DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023” Results

July 23, 2023

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023”, 23/07/2023
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
3,465 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Takeshi Masada defeated Kazuma Sumi with the Masada Power KOBU Mukimuki (6:48).
2. Sanshiro Takagi, Shinichiro Kawamatsu & Yuni defeated Masahiro Takanashi, Toy Kojima & Rukiya when Kawamatsu pinned Rukiya with the Shitamachi Rocket (8:30).
3. 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Minoru Fujita, MJ Paul & KANON defeated Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata and Kotaro Suzuki, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku when KANON pinned Koroku with the Vietnam Driver II (11:45).
4. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (w/ Kachikire Hisaya) defeated Akito, Soma Takao & Yoshitomo Shimohigashi (w/ Buchigire Ujihara) when Iino pinned Akito after the Sexy Cannon (9:42).
5. Special Tag Match: Chiitan☆ & Pokotan defeated Andreza Giant Panda & Super Sasadango Machine when Chiitan☆ pinned Sasadango after the ChiiPoko☆Trigger (11:50).
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani defeated Kazusada Higuchi, Ryota Nakatsu & Yuki Ishida (c) when Okatani pinned Ishida with the Double Arm Suplex (9:27).
*Harimao fails in V1. Eruption becomes the 52nd KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions!
7. Special Single Match: MAO defeated TAKA Michinoku with the Phoenix Splash (13:11).
8. Special Tag Match ~ Yukio Naya Return Match: Jun Akiyama & Shigehiro Irie defeated HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya when Irie pinned Naya with the Beast Bomber (13:25).
9. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated Yuki Ueno with the Brainbuster onto the corner turnbuckle (12:53).
10. DDT Universal Title: Matt Cardona (w/ Steph De Lander) defeated Tetsuya Endo (c) with the Radio Silence (15:43).
*Tetsuya Endo fails in V2. Matt Cardona becomes the 11th DDT Universal Champion!
11. Mexico Kanko Presents Dramatic Dream Match: El Desperado defeated Daisuke Sasaki with the Numero Dos (20:32).
12. KO-D Openweight Title – Good Com Asset Presents: Chris Brookes defeated Yuji Hino (c) with the Praying Mantis Bomb (21:04).
*Yuji Hino fails in V3. Chris Brookes becomes the 81st KO-D Openweight Champion!

In 2019 Chris Brookes came over from the British indepedents to DDT, taking to Japan’s wrestling scene like a duck to water. As his stay laster longer and longer he ticked off the most hardcore of bucket lists you can come up with in wrestling. He wasn’t just here to step inside Korakuen Hall, grab a Ribera jacket and have an excuse to start writing his name in Japanese for merchandise reasons. He ingrained himself into different pockets of all sizes in the wrestling industry. All the desire and hard work paid off with different accomplishments being added to his name over the years. The biggest one happened today when Brookes headlined “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023” in Sumo Hall and became the new KO-D Openweight Champion! His challenge against the champion Yuji Hino was a big one but Brookes had a secret weapon ready for the ocassion.

The pre-match hype video revealed Brookes had spent time training with KUDO in order to add the High Kick to his moveset. KUDO won his first KO-D Title in Sumo Hall in 2011 and that inspired Brookes to get in touch and learn from him. Not only did he take the High Kick from training, he also used KUDO’s Diving Double Knee Drop on Hino. However Hino took that move as well as the Praying Mantis Bomb and shook off the attack. He fought back with a Lariat and Exploder Suplex. Then Hino made a mistake of putting his hands behind his back and daring Brookes to strike him. Brookes hit a few Flying Knee Strikes that Hino brushed off but it was the High Kick that rocked the champion. Then Brookes pulled out another secret weapon, hitting HARASHIMA’s finisher the Somato! Brookes then dropped Hino with a second Praying Mantis Bomb to become the new champion.

After the match Brookes was given the KO-D Title by special guest Kenta Kobashi. Brookes said Hino was really strong and he thanked him for the match today. He then wasted no time and asked if there was somebody out there to be his first challenger. Shigehiro Irie walked down to the ring. He congratulated Brookes and the two of them talked about the times they wrestled together in Europe. Irie also pointed out that he too has gone to foreign countries and won championships there. They haven’t had a match against each other in Japan yet so Irie wants to challenge Brookes for the belt. It was accepted and will take place at Ota Ward Gymnasium on 9th September. Irie warned that he’s come to take the KO-D Title and he’s the one who will bring it over to Europe. After he left, Brookes called out the DDT roster and paid his thanks to every one of them for their support. He reminded everyone that DDT stands for Dramatic Dream Team and everyone here is part of a team. He also went into the crowd to celebrate with the fans.

According to El Desperado, he is one of Daisuke Sasaki’s few friends and he offered him a bouquet of roses before their match as proof. Sasaki repaid Desperado by attacking him with the bouquet while they brawled outside. Sasaki also laid out Desperado on the front row of chairs and hit a Diving Elbow Drop from the top rope into him. Back in the ring Sasaki pulled off a Destroyer counter for Desperado’s Tombstone Piledriver. But La Mistica Crossface Lock was countered and Desperado stuck up his middle finger to Sasaki before trapping him in the Numero Dos to make him submit.

Desperado called the match fun but he now has a year’s worth of tequila that he won’t be able to drink all by himself. Sasaki confessed he is now feeling emotional about the match they just had and might start crying. Maybe they can have a rematch someday but this time in New Japan? Desperado joked that he has a spare key for the NJPW office so he might be able to sneak Sasaki in for something down the line. Backstage he told reporters he is going to split the tequila prize in half with Sasaki. Also if the sponsor allows it he wants to autograph the empty bottles with Sasaki and sell them with all of the proceeds going towards Yoshihiro Takayama and Shinjiro Otani.

The second of three title changes took place in Match #10 when Tetsuya Endo lost the DDT Universal Title to Matt Cardona thanks to the interference of Steph De Lander. Cardona & De Lander entered the ring carrying all of their championships, including Cardona wearing a replica of the WWE Women’s Tag Team Title that currently belongs to his wife Chelsea Green. De Lander’s constant interference backfired at one point when Cardona’s belt shot aimed for Endo hit her instead. Endo took control and had Cardona all set up for the Burning Star Press when De Lander recovered and distracted him again. This time she started flirting with Endo and gave him a bunch of kisses! Meanwhile Cardona turned the ref’s back to them so De Lander could kick Endo below the belt. Cardona then pinned Endo with the Radio Silence to add a new championship to his collection.

Cardona & De Lander’s celebration was quickly interrupted by the video screen. A live message from Maki Itoh started playing where she challenged Cardona for the Universal Title! She promised to take the championship and leave her GCW enemy covered in blood! The title match was later approved for the 24th September Korakuen Hall show. Backstage Cardona bragged about his title win and said he came here to conquer the world. It’s his first time in DDT and he already made the company and Endo his bitch. He’s not going back to WWE or AEW but when he leaves DDT he will be bringing the Universal Title with him!

Can the version of Konosuke Takeshita that showed up in Sumo Hall today be called new and improved? He was different than the Takeshita of old from before his AEW run that’s for sure. Yuki Ueno found that out up front during the latest match in their rivalry. Takeshita removed his own elbow pad to deliver raw Elbow Strikes and later dropped Ueno with an Implant Driver on the entrance ramp. Ueno fought back but his BME attempt was blocked with him getting kicked in midair. Takeshita then hit the Zahi into the corner and deadlifted Ueno up into a top rope Brainbuster onto the turnbuckle! Ueno had no answer for that and took the fall, losing again to his friend. Or is that now former friend?

Tension could be felt after the match when Ueno refused to shake Takeshita’s hand after the match. Then Toy Kojima decided to step in between them and push Takeshita away! Backstage Takeshita’s message towards Ueno was a blunt one. If Ueno ever wants to win the KO-D Title he should keep quiet and follow Takeshita! Elsewhere, Ueno said he needs to get stronger and increasing DDT’s audience is a way to do that. But after losing again today he doesn’t know what he should do next.

Yukio Naya went straight into the thick of things with his return match from injury. He started off the match with Shigehiro Irie and was just as eager to face off with Jun Akiyama. HARASHIMA was happy to fight Irie for the first time in a while although his opinion might have changed after Irie gave him a Piledriver on top of Naya. The Beat Bomber was blocked with a Knee Strike by Naya but Akiyama came in and threw Naya with the Exploder Suplex. Irie got a nearfall with a Running Cannonball into the corner and then got the three count after he hit the Beast Bomber. Both Akiyama & Irie spoke of their surprise by how powerful Naya was in his first match back. But Irie is on a mission to take everything in the world that he can, as shown by his appearance at the end of the show.

Start paying attention because MAO is back on track with a massive victory over TAKA Michinoku! MAO used his own versions of his influence’s moveset, using the Alien Plancha with an added midair twist and then two versions of the Michinoku Driver including one from the top rope. He then finished TAKA off with a Phoenix Splash. MAO said he was really happy to have this match because he’s been losing confidence in himself as a singles wrestler lately. He always admires TAKA so to beat him inside Sumo Hall using his own techniques means so much to him. However TAKA said in beating him in this day and age is not worth even a medal. MAO should be beating him and he should also be aiming for the top!

Just because Saki Akai is retiring later this year doesn’t mean she’s done winning championships. She achieved her goal of winning the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles with Eruption one more time! Eruption defeated Harimao, the team led by their former “brother” Kazusada Higuchi to claim the belts. Akai herself went head to head with Higuchi and took his best shot. She held her ground and performed the Quetzalcoatl with some help from Yukio Sakaguchi hitting Higuchi with the God’s Right Knee. Akai then dived onto Higuchi & Ryota Nakatsu outside the ring, leaving Hideki Okatani to face off with Yuki Ishida. Okatani kicked out of the Dosukoi Hold and pinned Ishida with the Double Arm Suplex to cause the title change. Both teams shook hands after the match to show there is no bad blood between them.

Afterwards Akai said her retirement match will be at Sumo Hall later this year so she’s going at full speed for her remaining months as a pro wrestler. She wanted to win the titles with Sakaguchi & Okatani in this building and is glad to have done so. She is especially happy for Okatani because this is his first championship win. Okatani then revealed Eruption’s next big plan. If they have the power to challenge anybody then they want to go to All Japan and win the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles! They are even willing to put the KO-D 6-Man Tag Titles on the line in a double championship match to get what they want. Akai is already booked for AJPW’s show in Nagoya on 27th August and she heard that their trios champions put out an open challenge regardless of company or gender. So she’s bringing the rest of Eruption with her!

There was a reason why Andreza Giant Panda & Super Sasadango Machine were given the tag team name Food Chain. Sasadango wrestled the match wrapped together in giant bamboo leaves, just like a real sasadango. The reason why was shown when Andreza started to deflate with hunger. Sasadango made himself bait to be sacrificed to the panda! The venue went dark and in the darkness Andreza swallowed Sasadango whole, leaving only his mask behind for a horrified Yukinori Matsui to discover. Now fully fed and powered up, Andreza went on a rampage of Headbutts against the ChiiPoko☆Ultra Cute Alliance. However Chiitan pulled out a samurai sword and stabbed Andreza in the stomach with it. The venue went dark again sparing the audience from seeing a giant panda throw up. The lights came back on and Sasadango was back in the ring in one piece, covered in bits of vomit. Pokotan took advantage by giving Sasadango the Swanton Bomb. Then the two mascots joined forces and did the ChiiPoko☆Trigger together on Sasadango to score the win. Backstage Sasadango explained what it was like being eaten by Andreza. He said Andreza’s stomach was bigger than he thought and would make for a comfortable living space in Tokyo.

The comedian Buchigire Ujihara was given the full Pheromones experience, something that the former Hisaya Imabayashi was happy to see because it wasn’t him getting humiliated for once. However he overstepped his bounds when he tried to interfere and attack Akito with a chair. Akito dodged it and the chair hit both Yuki Iino & Danshoku Dieno instead. Yumehito Imanari then caused a mess using a fire extinguisher on Akito, Soma Takao & Yoshitomo Shimohigashi. Dieno then launched Iino across the ring with a hip thrust, causing Iino to pin Akito with the Spear.

A victorious Hisaya celebrated Pheromones winning the match but didn’t expect them to turn on him. Imanari suddenly grabbed him and gave him a DDT inbetween Iino & Dieno’s backsides, leaving him vertically jammed upside down in the gap! Ujihara gave them a nod of approval, coming around to understand what Pheromones is like. Backstage Akito approached Pheromones asking for one more match. If Akito wins then Pheromones will disband but if Pheromones win then Akito will stop trying to destroy them. Dieno demanded that Akito crawl between Iino’s legs and then press his own face into Iino’s backside to prove he is being sincere. Akito did so and said he wanted the match to happen on 9th September at Ota Ward Gym.

DAMNATION T.A won the 3 Way Trios match against BURNING and the Dragon Gene team. KANON pulled out the Vietnam Driver II, a move previously used by Daisuke Sasaki to beat Yuya Koroku for the finish. KANON was of mixed emotions backstage afterwards. He was so happy that Minoru Fujita made it to the show on time and also that MJ Paul did his best. But then he got mad that the three of them were thrown into a nothing 3 Way Tag Match! Fujita had to calm him down. The BURNING team took the loss in good grace. Kotaro Suzuki was happy to wrestle in DDT again while Yusuke Okada was thankful to wrestle inside Sumo Hall again. Koroku said he will take the loss as another learning experience. Neither Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi or Kazuki Hirata gave any comments after the match.

Being born and raised in Ryogoku was enough motivation for Shinichiro Kawamatsu to go out there and win. With Sanshiro Takagi & Yuni on his team the three of them were able to beat Masahiro Takanashi, Toy Kojima & Rukiya. Takagi stacked Takanashi and Kojima on top of him to deliver a Double Samoan Drop. Yuni followed up with a Moonsault out of the ring. Kawamatsu then targeted Rukiya’s mid-section with the Shitamachi Rocket Spear to get the three count. Yuni called it a memorable experience because it is the first time he won a match inside Sumo Hall. His effort didn’t go unnoticed by Kojima because Kojima blames Yuni for his team losing! Takagi told Kawamatsu DDT will be back here in November so he’ll find a great opponent for him if he wants to wrestle then.

The opening match of the show saw Takeshi Masada use the Samurai Driver ’01 to beat Kazuma Sumi. However here the move was called the Masada Power KOBU Mukimuki. It’s been almost a year since Masada debuted and he feels like he has regressed since the end of the D GENERATIONS CUP. Today’s win against his classmate Sumi is a good step forward towards DDT’s next major shows in Ota Ward and Sumo Hall happening later this year. Sumi is frustrated to lose but he promises to do his best until he can win, no matter how many more times he loses.

When the show finally ended and all the wrestlers left ringside, the credits began to roll. And then it stopped for a sudden post-credits sequence. A fallen Sasaki was seen sitting on a hallway floor when he is approached by Takeshita. The scene ends with Takeshita offering his hand and Sasaki shaking it! To add more to the confusing scene, it was reported that Takeshita’s post-show meet and greet took place at the DAMNATION T.A merch table. What made things even more confusing is Takeshita afterwards said he has no intention of joining DAMNATION T.A. Instead he is doing this to position himself against The 37KAMIINA because he thinks the unit no longer needs him.

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Posted by JamieOD

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023” Preview

July 21, 2023

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023”, 23/07/2023
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. Sanshiro Takagi, Shinichiro Kawamatsu & Yuni Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Toy Kojima & Rukiya
3. 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Minoru Fujita, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Kotaro Suzuki, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
4. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (w/ Kachikire Hisaya) Vs Akito, Soma Takao & Yoshitomo Shimohigashi (w/ Buchigire Ujihara)
5. Special Tag Match: Chiitan☆ & Pokotan Vs Andreza Giant Panda & Super Sasadango Machine
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi, Ryota Nakatsu & Yuki Ishida (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani
7. Special Single Match: TAKA Michinoku Vs MAO
8. Special Tag Match ~ Yukio Naya Return Match: HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya Vs Jun Akiyama & Shigehiro Irie
9. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Yuki Ueno
10. DDT Universal Title: Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Matt Cardona (w/ Steph De Lander)
11. Mexico Kanko Presents Dramatic Dream Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs El Desperado
12. KO-D Openweight Title – Good Com Asset Presents: Yuji Hino (c) Vs Chris Brookes

Welcome to the 15th annual “WRESTLE PETER PAN”! This year DDT is bringing their flagpole supercard back to Sumo Hall for the first time sine 2018. There is a lot to go through. It’s a twelve match card and all of it is included on the main card. No dark matches, pre-show exhibitions or whatever you want to call them. DDT needs to put their best foot forward on Sunday as they struggle to regain the ground they lost over the pandemic years. A few matches on the card looks like they’re throwing different ideas to the wall and seeing what sticks. It hasn’t reached the depths of desperation yet but they could really do with this show becoming a hit.

I’ll go through each topic in more detail below when it applies to the match but DDT has been hampered by a few things this year. There is a little bit of an identity crisis in there, perhaps the wrong people were chosen to hold a few of the championships and an injury bug keeps getting in the way of every attempt to elevate people. There is also a staleness to the humour and the fresh blood are not being given enough opportunities to come up with their own jokes. I will listen to any arguments that CyberFight should stop being scared of mixing DDT and NOAH together for more inter-promotional matches. Keiji Muto’s retirement show was a great demonstration what DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro wrestlers would look like under NOAH’s top notch presentation. The problem there is the people in charge are determined not to make any of the same mistakes SWS did in the early 90s when it comes to to managing multiple companies in a “room-by-room” manner. It’s a delicate task having to juggle several different rosters with their own differing views on what kind of wrestling show to put on.

1. Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuma Sumi

The day kicks off with a match between two wrestlers from the current crop of rookies that have been at times referred to as D GENERATIONS. The name came from the D GENERATIONS CUP tournament that was held in the Spring to give DDT’s fresh blood the chance to earn the last spot on the company’s trip to Los Angeles for their DDT USA shows. The winner of the tournament was Takeshi Masada who was already being marketed as the highest prospect to come out of DDT’s dojo in years. Getting to debut after only three months of training will give you that kind of hype. He was the first from a group of five to debut. The second is his opponent here Kazuma Sumi. Officially it took him half a year of training before debut but in reality Sumi was previously attached to Dragongate’s dojo and dropped out. If there is more to the story about how, when and why he jumped to DDT, it hasn’t been told to anyone publicly so I doubt there is anything unusual or controversial behind it. So much of DDT’s talent development throughout its history is built around taking in dropouts from other dojos anyway. They’re not a picky company and if they are I can’t imagine what kind of trainees they’ve turned down for reasons involving quality.

The current state of DDT’s training system is sort of displayed with this matchup. The rookies they’ve been debuting over the last twelve to eighteen months are all functionally good. Masada’s been the best of the bunch and has clearly been positioned as such. Sumi gets to display his athleticism but not much else in the form of character. While I enjoy seeing fresh faces coming in and have fun following the careers that last, the underlying problem so far is the lack of creativity given to their roles. I can tell they get to have fun doing what they do and are willing to join in whatever silliness is thrown their way. It’s just that so far none of it is by their own creation. DDT needs to come up with new jokes and gimmicks. Keigo Nakamura is an example of somebody who is standing out as his own character and personality but unfortunately he’s become injury prone and I fear his wrestling career has been shortened for that reason. It’s fine that the company is able to attract new trainees on a regular basis but I would like to see them become more than just extra bodies to drop falls to the veterans.

2. Sanshiro Takagi, Shinichiro Kawamatsu & Yuni Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Toy Kojima & Rukiya

A battle between generations young and old with a few returns from injury added too. Sanshiro Takagi has been rehabbing a torn calf in his left leg in order to make this show. He is also the current Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion at the time of writing. You’d think he’d be tempting fate by telling the other wrestlers not to take advantage of his weakened state but everyone followed the order and left him be. The politician Shinichiro Kawamatsu had a failed attempt at becoming the new O-40 Champion back in March but made up for it a month later by directly winning a match for the first time. Yuni has been the most active out of anyone from the team. The youngster unmasked himself to end his El Unicorn gimmick and graduated from child pro wrestler to teenage pro wrestler. The other team has Masahiro Takanashi as the veteran captaining two young prospects. Toy Kojima is finding his place in the world as part of The 37KAMIINA. He recently lost a feud to DAMNATION T.A but showed a lot of fire standing up for himself and his friends. Rukiya is at the time of writing still recovering from a cracked sternum. He only debuted in April so hopefully it’s just a minor setback. Still though, I always say rookies break easily. DDT is only just coming out of an injury bug too.

3. 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Minoru Fujita, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Kotaro Suzuki, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku

Long story short this is three wrestlers who all carry the Toryumon gene in some form taking on both DAMNATION T.A and the lower ranked wrestlers in BURNING. Ever since he went freelance Naruki Doi has been on a tear by winning championships in both DDT and All Japan. His brightest moment in DDT was short lived but he still shows up from time to time where he is stuck with Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata due to their shared wrestling heritage. Yes, even including Hirata. DAMNATION T.A have sort of been inconsistent this year. KANON got injured with a dislocated shoulder and just came back to the ring recently. Minoru Fujita was busy wrestling elsewhere so DDT was not a priority for him. MJ Paul is the same as always but at least he gets a KO-D Tag Team Title reign out of it. BURNING’s two youngest wrestlers have spent a lot of time on the undercard. That’s fair for Yuya Koroku given how young his career is but Yusuke Okada never progresses anywhere and I’m not sure why. Kotaro Suzuki leads the team into the match and remains involved with BURNING as an extra guiding hand whenever they need it.

4. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (w/ Kachikire Hisaya) Vs Akito, Soma Takao & Yoshitomo Shimohigashi (w/ Buchigire Ujihara)

DDT was spared from having the main event scene successfully taken over by Pheromones after “MEGA MAX BUMP 2023” back in May. Yuki Iino has brushed aside his short lived “Strong” persona to become “Sexy” again and is back to pushing the envelope with Danshoku Dieno & Yumehito Imanari. The boss Takagi has long since passed the responsibility of suppressing Pheromones down to his Vice President Akito. It’s a thankless task but Akito keeps agreeing to the job in the hopes it will take him right to the top of CyberFight management whenever Takagi calls it a day. Soma Takao is dragged into the mission as the man in charge of the Dropkick Bar. That makes him a vital employee in the eyes of Akito so he must take part whether he wants to or not. Filling out the team is Akito’s secret weapon. One with a origin that goes back to Kota Ibushi. It’s not Ibushi himself though. He was busy this week.

Remember the Ibushi Wrestling Institute? It’s that project Ibushi put together after he ended his double contract with DDT and New Japan. It turned out there actually was somebody who debuted as a pro wrestler under that banner in 2018. Meet Yoshitomo Shimohigashi, aka “Golden Stardust” the first man to carry on Ibushi’s pro wrestling legacy. His background is in pro bowling, his wife is a competitive eater and he’s barely wrestled much in the 5 years since. Boy, Ibushi sure knows how to pick them. Shimohigashi’s most high profile matches have been with Tokyo Gurentai and I haven’t been able to find anywhere else he’s been. He is a figure more known inside the pro wrestling business than out and Akito is attached to him through having an advisory role in the Institute.

One last addition to the match is the involvement of Buchigire Ujihara, a comedian on Youtube who was just a bystander at a restaurant where Pheromones and Akito’s team got into a fight. He got caught in the crossfire along with the DDT GM Hisaya Imabayashi. When Imabayashi found out who Ujihara is, he flipped his lid. Ujihara gets to make a living off of playing pranks and acting a fool on Youtube while Imabayashi has to work several different part time jobs along with his subcontracted DDT role in order to get a decent salary. The jealousy caused Imabayashi to unexpectedly side with Pheromones because he no longer sees the point of defending DDT against them when he is not a full time employee. Now going by the name Kachikire Hisaya, this time he’ll get to join in with the Pheromones abuse after years of having to take it.

5. Special Tag Match: Chiitan☆ & Pokotan Vs Andreza Giant Panda & Super Sasadango Machine

What can I say? Mascots are big in Japan. Chiitan’s crazy debut in May lured DDT’s own mascot Pokotan back to the ring out of jealousy. They settled their differences in a tag match and discovered they can work quite well together as a team. They also already came up with their own tag team finisher called the Chi☆Poco Trigger. All that was left needed is a tag team name. DDT fans did the job for them, coming up with ChiiPoko☆Ultra Cute Alliance as the name. Everything’s ready so let’s see what their opponents get up to. Andreza Giant Panda & Super Sasadango Machine have prior history with each other. In 2018 Sasadango made it his mission to put a stop to Andreza because the panda’s gigantic appitite was a danger to the local environment. He failed but ended up on Andreza’s good side afterward. Almost four years later and they are back in the ring together going against two violent mascots. Andreza defeated Pokotan in a preview singles match that saw Andreza take off Pokotan’s head with an uppercut! Will Chiitan be given the same fate? Normally Sasadango would come up with a big plan and happily tell the audience what he means to achieve, slide by slide. He won’t have to do that with something as powerful as Andreza by his side Headbutting mascots left, right and centre.

6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi, Ryota Nakatsu & Yuki Ishida (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani

Aw man, we’re getting closer towards saying goodbye to Saki Akai. I don’t want to do that yet. She is set to retire from pro wrestling on 12th November, ending a decade long career on her own terms without injury and away from life changing circumstances (she has since called out the double standard in the industry where men always assume a female wrestler’s decision to retire is because of marriage or pregnancy). Until that day comes, Akai has one goal in mind and that is to win the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles with Eruption one more time. It is a belt she has held just once before with the original Eruption trio. That is what makes this match a little more spicy because this time Akai & Yukio Sakaguchi are teaming with Hideki Okatani while Kazusada Higuchi is now on the other side defending the championship against them!

We are well past Higuchi’s reign at the top of the mountain sadly enough. Harimao wanted to blow a new wind across DDT but that plan hit a massive wall when Naomi Yoshimura took time off to deal with a herniated disc. Higuchi did his best to rebuild the unit to make up for Yoshimura’s absence. He called in his DNA generation rival Ryota Nakatsu from BASARA not to replace Yoshimura but to add more firepower for when he returns. The decision worked out as Harimao went on to win the KO-D 6-Man Tag Titles, giving the third man Yuki Ishida plenty of experience to gain. Ishida himself is gradually levelling up by relying heavily on having Dosukoi spirit. It inspired a new pinning hold he uses that has scored the three count on both Sakaguchi and Akai. Those results have left Sakaguchi in a bad mood. So not only does Eruption want to win the titles one more time, Sakaguchi wants Ishida’s head on a plate too!

7. Special Single Match: TAKA Michinoku Vs MAO

MAO has spent the month in America and is coming back ready for an important match against one of his inspirations. Growing up in the Tohoku region as a wrestling fan means it is obvious that MAO would look up to somebody like TAKA Michinoku. The Spaceman Plancha and use of the Michinoku Driver are as clear nods as you can get. This is not the first time MAO and TAKA have fought each other though. Back in 2017 TAKA defeated MAO on a DNA event. TAKA was complimentary towards him then. A few months later MAO avenged the loss a little bit by pinning TAKA at the annual New Year’s Eve Korakuen Hall show. What’s noteworthy about that is it happened right when the countdown reached zero so it was both the last pro wrestling result in Japan of 2017 as well as the first pro wrestling result of 2018! The two have not fought each other since then and a lot has changed. TAKA is a key part of Just 5 Guys in New Japan while 2023 became the year MAO started getting noticed on the American indies for his nutty antics inside and out of the ring.

This singles match will be a good test to see where MAO fits in from this point forward. His strongest work in DDT is as a tag team wrestler. His run with the KO-D Tag Titles as part of ShunMao is a highlight of DDT’s 2023 that sadly had to end when Shunma Katsumata fractured his ankle. That point I made for the first match about DDT giving the younger wrestlers more chances to be creative? MAO is a good example of letting that happen, especially when he used the recent USA excursion to spread his wings. Who ever thought we would see him cosplay as Don Callis for example? His feud with Yoshihiko and Kazuki Hirata over the vacant DDT Extreme Title was a fun way to shine a bigger spotlight over that part of the roster too. I hope to see that sort of energy going into the match with TAKA. Would his opponent be up for it though?

8. Special Tag Match ~ Yukio Naya Return Match: HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya Vs Jun Akiyama & Shigehiro Irie

The injury bug has been a regular problem for DDT this year. Several times they try to build up wrestlers and then bam! They go down with an injury. Yukio Naya is probably the biggest example of that given his main event push. After years of trying, the big lug finally started to click things together and had a strong run in the D-Ou Grand Prix, beating Higuchi in an upset to reach the final. He didn’t win the tournament but the push continued into Spring where he main evented DDT’s Korakuen shows two more times, including the 26th Anniversary show. Then his ankle went kaput and he’s been out of action ever since. Four months later and he finally gets to return and start climbing the ranks again. The question now is if the injury was disruptive enough to wipe away the progress he made since the winter? Before he got hurt he had improved a bunch but boy did it take a long time for that to happen. DDT wants to build their main events around heavyweights which is why they are determined to get a guy like Naya over. Him being part of a famous sumo family is a reason too.

So if Naya is back to being able to give and take a lot of big impact moves, DDT have found the right people to put him in the ring with. HARASHIMA was one of the wrestlers who lost to Naya as part of Naya’s rise up to the main event spot in the first half of the year. So it makes sense to have those two teaming up. Jun Akiyama is always there for Naya’s generation to chase after. There will be a day where Naya scores a fall on Akiyama but it won’t be here. Shigehiro Irie running into people at full speed is always as fun as it is dangerous. I’ll be sweating bullets thought if Irie does the Running Cannonball spot against the ropes to Naya. A guy Naya’s size will take the move better than Yumehito Imanari ever could but that injury bug is still hanging around.

9. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Yuki Ueno

I don’t know how many more times I’ll get to write about Konosuke Takeshita in these kind of show previews so enjoy them while we can. A heel turn in AEW has him firmly placed in a storyline with The Elite over on the Dynamite half of the company. With that heel turn comes questions about how Takeshita will behave when he is back in DDT wrestling against his longtime friend Yuki Ueno. The hint is in how his name is now spelt. He has ditched the hiragana writing to go completely romanized in the upper case, becoming KONOSUKE TAKESHITA! Shout it as loud as that one Wakana Uehara fan for full effect. So how will Takeshita treat Ueno? Is he still a sauna loving member of The 37KAMIINA? Did Don Callis tell him to ditch the Cinnabon takeouts and go on a diet? Will he become Chris Jericho’s next clout victim? So many questions to answer and only some will be given at this match.

Takeshita and Ueno have had two previous singles matches this year. The first was only a ten minute long draw that was done as a new year bonus for the fans. The second took place in Los Angeles as the main event for DDT’s USA show with Takeshita coming out on top. While he’s been sorting out things in AEW, Ueno’s been advancing up the ranks in DDT by winning the D-Ou Grand Prix and working towards becoming the guy to carry the company on his back. The results so far have not matched his ambition. As much as I think the guy is talented in the ring, a bland personality continues to hold him back. I don’t know if the solution is to make him find a rotten side by turning heel or take some comedy classes to develop a wackier character but what he is right now does not connect. Something he has been up to recently is getting an acting role for a children’s TV show on NHK. So maybe the next step is booking him into becoming a hero to children? Ueno has always been in Takeshita’s shadow though. If the Takeshita that turns up is nothing like the one Ueno knows then there could be a harsh lesson to learn there.

10. DDT Universal Title: Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Matt Cardona (w/ Steph De Lander)

2022 turned into a year to forget for Tetsuya Endo and not by choice either. There is no denying the diamond’s shine has been diminished ever since Katsuhiko Nakajima knocked him out and he hasn’t come close to reclaiming it. 2023 has been better. He has bounced back somewhat by holding the KO-D 6-Man Tag Titles with BURNING and then went on to win the DDT Universal Title. He is now being positioned in an important match of the card against a big international name. Not bad but given the high hopes I’ve always held for they guy I’m always going to think he should be doing better. How much that should be blamed on him is a bitter pill for me to swallow. That slap is going to keep haunting him for quite a while yet and it doesn’t look like he’ll a chance to exorcise that ghost anytime soon.

Next question to ask, is Endo’s opponent a good fit for DDT? Matt Cardona was the success story of the American indies in 2021 with his heel run in GCW reinventing himself into something way more newsworthy than just another ex-WWE superstar. He’s gone on to win championships across America and now sets his sights on winning the DDT Universal Title with a big pay day to go along with it. That last piece of info touched a nerve with the champion. He was told to expect a former WWE wrestler to come challenge him. But he didn’t know DDT was allegedly paying the challenger 30 million yen to do the match! That Cardona is the person chosen to fight him after so much hype does not impress Endo one bit. He doesn’t think of him as a strong opponent if it’s being based on how many social media followers he has. If that much money is being spent then Endo thinks it should have been given to himself instead! One thing to watch out for is Cardona’s partner in crime Steph De Lander. The former NXT wrestler has benefited greatly from working with Cardona as his Sensational Sherri equivalent. She won’t be afraid to do some nasty things to Endo in the ring if the opportunity presents itself. She said it herself in the hype video “When the Indy God and the Baddest Bitch come to DDT, you’re all fucked!”

11. Mexico Kanko Presents Dramatic Dream Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs El Desperado

It’s not often that Daisuke Sasaki springs up a surprise for DDT fans that everyone approves of. So everyone was thrilled when he pulled some strings and got this as the first match announcement for the show. For somebody who always threatens to quit and go home every time he suffers a setback, the match has been keeping Sasaki focused for the last few months. That it’s being sponsored by a tourism company willing to reward the winner with a year’s worth of tequila probably helps. The company has already been warned that one year’s worth for Sasaki is equal to five year’s worth for anyone else. Sasaki is already promising to drink through three bottles a day if he wins. Can you blame the guy when he’s had to spend the last couple of weeks feuding with somebody as persistent as Toy Kojima? All that chair swinging is thirsty work you know.

Who right now is living a happier wrestling life than El Desperado? The masked man has been ticking off a bucket list of goals this year while somehow championing the independents as a New Japan wrestler. He’s been repping Junior Heavyweight wrestling, getting into death matches with Jon Moxley, fighting in the GCW Tournament Of Survival, popping through the Forbidden Door, getting a tour with CMLL that includes a visit to Arena Mexico and even found a way to get Jun Kasai inside the NJPW ring for the first time ever. The man loves the indies so much he wrestled Evil Uno on a Mystery Wrestling show for God’s sake! So when he got challenged by Sasaki, who is he to say no? In a wrestling world where it feels like every important match needs something on the line, both Sasaki and Desperado are happy to just have it be for the tequila. They don’t see the need for a championship to be on the line or for masks and hair to be wagered. Just the two of them as they are will be enough to promise an intense fight in the ring.

12. KO-D Openweight Title – Good Com Asset Presents: Yuji Hino (c) Vs Chris Brookes

The running storyline that carried DDT’s main event scene across 2022 was whoever was KO-D Openweight Champion became the man to carry DDT on their back from that point forward. In Higuchi’s case he was literally turned into the company’s flag bearer. The rest of the year was spent having Higuchi defend the title against the likes of Endo, Takeshita, Shinya Aoki, Sakaguchi and Ueno. Unfortunately he didn’t become much of a difference maker for DDT. As much as the foreign fanbase approves of Higuchi, he doesn’t have the same hold on the home audience. That’s why in 2023 the value of the KO-D Title has felt a little off. Yuji Hino defeated Higuchi to take the title in January and has held onto it ever since. What has felt off the entire time is Hino himself. He hasn’t been the big nasty heel that longtime fans remember from K-DOJO. In fact he’s been pretty supportive of DDT as their champion. He does his part to promote the company as the place to be, it just hasn’t been working out that way despite his efforts. DDT also really wants to get more heavyweights going in the main event position, as shown by having Hino’s defences so far be against Naya and Iino. It’s been a criticism towards DDT for quite a while now. Why fight to compete against the heavyweight divisions of the bigger companies when your appeal was always supposed to be something entirely different?

So if they story for DDT is the search for the right person to carry the company, they may have had him in the background the entire time. Chris Brookes from the moment he stepped foot in the company got what DDT is. Not just from a fanboy level by getting to relive everything he ever downloaded from Megaupload but also understanding a company spirit that is all parts open minded, anarchic and most of all daft. The dedication was also there when he chose to stay in Japan during the pandemic. Ever since then he’s been an integral part of DDT as well as Gatoh Move and a few other indies. He also went ahead and crafted his own little hub in the Japanese wrestling scene with the Baka Gaijin + Friends shows. At a time when DDT is trying to develop something that’s as prestigious as whatever NOAH or All Japan are doing, Brookes is busy digging up Mecha Mummy and putting together events that capture the warm vibes of DDT’s Beer Garden shows. The company always has a high ambition of where they want to go but perhaps how they get there is all wrong. It’s time to switch things up and Brookes looks like the guy to lead the pack.

That’s all easier said then done though. Brookes dislocated his shoulder two months ago and was out of action for a lot of the build up to this main event. He even admits he might have come back to wrestle too soon with his shoulder being anywhere from 70% to 90% recovered. His injury time has left Hino feeling annoyed for several reasons. Hino goes into his matches hurt too but he never takes time off. He argued why does Brookes get to stay home and rest while he has to keep wrestling on shows? Then Hino’s attitude towards Brookes changed into something more mocking. He started cracking jokes and treating Brookes like a rookie making his debut instead of an established wrestler coming back from injury. It was up to the challenger’s friends to step up and fight Hino on his behalf. Even when Brookes started wrestling again and won a tag match, Hino would still make fun of him for only beating Makoto Oishi. Brookes will have to work real hard to prove Hino wrong. He has taken big guys down with the Octopus Stretch in the past but Hino has been winning matches with the King Kong Sleeper. The champion also has the Fuckin’ BOMB, one of the most devastating moves in DDT. Does Brookes have the strength to lift up Hino with the Praying Mantis Bomb to combat this? The result of this match can lead to a different looking DDT for the rest of the year.

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Hisaya Sides With Pheromones, YuuRI’s Big Advance

July 18, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 22/07/2023
Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall

1. 3 Way Match: Mizuki Vs Haruna Neko Vs Shino Suzuki
2. Raku & Pom Harajuku Vs Suzume & Runa Okubo
3. Hyper Misao & Kaya Toribami Vs Nao Kakuta & Haru Kazashiro
4. Yuki Aino Vs Toga
5. Rika Tatsumu, Miu Watanabe, Moka Miyamoto & HIMAWARI Vs Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima, Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara
6. Tokyo Princess Cup – Round 1G: Arisu Endo Vs Mahiro Kiryu
7. Tokyo Princess Cup – Round 1H: Hikari Noa Vs Yuki Arai

So many shows happened over the last three days so I’m happy to get a little bit of a break before things ramp up again. The last two matches in the Tokyo Princess Cup 1st Round sees Arisu Endo against Mahiro Kiryu and a rematch from last year’s tournament between Hikari Noa and Yuki Arai.

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023”, 23/07/2023
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. Sanshiro Takagi, Shinichiro Kawamatsu & Yuni Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Toy Kojima & Rukiya
3. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari (w/ Hisaya Kachikire) Vs Akito, Soma Takao & Yoshitomo Shimohigashi (w/ Buchigire Ujihara)
4. 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Minoru Fujita, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Kotaro Suzuki, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
5. Special Tag Match: Chiitan☆ & Pokotan Vs Andreza Giant Panda & Super Sasadango Machine
6. Special Tag Match ~ Yukio Naya Return Match: HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya Vs Jun Akiyama & Shigehiro Irie
7. Special Single Match: TAKA Michinoku Vs MAO
8. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Yuki Ueno
9. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi, Ryota Nakatsu & Yuki Ishida (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani
10. Mexico Kanko Presents Dramatic Dream Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs El Desperado
11. DDT Universal Title: Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Matt Cardona (w/ Steph De Lander)
12. KO-D Openweight Title – Good Com Asset Presents: Yuji Hino (c) Vs Chris Brookes

Chaos broke out at a rally event held by Akito, Soma Takao & Yoshitomo Shimohigashi to promote the show. Pheromones found out the location was at a store where the DDT GM Hisaya Imabayashi works part-time. Imabayashi is currently subcontracted to DDT instead of being a full time employee, so he got a part-time job here to make up for his drop in salary. When Pheromones crashed the event and started causing trouble with Akito’s team they ended up dragging a bystander into the situation. That person turned out to be Buchigire Ujihara, a comedian and Youtuber who is friends with Shimohigashi. Imabayashi found out who he was and started complaining it’s unfair that he has to work these low paying part-time jobs while Ujihara gets rich by acting a fool on Youtube. Since Imabayashi is not fully employed by DDT, he no longer sees the point in opposing Pheromones. Instead he is going to be on their side at Sumo Hall under the name Hisaya Kachikire. In response to this Ujihara agreed to be in the corner of Akito’s team for the match.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 29/07/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Miyu Yamashita Vs Moka Miyamoto
2. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Rika Tatsumi Vs Shoko Nakajima
3. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Yuki Kamifuku Vs Miu Watanabe
4. Tokyo Princess Cup – Quarter Final: Winner Of Match 1G Vs Winner Of Match 1H

The final 8 is almost complete. Yuki Kamifuku and Miu Watanabe are now in each other’s way on the path to the semi finals.

GANBARE☆PRO “UNDER THE SILVER LAKE 2023”, 06/08/2023
Tokyo Takashimadaira Kumin Center

1. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Koji Doi
2. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada (c) Vs Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE
3. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs YuuRI

It’s been a weekend to remember for YuuRI. She settled a score with Misa Kagura going back to their JTO beginnings, won the main championship of Ice Ribbon the next day and is now challenging Isami Kodaka in a bid to rescue the Spirit Of Ganbare Title! This isn’t the kind of match Kodaka was expecting to get involved in after taking Ganbare☆Pro’s singles belt but he is still intrigued by the challenge.

GanPro’s first attempt and defending themselves against DoiKuma did not go the way they wanted it to. Ken Ohka was beaten but still wants to fight Kuma Arashi to get his revenge. Arashi is not interested in facing Ohka one on one and has plans elsewhere to worry about. Koji Doi however is interested in fighting Ohka by himself while Arashi is busy.

GANBARE☆JOSHI “GANJO BATTLE GAREGGA ’23”, 11/08/2023
Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall

1. ICEx∞ Title: YuuRI (c) Vs Ami Manase

The ICEx∞ Title is the name of the championship YuuRI won in Ice Ribbon. Her title win is significant because she is only two years and eight months into her wrestling career. The only person to have won that title with less experience at the time was Suzu Suzuki at one year and eight months. YuuRI decided her first title defence will be at the next Ganbare☆Joshi show. She picked Ami Manase to be her opponent because they haven’t fought each other in GanJo yet.

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Video – GANBARE☆PRO “FRENCH CONNECTION 2023”

July 18, 2023

GANBARE☆PRO “FRENCH CONNECTION 2023”, 17/07/2023
Tokyo Takashimadaira Kumin Center
81 Fans

1. Tyson Maeguchi Vs Yuki Kanzaki
2. Yumehito Imanari & Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE
3. Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Shingo
4. YuuRI Vs Riara
5. Ken Ohka & Shota Vs Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi
6. Keisuke Ishii, Mizuki Watase & Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Shuichiro Katsumura, Soma Takao & HIROYA

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GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA II” Results

July 9, 2023

GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA II”, 09/07/2023
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
667 Fans

1. Masahiro Takanashi defeated Munetatsu Nakamura with the Hangover!! (8:38).
2. Takumi Iroha & Mio Momono defeated YuuRI & Tomoka Inaba when Iroha pinned YuuRI with the Running Three (16:43).
3. Sayaka Unagi defeated Riara with the Sliding U (6:08).
4. Miyuki Takase defeated Yoshiko Hasegawa with the Diving Guillotine Drop (11:24).
5. Keisuke Ishii, Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao defeated Akito, Shota & Shinichiro Tominaga when Ishii pinned Shota with the Kneel Kick (10:30).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles Next Challengers Decision Survival 4 Way Tag Match: Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE defeated Ken Ohka & Kuma Arashi, Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura and Tsuyoshi Okada & Yuki Kanzaki (14:57).
6a. Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE eliminated Tsuyoshi Okada & Yuki Kanzaki when Jackson pinned Okada with the Piledriver (10:54).
6b. Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE eliminated Minoru Fujita & Daiki Shimomura by Ring Out when HARUKAZE knocked Fujita out of the ring (12:25).
6c. Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE eliminated Ken Ohka & Kuma Arashi when HARUKAZE pinned Ohka with the Fire Spear (14:57).
7. Special Single Match: El Lindaman defeated Yumehito Imanari with the German Suplex (16:33).
8. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada defeated Hikaru Sato & Tyson Maeguchi (c) when Katsumura submitted Maeguchi with the Triple Three 3 Lock (19:43).
*Hentai Punch Drunkers fails in V2. Ground Absolute become the 2nd Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Champions!
9. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka defeated Mizuki Watase (c) with the Isamiashi Zan (17:30).
*Mizuki Watase fails in V5. Isami Kodaka becomes the 5th Spirit Of Ganbare World Champion!

For the second time Ganbare☆Pro was at Ota Ward Gymnasium to establish “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA” as their premier supercard for the year. By the end of the show the promotion suffered a big defeat against Pro Wrestling BASARA when Mizuki Watase lost the Spirit Of Ganbare Title to Isami Kodaka! The result comes as a major blow to Watase who was on the run of his life both as GanPro’s champion and a leading contestant in the Fire Festival tournament in ZERO1. His fight with Kodaka came close to ending in a knockout several times with both wrestlers avoiding the 10 count. Watase’s reliable Elbow Strikes could only take him so far until he was caught with a Rabbit Punch, a Buzzsaw Kick and then the Isamiashi Zan for the title change.

After the match Kodaka called the SOG Title his passport that will let him continue wrestling in GanPro. He praised Watase for being strong and admitted there were times he reached breaking point against him. But the SOG Title is proof of who can survive the toughest of endurance contests. Now the GanPro ring belongs to Sento Minzoku! Kodaka then promoted his upcoming BASARA match against SHO from New Japan on 23rd July before leaving to celebrate with his unit. The rest of the GanPro roster came out to console Watase as he was apologising for losing. Shuichiro Katsumura said Watase showed his strength last year when he won the title and wrestled across the indies as GanPro’s champion. He has given everyone else courage so many times so they will be fine. It’s time to regroup and get the belt back. Watase promised to regain the title because Shinjiro Otani taught him to never give up!

It looks like Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada are calling their tag team Ground Absolute. Katsumura’s been tweeting that name every time he talks about preparations for today’s match against Hentai Punch Drunkers. It’s probably going to stick because Katsumura & Wada are the new Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Champions! Wada had to handle Hikaru Sato while Katsumura fought off Tyson Maeguchi. Katsumura kicked out of the Tyson Splash and was saved by Wada after taking Buzzsaw Kicks. He recovered and caught Maeguchi in a submission, making him give up to the Triple Three 3 Lock. Wada pointed out this is the first time in pro wrestling where a champion tag team is made up of a former Shooto champion and a former Pancrase champion. Backstage Maeguchi tried to deny to Sato that he gave up but eventually admitted defeat. The Punch Drunkers agree they can win back the titles and would have their rematch tomorrow if they could.

Even though Yumehito Imanari lost to El Lindaman in a close match, he got what he wanted out of it. He now understands why Lindaman is the Strong Heart of GLEAT because a strong heart keeps you alive no matter what. Imanari thinks his own heart is weak. However Lindaman doesn’t agree. The feelings they experienced today is something only they and Shigehiro Irie (who was at ringside for the bout) will understand. It was the kind of match Lindaman always wanted and he shared a toast with Imanari backstage to celebrate it. He hopes to do a rematch on a bigger stage someday.

The new SOG Tag Champions already have their first challengers lined up. The mixed gender team of Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE made a clean sweep of the 4 Way Elimination match although it came with a bit of luck. They eliminated Tsuyoshi Okada & Yuki Kanzaki first when Jackson pinned Kazaki with the Piledriver. Then HARUKAZE was able to knock Minoru Fujita over the top rope and out of the ring to eliminate him & Daiki Shimomura. Finally HARUKAZE pinned Ken Ohka with the Flame Spear to win the match. However the reason that happened was because Ohka was betrayed by Kuma Arashi!

Ohka & Arashi seemed to be doing well as a team and could have won the match. But when they got themselves hyped up for the finish, Arashi gave Ohka a Lariat and left him to get beaten by HARUKAZE! If that wasn’t enough, after the match Koji Doi suddenly ran into the ring and joined in on Arashi’s attack on Ohka! Arashi explained backstage that nobody wants to team with Ohka. Today is the start of DoiKuma’s revolutionary invasion of GanPro! They are going to rebuild the promotion in their image in order to make it the best wrestling company.

Team Drift defeated Young Communication in a same-generation 6-Man Tag Match. It came down to Keisuke Ishii and Shota with the Frog Splash and Tiger Suplex giving both wrestlers nearfalls. Ishii kicked out of the Gannosuke Clutch and scored the victory by striking Shota with the Kneel Kick. Shota said the match shows that their generation is the one to watch. Akito said he would like to do these matches more and more because it breaks up his trend of having to fight Pheromones over and over. He also wants to have as much ring time with Irie he can get before their careers end. Shinichiro Tominaga described pro wrestling like a lover you only get to see once or twice a month. Soma Takao said he wants to follow Irie’s lead and show that everybody in Team Drift still has a lot to do.

The early portion of the card was mostly made up of matches from the Ganbare☆Joshi division. Yoshiko Hasegawa was given a big task of taking on Miyuki Takase, losing to her in a competitive effort. She was able to kicked out of an Ace Crusher and Lariat, then scored a nearfall using the Tornado Clutch. She then made the mistake of rushing to make her next move, leading to her charging into a Power Slam. With Takase back in control, she ended up beating Hasegawa with the Diving Guillotine Drop. Although Hasegawa lost, she isn’t treating the result as a negative. It shows she has more room to grow. Takase praised her for showing determination and looks forward to the next time they face each other.

Sayaka Unagi has assessed Riara and taught her a good lesson about being a wrestler. Wrestling is painful but it is also very fun! The proof can be seen when Unagi Body Slammed Riara on the floor and Riara Body Slammed her back on the entrance stage! Back in the ring Unagi used her own version of the Sliding D called the Sliding U to pick up the win. She told Riara after the match that she should learn to enjoy wrestling more before worrying about getting her first win. Once you get to have fun in the ring then the wins and championships will follow. Unagi then called out to Yuna Manase over at the commentary table. No matter how long it takes, Unagi will wait for Manase to recover from injury so they will wrestle again! And one more thing, Unagi said Watase owes her a debt from the Fire Festival. He beat her by Knockout in their tournament match and Unagi wants revenge! She even confronted Watase after the show forcing him to promise she will be his first challenger when he regains the SOG Title!

Wrestlers from JTO and Marvelous joined up with YuuRI in Match #2. YuuRI got to team with JTO’s Tomoka Inaba to take on Takumi Iroha & Mio Momono. Inaba used High Kicks on both opponents to set the table for YuuRI. Unfortunately YuuRI missed the Swanton Bomb, giving Iroha the chance to land the move on her instead. YuuRI kept in the fight though so Iroha had to use the Running Three to win the match. Momono said she enjoyed wrestling in a big venue like Ota Ward Gym and would like to come back to GanPro. Iroha noticed YuuRI crying after the match and understands how she feels. Her advice to YuuRI is to be strong and keep her Ganbare Spirit while Manase is out injured. Facing this kind of pressure regularly will only help YuuRI grow. She put it out there that she would like to wrestle YuuRI in a singles match. YuuRI said she has to improve but would like to wrestle everybody she was in the ring with again, even Inaba. She has a title match coming up in Ice Ribbon soon so her next focus is to win that.

The show began with the rookie Munetatsu Nakamura taking on Masahiro Takanashi. Nakamura hit a dive to the outside and even blocked the Takatonic. But Takanashi started catching him in different pinning holds until he got the three count with the Hangover!! Nakamura promised to work on his technique and add to his wrestling style. Takanashi wonders if today’s match is a turning point for Nakamura. He thinks it would be nice for Nakamura to come over to his wrestling place as a representative of GanPro. Now does he mean DDT or somewhere else?

Yuna Manase greeted the fans at the start of the show and thanked them for their support while she is recovering from injury.

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Brookes Returning From Injury, Summer Sun Princess Title Match Comments, Osaka Bay Bang

July 6, 2023

DDT “DDT TANABATA SPECIAL 2023 IN SHINJUKU”, 07/07/2023
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Toru Owashi & Kazuma Sumi
2. DISASTER BOX Vs BURNING!: HARASHIMA & Kazuki Hirata Vs Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada
3. Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Ilusion Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani
4. KANON Debut 4th Anniversary Match ~ Special Tag Match: TAKA Michinoku & KANON Vs Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku
5. International Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Nick Wayne
6. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Toy Kojima
7. Road To PETER PAN 2023! Special Tag Match: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi

Tomorrow sees the return of Chris Brookes to the ring, fully recovered from his injury. Yuji Hino has been taunting him by either comparing this match to Brookes having his debut match or having his retirement match!

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’23”, 08/07/2023
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. Juria Nagano Comeback Match: Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Moka Miyamoto Vs Juria Nagano
2. Mahiro Kiryu, Haruna Neko, HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki Vs Kaya Toribami, Toga, Haru Kazashiro & Runa Okubo
3. Ryo Mizunami & Nao Kakuta Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Asuka
4. DEFY Women’s Title: Vert Vixen (c) Vs Hikari Noa
5. 3 Way Tag Match: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao Vs Aja Kong & Raku Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
6. Nyla Rose Vs Miu Watanabe
7. EVE Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Sawyer Wreck
8. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel Vs Yuki Arai & Wakana Uehara
9. International Princess Title: Rika Tatsumi (c) Vs Yuki Arai
10. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Maki Itoh

A press conference took place in Shibuya yesterday featuring wrestlers from some of the major matches on the show. Maki Itoh said the only result that can happen in the main event is her winning the Princess Of Princess Title and ending her story with Mizuki that has lasted for so long. Mizuki know she and Itoh are exact opposites to the point where it feels like they are in different worlds. Itoh pointed out she’s never been hit with the Whirling Candy and is not going to let her guard down. Mizuki knows how powerful the Itoh Deluxe is so she thinks she should target Itoh’s hips. However she believes the winner is whoever has the most heart.

For the International Princess Title match, Yuki Aino explained she feels happiest when she is fighting so she wants to win the title and fight even more. She is excited to have a hot fight with Rika Tatsumi that will burst Ota Ward Gymnasium into flames! Tatsumi is taking things in a more calm and cool manner because she does not want to risk burning out before the match begins. The two are close friends in private but that means they know each other’s weaknesses. Tatsumi even said she could take advantage of Aino’s kindness in the ring.

Miyu Yamashita’s request to put the EVE Title on the line against Sawyer Wreck has been agreed to by all parties involved. The contract signing will be held once Wreck is in Japan. The match will be held under Spirit Of EVE Rules which means it will have a 30 minute time limit, there will be no countouts and the referee can end the match if he thinks one of the wrestlers is not showing the will to fight. Sayuri Namba explained those rules and asked Yamashita if she is worried about Wreck taking the match outside the ring where she is most violent? Yamashita does not think that will give Wreck the advantage. She is confident she take fight directly against Wreck’s strong points and take her down with the Skull Kick.

DDT “OSAKA BAY BLUES SPECIAL 2023”, 20/08/2023
Osaka Edion Arena #2

1. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Hideki Okatani & Soma Takao

While Yukio Sakaguchi waits for his All Asia Tag Team Titles shot to be granted he faces the champions Atsushi Onita & Yoshitatsu in a Current Blast Death Match! Sakaguchi has his Eruption stablemate Hideki Okatani as well as Soma Takao on his team. Onita & Yoshitatsu will be teaming with Toy Kojima for the match.

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DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 10 ~I WILL NOT SPARE YOUR LIFE OR YOUR REPUTATION~” Results

July 2, 2023

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 10 ~I WILL NOT SPARE YOUR LIFE OR YOUR REPUTATION~”, 02/07/2023
Osaka Komikyo Higashinari Civic Center
438 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Dosukoi Thank You Vs DDT’s Most Green Boy Combo: Yusuke Okada & Yuki Ishida defeated Kazuma Sumi & Ilusion when Ishida pinned Ilusion with the Ensho (9:30).
2. Pheromones Vs ROMANCE DAWN Vs Yoga Sumo ~Between Compliance And The Taste Of Pheromones~: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno defeated Soma Takao & Shota and Toru Owashi & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi when Iino submitted Hiroshi after the Sexy Peeler (9:28).
3. Diabolical DAMNATION T.A Vs Men With A Thousand Skills: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul defeated Tsubasa & Makoto Oishi when Sasaki submitted Oishi with the Crossface Lock (8:47).
4. “Did You Hear That? I Heard That Guy’s A Prick” Special Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo & Kuishinbo Kamen defeated Kikutaro & Antonio Honda when Endo pinned Honda with the Burning Star Press (14:11).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match – Japan-US Young Wrestling Summit!: Nick Wayne, Kohei Kinoshita & Yuya Koroku defeated MAO, Toy Kojima & Yuni when Wayne pinned Kojima with the Wayne’s World (12:25).
6. Special Tag Match – One Hundred Tales Of Osaka ~Saki Akai, Her Biggest Crisis Before Retirement~: Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai defeated Kazuki Hirata & No Name when Sakaguchi pinned Hirata with the PK (10:10).
7. Magnitude Kishiwada 30th Anniversary Match ~You Guys Will Know When You See It~: Dick Togo, Magnitude Kishiwada & Black Buffalo defeated Shigehiro Irie, Yuto Kikuchi & Takeshi Masada when Kishiwada pinned Masada with the Last Ride (14:58).
8. Right Before Ryogoku! Road To KOKUGIKAN Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuji Hino, Jun Akiyama & Hideki Okatani defeated HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Akito when Hino submitted Akito with the King Kong Sleeper (14:02).
9. Special Single Match – WR ~Wrestling & Respect~: Yuki Ueno defeated HUB with the WR (27:55).

The annual Yukinori Matsui produced show in Osaka was this year headlined with a match between Yuki Ueno and HUB. It is a matchup Matsui put together because one year ago Ueno asked HUB to do the match on this show. HUB spent the bout targeting Ueno’s leg and also used the WR, his original version of the finishing move. He tried to finish his opponent off with the Avalanche Viper Strike but Ueno gave him a Frankensteiner to the canvas instead and used his own WR to win the match.

Afterwards HUB took off his mask in the ring but kept his face covered using a shirt. He said today’s match was the best in his 24 year career. He heard Ueno keeps talking about Konosuke Takeshita. That reminded HUB of the time he fought Takeshita as Zero back in 2016 and how he gave the Zero mask to Takeshita as a gift. Today he is giving Ueno an even better gift, the HUB mask he just took off! If Ueno wants to carry DDT on his back then HUB wants him to stand tall. Ueno said HUB is the wrestler he admires most. He may never become as cool as him but Ueno will make it his goal to be just as good looking!

The show also held the 30th Anniversary match for Magnitude Kishiwada. The special occasion saw the masked wrestler team up with Dick Togo & Black Buffalo to beat Shigehiro Irie, Yuto Kikuchi & Takeshi Masada. After pinning Masada with the Last Ride, Kishiwada declared that his career is only at the halfway point! After all there is no such thing as an actual pro wrestling retirement. Kishiwada’s going to wrestle for the rest of his life if he gets his way. The next thing he wants to do is fight Irie in a singles match.

You never see the wrestlers in Eruption get intimidated by anybody but that was before they had to fight No Name. The horror wrestler was such a scary presence that Eruption and even No Name’s partner Kazuki Hirata all tried to hide away from her. Their fear was warranted when after the match No Name trapped Saki Akai in a strangling submission and choked her unconscious. Yukio Sakaguchi ran away carrying Akai in his arms while No Name decided to chase Hirata around the venue.

After Match #4 Kikutaro told the audience that Matsui lost his wallet a few days ago. The wallet was found and returned to him but it was missing 50,000 yen. Kikutaro proposed the formation of Matsui AID to collect donations from the audience.

Yasu Urano was unable to wrestle on the show due to illness. Shota took his place in Match #2 which meant teaming with Soma Takao as ROMANCE DAWN again.

At the end of the show Matsui said he wants to hold the event again next October. This one is going to be more important than usual because he will be celebrating his 30th Anniversary in wrestling!

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DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2023” Results

June 25, 2023

DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2023”, 25/06/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
755 Fans

0. Dark Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Toru Owashi & Yuni Vs Akito, Soma Takao, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya ended in a No Contest (5:44).
1. Special Single Match: Naruki Doi defeated Takeshi Masada with a Cradle (7:04).
2. Ryota Nakatsu, Yuki Ishida, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku defeated Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai, Hideki Okatani & Sanshiro Takagi when Ishida pinned Sakaguchi with the Dosukoi Hold (9:22).
3. Special Single Match: HARASHIMA defeated Minoru Fujita by Disqualification after Fujita attacked the Referee (7:31).
4. International Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo defeated Nick Wayne with the Burning Star Press (13:44).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuji Hino, Jun Akiyama & Makoto Oishi defeated Kazusada Higuchi, Masahiro Takanashi & Antonio Honda when Hino submitted Honda with the King Kong Sleeper (13:23).
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul defeated Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima when Sasaki submitted Kojima with the Crossface Lock (15:29).
*DAMNATION T.A becomes the 77th KO-D Tag Team Champions!
7. DDT Extreme Title – 3 Way Dance: Kazuki Hirata defeated MAO and Yoshihiko (21:25).
7a. MAO and Kazuki Hirata eliminated Yoshihiko with a Double Reincarnation Cutback (17:36).
7b. Kazuki Hirata eliminated MAO with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (21:25).
*Kazuki Hirata becomes the 58th DDT Extreme Champion!

Believe it or not Kazuki Hirata is now a singles champion! For weeks leading up to the 3 Way Dance, everybody including Hirata himself expected him to be taken out of the picture very quickly so MAO and Yoshihiko would fight each other over the vacant DDT Extreme Title. Instead Hirata persisted against his two opponents. He and MAO used their combined power to roll over from Yoshihiko’s Reincarnation and together pin the doll to eliminate it from the match. MAO took control of the match but none of his big moves could work. Hirata ended up countering the Michinoku Driver II into the Miracle One Shot Cradle to pull off the shock of all shocks. He is now the new Extreme Champion!

Hirata now finds himself in a position he never thought about previously. As a champion he now gets to nominate his challengers. Hisaya Imabayashi asked him who he wants to face in his first defence on 30th July. Hirata said there is a lot of people he wants to fight and he gets to pick the rules that will make him beat them too. So his first opponent is his DISASTER BOX stablemate HARASHIMA! He admits he can never beat HARASHIMA in a regular head-to-head fight but he can come up with funny rules that will even the odds. HARASHIMA accepted the challenge because he is a mutltiple time Extreme Champion and has fought in many different kinds of matches over the years.

Poor Toy Kojima suffered so much abuse at the hands of DAMNATION T.A and unfortunately it was all for nothing. The vacant KO-D Tag Team Titles were on the line when Kojima & Yuki Ueno represented The 37KAMIINA against Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul. Ueno & Kojima used their new double team move the My MADMAX on Sasaki but Paul broke up the pin. Then when Kojima used the Kojima In Wonderland on Sasaki, the injured KANON ran down to the ring armed with a stungun! The referee Tomomitsu Matsunaga ran over to stop KANON from entering the ring and missed Sasaki giving two Low Blows to Kojima. Sasaki stayed on the offensive and made Kojima tap to the Crossface Lock to make DAMNATION T.A the new Tag Champions. Backstage Sasaki said Kojima must never forget this day because today is the day he experienced absolute despair and humiliation! Now that DAMNATION T.A is back to full force, they are going to make the second half of 2023 crazy for everybody. Sasaki also said if Ueno, Kojima or anybody else wants to do something about it they are always welcome to join DAMNATION T.A.

Jun Akiyama found a way to fit in with Ω by wearing their shirt along with a bandana and sunglasses. The fun and games for Yuji Hino sort of stopped when Antonio Honda tried standing up to him on behalf of his friend Chris Brookes. The match then moved on to Hino and Kazusada Higuchi squaring off again while Makoto Oishi dealt with Masahiro Takanashi. Honda tagged in ready for his moment when he tripped over the ropes and fell like he always does. But instead of telling a Gongitsune joke, Honda asked himself why does he always fall down? He figured out it’s to get back up! If his best friend Brookes goes back to England, he will get back up. If he gets injured, he will get back up. He will always get back up because he is chasing his dream! A fired up Honda then poked Hino in the eyes and knocked him down with the Bionic Elbow for a nearfall. Unfortunately Hino recovered and countered the Octopus Hold into the King Kong Sleeper to make Honda give up.

After the match Ω called for Brookes’ attention while Honda was being tended to outside the ring. Oishi lambasted him for taking it easy while Hino’s been working hard in the ring week after week. How can Brookes become the KO-D Openweight Champion when all of Hino’s hard work has made him reach his perfect condition? Hino calmed Oishi down and asked Brookes when he can start wrestling again? Brookes said 7th July. Hino said that is a long way off so he is going to make sure that date will become Brookes’ retirement match! Backstage Brookes admits he is feeling guilty over not being able to wrestle because of his injury. He promised to do his best when he returns as his way of showing thanks for everyone who fought for him while he’s been out of action.

Nick Wayne was thrown into the deep end for his Japanese DDT debut when he took on Tetsuya Endo. The young American went for impactful moves like the Poison Hurricanrana and Dragon Suplex. But Endo hit back with the Tetsuya In The Sky and also caught him in mid-air to set up the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb. Wayne kicked out of both moves but became a sitting duck for the Burning Star Press. Endo thinks Wayne will absorb the Japanese way of wrestling during his stay here and it will expand his range. It makes Endo look forward to having a rematch some day. One he thinks he will still win of course. Wayne told reporters he is very inspired by the wrestlers in DDT and being in the same environment makes him feel like he can give 100% every match.

The match between HARASHIMA and Minoru Fujita started off awkwardly when Fujita refused to shake his opponent’s hand and instead give him the HERO! pose. He then accepted HARASHIMA’s handshake but only so he could cheap shot him afterwards. Fujita continued fighting dirty by using the ropes for pin leverage and bringing a chair into the ring. He threw the chair at HARASHIMA right when he was setting up the Somato. Then he gave Yukinori Matsui a Low Blow to purposely get disqualified. Fujita also gave HARASHIMA a Low Blow before doing another HERO! pose and leaving.

In a KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match preview, Harimao scored a big win over Eruption with an unlikely result. Yuki Ishida ended up pinning Yukio Sakaguchi! He used a move that looks similar to a backwards Gannosuke Clutch to get the three count. He told Ryota Nakatsu that he used “Dokusoi” spirit to beat Sakaguchi so the two of them agreed to call the move the Dosukoi Hold. The move is based on a sumo technique so you can bet Ishida wants to use it again at Sumo Hall. However Sakaguchi wants him to know today’s result isn’t the end of their story so he shouldn’t be getting carried away. Saki Akai was interested to fight Nakatsu for the first time today because they are both from Kyoto. Unfortunately for Sanshiro Takagi, his time in the ring today didn’t last long. According to a tweet he posted after the show he tore a muscle in his leg during the match.

Naruki Doi was the latest big name opponent for the super rookie Takeshi Masada to face one on one. Masada did quite well and looked to be on his way towards scoring a huge upset. But Doi countered the Samurai Driver ’01 into a Cradle to win instead.

Strange bedfellows were put together for the dark match because Toru Owashi & Yuni had to team with Pheromones. Usually the likes of them would be their opponents. We found out the reason why because Akito wanted to ruin Yuni’s reputation by getting pictures of him doing lewd stuff with Pheromones in the ring! Imabayashi told Akito off because creating a scandal like that would harm CyberFight too. Still when Yuki Iino & Danshoku Dieno stacked themselves in the corner with their backsides exposed, Akito tried to force Yuni head first into there. It didn’t matter to him if Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya had to suffer the same fate. Just when Akito looked like he was going to succeed, Imabayashi cancelled the match. Akito went out of control throwing more wrestlers into butts until Soma Takao stopped him. Akito then invited Takao to help him destroy Pheromones. Takao tried not to listen but was eventually convinced to join Akito’s side.

The injured Shunma Katsumata was at ringside for the final two matches. He had to vacate both the Extreme Title and KO-D Tag Title due to a foot injury. He told the fans it will be a while until he gets back to wrestling again but he is currently feeling fine with his recovery.

Also making an appearance today was Yukio Naya. He came here to announce his return match from injury will be “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023” on 23rd July! He’s been recovering from a fractured right ankle since the end of March. His goal once he returns is to reach the top of DDT in the shortest amount of time possible.

Shota was at the show during the opening announcements. He was there to promote Ganbare☆Pro’s big event “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA II” at Ota Ward Gymnasium on 9th July.

DDT will also be going to Ota Ward this Autumn. They announced “DDT BIG BANG 2023” will take place there on 9th September. Another announcement regarding the event will be revealed tomorrow.

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023”, 23/07/2023
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. Sanshiro Takagi, Shinichiro Kawamatsu & Yuni Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Toy Kojima & Rukiya
3. Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Akito, Soma Takao & Yoshitomo Shimohigashi
4. 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Minoru Fujita, MJ Paul & KANON Vs Kotaro Suzuki, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
5. Special Tag Match: Chiitan☆ & Pokotan Vs Andreza Giant Panda & Super Sasadango Machine
6. Special Tag Match ~ Yukio Naya Return Match: HARASHIMA & Yukio Naya Vs Jun Akiyama & Shigehiro Irie
7. Special Single Match: TAKA Michinoku Vs MAO
8. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Yuki Ueno
9. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Kazusada Higuchi, Ryota Nakatsu & Yuki Ishida (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani
10. Mexico Kanko Presents Dramatic Dream Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs El Desperado
11. DDT Universal Title: Tetsuya Endo (c) Vs Matt Cardona (w/ Steph De Lander)
12. KO-D Openweight Title: Yuji Hino (c) Vs Chris Brookes

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New Up Up Girls Show, IP Title No. 1 Contender Match, SILVER QUEEN, Time To Get Assessed

June 5, 2023

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “UP UP GIRLS (PRO WRESTLING) 2ND SHOW GRAB IT! THE HIGHEST STAGE!”, 10/06/2023
Shinjuku FACE

1. Moka Miyamoto & Toga Vs Arisu Endo & Shino Suzuki
2. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Wakana Uehara & Haru Kazashiro
3. Miu Watanabe & Suzume Vs Raku & HIMAWARI

For the first time in four and a half years The Up Up Girls (Pro Wrestling) are holding their own show featuring music performances as well as wrestling matches. The first show was a milestone for the unit because it was where each member revealed their pro wrestling names as well debuting their song “Upper Chop!” Shino Suzuki already has her ring name. Unless at the show she decides to change it to Susususu Suzuki?

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “STICK OUT ’23”, 11/06/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Pom Harajuku Vs HIMAWARI
2. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Toga & Runa Okubo
3. Shoko Nakajima & Moka Miyamoto Vs Suzume & Haru Kazashiro
4. Yuki Kamifuku, Kaya Toribami & Wakane Uehara Vs Yuki Arai, Raku & Shino Suzuki
5. Hyper Misao Vs Mahiro Kiryu
6. International Princess Title Next Challenger Match: Yuki Aino Vs Arisu Endo
7. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe

Two wrestlers have stepped forward asking for a shot at the International Princess Title for different reasons. Yuki Aino wants to win the championship after seeing there are women all over the world coming to Tokyo Joshi Pro to fight for it. Arisu Endo was inspired to ask for a shot after standing in her friend Suzume’s corner during last month’s title match. The two will face off in a singles match with the winner getting to challenge Rika Tatsumi somewhere down the road.

A few weeks ago Hyper Misao made Mahiro Kiryu the hero of her own story at the “HYPE!” event. Now they have to be opponents. Misao didn’t see this match coming but understands she will have to beat her friend, even if it ends Kiryu’s momentum coming out of “HYPE!”

Yuki Arai is cleared to return to wrestling on this show. Her return match is also the first time she will be teaming with Raku & Shino Suzuki. That fact is making her look forward to returning even more.

English commentary for the show will be provided by Chris Brookes, Drew Parker and Baliyan Akki.

DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2023 TOUR IN HAKODATE”, 16/06/2023
Hakodate City General Wholesale Center Distribution Hall

1. SILVER QUEEN Infomercial Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Kazuki Hirata Vs MAO & Yoshihiko

DDT is bringing back the Infomercial Match. It is a wrestling match purposefully put together to promote a local sponsor. For example the sponsor for this show is SILVER QUEEN, a restaurant marketed towards fans of the singer Eikichi Yazawa (the inspiration for Antonio Honda’s alter ego A.YAZAWA).

BASARA “BASARA 222 ~OENSOGURA~”, 17/06/2023
Miyagi-no Cultural Center

1. Lil’ Kraken Vs Yasu Urano
2. FUMA & Daichi Kazato Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & SAGAT
3. Daiki Shimomura & Takato Nakano Vs Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga
4. Isami Kodaka Vs MUSASHI
5. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2023 – Round 2 B Block: Ryota Nakatsu Vs Minoru Fujita
6. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2023 – Round 2 B Block: Takumi Tsukamoto Vs Fuminori Abe

Three of the four remaining wrestlers in the B Block are former Chouten ~Itadaki~ winners. Takumi Tsukamoto has never won the tournament but he is the current Union MAX Champion. Meanwhile Ryota Nakatsu is a two time winner while Minoru Fujita and Fuminori Abe are the two most recent tournament champions.

Isami Kodaka being knocked out of the tournament early frees him up for a first time singles match against MUSASHI from Michinoku Pro.

DDT “WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2023”, 25/06/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai, Hideki Okatani & Sanshiro Takagi Vs Ryota Nakatsu, Yuki Ishida, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
2. International Special Single Match: Tetsuya Endo Vs Nick Wayne
3. DDT Extreme Title: MAO Vs Kazuki Hirata
4. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima

This past weekend saw Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul attack Toy Kojima with chairs before throwing their names in for the vacant KO-D Tag Team Titles match. DAMNATION T.A are entering the match thinking the championship is as good as theirs. Kojima has Yuki Ueno backing him up and will be fighting to bring the belts back to The 37KAMIINA on Shunma Katsumata’s behalf.

MAO has threatened to kick Kazuki Hirata to death in order to win the vacant DDT Extreme Title. However Hirata is always ready and expecting to be kicked to death in his matches so MAO will have to think about doing something else!

BASARA “BASARA 223 ~KOO~”, 27/06/2023
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2023 – A Block Final: Daiki Shimomura Vs SAGAT
2. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2023 – B Block Final: X Vs X
3. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2023 – Final: X Vs X

Daiki Shimomura joins SAGAT in the semi-finals. Shimomura had to beat Kodaka to get hear while SAGAT had a much more peaceful route thanks to a bye sending him past the previous round without him having to wrestle.

GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA II”, 09/07/2023
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. Riara Vs Sayaka Unagi
2. Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Miyuki Takase
3. YuuRI & Tomoka Inaba Vs Takumi Iroha & Mio Momono
4. Keisuke Ishii, Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao Vs Akito, Shota & Shinichiro Tominaga
5. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Hikaru Sato & Tyson Maeguchi (c) Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Mizuki Watase (c) Vs Isami Kodaka

Friends, training partners, wrestling rivals and now a tag team. That describes the relationship between Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada. They’ve never been able to fight each other in MMA due to being in different weight classes and also different companies. But they are joining forces believing they are the only two fighters who can defeat Hentai Punch Drunkers for the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Titles. Their challenge was accepted by Tyson Maeguchi before Hikaru Sato could give his thoughts on the matter.

It will soon be time for Riara to get assessed by Sayaka Unagi. Apparently that’s a thing a lot of joshi has to go through these days. Unagi offered to wrestle on Ganbare☆Pro’s biggest show of the year again as a favour to her friend Yuna Manase. Since Manase is currently injured, Riara was chosen to be Unagi’s opponent. The two already knew each other while Riara was training to be a pro wrestler. Unagi’s lesson for her is it takes more than just having the “ganbare” spirit to succeed in wrestling.

The 6-Man Tag Match is a reunion on both sides. Akito, Shota & Shinichiro Tominaga represent the Young Communication Generation while Keisuke Ishii, Shigehiro Irie & Soma Takao are back together as Team Drift.

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Brookes Is Indeed Injured, GanJo Gets Marvelous, Sasadango In TJPW

May 31, 2023

DDT “DDT YOKOHAMA UNLIMITED VOL. 3”, 03/06/2023
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. 2 Vs 3 Handicap Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Antonio Honda, Yuya Koroku & Rukiya
3. Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuki Ishida
4. Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama Vs HARASHIMA & Soma Takao
5. Daisuke Sasaki (w/ MJ Paul) Vs Toy Kojima
6. Sanshiro Takagi & Akito Vs Yuki Ueno & Yuni
7. Special Tag Match: MAO & Mei Suruga Vs Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata
8. Special Tag Match: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Masahiro Takanshi

DDT confirmed that Chris Brookes dislocated his right shoulder yesterday. He will be resting for three weeks but no date has been given yet for when he can return to wrestling. This weekend’s shows have been changed around to make up for Brookes’ absence. Kazusada Higuchi is living up to his promise to help Brookes prepare for the KO-D Openweight Title match as much as he can and still intends to put Yuji Hino’s to the test this weekend.

The Yokohama show is changed a lot because of Brookes’ injury. Masahiro Takanashi replaces him in the main event, MAO now has to team with Mei Suruga again, Yuni will be teaming with Yuki Ueno to fight their bosses Sanshiro Takagi & Akito plus more changes were made down the card.

DDT “JAPAN PARA-WRESTLING FEDERATION CHARITY SHOW ~ WHAT ARE YOU DOING 2023 TOUR IN ODAWARA”, 04/06/2023
Kanagawa Odawara Arena Sub Arena

1. Takeshi Masada Vs Rukiya
2. Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Kazuki Hirata & Toy Kojima
3. DAMNATION T.A Vs BURNING!: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
4. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Soma Takao & Kazuma Sumi
5. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Akito
6. Odawara Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yoshiaki Yatsu, Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi & Makoto Oishi
7. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuji Hino, HARASHIMA & Yukio Sakaguchi Vs Kazusada Higuchi, MAO & Yuki Ishida

The Kanagawa show the next day does not have as many changes. MAO replaces Brookes in the main event, turning Harimao into HariMAO! Also Soma Takao is now getting booked to take MAO’s original spot in the Yoshiaki Yatsu match.

GANBARE☆PRO “WRESTLE SEKIGAHARA II”, 09/07/2023
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Miyuki Takase
2. YuuRI & Tomoka Inaba Vs Takumi Iroha & Mio Momono
3. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Mizuki Watase (c) Vs Isami Kodaka

The friendly rivalry that’s been brewing between YuuRI & Tomoka Inaba is leading to them teaming together. Their opponents come from Marvelous as that promotion is sending Takumi Iroha & Mio Momono over to Ganbare☆Pro!

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~SHOKO NAKAJIMA LOCAL TRIUMPH~”, 05/08/2023
Niigata Dúo CEREZO

This show is a long way out but I’m including it for the list of talent announced so far: Yuki Arai, Aja Kong and… Super Sasadango Machine? Well the event it taking place in his hometown after all. Last time he was in Tokyo Joshi Pro it was to help Hyper Misao reveal she got married.

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