Stardom has announced the names of twelve of the fourteen participants, along with the schedule for their upcoming "5*STAR GRAND PRIX" Tournament, which will span from August 21 at Shin-Kiba 1st Ring, to September 22 at Tokyo Korakuen Hall. Like past iterations of the tournament, it will see the participants split into two blocks, with a round robin format. All matches have a 15 minute time limit, outside of the Final, which will have a 30 minute time limit. Of the announced competitors, over half are foreign, with several big names making the trip to Japan to compete - namely Lucha Underground star Ivelisse, 3rd generation rising star Tessa Blanchard, and UK regular Toni Storm, who most recently competed in Japan for the REINA promotion. Of the mainland names, Io Shirai, Kairi Hojo and Mayu Iwatani will be joined by youngsters Momo Watanabe and Jungle Kyona, and the recently returned Yoko Bito will also be a part of the tournament, looking to re-cement herself as a main event player. The remaining two names, along with the block pairings, will be announced on 7/31, as part of their scheduled Shin-Kiba 1st Ring show.
Participants:
1. Io Shirai (2014 Winner)
2. Kairi Hojo (2015 Winner)
3. Mayu Iwatani
4. Yoko Bito
5. Momo Watanabe
6. Jungle Kyona
7. Ivelisse
8. Tessa Blanchard
9. Toni Storm
10. Kay Lee Ray
11. Blue Nikita
12. Courtney Stewart
13. TBA
14. TBA
5*STAR GRAND PRIX Schedule:
8/21 @ Shin-Kiba 1st Ring
8/27 @ Niigata East Plaza
8/28 @ Osaka City Nishi Ward Community Center
9/3 @ Yokohama Radiant Hall
9/4 @ Sendai Rensa
9/9 @ Nagoya Chikusa Bunka Mini-Theater
9/11 @ Shin-Kiba 1st Ring
9/22 @ Tokyo Korakuen Hall (Tournament Final)
9/24 @ Osaka City Minato Ward Community Center
Source : PuroLove