Tag: Gleat

Parker Boudreaux says he’s ‘deeply grateful’ for recent support in Japan

Posted on by Ian Carey

Parker Boudreaux has released a statement about the recent groundswell of support he has received while wrestling for GLEAT in Japan.

Last year, GLEAT president Hiroyuki Suzuki praised Boudreaux, calling him the “greatest fighter out there right now,” pointing to the engagement numbers his match videos generate on Instagram.

Boudreaux released the following statement on Saturday (translated from Japanese):

“I truly love professional wrestling from the bottom of my heart. I am deeply grateful for the recent support from Japan. Every day, in every moment, I feel your love with all my senses. From here on out, I will continue to give my all in every aspect. This is my dream. From now on, day by day, I will keep striving endlessly.”

Boudreaux also spoke to WrestlingNews.co recently, and commented on the GLEAT president’s praise.

“The president of GLEAT, the company I am signed to in Japan, called me the greatest fighter out in the world right now,” Boudreaux said. “When he called me that, I nearly cried. All the hard work in the dojo and big matches throughout Japan paying off. They treat me like I am Taylor Swift out there.”

Boudreaux has been with the GLEAT promotion since 2024. Prior to that, he played college football at the University of Central Florida before signing with WWE in 2021 and later wrestling under the name Harland. He was released in April 2022. That December, he debuted with AEW and joined Swerve Strickland’s Mogul Affiliates stable. He was released by AEW in April 2024. He began training in the GLEAT dojo in Japan later that year and debuted for the promotion that October.

The Rascalz win tag titles, Ricochet returns to Japan at GLEAT Ver. MEGA

Posted on by Ian Carey

GLEAT held a big show in Osaka on Sunday.

The event featured Ricochet’s first match in Japan since 2017. He teamed with CIMA in a win over El Hijo Del Vikingo and Soma Watanabe on the show.

Kota Ibushi also wrestled in Osaka on Sunday despite DDT announcing yesterday that he will not make their shows on October 17 and 20. This has led some to speculate that Ibsuhi missing the DDT shows could be due to him making his AEW return around the same time.

Ibushi wrestled alongside former K-1 fighter and graduate of the “Ibushi Wrestling Research Institute” Ryo Aitaka, who will now be joining GLEAT full-time.

“I truly respect him, and I will be waiting for the day when I can meet the perfect, strongest Ryo Aitaka as a GLEAT wrestler in the same ring. I’m looking forward to it,” a translation of Ibushi’s comments to Tokyo Sports reads.

The Rascalz Zachary Wants & Trey Miguel won the G-Infinity Tag Team Championships on the show by defeating Kaito Ishida & Tetsuya Izuchi.

“No one is doing the same thing as the Rascalz. Rascalz is making history. Whether it’s TNA, NXT, or GLEAT, we’re conquering the world with these tag team championships,” Wentz said after the show.

“For six years, we have dreamed, shed blood, and have done everything we can to return to Japan. Since I’m back, let’s stay here for a while,” added Miguel.

Former NXT and AEW wrestler Parker Boudreaux also wrestled on the show. He unsuccessfully challenged Hayato Tamura for the G-Rex title. Tamura now has the record for most successful defenses of the belt with eight.

Match results from GLEAT Ver. MEGA in Osaka include:

  • UWF Champion Katsuhiko Nakahima defeated Masakatsu Funaki
  • G-Rex Champion Hayato Tamura defeated Parker Boudreaux
  • CIMA & Ricochet defeated El Hijo del Vikingo & Soma Watanabe
  • The Rascalz (Trey Miguel & Zachary Wentz) defeated Kaito Ishida & Tetsuya Izuchi to win the G-Infinity Tag Team Championships
  • Kota Ibushi, Ryo Aitaka, Yukimitsu Takahashi, and Taro Kiku (Ibushi Wrestling Research Institute) defeated Minoru Tanaka, Takanori Ito, Seichi Ikemoto, and Tsutenkakka (GLEAT)
  • Team GLEAT defeated Tokyo Sabres in a Grappling Rules match
  • El Lindaman, Octagon Jr. & Faby Apache defeated MICHIKO, Chris Ridgeway & Sam Adonis
  • T-Hawk defeated Takehiro Yamamura
  • Brass Knuckle JUN & Ryuichi Kawakami defeated Kotaro Suzuki & Takashi Daimonji
  • KAZMA SAKAMOTO, Quiet Storm, Mirko Mori & Nico Inverardi defeated Issei Onitsuka, Jun Jie, JD Lee & Jesse Queen

Big Audio Nightmare: Queen of Villains, Stardom, NJPW, GLEAT

Posted on by Adam Summers

The Big Audio Nightmare is back as Adam Summers and Mike Sempervive talk about everything happening in the very busy world of Japanese wrestling.

This week’s topics include:

  • The greatness of Netflix’s Queen of Villains show
  • Thoughts on recent Stardom and Marigold shows
  • A full preview of NJPW’s King of Pro Wrestling show
  • We try to game out the possibilities of Naito vs ZSJ and the booking for the rest of the year
  • A look at GLEAT’s intriguing and truly unhinged lineup at Osaka’s Edion Arena

Click Here to Listen (sub needed)

Wrestling Observer Live: WWE NXT, AEW Dynamite, Kota Ibushi

Posted on by Mike Sempervive

With Bryan Alvarez out summoning the spirit of Art Bell, Mike Sempervive and Filthy Tom Lawlor join you to talk about Bryan Danielson praising Swerve Strickland, AEW Dynamite, GLEAT, last night’s NXT & more! It’s a fun show as always, so check it out~!

Click Here for the Commercial-free Download (subscription required)

Kota Ibushi announced for GLEAT show next month

Posted on by Ian Carey

Kota Ibushi is returning to GLEAT.

The promotion has announced that the 42-year-old will wrestle on its October 6 show at EDION Arena in Osaka. His opponent has yet to be revealed.

The event will also feature Ricochet’s return to the promotion as he teams with CIMA against El Hijo del Vikingo & Soma Watanabe. Zachary Wentz & Trey Miguel of The Rascalz and former NXT/AEW wrestler Parker Boudreaux are scheduled for the show as well.

Ibushi last performed for GLEAT on its July 1 show at Tokyo Dome City Hall. He participated in a five-minute exhibition bout that night against Daisuke Sekimoto to celebrate his 20th anniversary in wrestling. It was Ibushi’s first bout in five months after an injury-plagued performance against Naomichi Marufuji at Pro Wrestling NOAH’s New Year 2024 event in January.

Ibushi has wrestled twice for DDT recently as well, wrestling tag team matches for the promotion on August 25 and September 8.

The announced lineup for Gleat Ver. Mega In Osaka on October 6:

  • LIDET UWF Champion Katsuhiko Nakajima defends against Masakatsu Funaki
  • G-REX Champion Hayato Tamura defends against Parker Boudreaux
  • G-INFINITY Champions Tetsuya Izuchi & Kaito Ishida defend against The Rascalz (Zachary Wentz & Trey Miguel)
  • Ricochet & CIMA vs. El Hijo Del Vikingo & Soma Watanabe
  • Kota Ibushi in action
  • Yu Iizuka vs. Caol Uno
  • Hideki Sekine vs. Kanten Man
  • Daisuke Nakamura vs. Masaki Takeura

GLEAT reveals Ricochet’s match for Japan return

Posted on by Joseph Currier

GLEAT has revealed Ricochet’s match for his upcoming return to Japan.

Earlier this week, the promotion announced that AEW star Ricochet would be competing for them alongside CIMA in Osaka on Sunday, October 6. It’s now been confirmed that the match will be Ricochet & CIMA vs. El Hijo del Vikingo & Soma Watanabe.

CIMA was Ricochet’s mentor earlier in his career, with them holding tag team titles in Dragon Gate. They have not teamed together since 2017. Ricochet joined WWE in 2018 but left the company this summer. He signed with AEW following his WWE departure, debuting at All In.

Vikingo has been out of action since February due to injury but is now returning to the ring. This tag match will be the first time he and Ricochet have ever faced each other.

In a recent interview on the Battleground Podcast, Ricochet said he still has a lot of goals he wants to accomplish in Japan for NJPW, including competing in a G1 tournament.

“I already won the Best of the Super Junior [in 2014], so I feel like now I should upgrade my goals to the G1, for sure,” he said. “And actually, obviously, there’s still a lot of things in New Japan that I didn’t get to accomplish that I still plan on accomplishing.”

Ricochet announced for GLEAT show next month

Posted on by Ian Carey

Ricochet is headed back to Japan.

GLEAT has announced that Ricochet will debut for the promotion on its October 6 show in Osaka, teaming with his former partner CIMA. Their opponents have yet to be announced.

On Monday, GLEAT shared a video featuring Ricochet making the announcement. He said:

“Ladies and Gentleman, you know who it is, I really don’t need no introduction but since we’re here, it’s your boy, Ricochet. I’m here to let you guys know that I have a very important announcement. You see I will be returning to Japan on October 6 in Osaka for GLEAT. And not only will I be returning, I will also be teaming with my former sensei, my former partner, we were tag team champions all across the world, yeah me and CIMA. Let’s go!”

Shortly after the announcement, Ricochet posted to X that it could be the last time he and CIMA team together.

Ricochet and CIMA haven’t teamed together since a Dragongate show in late 2017. They are former holders of the promotion’s tag titles, as well as the Dragongate USA tag belts. Along with Dragon Kid they also once held GLEAT’s trios championships as well.

Kota Ibushi to celebrate 20th anniversary with five-minute exhibition

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Though he’s still recovering from injury, Kota Ibushi plans on celebrating the 20th anniversary of his pro wrestling debut.

Ibushi will compete in a five-minute exhibition on July 1, which is 20 years to the day since his first match. The exhibition is taking place in conjunction with Japanese promotion GLEAT’s third anniversary show at Tokyo Dome City Hall.

GLEAT tweeted that, while Ibushi is still injured, he wants to express his gratitude to the fans with this exhibition. Ibushi thanked the president of GLEAT and said he’s going to give it his all, no matter who he faces.

Injuries have plagued Ibushi’s career over the past few years. A shoulder injury kept him out of action from October 2021 to March 2023, and he never looked 100 percent after returning. He underwent surgery this January after hurting both of his ankles.

Ibushi has not wrestled since facing Naomichi Marufuji for Pro Wrestling NOAH in January. He was hurt going into the match and then injured both of his ankles further. Ibushi apologized for his performance and how his injuries ruined the match.

Ibushi signed an AEW contract last year that allows him to be based in Japan and wrestle for other promotions in the country.

In an update posted on social media this week, Ibushi indicated that he’s now feeling 85 percent healthy.

“Of course, if my current doctor in Japan tells me that I can compete, I will report to AEW and return immediately,” he wrote. “I’m now 85% alive. Please wait a little more.”

KAIRI announced for GLEAT show next month

Posted on by Ian Carey

KAIRI has been announced for a show with GLEAT next month. 

The promotion put out a video on Wednesday announcing the former IWGP Women’s Champion for Shinjuku FACE on Wednesday, September 20, 2023. Her opponent for the show has yet to be announced. 

KAIRI is expected back in WWE shortly, with our own Dave Meltzer stating earlier this month that she could return to the company in November. She announced at a press conference on August 7 that she is preparing for a “new voyage” and will be taking an indefinite hiatus after finishing up some dates. The 34-year-old is booked for the Sendai Girls’ promotion on September 2 and an All Japan show on September 9 as well.  

Meltzer addressed KAIRI’s departure from Stardom and pending WWE return in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, noting that Triple H being in charge of WWE creative played a role in her decision. 

Meltzer wrote:

Bushiroad wanted her exclusive. She wanted to work more dates but Bushiroad wanted exclusivity regarding the more dates which would also mean more money. Other things also came up as mentioned last week. She then talked about returning to WWE and had thoughts about returning, particularly with the success Sky has had there. She talked with those close to her who supported her leaving with the idea that if she doesn’t, she later in life would always have questions or regrets about it. She also felt things for her would be better with Levesque in charge of creative

Kota Ibushi to make Japan in-ring return for GLEAT

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Former NJPW star Kota Ibushi is set to wrestle his first match in Japan in nearly two years.

At GLEAT’s second-year anniversary show on Saturday, a video aired announcing that Ibushi will be coming to the promotion at their Ver. Mega show on Friday, August 4. The show is being held at Sumo Hall in Tokyo. It will be Ibushi’s GLEAT debut.

https://twitter.com/PuroresuFlow/status/1675128092472246274

GLEAT hasn’t announced Ibushi’s opponent for the match.

Ibushi’s last match in Japan prior to this was the 2021 G1 Climax finals, where Ibushi suffered a shoulder injury against Kazuchika Okada. The injury forced the match to end in a stoppage.

Ibushi departed NJPW when his contract with the company expired this January.

Ibushi returned to the ring this March for the first time since his shoulder injury. He wrestled two matches at GCW’s The Collective, defeating “Speedball” Mike Bailey at Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport and defeating Joey Janela at Joey Janela’s Spring Break.

During a February appearance on Busted Open Radio, Tony Khan addressed the possibility of bringing Ibushi into AEW.

“There’s a lot of great free agents in the world of pro wrestling, but certainly Kota Ibushi is a great talent,” Khan said. “When you have a name like that, that is certainly somebody everybody in the world of pro wrestling would be very fortunate to have in their promotion. We really wanted to work with him in the past, so I think that is certainly something we’d have to consider.”