DDT 11/12/22 Results

DDT continued the D KING GP earlier today as they finished up their stretch of events in Osaka as part of the tournament.

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

The announced paid attendance was 320, a full house/near sellout. Vocal cheering was allowed.

Pre-show match: Yusuke Okada & Yuya Koroku beat Shunma Katsumata & Kazuma Sumi. Okada pinned Sumi.

Match 1; MJ Pawl & KANON beat Hideki Okatani & Takeshi Masada. KANON pinned Masada.

Match 2; Danshoku Dieno Produced Match: Danshoku Dieno & Yuki Iino vs. Aja Kong & HARASHIMA went to a no contest. Ring announcer Ken Kato stoppage.

Match 3: D KING GP Block B: Yukio Naya beat Chris Brookes.

Match 4: D KING GP Block A: Daisuke Sasaki beat Joey Janela.

Match 5: D KING GP Block A: Tetsuya Endo beat Rickey Shane Page.

Impromptu Match: Shunma Katsumata beat DDT Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion Keiko Takeshita by handover of the title belt to win the title. Katsumata becomes the 1554th DDT Iron Man Heavymetalweight Champion.

Match 6: Naruki Doi, Toru Owashi & Kazuki Hirata beat KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions Yuji Hino, Makoto Oishi & Shiori Asahi to win the titles. Doi, Owashi & Hirata become the 58th KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions. Hirata pinned Oishi.

Match 7: D KING GP Block B: Kazusada Higuchi beat MAO.

Main Event: D KING GP Block A: Naomi Yoshimura beat Yuki Ueno.

The next event is tomorrow at Kyoto KBS Hall in Kyoto. Live streaming on WRESTLE UNIVERSE will begin at 3:30 AM ET/12:30 AM PT.

Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling “CITY CIRCUIT-Yuki Arai Local Triumphant Performance” Results (11/13/22) (Updated)

Tokyo Joshi Pro continues the CITY CIRCUIT series today with a return to Kyoto, the hometown of SKE48 member and Princess Tag Team Champion Yuki Arai. Appropriately enough, she is the featured star today and that means we get another hearty helping of AA Eye Candy as fellow Princess Tag Team Champion Saki Akai will be joining Arai for the main event as they face Miu Watanabe & Pom Harajuku in a NON-TITLE match. There is a bit of notable missing talent today as Miyu Yamashita & Hyper Misao will miss the event due to competing in England and Nao Kakuta will miss the event due to a stage/theater performance.

Today’s event will be held at Kyoto KBS Hall in Kyoto and can be watched LIVE on WRESTLE UNIVERSE. There probably will not be any commentary. The event is a legit advance sellout. The card is split evenly between single and tag matches so between that, and a DDT event shortly afterwards, this could be a quick event. I anticipate the total runtime being just under 2 hours.

Today’s lineup:
Shoko Nakajima vs. Suzume & Neko Haruna in a 3-way
Moka Miyamoto vs. Kaya Toribami
Yuki Aino & Raku vs. Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu
Rika Tatsumi vs. Arisu Endo
Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki vs. Maki Itoh & Hikari Noa
Yuki Arai & Saki Akai vs. Miu Watanabe & Pom Harajuku

Refresh this page occasionally for the latest results.

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

10 PM ET UPDATE: Stream launch, normally 30 minutes before an event begins, has been delayed to 10:15 PM ET/7:15 PM PT.

10:25 PM ET UPDATE: Live results begin now.
We are LIVE from Kyoto KBS Hall in Kyoto, Japan. There is no commentary.

The paid attendance will be announced after the event but it’s a legit advance sellout. Vocal cheering is allowed so that will keep the number low, probably 300-400. We also have a hard-camera only setup.

Match 1: Moka Miyamoto vs. Kaya Toribami. 15 minute time limit
Result: Moka Miyamoto beat Kaya Toribami

Match 2: Shoko Nakajima vs. Suzume & Neko Haruna in a 3-way. 15 minute time limit
Result: Shoko Nakajima beat Suzume & Neko Haruna in a 3-way by pinning Haruna.

Match 3: Yuki Aino & Raku vs. Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu. 20 minute time limit
Result: Yuki AIno & Raku beat Yuki Kamifuku & Mahiro Kiryu. Raku pinned Kiryu after Doctor Yellow.

Match 4: Rika Tatsumi vs. Arisu Endo. 15 minute time limit
Result; Rika Tatsumi beat Arisu Endo by submission

Match 5: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki vs. Maki Itoh & Hikari Noa. 20 minute tiem limit
Result: Yuka Sakazaki & Mizuki beat Maki Itoh & Hikari Noa. Sakazaki pinned Noa after Magical Merry-Go-Round.

Main Event: Yuki Arai & Saki Akai vs. Miu Watanabe & Pom Harajuku. 20 minute time limit
Ewault: Yuki Arai & Saki Akai beat Miu Watanabe & Pom Harajuku. Arai pinned Harajuku after Finally. This was the longest match of the event, the only one to go over 15 minutes. The winners’ post-match promo was interrupted before it even began by Raku & Yuki Aino. Challenge issued for the Princess Tag Team Championship. Accepted. We should soon find out when it will happen. Based on the current schedule I would tentatively expect 11/26, the next major event.

The next event is 11/20 at Shinjuku Face in Tokyo. Live streaming on WRESTLE UNIVERSE will begin at 3:45 AM ET/12:45 AM PT.

UPDATE: The tag title match will happen on 11/27 (11/26 US time).

The announced paid attendance was 308, a legit advance sellout. 50% capacity limit due to vocal cheering allowed.

All-Japan Pro Wrestling World’s Strongest Tag League 2022 Results (11/13/22) (Updated)

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.

New Japan 11/12/22 Results

New Japan ran a special Kazuchika Okada Homecoming Event today that coincided with the 70th Anniversary of the founding of his hometown, Anjo City in Aichi Prefecture.

Today’s event was held at Tosho Arena Anjo in Aichi. There was no live broadcast and no on demand video will be available.

The announced paid attendance was 2200, a legit advance sellout.

Match 1: Yuto Nakashima beat Ryohei Oiwa.

Match 2: Tiger Mask beat Kosei Fujita by submission.

Match 3: Aaron Henare & Great-O-Khan beat Dick Togo & EVIL. Henare pinned Togo after Ultima.

Match 4; Sho & Yujiro Takahashi beat Master Wato & Hiroyoshi Tenzan. Takahashi pinned Tenzan after Pimp Juice.

Match 5: Ren Narita, Ryusuke Taguchi & Satoshi Kojima beat DOUKI, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Zack Sabre Jr. Narita beat DOUKI with a cobra twist.

Match 6: Yoh, YOSHI-HASHI & HIrooki GOto beat BUSHI, SANADA & Tetsuya Naito. YOSHI-HASHI pinned BUSHI after Lights Out.

Match 7: El Desperado & Taichi beat Hiromu Takahashi & Shingo Takagi. Taichi beat Takagi with a Taichi-type Gedo Clutch. Afterwards, Taichi demanded a KOPW 2022 Trophy match against Takagi.

A homecoming ceremony for Kazuchika Okada was held and a gift was presented to the promotion by Anjo City.

Main Event: Toru Yano, Tomohiro Ishii & Kazuchika Okada beat Tomoaki Honma, Togi Makabe & Hiroshi Tanahashi. Okada pinned Honma after Rainmaker.

The next event is HISTORIC X-OVER, the first joint New Japan-Stardom event, on 11/20 at Ariake Arena in Tokyo. This will be a worldwide PPV via New Japan World in English (separate PPV purchase required) with live streaming to begin at midnight PT/3 AM ET. It will be available on demand to purchasers for one week and then to all New Japan World subscribers at a later date.

NWA “Hard Times In New Orleans” Results (11/12/22)

The NWA runs their final quarterly PPV of the year today, and it comes amidst a month of white-hot controversy outside of the ring. Over the last couple months, a fast-growing inferno has erupted between now-potentially-former top star Nick Aldis and NWA owner/promoter Billy Corgan that, in reality, stretches back about a year when Aldis first lost the NWA World Heavyweight Championship to Trevor Murdoch, later had a title shot mysteriously taken away, and now has spilled over to include comments Corgan reportedly made to Aldis’ wife, WWE Hall of Famer and current NWA & Impact wrestler (and radio host) Mickie James. Aldis has given notice he’s leaving NWA at the end of the year when his contract is up and now has supposedly been suspended. But could he make a surprise unexpected appearance tonight? That threatens to overshadow another big card. A lot is on the line including Murdoch defending the 10 Pounds Of Gold against both Matt Cardona and Tyrus, who vacated the NWA TV Championship under the Lucky 7 Rules, to get into the title match (Lucky 7 Rules allow the TV Champion to vacate the title for another title shot of his choice if he makes 7 consecutive successful defenses, which Tyrus did. It’s not mandatory). These are among the TEN title matches making up the planned 14-match card.

Today’s event will be held at Frederick J Sigur Civic Center in Chalmette, LA and can be watched LIVE on FITE. The PPV itself is $24.99 and includes the live broadcast and unlimited on demand replays. If you are an NWA All Access Annual subscriber (which I am), you can watch the PPV live and on demand as part of your subscription. All Access Annual is available on FITE for $49.99/year and includes ALL NWA PPVs and current & past weekly TV show episodes. It’s a bargain just because the PPVs alone are over $100/year if purchased separately. There will also be a 1 hour pre-show before the PPV which will be available FOR FREE on YouTube (and possibly FITE). You can watch the pre-show below:

Tonight’s current lineup:
Pre-Show:
Anthony Andrew vs. Mims for the #1 contender to the NWA TV Championship
Wildkat Wrestling Tag Team Champions Slime SZN vs. Miserably Faithful for the titles
Hardcore Team War: Mercurio, Magic Jake & Jax Dane vs. Mayweather, JTG & The Pope
Jordan Clearwater vs. AJ Cazana for the vacant NWA TV Championship
PPV:
NWA Women’s Tag Team Champions Pretty Empowered vs. Madi & Missa Kate for the titles
NWA Jr. Heavyweight Champion Homicide vs. Kerry Morton for the title
NWA US Tag Team Champions The Fixers vs. The Spectaculars for the titles
NWA National Champion Cyon vs. Dak Draper for the title
MLW National Champion Davey Richards vs. Colby Carino for the title
Natalia Markova vs. Max The Impaler in a Voodoo Queen Casket Match
NWA World Tag Team Champions La Rebelion vs. Hawx Aerie for the titles
EC3 vs. Thom Latimer
NWA Women’s Champion Kamille vs. KiLynn King & Chelsea Green in a 3-way for the title
NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch vs. Matt Cardona & Tyrus in a 3-way for the title

Refresh this page occasionally for the latest results.

Updates below will begin at 7 PM ET/4 PM PT.

We almost jump right to the action skipping the mandatory FBI Warning…
We are LIVE from Frederick J Sigur Civic Center in Chalmette, LA. Your hosts are Joe Galli & Tim Storm. The first match has already begun.
Pre-show:
Match 1: Anthony Andrew vs. Mims for the #1 contender to the NWA TV Championship
Result: Mims beat Anthony ANdrew. As a result, Mims becomes the #1 contender for the NWA TV Championship and gets a title shot at an upcoming TV event
Grade: N/A (Incomplete) because I don’t know how much we missed when we joined in progress.

Commentary announces the Voodoo Queen Casket Match will be the first PPV match.

Match 2: WIldkat Sports Tag Team Champions Slime SZN (J Spade & Bu Ku Dao) vs. Miserably Faithful (Gaagz The Gimp & Sal The Pal) for the titles
Result: Wildkat Sports Tag Team Champions Slime SZN beat Miserably Faithful to retain the titles. Spade pinned Sal with a backslide.
Grade: C

May Valentine interviews Thom Latimer backstage.

Match 3: Hardcore Team War: Mercurio, Magic Jake & Jax Dane vs. Mayweather, JTG & The Pope…apparently there’s a last second change. There is a claim that Magic Jake is injured and can’t compete so Alex Taylor is stepping in.
Result: Mayweather, JTG & The Pope beat Mercurio, Alex Taylor & Jax Dane. This was a hardcore elimination match
Grade: C

May Valentine interviews Matt Cardona & Chelsea Green.

Match 4: AJ Cazana vs. Jordan Clearwater for the NWA World TV Championship
Result: Jordan Clearwater beat AJ Cazana to become THE NEW NWA WORLD TV CHAMPION!
Grade: C+

A LIVE episode of NWA Powerrr is announced for 1/31/23, to simulcast live on YouTube and FITE.

End Pre-show. Updates will resume at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT.

PPV:
Updates will begin momentarily
Velvet Sky joins commentary for the PPV portion.
Question 1 vs. Question 2 in a Mask vs. Mask Match has just been added to the card..

Match 1: Natalia Markova vs. Max The Impaler in a Voodoo Queen Casket Match. The only way to win was to put your opponent in a casket and close it.
Result: Max The Impaler beat Natalia Markova
Grade: C

May Valentine interviews EC3.

Match 2: MLW National Champion Davey Richards vs. Colby Corino for the title
Result: MLW National Champion Davey Richards beat Colby Corino by submission to retain the title.
Grade: B

Match 3: Question Mark 1 (with Aron Stevens) vs. Question Mark 2 (with JR Kratos) in a Mask vs. Mask Match. Before it began, Stevens cut a comedy promo citing state rules to get Kratos ejected from ringside
Result: Question Mark 2 beat Question Mark 1. As a result, Question Mark 1 was forced to unmask. Stevens protested and, after taking the mask off, put a towel over Question Mark 1’s head. Identity not revealed.
Grade: C-

Match 3: NWA Jr. Heavyweight Champion Homicide vs. Kerry Morton for the title
Result: Kerry Morton beat NWA Jr. Heavyweight Champion Homicide to become THE NEW NWA JR. HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION!
Grade: C

Odinson is brought out. He doesn’t have an opponent for some reason. Until Thrillbilly Silas comes out with a referee. Which led to…
Match 4: Odinson vs. Thrillbilly Silas
Result; Thrillbilly Silas beat Odinson
Grade: C

Match 5: NWA US Tag Team Champions The Fixers vs. The Spectaculars for the titles
Result: NWA US Tag Team Champions The Fixers beat The Spectaculars to retain the titles.
Grade: C

May Valentine interviews Trevor Murdoch.

Match 6: NWA National Champion Cyon vs. Dak Draper for the titleResult: NWA National Champion Cyon beat Dak Draper to retain the title.
Grade: Incomplete (missed some of this match due to a bathroom break and forgot to pause the stream)

Match 7: NWA Women’s Tag Team Champions Pretty Empowered (Kenzie Page & Ella Envy) vs. Madi & Missa Kate for the titles
Result: NWA Women’s Tag Team Champions Pretty Empowered beat Madi & Missa Kate to retain the titles. Page pinned Kate.
Grade: C+

Match 8: EC3 vs. Thom Latimer
Result: EC3 beat Thom Latimer by DQ. Ref assault
Grade: D-

Match 9: NWA World Tag Team Champions La Rebelion vs. Hawx Aerie for the titles
Result: NWA World Tag Team Champions La Rebelion beat Hawx Aerie to retain the titles.
Grade: C+

For the rest of the event updates will be RESULTS ONLY. I’m now trying to watch THREE events simultaneously.

Match 10: NWA Women’s Champion Kamille vs. KiLynn King & Chelsea Green in a 3-way for the title
Result: NWA Women’s Champion Kamille beat KiLynn King & Chelsea Green in a 3-way by pinning Green to retain the title.

Main Event: NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch vs. Tyrus & Matt Cardona in a 3-way for the title
Result: Tyrus beat NWA World Champion Trevor Murdoch & Matt Cardona in a 3-way by pinning Murdoch to become THE NEW NWA WORLD CHAMPION!

Overall show grade: C
Disclaimer: I don’t follow the TV shows as closely as I should. That being said, the biggest thing I don’t like about the current NWA product is every big match seems to rely too much on outside interference or screwjob tactics for the finish and it turns me off quickly. On paper this looked like a great card. In reality, not so much. Get caught up on the last couple months of NWA TV before watching. And apparently no Nick Aldis and no Billy Corgan, a slight letdown after everything they’ve said in the media lately.

End Show.

UPDATE: The reason Odinson didn’t have an opponent tonight because plans changed? Aldis. it was to have originally been Odinson-Alsis.

AEW Rampage 11/11/22 Results

Here are the quick results from tonight’s TAPED AEW Rampage in Boston, MA:

Jungle Boy confronted Christian Cage & Luchasaurus before getting beaten down and chokeslammed on a chair. This set up Jungle Boy vs. Luchasaurus in a steel cage match for Full Gear.

AEW World Title Eliminator Tournament:
Brian Cage beat Dante Martin.
Bandido beat Rush.
As a result, Bandido will face Ethan Page in the Semifinals. Ricky Starks vs. Lance Archer was scheduled for tonight but was postponed after Archer attacked Starks on Dynamite Wednesday. Why this REALLY didn’t happen tonight is not known but Cage faces the winner.

Nyla Rose beat Kayla Sparks. Squash.

AEW All-Atlantic Champion Orange Cassidy beat Lee Johnson to retain the title..

I personally thought this was a really bad episode in every way outside of the squash. Rose imitated Jade Cargill, which was both hilarious and quite good. Very nice pump kick.

After the show went off the air, AEW announced on social media that Bandido has signed with the promotion.

Wednesday on the last Dynamite before Full Gear: Bryan Danielson & Claudio Castagnoli vs. Chris Jericho & Sammy Guevara, Toni Storm vs. The Bunny, Page-Bandido, AEW Trios Champions Death Triangle vs. Top Flight (with the returning Darius Martin) & AR Fox for the titles, Tony Schiavone interviews Britt Baker, Renee Paquette interviews Saraya, Jon Moxley Speaks, MJF Speaks, Samoa Joe Speaks, and The Acclaimed debut a new music video. While not confirmed, probably Archer-Starks as well. Otherwise Cage would all but get a free pass to the Finals at Full Gear unless Archer-Starks winner competes twice next Friday.

Rampage is LIVE next week.

New Japan 11/11/22 Results

New Japan held the debut event for TAMASHII today, the promotion’s newest sub-label focusing on the Australia/New Zealand/Pacific Islands region and the growing talent pool that continues to be produced there. Spearheaded by current New Japan wrestler/trainer Bad Luck Fale, who is also the head trainer at New Japan’s New Zealand Dojo, this is the first of two launch events for the brand.

Today’s event was held at Pioneer Recreation and Sports Centre in Christchurch, New Zealand. There was no live broadcast and on demand video likely will not be available.

The announced paid attendance was 650.

Match 1: Mark Tui & Chris Miles beat Jordan Allen-Wright & Shep Alexander. Yui pinned ? after SKO.

Match 2: Jack Bonza & Bad Luck Fale beat Jake Taylor & Tony Kozina. Fale pinned Taylor after an elbow drop.

Match 3: Stevie & Tome Filip beat Nikolai Anton Bell & Rowan Davis. Tome pinned Davis after Mother Of All Bombs.

Match 4: Michael Richards beat Richard Mulu.

Match 5: KENTA beat Andrew Villalobos.

Main Event: Taiji Ishimori beat Aaron Solo by submission.

The second event is Sunday in Sydney, Australia. There will be no live or on demand broadcast.

Pro Wrestling NOAH 11/11/22 Results

For the second half of Global 2days, Pro Wrestling NOAH and Dragon Gate Pro Wrestling ran a special cross-promotional event full of matches with both promotions facing off against each other. No title matches but no doubt a lot of pride on the line.

Today’s event was held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched on demand on WRESTLE UNIVERSE.

The announced paid attendance was 1209. This is the highest Korakuen number I’ve seen period, or at worst the second-highest, since the pandemic began, which is outstanding. It meant no vocal support but that’s still close to double what has been “normal” the last couple years (Under normal circumstances, this would be 55-60% of the venue’s max capacity).

Match 1: Yoshiki Inamura, Yasutaka Yano & Kai Fujimura beat Madoka Kikuta, Ryu Fuda & Mochizuki Jr. Inamura pinned Fuda after Oklahoma Stampede. On an interesting side note, Mochizuki Jr. is the real-life son of NOAH & Dragon Gate wrestler Masaaki Mochizuki.

Match 2: In a timed-entry 5-way elimination match, Manabu Soya & ISHIN beat Mohammed Yone & BIGBOSS Shimizu, Ben-K & Minorita, Eita & Super Crazy and Susumu Michizuki & Yasushi Kanda. When one member of a team was eliminated, their partner was as well. Order of elimination: Mochizuki/Kanda by Yone/Shimizu, Eita/Crazy by multiple teams, Ben-K/Minorita by Soya/ISHIN, Yone/Shimizu by Soya/ISHIN. Eliminations were by pinfall, submission or over the top rope.

Match 3: Kzy, JACKY “FUNKY” KAMEI & YO-HEY beat Ryo Saito, Genki Horiguchi & NOSAWA Rongai. Kzy pinned NOSAWA.

Match 4; Satoshi Kojima beat Konomama Ichikawa. Likely a comedy match (it was short).

Match 5: Atsushi Kotoge, Dante Leon & Punch Tominaga beat UT, Jason Lee & Strong Machine J. Leon pinned Lee after Inferno. Strong Machine J is another second-generation wrestler, he is the son of former New Japan Pro Wrestling veteran Super Strong Machine.

Match 6: YAMATO beat Seiki Yoshioka.

Match 7: AMAKUSA (Haoh) & Takuma Fujiwara beat Shun Skiywalker & Tadasuke. AMAKUSA pinned Tadasuke.

Match 8: Dragon Kid, Alejandro, Dragon Dia, Ninja Mack & Extreme Tiger beat BxB Hulk, H-Y-O, Diamante (not the US female wrestler who has competed in All Elite Wrestling), Hajime Ohara & Hi69. Mack pinned H-Y-O after Ninja Bomb.

Main Event: Kenoh & Kota Minoura beat Kaito Kiyomiya & Yuki Yoshioka. Kenoh pinned Kiyomiya after Ring Of Fire.

Before this event, I had previously decided I was going to add more Dragon Gate coverage to the site in the near future, and now I have decided that will start in January 2023. Dragon Gate is what I consider to be the #4 promotion in Japan, and is very popular with younger fans for it’s emphasis on Jr. Heavyweight style fast & furious action and also faction warfare being very integral to the promotion. It previously branched out to the USA in the late 2000s & early 2010s but ultimately failed after a strong start due to lack of support on the US side among other things. Among notable DG alumni competing elsewhere now is Shingo Takagi, who has been in New Japan Pro Wrestling for a few years and was the rare heavyweight in the promotion and has become one of the top wrestlers in Japan over the last two years.

The next event is NOAH the BEST 2022 on 11/23 at Yoyogi National Stadium Gym 2 in Tokyo. Live streaming on WRESTLE UNIVERSE in English will begin on 11/22 at 10 PM PT/1 AM ET.

Pro Wrestling NOAH 11/10/22 Results

Pro Wrestling NOAH kicked off a special doubleheader today with “Global Honored Crown”, an event that only featured 5 matches (excluding a pre-show match), but they were all GHC Title matches making it a major event with all significant outcomes.

Today’s event was held at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo and can be watched on demand on WRESTLE UNIVERSE. You can also watch the pre-show match FOR FREE on YouTube.

The announced paid attendance was 789. That number suggests vocal cheering was not allowed (the limit likely would have been 700) and this seems just short of a full house.

Match 1: Pre-Show Dark Match: Yoshiki Inamura & Kai Fujimura beat Yaustaka Yano & Taishi Ozawa. Inamura pinned Ozawa after a shoulder tackle.

Match 2: Shuji Kondo & Hajime Ohara beat GHC Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Atsushi Kotoge & Seiki Yoshioka to win the titles. Kondo & Ohara become the 52nd GHC Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champions. Ohara pinned Yoshioka after Muy Bien. Next up: Immediate Rematch. That will happen on 11/23 at Yoyogi National Stadium Gym 2.

Match 3: Dante Leon beat GHC Jr. Heavyweight Champion Ninja Mack to win the title. Leon becomes the 51st GHC Jr. Heavyweight Champion.

Match 4: GHC Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Takashi Sugiura & Satoshi Kojima beat Mohammed Yone & Akitoshi Saito by ref stoppage to retain the titles. Sugiura beat Saito with a front neck lock. V2 for the champs.

Match 5: Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. beat GHC National Champion Masakatsu Funaki to win the title. Wagner Jr. becomes the 9th GHC National Champion.

Main Event: GHC Heavyweight Champion Kaito Kiyomiya beat Timothy Thatcher to retain the title. V2 for Kiyomiya. 37 1/2 minute marathon. Next up: Kenoh, the man Kiyomiya won the title from. That match will happen on 1/1/23 at Nippon Budokan.

The next event is a NOAH/Dragon Gate cross-promotion event tomorrow. Live streaming on WRESTLE UNIVERSE will begin at 1:30 AM PT/4:30 AM ET.

New Japan News: Young Lion Debuting in Mexico

New Japan announced today that Yota Tsuji, one of the last batch of Young Lions who is now on his traditional international training excursion, will be debuting in the CMLL promotion in Mexico tomorrow at the weekly Viernes Espectacular (Friday Spectacular) event at Arena Mexico in Mexico City. He arrived in Mexico yesterday and was interviewed upon his arrival. He will compete as his first name only-Yota-and will likely be a rudo (heel). He appeared yesterday on CMLL’s weekly program “CMLL Informa”, which can be watched live and on demand every Wednesday FOR FREE on YouTube in Spanish.

Video of Yota’s CMLL debut likely will be available on YouTube at a later date (they currently upload Viernes Espectacular replays 3-4 weeks after each event).