(NOAH) "I can see something new...something will be born" Kota Ibushi reveals his true feelings about the one-on-one fight with Naomichi Marufuji in Ariake on Noah's official YouTube

9th December 2023

Hochi News 

Kota Ibushi, who will face Naomichi Marufuji in Pro Wrestling Noah's main event at Ariake Arena in January 2nd next year, has given an interview to Noah's official YouTube. 

A match with Marufuji had been scheduled twice in the past, but it did not happen due to the injuries to both wrestlers. Ibushi made a surprise appearance in the ring at the Yokohama Budokan on December 2nd, and revealed his true feelings for the singles match that has been decided after more than ten years. First of all, he revealed his current impression of Noah at the Yokohama Budokan. 

"It was a completely different scene from the old Noah ring I was in. It's been a while since I've been in a Japanese ring, but it was a different scenery."

On top of that he reminisced about his past appearances in the Noah ring. 

"There was the event called Differ Cup, which was sponsored by Noah*. It wasn't actually Noah as different promotions were participating, but the ring was Noah's, and so I guess it was Noah. So, the tag tournament was held in May 2005, ten months after I made my debut. The first match was KODO & Ibushi vs KENTA and Marufuji. I was involved with Marufuji-san in 2005, eight months after my debut. I was inexperienced, like new rice. I think I was the youngest and lowest ranking member of DDT, I guess that is why I was selected for that match there. I think he probably helped spread the word about Kota Ibushi, who exploded in the Differ Cup. At that time, I thought there were some awesome new indie wrestlers, and Marufuji and KENTA were probably in the 5th or 6th years of their career, but I thought that they were two people that I would never have anything to do with. Since he was already "Marufuji-san" at the time, it was impossible for him to be in front of a person who was giving off hesitation that made me think he was going to be the one to become the top guy. It feels unrealistic".

Here's how he looks back on his match with Marufuji at the time. 

"It was my first time to experience being controlled by someone, and it felt like I fell into his hands well. I think it was the first time I had felt that way. I had been absorbed from the beginning, but I was influenced by the atmosphere. I was thinking "I'll never get engulfed", but it turned out to be the case."

In 2007, he also participated in a Noah tour. 

"There I had my first taste of touring, traveling around the country for about two weeks. Ah, this is what touring with a major promotion is all about. I still remember travelling by bus, staying in hotels all over the place, and then having another match the next day. I was blown away by it, I was alone with the people I had seen on TV. I wonder if Misawa-san was at the very back? I remember going to Osaka because I couldn't lean against the backrest of the chair in the front row of the bus, and I didn't even hit my back once. But as much as it hurt, it didn't matter, the matches took place when we got there."

He also had a match against Mitsuharu Misawa.

"I think I went in first? Anyway, Spartan X made me explode, and in my mind I was chanting "Mi-sa-wa", although in my heart he was my opponent. But, I didn't think I would fight Misawa-san in the match, but unexpectedly, I ended up fighting Misawa-san from the beginning (of the match). And speaking of Misawa-san, it's about elbows, so I thought that I had no choice but to use elbows, so I kept hitting them. I hit it as many times as I could, and when I got that one elbow in return, everything spun. That's why I thought I only got hit once, but when I watched the footage, I realized that I got hit about four times, and even after my memory skipped a beat, he was still heading towards me with an elbow. I was unconcious, and I really don't remember it, and I got hit with an elbow again. But I was still going, and I probably got three or four shots. I was so excited that in slow motion I was thinking, "Wow, it's Noah, it's Misawa-san, it's Noah, it's Misawa-san, it's Noah". It's true! I can't forget that boom. 

He also revealed his impressions of Marufuji, who he competed with in a singles match at Ariake. 

"Everyone said that he was a genius, and that Marufuji-san's inspiration was amazing, but I didn't think of Marufuji-san in that way at all. Marufuji-san thought that I was a hard worker. I felt like he was probably thinking about pro wrestling all the time, more so than everyone else. Of course, I assume that you like pro wrestling, and I'm sure that's the case with everyone, but I feel like he's someone who thinks more deeply about pro wrestling than most people. I'm more of a "hard worker" type than a genius or anything like that". 

After two singles matches, it will finally be realized on the 2nd January. 

"Perhaps it was the year after Marufuji-san's injury? Marufuji-san and I were going to have a singles match in DDT, but I wasn't recovered from a dislocation. We both missed the singles match, and we didn't overlap, and in the end twelve years passed without us meeting each other. During those twelve years, we've both experienced a lot. Personally, if there is one thing that I've left unfinished, it's that I wished I had been able to do it with Marufuji-san at that time. I am the type of person who doesn't regret anything, but Marufuji is the only person who makes me wonder for a moment what it would have been like if we had done it at that time. I don't want to say I regret it, but I do regret it. That's what it comes down to. In the end I was just trying to be strong. I thought we would never meet again, but now that we're meeting again when we are both in our forties, I think we might be able to see something new".

He continued; 

"If I was in my twenties, I might have been able to see some amazing professional wrestling from people in their twenties. Pro Wrestling varies, but what will Marufuji and Ibushi's pro wrestling be like now that they are both in their 40s? Like, this is what I can enjoy. To be honest with you, I've had injuries to my shoulders, ankles, etc, and I am sure that Marufuji-san is also injured in various places, but even in that condition he's definitely going to have a career of maybe twenty-five years? I've covered a lot of different things in my career for probably twenty years, and since I already have experience points, I think something will be born somehow. It's been a long time since I felt excited". 

Translated from Hochi News

Picture credit: Hochi News

Kota Ibushi Interview

Notes

Differ Cup: Held at Differ Ariake whereby teams of junior heavyweights from different promotions would compete. When Noah came back to Differ in 2017 for the last Differ Cup, they wandered through the now empty and silent areas that a generation had grown up in.