Kushida Reflects On Past Health Issues And His Feud With With Kyle O’Reilly Keeping Him Motivated

Kushida explains why his match against Kyle O’Reilly on the June 22 episode of NXT was special.

On the most recent episode of NXT, Kushida and Kyle O’Reilly brought their rivalry to WWE in a hard-hitting matchup which would see Kyle O’Reilly walk away with the victory.

On the morning of June 23, Kushida took to Twitter to explain why this match was so special. In his tweet, he revealed that in 2017, around the time that he had his final match overseas with Kyle O’Reilly, he was experiencing tremendous abdominal pain and was beginning to believe that his days inside the squared circle were numbered.

Kushida goes on to say that when Kyle O’Reilly told him that he was, in fact, signing with WWE, Kushida began to think that a match between them inside the WWE ring would be a great experience.

In 2017, around this time, I was considering retirement after every match. I was concerned about my mental and physical health after every match. I wrestled back and forth between Japan and the United States twice a month. 

During that time, I sometimes suffered from severe abdominal pain after matches. I crouched on the floor with a cold sweat and had no choice but to wait for the pain to pass. I had to insert a gastro camera down my throat at the hospital to examine my stomach. But the doctors couldn’t find anything wrong. The doctor’s diagnosis was that my autonomic nerves must have been disturbed. My level of this abdominal pain wasn’t normal. And, if it continued, I couldn’t wrestle anymore. I knew it wasn’t an exaggeration. And I knew that my wrestling career could be over at any time. 

I had a match with Kyle O’Reilly at that time. It was four years ago in London. At that point, it was rumored that Kyle O’Reilly would soon sign a contract with WWE. After our match, I talked to him directly. He told me his honest intentions. At that time, I thought it would be great to have a match against him in the WWE some day. I knew my professional wrestling life wouldn’t last forever. 

So Yesterday was special. WWE/NXT universe! Thank you for watching. 

Our fight will go on forever. 

Our fight will go on forever. pic.twitter.com/MtCxk74F3i

— KUSHIDA (@KUSHIDA_0904) June 23, 2021

After the match, Roderick Strong returned to WWE NXT as part of the Diamond Mine. The group also includes Hideki Suzuki, Tyler Rust, and Malcolm Bivens. Learn more here.