Former IWGP Champ SANADA Taking 'Indefinite Leave' From NJPW

At New Japan Pro Wrestling's New Year Dash!! event on Monday, House of Torture member SANADA caused a stir, making his entrance to the ring with a guitar that carried the message "Good Bye New Japan" on a small screen. It didn't stop there though, as SANADA declared after the match that he was "going on a journey," fanning more flames to the idea that he may be departing the promotion.

Today, New Japan confirmed those suspicions, announcing on their website that SANADA was on "an indefinite leave of absence from competition." The announcement suggests that SANADA is still with New Japan, though the promotion offered no potential return date for him, and apologized to fans that had purchased tickets in the hopes of seeing SANADA wrestle.

SANADA's leave of absence comes as plenty of speculation has ramped up regarding the contractual status of other New Japan stars, including SANADA's House of Torture stablemate EVIL, who is reportedly looking to explore his options outside of New Japan. Should both EVIL and SANADA leave, they would be following in the footsteps of former Los Ingobernables de Japon stablemates Tetsuya Naito and BUSHI, who departed New Japan last spring and have worked as freelancers since.

Though he is mostly known for being a member of LIJ and House of Torture, SANADA found success as the leader of his own stable, Just Five Guys, in 2023, including defeating Kazuchika Okada to win the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship in April. He would hold the championship for nearly nine months before dropping the title to Naito at Wrestle Kingdom 18.