Takeshita’s 2nd G1 Adventure (He Won It!)

It only took him two tries to nail it. Konosuke Takeshita took part in his second G1 Climax for New Japan after making his tournament debut last year. Whereas last time Takeshita treated the G1 as his way to spread his name across NJPW with a few short lived alliances and some seed planting for the future, this year he was all in on winning the tournament relying only on himself… and Rocky Romero. Firmly representing The Don Callis Family in AEW, Takeshita had no intention of teaming with any of the NJPW units for his non-tournament bouts. It’s a somewhat lonely decision that paid off in the long run. When the dust had settled, Takeshita had emerged as this year’s G1 winner! He is now the third wrestler with a DDT background to win the big tournament, joining Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi.

Something I want to make note of is before the tournament began, whispers had been going around in some online circles that New Japan was putting together big plans for Takeshita this year. That pretty much foreshadowed how his G1 was going to turn out even before it started. Now information like that emerging late in the tournament is not out of the ordinary if you’re deep into the insider stuff but having it happen before the G1 even began? That just shows somebody who is in the weeds had some very loose lips this time around.

Block B

1. Zack Sabre Jr. (14)
2. Shota Umino (12)
-. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (12)
4. Shingo Takagi (10)
-. Ren Narita (10)
6. YOSHI-HASHI (8)
-. Drilla Moloney (8)
-. Great-O-Khan (8)
-. El Phantasmo (8)
10. Gabe Kidd (0)

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 19/07/2025
Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center Hokkai Kitayell
2,579 Fans

7. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (2) defeated Gabe Kidd (0) by Referee Stoppage with the Plus Ultra (13:15).

The opening day of the G1 pitted Takeshita against the most hot-headed wrestler in Block B. Gabe Kidd was taking part as the current IWGP Global Heavyweight Champion and he too was expected to play a big part in the tournament. However Takeshita went blow for blow against him and took things one step further than the mad man. After hitting him with an Elbow Strike to the back of the head, Takeshita then grabbed Kidd’s head and gave him a Neck Snap before applying the Plus Ultra, his version of the Chickenwing Face Lock. Kidd fainted from the move and the match was ruled in Takeshita’s favour. Kidd did regain consciousness and tried to fight Takeshita again after the match but the Young Lions at ringside kept them apart. Backstage Takeshita admitted to blacking out during the match so he felt it was only right to make things even by knocking Kidd out. He had hoped this will be the end of their story but knows they have unfinished business so he challenged Kidd to meet him in the finals. However Kidd eventually ended up pulling out of the rest of the tournament due to injury so his run was ended by Takeshita before it could really get going.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 20/07/2025
Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center Hokkai Kitayell
2,520 Fans

8. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: El Phantasmo (2) defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (2) with the CR III (15:02).

Next up was an immediate revisit of Takeshita’s rivalry with El Phantasmo. They had their first singles match together at last year’s G1 where Takeshita was the victor. Since then they had two more singles matches each with a different championship on the line. They had a time limit draw over the NJPW World TV Title and Takeshita then beat ELP in a NEVER Openweight Title defence. This time around ELP finally got a win over Takeshita. He back flipped out of a German Suplex and flipped Takeshita over with a Reverse Hurricanrana. Takeshita kicked out after taking a the CR II so ELP used the move a second time and then finished Takeshita off with the CR III to score his first points of the tournament. Takeshita gave credit to his rival by telling the reporters afterwards that he and ELP are always evolving to take the next step. He then brought up Gabe Kidd and talked about Kidd’s knee injury. That prompted Kidd to approach him on crutches with a warning. One day he’s going to kill Takeshita, leaving Yuka Sakazaki and their pet dog Kenshiro behind all on their lonesome!

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 22/07/2025
Miyagi Sendai Sun Plaza Hall
1,714 Fans

3. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Rocky Romero defeated Great-O-Khan & Jakob Austin Young when Romero pinned Young with a Crushed La Magistral Cradle (7:30).

With the death threat out of the way, Takeshita moved onto preparations for his next block match. His first non-tournament bout meant Romero now started to pay his part on the tour as Takeshita’s tag partner. First up for the duo was Great-O-Khan alongside Californian wrestler and United Empire ally Jakob Austin Young. Romero countered Young’s La Magistral Cradle by blocking it mid-move and pressing himself down on his opponent for the pinfall. Meanwhile O-Khan had grabbed Takeshita with an Iron Claw outside the ring and it required the seconds at ringside to break up the hold. After listing all of his sponsors backstage, O-Khan told reporters he has no idea how much skill the fool Takeshita has but he heard about him being strong in AEW. He wants to see that strength in their G1 match because he didn’t see a single glimpse of it here. Takeshita promised to blow O-Khan’s head off his shoulders with his right elbow. When he left, Romero started to brag about aiming to win this year’s “C Block” of non-tournament matches.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 23/07/2025
Niigata Aore Nagaoka
1,547 Fans

8. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (4) defeated Great-O-Khan (2) with the Raging Fire (17:05).

Takeshita got his revenge the next night but it proved to be a bit difficult to decapitate the guy. He got the big Elbow Strike in as a counter to O-Khan’s strikes and used the Raging Fire for the victory. He then rubbed salt into the wound after the match by doing O-Khan’s standing pose over his prone body. By this point Takeshita understood that he is facing a strong field of opponents this year and can see similarities between himself and O-Khan. He’d like to fight him again but that doesn’t mean he wants to team with him or anything. O-Khan feels the same way. He empathizes with Takeshita over having a triple contract deal that prevents him from touring with NJPW. O-Khan thinks Takeshita does not have to love NJPW in order to belong to the company.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 25/07/2025
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
1,308 Fans

4. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Rocky Romero defeated Shingo Takagi & Daiki Nagai when Romero submitted Nagai with an Armbar (7:32).

Next up for Takeshita & Romero is a fight with Shingo Takagi & Daiki Nagai. The Young Lion caused a bit of a stir by declaring he was going to make Romero cry in pain! That didn’t happen. While Takeshita and Takagi had cancelled each other out, Romero captured Nagai in an Armbar to make him tap out. Romero couldn’t resist but ask everyone backstage who is crying now! Takeshita’s message to Takagi before their Block B match is for them to have a fight that surpasses their match from the Tokyo Dome back on 4th January. Nagai later told Takagi about Takeshita’s track and field credentials from middle school and high school because Nagai comes from a similar background. Takagi however thinks that amateur results don’t matter. That’s a lesson the incoming Aaron Wolf should be aware of too. Takagi also revealed he was mad when he heard Takeshita talk about aiming for the IWGP World Heavyweight Title right after he lost the NEVER Title to Oleg Boltin.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 26/07/2025
Tokyo Ota Ward Gymnasium
2,250 Fans

9. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (6) defeated Shingo Takagi (2) by Referee Stoppage with the Plus Ultra (23:56).

This was the first of several main events Takeshita took part in during the tournament. By this point in the G1 Takagi has had a bad start and it went no better against Takeshita. He was still a formidable opponent who hit Takeshita as hard as Takeshita could hit him. But something Takagi didn’t expect was for Takeshita to use the Made In Japan against him! That wasn’t enough to win so Takeshita had to pull out the Plus Ultra again to render Takagi unconscious. Takeshita told reporters that his wrestling philosophy is to live strong and stay strong. Living strong means living for tomorrow which means Takeshita is the strongest tomorrow, the day after that, a year from now and even a decade into the future!

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 27/07/2025
Aichi Port Messe Nagoya Exhibition Hall 1
2,162 Fans

4. Zack Sabre Jr. & Hartley Jackson defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Rocky Romero when Jackson pinned Romero with the Death Valley Bomb (9:01).

All this good momentum Takeshita and his buddy Romero were building up came to a stop when they collided with TMDK. Takeshita now had Zack Sabre Jr. to worry about while Romero was stuck having to wrestle the much bigger Hartley Jackson. Romero proceeded to make the fatal mistake of calling Jackson fat and paid the price when Jackson flattened him with a Cross Body Block before pinning him with the Death Valley Bomb. Takeshita’s night wasn’t much better because Sabre tangled him up with a Cobra Twist outside the ring. Once they were seperated, Sabre taunted Takeshita with the IWGP World Title belt. Takeshita was humbled a bit by what happened but said if he beats Sabre next, it will prove he is the strongest. He will absorb Sabre’s wrestling to become even stronger. Sabre said he isn’t stupid enough to criticise a wrestler like Takeshita. They have some similarities when it comes to their age of debut and their age from when they started to wrestle around the world. The differences are Sabre is the champion and nobody understands technique as much as he does!

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 30/07/2025
Osaka Yamato University Yamato Arena
1,390 Fans

9. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: Zack Sabre Jr. (6) defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (6) with a Modified Sleeper Hold (22:37).

Sabre went ahead and taught Takeshita that harsh lesson inside the ring and in Takeshita’s home city of Osaka. He had an answer for everything Takeshita had for him, including the Plus Ultra. Then when Takeshita tried the Raging Fire, Sabre escaped and pulled out the Sabre Driver as a counter. Takeshita kicked out and gained the advantage using Elbow Strikes but the Raging Fire was again countered, this time into a Sleeper Hold. Takeshita did what he could to fight out of it but Sabre kept his grip and wore his opponent down to nothing, leaving Takeshita with no choice but to tap out. After the match Sabre said Takeshita might be The Alpha “but I’m the fucking World Heavyweight Champion, dickhead!”

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 01/08/2025
Sun Messe Kagawa
1,244 Fans

2. Drilla Moloney & Taiji Ishimori defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Rocky Romero when Ishimori submitted Romero with the Bone Lock (7:24).

Takeshita’s rocky patch of results continued when he had to go fight wrestlers from Bullet Club WAR DOGS again. Drilla Moloney entered NJPW as a Jr. Heavyweight but switched up to the heavier weight class this year. Takeshita looked like he could get the better of him here but the match came down to Taiji Ishimori catching Romero in La Mistica and then tapping him out with the Bone Lock. Moloney revealed after the match he had no grudge with Takeshita. That was until Takeshita injured Kidd in the opening day. That robbed Moloney of the chance to wrestle his best friend in the G1. Ishimori also hyped up Moloney for going into the match with a 4-1 record in the tournament so far. Takeshita warned Moloney not to get too cocky just because he is motivated to get revenge on behalf of Kidd. Romero called the WAR DOGS nothing more than a pack of miniature poodles.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 02/08/2025
Hiroshima Sun Plaza Hall
2,002 Fans

8. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (8) defeated Drilla Moloney (8) with the Raging Fire (14:01).

Takeshita got things back on track by beating Moloney in the B Block. The two had a brief staredown and then fought out of the ring where Takeshita gave Moloney a Brainbuster into a row of chairs. Moloney kept going for the Gore back in the ring but when he finally hit it, there wasn’t enough damage done to soften Takeshita up for the Drilla Killer. Instead Takeshita hit a Rolling Elbow and also the Wagamama. Moloney had some fight left in him but ultimately fell to the Raging Fire shortly afterwards. Takeshita said he could feel Moloney’s strong will but nothing is going to stop him from reaching the top. Moloney admitted he let his emotions get to him and he tried to hurt Takeshita for Kidd when he should have been fighting to get himself more points.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 03/08/2025
Fukuoka International Center
2,534 Fans

1. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Rocky Romero defeated YOSHI-HASHI & Shoma Kato when Romero pinned Kato with the Slice Rocky (8:13).

The turnaround meant Romero got to taste victory again too. Takeshita’s next non-tournament match was a preview for his G1 bout with YOSHI-HASHI. The Young Lion Shoma Kato got to show his tenacity by hitting Takeshita with Shoulder Blocks over and over until he could finally knock him down with the move. YOSHI-HASHI was able to get Takeshita out of the ring but Romero kept up his part of the bargain by pinning Kato with the Slice Rocky. Takeshita and YOSHI-HASHI kept fighting each other after the match before being seperated. Backstage Takeshita said he heard about the time YOSHI-HASHI miraculously defeated Kenny Omega in the G1 but he is never going to beat The Alpha! Their match is going to be an easy one for Takeshita. YOSHI-HASHI took offence to that and promised to break Takeshita’s long nose! Meanwhile Kato was annoyed that Takeshita didn’t remember him from when they wrestled each other during last year’s G1 tour. He doesn’t want to wait another year to fight him again.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 05/08/2025
Intex Osaka Hall #5
1,142 Fans

6. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (10) defeated YOSHI-HASHI (8) with the Raging Fire (15:13).

Takeshita went on to reach 10 points after beating YOSHI-HASHI, equaling his score from last year. While victory was not in doubt, Takeshita still had to work hard to earn it. YOSHI-HASHI had counters for the Raging Fire from using Inside Cradles to making him fall with DDTs. He got a nearfall with the Swanton Bomb and tried to win with the Karma but Takeshita countered that into a Stunner. Once Takeshita pulled off the Raging Fire, victory was his. He’d love to call that an easy win but it was nothing like it. He hates guys like YOSHI-HASHI the most because they are the veteran wrestlers who act like they are steadily declining until a match that matters happen and they become serious just like that. Those are the guys Takeshita thinks make pro wrestling boring. YOSHI-HASHI said it is clear Takeshita loves pro wrestling and knows a lot about NJPW’s history. There were parts of the match where Takeshita even reminded YOSHI-HASHI of Kazuchika Okada. But Okada is even more of a monster than Takeshita is.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 07/08/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,509 Fans

4. KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Rocky Romero defeated Shota Umino & Tomoaki Honma when TAKESHITA submitted Honma with the Plus Ultra (5:38).

Shota Umino was eager to start fighting with Takeshita as soon as they could but Takeshita let Romero start off the match instead. Tomoaki Honma though got some hits in and scored a nearfall on Takeshita with the Kokeshi. Takeshita quickly put a stop to that by countering the Kokeshi Rocket with an Elbow Strike and then forced Honma to give up to the Plus Ultra. Umino tried to attack Takeshita after the match but was given a Brainbuster onto the floor for his troubles. Takeshita heard that Umino is currently going through his “Second Chapter” but from his perspective Umino hasn’t even started his prologue yet. There is a world of difference between them so he wants Umino to think carefully about how he can win. Whatever he comes up with, Takeshita is sure he can surpass it. Romero added to the insults by saying everyone was talking about Takeshita after the Tokyo Dome this year while nobody had anything positive to say about Umino.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 08/08/2025
Yokohama Budokan
2,448 Fans

9. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: Shota Umino (10) defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (10) with the Second Chapter (25:46).

Umino did indeed find a way to beat Takeshita and the result of that put Takeshita’s chances of advancing out of Block B in danger. This was also Takeshita’s longest match of the tournament up to this point. He gave Umino another Brainbuster on the floor just like the day before but nothing could put Umino away, not even the Plus Ultra. He hit back with Lariats, countered one Raging Fire into a Neckbreaker and countered another into the Second Chapter, winning the match at Takeshita’s expense. Umino said it doesn’t matter which dojo Takeshita came from. He has to remember there are people around the world who love pro wrestling. It is the role of a wrestler to visit these places and give back to those people. Backstage Takeshita said in the next five to ten years Umino will look back on today and think he could only ever beat Takeshita once.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 10/08/2025
G-Messe Gunma
2,053 Fans

4. Ren Narita & Yoshinobu Kanemaru defeated KONOSUKE TAKESHITA & Rocky Romero when Narita submitted Romero with a Cross Kneebar (6:25).

Here comes trouble. With Takeshita at risk of not reaching the playoffs he had to put all of his focus on Ren Narita. It was the exact same way last year. Even the bit where House Of Torture beats Takeshita’s team in a non-tournament match because of Yoshinobu Kanemaru happened last time around too. What happened here was Kanemaru hit Romero in the knee with a whiskey bottle while Narita distracted the ref. Then once the coast was clear Narita made Romero submit to a Cross Kneebar. Narita is sick of hearing Takeshita rambling on and on about being the strongest. However what happened here only made Takeshita even more determined to beat all of the House Of Torture.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 13/08/2025
Shizuoka Act City Hamamatsu
1,730 Fans

9. G1 CLIMAX 35 – B Block: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA (12) defeated Ren Narita (10) by Referee Stoppage with the Plus Ultra (20:50).

You know the drill by now. It’s the last day of the group stage and Takeshita needs to win. By this point the other results in Block B all went a certain way for him to qualify for the playoffs as long as he could beat Narita. History repeated itself and Takeshita was able to render Narita unconscious to the point where his gumshield was knocked out of his mouth again. Other House Of Torture members ambushed Takeshita and Romero before the match began. They continued to attack Takeshita by targeting his left leg in the hopes of counting him out of the ring. Takeshita withstood Narita’s knee submissions while Romero did whatever he could to combat Dick Togo and Don Fale’s interference at ringside. Takeshita wiped everyone out with a dive which allowed Romero to chase Togo away while the Young Lions escorted Fale to the back. That didn’t stop Narita from using more ways to cheat and also bring in Kanemaru for even more interference. That backfired when a spray of Whiskey Mist blinded Narita instead of Takeshita. After bumping Kanemaru to the floor, Takeshita then put Narita in the Plus Ultra to choke him out and win his last block match.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 14/08/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1,518 Fans

6. G1 CLIMAX 35 – Final Tournament Qualifier: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated David Finlay with the Raging Fire (17:02).

Takeshita still had a long way to go. By finishing third in the B Block he had to start in the earliest round of the playoffs where David Finlay from the A Block was waiting for him. They hadn’t fought each other since last year’s G1 where Finlay was the victor. He was even more vicious this time around, Power Bombing Takeshita from the aprong through two tables at ringside. Takeshita later kicked out of the Into Oblivion at the 1 Count and then kicked out of a Power Bomb at 2. He avoided the Overkill and used a Last Ride to set Finlay up for the Wagamama. After that he dropped Finlay with the Raging Fire to get the win. Takeshita said losing the Quarter Final to Yota Tsuji was the first time he cried since he became a pro wrestler because it felt like the ultimate failure. But a pro wrestler is someone who gets back up which means he has no choice but to win and become No. 1! Romero then hyped up Takeshita by calling him the Uncrowned King Of Pro Wrestling.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 16/08/2025
Tokyo Ariake Arena
4,558 Fans

8. G1 CLIMAX 35 – Semi Final: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated Zack Sabre Jr. with the Raging Fire (26:46).

The semi final brought Takeshita right back to Zack Sabre Jr. In a rematch from the B Block a spot in the grand final was on the line for both men. This time Takeshita pulled out something pretty dangerous to be the difference maker. When the two of them were both standing on the top rope fighting each other, Takeshita lifted Sabre up into the air and dropped him onto his head with the Avalanche Raging Fire! The move knocked Sabre completely loopy but he wasn’t finished just yet so Takeshita gave him another Raging Fire to make sure he was completely beaten. Sabre said getting dropped on your head sucks but so too is losing to EVIL. So he is throwing his support behind Takeshita for the final. Otherwise if EVIL wins then Zack will throw himself into the Pacific Ocean and the IWGP World Title would probably have to be vacated.

NJPW “YAMADA INFRA TECHNOS PRESENTS G1 CLIMAX 35”, 17/08/2025
Tokyo Ariake Arena
6,870 Fans

8. G1 CLIMAX 35 – Final: KONOSUKE TAKESHITA defeated EVIL with the Raging Fire (26:26).

And so we come to the end of a G1 that was quite frankly not to anyone’s cup of tea. EVIL had made it to the final thanks to the usual over reliance of cheating from House Of Torture that not a lot of people enjoy. But Takeshita reaching the final as something of an outsider at the expense of NJPW’s current generation of homegrown talent had been a sore spot for New Japan’s hardcore fans going into this match too. House Of Torture didn’t wait long to make their presence felt but Romero, the Young Lions and even Sabre all played their part in chasing off the unit so Takeshita and EVIL could go through the rest of the match mano a mano. Takeshita used EVIL’s own finisher against him but EVIL resorted to using a Low Blow to take back the advantage. EVIL also blocked the Wagamama and tried to throw an Elbow Strike only for Takeshita to beat him to the punch with one of his own. Seeing his opening, he immediately gave EVIL the Raging Fire and three second later became the winner of the 35th G1 Climax!

When Takeshita was presented with his trophy he told the fans a pro wrestler is someone who dreams, make those dreams come true and gives dreams to others. He is now standing at the pinnacle and invites everyone to put their dreams on him while he makes NJPW and the world of pro wrestling more exciting. Backstage he said his next goal is to stand in the Tokyo Dome on 4th January as the IWGP Champion so he wants to challenge Sabre for the title in the near future. He also talked about how grateful he is for Romero because he always helps him out all over the world. He also praised EVIL for being one of his best opponents he’s ever faced. He understands there are some wrestlers out there who think this result is crap but Takeshita believes his strength is something he’s been carrying since his teenage years. When he is no longer strong, that will be when it will be time to quit pro wrestling.

DDT “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024” Preview

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

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

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

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

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

1. Demus & Ilusion Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

6. Special Single Match: Jun Akiyama Vs Yukio Naya

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

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

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

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

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

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

8. “Unofficial” DDT Extreme Title ~ A Dramatic Fight Where People Fight With Their Hearts: Danshoku Dieno (c) (w/ Tetsu Inada) Vs Great-O-Khan (w/ Kentaro Kumagai)
*No title change or successful defence will be recognized.

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

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

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

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

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

9. Special Single Match: Yuki Ueno Vs Takeshi Masada

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Great-O-Khan Pulled From Sumo Hall, Dieno Will Now Fight Invisible Man

GANBARE☆PRO “SOME DAY THE SUN WILL SHINE 2024”, 27/12/2024
Shinjuku FACE

1. Tyson Maeguchi & Shota Kawakami Vs Yuki Kanzaki & Daisuke®️
2. Choun-Shiryu, Moeka Haruhi & HARUKAZE Vs PSYCHO, YuuRI & Banny Oikawa
3. Munetatsu Nakamura Debut 2nd Anniverary Match – Special Tag Match: Ken Ohka & Munetatsu Nakamura Vs Minoru Fujita & Isami Kodaka
4. Kitsune World Title: Yuna Manase (c) Vs MICHIKO
5. Tatsuhito Takaiwa, Shigehiro Irie & Takuya Wada Vs Hartley Jackson, Kouki Iwasaki & Rekka
6. Special Single Match: Shuichiro Katsumura Vs Dick Togo
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Keisuke Ishii (c) Vs Yumehito Imanari

Tomorrow is the last Ganbare☆Pro show of the year.

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

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

Oh bugger. Great-O-Khan suffered a lower back injury from his recent New Japan match on 22nd December. NJPW wants him to recover in time for their Tokyo Dome shows in the new year so he’s been pulled from the DDT show as a precaution. Danshoku Dieno will now fight The Invisible Man as a last minute replacement and any intention Dieno had to unofficially defend the DDT Extreme Title has been put to the side for now.

DDT “NEW YEAR, NEW HERO. 2025 ~A NEW STORY BEGINS~”, 26/01/2025
Tokyo Korakuen Hall

1. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes (c) Vs Winner Of 03/01 4 Way Match

Gringo Loco will be on the show. Earlier this month he had his first defence of the DDT Universal Title by beating Sidney Akeem at a Demand Lucha show.

DDT “NEVER MIND 2024” Results

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

DDT “ROAD TO ULTIMATE PARTY 2024 IN SHINJUKU” Results

DDT “ROAD TO ULTIMATE PARTY 2024 IN SHINJUKU”, 11/12/2024
Shinjuku FACE
319 Fans – No Vacancy

1. KANON & Demus defeated Yuki Iino & Kazuma Sumi when Demus pinned Sumi with La Valagueza (7:21).
2. 3 Way Match: Danshoku Dieno defeated Toru Owashi and Kazuki Hirata when Dieno pinned Hirata with the Gay-do Clutch (0:17).
2a. Rematch: Danshoku Dieno defeated Toru Owashi and Kazuki Hirata when Dieno pinned Hirata with the Danshoku Driver (0:17).
3. Jun Akiyama, HARASHIMA & Tetsuya Endo defeated Yukio Naya, Daichi Sato & Yuki Ishida when HARASHIMA pinned Ishida with a Right High Kick (12:01).
4. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Ikuto Hidaka, Minoru Fujita & Fuminori Abe defeated Yuki Ueno, MAO & Keigo Nakamura by Referee Stoppage when Abe choked out Nakamura with the Nakamura Ganbare Hold (14:09).
5. Special Single Match: To-y defeated Yuya Koroku with the Kojima Impact (13:09).
6. SCHADENFREUDE International Vs DAMNATION T.A! – Best 2 Out Of 3 Falls: Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & Ilusion (2) defeated Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Antonio Honda (1).
6a. Ilusion (1) pinned Takanashi (0) with a Modified Cradle (7:24).
6b. Antonio Honda (1) submitted MJ Paul (1) with an Arm Bar (11:56).
6c. Daisuke Sasaki (2) submitted Chris Brookes (1) with the Crossover Face Lock (6:47).

As DDT gets closer to Sumo Hall, one of the last stops left was at Shinjuku FACE for some more previews of what to expect at “ULTIMATE PARTY 2024”. In the main event DAMNATION T.A went ahead of SCHADENFREUDE International in their feud filled with different multi-man tag stipulations. Today’s match was Best 2 Out Of 3 Falls. DAMNATION took the first fall with a surprise attack at the start followed by Daisuke Sasaki grabbing Masahiro Takanashi from the apron so Ilusion could pin him with a Cradle. SCHADENFREUDE used their own tricks to win the second fall with Chris Brookes using tape to stick Sasaki’s hands together and Antonio Honda making MJ Paul submit to an Arm Bar (he pulled off a similar result with that move to Shuji Ishikawa/Koo many years ago). Brookes and Sasaki fought each other for the final fall until KANON interfered with a chair. Brookes tried to fight back but Sasaki caught him in the Crossface Lock and made him give up when he turned it into the Crossover Facelock.

Brookes grabbed the KO-D Openweight Title after the match and bragged about how much the belt wants to go back to him. He told Brookes not to give up in his British accent again. Backstage Sasaki said the punks in Britain taught him that they are not bound by law but that was all a lie. Those lies have ruined Sasaki’s life and it is time Brookes take responsibility for it! Brookes refused to give any comments backstage so Honda spoke for the team. He said that SCHADENFREUDE will be standing at the end of Ryogoku laughing in the middle of the ring.

It looks like To-y just has Yuya Koroku’s number by this point. They had a singles match today and To-y once again came out on top. Koroku’s gameplan was to target his opponent’s arm but that didn’t stop To-y from beating him with the Kojima Impact. To-y then said he will win the KO-D Tag Team Titles and make 2025 the year of himself and MAO! Koroku got scolded by Tetsuya Endo afterwards. Endo explained he keeps losing because he has changed nothing, which means he is not making any progress. He has no independence, shows no capacity to come up with crazy ideas and his heart is weak too. Koroku said he already knows that. No matter what idea he comes up with it doesn’t work. Endo told him to stop talking and try harder in the ring.

Even though Fuminori Abe twisted Keigo Nakamura into a pretzel until their match was stopped, he gives him his support for the Ryogoku tag match with Shinya Aoki against KENOH & Yu Owada. Nakamura promised to carry DDT on his back for the match so he can beat the NOAH team.

Jun Akiyama and Yukio Naya continued to fight each other after their match and it ended pretty badly for one of them. They fought up to the entrance way where Naya put Akiyama through a table with the Choke Slam! Naya later said he is at his peak and ready to surpass Akiyama at Sumo Hall.

Before the 3 Way Match began, Hisaya Imabayashi revealed to everyone he booked the match to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of his acting career. Kazuki Hirata ruined it by immediately losing the match to Danshoku Dieno. Imabayashi restarted the match and stopped Dieno from quickly winning the same way. He was so involved in the match it almost turned into a tag match with the way he was trying to help Hirata win. Imabayashi explained DDT will have no future unless Hirata becomes popular so he needed him to win. Sadly for him Dieno ended up beating Hirata again anyway.

Dieno also sent out a message to Great-O-Khan for the match on 28th December. He promised it will be the most hideous match of O-Khan’s career. O-Khan’s pride for New Japan will mean nothing when they fight in DDT!

KANON invited an unexpected guest to the ring after the opening match. It was Haruto Sakuraba, the muscle actor who recently chose to side with DAMNATION T.A for his upcoming debut! KANON introduced him to Yuki Iino and said he will crush Iino at Sumo Hall. Sakuraba said Iino is smaller than he though which caused a fight to break out between them. Sakuraba won out by knocking down Iino with a Lariat. He made fun of Iino and said he is so weak that it makes Sakuraba’s muscles cry! Sakuraba finished his introduction by calling himself “MONSTER”. Iino warned him he will be 1,000 times more powerful at Sumo Hall.

How is it that Kazuma Sumi is the only one who keeps losing to Demus’s La Valagueza finisher?

The Full Card For Ultimate Party 2024

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

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

Here is the full lineup for DDT’s final show of the year. New KO-D Tag Team Champions will be crowned with the replacement match keeping The 37KAMIINA Vs BURNING as its theme. You’d think To-y will want to win the belts for Shunma Katsumata but instead he is fighting for himself. That is a lesson for Yuya Koroku to learn, you still need an ego to make it as a pro wrestler.

Great-O-Khan Vs Danshoku Dieno is for the sickos but probably not the sickos you want to associate with. It’s the holder of New Japan’s notorious King Of Pro Wrestling Title taking on the DDT Extreme Champion, which is pretty much what the KOPW is trying to be. At the moment neither title seems to be on the line.

The original “ULTIMATE PARTY” shows were to bring all of the DDT (and later CyberFight) brands together so NOAH and Tokyo Joshi Pro will both have some presence on the card. Shinya Aoki has a bad habit of constantly calling out opponents for matches that no company wants to book for one reason or another. When he’s not trying to challenge Katsuhiko Nakajima to a fight he is instead trying to goad Kenoh into wrestling him. It is well known by now how much Kenoh looks down on DDT. He will bitterly accept them for what they are but he would rather be caught dead than stand in a DDT ring again. However Aoki & Keigo Nakamura have stuck a nerve with him enough to make him swallow his pride and fight in DDT again. He will be joined by NOAH rookie Yu Owada for the tag match. Aoki started this whole thing by saying he is going to beat Kenoh at Budokan Hall on New Year’s Day but I’m not sure if NOAH will actually book that match as a follow up for the DDT bout.

The two celebrities are both being put in tag matches. Haruto Sakuraba is living up to his deal with DAMNATION T.A to team with them in order to become a heel. Kumadori is naturally teaming up with DDT’s resident dancer Kazuki Hirata, mainly because Hirata admits he cannot beat him in dancing or wrestling.

TJPW are sending over the colorful trio of Rika Tatsumi, Hyper Misao & Pom Harajuku to take on the misfit squad of Toru Owashi, Super Sasadango Machine & Antonio Honda. It is a big reunion for Misao and Sasadango. They famously put together Misao’s “retirement” match in 2020 that was actually a surprise announcement of her marriage.

DDT “GET ALIVE 2024” Results

DDT “GET ALIVE 2024”, 23/11/2024
Tokyo Korakuen Hall
984 Fans – No Vacancy

1. Demus & Ilusion defeated Munetatsu Nakamura & Kazuma Sumi when Demus pinned Sumi with La Valagueza (5:50).
2. Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title – Kazuki Hirata 37th Birthday Special 1 Vs 6 Handicap No DQ Match: Toru Owashi, Antonio Honda, Soma Takao, Diego, Yuki Ishida & Yoshihiko defeated Kazuki Hirata (c) when Yoshihiko pinned Hirata with the Reincarnation (7:41).
*Yoshihiko becomes the 1,700th champion.
3. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura defeated HARASHIMA, Yukio Naya & Tomomitsu Matsunaga when Aoki pinned Matsunaga with the Full Nelson Hold (8:14).
-. Emergency Match: Shinya Aoki defeated Yu Owada with the Full Nelson Hold (0:11).
4. Akito 15th Anniversary Debut Special Single Match: Isami Kodaka defeated Akito with a Cradle (9:12).
5. The 37KAMIINA Vs BURNING!: Yuki Ueno, MAO & To-y defeated Tetsuya Endo, Yuki Iino & Yuya Koroku when To-y pinned Koroku with the Kojima Impact (11:50).
6. DDT Extreme Title – You’re Still A Cinderella As You Climb The Ladder To Adulthood Rules: Danshoku Dieno (c) defeated Yuni with the Cinderella Sleeper (9:18).
*V1 for Danshoku Dieno.
7. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki, KANON & MJ Paul (c) defeated Chris Brookes, Masahiro Takanashi & Takeshi Masada when Sasaki submitted Takanashi with the Crossover Face Lock (13:57).
*V4 for DAMNATION T.A.

With Sumo Hall coming up at the end of the year, Chris Brookes and Daisuke Sasaki have a long war ahead of them that’s bringing in almost everybody with attachment to either SCHADENFREUDE International or DAMNATION T.A. Today’s battle was over the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles and quickly turned into a brawl around ringside. Sasaki and Brookes attacked each other with chairs while MJ Paul fell victim to a balcony length rubber band attack. KANON bested Takeshi Masada in their face off and left the match to the two unit leaders. Brookes had Sasaki beaten with the Praying Mantis Bomb but the pin was interrupted by DAMNATION T.A pulling the ref out of the ring. Ilusion then interfered but Munetatsu Nakamura came after him to even the odds. More chaos broke out with Demus and Antonio Honda getting in on the action. When things finally calmed down, DAMNATION T.A isolated Masahiro Takanashi and picked him apart. Sasaki countered the Takatonic with the Implant and then he gave Brookes a Low Blow. Sasaki & KANON then did the Freedom Call to Takanashi and he was then choked out by Sasaki’s Crossover Face Lock to give the champions the win.

After the match Sasaki told Brookes he and SCHADENFREUDE are nothing special. Love, romance and dreams are powerless before Sasaki! He only works for championships and the KO-D Openweight Title will definitely be his. Sasaki will be the last man standing in Sumo Hall on 28th December. He then said backstage there is a reason why he hasn’t challenged for the KO-D Title in four years but he won’t reveal it today. Instead he wants everyone to know he will be the one to bring the KO-D Title to Las Vegas next April. Brookes said there are plenty more matches to come in the next month and he will defend the title at Sumo Hall.

The DDT Extreme Title was on the line in a “Forbidden Battle” between Danshoku Dieno and Yuni. For five minutes of the match Yuni benefitted from “Cinderella Time” that meant Dieno would be immediately disqualified if he used any of his lewd moveset against him. However once that time ran out, the ban was lifted and the match would continue with no DQs whatsoever. Yuni wanted to win quickly so he went for high risk moves from the get-go while Dieno kept stopping himself from using his typical attacks. Time ran out though and Dieno instantly took over the match. Yuni eventually fought fire with fire by giving Dieno the Lip Lock and then hit two Moonsaults followed by the Fireball Splash. Dieno was still in the match so Yuni went for a Phoenix Splash. Dieno rolled out of the way, applied the Lip Lock, did the Danshoku Driver and then used a Triangle Choke to win.

Yuni refused to shake Dieno’s hand after the match. Backstage Dieno called him a rival and warned him not to get tripped up by everyone who just treats him as a high school student. That’s not just in pro wrestling but in life too. Yuni is only going to get stronger from here so Dieno doesn’t want to see him get spoiled and pampered just because he is in high school. Yuni understands that and appreciates that Dieno treated him like a pro wrestler. He thinks today was a rite of passage for him on the way to winning the Extreme Title and also the KO-D Title while he is still in high school. Next up for Dieno is an unexpected opponent for 28th December. It was announced after the show he will face Great-O-Khan at Sumo Hall!

Thanks to Shunma Katsumata’s ACL injury the KO-D Tag Team Titles were vacated earlier this week and today’s title match was cancelled. The replacement match was still The 37KAMIINA Vs BURNING but as a 6-Man Tag Match instead. Yuya Koroku was frustrated to have his title shot taken away from him so he wanted to make an example out of To-y. That ended up being a mistake. Thanks to some teamwork from Yuki Ueno & MAO, To-y ended up pinning Koroku with the Kojima Impact! Koroku couldn’t believe it but still said after the match he will not give up on chasing after the KO-D Tag Titles. To-y said he has just as many frustrations as Koroku because he was fighting for Katsumata when he really wants to win the KO-D Tag Title himself. The two argued about having a rematch until Hisaya Imabayashi came up with an idea. Tetsuya Endo & Koroku will face MAO & To-y at Sumo Hall with the vacant KO-D Tag Titles on the line! Endo talked down to Koroku backstage because he thought every point To-y made was right and he outperformed Koroku on the microphone. Of course wrestlers perform for the fans but they still need to have an ego because a pro wrestler in an embodiment of their ego. Meanwhile Yuki Iino talked about his upcoming match with Tomohiro Ishii on the 22nd December Korakuen show. He thinks Sumo Hall is where all of BURNING can regain their momentum going into the new year.

Akito wanted to have a match with Isami Kodaka for his 15th Anniversary because Kodaka was one of his seniors who helped him so much throughout his career. The two had a back and forth match that included a little trick from Akito where he used the ref as a shield. However Kodaka got the better of him by doing a Brainbuster and then pinning him down legs over shoulders to get the three count. Akito thanked him for the match and suggested they wrestle again for his 20th Anniversary. Kodaka said he would be on his 27th Anniversary by then so they should make the match the main event instead of putting it in the middle of the card.

There was a 6-Man Tag Match that was there to put the focus on Jun Akiyama Vs Yukio Naya but its attention was stolen away by the end of it. HARASHIMA & Tomomitsu Matsunaga did well to control Shinya Aoki until Aoki trapped Matsunaga in the Full Nelson Hold to get the three count. When the dust was settling, Akiyama and Naya had a staredown outside the ring, getting themselves ready for Sumo Hall. However Aoki then got on the microphone to talk about something completely different…

One of the many matches Aoki has been trying make happen this year is a bout against Kenoh from NOAH. Aoki told the fans in Korakuen Hall that on 1st January he will go to NOAH’s Budokan Hall show to have a match with Kenoh! That claim brought the actual Kenoh down to ringside where he angrily denied the match is going to happen. Aoki then asked him if they should have a match at DDT’s Sumo Hall show instead? Kenoh told him he would never climb back into DDT’s cheap and dirty ring. He respects the MMA version of Aoki but not the DDT version. He then ordered the NOAH rookie Yu Owada to have a match with Aoki right now! Aoki pinned Owada in seconds with the Full Nelson Hold. Then Keigo Nakamura got on the microphone asking to fight Kenoh for insulting the DDT fans. A brawl broke out between the four wrestlers and ended with Kenoh agreeing to a match at Sumo Hall. It will be Aoki & Nakamura against Kenoh & Owada!

Earlier in the day before the show began, Kazuki Hirata assaulted Yuki Ueno with a ring bell hammer to win back the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title. He then brought the hammer with him to fight off his six opponents in the Handicap match put together to celebrate his 37th birthday. Since it was his birthday he said the match was No DQ so he was allowed to bash everyone over the head with the hammer. Ueno then returned and pleaded Hirata to stop because this isn’t how is usually behaves. To try and win Hirata back, Ueno put on the Hirata GO! glasses and got the other wrestlers to dance with him. Hirata saw the light and joined in… until Ueno put him in a Sleeper Hold and Yoshihiko pinned him with the Reincarnation to become the champion.

Hirata was still in the ring when the O-MENZ dancer Kumadori entered the ring to talk to him. He thinks Hirata is a good dancer so they should have a dance battle. But when it began Kumadori pushed Hirata down and showed off his breakdance moves. Hirata praised his skill and admitted he cannot beat him in either dancing or wrestling. He then offered to team up with Kumadori for the dancer’s debut at Sumo Hall. The two agreed and their match will be against Makoto Oishi & Akito.

DAMNATION T.A had a good day at Korakuen. There was the title defence in the main event and also a tag victory in the opener. Demus & Ilusion didn’t take long to beat Nakamura & Kazuma Sumi. It fell apart for the losing team when Nakamura aimed a Super Kick for Ilusion that was ducked and hit Sumi instead. Demus took the opportunity to pin Sumi with La Valagueza after that.

DDT usually makes their news announcements at the start of the show but today they waited until two matches were completed first. Sanshiro Takagi gave an update that he is not ready to return to the ring yet. However he still has a special idea to celebrate his 30th Anniversary in wrestling next year. He will be producing his own show at Shinjuku FACE called “NEVER SAY NEVER” but the catch is nobody under DDT contract will be booked for it. Instead he will rely on his connections with freelancers and wrestlers from other companies to fill up the card. The first match announced for the show is Toru Owashi & Dump Matsumoto Vs The Brahman Brothers! Takagi’s goal is to come up with an unbelievable card of matches.

The NωA idol project is back with Oishi’s handpicked members deciding on their new group name. Katsumata, Yuni & Sumi will now be called NωA Jr. whenever they perform together as idols. Their debut song and CD will be unveiled at Sumo Hall. Sumi admitted he hasn’t practiced the song yet but he’s still all set for the debut.

Yesterday came the sad news that Yusuke Okada was going to retire from pro wrestling. He is still recovering from his cancer and is unable to get back to the condition needed to start wrestling again. Today is officially the date of his retirement and he got to give a speech to the fans during the show. He told the fans his treatment is going well and he is feeling fine but he thought about this decision a lot. He wrestled for 8 years and 4 of them were with DDT. He has met the best teammates and fans and will support DDT as a fan himself from now on. Takagi and Akiyama presented him with bouquets of flowers and Okada met with many wrestlers outside the ring for his exit. Included among them were Yukio Sakaguchi, Saki Akai, Kazusada Higuchi and Naomi Yoshimura. Backstage Okada said he would like to still be involved with DDT in some way.

DDT announced they will be part of two shows at Las Vegas next April for The Collective during Wrestlemania Week. “DDT GOES LAS VEGAS!” will be held on 18th April (same day as the Tokyo Joshi Pro show) and “DDT VS TJPW VS GCW” will be on the 19th.

DNA 10th Anniversary Card, Great-O-Khan Coming To Ultimate Party

BASARA “BASARA 262 ~OJI NI KITSUNE ’24~”, 17/11/2024
Tokyo Oji BASEMENT MONSTAR

1. FUMA Vs Takeru Inoue
2. Ryuichi Sekine Vs Masahiro Takanashi
3. Isami Kodaka Vs KUBITO
4. 4 Way Match: Daichi Kazato Vs Daiki Shimomura Vs Yasu Urano Vs Judomaster
5. Takumi Tsukamoto, Ryota Nakatsu & SAGAT Vs Takato Nakano, Masato Kamino & Lil’ Kraken

I needed that few days of rest after the end of last weekend. Might need it again with the same amount of shows coming up this weekend.

DDT “GORGEOUS NIGHT”, 24/11/2024
Fukushima Toyota Crown Arena (Fukushima National Athletic Meet Memorial Gymnasium) Sub-Arena

1. Akito Vs Keigo Nakamura
2. Tetsuya Endo & Makoto Oishi Vs Takeshi Masada & To-y
3. KANON, MJ Paul & Ilusion Vs Yuki Iino, Yukio Naya & Yuya Koroku
4. Special Tag Match: Shunma Katsumata & Moeka Haruhi Vs Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata
5. Special Single Match: Danshoku Dieno Vs Antonio Honda
6. SCHADENFREUDE International Vs DAMNATION T.A!: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi Vs Daisuke Sasaki & Demus
7. Fukushima Specialty 6-Man Tag Match: Gorgeous Matsuno, Jun Akiyama & HARASHIMA Vs Yuki Ueno, MAO & Kazuma Sumi

Two reliable DDT wrestlers are being pitted against each other when Danshoku Dieno faces Antonio Honda.

DNA “DNA 10TH ANNIVERSARY”, 28/11/2024
Shinjuku FACE

1. Yuni Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
2. Rekka & Diego Vs Akira Jo & Yuki Ishida
3. Kota Umeda, Ryota Nakatsu & Kouki Iwasaki Vs Keigo Nakamura, To-y & Yuya Koroku
4. Banana Senga & Tsutomu Oosugi Vs Daiki Shimomura & Check Shimatani
5. MAO & Mizuki Watase Vs Yuki Iino & Masato Kamino
6. Shunma Katsumata Vs Yuki Ueno

More names from DNA’s past are coming to the reunion. Mizuki Watase, Masato Kamino, Rekka, Diego and Akira Jo have all been added to the card. Also some space has been saved for the DDTeeeen!! generation with Yuni and Munetatsu Nakamura being put in the opening match.

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

1. O-MENZ Kumadori Debut Match: Kumadori Vs X
2. Haruto Sakuraba Debut Match: Haruto Sakuraba Vs X
3. KO-D Openweight Title: Chris Brookes Vs Daisuke Sasaki

Coming over from New Japan for the show is Great-O-Khan! He must have jumped on the phone to DDT the second he found out they helped FuwaMoco produce the 3D Vtuber wrestling match back in the summer.

DDT At “ALL TOGETHER IN SAPPORO” Results

UJPW “ALL TOGETHER IN SAPPORO”, 15/06/2024
Sapporo Hokkai Kitayell
2,156 Fans

0. Dark Match: Toru Yano & Tomoaki Honma defeated Tomoya & Andreza Giant Panda when Yano pinned Tomoya with a School Boy (6:26).
1. Zack Sabre Jr., Robbie Eagles & Kosei Fujita defeated Ulka Sasaki, HAYATA & Yu Owada when Sabre submitted Owada with an Arm Bar (8:37).
2. AZM Vs Starlight Kid ended in a Time Limit Draw (15:00).
3. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI defeated Daisuke Sekimoto & Daichi Hashimoto when Goto pinned Hashimoto after the Lights Out (10:24).
4. Jeff Cobb, Great-O-Khan & Kazusada Higuchi defeated Oleg Boltin, Ryohei Oiwa & Tetsuya Endo when Cobb pinned Oiwa with the Tour Of The Islands (9:53).
5. SANADA, Taichi & Yuya Uemura defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi, Naomichi Marufuji & Kento Miyahara when SANADA pinned Tanahashi with an O’Connor Bridge (13:25).
6. Masa Kitamiya defeated Tomohiro Ishii with the Saito Suplex (13:42).
7. Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji, Hiromu Takahashi, BUSHI & Titan defeated Jack Morris, Anthony Greene, LJ Cleary, Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney when Tsuji pinned Cleary with the Gene Blaster (10:30).
8. Gabe Kidd, David Finley & YO-HEY defeated Kaito Kiyomiya, Kenoh & Alejandro by Referee Stoppage when Kidd knocked out Kiyomiya the Leg Trap Piledriver (12:16).
9. Tetsuya Naito defeated Jake Lee with the Destino (26:32).

Not much to talk about this show in regards to DDT’s involvement with it. The show was also a bigger drawing disappointment than the first one so who knows if UJPW will hold another event like this anytime soon? Tetsuya Endo and Kazusada Higuchi were in the same match representing DDT on both teams. Endo & Ryohei Oiwa were originally meant to team with Shota Umino but Umino pulled out of the show after injuring his back during practice earlier in the day. New Japan replaced him with Oleg Boltin. Higuchi was on the same team as United Empire members Jeff Cobb & Great-O-Khan. While the DDT wrestlers did get to mix with the NJPW guys, the result came down to Cobb pinning Oiwa. Endo regretted missing the previous “ALL TOGETHER” show because of injury and went into the match hoping to make up for it. He is sorry he still couldn’t win with that kind of extra motivation.

I’ll talk about the dark match too because one team in it should be familiar to the regular readers here. Tomoya & Andreza Giant Panda were the local wrestlers competing in the dark match against New Japan’s Toru Yano & Tomoaki Honma. None of Yano’s usual tactics could work against Andreza so he grabbed some bamboo and gave it to Honma so he could get Andreza’s attention. The distraction worked and Yano gave Andreza a Low Blow. Honma followed up with a Kokeshi Rocket, almost knocking the panda out. Andreza just about answered the 10 count by standing back up at 9. However a mistimed Headbutt hit Tomoya by accident and Yano gave him a Low Blow followed by a School Boy to steal the win.