(Noah) The GHC Champion makes his first defense, aspirations for "Marufuji battle in August"

Yahoo Japan
7th January 2018

Noah held the GHC Championship match at Korakuen Hall (6th January) which kicked off with the challenger, Kaito Kiyomiya (21) and Kenoh (33), who succeeded in his first defence.

He was visibly different from his training overseas, and tried to make it a triumph and beat the champion, who recieved the cheers of the fans.

Kenoh did not hesitate to deploy the heavy kicks, and kicked out of the fierce tiger bomb. At the end he hit three kicks to the left and the right, and broke the ambition of the young man aiming to crown himself the youngest champion in the history of the title.

Kenoh could not afford to stumble in this way in order to attain his goal to end the era of Naomichi Marufuji (38) and Takashi Sugiura (37), but the setting for this is likely to come in the summer.

Noah's chairman, Masayuki Uchida (55) said, "We will set up a big match for this year marks the anniversary for Marufuji who is a symbol of this group, so I would like to have a suitable celebration". It will be around the date of Marufuji's debut on August 28th 1998. They will select a venue and announce it at the end of this month at the earliest. Memorial events are usually done with a fellow wrestler of whom there is a close relationship, but according to the chairman, there is the possibility of a title fight.

Kenoh has stated, "the opponent challenges in the title fight. If you do not challenge me, I will challenge you", suggesting the possibility that he will force the nomination.

In the V2 (second defence) he has accepted the challenge of Yuko Miyamoto (35) at Korakuen Hall on February 2nd 2018. "Do not take your eyes off of me, I will make this match interesting"; Kenoh will be towing the ark in 2018.

Link to original article in Japanese