GANBARE☆PRO “BAKURETSU TOSHI BURST CITY 2022”, 17/07/2022 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR 78 Fans – Super No Vacancy
1. GanPro Summer Festival! MakoHaruka Vs YuriMoeka Full-Scale Battle: Makoto & HARUKAZE defeated Moeka Haruhi & YuuRI when Makoto pinned YuuRI with the Seien no Uneri (14:11).
2. GanPro Summer Festival! Lari Pro Army Vs Knee Pro Army Full-Scale Battle: Shuichiro Katsumura & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shota ended in a Quadruple Knockout (16:40).
3. GanPro Summer Festival! GanPro Survival 8-Man Tag Match ~Ohka Army Vs Imanari Army Full-Scale Battle~: Ken Ohka, Kouki Iwasaki, Mizuki Watase & Sayaka Obihiro (3) defeated Yumehito Imanari, Soma Takao, Tyson Maguchi & Sayaka (2) (49:56).
3a. Mizuki Watase & Sayaka Obihiro defeated Yumehito Imanari & Soma Takao when Obihiro knocked Takao out of the ring (18:56).
3b. Mizuki Watase & Sayaka Obihiro defeated Yumehito Imanari & Sayaka when Obihiro pinned Sayaka with the Obihiro Magic (10:29).
3c. Yumehito Imanari & Tyson Maguchi defeated Mizuki Watase & Sayaka Obihiro when Imanari pinned Obihiro with a Gedo Clutch (3:56).
3d. Yumehito Imanari & Tyson Maguchi defeated Kouki Iwasaki & Mizuki Watase when Maeguchi knocked Iwasaki out of the ring (4:05).
3e. Ken Ohka & Mizuki Watase defeated Yumehito Imanari & Tyson Maguchi when Watase pinned Maeguchi with a Vertical Drop Brainbuster (12:30).
During the beginning of the show, Yumehito Imanari nominated his next challenger for the Spirit Of Ganbare Title. He told everyone about something that somebody said to him on 6th October 2020. It was for the main event at Korakuen Hall when this person said Imanari was the only person who did not deserve to be in that spot. Imanari has never forgotten those words or who said it to him. He wants to defend the title in a Korakuen main event against Shigehiro Irie! The next Ganbare☆Pro show in Korakuen is scheduled for 13th August so now Imanari must wait to hear Irie’s response.
The spotlight at the end of the show was shining on someone else. Mizuki Watase came off his momentous win against Eruption at Ota Ward last week to be the deciding factor in today’s Survival Tag Match. Ken Ohka praised him afterward and Watase said he can feel the momentum surrounding Ganpro. He noticed however that Ohka isn’t speaking as much as he normally does and could tell he has a lot he wants to say. Ohka explained he is saving those words for when he wins the Spirit Of Ganbare Title from Imanari.
The Lariat Pro Wrestling Vs Knee Pro Wrestling match featured a montage of songs from famous wrestlers synonymous with Lariats and Knee Striking moves. The action became too much to handle for Shuichiro Katsumura, Shinichiro Tominaga, Keisuke Ishii and Shota because all four were left knocked out by the end of the match resulting in a draw.
Backstage Shota announced he is going on excursion to America this September with no timeframe on when he will return to Japan. While he already knows where he can go looking for bookings over there, nothing is set in stone and there is no guarantee he will be successful. But he is willing to put his life as a pro wrestler on the line for a few months. So for that reason he is taking a one way flight to the USA with the goal of wrestling there until he is exhausted. Until then he will spend August wrestling his remaining matches in Ganpro before going off to chase his dream in America.
Everyone got to learn about HARUKAZE’s history with Makoto when HARUKAZE got on the microphone after their match. She told a story about how she became a recluse after getting injured and leaving Stardom. Then suddenly one day Makoto, who she had never met previously, got in touch and invited her to take part in a show she was on. HARUKAZE said that was the beginning of her rehabiliation and the match she had on that show felt like she was making her debut all over again. Makoto is why HARUKAZE is still a pro wrestler so she asked Makoto to have a singles match together. Makoto admitted she didn’t expect to hear this story and called it a great honour for another wrestler to want a match with her. She accepted the challenge and the match will happen on 13th August. However Makoto warned that she is stronger than HARUKAZE thinks.
GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA”, 10/07/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium 804 Fans
1. Four Beasts Of Fate Gathered In Sekigahara ~Special Tag Match~: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Isami Kodaka & Shuji Ishikawa
2. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Takaiwa Army: Kouki Iwasaki & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Tatsuhito Takaiwa & 5th Black Tiger
3. Ganpro Specialty 6-Man Tag Match Match: Ganbare Tamagawa, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE Vs Onryo, YuuRI & Lingerie Muto
4. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Eruption: Mizuki Watase, Moeka Haruhi & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani
5. Special Single Match: Yuna Manase Vs Sayaka Unagi
6. Special Single Match: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Minoru Suzuki
7. Special Tag Match ~ CDK Vs ROMANCE DAWN: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Shota & Soma Takao
8. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) Vs Ken Ohka
GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA”, 10/07/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium 804 Fans
1. Four Beasts Of Fate Gathered In Sekigahara ~Special Tag Match~: Isami Kodaka & Shuji Ishikawa defeated Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie when Ishii pinned Kodaka with the Isamiashi Zan (13:42).
2. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Takaiwa Army: Kouki Iwasaki & Tyson Maeguchi defeated Tatsuhito Takaiwa & 5th Black Tiger when Maeguchi pinned Tiger with the Tyson Splash (14:00).
3. Ganpro Specialty 6-Man Tag Match Match: Ganbare Tamagawa, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE defeated Onryo, YuuRI & Lingerie Muto when HARUKAZE pinned YuuRI with the Flame Spear (9:13).
4. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Eruption: Mizuki Watase, Moeka Haruhi & Shinichiro Tominaga defeated Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani when Watase pinned Sakaguchi with an Elbow Butt (15:22).
5. Special Single Match: Sayaka Unagi defeated Yuna Manase with the Jomon Toppa (12:59).
6. Special Single Match: Minoru Suzuki defeated Shuichiro Katsumura with the Gotch-Style Piledriver (21:45).
7. Special Tag Match ~ CDK Vs ROMANCE DAWN: Shota & Soma Takao defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi when Shota pinned Brookes with the Gannosuke Clutch (23:09).
8. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) defeated Ken Ohka with the Lariat (19:25). *V1 for Yumehito Imanari.
Today Ganbare☆Pro reached Ota Ward Gymnasium to hold the biggest event in its nine year history. The two men most important to the promotion faced off in the main event. On the one side is Ganpro’s founder Ken Ohka, the man who created the company in the hopes of making his own major sports league. His opponent is the first person to stand by him during Ganpro’s creation. Yumehito Imanari was just a member of DDT’s video team who wrestled on a part time basis. Today he was headlining Ota Ward Gym as the defending Spirit Of Ganbare Champion. The two fought each other knowing it was the most important match of their lives. Ohka relied on the Flame Spear but it was Imanari’s use of the Lariat that ended the match with his arm raised in the air and a successful first title defence.
After the match Imanari said when he became a pro wrestler he embarrassed himself a lot. But it is that shame that led him to the treasure he has now. He said Ganpro is necessary in the wrestling world because there is nowhere else where you can put your life on the line in such a muddy atmosphere. If you ever have a hard time, look at Ganpro! Ohka didn’t cry when he lost. He laughed instead. He doesn’t understand why because it should be the opposite. At 45 years of age he believes he still has room to grow. He wants to work hard with the younger wrestlers and continue his work to make pro wrestling into a major sport. The attendance of 804 fans today is considered a success and is going to inspire Ganpro when they decide on their next big goal.
The other important matches on the show were built around matches where Ganpro wrestlers fought outsiders. The tag team battle between ROMANCE DAWN and CDK was Ganpro’s top tag team taking on the notorious duo found in DDT and ChocoPro. CDK did some cheating throughout the match. Early on Chris Brookes taped Soma Takao to a dolly and rolled him away from ringside, leaving Shota fighting in a 2 on 1 disadvantage. Takao was able to get freed and return to the ring. Brookes also grabbed HARUKAZE and Gorilla Pressed her out of the ring onto everyone below. Later Masahiro Takanashi pulled the referee out of the ring to break up Shota’s Frog Splash on Brookes. Shota was then hit over the head with the Asia Dream Tag Team Title belt but he kicked out of the pin. ROMANCE DAWN was able to get the win out of nowhere when Shota countered the Praying Mantis Bomb into the Gannosuke Clutch, pinning Brookes for the victory. Shota said he is ready to go for a rematch while Takao was happy to win in his hometown with his friend. Brookes is making demands for a singles match. He wants to go one on one. But not against Shota, he is demanding a match against HARUKAZE! Takanashi backs up the idea and suggested they do a tag match if HARUKAZE has a tag partner.
Fans were allowed to cheer which meant everyone got to shout “Kaze Ni Nare!” during Minoru Suzuki’s entrance. But when it was time for his match to begin, the cheers and chants were for Ganpro’s own Shuichiro Katsumura. The match was filled with strikes and submission holds with a little bit of chair usage from Suzuki. He broke out of the Ninja Choke and dropped Katsumura with the Gotch-Style Piledriver to win the match. In a rare act of sportsmanship, Suzuki shook Katsumura’s hand and left to ring to give his opponent the spotlight. He even later admitted to enjoying the match! Katsumura said getting the match he always wanted is no big deal and he will continue to wrestle for Ganpro.
Emotions ran high for Yuna Manase’s match against Sayaka Unagi. The two have history together that recently mutated into Unagi holding a grudge. Their only previous singles match happened early in Unagi’s career and the loss to Manase has haunted her ever since. She showed erratic behavior at a press conference for the match by biting Manase’s chest. She did the same here when the match began. The match continued to heat up with Manase throwing Lariats. But Unagi broke through her defences and got the three count after hitting the Jomon Toppa. After the match Unagi confessed that she does not hate Ganpro and she does not believe Manase is on her last run. She learned about the fun and freedom of pro wrestling from Manase so she’s not going to let her quit so easily. They also now have a 1-1 record against each other. Unagi believes she will one day become the top wrestler in Stardom and the world of pro wrestling. When she does she will look for Manase so they can have the rubber match.
Ganpro’s previous experiences with Eruption have ended with the DDT unit bullying them. Yukio Sakaguchi in particular has been a pain in the back for Mizuki Watase to deal with. It ended up causing Watase to shave his own head after he dropped the fall to Sakaguchi in a Ganpro Vs Eruption match at “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2022”. Today was Watase’s shot at redemption when he teamed with Moeka Haruhi & Shinichiro Tominaga against the same trio of Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani. He finally got his day in the sun when he pinned Sakaguchi with an Elbow Butt to the face. Once Sakaguchi got over the shock of defeat, he gave Watase a congratulatory pat to the body and left him to celebrate with his team.
The advertised 3 Vs 2 Handicap Match turned into a 6-Man Tag Match on short notice. Munenori Sawa wasn’t around so in his place was Lingerie Muto as an active participant in the match! Ganbare Tamagawa thought he was going to get a hero’s welcome for his first Ganpro appearance in years. He even created a new move for the occassion called the Ganbare☆Pro Elbow. Instead he got booed. YuuRI on the other hand got loads of streamers thrown at her, leaving her in tears of joy because she debuted during the pandemic and never experienced an audience response like this. The ring was also filled with ecto dust whenever Onryo did something with Nobuhiro Shimatani. In the end, HARUKAZE was the one to win the match when she pinned YuuRI with the Flame Spear.
After nine months wrestling for Ganpro, Tyson Maeguchi finally gets his first direct win! The opportunity came when Tatsuhito Takaiwa accidentally hit 5th Black Tiger with a Lariat. Kouki Iwasaki then gave Tiger a Vertical Drop Brainbuster and left him for Maeguchi to finish off. Maeguchi did so with a Diving Body Press taught to him by Kota Ibushi. He now believes this is the end of Taison Maeguchi: the weak pro wrestler. From this day forth he is Taison Maeguchi: the strong pro wrestler! Next up he would like to aim for a championship. Takaiwa said this is not the end of him or his Takaiwa Army because he is still looking to understand the Ganbare Spirit.
The show opened with a barnburner between four wrestlers linked together through a time before Ganpro even existed. Keisuke Ishii, Shigehiro Irie, Isami Kodaka and Shuji Ishikawa smashed each other to pieces until somebody reached their breaking point. That came when Kodaka hit Ishii with the Isamiashi Zan. Even when the match was over tempers were flaring. Kodaka said he is the top wrestler of BASARA and Ishikawa is the top wrestler of All Japan. He thinks Ishii and Ganpro haven’t grown at all in the decade that passed since Union Pro closed down. Ishikawa was in a happier mood and congratulated Kodaka on his 20th anniversary in wrestling. He explained he can’t be at Kodaka’s 20th Anniversary show because he has a booking with AJPW on the same day.
The new Ganbare☆Joshi signing is Yoshiko Hasegawa! The former Actwres girl’Z wrestler left the business at the end of last year after dealing with a neck injury. However after a year and seven months since her last match, she will re-debut for Ganpro on 13th August. She calls it her re-debut because she is starting again from scratch. Part of the reason is because Ganpro does mixed gender matches and she wants to take part in them to get stronger. She is also currently still getting treatment on her neck but assures everyone she will be ready to wrestle again on 13th August.
I’ll now include the official Youtube videos of matches to these posts. Last month’s article was updated to include the videos available from May and I’ll go back to add more if they get uploaded. Konosuke Takeshita having matches across the American indies that are so good they have to be put up for free on Youtube is going to be the trend this summer. The other trend seems to be Tokyo Joshi Pro wrestlers unexpectedly appearing on AEW’s Youtube shows whenever they are in the country. The Forbidden Door is behind us for the time being so if there was any red tape preventing Takeshita from having a higher profile that should be gone now. Even then he’s keeping himself busy as you will see below. By the way it is incredibly satisfying to see how successful that show turned out. So many wrestling analysts and personalities last month predicted failure because let’s be honest, they personally don’t care about New Japan. It is obvious to me that a lot of them used the “casual fan” argument as a cover for their own lack of interest or knowledge for Japanese wrestling. But the PPV being a success proves there is an audience out there that does care. I mean that’s why you’re here right now reading this post, right?
SPOILER WARNING: The results section includes spoilers for taped AEW matches that have not aired yet.
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Videos
DPW “NO PRESSURE”, 05/06/2022 Gov. James E. Holshouser Building, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
1. Golden Opportunity Match: Miyu Yamashita Vs Miyuki Takase
Video starts at 21:24 for the match AEW “DARK ELEVATION”, 06/06/2022 The Kia Forum, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Skye Blue & Miyu Yamashita Vs Serena Deeb & Nyla Rose
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 08/06/2022 Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA
1. Casino Battle Royale: Darby Allin Vs Tony Nese Vs Daniel Garcia Vs Lance Archer Vs Eddie Kingston Vs Ricky Starks Vs Jake Hager Vs Rey Fenix Vs Swerve Strickland Vs Keith Lee Vs John Silver Vs Konosuke Takeshita Vs Max Caster Vs Austin Gunn Vs Colten Gunn Vs Powerhouse Hobbs Vs Bobby Fish Vs Kyle O’Reilly Vs Dante Martin Vs Wheeler Yuta Vs Andrade El Idolo
WEST COAST PRO “’93 TIL INFINITY”, 10/06/2022 The State Room, South San Francisco, USA
1. Mike Bailey Vs Konosuke Takeshita
ROW “LOCK UP”, 11/06/2022 Booker T World Gym Arena, Texas City, Texas, USA
1. Ryan Davidson Vs Shota
Video starts at 37:43 for the match AEW “DARK”, 14/06/2022 Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Nick Comoroto (w/ Aaron Solo)
PRESTIGE “THE NEW REALITY”, 18/06/2022 The Glass House, Pomona, USA
1. Lee Moriarty Vs Konosuke Takeshita
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Results
AEW “DARK ELEVATION”, 01/06/2022 (Aired 06/06/2022) The Kia Forum, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Serena Deeb & Nyla Rose defeated Skye Blue & Miyu Yamashita when Deeb submitted Blue with the Serenity Lock (7:40).
When the month began, the joshi wrestlers who were hanging around in America all went back to Japan except for Miyu Yamashita. She still had an indie date left to do but there was an unusually long gap of time until it took place. Turns out the extra time was filled up with Yamashita’s first AEW booking. She unexpectedly had her debut match with the company on Dark Elevation teaming with Skye Blue against two of AEW’s top threats in the women’s division: Serena Deeb & Nyla Rose. There were complaints from fans that you shouldn’t be just throwing Yamashita into a Youtube match like that but there’s a long game being played here. AEW are well aware of Yamashita’s status in the joshi scene and have kept an eye on her for her entire US trip last month. There’s even some hearsay that her indie bookings went through AEW as part of getting her over to the USA in the first place. They’ve been so impressed with her performances that considerations are under way to put together a future AEW Women’s Title program between her and Thunder Rosa. Those plans are separate from the Rosa Vs Yamashita match happening in TJPW later this month. I know the booking of the AEW women’s division is incredibly frustrating to follow but I assure you there is some thought being put behind what to do with Yamashita in the future.
AEW “DARK”, 03/06/2022 (Aired 14/06/2022) Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Nick Comoroto (w/ Aaron Solo) with the Jumping Knee Strike (6:42).
We’re getting into odd territory with the Dark tapings. Takeshita’s match against Nick Comoroto was recorded on 3rd June but was not used until the episode that aired on the 14th.
DPW “NO PRESSURE”, 05/06/2022 Gov. James E. Holshouser Building, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
1. Golden Opportunity Match: Miyu Yamashita defeated Miyuki Takase with the Skull Kick (15:27).
A first time meeting took place in Deadlock Pro when Yamashita took on the freelancer Miyuki Takase. The match had a little bit of everything from strike exchanges, slight comedy, big moves like an Avalanche Attitude Adjustment and Takase running a lap around the building to set up the longest Clothesline spot you’ll ever see. Yamashita found her opponent’s limit with High Kicks and finished her off with the Skull Kick to win. According to the match stipulation Yamashita now has a championship shot of some sort for whenever she wants when she returns to DPW.
AEW “DYNAMITE”, 08/06/2022 Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA
1. Casino Battle Royale: Kyle O’Reilly defeated Wheeler Yuta by Ring Out (24:59). Order Of Elimination: Tony Nese, Lance Archer, Max Caster, Austin Gunn & Colten Gunn, Keith Lee, John Silver, Daniel Garcia, Eddie Kingston, Jake Hager, Konosuke Takeshita, Dante Martin, Ricky Starks, Bobby Fish, Darby Allin, Swerve Strickland, Powerhouse Hobbs, Rey Fenix, Andrade El Idolo and Wheeler Yuta.
Takeshita entered the annual Casino Battle Royal where the winner would face Jon Moxley later in the night. It was all part of a long, sudden journey to crown an Interim AEW World Champion thanks to CM Punk unexpectedly going out of action with injury. Takeshita entered the match in the middle of the pack but was thrown out by both Ricky Starks & Powerhouse Hobbs. That left Takeshita tweeting about if he should find some new friends for backup should a similar situation ever repeats itself.
WEST COAST PRO “’93 TIL INFINITY”, 10/06/2022 The State Room, South San Francisco, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Mike Bailey with the German Suplex (17:50).
Well he got to reunite with one of his friends a couple of days later. The long awaited rematch with Mike Bailey delivered and then some. What are you doing reading this when you can watch it up at the top of the post above?
AEW “DARK”, 11/06/2022 (Aired 19/07/2022)
Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Anthony Henry with the Jumping Knee Strike (7:48).
Back to the weirdness of the tapings. Takeshita’s match against Anthony Henry hasn’t aired yet. AEW now tapes month’s worth of Dark matches in Universal Studios a couple times a year. Details results of the tapings aren’t common so for the moment we just know who won. I’ll come back to edit this post when the match does air.
ROW “LOCK UP”, 11/06/2022 Booker T World Gym Arena, Texas City, Texas, USA
1. Ryan Davidson defeated Shota with the Davidson Driver (?:??).
Hey Ganbare☆Pro can join in on the fun now. Shota finally got to travel to America after his original plans to do so went kaput two years ago because of the pandemic. He went over to Texas to perform on a Reality Of Wrestling show. That is the promotion run by none other than Booker T. Shota took on Ryan Davidson, an American wrestler who wrestled in both DDT and Ganpro back in 2018. Shota stayed in America for a few more days and went to an AEW event in St. Louis where he hung out with Takeshita and Michael Nakazawa backstage.
PRESTIGE “THE NEW REALITY”, 18/06/2022 The Glass House, Pomona, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Lee Moriarty with the Zahi (17:55).
Another very entertaining match worth watching. Lee Moriarty is such a good talent who can shine through your screen with his ring work. He’s a good opponent for Takeshita as you can see when you watch the video way up above.
AEW “DARK ELEVATION”, 29/06/2022 (Aired 04/07/2022) Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Hikaru Shida & Yuka Sakazaki defeated Heather Reckless & Laynie Luck when Shida pinned Reckless with the Falcon Arrow (2:53).
It was a surprise to everyone when both Yuka Sakazaki and Hikaru Shida showed up to wrestle as a tag team this past Wednesday. I didn’t realize Sakazaki had left Japan for her PWG booking and it wasn’t publicly known that Shida was returning to the US either. The match against Heather Reckless & Laynie Luck will air on Dark Elevation next Monday. Hopefully for Sakazaki’s sake they edit her entrance because she tripped and fell on the ramp while running out. She got revenge on the ramp after the match by stomping on it while leaving ringside.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 29/06/2022 (Aired 01/07/2022) Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Royal Rampage: Brody King defeated Darby Allin by Ring Out (22:41). Order Of Elimination: Tony Nese, John Silver, Max Caster, Penta Oscuro & Rush, Matt Hardy, Frankie Kazarian, Dante Martin, Dustin Rhodes, Konosuke Takeshita, Orange Cassidy, Keith Lee, Swerve Strickland, Ricky Starks, Hangman Page, The Blade, The Butcher and Darby Allin.
Tonight’s episode of Rampage has Takeshita entering the first ever Royal Rampage match. It is reportedly a Royal Rumble match involving two wrestling rings and the last wrestlers left in each ring face off in the finale. Remember earlier when I said Takeshita wants to look for backup so he won’t get eliminated by a tag team? Well it happened again when The Butcher & The Blade worked together to throw him out of the ring.
Yamashita is currently in Spain ready and waiting for this weekend’s show with RCW. Her opponent is an interesting choice. Alex Windsor has been on a roll in England lately for both Revolution Pro and Pro Wrestling: EVE. She will be coming to Japan one week later to challenge for the International Princess Title too. No bigger message to send TJPW than to beat their first ace before heading over.
PWG “NINETEEN”, 03/07/2022 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Yuka Sakazaki Vs Masha Slamovich
2. PWG World Title: Daniel Garcia (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita
Takeshita has had no luck chasing after AEW championships. The PWG World Title however is so close he should be able to taste it. The champion Daniel Garcia is beaten up from doing a Blood & Guts cage match. Sakazaki gets to be added to the short list of women to have wrestled for PWG. She can make Masha Slamovich 0 for 2 against TJPW talent.
JCW “THE GREAT AMERICAN BIRTHDAY BASH”, 10/07/2022 Phil Sheridan Building, Ridgefield Park, New Jersey, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Cole Radrick
This is a match with more history than meets the eye. Takeshita and Cole Radrick have gotten along on Twitter for the last year, sharing gifs of them doing each other’s moves in matches. Does that mean when they finally meet they will play mind games by swapping movesets against each other?
DEFY “THE WORLD IS YOURS NIGHT 1”, 16/07/2022 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Davey Richards
Davey Richards has taken up the indie gatekeeper role ever since he returned to active competition. Takeshita getting an opponent as established as him in a promotion as energetic as DEFY should result in magic.
TERMINUS “TERMINUS 3”, 21/07/2022 Oasis Event Center, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
1. Jonathan Gresham Vs Konosuke Takeshita
The hits keep on coming! Takeshita should expect a change of pace here because TERMINUS uses an alternate ruleset that encourages more grappling and less theatrics. Jonathan Gresham flies the flag for that style (often literally) and has been pretty much unbeatable since becoming the ROH World Champion. It would be a good idea for Takeshita to remember what he learned from wrestling Shinya Aoki and fight fire with fire.
PRESTIGE “NONSTOP FEELING”, 22/07/2022 Hawthorne Theater, Portland, Oregon, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Kevin Blackwood
The next day Takeshita returns to Prestige for his second match in the promotion. Kevin Blackwood has been gaining notoriety in the indies this year and just last week got a big win over Takeshita’s buddy Mike Bailey.
GARDEN STATE PRO “WELCOME TO EDEN”, 23/07/2022 The Heart Ballroom, Newark, USA
1. 3 Way Match: Billie Starkz Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Janai Kai
2. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Josh Alexander
Takeshita will also be holding a seminar for Garden State Pro on the day of the show.
BLACK LABEL PRO “THE GANG CROSSES THE LINE”, 29/07/2022 Nashville Fairgrounds, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Nick Wayne
A teenage prodigy being hailed as the future of pro wrestling with the world at his feet. Sounds familiar. Nick Wayne is sort of where Takeshita was a decade ago. The young phenomenon is becoming a must see wrestler on the indies and supposedly has an AEW contract waiting for him once he is eligible to sign it. One future will get to see the next future first hand.
SETUP “SETUP EP.8”, 30/07/2022 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. Hoshitango Vs Bital Hasdin
2. Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs X
Hoshitango’s opponent Bital Hasdin is being promoted as Thailand’s super rookie.
PROGRESS “CHAPTER 137: DEADLY VIPER TOUR – COPPERHEAD”, 13/08/2022 O2 Academy, Sheffield, England
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs X
Takeshita heads over to England in August for a tour with PROGRESS, the company that wishes it was still 2019. His first show will be in Sheffield and then he will be in Newcastle the next day.
GCW “HOMECOMING PART 1”, 13/08/2022 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
GCW is not ready for Maki Itoh.
PROGRESS “CHAPTER 138: DEADLY VIPER TOUR – COTTONMOUTH”, 14/08/2022 Boiler Shop, Newcastle, England
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs X
Takeshita won’t be the only DDT talent PROGRESS gets to experience this year…
GCW “HOMECOMING PART 2”, 14/08/2022 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
I repeat, they are so not ready for her.
PROGRESS “CHAPTER 142: DEADLY VIPER TOUR – CALIFORNIA MOUNTAIN SNAKE”, 25/09/2022 O2 Academy, Birmingham, England
1. Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs X
Chris Brookes is coming back to Europe and he’s bringing Masahiro Takanashi with him!
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2022”, 01/10/2022 – 03/10/2022 Turbinenhalle, Oberhausen, Germany
1. World Tag Team Festival 2022: Fuminori Abe & Shigehiro Irie Vs X
2. World Tag Team Festival 2022: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs X
Take it from me, wXw tournaments in Oberhausen make for great weekend breaks if you’re with other wrestling fans. They have done tag team tournaments every Autumn for years but the World Tag Team Festival branding is only a recent creation that got interrupted by the pandemic. CDK was one of the first teams announced to enter the annual tournament. They are joined by two familiar faces, the team of Fuminori Abe & Shigehiro Irie!
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “ADDITIONAL ATTACK ’22”, 19/06/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Arisu Endo Vs Kaya Toribami
2. Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu Vs Nao Kakuta & Haruna Neko
3. 3 Way Match: Yuki Aino Vs Raku Vs Pom Harajuku
4. Miu Watanabe Vs Juria Nagano
5. Miyu Yamashita & Moka Miyamoto Vs Saki Akai & Yuki Arai
6. Rika Tatsumi & Suzume Vs Maki Itoh & Hikari Noa
7. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao
The match order for tomorrow has been determined. The change is just matches #5 and #6 swapping places now that Rika Tatsumi is the No. 1 Contender.
DDT “KING OF DDT 2022 2ND ROUND”, 19/06/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
0. Dark Match: Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari
1. DAMNATION T.A Vs Eruption!: MJ Paul & KANON Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani
2. THE KICKBOXING MATCH 2022: Shinya Aoki & Toi Kojima Vs Hikaru Machida & Gota Ihashi
3. MAO, Shunma Katsumata, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Yuji Hino, Yukio Naya, Chris Brookes & Yuki Ishida
4. King Of DDT 2022 – Round 2: Masahiro Takanashi Vs Kazusada Higuchi
5. King Of DDT 2022 – Round 2: Jun Akiyama Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino
6. King Of DDT 2022 – Round 2: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno
7. King Of DDT 2022 – Round 2: Naomi Yoshimura Vs HARASHIMA
Round 2 of King Of DDT takes place tomorrow. The winners will all be put through a lottery at the end of the show to pick who faces who in the semi-finals next month.
THE KICKBOXING MATCH is set for 5 Rounds with a 3 minute time limit for each. Fitness model Sanae Takebayashi is the special guest ring girl along with Miyata Mitsuru as the ring announcer. Takebayashi has wrestled before with Best Body Japan Pro Wrestling.
BASARA “BASARA 195 ~GLITTER~”, 21/06/2022 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Lil’ Kraken Vs Chicharito Shoki
2. Daichi Kazato & Gouma Vs SAGAT & Akiyori Takizawa
3. Takumi Tsukamoto, Fuminori Abe & Yasu Urano Vs Daiki Shimomura, Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino
4. IRON FIST Tag Titles: Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga (c) Vs FUMA & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
5. Union MAX Title: Ryota Nakatsu (c) Vs Isami Kodaka
There would be nothing better to celebrate Isami Kodaka’s 20th anniversary in wrestling than to win back the Union MAX Title. Otherwise Ryota Nakatsu will continue is unstoppable reign as champion.
GANBARE☆PRO “KINDERGARTEN COP 2022”, 29/06/2022 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Dotonbori Pro Wrestling: Kouki Iwasaki Vs Ryuya Matsufusa
2. Ganpro Special Mixed 6-Man Tag Match: Shuichiro Katsumura, Yuna Manase & YuuRI Vs Mizuki Watase, Moeka Haruhi & HARUKAZE
3. Spirit World Drunkers Vs Dragon Beast Bombers: Onryo & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Shigehiro Irie
4. Ishii-gun Vs Pro Wrestling BASARA: Keisuke Ishii & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Isami Kodaka & Daiki Shimomura
5. Road To SEKIGAHARA Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari, Shota & Soma Takao Vs Ken Ohka, Masahiro Takanashi & Chris Brookes
The build to “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA” continues with Ganbare☆Pro putting together a lot of fresh matches it has to be said. BASARA are invited round with Kodaka & Daiki Shimomura taking on Keisuke Ishii & Nobuhiro Shimatani. That match doubles up as a Gran MilliMeters reunion for Shimomura and Shimatani. Former opponents Onryo & Tyson Maeguchi team up to go against the unique team of Tatsuhito Takaiwa & Shigehiro Irie. Also Ryuya Matsufusa returns to Ganpro for a match against Kouki Iwasaki.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’22”, 09/07/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Willow Nightingale Vs X
2. Mei Suruga & Suzume Vs X & X
3. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Invited Overseas Wrestler
4. Princess Of Princess Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi
American wrestler Willow Nightingale will make her Tokyo Joshi Pro debut on the show. “The Babe With The Power” is a regular on the American indies with her most high profile work being with ROH, MLW and lately AEW. An interesting note to point out is she will not be the foreign wrestler challenging Maki Itoh for the International Princess Title. Nightingale’s match will instead be announced on a later date.
May as well put it here that the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer reports on discussions to bring Thunder Rosa back to TJPW while she holds the AEW Women’s Title. This follows up on last week’s report on AEW being so impressed with Miyu Yamashita during her entire American excursion that they may want to do Rosa Vs Yamashita for the title somewhere down the road. Rosa herself hasn’t kept it a secret about how much she supports TJPW and wants to go back to Japan (and I think she let slip on one of her vlogs that it will happen sooner rather than later). That would be a big opponent for Itoh because the belt she has was taken away from Rosa two years ago.
GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA”, 10/07/2022 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Takiawa Army: Kouki Iwasaki & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Tatsuhito Takaiwa & 5th Black Tiger
2. Four Beasts Of Fate Gathered In Sekigahara ~Special Tag Match~: Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Isami Kodaka & Shuji Ishikawa
3. Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs Eruption: Mizuki Watase, Moeka Haruhi & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani
4. Special Single Match: Yuna Manase Vs Sayaka Unagi
5. Special Tag Match ~ CDK Vs ROMANCE DAWN: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Shota & Soma Takao
6. Special Single Match: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Minoru Suzuki
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) Vs Ken Ohka
Four figures from the past DNA that helped create Ganbare☆Pro are put together for a beastly tag match. You can trace Ishii, Irie, Kodaka and Shuji Ishikawa back to Ganpro’s predecessor Union Pro.
BASARA “ISAMI KODAKA 20TH ANNIVERSARY”, 18/07/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Lil’ Kraken Vs Raimu Imai
2. 3 Way Jacket Match: Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Gouma Vs Shiori Asahi
3. Takumi Tsukamoto, Yasu Urano & Kengo Mashimo Vs FUMA, Yusuke Kubo & Daichi Kazato
4. Daiki Shimomura, Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino Vs Tsutomu Oosugi, Banana Senga & Masahiro Takanashi
5. Elimination 8-Man Tag Match: Ryota Nakatsu, SAGAT, Naoki Tanizaki & Akiyori Takizawa Vs Fuminori Abe, Takuya Nomura, Hideyoshi Kamitani & Kosuke Sato
6. Isami Kodaka Vs Yuko Miyamoto
Kodaka celebrates his 20th Anniversary by taking on the wrestler who probably knows him better than anyone else in the business. Yuko Miyamoto teams on and off with Kodaka as Yankee Two Kenju and is probably the most fitting opponent available for this show.
For the first time in a long time Sparky is together at full power. All four members of the unit will team up to take on a Big Japan flavored team led by Astronauts.
Yusuke Kubo has recovered from his illness and returns to wrestling here. It will be his first match since March.
DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2022”, 24/07/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Makoto Oishi Return Match: Makoto Oishi Vs X
After one year away with injury, Makoto Oishi returns to the ring! Oishi suffered a back injury last July during a match and had to be stretchered out of the venue. He was diagnosed with a fractured lumbar vertebrae and hadn’t wrestled since. However he was equipped with a back brace and continued working in the background at DDT shows, even finding ways to perform on those shows without having to wrestle.
1. Punch Drunker Vs Strong Zero Drunker: Soma Takao defeated Tyson Maeguchi with a Sleeper Hold Switchback (7:14).
2. GanJo Super Fight In Chiba: HARUKAZE & Ann Cham defeated Moeka Haruhi & YuuRI when HARUKAZE submitted YuuRI with the Haru Ichiban (9:26).
3. Nippon University Alumni Association In 2AW Square: Ken Ohka defeated Kyu Mogami with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (8:26).
4. Yuna Manase Triumphant Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari, Kaji Tomato & Yuna Manase defeated Keisuke Ishii, Shota & Ayame Sasamura when Imanari pinned Shota with the Lariat (12:02).
5. Shinichiro Tominaga 2nd Hometown Triumph Match: GENTARO & Yasu Urano defeated Shuichiro Katsumura & Shinichiro Tominaga when GENTARO submitted Tominaga with a Haragatame (14:37).
6. Special Tag Match: Shigehiro Irie & Kouki Iwasaki defeated Naoya Nomura & Mizuki Watase by TKO when Irie used Repeated Elbow Butts on Watase (21:21).
REAL BLOOD’s first appearance in Ganbare☆Pro ended in defeat to Shigehiro Irie & Kouki Iwasaki. Near the end Iwasaki and Naoya Nomura exchanged German Suplexes to take each other out of the match. Irie then held Mizuki Watase down and unleashed Elbow Strikes to his head until the referee called for the bell. Nomura expected the result, saying REAL BLOOD wouldn’t be as fun if they were successful from the beginning. They’re going to sneak around the wrestling world instead. Watase agrees, thinking it is great that he has something to fight for. Irie said Watase is working harder and Iwasaki is excited at the thought of fighting Nomura again.
Today was the first time in over four years Shinichiro Tominaga got to fight GENTARO. It was also five years since Tominaga was last in Chiba 2AW Square. Injuries and time spent away from wrestling prevented the two from wrestling each other until today. Tominaga thought he gained the experience he needed in that time to win today but was proven wrong when GENTARO stretched him into submission.
Yuna Manase was happy to wrestle in a match promoting her triumphant hometown return. She began wrestling when she was 25 and this year she will turn 35. She does not know if all of her dreams will come true but Ganpro has shown they can if she keeps thinking about them.
1. FUMA, Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Daichi Kazato defeated Takumi Tsukamoto, Lil’ Kraken & Yasu Urano when FUMA pinned Kraken with a German Suplex (12:04).
2. Jacket Match: Fuminori Abe defeated Gouma by Knockout with the Nagabuchi K (24:02).
3. Daiki Shimomura & Minoru Fujita defeated Ryota Nakatsu & Akiyori Takizawa when Shimomura pinned Nakatsu with an Inverted Hurricanrana (17:35).
4. Shigehiro Irie defeated SAGAT with the Beast Bomber (17:10).
5. IRON FIST Tag Titles: Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga (c) defeated Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino when Oosugi pinned Kamino with a School Boy (18:09). *V4 for Speed Of Sounds.
It was a lucky result for Speed Of Sounds today. They barely defeated Aijin Tag thanks to a Thrust Kick from Banana Senga to Masato Kamino leading into a School Boy from Tsutomu Oosugi. Senga admitted afterwards that the match was even closer than the one last month and they probably wouldn’t win if they did another rematch. Oosugi cut him off but Takato Nakano’s eyes lit up and he begged for another rematch next month. SOS won’t do it so Nakano told them to hold onto the IRON FIST Tag Titles until Aijin Tag can earn another title shot.
Shigehiro Irie offered to shake SAGAT’s hand after their match but SAGAT refused. Instead he begged Irie for a rematch somewhere down the line. Irie nodded and left the ring.
A “perfect three count” happened when Daiki Shimomura pinned Ryota Nakatsu in their tag match. He pinned him with a 2 count before and today’s three count means Shimomura now has the confidence he needs to beat Nakatsu again when the Union MAX Title is on the line on 28th April.
The Jacket Match between Fuminori Abe and Gouma actually begun during the show opening announcements and continued while the opening tag match was going on. Both matches ended up getting mixed together at points. This was allowed to happen because the Jacket Match had No DQs, No Countouts and could only be won by Knockout. Abe won by knocking out Gouma with the Nagabuchi Kick. Asian Kung Fu Revolution then attacked the both of them because it turns out Abe and Gouma just ruined FUMA’s 12th Anniversary match! Takumi Tsukamoto & Yasu Urano came back out to rescue them, leading to a big brawl between everyone in the ring.
BASARA “BASARA 185 ~GLITTER~”, 15/03/2022 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Isami Kodaka, Daiki Shimomura & Minoru Fujita Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi, Yusuke Kubo & Daichi Kazato
2. 3 Way Match: SAGAT Vs Gouma Vs Lil Kraken
3. Takumi Tsukamoto & Yasu Urano Vs Fuminori Abe & Masahiro Takanashi
4. Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga Vs Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino
5. Union MAX Title: Ryota Nakatsu (c) Vs FUMA
Shigehiro Irie was originally advertised to be on the show. However today he tested positive for covid and he cannot be cleared in time for next week. Masahiro Takanashi will take his place instead. Fuminori Abe is a close contact with Irie but tested negative. As long as he continues testing negative during his quarantine he will be on the show.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GRAND PRINCESS ’22”, 19/03/2022 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
1. Juria Nagano Debut Match: Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Moka Miyamoto & Juria Nagano
2. Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling Vs Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling: Nao Kakuta, Mahiro Kiryu, Haruna Neko & Kaya Toribami Vs Yuna Manase, Moeka Haruhi, HARUKAZE & YuuRI
3. Sanshiro Takagi Vs Hyper Misao
4. Yuki Kamifuku Vs Asuka
5. Nodoka Tenma Vs Yuki Aino
6. Sakisama, Mei Saint-Michel, Martha & Yukio Saint Laurent Vs Marika Kobashi, Raku, Pom Harajuku & Ram Kaichow
7. Special Single Match: Hikaru Shida Vs Hikari Noa
8. International Princess Title: Maki Itoh (c) Vs Yuki Arai
9. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
10. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima
A press conference was held between the wrestlers participating in the inter-promotional match between Tokyo Joshi Pro and Ganbare☆Pro. Both Nao Kakuta and Yuna Manase want their teams to put on an exciting match fitting for Sumo Hall. It is the first time Kakuta really feels like she is part of TJPW and she wants to show Manase she is not the same person she was back in Actwres girl’Z. The other members of Team TJPW shared their thoughts. Mahiro Kiryu is keeping her eyes open at the rest of Team Ganpro because she doesn’t know much about them. She does like mahjong though so she wants to win with a high score. Haruna Neko wants to do everything she can as a cat and will scratch everyone. Kaya Toribami admits to being the least experienced girl on the team but reminds everyone that her mask is based on the most ferocious bird in the world, the cassowary. She will learn from her opponents to become strong and deserving of wearing the mask.
The members of Ganbare☆Joshi then spoke. YuuRI is glad to wrestle in Sumo Hall where she discovered pro wrestling in the first place. HARUKAZE described how Ganpro picked her up and gave her friends so the company is an important family to her. She wants to make the name of Ganpro known to everyone. Moeka Haruhi called Manase the Sun of Ganpro while she is the Rainbow. When Manase challenged TJPW in the first place, everyone in Ganjo decided to join her. Just don’t miss the rainbow while you’re busy looking at the sun. Manase wanted her team to show more energy so they started chanting “Ganjo!” over and over. Kakuta told them the blue flame is hotter than the red flame which is why Team TJPW are staying calm in response to them. Manase then gave a passionate rant about wanting their match to have so much heat behind it. The conference ended with a fist bump between the team captains.
Two special guest ring announcers will be at the show. The “Anime Idol Chick” Minami Momochi was Tokyo Joshi’s ring announcer for the first four years of the promotion. Kero Tanaka is the famous ring announcer from the 1980s and 1990s who has worked with TJPW before at some of their previous Ittenyon shows. They will each announce one or two matches on the day.
DDT “JUDGEMENT 2022 ~DDT 25TH ANNIVERSARY~”, 20/03/2022 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
0. Dark Match: Yusuke Okada, Yuya Koroku & Ilusion Vs Toui Kojima, Yuki Ishida & El Unicorn
0. Dark Match – Time Admission Tag Battle Royal: Tomohiko Hashimoto & Seiya Morohashi Vs Soma Takao & Shota Vs Minoru Fujita & MJ Paul Vs Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya Vs Gorgeous Matsuno & Gota Ihashi Vs Andreza Giant Panda & Super Sasadango Machine
1. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Toru Owashi, Antonio Honda, Kazuki Hirata & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Poison Sawada JULIE, Takashi Sasaki, GENTARO, MIKAMI & Tanomusaku Toba (w/ Naomi Susan)
2. LiLiCo Retirement Match: LiLiCo, Ryohei Odai & Akito (w/ Junretsu) Vs Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari
3. Special Tag Match: Isami Kodaka & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Yuki Ueno & Shunma Katsumata
4. Special Single Match: Saki Akai Vs Maya Yukihi
5. Jun Akiyama 30th Anniversary Match: Jun Akiyama & Takao Omori Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani
6. DDT 25th Anniversary Special Single Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Michael Nakazawa
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura (c) Vs Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi
8. DDT Universal Title – Hardcore 3 Way Match: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Jun Kasai Vs MAO
9. KO-D Openweight Title – Japan Bakery Marketing Presents: Konosuke Takeshita (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo
Yesterday the celebrity couple of LiLiCo & Ryohei Odai were hard at work training with Akito for LiLiCo’s retirement match. Odai isn’t in shape and had trouble even stretching during the warmups. He then got back pain from running the ropes. Meanwhile LiLiCo had no trouble training for wrestling again and worked out how to move around the ring without putting stress on her injured knees. Akito then put together some double team moves with LiLiCo before setting up an extreme training exercise. He stripped down to his O-back and went into the Hell Gate position on the corner. He explained they need to get used to having their faces thrown into another person’s ass because that is what Pheromones like to do. Suddenly Pheromones themselves appeared and attacked Akito, stripping him naked! Odai couldn’t help because of his back pain and he collapsed with LiLiCo when they tried the double team attack they learned. Pheromones left after a confrontation with LiLiCo where they said they will see her at Sumo Hall. Akito told Odai to train his hips more while LiLiCo promised to win using the love between a husband and wife!
GANBARE☆PRO “FIFTH ELEMENT 2022”, 26/03/2022 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Ganjo Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Yuna Manase, HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Moeka Haruhi, Maya Yukihi & Ann Cham
2. ROMANCE DAWN Vs Wrestle Drunkers: Shota & Soma Takao Vs Keisuke Ishii & Tyson Maeguchi
3. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Tatsuhito Takaiwa (c) Vs Shinichiro Tominaga
The so-called strongest amateur pro wrestler in Japan Shinichiro Tominaga is the one who is challenging Tatsuhito Takaiwa next. Takaiwa is trying to raise the Spirit Of Ganbare World Title‘s prestige up to the highest level in Japan and fighting somebody on the level on Tominaga will not help him. However he sees potential in the guy and if Tominaga can live up to that potential it may not be a waste of time after all.
The bond between Keisuke Ishii & Tyson Maeguchi has grown stronger after they fought each other. They want to continue wrestling together as tag partners and opponents so it looks like Wrestle Drunkers are here to stay!
Irie is booked for the show but it will depend on how quickly he recovers from covid. Nobuhiro Shimatani is also advertised to appear.
GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2022”, 27/02/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 319 Fans
1. Katsumura-gun Vs Hitodenashi BLUES: Shuichiro Katsumura & Tsuyoshi Okada defeated Nobuhiro Shimatani & Tyson Maeguchi when Katsumura submitted Shimatani with a Triangle Choke (10:04).
2. Ganjo Special Tag Match: Moeka Haruhi & Maya Yukihi defeated Yuna Manase & YuuRI when Yukihi submitted YuuRI with the Whiteout (13:49).
3. Ganpro’s Famous Hardcore Mixed Tag Match: Shunma Katsumata & Akane Fujita defeated Mizuki Watase & HARUKAZE when Fujita pinned HARUKAZE with the Mikan de Pon onto the Ladder (15:30).
4. Unleash The Curse Of The Great Prophecy!: Yumehito Imanari defeated The Great Sasuke with a Lariat (15:50).
5. BAD COMMUNICATION 2022 Special Bout: Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie defeated Shota, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga when Ohka pinned Tominaga with the Fire Spear (12:38).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Tatsuhito Takaiwa (c) defeated Kouki Iwasaki with the Avalanche Death Valley Bomb (23:02). *V2 for Tatsuhito Takaiwa.
A hot topic in Japanese wrestling right now is how hard the old guard are fighting to stay in the spotlight. It’s happening in Ganbare☆Pro too where Tatsuhito Takaiwa has a tight grip on the new Spirit Of Ganbare World Title. He successfully defended the championship against Kouki Iwasaki in the main event of Korakuen Hall after a hard fought battle. Any hope Ganpro had of their “young general” bringing the belt back home failed to materialize after the Avalanche Death Valley Bomb put him away. Takaiwa called the match the toughest he’s had in years because he is not good against kickers. Iwasaki agreed, describing the champion as a man who crawled up from Hell. Takaiwa is being a good spirit despite being somewhat of an outsider. He made a promise to help Ganpro grow bigger while he is their champion and welcomes anyone to come challenge him. He is willing to have a rematch against Iwasaki but he also wants to learn more about the rest of the roster for potential opponents.
The trio of Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie were too strong from ROMANCE DAWN & Shinichiro Tominaga to sail through. Irie smashed through Soma Takao with the Traffic Accident while Ishii took Shota out of play. That left Tominaga on his own ducking and diving all of his opponent’s big moves. He dodged the Beast Bomber and Kneel Kick but Ohka finally caught him with the Flame Spear to get the win.
In December 2015 The Great Sasuke gave Yumehito Imanari a “Great Prophecy” predicting he would have a breakout year in 2016. Nothing has happened since then and Imanari puts the blame on Sasuke for giving him a false blessing. That is what led to their singles match today. Sasuke, being the nutjob he is, did a Senton Bomb to the floor and missed. He was able to keep fighting until Imanari beat him with a Lariat. A tearful Imanari told Sasuke he still believes in the prophecy because it drives him to do his best. Sasuke gave an excuse that his prophecies sometimes have a time lag so Imanari’s one will definitely come true this year!
The Mixed Tag Match brought violence on an absurd level with some of the bizarre weapons being used. Mizuki Watase wore a tiger paw glove covered in barbed wire, HARUKAZE carried a garbage bag filled with empty plastic bottles, Akane Fujita had a baseball bat covered in thumbtacks and Shunma Katsumata had a bad with toy blocks stuck to it. Other weapons used included chairs, a ladder, an acupressure foot mat, steel cans and concrete blocks. Katsumata & Fujita kept accusing each other of stealing their own weapon ideas but had to get along out of necessity to win the match. Katsumata told Akane they keep winning together but they should stop before Sanshiro Takagi decides to make them team up again. Akane said that’s his problem and she will team with whoever the company offers to her. Watase & HARUKAZE enjoyed doing the match and like the idea of becoming a Hardcore Manzai tag team.
The Ganbare☆Joshi division was put on display in Match #2. YuuRI was put through the wringer by Moeka Haruhi & Maya Yukihi so Yuna Manase used her own size and power to spark a comeback. YuuRI also got her second wind but it couldn’t last against Yukihi. After Haruhi got Manase out of the ring, Yukihi stretched and pulled YuuRI in the Whiteout until she gave up.
In the opening match Shuichiro Katsumura & Tsuyoshi Okada joined forces to beat Nobuhiro Shimatani & Tyson Maeguchi. It was a Power Bomb from Shimatani that was suddenly countered into a Triangle Choke from Katsumura that led to that result.
2022 is going to be a big year schedule wise for Ganpro. There will be three more Korakuen shows this year on 3rd May, 13th August and 27th December. Pocchari Joshi will also return for its third show on 26th April. But that’s not all. Ganpro are making their biggest gamble yet to become a major pro wrestling promotion. On 10th July they are going to run Ota Ward Gymnasium! When Ganpro began in 2013 Ohka only had 150,000 yen and Nanhai Ichigaya Memorial Clinic (now known as Ichigaya Chocolate Square) as a venue. He likes venues like that and Itabashi Green Hall but believes the time has come to grow bigger and become more major. That is why Ganpro is running Korakuen four times a year and also going to Ota Ward. He wants to keep the momentum going so one day Ganpro will reach Sumo Hall and the Tokyo Dome! He also said if Ganpro works hard and Japan works hard they can create a booming economy together!
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 