Backstage Update On AEW's Plans For Konosuke Takeshita

Though his stint with AEW has been relatively short thus far, Konosuke Takeshita has already done plenty to endear himself to its fanbase, having stellar matches with the likes of Jon Moxley, "Hangman" Adam Page, and Claudio Castagnoli along the way. As a result, it appears the hard work of the long-time DDT star has gotten the attention of top AEW brass.

The latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter notes that, despite Takeshita having yet to pick up a big singles win since his arrival, AEW has earmarked the rising talent as a top-tier guy with significant plans in the works that would see him pushed to greater heights in the future. The prompt to this proposed new importance is centered around Don Callis, who, in storyline, has been seen scouting Takeshita matches on "AEW Rampage" and "AEW Dark: Elevation."

Takeshita hasn't been present on AEW programming since the December 26 episode of "Dark: Elevation," where he defeated Frankie Kazarian. Over the past week, he has been back in Japan, working several shows for DDT, including a joint show with Big Japan Wrestling on New Year's Eve. His stay in Japan won't be long though, as he's set to wrestle on "AEW Dynamite" next week in Los Angeles. He'll be facing Bryan Danielson, as "The American Dragon" looks to climb the ranks and cement himself as the No. 1 contender. Doing so will get Danielson a shot at the AEW World Championship against MJF at Revolution in a 60-minute Iron Man Match.