At Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall in June, a young lion lost to IWGP United States Champion Jon Moxley in what was a total mismatch.
Following the match, Jon Moxley drug his defeated victim backstage and essentially claimed ownership of him. This is Shota Umino, and his involvement with Jon Moxley put a large spotlight on this very exciting future star of New Japan Pro Wrestling.
The Young Lion System
For those unfamiliar with NJPW or Japanese Wrestling as a whole, a young lion (or simply young boy) is a wrestler in training at one the NJPW Dojo, where they live, work, and train to become of the next top stars for the company.
Once they’re ready, they will work matches early in NJPW shows, often in the form of multiman tags with veteran talents or singles matches against fellow trainees.
You’ll also see them at ringside during matches, studying the matches and being attacked by heels like Minoru Suzuki or Chris Jericho, and bringing ice packs to competitors after a match.
They wear simple black trunks and wrestle using very basic maneuvers, yet their matches are inherently compelling. There is just something so pure about watching these young talents slowly break out into someone to watch for.
Nearly every star NJPW ever created came through the Young Lion system, even current IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada & The Ace Hiroshi Tanahashi spent their time as Young Lions before coming into their own as World Champion level performers.
Once they’ve gained enough experience, they’re sent on an excursion, often to the UK or Mexico to learn another style aside from the one they learned at the NJPW Dojo, and then they’ll return as a more complete star.
Shota Umino
Shota Umino is the son of NJPW referee who is known as “Red Shoes” due to his standout footwear. Shota made his debut for the company in 2017 in their developmental territory of Lions Gate, losing to Taka Michinoku, as was expected from a rookie.
He would continue to lose any match to a more experienced competitor, but get a few victories against fellow Young Lions or in multiman tags when someone else would score the pinfall or submission.
His breakout moment came in the 2019 New Japan Cup, where he faced The Ace Of NJPW, Hiroshi Tanahashi in the opening round. Knowing this was the biggest match of his young career, Shota gave a defining performance and took the ace to his absolute limit, and got the crowd on his side. He managed to score a few very close calls and almost pulled off the upset of the century, before succumbing to a High Fly Flow after 16 minutes of action.
The Rise Of Shooter & His Excursion
After facing then IWGP United States Champion at Dominion, Shota would be taken under the wing of Jon Moxley, carrying his title to the ring, being in his corner during Moxleys run through the G1 Climax, and teaming with Moxley in tag matches on the nights when he wasn’t in singles action. These two months lead to a huge surge in popularity for Shota Umino, or as Moxley called him “Shooter”.
After the G1, Moxley left NJPW to focus on All Elite Wrestling for a while, leaving Umino behind. Umino would then join the Young Lions Cup, winning several matches along the way, finishing with 5 victories, but lost in the final match of the tournament to L.A Dojo competitior Karl Fredericks.
Following this tournament, Umino announced he was going to be doing his excursion in the UK. Upon his debut for Revolution Pro Wrestling, he debuted new gear which paid tribute to Hiroshi Tanahashi & Jon Moxley. He faced Aussie Open member Kyle Fletcher in a losing effort.
What Shota Actually Learned From Moxley
In a statement made before he left for the UK, Shota revealed what Moxley had taught him. “When I was with Moxley during the G1, he didn’t give me any advice. If I asked for some he would just give some vague praise. ‘Good job, like that’. If I asked him for anything more concrete, he’d tell me to be more confident. What makes him who he is isn’t moves, style, technique. It isn’t ‘heart’. It’s… ‘something’.”
Shooter is going to find his ‘something’ as he develops as a wrestler over the next few years. Excursions generally last about two or so years before a talent returns, and it’ll be interesting to see how Shota evolves.
