Hanan Defeats Starlight Kid In Excellent Main Event To Cap Off Night 7 Of 5★STAR GP

STARDOM returned to the Sendai PIT to host the seventh night of the 5★STAR Grand Prix on Saturday. The show featured an eight matches all from the two blue blocks and featured a fun main event featuring a clash between Starlight Kid and Hanan, two former Mayu Iwatani disciples. The show was streamed live both on STARDOM World and the company’s YouTube page for free.

The event opened up with a Blue Stars B match pitting High Speed Champion Yuna Mizumori against Kikyo Furusawa. Yunamon entered the evening with an 0-2 record with loses over Momo Watanabe and Ami Sourei, while Furusawa sported an 0-3 record in her first ever 5★STAR, guaranteeing someone would pick up their first points. Furusawa showed a lot of fighting spirit in this contest, but few thought that she was going to leave Sendai with the victory. Mizumori finished off Furusawa with a Kumamoto no Fuchinkan to win her first 5★STAR match of the year in 7:59.

Furusawa’s ally Rian was up next for her match against Neo Genesis’ Miyu Amasaki in a match with similar background. Both Amasaki and Rian came into this match sporting 0-3 records in the Blue Stars A block. However, while Rian’s loses could be explained pretty easily because she’s a very young and inexperienced wrestler, Amasaki’s early struggles were a bit more surprising to many of STARDOM’s fans. Rian showed a ton of heart, just as Furusawa had in the previous match, and she was also able to weaken Amasaki in the process. It was entertaining to see her channel Stone Cold Steve Austin of all people when she stomped a mudhole in Amasaki at one point. She would also hit a stunner of her own in the match as well. However, it would be Amasaki who would get the last laugh after she hit a Tensei to earn her first win at 8:21.

Next we had a match that pitted one of the best technical wrestlers on STARDOM’s roster, Hina, with AEW’s Julia Hart. To keep it short, this was a bad match. The former TBS Champion’s offence didn’t look clean, and things just didn’t click. Hart pushed Hina into referee Barb Sasaki, hit Hina with her Artist of Stardom belt, and locked in the Hartless to win at 8:04. I miss Bea Priestley.

The next match saw Koguma take on former World of Stardom Champion Saya Kamitani. Koguma came into Sendai with a 2-1 record, while Kamitani drew with Starlight Kid in her absolutely fantastic match on Tuesday. This match didn’t reach those heights, but it was still really fun. Koguma took it to Kamitani earliy, utilizing her incredible speed and deceptive strength to get the former champ to the ground early. After using some of her comedic mind games, Koguma continued to disrupt Kamitani’s plans. Even though she was able to get some offense in, Koguma seemed to always have her number, until she attempted to roll her up. Kamitani lifted up Koguma and hit her devastating Star Crusher to earn the win in 7:24.

The second half of the card began with Cosmic Angels’ leader, Aya Sakura, taking on H.A.T.E.’s Ruaka. Following the previous match looked to be a tough challenge for these two young wrestlers, but they absolutely came to play on the night. Ruaka physically dominated Sakura for most of this match, but, to Sakura’s credit, she showed some incredible fire here. She used her kicks and other strikes to create as much distance as she could from Ruaka throughout, and, even though Ruaka would eventually come back with more powerful attacks, Sakura kept to her formula until she was able to connect with a Sakulatch pin to gain a massive victory at 9:59. Ruaka would then attack Sakura after the bell with her patented plastic box.

World of Stardom Champion, Suzu Suzuki was in action next as she took on HANAKO. Suzuki entered the evening with a 2-0 record, sporting victories over Hina and Miyu Amasaki. On the other hand, HANAKO was 1-1. This was a fun brawl between these two furiously powerful wrestlers. Suzuki sports a brawling and death match background, which she gained during her tenure in Ice Ribbon and as a member of the Prominence faction/ pseudo-promotion, so she was right at home here. While she’s a terrific technician when she needs to be, Suzuki’s first impulse is to start a chaotic brawl. Luckily for HANAKO she was up to the change of pace, looking impressive in the process. This match descended into both wrestlers throwing massive bombs at each other. I think anyone not familiar with STARDOM or their wrestlers would get a kick out of this. While HANAKO is not as great at striking than maybe some would expect her to be, she really held her own against the champ here. Unfortunately for her, however, HANAKO would eventually fall to the Tequila Shot to lose at 11:06. She is now 1-2 while Suzuki is now a perfect 3-0.

The event’s semi-main saw God’s Eye’s Ami Sourei attempt to halt Momo Watanabe’s momentum. Sourei came into the match with only one win on her resume, that being against Yuna Mizumori on night six, while Watanabe had ran through Mizumori and Kikyo Furusawa, each in under 10 minutes. If the previous match was all about brawling, this one was about power. These two women are among the best power wrestlers in STARDOM today, and they showcased that style in a really fun way. Sourei was able to get Watanabe to reach her breaking point, however, “The Black Peach” was able to break through and hit Sourei with a back shattering Peace Sunrise to win in 13:34. Watanabe, the woman who won last year’s 5★STAR Grand Prix, is now 3-0 and on top of her group in the early going.

Finally, we reached the main event, a match that immediately stood out on the running order. Two former disciples of the legendary Mayu Iwatani, Starlight Kid and Hanan were set to battle. Both of these women have had fascinating careers, and, at one point or another, had been viewed at times as the rightful heir to “The Icon”. While Hanan has mirrored her as the leader of STARS, SLK has shown more echos of Iwatani through her wrestling. Hanan came into this match with a 2-0 record after beating Kikyo Furusawa and Koguma, while Starlight Kid had only earned a draw in her lone matchup against Saya Kamitani.

To put it simply, this was a fantastic match. You could tell that both of these women had this circled on their calendar as an important match. You could absolutely feel the passion from the competitors, both in how they hit their offensive, but also how they took their opponents manoeuvres. Starlight Kid certainly deserves praise for her performance, but I feel like this match worked well due to Hanan’s immaculate selling. There were times where SLK would hit a crazy flying move or trap her opponent in a submission, and Hanan would appear it like she on the verge of an injury which could potentially affect her tournament status. When she finally got back on offense, she made sure she carried the damage she underwent with her. Hanan was in danger for most of the match, however she used every bit of top babyface fire and tenacity to catch Starlight Kid in a Backdrop Hold to earn a seismic victory at 11:28.

STARDOM will return for their eighth night of the 5★STAR Grand Prix on Saturday night in Utsunomiya and will feature some key matches including Itsuki Aoki vs. Rina, Hina vs. HANAKO, Yuna Mizumori vs. Koguma, and Hanan vs. Ami Sourei in the main event.

For more coverage from the tournament and everything surrounding STARDOM, WrestlePurists will keep you updated.

5★STAR Grand Prix – Current Standings (W-L-D):

Red Stars Block A:

Itsuki Aoki – 4-0 (8 points)

Maika – 3-1 (6 points)

AZM – 2-1 (4 points)

Natsuko Tora – 2-2 (4 points)

Sayaka Kurara – 2-4 (4 points)

Tomoka Inaba – 2-3 (4 points)

Rina – 1-2 (2 points)

Akira Kurogane – 0-3 (0 points)

Red Stars Block B:

Konami – 3-0 (6 points)

Rina Yamashita – 2-1-2 (6 points)

Saya Iida – 3-1 (6 points)

Maki Itoh – 2-1-1 (5 points)

Azusa Inaba – 1-2-1 (3 points)

Mei Seira – 1-2-1 (3 points)

Utami Hayashishita – 1-1-1 (3 points)

Lady C – 0-4 (0 points)

Blue Stars Block A:

Suzu Suzuki – 3-0 (6 points)

Aya Sakura – 2-1 (4 points)

Julia Hart – 2-0 (4 points)

Ruaka – 2-1 (4 points)

HANAKO – 1-2 (2 points)

Hina – 1-2 (2 points)

Miyu Amasaki – 1-3 (2 points)

Rian – 0-3 (0 points)

Blue Stars Block B:

Hanan – 3-0 (6 points)

Momo Watanabe – 3-0 (6 points)

Koguma – 2-2 (4 points)

Saya Kamitani – 1-0-1 (3 points)

Ami Sourei – 1-2 (2 points)

Yuna Mizumori – 1-2 (2 points)

Starlight Kid – 0-1-1 (1 point)

Kikyo Furusawa – 0-4 (0 points)