Gabe Kidd is no longer the IWGP Global Heavyweight Champion.
Kidd and Yota Tsuji had the third match in their trilogy at King of Pro Wrestling and it did not disappoint. The bout went nearly 25-minutes and it was non-stop action from beginning to end. There were several nail biting nearfalls in the match; one was Yota connecting with a Gene Blaster (spear).
Another was Kidd hitting not just one, but two piledrivers that only got a two! In the end, Yota hit another two Gene Blasters. The first one only got a one count, but the second put him down and Tsuji locked in a Boston Crab. Kidd eventually tapped out.
That put an end to Kidd’s 120 days as the IWGP Global Heavyweight Champion. The 28-year-old originally put an end to Yota’s title run at Dominion in June. Kidd successfully defended the belt against Hiroshi Tanahashi and Shingo Takagi.
These two first had a match at The New Beginning in Osaka show for the prestigious belt and that ended in a double KO. That means it’s 1-1 for both Kidd and Tsuji. Will there be another match between these two men? As of now, that’s currently unknown, but it wouldn’t be a particular surprise. However, the ending saw Kidd and Tsuji show respect to one another, so it’s quite possible that both men move on for the time being.
Nevertheless, it was an incredible match that was featured on a card that had a night full of surprises such as Konosuke Takeshita beating Zack Sabre Jr to become the new IWGP World Heavyweight Champion. The new direction New Japan Pro-Wrestling is certainly going in is an interesting one heading into Wrestle Kingdom 20 on January 4, 2026. Will Yota Tsuji remain the champion at that time? We’ll find out in the coming months! Until then, congratulations to the two-time IWGP Global Heavyweight Champion.