NJPW announces first three Best of the Super Juniors 33 participants
The first three wrestlers for the Best of the Super Juniors 33 tournament have been announced.
The tournament kicks off on May 14 with a show at Korakuen Hall and concludes on June 7 at Ota City General Gymnasium. NJPW has said the lineup for this year will be revealed three wrestlers at a time. The first three wrestlers were revealed on Sunday.
Kosei Fujita will take part in his fourth Best of the Super Juniors tournament this year. He defeated YOH in the finals of the 2025 tournament to win last year’s competition.
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion DOUKI has also been announced for the tournament. This will be his seventh Best of the Super Juniors appearance and his first in two years. His career-best finish came in 2024, when he reached the semifinals.
Also confirmed is El Desperado, who won the 2024 Best of the Super Juniors. This will be his tenth appearance in the tournament. He finished tied atop his block in 2025, but YOH advanced via tie-breaker.
NJPW Best of the Super Juniors 33 confirmed participants:
- Kosei Fujita
- DOUKI
- El Desperado
Ian Carey is the editing manager at F4WOnline and a writer from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His work has appeared in award-winning publications including NOW Magazine and The Huffington Post. He joined the F4WOnline team in 2019 and moved into the editing manager role in the summer of 2026. Born in Calgary, Alberta, Ian has covered professional wrestling for more than 15 years.