Aaron Henare
# Aaron Henare

Aaron Henry (born 5 August 1992) is a New Zealand professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) under the ring name Henare (stylized in all caps). He previously wrestled under the ring names Aaron Henare (アーロン・ヘナーレ, Henāre Aaron) and Toa Henare (トーア・ヘナーレ, Tōa Henāre). He is the only full-time contracted professional wrestler of Māori descent in a major wrestling promotion.

## Early life

Henry was born in Auckland, New Zealand and is of Cook Islander/Māori descent from Ngāpuhi and Ngāi Takoto Iwi. His uncle is former professional rugby league player Richie Barnett, who captained New Zealand at the 2000 Rugby League World Cup.

Prior to training in professional wrestling, Henare was an accomplished amateur wrestler, winning national championships in Freestyle, Greco-Roman and Submission wrestling in the 85 kg weight category. He was offered a spot on the New Zealand Commonwealth wrestling team, but turned it down to pursue trainings with Bad Luck Fale. He has also trained in MMA, Catch Wrestling and Muay Thai with other New Zealand fighters such as Shane Young, Kai Kara France, Mark Hunt and Israel Adesanya.

## Professional wrestling career

### New Japan Pro-Wrestling (2016–present)

**Early beginnings (2016–2021)**

Henare signed with NJPW in early 2016 and debuted in September of that year, losing to Pro Wrestling Noah's Quiet Storm at Lion's Gate Project 3. Henare's first win in NJPW came on 6 September, when he defeated fellow young lion Hirai Kawato. He appeared on his first major NJPW show, Destruction in Tokyo on 17 September, teaming with David Finlay in a losing effort against Roppongi Vice. On 12 November, Henare returned to his home city of Auckland, New Zealand, defeating Hikule'o at a Bad Luck Fale produced show. Henare entered the 2016 World Tag League alongside veteran Manabu Nakanishi. The two finished last in their block with zero wins and zero points. On 21 February 2017, in a match with Tomoyuki Oka, Henare suffered an Achilles tendon injury and the match had to be stopped. He was taken out on a stretcher. Henare returned in November for the 2017 World Tag League, where he teamed with Togi Makabe. The two finished the tournament with a record of one win and six losses.

On the Wrestle Kingdom 12 pre-show on 4 January 2018, Henare debuted under the new ring name Toa Henare. On 27 January, at the New Beginning in Sapporo, Toa received his first title shot when he teamed up with Ryusuke Taguchi and Togi Makabe to unsuccessfully challenge the Guerillas of Destiny and Bad Luck Fale for the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship. In April 2018, he begun showing promise within the company, wowing fans with a classic Strong Style showcasing against Tomohiro Ishii during the Dontaku series.

In 2019, Toa teamed with Hiroshi Tanahashi for the World Tag League, finishing with 3 wins and 12 losses. The next year, the duo teamed again now dubbed as "HenarACE", only this time, they got only one win. In early 2020, he was slated to face Tomohiro Ishii in the main event of the New Japan Cup, however the COVID-19 pandemic put plans on hold for the company to put Henare in the main event.

**United Empire (2021–present)**

On April 4, 2021, Henare, now going by the ring name Aaron Henare, was revealed as the new member of Will Ospreay's United Empire faction, turning heel in the process, as he teamed up with new stablemates Great-O-Khan and Jeff Cobb to defeat the Los Ingobernables de Japón team of Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, and Sanada at the Sakura Genesis 2021 event. During the Road to Dontaku tour series in 2021, Henare ruptured his C6-C7 disc in his neck, having to take six months off to heal the injury.

Henare recovered and teamed with O-Khan in the World Tag League, where they finished with a total of 14 points. After returning from injury, Henare began to gain momentum with victories over former champions and team members such as Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Yuji Nagata, Tiger Mask, Tomoaki Honma, and former Tag Team partner Togi Makabe. This marked a turn in Henare’s career, finally getting square with his former NJPW team members. At Wrestle Kingdom 16, Henare entered the New Japan Rambo match.

Henare entered his first Heavyweight singles tournament in NJPW, in the New Japan Cup. He beat Yuto Nakashima in round one but lost to then IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion Sanada in round 2. Henare made his NJPW Strong debut in America, teaming with O-Khan and new United Empire member TJP, to defeat Brody King, Mascara Dorada and Taylor Rust. At Windy City Riot, Henare teamed with, Cobb, O-Khan and new members, Aussie Open (Mark Davis and Kyle Fletcher) to defeat Bullet Club. In May, Henare made his Revolution Pro Wrestling debut, against Ricky Knight Jr. In June, Henare was announced for the G1 Climax 32 tournament as part of the C Block, making his G1 debut. Henare managed to pin his former partner and 3 time G1 Champion, Hiroshi Tanahashi. Henare impressed NJPW enough in 2022 to earn him a spot on New Year’s Dash main event against IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kazuchika Okada, and Kenny Omega alongside Jeff Cobb.

Henare was a standout performer during the 2023 New Japan Cup, pinning KOPW champion, Shingo Takagi in the main event of his hometown, leading to angry fans leaving the arena before the end of the show. Henare then used this performance to challenge Takagi to the first "Ultimate Triad Match", meaning the winner of the match would have to win the match by pin, submission, and standing count in order to win the match. Although unsuccessful, Henare gained worldwide acclaim for the match which lasted 38 minutes, and gained a 5.25 star rating by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Upon entering the 33rd G1 Climax tournament on July 16, 2023, Henare showcased a new tā moko tattoo on his face and revealed the new ring-name of HENARE. The tā moko, or "mataora" tattoo, made Henare the first ever Polynesian wrestler to sport the tattoo in a mainstream professional wrestling promotion. He had previously revealed the tattoo earlier in the month at a New Zealand wrestling show.

### All Elite Wrestling (2022–present)

On the June 8, 2022 episode of Dynamite, Henare along with United Empire stablemates Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis of Aussie Open, made their All Elite Wrestling debuts, assisting stable leader Will Ospreay in attacking Trent Beretta and FTR.

## Championships and accomplishments

* Impact Pro Wrestling
   * IPW New Zealand Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Jakob Cross
   * Armageddon Cup (2014)
* Pro Wrestling Illustrated
   * Ranked No. 250 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2018
