Kota Ibushi
Biography
Kota Ibushi is a Japanese professional wrestler and former martial artist who signed with All Elite Wrestling (AEW) in 2023. Widely praised by fans and critics for his explosive athleticism, striking ability, and willingness to take extreme physical risks, he built a reputation for delivering some of the highest-rated matches of his era, particularly through his work in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). Ibushi began his career in 2004 with DDT Pro-Wrestling, where he became one of the company’s top stars. During his time there, he won the KO-D Openweight Championship three times, the KO-D Tag Team Championship five times, and the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship twice. Two of those tag title reigns came alongside Kenny Omega as the Golden☆Lovers, whose combined 351 days as champions remain a DDT record. He first appeared for NJPW in 2009 before officially signing in 2013. Across his time with the promotion, he won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship three times, the NEVER Openweight Championship once, and the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship. After leaving both NJPW and DDT in 2016 to work as a freelancer, he competed for multiple promotions and took part in the WWE Cruiserweight Classic. He returned to NJPW full-time in 2019 and soon reached the peak of his career. Ibushi won the G1 Climax in 2019 and 2020, the Best of the Super Juniors in 2011, and the New Japan Cup in 2015, making him the only wrestler to win all three of NJPW’s major tournaments. In 2021, he captured the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and unified it with the IWGP Intercontinental Championship to become the inaugural IWGP World Heavyweight Champion.
