Earlier this week, Tokyo Sports reported WWE reached out to Tetsuya Naito sometime after NJPW Dominion (June), but Naito quickly turned down the offer. At Dominion, Chris Jericho defeated Naito for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.
As a follow-up to the story, in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter it was reported Naito was among “at least” three top Japanese stars WWE reached out to.
No other names were mentioned, but they were said to have at least given it some thought before turning down the offer. One of the names would have been considered a “huge surprise” while the other would have had less reservations about moving to the States.
As translated by NJPW Announcer Chris Charlton, Naito apparently didn’t have to think long about the prospect of going to WWE. From the Tokyo Sports article, it sounded like the Los Ingobernables de Japon leader is very happy right where he is now.
“I didn’t even give it a thought,” Naito said. “This New Japan ring is already the world’s number one stage. The fans know this. That’s why I think we should focus on our home crowd before looking international.”
https://t.co/lCYX6Fm3Ze Naito received a WWE offer after Dominion and turned it down. ‘I didn’t even give it thought. This New Japan ring is already the world’s number 1 stage. The fans know this. That’s why I think we should focus on our home crowd before looking international’— chris charlton (@reasonjp) November 6, 2018
At Wrestle Kingdom 13 (January 4), Naito will face Chris for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.
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