DDT “EARLY SUMMER BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING 2025 – DAY 1”, 13/05/2025 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. 3 Way Match – Submission Rules Only: Kazusada Higuchi Vs KANON Vs Yuya Koroku
2. Thank You Toru Owashi ~Toru Owashi 20th Anniversary Of DDT Participation Series Vol. 1~ Lucha Libre Rules: Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion Vs Toru Owashi, Soma Takao & Kazuma Sumi
3. Jun Akiyama & Antonio Honda Vs HARASHIMA & Kazuki Hirata
4. Danshoku Dieno Produce Match ~ Woof Woof Paradise Insurance Match: Akito Vs Yukio Naya
5. Danshoku Dieno Produce Match ~ Woof Woof Paradise: Danshoku Dieno (w/ Haku) Vs Shunma Katsumata (w/ Ponta & Komachi) Vs Yuki Kamifuku (w/ Zac) Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa (w/ Qoo)
6. Special Tag Match: Chris Brookes & Yuki Ueno Vs To-y & Takeshi Masada
There is now a two week break from the King Of DDT tournament until the final takes place near the end of the month. Instead DDT is heading back to Ueno Park for a series of early summer shows.
DDT “D GENERATIONS 2 ~THERE’S NO LIMIT TO GROWING PAINS~”, 14/05/2025 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Special Single Match: Keisuke Ishii Vs Kazuma Sumi
2. Soma Takao Vs Takumi Saito
3. Yuni Vs Ali Najima
4. Hideki Okatani & Ilusion Vs Munetatsu Nakamura & Shota Kawakami
5. Special Single Match: Ryoma Tsukamoto Vs To-y
6. Special Tag Match: Shigehiro Irie & Shota Vs Takeshi Masada & Yuya Koroku
The match order for the second D GENERATIONS show has been decided.
BASARA “BASARA 278 ~KOO~”, 14/05/2025 Shin-Kiba 1st RING
More tournament action this week with BASARA holding the second round of its Chouten ~Itadaki~ tournament.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW SPRING TOUR 2025 IN SHINAGAWA VOL. 1”, 17/05/2025 Tokyo Shinagawa Prince Hotel Club eX
1. 3 Way Match: Pom Harajuku Vs Mahiro Kiryu Vs Chika Nanase
2. Yuki Aino Vs Ivy Steele
3. Yuki Kamifuku & Raku Vs Rika Tatsumi & Haruna Neko
4. Mizuki, Wakana Uehara & Mifu Ashida Vs Miu Watanabe, Toga & Kira Summer
5. Shoko Nakajima & Kaya Toribami Vs Yuki Arai & Moka Miyamoto
6. Maki Itoh Vs Uta Takami
7. Suzume, Arisu Endo & Haru Kazashiro Vs Yoshiko Hasegawa, HIMAWARI & Shino Suzuki
The singles match between Maki Itoh and Uta Takami is going to mean a lot to Takami. She tweeted about the time she was a trainee and took an Elbow Strike from Itoh for the first time. She would never forget the pain. Then when Takami got to wrestle Itoh for the first time back in January she hit her with an Elbow Strike using all of her heart. However Itoh hit back with an Elbow Strike using all of her soul. They then had a singles match at the Garafes show in March where Takami felt like she couldn’t do anything against Itoh. It was the most depressed she ever felt so with this rematch coming up she is going to put all of her soul into it.
The two current holders of Asian championships are teaming up on this show. Yuki Kamifuku recently lost the VPW Women’s Title but still has the Queen Of Asia Title in her possession while Raku is currently the SETUP All Asia Women’s Champion.
Hyper Misao is still out of action with the right hand injury she suffered last week.
DDT “EARLY SUMMER BEER GARDEN PRO WRESTLING 2025 – DAY 2”, 21/05/2025 Tokyo Ueno Park Outdoor Stage
1. Daisuke Sasaki & Ilusion Vs Kazuki Hirata & Antonio Honda
2. No English Match: HARASHIMA, Akito & Yuya Koroku Vs Yukio Naya, Daichi Sato & Yuki Ishida
3. 3 Count Vs 1 Count! Count Handicap Match: Jun Akiyama Vs Kazuma Sumi
4. Thank You Toru Owashi ~ Toru Owashi 20th Anniversary Of DDT Participation Series Vol. 2: Toru Owashi Vs Danshoku Dieno
5. Takeshi Masada Produce Match – Hardcore Match: Chris Brookes & Takeshi Masada Vs Shunma Katsumata & To-y
6. Road To KING OF DDT 2025 FINAL!! Special 4 Way Match: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yuki Ueno Vs KANON Vs Hideki Okatani
There will be a big preview of the semi finals taking place just a few days before. The final four will be pitted against each other in a 4 Way Match.
More Beer Garden inspired silliness is happening on the show. Kazuma Sumi only needs a 1 Count Pinfall to beat Jun Akiyama while Akiyama will follow the usual rules. There will also be a match where speaking in English for any reason is prohibited!
“HEISEI’S PRO WRESTLING MASTERMIND – KATSUJI NAGASHIMA’S FINAL MOVE! IKEBUKURO ROOFTOP WRESTLING”, 24/05/2025 Tokyo Yodobashi HD Ikebukuro Building Special Rooftop Venue
1. GLEAT Offer Match: Katsuhiko Nakajima & El Lindaman Vs Minoru Tanaka & Yumehito Imanari
2. DDT Offer Final nWJ Match: Ken Ohka, Yukio Nay & Soma Takao (w/ Sanshiro Takagi) Vs Tomomitsu Matsunaga, Yuya Koroku & Kazuma Sumi
A special memorial show for the late Katsuji Nagashima will be taking place later this month. DDT, New Japan, GLEAT and Ganbare☆Pro along with the Battle News website will hold the show at the rooftop of the Yodobashi HD Ikebukuro Building in Tokyo to pay tribute to the Heisei era’s pro wrestling mastermind who passed away back in February. Admission to the event is free although visitors are encouraged to leave a donation at the reception desk with all of the funds minus the minimum expenses being donated to his widow.
The DDT match of the show will be the final match for New World Japan, the nWo Japan parody that Sanshiro Takagi put together in 2012 that included Nagashima as the unit’s backer. The GLEAT match includes Katsuhiko Nakajima who had his debut match in Wrestle Japan, the company that Nagashima helped launch after he left NJPW. The other wrestlers in the match El Lindaman, Minoru Tanaka and Yumehito Imanari also had connections with Nagashima when he was alive.
Yuji Nagata will be at the event as one of the guests for a talk show segment being held in between the two matches. Also former AKB48 idol Chisato Nakata will be the special ring announcer for the event. She was a radio host with Nakajima for over two years on a show called Avalanche Brainbuster Radio.
DDT “KING OF DDT 2025 FINAL!!”, 25/05/2025 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. 4 Way Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Kazuki Hirata Vs Akito & Yuya Koroku Vs Toru Owashi & Yuki Ishida Vs Yuni & Kazuma Sumi
2. Special 6-Man Tag Match: Jun Akiyama, Yukio Naya & Daichi Sato Vs Shinya Aoki, Shunma Katsumata & To-y
3. SCHADENFREUDE International Vs DAMNATION T.A!: Chris Brookes, Antonio Honda & Takeshi Masada Vs Daisuke Sasaki, MJ Paul & Ilusion
4. DDT Universal Title: Minoru Suzuki (c) Vs Danshoku Dieno
5. King Of DDT 2025 – Semi Final: KANON Vs Hideki Okatani
6. King Of DDT 2025 – Semi Final: Kazusada Higuchi Vs Yuki Ueno
7. King Of DDT 2025 – Final: X Vs X
So how are the semi finals shaking out? Kazusada Higuchi and Yuki Ueno are both trying to climb back to the top of DDT. Higuchi’s run has been presenting him as being completely recovered from his injuries while Ueno has a specific vision of DDT in mind that he feels only he can lead. Meanwhile KANON has a grudge match with Hideki Okatani. It was Okatani who helped DAMNATION T.A kick KANON out of the unit as his replacement and the new mean streak has served him well ever since. KANON found a new path to change the error of his ways but a chance at revenge might briefly turn him back into a psychopath.
1. Akito Vs Yuya Koroku
2. Thank You Toru Owashi ~ Toru Owashi 20th Anniversary Of DDT Participation Series Vol. 3: Toru Owashi Vs Danshoku Dieno Vs Antonio Honda Vs Kazuki Hirata
3. Special Tag Match: HARASHIMA & Yasu Urano Vs Naomi Yoshimura & Yuki Ishida
4. KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles: Daisuke Sasaki, Hideki Okatani & Ilusion (c) Vs Yuki Ueno, Shunma Katsumata & To-y
Nagoya sees Naomi Yoshimura & Yuki Ishida joining together as a tag team for the first time since Yoshimura’s return from injury. Their opponents are the Smile Squash tag team of HARASHIMA & Yasu Urano.
GLEAT “GLEAT VER.12”, 01/07/2024 Tokyo Dome City Hall 1,511 Fans
2. MONDAY NIGHT FEVER: Minoru Tanaka & Kazuki Hirata defeated Yusuke Kodama & Issei Onitsuka when Tanaka pinned Onitsuka with the B”D”F (3:59).
7. G-REX Title: Hayato Tamura (c) defeated Yuki Iino with a Lariat (14:56). *V6 for Hayato Tamura.
A month ago when GLEAT and DDT held a show together, Yuki Iino scored a pinfall win over Hayato Tamura. The result made him No. 1 Contender for the G-REX Title and he got his shot yesterday at Tokyo Dome City Hall. The two had a stubborn heavyweight match with plenty of collisions. Iino was able to hit the Spear but it wasn’t enough to win this time. Tamura cut him off with a German Suplex and Back Drop before getting the three count with a Lariat. He said he was energized today thanks to Iino beating him at Korakuen Hall last month. He does not know what to think of him personally but in the ring they are truly rivals who can fight each other for decades to come. Iino agreed and wants to fight Tamura again anytime, any place and in any match.
It’s an eventful week for Minoru Tanaka’s family so he was given a match to let out some steam. He was well into dancing with Kazuki Hirata from the get go. Their opponents Yusuke Kodama & Issei Onitsuka, not so much. Hirata briefly paused the action to get a drink of water but when he returned he sportingly allowed Onitsuka to put him back in a Sleeper Hold. Tanaka got tagged in and didn’t take long to win the match. All four of them danced with each other after the match. Tanaka said it was the first time a “mixed martial arts” match between a dancer and a ramen shop owner ever took place. He was impressed by how strong the dancer was. Onitsuka warned that he will get payback on Hirata.
GLEAT/DDT “GLEAT VER. & – GLEAT X DDT PRO WRESTLING”, 06/06/2024 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 725 Fans
1. 3 Way Tag Match: Shunma Katsumata, Takanori Ito & Issei Onitsuka defeated Densha MICHIo, Jitensha KEIgo & Yu Iizuka and Danshoku Dieno, Makoto Oishi & Jun Tonsho when Katsumata pinned Oishi with the Totonou Splash (7:32).
2. Minoru Tanaka defeated Kazuki Hirata with the B”D”F (8:44).
3. CIMA & HARASHIMA defeated Soma Watanabe & Soma Takao when HARASHIMA pinned Takao with the Somato (7:15).
4. Tetsuya Endo defeated Tetsuya Izuchi with the Tetsuya In The Sky (9:34).
5. SBK & TAKUMA defeated To-y & Kazuma Sumi when TAKUMA pinned Sumi with the 630° (11:32).
6. Yuki Ueno, El Lindaman & MAO defeated Sanshiro Takagi, Kaz Hayashi & Akito when MAO pinned Akito with the Iai Kick (11:39).
7. Elimination Tag Match: Daisuke Sasaki, Kaito Ishida, KANON, Hartley Jackson & Kotaro Suzuki defeated T-Hawk, Chris Brookes, Takehiro Yamamura, Seiki Yoshioka & Takeshi Masada (22:43).
7a. Kotaro Suzuki eliminated Takehiro Yamamura with the Blue Destiny (8:18).
7b. Daisuke Sasaki eliminated Seiki Yoshioka by Ring Out (9:20).
7c. T-Hawk eliminated Kotaro Suzuki with a Low Blow (10:06).
7d. Hartley Jackson accidentally eliminated KANON by Ring Out (13:33).
7e. Chris Brookes eliminated Hartley Jackson by Ring Out (13:58).
7f. Daisuke Sasaki eliminated Chris Brookes with El Es Culero (14:50).
7g. Daisuke Sasaki eliminated T-Hawk with the Crossover Face Lock (18:36).
7h. Takeshi Masada eliminated Daisuke Sasaki by Ring Out (21:07).
7i. Kaito Ishida eliminated Takeshi Masada with the Half Tiger Suplex (22:43).
8. Kazusada Higuchi, Yuki Iino & Yukio Naya defeated Hayato Tamura, Ryuichi Kawakami & KAZMA SAKAMOTO when Iino pinned Tamura with the Spear (20:46).
The latest GLEAT show at Korakuen Hall was a joint show with DDT, mashing the two rosters together for a bunch of inter-promotional matches. In the main event it was DDT’s heavyweight team that defeated BULK Orchestra. Even more newsworthy is Yuki Iino pinned Hayato Tamura with the Spear, scoring the win over the G-REX Champion! Iino rubbed it in his opponents’ faces after the match, saying GLEAT is weak and comparing them to the brass band club in elementary school. When Tamura went to respond, Iino tackled him with another Spear and then posed with the G-REX Title. After the DDT team left the ring Tamura promised he will get revenge. He also encouraged GLEAT fans to support DDT and DDT fans to support GLEAT. Backstage Yukio Naya talked about the times he wrestled with KAZMA SAKAMOTO in Real Japan and then challenged him to a singles match. Ryuichi Kawakami lost his temper at his partners for making GLEAT look weak.
A 10-Man Elimination Tag match mixed the two rosters together. One side was an alliance between SCHADENFREUDE International and #STRONGHEARTS that took on the name SCHADENHEARTS. The other side paired together DAMNATION T.A with Black Generation International. BGI’s Kaito Ishida ended up being the last man standing.
El Lindaman didn’t hear the news about Sanshiro Takagi’s recent demotion. He declared he was going to take over the President role from Takagi while attacking him. When Takagi fought back he sadly explained to Lindaman he is the Vice President now. Takagi also crashed the Dramatic Dream bike into Yuki Ueno. Lindaman then brought out a bouquet as a gift for Takagi but tried to hit him with it. The match came down to MAO beating Akito with the Iai Kick. Afterwards he called out Kaz Hayashi and said he is his hero who has been a big influence. Hayashi is retiring soon but MAO wants to defend the DDT Universal Title against him before he retires. Or to be more exact, MAO wants to defend the title against Shiryu, Hayashi’s masked gimmick from Michinoku Pro! Hayashi said he can tell MAO has been influenced by him and he promised he will tell Shiryu to accept the challenge. The title match will go ahead in DDT on 16th June.
GLEAT did get a straight tag team win against DDT when SBK & TAKUMA defeated To-y & Kazuma Sumi. The DDT side did well enough. To-y hit the Kojima Wonderland while Sumi did a Lionsault. But SBK & TAKUMA isolated Sumi with tag moves and TAKUMA finished him off with the 630°. SBK joked that Sumi seems to already know them from somewhere else but he doesn’t remember. Sumi took the blame for losing and couldn’t shake the feeling there was something else other than GLEAT and DDT that connected him and his opponents today…
Several of the matches on the show seemed to be booked because the wrestlers involved had similar names. For example Tetsuya Endo from DDT fought Tetsuya Izuchi from GLEAT. Endo got the win out of nowhere by giving Izuchi the Tetsuya In The Sky. He thought they would get along afterwards because of their names but Izuchi bit Endo’s hand after the match.
There were times before when CIMA & HARASHIMA were in the same match but today was the first time they teamed up together. CIMA also got to meet up with Soma Takao again but this time Takao was teaming with Soma Watanabe. That made it HARACIMA Vs Soma-Soma! Backstage after the match Watanabe told Takao that when he was in high school he sent a resume to DDT hoping to wrestle for them but never received an answer. His Dramatic Dream to be in DDT finally came true today.
Kazuki Hirata tried to get Minoru Tanaka to wear the Hirata GO! glasses and dance with him. Tanaka kept on refusing until finally the temptation was too much to ignore. The extra power of the dance led to Tanaka pinning Hirata with the B”D”F. He ended up enjoying it so much he told Hirata they should go clubbing together!
The opening match was already changed when MICHIKO opted out so her otaku alter ego Densha MICHIo could take her place. Keigo Nakamura decided to do something similar by showing as Jitensha KEIgo. That left Yu Iizuka as the odd man out on the team because he wanted to wrestle seriously. Jun Tonsho got dragged into doing the Hell Gate with Danshoku Dieno but that left Makoto Oishi along to fight off everyone else. Shunma Katsumata, Takanori Ito & Issei Onitsuka took advantage of that to win the 3 Way Trios Match.
GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2023”, 27/12/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall 603 Fans
1. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Shota & Soma Takao (c) defeated Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie when Shota pinned Ishii with the Gannosuke Clutch (10:00). *V3 for ROMANCE DAWN.
2. Makoto, HARUKAZE & Banny Oikawa defeated Sumire Natsu, YuuRI & Riara when HARUKAZE pinned Riara with the Flame Spear (11:59).
3. Special Single Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa defeated Arisu Endo with the Diving Double Knee Attack (6:50).
4. Yuko Miyamoto defeated Munetatsu Nakamura with the Moonsault Press (10:02).
5. GanPro Vs GLEAT All Out Battle ~ GanPro’s Famous Elimination 10-Man Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari, Takuya Wada, Mizuki Watase, Shinichiro Tominaga & Tyson Maeguchi defeated Kaz Hayashi, Minoru Tanaka, Takanori Ito, Check Shimatani & Jun Tonsho (20:13).
5a. Kaz Hayashi eliminated Shinichiro Tominaga with the Final Cut (5:17).
5b. Mizuki Watase eliminated Jun Tonsho with the Venetian (10:00).
5c. Takanori Ito eliminated Tyson Maeguchi by Over The Top Rope (11:55).
5d. Yumehito Imanari & Mizuki Watase eliminated Takanori Ito by Over The Top Rope (12:09).
5e. Minoru Tanaka eliminated Mizuki Watase with HEAT Clutch (15:37).
5f. Minoru Tanaka and Takuya Wada eliminated each other by Double Over The Top Rope (17:25).
5g. Yumehito Imanari eliminated Check Shimatani with the Lou Thesz Press (19:36).
5h. Yumehito Imanari eliminated Kaz Hayashi with the Lariat (20:13).
6. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka defeated Kuma Arashi with the Shin Flame Spear (14:03).
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Shuichiro Katsumura defeated Isami Kodaka (c) with a Moonsault Press (19:47). *Isami Kodaka fails in V5. Shuichiro Katsumura becomes the 6th Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Champion!
The year closes on Ganbare☆Pro with a brand new Spirit Of Ganbare Champion! After clearing through most of the GanPro roster in his reign, Isami Kodaka finally fell and made Shuichiro Katsumura the promotion’s new hero. Katsumura went into the match knowing he would have to do something new to beat Kodaka. When different submission holds to the arm couldn’t get the job done, Katsumura climbed the top turnbuckle and did a Moonsault onto Kodaka to beat him! According to the new champion, he used his own form of pro wrestling to defeat Kodaka’s pro wrestling.
Katsumura didn’t want to shake Kodaka’s hand after the match because he’s not going to do that pretend friendship stuff from the Shonen Jump comics Kodaka likes. By taking the SOG Title away from him he also takes away the BASARA wrestler’s “passport” to enter GanPro. The result also means Katsumura is a double champion in GanPro and that should give him some power to make decisions. So as long as he is champion, Kodaka’s passport will be automatically renewed. However Kodaka refused the gesture and dared Katsumura to raise the SOG Title even higher than he did because Kodaka’s Shonen Jump story is not done yet!
When Kodaka left, Katsumura called down the GanPro roster to the ring so they could all finish the show together. Ken Ohka was given the microphone and he praised everyone in GanPro for working so hard. He then challenged Katsumura for the SOG Title because he wanted to strike while the iron is hot! Katsumura agreed to do a title match against Ohka at Itabashi on 4th January. However Ohka then also challenged him for the Spirit Of Ganbare Tag Team Titles in Osaka on 6th January with HARASHIMA as his partner! Katsumura accepted on behalf of Ground Absolute so GanPro’s 2024 will start off with two title matches in a three day period!
The reason why Ohka wants these title shots as soon as possible is because he is on a wave of momentum after finally beating Kuma Arashi in a grudge match. Arashi had Koji Doi helping with interference at ringside until Shota pulled him away. With no more trouble in his way, Ohka hit Arashi with the Flame Spear followed by the new and improved Shin Flame Spear to get the three count.
Despite the bad blood between them, Ohka thanked Arashi because every awful thing he did to him over the last six months helped Ohka grow as a 46 year old pro wrestler. Arashi didn’t want to speak but Doi stopped him from leaving. DoiKuma fully accepts defeat today but they enjoyed the atmosphere of GanPro fans booing them and cheering for Ohka. This may be the last time DoiKuma are in a GanPro ring so they asked if they could dance to “Bad Communication” with Ohka one last time? Ohka said of course they could! He also told them that everyone who is exposed to GanPro even once will always become a GanPro fan. The three of them then celebrated while “Bad Communication” played.
The good times for GanPro could be found even further down the card because the home team were victorious against GLEAT in the 10-Man Elimination Match! GLEAT dealt the first blow when Kaz Hayashi pinned Shinichiro Tominaga but Mizuki Watase evened the score by taking out Jun Tonsho. GLEAT went ahead again thanks to Takanori Ito getting Tyson Maeguchi over the top rope and then kicking him to the floor for an elimination. Seeing Ito as the big threat, both Watase & Yumehito Imanari worked together to get him out of the ring. Minoru Tanaka used his old finisher from his HEAT days to pin Watase. Takuya Wada wanted to make Tanaka submit but their struggle send both of them over the ropes to the apron. Check Shimatani then decided to sacrifice Tanaka to eliminate Wada and Dropkicked the both of them to the floor. That left Imanari in a 2-on-1 disadvantage but he pulled off the upset by pinning both Shimatani and then Hayashi to win the match for GanPro! Imanari later said GanPro and GLEAT should do a GxG collaboration again somewhere. That might happen because Hayashi does not want his interactions with Imanari to end like this! Things between Watase and Shimatani were a bit friendlier given their past together in DDT.
Munetatsu Nakamura looks up to Yuko Miyamoto a lot so he decided to wear a purple yankee costume for his match against him. Nakamura hit some big dives and used the Michinoku Driver II for a nearfall. Miyamoto turned the tables by blocking a German Suplex and then throwing his opponent head first over him to the canvas. Miyamoto won the match with the Moonsault Press but was left impressed by Nakamura. He said looking at Nakamura is like looking at a young Isami Kodaka. He wants to see more of him and what he can grow into. Nakamura said if he had beaten Miyamoto at Korakuen Hall on the 1st anniversary of his debut it would have created a great memory for him. Instead he has some regrets over losing. But he wants to continue fighting Miyamoto and even team up with him so he can get stronger.
After so many tries and close calls, Yoshiko Hasegawa has finally won a match by herself! She took on the visiting Arisu Endo from Tokyo Joshi Pro and they had a back and forth match. The difference maker was Hasegawa using a Diving Double Knee Attack from the turnbuckles to pin Endo for the 3 count. Hasegawa said it took her one year and 4 months to finally win a match but she now has a 1-1 record against Endo so they still need to figure out who is stronger. She eventually wants to fight for a championship someday so this result finally puts her on the starting line. The move she used was her first time using it so she hasn’t come up with a name for it yet.
There was more Ganbare☆Joshi action before that with a 6-Woman Tag Match. Makoto led HARUKAZE & Banny Oikawa to victory against the hedonistic team of Sumire Natsu, YuuRI & Riara. HARUKAZE scored the pin on Riara with the Flame Spear.
For the second time this year ROMANCE DAWN defended the KO-D Tag Team Titles in the opening match of a show. Here in GanPro the champions took on Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie in a match that connected Team Drift and the Young Communication generation together. Ishii aimed big by giving Shota the Double Arm Driver from the top rope but Soma Takao came to his partner’s rescue. Shota was then able to trap Ishii in the Gannosuke Clutch to win the match. Takao said it meant a lot for him and Shota to defend the titles against friends and former champions Ishii & Irie. Shota thinks all four of them are still rivals for each other to chase after. Irie said he does not know how many more chances he will get to team with Ishii so he appreciates the times when he does. He will always want to team with him one more time.
Yuna Manase announced she will have her first match back from injury on 23rd February! She told the fans about the frustrations she felt throughout the past year by being on the sidelines but those frustrations will soon disappear. She will be spending the next two months getting ready for her return. She already came up with ideas for a new costume and has decided on who she wants her opponent to be. That will be revealed on GanPro’s social media accounts soon.
Moeka Haruhi made an appearance during the opening announcements to greet the fans and joke around with ring announced Michiko Nonaka.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TOKYO JOSHI PRO WRESTLING 10TH ANNIVERSARY PERFORMANCE ~YUKA SAKAZAKI GRADUATION SPECIAL~”, 06/12/2023 Tokyo Kitazawa Town Hall
1. Wakana Uehara, Shino Suzuki & Runa Okubo Vs HIMAWARI, Toga & Haru Kazashiro
2. Miu Watanabe, Suzume & Arisu Endo Vs Yuki Kamifuku, Mahiro Kiryu & Kaya Toribami
3. Hikari Noa, Nao Kakuta, Mizuki & Moka Miyamoto Vs Hyper Misao. Yuki Aino, Raku & Pom Harajuku
4. Yuka Sakazaki & Rika Tatsumi Vs Antonio Honda & Trans-Am ★ Hiroshi
5. Yuka Sakazaki Graduation Special 3 Way Match: Yuka Sakazaki Vs Miyu Yamashita Vs Shoko Nakajima
Tomorrow is the final day of Yuka Sakazaki as a Tokyo Joshi Pro wrestler and it is in the same venue where she had her debut match a decade ago.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO/PRESTIGE “COMBAT PRINCESS USA”, 14/12/2023 Globe Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA
1. Rika Tatsumi & Amira Vs Max The Impaler & Pom Harajuku
2. Moka Miyamoto Vs Trish Adora
3. Mizuki Vs Sandra Moone
4. Shoko Nakajima Vs Taya Valkyrie
5. Miu Watanabe Vs Hyan
6. Princess Tag Team Titles: Hikari Noa & Nao Kakuta (c) Vs Janai Kai & Shazza McKenzie
7. Special Tag Match: Miyu Yamashita & Maki Itoh Vs Masha Slamovich & Killer Kelly
The Princess Tag Team Champions want to defend the belts in America! Free WiFi made the request after their recent title defence last week and it’s been accepted. They were originally scheduled to face Janai Kai & Johnnie Robbie in Los Angeles but Robbie pulled out with an injury. Shazza McKenzie will now take her place and could become a TJPW champion in her first appearance with them.
TOKYO JOSHI PRO “TJPW CITY CIRCUIT ’23 ~KASUKABE PERFORMANCE~”, 17/12/2023 Saitama Kasukabe Fureai Cube
1. 3 Way Match: X Vs X Vs X
2. X Vs X
3. X Vs X
4. X Vs X
5. X Vs X
6. X Vs X
7. X Vs X
8. X Vs X
9. X Vs X
10. X Vs X
Participants: Hikari Noa, Shoko Nakajima, Maki Itoh, Yuki Kamifuku, Hyper Misao, Yuki Aino, Miu Watanabe, Raku, Pom Harajuku, Mahiro Kiryu, Suzume, Moka Miyamoto, Arisu Endo, Kaya Toribami, Wakana Uehara, HIMAWARI, Shino Suzuki, Toga, Haru Kazashiro, Runa Okubo and Juria Nagano
A schedule conflict means Nao Kakuta will not be part of this show after all. So instead of 11 matches the show will have 10 with one being a 3 Way Match. It could be anywhere on the card. I’m just placing it as Match #1 for convenience sake.
GANBARE☆PRO “BAD COMMUNICATION 2023”, 27/12/2023 Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Yuko Miyamoto Vs Munetatsu Nakamura
2. Sumire Natsu, YuuRI & Riara Vs HARUKAZE, Makoto & Banny Oikawa
3. Special Single Match: Yoshiko Hasegawa Vs Arisu Endo
4. Special Single Match: Ken Ohka Vs Kuma Arashi
5. GanPro Vs GLEAT All Out Battle ~ GanPro’s Famous Elimination 10-Man Tag Match: Yumehito Imanari, Takuya Wada, Mizuki Watase, Shinichiro Tominaga & Tyson Maeguchi Vs Kaz Hayashi, Minoru Tanaka, Takanori Ito, Check Shimatani & Jun Tonsho
6. KO-D Tag Team Titles: Shota & Soma Takao (c) Vs Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie
7. Spirit Of Ganbare World Openweight Title: Isami Kodaka (c) Vs Shuichiro Katsumura
The KO-D Tag Team Champions also took control of where they wanted to defend their belts next. ROMANCE DAWN have used their title reign to have matches against other wrestlers from the Young Communication generation of the indies. It continues in Ganbare☆Pro because their match here against Keisuke Ishii & Shigehiro Irie now has the belts on the line! Ishii & Irie once held the titles together back in the winter of 2011.
Over the last few days videos were being sent in thick and fast to both GanPro and GLEAT from wrestlers volunteering to take part in the inter-promotional 10-Man Tag. Some were doing it out of pride for their home company while others were either calling out rivals from the other side or accepting challenges from them. Yumehito Imanari’s team includes Takuya Wada, Mizuki Watase, Shinichiro Tominaga & Tyson Maeguchi all ready to fight for GanPro’s burning spirit. The GLEAT visitors consists of Kaz Hayashi, Minoru Tanaka, Takanori Ito, former DDT wrestler Check Shimatani & Jun Tonsho. The match itself is Elimination rules where you are taken out of the match by either pinfall, submission or being thrown over the top rope and out of the ring.
DDT “BLACK OUT PRESENTS KING OF DDT 2020 FINAL!!”, 23/08/2020 Tokyo Korakuen Hall ??? Fans
0. Under Match – 5 Way Match: Kazuki Hirata defeated Toru Owashi, Antonio Honda, Tomomitsu Matsunaga and Yukio Naya when Hirata pinned Honda with the Miracle One Shot Cradle (5:33).
1. King Of DDT 2020 – Semi-Final: Tetsuya Endo defeated Kazusada Higuchi by Referee Stoppage with the Modified Yurikamome Hold (10:19).
2. King Of DDT 2020 – Semi-Final: T-Hawk defeated Akito with the Night Ride (11:19).
3. Danshoku Dieno & Seigo Tachibana defeated Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai when Dieno pinned Sakaguchi with the Gaydo Clutch (7:32).
4. KING OF DDT 2020 Special 10-Man Tag Match: HARASHIMA, Yuki Ueno, Naomi Yoshimura, Chris Brookes & Minoru Tanaka defeated Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao, Mad Paulie, El Lindaman & Nobuhiro Shimatani when HARASHIMA pinned Shimatani with the Somato (12:47).
5. Konosuke Takeshita, Shunma Katsumata, Shinya Aoki & Keigo Nakamura defeated Jun Akiyama, Makoto Oishi, Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani when Takeshita pinned Oishi with the German Suplex (14:55).
6. King Of DDT 2020 – Final: Tetsuya Endo defeated T-Hawk with the Shooting Star Press (20:24).
Today confirms without a shadow of a doubt that Tetsuya Endo is the number one wrestler in DDT. The reigning KO-D Openweight Champion survived an early setback in the tournament to end up winning King Of DDT 2020! This is the second time in four years that Endo won King Of DDT. He had to beat his #DAMNHEARTS stablemate T-Hawk in the final. When the final began, Endo grabbed Hawk’d leg and attempted the Golitah Birdeater hold that Akito uses but Hawk dodged it. Hawk also used a rope break to stop the Modified Yurikamome Hold Endo used to beat Kazusada Higuchi earlier. Hawk’s strength came into play but whenever he tried the BT Bomb, Endo had it countered. Endo kicked out of the Night Ride and pulled out his new Wrist-Clutch Driver move (which DDT’s website is calling a Modified One-Winged Angel). After that Endo got the pin with the Shooting Star Press.
As the champion, Endo now gets to choose his challenger for “ULTIMATE PARTY 2020” this November. Hisaya Imabayashi entered the ring to get his answer. Endo said it is somebody he has mentioned over and over… Tomomi Morisaki. No, Imabayashi told him to pick someone else. So Takei? No. Kanna Hashimoto? No. Tomoya Nagase? No. Okay, okay, okay, Endo picks Kenny Omega! He is the only one he wants to fight. Imabayashi accepted the choice but warned Endo that the match is unlikely to happen because of the current global travel restrictions caused by the Coronavirus. Imabayashi will try to negotiate but if that plan falls through then Endo will have to pick another opponent. Endo admits it is an irresponsible choice and accepts that it might not happen but he wants to follow through on the promise he made last month to wrestle Omega at Ota Ward Gymnasium. With that settled, Endo also decided to split his tournament winnings evenly among the other DAMNATION members. Daisuke Sasaki is busy trying to claim 90% of it for himself.
The “ULTIMATE PARTY 2020” isn’t set in stone but the undercard has some confirmed matches. One of the big ones is Konosuke Takeshita and Jun Akiyama facing off in a singles match! Takeshita’s team defeated Junretsu in an 8-Man Tag bout. Akiyama had his hands full with both Takeshita and Shinya Aoki across the ring from him. Makoto Oishi tried to take the load off him but Takeshita escaped from the Fujiyama Knee Lock to pin Oishi with the German Suplex. Takeshita told Akiyama they are even in tag matches so he challenged him to the singles match. Akiyama said he will stand in front of Takeshita in his best condition.
HARASHIMA led his team to victory against #DAMNHEARTS in the King Of DDT 10-Man Tag. Afterwards, Imabayashi told HARASHIMA and Soma Takao not to leave the ring because he had news for both of them. The HarashiMarufuji Vs CimaSoma match that was supposed to happen back in June will now take place at “ULTIMATE PARTY 2020”! Takao said backstage he is happy to team with CIMA in his hometown.
A couple of weeks ago DDT had a match where all of the wrestlers wore pantyhose over their heads. Danshoku Dieno found out the joke makes Yukio Sakaguchi laugh so much it makes him weak. So that was the battle plan for Dieno and Seigo Tachibana today, wrestle Sakaguchi & Saki Akai while wearing pantyhose over their faces. It worked! Sakaguchi kept laughing at the silly faces seen beneath the pantyhose. Dieno’s was pulled off but he put it over Yukinori Matsui’s head, gave Sakaguchi the Lip Lock and pinned him with the Gaydo Clutch! Tachiabana was left impressed by Dieno’s wrestling knowledge. With a KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Titles match against Eruption coming up, how can they lose? Akai is annoyed at Sakaguchi for laughing at basic comedy. She’s from Kansai and grew up watching a lot of comedy so she learned how to no sell it.
T-Hawk had to go past Akito in the semi-final. The CyberFight Vice President kept to what worked for him so far. He targeted Hawk’s legs, weakening the Cerberus knee strike in the process. What saved Hawk was his ability to avoid the Goliath Birdeater. He used a Reverse Power Slam to put Akito on the ropes and won with the Night Ride. Akito said this year was the strongest feeling he had to win but T-Hawk is stronger than him. Still, he learned a lot and thinks it was his best showing in the King Of DDT.
Higuchi’s sumo charge momentum met its end against Endo in the other semi-final. He went for big hit after big hit but when he went for the Buchikamashi, Endo countered it into the Yurikamome Hold. Endo maneuvered himself on top of Higuchi in the hold for added pressure, causing Higuchi to pass out. Endo was ruled the winner by referee stoppage.
The audience was introduced to Mecha Pandita for the first time. The robot entered the ring and attacked Shunma Katsumata while he promoted the “STREET FIGHT CLUB” happening this Tuesday. Pandita landed a Dropkick, a Standing Shooting Star and then poured coffee beans into Katsumata’s mouth.
The 5 Way dark match turned into a dance rave when Yukio Naya took out penlights to dance differently against Kazuki Hirata’s glasses. Soon everyone in the match danced with penlights until Hirata pinned Antonio Honda with the Miracle One Shot Cradle. Naya finished his dance anyway.
It’s worth noting that Shota was the referee for some of the matches today. Daisuke Kiso is still absent from shows.
DDT “BLACK OUT PRESENTS KING OF DDT 2020 3RD ROUND”, 10/08/2020 Tokyo Kanda Myojin Hall ??? Fans
0. Under Match: Yukio Naya & Keigo Nakamura defeated Mizuki Watase & Hideki Okatani when Naya pinned Watase with a Power Bomb (6:27).
1. 4 Way Tag Match: Yukio Sakaguchi & Saki Akai defeated Danshoku Dieno & Seigo Tachibana, Makoto Oishi & Kazuki Hirata and Shunma Katsumata & Yuki Iino when Sakaguchi pinned Hirata with the PK (5:18).
2. Chris Brookes & Antonio Honda defeated El Lindaman & Nobuhiro Shimatani when Brookes pinned Shimatani with the Praying Mantis Bomb (10:11).
3. DISASTER BOX Vs DAMNATION ~ Lucha Libre Rules: HARASHIMA, Toru Owashi & Naomi Yoshimura defeated Daisuke Sasaki, Soma Takao & Mad Paulie when HARASHIMA pinned Paulie with the Somato (11:05).
4. King Of DDT 2020 – Quarter Final: T-Hawk defeated Yuki Ueno with the Nightride (13:23).
5. King Of DDT 2020 – Quarter Final: Akito defeated Shinya Aoki with the Goliath Birdwatching (8:24).
6. King Of DDT 2020 – Quarter Final: Tetsuya Endo defeated Minoru Tanaka with the Shooting Star Press (17:20).
7. King Of DDT 2020 – Quarter Final: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Konosuke Takeshita with the Buchikamashi (16:13).
The King Of DDT Quarter Finals are done and there are four wrestlers left. Kazusada Higuchi took a page out of his sumo rulebook to defeat Konosuke Takeshita. After an intense exchange of strikes, Higuchi ran into Takeshita and tackled him down with a Buchikamashi charge to pin him.
Minoru Tanaka’s late request for a KO-D Openweight Title shot was denied and his match with Tetsuya Endo was non-title as scheduled. Endo was able to rope break his way out of Tanaka’s submission holds. He got a nearfall with the Canadian Destroyer and had his arm raised after the Shooting Star Press. When Tanaka left the ring, Endo signaled for him to have a rematch some day. Tanaka admitted he learned the distance between himself and the KO-D Champion today. He was close but Endo is still strong. He accepts defeat today but won’t forget about the KO-D Title because Tanaka loves to win championships he never held before.
Up until today, Akito was using the Goliath Birdeater submission hold in its original form. Against Shinya Aoki, he modified the move into a clutch pin to hold Aoki down and prevent him from breaking free. It worked as intended and Akito got the pin. He calls this version of the move the Goliath Birdwatching. Akito had previously told Aoki that there are more ways to win pro wrestling matches than using joint holds. Today he proved it.
Last but certainly not least, T-Hawk completes the final four. The combination of Cerberus, BT Bomb and the Nightride ended Yuki Ueno’s tournament run. Not a good sign for the KO-D Tag Team Champions when one of them loses to a previous challenger.
The Semi Final draw took place after the main event. Endo and Higuchi drew each other which means Akito and T-Hawk takes the other match-up. T-Hawk promises to win King Of DDT as a representative of #STRONGHEARTS. Akito swore to avenge his loss to T-Hawk at Sumo Hall last February. He doesn’t care about Endo so he wants to face Higuchi in the final. What he said made Endo even more determined to chase after him, that and the Round 1 loss. Higuchi said he will go through who is left one by one, starting with Endo.
The DISASTER BOX Vs DAMNATION match was held under Lucha Libre rules when Mad Paulie of all people asked for it. Kazuki Hirata snuck into the match for a few spots during the chaos.
El Lindaman used cold spray to freeze Antonio Honda’s Gongitsune hand. He then summoned his own Gongitsune but Honda froze his hand with the cold spray. Honda poked Lindaman in the eye, a blinded Lindaman poked Nobuhiro Shimatani in the eye and Chris Brookes pinned Shimatani with the Praying Mantis Bomb.
Yukio Sakaguchi was tricked into doing the hop spot during the 4 Way Tag. Saki Akai was embarrassed over it.
DDT “BLACK OUT PRESENTS KING OF DDT 2020 2ND ROUND”, 09/08/2020 Tokyo Kanda Myojin Hall ??? Fans
1. Loser Revival Battle Royal “Dramatic Chance”: Tetsuya Endo defeated Chris Brookes by Ring Out (16:31). Order Of Elimination: Tomomitsu Matsunaga & Mizuki Watase, Yukio Sakaguchi, Yukio Naya, Mad Paulie, Naomi Yoshimura, Yuki Iino, Seigo Tachibana, Soma Takao, Antonio Honda, Nobuhiro Shimatani, Kazuki Hirata and Chris Brookes.
2. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 2: T-Hawk defeated Makoto Oishi with a Fujiyama Knee Lock Cut Back (11:00).
3. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 2: Yuki Ueno defeated Danshoku Dieno with the BME (10:18).
4. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 2: Akito defeated Toru Owashi with the Goliath Birdeater (5:33).
5. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 2: Shinya Aoki defeated Daisuke Sasaki with a Tekubikatame (7:46).
6. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 2: Minoru Tanaka defeated Shunma Katsumata with the Tanaka Legbar (11:52).
7. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 2: Konosuke Takeshita defeated El Lindaman with the German Suplex (13:54).
8. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 2: Kazusada Higuchi defeated HARASHIMA with the Doctor Bomb (13:47).
Could this be Kazusada Higuchi’s year? He defeated HARASHIMA pretty soundly in the main event and that’s a man who was always a big wall for him to climb over. The match came down to a striking battle between Higuchi’s Chops and HARASHIMA’s kicks. Higuchi switched to Headbutts with three in a row leaving his opponent defenceless. The Doctor Bomb got him the pin afterwards. Higuchi credits the Head To Head positioning for his wins over HARASHIMA and Mizuki Watase this weekend. It brings him back to his sumo roots and that is where his Headbutt power comes from.
Konosuke Takeshita versus El Lindaman was the battle of German Suplexes. Lindaman’s goal was to do that move to his larger opponent which led to Takeshita taunting him when he couldn’t do it. He was eventually able to hit the move but Takeshita kicked out of the pin. In return Takeshita went for the move, Lindaman rolled throught it but Takeshita rolled him back and swung him into the German Suplex to win the match. Takeshita identifies with Lindaman the most out of all the #STRONGHEARTS members. Maybe it’s because of the different style and physique but he can sense some kind of similarity between them.
Shunma Katsumata used up all his luck against Yukio Sakaguchi yesterday. He attempted to out-wrestle Minoru Tanaka which is probably not the smartest idea. Tanaka would tangle him into a Figure 4 Leglock and turn it into a Legbar for the submission victory. After the match Tanaka called out Tetsuya Endo, his opponent in the next round. Tanaka has won a lot of championships in different companies but not any here in DDT. So he is really looking forward to wrestling Endo tomorrow. In his backstage interview, Tanaka even demanded the KO-D Openweight Title be put on the line tomorrow! Endo likes the idea but it is up to DDT to grant his request.
MMA gloves. That is what Daisuke Sasaki thought he needed to go toe to toe with Shinya Aoki. He grappled with Aoki for a few minutes but when it became clear it wasn’t working, Sasaki brought in a chair to use as a weapon while Nobuhiro Shimatani distracted the referee. Sasaki went back to MMA mode with Mounted Punches to soften Aoki up for the Crossface Lock. The Sasaki Hurricanrana was countered into a Power Bomb and Aoki applied a Grounded Wristlock for the tapout. Aoki said afterwards that it was a strange match where he and Sasaki somehow both meshed together and did not mesh together.
The CyberFight Vice President looks unbeatable now! Akito attacked Toru Owashi and quickly targeted the legs. Confident, Akito told Owashi he is not scared of him now. He used to be scared of Owashi when he was in T2P but he doesn’t exist anymore. This fired up Owashi and he did the Running Nodowa Otoshi. But in the end Akito escaped from a Power Bomb and countered La Magistral Cradle into the Goliath Birdeater submission hold. Owashi eventually gave up. He also remembers seeing that move before. That was originally Taku Iwasa’s submission hold! Akito really knows his Toryumon history. He admits to being an Iwasa fan which is why he does the Goliath Birdeater with no modifications.
A warning was sent out that Danshoku Dieno is once again in a frustrated modd due to social distancing limiting his antics. Yuki Ueno in particular was told to watch out. Dieno used the Danshoku Nightmare 4K, the Lip Lock, the Gaydo Clutch and the Danshoku Driver but Ueno kept fighting back. Ueno stood up to Dieno by pulling off his own wrestling tights and getting into a Lip Lock duel. Ueno overpowered Dieno with the move until Dieno was weak enough to take the Blizzard Suplex. Ueno then finished him off with the BME. Dieno says it’s a little scary how the feelings he gets wrestling Ueno are like the ones he got from wrestling Kota Ibushi. He never thought he would feel something that special again. Ueno sees the funny side. If somebody asks him how his match went today he can tell them he took his tights off.
Makoto Oishi was left rattled over today’s result. Yesterday he beat the DDT UNIVERSAL Champion with the Fujiyama Knee Lock but today the move was scouted. T-Hawk used Oishi’s momentum against him and rolled the move over into a pin for the three count. T-Hawk is studying every opponent he is coming up against so he is gaining more experience with every win.
Endo got inserted back into the tournament straight into the Quarter Finals by winning the Loser Revival Battle Royal. Every wrestler who was eliminated in Round 1 was entered into the match. Endo won by last eliminated Chris Brookes with a Candian Destroyer on the ring apron. Endo kept himself on the ring apron while Brookes fell to the floor below. Endo said he is now carrying the souls of all the eliminated wrestlers for reviving his tournament run.
The King Of DDT Quarter Finals tomorrow will be Yuki Ueno Vs T-Hawk, Shinya Aoki Vs Akito, Tetsuya Endo Vs Minoru Tanaka and Kazusada Higuchi Vs Konosuke Takeshita.
DDT “BLACK OUT PRESENTS KING OF DDT 2020 1ST ROUND”, 08/08/2020 Tokyo Kanda Myojin Hall ??? Fans
1. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: El Lindaman defeated Yukio Naya with a Cradle (10:17).
2. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Toru Owashi defeated Seigo Tachibana with the Nodowa Otoshi (4:31).
3. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Danshoku Dieno defeated Antonio Honda with two Moonsaults (2:57).
4. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Kazusada Higuchi defeated Mizuki Watase with a Short Range Lariat (3:37).
5. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Yuki Ueno defeated Nobuhiro Shimatani with the BME (10:11).
6. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Daisuke Sasaki defeated Tomomitsu Matsunaga with the Crossface Lock (6:51).
7. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Shunma Katsumata defeated Yukio Sakaguchi with a Cradle (3:46).
8. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: HARASHIMA defeated Mad Paulie with the Somato (11:19).
9. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Shinya Aoki defeated Yuki Iino with an Armpit Lock (0:36).
10. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Makoto Oishi defeated Chris Brookes with the Fujiyama Knee Lock (8:41).
11. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: T-Hawk defeated Kazuki Hirata with the Nightride (7:45).
12. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Minoru Tanaka defeated Soma Takao with the Minoru Special (8:30).
13. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Konosuke Takeshita defeated Naomi Yoshimura with the German Suplex (8:07).
14. King Of DDT 2020 – Round 1: Akito defeated Tetsuya Endo with the Goliath Birdeater (17:21).
The KO-D Openweight Champion is out in the 1st Round! Akito scored what is no doubt the biggest upset of the 2020 King Of DDT by beating Tetsuya Endo. Akito targeted Endo’s arm but switched to the legs in reaction to his opponent going for his own. The arm work paid off when Akito grabbed Endo’s wrist to free himself from the Swivel Torture Rack Bomb. He shifted over to an Anklelock and when Endo tried to escape, Akito turned it into the Goliath Birdeater. With no chance of escaping the hold, Endo gave up. Akito said he can’t be as acrobatic as Endo but with his own pro wrestling style, the new CyberFight Vice President can make it to the top of DDT for a long time!
Naomi Yoshimura surprised everyone by showing off his freshly shaved head. It was the latest dramatic turn in his lifelong rivalry with Konosuke Takeshita. Sadly for him the rivalry continues to be one sided. Takeshita beat him again, this time with the German Suplex.
The visiting Minoru Tanaka is entering the tournament in his best condition. He took everything Soma Takao threw at him from the Running Elbow Butt to the Official Endless Waltz. Takao couldn’t do the same, he tapped to the Minoru Special.
Kazuki Hirata wanted T-Hawk to shake his hand before their match because Hirata claims to be Hawk’s former senpai. Apparently there was a brief window of a few months where both of them trained in Kobe at the same time. It’s safe to say T-Hawk has surpassed Hirata.
There were a few Round 1 upsets today. The DDT UNIVERSAL Champion lost his match too! Chris Brookes gave up to Makoto Oishi when the Praying Mantis Bomb was countered into a Complete Shot. Oishi then applied the Fujiyama Knee Lock for the submission victory.
36 seconds is the time to beat for the quickest match of the tournament. Yuki Iino quickly Speared Shinya Aoki and hit an Elbow Drop. Aoki scrambled out of the pin and caught Iino in an Armpit Lock for the quick submission.
HARASHIMA thinks he was a little off today despite beating Mad Paulie. He managed to keep his pace but still felt he rushed his attacks against Paulie.
Another upset was Shunma Katsumata over Yukio Sakaguchi. Katsumata went for roll ups and cradles throughout the match. He got his three count eventually, rolling up Sakaguchi from the Sleeper Hold position.
DAMNATION is already having a bad tournament. Only Daisuke Sasaki won his 1st Round match with a victory over Tomomitsu Matsunaga. If you count DAMNHEARTS things are looking better though.
An even pace from both Yuki Ueno and Nobuhiro Shimatani kept them on their toes. Ueno kicked out of the Fisherman Buster and used a Dropkick to turn the match in his favour. A Blizzard Suplex and the Best Moonsault Ever got Ueno the win.
A Headbutt and a Lariat gave Kazusada Higuchi the win over Mizuki Watase. That’s all you need to know. That’s not meant to disparage Watase, it was that big of a Headbutt and a Lariat from Higuchi.
Antonio Honda already tripped into the ring before the match began to set up his Gongitsune spot. He and Danshoku Dieno wasted no time in finding a winner. They immediately went for the big moves and Dieno won with two Moonsaults.
The bad attitude of Seigo Tachibana didn’t intimidate Toru Owashi at all. He fought him face to face, eye to eye and crouch to crouch. Tachibana was tough enough to kick out after most of Owashi’s big attacks but he was down for good when he was given the Choke Slam.
The complaints of Yukio Naya not fighting like a big man was proven when the big boy was lifted off his feet by El Lindaman. Some cheating from Lindaman went a long way too. He blinded Naya with cold spray, used tape to wrap his limbs together and rolled him into a pin for the three count.
The 2nd Round matches are T-Hawk Vs Makoto Oishi, Yuki Ueno Vs Danshoku Dieno, Toru Owashi Vs Akito, Daisuke Sasaki Vs Shinya Aoki, Shunma Katsumata Vs Minoru Tanaka, El Lindaman Vs Konosuke Takeshita, HARASHIMA Vs Kazusada Higuchi. There is also the Loser Revival Battle Royal featuring all of the losers from Round 1 in an all or nothing chance to get into the Quarter Final.
Posted by JamieOD 
Dramatic DDT 