Rohit Raju says he loves IMPACT Wrestling, but he has several places he wants to work for, including NJPW STRONG.
Raju previously spent a few years with IMPACT and eventually rose to prominence in the X-Division. He won the X-Division Championship in 2020, and he continued to compete for IMPACT until his contract expired in January 2022. However, he recently wrestled for the company; he faced Jack Price and Ace Austin at an Ultimate Championship Wrestling show, and the match aired as an IMPACT Digital Exclusive.
In a new interview with Sean Ross Sapp, Raju was asked about the bout, and he stated that he had no idea it was for IMPACT. He noted that he appreciated the fan response and the way people have rallied for him to return to the company. Raju stated that you never know what will happen in the world of wrestling, and he has been reaching out to multiple places. That said, he emphasized that he loves IMPACT, and it will always be home for him.
"No, I had no idea it was for IMPACT. I did a show in Bay City. It was against Ace Austin and Jack Price, two guys that are with IMPACT. Next thing I knew it was on there and I was like, ‘Oh, that’s really cool.’ I thought the coolest thing was the fan response. Those IMPACT fans, I get tagged every week. ‘When are we bringing back Rohit?’ ‘When are you coming back?’ Stuff like that. You never know. You never know what’s gonna happen. I’ve been reaching out to several companies. So we’ll see what happens. There’s a couple places I’d like to hit, but I love IMPACT. It will always be home for me. You never know what will happen," Raju said.
Raju then discussed the journey he has been on since he left the company. He stated that he wanted to bet on himself, and he had fun when he worked at multiple AEW Dark tapings. The veteran also described how he enjoyed working with Rocky Romero at a Glory Pro show.
"I just wanted to bet on myself for a little bit. I’ve had some really fun success at AEW. I loved that experience. Maybe I’ll show back up there. I got a chance to work with Rocky Romero recently as a second time, it was at Glory Pro. If you get a chance, go watch that show. Man, that match, it was so much fun working with Rocky. He’s such a good dude. I’ve been name dropping this whole time like an idiot," Raju said.
Raju made it clear that he wants to face Romero again, preferably at a NJPW STRONG show because he'd like to compete there. As for his goals, he emphasized that returning to AEW is at the top of the list, but he's quite interested in NJPW STRONG, too.
"He is the forbidden door. He knows I want round three. New Japan Strong. That’s what I want. That’s a place I want to go. Jake Something’s been killing it there. He recently got a chance to work with Shingo—awesome. That’s where I want to go. I know there’s a lot of guys there that I know and I would love to put my toe in that water. That’s my next goal is to get back to AEW, do some stuff. Who knows, maybe IMPACT? But I would love to work with New Japan Strong as well," Raju said.
In the same interview, Raju discussed his experience working with AEW. Check out his comments here [will update with link when the interview is live]
Raju remains active on the independent scene; recently, he has worked for Glory Pro Wrestling, AAW, and Black Label Pro.
Catch up on results from around the world of wrestling using Fightful's results section.
