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NJPW: 5 burning questions we have after Wrestle Kingdom 14

By Sonal Lad

TOKYO, JAPAN - JANUARY 06: Jon Moxley speaks to Minoru Suzuki during the New Japan Pro-Wrestling 'New Year Dash' at the Oita City General Gymnasium on January 06, 2020 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)
TOKYO, JAPAN - JANUARY 06: Jon Moxley speaks to Minoru Suzuki during the New Japan Pro-Wrestling 'New Year Dash' at the Oita City General Gymnasium on January 06, 2020 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images) /
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TOKYO, JAPAN – JANUARY 04: Kazuchika Okada of Japan and Kota Ibushi of Japan compete in the IWGP Heavy Weight Championship bout during the New Japan Pro-Wrestling ‘Wrestle Kingdom 14’ at the Tokyo Dome on January 04, 2020 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images)
TOKYO, JAPAN – JANUARY 04: Kazuchika Okada of Japan and Kota Ibushi of Japan compete in the IWGP Heavy Weight Championship bout during the New Japan Pro-Wrestling ‘Wrestle Kingdom 14’ at the Tokyo Dome on January 04, 2020 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Etsuo Hara/Getty Images) /

After the biggest weekend in the NJPW calendar, fans are still talking about the amazing two nights at the Tokyo Dome. With so many title changes and the potential for new feuds and storylines, here are five burning questions we have after Wrestle Kingdom 14.

New Japan Pro Wrestling has just put on its biggest event of the year in the form of Wrestle Kingdom 14 at the Tokyo Dome. The stage was even bigger this year with NJPW deciding to put on two nights at the world famous Dome, which meant even more matches and chances for the wrestlers to shine in front of a global audience.

For many, Wrestle Kingdom starts a new calendar year for the company and is also key in not only tying up storylines from the previous year, but also a certain sense of starting fresh, especially after New Year’s Dash. We saw titles change hands, new rivalries start to brew and the potential for matches we never thought we wanted or needed!

With all these changes and the potential for so many new matches, feuds and storylines, here are the top five burning questions I have after the fallout of the Wrestle Kingdom weekend!

Where does Kota Ibushi go from here?

It was one thing for Jay White to lose on Night One and for Kazuchika Okada to lose on Night Two, but imagine how it would feel to lose on both nights of Wrestle Kingdom. That was the reality for the Golden Star Kota Ibushi after losing to the Rainmaker on the first night and then Switchblade the night after.

However, as positive as the Golden Star sounded in the post-match comments, it had to hurt him not to get his Wrestle Kingdom moment and really to be at the back of the line when it comes to title opportunities in the future.

This leaves Ibushi in a tricky position and the question now is where does he go from here?

New Year’s Dash saw Ibushi challenging FinJuice for the Tag Team Championship belts with his hero, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and all seems well in the mind of the Golden Star. But I don’t think it will last.

Over the past few months, we’ve seen small changes to Ibushi in matches. They don’t normally last long, but it’s little specks of darkness creeping in, whether it was him throwing the briefcase at Okada during World Tag League or refusing to stop punching Okada on the 4th.

This is something I think could lead to the perfect next step for Ibushi. Normally I would disregard these changes in behavior, but something about Ibushi’s past with the Bullet Club raises some potential future changes.

Obviously, Chase Owens and Jay White have both invited Kota to join the faction and he refused, but something has to give. Ibushi has too much history with Bullet Club to completely disregard it from his history with Kenny Omega to even the blossoming friendship he had with Chase Owens.

We all know that Ibushi has the physical traits needed to be a star, but maybe he needs something else, something edgy. He will have a massive chip on his shoulder, and that’s what Bullet Club was built on so him joining one of the biggest factions in the business seems like the perfect next step.

Bullet Club is a faction known for taking in talent and either making them stars or for superstars who need a change. Kota needs a change and Bullet Club could help him on his way. We saw how much it helped the likes of Jay White and KENTA, just to name a few.

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