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Tag: Kenny Omega

  • Kenny Omega Comments On Roman Reigns/Tama Tonga Beef

    Kenny Omega Comments On Roman Reigns/Tama Tonga Beef

    Kenny Omega has chimed in on the recent Twitter escapades of Tama Tonga and Roman Reigns. Tonga was recently suspended from Twitter temporarily and went looking for who turned him in. He eventually concluded it was Roman Reigns which led to an interesting back and forth between the two of them.

    Omega took to Twitter to give his thoughts on the situation.

    “If the enemy of my enemy is my friend but my new friend hates me more than my enemy does, is he still my friend?”

    Omega was referring to the fact that while Tama Tonga and he are enemies in current NJPW storylines, Omega and Roman Reigns have had their issues in the past as well.

    Kenny Omega and Roman Reigns Rivalry

    Late last year/early this year, Omega and Roman Reigns were involved in a mild public spat as well. Their issues began after Reigns claimed he was the best in-ring performer in the world.

    “I’m the best performer, in-ring, in the world right now,” Reigns said in late 2017 to the Bleacher Report. “You can go to my matches and my pay-per-views over the last three years and you can say I’m an idiot or you can be like, ‘man, he has a point.’ Do you know what I mean? I didn’t come here for any other reason.”

    Omega then responded t Roman’s claims in an interview with the Bleacher Report.

    “I don’t know if Roman was put up to saying a comment like that from a social media team or if it was something that he consciously thought of himself,” Omega said. “But I thought it was pretty smart of him to do — to say — that, because it became instantaneously a topic that people were talking about. And just because it sounds so ridiculous. You know what I mean? By no means do I actually think he believes in those words. There’s no possible way. … I don’t have to feel like I have to speak up about it. It is what it is, and I understand that it’s a fun thing for fans to generate interest in the product. I take absolutely zero offense in him saying it. Especially, since it’s quite clear that the fact of the matter is much, much different.”

  • Kenny Omega Takes Shot At Tama Tonga For Lowering His “Average Star Rating”

    Kenny Omega Takes Shot At Tama Tonga For Lowering His “Average Star Rating”

    Kenny Omega defeated Tama Tonga on Saturday in NJPW’s G1 Climax 28. Tonga was disqualified after repeated interference and giving a cutter to the referee. This G1 has seen far more interference and run-ins than what is normally seen in the promotion.

    According to comments Omega made after the match, he was upset at Tama for cheating but for different reasons than you might expect.

    “I’m not mad that you cheated in this match,” Omega said backstage. “In fact, what I’m most mad at is that by using your friends, by using a DQ just to beat me up and leave me possibly with injury, you, my friend, have affected my average star-rating.”

    The Bullet Club OGs/Firing Squad have been interfering in several matches and Bad Luck Fale has already been disqualified multiple times for his actions. On the first night of the tournament, the Firing Squad interfered early in Fale’s match with Hangman Page, who was making his debut in the tournament. The BCOGs constant cheating has been the talk of the G1 thus far.

    Kenny Omega Reacts To Match With Tama Tonga

    Kenny Omega had the following to say when he got to the back after the match.

    “Tama Tonga, nothing much has changed since last year, has it?” Omega said. “Last year, you yourself said the G1 didn’t mean anything. Clearly, the same is true. You don’t care about the 2 points, you don’t care about going to the finals, all you care about is making a statement that you and your boys care about each other. And oh boo f****ng hoo,  there’s a group of people that are better than you that dream bigger.”

    “I thought you were clever by implicating the use of your boys,” Omega continued. “But Tama, at the end of the day, it was still all to make a very immature point that blood is thicker than water.”

    “Tama Tonga, all take these boys and their talent and what they bring to the table over whatever the hell it is you believe in.”

    The G1 Climax 28 resumes on Thursday.

  • Kenny Omega Reacts To Match With Tama Tonga From G1 Climax 28

    Kenny Omega Reacts To Match With Tama Tonga From G1 Climax 28

    Yesterday, Tama Tonga and Kenny Omega met in the round-robin of the G1 Climax 28. Omega went into the match with a 2-0 record with victories over Tetsuya Naito and Hirooki Goto. Tonga went into the match 1-1, winning his first bout against Juice Robinson but dropping his next to SANADA.

    A win for Tama Tonga likely would have led to an IWGP Heavyweight Championship opportunity for him and a big-time main event match for the Bullet Club civil war angle. It was not to be, however, as Tonga was disqualified after repeated interference by Tanga Loa and Bad Luck Fale.

    Omega responded to the match result recently on Twitter.

    “I’m very indifferent about these 2 points, but I get it, I really do,” Omega Tweeted. “You’re not trying to ruin it just me but for everyone. You won’t ruin it for Ibushi. Onward and upward.”

    Tama Tonga and Kota Ibushi will meet on August 8th, 2018.

    Kenny Omega vs Tama Tonga

    Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, Bad Luck Fale, King Haku, and HIKULEO (out with leg injury) currently comprise the Bullet Club “Firing Squad”. The Bullet Club sub-faction is still introduced in NJPW as the Bullet Club OGs, however.

    Tama Tonga explained his actions in an interview shortly after the G1 Special in San Francisco.

    “This has been a long time coming,” Tonga said to Sports Illustrated. “Kenny Omega started a subgroup, ‘The Elite,’ within Bullet Club. No one is the head of Bullet Club, no one ever has been, and we had a self-proclaimed leader focusing on his own ‘Super Kliq’ or whatever else nerd ass name it’s called. This war was sparked the moment ‘The Elite’ was formed.”

    “We tried, over time, to give them the benefit of the doubt, but it kept getting worse,” he continued. “The ideals of Bullet Club working together, being a team, and watching each other’s backs was no longer what we stood for. We were a divided club. It was just too much to ignore.”

  • AJ Styles Picks A Side In Bullet Club Civil War (Video)

    AJ Styles Picks A Side In Bullet Club Civil War (Video)

    WWE Champion, AJ Styles, was asked recently which side of the Bullet Club civil war angle he sides with. While it may have been easier for Styles to give a vague answer of “Those guys are all my friends,” or something similar, Styles did not hesitate to pick a side.

    When asked if he was with Team Kenny or the Firing Squad, Styles was adamant. “I don’t know if you watched my last match that I had over in Japan with New Japan,” Styles said in reference to the night Omega kicked him out of Bullet Club. “I kind of got the crap kicked out of me by those guys. So, I’m a Firing Squad kind of guy.”

    Bullet Club, January 5th, 2016

    Following his match the night after the Tokyo Dome show in 2016, Omega turned on Styles. He gave him a 1-Winged Angel and then continued to deliver the boots to him.

    The Young Bucks separated Omega from Styles while Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows tended to Styles. As Anderson and Gallows were holding Styles, however, the Bucks gave him a double super-kick. Anderson and Gallows then later joined in the beating of the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion. Omega would announce he was moving up to heavyweight afterward and Styles would be in WWE’s Royal Rumble later that month.

    Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows would join Styles in WWE just months later, however. They would form “the Club” with Styles and it appeared as though Styles and the tag-team managed to work things out between them off-camera.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xK7T1ZlXfQ&frags=pl%2Cwn

  • Kenny Omega On Which NJPW Stars He Wants To Face

    Kenny Omega On Which NJPW Stars He Wants To Face

    New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) star and IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega was recently a guest on WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross’ podcast, The Ross Report, to talk about several professional wrestling topics. “The Cleaner” was first asked about feuds he’s excited to be a part of in NJPW.

    Immediately Omega mentioned that he’s “chomping at the bit” to show everyone what he can do with Kota Ibushi inside the ring:

    “Sort of the match that everyone is looking forward to, and it’s going to happen because they’ve announced it for the G1 is the match with Ibushi.” Omega explained, “and I’m sort of really chomping at the bit to show everyone what Ibushi is really capable of.

    “A lot of people do know what he can do, but I don’t think he has shown it in the newest form of his. I think he’s really ready to take the ball and kind of step into the league of four or five top guys that could headline any show for New Japan.

    “And I think this G1 performance is kind of the perfect way to display that he’s one of those individuals. So Ibushi is one of them for sure.”

    He also named several other stars that he’d like to work with; such as Naito, ZSJ, Hiromu Takahashi, Will Ospreay, and Rey Mysterio:

    “I only ever get to work with Naito once a year,” Omega considered. “I’d love to wrestle him again. Yeah, he’s good for sure. The person I’ve never worked before in a New Japan ring and I’d be happy to get the chance and show the difference of styles is Zack Sabre, Jr., so that’d be another one. Yeah, he’s one of my favorites. Yeah, for sure [ZSJ has it factor].

    “And I may be speaking a little premature, but I think of Hiromu as a guy that could possibly graduate from being a junior heavyweight and move onto other things just due to the fact that his charisma is too huge to be contained in just one division. I think he could do more than what he’s doing right now and I think they really need to capture that lightning in the bottle with that rather than keep him chained down so to speak.

    “And yeah, for me, original, ‘you can’t see them everyday’ moments are important to me, so I’d say, I’d even like to show what I can do with a guy like Will Ospreay or working with Rey Mysterio, Jr. That’s another guy I’d love to show sort of that style of match. I really think our styles could work well together.”

    You can listen to Omega’s interview on The Ross Report by clicking this link here.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulgQmGeHeX4

    H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

  • Kenny Omega On Potentially Becoming NJPW Grand Slam Champion

    Kenny Omega On Potentially Becoming NJPW Grand Slam Champion

    Kenny Omega will take on NEVER Openweight Champion, Hirooki Goto, tomorrow in the G1 Climax 28 tournament. It will be a rematch from 2 years ago when Omega defeated Goto in the finals of G1 Climax 26.

    Omega spoke with reporters backstage after night 3 of the tournament. He spoke about his upcoming match with Goto and the possibility he could one day become the first-ever NJPW Grand Slam Champion.

    Kenny Omega vs Hirooki Goto G1 Climax 28 (night 4)

    Omega and Chase Owens were defeated by Hirooki Goto and Yohei Komatsu in a tag match on night 3. Goto pinned Owens and Omega then directed his comments towards him after the match.

    “Hey Goto,” Omega started his post-match interview. “It’s easy to say that your belt means nothing compared to mine. That you are nothing compared to me. But guess what? That isn’t true because your NEVER belt, as s****y as it may be, it’s the only single’s belt I’ve never won.”

    “Trust me, I’m a fair man. I believe in revenge. My career has been fundamentally been built upon revenge,” Omega continued. “So, I’m going to give you a fair chance. G1 26 Finals, I beat you, do you remember? I do. I made history and then I went on to have one of the greatest matches of all time against Okada and I lost. And he gave me revenge and then I couldn’t beat him and then he gave me revenge and then I did.

    What kind of champion would I be if I didn’t give you that same chance? You better come prepared because the next chance at the G1 could mean everything. And it could cost everything for you Goto because I might just come for your title after. What are you going to do then? What’s everyone going to do once I become the first-ever Grand Slam Champion of New Japan? Wouldn’t that be interesting? Wouldn’t that be something?”

  • Kenny Omega Gives High Praise Juice Robinson, Opens Up On Working With Cody Rhodes

    Kenny Omega Gives High Praise Juice Robinson, Opens Up On Working With Cody Rhodes

    Kenny Omega has given some high praise to one New Japan Pro Wrestling Star who has reinvented himself in the promotion after his departure from the WWE and that’s Juice Robinson.

    The IWGP Heavyweight Champion recently appeared on The Ross Report to talk with WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross about various topics. When talking about Robinson, Omega pointed out that people are starting to believe in Robinson and that he’s going to start to connect to people in a brand new way and people are going to start to care more about what he does in the ring.

    Omega would continue to say that he remembers that he was sort of recognized as a graduate of the Young Lions kind of program even though he was fully trained when he came to New Japan.

    “This is sort of a gimmick kind of thing. But he was doing the punches. You know he [has] got those great punches and he eventually wanted the crowd to chant, ‘Juice’ with it as he did every jab. And I worked with him in a singles match in one of the country towns and none of them knew to chant the ‘Juice’ and he was really disappointed about that, but now he’ll go anywhere and everybody is all about his punches and they’re all about his character. He’s really starting to get that effect and have that gathering and people are really starting to cheer for him as an underdog.”

    Switching gears to former ROH World Heavyweight Champion Cody Rhodes, Omega, who just wrestled him last weekend at NJPW G1 Special, stated that he always look forward to when working with Cody because it’s rare that he gets to work with someone who has such good facials and selling ability.

    “So I love being able to work with people like that. It allows for moments, and moves to feel more real, and for people to kind of take in the in-between stuff a lot more.”

    H/T to Wrestling Inc for the transcribed quotes.

    What are your thoughts on Omega’s comments? Sound off in the comment section.

  • Tama Tonga Rips Into Kenny Omega At G1 Climax 28 Press Conference

    Tama Tonga Rips Into Kenny Omega At G1 Climax 28 Press Conference

    NJPW held a press conference today to promote the G1 Climax 28. The tournament gets started tomorrow.

    One of the match-ups that everyone is looking forward to will take place on July 21st, 2018. On that night, Kenny Omega will face Tama Tonga.

    Tonga was all confidence when he appeared at the G1 Climax 28 press conference today. He turned his attention to Omega shortly after he began speaking.

    “You can just feel the tension right here!” Tonga said before turning to Omega (who was seated to the left of the podium). “Do you blame me for what I did?”

    Bullet Club “Firing Squad” versus Bullet Club “the Elite”

    “(Kenny Omega) shouldn’t be mad. He should be thanking me,” Tonga said. “I granted him his wish! I cut him away from Bullet Club so he can be the super-Kliq, no wait Golden Lovers, no wait, Golden.. whatever team he’s always wanted. Obviously, he’s never wanted to be Bullet Club. You can just tell that from the very beginning!”

    With the Cody vs Omega rivalry over, it now looks as though this version of the Bullet Club civil war angle will play a key role in NJPW storylines.

    “As for the G1,” Tonga continued. “I want (Kenny Omega) and he knows that. Everyone here knows that. This G1 I’ll show you how good I am.”

    For his part, Omega chose not to comment on Tama Tonga or the Firing Squad. He simply promised the fans that he would put in a good performance at the tournament.

    “I promise you, every match will be a best bout,” Omega said. “It will only be a race for a distant second place.”

    Hangman Page vs Bad Luck Fale

    While Omega vs Tonga might be the most anticipated match of the new rivalry, the first battle takes place tomorrow. The first match between the Elite and the Firing Squad will be between Hangman Page and Bad Luck Fale.

    While Fale was not present for the Cow Palace attack, it’s been made clear since that he played a pivotal role in the planning. Fale also sent out the following Tweet which Page took offense to.

    Fale then gave the same statement as his pre G1 speech during the press conference.

    “Is there more to that?” Page asked Fale. “Is it F*** Me, is it F*** Kenny, is it F*** the Elite? Is that what you are trying to say? You’re not making it very clear, Fale. I guess we’ll find out tomorrow.”

  • Kota Ibushi Comments On Facing Kenny Omega In The G1

    Kota Ibushi Comments On Facing Kenny Omega In The G1

    Golden Lovers teammates, Kota Ibushi and Kenny Omega, will face each other in the round-robin of this year’s G1 tournament. The two will meet on Saturday, August 11th, 2018, the final night of the round-robin. The match will take place inside the same venue as their last match did, the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo.

    The last time Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi met, Ibushi was banned from performing in the famed Nippon Budokan again. Ibushi delivered a moonsault from the balcony, causing the venue to state he was not allowed to wrestle there anymore. The venue has since lifted his ban, however.

    Author, Chris Charlton, provided a translation of Ibushi’s comments:

    Kota Ibushi vs Kenny Omega – August 11th, 2018 – Nippon Budokan – Tokyo, Japan

    “I hate it. Hate that I have to face (Kenny Omega). It’s like ‘the time has finally come’. To have Kenny last, that’s a really dangerous scenario. The finals are the very next night, remember. But we have to do it. I don’t have all the time in the world, so we have to do this.”

    Ibushi also spoke about his feelings regarding the rest of the B Block this year.

    “It’s the more athletic group I think,” Ibushi said. “It’ll be a more athletic, physical style in these matches. People that stand out, of course, Kenny, Naito, SANADA. He’s interesting. I  haven’t wrestled him before. I think there’s something about him he hasn’t shown. I want to get that out of him.”

  • Ex-WCW Announcer Criticizes Omega vs. Cody At G1 Special

    Ex-WCW Announcer Criticizes Omega vs. Cody At G1 Special

    This past weekend (Sat. July 7, 2018) New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) hosted their G1 Special event in San Francisco, California. The show was main evented by an IWGP Heavyweight Title match between defending champion Kenny Omega and Cody Rhodes.

    One spot during the match saw Omega do a running release powerbomb to Cody from inside the ring, dumping him outside the ring and onto the floor after failing to break a table. After the match Rhodes took to Twitter and noted he’d be taking time off to heal his body before September 1st’s “All In.”

    Former WCW ring announcer, Gary Michael Cappetta, (the spot can be seen by clicking the following link) took to his official Facebook page and offered a bit of criticism towards Omega and Rhodes’ match. Cappetta’s comments seemed to come from a place of concern and wished wrestlers wouldn’t do spots like this in order to preserve their longevity:

    “WRESTLER ALERT: Human bodies aren’t made to do this,” said Cappetta. “Please stop shortening your valuable careers. Stop limiting the health and happiness of your post wrestling lives.”

  • Kenny Omega Comments On Hiromu Takahashi Injury

    Kenny Omega Comments On Hiromu Takahashi Injury

    Hiromu Takahashi is currently undergoing a thorough medical evaluation after sustaining an injury Saturday at the Cow Palace. Takahashi was dropped on his head during a cradle-suplex in his match with Dragon Lee. After finishing the match, Takahashi collapsed backstage and was taken to hospital.

    IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega commented on Takahashi’s injury on Monday morning. “As everyone may know, ‘Kenny Omega’ isn’t an LIJ guy whatsoever, but there’s no mistaking that Hiromu was one of, if not, our company’s brightest current/future star. Let’s pray for his recovery.”

    Hiromu Takahashi Neck Injury

    Earlier today, New Japan Pro Wrestling sent out an update on Takahashi’s condition. “It is reported Takahashi, after the match was immediately taken to a nearby hospital,” the statement reads. “He is currently undergoing a thorough evaluation, Takahashi is conscious, and is able to sit and talk.”

    Hiromu Takahashi was having a career year in 2018. He won the Best of the Super Juniors tournament and followed it up five days later by defeating Will Ospreay for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight championship at Dominion. It was the second time Takahashi won the title.

    Takahashi and his opponent from the G1 Special on Saturday, Dragon Lee, are longtime rivals. Their rivalry sparked during Takahashi’s multi-year excursion to CMLL in Mexico. Dragon Lee unmasked Takahashi when he wrestled as Kamaitaichi as well. It had been speculated the two would meet in a Mask vs Hair match later this year or possibly at the Tokyo Dome show in 2019.

  • Kurt Angle Reveals Who He’d Like Kenny Omega To Face In WWE

    Kurt Angle Reveals Who He’d Like Kenny Omega To Face In WWE

    WWE Hall Of Famer and Monday Night RAW General Manager Kurt Angle recently held a Q&A on his Facebook page. You can find some of the highlights here below:

    Who he’d like to see Kenny Omega face in WWE:

    “Seth Rollins or AJ Styles. I’d love a shot at Kenny as well. I have a list of dream opponents that I would like to compete against. These three are in the list.”

    If he has any regrets about leaving TNA for WWE:

    “I can’t. I had a great career in TNA, maybe better than my WWE career. I had a reduced schedule there. And I wrestled so many greats AJ, Joe, Sting, Roode…To name a few. My body couldn’t hold up to the rigorous schedule in WWE at the time. I always imagine the career I could have had if I stayed in WWE. It would have been incredible, but I couldn’t stay so I can’t keep asking myself ‘What if?’”

    Which tag team he’d like to face if he partnered up with Shawn Michaels:

    “Tag teams? Cesaro and Shaemus or The Usos. But the most cohesive tag team right now is…The Revival. They are amazing together as a unit. Great things coming from them.”

    Should aspiring wrestlers get an education first or start training as young as possible:

    “Education first! You’re still young after you graduate college. If you skip college and promise yourself you’ll go back and graduate later on in life, there’s a 99 percent chance you won’t. Get your degree. Then focus on wrestling.”

    Is he writing a biography:

    “Yes. Someday. I have a documentary I’m making right now. I’m excited to show all of you my entire life story. Stay tuned.”

  • Kenny Omega On Where NJPW Should Go Next In The U.S.

    Kenny Omega On Where NJPW Should Go Next In The U.S.

    Yesterday (Fri. July 6, 2018) IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega spoke at the New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) G1 Special press conference. “The Cleaner” was asked where in the United States he’d like to see NJPW go next.

    Omega offered a rather unorthodox answer, saying he’d like to see the promotion go somewhere such as Alaska. Omega explained it’s tough for fans in locations such as those to go see professional wrestling shows and he wants NJPW to make their product available to as many fans as possible:

    “I mean, this might sound strange, but maybe a place like Alaska? The reason why I say that is because geographically it might be the most difficult place for citizens of Alaska to travel outside of to get to [shows],” Omega said.

    “Like I said, I feel like if we’re already making the strides to visit these new and exciting places, I want to make it as fair as possible for everyone to get to places we’re going to. Of course, we can’t travel to every state, we can’t travel to every country, but for ease of travel and to spread our wealth – so to speak – it would be cool to do that.

    “I’m not sure how much wrestling is in Alaska. I know they have independent promotions, but for me that sounds exciting and I think we’d reach a lot of new people and the people there would probably also appreciate it, as well.”

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1GQ9xPILGM

    H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

  • Kenny Omega Reveals Who In WWE He’d Like To Work With

    Kenny Omega Reveals Who In WWE He’d Like To Work With

    Kenny Omega has his eyes on a pair of top WWE talents should he execute a potential move to the professional wrestling juggernaut.

    “The Cleaner” recently joined WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross’ podcast, The Ross Report, and was asked about the possibility of signing with WWE. He also touched on potential matches that await him in the promotion. Omega named two potential opponents specifically that fans would love to see him share the ring with – Seth Rollins and AJ Styles:

    “When I think about the possibilities and stuff like that it does get me excited,” Omega said. “Every promotion has so many good guys – there’s no way that I would have a bad time going almost anywhere because the depths to the talent is so deep. WWE right now has a very great collection of talent.

    “I would feel like it was a missed opportunity if I couldn’t work with them at some point. If I could work with Seth Rollins at some point in time that would be a lot of fun. And of course, the huge name amongst all that, is AJ (Styles). I would love to work with AJ at some point. And I would like to be able to do it while I can still move, you know what I mean?”

    If you use any transcribed quotes from this article please H/T SEScoops for the transcriptions

    Listen to Omega’s interview on The Ross Report by clicking this link here.

  • Kenny Omega Says Match Against Cody Will Determine Bullet Club Leader

    Kenny Omega Says Match Against Cody Will Determine Bullet Club Leader

    Kenny Omega and Cody will go one-on-one for the second time in their rivalry this Saturday at the Cow Palace. Not only will the match be for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, the winner will be declared the leader of Bullet Club.

    Omega built the match up with the following Tweet from earlier today:

    Both Cody and Omega alluded to the idea that the winner of their last match would be declared leader of Bullet Club as well. The faction leadership was still up for debate after Cody had won, however.

    Kenny Omega versus Cody II

    Saturday will be Omega’s first defense of the title he won at Dominion. Omega’s victory over Kazuchika Okada ended the longest running IWGP Heavyweight Championship reign of all-time. He is just the second member of the faction to win the title after AJ Styles did so in 2014.

    As for Cody, this will be his 3rd title match in a week’s time. He unsuccessfully challenged for the ROH World Championship this weekend. At Best in the World on Friday night, Dalton Castle won a 3-way match against Cody and Marty Scurll. The next night in Fairfax, Jay Lethal would win a fatal 4-way match against Castle, Scurll, and Matt Taven to win the title for the second time in his career.

    “NJPW G1 Special in San Francisco

    1. Sho, Yoh, Rocky Romero, Gedo, YOSHI-HASHI (CHAOS) vs Chase Owens, Yujiro Takahashi, Tanga Loa, Tama Tonga, and King Haku (Bullet Club)
    2. Toru Yano and Tomohiro Ishii (CHAOS) vs Zack Sabre Jr and Minoru Suzuki (Suzuki-Gun)
    3. KUSHIDA and Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Marty Scurll and Hangman Page (Bullet Club)
    4. NEVER Openweight Championship
      Hirooki Goto (CHAOS) (c) vs Jeff Cobb
    5. IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships
      the Young Bucks (Bullet Club) (c) vs SANADA and EVIL (LIJ)
    6. Will Ospreay and Kazuchika Okada (CHAOS) vs Tetsuya Naito and BUSHI (LIJ)
    7. IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
      Hiromu Takahashi (LIJ) (c) vs Dragon Lee (CMLL)
    8. IWGP United States Championship
      Jay White (CHAOS) (c) vs Juice Robinson
    9. IWGP Heavyweight Championship
      Kenny Omega (Bullet Club) (c) vs Cody (Bullet Club)”
  • Kofi Kingston: I Thought WWE Would Cancel E3 Battle With Kenny Omega

    Kofi Kingston: I Thought WWE Would Cancel E3 Battle With Kenny Omega

    Kofi Kingston thought WWE would cancel the New Day vs the Elite gaming battle at E3. The member of New Day recently spoke to the Unsanctioned Podcast about his experience at the event.

    Kingston mentioned he is a big Kenny Omega fan. “To see where [Omega’s] career has gone, and to see him just rise over there in Japan has been awesome to watch,” Kofi said. “So I always regretted not being able to have personal interaction with him, so for me, it was kind of a dream come true.”

    Kofi Kingston on WWE Promoting E3 Battle With Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks

    Many were surprised when WWE got behind the event, even mentioning the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega on WWE.com.

    “It was just great, man. And the Young Bucks are just so cool. It was just an instant vibe, just instant chemistry,” Kingston said. “We were all on the same page and just went out there. And honestly, the vibe in general like leading up to it was like, okay, this is probably going to get canceled because there’s no way that Vince knows this is happening. When was the last time you saw WWE doing anything inter-promotional? Granted it was on the video game stage, but still. Ever since we came out, there was talk of The Elite versus The New Day, all this talk on the internet, on social media. We get those comments every single day. And hopefully, this was like the first step to open up some doors to do more things in the future. We’ll keep our fingers crossed.”

    WWE has shown more openness to working with different promotions as of late. The company recently reached a deal with Pro Wrestling NOAH to allow Hideo Itami to appear on an event for the promotion as well.

  • AJ Styles Shuts Down Bullet Club Fan On Twitter

    AJ Styles Shuts Down Bullet Club Fan On Twitter

    AJ Styles isn’t afraid of shutting someone down on Twitter. He did so just recently to a fan who bashed WWE’s potential signing of Bullet Club members.

    AJ Styles, Luke Gallows, and Karl Anderson were in Tokyo recently as part of the Smackdown brand’s live events this weekend. WWE posted the following Tweet in reference to the Club’s Japanese roots.

    WWE’s Club versus Bullet Club

    Another fan posted a Tweet implying they would like to see Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks in WWE as well.

    https://twitter.com/WWERDream/status/1013527985985646592

    This led one Bullet Club fan to state they do not support the idea of more BC members signing with WWE.

    https://twitter.com/iDontCare1830/status/1013562775652663297

    “I know you’re not implying you’d like to see them all in the WWE,” the fan Tweeted. “Seriously? So they could be ruined and tarnished and have WWE’s corporate stench on them? They’re perfectly fine changing the wrestling world in NJPW, ROH and ALL_IN.”

    The fan who AJ ultimately shut down is of the belief if the Bucks and Omega went to WWE, it would not be as entertaining as what they are doing now is. In the fan’s defense, this is a popularly held belief.

    Styles saw the Tweet and addressed it directly.

    “This is what you and some seem to forget….THIS IS A BUSINESS. We have bills and a family to take care of just like everyone else. Everything we put our body’s through on a weekly basis well not last forever. Work hard and earn it all.”

    Would WWE misuse Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

  • Don Callis On Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho Potentially Going To Impact Wrestling

    Don Callis On Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho Potentially Going To Impact Wrestling

    Don Callis is believed to have played a key role in organizing the Chris Jericho vs Kenny Omega match at the Tokyo Dome this year. All three are from Winnipeg and Callis also has his own podcast through the Chris Jericho podcast network.

    At the Slammiversary press conference in Toronto recently, Callis indicated to me he’d love to bring Omega and Jericho to Impact Wrestling. “There’s a young Canadian kid I like, we’d love to sign him, his name is Kenny Omega,” Callis said. “Another is Chris Jericho.”

    Callis recently doubled-down on his comments during his appearance on Jim Ross’ podcast.

    Don Callis On Jim Ross Podcast

    Callis explained his history with Omega. “I’ve been on this journey with Kenny Omega since he was a 16-year-old kid who I booked,” Callis explained.

    “I gave him his first break wrestling for the promotion I had in Winnipeg [Canada]. And his uncle, The Golden Sheik, who was an indie wrestler in Winnipeg helped train me in the [pro wrestling] business in 1989, so my roots with Kenny go back many years. I’ve been on this journey with him, and specifically since I’ve been in New Japan and we have a very close relationship. We talk about ideas, we do things, I helped put together the match between him and Chris [Jericho] for the Tokyo Dome.”

    Callis On Omega and Jericho to Impact Wrestling

    Callis continued to say the chances of Omega and Jericho appearing in an Impact Wrestling ring are less remote than they seemed not too long ago.

    “I kind of say, ‘never say ‘never” and I think that one of the things that we’ve been doing under Ed Nordholm here at Impact is breaking some longstanding paradigms of pro wrestling,” Callis said.

    “The intellectual property stuff that we’ve talked about before, but also we’ve been working with multiple people now and now recently announced by Chris Jericho and I know [Ross] will be on that cruise, so that’ll be cool, get to have a beer together. It’s going to be Impact and Ring Of Honor on the same cruise ship, so there’s some stuff that’s probably going to happen and I don’t think you can have those talents in a closed environment like that, so we are working, in a sense if you take that, with Ring Of Honor right now.

    We’ve got Taiji Ishimori coming in for our pay-per-view and our TV in July. The Bone Soldier just started with New Japan, so we’ll see what happens. How many people would’ve thought that Chris Jericho would’ve headlined the Tokyo Dome with New Japan Pro-Wrestling? I was so sheepish when I pitched it to him because he always told me, ‘I will never work for anyone except Vince McMahon and I have a deep respect for Vince.’ Obviously, he took Vince into consideration. Vince is the first guy he told about it. Nevertheless, it shocked me that Chris was on a New Japan show, so I’ve learned to say, ‘never say ‘never” in this business.”

    transcriptions via WrestlingInc

  • Kenny Omega Responds To Criticism Over Booked Wrestler

    Kenny Omega Responds To Criticism Over Booked Wrestler

    On Friday night, Kenny Omega produced a live CEOxNJPW show which aired on Twitch. After the show, word began to spread that one of the wrestlers booked for the show was a registered sex offender.

    Fans took to social media to voice their concern over the wrestler being booked. Omega issued the following response to the situation:

    Kenny Omega Responds to Criticism

    Earlier in the day, Omega released a series of Tweets addressing the matter:

    “Here it is: I produced all matches from dark match #2 on. I gave the ring crew (also a wrestling school) carte Blanche to have our first dark. No entrances, no name graphics. And thus they had a match. I met Chasyn once in 2004 so his name was familiar. The other guy I’d never met.”

    “Regardless of their history or whatever, this crew of people were all very helpful in set up, tear down, and various odd jobs around the arena. I’d felt giving them the opportunity to have a dark match was the least I could do as a way to show appreciation.”

    “I’m gutted that people feel betrayed by their involvement, but at no point did I feel I was working with criminals or anything of the sort. As I’d said earlier, they were nothing but polite and helpful throughout the entire experience.”

    “I’ll know better for next time to only use those I’m absolutely familiar/comfortable with”

  • Jim Ross On Calling Cody Rhodes vs. Kenny Omega At G1 Special

    Jim Ross On Calling Cody Rhodes vs. Kenny Omega At G1 Special

    WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross recently spoke with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Good Ole’ JR first talked about getting to call Cody Rhodes vs. Kenny Omega at the upcoming G1 Special in San Francisco:

    “Kenny is so cerebral and makes his matches so different. He and Cody have some characteristics that are compatible, but they also have some very different traits. The story they’re going to tell is going to be so well told. They are two of the best in the game. They’re going to mix all those ingredients into a hell of an entrée on July 7.”

    “They’re both in their 30s, they’ve both paid their dues, they’re not new kids on the block. They have the chance to close the show on a live, free national broadcast. There is a lot of opportunity for positive exposure. They just need to get it done, bell-to-bell. It should be absolutely off the hook.”

    Ross then explained why he thinks that Will Ospreay could be professional wrestling’s next big breakout star:

    “Ospreay is the next breakout star, but only if he can stay healthy. He has a great upside, without any question, but the questions concern the style and how he works. Calling his matches, I’ve seen him get up after I thought he hurt himself or broke something in his body. At some point, you don’t need a medical degree to figure out the fact that when you take bumps on surfaces that were never intended to be bumping surfaces, and you do it for too long, the cumulative effect is going to be negative.

    “He has a great imagination and he’s a great improvisationalist, and he’s really good with strikes and submissions. So if he leaned a little more on the other aspects of ‘The Aerial Assassin’–he doesn’t have to do a moonsault to the outside to be an aerial assassin, he just needs to land on a surface that will half-ass welcome your body to it.

    “He’s got some size, he’s a real keeper, but I do worry about the number of risks he takes on any given tour. I hope I’m wrong, because he is so entertaining and wonderfully creative, and he’ll be a big, big star if he stays healthy. It’s up to guys like myself and Josh Barnett, or Don Callis and Kevin Kelly, to make sure we don’t make him known for only one thing in taking risks. Sometimes the talent believe what you say about them, and they continue down that road, which has a very unfortunate but inevitable destination.”

    You can read Ross’ full interview with Sports Illustrated by clicking this link here.

  • Kenny Omega Talks Upcoming Kota Ibushi G1 Match

    Kenny Omega Talks Upcoming Kota Ibushi G1 Match

    IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega recently spoke to Tokyo Sports in Japan on a variety of topics including his involvement in the upcoming G1 Climax Tournament.

    Due to the ‘block’ structure of the round robin tournament the IWGP Champion will be facing his longtime friend and ‘Golden Lovers’ tag team partner Kota Ibushi. When asked how he felt about facing the ‘Golden Star’ Omega gave the following response:

    “Honestly I don’t like it. Six Years ago after the Budokan match, we had an agreement. ‘If we do this again, one of us might die. If it isn’t a bigger match than this, let’s never wrestle a singles match again.’ If it was the G1 final, or the Tokyo Dome main event, that level. But the group selection is random, you can’t help that...”

    Omega went on to say; “I don’t want there to be an injury and I don’t want to hurt him. But I am the Champion, and I don’t want to lose in that situation. In all honestly, he’s on a level that he could be a legitimate challenger whether he wins the G1 or not but he wants to earn his spot, that’s the type of guy he is. So he’s going to come at me with all he has.”

    New Japan’s G1 Climax Tournament begins on Saturday July 14th and will be available to view on NJPWWorld.com

    *Credit to Chris Charlton for the transcription

  • Kenny Omega Teases Fifth Match Against Okada

    Kenny Omega Teases Fifth Match Against Okada

    IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega was recently a guest on Sean Waltman’s X-Pac 1,2,360 podcast and talked about his match with Kazuchika Okada at Dominion 6.9.

    It was arguably the greatest match in professional wrestling history. The two-out-of-three falls match lasted about 65 minutes and Omega revealed it took “a lot of thought and care” to put together parts of the match.

    The Cleaner also divulged that he and Okada didn’t want to do too much in the two falls leading up to the third in order to keep the audience intrigued. Creatively, Omega and Okada didn’t want to exhaust themselves creatively, leaving the door open for a fifth possible meeting between the two rivals:

    “It’s what story are we going to tell that complements the other three matches that we’ve done,” said Omega.

    “What story do we tell that leaves something open for a possible fifth match, because even though we were never told that there was gonna be a fifth match, I have a feeling that there’s gonna be a fifth match. So I didn’t want to blow everything in that match, and I wanted to leave it for that there is gonna be another one.”

    For a fifth meeting between himself and Okada, Omega wants to bring something different to the table “whenever it happens.”

    You can listen to Omega on the X-Pac 1,2,360 podcast by clicking this link here.

    H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

  • Adam Cole On How Kenny Omega & The Young Bucks Would Fit In The Undisputed Era

    Adam Cole On How Kenny Omega & The Young Bucks Would Fit In The Undisputed Era

    WWE NXT North American Champion Adam Cole recently did an interview with Sports Illustrated to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Cole was first asked if he thinks Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks would be good additions to The Undisputed Era:

    “Those guys would fit perfectly in the Undisputed Era. They’re exactly what the Undisputed Era is all about: cutting-edge, going against the grain, doing what they want when they want.

    “Obviously, a lot of people know my history with Kenny Omega, and I have a very long history with the Young Bucks, and those guys would fit perfectly. It’s like two peas in a pod.”

    Cole then discussed going back-and-forth on the NXT TakeOver: Chicago pre-show with panelist Pat McAfee:

    “Pat McAfee is real quick on his feet and he’s real entertaining to listen to when he talks, but every time I speak to Pat, I make sure he knows that he’s in my world. This isn’t a football field, and I make sure he’s very aware of that every time we exchange words.

    “Pat got a taste of that again on NXT TakeOver: Chicago’s pre-show panel. As long as Pat’s running his mouth the way that he does, I guarantee I’ll be there to back up every word that comes out of my mouth, as well.”

    The North American champ seems confident in his ability inside the ring. So confident in fact that he believes he’s not just the best in NXT or in WWE, but the best in the world:

    “I’m not just the best in NXT, I’m not just the best in the WWE, I’m the best on the freaking planet. Part of backing that statement up is competing outside of WWE, and the North American championship has given me the opportunity to do that.

    “I can go to a company like EVOLVE and wrestle a talent as good, as big, and as strong as WALTER and defend my championship on a non-WWE show. That’s the epitome of making the North American title a world championship, one I can defend all over the world.”

    You can read Cole’s full interview with Sports Illustrated by clicking this link here.

  • Kenny Omega Says He Might Work Better In A WWE Enviornment

    Kenny Omega Says He Might Work Better In A WWE Enviornment

    IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega recently participated in a media call to help promote the G1 Special in San Francisco from the Cow Palace on July 7th. The Cleaner will defend his title against Cody Rhodes at the event. Omega was first asked how he would prepare for a match in an environment where his match length is limited:

    “It’s funny there’s this idea where Kenny is only good because he can do what he wants and he gets time. Well, everyone else through those doors had had time and opportunity. Why didn’t they do anything special?”

    He was then asked how he feels he’d work in a restrictive environment such as WWE. Omega feels he would thrive in such an environment as it would force him to think creatively to work around such restrictions:

    “I actually work better within restrictions,” the IWGP Heavyweight Champion continued. “When you leave everything wide open things tend to get a little convoluted. So when you give me those restrictions and I start to use my brain creatively to work around those that’s when things get interesting.

    “I mean no, you’re not going to get a seven-star match or six or five in a seven-minute segment but I always do the best I can to make that segment memorable and entertaining and I think that’s always the name of the game.

    “The thing is too it’s like, ‘hey if you ever go to WWE what are you gonna do if you only get five minutes?’ I mean sure you’d have nights like that but would I take a contract with WWE if I were not gonna be able to show the best of Kenny Omega? That would be a disservice to fans to professional wrestling, it would be a disservice to my own career all the hard work I put in.

    “I would for sure make sure that I was able to show the best of what I do and that requires a little bit of time. So yeah, things like that don’t really worry me I think I would be fine.”

    H/T Wrestling Inc. for the transcriptions

  • Kenny Omega Praises Matt Riddle, The King Of Bros Responds Accordingly

    Kenny Omega Praises Matt Riddle, The King Of Bros Responds Accordingly

    Yesterday, Kenny Omega took part in an AXS TV media conference call to promote the G1 Special in San Francisco. During the press conference, Omega mentioned Matt Riddle as someone who he feels should do well in NJPW.

    “I’m looking forward to seeing how Jeff Cobb and Matt Riddle do in Japan,” Omega said. “Matt Riddle should have a very successful career in Japan. It’d be cool if he became the foreign Shibata.”

    Word reached Riddle about comments made by Omega and he responded in a way consistent with his moniker as “the King of Bros”.

    The former UFC fighter is no stranger to receiving praise. After winning “Rookie of the Year” and “Most Improved” in the 2016 Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards, Riddle turned in a solid 2017 which saw him ranked at 116th in the PWI 500.

    Riddle is the current Evolve champion, former WWN Live champion, and also held the PWG tag titles along with Jeff Cobb. In May, Riddle made it down to the final 2 competitors in Smash Wrestling’s Northern Tournament. The Northern runs a similar format to BOLA and was eventually won by Tyson Dux. Other competitors in the tournament included Joey Janela, Joey Mercury, Mia Yim, Kimber Lee, and Andrew Everett.

    Kenny Omega Interview Notes

    During the press conference, Omega also noted that he is proud of the Golden Lovers storyline.

    “I’m proud of it. I’m not going to lie, that story was created for us,” Omega said. For myself and Ibushi…we built to it for years and years and years. For it to finally culminate and to hear the positive feedback, it was overwhelming.”

    Omega also took some shots at Los InGobernables and most notably, their leader Tetsuya Naito.

    “Naito is a pseudo-Steve Austin. I really don’t appreciate his message,” Omega said. “It only works in Japan. They live rough lives, it’s easier to fit in than rock the boat. Naito’s message is to calm down and not care. I think that message only has life in Japan.”