Yoshiki Inamura Reflects on His WWE Excursion and WWE NXT Experience

Pro Wrestling NOAH talent Yoshiki Inamura recently had an excursion run in WWE for their NXT brand from November of 2024 to this past August. Inamura made his official return to NOAH earlier this month.

NOAH recently held an interview with Inamura. One of the topics discussed included Inamura’s thoughts about his recent return to NOAH.

“To be honest, I’m home. I was born in Pro Wrestling NOAH and grew up here, so I’m very happy to be able to come back there.”

Inamura also gave his thoughts about his experiences at WWE’s NXT brand and what made him feel nervous.

“Just one thing made me anxious… I knew nothing about the NXT system itself. With so many wrestlers there, I didn’t know who was wrestling or who wasn’t. At first, I couldn’t even imagine what I should do there…”

In response to a question about how the pro wrestling systems in Japan and America are different, Inamura stated that he got used to things quickly in NXT. Inamura also gave his praise of Tavion Heights, Charlie Dempsey, Josh Briggs, and the coaches at the Performance Center for taking care of him.

“Yes, but I got used to it within a month. I had the ability to adapt… Also, Tavion Heights, Josh Briggs, and the coaches who were in NOAH and had experience in Japan, all of whom were former wrestlers, really took good care of me. Since they had been taken care of in Japan, they looked after me as a Japanese guy. The biggest one was Josh Briggs. And Charlie Dempsey, who’s in NOAH now, also looked out for me a lot.”

Inamura also gave his thoughts about the differences when it comes to communication with coaches in Japan and NXT.

“Yes, but in Japan, it’s often a one-way street to be taught by a senior, but in NXT, it’s normal to proactively ask. What does the coach want? What do you want to know? If you don’t actively communicate, nothing starts. That’s why I pushed myself with English too.”

Inamura also gave his thoughts about what he learned the most for his in-ring career during his time in WWE’s developmental brand.

“As you can see, my fighting style hasn’t changed. But the substance has changed significantly. My coach, Dave Finlay, told me, ‘Don’t be a gentleman.’ Don’t be a gentleman in the ring. When he said that, it hit me hard, and everything clicked into place.”