Tag: giulia

Giulia makes surprise NOAH appearance on first day of free agency

Posted on by Ian Carey

Giulia is set to make her in-ring debut for Pro Wrestling NOAH. 

On her first official day of free agency, Giulia appeared on NOAH Monday Magic in a segment with Nosawa. Nosawa first attempted to convince her to wrestle on today’s card, but after she rejected his proposal, Giulia announced she will compete at Wrestle Magic on May 4 at the Ryōgoku Kokugikan in Tokyo. 

Her opponent for the event has yet to be announced. 

Giulia would later say:

I’m Giulia, unemployed from today, I quit Stardom yesterday. I came here because I was called. The fact that I’m here means that the wrestling world will become more and more interesting, so please look forward to the future Giulia. Arrivederci, see you soon!

Giulia’s contract with Stardom officially expired at the end of March. She is expected to be part of Rossy Ogawa’s new promotion in Japan before eventually landing in WWE. She dropped the NJPW Strong Women’s Championship to Stephanie Vaquer on Stardom’s March 10 show in Korakuen Hall. 

Stephanie Vaquer defeats Giulia for NJPW Strong Women’s Championship

Posted on by Bryan Rose

A new NJPW Strong Women’s Champion has been crowned.

CMLL’s Stephanie Vaquer defeated Giulia at Sunday’s Stardom event at Korakuen Hall to win the championship for the first time, pinning the former champion with a roll-up. This ends Giulia’s run with the title after 243 days, defeating first-ever champion Willow Nightingale at NJPW Strong Independence Day back on July 5 of last year.

The title change comes as Giulia’s run with Stardom is coming to an end. Tokyo Sports reported last month that Giulia would not be renewing her Stardom contract when it expires later this month. Instead, she will be part of Stardom founder Rossy Ogawa’s new promotion before eventually heading to WWE.

Vaquer started wrestling for CMLL in 2019, where she is the current CMLL Women’s Champion and Women’s Tag Team Champion with Zeuxis. Last April, she made her debut at NJPW Strong’s Resurgence event to crown the first-ever Strong Women’s Champion, losing to Mercedes Mone in the opening round. On November 10 at Lone Star Shootout she was unsuccessful in challenging Mayu Iwatani for the IWGP Women’s Championship.

Giulia to defend NJPW Strong Women’s title against Stephanie Vaquer

Posted on by Joseph Currier

As she enters her final month with Stardom, a date has been set for Giulia’s next NJPW Strong Women’s Championship defense.

Giulia will defend the title against Stephanie Vaquer at Stardom’s show at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo on Sunday, March 10. Giulia has been Strong Women’s Champion since winning the title from Willow Nightingale in July 2023.

Tokyo Sports confirmed earlier this week that Giulia has informed Bushiroad (Stardom and NJPW’s parent company) that she will leave Stardom when her contract expires at the end of March. Giulia is expected to help Rossy Ogawa start a new promotion and then end up in WWE.

Ogawa was one of the founders of Stardom. His contract with Bushiroad was terminated earlier this month.

Vaquer is a double champion in CMLL, holding their Women’s Championship and Women’s Tag Team titles.

In 2023, Vaquer was part of NJPW’s one-night tournament to crown the inaugural Strong Women’s Champion. She lost to Mercedes Mone in the opening round.

Vaquer will be in action for NJPW at the promotion’s Windy City Riot event in Chicago on Friday, April 12.

Giulia to leave Stardom after contract expires next month

Posted on by Ian Carey

A Tokyo Sports article has confirmed Giulia will leave Stardom at the end of March when her contract expires. 

According to today’s report, the 30-year-old told Bushiroad in late 2023 that she intended to leave. 

As first reported by our own Dave Meltzer, Giulia is expected to join WWE eventually but only after helping Stardom founder Rossy Ogawa with a new promotion.

Bushiroad fired Ogawa on February 6 just weeks before his contract was set to expire. The company alleged he was poaching talent for a new company. Shortly after Bushiroad announced the news, Meltzer reported that Giulia is delaying her WWE start out of loyalty to Ogawa. 

Meltzer said on Wrestling Observer Radio:

The reason that (Giulia) is delaying her WWE start is so she can, at least, be there to kick off the promotion for a while and get the promotion going and then she is going to end up with WWE at some point.

But when WWE was interested in her she basically gave her word she would help (Ogawa) start out and that’s what she’s going to do. She’s actually postponing her WWE debut because she had given her word. 

Giulia has been with Stardom since 2019 after having gotten her start with the Ice Ribbon promotion in 2017. She’s a one-time Wonder of Stardom Champion, one-time World of Stardom Champion, and the current NJPW Strong Women’s Champion.

Big Audio Nightmare: The Stardom/Rossy Ogawa split

Posted on by Adam Summers

The Big Audio Nightmare is back with Mike Sempervive and I to talk about everything happening in the very busy world of Japanese wrestling.

This week’s topics include:

  • Stardom and Rossy Ogawa parting ways and what it means for the future of women’s wrestling in Japan
  • Who will stay with Stardom and who will join Ogawa’s new promotion?
  • How does WWE play into this, if at all?
  • Thoughts on the incredible Henare vs. Gabe Kidd war at Korakuen Hall
  • Hype for this weekend’s NJPW show in Osaka and why it feels like the end of an era

Click Here to Listen (sub needed)

Giulia delaying WWE start to help Rossy Ogawa with new promotion

Posted on by Ian Carey

Giulia is loyal to Rossy Ogawa. 

Following his release from Stardom this week, Ogawa announced his intention to start a new promotion. The current NJPW Strong Women’s Champion plans on being part of it, at least, initially. 

While she is expected to land in WWE eventually, Giulia is delaying her start to help Ogawa kick off his new company. 

Our own Dave Meltzer addressed the situation with Ogawa, Giulia, and Bushiroad on the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio.

Meltzer said:

The reason that (Giulia) is delaying her WWE start is so she can, at least, be there to kick off the promotion for a while and get the promotion going and then she is going to end up with WWE at some point.

But when WWE was interested in her she basically gave her word she would help wh(Ogawa) started out and that’s what she’s going to do. She’s actually postponing her WWE debut because she had given her word. 

Bushiroad announced on Sunday that Ogawa had been fired from the promotion. They also accused him of attempting to poach talent for his new company. Ogawa would later deny those accusations in an interview with Tokyo Sports. He confirmed his intention to start a new promotion during the same interview.

In a Subscriber Exclusive story posted this weekend, Meltzer detailed what led to Ogawa’s departure from Stardom. 

“The story dates back about nine months when Bushiroad execs started overruling Ogawa to the dismay of both himself and talent and some of the more outlandish booking decisions,” Meltzer wrote. 

Giulia leaning toward joining WWE in 2024

Posted on by Joseph Currier

One of Japan’s top wrestlers is likely WWE bound.

In the new edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reports that Giulia is likely coming to WWE in 2024. Her contract with Stardom is set to expire in March. Meltzer noted that Giulia might not come into WWE right away, but she’s leaning toward joining the promotion.

Meltzer wrote:

Giulia right now is seen as likely to be coming here [WWE] in 2024. Her contract expires with Stardom in March. She may not be coming in right away, but as of right now she’s leaning toward coming here in 2024.

Giulia is the current NJPW Strong Openweight Champion. She also holds the Artist of Stardom titles with Mai Sakurai & Thekla.

In the 2022 Wrestling Observer Newsletter Awards, Giulia finished in ninth place for Wrestler of the Year. She was in the top five for Japanese MVP, Women’s Wrestling MVP, and Most Charismatic.

Meltzer previously reported that AEW had never made a serious play for Giulia and she wasn’t in conversations with them. Meltzer wrote that Giulia wasn’t considering AEW. Her two options were signing with WWE or staying in Japan.

Giulia retained the Strong Openweight Championship against Megan Bayne at Stardom Dream Queendom on Friday. Her next title defense will be against Trish Adora at NJPW Battle in the Valley in San Jose, California on Saturday, January 13.

Meltzer also reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that WWE is interested in working with Stardom:

Besides the new deal working with All Japan, WWE has also expressed interest in working with Stardom. Nothing is finalized that we know of regarding that but WWE is confirmed interested.

Giulia update: No talks with AEW, will remain in Japan or sign with WWE

Posted on by Ian Carey

AEW is not currently considered a serious player to sign NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Giulia. 

The 29-year-old is under contract to Bushiroad until March but WWE has expressed interest in signing her should she become a free agent. WWE has had Giulia on their radar dating back to 2019. 

Our own Dave Meltzer addressed the latest on Giulia in today’s edition of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter. He wrote that there have been no talks between her and AEW and that she is either WWE-bound or will re-sign with Bushiroad. 

Meltzer wrote:

Nothing new on Giulia past that AEW has never made a serious play for her and she’s had no conversations with AEW and is not considering them. It’s WWE or staying in Japan.

Giulia is set to defend her title against Megan Bayne at Stardom Dream Queendom on December 29. Should she successfully retain, her next challenger will likely be Trish Adora at Battle in the Valley in San Jose on January 13. 

Pacific Rim: A look ahead at 2024 for Will Ospreay, Giulia, Okada & Stardom

Posted on by Jim Valley

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFKPWsvW1yc

We’re back with nearly 90 minutes of the Pacific Rim Pro Wrestling Podcast.

Fumi Saito and I talk about what the future may hold for Will Ospreay, Giulia and Okada in 2024 including why WWE may or may not be the best fit for them.

Fumi answers questions on Stardom’s new president and possible changes we could see in the company in 2024. 

We also discuss All Japan Pro Wrestling’s comeback year and the three people driving the resurgence and change backstage.

Plus, Wrestle Kingdom, Bruiser Brody, Abdullah The Butcher, The Von Erichs, questions from the YouTube chat and much more.

Click Here to Listen (sub needed) or watch above on YouTube

Wrestling Observer Live: Botched RAW finish, Ospreay and Giulia thoughts, RAW report, more

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Mike Sempervive is back with tons to talk about including the botched finish on RAW in the IC Title qualifying match, Collision getting killed by a WWE PLE again, thoughts on where Will Ospreay and Giulia would best fit in, the World Famous RAW Report and more! A fun show as always so check it out~!

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WWE interested in Giulia, no tryout planned

Posted on by Josh Nason

Reigning NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Giulia has drawn interest from WWE, but there is no tryout for the 29-year-old currently on the books.

The reason: she is still under contract with Bushiroad until March 2024 with a verbal commitment for afterward, according to Dave Meltzer. 

Talking about the PWInsider report from Monday, Meltzer confirmed on Wrestling Observer Radio that there is interest from WWE but also that there has been since 2019. He said WWE confirmed with him they are interested, but the tryout isn’t happening.

He did not confirm whether she is interested in signing with WWE or anywhere other than Bushiroad when her deal is up. She currently lives in Japan.

While Giulia is set to visit the United States for January’s NJPW Battle in the Valley to defend her Strong title against Trish Adora, Meltzer said that unless Bushiroad gives her permission, she wouldn’t be allowed to do a tryout with WWE. He also added that her schedule is booked throughout the end of the year.

Since winning the title in July, Giulia has secured five title defenses with the most recent being at last month’s NJPW Strong Fighting Spirit Unleashed against Hyan. She is also part of the reigning Artist of Stardom trios champions along with Mai Sakurai & Thekla.

Wrestling Observer Radio: RAW report, AEW and NXT previews, Giulia, New Japan and more!

Posted on by Bryan Alvarez

Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer is back with tons to talk about including AEW and NXT this week, Most Outstanding 2023, Giulia and Tam Nakano updates, ratings, the RAW report for Monday night with Sami Zayn and Seth Rollins for the World Title in the main event, and more. A fun show as always so check it out~!

Timestamps:

Start: Will Ospreay and Most Outstanding Wrestler, NJPW Power Struggle

21:17: Giulia update

30:35: Tam Nakano update, Sareee to Sukeban, Billy Corgan/NWA/CW update

35:39: Ratings, AEW Dynamite & NXT cards

45:21: Dana White on Saudi Arabia deal, latest on WWE Raw TV negotiations, new UFC main events

49:24: WWE Raw report 

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Report: WWE interested in signing NJPW women’s champion Giulia

Posted on by Ian Carey

WWE is reportedly interested in signing a top talent from Stardom.   

Update: 

Our own Dave Meltzer has confirmed Giulia is under contract to Bushiroad until March 2024. Regarding her possibly being at the WWE PC later this month, it’s doubtful Bushiroad would allow this, and her booking schedule would make it difficult up until January’s NJPW Battle in the Valley in San Jose. 

Original:

According to a report from PWInsider citing sources from Japan, WWE has been courting NJPW Strong Women’s Champion, Giulia. One source is said to have stated that talks between Giulia and the company have progressed enough that she is expected at the WWE Performance Center sometime this month. However, Giulia is under contract to Bushiroad until next March. 

The plan had been for Giulia to defend her title against Mercedes Mone once she was cleared to return, our own Dave Meltzer reported this summer. However, there is still no timetable for Mone to be back after suffering a broken ankle in May. 

Giulia has had some of the highest-rated matches of 2023. Meltzer rated her match against Tam Nakano at All-Star Grand Queendom in April four and three-quarter stars.

She recently defended her title against Hyan at NJPW Strong Fighting Spirit Unleashed in Las Vegas on October 28. She also wrestled at NJPW/Impact Multiverse United 2 in Philadelphia on August 20, defending her title in a four-way against Deonna Purrazzo, Gisele Shaw, and Momo Kohgo on the show.

Eddie Kingston title defense booked for NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Eddie Kingston’s Strong Openweight Championship will be on the line in Las Vegas later this month.

NJPW has announced that Kingston will defend his Strong Openweight title against Henare at Fighting Spirit Unleashed on Saturday, October 28. The show is taking place from Sam’s Town Live in Las Vegas and will be available to watch live as a pay-per-view on Fite TV.

Issues between Kingston and Henare date back to this summer’s G1 Climax. Kingston defeated Henare in a tournament match. Henare then attacked Kingston later in the tour. Kingston responded by brawling with Henare the next day.

Kingston is currently a double champion, holding both the NJPW Strong Openweight Championship and ROH World Championship. Only the Strong Openweight title will be up for grabs in his match against Henare.

Kingston became ROH World Champion by defeating Claudio Castagnoli in a title vs. title match at Dynamite Grand Slam last month.

NJPW has also confirmed that Giulia will defend the Strong Women’s Championship against Hyan at Fighting Spirit Unleashed. Hyan challenged Giulia to the match this past weekend.

Here’s everything that’s been announced for Fighting Spirit Unleashed so far:

  • Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston defends against Henare

  • Strong Women’s Champion Giulia defends against Hyan 

  • Stephanie Vaquer & Zeuxis vs. Lluvia & Johnnie Robbie
  • Atlantis, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Mistico & Atlantis Jr. vs. Rocky Romero, Tiger Mask, Soberano Jr. & Adrian Quest

Giulia challenged by HYAN for NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed

Posted on by Ian Carey

HYAN wants to face Giulia for the NJPW Strong Women’s Championship. 

Giulia successfully defended her title against Ami Sohrei on today’s Stardom show from Korakuen Hall. HYAN appeared via video and issued a challenge to Giulia for NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed on October 28. 

“You guys love, love, love Giulia. I understand why, she’s had a hell of a year. World of Stardom Champion, an Artist of Stardom Champion, the current New Japan Strong Women’s Champion. But I think you’ve just been getting lucky,” HYAN says in the video. “The Renaissance Woman HYAN has also had a hell of a year.” 

“I’ve competed in top companies around the world, WXW in German, Impact and Ring of Honor in the United States, I’ve toured the United Kingdom with Revolution Pro. I’ve traveled all over the world looking for the strongest opponents so Giulia, I challenge you for your New Japan Strong Women’s Championship. Las Vegas, October 28, Fighting Spirit Unleashed, and your luck is about to run out.” 

However, HYAN is not the only wrestler who appears to be targeting Giulia. As today’s show came to a close, Giulia was attacked by Michiko Miyagi.

Giulia was not the only wrestler to be attacked on Saturday’s show either. After Mayu Iwatani defeated AZM, she was assaulted by what Stardom is describing as a “group of mysterious masked crows.” 

The same group of mysterious masked crows also attacked MIRAI earlier in the show. 

Only two matches are confirmed for NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed. The event takes place from Sam’s Town Live in Las Vegas. 

NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed on October 28 announced matches:

  • Stephanie Vaquer & Zeuxis vs. Johnnie Robbie & Lluvia
  • Atlantis, Atlantis Jr., Hiroshi Tanahashi & Mistico vs. Adrian Quest, Rocky Romero, Soberano Jr. & Tiger Mask

Stardom October 1 results from Korakuen Hall: 

  • NJPW Strong Women’s Champion Giulia defeated Ami Sohrei to retain her title
  • IWGP Women’s Champion Mayu Iwatani defeated AZM in a non-title match
  • Natsuko Tora, Momo Watanabe, Rina & Ruaka defeated Tam Nakano, Natsupoi, Saori Anou & Yuna Mizumori
  • Mai Sakurai, Maika & Thekla defeated Hazuki, Koguma & Hanan
  • Suzu Suzuki, Mei Seira & Megan Bayne defeated MIRAI, Syuri & Saki Kashima
  • Mina Shirakawa & Waka Tsukiyama defeated Lady C & Miyu Amasaki
  • Fukigen Death defeated HANAKO, Saya Iida & Hina in a four-way match