Noah the Best 2022

Promotional poster for the event, featuring various wrestlers of the Pro Wrestling NOAH roster

## Information

### Sponsor(s)

The Reeve
OSG

### City

Tokyo, Japan

The **Noah the Best 2022** was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event promoted by Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah). The event took place on November 23, 2022, at the Yoyogi National Stadium Gymnasium #2 in Tokyo, Japan.

The show was headlined by El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. defending the GHC National Championship against Yoshiki Inamura. The event aired live on AbemaTV online linear television service and CyberFight's streaming service Wrestle Universe and FITE TV streaming service as a pay-per-view (PPV). This is the third event under the Noah the Best name.

Due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the event had some restrictions in attendance, after the Japanese Government lifted the State of Emergency.

## Production

### Background

Since 2019, Noah began annually holding the event, after LIDET Entertainment took over the promotion. The event marked the third time the promotion held an event at the Yoyogi National Stadium Gymnasium #2, with the first event being held on October 22, 2004.

#### Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

On January 29, 2020, Noah also announced that the promotion would celebrate its 20th anniversary in the Ryōgoku Kokugikan which would be later canceled due to the 2019-20 coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). On March 30, it was initially announced that some 2020 Global Tag League shows of the tournament, while the April 15 show would be held behind closed doors, being streamed on DDT Universe, due to restrictions made by the Japanese government regarding the 2019-20 coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic but it was later announced that the entire tournament would be held behind closed doors and the shows would be streamed on the DDT Universe under NOAH TV name. On April 22, the first show of the NOAH THE SPIRIT 2020 tour was held in an empty TV studio broadcast live on AbemaTV, and the rest of the shows would be canceled including ALL OUT ATTACK 2020 tour. On May 9, NOAH and their sister promotion, DDT started to promote shows at an empty TV studio being broadcast on AbemaTV under NOAH TV name. On July 18, Noah returned to held events with a limited number of fans in attendance at the Korakuen Hall.

### Storylines

Noah the Best 2022 featured professional wrestling matches that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and storylines. Wrestlers portrayed villains, heroes, or less distinguishable characters in the scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.

Noah the Best 2022 was headlined by El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. defending the GHC National Championship against Yoshiki Inamura. On November 10 at Global Honored Crown, Wagner defeated Masakatsu Funaki to win the GHC National Championship, becoming the first non-Japanese wrestler to hold the title. Following the match, Inamura challenged him to a title match, but Wagner initially refused, but following a positive reaction from the audience on Inamura's challenge, he decided to accept it. This match marked Inamura first title match in Inamura's career. In a interview, leading to the match, Inamura stated that he wanted to win the title in order to stand in the same position to his senior Kaito Kiyomiya, who was the reigning GHC Heavyweight Champion.

On October 30, Atsushi Kotoge and Seiki Yoshioka sucessfully defended the GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship against KONGOH (Hi69 and Tadasuke). Not long after, Hi69 and Tadasuke's KONGOH's stablemate Hajime Ohara and Shuji Kondo, named themselves as their next challengers, before attacking them. At Global Honored Crown, Ohara and Kondo defeated Kotoge and Yoshioka to win the GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. Following the match, Kotoge requested a rematch, which they accepted.