New Japan Pro Wrestling head booker Gedo recently spoke with Sports Illustrated’s Extra Mustard, and below are some interview highlights.
On the Difference between WWE and NJPW:
“We are not a soap opera. We are not sports entertainment, we are not acting and not dancing. We wrestle and we are wrestling – we are New Japan Pro Wrestling. Watch a Shibata match and the way he kicks, that’s New Japan Pro Wrestling. [Tetsuya] Naito, [Hiroshi] Tanahashi, and [Tomohiro] Ishii all wrestle and fight. That is entertaining, but it is not entertainment. It’s wrestling.”
On declining a WWE contract offer:
“WWE has characters, and it’s not that big a deal. You need characters that people can understand and like, but that’s not as important as skill. Characters are different in the United States than they are in Japan. Skill and fighting spirit are most important, much more than character, in Japan. Ultimately, my most important thing is my partner, Jedo. I choose to stay with my partner.”
On Kenny Omega being better than AJ Styles:
“Kenny Omega has everything. I think he’s better than AJ Styles. He’s so good and one of the best in the world—and he’s unbelievably physical. Kenny Omega is no longer a junior heavyweight, he’s one of the best.”
On respecting Paul Heyman:
“I respect Paul Heyman. He has many, many good ideas—ideas that make money. Other wrestlers didn’t understand that his ideas would make them money, but I understood that”
Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
