Ryohei Oiwa Explains His Decision To Remain In Japan For His Excursion And Not Go Overseas

New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s Ryohei Oiwa had recently graduated from Young Lion status which meant the time for his excursion had arrived. While every other former Young Lion went overseas for their excursions away from NJPW, Oiwa decided to remain in Japan and complete his training in NJPW’s rival promotion Pro Wrestling NOAH.

Oiwa was invited by Kaito Kiyomiya to join him in NOAH on August 13th following the duo’s tag team win over Toru Yano and Oskar Leube. That was the fourth time Kiyomiya and Oiwa had teamed together during the G1 Climax 33.

On August 12th, Oiwa lost a dark match to Oleg Boltin which made him think he needed a change of scenery during an interview with Tokyo Sports:

I thought that I had to change something, so when I was invited the next day, I thought if I turned down the invitation, I wouldn’t get the chance.

Oiwa explained his reason by bypass the traditional overseas excursion and remain in Japan:

We live in an age where social media is so advanced, even when you go overseas, your growth process can be seen by your fans. So I chose the path of having matches in front of domestic audiences, and have them watch them. I also wanted to take a step forward that had never been done before.

Oiwa also talked about wanting to learn from Kaito KIyomiya :

I want to learn from Kiyomiya-san, and go as far as I can. I want us to get the belts. I want to fight against all of Noah’s wrestlers and return to New Japan with the confidence that I’ve become stronger. I will do my best with the goal of standing out from the N-1 VICTORY finals, and becoming the main character of the event.

Ryohei Oiwa’s first Pro Wrestling NOAH match will be on September 3rd at the N-1 VICTORY 2023 Finals. Oiwa will team with Kaito KIyomiya as they face Zack Sabre Jr and Yoshinari Ogawa.

(H/T goes to NOAH’s ARKIVE for the transcription and translation)

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