Wrestle Kingdom 9
Wrestle Kingdom 9 drew 36,000 fans to the Tokyo Dome, reportedly (accordingly to "Wrestleview.com" and the "Wrestling Observer Newsletter") the best attendance for a NJPW January 4 Tokyo Dome Show in 13 years. The event reportedly had 12,000 to 15,000 purchases in North America.
The New Beginning in Niigata
The New Beginning in Niigata would also feature a rematch from Wrestle Kingdom 10 in Tokyo Dome, where G.B.H. (Togi Makabe and Tomoaki Honma) were set to defend their newly won IWGP Tag Team Championship against previous champions, Bullet Club representatives Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson. Gallows and Anderson worked the event as free agents, with Anderson's NJPW contract having expired at the end of January 2016. Though Anderson publicly denied he was leaving the promotion, The New Beginning in Niigata was expected to be one of his and Gallows' last NJPW appearances before leaving for WWE. Also on the card, Kushida was set to defend the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship against Bushi. This match stemmed from events taking place at a show the day after Wrestle Kingdom 10 in Tokyo Dome, where Bushi attacked Kushida and challenged him to a title match.