August 27, 2026
(Continued from Why VENY is Fighting Ayako Hamada at the October 16 Korakuen Event Part 1)
When VENY was in elementary school, she was the victim of bullying. One night, dreading the next day and thinking, “I really don’t want to go to school tomorrow,” she stayed up late watching TV and happened to stumble upon a broadcast of HUSTLE. Thinking, “What in the world is this?”, VENY kept watching and found herself glued to the screen by the sight of one particular wrestler. That wrestler was Alicin Z—none other than Ayako Hamada.
Although Alicin Z was a heel affiliated with the Takada Monster Army, seeing her refuse to give an inch against male wrestlers much larger than herself made VENY yearn for that strength: “I want to be strong like her!” A few years later, when it came time to become a pro wrestler, a huge factor in VENY choosing to join Pro Wrestling WAVE was the fact that Ayako Hamada, the true identity of Alicin Z, was on the roster.
That being said, VENY isn’t looking to fight Ayako based purely on nostalgic sentiments.
“When I watch footage of Ayako in Mexico, she’s still just incredible,” VENY says. “Especially the facial expressions she shows in the fleeting moments of a match, or the way she gauges distance and timing with her opponent—it’s still absolutely brilliant. She remains a phenomenal pro wrestler today. That’s exactly why I’ve continually wanted to wrestle her. I kept wondering, what kind of match can the ‘me’ of today have with the ‘Ayako’ of today?”
Because she is going into it with that mindset, there is a high probability that their October 16 match at Korakuen Hall will see VENY stepping onto Ayako’s turf. If so, the match we are about to witness between VENY and Ayako will be a completely different breed of pro wrestling compared to her matches against Chihiro Hashimoto or Sareee, where they squeeze every last drop of physical stamina out of each other.
“The last time I fought Ayako in a singles match was ten years ago, but since I was still just a rookie back then, all I could really do was throw everything I had at her,” VENY explains. “So, in a way, this feels like a first-time encounter, and even I can’t imagine what kind of match it will turn into. It’s in my nature to want to do things where I can’t predict what will happen, so I’m already incredibly thrilled.”
At the same time, right up until the moment she announced the match with Ayako, a certain hesitation had been smoldering inside VENY. It has been eight years since Ayako last wrestled in Japan. More and more fans don’t even know who she is. Do the fans who support the VENY of today genuinely want to see her fight Ayako?
“To be honest, up until the day before I announced the match with Ayako, I was agonizing over whether I should instead book a singles match against a current top-tier wrestler—a card that would draw out the absolute maximum of the ‘VENY’ that everyone knows today,” VENY confessed. “But at the very end, I made my resolve. Whether the tickets don’t sell and I go into the red, or if I get thoroughly flamed online after the event, it’s my own self-produced show, so I can bear the risks myself. If that’s the case, I decided to focus on the match I want to do the most—a match against Ayako that can only happen right now.”
The day after announcing the singles match between herself and Ayako as the main event of her self-produced show, VENY timidly checked the ticket sales. And then…
“The tickets moved. Much more than I had anticipated, actually,” VENY revealed. “I didn’t think there were that many people who knew about the history between me and Ayako, but it seems I was wrong. Of course, as the promoter, I was happy the tickets sold, but I was even happier to know that there were so many people out there who wanted to see Ayako wrestle.”
I want to see Ayako Hamada wrestle in Japan. That is something I, too, have continued to wish for ever since she left the country. While she garnered massive attention from her debut and has led a pro wrestling life that hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing, she is a pillar of the industry who, alongside Meiko Satomura and Nanae Takahashi, sustained the “Winter Era” of joshi puroresu.
Of course, the crime she committed eight years ago can never be erased. I understand that there are still people out there who cannot forgive her. Furthermore, as someone who reports on the industry, I believe I must strictly refrain from commodifying her return to Japan by packaging it as a heartwarming redemption story.
Even so, when VENY told me, “I’m going to be able to have a match with Ayako,” I was so happy I almost burst into tears. Even though it was something I had strongly wished for, VENY took every single ounce of risk upon her own shoulders, and in doing so, granted the wishes of so many people.
Perhaps because of that sense of gratitude, VENY has been looking particularly radiant lately. But that radiance will reach its absolute peak when she squares off one-on-one with Ayako on October 16.
Translator’s Notes:
- HUSTLE / Takada Monster Army: HUSTLE was a highly theatrical “sports entertainment” promotion created in Japan in the mid-2000s, blending MMA aesthetics with absurd, comedic wrestling storylines. The Takada Monster Army was the promotion’s premier heel faction, led by Nobuhiko Takada. Ayako Hamada competed there under a mask as “Alicin Z” (often transliterated as Aliisin Z).
- “Winter Era” (冬の時代): A common journalistic term used in Japanese media to describe the severe dark ages/recession of women’s professional wrestling in the 2000s and early 2010s, following the boom periods of the 1980s and 1990s.
- “The crime she committed eight years ago”: This references Ayako Hamada’s 2018 arrest in Japan for possession of stimulants, which led to an 18-month suspended prison sentence. Following the scandal, her contract with Pro Wrestling WAVE was terminated, she announced her retirement from Japanese competition, and she ultimately returned to Mexico. The author carefully acknowledges the severity of this history to clarify why booking her carries massive reputational and financial “risk” for VENY’s independent show.
- “Stepping onto Ayako’s turf” (文子の土俵に上がる): Literally “stepping into Ayako’s sumo ring.” Used here idiomatically to suggest that instead of wrestling a modern, high-speed, physically exhausting joshi style (as she does with Chihiro Hashimoto or Sareee), VENY will likely adapt to Ayako’s signature pacing, psychology, and lucha-influenced style.