As is the annual tradition, New Japan Pro-Wrestling look to kick off the new year in wrestling with their biggest event of the year – Wrestle Kingdom!
The 16th annual Wrestle Kingdom is set to mark multiple firsts in the event’s history. For the first time ever, the event is set to span three nights just two years after the promotion broke the mold by adding a second night of the show on January 5th.
On top of that, stars from fellow Japanese promotions World Wonder Ring Stardom and Pro Wrestling NOAH will be featured at the event. Whilst female talent from Stardom have competed at Wrestle Kingdom before, the 2022 edition marks the first time they will feature on the live broadcast.
Meanwhile, over 20 stars from Pro Wrestling NOAH will go head-to-head with the stars of New Japan during the show’s history-making third night which is being themed as a ‘New Japan vs NOAH’ event.
But how do you watch NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16? When does the show start each night? And what matches are on the card? Here at Inside The Ropes, we have all the information you need to know ahead of the show!
When is NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16?
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16 is currently scheduled to take place across three nights on January 4th, 5th & 8th 2022. Nights 1 and 2 will emanate from the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan whilst night 3 will take place at the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan. All three nights of the event will have a live crowd in attendance.
Wrestle Kingdom’s first and second nights will begin at 4pm JST, which is 7am UK time. The event’s third night will start slightly earlier at 3:30pm JST, 6:30am in the UK.
How can I watch NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16?
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16 nights 1 and 2 will stream live at 7am UK time on January 4th and 5th respectively through NJPW World and FITE. Night 3, meanwhile, will stream live at 6:30am on January 8th, exclusively via AbemaTV before becoming available on NJPW World a week later on January 15th.
NJPW World costs ¥999 per month for subscribers, which equates to around £6-7, whilst FITE are offering nights 1 and 2 of the event as a pay-per-view bundle for $29.99, which equates to roughly £22.
What is the match card for NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16?
The match card for all three nights are as follows:
Night 1
- Yoh vs Sho
- Hiroshi Tanahashi & The Mega Coaches (Ryusuke Taguchi & Rocky Romero) vs Bullet Club (KENTA, Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo)
- Los Ingobernables de Japón (Tetsuya Naito, SANADA & Bushi) vs United Empire (Will Ospreay, Great-O-Khan & Jeff Cobb)
- Katsuyori Shibata vs TBA – Catch Wrestling Match (strikes are forbidden)
- Tomohiro Ishii (c) vs EVIL for the NEVER Openweight Championship
- Dangerous Tekkers (Taichi & Zack Sabre Jr.) (c) vs CHAOS (Hirooki Goto & Yoshi-Hashi) for the IWGP Tag Team Championship
- El Desperado (c) vs Hiromu Takahashi for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
- Shingo Takagi (c) vs Kazuchika Okada for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship – Winner defends against Will Ospreay on night 2
Night 2
- Flying Tiger (Robbie Eagles & Tiger Mask) (c) vs Bullet Club’s Cutest Tag Team (Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo) vs The Mega Coaches (Ryusuke Taguchi & Rocky Romero) for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
- Mayu Iwatani & Starlight Kid vs Tam Nakano & Saya Kamitani
- Toru Yano vs Minoru Suzuki vs Chase Owens vs Cima for the Provisional King of Pro Wrestling 2022 Trophy
- House of Torture (EVIL, Yujrio Takahashi & Sho) vs CHAOS (Hirooki Goto, Yoshi-Hashi & Yoh)
- SANADA vs Great-O-Khan
- Tetsuya Naito vs Jeff Cobb
- KENTA (c) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi – No Disqualification match for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship
- Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Will Ospreay for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
Night 3
- Sho vs Atsushi Kotoge
- Bullet Club (Taiji Ishimori & Gedo) vs Stinger (Hayata & Seiki Yoshioka)
- Suzuki-gun (El Desperado & Douki) vs Los Perros del Mal de Japón (Yo-Hey & Nosawa Rongai)
- CHAOS (Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto & Yoshi-Hashi) & Six or Nine (Master Wato & Rysuke Taguchi) vs Daisuke Harada, Hajime Ohara, Daiki Inaba, Yoshiki Inamura & Kinya Okada
- Suzuki-gun (Zack Sabre Jr. & Yoshinobu Kanemaru) vs Naomichi Marufuji & Yoshinari Ogawa
- Suzuki-gun (Taichi, Minoru Suzuki & Taka Michinoku) vs Sugiura-gun (Takashi Sugiura & Kazushi Sakuraba) & ???
- House of Torture (EVIL & Dick Togo) vs Go Shiozaski & Masa Kitamiya
- Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Keiji Mutoh & Kaito Kiyomiya
- Los Ingobernables De Japón (Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, SANADA, Bushi & Hiromu Takahashi) vs Kongoh (Katsuhiko Nakajima, Kenoh, Manabu Soya, Tadasuke & Aleja)
You can watch NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 16 nights 1 and 2 live on NJPW World or FITE on January 4th and 5th. Night 3 of the event will be live exclusively through AbemaTV on January 8th and will be available on NJPW World a week later on January 15th.