New Japan Pro Wrestling Articles - Page 3

On paper, some could call Seth Rollins‘ match with Shinsuke Nakamura at Payback nothing more than a “bridge match” that keeps the WWE World Heavyweight Champion on television until he’s ready for his next feud on a bigger card in the future. Nakamura, once considered one of the best wrestlers in the world, hasn’t been […]

Why did Will Ospreay wrestle Chris Jericho at All In? Was it because he wanted to finally check the “dream match” off of his checklist after their previously booked bout in New Japan Professional Wrestling was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic? Was it because he took issue with Jericho using his match to perform […]

When news broke that Kairi Sane was taking a “leave of absence” from Stardom/New Japan Pro Wrestling following a very successful 18-month run back in Japan, rumors started to arise that Asuka‘s former tag team partner in The Kabuki Warriors was approaching a return to the WWE Universe for the first time since July of […]

What is Karl Anderson‘s legacy in professional wrestling? Will he be remembered for the G1 Climax in 2012? For being one of the few modern WWE wrestlers who worked a match in New Japan while still under contract? Or will it be for taking part in The Undertaker’s final bout, the Boneyard March? Asked this […]

After spending the last decade together in WWE, working as a “best friends”-style tag team called “The Boss ‘n’ Hug Connection” on more than a few occasions, it must be incredibly weird for Bayley not to be working alongside Mercedes Moné, aka the “Boss” formerly known as Sasha Banks. Fortunately, professional wrestling is an ever-changing […]

While Eric Bischoff isn’t what you would call an AEW homer, as he critiques the promotion as much, if not more than he complements it on his various podcasts, the former ECW leader and WWE Hall of Famer will point out the good stuff when he sees it, as he at least attempts to calls […]

At Forbidden Door 2, in the year 2023, WCW legend Sting took part in the penultimate match of the Pay-Per-View sandwiched between Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay’s masterclass and Bryan Danielson submitting Kazuchika Okada with a broken arm in front of 14,000 ravenous fans in Toronto. That’s…certainly not a statement anyone would have imagined being […]

With Forbidden Door officially passed and AEW’s next Pay-Per-View, All In, roughly two months away, fans can officially turn their attention back to the promotion’s weekly television output, which has blossomed up to three shows – plus Ring of Honor – thanks to the debut of Collision on June 17th. With five hours of weekly […]

When Bryan Danielson took the ring in the main event of Forbidden Door II opposite Kazuchika Okada, the “American Dragon” knew he was in for one heck of an ordeal, but little did he know that, roughly 20 minutes later, he’d find himself with a broken forearm and an uphill climb to prove he’s the […]

Heading into Forbidden Door II, one question rose above all others in the minds of AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling fans alike: who is the best wrestler in the world? Now granted, there are a lot of performers who could take legitimate ownership of that title, including Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega, who worked […]

How on earth does Forbidden Door follow up the second match in a series between Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay that will likely end up with a six-star distinction when Dave Metlzer’s ratings are all said and done? Well, by booking a lean, mean, hard-hitting affair between Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, and Minoru Suzuki and […]

When Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay took the ring for the second time in this current series at Forbidden Door II, fans knew they were in for one heck of a match, and needless to say, the former NJPW Champions did not disappoint them at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. Wrestling in the third-to-last match […]

After becoming the first-ever performer in AEW history to hold the Women’s World Championship on two separate occasions, Toni Storm faced her toughest challenge yet at Forbidden Door, when she was tasked with wrestling another champion, Willow Nightingale, the NJPW Strong Women’s Champion, to be exact, in the sixth match on an absolutely loaded card. […]

When Eddie Kingston agreed to team with The Elite and Tomohiro Ishii against the Blackpool Combat Club – Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, Wheeler Yuta, Konosuke Takeshita, and Shota “Shooter” Umino – at Forbidden Door, it was always going to be a mixed bag of emotions for the “Mad King,” but in practice, that assessment might […]

When “Jungle Boy” Jack Perry accepted Sanada’s open challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at Forbidden Door, it turned a lot of heads, including that of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s current top dog, who felt the AEW mainstay wasn’t quite up for the prestige that his title holds. Ultimately, Sanada’s assertion was the correct […]

After over 250 days with the AEW International Championship, Orange Cassidy entered through the Forbidden Door at Forbidden Door with his greatest challenge yet, a Fatal Fourway to decide the fate of his strap against the Ring of Honor Pure Champion Katsuyori Shibata, the New Japan Pro Wrestling Television Champion Zack Sabre Jr., and Daniel […]

In Chicago, CM Punk is the ultimate babyface, but how would the fine folks in Toronto treat the troubled ex-AEW Champion in his first-ever appearance at Forbidden Door? Well, as it turns out, Punk got the Bret Hart treatment, just the Bret Hart treatment from anywhere but Canada, aka a 60-40 split of boos and […]

Though MJF‘s Forbidden Door didn’t go exactly as he planned, as Adam Cole was forced to drop off of the card with an illness that left the “Salt of the Earth’s” hand-picked challenger, “Filthy” Tom Lawler without an opponent on either the main card or on Zero Hour – he reportedly wrestled Serpentico before the […]

After a year of anticipation – literally – Forbidden Door II is officially here, AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling fans. Soon fans will find out which belts will change hands, which matches will earn a five, or even greater star rating, and which matches could set up even bigger opportunities down the line, when […]

When AEW announced Forbidden Door – the show, not the concept – in 2022, it marked a truly revolutionary concept in the world of  American televised professional wrestling. Suddenly two of the titans of professional wrestling were coming together for a greatest hits show a la the cards Ring of Honor used to run before […]

Though the 2023 calendar year is only half over, it’s hard to find many matches that rise to the level of the bout between Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay back at Wrestle Kingdom 17 in January. A certified classic that earned Dave Meltzer’s highest rating of the year at 6.25, the bout was long, dramatic, […]

As AEW rapidly throws together a card for Forbidden Door 2, which is somehow less than two weeks away, fans of professional wrestling from all over the world – literally – are excited to see who top stars like MJF, Sanada, and Zack Sabre Jr. will throw down with at the cross-promotional event with New […]

Claudio Castagnoli – then known as Cesaro – was a very friendly man during his run in WWE. A member of not one, not two, but three factions, working alongside Sheamus in the Bar, with Zeb Colter and Jack Swagger in the Real Americans – a funny faction for a man from Switzerland – and […]

After securing the new WWE World Heavyweight Championship belt at Night of Champions in Saudi Arabia, Seth Rollins is suddenly the most wanted man in The Fed, with Damian Priest the first to line up for a shot at the Champ on the next edition of RAW. But could one of Rollins’ future challengers come […]

Though they most recently held championship gold in New Japan Pro Wrestling, holding the IWGP Tag Team Championship and the NJPW StrongOpenweight Tag Team Championships until they vacated both due to injury at NJPW Strong Resurgence 2023, Aussie Open didn’t have to wait long to find their new professional wrestling home, as the unsigned tag […]

Who is Bronson Reed? Is he a more-or-less one-for-one copy of the man born Jermaine Haley? A persona designed by creative to elicit crowd reactions? Or something in between? Sitting down for an interview with Ryan Satin on Out of Character, Reed compared his character to “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, in that both men took […]

Since returning to WWE following a few months off to begin the year, Shinsuke Nakamura has been dipping his toes back into the WWE Universe. He’s worked a few televised matches, made fun of The Miz’s, get this, manhood, and was drafted onto RAW, where he can wrestle the likes of Gunther, Drew McIntyre, Seth […]

When Sasha Banks decided to leave WWE behind in favor of testing her mettle as a member of the NJPW roster under the Mercedes Moné moniker, it was a polarizing decision among wrestling fans. Why would a performer like Moné, a Four Horsewoman of the “Women’s Revolution,” leave the franchise that made her into a […]

With the WWE Universe currently in flux due to Vince McMahon’s decision to merge his father’s brand with UFC to form an elite pairing under the Endeavor name, fans have been wondering if Sasha Banks, the performer currently known as Mercedes Moné in New Japan Pro Wrestling, could be headed back to the promotion that […]

After watching “Switchblade” Jay White not only make his debut in AEW but announce the incorporation of Bullet Club Gold, Tony Khan’s version of the most influencial club in professional wrestling, the new leader of Bullet Club, David Finlay, decided to weight in on the state of the group, address the exit of El Phantasmo, […]

Do you know which wrestler has the most five-star matches in professional wrestling, according to “The Rodger Ebert of Professional Wrestling,” Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer? No, it’s not Ric Flair, Bret Hart, Booker T, or even Kenny Omega; it’s Will Ospreay, the high-flying international superstar who cut his teeth in his native England […]

After watching the Bullet Club record a win over the Guerrillas of Destiny, Hikuleo, and Tama Tonga, plus Master Wato at New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Sakura Genesis 2023, David Finlay and Kenta decided to put a beatdown on the NEVER Openweight Champion and his younger brother. While ElP didn’t want to get in on the […]

After being linked to WWE for months, “Switchblade” Jay White has officially signed with AEW, teaming up with Juice Robinson to lay a beatdown on Ricky Starks in a match that was ruled a no-contest as a result. The former leader of Bullet Club, who lost a Loser Leaves Japan match to Hikuleo back in […]

When news broke that “Switchblade” Jay White’s contract with New Japan Pro Wrestling was coming up, it left many wondering which promotion would garner his services next: WWE or AEW. When news broke that WWE had “serious” interest in the former Bullet Club leader and that Paul “Triple H” Levesque and company had an interest […]

Though Mercedes Moné is no longer a member of the WWE Universe, putting a decades worth of Sasha Banks’ legacy behind her to go out on her own as part of New Japan Pro Wrestling, that doesn’t’ mean the woman formerly known as “The Boss” doesn’t still keep up with her former employer’s on-screen product. […]

While Forbidden Door II is still three months away, with another AEW Pay-Per-View, Double or Nothing, scheduled before the cross-promotional, Toronto-based event, fans and wrestling media alike have been racking their brains, attempting to fantasy book the best possible match for Mercedes Moné, the former WWE Four Horsewomen who now calls New Japan Pro Wrestling […]

Though AEW hasn’t officially announced the date of Forbidden Door II – according to Spectrum, it’s June 24, 2023 – it looks like one of the top talents in New Japan Pro Wrestling already has a challenger for her IWGP Women’s World Championship, as none other than Britt Baker is very, very interested in sharing […]

When David Finlay emerged from the back at the end of Jay White’s match with Eddie Kingston at Battle in the Valley, it put the rest of the New Japan Pro Wrestling world on notice. While most expected something to happen at the end of the match, as “King Switch” lost a loser-leaves-NJPW match to […]

After months of speculation, a very big-time debut at Wrestle Kingdom 17, and a universally lauded debut match for New Japan Pro Wrestling against KAIRI at Battle in the Valley, Mercedes Moné is the new and second-ever IWGP Women’s Champion. Arguably the hottest name in the wrestling world right now, with even male wrestlers like […]