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Joshi Watch: Sayuri

Sayuri Gatoh Move

Standing at five feet, what Sayuri lacks in stature, she makes up in sheer heart and tenacity. The young upstart in red and black started her professional wrestling vocation this past summer and has been steadily building knowledge ever since. Though the native of Chiba, Japan may not have the same degree of strength as many of her peers in Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling, her technical prowess helps her stand out from the pack. In this piece, we take a deep dive into the in-ring career of Sayuri that is nothing short of promising.

Sayuri began training in August of 2019. She entered Darejo Project, the training facility of Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling. It was here where she learned under Mei Suruga and the promotion’s founder, Emi Sakura. Sayuri entered as one of the newest recruits in addition to Sayaka, Chie Koishikawa, Tokiko Kirihara, Rin Rin, and Lulu Pencil. It wasn’t long after that she began to wrestle in front of crowds, predominantly those within the Ichigaya Chocolate Square venue in Tokyo.

Sayuri Gatoh Move
Photo / Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling
Along with the aforementioned recruits, Sayuri was introduced to Gatoh Move viewers in multiple exhibition matches.

The purpose of these matches was to get fans acquainted with not just her but the promotion’s slew of newcomers. In her first exhibition match, Sayuri faced Mitsuro Konno in a losing effort; she would rematch Konno eleven days later in her official debut as well. Sayuri’s second exhibition match was an eight-person tag team contest. Alongside Sayaka, Lulu Pencil, and Sayaka Obihiro, Sayuri fell to the quartet of Koishikawa, Kirihara, Rin Rin, and Konno.

During 2019, Sayuri continued to wrestle against both fellow newcomers and Gatoh Move veterans alike. She found herself standing across the mat from Konno, in particular, who had been with the promotion since 2016. Needless to say, Sayuri amassed considerable knowledge in these encounters. She also worked with Sakura and Yuna Mizumori, just to name a few, which further helped the learning process. Sayuri picked up her first official victory in October, when she teamed with Makoto, Hagane Shinnou, and Chon Shiryu to defeat Koishikawa, Lulu Pencil, Obihiro, and Antonio Honda.

Sayuri Gatoh Move
Photo / Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling

With 2019 in the rear view, and new wrestling knowledge under her belt, Sayuri entered 2020 with a sharper focus. In addition to another singles encounter with Sakura, Sayuri has been active in tag team competition. Case and point, at the time of this piece’s publication, her last match took place in February. She teamed with Makoto against Lulu Pencil and Konno, and though Sayuri lost the encounter, it proved to be another valuable learning experience. At 34 years of age, Sayuri is as wise as she is technically sound. It may very well be this combination that helps her reach greater heights in Gatoh Move and elsewhere.

Recommended Matches:

Sayuri vs. Mitsuru Konno (August 28, 2019)

Following the aforementioned exhibition matches, Sayuri wrestled her first official match against Gatoh Move veteran Mitsuru Konno. Though the match in question lasted roughly seven minutes, it proved to be a solid platform for the newcomer to make an impression. Sayuri gave up some height in this encounter, but she was unwavering, able to utilize a series of wrist locks, leg scissors, and other technical maneuvers to stay in the match. She may have been a rookie, but she didn’t wrestle like it, as Konno had to work to rebuild momentum. In short, Sayuri had a solid first official showing.

Sayuri vs. Yuna Mizumori (October 14, 2019)

Known as the “power fighter” of Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling, Yuna Mizumori entered this match with a clear strength advantage. As such, Sayuri’s quickness and technical aptitude would have to be implemented in this match. This clash of styles resulted in fun yet aggressive contest where neither competitor was unwilling to back down. This wasn’t to say that mat-based offense was nonexistent. Sayuri utilized different holds to keep the more powerful Yunamon at bay. Given that Sayuri was only a few months into her career at this point, her fearlessness was admirable and should be seen in this sound, hard-hitting encounter.

Sayuri vs. Emi Sakura (December 29, 2019)

With a few months of wrestling experience under her belt, Sayuri faced one of her mentors toward the end of the year. In this post-Christmas bout, the relative newcomer faced Emi Sakura in this match that yielded chants for both competitors. Sakura played the heel in this match, taking her opponent lightly, even playing with a fan while Sayuri applied a wrist lock. Nonetheless, Sayuri fought back, even getting the fans to chant her name with each pin she attempted and every forearm smash she executed. Given the popularity of Sakura in Japan and abroad, this was no easy feat. Against one of the individuals that trained her, Sayuri shined in this encounter.

Check out past Joshi Watches and discover more stars from Japan!

Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can watch Sayaka at Gatoh Move on YouTube and via the Gatoh Move Experience.

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