We now return to Stardom as the 5Star Grand Prix continues as we’re now at the halfway point of the tournament. Three shows happened over the weekend and to make it even, we’ll be covering the day and night shows that happened on September 12th.

Who will get closer to the top of the ranks?

Let’s find out as we…dive right in.

Star Rating System:

• 0 Stars: Dave Meltzer
• 1 Star: Vince Russo
• 2 Stars: Tony Schiavone
• 3 Stars: Eric Bischoff
• 4 Stars: Bruce Prichard
• 5 Stars: Jim Cornette

9/12/2020 Day Show

5 Star Grand Prix Blue Stars Match
Utami Hayashishita vs. Saya Iida

Review: Our first match for this show starts us off with Utami Hayashishita taking on Saya Iida. Saya is currently in last place with zero wins and it seems like the chances of her winning are impossible. Utami is still currently in the lead with three wins and zero losses, so her winning here will make her stay in the lead. Does Utami remain undefeated or will Saya ruin it?

Utami missed a Dropkick after having the early advantage and Saya delivered a Dropkick of her own onto Utami’s arm and it seems to be injured, giving Saya an opening. Saya working on Utami’s arm to injure it was solid enough as she was on top of it instead of hurting it once and ignoring it till the end. To me, I think Utami is ready to be the top player in Stardom, she has the right look, has a name behind her even before she joined, and is great in the ring to boost it up. I wouldn’t be mad if they decide to go with Utami winning the block or the whole thing.

Saya delivers a few forearms to Utami but before she could deliver one more, Utami delivers a Lariat. Saya attempted a Northern Lights Suplex onto Utami but she fights it off, for now, Saya would then charge at her only to be caught for a Scoop Slam. Utami climbed to the ropes but Saya Dropkicked her off and climbed up herself to deliver a Missle Dropkick of her own. Saya hits the Northern Lights Suplex this time and as Utami kicked out, Saya transitioned it into the Kumura Lock on her bad arm as she locked it in tight. Utami broke the hold once Utami reached the ropes and Utami caught her for a Reverse Samoan Drop and pinned her for a two count. Utami would end it with the Kryptonite Krunch and pinned Saya to remain undefeated.

Rating: Tony Schiavone and three quarters

5 Star Grand Prix Blue Stars Match
Jungle Kyona vs. Natsuko Tora

Review: Our next match is between Jungle Kyona and Natsuko Tora. Their rivalry has been brewing lately and later on in the month, they’ll be having a tag match where if Jungle’s team loses, Tokyo Cyber Squad will disband. Jungle would need to win here to stay in the race or she would be considered eliminated. Will Jungle win three in a row or is her chances to the top are over?

Not gonna lie, I’m enjoying how this rivalry has been playing out and I’m curious to see how this will play out at the end of things. The two make their way outside of the ring and Saki is distracting the referee for some reason even though people do whatever outside the ring anyway. Natsuko puts a bucket on Jungle’s head and hits her with an umbrella. Natsuo would toss her into the ring and grabs a chair to hit her but Jungle Dropkicks the chair, making it hit her in the process.

Jungle will hit the Splash off the top rope and Natsuko kicked out at two. Jungle attempted to lift her up as Natsuko pushed her off and delivers a Spear as she goes for the cover and another kickout. Natsuko went to the top rope to hit a Splash of her own but Jungle moved out of the way, causing Natsuko to hit the mat and Jungle hits a Lariat in the back of her head. The two brawl until Jungle get her into the corner and once Jungle rushed towards her, Natsuko would hit her with a Lariat with the chain covering her arm. The referee sees it and tries her best to stop her but Saki comes in to pull the referee away while Natsuko starts choking her out with the chain. The referee catches Natsuko hanging her from over the ropes and calls for the bell to give Jungle the disqualification victory to keep her in the race. Enjoyable match and looking forward to more of this rivalry.

Now on Stardom World! The 5★STAR GP 2020 continues! It's Natsuko Tora vs Jungle Kyona, from our 9.12 daytime show in Fukuoka. https://t.co/q8dHnF58vW pic.twitter.com/VxqKjbr6zR

— We Are Stardom (@we_are_stardom) September 14, 2020

Rating: Eric Bischoff and a half

5 Star Grand Prix Blue Stars Match
Syuri vs. AZM

Review: We’re now at the end of the day show as we have Syuri taking on AZM. Syuri missed the last show due to her mother passing away and she has a chance to try and catch up. AZM is almost out of the race but a win here would make her stay in it just a bit longer. Will Syuri get a win back or does AZM hang on?

What’s this, no handshake attempt from AZM? Guess she learns it’s not working out in her favor every time she attempts it. A rather quick sequence to kick things off and it looked like AZM was gonna try to flip her over after jumping the ropes but Syuri held her ground and just stomped her down a peg. Syuri kicked her in the back and goes for one more as AZM ducked to try and roll her up as they continue it until Syuri attempted a roundhouse kick, only to miss as the two stare each other into a stalemate. This is a big match for AZM to fight a big name outside of Stardom and she does well on her own here as the two created magic in this match.

AZM attempted a Brainbuster but Syuri fought her off and delivered a couple of kicks and AZM caught her into an Octopus Stretch, looking the hold in and work on her arm. AZM lets go of the hold and hit a Brainbuster for a two count. Syuri delivered a kick to the midsection and ran the ropes, only to be met with a Dropkick and now AZM runs the ropes, only for Syuri to deliver a knee to her midsection again. Syuri delivered a couple of kicks into the corner but AZM kicked her and held her arm to the top rope and slammed it down to stretch it out into her submission hold. AZM wrings her arm far back but Syuri eventually made her way to the rope, making AZM quickly drag her to the center of the ring and climbs the rope to hit a Diving Foot Stomp. AZM works her arm again as she hits the La Mistica and wrings her arm again. Syuri made it to the ropes again and AZM ran up to her, only to be caught with a roundhouse kick by Syuri and would apply the Fujiwara Armbar of her own to try and make her tap. Syuri had AZM on her shoulders but AZM rolled over her for a Sunset Flip and the two of them exchange a sequence of rolling each other up but they all kick out. Syuri goes for one more roundhouse kick as AZM ducked and pushed her down to do a La Magistral variation pin and gets the upset over Syuri!

Now on Stardom World from earlier today in Fukuoka! AZM battles Syuri in the main event of our matinee show, in the 5★STAR GP 2020 Blue Stars block! https://t.co/q8dHnF58vW pic.twitter.com/RtFePEEsOD

— We Are Stardom (@we_are_stardom) September 12, 2020

Rating: Eric Bischoff and three quarters

9/12/2020 Night Show

5 Star Grand Prix Blue Stars Match
Syuri vs. Saya Iida

Review: Time to start the night show as our block kicks off with Syuri taking on Saya Iida. Saya is already out after losing more than half of her matches and there’s no way she could catch up to Utami. Syuri lost her last two with one in a bye and the other to AZM, so she would need to win here to stay in the game or she’s out. Will Syuri win or will Saya finally get points on the board?

Not a great start for Saya as she attempted a German Suplex early on into the match and Syuri doesn’t budge, making Saya jump up to apply a sleeper until Syuri backed into a corner to make her leg go. A good chunk of the match is Syuri basically smacking and kicking her around like a season veteran would with a rookie and does a well enough job for it to work. Saya did get a moment to knock her down with her shoulder, mostly due to her being slightly bigger than her and could use her size as a slight advantage.

After Syuri had her fun in the match for a while as Saya gets her down with a two-handed chop and beats her own chest like she’s Donkey Kong. It doesn’t last much longer as she attempted a Northern Lights Suplex, only for Syuri to push her off and kick her in the midsection and then hits a DDT. Saya lands a few forearms onto Syuri’s chest until she has her on her knees and picks her up for a Scoop Slam. Saya delivers a Missile Dropkick off the top and finally hits the Northern Lights Suplex but Syuri kicked out at two. Syuri hits the Underhook Suplex and a knee to the face ad Saya kicked out. Syuri delivers a couple of kicks to her head and looks like she’s out as Syuri gets the victory.

Rating: Tony Schiavone and three quarters

5 Star Grand Prix Blue Stars Match
Jungle Kyona vs. Maika

Review: Our next match takes place between Jungle Kyona and Maika. This is a crucial moment for Jungle as she would need to win this match to stay in the game or she’ll be mathematically eliminated. Maika only has one loss under her belt but a loss here could damage her chances but if she wins, she’ll be on top with Utami. Is this the end for Jungle?

Basic start to the match with a headlock or two as the two would try to shoulder tackle the other but nobody would budge until Jungle would eventually come out on top with the battle of shoulders. Maika really has been improving since her JTO days and glad she’s the champion, just wish she would beat Utami for it to make it more meaningful. Looks like both of them have different body parts to work on as Maika would go for Jungle’s arms and even applied a Double Armlock until Jungle made it to the ropes to break it. Jungle would work on Maika’s back with a Boston Crab like she did earlier and goes back to doing that but Maika made it to the ropes.

Jungle attempts a Sharpshooter after pulling Maika away from the ropes but had her arms close to the ropes to grab them in time, breaking the hold. Jungle goes to the top ropes but Maika gets up to attack Jungle before climbing up, hitting a Suplex off the top rope, and goes for the pin as Jungle kicks out. Jungle Lariats Maika into the ropes and had her roll forward to hit another Lariat and goes down for a two count. The two get up to the corners and ran towards each other for a Lariat but the two don’t budge. They would now go punch for punch but Jungle ended it with a forearm once Maika ran the ropes. It looks like Jungle is going for the Muscle Buster but Maika fought her off and applies a Sleeper Hold while sitting on the top turnbuckle and chokes her out, letting her go. Maika attempts a Straight Jacket Slam but Jungle fought her off and attempts another Lariat as Maika caught her for a Spinebuster. Maika picked her up and dropped her with the Straight Jacket again and goes for the pin as Jungle kicked out again! Maika picked her up and hits the Maika Cutter and pins her to get the win, eliminating Jungle in the process.

Rating: Eric Bischoff and a half

5 Star Grand Prix Blue Stars Match
Momo Watanabe vs. Utami Hayashishita

Review: Time to close up the night show with our main event as Momo Watanabe takes on Utami Hayashishita. This is a rematch from their match last year when they fought for the Wonder of Stardom Championship and one year later, things could be different between these two. If Utami wins here, she’ll basically be locked to win the whole block. Will Utami win one more or does Momo stop her in her tracks.

We start off the match with some smooth chain wrestling between the two women and things have been back and forth at a nice even pace until it ended into a stalemate, the two staring at each other as the audience applauded them. If you look at their progress from their previous encounter over a year ago and now, you can see how much they’ve grown, and even though Momo simmered down after losing the white belt, she’s still one of the best the roster has to offer. I said it before but I do believe Utami is ready for the red belt if they give her that opportunity. A lot of people knew she was gonna be a star when she arrived and she still can be, it’s not too late. Momo gets Utami to the outside for a brief moment and kicks her back, signaling what her target is going to be in the match. Momo delivered a couple of kicks and applied the first of many Camel Clutches for that extra damage but Utami isn’t done yet. Utami does do her best to fight her off but gets caught in a Guillotine by Momo until Utami reached the ropes again. Love when Momo takes control in the match since it shows off her cocky side and just plays it off so well. Now Utami gets an opportunity to work on Momo’s back this time around as she applies the Boston Crab but Momo was able to reach the ropes.

Utami slammed her down and went for the pin as Momo kicked out, leaving Utami frustrated as she went to pin her again but no luck with Momo kicking out again. Utami throws her into the corner and charges at her but Momo moved to deliver a Dropkick and delivers one more once Utami sat down and picked her up for a Suplex as Utami kicked out. Utami catches Momo with a judo flip and does it one more time before pinning her and Momo kicked out again as not a lot of time is left. The two are on the top rope and Momo attempts a Superplex but she would toss her over with what looks like a Uranagi and tops it off with a Somato as Utami barely kicked out. Momo went for a kick but Utami ducked and catches her for a German Suplex. The two slowly get up as they go blow for blow until Momo got up and roundhouse her in the face and delivers a Somato to her back and then a regular one to pin her and Utami kicked out again! Momo is wasting no time and delivers a Package Driver to get her down but Utami with another kickout as she just won’t quit. Momo climbed to the top rope and goes for a Dropkick but Utami went under her and catches her for another German Suplex, making her crash into the turnbuckle and that looked brutal. Utami picked her up for the Kryptonite Krunch and pins her as Momo would kick out but just barely! Utami puts her in a Sleeper Hold and would turn it into a German Suplex Hold and Momo would kick out again as we have less than a minute left now! Utami attempts the Torture Rack but Momo fought off her to apply the Crossface Chickenwing for a moment and turns it into a Torture Rack of her own. Momo puts her down to hit the Tequila Sunrise and Utami kicked out! Momo calls for the PEach Sunrise and Utami flipped over her and got up to hit a Lariat as the bell rings and we have a tie!

Momo Watanabe vs Utami Hayashishita! The Queen's Quest 5★STAR GP 2020 showdown from the 9.12 evening show in Fukuoka is available now on https://t.co/q8dHnF58vW!

*All 9.12 nighttime show matches are now available pic.twitter.com/iV2Jswrr2x

— We Are Stardom (@we_are_stardom) September 16, 2020

Rating: Bruce Prichard

Overall: Aside from the Saya matches, the rest were great and enjoyable to watch with a nice main event to top it off. Utami is still in the lead despite the draw but Momo was able to save herself a little bit longer for that. We got two more shows left, so let’s go!

Favorite Match: Momo Watanabe vs. Utami Hayashishita

Least Favorite Match: Syuri vs. Saya Iida

Score: 7.5/10