Bullet Club War Dogs Loses Member Following Brutal Steel Cage Match

The brutal Steel Cage Match at the New Beginning in Osaka looks set to have long-term repercussions for New Japan Pro-Wrestling.

The match on February 11 saw Bullet Club War Dogs of David Finlay, Alex Coughlin, Clark Connors, Drilla Moloney, and Gabe Kidd defeat United Empire's Will Ospreay, Francesco Akira, HENARE, Jeff Cobb, and TJP in Will Ospreay's final NJPW match. The match was a bloody affair to the point that Will Ospreay genuinely feared for HENARE's life during the contest.

Bullet Club War Dogs' leader David Finlay has experienced a rocky period since New Beginning in Osaka, having dropped the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship to Nic Nemeth at the New Beginning in Sapporo on February 23. Finlay then competed in the New Japan Cup but he was pulled from the tournament after being hospitalised.

Speaking in a social media promo, David Finlay addressed his and Bullet Club's future, stating:

"I see all the talk that's out there and I hear all the whispers and the rumours about 'The Rebel' and his War Dogs, but before I talk about now, I want to talk about my IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship match that I had with Nic Nemeth. See, it was only about a week after I spent 64 minutes inside of the steel cage and won the most brutal match in New Japan history that I was forced to defend my championship against Nic. Right before I limped out the curtain, someone from New Japan comes up to me and whispered something in my ear that changes the War Dogs forever. My body was already broken and now, they made sure that my brain was, too. So, congrats, Nic. They didn't stack the deck in your favour at all, did they?

"Well, let's cut to today. See, I've been dragging those Cage Match injuries around ever since and I've had no time to rest, which means I've had no time to heal. I went from the Cage Match straight to a championship match, then straight into a gruelling New Japan Cup. For all the idiots out there, that means damage on top of damage on top of damage. So they wouldn't clear me for my quarter-final match, which, quite honestly, is bulls**t. How am I healthy enough to defend my championship a week after the brutality that I endured but as soon as I want to earn it back, now you're worried about my health? Interesting. I would have been more than happy to show up in a stretcher and leave in a hearse if it meant getting my hands and gold again but New Japan had other plans."

Finlay then revealed the Steel Cage Match had "claimed" one of the members of Bullet Club War Dogs, suggesting one of the talents in the faction is no longer a part of the group.

"I will have to find another way. A damn Cage Match has already claimed one of my War Dogs but I promise you this, it will not take out its leader," Finlay added.

Bullet Club War Dogs officially consists of David Finlay, Gabe Kidd, Alex Coughlin, Drilla Moloney, Clark Connors, and Gedo. There is no word on which of those talents is no longer with the stable.

H/T Fightful