Current three-time IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Los Ingobernables de Japon (LIJ) member Hiromu Takahashi will miss a good portion (possibly the rest) of the current Summer Struggle tour but will return in time for his v2 defense of the title against Bullet Club member Taiji Ishimori on August 29th during the Summer Struggle in Jingu featured event.
New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) released the following announcement regarding Hirmou’s injury earlier this week:
Due to an injury to his left shoulder, NJPW medical staff have determined that Hiromu Takahashi will not be able to appear on cards from tonight’s Hamamatsu event. Changes have been made to cards for tonight and Friday, July 31 in Korakuen Hall accordingly.
We apologize to fans who were looking forward to seeing Takahashi wrestle and appreciate your understanding.
Hiromu Takahashi is expected to return in time for his scheduled IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship defense against Taiji Ishimori on August 29 in Jingu Stadium.
Hiromu also took to Twitter to discuss his injury.
俺が会社に出ると言ったばかりに、当日欠場という情けないことになり、チャンピオンとして申し訳ない。
痛めた肩でクソみたいな試合は見せられないから、いまは大人しく治す。そして石森を万全のコンディションで迎え撃つ。Thank you for caring about me.
Don't worry, I'll be back soon! Kiss! https://t.co/FfVmpTpCND— 高橋ヒロム / Hiromu Takahashi (@TIMEBOMB1105) July 29, 2020
Google translate provides the following rough script as translation, “I’m sorry to be a champion because I just said I’d be going to work, but I felt sorry to miss the day. I can’t show a fucking match with my injured shoulder, so I’ll heal now. And I will meet Ishimori in perfect condition.”
Hiromu is coming off a match against Bullet Club member and IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental ‘Double Champion’ Evil where he looked extremely strong, leading up to a new merchandise announcement for the highly marketable IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion.
【8月1日（土）昼12時～応募開始！】
『真夏の大プレゼント祭り』！
・シンニチプレミアムストア（@njpwpremium）からご提供！
大好評！「16d ソフビコレクション013 新日本プロレス 高橋ヒロム」を3名様に！
※詳細はコチラ！
⇒https://t.co/MDMy3fGTsX#NJPWスマホサイト #njpw pic.twitter.com/K6laGxJFWQ— 新日本プロレスリング株式会社 (@njpw1972) July 31, 2020
Hiromu being able to compete at Summer Struggle in Jingu featured event will be a boon for ticket sales, as ticket prices convert to USD at $105.42 and $191.71.
Due to social distancing guidelines, approximately 13,000 – 17,000 tickets will be made available by NJPW if they follow their pattern of limiting capacity to 1/4 to 1/3 of a venue’s total. The company may have allocated slightly fewer or more tickets depending on the exact layout of Meiji Jingu Stadium.
Hiromu is in the third-highest merchandise seller according to journalist Fumi Saito and is likely a large house draw for the company as well. If all goes as expected for NJPW, Summer Struggle in Jingu will produce a gate of over $1 million.
