Wrestle-1 made the announcement that it is going to go on an indefinite hiatus and suspend all activities after their April 1 event at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo. The Japanese wrestling promotion made the announcement at a press conference by representative director Keji Mutoh aka The Great Mutah and president Kaz Hayashi.
All contracts of Wrestle-1 talent will be terminated, the company announced. The contracts will be terminated the day before the April 1 show, making the entire roster free agents.
Here is a translation of the company's statement:
"We would like to report that the professional wrestling organization “WRESTLE-1” will suspend its activities indefinitely at the end of the Korakuen Hall Games in Tokyo on Wednesday, April 1, 2020.
Thank you to all the fans who supported us, the people who supported the organization and the players, and all the concerned parties. Sorry for the sudden report.
Due to the suspension of activities, all Wrestle One players will be released on March 31, 2020 (Tuesday).
Both players and staff are willing to run with all their strength until the end.
Thank you for your continued support."
The reason behind the closure of Wrestle-1 is the fact that it was not profitable. There's also a professional wrestling training academy by Great Muta which was established back in 2016. Popular female wrestlers like Hana Kimura and Reika Saiki were the first-year students at this academy. It has been announced that the academy will also be closed indefinitely.
Wrestle-1 has been around since 2013 and was created by The Great Muta. The early days of the promotion managed to draw in large crowds while having stars like Sanada, Shuji Kondo, and Kaz Hayashi under its belt. The company also had a partnership with Impact Wrestling. However, Sanada and other popular stars started leaving and the company spiraled down into obscurity soon enough.
