Hiroshi Tanahashi doesn’t want to ‘look older or slower’ in NJPW retirement match
In his retirement match, Hiroshi Tanahashi is hoping to turn back the clock and deliver one last great performance.
NJPW held a public training session with Tanahashi and Aaron Wolf this week to promote their respective matches at Wrestle Kingdom 20. Tanahashi is ending his legendary career by facing Kazuchika Okada at the show, while Wolf will start his own pro wrestling journey by challenging EVIL for the NEVER Openweight Championship.
Tanahashi was asked what he wants fans to see in his last match.
“I don’t want them to justify my retirement. I don’t want them to see me look older or slower, but to see a Tanahashi who can still go, and that everybody else is chasing right to the end,” he said.
The Tanahashi vs. Okada match is a renewal of one of pro wrestling’s greatest rivalries. Their matches were crucial to the new golden era that NJPW experienced, and Okada — now signed to AEW — is returning home for Wrestle Kingdom to help Tanahashi end his career in style.
Tanahashi is the real-life president of NJPW and will remain in that role after his in-ring retirement. Wolf, an Olympic gold medalist in judo, is a prospect that the company has high hopes for.
“Some wrestlers retire more than once (laughs). But there’s only one debut,” Tanahashi responded when asked if he has advice for Wolf’s first match. “It’s an important point. I want him to put in the absolute best he has.”
Tanahashi vs. Okada will be the main event of the January 4 Wrestle Kingdom show. EVIL vs. Wolf is going on third-to-last.
Before Wrestle Kingdom, Tanahashi has matches coming up against Hiromu Takahashi, El Desperado, and Kosei Fujita.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.