After more than seven years working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling as a kohai, Rocky Romero symbolically became a senpai in 2017 – and the role suits him just fine.
In the Japanese culture, senpai and kohai refer to senior and junior members of any group or relationship – not boss and employee, necessarily; more of a leader/follower or mentor/protege link.
Romero is from California, but has adopted many aspects of the culture during his time in Japan. His age (35) and status in NJPW have gradually made him a respected voice in the locker room and when he became the manager of the Roppongi 3K tag team last year, it brought that leadership role in front of the camera and into the ring.
“I wasn’t looking for it,” Romero told the Sentinel earlier this month, “but I guess I’m a leader now. New Japan has the system of senpai and kohai – rookie and veteran, something like that – and I’m always willing to help younger talent.”
The changing roles haven’t kept Romero – who has won more than a dozen championships in the U.S., Japan and Mexico — out of the ring. He took on Jushin Thunder Liger at “CEO x NJPW: When Worlds Collide” last month in Daytona and competed in a 10-man tag match at the G1 Special in San Francisco on July 7.
But now he’s wearing another different hat – err, headset – as an English-language ringside commentator for New Japan’s G1 Climax, a 20-man monthlong tournament held at venues across Japan that continues through Aug. 12. The shows are available – streaming live and on-demand — via monthly subscription at NJPWWorld.com. (The link takes you to the English-language page; for Japanese, click the box near the upper-right corner of the screen.)
Romero said being so close to the action and just watching has taught him a lot as a broadcaster and a wrestler. He heaps praise on broadcast colleagues Kevin Kelly and Don Callis, his partners in a trio that is getting positive feedback from viewers.
“Kevin is the best,” Romero said. “He leads me into saying the right things, takes me out, asks me all the right questions. I’m learning a lot from him. Don is great, too – he keeps things fun and loose.”
When Romero has wrestled recently – including Daytona and San Francisco – his match has often opened the main card. It’s a position he relishes and feels well-suited for.
“The first match is just the time to have a party and get it started,” Romero said. “I get to be the tequila shot for the show. When I have great guys to play with, we just go have a good time and bring everybody along for the ride.”
Finding his place in the world
Romero was trained in California before his pro debut in 1997, but spent time in the U.S., Mexico and Japan during his early years as he soaked up experience and tried to figure out where he belonged in the business. He cites Chris Jericho and the late Eddy Guerrero, who made similar worldwide pilgrimages, as his inspirations in that regard.
“My philosophy is, you gain knowledge from anything and everything,” Romero said. “If you have the knowledge, it’s there when you need it. I wanted to learn every style and try everything, and I figured out that Japan is the place I wanted to stay and grow.”
More recently, things have come full circle. New Japan’s working relationship with Ring of Honor brought him back to the States for more dates, and now that New Japan is increasing its own American presence, his hybrid style and U.S. pedigree become even more important.
He said the diversity of a typical New Japan show – “some fun, serious action, crazy stunts and a lot of drama” – always makes him proud to work there. But as New Japan rises to the challenge of competing with WWE, he said the Japanese traditions and spirit of unity set NJPW apart.
“We’re not about selfishness,” Romero said. “It’s different with WWE. They’re telling wrestlers to reach for the brass ring and compete with each other for top spots. The Japanese mentality is to work together to make the ship run better. It’s been instilled in me for a long time and now I’m passing it on to Sho and Yoh [of Roppongi 3K] to guide them, let them learn from mistakes and make them the best.”
Even though he’s more of a mentor and energetic undercard talent now, don’t be surprised to see Romero back competing for championships soon. His time is far from over.
“This is the right role for me at the moment,” Romero said. “It’s a different challenge for me, but who knows? I might wake up in a year and be bored. I’ve been a tag-team wrestler for so long, but the talent in the singles class, some guys I’ve never gotten to work with, has me curious. I can’t see the future, but it doesn’t mean I can’t be interested.”
Beyond the ring
Romero’s creative streak extends beyond the wrestling ring. He has recorded two hip-hop mixtapes with the help of Mark Jindrak (who wrestles in Mexico as Marco Corleone) and recorded his own entrance music. He said his music started from a sense of restlessness about 10 years ago.
“When I first started in AAA [promotion in Mexico], I was miserable,” Romero said. “I had a contract but wasn’t wrestling much and wasn’t being used well. I didn’t have a creative outlet, so I decided to start making beats on my computer. It snowballed to where I was writing raps with Jindrak and recording them. It was fun to create something new, and now it’s part of my brand.”
When he’s on the road, he said you can find him binge-watching TV shows (“Anything with Anthony Bourdain has piqued my interest. I like to think I’m an explorer and his shows help me find a new restaurant or something cool I haven’t done”) or playing video games. He enjoyed seeing the new offerings at last month’s CEO Fighting Game Championships in Daytona and recently bought a Nintendo Switch to take with him on the road.
Some of his most passionate game talk is reserved for his younger days. In fact, he believes a single Nintendo 64 release from 18 years ago has a big impact on the wrestling industry even today.
“No Mercy in the year 2000 was a huge influence on the way I learned to wrestle,” Romero said. “It was the first wrestling game that wasn’t a button-masher – the strategy was finding ways to put moves together in a series. As wrestlers, we put together matches in a similar way. I think the matches even got star ratings. We didn’t know it at the time, but for guys like me, [WWE champion] AJ Styles, [NJPW U.S. champion] Juice Robinson … it helped us learn.”
