(NOAH) To the sunlit ring
8th & 15th January 2025 (Issue no 2335)
Junya Matsunaga suffers a valiant defeat in his long awaited match against Shiozaki.
Junya Matsunaga's entry into Noah began in July 2024, when Satsuki Nagao was forced to withdraw due to injury. Four months later, on November 24th at Shinkiba, he announced his challenge for Go Shiozaki's World Heavyweight Championship, which had been his original goal, and a title match was confirmed. I thought that was a good thing. He still has a number of matches, but he rarely gets the chance to have them in a spotlight like Noah.
"I can't spend my whole life in the dirt," Matsunaga said. In July 2011, he won ZERO1's singles league event "Himatsuri," in the shortest time since his debut, just two and a half years, and declared, "I'm going to stand at the heart of the pro wrestling world." He is known for his energetic fighting style and great potential.
However, as he himself has said, the honest truth is that he is not attracting attention from the industry as a whole.
Challenging Shiozaki for the World Heavyweight Championship was a great opportunity to embody the desire to compete more outside, a desire he has had since winning the Fire Festival.
For ZERO1, their gold has been leaking to Noah since March 2024. However, Matsunaga went into the match with the mindset that, "I'm sorry, but Go Shiozaki seems more attractive to me than the current belt. I'll take on the challenge as a professional wrestler, regardless of my affiliation."
During the match, he acted almost cocky and tough, trying to tear down Shiozaki's stronghold while stirring up the Noah fans.
No matter how many powerful reverse chops he received, he endured the pain and continued to move forward, unleashing passionate roar befitting a graduate of Animal Hamaguchi Gym. He was finished off with a powerful lariat for the three count, but it was such a fierce battle that the crowd erupted in cheers after the match, even though it was on enemy territory.
"Chasing Noah and Go Shiozaki was not a mistake. I've been aiming for Go Shiozaki ever since TEAM NOAH first came up to ZERO1. Today, I was supposed to win the World Heavyweight Championship. It's frustrating. But someone said, "The interesting thing about pro wrestling is that you never know what's going to happen." I think so too. I wonder what I'll do in the next 25 years, in what ring. The only thing I can say is that I'll repay my debt to Noah with Noah". His meaningful comments are intriguing, but even if Matsunaga didn't get a result in his fight with Shiozaki that day, he was successful in making his presence known in the industry.
Regarding the future of LIMIT BREAK, he openly expressed his competitive spirit, saying, "I want to work with more different wrestlers. In particular, in Noah, Kiyomiya Kaito is my age. I can't afford to lose."
He's now 28 years old and in his fourth year of his career, and in the prime of his career. I hope to see more of Matsunaga fighting with all his might in the sunshine of 2025.
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