Written by: Super Mastodon (@SuperMastodon)
As another decade ends, we will welcome a new one and what better way to kick things off than with the biggest event in Japanese professional wrestling; NJPW’s Wrestle Kingdom 14 live in the Tokyo Dome! What sets this one a part from the rest is that WK 14 will be a special two day event featuring historic and high stakes matches from top to bottom. The end of an era for some but the beginning for the future of NJPW.
This will be my biggest and most special preview article I’ve written yet so buckle up and prepare yourselves as we take a look at every scheduled match on the main card for the upcoming two nights of wrestling greatness at the 14th annual Wrestle Kingdom event.
Day 1 (January 4)
Match #1 – Eight Man Tag-Team: Liger Retirement Match 1:
Jushin “Thunder” Liger, Tatsumi Fujinami, Great Sasuke, & Tiger Mask IV (w/ El Samurai) vs. Naoki Sano, Shinjiro Otani, Tatsuhito Takaiwa, & Ryusuke Taguchi (w/ Kuniaki Kobayashi) – Special Guest Referee: Norio Honaga
A total of 29 reigns for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship with all the men involved in this match. The first out of the two retirement matches for the great Jushin “Thunder” Liger who will be capping off his decorated and amazing three decade career in pro wrestling. All of the men in this match have played a heavy role in Liger’s career one way or another, so let us take a closer look at each of them.
Team #1:
Jushin “Thunder” Liger – The man of the hour. A long celebrated and decorated career will finally come to an end, surrounded by some of the most influential people in his career. I’d talk extensively on Liger later on as we get into his final match at the second night.
Tatsumi Fujinami – Liger’s idol and the reason why he wanted to become a professional wrestler. A 6x IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Fujinami is one of the greatest of all time in New Japan history. This will be his first match back in the company since 2008.
Great Sasuke – His rivalry with Liger in the 90’s is arguably the best junior heavyweight feud of all time, the only one that can even measure up would be Dynamite Kid vs. the Original Tiger Mask. Sasuke and Liger had a lot of memorable bouts against one another and helped in transcending what the junior heavyweight division is all about now. This will be Sasuke’s first match in New Japan since 2010 where he won a tag match with Satoshi Kojima against GBH’s Togi Makabe and Tomoaki Honma.
Tiger Mask IV – One of the men who carried the junior heavyweight division along with Liger during the darker years of the company in the 2000’s. Also had plenty of classic bouts with Liger for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight title and later on in their careers as they become veterans, began teaming up often as a duo, they even held the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag-Team titles in 2012.
El Samurai – He will be the cornerman for Liger’s team. El Samurai is one of the most underrated junior heavyweights of the 90’s. A former 2x IWGP Heavyweight Champion and also held the junior tag belts with Liger in 2001.
Team #2:
Naoki Sano – The first rival of Keiichi Yamada when he became Jushin “Thunder” Liger during the company wars between NJPW and UWFI. Liger and Sano’s matches were some of the best ever in New Japan history and their rivalry shaped the entire junior heavyweight scene of Puroresu. Some of you might be more familiar later on with his body of work in Pro Wrestling NOAH as Takuma Sano but he is now making his return to New Japan, with his last match being in 2011 when the company was still in partnership with NOAH.
Shinjiro Otani – Before becoming well known for his work in Pro Wrestling ZERO1, Shinjiro Otani was another superstar of the junior heavyweight division at its peak in the 90’s. In his sole reign with the IWGP Heavyweight Championship in 1998, he was defeated by Liger ending his 181 day run. Otani is also considered one of the best juniors ever, his last New Japan match was in 2013 for Wrestle Kingdom 7 where he lost to TenCozy teaming up with Keiji Mutoh.
Tatsuhito Takaiwa – A multi-time tag-team champion with Shinjiro Otani, Takaiwa also held the IWGP Heavyweight Championship when he defeated Liger in 2000. He also donned the mask of Black Tiger, wrestling last time in New Japan with said gimmick in 2009.
Ryusuke Taguchi – The youngest of the bunch, which is saying something because he is already at 40 years old. Liger and Taguchi share a mutual respect for one another. He is a 2x IWGP Heavyweight Champion and one of the more decorated wrestlers active in the junior heavyweights today. Despite wrestling in a comedic style, he can still perform at a top notch level if given the proper time and opponent.
Kuniaki Kobayashi – The cornerman for the team, Kobayashi is one of the original cornerstones of the junior heavyweight division in NJPW way back in its inception. He is a former IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion, held it for 129 days in 1987.
Special Guest Referee: Norio Honaga – A 3x IWGP Heavyweight Champion, exchanged the belt against Liger in his heyday. Became a referee after his retirement from in-ring competition.
Prediction: Team Liger Wins
At the end of the day, we all win in this match no matter the result. It’s only fitting we get this as one of Liger’s matches. Some of the wrestlers who influenced and shaped his 30 year career, plus just seeing these legends back in a New Japan ring is both nostalgic and a sight to behold. Yes they are all past their primes but that doesn’t matter, we will be watching this match for its implication, not to expect a five star rating. It is after all the second to the last match in Liger’s entire career. Let’s just the moment as these legends share a wrestling ring together.
Match #2 – Eight Man Tag-Team: Los Ingobernables de Japon vs. Suzuki-Gun
SANADA, EVIL, Shingo Takagi, & BUSHI vs. Zack Sabre Jr., Minoru Suzuki, Taichi, & El Desperado
LIJ and Suzuki-Gun members have been at each other’s throats all year. The two rival factions will finally settle their differences in the Tokyo Dome in an eight man tag.
SANADA – It was a pretty solid year for SANADA, having challenged multiple times for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Kazuchika Okada in instant classic matches but never quite got on the next level to capture the belt for the first time in his career. The next night he will have his chance however for the RevPro British Heavyweight Championship held by Zack Sabre Jr.
EVIL – Unlike his partner SANADA, EVIL had somewhat of a quiet year in 2019. He still had solid matches here and there, but nothing out of the ordinary so him re-gaining some momentum at the start of the new decade will help get back on his tracks.
Shingo Takagi – One of the breakout starts in 2019 for New Japan Pro Wrestling ever since making his debut as the newest member of Los Ingobernables de Japon. The former long time member of the Dragon Gate roster quickly made an impact in the company, going on an undefeated streak and tearing the competition initially at the junior heavyweight division until losing for the first time in the finals of the Best of the Super Juniors tournament to Will Ospreay in what many consider as Match of the Year. Since moving up to the heavyweights division by entering the G1 Climax for the first time, The Dragon has been making some waves on the roster and looking to further up his momentum.
BUSHI – Similar to EVIL, it’s been a quiet year for BUSHI as well. He did win the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag-Team belts earlier at this year’s Wrestle Kingdom with Shingo in a three way against Desperado & Kanemaru and Roppongi 3K. His highest profile match was challenging for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship, a title he once held, against Will Ospreay at Power Struggle. It was a great showing for BUSHI but not enough to secure the victory. It did however mark the return of his old pal Hiromu Takahashi which we would get more onto later.
Zack Sabre Jr. – It’s been kind of an up and down year for Zack in 2019. It was in 2018 where he really reached the pinnacle in New Japan so far in his career, winning the New Japan Cup and ended up challenging Okada for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Although with Minoru Suzuki taking a step back, he’s been the “unofficial” next guy for Suzuki-Gun. Eventually he’ll get there but his rank within the stable is increasing as time progresses.
Minoru Suzuki – We could potentially see Suzuki’s last match in New Japan and in the Tokyo Dome for a while as rumors has it he will be having his departure with the company soon. I personally would be a little disappointed to see The King go but whatever makes him happy, he can do it. Suzuki has kind of a down year as well, primarily sharing the spotlight with the much younger members of his stable. He did not participate in this year’s G1 Climax much to his ire but guys like Taichi and ZSJ were able to shine because of it. His feud and eventual singles match against Liger is one of the most memorable of the decade. Suzuki bringing out the devil within, Kishin Liger, is something we will never forget about.
Taichi – Ever since moving up to the heavyweight division, it’s been pretty solid for The Holy Emperor himself. In the middle of the year Taichi held the NEVER Openweight Championship for the second time beating Jeff Cobb but would lose in his first defense against Tomohiro Ishii. The two of them would have a banger of a re-match in Taichi’s first run in the G1 Climax tournament which he excelled in a lot of other matches. Him and Zack had a solid run in this year’s World Tag League as well, overall a pretty good year for Taichi.
El Desperado – Desperado missed a majority of the middle of the year due to suffering a jaw injury at the hands of Jun Kasai at an independent show just days before he could participate in the Best of the Super Juniors. In his return however, he has been great and doesn’t looked like he missed a step. Looking to gain back a lot of the momentum he has lost and possibly have a singles run at some point as well, challenging for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship again.
Prediction: LIJ Wins
Well for those who know me, I am an LIJ fan so there’s some bias in my prediction. Honestly it could go either way, the main purpose of this match anyway other than to put in the rest of the remaining members of the roster is to hype up SANADA vs. ZSJ for the next night. Knowing what my prediction is for that match, I think having LIJ get a win here would be the best way to go.
Match #3 – Eight Man Tag-Team: CHAOS vs. Bullet Club
Hirooki Goto, Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, & YOSHI-HASHI vs. KENTA, Bad Luck Fale, Yujiro Takahashi, & Chase Owens
It’s fitting that we’re getting this match in what is a faction rivalry that defined the decade for New Japan, CHAOS vs. Bullet Club. CHAOS were initially the bad guys on the company, originally led by Shinsuke Nakamura formed in 2009 but upon the arrival of Prince Devitt’s Bullet Club, the home grown talent became the good guys against the evil foreign gaijins which would later on become the biggest entity in all of professional wrestling since the nWo in the 90’s.
Hirooki Goto – Hasn’t really done much earlier in the year but would later become one of the best parts of the G1 Climax as per usual of Goto having great battles against the likes of Shingo, Juice, and Naito just to name a few. We’ll get more on to him later as we talk about his second night match against KENTA for the NEVER Openweight Championship.
Tomohiro Ishii – The Stone Pitbull had another solid year. He lost the RevPro British Heavyweight Championship to kick off 2019 at the hands of Zack Sabre Jr. at Wrestle Kingdom 13, he would then bounce back in the New Japan Cup having a MOTY worthy bout against CHAOS stable mate Kazuchika Okada. Ishii would have his 5th reign with the NEVER Openweight Championship this year, beating Taichi for it at Dominion and entered the G1 with the belt. All of his matches were great but the one that will always be my favorite is his match against Jon Moxley, was full of intense action from beginning to end. He would eventually lose the belt to KENTA at the Royal Quest UK show. Him and YOSHI-HASHI had a good run at this year’s World Tag League to conclude his 2019.
Toru Yano – Not much really took place for YTR other than his usual antics. Besides his DVD’s he now sells curry recipes as well apparently. As of the writing of this article Yano is still 1/3 of the NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag-Team Championships along with reunited tag partner in Togi Makabe and Ryusuke Taguchi, for whatever those belts are worth anymore. He actually had a decent dark horse run at the G1, pulling off upset wins one after another. He formed a bond with Colt Cabana this year and teamed up for the first time in the World Tag League.
YOSHI-HASHI – It’s YOSHI-HASHI. He had a year to say the least. Didn’t even qualify for the G1. The biggest match he had was losing to KENTA in his first defense as NEVER Openweight Champion at the Fighting Spirit Unleashed tour. Other than that, not much else of note.
KENTA – Ever since leaving the WWE, KENTA surprised everyone at Dominion by being introduced by his former tag-team partner and long time friend Katusyori Shibata making his debut in New Japan Pro Wrestling and entered the G1 Climax. He is going into this match as the reigning NEVER Openweight Champion and we’ll talk more about him later as we get into his second night match vs. Goto.
Bad Luck Fale – One of the remaining original members of the Bullet Club is still around, Fale has somewhat taken a step back in his role though and mainly focuses on training the future with the Fale Dojo. He still participated at some of the tournaments like the New Japan Cup, G1 Climax, and World Tag League but his days of being at the top and a dominant monster are coming to a close. With all that said, he is still a force to be reckoned with no matter what.
Yujiro Takahashi – Pimpin’ ain’t easy. Yujiro is just Yujiro. He will never be higher in the card than where he is but serves his purpose as one of the lower midcard members of the Bullet Club but still remains as one of the entertaining parts of the faction. As long as Pieter is around, no one is complaining.
Chase Owens – The Honorary Tongan had an underrated year. He had an upset victory over Juice Robinson at the New Japan Cup earlier in the year which granted him a shot at the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship. Tagged with Fale at the World Tag League to round up the year for him.
Prediction: CHAOS Wins
This is mainly a preview match for Goto vs. KENTA at night 2 for the NEVER Openweight Championship. I’m choosing the CHAOS team to win this one, but really whoever gets the victory, I won’t complain. It’s primarily a filler match just like the previous multi-man tag. It sucks that Ishii is relegated to another one of these again but with all the programs they are running, it’s good that he even made the card at least.
Match #4 – IWGP Tag-Team Championships: Guerrillas of Destiny (c) vs. FinJuice
Guerrillas of Destiny – GoD could very well go down as the best tag-team of not only the year, but of the entire decade for New Japan Pro Wrestling. No other team has been more dominant than them, being 5x IWGP Tag-Team Champions. This year in particular, GoD just ran through the entire division ever since winning the tag belts earlier in the year at the Honor Rising event from EVIL and SANADA. They had a total of seven successful title defenses across the ongoing 291 day reign. They also simultaneously held the ROH World Tag-Team Championships this year, winning those at the Madison Square Garden for the G1 Supercard event and feuded with The Briscoes at ROH. All in all, Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa have a total combined reign of 563 days as IWGP Tag-Team Champions, while representing Bullet Club successfully around the world. No other team can even come close throughout the year against them.
FinJuice – GoD has pretty much decimated all the teams New Japan and ROH had to offer except for this one, the reunited duo of David Finlay and Juice Robinson, collectively known as FinJuice! Finlay was out for the majority of the year due to suffering a shoulder injury which removed him from the New Japan Cup. Meanwhile for Juice he had a pretty good run with the IWGP US Heavyweight Championship since winning it from Cody at WK13, in his second run he defended the belt three times successfully before losing it to Jon Moxley’s debut match at the BOSJ Finals. Juice would face off against Lance Archer for the vacated US Belt at King of Pro Wrestling but failed to win back what was once his. After the match, Archer continued to attack Juice only to be rescued by a returning David Finlay, who was one of his classmates at the dojo. Since then the two have teamed up constantly, entering and winning this year’s World Tag League which earned them a rightful challenge at GoD’s IWGP Tag-Team Championships.
Prediction: FinJuice Wins
The momentum is pretty much on the corner of Juice and Finlay, they had a great tournament at the WTL and GoD’s time as champions have been served well, it is time to put over the next top team of the company.
Match #5 – IWGP US Heavyweight Championship (Texas Death Match): Lance Archer (c) vs. Jon Moxley
Lance Archer – What a breakout year it has been for “The American Psycho” Lance Archer. Since his split up with Davey Boy Smith Jr., Archer was able to focus on his singles career and his trajectory has been great right from the get-go. He outdid everybody’s expectations at the New Japan Cup when he had a surprisingly great match against Will Ospreay. It would turn out that it wasn’t just a fluke and he’d continue to have this streak of amazing matches to add in his resume, a complete career resurgence for someone who has been wrestling for nearly 20 years and has seen multiple ups and downs throughout his days. He also entered the G1 Climax for the first time since 2014 this year and while he did not do well in terms points, he did have instant classic bouts against some of the best A Block had to offer. Archer won his first ever singles gold in New Japan by winning the vacant IWGP US Heavyweight Championship at King of Pro Wrestling beating Juice Robinson. He has successfully defended the title once against David Finlay at the Showdown in San Jose show and is now looking to have an all-out war against former champion, Jon Moxley, in a Texas Death Match! Somewhere in Amarillo, Terry Funk has a smile on his face.
Jon Moxley – One of the biggest stars in all of professional wrestling in 2019 without a doubt is Jon Moxley. Ever since leaving the WWE, he has made headlines after headlines and surprised a lot of people in different promotions he has wrestled in so far. During the Best of the Super Juniors tournament, vignettes started to show of a mysterious challenger for Juice Robinson’s IWGP US Heavyweight Championship. It would be revealed later on to be Jon Moxley, making his first post-WWE appearance and Japanese wrestling debut at at the BOSJ Finals in June where him and Juice, old familiar foes, beat the living hell out of one another in what can be argued as “Match of the Year” for the company. In my opinion, it is Juice’s best match in his New Japan career so far. After a hard fought battle, Moxley was successful in his debut, squashed Shota Umino at Dominion and took him under his wing afterwards, then went on a tear at his inaugural G1 Climax competition. He would go on to have a five-match winning streak at the G1 before finally losing to the trickster that is Toru Yano. Moxley would then debut in All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as well but has not forgotten his NJPW commitments. He was however forced to vacate the US belt by failing to fly over for his re-match against Juice due to flight issues but is now prepared to re-claim what was once his and a title he never properly loss. He returned to New Japan at the World Tag League finals, delivering a Death Rider not only to Lance Archer, but Minoru Suzuki as well. Message was sent.
Prediction: Jon Moxley Wins
As much as I have enjoyed Archer’s run and he is definitely a solid champion, I feel with where the story is going, Moxley will take the W here and face Juice the next night for the US belt and finally have their long awaited rubber match in New Japan but we’ll see. Whatever the case may be, these two will definitely destroy each other and I expect blood to possibly rain down on the Dome with such a high stakes and stipulation of a match.
Match #6 – IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship: Will Ospreay (c) vs. Hiromu Takahashi
Will Ospreay – There is no other wrestler in the world that could even come close to being “Wrestler of the Year” in terms of match quality and resume to Will Ospreay. I’m not even the biggest fan of his but you cannot deny what he has done this year and how much he has elevated his career for the good with all the hard work he has put in day in and day out in every match. It all began at the beginning of the year, Wrestle Kingdom 13, in a deadly bout for the NEVER Openweight Championship defeating Kota Ibushi in what was a hellacious action-packed, fast-paced match from start to finish. He would go on to have two successful defenses with the belt before losing it to a Double Title match against Jeff Cobb at the G1 Supercard in Madison Square Garden. Afterwards Ospreay would join pretty much all the tournaments New Japan has to offer and do well in every single one of them, as a junior heavyweight to be exact! In the New Japan Cup he became a “giant slayer” by defeating both Bad Luck Fale and Lance Archer in the first two rounds before losing in a classic quarter finals match against CHAOS stable bretheren Kazuchika Okada. Then he would enter his fourth Best of the Super Juniors tournament, pretty much have all great matches against his entire block competition, most memorable are the ones against Rocky Romero, El Phantasmo, and Robbie Eagles at least for me. He would reach the finals and ended up being the first man to beat Shingo Takagi in a New Japan ring, ending The Dragon’s undefeated streak since his debut in NJPW. Ospreay would beat another dragon in the form of Dragon Lee in what was a crazy death-defying, highflying match at Dominion and become a 3x IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion. With the BOSJ over it seems like that is it for Ospreay but he would continue to make history, entering the G1 Climax as the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion. It’s not a first time though as Tatsuhito Takaiwa, the reigning IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion in 2000 entered the G1 but it is a rare ocassion for junior heavyweights to enter the premier tournament for heavyweights. He didn’t slow down as he would go on to have one of the best G1 runs ever, especially for someone who is entering for the first time and is suffering with injuries. His biggest victory was winning over The Ace, Hiroshi Tanahashi in an emotional bout between the two. Ospreay entered the revived Super J Cup reached the Semi Finals before losing to El Phantasmo and also participated in the Super Junior Tag League with Robbie Eagles. There has been so much already that I haven’t even mentioned that he has successfully defended the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship throughout all this three times, with BUSHI being the latest at Power Struggle. Will Ospreay has pretty much reigned over the entire junior heavyweight division. He has beat every single challenger possible. There’s no one left to fight anymore. Or so does it seems…
Hiromu Takahashi – On July 7, 2018 Hiromu Takahashi defeated Dragon Lee for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship that he won at Dominion from Will Ospreay. However during the match, Hiromu suffered a neck injury and would be force to vacate the belt afterwards. At the time nobody knew the extent of how long he’d be gone but as time passes by it would be evident that it will take a while. Hiromu was sidelined for a year, with barely any updates other than the odd social media post here and there. Some even speculated his career is over, after all neck injuries are no joke, we have seen countless wrestlers retire prematurely due to these cases. Every tournament we would wait if Hiromu is finally coming back, he has been one of the most beloved members of the New Japan roster ever since making his return from excursion in 2016 becoming a part of Los Ingobernables de Japon. 2018 was seemingly the year for him, he won his second IWGP Jr. Heavyweight title and the BOSJ for the first time in his career but it all ended abruptly due to the aforementioned injury. But all hope was never lost, the Ticking Time Bomb finally made his anticipated comeback at Power Struggle. After Ospreay beats BUSHI, Hiromu appeared for the first time since his injury and has recovered fully. His energetic personality loomed over the entire arena and everyone was surprised yet also full of joy in seeing the former champion make his way to the ring and eventually challenge Will Ospreay at the Tokyo Dome! After all, Hiromu never lost the belt, he just vacated it, now he has a chance to take back Belt-san and continue on his supposed long reign as champion.
Prediction: Hiromu Takahashi Wins
This is another case similar to GoD, Ospreay has pretty much beat everyone there is to beat as champion in his division, with Hiromu returning, I think he’d take the belt back and Ospreay would probably move up to the heavyweights officially sooner rather than later. These two are very much familiar with one another. They are rivals but also share a common respect with one another, this is probably the match I’m most looking forward to in the whole card, which is saying something because this year’s Wrestle Kingdom is packed with a whole lot of exciting matches!
Semi Main Event – IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Jay White (c) vs. Tetsuya Naito
A clash of styles, two men who have different outlooks in professional wrestling. One is a devious leader who is willing to do anything, no matter how clean or dirty it is, just to get to the top while the other cannot be governed, does not abide by the traditional rules, but it has garnered the respect of the fans because he still showcases heart and hardwork despite the seemingly nonchalant attitude. But they both have something in common, a similar goal. The path to become the number one in all of New Japan Pro Wrestling. It’s the battle between Jay White and Tetsuya Naito, for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.
Jay White – Since 2013 Bullet Club has taken not only NJPW, but the entire world by storm! Never has a faction become so impactful in the grand scheme of things since the nWo. The stable itself has seen different forms of leadership throughout its existence, started with Prince Devitt who laid the foundation as to what the group was all about, a collection of unwanted “outsiders” bonding to terrorize the rest of the roster. Moving on to AJ Styles wherein BC truly reached their peak in terms of massive gain in popularity and success, when at one point majority of the members held all the belts. Then to the Kenny Omega and Elite era, having a strong presence in the media day by day, making multiple headlines, and controversies within the group itself being divided as to differing in beliefs. Finally, to the present time, the Cut Throat Era, “Switchblade” Jay White since 2018 has betrayed CHAOS and became the new leader of Bullet Club. With the guidance of Gedo who also left CHAOS and turned on his long time partner and mentoree Kazuchika Okada, he found his new star in Jay White. Since his return from excursion, he challenged Hiroshi Tanahashi at Wrestle Kingdom 12 for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship but failed. It wouldn’t be long though before Jay finds his purpose and takes on a path rightful for him in reaching the top one day. Since then though, his connection to the belt was already planted. Fast forward on February 2019, after beating Okada at Tokyo Dome, New Beginning in Osaka, he also defeated another fan favorite, this time getting his revenge on Tanahashi, upsetting and getting the IWGP Heavyweight Championship for the first time in his career. It was only a short reign though as 54 days in, Jay headlined MSG for G1 Supercard when The Rainmaker finally got his payback and win, losing the title in the main event. This year’s G1, Jay started off with a three match losing streak to his former stable mates in CHAOS but would eventually bounce back. He reached the finals, once again beating another fan favorite in Tetsuya Naito at the semis, but got defeated by Kota Ibushi. At New Destruction in Kobe however, Jay got his title shot against Naito for the Intercontinental Championship and defeated him once more, finally getting the belt he challenged for way back when he returned. Now he is looking to take things further, by pulling off another win over Naito, and headline the following night and make history. Much to the ire of many fans.
Tetsuya Naito – From becoming a hated bland babyface, to being the most popular member of the roster, the past decade for Tetsuya Naito’s career has been an interesting journey. Ever since “re-discovering” himself due to finding Los Ingobernables in CMLL, Naito’s trajectory at becoming a top star changed for the better. Gone are the days of him seemingly being forced in the role of ace, he has taken more of an “anti hero” role which the fans would gradually turn to support. As Los Ingobernables de Japon started to grow, so is Naito’s popularity. He would become the number one merchandise seller in the company, on April 2016 with the help of his LIJ bretheren, he finally captured the IWGP Heavyweight Championship for the first time, beating Okada and successfully defending it to Tomohiro Ishii at Dontaku. However just 70 days in, he’d drop the belt right back to The Rainmaker wherein Okada would go on to have his historic 720 day reign as champion, the longest single run in NJPW ever. Naito’s time as champion was merely seen as a transitional one, he is yet to have a “proper reign” so to speak. However another belt that is pretty much intertwined with his career is the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. Around the same time, Naito became the IC Champ beating Michael Elgin. However, he would treat the belt like trash, often throwing it around, damaging the belt, and just being plain old disrespectful towards it. Why? Well the IC Title was always seen as the “second prize” Naito always desired to be on the shuyaku aka top star. Being seen with the IC Title is like being the man behind THE man. He treated the belt so badly that by the time Hiroshi Tanahashi ended his 259 day run with the belt at Dominion, they made a new one because the one Naito held was so damaged beyond good repair. This wouldn’t be the last time Naito would become IC Champion though, he would have three more reigns afterwards mainly feuding with the likes of Minoru Suzuki, Chris Jericho, and Kota Ibushi. Now though he sets his sights towards the Switchblade. At Wrestle Kingdom 12, Naito was unable to capture the IWGP Heavyweight Championship after such a flawless year, at 13 he did have a “dream match” against Chris Jericho, but since then it seems like he became directionless. He was one of the leading favorites in winning the G1 this year but Jay White put a stinker on those thoughts, eliminating him in the semis. This could very well be Naito’s last chance at becoming the shuyaku he desires since training at Animal Hamaguchi’s dojo. He has built up LIJ and his own career towards this goal, he doesn’t have a lot of chances left, being relegated to a “what could have been scenario?” isn’t so fitting for someone like him. The entire fan base is rooting for someone they once despised. El Ingobernable has the chance to dethrone the Cut Throat Era away from its place once and for all.
Prediction: Tetsuya Naito Wins
I’m holding out hope. Please. Just let him win this one. I’m begging all the wrestling Gods to bless Naito on the upcoming event. As I’ve said, this could very well be his last chance, if he fails, there may never be another one again and he could turn into someone like Hirooki Goto and Tomohiro Ishii. Great workers but could never quite get to the top. What makes Naito different from them though is he has tasted the gold already, he just wasn’t able to savor it enough. But if there is any time to do it, it is now. To hell if I’m bias, I’m rooting for Tetsuya Naito all the way!
Main Event – IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. Kota Ibushi
Two men whose careers began so different from one another. Okada has been a pet project of New Japan since his early young lion days. He was groomed to be the next big thing in Puroresu, the face of the entire sport. While Ibushi is a self-trained wrestler, mainly a freelance for the majority of his early run. Doing oddball spots in promotions like DDT while maintaining his integrity as one of the best workers in the country. But no matter how different the paths they took, it all led them to this. Main eventing the Tokyo Dome in front of a sellout crowd, for the prestigious IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Let’s take a closer look as to how they got here in the first place.
Kazuchika Okada – As I’ve mentioned right from the get-go of his young lion years, Okada was already seen as a top prospect, a blue chipper with tons of potential. Ever since his return from excursion in 2012, Okada was poised to the very top feuding with the ace, Hiroshi Tanahashi. Initially, it felt like he was being put on the position way too early. But as time went by, The Rainmaker has proven that he is worthy of being the next top star and that he became. What’s interesting about Okada is that besides his other accomplishments such as being a 2x G1 Climax and NJC Winner as well as a plethora of awards in the Tokyo Sports magazine, he has only held one championship belt his entire 16 year career so far and that is the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Okada is pretty much synonymous with the belt at this point and vice versa, the two compliment each other so much because they have always been intertwined. He held the belt on five different ocassions, his longest was at 720 days in his fourth reign, beating Shinya Hashimoto’s record as the longest reigning IWGP Heavyweight Champion. All in all Okada holds the record for total combined days as champion at 1,767 days, a record that will likely never be touched, at least for a very long time. His rivalry with Hiroshi Tanahashi is what really got the ball rolling for him, taking him from a star to superstar level due to their classic matches. Then his feud with Kenny Omega really took the world by storm and made him one of the most well known workers in a global scale. However before winning his 5th title, when Okada’s 720 day run came to a close at Dominion last year, he changed. He lost the only thing that mattered to him, his prized possession is no longer by his side. Okada went crazy, a new attitude altogether. He dyed his hair red, carried balloons around, he just wasn’t himself. Even when he tried to be, returning as the Rainmaker at Wrestle Kingdom 13, complete with the classic attire, he still lost to Jay White. But everything changed at this year’s New Japan Cup. The Rainmaker we all remembered got back on his feet and momentum found its way back at him, he would go on to defeat Michael Elgin, Mikey Nicholls, Will Ospreay, Tomohiro Ishii, and finally SANADA in the finals. Okada would go on to main event Madison Square Garden at G1 Supercard to take back the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, beating Jay White, and has reigned long since once again currently at 251 days. He has already defended the belt successfully four times, twice to SANADA, then to veterans Minoru Suzuki and Chris Jericho. Now an old foe faces him in his fifth Tokyo Dome main event and will defend the title that means so much to himself and to his career.
Kota Ibushi – For the longest time the perception towards Kota Ibushi is that he has the potential to become the biggest star at the biggest stage, but he preferred to do things his way and be a freelancer for the majority of his career. The man is blessed with athletic talents, he would become one of the best workers in all of Japan and later on in the world as his name gets more recognized. If Kenny Omega has connection to Okada, I don’t think it can be compared how much connected he is to the career and life of Ibushi. Those two men will always be related to one another no matter how near or far they get in the paths they take in their professional lives. But now, Omega is gone from New Japan. Ibushi is all alone. Despite this, he is already an accomplished wrestler on his own right, before finally getting this opportunity, he has won a plethora of titles for NJPW before such as being a 3x IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion, 1x IWGP Jr. Tag-Team Champion with Kenny, also held the NEVER Openweight and IC Titles once while also winning the BOSJ in 2011 and NJC in 2015. With such a stacked a resume, it was always a wonder why Ibushi was never seen as a top guy. Well he put himself in that position, by never fully committing to New Japan and still wrestling primarily for DDT as well as other promotions. The Golden Lovers would reunite during the Bullet Club split saga in what was the most emotional moment in New Japan this entire decade and there have been plenty, its just that nothing beats the years of buildup towards that very moment. Although everything changed when they split up once again. Ibushi is back being on his own but this time he has signed a long term deal with NJPW, solidifying his position in the company. Little by little he would be rewarded, he had a hellacious feud with Tetsuya Naito for the IC Title where both men seemingly attempted to kill one another with their intense matches, then we proceed to the G1 Climax. Last year he reached the finals but did not quite have the complete tools yet to beat Hiroshi Tanahashi. However this time around, Ibushi flourished and defeated one of his idols besides Shinsuke Nakamura. For the first time, five G1’s later, and he has finally done it, beating Jay White in the finals! Their battle was interesting too, Jay was surrounded and backed up by the entire Bullet Club while Ibushi was all by himself, with no one to truly protect him. Yet he beat all the odds stacked against him and was finally one step away from reaching something he has never achieved, main eventing the Tokyo Dome. Him and Okada have only faced one-on-one twice their entire careers, one encounter was at this year’s G1 in the semis. Now for the third time, it will be the biggest match of their careers yet, headlining the first night of Wrestle Kingdom 14 at a sold out crowd. From wrestling inside trains and subways, to becoming one of the top draws at the Dome, Kota Ibushi has had one hell of a career and him finally winning the IWGP Heavyweight Championship would truly be the icing on the cake.
Prediction: Kazuchika Okada
Out of all the matches so far, this one is really the most difficult to predict for me. Honestly it could really go either way and the story for both men would still work. Okada’s 5th reign while lengthy seems like it hasn’t fully reached its true potential yet. Meanwhile for Ibushi, him finally getting that Tokyo Dome moment would be huge for his career. But the momentum is really strong on both sides, Okada and Ibushi had a great year, it’s been nothing but solid for them, it’s really not an easy pick but I ended up going with Okada. Initially I had Ibushi, in fact as I was originally typing this I had Ibushi as my pick but decided to change on the last minute. I remembered one golden rule (heh, pun sort of intended) is that the ace rarely loses at the Dome. As much as I want to witness Ibushi to finally win it, I think they’re going to have it at another time. For everything to go full circle and we get Okada vs. Naito III at the Dome the following night, couldn’t get much more sweeter. But that’s not a guarantee and tha’s the beauty of New Japan booking.
