Tag: all-japan

All-Japan kicks off the annual World’s Strongest Tag League today, their yearly tag team tournament which this year is supported by a Jr. Heavyweight mini-tournament. Expect fast-paced action in the latter as matches will only have a 10 minute time limit while the tag league will follow traditional Japan tournament rules. Before the event there will be a pre-show dark match and traditional ceremonies to introduce all the participants for each tournament.

Today’s event will be held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched LIVE on AJPW.TV. There will likely be Japanese commentary. The pre-show match is scheduled to begin 20 minutes before the event. Taking this into account and the time limits for the matches, I anticipate the event having a total runtime of about 2 1/4 hours.

Today’s lineup:
Pre-show: Jr. Battle Of Glory Entrance Ceremony
Pre-show: Takao Omori, Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI vs. Izanagi, Black Menso-re & Oji Shiba
World’s Stringest Tag League Entrance Ceremony
Jr. Battle Of Glory:
Dan Tamura vs. Ryo Inoue
Hokuto Omori vs. Rising Hayato
Atsuki Aoyagi vs. Hikaru Sato
World’s Strongest Tag League:
Jun & Rei Saito vs. Koji Doi & Arashi
Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda vs. Yuji Nagata (New Japan Pro Wrestling) & Yuma Anzai
Jake Lee & Yuma Aoyagi vs. Shuji Ishikawa & Cyrus
Suwama & KONO vs. Kento Miyahara & Takuya Nomura

Refresh this page occasionally for the latest results.

Updates below will begin at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT, assuming the pre-show content is streamed. If not, then updates will begin at 9:30 PM ET/6:30 PM PT.

9 PM ET UPDATE: Live stream has launched. Waiting for broadcast to begin.

9:10 PM ET UPDATE: Live updates begin now.
We are LIVE from Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. There is Japanese commentary but I missed host intros.
The Jr. Battle Of Glory participants are being introduced.
Pre-show Match: Takao Omori, Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI vs. Izanagi, Black Menso-re & Oji Shiba. 10 minute time limit
Result: Izanagi, Black Menso-re & Oji Shiba beat Yakao Omori, Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI. Iazangi pinned Yoshitatsu.

Updates will resume when the first match begins.

The paid attendance will be announced after the event. Hard camera seating on camera looks full, as do the middle bleachers opposite hard camera. Since this is a no-cheering event, I’m going to estimate the crowd is in the range of 750-850.

World’s Strongest Tag League Introduction Ceremony is first. Gets a little heated between Kento Miyahara & Suwama.

Match 1: Jr. Battle Of Glory: Dan Tamura vs. Ryo Inoue. 10 minute time limit
Result: Dan Tamura beat Ryo Inoue by submission

Match 2; Jr. Battle Of Glory: Rising Hayato vs. Hokuto Omori. 10 minute time limit
Result; Rising Hayato beat Hokuto Omori

Match 3: Jr. Battle Of Glory: Hikaru Sato vs. Atsuki Aoyagi. 10 minute time limit
Result: Hikaru Sato beat Atsuko Aoyagi by submission. Moments before time limit

Short break for announcements related to upcoming events. In particular a 12/25 event which will feature a mixed 6-person tag match with Maya Yukihi, Mayumi Ozaki, Chihiro Hashimoto & Yuu. Ozaki is one of the oldest active women wrestlers in Japan…and last I heard, at prob well into her 50s she’s still pretty darn hot.

Match 4: World’s Strongest Tag League: Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi vs. Jun & Rei Saito. 30 minute time limit
Result: Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi beat Jun & Rei Saito by DQ. Jun Saito DQ’d.

Match 5: World’s Strongest Tag League: Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda vs. Yuji Nagata (New Japan Pro Wrestling) & Yuma Anzai. 30 minute time limit
Result: Yuji Nagata & Yuma Anzai beat Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda. Nagata beat Ashino with Nagata Lock 54.

Match 6: World’s Strongest Tag League: Jake Lee & Yuma Aoyagi vs. Shuji Ishikawa & Cyrus. 30 minute time limit
Result: Shuji Ishikawa & Cyrus beat Jake Lee & Yuma Aoyagi. Ishikawa pinned Aoyagi after a chokeslam.

Main Event: Suwama & KONO vs. Kento Miyahara & Takuya Nomura. 30 minute time limit
Result: Suwama & KONO beat Kento Miyahara & Takuya Nomura. Suwama pinned Miyahara after a backdrop.

During the event it was announced that the Triple Crown would likely next be defended on 1/3/23. We may have a rematch coming from this.

The next event is Wednesday at Shin-Kiba 1st Ring. Live streaming on AJPW.TV will begin at 1:30 AM PT/4:30 AM ET.

UPDATE: The announced paid attendance was 794.

All-Japan wraps up the Flag Raising Series 2022 Tour today with an early Halloween-themed event where fans will be able to dress up, and the promotion has announced that fans who dress up like their favorite wrestlers or in wrestler support merchandise will receive gifts after the event on the way out of the venue. 2 title matches headline the event-first up, GAORA TV Champion Toshizo defends the title against Masao Hanabata (the former Seigo Tachibana, who changed his ring name after the last event), then in the main event All-Asia Tag Team Champions Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura defend against Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI.

Today’s event will be held at Shin-Kiba 1st Ring in Tokyo and can be watched LIVE on AJPW.TV. It is not known if there will be any commentary. The event is a legit advance sellout. For those potentially staying up late to watch in the east US, I anticipate the event will have a runtime of around 2 1/2 hours.

Today’s lineup:
Hokuto Omori vs. Yusuke Kodama
Yuma Anzai vs. Naoya Nomura
Kento Miyahara & Rising Hayato vs. Yuma & Atsuki Aoyagi
Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda vs. Takao Omori & Masao Inoue
Suwama, Jun & Rei Saito vs. Jake Lee, Shuji Ishikawa & Ryo Inoue
Izanagi vs. Black Menso-re
GAORA TV Champion Toshizo vs. Masao Hanabata for the title
All-Asia Tag Team Champions Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura vs. Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI for the titles

Refresh this page occasionally for the latest results.

Updates below will begin at 11 PM ET/8 PM PT.

11 PM ET UPDATE: Updates will begin shortly. Waiting for the live stream to begin.

We are LIVE from Shin-Kiba 1st Ring in Tokyo, Japan. As usual, audio is muted when we begin for the opening announcements.

The paid attendance will be announced after the event but it is a legit advance sellout. Depending on the venue’s layout, that likely means in the 450-500 range if full capacity, possibly as high as 600. But vocal cheering is allowed today so that’ll limit the attendance to closer to 300 (50% capacity).

Audio is turned on 5 minutes in. Then off again for first match entrances and back on to start the first match (sounds like they’ll have to do this for every wrestler with non-original aka licensed music, even ones they normally don’t do it for, because this isn’t on TV in Japan). There will be no commentary. The non-hard cameras at ringside are not good quality.

Match 1: Izanagi vs. Black Menso-re. 10 minute time limit
Result: Time Limit Draw. Comedy match

Match 2: Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda vs. Takao Omori & Masao Inoue. 15 minute time limit
Result: Shotaro Ahsino & Ryuki Kinda beat Takao Omori & Masao Inoue. Ashino beat Inoue.

Match 3: Hokuto Omori vs. Yusuke Kodama. 15 minute time limit
Result: Hokuto Omori beat Yusuke Kodama

Match 4: GAORA TV Champion Toshizo vs. Masao Hanabata for the title. 1 Hour time limit
Result: GAORA TV Champion Toshizo beat Masao Hanabata to retain the title. V3 for Toshizo.

Intermission. Updates will resume in a few minutes (as of midnight ET/9 PM PT).

We resume at 12:13 AM ET/9:13 PM PT.

Match 5: All-Asia Tag Team Champions Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura vs. Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI for the titles. 1 Hour time limit
Result: Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI beat All-Asia Tag Team Champions Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura to win the titles. Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI become the 115th All-Asia Tag Team Champions. Yoshitatsu beat Tamura. Next up: Potentially Black Menso-re & Izanagi, who were quick to hit the ring post-match for a comedy challenge.

Match 6: Yuma Anzai vs. Naoya Nomura. 30 minute time limit
Result: Naoya Nomura beat Yuma Anzai

Match 7: Suwama, Jun & Rei Saito vs. Jake Lee, Shuji Ishikawa & Ryo Inoue. 30 minute time limit
Result: Suwama, Jun & Rei Saito beat Jake Lee, Shuji Ishikawa & Ryo Inoue. Suwama pinned Inoue after a backdrop suplex. Afterwards, Suwama with microphone. It appears he challenged Ishikawa to a match at the next event.

Main Event: Kento Miyahara & Rising Hayato vs. Yuma & Atsuki Aoyagi. 30 minute time limit
Result: Kento Miyahara & Rising Hayato beat Yuma & Atsuhi Aoyagi. Miyahara pinned Yuma Aoyagi with a German suplex hold.

The next event is the World’s Strongest Tag League 2022 beginning on 11/13 at Korakuen Hall. Live streaming on AJPW.TV will begin on 11/12 at 9:30 PM ET/6:30 PM PT.

UPDATE: The announced paid attendance was 300, a legit advance sellout. Vocal cheering allowed meant 50% max capacity.

All-Japan continued the Flag-Raising Series tour today with a mid-major event featuring 3 title matches.

Today’s event was held at Osaka Prefectural Gym 2 in Osaka and can be watched on demand on AJPW.TV.

The announced paid attendance was 689.

Match 1: Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI beat Izanagi & Black Menso-re. Yoshitatsu pinned Menso-re after Cockroach Driver 2022.

Match 2: Jun & Rei Saito beat Yuji Nagata (New Japan) & Yuma Anzai. Jun Saito pinned Anzai after Cobra Clutch Slam.

Match 3: All-Asia Tag Team Champions Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura beat Yusuke Kodama & Seigo Tachibana to retain the titles. Tamura pinned Tachibana after Death Valley Bomb. V1 for the champs.

Match 4: T-Hawk, El Lindaman, Issei Onitsuka & Shigehiro Irie (GLEAT) beat Jake Lee, Yuma Aoyagi, Hokuto Omori & Ryo Inoue. Onitsuka pinned Inoue after a spear.

Match 5: Takao Omori, Shuji Ishikawa & The Bodyguard beat Kento Miyahara, Rising Hayato & Uji Shiiba. Bodyguard beat Shiiba with a camel clutch.

Match 6: All-Japan World Jr. Heavyweight Champion Atsuki Aoyagi beat Minoru to retain the title. V2 for Aoyagi.

Main Event: Suwama & KONO beat All-Japan World Tag Team Champions Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda to win the titles. Suwama & KONO become the 92nd All-Japan World Tag Team Champions. Suwama pinned Ashino after a backdrop.

The next event is 10/30 at Shin-Kiba 1st Ring in Tokyo. Live streaming on AJPW.TV will begin Saturday at 11 PM ET/8 PM PT.

UPDATE: All-Japan has announced vocal cheering will be allowed on 10/30. Also, Seigo Tachibana has changed his name to O Hanabatakemasa. He will debut under the new name Sunday when he challenges GAORA TV Champion Toshizo for the title.

All-Japan resumed the Flag-Raising Series today after an unusual 3-week break following the tour opening event earlier this month. Today also was highlighted by a Takao Omori 30th Anniversary Match for the Triple Crown.

Today’s event was held at Sanjo City Welfare Hall in Niigata and can be watched on demand on AJPW.TV.

The announced paid attendance was 1018.

Match 1: TAJIRI & Takuro Niki beat Izanagi & Black Menso-re. TAJIRI pinned Izanagi.

Match 2: Shuji Ishikawa beat Rising Hayato.

Match 3; Jun & Rei Saito beat Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura. Rei Saito pinned Tamura after Drill-A-Hole piledriver.

Match 4; Yoshitatsu 20th Anniversary Match: Suwama beat Yoshitatsu.

Match 5: Masanobu Fuchi, Atsushi Onita & Yuma Anzai beat Jinsei Shinzaki (I believe), Masao Inoue & Ryo Inoue. Fuchi pinned Masao Inoue.

Match 6: Shotaro Ashino, Ryuki Honda, Yusuke Kodama & Seigo Tachibana beat Jake Lee, Yuma & Atsuki Aoyagi & Hokuto Omori. Honda pinned Omori after Final Vent.

Main Event; Takao Omori 30th Anniversary Match: All-Japan Triple Crown Champion Kento Miyahara beat Takao Omori to retain the Triple Crown. V2 for Miyahara.

The next event is tomorrow at Osaka Prefectural Gym 2 in Osaka, which has 3 title matches scheduled (All-Asia Tag Team, All-Japan World Jr. Heavyweight and All-Japan World Tag Team). Live streaming on AJPW.TV will begin at 1 AM PT/4 AM ET.

All-Japan kicks off the 2022 Flag Raising Series today, the start of their October tour continuing their 50th Anniversary celebration with a borderline major event featuring 3 title matches. However, in recognition of his contributions to Japanese pro wrestling even though he never competed for them, the event will open with a memorial tribute to Hall of Fame wrestler Antonio Inoki, the founder of rival promotion New Japan Pro Wrestling, who died today at 79.

Today’s event will be held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched LIVE on AJPW.TV FOR FREE! There is a catch-you do have to create a provisional AJPW.TV account with a valid email address. A paid subscription is not required to watch this event, should you choose to go that route it’s currently about $6.25 US per month. You also can watch the first 3 matches FOR FREE on YouTube. There likely will be Japanese commentary. If you watch the full event, I anticipate the total running time being around 2 1/2 hours.

Today’s lineup:
Takao Omori, Hokuto Omori, Shuji Ishikawa & Izanagi vs. TAJIRI, Yoshitatsu, Jun & Rei Saito
GAORA TV Champion Toshizo vs. Dan Tamura for the title
Hokkaido Tourism Ambassador Showdown: Black Menso-re vs. Toru Yano (New Japan Pro Wrestling)
Suwama & KONO vs. Jake Lee & Yuma Aoyagi
All-Japan 50th Anniversary Special Match: Kento Miyahara, Takuya Nomura, Ryo Inoue & Yuma Anzai vs. Yuji Nagata, Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita & Yuto Nakashhima (New Japan Pro Wrestling)
All-Japan World Tag Team Champions Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda vs. Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi for the titles
All-Japan World Jr. Heavyweight Champion Atsuki Aoyagi vs. Rising Hayato for the title

Refresh this page occasionally for the latest results.

Updates below will begin at 10:30 PM ET/7:30 PM PT.

10:30 PM ET UPDATE: Live results will begin momentarily below.

We are LIVE from Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. as usual the audio is muted at the beginning and will come on in a few seconds.

The paid attendance will be announced after the event, the crowd is still filing in (based on what I saw the first couple matches I’m estimating around 600). Your host is joined by All-Japan senior referee Kyohei Wada.

New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Yuji Nagata leads the wrestlers’ procession and around the ring for a memorial for New Japan founder and Hall of Fame Wrestler Antonio Inoki, who died yesterday at 79. The audio comes on during this. After a tribute from the ring announcer, the crowd rises silently for a 10 Bell Salute, followed by the customary final introduction and a playing of Inoki’s customary “3, 2, 1, DAAA!!!” shout and his theme music. Interestingly, a variation of it is the current entrance theme music of Pro Wrestling NOAH’s Kazuyuki Fujita.

Match 1: Takao & Hokuto Omori, Shuji Ishikawa & Izanagi vs. TAJIRI, Yoshitatsu, Jun & Rei Saito. 20 minute time limit
Result: TAJIRI, Yoshitatsu, Jun & Rei Saito beat Takao & Hokuto Omori, Shuji Ishikawa & Izanagi. Rei Saito pinned Izanagi after a piledriver.

Match 2: GAORA TV Champion Toshizo vs. Dan Tamura for the title. 1 Hour time limit
Result: GAORA TV Champion Toshizo beat Dan Tamura to retain the title. V2 for Toshizo.

TAJIRI joins commentary for the next match.
Match 3: Hokkaido Tourism Ambassador Showdown: Black Menso-re vs. Toru Yano (New Japan Pro Wrestling). 30 minute time limit. Audio muted for Yano’s entrance. Former New Japan and All-Japan ring announcer Makoto Abe, who left New Japan earlier this year, was the guest ring announcer/timekeeper.
Result: Toru Yano beat Black Menso-re by countout. Comedy match.

Shuji Ishikawa joins commentary for the next match, replacing TAJIRI.
Match 4: Suwama & KONO vs. Jake Lee & Yuma Aoyagi. 30 minute time limit
Result: Jake Lee & Yuma Aoyagi beat Suwama & KONO by DQ. Suwama DQ’d. Saito Bros interference. Afterwards, the Saito Bros joined Voodoo Murders.

Black Menso-re joins commentary for the next match. Makoto Abe is again ring announcer. Before the match, there were several announcements about upcoming events and also the All-Japan annual Tag League coming up in November and December, an 8-team tournament.
Match 5: All-Japan 50th Anniversary Special Match: Kento Miyahara, Takuya Nomura, Ryo Inoue & Yuma Anzai vs. Yuji Nagata, Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita & Yuto Nakashima (New Japan Pro Wrestling). 30 minute time limit
Result: Yuji Nagata, Ryohei Oiwa, Kosei Fujita & Yuto Nakashima beat Kento Miyahara, Takuya Nomura, Ryo Inoue & Yuma Anzai. Fujita beat Inoue with a Boston Crab. After the bell the Young Lions kept going at it.

Match 6: All-Japan World Tag Team Champions Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda vs. Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi for the titles. 1 Hour time limit
Result: All-Japan World Tag Team Champions Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda beat Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi to retain the titles. Honda pinned Arashi after Final Vent. V4 for the champs. Next up: Possibly Suwama & KONO-challenge issued. (I missed parts of the late portion of the match due to internet issues on my laptop. Switching to tablet for the final match)

Main Event: All-Japan World Jr. Heavyweight Champion Atsuki Aoyagi vs. Rising Hayato for the title. 1 Hour time limit
Result: All-Japan World Jr. Heavyweight Champion Atsuki Aoyagi beat Rising Hayato to retain the title. V1 for Aoyagi.

The next event is 10/22 at Sanjo Welfare Center in Niigata. The main event will be a Takao Omori 30th Anniversary match featuring Omori vs. Kento Miyahara for the Triple Crown. Live streaming on AJPW.TV will begin at 1 AM PT/4 AM ET.

UPDATE: The announced paid attendance was 821.

Less than 24 hours after their huge 50th Anniversary event, All-Japan is turning right back around with another big matinee event today, a national holiday in Japan. Despite the threats from the massive Super Typhoon (hurricane) that made landfall in the southwestern regions of the country and impacts that may be reaching Tokyo soon if they haven’t already, the event is going on as planned. The main event features New All-Japan Triple Crown Champion Kento Miyahara, who won the Triple Crown yesterday (today US time), defending against Naoya Nomura, who earned the opportunity by beating Jake Lee yesterday. On the undercard, one of the longest-running comic book-inspired rivalries in Japanese wrestling will be reborn as New Japan star Tiger Mask, who just lost the All-Japan World Jr. Heavyweight Championship yesterday, faces the resurfacing of his eternal rival, Black Tiger (who may or may not be New Japan and AEW star Rocky Romero, who often has portrayed Black Tiger before).

Today’s event will be held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched LIVE on AJPW.TV. There likely will be Japanese commentary. If you’re staying up late on a Sunday night in the US to watch, I anticipate the event’s running time being between 2 1/2-3 hours.

Today’s lineup:
Izanagi & Black Menso-re vs. Doho Koji (?) & Ryuarashi (?)
Yoshitatsu, TAJIRI & Rising Hayato vs. Atsuki Aoyagi, Christopher Daniels & Cyrus
Tiger Mask (New Japan Pro Wrestling) vs. Black Tiger
Takao Omori & Ryo Inoue vs. Yuji Nagata (New Japan) & Dan Tamura
Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuma Anzai
Suwama, TARU, Minoru & Toshizo vs. Jake Lee, Shuji Ishikawa, Yuma Aoyagi & Hokuto Omori
All-Japan World Tag Team Champions Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda vs. Jun & Rei Saito for the titles
All-Japan Triple Crown Champion Kento Miyahara vs. Naoya Nomura for the Triple Crown

Refresh this page occasionally for the latest results.

Updates below will begin at 10:30 PM ET/7:30 PM PT.

10:30 PM ET UPDATE: Live updates begin now.

We are LIVE from Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. There is Japanese commentary but I did not catch the name (just one person).

The paid attendance will be announced after the event. From first look at the beginning I’m estimating around 550.

Match 1: Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi vs. Izanagi & Black Menso-re. 10 minute time limit
Result: Koji Doi & Kuma Arashi beat Izanagi & Black Menso-re. Arashi pined Izanagi after a diving senton.

Match 2: Yoshitatsu, TAJIRI & Rising Hayato vs. Atsuki Aoyagi, Christopher Daniels & Cyrus. 20 minute time limit
Result: Atsuki Aoyagi, Christopher Daniels & Cyrus beat Yoshitatsu, TAJIRI & Rising Hayato. Daniels pinned TAJIRI after a moonsault. Afterwards, Hayato gestured towards Aoyagi as to suggest a challenge for the All-Asia Tag Team Championship.

Match 3: Tiger Mask (New Japan Pro Wrestling) vs. Black Tiger (about 100% certain it’s not Rocky Romero). 20 minute time limit
Result; Tiger Mask beat Black Tiger by ref stoppage (submission). Afterawrds, TM 4 attempted to unmask Black Tiger, and did enough to confirm that indeed it was not Rocky Romero. TM 4’s entrance theme was muted during his entrance but they did an instrumental version afterwards to not mute audio.

Match 4: Takao Omori & Ryo Inoue vs. Yuji Nagata (New Japan) & Dan Tamura. 20 minute time limit
Result: Yuji Nagata & Dan Tamura beat Takao Omori & Ryo Inoue. Tamuura pinned Inoue after a thunder driver.

Matches for upcoming events are announced. On 10/2, Toru Yano, Nagata and the New Japan Young Lions will all participate. On 10/22 there will be a Yoshitatsu 20th Anniversary Match of Yoshitatsu vs. Suwama and a 50th Anniversary match. On 10/23, Nagata and several members of GLEAT will participate.

Match 5: Yuma Anzai vs. Minoru Suzuki. 20 minute time limit
Result: Minoru Suzuki beat Yuma Anzai by submission. This was Japan’s version of an extended glorified squash, although this was only Anzai’s second career match. His Debut was just yesterday.

Match 6: Suwama, TARU, Minoru & Toshizo vs. Jake Lee, Shuji Ishikawa, Yuma Aoyagi & Hokuto Omori. 30 minute time limit
Result: Jake Lee, Shuji Ishikawa, Yuma Aoyagi & Hokuto Omori beat Suwama, TARU, Minoru & Toshizo. Ishikawa pinned Suwama.

Match 7: All-Japan World Tag Team Champions Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda vs. Jun & Rei Saito for the titles. 1 Hour time limit
Result: All-Japan World Tag Team Champions Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda beat Jun & Rei Saito to retain the titles. Ashino beat Rei Saito (I think) with a heel hook. V3 for the champs. Afterwards, Doi & Arashi came out presumably to make the customary next challenge. Presumably accepted.

Main Event: All-Japan Triple Crown Champion Kento Miyahara vs. Naoya Nomura for the Triple Crown. 1 Hour time limit
Result: Triple Crown Champion Kento Miyahara beat Naoya Nomura to retain the Triple Crown. V1 for Miyahara. Afterwards, the next potential challenger appeared and hit the ring…Takao Omori. Very spirited challenge made.

The next event is 10/2.

UPDATE: The announced paid attendance was 919.

The second-oldest active promotion in Japan, just about 6 months behind New Japan Pro Wrestling, All-Japan Pro Wrestling held their 50th Anniversary Commemoration Event today. It’s been a tumultuous 2000s for the promotion as it’s struggled mightily the last 20+ years between the death of founder Giant Baba (a legendary Hall of Fame wrestler), the mass defection at the end of the 1990s led by top wrestler Mitsuharu Misawa to form Pro Wrestling NOAH, ownership turmoil and disagreements/mismanagement between owner Motoko Baba (Giant Baba’s widow) and subsequent presidents/executives including Keiji Muto & Jun Akiyama and more, but with support from longtime TV partner GAORA TV and others the promotion has managed to survive. This has been an event several months in the making and it brought the past, present and future of the promotion together.

Today’s event was held at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo and will be available on demand on AJPWTV in Japanese worldwide beginning Thursday at 3 AM PT/6 AM ET. The live broadcast was exclusively on TV Asahi in Japan.

The announced paid attendance was 4780. With capacity limits presumably still in place and at 50% in all likelihood, this is probably at least a super full house, meaning over 90% full. But based on the layout of the venue, there’s a chance this was a legit sellout based on same-day ticket sales. Keiji Muto was a special guest on commentary.

Match 1: Rising Hayato & Ryo Inoue beat Yusuke Kodama & Oji Shiiba. Hayato pinned Shiiba after Shimatani Driver.

Match 2: TAJIRI, Yoshitatsu, Mitsuya Nagai & ATM beat Black Menso-re, Andy Wu, Izanagi & Sushi. Nagai beat Sushi with a Stretch Plum.

Match 3: Saito Brothers Triumphal Match: Jun & Rei Saito & Cyrus beat Shuji Ishikawa, Kohei Sato & Yukio Naya (DDT). Rei Saito pinned Ishikawa after a diving body press.

Match 4: Hikaru Sato & Dan Tamura beat All-Asia Tag Team Champions Minoru & Todhizo to win the titles. Sato & Tamura become the 114th All-Asia Tag Team Champions. Tamura pinned Toshizo after Death Valley Bomb.

Match 5: Minoru Suzuki beat Hokuto Omori.

Match 6: Yuma Anzai Debut Match: Yuji Nagata (New Japan Pro Wrestling) beat Yuma Anzai.

Match 7: Yuma Aoyagi beat Christopher Daniels (All Elite Wrestling).

Match 8: All-Japan 50th Anniversary Match: Masanobu Fuchi, Atsushi Onita & Shiro Koshinaka beat The Great Kojika, Yoshiaki Yatsu & Masao Inoue. Fuchi pinned Inoue after a backdrop.

Match 9: All-Japan World Tag Team Champions Shotaro Ashino & Ryuki Honda beat Takao Omori & Manabu Soya (Pro Wrestling NOAH) to retain the titles. Ashino pinned Omori after Final Vent. V2 for the champs.

Match 10: Atsuki Aoyagi beat All-Japan World Jr. Heavyweight Champion Tiger Mask (New Japan Pro Wrestling) to win the title. Aoyagi becomes the 63rd All-Japan World Jr. Heavyweight Champion.

Match 11: Naoya Nomura beat Jake Lee. As a result, Nomura will face the main event winner tomorrow for the All-Japan Triple Crown.

Main Event: Kento Miyahara beat Triple Crown Champion Suwama to win the Triple Crown. Miyahara becomes the 68th Triple Crown Champion.

The next event is tomorrow at Korakuen Hall. Live streaming on AJPW.TV will begin TONIGHT at 10:30 PM ET/7:30 PM PT.

All-Japan wrapped up the Road to 50th Anniversary tour today with the final event before their 50th Anniversary event this weekend.

Today’s event was held at Hodogaya Public Hall in Yokohama and can be watched on demand on AJPW.TV.

The announced paid attendance was 255.

Match 1: Rising Hayato beat Izanagi & Black Menso-re in a 3-way by pinning both.

Match 2: Cyrus beat Yoshitatsu.

Match 3: Jake Lee, Hokuto Omori, Yuma & Atsuki Aoyagi beat Shotaro Ashino, Ryuki Honda, Yusuke Kodama & Seigo Tachibana. Lee pinned Tachibana after D4C.

Match 4: Yuji Nagata (New Japan Pro Wrestling), HIkaru Sato & Dan Tamura beat Shuji Ishikawa, Takao Omori & Ryo Inoue. Tamura pinned Inoue after Death Valley Bomb.

Match 5: Minoru Suzuki beat TAJIRI.

Main Event: Suwama & Black Tiger beat Kento Miyahara & Tiger Mask (New Japan Pro Wrestling) by ref stoppage. Suwama beat Miyahara with a backdrop.

The next event is the All-Japan Pro Wrestling 50th Anniversary Event Sunday at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo. The live broadcast will be exclusively on TV Asahi and available on Japan only. It will be available worldwide on demand on AJPW.TV beginning Thursday at 3 AM PT/6 AM ET.

All-Japan continued the Road to Nippon Budokan tour with the second of 3 events on the short tour leading up to their 50th Anniversary event, which is now just one week away.

Today’s event was held at Yonago Industrial Gym Sub-Arena in Tottori and can be watched on demand on AJPW.TV.

The announced paid attendance was 350.

Match 1: Dan Tamura beat Ryo Inoue by submission.

Match 2: Izanagi vs. Black Menso-re went to a 10 minute time limit draw.

Match 3: Yoshitatsu & TAJIRI beat Rauza (?) & ALL Mighty Inoue. Yoshitatsu pinned Rauza after Fantasy.

Match 4: Cyrus beat Hokuto Omori.

Match 5: Takao Omori, Jake Lee & Shuji Ishikawa beat Shotaro Ashino, Tatsuki Honda & Seigo Tachibana. Omori pinned Honda after Ax Bomber.

Match 6: Suwama beat Hikaru Sato by ref stoppage.

Main Event: Kento Miyahara & Tiger Mask (New Japan Pro Wrestling) beat Atsuki & Ryo Aoyagi. Miyahara beat Ryo Aoyagi with a chicken wing.

The tour-ender is Thursday at Hodogaya Public Hall in Yokohama. Live streaming on AJPW.TV will begin at 2:30 AM PT/5:30 AM ET.

All-Japan kicked off the Road to Nippon Budokan tour today, a short series that will lead to the promotion’s 50th Anniversary event next weekend.

Today’s event was held at Mina City Park Udatsu Arena in Tokushima and can be watched on demand on AJPW.TV.

The announced paid attendance was 605.

Match 1: Yoshitatsu beat Ryo Inoue.

Match 2: In a handicap match, Cyrus beat Black Menso-re & Izanagi in just 8 seconds. Which led to…
Rematch: In a handicap match, Cyrus beat Black Menso-re & Izanagi.

Match 3: TAJIRI vs. Hikaru Sato went to a 10 minute time limit draw.

Match 4: Takao Omori, Shuji Ishikawa & Atsuki Aoyagi beat Shotaro Ashino, Tatsuki Honda & Seigo Tachibana. Omori pinned Honda after Ax Bomber.

Match 5: Suwama beat Dan Tamura.

Main Event: Kento Miyahara, Rising Hayato & Tiger Mask (New Japan Pro Wrestling) beat Jake Lee, Ryo Aoyagi & Hokuto Omori. Miyahara pinned Omori with a shutdown suplex hold.

The next event is tomorrow at Yonago Industrial Gym Sub-Atena in Tottori. Live streaming on AJPW.TV will begin at midnight PT/3 AM ET.