[Press Conference] Konosuke Takeshita on his Long-term Excursion to AEW “I’m going there to become the best wrestler in the world, and my aim is to be champion”

A Press-Conference took place at Abema Towers on March 28th. After the 4.10 Korakuen show, Konosuke Takeshita will be going on a long-term AEW excursion in America, and he spoke his mind on the situation.



On the anniversary of his AEW excursion, Takeshita said “It’s been my dream to wrestle in the America, and I wrestled three shows including a house show on my AEW excursion last year. My desire to wrestle on a bigger stage became stronger, and once again they indulged me by allowing me to go to AEW. The last time I went for only about a week, but this time I requested a longer duration. I’m very thankful to DDT and AEW for this opportunity. I’m also beyond thankful to Kenny Omega and Michael Nakazawa for creating this opportunity. The only way I can return the favour to them is by achieving results in the ring. Going forward, I want to show the world my style of wrestling on the grand stage of AEW. Konosuke Takeshita’s Season 2 begins here.”
On his aims in AEW, Takeshita responded “Previously, I wrestled twice on a dark match and once on a house show. AEW has a deep and almost impenetrable roster, but my goal is to appear on TV for Dynamite and Rampage.”
On the length of his excursion, he replied “To be frank, I’m not migrating to America immediately. If you think on a 1-year basis, I’ll mainly be in America and ideally return to DDT for the bigger shows. To put it into perspective, I’ll be based in America, return to Japan for a moment and subsequently go back. There are many things we haven’t hashed out yet, and I myself am unsure how long I plan to be there. (A one-way ticket?) Yeah. I’ve not booked my returned flight yet.”
On the reason for his decision, Takeshita responded “DDT has reached an important milestone with Ryogoku on its 25th Anniversary, and I myself reached my 10th. I felt like I accomplished what I needed to do in these 10 years. I’m satisfied. Well, when I thought of what I could accomplish next, I felt like going to America was the best option for me.”

On making a proper appearance, as well as the possibility of a title run, he said “I’m going there to be the best wrestler in the world, so I aim to be a champion….in a sense that could be the goal as well. I’ve seen the high level of wrestling they have at AEW over this past year, and I take pride that DDT is no slouch in that aspect either. But only so many people can make it. The situation there now is completely different. Over the past year their roster has deepened, and I may not be put on the card just by being there. Each match will be a challenge and I hope to overcome it. I’ll show the fans of DDT and Japan that I’m doing my best even across the ocean.