Konosuke Takeshita has his sights set on the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship.
AEW's Konosuke Takeshita will compete in the NJPW G1 Climax 34 tournament. The winner of the prestigious tournament will challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 19.
Speaking with Tokyo Sports, Konosuke Takeshita discussed entering the G1 Climax for the first time. (Translated by DeepL)
"This is my third year in the U.S., and I am slowly gaining recognition in the world of professional wrestling as a whole. I wonder if the rest of the unappreciated demographic is the fans of New Japan Pro-Wrestling. I had the sense that I was actually approaching my physical and mental prime, so the timing was good," Takeshita said.
Takeshita also shared his thoughts on competing in B Block, and he noted that the group of competitors represented a new era. He highlighted Yota Tsuji, Ren Narita, Yuya Uemura, and Shota Umino, and he noted that this generation could make the wrestling world exciting for years to come.
"My impression was that there were many young players, and I really felt that this was the G1 Climax of a new era. I objectively felt that there would be comparisons among wrestlers of the same generation, including Yota Tsuji, Ren Narita, Yuya Uemura, and Shota Umino from another block. At least for the next 10 years, this generation will make the wrestling world exciting, and I think it will be an opportunity to show that I am by far the leader of this generation," Takeshita said.
Takeshita later made it clear that he was aiming for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. He stated that it would be pointless to compere in another organization without going for the top title, especially as someone who had been a fan of wrestling in Japan for years.
"I think it's meaningless to move up to another organization unless you are aiming for the championship belt there. I thought the four letters "IWGP" was a good title to have since I had a match with [Jon] Moxley in the Eliminator Match. As a man who has been a wrestling fan in Japan for many years, I felt that I could not ignore this, so I will definitely aim for the belt with the IWGP name on it," Takeshita said.
Click here to see what Takeshita had to say about potentially facing Kazuchika Okada.
Fightful will have coverage of NJPW G1 Climax 34 once it begins on July 20.
