Hiroshi Tanahashi Admits NJPW Need To Make New Stars

New Japan Pro-Wrestling find themselves at a crossroads in 2024, with the exit of main event stars Kazuchika Okada and Will Ospreay leaving the top of the NJPW card looking thin on the ground.

New NJPW President Hiroshi Tanahashi is all too aware of the lack of depth at the top in the promotion, telling Inside the Ropes that the company need to build for the future:

“This is a star driven business, and we need to make new stars. That goes beyond success in the ring as well- mainstream awareness and name value is the key to success. I want more of our wrestlers becoming household names,” admitted Tanahashi.

Outside of Okada and Ospreay, NJPW have also lost former IWGP World Heavyweight Champions Jay White and Kota Ibushi over the last two years, with both White and Ibushi signing with All Elite Wrestling.

NJPW did finally crown SANADA as World Heavyweight Champion in 2023, and are actively building up Bullet Club's David Finlay, and the ‘Reiwa Musketeers’ Shota Umino, Yota Tsuji, and Ren Narita. But in terms of established main event names, outside of current champion Tetsuya Naito the division is noticeably lacking at the moment.

H/T: ITRWrestling