(NOAH) "Follow Me You Bastards" - Kenoh's Weekly Pro Column

1st March 2022

Weekly Pro

Q: Kazuyuki Fujiya took the GHC Heavyweight Championship, and joined Noah.

KENOH: I was surprised. Anyway, Fujita's beer drinking is really cool. When I see Fujita drinking beer, I feel like drinking beer in a tankard.

Q: Certainly, it was exciting.

KENOH: Firstly, the signing ceremony two days before the title match was interesting. Fujita drank that tasty looking beer, even if he was attacked by Katsuhiko Nakajima. It was completely beyond my expectations. If you show the footage then the expectations for the title match will increase, 120 points out of 100.

Q: Kenoh, you attach a great important to raising pre match heat at press conferences.

KENOH: I can understand Nakajima wanting to splash beer, because Fujita's bad attitude is annoying. I think he tried to make Fujita angry, but had he responded, then he would have had no choice but to sit down. Fujita might have completely won the mental battle two days before the title match.

Q: That is enormous mental damage

KENOH: But, Katsuhiko Nakajima refused to give in, and was cool like Kongoh. The result was that in the title match, Nakajima lost and Fujita became the GHC Heavyweight Champion. Of course, I admit his strength and it was a great match with a lot of tension, but the champion is 51 years old? 

Q: The GHC National champion is 52 year old Masakatsu Funaki

KENOH: Hey, Funaki is different from other people in their 50s because he has a strong belief.

Q: What do you mean?

KENOH: Funaki joined Kongoh, but he did not belong to Noah. Perhaps there was a consultation with the company about his affiliation. Still, Funaki remains as a freelancer, and as he said, the purpose of joining Kongoh was "stimulation". Becoming a member in your 50s is a place of peace, it's like entering your final home. For the time being, you can live your life stably by completing the schedule given by the company, but then it becomes difficult for you to maintain a strong belief because you are pampered. Funaki dared to enter Kongoh while pretending to be spoiled, eliminated the temptation of stability, and instead turned it into a stimulus and a challenge to himself.

Q: Very like stoic Funaki

KENOH: Kongoh's Funaki...he's cool. Fujita, on the other hand at the press conference said something like, "From now on...I am affiliated to Noah, and my life will be stable..." If he is aware of that as soon as he joined, saying that is bothering as a member of the same promotion. As a pro wrestler, I don't want you to be calm. The press conference was him messing around with smug self satisfaction, making everyone laugh with inside jokes. Isn't that the harmful effect of becoming a member who can't create the anticipation that subsequently leads to the most important stage. Isn't that the harmful effect of having already become a member? 20 out of 100 points. 

Q: That's harsh

KENOH: For Noah, who are currently aiming to be the number one in pro wrestling, the big names are vital to give a sense of scale of the fight. But, the big names have a high guarantee and everyone has a strong self assertion and it's a hassle. I want a battlefield because even the hard to use big names, can't be easily used by another promotions because of corona. The reason why the big names are shining in Noah post Corona, is because they are hungry and losing their places to fight, and are fighting desperately to live. 

Q: That's a perceptive point of view

KENOH: Take for example, Keiji Mutoh. In February of last year, he became the GHC Heavyweight Champion and joined Noah, and for a while he was a big success. If the glare of the first half of the year had persisted, I am sure that he could have taken the MVP last year. However, in the second half of the year, he became a member and I think the serene part appeared inside and outside of the ring. He is resting now due to an injury. The same can be said at the same time for some former members of Noah in their 50s, although they will desperately deny it!

Q: If you insist. Are you angry again?

KENOH: I'm just saying what everyone thinks, and therefore I don't want to Fujita to get stuck in the same rut as Mutoh and the others. Even if he belongs to Noah, I want him to stay a wild hungry beast, instead of becoming a domesticated household pet.

Q: Well said!

KENOH: In that sense, Hideki Suzuki, who was dismissed from WWE and returns after being lost on his way to Noah, must be treated with maximum caution. 

Q: You will face Takashi Sugiura & Hideki Suzuki in the first round of the GHC Tag Team Championship event on March 13th in Yokohama

KENOH: Noah isn't helping people in need, it's like giving him a belt and handing him a free pass to Noah. Funaki and I will win, so they will always be hungry. We are the GHC Tag Team Champions.

Translated from Weekly Pro

Picture Credit: Weekly Pro