Willow Nightingale made history at NJPW Resurgence.
At NJPW Resurgence, New Japan Pro-Wrestling crowned the first NJPW STRONG Women's Champion with a one-night tournament. In the first round, Mercedes Mone defeated Stephanie Vaquer in a hard-fought match by pinning her with the Mone-Maker. Willow Nightingale advanced to the finals by beating Momo Kohgo, as she pinned her with the Doctor Bomb.
Nightingale and Mone then clashed in the tournament finals in the main event. They went back and forth, and Nightingale overpowered Mone throughout the bout. In the end, Willow got a near fall with one Doctor Comb, and she followed that up with a second Doctor Comb for the win.
Willow Nightingale has done it. She has defeated Mercedes Mone to become the 1st NJPW Women’s Strong Champion at tonight’s NJPW Resurgence (05.21.2023)pic.twitter.com/NJsyKZmcTa
— Dark Puroresu Flowsion (@PuroresuFlow) May 22, 2023
Nightingale delivered an emotional message after the match, as she thanked her fellow competitors and expressed her gratitude to the fans for their support throughout her journey up to this point.
After the match, Mone was helped to the back, as she seemingly suffered an apparent injury during the bout.
Mercedes Moné being carried to the back. Really hope it’s nothing too serious. -------- #njresurgence
— ------------ (@WrestlingCovers) May 22, 2023
pic.twitter.com/6EqDIUOCz8
Nightingale is currently signed to AEW, and she also competes for ROH. She has also wrestled for Beyond, ROH, and MLW, among other promotions. Mone, formerly known as Sasha Banks, is a WWE Women's Grand Slam Champion. She won the IWGP Women's Championship by defeating KAIRI at NJPW Battle in the Valley, and she lost the title to Mayu Iwatani at the STARDOM All Star Grand Queendom event on April 23.
Fightful will provide more information about Mone's potential injury as it becomes available.
Catch up on our coverage of NJPW Resurgence here.
