Tetsuya Naito Prepares for Eye Surgery Ahead of Wrestle Kingdom 19 Match

Tetsuya Naito is gearing up for another major fight—but this one’s in the operating room. The NJPW superstar revealed to Tokyo Sports that he will undergo surgery on his left eye on December 18. This marks a significant step for the wrestler, who has already undergone three surgeries on his right eye.

“People often talk about my knees, but honestly, my eye is the bigger issue,” Naito explained. “When I look down, I see both a flat surface and a slanted one. Running in such a distorted view is challenging—I can’t trust my footing, my opponent looks like two people, and I struggle with depth perception in certain environments.”

Naito elaborated on the stress this condition has caused in his career and why he postponed surgery until now. “Apparently, there’s a method to align the vision of both eyes by adjusting the healthy eye to match the impaired one. This would help synchronize my overall vision. It sounded risky and made me very anxious, so I postponed it. But with the match against Hiromu now confirmed, I’ve decided to go through with it.”

His upcoming surgery comes just weeks before his highly anticipated match against Hiromu Takahashi at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 19. The two recently claimed victory at the World Tag League on December 8, adding more significance to their upcoming bout.

Naito’s last eye surgery was in November 2022, making this next procedure a critical step in improving his quality of life and performance in the ring.