STARDOM
5STAR Grand Prix Day 20
September 23, 2023
Sanjo, Japan

Watch: Stardom World

The 5STAR Grand Prix will finish up this upcoming weekend but first, one final match. Syuri and Starlight Kid faced off in a crucial match for Syuri as she was fighting for her tournament hopes. Win and you got a shot, lose and you’re out. Pretty simple.

We have just one 5STAR Grand Prix tournament match to review on this show due to Utami Hayashishita’s injury. Due to a cervical hernia, she had to forfeit her match against Hanan and officially be eliminated from the tournament.

Undercard Thoughts

  • Seeing ROSE GOLD team for one final time was an emotional moment. What Mina Shirakawa and Mariah May managed to create in May’s nine months was special. They built Club Venus from the ground up, became one of the best tag teams in wrestling, and even got a chance to hold the Goddesses of Stardom Championship. A job well done. Here’s to hoping they come together again somewhere down the line.
  • The decision to give Saya Iida continued focus will be a good one. Whether this leads to a faction change for her or just a continued push, we’ll take it.

Red Stars
Syuri (11) def. Starlight Kid (4)

The good news for Starlight Kid is that she had one of the strongest outings of her tournament in this match. The bad news is that it was another loss for the rising star.

Taking down Syuri in a must-win match for the God’s Eye leader was asking a lot of Kid, but it was still a win that she desperately needed. And from start to finish, she wrestled exactly as if she did. Before Syuri could even finish her entrance, Kid was on the attack and bringing it to Syuri. She pulled the Oedo Tai staple of throwing her through chairs and continuously attacked the right leg at the same time.

As the match got back in the ring, the leg remained Kid’s focus as she’d managed to lock on the Black Tiger Leg Killer multiple times, bringing Syuri to a struggle but never to defeat. When Syuri got her legs back under her, it felt as though it was the end for SLK. But she kept fighting back time and time again, showing more fight here than in the majority of her matches prior.

The end of this match came for Starlight Kid. It started with Syuri’s spinning Ryuen, which led to a kick-out by the 22-year-old. Syuri would keep the onslaught on, however, as she’d hit a Buzzsaw Kick and modified Ryuen for the victory.

Syuri’s win gave her a chance heading into the finals. That’s all she needs. And for Starlight Kid, she enters her most daunting match yet against former mentor Mayu Iwatani.

For being the last match ahead of the finals, this was a solid effort by both competitors. No complaints. ***½

Check out the complete 5STAR Grand Prix 2023 Finals Guide here to get yourself up to date on everything ahead of the big show on Saturday.

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