WWE: Will Others Follow Chris Jericho’s Lead?

How Chris Jericho’s interaction with NJPW, and ROH while still having a presence in WWE  could redefine the rules of engagement between WWE, performers, and other wrestling companies.

Chris Jericho has been very busy as of late between his appearances in NJPW, and the WWE RAW 25th Anniversary Show.  Jericho is also planning his upcoming cruise that will feature Ring of Honor talent. He will be back on tour with his band FOZZY again soon as well.

Jericho has been part time in WWE over the past several years.  WWE is known to be quite strict when it comes to competing in other Wrestling companies.

Y2J seems to treading on uncharted waters when it comes to a relationship with the WWE.  It all started on November 5th, 2017 at NJPW’s Power Struggle with a video of Jericho challenging Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 12.

This shocked the wrestling world since Jericho was heading on tour with his band after his  WWE appearance in July. All of this led to their epic battle at Wrestle Kingdom 12, and it was Jericho’s first time wrestling outside of the WWE since 1999.

This and Jericho’s partnership with Ring Of Honor for his upcoming Rock and Wrestling  Rager at sea would historically disqualify talent from staying relevant on WWE TV.

Jericho is not just any athlete it seems since WWE  is overlooking Jericho’s wanderlust.

What Does This Mean For other WWE Superstars?

This could open up the door for other superstars to venture out a bit while still calling WWE their home.

Over the past few years WWE has started to mention other companies such as NJPW and ROH with guys like  Styles,  Anderson and Gallows joining the roster.

This was a change from the post Monday Night War era where the company would act almost as if the were the only wrestling company to exist.

In Japan when athletes seem to be lost in the shuffle they send them abroad on an excursion to. This has been shown to transform careers take Tetsuya Naito for instance who left Japan as a down-on-his-luck face. After an excursion to Mexico, Naito returned to Japan bringing the infamous Los Ingobernables  stable with him.

Photo Credit WWE.com Dolph Ziggler the night after winning the WWE US Championship

This concept could wonders for some of the WWE superstars who have been lost in the shuffle. The first person who comes to mind would be someone like Dolph Ziggler, who is in a current story line where he vacated the US title now held by Bobby Roode.

Imagine if WWE allowed excursions and let Ziggler travel to Japan to  revitalize his character. Furthermore imagine the fuel this would add to the story line of  him vacating the title.

I am not sure if WWE is ready to welcome this idea with open arms, but Jericho’s activities seem to verify that they are at least open to being more flexible.

WWE needs to realize that at the end of the day all of their athletes are there because of a strong sense of competition and love for the sport. If a superstar doesn’t fit into WWE’s creative story line of the time let them practice their craft in NJPW, PROGRESS, or AAA for a few months.

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Only time will tell if the Jericho effect will sway the WWE to allow more talent take excursions abroad. One thing is for sure, it would not only benefit the athletes and WWE, but it would also benefit the fans.