Peatzilla | MP
By: Lewis Carlan
At seven feet tall and over three hundred pounds, All Japan Pro-Wrestling star Talos is quite an imposing figure inside the squared circle.
Talos made his debut for AJPW back on June 1st at the AJPW Super Power Series 2025 event in Sendai. Joining forces with Hokuto-gun, he teamed with Hokuto Omori & Kuma Arashi as they defeated Ren Ayabe, Yuma Anzai & Ryuki Honda.
In Aug. 2025, Talos decided to leave Hokuto-gun and formed a powerhouse tag team with Ren Ayabe who he had been feuding with prior. The new tag team called themselves the “Titans of Calamity”.
Talos & Ayabe hit the ground running and proved that they were a tag team force inside the ring as they racked up numerous victories.
The “Titans of Calamity” earned the distinction of being one of the best teams in AJPW and all of pro-wrestling when they won the prestigious AJPW Real World Tag League 2025 tournament on December 10.
They made a huge statement by defeating the current AJPW World Tag Team Champions Xyon & Oddyssey in the finals of the tournament.
On Jan. 2nd, Ayabe & Talos will get their AJPW World Tag Team Championship opportunity when they face Xyon & Oddyssey once again. this time with the titles on the line.
Talos graciously granted Monthly Puroresu an exclusive interview as we discussed various topics including the AJPW Real World Tag League, Ren Ayabe and much more.
Here is our exclusive interview with AJPW star Talos:
Monthly Puroresu:
Congratulations on winning the AJPW Real World Tag League. Where does this rank among your other championship accomplishments?
Talos:
Thank you! This certainly ranks up near the very top for me. When you talk about something this historic with past winners like Bruiser Brody, Terry Funk, The Dudley Boyz, Giant Baba & Jumbo Tsuruta. You have to try and appreciate what that means. So yeah I’d say it’s pretty high on the list.
Monthly Puroresu:
The Real World Tag League is a tough tournament, did you have to increase your training regiment prior to the tournament?
Talos:
Well wrestling doesn’t really have an offseason so the training never stops but I’d say the best training was being on the Hokkaido Dynamite Tour before the start of the tournament. I think that time and those matches really let me and Ayabe work on our team work and strategy.
Photo Credit: AJPW
Monthly Puroresu:
You and Ren Ayabe defeated the AJPW World Tag Team Champions Xyon & Oddyssey to win the tournament. Your thoughts on the champions and can you and Ayabe beat them again on Jan 2?
Talos:
Absolutely. I know they’re going to come back swinging even harder than this time but we’ve already proven we can beat them and Jan 2nd won’t be any different than the first time.
Image Credit: AJPW
Monthly Puroresu:
Why do you think you and Ayabe make such a dominant team that works so well together?
Talos:
The reality is this, me and Ayabe are the biggest tag team in the world right now and arguably one of the biggest of all time since Andre and Giant Baba. Each of us is a powerhouse on our own and together I don’t think there’s a team on earth that can stop us.
Monthly Puroresu:
Who came up with the name “Titans of Calamity” and is there a story behind it?
Talos:
There is! But I’m gonna let Ayabe-san be the one tell that story!
Monthly Puroresu:
What were the circumstances that led you appearing in AJPW?
Talos:
Well at the time AJPW first approached me I was working with the Billy Corgan and the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) in the US. They were good enough at the time to allow me to come out here. When I did last May, everything had kind of grown from there.
Monthly Puroresu:
You began your time in AJPW as a member of Hokuto-gun. Why did you decide to leave the unit and join forces with Ayabe?
Talos:
I have a lot of love for Hokuto-gun and every member of that group. They brought me in and gave me a place here in AJPW so I’ll always be grateful for that. But I’m not here to simply make friends and be a part of someone else’s story. I’m here to win championships and make history and I knew after fighting Ayabe that he was a man I could do that with. So I made the decision and returned the shirt.
Photo Credit: AJPW
Monthly Puroresu:
What led to you deciding to pursue a career as a pro wrestler?
Talos:
Man there’s a loaded question! I’ll try to give you the quick version because it’s kind of a long story. So I was a fan in and out of my life but prior to my wrestling career I played professional basketball in a number of places internationally. For the last couple years prior to becoming a wrestler I was working with the World Famous “Harlem Globetrotters”. For the people who don’t know who that is they are technically the oldest basketball team on earth and the best way to think of their games is if wrestling and basketball had a baby. I was the lead villain for the opposing team the “Washington Generals”. We were doing a show in Georgia when The phenomenal one himself AJ Styles came to one of the shows as he’s a big basketball fan. He approached me after the show and offered me a tryout with the WWE which I accepted and went on to get a job there from 2020 to right near the beginning of 2022. It should be noted I was looking at wrestling schools when this happened to start transitioning to becoming a professional wrestler but the universe just has funny timing.
Monthly Puroresu:
Who were some of your influences?
Talos:
As a wrestler? There’s a few but I’d say the biggest 3 are firstly, The Undertaker who absolutely was and is my all time favorite. Second would be Bruiser Brody because I loved the raw emotion it felt like he always brought into the ring. Lastly I would say “Sir” Robbie Brookside. He was my very first wrestling coach and absolutely my biggest inspiration in wrestling.
Photo Credit: AJPW
Monthly Puroresu:
What is your contract situation with AJPW? Are you signed and if not, it that something you would consider?
Talos:
So I’m not really at liberty to discuss that but I will say that I don’t have any plans on being anywhere else for the foreseeable future.
Monthly Puroresu:
You’ve had three singles bouts while in AJPW against Ayabe, Seiki Yoshioka & Seigo Tachibana. Are there any other competitors you’d like to face in a singles bout while in AJPW?
Talos:
Oh there’s plenty of singles matches I’d love to have. Kento Vs. Talos would be one hell of a match or either of the Saito brothers. I’d really to get a little revenge on MUSASHI one of these days and I’d relish the chance to throw Hideki [Suzuki] around a little bit.
Image Credit: AJPW
Monthly Puroresu:
Do you have your eyes on the AJPW Triple Crown Title?
Talos:
Right now, I’m focused on what’s in front of me and that’s the Tag Team championships but, yes. Like I said early I’m here to win championships and make history and being a Triple Crown champion is definitely on that list. But it all happens one step at a time.
Monthly Puroresu:
I’ve always wanted to ask, how does a Talos vs Andre the Giant match play out in your opinion?
Talos:
Oh man! I don’t know how the ring would hold up with all that but it would be one hell of a fight. We’re right around the same height. He’d have the weight but I’d have the speed which is a strange thing for me to say. I don’t know what would have happened but I know I would have paid to watch it.
Monthly Puroresu:
What does the future hold for you and what are some of your goals in 2026?
Talos:
2026 is shaping up to be one hell of a year. First thing is first though and right now all my focus is on the tag belts with Ayabe. After we secure those with a victory on January 2nd I can start looking further out. The Champions Carnival is just around the corner and that might just be the best place to start working towards the Triple Crown.
Monthly Puroresu would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Talos for granting us this interview.
Date:
December 23, 2025
