Published: May 2, 2026 by Sanchez Taylor | Last Updated: May 2, 2026 by Sanchez Taylor
Sanchez has over six years of pro-wrestling news writing experience, covering the biggest news stories in WWE, NXT, AEW, TNA Wrestling and more. He has personally interviewed a number of top stars, producing exclusive content with the likes of AEW's Swerve Strickland and WWE's Nick Aldis.
NOAH
Former WWE star Shane Haste scored a huge victory at Pro Wrestling NOAH Spring Mayhem, winning the GHC Heavyweight Champion.
Haste – formerly Shane Thorne and Slapjack in WWE – challenged for Yoshiki Inamura’s GHC Heavyweight Title at the May 2 show.
The challenger was ultimately victorious, pinning Inamura to walk out with the gold.
You can view a clip of the closing moments of this match at this link.
NOAH’s new top champion immediately issued a challenge following his title win, calling out KENTA during his post-match comments, saying:
“It has been a long, long journey to get here, but now I’m on the top, baby! Thank you, Japan. Thank you, Pro Wrestling NOAH. Thank you, TMDK. Thank you, White Raven Squad.
“This has been the biggest dream of mine since I was a child, but now I have another dream. I want to put this GHC title on the line and defend it against KENTA.”
The duo referenced their previous match against one another, before shaking hands.
Pro Wrestling NOAH has now announced that Haste vs KENTA will take place at the May 13 Legacy Rise event.
KENTA notably defended the GHC Heavyweight Championship against Haste at the August 31, 2013 NOAH Super Navigation event.
Their upcoming match will give Haste the opportunity to show his growth in the almost-13 years since then, as he attempts to avoid history repeating itself.
In addition to Haste and KENTA who both had runs with the company, WWE fans will also be familiar with Yoshiki Inamura, whose overseas excursion saw him compete for the US-based promotion from November 2024 to August 2025.
With WWE maintaining a relationship with Pro Wrestling NOAH, it would be an interesting full-circle moment to see the former Retribution member appear for his former home promotion holding the GHC Heavyweight Championship, after not winning any gold during his six year WWE stint.
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