Saori Anou vs Mika Iwata: The Lion, the Wanderer, and the Wonder of Stardom Championship

July 14, 2024

Stardom The Conversion made a lot of changes to the landscape of Stardom. None, however, was more of a shock to the system than the Wonder of Stardom championship changing hands from Saori Anou to Mika Iwata. If you asked anyone heading into this card to pick the outcome of this match, I imagine most, if not all of them, would have told you that Saori Anou would still be the Wonder of Stardom champion come June 23rd. Instead, the Sendai Girls world champion came into Stardom and came away with the white belt to add to her collection.

Before this match, Mika Iwata and Saori Anou had only met twice in singles matches, both times taking place in a Sendai Girls ring. Both times, these matches went to a time-limit draw. There was no precedent set for who had the upper hand leading up to Stardom The Conversion. When it came down to it, one move would make all the difference and crown a new Wonder of Stardom champion to the shock and awe of every fan in the arena and those watching live from their homes around the world.

But to truly appreciate these two perfectly matched foes, we need to go back to where this story really starts.

Similar Beginnings; Different Paths

Saori Anou and Mika Iwata both debuted in 2015, not even a month and a half from one another. Saori was trained in the ways of professional wrestling by Yuna Manase, the same woman who trained Saori's stablemates Natsupoi and Tam Nakano. Meanwhile, Mika Iwata trained under the guidance of Joshi legend Meiko Satomura.

Despite debuting at roughly the same time, these two wrestlers took different paths to end up where they are today.

Saori Anou made it a point to take the indie scene in Japan by storm. Her longest tenures reside in Actwres girl'Z (where she made her debut), Oz Academy, and Ice Ribbon. She performed for Stardom over the first three years of her career but pulled away from the promotion in 2018 for five long years. It wasn't until her reappearance in April 2023 to tag with Natsupoi and Kairi Sane in an Artist of Stardom championship match that she really began to make waves in the company. She has held nine different titles from six different companies. Even to this day, despite signing an exclusive contract with Stardom in early 2024, Saori Anou continues to wrestle for promotions like Oz Academy, adding to her impressive catalog of over 600 matches in her nine years of wrestling.

Mika Iwata debuted in July 2015 for Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling and has been largely loyal to the promotion over the nine years of her career. Of her 350+ matches, fewer than 100 have taken place outside of Senjo. While she did have a handful of matches in Stardom in the early years of her career, she hasn't graced the World Wonder Ring since 2016 until her return in 2024 for one major match against one very keen champion. Mika Iwata's title runs once held only championships from her home promotion, including two reigns as a Sendai Girls tag champion and her current 300-day plus reign as the Sendai Girls world champion.

That is... until she became the Wonder of Stardom Champion on June 22nd.

Face to Face for the First Time

Mika Iwata and Saori Anou have shared space in the ring a little over a dozen times since 2015. Most of these matches were your standard tag match or multi-man make-up of multiple teams, but those matches don't mean as much to this story as the two times Saori Anou faced Mika Iwata one-on-one.

Their first singles match took place all the way back on November 20, 2022. It went to a 15-minute time limit draw. Following the match, both competitors made it a point to say that this meeting would be far from their last. They both felt that their careers were somehow intertwined, drawn to one another by a destiny neither of them could even imagine at the time.

However eager they were to face each other in the ring again, Saori Anou and Mika Iwata would not have their second singles meeting until exactly 15 months later. On February 20, 2024, the two returned to the Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling ring for a showdown a long time in the making. They were determined to come to a decision here with 20 minutes on the clock and neither of their highly-coveted titles on the line.

Both of these matches had a lot in common in the way each wrestler approached their opponent.

Mika Iwata is known for her hellacious kicks, a weapon she uses to come out strong early in the match. Saori Anou knows this is Mika's plan and immediately targets her right leg the first chance she gets. The best way Mika has to calm Saori down when she gets overzealous is to force her to the mat via armbar. Having effectively taken out one limb each, they do what they do best: throw forearms. This is where the second match takes things to the next level.

In the midst of the forearm exchange, Mika Iwata grabs Saori by the hair and starts to slam their skulls together to gain the upper hand. Saori Anou’s crossface choke is complimented in match number two by Unknown, a submission that looks like it should finish a match as soon as it’s cinched in. Mika answers all the stretching she receives with her beautiful inverted roundhouse kick from the top of the turnbuckles.

In both matches, the ending comes with a desperate attempt to find the finish. Saori Anou escapes from the Raion driver. Mika Iwata kicks out of Pottering. They throw hands. One of them falls over top of the other in a full body pin. But, no matter how hard they try, the bell always rings before the count of three.

Two singles matches. Two time limit draws. Two wrestlers looking each other in the eye, like looking into a mirror.

Laying Down the Challenge

On May 31, 2024, Stardom ran a show in Sendai. It was like any other house show on the surface, packed with fast-paced, fun action from the entire roster. In the main event, the Stars contingent of Hanan, Hazuki, and Mayu Iwatani took on the big three of Cosmic Angels - Natsupoi, Tam Nakano, and Saori Anou. At this point, everyone and their sister wants a shot at Saori Anou and her Wonder of Stardom championship. Hanan, Hazuki, and Natsupoi all stand in the ring with the champ, eager to stake claim to the next white belt opportunity, and that doesn’t even include Ami Sourei and Starlight Kid.

The Wonder of Stardom championship has undoubtedly become the title to have in Stardom over the first half of 2024. While the World of Stardom champion, Maika, struggles to find opponents up to the challenge, Saori Anou is batting them away left and right. Everyone wants to be the face, the heart, the soul of Stardom.

But they’re in Sendai. And if there’s one person who has become synonymous with Sendai, it’s Mika Iwata.

Following Cosmic Angels’ victory over Stars, Mika made her way to ringside to speak to Saori in person. Apparently, Saori had been in constant contact looking for a rematch, another chance to put a definitive stamp on their budding rivalry. Mika heard that Stardom was coming to Sendai, so she came to see her. Saori didn’t waste any time in offering up a shot at her Wonder of Stardom title on June 22nd in Yoyogi.

“I think there are a lot of people who don’t know about our relationship.” She said. “Shouldn’t we settle this soon?”

Stardom The Conversion

By the time we reached the semi-main event of Stardom The Conversion, it had already been an emotional rollercoaster. The main show opened with FWC’s Hazuki and Koguma defending their Goddess of Stardom titles against fellow Stars members Hanan and Saya Iida. The fans were treated to a highspeed showcase between Starlight Kid and Mei Seira as well as a fun Runaway Wrestler-themed match. They also watched as Queen’s Quest was basically wiped out by Oedo Tai, leaving Saya Kamitani on her own and four former members without a home.

It’s easy to feel the emotional burnout with PPVs when you’re hitting the fourth hour and so much has already happened. That didn’t matter here, though. Not for Saori Anou, and not for Mika Iwata. They were primed and ready to take on their greatest singles meeting to date with the Wonder of Stardom championship on the line.

And, boy, did they deliver.

The tension between them is immediate. With handfuls of each other’s hair, they make it very clear that they mean business here tonight. No one wants to leave this arena without a winner. Something has got to give and neither of these women wants the final bell to ring without a definitive decision.

The kicks begin in full force.

There's a difference here, though, that we didn't see in their previous two matches. Despite Mika Iwata raining down those heavy kicks, Saori Anou is totally confident in her ability to win this match. You might even say she was arrogant. Sitting on the mat, she ducks a running kick from Mika that soars over her and receives another straight to the side of the head in reply. Saori slams her hands into the mat, showing her refusal to stay down. Back on her feet, she arrogantly walks into every kick Mika throws at her chest. Even a flipping kick straight to the face can't deter her.

Saori Anou is still smiling.

It's time for the next phase of the game plan. Saori Anou starts to target Mika's right leg with more determination than ever. A dragon screw leg whip and the bridging figure four ground her opponent for as long as possible. Even when Mika manages to break the hold, Saori is incredibly arrogant. And why shouldn't she be? She is on her turf, wrestling for her title, with Mika Iwata on the ropes early. This is her time to shine and she knows it.

But it isn't long before the equally confident, yet extremely focused, Mika Iwata regains the upper hand with a facebuster and that nasty running knee through the ropes. Her frustration is all over her face. She takes the match into new territory on the floor outside the ring.

It's there that Saori outsmarts her, ducking one of her high kicks. Mika's leg smacks hard into the ring post, sending her to the ground.

Saori doesn't give Mika room to breathe. Every single move she makes targets the right knee and leg with pinpoint precision. There's not a wasted movement and, for a moment, she's firmly in control of her opponent. Then... a mistake. Saori starts to go off her game plan, pushing her foot in those frustrating little kicks to Mika's head. Something like that would light a fire under anyone. Before Saori can return to the leg, she's trapped in that tried and true Mika Iwata armbar. Only this time, Mika throws in a cross face for good measure. She's in it to finish it.

For a few long moments, Mika does everything in her power to stop Saori from reaching the ropes for a break. She cranks back on the cross face, bending Saori in half, but she reaches the ropes anyway. When she does, Mika's face says it all.

This is a fight.

Free from the submission, Saori Anou makes another arrogant mistake. She enters a kick battle with Mika Iwata. She's trying to prove she can match up. Kicks devolve into forearms. They trade back and forth until Saori hits the ropes, giving Mika the space to hit a devastating thrust kick right as the 10-minute call rings out. We're halfway through this match and both women are on the mat. It's Saori who manages to take control first.

After the fisherman suplex out of the corner followed by a roll into another fisherman suplex, Saori Anou sinks in her crossface choke. That same deep choke she had put Mika in before pulled tight with a purpose. With both of her arms wrapped around her own throat, Mika refuses to say die. By the time Mika manages to reach the ropes, she's worse for wear. Saori has her on the back foot and she knows it. It's all over her expression.

She's got this won.

Saori is ready to finish it, but a couple of german suplex holds don't get the job done. She goes for the big one instead. Before she can hit the Temps Tendre, Mika does what she does best and nails her with two massive kicks, dropping her. As Saori attempts to rise to her feet, she takes another huge kick to the side of the head for a close two count. The finish she craves is slipping from her grasp and she has to do something about it.

In a desperate attempt to regain her footing, Saori grabs Mika for another big german suplex and then throws on Unknown, a submission that has finished many a match for her before. But for some reason, whether it was arrogance or foolishness, as Mika fades... Saori releases the hold. She fires up and climbs to the top rope for a picture-perfect missile dropkick.

Mika kicks out of the Temps Tendre and refuses another suplex, wildly throwing a spinning kick at Saori’s head to send them both straight to the mat.

It's time for the slow rise from the bottom. These perfectly matched foes trade forearms back and forth, frustration boiling over. Saori throws an enzuigiri and Mika answers with a headbutt, a high kick, and a running knee in quick succession. Climbing to the top rope, Mika hits the inverted roundhouse kick for a close fall. Just like in both matches before, she gathers Saori Anou into the Raion position, Saori escapes and flips her into the Pottering, and Mika kicks out.

Three massive kicks to the head and Mika lays across Saori's shoulders to a resounding one count.

They smile at each other. Enraged? Enthralled? Maybe a little of both.

Saori sits on the mat and accepts a combo of three more kicks straight to the head and still manages to kick out at two despite the obvious damage done to her face.

And then it happens.

The one thing that hasn't happened in any of their matches before. The one difference maker that stops this match before it ever has a chance of reaching the time limit.

Mika Iwata hits Saori Anou with the Raion driver.

One... Two... Three...

We have a new Wonder of Stardom Champion.

An Indomitable Struggle

The aftermath of Mika Iwata's victory over Saori Anou was immediate. Following their match at Stardom The Conversion, Saori was despondent. She sat staring into space in the ring with the newly crowned champion, not saying a word.

This is where the third member of our story enters the picture.

Mika Iwata implored Saori to say something. When she wouldn't so much as look at the microphone, Natsupoi intervened. For those who don't know, Natsupoi is a fellow member of Cosmic Angels and Saori Anou's best friend. They have shared a rather emotional story of their own since their shared debut in 2015, a story including one hell of a strap match at Stardom MidSummer Champions in July 2023. Despite being so close, Natsupoi and Saori Anou also share a rivalry full of love and respect, not so different from the one Saori now has with Mika Iwata.

Saori and Natsupoi always wanted to reach the top and be the best, even when it meant facing one another in the ring.

When Saori fell silent, Natsupoi jumped into action to help her friend. She desperately pushed the microphone into her hands and urged her to say something to this outsider who now held one of Stardom's top belts. One of their top belts. But Saori refused.

"You'll try again, right?"

As Saori rolled out of the ring and away from her crushing defeat, Natsupoi begged through tears, voice breaking, for her friend to make this right. They made a promise, after all, to face one another for the Wonder of Stardom championship when the time came. So, if Saori wasn't going to get that belt back, she would go and do it herself. But that's not how it was supposed to happen. None of this was supposed to happen. But even if it did, how could Saori Anou just give up?

Mika Iwata promised to defend her new Stardom title in the Sendai Girls ring. She made sure Saori heard her on her way to the back. Come July 15th, she fully intended to defend the Wonder of Stardom championship in Korakuen Hall. It was clear the challenger she wanted, and she held out hope for that answer.

A week went by with nothing but a single word of apology from Saori Anou.

As the next Stardom show rolled around on June 29th, it was clear little had changed. Not only did Saori take the pin to lose a match for her faction, but she also took it from Ami Sourei, someone she had defended her title against before. Filled with concern at her behavior and lack of response, Stardom officials took it upon themselves to negotiate a match.

Saori Anou and Natsupoi vs Mika Iwata and Manami - July 4th - Korakuen Hall.

Raising the Stakes and Running It Back

If you listen to the Wrestling is Her Podcast, you already know exactly how I feel about the tag team match that took place on July 4th. It is a masterclass in storytelling through professional wrestling and one of my personal favorite matches that I've probably ever seen. The feeling put into this 20 minutes by all of the players takes this story to the next level and sets us up perfectly for what's to come on July 15th.

There were moments in this match that gave me chills, perfectly showcasing the climb Saori Anou needed to take back up the mountain of remembering who she was in between the ropes.

When the match starts out, Saori won't even look at Mika Iwata, who is staring her down throughout the introductions. She doesn't start the match, allowing Natsupoi to take the lead, which she does gladly. The only reason Saori tags in at all is because it's Manami in the ring. But not for long.

The moment Mika tags in, Saori freezes up all over again. She tries to fire herself up and take control to no avail. Even after Manami gets back in the ring, it takes Natsupoi helping out for Saori to make another tag.

Once Natsupoi is in the ring squaring off with Mika Iwata, we hit a turning point.

Natsupoi isn't afraid of Mika. She happily stands toe-to-toe with her in the center of the ring and trades forearms. Even when Mika hits her with everything she's got, Natsupoi doesn't back down. On the apron, Saori watches on from behind the top rope. She witnesses her friend facing down a lion and it spurs something in her. Something that was almost stolen the moment she lost her belt.

A spinning back kick sends Mika to the ground and, from the outside, Saori Anou's hand shoots over the rope for the tag.

What follows this moment is a beautiful display of Saori remembering who she is. She gets in the ring with Mika Iwata and they absolutely go to town on one another. There are forearms, there are kicks, facebusters, and suplexes. We see Saori Anou smile, not with arrogance, but with pure confidence in herself. A big knee lays both wrestlers out on the mat practically on top of one another. In the silence, Saori turns her head to look at Natsupoi.

Natsupoi nods at her.

The classic slow rise from the depths is emphasized when Saori Anou mounts Mika Iwata and beats her into the mat with a flurry of forearms. All four wrestlers are in the ring creating magic. Double-team moves abound. Saori manages to escape once more from the Raion hold and when Mika kicks out of her next pin attempt, Saori holds her fist in the air. She's not giving up.

There's a flurry to the finish where Mika Iwata once again kicks out of Pottering, an absolutely stunned look on her face like she can't believe this is the same Saori Anou that was sitting in the ring with her 12 days before. In the final seconds, Mika tries to finish it with her favorite driver, but again, Saori escapes and nails her with a thrust kick. As she falls on top of her, the bell rings.

Time limit draw.

"Next time... I'll win. I'll defeat Mika Iwata."

These are the words we finally get from Saori Anou after nearly two weeks of waiting. Mika Iwata sits in the background, a huge smile on her face, because this is everything she wanted. That fire has returned to Saori's eyes, the heat that Mika has been drawn to since they first met in the ring on November 20, 2022. And she's prepared to sweeten the deal.

On July 15th in Korakuen Hall in a Sendai Girls' Pro Wrestling ring, she won't just be putting the Wonder of Stardom championship on the line. She's putting her Sendai Girls World Championship on the table as well.

Winner Takes All.

Where the Wonder Leads Us

As I type this, we are closing in on July 15th, and I can't begin to tell you how excited I am for this rematch. There are so many ways this could all shake out that are all equally as interesting.

Following Mika Iwata's challenge and Saori Anou's acceptance of the rematch, Natsupoi made it clear that she would be taking the first shot at the person who comes out the other side as the Wonder of Stardom champion. That title shot will take place at Stardom Sapporo Wonder Rendezvous on July 27th.

There's a good chance that Saori Anou wins this match against Mika Iwata and regains the Wonder of Stardom title along with becoming the Sendai Girls World champion. However, I believe there's an equally good chance that Mika Iwata retains and goes into Sapporo to face Natsupoi herself.

When this all shakes out, maybe this story was never about Saori Anou or Mika Iwata. Maybe it was always the story of a Ring Fairy becoming the heart and soul of a company.

Whatever happens on July 15th, there's one thing I'm absolutely certain about. Saori Anou vs Mika Iwata is going to deliver in ways no one is expecting. These two mirror one another in the ring, running on two separate paths until they have the chance to cross and collide. I'm so excited to see this match, to see where this story goes, and to see Saori Anou and Mika Iwata continue to be two of the best in the game today.