An NJPW name has sent a message to the recently departing stars ahead of this year’s New Japan Cup tournament.
Hiromu Takahashi made his final appearance in NJPW recently, bringing to an end a run of over fifteen years.
NJPW’s roster appears to be decreasing further, with Shane Haste – fka WWE’s Shane Thorne – entering free agency, and David Finlay appearing to bid farewell to fans in Japan following reports that he was exploring his options, with his contract set to expire.
Reflecting on the recent departures in an interview with NJPW, Yuya Uemura stated that he wants to show the world what NJPW is in 2026 by winning the New Japan Cup, saying:
“All I can say is of course I have to win this. This is my chance to show the world what NJPW is right now in 2026.
“There’s nothing I can do about guys leaving. They wanted to go, and they went, and that’s their choice, right? But what I have to do is show NJPW’s strength to the point where they regret that decision. And to say that this isn’t a place to come and go as you please.
“This is NJPW; if you leave, don’t think you can just waltz back in.”
Uemura joined the NJPW ‘Young Lion’ program in early 2017 and would make his debut in April the following year.
As is tradition in Japanese wrestling, he would undertake a foreign excursion, travelling to the United States in 2022 and competing in AEW, TNA Wrestling and Game Changer Wrestling.
The Japanese star teamed with El Desperado and Paragon (Kyle O’Reilly & Roderick Strong) in a victory over CRU (Action Andretti & Lio Rush) and The Don Callis Family (Hechicero & Josh Alexander) at AEW Forbidden Door Zero Hour in August last year.
Uemura is a former King of Pro-Wrestling Champion, holding the Provisional iteration of the title in 2024.
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