New Japan Pro-Wrestling professional wrestling television program
NJPW Strong is a brand name utilized by Japanese professional wrestling promotion New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). NJPW Strong also refers to the former professional wrestling television series produced by NJPW's New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America (NJoA) subsidiary.[3]
The Strong weekly TV series debuted on August 7, 2020, airing on Saturdays at 8 pm ET on NJPW World and FITE TV until its final episode aired on January 28, 2023. After the program's end, NJPW Strong became the branding for NJPW events held in the United States. These events are distributed live via PPV under the NJPW Strong Live banner, and are later distributed as weekly instalments of the NJPW Strong on Demand series.
History
Background and Early format
On November 24, 2014, AXS TV announced that it had acquired a thirteen-episode series featuring matches from New Japan Pro Wrestling under the AXS TV Fights banner. The series was an English-language adaptation of NJPW's own television series, NJPW World Pro Wrestling, produced by TV Asahi. The series premiered on January 16, 2015, airing on Friday evenings.[4] This was the first time NJPW had been aired on an American television network since its formation in 1972.[5] NJPW content would continue to air on AXS until December 2019.[6][7] Prior to this, on October 21, NJPW announced the formation of an American subsidiary called "New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America" (NJoA).[8]
On July 31, 2020, NJPW announced a new weekly series titled NJPW Strong, with its initial episodes to feature matches from the inaugural New Japan Cup USA tournament. As part of NJPW's expansion into the United States, the series would be produced by NJoA.[9]
The premiere episode of Strong aired on August 7, 2020, broadcast live from NJPW's training dojo in Los Angeles, and streaming on NJPW's service NJPW World.[10] The event was held with no spectators due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[11] On August 19, NJPW announced that Strong would be streaming on FITE TV in conjunction with NJPW World.[12]
Change in format
On January 6, 2023, Hiroshi Tanahashi announced on his blog that the January Strong tapings would be the last, and that "overseas tournaments" would be held in a different format in the future.[13] On January 30, NJPW announced that all of the promotion's future American events would be branded under the NJPW Strong name and be available for purchase via pay-per-view (PPV) providers.
Beginning with Battle in the Valley on February 18, the NJoA PPVs began airing as NJPW Strong Live, with Strong ceasing to be its own show with exclusive content. These PPV events will later air on NJPW World in hour-long instalments known as NJPW Strong on Demand.[14]
