Category: NJPW

NJPW New Year Dash To Be A Mystery Card

New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) has made a rather interesting announcement. Matches for their upcoming New Year Dash 2023 show won’t be announced until they actually happen. Thus, the card will be a mystery card of sorts.

The promotion did a similar thing back in October at The Night Before Rumble on 44th Street. New Year’s Dash goes down on January 5, after Wrestle Kingdom 17. Check out the announcement here:

2023 sees the return of New Year Dash to the calendar. This exciting start to the year traditionally sees a mystery card revealed to the audience, staff and wrestlers as the event gets underway. On January 5 2023, however, things get an added twist. This year, the card will not be announced at all!

Instead matches will be revealed as wrestlers make their entrance. Back in October, the Night Before Rumble on 44th Street saw a similar concept with chaotic results, and a raft of big time surprises. What might be in store on January 5? Make sure you watch live in English on NJPW World, or better yet, be part of the action in person!

Source: ewrestlingnews

Mercedes Varnado (Sasha Banks) Will Reportedly Be At NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17

Mercedes Varnado (also known as Sasha Banks in WWE) is expected to be at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17, according to a report from Pwinsider.

It’s unclear whether she will just be in attendance for the show or appearing on the broadcast, but she’s being brought in. This comes after she expressed interest in wrestling former WWE Superstar KAIRI in STARDOM, a sister company to NJPW.

Due to creative differences, Banks walked out of WWE at a Monday Night RAW TV taping back in May. She and Naomi were later indefinitely suspended. Both women have made several public appearances since the walkout.

This past August, it was reported that Banks and Naomi had reached an agreement to return to WWE. However, their return has yet to happen as there have been hang-ups in negotiations for a new deal with Banks due to money.

Source: EWrestlingNews

KAIRI Suffered Injury Days Before IWGP Women’s Championship Win

KAIRI made history by becoming the first IWGP Women’s Champion this past week, and did so while nursing an injury.

At NJPW x STARDOM Historic X-Over, KAIRI won the title in the main event of the show against Mayu Iwatani.

Taking to Twitter, the former WWE Superstar explained that she suffered a sprain during training, and nearly gave up because it hurt to walk.

“Four days before the match, during ring practice, I sprained myself in a flashy fall. I was told that it would take three weeks for a full recovery, and I almost gave up because it hurt to walk. However, with the support of many people, I was able to fight through the two battles with my willpower. really really Thank you very much.”

KAIRI left WWE’s weekly programming in 2020 and served as an ambassador for the promotion in Japan until her full departure earlier this year.

Since leaving, the former NXT Women’s Champion has earned a bachelor’s degree, competed for STARDOM and gotten married.

https://twitter.com/KAIRI_official/status/1594337785111990272

Source: EWrestlingNews

NJPW Reportedly Breaking Tradition To Accommodate Karl Anderson

It appears that NJPW expects Karl Anderson to return in the coming months. Anderson reportedly is not going to be stripped of his NEVER Openweight Championship despite not appearing at this weekend’s NJPW Battle Autumn event, according to the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. WON’s Dave Meltzer reported Friday that NJPW will break tradition by not stripping Anderson of the title for failing to appear at a scheduled event. 

Anderson, 42, returned to NJPW in 2021 and won the NEVER Openweight Championship in June of last year by defeating Tama Tonga. The American star was booked to appear in a title match this Saturday at NJPW’s Battle Autumn event in Osaka, but the match has since been rebooked. Anderson was scheduled to take on Hikuleo for the NEVER Openweight Championship. However, earlier this week NJPW announced that “despite extensive efforts” to reach Anderson about the match, “NJPW officials have still been met with no response, and have been left with no other option but to cancel the planned NEVER Openweight Championship match.”

The promotion then said that Hikuleo made a “direct request” to instead face Yujiro Takahashi in a non-title match at the event. Meltzer reported Friday that the match remains a non-title match and that the issue at hand with Anderson appears to be an angle, and that NJPW expects Anderson to return to Japan despite no-showing this weekend. The angle — which Meltzer notes to likely culminate at January’s upcoming Wrestle Kingdom event — comes weeks after Anderson returned to the WWE for the first time since 2020.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

NJPW Reveals Karl Anderson Will Forfeit His Title If He Competes At WWE Crown Jewel

Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson returned to WWE earlier this month, backing up AJ Styles as he was seriously outnumbered by The Judgment Day. That raised a lot of questions regarding the tag team’s current status with NJPW. Not only is Anderson the promotion’s Never Openweight Champion, but he is slated to defend that title at Battle Autumn on November 5.

The plot thickened considerably when WWE announced The OC and The Judgment Day will clash at Crown Jewel, a WWE event taking place on the same day as Battle Autumn. In case it wasn’t clear, Anderson confirmed that despite his NJPW booking, he will be competing for WWE on November 5 and will not be in Osaka to defend his title.

After an initial reaction to that news from NJPW’s president, the promotion has now revealed a full statement (thanks, Fightful). “NJPW has for the past several days attempted to negotiate with Anderson, but has not been met with a response,” the statement reads. “Should Anderson decide to renege on his scheduled championship match, he will be required to vacate the NEVER Openweight Championship and return the title belt to NJPW immediately.”

https://twitter.com/SeanRossSapp/status/1585110853187416064

When Anderson confirmed he will be heading to Saudi Arabia on November 5 and not Japan, the Never Openweight Champion also claimed the title defense was booked without consulting him. NJPW denies that was the case, highlighting in the statement above that the match was booked on October 4, and that Anderson was complicit in that process.

What happens next remains unclear. What appeared to be an arrangement between WWE and NJPW when Gallows and Anderson first showed up on Raw now doesn’t seem to be an official deal at all. It now seems like Anderson won’t be at Battle Autumn, and that he will be stripped of the Never Openweight Title. As for returning the championship to the company, that might be a little tricky and could make the situation even more problematic.

Source: TheSportster

NJPW President Addresses Karl Anderson Being Double Booked For November 5

NJPW President Takami Ohbari has taken to Twitter to address WWE Superstar Karl Anderson being double booked for November 5.

Anderson is scheduled to defend the NJPW NEVER Openweight Championship against Hikuleo at NJPW Battle Autumn, which is the same day he is scheduled to team with AJ Styles & Luke Gallows against The Judgment Day (Finn Balor, Damian Priest, & Dominik Mysterio), at Crown Jewel on Saturday, November 5.

Back on October 4, NJPW announced Karl Anderson would be defending the NJPW NEVER Openweight Championship against Hikuleo on November 5 at NJPW Battle Autumn. Then on October 10, Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows made their surprise return to WWE on Raw, as a back up for for AJ Styles in his battle with The Judgement Day.

It was then announced during the October 17 episode of WWE Raw, it was made official for Styles, Anderson, & Gallows and The Judgment Day (Finn Balor, Damian Priest, & Dominik Mysterio) to have a six-man tag match at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia on November 5.

In a video posted to Twitter on October 19, Anderson claimed NJPW never confirmed the NJPW November 5 date with his booking agent The Big LG – Doc Gallows. Anderson then said he will not be defending the NEVER Openweight Title at the Battle Autumn event. 

Source: WrestleView

The Good Brothers Return To WWE On Monday Night RAW, Karl Anderson NJPW Update

Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, known together as the Good Brothers, made their return to the WWE last night.

A lot of familiar faces have been finding their way back to the WWE within the last few months. Some of these names include Johnny Gargano, Sarah Logan, Dexter Lumis, Candice LeRae, and, most recently, Bray Wyatt.

Last night, two more former WWE superstars returned to the company: Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, known together as the Good Brothers. Rumors flew about earlier in the day saying that the pair would be re-signing with WWE, but those rumors came to fruition much faster than anyone expected.

Finn Balor’s Judgment Day stable stood in the ring to cut a promo. Balor called out AJ Styles and told him to come to the ring; for the past few weeks, Balor had been recruiting Styles to Judgment Day with no success. Styles came to the ring and pretended to accept Finn’s offer. In reality, though, he was reintroducing his good friends and teammates, Gallows and Anderson.

They were among the crowd released due to “budget cuts” in 2020.

During their time away from WWE, Gallows and Anderson competed in AEW, IMPACT, and New Japan Pro Wrestling. They won the IMPACT Tag Team Championships. In NJPW, Karl Anderson won the NEVER Openweight Championship and is technically still billed as champion. He was supposed to defend at Battle Autumn on November 5.

NJPW updated the Battle Autumn card following The Good Brothers’ WWE re-debut, but not because Anderson needed to be removed from it. The Never Openweight title defense against Hikuleo remains, and according to Wrestling Observer, it will go ahead as planned. The show takes place in Osaka, Japan on the same day as WWE’s Crown Jewel, so don’t expect to see The Good Brothers on the first Saudi show without Vince McMahon in charge.

This clearly wasn’t a case of Gallows and Anderson showing up in WWE without permission, nor the pair finding a loophole or keeping a title in their possession after their contracts lapsed. NJPW has retweeted WWE’s clip showing the pair as they rushed to the ring to flank Styles. A deal must have been struck, but the finer details of that deal currently remain unclear.

Gallows and Anderson returning and confirming WWE has some sort of working relationship comes just days after Tony Khan revealed details about a conversation he had with CEO Nick Khan. The AEW owner spoke with Nick in 2021 following reports WWE had spoken to NJPW about working together. Tony called Nick a con man live on Dynamite after being assured by NJPW that no such deal was in place.

Source: TheSportster

Japanese Wrestling Legend Antonio Inoki Has Passed Away At The Age Of 79

One of the most influential and important figures in the history of Japanese professional wrestling has died.

Yahoo! Japan reported Antonio Inoki passed away at his home on Saturday, October 1. A specific cause of death was not reported, but Inoki’s health problems over recent years were well known. In an interview earlier this year, he admitted he had been near death on a number of occasions.

News of Inoki’s passing came nearly 62 years to the day after his pro wrestling debut at the age of 17 on September 30, 1960. Another literal and figurative giant in Japanese wrestling history, Inoki’s future tag team partner Shohei Baba, made his in-ring debut on the same card for the Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance (later, simply known as the Japan Wrestling Alliance).

Inoki and Baba’s departures from the JWA changed the course of wrestling in Japan forever. In 1972, Inoki founded New Japan Pro-Wrestling, while Baba founded All Japan Pro Wrestling. Without two of its top stars, the JWA collapsed.

Inoki’s influence spread around the world. In 1976, he squared off against Muhammed Ali in an infamous “wrestler vs. boxer” match. The bout is viewed by many as a prelude to the future popularity of the sport of mixed martial arts.

Inoki’s leadership of NJPW was not without its missteps. His interest in MMA during the early 2000s gave birth to an in-ring philosophy that became known as Inoki-ism. However, the shift to the shoot fighting style nearly doomed NJPW. Inoki sold his stake in NJPW in 2005 and stepped away from the company.

Inoki explored other promotions and ventures following his exit from NJPW. Those included him founding the Inoki Genome Federation

Inoki also found success in the political arena. He served two terms in the House of Councillors. He was first elected in 1989. During that term, he notably traveled to Iraq, where he met with Saddam Hussein and successfully negotiated the release of a group of Japanese hostages.

A failed re-election bid saw Inoki leave office, but he returned after being elected to a new term in 2013. This one was marked by a number of controversial trips to North Korea. Inoki retired from politics in 2019.

Word of Inoki’s death began circulating in North America on Friday night.

News of his passing was announced during Friday night’s live broadcast of “SmackDown,” with Michael Cole conveying the company’s condolences to Inoki’s family, friends, and fans. On Twitter, WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque shared his own tribute.

“One of the most important figures in the history of our business, and a man who embodied the term ‘fighting spirit,'” Levesque wrote. “The legacy of WWE Hall of Famer Antonio Inoki will live on forever.”

Inoki defeated Bob Backlund to win the WWF Heavyweight Championship in 1979, but the company never officially recognized his reign. Inoki was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2010.

AEW Owner and CEO Tony Khan joined the many on social media paying tribute to Inoki’s memory.

“RIP Antonio Inoki, a pioneer in the pro wrestling industry,” Khan wrote on Twitter Friday night. “Inoki’s influence and his achievements will live on forever in the wrestling world; he’s an inspiration to all of the dreamers. Thank you sir.”

Many of NJPW’s current top stars are in London, England where the company is holding its two-night Royal Quest II event this weekend.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

KUSHIDA Off Upcoming NJPW Show Due To Health Concerns

New Japan Pro Wrestling(NJPW) announced that KUSHIDA would no longer participate in an upcoming event in Kumamoto, Japan, tomorrow due to health concerns related to a suspected skin disease. The Japanese star was initially removed from a show last Saturday after coming down with a fever. You can read NJPW’s full announcement below.

KUSHIDA, who was scheduled to wrestle on a non televised live event September 21 in Kumamoto, will miss the event as a precaution due to health concerns.

KUSHIDA was removed from Saturday’s event in Kagoshima after presenting with a fever. After testing negative for COVID-19, he underwent consultation with doctors who diagnosed him with a suspected skin disease.

We apologize to fans who were looking forward to seeing KUSHIDA wrestle, and appreciate your understanding.

The following change has been made to Wednesday’s card.

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano, Tama Tonga, KUSHIDA & Jado vs Jay White, Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows, Taiji Ishimori & Gedo ->

Hiroshi Tanahashi, Toru Yano, Tama Tonga & Jado vs Jay White, Karl Anderson, Doc Gallows & Taiji Ishimori

Source: EWrestlingNews

STARDOM Teases ‘Super Big Foreign Wrestlers’ For Upcoming Show

All sorts of things are happening right now in World Wonder Ring Stardom. The promotion is set to have talent appearing on New Japan shows in the United States for the first time starting in October, followed by a joint show with New Japan, called Historic x-Over, in November, where the first-ever IWGP Women’s Champion will be crowned. And the latest announcement seems to suggest a big player could be involved in the tournament to crown the first champion.

Early this morning, Stardom made the following announcement on Twitter.

“Urgent notice,” Stardom tweeted. “Super big foreign wrestlers from overseas decided to participate in the [IWGP Women’s Championship tournament]!! Scheduled to be announced at Korakuen Hall on 8/27!”

Shortly after the announcement, Japanese Twitter user Shigeo provided his own translation that confirmed the news, while also providing an additional comment from Stardom promoter Rossy Ogawa. Shigeo’s translation referred to the teased foreign wrestler as “an unbelievably famous non-Japanese Joshi wrestler.”

Stardom provided no other hints at who the mystery talent could be. One name that will likely receive a ton of speculation is AEW star Toni Storm. Storm previously worked for Stardom from 2016 to 2018, winning the World of Stardom and SWA Undisputed Women’s Championships, as well as the 2017 Cinderella and 5Star Grand Prix tournaments. While no known working relationship exists between AEW and Stardom, a July report suggested the two sides were discussing a plan to work together, and Storm was named as a talent Stardom would be interested in using. Storm is currently scheduled to challenge for the AEW Women’s World Championship at AEW All Out on September 4, taking on the current champion — and Storm’s tag team partner — Thunder Rosa.

Source: Wrestling Inc.