WWE.com Exclusive: Finn Balor Gives His Opinion on NJPW Rumors

There are so many promotions in the pro wrestling industry that it’s hard to know all the wrestlers in each promotion. It’s almost like watching four or five different football leagues. It’s not unreasonable that a lot of fans don’t know the wrestlers from NJPW that have set the wrestling world on fire.

Thankfully, WWE was aware of this and decided to do an interview with the current NXT Champion Finn Balor. His history in New Japan Pro Wrestling is extremely well connected with AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows.

Balor provides key insight into understanding how good these talents are, who they are, and The Bullet Club. You can read the full interview right here. Below are the interview highlights:

WWE.com: Can you tell us about your relationship with The Bullet Club?

BÁLOR: The Bullet Club was essentially in existence long before it was ever onscreen. Myself and Karl Anderson were best friends in and out of the ring. Tama Tonga and Bad Luck Fale were the other foreign wrestlers in New Japan. Essentially we lived together, traveled together, ate together, drank together and spent four years being in each other’s company. We were closer to each other than we were to our own families, due to the fact that we were in a foreign country and all going through the same issues of living in a non-English speaking country. That’s an incredible cultural contrast to where we came from. We were literally best friends. The opportunity arose for me to create a faction in New Japan, and the office said, “Would you be willing to start a faction with your buddies?” I said, “Absolutely. 100%. I would love to.” They said, “Come up with a name next week.” I came up with a name, and it kind of all happened from there.

WWE.COM: What does this mean for WWE to be potentially receiving this influx of talent?

BÁLOR: A year and a half ago, myself, Kevin Owens and Hideo Itami all came in together. And there was kind of a buzz that helped create a special time in NXT. I think, potentially, what is going to happen over the next couple of months if these four names come in is going to be even bigger. I think the growth of NXT in the last year and a half and the growth Bullet Club has made in the last year and a half since I left means this would be a huge coup for WWE.

Nakamura, being one of the most charismatic wrestlers on the planet, is an absolute game-changer unlike anyone that is out there right now. Gallows & Machine Gun [Anderson] are one of the world’s most established tag teams. Machine Gun, in my opinion, is the most underrated wrestler on the planet. For years. The fact that he’s getting so much media attention right now makes me happy, but I’m slightly disappointed it’s only happening now and didn’t happen 10 years ago when I first met him. AJ Styles’ reputation speaks for itself. He’s one of the best in-ring performers on the planet, ever. To say this would be a coup is an understatement. I think the next couple of months could change the way pro wrestling is viewed for the next 10 years.