An emotional Kazuchika Okada bowed in the middle of the ring after he wrestled at NJPW The New Beginning in Nagoya today.

With tears in his eyes, Okada returned to the empty ring after he teamed up with Ryusuke Taguchi, Shota Umino and Yoh to defeat Los Ingobernables de Japón in an eight-man tag team match. He waved to all four sides of the ring and then bowed and exited the ring as fans clapped.

It was Okada’s last time wrestling in Nagoya, at least for the foreseeable future, as he is departing NJPW to move to the United States.

His last contractual date with NJPW is January 31 but has agreed to work three more shows in February and not burn any bridges with the promotion that made him a worldwide megastar.

.@rainmakerXokada “Thank you Nagoya👋”

Sign up Now & Stay tuned to https://t.co/CeQLGjTmZ5#njnbg #NJPW #njpwworld pic.twitter.com/B7RMXjlOaY

— NJPW WORLD (@njpwworld) January 20, 2024