STARDOM: The Maidenverse

[CakeWalker]

Pre-Show Match

- The fans would still be finding their seats in the Prefectural Gymnasium when the Noa and Saiki would begin the contest, and with the carrot hanging above their heads of a potential future contract both Joshi came into the contest with some real desire to walk away with the win.

- Reika would start the contest looking stronger, with perhaps her age playing a factor in motivating her to get the win. Saiki’s first real attempt at a finish would come when she would launch herself off the corner with a Middle Rope Moonsault DDT. Noa showed it was going to take a lot more than that to finish her off and would break a pin count after just a one count.

- Hikari would make a strong early impression as well with a move that would be a strong throwback to Mariko Yoshida as she would pivot herself body and throw Saiki over with a Wrist Clutch Back Suplex. Saiki would show a level of wrestling intelligence by rolling towards the ropes following the impact, to prevent a pin attempt from having any merit.

- It must be noted that once again Noa found herself receiving some interest from a member of Queen’s Quest, with Wonder of Stardom Champion Saya Kamitani coming out and standing in Hikari’s corner to offer some clear support. Veda Scott would bring up the fact that Hayashishita had shown an interest in Noa and perhaps if she continued on the right track she might find herself being brought in as the newest member of the unit.

- The match would end with both Joshi having been fighting on their feet and neither showing any real signs of weakness, which made for a snap finish as Reika would take hold of her opponent and bring down hard to the canvas with a Vertical Suplex Powerslam and claim the three count much to her own surprise and her opponent’s.

- The win would confirm Reika a place on the New Blood 8 card, whilst Noa would just look dejected as Kamitani would make her way towards the back without exchanging a single word with Noa.

Winner: Reika Saiki

4th February [Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium, Osaka]

1st Match

- The fans would be reminded of the exact rules for the ‘Naniwa Roulette Single Elimination Tournament’ ahead of the start of the contest:

- two wrestlers begin the match, with each match having a five minute time limit.
- a win can be achieved by pin, submission or being thrown over the top rope.
- if the match ends in a time limit draw, both wrestlers are eliminated from the contest.
- as the soon as the fall occurs,the next entrant is decided by the Naniwa Roulette
- the final winner earns the right to challenge for any Stardom title of their choice.
- a limit would be placed on all units, with a maximum of two entrants into the tournament

​

Draw​	Entrant​	Order​	Eliminated By​	Method​	Elim(s)​
1 ​	Yuna Manase​	1​	Kurumi​	Pinfall​	0​
2​	Hiragi Kurumi​	2​	Konami​	Pinfall​	1​
3​	Konami​	3​	Themselves​	Draw​	0​
4​	Thekla​	4​	Themselves​	Draw​	0​
5​	Miyu Amasaki​	5​	Tam Nakano​	Pinfall​	0​
6​	Tam Nakano​	8​	Themselves​	Draw​	3​
7​	Karma​	6​	Tam Nakano​	Submission​	0​
8​	Momo Kohgo​	7​	Tam Nakano​	Over The Rope​	0​
9​	Utami Hayashishita​	9​	Themselves​	Draw​	0​
10​	Waka Tsukiyama​	10​	Lady C​	Pinfall​	0​
11​	Lady C​	11​	Alpha Female​	Over The Rope​	1​
12​	Alpha Female​	14​	Risa Shera​	Pinfall​	3​
13​	Rina​	12​	Alpha Female​	Over The Rope​	0​
14​	Mirai​	13​	Alpha Female​	Over The Rope​	0​
15​	Risa Shera​	-​	Winner ​	-​	2​
16​	Mayu Iwatani​	15​	Risa Shera​	Pinfall​	0​

2nd Match

- With both women in the ring, Saya would have a certain level of focus and intensity about determined to not only win the Future of Stardom Championship, but continue to prove herself as one of the biggest rising stars in the Joshi wrestling scene. The match would begin slowly with the pair circling the ring and sizing each other up, before locking up in a test of strength. Ami gains the upper hand, using her strength to push Saya back into the ropes. Saya fights back with quickness and agility, hitting Ami with a dropkick and sending her stumbling back and is met with a chorus of applause from the fans.

- It wouldn’t take Ami long to recover though and she would be quick to get back on the offensive and would focus on tiring out Saya with a series of power moves in a clear tactical approach of getting Iida down onto the match before wearing her down with various submission moves. Saya though would refuse to succumb and each time escape. On the last occasion she would move towards the ropes only to spot Sourei was setting her up and instead use all her strength to pull herself over the ropes and onto the ring apron to avoid the deadly collision.

- Sourei would change her approach and start to play dirty. Sourei would use the rope for a leverage on a pin attempt and then after she was caught out by the referee for her indiscretion. She would poke Iida in the eye and kick her with a rough kick in the stomach. With Saya winded and blinded she would be left vulnerable, as Ami would take hold of Iida and wipe her out with a spinning sitout powerbomb. Ami would clearly enjoy the moment and the fact she had defended the belt, whilst it was clear that Iida had once again earned the respect of the crowd and despite the loss was looking to be even more dangerous then she had when she had previously been the champion.

Winner: Ami Sourei


3rd Match

- Mina Shirakawa would be accompanied out from the back by her fellow Club Venus members and the trio would do a signature synchronised dance routine before Mina would hug both Mariah and Xia before sending the pair back with it being clear cut she wanted to do this all by herself. On the other hand Syuri would come out by herself and would be met with jeers and general contempt from the crowd, with it clear that they very much were cheering for the leader of Club Venus in tonight’s contest.

- The match would start abruptly though, as even before the bell was rung Syuri would charge forward and connect with a vicious clear, showing no mercy at all for her adversary and her anger towards Mina was still present at a surface level. Syuri though had a really look in her eye and she would grit her teeth and charge forward with Shirakawa still on her knees and connect with a punt to the side of the head and almost manage to claim a pinfall victory, with Mina lifting up her shoulders just before the three count could be completed.

- Mina would get back into the swing of things though as she would cause Syuri to stumble backwards after connecting with a series of hard chops. As Syuri would touch her chest, she would be left stunned as she would look upwards as Mina would springboard off the top rope and nailing the leader of God’s Eye with a Flying Forearm Smash. Syuri though would show survival instincts and roll herself underneath the bottom rope to avoid suffering a pin attempt in the process.

- Syuri would fight with real intent as she would play possum slightly, by waiting below at ringside as Mina would launch herself over the ropes before being caught in mid-air by Syuri and being locked in a bearhug and squeezing the hold in tight whilst openly mocking Mina by shouting out loud taunts mocking her opponents wrestling ability in the ring. Syuri would then spin around and toss Mina into the ring barrier with a loud clatter. She would be relentless with her follow up and repeatedly stamp down on Shirakawa before rolling back into the ring. The referee would begin the twenty-cout, with Mina persevering and slide back into the ring at the count of 18.

- Syuri would do her best to to hammer down on Mina and prevent her from getting back onto her feet, but Mina would keeping on fighting and almost as if she wasn’t feeling any pain would hit Syuri with a flurry of quick strikes before running towards the the ropes at a 90 degree angle and connecting with a swinging neckbreaker. Shirakawa would move towards the ropes with a real desire to finish off the contest only to be caught in midair and dropped down hard onto the canvas with a Fishermen’s Buster. She would then lock in a chinlock, but then connect with a hard elbow show and then transition into an Armbar and would do her best to force Mina to tap - but the leader of Club Venus would reach out at full stretch and grab hold of the bottom rope to force a rope break.

- The match would enter its latter stages with both Joshi trading blows and reversals, with the audience getting up off their seats realising a finish was coming soon. Syuri would connect with a discus elbow before looking to lift Mina with a German Supex. Shirakawa would counter though and use Syuri’s momentum against her to pull off a surprise roll-up and once again claiming victory over Syuri in a somewhat embarrassing fashion. Mina would be quick to exit the ring, as Syuri would be left standing inside the square circle absolutely raging about the fact that she had been pinned once again by Shirakawa in similar circumstances.

Winner: Mina Shirakawa


4th Match

- With three Joshi battling for the prize of the High Speed Championship - Hazuki, AZM and Starlight Kid would live up to the gimmick of the championship in what would prove to be a high energy contest that would be fast paced from start to finish.

- The match would begin with Hazuki and SLK briefly teaming up, with the clear intention of taking out the champion earlier. The would connect with a double dropkick that would send AZM through the ropes and out of the ring. Hazuki and Starlight Kid would exchange words and begin to size each other up and in doing so underestimate the champion, who would be quick to recover and launch herself up onto the top rope and wipe out the pair with a diving crossbody with SLK taking the brunt of the impact and getting a taste of her own medicine as she would be bundled out of the ring.

- Hazuki and AZM would exchange strikes in the ring, with Hazuki gaining an advantage by nailing AZM with a spinning heel kick before colliding with a running elbow. AZM would show the resilience worthy of a champion as she would respond with a dropkick, before nailing Hazuki with a moonsault from a vertical base of the mat. Starlight Kid recovers and re-enters the ring, hitting a double stomp on the back of Hazuki's neck before leaping up and nailing AZM with a headscissors takedown.

- As the match progressed all three women would continue to impress with some more memorable moments. Hazuki would hit AZM with the Tiger Supex, Starlight Kid would gain some real height and nail Hazuki with the 450 Splash, whilst AZM would drop on the back on SLK with a double knee drop landing down hard on her opponent’s chest and knocking all of the wind out of her.

- The match would progress with the intensity and speed of all involved really ramping up. with all three wrestlers hitting impressive moves on each other, each trying to gain an advantage. AZM hits a Michinoku Driver on Hazuki for another near fall. The match continues with back and forth action until AZM hits a high octane final Moonsault on Starlight Kid, but to everyone's surprise, Starlight Kid rolls out of the way just in time, and AZM crashes into the mat. Everyone would look stunned as AZM ate nothing but canvas, with Hazuki nowhere to be seen. SLK would capitalise on the mistake made by AZM as she would lock in La Mistica and force the champion to tap and win the High Speed Championship. The result would mean that AZM would not be able to claim the historic record of holding the title for one calendar year.

Winner: Starlight Kid

- Despite the clear disappointment shown on AZM’s face, she showed her sportsmanship and she was a woman of honour as she would offer SLK her hand before presenting her with the championship belt.


5th Match

The Hardcore Contest between Sayaka and Suzuki would really raise the bar for the evening, with it being clear that both women were really intent on not only walking away as the winner, but doing so in impressive style. Below are some of more memorable moments for the contest:

- Unagi would grab hold of a kendo stick quite early in the match and begin to beat Suzu mercilessly with it, leaving bruises and welts all over her opponent’s body.

-Suzu though would shy away from using a weapon of her own and would trap Sayaka in the corner before smashing her over the head with a steel chair multiple times. Unagi would realise she was in danger though and would do her best to fight back and would smash the chair with a forearm smash to dislodge the chair from Suzuki’s grip.

- The two women would begin brawling at the ringside area. Sayaka set up a table with a clear intention of setting up Suzu for a powerbomb, but Suzuki would counter and instead send Unagi crashing through the table with a hurricanrana.

- Unagi hits Suzu with a DDT on a pile of steel chairs, and it looks like she might get the pinfall victory, but Suzu kicks out at two.

- The match would end with Suzuki emptying a bag of thumbtacks out onto the canvas and slams Sayaka down onto the tacks with the Michinoku Driver II before dropping down to get the pin fall and claim an important victory.

Winner: Suzu Suzuki


Co-Main Event

- The Stardom Special Tag Match would draw a lot of attention and the addition of Hoshiki and Blanchard added to the buildup of the future IWGP Women’s Championship match and was deserving of its Co-Main Event placement. The two women who were scheduled to face each other would both elect to kick off proceedings in the ring, much to the pleasure of the fans in Osaka. Kairi would look to start with quick strikes, but Mone would muscle through and use her strength to keep Kairi at bay before driving her backwards and smashing her into the corner post before tagging in Tessa. Blanchard would enter the ring with a certain swagger about her and would start aggressively.

- Tessa would focus on working Kairi down with strikes, and would seem to have a really clear plan by targeting her arm with a real intent of locking in hold and putting pressure on the hold as much as she could. As much as Kairi would try to escape, Tessa would keep the match on the mat and retain control. Kairi would manage to weave out and would look to spring herself off the ropes, but Blanchard would counter and nail Kairi with a powerbomb before tagging Mercedes back in. Kairi though would feign injury and whilst Mercedes was taunting the fans she would roll towards her partner and tag in Arisa Hoshiki - with Aria being met with a massive pop as she would step into ring for the first time as an active wrestler since retiring.

- Arisa would come in like a firework show as she would be explosive with a flurry of kicks that would seem to really catch Mone off guard, before getting a massive roar from the fans she would connect with a signature Brazilian Kick to the back of Mercedes’ neck. Mone would be quick though to realise she was in real danger as she would throw herself towards her corner and slap Tessa in with it being evidently clear that she was still wobbly on her feet after taking the brutal kick.

- Tessa and Arisa would engage in a back and forth sequence of counter and reversals with Veda commenting that a singles match between both these two men was surely on the card now considering the reaction they were getting from the fans. The sequence would eventually end with Blanchard nailing Hoshiki with a devastating stiff clothesline with no prisoners.

- After a few more minutes of fighting an all out brawl would break out with all four women spilling into the ring. The referee would do their best to control the match, but rather than obey instead the fighting would continue at ringside. Tessa and Mone would show absolutely no care for the rules and would both grab chairs and start whacking Arisa and Kairi with hard shots. The referee managed to convince the pair to drop the weapon, without ending the match, but the fighting would continue much to the referee’s clear frustration. The referee would whisper to the ring announcer, and he would inform that if both teams didn’t return to their respective corners the match would end in a no contest. This would have the right effect and the match would restart in a much more orderly fashion.

- The final moments of the match would see Mercedes Mone absolutely nail Kairi with a solid Big Boot and would look to finish off the contest by going for the pin, but Arisa would prove herself as a solid partner and dive into the ring to break up the win. Tessa though would leap over the ropes and intercept the interruption by throwing Hoshiki at the ropes before nailing her with a Cutter. Before being quick to throw her through the ropes and following through, before the referee could tell her off. With Kairi still on the mat, Mone would look very pleased with herself as she would stalk Kairi and wait for the IWGP Women’s Champion to get back to her feet before nailing Kairi from behind with ‘The Mone Maker’ which Stewart Fulton would reveal was Mercedes’ newest signature move and it was a brutal lariat that would crumple Kairi and Mone would flip her opponent over long enough to secure the victory and perhaps a suggestion of things to come when the pair were set to face each other at Battle in the Valley in a few weeks time.

Winners: Mercedes Mone & Tessa Blanchard


Main-Event

- Giulia and Tora would start the match at a slow pace. Tora was clearly very wary of not letting this opportunity slip her by, whilst Giulia couldn’t afford to lose the title on her very first defence of the belt as the likelihood was she was unlikely to get another shot at the belt if she dropped it in these circumstances. Giulia would show her sharp and cunning mind by trapping Tora into a false sense of security by allowing herself to be taken into a headlock before flipping Natsuko onto the canvas with a variation of Judo inspired double leg takedown and then swivelling around to take Tora’s back and lock in a rear naked choke. The intent was clearly not to actually claim the tap, but to squeeze the life out of Tora and exert some early pressure.

- Giulia would continue to dominate in the early portions of the contest, and would connect with multiple stiff forearm and would show no mercy as rather than allow Tora to slump to the floor would actually hold her up so she could connect more cleanly with each blow doing a large amount of damage, with the fans wondering whether the leader of Oedo Tai was really going to take a beating without having any sort of impact on the contest at all. Giulia would look as if she had finished the contest off though as she would lift Tora up into the air only to connect with the Glorious Northern Lights Bomb. Rather than go for the finish though, Giulia would showboat in the ring and pay absolutely regard to the presence of Natsuko as a total lack of disrespect with Fulton likening her behaviour to that of an animal playing with its food.

- Tora would have a strong spell in the midportion of the contest and would really seem to frustrate Giulia as she would seem to become raged and invulnerable to the champ’s attack and would charge forward and collide into Giulia’s chest with multiple knife edge chops before tossing the champ up into air and connecting with a unique Pop-up uppercut before dropping to her stomach and waiting for Giulia to stand up before clattering into her with a Spear that would result in nearfall and almost see the title change hands.

- The match would end with both Giulia and Tora going at each other with a real intensity, but it was clear in the latter portions that Giulia just seemed to have the edge and was very much living up to the gold standard expected of the World of Stardom Champion and would wrap up the contest and close the show by wiping Tora out with the Glorious Buster to retain the top title in Stardom.

Winner: Giulia​

 

[CakeWalker]

- Following Supreme Fight 2023 - it was announced that the next three episodes of Purple Moon would see the completion of the round robin stage of the Triangle Derby. Round Five would be split over Episode Six (Duo Cerezo, Joetsu, Niigata) and Episode Seven (Fujisan Messe, Fuji, Shizuoka) before the entire field would fill Korakuen Hall on Episode Eight of Purple Moon to confirm the trios who would finished first and second in both the Red and Blue Pool. The semi finals would then place a week later on the go-home show ahead of Triangle Derby - Championship Battle that would take place on the 4th March at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium #2 in Tokyo.

- A date would be confirmed for New Blood 8 - with the show booked for the 26th February coming from the Kobe International Exhibition Hall. Two matches were confirmed in New Blood Tag Team Tournament with semi final encounters of:

MakiMai [Sakurai & Itoh] vs. Milky Way [Iida & Kohgo]

Club Venus [May & Brookside] vs. Barracudas [Rina & Starlight Kid]

- Following her victory over Hikari Noa at Supreme Fight - it was now confirmed that Reika Saiki would be competed in a singles on the show and if Saiki was to win her match she would be offered permanent contract with stardom.

- It had also been confirmed that the SWA World Championship would be up for grabs and that Miyu Yamashita would be involved in the contest, with an opponent to be confirmed over the next few weeks.

- It was also confirmed that AEW x Stardom were looking to continue their working relationship past the Triangle Derby, although there was no confirmation about who would be involved and whether there would be some sort of talent exchange. However, Serena Deeb would make a comment that she was far more interested in working on her own and hoped that whatever plans were put forward involved her facing some high caliber talent on the roster.
​

 

[CakeWalker]

Episode Six - 6th February [Duo CEREZO, Joetsu, Niigata]

- Veda and Stewart would welcome the fans to the fallout show and reflect on how successful Supreme Fight had been as the first pay per view of the year and that the show had really shown Stardom’s intention for the rest of the calendar year. Stewart would then confirm that the match bookers had a busy few weeks ahead of themselves, with the results of the Triangle Derby most likely having a knock on effect on how the card for Triangle Derby - Championship Battle would be put together.

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|| MATCH ONE - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
YoungOED [Starlight Kid, Ruaka & Rina]

vs.
MaiHime & Lady [Maika, Himeka & Lady C]

Summary
YoungOED would enter the contest with an added intensity and perhaps this was due to the fact that SLK entered the match as the new High Speed Championship and her recent success seemed to have motivated Ruaka and Rina to step up their game. Maika, Himeka and Lady C were clearly thrown off by the new found fire within their opponent’s temperament and YoungOED would claim their first win in the Derby, after Ruaka would nail Maika with a Boot to the face, keep her foe down and secure a three count victory. The victory would mean that YoungOED had claimed their first point in the tournament, meaning that now only AEW’s On Tour were the only trio without a win in the tournament.

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|| MATCH TWO - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
BariBari Bombers [Giulia, Thekla & Mai Sakurai]

vs.
Queen’s Quest [Utami Hayashishita, Saya Kamitani & AZM]

Summary
With the current World of Stardom Champion on one time and the longest reigning champion in more recent years on the other, it was not at all surprising that the contest would prove to be a fiery contest. Everyone involved would fight with real intensity, although it would be noted that AZM seemed more angry than usual and being without the High Speed Championship had perhaps unlocked a more dangerous side to her personality. It must be noted that Giulia and Utami would wrestle with a degree of respect when they found themselves as the two legal women, with Veda reminding/informing fans that both women had never met each other in a Singles match before. The match would come to a finish when Kamitani would nail Thekla with a Dropkick before landing on top with Running Shooting Star Press to secure the victory and keep Queen's Quest perfect record in the Derby.

Post-Match
With the win confirming that Queen’s Quest had now confirmed themselves as one of the top two teams in the Blue Pool, it was no surprise that members of the trio would take to the microphone. Saya having secured the victory would celebrate on the fact that she partnered with two of the very best in Stardom and that if they carried on their winning ways they would find themselves leaving the Yoyogi National Gymnasium on the 4th March as the winners of the inaugural Triangle Derby. However, she fully intended on continuing to be the best version of herself and fully intended on defending her Wonder of Stardom Championship next week in Fuji. Saya would confirm that she would either defend the belt against Mayu Iwatani or SAKI and that it was 100% dependent on which of their sides won in their Derby match later on tonight.

Utami would then grab the microphone and make a point that she continued to be impressed by Giulia, and despite how noble their careers had been in recent years they never seemed to find themselves aligned to face each other and it was unlikely to be the case at Championship Battle. However, Hayashishita would suggest that perhaps next week herself and AZM could face Mafia Bella [Giulia & Thekla] in a tag team contest on next week’s episode of Purple Moon. Utami would end by hoping that Giulia would hold onto her world title belt a little bit longer, because she felt it was about time that the world was treated to a Dream Match.

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- Tessa Blanchard would cut a promo backstage in which she expressed her full intention of becoming one of the biggest names in Japan and that in a world full of second chances she fully intended on taking. Tessa would thank Mercedes Mone for giving her the opportunity to be her partner, but going forward she wasn’t interested in tag team partners or unit members and that the only person she cared about was herself. She would be frank in stating she would very much enjoy the opportunity to share the ring with Arisa Hoshiki again sometime in the future, but wasn’t in the business of begging for opponents who weren’t sure of their own futures. Instead, she suggested that Stardom’s matchmakers should find her an opponent for next week’s show because she fully intended on continuing her winning ways and claiming a first victory on Purple Moon against whoever was pitted against her.

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|| MATCH THREE ||
Gold Ship [Momo Watanabe & Saki Kashima] w/Natsuko Tora

vs.
Club Venus [Mariah May & Xia Brookside] w/ Mina Shirakawa

Summary
The contest would serve as a warm up of things to come, with the respective teams set to face each other in a Triangle Derby match on next week’s show. The pair would be joined by the thirds at ringside, with Mina and Natsuko still fresh from matches at Supreme Fight. The match would prove to be an interesting test for May and Brookside, but the New Blood prospects would play second fiddle as Momo would impress and would finish Xia off with Peach Sunrise.

Post-Match
Despite the loss, Mina Shirakawa would slide into the ring and make it clear to Mariah and Xia to hold their position and would have a confrontational stare down with Gold Ship, with Mina and Natsuko getting particularly close. Mina would make a hand gesture and Natsuko would reciprocate with the rest of Gold Ship and Club Venus exiting the ring and Shirakawa grabbing a microphone.

Mina would remind the fans that at Supreme Fight she had left with a win over the former World of Stardom Champion, whilst Tora had once again fallen at the final hurdle and been unable to get the job done when it mattered. Shirakawa would state she was relishing taking on Gold Ship next week and wanted nothing more than to personally claim the win by claiming the pinfall victory with Tora’s shoulders down on the mat and making a statement that she was the Joshi most worthy of next challenging for Giulia’s title. Tora would have very little to say, but just cross her arms and stare definitely at Mina with the fans left excited about next week’s contest in the Derby.

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- Risa Shera would be standing backstage and be joined by the rest of Prominence. Risa would state she was extremely proud of the manner in which Suzu had carried herself this past weekend and the Hardcore victory of Sayaka would be remembered for years to come. Shera would then talk about the power that came with having won the Naniwa Roulette Single Elimination Tournament and that she now had the option to challenge for any championship of her choice.

- Risa would confirm that she had been given a few weeks to decide what belt she would challenge for, and would very much be scouting all the current champions before making her decision. Shera would end by closing that she had full confidence that herself, Suzuki and Kurumi would join Queen’s Quest in advancing to the Semi Final Round of the Triangle Derby and that they only needed one more win to confirm themselves and with On Tour their opponent’s next week she completely confident they would achieve that target.

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|| MATCH FOUR ||
Cosmic Angels [Natsupoi & Waka Tsukiyama]

vs.
7Upp [Nanae Takahashi & Yuu]

Summary
Natsupoi and Tsukiyama would find themselves in a tough spot as they found themselves opposite the Goddess of Stardom Champions. Nanae and Yuu would absolutely demolish the opponents and the pair would nail their opponent’s with tandem powerbombs and double pins to secure the victory in just a matter of minutes. Stewart Fulton would comment that Neo Stardom Army had been lacking in the Triangle Derby and that if they found themselves facing a more worthy pair they would be in real danger of losing their straps.

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- Backstage Ryo Mizunmi would cut a short promo in which she would confirm that she had signed a contract with Stardom and if Tessa Blanchard really needed an opponent next week then the “Big Bro” was stepping up to the mark and fully intended the Gaijin a lesson in respect.

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|| MAIN EVENT - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
Cosmic Elite [Tam Nakano, SAKI & Unagi Sayaka]

vs.
STARS [Mayu Iwatani, Saya Iida & Hazuki]

Summary
The main-event would be action packed with both teams desperate to get some vital points, although a win for STARS was vital as they knew that another loss would end any chances of advancing in the Derby. Both teams would be super competitive though, although with two members of STARS having competed at Supreme Fight it was clear they were relying a lot on Iwatani’s stamina. The contest would end with SAKI picking up Hazuki and hitting the Brainbuster to win the contest. The victory would also mean that SAKI was now lined up to challenge for the Wonder of Stardom Championship on next week’s episode of Purple Moon.​

 

[CakeWalker]

Episode Seven 13th February [Fujisan Messe, Fuji, Shizuoka]

- Stewart Fulton would welcome the fans to the show coming from the Fujisan Messe and with the Wonder of Stardom Championship on the line in tonight’s main-event he felt that this week’s episode of Purple Moon was guaranteed to be an absolute stormer. Veda Scott would add that there was also three matches in the Triangle Derby to look forward too and in particularly that a win for the reigning Artist of Stardom Champions Prominence would confirm them a place in the Semi Finals and by doing so close shop and potentially even motivation for the other four team in the Blue Pool.

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|| MATCH ONE - TAG TEAM MATCH ||
Mafia Bella [Giulia & Thekla]

vs.
Queen’s Quest [Utami Hayashishita & AZM]

Summary
With Queen’s Quest having claimed a victory in the Derby only one week before, there was a clear desire from both Giulia and Thekla to get back to winning ways especially for the honour that came with being the World of Stardom Champion. After a stiff shot from AZM on Thekla, the pair seemed to go from a friendly rivalry to all out passionate hate in the middle of the ring and actually had to be pulled back by their partners in fear the referee was going to throw out the contest. The match ended in unforeseen circumstances, with Hikari Noa appearing at ringside and proceeding to divert Giulia’s attention. This would allow Utami and AZM to combine to nail Thekla with a Double Flapjack to claim the victory.

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- Starlight Kid would cut a promo backstage reflecting on both Supreme Fight and last week’s victory in the Triangle Derby. SLK would express her mass delight of becoming the High Speed Champion for the second time in her career and there was no doubt in her mind that the triple threat contest between herself, Hazuki and AZM had without a shadow of a doubt been one of the best contests of the night. She would continue to show her satisfaction that YoungOED had a win to show for their efforts and fully intended on ending next week with a bang and claiming a victory over STARS. SLK wished Natsuko, Momo and Saki the best of luck against Club Venus in the night’s next contest.

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|| MATCH TWO - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
Gold Ship [Natsuko Tora, Momo Watanabe & Saki Kashima]

vs.
Club Venus [Mina Shirakawa, Mariah May & Xia Brookside]

Summary
With Mina working with them in the ring, rather than watching at ringside Mariah and Xia had noticeably stepped up their game from last week to the point that Momo and Saki Kashima seemed almost thrown off by the increase in intensity the full complement version of Club Venus brought to the ring. Tora though would really prove herself to be the difference maker and being a vital force in keeping Gold Ship in the contest and coming to aid and saving her partner from a number of pin attempts throughout the contest. Mina and Natsuko would eventually find themselves as the two legal women in the contest and would throw real slugs at each other, however neither would be able to break the deadlock and the match would end in a complete stalemate with the fifteen time limit reached resulting in a draw and a point for each trio.

+ + + + + + +

- Jinny Couture would appear for the first time since New Blood 7 and would once again offer her condolences for Zoe Lucas as it seemed that Lucas still hadn’t recovered from her re-education in public decency. Couture commented that she was very much looking forward to two weeks' time in Wakayama because her warriors forged in the fires of war would be touching down on Japanese soil with the intention of making a truly destructive debut live on Stardom TV.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH THREE - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
Prominence [Risa Sera, Suzu Suzuki & Hiragi Kurumi]

vs.
On Tour [Serena Deeb, Madison Rayne & Julia Hart]

Summary
The fractured relationship between Deeb and Rayne/Hart was still widely apparent in the early stages of the contest, with Deeb seeming to refuse to actually work with her partners and just seemed willing to tolerate her team mates. However, when Deeb found herself in the ring opposite Hiragi Kurumi it was like someone had flipped a switch in her mind. Deeb would impress by dropping Kurumi on her head with an awkward looking belly-to-back suplex that would leave her wobbly with Deeb following up by charging into Kurmi with Double Running Knees and locking her in a Crossface to claim an unlikely victory and shocking loss for the reigning Artist of Stardom Champions.

Post-Match
Madison Raye and Julia Hat would lock delighted as they were announced the victors and would flood into the ring. Deeb would seem to snap that Julia and Madison were claiming some of her glory and would wrap a steel chain around her right wrist and proceed to punch the crap the pair and would leave them both bloody with the crimson running down both their faces before a team of referees and backstage staff would run into the ring and pull Serena away from her partners, who were looking in terrible shape and unable to stand on their own two feet.

+ + + + + + +

- Kairi would cut a short promo talking about how magical it had felt to team up with Arisa Hoshiki at Supreme Fight and she never thought she would get the opportunity to tag with a true legend of the sport. Kairi would sign off by wishing the best of luck to Mercedes this weekend at Battle In The Valley because she fully intended on walking in and walking out as the IWGP Women’s Champion and continuing to be the bridge that both Stardom and New Japan needed to become the very best that wrestling had to offer.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH FOUR - SINGLES MATCH ||

Tessa Blanchard vs. Ryo Mizunami

Summary
Mizunami would be visibly inspired to improve from her performance against Deeb at New Blood 7 that had resulted in a time limit draw. Tessa though came into the contest with no respect for her opponent and bent the rules to her advantage at every opportunity. The frustrations of Blanchard’s approach would clearly get under Mizunami’s skin and lead her down a path to make decision based on emotion rather than logic and would play right into a trap set up by Tessa, who would nail her opponent with a Running Clothesline before dragging Ryo back up and wiping her out with a Slingshot belly-to-back suplex to claim the victory. Tessa would look incredibly pleased with herself as her arm was raised in the air and she couldn’t help smiling as she was announced the victor.

+ + + + + + +

- Thekla would cut a promo backstage and would stand solo and wouldn’t be joined by another member of Donna del Mondo. Thekla would express her clear annoyance that outside interference from Hikari Noa had resulted in the Mafia Bellas first loss of 2023 and she wasn’t going to be forgetting that fact anytime soon. Thekla would continue by informing Noa that if she really wanted to impress and earn the favour of Queen’s Quest, then she was going to make an enemy out of Donna del Mondo in the process. And from this night onwards, she was going to have a target on her back and eventually she was going to have her chance to teach Noa a lesson in lesson and the proper way to behave when trying to make a name for yourself in a real wrestling promotion.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH FIVE - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
Abarenbo GE [Syuri, MIRAI & Ami Sourei]

vs.
Neo Stardom Army [Alpha Female, Nanae Takahashi & Yuu]

Summary
The pressure had really been on Neo Stardom Army as of late and the Goddess of Stardom Championship had left them vulnerable to challenges from all the combination of teams that had beaten them during the competition. And things would only go from bad to worse as NSA would suffer their fourth loss in row in the Derby, with MIRAI claiming the win for God’s Eye by lifting up Takahashi with a Backdrop Suplex. The win meant that Abarenbo GE were still in contention of advancing to the semi final stage of the Triangle Derby.

Post-Match
Ami Sourei would pose with the Future of Stardom Championship and take hold of the microphone and stated she fully intended to defend the belt at New Blood and had the perfect opponent in mind than her Tsikuri tag team partner Tomoka Inaba. Ami would end with the viewpoint that with God’s Eye open they looked down at the world and knew a member of their favourite unit was the future of Stardom.

+ + + + + + +

|| MAIN EVENT - WONDER OF STARDOM CHAMPIONSHIP ||

Saya Kamitani (c) vs. SAKI

Summary
Kamitani would be making her thirteenth defence of the Wonder of Stardom Championship, with Saya now having been the champion for over 400 days and counting and arguably seen as the toughest champion on the roster and SAKI seemed to realise this fact fairly on when Saya seemed to get up after almost everything that the leader of COLORS through at her. Kamitani would bring an end to the contest around the ten minute mark by locking SAKI in the Sickle Hold and forcing her to tap out. The episode would end with Saya being handed her championship belt and just staring at it with a look of real focus about her. Stewart Fulton would comment that eventually Saya was going to have to consider looking further up the card or she was in real danger of starting to stagnate and failing to maximise her full potential. ​

 

[CakeWalker]

- The match between Kairi and Mercedes Moné was the Co-Main Event of the show in California and for many viewers it would be argued as being the match of the night with both women throwing everything into the ring and acting as great ambassadors of both Stardom and NJPW on American Soil. And certainly was a match that would most definitely convince viewers to consider checking out watching Stardom on a more weekly basis, especially with both women very much part of the roster. Mercedes Moné would look incredible in what would be her first match in over nine months.

- Kairi thought would successfully defend the belt for the second time and the result of the contest would actually seem to surprise a large portion of fans at the San Jose Civic who might have presumed that Moné was going to win the belt on her debut match. Despite the bad blood that had led up to the meeting, both Kairi and Mercedes seemed to have earned each other’s respect with both women parting ways with a handshake.

- Ian Riccaboni and Matthew Rehwoldt - who had been working the commentary table, had suggested that surely these two women would meet again with a second match, most certainly something that everyone would want especially on Japanese soil.

- It would be confirmed that following her performance in Fuji, in which she had single handedly managed to claim a victory for On Tour in the Triangle Derby, Deeb had been hand picked to be Miyu Yamashita opponent for the SWA World Championship at New Blood 8. It would also be announced that Deeb would no longer be participating in the Triangle Derby and that Julia Hart & Madison Rayne would have to rely on each other in their final match of the tournament.

- It would also be confirmed at New Blood 8 - Hazuki had been selected to face Reika Saika in single competition, with Saika being offered the carrot of a Stardom contract if they were to leave with the victory. It would then be expanded that Hazukiwas the selected opponent for another reason as well - and that STARS’ leader Mayu Iwatani had stated that if Reika claimed a victory over a fellow unit member she would also be greeted with an invitation to join the unit.

The Triangle Derby has now reached its final round of pool stage with each trio having one last match before we move to the Semi Final Stage. With the standing for each pool shown below:

​

Team	Points
Club Venus​	7​
Cosmic Elite​	6​
BariBari Bombers​	4​
Neo Stardom Army​	2​
YoungOED​	2​
On Tour​	2​

- Club Venus have now officially booked themselves a spot in the Semi Final stage and will confirm themselves as the #1 seed if they manage to claim a victory over Prominence.

- Cosmic Elite will officially book themselves into the next stage with over MaiHime & Lady, whilst the BariBari Bombers will need to defeat Abarenbo GE and hope that Cosmic Elite lose just for the standings to end in a tie (with it not known how a tie breaker will be settled).

​

Team​	Points​
Queen's Quest​	10​
Prominence​	7​
Abarenbo GE​	7​
Gold Ship​	5​
MaiHime & Lady​	4​
STARS​	4​

- Queen’s Quest can now not be caught and are the only team in the Triangle Derby who have a perfect record of five wins out of five.

- Prominence and Abarenbo GE are both currently tied on 7 points each. Prominence has Club Venus, whilst Abarenbo GE are set to face the BariBari Bombers so it's anyone’s guess who will join Queen’s Quest as the top two teams in the Blue Pool.
​

 

[CakeWalker]

Episode Eight 20th February [Korakuen Hall, Tokyo]

- Stewart Fulton and Veda Scott would come off as very excited as they would introduce the fans to the final round of games in the round robin stage of the Triangle Derby, before informing the fans that before the evening’s first match the management team had brought in a global superstar to become the public face of their decision on screen. The attention would then turn towards the ring, where all the lights were off but it was clear that someone was standing in the ring. As a spotlight was turned on the fans within Korakuen would erupt, as Gail Kim would be standing in the ring dressed to impress and looking pleased with herself.

- Gail would inform the fans that she had been employed by World Wonder Ring Stardom to take on the role of Joshi Commissioner and would confirm that Fuka Kakimoto would continue to be the promotion’s General Manager and would continue to be authority in regards to all decision made by the management group off-screen. However, Gail would be bold in stating she had been tasked with making dynamic decisions on a weekly basis and until it was stated otherwise had been informed that she had the power to make decisions as long as they were done in the best interest and future success of Stardom. Kim would end by stating there were big plans in the works, and all would be revealed at Championship Battle on the 4th March.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH ONE - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
On Tour [Madison Rayne & Julia Hart]

vs.
Gold Ship [Natsuko Tora, Momo Watanabe & Saki Kashima]

Summary
The match would be a bit of a farce considering the fact that On Tour would enter the contest with a woman down and against Gold Ship they were effectively in an impossible situation of no fault of their own. Madison and Julia Hart would do the best they possibly could, but it would be no avail with Kashima picking up the win by spiking Madison Rayne with My Emblem (Inverted Double Underhook Facebuster) to end Gold’s Ship Derby with a total of seven points. Gold Ship’s hopes of advance were currently slim - although at this point nothing was impossible.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH TWO - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
YoungOED [Starlight Kid, Ruaka & Rina]

vs.
STARS [Mayu Iwatani, Saya Iida & Hazuki]

Summary
STARS and YoungOED had both had quite a hard time in the Derby and this match served as a great opportunity for one of the trios to end the tournament in style. The most memorable moment of the contest would be when Starlight Kid and Mayu Iwatani would really go hard at each other, with SLK really showing signs of becoming one of the bigger stars in the promotion’s future. The contest would come to an end with Rina nailing Hazuki with the STO to give YoungOEd the victory. Mayu Iwatani would look particularly disappointed following the loss, but would do her best to keep Iida and Hazuki in high spirits as they made their way towards the back.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH THREE - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
Neo Stardom Army [Alpha Female, Nanae Takahashi & Yuu]

vs.
Queen’s Quest [Utami Hayashishita, Saya Kamitani & AZM]

Summary
Veda Scott would make a comment during the early portions of the contest that so far during the Triangle Derby - Yuu had been pinned by Mayu Iwatani, Maika had claimed a pin over Takahashi, Hiragi Kurumi also over Yuu and MIRAI over Nanae. Scott would suggest that Stardom’s management may find themselves having quite a head scratcher in figuring out who would next challenge for the Goddess of Stardom Championships and should hope that Queen’s Quest also don’t join the list of teams arguably due a shot at the belts.

Alpha Female would come out all guns blazing in the contest though, and despite not evening needing the win Utami would continue to direct traffic and along with AZM and Kamitani would continue to be a deadly force, with Hayashishita claiming the victory for her team to complete a clean sweep in the pool stage by hitting Alpha with the Argentine Backbreaker.

+ + + + + + +

- Miyu Yamashita would cut a short promo ahead of her scheduled SWA World Championship match this coming weekend at New Blood 8 against Serena Deeb. Yamashita would state she would have preferred to face an opponent with more honour, but she wasn’t going to complain with the hand she had been dealt with and fully intended on becoming the very best version of herself and becoming a world champion that would have wrestlers all around the world wanting to challenge her for the strap.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH FOUR - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
MaiHime & Lady [Maika, Himeka & Lady C]

vs.
Cosmic Elite [Tam Nakano, SAKI & Unagi Sayaka]

Summary
Cosmic Elite came into the contest knowing the win would guaranteed themselves into the semi final round, although it was clear from the get go that MaiHime & Lady knew that if they were able to claim the win, fellow Donna del Mondo members BariBari Bombers still had a chance of advancement in the Derby. Maika and Himeak would really turn up the pressure, so much so that you would think they were personally challenging for tag team gold rather than doing a favour for their unit leader. SAKI would be targeted with it clear that she was still tired from her title challenge last week, with it be Lady C who would claim the win by nailing SAKI with a Chokeslam to give MaiHime & Lady the winner - and leave the Cosmic Elite in a state of uncertainty.

+ + + + + + +

- Gail Kim would make an announcement backstage and confirm that at Championship Battle, 7Upp would be required to make a mandatory defence of the Goddess of Stardom Championships and that next week in Wakayama a triple threat match would take place to decide which team would challenge for the belts - but that rather than team the women who had claimed victories over the champions would earn the right to challenge in singles action. She would announce Mayu Iwatani and Maika as the first two entrants - and that either Kurumi or MIRAI would be the third entrant depending on which of their trios didn’t advance in the Triangle Derby.

- Kim would then add that she expected she would be busy for the next fortnight making sure that ‘Championship Battle’ wasn’t just remembered as the finale of the Triangle Derby.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH FIVE - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
Prominence [Risa Sera, Suzu Suzuki & Hiragi Kurumi]

vs.
Club Venus [Mina Shirakawa, Mariah May & Xia Brookside]

Summary
It was not at all surprising that Prominence would wrestle with an added intensity and considering the manner in which Serena Deeb had embarrassed them last week and now had the added pressure of knowing a second loss could put their advancement out of their hand. Club Venus though would continue to show themselves as a trio to be reckoned with and Brookside and May were really proving themselves as two of the hottest arrivals of 2023 so far. Kurumi would wrestle with a level of explosiveness that had been missing last week and would correct her mistake from last week by launching herself off the turnbuckle and landing on top of Mariah May with the Nut Cracker to claim the victory.

That was until the referee would indicate that Mariah had managed to place her foot on the bottom rope at the last possible moment. In the confusion of the situation Brookside and Shirakawa would circle the ring and pull Shera and Suzuki off the ring apron, whilst Kurumi would celebrate as if she had won. With Hiragi clueless about what was actually happening, Mariah would take Kurumi legs out from underneath her with a hard hitting lower leg Lariat before using her legs to lock in a Triangle Choke and claim a massive win to her name, when Kurumi would be left with no choice but to tap out. The win put Club Venus as the outright winners of the Red Pool and meant they had finished higher than the Cosmic Elite, which had been touted as the trio from Cosmic Angels expected to have performed better in the Derby.

+ + + + + + +

|| MAIN EVENT - TRIANGLE DERBY ||
Abarenbo GE [Syuri, MIRAI & Ami Sourei]

vs.
BariBari Bombers [Giulia, Thekla & Mai Sakurai]

Summary
The final match in the pool stage of the Triangle Derby still held ramifications. A win for the BariBari Bombers would result in a tiebreak in both the Red and Blue Pool, whilst a win for Abarenbo GE would see them leapfrog over Prominence and also end the Bombers hopes of advancement too. The match would be fitting of its place in the card, with the fans being particularly excited when the current and former World of Stardom Champion found themselves sharing the same ring - with Giulia and Syuri well aware of the ability of their counterpart. This led to a level of frustration on both parties and before a real breakthrough could be made the ring bell would be rung to signal the match had ended in a draw. The BariBari Bombers would look visibly dejected, whilst Syuri, MIRA and Ami would celebrate as if they had won the match itself knowing they had now booked themselves a spot in the semi finals. The show would end with Syuri locking eyes with Giulia and blowing her a kiss in a mocking manner.​

 

[CakeWalker]

- The Triangle Derby pool stage is now complete and the Semi Final stage has now been - with both matches set to take place at the Wakayama Prefectural Gymnasium next Monday on Purple Moon (27th February - Episode Nine) The final standing for both pools are shown below:

Team​	Points
Club Venus​	9​
Cosmic Elite​	6​
BariBari Bombers​	5​
YoungOED​	4​
Neo Stardom Army​	2​
On Tour​	2​

- Club Venus wins Triangle Red with a haul of nine points, that come from achieving four wins and one draw. Shirakawa, May and Brookside looked very impressed for a trio who hadn’t even partnered as a group until the first match of the Derby.

- Cosmic Elite finished in the second seed, although with two wins and two draws, they only lost twice during the Derby. Their qualification means that both teams representing Cosmic Angels have advanced to the semi final round.

​

Team​	Points​
Queen's Quest​	12​
Abarenbo GE​	8​
Prominence​	7​
Gold Ship​	7​
MaiHime & Lady​	6​
STARS​	4​

- Queen’s Quest finished in top spot in Triangle Blue with a clean sweep of six wins from six and as things stand are most likely seen as the favourites to win the entire Derby.

- Abarenbo GE claimed the second seed after finishing with three wins and two draws - with their only loss being against Club Venus who they will face in the Semi Finals.

- It is noted that if either Prominence or Gold Ship had been members of Triangle Red, with the points they earned they would have qualified instead of Cosmic Elite.

The Semi Finals matches are as follows:

R1: Club Venus [Shirakawa, May & Brookside] vs. B2: Abarenbo GE [Syuri, MIRAI & Sourei]
B1: Queen’s Quest [Hayashishita, Kamitani & AZM] vs. R2: Cosmic Elite (Nakanko, Sayaka & SAKI]

- This weekend (26th February) at the Kobe International Exhibition Hall - the next edition of the New Blood Series will take place and so far the following five matches have been confirmed:

New Blood Tag Team Tournament
#1 MakiMai [Mai Sakurai & Maki Itoh] vs. Milky Way [Saya Iida & Momo Kohgo]

New Blood Tag Team Tournament
#2 Club Venus [Mariah May & Xia Brookside] vs. Barracudas [Rina & Starlight Kid]

Contract Match
#3 Reika Saiki vs. Hazuki

SWA World Championship
#4 Miyu Yamashita vs. Serena Deeb

Future of Stardom Championship
#5 Ami Sourei (c) vs. Tomoka Inaba

- Two additional matches have now been added to the card for New Blood 8.

- Julia Hart will make her Stardom singles debut this weekend against Yuna Manase. It has been confirmed that Julia will be returning to the United States following her match against Manase. Hart’s involvement on the card seems to suggest that there is an intention for Julia to return to Stardom at some point in the future.

#6 Julia Hart vs. Yuna Manase

- The final match on the card sees two women who fell short at New Blood 7, invited back for a second chance to impress as Killer Kelly will take on Marika Kobashi.

#7 Killer Kelly vs. Marika Kobashi

- It has also been announced that Rebel X Enemy will be making an appearance at New Blood 8, although it is unknown how many of the four members will be present or what the reason for their visit to Stardom is - but one would expect this is a clever booking decision by the management team to get more butts on seats and more people to potentially purchase the stream. ​

 

[CakeWalker]

New Blood 8 - 26th February

New Blood 8 would begin with Veda Scott and Stewart Fulton welcoming Gail Kim to the commentary table with it being confirmed that the Joshi Commissioner would be sitting at the table for the entire evening and share her insights on those prospects that were featured on this evening’s card. The biggest match of the evening was pencilled as the SWA World Championship match between Miyu Yamashita and Serena Deeb and all the ramifications for either winner would be discussed in some depth. It would then be announced that the show’s opening contest would be the match between Julia Hart and Yuna Manase.

+ + + + + + +

Killer Kelly would appear backstage and would cut a promo ahead of what would be her second match on Stardom this year.

Killer Kelly: At New Blood 7 - I embarrassed myself by tapping out to someone who I would consider as an inferior opponent in Hikari Noa and if we cross paths again I can promise everyone that I will leave the victor. Tonight though - Marika Kobashi you might be a member of the Neo Stardom Army - but I am a one woman warrior and I can’t wait to shove my mouth guard into my mouth and kick Yuna’s fucking head in and convince whoever is making the booking decisions to make me a more permanent member of this company.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH ONE - SINGLES MATCH ||

Yuna Manase vs. Julia Hart

Summary
- Yuna Manase was relatively fresh having not been involved in the Triangle Derby, but it would be clear leaving the gates that Julia Hart looked 1000% better than she had whilst competing in the tournament and this factor almost seemed to catch Yuna off guard. Stamina would be the real difference maker in the contest, and Yuna would take advantage of a fatiguing Hart by picking her up and bringing her down hard onto the mat with the Suzuki Dynamic (Double Chickenwing Facebuster) to pick up the three count victory.

Winner: Yuna Manase

- Manase and Hart would share a respectful moment after the bell and the pair would shake hands before giving each other a traditional bow.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH TWO - TRIAL MATCH ||

Marika Kobashi vs. Killer Kelly

Summary
- Both Marika and Kelly were yet to be given permanent deals, although it would be a fair assumption that whoever out of the pair who suffered a second trial loss in a row was less likely to see themselves invited for a third consecutive match in a row at a New Blood Event. And it would be noticed very early into the match that Killer Kelly was wrestling with a real fire to her step and it was clear that she really did intend on leaving tonight with nothing less than a win.

- Marika and Kelly would both impress the fans and Gail Kim would actually make a comment that if both these women were capable of wrestling at this level week in and week out some of the current members of Stardom could find themselves in trouble. Kobashi would almost claim a victory by locking in Kelly into a Front Necklock, but Marika’s arms seemed to fail her, which would allow for Kelly to escape the standing submission move.

- The contest would end in a clinical fashion with Killer Kelly colliding into Marika with a Shining Wizard, before setting her opponent up with a masterful Superkick to claim the W.

Winner: Killer Kelly

+ + + + + + +

Saya Iida and Momo Kohgo (Milky Way) would cut a short promo ahead of their scheduled New Blood tag team match later tonight against MakiMai later on in the evening.

Saya Iida: The performance of STARS during Triangle Derby was disappointing, and finishing as the bottom ranked trio in Triangle Blue - so it is my deepest desire that tonight Momo and I will advance and show that there is nothing more important in life than being a star.

Momo Kohgo: The Triangle Derby was tough to watch, and even more so because I was forced to watch from the sidelines. Next year I hope that I will get a chance to impress in the Derby, tonight though me and Saya are going to prove that we are number one and future of Stardom tag team wrestling.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH THREE - CONTRACT MATCH ||

Reika Saiki vs. Hazuki

Summary
- Reika entered the ring with the knowledge that if she won her match tonight, not only would she earn herself a permanent contract with Stardom, but also become the newest members of the STARS unit. Hazuki though, who had had a frustrating time so far in 2023 really needed to put on a strong performance tonight so as to just save face.

- Hazuki would come at Reika hard and would show no sign of taking it easy on the hopeful signee with blunt blows and kicks, which would surely be remembered if the two were actually to become stablemates. Hazuki would connect with an impressive Codebreaker, but Saiki would show she wasn’t just another rookie by kicking out of the pin attempt.

- Reika though would turn up the heat and really put the pressure on Hazuki when she would take her to the mat with a back-to-belly suplex before locking in a Camel Clutch and would look like a woman possessed by clinging on tight and showing no signs of letting go. The submission would only be ended when Hazuki would crawl towards the ropes and eventually grab on by enforcing a rope break.

- The match would break the ten minute mark before a finish would take place and Saiki would look noticeably rattled perhaps from the pressure of the contest, but would make a mistake that would create an opening that would allow Hazuki to lift Saiki up and pummelled her down with a Full Nelson Slam to claim the victory.

- Saiki would look particularly frustrated when she got back to her feet, whilst Hazuki would look particularly pleased with herself - but would still show the respect fitting of the STARS faction by offering her hand to Saiki with both Joshi honouring each other with a shake of hands.

Winner: Hazuki

+ + + + + + +

Maya Yukihi and Maikia Ozaki would appear backstage wearing branded Rebel x Enemy merchandise, with the leader of the group Yukihi addressing the camera.

Maya Yukihi: I will be the first to admit that Stardom has looked particularly strong during this new year, and I would be lying if I said I hadn’t been jealous not being part of the Derby because it looks like everyone has had a lot of fun and if things go my way I will very much be pushing for Rebel x Enemy to take part in next year’s tournament. However, I am present here at New Blood 8 to talk of other matters. I hear whispers of Mina Shirakawa, Suzu Suzuki and even Kairi as potential opponents to challenge Giulia for the World of Stardom Championship. But I want to throw another name into the hat - Maya Yukihi!

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH FOUR - FUTURE OF STARDOM CHAMPIONSHIP ||

Ami Sourei (c) vs. Tomoka Inaba

Summary
- The match would begin in an unusual fashion, as rather than two separate entrances the entire God’s Eye unit would come out as one ensemble, with Syuri, MIRAI and Konami remaining at ringside as neutral observers not offering particular support to either of their respective unit members.

- Ami and Tomoka would look like they were working in an exhibition match rather than a competitive match, and at times it didn’t even seem as if the two women were actually fighting each other for a championship belt. Eventually though, it would be Inaba who would be the first to turn up the pressure which would completely catch Sourei off guard as she would connect with a fine tuned Tokoka Kick that would leave everyone watching stunned. Everyone would stand in complete shock however as Inaba would manage to secure a three count following the move and by doing so become the new Future of Stardom Champion.

Winner: Tomoka Inaba

+ + + + + + +

Kairi would appear on camera in what looked like a recorded promo package where she would sport the IWGP Women’s Championship over her shoulder.

Kairi: In America, Mercedes Mone gave me a good run for my money but I think I reminded the world that it is my face that is printed on the most important currency in this sport - championship gold. If the booking decisions were up to me I would have organised a second match between myself and Mercedes, but unfortunately that is not the case and Mone is not available to face me at the upcoming Championship Battle on the 4th March and as things stand I don’t know if I will have a challenger that will meet the conditions required by both Stardom and New Japan. However - I wanted to talk about something else. Something more important. Something that a Pirate Princess I have realised is needed if I am to thrive and that is family. A group of people I can surround myself with and put my faith in. So I am offering the hand of friendship to either those without a unit of their own or perhaps those who feel they are undervalued or even want a new challenge. My door is open and I will be happy to welcome you into the Knuckle Bunny Death Squad. Punch Punch Pow Mofos!

The package ends with the logo belonging to the new unit flashing on the screen.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH FIVE - NEW BLOOD TAG TOURNAMENT ||
MakiMai [Maki Itoh & Mai Sakurai]

vs.
Milky Way [Saya Iida & Momo Kohgo]

Summary
- Maki Itoh had been massively over with the fans since her first appearance on Stardom and as expected the fans in the Kobe International Exhibition Hall would hold banners and scarves showing their appreciation for Itoh and Donna del Mondo.

- Momo and Saya would find themselves in a good routine with fast tags and would control a portion of the contest with Kohgo hitting Sakurai with a Swandive Dropkick that would almost result in a finish, if it hadn’t been for Maki diving through the ropes to break up the pin by way of a shoulder tackle.

- The match would reach its conclusion with Iida and Itoh in the ring. Itoh would wipe Saya’s feet from under her before hitting her very own version of the Kokeshi (Diving Headbutt) as she would ramp up the fans with her own pose before grabbing hold of Iida and twisting her into the Itoh Punish to get Iida to tap and see MakiMai advance to the finals.

Winners: MakiMai (Maki Itoh & Mai Sakurai)

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH SIX - NEW BLOOD TAG TOURNAMENT ||
Barracudas [Rina & Starlight Kid]

vs.
Club Venus [Mariah May & Xia Brookside]

Summary
- The second semi final proved to be extremely competitive, and despite Mariah May and Xia Brookside having a massive match in the Triangle Derby on the next episode of Purple Moon the British pair would pull out all the stops to show their real desire to impress and earn their right to challenge for the gold. Club Venus would put a real exclamation point on the match early on when they would pull off an assisted Rolling DDT that would almost result in Starlight Kid down for the three count.

- The new High Speed Champion would remind everyone what it meant to be in possession of the title though, and would pay homage to Tazz the Tasmanian Devil in the level of energy and back and forth she would bring to the match in terms of explosivity that when May and Brookside weren’t working as a fluid team would make them look particularly vulnerable. This would be most noticed when SLK would find herself doing a rope walk only to springboard off and land on top of May with an impressive Moonsault.

- The contest would end with Xia Brookside launching herself off the turnbuckle despite not being the legal participant and wiping out Rina with the Diving Codebreaker, with Mariah May claiming the cover to see Club Venus advance to the championship match, with the date yet to be announced.

Winners: Club Venus (Mariah May & Xia Brookside)

+ + + + + + +

Risa Shera the leader of Prominence would make an appearance backstage, despite the fact that the unit seemingly had no reason to be present at the event.

Risa Shera: Tonight has been full of talent, potential and possibility. The future looks very bright and full of hope. Being part of prominence is just about being important or famous, but also noticeable and considering what I have witnessed this evening - I would like an open invitation to Killer Kelly to join me, Suzu and Hiragi and join our little clique because from what I witnessed earlier tonight you would fit right in.

+ + + + + + +

|| MAIN EVENT - SWA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ||

Miyu Yamashita vs. Serena Deeb

Summary
- The SWA World Championship would be contested in the main-event for the second New Blood event in a row, although this time everyone was really hoping that this contest would end cleanly so that the title belt would finally find itself into the hand of a new holder. It would also be noticed that the audience seemed to be filled with TJPW and AEW merchandise, with there being no doubt in a lot of people’s minds that both women were far from being fully fledged Stardom representatives just yet despite their intent or contract statuses.

- Deeb would start the contest strong and focused, with her game plan pretty obvious with a clear desire in wearing Miyu’s legs down with the intent of eventually locking in the Serenity Lock. With Yamashita aware of this clear tactic though, Miyu would wrestle very cautionary and there would be a level of respect present as both women would circle each other and be quick to roll out of the way at a moment’s notice.

- Deeb would eventually manage to trap Miyu in a corner and would place Miyu’s left leg on the ring rope before jumping off the middle rope and dropping down hard on the ankle and really looking to have left Yamashita in a bad way. Deeb would then continue to put the leg under pressure, by illegally twisting it around the middle rope and squeezing so hard that Yamashita would scream in sheer pain.

- Yamashita wouldn’t give up though, despite the fact that it was clear that she was struggling to put weight on her left ankle. However, she would be met with a massive cheer from the crowd as she would nail Deeb with Crash Rabbit Heat but because of her leg would land awkwardly and end up bumping into the referee knocking the official off their feet.

- As if one cue, a member of the audience where a luchador mask would leap the barrier and take hold of a steel chair and slide into the ring before nailing the chair into the back of Miyu’s head before lifting her up and dropping her down onto the chair with a brainbuster. Deeb would realise what was taking place, and would crawl over towards Yamashita to earn the victory with the referee clueless about what had just happened.

Winner: Serena Deeb

- As Serena Deeb would be presented with the SWA World Championship, the masked individual would remove their mask revealing themselves as Alex Windsor and look incredibly pleased with themselves as Miyu would wince on the floor in clearly a large amount of distress.
​

 

[CakeWalker]

Episode Nine 27th February [Wakayama Prefectural Gymnasium, Wakayama]

- The episode would begin with a cold opening starting directly in the office of Joshi Commissioner Gail Kim. Kim would inform the fans that the night opening contests would be the semi finals of the Triangle Derby, flipping the script and stating the reason was to give the winning teams extra recovery time whilst also giving her more freedom to book the rest of Championship Battle this coming weekend.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH ONE - TRIANGLE DERBY SEMI FINAL ||
Club Venus [Mina Shirakawa, Mariah May & Xia Brookside]

vs.
Abarenbo GE [Syuri, MIRAI & Ami Sourei]

Summary
When Club Venus and Abarenbo GE had met during the pool phase, with it being Mina Shirakawa who had claimed the victory by nailing Syuri with the Glamourous Driver. Syuri would really be a driving force in the contest, and make sure to remind MIRAI and Sourei just how dangerous Mina was every time the leader of Club Venus was in the ring. Ami Sourei would wrestle with a strong level of confidence and it was hard to think that she had only lost the Future of Stardom Championship just a few days ago, not that this would stop Xia and Mariah from openly mocking the fact that Sourei was now without the strap. The match would reach a conclusion when MIRAI would show some dominance and crash Mariah May into the ring corner with a shoulder barge before nailing her with a Backdrop Suplex to claim the victory and see the representatives of God’s Eye advance to the Triangle Derby Final.

Winners: Abarenbo GE (MIRAI, Syuri & Ami Sourei)

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH TWO - TRIANGLE DERBY SEMI FINAL ||
Queen’s Quest [Utami Hayashishita, Saya Kamitani & AZM]

vs.
Cosmic Elite [Tam Nakano, SAKI & Unagi Sayaka]

Summary
Queen’s Quest came into the contest with an unblemished record having won every single match during the pool stage, and so had all the pressure and expectation resting on their shoulders and it was clear that Utami, Saya and AZM looked anxious and this would lead to a few mistake being made that would almost result in near falls. This would lead to Cosmic Elite wrestling with extra vigour, that would result in the emotion of the contest reaching an extra level of intensity. Utami would take hold of SAKI and wipe her out with the Argentine Backbreaker, only for the referee to indicate that Tam Nakano had manage to tag herself in and would blindside Hayashishita with a discus elbow before lifting her up and dropping her down onto the canvas with Dodon.tam to secure the win and setting up a Triangle Derby Final between Cosmic Elite and Abarenbo GE this Saturday.

Winners: Cosmic Elite (Tam Nakano, SAKI & Unagi Sayaka)

Post-Match
As the Cosmic Elite would celebrate their victory, and seemingly having done the unlikely by ending the Queen’s Quest impressive run. The trio would be joined in the ring by Abarenbo GE with the two teams sharing the win for the cliché stare down before taking part in a photo opportunity in what was scheduled as this weekend’s main-event.

+ + + + + + +

- Risa Shera would stand backstage and look very pleased with herself, before announcing that she had been hoping to add one addition of Killer Kelly to the group - but after a number of conversations over the rest of the weekend she was happy to welcome not just one, but two of the newest members of the Prominence group. Out from the left of the camera Killer Kelly and Billie Starkz would enter into the frame and proceed to embrace Shera as they were officially welcomed into the fold. Before they would be joined by Hiragi Kurumi and Suzu Suzuki.

- Suzu Suzuki would then claim the focus of the camera and mention the fact that she noticed that Mina Shirakawa was without an opponent this coming weekend, especially now that Club Venus had dropped out of the Triangle Derby and would suggest that this coming weekend the pair face each other in a tag team contest. She would bring Billie Starkz and Mina could bring anyone she wanted - because laying all the cards down on the table Suzu felt that eventually a match between herself and Mina would determine who may challenge for the World of Stardom Championship at a future date.

- Killer Kelly would also add that she had hoped that a close friend of hers would consider coming to Japan and hopefully impress Shera enough to also be given a chance to be part of the best unit in Stardom and hopefully would be able to win some titles of her own at a later date.

+ + + + + + +

- Tessa Blanchard would feature in a backstage promo in which she would announce that the contracts had been signed and a match was now in place to take place between herself and Arisa Hoshiki in an Exhibition Match. Tessa would talk about how much she had enjoyed being on opposite sides of Arisa at Supreme Fight, and hoped that this Exhibition Match would cement herself in the minds of the Stardom management as a really contender for the future and perhaps also convince Hoshiki to return to Stardom on a more permanent basis. Tessa would close by declaring her interest to be part of a unit and that as big as her ego was, she wasn’t established enough in Stardom to be creating a group of her own and that if any one of the many groups were interested in having her then she would be open to suggestion.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH THREE - TAG TEAM MATCH ||
Donna del Mondo [Thekla & Maki Itoh]

vs.

Rebel x Enemy [Maika Ozaki & Ram Kaicho]

Summary
The match would be interesting spectacle as it would see Thekla and Maki Itoh work together for the very first time as a tag team pairing and really find themselves in a baptism of fire as they would face the more experienced pairing of Ozaki and Kaicho who had been part of Rebel x Enemy for now a number of years, and it was not at all surprising that with experience came an element of comfortability and reliability as it would be Ram Kaicho who would claim a win for her team after she would finish off Maki Itoh with the Rainmaker.

Winners: Rebel x Enemy (Ram Kaicho & Maika Ozaki)

Post-Match
Following the contest, Rebel x Enemy would be joined by Maya Yukiki and Rina Yamashita. Yukiki would express her pleasure at her group claiming an important win in enemy territory, but would request the Giulia come out from the back as perhaps two women could look into each other’s eyes and discuss the future.

Giulia would answer the call and admit she had heard what Maya had said at New Blood 8 and that after a conversation with Fuka Kakimoto and Gail Kim it had been determined that at Stardom World Climax 2.0 on the 1st April, Giulia would defend the World of Stardom Championship against Yukiki. This news seemed to particularly thrill Maya, whilst the fans would be excited in regards to the fact that the next major event had just been announced. Giulia would then announce that a match between both unit had been booked at this weekend’s event and that Rebel x Enemy would take on Donna del Mondo in a four-on-four tag team contest and that Giulia intended on bringing Maki Itoh, Mai Sakurai and Thekla to the ring with her.

Thekla who had now joined Giulia on the entrance ramp would interject and inform Giulia that she had a different opponent in mind for herself this weekend, but that if she got her wish granted by management she had been speaking with Maki prior to the match and had a perfect person in mind that could be considered as a potential future member of the group.

+ + + + + + +

- An angry and incensed Miyu Yamashita would feature in a segment that had clearly been recorded following New Blood 8 had gone off air. Yamashita would make her intentions clear and would demand that this coming weekend she be given a chance to face Alex Windsor in a grudge match and that all rules be off the table, because now she had been denied not once but twice but the same woman and fully intended on getting her revenge in the most violent of fashions. Miyu would make the point that she didn’t really understand why Windsor had so much anger towards her, especially when she was no longer even in possession of the belt she had won from Alex - but that where she currently stood she saw no other option than to take Windsor off the board permanently.

+ + + + + + +

|| MATCH FOUR - SIX MAN TAG MATCH ||
Cosmic Angels [Rina Amikura, Yuko Sakurai & Waka Tsukiyama]

vs.
Oedo Tai [Natsuko Tora, Ruaka & Momo Watanbe]

Summary
For the three members of Cosmic Angels, the last few months in Stardom had been quiet for them having not been participants of the Triangle Derby and it was clear that this came with a freshness and a level of determination to impress now that they had been booked. Oedo Tai though we're not a unit to lie down and despite having a combination of two different teams that had taken place in the Derby would wrestle in a very fluid manner. For a moment it looked like the Angels were going to pick up the win after Tsukiyama would connect with an impressive Dropkick into Watanabe, only for Momo to kick out at the last possible second. The nearfall would give Momo the push she needed and she would throw Waka over with Peach Sunrise to pick up the W.

Winners: Oedo Tai (Momo Watanbe, Natsuko Tora & Ruaka)

+ + + + + + +

- The camera would cut backstage where Jinny Couture looked very pleased with herself as she would pull apart a leather jacket to reveal a very noticeable logo on her t-shirt.

- Jinny would inform the fans that ‘Draggernauth’ were the newest unit in Stardom, and she had high hopes that it wouldn’t take long for the group to take control once they had a full complement of loyal soldiers to the cause. Jinny would then introduce the first member of the unit as ‘The Warforged’ with Heidi Howitzer & Max Impaler entering into the frame and looking mean and scary. Couture would state that they were willing to work for the highest bidder if the money made sense and the outcome aligned with their own, before putting Neo Stardom Army on notice and making it known that she fully intended on wiping NSA off the board.

+ + + + + + +

- Gail Kim would make an announcement backstage and inform the fans that this weekend Serena Deeb would defend the SWA World Championship against her former trios partner Madison Rayne, and would state that she couldn’t think of a better reason to book a match than personal hatred and revenge and wished both women the best of luck knowing that the pair would be returning the States as this would be the final booking of their tour in Japan.

+ + + + + + +

|| MAIN EVENT - GODDESS OF STARDOM #1 CONTENDER’S MATCH ||

Mayu Iwatani vs. Maika vs. Hiragi Kurumi

Summary
The unique number one contender’s match served as a great match to close the show and the go-home show before the conclusion of what would be the first chapter of 2023 for Stardom at Triangle Derby - Championship Battle. The match would be an interesting encounter, with all three Joshi motivated by the fact that the tag champions had never looked more vulnerable than they had in the last few months. All three women would battle it out and intense contest, with neither holding anything back - but it would be Maika who would claim the victory after hitting Iwatani with the Maika Cutter, before forcing Kurumi to tap by locking in the Cross Armbreaker confirming that MaiHime would challenge for the Goddess of Stardom Championships this Saturday at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo.

Winner: Maika​

 

[CakeWalker]

This Saturday Night at the Yoyogi National Gymnasium, Tokyo - Stardom hosts Championship Battle that will determine the winner of the first ever Triangle Derby. The following matches are currently confirmed for this weekend's event:

#1 Triangle Derby Final
Abarenbo GE (Syuri, MIRAI & Ami Sourei) vs. Cosmic Elite (Unagi Sayaka, SAKI & Tam Nakano)

#2 Tag Team Match
Prominence (Suzu Suzuki & Billie Starkz) vs. Cosmic Angels (Mina Shirakawa & Natsupoi)

#3 Exhibition Match
Tessa Blanchard vs. Arisa Hoshiki

#4 Grudge Match
Miyu Yamashita vs. Alex Windsor

#5 SWA World Championship
Serena Deeb (c) vs. Madison Rayne

#6 Goddess of Stardom Championship
7Upp (Nanae Takahashi & Yuu) (c) vs. MaiHime (Maika & Himeka)

It would be announced on wwr-stardom.com that the reason that Thekla had removed herself from selection from the Donna del Mondo vs. Rebel x Enemy match was because she had requested a one-on-one match with Hikari Noa and had stated that if Noa hadn't got involved in the match between Queen's Quest and the BariBari Bombers then she personally felt that herself Sakurai and Giulia would have gone on to win the match and qualify for the semi finals. Thekla would add that Joshi Management had added a stipulation that the match would have a ten minute time limit, with the Austrian thinking that ten minutes would be more than enough time to send a clear message.

It would also be revealed that Thekla's hand picked choice to take her position and work alongside Donna del Mondo was none other than TJPW star Yuki Arai - with Thekla making a statement that she felt that Arai had all the qualities needed to become a future member of DDM.
​

 

[CakeWalker]

Joshi Commissioner Gail Kim has announced that it had been originally scheduled for a House Show to take place the day before Championship Battle at Korakuen Hall. However, in a more strategic and financially driven decision an event named 'The Day Before' will take place the night before - with a massive seven matches added to the card that will include both Saya Kamitani and Starlight Kid defending the Wonder of Stardom and High Speed Championship belts respectively. It has been suggested that 'The Day Before' branding may be used for future events, so the success event could lead to major ramifications later down the line. Confirmed matches are expected to be announced over the next few days.​

 

[CakeWalker]

3rd March [Korakuen Hall, Tokyo]

1st Match

Cosmic Angels (Mariah May, Xia Brookside Waka Tsukiyama, Rina Amikura & Yuko Sakurai)
vs.
Oedo Tai (Ruaka, Rina, Saki Kashima, Fukigen Death & Karma)

[Oedo Tai and Cosmic Angels will meet in a 10-Joshi Tag Team Contest, that sees a combination of participants in this year’s Derby as well as those that were forced to sit on the sidelines. With ten different Joshi involved in this match, it is guaranteed that this match will be chaotic and the perfect contest to kick off proceedings at ‘The Day Before’ with more pressure arguably on Oedo Tai’s shoulders considering the poor showing from both Gold Ship and YoungOED, whilst the inclusion of May and Brookside perhaps could act as inspiration role models for the other three members of Cosmic Angels present in contest.]

2nd Match

STARS (Mayu Iwatani, Saya Iida, Hazuki & Momo Kohgo)
vs.
Queen’s Quest (Utami Hayashishita, AZM, Hina & Miyu Amasaki)

[Queen’s Quest members Hayashishita, Saya Kamitani and AZM were very much the team of the Triangle Derby, as they went on to win every match in the pool stage - only to have their dreams crushed when they faltered at the final hurdle by losing to Cosmic Elite. Utami and AZM are joined by Hina & Miyu Amasaki to take on the full complement of STARS, who as of late have been collectively on a poor run of form apart from Mayu Iwatani who still has a shot at any title of her choice to her name - with it being confirmed that she will make the decision at Championship Battle. In the meantime, this match will all be about bragging rights.]

3rd Match

MNTN Dew (Yuna Mizumori & Yuna Manase)
vs.
God’s Eye (Konami & Tomoka Inaba)

[At New Blood 8, Inaba became the new Future of Stardom Champion after claiming a victory over fellow God’s Eye member Ami Sourei. For all four women, the beginning of the year has seen the Triangle Derby dominate the match card and so this match will give them a chance to show management that they deserve to be given more recognition and booked on a more weekly basis. One thing is certain both team respective unit leaders will be watching on, as with an ever changing landscape and the Forbidden Door seeming to be creeping open job security has never been less secure.]

4th March

Oedo Tai (Natsuko Tora & Momo Watanabe)
vs.
Muscle JK Strikers (Marika Kobashi & Reika Saiki)

[Natsuko Tora as the leader of Oedo Tai has had to see both Gold Ship and YoungOED falter and fail to advance during the Triangle Derby, as well as missing out on becoming the World of Stardom Champion at Supreme Fight last month. Tora is joined by Gold Ship partner Momo Watanabe and will surely be looking to get Oedo Tai back into winning ways. Their opponents are Muscle JK Strikers, with Reika Saiki being one two unsigned talents that have really been impressive during the first part of the year. Saiki who last went against her former partner Kobashi at New Blood 7 - will see the two women team up for the first time since 2019 and perhaps this approach will increase Reika’s chance of earning herself a permanent contract.]

5th March

[Starlight Kid will make her first defence of her second reign as the High Speed Champion against newly signed Killer Kelly who was confirmed on the last episode of Purple Moon to be one of two new signings to have joined Prominence. This will be the first time that the pair have ever faced each other in singles competition and so many feel that this could arguably be one of the more memorable moments of the show, although many feel that this will be another almost moment for Kelly who has only had one championship reign during her eight year professional wrestling career. SLK though will not want to become a transitional champion though, so this will not be an easy fight for either of the pair.]

Co-Main Event

[Saya will make her fourteenth defence of the Wonder of Stardom Championship, although it is unlikely in the run up to the Championship Kamitani felt that she would actually be defending her belt, as Queen’s Quest had been odds on to win the entire Derby. Kurumi has never challenged for a singles title during her time with Stardom, so is really being thrown into the deep end by facing a woman who will have held the Wonder of Stardom Championship for 430 days when both women meet this coming Friday night at ‘The Day Before’ and has been booked as the Co-main event.]

Main Event

[The leader of Prominence Risa Sera takes on the leader of Neo Stardom Army Alpha Female in what has been designated as the first main event in the chronology of ‘The Day Before’ with hopes for everyone in the wrestling community that there will be more to come. Both women would have hoped for better performances in the Triangle Derby, but all of that will be behind the pair of them when the match official raises the arm of the victor at the end of the night at Korakuen Hall.]

+ + + + +

- Bold the winner if you wish to make predictions. Predictions will be combined with predictions for Championship Battle.

- Winner of the contest, will get to select three trialist to appear on future Stardom events.

Match Number	Competitors
Match One​	Oedo Tai/Cosmic Angels​
Match Two​	Queen’s Quest/STARS​
Match Three​	MNTN Dew/God’s Eye​
Match Four​	Oedo Tai/Muscle JK Strikers​
Match Five​	Starlight Kid/Killer Kelly​
Match Six​	Saya Kamitani/Hiragi Kurumi​
Main Event​	Risa Sera/Alpha​

 

[CakeWalker]

4th March [Yoyogi National Gymnasium, Tokyo]

1st Match

[At New Blood 7, after Hikari claimed a victory over Killer Kelly - Utami Hayashishita expressed an interest in Noa with it seeming that Queen’s Quest may have a potential interest in adding Hikari to their unit at a later date. Noa would appear at ringside during a match between Queen’s Quest and the BariBari Bombers, with Thekla taking exception to this distraction and blaming Noa for distracting Giulia which led to her being wiped out with a Double Flapjack from Utami and AZM in what had been Mafia Bellas first tag match of the year. Thekla has demanded to face Noa in a singles contest, but management has only allowed for a ten minute time limit. Will this be a case of survival or will Hikari show Thekla that she has a lot more to offer than being a prospect.]

2nd Match

[Although their backstories may be very different, Tessa and Arisa have one thing in common and that is that 2023 is the year of the comeback with their returns both having taken place at Supreme Fight in the tag contest that saw Arisa team up with Kairi, to take on Mercedes Mone and Tessa Blanchar, with the latter going on to claim the victory after Mone nailed Kairi with ‘The Mone Maker’. Following the victory Tessa confirmed her desire to secure a permanent position on the roster and claimed a victory over Ryo Mizunami on her Purple Moon debut. It was later confirmed that an Exhibition Match was booked between Blanchard and Arisa Hoshiki, that would not affect either of their wrestling records and would remain strictly off the bookings. However, with Tessa committed to the cause and Hoshiki seeming to be flirting with the idea of returning full time this match is garnering a lot of attention.]

3rd Match

Prominence (Suzu Suzuki & Billie Starkz) vs. Cosmic Angels (Mina Shirakawa & Natsupoi)

[At Supreme Fight both Suzu Suzuki and Mina Shirakawa achieved standout solo victories. Mina managed to get a roll-up victory over former World of Stardom Champion Syuri, whilst Suzu took on Unagi Sayaka in a hellacious Hardcore match that ended when Suzu nailed Sayaka with a Michinoku Driver II onto tacks on the floor. Both these wins have left many feeling that one if not both of these Joshi stars will in the near future find themselves challenging for the World of Stardom Championship, and it seems to have become apparent that Suzuki has realised she is going down the same path as Mina so perhaps this tag team challenge is just the first chapter of an impending feud between both women. Suzu will have new signing Billie Starkz, whilst Mina has chosen a fresh Natsupoi to be her second. This could surely be a preview of things to come over the next few months - and is something the fans are very much hoping will become reality.]

4th March

7Upp (Nanae Takahashi & Yuu) (c) vs. MaiHime (Maika & Himeka)

[There can be no denying that Neo Stardom Army performed poorly during the Triangle Derby, with Nanae and Yuu finding themselves being pinned multiple times. A unique triple threat match was booked featuring all the women that had pinned the Goddess of Stardom Champions, and it was Maika who won the number one contender contest to earn MaiHime a shot to challenge for the tag team championships. Recent form would suggest that 7Upp have never been more vulnerable, with Maika and Himeka surely motivated by this fact and wanting to place further gold into DDM’s trophy cabinet.]

5th Match

[All the way back on the first episode of Purple Moon, Yamashita made her on-screen Stardom debut and made her intentions known that she very much had her eyes locked on the SWA World Championship. It wouldn’t take long for a match to be booked between Miyu and Zoe Lucas with the two set to battle for the belt. However, at New Blood 7 Zoe Lucas would be attacked backstage and instead Yamashita would be booked to take on Marvelous wrestler Takumi Iroha. Yamashita had looked likely to win the contest and claim the belt on her Stardom debut, only for Alex Windsor to illegally attack her and end the match via DQ. It would emerge that Windsor was coming for Miyu, because she blamed her for embarrassing her when Yamashita had beaten her for the EVE Championship only one night after winning it.

A few weeks later it was confirmed that Yamashita would get a second chance to challenge for the SWA World Championship, with Serena Deeb being booked as her opposite number. However, at New Blood 8 a masked Alex Windsor would attack Miyu with a steel chair and cause Yamashita to miss out once again with the attack being unsighted by the referee and leading to Deeb becoming the new SWA World Championship. This has resulted in Miyu requesting a grudge match between Windsor, that will see the two women battle with no rules in place that is guaranteed to be a truly violent contest.]

6th Match

Donna del Mondo (Giulia, Maki Itoh & Mai Sakurai) & Yuki Arai
vs.
Rebel X Enemy (Maya Yukihi, Maika Ozaki, Ram Kaicho & Rina Yamashita)

[At New Blood 8, Maya Yukihi with Ozaki as backup would make an appearance as representatives of Rebel x Enemy on Stardom programming. Yukihi would express her desire of at some point challenging Giulia for the World of Stardom Championship. At the go-home show in Wakayama, Giulia would confirm that at Stardom World Climax 2.0 on 1st April she would take on Yukihi with the title on the line. As a prelude DDM were set to take on Rebel x Enemy, in a Stardom vs. Ice Ribbon contest. Thekla, though, pulled out of the match and instead chose Yuki Arai as her replacement. No one really knows what Arai’s position is, but no doubt this match will be an interesting encounter, especially considering the fact that she seemed an unlikely recruit for DDM.]

7th Match

[During the Triangle Derby, one of the more talked about points was the disappointing performance of ‘On Tour’ which was made up of AEW’s Serena Deeb, Madison Rayne and Julia Hart. Throughout it was clear that Deeb had no love or respect for her partners, and eventually would simply refuse to team up with them after attacking both her partners. Deeb now the SWA World Championship, has been booked to take on Madison Raye in a match fuelled by revenge and disdain and with both women set to remain to the states it is now guaranteed that one of the touring women with return to AEW with the SWA World Championship in their possession.]

Main Event

Abarenbo GE (Syuri, MIRAI & Ami Sourei) vs. Cosmic Elite (Unagi Sayaka, SAKI & Tam Nakano)

[The Triangle Derby has proven to be a massive success and has been a massive draw for wrestling fans and seemed to have been the perfect way to kickoff the new year, with it being confirmed that the Triangle Derby will in fact return next year and there is hope that potentially more teams will take part in the trios tournament. Abarenbo GE and Cosmic Elite are the last team standing after advancing from the pool stage and then winning their respective semi final matches. It has also now been confirmed that the winning team will earn a future match to challenge for the Artist of Stardom Championships.]

+ + + + +

- Bold the winner if you wish to make predictions. Predictions will be combined with predictions for The Day Before.

- Winner of the contest, will get to select three trialist to appear on future Stardom events.
​

Match Number​	Competitors​
Match One​	Thekla/Hikari Noa​
Match Two​	Tessa Blanchard/Arisa Hoshiki​
Match Three​	Prominence/Cosmic Angels​
Match Four​	7Upp/MaiHime​
Match Five​	Alex Windsor/Miyu Yamashita ​
Match Six​	DDM & Aria/Rebel x Enemy​
Match Seven​	Serena Deeb/Madison Rayne​
Main Event​	Abarenbo GE/Cosmic Elite​

​

 

[CakeWalker]

3rd March [Korakuen Hall, Tokyo]

The fans would be greeted by a special commentary pairing of Chris Charlton and Ayako Hamada, who would both exclaim how much they were looking forward to being involved in this unique event and that tonight was all about showing the world that there was a better way to host a kickoff hour and just actually package it as a whole stand alone event and both Chris and Ayako would be very open in stating that they looked forward to be involved in future event if Stardom management would have them back in a humorous manner.

1st Match

Cosmic Angels (Mariah May, Xia Brookside Waka Tsukiyama, Rina Amikura & Yuko Sakurai)
vs.
Oedo Tai (Ruaka, Rina, Saki Kashima, Fukigen Death & Karma)

- With five representatives for each unit involved in the contest, it wasn’t at all surprising that this match was incredible messy and at times would be incredibly hard to follow, which would be advantageous when both teams would bend their rules to their advantage with Fukigen Death and Karma [Oedo Clown Town] in particularly taking this approach for Oedo Tai. It would also be noticed that Mariah and Xia were looking absolutely incredible with the two women having had a really impressive two months since signing with Stardom, and it was noticeable that Club Venus flags would be waved throughout the contest, with the sub-unit having earned a lot of attention as of late.

- With bodies scattered all over ringside, the match would end in a fitting fashion with Ruaka and Rina teaming up and nailing Amikura with high and low lariats to secure the win and give Oedo Tai an important win.

Winners: Oedo Tai

+ + + + + + +

2nd Match

STARS (Mayu Iwatani, Saya Iida, Hazuki & Momo Kohgo)
vs.
Queen’s Quest (Utami Hayashishita, AZM, Hina & Miyu Amasaki)

- A large amount of focus would be put on the respective unit leader in this contest, with many feeling that Hayashishit and Iwatani in many ways were far lower down on the card than anyone had been expecting, especially in regards to Queen’s Quest who had faltered at the final hurdle and hadn’t earned their way into the Championship Battle main-event. For Hina and Miyu Amasaki this was a perfect opportunity to impress and in the early portions of the match the pair would really put the pressure on Momo Kohgo looking to steal a quick victory.

- The fans would be treated to a memorable minute when Mayu and Utami were the two legal women in the ring, although neither would really express a position of dominance over the other before a tag would take place and the match would continue at a fast pace, with the commentary team making note that this match was running a lot more smoothly than the night’s opening contest.

- The match would end with Saya Iida and AZM were the two legal entrants in the contest, with Queen’s Quest saving face from what had been a disappointing week as AZM would claim the victory by taking out her opponent with the acrobatic Triple Jump Crossbody to take the victory.

Winners: Queen’s Quest

+ + + + + + +

3rd Match

MNTN Dew (Yuna Mizumori & Yuna Manase)
vs.
God’s Eye (Konami & Tomoka Inaba)

- Tomoka Inaba drew a massive amount of attention as she entered the match, which wasn’t at all that surprising as she was the new Future of Stardom Champion and was getting a lot of attention on that basis and wasn’t all that surprising that Mizumori and Manase would target the champion at every opportunity as a win over a belt holder always came with its benefit. Konami though would show herself as a dedicated partner and would come to the aid of Inaba at every turn, with it clear that there was great chemistry between the pair and Chris Charlton would suggest that perhaps the pair would be a good team to challenge for the New Blood title at some point in the future.

- Konami would actually really go on to impress and twist Mizumori like a pretzel before connecting with the Triangle Lancer and forcing the submission to give God’s Eye the win. Konami would look incredibly pleased with the manner in which she won and would be met with a massive hug from Inaba as the pair would enjoy the victory.

Winners: God’s Eye

- With God’s Eye celebrating the victory, MNTN would shuffle towards the back with Manase helping her partner towards the back. The pair would be blindsided by Heidi Howitzer and Max the Impaler of Draggernauth would grab both women up and slam them down hard onto the entrance ramp with tandem powerbombs before just standing over the two and just looking dominant as they would stand over the pair looking menacing and just outright scary. Neither Inaba or Konami looked like they had any interest in getting involved in what was happening on the entrance stage, which was clearly smart thinking.

+ + + + + + +

4th March

Oedo Tai (Natsuko Tora & Momo Watanabe)
vs.
Muscle JK Strikers (Marika Kobashi & Reika Saiki)

- It was certainly noticeable that the Muscle JK Strikers hadn’t teamed together for a few years, because there was a noticeable level of chemistry missing between the pair especially when compared directly to what Tora and Watanabe brought to ring and very early into the contest it was evident that the the Gold Ship pairing had an early advantage and would almost claim a quick win with a combination of Watanabe hitting the Peach Sunrise followed by Tora launching off the turnbuckle with a Diving Leg Drop, with Kobashi saved by Reika Saiki diving through the ropes to stop the count.

- Saiki would seem to get the very best of Kobashi, and Marika would really impress by actually work down Momo to the point that she would almost manage to get a submission win by hitting the Running Up Bulldog Headlock with Watanabe managing to pull herself towards the rope for the official to enforce the rope break.

- Gold Ship though would eventually fully gain control of the match, and Natsuko Tora would take one for the team and bundle into Reika with a Spear as she was running along the ring apron, that would allow Watanabe to punch Marika directly into the throat before climbing up onto the turnbuckle and nailing Kobashi with a Diving Somato to pick up the win.

Winners: Oedo Tai

+ + + + + + +

5th March

- This being SLK’s first defence in her second reign as champion came with so much more pressure than at any time during her first run, and considering this was Kelly’s first match as a contracted member of Stardom the pressure was multiplied even more based on this factor alone.

- It was also clear that Kelly had picked up on this fact and would come in with a gung-ho attitude and held nothing back as soon as the bell was rung, with the fans clearly thrilled at the level of intensity of the contest they were being treated to in the early portions of the contest. Whether it was an exchange of Kelly countering with a series of rapid strikes or SLK being quick to use every element of the ring to gain an aerial advantage the match would quickly become an explosive encounter.

- A memorable exchange would occur in the middle of the contest. Starlight Kd would pull off an impressive lighting-quick arm drag takedown that would send Killer Kelly crashing down with quite the impact. KK wouldn’t allow herself to be grounded for too long though and would kip herself back onto her feet only to take SLK’s leg out from under her with a precise leg sweep before transitioning into a head scissor hold and would thrust her hips aggressively really putting a lot of pressure on her opponent’s neck.

- The match would end in the same fast paced fashion the match had begun in and Killer Kelly would connect with a well placed Pele Kick, before rebounding off the ring ropes and would charge forward and connect with a perfectly timed Penalty Kick. SLK would remain on her knee though and would look defiant as she would scream at her opponent for another. Kelly would charge forward once again, only for Starlight Kid to use Kelly’s momentum against her and pull off a Standing Shiranui before connecting with a Standing Moonsault to land on top for the pin count and successfully retain the High Speed Championship.

Winner: Starlight Kid

+ + + + + + +

Co-Main Event

- The Wonder of Stardom Championship contest had all the potential of being a great contest, but from very early on into the contest it became clear that there was only ever going to be one winner with the champion Kamitani absolutely dominating her opponent from start to finish in what would be a short lived contest that wouldn’t last much longer than five minutes. The match would end with Saya moving like a knife through hot butter as she would dart into Kurumi with a perfectly horizontal running drop kick, before bringing her full weight down hard onto Kurumi with a Handstand Double Knee Drop that would knock all the wind of her opponent. Saya would then take a few steps before charging forward at her ground opponent and land on top with a running Shooting Star Press only to transition her body into a Sickle Hold arching her back and forcing Kurumi to tap under the sheer pressure of the submission manoeuvre.

Winner: Saya Kamitani

+ + + + + + +

Main Event

A single match with nothing to be lost but provide would supply the audience with a number of memorable moments as the leader of Prominence took on the leader of the Neo Stardom Army in the first ever main event in the newly found ‘The Day Before Series’. Below are just a few memorable moments that took place in the matchup:

- Alpha Female would use her power and strength to her advantage early on into the contest and proceed to do a lap of the ring and send Sera into the each of the ring posts with four heavy handed choke bombs that would look like they had done really damage, and a lesser opponent would have been finished after receiving such brutality.

- Sera’s knees were two of her strongest weapons in her arsenal and would introduce her weapons to the leader of NSA very early on into the contest whether it was leaping knee smashes, driving her knees down on her floored opponent or launching herself off the turnbuckle and connecting with double knee drops. Eventually, Alpha Female would become increasingly more aware of Sera tactics and would begin actively acting to counter and protect herself from such moves.

- Sera would change her tune and connect with multiple strikes to the legs, that could be likened to a woodsman cutting down the trunk of a large redwood. Risa would then use all of her strength to haul her opponent up onto shoulder and pummelled her down onto the canvas with Ayers Rock, although would only manage to get a two-count before Alpha Female would lift her shoulders up to end the count.

- Alpha Female would act like an animal on pure instinct as she would smash into Sera’s chest with Machine Gun Punches before wrenching Risa up into the air only to bring her down abruptly with a sitout Omega Slam before turning her opponent over with clear intention of going for the cover. That, however, isn't what would happen next.

- Jinny Couture of newly formed Draggernauth would slide into the ring and be met with confused looks from both the referee and a frustrated looking match official who would do their best to get Jinny to leave the ring. This would serve as a distraction for Jessicka Havok to roll into the ring and grab hold of an unsuspecting Alpha Female by the neck and lay her out with the Harlot Slayer (Chokeslam) only to then fall through the ropes, just as Jinny would finally exit the ring. Sera would crawl towards Alpha Female dazed and confused but drape her arm over the NSA leader and secure a three count by the benefit of outside interference.

Winner: Risa Sera

- The show would end with Chris Charlton and Ayako Hamada stating the obvious that it seemed that the war between Neo Stardom Army and Draggernauth was well and truly underway, and it seemed that Jessicka Havok was potentially the newest member of the freshest unit in Stardom.​