NEVER (professional wrestling)

NEVER
Logo of the NEVER events
PromotionsNew Japan Pro-Wrestling
First eventNEVER.1
Last eventNEVER: Shodai NEVER Musabetsu Kyu Oza Kettei Tournament Final
Event gimmickShowcase for new and younger talent

NEVER was a series of professional wrestling events held by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) between August 2010 and November 2012. On July 12, 2010, NJPW officially announced the NEVER project, which was to highlight younger up-and-coming talent and outside wrestlers not signed to the promotion.[1][2] It was explained that the name of the project was an acronym of the terms "New Blood", "Evolution", "Valiantly", "Eternal" and "Radical".[1] For the events, NJPW recruited several freelancers as well as wrestlers signed to promotions such as DDT Pro-Wrestling and Kaientai Dojo. Some outsiders who became NEVER regulars included Daisuke Sasaki, Kaji Tomato, Madoka, Ryuichi Sekine and Shinobu. Kushida, who entered NEVER as a representative of the Smash promotion in February 2011, signed a NJPW contract the following month and returned to the project the following September, now representing NJPW.[3] Three NJPW trainees; Hiromu Takahashi, Sho Tanaka and Yohei Komatsu, made their professional wrestling debuts at NEVER events. Takahashi, who debuted at NEVER.1, was the only wrestler who wrestled on all thirteen NEVER events.

On October 5, 2012, NJPW announced that NEVER was going to get its own championship, the NEVER Openweight Championship.[2][4][5] The title was originally scheduled to be defended exclusively at NEVER events, but this plan was quickly changed and since its foundation, the title has been defended on the undercards of NJPW events.[4][6] NJPW has not held a single NEVER event since the tournament, which crowned the first NEVER Openweight Champion on November 19, 2012.[7] A second NEVER title, the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship, was announced on December 21, 2015, with the first champions crowned on January 4, 2016.[8]

On July 18, 2015, NJPW announced "Lion's Gate", a project with a theme similar to NEVER,[9] which held its first show on February 25, 2016.[10]

  1. ^ a b "Nextジェネレーション育成 新プロジェクト「NEVER」シリーズがスタート!!". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). July 12, 2010. Archived from the original on December 28, 2010. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  2. ^ a b Caldwell, James (October 5, 2012). "News items: Velvet Sky launches clothing line, Details on Nash's next int'l tour, NJPW introducing new title". Pro Wrestling Torch. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  3. ^ "Kushidaの"新日本入団会見"にTajiri&酒井代表も出席！ 3.18Smash後楽園には棚橋が来場!!". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). March 8, 2011. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  4. ^ a b "あの『NEVER』がリニューアル!! "無差別級王座"も新設!! 11.15＆11.19Shibuya AXで再出発!!". New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). October 5, 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  5. ^ 新日若手興行ＮＥＶＥＲで王座決定戦開催. Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). October 5, 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  6. ^ 復帰の内藤 標的はＮＥＶＥＲ王座. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). May 24, 2013. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  7. ^ 内藤「俺の使命はＮＥＶＥＲ復権」. Tokyo Sports (in Japanese). October 3, 2013. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  8. ^ 【WK10】1.4東京ドームは“8大選手権”！ 第2試合は初代NEVER無差別級6人タッグ王座戦！ 第3試合はROH世界選手権に！ NJランボー参戦選手も追加！. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). December 21, 2015. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved December 21, 2015.
  9. ^ 木谷オーナーが「ファーム設立プラン」「21世紀のIWGP構想」、そして「新日本プロレスは株式上場を目指す」と宣言! 【7.18戦略発表会】. New Japan Pro-Wrestling (in Japanese). July 18, 2015. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  10. ^ Rose, Bryan (February 25, 2016). "Lion's Gate Project 1 results: Nagata vs. Kitamiya; NJPW and Noah rookies shine". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved February 25, 2016.