We are living through a thrilling time in joshi wrestling.
The scene is host to a whole wave of rising stars who are poised to shape the future. We have super rookies. Fresh faces. Teenagers making a splash.
Our writers joined forces to spotlight some of this up-and-coming talent, talking up why they are special and where we see them headed in 2026. From Marvelous to TJPW and beyond.
Read on to see which stars are set to thrive in the new year.
Sora Ayame (Ryan)
It’s no surprise how much attention Ayame’s fellow Marvelous rookie got last year. Senka Akatsuki is just plain great. But don’t sleep on the woman who debuted at the tail end of 2024 with an ass-whooping from Aja Kong.
Sora has great heart. She excels at being a feisty underdog. She’s the scrappy little sister you don’t want to mess with.
While Senka’s matches have gotten more buzz, Sora has quietly performed well outside of the spotlight. In Vegas during WrestleMania week, she fought back valiantly against the towering, overwhelming force that is Nyla Rose. She had a strong showing against Itsuki Aoki on Marvelous’ first show of 2025. She’s also shown promise in tag matches alongside Akatsuki.
She’s only 19 and has less than 50 matches on her resume. Growth is coming, and we’re going to see her tap into the potential we’ve seen from her early on.
It helps too that has a spirited rivalry cooking with Senka, something we’re sure to see more of this year. Count on Sora making enough noise that we won’t be able to ignore her.
Seri Yamaoka (Scott)
I’m not sure I will ever see a rookie campaign from a wrestler in my lifetime as good as the run that Seri Yamaoka has had in 2025. Finding excellent talent isn’t necessarily hard around the joshi scene these days—it seems that there’s more talent than ever, which is fantastic. But there’s a level that few reach with being great from Day 1. And that’s what Yamaoka has been since the moment she stepped foot into the ring at Marigold First Dream 2025 against MIRAI.
Imagine the pressure of being called a “Super Rookie.” Having your debut hyped for seemingly months before your debut match…and then to try and live up to it? Yamaoka did that and stepped up her game match after match.
Her pairing with Nanae Takahashi was one of the best parts of 2025, and she went from being an amateur wrestler with that expected background to so much more so quickly. The offense has transformed from just the first match, mixing explosiveness both in the ring and through the air—hitting the best Springboard Missile Dropkick, and showcasing impressive power each match she’s in.
Her matches with Takahashi, Takumi Iroha, Mayu Iwatani, and Chihiro Hashimoto were all the ultimate tests, and she thrived in each of them. The growth was apparent and quite shocking at times in terms of how she handled it. She’s ahead of any expectation anyone could have had, and is far from done when it comes to her potential. It’s hard to remember—it’s still just the first year of her career.
The main conversation for Yamaoka throughout 2025 has been about her rivalry with Senka Akatsuki and how each of them use each other to be better. It has driven Yamaoka to excel in all the best ways and is a significant reason she’s as good as she already is. And to consider where she is in her career, it’s scary to think how much better she’s going to get in Year 2 and so on. Marigold has the best young talent in all of wrestling in Yamaoka, and I believe 2026 will see her rise even further in the ranks, with consideration to make her the top dog in the company. Yamaoka is special. She’s a one-of-one talent. And there may be no wrestler more fun to watch right now than her on a match-to-match basis. If there’s a leader of the new wave, I believe it will be Yamaoka.
Senka Akatsuki (Trent)
Some wrestlers need a bit of flash and pizzazz to stand out, whether it’s some fancy gear, some high-flying moves or a big hype machine around them. But some wrestlers are not Senka Akatsuki. She’s gotten over through sheer talent, determination, and force of will, with a kind of throwback energy not typically seen in modern joshi.
Senka is the perfect case study of how important it is for a rookie to nail down the basics. She doesn’t do anything too crazy in the ring from a technical standpoint, but everything is executed with a crispness and believability that is beyond her experience level, and that goes a long way. She’s fast on her feet, hits hard, and already has an authentic character to her that often takes young wrestlers years to find.
Even within her more basic move set she’s still found a way to stand out. Just from her movements and actions you’d be able to pick her out, and her signature shoot pin style has quickly gotten over as well as any high-flying signature move would – and without the inherent risk.
If you need any further proof as to her ceiling, you need look no further than her attire. She’s wearing the same iconic red singlet made famous by the legendary Chigusa Nagayo that runs Marvelous. That’s no coincidence. It’s like Michael Jordan giving another Chicago Bull the number 23.
Shinno (Dave)
Marigold has a whole bunch of young talent looking to break out. And while Seri Yamaoka is arguably a shoe-in for Rookie of the Year, there’s no denying the talent and charisma of Shinno. The Yamaguchi native made her debut at 16 years old with all the hype that comes with being a second-generation talent. And she did not disappoint. Despite a busted lip, she nearly beat one of the biggest stars in the company in her debut match. This exemplified her amazing will to win and fighting spirit, which has only grown stronger.
Partially because she’s still in school, Shinno only has about 25 matches under her belt. She has won several tag team matches and even scored her first singles win in a three way over Megaton and Nao Ishigawa in August, a mere three months after her debut. She may have lost the highly touted battle of the second-generation stars against Kizuna Tanaka at Grand Destiny, but there’s little doubt Shinno will bounce back and make 2026 her year.
Marigold should definitely add a junior championship, to give their huge youthful talent pool something to fight over. And if they do, Shinno would absolutely be an odds-on favorite to grab that belt.
Chi Chi and Miku Kanae (Fernando)
Okay, a little cheating here, but let me explain.
Sareee, one of the best wrestlers (and booker, may I add) in the world, wouldn’t take you under her wing if she doesn’t see something special in you. She wouldn’t book you for her Sareee-ISM shows regularly if she doesn’t think you bring your A-game every time you wrestle. Chi Chi and Miku come from very different places, the Barbie Girl is a product of the Pro Wrestling Evolution, where she was one of the first trainees; meanwhile, Miku debuted for ActWres girl’Z under the name of Kanamic.
Despite their contrasting backgrounds, they have shown an interesting chemistry both as rivals and as a team, especially when Sareee is also in the mix. These girls have already won titles in the form of the Sendai Girls Junior Championship for Chi Chi and the International Ribbon Tag Team Championship for Miku, and it seems that this is just the beginning because the fire and fighting spirit they showed every time they step in the ring won’t go unnoticed.
Ren Konatsu (Justin)
Look, I can admit that I don’t get a chance to watch every single TJPW show, however I can honestly say that Ren Konatsu is one of the most exciting prospects that has joined TJPW in quite some time. At the time of me writing this, she only has 32 matches under her belt, but what I’ve seen in those matches have been very impressive. Sure, she’s not a polished wrestler quite yet and she has a ways to go when it comes to the psychology of it, but the athletic ability, along with the creativity she has is in the ring is something that you really have to pay attention to.
She started her career in June of last year taking on Suzume in her first ever match, a wrestler who is known for getting very good stuff out of her rookie opponents, I mean just look at another one of the young wrestlers who chose Suzume as their first opponent in Arisu Endo. She’s turned out pretty well I’d say. Ren’s purple gear is very cute in TJPW’s usual style, and the way she brings her little stuffed sheep around also plays into what makes TJPW special. The way she can also do high speed or high-flying moves though is something that sets her apart from a lot of the wrestlers on the roster. If you don’t believe me, watch some of her matches, and notice the type of stuff she can do once she gets to the top rope even though she’s not booked strongly enough to do too much yet.
It’s going to take a while for her to get the company’s full backing as they don’t normally give rookies too many wins early on in their respective careers, but I do believe that once Ren either gets a good regular tag team partner, or the office realizes her true potential, she’ll start to rack up the wins as one of the most exciting wrestlers in the company to watch.
Which rising star do you think will prosper in 2026? Tag us at @resuramag to keep the discussion going.
RESURA 