Hideo Itami Has Suffered A Neck Injury And May Be Out Of Action Until December

On Wednesday, a report came out from Pro Wrestling Sheet that Hideo Itami had suffered a neck injury that could keep him out of action for “months.” The injury was related to a mistimed powerslam from a tag team match at an NXT house show at the beginning of October, but apparently WWE wanted to take a “wait and see” approach to the injury, as Itami was set to participate in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic with his partner Kota Ibushi.

Apparently, the neck injury is severe enough to keep Itami out of action for the foreseeable future, as WWE announced in the above video on Thursday that he will not be teaming with Ibushi in the tournament. What’s more, he is uncertain whether he will be able to be back in action for NXT TakeOver: Toronto in November, but he promised fans that he will return at the latest in December, when NXT goes to Osaka, Japan.

You can see the move that allegedly led to Itami’s neck injury in the below video:

This is a huge bummer for fans and for Itami, who just returned to NXT after a year away with a shoulder injury and was involved in a feud with Austin Aries and showing a new intensity and focus. We can only hope that he returns as soon as possible and makes a complete recovery.