TJPW Live In Las Vegas: Goofy Fun And Pillow Fighting

TJPW Live In Las Vegas
Date: April 16, 2026
Location: Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Veda Scott, Unknown

This is Tokyo Joshi Pro, meaning Japanese women’s wrestling. I’ve watched their Wrestlemania Week offering a few times now and had a good time with it, as this is usually much more lighthearted in a lot of ways. That should be the case again here, with some awesome wrestling going with the mirth and merriment. Let’s get to it.

Our ring announcer/host welcomes us to the show and gets us to cheer before introducing what sounded like the Up Up Girls, who warm us up with a rather perky song and dance.

We run down the card.

Toga/Uta Takami vs. Wakana Uehara/Yuki Kamifuki

Toga and Uehara trade waist and wristlocks to start with Uehara taking her down for a front facelock. They flip up to a staredown so it’s off to Kamifuki to slam Takami. A double choke has Takami in trouble and Uehara gives her a running elbow in the corner. The running dropkick puts Takami down for two but she’s up with a dropkick of her own. That lets Toga come back in for Rolling Thunder and a near fall of her own.

Uehara pulls Toga into a weird armbar but that’s broken up for a hard clothesline to put Uehara down instead. Kamifuki gets a Black Widow, which is escaped with a needed grab of the rope. Toga gets in a slam and it’s back to Takami for a dropkick of her own. Kamifuki blocks an attempt at a choke and boots Takami in the face. Takami is right back up with the Koala Clutch (a hanging cobra clutch), which is broken up without much trouble. Kamifuki grabs a brainbuster and Fameassers Takami for the pin at 10:01.

Rating: B-. This was a nice fast paced opener and the fans were into what they were seeing. As usual, it’s a good sign when I don’t know who these people are but I could understand what was going on. They weren’t out there too long either an it wound up being a nice opener. Well done.

Pom Harajaku/Raku/Yuki Aino vs. Alexis Lee/Himawari/Shino Suzuki

Hold on as the referee pulls out a remote and mutes one of the wrestlers, which is certainly a brilliant/stupid idea (your call). They all shake hands and we’re ready to go. A pillow comes out so Lee’s team teases a nap, only to get rolled up for a triple near fall. Lee and company send them into the corner, with Shino picking up Himawari to swing her into Aino

Himawari swings her hair at Raku, who takes her back down, runs the ropes, and calmly sits on her for two. Aino’s backsplash gets two and it’s off to Pom…who has a big die and rolls a three. That means three forearms so Himawari rolls a six…and Pom forearms her six times. Himawari manages to roll a zero but is fine enough to grab a Blockbuster.

Lee comes in for a rollup out of the corner before biting Pom’s neck. She teases checking on Pom, who rolls her up instead and hits a dropkick. Raku knocks Lee down in the corner and gets two off a running dropkick. Lee slams Raku’s head into the mat but misses a charge. Instead she settles for biting Raku’s arm, only to get caught with a Sling Blade. Aino comes in to face Himawari and pick up the pace, with Aino hitting a spinning Vader Bomb for two.

Himawari uses her own hair to choke and Shino holds Raku up for a spear. Aino comes back in and gets dropkicked but Pom (die) and Raku (pillow) are up to clean house. Back in and Pom cleans house with the die but Shino takes it away and rolls…a zero. Somehow she gets to throw six forearms until Lee is back in with a spear to Raku. The pillow is brought in and thrown out Aino gives Shino a reverse layout DDT for the pin at 14:33.

Rating: C+. I have no idea what a lot of this was about, but I think I liked it and I’ll call that a win. This is the definition of something that doesn’t exactly translate and I had a lot of instances of “WHY”, but the wrestling we got was good enough. Call it a culture clash, though it could have been worse.

Miyu Yamashita vs. Mizuki vs. Miu Watanabe

They seem to get along as we’re ready to go. Mizuki gets the worst of a three way test of strength before Yamashita grabs a double snapmare. Yamashita kicks both of them in the back and takes them to the entrance for some running kicks to the chest. Mizuki is ready for a kick on the ramp though and sends Yamashita to the floor for a double stomp.

Back in and Watanabe beats on Yamashita until Mizuki breaks up the giant swing. Yamashita drops Watanabe with a running clothesline before grabbing a kind of reverse cobra clutch. With that broken up, Yamashita hits an AA but Mizuki is back in for the save. A high crossbody gives Mizuki two but Yamashita drops her with a wheelbarrow suplex.

Watanabe is back in with the giant swing before they knock each other down for a triple breather. Back up and Mizuki’s spinning crossbody hits Yamashita for two, leaving Yamashita to kick the head out of Watanabe. Mizuki’s top rope double stomp hits Watanabe for two but Yamashita is back with a running knee to pin Mizuki at 14:06.

Rating: B. That’s probably the match of the night as it’s almost all action throughout. You don’t get many matches like this and it’s the match with the least silliness thus far. Yamashita is someone who feels like a force every time she’s in there and Watanabe is easy to cheer for due to her size. I liked this a lot and that’s nice to see, even with nothing on the line.

International Princess Title: Sakura Hattori vs. Suzume

Suzume is defending. Hattori tries to strike away and gets rolled up for some early near falls. A running back elbow puts Suzume down and a handspring kick gives Hattori two. Hattori’s victory roll out of the corner gets two more but Suzume is back with a springboard bulldog for a breather. A non-springboard bulldog gives Suzume two and they head to the apron, where Suzume grabs a running bulldog to send her onto the floor.

Back in and Hattori ties up her…well everything really for two, followed by a standing choke. Suzume slips out and hits a Gory Bomb before going up, only to get crotched down. Hattori spider superplexes her down so a top rope forearm can connect for two. A spinning Swanton misses though and Suzume hits a running dropkick. Suzume’s running cutter retains at 11;38.

Rating: B. Commentary didn’t seem to know much about Hattori but you could feel the basic idea of the match very easily. Suzume felt like the crowd favorite who was fighting from underneath against an aggressive challenger. That’s something that will work every time and they played it rather well here. I could see Suzume being a popular act and that seemed to be working, which isn’t a big surprise.

Princess Tag Team Titles: IInspiration vs. Shoko Nakajima/Hyper Misao

The IInspiration is challenging and Misao thinks she’s a superhero. The champs rip up a sign to start and the fans want to see a title change. Misao says their mission is to get the titles back so they jump the champs to start fast. The IInspiration fights back and strikes their pose, only to get wrapped up in the ring skirt.

Back in and Misao hits a running knee for two on Lee and Nakajima adds a slingshot hilo for two. That just earns her a drop toehold into a knee to the face, followed by a double choke in the corner. Lee forearms her down but Nakajima is back up for the tag off to Misao. McKay gets sent throat first into the ropes, only to come back with a big boot for a double down.

Nakajima is back in with a springboard dropkick but McKay cuts off the 619 attempt. The Idolizer is broken up as well though, allowing Misao to put on her cape and hit a double high crossbody. They all strike it out until McKay easily fights out of the corner. The Idolizer finishes Nakajima to retain the title at 12:35.

Rating: C+. As usual, the IInspiration are not the most polished in-ring team, but they know how to wrestle a story that works well enough for them. The ending kind of came out of nowhere here as the IInspiration just shrugged off what was thrown at them and retained the titles. Not a great match, but Misao continues to be memorable, as I remembered everything about her the second her name came up. That’s a good sign.

Princess Of Princess Title: Yuki Arai vs. J-Rod

Arai is defending the company’s top title. The rather muscular J-Rod isn’t having any of this being headlocked and hits a hard shoulder to put the champion down. Arai manages a takedown and drops a knee, only to get suplexed. A hair takedown drops Arai so a splash can give J-Rod two. They head outside with Arai being dropped onto the apron and we hit the double arm crank back inside.

Arai gets up and kicks her in the face before managing an impressive slam. Some kind of leglock is blocked and J-Rod’s spinebuster gets two. Arai tries a sunset flip, which lets her pull J-Rod into a Sharpshooter. J-Rod is into the ropes (the fans get sad) and it’s a big spear for two, with Arai making it to the rope as well. Another spear hits post though and Arai gives her a full nelson slam. The ax kick retains the title at 11:04.

Rating: B-. Perfectly fine match here, even though J-Rod was only doing basic stuff. She has a phenomenal look and is basically all muscle but is going to need some more time and experience in the ring. Arai didn’t exactly stand out, but it was pretty clear that she had more experience and polish here.

Post match respect is shown and here is the roster to celebrate to end the show (as it TJPW’s custom).

Overall Rating: B-. This show might be the definition of “not for everyone” as there are definitely parts that embrace the sillier side of wrestling. Throw in all of the princess themed stuff and there are going to be things that don’t keep everyone’s attention. That being said, there is some rather good action here and I definitely had a good time with the whole thing. If you like some of the less serious stuff which still has nice wrestling, maybe check it out. Or wait for Stardom if you still want to see women’s wrestling with a straighter style.

Results
Wakana Uehara/Yuki Kamifuki b. Toga/Uta Takami – Fameasser to Takami
Pom Harajaku/Raku/Yuki Aino b. Alexis Lee/Himawari/Shino Suzuki – Reverse layout DDT to Suzuki
Miyu Yamashita b. Mizuki and Miu Watanabe – Running knee to Mizuki
Suzume b. Sakura Hattori – Running cutter
IInspiration b. Hyper Misao/Shoko Nakajima b. Idolizer to Nakajima
Yuka Arai b. J-Rod – Ax kick

 

 

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GCW vs. TJPW: They’re In A Hurry

GCW vs. TJPW
Date: April 6, 2024
Location: Penns Landing Caterers, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Dave Prazak, Veda Scott

We have Game Changer Wrestling vs. Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling, meaning it’s a women’s show. It’s another promotional war show, though this one seems to be a bit less intense than the others. I’ve liked the stuff I’ve seen from TJPW over the years, including this weekend, so hopefully they can continue their streak. Let’s get to it.

Suzume vs. Pom Harajaku vs. Saki

Suzume and Pom are from TJPW while Saki is a freelancer, making this more of an exhibition rather than an interpromotional match. Saki gets taken down with a double wristlock to start but she rolls her way to freedom and it’s a standoff. With Pom sent outside, Suzume grabs a headlock on Saki before scoring with a dropkick. Saki swings Suzume down, allowing Pom to come back in and steal a two count.

The much bigger Saki sends Pom back to the floor, only for Pom to come back in and kick her in the shin. Suzume grabs a bulldog to put Saki down before sidestepping Pom’s missile dropkick. Saki kicks Pom in the face but gets rolled up for two. A rope walk spinning faceplant drops Saki again but she’s back up with a Michinoku Driver for two on Suzume. Saki is sent outside though and Suzume cutters Pom for the pin at 7:56.

Rating: C+. The action was fast paced but it was only so interesting, with Suzume dominating a good chunk of the match as the other two were just kind of there. It made sense for the speedy opener, though having a match that has nothing to do with the concept was a bit odd. Saki worked as a power star, but this didn’t break through to that next level.

Session Moth Martina (GCW) vs. Raku (TJPW)

Martina has Every Time We Touch as her entrance music and yes the fans do go rather nuts for it. Raku on the other hand comes to the ring with a pillow. We pause for Martina to get in a fight with the streamers before she can offer Raku a beer. Raku would rather have a nap, so Martina pours beer in her mouth, which I think has Raku drunk (low tolerance and all that). That leaves Raku to beat on Martina with the pillow, which Martina is laid down on for a breather.

Raku steps onto her stomach a few times and then sits on her for a near fall. Back up and Martina sends her into the corner for the Bronco Buster. She loads up another one, but Raku has stopped for a nap. That means Martina has to slowly pull her back to the middle but Raku wakes up at two. Raku strikes away and gets two off a running dropkick. Code Red gets two more, only to have Martina come back with a spear for two of her own. Raku fights up but charges into a Codebreaker to give Martina the pin at 5:49.

Rating: C. This is one of those situations where the whole thing is going to depend on your tastes in comedy. Martina is a ball of energy and a lot of fun, but Raku with the sleeping thing….yeah I don’t get it. I’m not big on that style with Wendy Choo in NXT and it’s the same thing here, as I don’t see the humor. The wrestling was a backdrop to the comedy and that mainly didn’t land for me, so this wasn’t much to see.

GCW – 1
TJPW – 0

Arisu Endo (TJPW) vs. Shazza McKenzie (GCW)

They fight over arm control to start with McKenzie getting the better of things. That’s reversed into a headlock, which McKenzie reverses into a headscissors and we get a standoff. Endo sends her into the corner but McKenzie is back with a running boot for two. McKenzie grabs a chinlock before hitting running legdrop to a seated Endo for two more. Endo is back up with a running hip attack into a splash for two of her own.

The camel clutch goes on but McKenzie crawls over to the ropes rather quickly. McKenzie ties her in the ropes for some kicks to the chest but a super Stunner is blocked. Endo hits a middle rope knee to drive her to the mat, setting up a torture rack neckbreaker for the pin on McKenzie at 7:32.

Rating: C+. McKenzie is someone I’ve seen a good many times over the years and I’m not sure why she has never gotten a chance on a bigger stage. She comes off as a polished enough star but it never comes together. Endo is rather good at what she does as well and it was a nice match between two women who know what they’re doing.

GCW – 1
TJPW – 1

Steph de Lander (GCW) vs. Hyper Misao (TJPW)

Misao, a superhero, promises to save us all. De Lander, in American flag gear, jumps her to start but Misao blinds her with some kind of spray. We get some early skewer use, with Misao stabbing her in the head. De Lander is back with some skewers of her own but Misao, with skewers still in her head, misses a quick 619 attempt. Some chair shots stagger de Lander, who manages to take the chair away. The big swing hits rope though, with the chair smashing de Lander in her own face.

Misao throws in a bunch of chairs and plants de Lander onto them for two. A spinebuster onto the chairs gives de Lander two and it’s time to bring out….a box full of tubes of (de Lander’s) lipstick. De Lander gets knocked off the top and high crossbodied into them for two. Back up and de Lander grabs a sitout F5 onto the lipstick and her Women’s Internet Title for the pin at 8:13.

Rating: C. So much like the Raku vs. Martina match, this was a short form version of a special kind of match, though in this case it was the hardcore variety instead of comedy. While it makes sense to mix things up a bit, it’s a bit hard to get into a violent match like this that only lasts eight minutes and is coming in cold. It wasn’t bad, but it was like they were trying to get in a bunch of stuff in a short amount of time and it didn’t exactly work.

GCW – 2
TJPW – 1

Yuki Kamifuku (TJPW) vs. Dark Sheik (GCW)

Sheik does the splits to start but Yuki isn’t willing to try her own. Instead she takes Sheik down with a headscissors before sending her outside. Yuki’s big dive is teased but she rolls into a pose instead. Back in and Sheik grabs a backbreaker into a splits splash for two, followed by a nice slingshot legdrop. Yuki slugs away but gets kicked in the head for her efforts.

Sheik has to break out of a quick Octopus hold and then pulls Yuki into the old rocking horse hold (the fans don’t approve). A legsweep into a spinning kick to the head gives Sheik two but Yuki catches her with a running dropkick on the top. Sheik counters the Fameasser and grabs a bridging German suplex. A guillotine legdrop finishes Yuki off at 7:44.

Rating: B-. Best match of the night so far as again they didn’t have much time but they packed in a bunch of stuff. Sheik dominated most of the match and then won in the end, as she should have. Good stuff here, with both of them doing well in the limited time that they had to put something together.

GCW – 3
TJPW – 1

Mizuki (TJPW) vs. Allie Katch (GCW)

The wrong graphic/music is put up and the fans are not impressed. The much smaller Mizuki is backed into the corner but she does the same thing to Katch. Mizuki blows a kiss, which Katch does not seem to care for, meaning it’s time to fight over wrist control. Mizuki’s suplex attempt gets little more than a shrug from Katch, who kicks her in the face for her efforts. Katch’s suplex works a bit better and a corner Cannonball gets two.

A chinlock into a slam gives Katch two but Mizuki is back up with a double stomp to the back. The running dropkick against the ropes sends Katch outside and Mizuki is right there with the dive off the top. Back in and a Michinoku Driver gives Katch two but Mizuki bites her thigh. She bites her stomach as well, setting up a top rope double stomp for two. Katch misses another Cannonball, allowing Mizuki to grab a northern lights suplex for the pin at 7:38.

Rating: C+. Another match where they didn’t have much time but they were playing into the small vs. big formula. Mizuki isn’t your usual smaller style wrestler though, with the biting being more than a little odd. It was also nice to see the ending come from something *other than a rollup, as Mizuki beat her clean with a suplex.

GCW – 3
TJPW – 2

Post match Mizuki goes for another bite but Katch bails out.

Hakuchumu (TJPW) vs. Billie Starkz/Janai Kai (GCW)

That would be Miu Watanabe and Rika Tatsumi. Starkz and Watanabe have a tentative handshake to start before Watanabe takes her down by the leg for an early two. A wristlock lasts a bit longer but Starkz grabs a rollup for two. That goes nowhere so it’s off to Kai vs. Tatsumi, with Kai snapmaring her down for a kick to the back. Tatsumi chokes her into the corner and Watanabe comes in for a dancing double elbow.

Since it’s just a double elbow, Kai is able to power Watanabe into the corner for the tag back to Starkz. Alternating kicks in the corner have Watanabe in more trouble but she suplexes her way to freedom. It’s back to Tatsumi to clean house with some running hip attacks in the corner. A dragon screw legwhip over the rope has Starkz in more trouble but she’s fine enough to hit a spinning kick to Tatsumi’s head.

Tatsumi backbreakers Kai and it’s back to Watanabe to pick the pace back up. Watanabe hits a backbreaker of her own and there’s the very giant swing for two on Kai. Watanabe slips out of Kai’s dragon sleeper and hits a powerslam for two, with Starkz making the save. With Starkz down, Kai gets loaded up into something like a spinning Big Ending/cutter combination for the pin at 13:29.

Rating: B. This got some more time and you can see that Hakuchumu is a regular team who has some experience together. They worked well together out there, with Starkz and Kai not quite being able to keep up. It’s also nice to have something that feels different on here after a long string of singles matches.

GCW – 3
TJPW – 3

Maki Itoh/Masha Slamovich/Rina Yamashita (GCW) vs. Miyu Yamashita/Shoko Nakajima/Yuki Aino (TJPW)

The GCW team’s entrance goes through the crowd and the fans rather approve. Miyu and Itoh start things off, with Itoh flipping her off. A big kick misses and we have a standoff, meaning it’s off to Nakajima vs. Rina. Nakajima stomps on her foot but needs Miyu and Aino to lift her up to get the height advantage over the taller Rina. That’s fine with Rina, who has Itoh and Slamovich pick her up….or at least try to, as they can’t get her up.

Rina and Slamovich can get Itoh up though and we get an elevated slugout, with Itoh getting the better of things. Everything breaks down and the fight heads out to the floor, with the GCW team getting back in to dance. We settle down to Rina hitting Aino in the chest before Itoh gets to hammer away in the corner. Aino manages a suplex to Rina and Nakajima comes back in to pick up the pace.

Hold on though as Nakajima brings in her bag full of kaiju toys, allowing Rina to slam her onto them. They take turns hitting each other with said kaiju with Rina getting the better of things. She heads up top but takes too long, allowing Nakajima to hurricanrana her back down onto the kaiju. Everything breaks down and it’s Miyu slugging it out with Slamovich. Miyu gets pulled into a seated abdominal stretch and has to knee her way to freedom. Back up and they trade running shots to the face until Miyu runs up the corner for a spinning kick to the head.

An exchange of kicks to the head leave both of them down and it’s Aino coming back in to run Itoh over with a shoulder. Itoh’s running DDT connects and everything breaks down, with Itoh knocking Aino down for two. Chairs and a door are brought in…but the door breaks as soon as Aino is placed on it. Another door is brought in and Itoh is slammed through Aino for two. Slamovich chairs Miyu down but all six are up for the big slugout. Nakajima hits a big dive to the floor and Itoh rolls Aino up for two. A Walls of Jericho style Texas Cloverleaf makes Aino tap at 21:05.

Rating: B-. The time helped here and commentary was putting over the idea of these wrestlers knowing each other rather well. It made the match feel more personal, but at the same time it wasn’t exactly great. The kaiju stuff in the middle felt like it belonged in a different match and was only happening because it was a signature Nakajima deal. It’s a perfectly fine main event, though not as good as the previous match.

GCW – 4
TJPW – 3

Overall Rating: B-. Good show here with a rather nice mixture of match types. The problem is a lot of those matches went rather quickly and didn’t get the chance to stand out. There was probably a series of much better matches to be had with more time, but there is only so much you can do with an eight match show that doesn’t even combine to go two hours.

 

 

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