Desperado: “Narita Should Be The Face of Strong Style”

Desperado: “Narita Should Be The Face of Strong Style”

by: J. Curbelo

After winning the NEVER 6-Man Tag Team Championships last February 11, Strong Style’s El Desperado has revisited some of the beliefs he had about the philosophy surrounding the “Strong Style” name and Ren Narita as a performer.

His partner, Minoru Suzuki, grabbed the microphone almost immediately after the group won the championships to announce that the team would be known simply as Strong Style moving forward.

'Our name is Strong Style!'

We have new NEVER Openweight 6 man Tag Team Champions, and Suzuki, Desperado and Narita formed a Strong Style combination tonight at New Beginning!#njnbg report https://t.co/PIdN0mSt0K

Watch the replay now!https://t.co/sKvIwnoRZ7#njpw pic.twitter.com/7sexKUgxi3

— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) February 11, 2023

Desperado opened up about his near disgust towards the term. “I used to hate that word so, so much. People think that strong style is all about looks. Wearing simple gear, having your face uncovered. I was like ‘Shut up!’ Desperado vented, as he didn’t like the idea of unmasking in order to embrace that aesthetic.

However, Desperado realized that it wasn’t all about appearance as Ren Narita made his return to New Japan last year. Initially, the masked wrestler disregarded Narita as just a “Katsuyori Shibata cosplayer” who tried too hard to look like a strong style wrestler without any of the substance that makes one. “I was pissed off… Which probably means I actually liked strong style after all.”

本日2/11(土)ごご5️⃣時から#新日本プロレスワールド で生中継！

🏁THE NEW BEGINNING in OSAKA🏁
　　　
視聴はこちらhttps://t.co/CcdQ1XamUA

NEVER無差別級6人タッグ選手権試合#成田蓮 & @ElDesperado5 & @suzuki_D_minoru vs @njpwShowT & #高橋裕二郎 & @151012EVIL #njnbg #NJPW #njpwworld pic.twitter.com/yfiRJRNqFu

— njpwworld (@njpwworld) February 11, 2023

Over time, Narita proved himself as an earnest competitor in Desperado’s eyes, as he decided to devote himself to absorb all about the philosophy by following Minoru Suzuki’s teachings. “He went from being a cosplayer to being side by side with the real deal. I guess that’s good, isn’t it? Personally, I think Narita should be the face of our team. He’s alright,” Desperado pondered.

With Suzuki-gun in the past, Desperado also gave his thoughts on what makes Strong Style different to the disbanded unit. He reckons that Suzuki-gun was all about Minoru Suzuki as a leader and mentor, but now he fights as an equal with him and Narita. He remarked that he and Suzuki have a tight, trustworthy bond with each other, and he would also like to bring someone of choosing to the faction, but is in no rush to pick someone rightaway.

成田蓮選手、鈴木みのる選手、エル・デスペラード選手をdotswrestlerにしました。NEVER6人タッグ新チャンピオンチーム。その名はストロングスタイル！#njpw #njnbg #dotwrestler #pixelart pic.twitter.com/NS86qyUG9d

— daizon (@DaizonNonaka) February 12, 2023

El Desperado also confirmed that he’s aiming to win the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, which only means he will have an eventful 2023.