TJPW Vs Ganjo, LiLiCo And Odai Train Hard, Amateur challenges Dragon

March 8, 2022

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” Results

February 27, 2022

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!


Video – Ganpro’s Best Matches Of 2021

February 27, 2022

A fan vote was held by Ganbare☆Pro in January to decide promotion’s best matches of 2021. The top 3 matches would be uploaded to Ganpro’s Youtube channel. Two matches finished tied in 3rd place so four matches in total were uploaded.

1. Yuna Manase Vs Yuu Yamagata (19/12/2021)
2. Keisuke Ishii Vs Shigehiro Irie (25/09/2021)
3. Tatsuhito Takaiwa Vs Yumehito Imanari (23/11/2021)
-. Ken Ohka & Isami Kodaka Vs HARASHIMA & Kengo Mashimo (25/09/2021)

GANBARE☆JOSHI “PROTECT YOU AND LOVE YOU 2021”, 19/12/2021
Shin-Kiba 1st RING
168 Fans – No Vacancy

Ganjo Three Special Singles Match: Yuna Manase Vs Yuu Yamagata

GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION -ULTRA PLEASURE STYLE 2021”, 25/09/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
396 Fans

Ganpro Special Single Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Shigehiro Irie

GANBARE☆PRO “LEC CLEANPA! PRESENTS GANBARE☆CLIMAX 2021 FINAL ROUND”, 23/11/2021
Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall
141 Fans

Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title – Ganbare☆Climax 2021 Final: Tatsuhito Takaiwa Vs Yumehito Imanari

GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION -ULTRA PLEASURE STYLE 2021”, 25/09/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
396 Fans

Ken Ohka 20th Anniversary Special Tag Match ~Roar Of The Lion King~: Ken Ohka & Isami Kodaka Vs HARASHIMA & Kengo Mashimo


Official Ganpro Best Matches Of 2021

January 19, 2022

Fans of Ganbare☆Pro on Twitter have voted for their favourite matches from 2021. The top 3 matches will be uploaded to Ganpro’s Youtube channel with commentary soon.

Ganpro Best Bouts 2021

1. Ganjo Three Special Singles Match: Yuna Manase Vs Yuu Yamagata
19/12/2021 @ Shin-Kiba 1st RING
22 pts

2. Ganpro Special Single Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Shigehiro Irie
25/09/2021 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
20 pts

3. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title – Ganbare☆Climax 2021 Final: Tatsuhito Takaiwa Vs Yumehito Imanari
23/11/2021 @ Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall
18pts

3. Ken Ohka 20th Anniversary Special Tag Match ~Roar Of The Lion King~: Ken Ohka & Isami Kodaka Vs HARASHIMA & Kengo Mashimo
25/09/2021 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
18 pts

5. Age Is Just A Number! 44 Year Old Vs 48 Year Old Full Scale Battle!: Ikuto Hidaka Vs Shuichiro Katsumura
24/01/2021 @ Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
14 pts


GANBARE☆PRO “YUMEHITO IMANARI PRODUCE ~GANBARE PRIME 2021~” Results

January 10, 2022

GANBARE☆PRO “YUMEHITO IMANARI PRODUCE ~GANBARE PRIME 2021~”, 10/01/2022
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
109 Fans

1. Hardcore Mixed Tag 1 DAY Tournament – Round 1: Shigehiro Irie & Itsuki Aoki defeated Yumehito Imanari & Miss Mongol when Irie pinned Imanari with a Turnback Backslide Pin (7:08).
2. Hardcore Mixed Tag 1 DAY Tournament – Round 1: Shota & Asuka defeated Mizuki Watase & Cherry when Asuka pinned Watase with the Moonsault Press (10:19).
3. Pocchari Joshi Pro Wrestling TRIGGER 1st: Yuna Manase defeated Totoro Satsuki with the Lariat (8:03).
4. Dreamer’s Bridge ~Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Vs HOT JAPAN~: Yuya Aoki, Andy Wu & Tsugutaka Sato defeated Keisuke Ishii, Shinichiro Tominaga & Kouki Iwasaki when Aoki pinned Tominaga with the Kesagiri Chop (21:24).
5. A Clinical Trial Match Between Men With Painted Faces: SAGAT defeated Hajime with the Goregrind (8:48). (Special Referee: The Great Yume)
6. Hardcore Mixed Tag 1 DAY Tournament – Final: Shigehiro Irie & Itsuki Aoki defeated Shota & Asuka when Irie pinned Shota with an Avalanche Samoan Drop onto the Chair (14:06).

The 6th and last Ganbare☆Pro show in three days was a chaotic affair all put together by Yumehito Imanari. His show was built around a Hardcore Mixed Tag Tournament, one with so many hot matches that it would become a must-watch video on WRESTLE UNIVERSE. Unfortunately for Imanari he was eliminated from his own tournament in the very first match. He & Miss Mongol fell to Shigehiro Irie & Itsuki Aoki. Then the Weekend Lovers of Shota & Asuka went over Mizuki Watase & Cherry. The final was the craziest match of the lot and ended with Irie giving Shota a top rope Samoan Drop onto chairs. Despite Imanari’s lack of success in the ring, he was still proud with how the show went. Ganpro may be small but he knows it can go all the way to the top!

The match between SAGAT and Hajime became so intense it needed a special referee to watch over it. Imanari came out as The Great Yume, knocked out Daisuke Kiso with an uppercut and took over as the ref!

The Ganpro and HOT JAPAN teams got into a war of words after their match and started brawling in the ring. Imanari was one of the wrestlers trying to pull them apart but Keisuke Ishii gave him a Fisherman Buster for his troubles. HOT JAPAN were confused enough from seeing Ishii attack his own ally that they calmed down and stopped fighting.


GANBARE☆PRO “TROPIC THUNDER 2022” Results

January 10, 2022

GANBARE☆PRO “TROPIC THUNDER 2022”, 10/01/2022
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
108 Fans

1. Ganpro New Year Battle 2022 2nd Round: Shuichiro Katsumura, Tyson Maeguchi & Moeka Haruhi defeated Shota, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE when Katsumura submitted Shota with a Triangle Choke (10:50).
2. Hatsuyume Special Tag Match 2nd Round: SAKI & Hikari Shimizu defeated Yuna Manase & Rina Amikura when SAKI pinned Amikura with the Choroild (10:50).
3. New Year Special Single Match 2nd Round: Soma Takao defeated Shinichiro Tominaga with a Cradle (11:19).
4. Ganpro Vs Takaiwa Army Full Scale Battle 2nd Round: Keisuke Ishii & Kouki Iwasaki defeated 5th Black Tiger & Kenya Maeda when Iwasaki pinned Maeda with the Back Drop Hold (9:55).
5. RENEGADES Are Back! New Year Special Tag Team Match: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase defeated Yumehito Imanari & Baliyan Akki when Watase pinned Akki after the Made In Ohio (12:56).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Tatsuhito Takaiwa (c) defeated Ken Ohka with the Avalanche Death Valley Bomb (14:58).
*V1 for Tatsuhito Takaiwa.

The second of this month’s Ganbare☆Pro tripleheaders began with the inaugural Spirit Of Ganbare Title defence. Tatsuhito Takaiwa’s first challenger was none other than the face of Ganpro, Ken Ohka. The challenger’s never say die attitude drove Takaiwa into doing multiple Death Valley Bombs but Ohka kept kicking out. Ohka was finally defeated when he was given the Death Valley Bomb from the top rope. Takaiwa told him he could challenge for the belt again anytime. He’ll be waiting for him. But first Takaiwa has another challenger in mind. He called out Kouki Iwasaki and nominated him for the next title shot. Iwasaki couldn’t stay quiet anymore and thanked the champion for giving him the opportunity. They agreed to hold the title match in the main event of Korakuen Hall on 27th February! Shinjiro Otani gave Iwasaki encouragement at the end of the show.

RENEGADES are back and so is Mizuki Watase’s suit! He and Shigehiro Irie didn’t miss a beat teaming together again and wiped out Yumehito Imanari & Baliyan Akki in their return match. Irie & Watase even brought back their Double Stomp/Fire Thunder combo called Made In Ohio to win the match.

Shinichiro Tominaga asked Soma Takao & Shota if he could join ROMANCE DAWN but he was turned down. He spent the rest of the match begging them to join but they explained to him he didn’t meet the age limit (ROMANCE DAWN are both 34, Tominaga is 33).

The opening match saw Shuichiro Katsumura & Moeka Haruhi bring back THE HALFEE entrance with Tyson Maeguchi filling in as the third member. He had trouble lip-synching to the song.

During the opening announcements Ohka referred to himself, Imanari and Otani as Ganpro’s “Hot Blooded Three Musketeers”.


“NEW YEAR’S WRESTLING 2021 ~TOSHIKOSHI! SHUFFLE 6-MAN TAG TOURNAMENT” Results

December 31, 2021

“NEW YEAR’S WRESTLING 2021 ~TOSHIKOSHI! SHUFFLE 6-MAN TAG TOURNAMENT”, 31/12/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
655 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: Kazusada Higuchi, Ryuji Ito & Shiro Koshinaka Vs Chris Brookes, Takuya Nomura & Minoru Fujita ended in a Time Limit Draw (10:00).
1a. Overtime – 1 Count Fall Rule: Chris Brookes, Takuya Nomura & Minoru Fujita defeated Kazusada Higuchi, Ryuji Ito & Shiro Koshinaka when Fujita pinned Ito with the Modified Samson Clutch (0:52).
2. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: HARASHIMA, Daichi Hashimoto & Kengo Mashimo defeated Soma Takao, Yuya Aoki & Shuji Ishikawa when Hashimoto submitted Aoki with the STF (9:06).
3. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuji Okabayashi & Kuishinbo Kamen defeated Naomi Yoshimura, Kota Sekifuda & Brahman Kei (w/ Brahman Shu) when Takeshita pinned Kei with a Cradle (5:17).
4. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: MAO, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Shigehiro Irie defeated Akito, Daisuke Sekimoto & Jun Kasai when MAO pinned Akito with the Cannonball 450° (8:50).
5. MUSASHI, Daisuke Kanehira, Takafumi & Tatsuya Hanami defeated Takuho Kato, Kosuke Sato, Hideki Okatani & Yuki Ishida when MUSASHI submitted Ishida with the Modified Sasorikatame (13:40).
6. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: HARASHIMA, Daichi Hashimoto & Kengo Mashimo defeated Chris Brookes, Takuya Nomura & Minoru Fujita when Mashimo pinned Fujita with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (11:41).
7. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuji Okabayashi & Kuishinbo Kamen Vs MAO, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Shigehiro Irie ended in a Time Limit Draw (15:00).
7a. Overtime – 1 Count Fall Rule: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuji Okabayashi & Kuishinbo Kamen defeated MAO, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Shigehiro Irie when Kamen pinned MAO with a Crushed La Magistral Cradle (0:44).
8. 3 Way Tag Match: Stan Kobayashi & Kazuki Hirata defeated Jaki Numazawa & Antonio Honda Vs Danshoku Dieno & Kankuro Hoshino when Kobayashi pinned Hona with the Bakachinga Anal Elbow (14:21).
9. Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Final: HARASHIMA, Daichi Hashimoto & Kengo Mashimo defeated Konosuke Takeshita, Yuji Okabayashi & Kuishinbo Kamen when HARASHIMA pinned Kamen with the Somato (16:19).

The annual New Year’s Eve Shuffle Tag Tournament switched over to a trios format for the end of 2021. Each team consisted of a DDT wrestler, a Big Japan wrestler and a “Dream Slot” wrestler from another company or batch of freelancers.

Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1

I’ll Do It!! Vs Three Brothers Kawaii

Fans didn’t have to wait long for the reveal of Chris Brookes & Takuya Nomura’s mystery partner. It was Minoru Fujita! Their combined cuteness went to a 10 minute stalemate against the rugged trio of Kazusada Higuchi, Ryuji Ito & Shiro Koshinaka. In the final seconds Fujita hit Ito with the SAYONARA but time ran out before the pin. Sudden death overtime meant One Count Fall rules to win. Koshinaka misfired the Hip Attack and hit Ito by accident, allowing Fujita to get the 1 Count to win.

Ikemen’s Vs LEFTOVERS

Next up the team of Soma Takao, Yuya Aoki & Shuji Ishikawa all walked out dressed and posing like Masahiro Chono. They continued the Chono tribute by locking in a Triple STF to HARASHIMA, Daichi Hashimoto & Kengo Mashimo. They got a taste of their own medicine at the end when Hashimoto locked Aoki into his own version of the STF to win. He then encouraged his own team to do Chono’s pose.

Deadlifters Vs I Dream Of Twins, Lizards And Naomi

Things got weirder because next up was The Brahman Brothers entering the ring with Naomi Yoshimura & Kota Sekifuda behind them carrying stuffed toy lizards. Konosuke Takeshita and Yuji Okabayashi brought out chairs looking ready for a fight until they had powder thrown in their faces. Kuishinbo Kamen tried to help but couldn’t do much. Takeshita was given a Low Blow but found a way in his doubled over state to block a Sunset Flip and press down to get the three count.

Ugo Association Vs Team Saiyuki

Before this match began Shigehiro Irie and MAO shook hands to show that their problems are in the past and they can work together. Jun Kasai announced he created a new move and it is punching MAO a lot. MAO took a beating from Akito, Daisuke Sekimoto & Kasai but toughed it out so Yasufumi Nakanoue & Irie could come for the rescue. Akito then got singled out and fell to the trademark moves of his opponents.

Non-Tournament 8-Man Tag Match

The buffer match after Round 1 brought together a mixture of wrestlers from across the indies. DDT & Big Japan were represented by their young generation of Takuho Kato, Kosuke Sato, Hideki Okatani & Yuki Ishida. Their opponents were MUSASHI from Michinoku Pro, Daisuke Kanehira from HEAT-UP, Takafumi from ZERO1 & Tatsuya Hanami from 2AW. In the end MUSASHI picked up the win by making Ishida submit.

Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final

Three Brothers Kawaii Vs LEFTOVERS

The semi-finals had a tense start when Hashimoto and HARASHIMA declined to shake the other team’s hands. Fujita and Mashimo had a back and forth that ended with Fujita asking for a handshake only to get attacked. HARAHSIMA and Nomura got into a spirited kick-off and Fujita almost pinned Mashimo with the SAYONARA. The tables were turned when Fujita was hit with a Triple Super Kick and Mashimo pinned him with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster.

Deadlifters Vs Ugo Association

Kamen was targeted as the weak link in this match. While Takeshita & Okabayashi cancelled out Nakanoue & Irie the dying moments of the match fell down to Kamen and MAO. Kamen was caught in the Clothespin submission but held out for the last 30 seconds so the match could end in a draw. When Sudden Death began Kamen was quickly given more big blows but when MAO attempted La Magistral Cradle, Kamen blocked it and stole the win with the 1 Count fall.

3 Way Tag Match

The other non-tournament match brought the show back to weird territory. Danshoku Dieno jumped into the Hell Gate position, Kazuki Hirata started dancing, Kankuro Hoshino vanished to be replaced by Kenshiro Hoshino, then Abdullah Kobayashi disappeared and Stan Kobayashi took his place. To cap it all off, Jaki Numazawa left and returned as RoboCop! Antonio Honda was ready to finish the match but tripped and injured his knee. Kobayashi ended up using Dieno’s backside to charge up his Lariat arm and pin Honda with the Bakachinga Elbow.

Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Final

LEFTOVERS Vs Deadlifters

Poor old Kuishinbo Kamen has never won a tournament in his career. His run of luck in these things is so bad that back in Osaka Pro it was a known flaw that he would get eliminated early in their annual tournaments. By making it to the final, today could have finally been his day. Sadly it just wasn’t to be. He brought out some fun antics at the beginning but was there to win with his partners as the match heated up. Okabayashi floored HARASHIMA with a Lariat and Takeshita wiped out Hashimoto & Mashimo with a Topé. But HARASHIMA regained control of the match against Kamen and pinned him with the Somato to win the final.

The tournament winners celebrated and HARASHIMA said he felt good fortunes with his team this year. They were all the last people picked in the lottery draft which is why they called themselves LEFTOVERS in the first place. Hashimoto agreed and thinks it is a sign that the new year will be good to them. He’d like LEFTOVERS to team together for next year’s Shuffle Tag show but doesn’t know if that will happen. Mashimo credited all of the wrestlers involved for making today and exciting tournament and he invited all of them out for a group photo to end the show.

Japan Indie Grand Prix Awards 2021

MVP

1. Konosuke Takeshita
2. Takuya Nomura
3. Drew Parker
4. Takumi Tsukamoto
5. Jun Kasai

Best Bout

1. Takuya Nomura Vs Daisuke Sekimoto (Big Japan, 18th October)
2. The Great Sasuke Vs Jinsei Shinzaki (Michinoku Pro, 4th June)
3. Jun Akiyama Vs Konosuke Takeshita (DDT, 21st August)
4. HARASHIMA Vs Yuji Okabayashi (DDT, 21st November)
5. Tetsu Inada Vs Shota Okamura (Hiragana Muscle, 1st September)

Best Unit

1. Pheromones
2. Astronauts
3. Speed Of Sounds
4. The 37KAMIINA
5. E.R.E

Best Box Office

1. Hiragana Muscle @ Korakuen Hall, 1st September
2. DDT @ Fujitsu Stadium Kawasaki, 21st August
3. CyberFight Festival @ Saitama Super Arena, 6th June
4. Big Japan @ Sapporo Chateraise Gateaux Kingdom, 20th September
5. Masahiro Takanashi Produce @ Shinjuku FACE, 1st August

Best Newcomer

1. Drew Parker
2. Tomoya Hirata
3. Yumehito Imanari
4. Tetsu Inada
5. Kosuke Sato


Suzuki Joins Itoh Respect Army? Prominence Arrives, RENEGADES Revival

December 20, 2021

DDT “NEVER MIND 2021 IN YOYOGI”, 26/12/2021
Yoyogi National Stadium 2nd Gymnasium

0. Dark Match: Toru Owashi & Yukio Naya Vs Antonio Honda & Hideki Okatani
0. Dark Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Maku Donaruto
0. Dark Match – DDTeeeen!! Special Single Match: Ilusion Vs Vent Vert Jack
1. Soma Takao & Shota Vs Akito & Yuki Ishida
2. Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Shinya Aoki, Yumiko Hotta & Super Sasadango Machine
3. Special Single Match: Shuji Kondo Vs Kazuki Hirata
4. BURNING Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Shunma Katsumata, Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toui Kojima
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match – Yukio Sakaguchi Return Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Kazusada Higuchi & Saki Akai Vs Minoru Suzuki, Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yuji Hino & Bodyguard
7. DDT Universal Title: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Konosuke Takeshita (c) Vs Yuji Okabayashi

Earlier today Chris Brookes & Maki Itoh went to visit Minoru Suzuki at his clothing store Piledriver in Harajuku. Their intention was to initiate Suzuki as the newest member of The Itoh Respect Army before their match against Eruption. Despite Suzuki’s intimidating presence, the two introduced themselves to him and explained what was going on. Suzuki told them if they spent 10,000 yen in his shop then he would become friends with them. He gave advice to Itoh, telling her not to compare herself to others. He also said he will target Yukio Sakaguchi because he has known him since junior high. Brookes volunteered to fight Saki Akai because they are both tall and slim wrestlers who have good chemistry together in the ring. That leaves Itoh to deal with Kazusada Higuchi. Brookes told Itoh they both have iron heads so it will be an even fight. Itoh welcomed Suzuki into the Itoh Respect Army after making Brookes pay for their items. However Suzuki denies joining the unit because he is still Suzuki-gun.

GAKE NO FUCHI JOSHI PRO “CLOCKWORK GAKE NO FUCHI 2022 ~GAKE NO FUCHI VS PROMINENCE~”, 04/01/2021
Shinjuku FACE

1. Hardcore Match: Chris Brookes Vs Suzu Suzuki

Two years ago Gake No Fuchi Joshi held an unforgettable Ittenyon show where Brookes and Miyako Matsumoto had a nightmare of a Falls Count Anywhere Match. Matsumoto urgently decided to hold a show on 4th January again but this time it’s to welcome one of the newest joshi units onto the scene. A few weeks ago several wrestlers from Ice Ribbon announced their intentions to go leave the company and become a freelance death match unit called Prominence. One of the key members of this new unit is Suzu Suzuki who was built up by Ice Ribbon to be their young prodigy with a love for death match wrestling. A Hardcore Match against Brookes is exactly what she is looking for after taking her career in a new direction.

The other members of Prominence will also be on the show for other matches. The members are Risa Sera, Mochi Miyagi and Akane Fujita. Gake No Fuchi in the past hasn’t held more than two matches in a single show so I expect it to be a tag match with Matsumoto also involved. As you will see below the Prominence wrestlers have no problem with wrestling each other.

DDT “DDTEEEEN!!”, 05/01/2022
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. Raimu Imai & Toui Kojima Vs Yuya Koroku & Yuki Ishida
2. Daichi Sato Vs Yuki Ueno
3. Hardcore Match: Suzu Suzuki & Hideki Okatani Vs Akane Fujita & Shunma Katsumata
4. Ilusion & Tetsuya Endo Vs Vent Vert Jack & Naomi Yoshimura
5. El Unicorn Vs You-sei☆Estrella

The main event between El Unicorn and You-sei☆Estrella promises to be a high flying battle.

If there is any unsettled business between Ilusion and Vent Vert Jack from Yoyogi then Tetsuya Endo and Naomi Yoshimura will help clear things up between them.

Prominence is also showing up on the next DDTeeeen!! show with Suzuki and Fujita taking part in a Hardcore Match. Suzuki will team with Hideki Okatani who recently took part in his first Hardcore Match thanks to Shunma Katsumata. Only makes sense for Katsumata to drag him into another here.

The other teenage wrestlers Daichi Sato and Raimu Imai are back for more.

GANBARE☆PRO “MOEKA HARUHI PRODUCE ~PARADISE AFTER THE RAIN 2022~”, 08/01/2022
Kitazawa Town Hall

1. Rain And Bumblebees: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Thanomusaku Toba Vs Fuminori Abe
2. Rain And Then Downpour: Ken Ohka & Miyako Matsumoto Vs Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE
3. After The Rain, Gokigen: Kaori Yoneyama Vs YuuRI
4. I Like The Rain: Moeka Haruhi, Makoto & Cherry Vs Yuna Manase, Rina Yamashita & Tsubasa Kuragaki

The final match added to Moeka Haruhi’s produce show is a heavy striking 3 Way between Shuichiro Katsumura, Tanomusaku Toba and Fuminori Abe.

GANBARE☆PRO “TROPIC THUNDER 2022”, 10/01/2022
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. Hatsuyume Special Tag Match 2nd Round: Yuna Manase & YuuRI Vs SAKI & Hikari Shimizu
2. RENEGADES Are Back! New Year Special Tag Team Match: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase Vs Yumehito Imanari & Baliyan Akki
3. Ganpro New Year Battle 2022 2nd Round: Shuichiro Katsumura, Taison Maeguchi & Moeka Haruhi Vs Shota, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE
4. New Year Special Single Match 2nd Round: Soma Takao Vs Shinichiro Tominaga
5. Ganpro Vs Takaiwa Army Full Scale Battle 2nd Round: Keisuke Ishii & Kouki Iwasaki Vs 5th Black Tiger & Kenya Maeda
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Tatsuhito Takaiwa (c) Vs Ken Ohka

Now that Mizuki Watase has gotten his feet wet in Ganbare☆Pro he is getting straight to business. He is reviving RENEGADES with Shigehiro Irie! The tag team was originally a unit led by Irie during his 2018 main event run in DDT. However most of the unit was made up of foreign wrestlers so for now RENEGADES is coming back as just a tag team. Watase said he will DM the other members and ask them to come back once the pandemic is over. There is one question I have to ask. Does this mean Watase will wrestle in a suit again?

The Ganbare☆Joshi division is open to work with Color’s and that relationship continues here. Yuna Manase is looking for more joshi to appear on GanJo shows. YuuRI also just learned a harsh lesson being in the ring with SAKI.


GANBARE☆JOSHI “PROTECT YOU AND LOVE YOU 2021” Results

December 19, 2021

GANBARE☆JOSHI “PROTECT YOU AND LOVE YOU 2021”, 19/12/2021
Shin-Kiba 1st RING
168 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Ganjo Three Special Singles Match – YuuRI “Glamorous Valkyrie” Trial Single Match Round 3: SAKI defeated YuuRi with a Power Slam (12:34).
2. Actwres girl’Z Offer Match: Miku Aono & Aoi Natsu defeated Hikari Shimizu & Rina Amikura when Aono pinned Amikura with the Double Arm Suplex (11:52).
3. Ganjo Three Special Singles Match: Moeka Haruhi defeated HARUKAZE with the 79.5MHz (12:00)
4. Secret Captain’s Fall Elimination 6-Man Tag Match: Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Mizuki Watase (C) defeated Shota (C), Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga (16:46).
4a. Shota (C) eliminated Ken Ohka by Ring Out (6:48).
4b. Shota (C) eliminated Keisuke Ishii by Ring Out (8:55).
4c. Mizuki Watase (C) eliminated Soma Takao by Ring Out (15:00).
4d. Mizuki Watase (C) eliminated Shota (C) with a Cradle Cutback (16:46).
5. Ganjo Three Special Singles Match: Yuna Manase defeated Yuu Yamagata with the Suzuki Dynamic (12:41).

All year long Yuna Manase has been searching for a win against Yuu Yamagata. It has been the one story that had been built around Ganbare☆Joshi since its reboot. Today was the day it finally happened! Lariats and hitting the Suzuki Dynamic twice were what Manase needed to do to win. Afterwards a defeated Yamagata declared she was withdrawing from Ganjo. She finally lost like Manase wanted and saw no reason to sick around. But Manase stopped her and said Yamagata was the one main eventing Ganjo all year. She is Ganjo more than anyone else! Manase welcomed Yamagata to stay and the two sang “Tonbo” together. Backstage Manase told reporters that her goal this year was not to leave a mark but to produce results. She achieved her goal of beating Yamagata and proved that if you never give up, your dreams can come true. Manase also asks if there is anybody out there looking to join Ganpro to send her a DM. She knows the joshi scene is undergoing tremendous upheaval right now and Ganjo is looking to find new friends.

There were some arguments over the Secret Captain’s Fall Elimination rules before that match began. The two teams chose their captains by writing them on pieces of paper and handing them over to the ring announcer. Shota said that while it is a thrilling rule it is also unfair and he would prefer if everyone knew who the captains were before the match starts. Ken Ohka shrugged away the complaints which led to Shota thinking he was the captain. He was proven wrong when Ohka was eliminated first and the ring announcer revealed he was not the captain. Keisuke Ishii and he wasn’t the captain either which meant Mizuki Watase was meant to be the target all along. Watase pulled off a come from behind victory by eliminating Soma Takao and then pinning Shota, who was the captain for his team all along.

Watase celebrated the victory by declaring he is now part of Ganbare☆Pro and won his first match with the promotion. He then announced that on the 10th January tripleheader he wants to revive RENEGADES with Shigehiro Irie and main event one of the shows. Ohka said it isn’t up to Irie to make that decision. They’re in Ganpro so it is Ohka who decides and he approves of a RENEGADES revival! Watase later revealed he will DM the other members Sammy Guevara and Jason Kincaid to come over when the pandemic ends.

Moeka Haruhi had a lot of fun wrestling HARUKAZE because it was a long time since their last singles match together. However Haruhi is concerned over the path HARUKAZE took over the last few months to get stronger. It must be hard for her but Haruhi felt her persistence in the ring and never saw her as being weak. She is clumsy but does her best and lives life to the fullest. A tearful HARUKAZE said she was the very first person to join the Ganjo division but once others joined was instantly the weakest member among them. She tried not to show her depression but Haruhi was always there for her and she is grateful for it. From now on she is going to stop calling herself weak. The two promised to continue working hard for Ganjo, hugged and then bowed to each other.

Today’s show gets to play a little part in the wider story of Actwres girl’Z going away and Color’s coming out of it. Hikari Shimizu & Rina Amikura both did the “We are Color’s” pose during their tag match. Miku Aono & Aoi Natsu got the better of them in the end and won the match.

YuuRI is now zero for three in her trial series after losing to the Color’s leader SAKI. Ohka gave YuuRI advice after the match, telling her never to forget the regret she feels for losing. He then told her the 4th match in her trial is against Hong Kong International Police Man. YuuRI doesn’t know who that is but promised to win against him. SAKI was more a little more harsh with her advice for YuuRI. She said YuuRI should not be making excuses in order to work hard and she also should not give herself the excuse that all she needs to do is work hard.


New Year’s Eve Trios Teams

November 16, 2021

“NEW YEAR’S WRESTLING 2021 ~TOSHIWASURE! SHUFFLE 6-MAN TAG TOURNAMENT”, 31/12/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Toshiwasure! Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: X, X & X Vs X, X & X
2. Toshiwasure! Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: X, X & X Vs X, X & X
3. Toshiwasure! Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: X, X & X Vs X, X & X
4. Toshiwasure! Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Round 1: X, X & X Vs X, X & X
5. Toshiwasure! Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: X, X & X Vs X, X & X
6. Toshiwasure! Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Semi Final: X, X & X Vs X, X & X
7. Toshiwasure! Shuffle 6-Man Tag Tournament – Final: X, X & X Vs X, X & X

Team Saiyuki – Akito, Daisuke Sekimoto & Jun Kasai
Ikemen’s – Soma Takao, Yuya Aoki & Shuji Ishikawa
I Dream Of Twins, Lizards And Naomi – Naomi Yoshimura, Kota Sekifuda & Brahman Kei (w/ Brahman Shu)
Three Brothers Kawaii – Chris Brookes, Takuya Nomura & X
I’ll Do It!! – Kazusada Higuchi, Ryuji Ito & Shiro Koshinaka
Deadlifters – Konosuke Takeshita, Yuji Okabayashi & Kuishinbo Kamen
Ugo Association – MAO, Yasufumi Nakanoue & Shigehiro Irie
LEFTOVERS – HARASHIMA, Daichi Hashimoto & Kengo Mashimo

A draw was held to determine the eight teams competing in the trios tournament. Each trio also came up with team names for themselves. The most notable team is Konosuke Takeshita, Yuji Okabayashi & Kuishinbo Kamen. They are calling themselves Deadlifters because they claim that is what they all have in common. Takeshita can deadlift 250kg, Okabayashi can lift 300kg and Kamen they guess can probably lift 50kg. Also Takeshita and Okabayashi are currently neck and neck fighting for a spot in the D-Ou Grand Prix final. Kamen is counting on his partners to win the matches without him getting involved.

There are some powerful teams put together. Maybe the strongest was formed entirely out of luck. HARASHIMA, Daichi Hashimoto & Kengo Mashimo were all the last ones left in their pools so they came up with LEFTOVERS as their team name. Mashimo is happy with who he ended up with so he doesn’t care about being picked last.

Akito feels indebted to Daisuke Sekimoto & Jun Kasai because early in his career he worked with Big Japan (he was trained by BJW wrestler Hakaru Imai) and they were his seniors.

The annual NTV new year’s comedy show has been cancelled so Shuji Ishikawa now has time to concentrate on the tournament. Soma Takao is looking forward to teaming with him again. Yuya Aoki thinks all three of them have nothing in common. He believes they can have something in common by becoming tournament winners together.

One team is a reunion of sorts. Naomi Yoshimura and Brahman Kei were on the same team for the 2019 tournament but Brahman Shu was absent with the flu. Now the three of them are together with Kota Sekifuda as the missing piece of the puzzle. They used the song “I Dream Of Naomi” for their entrance in 2019 and Kei wants to reference that again. That is why their team is called I Dream Of Twins, Lizards And Naomi.

Chris Brookes and Takuya Nomura were opponents at the tournament two years ago. There is no heat between them, instead they both think they are cute. The third member of their team is the mystery wrestler and they are sure that wrestler is cute too. Therefore they are Three Brothers Kawaii!

Having the legendary Shiro Koshinaka on their team will encourage Kazusada Higuchi & Ryuji Ito to Hip Attack their way to victory. Higuchi is honoured to team with the two veterans. Ito thinks the team has other specialties but they should win the tournament with the Hip Attack.

There is another team with nothing in common and even worse, none of the members can find anything positive about that. MAO and Shigehiro Irie never got along. MAO describes their relationship as a Cold War that Yasufumi Nakanoue is now in the middle in as a neutral party. He hopes nothing gets bad enough for Nakanoue to press the nuclear button. All Nakanoue can promise is that the team will make things work.

There will be two non-tournament matches also happening on the show.