David Finlay Withdraws from NJPW Tournament
There are a lot of plans in place for NJPW, but they can't predict everything. Sadly, David Finlay is unable to wrestle as planned, and the company was forced to figure things out.
NJPW announced today that David Finlay will not compete tonight in Nagoya due to illness. He is currently undergoing evaluation at a local hospital. Hirooki Goto will advance to the semifinals via forfeit.
In a recent announcement by NJPW, it was revealed that David Finlay would be absent from the event in Nagoya due to an unexpected illness. This was a bit of a surprise, because fans were expecting to see him.
With Finlay unable to compete, NJPW announced that Hirooki Goto would advance to the semifinals of the tournament by default. While Goto's advancement was a result of Finlay's unfortunate circumstance, it provided him with an opportunity to progress in the tournament that he didn't pass up.
With a rich wrestling lineage as a fourth-generation wrestler, David debuted in NJPW during the 2015 Best of the Super Jr. tournament. He then joined the New Japan Dojo. His road in NJPW included a tag team run with Juice Robinson, but now he is on his own.
After assuming leadership of Bullet Club, Finlay declared that the group was now exclusively for 'savages,' as he kicked out El Phantasmo and recruited Clark Connors. He then challenged for the NEVER Openweight Championship, winning over Tama Tonga in a brutal encounter.
Although Finlay lost the title to Tama later that October, he made a significant impact at Power Struggle in Osaka by attacking Will Ospreay and Jon Moxley after their US(UK) Heavyweight Championship match, destroying both belts.
In the aftermath, a new IWGP Global Championship was established, and Finlay claimed the inaugural title at Wrestle Kingdom 18. Now, he is still going strong in NJPW, despite his recent health setback.
