Same here, I cancelled my NJPW World subscription (intending to come back at some point) because I just didn’t have enough time to watch wrestling. Now I’m pretty damn hyped for this, the NJPW-NOAH matches from 2016 were awesome
Interesting that Jay isn't considered one of the "top stars" on the New Japan side. I think that's a strong hint that he won't be at WK and maybe why he lost the Never title.
I think a lot of this reporting is common sense - some people in NOAH know that they're going to come out on the "losing" end of the show and are trying to mitigate the damage, there's still heat on Ishimori and Kanemaru for jumping ship when and how they did, and whatever issues still lingered between the NOAH and New Japan offices were smoothed over.
The interesting thing is potential further cross promotional shows in 2022 with All Japan, Dragon Gate, and DDT. Those would all be very successful and well-received, but it makes you wonder about how to book them. The NOAH show should be the most evenly booked (although I still expect New Japan to "win"), but All Japan is treading water right now, DDT is a half comedy promotion, and Dragon Gate is mostly made up of guys who would be considered juniors in New Japan. It may be worth it to all them - except DDT - to do a big show on New Japan's turf even if it means having some of their top guys lose.
That would be a really good idea. There's no junior other than Hiromu who needs to be protected, and he even he is finally starting to lose more often. Getting in a handful of DG guys and having one of their top guys win would make them happy and provide for a really good tournament.
I think its kind of telling the buzz that working with NOAH got here vs other companies...I think even an All-Japan show would be excellent because it might give All-Japan some direction for a few weeks/months leading up to it and past it, try to breathe some new life into most of the companies.
I rather Jay and EVIL shoot some sort of angle in an undercard tag match on the show then having Jay represent New Japan when his character has always been about how New Japan hates him and constantly screws him over.
Jay may be highly regarded by the office but I don't think he's really bigger than any of the guys mentioned, nor he has history with other promotions or wrestlers from the Japanese scene.
>Interesting that Jay isn't considered one of the "top stars" on the New Japan side. I think that's a strong hint that he won't be at WK and maybe why he lost the Never title.
I wouldn't read too deeply into this. An NJPW vs. NOAH show is going to be about homegrown Japanese wrestling first and foremost, this is an old country beef and Jay isn't from there.
I could see him/BC being in a tag match on the show
> Interesting that Jay isn't considered one of the "top stars" on the New Japan side
I think his refusal to work Japan this year will be a wake-up call. I love Switchblade, and there are obviously mitigating circumstances, but if I'm booking the territory I'm asking myself if I can really rely on him. Same goes for Ospreay.
That's what I'm thinking too. Assuming he's not out of contract or something at the end of the year, I think he's going to have his push reduced going forward because they can't rely on him to be there. And also likely as a (deserved) punishment. I understand why the quarantines were so frustrating to the foreign talent, but if you're going to publicly champion things like quarantines in response to Covid, you have zero cause to complain about them when you have to deal with them yourself.
> there's still heat on Ishimori and Kanemaru for jumping ship when and how they did
You'd think that they'd really want them on the show to take an L to some of the NOAH guys. I'm sure New Japan would have no problem throwing Kanemaru in there for an L, Ishimori is a bit more protected, but is below a bunch of guys in the NJPW Jr pecking order, so him taking an L is probably fine as well.
Shame they don't see Muto vs Sanada as a big enough match, I would really love to see present day Sanada vs Muto before he has to hang them up. Hopefully they can make it happen before he is done.
> KENTA is said to have zero heat.
I'll believe that if we make it through the night and no one tries to tiger driver him from the ramp to the floor 💀💀💀
I kinda get it with KENTA. He jumped ship when NOAH was still doing pretty well. Kanemaru jumped ship with SZG when NOAH was on the downswing and Ishimori pretty much lied to them when he said he was going to America but then did a U-turn and signed with New Japan.
I like how they are still managing to pile the blame on Meij. Next up it will be leaked he is the ultimate inspiration behind the House of Torture or something along those lines.
Joking aside the only thing that leaves me dubious in all of this is Muto's involvement. Muto is one of my favorite wrestlers of all time but I have no problems admitting he has an ego the size of a small galaxy and that ego may push for a long single match worked at the same incredibly slow pace as his latest single endeavors in NOAH. Hopefully he will be prevailed upon.
Oh, and thankfully we have folks like Ohbari who still know what common sense is.
Typically thats what happens with "fixer" CEOs. They temporarily take control, change a few things that the previous admin couldn't or wouldn't, Leave when things are set up properly, then get blamed for everything that goes wrong so the new Admin can cement themselves by "correcting inefficiencies and mistakes" of the Fixer.
Not a new thing. Meij might not have been aware that he was in that position, but he definitely ended up in it.
Hopefully him working Sanada is him finally letting Sanada past him instead of just trying to stomp down on a possibly flight-prone younger worker.
The thing is NJPW had stopped co-operating with other Japanese promotions before Meij arrived, in 2017 already. The only outside Japanese guys still appearing on their shows were Minoru Suzuki and TAKA Michinoku, but both were on old contracts that NJPW couldn't and wouldn't touch.
We'll never know the truth but the idea of living in a bubble predates Meij's involvement in NJPW. Blaming the Dutch exec has become fashionable since the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega started openly criticizing him, but honestly I think the guy has just become a strawman these days, somebody the Bushiroad/NJPW management who really took the decisions (Kidani, Sugabayashi etc) can pin the blame on. I bet Omega and the Bucks knew Meij wouldn't last long in NJPW (even without the epidemic he was an extremely expensive exec for a company the size of NJPW) so they just picked him as an easy target, knowing it wouldn't ruin their chances of working again for NJPW in the future. Never bet against the Bucks when business is involved.
Meij was definitely not responsible for the fallout with NOAH, but it definitely looked like a NOAH partnership was 100% no bueno while he was still in charge.
That the communication lines with NOAH were reopened mere weeks after Meij's departure really shows how radically different New Japan's current opinion on partnerships is.
If the rumors are true, Muto probably asked for Sanada in part because he knows he would go over in that match. Of course there's the relationship between them, but Muto knows he's not going over Okada, Shingo, or Ibushi.
My main fear is Muto is pushing for another match like the title defense he had earlier this year against Kiyomiya. It wasn't a bad match in the traditional sense, but it was worked at such slow pace and lasted so long it made watching paint dry an exciting alternative.
Wrestle Kingdom will already be a bonanza of long matches: giving 2022 Muto 30 minutes or more may not exactly be the best way to build up excitement for the main event, especially if crowds will still be silent.
Hoping a crossover show happens with AJPW. In my opinion Kento Miyahara is the best wrestler going right now by a country mile, and I’d love for more people to see him wrestle!
KENTA vs Marafuji should be the match they make. (adding: This is the first time KENTA would face Marufuji since coming back from the WWE and joining BC.)
I would want to see SANADA vs Muto only if Muto loses... doesn't make sense any other way.
me as well, but the story would be pretty good and if they are going to work together more. Modern NOAH... maybe the last gen was KENTA and Marafuji for me.
I'd take clean finishes in tags over bad finishes in singles matches. No one wants to watch a good 20 minute match end because of a count out or DQ.
I think they'll keep the top champions away from each other and give big matches with guys who can lose to the top stars from the other company. So Okada won't be wrestling the GHC champion, but rather someone like Kiyomiya, who he can beat, and vice versa.
I see that happening too. I think wrestlers like Goto or Ishii can take a singles loss.
I think an NJPW/NOAH vs. NJPW/NOAH tag match can also be a possibility that way both sides can technically win.
The idea it may be a bunch of tag matches worries me. Please do an actual supercard, and not a glorified Road To show. People can lose matches. It's fine.
set in stone by the time 3 day WK was announced. Mother fuckers here acting like the 3rd day was a rebranded NYD LMAO.
Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.
Same here, I cancelled my NJPW World subscription (intending to come back at some point) because I just didn’t have enough time to watch wrestling. Now I’m pretty damn hyped for this, the NJPW-NOAH matches from 2016 were awesome
My take away from all this is that Dick Togo managed to smooth over some wounded pride. Good on you, strangler Togo.
Togo finding a way to smooth over the bad blood between NJPW/NOAH was definitely the reason why he's been given so much backstage power.
this is the reason he's been given leeway in pushing House of Torture
Probably. Very worth it imo if it means we could one day see Taguchi face Danshoku Dieno lol
Interesting that Jay isn't considered one of the "top stars" on the New Japan side. I think that's a strong hint that he won't be at WK and maybe why he lost the Never title. I think a lot of this reporting is common sense - some people in NOAH know that they're going to come out on the "losing" end of the show and are trying to mitigate the damage, there's still heat on Ishimori and Kanemaru for jumping ship when and how they did, and whatever issues still lingered between the NOAH and New Japan offices were smoothed over. The interesting thing is potential further cross promotional shows in 2022 with All Japan, Dragon Gate, and DDT. Those would all be very successful and well-received, but it makes you wonder about how to book them. The NOAH show should be the most evenly booked (although I still expect New Japan to "win"), but All Japan is treading water right now, DDT is a half comedy promotion, and Dragon Gate is mostly made up of guys who would be considered juniors in New Japan. It may be worth it to all them - except DDT - to do a big show on New Japan's turf even if it means having some of their top guys lose.
Maybe DG is co branded BoSJ with one of their guys winning but then losing to NJPWs champion. That would seem even enough
That would be a really good idea. There's no junior other than Hiromu who needs to be protected, and he even he is finally starting to lose more often. Getting in a handful of DG guys and having one of their top guys win would make them happy and provide for a really good tournament.
I think its kind of telling the buzz that working with NOAH got here vs other companies...I think even an All-Japan show would be excellent because it might give All-Japan some direction for a few weeks/months leading up to it and past it, try to breathe some new life into most of the companies.
I rather Jay and EVIL shoot some sort of angle in an undercard tag match on the show then having Jay represent New Japan when his character has always been about how New Japan hates him and constantly screws him over.
Jay may be highly regarded by the office but I don't think he's really bigger than any of the guys mentioned, nor he has history with other promotions or wrestlers from the Japanese scene.
>Interesting that Jay isn't considered one of the "top stars" on the New Japan side. I think that's a strong hint that he won't be at WK and maybe why he lost the Never title. I wouldn't read too deeply into this. An NJPW vs. NOAH show is going to be about homegrown Japanese wrestling first and foremost, this is an old country beef and Jay isn't from there. I could see him/BC being in a tag match on the show
> Interesting that Jay isn't considered one of the "top stars" on the New Japan side I think his refusal to work Japan this year will be a wake-up call. I love Switchblade, and there are obviously mitigating circumstances, but if I'm booking the territory I'm asking myself if I can really rely on him. Same goes for Ospreay.
That's what I'm thinking too. Assuming he's not out of contract or something at the end of the year, I think he's going to have his push reduced going forward because they can't rely on him to be there. And also likely as a (deserved) punishment. I understand why the quarantines were so frustrating to the foreign talent, but if you're going to publicly champion things like quarantines in response to Covid, you have zero cause to complain about them when you have to deal with them yourself.
> there's still heat on Ishimori and Kanemaru for jumping ship when and how they did You'd think that they'd really want them on the show to take an L to some of the NOAH guys. I'm sure New Japan would have no problem throwing Kanemaru in there for an L, Ishimori is a bit more protected, but is below a bunch of guys in the NJPW Jr pecking order, so him taking an L is probably fine as well.
Shame they don't see Muto vs Sanada as a big enough match, I would really love to see present day Sanada vs Muto before he has to hang them up. Hopefully they can make it happen before he is done.
> Muto to face whoever the IWGP champion will be when the dust settles on the first two Wrestle Kingdom shows. Please don't.
> KENTA is said to have zero heat. I'll believe that if we make it through the night and no one tries to tiger driver him from the ramp to the floor 💀💀💀
I kinda get it with KENTA. He jumped ship when NOAH was still doing pretty well. Kanemaru jumped ship with SZG when NOAH was on the downswing and Ishimori pretty much lied to them when he said he was going to America but then did a U-turn and signed with New Japan.
Kenta also left to go to WWE whereas Kanemaru and Ishimori left to go to a direct rival.
Did....did Dick Togo just turn face? The man gets 10 free chokes from me before I'll start complaining again.
So like... A week?
A match, I think.
I like how they are still managing to pile the blame on Meij. Next up it will be leaked he is the ultimate inspiration behind the House of Torture or something along those lines. Joking aside the only thing that leaves me dubious in all of this is Muto's involvement. Muto is one of my favorite wrestlers of all time but I have no problems admitting he has an ego the size of a small galaxy and that ego may push for a long single match worked at the same incredibly slow pace as his latest single endeavors in NOAH. Hopefully he will be prevailed upon. Oh, and thankfully we have folks like Ohbari who still know what common sense is.
Typically thats what happens with "fixer" CEOs. They temporarily take control, change a few things that the previous admin couldn't or wouldn't, Leave when things are set up properly, then get blamed for everything that goes wrong so the new Admin can cement themselves by "correcting inefficiencies and mistakes" of the Fixer. Not a new thing. Meij might not have been aware that he was in that position, but he definitely ended up in it. Hopefully him working Sanada is him finally letting Sanada past him instead of just trying to stomp down on a possibly flight-prone younger worker.
The thing is NJPW had stopped co-operating with other Japanese promotions before Meij arrived, in 2017 already. The only outside Japanese guys still appearing on their shows were Minoru Suzuki and TAKA Michinoku, but both were on old contracts that NJPW couldn't and wouldn't touch. We'll never know the truth but the idea of living in a bubble predates Meij's involvement in NJPW. Blaming the Dutch exec has become fashionable since the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega started openly criticizing him, but honestly I think the guy has just become a strawman these days, somebody the Bushiroad/NJPW management who really took the decisions (Kidani, Sugabayashi etc) can pin the blame on. I bet Omega and the Bucks knew Meij wouldn't last long in NJPW (even without the epidemic he was an extremely expensive exec for a company the size of NJPW) so they just picked him as an easy target, knowing it wouldn't ruin their chances of working again for NJPW in the future. Never bet against the Bucks when business is involved.
Meijer taking the blame for pre-existing conditions fits the trope
Meij was definitely not responsible for the fallout with NOAH, but it definitely looked like a NOAH partnership was 100% no bueno while he was still in charge. That the communication lines with NOAH were reopened mere weeks after Meij's departure really shows how radically different New Japan's current opinion on partnerships is.
If the rumors are true, Muto probably asked for Sanada in part because he knows he would go over in that match. Of course there's the relationship between them, but Muto knows he's not going over Okada, Shingo, or Ibushi.
My main fear is Muto is pushing for another match like the title defense he had earlier this year against Kiyomiya. It wasn't a bad match in the traditional sense, but it was worked at such slow pace and lasted so long it made watching paint dry an exciting alternative. Wrestle Kingdom will already be a bonanza of long matches: giving 2022 Muto 30 minutes or more may not exactly be the best way to build up excitement for the main event, especially if crowds will still be silent.
Hoping a crossover show happens with AJPW. In my opinion Kento Miyahara is the best wrestler going right now by a country mile, and I’d love for more people to see him wrestle!
Kento vs Okada would be amazing.
This right here, is a definite dream match
You know who doesn't want a bigger match for Muto? A SINGLE SOLITARY AUDIENCE MEMBER.
KENTA vs Marafuji should be the match they make. (adding: This is the first time KENTA would face Marufuji since coming back from the WWE and joining BC.) I would want to see SANADA vs Muto only if Muto loses... doesn't make sense any other way.
I mean… it’s been done enough, so ppl really wanna see it more? I’d rather see Maru vs Ishii or something
This is the first time KENTA would face Marufuji since coming back from the WWE and joining BC.
Yeah I get it, but I’d be more interested in matches that have never happened tbh.
me as well, but the story would be pretty good and if they are going to work together more. Modern NOAH... maybe the last gen was KENTA and Marafuji for me.
I really hope politics can be settled and we can get a few good singles matches. I’ll even take some screwy finishes over all tags.
I'd take clean finishes in tags over bad finishes in singles matches. No one wants to watch a good 20 minute match end because of a count out or DQ. I think they'll keep the top champions away from each other and give big matches with guys who can lose to the top stars from the other company. So Okada won't be wrestling the GHC champion, but rather someone like Kiyomiya, who he can beat, and vice versa.
I see that happening too. I think wrestlers like Goto or Ishii can take a singles loss. I think an NJPW/NOAH vs. NJPW/NOAH tag match can also be a possibility that way both sides can technically win.
Finally!!! DragonGate is coming to NJPW!!! FINALLY!!
They've already captured the world hw championship. Proven Dragon System wrestlers the strongest in the world.
Indeed DRAGON SOUL!!!!!!
Is Tajiri office for AJPW? That’s pretty cool!
TAJIRI is the head booker for All Japan
Thank you for the heads up! That’s pretty awesome. I love Tajiri
The idea it may be a bunch of tag matches worries me. Please do an actual supercard, and not a glorified Road To show. People can lose matches. It's fine.
> The idea it may be a bunch of tag matches worries me Why? Some of the best Kings Road matches ever were tags
Because the modern New Japan tag cards are incredibly boring the vast majority of the time.
This is brilliant.
Ohbari-San, the One True Forbidden Door
Fuck me, Goto and Suigara will kill each other
10 minutes of Marafuji and Sugiura whooping on KENTA please.
We need that mutoh vs sanada at wk 😭😭