October 20, 2018: The 8th GODDESSES OF STARDOM ~Tag League Tournament~ (Daytime)

8th GODDESSES OF STARDOM ~Tag League Tournament~ (Daytime)
October 20th (Sat) Osaka, Sekaikan (Attendance: 215 people = Sold out)

The Osaka daytime and nighttime tournament kicked off with the first-ever singles match between Shiki Shibusawa and Ruaka. Both are making their first appearance in this year's Goddess of Stardom Tag League. They won't face each other in an official match because they are in different blocks, but this singles match is still a stepping stone to the future. Neither of them has yet secured a win in the league, so both will be looking to gain momentum and report good news to their partners

　The two men exchanged a clean handshake and the match began. In a test of strength in the lock-up, Ruaka pushed Shibusawa into the ropes. Shibusawa went for a dropkick, but Ruaka resisted. After an exchange of elbows, Ruaka landed a complete shot. Shibusawa went for a submission, but Ruaka escaped. Ruaka overwhelmed Shibusawa with a series of shoulder tackles. When Shibusawa kicked out, Ruaka threw him into the corner and charged. Shibusawa dodged and landed a series of elbows followed by a neckbreaker. Shibusawa climbed to the corner, but Ruaka knocked him down. Ruaka hit a fisherman suplex, but it was only a two count. Ruaka dashed forward, but Shibusawa hit a dropkick. Ruaka threw Shibusawa into the corner, but Shibusawa hit another dropkick. He followed up with a corner spear and a face crusher. When Ruaka kicked out, Shibusawa went to the corner. Shouting "Take this!", he delivered a missile kick followed by a DDT. The referee counted to three, and Shibusawa won the opening match

　Queen's Quest has split into two teams for a tag team match. In the tag league, Konami & AZM are entered as one team and Bea Priestley & Chardanay as the other, but this time Konami will be partnered with Chardanay and AZM with Bea Priestley for a match between teammates. The official match between Konami & AZM vs. Priestley & Chardanay will be held on November 3rd in Shin-Kiba. With the official match scheduled for the final stages of the league, what kind of strategies will unfold?

　AZM and Chardaney start the match. Chardaney raises her hand and smiles provocatively. AZM pretends to respond but then lures her into rope work. AZM leaps forward but Chardaney holds on. Chardaney catches AZM's crossbody and delivers a backbreaker. Konami stomps on AZM repeatedly, drives her into the corner, and stomps on her face. She takes down the reserve Priestley and calls in Chardaney for a double corner attack. Konami lands a dropkick from the front but Priestley breaks it up. Chardaney throws AZM into the ropes. AZM leaps forward and rolls her up with a Manji Gatame. Priestley lands a series of elbows on Chardaney but is countered with a knee. Chardaney throws Priestley into the ropes, but Priestley dodges and delivers a knee followed by a back drop. Chardaney kicks out and Priestley hits a lariat. Chardaney dodges and delivers a double arm suplex. Konami lands a series of middle kicks on Priestley. Priestley sees a counter kick and passes to AZM. AZM attempts a diving foot stomp, but Konami counters. AZM attempts a hurricanrana, and with Priestley's help, rolls her up for the pin. AZM charges forward, but Chardaney hits a spinebuster, and Konami applies a reverse Boston crab. Priestley tries to break it up, but Chardaney catches him in the reverse Boston crab. Konami lands a series of strikes followed by a sliding kick. Five minutes have passed. Konami signals her finish, but AZM rolls her up for the pin. AZM attempts a thrust kick followed by a brainbuster. Konami resists, and AZM takes her back. However, Priestley's high kick is dodged and hits him by mistake. Konami attempts a high kick, but AZM raises her shoulder. Konami then goes for a Triangle Lancer. Chardaney prevents the breakup, and AZM gives up. The match between teammates ends with Konami and Chardaney emerging victorious

High Speed ​​Champion Marie Apache has joined the team, teaming up with Hana Kimura, whom she met in Mexico, and they will face the team of Hanan & Reo Onozaki in their first official match. Hana, who has left Oedo Tai, will challenge Kagetsu for the Red Belt at Korakuen Hall on October 23, and Kagetsu is excited by Hana's rule demands, saying that she will have "the most brutal match in Stardom history." Given these circumstances, it remains to be seen what Hana's mindset will be going into the league matches. It seems unlikely that the Hanan & Onozaki team will hold them back, but the focus will be on how well they can function as a team

　As Hana is called last, the Hanan team attacks and the match begins. However, Marie catches Hanan. Hana shouts, "Don't you come out!" and sends Onozaki outside the ring. The Hana team delivers a double big boot, and Hana covers with one knee. Hana body slams Hanan and stomps on her face. Hana slams Hanan into the corner and stomps on her throat. She puts her right arm on the top rope and delivers a big boot. Marie attacks Hanan's arm and applies a submission hold. Hana throws Onozaki, who tries to interfere, out of the ring. Marie puts Hanan in a reverse figure-four leglock. Hana prevents Onozaki from interfering and taunts Hanan by grabbing her hair. Hana tags in and delivers a chop to Hanan's arm. Hana pulls Hanan up and delivers a series of elbows. Hana also catches Onozaki, who has come in. Marie also enters and they both throw her into the ropes. After taking down both of them, Marie and Hana perform a hanging ceiling hold in a duel. Hana charges forward, but Hana stands firm and knocks her down with a single elbow. Hana holds Hana to the ropes and attacks with Marie. When Hana tries to dash, Onozaki blocks her from the apron. Hana attempts a shoulder throw, but Hana doesn't allow the tag. Hana throws Hana, but it's only a two count. Onozaki grabs Hana and calls Hana over, slamming her into the corner. The two deliver a series of elbows, and then elbow Marie who is waiting on the sidelines. Onozaki hits Hana with a face crusher. Marie comes in, but Hana interferes. Onozaki tries to pin Marie, but Marie manages to break up the hold. Onozaki tries to roll up Hana, but Marie breaks up the pin as well. Onozaki calls Hana over for a double attack, but is hit with a dropkick. Hana hits Onozaki with a brainbuster. Onozaki counters, and Hana hands the ball to Marie. Marie takes a series of elbows from Onozaki and gets back up. Marie slams Onozaki and then hits a somersault drop. Marie prepares for a Gory Bomb, but Onozaki reverses and rolls her up. As Onozaki charges, Marie delivers a thrust kick. Hanan tries to break it up, but Hana sends her out of the ring. Marie lifts Onozaki up and performs an Atlantica. Onozaki gives up, and Marie's team gets off to a winning start

The team of Momo Watanabe and Utami Hayashishita lost to Mayu Iwatani and Saki Kashima at Shin-Kiba on October 14th, leaving them with a record of 1 win and 1 loss. In a sense, this match will be a chance for them to bounce back. As they are considered strong contenders for the championship, they cannot afford to suffer another loss. Their opponents are Starlight Kid and Natsumi from STARS. Natsumi, Marie's daughter, is returning to Stardom for this tournament. This will be her first tag team match with Kid, and they will be facing each other in an official match. How much she has grown during her hiatus in Japan, and how well she can showcase that growth in a tag team match with Kid, will likely be key to their success in the league

　Natsumi also entered wearing an overmask. Momo volunteered to go first, and Kid's team sent out Natsumi. Natsumi made the first move, trying to entice Momo. When Momo responded, Natsumi went for a submission hold. However, Momo refused and went to the ropes. Natsumi then grabbed her leg and applied a submission hold. Momo escaped, and Natsumi grabbed her neck. Momo endured and delivered a soccer ball kick. She kicked from the front as well, but Natsumi countered. Momo delivered a series of stomps, then pulled Natsumi up and delivered a body slam. Natsumi countered, and Momo tagged in Utami. Utami delivered three shoulder tackles followed by a body slam. Natsumi countered, and delivered a series of elbows. She followed up with a series of corner attacks, but Utami dodged them. Natsumi then grabbed Momo's arm, applied a submission hold, and rolled her up. Kid delivered a dropkick to Utami. Momo interfered, but Natsumi broke it up and delivered a series of elbows. Kid and Utami performed a hurricanrana together. Natsumi ties Momo to the third rope. Kid puts Utami on the ropes and delivers a 619. She then follows up with a standing moonsault press and charges forward. However, Utami throws her over her shoulder. Momo hits Kid with a series of dropkicks in the corner and a brainbuster. Kid hits a swinging DDT and a crossbody. Momo stops it and delivers a back suplex followed by a kick to the face. Five minutes have passed. Momo charges at Kid but Natsumi cuts in and slams her to the mat. Kid hits Momo with a Shiranui followed by a spinning frog splash. Momo kicks out and Kid declares she's going for the finish and goes for a hurricanrana. Utami cuts in and exchanges elbows with Natsumi. Kid jumps on Momo but Utami cuts in and Momo hits a Soumatou. Kid manages to kick out and Momo hits a missile kick, followed by a missile kick from Utami. Momo hits a B-Driver and Kid can't kick out for the three count. Momo's team gets their second win

Kagetsu & Hazuki and Natsu Sumire & "Session Moth" Martina will face off in an official league match between teammates from the same stable. Kagetsu's team has two wins, and Natsu's team has one win. In other words, Oedo Tai has yet to suffer a loss in the tag team league. For that reason, the way both teams play in this match will be closely watched. Will Natsu's team give up two points to help Kagetsu's team win the championship, or will they go for the win to secure the championship for themselves? Natsu's actions will likely greatly influence the outcome of the match

　The Oedo Tai entered the ring as a group of four. Kagetsu and Hazuki also went to the same corner as Natsu and Martina. Then ring announcer Ando reminded them, "You're in the red corner." They split into two corners to receive their introductions. Natsu was wearing a leopard print outfit she bought in the city. Kagetsu walked over to Natsu's side and said, "Wait a minute, let's shake hands." Natsu confirmed that it was a handshake and cautiously shook hands with the opposing team. Kagetsu and Natsu were the first to enter. After a lock-up, Kagetsu went for Natsu's arm, but Natsu countered. They exchanged some loose elbows, and their chops also became half-hearted. Then Hazuki cut them off with a paper fan and said, "Be serious!" Martina, who seemed to understand, entered and teamed up with Natsu. Martina threw both of them, but ended up throwing her partner and the referee as well. It looked like they were going to do the Kin-chan Jump, but only referee Duke Sado jumped, prompting the Oedo Tai to comment, "That's lame." Natsu lies down on the mat and says, "There's no point in doing this with family, so let's end it here." Kagetsu goes for the pin, but Natsu reverses and goes for the cover, saying, "I got it!" Kagetsu kicks out and Hazuki comes in, but gets hit with a big boot from Natsu. Martina's clothesline is dodged, but she catches Natsu's rope work and does a backflip. She drives them into the corner, but Kagetsu breaks it up. Five minutes have passed. Natsu and Martina drive Kagetsu and Hazuki into the corner and perform a Bronco Buster in succession. They both pile on top of Hazuki. Martina catches Hazuki's charge and slams her down. Natsu goes for Hazuki, but Kagetsu comes in and they do a double sliding senton. Natsu kicks out and Hazuki charges. Natsu rolls her up and hits her with a big boot. Natsu hits a brainbuster hold, but only gets a two count. Hazuki hits a swan dive missile kick and then a big boot. She slams her forward again, but it's broken up. Kagetsu and Hazuki do a double two-stage kick. Hazuki tried to provoke Natsu, but Martina sprayed her with alcohol. Natsu then pinned Hazuki, and the referee counted to three

Comment from Oedo Tai

Summer: "We won."

Martina: "We won."

Natsu: "Thanks to Maru-chan, I really appreciate it."

Kagetsu and Hazuki enter

Kagetsu: "Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, that's not what we agreed on! Hey, Natsu. You said you'd give way. There's nothing left. Nothing at all. Maru-chan drank too much. What's going on? We were way ahead of everyone else."

Natsu: "It was a spur-of-the-moment thing, I guess... I just couldn't help it... I just couldn't help but get greedy and want to win..."

Kagetsu: "So, is it safe to say it was just a spur-of-the-moment thing?"

Summer "Hi"

Kagetsu: "You're reflecting on it, right?"

Natsu: "I am reflecting on my actions."

Kagetsu: "What about 'I'm sorry'?"

Hazuki: "Say you're sorry? I did something wrong..."

Natsu: "I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry!"

Kagetsu: "Okay, I'm reflecting on it, so that's fine. All you have to do now is win all the remaining matches."

Hazuki: "That's right."

Kagetsu: "Okay then. Let's do our best tonight. Let's consider this a reconciliation. So, let's go for a drink for now."

Natsu: "Let's go!"

Four people left the field

Natsu: "...I'm gonna win the championship."

*The 18th champion team, Mayu Iwatani, Saki Kashima, and Tam Nakano, successfully defended their titles for the first time

The Artist of Stardom Championship match will take place in the middle of the tag team league tournament. The former champions, Jungle Kyona, Tora Natsuko, and Yoneyama Kaori, have requested a rematch, and a return match has been arranged. The champions are STARS, Iwatani Mayu, Kashima Saki, and Nakano Tam. Iwatani and Kashima, along with Nakano, captured the Artist of Stardom Championship on September 30th in Nagoya, becoming double champions for a time, but lost the Goddesses of Stardom Championship to Kyona and Natsuko in the evening show. The match is set up as a STARS vs. JAN battle for the team championship, but will the title change hands again in this match, or will Iwatani's team defeat Kyona's team? This title match will also be a prediction of the future of the unit rivalry

　Nakano and Natsuko clash as the starters. They exchange blows and shoulder tackles. Natsuko comes out on top, and Yoneyama, Natsuko, and Kyoka deliver body presses one after another, and a body press all three at once. However, STARS quickly turn the tables and hit Natsuko with a triple dropkick. Nakano hits Natsuko with a leg lariat and a soccer ball kick. Iwatani drops a dropkick to Natsuko's back. After taking down the opposing team, she corners Natsuko and stomps on her. She also lands a dropkick from the front, but Natsuko kicks out. Kashima puts Natsuko in an armbreaker. She attacks her left arm and stomps on her while she's on the top rope. Nakano hits a heel drop and then exchanges elbows with Natsuko. Natsuko lands a series of elbows, but Natsuko retaliates with a double chop. Natsuko dashes forward, but Nakano gets there first. However, Natsuko hits a leg lariat. Nakano body slammed Natsuko without letting her tag in, then stomped on her with one leg, then both. When Nakano slapped Natsuko, she charged, but Natsuko, who had anticipated it, hit her with a spear. Five minutes had passed, and Kyoka had tagged in and forcibly pinned Nakano. As Kyoka charged, Iwatani interfered and broke up the hold. Iwatani threw Kashima into the corner and charged, but Kyoka hit all three of them in succession with shoulder tackles and then a lariat to Nakano. Kyoka charged at Nakano, but Nakano hit a low kick followed by a series of middle kicks. Kyoka endured, but Nakano hit a face crusher. Iwatani hit a series of elbows, but one hit from Kyoka sent Iwatani collapsing. Kyoka hit a low lariat, but it was only a two count. Kyoka then locked Iwatani in a figure-four neck lock. JAN prevented STARS from interfering, but Iwatani reached the ropes. Kyoka pulls Iwatani up and swings her around in a sleeper hold. Kyoka pounces on the downed Iwatani but is broken up. Kashima dodges Kyoka and Natsuko's clothesline and lands a face crusher, then her brainbuster on Kyoka lands on Iwatani. Iwatani lands a diving foot stomp on Kyoka from the corner, but Yoneyama manages to break it up. Iwatani pulls Kyoka up and takes her back. Kyoka resists and lands a powerful slap. Kyoka charges forward but Iwatani is down. Kyoka pulls Iwatani up but is taken from behind and hit with a German suplex. Kyoka kicks out and 10 minutes have passed. Iwatani dashes forward but Kyoka's lariat sends her spinning. Both are down and tag each other. Kashima and Yoneyama face off. After an exchange of elbows, Yoneyama lands a knee. She slams Kashima into the corner and attacks her face. Yoneyama goes for a double armlock, but Kashima counters with a facebuster. Natsuko cuts off My Emblem's attempt. Natsuko and Kyoka deliver a pincer shoulder tackle. Triple powerbomb attempt is cut off. Iwatani, Nakano, and Kashima exchange kicks, and a triple thrust kick is also landed, but Kyoka cuts off their rocket attempt. Kyoka and Natsuko deliver a corner attack to Kashima, followed by a double wrist lock from Yoneyama, but it's only a two count. Kyoka and Yoneyama combine for a face crusher. It looked like it was finished, but it's cut off. Iwatani and Nakano charge in, but Kyoka and Natsuko send them flying with a shoulder tackle. JAN slams STARS onto the mat and delivers a diving body press from three directions. However, Kashima kicks out of Yoneyama's cover. Yoneyama goes for a diving senton, but Kashima dodges and rolls her up for a last-ditch effort. This gets the three count, and STARS has defeated JAN. Yoneyama leaves the ring alone. After the match, Natsuko and Nakano got into a scuffle

　Kashima: "Hello everyone in Osaka, we were able to successfully defend our title for the first time. It was tough. (To my partner) Wasn't it tough? Was it easy? Was it easy? It was easy, it was easy. The time span was short, which surprised me. We just won, and now they're challenging again. It hasn't even been a month. They might come again. But even if they do, we will definitely defend our title again."

Nakano: "I want them to keep defending their title... no, I want them to keep challenging me. I want to keep defending my title, so I want them to keep challenging me. Who's going to challenge me next? Come on, challenge me!"

Kashima: "Tam-chan, how many digits is your defense count?"

Nakano: "First, I want to reach double digits. I want to defend my title as many times as possible."

Kashima: "Mayu-chan, a word."

Iwatani: "Good evening, everyone in Osaka! ...Good afternoon, everyone in Osaka! I was able to defend the title today, so I will continue to protect this belt as STRAS, so I hope you will come to Osaka again in the future."

Kashima: "We also have a show tonight, so please come and join us. STARS won today, so can STARS wrap things up? Believe in the present, shine tomorrow, We are STARDOM!"

STARS' comments

Kashima: "Is the camera rolling? Yes, it is."

Nakano: "The world keeps turning."

Nakano: "I defended my title!"

Kashima: "Tam-chan, Tam-chan, what's wrong?"

Nakano: "I successfully defended the belt for the first time."

Kashima: "Since this is the first time I've won, this will be my first title defense."

Nakano: "I never thought I'd be this happy to be back here (with the belt), it's just..."

Kashima: "(Nakano) is experiencing something I've never felt before."

Nakano: "I'm so happy. I really want them to keep challenging me. I want to defend my title more and more. When I'm working with Saki and Mayu like this, I feel like I'm getting stronger both mentally and physically. I want to share this feeling with more people, so I want them to keep challenging me. I want to defend my title more and more. I want to achieve double-digit title defenses by the end of the year. From now on, I'm just saying, please keep challenging me."

Kashima: "Double digits by the end of the year?"

Nakano: "Double digits by the end of the year. About three months left?"

Kashima: "How many matches should we play in a day?"

Nakano: "Doing it 10 times a month is enough. Thank you, Saki."

Kashima: "Well, it's only been two weeks since the joy of defending the belt and winning it, and I'm really happy to be able to experience the joy of defending it again in a different way. To be honest, there were many times when I would have lost if these two hadn't come to help me, and I really think that I was able to win and defend the title because I was with them. Thank you very much. (To Iwatani) Are you okay?"

Iwatani nodded

Nakano: "Keep challenging yourself!"