Callum Joseph Newman[1] (born August 31, 2002), is a British professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Callum Newman. He is working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a member of the United Empire stable.
Early life[]
Callum Joseph Newman was born on August 31, 2002 in Havering, London, England. His is a second-generation wrestler whose grandfather is a former professional wrestler, Toni Granzi, also from England. He started wrestling from a young age, with his grandfather training him. At the same time, he also played soccer playing for Tottenham Hotspur's youth academy, his dad's favorite team and nearly got scouted by London rivals Arsenal and West Ham United. Newman concilled both sports and later meet Will Ospreay, who convinced him and his parents to pursue his professional wrestling career, leading him to quit soccer at age of 16.
His idols were Prince Devitt and Masato Yoshino, earning the moniker of "Prince of Pace", due to similarities with the latter, regarding their incredible speed in the ring.
Professional Wrestling Career[]
New Japan Pro-Wrestling (2023–Present)[]
On June 18 at Revolution Pro Wrestling event, Newman faced New Japan Pro-Wrestling's Will Ospreay in a losing effort. After the match, Ospreay, who was impressed with Newman's performance, recruited him into the United Empire. He made his debut in NJPW on September 8 in an eight-man tag team match when he alongside his United Empire stablemates, Jeff Cobb, Great O-Khan and HENARE faced Los Ingobernables de Japón (Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, Yota Tsuji and Hiromu Takahashi) in a losing effort. Afterwards, Ospreay announced Newman as his protègè and stated that he would have a smiliar path of a Young Lion, where he would slowly climb the ranks in NJPW and work with more experienced wrestlers in order to give him some in-ring, televised experience.
Newman got his first win on December 3, when he defeated Young Lion Shoma Kato. Later that month, during the Road to Tokyo Dome tour, Newman developed a short rivalry with Tomohiro Ishii, culminating in a match on December 22, which he lost. Despite the result, Newman was praised for his performance and his short development over his period in Japan, earning comparisons to former young lions, Bullet Club leaders and gaijin wrestlers Prince Devitt and Jay White. On July 5, Newman defeated Yoshi-Hashi in a six-man tournament final to win one of two spots of qualification to the G1 Climax, his first G1 Climax tournament. He finished his block with a record of two wins and sevens losses, failing to advance to the play-off match of the tournament.
On April 5, 2025, at Sakura Genesis, Newman and Jeff Cobb defeated Tetsuya Naito and Hiromu Takahashi to win the IWGP Tag Team Championship, winning his first professional wrestling championship and also becoming the youngest wrestler to hold the title at 22 years old. They vacated the titles on April 9, due to Cobb leaving NJPW. In a press conference, that same day, Newman challenged Hirooki Goto to a title match for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship, vowing to become the youngest ever IWGP World Heavyweight Champion. Newman also announced he would take over the leadership of United Empire.
In wrestling[]
- Finishing moves
- Prince of Pace (Corkscrew 450° splash)
- OsCutter (Springboard cutter) – adopted from Will Ospreay
- Signature moves
- Diving springboard double foot stomp
- Dropkick
- Forearm smash, sometimes from the apron
- Full nelson lifted and dropped into a reverse STO
- Pumphandle half nelson driver
- Roundhouse kick
- Running big boot, sometimes to a cornered opponent
- Samson Clutch (Wheelbarrow bodyscissors victory roll)
- Shooting star press
- Snap suplex
- Spin-out sitout powerbomb
- Springboard lariat
- Uppercut
- Vertical suplex
- Nicknames
- "Prince of Pace"
- Entrance themes
- "Prince of Pace" by Yonosuke Kitamura
Championships and accomplishments[]
- New Japan Pro-Wrestling
- IWGP Tag Team Championship (1 time, current) – with Jeff Cobb
References[]
- ↑ Search Results for Civil Births in Birth, Marriage, Death & Parish Records . England & Wales Births 1837–2006.