Vietnamese wrestler Ares is preparing for a major career moment when he makes his New Japan Pro Wrestling debut on October 7.

Ares will team with Yota Tsuji to face Ryohei Oiwa and Zack Sabre Jr. at Korakuen Hall in Tokyo during the Road to King of Pro Wrestling tour. The match will also offer a preview of Tsuji’s upcoming IWGP Heavyweight Championship clash with Oiwa.

Tsuji recruited Ares to the NJPW dojo, opening the door to a new chapter for the former Vietnam Pro Wrestling champion. Ares is a different performer from the Swiss wrestler of the same name and AEW’s El Clon, also known as Arez.

Vietnam Pro Wrestling was recently featured in a documentary that AEW star Chris Jericho helped produce. Now, one of its former champions has an opportunity to represent the country on a major international wrestling stage.

NJPW English-language commentator Walker Stewart, who has also worked with Vietnam Pro Wrestling, shared his excitement about calling Ares’ debut live on NJPW World.

“Never before has a Vietnamese pro wrestler made it to a stage like this,” Stewart wrote. “When Tsuji offered Ares a position in the Noge Dojo, everyone on that roster and on the staff were moved to tears.

“Opportunities like this never existed before for anyone aspiring to be a pro wrestler in Vietnam. Now, Ares gets the ball and runs with it. Puts his entire country on his back.”

The October 7 event is NJPW’s final significant stop before King of Pro Wrestling on October 12, where Tsuji and Oiwa will headline.

The announced card for October 7 is:

• IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion YOH defends against Robbie X.
• Aaron Wolf, Hechicero and Tatsuya Matsumoto vs. Kosei Fujita, Robbie Eagles and Hartley Jackson.
• Yota Tsuji and Ares vs. Ryohei Oiwa and Zack Sabre Jr.
• Jeff Cobb, Yuto-Ice, OSKAR and Shingo Takagi vs. Callum Newman, HENARE, Great-O-Khan and Zane Jay.
• Shota Umino, Toru Yano, Oleg Boltin and Master Wato vs. Ren Narita, Shun Skywalker, Yoshinobu Kanemaru and Dick Togo.
• Yuya Uemura, Taichi, El Desperado and Masatora Yasuda vs. SANADA, Yujiro Takahashi, DOUKI and SHO.
• Taisei Nakahara vs. Yushin Hatazawa.