Two Top NJPW Stars Tease Signing With WWE

January 2016 stands as one of the most pivotal months in the professional wrestling industry's history. At the beginning of New Japan Pro Wrestling's 2010s golden age, WWE managed to steal four of the Far East's biggest stars. Former IWGP World Champion AJ Styles, then-IWGP Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura, and former IWGP Tag Champions Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson all inked deals with the global leader in sports-entertainment, finishing up their NJPW obligations shortly after NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 10. Styles debuted at WWE Royal Rumble and went on to win the WWE Championship just eight months later, while Nakamura dominated NXT for just over a year.

While NJPW course-corrected fairly easily, elevating Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega to fill the voids, history could be repeating itself relatively soon. Former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Jay White and current NEVER Openweight Champion Tama Tonga are set to become free agents imminently, and both men are entertaining offers from WWE.

"So much is possible. Impact, AEW, WWE—we'll see. I'm at peace with it," White told Sports Illustrated. "I don't know if there is much more I could have done. I don't feel like I left a bunch of boxes unchecked. I've been living it, so it can be hard to appreciate it in the moment, but as I move on, I've started to look back at the weight some of it holds. As time goes on, I hope people appreciate it even more. Now I'm looking at what's next. I can't go back to Japan, but there is nothing that says I can't compete at the shows in the United States."

White saying he "can't go back" is due to him recently losing a Loser Leaves Japan match to Hikuleo. That said, he could make a permanent home in NJPW's American division, NJPW Strong. Regardless of what the future holds, it is almost guaranteed that White will be competing on United States soil moving forward.

While White mentioned three possible landing spots, Tonga's western shortlist is down to one.

"I will be the best wrestler. It could be the ultimate legend of New Japan Pro Wrestling, or it could be WWE," Tonga told Tokyo Sports. "Because WWE is knocking hard on my door. And I might say, 'Hello.'"

Tonga has spent his entire career in New Japan, but he does have some ties to WWE. His adoptive father, Haku, competed for WWE on two occasions, wrestling for the then-WWF in the 1980s and early 2000s. Tonga's tag partner and adoptive brother, Tanga Loa, had a brief run in WWE as Camacho.

White faces Eddie Kingston at NJPW Battle in the Valley this Saturday, February 18th in what could be his final NJPW match.