Emi Sakura has revealed that she is heading back to All Elite Wrestling.
The legendary joshi wrestler has remained a part of the AEW roster throughout the global pandemic, despite having not appeared on US soil since 2019.
She did however appear in the Japanese bracket of the AEW Women’s Eliminator tournament earlier this year, defeating ASUKA (Veny) in the first round before crashing out to fellow AEW star Yuka Sakazaki in round two.
Having previously challenged for the AEW Women’s Championship before (against Riho at Full Gear 2019), Sakura noted on Twitter that current champion Britt Baker looked ‘very interesting’.
I decided to go to America with a one-way ticket. Please look forward to what happens to #ChocoPro from now on. We are, ChocoPro & we like a challenge.
Now #AEW Women Division, you better be ready, Emi Sakura’s looking at the top & @RealBrittBaker looks very interesting. pic.twitter.com/PpKf4PGhJy
— Emi Sakura さくらえみ (@EmiSakura_gtmv) July 25, 2021
No set date has been confirmed for Sakura’s return to television but her arrival will certainly provide another welcome addition to AEW’s growing women’s division.
During the pandemic, Sakura had made good use of her time in Japan, developing the straight-to-camera ChocoPro promotion out of her existing Gatoh Move company.
ChocoPro, which will continue in her absence, has provided a global platform for the likes of Baliyan Akki, Yuna Mizumori and another participant of the AEW Women’s Eliminator tournament, Mei Suruga.