New Japan’s first official Destruction 2018 show took place on September 15th. Emanating from Hiroshima Sun Plaza Hall the stellar card featured two title bouts and a host of top NJPW stars.
The real headline grabber was the main event between Kenny Omega and Tomohiro Ishii. The two world class talents collided for Omega’s IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Omega and Ishii had one of the best bouts from this year’s G1 Climax tournament, the match saw Ishii defeat Omega to earn this bout and main event of the first Destruction show of the tour.
Results
Here’s the results from the show:
Jushin Liger, KUSHIDA, & Tiger Mask IV b. Roppongi 3K (Rocky Romero, SHO, & YOH) – Tiger took the win via pinfall with a Tiger Suplex on Romero
Bad Luck Fale b. Toa Henare – Fale took the win via pinfall following the Grenade
Killer Elite Squad (Davey Boy Smith, Jr. & Lance Archer) b. Ayato Yoshida & Michael Elgin – KES took the by pinfall win following a Killer Bomb on Yoshida
Chaos (Beretta, Chuckie T, & Will Ospreay) b. Bullet Club (Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi) & Kota Ibushi – The Best Friends won via pinfall following a double stomp-assisted Dudebuster on Owens
Firing Squad (Taiji Ishimori, Tama Tonga, & Tanga Loa) (c) b. Taguchi Japan (David Finlay, Juice Robinson, & Ryusuke Taguchi) – Tanga Loa took the pinfall win after hitting the Apesh*t on Finlay to retain the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship
Chaos (Gedo, Hirooki Goto, & Toru Yano) b. Suzuki-gun (Taichi, Takashi Iizuka, & Yoshinobu Kanemaru) – CHAOS took the disqualification win after Taichi attacked Goto with his microphone stand
Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, EVIL, SANADA, & Tetsuya Naito) b. (El Desperado, Minoru Suzuki, TAKA Michinoku, & Zack Sabre, Jr.) – Ingobernables took the pinfall win following the Magic Killer on Michinoku
Togi Makabe, Tomoaki Honma & Hiroshi Tanahashi b. Chaos (“Switchblade” Jay White, Kazuchika Okada, & YOSHI-HASHI) – Tanahashi defeated YOSHI-HASHI via pinfall with a small package
Kenny Omega (c) b. Tomohiro Ishii – Omega won the match via pinfall following the One-Winged Angel to retain the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
Daniel Bryan recently praised the organizers of All In for selling out a 10,000 seat arena. Bryan made the comments recently while promoting the upcoming WWE 2K19 video game.
“They are like their own new 4 horsemen,” Bryan said “They are so different but they compliment each other and have this buzz about them. The idea that they are doing their own event outside of Ring of Honor, outside of New Japan. They are bringing in people from IMpact and doing all this kind of stuff.”
Unfortunately for fans who were hoping to see Bryan compete at All In 2, he is reported to have agreed to terms on a new deal with WWE recently.
Daniel Bryan On All In
“If you were to tell me 5 years ago that that would happen I’d say you’re crazy, you don’t know what you’re talking about,” Bryan said in reference to All In selling out the Sears Center Arena in Chicago. “But that’s a testament to these guys.”
Bryan would speak further on how Cody, the Bucks, and Omega have all created a buzz for themselves in different ways.
“I think it’s especially a credit to Cody, the Young Bucks, and Kenny Omega,” Bryan continued. “Because they’ve all created waves in different ways: Cody leaving WWE to say ‘you know what? I think I’m better than what they’re giving me, I’m going to go out and prove something.’ The Young Bucks doing this whole thing on their own being creative, they are starting this YouTube thing, doing this thing where they are like anti-authority anti-corporate people who are bucking the trends. And then Kenny Omega going out and having these matches some people look at them and say ‘these are the greatest pro-wrestling matches of all time.’”
“I think it’s so empowering and so cool,” Bryan continued.
New Japan’s first official Destruction show takes place on September 15th. Emanating from Hiroshima Sun Plaza Hall the stellar card will feature two title bouts and a host of top NJPW stars.
The real headline grabber is the main event between Kenny Omega and Tomohiro Ishii. The two world class talents will be colliding for Omega’s IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
Omega and Ishii had one of the best bouts from this year’s G1 Climax tournament, the match saw Ishii defeat Omega to earn this bout and main event of the first Destruction show of the tour. Whilst Ishii can be considered one of the best in NJPW it’s clear that Omega is here to stay as IWGP Champion heading into January’s Wrestle Kingdom so it’s very unlikely that he drops the title.
Here’s the full card for the first Destruction event which will be available to view on NJPWWorld.com:
KUSHIDA, Tiger Mask IV & Jushin Thunder Liger vs Rocky Romero, SHO & YOH
Bad Luck Fale vs Toa Henare
Michael Elgin & Ayato Yoshida vs Davey Boy Smith Jr & Lance Archer
Will Ospreay, Beretta & Chuck Taylor vs Kota Ibushi, Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens
NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championship Match – Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, & Taiji Ishimori (c) vs Juice Robinson, David Finlay & Ryusuke Taguchi
The New Japan Pro Wrestling ‘Road to’ Destruction shows are in full swing. IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega and his ‘Golden Lovers’ tag partner Kota Ibushi faced CHAOS rivals Tomohiro Ishii and Will Ospreay at last night’s Korakuen Hall event.
The bout was stellar and was unexpectedly so for what is traditionally a ‘lesser’ show in NJPW’s scheduling. The ‘Road To’ shows tend to act as a series to build to the bigger events such as Destruction later this month. The company may be looking to up the ante with the expected drive in ALL IN subscribers getting the megashow at a heavily discounted price.
Omega took to the mic following the bout to discuss his upcoming IWGP Heavyweight Title bout. Kenny will be facing Tomohiro Ishii at Destruction in Hiroshima September 15th. Ishii earned the bout by defeating Omega in their G1 Climax tournament bout. Omega stated (in Japanese) that “My next defence will be against Ishii. Many American fans say that our G1 match was epic, the best bout from G1. My personal opinion…the best matches were all of Ibushi-san’s. Don’t you agree Ibushi-san?”
Many fans are excited about the numerous alternative wrestling products currently available. With advances in streaming services, fans now have access to promotions from across the globe with diverse styles.
Kenny Omega believes that the success of All In proves there are wrestling fans hungry for an alternative to WWE. He spoke to Sports Illustrated recently.
“Fans, wrestlers, and even the general public have been conditioned to believe that there’s an enormous skill gap between WWE and everyone else,” Omega said. “A major league and a minor league. It’s either you’re there or you’re just not good enough.
“While it’s true their collection of talent is undeniable,” Omega continued. “A small group of us have bet on ourselves and on the unique alternative vision we have for pro wrestling. What they can offer in flash, we can offer in substance. While their writers produce TV for a certain demographic, we’re producing stories for fans that want something a little different.”
Our #Allin has ended but the grind has not. Thank you to all that supported our event, GL is headed back to Japan for the next tour. pic.twitter.com/agAcxwJaMB
For many members of Bullet Club, there was little time to rest after All In. The Golden Lovers main event’ed an NJPW house show last night and will be back on New Japan World tonight/early tomorrow morning. The Firing Squad is also back on tour with New Japan now as well.
Omega’s next big match will be on September 15th when he defends his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against longtime rival, Tomohiro Ishii.
The main event of Saturday night’s All In pay-per-view saw The Young Bucks and Kota Ibushi defeat Rey Mysterio, Bandido, and Rey Fenix in a six-man tag match. After the broadcast ended, the wrestlers were joined in the ring by new NWA World Champion Cody, Brandi Rhodes, Kenny Omega, Hangman Page and family members.
In a post-match celebration that lasted around 15 minutes, The Young Bucks, Cody and Kenny Omega addressed the audience about the show that just ended and what the future holds for all of them. SEScoops was ringside for the show and got exclusive video of everything that happened after All In.
The Young Bucks Ready To Deliver More of ‘Their Vision of Pro Wrestling’
Nick Jackson of the Young Bucks revealed to the crowd that due to time constraints, they had to defeat their opponents even faster than they would have otherwise. The main event was in fact cut short and ended with just seconds to spare before the pay-per-view feed cut out. Things got a bit more serious, however, as the conversation turned to reflect on their collective journey towards ‘All In’.
Matt Jackson recalls, “You know guys, about a year ago – or maybe even longer – this man [Cody] came into our lives. And I liked him right away because I thought to myself ‘man, that guy is as crazy and as ambitious as us, Nick.’ So I said, ‘hey, let’s take this guy, let’s ride with him, let’s dine with him, let’s hang out with him.’”
During the course of their burgeoning friendship, Cody would one day come to them with a proposition. Matt remembers, “Cody came to us with this wild idea. He said, ‘Young Bucks, Bullet Club, I think we can put 10,000 asses in 10,000 seats.’”
A lofty goal that they were able to accomplish, with their event selling every single one of those 10,000+ seats in just under thirty minutes. A fact that isn’t lost on the trio.
“[…] it didn’t take just three men,” Matt claims. “It didn’t take just the Young Bucks and Cody. It took each and every one of the people standing in this ring. This was a group collaboration. All the people in the back. And most importantly, as cheesy as it sounds, all 10,000+ of you. You can feel it. You can feel it. There’s a hunger. There’s a thirst. You guys want good. Pro. Wrestling.”
This was met with huge applause as Matt pressed on.
“You guys want good entertainment. And what we presented to you in those 4 hours and 57 minutes – Oh my God – was our vision of what we think we can do with pro wrestling.”
Before handing the mic over to Cody, Matt had one final thing to admit to the crowd in attendance: “[…] if you guys want it, you want more pro wrestling from the cast of Being The Elite, then my family, my great friends, my cast of bandits, we will give you more of this. Because we couldn’t have done this without you,” he admits, before continuing in an emotional moment, “Chicago, this is was one of my favorite – you know what, this was my favorite night of my career.
Cody: “No Man, No Company, No Entity Owns Pro Wrestling. We Own Pro Wrestling!”
For Cody, however, it seemingly became more than just a pro wrestling event. It became about the importance of the relationships he clearly cares most about.
“‘All In’ is a serendipitous tale of things just falling in line one after the other. And one of those things is – not only did I find colleagues right here, not only did I find peers, these people are my best friends in the entire world.”
With people wondering about what could be coming next, Cody tried to allay any sort of worry by proclaiming, “And that big question of what happens next with this group? We are sticking together. Because no money, no man, no company, no entity owns pro wrestling. We own pro wrestling!”
His last words were particularly poignant, as he declared that “[…] the reality is this: this group [behind ‘All In’] went from undesirable to undeniable!”
At this point, Cody introduced his friend and leader of the Bullet Club, Kenny Omega to close the show.
Kenny Omega Addresses His Future
Kenny admitted that he was “merely a piece of the puzzle” and not a part of original three minds that created the show, before giving “all the credit in the world to Cody and the Young Bucks”. Omega said All In was probably the greatest pro wrestling show and addressed rumors that he could be WWE bound next year.
“You guys know where I come from. You guys know where some people want me to go. But guess freaking what? Guess freaking what? What we did today blew everything out of the water.”
He continued, “Believe it or not, that’s not just talking about the match quality. That’s not talking about this incredible cast of characters. Guess what the most important ingredient is…Did you figure it out yet? Oh, yes. It’s each and every single one of you. You guys believed in the change. You believed in the movement. You believed in the alternative. And thus, we shall continue this journey.”
Omega ended his words with his signature sign-off “But for now, we all must bid you adieu. So, please, with me now, if you will…good-bye and good-night. Bang!”
There was something – to borrow a phrase from Cody – undeniably special about the event, with an electricity coursing through the crowd throughout the entire show, from Zero Hour to ‘All In’ actual. It will be with great interest that the wrestling world watches where the Elite, and those who helped them put together ‘All In’, go from here.
The pay-per-view feed for All In cut out shortly after the 3-count in the night’s main event. Live inside Sears Center Arena, however, an extended celebration took place.
Rey Mysterio, Bandido, and Fenix thanked the crowd as Kenny Omega and Cody came out to join them. The Massie family along with some of their small children also filled the ring as confetti drifted down from the ceiling.
Omega gave his standard “Goodnight and Goodbye speech” while Cody reiterated that WWE does no own pro-wrestling.
Cody, Kenny Omega, the Young Bucks, Marty Scurll and Hangman Page
The group reiterated that they will not be splitting up when their contracts come due in 2019. This likely means they will not be going to WWE next year as Scurll’s contract commits him to ROH past then.
What happens when Omega, Cody and the Bucks are all free agents in a few months should be interesting. Both WWE and Sinclair should have the money to keep the stable but its also possible multiple non-WWE promotions could work together to provide the team with a joint offer. What this new era of non-WWE promotions working together means should become more apparent during what is looking to become the hottest free agent period in wrestling since the Monday Night War era.
Next up for most of the crew will be NJPW’s Destruction tour. Omega’s next IWGP Heavyweight Championship match is on September 15th versus Tomohiro Ishii.
Recently reinstated WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan spoke with Sports Illustrated’s Extra Mustard section for an article focusing on Kenny Omega.
During the interview, “The Hulkster” spoke at length about this year’s PWI Top 500 number one wrestler, giving his take on why Omega’s story won’t be “complete” if he doesn’t eventually make the transition to WWE.
“Would I love to see him go to the WWE? Yes,” said Hogan. “Would I love to see him be used correctly? Yes.”
The pro wrestling legend would go on to elaborate, talking specifically about how Omega could be the guy that Vince McMahon signs to take WWE to another level once again.
“If he ever got lost in the mix, it would be a sad, sad story,” said Hogan. “But if there is a chance to sign him, Vince McMahon could be the guy to take him to the next level. If you don’t touch on the WWE, your story is not complete.”
Hogan continued, “But rules are made to be broken, and Kenny is such a big star that he could be the one to change all that. Kenny is such a big star that he doesn’t need to sign in New York, but it would complete the story if he went and dominated and had a hell of a run in WWE.”
Check out the complete Hulk Hogan interview with Sports Illustrated’s Extra Mustard section at SI.com.
Kenny Omega took some time to do an interview with Justin Barrasso of SI.com. One question that was asked on whether Omega had any intentions on wrestling for WWE.
Thoughts On A Possible WWE Run
“I realize that there are people that are employed by that promotion that I could have a good match with. There are people within that promotion where, if we had that said match, could generate multiple communities celebrating the performance. That’s what happened when the Bucks and I did the gaming battle with the New Day. If I wrestled one of their top guys, people would watch that match in the anticipation of something great happening.
But right now, it’s all, ‘What if?’ fantasy scenarios. It’s going to stay that way until it happens, if it ever even happens, because you never know what type of limitations are going to be placed on those matches. If Kenny Omega is allowed to be Kenny Omega, then those matches would be really special. Would I be allowed to be myself, the real Kenny Omega, within that realm? In a way, it’s almost more exciting to think about what it could be rather than see what it would be.”
WWE Developmental
Back in 2005 Omega was signed to WWE under a developmental deal at Deep South Wrestling. It wouldn’t be until August 2006 that Omega requested his release from developmental in order to pursue other wrestling avenues.
In recent years, Omega has told in various interviews that WWE has approached him several times to sign with the company. Once in 2014 and three times in 2015, all in which he turned down.
The ALL IN weigh-ins from Starrcast took place on Friday, although only one match ended up on the scales.
Following a brief introduction, The Young Bucks made their way to the stage to talk about ALL In and celebrate with the crowd after selling out 10,000 seats for what is being hailed as the biggest independent pro wrestling show of all time.
While everybody involved put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into building the card, the Young Bucks were obviously excited by the reaction from the crowd and the wrestling community as a whole.
“The way I feel right now, I wanna do 50 more of these damn things!” the Young Bucks shouted to the crowd.
From there it was time for the only actual weigh-in that took place at the hour plus long event as Cody Rhodes and NWA heavyweight champion Nick Aldis made their way to the stage. Cody officially weighed 206 pounds while Aldis was at 238 pounds.
Afterwards, Aldis refused to shake hands with Cody before leaving the stage to a loud chorus of boos from the audience.
Cody then made a special announcement regarding his match as famed referee Earl Hepner will be the third man in the ring during the NWA heavyweight championship match on Saturday night.
Bill Apter also made an appearance during the weigh-ins where he presented three custom made ALL IN championship belts to Cody and The Young Bucks, who spearheaded the entire idea behind this massive show.
The show was then turned over to “The Hangman” Adam Page, who came out without wearing any boots — and then he allowed the fans to ask him a few questions.
Unfortunately for Page, all anybody wanted to talk about was Joey Ryan, which finally led to him erupting on the microphone.
“The truth is I murdered Joey Ryan. I murdered him!,” Page shouted before his “attorney” came onto the stage to take away the microphone to protect his client.
Following a brief appearance from the SoCal Underground, the crowd then came to its feet when Marty Scrull came to the stage. He definitely received one of the loudest ovations during the entire weigh-ins before addressing his upcoming match against former IWGP heavyweight champion “The Rainmaker” Kazuchika Okada.
“I will stop the rain!” Scurll shouted to the crowd in anticipation of his match at ALL IN.
Joey Janela also popped up out of the crowd before making his way to the stage to stir up the audience while smoking a cigarette and chugging a beer while promising to beat “Hangman” Page at ALL IN.
Finally at the close of the weigh-ins, one final guess was introduced as reigning IWGP champion Kenny Omega came to the stage to the loudest reaction of the night.
Omega answered a few questions from the crowd — and even anticipated an inquiry about his interest in going to WWE, although that never actually came.
Perhaps the biggest piece of news to come out of Omega’s appearance was a question about him appearing at the upcoming G-1 Supercard co-promoted by Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling taking place in Madison Square Garden in New York.
While Omega wasn’t ready to commit to anything just yet, a giant smile crept across his face after the question was asked. He joked about getting a ticket before adding more intrigue to the card coming up on April 6, 2019.
“I will probably be there,” Omega said. “Whether I’m needed or not, I don’t know.”
Before leaving, Omega was asked what it felt like being the greatest wrestler in the world right now on the heels of reaching No. 1 in the 2018 PWI 500.
Omega said that as much as awards and accolades are nice to receive, what means even more to him is the reaction he gets from the fans who watch his matches and they are the ones he’s representing each time he steps into the ring.
“That’s what fuels me to continue to fight,” Omega said. “To represent every one of you guys as the alternative for ALL IN.”
IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kenny Omega, will take on Pentagon Jr. tomorrow night at All In. The event will take place inside a soldout Sears Center Arena in Chicago.
Omega credits the success of the event to wrestling fans being willing to take a chance on an alternative product.
“All In shows there are enough people willing to take a chance on an alternative,” Omega said to Sports Illustrated recently. “It shows that it’s worth putting your heart and soul into that alternative. We’re not looking for a quick path or quick WWE money. Opportunities like All In are great, it’s a tool to find who you are.”
A great piece with some friends and familiar names adding their insight. Please check it out if you have some time! https://t.co/OszEGQCCcn
Omega would continue to say that WWE is no longer the only goal for top-tier professional wrestlers.
“WWE was always the be-all, end-all, but now it’s changed so much that you can have your best years without WWE,” Omega continued. “You don’t necessarily have to stress or worry about not having that ‘WrestleMania Moment.’ I used to hear that all the time when I was coming up in DDT. People found a measure of joy by saying, ‘You’ve never walked the ramp on Raw, so who the hell are you?’ I’m hearing a lot less of that. People are realizing the alternative can be just as good, if not better.”
Omega has two big single’s matches coming up in the near future. First, he will face Pentagon Jr at All In tomorrow night. The two have never met in single’s competition before, though they were on opposing sides of a tag match once in PWG. Omega will also defend his IWGP Heavyweight Championship coming up against Tomohiro Ishii on September 15th.
New Japan Pro Wrestling returns to Long Beach on September 30th, 2018. Only 3 matches have been confirmed for the show thus far, however.
The promotion has 3 big shows before Long Beach and will likely only announce more matches after the Destruction in Kobe event on the 23rd. In lieu of announcing more matches, NJPW has confirmed that several wrestlers will be apart of the show.
NJPW has just confirmed the following wrestlers for Fighting Spirit Unleashed on September 30th:
IWGP United States Championship
Juice Robinson (c) vs Cody
This will be Juice Robinson’s first defense of the title he won back in July. Following his title victory over Jay White, Juice only went 3-6 in the G1 Climax. He was sporting a broken hand during the tournament, however.
Robinson was trained by Cody’s father and often uses Dusty Rhodes’ trademark jabs during his matches. Cody defeated Juice at Wrestle Kingdom 11 on January 4th, 2017.
IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) (c) vs The Guerillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa)
The Young Bucks won the IWGP Heavyweight Championships at Dominion in Osaka back in June. They then defended the titles against Evil and Sanada successfully at the G1 Special in San Fransico. Later that show, however, the Bucks were the victims of a beatdown at the hands of the Firing Squad.
The last time the Bucks were in the same ring as the Firing Squad, Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa and Taiji Ishimori defeated them and Marty Scurll for the NEVER 6-Man titles.
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Tournament (Semi-Final)
Will Ospreay vs Marty Scurll
Hiromu Takahashi was forced to vacate “Mr. Belt”, his name for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. Takahashi will be out of action for 9-12 months after sustaining a neck injury at the G1 Special in San Francisco.
The other semi-final match in the tournament will be between Bushi and Kushida on September 23rd.
IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega has landed the top spot in this year’s installment of Pro Wrestling Illustrated famed PWI 500 list.
It is the first time Omega has topped the list and the second straight year a wrestler from New Japan Pro Wrestling has earned the distinction. Prior to 2017, the last time a non-WWE wrestler earned the top spot was 2010 – when AJ Styles did so while a member of TNA. Prior to 2010, then-WCW Cruiserweight Dean Malenko topped the list in 1997.
PWI 500 2018 Top 10
The Top 10 wrestlers on the 2018 PWI 500 were revealed on the latest episode of The Jim Ross Report podcast. (Previous ranking in brackets)
Kenny Omega (#5)
AJ Styles (#2)
Kazuchika Okada (#1)
Brock Lesnar (#25)
Seth Rollins (#16)
Braun Strowman (#34)
Roman Reigns (#4)
Cody (#33)
Tetsuya Naito (#12)
The Miz (#10)
PWI Top 500 Explained
While often controversial, the PWI 500 could use some explaining. Pro Wrestling Illustrated used to be one of the only ways for fans to follow promotions outside of their local territory. The magazine was, at one point (and might still be), based in kayfabe. The PWI 500 is then based on who were the most successful wrestlers of the year if wrestling was a real sport.
Omega won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and beat the greatest champion in the title’s lineage to do so. Styles has been the WWE Champion since November. Okada completed the greatest reign in IWGP Heavyweight title history this year.
Brock Lesnar won the main event of WrestleMania and held the Universal title for almost the entire year in which the PWI 500 capsules.
Spots 11-500 are available through the PWI-Online or the magazine itself.
Cody Rhodes, Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks and Adam Page have made a pledge to stay together next year, no matter what.
On Wednesday, a media conference call was held to promote next weekend’s All In event and the weekend-long Starrcast convention. I had a chance to participate in the call and there was a pretty newsworthy statement made by Cody about the Bullet Club members behind All In.
When Cody and the Bucks sold out a 10,000+ person arena for All In in less than a half hour, you can be sure it got on WWE’s radar. When Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling sold out Madison Square Garden in a matter of minutes, many fans were left wondring the same thing. Which of the performers involved will WWE attempt to sign, in an effort to suppress the momentum of the Bullet Club, ROH and New Japan?
Cody Rhodes was asked what’s next for his gang after All In on September 1st. Cody said he does not know where he (and the others) will be working next year. However, he did reveal that he, Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks and Adam Page have made a ‘verbal commitment’ to each other that they will stick together no matter where they wind up.
“As far as what’s next, I really wish I could answer, ” said Cody. “A lot has happened in the last few weeks. A lot of discussions about the future. One thing that’s special about this, and I have to be rather cagey in answering, one thing that is special about this group is we have verbally committed to each other and I don’t know that that’s ever been done in the history of professional wrestling, where I have verbally committed to the Bucks, the Bucks, Kenny Omega, Hangman Page.”
He continued, “There’s this verbal commitment that the next step we take because it’s no secret. Our contracts are all up…what happens next? The next step we take, we’re going to take it together and we’re going to take it as a family. It could be the dumbest move ever. Wrestling is sorta a shady business or we can do what my gut tells me, the right call.”
A verbal pledge like this is unprecedented. It is the latest sign that Cody, the Young Bucks & company are onto something special and have tremendous confidence in themselves.
It’s been reported that Cody and The Bucks’ Ring of Honor contracts expire at the end of the year. Kenny Omega is signed with New Japan Pro Wrestling through January 2019.
Will Cody, the Bucks, Omega and Page remain with ROH & New Japan? Will they join WWE together? Will they star their own promotion? Only time will tell. One thing we do know: it’s going to be a very interesting few months ahead.
Kenny Omega has landed a sponsorship deal with Team Razer. The avid video game fanatic uses Team Razer products such as the Panthera Evo fight stick and the Razer Thresher Ultimate headset for PlayStation 4.
“I’ve always been a supporter of Razer and their products, so joining their team is really exciting,” said Omega. “To rise to the next level in wrestling or gaming, a true support system is needed, and that’s where Team Razer comes in. Their top-quality devices and fashion-forward gear are the best on the market, and I’m proud to be working with a company whose motto is ‘for gamers, by gamers’ that is just as driven to win as I am.”
Proud to be a member of the team. Better believe we’re gonna do a ton of cool stuff in the future. Can’t wait to show everyone! https://t.co/egtGMfh5cX
Some felt Omega’s deal with the company was only a cover, however. Omega seemed to profess his love for Brandi Rhodes on an episode of BTE. It was later revealed, however, that Omega was simply talking about his new sponsor.
Omega will face Pentagon Jr. on September 1st at All In. Following that match, Omega will next defend his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Tomohiro Ishii.
The current IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kenny Omega, has fired a shot at Hiroshi Tanahashi. Omega referred to Tanahashi as an “egomaniac”, said he’s glad he won’t be at All In and referred to his fans as a cult.
He made his comments in a reply to the newest English broadcast team member, Chris Charlton.
What’s crazy is that his dwindling mini cult will still believe every word he says. A complete ego maniac. Sure glad he ain’t #allin
“What’s crazy is that his dwindling mini cult will still believe every word he says. A complete egomaniac. Sure glad he ain’t #allin”
Omega’s comments were made in response to Tanahashi saying Ibushi would never reach his true potential while aligned with Omega.
As Omega is the IWGP Heavyweight Champion and Tanahashi the G1 Winner, the two could meet in the main event of WrestleKingdom. Omega will need to defend his title before then, however, and Tanahashi will have to defend his G1 briefcase as well.
Kenny Omega vs Hiroshi Tanahashi
In his post #g128 press conference now 3 time winner Hiroshi Tanahashi said there's no doubt that the G1 champion will become the center of attention in the second half of 2018. He already has an opponent in mind to whom he lost at Wrestling Dontaku and who he drew with in the G1 pic.twitter.com/YlhVyI3cV5
Tanahashi said he would only go on to face Omega in the Tokyo Dome if he successfully retains the G1 briefcase against Kazuchika Okada. Although Tanahashi won the B-Block in the G1 this year, he only wrestled Okada to a draw on the final night of the round-robin.
The only wrestler to defeat Tanahashi in the G1 this year was Jay White. Tanahashi will likely defend the briefcase against him as well.
As for Omega, he’ll have to defend his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Tomohiro Ishii next. He could have to defend the title against either Kota Ibushi or Toru Yano before WrestleKingdom as well.
His title match against Ishii has yet to be scheduled.
Kenny Omega vs. Pentagon Jr. has been confirmed for next month’s All In pay-per-view.
With the news of this high-profile contest, there are now 9 matches confirmed for All In, including 2 matches on the 1-hour pre-show airing on WGN.
Kenny Omega vs. Pentagon Jr.
Omega is the current IWGP Heavyweight Champion and Pentagon is a former Lucha Underground and Impact World Champion and one of the most decorated younger luchadors of his generation in Mexico.
Pentagon and Fenix have recently been the center of rumors concerning WWE. Two weeks ago it was reported WWE had interest in the brothers, however, it is still unclear what their current contract status with Lucha Underground. Pentagon and Fenix are both thought to have signed 7-season deals with Lucha Underground but there are reports both have told bookers they may need to cancel dates in 2019.
Kenny Omega could have to defend his IWGP Heavyweight Championship multiple times before WrestleKingdom. His likely first title challenger was revealed today.
After pinning Chase Owens in a tag match, Tomohiro Ishii declared he wants a shot at the champion. Kevin Kelly speculated the match could main event NJPW’s return to Long Beach on September 30th.
Ishii was the first wrestler to defeat Omega in the tournament this year. Omega was later defeated by Toru Yano and Kota Ibushi as well.
Omega and Ishii are tied 2-2 in their all-time one-on-one series. Ishii defeated Omega the first time they met in the 2017 NJ Cup. Omega would defeat Ishii the next time they met at Wrestling Dontaku 2017, however.
Omega then defeated Ishii in the finals of the tournament to crown an inaugural IWGP United States Champion in Long Beach. Most recently, Ishii defeated Omega in the G1 Climax 28 B-Block.
Kenny Omega G1 Climax 28
Omega lost his final 3 matches in this year’s G1 Climax tournament. He started the tournament much as Kazuchika Okada had last year. Omega won his first 6 round-robin bouts but his 12pts were only good enough for a 4-way tie atop the group.
Kota Ibushi advanced to the finals based on the tie-breaker rule that the wrestler with the best record against the 3 opponents he’s tied with advances. Ibushi defeated Omega, Zack Sabre Jr, and Tetsuya Naito.
Wrestlemania weekend may be the better part of eight months away at this point in time, but that hasn’t stopped speculation amongst fans over the kind of unsigned talent that could potentially show up over that April weekend when WWE descends upon New Jersey.
With Ring Of Honor holding their G1 SuperCard show on April 6th at the legendary Madison Square Garden, that places the company in direct opposition to WWE’s NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn event at the Barclays Center.
This move from ROH has already been paying dividends as the eyes of the wrestling world have turned towards it, leading to the show selling out, with fans anticipating the mix of ROH/NJPW action.
— ROH – Ring of Honor Wrestling (@ringofhonor) August 8, 2018
There are a few wrestlers, however, that may not be present to take part in ROH’s historic event at the Garden.
Aggressive Negotiations
Contracts for The Young Bucks, Cody Rhodes, and the Best Bout Machine; Kenny Omega, all expire months before the G1 SuperCard show takes place, and speculation is rife with whispers and rumours revolving around a potential jump to WWE, with the behemoth wrestling company in a position to offer them deals that other companies like ROH and NJPW may not be able to match.
General Manager for Ring Of Honor, Greg Gilleland, had this to say on ROH’s plans to keep the Bullet Club members within the ranks of ROH:
“They’re our top guys, right? Of course, we’re going to do everything that we can to keep them. And we have fair offers and fair plans to retain them.” He goes on to say, “We always operate with solid backup plans. And we have to always think about what if this, and what if that. If they go to the WWE, and they very much deserve that opportunity, we’ll continue to offer the best wrestling that we can. There’s other talent out there.”
Greg is candid over ROH having lost top talent in the past, referencing Kevin Owens, Bryan Danielson, and CM Punk as all top tier ROH stars that have jumped from ROH to the WWE, and is fully confident in ROH’s ability to thrive despite this.
“They all went to the WWE, and the brand has continued to grow and prosper. […] We pride ourselves on the ROH experience, and it goes back to the question of losing top guys. Do I wanna lose the Young Bucks and Cody? No. Of course not. Why would I wanna lose them?”
He ends his discussion on the Bullet Club members, declaring, “Am I gonna make an aggressive attempt to retain them and sign longer-term agreements? Of course, we are. But, at the end of the day, the ROH brand is about the ROH experience, and that’s how we continue to grow.”
Kota Ibushi defeated Kenny Omega in the main event of today’s G1 Climax 28 show in Tokyo, Japan. In front of a sold-out Nippon Budokan, Ibushi pinned Omega after delivering his second Kamigoye.
With the win, Kota Ibushi will advance to tomorrow’s finals against Hiroshi Tanahashi. The winner of the tournament will earn the right to challenge the IWGP Heavyweight Champion in the Tokyo Dome on January 4th, 2019.
The winner of the G1 has earned the Tokyo Dome title shot dating back to 2012. As of yet, no wrestler in that time has dethroned the champion after winning the G1.
Tonight’s match was the third all-time between the Golden Lovers and Golden Elite teammates. Ibushi has won all three matches between them.
DDT, August 6th, 2008 – Kota Ibushi defeated Kenny Omega (2:1 best 2-of-3 falls hardcore match)
DDT, August 18th, 2012 – Kota Ibushi (c) defeated Kenny Omega (KO-D Openweight Title)
NJPW G1 Climax 28 B-Block. August 11th, 2018 – Kota Ibushi defeated Kenny Omega
Kota Ibushi vs Hiroshi Tanahashi
Tomorrow’s final between Ibushi and Tanahashi will be the 4th time the two wrestlers have met. Tanahashi leads their all-time series 2-1.
G1 Climax 2015 Block A: Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Kota Ibushi
G1 Climax 2017 Block A: Kota Ibushi defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi
NJPW Power Struggle 2017: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) defeated Kota Ibushi (IWGP Intercontinental Championship)
The rest of the lineup for tomorrow’s finals has yet to be announced. Rey Mysterio is also scheduled to be on the card but his match has yet to be announced as well.
G1 Climax 28 Night 18 (B-Block) Results
David Finlay and Michael Elgin defeated Shota Umino and Toa Henare
Bad Luck Fale and Tanga Loa defeated Chase Owens and Hangman Page
Marty Scurll and the Young Bucks defeated Jay White and Roppongi 3K
Bushi and Evil defeated El Desperado and Minoru Suzuki
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Togi Makabe, and Tomoaki Honma defeated Gedo, Kazuchika Okada, and Yoshi-Hashi
B-Block
Toru Yano (10) defeated Tama Tonga (6) via DQ
B-Block
Juice Robinson (6) defeated Hirooki Goto
B-Block
Tomohiro Ishii (10) defeated Sanada (8)
B-Block
Zack Sabre Jr (12) defeated Tetsuya Naito (12)
B-Block
Kota Ibushi (12) defeated Kenny Omega (12)
Kota Ibushi advances based on having the best record of all 4 wrestlers tied with 12 points in the block.
New Japan Pro Wrestling released new guidelines for wrestlers yesterday. The promotion is looking to reduce the amount of English-language swearing and obscene gestures seen on their shows.
Despite this, there was still much swearing and obscene gestures present in yesterday’s show. Juice Robinson in particular, swore several times during his match and Tama Tonga gave the middle-finger to the camera on his way to the ring. Tonga does seem to have relaxed his disdain for trolls on Twitter, however.
“Those who have been swearing in English in their promos were privately spoken to and asked as best they can to clean up their promos,” Dave Meltzer wrote in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. “All the wrestlers were told this week to not swear or try not to offend people on social media.”
Kenny Omega Comments On New NJPW Rules and Tama Tonga
At yesterday’s show, Tama Tonga defeated Kota Ibushi after repeated interference. Kenny Omega attempted to stop the Firing Squad beatdown of his partner but got beaten up himself for his troubles.
The Firing Squad then interfered in Omega’s match with Yano. The actions of Tama Tonga and company caused the IWGP Heavyweight Champion to lose just his 2nd match of the tournament.
Swearing, littering, disrespecting the big dawg… I can possibly forgive all of those. But come on, don’t ruin my once a year Yano vs Kenny Omega match!!! #g128
“Swearing, littering, disrespecting the big dawg… I can possibly forgive all of those. But come on, don’t ruin my once a year Yano vs Kenny Omega match!!!”
Kenny Omega now has a 2-1 record against Toru Yano in the G1.
Who’s asking for your forgiveness? Your nose is getting mighty brown from the ‘big dawgs’ ass. Trust me, I made your match a ???????????????? . Good luck fighting your boyf….lov…partn…whatever that is.
Following Kenny Omega’s last match in the G1, his undefeated streak had been ended and he was bleeding profusely from the mouth. Tomohiro Ishii defeated Omega Saturday, evening their all-time series at 2 wins each.
Omega still leads the B-Block with 12pts, a 6-1 record, and just two round-robin matches left to go.
He will face Ishii’s CHAOS stablemate, Toru Yano, on Wednesday. Following Omega’s preliminary tag-team match yesterday, he had the following to say to the members of CHAOS:
Kenny Omega vs Toru Yano
“We’re focussing more and more these days on being a G-rated product,” Omega said. “I’m doing my best to give you a profanity-less, a profanity-light promo, but it doesn’t help when you have guys like CHAOS members cheating every day.”
He would then move his attention to Toru Yano.
“Toru Yano, I’ll I have to do is beat you and once I beat you, I am pretty much guaranteed a slot in the G1 Finals. I can do it,” Omega continued. “I’ll I have to do is beat the biggest joke of a wrestler in the G1.”
Omega is the only person in the B-Block who controls his own fate. With two matches left, if Omega defeats Toru Yano and then Kota Ibushi, he wins the B-Block. Only Naito and Ibushi can catch Omega at this point. Omega holds the tie-breaker over Naito as a result of their match on the 2nd night of the tournament. Ibushi also holds the tie-breaker over Naito.
Omega and Yano have met each of the last two years in the G1 with Omega winning each time.
Kenny Omega is 5-0 in the round-robin of the G1 Climax 28 tournament. As the current IWGP Heavyweight Champion, any loss he endures in the tournament could lead to a future title defense.
The other member of Bullet Club Elite entered into the tournament has not been as lucky. With a record of only 1-5, Hangman Page is already mathematically eliminated from the tournament.
On this week’s edition of “Being the Elite”, Page and Omega discussed their performances in the tournament thus far. Omega revealed the reason he has done so well in the tournament is a book he’s been reading.
As seen on #BTE ep. 113, “The Will to Keep Winning” by, @daigothebeast was featured. Legends in any field usually have ideas that are applicable to real-world success and Daigo’s are no exception. A small excerpt that I particularly enjoy: pic.twitter.com/StCPIdj4sE
“As seen on #BTE ep. 113, “The Will to Keep Winning” by, @daigothebeast was featured. Legends in any field usually have ideas that are applicable to real-world success and Daigo’s are no exception.”
Kenny Omega, The Will To Keep Winning
Daigo Umehara authored the book Omega refers to on the show. Umehara is a professional video game player who specializes in fighting games.
At the end of the BTE episode, Hangman Page offers Omega a slice of ham in exchange for the book. Omega states he is unable to part with the book until after the G1 tournament. Page insists, however, and it started to become clear Page might becoming a little unhinged with all the rumors of his involvement of Joey Ryan’s disappearance spreading.
Omega eventually gives Hangman Page the book (and his slice of ham). Page only has 3 matches left in the G1 and the most points he could finish with at this point is 8.
Omega’s remaining opponents in the tournament are Zack Sabre Jr, Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, and is Golden Lovers tag-team partner, Kota Ibushi. As for Page, he has Togi Makabe, Minoru Suzuki, and YOSHI-HASHI left to face in the tournament. Omega is looking to become the first person to ever make it to the finals of the tournament 3 years in a row.
Kenny Omega is having a great G1 Climax 28 tournament thus far. The current IWGP Heavyweight Champion is undefeated in the round-robin portion of the tournament. He defeated LIJ’s Sanada in his last tournament match.
Omega took to Twitter to comment on his most recent opponent. He also took a shot at his upcoming tournament opponent as well.
You know, I hate to say it but SANADA may a future wor…. Woah, I’ll stop myself there. *Ahem* it was an easy 2 points. ? ZSJ next. He’s about to get that Hanes underwear model body pulverized. #g128#njpw
“You know, I hate to say it but SANADA may a future wor…. Woah, I’ll stop myself there. *Ahem* it was an easy 2 points. ZSJ next. He’s about to get that Hanes underwear model body pulverized.”
Kenny Omega G1 Climax 28
Omega has stated several times that he is not a fan of Tetsuya Naito’s Los InGobernables de Japon.
Last month, Omega clarified his feelings regarding the Naito and his faction.
“Naito in a way is a Pseudo-Stone Cold Steve Austin, anti-hero-esque character. I really don’t appreciate his message and I really only think it works in Japan,” said Omega. “Naito’s message is rather than trying to follow your dreams, rather than try and strive for something more than that, just calm down, just don’t worry about it, and don’t care.”
Omega’s comments are likely a way to build a future angle, however, and not his true feelings.
“LIJ is just rinse, wash repeat. Sure they are talented, maybe they have an interesting type of charisma, but they are very local and not the type of worldwide image NJPW is looking for,” Omega continued. “They’re assets, we can use them, but they’re niche.”
Omega and Naito met on night 2 of the G1 Climax 28. Omega defeated Naito in the main event of the first night of round-robin matches for the B Block. Naito won the G1 Climax 27 tournament last year by defeating Omega in the finals. Omega had won the G1 Climax 26 tournament the year before.
Kenny Omega and Roman Reigns connect with professional wrestling fans very differently.
Both “The Cleaner” and “The Big Dog” spoke with Mel Magazine to offer their philosophies on how they connect with their audiences. Reigns noted that he likes to project an image of self-confidence when he’s in the ring:
“That’s what makes me appealing— that I’m confident, I believe in myself and I think everybody can relate to that,” Reigns said.
“That’s something everybody should relate to. It’s called self-esteem for a reason. You can’t get it from anybody else.
“If I project that, if I portray that, it’s empowering to so many people who are a little insecure, who get nervous.”
The IWGP Heavyweight Champion heard Reigns’ comments and rebutted. Omega said Reigns’ style of projection isn’t true. He himself prefers to put himself in a position to feel pain with his audience:
“[Laughs] It also doesn’t seem true, either,” Omega said. “People go through [heartbreak] in all walks of life, regardless of age, sex, religion or whatever.
“There are times you break up with a loved one, a friend or whatever. You feel alone. It’s a very easy feeling to understand—the feeling of loss, heartache and pain.
“So I’ve put myself in a position to feel pain alongside with the fans.”
In the end, Omega doesn’t put Reigns at full fault. He understands that WWE has a philosophy of keeping things as simple as necessary – so “The Big Dog” can’t take all the blame:
“[WWE] keeps it simple, because they feel as simple as possible is best. It’s the easiest to book for television as well,” Omega said. “You can micromanage things to the second that way.
“If there’s real emotion you can’t. … Even if you can’t really understand what’s going on [as a child], you can feel, and as long as you can feel something, it’s better than coming out of it and feeling nothing.”
