Stardom - 5STAR Grand Prix 2021 (9/24/2021)

3. 5STAR Grand Prix 2021 Red Stars: Himeka vs. Koguma

Another short but good match in the undercard. Koguma took a gnarly bump for Himeka's lariat, and her counter roll-ups were really smooth. She seems to have good control of her body. ***1/4

4. 5STAR Grand Prix 2021 Red Stars: Mayu Iwatani vs. Starlight Kid

This match had great action and storytelling for its duration. Starlight Kid has been using Mexican wrestling-style overhand chops since joining Oedo Tai and that led to a great chop battle here. Botches are natural, but in Kid's last few performances she hasn't had the best accuracy with her " rana" moves. I can only hope this is a temporary issue. Still, great performance from her, which showed her growth. I liked the way she evoked some of Mayu's signature moves. ***1/2

6. 5STAR Grand Prix 2021 Blue Stars: Saya Kamitani vs. Unagi Sayaka

There were moments that felt unfocused during the middle, but the overall match was good. I liked seeing the more aggressive side of Kamitani, and Unagi was fighting with a sense of tenacity, unleashing a new diving leg drop. Loving this cute rivalry between relatively tall wrestlers with long limbs. ***1/2

8. 5STAR Grand Prix 2021 Blue Stars: Syuri vs. Takumi Iroha

The red belt triangle of Utami, Syuri and Iroha has been the most exciting thing about the latter half of this tournament. This match was an impeccable blend of MMA and traditional wrestling, with some very heavy smacks traded between the two. A short 20 minutes of high-level grappling and striking from world-class professionals. ****1/2

9. 5STAR Grand Prix 2021 Blue Stars: Tam Nakano vs. Utami Hayashishita

This was everything you could want from a 14-minute tournament match between the promotion's top champions, underpinned by Tam's compelling underdog performance. Tam and Utami are very different wrestlers but they both specialize in suplexes so there were plenty of great ones here. ****1/4

10. 5STAR Grand Prix 2021 - Finals: Momo Watanabe vs. Syuri

Syuri came in after 20 minutes of struggling with Takumi Iroha and fought frantically from the bell, and used big moves early on that she normally uses later in the match. Momo was steady as usual and landed a number of powerful head kicks. There was a lot of striking, especially heavy dull sounding kicks. This was an amazing tournament final, the best in tournament history in my opinion. ****1/2