Tetsuya Naito And NJPW Are DONE (NJPW News)

Tetsuya Naito will finish up with NJPW next month.

by Andrew Pollard
Tetsuya Naito
AEW

Having been with the company for 20 years by this point, Tetsuya Naito's time with New Japan Pro-Wrestling is coming to an end.

The start of the month saw reports that Naito was working for NJPW without a contract, and New Japan themselves have now confirmed that Naito - and his Los Ingobernables de Japón cohort Bushi - will be finishing up with the promotion on May 4th.

In a statement, NJPW said:

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"Thank you for supporting New Japan Pro-Wrestling.

In recent weeks, conversations have been ongoing between New Japan Pro-Wrestling and Tetsuya Naito regarding Naito's future wrestling activities. As a result of those conversations, both parties have mutually agreed not to renew Naito's contract with NJPW.

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Both parties have arrived at this decision after careful consideration and lengthy conversation. Naito's contract ends on the best possible terms with NJPW, which joins fans in wishing Naito further success in any and all future endeavours.

New Japan Pro-Wrestling deeply apologises to NJPW and Naito fans for any concern this announcement may cause. Naito will make all of his scheduled appearances through the Dontaku series concluding May 4 in Fukuoka, and looks forward to your ongoing support."

In follow-up to this news, Fightful Select reports that Tetsuya Naito has been exploring his options over the past month or so. WWE was interested in Naito back in 2018, when the talent purportedly turned down a WWE offer, and it's not known at this stage whether the market leader still maintains any interest in the 42-year-old. As for AEW, Fightful adds that Naito is not expected to join Tony Khan's promotion.

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It's also worth noting how Fightful mentions how Naito could eventually return to New Japan, but for now, the five-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion will be done with NJPW in just a matter of weeks. Interestingly, Naito is said to be one of several current NJPW stars working without a contract.

As alluded to, Tetsuya Naito's history with NJPW is a vast, storied one, earning a contract with the promotion back in 2004 and training as a Young Lion. In the subsequent 20 years, Naito has become one of the most successful, popular, and outright best wrestlers to ever compete in New Japan. Injuries may have started to take their toll on Naito's ringwork in more recent years, but the veteran can still deliver big when the moment calls for it. Now, though, it remains to be seen where exactly Tetsuya will be calling home once his time with NJPW rolls to a close.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.