Notes
- Ami Sohrei will be absent from all cards as she begins the process of recovering from ACL and meniscus tears in her knee.
- Kaori Yoneyama – more commonly known as Fukigen Death in Stardom – has also suffered an ACL tear and will be out of action for a year.
- Mayu Iwatani will miss the two shows in Aomori as she will be receiving treatment for an unspecified injury.
- Thekla will miss the two shows in Aomori for unspecified reasons.
Quick Results
- Singles Match: Mina Shirakawa def. Rian w/ Figure Four Leg-Lock (10:41)
- Three-Way Match: Saki Kashima def. Maika & Sayaka Kurura w/ Flying Headscissors (6:57)
- Singles Match: Ruaka def. Aya Sakura w/ Choke Bomb (8:20)
- 6-Woman Tag Team Match: EXV (HANAKO, Xena & Waka Tsukiyama) def. God’s Eye (Syuri, Lady C & Ranna Yagami) w/ Shirasagi (10:51)
- 10-Woman Tag Team Match: NEO-GENESIS (Starlight Kid, AZM, Miyu Amasaki, Suzu Suzuki & Mei Seira) def. STARS (Hazuki, Koguma, Momo Kohgo, Saya Iida & Hanan) w/ Tequila Shot (12:52)
- 8-Woman Tag Team Match: H.A.T.E (Natsuko Tora, Saya Kamitani, Momo Watanabe & Rina) def. Cosmic Angels (Tam Nakano, Natsupoi, Saori Anou & Yuna Mizumori) w/ Frankensteiner (13:46)
The Undercard
After finally getting her first win in Stardom as part of a tag team alongside Maika at New Blood 14, it looks like Rian may be on the way to finding a permanent home in EXV. She impressed against Xena at Namba Grand Fight and faces off with Mina Shirakawa here. It’s another great example of just how far Rian has come, with her embarking on a great back and forth with Mina until she’s physically incapable of withstanding the level of damage to her leg, submitting to a Figure-Four. Shirakawa takes the time post-match to put over Rian, and with the latter taking on Maika tomorrow, it almost feels like a final initiation before allowing her into EXV. (***1/4)
A bit of comical levity next, with Maika, Saki Kashima and Sayaka Kurura in a three-way providing a lot of entertainment, especially from Saki. After opening the match attempting to entice Daichi Muryama into a Greco-Roman Knuckle Lock and looking to team with both Kurura and Maika, Saki manages to secure the victory in a rather unique way. With Kurura on the mat having eaten the Sazanka, Saki re-enters the ring and hits a Flying Headscissors that simultaneously sends Maika out of the ring and allows her to land on top of Kurura to steal the winning pinfall (***)
In seeming preparation for her Future of Stardom Championship match, Aya Sakura has a shot at Rina’s H.A.T.E teammate Ruaka. Unfortunately for her, she spends the match being beaten pillar-to-post save for a brief pocket of offence. With Tora distracting the referee, Tora uses the crate and then hits the Choke Bomb for the win, putting an enormous dent into Sakura’s momentum heading towards the Future of Stardom Championship match. (**1/2)
No disrespect meant to Waka Tsukiyama – who I have a tremendous amount of time for – but I think there are few bigger mismatches on the Stardom roster than her and Syuri. In fact, it gets to a point where you fear for Waka’s safety before she’s finally able to tag in Xena. With Xena and Syuri recapturing their excellent 5Star Grand Prix match from last month, it’s without doubt the best stretch of the match, however credit where credit is due, the exchanges between Ranna Yagami and HANAKO are also really good. The Wonder Tower in particular is built once again to look extremely formidable, and the way she ragdolls Yagami into the Shirasagi, hosting her up into the air and holding her there is a brutal way to end the match. Another strong showing for HANAKO, who continues her imperious post-excursion form! (***1/4)
Main Event Matches
NEO-GENESIS (Starlight Kid, AZM, Miyu Amasaki, Suzu Suzuki & Mei Seira) def. STARS (Hazuki, Koguma, Momo Kohgo, Saya Iida & Hanan) – The biggest question, at least on my mind, coming out of Namba Grand Fight was how would Hazuki react to her sixth straight unsuccessful attempt at the Wonder of Stardom Championship? Anger? Ferocity? A renewed desire to prove herself? The answer is rather shocking as she is just…existing. Far from the fire and the ‘Hazuki-mode’ that make her the delight to watch that we are used to, she is so desperately pre-occupied that you can hardly call her the same wrestler. Hood up, lagging behind during the entrances, not performing the STARS symbol; it’s a really disconcerting yet captivating change – where is it going to lead?
It’s only when Koguma physically drags her into the ring that she takes part in the match, and her inability – or lack of desire – to fight back eventually begins to aggravate Starlight Kid. When Hazuki brings herself to hit the Codebreaker and tag out, the match pace really picks up, with a great closing sequence between Suzu Suzuki and Saya Iida, eventually leading to the former getting the pinfall with the Tequila Shot. (***1/2)
H.A.T.E (Natsuko Tora, Saya Kamitani, Momo Watanabe & Rina) def. Cosmic Angels (Tam Nakano, Natsupoi, Saori Anou & Yuna Mizumori) – There are so very few absolutes in life. However, H.A.T.E attacking before the bell before going for a nice round of chair bowling is something you can count on week in, week out. It’s the exact same here, with H.A.T.E then taking the time to target Yuna Mizumori, who they seem to have scouted out as the week link in Cosmic Angels. We briefly revisit Tam and Tora, though Tam’s knee is noticeably left out of any offence with Tora choosing to target Yuna’s leg with the Grand Death Lock instead.
Though a serviceable match, it’s the exchanges between Saya Kamitani and Saori Anou that make this a significantly more entertaining watch. An explosive set of reversals and suplexes elevate the closing sequence significantly, making one hope for a singles match between the pair somewhere down the line. However, Saya is able to sneak the win with the Frankensteiner, with Saori eating the pinfall. Following this, the H.A.T.E team of Tora, Saya Kamitani and Ruaka make a challenge for Cosmic Angels’ Artist of Stardom Championships on Sunday in Kaminoyama. (***1/2)
You can check out the Stardom roster win/loss records for 2024 right here; https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/103h_Y27csTgcS-CcBwswaj-D7hVazTC_Wn0SPn0BZBM/edit
You can check out a comprehensive run down of the Stardom Championship Histories here; https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-Dk6T0ukSXm6R8eOTQU96i4rsfoy34wnz0-rKP5mwmQ/edit
Upcoming Shows
- Thursday 19th September – Stardom Aomori 2 Days in Hachinohe, Aomori YouTree 1st Floor Multipurpose Hall, Aomori (VIDEO ON DEMAND)
- Saturday 21st September – Stardom in Sendai 2024 Sept., Sendai PIT, Miyagi (LIVE)
- Sunday 22nd September – Stardom in Kaminoyama, Yamagata Sanyu Engineer Sports & Culture Centre, Yamagata (VIDEO ON DEMAND)
- Monday 23rd September – Stardom in Niigata, Niigata City Industrial Promotion Center, Niigata (VIDEO ON DEMAND)
- Saturday 28th September – Stardom in Korakuen 2024 Sep 2., Korakuen Hall, Tokyo (LIVE)
- Sunday 29th September – New Blood 15, Saitama Tokorozawa Sakura Town Japan Pavilion Hall, Saitama (LIVE)
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