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NJPW confirmed that the Night 3 of Wrestle Kingdom 16 will be an NJPW vs. NOAH-based show.
New Japan Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrestling NOAH held a press conference to make this grand announcement.
January 8, which is the third night of Wrestle Kingdom 16, will see NJPW and NOAH Superstars share the stage. This will be the first time in years that NJPW and Pro Wrestling NOAH will work together.
The poster for this special card features former IWGP Heavyweight Champions, Kazuchika Okada and Hiroshi Tanahashi. The reigning IWGP World Heavyweight Champion, Shingo Takagi, can also be seen on the NJPW side.
For NOAH, Kaito Kiyomiya, GHC Heavyweight Champion Katsuhiko Nakajima, and the reigning GHC Tag Team Champion Keiju Muto are featured.
At the press conference, Tanahashi stated that New Japan wrestlers will be fired up by this news. The Ace noted that over the past few years, NJPW has been competing with themselves:
“I think there’s no doubt the NJPW wrestlers will be fired up by this news. Over the last few years, NJPW has been competing amongst itself, and our quality has only elevated. Now we have the chance to show another company how far we have come, and it’s created a thrilling situation."
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16 is already a stacked event
New Japan Pro Wrestling is yet to announce and put together the full match card for Wrestle Kingdom 16. However, on Night 1, Kazuchika Okada, who won this year's G1 Climax, will challenge Shingo Takagi for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship.
On Night 2, Will Ospreay will aim to win gold once again. The former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion is set to face the winner of Okada vs. Takagi from Night 1.
Courtesy of New Japan Pro Wrestling's working relationship with AEW and IMPACT Wrestling, it would be interesting to note if Superstars from either promotion are featured on Wrestle Kingdom 16.
