Kazuchika Okada will be leaving New Japan Pro Wrestling at the end of the month when his contract expires, and he recently discussed his decision to leave NJPW in an interview with Tokyo Sports.
According to Okada, his decision to leave the company came “only recently.”
You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
On leaving the company: “First of all, my contract was up for five years this year (the last year of my contract). It was a good time for me to think about something. When I thought about whether I would sign another contract with New Japan Pro-Wrestling…or whether I would look at other worlds, I thought that maybe this was my last chance.”
On when he made the decision: “Of course the company talked to me about various things, and I had been thinking about it for a while. It was really only recently that I made the decision.”
On why he decided to go: “After announcing that I was quitting and going on the tour … I felt too comfortable. I wondered what that would be like. I started my wrestling career in Mexico, came to New Japan Pro Wrestling, and became a rainmaker 12 years later. Maybe if I stay here, I can wrestle without any inconvenience. But I don’t want to become the same Kazuchika Okada without such hunger. I don’t want to be in a situation where I have to rest on my laurels. If I were “human” Okada, I would have friends here, and I would be in the best environment. But as “wrestler” Okada, it was different.”
