Marigold is presenting ‘Summer Destiny 2024’ on July 13th from Sumo Hall. It’s the first major PPV for the newly founded promotion by Rossy Ogawa, and it will be the first big test for the promotion after a successful start for Marigold.
The nine-match long show is available as a PPV on Wrestle Universe and features three inaugural champions being crowned, including Sareee fighting Giulia for the Marigold World Championship. In addition, a dream match between Utami Hayashishita and WWE’s IYO SKY is scheduled to happen on the show.
Let’s dive into the main card of the show.
Komomo Minami vs. Rea Seto
In the dark match of the show, Rea Seto will face Komomo Minami in her debut match for Marigold in a singles match that will start 20 minutes before the show.
At the recent Korakuen Hall show, Rossy Ogawa announced in the ring that former Sendai Girls rookie Rea Marumori, who is now wrestling under the name Rea Seto, will be joining Marigold. He stated that SENJO owner Meiko Satomura gave him a call saying that Marumori wanted to join the promotion. The 23-year-old debuted back in August and has had around 20 matches in her career and is another good addition to the roster that will help the promotion in the long run.
Komomo Minami has been doing well as the first Marigold trainee that has debuted, but has yet to be successful as she is winless so far, and it doesn’t seem like that will change. The match has a 10-minute time limit so a TLD isn’t something fans should count out, but a win for Seto in her debut sounds more realistic.
Prediction: Rea Seto
Kouki Amarei & Chika Goto vs. Victoria Yuzuki & Kizuna Tanaka
The “tWin toWers” will be in tag team action as Kouki Amarei & Chika Goto will face Victoria Yuzuki & Kizuna Tanaka, who will make her Marigold debut on this show.
Kizuna Tanaka, who left Pro Wrestling WAVE on July 1st, was announced as the “X” on Friday’s press conference after being out of action for the past two months due to “poor health”. Tanaka debuted back in April 2023 and has been one of the most promising rookies in the recent memory of Joshi wrestling. The daughter of Minoru Tanaka and Yumi Fukawa managed to win the WAVE Tag Team Titles with her “Harmonie” tag team partner Honoka last December and was meant to be the future Ace of WAVE, but now made the jump to Marigold. She will be a great addition to the roster and show out.
Tanaka will team up with Victoria Yuzuki, who was named as a potential future ace in STARDOM before her departure earlier in the year. On the other side, Kouki Amarei & Chika Goto left AWG to join the ranks of the new promotion. The two have good chemistry and showed out well together recently. The match quality will be fun as Kizuna will be as motivated as ever to prove why Ogawa has trust in her, while the other three will see this as a major opportunity to prove their worth.
With Marigold building up the tag division, both teams could win the match, but Amarei & Goto have been protected in the Marigold ring, and have been gaining momentum as a duo, which will continue here.
Prediction: Kouki Amarei & Chika Goto
Nagisa Nozaki & CHIAKI vs. Zayda Steel & Myla Grace
Another tag team match as CHIAKI & Nagisa Nozaki continue to form their alliance against Myla Grace & Zayda Steel in a solid match-up.
The team of the foreigners had a tough start in the promotion, but both are getting better & better with every show and are now on a level to deliver solid & entertaining matches. Meanwhile, Nozaki & CHIAKI have been working well together and it’s the first duo that has been leaning more into the heel direction as they have been starting to cheat on the recent shows including using chairs.
Zayda has yet to win a match in Marigold and it’s not changing here as Nozaki & CHIAKI have been teasing to go for the Tag Titles.
Prediction: Nagisa Nozaki & CHIAKI
Nanae Takahashi, Nao Ishikawa, & Mai Sakurai vs. Shinobu Kandori, Takako Inoue, & NORI
LLPW-X is invading Marigold as Shinobu Kandori, Takako Inoue, & NORI will face Nanae Takahashi, Nao Ishikawa, & Mai Sakurai. The match was set after a Passion Injection match between Takahashi & Ishikawa, where the two agreed to team up to face Kandori & Inoue. A few shows later, Sakurai & NORI ended up in the match as well. At the press conference, the six decided on a special stipulation – the winner gets the LLPW-X dojo which Marigold is currently renting.
It’s 2024 and there is only so much that Kandori & Inoue can do, but they showed last year in STARDOM that they can still have great performances as their in-ring style is simple but effective. They are just beating the hell out of their opponents, while their partner is doing the more work-rate part of the match. Will NORI be able to fill that role? Impossible to say as NORI doesn’t have much experience in the ring, and hasn’t wrestled much since debuting in LLPW-X.
Still, I’m expecting the LLPW-X trio to win as they need their dojo, while Marigold will likely start their own soon.
Prediction: Shinobu Kandori, Takako Inoue, & NORI
Misa Matsui vs. Natsumi Showzuki for the Marigold Superfly Championship
The first of three championship matches as Misa Matsui faces Natsumi Showzuki for the Marigold Superfly Championship, which every wrestler under 55kg can compete for. In a four-women tournament, Matsui defeated Myla Grace, while Showzuki defeated Zayda Steel to advance to the tournament final at Sumo Hall.
An interesting match-up between the two former AWG wrestlers and it will be a great one that has the potential to steal the show. Both Showzuki & Matsui have had multiple stand-out performances so far, and this makes for an exciting first title match of the show.
Both could win this, and honestly, both are more than deserving winners, but there is more story potential with a Showzuki win here, with Matsui portraying a fantastic underdog babyface that will likely have a fantastic chase before she eventually wins the Superfly Championship, potentially even from Showzuki, overcoming her senior down the line.
Prediction: Natsumi Showzuki
MIRAI vs. Miku Aono in the Marigold United National Tournament
Match number four between Aono & MIRAI as part of the Marigold United National Tournament, and this time on the big stage in Sumo Hall. The two have fought to three time-limit draws including an overtime and, after a combined 60 minutes, they still weren’t able to decide a winner, so Ogawa decided that the two would face on the Sumo Hall show with the winner fighting Bozilla on the same day.
The booking was overly complicated, but it told an interesting story between the two that made them rivals for life. They were able to fill the three matches well and delivered good performances, but now, with the fourth match coming, the question arises – can they do it again? They need creativity, but considering the skill of the two, they may make it happen and have a fourth really good match.
Now it’s down to who is advancing, and honestly, it could be both of them. They will likely go to another 15-minute draw as it was a big part of the storyline between the two in the rivalry, and then a deciding fall in the overtime. By following Ogawa’s booking in STARDOM in the past 2 years, there is one unofficial rule in these predictions – never bet against MIRAI. Ogawa sees her as a major star and the reactions on the recent shows proves him right.
Prediction: MIRAI
Bozilla vs. MIRAI or Miku Aono for the Marigold United National Championship
The winner of the previous match is facing Bozilla with the vacant Marigold United National Championship on the line and whoever faces Bozilla has a huge disadvantage. Bozilla, who made quick work of Nagisa Nozaki in the semi-final, has yet to be pinned or submitted since making her debut in Marigold, and with her opponent coming into the match already having 15+ minutes under her belt, she is coming into the match as the heavy favourite.
It’s the biggest spot of the 20-year-old German’s career, and, given that she has barely 40 matches of experience, it’s unclear how she will do, but that makes the match interesting. Ogawa loves to throw wrestlers into big spots early, and he’s doing that right in front of our eyes with Bozilla. The match will be laid out around her strengths as she will throw her opponent around until the end of the match.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – never bet against MIRAI. It would be a devastating loss for Bozilla, but it just seems right for Marigold’s soul to become the first-ever White Belt Champion.
Prediction: MIRAI
Utami Hayashishita vs. IYO SKY
IYO SKY is back in a Rossy Ogawa promotion and it just feels right. The most successful World of Stardom Champion and former Queen’s Quest leader returns to Japan for the first time in six years to face another former Queen’s Quest leader and one of the most dominant Red Belt Champions in Utami Hayashishita inside a Marigold ring in a match that got a lot of buzz on social media when it was announced.
When IYO SKY left Japan to become a star in WWE, Utami hadn’t even made her debut yet, and now the two will square off in an absolute dream match – not only for the fans, but also for Utami, who wanted the match against the former WWE Women’s Champion before Utami made her pro wrestling debut and stated that IYO was the reason why she joined STARDOM in the first place. Until now, the pair never had the chance to cross paths due to IYO joining WWE. ‘The Red Queen’ was happy & instantly in tears when the match was announced as it was a surprise for her.
For more on the history between these two, click here.
The winner is obvious as IYO is not going to lose as a WWE representative, but that is okay, as it has brought eyes to the show and will be the start of Hayashishita’s story to the top of Marigold. This is the biggest dream match in Japanese women’s wrestling right now, and it’s finally happening on July 13th. It’s going to be a must-watch as the two aim to have one of the best women’s matches in modern history.
Prediction: IYO SKY
Giulia vs. Sareee for the Marigold World Championship
The main event of the show is as big as it gets, as Sareee & Giulia will fight for the Marigold World Championship. After there was major doubt if the match would even happen due to Giulia suffering a broken wrist at the first Marigold show, she was finally cleared on Thursday and is able to compete in the match. The match was set up at Marigold Fields Forever after Sareee pinned Giulia in the middle of the ring in a tag match.
This is the second match between the two as the last time that Giulia and Sareee faced off one-on-one was on Minoru Tanaka’s 25th Anniversary show as a produce match of Yumi Fukawa. Minoru Tanaka and Yumi Fukawa are Kizuna Tanaka’s parents, who will make her Marigold debut when these two face off again – funny how this played out.
It couldn’t get much bigger to close the biggest show in Marigold’s young history so far, as a match between the two, where the winner becomes the inaugural Marigold World Champion. Both have many arguments for why they should win here. On the one side, Sareee is the best wrestler in the entire world right now and has been an incredible outsider so far, destroying everyone in her way. It didn’t matter if it was Utami, Yuzuki, or Sakurai – she beat them all up, and that won’t change here. ‘The Sun God’ is on the run of her life and it’s tough to argue against her. Meanwhile, Giulia is joining the ranks of WWE soon, and there is only limited time left for her in Marigold as there is constant speculation as to when she could potentially turn up in NXT.
Marigold will try to get the most out of the Giulia run and this feels like her redemption arc after her World of Stardom Championship reign got cut short. It’s going to be her last run on top of a Japanese promotion before she leaves Japan to join WWE. Either way, the match will be fantastic, and both wrestlers would make for perfect inaugural Marigold World Champions.
Prediction: Giulia
