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Sumo-March 2023 Grand Sumo Tournament Day 1 Results (Opening Day) (3/12/23) (Top 2 Tiers)

Here are the quick results from today’s Day 1-Opening Day-of the March 2023 Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka:
Key: M-Maegashira, K-Komusubi, S-Sekiwake, O-Ozeki, Y-Yokozuna, J-Juryo, Ms-Makushita

Makuuchi (Top Tier):
Asanoyama (J1) beat Mitoryu (M17)
Tsurugisho (M16) beat Chiyoshoma (M16)
Hkuseiho (M15) beat Oho (M15)
Kinbozan (M14) beat Bushozan (M14)
Daishoho (M13) beat Kotoeko (M13)
Takarafuji (M12) beat Kagayaki (M12)
Takanosho (M11) beat Azumaryu (M11)
Nishikifuji (M10) beat Myogiryu (M10)
Aoiyama (M9) beat Hiradoumi (M9)
Ura (M8) beat Ichiyamamoto (M8)
Takayasu (M7) beat Hokutofuji (M7)
Endo (M6) beat Sadanoumi (M6)
Midorifuji (M5) beat Kotoshoho (M5)
Onosho (M4) beat Meisei (M4)
Kotonowaka (K) beat Mitakeumi (M3)
Wakamotoharu (K) beat Ryuden (M2)
Kiribayama (S) beat Abi (M2)
Shodai (M1) beat Hoshoryu (S)
Tamawashi (M1) beat Wakatakakage (S)
Tobizaru (K) beat Takakeisho (O)
WITHDRAWAL: Terunofuji (Y). Continued recovery from double knee surgery in September. Expected back in May barring any more unforeseen setbacks in recovery. He could have competed this time but it was determined he was not at a level to compete for the championship so he was held out.
Of note: This is the 3rd straight tournament in which Tobizaru beat Takakeisho. But don’t panic yet-Takakeisho still went runner-up, runner-up and playoff loss, Champion each time so the Yokozuna hopes remain alive, and it’s only Day 1. Still 14 days to go. But a tough opening doubleheader sees ironman Tamawashi up next.

Juryo:
Ochiai (J14) beat Tsukahara (Ms1)
Tomokaze (J13) beat Tokushoryu (J14)
Tamashoho (J13) beat Takakento (J12)
Shimanoumi (J11) beat Tochimusashi (J12)
Churanoumi (J10) beat Kitanowaka (J11)
Hakuyozan (J9) beat Kotokuzan (J10)
Atamifuji (J8) beat Tsushimanada (J9)
Shimazuumi (J7) beat Hidenoumi (J8)
Akua (J7) beat Daiamami (J6)
Gonoyama (J6) beat Enho (J5)
Oshoma (J4) beat Roga (J5)
Shonannoumi (J3) beat Chiyomaru (J4)
Ichinojo (J3) beat Tochinoshin (J2)
Tohakuryu (J1) beat Chiyonokuni (J2)
Of note: As seen at the top, Asanoyama made an appearance in the top tier today due to the Terunofuji withdrawal and picked up a fairly easy win, putting the former Ozeki 7 more wins away from promotion back to Makuuchi. July top tier champion Ichinojo came out with the opening win against former Ozeki Tochinoshin in his first match after missing the January tournament due to suspension. Asanoyama will be back in Juryo tomorrow and will face Chiyonokuni, and get ready for perhaps March’s only epic salt throw-Terutsuyoshi is the Makushita man coming up to Juryo tomorrow from Ms1 to face Tokushoryu. Terutsuyoshi lost his Makushita opener today to Fujiseiun, who is at Ms2.

Dragon Gate 3/11/23 Results (2 Events)

Dragon Gate held two different events today, first was finishing up their doubleheader in Singapore while second was continuing the Glorious Gate 2023 Tour back in Japan with those not in Singapore.

Singapore:
Today’s event was held at Singapore Eurasian Community House in Singapore> There was no live broadcast.

The announced paid attendance was 230.

Match 1: Grapple Max Openweight Champion Big Dave beat Ahmad Arif to retain the title.

Match 2: Big T vs. Showtime (not sure if accurate for both) went to a No Contest.

Match 3: Ho Ho Lun & Crypto Boy LK beat Erfie & Arden Rex. Lun pinned Erfie after Horlor.

Match 4: In a Handicap Match, The Eurasian Dragon beat Caramel Plata & Jackie Ung (?).

Match 5: Andreuw Tan beat DJ KAL.

Main Event: YAMATO, Dragon Kid & BIGBOSS Shimizu beat SusumuMochizuki, BxB Hulk & Madoka Kikuta. Kid pinned Moxhizuki after Bible.

Japan:
Today’s event was held at Atelier Himeji in Hyogo. There was no live broadcast.

The announced paid attendance was 312.

Match 1: BxB Hulk & Ben-K beat Genki Horiguchi & Daiki Yanaguchi. Ben-K pinned Yanaguchi.

Match 2: Shachihoko BOY beat Ichikawa.

Match 3: Kaito Nagano & Yoshiki Kato beat Kota MInoura & Minorita. Kato pinned Minorita after Bloodfall.

Match 4: Shun SKykwalker, KAI & H-Y-O beat Shuji Kondo, Takashi Yoshida & Ryu Fuda. H-Y-O pinned Fuda after a diving senton.

Match 5: Eita & Dragon Dia beat Naruki Doi & Kagetora. Dia pinned Kagetora after Repterian Lana.

Main Event: Masaaki Mochizuki, Yasushi Kanda & Mochizuki Jr. beat Kzy, Strong Machine J & JACKY “FUNKY” KAMEI. Mochizuki pinned Kzy.

The next event is tomorrow at Kozokan Sports Park Bingo in Hiroshima. There will be no live broadcast.

3/12/23-3/18/23 Events Schedule (Updated 3/14)

Here is the current events schedule for 3/12/23-3/18/23, which is subject to change (all times PT):
3/12:
Midnight-New Japan Pro Wrestling New Japan Cup 2023 Tournament, Shiga Prefectural Cultural Industry Community House Event Hall, Shiga, Japan. Live on New Japan World
Midnight-Dragon Gate Pro Wrestling Glorious Gate 2023 Tour, Kozakan Sports Park Bingo, Hiroshima, Japan. No live broadcast

3/13:
2:30 AM-Dragon Gate Pro Wrestling Glorious Gate 2023 Tour, Tottori Industrial Gym, Tottori, Japan. No live broadcast
3 AM-New Japan Pro Wrestling New Japan Cup 2023 Tournament, Item Ehime, Ehime, Japan. Live on New Japan World

3/14:
2 AM-Pro Wrestling NOAH SUNNY VOYAGE 2023 Tour, Yokohama Radiant Hall, Yokohama, Japan. Live on WRESTLE UNIVERSE
2:30 AM-All-Japan Pro Wrestling, Shinjuku Face, Tokyo, Japan. Live on AJPW.TV

3/15:
2:30 AM-New Japan Pro Wrestling New Japan Cup 2023 Tournament, ZIP Arena Okayama, Okayama, Japan. Live on New Japan World
2:30 AM-GLEAT “G PRO WRESTLING Ver. 46”, Shinjuku Face. Live on YouTube
5 PM-All Elite Wrestling “AEW Dynamite”, WInnipeg, Canada. Live on TBS in US and FITE elsewhere

3/16:
5 PM-Impact Wrestling “IMPACT Wrestling”. TAPED on AXS TV

3/17:
2:30 AM-New Japan Pro Wrestling New Japan Cup 2023 Tournament, Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan. Live on New Japan World
TBA-All Elite Wrestling “AEW Rampage”. TAPED on TNT in US and FITE elsewhere
11 PM-Dragon Date Pro Wrestling “MEMORIAL GATE 2023”, Wakayama Prefectural Gym, Wakayama, Japan. Live on DRAGONGATE NETWORK
11 PM-Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling “GRAND PRINCESS ’23”, Ariake Arena, Tokyo, Japan. Live on WRESTLE UNIVERSE

3/18:
2:30 AM-New Japan Pro Wrestling New Japan Cup 2023 Tournament, Act City Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan. Live on New Japan World
2:30 AM-All-Japan Pro Wrestling, Korakuen Hall. Live on AJPW.TV
4 PM-All Elite Wrestling “AEW House Rules Tour”, Troy, OH. No live broadcast
9 PM-DDT Pro Wrestling “Dramatic Dream Onita-DDO Launch Battle”, Tsurumi Fruit & Vegetable Market, Saitama, Japan. No live broadcast

3/13 UPDATE: The airtime for Friday’s AEW Rampage is now TBA because the regular airing will be delayed in the US due to NCAA Basketball on TNT. It is now scheduled to air at 11:30 PM ET or after basketball ends, whichever is later. The 10 PM PT west US airing should be at regular time unless the last game of the night is a marathon. There are also reports the 3/24 episode will be moved to 3/25 at 10 PM ET due to soccer on TNT.

3/14 UPDATE: GLEAT has announced the 3/15 event will be broadcast LIVE FOR FREE on YouTube.

Dragon Gate 3/10/23 Results

Dragon Gate made their debut in Singapore yesterday with the first half of a doubleheader featuring some of the roster facing some of the top talent Singapore has to offer.

Yesterday’s event was held at Singapore Eurasian Community House in Singapore. There was no live broadcast.

The announced paid attendance was 220, a super full house/very near sellout.

Match 1: Aiden Rex, Big Dave & The Eurasian Dragon beat Yuki Yoshioka, Madoka Kikuta & Ho Ho Lun. Dave pinned Lun after Gold Driver.

Match 2: Erfie & Ahmad Arif beat Julian & Showtime. Arif pinned Julian. Completely guessing on names based on translation.

Match 3: Crypto Bro LK beat Brother By (?).

Match 4: Susumu Mochizuki beat DJ KAL.

Match 5: Andruew Tang beat BIGBOSS Shimizu.

Main Event: YAMATO & Dragon Kid beat Dr. Gore & Da Butcherman. YAMATO pinned Gore after Gallaria.

The second event was earlier today. Results will be posted when available. There was no live broadcast. The next event for the current tour was also earlier today at Atelier Himeji in Hyogo. Results will be posted when available. There was no live broadcast.

The next upcoming event is tomorrow at Kozakan Sports Park Bingo in Hiroshima. There will be no live broadcast.

AEW Rampage 3/10/23 Results & “Live” Recap

I held off on posting last night’s AEW Rampage results because I wanted to watch and compare the TV presentation to the live experience I had as I was at Wednesday’s event & taping in Sacramento, CA. So here’s what happened…

TV:
Sammy Guevara beat Action Andretti.

The Acclaimed beat 2 jobbers. Squash.

Mark Briscoe announced a Reach For The Sky Ladder Match on 3/31 for the Ring Of Honor Tag Team Championship at their next PPV. Mark holds half the title, his late brother Jay Briscoe held the other half. The first team in the match was announced and it’s Lucha Bros.

Konosuke Takeshita beat Preston Vance.

Riho beat Nyla Rose.

Live experience:
Rampage taping began about 20 minutes after Dynamite went off the air (had to change the ring skirts, graphics, etc.). We also got entrances for Jim Ross and Chris Jericho (again) for commentary. Second Judas Sing Along of the night! The Acclaimed squash was taped first. Quick squash against two guys working their second matches of the night (you’ll also see them on this Monday’s Dark Elevation on YouTube, which was taped before Dynamite began). Afterwards, they hung around and posed for fans with signs at ringside. They are ridiculously stupid over.

The Mark Briscoe segment happened. I was excited to see him in person as I’ve been a longtime big fan of The Briscoes. Big pop of course for yet another Lucha Bros appearance (they were also on Dark Elevation). I was almost right in front of the stage and pyro all night. When those flames shoot out, when you’re that close YOU FEEL THE HEAT!

Riho-Rose was next. Great match that made for a solid TV main event and they got a lot of well-deserved time. Everyone loves Riho, she’s the perennial underdog because of her size (not even 100 pounds) but her personality and fighting spirit makes her very easy to root for (and she has 17 years experience despite only being 25…yes, that means she debuted in Japan at age 8. EIGHT!). This was a rematch between the first 2 AEW Women’s Champions-Riho beat Rose to become the first champion and Rose later returned the favor. No Vickie Guerrero amidst rumors she might be done with AEW (contract is about up), Marina Shafir seconded Rose. After the Paige/Saraya/Storm beatdown (TV ended here) they left and flipped off the fans in the process. My section in particular, haha.

An advertised Jungle Boy promo and all other promos/video packages and the Mark Henry main event intro were not shown to the live crowd so I first saw them on TV. That was perhaps the biggest difference between TV and being at the taping.

Takeshita-Vance was taped next. Another solid affair. Takeshita may not be as over as he should be due to fans maybe not being aware of his years in DDT in Japan, but he is gaining more fans with his performances and professed love of Cinnabon. Jose interference didn’t keep Takeshita from winning and Vance got good heel heat too.

The opening theme and pyro went off after Guevara & Andretti made their entrances to start the TV broadcast (entrances were streamed on YouTube). This was our live crowd main event. Another good match that ended sour for the live crowd when Daniel Garcia interfered and hid to help Guevara win. After the TV portion cut away, Chris Jericho left commentary to join Guevara & Garcia in the ring for the live crowd show-ending promo. It did not send the crowd home happy of course, but we still sent LE DEMO GOD CHAMPION off with one final Judas Sing Along. That ended the event. From start to finish the whole thing went about 4 1/2 hours (we did start 15 minutes earlier than advertised).

While TV editing and commercials obviously took away from the live experience, it was a quite good Rampage overall with what I felt were 3 solid single matches. Outside of The Acclaimed squash it’s all worth watching. Of course haters and the WWE chapter of the IWC are gonna hate, but it’s much better being able to see it live and in person because you’ll get stuff TV won’t, and it’s different presentation depending on where you’re seated. If you ever have a chance to get to a Dynamite/Rampage combo or a live Rampage, do so. Then go back and watch on TV and compare the experiences.

New Japan 3/11/23 Results

New Japan began Round 2 of the New Japan Cup today with the first 2 matches, which would set up the first of the Quarterfinals beginning next week.

Today’s event was held at Aichi Prefectural Gym in Nagoya and can be watched on demand on New Japan World. This was a Samurai! TV broadcast in Japan.

The announced paid attendance was 2190.

Match 1: Aaron Henare, Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb beat Oskar Leube, Toru Yano & Tama Tonga. Henare pinned Leube after Rampage.

Match 2: El Phantasmo & David Finlay ebat Kosei Fujita & Zack Sabre Jr. Finlay pinned Fujita after Blue Thunder Bomb.

Match 3: Dick Togo, Sho, Yujiro Takahashi & EVIL beat TAKA Michinoku, DOUKI, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Taichi. Sho pinned TAKA after a cross arm piledriver.

Match 4: Lio Rush, Yoh & Tomohiro Ishii beat BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi & Shingo Takagi. Rush pinned BUSHI after Final Hour.

Match 5: Aussie Open & Will Ospreay beat Tomoaki Honma, YOSHI-HASHI & Hirooki Goto. Mark Davis pinned Honma after Corealis.

Match 6: Hiroshi Tanahashi & Kazuchika Okada beat Ren Narita & Shota Umino. Okada pinned Narita after Rainmaker.

Match 7: New Japan Cup Round 2: Tetsuya Naito beat Chase Owens.

Main Event: New Japan Cup Round 2: SANADA beat KENTA. As a result, the first quarterfinal will be Naito vs. SANADA. All LIJ, guaranteeing they’ll be in the Semifinals. The question of course is who…we’ll find out on Friday.

The next event is tomorrow at Shiga Prefecture Cultural Industry Community House Event Hall in Shiga. Tomorrow’s Quarterfinals are Tonga vs. Henare and Goto vs. Kyle Fletcher, which could set up the first of potentially two all-United Empire Quarterfinals. Live streaming on New Japan World will begin at midnight PT/3 AM ET, however the start time in the ET and CT time zones is subject to change because of the time change tomorrow at 2 AM local time (set clocks forward 1 hour).

Ring Of Honor 3/9/23 Results

Here are the quick results from the 3/9/23 episode of Ring Of Honor TV from Orlando, FL:

ROH TV Champion Samoa Joe beat Tony Deppen to retain the title.

Dalton Castle & The Boys beat Marcus Cross, Cody Chhun & Guillermo Rosas.

Rush & Dralistico beat Angelico & Serpentico.

Trish Adora beat Billie Starkz.

Ari Daivari & Slim J beat Jake Crist & Man Stout.

ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta beat Timothy Thatcher by submission to retain the title. Cheating by getting away with an unseen closed fist punch first (in Pure Rules matches one such punch is a warning. A second after that is a DQ).

Aussie Open beat Tracy Williams & Rhett Titus.

Eddie Kinggston beat Ben Dejo. Squash.

ROH Women’s Champion Athena beat Willow Nightingale to retain the title.

The episode can be watched on demand on HonorClub, which costs $9.99/month.

New Japan 3/10/23 Results

New Japan ran Day 3 of the New Japan Cup today, finishing up Round 1 and filling out the 16 participants in Round 2.

Today’s event was held at Ainesse Yamanashi in Yamanashi and can be watched on demand on New Japan World.

The announced paid attendance was 710.

Match 1: Sho & Yujiro Takahashi beat Kosei Fujita & Zack Sabre Jr. Sho pinned Fujita after a cross arm piledriver.

Match 2: Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Taichi beat Dick Togo & EVIL. Kanemaru pinned Togo with a rollup.

Match 3: El Phantasmo, Chase Owens, KENTA & David Finlay beat Ryusuke Taguchi, Ren Narita, El Desperado & Minoru Suzuki. Finlay pinned Taguchi after Trash Panda.

Match 4: Great-O-Khan, Jeff Cobb, Mark Davis & Will Ospreay beat Tomoaki Honma, Toru Yano, Tomohiro Ishii & Hirooki Goto. Cobb pinned Honma after Tour of the Islands.

Match 5: Lio Rush, Yoh, Shota Umino & Tama Tonga beat BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, SANADA & Tetsuya Naito. Umino beat BUSHI with STF.

Match 6: New Japan Cup Round 1: Kyle Fletcher beat YOSHI-HASHI. As a result, Fletcher advances to Round 2 and will face Hirooki Goto.

Main Event: New Japan Cup Round 1: Aaron Henare beat Shingo Takagi. As a result, Henare advances to Round 2 and will face Tama Tonga. UPSET ALERT!!! Could Henare be this year’s David Finlay?

Round 2 of the Cup is now set. Interesting statistic: 12 of the 16 cumulatively represent one of Bullet Club, LIJ or United Empire. And half of that is just United Empire as all 6 members are in Round 2. But all can’t advance further as Mark Davis faces Will Ospreay next. The winner then could get Cobb in the Quarterfinals.

Round 2 begins tomorrow at Aichi Prefectural Gym in Nagoya with Tetsuya Naito vs. Chase Owens and SANADA vs. KENTA. The winners meet in the Quarterfinals so it could be all Bullet Club of all LIJ. Or Bullet Club vs. LIJ again! Live streaming on New Japan World will begin at 3 AM ET/midnight PT.

In other news, the next round of TAMASHII events has been announced for 4/14-4/16 in Australia. 4/14 will be the debut event in Adelaide, 4/15 will be the Sydney return, 4/16 will be the Melbourne return. Additionally, a 5/21 US event, RESURGENCE, has been announced for Long Beach, CA. That will be a STRONG LIVE event and should be a PPV on FITE.

US Fans: Reminder Regarding Weekend Time Change

For US fans except in Arizona, this is a reminder that the spring time change happens this weekend, so we have to set clocks forward 1 hour Sunday (3/12) at 2 AM local time. This will affect start times for Japan events on Sunday so if you’re watching live events starting prior to 2 AM local time, including Day 1 of the March Grand Sumo Tournament (in East & Central time zones that should be during the top tier matches) don’t forget to set clocks forward during the events. Events with a 2 AM local time start will instead begin at 3 AM. This means Japan time will now be 13-16 hours ahead of the continental US until mid-November.

DDT News: Wrestler Absence This Weekend

DDT has announced pending changes for this weekend’s events because Toui Kojima is now off the scheduled events. Fever. He will miss a The37KAMIINA talk show event tomorrow and the Saitama outdoor event Sunday. He was scheduled to be part of a Yuki Iino Produced Pheromone Rumble match. No specific replacement named. Yuki Ueno also will miss the event, which is a scheduled absence due to other performing arts activities.