Various: Chris Dickinson Signs with NJPW, Kaun & Toa Liona Signs with AEW & ROH, Shinjiro Otani Injury Update

Chris Dickinson Signs Contract with NJPW

Chris Dickinson announced on Instagram that he recently signed a contract with New Japan Pro Wrestling. Dickinson stated that his deal with NJPW allows him the ability to continue working in the indies but he will be exclusive to them for events in Japan.

“I am beyond proud to announce that I have officially signed an agreement with New Japan Pro Wrestling. I’ve heard you all for years say I should sign with other companies and I appreciate everyone of your hopes for my success but this is what I’ve always wanted. With the companies expansion in the USA on the rise and Japan finally reopening, the future is brighter than ever. I am still available to work independently in the USA and internationally excluding Japan but NJPW is now home. Let’s continue to bring the highest level of pro wrestling to the world together.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Chris Dickinson (@borndirtydiedirty)

---

Kaun & Toa Liona Reportedly Sign AEW & ROH Contracts

Tag team Gates of Agnoy, Kaun and Toa Liona, reportedly recently signed official contracts with AEW and Ring of Honor, according to Fightful and Liona himself.

Fightful Select reported that their sources stated that Kaun recently signed an official contract with both AEW and ROH. Prior to his signing, Kaun previously worked for ROH as a member of the Shane Taylor Promotions stable.

During a recent interview with the Koffin Radio podcast, Liona stated that he recently signed an official contract with both companies but will primarily be working for ROH.

“It’s official, I’m signed with them. I’m part of the ROH roster, but, I’m contracted so you never know when I might pop up on TBS or TNT. Watch Dynamite and Rampage.”

Liona also discussed the process that led to his signing to both companies.

“After all the Dark tapings, I had a conversation with Tony (Khan) and he pretty much said, ‘stay ready.’ I got my gear, had a conversation with Kaun, and we have the same type of mindset. We’re both…we love to grind, we love to work hard, and we both want to be the best to ever do it. It was the perfect partnership for me and him to be put together. When that happened, we just had to stay ready and when we got that phone call, you get that opportunity, you have to get ready to hit it out of the park.”

Transcript h/t: Fightful.com

---

Shinjiro Otani Injury Update – Otani to Undergo Spinal Surgery

As noted before, Japanese wrestler Shinjiro Otani suffered a serious spinal-related injury at Pro Wrestling ZERO1’s event this past Sunday in Tokyo, Japan.

Pro Wrestling ZERO1 recently issued an official statement stating that Otani had suffered a cervical spinal cord injury and he is currently scheduled to undergo surgery on April 13th.

Shinjiro Otani, who was injured in the main event of ZERO1’s 20th & 21st Anniversary Tournament at Oshinobu PREMIUM Ryogoku Kokugikan on April 10.

The name of the [injury] is ‘Cervical Spinal Cord Injury.’

After emergency transport on the night of the 10th, the patient was transferred to the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) for the purpose of securing the airway, and will undergo surgery tomorrow, the 13th, to prevent future deterioration.

Currently, the hospital is asking the attending physician to contact the family and the family to contact us in order to prevent the transmission of coronavirus.

English translation via PostWrestling.com