Author: Alex Podgorski

The rivalry between Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada has spanned fourteen singles matches over almost a full decade. But it is Tanahashi and Okada IV that may be their greatest match in NJPW History. For many years, their matches together were heralded as the peak of modern professional wrestling. Some observers have since gone on to hail other New Japan matches as being far better than those in the fabled Tanahashi-Okada series. There’s something about this match that makes it not only the best match in modern NJPW history but also the best match NJPW has ever produced. And now,…

Misawa vs. Kawada “6-3-94” was recently described by Eddie Kingston as the greatest match there ever was. “I’ve probably seen June ’94 more than 1,000 times — hand to God,” he wrote. “I’ve almost missed so many flights over that match. I’ll be sitting in an airport, waiting for my flight to board, and I’ll pull it up on YouTube and I’ll just be gone. I’ll be in it. I’ll be living it.” Here is the story behind this flawless match. (And yes, it truly was the greatest wrestling match of all time.) ‘On This Day’ is a commemorative article series.…

On this day, the thunder queen battle in Yokohama took place. July 31st, 1993, bore witness to one of the greatest and most unique wrestling matches of all time. First, imagine a traditional four-on-four Survivor Series tag match. Then add an ironman stipulation to it and make it go sixty minutes. Then add some special stipulations during the first act. And finally, add eight of the toughest and most talented women’s wrestlers of all time as its participants. This is the story of the Thunder Queen Battle in Yokohama. Writing out all of their names wouldn’t roll off the tongue…

It was the head-butt heard around the world. While things have changed, but on April 9th, 2017, New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Katsuyori Shibata wrestled what many believed was his last match ever. He fought tooth and nail to try and claim the coveted IWGP Heavyweight Championship from the company’s new ace, Kazuchika Okada. But Shibata did something in that match that changed his career forever. And that’s because he did something that almost cost him his own life. The Head-butt Heard Around The World An Epic match-up Shibata had come a long way going into this match. He was once pegged…

Fans of pro wrestling in West Virginia are likely to be in for a treat later this year. It’s likely there will be a new restaurant to cater to fans of that sport. He lost His Job Due To COVID-19 Pandemic, one West Virginia man plans to open a Wrestling Themed Burger Restaurant. JL Kyle, a former coal miner, and promoter of the International Combat Sports wrestling promotion is planning on living his dream. Amidst all the sad and depressing news in these trying times, Kyle plans on opening a wrestling-themed burger join in West Virginia. The restaurant, called Squared…

‘On This Day’ is a commemorative article series. It is dedicated to specific events, matches, and occurrences in wrestling history. We revisit those key moments and look back at how they went down and what they meant to the wrestling industry. Mitsuharu Misawa & Kenta Kobashi vs Toshiaki Kawada & Akira Taue is that match. Mitsuharu Misawa. Kenta Kobashi. Toshiaki Kawada. Akira Taue. These four men are collectively known in Japan as Shitennou. That roughly translates as ‘Four Heavenly Kings’ or ‘Four Pillars of Heaven’. There has never been a more apt name for a group of wrestlers than that.…

New Japan Pro-Wrestling ace Kazuchika Okada answered fans’ questions in an online interview. Kazuchika Okada discusses his finisher among other things. These questions and answers provided fans of his an interesting opportunity. They peer into the mind of one of the best wrestlers active today. Kazuchika Okada has been a mainstay of NJPW’s for over a decade now. But only began portraying the ‘rainmaker’ since 2012. Prior to that, he was a generic young boy that lacked any uniqueness and had limited success at best as a wrestler. It wasn’t until he left TNA under acrimonious circumstances that he really…

Current IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito discusses in an interview recently to discuss what has happened in his career of late. Naito made history on January 5th, 2020 by becoming the first-ever dual singles champion in NJPW history. Unfortunately, despite that major accomplishment, he hasn’t had many opportunities to show that he deserves being called the company’s ace. Like most wrestling companies, NJPW’s activities are completely on hold at this time due to the global coronavirus pandemic. Naito hasn’t defended his two belts since mid-February when he successfully defended both them against KENTA. But since that match, Naito…

DDT Pro Wrestling, one of Japan’s top independent wrestling federations, announced that it has canceled on if its largest annual events. Wrestle Peter Pan 2020 due to pandemic outbreak. The event was originally scheduled to take place on June 7th, 2020, at the Saitama Super Arena. This would have been the 12th edition of the annual event and the second under the ‘Wrestle Peter Pan’ name. DDT, like most wrestling promotions, is no longer hosting live events due to the ongoing global Coronavirus pandemic. Like most promotions in the Japanese wrestling market, a large portion of their revenue comes from…

(New Japan Pro-Wrestling) NJPWs Shingo Takagi conducted an interview with his company recently. In that interview, Takagi answered questions submitted by fans about a wide variety of subjects. Takagi spent the bulk of his career wrestling for the Dragon Gate promotion, before moving to NJPW in 2018. Once there, he became the newest member of the Los Ignobernables de Japon (LIJ) stable, led by current IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito. As part of LIJ, Takagi has enjoyed incredible success. He went on an undefeated streak for eight months, before losing his first match in the finals of the…