New Japan Pro Wrestling held a press conference today in Japan with their top star, Shinsuke Nakamura, to officially announce "The King Of Strong Style's" departure from the company. Nakamura had worked over the weekend during the Fantastica Mania shows that were co-promoted between NJPW and CMLL. The press conference was streamed live on New Japan's streaming service, NJPW World. Nakamura announced that he is resigning from the company and officially surrendered his IWGP Intercontinental Championship belt. The company had previously announced that Nakamura had been stripped of the title. Prior to that, it was expected that he would drop the belt to Kenny Omega at the end of January. However, NJPW decided they didn't want to promote a match where the outcome was known by any well-informed audience member ahead of time. Nakamura did not address the reports that he is departing the company for WWE during the press conference, though that is widely reported as being the case. As I wrote here on WhatCulture just last week, Nakamura is expected to report to WWE's Performance Center in Florida in early February. When asked about leaving NJPW, Nakamura acknowledged that the decision was brought on by several factors. He mentioned his age and it being the right time to further his career (he said he's been in a rut for a while). When directly asked about working in the United States, Nakamura said, "If theres fun to be had, no matter how few slots there are to take, then Ill find a way to squeeze in overseas." Nakamura is still booked through the end of the month with New Japan, and he mentioned during the press conference that is grateful NJPW accepted his departure from the company while still giving him the opportunity to have a send-off match.
