On Friday, WWE announced Meiko Satomura as the latest participant in this year’s Mae Young Classic. The Joshi legend is an immediate favorite, since it’s no exaggeration to say she’s one of the best wrestlers on the planet.
As we draw closer to the second annual Mae Young Classic, the field is growing larger every day. WWE has confirmed that 32 women will once again be a part of the tournament, which is set to tape some time in August at Full Sail University. The finals will be held at WWE Evolution in October, and you may want to pencil in the most recent competitor announced into the finals.
The 21st entrant in this year’s MYC is none other than Joshi legend Meiko Satomura. There’s probably a good number of you reading this asking, “Who?” And let me tell you something: You are in for a treat.
Satomura, 38, is a long-time pro wrestler. She got her start with Gaea Japan in 1995 at the age of 15. Since that time, she’s made numerous excursions to the United States, co-founded her own promotion, and become one of the most feared and respected wrestlers in Japan.
American wrestling fans would likely know of Satomura from one of two places: WCW or CHIKARA. In the mid-90s, WCW entered a working agreement with Gaea Japan, and Satomura was one of the talents to appear on Nitro. Not bad for a teenager, huh?
But CHIKARA is where she really established herself in America, as evidenced by tweets from CHIKARA alums Drew Gulak and Ruby Riott. In 2012, Satomura came over with some fellow joshi stars from Sendai Girls, the joshi promotion Satomura co-founded in 2005 after Gaea Japan shut down.
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And Satomura, along with sisters Dash Chisako and Sendai Sachiko, became the ultimate fan favorites of the tournament. While they ultimately were eliminated in the semifinals by The Young Bucks and Mike Bennett, it took outside interference and Satomura still almost fought off her three opponents. The crowd reaction for Sendai Girls was huge, which led to their return to the tournament in 2016, where this time the trio won the whole thing.
Not only did Satomura and crew become the first women to win King of Trios (Queen of Trios), they became the first trio to make it to the finals in the following year, ultimately losing to British Strong Style. If you haven’t seen Pete Dunne and Meiko Satomura go at it, find a copy of the video right now. It’s unbelievable.
Of course, the Mae Young Classic won’t be an intergender competition, so how is Meiko Satomura against other women? Well, take a look at this match pitting Satomura against fellow MYC participant and recent NXT signee Io Shirai:
How about Satomura vs. Kana, now known as Asuka in WWE?
There’s no shortage of highlights that demonstrates just how impressive Satomura is in the ring. Getting her to participate in the Mae Young Classic is a real coup by WWE, especially if she crosses paths with Shirai in the tournament — hopefully in the finals.
Are you ready for Meiko Satomura in the Mae Young Classic this year?