Jeff Cobb, who courted WWE interest as recently as March, has shocked the wrestling world by suddenly quitting NJPW. His departure was confirmed by NJPW on their website. The nature of the statement revealed a strong sense of surprise at Cobb’s exit.
“New Japan Pro-Wrestling has come to terms with the departure of Jeff Cobb at his request. With Cobb one half of the IWGP Tag team Champions, those titles have now been vacated. Cobb’s final match in NJPW will take place in Korakuen Hall on April 19 against Hiroshi Tanahashi. New Japan Pro-Wrestling profoundly apologises for the sudden nature of this news and joins fans in wishing Cobb the best in all his future endeavours.”
The news comes as a major shock considering Cobb’s prolific appearances and recent achievements at NJPW. Cobb has wrestled 25 times for NJPW this year, which included five championship matches. His most recent title challenge, which saw Cobb and Callum Newman defeat reigning IWGP Tag Team Champions Hiromu Takahashi and Tetsuya Naito, came just nine days ago.
The sudden conclusion of Cobb’s tenure at NJPW has also caught the eye of many industry insiders. The same can be said for Cobb’s final match. A worthy finale against the promotion’s legendary president Hiroshi Tanahashi, it will take place in just five days’ time.
Will WWE Come Back In For Jeff Cobb?
Jeff Cobb’s imminent exit from the company suggests a transfer to a rival promotion is in the cards. Fightful reported last month that Cobb had held talks with WWE following the expiry of his current deal in January. Since then, the Hawaii-born wrestler has been working as a free agent for the promotion.
Since signing with NJPW in 2017, Cobb has held the IWGP Tag Team Championship three times, as well as winning the NEVER Openweight Championship and NJPW World Television Championship. Cobb has also performed in AEW, Ring of Honor, and PWG, winning the world championship in the latter. In amateur wrestling, Cobb notably represented Guam at the 2004 Olympics, carrying the nation’s flag during the opening ceremony.
WWE’s recruitment strategy has been impressive this year. Having already signed Penta, Rey Fénix, Rusev, Ricky Saints, and Jordynne Grace in 2025, SmackDown’s recent cryptic vignettes suggest that Malakai Black looks likely to return to WWE as well. With concrete interest in Cobb already confirmed, it would be no surprise to see him officially signed to WWE, or another promotion, in the next few months.
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Header photo – NJPW – Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on Jeff Cobb, NJPW, and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can rewatch all 2021 NJPW events and plenty more tremendous wrestling content from New Japan Pro-Wrestling on NJPWWorld.com; The King of Sports Streaming.
