Finn Balor Reveals He Thought He’d Spend His Career In Japan Before Move To WWE
Finn Bálor revealed he once thought he’d always stay in Japan.
When Finn Bálor signed with WWE in 2014, he was one of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s top names. The year prior, the Irishman formed one of the most influential groups in wrestling history, heading up the Bullet Club and capturing attention across the industry as a whole. At the time of his departure, the star had three IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship reigns to look back on, and he’s now discussed once feeling as if he’d never leave Japan.
Appearing on Talk ‘n’ Shop, Bálor reflected on leaving New Japan for WWE, saying he believed he’d spend his whole his career in Japan at one point.
“I think what we had in Bullet Club when I was there was a real special time. Leaving when it was that hot was kind of bittersweet. I had known for a long time that I wanted to move on, but it’s always bittersweet. And I cried, obviously, leaving New Japan. That was super emotional. I kind of always pictured my whole career in Japan up until that point. I just really wanted to roll the dice in WWE and give it one try. And if it’s gonna be a year, it’s gonna be a year, whatever, and then go back to Japan.”
-Finn Bálor
Although Bálor discussed feeling comfortable with the possibility of going back to Japan after just one year, ‘The Prince’ took NXT by storm after he’d signed. His reign as NXT Champion stood as the longest in the title’s history until 2020, and he came to the main roster with huge momentum, winning the Universal Championship just weeks after his call-up.
Although Bálor hasn’t been able to reclaim a world championship since SummerSlam 2018, he remains a key part of Monday Night RAW having led the Judgment Day for several years. In February, the star unsuccessfully CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship and is now set to face former teammate Dominik Mysterio at WrestleMania 42.
Speaking of Bálor’s recent pursuit of RAW’s top title, his longtime friend Karl Anderson recently said he wants to see the Irishman once again become a world championship in WWE. You can read more about that here.
As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on Finn Bálor as soon as we hear more.
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