Dragon Gate wrestlers have been pulled from next week’s WrestleCon due to visa issues.
WrestleCon announced this afternoon in a press release that they had worked with an immigration attorney to directly work with Dragon Gate to bring wrestlers to the US. Despite negotiations through the proper channels, it still wasn’t able to be done.
“Unfortunately, after two separate visa application attempts, including conversations with the Japanese Consulate, the Department of Homeland Security, the National Visa Center and the Visa Office in Tokyo, we are left without any more time to make this possible” the release said.
WrestleCon explained that because they are not the primary employers of Dragon Gate talent, nor do WrestleCon offer annual employment contracts, there are no visa options for them to come in. A similar issue with PAC also forced WrestleCon to announce earlier this week that he would be unable to come to the US as well.
Black Label Pro later confirmed that with the visa issues, Masato Yoshino will be unable to appear at their Adventures in Wrestling event on April 5. Shigehiro Irie was announced as a replacement opponent for Jonathan Gresham.
The revised card for next week’s US vs. The World event, which also takes place on April 5, has been updated on Twitter.
New Japan had a similar issue earlier this year after they were unable to bring in a number of wrestlers to the United States due to the government shutdown. As a result, a number of independent and ROH contracted wrestlers were brought in to fill gaps.
