11 NJPW Shows Cancelled Due To Coronavirus
Bad news for anyone looking forward to Hiromu Takahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito.
New Japan Pro Wrestling has just been forced to cancel every event they had scheduled for the first half of March.
The promotion broke the news on their English-language website a short while ago, announcing that they'd made their decision following "recommendations by the Japanese Ministry of Health connected to the new Coronavirus COVID-19."
The full release can be read here.
There's currently no word on whether or not the scrapped shows will be rescheduled, though the writeup notes that further announcements will be forthcoming and all ticket-holders will be entitled to a refund, with the promotion apologising for this difficult decision.
Here's a complete list of the cancelled shows:-
Anniversary Tour:
March 1: Mito Municipal Gymnasium, Ibaraki
March 2: Big Palette Fukushima
Anniversary Event:
March 3: Ota City Gymnasium, Tokyo
New Japan Cup
March 4: Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
March 7: Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium
March 8: Baycom Gymnasium, Hyogo
March 9: Kochi Prefectural Gymnasium
March 10: ZIP Arena Okayama
March 12: Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
March 13: Korakuen Hall, Tokyo
March 14: Makuhari Messe, Chiba
The 3 March cancellation is particularly disappointing as the show was set to feature the much-anticipated Tetsuya Natio vs. Hiromu Takahashi clash, but health and safety is obviously the top priority here.
Joshi promotion Stardom, who are also owned and operated by NJPW parent company Bushiroad, cancelled eight events due to the Coronavirus last week, announcing that one would take place in an empty arena with no fans in the building. The condition has infected 81,264 people around the world at the time of writing.