Mark Cuban isn’t just the owner of the Dallas Mavericks or one of the investors on Shark Tank. He is also chairman of AXS TV which is the current home of New Japan Pro Wrestling
Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated recently spoke to Cuban where he opened up about New Japan Pro Wrestling which happens to be one of the most popular programs on AXS TV. There are some big plans for New Japan on AXS TV in the upcoming year due to the rising interest stateside for the Japanese wrestling company’s product.
There are plans to expand NJPW’s AXS show on Friday Nights as well as do more live specials. The G1 USA Special on AXS TV was obviously a huge eye opener in a very good way. Needless to say, there seems to be a lot of interest in the company and AXS TV plans to capitalize on that.
The Dallas Mavericks owner also spoke about Vince McMahon and didn’t hold much back when relaying how he thought The Chairman Of The Board in WWE felt about NJPW.
“He thinks we’re just little sh-ts,” Cuban said of McMahon. “We’re not a threat because of the language. That’s the biggest challenge, the language. But if you’re a purist for wrestling, and you like the action, it’s the best promotion by far. People here aren’t going to connect as directly, but if you really love wrestling, then it’s a no-brainer.”
Cuban sees big things for the future of New Japan and he’s not the only one. If anything, their Hot Topic sales should prove that they’re not “just little sh-ts.” Cuban also sees big things on Friday nights for NJPW as they create a tentpole for AXS TV. Therefore, if Vince McMahon doesn’t see New Japan as competition for WWE, it might be a good idea just to wait it out a little bit because they could be impossible to ignore in a very short time.
I miss the territory days.