 Official logo of the promotion | |
| Acronym | NEO |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1997[1] |
| Defunct | 2010[1] |
| Style | Joshi Puroresu |
| Headquarters | Yokohama,Kanagawa,Japan[1] |
| Founder | Kyoko Inoue |
| Split from | All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling |
| Successor | World Woman Pro-Wrestling Diana |
Neo Japan Ladies Pro-Wrestling (ネオ・ジャパン・レディース・プロレスリング,Neo Japan Redīzu Puroresuringu; frequently shortened toNeo Ladies and styled asNEO) was ajoshi puroresu (women's professional wrestling)promotion established in 1997 byKyoko Inoue. The first event took place on January 9, 1998.[1]
NEO Japan Ladies Pro-Wrestling was founded duringAll Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling financial struggles. The figurehead of the company wasKyoko Inoue, a formerAll Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling wrestler. The name was meant to reference the "Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling" part of the name for All Japan Women's Pro Wrestling. The group was pegged with problems from the beginning as the group was initially supposed to be called New Japan Women's Pro Wrestling, but due to copyright concerns, NEO was chosen instead.
Their first show on January 9, 1998, featured the 9 members of the roster wrestling multiple times due to the small roster. The main event of the first show featuredLas Cachorras Orientales ofEtsuko Mita andMima Shimoda teaming with Saya Endo to defeat Chaparita Asari,Kyoko Inoue andYoshiko Tamura.[2]
During Spring 1998,Kyoko Inoue feuded withLioness Asuka. Kyoko captured Lioness' TWF title on April 26, 1998.[3] The feud carried over to NEO, where they met in a singles match on May 6, 1998, forJDStar's TWF Title, in which Asuka won the title back. In August 1998,Nicole Bass toured with the promotion, defeatingEtsuko Mita, Chaparita ASARI, andKyoko Inoue on August 16, 1998.[4]
On October 29, 1998, the promotion featured a match betweenKyoko Inoue andAja Kong for Kyoko Inoue's 10th anniversary as a wrestler.
During Summer 1999, the promotion feuded with JWP andAll Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling, resulting in multiple inter-promotional matches. On July 11, 1999,Kyoko Inoue captured theWWWA World Single Championship of All Japan Women's, defeatingYumiko Hotta. The two had a rematch at a NEO event on October 22, 1999, with Hotta winning the title back.[5]
The original incarnation of the promotion only lasted until January 6, 2000, less than two years after its first show. The last show featured Kyoko Inoue wrestling in every match on the card.[6]
NEO renamed itself toNEO Women's Wrestling (NEO女子プロレス,Neo Joshi Puroresu) after NEO Japan Ladies Pro-Wrestling closed in 2000. The promotion's pre-debut show was on March 16, 2000, and their official debut was on May 31, 2000. The promotion regularly held events at Itabashi Green Hall inItabashi,Tokyo, due to its smaller size, while runningKorakuen Hall for bigger events.
The promotion rose to power in 2005 after the closure ofAll Japan Women's Pro Wrestling andGaea Japan, with NEO being considered by many to be the topjoshipuroresu promotion during this time. In 2007, founderKyoko Inoue had complications from her pregnancy and was unable to wrestle, which hurt the promotion.
In 2009, business declined when two of their top stars,Etsuko Mita andidol wrestler Haruka Matsuo retired.[7]
The promotion announced its closure on May 5, 2010.[7]Kyoko Inoue announced her resignation,[8]Yoshiko Tamura, Tanny Mouse, and Yuki Miyazaki were slated to retire, young wrestlers Aoi Ishibashi and Natsumi Kawano had already left the company and the roster would have only been left with three wrestlers, due to the companies struggles with finding new talent.[7] The company held their final show on December 31, 2010. The first main event featuredAyumi Kurihara capturing her long-awaited first major singles title by defeatingYoshiko Tamura for theNWA Women's Pacific/NEO Single Championship, and the second main event featured the remaining members of the NEO roster competing in a 10-minute time limit trios match.
| Championship | Final champion(s) | Reign | Date won | Previous champion(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NWA Women's Pacific/NEO Single Championship | Ayumi Kurihara | 1 | May 25, 2011 | Yoshiko Tamura |
| High Speed Championship | Leon | 1 | November 27, 2010 | Natsuki☆Taiyo |
| NEO Tag Team Championship | NEO Machine Guns (Tanny Mouse andYuki Miyazaki) | 2 | November 28, 2010 | Aya Yuuki andRyo Mizunami |
| NEO Itabashi Tag Team Championship | Chiharu and Yuka Nakamura | 1 (2, 2) | December 23, 2004 | Tanny Mouse andYuki Miyazaki |
| NEO Kitazawa Tag Team Championship | Tanny Mouse andYuki Miyazaki | 4 | October 4, 2004 | Etsuko Mita andKyoko Inoue |
| Championship | Final champion | Reign | Date won | Previous champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AWF World Women's Championship | Tanny Mouse | 1 | June 26, 2004 | Misae Genki |
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