GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2022”, 27/02/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 319 Fans
1. Katsumura-gun Vs Hitodenashi BLUES: Shuichiro Katsumura & Tsuyoshi Okada defeated Nobuhiro Shimatani & Tyson Maeguchi when Katsumura submitted Shimatani with a Triangle Choke (10:04).
2. Ganjo Special Tag Match: Moeka Haruhi & Maya Yukihi defeated Yuna Manase & YuuRI when Yukihi submitted YuuRI with the Whiteout (13:49).
3. Ganpro’s Famous Hardcore Mixed Tag Match: Shunma Katsumata & Akane Fujita defeated Mizuki Watase & HARUKAZE when Fujita pinned HARUKAZE with the Mikan de Pon onto the Ladder (15:30).
4. Unleash The Curse Of The Great Prophecy!: Yumehito Imanari defeated The Great Sasuke with a Lariat (15:50).
5. BAD COMMUNICATION 2022 Special Bout: Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie defeated Shota, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga when Ohka pinned Tominaga with the Fire Spear (12:38).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Tatsuhito Takaiwa (c) defeated Kouki Iwasaki with the Avalanche Death Valley Bomb (23:02). *V2 for Tatsuhito Takaiwa.
A hot topic in Japanese wrestling right now is how hard the old guard are fighting to stay in the spotlight. It’s happening in Ganbare☆Pro too where Tatsuhito Takaiwa has a tight grip on the new Spirit Of Ganbare World Title. He successfully defended the championship against Kouki Iwasaki in the main event of Korakuen Hall after a hard fought battle. Any hope Ganpro had of their “young general” bringing the belt back home failed to materialize after the Avalanche Death Valley Bomb put him away. Takaiwa called the match the toughest he’s had in years because he is not good against kickers. Iwasaki agreed, describing the champion as a man who crawled up from Hell. Takaiwa is being a good spirit despite being somewhat of an outsider. He made a promise to help Ganpro grow bigger while he is their champion and welcomes anyone to come challenge him. He is willing to have a rematch against Iwasaki but he also wants to learn more about the rest of the roster for potential opponents.
The trio of Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie were too strong from ROMANCE DAWN & Shinichiro Tominaga to sail through. Irie smashed through Soma Takao with the Traffic Accident while Ishii took Shota out of play. That left Tominaga on his own ducking and diving all of his opponent’s big moves. He dodged the Beast Bomber and Kneel Kick but Ohka finally caught him with the Flame Spear to get the win.
In December 2015 The Great Sasuke gave Yumehito Imanari a “Great Prophecy” predicting he would have a breakout year in 2016. Nothing has happened since then and Imanari puts the blame on Sasuke for giving him a false blessing. That is what led to their singles match today. Sasuke, being the nutjob he is, did a Senton Bomb to the floor and missed. He was able to keep fighting until Imanari beat him with a Lariat. A tearful Imanari told Sasuke he still believes in the prophecy because it drives him to do his best. Sasuke gave an excuse that his prophecies sometimes have a time lag so Imanari’s one will definitely come true this year!
The Mixed Tag Match brought violence on an absurd level with some of the bizarre weapons being used. Mizuki Watase wore a tiger paw glove covered in barbed wire, HARUKAZE carried a garbage bag filled with empty plastic bottles, Akane Fujita had a baseball bat covered in thumbtacks and Shunma Katsumata had a bad with toy blocks stuck to it. Other weapons used included chairs, a ladder, an acupressure foot mat, steel cans and concrete blocks. Katsumata & Fujita kept accusing each other of stealing their own weapon ideas but had to get along out of necessity to win the match. Katsumata told Akane they keep winning together but they should stop before Sanshiro Takagi decides to make them team up again. Akane said that’s his problem and she will team with whoever the company offers to her. Watase & HARUKAZE enjoyed doing the match and like the idea of becoming a Hardcore Manzai tag team.
The Ganbare☆Joshi division was put on display in Match #2. YuuRI was put through the wringer by Moeka Haruhi & Maya Yukihi so Yuna Manase used her own size and power to spark a comeback. YuuRI also got her second wind but it couldn’t last against Yukihi. After Haruhi got Manase out of the ring, Yukihi stretched and pulled YuuRI in the Whiteout until she gave up.
In the opening match Shuichiro Katsumura & Tsuyoshi Okada joined forces to beat Nobuhiro Shimatani & Tyson Maeguchi. It was a Power Bomb from Shimatani that was suddenly countered into a Triangle Choke from Katsumura that led to that result.
2022 is going to be a big year schedule wise for Ganpro. There will be three more Korakuen shows this year on 3rd May, 13th August and 27th December. Pocchari Joshi will also return for its third show on 26th April. But that’s not all. Ganpro are making their biggest gamble yet to become a major pro wrestling promotion. On 10th July they are going to run Ota Ward Gymnasium! When Ganpro began in 2013 Ohka only had 150,000 yen and Nanhai Ichigaya Memorial Clinic (now known as Ichigaya Chocolate Square) as a venue. He likes venues like that and Itabashi Green Hall but believes the time has come to grow bigger and become more major. That is why Ganpro is running Korakuen four times a year and also going to Ota Ward. He wants to keep the momentum going so one day Ganpro will reach Sumo Hall and the Tokyo Dome! He also said if Ganpro works hard and Japan works hard they can create a booming economy together!
BASARA “BASARA 184 ~GLITTER~”, 22/02/2022 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Yusuke Kubo Vs Chicharito Shoki
2. Takumi Tsukamoto & Yusuke Kubo Vs Gouma Ryu & Yasu Urano
3. FUMA Vs SAGAT
4. Tsutomu Oosugi, Banana Senga & Fuminori Abe Vs Isami Kodaka, Daiki Shimomura & Minoru Fujita
5. Union MAX Title: Ryota Nakatsu (c) Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
More last minute changes this time in BASARA. First Takato Nakano tested positive for covid and second Masato Kamino is a close contact. Both of them are off tomorrow’s show and the first three matches have all been changed around.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI 2022 WINTER”, 23/02/2022 Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall
Due to how unreliable everything is at the moment, Tokyo Joshi Pro are not advertising any matches in advance for their show on Wednesday. They still promise to put forth the best show they can with whoever is available.
DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN FUKUSHIMA!!”, 23/02/2022 Will Fukushima
0. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya (4) defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani (2) by Forfeit.
1. Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Pheromones Vs DISASTER BOX!: Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Toru Owashi & Naomi Yoshimura
3. Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuji Hino & Akito
4. Chris Brookes Vs Yukio Naya
5. Fukushima Specialty Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Antonio Honda Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Gorgeous Matsuno
6. BURNING! Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada Vs Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & MAO
Here’s the updates for DDT that caused the show above to change more matches. The PCR results for Konosuke Takeshita came back negative. However the illness he does have was diagnosed as a stomach bug and he is not fit to compete on Wednesday. Toui Kojima also tested negative but is still showing flu symptoms so he is off the show too.
Hideki Okatani is identified as a close contact so he cannot be at the show either. That means Eruption must forfeit their Ultimate Tag League match against Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya and eliminates them from the running for 1st place in their block. Okatani is expected to be back for the Tag League finale this Sunday if he doesn’t test positive before then. The lesson here boys and girls is do not run a tournament during a pandemic.
GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2022”, 27/02/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Katsumura-gun Vs Hitodenashi BLUES: Shuichiro Katsumura & Tsuyoshi Okada Vs Nobuhiro Shimatani & Tyson Maeguchi
2. Ganjo Special Tag Match: Yuna Manase & YuuRI Vs Moeka Haruhi & Maya Yukihi
3. Ganpro’s Famous Hardcore Mixed Tag Match: Mizuki Watase & HARUKAZE Vs Shunma Katsumata & Akane Fujita
4. Unleash The Curse Of The Great Prophecy!: The Great Sasuke Vs Yumehito Imanari
5. BAD COMMUNICATION 2022 Special Bout: Ken Ohka, Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie Vs Shota, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Tatsuhito Takaiwa (c) Vs Kouki Iwasaki
The WRESTLE UNIVERSE broadcast will be the first time Ganbare☆Pro will have English commentary for one of their shows! Chris Brookes and the returning Mr. HAKU will call the action.
GANBARE☆PRO “MERCURY RISING 2022”, 06/03/2022 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall
1. Special Single Match – Wrestle Drunker Vs Punch Drunker: Keisuke Ishii Vs Tyson Maeguchi
The spirit Tyson Maeguchi shows in the ring has caught Keisuke Ishii’s attention. Maeguchi’s switch from kickboxing to pro wrestling has not brought much success so far, at least that is how it looks whenever he is in Ganpro. He still has a lot to learn and puro nerd Ishii might be the mentor he is looking for.
DDT “JUDGEMENT 2022 ~DDT 25TH ANNIVERSARY~”, 20/03/2022 Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
1. KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles: Toru Owashi, Antonio Honda, Kazuki Hirata & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Poison Sawada JULIE, Takashi Sasaki, GENTARO, MIKAMI & Tanomusaku Toba (w/ Naomi Susan)
2. LiLiCo Retirement Match: LiLiCo, Ryohei Odai & Akito (w/ Junretsu) Vs Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari
3. Jun Akiyama 30th Anniversary Match: Jun Akiyama & Takao Omori Vs X & X
4. Special Single Match: Saki Akai Vs Maya Yukihi
5. DDT 25th Anniversary Special Single Match: Sanshiro Takagi Vs Michael Nakazawa
6. DDT Universal Title – Hardcore 3 Way Match: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Jun Kasai Vs MAO
7. KO-D Openweight Title – Japan Bakery Marketing Presents: Konosuke Takeshita (c) Vs Tetsuya Endo
GANBARE☆PRO “FALLING DOWN 2022”, 05/02/2022 Yokohama Radiant Hall 138 Fans – Super No Vacancy
Ganpro Yokohama First Landing Commemorative Match ~Team Reversal Gym Yokohama Grand Slam Vs Wrestle Drunkers~: Shuichiro Katsumura, Tsuyoshi Okada & Yumehito Imanari Vs Keisuke Ishii, Tanomusaku Toba & Tyson Maeguchi
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI 2022 WINTER”, 29/01/2022 Shinjuku FACE
1. Yuka Sakazaki Vs Mahiro Kiryu
2. 3 Way Match: Mizuki Vs Nao Kakuta Vs Pom Harajuku
3. Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao & Marika Kobashi Vs Suzume, Arisu Endo & Kaya Toribami
4. Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Hikari Noa & Haruna Neko
5. 2nd “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Semi-Final: Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Moka Miyamoto & Yuki Arai
6. 2nd “Futari wa Princess” Max Heart Tournament – Semi-Final: Nodoka Tenma & Yuki Aino Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Asuka
There is a change in the card after Raku was suspected of getting in close contact with a covid carrier. She tested negative from a PCR test but will not be at the show tomorrow just to be safe. Raku will keep an eye on if she shows any sign of illness but is likely to be back at the next show. The trios match will now be a tag match with Nao Kakuta moving over to Match #2 to turn that into a 3 Way.
DDT “SWEET DREAMS! 2022 ~ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 OPENING ROUND~”, 30/01/2022 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
0. Dark Match: Sanshiro Takagi, Antonio Honda & Yusuke Okada Vs Toru Owashi, Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Yuki Ishida
1. Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Akito, Soma Takao, Toui Kojima & Yuya Koroku
2. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Shunma Katsumata & MAO Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Yumehito “Fantastic” Imanari
3. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Konosuke Takeshita & Yuki Ueno Vs Shuji Kondo & Kazuki Hirata
4. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama Vs Yuji Hino & Yukio Naya
5. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi
6. DDT Universal Title: Daisuke Sasaki (c) Vs Minoru Fujita
After getting a fever during the week, Danshoku Dieno got a covid test and received a positive result. No DDT wrestler or staff were identified a close contacts so he is the only absence from the show (knock on wood). It was already announced that Yumehito Imanari will replace Dieno in the Ultimate Tag League and he will likely be a permanent fill in for the rest of the tournament.
Some of the teams got to give their thoughts going into the opening day. Konosuke Takeshita wants to show everyone his bond with Yuki Ueno. Ueno wants to win the league so they can become KO-D Tag Team Champions and defend them in Osaka. Tetsuya Endo wants to win as part of his journey to Sumo Hall in March. Jun Akiyama says he can kill two birds with one stone by helping Endo become a champion again and getting a title for himself in the process. Former champions HARASHIMA & Naomi Yoshimura will make a massive statement about their dominance in the division by winning the titles they gave up, not lost. Yoshimura in particular will be very angry if another teams wins it.
Eruption have gained new energy with Hideki Okatani joining them. Okatani wants to use other teams as a stepping stone and Kazusada Higuchi wants the entire unit to leap forward this year. Yuji Hino sent in a message saying he wants to evolve with Yukio Naya. A message was also sent by Shuji Kondo listing all the wrestlers he is looking forward to fighting. He is also aware his partner Kazuki Hirata will get targeted for being weak. Now is the time for Hirata to get serious so Kondo prohibits him from dancing!
CDK as a team have mostly worked together in ChocoPro rather than DDT. Because of this, Masahiro Takanashi thinks the team will be fighting on behalf of ChocoPro in the tournament. He wants to win the Tag Titles and bring them over there. Chris Brookes adds his goal is to win all matches and kill Shunma Katsumata. On the other hand, MAO has figured out that his previous attempts to destroy Katsumata prevents them from achieving anything together. So instead of saying “Crush Shunma Katsumata” he will now say “I Love Shunma Katsumata!” Daisuke Sasaki is getting fed up with DDT putting on so many tournaments every year to determine who the best is. He doesn’t care as long as everyone watches him in the ring.
DDT “ULTIMATE TAG LEAGUE 2022 IN OYAMA!!~”, 05/02/2022 Tochigi Oyama City Cultural Center
1. Yukio Naya Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Yuji Hino & Akito Vs Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
3. 3 Way Match: Chris Brookes Vs Antonio Honda Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino
4. The 37KAMIINA Vs DISASTER BOX!: Konosuke Takeshita, Yuki Ueno & Toui Kojima Vs HARASHIMA, Naomi Yoshimura & Kazuki Hirata
5. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – B Block: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Shunma Katsumata & MAO
6. Ultimate Tag League 2022 – A Block: Tetsuya Endo & Jun Akiyama Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Hideki Okatani
The Pheromones Vs The Iyasareru tag match will now be a 3 Way with the remaining wrestlers after Dieno was removed.
GANBARE☆PRO “ICE SMILE 2022”, 13/02/2022 Osaka City Suminoe Maikon Hall
1. Tiger Vs Dragon In Osaka: Mizuki Watase Vs Ryuya Matsufusa
2. Ganjo Special Single Match: Yuna Manase Vs YuuRI
3. Ganpro Special Tag Match: Keisuke Ishii & Nobuhiro Shimatani Vs Tsuyoshi Okada & Tyson Maeguchi
4. Koshi Enjo Vs Harukatsu Shoot: Yumehito Imanari & HARUKAZE Vs Shuichiro Katsumura & Moeka Haruhi
5. Ganpro Osaka Winter Team: Ken Ohka, Kouki Iwasaki & Katsumi Oribe Vs Shota, Soma Takao & Rapid
A couple of guests from Dotonbori Pro will be at Ganbare☆Pro’s next visit to Osaka. Rapid is a masked wrestler with a motif based around bullet trains. Ryuya Matsufusa is a newcomer who has been wrestling for the promotion since 2020.
Ganpro is hyping up the tag team of Tsuyoshi Okada & Tyson Maeguchi as an exciting MMA/Kickboxing combo.
YuuRI’s very first match in Ganpro was against Yuna Manase last September. It was all very abrupt because of her unexpected appearance on the show. Now it’s time for the rematch and both will be prepared for each other this time.
GANBARE☆PRO “TROPIC THUNDER 2022”, 10/01/2022 Tokyo Itabashi Green Hall 108 Fans
1. Ganpro New Year Battle 2022 2nd Round: Shuichiro Katsumura, Tyson Maeguchi & Moeka Haruhi defeated Shota, Nobuhiro Shimatani & HARUKAZE when Katsumura submitted Shota with a Triangle Choke (10:50).
2. Hatsuyume Special Tag Match 2nd Round: SAKI & Hikari Shimizu defeated Yuna Manase & Rina Amikura when SAKI pinned Amikura with the Choroild (10:50).
3. New Year Special Single Match 2nd Round: Soma Takao defeated Shinichiro Tominaga with a Cradle (11:19).
4. Ganpro Vs Takaiwa Army Full Scale Battle 2nd Round: Keisuke Ishii & Kouki Iwasaki defeated 5th Black Tiger & Kenya Maeda when Iwasaki pinned Maeda with the Back Drop Hold (9:55).
5. RENEGADES Are Back! New Year Special Tag Team Match: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase defeated Yumehito Imanari & Baliyan Akki when Watase pinned Akki after the Made In Ohio (12:56).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Tatsuhito Takaiwa (c) defeated Ken Ohka with the Avalanche Death Valley Bomb (14:58). *V1 for Tatsuhito Takaiwa.
The second of this month’s Ganbare☆Pro tripleheaders began with the inaugural Spirit Of Ganbare Title defence. Tatsuhito Takaiwa’s first challenger was none other than the face of Ganpro, Ken Ohka. The challenger’s never say die attitude drove Takaiwa into doing multiple Death Valley Bombs but Ohka kept kicking out. Ohka was finally defeated when he was given the Death Valley Bomb from the top rope. Takaiwa told him he could challenge for the belt again anytime. He’ll be waiting for him. But first Takaiwa has another challenger in mind. He called out Kouki Iwasaki and nominated him for the next title shot. Iwasaki couldn’t stay quiet anymore and thanked the champion for giving him the opportunity. They agreed to hold the title match in the main event of Korakuen Hall on 27th February! Shinjiro Otani gave Iwasaki encouragement at the end of the show.
RENEGADES are back and so is Mizuki Watase’s suit! He and Shigehiro Irie didn’t miss a beat teaming together again and wiped out Yumehito Imanari & Baliyan Akki in their return match. Irie & Watase even brought back their Double Stomp/Fire Thunder combo called Made In Ohio to win the match.
Shinichiro Tominaga asked Soma Takao & Shota if he could join ROMANCE DAWN but he was turned down. He spent the rest of the match begging them to join but they explained to him he didn’t meet the age limit (ROMANCE DAWN are both 34, Tominaga is 33).
The opening match saw Shuichiro Katsumura & Moeka Haruhi bring back THE HALFEE entrance with Tyson Maeguchi filling in as the third member. He had trouble lip-synching to the song.
During the opening announcements Ohka referred to himself, Imanari and Otani as Ganpro’s “Hot Blooded Three Musketeers”.
BASARA “BASARA 177 ~GLITTER~”, 30/11/2021 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino Vs Lil Kraken & Yasu Urano
2. Takumi Tsukamoto, Fuminori Abe & Gouma Vs Yusuke Kubo, Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Daichi Kazato
3. FUMA Vs Masahiro Takanashi
4. IRON FIST Tag Titles: Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga (c) Vs Isami Kodaka & Daiki Shimomura
5. Union MAX Title: Ryota Nakatsu (c) Vs SAGAT
The two Sparky wrestlers are ready to fight over the Union MAX Title. Whenever they team together Ryota Nakatsu and SAGAT use the Big Mac to win their matches. They won’t be able to do that here when it’s one on one against each other.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI 2021 AUTUMN ~KACHO GETSURO~”, 11/12/2021 Osaka Azalea Taisho Hall
1. 3 Way Match: X Vs X Vs X
2. X Vs X
3. X Vs X
4. X Vs X
5. X Vs X
6. X Vs X
7. X Vs X
8. X Vs X
9. X Vs X
10. X Vs X
Usually every Christmas Tokyo Joshi Pro puts together some special matches that are randomly chosen by lottery. They are doing this format a little earlier this year but this time around it is for the entire show! Ten matches, each one with a seven minute time limit, will all be randomly chosen on 4th December. There are 21 wrestlers available so one of the matches is a 3 Way Match so there will be nobody left out.
GANBARE☆PRO “HOME ALONE 2021”, 25/12/2021 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Old Year, New Year Special Single Match: Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Jun Tonsho
2. Ganjo Christmas 6-Woman Tag Match: Yuna Manase, Miku Aono & YuuRI Vs Moeka Haruhi, HARUKAZE & Misa Matsui
3. Ganpro Toshiwasure Special Tag Match: Shota & Soma Takao Vs Nobuhiro Shimatani & Baliyan Akki
4. 2021 Ganpro Fight! Special Survival Tag Match: Ken Ohka, Yumehito Imanari, Kouki Iwasaki & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Keisuke Ishii, Shuichiro Katsumura, Mizuki Watase & Seiya Morohashi
The final Ganbare☆Pro show of the year is happening on Christmas Day featuring friends old and new. Mizuki Watase and Tyson Maeguchi are included in Ganpro’s signature match, the Survival Tag.
Miku Aono and Misa Matsui are both from Actwres girl’Z. Hey if Ganpro wants to gather together all the AWG girls and make Ganbare☆Joshi their new home then I’d be fine with that.
1. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 2: Tetsuhiro Kuroda defeated Ken Ohka with the Lariat (14:21).
2. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 2: Tatsuhito Takaiwa defeated Mizuki Watase with a Lariat (9:38).
3. Ganjo Special Tag Match: Moeka Haruhi & HARUKAZE defeated Yuna Manase & YuuRI when HARUKAZE pinned YuuRI with the Flame Spear (12:29).
4. Ganpro Special Single Match: Kenichiro Arai defeated Tyson Maeguchi with a DDT (9:39).
5. Ganpro Special Tag Match: Shota & Soma Takao defeated Keisuke Ishii & Nobuhiro Shimatani when Takao pinned Shimatani with a Mad Splash (13:47).
6. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 2: Shuichiro Katsumura defeated Kouki Iwasaki by TKO with the Ninja Choke (18:51).
7. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 2: Yumehito Imanari defeated Shinichiro Tominaga with an Elbow Butt (19:06).
Round 2 of the Ganbare☆Climax has concluded and there are now four wrestlers left. The main event was an emotional meeting between Yumehito Imanari and Shinichiro Tominaga. It all came down to an Elbow Butt from Imanari to put Tominaga away. Imanari wants to be a pro wrestler who uses his words as a weapon. But he also wants to convey his message with his right elbow, like he did today.
Shuichiro Katsumura went through a tough battle with Kouki Iwasaki to reach the semi-final. Iwasaki got caught in the Ninja Choke and lost consciousness leading to his defeat. Katsumura was amazed at how strong his opponent was and he is not sure he could beat today’s version of his again if they had a rematch.
The other two semi-finalists are outsiders to Ganbare☆Pro. From the get-go Tatsuhito Takaiwa meant business. He gave Mizuki Watase the Takaiwa Driller very quickly into the match. Watase fought back but the match was over when the Death Valley Bomb was pulled out. Takaiwa’s Lariat afterward was just a formality at that point.
Tetsuhiro Kuroda hit Ken Ohka with eight Lariats in a row yet Ohka was determined to stay standing. Kuroda had to charge up and hit one more to finally beat his admirer. Kuroda kind of remembers teaming with Ohka in a 6-Man Tag once before and found out how much he wanted to win today.
The Ganbare☆Climax semi-finals on 23rd November are Tetsuhiro Kuroda Vs Yumehito Imanari and Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Tatsuhito Takaiwa. Kuroda fought Imanari before and doesn’t want to take him lightly. Imanari says he owes a lot to Kuroda and will repay him the most. Katsumura thinks the value of the Spirit Of Ganbare Title will go up if he beats Takaiwa and Kuroda to become the first champion.
Shota & Soma Takao enjoyed teaming together and both want to do it again in the future. They crossed paths a couple of times in their careers so to finally team together after so long is kind of romantic in their eyes. Shota says they will continue to work as a tag team in pursuit of romance.
The former kickboxer Tyson Maeguchi was given another hard lesson in wrestling, this time against Kenichiro Arai with Shinjiro Otani watching at ringside. Maeguchi is frustrated by his lack of time practicing his wrestling skills so all he can do is learn in the ring little by little. Arai got annoyed with Otani for being in Maeguchi’s corner because he had nobody in his own. He also seems mad he wasn’t invited to compete in the Ganbare☆Climax.
1. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: Yumehito Imanari defeated Baliyan Akki with the Lou Thesz Press (8:56).
2. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: Kouki Iwasaki defeated Nobuhiro Shimatani with a Back Drop Hold (11:40).
3. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: Shuichiro Katsumura defeated Seiya Morohashi with a Modified Haneorigatame (15:18).
4. Ganjo Special Tag Match: Yuna Manase & Moeka Haruhi defeated HARUKAZE & YuuRI when Manase pinned YuuRI with the Suzuki Dynamic (10:28).
5. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: Tatsuhito Takaiwa defeated Tyson Maeguchi with the Death Valley Bomb (7:50).
6. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: Ken Ohka defeated Shota with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (15:24).
7. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: Shinichiro Tominaga defeated Keisuke Ishii with a Cradle (2:31).
After three years away the Ganbare☆Climax is back with a bang. The tournament favourite has been eliminated in Round 1! Keisuke Ishii was unexpectedly Cradled by Shinichiro Tominaga two minutes into the match and was shockingly pinned for the three count. Tominaga’s celebration was cut short when an angry Ishii gave him the Double Arm DDT after the match. It shook up Tominaga so much that he thought he lost the match when he gave the show closing speech. When he shook it off and remembered he won, he then said he is now the top candidate to win the Ganbare☆Climax. He’s going to win the Spirit Of Ganbare Title and draw a thick, clear line on his somewhat vague wrestling career. That way he will be proud of being a pro wrestler, be popular with office ladies and get married four times!
Shota was accompanied by Soma Takao for his opening round match against Ken Ohka. After a back and forth match, Ohka kicked out of the Gannosuke Clutch and hit Shota with the Fire Spear for a nearfall. Ohka got the win in the end with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster. Takao helped bring Shota to the back afterwards. He explained that she showed up to support Shota because they are “classmates” from the same generation. Ohka moves on to face Tetsuhiro Kuroda in Round 2. Ohka was once a ringside attendant for Kuroda when he wrestled in DDT. He remembers accidentally stepping on Kuroda’s glasses and breaking them. Kuroda told him not to worry and forgave him. Ever since then Ohka has seen Kuroda like a god!
Recently retired kickboxer Tyson Maeguchi is trying his hand at pro wrestling as a representative of the Ibushi Wrestling Institute. He was ultimately overwhelmed by Tatsuhito Takaiwa, ending with the Death Valley Bomb. Takaiwa was pleased by Maeguchi’s performance, particularly the Dropkick he threw at him. The match was more about Takaiwa teaching Maeguchi in the ring. When Takaiwa started wrestling he learned it is about feelings, not technique because you cannot lose with feelings. He hopes to have gotten that lesson across to Maeguchi. Takaiwa moves on to the next round to fight Mizuki Watase.
Shuichiro Katsumura’s tournament got off to a good start by eliminating Seiya Morohashi. His grappling skills was too much for Morohashi to fight against and he was tangled into submission. After the match Katsumura got into a standoff with his 2nd Round opponent Kouki Iwasaki at ringside. Katsumura pushed him away and Iwasaki Headbutted him in response before things got broken up.
Iwasaki made it out of the 1st Round by beating Nobuhiro Shimatani in a DNA confrontation. Iwasaki cut down his oppoenent with High Kicks and pinned him with a Back Drop Hold. After winning the match, Iwasaki stuck around ringside to watch Katsumura Vs Morohashi which led to the post-match meeting with Katsumura.
The tournament kicked off with the last winner Yumehito Imanari winning against Baliyan Akki. He blocked the Namaste Press and scored the pin with a Lou Thesz Press. Imanari praised Akki for his performance but Akki gave him a Headbutt to take out his frustration at losing. He waited three and a half years to take part in the Ganbare☆Climax so getting eliminated in the very first match left him very upset.
The show began with an announcement that Shinjiro Otani is now the on-site director for Ganbare☆Pro! He still intends to wrestle again when his injuries are healed and had hoped to recover in time to enter the Ganbare☆Climax. Until then, this new role gives him a reason to continue working at Ganpro shows while he is out of action. His advice for the wrestlers entering the tournament is they need to be strong, passionate, hardworking and human to win. He wants the Ganbare☆Climax to cheer up everybody who sees it.
For the third time Ganbare☆Pro is holding the Ganbare☆Climax tournament. The first two editions were held in 2017 and 2018. In 2021 the tournament is without a doubt the most important one so far for two reasons. First the tournament is being sponsored by LEC. The company sponsors various wrestling events large and small but they now have the honour of being Ganpro’s first annual sponsor. The more exciting news is the prize for winning the tournament. The winner will become the first ever Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Champion! That’s right, Ganpro finally has its own singles championship to call its own.
There are fourteen people entering the tournament. Round 1 will consist of six matches all taking place on 24th October. Two entrants will receive a bye to the second round. Then the second event on 7th November will consist of Round 2 and then the semi finals. The final will then take place on 23rd November to crown the first champion. The full list of entrants are:
1. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: X Vs X
2. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: X Vs X
3. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: X Vs X
4. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: X Vs X
5. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: X Vs X
6. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 1: X Vs X
1. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 2: X Vs X
2. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 2: X Vs X
3. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 2: X Vs X
4. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Round 2: X Vs X
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GANBARE☆PRO “LEC CLEANPA! PRESENTS GANBARE☆CLIMAX 2021 FINAL ROUND”, 23/11/2021 Tokyo Narimasu Act Hall
1. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Semi Final: X Vs X
2. Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Semi Final: X Vs X
3. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title – Ganbare☆Climax 2021 – Final: X Vs X