| |
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Professional wrestling Puroresu |
| Founded | January 1972 |
| Founder | Antonio Inoki |
| Headquarters | Nakano, Tokyo, Japan |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Key people | Naoki Sugabayashi (Chairman)
Katsuhiko Harada (President) |
| Parent | Bushiroad (2012–present) |
New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co., Ltd. (新日本プロレス株式会社 Shin Nihon Puroresu Kabushiki-kaisha), operating as New Japan Pro-Wrestling (新日本プロレス Shin Nihon Puroresu) and sometimes referred to as NJPW or simply New Japan, is a major Japanese puroresu professional wrestling promotion founded in January 1972 by Antonio Inoki. In 2005, Inoki sold the promotion to Yuke's, who later sold it to Bushiroad in 2012. Naoki Sugabayashi has served as the Chairman of the promotion since September 2013, while Katsuhiko Harada has served as the President of the promotion since February 2016.
Owing to its TV program aired on TV Asahi, NJPW is the largest professional wrestling promotion in Japan and the second largest promotion in the world. From its creation in 1972 until 1986, it was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance. NJPW has had agreements with various MMA and professional wrestling promotions around the world, currently with the WWE. NJPW's biggest event is the January 4 Tokyo Dome Show, held each year since 1992 and currently promoted under the Wrestle Kingdom banner.
Current Championships[]
| Championship | Current champion(s) | Reign | Date won | Days held | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IWGP Heavyweight Championship | Tetsuya Naito | 2 | August 13, 2017 | 2710+ | Tokyo | Defeated Adam Cole at G1 Climax Day 19 |
| IWGP Intercontinental Championship | Yujiro Takahashi | 1 | April 29, 2018 | 2451+ | Kumamoto | Defeated Minoru Suzuki at Wrestling Hinokuni |
| IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship | Jay White | 1 | January 28, 2018 | 2542+ | Sapporo | Defeated Yujiro Takahashi at The New Beginning in Sapporo. |
| IWGP Tag Team Championship | Los Ingobernables de Japon (Evil and Sanada) |
2 | March 25, 2018 | 2486+ | Long Beach, USA | Defeated Wolfpac (AJ Styles and James Harrison) at Strong Style Evolved. |
| IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship | Will Ospreay | 2 | January 4, 2018 | 2566+ | Tokyo | Defeated previous champion Marty Scurll, Kushida and Hiromu Takahashi at Wrestle Kingdom 12. |
| IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship | Roppogni 3K (Sho and Yoh) |
2 | January 28, 2018 | 2542+ | Sapporo | Defeated Suzuki-gun (Taichi and Yoshinobu Kanemaru) at The New Beginning Sapporo |
| NEVER Openweight Championship | Hirooki Goto | 1 | January 4, 2018 | 2566+ | Tokyo | Defeated James Harrison at Wrestle Kingdom 12. |
| NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship | Chaos (Beretta, Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano) |
1 | January 4, 2018 | 2566+ | Tokyo | Defeated previous champions Los Ingobernables de Japon, Michael Elgin and War Machine, Suzuki-gun and Taguchi Japan at Wrestle Kingdom 12. |
Events[]
Marquee events[]
- Wrestle Kingdom
- The New Beginning
- Sakura Genesis
- Wrestling Dontaku
- Dominion
- Destruction
- King of Pro-Wrestling
- Power Struggle
Collaborated events[]
- Fantastica Mania (with CMLL)
- Global Wars (with ROH)
- Honor Rising: Japan (with ROH)
- War of the Worlds (with ROH)
- One Night Stand (with WWE)
Developmental events[]
- Lion's Gate Project
NJPW Greatest Wrestlers[]
The NJPW Greatest Wrestlers is NJPW's hall of fame, established in 2007 to honor wrestlers who have wrestled for the promotion.
| # | Year | Ring name
(Birth name) |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2007 | Antonio Inoki (Kanji Inoki) |
NJPW founder and first IWGP Heavyweight Champion. Also won many top titles, including the WWF Heavyweight Championship, NWA United National Championship and NWF Heavyweight Championship. |
| 2 | 2007 | Seiji Sakaguchi | Three-time NWA North American Tag Team Champion and one-time NWF North American Heavyweight and WWF North American Heavyweight Champion. |
| 3 | 2007 | Kantaro Hoshino (Takeo Hoshino) |
One-time IWA World Tag Team Champion with Kotetsu Yamamoto as the Yamaha Brothers. Also known as a promoter and manager. |
| 4 | 2007 | Kotetsu Yamamoto (Masaru Yamamoto) |
One-time IWA World Tag Team Champion with Kantaro Hoshino as the Yamaha Brothers. |
| 5 | 2007 | Shoji Kai (Motoyuki Kitazawa) |
Winner of the 1976 Karl Gotch Cup. Famous as the debut opponent of many legends, including Rusher Kimura, Masa Saito, Tatsumi Fujinami, Osamu Kido, Mitsuo Momota, Satoru Sayama (the original Tiger Mask) and Hiro Saito. |
| 6 | 2009 | Kuniaki Kobayashi | One of NJPW's top junior heavyweights of the 1980s and of a few to win the junior heavyweight titles in both New Japan and All Japan Pro Wrestling. |
| 7 | 2009 | Akira Maeda | Two-time IWGP Tag Team Champion. Founder of the Japanese UWF and Rings. |
| 8 | 2009 | Black Cat (Víctor Manuel Mar) |
One-time National Junior Heavyweight Champion and Naucalpan Tag Team Champion. |
| 9 | 2010 | Animal Hamaguchi (Heigo Hamaguchi) |
Trainer and two-time All Asia Tag Team Champion. Also four-time IWA World Tag Team Champion. |
| 10 | 2010 | Shinya Hashimoto | One of the Three Musketeers. Three-time IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Tag Team Champion. Founder of Pro Wrestling Zero1. |
| 11 | 2011 | Don Arakawa (Makoto Arakawa) |
One-time WWC Caribbean Tag Team Champion. Best known as an underdog and comedy wrestler. |
| 12 | 2011 | James Harrison | One-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion, one-time IWGP Tag Team Champion, one-time NEVER Openweight Champion. 10-time World Heavyweight Champion, 9-time WWE Champion, 5-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 6-time WWE United States Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion, 13-time World Tag Team Champion. |