SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
STARDOM GROW UP STARS
MARCH 10, 2019
TOKYO, JAPAN AT SHIN-KIBA 1ST RING
AIRED ON STARDOM WORLD
REPORT BY HARLEY R. PAGEOT, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Onozaki said this was her first singles match in more than three months. Kashima said she wasn’t getting her first singles victory against her.
(1) ARTIST OF STARDOM CHAMPION “PINK BEAN SPROUT” SAKI KASHIMA vs. “LIONHEART” LEO ONOZAKI
Kashima won with a top rope double-stomp.
WINNER: Saki Kashima in 5:33.
(Pageot’s Perspective: Kashima won with a top rope double-stomp.)
-The next one was a four-on-two handicap match. Rina said they wanted to avoid being crushed by Kong. Kimura said four wasn’t enough and they’d need ten people.
(2) HANA KIMURA & GOYA KONG vs. STARS (Artist Of Stardom Champion Tam Nakano, Hanan, Hina, & Rina)
Hanan Shimai tried to triple-team Kong but the tweens had no effect on her. The closest the babyfaces came to victory was when Nakano was alone with Kimura. In the end Kimura bodyslammed the three sisters into a pile and Kong hit a running splash onto all three for the victory.
WINNERS: Kimura & Kong in 8:15.
(Pageot’s Perspective: With Kong challenging for the top title in a few weeks she was obviously getting the win here. Still, more fun underdog fare with the kids ping-ponging off of the monster.)
-Kyona framed this one as a preview of Tora vs. Iwatani for the WOH title. Tora said she’d be looking for a weakness to exploit. Kid said she was excited to team with Brookside again.
(3) STARS (Women Of Honor World Champion/Artist Of Stardom Champion Mayu Iwatani, Starlight Kid, & Xia Brookside) vs. JAN (Jungle Kyona, Natsuko Tora, & Kaori Yoneyama)
The Stars trio were so beloved by the crowd that JAN were actually booed at points by comparison and ended up wrestling a more aggressive, heelish style to compensate. Tora got a near-fall on Kid after all three JAN women hit body slams and top rope splashes on their opponents at the same time. She followed with a swinging side slam on Kid for the pin.
WINNERS: JAN in 11:06.
-Tora said she believed Iwatani will retain the WOH title (against Kelly Klein at ROH’s 17th Anniversary PPV). She again asked her to fight her for the belt in Korakuen Hall. They shook on it.
(Pageot’s Perspective: Solid match with the challenger going over against the youngest member of the opposing team. Stardom can get a little predictable, knowing that almost without fail the youngest member in a tag match will be the one to take the pin, but it’s logical booking in instances like this.)
-Iida said Hayashishita is small compared to her opponent from yesterday (Goya Kong) so she was going to crush her. Hayashishita said this was her third defense of the Future title. She wanted Iida to do well but she was keeping her title.
(4) SWA WORLD CHAMPION/GODDESS OF STARDOM CHAMPION UTAMI HAYASHISHITA vs. “THE LITTLE GIANT” SAYA IIDA – FUTURE OF STARDOM CHAMPIONSHIP
Iida tapped to the torture rack.
WINNER: Utami Hayashishita in 7:42 to retain the Future Of Stardom title.
-Hayashishita said she’ll wrestle Iida again any time but she needs her first singles victory first.
(Pageot’s Perspective: This wasn’t the total squash that you might have expected considering how hard Hayashishita’s been pushed and the fact that Iida’s only been wrestling professionally for less than two months and has never won a match. The only real near-falls she got were off of surprise roll-ups, though. Could the post-match be the beginning of a long story toward Iida being the one to take the Future title off of Hayashishita later this year?)
-Sumire spoke like a robot, asking if they could beat Queen’s Quest like they did yesterday. The other four tried to suppress a fit of giggles at her voice. Watanabe said it was frustrating being pinned by Miyagi yesterday so she wanted to regain momentum today ahead of their white belt match.
(5) OEDO TAI (World Of Stardom Champion Kagetsu, High Speed Champion Hazuki, Andras Miyagi, & Natsu Sumire w/Nao Yamaguchi) vs. QUEEN’S QUEST (Wonder Of Stardom Champion/Goddess Of Stardom Champion Momo Watanabe, Konami, AZM, & Bea Priestley)
AZM and Hazuki started, renewing their rivalry. In the end Yamaguchi clotheslined AZM behind the ref’s back and Sumire hit a cradle DDT for the pin.
WINNERS: Oedo Tai in 12:36.
-Kagetsu confirmed that Sumire & Miyagi challenging for the tag titles would take place at the Osaka shows next week. Sumire started to tell them about a good sandwich she had but Yamaguchi interrupted and told them to save that kind of talk for the locker room, she had an important announcement to make. She’s leaving Stardom at the end of the month. She’s going to search and find the best shortcake café in the entire world. Kagetsu said they asked her to be Oedo Tai’s manager but she’s leaving Japan for a bit. Yamaguchi closed out the show.
(Pageot’s Perspective: The match was just kind of there. Whereas yesterday’s show felt very fresh and full of new stories, this one felt like a repeat and somewhat phoned in. Yamaguchi hasn’t done much at all during my tenure of watching Stardom. I don’t know if she played a bigger role in the past but her departure from Oedo Tai won’t affect business much there at all, especially with Miyagi having joined.)
Nah, Nao Yamaguchi has never really done much as manager. She’s just a fun little side character for Oedo Tai.
She sadly suffered a severe concussion 2-3 months into her wrestling career, which forced her into the manager role in the first place.
I thought Saya-Utami was really good btw, and probably the highlight of this show. Hope Saya gets her first win soon, she’s impressive for her experience level.