After the semi-main event of Power Struggle in Osaka, the Ticking Time Bomb Hiromu Takahashi returned. He made his triumphant return from injury to challenge IWGP Jr Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay. This would be for Ospreay’s title at Wrestle Kingdom 14.
The Los Ingobernables de Japon member has been out of action since July 7th last year. The injury took place during the G1 Special in San Fransisco. After winning the Jr title at Dominion against Will Ospreay, Hiromu put his title on the line against long-time rival Dragon Lee. During the bout, Lee hit Hiromu with a move which resulted in him breaking his neck.
Even though Takahashi retained his title in this match, his future was uncertain. With the details about his injury not known, fans waited with baited breathe. However, nearly a month later on August 20th, Hiromu had to vacate his title due to being unable to defend it.
The Return of Hiromu Takahashi
Many predicted that Hiromu would return after fellow stablemate Bushi was unable to beat Ospreay for the Jr title at Power Struggle. However, this did not stop the Ticking Time Bomb from being met with a thunderous reaction from the crowd, including an emotional Milano Collection, and people online after a very Hiromu-esque titantron build up.
As expected, Hiromu came out all guns blazing darting around the arena in his usual unpredictable and unhinged fashion with his friends Daryl and Mochineko and an amazingly flamboyant suit combination.
https://twitter.com/TIMEBOMB1105/status/1190963890127024128
After congratulating long term friend and rival Will Ospreay in a very seductive fashion, Hiromu challenged Ospreay for the title at Wrestle Kingdom.
Not only will it be a chance for Hiromu to get back the title he never lost, but it’s another match against a guy who just perfectly fits with Takahashi. Nobody has better in-ring chemistry than Takahashi and Ospreay.
With Wrestle Kingdom only months away, this is a great way to showcase the Jr division in New Japan. It’s a match a lot of people will be looking forward too!
