Dragon Gate Pro Wrestling will be holding its Memorial Gate 2021 event on March 27, 2021. This event received buzz last year after Eita captured his first Open The Dream Gate Championship. This is in addition to Jason Lee and Kota Minoura netting an upset, winning the Open The Twin Gate Championship. This year’s format will be similar to the last in that there will be matches for the Dream Gate and Twin Gate Titles. Let’s take a look at the card and predict who leaves with the gold and who will step to them next.
The Memorial Gate 2021 Undercard
- Natural Vibes (KZY, Susumu Yokosuka, Genki Horiguchi, and U-T) vs. Gurukun Mask, Shachihoko Boy, Punch Tominaga, and Ho Ho Lun.
- Ultimo Dragon, Bokutimo Dragon, and Ryo Saito vs. BxB Hulk, Kaito Ishida, and Diamanté
- Ben-K vs. HipHop Kikuta
- Wakayama Tornado Winning Match: Masquerade (Jason Lee, Kota Minoura, and La Estrella) vs. HIGH-END (YAMATO, Dragon Kid, and Keisuke Okuda) vs. R.E.D (Eita, KAI, and SBKENTo)
Open The Twin Gate Championship: Takashi Yoshida and Masaaki Mochizuki (c) vs. Kenichiro Arai and Yasushi Kanda
Yasushi Kanda and Kenichiro Arai have challenged for the Twin Gate Championship before but failed. This time is very different, as they seem to have the edge over the current champions. In the lead-up to Takashi Yoshida and Masaaki Mochizuki challenging for the belts, Arai got a pin on Yoshida in a four-way tag team match. This planted the seeds for Arai and Kanda to challenge the Twin Gate Champions post-Champion Gate in Osaka. Afterward, Arai got another win on Yoshida on the first night of the doubleheader in KBS Hall, after Yoshida and Mochizuki captured the gold. That’s when Arai and Kanda made their title challenge, which was accepted.
However, things swung in the challengers’ favor, even more, when on the second night of the doubleheader, Kanda pinned Yoshida. It would seem that the challengers have the edge and are primed to take the Twin Gate Championship. However, the team of Yoshida and Mochizuki is special and it’s hard to say they’ll give up their belts this easily. Will the champions prove they are worthy with a successful defense, or will the veteran team work their magic and win the Twin Gate Championship?
Open The Dream Gate Championship: Shun Skywalker (c) vs. KAZMA Sakamoto
Shun Skywalker has been on a tear as Open The Dream Gate Champion since winning the belt last year. Skywalker has had successful defenses over Ben-K and Kaito Ishida in stellar matches. However, no one knew what was next after he beat Ishida in a barn burner. That’s when KAZMA Sakamoto stepped up. As a member of R.E.D, Sakamoto was actually their first secret weapon of sorts when they formed. Since joining, he has had runs as Open The Twin Gate and Open The Triangle Gate Champion, but hasn’t challenged for the top prize until now.
Sakamoto has been outsmarting and attacking Skywalker at each and every turn. However, things will be a lot different once the two men meet one-on-one. Will Sakamoto fulfill his goal and capture the Open The Dream Gate Championship or will Skywalker prove that, in the end, he is a champion that is here to stay?
Memorial Gate 2021 Predictions
One has to imagine that Yoshida and Mochizuki will come out victorious in the Twin Gate Championship match. We could see a challenge from Bensuke or a duo from Natural Vibes. Even a challenge from Eita and Kaito Ishida isn’t completely out of the picture. In the Dream Gate scene, it seems as if Skywalker is the guy that will run with this belt going forward. He may be challenged by BxB Hulk or the winner of the Ben-K vs. HipHop Kikuta match.
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