DDT “THE FORTUNE BATTLE 2025” Results

January 18, 2025

DDT “THE FORTUNE BATTLE 2025”, 18/01/2025
Tokyo Shinagawa Prince Hotel Club eX
??? Fans – Unannounced

1. HARASHIMA, Akito, Yuki Iino & Daichi Sato defeated Daisuke Sasaki, KANON, MJ Paul & Ilusion when HARASHIMA pinned Paul with the Somato (12:57).
2. A Match To Remember Kazuki Hirata ~ Scramble Bunkhouse Glasses Rules: Toru Owashi & Soma Takao defeated Danshoku Dieno & Yuki Ishida when Takao pinned Ishida with the Perfect Driver onto the Glasses (9:35).
3. Special Tag Match: Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura defeated Yukio Naya & Yuya Koroku when Nakamura pinned Koroku with the Modified Crucifix Pin (10:12).
4. Rock ‘N’ Roll Death Match: Yuki Ueno defeated A.YAZAWA with a Miracle One Shot Cradle (11:12).
5. KO-D Tag Team Titles: MAO & To-y (c) defeated Yuni & Kazuma Sumi when MAO pinned Sumi with the Ultra Big Tone (21:09).
*V1 for The 37KAMIINA.
6. Special Tag Match: Shuji Ishikawa & Jun Akiyama defeated Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada when Ishikawa pinned Masada with the Splash Mountain (18:45).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Tetsu Inada defeated Poison Sawada JULIE by Pinfall (7:41 pm).
*Tetsu Inada becomes the 1,708th champion.

Shuji Ishikawa appreciated getting help from Jun Akiyama to beat SCHADENFREUDE International in the main event. Antonio Honda actually distracted the referee so Chris Brookes could attack Ishikawa with a chairshot to the head. However Ishikawa hit back with a Headbutt to Brookes while the chair was still wrapped around his neck. He then went on to pin Takeshi Masada with the Splash Mountain. As much as Ishikawa would like to celebrate the win with some karaoke, he told the fans he will wait until he wins the KO-D Openweight Title on 26th January. Honda motivated Brookes by telling him he can overcome anything, just like how Honda overcame his lovesickness today to make to the venue in time to try and help him.

When MAO recently used AI to predict how a match between himself and Kazuma Sumi would turn out, it said he would win using a mystery move called the Ultra Big Tone. Today MAO figured out what that move is and he successfully used it on Sumi to defend the KO-D Tag Team Titles! The Ultra Big Tone starts off as a Lifting Reverse DDT and flips over into a Sitout Facebuster. This is all done from jumping off the second rope too. He praised Sumi & Yuni for being tough challengers while being so young. He heard the ultimate goal for NωA Jr. is to someday perform as idols at the Tokyo Dome. He will cheer them on to reach that goal because the previous NωA never could. While they go do that, he will try his best to bring DDT back to Budokan Hall! Meanwhile To-y said the match gave him a taste of what to expect from the D GENERATIONS CUP. He will chew up the competition there before going back to defending the KO-D Tag Titles again.

As mentioned earlier, Honda was dealing with a bout of lovesickness throughout the day that delayed him from making the show until the main event. His scheduled match with Yuki Ueno had to change into something else. Ueno was now put into a Rock ‘N’ Roll Death Match against his new opponent A.YAZAWA! The two wrestlers danced along to music while fighting and Ueno unexpectedly powered himself up by putting on a pair of Hirata GO! glasses! With these glasses he quickly learned how to do the Miracle One Shot Cradle and he used the move to beat YAZAWA.

Keigo Nakamura really wanted to test himself against Yuya Koroku even when his tag partner Shinya Aoki had Koroku beaten with the Full Nelson Hold. Nakamura called out to him and demanded to be tagged in. Aoki recluctantly agreed. That idea almost backfired when Koroku put Nakamura in the Chickenwing Arm Lock. But Nakamura was able to counter it with a Crucifix Pin to get the three count. Aoki admitted to Nakamura he thought they were going to lose the match after he tagged in Nakamura and he was only able to win by a fluke. Nakamura argued he didn’t make any mistake because they ended up winning instead.

Hirata was certainly missed by the wrestlers today. His absence due to injury made some of them so sad that Hisaya Imabayashi decided to turn one of the matches into a tribute for him. Match #2 was turned into a Bunkhouse Scramble Death Match with a pair of Hirata GO! glasses placed in the middle of the ring for everyone to fight over. However everybody fought while ignoring the glasses which made the GM angry. Soma Takao eventually picked up the glasses but used them to stab Danshoku Dieno in the backside. Soma didn’t want to wear them at that point so he decided instead to give Yuki Ishida the Perfect Driver onto them to win.

After beating DAMNATION T.A in the opening bout, HARASHIMA said backstage he would like to challenge them for the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles. He’ll need to find two wrestlers to team with first, which shouldn’t be difficult for him.

The show ended with an unexpected appearance from Poison Sawada JULIE. He came to the venue today annoyed that nobody has come to challenge him for the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title. His annoyance only grew backstage when several DDT wrestlers declined to fight him because they were busy with other things so Sawada went out to ringside at the end of the show. Sanshiro Takagi and Imabayashi both confronted him but he fought them off using his Snake Magic. Then suddenly the voice actor Tetsu Inada pulled out a mirror and deflected the magic back at Sawada, knocking him out into a petrified state. Inada then pinned Sanada to win the Iron Man Title and Imabayashi ushered him away from ringside. Inada told reporters backstage it was always his dream as a child to become a pro wrestler and win a cool looking championship. He understands the terrifying threat that comes with this title and called out for any voice actors? to come challenge him should they ever see him in the studio!

Before the show began, Dieno held a public contract signing for the DDT Extreme Title match against Gorgeous Matsuno on 26th January. Matsuno was not present for the signing but the two had already agreed to the stipulation. It will be a Life’s Sparkle Match where only a 1 Count Pinfall is needed to win.


DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024” Results

December 28, 2024

DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024”, 28/12/2024
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
3,579 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Yuni & Kazuma Sumi defeated Demus & Ilusion when Sumi pinned Demus with the School Boy (9:05).
2. Shuji Ishikawa, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Shinichiro Kawamatsu defeated Masahiro Takanashi, Daichi Sato & Yuki Ishida when Ishikawa pinned Ishida with the Fire Thunder (8:59).
3. Special Tag Match ~ O-MENZ Kumadori Debut Match: Makoto Oishi & Akito defeated Kazuki Hirata & Kumadori when Oishi pinned Hirata with a Northern Lights Bomb (0:06).
3a. Rematch: Kazuki Hirata & Kumadori defeated Makoto Oishi & Akito when Hirata pinned Oishi after the Air Double Helio from Kumadori (10:44).
4. TJPW Vs DDT Full-Scale 6-Man Tag Match: Rika Tatsumi, Hyper Misao & Pom Harajuku defeated Toru Owashi, Super Sasadango Machine & Antonio Honda when Tatsumi pinned Honda with the Missile Hip (12:17).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~ Haruto Sakuraba Debut Match: KANON, MJ Paul & Haruto Sakuraba defeated HARASHIMA, Yuki Iino & Soma Takao when KANON pinned Takao with the Vietnam Driver II (12:52).
6. Special Single Match: Jun Akiyama defeated Yukio Naya with the Front Neck Lock (13:24).
7. Special Tag Match: Kenoh & Yu Owada defeated Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura when Kenoh submitted Nakamura with the Kenoh Special (11:41).
8. Special Single Match: Invisible Man defeated Danshoku Dieno (w/ Tetsu Inada) with a Danshoku Driver Counter (11:13).
9. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno defeated Takeshi Masada with the WR (16:23).
10. 85th KO-D Tag Team Titles Decision Match: MAO & To-y defeated Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku when To-y pinned Koroku with the Kojima Impact (24:17)
*The 37KAMIINA becomes the 85th KO-D Tag Team Champions!
11. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) defeated Daisuke Sasaki with the Praying Mantis Bomb II (36:55).
*V1 for Chris Brookes.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Kazuki Hirata defeated HARASHIMA (c) by TKO with the Tegatana (6:35 pm).
*Kazuki Hirata becomes the 1,703rd champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Sanshiro Takagi defeated HARASHIMA with the Stone Cold Stunner (6:36 pm).
*Sanshiro Takagi becomes the 1,704th champion.

There’s still a few days left before the new year but DDT’s 2024 came to a close at Sumo Hall today. Daisuke Sasaki came over here looking to end Chris Brookes’s reign as the KO-D Openweight Title and bring DDT back to a more grimy atmosphere. However the feud between SCHADENFREUDE International and DAMNATION T.A coming up to this match showed Brookes is just as capable of fighting that way as he is with having a fair fight. So too was Yukinori Matsui of all people. The referee reached his breaking point from the constant interference from both sides that he grabbed a chair at ringside and was willing to attack any of them with it! Both units took his warning to heart and left ringside so the match could continue one on one. The violence still escalated with Brookes Piledriving Sasaki through a table at ringside. Sasaki fought back by seating Brookes onto a chair in the first row and hitting the Super Diving Elbow. DAMNATION T.A returned to pull Matsui out of the ring right when Brookes had Sasaki beaten with the Praying Mantis Bomb. SCHADENFREUDE also came back to cause another all out fight between the two sides. Brookes and Sasaki then attacked each other with staplers until Sasaki threw Brookes into the ref so he could Low Blow him and then hit a chair shot. But nothing he did could put Brookes away, not even El Es Culero which he took from El Desperado. Instead Brookes was able to slap Sasaki down, give him a Penalty Kick and pin him with an elevated version of the Praying Mantis Bomb.

With the battle finally over, Brookes offered to shake Sasaki’s hand after the match and Sasaki actually went through with it. Brookes told Sumo Hall he was able to win with love but he knows pro wrestling needs bad people like Sasaki to fight the good people like himself. Brookes then invited the DDT roster down to the ring to close out the show and comment on how the year went for them. Brookes told the fans he thought last year would be the final time he headlined Sumo Hall so he is happy to have done it again today. In 2025 he wants to achieve more dreams as the KO-D Champion. Backstage Sasaki told reporters he is going to take an extended break from wrestling for a while. He was asked when he plans to return and he said he’ll definitely be back on… 3rd January 2025.

The vacant KO-D Tag Team Titles were on the line in a match pitting two members of The 37KAMIINA against two wrestlers from BURNING. Due to Shunma Katsumata’s injury, the story turned into the growing rivalry between To-y and Yuya Koroku. The rivalry continued to be the focus here with Tetsuya Endo kept trying to fire Koroku up. Endo and MAO took each other out late in the match so it came down to the young pair. To-y avoided Koroku’s gameplan to target the arm and used a misdirection from running the ropes to catch Koroku off guard. His plan worked and after he pinned Koroku with the Kojima Impact, MAO & To-y became the new champions!

To-y said he is never going to forget the day he won this title. MAO also praised him because just when MAO thought he has done it all with The 37KAMIINA, along comes To-y to give him new things to do. MAO has experienced big victories in Sumo Hall before and he wanted To-y to experience the same to show how you get rewarded for your hard work. They were then approached backstage by Yuni & Kazuma Sumi. The two of them want a title shot on behalf of NωA Jr. To-y accepted the challenge but MAO had to be convinced because he doesn’t want to be associated with idols again. The title match will happen on 18th January.

A big change came from the losing side as a result of this match. BURNING is now splitting up! Endo made the decision but not for any negative reasons. While he was standing in the ring after the match he realized how much Koroku has grown as a wrestler and came to the conclusion that he does not need BURNING anymore. Koroku has fully become a pro wrestler and Yuki Iino has also reestablished himself as a strong fighter. Endo wants to keep growing to reach his own potential so the time is now for them to take their own separate paths. Koroku said the unit helped him grow a lot and he will no longer look down on himself anymore. Endo’s last piece of advice to him was it is ok to feel frustration.

Yuki Ueno took it upon himself to teach Takeshi Masada a lesson in wrestling. Masada always has high expectations to reach and pulled out a top rope version of his finisher to try and win. But Ueno couldn’t be beat and found an opening to twist Masada into the Body Choke Sleeper to wear him down. Masada started to crumble from there and Ueno kept up the attack until he could pin him with the WR. Ueno wants Masada to know he is here for him in DDT. He shouldn’t be listening to the people who give him high expectations about his future. Instead Masada should believe in himself in the present. He should get be more selfish, get even weirder and gradually he will round out his game more and more. In 2025 Yuki Ueno will enjoy being himself because only those who can express themselves will have a future.

Okay we didn’t realize just how cursed of an idea Danshoku Dieno Vs Great-O-Khan was going to be. First O-Khan gets pulled from the show by New Japan due to injury, then the only opponent DDT could find on short notice was The Invisible Man and now on the day of the show one of the special guests for the match Kentaro Kumagai could no longer make it due to illness. So it was all up to Dieno and Tetsu Inada to carry the match by themselves (with The Invisible Man of course). The referee and the commentary team all wore special glasses that would let them see The Invisible Man while Dieno wore special contact lenses that did the same thing. The match turned into a brawl up the entrance ramp that ended with The Invisible Man doing a dive off of the stage. Back in the ring he hit a Triple Moonsault and was shocked when Dieno kicked out of it. He tried hitting Dieno with multiple Axe Bombers but Dieno fired himself up by stripping off his costume piece by piece. But when he made his comeback, five other Invisible Men interfered! Then an Invisible Woman named See-Through came to Dieno’s rescue and fought them off for him. Dieno went back to give The Invisible Man the Danshoku Driver but it was countered into a sudden cradle for the three count.

After the match The Invisible Man gave Dieno credit for pushing him this far. He told Dieno that someday the ruler of the human world who should have fought him in the first place will reappear along with his loyal follower. He told Dieno to call their names out loud enough for them to hear. Inada apologized for not being to help Dieno more because he got caught up fighting the other Invisible Men. He promised to be by his side again whenever the match with O-Khan takes place. Dieno assured him they haven’t lost the battle because O-Khan and Kumagai are not here. The four of them will have their fated fight one day. Until then everyone should continue to go out and live their lives to the fullest.

It was a battle of pride between DDT and NOAH. The home team of Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura certainly felt it when they fought Kenoh & Yu Owada. They fought around ringside and beat lumps out of each other. Nakamura tried to do his own attempt at Aoki’s Full Nelson Hold to pin Kenoh but the NOAH wrestler kicked out of it and made him tap out to the Kenoh Special. Aoki and Kenoh then kept fighting after the bell until they were kept apart. Aoki’s in a good mood about it though. He thinks DDT got the moral victory today because of Nakamura’s performance. He also thinks Kenoh secretly had a lot of fun out there. Aoki would love to have a rematch or even a singles match with Kenoh. He says it is up to the fans to decide if it will happen. Kenoh spent his post-match interview backstage promoting NOAH’s Budokan Hall show on 1st January.

Over on the heavyweight side of the roster Jun Akiyama showed everyone that Yukio Naya still hasn’t met his potential yet. Naya Choke Slammed him onto the ring apron and hit other big moves like the Diving Elbow and The World’s Best Back Drop. But Akiyama kept kicking out and fought back with Knee Strikes and Exploder Suplexes. He went to finish him off with the Wrist-Clutch Exploder but Naya blocked it. So Akiyama switched over to the Front Neck Lock and made him give up. Akiyama admits that Naya is better than him at everything now but the difference is 33 years of determination. He will wait for Naya to come fight him again. Naya is now worried about a comment Konosuke Takeshita recently made. If this generation carries on like they are now then they will become the generation that left nothing behind. Naya swears he will get a rematch with Akiyama in 2025 and finally beat him.

The debut of “THE MONSTER” Haruto Sakuraba gave DAMNATION T.A their only victory of the show. His size and power left Yuki Iino shaken when they charged each other in the ring. With that taken care of, KANON & MJ Paul were able to pick off the rest of the other team ending with KANON using the Vietnam Driver II to pin Soma Takao. He praised Sakuraba’a overwhelming size and power while Sakuraba called out for more people to fight him. While HARASHIMA agrees with Sakuraba’a strengths, he pointed out that as a rookie he still has a long way to go. He hopes to see Sakuraba work even harder from now on and will be happy to fight him more anytime.

DDT lost their other inter-promotional match, this time to Tokyo Joshi Pro. Good thing they are all under the same CyberFight umbrella. The TJPW team actually met with the DDT team before the match offering a box of treats. But when Toru Owashi was about to accept it, Pom Harajuku hit all of the DDT wrestler over the head with the box. The match itself got so heated up that management even got involved! Hisaya Imabayashi and Tetsuya Koda fought each other in the ring at different points in the match. Super Sasadango Machine tried to give Hyper Misao the Vertical Drop Lehman Shock but Misao fought him off with her spray can. Antonio Honda tried telling a dirty Gongitsune joked but Koda stopped him for the sake of the TJPW wrestlers. Imabayashi ran in and hit Koda with the Uraken but fell over in the process, giving Koda the chance to hit him with the Finally kick before he collapsed. Misao brought in the Hyper Mobile and crashed it into Honda. The match slowed down and even included a flashback from Honda. The Hyper Mobile returned but Owashi & Sasadango accidentally crashed it into Honda. Rika Tatsumi then hit the Missile Hip to Honda for the victory.

Later backstage Imabayashi told the DDT team that as a result of this match, TJPW will get all of the profits made from today’s show. The wrestlers came up with the excuse that they are all freelancers so none of them are really effected by that. Honda promised to get revenge by winning the Princess Rumble tomorrow. Sasadango then confronted the TJPW team wanting to talk to Misao. He challenged her to a singles match but this time Sasadango will ditch the mask and wrestle as Muscle Sakai! Not only that but he wants the match to happen at Sanshiro Takagi’s 30th Anniversary show on 3rd February. Misao accepted so we are going to get a battle of who has the better sense of humour!

The other celebrity debut was over before it could even begin. Kumadori got to do his entrance with the rest of O-MENZ but seconds into the match Akito attacked him while he was posing while Makoto Oishi immediately pinned Kazuki Hirata. Kumadori complained by telling Akito he shouldn’t be ambushing him like that and Hirata should have practiced more. He didn’t have anything to say about Oishi because he doesn’t care about him. The teams agreed to an instant rematch and this time Kumadori got to put in a performance he was happy with. He landed a Cancun Torndao on Oishi and Hirata jumped on top to get the pinfall. Hirata and O-MENZ then celebrated all together with a victory dance. Kumadori thanked Hirata because the Hirata GO! glasses really were helpful when he needed them.

Shuji Ishikawa got his preparation in for the upcoming 4 Way No. 1 Contender match. He went toe to toe with Daichi Sato while Tomomitsu Matsunaga and Yuki Ishida were trying to sumo wrestle each other. Masahiro Takanashi and Shinichiro Kawamatsu got some ring time against each other too but the match was won by Ishikawa beating Ishida with the Fire Thunder.

The show opened with NωA Jr. performing their debut single “New! Wrestling! Idol!” before two of them went on to wrestle in the first match. Yuni & Sumi’s big day was close to being ruined because DAMNATION T.A almost beat them. But after Ilusion hit the Swanton Bomb on Yuni, Sumi finally found a way to counter Demus’s finisher. He turned La Valagueza into a School Boy to get the three count from out of nowhere. Sumi was so happy with the win he promised to work hard as an idol while also doing his best as a pro wrestler. He also wants to have another singles match with Demus in Mexico or DDT because he knows today’s win was just a fluke.

There were a couple of Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title changes that happened throughout the day. Before the show began Yuki Ishida attacked the champion Yoshihiko in a hallway. Yoshihiko fended him off but Makoto Oishi jumped in and pinned the doll to become the new champion. HARASHIMA saw it happen in the distance so he joined in the fight. Oishi did not want to take the Somato before his match so he gave up and forfeited the belt to HARASHIMA. There was no further title changes until the very end when after the credits, Hirata ambushed HARASHIMA and knocked him out with the Tegatana chop to the neck. Matsui couldn’t revive HARASHIMA so he declared Hirata the new champion.

Hirata then fled with the title but found himself in a dead end inside the shower room. There he found Sanshiro Takagi taking a bath by himself. The two started arguing over Takagi taking a bath while the show was still going on and it turned into a fight. Takagi gave Hirata the Stunner and pinned him in the bath water to end the show as the new Iron Man Champion!

There will be a merchandise collaboration between DDT and the anime “Brave Bang Bravern!” coming soon. DDT will announce more details on the 26th January Korakuen Hall show.


DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024” Preview

December 26, 2024

DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024”, 28/12/2024
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. Demus & Ilusion Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
2. Shuji Ishikawa, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Shinichiro Kawamatsu Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Daichi Sato & Yuki Ishida
3. Special Tag Match ~ O-MENZ Kumadori Debut Match: Kazuki Hirata & Kumadori Vs Makoto Oishi & Akito
4. TJPW Vs DDT Full-Scale 6-Man Tag Match: Rika Tatsumi, Hyper Misao & Pom Harajuku Vs Toru Owashi, Super Sasadango Machine & Antonio Honda
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~ Haruto Sakuraba Debut Match: KANON, MJ Paul & Haruto Sakuraba Vs HARASHIMA, Yuki Iino & Soma Takao
6. Special Single Match: Jun Akiyama Vs Yukio Naya
7. Special Tag Match: Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura Vs Kenoh & Yu Owada
8. Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno (w/ Tetsu Inada) Vs Invisible Man (w/ Kentaro Kumagai)
9. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Takeshi Masada
10. KO-D Tag Team Titles: MAO & To-y Vs Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku
11. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Daisuke Sasaki

The final DDT show of 2024 is winding up somewhere bigger than usual. In past years DDT ends their calendar in Korakuen Hall but this time they are heading straight over to Sumo Hall. The “ULTIMATE PARTY” name is used when DDT brings in a little bit of everything in CyberFight’s orbit. We have guests from New Japan (edit: not anymore!), NOAH and Tokyo Joshi Pro coming over but none of their matches against DDT wrestlers can be described as friendly. If that doesn’t catch your attention then maybe the debut matches of two celebrities will tickle your fancy. Celebrity usage has been a success story for DDT this year. The one they caught lightning in a bottle with isn’t here though so let’s see if the formula can be repeated with other performers.

The upper end of the card has two official championship matches and would have had a third title taking place without DDT’s authorization. I’ll explain that one when we get to it. The main event is not something I saw coming when this show was announced back in July. However it’s also between two wrestlers who DDT can always rely on. The penultimate match of the evening also shines the spotlight on two of DDT’s fresh faces who have been locking horns with each other for weeks leading up to this. It’s a well balanced card the company was able to put together.

Before we begin here’s a little piece of trivia. Did you know the announcement for this show was almost leaked by Rossy Ogawa? During an interview he did back in July he talked about having a plan to book Marigold’s second Sumo Hall show on 28th December to compete against a Stardom show he knew would be happening in the same venue the next day (Stardom’s show also wasn’t announced yet at the time). However another company, which we now know is DDT, beat him to the punch and already had the date booked. So DDT unintentionally prevented a Sumo Hall joshi war from happening this weekend! I know some of you out there would have preferred the joshi war but you’re stuck with us until 3rd January.


1. Demus & Ilusion Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi

The spotlight is shining on the youngsters for more than just a wrestling match here. Yuni & Kazuma Sumi are also going to make their idol singing debuts as part of NωA Jr. with Shunma Katsumata. The original NωA (New Wrestling Aidoru/Idol) was an idol unit that Katsumata was a part of from 2016 to 2018. The time has come for him to lead a new generation and the two young wrestlers were handpicked to join him. Yuni has that kind of performance in his blood because his mother was a dancer for Osaka Performance Doll in the 1990s*. Sumi however does not have much of a musical bone in his body. He did recently get an acting gig for the TV adaptation of the MMA manga Red Blue though.

The debut performance could be ruined by DAMNATION T.A if the heels get their way. Demus is a challenge that Yuni and Sumi both have trouble trying to beat. Sumi in particular has been beaten by Demus and his finishing move La Valagueza a lot. I’d almost call it an exclusive finish between the two if it wasn’t for Yuni recently getting pinned with the move too. Ilusion has also elevated himself after a nasty heel turn where he tricked SCHADENFREUDE International into accepting him as their newest member only for him to stab them all in the back and defect to DAMNATION T.A. He has a grudge with SCHADENFREUDE that’s only going to get worse. But when he’s away from that he just wants to go ruin other people’s plans.

*Yeah so long story short, the reason why DDT got away with signing Yuni to a pro wrestling contract at eight years old is because of nepotism. The story of him and his mom approaching Sanshiro Takagi asking for a tryout makes a lot more sense when you find out the mom has been in showbiz before.


2. Shuji Ishikawa, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Shinichiro Kawamatsu Vs Masahiro Takanashi, Daichi Sato & Yuki Ishida

It’s an undercard trios match with nothing going into it but perhaps something it will light a match for somebody’s 2025. Shuji Ishikawa had an eventful 2024. At the start of the year he ended his deal with All Japan to wrestle as a freelancer and also take on a general manager role within Evolution Joshi. That group will soon upgrade into a bigger company called Pro Wrestling Evolution in the new year so the timing of Ishikawa working with DDT again sure is interesting. Tomomitsu Matsunaga unexpectedly got a day in the sun when Jun Akiyama asked him to be his tag partner for a KO-D Tag Team Titles shot in April as a show of appreciation for his work ethic over the years. That opened up the doors for him to get some NOAH bookings at their “LIMIT BREAK” shows too. The politician Shinichiro Kawamatsu continues to wrestle every once in a while for DDT. He told everyone that Hulk Hogan passed down the Axe Bomber to him and proved it was true with a video of them hanging out together! Does that mean he’s to blame for Hogan getting into the US political scene with Donald Trump? Kawamatsu also played a part in getting Yuriko Koike, the governor of Tokyo to appear at DDT’s “TODEN PRO WRESTLING” match during her election campaign. Her appearance turned the match into controversy because it came off like DDT was being used to endorse a political figure (Sanshiro Takagi denies the claim and remains defensive over the matter).

The other team also seemed to be thrown together just for the sake of it. Masahiro Takanashi has been splitting his time between SCHADENFREUDE International and ChocoPro. It’s probably good he doesn’t have a heavy load to worry about on this day if he’s needed to be at ringside for the main event. Daichi Sato is a kid to keep an eye on. The 16 year old from HEAT-UP has appeared in DDT in the past under the short lived DDTeeeen!! sub-brand. He’s a big boy with a billed weight of 120kg and DDT recently started booking him again. Since young heavyweight wrestlers are few and far between in Japan nowadays he’ll be getting chances as long as he keeps up his end of the deal. A good showing here will raise his stock. Yuki Ishida took a different career route this year. He reduced his pro wrestling schedule so he could move to Osaka to  work for a sumo entertainment company. Whatever happened over there did not work out so he returned to DDT and is back wrestling full time with them again.


3. Special Tag Match ~ O-MENZ Kumadori Debut Match: Kazuki Hirata & Kumadori Vs Makoto Oishi & Akito

Brining in a celebrity heartthrob worked wonders for DDT’s business this year so they are going to try the idea a few more times. Two performers in the world of entertainment will be making their pro wrestling debuts at this show. The first one is Kumadori, a member of the flashy masked dance group called O-MENZ. They are described as a “Dance Terrorist Group” and Kumadori is considered to be their most muscular member. He met Sanshiro Takagi through an acquaintance and told him he wanted to give pro wrestling a go by using his breakdancing skills. Not long after the deal was made, Kumadori confronted Kazuki Hirata at a DDT show and demanded a dance battle between them. Hirata easily lost but offered to become Kumadori’s tag partner, knowing he’s probably not going to beat him in a wrestling match either. The rest of O-MENZ will also be in their corner because the group will provide a dance performance as part of Kumadori’s ring entrance.

Two of DDT’s most reliable hands will be on the opposing team. Makoto Oishi finished up his contract with DDT in October because his family relocated to Miyagi and he also wants to spend more time with them. He continues to take DDT bookings as a freelancer but everyone in the company briefly acted like he was retiring. Oishi also found the time to get a taxi driver license so he’s trying to become the personal driver for The Saito Brothers over in All Japan. Oishi is quite the wrestling trainer behind the scenes and played a big part in getting Kaisei Takechi ready for his matches. So he is the perfect kind of first opponent for Kumadori. Akito is no slouch either but he is trying to balance his matches along with his growing responsibilities as Sanshiro Takagi’s eventual successor in DDT management. While Takagi has moved further behind the scenes while he rehabs his injuries, Akito has taken his place this year as the person taking any post-show interviews about the state of the company.


4. TJPW Vs DDT Full-Scale 6-Man Tag Match: Rika Tatsumi, Hyper Misao & Pom Harajuku Vs Toru Owashi, Super Sasadango Machine & Antonio Honda

The first inter-promotional match of the show pits DDT against its sister Tokyo Joshi Pro. There wasn’t anything to the match when it was first put together other than a few connecting threads to the past. Antonio Honda and Rika Tatsumi were once part of a band called DPG. That was how Tatsumi got into wrestling and started training with TJPW. Super Sasadango Machine helped set up Hyper Misao’s memorable “retirement match” that turned out to be the surprise announcement of her engagement and marriage. Tatsumi was part of that match too. As far as I know, Toru Owashi and Pom Harajuku have absolutely nothing in common. Although if this was a sitcom Owashi is the kind of guy who gets forced to babysit a three year old for an episode.

That changed when Sasadango visited a recent TJPW show with gifts for his upcoming opponents. As a proud citizen of Niigata, he supported local business by buying some luxury chocolate for Misao. They were all hers if she would agree to call off the match because Sasadango believes nobody in Sumo Hall wants to watch the DDT team violently destroy the TJPW team. While Misao was being tempted by the bribe, Tatsumi got into the ring and started strangling Sasadango, which in this case is her way of saying no. Misao joined in once she realized that bribery in public is a violation of the company rules (they kept the chocolate anyway). Sasadango got a measure of revenge by attacking TJPW GM Tetsuya Koda for not taking responsibility of his locker room’s actions. That turned this match from a friendly little intergender tag match to a company versus company battle!

Before we move on let’s quickly put the spotlight on Harajuku for a big weekend she’s going to have. She recently won the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title in Thailand (in a No DQ Match to boot) and will be having her first title defence in TJPW the day after this show. As much as it’s joked about her acting like an eternal three year old she has levelled up as a wrestler this year. The title reign is made even more special because she considers Thailand her second home because her parents used to work there and she often visited the country to see them. In fact the first time she watched wrestling was in Thailand when Michinoku Pro held some matches at an expo held over there. When she went back to Japan she started following DDT and TJPW, eventually signing up with them to become a wrestler herself. What a lovely story. One that Honda will definitely ruin once he starts telling a dirty joke via Gongitsune.


5. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~ Haruto Sakuraba Debut Match: KANON, MJ Paul & Haruto Sakuraba Vs HARASHIMA, Yuki Iino & Soma Takao

Here is hot celebrity making his debut #2 and he’s even bigger than the first guy! Haruto Sakuraba has been called “The Muscular Actor” for being cast in stage adaptations for Haikyu!!, Tokyo Revengers, Grappler Baki, Final Fantasy Brave and more. The Final Fantasy show in particular is how he got here because Saki Akai was also part of the cast and she introduced him to Sanshiro Takagi. As I said earlier, new heavyweights are in short supply so when Takagi saw that Sakuraba is a 187cm tall weightlifter it was love at first sight. Sakuraba is giving wrestling a go because he is a big fan of The Rock and wants to become his Japanese equivalent. To do that he’s done his homework because what worked for The Rock is a heel turn so he too will turn heel for his debut match!

Sakuraba was given an offer by DAMNATION T.A to join their side because they see he has potential to be a villain. Sakuraba knew what they were putting down and accepted the offer. He doesn’t just want to be the Japanese version of The Rock, he wants to surpass his role model! Now nicknamed “MONSTER”, Sakuraba will be teaming with KANON & MJ Paul to take on a team of DDT faces. I don’t need to write much about HARASHIMA to tell you how important he’s been for DDT throughout most of the company’s history. Soma Takao on the other hand… well he’s more known for managing the Dropkick Bar whenever he isn’t wrestling on the DDT undercard. He doesn’t really have anything else going for himself nowadays. Not even ROMANCE DAWN is a thing anymore.

Yuki Iino is the man for Sakuraba to watch out for most of all. Iino has now fully moved on from his Pheromones gimmick, instead embracing everything that makes him a member of BURNING. He held the KO-D Tag Team Titles for around six months and also won the DDT Universal Title this year too. Sakuraba isn’t impressed though. Not when Iino is smaller in person than he thought. The two had a brief fight where Sakuraba claimed Iino is so weak it makes his own muscles cry! Iino recently fought Tomohiro Ishii and even though he lost, it should be enough preparation for Iino to fight a “MONSTER” like Sakuraba.


6. Special Single Match: Jun Akiyama Vs Yukio Naya

2024 could have been the year Yukio Naya finally showed his potential to become a big player for DDT. He won the D-Ou Grand Prix in January, got a KO-D Openweight Title shot less than a month later and that was kind of it for him getting any new career defining highlights. He got knocked out in the first round of the King Of DDT and then had the kind of feud with Ryuichi “Fire” Kawakami where he kept getting the short end of the stick until he won in the end. Not sure what went wrong for him this year other than DDT deciding to move their main event scene away from the heavyweights.

If there is a way for him to make up for any progress he lost in the last year then beating Jun Akiyama in a singles match should do it. Akiyama’s main event years in DDT are now behind him but he is still accomplishing a lot in the ring. He won the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles as part of D.O.A, made appearances in NOAH, New Japan and AEW again and joins in with DDT’s sillier matches whenever he is in the mood to do so. Maybe fighting Naya one on one will light a fire beneath him to climb back up the mountain again one more time. Naya left a mark on him after one match by Choke Slamming him through a table. All Akiyama wants from him is to fight as strong as he can when they meet inside Sumo Hall.


7. Special Tag Match: Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura Vs Kenoh & Yu Owada

Thanks to the “LIMIT BREAK” shows we finally got some DDT Vs NOAH interactions this year. However this match has absolutely nothing to do with that. Instead it is about an unlikely MMA fighter who made DDT his pro wrestling home. DDT has been good to Shinya Aoki whenever he wrestles for them and it was not made any clearer this year than when he won the KO-D Title! His title reign saw him transform the humble Full Nelson Hold into a nigh on unbreakable pinning maneuver. He has since been rewarded for his skill by winning the Best Technique category in this year’s Tokyo Sports Awards. It’s a prize he compares to receiving a black belt because he now feels he has been accepted into the pro wrestling world. Except somebody in NOAH isn’t willing to do that yet. Okay Kenoh what’s your problem this time? He likes Aoki as an MMA fighter, but as a pro wrestler? No way! Not when he’s alligned with DDT.

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again. If Kenoh is Frank Grimes then DDT is his Homer Simpson. He never liked that NOAH became associated with DDT because of the CyberFight takeover and only fights DDT wrestlers when there is a grudge involved. He would have been happy to never step foot inside a DDT ring again if it wasn’t for Aoki consantly trying to get his attention. You see, Aoki has this bad habit of telling media his upcoming plans in wrestling. The problem is he reveals these plans before any other party supposedly involved is aware of them. For example he keeps trying to challenge Katsuhiko Nakajima to a UWF Rules fight in GLEAT. After repeatedly getting no response over there, Aoki changed his plan and decided he will fight Kenoh at NOAH’s Budokan Hall show on New Year’s Day. Again, nobody in NOAH let alone Kenoh has any expectation of Aoki being booked for the show (Kenoh will be fighting KENTA on that show instead).

Kenoh had to take matters in his own hands by crashing a DDT show along with NOAH rookie Yu Owada. He told Aoki to his face there will not be a match happening between them at Budokan Hall. Unfazed, Aoki then suggested they have a match at Sumo Hall for DDT instead. Kenoh ordered Owada to fight Aoki in a match then and there but Aoki pinned him in seconds with the Full Nelson Hold. Then one of DDT’s bright and baldest youngsters Keigo Nakamura stood up to defend his company in front of the NOAH pair. The four of them got into a fight and once they were kept apart, the match was made! Aoki & Nakamura are defending home turf, Kenoh is pissed he has to show up in DDT again and Owada is mad at being treated like a third wheel in this situation.


8. “Unofficial” DDT Extreme Title ~ A Dramatic Fight Where People Fight With Their Hearts: Danshoku Dieno (c) (w/ Tetsu Inada) Vs Great-O-Khan (w/ Kentaro Kumagai)

*No title change or successful defence will be recognized.

You want pro wrestling for sickos? You’re getting pro wrestling for sickos. No take backsies. In one corner we have Danshoku Dieno. He is currently the DDT Extreme Champion and he is also the reason 90% of the time I see people who try out DDT decide to never come back. In the other corner is Great-O-Khan. He is New Japan’s King Of Pro Wrestling for 2024 and also a waifu loving pervert with a heart of gold (let me quote Sayaka Unagi who once asked him “Could you truly love a three-dimensional woman?”). Both men in their own bizarre ways have become pro wrestling savants who are able to come up with outside the box ideas for the industry they love so much. Whoever came up with this idea might be trying to get DDT banned from Sumo Hall. Both Dieno and O-Khan are aiming to have a match that will guarantee it.

At first it looked like the match will only have pride on the line. Dieno does not want this to be seen as a DDT Vs New Japan affair. It is about far more than that. Instead he decided to defend his Extreme Title against the man who won the New Japan equivalent this year. Unfortunately this match is enough of a political nightmare to begin with that DDT refuses to authorize it as a title match. Dieno does not care though and will still put the belt on the line in an unofficial manner. Whether that means he will vacate the title if he loses or O-Khan wins possession of the physical belt remains to be seen.

An extra factor coming into the match are the two special guests who will be at ringside. Two voice actors have found themselves becoming important parts of the story. When preparing for the match O-Khan discovered that the voice actor Kentaro Kumagai was once given the Lip Lock by Dieno and has wanted payback ever since. O-Khan made Kumagai pledge loyalty to the United Empire and in return will bring him to Sumo Hall to get his revenge. Luckily for Dieno there is another voice actor who is looking out for him. Tetsu Inada is a die hard DDT fan who has provided voice work for the company many times over the years from narrating videos to providing match commentary. He thinks the lewd pranks he suffered at the hands of Pheromones were way worse than what Kumagai went through. That means he isn’t going to stand by and let Dieno fight this battle by himself! Both Inada and Kumagai will be at ringside for the match. Knowing what the wrestlers involved are both capable of, the most disgusting things that take place in the ring will probably happen to the voice actors!


8. Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno (w/ Tetsu Inada) Vs Invisible Man (w/ Kentaro Kumagai)

So pretty much everything I wrote in the last three paragraphs can be thrown away. Except for the last part. The voice actors are still going to get violated somehow. O-Khan suffered a lower back injury during his most recent NJPW match so he’s been pulled from the show. He has an important IWGP Tag Team Titles match going on at the Tokyo Dome soon so New Japan wants to make sure he’ll have enough recovery time to do it. DDT scrambled for a replacement and came up with an old foe of Dieno’s… The Invisible Man! As far as I can tell the Extreme Title aspect of the match has been binned. It will be up to Dieno and the voice actors to craft a story worthy to be told at Sumo Hall.


9. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Takeshi Masada

The year that Yukio Naya could have had instead went to Yuki Ueno. He spent the first half of 2024 as DDT’s ace champion, even getting in a successful KO-D Title defence inside Sumo Hall. The second half of his year slowed down after he lost the title to Shinya Aoki but it seems that DDT finally found a place for him as the company’s prince. His final match of the year is against the supposed star of the new generation who is still finding his feet while dealing with the high expectations. It’s a match that kind of came out of nowhere and there might have been a reason for that. Did plans fall through when Kota Ibushi took offence to the “Golden Star Syndrome” promos The 37KAMIINA cut about him and he decided to stop working with DDT?

Ueno is not taking his opponent lightly. As a recent former champion he knows how much of a big deal it will be if he loses to Takeshi Masada. He sees how well Masada fits into SCHADENFREUDE International but maybe that could be a bad thing. Masada is so comfortable with his current lot in life that he might have abandoned his goals as a result. Masada telling him that his goal is to make the fans go home happy kind of proves his point. That kind of attitude might be why Masada only held the KO-D Tag Titles for a month earlier this year and lost them in his first defence. There also won’t be any rematch or follow up for Masada if Ueno beats him here. Just like with Akiyama versus Naya, Ueno wants to know if Masada is going to take his best shot at him.


10. KO-D Tag Team Titles: MAO & To-y Vs Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku

This should have been the next title defence for ShunMao’s second run as champions. But sadly just like their first run it was cut off thanks to an injury suffered by Shunma Katsumata. There is a bright side we can look at though and that is what DDT went with for Plan B. The original match was meant to ShunMao against Tetsuya Endo & Yuya Koroku from BURNING. MAO, Endo and Koroku are still part of the match, this time to crown new champions. Replacing Katsumata is To-y, the pluckiest member of The 37KAMIINA. And boy is he fired up for this opportunity!

Once To-y entered the picture he immediately made a statement by pinning Koroku clean with his Kojima Impact finisher. He then added insult to injury by claiming he has more of a reason to fight for the KO-D Tag Titles than Koroku does. Even Endo agreed with him, pointing out that To-y was able to clearly explain he wants this match for himself just as much as as he does for Katsumata while Koroku struggles to get his own points across on the microphone. Since then To-y was able to rack up several pinfall wins over Koroku, leaving the latter scratching his head trying to figure out what he’s doing wrong. It was only just recently he figured out he hasn’t been acting selfish enough. He reached that breakthrough by beating To-y via referee stoppage through the use of the Chickenwing Arm Lock. Now that he knows what to do, he is willing to break To-y’s arm for the championships if he has to!

Let’s not forget MAO and Endo in this match. MAO found his calling for most of the year as the DDT Universal Champion and also the King Of DDT winner. It provided a lot of fresh matches with different finishes that showed how much MAO has matured as a wrestler in his own way. Endo seems to have fitted into this roster best by changing his focus to tag team wrestling. It paid off with him and Yuki Iino getting a KO-D Tag Titles reign that rehabilitated both of their positions in the company. He also got probably the most closure he is ever going to get from the Nakajima slap incident with the KO-D Title match he had with Shinya Aoki in September. The story is focused on To-y Vs Koroku but watch out if MAO or Endo decide they want to steal the show.


11. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Daisuke Sasaki

It’s a story that goes from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs. This time last year Chris Brookes had gone through surgery to remove a tumor from his abdomen. Thankfully the tumor was not malignant and he recovered to wrestle in top shape again. Once year later and he finds himself as the two time KO-D Champion back on top of DDT. Who can hate a feel good story like that? Oh right, Daisuke Sasaki can. Brookes had only just gotten the title back when Sasaki came out to complain about love, romance and dreams. Wrestling doesn’t need any of that stuff! DDT should always be a dirty mess and Sasaki is the only person who can make that happen on the biggest stage DDT can get.

With the Sumo Hall main event set, DDT spent the winter indulging in several different stipulation tag matches between SCHADENFREUDE International and DAMNATION T.A. There was already bad blood between the two groups when Ilusion went undercover for DAMNATION T.A by joining SCHADENFREUDE and betraying them during a heated KO-D 6-Man Tag Titles match in October (it was an illusion!). The two sides went to battle in many multi-man matches including a Best Of 5 Singles Series, a 10-Man Elimination Tag and a Best 2 Out Of 3 Falls Match. Sasaki got Brookes to submit to the Crossover Face Lock but a few weeks later Brookes was able to pin Sasaki with the Praying Mantis Bomb. With no clear lead coming up to what could be the end of the feud the only thing to be sure of is the match on a stage as big as this is sure to become violent.

There’s even a risk this match might end up becoming loser leaves town one way or the other. Sasaki keeps saying he is going to beat Brookes so bad he’ll pack his bags and go home to England. Sasaki can feel how much the KO-D Title wants to come back to him. If he wins the championship then he will turn every DDT show at Korakuen Hall next year into a “CHARISMANIA” show! Brookes knows how much Sasaki likes punk music so he says he’ll get a one way plane ticket back to England but it will be under Sasaki’s name! That way he can go visit all of the famous punk music spots England is known for. Then once Sasaki has been dealt with, Brookes promises to defend the KO-D Title regularly at his monthly Baka Gaijin + Friends shows, even if DDT won’t give him their permission.


DDT “NEVER MIND 2024” Results

December 22, 2024

DDT “NEVER MIND 2024”, 22/12/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
966 Fans – No Vacancy

1. MJ Paul, Demus & Ilusion defeated Takeshi Masada, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi when Demus pinned Sumi with La Valagueza (8:39).
2. Danshoku Dieno & Kazuki Hirata defeated Toru Owashi & Antonio Honda when Dieno pinned Honda with the Danshoku Driver (9:25).
3. Jun Akiyama, Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura defeated HARASHIMA, Yukio Naya & Yuki Ishida when Nakamura pinned Ishida with a Brazilian Kick (10:50).
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Yuya Koroku & Akito defeated MAO, To-y & Soma Takao by TKO when Koroku used the Chickenwing Arm Lock on To-y (13:47).
5. Special Single Match: Super Sasadango Machine defeated Yuki Ueno with an Inside Cradle (9:20).
6. Special Single Match: Tomohiro Ishii defeated Yuki Iino with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (16:55).
7. Road To Ultimate Party 2024! Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi defeated Daisuke Sasaki & KANON when Brookes pinned Sasaki with the Praying Mantis Bomb (16:38).

It’s one more week to go until “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024” but first there was a little matter of DDT running their last show at Korakuen Hall for 2024. Chris Brookes and Daisuke Sasaki got to clash one more time before their KO-D Openweight Title match. Here it was CDK against the top two of DAMNATION T.A. The match broke down with the rest of DAMNATION T.A interfering to attack Masahiro Takanashi. That led to SCHADENFREUDE International launching a counter attack that ended with the four of them all hitting Sasaki with a grouped up Super Kick. KANON brought in a chair but Brookes grabbed it off him, hit it over Sasaki’s head and pinned him with the Praying Mantis Bomb.

Brookes told everyone after the match that one year ago he was having surgery to remove a tumor but one year later he is here in the DDT ring as the KO-D Champion! He is confident he will defend the title at Sumo Hall. Sasaki thinks otherwise because today he absorbed all of Brookes’s moves. That means when “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024” comes around Sasaki will have Brookes all figured out. He suggests that Brookes start packing his bags because when Sumo Hall is over Sasaki will kick him back to the UK!

DDT was on in the afternoon today before New Japan took over Korakuen for the evening slot. That opened up an opportunity to have a few cross-promotional things happen like Yuki Iino fighting Tomohiro Ishii is a battle of the stocky heavyweights. There were Shoulder Blocks, Elbow Strikes, Chops, Lariats and Heabutts galore. Iino got to hit the Spear but Ishii kicked out at two. Ishii wore down Iino and finished him off with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster to win. Backstage Ishii said Iino is close to being ready and it’s a shame he isn’t there yet. Iino has power, stamina and drive but he still needs to fight and search for what he needs to get to that next level. He does not care if Iino wants to do that though. Ishii has already moved on so whatever Iino does in the future does not concern him.

There was a slight technological delay buy Super Sasadango Machine was able to display his latest PowerPoint presentation. It’s all about connecting the dots in order to beat Yuki Ueno. The greatest weapon in Ueno’s arsenal is his high flying moves so Sasadango secretly told everyone in Korakuen that he hid a spare King Of Sasadango title belt under the ring with three thumbtacks sticking out of it. During the match Sasadango swapped his belt with the thumbtack belt and lured Ueno into doing the Frog Splash. Ueno landed stomach first on the thumbtacks and was rolled over with a School Boy. Ueno kicked out though and gave Sasadango a Dropkick followed by a Body Slam onto the belt. But when he went for the pin, Sasadango suddenly caught him in an Inside Cradle and held him down long enough for Yukinori Matsui to eventually count to three! Sasadango then asked Ueno to nominate him as his first challenger if Ueno regains the KO-D Title next year.

Loss after loss has gotten to Yuya Koroku so he was determined not to get beaten by To-y again today. To-y was on fire though. He used the Kojima Impact on Akito and did the same to Koroku. But this time Tetsuya Endo was there to break the pin in time. Koroku then grabbed Kojima by the arm and refused to let go. He countered a Headlock into the Chickenwing Arm Lock and increased the struggle until To-y could no longer fight out of the move. To-y wouldn’t submit either so Matsui stopped the match for his safety and rewarded Koroku’s team with the win. Backstage Endo explained that the one thing Koroku has been missing until now was cruelty. Sometimes in wrestling you just have to be cruel to your opponent. Koroku agrees and said next time he will break To-y’s arm! However To-y thinks this result won’t happen again at Sumo Hall. He and MAO will win the vacant KO-D Tag Team Titles and they’ll have fun doing it.

Match #3 provided a good workout for some of the Sumo Hall undercard matches. Jun Akiyama and Yukio Naya started it off while Shinya Aoki and HARASHIMA got to wrestle each other again. Naya eventually got the upper hand by giving Akiyama the Choke Slam. However the match came down to Keigo Nakamura striking Yuki Ishida with High Kicks before knocking him down with the Brazilian Kick for the victory. Aoki told Nakamura they’re off to a good start as a team. Nakamura is confident they can beat Kenoh and the NOAH team at Sumo Hall. He will go there with his head held high. Akiyama told Naya that the practice matches are now over. It is now up to them to go at each other as strong as they can in Sumo Hall.

We all know what to expect by now when DDT books a tag match like Danshoku Dieno & Kazuki Hirata against Toru Owashi & Antonio Honda. Dieno went into the Hell Gate position, Honda used it to charge up Gongitsune and he ended up hitting Owashi with the move by accident. Dieno then charged up his own attack but hit Hirata with it by mistake. Honda then went for the Diving Fist Drop but Dieno blocked it with a Claw Attack and went on to pin Honda with the Danshoku Driver.

Dieno was not done yet however. He got on the microphone and wanted to talk about his Sumo Hall match with Great-O-Khan. So he invited O-Khan to the show to discuss the match stipulation in the ring! Khan entered the venue and sat with Dieno in the ring. They both agreed they want to have a match at Sumo Hall that can never be done there ever again. Something that DDT and New Japan would also not let them do either. O-Khan then brought out an unexpected guest, the voice actor Kentaro Kumagai. He also happens to be somebody that Dieno gave the Lip Lock to at a DDT show back in June. O-Khan gave him a United Empire shirt and ordered him to wear it out of loyalty. Another voice actor Tetsu Inada then entered the ring to side with Dieno and DDT. Dieno decided the match should have the DDT Extreme Title on the line but Hisaya Imabayashi refused to grant his request. It’s a miracle that Imabayashi convinced NJPW to let this match happen in the first place so upgrading it a title bout will be impossible. Dieno does not care and promised O-Khan the Extreme Title will be on the line even if DDT will not make it official. Kumagai then started complaining about the time Dieno gave him the Lip Lock. Inada argued back because the things Pheromones did to him were way worse. The two voice actors decided they will be at ringside for the match to support their wrestlers.

The rest of DAMNATION T.A put some of DDT’s younger wrestlers through the wringer in the opening match. MJ Paul & Demus worked together to give Kazuma Sumi a Double Argentine Facebuster. Ilusion landed the Swanton Bomb onto Yuni and then Demus used La Valagueza on Sumi to win the match. Ilusion made fun of NωA Jr. for trying to be fake idols while Demus promised to kill Sumi again at Sumo Hall. Both Yuni & Sumi want to get revenge on those two. Takeshi Masada asked the two of them to please win that match.

It was announced that Minoru Suzuki will be at DDT’s 28th Anniversary show at Korakuen Hall on 20th March.


DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2024” Results

August 25, 2024

DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2024”, 25/08/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,369 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. 3 Way Match: Antonio Honda defeated Kazuki Hirata and Toru Owashi when Honda pinned Hirata with a Backslide Pin (0:10).
1a. Rematch: Toru Owashi defeated Kazuki Hirata and Antonio Honda when Owashi pinned Honda with a School Boy (7:43).
2. Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Takeshi Masada defeated Makoto Oishi, Yuni & Ilusion when Takanashi pinned Ilusion with the Uwabami (10:50).
3. MAO, Shunma Katsumata & To-y defeated Jun Akiyama, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Keigo Nakamura when Katsumata pinned Matsunaga with a German Suplex (10:11).
4. Soma Takao 15th Anniversary ~ Special Single Match: Keisuke Ishii defeated Soma Takao with the Kneel Kick (9:02).
5. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Ryuichi “Fire” Kawakami & KANON defeated HARASHIMA, Yukio Naya & Kazuma Sumi when Kawakami pinned Naya with a Lariat (12:29).
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Yuya Koroku defeated Kota Ibushi, Danshoku Dieno & Akito when Endo pinned Akito with the Burning Star Press (20:30).
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Shinya Aoki defeated Yuki Ueno (c) with the Modified Manjigatame (19:49).
*Yuki Ueno fails in V8. Shinya Aoki becomes the 83rd KO-D Openweight Champion!

A packed house at Korakuen Hall got to see a newsworthy DDT show where the top championship of the company changed hands. Yuki Ueno’s nine month reign as KO-D Openweight Champion has come to an end by Shinya Aoki’s hands. The two have been linked together for a while now with Ueno looking up to the MMA fighter but perhaps that is ultimately what cost him to lose the title. Aoki surprised Ueno by using a Topé Suicida out of the ring. The Dropkicks to the face from Ueno couldn’t keep Aoki down and neither could the BME. When Ueno set up his WR finisher Aoki countered it into a Cobra Twist and transitioned the move into a Modified Manjigatame. The hold took Ueno down to the ground and he had no choice but to give up.

After the match Aoki praised Ueno for being strong and even told everyone how much he likes him. But losers have to leave the ring. Ueno bowed to everyone and left while Aoki applauded him. The new champion promised to protect what he has taken from Ueno. He also declared he wants to get revenge on Katsuhiko Nakajima for harming the championship’s reputation while defending the title against any of the Right To Challenge Anytime, Anywhere holders. He expected one of them to come out and challenge him but he got someone completely different instead. Tetsuya Endo!

Aoki wasn’t impressed and called Endo the weakest person who could challenge him. He talked about how much Endo has struggled ever since Nakajima knocked him out. Others like Ueno and MAO struggled too but Endo may as well be sleeping compared to them. Endo understands why Aoki would reject his challenge but that is why it must be Endo who should hold the belt and be the one to find revenge! Aoki argued that the reason he brought up Nakajima in the first place was because nobody in DDT did. Endo then asked Aoki if he ever lost a match that changed his life? Was there someone there to help him at the time? Aoki can be like that for Endo if he accepts the challenge. Aoki understood and a title match between them will take place in Nagoya on 8th September.

Finally Kota Ibushi came home to DDT. A lot has changed since he left but really, a lot has stayed the same too. He started the match off against Endo and their back and forth ended with a respectful handshake. Then the match turned over to more of DDT’s silly side as Danshoku Dieno kept kissing Yuki Iino over and over. Then when Akito put Yuya Koroku in a Figure 4 Leg Lock, Dieno performed the Danshoku Nightmare over Koroku. Ibushi also carried Koroku face first into Dieno’s Hell Gate at the corner. Endo got revenge by pushing Dieno and Ibushi into each other for the Lip Lock. He then hit Akito with a Handspring Kick followed by the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb. Akito kicked out of that but was put away with the Burning Star Press.

Endo welcomed Ibushi back to DDT after the match and had a question for him. Does Ibushi still love pro wrestling? Ibushi says he still loves it. Endo was happy to hear it and said he’ll be here in DDT waiting for Ibushi anytime. Dieno wanted to hear Ibushi give his honest opinion about how he feels right now. He then handed him a cue card to read (a bunch of people in DDT used to do this for Ibushi during his first main event push). Ibushi admitted there was a time when he didn’t know if he really loved wrestling. But coming back to a DDT ring today was something he enjoyed. He had a good time but his true love is only at 60 points out of 100 right now. He will keep wrestling in AEW and DDT to find the wrestling that he enjoys so his love will reach back up to 100. He then asked Makoto Oishi why he is quitting DDT soon? When Oishi told him it was to be with his family, Ibushi then asked why was his voice sounding so hoarse? Oishi reminded him it’s been like that for a long time. Backstage Ibushi told reporters he has the money and the fame. The only thing that’s missing for him is the fun. Akito told him he would like to see him appear in DDT regularly but Ibushi has only committed to one other date so far on 8th September.

Yukio Naya felt humiliated after today’s show thanks to Ryuichi “Fire” Kawakami. The latest part of their feud saw Kawakami pin Naya thanks to some foul play. HARASHIMA & Kazuma Sumi played their part as best as they could against DAMNATION T.A so Naya could beat Kawakami by himself with a Choke Slam. But MJ Paul pulled the referee away during the pin count. Naya then fought off Daisuke Sasaki & KANON until Kawakami hit him in the back with a Chair and pinned him with a Lariat. Kawakami said he will beat Naya again in their singles match on 8th September and then go on to challenge for the KO-D Title. Naya tried to fight him again but Sasaki hit him with the chair and Kawakami put him down with the Thunder Fire Bomb. Backstage Naya promised to get revenge and make Kawakami regret ever talking about the KO-D Title so casually.

The 15th Anniversary of Soma Takao’s debut match put him against someone who has been linked to him for most of his career. Keisuke Ishii was one of Takao’s tag partners in his debut and they want on to wrestle together as part of Team Drift. Ishii didn’t take it easy on his friend though. They fought up to the aisleway where Ishii gave Takao the Double Arm Driver onto the floor. Takao just about made it back to the ring to avoid being counted out. He fought back using a Double Stomp and the Perfect Driver for nearfalls. But Ishii caught him with a Frankensteiner and won the match with the Kneel Kick.

Two Right To Challenge Shield holders were on opposite teams for Match #3 so there was a little more risk of a Shield changing hands. Jun Akiyama kept grabbing To-y’s hair and did it even more after Shunma Katsumata complained about it. Keigo Nakamura went after Katsumata but things ended evenly between the two Shield holders. Tomomitsu Matsunaga got a nearfall on Katsumata with a Lariat. Katsumata turned things around with a Neckbreaker and Thrust Kick. He then scored the pin on Matsunaga with a German Suplex.

Today was another attempt by Ilusion to convince Chris Brookes he belongs in SCHADENFREUDE International. He even put Brookes in the Octopus Stretch during their match. Masahiro Takanashi wanted to thank Makoto Oishi for everything he’s done but it was just a trick to attack him. Oishi then tried singing a birthday song for Brookes but got attacked for that too. Takeshi Masada blocked Yuni’s Moonsault and Brookes tried to finish the match with the Praying Mantis Bomb but Yuni avoided it. The match came down to Ilusion and Takanashi trying to pin each other with different cradle moves. Takanashi got the better of Ilusion and got the three count with the Uwabami. Brookes wasn’t convinced by Ilusion’s performance.

The 3 Way Match to open the show featured voice actor and wrestling fan Tetsu Inada as a special guest commentator. However Antonio Honda pinned Kazuki Hirata seconds into the match before Toru Owashi could even do anything. Hisaya Imabayashi got mad like he always does and admitted he is getting tired of this. Inada took the microphone from him and demanded a restart because he wanted to see an exciting match. The match begun again but the wrestlers were showing low energy, causing Inada to get mad again. Hirata tried to do his dance but Inada asked him to do something new. Inada then joined in with Honda’s Gongitsune joke and together they attempted the Super Pheonix Fire Thunder Ultra Gongitsune attack! However they both missed. Owashi rolled up Honda with a School Boy and Hirata did the same to Inada. Both of them got a three count pin but since Inada was never a match participant, Owashi was the winner.

At the very end of the show MAO & Katsumata told the fans that Ueno losing the title is not going to stop The 37KAMIINA’s momentum. ShunMao intends to challenge for the KO-D Tag Team Titles and KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles again. Backstage they said the championship has been turning rotten ever since they had to vacate it due to Katsumata’s injury. No reign since then has been as good as theirs so they want to start a new era for the championship. MAO also described Ibushi’s return today as Golden Star Syndrome. The middle aged fans who came to the show are only chasing shadows because the glory days from Ibushi’s time are gone. DDT has been drowning in muddy waters ever since and it is thanks to the likes of ShunMao that things have started to pick up for the company. MAO is telling the fans not to lose their minds from Golden Star Syndrome and they should not be taking the current generation for granted.

The 37KAMIINA are also going to be part of Kaisei Takeshi’s return match on 29th September. Takeshi, Ueno & MAO will take on Brookes, Takanashi & Masada from SCHADENFREUDE International on 29th September!

As part of Takeshi Masada’s sponsorship with Bodix bodywear, several models known as the BB Girls were in attendance. Imabayashi got to take a group photo in the ring with them at the start of the show.


MUSCLE “HIRAGANA MUSCLE 7 ~IT’S STILL SUMMER ON THE KOSHU KAIDO~” Results

September 7, 2022

MUSCLE “HIRAGANA MUSCLE 7 ~IT’S STILL SUMMER ON THE KOSHU KAIDO~”, 07/09/2022
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
544 Fans

1. UP & DOWN CLIMAX FIGHT ~ SWOUD Special Rules: Totaro Omoiki, Takaku Karahiko, Knee Cross Kinya, Baseball Bat Swing, Marume Komimatsu, Hisamitsu Chikuhisa, Sasadango, Yukidango, Yasudango & Surprise-san defeated Herman Miller Mao, Kazusada Kokuyo, AK Racing Yoshimura, Eames Watase, Human Chair Imanari, Itoki Oyoshi, One-Eyed Iron Naya, Daigouin Inada, Dee Jay & South River when Chikuhisa pinned Mao with the Amonken (37:31).

The final chapter of Hiragana Muscle began with a PowerPoint presentation from Super Sasadango Machine. He explained to the audience that his task for today is to figure out how to make the last episode an all round success. Ticket sales and merchandise are important but the biggest factor was how much they audience could get excited. Cheers and shouting were not permitted for the show due to restrictions but laughter and gasps of shock were allowed. So Sasadango got the crowd to give a standing ovation to kick off the show. There was also a montage video that ended with a tribute to Tsurutimo Dragon, aka the late Goro Tsurumi.

Amon Tsurumi is leaving DDT at the end of the year so he was the hero of today’s story. He was seen in the ring training with Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno when Yuki Rock interrupted them. Tsurumi revealed he wants to end his career as an idol wrestler and asked Takeshita to reform The Finisher Boys for a limited time so he can perform with them. Takeshita & Ueno agreed. Meanwhile up in the balcony, the former members of The Steel Chair Boys watched on. Since Shota is now in America he was replaced with Tetsu Unada and Yukio Naya in the group. Inada in particular set his sights on Tsurumi and declared war!

There was an introduction of all the characters followed by the title reveal for this episode, “UP & DOWN”. In the ring Takeshita talked to the others about his time training in Venice Beach when DJ Nira & Minamikawa confronted him. They came to warn that Naya High School, an elite group of badasses are trying to disrupt the balance of power and need to be stopped. Tsurumi asked if he can help but Nira turned him down. However The Finisher Boys saw the need to bolster their forces and decided to form the Finish Federation with their allies. Meanwhile the Naya High School were doing harsh knee training using chairs. Inada & Naya agreed to launch a conflict on all groups standing in their way!

Suddenly, Kazusada Higuchi collapsed holding his knee in pain. He was meant to be the gang leader but now he can’t go through with it. Luckily for them, MAO stepped into the spotlight introducing himself as Naya High School’s newest transfer student. He is a bad guy who loves fighting and offered to take Higuchi’s spot. A video then played of Tsurumi visiting the SWAN DIVE bar for a drink and also to look for info. Inada & Naya arrived shortly afterward looking for Sasadango. They want him to create a weapon to defeat the Finish Federation but he refused. MIC the bartender tried to intervene but got his arm broken by Inada & Naya instead. Tsurumi couldn’t do anything but stay hidden in the corner and watch innocent people get hurt.

Tsurumi had to move on with his investigation and found the information he wanted. He learned that Naya is the leader of the Naya Zaibatsu criminal organization and Naya High School is just a cover up. His goal is to redevelop the city into his own sumo arena and turn all martial arts into gambling events. Tsurumi vowed to protect the city from them and will not run away. However most members of The Finisher Boys wanted nothing to do with the war and walked out on Tsurumi, Takeshita & Ueno. They would have to take on this fight on their own. Tsurumi then went through a training montage that included video clips of Hisaya Imabayashi fighting Pheromones.

While all of this was going on, Sasadango met with his family for their monthly meeting. They looked over all of the movements going on and had to decide which side to take. There is Naya High School declaring war on everyone, the remains of the Finish Federation getting ready to defend themselves and a third party called NUDE BOYS on the fringes that could get involved too. Haruo Murata then got a phone call over at the commentary table. The caller asked if he thinks a fight was about to begin? Murata answered he’s been sitting at his table for 1 hour 40 minutes. The atmosphere feels like a fight is going to break out but none has happened yet. MIC then appeared with his broken arm and rang the ring bell. Murata excitedly said “The fight is about to begin!” The Sasadango Family called a cab and had 10 minutes to decide which side they will fight for.

Next we saw Tsurumi, Takeshita & Ueno outnumbered in the ring against eight members of Naya High School. The numbers game was difficult to fight against but a misfire from Yumehito Imanari led to him hitting Inada by mistake and the comeback was on. Tsurumi even did a big dive, jumping off the ring apron into everyone on the floor. Higuchi then grabbed him and threatened to finish him off when the Sasadango Family arrived in time for the rescue. The Finish Federation also returned to their aid. Tsurumi struck Higuchi with the Amonken Backfist but his pin was suddenly broken up by the NUDE BOYS! There was fighting and musical numbers happening everywhere. There was even Tetsuya Endo’s mandatory run in. Higuchi ordered MAO to attack Tsurumi with a chair when everything suddenly slowed down and “Etupirka” began playing. MAO slowly blocked the Amonken with his chair but Tsurumi fought through the pain and slowly threw another Amonken, nailing his target for the three count.

Tsurumi declared victory but Keigo Nakamura & Toi Kojima along with a badly beaten Yuki Ishida told him there was still fighting on the streets. Higuchi also said the war wasn’t over yet and he was ready go go another round. The fighting will continue. Tsurumi looked to the audience and apologised for being unable to save the city from the chaos happening around him. That was the end of this story.

In his closing speech Tsurumi said he thought he had a second chance at youth with the original MUSCLE but thanks to Hiragana Muscle he got a third chance. He learned that as long as you are alive you are young. Muscle Sakai said he’s been doing these shows since 2004 and today was the first time he was able to keep an event to under two hours. They have three more performances this week and told the others to keep up with making them fun and exciting. MAO complained the chair is too heavy to do slow motion spots with but promised to give it his all.


Nagano Sell Out, Isami Step In For Title Match, Kamen Vs Kikutato Final Showdown? HEAT-Up Added To DDTeeeen!!

October 5, 2021

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “WRESTLE PRINCESS II”, 09/10/2021
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. Raku, Pom Harajuku & Ram Kaicho Vs Haruna Neko, Mahiro Kiryu & Kaya Toribami
2. 3 Way Match: Rika Tatsumi Vs Hyper Misao Vs Nodoka Tenma
3. Yuki Kamifuku & Asuka Vs Nao Kakuta & Marika Kobashi
4. Riho & Shoko Nakajima Vs Suzume & Arisu Endo
5. Special Tag Match: Aja Kong & Moka Miyamoto Vs Miu Watanabe & Yuki Arai
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel (c) Vs Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki
7. International Princess Title: Hikari Noa (c) Vs Yuki Aino
8. Princess Of Princess Title: Miyu Yamashita (c) Vs Maki Itoh

I’m aiming to have a preview for the show posted on Thursday.

DDT “GET ALIVE 2021 TOUR IN NAGANO”, 10/10/2021
Nagano City Museum Of Art Act Space

1. Soma Takao Vs Keigo Nakamura
2. Kazusada Higuchi, Saki Akai & MAO Vs Daisuke Sasaki, Chris Brookes & Hideki Okatani
3. Tetsuya Endo & Ilusion Vs Akito & Yuya Koroku
4. The 37KAMIINA Vs Junretsu!: Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Ueno Vs Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Mizuki Watase
5. HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya
6. Nagano Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yasushi Kanda, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata Vs Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Antonio Honda

Toru Owashi’s marketing strategy of has worked. Booking Yasushi Kanda has led to the show selling out!

DDT “GET ALIVE 2021”, 12/10/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

0. Dark Match: Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Baliyan Akki Vs Gota Ihashi, Yukio Naya & Yuya Koroku
0. Dark Match: Yoshihiko Vs Kazuki Hirata
0. Dark Match: Saki Akai Vs Riko Kawahata
1. Yuki Ishida Debut Match: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Toru Owashi & Soma Takao
3. Road To D-Ou Grand Prix 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Kazusada Higuchi & Chris Brookes Vs Yuji Hino, Yuki Ueno & MAO
4. KO-D 8-Man Tag Team Titles: Yoshiaki Yatsu, Akito, Hiroshi Yamato & Keigo Nakamura (c) Vs Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada, Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani
5. DDT Extreme Title: Shinya Aoki (c) Vs Yumiko Hotta
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata (c) Vs HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura
7. DDT Universal Title: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Isami Kodaka

The newly babyfaced Daisuke Sasaki sent out the call. His planned DDT Universal Title match was cancelled so he is willing to defend the belt against anybody at Korakuen Hall next week. Isami Kodaka answered the challenge, offering to fight on behalf of his fellow Sento Minzoku stablemate Minoru Fujita. Kodaka also previously challenged Sasaki for the Universal Title in a Hardcore 3 Way Match last June. The heel Sasaki wouldn’t have taken this challenge. But he’s a babyface now so he is all for it and thinks it is destiny to fight Kodaka again. His goal is to deliver an exciting match, win fairly then wake up early tomorrow morning and shine in the sun.

Konosuke Takeshita’s goal for the rest of 2021 is to remain a double champion until the end of the year and to also win the D-Ou Grand Prix. He wants to finish the year with as many wins as he can get. HARASHIMA thinks DISASTER BOX needs to win the KO-D Tag Team Titles because championships are a symbol of strength. Shunma Katsumata pinned HARASHIMA to win the belt so he cannot lose it back to him. He also thinks Naomi Yoshimura isn’t as strong in tag matches as he is in singles. He is basing this opinion on their time wrestling each other in DNA.

Tetsu Inada will be at the show to do guest commentary. The voice actor previously had a starring role on the recent Hiragana Muscle shows.

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 8 ~LAUGHING GATE FORTUNE~”, 17/10/2021
Osaka City Abeno Ward Center

1. Masahiro Takanashi Returns To Osaka! Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs X & X
2. Tag Team Gauntlet Match: Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Yasu Urano & Kengo Takai Vs Antonio Honda & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs X & X
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Duel of Tohoku, Osaka And Shinjuku Bloodlines~: Soma Takao, Tsubasa & HUB Vs Shunma Katsumata, MAO & Billiken Kid
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Research, Extreme, Fierce, Crash~: HARASHIMA, Yuji Hino & Daisuke Sekimoto Vs Tetsuya Endo, Kazusada Higuchi & Kazuaki Mihara
5. Special Tag Match ~ South Osaka Great War! Izumi Vs Kishiwada: Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada Vs Magnitude Kishiwada & Inaba no Buffalo
6. Special Tag Match ~OSAKA THE BEST~: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno Vs Shigehiro Irie & Naomi Yoshimura
7. Special Singles Match To Commemorate Yukinori Matsui’s 25th Anniversary Of His Debut Two Years Later: Kuishinbo Kamen Vs Kikutaro

A press conference was held by Yukinori Matsui, Kuishinbo Kamen and Kikutaro to promote what could be the final showdown between the two legendary figures of Osaka wrestling. Kikutaro got bored and started playing on his phone. When Matsui tried to stop him, Kikutaro knocked him out. Kamen then drew on Matsui’s face with a marker.

DDT “DDTEEEEN!!”, 27/10/2021
Shinjuku FACE

1. Yuki Ueno Vs Hideki Okatani
2. Keigo Nakamura & Yuya Koroku Vs Raimu Imai & SHINGO
3. MAO Vs Daichi Sato
4. Vent Vert Jack Vs You-sei☆Estrella
5. El Unicorn Vs Ilusion

A couple of wrestlers from HEAT-UP are added to the card. Raimu Imai was part of the 10-Man Tag at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2021”. Cyclist SHINGO appeared at one of the Beer Garden shows during the summer. The new name in the group is 13 year old Daichi Sato. He had his debut match last month.


MUSCLE “HIRAGANA MUSCLE 5 TOKYO PERFORMANCE” Results

September 1, 2021

MUSCLE “HIRAGANA MUSCLE 5 TOKYO PERFORMANCE ~NO MORE SPECIAL MOVES ANYMORE~”, 01/09/2021
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
565 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Pro Wrestling “Kata” Group Final: Federal Republic Of Isubekistan (2) defeated Republic Of Creatord Tobago (1) and United States Of Finish (1).
1a. Single Match Section: Takaku Karahiko defeated Kazusada Kokuyo and DJ Nira by Audience Judgment.
1b. Tag Team Match Section: Itoki Oyoshi & Shota Okamura defeated Totaro Omoiki & Baseball Bat Swing and Yuki Rock & Minamikawa by Audience Judgment.
1c. 3 Way Match Section: Amon Tsurumi defeated Knee Cross Kinya and Herman Miller Mao by Audience Judgment.
1d. Backstage Comment Section: AK Racing Yoshimura, Eames Watase & Human Chair Imanari defeated Marume Komimatsu and Hondusty Rhodes by Advisor Judgement (Honorary Advisor: Danshoku Dieno).
*Gold: Federal Republic Of Isubekistan, Silver: Republic Of Creatord Tobago, Bronze: United States Of Finish.
2. Remote Pro Wrestling: Tetsu Inada defeated Shota Okamura with the Last Ride (23:47).
*Gold: Tetsu Inada, Silver: Haruo Murata, Bronze: Super Sasadango Machine.

United States Of Finish: Totaro Omoiki (Konosuke Takeshita), Takaku Karahiko (Yuki Ueno), Baseball Bat Swing (Shunma Katsumata), Knee Cross Kinya (Akito) & Marume Komimatsu (Kazuki Hirata)

Federal Republic Of Isubekistan: Kazusada Kokuyo (Kazusada Higuchi), Herman Miller Mao (MAO), AK Racing Yoshimura (Naomi Yoshimura), Itoki Oyoshi (Choun-Shiryu), Shota Okamura (Shota), Eames Watase (Mizuki Watase) & Human Chair Imanari (Yumehito Imanari)

Republic Of Creatord Tobago: Yuki Rock, Minamikawa, Amon Tsurumi, DJ Nira, RAM RIDER & Hondusty Rhodes (Antonio Honda)

The latest adventures of Hiragana Muscle began with a PowerPoint presentation from Super Sasadango Machine. It was called “What Is Public Awareness?” and he talked about his struggles to make Muscle famous around the world. His hopes for 2.9 Dimensional Pro Wrestling catching on fell on deaf ears and his mood got worse when he found out Super Delfin is successfully putting together a similar idea with his own musical pro wrestling show. To solve this problem, today’s special guest is famous voice actor Tetsu Inada. The idea already paid off with evidence of The Great O-Kharn allegedly tweeting about the show.

Inada narrated the story while the producers Yuki Rock and Minamikawa introduced everyone to the show. Amon Tsurumi then came out and gave a huge announcement. A big sports festival is taking place today and they’re hosting it! This event only happens every 40 years because of the toll it takes on the athletes taking part. The opening ceremony began with a speech from Yuriko Koikebukuro, who looks like the Governor Of Tokyo. Rock got bored and started arguing with Koikebukuro. Each of the producers were then fired because Rock implied he has taken illegal drugs, Minamikawa previously made inappropriate TV shows and Tsurumi was caught looking at porn on the company laptop. The producers all swore revenge.

Meanwhile The Finisher Boys were busy training when they found out about the sports festival. Most countries declined to participant due to the pandemic leaving only three teams. The Finisher Boys will be there representing the United States Of Finish. Their enemies The Steel Chair Boys from the Federal Republic Of Isubekistan will also compete. Last but not least is the Republic Of Creatord Tobago consisting of all the creative types. The Finisher Boys had the least members on a team until a trainee named Secondotti Tetsuji (played by Inada) approached them asking to join. They accepted him but only when he said everybody in DDT are his favourite wrestlers.

Suddenly, The Steel Chair Boys entered the scene. Shota challenged The Finisher Boys to a fight in the form of pictograms. They easily defeated him but it was all a distraction so The Steel Chair Boys could kidnap Tetsuji! If our heroes want to rescue him, they need to win the sports festival! Luckily for Tetsuji he is being played by a famous voice actor so the villains actually took good care of him while he was captive.

It was time for the festival to begin. Every team would take part in several rounds of Pro Wrestling “Kata” against each other. Each participant would perform no contact pro wrestling against an invisible opponent and fans would vote for the best performance. The master of ceremonies Danshoku Dieno oversaw the proceedings and would give the deciding vote if any audience poll ended in a tie. In the Singles Match Section, Yuki Ueno won the vote with his rendition of a midcarder wrestling in the second match of the third show during a tour outside of Tokyo. It beat Kazusada Higuchi’s performance of a heavyweight double down spot and DJ Nira doing the standard opening moments of a wrestling match.

Round 2 was in the Tag Team Section. Yuki Rock & Minamikawa performed the Tetsuya Naito & SANADA tag team. Konosuke Takeshita & Shunma Katsumata choreographed a tag team style that will become popular in the American indies some day in the future. But the winners were Choun-Shiryu & Shota Okamura who bounced around the ring as if they were getting beaten up by Strong BJ.

Round 3 was fittingly the 3 Way Match Section. Akito, MAO and Amon Tsurumi worked together to tell the story of a 3 Way Match that has a complete amateur also involved. Tsurumi was that amateur but he tricked Kinya & Mao into linking their arms together while back to back. He then pushed both of them over upside down onto their shoulders for a double pin. That won him the support of the crowd, tying the medals table at one victory a piece.

It all came down to the final round. The Backstage Comment Section. The remaining participants from each of the teams went backstage and gave post-match interviews for famous moments in wrestling. Hondusty Rhodes did a promo based on the aftermath of Wrestlemania III. Next was Kazuki Hirata throwing a chair around like a mentor pushing around his student. Finally Naomi Yoshimura, Mizuki Watase & Yumehito Imanari did a reenactment of Tatsumi Fujinami’s “Dragon Revolution”. It’s a famous scene where Fujinami confronted Antonio Inoki for not stepping aside and letting his generation step up. Watase committed to the bit and cut off bits of his hair just like Fujinami did. It was worth it because that won his team the gold!

The sports festival ended and the next scene was Sasadango recording his radio show with Inada. Things took a turn when Inada realised this is a wrestling show and he has a chance to live out his dream of becoming a pro wrestler. Sasadango refused because he doesn’t want to deal with any trouble caused if Inada gets hurt. RAM RIDER came up with a solution. They can do a Remote Pro Wrestling match with Inada shouting out orders to his team of wrestlers. Inada and Sasadango agreed to it and they went down to the ring.

The match itself is 5 Vs 5 with Inada coaching The Steel Chair Boys while Sasadango ordered around The Finisher Boys. Things went south when Sasadango was hit over the head several times with chairs. He needed to be replaced so Haruo Murata took his spot. The Steel Chair Boys continued to dominate under Inada’s commands until Tetsuya Endo made his mandatory run in and cleared the ring. He then gave a motivating speech to Murata before leaving. Inada and Murata then spoke to each other about each of them living their dreams. They both agreed it was time for them to wrestle! They begun their match when suddenly, Shota ran in with a chair ready to attack Murata. Inada stopped Shota with a Lariat and, with the help of everyone else, delivered the Last Ride to win the match!

Inada and Murata embraced after the match. Inada then received the gold medal from Yuriko Koikebukuro. The show ended with Inada talking about his love for pro wrestling. He also wished both Tsurumi and Yuki Ueno a happy birthday.


DDT “BEER GARDEN-LIKE PRO WRESTLING 2021 DAY 3” Results

August 1, 2021

DDT “BEER GARDEN-LIKE PRO WRESTLING 2021 DAY 3”, 01/08/2021
Shinjuku FACE
223 Fans – Super No Vacancy Full House

0. Special Under Match – Ultimate Vs Supreme: Tetsuya Koda defeated Hisaya Imabayashi by TKO with the Sleeper Hold (11:57).
1. Yukio Naya & Yuki Iino defeated Sanshiro Takagi & Yuya Koroku when Iino pinned Koroku with a Lariat (9:35).
2. Playfulness Series Act 3: Danshoku Dieno Vs Hideki Okatani ended in a No Contest (5:19).
3. Yukio Sakaguchi, Akito & Yusuke Okada defeated Soma Takao, Yuji Hino & Nobuhiro Shimatani when Sakaguchi pinned Shimatani with the God’s Right Knee (8:17).
4. Rock & Roll 5 Way Death Match: A.YAZAWA defeated HARASHIMA, Saki Akai, Mad Paulie and Kazuki Hirata when YAZAWA pinned Hirata with a School Boy (14:17).
5. Shunma Katsumata & MAO defeated Chris Brookes & Keigo Nakamura when MAO pinned Nakamura after the MADMAX (14:45).
6. The Annual Tradition! Customer Lottery Match: Jun Akiyama, Konosuke Takeshita & Tetsuya Endo defeated Yuki Ueno, Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura when Endo pinned Yoshimura with the Shooting Star Press (21:26).

Beer Garden 2021 came to a close with the usual end to DDT’s tradition, a Fan Lottery 6-Man Tag Match. Members of the audience randomly picked the spots for each team and we ended up with Jun Akiyama, Konosuke Takeshita & Tetsuya Endo all on the same side. Any visual sign of tension disappeared when Endo came out dressed in his old wrestling gear and encouraged the others to reform Happy Motels for one night. Akiyama had to play the role of Antonio Honda in this case. The opposing team was Yuki Ueno, Kazusada Higuchi & Naomi Yoshimura. All of them came from the DNA generation so they paid tribute to the old brand by wearing DNA shirts and walking out to the DNA theme song. Akiyama played the part of Honda well by tripping onto his knee and doing the Bionic Elbow with his partners. The three of them worked so well they won the match with Endo getting the pin on Yoshimura.

After the match Endo said Beer Garden is all about having fun so he encouraged Akiyama and Takeshita to let go of their rivalry for the day. He also apologised to Takeshita for cheap shotting him at last year’s Beer Garden finale. Takeshita and Akiyama both agreed to get along but things will go back to normal when they fight each other for the KO-D Tag Team Titles on 15th August and the KO-D Openweight Title on the 21st. Endo also promoted his DAMNATION team defending the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles on that day too. They all raised their hands together to end the show… and then Endo Headbutted Takeshita. Endo stormed off backstage and stripped out of his old costume embarrassed that he had to act so nice towards Akiyama & Takeshita today.

Chris Brookes didn’t want to team with Keigo Nakamura so he purposely joined the other team to make it a 3 Vs 1 Handicap match. Brookes entered the ring with The 37KAMIINA but Nakamura begged him to team up as planned. Brookes agreed to do it but still helped Shunma Katsumata & MAO do some triple team spots. Brookes eventually took the match seriously but it wasn’t enough for them to win. Katsumata & MAO hit the Power Bomb/Blockbuster version of MADMAX (apparently any double team move involving Katsumata jumping off the top rope is called the MADMAX) on Nakamura to get the win. Afterwards Katsumata told MAO he found out Jun Kasai’s weakness. He doesn’t like stepping on Lego so they’re going to use them against him at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2021”!

Daisuke Sasaki was pulled from the show on short notice because he might have been in close contact with somebody who recently tested positive for the Coronavirus. The Drunk Match was cancelled and HARASHIMA was moved over to the Rock & Roll Death Match. There was another replacement as Antonio Honda suffered from love sickness and had to be replaced by A.YAZAWA in a rare appearance. Everyone in the match got drunk and danced whenever music played. YAZAWA and Saki Akai did karaoke. A recording of Shuji Ishikawa singing caused Mad Paulie to dance. Everyone fell asleep until Swan Lake played and they all did ballet together. YAZAWA then rolled over Kazuki Hirata to win the match.

Eruption once again got the better of DAMNATION once again in their latest preview match, this time with Yusuke Okada teaming with them. Yuji Hino was already drinking and decided to wrestle in his normal clothing. When he put Akito in a Sleeper Hold he flipped off the rest of his opponents. Eventually he got drunk and when he went to do the Diving Body Press off the top rope, he landed on Nobuhiro Shimatani instead of Yukio Sakaguchi. Hino needed Soma Takao’s help to get out of the ring and while that happened, Sakaguchi pinned Shimatani with the God’s Right Knee.

An accidental bump of heads between Danshoku Dieno and Hideki Okatani during the opening of the show led to them swapping bodies before their match. Dieno walked out wearing Okatani’s gear while Okatani ran out in Dieno’s costume acting just like him. Another clash of heads seemed to turn them back to normal. Dieno was himself again and he chased after Daisuke Kiso. However Okatani didn’t change and he got his hands on Yukinori Matsui. That officials had to call of the match as things got out of hand.

Sanshiro Takagi paid a lot of cash to repair the Dramatic Dream so he is going to get his money’s worth! He brought it out for the opening match, crashed into the combined centaur form of Yukio Naya & Yuki Iino and then crashed into his own partner Yuya Koroku. Iino then hit a Lariat on Koroku to take the win for his team.

The most important match of the week, nay, the month took place in the pre-show. It was the DDT GM Hisaya Imabayashi against the Tokyo Joshi Pro GM Tetsuya Koda in the latest chapter of their never ending one sided rivalry. Imabayashi was spurned on by phonecalls of his increasingly disgruntled wife while Koda showed a more evil side to his wrestling abilities. Sadly for Imabayashi he fell to the Sleeper Hold and as a result won’t be welcomed back home by his family.

Midway through the show, Dieno & Iino confronted Imabayashi demanding to be made into a full time tag team. They kept coming up with sexual innuendos for team names like Osu Academy, The Wizard Of Osu and Will Osupreay. Imabayashi told them he will agree to their demand once they come up with a better tag team name.

Earlier today on the Ganbare☆Pro show, Yuna Manase made it known that she wants a match against Saki Akai. She crashed the DDT show along with Ken Ohka to challenge Akai directly. It is a match she wanted to have at “CYBERFIGHT FESTIVAL 2021” and when that never happened it’s been bothering her ever since. Akai accepted the challenge and wants the match to happen in Fukuoka on 12th September. Manase said Ganpro already has a show in Itabashi that day but Ohka encouraged her to go do it. Manase offered to shake hands but Akai left her hanging.

Voice actor Tetsu Inada will be making appearances at the Hiragana Muscle shows in September.