{"id":72329,"date":"2020-07-13T10:20:35","date_gmt":"2020-07-13T14:20:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprowrestling.com\/?p=72329"},"modified":"2020-07-13T10:20:35","modified_gmt":"2020-07-13T14:20:35","slug":"evil-iwgp-champion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2020\/07\/13\/evil-iwgp-champion\/","title":{"rendered":"The Journey Into EVIL: A Look at New Japan’s First Triple Champion"},"content":{"rendered":"

New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW)<\/strong> provided three of the most shocking moments of 2020 in a span of 24 hours over the weekend when Los Ingobernables de Japon<\/strong>‘s EVIL<\/strong> not only upset 5x IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada<\/strong> to win the 2020 New Japan Cup<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, but then turned on LIJ leader Tetsuya Naito<\/strong> to join Bullet Club<\/strong>. And while the world was still reeling from those two moments, a day later at NJPW Dominion<\/strong><\/em>, EVIL stunned the world by defeating his Naito for both the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and IWGP Intercontinental Champion<\/a>, bringing in Japanese legend Dick Togo<\/strong><\/a> as his new manager. The actions themselves were probably less shocking in comparison to the person who committed them – a year ago, EVIL wasn’t even considered the top contender for a singles title in his own tag team (with SANADA<\/strong>), let alone in LIJ. But here we are, entering the second half of 2020, and EVIL is now only the second man in NJPW history to hold both top singles titles at the same time, as well as the second-ever Triple Crown winner (Heavyweight, Intercontinental, and NEVER Openweight), and the\u00a0first-ever <\/em>Triple Champion, to hold three titles at the same time – he’s also currently one-third of the reigning NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champions alongside (former) LIJ members BUSHI<\/strong> and Shingo Takagi<\/strong> (although at the NJPW Dominion One Night Dawn<\/em> press conference on Tuesday, he appeared to abdicate his third of the title<\/a>, saying “LIJ is rotten. I don’t need a stinking belt like that.”).<\/p>\n

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Photo: NJPW<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Journey Into EVIL: A Look at New Japan’s First Triple Champion<\/strong><\/h3>\n

EVIL began his career as a Young Lion in NJPW named Takaaki Watanabe<\/b>\u00a0<\/strong>in 2011, a student of Animal Hamaguchi<\/strong> and Hiroyoshi Tenzan<\/strong> at the NJPW Dojo. He made his live debut at NJPW Life Goes On!<\/strong> <\/em>on May 13, 2011, where he faced another Young Lion and future LIJ teammate Hiromu Takahashi<\/strong> to open the show. That June, he would face his future manager Dick Togo on the first night of the NJPW J Sports Crown Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Tournament<\/strong><\/em>, where Togo emerged victorious alongside Masato Tanaka<\/strong> and Yujiro Takahashi<\/strong> against Watanabe’s team with Yuji Nagata<\/strong> and Tiger Mask IV<\/strong>. He would work the undercard for several years, including tagging with another Young Lion in current teammate Bad Luck (then King) Fale.<\/p>\n

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Photo: NJPW<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Following a tag team loss with his teacher, Tenzan, to Killer Elite Squad<\/strong>‘s Lance Archer<\/strong> and Davey Boy Smith Jr.<\/strong> at NJPW King of Pro Wrestling<\/strong><\/em> in October 2013, New Japan announced it was time for Watanabe’s Young Lion excursion would be in the United States, where he would make his US indie debut with four days later with NWA Houston<\/strong> in Texas. He would also compete with Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW)<\/strong>, New Jersey’s Pro Wrestling Syndicate<\/strong> and Jersey Championship Wrestling (JCW)<\/strong>, Anarchy Championship Wrestling (ACW)<\/strong> and Inspire Pro<\/strong> in Texas, St. Louis Anarchy<\/strong>, New York City’s House of Glory (HOG) <\/strong>and New York Wrestling Connection (NYWC)<\/strong>, Xtreme Intense Championship (XICW)<\/strong> in Detroit, and in Canada with Windsor’s Border City Wrestling (BCW)<\/strong> and Toronto’s Smash Wrestling<\/strong>.<\/p>\n