Back in 2014, WWE announced the signing of KENTA, who was regarded as one of the best wrestlers in Japan at the time. The former GHC Heavyweight Champion would eventually make his way to NXT later on that year and unfortunately had the worst luck down in the developmental brand, suffering several injuries that halted his momentum.
KENTA – who was then known as Hideo Itami – seemed to be gaining momentum during his final months in NXT, as the originator of the G.T.S was having great matches against the likes of Bobby Roode and Aleister Black before being moved to the main roster in November 2017.
Unfortunately, KENTA’s run on the main roster show paled in comparison to anything he did in Japan or even during his final months in NXT. The 38-year-old finally requested his release earlier this year and will be competing in the G1 Climax tournament next month.
The former 205 Live star did an interview with
Weekly Pro Wrestling magazine (which was translated to English by POST Wrestling) in Japan and recalls his time on the cruiserweight show. As expected, KENTA didn’t have great things to say about the brand.
KENTA said he was excited when he was moved to the main roster cruiserweight show, “but then things started to ‘deteriorate’.” He struggled with his character, and “could never really figure out who Hideo Itami was due to his lack of in-ring activity”. A big issue was with WWE telling him what to do, and what not to do, during matches. The New Japan star says he was "defanged” on 205 Live and that “‘no good memories come to mind’” of his time on the purple brand.
Also in the interview, KENTA says he and his family will continue to live in the U.S. as he doesn’t want to uproot them again. He also talks about choosing New Japan, where he’ll compete in the G1 Climax tournament starting on July 6, because he still wants to achieve the international success, which he feels he failed to reach with WWE.