Lio Rush Reveals Wrestle Kingdom 17 Battle Scars

Lio Rush teamed with YOH at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 today in an attempt at winning the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. While YOH seemingly came out of the match okay, Rush was busted open fairly early into the contest. Rush took to Twitter to provide an update and post a photo of his wounds: "Just a scratch...... Ok maybe more than a scratch 🤕. Either way, I've never felt more alive. Thanks for watching. #Wk17 #LioRush @njpwworld."

Wrestle Kingdom is NJPW's biggest event of the year, which means wrestlers tend to put it all on the line. This was Rush's first Wrestle Kingdom match, as he and YOH took on the United Empire's TJP and Francesco Akira, known as Catch 22. The champions retained their title by TJP pinning YOH with a small package. Rush has yet to get his hands on championship gold since coming to NJPW, although he has only been with the company since November.

Rush and YOH received the opportunity to challenge for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship by winning the annual Super Junior Tag League in December, defeating Bullet Club's Ace Austin and Chris Bey in the finals. During the tournament, Rush and YOH picked up victories over the likes of Suzuki-Gun, Flying Tiger, and Los Ingobernables de Japon. While wrestling on "NJPW Strong" in 2021, Rush faced NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Tom Lawlor for the title but was defeated.