NEWS
8/18 - "WSSW HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT" Lineup Announced
- The full
lineup for VJPW's "WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT"
show was announced, which ten matches in all. Additions include a
tag match featuring the Blonde Outlaws, and a CLLL Mexican Trios
Titles match that will see new champions Akihito Suzuki, Roach
Hanamizu and Taku Shizuma defend the belts the won just two weeks
earlier. KANJI Sakaigama has also consented to facing Ryuji Saito
for the WPJ Independent Welterweight Championship, in a match
that many are looking forward to.
The actual tournament will play off of several rivalries in the
first round: Kodou vs. Chojin Devils, Tsuwamono Office vs. Blonde
Outlaws, and Komura/Yamura vs. the Wild Hearts.
Victory
Japan Pro Wrestling (Samurai! TV)
"WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT"
8/27/05 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT - ROUND
ONE:
Jun Fuchiyama vs. Masao Ishii
2. WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT - ROUND
ONE:
Kensei Tsuwamono vs. Hiroyuki Nakano
3. WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT - ROUND
ONE:
Takayuki Morita vs. Seiichi Yamura
4. WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT - ROUND
ONE:
Mitsuaki Komura vs. Tetsuhiro Kaneda
5. Monster Shinigami & Mikio Tsuruya vs.
Toshi Mabayui & Koki Akita
6. WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT - SEMI
FINAL: Winner of Match 1 vs. Winner of Match 2
7. WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT - SEMI
FINAL: Winner of Match 3 vs. Winner of Match 4
8. CLLL MEXICAN TRIOS TITLES: Akihito Suzuki, Roach
Hanamizu & Taku Shizuma [C] vs. Satoru Watanabe, Tsuyoshi Yamamura
& Kazuki Shimizu
9. WPJ INDEPENDENT WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP: KANJI Sakaigama [C] vs. Ryuji Saito
10. WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT - FINAL: Winner of Match 6 vs.
Winner of Match 7
8/12 - "WSSW HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT" Date Change
- VJPW president
Koichi Yukiguni called an emergency press conference from
Sakagami Digital offices today, announcing that due to an
unforeseen problem with booking Korakuen Hall, the scheduled WSC
Heavyweight Title Tournament show will have to be pushed back two
weeks and will now happen on 8/27. Yukiguni announced the
tournament participants, and said that a full card will be
released within the next couple of days.
After a successful first showing for the company on the network,
the event will air near-live in a 75 minute digest on Samurai TV,
beginning at 1AM JST on 8/28.
Victory
Japan Pro Wrestling (Samurai! TV)
"WSC HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT"
8/27/05 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
One
Night Tournament Featuring: Mitsuaki Komura, Tetsuhiro Kaneda,
Kensei Tsuwamono, Takayuki Morita, Jun Fuchiyama, Seiichi Yamura,
Hiroyuki Nakano & Masao Ishii.
7/01 - Koichi Yukiguni Press Conference
- Victory Japan Pro Wrestling
President Koichi Yukiguni held a press conference from Sakagami
Digital's offices in Tokyo today, announcing several newsbytes
pertaining to the group.
First off, Yukiguni drew attention of Masanobu Kimura's press
conference yesterday, and his plans to revive professional
wrestling in the Kyushu region. Yukiguni pledged VJPW's full
support to his cause, saying that "The professional
wrestling scene in Japan needs to band together, and save a
struggling art form." Yukiguni personally invited Kimura to
attend VJPW's next rally (more information below) as his guest.
Secondly, Yukiguni addressed the situation between WPJ
Independent Welterweight Champion KANJI Sakaigama and VJPW's
Ryuji Saito. Yukiguni said that Sakaigama had promised to defend
the title at least once in VJPW, and now that a challenger arose
he was trying to back out. He said he would continue negotiations
with both sides and try to make the match happen, as it is
something fans have been talking about since the first rally.
And in the biggest news of the conference, Yukiguni announced
that after attending "WRESTLE THE FUTURE", Japan's top
wrestler "Mr. Puroresu" Yoshikazu Kanda has generously
donated his WSC Heavyweight Championship to Victory Japan, to be
used as the company’s top championship. "We at VJPW are
very grateful to Kanda-san for offering to help us in the way he
has." said Yukiguni, "We have booked Korakuen Hall on
8/13, and will hold a tournament on that day to decide the new
champion."
Finally, Yukiguni announced the lineup for VJPW's next show.
Titled "REAL LIVE @ CLUB ATOM", the rally will take
place on 7/22 at Tokyo's Club ATOM. It won't air on TV, though
Yukiguni did mention that Samurai! TV were "very happy"
with the performance of "WRESTLE THE FUTURE", and would
possibly air future shows for the promotion.
Victory
Japan Pro Wrestling
"REAL LIVE @ CLUB ATOM"
7/22/05 @ Tokyo Club ATOM
1. Satoru Watanabe & Tsuyoshi Yamamura vs.
Yusuke Yuhara & Ishin Akaishi
2. Akihito Suzuki & Roach Hanamizu vs. Ryuji
Saito & TOORIMA
3. Tetsuhiro Kaneda vs. Kazuki Shimizu
4. Takayuki Morita & Eiji Miyoshi vs. Katsuo
Ishida & Power Boy Kasei
5. Mitsuaki Komura, Kensei Tsuwamono &
Seiichi Yamura vs. Hiroyuki Nakano, Toshi Mabayui & Koki
Akita
The new team of Watanabe & Yamamura will make their 'debut',
facing the junior upstarts Yusuke Yuhara & Ishin Akaishi.
Akaishi is coming off of a brutal fight with the Blonde Outlaws
(along with mentor Kensei Tsuwamono), and looks to make this his
first win in VJPW.
Former WAVE Jr. ace TOORIMA will make his VJPW debut, teaming
with Ryuji Saito to face Suzuki & Hanamizu. After KANJI
Sakaigama started refusing his challenge for the WPJ Independent
Welterweight Championship, Saito will attempt a measure of
revenge against two of Sakaigama's friends.
Takayuki Morita leads Eiji Miyoshi into battle against the Chojin
Devils, the two facing Katsuo Ishida & Power Boy Kasei.
Leader Masao Ishii is off the show, and will be taking the rest
of July off to rest.
The main event sees "Suntanned Superman" Koki Akita
join up with the Blonde Outlaws, the three facing Komura,
Tsuwamono and Yamura. Tsuwamono promised revenge against the
Outlaws after their brutal attack on his pupil Ishin Akaishi, and
will try to carry it out here.
Yukiguni ended the conference with another message of gratitude
to the fans of VJPW, saying that VJPW's first rally was
considered a "great success" and that he looks forward
to producing more shows under the VJPW banner.
7/01 - Tokyo Sports Article About VJPW!
One week away from Victory Japan
Pro Wrestling's debut show at Tokyo Korakuen Hall, Tokyo Sports
printed a special preview of the show. Included with the article
was a small interview with the four men in the main event -
Mitsuaki Komura, Seiichi Yamura, Tetsuhiro Kaneda and Takayuki
Morita.
Q: "What lead you to sign a contract with
VJPW?"
- Komura: "I've gotten some big chances in
the past couple of years, most notably BSPW, and I've surprised
myself with my growth. This is a chance to do something
different, though. To get back to 'indy wrestling,' of course,
will be nice, but this is also a chance to mold a brand new
wrestling group. And, hopefully, to help lead it to
prominence."
- Yamura: "After both WSSW and BSPW folded,
I wanted to get back to my roots as an independent wrestler. VJPW
presented that opportunity."
- Kaneda: "I got a call from Yukiguni
during FURY's off month. I like it there but I've wanted to get
away from the pop-culture bullshit for a while now, and VJPW
seemed 'real' to me. That, and the opportunity to team with
Morita again, was too much to pass up."
- Morita: "Money! I've been out of work for
too long, and FURY didn't pay me well! (laughs)"
Q: "What is your opinion of the match on
the 8th?"
- Komura: "It's the perfect beginning for
VJPW. Yamura and I have fought the very best in Japan while in
BSPW, but I can't discount Kaneda and Morita's chances. They're a
great team. Whatever the result, we'll make it a gem of indy
wrestling!"
- Yamura: "Kaneda and Morita are a tough
team, but they haven't had a match together in over half a year.
Meanwhile, Mitsuaki and I have become one of the strongest teams
in Japan. I don't think it's much of a stretch to say that they
can't beat us. (Smiles)"
- Kaneda: "Komura and Yamura love to brag
about their 'indy spirit', but how will they do against the best
team period - indy or not? You can beat up all the no-name kids
in parking lots that you want, but it can't help you against the
best team in this country."
- Morita: "I think they're a little
overconfident, especially him. (jerks a thumb toward Yamura) They
had better not count on what they did in BSPW to get them past
us. Indy, major... those labels won't mean anything once we're in
the ring."
Q - Komura & Yamura: "You're just
coming off a successful stint in Burning Spirit Pro Wrestling,
winning the Burning Winter Tag Tournament and solidifying your
place as top contenders to the GC Tag Titles, in a match that
unfortunately didn't happen. Do you think you can carry that
momentum over to VJPW?"
- Komura: "Hmmm... that's tough to say.
Momentum is a strange animal, so we'll see!"
- Yamura: "Absolutely. We didn't get a
chance to wrestle Kuroyama & Sugimoto, but I think that
everyone believed we would win that match. Regardless, we've been
training hard and we're a lot better than we were even
then."
Q - Kaneda & Morita: "You two have not
teamed together since 12/21/04, when Morita left FURY. Do you
think your team will suffer any ring rust?"
- Kaneda: "Of course not. Admittedly we
were in a slump near the end there, but that was then. Now, we're
going to prove that we haven't lost a step."
- Morita: "Yeah... I was admittedly
confused when I was in FURY. And, frankly, I didn't care anymore
toward the end. But whatever ring rust we may have will be more
than made up for by us gaining our freedom from that hellhole.
The team you saw in FURY? We'll be 150% better than that!"
Q: "Any final comments?"
- Komura: "I want to thank Mr. Yukiguni for
the opportunity. This is a chance to revive not just indy
wrestling, but ALL of wrestling! Kaneda, Morita, Seiichi, and
I... together we can rekindle the flame!"
- Yamura: "VJPW is just starting out, so
come to Korakuen Hall and support good wrestling!"
- Kaneda: "We can sit around and talk all
we'd like, but none of it's going to matter on the 8th.
Come see the match and decide things for yourself."
- Morita: "Although I've been inactive for
a while, my match in January with (Simon) Ezra helped me confront
a lot of demons. I have total clarity of mind and spirit now, and
I predict a victory for Tecchan and I -- the perfect way to start
_Victory_ Japan! (smiles)"
7/01 - Tetsuo Matsumoto To Appear!?
Tetsuo Matsumoto, absent from
the Puroresu seen for the last 18 months stunned reporters today
by announcing his intention to wrestle in VJPW. "It seems
Puroresu has forgotten me", said Matsumoto, "I cannot
allow that to happen. I will wrestle for VJPW and show them that
the old 'Iron Man' is still Puroresu no Kamisama!"
Matsumoto was last seen in Super Japan Pro-Wrestling, which he
either left or was released from depending who you ask. Matsumoto
was not mentioned as one of the participants for the first VJPW
rally so whether he will show up as a guest or intrude in his own
unique way remains to be seen.
6/28 - Official Korakuen Hall Press Conference
VJPW President Koichi Yukiguni,
along with financial backer Kiyoshi Sakagami, held the promised
press conference from Tokyo Korakuen Hall today. The conference
was set up inside of the actual venue, where VJPW's ring was
displayed for the first time. Despite Yukiguni's claims that the
promotion will be a more gritty, violent group, the ring itself
is quite traditional looking - a plain blue mat, with a red ring
apron that reads "VICTORY JAPAN PRO WRESTLING" in white
on two sides, and "WRESTLE THE FUTURE" on the other
two. Yukiguni explained that "WRESTLE THE FUTURE" will
be VJPW’s motto, and that the company's emphasis will be on
the rising stars of Japan.
Yukiguni then addressed the roster of the promotion. He said that
unlike traditional groups, VJPW would keep a "very
limited" contracted roster; instead, the group will be
"open ground". Said Yukiguni, "With the growing
trend of talent loan organizations over traditional groups, VJPW
will utilize the best and most hungry talent according to our
personal beliefs." Those beliefs, Yukiguni said, are in a
"gritty" form of professional wrestling; hard-hitting,
smash mouth competition stressed above all, with "mainstream
appeal" taking a backseat. "We're not looking to appeal
to teenage soap opera fans with so-called 'ikemen', nor are we
looking to score multi-million yen marketing deals." said
Yukiguni, "Fans that want to see true professional wrestling
will watch Victory Japan."
As of now VJPW has a total of seven contracted wrestlers:
"Solid K" Mitsuaki Komura, Tetsuhiro Kaneda, Takayuki
Morita, Seiichi Yamura, Ryuji Saito, Eiji Miyoshi and Yusuke
Yuhara. The Chojin Devils unit of Masao Ishii, Katsuo Ishida and
Power Boy Kasei has also agreed to regularly work for the
promotion. In addition to that, Yukiguni promised that strong
ties will be made with several other parties, ensuring what he
called an "ever-changing, yet consistent talent pool."
The first VJPW rally has been set for July 8th, 2005 at Tokyo's
famous Korakuen Hall. It will air on Samurai! TV a day later,
which future shows on the network possible if this one is a
success.
The lineup is as follows:
Victory Japan Pro Wrestling (Samurai! TV)
"WRESTLE THE FUTURE"
07/8/05 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall
1. Satoru Watanabe vs. Tsuyoshi Yamamura
2. Monster Shinigami vs. "Suntanned
Superman" Koki Akita
3. 2/3 FALLS: Ryuji
Saito, Eiji Miyoshi & Yusuke Yuhara vs. KANJI Sakaigama,
Akihito Suzuki & Roach Hanamizu
4. Masao Ishii, Katsuo Ishida & Power Boy
Kasei vs. Jun Fuchiyama, Naoyuki Watanabe & Hideki Takahashi
5. Kensei Tsuwamono & Ishin Akaishi vs.
Hiroyuki Nakano & Toshi Mabayui
6. Mitsuaki Komura & Seiichi Yamura vs.
Tetsuhiro Kaneda & Takayuki Morita
Several key players of the independent puroresu scene have been
brought in, including members of the popular Tsuwamono Office and
Kodou groups, the latter of which will continue their rivalry
with the Chojin Devils that dates back to the VSP promotion. The
"Blonde Outlaws" team of Hiroyuki Nakano & Toshi
Mabayui will also reunite for the first time since Oita
Pro-Wrestling's unfortunate suspension of operations last
December.
WPJ Independent Welterweight Champion and former VSP kingpin
KANJI Sakaigama has agreed to appear in the group’s junior
division, and will reportedly defend the WPJ Championship there
as well. Who his first title opponent will be remains to be seen.
The main event will showcase the four men who Yukiguni referred
to as the "pillars of VJPW". For Komura & Yamura
the show will be a return to the independents, the two coming off
of a successful stint in the latest incarnation of Burning Spirit
Pro Wrestling, where Komura especially seemed poised to become a
breakout mainstream star.
It will also be the first time that the popular Wild Hearts combo
of Kaneda & Morita have teamed together since 12/21/04, after
which Morita left the Pro-Wrestling FURY promotion Kaneda still
competes regularly for. Regarding FURY, a reporter asked Mr.
Yukiguni if Kaneda would still regularly compete for the
promotion, to which Yukiguni said "that's a question for
Kaneda himself." His partner Morita has not wrestled since
1/09, when he appeared on DANGER's "This is Real
Death!" show, making it to the semi-finals of the DANGER
World Death Match Heavyweight Title Tournament before falling to
"Blood Angel" Simon Ezra.
After all of that Yukiguni and Sakagami thanked the press for
attending, and promised that VJPW would "revive the stagnant
professional wrestling scene in Japan."
6/26 - Mr. Yukiguni's Official Press Release
Greetings all.
I am sure you are surprised to hear from me after the sudden
disappearance of Burning Spirit Pro Wrestling, which for the
third time has failed to stay afloat. There are reasons to this,
which I am sure will come out at a later date from those much
more qualified to speak of them than I.
I am not here to talk about the past, however. On the contrary,
this is about the future. I would like to announce plans to
re-enter myself into professional wrestling...along with Mr.
Kiyoshi Sakagami, I am proud to announce the formation of Victory
Japan Professional Wrestling (VJPW)!
Though unfortunately I cannot go more in depth as of yet, I can
say that Victory Japan will present hard-hitting, gritty pro
wrestling with a heavy emphasis on the rising stars of the
future. I have all ready been in contact with several stars to
appear on our first rally, tentatively set for July 8th at
Tokyo's Korakuen Hall. Our home base itself will be in Tokyo,
home to the most loyal professional wrestling fans in the world.
We hope to run shows two-to-three times a month.
Mr. Sakagami and I will hold an open press conference at 15:00 on
the 28th, in front of Korakuen Hall. There we will announce the
lineup for our first show.
Thank you for reading, and please support this new venture. I
understand the loss of Burning Spirit has once again left a
bitter taste in the mouths of wrestling fans, but I assure you
VJPW will work to correct that!
Koichi Yukiguni
http://www.freewebs.com/vjpw