FREEDOMS/GANBARE☆PRO “SHIN-KIBA NO JIN”, 16/10/2025 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
1. Dragon Libre & Reiya Igarashi Vs Shota Kawakami & Sentaro Motoshima
2. GENTARO Vs Shuichiro Katsumura
3. Violento Jack Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
4. Mammoth Sasaki, Daisuke Masaoka & Kenji Fukimoto Vs Keisuke Ishii, Takuya Wada & YuuRI
5. Takashi Sasaki & Toru Sugiura Vs Yumehito Imanari & Yuna Manase
6. Fluorescent Light + Weapon Death Match: Jun Kasai & Tomoya Hirata Vs Ken Ohka & Mizuki Watase
The type of death match for tomorrow’s FREEDOMS Vs Ganbare☆Pro main event has been decided. Lighttubes are the recommended item on the menu but other weapons will be featured too.
GanPro has a secret weapon up their sleeve for the semi-main event. Yumehito Imanari & Yuna Manase will be accompanied by Nobita as their ringside attendant. Nobita is the nickname of Takahiro Nakayama, a GanPro staff member who was a pro wrestler for a very brief amount of time back in 2014. The FREEDOMS wrestlers had been bullying him around whenever they showed up at GanPro shows, unaware of his background. If Takashi Sasaki & Toru Sugiura are not careful he might decide to start fighting back!
DDT “WRESTLING HARVEST ~UNDER THE RED SKY~”, 19/10/2025 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Naomi Yoshimura & Soma Takao Vs Munetatsu Nakamura & Hinata Kasai
2. Jun Akiyama & Tomomitsu Matsunaga Vs Daichi Sato & Rukiya
3. Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada Vs Super Sasadango Machine, Akito & Fuminori Abe
4. Special Single Match: Shinya Aoki Vs Kazuki Hirata
5. Special 8-Man Tag Match: MAO, KANON, Kazuma Sumi & Kumadori (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani, MJ Paul & Ilusion
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Yuki Iino & Yukio Naya (c) Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
7. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Yuki Ueno, To-y & Kaisei Takechi (c) Vs Minoru Suzuki, HARASHIMA & Yuya Koroku
With Danshoku Dieno out of action for the time being, he will be missing a number of DDT shows. Fuminori Abe will be his replacement for this Sunday’s event at Korakuen Hall.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW AUTUMN VICTORY IN TAKASAKI”, 19/10/2025 Gunma G-Messe Main Hall (Takasaki City)
1. Next Generation Tournament ’25 – Losers Bracket: Kira Summer Vs Chika Nanase
2. Miu Watanabe Vs Mifu Ashida
3. Toga Vs Ren Konatsu
4. Arisu Endo & Shino Suzuki Vs Mizuki & Haru Kazashiro
5. Yuki Kamifuku, Wakana Uehara & Kaya Toribami Vs Yuki Arai, Alice Crowley & Uta Takami
6. Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao Vs Yuki Aino & Raku
7. Mahiro Kiryu & Suzume Vs Miyu Yamashita & Pom Harajuku
We are getting ever so closer to Mahiro Kiryu making it home with the Iron Man Heavymetalweight Title still in her grasp.
19th October is Miu Watanabe’s birthday so she gets a singles match with Mifu Ashida as her present.
We’re now reaching the end point of the Next Generation Tournament. The winner of Kira Summer Vs Chika Nanase will meet Uta Takami in the final.
DDT “BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING 2025 ~THE FINAL~”, 23/10/2025 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. “I Am The Apex!” “Come On!” “Dosukoi!” No-Look Match: Yuki Iino Vs To-y Vs Yuki Ishida
2. Special Single Match: Kazuki Hirata Vs KANON (w/ KIMIHIRO)
3. KING OF DRUNK 2025 FINAL ~Annual Championship Decision Match~: MAO Vs HARASHIMA Vs Daisuke Sasaki Vs Chris Brookes
There have been two previous KING OF DRUNK contests in DDT this year. MAO won the Spring contest while the Summer contest was split between Daisuke Sasaki, HARASHIMA and Chris Brookes. The four will now compete in a final to determine who the true KING OF DRUNK for 2025 is.
The 3 Way match between Yuki Iino, To-y and Yuki Ishida will have an extra rule banning the wrestlers from doing their trademark catchphrases and poses.
DDT “EMPEROR OF THE RING”, 25/10/2025 Osaka City Ikuno Ward Community Center
1. 3 Way Match: Hideki Okatani Vs Yuki Ishida Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. Kazuki Hirata “Second Match Triumphant Return” Series Vol. 3: MAO (w/ KIMIHIRO) Vs Kazuki Hirata
3. The 37KAMIINA Vs SCHADENFREUDE International!: Yuki Ueno & To-y Vs Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada
The match order for the show has not been decided yet other than Match #2, because Kazuki Hirata will always belong in Match #2.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW AUTUMN VICTORY IN RYOGOKU”, 26/10/2025 Tokyo Ryogoku KFC Hall
1. Next Generation Tournament ’25 – Final: Uta Takami Vs Winner Of Losers Bracket
Takami is in the driver’s seat because she will need to be beaten twice due to the double elimination format. Summer and Nanase cannot afford to lose at all for the rest of the tournament.
DDT “LET’S GO! IMAIKE MOTOIKE 2025”, 26/10/2025 Aichi Imaike Gas Hall
1. Antonio Honda Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Kazuki Hirata & Akito
3. The 37KAMIINA Vs Harimao!: Yuki Ueno & To-y Vs Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida
It’s possible that Kazusada Higuchi & Yuki Ishida will be the KO-D Tag Team Champions by the time this match takes place.
BAKA GAIJIN + FRIENDS “VOL. 25: GHOST IN THE MACHINE”, 28/10/2025 Tokyo ARENA Shimokitazawa
1. Special Single Match: Mr. Bueno Vs Kota Sekifuda
2. Special Single Match: Chris Brookes Vs K4PY
Kota Sekifuda and K4PY both made their Baka Gaijin + Friends debut at “FUCKED UP FEST 2025” but here will be their first appearances in the promotion’s home venue.
Also MAO will be on the show.
BASARA “BASARA 291 ~KOO~”, 31/10/2025 Shinjuku FACE
1. Iron Fist Tag Team Titles: Kengo Mashimo & Ayumu Honda (c) Vs Takato Nakano & Masato Kamino
2. Union MAX Title: Ryota Nakatsu (c) Vs Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
Aijin Tag defeated one half of MJ2 in order to win the IRON FIST Tag Tournament. Next they will have to beat the other half to bring the Iron Fist Tag Team Titles back to BASARA.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “ALL RISE ’25”, 09/11/2025 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Princess Tag Team Titles: Yuki Kamifuku & Wakana Uehara (c) Vs HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki
2. Princess Of Princess Title: Miu Watanabe (c) Vs J-Rod
The next wrestler from America has been chosen to go on tour with Tokyo Joshi Pro this November. J-Rod has around three years of experience since graduating from the NJPW Academy in America with Ohio Valley Wrestling being her current most regular promotion. The “Ultimate Athlete” will debut in TJPW on the 1st November show but the big match of her tour will be fighting either Miu Watanabe or Yuki Aino for the Princess Of Princess Title at November’s Korakuen show.
I don’t mind this trend of tag teams getting themselves in line for a future Princess Tag Team Titles shot while the champions still have other challengers to get through. HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki have teamed on and off together this year but both are feeling left behind by other wrestlers from their class. The two are taking their team to the next level by challenging the winners of Ober Eats Vs Hot Shot for the titles.
SUPER JAPAN “NEVER MIND”, 29/12/2025 Shinjuku FACE
1. Special Tag Match: MIKAMI & Takashi Sasaki Vs X & X
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Sanshiro Takagi, Jun Kasai & Ippanjin Munenori Sawa Vs Yuji Nagata, Kuroshio TOKYO Japan & Fuminori Abe
The last Super Japan show of the year is being advertised as the season finale of year one. Sanshiro Takagi is so happy with how Yuji Nagata has turned out as his chosen ace that he wants to wrestle Nagata himself. He also wants to team with Munenori Sawa again and expected Nagata to get more plenty of people offering to team with him so Jun Kasai was brought in to even up the numbers. Nagata has both Kuroshio TOKYO Japan & Fuminori Abe wanting to join his side so the two teams are now set.
Super Japan serves as an alternate take of what DDT could have turned into if Takagi chose that name instead of Dramatic Dream Team back in 1997. In DDT, MIKAMI & Takashi Sasaki were more like rivals than partners despite once holding the KO-D Tag Titles together back in 2002. So Takagi wants to see what it would be like if the two of them were a tag team from the beginning instead of opponents. MIKAMI & Sasaki are both curious to find out for themselves as well.
The end of the summer turned out to not go as planned for a few people. Maki Itoh suffered a hand injury that cut short her latest GCW tour. Yuna Manase had some travel problems get in the way of her first time visit to America but at least her story ended happily for her. She ended up winning a championship over there! Things went smoother for Tokyo Joshi Pro as their co-promoted show with EVE in England was a big success. The EVE promoters have their own stories to tell about searching for venues, dealing with the ticket operators and having last minute changes with their production team but once the show began it could not have gone any better in the venue s far as I could tell. Miyu Yamashita also had time to wrestle in a few other places before she heads back to Japan.
The end of the month also had Konosuke Takeshita return to AEW. After his performance in the G1 Climax reminded everyone of his talents (not that we should need any reminding), there is understandably a lack of enthusiasm online to see him go back to AEW where his main role is to stand behind Don Callis’ shoulder week after week. That his first match back happened on Rampage doesn’t do much to quell those worries. With that said though it was a cracking match anyway. If the second Continental Classic happens this year we’re probably still over a month or to away from it.
Heading into September we’re going to see Itoh go back to America. It does not sound like she’s at 100% but she isn’t going to say no to making some more money over there if she’s in any way able to. Some TJPW wrestlers will be spreading their wings around Asia with championships there for the taking. There is a new company opening up in Canada that Takeshita and Yamashita will appear in. Wrestling fans in general might do well to pay attention to that place in regards to whether or not it will effect TNA in the long run given who has been associated with it so far. But if you don’t care about that and want to keep talk to just DDT and TJPW, there is the road to Seattle coming up. We’ll be there before you know it!
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 28/08/2024 (Aired 30/08/2024) State Farm Arena, Champaign, Illinois, USA
1. 4 Way Match: Konosuke Takeshita Vs The Beast Mortos Vs Komander Vs Lio Rush
———————————————————————–
Results
GCW “NOW AND FOREVER”, 02/08/2024 TempleLive Cleveland Masonic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
1. GCW Extreme Title: Maki Itoh (c) defeated John Wayne Murdoch with a School Boy (5:51). *V2 for Maki Itoh.
Itoh’s first GCW appearance of her tour was against one of the promotion’s death match specialists John Wayne Murdoch. It was also made into a GCW Extreme Title defence. Murdoch got under Itoh’s skin early when he grabbed a “Respect Maki Itoh Or Die” sign and stomped on it in the ring. He then tried to win her over by allowing Itoh to sing for the fans but that was only so he could attack her from behind. Murdhoch brought in a steel chair and tried to Suplex Itoh onto it. Itoh avoided the move and gave Murdoch a Stunner, making him land back and head first into the chair. She then rolled him up with a School Boy to win the match and retain the Extreme Title.
GCW “CAN I TRUST YOU?”, 04/08/2024 House Of Independents, Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA
1. GCW Extreme Title: Maki Itoh (c) defeated Allie Katch with a Mouse Trap (8:32). *V3 for Maki Itoh.
Later in the weekend Itoh had another Extreme Title defence, this time against Allie Katch. The two get along and have teamed together in the past so their match was all trying to outdo each other. Itoh tried to trick Katch with crocodile tears so Katch decided to lie down and let Itoh do a Kokeshi Headbutt. Except Katch got back up and cut her off to take control of the match. Itoh fired up when her head hit the turnbuckle and she hit a Draping DDT onto the ring apron. The fight came down to duelling strikes and then Itoh trying several different pinning combinations. She finally got the three count on Katch by giving her the Mouse Trap cradle.
SPW “HARDCORE ISLAND 2: A FINE CITY”, 16/08/2024 Foo Chow Building, Singapore
1. 3 Way Match: Alexis Lee defeated Miyu Yamashita and Kaya Toribami when Lee pinned Toribami after the Skull Kick from Yamashita (?:??).
Over in Singapore both Yamashita and Kaya Toribami were flying the flag for TJPW in a 3 Way Match against Alexis Lee. It was every woman for herself and Lee took advantage of that. Yamashita knocked down Toribami with the Skull Kick only for Lee to steal the pin.
KITSUNE “YABAI!”, 18/08/2024 1110 Bates Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Kitsune World Title: Yuna Manase defeated Megan Bayne and J-Rod when Manase pinned J-Rod with a Lariat (10:11). *Yuna Manase becomes the 2nd Kitsune World Champion!
It was a long journey for Manase to get to America (more details at the end of the report) but she finally got there and ended up winning a championship! Due to circumstances with her visa, Sayaka Unagi couldn’t make the show and had to vacate the Kitsune World Title. It was now up for grabs in the 3 Way Match that Manase was booked in against J-Rod and Megan Bayne. At one point Manase and Bayne worked together and gave J-Rod the Doomsday Device. Bayne was then taken out of play by J-Rod’s Spear. J-Rod went for the same move on Manase but missed and hit the corner. Manase knocked her down with the Lariat and got the three count to win the title! She celebrated by getting the fans to shout “We are Ganbare!” along with her.
EVE/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “EVE X TJPW: JAPAN & UK WRESTLING UNITE!”, 24/08/2024 Conway Hall, London, England ??? Fans – Unannounced
0. Triple Threat Match: Skye Smitson defeated Anita Vaughan and Kasey when Smitson pinned Vaughan with the Smitson Effect (7:49)
1. Mahiro Kiryu defeated HIMAWARI with the Spinebuster (11:15).
2. Alex Windsor defeated Lena Kross with a Sharpshooter (11:46).
3. Raku defeated Session Moth Martina with the Hurricane Turn (6:18).
4. Zizi & Safire Reed Vs Aja Kong & Max The Impaler defeated Zizi & Safire Reed when Kong pinned Reed with the 2nd Rope Diving Elbow Drop (11:06).
5. EVE Title: Nina Samuels (c) defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Starstruck (19:39). *V5 for Nina Samuels.
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 28/08/2024 (Aired 30/08/2024) State Farm Arena, Champaign, Illinois, USA
1. 4 Way Match: Konosuke Takeshita defeated The Beast Mortos, Komander (w/ Alex Abrahantes) and Lio Rush when Takeshita pinned Komander with the Raging Fire (13:53).
Takeshita’s first appearance in AEW since returning from the G1 was for a wild 4 Way Match against The Beast Mortos, Komander and Lio Rush. He was back to using his actual AEW theme and Callis kept himself to the commentary table. The match was wild as you had the power and speed of Takeshita and Mortos along with the speed and agility of Komander and Rush all mixing up together. Mortos soon wiped out Rush with a Spear and broke Komander over his knee. Takeshita then hit Mortos with the Powerdrive Knee to get rid of him. Komander tried to roll up Takeshita but got a nearfall. Takeshita spun him into the Blue Thunder Bomb and used the Raging Fire to get the win.
MLW “SUMMER OF THE BEASTS”, 29/08/2024 Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York, USA
1. Delmi Exo defeated Miyu Yamashita with the Delmi Driver (6:15).
In an MLW rematch from last December, Delmi Exo got her win back from Yamashita. By winning the match Exo declared herself the No. 1 contender for the MLW Women’s World Featherweight Title.
GCW “LIVE FAST DIE YOUNG”, 31/08/2024 Thalia Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Megan Bayne defeated Miyu Yamashita by Disqualification when Broski Jimmy attacked Bayne with a Chair (15:38).
The rematch between Yamashita and Bayne from DREAMWAVE earlier this year took place in GCW but was ruined by outside interference. Bayne gave Yamashita a Choke Slam and was about to use the Tombstone Piledriver when Broski Jimmy ran into the ring with a chair and hit Bayne with it. Yamashita stopped the attack and gave Jimmy the Skull Kick. Bayne got her hands on him too with a Choke Slam and Yamashita followed up by hitting Jimmy over the head with the chair! Bayne then finished him off with the Tombstone. After that was done the two women had a stare down before deciding to shake each other’s hands.
———————————————————————–
Upcoming Appearances
F1RST “SATURDAY NIGHT NITRO”, 07/09/2024 Mall Of America, Bloomington, Minnesota, USA
1. Allie Katch & Effy Vs Danhausen & Maki Itoh
The second half of Itoh’s American tour is going ahead despite her injury. One of her next matches will be to team with Danhausen to take on Bussy. That does not sound like the most physically demanding of matchups so even if her hand is not at 100% she’ll be find going out there. The F1RST show is also noteworthy because it is their annual visit to the Mall Of America were the first episode of WCW Nitro was famously taped. This is the third year in a row F1RST are running a show there.
MKW “CHAMPIONSHIP SUPERCARD FROM SHANGHAI”, 14/09/2024 Bandai Namco Shanghai Base, Shanghai, China
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Crystal
The next Queen Of Asia Title defence is taking place in China next month. Crystal believes Yuki Kamifuku is not ready to take on an opponent with her kind of wrath, tenacity and power.
GCW “BAD ONE”, 14/09/2024 Harpos Concert Center, Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kylie Rae
Even after Itoh pulled out of her August dates, GCW continued to promote her September appearances so they already knew how long her recovery would take. Her match with Kyle Rae that was meant to happen on 31st August will now take place on 14th September.
GCW “THA G-CODE”, 15/09/2024 Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
This will be the weekend before “WRESTLE PRINCESS V” back in Japan so she will at least get some ring rust off her before heading back to TJPW.
DPW “CAROLINA CLASSIC”, 15/09/2024 Durham Convention Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
1. Battle Of The Best – Round 2: Shoko Nakajima Vs Trish Adora
Another visit to Deadlock Pro for Shoko Nakajima as she continues the inaugural Battle Of The Best tournament. She faces Trish Adora in Round 2 and the winner advances to the final scheduled for 13th October.
SETUP “CHAOPHRAYA VOYAGE: 12TH ANNIVERSARY OF THAI WRESTLING”, 28/09/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title – 3 Way Match: Matcha (c) Vs Raku Vs Pom Harajuku
Fresh back from visiting England, Raku is going to travel again this time to Thailand and with Pom Harajuku following her. The travel buddies will be opponents though as they both take on Matcha for the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title in a 3 Way free for all.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 1”, 19/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Josh Alexander Vs Konosuke Takeshita?
Some interesting news coming out of the Canadian scene. Scott D’Amore was fired as president of TNA back in February and in the meantime went about establishing a new venture called Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling. Takeshita will be there for the debut weekend of shows. The first match announced for the weekend is Takeshita against Josh Alexander in a rematch of their 20 minute draw from Garden State Pro Wrestling back in July 2022. Maple Leaf Pro haven’t made clear yet if the match is happening on Night 1 or Night 2.
MAPLE LEAF PRO “FORGED IN EXCELLENCE – NIGHT 2”, 20/10/2024 St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs X
2. Josh Alexander Vs Konosuke Takeshita?
Yamashita will also be booked for both shows that weekend.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “BRIGHT EYES”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
The twelve wrestlers from TJPW making the trip are Miu Watanabe, Suzume, Arisu Endo, Yuki Kamifuku, Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima, Rika Tatsumi, Mizuki, Maki Itoh, Yuki Aino, Moka Miyamoto and Wakana Uehara. There will be around 6-8 local or American wrestlers also on the card for a total of 6 or 7 matches.
DDT/DEFY “DDT IN UTERO”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
Takeshita is the first DDT wrestler announced to be on the show.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TRIANGLER DTD”, 10/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
Both Takeshita and the dozen TJPW wrestlers will also be at the weekend finale.
———————————————————————–
Cancelled Appearances
KITSUNE “LOVE MY SHOW!”, 17/08/2024 Brick X Brick, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Aspyn Rose & Yuna Manase Vs Aria Perkins & Delmi Exo
As mentioned above Manase had a hell of an ordeal to go through just to make it to America. Travel from Japan was heavily effected by an incoming typhoon that week and her flight was delayed by many hours. So her first match for Kitsune the day before her title match had to be changed into something without her. Then when she finally made it to America it still took a few more hours to get through immigration customs.
GCW “NO SIGNAL IN THE HILLS PT. 4”, 17/08/2024 Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Nick Gage & Maki Itoh Vs Mance Warner & Broski Jimmy
Itoh’s injury cancelled not one but two matches against Mance Warner this month. She would have faced him for the GCW World Title in Japan and then a tag match in America a few days later.
GCW “SAVE ME”, 18/08/2024 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
No appearance at Salt Lake City for Itoh either.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 1”, 24/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kerry Morton
I think Kerry Morton lost his booking because he didn’t wrestle on the show from what I could find.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 2”, 25/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Itoh probably missed out on a few extra Extreme Title defences because of her injury. She is still the champion as far as I’m aware.
GCW “LIVE FAST DIE YOUNG”, 31/08/2024 Thalia Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kylie Rae
Kylie Rae ended up facing Brooke Havok instead.
INSPIRE A.D. “MAY THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN”, 01/09/2024 Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA
Summer is here and everyone has either gone travelling or are getting their all their plans in order. Funny thing is the people usually being covered for their overseas matches spent most of July wrestling back in Japan. Konosuke Takeshita had a few AEW matches over and done with before he got ready for the G1 Climax. Then Maki Itoh was wrestling in Tokyo Joshi Pro finishing off her latest dates with them before she goes on another GCW tour. So most of the results below are filled up by Miyu Yamashita, Shoko Nakajima and CDK related matches.
It’s the rest of the summer that’s going to get busy. A lot of Itoh matches in GCW with Yamashita popping up here and there along the way. Also some TJPW appearances in Southeast Asia and the USA debut of Yuna Manase are all coming up soon. Then there is the matter of DDT and TJPW holding shows abroad with local promotions in places like London and Seattle. Grab some water and stay hydrated because it’s going to be a busy summer of wrestling everywhere.
Video starts at 2:27:50 for Match #1. Go to 2:52:58 for Match #2. IWA JAPAN “HARDCORE FOREVER”, 27/07/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Hardcore Match: Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (c) Vs Mister Suchart & Anont Alonzo Vs Ultramantis Black & Dr. Gore Black (w/ Kappa Kozo & Kappa Jr.)
2. IWA Japan SETUP World Title: Ultramantis Black (c) (w/ Dr. Gore Black, Kappa Kozo & Kappa Jr.) Vs Chris Brookes (w/ Masahiro Takanashi)
GCW “JOSH BARNETT’S BLOODSPORT XI”, 28/07/2024 Roulette Intermedium, New York City, New York, USA
1. Shayna Baszler Vs Miyu Yamashita
———————————————————————–
Results
AEW “RAMPAGE”, 03/07/2024 (Aired 05/07/2024) Wintrust Arena, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Konosuke Takeshita & Kyle Fletcher defeated Isiah Kassidy & Marq Quen when Fletcher pinned Quen with the Kneeling Piledriver (10:10).
Takeshita had bigger stuff to prepare for this month but still got some ring time in AEW before heading back to Japan. He and Kyle Fletcher fought against Private Party, surviving a close call against them. Isiah Kassidy joked around to promote Shark Week and then landed the Swanton Bomb on Fletcher. Marq Quen’s 450 Splash afterwards though was blocked by Fletcher’s knees and Takeshita came in to German Suplex him away. Private Party fought back with a Top Rope Frankensteiner into the Cutter to Takeshita followed by the Silly String to Fletcher. Takeshita kicked out of Quen’s 450 Splash, took out both members with Lariats and then gave Kassidy the Blue Thunder Bomb. Fletcher then got to finish off Kassidy with the Kneeling Piledriver.
DPW “DPW LIVE 7”, 06/07/2024 NC State Fairgrounds, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
1. Battle Of The Best – Round 1: Shoko Nakajima defeated Masha Slamovich with the Diving Senton (16:16).
Shoko Nakajima touched down on DPW and left North Carolina with a big victory against Masha Slamovich despite taking some heavy hits from her. Slamovich used a Sit Down Power Bomb and also countered the Unmanned Local Train Hold into a Running Air Raid Crash that landed right into a bottom turnbuckle. But Nakajima used the top ropes against Slamovich in order to use a Power Bomb of her own. Slamovich tried using the Power Bomb again but Nakajima slipped down and pulled her into the Double Arm DDT. After that it took a Diving Senton to finish her off and make Nakajima advance to the next round of Battle Of The Best.
1. Konosuke Takeshita defeated Tommy Billington with the Powerdrive Knee (13:29).
Takeshita’s last AEW appearance for the month was a noteworthy one because his opponent was Tommy Billington, the nephew of the late Dynamite Kid! The new generation Dynamite Kid gave Takeshita a good challenge but fell to the Powerdrive Knee. Don Callis then attempted to recruit Billington to The Don Callis Family by bringing up his family’s heritage. But that was just a trap for Takeshita and the rest of The Family to attack Billington from behind until FTR ran down to save him.
NORTH WRESTLING “THUNDER STRUCK 2”, 13/07/2024 Walker Dome, Newcastle, England
1. Lizzy Evo defeated Miyu Yamashita with an Inside Cradle (13:45).
This was a case of defeat being snatched from the jaws of victory here. Yamashita seemed to have a lot of the match under control until Lizzy Evo saw an opening to hit her with a Knee Strike to the face and then roll her into a Small Package for the three count out of nowhere. For Evo the result is payback for Yamashita beating her in EVE last year.
IWA JAPAN “HARDCORE FOREVER”, 27/07/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles – 3 Way Hardcore Match: Mister Suchart & Anont Alonzo defeated Chris Brookes & Masahiro Takanashi (c) and Ultramantis Black & Dr. Gore Black (w/ Kappa Kozo & Kappa Jr.) when Alonzo pinned Gore after a Choke Slam/Power Bomb Combo through the Table (?:??). *CDK fails in V2. THE GOOD DEAL becomes the 2nd IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Champions!
2. IWA Japan SETUP World Title: Ultramantis Black (c) (w/ Dr. Gore Black, Kappa Kozo & Kappa Jr.) defeated Chris Brookes (w/ Masahiro Takanashi) with a School Boy (?:??). *V1 for Ultramantis Black.
Whenever CDK goes over to Thailand for SETUP Pro Wrestling that’s enough trouble to handle by itself. This however was not just a SETUP show. It was an event using the IWA Japan banner to celebrate 30 years of the promotion’s existance. CDK came over to defend the IWA Japan SETUP World Tag Team Titles in a Hardcore 3 Way Match. They had to fight the previous champions THE GOOD DEAL as well as the UMA Corps pairing of Ultramantis Black and Dr. Gore Black. Things went crazy as everybody fought outside the ring. Mister Suchart even got on a motor scooter and crashed it into everyone at ringside! A stapler gun was brought into the ring for Brookes and Ultramantis to staple each other with. Ultramantis then took advantage of miscommunication between CDK to put Brookes through a mini ironing board with a Back Drop. Masahiro Takanashi was also taken out by Dr. Gore attacking him with a toilet seat. From that point on CDK were too hurt to do anything and THE GOOD DEAL put Gore through a table. Anont Alonzo pinned him afterwards to win the belts.
It did not end there though. Earlier in the show the brand new IWA Japan SETUP World Title was introduced to the world. However Ultramantis and the UMA Corps launched an attack to steal the belt. Brookes was so mad to lose the tag titles in the main event without being pinned that he challenged Ultramantis for a World Title match straight away! Ultramantis refused but then attacked Brookes with the belt, causing the impromptu match to begin. Brookes fought back from the disadvantage and Takanashi was still there to cut off interference from the UMA Corps. But Dr. Gore threw a chair into Brookes’ face at ringside allowing Ultramantis to roll him up and escape with his first successful title defence. The UMA Corps continued to attack CDK until THE GOOD DEAL returned to save the day.
GCW “JOSH BARNETT’S BLOODSPORT XI”, 28/07/2024 Roulette Intermedium, New York City, New York, USA
1. Shayna Baszler defeated Miyu Yamashita by TKO (8:37).
If there is any big story to talk about in this month’s article it is this one. Yamashita taking part in GCW’s Bloodsport event is notable in itself. She gave shoot boxing a go pretty early into her pro wrestling career and has the kind of martial arts cred that would get you booked for a show like this. The big news though was who they chose to be her opponent. In the main event she took on Shayna Baszler from WWE! It’s the latest move from WWE to open themselves up and show they are willing to work with other wrestling companies. It’s been noted online that the Bloodsport show featured talent from WWE/NXT, TNA, AEW/ROH, NJPW’s American arm, MLW and TJPW. Baszler ended up beating Yamashita by catching her Skull Kick, turning it into a Tombstone and then beginning to ground and pound her until the referee stepped in to stop the fight.
———————————————————————–
Upcoming Appearances
GCW “NOW AND FOREVER”, 02/08/2024 TempleLive Cleveland Masonic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs John Wayne Murdoch
August is going to be a GCW month for Maki Itoh both in America and Japan. Her next tour begins with an unexpected opponent. She’s taking on one of their most violent wrestlers John Wayne Murdoch. He won the Tournament Of Survival back in June but his win-loss record in the company since then hasn’t been great.
GCW “CAN I TRUST YOU?”, 04/08/2024 House Of Independents, Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Itoh does not have a match announced for the show yet. This date was on her list of advertised bookings last month. The full card seems to have been shown since then and Blake Christian just so happens to have a “Pick Your Poison” style mystery opponent to be announced that day… I don’t see where else she will fit if she is still going to be there.
GCW “THE SKY IS THE LIMIT”, 13/08/2024 Shinjuku FACE, Tokyo, Japan
1. Broski Jimmy Vs Miyu Yamashita
2. The Great Sasuke Vs Maki Itoh
Itoh is also representing GCW for their Japan tour that is going on with some help from DDT. In a matchup that only sounds more mind bending the more I think of it, Itoh is going to fight The Great Sasuke! Yamashita will be on one of the shows too facing Broski Jimmy. That’s another match that I would never expect but more for head scratchy reasons.
GCW “YOU ONLY DIE ONCE”, 14/08/2024 Shinjuku FACE, Tokyo, Japan
1. Allie Katch & Dark Sheik Vs Kaya Toribami & Shoko Nakajima
2. GCW World Title: Mance Warner (c) Vs Maki Itoh
I made a prediction for this year that Itoh is going to win the GCW World Title. If it ever comes true then this will be the show to do it! It won’t though because GCW are all in on Mance Warner as their top champion while Itoh already holds the GCW Extreme Title but just imagine if they did.
Also added is a GCW Vs TJPW tag match. The visitors (or are they the home team because it’s GCW?) Allie Katch & Dark Sheik take on Kaya Toribami & Shoko Nakajima. I’ll probably make a separate post for the GCW Japan results since those matches are happening in Japan and DDT is involved with promoting the whole tour.
SPW “HARDCORE ISLAND 2: A FINE CITY”, 16/08/2024 Foo Chow Building, Singapore
1. 3 Way Match: Alexis Lee Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Kaya Toribami
Now that Alexis Lee got to wrestle in Japan and fully integrate herself into TJPW it’s time to send more people back over to Singapore Pro Wrestling. This time Lee will be in a 3 Way Match against two TJPW wrestlers. Yamashita and Toribami are on board to go face her in her home country.
KITSUNE “LOVE MY SHOW!”, 17/08/2024 Brick X Brick, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Yuna Manase Vs X
I was wondering how long it was going to take until I get to write about more of the American “Joshi” promotions that are currently around. Kitsune emerged around the same time period as SPARK Joshi and Sukeban. This one though has actually been able to run a show in Japan thanks to a lot of help from Marvelous. Their next shows in California is where Yuna Manase will be making her American wrestling debut.
GCW “NO SIGNAL IN THE HILLS PT. 4”, 17/08/2024 Ukrainian Culture Center, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
Itoh will be following GCW back to America after the Japan tour ends.
GCW “SAVE ME”, 18/08/2024 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
More Itoh in GCW here.
KITSUNE “YABAI!”, 18/08/2024 1110 Bates Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Kitsune World Title: Yuna Manase Vs Megan Bayne Vs J-Rod
The original plan was for Manase to be in a 3 Way Match with Sayaka Unagi and J-Rod for the Kitsune World Title. However Unagi is unable to get her visa approved in time and won’t be able to travel to America anytime soon. Since she was the champion, Kitsune made the decision to vacate the belt. It will now go to the winner of a new 3 Way Match between Manase, J-Rod and Megan Bayne.
EVE/TOKYO JOSHI PRO “EVE X TJPW: JAPAN & UK WRESTLING UNITE!”, 24/08/2024
Conway Hall, London, England
Finally we got a venue for the show. Yamashita, Raku, Mahiro Kiryu and HIMAWARI along with Aja Kong are the Japanese talent coming over to TJPW’s joint show with EVE. The EVE wrestlers being promoted for the show so far include Alex Windsor, Nina Samuels, Lena Cross and Session Moth Martina.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 1”, 24/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Kerry Morton
The match is in GCW but Itoh gets a little taste of NWA with Kerry Morton as her opponent here. Kerry is the son of Ricky Morton and has been spending a lot of time in NWA as part of The Southern Six. He was even on the winning team at The Crockett Cup a few months ago.
GCW “HOMECOMING – NIGHT 2”, 25/08/2024 The Showboat, Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
None of her GCW matches next month have been announced as Extreme Title defences yet.
MLW “SUMMER OF THE BEASTS”, 29/08/2024 Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York, USA
1. Delmi Exo Vs Miyu Yamashita
MLW wrote a really long passage about this match on their Twitter page but we don’t need to go through all that. Yamashita beat Delmi Exo last December, next month is time for the rematch. The difference here is Exo now has the support of MLW’s main authority figure Cesar Duran by her side.
GCW “LIVE FAST DIE YOUNG”, 31/08/2024 Thalia Hall, Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Miyu Yamashita Vs Megan Bayne
2. Maki Itoh Vs Kylie Rae
Prepare for cute smiles everywhere when Itoh is in the ring with Kylie Rae. Things might get ugly though if Itoh ends up feeling threatened by Rae’s cheerfulness. Yamashita getting another match with Megan Bayne is something she might not want to smile about either. They wrestled each other at a DREAMWAVE show back in April. Bayne won clean and Yamashita was in a pretty bad mood about it afterwards, rejecting her post-match handshake.
INSPIRE A.D. “MAY THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN”, 01/09/2024 Empire Control Room, Austin, Texas, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs Devin Carter
One of the non-GCW bookings Itoh is taking after the summer is over at Inspire A.D. in Texas. “The Fashionista” Devin Carter is her opponent. They have only been wrestling for a couple of years, mostly around the Texas scene.
MKW “CHAMPIONSHIP SUPERCARD FROM SHANGHAI”, 14/09/2024 Bandai Namco Shanghai Base, Shanghai, China
1. Queen Of Asia Title: Yuki Kamifuku (c) Vs Crystal
Still another while until Yuki Kamifuku defends the Queen Of Asia Title against Crystal. Kamifuku has been stepping her game up over the last twelve months and it’s really been paying off for her lately.
GCW “BAD ONE”, 14/09/2024 Harpos Concert Center, Detroit, Michigan, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
This will be the last weekend of Itoh’s current tour.
GCW “THA G-CODE”, 15/09/2024 Water Street Music Hall, Rochester, New York, USA
1. Maki Itoh Vs X
And Itoh’s last American booking as of now is here.
SETUP “CHAOPHRAYA VOYAGE: 12TH ANNIVERSARY OF THAI WRESTLING”, 28/09/2024 The Circus Studio, G Village, Bangkok, Thailand
1. SETUP All Asia Women’s Title – 3 Way Match: Matcha (c) Vs Raku Vs Pom Harajuku
TJPW sent a video message to SETUP announcing the next opponents for Matcha and the SETUP All Asia Women’s Title she currently holds. Both Raku and Pom Harajuku are coming to Thailand to wrestle there for the first time!
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “BRIGHT EYES”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
A big weekend is going down in Seattle during November. TJPW is teaming up with DEFY for a show. Expect around 10-12 TJPW talent to be coming over. That was already announced a while ago…
DDT/DEFY “DDT IN UTERO”, 09/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
What turned out to be new news about the event is DEFY will be bringing over DDT for an evening show too! DDT has not said yet how many people they are going to bring over.
DDT/TOKYO JOSHI PRO/DEFY “TRIANGLER DTD”, 10/11/2024 Washington Hall, Seattle, Washington, USA
The weekend ends with DDT, TJPW and DEFY all joining forces for a triple promotion show.