2026 wasted no time in hitting us with the goods.
Four days into the year, we got one of the best TJPW matches in company history to get January started. Then SEAdLINNNG, Sendai Girls, and Evolution Pro-Wrestling followed up with bangers of their own.
Slugfests. Title bouts. Early Match of the Year contenders. Month One gave us plenty to take in.
Read on as Fernando and Ryan take you through the best January had to offer across the joshi scene.
Miu Watanabe vs. Suzume, TJPW – Tokyo Joshi Pro’ 26 (Jan. 4)
Starting 2026 strong.
Six years after her debut, Suzume challenged Miu Watanabe for the Princess of Princess title, with the opportunity to become Grand Slam champion (just like Miu). Once the main event at Korakuen Hall started, there was a big-match feel in the air, two girls who have been leading the promotion into a new era met in the ring to fight for the top title. Their styles were so different but meshed together so well; Suzume as a high speed flyer and Miu as the powerhouse gave their everything for more than 20 minutes. Just when you think Miu couldn’t hit a Giant Swing in a new way, she countered Suzume’s Ring a Bell and spun her around in a dragon sleeper position. The Champion hit an enormous spinning Teardrop to end the match and retained her title.
The Bee looked impressive and she surely will have another chance at the championship, but for now, Miu will continue her reign as the Princess of Princess.
Recommended by: Fernando
Marino Saihara & Yukina Uehara vs. Natsuki & Nagisa Shiotsuki, AWG – ACTWrestling In Korakuen Hall (released Jan. 5)
Yes, I do think Yukina Uehara winning a title so early into her career was rushed, but at least she is making the most out of it.
On December 29th, AWG presented its last show of the year, main evented by the recently reintroduced AWG Tag Team Championships. The interim champions, Marino Saihara & Yukina Uehara, faced challengers Natsuki & Nagisa Shiotsuki, and even though Marino and Natsuki are part of the ACTWres 5, they didn’t hold back any punches and went all-in in this title defense. These four girls pulled some interesting tag team moves, especially the challengers, but the last third of the match was taken over by Yukina and Natsuki battling to get the win. With an impressive Jackhammer, Yukina pinned the former AWG champion in a huge upset.
They’re giving Yukina Uehara so much, and on her 1st Anniversary as a wrestler, she was able to successfully defend a title. Not bad for the rookie.
Recommended by: Fernando
MICHIKO vs. Chi Chi, Evolution Pro-Wrestling – Evolution Vol. 42 (Jan. 7)
Give Chi Chi all the belts! *slams the table*
The Evolution project is an interesting one. It’s got very few signed wrestlers, yet they have produced very solid prospects who have been thriving in other promotions, like SOY in ChocoPro. Now Chi Chi, who became Sendai Girls junior champion in 2024, challenged MICHIKO (an outsider) for the Evolution Strong Women’s Championship, a title she herself failed to win when ZONES defeated her to become the inaugural champion.
Once the match started, things didn’t look good for the Barbie Girl. The champion was dominant, countering almost every move Chi Chi tried to hit, and to top it all off, MICHIKO hit her opponent with a Tombstone Pildriver on the outside. Once they were in the ring, the challenger was only able to kick out out of pure instinct, trying her hardest to take the offense, hitting a series of kicks and two Backdrop Drivers to pin MICHIKO and finally win the match.
Chi Chi won the title of the promotion that trained her and has proudly represented since her debut. She has the heart and the will to become a big name, and I’m all here for it.
Recommended by: Fernando
Yuki Arai vs. Max The Impaler vs. Miyu Yamashita vs. Mizuki vs. Rika Tatsumi vs. Shoko Nakajima, TJPW – New Year Party (Jan. 10)
Grand Princess is over two months away? Guess we have to set the main event right now.
After a great title defense at Tokyo Joshi Pro’ 26, Princess of Princess champion Miu Watanabe needed a new challenger for the next big event. So, with the Max Heart Tournament about to start, six women fought for the right to challenge the top champion in TJPW in a 6-Way Elimination match.
Miyu Yamashita, Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima, Rika Tatsumi, Yuki Arai, and Max the Impaler unleashed chaos once the bell rang, with everyone trying to neutralize their opponents. Max was surprisingly the first to be eliminated, followed by Mizuki and Shoko, and once we had the final three, the match peaked. Rika, Miyu, and Yuki had a really fun exchange, with Rika putting everything together, only to be eliminated by Miyu. Yuki and Miyu battled in the last five minutes in the match; Miyu looked dominant, but Yuki was able to lock in the Sharpshooter on the Pink Striker, who tried her hardest to escape, but she ultimately tapped out.
Yuki Arai will once again challenge for the Princess of Princess Championship, and the Genius Girl hopes this time she will win the gold.
Recommended by: Fernando
Hazuki vs. Mei Seira, STARDOM – New Years Stars (Jan. 11)
Hyper-charged high-speed action between two great athletes with excellent chemistry. That’s a winning formula. But Mei and Hazuki brought it up a level from their usual high-adrenaline battle.
In addition to all the fluid action you’d expect, you also get a stirring final stretch, Hazuki’s ferocity cranked up, and some great moments of cold-heartedness. Some of the best highlights were the nasty bits where the two wrestlers drove their foe’s head into the mat like a tentpole.
Just a damn fine match. It doesn’t matter if they are fighting for the CMLL-Japan Championship or the DDT King of the Dark title, if Hazuki and Mei Seira are going at it, count me in.
Recommended by: Ryan
Chihiro Hashimoto vs. Saya Iida, Sendai Girls – Shinkiba 1st Ring (Jan. 11)
Just a badass hoss match.
Machismo for days. Blasting lariats. Primal yells. This bout brims with aggression and intensity.
It’s a power-versus-power battle with some standout counters and excellent chemistry. Hashimoto hits a deadlift suplex that just has to be seen. A thing of absolute beauty.
Okay, Taro. When are you booking the rematch in STARDOM?
Recommended by: Ryan
Hiroyo Matsumoto vs. MIRAI, SEAdLINNNG – Shin-Kiba Series 2026 Vol. 1 (Jan. 13)
Good lord, what a physical match. Matsumoto defends the Beyond the Sea Championship like an animal protecting its young. This is a hard-hitting contest where each wrestler’s moxie is on fully display.
It is stuffed to the brim with rage and resilience, the thunderclap of flesh on flesh. Again and again.
A fun, memorable entry in this new stage MIRAI’s career as a freelancer and hopefully a harbinger of what’s to come with Matsumoto’s title reign. Keep an eye on both women in 2026, y’all.
Early Match of the Year frontrunner for me.
Recommended by: Ryan
Miyu Yamashita & Kaya Toribami vs. Shoko Nakajima & Hyper Misao, TJPW – Max Heart Tournament – Night 2 (Jan. 17)
Talk about the run Kaya is having.
What Miyu is doing for the whole roster is noteworthy. She chose to stay in TJPW and elevate it and everyone else, and Kaya Toribami has benefited a lot. She and Miyu currently hold the Set Up tag team titles and were set to face last year’s Max Heart Tournament winners, Shoko Nakajima and Hyper Misao. With Kaya being the least experienced one, she could easily fall in the ”pin eater” category, so needed to show she could hang out with the veterans. Back and forth action led to Miyu and Shoko battling outside the ring, while Misao and Kaya were left to decide the winner, and with Miyu finally neutralizing Shoko, Kaya cradled the Hero to get the victory.
An upset with that felt earned after such a good match. Now let’s see how the team (now called K!CK Kick Slash) does in the rest of the tournament.
Recommended by: Fernando
Mei Suruga, Baliyan Akki, Chris Brookes & Emi Sakura vs. Miya Yotsuba, Chie Koishikawa, Hagane Shinno & Sayaka, ChocoPro – ChocoPro #500 Special (Jan. 18)
500 editions of ChocoPro. This calls for a big match.
The 500th ChocoPro show featured only one match: a star-studded 8-person tag team bout. Now, anyone who knows Ichigaya Square can only imagine how eight people could wrestle there, but if there’s one thing the Choco Crew can do is make the most out of such a small place. For more than 40 minutes, everyone had a fair share of the action in this match, bodies were thrown against the walls, fights broke out outside the venue, Chie was locked in the bathroom at one point. It was Mei who finally pinned Miya to put an end to this crazy ride.
It’s matches like this that prove ChocoPro is worth watching.
Recommended by: Fernando
Victoria Yuzuki vs. Komomo Minami, Marigold – Mayu Iwatani 15th Anniversary ICON Forever (Jan. 24)
Action-packed showcase match for Minami. Yuzuki being a boss yet again. Well worth your time.
Recommended by: Ryan
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