Creation
New Japan Pro Wrestling was founded on January 13, 1972, by the legendary Antonio Inoki. They held their first event on March 6 of that year in the Ota Ward Gymnasium in Tokyo, in front of a crowd of 5,000 fans.
A few years later, NJPW launched its own governing body, the International Wrestling Grand Prix (IWGP). They established the IWGP Heavyweight Championship that fans know and love in 1987, with Inoki serving as the inaugural champ.
The Rise Of Strong Style
On April 24, 1989, NJPW held its first show in the Tokyo Dome. The event was called Battle Satellite and featured stars like Big Van Vader, Jushi Liger, and Bam Bam Bigelow. Over 43,000 fans were in attendance.Japanese fans loved NJPW’s hard-hitting style. They presented a form of pro wrestling that was much more grounded than that of American promotions, namely the WWE. The company also began to create its own major stars. The most prominent of these were Keiji Muto, Masahiro Chono, and Shinya Hashimoto, known together as the Three Musketeers.
While NJPW enjoyed immense success in its first two decades, a period of great financial hardship was about to fall over the company.
New Japan’s Dark Age
During the 1990s, MMA became incredibly popular in Japan. Inoki viewed the rise of MMA as a threat to pro wrestling’s success. In an attempt to overcome this perceived competition, Inoki began to incorporate aspects of MMA into NJPW shows. He brought in MMA fighters to compete in the ring and sent NJPW wrestlers to compete in MMA fights. However, both of these endeavors failed; pro wrestling fans didn’t want to see MMA fights, and pro wrestlers simply couldn’t hold their own in a sport they weren’t trained for.
Fans grew alienated from NJPW’s new product and gave their support elsewhere. Wrestlers also became frustrated with this new style and began to quit the company, including Keiji Muto and Shinya Hashimoto.
Inoki departed from NJPW in 2005 and went on to create another wrestling promotion of his own, Inoki Genome Federation. Creative control was handed over to a wrestler named Gedo, who was left to rebuild the company and undo the damage done over the last several years. Luckily, he found a new star to help carry NJPW out of the trenches: Hiroshi Tanahashi.
Tanahashi’s in-ring talent, charisma, and undying optimism revived the spirit of NJPW and drew fans back to their seats. It’s very likely that without The Ace, NJPW would have gone under during the company’s Dark Ages.
International Expansion
In May 2011, NJPW embarked on its first tour of the United States, Attack on East Coast. The event introduced American fans to several big names, including Satoshi Kojima, Toru Yano, Kazuchika Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Kenny Omega.
Since then, NJPW has been focusing on its global appeal. They recruit wrestlers from all over the world to perform, many of whom became major players for the company, such as The Young Bucks, Zack Sabre Jr, Will Ospreay, and Jay White. NJPW’s partnership with Ring of Honor, launched in February 2014, helped facilitate a growing familiarity with American fans and NJPW stars.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, NJPW established an American branch titled NJPW Strong. The brand and its weekly television program helped international fans keep in touch with the promotion when international travel was forbidden.
