Jay White Gets Emotional at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom Press Conference

Jan 5, 2021 - by James Walsh

On Night 2 of Wrestle Kingdom 15, G1 briefcase holder Jay White was unsuccessful in his challenge to unseat new double gold champion Kota Ibushi in the main event. After just over 48 minutes, Ibushi pinned White to retain the titles. Following the show, a distraught Jay White took part in the post-show press conference. Incredulous, White broke down, flipped the conference tables, and he even fell off his chair. He also declared that he was “done” and said “After New Year’s Dash, that’s it,” indicating he was either quitting the business or NJPW. Below are some highlights and footage from the press conference:

White on the loss: “Out there, sums up my situation. I feel like I’m physically the closest to death I’ve ever been, hopefully that I ever will be. You just all saw what I put on the line. I put myself at risk, not directly for your entertainment, for myself. But a byproduct of me being in the ring is your entertainment. So by proxy, I go and put myself through that eventually for your entertainment. I can barely walk and you all, you all, you all just stand there and stare at me. You, one, two, three sitting down, or you standing there. You ever think to help somebody in need, huh? Did you enjoy that? Did you enjoy watching me trying to walk up here by myself?! Hmm? And or what? Huh?! I go through all of that, all of that, for what? And you? You don’t even have the tiniest bit of respect, the tiniest bit of empathy to where you would think to help somebody in need. So if you can’t do something simple like that, I will let everybody know watching, even if they had the chance, they wouldn’t have helped. I will never be appreciated like I should be. I see it. I see it now. Everything I’ve done. Everything I’ve done. You want to talk to Switchblade Jay White, I’m sorry. You’re just getting Jamie. Everything I’ve done.”

White on the sacrifices he’s made: “Sacrifices. The years away. When I first left New Zealand, I haven’t seen my family or my parents, my parents, I haven’t seen them for three and a half years because I dedicated myself to this! I put everything into this! I believe in myself like you wouldn’t believe. I know what I can do. I know! At least I thought I knew. And no matter how much I knew it in here and in here, no matter how much I believed that it was my time, my moment, my destino, that I was about to become God. I end up being wrong. I end up being wrong. And don’t you love that?! You like enjoy that?! I was wrong. I guess it wasn’t my destino! It still wasn’t — it still wasn’t my new era! Doesn’t that make you all happy?!”

White on being done with wrestling: I am out here, in Japan, wasting my life out here for what during a global pandemic?! I could be at home right now. No, it’ll be worth it. Sacrifice! Sacrifice! Sacrifice! And it’ll be worth it! You will finally get both of those belts when you finally made it at Wrestle Kingdom! It’ll be worth it! But if I can’t get it done after all the time and all of the sacrifices, they’re not worth it! So, why am I here? I’m not going to do this anymore. I’m not going to do this anymore! I’m not going to do this anymore! Not for any of you. Not for any of you! Not for any of the people out there! If I can’t do this for myself, then it’s not worth doing! It’s not worth me being here! [throws tables and falls of chairs]”

White on what’s next: “Maybe — Maybe my time would be spent better someplace else. I don’t want to do this anymore. I’m not going to do this anymore. If this is all it’s for, I’m not going to do it. Tomorrow, contractually, if they want me, if they want to make me wrestle again after what I’ve just been through, and I don’t mean just tonight, I mean the last, in eight days, eight days, it’ll be eight years to the date that I first stepped in a wrestling ring and started training. I’m not going to do this anymore. So, if they want to make me show up tomorrow, fine. Fine and I’m sure they will because you all, New Japan, the media, the fans, you love nothing more than to see me distressed. See me like this, huh? Fine. I’ll show up tomorrow if you want me to, but after that, that’s it. Will you f***ing help me?! Will you f***ing help me?!”

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