Hiromu Takahashi has officially arrived on WWE SmackDown.
As WWE has been teasing, a video aired on SmackDown tonight confirming Takahashi as Shinsuke Nakamura’s new tag team partner. Takahashi will be going by the name “Kyoki,” which WWE filed a trademark for last month. The promo that aired tonight continued to hype Nakamura & Takahashi challenging the MFTs (Tama Tonga & Talla Tonga) for the WWE Tag Team titles.
“I am Kyoki,” Takahashi announced. “After spending years competing around the world, finally I have arrived to WWE. Champions, legends, monsters — I don’t care. The stronger they are, the more fun I have. More fights. More gold. More madness.”
Takahashi had his last NJPW match in February 2026 and has not wrestled since then, with the expectation always being that he would land in WWE. During his years in NJPW, Takahashi was one of the top junior heavyweights in the world and was a member of Los Ingobernables de Japon before that stable disbanded.
MFTs retain WWE Tag Team titles on SmackDown —
Prior to Takahashi’s debut video airing, the Tongans retained their titles against Damian Priest & R-Truth tonight. A potential breakup of Priest & Truth was teased after that match with Priest looking disappointed, but he did not turn against Truth here.
The eventual MFTs vs. Nakamura & Takahashi title bout will feature four wrestlers who are all former members of the NJPW roster. Talla Tonga was known as Hikuleo during his time in Japan.
Joseph Currier
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated’s wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.
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