STARDOM 5★STAR Special in Hiroshima 2023 - WrestleFile Historical Verdict

Sohrei pins Lady C after the Blue Thunder Bomb in a compact six-woman opener. The match was reshuffled after absences changed the announced card, so its main value is keeping several active roster pieces on the show without taking time away from the tournament and title matches. At 6:12, it establishes the night's brisk early pace and gives Ami Sohrei a direct winning fall. The result also lets Thekla and Yuna Mizumori open the PPV with momentum while Queen's Quest absorbs a loss through Lady C rather than one of its higher-ranked tournament names.

Bayne and Maika give the second match a clear power advantage against Mina Shirakawa and Mariah May. Bayne pins May after the F5 at 7:41, protecting her momentum while giving Maika another useful win during the tournament period without spending a league result. The pairing keeps Bayne positioned as a serious physical threat and allows Maika to remain prominent without altering either 5★STAR block. Rose Gold can take the defeat through May while Shirakawa stays connected to the title picture, making the match useful connective material rather than an isolated undercard tag.

The former Queen's Quest partners bring existing faction history into a Blue Stars league match. Hayashishita survives Watanabe's aggression and wins with the Hijack Bomb at 9:26, moving to eight points and turning a compact tournament bout into a result with both standings and rivalry value. The match does not need a long runtime because the relationship between the wrestlers already supplies context. Watanabe's Oedo Tai identity gives the bout extra tension, while Hayashishita's victory preserves her tournament momentum and adds another documented chapter to a rivalry rooted in the collapse of their former alliance.

STARDOM's original September 3, 2023 Hiroshima Sun Plaza report records World of Stardom champion Tam Nakano defeating Starlight Kid in 8:28 with the Violet Screwdriver to earn Red Stars 5STAR Grand Prix league points. The official same-day preview is crucial to understanding the standings: Nakano entered with seven points and a route toward the tournament final, but Kid had just four and, despite a prior head-to-head win over Natsuko Tora, was already out of final contention under the official remaining-match calculation with Tora at 12. The original editorial's claim that Kid needed this match to revive her tournament was therefore wrong; Kid was pursuing an upset of the red-belt champion and their ongoing personal rivalry, not mathematical survival. Nakano won the non-title league match; her World Championship was NOT defended or switched. The official post-match comments show that Kid's interest in challenging Nakano outlasted her failed GP run, giving the result a real future-story hook distinct from its bracket effect. The original A-minus/8.9 evaluation still reflects a meaningful eight-minute rivalry match and its source-correct competitive context.

Syuri versus IWGP Women's champion Mayu Iwatani is the strongest pure singles pairing on the card. They use the tournament setting to revisit a top-level rivalry without a championship stipulation, and Syuri wins at 12:30 with Syu-sekai. The result gives Syuri a major name victory and adds immediate weight to her Grand Prix campaign. Iwatani's IWGP Women's Championship remains outside the stakes, so the value comes from Syuri defeating a reigning champion in tournament competition rather than from a title change. That distinction makes the result historically useful: it records a clean high-level singles win while leaving Iwatani's championship lineage untouched.

Kashima's High Speed reign is built around survival and opportunism, so a 4:43 defense fits the champion's identity. Kohgo creates enough danger to make the finish matter, but Kashima escapes with Kishikaisei and records a third successful defense without overstaying the concept. The compressed runtime works for a championship designed around sudden reversals rather than extended escalation. Kohgo receives a title opportunity on a crowded card, while Kashima's retention advances the reign efficiently and preserves the belt as a distinct change of pace before the longer championship matches that follow.

The new Goddesses champions get an immediate test from Suzuki and Seira. The challengers bring speed and aggression, while Anou and Natsupoi need to show that their title win has a sustainable team structure. Anou pins Seira at 13:46, giving the champions their first defense and establishing the reign beyond the initial title change. That first successful defense is the key historical point. It turns the championship win into the beginning of an actual reign, while Suzuki and Seira provide credible opposition without requiring either challenger to be protected by a non-finish or tournament-specific stipulation.

MIRAI's first Wonder of Stardom defense comes against Konami, whose striking and submission threat gives the new champion a different kind of test. MIRAI survives and wins with a lariat at 12:52. The result is more important than a routine retention because it is the first proof point after MIRAI captured the white belt. A first defense establishes whether a title win becomes a reign or only a brief transition, and this match gives MIRAI that initial confirmation. Konami's established submission style also forces the champion into a different matchup than a straightforward power contest, adding useful variety to the title record.

Giulia and Risa Sera close the show around the STRONG Women's Championship, giving the PPV a main event that feels separate from the tournament. Their shared history supplies intensity without needing a 5★STAR point at stake. Giulia wins at 17:37 with the Northern Lights Bomb and adds another successful defense to her international-title run. The placement is important because it lets the event end on a championship result after the league matches have already advanced their standings. Sera's presence also gives the bout an identity beyond a routine defense, tying Giulia's reign to an opponent with meaningful prior history and making the retention a stronger archival endpoint for the show.