As I have gotten more into Japanese wrestling, the rookie/lower card talent vs veteran/pushed talent matches began to be some of the most enjoyable matches I’d been watching. These types of matches have a usual quite simple story but are always ones I pay attention to because of how often they are executed well. How they essentially work is like a great squash match you see from time to time in American promotions but work to elevate lower the rookie/low-card talent instead of the established wrestler. These matches are often a platform to really show the growth of these lower level talents and are often their best matches up to that point.
I want to use three of these matches from this year to highlight some rookies who I absolutely love and rooting for and also to use this time to talk about some veterans who I also love and think are helping guide this next generation. Additionally, I want to expand a bit further on this idea by talking about the Passion Injection match series that has been happening with Nanae Takahashi in Stardom to help emphasize the importance of these matches and how they impact these younger talents.
Don Fujii vs. Daiki Yanagiuchi
Unlike the other two matches I will highlight, this match has a much more clear heel vs face dynamic. Daiki as the face and Fujii playing the veteran heel. This is Daiki Yanaguichi’s debut match. He has simple gear and comes to the ring with a Korakuen Hall staff outfit on since he worked there part-time to try to help get him into wrestling and to see more wrestling. Fujii in contrast is a retired drill sergeant and veteran of DragonGate who just wants to feud with all the new kids and cause trouble wherever he can. Almost immediately they establish that further with Fujii attacking Mochizuki Jr (Son of DragonGate and Puro legend Masaaki Mochizuki and fellow rookie seconding Daiki) before the match even begins and attacks him during the match too.
The match starts with Daiki going for a handshake and Fujii refusing. Afterward, Daiki lands his signature dropkick and dive to the outside of Fujii which immediately gets the energy up and the crowd behind him. The rest of the match has several highlights including Fujii body slamming Daiki onto the floor away from the protective mats, Daiki almost getting a win on a count out, some real fun chop/slap exchanges, near falls, etc. The fun of this match is watching Fujii get more and more upset that he is not beating Daiki. A fun spot of note is when Fujii holds Daiki’s wrist so every time Daiki kicks out with that arm Fujii presses it back down to the mat, so it becomes a game of endurance with Daiki repeatedly kicking out and Fujii pushing him back down.
This in essence is one of the hallmarks of these matches; the showing of will to succeed from the rookies and the veterans allowing them room to do so. The ending of this match is perfect with Fujii locking in a boston crab and Daiki attempts to push up out of it to get to the ropes, but then Fujii sits back down and Daiki immediately taps, a sort of last-gasp effort to win but doesn’t have the quality to do so yet. The post-match has Fujii shaking Daiki’s hand – gaining some respect from his senior who then lifts his arm in appreciation as well and to allow the crowd to cheer for Daiki in a lovely moment. He has become a wrestler.
Ryo Mizunami vs. Toga
Our second match is Ryo Mizunami vs Toga. We have the incredibly charismatic hard hitting veteran of Ryo Mizunami against a sort of reserved but strong rookie Toga. Toga stood out to me immediately in TJPW because she doesn’t have the same sort of outgoing charisma you’d sort of expect from the more idol-like wrestlers they have but instead has a sort of almost brooding cool charisma like you’d see with someone like Saori Anou for example. Her offense is much more power based as well which helps her stand out in this company and makes her a great opponent for Ryo Mizunami.
The dynamic of this match is chalked up a bit different from the first with neither being an outright heel in any way which is evident in them shaking hands at the beginning, unlike the previous bout. It follows a similar formula as the previous match of the veteran being on top for the majority of the match with the rookie getting some key comebacks. One moment I love in particular about this match is Ryo is hyping up the crowd, and it’s partially to get them to cheer for her and to get into the move she’s about to do, but the way she does it seem to also be hyping up Toga to fight back and to get the crowd behind Toga.
This emphasizes her charisma and veteran instincts at this moment. Other key moments of the match are Toga finally getting a big body slam after failing before and being repeatedly body slammed by Ryo; which mind you Ryo is not a small person, so this sells Toga’s strength already as a rookie. The other great moment is what you’d expect if you’ve seen any Toga match which is her big elbow strike which she hits to perfection against Ryo in a great hope spot late on in the match.
Konosuke Takeshita vs. Takeshi Masada
Our third match is quite different as though it is a rookie match, the dynamite has the rookie on a much higher level than the previous two. Takeshi Masada is a sort of super rookie as it would be dubbed in the wrestling world. Essentially someone who has excelled very quickly at wrestling. A more Western example could be Kurt Angle for example. From what I understand he passed his tests to become a wrestler after only 3 months which is pretty insane.
This match is about double the time of the last two clocking in at just over 10 minutes which shows the trust they already have in Masada to do this long of a match so early in his career. His opponent is Konosuke Takeshita who is still very young in his career and was also a super rookie when he debuted. I wouldn’t say this match has the same type of veteran vs rookie energy that the other two do just because of Takeshita’s age but this one I would say has the biggest discrepancy of top wrestler vs rookie as Takeshita is a certified main event star likely not even in his prime yet.
Masada’s development shows in this match as he has a much deeper bag of moves than Toga and Daiki and holds his own for a great portion of this match, what this match accomplishes most is DDT showing their trust in Masada and how highly they view him as a wrestler. He is on top for a lot more of this match which emphasizes this as well.
One of the coolest parts of this match was early on with Masada hitting a massive missile dropkick off the railing on the outside of the ring. I put this match last out of the three because even though Masada has essentially the same experience as Toga in-ring for example, this is the type of match you’d expect to be having later on in your career. What this match shows then is that Masada can do a lot of things already with his raw talent but lacks the polish and experience to beat more seasoned opponents. In contrast, however, this shows how highly he is viewed and trusted already to have such a match.
I want to tie these ideas together and show how this sort of progression works by talking about the Passion Injection matches that Nanae Takahashi has been having in Stardom this year. These matches are almost all like the 3 types I outlined above with the added addition of lower level talent being used for these matches to help elevate them. The title of this series is pretty straightforward, Nanae is attempting to inject her PASSION into these wrestlers by giving them a space where she won’t make them have an easy match but will give them room to show the heart and desire to win that is why these matches are so loved and easy to enjoy.
Waka Tsukiyama & Tam Nakano vs Nanae Takahashi & KAIRI
Perhaps the biggest success story in a way from one of these matches was Waka Tsukiyama. Waka had joined Stardom in 2021 and had never won a match being pinned in every match she was in, recording over 100 losses. She started to have a sort of rivalry with Nanae leading up to her passion injection match and ultimately lost that, then lost again in their triangle derby league match but ended up finally getting a win over Nanae in a sort of last stand tag match with Waka and Tam Nakano facing Nanae Takahashi and KAIRI. She is the only person from any of these matches to have actually beaten Nanae and even though the win was not in a passion injection match, it showed Waka’s growth as a wrestler and was one of the most genuinely heartwarming moments of the year with the fans fully supporting her and moving many to tears. I will never forget watching this match live and being so invested in Waka’s win, I cried because I was so happy for her and I think that’s the brilliance that these matches can achieve at their apex.
Some other highlights I would say from her opponents have been her ongoing rivalry with Ruaka whom the fans voted to team together at the Dream Tag Festival event in September and her fantastic matches with Saya Iida and Mei Seira who have both gone on to win championships since their matches with Nanae, and have both gotten very wholesome reactions from Nanae for doing so. I highly suggest checking out the entire series of matches, but those were just some personal highlights that I wanted to mention.
What is so important about these matches and their aftermath is the tangible growth we can see from them. Nanae like Ryo, Fujii, Takeshita, and countless others are vital veterans who are giving back to the business and helping the next generation grow and learn. These matches also give a built-in rivalry between the veteran and the rookie so in the future when they eventually go beyond their level or beat them it’s more interconnected and earned and as fans, we can look back at these matches as the beginning of those journeys. The generosity of the veterans cannot go understated here, and I want to give them their flowers for it.
For me, and so many others the most intriguing and rewarding part of wrestling is the growth of wrestlers throughout their career. We want to invest in new faces and cheer them along in their journey. We want to be there for their success, it’s easy to cheer for the underdog and that’s what these matches help us fans do. They’re a perfect platform for young wrestlers to start putting everything together and to get support and recognition. These matches tick all the boxes for me. They’re just simply perfect and I love them.
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