Ever since AEW came into existence and even before they had produced their first show as a company, people have been talking about a potential relationship between them and NJPW.
However, so far there has been no indication of the same and while officials have maintained the never say never attitude, there hasn’t really been any solid development that could suggest a future partnership between the two.
The rumours picked up once again after the Japanese promotion was referenced a number of times during this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite including a cameo from Hiroshi Tanahashi.
However, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer killed the rumours recently and replying to a tweet about the references, he revealed that the Tanahashi appearance was Chris Jericho’s doing:
This week’s Dynamite saw Chris Jericho celebrating the 30-year anniversary of his pro wrestling debut. The episode included multiple video messages from various wrestlers congratulating Y2J, including one from the NJPW star.
Though this wasn’t the only NJPW reference on the show. A video package hyping the match between Jon Moxley and Lance Archer featured footage from their previous encounter at the Japanese promotion and Excalibur name-dropped the company on commentary as well.
While the two companies do not have a working relationship at the moment, the recent departure of NJPW CEO Harold Meij has given a new life to the rumours and it would be interesting to see if this change turns out to be a positive development for a future relationship between the two promotions.
