Thursday, January 18, 2024

Kazuchika Okada to leave New Japan Pro Wrestling

Kazuchika Okada to leave New Japan Pro Wrestling

 From: https://twitter.com/njpwglobal/status/1748163432787202212

NJPW was kind of lucky to keep him as long as they did. They just can't offer what WWE and AEW can money or fame wise due to things out of their control like geography, population size and television contracts. The only card they had was giving him backstage powers like Tanahashi, ownership stake or by hiring his relatives. And even that might not have been enough.

If it's AEW who is taking him, it's awful. NJPW are supposed to be their partners and they could have Okada most of the time they wanted him anyway. He won't make a lick of difference for their ratings and may even hurt them.

If it's WWE, it's a pure power move. They don't need Okada. They won't get the best out of him and they'll have to put in a lot of work to get little in return.

I'd be more sympathetic for NJPW if they hadn't done the same thing to others by poaching their wrestlers. It's going to be a rough year for them with Will and now Okada going along with Naito slowing down, Tana being almost done and Sanada not getting a good title run. I said it during the last few years when they hadn't gotten Yota/Shota/Yuya out of the young lion stage yet - they just aren't producing new talent fast enough. Now they pay for it. Shota's closest to being ready but him, Yota and Yuya still need another 2-3 years and it's a shame they will be not get to elevate through Okada. Ren is not going to be that guy. We'll see what happens with Oleg, Oskar, Oiwa and Yuto though.

Pro Wrestling NOAH is also going to take a big loss off of this one. They fed Kaito to Okada likely in the hopes of getting his win back down the line. Now with Okada being gone, that's off the table and they buried their top star for absolutely nothing.

Okada leaving completely changes New Japan and it's going to be a different promotion without him. We always rip WWE for not letting stars get too big but reasons like this are why you don't let them get too big. When they leave, it's too hard to replace them.

3 comments :

  1. Sorry for the blank comment, I hit the wrong key on the laptop. :)

    Unless WWE is offering ridiculous money, I can't see him going there. And I'm with you with the idea that going to AEW doesn't really make sense, since they're partners and they could easily work something out if he wanted an extended stay over here.

    I'm sort of thinking that he's going completely freelance, and just going anyplace that suits him. Unless there's some sort of bad blood, he'd still be able to work NJ dates, and he could just as easily pop up in All Japan, NOAH, DDT, Dragon Gate, etc. After Fujita a couple of years ago, I honestly wouldn't be all that shocked if he shows up in NOAH and wins the GHC.

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    1. We will have to see what happens. I'm still really surprised by the news.

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