NJPW, MLW, CMLL Announce 'Landmark Strategic Alliance' Launching In October

Three of the world's biggest wrestling promotions are uniting for a greater cause. It was announced Tuesday that NJPW, MLW, and CMLL have formed a strategic alliance that will facilitate a variety of crossover collaborations between the companies, creating a platform for talents to be showcased across the promotions based in Japan, the United States, and Mexico.

Through a press release, MLW CEO Court Bauer thanked NJPW President Takami Ohbari and CMLL boss Salvador Lutteroth Lomeli for sharing his vision for the future of wrestling, while revealing that NJPW star Rocky Romero played a vital role in the partnership coming to life. "We look forward to showcasing the extraordinary athletes from Mexico, Japan, and America for fans worldwide," Bauer added.

Subsequently, "Fightful Select" provided additional details on the alliance, revealing that discussions between the companies began as early as July and that the partnership will officially launch in October. The report also noted that MLW adjusted its roster to align with CMLL, meaning they will no longer utilize any AAA talent due to the two Mexican promotions being in direction competition. This would explain why a talent like Sam Adonis — a regular competitor for AAA – finished up with MLW a few months ago and has since remained away from Bauer's promotion.

Other sources "Fightful" spoke to expect "a steady flow of talent between the three groups" and that MLW is looking to get "a big refresh of lucha talent in 2024" by bringing in several CMLL wrestlers. Similarly, NJPW — which already co-promotes two PPVs with AEW — expects to bring in a lot of American and Mexican talents into its promotion next year.

The report added that Salina De La Renta, who recently returned to MLW from a two-year hiatus, will be a pivotal figure in storylines pitting wrestlers from MLW against CMLL.