David Finlay opens up about being forced to withdraw from the New Japan Cup, the state of the Bullet Club War Dogs, his desire for gold, and more.
David Finlay recently lost the IWGP Global Championship to Nic Nemeth and as he was looking toward the New Japan Cup Tournament as a way to potentially earn a chance to gain more gold, he was forced to withdraw from the tournament and subsequent events due to illness.
Now, Finlay has posted a video to social media providing an update on his health, physically and mentally, and issues a promise that while the recent Cage Match that Bullet Club War Dogs participated in on February 11, 2024, has already had its fair share of repercussions for the group, he does not intend to allow the match, nor its lingering effects, to take him out of the game completely.
"I see all the talk that's out there and I hear all the whispers and the rumors about 'The Rebel' and his War Dogs, but before I talk about now, I want to talk about my IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship match that I had with Nic Nemeth," he began. "See, it was only about a week after I spent 64 minutes inside of the steel cage and won the most brutal match in New Japan history that I was forced to defend my championship against Nic. Right before I limped out the curtain, someone from New Japan comes up to me and whispered something in my ear that changes the War Dogs forever. My body was already broken and now, they made sure that my brain was, too. So, congrats, Nic. They didn't stack the deck in your favor at all, did they?
"Well, let's cut to today," he continued. "See, I've been dragging those Cage Match injuries around ever since and I've had no time to rest, which means I've had no time to heal. I went from the Cage Match straight to a championship match, then straight into a grueling New Japan Cup. For all the idiots out there, that means damage on top of damage on top of damage. So they wouldn't clear me for my quarter-final match, which, quite honestly, is bullshit. How am I healthy enough to defend my Championship a week after the brutality that I endured but as soon as I want to earn it back, now you're worried about my health? Interesting. I would have been more than happy to show up in a stretcher and leave in a hearse if it meant getting my hands and gold again but New Japan had other plans."
All this being said, Finlay promised that this would not deter him from finding his path to more championship gold in New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
"I will have to find another way. A damn Cage Match has already claimed one of my War Dogs but I promise you this, it will not take out its leader," he said, to bring the video to a close.
Time to address the rumors and whispers about my health and my War Dogs.#njpw #bulletclub #wardogs #njcup pic.twitter.com/Ap4m9pv05Q
— David Finlay (@THEdavidfinlay) March 22, 2024
The Cage Match referenced would see Alex Coughlin, Clark Connors, David Finlay, Drilla Moloney & Gabe Kidd defeat The United Empire's Francesco Akira, HENARE, Jeff Cobb, TJP & Will Ospreay. The match was Ospreay's last in NJPW before heading to All Elite Wrestling full-time.
One member of the War Dogs who has signed a new contract with NJPW and therefore will not be leaving anytime soon is Gabe Kidd. Learn more about that here.
Finlay did not address when he would be back inside the ring. Fightful will continue to provide any updates on his health as more information is made available.
If you use any of the above quotes, please credit the original source and make sure to link back to this article giving Fightful credit for the transcription.
