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>[Stardom] Mayu Iwatani makes shocking statement after losing in league match: "I'm retiring from 5STAR"
>A shocking statement was made by Iwatani Mayu (31), the IWGP Women's Champion of the women's professional wrestling group "Stardom". The midsummer festival "5STAR GP" concluded on August 31st. Iwatani, who was more motivated than usual, advanced to the championship tournament, but lost to Maika in the semi-finals and missed out on the top spot. What was Iwatani's decision to make as she felt frustrated by her second summer as IWGP Women's Champion?
>Aiming for her second league victory since 2018, Iwatani recorded 5 wins and 1 loss in the Red Stars B Block, and advanced to the final tournament in first place with 10 points. In the quarterfinals, she won a fierce battle against Wonder champion Natsupoi, but lost to former world champion Maika in the semifinals, bringing her iconic summer to an end. Iwatani reflected, "It was a summer of growth. I can still aim higher. I thought I have to go even higher."
>Even before the start of the tournament, she showed more enthusiasm than usual, saying, "I will make this the best year of my wrestling career so far. I will win and remain an icon of Stardom." That is why she was so shocked, saying, "This year I was in top condition and gave it my all, and yet I lost..." She made a weak statement, saying, "I don't know if I'll be in better condition than this year..." and then declared her "graduation" from the league, saying, "Because I have such high hopes for this year, I won't be competing in 5STAR next year. I'm retiring from 5STAR."
