OZAWA Claims Everyone Wants Him and Tetsuya Naito to Main Event NOAH’s SPRING MAYHEM RYOGOKU 2026 on 5/2

By: Ian McCord

Multiple high-profile singles matches are set for Pro Wrestling NOAH’s SPRING MAYHEM RYOGOKU 2026 event on May 2nd. One of those matches is TEAM 2000X’s OZAWA finally getting his opportunity to go one on one with Los Tranquilos de Japon’s Tetsuya Naito.

Ahead of his much anticipated singles match with Tetsuya Naito, OZAWA sat down for an interview with Pro Wrestling NOAH. During the interview it’s mentioned that the match between OZAWA & Naito may be attracting more attention than Yoshiki Inamura’s GHC Heavyweight Championship defense against Shane Haste.

OZAWA would respond to this with some harsh words for Inamura, claiming that everyone believes he and Naito should be in the main event in Ryogoku and that everything the Champion has built to this point is being overshadowed by OZAWA’s feud with Tetsuya Naito.

From OZAWA:

“To be honest, everyone thinks that Naito and I should be the main event. Everyone thinks that, but it’s like, ‘Well, to maintain the prestige of the GHC Heavyweight title, we’ll just squeeze us in as the main event… I guess we have no choice.’ Ultimately, that’s entirely Inamura’s fault. Everything Inamura has built up so far is being overshadowed by a match between Naito and me—a match with no title on the line—in terms of buzz. This alone proves he wasn’t cut out to be a champion.”

On April 18th, OZAWA would continue his criticism of Inamura’s GHC Heavyweight Title reign at NOAH’s LETHAL ODYSSEY TOUR 2026 in Niigata. After defeating LTJ in 8-man tag action, OZAWA would use his post-match comments to question the excitement of the GHC Heavyweight Title scene with Inamura as champion, wondering if the fans should decide the main event for Ryogoku on May 2nd.

From OZAWA:

“You know, doesn’t the GHC Heavyweight division seem a bit lackluster lately? I feel like it hasn’t really picked up since Inamura became champion. Is it really okay to have Inamura vs. Shane as the main event at Ryogoku? Wouldn’t it be better to have me and Naito? I’d kind of like to ask the fans what they think.”

GHC Heavyweight Champion Yoshiki Inamura response to OZAWA would happen on April 19th at NOAH’s LETHAL ODYSSEY TOUR 2026 in Gunma during his post-match comments.

From Yoshiki Inamura:

“Mr. OZAWA. Are you wrestling all by yourself? I’m the current GHC Heavyweight Champion. That’s only possible because of everyone’s support. You can’t carry a mikoshi all by yourself. Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to hype up the main event at Ryogoku.”

Inamura would double down on his comments in a social media post on X, telling OZAWA he can relax, stating that as champion he will be sure to fulfill his role of being in the main event.

From Yoshiki Inamura:

“Don’t worry, Mr. OZAWA. Smile, Mr. OZAWA. Relax, stay focused, and put on a great fight against Mr. Naito! As the NOAH Champion, I’ll make sure to fulfill my role as the main event. That’s what being a champion is all about.”

(All English Translations via DeepL)

At the time of reporting, there has been no update from Pro Wrestling NOAH on which match will take place in main event of NOAH’s SPRING MAYHEM RYOGOKU 2026 on May 2nd.