#1.) The dark ages
In the early to mid-2000s, NJPW entered a period known as the dark age. Around this time, two of the “Three Musketeers”, who had been central NJPW figures, left the company after differences with Antonio Inoki and otherwise. With the rise of PRIDE MMA and MMA in general in Japan, Inoki suddenly felt that was the direction to go in.
From putting his NJPW wrestlers in legitimate MMA fights to having fighters wrestle in NJPW, things had gone really sour. Multiple top stars looked foolish when fighting world class elite fighters whereas fighters clearly had no place in the squared circle. NJPW started losing fans and Inoki was forced to sell the company to Yuke’s.
However, before this, he tried pushing a young superstar named Shinsuke Nakamura much before he was ready for the spotlight. Not only was he late in starting to push younger superstars, but he rushed it as well. Thankfully, the company takeover and the rise of Hiroshi Tanahashi (and the influence of Gedo) played a huge role in getting NJPW back to the forefront.
From there, they would reach new heights.
