I would like to wish a happy 36th birthday today to Kenny Omega. ‘The best bout machine’ has seen his career take off over the last five years and is currently a performer/executive vice president of AEW.
Before playing a part in founding AEW, after wrestling professionally for over a decade all over the world, Kenny Omega signed a contract to wrestle in New Japan Pro Wrestling on Oct. 3rd, 2014. Previously, Omega had bounced around the globe. Kenny wrestled in DDT, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla as well as New Japan for six years.
This time, for NJPW, he was introduced as the newest member of the Bullet Club. Nicknamed ‘The Cleaner,’ Omega vowed to clean out the Junior Heavyweight division. He did just that, winning the IWGP Junior Heavyweight championship twice before moving up to the heavyweight division in January of 2016.
After kicking AJ Styles out of the Bullet Club, Kenny Omega pronounced himself the leader of the new Bullet Club. From this point forward, Omega began his march through the New Japan heavyweight division. Becoming one of the best wrestlers on planet earth along the way.
Having watched nearly every singles match of his New Japan run, I had the enviable task of putting together a list of Kenny Omega’s 10 greatest matches ever. Believe me when I say this, it was one of the most difficult lists I’ve ever had to put together. From 2014 to the present, Kenny Omega has wrestled in 48, 4 star plus matches according to The Wrestling Observer. This doesn’t include his previous work in various promotions.
I did the best I could to give you what I felt were the 10 greatest Kenny Omega matches in his storied career. I have included one tag team match in my list, which is astonishing considering his tremendous singles career. My opinions are subjective, but you will likely nod your head in approval with some of the selections.
Without a further ado, here are the top 10 best Kenny Omega matches of all time. Roll the footage Daily DDT!
But first, some honorable mentions:
Kenny Omega vs Hiroshi Tanahashi-New Beginning 2016
Kenny Omega vs Hirooki Goto-G1 Climax Final 2016
Kenny Omega vs KUSHIDA-Dominion 2015
These three matches were near misses on the top 10 list. All of these bouts could be justified to make most top five match lists for nearly anyone else worldwide. That’s how good Kenny Omega is.
After taking the reigns of Bullet Club, Omega would pack on 10 pounds of muscle and ascend to the heavyweight division. Kenny Omega’s first bout as a heavyweight in New Japan took place at the New Beginning card in Niigata, Japan. His opponent on this night was ‘The Ace’ of New Japan, Hiroshi Tanahashi in a match contested for the vacated IWGP Intercontinental championship.
A near half hour battle ensued between the best wrestler in New Japan at the time vs the young upstart from the hottest faction in the promotion. The masterpiece that took place between these 2 men was sensational. Kenny hit his signature ‘One Winged Angel’ for a three count and his first heavyweight singles title in New Japan. An absolute classic between 2 of the current best wrestlers alive.
Omega burst onto the worldwide wrestling scale with his G1 Climax tournament run in 2016. After 9 round robin bouts, Kenny would win the B Block and find himself across the ring with New Japan veteran Hirooki Goto in the G1 Climax final.
A back and forth Donnybrook ensued between these two Block winners. When all was said and done, history was made. It ended with Kenny becoming the first Canadian born wrestler to win the G1 Climax. He defeated Goto in the G1 final to earn the right at the opportunity at the IWGP Heavyweight championship.
Finally, Kenny Omega had one Junior heavyweight bout in New Japan that stood out above the rest. He walked into the Dominion event as the IWGP Junior Heavyweight champion. His opponent was New Japan’s residential fan favorite of the junior division, KUSHIDA.
Both men stood toe to toe and exchanged amazing wrestling maneuvers. Often times, Junior heavyweight title matches steal shows and this match was no exception. While Omega was the champion before Dominion started, KUSHIDA would be the one with his hand raised in victory on this night.At the time it was a classic between of the best Juniors in the world, both men are now considered to be among the best heavyweight’s on the Planet. A must watch for fans of both men.
10. Kenny Omega vs Rey Fenix- Northeast Wrestling Redemption 2018
This is a match with zero back history. Getting Kenny Omega and Rey Fenix to wrestle in an independent promotion as a one-off contest is a coup for Northeast Wrestling. There was no real story between these 2 magnificent performers.
As soon as you’re finished reading this article, go to Highspots and make a single payment just for this show alone. You get to see Darby Allin go one on one with Pentagon Jr. On top of that, Jake Hager (formerly Jack Swagger) takes on Rob Van Dam. All of this before one of the best independent main event matches you will ever see.
I cannot speak highly enough of this bout. Both Omega and Fenix tore the house down and had the commentators ooh and ahhing throughout the near 30 minute bout. There were incredible counters, tables brought out and fantastic chain wrestling you would expect from these two combatants. Rey Fenix in my eyes is one of the 5 best wrestlers on the planet. You have him go one on one with ‘The Best bout machine’ and there will be fireworks ensuing.
9. Kenny Omega vs Tomohiro Ishii- G1 Climax Day 14 2018
Look at Kenny Omega’s face in the header of this video. This was a G1 Climax B block contest that could have easily been the G1 final in 2018. We can honestly say that a half-dozen matches in the G1 Climax end up being finals caliber quality. The contrast in styles between Omega and his opponent Tomohiro Ishii are what makes this match so fun to watch.
Ishii is one of the most underrated performers on this Earth. He is often mentioned as the MVP of New Japan for all of the punishing “match of the night” quality matches he participates in. On this night in Osaka, Ishii punished Omega and defeated him to hand Kenny his first loss in the G1 up to that date.
This bout went 23 minutes and from bell to bell, these two were physical and pulling out all of the stops. This was a rematch from the IWGP United States championship final in Long Beach. Where Omega outlasted Ishii in another classic of a contest to claim the United States title.
The highlight of this bout was Ishii delivering a thunderous clothesline which busted Kenny Omega’s mouth wide open. Nearly sidelining him with a broken jaw. If you love a good mix of strong style and new age wrestling, this match is the one for you to watch!
8. Kenny Omega vs Kota Ibushi- G1 Climax Day 18 2018
This match right here was my favorite of the entire G1 Climax in 2018. I’m a little biased due to my love for both Kenny Omega and his former Golden Lovers tag team partner, Kota Ibushi. From bell to bell, the 2 best friends went toe to toe in one of the fastest paced 23 minute matches you will ever see.
The story here was Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi going one on one to determine who would be the B Block representative in the G1 Climax final of 2018. Both men flew through the air and dazzled the fans in Tokyo on this warm night in August. These two put on a spectacle of a main event that felt like it lasted 15 minutes with the frantic pace they were able to keep.
This was the first ever known one on one match between the Golden Lovers duo. Having teamed for two plus years in New Japan and DDT, Kota Ibushi and Kenny Omega knew their styles like the their own anatomy’s and it showed. after a thrilling back and forth which had the crowd eating out of their hands, Ibushi would pin Omega to advance to the G1 Climax final.
I can’t speak highly enough of this match as well. If you are a fan of both these men, go back and watch this amazing encounter. Pay attention the speed and attention to detail in which both Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi put on display for you to watch. Such a breathtaking display of striking and one trying to up the other.
7. The Golden Lovers vs The Young Bucks-Strong Style Evolved 2018
This contest is the definition of tag team wrestling. In what is one of the best tag team matches you will ever witness, The Young Bucks squared off against The reunited Golden Lovers. Kenny Omega grabbed a microphone after he and Kota Ibushi defated fellow Bullet Club members Cody Rhodes and Marty Scrull.
Kenny declared that he and Kota were the ‘best tag team on the planet.” This brought out Nick and Matt Jackson who made took exception to their “Elite” members comments. The Young Bucks declared that they would be moving up to the IWGP heavyweight tag team division and challenged The Golden Lovers to a match.
The action was what you would expect from these 4 talented athletes. Add the emotion of Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks on opposite sides of the ring for one of the emotional matches you will ever witness. Kenny working on Matt Jackson’s injured back. Both teams talking a ton of trash which elicited some more drama among the 4 men.
False finishes, tag team high spots and intense blows ensued for over 30 minutes. In the end, Ibushi and Omega would hit “The Golden Trigger” on Nick Jackson to end one of the damnedest tag team matches of all time.
6. Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada-G1 Climax Day 18 2017
This will be installment of the Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada wars you’ll see in the top 10 list. In arguably the greatest set of matches between 2 men of all time, this 3rd match would conclude B block action in the 2017 G1 Climax. Omega and Okada were separated by 1 point in round robin play. The winner of this bout moved on to the G1 Climax final the following night.
This match brought a blistering pace, something which favored Kenny Omega on this night. With a 30 minute time limit in play, Omega was desperate to finally defeat his rival Okada. The IWGP heavyweight champion had defeated Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 11. The second bout ended in a 60 minute draw that one upped their first encounter. Omega was out for redemption and it showed.
In a 25 minute contest which included brawling on the outside and many false finishes, Kenny Omega finally connected with a successful “One Winged Angel” attempt for a 3 count on Okada. The result was Omega finally avenging his previous 2 meetings with Okada and advancing to the 2017 G1 Climax final. While this match was not for the IWGP Heavyweight championship, Kenny Omega had to feel like the monkey was off of his back and he was ready to make a run at the title held by the man he just defeated.
5. Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada-Wrestle Kingdom 11 2017
This match was deemed the gold standard in professional wrestling. Kenny Omega had won the 2016 G1 Climax and earned the right to challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 11. His opponent, the great Kazuchika Okada. In the 1st installment of this series, we’ll take a look back at this astounding main event.
This was the match which put New Japan on the map worldwide. It received acclaim in the Wrestling Observer as the 1st 6 star match in their rating system. How in the world is this only Kenny Omega’s 5th greatest match of his career? Quite frankly, his body of work over the last 3 years is nothing short of amazing. This list is subjective, but I digress.
In this 45 minute thriller, Kazuchika Okada was determined to put his challenger in his place on this night. Okada back dropped Kenny Omega high through a table on the outside. Both men traded mighty dropkicks, suplexes and other high-profile maneuvers throughout the duration of this contest.
The story being told was how Kenny Omega could not hit the “One Winged Angel” on Okada in this match. Numerous times, Kenny hoisted the champion up on his shoulders. Only for Okada to slip through Kenny’s fingers. After many false finishes and back and forth action. Kazuchika Okada finally closed the door on Kenny Omega with a tombstone and a vicious “Rainmaker in the most incredible main event the Tokyo Dome had seen to date. This was just the beginning for Kenny Omega.
4. Kenny Omega vs Hiroshi Tanahashi-Wrestle Kingdom 13-2019
This match headlined Wrestle Kingdom 13 at The Tokyo Dome. Kenny Omega was the IWGP Heavyweight champion coming in. His challenger on this night, ‘The Ace’ Hiroshi Tanahashi. This match was super charged with emotion and grit. Tanahashi was out to prove he wasn’t washed up, Omega was out to show the Japanese audience that there was a new movement on the horizon for New Japan.
This was a war of attrition between differing philosophies. Omega believed in pushing the envelope, he’s also shown how much he values eastern tradition many times throughout his career. While Tanahashi represents the rich tradition of New Japan. Yet he had proven his willingness to change and adapt his style in order to remain at the top of NJPW for 10 plus years.
The ability to reinvent yourself in pro wrestling is an art form. Hiroshi Tanahashi has continued to do so for over a decade. He was out to show Kenny Omega that he should respect the promotion that made him a star in the first place. These 2 men went toe to toe in an incredible Wrestle Kingdom main event.
Many false finishes once again, brutal forearms, kick outs of ‘High Fly Flow’s’ by the IWGP champion. This match is a little overlooked in the pantheon of Kenny Omega matches. Especially since he had 4 marvelous matches vs Kazuchika Okada which could easily be seen as Omega’s top 4 contests. We need some originality here.
As is the theme in a lot of Kenny Omega’s best bouts, he came out with a loss. In turn, he left New Japan for the time being and signed with AEW once his contract ran up. However, that doesn’t mean this match wasn’t an instant classic. One could put right at the top for match of the year in 2019. Just another reason why Omega is lauded throughout the wrestling landscape.
3. Kenny Omega vs Tetsuya Naito-G1 Climax Final 2017
This is my favorite match of Kenny Omega’s career. I would have loved to put this number one and it holds up each and every time I watch it. If I were to point to one Kenny Omega match to watch which didn’t match him up with Kazuchika Okada, this is the one. A 2017 G1 Climax final which featured Omega going one on one with Tetsuya Naito.
Omega finally got the monkey off of his back and defeated Okada in the B Block final. What was waiting for him was the leader of Los Ingobernables, Tetsuya Naito. These 2 men have amazing chemistry in the ring, it’s on par with Omega/Okada in my opinion. Styles make amazing matches and these 2 men might as well be peanut butter and jelly in the ring.
In the previous G1 Climax, Kenny Omega defeated Naito in the B Block final to advance to the G1 Climax 26 final. That match was Kenny’s best in 2016 and could have easily made this list. Naito presents a match-up problem for Omega. He’s unpredictable, as his tranquilo style is a frustrating one to conquer. Yet Naito also is so good in the ring, that he can lull you to sleep and knock you out cold with his ‘Destino’ in the blink of an eye.
This bout was hard-hitting from the start, Highlghts include a top rope senton to the floor by Omega. A barrage of German Suplexes from both men and 2 frankensteiners by Naito. After 2 Destino attempts failed to put Omega away, Naito connected with a third Destino to conclude this phenomenal G1 Climax final.
I cannot state this enough, if you were to go back and watch G1 Climax over and over again, this is it. I provided the cliff notes version for you to chew on. Go back and watch the entire match and you won’t be disappointed. Kenny Omega vs Tetsuya Naito could continue to hold up as the best G1 Climax final in the history of the tournament for years to come.
2. Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada- Dominion 2017
Where do I start? This match followed up the first bout between Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 11. That match went over 45 minutes and ended with Okada having his hand raised in what was called by some, the greatest wrestling match of all time. How do you follow that up?
With the greatest professional wrestling match ever. Kenny Omega was out for revenge on this night. He had taken Okada to his limits in January of 2017 like no one had before him. Both men knew just exactly what it would take to outlast the other and reign atop the New Japan landscape. The IWGP Heavyweight championship is one of the most prized titles in the world of professional wrestling. It often comes with being recognized as the world’s best wrestler.
What happened on this night in June of 2017 will live on as the best 60 minute draw ever. Over half way through the contest, both men were struggling to stand. Yet, they would continue to hit each other with everything but the kitchen sink. This had a lot of built-in drama as well.
Okada would hit Omega with a couple of Rainmakers for a 2 count. Kenny Omega would finally connect with the ‘One Winged Angel” on Okada. Yet the IWGP champion was so close to the ropes, he managed to drag his leg foot over the bottom rope to break up the 3 count. Bullet Club member Cody Rhodes threatened to throw in the towel on Kenny Omega, stirring up more drama in a match that didn’t need the extra curricular activity for it to be so great.
In the last-minute of the match, Kenny Omega would connect with a snap dragon suplex. Kazuchika Okada would counter with a mighty dropkick that looked like the match had just started. Okada followed that up with a ‘Rainmaker’ as both men would collapse in a heap to the floor. The bell rang a few short seconds later and this marathon ended in a 60 minute draw.
You’d think that a 60 minute affair would drag on at some point? This one did not, the pace remained crisp and constant. Omega and Okada were still executing moves late in the match that would finish off most opponents. Even if they were exhausted in the process.
What is the number 1 Kenny Omega match you ask? I’ll be glad to tell you.
1. Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada-Dominion 2019, Best 2 out of 3 falls match
This match was the 4th and final match in the Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada series. It would conclude at the 2018 Dominion event in a 2 out of 3 falls match which would proceed to break records and ratings systems all over the world.
I’ve described all 3 bouts between Omega and Okada as, at the time of the match taking place, the greatest wrestling bout of its time. This one trumped them all in a landslide. There were 3 matches wrapped into 1, something that we don’t see very often. The realism and attention to detail displayed in the match are near unparalleled.
The story being told was bountiful. The IWGP Heavyweight championship reign of Kazuchika Okada had reached a record 12 defenses. Many men tried and failed to unseat him. Kenny Omega had already unsuccessfully attempted to defeat Okada twice for the IWGP title. While he finally conquered Okada in the G1 Climax tournament, it wasn’t for the championship.
If there is such thing as a perfect wrestling match, this one takes the prize. Okada would win the 1st fall with a Rainmaker. Omega would win the 2nd fall with a One Winged Angel. What proceeded those happenings would be a 3rd and decisive fall which no one saw coming.
Both Kenny Omega and Kazuchika Okada know each other so well, that the 3rd fall turned into a game of cat and mouse. Countered attempts of both men’s trademark moves became the normal. Omega would hit a Styles Clash for a 2 count. He would proceed to attempt a Phoenix Splash and miss. Every last stop was being pulled out to win this 3rd and climatic final fall.
Okada would hit Omega with Rainmakers, only collapse halfway through the move. Omega would attempt his One Winged Angel and fall forward with exhaustion. Okada attempted a Rainmaker, only for Omega to duck the attempt and immediately hoist Okada on his shoulders for a successful One Winged Angel move. Okada then rolled out of the ring as he was near the edge of the ropes as he slumped over in agony.
After 65 minutes, the end was finally drawing near. Kenny Omega would bring the IWGP champ back into the ring. He would connect with a German Suplex, V Trigger and successful One Winged Angel in the middle of the ring to finally slay Kazuchika Okada and claim the IWGP heavyweight championship. I’m done giving you superlatives to describe this match, just watch it!
Once again, a happy 36th birthday to Kenny Omega. This article was a tribute and look back into the top 10 greatest matches of the AEW star’s career. Omega is still in the prime of his career and is beginning anew with a wrestling which is primarily based in the United States. We look forward to seeing what the career trajectory of Kenny Omega has in store. Can ‘The Best Bout Machine’ add to his list top list of matches ever? Time will tell, but I’m sure he’s quite determined to prove that his run in Japan can be built upon in America.