Into The Fight 2016 was a

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

event promoted by

DDT Pro-Wrestling is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Its name stands for Dramatic Dream Team, which was the promotion's official name from 1997 to 2004. Founded in March 1997 by Shintaro Muto, the promotion was eventually bo ...

(DDT). It took place on February 28, 2016, in

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, at the Korakuen Hall. The event featured eight matches with three championships at stake and was headlined by a match between

Shigehiro Irie is a Japanese professional wrestler and former mixed martial artist best known for his work in DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT). Irie has also competed for All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), Big Japan Pro Wrestling (BJW), and a number of North American inde ...

and

Harashima Harashima (stylised in all capital letters) (born July 6, 1974) is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is best known for his work in DDT Pro-Wrestling (formally Dramatic Dream Team), where he is a ten-time KO-D Openweight Champion and a current ...

that would determine the first contender to the

KO-D Openweight Championship The is a professional wrestling world openweight championship and the top singles accomplishment in the Japanese promotion CyberFight currently defended in the DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT) brand division. It is one of CyberFight's top major world tit ...

then held by

Isami Kodaka is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently signed to Pro-Wrestling Basara (Basara). He originally started his career in the Kaientai Dojo (K-Dojo) promotion in July 2002, but later left the promotion to become a freelancer, before signing wi ...

. The event aired domestically on

Fighting TV Samurai Combat (French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...

Storylines

Into The Fight 2016 featured eight

professional wrestling matches Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

involving wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and storylines. Wrestlers portrayed

villains A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...

heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

, or less distinguishable characters in the scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.

Event

Pre-show

In the pre-show, a

dark match Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence o ...

saw the team of Mizuki Watase and Kota Umeda take on Hiroshi Fukuda and Guanchulo in an attempt to get rid of the

King of Dark Championship The was a professional wrestling championship created by Amon Tsurumi. The champion was forced to wrestle exclusively in dark matches on DDT shows. Contrary to regular professional wrestling championships, the title was not rewarded to the win ...

. Contrary to regular professional wrestling titles, this one is awarded to the loser of the match who is then forced to wrestle in dark matches. Watase, who was the champion heading into the match, pinned Guanchulo to win the bout and pass the title onto him.

Preliminary matches

The opening match was T2Hii (

Sanshiro Takagi , better known by his ring name , is a Japanese professional wrestler. Takagi's gimmick is that he is Stone Cold Steve Austin. He is known in Dramatic Dream Team (DDT) and around the micro-indy scene for his hilarious promos and natural charism ...

Toru Owashi is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by his ring name . He is best known for his work in DDT Pro-Wrestling, where he is a former KO-D Openweight Champion and two time KO-D Tag Team Champion. Professional wrestling career Initial ...

and

Kazuki Hirata is a Japanese professional wrestler currently working for the Japanese professional wrestling promotion DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT). Professional wrestling career DDT Pro-Wrestling (2010-present) Hirata's first known match as a professional wrestle ...

) defending the

KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship The is a professional wrestling championship owned by the DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT) promotion. The title was first announced during DDT's year-end event on December 23, 2012, becoming the promotion's fifth active title. The first champions were c ...

against

Kazusada Higuchi is a Japanese professional wrestler, currently working for the Japanese professional wrestling promotion DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT). Professional wrestling career Independent circuit (2014–present) Higuchi made his professional wrestling ...

Shunma Katsumata is a Japanese professional wrestler currently working for the Japanese professional wrestling promotion DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT). Professional wrestling career Independent circuit (2014–present) Katsumata is known for tenures with various Japa ...

and Kouki Iwasaki, all three from the DDT New Attitude (DNA) sub-brand of DDT focused on showcasing trainees and younger wrestlers. In the closing moments of the match, Hirata caught Iwasaki in the " Miracle One Shot Cradle" but Iwasaki countered the move into a pin of his own to win the match, making himself, Higuchi and Katsumata the first DNA wrestlers to ever win a DDT championship title. The next title match was a tongue-in-cheek "three-man singles match" that was effectively a regular

three-way match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

in which

Kendo Kashin Tokimitsu Ishizawa (''Ishizawa Tokimitsu'', born August 5, 1968), better known by his ring name Kendo Kashin (ケンドー・カシン, ''Kendō Kashin''), is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is perhaps best known for his time in New Japan P ...

defended the

DDT Extreme Division Championship The is a singles title in the Japanese professional wrestling promotion DDT Pro-Wrestling. The title was established in 2006 and it is mostly defended in stipulation matches, with the defending champion being given the right to choose the stip ...

against

Antonio Honda is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by his ring name . He is currently working for the Japanese professional wrestling promotion DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT). He is the son of actor Tetsu Watanabe. Professional wrestling career Indepe ...

and Yoshihiko the blow-up doll. Kashin retained by locking both Yoshihiko and

Super Sasadango Machine is a Japanese professional wrestler, better known by his ring name and is currently working for the Japanese professional wrestling promotion DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT). Professional wrestling career Dramatic Dream Team/DDT Pro Wrestling (2002� ...

(who accompanied Yoshihiko to the ring as its second) in a cross armbreaker for a

submission Deference (also called submission or passivity) is the condition of submitting to the espoused, legitimate influence of one's superior or superiors. Deference implies a yielding or submitting to the judgment of a recognized superior, out of re ...

victory.

Main event

In the final match of the evening,

fought

to determine a first contender to the

held by

. In the end, Harashima was victorious after he hit Irie with two consecutive " Somato" knee strikes and covered him for the pinfall. With the win, Harashima earned a title match against Kodaka at the Judgement 2016 event on March 21.

Results

References

External links

The official DDT Pro-Wrestling website
{{List of major DDT Pro-Wrestling events

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

2016 in professional wrestling Professional wrestling in Tokyo