NJPW Announces ‘Indefinite Leave of Absence’ for SANADA

As previously reported, NJPW star and former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion SANADA announced after his match at New Year’s Dash that he’s leaving to “go on a journey.” During the event, he and his House of Torturer teammates Yujiro Takahashi and Yoshinobu Kanemaru lost a match to Hirooki Goto, YOSHI-HASHI & Oleg Boltin.

Now, NJPW1972.com has issued a statement, announcing “an indefinite leave of absence from competition” for SANADA. The statement reads, “Effective January 6, SANADA is on an indefinite leave of absence from competition. No return date is determined at this time. We apologize to fans looking forward to seeing SANADA wrestle, and appreciate your understanding.”

SANADA has been with NJPW since 2016. During his run in New Japan, he became the IWGP World and US Heavyweight Champion, a three-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion, and he also won the New Japan Cup in 2023. Additionally, he held the IWGP World Heavyweight Title for 271 days before losing it to Tetsuya Naito at Wrestle Kingdom 18.