Search Results: "iwgp"

NEWS

He’s Out There: Former World Champion Officially A Free Agent, Possibly Heading To WWE

March 4, 2023

He’s available. There are some incredibly talented wrestlers throughout the world who do not get to appear on the big stage that often. While they might appear on some very big shows, they do not make regular appearances in either WWE or AEW. Those are the stages where wrestlers will have the biggest audiences, and now a top international star is able to go anywhere he chooses. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: WRESTLING RUMORS: Possible Sign That Naomi Is Done With WWE Earlier this year, former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Jay White lost a Loser Leaves Japan match, signaling that he was done with New Japan Pro Wrestling. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, White is now officially a free agent, as his deal with New Japan expired on February 28. While it is not confirmed, it is expected that he will be signing with WWE. White has previously made appearances in AEW. White is an incredible talent. Check out what he can do: [This post contains video, click to play] [This post con..

NEWS

WATCH: Bayley Attends Mercedes Mone’s First New Japan Match, Helps Lead Cheers

February 20, 2023

She’s a friend. There have been several teams throughout the years in WWE and some of them develop quite the friendship during their time together. Every so often you will see that friendship continue after the wrestlers leave a promotion, but it is much rarer to see it continue when one star is in a different promotion entirely. That was on display over the weekend. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: On The Mend: Update On Injured AEW Star’s Recovery Status Over the weekend, Mercedes Mone, better known as Sasha Banks during her time in WWE, defeated Kairi to become the new IWGP Women’s Champion. A fan shot video from the match shows Mone’s former partner Bayley in the crowd, helping lead chants for Mone. There was no mention of Bayley being at the show and she was not recognized in any way. Bayley and Mone were the inaugural WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. This was a cool visual. Check out Bayley in the crowd, plus the two in their WWE days: [This post contains video, click to play] [This po..

NEWS

Mercedes Mone Wins First Championship In NJPW

February 19, 2023

Call her a champion. Mercedes Mone, known as Sasha Banks in WWE, has won her first championship as a member of the NJPW roster. She defeated Kairi for the IWGP Women’s Championship at NJPW’s Battle in the Valley show in San Jose, California. From Bleacher Report: NJPW sold out tickets to Battle in the Valley after Kairi vs. Mercedes Moné was announced and it showed as the crowd erupted as it began. It was the loudest the audience in attendance got all night. Mone entered the arena wearing new gear as a tribute to the late Hana Kimura. You could see how much she reveres Japanese wrestling, and how much this moment means to her. The former WWE star hasn’t wrestled since May 13, 2022, but she hasn’t missed a beat. The Blueprint dominated early on with the crowd behind her, but Kairi came roaring back. It looked like the champion could retain when she locked in the Ikari, but Mone fought out and cinched in her trademark crossface. Then, Kairi hit her staggering spinning back fist to f..

NEWS

Well Deserved: The Wrestling World Pays Tribute To Jay Briscoe

January 18, 2023

He deserved it. The most tragic wrestling story of the year so far is the sudden death of Jay Briscoe, who was killed earlier this week in a car accident. The accident has caused people to look back at everything Briscoe did in his career, which included a variety of championships and accomplishments. Now the tributes have begun pouring in, as the wrestling world remembers an incredible talent. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Delaware State Police Issue Full Statement And Details On Jay Briscoe Accident Following Briscoe’s death, various members of the wrestling world have paid tribute to him, including wrestling promotions and stars from around the industry. Briscoe was a thirteen time Ring Of Honor Tag Team Champion (including current) with his brother Mark and a two time Ring Of Honor World Champion. The Briscoes also held the IWGP World Tag Team and Impact Wrestling Tag Team Titles. RIP Jay Briscoe. I didn’t know him well but he was always super cool and friendly to me whenever we saw ea..

NEWS

That Could Mean Something: AEW Star Posts Cryptic Message, Says “Bye”

January 11, 2023

He’s gone? There have not been very many departures from the AEW roster during its few years of existence. As a result, seeing someone leave feels like a bigger deal when it actually takes place. It means something to see someone leave AEW and you get to see where they might go from there. While not confirmed, it does seem like another AEW star is hinting at heading elsewhere. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Up For Grabs: Former IWGP World Champion Jay White Free Agent Soon, WWE And AEW Interested AEW’s Andrade El Idolo has released a post on Instagram, showing a picture of his mask with the caption “Bye!!!”. There is no word on what this means for El Idolo, who is currently under suspension due to a backstage altercation with Sammy Guevara. El Idolo’s most recent AEW match took place in September. AEW has yet to comment on El Idolo’s comments or given a date for his return to television. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Andrade El Idolo (@andradealmas) El Idolo has done well du..

NEWS

She’s All Gone Now: More Details On Stephanie McMahon Leaving WWE (Again)

January 11, 2023

That’s a big one. The WWE roller coaster is fully underway as we have one change after another almost daily at this point. The biggest thus far this week has been Vince McMahon being reelected as Chairman of the Board of WWE and his daughter Stephanie resigning from her seat. While Vince will get more of the attention, Stephanie’s resignation has several details of its own. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Up For Grabs: Former IWGP World Champion Jay White Free Agent Soon, WWE And AEW Interested Fightful Select has more on Stephanie leaving WWE. Stephanie leaving is believed to be a continuation of the leave of absence she was taking last year, though there is no word on when or if she will be returning to the company. Along with former co-WWE CEO Nick Khan, Stephanie is said to be well liked backstage, with wrestlers feeling uncertainty over the situation, including when it comes to Stephanie and Khan. Stephanie’s husband Triple H is still officially Chief Content Officer. Stephanie has play..

NEWS

Up For Grabs: Former IWGP World Champion Jay White Free Agent Soon, WWE And AEW Interested

January 11, 2023

He’s up next? The rise of AEW has changed the way the wrestling world works, as wrestlers are no longer stuck picking between WWE and everything else. AEW now offers another large scale promotion where wrestlers can go and showcase themselves with more exposure. It means that a wrestler becoming a free agent means a lot, and that is the case again with a top international star. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Farewell: Wrestling Legend Says His Career Is “Probably Over” According to Fightful Select, former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion is expected to leave New Japan Pro Wrestling when his contract expires. While there is no firm date for when his deal is up, it is believed to be in the near future. White will be courted by both WWE and AEW, with a source saying that WWE will come out on top. On February 11, White is scheduled to face Hikuleo in a Loser Leaves Japan match. Neither White nor New Japan have responded to inquiries about the situation. White is one of the best in the world. Che..

NEWS

REVIEW: New Japan Wrestle Kingdom 17: That Feels Right

January 8, 2023

Welcome to KB’s Old School (and New School) Reviews. I’ve been reviewing wrestling shows for over twelve years now and have reviewed over 6,000 shows. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I’ll be posting a new review here on Wrestlingrumors.net. It could be anything from modern WWE to old school to indies to anything in between. Note that I rate using letters instead of stars and I don’t rate matches under three minutes as really, how good or bad can something that short be? Wrestle Kingdom XVII Date: January 4, 2023 Location: Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Chris Charlton, Gino Gambino It’s time to go back to New Japan for a promotion that I have not looked at since last year’s Wrestle Kingdom. As tends to be the case with this show, I’m coming in mostly blind, save for knowing the wrestlers involved. The main event is Jay White defending the IWGP World Title against Kazuchika Okada, who he took the title from back in June. Let’s get to it. Pre-Show: Boltin Oleg ..

NEWS

WATCH: Sasha Banks Makes New Japan Debut, First Match Set

January 4, 2023

New home. There have been a lot of comings and goings with the WWE roster in recent months and those changes are likely to continue. One of the interesting things about the departures winds up being where someone winds up next. That can make for a great moment, even if you know someone is going to wind up. Now one of the arrivals has actually taken place. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: WRESTLING RUMORS: Major Title Change Planned Before WrestleMania 39 This week at New Japan Wrestle Kingdom 17, Mercedes Mone, formerly known as Sasha Banks in WWE, made her debut for the promotion. Mone, referring to herself as the CEO, debuted after IWGP Women’s Champion Kairi (formerly known as Kairi Sane in WWE) defeated Tam Nakano to retain her title. Mone went on to attack Kairi’s arm before announcing that the two will face each other in San Jose, California on February 18. There is no word on if Mone will wrestle before then. Here she is. Check out Mone’s New Japan debut: [This post contains video, cl..

NEWS

Import: WWE Considers Bringing In Other Company’s Champion For Royal Rumble

December 16, 2022

She’s a name. We are just over two weeks away from the end of the year and that means it is time to start getting ready for the start of the Road To WrestleMania 39. The first step in that process is going to be the Royal Rumble, where several stars are going to be needed to fill in the show’s namesake matches. You will often see names from outside the company popping in, and now we might be set for another one. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: RUMOR KILLER On Chris Jericho And Sasha Banks’ New Japan Payoffs According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, New Japan’s Kairi (formerly known as Kairi Sane in WWE) is rumored to be part of the Women’s Royal Rumble match. However, this plan may have changed as Sane is now the IWGP Women’s Champion. WWE has brought in talent from other promotions before, as Impact Wrestling Knockouts Champion Mickie James competed in this year’s Women’s Royal Rumble, with Impact Wrestling being acknowledged on the broadcast. Sane was a big deal in WWE. Check out som..

NEWS

WWE Star Going International For Inter-Promotional “Miracle” Match

October 31, 2022

An international guest star. WWE is the most well known wrestling company in the world and their stars are some of the biggest names in the history of wrestling. However, there are several other promotions out there with quite the history of their own with quite the series of legendary stars. Now a WWE star is going to get to go do something special with a legend from outside the company. Pro Wrestling Noah has announced that WWE’s Shinsuke Nakamura will be facing the Great Muta on January 1 in Tokyo, Japan. The match will be part of Muta’s retirement tour, which culminates later in the month. Nakamura has commented on the match on Twitter, calling it a “miracle”. The two have wrestled two singles matches before, with Muta winning both, including defeating Nakamura for the IWGP Heavyweight Title in 2008. On New Year's Day, fans will see pro wrestling's biggest dream match in 2023. 2023.1.1 ABEMA presents "NOAH: THE NEW YEAR 2023" at NIPPON BUDOKAN: GREAT MUTA vs. SHINSUKE..

NEWS

AEW’s All Out Card Might Look A Little Different Than You Were Expecting

August 8, 2022

That might be an issue. There are a lot of very talented wrestlers on the AEW roster and a lot of them have been put together into a variety of matches. Some of those matches have developed into quite the series of rivalries, including some for championships. It seemed that we were coming up on another one in the near future but now that might not be the case anymore. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the original plan for next month’s AEW All Out would have seen the Young Bucks vs. FTR in a winner take all match for the AEW, IWGP, AAA and Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles. However, now the plan seems to have changed to the Young Bucks going after the newly formed Trios Titles, possibly with the returning Kenny Omega as their partner. AEW reportedly feels that the Bucks in the Trios Title match has a potential to bring in more money than the Bucks vs. FTR, which still may take place down the line. Opinion: This is one of those things that can be annoying, as FTR vs. the Buc..

NEWS

Say What? There Were Already Some Changes Made To WWE In Vince McMahon’s Absence

July 24, 2022

You can already feel it. Earlier this week, Vince McMahon officially retired from WWE, meaning that we are entering into a brand new era in the company. This could be quite the change of pace and there is no way of knowing just how things are going to go. One of the biggest changes is going to be the lack of McMahon influence on the product and some of those changes have already started taking place. According to Wrestling Observer Radio, there were multiple changes made during this week’s SmackDown, the first show without McMahon in charge. Some of these included New Day mentioning Ring Of Honor and the IWGP Tag Team Titles, as well as Michael Cole referring to “the WWE fans”. There is no word on other changes that might be made, but the lack of McMahon talking to the commentators throughout the show could cause more to take place. Opinion: This is the kind of thing that could be rather interesting. There are going to be a lot of changes to WWE in the big picture, but the smaller on..

NEWS

Big Ouch: Another AEW Injury May Lead To Major Company Change

July 2, 2022

That could be a big change. AEW has done quite a bit in its first three years of existence and a lot of that has been due to the signature style that they work. The company presents a combination of high speed and hard hitting matches between a variety of wrestlers. That can create some exciting matches but it might also be causing some issues, some of which might be addressed soon. According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Adam Cole suffered a very serious concussion at Forbidden Door, which led to the awkward finish to the IWGP Title match. This is the latest in a series of injuries in AEW and should AEW President Tony Khan see it as a result of the company’s style, he may limit the amount of dangerous spots, perhaps even limiting them to pay per view. There is no word on if Khan will do so, or if he will see the injuries as a mere run of bad luck. Opinion: This is the kind of thing that AEW might want to consider slowing down on anyway, as the fast paced offense and hard hit..

NEWS

Kind Of Another One: AEW Star Reveals He Has Separated His Shoulder

June 28, 2022

It comes with the territory. As a physical sport, wrestlers have the chance get hurt everyt ime that they step foot in the ring. You don’t know ho long it is going to be before they are back though and that is a very scary questions. That is the case again as another wrestler has gotten hurt while on a pretty big stage, but this time he is a bit of a different kind of person. Over the weekend at Forbidden Door, AEW’s Dax Harwood suffered a shoulder injury during FTR’s match with the United Empire and Roppongi Vice. Harwood was forced to leave during the match, though he did return with a bandage over shoulder. In his tweet announcing his injury, Harwood did not suggest that he will be missing any time. FTR are now the Ring Of Honor, AAA and IWGP Tag Team Champions. Separated shoulder? Bite a towel and rub some tequila on it. It’ll be fine. pic.twitter.com/RsvZ8QF6Zc — Uncle Dax FTR (@DaxFTR) June 28, 2022 Opinion: AEW’s luck with injuries lately has been appalling but thankfully Ha..

NEWS

Adam Cole Reportedly Suffers Serious Injury At Forbidden Door

June 27, 2022

It’s always a possibility. Wrestling is a contact sport and there is always the chance that something could go wrong. You never know when you are going to see someone get hurt and be taken out of the ring. There is an even bigger chance of something going wrong during a match and unfortunately that was the case this weekend in a high profile match at Forbidden Door. This weekend’s Forbidden Door event featured a four way match for the IWGP World Heavyweight title as Adam Cole, Hangman Page and Kazuchika Okada all challenged Jay White. According to F4WOnline.com, Cole suffered a concussion during the match, which ended when Cole collapsed and was pinned by White. While not shown on screen, commentary did say that Cole walked to the back on his own power. There is no word on how long it will be before Cole can return to the ring. Opinion: Concussion is one of the scariest words in wrestling as you never know how severe one of them is going to be. Cole could be out of action for more th..

NEWS

A Big Night: Multiple New Champions Crowned At AEW Forbidden Door

June 27, 2022

That’s the main point. Titles are often the centerpiece of a wrestling promotion because everyone understands how they work. A championship is the kind of thing that tells a fan who is the best wrestler around and one of them changing hands can make a huge difference. That was the case again this weekend, as several titles changed hands on a single night. AEW held its Forbidden Door event on Sunday night and multiple titles changed hands. First up, FTR won the IWGP Tag Team Titles by defeating Roppongi Vice and reigning champions the United Empire. FTR also retained their Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles in the process. Next, Pac became the inaugural All-Atlantic Champion by defeating Malakai Black, Clark Connors and Miro in a four way match. Finally, Jon Moxley defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi in the main event to win the inaugural Interim AEW World Title. AEW Women’s Champion Thunder Rosa, IWGP United States Champion Will Ospreay and IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Jay White all retained th..

NEWS

It Grows: AEW Announces Several New Matches For Forbidden Door

June 23, 2022

That’s what they needed. We are less than a week away from AEW’s Forbidden Door crossover show with New Japan Pro Wrestling. That is the kind of a show that you do not get to see very often and it certainly has potential to be special. There are several matches already set for the show and now that total has gotten even higher as AEW has beefed up the card. AEW added multiple matches to the Forbidden Door card this week on Dynamite. First up, the Buy-In show will include Max Caster and the Gunn Club facing Kevin Knight, Alex Coughlin and Yuya Uemura. Second, Jay White will defend the IWGP World Heavyweight Title against Kazuchika Okada, Hangman Page and Adam Cole. Finally, the Young Bucks will team with Hikuleo and El Phantasmo vs. Sting, Darby Allin, Shingo Takagi and Hiromu Takahashi. Zack Sabre Jr. was also confirmed for a match against an opponent to be named. Opinion: This is the kind of big set of matches that has been needed for the card and now you can see most of what is goi..

NEWS

Former WWE Star Makes Surprise Return To Former Promotion

June 22, 2022

It’s another place to go. WWE and AEW get most of the attention in the wrestling world and that is not going to change for the time being. That being said, they are also not the only promotions in the world and there is a lot of talent out there away from the major companies. Sometimes you see a former WWE wrestler try his luck elsewhere, and that is the case again with a homecoming. Kushida made a surprise return to New Japan Pro Wrestling this week at the New Japan Road show in Tokyo. Kushida returned and confronted IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Taiji Ishimori, likely setting up a future match between the two. After the confrontation, Kushida announced that he would be spending the rest of his career with New Japan. This marked Kushida’s first appearance since leaving WWE in April of this year. Opinion: I don’t know if Kushida returning to New Japan was so much a matter of if but rather when. He had the greatest successes of his career there and it makes sense to bring him back ..

NEWS

Something New: AEW Adds Unique Tag Team Title Match To Forbidden Door

June 18, 2022

That’s a different one. Next weekend, AEW and New Japan will be presenting its first ever Forbidden Door pay per view. The event will include a series of matches between the two promotions with one dream match after another. The card has already taken shape but there are still some matches that need to be filled in. AEW took care of part of that this week, as another promotion is getting in on the act (kind of). A new match was added to Forbidden Door this week on AEW Rampage. Announced for the show was a triple threat tag team match between Ring Of Honor Tag Team Champions FTR, IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champions the United Empire (Great O’Khan/Jeff Cobb) and Roppongi Vice with both sets of titles on the line. Forbidden Door is set to take place from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Opinion: That is the kind of stacked match that can make for a great addition to the pay per view card. I’m not sure how the companies are going to handle one of their titles changing hands but it..