Details about Hideki Suzuki’s Performance Center match with The Creed Brothers.
The 10-plus year veteran Hideki Suzuki wrapped up his run with WWE in January and he is now returning to Japan to compete in Pro Wrestling NOAH’s tournament to crown new GHC Tag Team Champions.
Prior to the news of Suzuki’s return to NOAH becoming public, he chatted with Hiroki Matsukawa of Weekly Pro Wrestling Magazine (transcribed by Connor Writing). They deep dove into Suzuki’s run with WWE and his exit from the company. Hideki had been a part of the Diamond Mine faction since its debut on NXT TV. He recalled being informed that he was going to be wrestling in a practice match against The Creed Brothers.
At the time, they had not made their debut. Suzuki felt that Julius Creed’s stomps were ‘weak’ and got physical with him to bring his intensity out.
At the Performance Center, they have these practice bouts that are more or less like actual matches. You have the entrance themes, the referees, all of that. At the time of this bout, the match that was written on the line-up was Creed Brothers versus Some guy and X. I went over to the Performance Center to go see it. I asked people there, ‘Who’s the X?’ And they told me, ‘It’s you, coach.’ See, there are a lot of kidders over there at the PC, so I thought they were just joking with me. Then I asked Terry Taylor and he said, ‘It’s you. Weren’t you listening?’
I must’ve forgotten about it, yeah. But that was all right, because I always pack my trunks in my car. I wasn’t panicking, but I was a bit nervous since the Creed Brothers hadn’t made their debut yet, and they’d only had one or two practice bouts before this.
I got a rope break, then Julius started stomping me while I was still down. But his stomps were really weak. I always teach them to do stomps properly in training. So I thought, ‘You fucking idiot,’ got up and slapped him.
He appeared alongside Diamond Mine on a weekly basis. The former ‘Hachiman’ expressed that being on TV every week was exhausting. He credited Asuka and Shinsuke Nakamura for being able to do it on a consistent basis.
I thought being on TV every week was exhausting. But think about people like (Shinsuke) Nakamura or Asuka, who do that every week, not just in America but all over the world for years and years. I felt it was amazing they could keep that up.
Suzuki’s return to NOAH is going to be his first match for the company since late 2020.
Back in 2019, Suzuki took on Timothy Thatcher at Josh Barnett’s Bloodsport. Thatcher, who was released from WWE in January, has been announced for Bloodsport this coming April.
