Bentley's Beat (10/10/2018) = Return of Sword of Lite GP?!?!

Guys,

I'm back home in Yokohama-shi for a couple days (working on my book, you know how it is). I went out for a morning jog and I came across this poster with the words actually written beneath it on a wall in an alleyway:

For those of you who don't know, the Sword of Lite Grand Prix is an annual junior heavyweight tournament that has quite a history. Many companies have hosted the Sword of Lite, e.g. PRO-WRESTLING MOON, SAKURA Pro, and most recently Shining Road Pro-Wrestling and MAXIMUM Japan co-hosted last year's event which took place just down the street at the Mirai Dome where Matt Pulver defeated "Demon Lord" ZENKI to win the tournament and become the inaugural MAX Jr. Heavyweight Champion.

Well, it appears that the tournament is back. One important thing to note is that the kanji indicate that the tournament will be held in Tokyo, which would be an unusual move as it has been held in Yokohama for the last seven years. Of course, it's possible that this is just fan-art, as the poster is admittedly light on details and does not feature the MAX-J logo. But maybe this is enough to convince the powers-that-be on the competition committee to put this thing together!

Only time will tell, but I've got my fingers crossed. Last year's tournament was a blast and served to elevate stars like ZENKI, Matt Pulver, and an eventual MAX Heavyweight Champion in Ben Chrenshaw. Given the influx of talent to MAX-J, it wouldn't surprise me if even some of the heavyweight superstars attempted to cut weight in order to make it into the tournament! I'll keep you posted if I hear anything more.

- Solomon B.