Various: Brian Myers Signs New Impact Contract, Hiroshi Tanahashi on Bullet Club’s Importance, Indies

Impact Wrestling

Dec 30, 2022

Brian Myers Signed New Contract with Impact Wrestling

Sports Illustrated held a recent interview with Brian Myers. One of the topics discussed included Myers revealing that he recently signed a new contract with Impact Wrestling that will keep him in the company through 2023.

“This was an easy decision for me. It’s a place where my talent is going to get the most opportunity. That’s what is important to me.”

Myers also gave his thoughts about his main goal for 2023 in Impact.

“Hands down, my goal is to become the Impact Wrestling world heavyweight champion. I’ve been an absolute workhorse for Impact Wrestling, and I truly believe this is my time.
I have my eyes set on Josh Alexander. We’ve been wrestling for years, but this is our chance to do it on Impact’s grandest stage. I am ultimately going to be everything Impact wishes he was. I’m the complete package, and I’m going to prove that.”

Hiroshi Tananashi Comments on Bullet Club Being Most Important Faction of Past 20 Years

New Japan Pro Wrestling’s official website held a recent interview with Hiroshi Tanahashi. One of the topics discussed included Tananhashi’s thoughts on Prince Devitt’s, also known as Finn Balor in WWE, transformation and star rise in NJPW.

“Devitt was incredible in that spot. He was just so driven with that idea, that if he was going to do it, he was going all in. He completely changed his approach, changed his style. Turned on a dime, started building his matches around punches and kicks. That was all out of a desire to embrace that heel persona and do it properly. I think he took risks that really gave him breadth and depth as a wrestler. This phase of his career made him the superstar he is now. He was a little softer when he first came to Japan, but the fans saw the effort he put in to get shredded like that. Visually he was a guy you wanted to get behind; I would if I was a fan. And he was developing and becoming more stable as a wrestler as well; he got hurt a lot at first in japan, but those injuries became much less of a factor. As he adapted to the Japanese style, he took a lot of ideas on board, made them his own, and got to be a hell of a talent.”

Tanahashi also gave his thoughts on his belief that Bullet Club has been the most important faction in wrestling of the past twenty years.

“That was the core four, Devitt, [Bad Luck] Fale, [Karl] Anderson and Tama Tonga. I think from there it’s no exaggeration to say that BULLET CLUB is the most important faction of the last twenty years at least. Wherever you go overseas you still see fans in BULLET CLUB shirts, and all those people in the top slot over the years, Devitt to AJ to Kenny Omega to Jay White are really best of the best.”

Misc. Wrestling News & Notes

Stardom’s Dream Queendom 2022 event on Thursday in Tokyo, Japan featured Giulia defeating Syuri to become the new World of Stardom Champion.

Stardom’s Dream Queendom 2022 event also featured former WWE NXT UK talent Xia Brookside making her surprise return to the company. Brookside and Mariah May made their surprise returns accompanying Mina Shirakawa to the ring for her tag team match with Unagi Sayaka against Mai Sakurai & Thekla. Despite being victorious, Shirakawa launched an ambush attack on Sayaka and officially announced the debut of her new group with Brookside and May called “Club Venus.”

Former Ring of Honor wrestler Deranged recently launched a GoFundMe fundraiser to help financially support his medical costs and living expenses due a very serious knee injury he suffered at a wrestling event this past October. Deranged stated that this injury is currently expected to keep him out of action for at least one year to eighteen months and there is a chance he might not be able to wrestle again depending on how his knee heals.

During a recent interview with New Japan Pro Wrestling’s official website, KAIRI revealed that she had been instructed by a doctor to not wrestle at NJPW and Stardom’s Historic X-Over event this past November due to a sprain ankle injury she had suffered prior to the event. KAIRI also stated that she decided to work through the injury in order to compete in her scheduled match for the IWGP Women’s Championship at the event.

NJPW recently announced that Fuji TV will be airing a new NJPW-themed series on their network in Japan starting next month. It was announced that this upcoming new series is titled THE Spirit – Project to Discover Wrestlers with a Fighting Spirit, will focus on recruits training for a potential career in NJPW, and Kazuchika Okada will be the lead trainer. (English translation via PostWrestling.com)

NJPW also recently announced that they will be holding a new training camp at their L.A. Dojo on January 19, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. It was also announced that KUSHIDA will be the lead trainer for this upcoming camp.

In a recent interview with the Keepin’ It 100 podcast, Cain Velasquez revealed that he recently had talks with former MMA fighter Daniel Cormier over the idea of them working in a potential match in Lucha Libre AAA in the future.

Major League Wrestling recently announced that the FBI (Little Guido & Ray Jaz) will be making an appearance for the company at their Blood & Thunder 2023 event on January 7, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Lucha Libre AAA’s Noche de Campeones 2022 event this past Wednesday in Acapulco, Mexico featured AAA booker Konnan officially stripping Sammy Guevara and Tay Melo of their AAA World Mixed Tag Team Championship due to them no showing the event. Konnan also stated that new champions would be crowned that night, which resulted in Flammer & Abismo Negro Jr. defeating Lady Shani & Octagon Jr and Komander & Sexy Star II to become the new champions.

Impact Wrestling recently announced that they will be hosting a live episode of the 83 Weeks with Eric Bischoff podcast as part of their Hard To Kill 2023 Fallout festivities on January 14, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Impact also announced a new match for the card of their Hard To Kill 2023 event in Atlanta, Georgia: