If any of the quotes from the following podcasts or video interviews are used, please credit those sources and provide an H/T and link back to POST Wrestling for the transcriptions.
** While guest appearing on the Hitting The Turnbuckle Podcast, Millie McKenzie was asked if she feels it’s a safer environment for women in wrestling coming out of Speaking Out. McKenzie stated that although she’s young herself, she feels a responsibility to stand up for fellow women who are coming into the business. Millie said after sharing her story during Speaking Out, people she’d known for a long time were ‘terrified’ to speak to her because they did not know how to react.
Yeah, I think a lot of the bad people went away and people just needed to know what they were doing with that safeguarding stuff and I think ‘safeguarding’ to me isn’t just, oh, I’m DBS checked, I can do this. It’s just being aware of the situation and having someone to talk to and even things before, like obviously the bad stuff happened but just little things before where I’d be 17 and I’d be wrestling and some random bloke could pick me up and then I’d be staying in this hotel that was awful and stuff like that which is — I guess it’s fine. I know it’s a low budget thing but just being more comfortable and making sure little things like that, like, okay, you’re gonna be traveling with someone or so-and-so is going to pick you up. You don’t just have to get in this random bloke’s car and just little things like that-that are now… I feel even though I am young, I feel slightly responsible for the girls coming up now because I was once there and I didn’t really have a girl looking out for me… I did have girls but no one that was close to around my area looking out for me as such so I feel now, like, whereas I’d have let things slip at that age, now I’ll say something on their behalf and speak up for them because I know I wouldn’t have said something then.
I think it definitely has helped (encouraged the next crop of talents to speak up) because like you say, people will speak out if something’s wrong but then I also think that can have a negative effect as well and people will go too far the other way in which I think it has and that’s not undermining anyone’s stories because obviously, I’m not saying it doesn’t happen. I’m not undermining anyone’s stories but I think people are too sensitive to it sometimes and as long as you’re safe — I’ll try to think of an example I mean but, you know, people just moan for the sake of moaning. I think that’s the direction it was going in. Not so much now, but I think at a steady medium.
Again, with me personally, I think after all the stuff happened or whatever, people were terrified to talk to me and this is people I’ve known for ages but, I’ve done nothing wrong. People were just terrified to talk to me because they didn’t know how to react and no one knew how to react to the situation and it kind of took a few months… I’m not evil, I’m not anything. I’m just the same old me. I’m not a nasty person. Don’t walk on eggshells around me and it took almost a year for the scene to kind of relax and not relaxing behaviors to slip up again but, relax and be like, okay, just be a nice person, be a good person and that’s what we need to be.
** As Yota Tsuji was speaking to Rolling Stone Japan, he expressed his thought that NJPW’s Young Lions should be treated better. He brought up that they work hard and even on days when they do not have matches, the work hours are long.
Yes, I do (have something I’d like to say to NJPW). I think Young Lions should be treated more highly. I think they work the hardest. Even when we don’t have matches, we are working 15 hours a day. If you work overtime, you get paid overtime, right? It may be good in the sense that they are training as underlings, but don’t get me wrong, they have been recognized by New Japan Pro Wrestling and have debuted as ‘professionals’. There is an atmosphere that it doesn’t matter what they do to the Young Lions.
** TVA Sports pushed out the written version of their chat with Trish Stratus. She told the outlet that she’s interested in doing a Cage match. Stratus clarified that it does not matter if it’s inside Hell in a Cell, Elimination Chamber, or a traditional Cage.
Imprison me in a cage. I’ve never had a cage match! And it doesn’t matter what kind of cage. The one without the roof, a Hell in a Cell or an Elimination Chamber. There were so many things we weren’t allowed to do back then. I remember being hit with a chair once and everyone was freaking out. And I was like, my goodness, can you just hit me with a chair!? So now I want a cage!
** Ahead of the July 17th ‘JUST TAP OUT’ event, promotion owner TAKA Michinoku did an extensive interview with Proresu-TODAY. He spoke candidly about not being as sharp in the ring as he once was and being aware that he can’t keep up with some of the younger talents.
I’m in a bad way these days. I am almost 50 years old, so I can no longer hide my physical decline. So I’m thinking, oh no, this is not good. But I’m training hard now because I have to be in top shape for a ranking match like this in Korakuen (for the JUST TAP OUT promotion) after a long time.
Yes, it is (wrestling is difficult). I felt miserable. Lately, when I wrestle with young guys, I often have that kind of situation. I can’t keep up with them, and I feel discouraged.
TAKA informed the outlet that there is not going to be a TAKATaichiDespe Mania event this year. Himself, Taichi and El Desperado would co-promote a J.T.O. show.
I returned to New Japan Pro-Wrestling at the end of the year before last, and TAKATaichi was revived, and last year we held four TAKATaichi-related shows. That helped boost revenues, and we were able to pass the last year relatively quickly. And I was able to use that money until just before this year. Last year was my 30th anniversary, and we had the biggest event I have ever worked on, the TAKATaichiDespe, which drew 2,000 people to Yoyogi.
I think it is not good to peak at that time, but it was the biggest event I have ever worked on, so I had to do it even if I had to remove the TAKATaichi and TAKATaichiDespe events. So there will be no TAKATaichi show this year.
Elsewhere in the conversation, Michinoku shared that he visited Kyushu Pro-Wrestling in Japan to learn from their growth and expansion. He stated that J.T.O. is doing their best to gather sponsors, but they need to make more sales efforts.
It is amazing, isn’t it? I went to Kyushu (Pro-Wrestling) once to learn from them. I learned many things from (Ryota) Chikuzen, and I thought, ah, so that’s the way to do it, and we have begun to implement some of the things we can do. We are doing our best to gather many sponsors, but we still need to make more sales efforts.
However, we have not been able to increase the number of sponsors because we are still lacking in sales efforts. I think it is necessary to have a broader perspective than just wrestling.
** East Coast Autograph Auctions hosted a virtual signing with AEW coach and talent Madison Rayne. She stated that she would like to do another segment with Sting to follow up on their in-ring segment in TNA/IMPACT Wrestling over a decade ago.
Oh my gosh, yes (I would love to do something with Sting on-screen again). A million times yes. Recreating some sort of crazy in-ring segment like we did years ago. That would be a dream. An absolute dream. I was so nervous that night and I’m so happy with how that whole segment came together.
** Pat McAfee and The Miz did a segment for FOX40 News.
** Hiroshi Tanahashi blogged about his physical preparations for the NJPW G1 Climax.
** STARDOM Results (7/16/23) Sapporo iione Stadium in Sapparo, Japan
– Three Way Match: Starlight Kid def. HANAKO and Momo Kohgo
– STARS (Hanan & Koguma) def. Mei Seira & Miyu Amasaki
– Maika & Suzu Suzuki def. Tam Nakano & Yuna Mizumori
– Oedo Tai (Momo Watanabe, Natsuko Tora & Ruaka) def. Queen’s Quest (AZM, Lady C & Saya Kamitani)
– Club Venus (Mariah May, Mina Shirakawa & Waka Tsukiyama) def. STARS (Hazuki, Mayu Iwatani & Saya Iida)
– Donna del Mondo (Giulia, Mai Sakurai & Thekla) def. God’s Eye (Ami Sourei, MIRAI & Saki Kashima)
** TJPW Tokyo Princess Cup Results (7/16/23) KFC Hall & Rooms in Tokyo, Japan
– Arisu Endo def. Runa Okubo
– Haruna Neko, HIMAWARI & Pom Harajuku def. Haru Kazashiro, Hikari Noa & Shino Suzuki
– Hyper Misao & Mizuki def. Toga & Wakana Uehara
– Mahiro Kiryu, Yuki Kamifuku Miu Watanabe & Miyu Yamashita def. Kaya Toribami, Moka Miyamoto, Nao Kakuta & Yuki Aino
– Tokyo Princess Cup First Round: Shoko Nakajima def. Suzume
– Tokyo Princess Cup First Round: Rika Tatsumi def. Raku
** Parts one and two of Jushin Thunder Liger’s predictions for the 2023 G1 Climax tournament.
** On August 14th and 15th, Pro Wrestling NOAH is holding events for their dojo talents. They also pushed out the announcement that their New Year show in 2024 is taking place on January 2nd from Ariake Arena in Tokyo.
** Dragongate Japan Pro-Wrestling Results (7/16/23)
– ISHIN, KAI & Shun Skywalker def. Minorita, Kota Minoura & B×B Hulk
– Susumu Mochizuki def. Chikichiki Ichikawa
– Susumu Mochizuki def. Chikichiki Ichikawa (Match restarted)
– Dragon Dia, Yuki Yoshioka & Shachihoko Boy def. YAMATO, Genki Horiguchi & Kagetora
– BIGBOSS Shimizu, Jason Lee, U-T & JACKY ‘FUNKY’ KAMEI def. Dragon Kid, Masaaki Mochizuki, Yasushi Kanda & Último Dragón
– King of Gate 2ND Round Match: H.Y.O. def. Kzy
– King of Gate 2nd Round Match: Madoka Kikuta def. Takashi Yoshida
** Following Zilla Fatu’s in-ring debut, he was interviewed by MuscleManMalcolm:
** Big Japan Pro Wrestling Results (7/16/23) Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan
– Satsuki Nagao & Takuya Nomura def. Hideyoshi Kamitani & Yuki Toki
– Andy Wu & Ryota Hama def. Kankuro Hoshino & Masaya Takahashi
– Barbed Wire Board Death Match: Masashi Takeda, Takumi Tsukamoto & Kazumi Kikuta def. Ryuji Ito, Isami Kodaka & Yuko Miyamoto
– Daichi Hashimoto & Tristan Archer def. Daimonji So & Daisuke Sekimoto
– Chicharito Shoki, Fuminori Abe & Kazuki Hashimoto def. Kaji Tomato, Kota Sekifuda & Tatsuhiko Yoshino
– BJW World Strong Heavyweight Championship: Yuya Aoki (c) def. Yasufumi Nakanoue
– BJW Death Match Heavyweight Championship – Death Match: Yuki Ishikawa def. Abdullah Kobayashi (c)
** Guest appearing on Busted Open Radio were Scott D’Amore, Alex Shelley and John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL).
** Destiny Wrestling President, Emilio Albi, was interviewed by Sunday Night’s Main Event.
** July 16th birthdays: ‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey and Bobby Lashley.
** Wrestlesphere welcomed Lio Rush onto the channel.
If any of the quotes from the following podcasts or video interviews are used, please credit those sources and provide an H/T and link back to POST Wrestling for the transcriptions.
