TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’25” Preview

July 19, 2025

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’25”, 21/07/2025
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. HIMAWARI & Ren Konatsu Vs Shino Suzuki & Uta Takami
2. Andreza Giant Panda & Raku Vs Kyoko Inoue & Pom Harajuku
3. Yuna Manase, Mahiro Kiryu, Kaya Toribami & Chika Nanase Vs Wakana Uehara, Toga, Mifu Ashida & Kira Summer
4. 3 Way Tag Match: Yuki Kamifuku & VENY Vs Yuki Aino & Haru Kazashiro Vs Arisu Endo & Jada Stone
5. Special Tag Match: El Desperado & Maki Itoh Vs Chris Brookes & Emi Sakura
6. Special Single Match: Miyu Yamashita Vs Billie Starkz
7. International Princess Title: Suzume (c) Vs Moka Miyamoto
8. Princess Tag Team Titles: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Yuki Arai

Welcome to the middle point of the year and the second of three visits to Ota Ward Gymnasium in 2025. As we enter part two in this trilogy of big venue events for Tokyo Joshi Pro this year I’m trying to figure out if a three act story can be pieced together in regards to the company’s top champion. It’s either going to be that or the inauguration of their next ace. A successful tour of Texas earlier this month has provided a gust of momentum for TJPW going into the show and perhaps even a fresh group of eyes looking towards the event, at least internationally. On the undercard a lot of the wrestlers are focusing on the upcoming Tokyo Princess Cup. Even a few of the champions have set up goals to win the tournament while holding their titles. That’s if they make it out of Ota Ward with the belt still in their hands of course. Then once the Cup is done with the road will take TJPW back here for “WRESTLE PRINCESS VI” in September. Now let’s see if this really is going to be Act II of a year long story.

1. HIMAWARI & Ren Konatsu Vs Shino Suzuki & Uta Takami

I don’t know what it is about the new rookie but whenever I look into Ren Konatsu’s eyes I see the crazy vibes of MAO hiding deep in there somewhere. This is way, way down the line by the way because she hasn’t even entered her third month as a pro wrestler yet. All I’m saying is it only takes the little sheep toy clipped to her belt to start whispering ideas into her head and next thing you know she’s using her opponents to smash plastic boxes into pieces. If the sheep suddenly gets replaced with a Labubu then we’re really going to see some trouble down the line.

I thought TJPW had something going on for HIMAWARI and Shino Suzuki by making them team up every now and then going back to the previous Ota Ward show. Instead they are going to be opponents here. HIMAWARI is teaming with Konatsu and is the only one in this match who qualified for the Princess Cup. Suzuki’s failure to get past the prelimary rounds may become a pivotal point in her career because she is now seeing how little progress she’s been making in her three years as a wrestler. Uta Takami meanwhile has her whole future ahead of her and had a big role on this year’s “HYPE!” show. Maybe she’s the one I should be worried about possibly turning crazy instead of Konatsu.

2. Andreza Giant Panda & Raku Vs Kyoko Inoue & Pom Harajuku

A potential monster bout ended up changing its plans but in doing so brings in a brand new joshi legend into the TJPW ring for the first time. Max The Impaler was supposed to return to Japan so they could team up with Pom Harajuku again. Unfortunately according to TJPW Max has health issues preventing them from being able to travel for the show so that put a stop to Pompaler getting back together for now. Harajuku’s new tag partner is the fearsome and face painted Kyoko Inoue! I wonder if United Japan Pro Wrestling is the reason why we’re getting this appearance? Inoue is the founder and current president of World Woman Pro-Wrestling Diana based in Kanagawa. The joshi group recently joined UJPW as a supporting member and TJPW is already a member so the connection is there to be made.

There might be a jealous Up Up Girl in the locker room once Inoue is in the ring because one of the highlights of her classic matches was always the Giant Swing. Will she be the one to do it to Andreza Giant Panda? The last time Andreza showed up in TJPW he went viral for getting bonked over the head with a Pico Pico Hammer. This place is starting to get too dangerous for him. For Raku though she’s been living a dream ever since her last visit to Ota Ward. Back in March she beat Harajuku to win the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title, her first proper championship reign. While she no longer holds the belt things are just going swimmingly for her lately. This match is just going to be another trip inside her sleepy wonderland. Maybe she’ll bring the Buc-ee toy she bought in Texas with her for Andreza to play with.

3. Yuna Manase, Mahiro Kiryu, Kaya Toribami & Chika Nanase Vs Wakana Uehara, Toga, Mifu Ashida & Kira Summer

Time to throw a mixture of women into the ring, shake it back and forth and see who comes out of it the last ones standing. Yuna Manase pays another visit to TJPW. While she’s been rocking the Ganbare☆Joshi division over in Ganbare☆Pro in Japan, she’s also been flying the flag for Kitsune over in America as their top champion. Mahiro Kiryu was settling into a new tag team with Haruna Neko until Neko got injured yet again so she’s sort of just been floating around at the moment. Kaya Toribami finally had something of a level up by getting to challenge for the MLW Women’s Featherweight Title last month and putting in a pretty good performance. She also has a new costume ready to debut for this show so maybe things are looking up for the bird. Chika Nanase is starting to move up into the next phase of her young career. Where she goes from here is anyone’s guess.

Over on the other team Wakana Uehara is progressing at a nice pace. She has a named tag team as part of Ober Eats, got to challenge for a championship and at this point is pretty much guaranteed to be part of the crew for every USA tour. As long as she keeps her appetite, I see good things coming for her in the future. The times Toga has mostly been standing out lately is from whenever she gets to play an ikemen role of some sort. In regular matches though she’s had a few setbacks lately. Mifu Ashida’s win-loss record since coming here hasn’t been great either. She’s been a bit busy doing other things lately but a time like now is always a good place to start turning things around. Kira Summer has been seeing the growth of women’s wrestling in Asia and Australia this year. It is motivating her to join in and play her part in helping it grow even more.

4. 3 Way Tag Match: Yuki Kamifuku & VENY Vs Yuki Aino & Haru Kazashiro Vs Arisu Endo & Jada Stone

Ober Eats is one of the new teams to appear on the scene this year but Yuki Kamifuku is going back to one of her favorite choices in her wardrobe. She is bringing VENY back so VENYU can team up together again! VENY has spent the year ruling over SEAdLINNNG with a five month reign as Beyond The Sea Champion. Once that title run came to an end she’s been going from place to place in the joshi scene with TJPW becoming her next brief stop. Yuki Aino is fresh off of coming out as the main character of this year’s “HYPE!” show. The lesson she learned coming out of it is she will never be alone in TJPW and that might finally be what leads her out of the maze she’s been stuck in ever since her sister Nodoka Tenma graduated. I’m probably going to be writing that opinion again and again until the end of time.

Aino will be teaming with Haru Kazashiro who continues to grow into a future high card player for the promotion. Once she gets her final year of high school out of the way, the sky’s the limit for how far she will go in the ring. She is already developing the ring smarts to gradually figure out how to perfect the Fisherman Suplex but a 3 Way Tag Match like this is probably too chaotic an environment to show that off. The third team is a fitting mixture of pep and spark. Arisu Endo has been taking a back seat for her Daisy Monkey’s partners success. She hasn’t been letting that dampen her spirits. Jada Stone is now well accustomed to TJPW but it looks like she has a new place to call home. She was recently offered a contract by TNA so I’m not sure if she will continue to do tours here. If this is close to the end then she’s certainly made good use of her time in TJPW.

5. Special Tag Match: El Desperado & Maki Itoh Vs Chris Brookes & Emi Sakura

Are there as many wrestlers out there who are currently living out their dreams like El Desperado has? He gets to fulfill his most violent desires by having several deathmatches with Jun Kasai, pals around with the likes of MAO and Chris Brookes especially when it comes to the more sleazy indies style of wrestling. There’s nobody else in New Japan who is quite as in sync with the current wrestling scene than good ol’ Despy. Now he gets to tick off another line in his bucket list by getting to team with Maki Itoh! The two got to know each other in America two years ago when they were both booked on the same GCW show. The idea was thrown around for them to team up. Now that it’s happening it finally occurred to Despy that he has to learn Itoh’s song and dance in order to be accepted into the Itoh Respect Army. Rehersals so far have not been promising. Brookes was at least able to pull the dance off so the current IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion has no excuse. Come on man you used to carry a guitar around. Surely you can carry a tune too?

TJPW brought Despy & Itoh together because they needed a poison pairing that could match the same level as TeaDK. Brookes & Emi Sakura teamed up in TJPW last March for “GRAND PRINCESS ’24” and it didn’t go according to plan for them. They lost to The Magical Sugar Rabbits and blamed each other over the result. Time healed those wounds so they are teaming up again to give TJPW another go. Sakura has had several matches with Sakura over the years, most of them in an AEW ring. Thankfully they haven’t needed to staple each other over and over like Brookes and Despy do whenever they fight. Oh God, don’t let Itoh arm herself with a stapler!

6. Special Single Match: Miyu Yamashita Vs Billie Starkz

One of Miyu Yamashita’s toughest rivals on her excursions to America is Billie Starkz. When it comes to their previous matches Starkz has beaten Yamashita more than the other way around. It’s a friendly rivalry though and the two of them even had something of a good tag team going on during Yamashita’s recent stay in GCW. So when Yamashita heard that Starkz would love nothing more than to wrestle in Japan again she got TJPW to set this match up.

So yeah, that’s pretty much it. Not a lot of story to set this up and it remains to be seen if this is just a one off attraction match to have for the big show. Yamashita only has one championship left to win in TJPW to have achieved every single accomplishment available to her. If anything her winning this match would be done to establish her as the favorite for the Princess Cup. A win for Starkz here though should be followed up on. A younger wrestler beating Yamashita in her home promotion is worth a title shot of some sort down the line. We don’t really need to worry about locker room politics either because it’s become pretty clear recently that Yamashita has some sort of deal in place with AEW/ROH.

7. International Princess Title: Suzume (c) Vs Moka Miyamoto

Now we get into the big three matches of the show. The three championships are all currently on a reliable group of wrestlers so where the belts go from here is a good question to think about. If Suzume was to lose the International Princess Title here she would have left a good mark as champion. Her reign has been a little bit different than the others thanks to a pair of defences against Jada Stone, one in Japan and the rematch in America. It’s unusual for someone to defend a Princess Title against the same challenger twice in one reign. It’s also not that common for the IP Champion to defend the belt overseas when that’s meant to be the whole bloody point of it! When it’s all said and done, Suzume will have a good argument towards having one of the more defining runs as IP Champion. She’s already said she feels like she has evolved from a bee into a hornet because of this title. Her ultimate goal is to become queen bee of TJPW!

Her challenger Moka Miyamoto has also become attached to the belt but it’s becoming for a pretty bad reason. This is going to be her third time challenging for the IP Title after failing to win it twice before. It is the title she wants most because she believes having an international championship is the best way for her to spread Japanese culture across the world. Part of that culture is Japan’s technology and Miyamoto thinks there has to be some kind of Japanese technology out there that is good for getting rid of hornets! The two traded wins with each other during the Texas tour so it’s all even going into Ota Ward.

8. Princess Tag Team Titles: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe

Okay where do sasumata poles stand on the police brutality scale because they’re going to be mentioned a lot in this part of the preview and the girls have already used them to literally crucify Tetsuya Koda. The existence of these things have been the blight of Kyoraku Kyomei’s last couple of weeks. Other than that things are going great for the Princess Tag Team Champions. The big kaiju Shoko Nakajima was let loose in MLW and she quickly acquired the MLW Women’s Title. Meanwhile Hyper Misao lived through the stress of putting together the third annual “HYPE!” show and came out of it in one piece. They were looking forward to their next crazy adventure with the Princess Tag Titles but weren’t ready for how it would be set up.

One year ago the headline match of “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’24” was the battle of Daydream between Rika Tatsumi and Miu Watanabe. In the aftermath the two appeared to have gone their separate ways and they went almost a year without teaming up again. That was until a month ago when Daydream reunited and ambushed Kyoraku Kyomei with sasumata poles, demanding a title shot. The champions agreed to the match because Daydream are the kind of strong team they’re looking to beat. Ever since then Tatsumi & Watanabe have been attacking Nakajima & Misao with sasumata poles in their preview matches. Kyoraku Kyomei reached their breaking point over it and stole the sasumatas away from their challengers. They then tried to properly recycle them under the watchful eye of GM Koda until Daydream appeared to try and take their weapons back by force. That led to Nakajima & Misao taping the poles to Koda like a crucifix but Daydream were able to take him back too. Now that the weapons are back in the challengers’ hands they have the advantage going into the title match. Will the champs decided to fight fire with fire or will they have something else under their sleeves to foil Daydream’s plan?

9. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Yuki Arai

This is going one of two ways. Either we are firmly in Mizuki’s era as the dominant Princess Of Princess Champion where she will headline all of the Ota Ward shows or TJPW decides now is the time to crown Yuki Arai as their new top draw. Mizuki has already toppled Watanabe (to win the belt), Tatsumi and Yamashita (the two defences) in this title reign. If she beats Arai here I see her holding onto the belt for a long time to come so she can have her definitive main event run in the promotion. Arai meanwhile made the choice to go all in on having pro wrestling be her career so while she has all the time in the world to achieve the final piece of the TJPW Grand Slam, I wouldn’t be shocked to see the company strike now while the iron is hot.

History doesn’t paint a clear picture for how this is going to go. Arai won the Princess Tag Titles on her first try and Mizuki was one of the champions back then. Arai was involved with the finish but it was Saki Akai who pinned Mizuki for the victory. When it comes to the International Princess Title however Arai failed to win it twice before becoming champion on her third attempt (hey, that’s a good sign for Miyamoto). This main event is her first time fighting for the Princess Of Princess Title. Only a select few have held the title and none were ever able to beat the champion on their first try. But that’s just the kind of record a wrestler booked like Arai would go on to break, right? After all, this is the idol who only needed one Finally Axe Kick to beat the unstoppable Max The Impaler and earned an endorsement from Meiko Satomura. She’s been groomed since day one to become the promotion’s next ace and her quick success is evidence of it.

Arai is not taking this moment for granted. It’s her first big match since graduating from SKE48. When she juggled her idol career with her wrestling career she felt like she wasn’t as good as everyone else in TJPW. But now that she’s fully focused on just wrestling she is eager to go challenge all of her seniors and eventually take the lead of the promotion. Mizuki has a goal in mind to win the Princess Cup while she holds the Princess Title. She has already proved that princesses are stronger than monsters. But are they stronger than successful pop singers?


Yoppy’s Graduation Match Now For Iron Man Title, Leatherface In GanPro, Full Summer Sun Princess Card

July 7, 2025

DDT “FIGHTING BEER GARDEN 2025 IN UENO”, 08/07/2025
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. Makoto Oishi & Kazuma Sumi Vs Yuya Koroku & Yuki Ishida
2. Dance Vs Idol Battle Without Honor & Humanity ~ Special Single Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs Yuni
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Iino & Yukio Naya Vs Jun Akiyama, Daichi Sato & Soma Takao
4. Falls Count Anywhere Crocodile Death Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion Vs Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada
5. Special Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & To-y Vs Hikaru Sato & Akito
6. KANON 6th Anniversary Match ~ Special Tag Match: MAO & KANON (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs HARASHIMA & Danshoku Dieno

There will be a public contract signing for the next DDT Extreme Title match during the show. During it To-y will reveal to Hikaru Sato the rules for their match on 15th July.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “YOSHIKO HASEGAWA GRADUATION EVENT – NONFICTION”, 08/07/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. 3 Way Match: Raku Vs Mahiro Kiryu Vs Shino Suzuki
2. 12th Tokyo Princess Cup Preliminary League – Round 2: Pom Harajuku Vs HIMAWARI
3. 12th Tokyo Princess Cup Preliminary League – Round 2: Moka Miyamoto Vs Kaya Toribami
4. Maki Itoh, Mifu Ashida & Ren Konatsu Vs Kira Summer, Chika Nanase & Ivy Steele
5. Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao & Yuki Aino Vs Rika Tatsumi, Miu Watanabe & Toga
6. Mizuki, Suzume, Arisu Endo & Haru Kazashiro Vs Yuki Arai, Yuki Kamifuku, Wakana Uehara & Uta Takami
7. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Yoshiko Hasegawa Graduation Commemorative Match ~ 1 Vs 27 Handicap Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa (c) Vs Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao, Suzume, Rika Tatsumi, Maki Itoh, Yuki Kamifuku, Yuki Aino, Miu Watanabe, Raku, Pom Harajuku, Mahiro Kiryu, Moka Miyamoto, Arisu Endo, Yuki Arai, Kaya Torbami, Wakana Uehara, HIMAWARI, Toga, Shino Suzuki, Haru Kazashiro, Mifu Ashida, Kira Summer, Chika Nanase, Uta Takami, Ren Konatsu & Ivy Steele

Barring any unforeseen title changes, Yoshiko Hasegawa will be defending the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title against almost the entire Tokyo Joshi Pro roster in her retirement match! The rules of the match have not been announced yet. It is possible it may last for several falls given the occassion.

BASARA “BASARA 283 ~UTAGE~”, 08/07/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Daiki Shimomura Vs Takeru Inoue
2. Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi & Gouma Ryu Vs Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga
3. Daichi Kazato & Munetatsu Nakamura Vs SAGAT & Minoru Fujita
4. Ryuichi Sekine, FUMA & Ayumu Honda Vs Masato Kamino, Lil’ Kraken & Fuminori Abe
5. Isami Kodaka & Ryota Nakatsu Vs Takumi Tsukamoto & Takato Nakano

The Isami Kodaka & Ryota Nakatsu versus Takumi Tsukamoto & Takato Nakano match will main event tomorrow’s BASARA show.

DDT “FIGHTING BEER GARDEN 2025 IN SHINJUKU – DAY 1”, 15/07/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. Yuya Koroku Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Special 8-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani, Ilusion & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Iino, Yukio Naya, HARASHIMA & Akito
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ueno & Chris Brookes Vs Daichi Sato, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
4. Rock ‘N’ Roll 4 Way Death Match: Antonio Honda Vs MAO (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Takeshi Masada
5. Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs KANON
6. DDT Extreme Title: To-y (c) Vs Hikaru Sato

Some extra card updates to remove the injured Shunma Katsumata from the lineups. The Rock ‘N’ Roll Death Match is now a 4 Way without him.

DDT “FIGHTING BEER GARDEN 2025 IN SHINJUKU – DAY 2”, 16/07/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. Jun Akiyama & Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Hideki Okatani & MJ Paul
2. Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Iino & Yukio Naya Vs Daichi Sato, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
3. Dedicated To Lafcadio Hearn! Ghost Story Shin-Numabukuro Death Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Akito Vs KANON Vs Soma Takao
*Ghost Story Artist: Hisaya Imabayashi
4. Noryo KING OF DRUNK Decision Match: HARASHIMA Vs Daisuke Sasaki Vs Chris Brookes
5. Special Single Match: Ilusion Vs Kumadori
6. Beer Garden Specialty Customer Lottery 8-Man Tag Match: To-y, Yuki Ueno, MAO, Kazuki Hirata, Antonio Honda, Takeshi Masada, Yuya Koroku and Yuki Ishida

And sadly it turns out Katsumata is too injured to take part in the King Of Drunk match too. Chris Brookes will take his place (and his drinks).

The young trio of Daichi Sato, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi will be getting some tough matches at the Beer Garden this time around. Kazusada Higuchi is the common opponent on both teams facing them.

GANBARE☆PRO “WILD AT HEART 2025”, 19/07/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Tyson Maeguchi Vs Shota Kawakami
2. Moeka Haruhi & Yuna Manase Vs Makoto & Chika
3. YuuRI Vs Mio Shirai
4. Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada Vs Keisuke Ishii & Leatherface
5. Yumehito Imanari & Shinichiro Tominaga Vs Masaaki Mochizuki & Ken Ohka
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Mizuki Watase & Shigehiro Irie (c) Vs Toru Sugiura & Munetatsu Nakamura

Where in the hell did Keisuke Ishii dig up Leatherface from?!? This match has a bit of W*ING flavour to it because we have a horror movie monster fighting a tag team of martial artists. Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada better use their preparation time getting to know the best way to disarm a chainsaw wielding maniac.

DDT “ROJO PRO WRESTLING IN HANDMADE IN JAPAN FES 2025”, 20/07/2025
Tokyo Big Sight HandMade In Japan Fes 2025 Music & Play Area

1. Falls Count Anywhere 3 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Yukio Naya, KANON & Yuki Ishida Vs To-y, Takeshi Masada & Pokotan Vs Daichi Sato, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi

Awwww, it’s Daichi Sato’s first Falls Count Anywhere match in DDT. They grow up so fast.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’25”, 21/07/2025
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. HIMAWARI & Ren Konatsu Vs Shino Suzuki & Uta Takami
2. Andreza Giant Panda & Raku Vs Kyoko Inoue & Pom Harajuku
3. Yuna Manase, Mahiro Kiryu, Kaya Toribami & Chika Nanase Vs Wakana Uehara, Toga, Mifu Ashida & Kira Summer
4. 3 Way Tag Match: Yuki Kamifuku & VENY Vs Yuki Aino & Haru Kazashiro Vs Arisu Endo & Jada Stone
5. Special Tag Match: El Desperado & Maki Itoh Vs Chris Brookes & Emi Sakura
6. Special Single Match: Miyu Yamashita Vs Billie Starkz
7. International Princess Title: Suzume (c) Vs Moka Miyamoto
8. Princess Tag Team Titles: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe
9. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Yuki Arai

This is the full lineup for “SUMMER SUN PRINCESS ’25”. We have the additions of VENY, Yuna Manase and Jada Stone to the card. The former teams up with Yuki Kamifuku again for a VENYU reunion.

Unfortunately Ivy Steele has to miss out on the show. She has university exams to do that day.


DDT Around The World – June 2025

July 1, 2025

Okay where do we start when it comes to July? Do we go with Konosuke Takeshita’s adventures in Mexico, Miyu Yamashita falling foul to the Missouri athletic commission or Maki Itoh voicing a character in Punch Punch Forever? Or how about Tokyo Joshi Pro being used to prop up Major League Wrestling’s shrinking women’s division? Yuka Sakazaki is starting to get more than one booking a month so more of that would be appreciated. Also is Takeshita’s team with Kyle Fletcher only called Protoshita because it makes everyone smirk when they say it out loud?

Oh, and we’re finally starting to find out what sort of deal Yamashita is on over in America. On the surface she’s going around the country like a freelancer and some media back in Japan highlights that is what makes her US work different from the joshi who work full time with WWE or AEW. Except we’re now seeing Yamashita pop up in Ring Of Honor again and her being pulled from one of TJPW’s Texas shows just so happens to line up with the ROH PPV taking place that same day.

Speaking of the Texas tour, that will be the big story for next month. TJPW’s decisions when it comes to the American market are going to pay off well by the sounds of it. Two of the Texas shows have sold out and according to the promoters the third will become the promotion’s highest selling USA show in their history. If the Wrestle Universe live streams go off without a hitch then even more American tours will be planned for the future so TJPW can make some dollars while the fans back in Japan still get to watch it on a reliable service. Given how much the scene suddenly exploded with joshi influenced companies over the last few years, nothing beats the real thing in the end.

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Videos

Konosuke Takeshita In AEW Playlist


MLW “WAR CHAMBER”, 07/06/2025
Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, USA

1. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) Vs Delmi Exo


AEW “COLLISION – SUMMER BLOCKBUSTER”, 11/06/2025
Theater Of The Clouds At Moda Center, Portland, Oregon, USA

1. Adam Cole, Roderick Strong, Kyle O’Reilly & Daniel Garcia Vs Konosuke Takeshita, Josh Alexander, Lance Archer & Hechicero

Video starts at 1:20:06 for the match
JCW “REC.SPORTS.PRO.WRESTLING”, 12/06/2025
The Hall, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Jordan Blade


LLL “BUY THE TICKET, TAKE THE RIDE – NIGHT 1”, 13/06/2025
The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Stormi Renee


CMLL “MARTES POPULARES – CMLL Vs AEW Y ROH”, 17/06/2025
Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

1. Ultimo Guerrero, Gran Guerrero, Averno & Euforia Vs Konosuke Takeshita, Kyle Fletcher, Rocky Romero & Hechicero


AEW “DYNAMITE – GRAND SLAM MEXICO”, 18/06/2025
Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

1. Bandido, Templario, Atlantis, Atlantis Jr., Adam Cole, Brody King & Daniel Garcia Vs Volador Jr., Hechicero, Kyle Fletcher, Konosuke Takeshita, Josh Alexander, Lance Archer & Dax Harwood


AEW “COLLISION”, 21/06/2025
accesso ShoWare Center, Kent, Washington, USA

1. Adam Cole, Roderick Strong, Daniel Garcia & Bandido Vs Dax Harwood, Cash Wheeler, Kyle Fletcher & Konosuke Takeshita


AEW “DYNAMITE”, 25/06/2025
accesso ShoWare Center, Kent, Washington, USA

1. 4 Way For The #1 Spot In The Casino Gauntlet At All In Texas: Konosuke Takeshita Vs Mark Briscoe Vs Roderick Strong Vs Bandido

Video starts at 28:22 for the match
MLW “SUMMER OF THE BEASTS”, 26/06/2025
Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York, USA

1. Wakana Uehara Vs Yuki Kamifuku

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Results


NEW TEXAS PRO “BAT CITY”, 01/06/2025
Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA

1. VertVixen & Yuka Sakazaki defeated Charity King & AQA when Sakazaki pinned King with the Magical Girl Splash (16:55).

It’s been around four months since Sakazaki last wrestled and even then it was on a cruise ship. It wasn’t until this month she was back wrestling on land. She showed up to New Texas Pro wearing an all new black outfit to to team up with VertVixen. She needed to shake off the ring rust fast because she started the match fighting against the much larger Charity King. But King quickly learned that Sakazaki is no weakling. AQA, who was returning to wrestling after a three and a half year absence helped King wear down Vixen until Sakazaki hot tagged herself in to even the odds. AQA stopped her momentum in a sort of unintentional way when she jumped up for a Hurricanrana and Sakazaki collapsed beneath her. The match broke down to where Vixen gave AQA the Blue Thunder Bomb and Sakazaki went on to pin King with the Magical Girl Splash.


AEW “COLLISION – FYTER FEST 2025”, 04/06/2025
Mission Ballroom, Denver, Colorado, USA

1. Kyle Fletcher, Konosuke Takeshita & Hechicero defeated Bandido, Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd when Fletcher pinned Magnum with the Vertical Drop Brainbuster (14:16).

The lucha flavour was strong in AEW this month even before they made it over to Mexico. Don Callis has had it up to here with both Bandido and The Outrunners so he challenged them to fight The Don Callis Family but with a twist. Protoshita would be involved but so too would the Family’s newest member, the CMLL luchador Hechicero! Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd tried to play mind games by coming out wearing their own pink luchador masks and being introduced as Los Outrunners. The plan didn’t work and Protoshita dealt them the killing blows to win the match.


KITSUNE “GOING BACK TO SAN DIEGO”, 07/06/2025
Primal Compound, San Diego, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Zara Zakher with the Skull Kick (10:39).
2. Vipress & Hudson Envy defeated Nagisa Nozaki & Yuna Manase when Envy pinned Manased with a Rolling Koppo Kick (18:07).

If Yuna Manase was expecting a warm welcome back to Kitsune by everybody there she was in for a rude surprise. Vipress & Hudson Envy have gold in their sights and saw Manase as a target to get into the promotion’s title picture. Also it turned out Nagisa Nozaki wasn’t exactly on Manase’s side either because she attack her with a chair during the main event! However she also attacked Vipress with the same chair and seemingly only wanted to join forces with Envy. Dark Sheik ran in to chase after Nozaki while Tae Honma wanted to help Manase out. However her Missile Dropkick missed Envy and hit Manase instead. Envy then hit Manase with the Rolling Koppo Kick to get the win for her team. Honma checked on Manase afterwards and handed her over the Kitsune World Title. There’s still trust between the two but they have a title match coming up the next day.

Yamashita was also involved for both of Kitsune’s shows that weekend. Zara Zakher wanted to out-strike her late in their match but Yamashita shrugged off her chops and knocked her down with an Elbow Strike. Zakher got a second wind using a German Suplex and a Clothesline. She even backflipped out of the way from the Skull Kick to give her a Stunner for the nearfall. Yamashita got her back with a Knee Strike to the back of the head and put her down for the count with the Skull Kick. Yamashita pulled back her handshake to Zakher after the match, telling her instead she wants another singles match with her.


KITSUNE “8888”, 08/06/2025
South Gate, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Kidd Bandit with the Skull Kick (16:31).
2. Kitsune World Title – Triple Threat Match: Yuna Manase (c) defeated Tae Honma and Hudson Envy when Manase pinned Honma with the Suzuki Dynamic (17:07).
*V1 for Yuna Manase.

The next night’s main event was thrown for a loop when Envy added herself into the Manase Vs Honma match midway through it! Earlier in the show Envy won a Nine Tails Rumble which granted her a Kitsune Title shot whenever she wanted. So she pulled out the ref while he was counting Manase pinning Honma and cashed in to try and steal the title for herself. However Honma kicked out of her pin to keep the now Triple Threat going. Manase survived to the end and used the Suzuki Dynamic to pin Honma for a successful title defence. She purposely used that move to win as her way of contributing to Honma’s retirement from pro wrestling happening later this year.

Yamashita ended her Kitsune weekend going two for two. She seemed to enjoy picking Kidd Bandit apart but didn’t expect to be hit with a Leaf Hurricane Kick. Just like with Zakher the day before, Bandit wanted to get into a striking duel with Yamashita but it led to her doom when she missed a second Leaf Hurricane and was blown away with the Skull Kick.


ROH “ROH ON HONORCLUB”, 11/06/2025 (Aired 19/06/2025)
Adrian Phillips Theater At Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Brooke Havoc with the Skull Kick (3:33).

Now it’s starting to become clearer. Yamashita made an unexpected return to ROH for a quick victory over Brooke Havoc. Her opponent got cocky with a Dropkick and wasn’t aware that Yamashita stood back up behind her to deliver some kicks. Havoc got some chances back with a Superman Elbow Strike as well as a Sunset Flip counter to the Attitude Adjustment. But Yamashita caught her handstand, kicked her down and pinned her with the Skull Kick.


AEW “COLLISION – SUMMER BLOCKBUSTER”, 11/06/2025
Theater Of The Clouds At Moda Center, Portland, Oregon, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita, Josh Alexander, Lance Archer & Hechicero defeated Adam Cole, Roderick Strong, Kyle O’Reilly & Daniel Garcia when Alexander pinned Strong with a German Suplex (11:56).

Bloody hell it’s like The Don Callis Family is gaining new members every week! They had an 8-Man Tag Match against Paragon & Daniel Garcia but RPG Vice were hanging around at ringside to make it more like 6 Vs 4. Things broke down as they tend to do with Paragon & Garcia all locking in submission holds. Lance Archer powered out of Kyle O’Reilly’s Guillotine Choke by charging him into Garcia’s Sharpshooter on Josh Alexander and then stomping on Adam Cole to break Takeshita free from a Figure 4 Leg Lock. Takeshita also got a cheap shot in by hitting Roderick Strong with an Elbow Strike, allowing Alexander to pin him with a German Suplex.


JCW “REC.SPORTS.PRO.WRESTLING”, 12/06/2025
The Hall, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Jordan Blade with the Skull Kick (11:13).

A fired up Jordan Blade offered Yamashita something different from her previous opponents this month. Blade is a grappler with a focused ground game that put Yamashita on defence a lot more than usual. She also had some impact with using a Saito Suplex and also countering a Front Neck Lock into a Fisherman Suplex. But the temptation to get into a strike battle got into Blade’s head and led to Yamashita turning the tables on her. Blade got her head straight and went back to using grounded submissions. By this point it became a fight of endurance with both wrestlers getting groggy and throwing sloppy strikes. Blade tried to hit a Spinning Back Fist but she got hit back with the Skull Kick for the finish.


LLL “BUY THE TICKET, TAKE THE RIDE – NIGHT 1”, 13/06/2025
The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA

1. Abadon defeated Maki Itoh (11:00).
2. Miyu Yamashita defeated Stormi Renee with the Crash Rabbit Heat (?:??).

Oh hey we got a match finish that wasn’t the Skull Kick. Yamashita instead used the Crash Rabbit Heat to put away Stormi Renee.

Fans at Lucha Libre & Laughs got some bonus TJPW representation when Maki Itoh showed up unannounced for the weekend! She lost to Abadon on the first night but things went better on Night 2.


LLL “BUY THE TICKET, TAKE THE RIDE – NIGHT 2”, 14/06/2025
The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA

1. Maki Itoh defeated Mo Magee with the Itoh Deluxe (?:??).
2. Dark Sheik defeated Miyu Yamashita (?:??).

The next night Dark Sheik powered herself up by fighting Yamashita while dressed as Vertigo from the X-Men. Turns out that wasn’t a bad plan because she got to beat Yamashita. Itoh meanwhile made sure she would leave Denver as a winner when she beat Mo Magee.


CMLL “MARTES POPULARES – CMLL Vs AEW Y ROH”, 17/06/2025
Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

1. Ultimo Guerrero, Gran Guerrero, Averno & Euforia defeated Konosuke Takeshita, Kyle Fletcher, Rocky Romero & Hechicero when Gran pinned Romero with an Avalanche Landslide (17:11).

AEW’s stay in Arena Mexico started a day early when Takeshita was among the AEW wrestlers booked for CMLL’s Tuesday show at the venue. You know maybe this was all meant to be. Even though this was Takeshita’s CMLL debut, he had a very thin attachment to the company already because he had held the KO-D Tag Team Titles multiple times back when it was also a certified CMLL championship. Does that actually mean anything? No but it’s nice to find even the slightest of reasons to connect things. The Don Callis Family fitted in nicely as the rudos for the match while Team CMLL the tecnicos by default even though Ultimo Guerrero, Gran Guerrero, Averno & Euforia usually all tend to be on the rudo side. The match was also only set for one fall instead of CMLL’s traditional Best 2 Out Of 3 rules. So there were a lot more pinfall breakups than you would expect in a CMLL match, although everyone still figured out how to pace it like the latter. Takeshita landed face first from Ultimo Guerrero’s Super Gourdbuster and Gran Guerrero used his own top rope move to pin Rocky Romero.


AEW “DYNAMITE – GRAND SLAM MEXICO”, 18/06/2025
Arena Mexico, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico

1. Bandido, Templario, Atlantis, Atlantis Jr., Adam Cole, Brody King & Daniel Garcia defeated Volador Jr., Hechicero, Kyle Fletcher, Konosuke Takeshita, Josh Alexander, Lance Archer & Dax Harwood (w/ Stokely) when Atlantis pinned Harwood with an Inside Cradle (15:47).

Things got even crazier the next night when AEW hosted “DYNAMITE” in Arena Mexico. A planned 12-Man Tag Match was changed into a 14-Man Tag Match mixing CMLL and AEW wrestlers all together. Plus the world got to learn just how much the hardcore CMLL fans do not like Atlantis Jr., which gets his father Atlantis caught in the crossfire too. Takeshita was taken out by a Templario dive late in the match, Bandido did the same to wipe out Volador Jr. and Brody King saved the biggest dive of them all for the end which Takeshita took alongside Hechicero. The match then came down to Atlantis fighting Dax Harwood and taking the victory with an Inside Cradle, much to the annoyance of the hardcores in attendance.


GCW “BANGIN’ IN LITTLE ROCK”, 20/06/2025
The Hall, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Blake Christian with the Skull Kick (15:04).

I wonder if this was another sign that Yamashita has an AEW/ROH deal under wraps. Blake Christian is a regular over in that circle and while he’s not protected over there, he is placed on a high pedestal over in GCW. Plus Yamashita likes to do new things over in that company. Like pull out a door from under the ring and have Christian dive into it, crushing her beneath it! Christian then threw everything he had at her including a Springboard 450 and also a Handspring Ace Crusher. However Yamashita stumbled back up and took a lucky swing, knocking her opponent out with the Skull Kick. Christian crumbled to the mat and Yamashita rolled on top of him for the pin. Yamashita offered a handshake afterwards but Christian gave her the middle finger and walked out. However he reconsidered and went back into the ring to shake her hand after all.


AEW “COLLISION”, 21/06/2025
accesso ShoWare Center, Kent, Washington, USA

1. Dax Harwood, Cash Wheeler, Kyle Fletcher & Konosuke Takeshita (w/ Stokely) defeated Adam Cole, Roderick Strong, Daniel Garcia & Bandido when Harwood pinned Strong after the Shatter Machine (11:52).

The aftermath of Arena Mexico brought Protoshita back in the sights of Paragon, Garcia & Bandido. At least this time they had both members of FTR fighting alongside them. FTR scored the win for the team and everyone decided to beat down the faces afterwards until The Outrunners arrived to chase them off.


AEW “DYNAMITE”, 25/06/2025
accesso ShoWare Center, Kent, Washington, USA

1. 4 Way For The #1 Spot In The Casino Gauntlet At All In Texas: Mark Briscoe defeated Konosuke Takeshita, Roderick Strong and Bandido when Briscoe pinned Strong with the Froggy Bow (11:05).

Now that the road towards “ALL IN TEXAS” is getting clearer, Takeshita starting making his plans to enter the much lauded Casino Gauntlet Match. Mark Briscoe was now added to the mix as four men battled to become the No. 1 entrant in the match. The Casino Gauntlet is an Aztec Warfare/Thunderbastard style match that only lasts for one fall so entering early gives you the advantage to win rather than entering late because you get the chance to win before many of the other participants show up. The danger of having a one fall match was shown here when Bandido threw away Takeshita with the 21 Plex, Strong gave Bandido the End Of Heartache and Briscoe surprised Strong from the top rope with the Froggy Bow to get the win.


MLW “SUMMER OF THE BEASTS”, 26/06/2025
Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York, USA

1. Yuki Kamifuku defeated Wakana Uehara with an Inverted Famouser (7:24).

TJPW’s working relationship with MLW grew with the American group hosting “The Battle Of The Idols” between Yuki Kamifuku and Wakana Uehara. The two Ober Eats partners had a standard match with each other. The only unusual thing was Kamifuku winning the match with an Inverted version of the Famouser instead of the regular one, possibly because Uehara couldn’t get herself in the right position. Kamifuku’s win was enough to get the attention of Shotzi Blackheart who walked to the ring after the match for her first appearance in the promotion. The two women even threw out the idea of them having a match together somewhere down the road.


REAPER “REAPER RISING – A KING’S CORONATION”, 27/06/2025
The Pit, Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada

1. Janai Kai defeated Miyu Yamashita by Pinfall (?:??).

How’s this for a match finish over at Reaper Wrestling. Yamashita and Janai Kai keep kicking the hell out of each other, Kai hits the Hurricane Kick, Yamashita hits back with the Skull Kick and Kai falls on top of her to get the pin.


METALMANIA “2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY”, 28/06/2025
Stage 722, Portland, Oregon, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Janai Kai

Yamashita and Kai faced each other again the next night at METALMANIA. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to find the result of the match. The only thing I could see online is a clip of the two kicking each other. They didn’t just do the same match from the day before again, did they?


SPARK “IGNITE TEXAS”, 29/06/2025
Baytown Community Center, Houston, Texas, USA

1. Yuka Sakazaki & Raychell Rose defeated SAKI & Kaia McKenna when Sakazaki pinned McKenna with the Magical Merry-Go-Round (11:25).
2. SPARK Joshi Pacific Title – 3 Way Match: Airica Demia defeated VertVixen (c) and Miyu Yamashita when Demia pinned Vixen after the Skull Kick from Yamashita (13:37)
*VertVixen fails in V1. Airica Demina becomes the 3rd SPARK Joshi Pacific Champion!

We finally get to the end of the month with SPARK Joshi holding its latest show in Texas. I haven’t seen the show yet so I don’t have much info on the matches other than how they finished. Yamashita came close to winning the SPARK Joshi Pacific Title when she used the Skull Kick on the champion Vert Vixen. However the third person in the match Airica Demina took Yamashita out of the way to steal the pin and win the championship instead.

Elsewhere on the card Sakazaki had her second match of the month by teaming with Raychell Rose to beat SAKI & Kaia McKenna. Sakazaki even scored the pin on McKenna by doing the Magical Merry-Go-Round on her.

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Upcoming Appearances


BZW “LES JEUX SONT FAITS”, 05/07/2025
Casino Barrière de Lille, Lille, France

1. BZW Tag Team Titles: MAO & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Danny Black & Joe Lando

Texas will be the main point of interest next month but first we have something going on in France to pay attention to. MAO & Yoshihiko are heading back to Banger Zone Wrestling to defence the BZW Tag Team Titles. The CPF team of Danny Black & Joe Lando are their latest challengers.


GCW “THE TOP PLAY”, 05/07/2025
The Webster Theatre, Hartford, Connecticut, USA

1. Alec Price, Jordan Oliver & Marcus Mathers Vs Miyu Yamashita, Megan Bayne & Billie Starkz

The GCW Tag Team Titles match didn’t go ahead this month for reasons I will cover at the end of this article. However Yamashita & Billie Starkz will get their hands on YDNP next month for an intergender trios match. Megan Bayne adds firepower to their team while Marcus Mathers comes to the aid of the champions.

This weekend looks to be the end of Yamashita’s latest tour. Her tweet schedule also mentions a booked in New Jersey on 6th July. JCW will be holding a show there on that date but they haven’t promoted Yamashita for it yet and I don’t see where she can fit on such a packed card that’s currently being advertised. I also haven’t been able to find any other shows taking place in the area that day so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “QUERI PRESENTS TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 1”, 10/07/2025
POST, Houston, Texas, USA

1. 3 Way Match: Yuki Kamifuku Vs Raku Vs Vert Vixen
2. Yuki Arai Vs Kaylia Capri
3. Miu Watanabe Vs Wakana Uehara
4. Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Moka Miyamoto & Shino Suzuki
5. Special Single Match: Miyu Yamashita Vs Maki Itoh
6. Mizuki & Pom Harajuku Vs Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao

The word coming from TJPW and their American promotors is this Texas tour will be a big success.


ROH “SUPERCARD OF HONOR”, 11/07/2025
Esports Stadium Arlington, Arlington, Texas, USA

1. ROH World Title: Bandido (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita

I have high hopes this will be one of the matches of the weekend. Don’t even have to call it a sleeper. The last month of matches where Bandido went to battle with The Don Callis Family has all led to Takeshita challenging him for the ROH World Title! Can Takeshita become the second Japanese wrestler after Takeshi Morishima to hold the belt?


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “QUERI PRESENTS TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 2”, 11/07/2025
POST, Houston, Texas, USA

1. Wakana Uehara Vs Shino Suzuki
2. Arisu Endo Vs Kaylia Capri
3. Yuki Kamifuku Vs Pom Harajuku
4. Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao Vs Miu Watanabe & Vert Vixen
5. Maki Itoh Vs Raku
6. Mizuki & Suzume Vs Yuki Arai & Moka Miyamoto

The first two shows in Houston have both sold out.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN DALLAS PRESENTED BY NEXTSHARK & QUERI”, 13/07/2025
The OC, Forney, Texas, USA

1. Hyper Misao & Shino Suzuki Vs Raku & Pom Harajuku
2. Moka Miyamoto Vs Alejandra Quintanilla
3. Yuki Arai Vs Maya World
4. Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara
5. Shoko Nakajima Vs Miu Watanabe
6. Yuka Sakazaki & Billie Starkz Vs Miyu Yamashita & Vert Vixen
7. Special Single Match: Mizuki Vs Maki Itoh

And the “Dallas” show is apparently going to end up becoming TJPW’s biggest drawing show in America ever!


SETUP “UNDER PRESSURE”, 26/07/2025
The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand

1. Chris Brookes Vs X

Some late summer travelling for Chris Brookes. First he’ll be going back to Thailand for a SETUP show. Ram Kaichow will be there too.


BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. MNL”, 22/08/2025
The Social House, Makati, Philippines

1. Takeshi Masada Vs X
2. Chris Brookes Vs X

Then a month later Brookes is going over to the Philippines and he’s bringing Takeshi Masada with him. Dexcon will be holding a weekend tripleshot of shows, the first of which will be Baka Gaijin + Friends!


DXCN “???”, 23/08/2025
Philippines

1. Takeshi Masada Vs X
2. Chris Brookes Vs X

I can’t find any info on what the second Dexcon show of the weekend will be other than Brookes and Masada should both be on it.


GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 1”, 23/08/2025
Showboat Hotel Atlantic City, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs X

Itoh returns to GCW in August for a doubleshot weekend.


DXCN “PEKSMAN”, 24/08/2025
Brawl Pit Bulusan, Quezon City, Philippines

1. Takeshi Masada Vs X
2. Chris Brookes Vs X

The third Dexcon show will be built around local wrestlers taking on the international guests.


GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 2”, 24/08/2025
Showboat Hotel Atlantic City, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs X

There will likely be a lot more GCW bookings coming for Itoh as usual.

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Cancelled Appearances


WAFFLE HOUSE “GOOD FOOD FAST”, 15/06/2025
Waffle House, Colorado, USA

While Itoh was in Colorado for Lucha Libre & Laughs, she went to a Waffle House fully expecting the place to live up to its online reputation. Unfortunately for her no fights or other bad doings took place while she was there. Instead she got to experience the kind of Waffle House that the late Anthony Bourdain once waxed lyrically about.


GCW “TAKE A PICTURE”, 22/06/2025
The Truman, Kansas City, Missouri, USA

1. GCW Tag Team Titles: Jordan Oliver & Alec Price (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita & Billie Starkz

Yamashita found herself in the centre of controversy during the month when GCW were running a show in Missouri. The state’s athletic commission refused to give Yamashita a license to wrestle on the show because she has no social security number. GCW argued that she has all of the required documents as well as a valid working visa needed to qualify for a license. They also pointed out that Yamashita has wrestled in Missouri several times previously without any trouble. I can back up that claim because this very series of articles has records of her wrestling in St. Louis, Missouri twice in 2023: once for ROH in March and then for Glory Pro in May. Unfortunately this couldn’t change the commission’s mind and Yamashita wasn’t allowed to wrestle that evening.


GANBARE☆PRO “BLUE VELVET 2025” Results

June 22, 2025

GANBARE☆PRO “BLUE VELVET 2025”, 22/06/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING
196 Fans

1. Ken Ohka & Choun-Shiryu defeated Shinichiro Tominaga & Ali Najima when Ohka pinned Najima with the Flame Spear (9:05).
2. Keisuke Ishii defeated Shota Kawakami with a Knee Drop (6:40).
3. GanPro Ultimate Rules: Shuichiro Katsumura defeated Thanomsak Toba by Referee Stoppage with a Body-locking Sleeper Hold (2:20).
4. Yoshiko Hasegawa’s Last Ganbare☆Pro Wrestling Match: Moeka Haruhi, Yuna Manase & Banny Oikawa defeated YuuRI, Yoshiko Hasegawa & Riara when Manase pinned Hasegawa with the Suzuki Dynamic (12:22).
5. Mizuki Watase defeated Munetatsu Nakamura by TKO when Watase used the NAGISA on Nakamura and Toru Sugiura threw in the towel (12:54).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Yumehito Imanari (c) defeated Tyson “Ultimate” Maeguchi with the Power Bomb (12:36).
*V5 for Yumehito Imanari.

Given that Tyson “Ultimate” Maeguchi is digging deep into his combat sports roots he aimed to beat Yumehito Imanari by knockout. But Imanari’s faith in pro wrestling won out in the end. He was reminded of the time Keiji Muto fought Don Frye and Muto said he had no choice but to prepare for his Frye’s punches. Imanari was able to beat the 10 counts, block Maeguchi’s punches and drop him with a Power Bomb to get the win in the end. Imanari gave praise to Maeguchi after the match for being who he wants to be, which is a goal of Ganbare☆Pro. He found a way to mix together kickboxing with pro wrestling and take it all over the indies. Imanari brought up that they recently wrestled a match together at a okonomiyaki restaurant in Suidobashi. He congratulated Maeguchi on becoming a real kickboxing pro wrestler and told him they should wrestle each other in that restaurant again.

Mizuki Watase kept taunting Munetatsu Nakamura with the Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Title belt which fired Nakamura up for to fight him. Watase taunted him again by screaming Nakamura will never win the belt like this. He put Nakamura in a Front Neck Lock with an Arm Lock added on but Nakamura wouldn’t give up. His tag partner Toru Sugiura threw in a towel from ringside to forfeit the match. Nakamura complained about it but Sugiura explained afterward, asking him what if he broke his arm? If it was a title match he’d understand losing one or two arms behind but it’s not worth doing it for this match. Watase understood Sugiura’s point and told both of them to bring this same feeling with them for the title bout next month. Sugiura & Nakamura promised that when they win the SOG Tag Titles they will be all over Shukan Puroresu and Wrestle Universe!

All of the Ganbare☆Joshi division gathered together for Yoshiko Hasegawa’s final match in GanPro before she retires from pro wrestling. Riara returned to GanPro for the occasion and even HARUKAZE showed up to be the ring announcer. Hasegawa got to start off the match with Moeka Haruhi. Then YuuRI & Riara helped beat down Yuna Manase so Hasegawa could put her in the Muffler Hold but Banny Oikawa cut her off. Manase was able to get the pin on Hasegawa by giving her the Suzuki Dynamic, a move she hasn’t used for a while in GanPro. After the match Manase said she was so nervous about today that she forgot her wrestling boots and had to borrow Ken Ohka’s boots for the match. She told Hasegawa she will always be a part of GanJo as long as she keeps trying. So if she doesn’t feel like trying anymore she will always be allowed to come back and wrestle matches to find her strength again. Hasegawa then surprised Manase with a roll up and everyone else did a three count so they could all call Hasegawa the winner.

Ken Ohka has been inspired recently by Masaaki Mochizuki challenging for the Open The Dream Gate Title at the age of 55 years old. He wants to put the message out there that he would like to team with Mochizuki for a match on 19th July.

In his post-show comments, Imanari brought up that today has been a busy day for the Ibushi Wrestling Institute. He and Maeguchi fought each other in GanPro, Kota Ibushi returned to AEW and shootboxer Yukimitsu Takahashi won his fight today. So in Imanari’s mind today was like a birthday for the Ibushi Wrestling Institute.


DDT Around The World – May 2025

June 1, 2025

Can’t say this month has been a quiet one. Konosuke Takeshita had a lot of TV time with AEW and we even got the lovely announcement that he’s married to Yuka Sakazaki. All of Takeshita’s work this month revolves around The Don Callis Family, yes even the American New Japan appearance. The group in its current form is nailing it at the moment with good tag matches week to week and the presence of Don Callis himself is not as overwhelming as it was before. I bet over the coming months Takeshita’s schedule will gradually switch from AEW over to New Japan as we walk through the Forbidden Door and approach the G1 season.

May saw Maki Itoh finish up her remaining dates in America before she travelled back home to rejoin Tokyo Joshi Pro. She has another tour lined up during the Tokyo Princess Cup so the Americans won’t be missing her for long. Miyu Yamashita is entering the second half of her excursion and her schedule is definitely keeping her busy. She’s bouncing back and forth from America to Canada and even found time to visit Italy. Her matches in the Upcoming Appearances section below are not all of the bookings she has left. She included a few unlabeled dates in her schedule on Twitter and it’s pretty easy to find online that they are for GCW’s sister promotion JCW. However JCW themselves haven’t announced her for anything yet so I left them off this post. As you’ll see at the very end, there is always a possible booking cancellation that could happen at any time.

TJPW’s grip on the Southeast Asian scene took something of a hit because Yuki Kamifuku and Raku both lost all of the SEA championships this month. It’s likely not the end of TJPW working with companies from Thailand and Singapore but for now the focus looks to be moving towards the new relationship with Major League Wrestling in America. MLW is currently going through a roster shuffle too with a good amount of contracts not being renewed and some new talent coming in to fill those emptying spots. TJPW may just be used as a temporary solution to fill in the gap but they’ll benefit from it for as long as it lasts.

The thing to watch for in the next month or two is how often Sakazaki will get to wrestle, whether it’s on the indies or if she can get booked in AEW/ROH again. I hear rumours every now and then that there’s an injury clearance issue going on with her. But it wouldn’t make sense if AEW uses that as a reason to keep her on the shelf only to let her go wrestle somewhere else. They haven’t like it in the past when their wrestlers got injured on another promotion’s show.

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Videos

Konosuke Takeshita In AEW Playlist


AEW “COLLISION”, 08/05/2025
Masonic Temple Theatre, Detroit, Michigan, USA

1. Evil Uno & Alex Reynolds Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Josh Alexander (w/ Don Callis)


HOG “WAGING WAR”, 09/05/2025
Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois, USA

1. HOG Women’s Title: Indi Hartwell Vs Miyu Yamashita


AEW “DYNAMITE – BEACH BREAK”, 14/05/2025
NOW Arena, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA

1. Will Ospreay & Hangman Page Vs Konosuke Takeshita & Josh Alexander


AEW “COLLISION”, 22/05/2025
Rio Rancho Events Center, Rio Rancho, New Mexico, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita, Trent Beretta & Rocky Romero (w/ Lance Archer) Vs Bandido, Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd


AEW “COLLISION”, 31/05/2025
El Paso County Coliseum, El Paso, Texas, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita, Trent Beretta & Rocky Romero Vs Roderick Strong, Kyle O’Reilly & Tomohiro Ishii

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Results


TOP TALENT “LIVE AT MIDWAY MUSIC HALL”, 02/05/2025
Midway Music Hall, Edmonton, Canada

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Ava Lawless (?:??).

We start off over in Canada where Yamashita headlined a Top Talent Wrestling show against Ava Lawless. The Canadian knew it was going to be a big test for her and she embraced it but Yamashita came out on top.


HOODSLAM “PHANTASMAGORIA”, 02/05/2025
Continental Club, Oakland, California, USA

1. GLAMpionship: MacDaddy MYLO (c) (w/KEiTA) defeated Maki Itoh with a School Boy (?:??).
*V6 for MacDaddy MYLO.

On the same night one country away, Itoh was main eventing a show of her own with her return to Hoodslam. She was getting a shot at the GLAMpionship, a title that was originally created for the promotion’s sub-brand GLAM but made its way over to the regular shows. MacDaddy MYLO attacked her before she could finish her entrance but made the mistake of slamming her head into the turnbuckles which had no effect. Itoh’s momentum was cut off when MYLO pulled the ref into her way and then jumped in to do a Cutter. Itoh made another comeback only for KEiTA to interfere on the champion’s behalf. Itoh fought them both off and put MYLO in the Itoh Deluxe but KEiTA distracted the ref so she wouldn’t see MYLO tap out. Itoh got rid of KEiTA again but MYLO rolled her up in a School Boy to steal the win.


GCW “CRAZY SCARY SPOOKY HILARIOUS”, 03/05/2025
Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Maki Itoh with the Skull Kick (13:23).

The day after that Yamashita and Itoh’s paths crossed over in GCW. The two of them were heading into a big weekend where they both had title matches to prepare for. But before any of that could happen the two would meet in the ring against each other! Did anyone on GCW commentary know about their history together as 121000000 beyond just them being tag champions a few times? Fucking of course not! At least the fans were super into it. The was the first time Yamashita would face Itoh in a place where Itoh has the home field advantage and while she didn’t go into MDK mode, she was able to put up her biggest fight against Yamashita yet. Even Yamashita seemed to be aware of it because when he knocked down Itoh with the Skull Kick, she ordered the ref to check her for a knockout. The ref dropped Itoh’s arm three times but on the third Itoh kept her hand up and raised a middle finger to the air! She got a second wind and almost scored the victory she waited so long for by countering the Attitude Adjustment into a Small Package. But Yamashita kicked out and nailed another Skull Kick to increase her singles match record with Itoh to 10-0. There was no hard feelings over the result and 121000000 shook hands afterwards.


GCW “WE STILL DON’T TRUST YOU”, 04/05/2025
Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, Oregon, USA

1. JCW World Title: Masha Slamovich (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita with the White Knight Driver (10:13).
*V36 for Masha Slamovich.
2. GCW World Title: Effy (c) defeated Maki Itoh with a Spinning Tombstone Piledriver (12:08).
*V16 for Effy.

Well if plan of having iron sharpen iron was to result in championship wins it didn’t work out here. Itoh finished up her latest excursion by getting a shot at the GCW World Title held by Effy before she went home. Effy lightened the mood by singing “Mandy” on the microphone but changed the lyrics to be about Maki. She didn’t like it and told him to stop but that made Effy start to cry. It was all a trap to for Effy to get the one up on Itoh but she quickly escaped and turned the tables. She did a Diving Cross Body from the top rope to Effy outside the ring. Effy brought in chairs and ended up getting Choke Slammed onto one by Itoh! She also kicked out of a Spear at one and sliced Effy’s forehead open with her pizza cutter. Despite all that Effy countered the I.S.D by catching her in mid-air. He then spun it around into a Tombstone Piledriver to get the win.

Also on the show Yamashita challenged Masha Slamovich for the JCW Title in a continuation of their international rivalry. It was an even matchup but just like in Las Vegas last month, Slamovich got Yamashita in the White Knight Driver for the three count. Yamashita slapped away the champion’s hand after the match but immediately offered a handshake of her own, which Slamovich accepted.


AEW “COLLISION”, 08/05/2025
Masonic Temple Theatre, Detroit, Michigan, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita & Josh Alexander (w/ Don Callis) defeated Evil Uno & Alex Reynolds when Alexander pinned Reynolds with the C4 Spike (2:30).

Even though Takeshita was already eliminated from the Owen Hart Cup last month, this month he was still in orbit of the tournament. His new tag team with Josh Alexander in The Don Callis Family were set up for a match against the two wrestlers who reached the final. So for a warm up match they went and destroyed two members of The Dark Order in quick fashion on Collision. Alexander picked up Evil Uno and with Takeshita did a Doomsday Jumping Knee to the masked man. Then they smashed Alex Reynolds with a Double Elbow Strike to the head before Alexander pinned him with the C4 Spike.


HOG “WAGING WAR”, 09/05/2025
Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois, USA

1. HOG Women’s Title: Indi Hartwell defeated Miyu Yamashita with a Full Nelson Facebuster (12:13).
*Indi Hartwell becomes the 8th HOG Women’s Champion!

The stakes were raised for Yamashita’s return to House Of Glory. Right before her match with Indi Hartwell began the HOG commissioner Jason Solomon walked out and announced that the HOG Women’s Title held by Megan Bayne had been vacated. He then announced that this match would determine the new champ! Yamashita had the end of the match under control until Hartwell ducked the Skull Kick and planted her with a Full Nelson Facebuster to win the match out of nowhere and become champion.


NJPW “RESURGENCE”, 09/05/2025
Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA

1. NEVER Openweight Title: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (c) (w/ Rocky Romero) defeated El Phantasmo with the Raging Fire (17:48).
*V6 for KONOSUKE TAKESHITA.

Rocky Romero’s involvement with Takeshita in the NJPW USA shows have become a little more clearer now that Romero is part of The Don Callis Family. He accompanied Takeshita for his NEVER Openweight Title defence against El Phantasmo. It couldn’t reach the heights of last year’s G1 match but ELP still did a massive Thunderkiss ’86 dive to Takeshita into the front row, landed a Cutthroat Driver for a nearfall and also gave Takeshita a Piledriver on the ring apron. ELP had the win in his grasp when Romero pulled the referee out of the ring during a pinfall. ELP got some measure of revenge on Romero by Power Bombing him through a table but that gave Takeshita time to recover and pin ELP with the Raging Fire. There is growing respect between the two because they shook hands after the match.


MAPLE LEAF PRO “NORTHERN RISING”, 10/05/2025
Mattamy Athletic Centre, Toronto, Canada

1. Serena Deeb defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Detox (12:55).

Yamashita travelled back up to Canada for another appearance in Maple Leaf Pro. There she faced Serena Deeb who was making her third appearance in a row for the promotion. Yamashita hit the Skull Kick but Deeb made sure to topple out of the ring to avoid getting pinned. When she was put back in the ring, Deeb pushed Yamashita into the ref and then hit her from behind with a Chop Block. She then pinned her with the Detox, which is Deeb’s arm trapped Styles Clash kind of finisher.


MLW “AZTECA LUCHA”, 10/05/2025
Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, USA

1. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title: Shoko Nakajima (c) defeated Delmi Exo (?:??).
*V1 for Shoko Nakajima.

Right, here’s the funny thing about MLW. Their shows nowadays are one half live iPPV and the other half TV tapings for the upcoming month. That’s not unusual for wrestling but barely anyone who goes to MLW shows cares about spoiling the tapings part. Shoko Nakajima’s appearance on the live PPV was just to be seen sitting in the front row to hype up her next MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title defence. That match is a rematch with Delmi Exo that will air on MLW’s TV show in June. I couldn’t find any result or talk of the rematch online anywhere and the only reason we know Nakajima is still the champion is because she brought the belt back to Japan with her. Once the match airs I’ll come back and write this with any necessary corrections included. Like I don’t know, maybe they went to a 60 minute draw. I can’t prove they did but you can’t prove they didn’t either.


AEW “DYNAMITE – BEACH BREAK”, 14/05/2025
NOW Arena, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA

1. Will Ospreay & Hangman Page defeated Konosuke Takeshita & Josh Alexander (w/ Don Callis) when Page pinned Alexander after the Buckshot Hidden Blade (18:34).

The two Owen Hart Cup finalists Will Ospreay & Hangman Page had to team up before their big PPV match. They needed to be on the same page because Takeshita & Alexander were coming after them like a well oiled machine. There was some communication between them to set things up but it still led to moments where Page almost hit Ospreay with the Buckshot Lariat and Ospreay almost hit Page with the Hidden Blade. But something eventually clicked between the two and they combined their finishers Kinnikuman style on Alexander to get the victory.


GCW “BIG TIME”, 17/05/2025
RJ Meyer Arena, Joppa, Maryland, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Marcus Mathers with the Crash Rabbit Heat (21:02).

Plans changed for Yamashita’s next match in GCW. She was supposed to face Tony Deppen but instead her opponent was Marcus Mathers. The match featured quite a bit of mat work with Mathers looking for spots to take Yamashita into an Ankle Lock. Yamashita also found herself getting thrown around more often than she would back in TJPW. Mathers press dropped her onto the ring apron and tried to do a Power Bomb but it was countered into a Sunset Flip. When Mathers went more high risk he paid for it by springboarding into a glancing Skull Kick for a nearfall. By that point Yamashita knew she had Mathers where she wanted him and wore him down with kicks before pinning him with the Crash Rabbit Heat.


GCW “RUN FOR IT”, 18/05/2025
Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA

1. Billie Starkz defeated Miyu Yamashita with a Victory Roll Reversal (10:34).

Yamashita’s final GCW appearance for the month (probably because it was also the last GCW show of the month) was also the fourth singles meeting with Billie Starkz. It turns out Starkz has become a very slippery opponent for Yamashita to beat nowadays because this match was her third defeat in a row to her. Yamashita got a nearfall with an Avalanche Attitude Adjustment and continued the pressure after that but Starkz ended up reversing a Victory Roll to get the three count out of nowhere.


AEW “COLLISION”, 21/05/2025 (Aired 22/05/2025)
Rio Rancho Events Center, Rio Rancho, New Mexico, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita, Trent Beretta & Rocky Romero (w/ Lance Archer) defeated Bandido, Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd when Takeshita pinned Floyd with the Bastard Driver (9:35).

More shuffling going around within The Don Callis Family yet things look so similar. Trent Beretta is back from injury and has reunited with Rocky Romero. Their Roppongi Vice team in New Japan is now conveniently renamed RPG Vice in AEW. They and Takeshita were put together for a trios match against the wild combination of Bandido and The Outrunners. During the madness Takeshita used a well timed Jumping Knee Strike to make Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd clash into each other. Then at ringside Lance Archer wiped out Bandido so the rest of The Family had the coast clear to finish things off.


MKW “BATTLE OF THE DECADE”, 24/05/2025
Dongxin Plaza, Beijing, China

1. Yuki Kamifuku & Chen Wenbin defeated Alexis Lee & Big Sam when Kamifuku pinned Lee with the Diving Famouser (?:??).

Now let’s head over to Asia to see what some of the other TJPW wrestlers have been up to. Middle Kingdom Wrestling in China brought in Yuki Kamifuku for a mixed tag match with Alexis Lee on the other team, making it a preview for their big title match happening in Singapore one week later. Kamifuku was teaming up with Chinese wrestler Chen Wenbin while Lee had a big British brute named Big Sam as her tag partner. Sam was too strong to a fault because he ended up missing Wenbin and Clotheslining Lee off the ring apron by mistake. Kamifuku by herself couldn’t hurt Big Sam but Wenbin was there to help her out when needed. Things also went wrong for Sam when his manager messed up a pin break and stomped on him, allowing the other team to charge in and Double Big Boot Sam out of the ring. Lee tried to get her hands on Kamifuku afterwards but Kamifuku got the better of her, winning the match with the Diving Famouser.


SAJ “HUNTER’S NET”, 24/05/2025
Via Dante 72, Sporting Cesate, Milan, Italy

1. 3 Way Match: Miyu Yamashita defeated Irene and Session Moth Martina (?:??).

Yamashita can now scratch Italy off her growing list of countries she’s wrestled in. SAJ Wrestling brought her in for a 3 Way Match against Italy’s own Irene and the Irish wrestler Session Moth Martina. The latter was really looking forward to this because she was meant to face Yamashita at EVE earlier in the year but she had to cancel it due to illness. Yamashita also tweeted that her first time in Italy was an incredible experience.


AEW “DOUBLE OR NOTHING”, 25/05/2025
Desert Diamond Arena, Glendale, Arizona, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita, Kyle Fletcher & Josh Alexander defeated Adam Cole, Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly when Fletcher pinned O’Reilly with (12:48).

Takeshita and co. were put in the unenviable position of following the annual Anarchy In The Arena match. They all did alright given the circumstances. Takeshita has crossed paths with Adam Cole, Roderick Strong & Kyle O’Reilly before but not when all three have been together as Paragon. In fact the previous times Takeshita has been in the ring with Strong was as tag partners. The Don Callis Family ended up isolating O’Reilly and left it to Kyle Fletcher to finish him off. The Family continued the attack after the match until an unlikely trio of wrestlers came to the rescue. Hiroshi Tanahashi made a suprise appearance leading Tomohiro Ishii & Brody King to the ring to chase off The Family. It’s all to set up the next “FORBIDDEN DOOR” that will be held in England this year. It’s since been confirmed that the show will feature Tanahashi’s final wrestling match in the UK before he retires. Could Takeshita become a part of it just like he was for Tanahashi’s last USA match?


AEW “COLLISION”, 28/05/2025 (Aired 31/05/2025)
El Paso County Coliseum, El Paso, Texas, USA

1. Konosuke Takeshita, Trent Beretta & Rocky Romero defeated Roderick Strong, Kyle O’Reilly & Tomohiro Ishii when Takeshita pinned Ishii with the Raging Fire (10:18).

Chaos broke out from the get go when The Don Callis Family attacked their opponents from behind only for Paragon & Ishii to bring the fight to them outside the ring. Don Callis also briefly got away from the commentary table to deliver a cheap shot. Takeshita and Ishii threw bombs at each other until Takeshita pushed Ishii into the ref. That allowed Romero to Low Blow Ishii from behind so Takeshita could pin him with the Raging Fire.


SPW “MAYHEM”, 30/05/2025
Foo Chow Building, Singapore

1. Queen Of Asia Title: Alexis Lee defeated Yuki Kamifuku (c) (?:??).
*Yuki Kamifuku fails in V7. Alexis Lee becomes the 6th Queen Of Asia Champion!

The Queen Of Asia has been defeated. Long live the new Queen Of Asian Champion! Lee wanted one more shot at Kamifuku’s title in SPW and was willing to put up the biggest gamble of her life to do it. She promised to put her career on the line and retire from wrestling if she couldn’t take the title from Kamifuku! The bet paid off because Lee was able to get the win and become a two time Queen Of Asia Champion. Thing along with Kamifuku losing the VPW Women’s Title in TJPW earlier in the month brings her Southeast Asian dominance to an end, maybe just for the time being.


SETUP “THE FALLEN KINGDOM”, 31/05/2025
The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand

1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title: Matcha defeated Raku (c) with the Stunner (?:??).
*Raku fails in V2. Matcha becomes the 4th SETUP All Asia Women’s Champion!

The good folks at SETUP have kept me up to date on Raku’s return to Thailand this month which I appreciate greatly. Matcha wanted a chance to win back the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title she lost to TJPW and would get it with Raku coming over to defend it. But Raku had a devious plan put in place to give her the advantage. When Matcha was in Japan for a TJPW tour, Raku purposely sang “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” to her her backstage to send her to sleep. Raku then sent a recording of the song over to the SETUP dojo, making everyone over there who played it fall asleep on the spot. SETUP staff also told me that Raku played the same prank on a delivery driver on Matcha’s birthday so her birthday cake would never arrive! So Matcha tried to fight fire with fire by bringing along a certain kind of pillow and mat used in Thailand for Raku to lie on. Raku almost fell asleep but had the awareness to roll up Matcha when she tried to pin her. The two proceeded to wrestle the match using the mat as a weapon on each other, mostly by one bundling up the other in the mat to try and immobilize them. When it came down to the final moments of the match, Matcha countered Raku’s Doctor Yellow into the Last Rights. After that she hit the Stunner to win and regain her championship! Raku was upset to lose the title but Matcha made it up to her after the match by giving her the pillow to bring home as a keepsake. Raku may have also got to sing Zack Sabre Jr. to sleep at the merch table as the main photo at the top of the article suggests.

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Upcoming Appearances


NEW TEXAS PRO “BAT CITY”, 01/06/2025
Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA

1. Charity King & AQA Vs VertVixen & Yuka Sakazaki

There was only one previous time when VertVixen & Yuka Sakazaki were in the ring together and it was for an AEW Dark match. They meet again for Sakazaki’s return to the American indies, this time teaming together over at New Texas Pro. Someone in this match who is also getting attention is AQA. She was seen as an exciting prospect on the indies a few years ago and even signed a deal with AEW (she got the graphic and everything) but unexpectedly quit the business only a few months later. All of a sudden New Texas Pro announced her return and this is going to be her first match back in three years. Charity King will be there to lend her a helping hand for the comeback.


KITSUNE “GOING BACK TO SAN DIEGO”, 07/06/2025
Primal Compound, San Diego, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Zara Zakher
2. Vipress & Hudson Envy Vs Nagisa Nozaki & Yuna Manase

Not long to go now until Yuna Manase returns for the next weekend of Kitsune shows. Yamashita will be there too.


KITSUNE “8888”, 08/06/2025
South Gate, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Kitsune World Title: Yuna Manase (c) Vs Tae Honma

Manase has a Kitsune World Title defence against Tae Honma lined up while Yamashita won’t know who she faces until the day of the show.


LLL “BUY THE TICKET, TAKE THE RIDE – NIGHT 1”, 13/06/2025
The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

Yamashita’s first opponent for her weekend at Lucha Libre & Laughs has not been announced yet.


LLL “BUY THE TICKET, TAKE THE RIDE – NIGHT 2”, 14/06/2025
The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA

1. Dark Sheik Vs Miyu Yamashita

But her opponent on the second night is already known. It’s Dark Sheik!


GCW “BANGIN’ IN LITTLE ROCK”, 20/06/2025
The Hall, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

It won’t be until them middle of the month when Yamashita jumps back into GCW. There will be a couple of both new and familiar faces showing up by then, giving Yamashita a few potentially fresh opponents.


GCW “TAKE A PICTURE”, 22/06/2025
The Truman, Kansas City, Missouri, USA

1. GCW Tag Team Titles: Jordan Oliver & Alec Price (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita & Billie Starkz

If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em! Yamashita and Starkz are teaming up for a crack at the GCW Tag Team Titles currently held by Jordan Oliver & Alec Price. This could be Yamashita’s last chance on this tour to win some gold.


MLW “SUMMER OF THE BEASTS”, 26/06/2025
Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York, USA

1. Wakana Uehara Vs Yuki Kamifuku

The relationship between TJPW and Major League Wrestling will continue with more TJPW wrestlers crossing over to the world that never stops! While Nakajima is defending MLW’s Women’s Title in Japan, TJPW will be sending over Yuki Kamifuku and Wakana Uehara to compete against each other in the MLW ring. Cesar Duran says this is part of a new era for MLW’s women’s division being helmed by Salina de la Renta.


REAPER “REAPER RISING – A KING’S CORONATION”, 27/06/2025
The Pit, Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Janai Kai

This is one of those times when the wrestling promotion in question is so far out of my reach I half consider if it’s someone’s eFed because the info is so sparse. However I can confirm Reaper Wrestling is a real company in Canada. Yamashita will get to face Janai Kai again and she sent a video warning Kai that nothing has changed since the last time they fought each other.


METALMANIA “2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY”, 28/06/2025
Stage 722, Portland, Oregon, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

And the award for the most unlikely place to book Yamashita during her excursion goes to METALMANIA! It’s where you go in Portland to see lucha mix with death metal music. Never would have thought Yamashita to be a headbanger.


SPARK “IGNITE TEXAS”, 29/06/2025
Baytown Community Center, Houston, Texas, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Yuka Sakazaki Vs X

When was the last time Yamashita and Sakazaki were on the same show together? It wasn’t when Sakazaki graduated from TJPW a year and a half ago, was it? As you can see in the pic above, there’s also some Stardom talent appearing on the show. If SPARK has the pull to put together the tag match I’m thinking of then good job to them.


BZW “LES JEUX SONT FAITS”, 05/07/2025
Casino Barrière de Lille, Lille, France

1. BZW Tag Team Titles: MAO & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Danny Black & Joe Lando

It’s back to France for a quick summer break. Or maybe not because MAO & Yoshihiko have some business to attend to for their return to Banger Zone Wrestling. British wrestlers Danny Black & Joe Lando have challenged them for the BZW Tag Team Titles. The pair from the CPF (Close Personal Friends) stable held the titles before and are getting this match at the same venue where they lost them.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 1”, 10/07/2025
POST, Houston, Texas, USA

The current lineup “confirmed” for the Texas tour is Maki Itoh, Miyu Yamashita, Miu Watanabe, Suzume, Yuki Arai, Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima, Pom Harajuku, Moka Miyamoto, Arisu Endo, Raku, Shino Suzuki and Yuki Kamifuku.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 2”, 11/07/2025
POST, Houston, Texas, USA

The only one not “confirmed” yet but still included in the promotional material is Hyper Misao. That might depend on if she recovers from her elbow injury in time.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN DALLAS”, 13/07/2025
The OC, Forney, Texas, USA

The only other thing known about the show lineups right now is each night will have different matches.

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Cancelled Appearances


MPX “METROPLEX WRESTLING”, 31/05/2025
Harwood Road, Bedford, Texas, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Maya World

A cancelled flight prevented Yamashita from travelling to Texas for her first appearance at Metroplex Wrestling. She was meant to fight Maya World at the show and called in a favour to Athena to be her replacement.


PRESTIGE “UNIT3D”, 01/06/2025
Vermont Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

Not much to say about this other than I’m including it just for the sake of record. When Yamashita first posted her list of USA bookings she included one for Prestige on 1st June. She later had an update saying the booking was cancelled and she was available for other dates on the weekend. Nothing was said on Prestige’s end but that’s also because they hadn’t at any point promoted she would appear on the show.


GANBARE☆PRO “SUICIDE SQUAD 2025” Results

May 6, 2025

GANBARE☆PRO “SUICIDE SQUAD 2025”, 05/05/2025
Yokohama Radiant Hall
294 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Shota Kawakami 1st Anniversary Match: Shota defeated Shota Kawakami with the Frog Splash (10:10).
2. YuuRI, Nanami & Kirari Wakana defeated Moeka Haruhi, Yuna Manase & Banny Oikawa when YuuRI pinned Oikawa with the Swanton Bomb (9:50).
3. Yumehito Imanari, Keisuke Ishii & Shinichiro Tominaga defeated Yuki Kanzaki, Munetatsu Nakamura & Daisuke®️ when Tominaga pinned Daisuke®️ with Wine Hamon Overdrive (13:36).
4. HARUKAZE’s Last Match Before Her Hiatus: Ken Ohka defeated HARUKAZE with the Flame Spear (13:17).
5. Shuichiro Katsumura & Hartley Jackson defeated Toru Sugiura & Dragon Libre when Katsumura pinned Libre with the KKB (15:23).
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase (c) defeated Yasu Urano & PSYCHO when Watase pinned Urano with the Running Elbow Butt (19:25).
*V4 for Shigehiro Irie & Mizuki Watase.

After the main event Mizuki Watase brought up that he and Yasu Urano once fought each other for the King Of Dark Title, a championship that DDT awarded to the loser and banished them to the pre-show until they won a match. He noted that match was 16 minutes long and lasted longer than the main event of the same show that day. He also said after today’s show he is now certain who the main character of Ganbare☆Pro is and that’s everybody in the GanPro universe! As for the next challengers for Watase & Shigehiro Irie, they welcome anyone to come face them for the Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles. They want to defend the titles at every GanPro show.

The semi-main event sparked a fire between GanPro and FREEDOMS when Takashi Sasaki interfered in the match to help Toru Sugiura & Dragon Libre. The GanPro wrestlers acting as seconds at ringside ran him off allowing Shuichiro Katsumura & Hartley Jackson to win one for the home team. Sasaki swore revenge afterwards and said he will fight GanPro any time.

Sadly for HARUKAZE she is leaving pro wrestling for now without ever winning a match at an independent GanPro show. She was persistent in trying to get Ken Ohka to tap out to an Arm Bar before switching gears to using roll up pins. Ohka couldn’t be beaten though and he pinned HARUKAZE with the Flame Spear. HARUKAZE asked everyone to make GanPro bigger so when she does come back she can win her first match there in front of a larger audience! Ohka said he believes she will be successful in life away from pro wrestling and when she does return they will wrestle together again.

Once the show was completed Munetatsu Nakamura, Shota Kawakami & YuuRI held a Ganbare☆Rally at ringside to promote the “YOUNG GANBARE SUMMIT” show happening on 10th May. Nakamura will be facing Mochizuki Jr. from Dragongate on the show and promised to beat him with a German Suplex. Kawakami called his opponents Kazumasa Yoshida & Ali Najima two big opponents so he and Shota Kofuji will show them a giant killing! YuuRI will be in a 6-Woman Tag Match and said no matter who she teams up with or fights against she will do her best in her own way.

Yoshiko Hasegawa will get to wrestle in GanPro one last time before her retirement. She will team with YuuRI & Riara to take on Yuna Manase, Moeka Haruhi & Banny Oikawa on 22nd June.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GOLDEN WEEK FAN APPRECIATION DAY 「EAST」” Results

May 3, 2025

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GOLDEN WEEK FAN APPRECIATION DAY 「EAST」”, 03/05/2025
Saitama Kasukabe Fureai Cube
374 Fans – Super No Vacancy

1. Yoshiko Hasegawa & Chika Nanase defeated Miu Watanabe & Uta Takami when Hasegawa submitted Takami with the Muffler Hold (10:23).
2. Yuki Arai, Moka Miyamoto & Shino Suzuki defeated Wakana Uehara, Kira Summer & Ivy Steele when Arai submitted Steele with the Scorpion Death Lock (8:37).
3. Yuki Aino & Haru Kazashiro defeated Rika Tatsumi & Toga when Aino pinned Toga with the Venus DDT (11:12).
4. Matcha, Alexis Lee & Nor ‘Phoenix’ Diana defeated Mizuki, Pom Harajuku & Arisu Endo when Diana pinned Harajuku with the DN (11:41).
5. Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao & Raku defeated Yuna Manase, Mahiro Kiryu & Haruna Neko when Misao pinned Neko with the Hypami Returns (11:39).
6. VPW Women’s Title: Viva Van defeated Yuki Kamifuku (c) with the Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex (7:15)
*Yuki Kamifuku fails in V4. Viva Van becomes the 2nd VPW Women’s Champion!
7. International Princess Title: Suzume (c) defeated HIMAWARI with the Ring A Bell (15:16).
*V4 for Suzume.

Suzume is quickly catching up to the International Princess Title defence record. Today’s win over HIMAWARI is her fourth defence since becoming champion at the start of the year. She avoided HIMAWARI’s new finishing move the Sunflower Tempest and used the corner to get her opponent with a Facecrusher and then the Ring A Bell to win. HIMAWARI said she is frustrated to lose after winning the No. 1 Contendership because she gave it her all and couldn’t beat Suzume. But she thinks the experience will help her take a step forward on an emotional level. She’ll train more so next time she challenges for a title she will win it!

In the ring Suzume praised HIMAWARI for establishing her own unique style from the beginning and having everything that Suzume does not have. As IP Champion Suzume wants to make Tokyo Joshi Pro known to the world just like her seniors who paved the way for her. Yoshiko Hasegawa then entered the ring. Back when she announced her plans to retire in March she said she wanted to challenge Suzume for the IP Title. Her idea received some criticism at the time which made her reconsider. But with only a short time of her wrestling career left, Hasegawa decided to be selfish and make the challenge. She asked the fans to call her name if they will support her challenge and they did. Suzume said she would have accepted the challenge no matter what others think and she will do her best to beat her.

There is a new VPW Women’s Champion after Viva Van defeated Yuki Kamifuku. It’s been a while since the two were together and Kamifuku couldn’t help but exclaim how much Van’s strikes hurt her. Kamifuku found her rhythm and got a nearfall from doing a Superplex followed by a Reverse Famouser. But Van ended up countering the regular Famouser and dropped Kamifuku with the Japanese Ocean Cyclone Suplex for the three count. Van said she’s been fighting all her life and didn’t come back to TJPW just to be someone else’s shadow. She won this championship for Vietnam and has become the first Vietnamese wrestler to win a title in Japan. Kamifuku said it is great to see an Asian girl like Van working hard so even though she isn’t happy she lost, she feels relieved to see the belt is now in Van’s care. It’s the end of the Asian Double Crown but Kamifuku still holds the Queen Of Asia Title. She hopes she is the catalyst of TJPW bringing in wrestlers from across the Southeast Asian region more often.

Kyoraku Kyomei have an important Princess Tag Team Titles defence coming up so they realized the best way to conserve their energy is to sleep more often. They got Raku to bring a blanket to the ring for the three of them to sleep under in the ring but it was all a trap so they could use it as a weapon on Yuna Manase. But Manase used her power to break free and Mahiro Kiryu had to apologise on their behalf for bringing the blanket into the ring. Manase helped Haruna Neko to Power Bomb Hyper Misao but Shoko Nakajima broke the pin. Raku got Manase & Kiryu out of the ring so Nakajima could dive onto them. That left Misao to pin Neko with the Hypami Returns.

After the match the SEA trio of Matcha, Alexis Lee & Nor ‘Phoenix’ Diana entered the ring to stand in front of their champion opponents. Matcha & Lee got into a little fight with Kyoraku Kyomei. Meanwhile Raku wanted to shake Diana’s hand and make a Good Night pose together but Diana turned her down. Nakajima said a successful defence against Matcha & Lee will be used as a stepping stone for Kyoraku Kyomei to defend their titles abroad even more. She wants to show the challengers she is the Big Kaiju while Misao will prove to them that she is a hero! Raku heard that Malaysians sleep a little longer than Japanese people but she wonders if Diana hasn’t been able to sleep because she is too excited to be in Japan? If that’s the case then Raku wants to have lots of sweet dreams with her.

The SEA wrestlers had a good start in the ring by winning their first match of the long weekend. Matcha used a Saito Suplex on Mizuki, Lee threw Arisu Endo aside with a German Suplex and Diana pinned Pom Harajuku with a Modified Neckbreaker called the DN. Diana said she is happy to debut in TJPW because Japan is the leading pro wrestling country in Asia. Lee thinks the three of them make a good team together. Matcha wants to keep the momentum going so all three of them can head home each carrying a championship belt.

The trainee Konatsu will make her debut on 1st June. She was originally introduced to fans back in October 2024. Since she is from Hamamatsu City in Shizuoka her debut match will be at the nearby Chunichi Hall in Nagoya on 1st June. She told the fans she will do her best for the once in a lifetime debut match close to her hometown.

The next “TJPW INSPIRATION” show will be held on 28th June at TOKYO SQUARE In Itabashi. It will be TJPW’s first show at the new venue. The first match announced is Tae Honma & Miyuki Takase Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa & Kaya Toribami.


King Of DDT Starting On Monday, Matsui’s Full Lineup, Two KO-D Title Matches For Wrestle Peter Pan

May 2, 2025

DDT “HELLO☆DRAMATIC DREAM 2025”, 03/05/2025
Yokohama Radiant Hall

1. Special Single Match: Kazusada Higuchi Vs MJ Paul
2. Danshoku Dieno & Antonio Honda Vs Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata
3. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs HARASHIMA & Akito
4. Yuki Ueno & To-y Vs Yuya Koroku & Daichi Sato
5. Special Tag Match: MAO & KANON (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs Soma Takao & Yukio Naya
6. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion (c) Vs Shunma Katsumata, Yuni & Kazuma Sumi

There are a weekend of shows for DDT to get through before King Of DDT starts on Monday.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “GOLDEN WEEK FAN APPRECIATION DAY 「EAST」”, 03/05/2025
Saitama Kasukabe Fureai Cube

1. Miu Watanabe & Uta Takami Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa & Chika Nanase
2. Yuki Arai, Moka Miyamoto & Shino Suzuki Vs Wakana Uehara, Kira Summer & Ivy Steele
3. Rika Tatsumi & Toga Vs Yuki Aino & Haru Kazashiro
4. Shoko Nakajima, Hyper Misao & Raku Vs Yuna Manase, Mahiro Kiryu & Haruna Neko
5. Mizuki, Pom Harajuku & Arisu Endo Vs Matcha, Alexis Lee & Nor ‘Phoenix’ Diana
6. VPW Women’s Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Viva Van
7. International Princess Title: Suzume (c) Vs HIMAWARI

Kaya Toribami is feeling unwell and won’t be able to wrestle tomorrow. Yuna Manase will now be on the show while Ivy Steele and Chika Nanase have been swapped around the card to fit her in.

DDT “SENDAI NEW LEGEND 2025 ~SASA KAMABOKO~”, 04/05/2025
Miyagi Yume Messe Miyagi

1. Hideki Okatani Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. 3 Way Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Toru Owashi Vs Yuni
3. Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs Makoto Oishi, Akito & Yukio Naya
4. Special Tag Match: Jun Akiyama & Kazuki Hirata Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuya Koroku
5. SCHADENFREUDE International Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y
6. Special Tag Match: MAO & KANON (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs HARASHIMA & Daichi Sato

Time to see if KIMIHIRO is worth bringing in.

DDT “KING OF DDT 2025 1ST ROUND”, 06/05/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

0. Dark Match – 3 Way Tag Match: MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs Toru Owashi & Soma Takao Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
0. Dark Match: Jun Akiyama & Danshoku Dieno Vs MAO & Kazuki Hirata (w/ KIMIHIRO)
1. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1A: Antonio Honda Vs Yuki Ueno
2. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1B: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Akito
3. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1C: KANON Vs Shunma Katsumata
4. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1D: Yukio Naya Vs Daichi Sato
5. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1E: Hideki Okatani Vs To-y
6. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1F: Chris Brookes Vs HARASHIMA
7. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1G: Takeshi Masada Vs Yuya Koroku
8. King Of DDT 2025 – Round 1H: Shinya Aoki Vs Kazusada Higuchi

It was announced during the week that Yuki Ishida was injured from his last match and would be unable to wrestle this weekend. They have since updated to say Ishida’s injury is a concussion and as a precaution there is no date yet for his return.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW SPRING TOUR 2025 IN FUJISAWA”, 11/05/2025
Fujisawa City Shonandai Cultural Center

1. Rika Tatsumi Vs Ivy Steele
2. Yuki Arai & Moka Miyamoto Vs HIMAWARI & Uta Takami
3. Miu Watanabe, Haru Kazashiro & Kira Summer Vs Suzume, Arisu Endo & Mifu Ashida
4. Hyper Misao, Haruna Neko & Chika Nanase Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
5. Mizuki & Shino Suzuki Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa & Kaya Toribami
6. Aja Kong Vs Mahiro Kiryu
7. Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara Vs Maki Itoh & Toga

This will be Maki Itoh’s return from her American tour but the spotlight will be on Yuki Kamifuku because the show is in her hometown. It’s a chance for Ober Eats to bounce back from their Princess Tag Team Titles match loss.

What did Mahiro Kiryu do to Kamifuku to get booked against Aja Kong?

BASARA “BASARA 278 ~KOO~”, 14/05/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. SAGAT & Minoru Fujita (w/ Takeru Inoue) Vs Tsutomu Oosugi & Banana Senga (w/ Gouma Ryu)
2. Ryuichi Sekine, Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi, Ayumu Honda & Reiya Igarashi Vs Takato Nakano, Masato Kamino, Lil’ Kraken & Yasu Urano
3. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2025 – Round 2 Block A1: Takumi Tsukamoto Vs Daichi Kazato
4. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2025 – Round 2 Block A2: Isami Kodaka Vs Keisuke Ishii
5. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2025 – Round 2 Block B1: Daiki Shimomura Vs Tomoki Hatano
6. Chouten ~Itadaki~ 2025 – Round 2 Block B2: Ryota Nakatsu Vs FUMA

Reiya Igarashi is a Gunma wrestler coming over from Osaka Style Wrestling.

DDT “DRAMATIC DREAMS! VOL. 12 ~GIVE IT TO THE CLOUDS THE MOUNTAIN CUCKOO~”, 17/05/2025
Osaka City Sumiyoshi Civic Center

1. The Anthem Of Geniuses ~The Battle To Decide The Strongest Variety Warrior~: Danshoku Dieno, Billy Ken Kid & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi Vs Toru Owashi, Kazuki Hirata & Soma Takao
2. Naomi Yoshimura’s Osaka Return Match ~REGGAE TOWN is back in OSAKA!~: Ryota Nakatsu & Naomi Yoshimura Vs Yasu Urano & Akito
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Laughter Leads To Hell~: Kuishinbo Kamen, Shunma Katsumata & Ram Kaichow Vs Kikutaro, Antonio Honda & No Name
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match Tecnico Vs Rudo Osaka War! ~The Code Of Justice, The Pride Of Evil~: Tsubasa, Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi Vs HUB, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion (w/ MJ Paul)
5. Special Tag Match – Muscle Villains Vs D GENERATIONS ~You Guys, You’ll Know It When You See It! It’s Me!~: Magnitude Kishiwada & Naruki Doi Vs To-y & Yuki Ishida
6. Special 6-Man Tag Match ~Heavyweight Super Carnival~: Jun Akiyama, KANON & Daichi Sato Vs Shuji Ishikawa, Yukio Naya & Takeshi Masada
7. Special Single Match ~Break Through The Top Of DDT! From Osaka To The World, A Terrifying Challenge For The Real Life Crowd!~: Chris Brookes Vs Kohei Kinoshita
8. Special Tag Match ~Head-To-Head Battle! One-Hit, Soul-Filled Attack!! Frontal Breakthrough!!!~: HARASHIMA & Kazusada Higuchi Vs Shuji Kondo & Shigehiro Irie
9. Special Tag Match ~Sakuyakonohana Dramatic Dreams Vs Superhuman Teacher & Student Wrestling Masters~: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Yuki Ueno Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Dick Togo

This is the full line up for Yukinori Matsui’s produce show.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “YOSHIKO HASEGAWA GRADUATION EVENT – NONFICTION”, 08/07/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. Yoshiko Hasegawa Graduation Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs X

It will be here before we know it. Yoshiko Hasegawa’s graduation from Tokyo Joshi Pro and retirement from pro wrestling will happen on 8th July.

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2025 – DAY 1”, 30/08/2025
Tokyo Higashin Arena Main Arena

1. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs X

The plan is to have two KO-D Openweight Title matches happen at “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2025”. One for both days. Seems obvious that the King Of DDT winner gets one of the title shots.

DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2025 – DAY 2”, 31/08/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs X

But who gets the other?


DDT Around The World – Late April 2025

May 1, 2025

What a month. Felt like the moment WrestleMania Week ended the wrestling world just kept going. Konosuke Takeshita was involved with the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament in AEW and when that came to an end he very quickly established a new tag team with Josh Alexander. Then in Japan some DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro wrestlers took part in Deadlock Pro’s weekend in the country’s capital. There was also some lucha libre action happening in Tokyo a few days later. Back in America Maki Itoh got her face painted again in a very nice and very evil manner. Then the very busy month came to an end with Miyu Yamashita stepping foot back inside AEW after a two or three year absence.

Yamashita is going to have a packed schedule in May. Itoh has a few things coming up but she will be back in TJPW in the middle of the month. Yamashita though has plenty on her plate and the AEW appearance came about at a good time to replenish some interest in her. What’s included below is not the complete schedule she posted on her Twitter account. There are plenty more dates coming up over the next few months but some haven’t been announced by the promotions yet so I left them out just to save some space. Our old pal Yuka Sakazaki got her first booking on the indies in quite a while too. Another thing to keep an eye on is just where will Keigo Nakamura land for his indefinite overseas excursion. Apparently wherever he’s going he is has gone travelling over there already. If he is indeed still going to wrestle I’ll do my best to keep track of it in these articles.

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Videos

Konosuke Takeshita In AEW Playlist


AEW “DYNAMITE – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 16/04/2025
MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Semi Final: Will Ospreay Vs Konosuke Takeshita


AEW “COLLISION – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 17/04/2025
MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

1. Josh Alexander & Konosuke Takeshita Vs Rocky Romero & Tomohiro Ishii


AEW “DYNAMITE”, 23/04/2025
Lakefront Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

1. Will Ospreay & Brody King Vs Josh Alexander & Konosuke Takeshita


AEW “DYNAMITE”, 30/04/2025
Chartway Arena, Norfolk, Virginia, USA

1. AEW Women’s World Title Eliminator Match: Toni Storm (w/ Luther) Vs Miyu Yamashita

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Results


AEW “DYNAMITE – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 16/04/2025
MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Semi Final: Will Ospreay defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the Stormbreaker (21:43).

A highly anticipated rematch in the Owen Hart Cup saw Takeshita clash with Will Ospreay once again. Ospreay looked to have had Takeshita’s number until Takeshita purposely collapsed to avoid taking the Hidden Blade. Takeshita even caught Ospreay in mid-air with an Elbow Strike only for Ospreay to kick out at one and hit the Hidden Blade from out of nowhere. Takeshita kicked out at one as well leading to a role reversal where Ospreay used the Bastard Driver into the German Suplex and Takeshita responded with a Hidden Blade of his own. More counters came with Ospreay turning the Raging Fire into a Hurricanrana that then switched into the Styles Clash. Takeshita countered another Hidden Blade with a Backslide into a Powerdrive Knee but Ospreay flipped over a Lariat and lifted Takeshita into the Stormbreaker, winning a hard fought match that booked his spot in the final.


AEW “COLLISION – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 17/04/2025
MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

1. Josh Alexander & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Rocky Romero & Tomohiro Ishii when Alexander pinned Ishii with a Power Bomb (10:18).

There wasn’t much time for Takeshita to lick his wounds but The Don Callis Family are already regrouping with a new addition to the unit. AEW’s newest signing Josh Alexander has taken on Don Callis’s management services and made to team with Takeshita. They won their first match as a tag team but one of the reasons it happened was because Rocky Romero ended up abandoning Tomohiro Ishii and left him to the wolves. Alexander & Takeshita rocked Ishii with a Double Roaring Elbow then Alexander finished him off with a Power Bomb. There was then more drama when Trent Beretta made his return after the match and attacked Ishii with Romero. Callis gave a wrench to Beretta and he used it to knock Ishii out.


AEW “DYNAMITE”, 23/04/2025
Lakefront Arena, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

1. Josh Alexander & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Will Ospreay & Brody King when Alexander pinned King after the Assisted C4 Spike (13:08).

Winning ways continued for The Don Callis Family when they took on Takeshita’s two opponents from the Owen Hart Cup. It was a heck of a task getting there though. Brody King ran through them like a tank while Ospreay and Takeshita had unfinished business from their match last week. The Family needed Lance Archer to distract the ref in order to turn the tables. Even then it took a lot fo Alexander & Takeshita to put King away. It eventually took Takeshita helping Alexander lift King up for the C4 Spike to finally put the big boy away.


DPW “SPIRIT RISING – NIGHT 1”, 24/04/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. Chris Brookes & HARASHIMA Vs LaBron Kozone & Calvin Tankman ended in a Draw (?:??).
2. DPW Women’s World Title: Dani Luna (c) defeated Rika Tatsumi (?:??).
*V3 for Dani Luna.

I couldn’t get any proper results from DPW’s two shows in Japan since they’re usually pretty good at keeping things under wraps until the matches get uploaded to their streaming service. But some scraping through Twitter I was able to piece together some things. Rika Tatsumi failed in her bid to win the DPW Women’s Title from Dani Luna. Also the DPW Vs DDT match went to a draw, I assume of the time limit kind. One of the big spots was HARASHIMA going to do the Somato on LaBron Kozone only to get ran over in midair with the Pounce from Calvin Tankman.


DPW “SPIRIT RISING – NIGHT 2”, 25/04/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Calvin Tankman & Kazuma Sumi defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida (?:??).
2. Emi Sakura, Chris Brookes, Mei Suruga & Baliyan Akki defeated Miyuki Takase, Kevin Ku, Dominic Garrini & Ryo Mizunami (?:??).

On Night 2 Chris Brookes was part of a ChocoPro team against a USA/Japan alliance representing DPW. Meanwhile Tankman got thrown in with some DDT wrestlers for a tag match between two pairs of big man and little man. Tankman is remaining in Japan for a ZERO1 tour but who knows, maybe DDT will come calling while he’s there.


HOG “ISOLATION”, 25/04/2025
NYC Arena, New York City, New York, USA

1. HOG Heavyweight Title: Mike Santana (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita ended in a No Contest when Charles Mason interfered (15:57).
*V14 for Mike Santana.

Well that kind of felt like a waste of time. The HOG Heavyweight Title was on the line and neither Mike Santana nor Takeshita were in a position to take a loss. So Charles Mason came out and ruined the whole thing. Santana had Takeshita pinned with the Spin The Block Roaring Lariat but Santana pulled the ref out of the ring mid-count and attacked Santana to stop the match. Takeshita tried to come to the rescue but Mason fled the ring unharmed. Santana and Takeshita raised each other’s hands to everyone afterward.


BLACK LABEL PRO “BLP AT SCX III”, 25/04/2025
The Wyndham, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita defeated Leyla Hirsch with the Skull Kick (?:??).
2. Danhausen & Maki Itoh defeated Davey Bang & August Matthews when Danhausen pinned Matthews and Itoh pinned Bang with the Double Kokeshi (?:??).

The latest American tours for Itoh & Yamashita kicked off over in Black Label Pro. Itoh joined forces with Danhausen once again to reunite Very Cute, Very Evil Makihausen. Itoh had the face fully painted to match her tag partner and be battle ready to go against Bang And Matthews. Itoh was in grave danger when Davey Bang & August Matthews combined to hit the Spears Tower on her but Danhausen broke the pin. When they tried the same move on Danhausen he paused them with a Curse that resulted in Itoh tripping them over. The two then filled their opponents’ mouths with jars of teeth before kicking them in their faces. Itoh & Danhausen then finished them off with Stereo Kokeshi Headbutts.

This month saw Leyla Hirsch return to action, now as a freelancer. Yamashita got to be one her of first opponents back and didn’t show much ring rust with her performance. She tried wearing down Yamashita with an Ankle Lock but Yamashita fired back with strikes that took a lot out of her opponent. Hirsch then missed a Moonsault and charged right into the Skull Kick for the finish.


MEXICO KANKO “LUCHA FIESTA ESPECIAL”, 27/04/2025
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan
2,714 Fans

1. Mexican Tourist Belt – The Road To Studying In Mexico 6 Way Match: Yuki Mashiro defeated Honoka, YuuRI, SONYA, CoCo and Yoshiko Hasegawa when Mashiro pinned Hasegawa with a Modified Suplex Hold (?:??).
Order Of Elimination: SONYA, CoCo, Honoka, YuuRI, Yoshiko Hasegawa.
2. Octagon & El Hijo del Octagon Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Pantera Jr. ended in a Draw when El Hijo del Octagon and Pantera Jr. pinned each other from a Romero Special (?:??).

The warm vibes of lucha libre were in the air surrounding Sumo Hall for a sponsored show put together by the Mexico Kanko tourism company. Daisuke Sasaki was thrown in with some luchadors for a tag match. Naturally Sasaki was on the rudo side teaming with Pantera Jr. to take on the supposedly family pair of Octagon & El Hijo del Octagon. Sasaki stepped in to stop Octagon from doing dive from the top turnbuckle. But the match ended up going to a draw when Pantera put El Hijo del Octagon in the Romero Special. The move leaned both luchadors back onto their shoulders resulting in a double pinfall. After some arguing over the finish, all four wrestlers raised each others hands in the ring.

A sixth woman was added to the Mexican Tourist Belt match. Yoshiko Hasegawa may be retiring from wrestling soon but she didn’t want to miss a chance to win a holiday to Mexico! She came close to winning too, eliminating YuuRI and making it to the final two with Yuki Mashiro. She tried to win using the Fisherman Buster but Mashiro got the better of her and won the match with a Modified Suplex.


AEW “DYNAMITE”, 30/04/2025
Chartway Arena, Norfolk, Virginia, USA

1. AEW Women’s World Title Eliminator Match: Toni Storm (w/ Luther) Vs Miyu Yamashita

Right at the end of the month Yamashita wound up in a familiar place. She came back to AEW for the first time since 2022 (or maybe 2023 if you want to count ROH). She was here to repeat what she did back then and that was to fight the AEW Women’s World Champion and beat her to get a title shot. We’re far past the days of Thunder Rosa though. It’s Toni Storm’s time now, which also happens to rewind the clock back one century thanks to her Timeless gimmick. Yamashita got into the swing of things by literally kicking Storm’s ass around the ring as well as kicking away the loyal butler Luther. She also hit the Skull Kick but was too fatigued to make the pin in time. I couldn’t tell if she broke the pin herself or if Storm kicked out of it because both looked like they happened at the same time. Storm made a comeback and avoided the Crash Rabbit Heat to throw Yamashita over to the corner with a German Suplex. She then landed the Running Hip Attack and pinned Yamashita with the Storm Zero. The booking sounds like it was a one time thing for Yamashita during this latest stay in the States. But she promised if she ever comes back to AEW she will kick someone else’s head in!

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Upcoming Appearances


TOP TALENT “LIVE AT MIDWAY MUSIC HALL”, 02/05/2025
Midway Music Hall, Edmonton, Canada

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Ava Lawless

May starts off with Yamashita and Itoh going in separate directions for a while. Yamashita will be in Canada to face Ava Lawless in her Top Talent Wrestling debut.


HOODSLAM “PHANTASMAGORIA”, 02/05/2025
Continental Club, Oakland, California, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs X

Meanwhile Itoh returns to a Hoodslam that is currently in chaos. But when is it ever quiet over there?


GCW “CRAZY SCARY SPOOKY HILARIOUS”, 03/05/2025
Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs Miyu Yamashita

The next day 121000000 are back together but this time as opponents. Can Itoh finally beat Yamashita one on one for the first time ever?


GCW “WE STILL DON’T TRUST YOU”, 04/05/2025
Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, Oregon, USA

1. JCW World Title: Masha Slamovich (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita
2. GCW World Title: Effy (c) Vs Maki Itoh

Then soon after that the two of them have the chance to both become champions in the GCW sphere on the same night. While Itoh faces Effy for the GCW World Title, Yamashita gets in the ring again with Masha Slamovich in a bid to take away her JCW World Title. Slamovich just recently pinned Yamashita at the “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW” show which seems to be what set this title match up. At the moment this looks to be Itoh’s last booking before she goes back to Japan. Her TJPW return will be on 11th May.


HOG “WAGING WAR”, 09/05/2025
Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois, USA

1. Indi Hartwell Vs Miyu Yamashita

Yamashita gets another match with someone who knows what it’s like to wrestle in WWE. This time it is the Indi Hartwell, the former NXT Women’s Champion (bet some of you forgot she held that title for a month) turned TNA’s latest signing.


NJPW “RESURGENCE”, 09/05/2025
Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA

1. NEVER Openweight Title: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (c) Vs El Phantasmo

It’s now been confirmed that Takeshita will defend the NEVER Openweight Title against El Phantasmo at New Japan’s next USA show. This is also happening a week after they face each other in Japan with the NJPW World TV Title on the line. Does Rocky Romero get involved after the ambush he committed on ELP last month?


MAPLE LEAF PRO “NORTHERN RISING”, 10/05/2025
Mattamy Athletic Centre, Toronto, Canada

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Serena Deeb

Yamashita is just bouncing back and forth between Canada and America during this trip. Serena Deeb will want to be the road block that stops her.


MLW “AZTECA LUCHA”, 10/05/2025
Cicero Stadium, Chicago, Illinois USA

1. Shoko Nakajima Vs X

After winning the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title earlier this month, Shoko Nakajima is set to return to MLW for their next “AZTECA LUCHA” taping. Nothing has been announced yet for what her match is going to be. Could it be a title defence against a luchadora from CMLL?


GCW “BIG TIME”, 17/05/2025
RJ Meyer Arena, Joppa, Maryland, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Tony Deppen

Itoh will be long gone home by this time so GCW could become Yamashita’s for the taking in her absence. Beating the promotion’s gatekeeper Tony Deppen would send her in the right direction.


GCW “RUN FOR IT”, 18/05/2025
Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA

1. Billie Starkz Vs Miyu Yamashita

What kind of momentum will be following Yamashita by the time she fights Billie Starkz again?


MKW “BATTLE OF THE DECADE”, 24/05/2025
Dongxin Plaza, Beijing, China

1. Yuki Kamifuku & Chen Wenbin Vs Alexis Lee & Big Sam

Could this be the penultimate chapter of the rivalry between Yuki Kamifuku and Alexis Lee?


SAJ “HUNTER’S NET”, 24/05/2025
Via Dante 72, Sporting Cesate, Milan, Italy

1. Irene Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Session Moth Martina

A change of venue for Yamashita’s debut in Italy due to an electrical problem in the original building. She is also finally going to face Session Moth Martina after their scheduled match in EVE back in March got cancelled. One week later Martina got to team with Italian wrestler Irene at the most recent SAJ Wrestling show. I haven’t seen it so I don’t know if anything happened as a reason to make them opponents here or if this is just three wrestlers who want to have some fun in the ring.


SPW “MAYHEM”, 30/05/2025
Foo Chow Building, Singapore

1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Alexis Lee

If all goes wrong for Kamifuku in May she could end up losing both the VPW Women’s Title and the Queen Of Asia Title!


NEW TEXAS PRO “BAT CITY”, 01/06/2025
Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA

1. Yuka Sakazaki Vs X

Finally Sakazaki gets to wrestle somewhere again! I don’t know if her lack of ring time lately is AEW/ROH not wanting to book her or if there’s an undisclosed injury of some sort holding her back but she’s making a reappearance on the American indies with New Texas Pro as her first stop.


KITSUNE “GOING BACK TO SAN DIEGO”, 07/06/2025
Primal Compound, San Diego, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Zara Zakher
2. Vipress & Hudson Envy Vs Nagisa Nozaki & Yuna Manase

The first singles meeting between Yamashita and Zara Zakher. They fought each other once before in a Princess Tag Team Titles match back in January. Yamashita pinned Zakher in that match. Will she do it again?


KITSUNE “8888”, 08/06/2025
South Gate, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Kitsune World Title: Yuna Manase (c) Vs Tae Honma

This October Tae Honma is going to retire from pro wrestling. One of her last big singles matches will be in America when Yuna Manase defends the Kitsune World Title against her.


LLL “BUT THE TICKET, TAKE THE RIDE NIGHT 2”, 14/06/2025
The Oriental Theater, Denver, Colorado, USA

1. Dark Sheik Vs Miyu Yamashita

Yamashita returns to Lucha, Libre & Laughs for two nights but only one of them has a match announced so far. She faces Dark Sheik on Night 2. Nothing yet on what match she will get on Night 1.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 1”, 10/07/2025
POST, Houston, Texas, USA

Four wrestlers are currently confirmed for TJPW’s big tripleshot in Texas.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 2”, 11/07/2025
POST, Houston, Texas, USA

Yamashita and Itoh will be there as will Miu Watanabe and Suzume. So far that’s all of the official announcements.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN DALLAS”, 13/07/2025
The OC, Forney, Texas, USA

Psst… the English website promoting the show also lists Yuki Arai, Mizuki, Hyper Misao, Shoko Nakajima, Pom Harajuku, Moka Miyamoto, Shino Suzuki, Raku and Arisu Endo as all “awaiting confirmation” to be on the show. I guess they could go and confirm them all but as we saw with Harajuku this month they might be making sure everything is absolutely ready for them all to travel first.


DDT Around The World – Early April 2025

April 13, 2025

What a month it’s been already and we’re not even halfway through yet. It’s the busiest time of the year for American wrestling with WrestleMania coming up next weekend and the carnival of shows that exist around it. DDT and Tokyo Joshi Pro will be deep in the mix with shows held under The Collective banner along with some outside bookings scattered around the Paradise of Las Vegas. Then there is no rest for the wicked afterwards because the months leading into summertime will be very busy for the likes of Miyu Yamashita and Maki Itoh. The international exchange will even be seen in Japan with Deadlock Pro running a tour over there and YuuRI getting involved in a big lucha libre show. Plus one of the big rivalries happening in Southeast Asia may finally come to an end if Yuki Kamifuku defeats Alexis Lee one more time.

But I’m burying the lede here. Shoko Nakajima won a championship in MLW! She has become the latest TJPW wrestler to win a title belonging to a foreign company and we may possibly add another person to that somehow growing list at the end of the month. Meanwhile Konosuke Takeshita is already turning April 2025 into a memorable period. He squashed an age old beef with one of Japan’s modern legends and has started a tournament run that will at least produce a few great matches if he doesn’t make it all the way.

Now let’s all go to Vegas.

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Videos

Konosuke Takeshita In AEW Playlist


AEW “COLLISION”, 05/04/2025
Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois, USA

1. Powerhouse Hobbs & Tomohiro Ishii (w/ Rocky Romero) Vs Kyle Fletcher & Konosuke Takeshita

Video starts at 22:53 for Match #1. Go to 1:12:00 for Match #2.
MLW “BATTLE RIOT VII”, 05/04/2025
Thunder Studios Arena, Long Beach, California, USA

1. HIMAWARI Vs Janai Kai
2. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title: Delmi Exo (c) Vs Shoko Nakajima


8th match Backstage 4/11/25 | Windy City Riot 2025


AEW “COLLISION”, 12/04/2025
MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA

1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Quarter Final: Brody King (w/ Julia Hart) Vs Konosuke Takeshita

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Results


AEW “COLLISION”, 02/04/2025 (Aired 05/04/2025)
Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois, USA

1. Kyle Fletcher & Konosuke Takeshita defeated Powerhouse Hobbs & Tomohiro Ishii (w/ Rocky Romero) when Fletcher pinned Ishii with the Sheer Drop Brainbuster (13:47).

Takeshita had to miss the “DYNASTY” PPV because he had other priorities with New Japan that weekend but he was able to fit in an AEW tag match right before he left. He and Kyle Fletcher are really catching on as a tag team lately and they were really put through the grinder against Powerhouse Hobbs & Tomohiro Ishii. They tried to give Ishii a Super Bomb from the corner but Ishii countered it into a Frankensteiner on Fletcher. Takeshita came to help Fletcher give Ishii a Sheer Drop Brainbuster for a nearfall and then clashed with Hobbs. Ishii’s face was bloody at this point but he was still fired up to fight. Fletcher didn’t care though and he used a Tombstone Piledriver followed by another Brainbuster for the victory.


MLW “BATTLE RIOT VII”, 05/04/2025
Thunder Studios Arena, Long Beach, California, USA

1. Janai Kai defeated HIMAWARI with the Tornado Kick (7:28).
2. MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title: Shoko Nakajima defeated Delmi Exo (c) with the Diving Senton (9:17).
*Delmi Exofails in V2. Shoko Nakajima becomes the 5th MLW Women’s World Featherweight Champion!

Well would you look at that, MLW went all the way with Nakajima and made her their women’s champion! The 619, Double Arm DDT and Diving Senton put Delmo Exo away and now Nakajima can add the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title to her collection.

Also HIMAWARI did not in fact get abducted or murdered by CONTRA Unit. She made it back to Japan in one piece. Janai Kai still beat her pretty handily but I’d still call it a successful MLW excursion.


NJPW “WINDY CITY RIOT”, 11/04/2025
Wintrust Arena, Chicago, Illinois, USA
4,674 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Hiroshi Tanahashi Last Match In The USA Final Road ~Kinship~: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi with the Raging Fire (20:37).

It was an emotional battle that’s been over a decade in the making. Takeshita was not only fighting Hiroshi Tanahashi in a rematch from their DDT bout from 2014 but he was defending DDT’s honour over the disrespect Tanahashi gave to them in 2015. Due to the added importance that this will be Tanahashi’s final wrestling match in America before he retires it was made the main event of the show ahead of the IWGP World Heavyweight Title bout. The two had counters for each other’s finishers but Takeshita surprised everyone by doing his own High Fly Flow. Everyone was then in even more shock when Tanahashi kicked out at one! Takeshita nailed Tanahashi with several Wagamama knee strikes before giving a big shout to HARASHIMA by hitting the Somato. After that he used the Raging Fire to get the win.

Backstage Takeshita said he was all anger before this match but now that it is over, his revenge on Tanahashi has ended and he now for the first time respects him. There is one thing that Takeshita couldn’t do to Tanahashi and that was take away the last of his light. He wishes to see Tanahashi keep that light shining until his retirement. He was then interrupted by El Phantasmo who complained about Takeshita not showing respect until now. He still remembers their match at last year’s G1 Climax and he wants to challenge him to a rematch, this time with the NEVER Openweight Title on the line. Suddenly Phantasmo was then attacked from behind by Rocky Romero. Whatever it is that’s going on between them has nothing to do with Takeshita. At least for now.


AEW “COLLISION”, 12/04/2025
MassMutual Center, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA

1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Quarter Final: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Brody King (w/ Julia Hart) with the Powerdrive Knee (12:18).

The 4th annual Owen Hart Cup is packed this year on both the men’s and women’s tournaments. Count Takeshita among them on the men’s side. His opening round match was against Brody King from The Hounds Of Hell. Even a guy like Takeshita gets a bit worried when he hears King barking nearby. It took several Powerdrive Knee strikes to break down King and the final two needed Takeshita to pull his kneepad down for extra damage to finally put his opponent down for the count.

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WrestleMania Week Appearances


PANDEMONIUM PRO “THE HOUSE ALWAYS WINS”, 17/04/2025
Fremont Country Club, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Masha Slamovich Vs MAO
2. Maya World Vs Miu Watanabe

Let’s get crazy. The first piece of involvement in Wrestlemania Week from DDT and TJPW both take place at the same show. Miu Watanabe makes a rare outside appearance from TJPW to take on Maya World while one of her later upcoming opponents Masha Slamovich takes a trip on MAO’s wild ride. Or maybe it’s MAO going on Slamovich’s wild ride.


WRESTLECON “MARK HITCHCOCK MEMORIAL SUPERSHOW”, 17/04/2025
Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Mickie James Vs Maki Itoh

Who knows what else WrestleCon has in store for their big event of the week and if it applies here. They have a mystery 10-Man Tag Match on the card which was used to promote TJPW in a previous year. Itoh might meet her match in more ways than one when she faces off against Mickie James. But the worst thing James could do is go in their and underestimate Itoh.


WEST COAST PRO “VEGAS VACATION”, 17/04/2025
Meet Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. MAO Vs Jiah Jewell

It will be the second match of the day for both MAO and Jiah Jewell.


GCW “JOSH BARNETT’S BLOODSPORT XIII”, 17/04/2025
Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Charlie Dempsey Vs Shinya Aoki
2. Nattie Neidhart Vs Miyu Yamashita

This year’s Bloodsport went through a slight overbooking problem with some fighters but it hasn’t affected the two matches here that I care about. Bless GCW and Josh Barnett for having conflicting stories over who is actually booking the show when it was time to explain why previously announced talent were being left off the final card. Friendship aside, Nattie Neidhart doesn’t want to be used as a stepping stone by Yamashita but Yamashita doesn’t want Neidhart to take her lightly either. Are we going to get MMA Shinya Aoki or DDT Shinya Aoki when he fights Charlie Dempsey?


BZW “VIVA LAS VEGAS”, 17/04/2025
Swan Dive, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. BZW Tag Team Titles: MAO & Yoshihiko (c) Vs Marcus Mathers & Alec Price

Alec Price has found a replacement partner to challenge MAO & Yoshihiko for the BZW Tag Team Titles. With Cole Radrick out of action, Marcus Mathers is going to take his place.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “QUERI PRESENTS TJPW LIVE IN LAS VEGAS”, 18/04/2025
Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Rika Tatsumi, Shino Suzuki & Vert Vixen Vs Yuki Aino, Raku & Viva Van
2. Yuki Arai Vs Arisu Endo
3. Maki Itoh & Zara Zakher Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
4. Special Single Match: Masha Slamovich Vs Miu Watanabe
5. International Princess Title: Suzume (c) Vs Jada Stone
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao (c) Vs Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara
7. Princess Of Princess Title: Mizuki (c) Vs Miyu Yamashita

I’ll aim to have my guide for the TJPW Las Vegas show posted either late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning Las Vegas time.


DDT “DDT GOES LAS VEGAS!”, 18/04/2025
Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Nick Wayne, Shunma Katsumata & Kazuma Sumi Vs Gringo Loco, Marcus Mathers & Tyler Bateman
2. Special Single Match: Antonio Honda Vs Santana Jackson
3. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki Vs Timothy Thatcher
4. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs MAO
5. wXw Unified World Wrestling Title: 1 Called Manders (c) Vs Yukio Naya
6. DDT Universal Title: Minoru Suzuki (c) Vs Yoshihiko

Same with my guide for the DDT Las Vegas show. You’ll pretty much know I arrived safe and sound when the articles get posted.


WRESTLECORE “FEAR & WRESTLECORE IN LAS VEGAS”, 18/04/2025
Swan Dive, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. ELP Vs Maki Itoh

Well so much for El Phantasmo and Maki Itoh joining forces as The Cutest Tag Team In The World. They’re not getting along so they’re going to fight each other instead.


PRIDESTYLE “OUT OF THIS WORLD”, 18/04/2025
Swan Dive, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

0. Yoshihiko’s Super Special Open Challenge: Yoshihiko Vs X
1. G-Sharpe Vs MAO

A new booking for MAO over at PrideStyle. If his opponent G-Sharpe looks a little familiar it may be because you might recognize him when he wrestles under a mask as Hyperstreak. There is a group called The Cartel de Los Villanos who have been feuding with G-Sharpe over in PrideStyle and they are the ones who hired MAO to fight him.

A bonus attraction will be happening before the show officially starts. That’s right, Yoshihiko is throwing out an open challenge! Who will dare step foot against “The Grave Digger Doll From Hell”?


GRAPHOUSE “FOR VEGAS, BY VEGAS”, 18/04/2025
Fergusons Downtown, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Lazarus Vs MAO

MAO’s Friday night comes to a close with a brawl against Lazarus near Fremont Street. Someone convince MAO to Moonsault off of the Vegas Vic neon sign.


DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/GCW “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW”, 19/04/2025
Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Rika Tatsumi & Antonio Honda Vs Kidd Bandit & Shota
2. 3 Way Match: MAO & Yoshihiko Vs Jimmy Lloyd & Alec Price Vs Jack Cartwheel & Kazuma Sumi
3. Special Tag Match: Mance Warner & Shunma Katsumata Vs John Wayne Murdoch & Matt Tremont
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Ilusion & Dark Sheik Vs Super Crazy, Marcus Mathers & Shoko Nakajima
5. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Masha Slamovich Vs Shinya Aoki & Miyu Yamashita

What the hell kind of Fire Pro random card is this?


GCW “CLUSTERF*CK FOREVER”, 19/04/2025
Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

1. Clusterfuck Match: Yoshihiko Vs X

Yoshihiko is among the many, many competitors announced for the Clusterfuck so far but nobody else from DDT or TJPW has declared they will be in it. It’s likely a bunch of the talent will already be flying home by the time this show takes place.

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Upcoming Appearances After WrestleMania Week


AEW “DYNAMITE – SPRING BREAKTHRU”, 16/04/2025
MGM Music Hall At Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

1. Owen Hart Foundation 2025 Men’s Tournament – Semi Final: Will Ospreay Vs Konosuke Takeshita

Ok this is during WrestleMania Week but isn’t actually part of it so let’s stick it here. It’s now on to the semi finals for Takeshita where is next opponent is quite a doozy. It’s the rematch against Will Ospreay!


DPW “SPIRIT RISING – NIGHT 1”, 24/04/2025
Shinjuku FACE

1. Chris Brookes & HARASHIMA Vs LaBron Kozone & Calvin Tankman
2. DPW Women’s World Title: Dani Luna (c) Vs Rika Tatsumi

The hype train’s not stopping once WrestleMania is done. The schedule is going to get even more packed heading into the summer! DPW is heading back to Japan and has some familiar wrestlers taking part on their shows. Rika Tatsumi is getting a shot at the DPW Women’s World Title on the first night. The champion Dani Luna is coming out of a violent feud with Hyan over the belt which included title defences in Street Fights and Dog Collar matches. Sounds like she’ll be ready to handle Tatsumi’s madness. Meanwhile Chris Brookes & HARASHIMA are teaming up to take on two of DPW’s mainstays. LaBron Kozone is currently the DPW National Champion which just so happens to be the first DPW championship that his teammate Calvin Tankman won in the company.


DPW “SPIRIT RISING – NIGHT 2”, 25/04/2025
Shin-Kiba 1st RING

1. Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida Vs Calvin Tankman & Kazuma Sumi
2. Emi Sakura, Chris Brookes, Mei Suruga & Baliyan Akki Vs Miyuki Takase, Kevin Ku, Dominic Garrini & Ryo Mizunami

Then on the second night Brookes joins team ChocoPro to fight a mix of joshi and Violence Is Forever… Joshi Is Forever? Violence Is Joshi? Miyuki Takase & Ryo Mizunami Plus Two?

Tankman finds himself in the ring surrounded by DDT wrestlers. It will be a match of big man and little man teams when Tankman teams with Kazuma Sumi to fight the Harimao pair of Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida.


HOG “ISOLATION”, 25/04/2025
NYC Arena, New York City, New York, USA

1. HOG Heavyweight Title: Mike Santana (c) Vs Konosuke Takeshita

Will Takeshita bring an end to Mike Santana’s 16 month reign as House Of Glory’s champion?


BLACK LABEL PRO “BLP AT SCX III”, 25/04/2025
The Wyndham, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Leyla Hirsch
2. Danhausen & Maki Itoh Vs Davey Bang & August Matthews

You know, this is one of those shows that feels like it just takes forever to get to.


MEXICO KANKO/CMLL/LADYS RING “LUCHA FIESTA ESPECIAL”, 27/04/2025
Tokyo Ryogoku Kokugikan

1. Mexican Tourist Belt – The Road To Studying In Mexico 5 Way Match: Yuki Mashiro Vs Honoka Vs YuuRI Vs SONYA Vs CoCo
2. Octagon & El Hijo del Octagon Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Pantera Jr.

I heard this show has a Street Fighter 6 product placement match. Makoto and Hikaru Shida are cosplaying as R. Mika & Yamato Nadeshiko to fight a pair of masked Zangief wrestlers. It would be funny if The Gief #1 and The Gief #2 were other members of DAMNATION T.A.

I missed that YuuRI was booked for this show a month ago. She’s taking part in a 5 Way match where the winner will be crowned the second Mexican Tourist Belt Champion. Whoever holds possession of the belt is given the right to go study in Mexico thanks to the show sponsors. YuuRI’s opposition in the match are the freelancer Yuki Mashiro, Honoka from WAVE, SONYA from the Costa Rica Wrestling Embassy (CWE) and CoCo from MY WAY.


TOP TALENT “LIVE AT MIDWAY MUSIC HALL”, 02/05/2025
Midway Music Hall, Edmonton, Canada

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

Yamashita is going to be visiting Canada a few more times during this excursion. Top Talent Wrestling is the latest promotion over there to book her.


HOODSLAM “PHANTASMAGORIA”, 02/05/2025
Continental Club, Oakland, California, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs X

Itoh is getting her ass back to Hoodslam!


GCW “CRAZY SCARY SPOOKY HILARIOUS”, 03/05/2025
Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Maki Itoh Vs Miyu Yamashita

Itoh believes she cannot lose to Yamashita in GCW. Anywhere but over there!


GCW “WE STILL DON’T TRUST YOU”, 04/05/2025
Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, Oregon, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. GCW World Title: Effy (c) Vs Maki Itoh

One day later she gets her chance to win the GCW World Title from Effy. Only one person missing from making it a full Maki Death Bussy reunion.


HOG “WAGING WAR”, 09/05/2025
Logan Square Auditorium, Chicago, Illinois, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

Just have to wait and see who House Of Glory wants to put Yamashita against. It didn’t work out so well for her there last time.


NJPW “RESURGENCE”, 09/05/2025
Toyota Arena, Ontario, California, USA

1. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs X

It hasn’t been made official at the time of writing but it’s looking like Takeshita will defend the NEVER Openweight Title against El Phantasmo at this show. Unless Romero does something else to ELP and changes the situation.


MAPLE LEAF PRO “NORTHERN RISING”, 10/05/2025
Mattamy Athletic Centre, Toronto, Canada

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Sereena Deeb

North American promoters really have a type of opponent in mind for Yamashita this time around, eh? She’ll have to deal with the wrestling expertise of Serena Deeb for her return to Maple Leaf Pro.


GCW “BIG TIME”, 17/05/2025
RJ Meyer Arena, Joppa, Maryland, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Tony Deppen

Yamashita’s journey through GCW continues.


GCW “RUN FOR IT”, 18/05/2025
Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA

1. Billie Starkz Vs Miyu Yamashita

Once again, they meet at last.


MKW “BATTLE OF THE DECADE”, 24/05/2025
Dongxin Plaza, Beijing, China

1. Yuki Kamifuku & Chen Wenbin Vs Alexis Lee & Big Sam

The end of May will be a dramatic period for Yuki Kamifuku and Alexis Lee. This match in Middle Kingdom Wrestling has now become the warmup for what happens in Singapore Pro Wrestling one week later.


SAJ “HUNTER’S NET”, 24/05/2025
Magnete, Milan, Italy

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X

Italy awaits for Yamashita in May.


SPW “MAYHEM”, 30/05/2025
Foo Chow Building, Singapore

1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Alexis Lee

The stakes have been risen to the extreme. Lee is wagering her pro wrestling career to get one last chance at winning back the Queen Of Asia Title from Kamifuku. If she loses this time then she is done for!


KITSUNE “GOING BACK TO SAN DIEGO”, 07/06/2025
Primal Compound, San Diego, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Vipress & Hudson Envy Vs Nagisa Nozaki & Yuna Manase

Hey since Darkness Revolution are now down a member in Marigold maybe Nagisa Nozaki will consider replacing Bozilla with Yuna Manase.


KITSUNE “8888”, 08/06/2025
South Gate, Los Angeles, California, USA

1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Yuna Manase Vs X

Yamashita’s match on this show will be a singles match with an opponent yet to be determined.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 1”, 10/07/2025
POST, Houston, Texas, USA

Does the T in TJPW now stand for Texas? On the weekend when AEW runs “ALL IN TEXAS” TJPW will be holding three shows in the Lone Star State.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN HOUSTON – NIGHT 2”, 11/07/2025
POST, Houston, Texas, USA

Two of the shows are going to be in Houston.


TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW LIVE IN DALLAS”, 13/07/2025
The OC, Forney, Texas, USA

The third show is happening… not in Dallas but they’re calling it Dallas anyway. Is this like years ago when WWE would be in New York State and only mention on air that they’re somewhere near New York City?