DDT “GOD BLESS DDT 2023 TOUR IN SAPPORO – DAY 2” Results

October 15, 2023

DDT “GOD BLESS DDT 2023 TOUR IN SAPPORO – DAY 2”, 15/10/2023
Hokkaido Sapporo ii-one Stadium
284 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Yusuke Okada defeated Danshoku Dieno with an Inside Cradle (4:38).
2. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON defeated Yukio Naya & Yuya Koroku when KANON pinned Koroku with the Vietnam Driver II (9:39).
3. Special Tag Match: Kouki Iwasaki & MAO defeated HARASHIMA & Rukiya when Iwasaki submitted Rukiya with the Texas Clover Hold (16:31).
4. Sapporo Specialty Special 6-Man Tag Match: Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama & Noriyuki Yoshida defeated Kazuki Hirata, Tomoya & Kazuma Sumi when Yoshida pinned Sumi with the Authorized Lightning Leg Lariat (10:53).
5. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani (c) defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Akito & Makoto Oishi when Sakaguchi pinned Oishi with the God’s Right Knee (17:35).
*V5 for Eruption.
6. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada defeated Kazusada Higuchi & Toy Kojima when Brookes pinned Kojima with the Praying Mantis Bomb (21:56).
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: MAO defeated Takeshi Masada (c) with a School Boy (3:17 pm).
*MAO becomes the 1,581st champion.
-. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title: Takeshi Masada defeated MAO (c) with a School Boy (3:43 pm).
*Takeshi Masada becomes the 1,582nd champion.

Everybody was given a reminder to how hard headed Kazusada Higuchi is. During an out of the ring brawl Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada both lifted up a table and charged it towards Higuchi. The end result was Higuchi’s head bursting through the center of the table and leaving a hole in it while he was unharmed! Toy Kojima did a call out to Yuki Ueno by using a BME set up for a Diving Cross Body Block on Brookes. Kojima was later given the Praying Mantis Bomb twice. Higuchi broke the pin the first time but wasn’t able to save him the second.

In the final moments of the show Brookes briefly turned on Masada after his speech in order to try and win the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title. Masada escaped but was rolled up by MAO outside the ring to lose the title anyway. Then during the post-show festivities Masada disguised himself as a fan to get close to MAO and attack him back to regain the belt.

Just like yesterday Sanshiro Takagi had a “Sapporo Castle” built out of stairs positioned near ringside to protect against Eruption. This time however there were three of them around the venue. Hideki Okatani immediately kicked one of them down during his team’s entrance. Yukio Sakaguchi was thrown into the second one and the final one was destroyed when a bunch of the wrestlers tackled each other into it. Makoto Oishi targeted Sakaguchi’s knees again knowing how much they were injured from yesterday’s match. The rest of Eruption made the save and focused their attack on Oishi in return. Saki Akai gave him the Quetzalcoatl, Okatani followed up with the Double Arm Suplex and Sakaguchi used his remaining strength to pin him with the God’s Right Knee.

The win for Eruption means another successful KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles defence and perhaps the last one in their reign. Akai thanked Takagi, Akito & Oishi for being the core of DDT. Takagi handed one of the chairs over to Akai as a gift, calling it a symbol of DDT. Akai took it and said that no matter how long you’re a part of pro wrestling you never fully understand it. Backstage Sakaguchi said this was the last time Eruption will defend the KO-D 6-Man Tag Titles and they will hold onto the belts until Akai’s retirement on 12th November. Okatani said they will do the same with the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles if they retain them in All Japan next week. Akito asked Takagi & Oishi to team up again in ten years time so they can build an even bigger castle of chairs. Oishi said they will need to add a taller member to achieve that. Takagi suggested they get either Yukio Naya or Giant Silva.

Both MAO and Kouki Iwasaki are considering a DNA reunion show next year to celebrate the project’s 10th anniversary. DNA was launched on 28th November 2014 and a lot of the wrestlers associated with the brand are still active and in touch with each other. The two of them also praised Rukiya for showing great fighting spirit lately.

The new chapter in Danshoku Dieno’s career is a worrying one for him so far. Yesterday Akito overpowered his usual Danshoku antics and put out a theory that everybody in DDT has developed an immunity to Dieno’s style of wrestling. It was put to the test today when Dieno fought Yusuke Okada, a regular opponent/victim of his. The theory proved to be correct when Okada kicked out of the Gaydo Clutch and then countered the Lip Lock into a Small Package for a clean win. Akito annoyed Dieno about it afterwards and suggested that perhaps Dieno’s kisses have lost their charm. Pheromones is finished and Yuki Iino is away moving onto his next step. Perhaps it is time for Dieno to move on from Danshoku style too…

DDT announced their return to Sapporo will be on 28th and 29th April next year at the Sapporo Sun Plaza.


DDT “WHO’S GONNA TOP? 2023” Results

September 24, 2023

DDT “WHO’S GONNA TOP? 2023”, 24/09/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
967 Fans – No Vacancy

0. Dark Match: Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku defeated Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya when Koroku submitted Rukiya with the Triangle Lancer (8:42).
1. Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul defeated Hideki Okatani, Yuni & Takeshi Masada when Sasaki pinned Yuni with the Vietnam Driver IV (7:43).
2. Pheromones Final Countdown In Korakuen ~ 3 Way Tag Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno defeated Kazuki “Magnum” Hirata & Naruki Doi and Akito & Antonio “FOXY” Honda when Iino submitted Akito with the Eiffel Tower (7:24).
3. Tetsuya Endo, Jun Akiyama, Kazusada Higuchi & Yukio Naya defeated Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi, HARASHIMA & Yukio Sakaguchi when Naya pinned Oishi with The World’s Largest Back Drop (13:39).
4. Special Tag Match ~ DDT Vs AJPW: Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima defeated Atsuki Aoyagi & Dan Tamura when Ueno pinned Tamura with the BME (10:12).
5. DDT Universal Title: Matt Cardona (c) (w/ Steph De Lander) defeated Maki Itoh by Pinfall (15:03).
*V1 for Matt Cardona.
6. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated MAO with the Wagamama (11:28).
7. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) defeated Saki Akai by Referee Stoppage with the Modified Octopus Stretch (21:00).
*V2 for Chris Brookes.

In the last ten years as a pro wrestler, Saki Akai had never competed for the KO-D Openweight Title before today. With retirement from the business around the corner, Akai was chosen by Chris Brookes to be his next challenger so they could have a rematch of their 2021 bout at Korakuen Hall, this time in front of an audience. Akai went into the match determined to show this opportunity was earned and wasn’t given to her out of charity. She fired with a Big Boot from the beginning but Brookes quickly turned things around by doing a Death Valley Bomb on the ring apron. The challenger had to pull out some deep moves to fight back, including her old Riemann Galaxy submission as well as the Takatonic. The two wrestlers found themselves fighting on the top rope where Akai dropped Brookes with the Avalanche Quetzalcoatl. However Akai wasn’t able to pin him afterwards, giving Brookes valuable recovery time. Brookes powered out of a Triangle Choke but was given the regular version of the Quetzalcoatl. To Akai’s surprise it only got a two count, marking it one of the rare times when her finisher did not end her opponent. Brookes fought back with a Piledriver, Double Knee Drop, Buzzsaw Kicks and the Praying Mantis Bomb but Akai kicked out of all of them. Brookes had to twist and pull Akai apart with the Octopus Stretch until Yukinori Matsui called for the match to end.

After the match Brookes reminded the fans he will face Akai again on 30th September, this time with the roles reversed because Eruption are defending the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles against CDK & Mei Suruga. He thanked Akai for doing her best and asked her to continue doing so until her retirement because we only live once. Brookes next wanted to talk about his next KO-D Title defence at “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023” on 12th November. Yuki Ueno walked out to the ring and appealed for the title shot. Brookes accepted and the two talked about being close friends for the last four years even though they hang out in seperate units. He wants the best challenger at the biggest stage so he’s fighting Ueno at Sumo Hall! Backstage Akai spoke about the pressure and responsibility she felt going into today’s main event. She is going to fight for herself as well as for everyone who supports her starting with the KO-D 6-Man Tag Title match taking place in Kyoto. She wants to pin Brookes in her hometown to clear up her regrets from today!

It turned out Konosuke Takeshita did not come back to DDT alone this time around. Midway during Takeshita’s match with MAO, his manager Don Callis walked down to ringside. MAO was taken aback by his appearance but kept his focus on the match. He tried to go big with the Avalanche Michinoku Driver but Takeshita blocked the move and turned it into an Avalanche Driver of his own. MAO tried to turn things around with a Palm Strike but Takeshita worn him down with Jumping Knee Strikes and the Zahi to get the win. Despite the recent differences between the two, Takeshita encouraged MAO after the match to take his own path because he is proving his style of pro wrestling can be successful around the world. They both joined DDT as teenagers and they are already in their late twenties so Takeshita thinks it is time for MAO to make decisions for himself.

Takeshita then introduced the DDT audience to Don Callis and spoke about how much they get booed in America. He said the Don Callis Family is only getting started so the entire pro wrestling world should pay attention to them from this point forward. Takeshita revealed his next appearance in DDT will be at “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023” where he would like to make everyone dream again. Suddenly the lights in the room went out and a video played on the screen. The video is sent by Chris Jericho and he is challenging Takeshita to a singles match at Sumo Hall! Jericho listed all of the Japanese wrestling legends he has fought over the years and swore to get revenge on Takeshita for his recent attacks over in AEW. Takeshita agreed to the match, calling it a “dramatic dream” to defeat him in a DDT ring. He promised to destroy everything about Jericho from “Lionheart” to “Y2J” to “The Painmaker”!

The GCW feud between Deathmatch Royalty and Maki Death Kill made its way over to Japan when Matt Cardona put the DDT Universal Title on the line against Maki Itoh. The champion was accompanied by Steph De Lander while Itoh went into the match alone. She had a plan to battle the number disadvantage though. Cardona made a big mistake by giving Itoh a Low Blow and being confused when it didn’t effect her. He then accidentally knocked out the referee Matsui with a missed Clothesline. Itoh’s plan came into play when she ducked De Lander’s attack with the title belt causing Cardona to get hit instead. Itoh took out a trolley at ringside, taped De Lander to it and pushed her away from ringside. She then took out a pizza cutter back in the ring and sliced Cardona’s forehead open with it! However De Lander freed herself from the trolley, returned to the ring with a chair and dropped Itoh onto it with a Modified Facebuster. Cardona pinned Itoh while De Lander revived Matsui so he could count to three.

Backstage Cardona complained about his match not being in the main event while De Lander said she wants DDT to put her in a match against Itoh the next time she shows up here. Itoh regretted not using more tape on De Lander. She knows this feud isn’t finished and there will be more matches against them when she goes back to America. She will chase after Cardona & De Lander to the depths of Hell in order to beat them one more time! Meanwhile MAO made the decision to challenge Cardona for the Universal Title at Sumo Hall. His thought process is if he can beat the indie wrestling god then he can become a puroresu god! Cardona accepted his challenge with a handshake but then attacked MAO with a belt strike from behind. When MAO recovered he warned Cardona that he just pulled out the Joker card.

The new DDT Vs All Japan rivalry continued with AJPW sending over Atsuki Aoyagi & Dan Tamura to take on The 37KAMIINA. The visitors entered the ring wearing sauna caps and then paired off against their opponents. Toy Kojima spent a lot of time fighting Aoyagi while Ueno went back and forth against Tamura. Ueno scored the win for the home team by pinned Tamura with the BME. He called the match fun and praised All Japan for being bright, intense and fun in a way that feels similar to The 37KAMIINA. Kojima then stole the All Japan team’s sauna cap and dared them to try and take it back. Aoyagi mentioned he will be wrestling MAO in AJPW on 5th October so his fight against The 37KAMIINA isn’t done yet.

Yuji Hino finished up his run with DDT by getting HARASHIMA & Yukio Sakaguchi to wrestle in Ω shirts. Makoto Oishi had his cane taken by Jun Akiyama while HARASHIMA went toe to toe with Tetsuya Endo. It wouldn’t have been Hino’s last match with DDT if he didn’t get into a chop battle with Kazusada Higuchi so one went down here. In the end though it was Yukio Naya who won the match for his team by pinning Oishi with The World’s Largest Back Drop. Hino thanked all the wrestlers after the match. He told the fans not to be said because today does not mean Hino will never wrestle in DDT again. He spoke about his children and how it is up to parents to protect their children. Backstage Hino said his wrestling future will be with Yasu Urano because apparently Urano is his mentor, not TAKA Michinoku. Oishi called him out for lying. Naya said the next time Hino will wrestle him will be when he is the KO-D Champion. Naya will even pick Hino as his first challenger.

A threat loomed over the 3 Way Tag Match when Danshoku Dieno announced that somebody among the other two teams was a traitor! Much to Akito and Naruki Doi’s horror it was gradually revealed that Kazuki Hirata and Antonio Honda were wearing O-backs, which means they are both with Pheromones! From there Yuki Iino, Dieno, Kazuki “Magnum” Hirata & Antonio “FOXY” Honda all joined forces to defeat Akito, giving Pheromones the victory. The effect on Hirata and Honda is only temporary but Dieno explained afterwards that even when Pheromones dies, it will never die!

Daisuke Sasaki unleashed a fourth version of the Vietnam Driver to win the opening match for DAMNATION T.A. While their match was against Hideki Okatani, Yuni & Takeshi Masada there were more people for them to fight when ROMANCE DAWN appeared. Shota & Soma Takao started a brawl at ringside when they stopped Minoru Fujita from interfering. KANON went over to help Fujita fight them while MJ Paul was there to stop anybody from breaking up Sasaki’s pin.

There was a Dark Match where Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku defeated Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya. The rookies team showed teamwork when Sumi Dropkicked Koroku into a Backslide Pin from Rukiya for a nearfall. Koroku took control by grabbing Rukiya’s arm and eventually grinded him into submission.

Before the main show began there was a contract signing for the KO-D Tag Team Titles match on 4th October. ROMANCE DAWN talked about how long they have known each other and their excitement of fighting for the championship together. Fujita didn’t find their story interesting while KANON started acting erraticly. He started crying at one point and then switched to shouting at people before excitedly posing for the group photo.


DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023” Results

September 9, 2023

DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023”, 09/09/2023
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1,363 Fans

1. Masahiro Takanashi, Antonio Honda & Ilusion defeated Yuni, Kazuma Sumi & Rukiya when Takanashi pinned Yuni with a Rotating Crucifix Pin (8:21).
2. Pheromones Vs Subjugation Final Match! Special Single Match ~ Dissolution Contra Vice President: Akito defeated Yuki “Sexy” Iino (w/ Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno) with a Yoropean Clutch (12:09).
3. HARASHIMA, Kazusada Higuchi & Soma Takao defeated Yukio Naya, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada when Higuchi pinned Koroku with the Doctor Bomb (10:45).
4. DDT Extreme Title & Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – All Humans Are Equal! Kazuki Hirata Death Match: Kazuki Hirata (E/c) defeated Naruki Doi (I/c) with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (9:28).
*V3 for Kazuki Hirata. Kazuki Hirata becomes the 1,576th Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion.
5. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles & AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani (c/c) defeated Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow when Sakaguchi pinned Miyamoto with the God’s Right Knee (12:04).
*V3 for Eruption with the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles. V2 for Eruption with the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles.
6. First Time In History! Time Difference Scramble Bunkhouse Current Blast 6-Man Tag Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada when Yoshitatsu pinned Takagi after a Sandwich Current Blast Bat Attack with Onita (9:12).
7. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Minoru Fujita & KANON defeated Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi when KANON submitted Oishi with the Just Cobra Twist (12:54).
*Ω fails in V1. DAMNATION T.A becomes the 79th KO-D Tag Team Champions!
8. Special Tag Match: Yuki Ueno & MAO defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Daisuke Sasaki when Ueno pinned Sasaki with the BME (23:09).
9. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) defeated Shigehiro Irie with two Praying Mantis Bombs (27:36).
*V1 for Chris Brookes.

The international rivalry between Chris Brookes and Shigehiro Irie begun in England, made its way to Germany and had its rubber match in Japan. The match started off quiet but notched up a level when the two took the fight outside the ring where Irie threw chairs but was then put through a table with a Piledriver. Back in the ring Irie brought out his heavy attacks like the Cannonball and Beast Bomber. He also almost knocked Brookes out with the 16 Carat Gold Elbows. However Brookes started using High Kicks to stun his opponent, following up with slaps and more kicks to the head. Irie fought back with a Headbutt and never expected Brookes to Headbutt him back. At this point Irie had already kicked out of the Praying Mantis Bomb so Brookes had to use the move again twice in a row to finish him off.

Brookes called Irie strong after the match and told him to please come over to DDT again anytime, anywhere. He also already decided who he wants the next challenger for the KO-D Openweight Title to be. Brookes then called Saki Akai to come down to the ring. He reminded her of the double title match they had in May 2021 that had to take place in an empty arena because of the pandemic. Since Akai will be retiring in two months time Brookes thought it would be a shame if they didn’t have a rematch. He also brought up that Akai had never challenged for the KO-D Title before. Akai told Brookes she doesn’t want to do the match just for the sake of making memories. She accepted the challenge and slapped Brookes across the face before shaking his hand. There is nothing more scarier than a person who has nothing left to fight for so she is fighting Brookes at Korakuen Hall on 24th September to become the KO-D Champion!

The last time Konosuke Takeshita was in DDT he gave Yuki Ueno an offer to follow his leadership and move on from The 37KAMIINA. His new attitude that formed in AEW won over his former enemy Daisuke Sasaki, so much so that Sasaki tried to help out with recruiting Ueno. Today Ueno gave his answer and it was to stay with his friends! Sasaki did his best to convince Ueno by manipulating moments of the match so Ueno and MAO would accidentally hit each other. But when the time came for Sasaki to hand a chair over to his opponents, Ueno refused to attack MAO with it. Together Ueno & MAO got rid of Takeshita with dives and Ueno went on to pin Sasaki with the BME.

After the match Ueno made his answer more clear. He knows he is going to fight Takeshita again some day and when it happens he will be the champion and Takeshita the challenger! He believes if he had taken Takeshita’s offer it would make him stronger but he already has friends in The 37KAMIINA who lend him their strength. MAO then called out Takeshita and demanded they have a singles match against each other. Later backstage MAO confronted Takeshita again to make the challenge. Takeshita said he is travelling back to America tomorrow but will return to DDT on 24th September. They will have their match on that date in Korakuen.

KANON promised he was going to get the last laugh on Ω and was proven right when DAMNATION T.A became the new KO-D Tag Team Champions! He had his chest beaten in by Yuji Hino’s chops but Minoru Fujita was there to rescue his tag partner. So was MJ Paul. It took both Fujita and Paul to hold Hino back at ringside from entering the ring while KANON submitted Makoto Oishi with the Just Cobra Twist for the title change. Backstage DAMANTION T.A’s celebration was interrupte by ROMANCE DAWN. Although they are usually a Ganbare☆Pro tag team, Shota & Soma Takao want to challenge for the KO-D Tag Titles. They will get their shot on the 4th October Shinjuku FACE show.

For the first time ever Jun Akiyama took part in an exploding death match! The match had unusual Bunkhouse Stampede rules added to it. Akiyama and Atsushi Onita would start out wrestling each other and then after three minutes the other wrestlers of both teams would all join in the match at once. Onita quickly blinded Akiyama with Poison Mist but was caught in the Front Neck Lock by the time everyone else entered. Yusuke Okada held Onita back on a chair for Sanshiro Takagi to hit him with an exploding baseball bat. Toy Kojima placed another exploding bat on top of a barbed wire board but Okada Superplexed him onto it causing a big bang. Onita used the Poison Mist again, this time on Takagi. He and Yoshitatsu then hit Takagi with the two remaining exploding bats to win the match.

Onita took the time afterwards to thank Takagi for putting this match with Akiyama together. But Onita thinks his matter with Akiyama has not been settled yet. There is another exploding death match happening on 18th September with Onita & Yoshitatsu taking on Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki. Akiyama previously challenged Onita to put the All Asia Tag Team Titles on the line. After what happened today, Onita wants to go through with the idea and agreed to make it a title match. He then paid tribute to the late Terry Funk. Both Onita and Akiyama have All Japan blood running through their veins so Onita hopes Funk is doing his best up in Heaven. He also revealed he got to speak with Funk’s daughters recently and he’d like to visit Amarillo, Texas again some day.

There were two double title matches on the show. Eruption retained both the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles & AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles against a team straight out of Triple Six. Akai hit Ram Kaichow with the Rookie Award but then took a Rock Punch from Isami Kodaka. Meanwhile Yuko Miyamoto dropped Hideki Okatani with the Fire Thunder. However Yukio Sakaguchi held things together for the champions and pinned Miyamoto with the God’s Right Knee for another successful defence. Okatani said he wants to defend the titles 10 times in 2 months before Akai’s retirement. Sakaguchi doesn’t mind who the opponents will be to achieve this. Akai promised to continue refining her skills until her last match on 12th November.

The other title match had both the DDT Extreme Title and Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title on the line. Kazuki Hirata made it an All Humans Are Equal Death Match where Naruki Doi was limited to only do what Hirata is capable of doing. Toru Owashi and Inoue Mic sat as judges near ringside holding up signs to tell Doi when he was and was not wrestling just like Hirata does. Not only that but Hirata convinced Doi to wear the same ring gear, setting up a curatined-off area inside the ring so he could change costumes. If this was a normal match, Doi would have won easily but the constant pausing by the judges threw him off. Doi thought he finally had the match figured out when he realised the Bakatare Sliding Kick was acceptable but when he got the three count the judges immediately invalidated it because Doi had to dance before the match could end. Doi did so in full Hirata costume (he later admitted to taking secret dance lessions to learn the routine) until Hirata suddenly pinned him with the Miracle One Shot Cradle.

Hirata is now a double champion but had other business he wanted to bring up before any new challengers appeared. He took out a letter he wrote for Hiromu Takahashi and began reading it to everyone. In the letter he talked about “ALL STAR JR FESTIVAL 2023” from earlier this year and how much it meant to him to be on the show. He also brought up Takahashi’s first ever pro wrestling win was against him but it is never acknowledged anywhere, like on their Wikipedia pages for example. Takahashi will be wrestling at DDT’s Sumo Hall show on 12th November and it would be a dream come true if he chooses Hirata as his opponent. All of a sudden, Takahashi ran into the ring and tried to pin Hirata for the Iron Man Title! Hirata kicked out and was in shock to see Takahashi standing right in front of him. Takahashi thanked him for the letter and agreed to do the match because Hirata is his favorite DDT wrestler. He then tried to pin Hirata again.

A 6-Man Tag Match had Yukio Naya, Yuya Koroku & Takeshi Masada all trying to break down Kazusada Higuchi. Koroku was able to put Higuchi in the Triangle Lancer but Takao broke it up by wrapping his Dropkick Bar shirt over Koroku’s head and pulling him back. Higuchi & HARASHIMA both hit Swan Dive moves to Koroku before Higuchi pinned him with the Doctor Bomb.

Is this finally the end of Pheromones? This was the so-called final battle in their feud with Akito with big stakes on the line. If Yuki Iino won then Akito would give up his Vice President role in CyberFight but if Akito won then Pheromones would disband. A match this dramatic needed to finish with a winner too so the usual Pheromones antics had to be tolerated by Yukinori Matsui and the Wrestle Universe broadcast was censored. Akito used that to his advantage by stripping himself down to an O-back to fight Iino on his level. He leapfrogged over him, causing Iino to Spear Danshoku Dieno by accident. Akito then pinned Iino with the Yoropean Clutch to get the climactic victory he has waited so long for.

Except this maybe is not the end for Pheromones after all. Akito admitted that the unit has become an integral part of DDT with its own supporters. So rather than break up Pheromones, Akito wants to see if they can be purified first. Over the next month Pheromones will be put on a trial period where they have to behave themselves and make up for their past transgressions. Then on 4th October Akito will decide their fate.

Antonio Honda showed up wearing Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi’s old American flag costume for the opening match. He tried his best to avoid hurting himself but as usual but it had to happen so Gongitsune could appear. It backfired slightly but he still hit Yuni with the Bionic Elbow, giving Masahiro Takanashi the opening to roll up the teenager with a Crucifix Pin.


DDT’s Matches In AJPW During September 2023

September 8, 2023

AJPW “GIANT SERIES 2023”, 03/09/2023
Niigata Aore Nagaoka
1,560 Fans

1. Special Single Match: Yoshitatsu defeated Super Sasadango Machine with the Yoshitatsu Fantasy (8:00).
2. AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles & KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani (c/c) defeated ATM, DASH Chisako & Black Menso~re when Sakaguchi pinned Menso~re with the God’s Right Knee (11:56).
*V1 for Eruption with the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles. V2 for Eruption with the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles.

This week there was more DDT participation in All Japan for the company’s latest tour. In Niigata Eruption stepped foot in AJPW again to defend their double crown trios championships. With both the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Titles and KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles on the line Eruption successfully retained all of their belts against ATM, DASH Chisako & Black Menso~re. With no challengers left in AJPW for the time being that allows Eruption to defend the titles back in DDT tomorrow. Yukio Sakaguchi said the successful defence means the AJPW championship now completely belongs to them. Saki Akai agrees and thinks the AJPW belts are now like part of their costumes. Hideki Okatani calls out for any more challengers to step forward. That’s if there are any left.

Also on the show was Super Sasadango Machine, getting to wrestle in the AJPW ring at his hometown. He took on Yoshitatsu with the goal of winning in order to become a regular addition to AJPW shows. Unfortunately he lost and the result supposedly destroyed any hope he had of joining that roster.

AJPW “GIANT SERIES 2023”, 08/09/2023
Yoyogi National Stadium Gymnasium #2
1,675 Fans

1. Evolution Vs DDT: Jun Akiyama, Sanshiro Takagi & Yusuke Okada defeated Suwama, Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura by Referee Stoppage when Akiyama used the Front Neck Lock on Tamura (6:57).

Earlier today at All Japan’s big show in Yoyogi there was some DDT involvement on the undercard to continue the growing rivalry between the companies. Jun Akiyama, Sanshiro Takagi & Yusuke Okada defeated the Evolution stable of Suwama, Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura when Akiyama used the Front Neck Lock to choke out Tamura. Akiyama and Suwama got into each other’s faces after the match causing Yukio Naya to step in and start a fight with Suwama! The two had to be pulled apart.

There were also two Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title changes on the show. Naoki Tanizaki rolled up Naruki Doi right after they teamed together to become the new champion. A few other wrestlers tried to roll up Tanizaki until Doi succeeded and regained the title.


DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023” Results

August 29, 2023

DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023”, 27/08/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
680 Fans

0. Dark Match – No Tag Rules: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Akito defeated Yuni & Ilusion when Iino pinned Ilusion with the Ketsugoye (8:38).
1. Minoru Fujita, KANON & MJ Paul defeated Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Rukiya when KANON pinned Rukiya with the Sleepy Hollow (8:49).
2. Saki Akai Photobook “GRACIA” Infomercial Match: Saki Akai Photobook “GRACIA” defeated Kazuki Hirata and Antonio Honda when “GRACIA” submitted Hirata and Honda with a Double Arm Lock (8:22).
3. Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 3 ~ Special Single Match: Saki Akai defeated Danshoku Dieno by TKO with a Face Kick (6:51).
4. Kazusada Higuchi, Hideki Okatani & Takeshi Masada defeated Yukio Naya, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku when Okatani pinned Koroku with the Double Arm Suplex (9:57).
5. HARASHIMA Debut 22nd Anniversary Match: HARASHIMA, Yasu Urano & Ken Ohka defeated Daisuke Sekimoto, Sanshiro Takagi & Yukio Sakaguchi when HARASHIMA pinned Sakaguchi with the Somato (14:15).
6. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Toy Kojima with the Crossface Lock (10:34).
7. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Yuki Ueno defeated Shigehiro Irie & Jun Akiyama when Brookes pinned Irie with the Praying Mantis Bomb (19:45).

Chris Brookes returned his first big blow back at Shigehiro Irie by pinning him in today’s main event at Korakuen Hall. The early part of the tag match had Irie & Jun Akiyama in control but the tides turned with Yuki Ueno helping Brookes to stop Irie’s momentum. Ueno wore down Irie with a top rope Frankensteiner followed by the BME. After that Brookes took over by hitting the Diving Double Knee Drop and Michinoku Driver II for some nearfalls. Irie was spent after that though and was pinned with the Praying Mantis Bomb. Brookes said Irie had won all of their previous warm up matches and today is the first time Brookes beat him. Irie may want to take over the world but Brookes does not care about that. He cares about DDT because he is their champion. They have time left to get ready for the KO-D Openweight Title match on 9th September. Backstage Irie took the loss to think he is not the strong challenger he thought he was. But he won’t stop believing in himself until he makes it back to the top of DDT!

The god damn injury bug that’s been haunting DDT all year struck again over the weekend, causing a few changes on this show. The big one was MAO being pulled from the show to get checked for a suspected cheekbone fracture. He ended up being diagnosed with traumatic TMJ arthritis, putting him out of action until the 9th September show at Ota Ward Gymnasium. His match with Daisuke Sasaki meant for today was changed into Sasaki against Toy Kojima, bringing back their feud from earlier this summer. Sasaki quickly tried to end the match with an immediate Pedigree and Crossface Lock but Kojima reached the ropes. Sasaki then attacked the injured Shunma Katsumata at ringside. Kojima fought back by diving onto Sasaki and other DAMNATION T.A members outside the ring. He tried using one of Katsumata’s signature moves the Totonou Splash but Sasaki blocked it with his knees. Sasaki hit a Spear and used MAO’s Michinoku Driver II but Kojima kicked out. Sasaki then applied the Crossface Lock, making Kojima give up.

Sasaki attacked Kojima with a chair afterwards, telling him he isn’t the person he wants to join his side. Yuki Ueno ran into the ring to rescue Kojima and Sasaki stopped. He told Ueno to give him an answer for his offer. Does he want to stay in The 37KAMIINA and stay where he is for the rest of his life? Or will he join Sasaki and Konosuke Takeshita so they can all change the world together? Ueno wouldn’t except a handshake so Sasaki whispered something into his ear. Whatever it was, it made Ueno pause and think before helping Kojima to the back.

HARASHIMA put together his own 6-Man Tag Match to celebrate his 22nd anniversary in pro wrestling. He teamed up with his close friends Yasu Urano & Ken Ohka but that wasn’t all. KUDO appeared with them for their entrance down to the ring and stood in their corner. Their opponents weren’t going to take it easy on them though. Yukio Sakaguchi relished in the chance to bully Ohka again, taping his arms to his side to mock him. Daisuke Sekimoto chopped and suplexed HARASHIMA around the ring. Ohka got his revenge by giving Sekimoto & Sakaguchi separate Spears Of Fire. That put Sakaguchi in position to take the Somato from HARASHIMA for the finish. HARASHIMA said 22 years seems like a long time but it went by in the blink of an eye. He got to produce his own match with wrestlers he wanted to fight but there are still many more he wants to wrestle again. He looked at KUDO as he said that. Backstage Urano also brought up Toru Owashi as someone who’s been important for HARASHIMA’s career. Sanshiro Takagi thanked Sekimoto and Urano for gathering with DDT again to celebrate HARASHIMA. Sekimoto said he could really feel HARASHIMA’s love in the match so he had to show love for HARASHIMA in his own way.

The scheduled 8-Man Tag Match was changed around into a 6-Man Tag thanks to Kojima and Ilusion both being moved around the card due to other people’s absences. Hideki Okatani was supposed to be against Kazusada Higuchi & Takeshi Masada but now found himself teaming with them. Yukio Naya & Yusuke Okada held their own against them and it was all left there for Yuya Koroku to finish the job. He put Okatani in the Triangle Lancer but Higuchi broke it up by putting him in the Brain Claw. Masada then hit Koroku with the Triangle Kick and Okatani pinned him with the Northern Lights Suplex. Okatani described the match as a warm up for later tonight. Eruption are heading over to an All Japan show in Nagoya where they are defending the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles against the AJPW TV 6-Man Tag Team Champions in a double championship match! Eruption ended up winning that match so they are all now double crown trios champions!

No injury was going to cancel Saki Akai’s match with Danshoku Dieno given how much it meant for Akai. Dieno recently had surgery on a broken nose and wore a face guard in order to let the match take place. His injury made Akai cautious to attack, which he took advantage of. He gave Akai the Danshoku Driver but she kicked out and applied a Triangle Choke. Dieno reached the ropes but then took a Superplex. Akai again hesitated to use her kicking moveset that targets the face. Dieno told her it’s okay. He currently cannot breath through his nose but he accepted this match and this only shows the weak side of Saki Akai. A pro wrestler is not supposed to show weakness so he demanded she attack him! Akai did so and kicked him in the face over and over until Yukinori Matsui stopped the match, rewarding her the victory by TKO.

After the match Dieno admitted he never told the hospital he was doing this match. However he accepts being completely defeated and he lost today because Akai has become a stronger wrestler. He encouraged her to keep getting stronger until the moment she retires. Nobody should have the same opinion about what pro wrestling is because it’s fun to throw different opinions into the ring together. Akai promised to take what he just said and keep them in her thoughts during her remaining months as a pro wrestler. She will become stronger and get more people to know about DDT! As mentioned above, Akai later went to AJPW with Eruption in the evening to win the AJPW 6-Man Tag Titles. By doing so she has become the first female champion ever in All Japan’s history!

Akai sort of got another win in the match prior. Her new photobook “GRACIA” defeated Kazuki Hirata and Antonio Honda in a 3 Way Match created to promote said book. Honda briefly fainted when Hirata showed him some of the pages inside but the book istelf started doing wrestling moves, trapping both opponents in a Double Arm Lock to make them submit. Both Hirata and Honda wondered if the book was printed in Mexico because that would explain why something called “GRACIA” is good at submission holds.

Just like with Irie in the main event, Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi suffered a setback in momentum in the opening match. KANON & Minoru Fujita along with MJ Paul beat them in a 6-Man Tag Match. Oishi tried shrugging off the result because KANON only pinned Rukiya. Hino agreed and said he doesn’t even know who Rukiya is. Backstage Ω and DAMNATION T.A signed the contract for the KO-D Tag Team Titles match on 9th September. But first KANON has to face Hino in a singles match on the 3rd.

Kazuma Sumi had to miss the show because of a fever. Ilusion took his place in the dark match. Akito wanting to team with Yuki Iino in a secret plan to infiltrate Pheromones naturally had Iino feeling suspicious. The two came to blows until Akito stripped out of his gear to reveal the costume he wore as Akito “Cochin” Nishigaki underneath! They got along from that point on until Akito tried to cost his tag partner the match. Yuni & Ilusion tried to take advantage but Iino found a way to win the match in one piece. He used the Ketsugoye, hitting Akito in the face with his groin before stuffing Ilusion’s face into his backside for the victory.

It was announced during the show that Hiromu Takahashi from New Japan will be at “ULTIMATE PARTY 2023” on 12th November! There was also a match announcement for the 18th September show in Nagoya. On that show Brookes, MAO & Honda will take on Sakaguchi, Akai & Minoru Suzuki!


DDT “SAKI AKAI 10TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR IN KORAKUEN!!” Results

August 13, 2023

DDT “SAKI AKAI 10TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR IN KORAKUEN!!”, 13/08/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
816 Fans

0. Dark Match: Yuya Koroku defeated Rukiya with the Modified Triangle Lancer (7:14).
1. Special Single Match: KANON defeated Hideki Okatani with the Vietnam Driver II (8:04).
2. Diya Diamond Presents 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Yusuke Okada defeated Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada when Naya pinned Masada with the World’s Best Back Drop (9:19).
3. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – marcheur Presents Battle Royal: Naruki Doi defeated Sanshiro Takagi (c), HARASHIMA, Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno, Antonio Honda, Akito and Kazuma Sumi (14:37).
3a. Naruki Doi eliminated Sanshiro Takagi (c) with a Cradle (6:58).
*Naruki Doi becomes the 1,573rd champion.
3b. Antonio Honda eliminated Kazuma Sumi by Ring Out (11:41).
3c. Naruki Doi (c) eliminated Antonio Honda by Ring Out (11:59).
*V1 for Naruki Doi.
3d. HARASHIMA eliminated Yuki “Sexy” Iino and Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno by Double Ring Out (13:24).
3e. Naruki Doi (c) eliminated HARASHIMA by Ring Out (13:54).
*V2 for Naruki Doi.
3f. Naruki Doi (c) eliminated Akito with the Bakatare Sliding Kick (14:37).
*V3 for Naruki Doi.
4. Jemile Fran Presents Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima defeated Kyusei Sakisama, Chris Saint Laurent & Martha when Ueno pinned Sakisama with a Cradle (9:58).
5. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi defeated Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (c) when Oishi pinned Paul with the Jikiden Tornado Clutch (11:13).
*DAMNATION T.A fails in V1. Ω becomes the 78th KO-D Tag Team Champions!
6. DDT Extreme Title – Weakness Explosion!! Activation Conditions Are Up To You! Fall & Escape = Ghost & Balloon Explosion Death Match: Kazuki Hirata (c) defeated Yukio Sakaguchi with the Miracle One Shot Cradle from a huge balloon explosion (14:27).
*V2 for Kazuki Hirata.
7. Nivea Body Wash Presents Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 2 ~ Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Saki Akai, Maya Yukihi & Asuka defeated Takumi Iroha, Rina Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima when Akai pinned Nakajima with the Quetzalcoatl (19:01).

It came a couple of days early but Saki Akai celebrated the 10th anniversary of her debut pro wrestling match in DDT. With her retirement coming up later this year, Akai is getting several matches dedicated to her decade in the business and today gathered together a lot of women she has attachments with. In the main event Akai teamed up with Maya Yukihi & Asuka, two women who have been her biggest opponents in DDT over the last two years. Their opponents were a trio of wrestlers who all debuted in the same year as Akai. It was the first time Takumi Iroha, Rina Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima all teamed together. Iroha & Yamashita quickly thought up a move where they gave Nakajima a Double Splash Mountain onto Akai. Asuka Moonsaulted onto Iroha & Yamashita outside the ring and Akai rolled out of the way from Nakajima’s Diving Senton. Akai then hit the Rookie Award and pinned Nakajima with the Quetzalcoatl.

Akai thanked the other wrestlers for accepting her invitation, knowing how busy all of their schedules are. She wanted to show the fans all of the wonderful friends she made outside of DDT over the years. She knows they will all continue to shine a light on pro wrestling when she’s gone so everyone should keep watching them. She isn’t sure how many more matches she has left until her retirement but she is going to hone her strength and run all the way to the end. Asuka said she wished the three of them had teamed together sooner and wonders if they could have chased after one of the KO-D championships together. Yamashita overheard that idea and told them they should do it anyway, even if it’s for the KO-D 10-Man Tag Team Titles. Her advice to Akai is to be greedy from this point until the end because she isn’t finished yet. Yukihi feels lucky she got to do her rivalry with Akai in DDT because she didn’t expect Akai’s retirement announcement to come when it did. Akai described all of the women are a fun loving group of people with good hearts.

Kazuki Hirata’s bizarre ideas to even the playing field against his opponents are working for him. The DDT Extreme Champion is normally scared of having to fight Yukio Sakaguchi but this time he got to turn the tables against him. Hirata’s stipulation for the match was to add ghosts and balloons whenever there was a kickout or rope break. Sakaguchi hates the sound of balloons bursting and also fears ghosts so we got the unlikely sight of Sakaguchi being submissive to Hirata and fleeing in fear whenever a ghost chased after him! Sakaguchi tried to fight his fears and found his spots to kick the hell out of Hirata. But by this point there were three ghosts in the ring haunting him with one popping a gigantic balloon right in his face. The fright made Sakaguchi walk right into the Miracle One Shot Cradle and Hirata got the win.

Once all of the ghosts vanished, Sakaguchi calmed down and handed the Extreme Title over to Hirata. He then attacked him a little bit and walked off. Hirata got on the microphone, said he was feeling mentally exhausted and now wants to know who his next challenger is. Naruki Doi walked out carrying the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title he won earlier in the show. Doi said his title win makes him feel more absorbed into DDT and he now wants to win the Extreme Title to become fully immersed in the company. He especially wants to beat Hirata for the belt because Hirata is the DDT wrestler who best expresses what the company is all about. Hirata refused but Hisaya Imabayashi ignored him. A double title match between Hirata and Doi will take place on 9th September. If Doi loses the Iron Man Title before that date then the match will just be for the Extreme Title. Hirata then tried to pin Doi to win the Iron Man Title but only got a two count. Doi chased him back to the locker room.

The KO-D Tag Team Titles aren’t ready to settle down with a team yet. DAMNATION T.A’s reign ended in their first defence, losing the belts to Ω. The champions tried to isolate Makoto Oishi and also get KANON involved to interfere for them. Yuji Hino came in to make a difference but his attempt to Fuckin’ BOMB MJ Paul was cut off by Daisuke Sasaki. That left Oishi to deal with Paul by himself. Paul threw Lariats at him but Oishi caught him with the Jikiden Tornado Clutch for the flash pinfall and title change. Hino praised Oishi for winning the KO-D Tag Titles under his own strength, calling it a miracle. Oishi was too exhausted to respond so Hino encouraged the audience to give him a round of applause.

KANON then entered the ring demanding a title shot but not as a member of DAMNATION T.A. There is another wrestler out there he considers a mentor. Hino thought he meant TAKA Michinoku but KANON said it is actually someone else because TAKA is busy. KANON’s partner is going to be Minoru Fujita! Imabayashi granted the request and booked the title match for 9th September. KANON helped Oishi back up to his feet, shook his hand… and then gave him a Clothesline before leaving.

Before Match #4 could begin it was announced that Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi were not at the show because they were both too hungover to wrestle. Then “The Rose Of Versailles” began to play and what appeared to be NEO Biishiki-gun walked out. Martha was there but instead of Yukio Saint Laurent we got Chris Saint Laurent instead. Also Sakura Hirota was nowhere to be seen, seemingly replaced in the match by Kyusei Sakisama. Despite their appearance looking weirder than usual, they were still NEO Biishiki-gun through and through. The 37KAMIINA had to deal with the unit’s antics. “Saint Laurent” jabbed an injection needle into Yuki Ueno’s neck, Martha was a nuisance towards MAO and Toy Kojima ended up suffering a Kancho attack involving Martha’s mop. “Sakisama” used the Academy Award finisher on Ueno but her glamorous pin was reversed and Ueno posed on top of her for the three count instead. The 37KAMIINA celebrated with their sponsored prize after the match until all of NEO Biishiki-gun gave them Kancho attacks and took the prizes for themselves.

Doi won the Iron Man Title pretty early in the Battle Royal. In fact him pinning Sanshiro Takagi to become champion was the first elimination in the match. Doi then had to fight through the rest of the field to survive. He still got caught up in the Pheromones experience with Kazuma Sumi, fell for Antonio Honda’s Gongitsune joke and outsmarted HARASHIMA. All that was left for him was a battle with Akito that ended with the DOI 555 and the Bakatare Sliding Kick. Doi promised to raise the value of the Iron Man Title then immediately had to fight off Sumi. That was when he realised the title is defended 24/7. He will stick to his promise anyway even if there’s a risk of him losing it in another company. Rukiya then tried to pin him so Doi kicked him away.

The 2nd match was overshadowed by the appearance of Evolution from All Japan. During the week Suwama told Tokyo Sports he had tickets for this show and was going in order to confront Jun Akiyama over a grudge held going back to Akiyama’s time as AJPW president. Suwama sat in his seat along with other Evolution members Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura to see Akiyama’s team beat Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada. Then after the match Evolution approached the ring, throwing aside Yuya Koroku and Rukiya who were trying to block them. Naya then wanted to stand in Suwama’s way but Suwama said he isn’t here for him. Suwama asked “useless former president” Akiyama why he is going to do an Exploding Death Match soon when he hated the idea of Suwama doing one six years ago? He then challenged Akiyama to come to Yoyogi on 8th September when AJPW is running a show there. He can even bring along Takagi so they can do a big Evolution Vs DDT match! Akiyama called the idea crazy but agreed to do it. He then told Suwama to stop making decisions without the AJPW president’s approval! Backstage Sato told DDT to send their icons like Dieno or HARASHIMA because as a former KO-D Openweight Champion and winner of a DDT General Election himself, he thinks he should be a DDT icon too. Tamura said he wants Yusuke Okada to come over because they have unfinished business from Okada’s time in AJPW.

KANON is sticking with the Vietnam Driver II as his new finisher, using it to beat Hideki Okatani in their first singles match against each other. KANON said the match left him more tired than he expected but that’s probably because of the summer heat. Okatani didn’t like the result and warned KANON he will beat him the next time they meet.

Koroku and Rukiya probably thought their dark match was the only physicality they would both experience today. Then Evolution came along and beat them up later in the show. In the match itself Rukiya tried to win with a Running Elbow Strike but Koroku took him down into a Modified Triangle Lancer to win by submission.

Chris Brookes has been appointed as the sales manager for “DDT BIG BANG 2023” at Ota Ward Gymnasium on 9th September. Also announced was Mei Suruga being at the 30h September show in Kyoto KBS Hall. That show is part of Akai’s countdown towards her retirement.


DAMNATION Vs 37KAMIINA Getting More Volatile, Akai’s Anniversary Plans Grow, Onita Gets His Match With Akiyama

August 2, 2023

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

1. Special Single Match: Aja Kong Vs Super Sasadango Machine
2. Suzume Vs Runa Okubo
3. 3 Way Match: Hyper Misao Vs Haruna Neko Vs HIMAWARI
4. Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta Vs Mahiro Kiryu & Toga
5. Mizuki, Shino Suzuki & Haru Kazashiro Vs Yuki Arai, Raku & Pom Harajuku
6. Rika Tatsumi & Miu Watanabe Vs Moka Miyamoto & Kaya Toribami
7. Shoko Nakajima & Yuki Aino Vs Miyu Yamashita & Arisu Endo

Both Yuki Kamifuku and Wakana Uehara will not be on the show due to other priorities that day. Kamifuku is attending an event in Fujisawa City while Uehara is performing on a stage show.

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

1. Keisuke Ishii Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
2. GanJo Vs JTO!: Yoshiko Hasegawa & Riara Vs Misa Kagura & HisokA
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari, Mizuki Watase & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Shota, Soma Takao & Shinichiro Tominaga
4. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Koji Doi
5. Spirit Of Ganbare World Tag Team Titles: Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada (c) Vs Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE
6. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs YuuRI

The long delayed Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Title belts have finally been completed and are being sent over to Ganbare☆Pro in time for this weekend’s show. The belts will be presented to Shuichiro Katsumura & Takuya Wada on the day as part of a contract signing ceremony with Hartley Jackson & HARUKAZE for their title match later in the show.

DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023 TOUR IN YAMAGATA”, 06/08/2023
Yamagata Big Wing

1. Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Akito & Makoto Oishi
2. Kazuki Hirata & Kazuma Sumi Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Hideki Okatani
3. Daisuke Sasaki & KANON Vs Yuji Hino & Rukiya
4. Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima Vs HARASHIMA, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku
5. Yamagata Specialty Special Tag Match: Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida Vs Yukio Naya & Keisuke Goto
6. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Shigehiro Irie & Jun Akiyama

Good luck to Kazuki Hirata having to fight Yukio Sakaguchi more so than usual this month because they have a DDT Extreme Title match coming up.

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

1. Ice Ribbon Offer Match: Ibuki Hoshi & Kaho Matsushita Vs Yappy & Tsukina Umino
2. Miyako Matsumoto Vs Banny Oikawa
3. Sumire Natsu & Riara Vs Maya Yukihi & Alex Lee
4. Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Sayaka Unagi
5. ICEx∞ Title: YuuRI (c) Vs Ami Manase

I was wondering why Yoshiko Hasegawa was missing from the lineup. Turns out there was one more match left to announce and it’s her against Sayaka Unagi!

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO PRINCESS CUP”, 12/08/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Suzume Vs Juria Nagano
2. Wakana Uehara, Toga & Runa Okubo Vs HIMAWARI, Shino Suzuki & Haru Kazashiro
3. Hyper Misao, Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta & Kaya Toribami Vs Yuki Aino, Raku, Pom Harajuku & Haruna Neko
4. Shoko Nakajima & Miu Watanabe Vs Moka Miyamoto & Arisu Endo
5. Sakisama & Mei Saint-Michel Vs Mizuki & Mahiro Kiryu
6. Tokyo Princess Cup – Semi Final: Rika Tatsumi Vs Yuki Kamifuku
7. Tokyo Princess Cup – Semi Final: Miyu Yamashita Vs Yuki Arai

The summer is nearing its end and so too is this year’s Tokyo Princess Cup. Four women are left standing and two of those will be next to fall. Miyu Yamashita is trying to win the tournament for the first time after a decade of trying, Yuki Arai is benefitting from adding Saki Akai’s Rookie Award finisher to her moveset, Rika Tatsumi is in the middle of one hell of a run and Yuki Kamifuku is showing everyone just how successful she can be when she puts her mind to it.

Mizuki & Mahiro Kiryu are the two women teaming together to fight NEO Biishiki-gun.

Match #4 is made up of the four women who were knocked out in the Quarter Finals.

The 6-Woman Tag Match in Match #2 is entirely made up of the 2023 class.

DDT “SAKI AKAI 10TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR IN KORAKUEN!!”, 13/08/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

0. Dark Match: Yuya Koroku Vs Rukiya
1. Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Yusuke Okada Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Takeshi Masada
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Battle Royal: Sanshiro Takagi (c) Vs HARASHIMA Vs Naruki Doi Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino Vs Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Antonio Honda Vs Akito Vs Kazuma Sumi
3. Special Single Match: Hideki Okatani Vs KANON
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Sakura Hirota Vs Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima
5. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul (c) Vs Yuji Hino & Makoto Oishi
6. DDT Extreme Title: Kazuki Hirata (c) Vs Yukio Sakaguchi
7. Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 2 ~ Special 6-Woman Tag Match: Saki Akai, Maya Yukihi & Asuka Vs Takumi Iroha, Rina Yamashita & Shoko Nakajima

Akai’s next 10th Anniversary match will feature her teaming with Maya Yukihi & Asuka. They were two of her recent big opponents here in DDT. Their opponents all debuted in 2013, the same year as Akai. Takumi Iroha & Rina Yamashita were already announced and this past weekend Shoko Nakajima was revealed to be the third woman on the team.

Hirata found a way to beat HARASHIMA. He’s also beaten Sakaguchi once before but as Extreme Champion he will come up with any stipulation that will tip the scales in his favour. Otherwise Sakaguchi is going to kill him and take his title!

Makoto Oishi has convinced Yuji Hino to go after the KO-D Tag Team Titles with him. Maybe Hino would be better off teaming with Yukio Naya for the match but Oishi being such a caring father for his children convinced Hino to stick with him.

DDT “FIGHTING BEER GARDEN – DAY 1”, 16/08/2023
Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage

1. The Scariest Event In History! Ghost Story New Numabukuro Death Match: Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno Vs Saki Akai Vs Yuni Vs Hideki Okatani Vs Kazuma Sumi (Ghost Story Reading Artist: Hisaya Imabayashi)
2. Blindfold Hidden Breast 4 Way Death Match: HARASHIMA Vs Kazuki Hirata Vs Antonio Honda Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino
3. YOROKOBI BREWERY Infomercial Match: Yuji Hino, Yukio Sakaguchi & Soma Takao Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yukio naya & Yuki Ishida
4. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Shigehiro Irie & Jun Akiyama

The Fighting Beer Garden shows now has a craft beer sponsor.

DDT “SOMA TAKAO LOCAL TRIUPMH! MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023 TOUR IN OTA-KU”, 19/08/2023
Tokyo Ota Ward Industrial Plaza PiO Small Exhibition Hall

1. Special Tag Match: Soma Takao & Shota Vs Yukio Sakaguchi & Kazuki Hirata
2. Jun Akiyama, Saki Akai & Antonio Honda Vs Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Ishida & Rukiya
3. DAMNATION T.A Vs The 37KAMIINA!: Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul Vs Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima

The recent actions of Konosuke Takeshita has fired up the rivalry between DAMNATION T.A and The 37KAMIINA. The one here is a rematch from the end of June when Daisuke Sasaki & MJ Paul beat Yuki Ueno & Toy Kojima to win the vacant tag titles.

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

1. Osaka Specialty Special Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi & Tsutenkakka Vs Akito & Kazuma Sumi
2. BURNING Vs Harimao!: Jun Akiyama & Kotaro Suzuki Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
3. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Shigehiro Irie & HARASHIMA
4. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno
5. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshitatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Yukio Sakaguchi, Hideki Okatani & Soma Takao

Sasaki has a few singles matches against different members of The 37KAMIINA this month. Yuki Ueno keeps being told by Takeshita to follow his lead and Sasaki has become a big supporter of that idea.

DDT “MEMORIES OF SUMMER VACATION 2023”, 27/08/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. Saki Akai Debut 10th Anniversary Match Vol. 3 ~ Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Saki Akai
2. Special Single Match: Daisuke Sasaki Vs MAO
3. HARASHIMA Debut 22nd Anniversary Match: HARASHIMA Vs X

Sasaki also has to face MAO. He might start regretting taking Takeshita’s side in the matter just because of how much extra ring work it’s giving him.

Akai asked Danshoku Dieno for a singles match to call back memories of the Extreme Title bout from 2016. Their match back then featured a stipulation that nobody was allowed to cry or else they would lose. It was a match that Akai learned a lot and still thinks about after all this time. Dieno understands how much it means to her and will not be using his “Dandy” persona for that reason.

DDT “ROJO PRO WRESTLING IN IZUKOGEN GRANILLUMI”, 02/09/2023
Shizuoka Izu Granpal Park

1. Falls Count Anywhere 4 Way 6-Man Tag Match: Chris Brookes, HARASHIMA & Saki Akai Vs Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima (w/ Shunma Katsumata) Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Shinya Aoki & Takeshi Masada Vs Yuki “Sexy” Iino, Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno & X

A lot of people are gathering together to wrestle among the bright lights of Izu Granpal Park. Not only is Shinya Aoki showing up but Pheromones will be joined by a mystery wrestler.

DDT “DDT BIG BANG 2023”, 09/09/2023
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium

1. Pheromones Vs Subjugation Final Match! Special Single Match ~ Dissolution Contra Vice President: Yuki “Sexy” Iino (w/ Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno) Vs Akito
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani Vs Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow
3. Special Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Daisuke Sasaki Vs Yuki Ueno & MAO
4. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita, Yoshi Tatsu & Toy Kojima Vs Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Akiyama & Yusuke Okada
5. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Shigehiro Irie

Sick of his demands being ignored, Atsushi Onita took it upon himself last week to crash a training session at the DDT dojo and confront Jun Akiyama. Apparently Onita got in touch with Kojima and demanded to find out when Akiyama was in the building. Kojima told him but didn’t actually expect he would show up. Onita told Akiyama the names of many famous wrestlers who fought him in Explosion Death Matches then asked why is he the only person who refuses to take part? Onita also reminded Sanshiro Takagi he was promised this match would happen. Akiyama accepted the challenge and both sides decided their teams. Onita will team with Yoshi Tatsu & Toy Kojima while Akiyama & Takagi will add Yusuke Okada to their team.

Is the team of Ueno & MAO enough to beat Takeshita & Sasaki? We’re heading into dangerous territory here as tensions raise higher and higher.

If Eruption are still the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions coming out of their All Japan appearance at the end of this month then their match against Yuko Miyamoto, Isami Kodaka & Ram Kaichow will be a title match.

TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~NAGOYA PERFORMANCE~”, 18/09/2023
Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall

1. Saki Akai & Yuki Arai Vs X & X

This will be the final time Reiwa AA Cannon will team together, just two months before Akai retires.

DDT “DRAMATIC EXPLOSION 2023”, 18/09/2023
Nagoya International Conference Center Event Hall

1. Current Blast Death Match: Atsushi Onita Vs X

Minoru Suzuki will be on the show. This is happening the same day as the Bullet Train match with Takagi by the way. How else were they making it to Nagoya?

“MASAHIRO TAKANASHI 20TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW”, 19/09/2023
Shinjuku FACE

1. Special Exhibition: Masahiro Takanashi Vs KUDO
2. Yukio Sakaguchi, Isami Kodaka & Ken Ohka Vs MAO, Daiki Shimomura & Munetatsu Nakamura
3. Special Single Match: Mei Suruga Vs Minoru Suzuki
4. Chris Brookes Vs Masahiro Takanashi

No way was KUDO going to miss Masahiro Takanashi’s big show. He isn’t in ring shape to do a full wrestling match so Takanashi decided KUDO will face him in a 5 minute exhibition instead.

Saki Akai will also be on the show.


DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2023” Results

July 30, 2023

DDT “SUMMER VACATION 2023”, 30/07/2023
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
761 Fans

0. Dark Match: Yuni defeated Kazuma Sumi with the Phoenix Splash (5:22).
1. Minoru Fujita & MJ Paul defeated Soma Takao & Rukiya when Paul pinned Rukiya with the Death Valley Bomb (8:24).
2. Special Tag Match: Yuki “Sexy” Iino & Danshoku “Dandy” Dieno defeated Akito & Naruki Doi when Iino pinned Akito after the Muscular Sexy Driver (12:15).
3. Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Yukio Naya defeated Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku when Hino pinned Koroku with the Fuckin’ BOMB (8:07).
4. Yukio Sakaguchi 50th Birthday Match ~ Special 6-Man Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai & Hideki Okatani defeated Shuji Ishikawa, Thanomsak Toba & Masahiro Takanashi when Sakaguchi pinned Toba with the God’s Right Knee (11:26).
5. Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada defeated Kazusada Higuchi, Kotaro Suzuki & Yuki Ishida when Brookes pinned Ishida with the Praying Mantis Bomb (11:49).
6. DDT Extreme Title – Super Fierce Battle! Hirata’s Miraculous Allies Gather! No Touch Captain’s Fall & 2 Count Hall Handicap Death Match: Kazuki Hirata (C/c), Broom, Kokeshi Doll, Chair, Yakitori, Baby Doll, Watch Dog, Cold Spray & Toru Owashi Doll defeated HARASHIMA (C) when Hirata pinned HARASHIMA with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (13:21).
*V1 for Kazuki Hirata.
7. Special 6-Man Tag Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA, Daisuke Sasaki & KANON defeated Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima when Sasaki submitted Ueno with La Mistica Crossover Face Lock (17:44).

A new direction for Konosuke Takeshita now sees him stand across the ring from his friends in The 37KAMIINA. If that’s not weird enough, he decided to become an ally with Daisuke Sasaki and DAMNATION T.A to further his agenda. Takeshita got his moments to fight Yuki Ueno, MAO & Toy Kojima throughout the main event. Sasaki & KANON were there to back him up for a triple submission spot. Ueno & Kojima had Sasaki beaten with the My MADMAX but Takeshita came back with a big rally. He used a Double German Suplex to throw both MAO & Kojima at the same time then hit Ueno with the Zahi. Sasaki then lined Ueno up for La Mistica Crossover Face Lock to win the match.

Afterward Takeshita again advised Ueno to start following him if he really wants to carry DDT on his back. Even Sasaki agreed with him and said he would support anybody who has Takeshita’s approval. If Takeshita tells Ueno to do something like join DAMNATION T.A then Ueno should have no other choice but to do it. By this point Shunma Katsumata was in the ring using a crutch to move around. Sasaki suddenly attacked him and knocked the crutch away until MAO chased him out of the ring. MAO lost his temper at Takeshita for doing nothing to stop Sasaki and not helping Katsumata afterwards. He understands now that Takeshita is The 37KAMIINA’s enemy from this point forward! Takeshita said he is going back to America but will return to DDT for the Ota Ward Gymnasium show on 9th September. He expects to hear an answer from Ueno by then. Ueno said he wants to team up with MAO to take on Takeshita & Sasaki on the show.

It was a Handicap Match for the ages when Kazuki Hirata gathered together his own army of inanimate objects to fight against HARASHIMA. It was part of a collection of rule stipulations the DDT Extreme Champion came up with to ensure his defence was going to be a fair fight, otherwise HARASHIMA was going to destroy him without much effort. Another rule was Hirata only needed a 2 Count pin to win. First HARASHIMA fought a Kokeshi Doll and almost got outwrestled by it. A Chair somehow put HARASHIMA in a Cross Armbreaker submission. HARASHIMA hesitated trying to fight a Baby Doll because nobody wanted to see him attack something cute like that. He instead played a Watch Dog toy game that bit his finger, giving Hirata a 1 Count nearfall with a roll up. The next fighter to enter was a Yakitori chicken skewer. HARASHIMA ate it, causing Hirata to attack him with a Broom out of anger for his fallen comrade. Hirata climbed the top rope with the Broom to do a Kiki’s Delivery Service Dive but it was blocked by HARASHIMA’s boots. HARASHIMA did a Falcon Arrow onto a pile of the objects for a nearfall. He went for the Somato but Hirata blocked it with the Broom and used the Miracle One Shot Cradle to win with a 2 count pinfall.

When the match was over HARASHIMA congratulated Hirata for beating him by wrapping the Extreme Title around his waist. Hirata thanked him and said no matter what the rules were, today he was able to beat HARASHIMA! He now feels like he can beat anybody. As soon as he finished saying that, Yukio Sakaguchi appeared and entered the ring. Hirata immediately offered to give up and forfeit his title to Sakaguchi. It was declined because Sakaguchi didn’t want to look like he is bullying Hirata. He wants to challenge him instead because winning the Extreme Title for the first time in his career would be a good birthday present for himself. Hirata’s cries of refusal were ignored by Hisaya Imabayashi and the match was made for 13th August. Sakaguchi then told Hirata “What’s mine is mine, what’s Hirata’s is mine.”

Chris Brookes paid his first visit to Korakuen Hall since winning the KO-D Openweight Title. There was no Shigehiro Irie appearance on the show so the new champion was in a 6-Man Tag Match with two of his buddies Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada. Their attempt to pull off a triple team pose on Kotaro Suzuki failed when Honda overshot his jump and fell onto the canvas. Suzuki then interruped the Gongitsune speech. Later in the match he tried to interrupt it again but his own partners Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida pleaded with him to let Honda proceed. The match continued from there and Brookes pinned Ishida with the Praying Mantis Bomb to win. Backstage Brookes acted like the Shukan Puroresu reporter was spreading rumours about Irie being scared of Brookes.

As mentioned a little bit earlier, Yukio Sakaguchi celebrated his birthday this week, turning 50 years old. Today he teamed with the rest of Eruption to take on a team of three opponents who all have ties to him. Shuji Ishikawa was a former rival, Thanomsak Toba trained with him and Masahiro Takanashi used to be his stablemate in Shuten-dōji. Speakin of that unit, KUDO was at ringside for the match too. He presented Sakaguchi with a gift of alcohol before the match. Sakaguchi picked up the win for Eruption by using the God’s Right Knee on Toba.

After the match everyone including KUDO raised each other’s hands in the ring. Then all of a sudden two unexpected guests appeared. It was Isami Kodaka & Yuko Miyamoto! The tag team known as Yankee Two Kenju were carrying bouquets and said they were here to wish Sakaguchi a happy birthday. Sakaguchi did not believe them and knew they had another reason for showing up. Kodaka dropped the facade asked if he and Miyamoto could get a shot at the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles? Sakaguchi was fine with the idea while Hideki Okatani was suddenly all fired up to pick a fight with Miyamoto. Yankee Two Kenju then revealed the third person on their team is going to be Ram Kaichow! Eruption accepted the challenge knowing full well they already have a title defence coming up in All Japan on 27th August. They are confident they will win that so their match against the Triple Six team on 9th September will have the titles on the line if they are still the champions by then.

It’s time for Ω to go take a fresh route and reevaluate their goals. Yuji Hino needed a bounce back win after losing the KO-D Title and found it here by teaming with Makoto Oishi & Yukio Naya. After defeating the BURNING team of Jun Akiyama, Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku their plans became more clear backstage. Oishi gets upset every time he sees Hino without a championship so he should go fight for the KO-D Tag Team Titles. Hino liked the idea and started to think about teaming with Naya again. However Oishi meant himself and Hino should be the team. Hino wasn’t sure because he thinks Oishi should take the rest of the summer off to be with his family. Oishi then said his eldest son sent him a message about wanting to see his dad win a championship. Hearing that cheered Hino up and he agreed to chase after the tag titles with Oishi. It was later confirmed Ω will face Sasaki & MJ Paul for the titles on 13th August.

Like many other people Naruki Doi wanted nothing to do with the Pheromones match. However Akito is desperate to build up momentum for his singles match against Yuki Iino so he was able to convince him to take part. Danshoku Dieno also taunted Doi by telling him his reputation would be tainted if he ran away from Pheromones. Doi picked up the courage to fight them head on but Akito ended up getting isolated and beaten two on one.

Saki Akai entered the ring after the match wanting to speak to Dieno. She reminded him of the singles match they had for the Extreme Title back in 2016. It’s a match that stuck with her ever since because Dieno taught her how wrestlers show their struggles with a human touch. However Akai still wonders if that lesson is true. She thinks pro wrestling is a dream job and wants Dieno to definitively prove her otherwise by facing her one more time before she retires this November. Dieno said Akai has a problem that hasn’t been solved yet and accepted her challenge. The match will take place on 27th August.

DAMNATION T.A overwhelmed Soma Takao & Rukiya in the opening match starting with a surprise attack. Takao found the energy to fight back against Minoru Fujita until the match switched over to Rukiya against Paul. Rukiya’s volley of Elbow Strikes were cut off with a Lariat and Paul pinned him with the Death Valley Bomb.

In the pre-show dark match Yuni defeated Kazuma Sumi one on one. He avoided the Lionsault, kicked out of a Brainbuster and pinned Sumi with the Phoenix Splash.

Shoko Nakajima was revealed to be Takumi Iroha & Rina Yamashita’s tag partner for the 6-Woman Tag Match against Akai, Asuka & Maya Yukihi on 13th August. The match is part of Akai’s retirement tour. She is teaming with her two recent rivals in DDT against a team of opponents who all debuted in 2013, the same year as her.


DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023” Results

July 23, 2023

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


DDT “WRESTLE PETER PAN 2023” Preview

July 21, 2023

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

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

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

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

1. Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuma Sumi

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

7. Special Single Match: TAKA Michinoku Vs MAO

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

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

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

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

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

9. Special Single Match: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA Vs Yuki Ueno

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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