NOAH The New Year (2024)

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

### Tagline(s)

"Happy New Year Pro-Wrestling" (Japanese: プロレス Happy New Year, Hepburn: *Puroresu Happī Nyū Iyā*)

## Information

### City

Tokyo, Japan

**NOAH The New Year (2024)** was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event promoted by Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah). The event took place on January 2, 2024, at the Ariake Budokan in Tokyo, Japan. The event was the third NOAH The New Year event, which is Noah's biggest annual event and as their equivalent to NJPW's Wrestle Kingdom and WWE's Wrestlemania.

The event was headlined by Naomichi Marufuji facing All Elite Wrestling's Kota Ibushi, the latter of whom would be returning to the NOAH ring after nearly 11 years away from the promotion. Another high-profile matches, also include Kenoh defending the GHC Heavyweight Championship against his former KONGOH stablemate Manabu Soya, Zack Sabre Jr. and Yoshinari Ogawa facing Hiroshi Tanahashi and HAYATA and Daiki Inaba, Junta Miyawaki, Kaito Kiyomiya, Ryohei Oiwa, Shota Umino, and Shuji Kondo facing NJPW's House of Torture (Dick Togo, EVIL, Ren Narita, Sho, Yoshinobu Kanemaru and Yujiro Takahashi) in a twelve-man elimination tag team match.

Two other title matches include Daga defending the GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship against Eita and Los Golpeadores (Alpha Wolf and Dragon Bane) defending the GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship against Ninja Mack and Alejandro and Good Looking Guys (YO-HEY and Tadasuke) in a three-way match.

Wrestlers from All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) – with whom Noah has a partnership – will appeared at the event. The event aired live on AbemaTV online linear television service and CyberFight's streaming service Wrestle Universe and FITE TV as a pay-per-view (PPV) in both English and Japanese commentaries.

## Production

### Background

Since 2022, Noah began annually producing shows the NOAH The New Year at the Nippon Budokan, which became the first puroresu show to be held in the New Year's Day, becoming Noah's biggest annual event and as their equivalent to NJPW's Wrestle Kingdom and WWE's Wrestlemania. NOAH The New Year was officially announced on July 15, 2023 at One Night Dream. NOAH The NOAH The New Year took part on January 2, 2024 at Ariake Arena, marking the first time that event was not held New Year's Day.

The event featured NOAH's return to Ariake Arena for the first time in two years. Noah held their launch in August 2000 at Differ Ariake, which was adjacent to their offices at that time, and regularly held big events at Ariake Coliseum on a regular basis. The arena became known as the home of Pro Wrestling Noah, housing the promotion's offices and training dojo until 2016. However in January 2017, construction began for Ariake Arena, which replaced the Differ Ariake, as the arena was built on the complex where Differ Ariake used to stand. On October 30, 2022, Noah held their first show at the Ariake Arena. The full card for the event was announced on December 11.

### Storylines

NOAH The New Year 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.

The event was headlined by Kota Ibushi facing Naomichi Marufuji. On November 2 at Noah the Best, All Elite Wrestling's Kota Ibushi made his return to Pro Wrestling Noah after eleven years, confronting Naomichi Marufuji after his match, challenging Naomichi Marufuji to a match at NOAH The New Year. Marufuji accepted, stating that he was "waiting for him in the ring at Ariake Arena", before both shaking hands, with the match being billed as "Destiny". Afterwards, NOAH announced that the match would be the main event of NOAH The New Year. Leading to the event, Marufuji worked on a new finishing maneveur for the event, the *Kami Ko-oh* (God Tiger King), a modified version of Ibushi's *Kamigoye* to use against him.

At NOAH The New Year, Kenoh made his first title defense of the GHC Heavyweight Championship against his former KONGOH stablemate Manabu Soya. On October 28 at Demolition Stage In Fukuoka, Kenoh defeated Jake Lee to win the GHC Heavyweight Championship. Afterwards, he challenged by former KONGOH stablemate Manabu Soya to a title match at NOAH The New Year, which he accepted. Both Kenoh and Soya were part of KONGOH, which was led by Kenoh. The two eventually won the All Japan Pro Wrestling's World Tag Team Championship from March until June, before Kenoh decided to disband KONGOH on June 24, at Kenoh's 15th Anniversary show of his professional wrestling career, with Soya being very emotional on the stable's disbanding. At Noah the Best, Kenoh and Soya faced each other in the main event of the event, with Kenoh teaming with his mentor Jinsei Shinzaki and Soya with Tatsumi Fujinami. Soya scored a direct submission over Kenoh, using his master finishing maneuver the *Dragon Sleeper*, with Funami allowing later Soya to use the move.

NOAH announced Marufuji and Ibushi's match for the main event of the show, relegating the GHC Heavyweight Championship match, for the second last match of the show, for the second consecutive year. Afterwards, the annoucement for the main event mixed reactions among fans, including criticism, mainly on social media, leading NOAH's Executive Officer Narihiro Takeda to reveal that he attributed them the main event, due to the popularity of both wrestlers over the GHC Heavyweight Championship match, with reigning champion Kenoh being furious about the decision. Marufuji himself addresed the criticism stating that he was looking forward for the GHC Heavyweight Championship match. He also revealed his plan to retire in the next five years. Ibushi also addresed the situation in a interview on December 9, stating that he was not concerned about the order of the matches, but instead, he wanted their match to be a success. Both were planned to face each other April 2009 and July 2010, but both matches were scrapped, after they were sidelined with an injury at that time. On December 20, following a tag team match, where Kenoh scored a direct pinfall victory over Soya, Kenoh addressed the change of status of the GHC Heavyweight Championship match, stating that NOAH was "NJPW's second promotion" and that he and Soya would have a match that symbolized Pro Wrestling NOAH.

On November 13, after Dragón Bane faced his brother Alpha Wolf in a draw, Ninja Mack and Alejandro, who previously teased a title challenge, came out and challenged Bane and Wolf to a title match for the GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. However, Good Looking Guys' YO-HEY and Tadasuke also challenged them to a title match, leading Wolf to propose a three way match at NOAH The New Year.

On November 24, NOAH announced that NJPW World Television Champion Zack Sabre Jr. would be teaming with his mentor Yoshinari Ogawa to face Hiroshi Tanahashi and HAYATA at NOAH The New Year, with the match being billed as "Wrestling Symphony". Sabre and Ogawa had previously had a student and master relationship during Sabre's tenrue in Pro Wrestling NOAH, with the duo holding the GHC Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship on two different occasions. Tanahashi and Ogawa last met in 2004, when Ogawa and Mitsuharu Misawa defeated Tanahashi and Yuji Nagata to win the GHC Tag Team Championship.

Also on November 24, after Daga successfully defended the GHC Junior Heavyweight Championship, Eita challenged Daga to a title match, before being attacked by him, setting up the title match for the event. At Noah the Best, Daga made his way to the ring, in a crutch, giving a emotional speech where he could not defend the title at NOAH The New Year, and as such, he handed the title to Eita, before revealing to be a ruse when Daga attacked Eita with his crutch, stating that Eita never learned, and he was controlling him with mind games. Daga made his debut for NOAH in Feburary 2023, as Eita's ally, due to connection that both previously shared in Mexico, however, Daga turned on Eita in May to join Stinger.

On November 27, Nagisa Nozaki faced Miyuki Takase in a winning effort. Afterwards, Nozaki and Takase were interrupted by Haruka Umesaki. She asked Nozaki to face her next, before The Great Sakuya appeared in the ring and spat the green mist at Haruka. After Great Sakuya whispered something in Nozaki's ear, she turned on Takase, leading to a match at the event.

At the event, Nosawa Rongai announced that Ulka Sasaki would be making his Noah debut at NOAH The New Year, with his opponent being Takashi Sugiura. Afterwards, Sasaki asked Sugiura for a handshake, before being attacked by Sugiura.

At Noah the Best, in a post-match interview, Masa Kitamiya called out New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW)'s Tomohiro Ishii to have a singles match at the Ariake Arena on January 2. He repeat his challenge on December 10. Also at the event, Go Shiozaki challenged NJPW's Satoshi Kojima at the event. The following day, NOAH announced both matches for the event. Kitamiya and Ishii had previously faced each other at the traditional NJPW vs. NOAH at the beginning of the year, on January 21 at Wrestle Kingdom 17, where Kitamiya and Ishii were involved in a brawl, after their match, with Kitamiya vowing to face him ever since. Meanwhile, the last time Shiozaki faced Kojima, he lost the GHC Heavyweight Championship to him at Cyberfight Festival on June 12, 2022.

On December 10, following a match between both sides Kiyomiya and Oiwa were attacked by House of Torture, only to be saved by Shota Umino. Afterwards, Oiwa and Kiyomiya challenged EVIL and Takahashi to a match. Later that day, NOAH announced the match for the event. Oiwa and Kiyomiya faced EVIL and Takahashi in their block match of the NJPW's 2023 World Tag League, which they won. On December 20, House of Torture made an appearance in NOAH attacking Kiyomiya, Oiwa and Junta Miyawaki, before EVIL proposed a match between all members of House of Torture and Kiyomiya, Oiwa and their potential partners. Afterwards, Kiyomiya revealed that he had two wrestlers assisting them, which were Miyawaki and Shuji Kondo, after they accepted Kiyomiya's offer to join them. The following day, Kiyomiya and Oiwa made an appearance in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) saving Shota Umino from an attack by House of Torture. Later that day, Noah announced that Kiyomiya, Oiwa, Umino, Miyawaki, Kondo, and Daiki Inaba would face House of Torture at the event.