New Japan Pro Wrestling presented Tiger Mask’s Retirement Match on July 7, 2026 in Tokyo, Japan. There were 1.490 fans present at Korakuen Hall. It was shown on NJPWWorld.com. Tiger Mask is retiring after 31 years.
Tiger Mask’s Retirement Match Results
Six-Man Tag Team Match: Satoshi Kojuma, Shota Umino, Yuji Nagata defeated Taisei Nakahara, Togi Makabe, Toru Yano (4:45 minutes)
Ten-Man Tag Team Match: United Empire (Francesco Akira, Great-O-Khan, Jake Lee, Jakob Austin Young and Zane Jay) defeated Goto Revolutionary Army (Hirooki Goto, Tatsuya Matsumoto, YOH and YOSHI-HASHI) and Ryusuke Taguchi (9:28 minutes)
Six-Man Tag Team Match: Aaron Wolf, Jado, and Oleg Boltin defeated Unbound Co. (Gedo, OSKAR and Yuto-Ice) (9:55 minutes)
Ten-Man Tag Team Match: House of Torture (DOUKI, Ren Narita, SANADA, SHO, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru) (w/ Dick Togo) defeated El Desperado, Masatora Yasuda, Master Wato, Taichi and Yuya Uemura (9: 20 minutes)
Eight-Man Tag Team Match: TMDK (Hartley Jackson, Kosei Fujita, Ryohei Oiwa, and Zack Sabre, Jr.) defeated Unbound Co. (Daiki Nagai, Shingo Takagi, Taiji Ishimori, and Yota Tsuji) (10:09 minutes)
Exhibition Match: Dynamite Kid (Tommy Billington) vs Tiger Mask – Time Limit Draw (5:00 minutes)
Exhibition Match: Black Tiger IV (Rocky Romero) vs Tiger Mask – Time Limit Draw (5:00 minutes) After the match, Black Tiger asked for another match.
Singles Match: Tiger Mask defeated Black Tiger (0:18 minutes) Following the second match, Romero revealed himself as Black Tiger IV and handed Tiger Mask his mask in a symbolic gesture of respect.
Tiger Mask’s Retirement Ceremony
After Tiger Mask’s retirement match, the night concluded with a lengthy post-match ceremony to honor Tiger Mask IV.
Attendees included:
- Satoru Sayama (original Tiger Mask), who wrestled Tiger Mask IV in a final lock-up before embracing him.
- Jushin Thunder Liger and other NJPW legends.
- Japanese baseball legend Tatsunori Hara.
Tiger Mask IV delivered a heartfelt speech thanking fans. He promised that younger NJPW talent would continue to deliver great matches. He will remain involved with NJPW through the company’s dojo.
Career Highlights (Compliments of Yahoo Sports)
- IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion: 6 times
- Best of the Super Juniors: 2 times
- IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion: 2 times (with Liger and Robbie Eagles)
- Longest tenure under the Tiger Mask gimmick — 31 years
Tiger Mask Legacy
Tiger Mask IV’s retirement marked the end of an era. It’s unclear if the Tiger Mask lineage will continue. His career spanned decades and influenced generations of Japanese wrestling, from Mitsuharu Misawa to Koji Kanemoto
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