Quoted By:
>Shirakawa's participation in the event was decided on short notice when she was contacted by Stardom President Taro Okada at the Kobe event on April 20, and she was scheduled to travel to the U.S. on April 22 and return to Japan the day before the Yokohama event, a grueling schedule.
>Shirakawa responded to the interview, "I knew it was going to be a hard schedule, and when I got the call, I didn't have any fights lined up, so I thought there was a chance I might not be able to make it. But I wanted to do something that no one else was doing, and I thought I had to move anyway, so I went.
>After the match, Mariah's partner, AEW World Women's Champion Toni Storm, appeared when she and Mariah May, who was seconding, were attacked by their opponent, Anna. She took Mariah out, then Selina Deeb appeared and announced her challenge for Toni's belt.
>Caught up in the chaos, Shirakawa said, "I won, but it was chaos anyway.... I will definitely push myself to the point where I will fight Toni to get Mariah back," she vowed.
>Of course, there is work to be done first. At the recent Kobe tournament, Tora said, "You're a working ant with a foreign rash. I'm going to stomp you flat like an alinko!" Shirakawa was furious at the provocation, which led to the decision for this single match.
>Shirakawa said, "I think the reason she thinks I'm a 'working ant' is because she's lazy. I have never thought of myself as a busy worker. I have a goal of showing stardom to the world, and I'm just working with that in mind.
>She then added, "I know that Natsuko can only show her strength by wielding a deadly weapon. That's why I won't let her do whatever she wants. I'm going to take control of the match," she said enthusiastically, "Now we, EXV, have the Artist belt as well. We will show that we are the best unit in Stardom now, by conquering the evil that is Natsuko," she said firmly. Shirakawa, who is active on the world stage, will show the difference in class.
