NJPW is reporting that Kazuchika Okada did not appear for Pro Wrestling NOAH’s ‘Last Love’ press conference this past Tuesday, instead sending a statement that he was “absent in order to prepare for a championship match on February 18.”
Okada will defend the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship against Hiroshi Tanahashi at the NJPW Battle in the Valley pay-per-view event.
The report further suggests that Okada’s absence drew an outburst from his opponent at the ‘Last Love’ show, Kaito Kiyomiya. Kiyomiya said,
“You’re not coming? After you jumped me from behind after the main event in Osaka? Don’t you dare run from me! I’ll tear you apart!”
Okada and Kiyomiya will wrestle at the February 21st show, which takes place at the Tokyo Dome and marks Keiji Muto’s final wrestling event.
