Wrestle Kingdom is New Japan Pro Wrestling’s (NJPW) annual Tokyo Dome super show ran every year on Jan. 4. This year however, NJPW will run the Tokyo Dome not only on the 4th, but the 5th as well for Wrestle Kingdom 14.
Wrestle Kingdom is always considered one of the best shows of the year, every year. Some of the best shows from the 2010’s have been Wrestle Kingdom shows, especially the last four years. Classic bouts such as AJ Styles vs Shinsuke Nakamura and Kenny Omega vs Kazuchika Okada have taken place at Wrestle Kingdom and have become that of pro wrestling legend ever since.
With two nights in a row stacked up with incredible matches, Wrestle Kingdom 14 is looking to already be the best show of 2020. Here’s what you need to know:
Jushin Liger’s Retirement
Jushin “Thunder” Liger debut in NJPW in 1989 and in those 30 years since, he has put together the most incredible run of any junior heavyweight wrestler in history. He’s an 11 time IWGP Jr Heavyweight champion, more than anyone else in NJPW history.
Many WWE fans may remember Liger’s match at NXT TakeOver Brooklyn against Tyler Breeze in 2015. That one-off with WWE was only a tiny part of his legendary career, and we owe it to him to know what he’s done for pro wrestling throughout the years.
On the first night, Liger hand picked a legendary 8-man tag team lineup. He teams up with Tatsumi Fujinami, Great Sasuke, and Tiger Mask to take on Rysuke Taguchi, Tatsuhito Takaiwa, Shinjiro Ootani, and Naoki Sano with Norio Honaga as the special referee.
On the second night, and final match of his career, Liger will team up with Noaki Sano to take on Ryu Lee (formerly Dragon Lee) and Hiromu Takahashi (we’ll get to him later). This match is a old school meets new school clash, and is sure to be great. Lee & Takahashi are two of the best wrestlers in the world, and will not disappoint.
Nothing but great respect for the legendary Jushin “Thunder” Liger as he rides off into the sunset in the Tokyo Dome at Wrestle Kingdom 14.
Stardom at Wrestle Kingdom 14
For the first time ever, the joshi stars of Stardom will work not only work with NJPW for the first time, but also get a match on the second biggest wrestling show of the year.
On Jan. 4 the team of Mayu Iwatani & Arisa Hoshiki will take on Hana Kimura & Giulia in a tag team match.
They will open the show and kick off the entire two night extravaganza with the exhibition. The competitor to look out for is Mayu Iwatani. She is the ace of Stardom and took over the role from Io Shirai and Kairi Hojo (Sane) when they left for WWE.
Jon Moxley vs Lance Archer (c)
Lance Archer will defend his IWGP US championship against Jon Moxley in a Texas death match. The only way to win is by submission or knockout. This match will take place on night one of Wrestle Kingdom.
Moxley was forced to give up his US title due to not being able to defend the championship as advertised in October. Archer was forced into the title match against Juice Robinson and came out with the title.
After floundering in WWE, TNA, and the tag team division in NJPW, Archer has now found himself in a career resurgence as of late. He was a major highlight of the G1 Climax this summer, as well as having a good US title run. With Moxley being an AEW guy, it may seem unlikely that he regains the title he never lost. Believe the contrary, however.
Despite Archer’s great run with the title, it ends on the 4th.
The winner of the Texas death match will defend their title against Juice Robinson for the title the next night, where ultimately Juice will gain back the title that he had coveted for so long until Moxley took the belt from him.
Kenta (c) vs Hirooki Goto
Kenta (formerly Hideo Itami) defends his NEVER Openweight championship against Hirooki Goto in a match that may be the most physical of all the bouts at wrestle Kingdom. These two are the epitome of strong style wrestling, and will prove it on Jan. 5.
Ever since returning to Japan and joining the Bullet Club, Kenta has been on a tear. For months he has been terrorizing Goto and it all culminates at Wrestle Kingdom 14. These two will no doubt beat the snot out of each other.
Will Ospreay (c) vs Hiromu Takahashi
The match of the year for 2020. There’s no question about it.
Hiromu came back in November 2019 after being out with a broken neck. He was sidelined for well over a year, and many thought Hiomu may never come back. When he did, it was the most emotional moment in pro wrestling all year.
He confronted Will Ospreay as on Hiromu can, and the match was set in stone. The match we’ve all been waiting for over a year for, and it’s finally here.
Will Ospreay has been the most consistent wrestler for the past couple of years, putting on barn-burner after barn-burner, match after match with any opponent. Get ready for those Meltzer star ratings because it’s going to break the scale.
The story is perfect, the match will no doubt be great, and if you watch even one Wrestle Kingdom match, please make it this one.
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Chris Jericho
The AEW World champion, Le Champion himself, Chris Jericho goes one on one with the ace of New Japan, Hiroshi Tanahashi. If Tana wins, he gets a future shot at the AEW title.
This is by far the most interesting match-up on either night. Both men’s styles differ so drastically, there’s no telling how this match could go. Of course, we thought the same thing when Jericho faced Kenny Omega or Tetsuya Naito, or anyone in AEW for that matter. He made it work, and it will definitely be a highlight of the second night.
IWGP Intercontinental and Heavywight Championships
By the end of Wrestle Kingdom 14’s second night, the first ever double champion in NJPW history will be crowned.
On Jan. 4, Jay White defends his IWGP Intercontinental championship against Tetsuya Naito. The winner will face the winner of the IWGP Heavyweight championship match between the champion Kazuchika Okada and Kota Ibushi.
The two winners will face each other in the main event of the second night in a winner take all title match. The losers of the bouts will face each other in a singles match the following night as well.
Kazuchika Okada is the greatest IWGP heavyweight champion of all time, and many consider him to be the very best wrestler in the entire world. Okada is currently in his fifth reign as IWGP champion, having held the belt for a combined 1,789 days by the time Jan. 4 rolls around. He’s only 32 years old.
His challenger is Kota Ibushi. Ibushi is best known for his tag team with Kenny Omega, the Golden Lovers, and from his run in WWE in the Cruiserweight Classic in 2016, making it all the way to the semi-finals before losing to TJ Perkins. Ibushi also won the 2019 G1 Climax tournament. The G1 a month long round-robin tournament that’s considered the most grueling tour in all of pro wrestling. The winner gets to main event Wrestle Kingdom against the IWGP heavyweight champion.
For the Intercontinental championship, Jay White used his leverage as champ to get a shot at the world title. It worked, just maybe not how he had planned. A fan vote allowed the winner of the IC bout and world title bout to wrestle each other in a winner take all match the following night.
White has been obsessed with becoming a double champion since he won the IWGP Heavyweight championship earlier in 2019. He lost the world title but gained the IC title from his challenger, Tetsuya Naito, who is also set out to become double champion.
Tetsuya Naito’s Redemption
Naito’s dream is to win the IWGP heavyweight championship in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom.
He was one step closer to achieving his dream, winning the G1 Climax in 2013, but a fan vote allowed Tanahashi vs Nakamura for the IC title to main event over Naito and Okada for the world title at Wrestle Kingdom 8. Naito saw this as a betrayal from not only the company, but also by the fans.
Ever since, Naito’s made his disdain for the IC title known. Every time he wins the belt, he throws the title around and disrespects it. That title is the reason he never got to achieve his dream. Now, it’s become a stepping stone for him to get to where he’s always wanted to be.
In 2017, Naito once again won the G1 Climax, defeating Kenny Omega in an amazing match and finally getting to main event Wrestle Kingdom. Despite geiving his best efforts, Okada retained his title in what many fans feel is a missed opportunity for NJPW. Naito was the most popular wrestler in the company by far at the time, so it was a confusing decision.
Fast forward to today, and Naito is two wins away from becoming double champion. The belt he’s loathed for so long is the key to main eventing Wrestle Kingdom and becoming IWGP Heavyweight champion.
Wrestle Kingdom 14 will be an amazing show. There’s no question that the two night show will be on the best shows of 2020. There will be matches that we’ll be talking about for the next 12 months, and even longer after that.
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