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DYLAN JAMES REFLECTS ON MMA DEBUT WITH TWO WEEKS OF TRAINING, WHY HE MISSED REAL WORLD TAG LEAGUE AND MORE

Three weeks notice. Two weeks of training. Then, his MMA debut in front of 5,000 people in Saitama, Japan.

September 27 probably didn’t go the way Dylan James would have wanted. He lost to Sudario Tsuyoshi via doctor stoppage after the first round.

“I received a call from someone who offered me the opportunity to fight for RIZIN. So, like with any good opportunity, I accepted,” he explains.

“My training for the RIZIN fight all in total was only about two weeks, with no background in MMA except for wrestling.”

But given the circumstances, can you really call James a loser?

James is a professional wrestler from Auckland, New Zealand. He debuted in Rizin Fighting Federation at its RIZIN 24 show on September 27, but he’s best known for wrestling in Pro Wrestling ZERO1 and All Japan Pro Wrestling.

In 2011, he made his Japanese debut for ZERO1. He regularly toured with the company until 2017.

Throughout his tenure, he won the ZERO1 United National Heavyweight Championship, ZERO1 World Heavyweight Championship and the Intercontinental Tag Team Championships alongside Masato Tanaka.

In 2018, he debuted for All Japan. He quickly asserted himself, winning the AJPW World Tag Team Championships with Ryouji Sai in his third match with the company.

He later formed a popular tag team with Joe Doering known as The Bomber. The duo won the Real World Tag League – a yearly round-robin tag team tournament dating back to 1977 – in 2018.

He was also ranked 116 out of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 – a yearly ranking published by the Pro Wrestling Illustrated magazine – in 2018.

His performance in All Japan’s Champion Carnival – a similar round-robin tournament, except only singles matches – last April drew considerable praise from fans. His matches against fellow All Japan stars Kento Miyahara, Zeus and Shuji Ishikawa in particular were well received.

“Last year’s Champion Carnival was a blast, and I am glad a lot of fans enjoyed the matches,” he remembers.

In September, a tag team match alongside Zeus against Miyahara and Yuma Aoyagi was given four stars by Dave Meltzer, a wrestling journalist who has graded matches since 1982.

But when it came to Real World Tag League, a year after winning the tournament with Doering, James was no where to be seen.

Rumours circulated about James’ status with the company, but James has revealed the absence was strictly due to a prior heel injury.

“I heard there were some ‘rumors’ going around that said otherwise – which are not at all true,” he explains.

“I was left out of the Real Tag League because of an injury outside of the ring where I fractured my heel.

“I wasn’t healed up in time for the Real Tag League hence why I didn’t compete in the Real Tag League last year.”

James recovered from his fractured heel and made three appearances at the end of the Real World Tag League tour. However, he has not since competed for All Japan.

His future might be in MMA now though: “As for the future with MMA, I had a blast, enjoyed the journey and it was a massive opportunity to fight for the biggest fighting promotion in Japan today.

“So, who knows what the future holds with that pathway in my career?”

As was the case for many wrestlers and fighters around the globe, the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic stunted James’ plans for 2020. He cites the year as a shamble, but still looking forward to 2021.

“As for the next step in my career, I’m looking forward to what opportunities lie ahead for next year,” he says.

“2020 was a bit of a shamble unfortunately due to the COVID-19 situation. So, I hope to be in the ring entertaining the fans again soon!”

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