TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~NAGOYA IPPONJIME~”, 26/11/2023 Aichi NGK Sports Plaza 3rd Stadium
1. Arisu Endo Vs Runa Okubo
2. Suzume Vs Haru Kazashiro
3. Hyper Misao Vs Raku
4. Shoko Nakajima & Kaya Toribami Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Viva Van
5. Miyu Yamashita, Mahiro Kiryu & Toga Vs Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & HIMAWARI
6. Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Shino Suzuki Vs Max The Impaler, Yuki Aino & Pom Harajuku
7. Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki Vs Yuki Arai & Moka Miyamoto
Yuki Kamifuku is coming back to Japan as a champion. She was in Singapore Pro Wrestling yesterday to challenge Alexis Lee for the Queen Of Asia Title. Kamifuku won the match and the championship, becoming the second Japanese person to hold the title. Riho was the first.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Rika Tatsumi & Amira Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
2. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Janai Kai & Johnnine Robbie
3. Moka Miyamoto Vs Trish Adora
4. Mizuki Vs Sandra Moone
5. Shoko Nakajima Vs Taya Valkyrie
6. Miu Watanabe Vs Hyan
7. Special Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly
So false alarm, the Globe Theatre is not closing down after all and Tokyo Joshi Pro’s show there with Prestige is going ahead there as planned. Even more good news, the full card for the show is out. Shoko Nakajima takes on Taya Valkyrie, a non-title match sees Mizuki take on Sandra Moone, the first meeting of Moka Miyamoto and Trish Adora together, Free WiFi in tag action against Janai Kai & Johnnie Robbie plus the team now known as Pompaler taking on Rika Tatsumi & Amira.
GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2023”, 27/12/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. GanPro Vs GLEAT All Out Battle: Yumehito Imanari, X, X, X & X Vs X, X, X, X & X
2. Special Single Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Arisu Endo
3. Special Tag Match: Shota & Soma Takao Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie
4. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Kuma Arashi
5. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shuichiro Katsumura
One by one Isami Kodaka is vanquishing the Ganbare☆Pro roster as they take turns trying to take the Spirit Of Ganbare Title from him. Shuichiro Katsumura is next and wants the title match to take place in Korakuen Hall at the end of the year. Kodaka likes the idea because if he wins then that means GanPro has to keep booking him next year. Katsumura is currently one half of the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Champions so he is also fighting to become a double GanPro champion.
The one sided feud between Ken Ohka and Kuma Arashi with bigger stakes on the line. Arashi is getting bored of beating Ohka over and over. But he will do it one more time on the condition that when he wins he gets title shots for both the SOG Title and SOG Tag Titles.
We have more examples of the Young Communication generation interacting with each other when ROMANCE DAWN goes against Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie.
Earlier this year at “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV” there was a Ganbare☆Joshi Vs TJPW tag match that ended with Arisu Endo beating Yoshiko Hasegawa by submission. A singles rematch between the two is giving Hasegawa a chance to avenge that loss in her own promotion.
An inter-promotional 10-Man Tag Match sees Yumehito Imanari leading a GanPro team against a group of wrestlers from GLEAT. The GLEAT side has not decided on who they are sending yet but Imanari demanded that Kaz Hayashi be one of them. Also Takuya Wada has shown interest in being on the GanPro team because he has no SOG Tag Titles defence scheduled for the show.
DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2024 TOUR IN OSAKA DAY 1”, 06/01/2024 Osaka 176BOX
1. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles – DEAD OR ALIVE Contra DEAD OR ALIVE: Jun Akiyama, Danshoku Dieno & Makoto Oishi (c) Vs Bodyguard, Naruki Doi & Tsutenkakka
Naruki Doi fills out the challenger team fighting to stop D.O.A from calling themselves Dead Or Alive.
September was looking to be more of a quiet month for looking at the overseas adventures of the DDT extended family until the last week showed up like an avalanche. You can always get a lot of news to cover during tournament weekends. It’s a shame that the current state of the independent scene means those tentpole super weekend events don’t get as much coverage like they used to. Can’t blame them when WWE and AEW dominates everybody’s attention. It’s only going to get tougher when those two companies increase their schedules and reach out even further. This week’s news of WWE getting an ABEMA deal and having NOAH promote it on social media does not thrill me. I’ve seen how this story goes before. Even if some kind of big crossover does happen with WWE it is never worth it for the other company in the long run. And any pundit who says a project like NXT Japan will work as a gateway for getting WWE fans into Japanese wrestling is only fooling themselves. The appetite that audience has for non-WWE wrestling is just not there anymore.
Heading into October we have Konosuke Takeshita deep into a feud with The Golden Lovers. The lack of actual wrestling from Takeshita last month annoyed me. I get holding some wrestlers back for PPV but his standard of ring work has been missing from AEW TV recently. His storyline is also pulling in other wrestlers who are never hurting for screentime which makes me worry he is getting pushed to the side. Maki Itoh has finished up her latest North American tour, Shoko Nakajima had a quick trip to the USA and Miyu Yamashita was in the middle of wrestling in UK and Ireland when the month began. The big chunk of news that completely passed me by until it happened was Mizuki Watase going over to wXw in Germany with Shigehiro Irie. Oh and Tokyo Joshi Pro squeezed in a visit to China right at the deadline.
A few years ago the idea of Yamashita wrestling in OTT would have had me overjoyed but nowadays I don’t want to give the company much of my attention because of how people attached to them handled and disregarded Speaking Out. Her Irish wrestling debut had a slight change in plan thanks to the other team. Debbie Keitel was advertised to team with Anita Vaughan but she instead surprised everyone by bringing along Emersyn Jayne to be her partner instead.
MLW “FURY ROAD”, 03/09/2023 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
1. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title No. 1 Contendership: B3CCA defeated Maki Itoh with the World Tour (7:42).
A singer showdown took place when Itoh made her first appearance in MLW. Itoh and B3CCA both love to be the centre of attention and literally fought over the microphone during their match. Itoh won that exchange and told B3CCA to “kiss my ass, bitch!” She also found a Singapore cane to beat up B3CCA with outside the ring. But Itoh made the grave mistake of missing the Flying Big Head, allowing B3CCA to give her a Death Valley Driver to the corner and then pin her with the World Tour 450 Splash.
AEW “ALL OUT”, 03/09/2023 United Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis) defeated Kenny Omega with the Powerdrive Knee (22:30).
A few days after Takeshita pinned Kenny Omega in England, he did it again back in America this time in a singles match. The match carried history over from Omega’s time in DDT, wearing new green and yellows tights based on what he wore in the early 2010s. Don Callis got involved though and brought the dreaded screwdriver into the match for Takeshita to use. However this time the referee stopped it from being used. It turned out Takeshita wouldn’t have needed it because he went on to beat Omega anyway, pulling down his kneepad to hit a raw Powerdrive Knee for the victory. The match even got ***** from Dave Meltzer! Okay, that doesn’t mean as much as it used to but it’s still a good accomplishment to have. Also let’s face it, when the wrestlers who complain about star ratings actually do get ***** from Meltzer they all of a sudden do a 180 and become grateful for it.
MYSTERY WRESTLING “MYSTERY WRESTLING 3”, 08/09/2023 Centre Aydelu, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
1. Emi Sakura defeated Maki Itoh with La Magistral Cradle (?:??).
This year over in Canada Evil Uno has been running a Mystery Wrestling show on his Twitch channel every couple of months. The surprise headline match for the most recent event was a first time singles bout between Itoh and Emi Sakura. Itoh played a trick to escape from Sakura’s attacks by beginning to cry and then walking out of the match back to the locker room. She then reappeared from the opposite side of the room to attack a confused Sakura from behind. Sakura’s not someone you can beat with just one trick though. She ended up rolling Itoh into La Magistral Cradle to win the match.
GCW “CRUSHED UP”, 10/09/2023 Roulette Intermedium, New York City, New York, USA
1. Maki Itoh defeated Killer Kelly with a Tornado DDT (10:43).
Itoh’s current run with GCW ended here with a match against Killer Kelly. She’ll be back again later this year but what will be in store for her next? Her feud with Matt Cardona & Steph De Lander can be never ending but there has to be other stuff she wants to do in GCW next. Maybe she already found a new arch nemesis as you will see at the bottom of this post.
WXW “INNER CIRCLE”, 21/09/2023 wXw Wrestling Academy, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
1. Mizuki Watase defeated Danny Fray with a Diving Foot Stomp (7:23).
2. Shigehiro Irie defeated 1 Called Manders with a Roaring Elbow (8:57).
This was already announced earlier in the summer and I completely missed it. Irie & Watase reunited as RENEGADES to enter the annual World Tag Team Festival in Germany! But first the wrestlers took part in separate warmup matches the night before the tournament began. Watase’s first match ever in Germany was a win against Danny Fray. Irie also won his match by beating 1 Called Manders in a hoss fight.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 1”, 22/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. World Tag Team Festival 2023 – Round 1: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase defeated Aigle Blanc & Senza Volto when Irie pinned Blanc with the Beast Bomber (16:41).
Irie won wXw’s other premium tournament the 16 Carat Gold back in March so he had his heart set on winning WTTF with Watase. They eliminated The Frenchadors in the opening round. Aigle Blanc & Senza Volto are former wXw World Tag Team Champions so RENEGADES could not have gotten off to a better start.
1. Shigehiro Irie defeated Arez with the Beast Bomber (9:20).
The WTTF weekend also featured shows promoted by GCW as part of their September European tour. Only Irie was on the first of two GCW shows that weekend where he beat the luchador Arez. Normally I wouldn’t include entries for Irie by himself but since he was RENEGADES affiliated for the weekend, I’m adding it here.
FREELANCE “ONCE UPON A TIME IN FREELANCE”, 22/09/2023 Avondale Music Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Shoko Nakajima defeated Shazza McKenzie with the Diving Senton (12:19).
Nakajima did a quick trip to the United States near the end of the month. Her first stop was at Freelance where she got over big with the crowd during her win against Shazza McKenzie. Nakajima’s quickness and ability to hit the 619 from any height near the ropes were the key to victory here.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 2”, 23/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. World Tag Team Festival 2023 – Round 2: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase defeated Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe when Irie pinned Abe with a Roaring Elbow (16:14).
RENEGADES weren’t the only Japanese team taking part in WTTF weekend. Takuya Nomura & Fuminori Abe from Astronauts were there too! The two team crossed paths in Night 2 where the winners would advance to Sunday’s final.
GCW “GCW VS THE WORLD”, 23/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. Scramble Match: Gringo Loco defeated Mizuki Watase, The Rotation, Arez, Jimmy Lloyd and Aigle Blanc when Loco pinned Blanc with the Base Bomb (11:46).
2. Joey Janela defeated Shigehiro Irie with the Diving Foot Stomp (17:19).
Irie was in GCW again for their other show in Germany, losing to Joey Janela in the main event. Watase also showed up by taking part in one of GCW’s staples, the Scramble Match. Watase hit a big dive and also the Coast To Coast Dropkick but otherwise got lost in the action and did not factor into the finish.
WXW “WORLD TAG TEAM FESTIVAL 2023 – NIGHT 3”, 24/09/2023 Turbinenhalle 2, Oberhausen, Germany
1. wXw World Tag Team Titles – World Tag Team Festival 2023 Final 3 Way Match: Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig defeated Robert Dreissker & Laurance Roman (c) and Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase (23:13). *Amboss fails in V1. Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig become the 64th wXw World Tag Team Champions!
RENEGADES made it all the way to the final. Had Irie & Watase won the match and the tournament they would have become the new wXw Tag Champions. Sadly for them they couldn’t pull it off. Instead Hektor Invictus & Dennis Dullnig were the winners, taking the titles away from the defending champions Amboss.
PRESTIGE “THE RESPECT ISSUE”, 24/09/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Trish Adora defeated Shoko Nakajima with the Lariat Tubman (9:51).
Nakajima’s other US booking this month was with Prestige at the Globe Theatre, the same location TJPW will return to this December. Trish Adora was a tougher opponent for her and kicked out of the Northern Lights Suplex. Just when Nakajima thought he had another shot, she was caught off guard and pinned with the Lariat Tubman.
JFC “JINGWU TAN JFC EXOTIC FIGHTING EXHIBITION 2”, 30/09/2023 Rucker Park, Chaoyang, Shanghai, China
1. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Match: Maki Itoh defeated Yuki Aino with the Itoh Deluxe (?:??).
2. Tokyo Joshi Pro Offer Match: Mizuki defeated Nao Kakuta with the Cutie Special (?:??).
TJPW sent four of their wrestlers over to China for a martial arts expo taking place in Shanghai. They would be presenting two women’s pro wrestling matches to go along with a bunch of other martial art bouts provided by other groups. It is not the first time joshi wrestling has been part of the event. The same organizers had Sareee and Nanae Takahashi wrestle for them during the first expo in the summer. After a lot of searching through Chinese social media I was able to find a clip of Mizuki beating Nao Kakuta and Itoh locking in the Itoh Deluxe on Yuki Aino.
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Upcoming Appearances
AEW “WRESTLEDREAM”, 01/10/2023 Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, Washington, USA
1. Chris Jericho, Kenny Omega & Kota Ibushi Vs Sammy Guevara, Will Ospreay & Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Don Callis)
Takeshita has spent the rest of the month either standing to the side Don Callis or wrestling back in Japan for DDT. Oh and he also invaded Kota Ibushi’s gym, attacking him with a kettlebell (and also getting Yumehito Imanari caught in the crossfire) because Callis understands how much Ibushi means to Omega. The big payoff it is leading to will happen later today when The Golden Lovers & Chris Jericho join forces to get revenge on The Don Callis Family. Takeshita is part of that family teaming with Sammy Guevara (newest member) and Will Ospreay (not a member). It is annoying to see what looked like a big push for Takeshita turn into him getting pushed aside so Jericho, Guevara and Ospreay can all squeeze into the spotlight instead.
WARRIOR “WARRIOR WRESTLING 31”, 06/10/2023 Bendix Arena, South Bend, Indiana, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita Vs Storm Grayson (w/ Frank The Clown)
One of the few American indies Takeshita wrestles for when he’s not busy with AEW is Warrior Wrestling. The next time he shows up there he takes on one of Frank The Clown’s clients, Storm Grayson.
SPARK “RISING HEAT WEST”, 11/10/2023 LA Dojo, Carson, California, USA
1. Spark Joshi World Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Billie Starkz
A familiar opponent challenges Yamashita for the Spark Joshi Title. She has a 1-1 singles record against Billi Starkz so this championship bout can also end up becoming a rubber match between the two.
SPARK “RISING HEAT EAST”, 14/10/2023 Engelwood Neighborhood Center, Orlando, Florida, USA
1. Miu Watanabe Vs KiLynn King
2. Miyu Yamashita Vs Jessie
A few days later Yamashita takes on Jessie, the former Jessi Kamea from NXT. That’s an interesting matchup because since leaving WWE, Jessie wound up doing a tour in Stardom. So we have a TJPW Vs Stardom match on a Spark show.
But Yamashita won’t be the only Tokyo Joshi there. Miu Watanabe is along for the ride too! She is getting to fight KiLynn King from Impact in what is sure to be a hoss fight. Or a hossette fight? Whatever, two strong women are going to fight each other. What more do you want?
LLL “THE HANDS OF FATE”, 20/10/2023 The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA
1. Lilith Grimm Vs Miyu Yamashita
Are there Lucha Libra & Laughs to be found when Yamashita pays another visit to Denver? Her opponent Lilith Grimm is nicknamed “The War Hammer” and does an entrance where she sets off sparks with a grinder.
SETUP “SETUP EP.16”, 28/10/2023 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. Gatoh Move One And Only Title & SETUP Thailand Openweight Title: Paksa (G/c) Vs Masahiro Takanashi (S/c)
2. Dramatic Dream Match: Chris Brookes Vs Monomoth
Whenever CDK goes over to Thailand and shows up in SETUP they tend to take over the place. One of the local faces Monomoth tries his best to defend his home but Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi find ways to get the better of him. Monomoth now gets to fight Brookes in a big singles match the next time Brookes heads over.
Meanwhile Takanashi has been ruling the roost in SETUP as the SETUP Openweight Champion. He can increase his domination when he has a double title match against Paksa. Takanashi puts his SETUP Title on the line while Paksa is defending a Gatoh Move branded championship called the One And Only Title.
REPUBLIC OF LUCHA “ROL VI VI VI: LA NOCHE DE WALPURGIS”, 30/10/2023 Republic Of Lucha, South Pasadena, California, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita, Penta el Zero Miedo & Rey Fenix Vs Shun Skywalker, Bestia 666 & Mecha Wolf
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that nobody in The Lucha Brothers gets injured, company politics do not keep Takeshita and Shun Skywalker away from each other and Vampiro does not show up with La Rebelion.
DAIKAIJU PRO “VOL. 1 – THE KAPPAS WALK AMONG US”, 04/11/2023 White Eagle, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
1. Shoko Nakajima Vs X
Something new and monstrous is coming out of Massachusetts. Daikaiju Pro is holding their debut show and seems to have deep ties with SETUP and also the UMA Corps. The new promotion is promising a mixture of talent coming in to mix around with monsters and other strange creatures. A show like these requires a Big Kaiju so Nakajima will be there.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
Miu Watanabe has been added to the lineup.
PANDEMONIUM PRO “HOLIDAY IN LA”, 17/12/2023 Don Quixote, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Mike Bailey Vs Miyu Yamashita
Yeah this do quite nicely. Pandemonium Pro is doing Yamashita against Mike Bailey in a first time ever matchup.
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Other Appearances
GCW “SAY YOU WILL”, 01/09/2023 Grand Sports Arena, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA
Itoh did not wrestle on the first GCW show of the month. Instead she showed up to attack Frank The Clown with a pizza cutter much to everyone’s delight.
DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023”, 09/09/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium 1,363 Fans
1. Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Ilusion defeated Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya when Takanashi pinned Yuni with a Rotating Crucifix Pin (8:21).
2. Pheromones Vs Subjugation Final Match! Special Single Match ~ Dissolution Contra Vice President: Akito defeated Yuki “Sexy” Iino (w/ Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno) with a Yoropean Clutch (12:09).
3. HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Soma Takao defeated Yukio Naya, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada when Higuchi pinned Koroku with the Doctor Bomb (10:45).
4. DDT Extreme Title & Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – All Humans Are Equal! Kazuki Hirata Death Match: Kazuki Hirata (E/c) defeated Naruki Doi (I/c) with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (9:28). *V3 for Kazuki Hirata. Kazuki Hirata becomes the 1,576th Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion.
5. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles & AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani (c/c) defeated Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow when Sakaguchi pinned Miyamoto with the God’s Right Knee (12:04). *V3 for Eruption with the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles. V2 for Eruption with the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles.
6. First Time In History! Time Difference Scramble Bunkhouse Current Blast 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada when Yoshitatsu pinned Takagi after a Sandwich Current Blast Bat Attack with Onita (9:12).
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Minoru Fujita & KANON defeated Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi when KANON submitted Oishi with the Just Cobra Twist (12:54). *Ω fails in V1. DAMNATION T.A becomes the 79th KO-D Tag Team Champions!
8. Special Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & MAO defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Daisuke Sasaki when Ueno pinned Sasaki with the BME (23:09).
9. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) defeated Shigehiro Irie with two Praying Mantis Bombs (27:36). *V1 for Chris Brookes.
The international rivalry between Chris Brookes and Shigehiro Irie begun in England, made its way to Germany and had its rubber match in Japan. The match started off quiet but notched up a level when the two took the fight outside the ring where Irie threw chairs but was then put through a table with a Piledriver. Back in the ring Irie brought out his heavy attacks like the Cannonball and Beast Bomber. He also almost knocked Brookes out with the 16 Carat Gold Elbows. However Brookes started using High Kicks to stun his opponent, following up with slaps and more kicks to the head. Irie fought back with a Headbutt and never expected Brookes to Headbutt him back. At this point Irie had already kicked out of the Praying Mantis Bomb so Brookes had to use the move again twice in a row to finish him off.
Brookes called Irie strong after the match and told him to please come over to DDT again anytime, anywhere. He also already decided who he wants the next challenger for the KO-D Openweight Title to be. Brookes then called Saki Akai to come down to the ring. He reminded her of the double title match they had in May 2021 that had to take place in an empty arena because of the pandemic. Since Akai will be retiring in two months time Brookes thought it would be a shame if they didn’t have a rematch. He also brought up that Akai had never challenged for the KO-D Title before. Akai told Brookes she doesn’t want to do the match just for the sake of making memories. She accepted the challenge and slapped Brookes across the face before shaking his hand. There is nothing more scarier than a person who has nothing left to fight for so she is fighting Brookes at Korakuen Hall on 24th September to become the KO-D Champion!
The last time Konosuke Takeshita was in DDT he gave Yuki Ueno an offer to follow his leadership and move on from The 37KAMIINA. His new attitude that formed in AEW won over his former enemy Daisuke Sasaki, so much so that Sasaki tried to help out with recruiting Ueno. Today Ueno gave his answer and it was to stay with his friends! Sasaki did his best to convince Ueno by manipulating moments of the match so Ueno and MAO would accidentally hit each other. But when the time came for Sasaki to hand a chair over to his opponents, Ueno refused to attack MAO with it. Together Ueno & MAO got rid of Takeshita with dives and Ueno went on to pin Sasaki with the BME.
After the match Ueno made his answer more clear. He knows he is going to fight Takeshita again some day and when it happens he will be the champion and Takeshita the challenger! He believes if he had taken Takeshita’s offer it would make him stronger but he already has friends in The 37KAMIINA who lend him their strength. MAO then called out Takeshita and demanded they have a singles match against each other. Later backstage MAO confronted Takeshita again to make the challenge. Takeshita said he is travelling back to America tomorrow but will return to DDT on 24th September. They will have their match on that date in Korakuen.
KANON promised he was going to get the last laugh on Ω and was proven right when DAMNATION T.A became the new KO-D Tag Team Champions! He had his chest beaten in by Yuji Hino’s chops but Minoru Fujita was there to rescue his tag partner. So was MJ Paul. It took both Fujita and Paul to hold Hino back at ringside from entering the ring while KANON submitted Makoto Oishi with the Just Cobra Twist for the title change. Backstage DAMANTION T.A’s celebration was interrupte by ROMANCE DAWN. Although they are usually a Ganbare☆Pro tag team, Shota & Soma Takao want to challenge for the KO-D Tag Titles. They will get their shot on the 4th October Shinjuku FACE show.
For the first time ever Jun Akiyama took part in an exploding death match! The match had unusual Bunkhouse Stampede rules added to it. Akiyama and Atsushi Onita would start out wrestling each other and then after three minutes the other wrestlers of both teams would all join in the match at once. Onita quickly blinded Akiyama with Poison Mist but was caught in the Front Neck Lock by the time everyone else entered. Yusuke Okada held Onita back on a chair for Sanshiro Takagi to hit him with an exploding baseball bat. Toy Kojima placed another exploding bat on top of a barbed wire board but Okada Superplexed him onto it causing a big bang. Onita used the Poison Mist again, this time on Takagi. He and Yoshitatsu then hit Takagi with the two remaining exploding bats to win the match.
Onita took the time afterwards to thank Takagi for putting this match with Akiyama together. But Onita thinks his matter with Akiyama has not been settled yet. There is another exploding death match happening on 18th September with Onita & Yoshitatsu taking on Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki. Akiyama previously challenged Onita to put the All Asia Tag Team Titles on the line. After what happened today, Onita wants to go through with the idea and agreed to make it a title match. He then paid tribute to the late Terry Funk. Both Onita and Akiyama have All Japan blood running through their veins so Onita hopes Funk is doing his best up in Heaven. He also revealed he got to speak with Funk’s daughters recently and he’d like to visit Amarillo, Texas again some day.
There were two double title matches on the show. Eruption retained both the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles & AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles against a team straight out of Triple Six. Akai hit Ram Kaichow with the Rookie Award but then took a Rock Punch from Isami Kodaka. Meanwhile Yuko Miyamoto dropped Hideki Okatani with the Fire Thunder. However Yukio Sakaguchi held things together for the champions and pinned Miyamoto with the God’s Right Knee for another successful defence. Okatani said he wants to defend the titles 10 times in 2 months before Akai’s retirement. Sakaguchi doesn’t mind who the opponents will be to achieve this. Akai promised to continue refining her skills until her last match on 12th November.
The other title match had both the DDT Extreme Title and Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title on the line. Kazuki Hirata made it an All Humans Are Equal Death Match where Naruki Doi was limited to only do what Hirata is capable of doing. Toru Owashi and Inoue Mic sat as judges near ringside holding up signs to tell Doi when he was and was not wrestling just like Hirata does. Not only that but Hirata convinced Doi to wear the same ring gear, setting up a curatined-off area inside the ring so he could change costumes. If this was a normal match, Doi would have won easily but the constant pausing by the judges threw him off. Doi thought he finally had the match figured out when he realised the Bakatare Sliding Kick was acceptable but when he got the three count the judges immediately invalidated it because Doi had to dance before the match could end. Doi did so in full Hirata costume (he later admitted to taking secret dance lessions to learn the routine) until Hirata suddenly pinned him with the Miracle One Shot Cradle.
Hirata is now a double champion but had other business he wanted to bring up before any new challengers appeared. He took out a letter he wrote for Hiromu Takahashi and began reading it to everyone. In the letter he talked about “ALL STAR JR FESTIVAL 2023” from earlier this year and how much it meant to him to be on the show. He also brought up Takahashi’s first ever pro wrestling win was against him but it is never acknowledged anywhere, like on their Wikipedia pages for example. Takahashi will be wrestling at DDT’s Sumo Hall show on 12th November and it would be a dream come true if he chooses Hirata as his opponent. All of a sudden, Takahashi ran into the ring and tried to pin Hirata for the Iron Man Title! Hirata kicked out and was in shock to see Takahashi standing right in front of him. Takahashi thanked him for the letter and agreed to do the match because Hirata is his favorite DDT wrestler. He then tried to pin Hirata again.
A 6-Man Tag Match had Yukio Naya, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada all trying to break down Kazusada Higuchi. Koroku was able to put Higuchi in the Triangle Lancer but Takao broke it up by wrapping his Dropkick Bar shirt over Koroku’s head and pulling him back. Higuchi & HARASHIMA both hit Swan Dive moves to Koroku before Higuchi pinned him with the Doctor Bomb.
Is this finally the end of Pheromones? This was the so-called final battle in their feud with Akito with big stakes on the line. If Yuki Iino won then Akito would give up his Vice President role in CyberFight but if Akito won then Pheromones would disband. A match this dramatic needed to finish with a winner too so the usual Pheromones antics had to be tolerated by Yukinori Matsui and the Wrestle Universe broadcast was censored. Akito used that to his advantage by stripping himself down to an O-back to fight Iino on his level. He leapfrogged over him, causing Iino to Spear Danshoku Dieno by accident. Akito then pinned Iino with the Yoropean Clutch to get the climactic victory he has waited so long for.
Except this maybe is not the end for Pheromones after all. Akito admitted that the unit has become an integral part of DDT with its own supporters. So rather than break up Pheromones, Akito wants to see if they can be purified first. Over the next month Pheromones will be put on a trial period where they have to behave themselves and make up for their past transgressions. Then on 4th October Akito will decide their fate.
Antonio Honda showed up wearing Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi’s old American flag costume for the opening match. He tried his best to avoid hurting himself but as usual but it had to happen so Gongitsune could appear. It backfired slightly but he still hit Yuni with the Bionic Elbow, giving Masahiro Takanashi the opening to roll up the teenager with a Crucifix Pin.
DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023”, 09/09/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Ilusion Vs Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
2. HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Soma Takao Vs Yukio Naya, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada
3. Pheromones Vs Subjugation Final Match! Special Single Match ~ Dissolution Contra Vice President: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (w/ Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno) Vs Akito
4. First Time In History! Time Difference Scramble Bunkhouse Current Blast 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshi Tatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada
5. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno & MAO
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Minoru Fujita & KANON
7. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles & AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani (c/c) Vs Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow
8. DDT Extreme Title & Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – All Humans Are Equal! Kazuki Hirata Death Match: Kazuki Hirata (E/c) Vs Naruki Doi (I/c)
9. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie
Tension continues to grow between Chris Brookes and Shigehiro Irie. They traded direct wins back and forth over each other in recent tag matches. It’s causing them to shove and strike each other even more after the matches had finished.
Kazuki Hirata is bringing back a match stipulation he used against Shinya Aoki in a DDT Extreme Title match two years ago. In a All Humans Are Equal Death Match Naruki Doi must wrestle on the same level as Hirata. If he does any moves or actions that the judges at ringside do not consider to be Hirata-like then the match will be paused until Doi corrects himself. Doi himself previously said he wants to be fully immersed into DDT so he now must prepare himself in both body and mind to be just like Hirata! He doesn’t understand the concept and is going to treat it like a regular match with normal rules.
Eruption have already defended their double trios championships in All Japan over the weekend. After dealing with ATM, DASH Chisako & Black Menso~re they are now cleared to put all of their belts on the line in DDT this weekend against the Triple Six team. It will be their third defence of the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles and their second defence of the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles.
What a night Konosuke Takeshita had last night! He is now returning to DDT on fire after beating Kenny Omega in AEW.
GANBARE☆PRO “GIRI GIRI CHOP! 2023”, 01/10/2023 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Loser Haircut Tag Match: Ken Ohka & Shota Vs Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi
2. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Yumehito Imanari
It is now up to Yumehito Imanari to try and bring the Spirit Of Ganbare Title back home. If he beats Isami Kodaka he will become the first two-time SOG Champion.
The feud between GanPro and DoiKuma is leading into a Hair Vs Hair Match! Ken Ohka & Shota lost to Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi back in July. Their rematch only got granted when they agreed to put their hair on the line. Whoever drops the fall in the match will get their head cut bald as punishment!
Mizuki Watase will not be at the show because he is booked for Dotonbori Pro in Okinawa that day.
1. Akito & Yukio Naya defeated Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno when Akito pinned Dieno with the Gaydo Clutch (8:16).
2. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul defeated Makoto Oishi & Takeshi Masada when Sasaki submitted Masada with the Crossface Lock (11:02).
3. Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku defeated Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya when Koroku submitted Rukiya with the Modified Chickenwing Arm Lock (10:46).
4. Special Tag Match: Naruki Doi & HARASHIMA defeated Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda when Doi pinned Hirata with the Bakatare Sliding Kick (10:23).
5. Special Single Match: Yuji Hino defeated KANON with the Fuckin’ BOMB (12:28).
6. Yuki Ueno Birthday Commemorative Match ~ Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno defeated Toy Kojima with the WR (14:31).
7. Special Tag Match: Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao defeated Chris Brookes & Kazusada Higuchi by TKO when Irie knocked out Brookes with the 16 Carat Gold Elbow (18:32).
Shigehiro Irie got one back on Chris Brookes by knocking him out with the same trapped Elbow Strikes he used to win this year’s 16 Carat Gold tournament in wXw. When Brookes came too he slapped Irie across the face thinking the match was still going on. Kazusada Higuchi and Soma Takao stepped to keep the two apart.
Yuki Ueno felt his match with Toy Kojima helped strengthen everyone’s bond in The 37KAMIINA. He thinks it would be great if he and Kojima could fight each other for a championship some day.
Some cheating by DAMNATION T.A wasn’t enough to help KANON beat Yuji Hino. Instead Makoto Oishi came to Hino’s rescue, giving KANON a boot to the face before diving onto the rest of DAMNATION outside the ring. Hino then finished KANON off with the Fuckin’ BOMB.
During the pre-show press contract signing for the upcoming DDT Extreme Title match, Kazuki Hirata announced the match stipulation. It will be the same match he had with Shinya Aoki back in 2021. It is an “All Men Are Equal” Death Match! Naruki Doi must wrestle down to the skill level of Hirata otherwise he will be disqualified!
GANBARE☆PRO “THE TRIPLE CROSS 2023”, 02/09/2023 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. GanPro 2 Big Singles Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Tyson Maeguchi
2. HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Sumire Natsu & Riara
3. GanPro 2 Big Singles Match: Shota Vs Kuma Arashi
4. Ken Ohka, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Yumehito Imanari, Mizuki Watase & Munetatsu Nakamura
The monthly tripleshot in Oji BASEMENT MONSTAR ran by Ganbare☆Pro is sticking to the recent change where the second show is more of a fan event instead of having any wrestling matches. So although there are three GanPro shows on the schedule tomorrow, I only have to cover two of them for the most part.
DDT “ROJO PRO WRESTLING IN IZUKOGEN GRANILLUMI”, 02/09/2023 Shizuoka Izu Granpal Park
1. Falls Count Anywhere 4 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, HARASHIMA & Saki Akai Vs Yuki Ueno, Toy Kojima & Kazuki Hirata (w/ Shunma Katsumata) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Shinya Aoki & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yuki “Pretty” Kamifuku
The match will be one fall to a finish.
GANBARE☆PRO “KAMIKAZE TAXI 2023”, 02/09/2023 Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MON☆STAR
1. Shuichiro Katsumura & Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Shota & Soma Takao
2. HARUKAZE & YuuRI Vs Tae Honma & Yoshiko Hasegawa
3. Secret Captain’s Fall Elimination 6-Man Tag Match: Ken Ohka, Mizuki Watase & Shingo Vs Keisuke Ishii, Yumehito Imanari & Takuya Wada
4. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shinichiro Tominaga
This is the third show of the tripleshot. However the middle fan event show will include a contract signing with Isami Kodaka and Shinichiro Tominaga for their Spirit Of Ganbare Title match.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~AUTUMN TOUR OPENING ROUND~”, 03/09/2023 Tokyo Otemachi Mitsui Hall
1. Toga Vs Shino Suzuki
2. Yuki Aino Vs Haru Kazashiro
3. Moka Miyamoto, HIMAWARI & Wakana Uehara Vs Haruna Neko, Kaya Toribami & Runa Okubo
4. Hikari Noa Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa
5. Mizuki Vs Juria Nagano
6. 8-Woman Tag Match: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe, Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao, Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu, Raku & Pom Harajuku
A few days ago Suzume tested positive for covid so she is unable to be at this Sunday’s show. Yoshiko Hasegawa from GanPro is now Hikari Noa’s new opponent.
1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Akito & Yukio Naya
2. Makoto Oishi & Takeshi Masada Vs Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul
3. Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
4. Special Tag Match: Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda Vs Naruki Doi & HARASHIMA
5. Special Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs KANON
6. Yuki Ueno Birthday Commemorative Match ~ Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Toy Kojima
7. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao
Public contract signings for both the KO-D Openweight Title match between Chris Brookes and Shigehiro Irie along with the double title match between Kazuki Hirata and Naruki Doi will take place before the first match.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~RIKA TATSUMI LOCAL TRIUMPH~”, 16/09/2023 Nagano Kissei Bunka Hall Middle Hall
The main event spot awaits for Rika Tatsumi in her hometown. She teams with Miu Watanabe as Daydream takes on the pair of Miyu Yamashita & Hyper Misao.
GANBARE☆JOSHI “GANJO MINEL VATON SAGA ’23”, 17/09/2023 Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall
1. YuuRI Vs Haruka Umesaki
Sadly YuuRI is no longer the ICEx∞ Champion. She lost it to Ibuki Hoshi in Ice Ribbon last week. Back over in Ganbare☆Joshi she will climb back to her feet for a match with Haruka Umesaki from Diana. Umesaki wrestled on a GanPro show back in June this year but this is her first time in GanJo.
DDT “SHINKANSEN PRO WRESTLING”, 18/09/2023 Nozomi No. 371 From Tokyo Station
1. Falls Count Anywhere Match: Minoru Suzuki Vs Sanshiro Takagi
A meeting was held between Minoru Suzuki and Sanshiro Takagi a few days ago to determine what can and cannot be allowed during their Falls Count Anywhere Match inside a moving bullet train. They were given a set of rules by the railway company telling them they cannot damage the train, cause any delays, disrupt the crew, use any weapons that could break apart into fragments, leave the inside of the train dirty, hit the floor and seating with considerable force, touch the ceiling at all or cause harm to other passengers. Suzuki brought up his previous calculations that he can punch Takagi at 400km/h in the train. He wanted to know if Takagi explodes into bits of meat flying everywhere would that count as making the train car dirty? Takagi answered that if he dodges that punch and Suzuki hits a piece of equipment instead then Takagi wins by DQ.
The railway line also handed out a list of wrestling moves they can permit on the train. They include Lock Ups, grounded submission holds, Chops, Kicks, Body Slams, Brainbusters and Piledrivers. Suzuki pointed out the list is pretty much his usual moveset so he accepts the terms. Takagi however was upset he is now allowed use his own moves like Power Bombs, Lariats and Dropkicks. Suzuki agreed that Takagi can use the Axe Bomber as long as he shouts “Axe Bomber!” beforehand. Last but not least, the two also discussed adding in lunch breaks and toilet breaks if the match goes on too long.
Over the weekend Eruption went to an All Japan show at Nagoya to take part in a double championship match. They put the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles on the line against ATM, Takao Omori & Black Menso-re, the defending AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles. Eruption won the match to successfully defend their own belts while also becoming the new AJPW 6-Man Tag Champions! Yukio Sakaguchi said the goal was to just defend their own championship. Winning the AJPW titles is just a bonus to him. The result made Saki Akai the first woman in history to win an AJPW championship!
ATM & Black Menso-re challenged Eruption to rematch for both sets of titles on 3rd September. They also said DASH Chisako is going to be the third member of their team. Akai & Hideki Okatani approved of the idea because they both want to wrestle Chisako again. Eruption accepted the challenge and also plan to have their next defence after that take place back in DDT on 9th September.
DDT “ROJO PRO WRESTLING IN IZUKOGEN GRANILLUMI”, 02/09/2023 Shizuoka Izu Granpal Park
1. Falls Count Anywhere 4 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, HARASHIMA & Saki Akai Vs Yuki Ueno, Toy Kojima & Kazuki Hirata (w/ Shunma Katsumata) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Shinya Aoki & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yuki “Pretty” Kamifuku
A few changes to the Falls Count Anywhere match due to MAO’s absence. Kazuki Hirata is now teaming with the rest of The 37KAMIINA.
1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Akito & Yukio Naya
2. Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
3. Makoto Oishi & Takeshi Masada Vs Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul
4. Special Tag Match: Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda Vs Naruki Doi & HARASHIMA
5. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao
6. Yuki Ueno Birthday Commemorative Match ~ Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Toy Kojima
7. Special Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs KANON
This will be the last warm up match for Brookes and Shigehiro Irie before “DDT BIG BANG 2023”.
Naruki Doi is still the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion as far as I know so his upcoming singles match with Hirata is still on track to be a double title bout. That may change when they cross paths here.
Eruption will be missing the show because they are now booked for an All Japan event in Nagaoka on the same day. Eruption will be defending the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Titles along with the KO-D 6-Man Tag Titles on that show.
DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023”, 09/09/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1. HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Soma Takao Vs Yukio Naya, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada
2. Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Ilusion Vs Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya
3. Pheromones Vs Subjugation Final Match! Special Single Match ~ Dissolution Contra Vice President: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (w/ Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno) Vs Akito
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow
5. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno & MAO
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Minoru Fujita & KANON
7. DDT Extreme Title & Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Kazuki Hirata (E/c) Vs Naruki Doi (I/c)
8. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie
9. First Time In History! Time Difference Scramble Bunkhouse Current Blast 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshi Tatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada
The rules have been decided for the main event. It will be a Scramble Bunkhouse Explosion Death Match with wrestlers joining in one after the other. The match will begin with Atsushi Onita against Jun Akiyama with all of the explosive weaponry available for them to use on each other. Akiyama suggested the two of them start and Onita agreed when the weapons were allowed. Then after three minutes the other four wrestlers will enter the match to gradually turn it into a 6-Man Tag Team brawl.
DDT are expecting MAO to be recovered in time to take part in this show.
Some of the lower matches have been changed around to deal with the additional injuries that have taken place over the last week.
DDT “TETSUYA ENDO LOCAL TRIUMPH! WHO’S GONNA TOP? 2023 TOUR IN SHIROISHI”, 16/09/2023 Miyagi Shiroishi White Cube
1. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Naya & Kazuma Sumi
2. Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda Vs MAO & Yoshihiko
3. Special Tag Match: Yuji Hino & Jun Akiyama Vs HARASHIMA & Rukiya
4. Shiroishi Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match ~ BURNING Vs Eruption!: Tetsuya Endo, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okantai
The return of Tetsuya Endo from injury takes place right in his hometown of Shiroishi!
DDT “DRAMATIC EXPLOSION 2023”, 18/09/2023 Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall
1. Kazuma Sumi Vs Rukiya
2. HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya Vs Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima
3. Nagoya Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Tetsuya Endo Vs Shigehiro Irie, Kazusada Higuchi & Shinya Ishida
4. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita & Yoshi Tatsu Vs Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, MAO & Antonio Honda Vs Minoru Suzuki, Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai
Next up on Saki Akai’s retirement bucket list is her getting to team up with Minoru Suzuki!
Nagoya is an area that means a lot to Irie. It is also the hometown of Shinya Ishida. So DDT are putting the two of them with Kazusada Higuchi in one of the main matches for DDT’s next visit there.
DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023”, 12/11/2023 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
1. Saki Akai Retirement Match: Saki Akai Vs X
Hiromu Takahashi will be on the show. He wants to choose his opponent so does he have somebody already in mind? Really interesting to see how open New Japan has become towards sending their wrestlers to other companies in Japan lately. It’s one thing to work with all of the different international promotions around the world to spread their brand. Doing it within the Japanese scene as well is something they haven’t been doing for years until just recently.
DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023”, 27/08/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 680 Fans
0. Dark Match – No Tag Rules: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Akito defeated Yuni & Ilusion when Iino pinned Ilusion with the Ketsugoye (8:38).
1. Minoru Fujita, KANON & MJ Paul defeated Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Rukiya when KANON pinned Rukiya with the Sleepy Hollow (8:49).
2. Saki Akai Photobook “GRACIA” Infomercial Match: Saki Akai Photobook “GRACIA” defeated Kazuki Hirata and Antonio Honda when “GRACIA” submitted Hirata and Honda with a Double Arm Lock (8:22).
3. Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 3 ~ Special Single Match: Saki Akai defeated Danshoku Dieno by TKO with a Face Kick (6:51).
4. Kazusada Higuchi, Hideki Okatani & Takeshi Masada defeated Yukio Naya, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku when Okatani pinned Koroku with the Double Arm Suplex (9:57).
5. HARASHIMA Debut 22nd Anniversary Match: HARASHIMA, Yasu Urano & Ken Ohka defeated Daisuke Sekimoto, Sanshiro Takagi & Yukio Sakaguchi when HARASHIMA pinned Sakaguchi with the Somato (14:15).
6. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Toy Kojima with the Crossface Lock (10:34).
7. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Yuki Ueno defeated Shigehiro Irie & Jun Akiyama when Brookes pinned Irie with the Praying Mantis Bomb (19:45).
Chris Brookes returned his first big blow back at Shigehiro Irie by pinning him in today’s main event at Korakuen Hall. The early part of the tag match had Irie & Jun Akiyama in control but the tides turned with Yuki Ueno helping Brookes to stop Irie’s momentum. Ueno wore down Irie with a top rope Frankensteiner followed by the BME. After that Brookes took over by hitting the Diving Double Knee Drop and Michinoku Driver II for some nearfalls. Irie was spent after that though and was pinned with the Praying Mantis Bomb. Brookes said Irie had won all of their previous warm up matches and today is the first time Brookes beat him. Irie may want to take over the world but Brookes does not care about that. He cares about DDT because he is their champion. They have time left to get ready for the KO-D Openweight Title match on 9th September. Backstage Irie took the loss to think he is not the strong challenger he thought he was. But he won’t stop believing in himself until he makes it back to the top of DDT!
The god damn injury bug that’s been haunting DDT all year struck again over the weekend, causing a few changes on this show. The big one was MAO being pulled from the show to get checked for a suspected cheekbone fracture. He ended up being diagnosed with traumatic TMJ arthritis, putting him out of action until the 9th September show at Ota Ward Gymnasium. His match with Daisuke Sasaki meant for today was changed into Sasaki against Toy Kojima, bringing back their feud from earlier this summer. Sasaki quickly tried to end the match with an immediate Pedigree and Crossface Lock but Kojima reached the ropes. Sasaki then attacked the injured Shunma Katsumata at ringside. Kojima fought back by diving onto Sasaki and other DAMNATION T.A members outside the ring. He tried using one of Katsumata’s signature moves the Totonou Splash but Sasaki blocked it with his knees. Sasaki hit a Spear and used MAO’s Michinoku Driver II but Kojima kicked out. Sasaki then applied the Crossface Lock, making Kojima give up.
Sasaki attacked Kojima with a chair afterwards, telling him he isn’t the person he wants to join his side. Yuki Ueno ran into the ring to rescue Kojima and Sasaki stopped. He told Ueno to give him an answer for his offer. Does he want to stay in The 37KAMIINA and stay where he is for the rest of his life? Or will he join Sasaki and Konosuke Takeshita so they can all change the world together? Ueno wouldn’t except a handshake so Sasaki whispered something into his ear. Whatever it was, it made Ueno pause and think before helping Kojima to the back.
HARASHIMA put together his own 6-Man Tag Match to celebrate his 22nd anniversary in pro wrestling. He teamed up with his close friends Yasu Urano & Ken Ohka but that wasn’t all. KUDO appeared with them for their entrance down to the ring and stood in their corner. Their opponents weren’t going to take it easy on them though. Yukio Sakaguchi relished in the chance to bully Ohka again, taping his arms to his side to mock him. Daisuke Sekimoto chopped and suplexed HARASHIMA around the ring. Ohka got his revenge by giving Sekimoto & Sakaguchi separate Spears Of Fire. That put Sakaguchi in position to take the Somato from HARASHIMA for the finish. HARASHIMA said 22 years seems like a long time but it went by in the blink of an eye. He got to produce his own match with wrestlers he wanted to fight but there are still many more he wants to wrestle again. He looked at KUDO as he said that. Backstage Urano also brought up Toru Owashi as someone who’s been important for HARASHIMA’s career. Sanshiro Takagi thanked Sekimoto and Urano for gathering with DDT again to celebrate HARASHIMA. Sekimoto said he could really feel HARASHIMA’s love in the match so he had to show love for HARASHIMA in his own way.
The scheduled 8-Man Tag Match was changed around into a 6-Man Tag thanks to Kojima and Ilusion both being moved around the card due to other people’s absences. Hideki Okatani was supposed to be against Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada but now found himself teaming with them. Yukio Naya & Yusuke Okada held their own against them and it was all left there for Yuya Koroku to finish the job. He put Okatani in the Triangle Lancer but Higuchi broke it up by putting him in the Brain Claw. Masada then hit Koroku with the Triangle Kick and Okatani pinned him with the Northern Lights Suplex. Okatani described the match as a warm up for later tonight. Eruption are heading over to an All Japan show in Nagoya where they are defending the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles against the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Champions in a double championship match! Eruption ended up winning that match so they are all now double crown trios champions!
No injury was going to cancel Saki Akai’s match with Danshoku Dieno given how much it meant for Akai. Dieno recently had surgery on a broken nose and wore a face guard in order to let the match take place. His injury made Akai cautious to attack, which he took advantage of. He gave Akai the Danshoku Driver but she kicked out and applied a Triangle Choke. Dieno reached the ropes but then took a Superplex. Akai again hesitated to use her kicking moveset that targets the face. Dieno told her it’s okay. He currently cannot breath through his nose but he accepted this match and this only shows the weak side of Saki Akai. A pro wrestler is not supposed to show weakness so he demanded she attack him! Akai did so and kicked him in the face over and over until Yukinori Matsui stopped the match, rewarding her the victory by TKO.
After the match Dieno admitted he never told the hospital he was doing this match. However he accepts being completely defeated and he lost today because Akai has become a stronger wrestler. He encouraged her to keep getting stronger until the moment she retires. Nobody should have the same opinion about what pro wrestling is because it’s fun to throw different opinions into the ring together. Akai promised to take what he just said and keep them in her thoughts during her remaining months as a pro wrestler. She will become stronger and get more people to know about DDT! As mentioned above, Akai later went to AJPW with Eruption in the evening to win the AJPW 6-Man Tag Titles. By doing so she has become the first female champion ever in All Japan’s history!
Akai sort of got another win in the match prior. Her new photobook “GRACIA” defeated Kazuki Hirata and Antonio Honda in a 3 Way Match created to promote said book. Honda briefly fainted when Hirata showed him some of the pages inside but the book istelf started doing wrestling moves, trapping both opponents in a Double Arm Lock to make them submit. Both Hirata and Honda wondered if the book was printed in Mexico because that would explain why something called “GRACIA” is good at submission holds.
Just like with Irie in the main event, Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi suffered a setback in momentum in the opening match. KANON & Minoru Fujita along with MJ Paul beat them in a 6-Man Tag Match. Oishi tried shrugging off the result because KANON only pinned Rukiya. Hino agreed and said he doesn’t even know who Rukiya is. Backstage Ω and DAMNATION T.A signed the contract for the KO-D Tag Team Titles match on 9th September. But first KANON has to face Hino in a singles match on the 3rd.
Kazuma Sumi had to miss the show because of a fever. Ilusion took his place in the dark match. Akito wanting to team with Yuki Iino in a secret plan to infiltrate Pheromones naturally had Iino feeling suspicious. The two came to blows until Akito stripped out of his gear to reveal the costume he wore as Akito “Cochin” Nishigaki underneath! They got along from that point on until Akito tried to cost his tag partner the match. Yuni & Ilusion tried to take advantage but Iino found a way to win the match in one piece. He used the Ketsugoye, hitting Akito in the face with his groin before stuffing Ilusion’s face into his backside for the victory.
It was announced during the show that Hiromu Takahashi from New Japan will be at “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023” on 12th November! There was also a match announcement for the 18th September show in Nagoya. On that show Brookes, MAO & Honda will take on Sakaguchi, Akai & Minoru Suzuki!
DDT “OSAKA BAY BLUES SPECIAL 2023”, 20/08/2023 Osaka Edion Arena #2 479 Fans – No Vacancy
1. Makoto Oishi, Yuni & Rukiya defeated Yusuke Okada, Yuya Koroku & Ilusion when Oishi pinned Ilusion with the Miracle Ecstacy (6:37).
2. 3 Way Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Saki Akai ended in a No Contest (7:25).
3. Osaka Specialty Special Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Tsutenkakka defeated Akito & Kazuma Sumi when Tsutenkakka pinned Sumi with the Tsuten Bomber (6:47).
4. BURNING Vs Harimao!: Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida when Suzuki pinned Ishida with the Tiger Driver (9:12).
5. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya defeated KANON & MJ Paul when Hino pinned Paul with the Fuckin’ BOMB (12:30).
6. Current Blast Bat & Board 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima defeated Yukio Sakaguchi, Hideki Okatani & Soma Takao when Yoshitatsu pinned Takao after the Sandwich Current Blast Bat Full Swing (7:43).
7. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Yuki Ueno with La Mistica Crossover Face Lock (17:03).
8. Special Tag Match: Shigehiro Irie & HARASHIMA defeated Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada when Irie pinned Masada with the Beast Bomber (16:32).
For the third time in a row Shigehiro Irie’s team has beaten Chris Brookes’s team in the buildup to their KO-D Openweight Title match. Irie even rubbed it in after today’s bout by telling Brookes he notices him favoring his shoulder. HARASHIMA lightened the tone a little bit by praising both Brookes and Irie and telling them he is looking forward to watching the two strong wrestlers fight each other. He isn’t cheering for one over the other, he just wants to see them have a great match. Backstage Takeshi Masada told Brookes they just need to get stronger together as a tag team.
Daisuke Sasaki defeated Yuki Ueno after working on his leg, dropping him with an Avalanche Pedigree and then using La Misitca to wrap him up in the Crossover Face Lock. He called Ueno weak after the match and then brought up Konosuke Takeshita’s offer to follow him. Ueno should get rid of his hesitation and accept by shaking Sasaki’s hand. Ueno grabbed Sasaki’s hand to get himself back to his feet but then he pushed the handshake away. Sasaki doesn’t get it but he’s moving on to his match against MAO on 27th August. MAO is currently in America but Sasaki will invite him to join Takeshita’s cause when he comes back. Backstage Ueno did not use his fever that kept him off yesterday’s show as an excuse for losing today. He believes in himself but he’s in a tough situation.
Yukio Sakaguchi’s quest to win the All Asia Tag Team Titles that his father once held has been stopped for now. Eruption would have earned a title shot if they and Soma Takao could beat Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima in an Explosion Death Match. Sakaguchi immediately went after Onita but got blinded with Poison Mist. Yoshitatsu swung a baseball bat rigged to explode at Sakaguchi but it was dodged and Onita took the blast instead. Yoshitatsu then got another bat and aimed for Hideki Okatani but Sakaguchi jumped in to sacrifice himself for his tag partner. Onita blew more Mist, this time at Takao. Then Onita & Yoshitatsu both attacked him with the two remaining baseball bats for a combined explosion, putting Takao down for the pinfall.
When the match was over Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki confronted Onita and demanded they get the All Asia Tag Title shot instead. Onita said he will do it anytime but Yoshitatsu reminded him they need to get permission from the PWF Chairman Dory Funk Jr. first. Akiyama assured them Funk will agree to it because he’ll be happy to see the belts move away from Explosion Death Matches. It was eventually decided that the Explosion Death Match on 9th September will determine if the title match will go ahead. If Akiyama’s team wins then he & Suzuki will get a title shot on the 18th. If not then their match against Onita & Yoshitatsu on that date will be non-title. Oh and another thing. Either way that match on the 18th is going to be an Explosion Death Match too!
Yuji Hino felt that MJ Paul hit harder than KANON did in their match. Based on that performance it made Hino wonder if it makes more sense for Paul to get a rematch for the KO-D Tag Team Titles instead of KANON. Makoto Oishi agreed because he just beat KANON yesterday. Hino mocked KANON even further by encouraging him to do his best on 9th September. KANON has a singles match with Hino on the 3rd and he warned Ω he always gets the last laugh.
The 3 Way Match ended with both Kazuki Hirata and Saki Akai getting their faces shoved into Yuki Iino’s backside on the turnbuckles. The action was so severe it caused all three of them to faint in that position, causing Yukinori Matsui to call the match a No Contest.
DDT “SOMA TAKAO LOCAL TRIUPMH! MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023 TOUR IN OTA-KU”, 19/08/2023 Tokyo Ota Ward Industrial Plaza PiO Small Exhibition Hall
1. Just No Fall No Rope Match: Makoto Oishi Vs KANON
2. 1 Vs 2 Handicap Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Akito & Yusuke Okada
3. Special Tag Match: Masamune & Yukio Naya Vs Hideki Okatani & Kazuma Sumi
4. Jun Akiyama, Saki Akai & Antonio Honda Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Rukiya
5. DAMNATION T.A Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Toy Kojima & Yuya Koroku
6. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Yuji Hino Vs HARASHIMA & Takeshi Masada
7. Special Tag Match: Soma Takao & Shota Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Kazuki Hirata
The main event spot goes to ROMANCE DAWN since the show is Soma Takao’s homecoming.
Yuki Ueno has a fever and will miss tomorrow’s show. Yuya Koroku moves out of the Handicap Match to take Ueno’s place in Match #5.
The match between Makoto Oishi and KANON will now be a Just No Fall No Rope Match. There will be no ropes attached to the ring and the match cannot be won by pinfall. Instead either submissions, knockouts or countouts can end the match.
DDT “OSAKA BAY BLUES SPECIAL 2023”, 20/08/2023 Osaka Edion Arena #2
1. Makoto Oishi, Yuni & Rukiya Vs Yusuke Okada, Yuya Koroku & Ilusion
2. 3 Way Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Saki Akai
3. Osaka Specialty Special Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Tsutenkakka Vs Akito & Kazuma Sumi
4. BURNING Vs Harimao!: Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
5. Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya Vs KANON & MJ Paul
6. Current Blast Bat & Board 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshi Tatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Hideki Okatani & Soma Takao
7. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno
8. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Shigehiro Irie & HARASHIMA
Shigehiro Irie has the wins over Chris Brookes so far with some thanks to Jun Akiyama being on his team. This weekend Irie swaps Akiyama for HARASHIMA while Brookes is teaming with Takeshi Masada again.
DDT “FIGHTING BEER GARDEN – DAY 2”, 29/08/2023 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. 3 Way Tag Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku Vs Toy Kojima & Kazuma Sumi
2. Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Ilusion Vs Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul
3. Rock ‘n’ Roll 4 Way Death Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs MAO Vs Antonio Honda Vs Yuni
4. Drunk Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai Vs HARASHIMA & Akito
5. Different Mixed Martial Arts Special Tag Match: Shinya Aoki & Yuki Ishida Vs Thanomsak Toba & Rukiya
6. Special Single Match: Yuko Miyamoto Vs Hideki Okatani
7. Beer Garden Specialty Customer Lottery 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Jun Akiyama, Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ueno, Yukio Naya and Takeshi Masada
The KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match gets a warm up bout when one third of the current champions Hideki Okatani faces Yuko Miyamoto.
A tag match built around the different martial arts of each competitor is being put together. Shinya Aoki represents Judo, Yuki Ishida represents (Sumo), Thanomsak Toba represents Kickboxing and Rukiya represents Grappiling.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll Death Match returns to the Beer Garden! When music plays you must dance no matter what! Don’t know why they have faith in Antonio Honda showing up though. He often misses these things and need to be replaced by someone else. What’s A.YAZAWA up to?
BASARA “BASARA 227 ~UTAGE~”, 29/08/2023 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. SAGAT Vs Yasu Urano
2. Jacket Match: Gouma Ryu Vs Ryota Nakatsu
3. KUBITO, Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Daichi Kazato Vs Takato Nakano, Masato Kamino & Fuminori Abe
4. Isami Kodaka & Ryuichi Sekine Vs Lil’ Kraken & Leo Isaka
5. IRON FIST Tag Team Titles: Daiki Shimomura & Minoru Fujita (c) Vs Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga
6. Union MAX Title: Takumi Tsukamoto (c) Vs FUMA
The young team of Lil’ Kraken & Leo Isaka faces their biggest challenge yet against Isami Kodaka and a returning Ryuichi Sekine.
DDT “ROJO PRO WRESTLING IN IZUKOGEN GRANILLUMI”, 02/09/2023 Shizuoka Izu Granpal Park
1. Falls Count Anywhere 4 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, HARASHIMA & Saki Akai Vs Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima (w/ Shunma Katsumata) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Shinya Aoki & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yuki “Pretty” Kamifuku
The mystery wrestler teaming with Pheromones is Yuki Kamifuku… or as she’s being called here, Yuki “Pretty” Kamifuku! She thought her nickname was going to be “Cool” or “Sexy” but understands that it goes without saying she is already those things.
1. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao
2. Yuki Ueno Birthday Commemorative Match ~ Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Toy Kojima
3. Special Single Match: Yuji Hino Vs KANON
KANON might need ropes and pinfalls in order to fight Yuji Hino.
Yuki Ueno turns 28 next month and will fight Toy Kojima to celebrate it.
Naruki Doi will be on the show. Will he still have the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title with him?
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~FIRST ATTACK ON HIROSHIMA~”, 09/09/2023 Hiroshima Industrial Hall West Exhibition Hall 2nd Exhibition Hall
1. Princess Tag Team Titles 1st Qualifier ~ 3 Way Tag Match: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao Vs Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
A six team mini-tournament will determine who will become the next Princess Tag Team Champions. The winners of two 3 Way Tag Matches will face off at “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV” for the vacant titles. In the first 3 Way Tag Match Kyoraku Kyomei, Free WiFi and the pairing of Raku & Pom Harajuku will all fight each other.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~YUKI ARAI LOCAL TRIUMPH~”, 10/09/2023 Kyoto KBS Hall
1. Princess Tag Team Titles 2nd Qualifier ~ 3 Way Tag Match: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo
The second 3 Way Tag Match takes place the next day. Here it will be Daydream against Toyo Mates against Daisy Monkey.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “WRESTLE PRINCESS IV”, 09/10/2023 Tokyo Tama Mirai Messe
1. Sakisama, Mei Saint-Michel, Martha & Yukio Saint Laurent Vs X, X, X & X
2. Special Single Match: Nyla Rose Vs Maki Itoh
3. Princess Tag Team Titles: Winners Of 09/09 Match Vs Winners Of 09/10 Match
4. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
Daydream are the only previous champion team involved in the tournament so the final will feature at least one pairing who were never champions together before. However if Kyoraku Kyomei and Daydream both win then that means the final consists of all former tag champions.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 