New Japan Pro Wrestling will be bidding farewell to one of the greatest stars the company has ever seen in the new year when company President Hiroshi Tanahashi officially retires at WrestleKingdom 20. Over the past few months, he has been having matches with some of NJPW's young lions to prepare them for the future, as well as some old rivals for one last dance, but at the recent Windy City Riot pay-per-view, "The Ace" not only crossed paths with a current AEW star, but he also lost his final match on American soil.
The match was against none other than current NEVER Openweight Champion Konosuke Takeshita, who requested the match earlier this year as he hadn't forgotten about the time the two men met in the ring with Takeshita just two years into his wrestling career. However, a lot has changed in the near 11 years since their last match, and Takeshita let Tanahashi know by picking up one of the biggest victories of his career so far.
After the match was over, both men would comment on the war they just went through with Takeshita saying, "Hiroshi Tanahashi, your revenge ends today. Today, for the first time, I truly respect you. There is only one thing left to do, I forgot to extinguish that tiniest bit of light in you. So please continue to shine until the very end of your retirement. That is my final wish from me."
Reflecting on bidding farewell to his fans in the United States, Tanahashi said, ""I'm really happy to be able to say goodbye to my American fans. I'll never forget that crowd. For the rest of my life. if I close my eyes I can hear those voices. It really moved me. Thank you. Thank you so much. Please continue to support New Japan Pro-Wrestling."
