
A number of notable names, including WWE stars Bayley and CM Punk, have sent messages to Sumie Sakai following her retirement.
Sakai wrestled her final match at Saturday’s (January 11) NJPW Battle in the Valley event, after challenging Hiromu Takahashi to a six-person mixed tag team match.
The former ROH Women Of Honor Champion ultimately came up short, teaming with EVIL and SHO in a losing effort against Takahashi, Mayu Iwatani & Yuka Sakazaki.
The wrestling world has now reacted to the Japanese wrestling veteran’s in-ring retirement.
Prior to the match, CM Punk had sent Sakai ‘love and respect’ on his Instagram story, which you can view below.
Former WWE Women’s Champion Bayley also shared a post for Sakai, taking to Twitter to share a photo with the retiring star.
NXT’s Stephanie Vaquer shared footage from a previous match with Sakai on Twitter, writing:
THANK YOU SUMIE SAN ❤️ @SumieSakai
It’s an honor to be your friend.
You can view more posts from other notable names – including AEW’s Christopher Daniels and Lee Moriarty – below.
While Sakai has been active since April 1997, she arrived on the radars of many US-based wrestling fans during her stint with ROH.
She became the inaugural Women of Honor Champion in April 2018, the promotion’s first women’s world title, which was replaced by the ROH Women’s World Championship in 2021.
We will Sakai well in her retirement.
CM Punk message to @SumieSakai for her retirement match ❤️ pic.twitter.com/QQjkpsyTm2
— Teffo (@Teffo_01) January 11, 2025
.@SumieSakai ❤️ pic.twitter.com/xtQJIqtW0W
— Bayley (@itsBayleyWWE) January 12, 2025
THANK YOU SUMIE SAN ❤️ @SumieSakai
It's an honor to be your friend pic.twitter.com/M5IEpalz3d
— Stephanie Vaquer (@Steph_Vaquer) January 11, 2025
Congratulations on an incredible career @SumieSakai. It’s a pleasure to know you and to have worked with you! #SumieFinal
— Christopher Daniels (@facdaniels) January 12, 2025
Best of luck @SumieSakai !
— TAIGASTYLE (@theleemoriarty) January 11, 2025
This makes me happy. Congrats @SumieSakai ❤️ https://t.co/kLPsHfk9mT
— Anthony Bowens (@Bowens_Official) January 12, 2025
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