A top contender in the Junior Heavyweight division, KUSHIDA has his eyes set on becoming the best in the organization. Having extensive overseas training in multiple promotions, he made his New Japan debut in April of 2011. With the classic speed of a Jr. Heavyweight, he combined his MMA background to employ painful holds and submissions against his opponents.

A glittering stretch in NJPW from 2011 to 2019 saw him win Best of the Super Jr. twice, and the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship six times, earning him the position of junior heavyweight ace. In February 2019, KUSHIDA headed for a new chapter in WWE, but returned in 2022, driven to become junior heavyweight champion once more. As champion Taiji Ishimori demanded KUSHIDA prove himself worthy of a shot, KUSHIDA headed to Nashville, and battled former tag team partner Alex Shelley at Music City Mayhem, before returning to pin Ishimori during a tag match at the G1 Climax 32 finals.