1. Future of Stardom Championship: Maika (c) vs. Saya Iida
This was a hot match to start the show. NEVER Openweight style match filled with heart and fighting spirit. Iida’s physical performance has been good for a while, but she’s also become good at facial expressions too.
***1/2
3. Oedo Tai (Natsuko Tora, Rina & Saki Kashima) vs. Cosmic Angels (Mina Shirakawa, Tam Nakano & Unagi Sayaka)
A solid trios match that showcased the younger and newer wrestlers. Unagi got her baptism in the form of a prolonged beating by Oedo Tai where she took heavy offense and bumps. Rina gave a convincing performance. It’s nice to see her active outside of the kid’s division.
***1/4
5. Momo Watanabe vs. Himeka
This was a good back and forth, both individual performances were good. There some cool sequences and Himeka's big knee strikes sounded brutal. There are people who are concerned about Momo's position in the promotion, but the fact that she is getting high-profile matches on big cards, whether she's winning or losing, means the promotion values her as someone who can reliably deliver in the ring.
***1/2
6. SWA World Championship: Bea Priestley (c) vs. Syuri
This was a rock-solid match. Neither was trying to innovate and stuck to their usual pattern, which led to a good match but one that didn’t deliver on the excitement created by their earlier outings. There was something missing to create that tangible escalation. I’d like to see a rematch in Kanto, where their interactions seemed to have more buzz.
***1/2
7. Wonder Of Stardom Championship: Giulia (c) vs. Konami
Giulia’s previous two defenses were flashy and dangerous. This one was more grounded, but it still had the same spirit. It was basically an expanded version of the match these two had in the white belt tournament, with Konami taking most of the match with unrelenting pressure. It definitely felt like a long match, but Giulia’s charisma and gravitas carried it through.
****
8. World Of Stardom Championship: Mayu Iwatani (c) vs. Utami Hayashishita
A great match that hardly felt like its near 30-minute duration. Utami showed a new level of viciousness with her attacks to the head and neck, but it was Mayu who really elevated the match with her bumping and her tenacity as she tried to withstand Utami's onslaught. The composition was so well done that a basic neckbreaker felt significant during the final stages.
****1/4
