wrestling / TV Reports
Pantoja’s STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix 2023 Night 6 Review
Image Credit: STARDOM
Loading...STARDOM 5STAR Grand Prix 2023 Night 6
August 8th, 2023 | KBS Hall in Kyoto, Japan | Attendance: 403
I’m so happy that this streaming service is getting stuff up promptly for this tournament. The website has had issues where a lot of people haven’t been able to stream matches. I can’t in my computer but this works well on my tablet. This is a loaded night on paper so I’m even more pumped. I also really like the look of this venue.
Blue Stars: Maika [3] vs. Momo Watanabe [2]
These two came right at one another, trading forearms as soon as the bell rang. You could tell this was going to be a hard hitting fight from the start. This was something I’d classify as a hoss fight. They just battered each other at every turn. Momo came across as such a bully and you could see her confidence after her big win over MIRAI. Maika was on her heels pretty early but rallied and Momo had to resort to a bit of help from her Oedo Tai buddies at points. It was never anything that went too far so it didn’t take away from the match. The spot late where Momo hit what could’ve been a match ending move only for Maika to immediately roll into a pin attempt made for one of the best near falls of the tournament. They kept going and Momo won with a modified German Suplex in 10:02. I love a good Hoss Fight and these ladies delivered. [***¾]
Blue Stars: Giulia [3] vs. Mariah May [2]
Here’s a pretty exciting match. A top star in Giulia against one of the company’s fastest rising stars and most impressive wrestlers of 2023. Less than a minute in, Mariah slapped Giulia with some force, triggering an exchange of them and it showed that she wasn’t going to back down or be intimidated by her tough opponent. Even when Giulia got the upper hand, Mariah was right there to fire back and she busted out the powerbomb on the outside that has been so effective for her in the tournament. Down the stretch, Mariah was firing up after taking suplexes like she was Tomohiro Ishii or some shit. She also has a pretty great Slingblade, which she used to end a string of back and forth they had. It became very plausible that she would pull this out. As they hit the 10 minute mark, they were back to trading vicious slaps and Mariah actually won that exchange. In fact, she got a near fall on one because it FLOORED Giulia. Alas, Giulia was able to regroup and win with the Glorious Driver in 12:04. If her entire year of performances wasn’t enough, this should convince everyone that Mariah May is a star. Giulia is Giulia so this is expected but this was one of the best matches of the tournament and a solo breakout of sorts for Mariah. [****¼]
Post-match, Giulia shook Mariah’s hand and honestly, that’s worth more than the 2 points.
Red Stars: Natsupoi [4] vs. Syuri [2]
Syuri beat Suzu Suzuki in a fantastic outing, while Natsupoi has wins over Starlight Kid and Suzuki. The feeling out process was one that gave me the sense this was going long. However, as soon as they came out of that, the pace picked up to the point where I didn’t think it would hit the 10 minute mark. That’s how hard they were going. Syuri was a killer and looked like the force who was nearly unstoppable in 2022 and Natsupoi was as good as it gets in terms of being the underdog. Every kick that Syuri threw looked brutal and sounded like death and Natsupoi sold them all masterfully. There was a point where Syuri just stomped on Natsupoi like her name was Stone Cold. Natsupoi’s response was to avoid a Syuri high kick with a spin kick of her own and while it may not like much when explained, the timing to get it just right was so perfectly done. It was seriously impressive. Whatever Syuri threw at Natsupoi, the latter would just find a way to get a shoulder up and survive, frustrating the former top champion. The crowd was invested in everything Natsupoi did late, popping for near falls on everything from flash pins to German suplexes. Natsupoi got one final shot with Fairy-ing Ring but Syuri kicked out and the bell rang at the 15:00 mark for a draw. Phenomenal match and Syuri is 2-2 in incredible outings, while Natsupoi continues to rack up great performances. She is quickly climbing the ranks of my current favorite wrestler. [****½]
Red Stars: Mayu Iwatani [2] vs. Suzu Suzuki [2]
Another highly anticipated match featuring two of the best. Like most of the matches tonight, this got off to a fast start. Mayu was seemingly a step ahead but Suzu threw some harder strikes and was able to take control with that. She progressed from that to submissions where she twisted Mayu in some very uncomfortable ways. Those holds made it so Mayu had to fight through shoulder issues throughout, including after hitting a tope suicida. The final few minutes here were tremendous, building on what the ladies had set up in the early stages. Just tons of great counter wrestling, well-timed strikes and kicks, and the late drama you want in a match like this. Mayu didn’t have a lot to sink her teeth into early in the year but from the Mercedes feud on, she’s been the ace we all know her to be. I liked Mayu going for a Bret’s rope moonsault instead of a top rope one to lessen the risk given what happened to her shoulder. By the time she hooked Suzu for her dragon suplex, you knew the end had come. Suzu had a good moment of trying to escape it but Mayu connected and won in 12:51. They wasted none of these minutes and put together an action packed main event that I loved. [****]
