【English】What is N-1 Victory?first part
N-1 Victory is Pro Wrestling NOAH’s annual round-robin singles tournament designed to determine who the strongest fighter truly is.
16 wrestlers have been divided into an A and B block, with eight players to each block.
The tournament begins on August 11 at Yokohama Budokan, and final regulation block matches wrap on August 28 at Cultz Kawasaki. First-place finishers in the A & B blocks will square off in a final bout at Edion Arena in Osaka on September 3 to determine this year’s N-1 Victory winner.
N-1 VICTORY RULES
- Based on the GHC Championship rules, the winner will be decided in a 30-minute, one-off singles match
- 2 points for a win; 0 points for a loss; 1 point for a tie
- To advance to the finals, wrestlers must win their block by points; A & B block winners will then face off in Osaka on September 3.
- In the case of a tied score, a winner will be determined with a singles match between tied wrestlers.
Kaito Kiyomia [B block]
It was Mitsuharu Misawa who inspired a young Kaito Kiyomiya to enter the Pro Wrestling NOAH dojo in 2015. He left for overseas training in July 2017, before returning in that winter.
On December 16, 2018, he challenged Takashi Sugiura for the GHC Heavyweight Championship at the Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium—and won. At just 22 years old, Kiyomia became the youngest GHC champion in company history.
In March of that year, Kiyomia returned to the Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium to defend against Naomichi Marufuji, where he debuted a new look that included an elaborate emerald ring robe before successfully defending his title against the longtime NOAH ace.
Before losing the GHC title to Go Shiozaki at Korakuen Hall on January 4th, 2020, he became the center of “NOAH NEW HOPE," a group featuring next-generation players, which made for exciting NOAH television matches.
In 2020, Kiyomia made it to the N-1 Victory finals before losing to Katsuhiko Nakajima. In 2021, he earned big N-1 wins over legends like Kazushi Sakuraba and Go Shiozaki and went to a draw with Keiji Muto before advancing to the tournament final four before losing to KENOH in the semifinals.
Kiyomia enters this year’s N-1 with more momentum than ever after scoring a massive singles win over Keiji Muto last month at Nippon Budokan. Will it be the year Kaito Kiyomiya wins his first ever N-1 Victory?
Match to watch:
Kaito Kiyomiya VS Katsuhiko Nakajima
August 14, 2022
Hiroshima Suna Plaza Hall
KENOH [A block]
In addition to being NOAH’s current GHC Heavyweight champion, was also the youngest fighter to win the All Japan Kenpo General Championship, and would later win the title again along with the World Championship. The kenpo phenom was scouted by Jinsei Shinzaki, and he joined Michinoku Pro Wrestling.
KENOH joined NOAH in January 2014 while still belonging to Michinoku Pro, but officially joined NOAH in March 2015 as part of the junior heavyweight division. At the end of 2016, KENOH would declare a move to heavyweight, and soon after, in 2017, he’d win the Global League, the previous version of NOAH’s N-1 Victory tournament. He’d then win his first GHC Heavyweight Championship after defeating Eddie Edwards at Korakuen on December 22nd in what many consider a modern NOAH classic.
KENOH also happens to be the first N-1 Victory winner, defeating Takashi Sugiura in the 2019 finals. Later that year, he would defeat Katsuhiko Nakajima for the GHC National Championship, which he defended six times before dropping it to Kazuyuki Fujita, another competitor in this year’s N-1 Victory.
On August 4, 2021, he beat Katsuhiko Nakajima to win the N-1 Victory for a second time. Defeated Katsuhiko Nakajima at Korakuen on August 4, 2020 to become the GHC National Champion. He made six defenses before losing the title to Kazuyuki Fujita.
On May 4, 2019 at Korakuen Hall, KENOH formed Kongo, a rebel group who were dissatisfied with NOAH's new regime. This also positioned KENOH as NOAH’s “opinion leader,” which is said to drive the company’s spirit. These days, Japanese fans like reading his outspoken column in Weekly Pro Wrestling magazine.
How will the current GHC Heavyweight champion fare in this year’s N-1 Victory? Do any of this year’s competitors have a chance at an upset? Or will KENOH become the first three-time N-1 Victory winner?
Match to watch:
KENOH vs. Kazuyuki Fujita
August 28, 2022
Cultz Kawasaki
Go Shiozaki (A block)
Immediately after his debut, Shiozaki was expected to become NOAH’s “heavyweight hope” and steadily climbed the ladder to become NOAH’s ace. Though he left NOAH at the end of 2012, he’d rejoin NOAH in June 2016.
In December 2018, he formed the AXIZ tag team with Katsuhiko Nakajima, who also made his debut in 2004, and won the GHC tag titles. He’d defeat Kaito Kiyomiya at Korakuen Hall on January 4th 2019 for his fourth GHC Heavyweight Championship. Afterwards, Shiozaki first declared "I am NOAH!!” and it has been his catchphrase ever since.
Shiozaki successfully defended against the title Kazuyuki Fujita, Akitoshi Saito, Naomichi Marufuji, and KENOH. Although he did not win N-1 as a champion, he beat the challenger Takashi Sugiura after a fierce battle in Yoyogi on December 6th, following the "Yokohama Trial" where AXIZ partner Nakajima turned on Shiozaki, leaving the team and joining the KONGO group.
At Nippon Budokan on February 12, 2021, he lost the GHC title to Keiji Muto in a match won the Pro Wrestling Grand Prix Best Bout award. The following month, Shiozaki took time off from NOAH to nurse injuries, but was able to make his comeback later that year, in December, and challenged GHC Heavyweight champion and former partner Katsuhiko Nakajima at Nippon Budokan, but lost.
Shiozaki was able to gradually return to his original condition, and in April 2022, he challenged GHC Champion Kazuyuki Fujita at Ryogoku Kokugikan Sumo Hall and won. Shiozaki held the title until June, when he dropped the title to Satoshi Kojima at CyberFight Festival 2022 at Saitama Super Arena.
Will Go Shiozaki bounce back in this year’s N-1 Victory tournament? And how will he fare in his A block bouts against former GHC champion Kazuyuki Fujita, or current champion and N-1 Victory 2021 winner, KENOH?
Match to watch:
Kazuyuki Fujita vs. Go Shiozaki [A block]
August 11, 2022
Yokohama Budokan
Takashi Sugiura [B block]
Sugiura is a former GHC Heavyweight champion, a former member of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, and self-proclaimed “company dog.” He turned professional at the age of 29. After winning NOAH’s junior heavyweight and tag team titles in 2006, he defeated Go Shiozaki to win the GHC Heavyweight title for the first time on December 6, 2009 at Nippon Budokan and successfully defended it 14 times in a year and half, which is the record for most consecutive defenses.
Sugiura was a finalist in the first N-1 Victory tournament in 2019 but lost to KENOH, current GHC Heavyweight champion, who is in this year’s A block. Will they square off once again in this year’s final bout in Osaka?
Match to watch:
Takashi Sujiura vs. Satoshi Kojima [B block]
August 11, 2022
Yokohama Budokan
Katsuhiko Nakajima [B block]
At the young age of 15 years and 9 months, Katsuhiko Nakajima made his debut as Japan’s youngest male wrestler ever. After working for Kensuke Office (later known as DIAMOND RING), Nakajima would join NOAH on January 1, 2016.
On October 23, 2016, he challenged Takashi Sugiura for the GHC Heavyweight Championship and was crowned for the first time at the Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium.
Last year was Nakajima’s 15-year anniversary in the business. He beat Takashi Sugiura on May 9 for the GHC National Championship. His AXIZ tag team with Go Shiozaki was at the top of NOAH’s division for most of the year, as wll, but on August 30 in Kawasaki, he betrayed Shiozaki and joined KENOH’s Kongo group.
Will Nakajima have the will to power through the highly competitive B block this year?
Kazuyuki Fujita [A block]
Fujita is one of Japan's leading mixed martial artists and professional wrestlers. He was an amateur wrestling champion in high school, winning titles in both freestyle & Greco-Roman. He won four straight All Japan Student Championships and two All Japan Championships while at Nihon University before joining the NJPW dojo in 1989. Fujita would make his pro debut in January 1996, losing to Yuji Nagata in Hiroshima.
After three years, Fujita left NJPW after Tokyo Dome event on January 4, 2000 and immediately went to the United States, where he’d train with kickboxing and MMA legend Maurice Smith. After a brief training period with Smith, he would then make his MMA debut on January 30, 2000 in Japan, fighting in the opening round of the classic PRIDE GRAND PRIX 2000 event. Many say this is where the “true” Kazuyuki Fujita was born.
Fujita first appeared in NOAH on September 16, 2019 in Osaka, tagging with Takashi Sugiura, who also has a wrestling background. He continued to make strong advances within the company, and would challenge for Go Shiozaki's GHC heavyweight for the first time in a non-audience match, the memorable “silent match” in March at Korakuen Hall. Even though Fujita didn't win the title, the 30+ minute match became a hot topic among the international pro wrestling community.
In March 2019, he seized KENOH’s GHC National Championship, but failed in his first defense against tag partner Takashi Sugiura at the Nagoya tournament in April that year.
In February 2020, he challenged Katsuhiko Nakajima for the GHC Heavyweight Championship and successfully won NOAH's treasure. Afterwards, Fujita simply proclaimed to the world that this was now "My NOAH." Fujita would drop the GHC title to Go Shiozaki in April 2022.
After the loss in Spring, will Kazuyuki Fujita have much trouble with competitors from this year’s eclectic A block? How will he fare against aerial fighters like Anthony Greene and Hijo del Dr Wagner Jr, or proven opponents, like Go Shiozaki and current GHC Heavyweight champion, KENOH?
Masa Kitamiya [B block]
Kitamiya was an active wrestler in high school and college. After graduating, he joined Kensuke Office, (later known as DIAMOND RING) where debuted in his hometown of Toyama. He joined Pro Wrestling NOAH in April 2014 after DIAMOND RING suspended operations.
In April 2016, he changed his ring name from his real name, Mitsuhiro Kitamiya, to Masa Kitamiya, in accordance with legend Masa Saito's will.
In 2017, on January 21st in Osaka, he and KENOH won his first GHC tag team championship. On March 11, 2018, won the GHC tag titles with Katsuhiko Nakajima at the Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium as The Aggression. The team dissolved later, and Kitamiya would later join the KONGO group. The two would later face off in a cage mask during the pandemic era, where Kitamiya defeated Nakajima. The match stipulated that if Kitamiya won, Nakajima must shave his head.
Kitamiya had a notable match against Keiji Muto last year, and despite a valiant effort, he lost to Muto in 22 minutes.
Kitamiya has greatly improved as a singles wrestler each year. Will he have enough power to win this year’s N-1 Victory on his own?
N-1 VICTORY 2022 is LIVE on WRESTLE UNIVERSE!
