Wrestle Kingdom 12 Predictions
IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. Tetsuya Naito.
Projected Winner: Tetsuya Naito.
No one has held the IWGP Heavyweight Title longer than Kazuchika Okada. He’s currently in the longest single reign of the belt’s history, and now has more combined days with the belt than Inoki, Hashimoto or even Hiroshi Tanahashi. Unless he is to hold the title for a decade, there is nothing left to do with Okada as champion. It is time for Tetsuya Naito to finally get his day in the sun. Having dethroned Okada once before Naito is already the favorite, however Naito has an extra reason to win; Naito has been here before. He won the G1 Climax in 2013 and his match with the then champion Kazuchika Okada was moved to the co-main event slot, with Tanahashi closing the show. Naito lost that night. It is time for Naito to beat Okada in Tokyo. It is time for Tetsuya Naito to close the show. He’s led the most successful faction of the past year, and he’s done it while putting on classic matches. 2017 was the year of The Rainmaker. 2018 will be the year of Naito.
Tranquilo.
♦
IWGP Untied States Heavyweight Championship No Disqualification Match: Kenny Omega (c) vs. Chris Jericho.
Projected Winner: Kenny Omega
Kenny Omega is coming off one of the best years of his career. While his championship was originally seen as a consolation prize, Omega has made the new US title feel big league. However, he’s never truly felt threatened as the inaugural United States Heavyweight Champion. Jericho presents a true challenge to The Cleaner and is one of the other reasons why the Tokyo Dome will be fuller, and louder than ever for his NJPW return. Like Jay White, this is Jericho’s first run in New Japan’s Heavyweight division, and like Jay White expect Jericho to fall to the reigning champion. Where this feud goes is anyone’s guess, but Kenny Omega has earned the Tokyo Dome victory.
♦
IWGP Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. “Switchblade” Jay White.
Projected Winner: Hiroshi Tanahashi
Jay White was a promising Young Lion and a lively, relatable presence in Ring of Honor. His Switchblade persona brings a darker side to the New Zealander, as he enters New Japan’s Heavyweight division. Like Zack Sabre Jr. before him, White will test himself against the Ace of New Japan and, like Zack Sabre Jr., White will fall to the IC Champion. Tanahashi has brought the IC Championship to new heights and another clash with Kota Ibushi or Tetsuya Naito doesn’t feel far off.
♦
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match: Marty Scurll (c) vs. KUSHIDA vs. Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi.
Projected Winner: Hiromu Takahashi
After a meteoric rise in the early part of 2017, Hiromu Takahashi found himself begging for title matches in the latter half of the year. Despite getting knocked out and having his fingers snapped, Hiromu persisted. Donning cricket wear to protect his extremities, Takahashi was granted his title rematch, against three of the greatest junior heavyweights on the current roster. It will be a rare four way dance, and the deck feels stacked against the redhead from LIJ. Marty Scurll has the protection of Bullet Club. Ospreay has speed and strength in spades. KUSHIDA has the advantage of…well…being KUSHIDA. You don’t get a better representation of what a junior heavyweight should be than KUSHIDA. With all of these odds stacked against Takahashi, Hiromu will find a way to take back the title. After all, no one loves the Jr. Heavyweight Championship more than Hiromu Takahashi. He’s bathed with that belt.
♦
NEVER Openweight Championship Hair vs. Title Match (No seconds allowed): Minoru Suzuki (c) vs. Hirooki Goto.
Projected Winner: Minoru Suzuki
Change is neither good nor bad. Change is inevitable. Hirooki Goto must change. At the NJ Fan Festa press conference, Goto said that he wanted to bring back the violent matches that he and Shibata made famous. While this is not a terrible idea, he’d be far angrier and far more violent if he lost his hair. If this were any other wrestler, Suzuki would lose and his clippers would remain an empty threat, but this is Goto, and this is a big match situation. Goto has a history of choking in big match situations, and his newly-shaven head will be a scar, a reminder that lights a fire under Goto like never before. Goto will be renewed in 2018, but his current form must perish.
♦
IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match: KES (c) vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon
Projected Winners: EVIL & SANADA
Los Ingobernables de Japon are a merchandise machine. From hats to shirts to Daryls, fans are buying up every bit of merchandise that Los Ingobernables de Japon. The faction is likely to be part of the reason the Tokyo Dome attendance will be 30,000-plus, up from the past few years. This box office success is well earned, as every member has a distinct personality and every member proved themselves in main event situations in 2017. In what will likely be a passing of the torch, expect EVIL & SANADA to topple Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Lance Hoyt.
♦
Cody vs. Kota Ibushi
Projected Winner: Kota Ibushi
Cody has achieved a lot in Ring of Honor, but his NJPW record is less stellar. This year’s Tokyo Dome match will be Cody’s second test against main event talent. Last year’s Long Beach main event against Okada received mixed reactions and his matches, while his victories against Juice Robinson, David Finlay, & Michael Elgin were merely showcases. How Cody handles The Golden Star as he shoots into 2018 will say a lot about the American Nightmare’s New Japan future. Kota Ibushi is coming off an amazing 2017 and is likely to repeat his superhuman efforts in 2018.
♦
NEVER Openweight Six-man Tag Team Championship Gauntlet Match: Bullet Club (Fale/Tonga/Loa) vs. Taguchi Japan (Taguchi/Makabe/Robinson) vs. Suzuki-gun (Sabre/Iizuka/Taichi) vs. Chaos (Ishii/Yano/Beretta) vs. War Machine & Michael Elgin.
Projected Winners: Bullet Club
Bad Luck Fale walked into the last Wrestle Kingdom as one-third of the NEVER Openweight Six-man Tag Team Champions, albeit with Hangman Page & Yujiro Takahashi, but Fale will have the Guerrillas of Destiny on his side, and the champions advantage of entering the gauntlet last. Expect Bullet Club to stand tall over the other teams.
Side Note: War Machine & Elgin teaming? Gone are the days of War Machine shouting “F*** Michael Elgin,” apparently.
♦
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match: Roppongi 3K (c) vs. The Young Bucks.
Projected Winners: Roppongi 3K
Roppongi 3K have not been in NJPW for a full calendar year, and yet they’ve already had banner runs since their return from excursion. Under the flawless direction of Rocky Romero, the former Tempura Boyz won the IWGP Jr. Tag belts in their re-debut and then went on to win the Super Jr. Tag Tournament. A win over the near-mythical Young Bucks would be the perfect way for this dynamic duo to keep their momentum into the new year.
♦
New Japan Rumble.
Projected Winner: Hirai Kawato??
The New Japan Rumble has become a pre-show tradition. Usually a fun mix of older legends, gaijins & rookies, it’s impossible to predict a winner as there are no announced entrants. Kitamura got to be the Young Lion Cup winner in 2017, so the 2018 New Japan Rumble feels like a worthy consolation prize for the wildly popular Kawato.
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