Former IWGP Heavyweight Champion Announces Retirement

The Wrestle Kingdom 14 press conference concluded with the announcement that Manabu Nakanishi would retire on February 22nd.

Now an announcement from chairman Sugabayashi.
Thank you for coming here. I have one thing to announce.

Manabu Nakanishi has decided to retire on February 22 at a special retirement event in Korakuen Hall.
WATCHhttps://t.co/YYpKS1iKgA#njpw

— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) January 7, 2020

Speaking at the conference, Nakanishi cited the fact that he has recently required time off to heal his neck.  When speaking of final opponents, Nakanishi emphasized a desire to face peers of his generation.

Nakanishi debuted for New Japan in 1992, having trained under the God of Puroresu Karl Gotch.  His excursion to the United States would follow his Young Lion’s Cup victory in 1995. He would perform in WCW as Kurasawa from July 1995 – September 1996 before returning to New Japan.

Nakanishi would win the 1999 G1 Climax, and hold multiple tag team championships in New Japan.  He captured the IWGP Heavyweight Championship from Hiroshi Tanahashi in 2009, though his reign would end 45 days later.

Throughout his career, he would occasionally appear at Japanese promotions such as DDT, NOAH, and AJPW.  Nakanishi’s most recent match was in Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night One’s pre-show where he was pinned by Satoshi Kojima in a tag team match.

What has been your favourite Manabu Nakanishi match? Let us know on Twitter or on Discord!

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