KENOH Demands Naomichi Marufuji Put Up His VP of NOAH Position At Their Upcoming GHC National Title Bout, Marufuji Responds

By: Lewis Carlan

Naomichi Marufuji is set to defend his GHC National Championship against KENOH on July 18th at Pro Wrestling NOAH’s HaRENO Presents SUMMER EPIC 2026 which takes place in Osaka.

Photo Credit: Pro Wrestling NOAH

Ahead of their highly anticipated showdown, KENOH & Marufuji were on opposing teams in a six man tag team bout that occurred on July 5th at NOAH’s “LEGACY RISE 2026” at Korakuen Hall.

KENOH teamed with Kazuyuki Fujita & Hiroto Tsuruya as they faced the trio of Naomichi Marufuji, Yoshiki Inamura & Katsumi Inahata. While KENOH and Marufuji had plenty of heated interaction during the course of the bout, it was KENOH forcing Inahata to tap out to his KENOH Special that enabled his team to emerge victorious.

After the bout, KENOH grabbed the microphone and stated he was aiming to reach the top of NOAH and challenged Marufuji to put his position of VP of NOAH on the line during their July 18th match in addition to the GHC National Title.

During his post-match backstage interview, KENOH double-downed on his demand that Marufuji put his VP of NOAH position on the line. KENOH stated he is the one to take NOAH to the top.

From KENOH:

“Marufuji-san, I asked you seriously in that ring. I truly intend to take NOAH to the top. What about you? Me — with my conviction, I’ll make PRO WRESTLING NOAH number one in this industry. Hey, Marufuji-san: July 18th, Intex Osaka — the National belt, of course, but stake your Vice President’s rights too. On 7/18, I’ll be the one pulling NOAH forward.”

Marufuji responded to KENOH when it was his turn for a post-match backstage interview. Marufuji stated he will put his VP of NOAH position on the line if KENOH agrees to hand over his highly successful YouTube channel should he win the high stakes bout.

KENOH responded to Marufuji and stated that he wouldn’t transfer his YouTube Channel over but would create a new YouTube channel just for Marufuji should he lose.

From KENOH:

“Will the vice president join in too?! It’s the GHC National Championship—and the battle for the vice president’s throne! Instead of transferring an account, I’ll just go ahead and create a Marufuji Channel account for you. Let’s trade insults until the 18th! It’s like the Ken-Oh Timeline.” (Translated via Deepl.com)

It’s understandable why KENOH would be reluctant in wagering his YouTube channel as it just reached the 100,000 subscribers milestone. Marufuji knew that would be a weak point for KENOH which is most likely why he asked for it to be put on the line.

Fans can expect a lot of verbal assaults between the two leading up to their huge, high stakes showdown on July 18th. It’s going to be very entertaining for the next 13 days.