Endo Brings In Kobashi, STOP THE Hidaka, DDT Centres Around Sauna Club

February 9, 2021

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “POSITIVE CHAIN”, 11/02/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Marika Kobashi & Moka Miyamoto Vs Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko
2. Yuna Manase, Nao Kakuta & Raku Vs Hikari Noa, Mahiro Kiryu & Sena Shiori
3. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo
4. Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel
5. International Princess Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Mirai Maiumi
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino (c) Vs Shin Ultra Shoko & Hyper Misao
7. Princess Of Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) Vs Miu Watanabe

The match order has been decided.

BASARA “BASARA 148 ~TAKAGARI~”, 13/02/2021
Takashimadaira Ward Community Center

1. Ryota Nakatsu Vs Takato Nakano
2. Fuminori Abe Vs Masato Kamino
3. Daiki Shimomura Vs SAGAT
4. Isami Kodaka Vs Akiyori Takizawa
5. 8-Man Tag Team Elimination Match: Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano, Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga Vs FUMA, Yusuke Kubo, Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Daichi Kazato

The Union MAX Champion and his next challenger will be on the same team in the Elimination match. Yasu Urano has shown a greedy side lately but can he keep it under control when it’s time to cooperate with Takumi Tsukamoto?

This is the first time all four members of Asian Kung Fu Revolution are teaming together.

DDT “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021”, 14/02/2021
Culttz Kawasaki

1. Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani Vs Yusuke Okada & Toui Kojima
2. Yuki Iino Return Match ~ DAMNATION Vs ALL OUT!: Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino Vs Konosuke Takeshita, Akito, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino
3. Super Joshi War ~Blooming Flowers~: Saki Akai & Maya Yukihi Vs Saori Anou & Miyako Matsumoto
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Super Delfin, Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh Vs MAO, Keigo Nakamura & Mirai Maiumi
5. Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Yuji Okabayashi Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya
6. KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Titles: Sanshiro Takagi, Danshoku Dieno, Toru Owashi & Makoto Oishi Vs Shinya Aoki, Super Sasadango Machine, Antonio Honda & Kazuki Hirata
7. DDT UNIVERSAL Title: Yuki Ueno (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Jun Akiyama

When we last left Tetsuya Endo, he teased about having a secret training partner to help him prepare for Jun Akiyama. His only hint was this trainer is somebody who knows Akiyama inside and out. Well the secret has been revealed and that trainer is Kenta Kobashi! Endo has been training at Kobashi’s fitness gym in Tokyo after he approached Kobashi for advice. Kobashi knew about Endo beating Akiyama during the D-Ou Grand Prix but explained that a tournament match is different from a championship match. Akiyama won’t allow himself to lose to the same opponent twice in a row. He will also be more ruthless because he is now a freelancer and failing to win a championship will affect his wrestling career more than usual. His advice to Endo is to ruthlessly target Akiyama’s knees, especially the left one that he just had surgery on. If Endo can make Akiyama panic, then Endo has a chance to win. Simply doing the same stuff he did in the Grand Prix match won’t work a second time. Kobashi wants Endo to be bold and dynamic to broaden his wrestling style.

Kobashi is throwing his support behind Endo to defend the KO-D Openweight Title. He hopes to see Endo get fired up to do the Shooting Star Press just like he he used to fire up before doing the Moonsault. He also gave Endo dating advice when he found out Endo is single. Endo explained his type to him. He likes women with big boobs such as Tomomi Morisaki. Kobashi bragged about meeting Morisaki at a public event just one month ago. Also as a champion, he explained if Endo treats the belt well the belt will be happy and will always come back to him.

Kobashi will attend the show to provide special guest commentary for the main event. Akiyama has since pointed out that whenever Kobashi appears to watch his title matches, he usually wins.

Yuki Ueno is hoping to clear out all of his bitter memories of Yukio Sakaguchi beating him up. If he successfully defends the DDT UNIVERSAL Title against him then he can spend the rest of 2021 having fun and loving saunas. Ueno has been getting advice from Shinya Aoki to prepare for the match. Sakaguchi thinks the message that has been sent over the last few weeks is he’s strong while Ueno is weak. The two met for commemorative photo during the week and Sakaguchi tried to grab the belt from Ueno. Ueno told him if he wants to take pictures with the belt he should win it on the 14th. Sakaguchi punched Ueno in the stomach and posed with the belt.

Most of the women are excited for their match. Saki Akai & Maya Yukihi are motivated to team together and even form a competitive rivalry of some sort. Saori Anou on the other hand isn’t pleased to be teaming with Miyako Matsumoto. She would much rather be on the same team as Akai or Yukihi. Matsumoto says the best thing about DDT is anything is possible and you are free to do anything. To her the charm of joshi wrestling is not just the glitter but also the grime. She wants Anou to understand that so they can work as a team.

BASARA “BASARA 149 ~GLITTER~”, 16/02/2021
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Daichi Kazato Vs Takato Nakano
2. Handicap Match: Minoru Fujita, Gouma & Rekka Vs FUMA & Yusuke Kubo
3. Jacket Match: Ryota Nakatsu Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
4. Takumi Tsukamoto, Fuminori Abe & Yasu Urano Vs Yasu Urano, Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga
5. IRON FIST Tag Titles: Isami Kodaka & Daiki Shimomura (c) Vs SAGAT & Akiyori Takizawa

First IRON FIST Tag Titles defence for the new champs.

Ryota Nakatsu is doing another Jacket Match, this time against Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi.

DDT “DAMNATION ILLEGAL ASSEMBLY RETURNS VOL. 3”, 19/02/2021
Shinjuku FACE

1. DAMNATION Super Heavyweight Match: Mad Paulie Vs Hoshitango
2. DAMNATION Vs Fukumen Gundan!: Soma Takao, Yuji Hino & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs SUSHI, Masamune & SAGAT
3. 45 Year Olds Gathering: Shuji Ishikawa & Tanomusaku Toba Vs Toru Owashi & Yasu Urano
4. Special Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki & Hiroshi Yamato Vs HUB & Yasutaka Oosera
5. Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Hagane Shinno

Everyone in DAMNATION now has a match.

GANBARE☆PRO “CLIFFHANGER 2021”, 21/02/2021
Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall

1. Shota’s Independent Journey: Shota Vs Hyper Brave G-Valion
2. THE HALFEE Vs Watase Manase: Moeka Haruhi & Shu Sakurai Vs Mizuki Watase & Yuna Manase
3. Ganpro Vs Aka Rangers: Ken Ohka & Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Takashi Sasaki & GENTARO
4. GWC 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Keisuke Ishii, Kouki Iwasaki & HARUKAZE (c) Vs Asuka, Hagane Shinno & Shinichiro Tominaga
5. STOP THE Hidaka! Special Single Match: Yumehito Imanari Vs Ikuto Hidaka

I love the name of the main event. ZERO1 had “STOP THE Matsunaga”. Ganbare☆Pro gets “STOP THE Hidaka!” It’s only fitting for the ZERO1 connection that Yumehito Imanari becomes maybe the last man standing in the way of Ikuto Hidaka. Imanari made a promise to be the messiah for Ganpro.

The new GWC 6-Man Tag Team Champions already have a road map set out. The trio called DREAMS HARU TRUE want to defend the belts against Pocchari Joshi. However, Asuka demanded her team with Hagane Shinno & Shinichiro Tominaga get another shot at the titles first because she will only wrestle in Ganpro for championships. She gets what she wants because Ken Ohka is worried she will walk out of the company, especially right before she could potentially become a breakout star in the AEW women’s tournament.

Ohka gets a second chance against the Aka Rangers. That’s if they can make it to the venue in time. Takashi Sasaki & GENTARO already have another match happening at a FREEDOMS and 2AW co-promoted show in Chiba earlier that day.

Even though he no longer has the Independent World Jr. Heavyweight Title around his waist, Shota still wants to bring the independent spirit to Ganpro. He is bringing in Hyper Brave G-Valion for a match. G-Valion is from a small Tokyo promotion called BRAVES.

DDT “FRIENDSHIP, EFFORT, VICTORY IN NAGOYA 2021”, 23/02/2021
Nagoya Congress Center Event Hall

1. Hiroshi Yamato & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Yusuke Okada & Keigo Nakamura
2. Toru Owashi & Yukio Naya Vs Soma Takao & Mad Paulie
3. Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh Vs Antonio Honda & Saki Akai
4. DAMNATION Vs DDT Sauna Club!: Tetsuya Endo & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata
5. Junretsu Vs #STRONGHEARTS: Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi, Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani Vs CIMA, T-Hawk, El Lindaman & Shigehiro Irie
6. DDT Megatonweight Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs Yuki Iino
7. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Akito, Kazuki Hirata & Shota (c) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, HARASHIMA & Danshoku Dieno
8. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita & MAO

MAO is happy to see his generation are now the main eventers of DDT. It’s a fight he never wants to give up. Konosuke Takeshita agrees and said the DDT Sauna Club runs in the centre of DDT. They main event Korakuen Hall, they’re main eventing Nagoya Congress Center and now they want the KO-D Tag Team Titles to add to their growing championship haul. These are just the kind of opponents Kazusada Higuchi is looking for. Also Sakaguchi disagrees about the age thing. Everyone from HARASHIMA to Danshoku Dieno are all doing their best no matter their age.

BASARA “BASARA 150 ~KINKON ICHIBAN~”, 25/02/2021
Shinjuku FACE

1. Union MAX Title: Takumi Tsukamoto (c) Vs Yasu Urano

Tsukamoto has two championships to take care of with little time to rest in between. His Union MAX Title defence is happening just a week after his first BJW Death Match Title defence.

DDT “INTO THE FIGHT 2021”, 28/02/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – 5 Way Match: The Young Bucks Autobiography “Killing The Business” (c) Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Danshoku Dieno Vs Antonio Honda Vs Saki Akai
2. DDT Extreme Title: Shunma Katsumata (c) Vs MAO

No matter who wins in the main event, the DDT Extreme Title will stay within the Sauna Club for the time being. Shunma Katsumata is also someone with a busy schedule coming up. He is entering the Ikki Tousen Death Match tournament in Big Japan next month.

The book has been booked.


(Yusuke) Okada In DDT

January 5, 2021

DDT “GO TO DDT! VOL. 1”, 09/01/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Keigo Nakamura & Hideki Okatani Vs Yusuke Okada & Toi Kojima
2. Chris Brookes & Shunma Katsumura Vs Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino
3. HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya Vs Konosuke Takeshita & MAO
4. Written By Hajime Takahashi & Masaki Inoue “Does Momotaro’s Kibidango Recognize As An Expense?” Infomercial Match: Akito, Kazuki Hirata, Super Sasadango Machine & Antonio Honda Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Danshoku Dieno, Toru Owashi & Saki Akai
5. DAMNATION Vs Junretsu!: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi & Mizuki Watase
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi (c) Vs CIMA & Soma Takao
7. DDT UNIVERSAL Title: Yuki Ueno (c) Vs Shota

Yusuke Okada has come to DDT looking to experience new pro wrestling worlds. He has spent all of his career in All Japan up until now so he has so much to discover Most of the new match announcements for this month involves him.

DDT “DDT EXTREME TITLE MATCH”, 10/01/2021
Saitama Savage Field

1. DDT Extreme Title – Savage Death Match: Sanshiro Takagi (c) Vs Nabe Yakan

The DDT Extreme Title has been stolen again! This time a comedian named Nabe Yakan led a squad of soldiers into the Korakuen Hall locker room to take the belt from Sanshiro Takagi. The champion must now go to another airgun battlefield, this time in Saitama to reclaim what belongs to him. Yakan has pro wrestling experience from appearances in Best Body Japan Pro Wrestling. He is currently the BBW Openweight Champion in that promotion. The match will be uploaded to DDT’s Youtube channel.

DDT “ISN’T IT DRAMATIC! 2021”, 11/01/2021
Nagoya City Biwajima Sports Center

1. Yusuke Okada Vs Hideki Okatani
2. Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Shunma Katsumata & Toi Kojima
3. Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Yuki Ueno & Keigo Nakamura
4. Konosuke Takeshita & MAO Vs Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda
5. Young Communication Generation Vs DDT Legend Army!: Akito & Shota Vs Sanshiro Takagi & Danshoku Dieno
6. Nagoya Specialty! Doerya Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya Vs Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino
7. DAMNATION Vs Junretsu!: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao Vs Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi & Mizuki Watase

Some of Okada’s matches will be against the rookies.

DDT “WRESTLING TONKOTSU 2021 ~MOTSUNABE~”, 17/01/2021
Fukuoka Nishitetsu Hall

1. Yusuke Okada Vs Toi Kojima
2. Yuki Ueno Vs Mizuki Watase
3. Sanshiro Takagi, Danshoku Dieno & Keigo Nakamura Vs Kazuki Hirata, Antonio Honda & Saki Akai
4. Akito & Makoto Oishi Vs Soma Takao & Azul Dragon
5. Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki & Yuji Hino Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Yukio Naya
6. Hakata Specialty! Seimonbarai Special 6-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi & Chris Brookes Vs Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata & MAO

Now that Keigo Nakamura has his first win, maybe he can impress Takagi enough to get a spot on his team for “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021”.

DDT “WRESTLING TONKOTSU 2021 ~MIZUTAKI~”, 17/01/2021
Fukuoka Nishitetsu Hall

1. Akito & Shunma Katsumata Vs Chris Brookes & Keigo Nakamura
2. HARASHIMA & Yuto Aijima Vs Yusuke Okada & Yukio Naya
3. Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai Vs Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & MAO
4. Yuji Hino Vs Hideki Okatani
5. DAMNATION Vs Junretsu!: Tetsuya Endo, Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao Vs Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi & Mizuki Watase
6. Only Because It Is! Hakata Specialty Special Tag Match: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno Vs Danshoku Dieno & Antonio Honda

Okada also gets to share the ring with the DDT mainstays like HARASHIMA.

BASARA “BASARA 146 ~5TH ANNIVERSARY~”, 20/01/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Ryuichi Sekine Vs Ryota Nakatsu
2. Dragon Contra Dragon: Gouma Ryu Vs Trans-Am ★ Ryuji
3. Yusuke Kubo, Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Daichi Kazato Vs Naoki Tanizaki, SAGAT & Akiyori Takizawa
4. Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino Vs Minoru Fujita & Ikuto Hidaka
5. Fuminori Abe Vs Yasu Urano
6. IRON FIST Tag Titles: Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga (c) Vs Isami Kodaka & Daiki Shimomura
7. Union MAX Title: Takumi Tsukamoto (c) Vs FUMA

Trans-Am ★ Ryuji doesn’t get to visit BASARA often anymore. He already had his name changed once (he was previously Trans-Am ★ Ryuichi). One big upset will result in him losing “Ryu” from his name. That will make him Trans-Am ★ Ji.

DDT “DRAMATIC EVERYONE’S DREAM HAS COME TRUE! 2021”, 23/01/2021
Osaka City Minato Ward Citizens Center

1. Yukio Naya Vs Hideki Okatani
2. Kazuki Hirata & Saki Akai Vs Antonio Honda & Keigo Nakamura
3. Toru Owashi & Akito Vs MAO & Mizuki Watase
4. Yuki Ueno Vs Yusuke Okada
5. Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata Vs Chris Brookes & Danshoku Dieno
6. HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino
7. DAMNATION Vs Junretsu!: Tetsuya Endo & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Jun Akiyama & Makoto Oishi

Does me typing Okada a lot in this post mess with Google’s algorithm?

DDT “DRAMATIC 2021 JANUARY SPECIAL”, 28/01/2021
Shinjuku FACE

1. HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi & Antonio Honda Vs Shunma Katsumata, MAO & Keigo Nakamura
2. DDT Megatonweight Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs Yukio Naya
3. Special Single Match: Jun Akiyama Vs Yusuke Okada

Okada ends his month in DDT with a big singles match against Jun Akiyama, who has been something of a mentor figure for him.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “POSITIVE CHAIN”, 11/02/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Princess Of Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) Vs Miu Watanabe

The new Princess Of Princess Champion already got a challenge from somebody close to her. Miu Watanabe asked Rika Tatsumi for a title match because she is aiming to surpass her this year. Tatsumi wouldn’t want it any other way so Daydream fighting each other for the title is on.

DDT “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021”, 14/02/2021
Culttz Kawasaki

1. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Super Delfin, Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh Vs MAO, Keigo Nakamura & Mirai Maiumi
2. KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Titles: Sanshiro Takagi, Danshoku Dieno, X & X Vs Shinya Aoki, Super Sasadango Machine, X & X
3. Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Yuji Okabayashi Vs X & X
4. Super Joshi War ~Blooming Flowers~: Saki Akai & Maya Yukihi Vs Saori Anou & Miyako Matsumoto
5. Yuki Iino Return Match ~ DAMNATION Vs ALL OUT!: Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao, Mad Paulie & Yuji Hino Vs Konosuke Takeshita, Akito, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino
6. KO-D Openweight Title: Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Jun Akiyama

Yuki Iino returns from injury, reuniting the complete ALL OUT unit. Iino has immediately picked Yuji Hino as his target.

Four corners of the joshi scene are brought together for a special tag match. Saki Akai & Maya Yukihi are being paired together to be a strong and beautiful tag team. Saori Anou & Miyako Matsumoto are meant to be the same but it seems like nobody wants to say a nice word about Miyamoto.

DDT “FRIENDSHIP, EFFORT, VICTORY IN NAGOYA 2021”, 23/02/2021
Nagoya Congress Center Event Hall

1. DDT Megatonweight Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs Yuki Iino
2. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Akito, Kazuki Hirata & Shota (c) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, HARASHIMA & Danshoku Dieno

The Iino versus Hino rivalry will continue past Culttz Kawasaki. Just under two weeks later they will have a singles match together in Nagoya.


DDT “NEW YEAR’S DAY GIFT SPECIAL! ALL SEATS 3,000 YEN SPECIAL BOX OFFICE!! 2021” Results

January 3, 2021

DDT “NEW YEAR’S DAY GIFT SPECIAL! ALL SEATS 3,000 YEN SPECIAL BOX OFFICE!! 2021”, 03/01/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
713 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

1. Keigo Nakamura defeated Hideki Okatani with a Cradle (7:42).
2. Antonio Honda 43rd Birthday & 16th Anniversary Debut Match: Antonio Honda defeated Choun-Shiryu with the Diving Fist Drop (9:14).
3. Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Gota Ihashi defeated Toru Owashi, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Toui Kojima when Sakaguchi pinned Kojima with the PK (9:37).
4. Mad Paulie, Nobuhiro Shimatani & Hiroshi Yamato defeated Makoto Oishi, Mizuki Watase & Yukio Naya when Paulie pinned Watase with the Reverse Splash (12:19).
5. 1 Vs 3 Handicap Match: Shinya Aoki, Danshoku Dieno & Super Sasadango Machine defeated Sanshiro Takagi when Aoki pinned Takagi with a Jackknife Pin (10:00).
6. Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata, MAO & Yuki Ueno defeated Akito, Kazuki Hirata, Shota & Keisuke Ishii when Ueno pinned Shota with the BME (14:34).
7. Tetsuya Endo, Soma Takao & Yuji Hino (w/ Daisuke Sasaki) defeated HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Chris Brookes when Endo pinned Brookes with the Shooting Star Press (17:18).

The first DDT show of 2021 was almost entirely a surprise card. The audience only knew what the matches were once they were ready to begin. For the main event HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Chris Brookes joined forces to fight DAMNATION. While all of DAMNATION were at ringside, Daisuke Sasaki got directly involved by grabbing Brookes by the leg. Yuji Hino brought it to both HARASHIMA & Higuchi. Soma Takao overheard Higuchi insult CIMA which spurred him on to fight through the Brain Claw. Tetsuya Endo got the win in the end by hitting Brookes with Tetsuya In The Sky, the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb and finally the Shooting Star Press. Endo looked over to Jun Akiyama at the commentary table while the pin was counted.

Shouting was heard over by the entrance after the match. It was Yuki Iino calling for Hino’s attention while the rest of ALL OUT tried to hold him back. Iino pushed his teammates back, entered the ring and demanded to face Hino in an arm wrestling contest on the canvas. Hino was confused but he accepted the challenge and won. Iino got mad over losing and had to be held back again while Konosuke Takeshita introduced him to Hino. He then explained that Iino’s return match from injury will be at “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021” on 14th February when ALL OUT takes on DAMNATION. He then suggested that Iino and Hino have a singles match at the next big event after that. Hisaya Imabayashi agreed to book Iino Vs Hino in Nagoya on 23rd February. ALL OUT dragged Iino away while Endo took the microphone and warned Akiyama that he is always ready. Endo closed out the show by saying this year he is aiming for more than just the Tokyo Sports MVP Award. He wants to make scandalous news stories with glamourous women in the tabloids too!

Another 8-Man Tag pitted the two new units that have unexpectedly taken over DDT in the last few months. All four members of the DDT Sauna Club came out first, followed by the Young Communication Generation. The latter team then surprised everyone by bringing out Keisuke Ishii! Akito warned him about the Sauna Club’s “Heat Wave WER!!” pose but he didn’t understand it. Kazuki Hirata did a Plancha to the outside while Ishii did his work. The Sauna Club isolated Shota and piled on the top rope moves to him. Shunma Katsumata, MAO & Yuki Ueno hit Diving Body Presses one after the other but Ueno’s pin was broken up. Shota caught Ueno in the Gannosuke Clutch but MAO was there to break that pin up. Ueno got to recover and beat Shota with the BME. Backstage Ishii said it was the first time in a long while he wrestled in DDT (not counting BOYZ) and he would like to appear more in 2021 to be with his friends in Young Communication again. Shota wants to make it a year where Ganbare☆Pro doesn’t lose to DDT. Meanwhile Katsumata wants to make 2021 the year of the Sauna Club!

One of the matches was supposed to be Sanshiro Takagi & Danshoku Dieno Vs Shinya Aoki & Super Sasadango Machine. But backstage before the match Dieno, Aoki & Sasadango were all complaining about Takagi’s tweets including one that where Takagi was showing off his calves. The three of them instead decided to gang up on Takagi in a Handicap Match and purposely target his calf. Aoki put him in a Jail Hold while Dieno & Sasadango brought out a bag containing some of Takagi’s personal belongings. Sasadango found Takagi’s wallet, pulled out 29,000 yen in cash and raffled it off to three fans in the audience. Dieno eventually thought things went overboard and he felt sorry for Takagi. It is thanks to Takagi that they get to wrestle this year so the best New Year’s gift is to give Takagi his first win of 2021. Sasadango agreed and with Dieno they both attacked Aoki. Dieno is still recovering from the fire extinguisher attack to his rear but Takagi forced to go into the Hell Gate position. That lost him Sasadango’s support and Takagi was thrown face first into the Hell Gate. Aoki kicked Takagi in the calf, Sasadango did the Vertical Drop Lehmann Shock and Aoki pinned him with a Jackknife. Backstage Sasadango offered to be on Aoki’s team at “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021” because they should be fighting for a better goal than satisfying Takagi’s desires. They like Takagi but will not be used by him anymore!

As Takagi was leaving the ring after his match, he was suddenly approached at ringside by Yusuke Okada! The former All Japan wrestler introduced himself to the audience and told them he wants to experience a new world of pro wrestling now that he became freelance. He asked Takagi if he could have a match in DDT. Takagi questioned his interest in DDT after seeing the match that just happened. He then passed the request over to Imabayashi, who wasn’t expecting that. Imabayashi told Okada he will book him on next week’s Korakuen Hall show on 9th January.

DAMNATION’s good run begun earlier in the show when Mad Paulie, Nobuhiro Shimatani & Hiroshi Yamato beat Makoto Oishi, Mizuki Watase & Yukio Naya. Paulie threw Yamato onto Watase with an X-Style Iconoclasm. Shimatani then hopped onto Paulie’s back and they jumped on top of Watase for a nearfall when Oishi & Naya broke it up. Paulie then hit Watase with a Lariat and won with the Reverse Splash.

Gota Ihashi didn’t get to wrestle in Korakuen Hall last year so he wanted to make up for lost time. This year he wants to join a unit and rampage all over DDT. There is only one unit he wants to join and that’s Eruption! He came out with his own custom entrance video wearing an Eruption coat made out of posters. He even drew his own version of the Eruption logo calling it Ihaption. Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai were bemused over this but it kind of worked out in the end. Akai gave Toru Owashi a Brainbuster and Ihashi went toe to toe with Tomomitsu Matsunaga. Eruption(?) then focused their attacks on Toui Kojima. Ihashi almost lost the match when he missed the Moonsault. Akai kicked Ihashi out of frustration and Sakaguchi tagged himself in to finish Kojima off. Sakaguchi & Akai had enough of Ihashi and walked off on him backstage. However he believes he can continue teaming with Eruption and together they can all go after the KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Titles.

Antonio Honda’s big day was almost ruined when he tripped on the ropes and hurt his knee. Choun-Shiryu knew what was coming and attacked Honda before he could tell his latest Gongitsune joke. Honda lived up to the big occasion though and hit a Topé Suicida and the Tenzan Tombstone Driver on route to victory.

The first DDT match of 2021 was Keigo Nakamura’s first ever singles victory! He defeated his generation rival Hideki Okatani by cradling his way out of the Double Arm Suplex. Nakamura currently has a 1-3 record against Okatani so he wants to reverse the numbers this year.

Some more matches were booked for “KAWASAKI STRONG 2021”. Akai will be teaming with Maya Yukihi from Ice Ribbon to take on Saori Anou & Miyako Matsumoto. Yukihi said she discovered DDT more than 10 years ago so she is deeply moved to be wrestling a match for them. She thought she was going to fight against Akai but Imabayashi corrected her. Akai always wanted to team with her because she is beautiful and strong. She is also excited to face Anou again. When Imabayashi asked Akai & Yukihi about Matsumoto, they both declined to answer. They were asked again backstage and Yukihi finally had something to say. “In terms of strength, beauty and glamour, Miyako-san will never the best.”

The New Year’s Shuffle Tag Tournament winners Smile Pissari will team again at the Culttz Kawasaki show. HARASHIMA & Yuji Okabayashi will face a team yet to be determined.

Takagi will return to the battlefield for his next DDT Extreme Title defence. He takes on Nabe Yakan from Best Body Pro Wrestling on 10th January. The match was made when earlier in the day Yakan led a bunch of soldiers armed with air guns into the locker room to steal the Extreme Title belt.


Video – DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 1” Digest Highlights

June 8, 2020

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 1”, 06/06/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio
0 Fans

1. Singles Match Between Wrestlers Who Want To Participate In DDT Regularly: Seigo Tachibana Vs Nobuhiro Shimatani
2. Keisuke Ishii & HARUKAZE Vs Hiroshi Yamato & Saori Anou
3. Soma Takao & Mad Paulie Vs Keigo Nakamura & Hideki Okatani
4. Niigata Joshi Pro Wrestling (#njpw) Pre-Flag Battle In Sakai Seiki Co., Ltd.: Pokotan Vs Yukako Mito
5. Akito & Yuki Iino Vs Jun Akiyama & Mizuki Watase
6. DDT Vs Kongo All Out Battle!: Sanshiro Takagi, Kazusada Higuchi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Kenoh, Masa Kitamiya & Hao
7. DDT UNIVERSAL Title – Hardcore 3 Way Match: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Isami Kodaka Vs Shunma Katsumata
8. TOKYO 2020 LAST MAN STANDING: Yoshihiko Vs Konosuke Takeshita


DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 1” Results

June 6, 2020

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 1”, 06/06/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio
0 Fans

1. Singles Match Between Wrestlers Who Want To Participate In DDT Regularly: Nobuhiro Shimatani defeated Seigo Tachibana with the Counter Strike (5:40).
2. Hiroshi Yamato & Saori Anou defeated Keisuke Ishii & HARUKAZE when Anou pinned HARUKAZE with the German Suplex (8:57).
3. Soma Takao & Mad Paulie defeated Keigo Nakamura & Hideki Okatani when Takao pinned Oktani with the Diving Foot Stomp (10:22).
4. Niigata Joshi Pro Wrestling (#njpw) Pre-Flag Battle In Sakai Seiki Co., Ltd.: Yukako Mito defeated Pokotan with the Beautiful Cross Body (4:18).
5. Akito & Yuki Iino defeated Jun Akiyama & Mizuki Watase when Iino pinned Watase the the Spear (?:??).
6. DDT Vs Kongo All Out Battle!: Kenoh, Masa Kitamiya & Hao defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Kazusada Higuchi & Tomomitsu Matsunaga when Hao pinned Matsunaga with a Tornado Clutch (19:19).
7. DDT UNIVERSAL Title – Hardcore 3 Way Match: Daisuke Sasaki (c) defeated Isami Kodaka and Shunma Katsumata when Sasaki pinned Katsumata with the Sasaki Hurricanrana (24:12).
*V3 for Daisuke Sasaki.
8. TOKYO 2020 LAST MAN STANDING: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Yoshihiko with an Explosion (15:04).

Day 1 of “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” was headlined with the grudge match between Konosuke Takeshita and Yoshihiko. But rather than take place inside the DDT TV SHOW Studio, Yoshihiko sent his enemy directions to a location where he wanted the Last Man Standing match to happen. It was by a graveyard at night. Takeshita was creeped out by his surroundings and was ambushed from behind by the doll. They fought on the ground and Yoshihiko kept its cool after it was given a German Suplex. It chased down Takeshita, applied a Figure 4 Leg Lock and even taunted Takeshita when he tried to fight out of it. When he finally broke free he went to hide and phoned Yuki Iino for help. But Yoshihiko found him and knocked the phone away right when Iino answered the call. Takeshita escaped into a nearby building yet Yoshihiko was never far away. It stalked him up to the roof but in a surprise, Takeshita pulled off the ambush this time. They had a fist fight on the roof that ended with Takeshita knocking the doll over the edge to the ground below. Takeshita thought he had won until he turned around and saw Yoshihiko reappear with its face covered in blood! It choked Takeshita with a Sleeper Hold but he fought out and grabbed a tank of gasoline. He poured the gas over Yoshihiko’s body but Yoshihiko grabbed the tank and did the same to Takeshita. They fought over a lighter until Yoshihiko struck Takeshita in the face and pulled out his left eyeball! He fought back, reclaimed the eye and pushed it back in. That gave Yoshihiko the opening to do the Canadian Destroyer. It grabbed the lighter and was about to use it when Takeshita knocked him across the roof with a Lariat. He ignited the lighter and threw it over to Yoshihiko, creating a big explosion. When the dust settled, Takeshita was the last man standing. Iino appeared carrying a bunch of baseball bats but Takeshita assured him it was all over. They left feeling like heroes but back on the rooftop the body of Yoshihiko remained. It’s eyes began to shine again…

Tables, ladders, chairs and block toys filled the ring by the time the Hardcore 3 Way Match was over. Daisuke Sasaki came out of it still carrying the DDT UNIVERSAL Title. There were moments where Isami Kodaka and Shunma Katsumata fought each other but they both knew getting Sasaki was the best way to win the title. Katsumata in his Super Hardcore form did everything he could. He gave Sasaki a Pedigree onto chairs. He also did a Moonsault Foot stomp onto Sasaki underneath a pile of the same chairs. But Kodaka was there to break the pin. Katsumata fought off Kodaka with the block toy covered baseball bat. That was when Sasaki took the bat, his Katsumata below the belt with it and pinned him with a Hurricanrana.

After the match Sasaki sat down on a chair while Kodaka climbed the ladder to speak to him. Kodaka admits defeat today but next time he wants a Singles match with Sasaki for the belt. Sasaki said he feels to tired for that so they should do a singles match in 10 years time. Kodaka thinks that is too long so he suggests they have a match in one year’s time so it will be during an Olympics year. Sasaki will think about it. But first he wants to nominate his next challenger. He wants… Masahiro Takanashi?

Kongo’s entry match into DDT was successful but were they satisfied with it? Kenoh led his troops into victory over the DDT team but they had to go through some familiar DDT spots to do it. Sanshiro Takagi smashed plastic cases over Masa Kitamiya’s head and ran over Hao with the Dramatic Dream Cycle. The Kongo members not in the match stopped the bike while Kitamiya fought Kazusada Higuchi in the ring. Tomomitsu Matsunaga ran wild and tried to get the win on Hao but a Tornado Clutch counter gave the result to the outsiders. Kenou confronted Takagi with a microphone after the match but threw it away without saying a word. When Kongo left ringside, Takagi spoke about the different ideologies between DDT and NOAH. They don’t have to fit together. Also Takagi doesn’t see the need to fight Kenou again after today. Kongo can lead NOAH their way and Takagi can lead DDT his way.

Coach Jun Akiyama’s run through the DDT roster moved him up to ALL OUT. With Mizuki Watase as his tag partner they lost to Akito & Yuki Iino. He was confused by Iino’s Haka style antics and underestimated Akito’s grappling skills. Watase took over and caught Iino with the Front Neck Lock. He countered a Spear attempt by jumping over it a Double Stomping Iino on the way down. Unfortunately Iino revved up momentum again and this time hit the Spear for the three count. He walked up to Akiyama after the match and did some Haka poses again.

To celebrate Muscle Sakai’s promotion to president of the Sakai Seiki company, DDT sent Pokotan down to the factory in Niigata to have a match with Super Sasadango Machine. Pokotan was disinfected before handing a letter to Sasadango. It was from Takagi saying the match was now all up to Sasadango to put together. Unfortunately, Sasadango had to turn down the match over fear of exposing his factory to Coronavirus. So instead he invited Pokotan to take a tour of his business. Pokotan was introduced to Yukako Mito and she showed the mascot how to polish plastic molds. Pokotan was left alone to polish the molds for hours until he noticed Mito went missing. He went searching for her and could hear shouting coming from another room. He found a sign on the door that said “Niigata Joshi Pro Wrestling (#njpw)” He opened the door and saw Sasadango was training Mito to wrestle by stomping on boxes! They caught Pokotan spying on their secret plan to launch a new pro wrestling company. It was decided that Pokotan was now Mito’s sparring partner and they would have a match straight away. Mito cartwheeled across the room and hit a Space Rolling Elbow for a nearfall. She then climbed a nearby desk and did her special move, the Beautiful Cross Body to win the match. The video then switched to a message from Sasadango & Mito. They warn DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro to watch out because some day Niigata Joshi Pro will come to Tokyo and crush them! Look forward to #njpw’s official flag raising match soon!

The rookies put up a fight against the DAMNATION tag team. Keigo Nakamura & Hideki Okatani worked well together in two on one situations. That went out the window when Mad Paulie got rid of Nakamura. Okatani tried to fight off Soma Takao on his own but he was put away with the Diving Foot Stomp.

It did not look like Saori Anou was into Hiroshi Yamato’s karaoke but other than that they have to be happy with today’s win over Keisuke Ishii & HARUKAZE. Anou countered HARUKAZE’s Cross Armbreaker into a German Suplex for the pin.

Nobuhiro Shimatani defeated Seigo Tachibana in the battle between wrestlers who want more DDT bookings. Shimatani wore down his opponent with a Fisherman Buster then got the win with the Counter Strike Crucifix. After the match, Hisaya Imabayashi told Tachibana he is now out of second chances. DDT won’t book him again so he should go home. However, Danshoku Dieno then walked out and helped Tachibana walk back to the locker room. He told Tachibana backstage that he wants to help him build up a track record good enough to be accepted by DDT.


News Comes As Restrictions Get Lifted

May 26, 2020

I hope everybody out there is feeling well and finding ways to cope with the sad news about Hana Kimura. Dylan from the Eastern Lariat podcast tweeted a magazine photo of the time when an 8 year old Kimura won the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title, which I think was her only connection to DDT. There would have been a working relationship between her and Sanshiro Takagi in WRESTLE-1 as well back when Takagi was part of its management.

There’s a quick story I want to tell. When I last went to Tokyo in 2016 I got to see a Sendai Girls show with a group of friends in Korakuen (the 8th April one). Kyoko Kimura was wrestling in the opener and Hana was there as her ringside attendant. This was only a few weeks after her pro debut and it was her only role on the show. I didn’t think anything of it at the time. The next day I spoke to an American expat and talked about the show. Before I even finished a sentence he cut me off and asked “Was Kyoko Kimura’s daughter there? She is going to be a star!”

DDT “DDT TV SHOW! #5”, 30/05/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio

1. Jun Akiyama Vs Hideki Okatani
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Danshoku Dieno (c) Vs Antonio Honda
3. DAMNATION VS ALL OUT!: Daisuke Sasaki & Soma Takao Vs Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino
4. Yoshihiko & Akihiro Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Akito
5. #DAMNHEARTS Vs DISASTER BOX!: Tetsuya Endo, T-Hawk & El Lindaman Vs HARASHIMA, Yuki Ueno & Naomi Yoshimura

Figures from past and present are returning as Japan opens up again. The #STRONGHEARTS pair of T-Hawk & El Lindaman rejoin Tetsuya Endo to protect him from losing before his big title match. Yuki Ueno has spent all of this time during the pandemic looking after the Dropkick Bar. He gets to wrestle again for the first time in almost two months.

The second battle doll Akihiro came back in Yoshihiko’s time of need to defeat ALL OUT. The feud isn’t over yet when revenge is on offer.

Third time’s the charm for Danshoku Dieno Vs Antonio Honda.

Two thirds of the next DDT UNIVERSAL Title match face off in tag action.

Hideki Okatani showed his stuff by fighting Seigo Tachibana to a time limit draw in the match that took place after the last episode ended. Jun Akiyama should have lots to teach him.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW PPV SHOW ~ZENRYOKU YELL~”, 31/05/2020
OPENREC.tv

1. Hikari Noa Vs Sena Shiori
2. Hyper Misao Vs Mahiro Kiryu
3. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Shoko Nakajima & Suzume

The main event is confirmed to be The Magical Sugar Rabbits against Shoko Nakajima & Suzume.

GANBARE☆WRESTLING “HIMITSU 2020”, 03/06/2020
???

1. 4 Vs 4 Survival Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii, Yumehito Imanari, Shinichiro Tominaga & Kouki Iwasaki Vs Shuichiro Katsumura, Shota, Washi Sakurai & X

At last Ganbare☆Wrestling gets to have a go at an empty arena match. Here’s a neat concept for the match. We have two teams with 4 wrestlers each. When the match begins two wrestlers from each side are selected to wrestle a tag team match. When a wrestler is defeated by normal means they are replaced by a new teammate and the tag match continues. To win the match, a team must eliminate three of their opponents.

As you can see, one team has a mystery wrestler advertised. I’m surprised to see Ken Ohka or Moeka Haruhi aren’t involved. Haruhi being there would have meant all members of THE HALFEE were in the match on the same side. This is the only match of the show too.

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 1”, 06/06/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio

1. Soma Takao & Mad Paulie Vs Keigo Nakamura & Hideki Okatani
2. Keisuke Ishii & HARUKAZE Vs Hiroshi Yamato & Saori Anou
3. DDT Yuru-chara No. 1 Battle In Niigata: Super Sasadango Machine Vs Pokotan
4. DDT UNIVERSAL Title – Hardcore 3 Way Match: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Isami Kodaka Vs Shunma Katsumata

The new plan for “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020” is to hold it under the DDT TV SHOW format across two days. It’s not the mega show it is going to be but under the current circumstances it keeps DDT chugging along as light appears at the end of the tunnel.

Daisuke Sasaki wanted his next title defence to be easy and violent. That is why he nominated Shunma Katsumata to be his next challenger. The twist is the sudden appearance of Isami Kodaka getting involved. Kodaka heard about DDT’s new UNIVERSAL Title and wanted to add it to his ever growing list of accomplishments.

I bet the DDT roster are happy to see Saori Anou again.

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2020 DAY 2”, 07/06/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio

1. Tokyo Joshi Pro 6-Woman Tag Match: Yuka Sakazaki, Miyu Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima Vs Rika Tatsumi, Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino
2. Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai Vs Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh
3. Super Sasadango Machine Remote Produce Match: Toru Owashi Vs Antonio Honda
4. DDT Extreme Title – Celebration! Release Restriction Rules: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs Yukio Naya
5. KO-D Openweight Title: Masato Tanaka (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo

Endo is so close to his final goal. He tripped up once before but reclaimed the KO-D Challenger Sword and just has to avoid a direct defeat one more time. Once he does that, Masato Tanaka will be there waiting for him with the KO-D Openweight Title held tightly in his grip.

The state of emergency in Tokyo has been lifted and the restrictions across Japan are easing off. Shinya Aoki will use the uplifting news as inspiration for his next DDT Extreme Title defence. Yukio Naya is stepping up as the challenger.

This show is taking place on Nodoka Tenma’s birthday! She is happy to spend the day fighting against the three strongest wrestlers in Tokyo Joshi Pro. Her team with Yuki Aino & Rika Tatsumi is called Bakuretsu Dragon.

BASARA “BASARA 129 ~BANQUET~”, 14/07/2020
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. IRON FIST Tag Titles: Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga (c) Vs Gouma Ryu & Ryuji Ito
2. Union MAX Title: Fuminori Abe (c) Vs Isami Kodaka

BASARA are playing it safe and have cancelled their last remaining show in June. Instead their first show back will be in July at Shin-Kiba 1st RING. Normally this is the Banquet all you can drink show but that system will be suspended and the seating rearranged to accommodate social distancing. For now they are numbering the show #129. The last BASARA show that took place was #126 (I’m amazed I’ve been able to keep track of the chapter numbers for so long). If that sticks then it means #127 & #128 are forever lost to the cancellations.

The two title matches that were originally going to take place in April are now finally going to happen in July. Fuminori Abe must be chomping at the bit to prove his worth as Union MAX Champion by now.


Video – “DDT TV SHOW! #3” Digest Highlights

May 18, 2020

DDT “DDT TV SHOW! #3”, 16/05/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio
0 Fans

1. Kazusada Higuchi Vs Keigo Nakamura
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Danshoku Dieno (c) Vs Antonio Honda
3. Soma Takao & Mad Paulie Vs HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura
4. Hardcore Match: Shunma Katsumata Vs Yoshihiko
5. Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani Vs Jun Akiyama & Keisuke Ishii
6. Saki Akai “Okibariyasu” 7 Match Series – 6th Match: Saki Akai Vs Saori Anou
7. DAMNATION Vs ALL OUT!: Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Akito
-. Emergency Match: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Tetsuya Endo


DDT “DDT TV SHOW! #3” Results

May 16, 2020

DDT “DDT TV SHOW! #3”, 16/05/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio
0 Fans

1. Kazusada Higuchi defeated Keigo Nakamura with a Canadian Backbreaker (3:09).
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Danshoku Dieno (c) Vs Antonio Honda ended in a No Contest (6:28).
3. HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura defeated Soma Takao & Mad Paulie when Yoshimura pinned Paulie with the Drill-A-Hole Piledriver (8:32).
4. Hardcore Match: Yoshihiko defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Reincarnation (15:48).
5. Jun Akiyama & Keisuke Ishii defeated Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani when Akiyama submitted Okatani with a Crab Hold (10:39).
6. Saki Akai “Okibariyasu” 7 Match Series – 6th Match: Saki Akai defeated Saori Anou with the Quetzalcoatl (11:21).
7. DAMNATION Vs ALL OUT!: Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo defeated Konosuke Takeshita & Akito when Endo pinned Akito with a Scorpion Lock Cutback (15:12).
*Tetsuya Endo wins Akito’s Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Gauntlet.
-. Emergency Match: Tetsuya Endo defeated Kazusada Higuchi with the Shooting Star Press (10:02).
*Tetsuya Endo cashes in his Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Gauntlet. Tetsuya Endo wins Kazusada Higuchi’s KO-D Challenger Sword.

Week #3 of DDT TV SHOW ended with Tetsuya Endo regaining the KO-D Challenger Sword! In the scheduled main event tag match Endo kept Akito in his sights from the beginning. His goal was to pin Akito and take away the Right To Challenge Gauntlet. Daisuke Sasaki and Konosuke Takeshita kept each other away from the ring so it came down to Akito putting Endo into a submission hold. His Scorpion Deathlock attempt was countered by Endo into a Small Package for the flash three count.

After the match Endo asked Hisaya Imabayashi if the rules for the Sword and Gauntlets had changed now that Saitama Super Arena is out of the picture. When it was confirmed that the rules are the same, Endo called for Kazusada Higuchi to come out because he was challenging him for the Sword right now! Higuchi appeared still in his ring gear but without his wrestling boots. Endo attacked him as he entered the ring and the match began as they brawled around ringside. Endo hit a stage dive before Higuchi got back to the ring. Higuchi tried to Choke Slam Endo onto the apron but Endo gave him a Brianbuster onto it instead. Whatever Higuchi tried, Endo had a counter for. The three move combo of Tetsuya In The Sky, the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb and the Shooting Star Press put Higuchi away.

Endo received the Challenger Sword and said he already knows when to use it for a KO-D Openweight Title shot. He wants to use it right now! Imabayashi told him he already wrestled twice today and Masato Tanaka isn’t here. A relieved Endo admitted he is happy not to wrestle a third time so he will go home and wait for another time. According to him, everyone in DDT hope to wrestle in front of a packed venue again. He may wait to cash in the Sword until then or maybe he won’t.

Saki Akai is now 3-3 in the Okibariyasu. She survived the multiple Suplex variations from Saori Anou to pin her with the always reliable Quetzalcoatl. Akai told Anou the style of pro wrestling she likes is happy, beautiful, cool and flowery. Just like Anou. She wants the two of them to push forward not just joshi wrestling but pro wrestling as a whole. Akai then asked Imabayashi about the seventh and final opponent. Imabayashi told her the final match would have been in Saitama Super Arena but obviously that plan is out the window. He asked her to wait a little longer while he finds a suitable opponent.

The guest coach Jun Akiyama took a few DDT wrestlers to school. He and Keisuke Ishii beat the team of Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani. Akiyama did things here and there to provoke his younger opponents into firing themselves up. He eventually made Okatani tap out to a Crab Hold. Watase Dropkicked Akiyama as he was leaving the ring. Akiyama grabbed him by his head and scolded him until Watase admitted he wanted a singles match against him. Akiyama walked off but accepted the challenge before he left.

Three of the four ALL OUT wrestlers have now lost to Yoshihiko since DDT TV SHOW began. Not even Shunma Katsumata in a Joker costume can stop it! More signs saying “ALL OUT All Dead” were found backstage before the Hardcore Match, driving Katsumata crazy. In the match, Katsumata started off hot. He shoved Yoshihiko into a trash can, hit it with a barbed wire baseball bat and mousetrapped Yoshihiko’s head with a chair several times. Yoshihiko took control by Back Dropping Katsumata onto a chair, giving him a Bulldog and a Piledriver onto a counter and Choke Slamming him onto a Ladder. A ref bump led to Takeshita coming out to interfere while the ring was filled with Lego. The ALL OUT double team failed and Yoshihiko took out Takeshita with a dive out of the ring. It then gave Katsumata a Canadian Destroyer for a nearfall before winning with the Reincarnation onto the Lego. Takeshita confronted Yoshihiko, challenging it to a match.

The only blight on DAMNATION’s record today was losing to DISASTER BOX in the early tag match. Looks like HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura work better as a team than Soma Takao & Mad Paulie do.

The Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title match was presented like a TV comedy sketch with canned laughter. Danshoku Dieno and Antonio Honda kept getting accidentally hit in the groin until both of them could no longer continue. Daisuke Kiso said the punchline and the match ended in a No Contest.

Higuchi’s scheduled match for the episode was a simple win over Keigo Nakamura.


Video – “DDT TV SHOW! #2” Digest Highlights

May 12, 2020

DDT “DDT TV SHOW! #2”, 09/05/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio
0 Fans

1. Saki Akai & Mizuki Watase Vs Saori Anou & Yukio Naya
2. Akito Vs Yoshihiko
3. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – 4 Way Match: Danshoku Dieno (c) Vs HARASHIMA Vs Soma Takao Vs Keigo Nakamura
4. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Gota Ihashi
5. Hardcore Match: Chris Brookes Vs Shunma Katsumata
6. KO-D Openweight Title: Masato Tanaka (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi


Partial Card For DDT TV SHOW #3, May’s Gake no Fuchi Show Cancelled

May 11, 2020

DDT “DDT TV SHOW! #3”, 16/05/2020
DDT TV SHOW Studio

1. DAMNATION Vs ALL OUT!: Daisuke Sasaki & Tetsuya Endo Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Akito
2. Hardcore Match: Yoshihiko Vs Shunma Katsumata
3. Jun Akiyama & Keisuke Ishii Vs Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani
4. Saki Akai “Okibariyasu” 7 Match Series – 6th Match: Saori Anou Vs Saki Akai

Saturday’s tag match built up a little bad blood between Saki Akai and Saori Anou. The winning result for Anou left her thinking she is too much of a challenge for Akai in a singles match. Akai’s current record in her series is 2-3.

Jun Akiyama is now working with DDT both as a coach and a wrestler. His first match on this run sees him teaming with Keisuke Ishii. The two were last in the ring together wrestling each other in Ganbare☆Wrestling a year and a half ago. Ishii also once won the All Asia Tag Team Titles from him. Mizuki Watase & rookie Hideki Okatani are the first ones who get to learn King’s Road style from him.

ALL OUT, All Dead” continues with Shunma Katsumata as the next person looking to stop Yoshihiko from hunting the group down. He just lost a Hardcore Match on the last episode but is willing to go through another one just to get his hands on his nemesis. Yoshihiko might also make his presence known when Akito & Konosuke Takeshita have a tag match with their usual enemies in DAMNATION.

GAKE NO FUCHI JOSHI PRO “GAKEPPUCHI RAPUNZEL 2020~”, 20/05/2020
Saitama Wrestle Arena

Add this to the growing list of cancelled shows. Miyako Matsumoto thought of replacing the event with a no person, no audience, no wrestler show but sadly that also couldn’t come to pass. She extends her deepest sympathies to all the people around the world who have been infected with Coronavirus. She hopes the pandemic will end as soon as possible.