Tag: Tomohiro Ishii

Tomohiro Ishii Pulled From 2026 New Japan Cup Due To Neck Injury

Just days before the 2026 New Japan Cup gets underway, New Japan Pro Wrestling has confirmed that Tomohiro Ishii will no longer be part of the tournament field.

NJPW announced on its official website that the “Stone Pitbull” has been sidelined with a neck injury, forcing him to withdraw from the 24-man tournament set to kick off on March 4. The promotion issued an apology to fans who were looking forward to seeing Ishii compete in this year’s Cup, especially given the high stakes involved.

The winner of the New Japan Cup will earn a shot at Yota Tsuji’s IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Sakura Genesis on April 4. For Ishii, this year represented another opportunity to finally capture a tournament that has eluded him throughout his storied career. Despite several deep runs — including semifinal appearances in 2017 and 2019 — Ishii has never managed to win the Cup.

With Ishii out, NJPW has tabbed a veteran replacement: former two-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion Satoshi Kojima. Kojima will step directly into Ishii’s position in the bracket. Since Ishii had previously received one of eight random byes into the second round, Kojima will now face the winner of the first-round bout between Taichi and Ren Narita.

As of now, NJPW has not clarified how or when Ishii sustained the neck injury. His most recent match took place on February 27 at The New Beginning USA, where he dropped the NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship to Boltin Oleg. There were no reported issues coming out of that match, but given the physical nature of the contest, it stands as the most likely point where the injury may have occurred.

Interestingly, Ishii also appeared on the February 28 episode of AEW Collision against Andrade El Idolo. However, that match was taped on February 25 — prior to his loss to Oleg — meaning it would not have been affected by the injury in question.

This latest setback comes shortly after what initially appeared to be another scare. During the February 18 episode of AEW Dynamite, Ishii looked to have suffered a potentially serious hamstring injury while teaming with Orange Cassidy against Clark Connors and Gabe Kidd. Fortunately, that issue turned out to be far less severe than initially feared.

Now, though, it’s a neck injury that has put Ishii on the shelf at a critical point in the calendar. With Sakura Genesis looming and the IWGP Heavyweight Championship picture set to shift following the Cup, Ishii’s absence is a significant blow to both the tournament and fans who were hoping 2026 might finally be his year.

We’ll continue to monitor Ishii’s status and provide updates as more information becomes available.

NJPW Star Tomohiro Ishii Sidelined with Shoulder Injury Following AEW Collision Match

New Japan Pro-Wrestling has confirmed on their website that Tomohiro Ishii will be out of action for the foreseeable future after suffering a dislocated shoulder during his recent AEW Collision bout with PAC.

Fans were quick to notice Ishii’s absence from the upcoming Blood & Guts lineup on AEW Dynamite, where the Conglomeration (Darby Allin, Orange Cassidy, Mark Briscoe, Kyle O’Reilly, and Roderick Strong) are set to battle the Death Riders (Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, PAC, Wheeler Yuta, and Daniel Garcia). Many assumed Ishii had simply returned to Japan for NJPW duties—but it turns out the “Stone Pitbull” is on the shelf instead.

In a statement, NJPW expressed regret over the situation, apologizing to fans and wishing Ishii a quick recovery. No specific timetable has been announced for his return, with the company noting that his status will be evaluated later.

For a competitor as notoriously tough as Ishii, this injury comes as a rare setback. Over nearly three decades in the ring, the NJPW Strong Openweight Champion has built a reputation for his unbreakable spirit and punishing style, rarely missing time due to injury. In fact, outside of pandemic-related breaks, Ishii has competed almost continuously for 29 years.

Given that history, this shoulder dislocation could mark the longest layoff of Ishii’s storied career. Wrestling fans around the world will no doubt be hoping the “Stone Pitbull” bounces back soon and returns to delivering the hard-hitting battles he’s known for.

NJPW Star Tomohiro Ishii Pulled From AEW X NJPW Forbidden Door Due To Injury

Another star will be missing this Sunday’s AEWxNJPW Forbidden Door event.

NJPW announced on Thursday that NJPW star Tomohiro Ishii has sustained a left knee injury and is not medically cleared to compete at AEWxNJPW Forbidden Door on June 26.

Clark Connors will be taking Ishii’s place in the AEW All-Atlantic Championship Four-Way match at Forbidden Door. The match is now Connors vs. PAC vs. Malakai Black vs. Miro.

Below is NJPW’s full statement: 

Thank you for supporting New Japan Pro-Wrestling.

Tomohiro Ishii, who was scheduled to compete on June 26 at AEWxNJPW Presents Forbidden Door, has sustained a left knee injury and is not medically cleared to compete.

We apologise to fans who were looking forward to seeing Ishii wrestle and appreciate your understanding.

After a hard fought qualifying match in Korakuen Hall on June 21, Clark Connors will take Ishii’s place in the All-Atlantic Championship four way at Forbidden Door. The card change is as follows:

AEW All-Atlantic Championship Four Way

PAC vs Miro vs Malakai Black vs Clark Connors

AEW has been dealing with a slew of injuries before the Forbidden pay-per-view. Bryan Danielson and CM Punk are just two AEW wrestlers who are currently injured and will be missing the Sunday event.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

New Japan’s Tomohiro Ishii Debuts On AEW Dynamite, Leads CHAOS To Victory

Veteran Japanese wrestler Tomohiro Ishii made his AEW debut during this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite, on which he teamed up with Orange Cassidy.

Veteran Japanese wrestler Tomohiro Ishii walked away from his AEW debut with a victory under his belt when he and Orange Cassidy defeated The Butcher and The Blade on the latest episode of AEW Dynamite on TNT.

It all went down in Norfolk, Virginia on the first episode of AEW Dynamite to air since Saturday’s Full Gear pay-per-view. Ishii and OC were accompanied to the ring by their CHAOS stablemates Rocky Romero, Chuck Taylor, Wheeler YUTA, and Kris Statlander, while The Butcher and The Blade had The Bunny, Matt Hardy, and a few other Hardy Family Office members in their corner … needless to say, chaos ensued.

Hardy and The Bunny did their best to sabotage Ishii’s AEW debut, but ultimately the experience and brute strength of New Japan’s NEVER Openweight Champion was too much for the HFO to overcome. The finish came when Orange Cassidy took out the HFO with a dive outside, allowing Ishii to land a massive lariat on The Blade followed by a brainbuster. Ishii then covered Blade for the 1-2-3, delivering a huge win to CHAOS and adding a W next to his name in the AEW record books.

In case you missed it, Ishii’s New Japan colleague Rocky Romero made his in-ring AEW debut against Bryan Danielson on last week’s Dynamite. Before the show kicked off, Romero approached The Best Friends (Orange Cassidy, Kris Statlander, Chuck Taylor, and Wheeler YUTA) with a tantalizing proposition. Romero informed the group that Kazuchika Okada had invited them to join his stable CHAOS. Taylor, who was a member of CHAOS from 20017-2019 accepted Romero and Okada’s offer on behalf of his teammates. The best friends then accompanied Romero to the ring for his match with Danielson on Dynamite as official CHAOS members.

Not much has come of the partnership between AEW and NJPW, but with several members of CHAOS infiltrating the AEW roster, it seems inevitable that CHAOS leader Okada will soon join them.

Source: TheSportster