STARDOM Cinderella Tournament: Night One Review – 3.26.23

STARDOM Cinderella Tournament: Night One Review – 3.26.23

By Trent Breward

Nobody’s brackets were safe after the first night of the Cinderella Tournament. In a chaotic first round, six of the eighteen matches ended in draws, eliminating a host of top stars and heavy favorites.

The biggest winner was someone who wasn’t even on the original lineup. Waka Tsukiyama was granted one of the wildcard spots after winning her first ever match less than 24 hours prior. She then went on to double her amount of victories by pinning Lady C in the opening match. Not only does she advance, but now she has a bye straight to the quarter finals thanks to Mayu Iwatani and Saya Kamitani ending in a draw.

Waiting for her will be either Saki Kashima or the former World of Stardom Champion Syuri, who are set to do battle yet again after both managed to defeat their opponents. Saki has proven to be a killer with her Revival Flash pin in tournaments, and it struck once more against her fangirl Momo Kohgo. Syuri meanwhile dispatched of her protege Tomoka Inaba in a strong battle between teacher and student. Much of Inaba’s style borrows from Syuri, and she was able to learn first hand what the ultimate version of her future looks like.

Momo Watanabe and Ami Sourei join Waka Tsukiyama in the quarter finals, both also benefiting from free passes due to draws. Momo Watanabe in particular will be counting her lucky stars as she gets to avoid one of Utami Hayashishita and Nanae Takahashi, as neither woman could end the match within the ten minute time limit. Those two had never been shy of speaking their mind about the other ever since Nanae returned to STARDOM, and ten minutes clearly wasn’t enough time for them to settle their differences. A post match skirmish after a rejected handshake has left the duo with unfinished business.

【📺シンデレラ PPV生配信中‼】

オーバーザトップロープにより桜井まいがジュリアに勝利！

🔻PPV購入はこちらhttps://t.co/B3FFA5XPAJ

🔻PPV for fans from overseas(Japanese commentary)https://t.co/iTlLK8cfkO#STARDOM pic.twitter.com/tdLwISuuNY

— スターダム✪STARDOM (@wwr_stardom) March 26, 2023

The biggest upset of the night belonged to Mai Sakurai, who managed to shock everyone by defeating the World of Stardom Champion Giulia. Mai had exploded out of the gates, attacking her stablemate before the bell rang and drew inspiration from Giulia’s own aggressive brawling style. As expected though the champion recomposed herself and took over, stunning her with a series of hard slaps and a huge Avalanche Butterfly Suplex. However she didn’t expect Mai to counter her apron suplex attempt. The move sent both wrestlers plummeting to the outside, but Mai managed to keep her feet from touching the floor, granting her the narrow win and a huge feather in her cap.

Mina Shirakawa might have suffered a first round exit when both she and Natsupoi fell to the outside during an apron Figure Four Leglock, but she will be happy that both of her Club Venus members managed to advance. Mariah May won her match against Rina, and their newest member Xena took the win from Hina. The second surprise entrant of the tournament, Xena is an Australian who has enjoyed training under Robbie Eagles and will be looking to continue her successful start in STARDOM against Thekla.

After a chaotic first round the Cinderella Tournament won’t be slowing down. The second round matches will take place on April 1st, and the following day final four will be determined at Korakuen Hall. It all leads to the final night on the 15th, where the final three matches will take place to crown the 8th Cinderella (in 9 events). Of all the past winners, only Momo Watanabe and last year’s Cinderella MIRAI remain in the tournament. The Ash Covered Cinderella will be looking to become just the second person to win it twice – incidentally that was also achieved in consecutive years by Mayu Iwatani.

With many of the favorites gone, this year’s tournament should be considered wide open. Tam Nakano, and Syuri should be considered the strongest wrestlers of those remaining, but with the unpredictability of the tournament due to its ten minute time limit and over the top rope elimination rules nobody should consider themselves safe. It’s the perfect tournament for a hungry wrestler to assert themselves at the top of the card.

This is where the Cinderella Tournament stands after Round 1!
Round 2 – April 1 in Tochigi
Round 3 & Quarterfinals – April 2 Korakuen Hall
Semifinals and Finals – April 15 Yoyogi PPV pic.twitter.com/JXCCUZTNC7

— We Are Stardom (@we_are_stardom) March 26, 2023

Full Results:

• Waka Tsukiyama def. Lady C
• Saya Iida def. Miyu Amasaki
• Ami Sourei def. Yuna Mizumori
• Starlight Kid vs. Haruka Umesaki ended in a draw
• Xena def. Hina
• Mariah May def. Rina
• Saki Kashima def. Momo Kohgo
• MIRAI def. Hanan
• Thekla def. Koguma
• Natsuko Tora def. Ruaka
• Syuri def. Tomoka Inaba
• AZM vs. Hazuki ended in a draw
• Mai Sakurai def. Giulia
• Natsupoi vs. Mina Shirakawa ended in a draw
• Saya Kamitani vs. Mayu Iwatani ended in a draw
• Momo Watanabe def. Maika
• Utami Hayashishita vs. Nanae Takahashi ended in a time-limit draw
• Tam Nakano def. Himeka

Rapid Fire Takeaways:

• Xena might be the newest member of Club Venus, but Mina Shirakawa has another ace up her sleeve, announcing the arrival of a new member to the club on April 6th. She is still technically a part of Cosmic Angels, but her attention seems more drawn to her own group of import wrestlers.
• Oedo Tai leader Natsuko Tora was nearly obliterated by her protege Ruaka during their match. The youngster hit a Freezer Bomb from the top rope, sending Tora through a table on the outside and tearing up her back. Ruaka had her in trouble for much of the match, being kept at bay only by the odd high impact move that bought Tora some time. Experience won out, but it was a great showing from Ruaka, who will be keen to climb up the pecking order this year.
• AZM told Mercedes Mone to pay attention to her match with Hazuki, and let’s hope the IWGP Women’s Champion did. She and everybody else were treated to a high speed dash between two wrestlers who know each other all too well. It was one of the match of the nights that should serve as a great appetizer for the triple threat match at Sakura Genesis.
• While the action was kept at an exciting pace, a third of the matches ending in draws felt like a bit too much. Especially when five matches in a row ended with both wrestlers falling to the outside of the ring, with Mai Sakurai escaping elimination during this stretch. The Cinderella Tournament always plays host to a few draws, but it began to feel rather repetitive.