Uncensored Writing: New Japan

Showing posts with label New Japan. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Why Hasn't Anyone Signed AR Fox?

Before the pandemic hit, it seemed that anyone who had any bit of potential was being scooped up by WWE, AEW, Ring of Honor, Impact, and New Japan. And despite independent wrestling being raided for talent, there was one name that always shocked me that he somehow didn’t get a big time organization contract, and that man is AR Fox.

I have been lucky to see AR Fox about a dozen times since he wrestled quite a bit down in Florida. Every match I have ever seen him in has been somewhere between very good and holy shit, and it isn’t all competition as I saw him against less than stellar competition with a crowd of like 15 people at a Style Battle in New Port Richey. Of course, when the competition is stellar, like the time I saw him against Matt Riddle, that’s when he can produce those holy shit matches.

But it’s not like he’s new to the scene. The guy has been awesome for a long time. The first time I saw him was at the WrestleCon Supershow back in 2015. I saw him team up with Jushin Thunder Liger and Ricochet to take on Roderick Strong, Frankie Kazarian, and Christopher Daniels, which, holy shit, that’s a hell of a lot of talent, and the guy I was most impressed with was Fox. He wrestled a hellacious pace and managed to outshine freaking Ricochet.

Over five years later, he’s still putting on awesome matches, running a wrestling school in Atlanta, and outside of a brief stint in Lucha Underground, he hasn’t gotten a real shot at showing what he can do on a bigger stage. He’d be an incredible addition to any organization, and it is absolutely baffling that it hasn’t happened yet. So for all of you wrestling executives reading this right now, remedy your mistake sign AR Fox before your competition does.

Thursday, February 6, 2020

Pro Wrestling and the Fascinating World of Free Agency

There has never been a better time to be a pro wrestling fan. Yeah, WWE main roster has some major issues, but NXT is fantastic, AEW is providing an interesting challenger, NJPW is still putting on ridiculous matches on their bigger cards, and NWA seems to get better every week. That doesn’t even include ROH, Impact, and MLW who have all been getting positive reviews. People may long for the good ol’ days, but there are just so many great options to watch right now that my only complaint is that I don’t have time to catch up on all of it.

There has also never been a better time to be a pro wrestler. There is a fit for every talented guy out there. If you’re looking to get the most exposure and have the highest potential for earnings, WWE is still the place to be. If you are looking for an international experience where you can work on a different style, the door to New Japan is open. If you are looking for the easiest schedule while having some flexibility in your bookings, both AEW and NWA have openings. Or you could do a sampler platter which appears to be the plan of Marty Scurll.

Everyone assumed that Marty Scurll would join his Elite friends and sign with AEW, yet he shocked the wrestling world and resigned with Ring of Honor instead. Now, with him signing the ROH deal, he was given freedom to work for the NWA and New Japan, and maybe others as well? At first, I questioned the decision, but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense.

In AEW, Marty Scurll was stuck. He was so tied to The Elite that it could have put a ceiling on his potential. Cody and Kenny are your top guys, the Bucks are the tag team greats, and Page is the future star. Marty was the other guy. He was loved, but he also wasn’t seen as a top star since he did most of his work in six-man tags and the junior/lightweight division. He showed his potential in an amazing match against Kazuchika Okada, but it was going to be tough for him to leap over guys that everyone naturally saw him aligned with.

So he surprised everybody and chose not to go with the big wrestling companies on cable and resigned with ROH where he managed to have a very successful year without his Elite compadres. He’s not only making good money by all accounts, but he has the freedom to work with New Japan where he is challenging a former heavyweight champion and NWA where he is already in the title picture. Oh yeah, and he’s got a good amount of creative control in his home promotion of Ring of Honor.

Right now, you would have to say that Scurll is projected to have the most interesting 2020, and he did it by straying away from everything that people thought he would do. Before this, I think most assumed that top free agents would have two choices between WWE and AEW, but Scurll is showing that there are many doors to choose from, and for some top wrestlers, the best path may be the one less traveled.

Monday, December 23, 2019

The WWE Is Ruining... Shelton Benjamin

To say this series has sapped me of any excitement towards wrestling gives this series far too much credit. Main roster WWE is still brutal anytime I check in on it, but NXT is great, AEW can be great, and New Japan is getting ready to be great with Wrestle Kingdom on the horizon. What does this have to do with Shelton Benjamin? Nothing. And that’s really all of my opinion on Shelton Benjamin at this point. He’s still a great athlete, but he’s not an overwhelming athlete at this point, and he’s better off in a tag team as opposed to a singles wrestler. I know I’ve been beating this drum repeatedly, but this is a guy that should be a crony in a stable of more important wrestlers. You could even have a formidable tag team with him and Apollo Crews if you wanted. But really, things are winding down for Benjamin, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he was one of the few talents WWE was willing to let go at this point. He can still be valuable for a couple more years, just not to the WWE where he is their version of wallpaper, only meant to stand in the background and be inoffensive.

Other Wrestlers WWE Is Ruining
Aiden English
Akam
Aleister Black