NJPW Returning To AXS TV With New Weekly Series
:njpw:
New Japan Pro-Wrestling returns to AXS TV later this month with a weekly one-hour series that will air on Thursday nights at 10 p.m.
The new deal with AXS TV’s owner, Anthem Sports & Entertainment, was announced during the broadcast of Night 1 of Wrestle Kingdom 16 on Tuesday. New Japan had a weekly series on AXS TV from 2015-2019.
The new agreement gives AXS TV the option to re-air those past broadcasts. AXS TV will begin airing select episodes from New Japan’s first run on the network beginning on January 20. That episode will feature the IWGP United States Championship match between Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho from Wrestle Kingdom 12. New episodes will begin airing on March 3.
The agreement also puts New Japan’s weekly series on Anthem’s Fight Network. The network is available in Canada, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
New Japan’s new timeslot on AXS TV provides it with Impact Wrestling as a lead-in. Impact’s flagship show airs Thursday nights from 8-10 p.m.
New Japan and Impact Wrestling have been working together and sharing talent over recent months. The working agreement has brought Jay White, Minoru Suzuki, Juice Robinson, David Finlay, El Phantasmo, and other New Japan stars onto Impact’s broadcasts.
Impact wrestlers including Moose and Josh Alexander have appeared on recent New Japan shows. And Impact’s Chris Bey landed a spot in Bullet Club last summer after accepting an invitation from Jay White.
“There is a great deal of support and synergy between the two companies, and we could not be more proud to have them back on AXS TV as they prepare to celebrate an incredible milestone in NJPW history,” Impact Executive Vice President Scott D’Amore said in a news release. “We are excited to continue to build on our growing relationship with NJPW, and look forward to seeing what new opportunities arise from this partnership in the future.”
