NJPW Formally Retires KOPW Championship

NJPW has formally retired the KOPW Championship. As previously reported, the promotion announced that the championship would be retired after Great-O-Khan revealed his intention to do so ahead of Wrestle Kingdom 19 in order to make the New Japan Ranbo at the show for an IWGP Heavyweight Championshup match. NJPW made the announcement on Thursday that the title was formally retired by the IWGP Committee.

The announcement reads:

IWGP Committee formally retires KOPW title
After the request of KOPW 2024 Champion Great-O-Khan on December 22 2024, the IWGP Committee has hereby formally retired the KOPW Championship.

The KOPW title was created in July 2020 by Kazuchika Okada. With fan votes determining rules, over 50 matches were contested for the KOPW Championships over its lifespan.

On behalf of the IWGP Committee, NJPW thanks fans for their support of the KOPW title, and for their votes and interaction over the years.