KUSHIDA Is Ready To Fight Josh Alexander For The Impact World Championship

New Japan Pro-Wrestling star Kushida is widely considered one of the greatest junior heavyweight competitors of his generation. One of only three men to ever hold the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship six times, Kushida went on to briefly dominated cruiserweight wrestling in WWE from 2019 to 2022 before returning to his home promotion in June 2022.

However, since his return, Kushida has spent most of his time competing as a representative of NJPW in the United States and is looking toward heavyweight championships instead of staying in his junior heavyweight lane. Kushida spoke to Sports Illustrated about his upcoming match against Josh Alexander for the Impact Wrestling World Championship at NJPW x Impact Wrestling Multiverse United on March 30. In the interview, Kushida recalled his history with Impact Wrestling and why winning the title would mean so much. "I stayed in Windsor, Canada, in 2009, and Scott D'Amore took care of me from start to finish," Kushida said about the current Impact Wrestling Executive Vice President. "From then on, I really wanted to wrestle in [Impact]. I know the history of the company."

Kushida's past with D'Amore is far from the only reason he is excited to be facing Alexander for the Impact World Championship. "Challenging top wrestlers is one of my lifeworks," Kushida explained before adding, "Their champion, Josh Alexander, is also my favorite type of wrestling fighter, so I'm ready to fight for his championship."

Since debuting for Impact Wrestling last July, Kushida has waged war against Bullet Club, aligning himself with his old friends Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin to create a team called Time Machine. His match against Alexander will be his first singles championship match since he challenged Darby Allin for the TNT Championship in his one-off appearance for AEW last January.