Top NJPW superstar Tetsuya Naito recently spoke with the NJPW press to hype up this week’s WrestleKingdom 16 pay per view and discuss all things pro-wrestling, most notably how the former world champion is thinking about retirement after an illustrious career with the promotion. Highlights are below.
Says he dropped weight going into the G1 because of his knee issues:
“I lost weight heading into the G1. A lot of it was stamina for a run of singles matches, but while I was rehabbing, I figured I’d actually lost a little too much weight, so I ate a lot while I was off. My knee was a big part of that. The more weight you have on a bad knee, the worse it gets.”
Says he is thinking about retirement:
“To tell the truth, when I started in the business, I thought I’d go until I was 40. As I’ve gotten nearer, I’ve started to become more conscious about retirement. I’m not saying I’m going to hang it up tomorrow. It’s just that the word ‘retirement’ is looming in my mind. That’s a sad thing for sure, but it’s motivating at the same time. Time waits for no man. But that means if I don’t enjoy everything to its fullest now, I’ll regret it later. If anything, being aware of my use by date has made me stronger than ever. I’m not going to carry on just to carry on.”
Believes he can switch to civilian mode in a heartbeat:
“When I’ve lost sight of a goal, I’ll stop then and there. Goals are important to me. If I have them I can do anything, without them, nothing. I think once I don’t have a goal left, I’ll switch to civilian mode, in a heartbeat. Every time I’ve gotten one goal, I’ve had the next in mind. When I can’t think of what’s next, that’s when I’ve hit the finish line, I think. You never know, all that might take until I’m 70, and I’ll be active until the day I die.”