NJPW Issues Statement on Kota Ibushi’s Issues & Status in Company

As noted before, New Japan Pro Wrestling talent Kota Ibushi recently accused NJPW’s management of “power harassment” against him over the past year.

NJPW President Takami Ohbari and Bushiroad President Takaaki Kidani held a press conference earlier today to discuss Ibushi’s current situation and status within the company.

Ohbari stated that he had met with Ibushi on March 31st to discuss the company’s issues with him breaching the terms of his contract over his appearance at a Just Tap Out event this past March that was not approved by the company. Ohbari stated that Ibushi’s punishment was limited to just a reprimand.

“Not wanting to lose the services of Kota Ibushi in such a manner, and wanting to find out his true mental state and opinions on this matter, I arranged a meeting with Mr. Ibushi at his personal training facility on March 31.

In my brief meeting with Mr. Ibushi, we chatted while we conducted some light exercise. As we moved on the mat, and participated in some jump training, I was amazed at his super human physical abilities, yet Ibushi confided that he found recovery from his 2021 shoulder injury was taking longer than he had expected, and that his range of motion was far from ideal.

After our conversation, Mr. Ibushi took me by car to a restaurant where we continued our conversation. Our conversation was amicable, and Mr. Ibushi explained to me that he had been invited to Just Tap Out by its manager TAKA Michinoku. He also explained that while he was in the dressing rooms, he made an impulsive decision on his own accord to head to ringside and second the wrestlers.

After receiving Mr. Ibushi’s explanation, I reprimanded him, reminding him that this was a breach of his contract with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, as well as a breach of licensing agreements we hold with other companies. Mr. Ibushi sincerely apologized for his actions. Mr. Ibushi’s penalty for his breach was limited to a reprimand as, on hearing with Mr. Ibushi, it was clear there was no intention to breach the terms of his contract, nor did he believe a breach had taken place because he had not participated in a match.

At the point of our meeting, I did not know the exact wording or particulars of Mr. Ibushi’s text conversation with the Official and as a result, did not offer a proper apology for the content of the conversation.”

Ohbari also stated that he learned that Ibsuhi’s series of tweets made earlier this month accusing NJPW officials of committing harassment towards him were made out of concern for his mother, who had suffered a mental breakdown and attempted suicide after becoming distress over her son’s issues.

Ohbari also stated that a meeting was held yesterday with Ibushi and Kidani which involved NJPW “fully and unreservedly” apologizing to Ibushi for the content of the messages sent by a NJPW official named Kikuchi.

“However yesterday, myself and the company owner Mr. Takaaki Kidani were able to meet with Mr. Ibushi, and discuss this statement to you here as well as our opinions on the matter. Before proceeding I would like once again to sincerely apologize to fans for the concern caused by this series of events.

I would now like to relay the company’s stance on this situation.

Mr. Ibushi’s actions in attending an outside event without proper procedure, as well as publicly disclosing internal affairs were actions in breach of his contract, and after consideration of the particulars I previously mentioned, an appropriate penalty for Mr. Ibushi will be determined.

However, the words of the Official in his text conversation were inexcusable, especially in their direction to a wrestler who risks his life in order to fulfill his role as a professional. It is this mindset that directly led to Mr. Ibushi posting his critical tweets about the company. For the thoughtless content of these messages, we fully and unreservedly apologize to Mr. Ibushi.

Despite the Official’s lengthy relationship with Mr. Ibushi, the lack of consideration shown to him and by extension our wrestlers at large should also be met with an appropriate penalty.”

Ohbari stated that Ibushi will remain a contracted wrestler for the company and there was never any consideration given of firing him over this incident. Ohbari also stated that Ibushi likely will be given a salary reduction due to his contract breach and publishing company secrets online though.

Kidani stated that there has yet to be an official decision made on the punishment for NJPW official Kikuchi but it will likely at least involve him being moved to a different position within the company.

In regards to a potential in-ring return for Ibushi, Ohbari stated that the company currently has no timetable set due to Ibushi’s shoulder is still not healthy enough for in-ring action.

Following the press conference, Ibushi stated on Twitter that he was not happy over what was said since a certain important part of his story was ignored. Ibushi stated:

“Don’t leave out the part you don’t want to talk about, the true story from May 8th. I’ll address in detail. My mother sensing my concern, asked me if there are any problems on May 8th. As a result of the story that I told her, on May 9th, she attempted suicide and broke her hip bone. That was 95% of my tweet. Why did you leave it out? I told you yesterday that I would address if it (their explanation on the press conference) was not correct.”

Following Ibushi’s tweet, NJPW issued an official statement that corrected some of the wording about Ibushi’s mother’s suicide attempt from an earlier statement.

Source: F4WOnline.com