Joshi wrestling brought it at WrestleMania weekend.
Japanese stars teamed up with Western indie talents to bring us barnburners aplenty in Las Vegas. STARDOM didn’t bring its full roster but produced a quality show nonetheless. Marvelous surely made new fans. TJPW continued its run of making its mark on the WrestleMania madness.
Which of the bouts from all these events came out as the undisputed champ? Allow me to dig through my notes and spit out a ranking of the top seven showdowns in Sin City.
Note that I’m only including matches from the shows I attended: STARDOM (Thursday only), TJPW, Marvelous, and Spark Joshi, as well as the two joshi matches on the Deadlock Pro card. I didn’t see the second STARDOM show that ran at the same time as TJPW. I also didn’t catch the TJPW x DDT x GCW event or stuff like Miyu Yamashita vs. Natalya at Bloodsport. Hit us up on Twitter (@resuramag), if you think anything I missed deserves a spot.
Honorable Mentions:
Suzume vs. Jada Stone, TJPW – Live in Las Vegas (4/18)
Syuri & Vipress vs. Konami & Kalientita, STARDOM – American Dream in Sin City (4/17)
7. Takumi Iroha & Johnnie Robbie vs. Syuri & Zara Zakkher, Marvelous (4/17)
The bell rang for Marvelous’ main event close to 1 a.m. (which is 3 a.m. my time), but my old ass was wide awake when these two teams were kicking each other’s asses.
The pace for this slugfest was frantic, full of energy. There was plenty of intensity to go around, too. Robbie was one of the more impressive American indie wrestlers mixing it up with the visiting joshi stars all week.
Iroha and Syuri’s exchanges, though, were the absolute highlight of this match. Their styles meshed perfectly together, each woman trying to kick the other’s soul from their body. Seeing Syuri going nuts and battering Iroha (despite my Takumi fandom) with her boot is one of my favorite moments from the whole trip.
We haven’t had a Syuri vs. Iroha singles since the 2021 5 Star Grand Prix, and damn this was proof we need another one soon.
6. Magenta (Maria & Riko Kawahata) vs. Masha Slamovich & Queen Aminata, Deadlock Pro – DPW Title Fight in Vegas (4/18)
What a showcase for Magenta. Any fans unfamiliar with the tag team stylings of Maria and Kawahata had to be won over. Magenta brought the fun with their pre-match dance and then brought the fight in the ring.
Both squads fed off an energetic crowd. They worked fast and hit hard. The bout was fluid, a beautiful blend of strikes and smooth teamwork.
Bonus points for fighting in the first rows of seats which further revved up the fans.
After the bell, Magenta told Masha and Aminata they want a rematch. Yes. Please and thank you.
5. Ai Houzan vs. Masha Slamovich, Marvelous (4/17)
Slamovich had a hell of a week. She worked show after show and went full gas on all of them.
She tore it up here with a bout that started with a furious pace and never let up.
Kicking and cursing was the core of this match. Masha came hard for Houzan, and the Marvelous young star fought back with all kinds of fury. A blur of pin attempts powered this very entertaining showdown in the middle of the card.
Houzan and Slamovich packed a hell of a lot into just over seven minutes.
4. Maika vs. Thekla, STARDOM – American Dream in Sin City (4/17)
To be honest, I was disappointed to see that my first live STARDOM show was going to be headlined by this battle of former Donna Del Mundo teammates. Thekla has never felt like a main-eventer, and it stung knowing that Mayu Iwatani or Saya Kamatani could have been in this spot if STARDOM had sent them over.
But this far outdid my expectations.
A clear, simple story played out in the Veil Pavilion. Thekla used underhanded techniques to get the upper hand on the bigger Maika and that forced the powerhouse to fight with heart in search of a win and survival.
Thekla played the cocky pest excellently. Maika thrilled in the grueling bout. A suplex on the ramp to Maika was a big highlight.
The two shared a violent, emotional hug afterward, each adversary clearly missing their days on the same squad.
Had Thekla and her HATE teammates done more early on to outnumber and break down Maika, the Toxic Spider’s stretch of control would have been more powerful. They didn’t quite earn that lopsided dynamic. Still, this was one of Thekla’s best outings since her DDM days.
3. Hazuki vs. Lena Kross, Spark Joshi – Lady Luck (4/17)
If you weren’t a Hazuki fan before this, her championship win had to convert you.
Kross killed it as the dominant, heartless bruiser. She’s so good at using her size and power. That paired superbly with Hazuki’s fiery underdog battle. You can’t make a proper WrestleMania weekend highlight reel without the sight of a screaming, unhinged Hazuki pushing back against the Australian monster.
A hard-hitting match with convincing near-falls and emphatic drama. Plus, getting to see Hazuki raise a championship belt in the air is just a beautiful sight. Next up, the Wonder of STARDOM Championship?
2. Aja Kong vs. Senka Akatsuki, Marvelous (4/17)
When Justin Stein (@BioHizzle) asked me what was my most anticipated match of the week, I went with Kong vs. Akatsuki. I wanted to see what the super rookie would do in this big spot, going up against a legend. And damn did she deliver.
Senka went right after Aja, but soon found herself overpowered and punished. This was an amplified version of the classic ‘rookie trying to prove themselves against a hard-nosed vet’ bout. Both women played their parts gloriously.
Senka’s heart was afire. Aja did her best to extinguish it. It felt like a real struggle throughout, a true battle of wills. A throwback to classic ‘90s joshi.
The crowd was hyped for all of it. I leaped up out of my seat when Senka went for her trademark shoot pin and Aja fought like hell against it.
I’m seeing a good number of smart people crown this their no. 1 joshi match of the week. I get it. I loved this, but one match outdid it for me in Sin City.
1. Miyu Yamashita vs. Mizuki, TJPW – Live in Las Vegas (4/18)
This benefited from being a big title match with the Princess of Princess Championship on the line and from building on the history between Yamashita and Mizuki. Heading into Vegas, these two were 1-1 against each other in POP bouts. The rubber match delivered.
Miyu transformed into her most intense, killer form. Her facial expressions, fierce as hell, stood out. Mizuki, meanwhile, looked formidable as she not only withstood Yamashita’s charge but hit back with her exciting offense. There’s nothing quite like Mizuki’s Whirling Candy.
Early on, champion and challenger fought on the entrance stage where they created some big highlights. Later in the ring, they each rode believable waves of control. The match flowed and did well to increase the tension as it went along.
A masterful story of Mizuki just being better on this day. For me, the clear no. 1 of the weekend.
RESURA 