Sareee Won’t Change Mindset, Says Tension In STARDOM Is ‘Hottest Topic In Joshi’ | Interview

Sareee isn’t backing down to anyone, no matter how loud the boos get when she steps into a STARDOM ring.

“The Sun God” has been the talk of Joshi wrestling since making her return to STARDOM earlier this year. She first stormed in to win the IWGP Women’s Championship from Syuri at STARDOM THE CONVERSION 2025 before quickly turning her attention to the 5STAR Grand Prix — STARDOM’s annual round-robin tournament. She promised that she’d win the tournament to prove she was the ace of the women’s pro wrestling world, showcasing her vision of pro wrestling at full force.

On Saturday, Sareee officially secured her ticket into the playoffs by defeating new rival Momo Watanabe in the main event at the Yokohama Budokan. She followed the next day by earning the top seed in her block, earning a bye for this upcoming Wednesday’s playoff round. Sareee has only lived up to her promises thus far, and she’s hearing about it from the STARDOM crowds as a result.

Sareee believes her vision and beliefs about pro wrestling are the best, and she refuses to back down from the idea of that. As told many times to Fightful and other media outlets, she wants to make sure the Zenjo spirit, which was the style and spirit back in the days of All Japan Women’s Wrestling (AJW), lives on. It has sparked continuous conversation among STARDOM fans and its wrestlers. Things heated up when she challenged the World of Stardom Champion Saya Kamitani, and it’s only moved forward throughout the remainder of the roster in each and every match she has had.

Every time Sareee’s signature music hits, a majority of the STARDOM crowd welcomes “The Sun God” with boos. And in her matches, it only intensifies. But rather than change who she is, you can see Sareee wrestle her way, believe in her way, and she’s getting the expected results because of it — no matter what the crowd reaction may be.

“I am only doing what I believe in, and I have great confidence in myself from experience and training. Therefore, some people might agree and disagree with me, but I won’t change,” Sareee told Fightful. “My fans have been very supportive, especially after the big boos I have been getting. They too have been fighting alongside with me, cheering my name.

“It takes guts to cheer my name in arenas filled with anti-Sareee STARDOM fans. That has given me great strength. I really thank each fan from the bottom of my heart.”

This tension between Sareee and STARDOM has become the talk of the Joshi world, and it’s only going to continue with the IWGP Women’s Championship around her waist. Anywhere she wrestles outside of STARDOM, she receives cheers with her fans filling the venues. But perhaps it’s the boos that drive her to be better, and that’s what is making her such an unstoppable force when she enters the World Wonder Ring. When asked if it pushes her to be better, the answer was simple.

“Yes, it pushes me even harder — believing in myself and believing in my confidence,” Sareee said.

Sareee isn’t ignoring the noise, but embracing it. It’s a tension that has continuously got the headlines throughout the 5STAR Grand Prix — and really kicked back in following her decisive victory against Momo Watanabe this past Saturday. The crowd was pro-Watanabe and anti-Sareee, as she noted earlier. Meaning that the group H.A.T.E., often the ones booed by STARDOM crowds in most other matches, had to try and play the heroes while still going to their typical tricks.

It wasn’t enough by H.A.T.E., and it’s the loss by Watanabe that allowed the aforementioned playoff berth for the IWGP Women’s Champion.

She didn’t back down from the angry STARDOM crowd when she stood tall to close the show, and held her title up high for all to see as they made their way out of the Yokohama Budokan. Her vision of pro wrestling is winning while she wins, and it’s because of her victories that the tension between herself, STARDOM fans, and STARDOM wrestlers only seems to be getting started, serving as a true “spark” for the final few months of 2025. And she won’t be backing down anytime soon.

“That has created the tension between Stardom wrestlers and myself and STARDOM fans and my fans,” Sareee said regarding her success in the tournament. “But that has sparked this 5STAR Grand Prix and has become the hottest topic in Joshi pro wrestling right now, and has been the center of attention for the fans and media.”

“Like it or not, it is the hottest topic in pro wrestling right now. I will continue to be and believe in myself and win.”

The hottest topic in Joshi is hard to deny, especially with a potential showdown between her and Saya Kamitani potentially still on the horizon if Sareee were to win the 5STAR Grand Prix.

Sareee will look to keep pushing her vision of pro wrestling on Wednesday at Korakuen Hall as STARDOM holds the playoffs for the 2025 5STAR Grand Prix. With earning one of the four byes, she will await the winner of her rival Momo Watanabe or Ami Sohrei, with a ticket to the semifinals on the line later in the night.

Fans who want to check out the STARDOM playoffs can tune into the show live at 5:30 AM EST on Wednesday via STARDOM WORLD.

“The Sun God” doesn’t stop there, however. She will also be wrestling as part of SEAdLINNNG’s 10th Anniversary show on Friday at Korakuen Hall and will go one-on-one with Mika Iwata at Sendai Girls’ SENJO THE BIGGEST on Sunday as well.

To stay up to date with everything Sareee has going on, make sure to follow her YouTube channel “Sareee Channel.” Make sure also to follow Sareee’s X account to never miss anything going on in her career, as well as the official Sareee-ISM account.

Fans can also check out the exclusive interview Sareee had with Scott back in June prior to winning the IWGP Women’s Champion. The interview features English and Japanese subtitles. Sareee also provided comments regarding her opening loss in the tournament to Konami, as well as the massive boos from earlier on. You can check that out here. Also check out Sareee’s thoughts regarding Takumi Iroha and her goals for their tag team, SPARK RUSH, following their 30-minute draw last Friday.