Kakuto Tanteidan IV ~ Straight Ahead 10/23/2025

 Ali Najima vs Kosuke Sato, KT 10/23

Najima is my boy, and I'm so glad they brought him in on this show, because clearly he is great in this kind of quasi-shootstyle environment. And Sato has also been quite reliable as an aggressive pitbull  that will slap and dropkick the shit out of your face in these short violent shootstyle matches. This was a great mix of slick wrestling and two aggressive guys trying to maul each other and one or two very well timed moments. I can't say much more than that, it was that simple  and straight forward. Just sick elbows and slaps and headbutts galore. Quite possibly the most enjoyable under 10 minute match of the year. Really hope Najima becomes a mainstay on these shows. I also liked the old lady in the front row that was really into the action.

brother YASSHI & Yuko Miyamoto vs Tanomusaku Toba & Kengo Mashimo - GREAT

A lot of fun to be had here. Miyamoto kind of felt like a joke, and he is an odd addition, but I thought for what he was going for he totally worked in this match, and he did some cool stuff like busting out his moonsault knee drop in plausible fashion, and a cool rolling cradle into a calf slicer. We also get to see brother YASSHI unleashing his inner grappler which is always cool, and Mashimo being a dick, especially to Miyamoto. I have no idea what Yasshi was thinking with that cartwheel comeback he tried though. TOBA~ brought the face punches as always. He does not swing as much as he did in his younger years but when he hits he will hit pretty hard. Thought the violent working over he gave YASSHI was easily the highlight of the early goings of the match. I thought they would have a Mashimo vs Miyamoto finish and it would settle for being a decent watch but instead TOBA and Yasshi tagged in and delievered an awesome brief but violent finish with Yasshi redeeming himself with a sick running headbutt and deadlift suplex that left Toba cold. Can't ask for much more from an old man comedy tag that is the 2nd on the card.

Keita Yano vs Manabu Hara - EPIC

It's been a while since their 2013. Keita has gone through many transformations, but at the core he is still the same old demon. This was Yano torturing Hara with carny tactics and dodgy Zbyszko stalling, and getting kicked in the face for his troubles. Even things like the old face scrape were made to look exceedingly violent and painful. I loved how Keita took off his elbow pad for seemingly no reason only to shove the point of said elbow into the Haras elbow nerve in a painful way moments later. Acts of cruelty always become more disturbing when they are premediated. Hara really looked like he just wanted to end the match. He was fighting a right demon after all. Builds to an approbiatly grotesque and violent finale. The most Keita match to happen in 2025, as somehow even his unconventional antics don't feel predictable here, and we are all here for it. One of the best bouts of the year, and Keita retains his title as the definitive anti-pro wrestler.

Yuki Ishikawa & Mohammed Yone vs Daisuke Ikeda & Ikuto Hidaka

Pretty much full on old man comedy tag stuff. I was expecting Ikeda to do an Eigen spit spot. Ishikawa still does provide some interesting matwork when he matches up with Hidaka, and he and Ikeda also had a nice grappling exchange later that lead to Ikeda biting Ishikawas wrist of course. Their one standing exchange felt to be at 5% of the usual intensity, which is understandable, though they do punch each other in the face later in the match. Yone looked spry and Hidaka can still be a bit energetic, he also had to shoe in the I'll be back. Not much shootstyle here, felt very much like a NOAH undercard tag. All these guys have more than proven their salt in their long careers so I don't really mind them retiring to this kind of thing.

Fuminori Abe vs Hikaru Sato

The early goings were pretty solid slow paced shootstyle action. Unfortunately, they had the really bad idea to have this be 30 minutes long. I wouldn't have minded if they had just continued dicking around on the mat for 15 minutes and then had a hot second half or something, but instead they padded the time with some pointless crowd brawling and some of that 'sitting down and letting the other guy kick you' macho stuff, which is probably the worst trope in all of wrestlig for me. You certainly never saw Yuki Ishikawa lying down allowing Daisuke Ikeda to hit him back in the day. They do hit each other quite brutally hard and the match has a few good moments, but just buried in an overly long match that didn't feel particularily inspired. Turning this kind of BattlARTS style match into a joke is certainly Fuminori Abes worst sin.

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2025 Matchguide 

Kakuto Tanteidan 4/8/2025

 Satsuki Nagao vs Shuji Ishikawa

It’s nice to see Ishikawa return to his Fu-Ten roots of just potatoeing the fuck out of people in quasi-shootstyle matches. This didn’t feel quite like a BattlARTS or Fu-Ten match, it had bit much of those back and forth elbow exchanges, but once in a while they would try to nuke each others brains with a sick headbott or knee and it was a spectacle. I’ve never seen or heard of Nagao, looking him up on Cagematch tells me he might be… sorta… a big deal on the small scales of Japanese indies? He’s with Tochigi Pro, challenged Akitoshi Saito for a title in NOAH last year, what ever that means nowadays. Having my first look at him in this match I thought he was a black trunks rookie, there to get mauled by the bigger Ishikawa, and it does feel a bit like that with Nagao eating a big beating and unable to get Ishikawa off his feet etc, but Nagao ends up surviving much longer than expected and getting bigger and bigger hits in on Ishikawa including just straight headbutting him in the face, maybe even to the point where I thought it was a little too much as he survived a sick dragon suplex and then the actual finish looked a little weak. Anyways I am nitpicking this match too much, they potatoed the fuck out of each other and it was a really fun opening match, end of story.

Masashi Takeda vs Kosuke Sato

Hey its Kosuke Sato. I enjoyed him when he was in CAPTURE for a hot minute. And look Takeda gets to do shootstyle! This starts with Takeda bullying Sato because Takeda iis a Tamura trainee even 12 years after Style-E so clearly the superior shooter. Sato comes back biting Takedas wrist because despite his chiselled body and boyish looks, he is a filthy BJW boy after all. Takeda ends up bleeding from his ear after grappling. I imagine sudden bleeding has to be a big problem for death match wrestlers in their daily lives. In this case it’s not even just a little smear of blood, its a full on gushing wound that keeps spilling blood. Sato manages to get some comebacks and when he does he hits these cool big leaping dropkicks where he makes sure to kick Takeda right in the head. He hits a lovable messily executed shootstyle bodyslam that is full of struggle and goes to choke Takeda out, with Takedas blood all over his body and even getting in his mouth. Sometimes you just gotta watch some filthy blood drenched gruesome pro wrestling like this. Started out just solid like a BJW or DDT undercard match with shoostyle elements but once they got to the bleeding and gritty fighting it got really great. Takeda is perfectly good as a shooter with cool submissions and sick suplexes, its a pity he gets to do this kind of match only once in a while.

Yuki Ishikawa & Tyson Maeguchi vs Super Tiger II & Tanomusaku Toba - FUN

A fun BattlARTS style midcard tag with some kickboxing mixed in. Ishikawa can still roll out and have cool exchanges with STII just like he did in from 2008-2011 all the time. I thought it was just gonna be a friendly grappling exchange with Ishikawa schooling his opponent and pulling out cool reversals, but then STII dropped a fucking Killer Kowalski level knee on Ishikawas face, making things more intense. Maeguchi basically was all kickboxing, and he does throw some fun combos, him sparring a little with the Tiger was fun, and Toba did his “I am too old for this shit but I can still dodge you and punch you in the face at any time” thing which entertains. The real money match up here is Ishikawa vs Toba which is a real sleazeball shootstyle dream match, unfortunately their exchange lasted only about 30 seconds but it was still nice we got to see that.

Brother Yasshi vs Dan Tamura

First few minutes had some very good amateur-style matwork with Yasshi once again busting out a cool Honda-ish arm takedown and Tamura throwing his opponent around, including hitting a pretty nutso German suplex. Unfortunately the match kind of turned into a mediocre indy match which looks really awkward on a show like this.

Fuminori Abe & Takuya Nomura vs Manabu Hara & Hikaru Sato

I’ll be honest, I thought this was hurt by being overly long, some goofy ropework and I dislike how Abe seems to turn everything into a joke. But fuck that, they decided to beat the fuck out of each other from the get go and the spirit was absolutely there. Lots of fun chaos and hard hitting. Sato coming in and looking like a badass was surprising and great. Hara also always looks great when it’s time kick ass. We get lots of fun chaos and plenty of violent exchanges with some great extended segments towards the end only slightly marred by the weird decision to include some rope running. Sato may have been the best guy in the match, he really comes into his own in this style, really feels like a late blooming for him. Thought the match needed a bit more Nomura and less Abe, Nomuras out of nowhere grittiness is great. This match was a blast, not mindblowingly great, but definitely a blast.

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CAPTURE International 5/8/2022 Night Show

  Buy it here

1. Takahiro Tababa & Rocky Kawamura vs. Raito Shimizu & Hiroshi Yamato

Another solid 6 minute CAPTURE opener where everyone gets to look good in short bursts. I really liked how Shimizu tried to play tough guy against Kawamura and Kawamura just punched him in the face hard, that should happen more often. Tababa then came in and bruised Shimizus mid section with some crowbar kicks. Yamato looked good again, busting out another crazy headbutt and his jumping kick is a pretty cool spot.

CAPTURE Tournament Semifinal Matches:
2. Super Crafter U vs. Takuya Nomura

Short match where they basically went for the kill from the start. Crafter U has some nifty kicks for an old looking guy, and he does a nice job turning Nomuras aggression against him.

3. Rikiya Fudo vs. Naoya Nomura

This was an awesome violent sprint that felt like it could end at any moment, Nomura being the young hotness in CAPTURE facing the monster that is FUDO. Fudo may have the most violent offense on the planet , tight face-wrenching headlocks, lung-bursting chops, big Vader Hammers and lariats, an elbow drop and senton that looks like it would leave a man with internal bleeding, Fudo just doesn‘t hold back on anything and it‘s awesome. Nomura was great absorbing the punishment and trying to take him down, and seeing him reach deep and hit those left-right elbows was awesome. His selling was really good too, as even after he hit a move he could barely get up, probably both from the punishment he took and from how much power he had excerted. The match ends in a flash, but what the hell, for a 5 minute match this was insanely good.

4. Keisuke Goto & Kosuke Sato vs. Daisuke Kanehira & Mizuki Watase

For a bunch of indy guys, this was really good, really stiff action. They do a mix of fun grappling and trying to crack each others jaws with nasty elbows. The elbow exchanges were a bit veering into your turn-my turn territory but at least they hit each other insanely hard. I really enjoyed Goto once again as a tubby guy who just shoulder blocks people really hard and squishes guys with sentons, and Sato was really energetic. The HEAT UP team held up their end giving and dishing some nasty punishment. Because it‘s CAPTURE you expect any move to be a finish, and even a basic vertical suplex looks absolutely brutal because they are wrestling on that tin mat. CAPTURE magic was at play, but they did a nice job working with the points system making this really good indy shootstyle overall.

5. CAPTURE Title Tournament Finals MMA Gloves Match: Super Crafter U vs. Naoya Nomura

This tournament has been one hell of a ride, and this was a worthy finale. Super Crafter U had some nice Fujiwara-ish counters to Nomuras size and aggression. Once they stood up and threw strikes things got intense, even a main event can end anytime in CAPTURE and that was felt with each move. Spear spots felt really violent, also due to Nomuras selling as he made it look as if he was wrecking himself too. The finish was cool and felt like a moment where someone kicking away at a prone opponent backfired. I was not sure how Nomura would continue to do going into this tournament but I am on board with him at this point.

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CAPTURE International 5/8/2022 Daytime Show

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1. Keisuke Goto & Raito Shimizu vs. Sanshu Tsubakichi & Takahiro Tababa

Nice to see my boy Shimizu work a CAPTURE show again. This was two kickpadded crowbars facing a pair of thick powerhouses and pretty fun, clearly meant to set the mood for the day. Everyone hits hard and does their thing. I continue to be invested in Keisuke Goto who has the potential to become a cool mini-Yoshie, his clubbering and big senton are really nice. Shimizu hit some big throws and Tababa and Tsubakichi hit some snug kicks, and Tsubakichi had a nice STO. The whole thing was really short at just 6 minutes too to remind everyone CAPTURE matches can end at any point, I really liked the finish as Tababa had a sleeper on Goto, who signaled for his partner to come help him only to be choked out anyways moments later. I dig a short match that puts over the sleeper hold.

2. Takuya Nomura vs. Mizuki Watase

This was pretty much your typical indy undercard match with no ring and the stiffness dialed up to 11 because it‘s CAPTURE. Solid effort but it‘s feels a bit controlled compared to your better CAPTURE affairs, they did some perfunctory matwork and then moved on to back and forth strike exchanges, which is something you see in basically every Japanese match now, but this was kept short at least and the stiffness was high. Watase brained Nomura with an absolutely murderous headbutt, but he also pissed me off a bit by no selling a German suplex on that thin mat. Violent finish. Perfectly fine short undercard as we move on to the really good stuff.

3. Super Crafter U vs. Kosuke Sato

This was much better, exactly that dungeon shootstyle goodness you are looking for and eschewing a typical by the numbers indy match structure. Sato is a BJW rookie and he has serious fight in him. Crafter U is kind of lumpy and old, nobody knows who he is and I wonder if he‘s some U-Style leftover who put on some pounds, whoever he is he is a really fun worker as he can do both the sick hard hitting as well as bust out some nifty surprise submissions and kicks. This was the right mix of guys dropping bombs on each other when standing and neat matwork, with a nifty finish.

4. Naoya Nomura vs. Hiroshi Yamato

I‘d never have expected it, but Yamato is starting to grow on me. Even though he doesn‘t have shoot style strikes, he is a really good scrambly matworker, and largely made this match. I really liked how when Nomura started to kick at Yamatos arm/shoulder, Yamato immediately seeked to equalized by attacking Nomuras leg. Yamato also uncorked another absolutely brutal headbutt. Nomura worked this match like a big powerful guy who will ram you and throw the fuck out of you, and that really works considering he has size and is a rugby guy. It also helps that a simple body slam will look absolutely devastating on that thin mat. Really good little match with a few nifty moments.

5. Rikiya Fudo vs. Rocky Kawamura

Fudo looked like a monster in this, tanking Kawamuras body shots and almost taking his head off with a huge Vader Hammer. Fudo took Kawamura down and then really grinded him into the mat, locking in a kesagatame that looked so heavy like it would make Kawamuras chest explode. Kawamura gets in an awesome desperation punch combo, but Fudo just crushes him. Once again Fudos big splash looked like it weighted 10000 kilos. This was one hell of a squash match.

 

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CAPTURE International 3/23/2022

First CAPTURE show to make tape in 19 years baby! Purchase it here

Daisuke Kanehira vs. Mizuki Watase

Pretty fun opening match between two juniors with dyed hair where they dialed up the stiffness to 11 like it‘s CAPTURE or something. They did some alright grappling and then waffled each other fierce. Couple fun spots such as a nasty guardrail drop, missile dropkick off the guardrail that looked tricky and a nasty rolling senton into the guardrail. Reminds me of those short FUTEN opening matches, I'm not sure I would want to check out these guys doing HEAT-UP undercard matches but the CAPTURE factor upgrades everything.

Fuminori Abe & Sanshu Tsubakichi vs. JOHTA & Keisuke Goto

Now this is the real CAPTURE material. 4 lunatics beating each other to death in a basement and not holding back in the slightest. JOHTA is a 20 year CAPTURE veteran, he is clearly a bit flabby and old but still looks like a menacing force in his ADIDAS pants. Abe is great when he cuts out the bullshit, and he did cut out the bullshit here. Keisuke Goto is a guy who was apparently trained in a joshi dojo, and he is a fun thick guy who can eat nasty kicks and retaliate with full bodyweight dropping sentons. Tsubakichi is fun and works stiff, hitting some nice body punches. Abe/JOHTA interactions were great and I loved how Johta got in peoples faces, grabbing the referee by the scruff, he came across as tough and out of control. Some really violent kicks and headbutts and Abe trying to break his fist on JOHTAs thick skull. I really liked how Abe was cocky initially and seemed to have the upper hand only to end being left a bloody mess by JOHTA.

Boxing Gloves Match: Takahiro Tababa vs. Super Tiger II

It‘s a boxing gloves match, baby. Short but very entertaining because Tababa was in „Beat a man to death“ mode here. He just pounced on poor Tiger and proceeded to drive his fists into him without relenting. Tiger looks overwhelmed but he has some fun comebacks shutting down Tababas rage and he looked like he really wanted to end this as soon as possible. The kick he caught him with was awesome. I think this went 4 minutes which is just right.

Takuya Nomura vs. Hiroshi Yamato

Yamato is this ex-AJPW guy who seems to be trying to be the most booked man on the Japanese indies. He‘s EVERYWHERE. And to my surprise he is pretty good at working basement shootstyle. Lots of fun grappling (Yamato trained with Virus), and while Yamato isn‘t a crowbar shooter there are some moments where they stand up and try to slap the skin off of each other. Really liked Yamatos jumping kicks, he came across as a pro wrestler tightening up his act to hang with a badass. Nomura looked quite good as usual. The suplex bumps were insane considering how thin that mat looks and the KO finish looked like it sent the guy to another dimension. Good shit.

2/3 Falls: Naoya Nomura & Super Crafter U vs. Rikiya Fudo & Kosuke Sato

The best match on this great show. Crafter is a masked guy who can do some fun grappling and hit people hard. Sato is a kickpadded BJW guy with good energy. And Fudo is just an awesome crowbar. I wasn‘t sure how AJPW boy Nomura would do but he has great energy and is willing to kill and get killed. Comprise all that into a 10 minute match and you have yourself one hell of a fight. Also add 2/3 falls rule means that any move can be a finish. Fudo is so great here, standing tall and beating the life out of people with Vader Hammers, shoot headbutts and the most violent splashes on earth. His sumo charge that bounced the other guy into the guardrail was also fantastic. All the Fudo/Nomura exchanges were damn great. I loved that Nomura is this guy who was primed to become an AJPW main eventer and Fudo just doesn't give a fuck at all and beats him like a dog. Nomura kept hitting these great spears. I really liked how when Fudo faced the other guy, Crafter just gave him some leg kicks and tagged out, I can understand not wanting to deal with that dude. Last fall was super intense and energetic with guys catching hands, eating sick headbutts and trying to tap each other out. Pro wrestling is good again.

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