Housekeeping Notes, Thoughts On The NJPW Sale

June 5, 2026

I now got a proper domain for the blog simply because I am very close to maxing out the free tier image limit WordPress has. That’s right folks, it’s taken me almost 17 years but I’m finally about to hit the ceiling as a freeloader. I admit doing the DDT Around The World articles helped speed up the decision. So I opened up the wallet and https://dramaticddt.com/ has now become active along with https://dramaticddt.wordpress.com/ which should still work. Kind of surprised the domain was available all this time. Dramatic DDT is a name I put one minute of thought into back when I started because I couldn’t think of any clever DDT related phrase at the time. There was a precursor blog in the 2000s called Dramatic Fantasia (named after the Samurai! TV show) that existed back on the old PuroresuFan group of fansites so I wasn’t going to copy that. Dramatic DDT is also somehow distinct enough that DDT themselves never had a problem with me using it. And that’s more or less the only change to the site I have in mind. I’m happy with the basic website layout. I also think adding pictures to the show reports, title histories and overseas excursions does so much to paint pictures of everything that I cover on this site so the increase of the image limit was necessary. I have an idea for setting up an archive site for Tokyo Joshi Pro in order to have a cleaner written history of the company available so you can read about its past without having to dig through the DDT content but that’s way down on my list of priorities in life right now. And given how much thought I put into the name Dramatic DDT, it would probably be called something like Tokyo TJPW or Princess TJPW. I’ll let you know if it ever comes to pass.

It’s been a week since BushiRoad sold New Japan to TV Asahi & CyberAgent. I never wrote about the news on here because the more I thought about it, the less it seemed relevant to DDT and TJPW. The evidence is how quiet CyberAgent has been over the story and that the name CyberFight appears nowhere in any of the official reports about the sale. So if DDT and NOAH became step-siblings then this makes NJPW a cousin by marriage, I guess? Stardom remaining with BushiRoad through the deal is odd but makes sense after listening to others give their opinion about it. BushiRoad likely figured the time had come to cash in on NJPW while there is still a lot of potential growth in the Stardom brand. The relationship between NJPW and Stardom still remains although I get the sense the NJPW side would be happy if they never do the “HISTORIC X-OVER” shows ever again. If you want to know why it can be so difficult to put these kind of inter-promotional events together, you just need to look at how much of the NJPW roster would distance themselves from having to wrestle the Stardom talent. Now imagine the same thing trying to juggle a NOAH roster, a DDT roster and a TJPW roster all under the one umbrella. There are reasons why SWS collapsed trying to manage multiple locker rooms and their conflicting egos all at once!

There is something of a monopoly slowly developing around Japanese wrestling lately but these companies were already circling the wagons with the creation of United Japan Pro Wrestling two years ago. Shinya Aoki wrote on his blog that he heard rumours that WWE were interested in acquiring New Japan raised my eyebrow but he’s the only person so far to bring up that idea. And since I brought up UJPW, keep in mind that Sanshiro Takagi’s term as the organisation’s head of the board will be finishing by the end of the year. I would be surprised if the second president is anyone other than a New Japan representative but that’s been my prediction even before this sale took place.

Also, hey CyberAgent! You have a video games division. You also now have full access to at least four different wrestling promotions. Can we get a new pro wrestling game? If it has to be gacha I at least have the confidence it will still turn out better than MyFaction in the WWE 2K series…

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Posted by JamieOD

UJPW Becomes Incorporated

January 20, 2025

Last July members of the United Japan Pro Wrestling association had met to discuss what their next movements should be with the concept. It was decided that UJPW would go from a voluntary organization to an incorporated group. After going quiet for the rest of the year, representatives from all of the member promotions gathered today to announce that UJPW went through with the plan and has now become incorporated as a non-profit organization. With this move UJPW aims to strengthen its governance in Japan’s pro wrestling scene, become more transparent with its management and improve wrestling’s social credibility. They also came up with a slogan: “Pro Wrestling will always be a driving force for the people of Japan.”

The move gives UJPW greater legal options with the example the Japanese press have given being to open up accounts and hold business assets under the corporate name. Sanshiro Takagi has taken on the role as the Representative Director even though the UJPW office will be located inside New Japan’s HQ. Takagi along with the other directors on the board will all serve two year terms. They were all chosen based on the number of voting rights they have in their respective companies. The board of directors will meet twice a year within the fiscal calendar.

Takagi said it is possible for more UJPW events to be held in the future but it is not the goal of the organization and there are no plans to run another event like “ALL TOGETHER” at this time. However there could still be more interactions coming between the promotions. For example, Hiroshi Tanahashi said he would like to appear in the other companies as part of his year long road to retirement.

There are currently ten members of UJPW. They are New Japan, All Japan, NOAH, DDT, Ganbare☆Pro, Big Japan, Dragongate, Stardom, Tokyo Joshi Pro & Kyushu Pro. Seven requirements have been laid out for future members to meet if they would like to join UJPW. They include needing a regular event schedule, being a legally recognized company, having at least one wrestler under a full time contract, having an annual revenue of over 50 million yen, been active for at least two years, have a corporate compliance system and want to improve the wrestling scene even when competing against other members. There will also in the future be a lower tier created place for supporting members to join that involve less demanding requirements. When I posted about these plans last July I mentioned DIANA had representatives at the meeting in an observing capacity. There has been no mention of them being involved since then but I imagine they can end up becoming one such example of a supporting member.

Wrestlers and staff from each of the member promotions were in attendance to give speeches about the news. I’m just going to focus on the companies I usually cover (although I’d like to point out that Takaaki Kidani put his foot in his mouth again). Takagi wants UJPW to also cooperate with as many of the different indies across Japan as possible. Michiyoshi Mishima said GanPro is the smallest member of the group but thinks they can set an example for other promotions of the same size. Chris Brookes spoke about wrestling being something that can unite people. Utami Hayashishita Miyu Yamashita talked about the respect that wrestling fans around the world has for Japan. Haru Kazashiro said she loved wrestling ever since she joined TJPW and wants to see more children drawn to the industry if UJPW can establish the safety and medical standards needed. Ken Ohka believes this attempt at bringing pro wrestling together will take the industry to new heights. Yuna Manase is happy to be able to exchange ideas with wrestlers from other companies that will bring more happiness to the fans.

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United Japan Pro Wrestling Is Announced

December 15, 2023

UJPW “UNITED JAPAN PRO WRESTLING”, 06/05/2024
Tokyo Nippon Budokan

I’m going to copy and paste the write up on New Japan’s official English site to explain what’s going on with this new thing called United Japan Pro Wrestling.

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December 15, Tokyo Japan

New Japan Pro-Wrestling today announces that it is one of nine organizations that will constitute United Japan Pro-Wrestling, a new industry group representing professional wrestling in Japan.

Without an industry wide group for professional wrestling in Japan, the unprecedented crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic made it all the more clear that there was a need to consolidate and express accurate information and best operating practices between promotions, as well as to communicate effectively with national and municipal governments. In a bid to better anticipate and adapt to societal changes in the future, nine Japanese promotions at the forefront of pro-wrestling in the country will be be part of a collective industry group (henceforth ‘the Group’).

The members of the Group will maintain their individual business identities and competition in the marketplace, but the Group will provide a space to discuss issues that concern the industry at large, and to exchange information with an interest in maintaining its growth. The formation of the Group will be marked by an event on May 6 2024 in Nippon Budokan under the banner of United Japan Pro-Wrestling.

Mission statement

To further the presence of pro-wrestling and its cultural merit in Japanese society at large, allow professional wrestling to contribute further to cultural and sporting sectors, and work toward continued health and prosperity of the industry.

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic made it apparent that there was a lack of communication and unified approach to event guidelines, and no common point of contact between the industry and national and municipal governments. There was also a desire to discuss issues surrounding wrestler health and safety (including in their online presence), to create a pipeline to other sporting organizations and to further the image of professional wrestling through issues of corporate social responsibility. There was a shared desire between members of the Group to continue existing competition within the marketplace while also sharing relevant information and know-how on these and other socio-economic issues.

Core tenets

Unity and integrity. The Group will be the representative spokesgroup for all of professional wrestling in Japan.
Representation. The Group will be the public facing symbol for the collective whole of professional wrestling in Japan.
Continuity. The Group will have a continuous presence and activity in the future.

As a result, the existence of the Group will be made known worldwide, and its members will be actively engaged in actions of merit.

Activities

Governmental communication and requests
Strengthening connections to other industries and sectors
Sharing resources and practices

Including those related to wrestler health and safety, such as the provision of financial support for wrestlers while injured, and to offer compliance training. Group members will also consolidate event data for historical archive purposes.

Monetization

Any proceeds from the monetized use of iconography shall be split among the Group members. Joint events and festivals will be held.

Group members

New Japan Pro-Wrestling (New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co. Ltd.)
All Japan Pro-Wrestling (All Japan Pro-Wrestling Co. Ltd.)
Pro-Wrestling NOAH (Cyber Fight Co. Ltd.)
DDT Pro-Wrestling (Cyber Fight Co. Ltd.)
Ganbare ☆ Pro-Wrestling (Cyber Fight Co. Ltd.)
Big Japan Pro-Wrestling （Yotsuba Industries Ltd.)
DRAGONGATE (DRAGONGATE Co. Ltd.)
STARDOM (BushiRoad Fight Co. Ltd.)
Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling (Cyber Fight Co. Ltd.)

Further Group members will be considered in future.

Founding chair: Seiji Sakaguchi
Executive office: New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co. Ltd.
Executive chief: Naoki Sugabayashi (Chairman: New Japan Pro-Wrestling Co. Ltd.)

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So we’re giving this another go then. My immediate reaction to the news was memories of the Global Professional Wrestling Alliance from the mid 2000s. The GPWA was a similar concept to this, getting many of the wrestling promotions in Japan to co-operate with each other under one banner. It faded away pretty quickly. The only legacy it left behind was the 2007 Differ Cup tournament (and that isn’t even the 2005 one that was hyped by tape traders from that era). It also stayed around as a piece of trivia in wiki pages for each of the companies involved for years afterwards. So from the jump I’m feeling cynical over UJPW’s chances of establishing itself as an important benchmark for Japanese wrestling.

However the entire wrestling landscape is very different now than it was back then. The scene in Japan is not back to pre-pandemic levels of business and it’s only when times are toughest you will get companies willing to work together in order to spark up some kind of momentum again. I see some instant reaction online that this might be another attempt to close up Japan to WWE but I’m struggling to think that’s the main priority here. WWE’s global expansion plans do seem to be revving up again and their recent ABEMA deal has gotten them more coverage in Japan recently. And of course there’s suddenly more and more rumours about WWE trying to snap up Japan’s biggest names at the nearest opportunity. Yet as I see all this on the horizon I still don’t think it is an immediate threat. What’s happening here with UJPW seems to be the Japanese companies all trying to get their plans in order in regards to challenges much closer to home. It’s more like something to represent the majority of the industry when communicating with government bodies.

But hey, let’s give this thing a shot because at the very least what we’re getting out of it is nine promotions working together for a big show at Budokan Hall next May. Company alliances over the last year have been interesting to follow. New Japan and NOAH have been working together, All Japan and DDT have bee working together. Dragongate mostly keeps to themselves while Big Japan and Ganbare☆Pro are usually full of freelancers and wrestlers from other indies showing up at all times. The most surprising dynamic is Stardom and Tokyo Joshi Pro finally interacting with each other. Getting the isolated promotions like Dragongate and TJPW involved in this is significant. TJPW were not involved at all in the big Joshi show celebrating 60 years of Korkauen Hall that was held in 2022. What on earth kind of matchup are they going to put together if inter-promotional bouts are planned for the show?

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