Queen Of Sports: Women In NJPW & ROH
Women’s wrestling has yet to be embraced by one of the biggest promotions.
In the aftermath of WWE’s first all-women’s pay-per-view, I thought it would be interesting to look at the status of women’s wrestling in two of my favorite promotions: New Japan Pro Wrestling and Ring of Honor. I have decided to look at both promotions together due to their close business partnership, and how each have the ability to improve a very serious problem.
Over the past few years, Ring of Honor has taken significant steps to diversify its product. While women’s wrestling and female figures have appeared in ROH sporadically throughout its history, the company has never really put an emphasis on women’s pro wrestling. Instead, much like New Japan, the company’s core focus was on its male division.
Women’s wrestling on ROH cards was seen very much through the “Attitude Era” WWE gaze: meaningless matches, novelty attractions and it sadly pains me to say it, as an afterthought. It was only when NXT’s women’s division took the internet by storm that I realized ROH was actually behind the times. As a pro wrestling fan, the lack of exposure to equal talent is extremely damaging. I will be honest – I didn’t even give the women wrestlers a chance, and nine times out of ten fast-forwarded to the next male match.
I was very dismissive of female wrestling in ROH due to the lack of depth in the division, which completely contrasted the promotion’s male roster for a long time, and in turn, shut me off from women’s wrestling in the company. For years, this was the same old story and situation. Around the mid-2010s, something changed. After ROH was bought out by Sinclair Broadcasting Group, the company began a plan to integrate more female wrestling into the product.
More emphasis was placed on matches and storylines, as well as deepening the minimal roster. These all sound like really obvious things to do, but when you are watching a product that looks to demote its female matches (often only one a show if that) to either “the dead spot” or even pre-shows, you really need to work hard to balance out your product. This is even more important when you have a multi-national TV deal and need to create a product that caters to all audiences.
While a lot of people are critical of the ROH TV show for watering down the overall product, what it has done is made the company address the equality issues which have faced it for many years. In 2015, ROH finally created its own female brand – “Women of Honor” – and gradually began taking steps to balance out its brilliant male roster, with an equally brilliant female roster. Thanks to a vibrant female independent scene that includes SHIMMER, Shine and STARDOM, ROH has been able to build a strong female wrestling reputation that has become a focal point of the company, much like the male roster did in years previous.
From recording the pilot “Women of Honor” show that appeared on DVD in 2016, to showcasing many exclusive WHO matches from all around the world via YouTube, as well as creating the WOH World Championship currently held by Sumie Sakai, ROH has finally been able to turn a corner and deliver its own “Women’s Revolution.”
Although it’s still in the developmental stages, no one can deny that ROH in 2018 is not only a lot more balanced, but also a lot more enjoyable thanks to the “Women of Honor.” Now while the company continues to address its female dynamic, the same cannot be said for its close affiliate New Japan.
As many of you know, NJPW has been in existence since the early 1970s, and is the premier puroresu promotion. Since 2013 (thanks to social media, internet PPV and fantastic quality matches), NJPW has steadily grown into one of the most successful wrestling companies in history. But this success comes at a price. As mentioned earlier, NJPW is an all-male wrestling promotion, with no female matches taking place in a NJPW ring.
Once again, much like ROH, it is only when you look at the current success of women’s pro wrestling in WWE that you realize NJPW is severely hindering itself by not presenting any women’s wrestling, in regard to equality and diversity. Recently, this has been a huge topic on Reddit and I know not everyone will agree with my views, but realistically, a company with the size and popularity of NJPW needs to have some form of women’s wrestling on its cards.
Having 7-star matches and ground-breaking tournaments is all well and fine, but if you haven’t got a balanced roster, you are ostracizing yourself from a massive section of the market. Sure, there are Joshi promotions in Japan and companies like DDT that feature matches from both male and female wrestlers. But it is still worrying that NJPW is fully male-orientated in 2018.
It is well known that puroresu is stooped in tradition, with young boys gradually working their way up the ladder to the main event and heavyweight title level. But answer me this question: In today’s puroresu climate (and considering NJPW’s size in said climate), how are people able to effectively climb up the metaphorical ladder if wrestlers are still being segregated into specific promotions based on gender?
NJPW has helped ROH greatly since joining forces in 2014. It has deepened ROH’s male roster and skyrocketed attendance figures, points that a lot of ROH diehards are quite vocal about. As a matter of fact, ROH has gotten lost somewhere, turning from a super-indy promotion into NJPW’s USA platform. But as the relationship has become very strong, and one that looks like it will continue to grow, there is a way ROH can actually help NJPW.
With the continuing success of the “Women of Honor” division, it would be great for ROH to negotiate a deal with New Japan to present their women’s division on NJPW shows. Basically, the reverse of what NJPW did for Ring of Honor with its male roster. It may again sound completely obvious, but just think what extra intrigue that would bring to NJPW. Dream matches in the Tokyo Dome, female affiliates in factions and even more partner promotions to work with around the globe. This would be a true showcase for a lot of hungry independent wrestling talent.
ROH already has an established women’s division as well as supportive fanbase, and NJPW is riding high on the most success the promotion has ever had. So why not do something daring, New Japan, and finally break a glass ceiling that has been in place for nearly 50 years. There is no better time than now to start a female division. The fans want it and the wrestlers need it.
It’s time for a revolution, and it’s time for the King of Sports to share the throne with a rightful Queen!
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