AEW and NJPW have had a working relationship for years, with stars appearing in both promotions on various occasions and an annual cross-promotional pay-per-view, AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door. Earlier this year, NJPW came under new ownership when Bushiroad Inc. sold all its shares to TV Asahi. During the media call ahead of this year’s Forbidden Door, Tony Khan addressed the sale and what it means for AEW’s relationship with the promotion going forward.
“It’s definitely something to keep an eye on, and it has not changed any of the day-to-day work with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Hiroshi Tanahashi – the president of New Japan Pro Wrestling – and Gedo are people I continue to work with,” he said. Khan asserted that he’s been working with the same people both before and after the sale.
Khan further praised the new ownership for how they’ve been promoting NJPW over the past year, and he’s relieved they haven’t removed Gedo and Hiroshi Tanahashi from leadership. Currently, several AEW talent are in the championship scene over in NJPW. Mistico is one-half of the current IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champions, Konosuke Takeshita reigning as the NJPW World Television Champion, Will Ospreay is a NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champion, and Alex Windsor is reigning as the current Strong Women’s Champion.
Considering that so many AEW names have gold in NJPW and even more continue to compete in the promotion, it appears Khan’s words hold some merit, and the relationship between the two promotions seems to have changed little under the new parent company.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit AEW and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
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