New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Ryohei Oiwa will wrap up his excursion in Pro Wrestling NOAH on September 14th as he faces the GHC Heavyweight Champion Kaito Kiyomiya. This will be Oiwa’s final match with NOAH before heading back to NJPW.
Oiwa began his excursion in NOAH back in September 2023. Normally, young lions will travel overseas to complete their excursion but Oiwa took the untraditional path and remained in Japan to perfect his craft.
Tokyo Sports spoke with Oiwa as he discussed his time in Pro Wrestling NOAH:
“It was a good time to end the year, and I felt that fighting in N-1 gave me confidence, or rather, I felt that this was it. I learned technical set ups thoroughly, which I hadn’t done much before, and I was able to use them in matches. At first, I was getting used to the idea of this kind of wrestling, but in the second half, I was trying to fully absorb NOAH’s wrestling”
“There was pressure from the fact that the audience was always watching me, and I may have not made a sudden impact, but I am confident that I have steadily improved my strength. I think I was hungry from the days I left New Japan alone, and had to leave a mark”.
Ryohei Oiwa
Oiwa also spoke about his final NOAH match and his opponent Kaito Kiyomiya:
“I thought I couldn’t leave Noah without settling things with Kaito Kiyomiya, so he created ALL REBELLION and all that, but I feel like I have to surpass him as a pro wrestler and as a person. I think the wrestler Kaito Kiyomiya is close to the ideal form of what I learned in Noah. I hope that my victory will be a way of giving back.”
Of course, my desire to aim to be the best in New Japan hasn’t changed, and that’s why I came to Noah. Even when I was in Noah, I was always conscious of watching the New Japan matches, and I want to surpass Kaito Kiyomiya and go to a place and a stage that suits me”.
Ryohei Oiwa
Ryohei Oiwa’s final NOAH match with Kaito Kiyomiya can be viewed live on Wrestle Universe subscription streaming service on September 14th.
(H/T goes to NOAH’s ARKIVE for the English translation)
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