Timothy Thatcher To Make AJPW Debut During Royal Road Tournament In September

All Japan announced the field for their upcoming Royal Road tournament during the first night of their Zennichi Junior Tournament from Korakuen Hall on Sunday. The single elimination tournament will feature a field of 16 wrestlers from All Japan’s core roster, as well as some part-time guests.

The first round will begin on September 9, with three matches taking place. Ren Ayabe will take on Go Shiozaki, Triple Crown Champion Kento Miyahara will battle Up Town’s stylish rookie Hyo Ogawa, and WWE EVOLVE general manager Timothy Thatcher will make his All Japan debut against Hideki Suzuki.

There will be three more matches a few days later on September 12, starting with Ryuki Honda challenging Kuma Arashi. Then XYON will battle his HAVOC ally, Odyssey. Finally, Daisuke Sekimoto will go up against Kuma Arashi.

The first round will conclude a day later on September 13, when Yuma Aoyagi battles Jun Saito and Yuma Anzai competes against Rei Saito.

The Royal Road (also known as the Ōdō) began in 2013 and is the spiritual successor to a much older AJPW tournament called the Open Tournament, which took place in 1975. Past winners of the Ōdō include Akebono, Go Shiozaki, Jun Akiyama, and Suwama.

For more coverage ahead of the tournament and everything surrounding AJPW, WrestlePurists will keep you updated.