Tiger Mask IV Addresses If Tiger Mask Character Should Continue In NJPW After He Retires
The subject of whether Tiger Mask should continue was addressed by Tiger Mask IV.
It was in 1995 that Yoshihiro Yamazaki took on the role of the next Tiger Mask. He is the fourth iteration of the original mask that was portrayed by Satoru Sayama.
Tiger Mask IV is set to retire from in-ring competition on July 7th, and ahead of his final match(es), he spoke to NJPW1972.com for an interview. He addressed whether the Tiger Mask character should continue after he retires.
“I don’t really have an opinion one way or the other. I think it would be fine if somebody wanted to do it. Purely when it comes to the different techniques and athleticism, today’s young wrestlers are even better than Sayama-sensei, but with the overall level so high, it’s hard to stand out from the crowd. So it would have to be someone that has (Satoru) Sayama’s accuracy, the weight to what he did, the attitude and the scariness. That’s what I think a new Tiger would need.
If it’s just a case of a decent hand, good high flier, then I don’t think it should continue. If you look at all the other Tigers, even Sayama-san himself, you can see how hard it is to keep the Tiger Mask thing going.”
He’ll be wrestling in two matches on his retirement card. He’ll be facing AEW/ROH talent ‘Dynamite Kid’ Tommy Billington in one bout and then Black Tiger (Rocky Romero) in another bout.
