Friday, April 3, 2015

War of the Worlds Has Some Rain in the Forecast

Okada is coming
Photo Credit: Scott Finkelstein
The second name announced for the Ring of Honor/New Japan Pro Wrestling War of the Worlds series is the yang to first announcee Hiroshi Tanahashi's yin. Kazuchika Okada, the two-time IWGP World Heavyweight Champion and headliner of last year's War of the World's show, will return to the States. Last year, Okada wrestled Michael Elgin and AJ Styles in a triple threat match for the IWGP Title. This year, with four shows on the docket, his slate could open up substantially.

Okada is arguably in the middle of some flux right now, after having lost his G1 Climax-earned title shot at Tanahashi at WrestleKingdom 9 and then being dropped in the New Japan Cup by Bad Luck Fale. Even if his story has taken a backseat, he remains one of the most exciting wrestlers in the world today. Since he's not tied to the main event, look for him to wrestle ACH or Cedric Alexander during one of the four shows at least. Both wrestlers have taken a rise in ROH lately, and ACH especially has been getting cracks at main event talent. This is all just speculation, but I have a feeling.