NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12: Match Card Predictions After G1 Climax
By Tim Sherry
IWGP United States Championship: Kenny Omega (c) vs Kota Ibushi
As we all know, professional wrestling isn’t just about what happens inside the ring but also the stories that are created to support the action. One of the best and compelling things that can happen in the wrestling game is when story lines come full circle. And that’s exactly what should shape the final two matches of Wrestle Kingdom 12.
Before Kenny Omega was the massive, global superstar that he is currently, he, along with Ibushi formed an extremely successful tag team. Dubbed as the “Golden Lovers”, the duo would capture 3 tag titles under the Dramatic Dream Team banner and 2 IWGP Junior Heavyweight tag championships in NJPW. However, in October of 2014, “The Cleaner” left DDT and with that, his tag team partner behind in search of fame in fortune in New Japan. Ibushi, who has been freelancing for the company regularly since 2009, went on his own path, and has been very successful.
But it seems like once in a while, Omega and Ibushi cross paths and it’s chillingly dramatic. No more so than when Ibushi faced Omega’s then-Bullet Club stable member, AJ Styles for the IWGP Heavyweight title at Invasion Attack 2015 when a moment where the two former partners stared each other down led to a Styles victory. Even more recently, the two met together in a very confusing moment backstage after Omega’s loss to Tetsuya Naito in the G1 finals. There is undoubtedly some type of program between these two coming shortly.
Now, Ibushi may be undersized, but he’s proven he can hang with the big boys and their elite. At the aforementioned G1, the “Golden Star” defeated both Tanahashi and Ishii cleanly. He’s earned his title shot. If this match is made, you can obviously expect a classic, but also expect some drama as old feelings will be brought to the surface and the Ibushi/Omega story can write another chapter.