(NOAH) "When it comes to management, I have wrecked two companies" ~ how did Keiji Mutoh's "sudden joining of Noah" come true?
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Keiji Mutoh defeated Go Shiozaki, and seized the GHC Heavyweight Championship at Pro Wrestling Noah's 12th February Nippon Budokan event. At the age of 58, it became a big talking point to achieve "The Grand Slam of three single heavyweight titles of the three major promotions", which include the IWGP Heavyweight Championship of New Japan and the Triple Crown of All Japan. Three days after achieving the "Grand Slam", Mutoh announced without warning that he would be joining Noah, and as a result the attention to Noah has risen sharply.
Noah joined CyberAgent on January 29th last year. From September 1st they became the brand CyberFight Co. Ltd, a pro wrestling subsidiary of CyberAgent and Internet TV "ABEMA". The degree of exposure was increased by the events being broadcast twice a month, and with the superstar Mutoh joining the promotion, this can be said to be news that makes you feel the momentum.
Mutoh joined Noah last year at a dinner with Takahiro Yamauchi, Senior Managing Executive Officer of CyberFight, and Narahiro Takeda, former President of Noah and current Director of CyberFight. It is said that one of the reasons was that Mutoh had empathy with CyberFight's future strategy. Today, we asked the three of them to come together again and we talked about the background of Keiji Mutoh's joining Noah and the future prospects of CyberFight.
"Because I got to eat delicious food"
Q: First of all, I would like to ask about the relationship between Mr Yamauchi, Mr Takeda and Mr Mutoh. Mr Takeda, you have a connection from the New Japan era.
TAKEDA: That's right. It started with New Japan, All Japan and then for a little while, WRESTLE-1. All the groups to which Mr Mutoh has belonged, I have worked with for some reason.
Q: What was the first encounter between Mr Yamauchi and Mr Mutoh?
YAMAUCHI: Last year, when Corona settled down a bit, I had the opportunity to have a meal, and we met met for the first time.
Q: What were the arrangements for having dinner?
YAMAUCHI: I have a meeting at CyberFight a few times a month with Mr Takeda and President Takagi (President of CyberFight), and in talking about how to expand Noah and DDT in the future, I once reported that "I want to know that the key wrestlers are thinking", and after I was asked, "How about Mr Mutoh?", and he took the time to meet with me.
Q: Was that the first opportunity for Mr Mutoh to join Noah?
MUTOH: First of all, it was because I got to eat delicious food (laughs). With good wine.
Q: This will be a good trend (laughs). What kind of impression did Mr Yamauchi have on Mr Mutoh at that time?
YAMAUCHI: I wondered if he was as straightforward as in the media. So, if we spoke about something like "How can we become number 1 in the industry"? When we talked about something like that and I received various advice, it made me strongly feel like I had no choice but to do this together. After that, when I met with Mr Takeda it developed into a meaningful meeting because it developed into a specific story, "How can make happen what Mutoh was talking about?"
Q: What kind of impression did Mr Mutoh have of Mr Yamauchi?
MUTOH: Well, because its the incomparable CyberAgent, and I felt that what I had been thinking about for a long time could actually be done. I used to be on the management side in All Japan and in WRESTLE-1, and Noah have all the tools I wanted at that time. I tried my best to approach various TV stations, including commercial broadcasters, but it is a sphere that I could never reach. Noah has a tool like ABEMA that can be viewed anywhere with a single smartphone, and has also overseas streaming. In the spring of last year, as Coronavirus spread, I was able to have an empty arena match quickly which the fans were able to see, and so I felt a great potential.
Q: Here you can demonstrate what you have cultivated so far, both in terms of physically and more abstract things
MUTOH: Well, I am relieved to be able to leave the physical side to other people. I have to say that I am confident about what I do inside the ring, but when it comes to management, I have wrecked two companies (laughs).
Q: With Noah, you can concentrate on your specialty of pro wrestling (laughs), everything else is left to Mr Yamauchi and Mr Takeda
TAKEDA: There is also President Takagi.
Q: Mr Yamauchi, what potential and appeal did you find in Mr Mutoh's story for the pro wrestling industry?
YAMAUCHI: The first is overseas expansion. We knew that broadcasting overseas was growing in pro wrestling, but as Mr Mutoh has been active overseas we had a frank talk about fan temperament, such as how to acquire fans over there, and what kind of promotions top American wrestlers are attracted to. I think I got some hints for expanding overseas.
Q: On the 12th February, Mutoh became the GHC Heavyweight Champion, and three days later he announced that he would join Noah. Mr Yamauchi, how did you feel about this?
YAMAUCHI: It was a response beyond imagination. Since we are an internet company, we were also watching how it was talked about on Twitter etc, but was also trending. From the time he took the title, from the time he joined the team, the topic rose. It was a big promotion for Noah, and I am really grateful for it. Also, I saw how many times on Twitter that each of Mutoh's comments were quoted by the media and reported in various articles. In that sense he can be called a leading figure, with the strength of words that only a first class wrestler can make you buzz. It felt good.
Q: Mr Mutoh, what was the most important point for your decision to join Noah?
MUTOH: The potential of Noah, which I mentioned earlier, and the comfort. Anyway, in order to do pro wrestling, you should be able to appeal the value of your merit. It is not worth it to simply say, "I will come because I'm not doing anything", but rather that I feel expectant here. Actually, I am the current champion and I am busy now, I am too old to take a break (laughs).
Q: And the contract presented, was, according to Mr Mutoh "a wonderful contract that is a little inferior to Masahiro Tanaka's" (laughs)
MUTOH: That was a little exaggerated. Masahiro Tanaka is not the pitcher of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, but the Masahiro Tanaka in ZERO1 (laughs)
Q: Did you mean Masato Tanaka (laughs)
TAKEDA: However, such remarks are widely covered in the media also
MUTOH: I made a joke in on an on the spot interview, that became the headline.
TAKEDA: The circumstances require further discussion (laughs)
Q: Mr Takeda, what kind of effect do you expect from the addition of Mutoh to Noah for the front desk area of pro wrestling?
TAKEDA: Isn't the pro wrestling business the same as in the world of Kabuki and Noh, like a "troupe"? It takes about three generations to form a promotion. Isn't it a formation like "Sazae-san"*
Q: In New Japan when Mr Mutoh was young, Mr Inoki was at the top with Tatsumi Fujinami, Riki Choshu, Mr Mutoh and the Three Musketeers.
TAKEDA: But in the case of Noah, there is Go Shiozaki's generation and even Kaito Kiyomiya's generation, but the top generation is missing isn't it? So with Mutoh joining, I had the image that he would be suited for that third generation.
Q: There is no generation of Misawa and Kobashi who essentially should be influential figures, and Jun Akiyama belongs to DDT.
TAKEDA: The Junior Heavyweight Division is good because they have Yoshinari Ogawa, but the Heavyweights don't have that component. Naomichi Marufuji and Takashi Sugiura are still working hard as the intermediate generation. Also, for the lowest generation, technique is hard to copy from the next generation up. I think it makes it easier if there is one more. That is why I am hoping that the addition of Mutoh will greatly increase the number of younger wrestlers.
MUTOH: But now in Noah the elderly like me, Fujita (Kazuyuki) and Sakuraba (Kazushi) are trying to hard in an inverted pyramid. It seems that the young people aren't ready yet, so that has to be reversed quickly. No matter how hard I try, the girls aren't going to squeal. I think the market for that must be led by Kiyomiya and the others, so that will be an issue for the future.
Q: Does CyberFight as a group have the awareness that the two years that Mutoh is contracted, is a period of victory or defeat for Pro Wrestling Noah content?
YAMAUCHI: Yes. One of the challenges of CyberFight is that we have to be more stringent in terms of earning profits on the Internet, which is our strength, while there are various aspects which do not go as expected due to Corona etc. However, we are promoting it, and I think it would be great if the wrestlers could make the content stand out and multiply that. I have been working on this for two years, and I want to do what my competitors can't. Of course we will do it on ABEMA, opening an easy to use site. I am thinking of installing a server system through CyberFight, that delivers image quality and powerful visuals, with no user stress etc. By doing so, I wonder if we can differentiate ourselves. We are also strong in online marketing, and we will make it more topical. If wrestlers do something at home or abroad, we will make clear where it can be seen. I think that will be reflected in the motivation of the wrestlers, so I would like to promote such things as well.
Q: What kind of vision does Mr Takeda have for Noah in the future?
TAKEDA: Perhaps the number of spectators at the venue will change again before the Tokyo Olympics. What I have done so far is an investment in a sense, so I think we have to change it from there. We have to hold a high quality event that will fill a large venue. Mutoh used to say, "I can't do a moonsault unless it's a venue with more than 10,000 people" (laugh)
MUTOH: That was before I had knee arthroplasty. I can't do it if there are 10,000 people now.
Q: Even if there was no moonsault, and the venue was overcrowded, the enthusiasm of the wrestlers, including Mutoh will be different, and the expectations of the audience will also change.
TAKEDA: On the video side, WRESTLE UNIVERSE is working with a great systems team, and so I think we have to create content that matches that, and as ABEMA is working hard, I think it is useless if we don't make hard content for that (rough).
Q: Mr Mutoh, you have a two year contract, what do you want to do in Noah?
MUTOH: I don't think about it being such a big deal. It's different from WRESTLE-1, and now I just have to think about what goes on in the ring. I can play matches twice a month in a good way, so I want to enjoy it and contribute with what I have cultivated. After that, we should all think and find solutions for Noah and CyberFight in a big way.
YAMAUCHI: Currently, as Mutoh said, it's not like a conference. I would be happy if we could talk frankly about things like "We should do something like this" or "I think big matches should be like this".
MUTOH: Certainly, I look forward to working with you with delicious food and wine.
*Sazae-san was a comic strip that ran from 1946 to 1976. You can imagine how many changes that society saw during that time, the war had ended and Japan was going through defeat and occupation, heavy social change, and then into the modern era with its rapid economic growth. Comics such as these flourished after the war, as not only where writers\illustrators allowed free reign without the threat of censorship, after such dark years of war and suffering, people needed an escape and excuse to look towards and think of the better times to come.
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