It’s been nearly a month since New Japan Pro Wrestling’s G1 Special in San Francisco, taking place at the Cow Palace back on July 7th. However, reigning IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi has remained in a hospital after suffering a gruesome injury during the show.

While it was never fully confirmed, Takahashi was believed to have a broken neck after taking a cradle suplex in his title defense against Dragon Lee at the event, accidentally getting spiked into the canvas on the top of his head. Hiromu was of course able to finish the match, but reportedly collapsed when he got backstage and was rushed to a local hospital before being transported back to Japan.

While details on his condition have been pretty scarce, The Wrestling Observer Newsletter is reporting that the expected recovery time for Takahashi is 9-12 months. Reportedly, no nerve damage was found, which is of course a good sign, however it will still be a long to road ahead of Hiromu.

EA’s Take: I think at this point we can safely say, he broke his freakin’ neck, even if it’s not been one hundred percent confirmed. The recovery timetable lines up with neck fusion surgery that we’ve seen so many others have to undergo, so that’s the conclusion I’m drawing here. Plus, how else would they know there’s no nerve damage unless he went under-the-knife? I’m no doctor, but it just makes too much sense. Here’s to hoping Takahashi can make a full recovery and get back in the ring. The G1 was really my introduction to his work and I found him, as well as the match (outside of the injury), to be highly entertaining.

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