Pantoja’s STARDOM Triangle Derby At Korakuen Hall Review 2.17.23

STARDOM Triangle Derby I in Korakuen Hall

February 17^th, 2023 | Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: 1,126

With a relatively big crowd in Korakuen Hall, we’re back for the Triangle Derby. I couldn’t review the Fuji show but this one is extra important as it’s the last night before the finals, which is set for March 4^th,

Fukigen Death & Rina vs. Himeka & Maika vs. Lady C & Miyu Amasaki vs. Mariah May & Mina Shirakawa

Again, I’m a big fan of these matches allowing a legal participant from each team. That set up fun stuff like a three-way test of strength as Fukigen calmly walked through it and posed. That was the tone of this match with lots of goofy action and it kept a lighthearted nature throughout with no stakes or anything like that. Everyone got to hit their shit and we got one of our last looks at Himeka in action. Speaking of Himeka, there was an enjoyable spot where everyone hit her in the corner as a way of saying goodbye and even her partner Maika joined in. Down the stretch we had solid exchanges from May and Lady C before a flurry of offense from everyone ended when Shirakawa laid in spinning backfists. One on Lady C led to Himeka rolling up Lady C as Maika held Mina away for the finish in 8:05. A fun opener that was just what I wanted. [***]

Haruka Umesaki, Ruaka and Starlight Kid [6] vs. Momo Watanabe, Natsuko Tora and Saki Kashima [6]

And just like that we’re into Triangle Derby action. There’s nothing really on the line here other than bragging rights since neither team can make the semifinals. We got a jump attack to start the action on the outside before the bell even rang. The match followed that concept throughout with a lot of brawling and there was almost no slow down. Just six women going hard from start to finish. The Momo/Starlight Kid exchange of strikes and kicks was tremendous and it blows my mind that this company has so many girls who are so young and so young. There was a lot of cheating here too but it made sense given who these teams are and it was done in an entertaining way. In the end, Saki Kashima did it again, scoring on a flash pin in 9:41 to take it. More enjoyable than I expected with lots of action. [***½]

Nanae Takahashi, Yuna Mizumori and Yuu [9] vs. Rina Amikura, Waka Tsukiyama and Yuko Sakurai [0]

This is all about playing spoiler. The 7UPP team can secure a spot in the semis with a win but a loss to the only winless team means they’d need help. This also gave me another look at Takahashi vs. Tsukiyama, which was really good at New Blood 7 (***½). Here we had a good old fashioned David vs. Goliath match as the underdog team was battered at points but refused to give up. The key to this match was Tsukiyama. The crowd adores her and everything she did got a very loud reaction. That made for a great atmosphere and she’s such a good underdog that these are ideal opponents for her. The stuff she did with Takahashi was again top-notch. Waka got trapped in a Figure Four for a while and the fans helped her rally to the ropes. I bought into the upset several times, especially when Waka got saved from the trios finisher and did a rollup. Alas, she still got hit with the move and then lost to a Mizumori TKO after 13:01, with the winners clinching a spot in the semis. One hell of a match boosted by the crowd. [***¾]

AZM, Saya Kamitani and Utami Hayashishita [9] vs. Hazuki, Koguma and Saya Iida [4]

Like the previous match, the Queen’s Quest trio/dream team can clinch with a win. However, given Kamitani and AZM’s status as champions who can have defenses on the March 4^th show, I came in expecting the upset. The fans were so behind Koguma that they weren’t pleased with AZM when she went against her. Then we got more from Kamitani and Iida who have continued to have interactions in a lot of matches I’ve seen. Or at least it feels that way. This had a great pace to it and some big spots like Kamitani hitting a springboard dive followed by Koguma nailing a cross body to the outside of her own. The real kicker here was the finish as Hazuki pinned Kamitani after a stalling Brainbuster to win at the 10:17 mark. The crowd audibly gasped and it looks like Hazuki will likely get a title shot out of this. The match was another really strong one and it could keep Queen’s Quest out of the finals. [***½]

Hanan, Mayu Iwatani and Momo Kohgo [2] vs. Maika Ozaki, Maya Yukihi and Ram Kaichow [6]

Things have been rough for the STARS trio with their only win coming against the winless team. There’s nothing on the line here but I love Iwatani and Yukihi is on the way to a title shot so she’s notable to see here. This had a fair bit of energy to it and the crowd was into everything STARS did. Their run of offense that included a triple team move on Yukihi was fun. I think Ozaki has been a highlight of their matches and that was the case here again. Yukihi had a late run against Kohgo where both picked up near falls. Kohgo got saved by her partners but couldn’t survive a running knee from Yukihi, falling in 10:30. It was probably the low point of the show but still a solid little tag. [***]

Ami Sourei, MIRAI and Syuri [10] vs. Natsupoi, SAKI and Tam Nakano [8]

If I’m right, the God’s Eye team has clinched a spot in the semis but the Cosmic Angels can leap frog AZM/Kamitani/Hayashishita into the semis with a win. We started with Natsupoi vs. MIRAI which is so my shit given MIRAI’s recent performances and my love of Natsupoi. Alas, it didn’t last too long before the Cosmic Angels were working MIRAI over with tandem offense. The tables were soon turned as Natsupoi took a trios beating for a while. Pretty much every interaction here was entertaining and hard hitting from SAKI getting isolated to Tam trading shots with Sourei. Momentum kept swinging until the Cosmic Angels nailed some dives to the outside. Tam nearly had it won with a Tiger Suplex but the pin was broken up and that led to everyone going at it in the ring. It came down to Tam and Sourei anyway and Tam won with the Screwdriver after 12:44. That sends them to the semis, capping a really fun match. [***¾]

Giulia, Mai Sakurai and Thekla [6] vs. Hiragi Kurumi, Risa Sera and Suzu Suzuki [8]

A win for Prominence would give them 10 and vault them into the semis. This also gives us more of Giulia vs. Suzuki. Right off the bat, Thekla and Sakurai were taking a bit of a beating as Giulia fared better than them. The quality really picked up here as soon as things got physical between Suzuki and Giulia. Their recent World of Stardom Title match ruled so I’m glad we got more of it here. It’s wild that Suzuki is only 20. Then, we got an unexpected clash between Giulia and Kurumi and it was dope. Giulia had trouble against her before opting to wear her down for a bit. The big spot off the top with also felt like the kind of thing you might save for a huge singles match so it was great to see here. In the end, we got Suzuki against Thekla and the former won to qualify for the semifinals with the Tequila Shot. This went 13:48 and was possibly the match of the tournament thanks to an electric crowd, tons of action, a wild pace and that Kurumi/Giulia section. [****]

Our semifinalists are Takahashi/Yuu/Mizumori, Natsupoi/Nakano/SAKI, Suzuki/Sera/Kurumi, and Syuri/MIRAI/Sourei.

Post-match, Yukihi showed up to set up the title match with Giulia. The card for the finals on 3/4/23 has the two semifinal bouts, the finals, Giulia/Yukihi, Himeka/Hashimoto, Kamitani/Hazuki, and what I’m looking forward to the most, AZM/Starlight Kid.

8.0

The final score: review Very Good

The 411

Possibly the best show of the tournament. Two matches at *** and everything else is something I’d recommend while they also set the stage for the finals, which is an exciting card.