Konosuke Takeshita Reflects On Challenges Of Wrestling On US TV

Konosuke Takeshita is a big part of AEW TV, and he recently talked about some of the difficulties he’s had competing on US TV. The AEW star spoke with DDT Pro Wrestling for a new interview and weighed in on the challenges of making a name in the US as an Asian talent and more. You can see a couple of highlights below:

On his match with Minoru Suzuki for DDT Pro this weekend: “I’ve seen him wrestle in AEW in person, and I’ve learnt lots at the many indie shows we shared locker rooms together. Our styles and philosophies on wrestling differ but our way of life as a wrestler, and it might not be the right way to phrase it but his resilience in an unforgiving industry is amazing. And I’ve come to understand how amazing that skill is in my current environment seeing how often he is called over to shows whether in Japan or America.”

On the challenges of making a space for himself on US TV: “I thought hard work could cover for everything else before getting there. If I showed how good I am I could get more airtime, but there are other aspects that come to play when competing here (in America). Discrimination is not the word here, but unfortunately, there’s a lack of space for an Asian person to be on a TV show watched by Americans. No matter how good my condition was nor the amount of matches I was put it, or how many times they said my match was good, it felt like I couldn’t make it in the starting lineup, to put it in Baseball terms. Everyone felt like they’re having fun Wrestling here (in Japan). I didn’t have any fun wrestling ever since I got to America. The effort was bearing fruit, but I didn’t feel the enjoyment. It was the most mentally exhausting period in all 12 years of my wrestling career. However, when I stopped having fun, my matches were better received, and I gained more recognition. And it’s not proportional.”