NJPW Spotlight is a series by Walter Yeates that highlights past and present members of the New Japan Pro Wrestling roster. This article highlights Sanada. The previous article in the series on Yuji Nagata is available here.
Sanada took a long path to New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), first being denied entry to the NJPW Noge Dojo in 2005, after failing the strenuous entry exam. After a career that took him to All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW), Total Nonstop Action (now IMPACT Wrestling), and Wrestle-1 — Sanada eventually debuted in NJPW on April 10, 2016, joining Los Ingobernables de Japon (LIJ) and costing Kazuchika Okada the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
Throughout his career, Sanada is former 3x NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Champion (w/Evil & Bushi), GAORA TV Champion, 2x All Asia Tag Team Champion, IMPACT X-Division Champion, 2x IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Champion (w/Evil), and AJPW World Tag Team Champion. Sanada is also a 2x World Tag League tournament champion.
Before coming to NJPW, Sanada wrestled around the world. He currently uses elements of the Lucha Libre inspired llave style of technical wrestling, which has made for compelling stylistic clashes against Zack Sabre Jr who uses the British influenced catch wrestling style.
His time in Los Ingobernable de Japon (LIJ) has seen his drawing power rise as the group continues to sell a wealth of merchandise, carry momentum with the fans, and increasing their ranks with individuals like Shingo Takagi.
Sanada’s Cold Darkness tag team with Evil has become a staple in the NJPW heavyweight tag team division, while both have had success as singles competitors. Sanada had his biggest moment as a singles competitor when he defeated Kazuchika Okada during G1 Climax 20 on August 3, 2019 — after losing all six of their previous singles matches.
It’s yet to be seen how far Sanada will rise on the stacked NJPW roster, yet he was elevated after his victory over Okada in the G1. The IWGP Intercontinental Championship is well within his reach, even if it is currently held by LIJ leader Tetsuya Naito.
Sanada is currently a good draw for NJPW, sitting in the second-tier level with individuals like Will Ospreay, Zack Sabre Jr, Shingo Takagi, Evil, Guerrillas of Destiny, and Juice Robinson. Ospreay is seemingly the logical one to first break out and become a first-tier draw in the heavyweight division, but that doesn’t mean Sanada is capped where he is.
