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What's the story?
New Japan Pro Wrestling have released a further update on the status on current IWGP Light Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi following the scary neck injury he sustained at the G1 Special show that caused him to allegedly collapse backstage.
In case you didn't know...
Hiromu Takahashi was defending his title against Dragon Lee at the G1 Special show in San Francisco where a botched suplex from Dragon Lee launched Hiromu onto the top of his head and bent his neck.
Takahashi finished the match and walked out of the area on his own but allegedly collapsed backstage leading to NJPW releasing a statement to confirm that he had suffered a neck injury but was able to sit up and communicate.
The heart of the matter
New Japan Pro Wrestling have subsequently released a further statement updating everyone on the status of Hiromu and it appears to be fairly positive news for the high-flying wrestler.
On July 7, during the G1 Special in San Francisco event, Hiromu Takahashi sustained a neck injury and was taken to a San Francisco hospital for evaluation.
Takahashi was able to return to Japan today, and will proceed with treatment. We apologize for the delay in publishing this update, which was in order to ensure smooth and efficient transit for Takahashi at the airport. We deeply appreciate our fans’ concerns. Please stay tuned to https://www.njpw1972.com/ for further updates.
The fact that Takahashi was able to make a long-haul flight from the United States to Japan with a suspected broken neck is surely a good sign that the worst hasn't happened here. However, we're still awaiting an official diagnosis as to what exact injury he has suffered, and an estimate on how long he will be out of action.
What's next?
The debate about wrestling styles and who is responsible for 'encouraging' wrestlers to wrestle this dangerous fast-paced, high-flying style which many hold responsible for the injuries wrestlers like Takahashi and Shibata are suffering.
What do you think, should wrestlers tone down the moves they do in the ring to possibly prevent injuries? Or is wrestling always a risk regardless of the wrestling style being used?
