DAMNATION T.A!: HARASHIMA, Yasu Urano & Akito Vs Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul

We only just recently had Smile Squash back together again so let’s keep it going for one of the Beer Garden shows. Also on the undercard are two tag matches each with different special rules applied.

DDT “EARLY SUMMER BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING – DAY 2”, 17/05/2024
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. Chris Brookes Vs Yuya Koroku
2. Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida Vs HARASHIMA & Keigo Nakamura
3. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul Vs Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Makoto Oishi
4. MAO & To-y Vs Toru Owashi & Akito
5. Special Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo & Yuki Iino Vs Yuki Ueno & Kazuki Hirata
6. Danshoku Dieno Birthday Eve Commemorative Match ~ Special 3 Way Match: Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuma Sumi Vs Rukiya (Special Referee: Danshoku Dieno)
7. DDT Extreme Title: Shunma Katsumata (c) Vs Antonio Honda

Oh there’s Toru Owashi. He disappeared from DDT for a minute there. I only just noticed now.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE TOUR 2024 SPRING”, 18/05/2024
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Queen Of Asia Title & VPW Women’s Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c/c) Vs Alexis Lee

All of a sudden Yuki Kamifuku has created an Asian Double Crown championship! She has held the Queen Of Asia Title since last November and just a few days ago won the brand new VPW Women’s Title in Vietnam. Both of those title wins came from Kamifuku defeating Alexis Lee, a 10 year veteran of the Southeast Asian wrestling scene. Her name has come up a lot in my DDT Around The World reports because she is the go-to opponent for whenever somebody from Tokyo Joshi Pro travels to Singapore. Lee has not given up on getting revenge for losing both championships to Kamifuku and is coming to TJPW for a double title rematch!

Wakana Uehara will not be at the show because she will be performing at a stage show elsewhere that day.

GANBARE☆PRO “EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE 2024”, 18/05/2024
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Shota Kawakami Debut Match: Ken Ohka Vs Shota Kawakami
2. Kitsune World Title: Sayaka Unagi (c) Vs YuuRI
3. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada (c) Vs Shinichiro Tominaga & Daisuke®️
4. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Keisuke Ishii (c) Vs Kouki Iwasaki

Shinichiro Tominaga had to go looking through the student pro wrestling scene for a partner so he can challenge GROUND ABSOLUTE for the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Titles. What he found is Daisuke®️ from Tomginaga’s other home promotion CWP. Daisuke®️ is allegedly a former trainee from another company whose name he cannot reveal. He’s been wrestling in CWP since 2019 with the dragon gene in his heart and his goal is to one day open CWP’s dream gate.

BASARA “BASARA 249 ~UTAGE~”, 28/05/2024
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Iron Fist Tag Team Titles: Ryota Nakatsu & Kazusada Higuchi (c) Vs Takumi Tsukamoto & Judomaster

There is a very slight naming change to the IRON FIST Tag Team Titles. BASARA noticed that the media and wrestlers keep writing the name of the championship in katakana instead of using the upper case “IRON FIST”. So from now on they decided it will be written as “Iron Fist Tag Team Titles” (アイアンフィストタッグ選手権).

Also something to note is BASARA themselves aren’t quite sure where Judomaster belongs to. His affiliation is written as “Free?” on their website.

DDT “SPA & POOL AQUA YUKARI – SAUNA ROJO PRO WRESTLING”, 21/06/2024
Chiba Aqua Yukari

1. Shunma Katsumata Vs X

The next street wrestling match DDT has come up with will be at the Aqua Yukari hot spring in Chiba. Shunma Katsumata is the first wrestler announced to take part.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “UP! UP! TJPW (2) ~TANABATA FESITVAL WITH NIKI-CHAN~”, 07/07/2024
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. X Vs X
2. X Vs X
3. X Vs X
4. X Vs X

TJPW is teaming up with one of the other versions of The Up Up Girls for an outdoor show held at Ueno Park. The event will feature concerts from both Up Up Girls (2) and Up Up Girls (Pro Wrestling). There will also be a short TJPW show taking place with 4 or 5 matches scheduled to happen.

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024”, 21/07/2024
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. KO-D Openweight Title: Yuki Ueno (c) Vs X

Minoru Suzuki will be on the show, joining Konosuke Takeshita and El Desperado among the first bunch of names announced.


DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 1ST ROUND” Results

May 5, 2024

DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 1ST ROUND”, 05/05/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,025 Fans – No Vacancy

0. Dark Match: Soma Takao, Keigo Nakamura & Yuya Koroku defeated Yuni, Ilusion & Kazuma Sumi when Nakamura pinned Sumi with the Diving Headbutt (9:25).
0. Dark Match: Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga defeated Shunma Katsumata, Akito & Kazuki Hirata when Oishi pinned Hirata with the Jikiden Tornado Clutch (0:09).
0a. Rematch: Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga defeated Shunma Katsumata, Akito & Kazuki Hirata when Oishi pinned Hirata with the Jikiden Tornado Clutch (4:43).
1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1: MAO defeated Poison Sawada JULIE with the Iai Kick (9:16).
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1: To-y defeated KANON with a Frankensteiner (11:09).
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1: Sanshiro Takagi defeated Yuki Ueno with the Stone Cold Stunner (11:09).
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Yuki Iino with the Standing Crossover Face Lock (11:15).
5. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Yukio Naya with the Buchikamashi (14:12).
6. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1: Shuji Ishikawa defeated HARASHIMA with the Giant Slam (13:58).
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1: Tetsuya Endo defeated Danshoku Dieno with the Burning Tanetsuke Press (18:26).
8. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1: Chris Brookes defeated Takeshi Masada with the Praying Mantis Bomb (15:53).

2004 was the year when DDT held its first King Of DDT tournament. It was not held on an annual basis until 2009 but the history of the tournament is filled with winners who have gone on to accomplish many things in DDT and pro wrestling as a whole. This year is the 20th anniversary of the first King Of DDT and the 18th edition of the event. The main show began with all of the 16 participants lining up in the ring for the opening ceremony.

The main event was all about SCHADENFREUDE International as two of its members faced off in the last of the Round 1 matches. Brookes had a special guest with him because Zack Sabre Jr. was there to be in his corner. Takeshi Masada wanted to win badly and tried using the Takatonic and the KOBU Mukimuki. He even tried to withstand the pain from taking an Avalanche Tiger Suplex but at that point Brookes just had to keep up the attack until he won. Masada had one last chance left when he countered the Praying Mantis Bomb but Brookes countered the Mukimuki, hit two Somatos and pinned Masada with the Praying Mantis Bomb. After the match Brookes told Masada that any bad things he said about him at the press conference was lies and he really wanted him to do his best today. Backstage Brookes and Sabre talked up the tag match they are having at “ALL TOGETHER” tomorrow.

Meeting Brookes in the next round is Tetsuya Endo. He had to dig in deep to beat Danshoku Dieno because Dieno was ready to avoid the Burning Star Press at any opportunity. One of the counters Dieno pulled off was a top rope Frankensteiner! He also had Makoto Oishi interfering when the two of them gave Endo the 3D after the referee was knocked out with a Lip Lock. Dieno went into the Hell Gate position over the turnbuckles but it was Oishi who got a face full of the Gate. Endo then grabbed Dieno by the crotch and Headbutted his butt! When Endo climbed the top rope to finally hit the Burning Star Press, Dieno had one last idea to defend himself. He rolled over and stuck his butt into the air daring Endo to jump in. Endo did exactly what Dieno wanted except first he pulled off Dieno’s tights and then hit the Burning Star Press! He was able to turn Dieno over and pin him without exposing anything further to the crowd.

After the match El Desperado unexpectedly entered the ring while Oishi was getting Dieno’s trunks back on him. He has a lot to look forward to this summer but he isn’t here to talk about the Best Of The Super Juniors or his next DDT appearance at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024”. Instead he pulled out two invitations for the “DESPE-INVITACIONAL” event he is holding at Korakuen Hall on 10th June. The two invitations are for Dieno and a wrestler of his choice. If it was up entirely to Desperado he would have wanted his main event to be Pheromones Vs House Of Torture just so he could see Dieno chase EVIL around the ring. Dieno confirmed to him that Pheromones have disbanded and cannot be brought back. Desperado will give him the invitations anyway and trusts Dieno to find a suitable partner so they can do something similar to Pheromones at the show. Dieno asked if that means his partner does not have to be anybody from DDT? Desperado said yes, the choice is all up to Dieno and no one else.

One of the former King Of DDT winners Shuji Ishikawa returned with a bang by eliminating HARASHIMA in Round 1. HARASHIMA was able to kick out of the Splash Mountain, Running Knee Lift, Fire Thunder and also the Kamigoye. But he was a beaten man at that point and was finally put away with the Giant Slam. He will be facing Kazusada Higuchi in the next round and Higuchi met him in the ring after the match to give him a Headbutt! Backstage Ishikawa admitted he needs to improve his own conditioning. When he fights Higuchi he will either strike out or hit a home run. If the latter happens then nothing will stop Ishikawa from winning the tournament and then the KO-D Openweight Title!

Higuchi already got rid of one big boy to advance into Round 2. He beat Yukio Naya by wearing him down with the Brain Claw inbetween the moments of high impact moves between them. Naya finally went down to a series of Headbutts and struggled to get back to his feet to beat the 10 count. When he did stand back up, Higuchi was already in position to run him over with the Buchikamashi for the victory. As mentioned above, Higuchi is eager to face Ishikawa next.

Yuki Iino was almost unstoppable against Daisuke Sasaki but “Charisma” found a way to beat him eventually. Chair shots over the head and interference from MJ Paul didn’t work. Even trying to Spear Iino just had Sasaki bounce off of him. What did work was countering the Spear into a Pedigree in midair. It wasn’t enough to pin Iino but Sasaki was able to give him La Mistica Crossover Face Lock from there. Iino used his power to stand back up but Sasaki would not let go of the hold, keeping it on tight so Iino had no choice but to give up from the pain he was feeling in his shoulder. Sasaki bragged about showing off his power as the strongest wrestler in DDT.

There were a couple of upsets in Round 1. The biggest of perhaps the entire tournament is the KO-D Champion Yuki Ueno losing to Sanshiro Takagi! This year’s King Of DDT looks to be Takagi’s last stand before he takes a break from being a wrestler and he could not have sent out a louder message for everyone to hear. They fought in the crowd so Takagi could knock Ueno down the stairs. Ueno fought back with a Moonsault out of the ring and also a Frog Splash in the ring. But he missed the BME, landing on his feet right there for Takagi to give him the Stunner for the shock three count! Takagi later said if he wins the tournament then he will challenge Ueno for the KO-D Title. Ueno does not want to end this with a loss and thinks Takagi must come challenge him for the title eventually.

The other big upset in the opening round is To-y advancing past KANON. He kept on getting hit with K-Spikes but fought back using the Kojima Wonderland. KANON avoided the Kojima Impace but got caught with a Frankensteiner for the upset loss. He heard KANON’s comments about Hideki Okatani during the week and is sure Okatani was supporting him rather than KANON. All he needs is a 1% chance of winning to turn it into a 100% chance! Meanwhile KANON can’t believe he lost in the first round again. After three years of trying he has never gotten past Round 1 in the King Of DDT.

It was a battle of magic and danger when MAO took on the very first King Of DDT winner Poison Sawada JULIE. The dreaded Snake Magic is Sawada’s main weapon. Using it causes the victim to raise their rattling hand in the air to show that Sawada can then make them do whatever he wants. However it turns out MAO has been learning the same dark magic and used his own version to fight back. The spells ended up knocking out Yukinori Matsui after they were deflected into his direction. MAO then summoned invisible baseball bats rigged with explosives that had its own warning siren to go with it. He and Sawada both hit each other with the bats, causing an invisible explosion every time. Sawada then blinded MAO with Poison Mist but couldn’t get the three count with the Choke Slam or the Maoi Of Easter. MAO had to defend himself from the magic and did so by spitting his own Mist in Sawada’s face. Sawada was then powerless to block the Iai Kick, ending the match and eliminating him from the tournament.

The King Of DDT Round 2 matches on 11th May will be MAO Vs To-y, Sanshiro Takagi Vs Daisuke Sasaki, Kazusada Higuchi Vs Shuji Ishikawa and Tetsuya Endo Vs Chris Brookes.

One of the dark matches ended before Jun Akiyama could even enter the ring so they had to restart it on his orders. His team did their entrance again and the same thing almost happened a second time. However Akiyama was there to stop Oishi from quickly pinning Kazuki Hirata again so everyone could get a chance to wrestle. Later in the match everyone began to fight over the Hirata GO! Glasses. When Akiyama was the last man standing he decided to put them on. Right when he was about to dance Oishi pinned Hirata to cut the music and end the match.

The other dark match had Keigo Nakamura winning the bout for his team. Yuni & Ilusion both did dives onto Soma Takao & Yuya Koroku outside the ring. But Kazuma Sumi couldn’t follow up for his side and got pinned by Nakamura’s Diving Headbutt.

There were a few announcements for some of DDT’s upcoming shows. Minoru Suzuki will be at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2024” on 21st July. There will be a Street Pro Wrestling match held inside a sauna on 21st June with Sayaka Unagi as one of the participants. Unagi will also be at the 20th July Beer Garden show.


King Of DDT 2024 Press Conference

May 3, 2024

DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 1ST ROUND”, 05/05/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

0. Dark Match: Yuni, Keigo Nakamura & Yuya Koroku Vs Ilusion, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
0. Dark Match: Shunma Katsumata, Akito & Kazuki Hirata Vs Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga
1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1A: MAO Vs Poison Sawada JULIE
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1B: KANON Vs To-y
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1C: Yuki Ueno Vs Sanshiro Takagi
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1D: Yuki Iino Vs Daisuke Sasaki
5. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1E: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yukio Naya
6. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1F: HARASHIMA Vs Shuji Ishikawa
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1G: Tetsuya Endo Vs Danshoku Dieno
8. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1H: Chris Brookes Vs Takeshi Masada

A press conference was held at yesterday’s DDT fanfest featuring 14 of the 16 entrants in this year’s King Of DDT tournament. Takeshi Masada could not be there due to university commitments but sent in a message. The message said Masada does not want to get knocked out in the first round like he did last year. He will be in the main event against his stablemate Chris Brookes. Masada has learned a lot from being in SCHADENFREUDE International and sees this match as a challenge to surpass his friend. Brookes is last year’s winner and he brought the trophy with him. He is motivated to win the tournament again and go all the way to winning back the KO-D Openweight Title. However he admits he felt a little aimless after he lost the KO-D Title last year. He’s still motivated but felt something was missing.

Elsewhere Tetsuya Endo’s match against Danshoku Dieno has more meaning to it than you would think. Endo’s recent luck in King Of DDT hasn’t been good but he feels he has gotten into shape after winning the New Year’s Eve trios tournament and raching the final of the D-Oh Grand Prix. However Dieno means so much to DDT that Endo admits he is not as good of a pro wrestler as Dieno is. He thinks Dieno does not realize that though and for that reason Endo is confident he will win. Dieno said he is only concentrating on this match and has done a lot of studying for it. His entire game plan is going to be based around Endo using the Burning Star Press. He knows how to avoid it and also how to counter it. The percentage of him succeeding is low but if Dieno can nail the timing of the Burning Star Press being used against him, he can find a way to exploit it and beat Endo.

It’s been a while since a HARASHIMA Vs Shuji Ishikawa match has happened. HARASHIMA is well aware of his big and strong Ishikawa is. He is also a believer that tomorrow is when a person will reach their peak so he will be stronger too. Both of them are evolving so he does not expect the match to be identical to their previous fights against each other. Ishikawa understands it takes a lot of training at his age to keep fit and HARASHIMA is older than he is. He had seen Yuki Ueno wrestle at Korkauen Hall last month and it made him realise all of DDT’s champions right now are young. He intends to last forever though. He also feels emotional about the tournament because he missed so many of them due to his affiliation with Union Pro at the time. When he finally got to have a proper go it was as an independant wrestler in 2016 and he won it that year. His hope is he will face Poison Sawada JULIE in the final.

An illness prevented Kazusada Higuchi from being at the event but he had a message written out for everyone. His thought process is the same, he will take it one match at a time. His 1st Round opponent is Yukio Naya so he will be focused the most on beating him. Naya is trying to repeat his success from the D-Oh Grand Prix so he can get another shot at the KO-D Title. He believes his momentum began when he beat Higuchi at the 2022 D-Oh GP. He wants to beat him again to take his place as the center of DDT’s heavyweight division.

There is a lot going on is Daisuke Sasaki’s mind. He knows if Yuki Iino hits him with the Spear in Round 1 it will be all over for him. However Sasaki realized some of the best wrestlers in the world right now like Jon Moxley, Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns are all 38 years old. He is 38 years old so that means he is going to win! Iino has never beaten Sasaki in a singles match but is confident he can do it because of the Spear. He doesn’t know what direction it will come from but he will hit it. Also if age is a factor then Iino at 29 is the same as Shohei Ohtani and Yuzuru Hanyu. That means he is going to win, not Sasaki!

Sanshiro Takagi’s entry into the tournament has caught the attention of the wrestling press because of his age and also who he is facing in Round 1. The 54 year old is taking on the KO-D Champion Yuki Ueno! He told Ueno that when he was his age it was a year into DDT’s existence and he worked as hard as he could to keep the company from collapsing. He wants to fight Ueno like he is 28 again. In order to do that he is thinking about visiting beauty salons and saunas to build up his stamina for a possible 60 minute long match. He also wants to keep his promise to Konosuke Takeshita. The promise is Takagi wins the KO-D Title one more time, Takeshita wins a singles title in AEW and the two of them will have a champion versus champion match together. Takeshita recently showing intentions to challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Title has only made Takagi’s wish become stronger. Ueno’s entire reign as champion has been about him proving he is the ace of DDT. Fighting the company president continues that story and will provide a look into DDT’s future. He will be in the main event of next week’s “ALL TOGETHER” show and wants to convey the fun that DDT brings to wrestling at that event.

It is To-y’s dream to win the KO-D Title so he is all revved up to be in the King Of DDT. KANON was unusually serious when he talked about looking forward to the match. He offered a handshake but To-y didn’t trust him. That caused KANON to burst into tears and claim he was told by Hideki Okatani to win the tournament. He then flipped out and attacked To-y putting him in the Cobra Twist. To-y promised to get revenge afterward.

There is a lot of nostalgia surrounding this year’s tournament because it is the 20th anniversary of the first one. The very first winner Poison Sawada JULIE is not feeling that nostalgia. He knows just how clever and tricky MAO is to fight. He is going to be careful but is confident he will win because of his magic spells. MAO said this year’s tournament is the turning point of DDT and he is that turning point. He has a counter for Sawada’s spells and that is to point somewhere so Sawada loses attention and then punch him in the face. Sawada sees the funny side of MAO’s idea and suggested the entire match just be them casting spells at each other.


King Of DDT 2024 Brackets

April 12, 2024

DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 1ST ROUND”, 05/05/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1A: MAO Vs Poison Sawada JULIE
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1B: KANON Vs To-y
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1C: Yuki Ueno Vs Sanshiro Takagi
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1D: Yuki Iino Vs Daisuke Sasaki
5. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1E: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yukio Naya
6. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1F: HARASHIMA Vs Shuji Ishikawa
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1G: Tetsuya Endo Vs Danshoku Dieno
8. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1H: Chris Brookes Vs Takeshi Masada

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DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 2ND ROUND”, 11/05/2024
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Winner Of Match 1A Vs Winner Of Match 1B
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Winner Of Match 1C Vs Winner Of Match 1D
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Winner Of Match 1E Vs Winner Of Match 1F
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Winner Of Match 1G Vs Winner Of Match 1H

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DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ FINAL!!”, 26/05/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Semi Final: X Vs X
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Semi Final: X Vs X
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Final: X Vs X


King Of DDT 20th Anniversary

March 18, 2024

The longest running tournament in DDT is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Just ignore the 4 year absence during the middle to late 2000s. This time round the King Of DDT tournament is filled up with previous winners and finalists along with parts of the modern roster making up the field of 16 participants. Every match in the tournament will have no time limit. The semi final pairings will be determined with a lottery after Round 2 has completed. The list of entries this year are:

Poison Sawada JULIE (3rd Appearance, 2004 Winner)
Sanshiro Takagi (6th Appearance, 2009 Runner Up)
Danshoku Dieno (8th Appearance, 2012 Runner Up)
HARASHIMA (15th Appearance, 2010 & 2013 Winner)
Shuji Ishikawa (3rd Appearance, 2016 Winner)
Tetsuya Endo (8th Appearance, 2017 & 2020 Winner)
Daisuke Sasaki (13th Appearance, 2018 Winner)
Kazusada Higuchi (10th Appearance, 2022 Winner)
Chris Brookes (5th Appearance, 2023 Winner)
Yuki Ueno (7th Appearance)
MAO (6th Appearance)
Yuki Iino (4th Appearance)
Yukio Naya (4th Appearance)
KANON (3rd Appearance)
Takeshi Masada (2nd Appearance)
The D GENERATIONS CUP 2024 Winner

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DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 1ST ROUND”, 05/05/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1A: X Vs X
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1B: X Vs X
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1C: X Vs X
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1D: X Vs X
5. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1E: X Vs X
6. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1F: X Vs X
7. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1G: X Vs X
8. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 1H: X Vs X

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DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ 2ND ROUND”, 11/05/2024
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Winner Of Match 1A Vs Winner Of Match 1B
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Winner Of Match 1C Vs Winner Of Match 1D
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Winner Of Match 1E Vs Winner Of Match 1F
4. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Round 2: Winner Of Match 1G Vs Winner Of Match 1H

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DDT “KING OF DDT ~20TH ANNIVERSARY~ FINAL!!”, 26/05/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Semi Final: X Vs X
2. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Semi Final: X Vs X
3. King Of DDT 20th Anniversary – Final: X Vs X


DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024” Results

January 28, 2024

DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024”, 28/01/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,120 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Special 10-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Tomoya, Antonio Honda, Takeshi Masada & Kazuma Sumi defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi, Akito, Shinichiro Kawamatsu & Yuni when Sumi pinned Yuni with a School Boy (7:07).
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & Bryan Keith (w/ MJ Paul) defeated Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Rukiya after KANON pinned Rukiya with the Freedom Call (8:39).
3. Yukio Sakaguchi Korakuen Final Match ~ Special Single Match: Yukio Sakaguchi defeated Hideki Okatani with the God’s Right Knee (5:42).
4. MAO Birthday Commemorative Match: MAO & TAKA Michinoku defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi when MAO pinned Takanashi with the Cannonball 450 (8:45).
5. DDT Extreme Title – Who Is The Fated One!? Toy Kojima Challenge Death Match: Shunma Katsumata defeated Kazuki Hirata (c) (8:33).
5a. Kazuki Hirata pinned Shunma Katsumata with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (0:57).
*Toy Kojima fails his challenge.
5b. Shunma Katsumata submitted Kazuki Hirata with a Crab Hold (4:04).
*Toy Kojima fails his challenge.
5c. Kazuki Hirata pinned Shunma Katsumata with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (7:42).
*Toy Kojima fails his challenge.
5d. Shunma Katsumata pinned Kazuki Hirata with a School Boy (8:33).
*Toy Kojima passes his challenge. Kazuki Hirata fails in V6. Shunma Katsumata becomes the 59th DDT Extreme Champion!
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles – DEAD OR ALIVE Contra DEAD OR ALIVE: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) defeated Hikaru Sato, Kazusada Higuchi & Ryo Kawamura when Oishi pinned Kawamura with the Jikiden Tornado Clutch (8:20).
*V3 for D.O.A.
7. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated Naruki Doi with the Wagamama (10:58).
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Yuki Ueno (c) defeated Yukio Naya with the Twister (23:35).
*V1 for Yuki Ueno.

Yuki Ueno’s run as KO-D Openweight Champion has just begun and in his first defence he put down Yukio Naya, shutting down the D-Oh Grand Prix winner’s momentum. The champion went for big dives from the get go but took high risk damage of his own when Naya gave him an Avalanche Choke Slam. Naya also blocked the BME with his knees and used a Wrist-Clutch Back Drop. Ueno was only able to break the pin thanks to a rope break. He switched to using Dropkicks and got a nearfall with the BME. Naya tried fighting back using Knee Strikes but Ueno grabbed him in a Face Lock and pulled him into a Twister hold, making Naya give up. After the match Ueno said Naya has nothing to be ashamed about. He is a great wrestler not because he crawled from the bottom up to the top but because he uses pro wrestling to stand up for himself. Ueno will take what he learned from Naya today and carry them on his own shoulders.

Ueno was told the next KO-D Title defence is scheduled for 17th March. He expected to hear that and already has an opponent in mind. He wants to defend the KO-D Title against Danshoku Dieno and he is willing to do it before the mandatory March defence. The 37KAMIINA will be holding a produce show in Shinjuku FACE on 14th February and Ueno can defend the title against Dieno there. Sanshiro Takagi entered the ring and told Ueno his request cannot be met. The KO-D Title is DDT’s top championship and its matches need to attract large audiences. Ueno explained he does not want this match for the venue size or as an easy title defence. He chooses Dieno because Dieno is the most amazing guy and interesting wrestler in DDT. Takagi accepted his reasoning and gave permission for the match to go ahead. Dieno told Ueno what he said to Jun Akiyama three years ago. He knows the champ will not let him win and DDT does not want him to become the KO-D Champion but if you flash the belt in front of his face he is going to want it! And if he does win the belt who knows what direction he will take DDT in!

The semi-main event was a first time ever meeting between Konosuke Takeshita and Naruki Doi. Takeshita dealt a big blow by giving Doi a Brainbuster on the floor outside the ring. Back in the ring Doi had to rely on speed to try and keep one step ahead of his opponent’s power. He used the V9 Clutch to counter a Lariat for a nearfall. There was one power spot Doi got the better of. That was for a Brainbuster that led to the Doi 555 and Bakatare Sliding Kick combo for another two count. Takeshita blocked the Muscular Bomb and used Doi’s rolling attempt to throw him over with a German Suplex. He then hit the Wagamama to get the victory. Takeshita called it a fun match that made him feel like Takeshita the young wrestling fan again. He never forgets that feeling wherever he goes. He wants to fight Doi again and next time it should be in America.

The D.O.A branding is safe again for the time being. The name was up for grabs along with the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles for the second time after Hikaru Sato complained about his catchphrase being stolen by them. Akiyama was the first one to stand against Sato and Kazusada Higuchi in the ring. Ryo Kawamura ended up sparring with Dieno and made the mistake of putting him in a Triangle Choke. Makoto Oishi kept trying to bring out wasabi and eventually succeeded in wiping it over Dieno’s backside. Both of them regretted it when Kawamura shoved Oishi face first in there but Oishi recovered and flash pinned Kawamura with the Jikiden Tornado Clutch. He celebrated the successful title defence by saying he is well aware that other people use the phrase “Dead Or Alive” so we are all D.O.A! He hoped Akiyama & Dieno would join in but he was left alone in the ring. Sato questioned if the team really are D.O.A because they show no intentions of staying alive and act like they only want to die.

The fate of the DDT Extreme Title all rested on Toy Kojima’s shoulders. Kazuki Hirata and Shunma Katsumata were wrestling each other under 2-Count Fall rules for the belt but the match result would only stand if Kojima could pass a challenge given to him backstage. He didn’t have to wait long for his first task because Hirata pinned Katsumata with the Miracle One Shot Cradle in under a minute. Kojima had to endure bumps for 30 seconds but he couldn’t so the match restarted. Katsumata then submitted Hirata with a Crab Hold so Kojima’s task was to drink a bottle of cola in one go. He couldn’t do that either. Hirata pinned Katsumata with the Miracle Cradle again so Kojima had to play Pop-Up Pirate for 10 turns without losing. He lost in the first turn. Katsumata used a School Boy to pin Hirata so Kojima had to play with a Kendama toy. He was given three goals to swing the ball onto the cup. He did it on his third and final go, making Katsumata the new Extreme Champion!

Katsumata thanked Hirata for coming up with such a fun ruleset. He also announced that after talking with the other members of the group, Kazuki Hirata has been accepted as the newest member of The 37KAMIINA! Unfortunately Hirata changed his mind and no longer wants to be part of the team. Why? Because he wants to create his own brand new unit instead! He later found Naruki Doi backstage and kept pestering him to join this new stable. Doi is reluctant but may have been talked into joining. Meanwhile Katsumata was asked for who he wants his challenger to be for his first defence on 17th March. He suggested Hideki Okatani so they could renew their rivalry over the title. However MJ Paul then came out to attack Okatani, handed Katsumata a piece of paper saying he wanted to challenge him and then he attacked Katsumata too. Katsumata and Okatani worked together to fend off Paul’s attack. Hisaya Imabayashi came up with a solution. Okatani and Paul will face each other on 7th February and the winner will get the title shot for 17th March.

MAO was having a big birthday bash and invited the likes of TAKA Michinoku and CDK to be at the party. One present he got was to be the headpiece of the Kaientai spot with poor Masahiro Takanashi being the victim. Somehow Chris Brookes got to be on the good side of that present. CDK fought back using their double team moves to wrap their opponents into each other but it couldn’t get them the win. Instead TAKA dropped Takanashi with the Michinoku Driver II and MAO pinned him with the Cannonball 450. MAO is happy to start off being 27 years old with a win. He said no matter where his career goes, TAKA Michinoku’s name will always be around him because he is his hero. TAKA said he is proud to be an influence to people outside of K-DOJO and JTO. He calls MAO one of the few genius young wrestlers he’s seen and that geniuses often don’t see it in themselves. He is sure he can become the KO-D Champion some day. CDK were disappointed to lose but everyone in SCHADENFREUDE International was happy to see Brookes be healthy and wrestle again.

Today was the final time Yukio Sakaguchi would wrestle in Korakuen Hall. He was given a singles match against his former Eruption teammate Hideki Okatani for the occasion. It was a chance for Sakaguchi to test how Okatani could fight by himself. Okatani took all the kicks he could and fought back with the Double Arm Suplex. But Sakaguchi blocked the Quetzalcoatl and put Okatani down with the God’s Right Knee to end the match. His message to Okatani backstage was to ask what is his strength? He needs to find that answer in order to change from what he is now. Okatani thanked Sakaguchi for the lesson and will use the DDT ring to show him what he learned.

The services of Bryan Keith were used by DAMNATION T.A to fight what’s currently left of BURNING along with Rukiya. MJ Paul interfered to take the Spear from Yuki Iino instead of KANON. Keith used the Emerald Tiger Driver on Rukiya then left him for the others to pick at the pieces. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON used a Vietnam Driver & Diving Elbow combination called the Freedom Call to finish Rukiya off. Sasaki called BURNING worthless and thinks the group should disband. KANON made fun of them, telling them to go home and drink their mothers’ protein. Iino complained about KANON needing Paul’s help because he doesn’t want to take the Spear. Tetsuya Endo thinks he needs to improve his accuracy because today’s performance wasn’t up to snuff. But he is confident that if he and Iino hit DAMNATION T.A right, they will win the KO-D Tag Team Titles from them.

The opening match went ahead with No Tag Rules. Takagi quickly gave Kazuma Sumi the Stunner but was then caught in a Train Attack that included the referee getting involved. HARASHIMA and Toru Owashi got to fight each other until Akito came in to target HARASHIMA’s leg. So did Tomoya and Shinichiro Kawamatsu in what turned out to be a battle between pro wrestling politicians. Antonio Honda paused the match for his Gongitsune joke but it backfired. Yuni gave Takeshi Masada a Tornado DDT but then missed a Moonsault aimed for Sumi. That allowed Sumi to roll up the school boy with the School Boy for the win.

The first set of wrestlers to enter this year’s King Of DDT are a mix of previous winners and finalists to mark the 20th Anniversary of the tournament. Poison Sawada JULIE (2004 winner), Sanshiro Takagi (2009 finalist), Danshoku Dieno (2012 finalist), HARASHIMA (2010 & 2013 winner, 2017 finalist) and Shuji Ishikawa (2016 winner) have all been announced to be taking part.

Kaisei Takechi’s debut match on 25th February has him teaming up with Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata. They will be against Tetsuya Endo, Hideki Okatani & Takeshi Masada.


DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN KORAKUEN HALL” Results

December 24, 2023

DDT “D-OH GRAND PRIX 2023 IN KORAKUEN HALL”, 24/12/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
761 Fans – No Vacancy

-. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Rei Saito (8) defeated Chris Brookes (2) by Forfeit.
1. KANON & MJ Paul defeated Yukio Sakaguchi & Rukiya when KANON submitted Rukiya with the Torture Cobra Twist (4:57).
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal ~ Toru Owashi Return Match: Toru Owashi defeated The Great Koji (c), Sanshiro Takagi, Kazuki Hirata, Akito, Kazuma Sumi and Poison Sawada JULIE (10:21).
2a. Sanshiro Takagi eliminated Akito by Over The Top Rope (8:25).
2b. Sanshiro Takagi eliminated Kazuma Sumi by Over The Top Rope (8:25).
2c. Sanshiro Takagi eliminated Kazuki Hirata by Over The Top Rope (8:25).
2d. Poison Sawada JULIE eliminated Sanshiro Takagi by Over The Top Rope (8:25).
2e. Poison Sawada JULIE eliminated The Great Koji (c) with the Cattle Mutilation (10:08).
*Poison Sawada JULIE becomes the 1,597th champion.
2f. Toru Owashi defeated Poison Sawada JULIE (c) with a School Boy (10:21).
*Toru Owashi becomes the 1,598th champion.
3. Special Single Match: Rei Saito defeated Hideki Okatani with the Drill-A-Hole Piledriver (4:43).
4. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) defeated Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada when Oishi pinned Honda with a Rotating Cradle (10:41).
*V1 for D.O.A.
5. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – B Block: Yukio Naya (8) defeated MAO (6) with The World’s Best Back Drop (10:58).
6. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: HARASHIMA (4) defeated Daisuke Sasaki (5) with the Somato (6:37).
7. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Yuki Iino (4) defeated Yuki Ueno (5) with the Spear (8:14).
8. D-Oh Grand Prix 2023 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo (6) defeated Kazusada Higuchi (6) with the Burning Star Press (20:37).
Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Christmas Tree defeated Toru Owashi (c) with a Body Press (1:39 pm).
*Christmas Tree becomes the 1,599th champion.

A Block

1. Tetsuya Endo (6)
-. Kazusada Higuchi (6)
3. Yuki Ueno (5)
-. Daisuke Sasaki (5)
5. Yuki Iino (4)
-. HARASHIMA (4)

B Block

1. Yukio Naya (8)
-. Rei Saito (8)
3. MAO (6)
4. KANON (4)
5. Kazuki Hirata (2)
-. Chris Brookes (2)

Back from the brink, Tetsuya Endo has won the A Block but only just! The last day of group matches in the D-Ou Grand Prix took place at Korakuen Hall on Christmas Eve. Every remaining A Block match had somebody fighting to finish in first so they will qualify for the grand final. The other potential challengers all fell at the final hurdle leaving it all on the line in the main event between Endo and Kazusada Higuchi. Throughout the tournament Endo has been using the Rolling Chop taught to him by Kenta Kobashi. The move here was not enough to put down Higuchi so Endo came up with an even more dangerous idea from Kobashi’s moveset. He wanted to do the Torture Rack Bomb but Higuchi grabbed him with the Brain Claw. Endo resisted and turned the Torture Rack into a Sitout Burning Hammer! He was then able to do the Spinning Torture Rack Bomb but Higuchi kicked out. Endo then hit the Burning Star Press and this time Higuchi was done for, ending the A Block with Endo heading to the final!

The other two frontrunners in the A Block both collapsed, leading to Endo to overtake them. Yuki Ueno was knocked for a loop thanks to Yuki Iino’s Spear. The first one was blocked with a Dropkick but when Ueno went for the WR, Iino countered it with a short-range Spear and pinned last year’s D-Oh winner in an upset! Iino calls the result a very precious victory and he will use this momentum to keep evolving into the next year. Ueno said whether he won or lost in this tournament, he is still the KO-D Openweight Champion coming out of it. He thinks it is still up to him to carry DDT over his back.

Daisuke Sasaki saw his chances of reaching the final blow up in flames thanks to HARASHIMA. Even with MJ Paul at ringside helping him behind the ref’s back, Sasaki fell to the Somato in short order. HARASHIMA credits his battleplan for the win because you have to be careful fighting against Sasaki. He isn’t pleased with only getting 4 points in the tournament but it will spur him on to train harder for next year. Sasaki meanwhile was so upset over his failure to win the Grand Prix that he decided to retire! Then he got cold feet and convinced a nearby reporter to grant permission for him to delay the retirement for one year.

Meeting Endo in the final is Yukio Naya in the B Block. There was only one match left in that group and Naya needed to win or else Rei Saito would go to the final instead. MAO was out of the running due to circumstances out of his control but he still fought like he had a chance to qualify. But despite using the match to get his frustrations out, MAO was hit with Knee Strike after Knee Strike, including one with his kneepad pulled down. It was all over for MAO when he was given The World’s Best Back Drop. He wasn’t happy about the result and complained about Naya not showing enough spirit when he fight. It has MAO wondering if Naya really wants to win this?

So the D-Oh final comes down to Endo against Naya. The two had a standoff in the ring after Endo’s match. Naya called Endo as amazing wrestler and Naya has to surpass amazing wrestlers to make up for last year’s defeat in the final. He wants to be the best not just in DDT but also all of Japanese pro wrestling so he cannot afford to lose now. Endo said Naya is bigger than him but not as strong. On 3rd January keep your eyes on Endo because he promises to crush Naya!

D.O.A might be getting a little ahead of themselves by accepting more title challengers than they need to but right now they look like they can handle the pressure. Their first KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles defence was a successful one against Schadenfreude International. The match saw Jun Akiyama using his own Gongitsune to combat Antonio Honda’s version. Things were looking bad when Masahiro Takanashi & Takeshi Masada blocked Danshoku Dieno’s Wasabi Lip Lock. But Makoto Oishi maneuvered Honda to run face first into Dieno’s backside and Oishi then rolled him up for the victory. Even though the champions won, Dieno was in agony because he still had the wasabi stuck in his mouth. Their next defence will be against Bodyguard’s Osaka team on 6th January. That match also has the D.O.A name on the line!

Rei Saito went into today’s show with a forfeit win over Chris Brookes. So with no tournament match Saito instead fought Hideki Okatani in a singles match between an AJPW World Tag Team Champion and an All Asia Tag Team Champion. Okatani had some chances to win but Saito was too big to let the Quetzalcoatl be used against him. Saito used his strength to turn things around and beat Okatani with the Drill-A-Hole Piledriver. Saito is still booked for 3rd January and so is his brother Jun Saito. Since the D-Oh final is no longer on the cards for Rei, The Saito Brothers are instead challenging DDT to give them a tag team to fight. Meanwhile Okatani promised to get revenge on Rei no matter if it is in DDT, All Japan or anywhere else!

The return of Toru Owashi from injury has him back in his natural role. He is and always will be the straight man in a comedy Battle Royal. The Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title was on the line as The Great Koji emerged from Parts Unknown against a field of challengers including a mystery opponent. That mystery wrestler turned out to be the championship’s creator Poison Sawada JULIE! He used his Snake Magic on Sanshiro Takagi forcing him to eliminate Akito, Kazuma Sumi and Kazuki Hirata one by one until JULIE eliminated Takagi by himself. Great Koji armed himself with a sickle and resisted JULIE’s magic at first but the spell eventually overpowered him. JULIE then applied his version of the Cattle Mutilation, forcing Koji to give up. JULIE was not the Iron Man champion but Owashi quickly pinned him with a School Boy to win the belt and the match.

Afterwards Takagi attacked JULIE and they fought their way to the back. Owashi stayed in the ring so he could thank the fans for their support during his recovery. Backstage he also made a decision to disband DISASTER BOX! Over the last five months Owashi has seen Hirata grow up and learn to take care of himself. The reason why DISASTER BOX stuck around for so long was so Owashi & HARASHIMA could look after Hirata but now that is no longer needed. Hirata is now walking down a new path, Owashi feels lucky he still has time to be a pro wrestler and HARASHIMA is fighting to remain the ace of DDT so the time is right for DISASTER BOX to end. The unit may come back in the future because it has been revived before. Also the three of them can still team together in some form whenever DDT tells them to so Hirata thinks not much is going to change from this decision.

Both KANON & MJ Paul were interested in fighting Yukio Sakaguchi because he is one half of the All Asia Tag Champions. So KANON felt a bit let down when he had to beat up Rukiya instead. At least DAMNATION T.A are having a year end drinking party at Sasaki’s house to make up for that disappointment.

At the very end of the show everyone came down to the ring dressed in Santa Claus outfits to celebrate Christmas with the fans. Hirata talked about how great DDT is and how he cannot wait for 2024. He then suddenly attacked Owashi with a Christmas Tree and everybody piled on top of them to try and win the Iron Man Title! Yukinori Matsui counted the pin and then seperated the pile of bodies to figure out who won. Everyone was pulled away until the only thing left directly lying on Owashi was the tree. Which means the Christmas Tree is the new Iron Man Champion! Takagi ordered everybody not to attack the tree because it is fitting for it to become a champion on Christmas Eve. Ueno closed out the show telling fans DDT in 2024 will make dreams come true for everyone!

The team challenging for the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles on 5th January have chosen the replacement for Chris Brookes. Taking his place for the title match is Takayuki Ueki. That means the team is not fighting as Schadenfreude International but instead representing Baka Gaijin + Friends!

DDT will be holding two outdoor Beer Garden shows in Tokyo Ueno Park on 21st and 26th March.


DDT “DRAMATIC DREAM TOUR 2022 IN YOKOHAMA” Results

June 25, 2022

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAM TOUR 2022 IN YOKOHAMA”, 25/06/2022
Yokohama Radiant Hall
190 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya defeated HARASHIMA & Hideki Okatani when Naya pinned Okatani with the Back Drop (10:02).
2. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Akito “Cochin” Nishigaki defeated Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & Soma Takao when Iino submitted Hirata after the Pheromones Chokoku-No-Mori (12:51).
3. DAMNATION T.A Vs The Iyasareru!: Daisuke Sasaki & KANON defeated Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda when KANON submitted Honda with the Medusa (13:18).
4. Naomi Yoshimura defeated Yuya Koroku with the Harai Goshi (9:21).
5. BURNING Vs Eruption!: Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi defeated Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada when Higuchi pinned Okada with the Brain Claw Slam (10:17).
6. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno, MAO, Shunma Katsumata, Toi Kojima & Shinya Aoki defeated Poison Sawada JULIE, Takashi Sasaki, GENTARO, MIKAMI & Thanomsak Toba (w/ Naomi Susan) (c) when Kojima submitted Toba with the Modified Triangle Choke (19:38).
*Legend-gun fails in V2. The 37KAMIINA & Shinya Aoki become the 8th KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Champions!

The allied forces of Shinya Aoki & The 37KAMIINA have defeated Legend-gun to becomes the new KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Champions! It was a big day for Toi Kojima most of all because he was the one to pick up the win. It was a close match all around but the final minutes came down to Kojima and Thanomsak Toba. Kojima had a recent bad experience with kickboxing at Korakuen Hall and things looked like it would be the same here. But Kojima knocked Toba to the mat and locked him into a Triangle Choke for the submission victory. Kojima said he was finally able to take the next step forward and win for The 37KAMIINA. He told Yuki Ueno to use this momentum for the King Of DDT final rounds next month.

Poison Sawada JULIE said he was caught off guard because nobody had ever used towels to counter his magic spells before. He doesn’t care about regaining the 10-Man Tag Titles. Instead he wants a singles match with his long time enemy Sanshiro Takagi! Some of the other members of Legend-gun were more positive over the experience. Takashi Sasaki accepts that their opponents represent the current era of DDT. He wants to get more of a taste of what current DDT is like. MIKAMI congratulates the new champions but if they ever act disgracefully he warns Legend-gun will come back to put them in their place!

King Of DDT semi finalists Kazusada Higuchi and Jun Akiyama faced off in a tag team bout. Higuchi came out on top although it was over Yusuke Okada instead of Akiyama. Higuchi said he knew he would win today. He will beat Akiyama again in the semi finals. He thinks he cannot afford to lose after Akiyama beat Yukio Sakaguchi in Round 1.

Naomi Yoshimura thanked Yuya Koroku for their match but said Koroku is not at the level to beat him yet. He is still too lukewarm. After eliminating HARASHIMA in Round 2, Yoshimura is absolutely confident he will go on to win King Of DDT and become the new KO-D Openweight Champion.

Daisuke Sasaki demanded The Iyasareru/CDK to cancel their challenge for the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles because he thinks Antonio Honda is too boring to qualify for a title shot. Sasaki later said the titles aren’t worth much to begin with but even then Honda does not deserve a shot. Honda defended himself and said he only lost today’s match because of a mistake. KANON made him submit to the Medusa, which is the new name of his Just Cobra Twist finisher. Honda promises the title match in Nagoya will be so great it will make everyone in the audience suffer nosebleeds from the excitement.

Before the Pheromones match began, Hisaya Imabayashi wanted to know if Yuki Iino has decided on his next challenger for the DDT Extreme Title. Instead Danshoku Dieno said they would use this match to determine a suitable candidate. After the match Dieno claimed there was nobody worthy of facing Iino for the belt. Suddenly Akito “Cochin” Nishigaki raised his hand and volunteered for the match! The rest of Pheromones were in disbelief and told him he cannot challenge another member while he is in the group. He decided he can then leave Pheromones challenge as just Akito because he loves the Extreme Title the most out of any championship in DDT. Iino accepted the deal and did a pinky swear with Akito before attacking him with the rest of Pheromones joining in. They stripped Akito of his gear and left him beaten in the ring. The title match will happen in Nagoya on 16th July. Backstage Akito said he doesn’t care about Pheromones anymore and instead wants the Extreme Title back to express the pro wrestling that he wants to do.

The mystery foreign wrestler entering DDT next month is Andrew “The Giant” Everett! He is the 175cm tall (although he claims he is 223cm tall) high flying giant of the American indies. He will team with Chris Brookes on 3rd July and will also wrestle on the 7th. Everett was scouted by Konosuke Takeshita recently and received his full endorsement. That is what brings him over to DDT.