Zack Sabre Jr Says His Career Is A Failure If He Can’t Win NJPW G1 Climax

In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Zack Sabre Jr spoke about taking part in the NJPW G1 Climax tournament and how he thinks his career will be a failure if he can’t win it. Here are highlights:

On winning the G1: “It’s probably somewhat dramatic to say that my career will have been a failure if I don’t win both the G1 this year and the IWGP world heavyweight title, but that’s the gut feeling I have–and I’m vegan, so I have a great constitution. This is my eighth G1, and it’s undoubtedly the most prestigious tournament in all of pro wrestling–but to solely win it this year isn’t enough. I’ve failed to win the top IWGP heavyweight title three times, so in my mind, it’s really now or never if I’m going to truly reach the top of the industry.”

On discovering Japanese wrestling: “I’m sure that, even in a digital age nowadays, discovering Japanese has a huge impact on people, but for me waiting for bootleg–ahem, definitely official–VHS tapes to come in the post when I was a teenager was a life-changing experience. The wrestling landscape was a completely different world in 2001. And I honestly don’t think I would have become a pro wrestler if I hadn’t discovered Japanese wrestling at that time. I’ve spent more of my adult life in Japan than anywhere else, so I owe more than just my career to the country. But pragmatically now, the environment and the infrastructure of the industry is still best suited to my style. New Japan is where I can be the best wrestler that I possibly can.”

On wrestling how he wants to wrestle: “I’m incredibly fortunate to be following my passion, so it naturally just leads you to strive for that. It’s a wonderful aspect of the relationships NJPW has globally. Being a NJPW wrestler doesn’t restrict you to only Japan. I’m in the 20th year of my career, so to be heading over to CMLL for the first time is a new challenge. Wrestling in Arena Mexico for the first time is a real bucket list achievement.”