Any word on KENTA's signing?

[Society of the Spectacle]

I know it's supposed to be tomorrow at some point (or Saturday in Japan), but has there been any word about it being broadcasted on WWE.com or the network? Didn't they do something similar for Sin Cara?

[CH Punk]

The public signing will take place an hour before the live show on Saturday, meaning 4 PM JST. That translates to 3 AM EDT (8 AM in England and midnight PDT) on Saturday Morning. So expect the news when you wake up on Saturday or if you stay up real late.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

You're right he's getting a press conference same as Sin Cara, the funny thing in my opinion is that while Mistico was the biggest star in Mexico at the time, Kenta has never been the man in Japan, he was never the featured guy during NOAH's boom period right before Misawa's death, and when he finally won the GHC heavyweight belt it was too little too late, if new japan is top dog would that make NOAH number 2 or 3?
I hope that the similarities with Sin Cara end with them just doing a press conference, hope they send him to nxt to get polished, put him with the right guy, don't give him a stereotypical Asian gimmick (although a yakuza gimmick would be awesome), wonder what goofy name they are gonna give him.

[4TheGlory]

In a huge swerve the press conference is to announce the signing of:

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}{Spoiler}Former United States Champion Kenzo Suzuki

[BigJerichool222]

I, for one, can't wait for the signing of Ken Wasabi

[Deleted]

Akira Tentacleporn is going to make a name for himself in the WWE I tell you what.

[OldDirtyBernie]

I wish they'd broadcast it on The Network. At least record it and play it in its entirety, throw in a short hype video. Especially since it's FREE PREVIEW WEEK.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

Harry Wong the orient's sex god

[YAKMAN is ICHIBAN]

I can't wait for them to sign the wrong Japanese guy.

[Deleted]

Jul 11, 2014 8:23:27 GMT -5 YAKMAN is ICHIBAN said:

I can't wait for them to sign the wrong Japanese guy.

I dunno, in this instance it'd still be pretty cool to have Kenta Kobashi as a Hall of Famer/ambassador for the WWE.

[Dr. Bolty, Disaster Enby]

Jul 10, 2014 22:11:51 GMT -5 OVO 40 hunched over like he 80 said:

You're right he's getting a press conference same as Sin Cara, the funny thing in my opinion is that while Mistico was the biggest star in Mexico at the time, Kenta has never been the man in Japan, he was never the featured guy during NOAH's boom period right before Misawa's death, and when he finally won the GHC heavyweight belt it was too little too late, if new japan is top dog would that make NOAH number 2 or 3?
I hope that the similarities with Sin Cara end with them just doing a press conference, hope they send him to nxt to get polished, put him with the right guy, don't give him a stereotypical Asian gimmick (although a yakuza gimmick would be awesome), wonder what goofy name they are gonna give him.

He wasn't "the guy" during NOAH's boom (which actually ended quite a bit before Misawa's death - I remember at the time, the Marufuji vs. KENTA main event's poor and mostly papered gate was seen as dire straits for the company), but he and Marufuji were still a very significant tag team during that time period. He's also by far the biggest Japanese name to get signed by WWE since Tajiri, in that he is a main event star (even if it is for a struggling or dying promotion like NOAH) instead of a rookie.

Additionally, the press conference may be less to say, "Oh look, we have KENTA! What a big signing!" and more to say, "KENTA is an important addition to WWE, and we intend to make him a star that you, our Japanese fans, can get behind." Jury's out on whether that actually happens, but bolstering fans' faith in the signing may be a motive - WWE has never pushed a Japanese star very hard, and the press conference could be their way of reassuring their Japanese audience that they have bigger plans for KENTA than they had for Yoshi Tatsu and Funaki.

[OVO 40 hunched over like he 80]

Jul 11, 2014 8:23:27 GMT -5 YAKMAN is ICHIBAN said:

I can't wait for them to sign the wrong Japanese guy.

Johnny Ace then signs a one legged Japanese wrestler.

[Digital Witness]

Jul 11, 2014 11:41:03 GMT -5 OVO 40 hunched over like he 80 said:

Jul 11, 2014 8:23:27 GMT -5 YAKMAN is ICHIBAN said:

I can't wait for them to sign the wrong Japanese guy.

Johnny Ace then signs a one legged Japanese wrestler.

Nah, Johnny Ace would sign former DDT Ironman Heavymetalweight Champion... ladder.