Shibata returns in exhibition match at NJPW G1 Climax finals
Image: NJPW
Katsuyori Shibata made a surprise return to in-ring action during this morning’s G1 Climax 31 finals, competing in a five-minute exhibition match.
As intermission ended, Zack Sabre Jr. came out. Katsuyori Shibata then entered and it was announced that a five-minute UWF rules exhibition match would take place. Shibata didn’t take bumps but had a competitive back and forth match, with Shibata reversing a cobra twist from Sabre and applying one of his own as the time limit expired.
After the match, Shibata and Sabre shook hands as Sabre left. Shibata then cut a promo saying next time he would be in the ring, it would be for a actual match.
Shibata has not wrestled since April 2017, when he suffered a hematoma while wrestling Kazuchika Okada at Sakura Genesis 2017. Shibata was forced to retire as a result of the injury. In the years since, he has become the head trainer for New Japan Pro Wrestling’s dojo in Los Angeles, which opened in 2018.
Bryan Rose is an editor from California that has been covering professional wrestling for well over a decade. He officially joined F4WOnline as an editor in 2017.