Rewriting 2019 in NJPW Through The Lens of Kenny Omega

The Road to the Tokyo Dome has reached its destined culmination as the path paved in gold ended with the crowning of NJPW’s first Double Champion. Tetsuya Naito, the man who defeated Jay White to become Intercontinental Champion on the first night, would clash with the man who, above all else, stood as his rival for the claim of being the “Shuyaku” of NJPW, Kazuchika Okada. In their third clash at the Tokyo Dome, it was Tetsuya Naito who finally, after six long years of rejection, rediscovery, and reversion, was able to defeat his rival under the adulation of the roaring audience of the Tokyo Dome, claiming his second IWGP Heavyweight Championship and becoming the first and, so far, only man in NJPW history to hold both championships at the same time.

The parallels of Naito’s original journey to the journey now are innumerable, from Naito being the NEVER Openweight Champion compared to Naito being the Intercontinental Champion to Naito’s reluctant usage of his previous finisher in their last encounter compared to the staunch self-belief to use it on his way to destiny. Now that the stardust has settled and destiny has been claimed, Naito finds himself on a road of uncharted territories as the Double Champion of NJPW, and with this, a fresh outlook of the main-event picture is on the horizon…but what if destiny took another twist? What if the man who ended Okada’s 720 Days of Rain had remained in NJPW? What effect would this have on the Road to the Tokyo Dome and how would the complexion of the Double Gold Dash change? As the One-Winged Angel soars in AEW, let us peer into a future where, perhaps, the Road to the Tokyo Dome would be shrouded under the Devil’s Sky.

The Omega Effect

The beginnings of the Double Gold Dash were set in the month of January of 2019 as Tetsuya Naito made the first overture toward, eventually, becoming a Double Champion at the following Wrestle Kingdom. At Wrestle Kingdom 13, Kenny Omega would compete in the main-event against Hiroshi Tanahashi in defense of his IWGP Heavyweight Championship. This led to a clash of ideologies between the two men, with both of them proclaiming their style of professional wrestling to be the best the world over, with Omega further driving the point home that it was his style of professional wrestling that brought NJPW success in the West, with NJPW having announced a joint collaboration with Ring of Honor at Madison Square Garden in April of 2019 called the “G1 Supercard”. Tanahashi would argue that his style of wrestling was what fans in the West wanted to see from them: “New Japan as New Japan” and not trying to be something it was not, flying in the face of Omega’s argument. With the G1 Contract in-hand, Tanahashi would go on to defy the odds and become the first and only man to win the G1 Climax and claim the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom amidst rumors and speculation that Kenny Omega would be leaving NJPW, leaving his future, at the time, uncertain. What if, however, Kenny Omega had remained and re-signed with NJPW for one more year? What would have changed in the Double Gold Dash? Perhaps the first ripple would’ve been felt in the career of the Switchblade.

Through 2018, Jay White would carve a path clean through the upper echelon of NJPW, challenging Tanahashi at Wrestle Kingdom 12, supplanting Kenny Omega as the IWGP United States Champion, and joining Chaos while making overt, clear threats to Okada and his run as IWGP Heavyweight Champion. This resulted in Jay White being the clear top heel of NJPW, taking control of Chaos from within during Okada’s downward spiral from the defeat at Dominion that year before he would find himself leading the Bullet Club by the end of the year. The common school of thought remains that, if Kenny Omega had remained in NJPW, while Jay White would’ve still seen the same trajectory, the end result would’ve been different as it relates to the aftermath of Wrestle Kingdom 13. By following the thread, one can place where the pieces would fall in this hypothetical.

Kenny Omega’s bout with Tanahashi, if the rumors are to be believed, would’ve gone the other way, resulting in Omega walking out of the Tokyo Dome as the IWGP Heavyweight Champion, leaving Tanahashi’s ideology in the dust. With this victory under his belt, Kenny Omega would go on to the New Beginning in Osaka clash with Jay White, with White having defeated Kazuchika Okada to stake his claim to No. 1 Contendership. This would be the best scenario. After all, this would lead to a conclusion to the Elite’s internal feud with the Bullet Club, with Kenny Omega facing off against Jay White once again, one year after his loss that signaled a lack of focus within the BC, the confrontation being emblematic of their new positions on the roster. When before, Omega was the Cleaner trying to reunite the BC by recruiting the young Jay White, and White would be the rebel fighting against the stable system of NJPW, Kenny Omega would be seen in a much better light, having overcome his own demons, reunited with his Golden Lover, and now, defeating Tanahashi at Wrestle Kingdom to lead NJPW into MSG while the Switchblade would return the Bullet Club to the era of Devitt, rechristened as the “Cutthroat Era”.

In this scenario, it is reasonable to believe that Omega would’ve come out on top against Jay White, showing the progression he had made through his journey to the top, defeating the new head of the Bullet Club and putting the BC officially on the back-burner and taking Jay White out of title contention. It would be perfectly fitting. One year removed from perhaps the most crushing defeat in Kenny Omega’s career up to that point, Omega would triumph over the Switchblade to show that his new way of life. His reunion with his Golden Lover and with the strength of his friends behind him, he has overcome what he once was by stopping the BC’s new head dead in his tracks on the road for glory, with White looking to put Omega away just as he had done before. After his victory here, it’s easy to see where the next destination would be for Omega: facing the Rainmaker once more at Madison Square Garden.

Kenny Omega’s Downfall in the Downpour

The confrontation at MSG would take on a much different context with Omega as Champion rather than Jay White. Instead of it being Okada’s crowning moment in his dream arena against the man who took his mentor away and attempted to destroy his faction from the inside, Okada and Omega would be the ultimate clash of two of the best in the world, their previous four matches having been regarded as the best series of matches of all time by many. To have it culminate at Madison Square Garden, a goal that both men shared, would’ve been poetic to say the least. Back at Wrestle Kingdom 11, Omega’s whole goal was to “take the company worldwide”, insisting that this was impossible to do with Okada at the helm. Omega as Champion would’ve been seen as a justification, creating the narrative that perhaps he was right. However, Okada would easily be able to claim the opposite, similar to Tanahashi, in that NJPW would only grow as much as it had under the Rainmaker’s downpour. This would put Okada back into his proper mindset. Back on his proper path of being NJPW’s Ace after taking the New Japan Cup and placing him on a collision with the man who ended his 720 Days of Rain.

At Madison Square Garden, we would’ve seen the same result as what originally happened: Okada would come out on top at his dream venue, except now, there would’ve been an added context to his redemption. The original context was Okada redeeming himself from his failings of the last few months, especially as it related to Jay White. In this scenario, Okada would’ve claimed his redemption against Jay White perhaps during the New Japan Cup, as Jay White would’ve slotted himself into the tournament in an effort to chase after Kenny Omega and put an end to Okada’s resurgence only to be drowned by the torrential deluge of a rejuvenated Rainmaker. With this, Jay White would be in a rebuilding pattern potentially through the IC Championship. After all, Naito stated the idea of claiming both belts, so why should Jay White’s path differ too heavily from screwing with Los Ingobernables now that his feud with the Elite and Chaos is over? In the meantime, Okada would avenge the loss at Dominion 2018 by defeating Kenny Omega at MSG, sending him back down and taking his belt from him. This would re-establish Okada just as effectively as what we saw happen. Okada would’ve put it all behind him: Jay White. Kenny Omega. It would all fall off as the Rainmaker would return to form…and that wouldn’t be the only “return to form” we’d see…

Just Getting Started

After the defeat against Okada at Madison Square Garden, we enter fully, uncharted territory in this scenario. Where does Omega go from here? How does this affect the trajectory of the NJPW story arc around the IWGP Heavyweight Championship? I think the first hint we can get from this goes back to the G1 Climax of 2018, where Kenny Omega, as IWGP Champion, would go on an amazing tear through the tournament before losing in an incredible match against Tomohiro Ishii. Omega’s post-match comments after this defeat were interesting. In it, he threw his loss in the audience’s face, asking the crowd if they were “satisfied” that Omega would not go undefeated at the G1, his stated goal through the tournament, with the idea of giving Ibushi the Championship match at Wrestle Kingdom as a result. Frustrated and combating threats from multiple angles, Omega would stumble, losing to Toru Yano and then, finally, losing to Kota Ibushi, his Golden Lover, in the match that would send Ibushi facing Tanahashi in the finals. This is a glimpse at how Omega handles defeat under particular circumstances. The crowd roaring for Ishii’s victory would not be unlike the Madison Square Garden audience cheering and hanging on to every single move Okada would throw at Kenny Omega, and the redemption of the once-lost Rainmaker in front of his dream crowd would send them into a fervor. After all, this was NJPW. This is the NJPW that they truly wanted to see in the West…and Omega wouldn’t take this laying down.

His next chance would come at the following G1, and I do believe Omega would start the G1 similarly to White’s beginning of the G1. While Omega went on an undefeated streak before dropping his final three matches, Omega would start with three straight losses, an indication of how much his mind and his focus had begun to slip since the defeat. The once-untouchable Best Bout Machine would begin to come undone, and I believe we would’ve seen an Omega much more akin to his days as The Cleaner as a result. The fans would applaud his defeats, finding sympathy in Goto’s chase for the title, hilarity in Yano’s antics, and jubilation in Ishii’s brutal brand of Strong Style…and Omega would, likewise, begin to reject the very audience that he catered to in a superficial desire to be what he thought they wanted him to be.

The G1 would see a different Kenny Omega. A Kenny Omega that has taken his previous experiences to heart, yet at the same time, he would wrestle and win by any means necessary, spitting in the face of the audience that had once embraced Omega as one of their own. In the midst of this, Ibushi would press onward, unimpeded by the forward momentum he had obtained since his signing with NJPW and his claiming of the Intercontinental Championship at the G1 Supercard. Omega’s words for and about his Lover would now contain hints of jealousy. Omega wouldn’t want Ibushi to be near him…because Ibushi would outshine him. Omega would not want to stand in the ring opposite of Ibushi…because Ibushi has beaten him before when it mattered most. So, it would only be fitting to see a perplexed Ibushi confront his lost Lover in the Finals of the G1 that year.

Ibushi and Naito: Star-Crossed Destino

As we know it, Ibushi went on to the finals of the G1, defeating Jay White and claiming his briefcase and contract for Wrestle Kingdom 14. In this, there wasn’t much of a connective tissue between them except for the existing link of the Bullet Club’s influence as mentioned in my previous write-up on the Double Gold Dash. One thing sticks out from the confrontation with Jay White, however. In his post-match interview, when asked about being “alone” in the ring against Jay White and his Bullet Club stablemates, Ibushi stated that he had “always been alone” in the ring. In this situation, this would’ve come to the forefront, as Ibushi would embrace the audience and the fans while Omega would become increasingly jaded, opting for a more brutal approach to his in-ring style that even his love for Ibushi wouldn’t be able to assusage. In their G1 Finals, Omega would’ve potentially triggered the darker, more dangerous side of Ibushi, perhaps in a fit of his own frustration and jealousy, and Ibushi would’ve made him pay dearly for it, channeling this anger into a Kamigoye to send Omega home and Ibushi to Wrestle Kingdom 14’s main-event.

Once again, Ibushi has “always been alone” whereas Omega always had someone at his side and in his corner during his time in NJPW, whether it was the Elite, the Bullet Club, or his Golden Lover supporting him. Omega, now hurt and completely estranged from the crowd that he once held dear, would, for the first time, be completely alone in his journey in NJPW, a feeling that Ibushi held himself despite never stating it so publicly. Omega would have to refind himself, rediscover his passion and find a new goal to get to where he needs to be. Omega, after all, still believes that his style is the best. The Best Bout Machine should not settle for second place…so what if he took the “silver medal” and used it as leverage to “gold”? Omega, from here, would take note of Tetsuya Naito, a man whom, while not directly feuding with one another, have had a shared history within the G1 and outside of direct conflict.

In 2016, Kenny Omega would defeat Tetsuya Naito to eliminate him from the G1, a tournament which Omega won to confront Okada in the main-event. In 2017, it would be Tetsuya Naito’s year to defeat Omega in the Finals of the G1, securing his spot in the main-event against Okada in hopes of righting the wrong from Wrestle Kingdom 8…only for Omega to be challenged by Chris Jericho, resulting in what was promoted as a Double Main-Event much to Naito’s chagrin. Each conflict between Naito and Omega escalated in violence and aggression due to the heated, competitive nature between them both, with Naito especially feeling as if Omega was attempting to overshadow him at each possible moment, and with Omega gunning for him for the same reason that Naito held claim to the IC Championship, the potential of holding both championships, it would settle, without a shadow of a doubt, that Omega was now intentionally looking to stomp Naito out of the title contention and steal his thunder.

Omega-Level Spotlight

Ibushi had stated in an interview after his return to NJPW that while Omega had always stated it was a 50-50 partnership, he had never felt as if it was. Omega, in that time, had become IWGP Heavyweight Champion, and even prior, he had won the G1 Climax, so in its own right, it couldn’t be 50-50. Ibushi would go on to state that without Omega at his side, it would allow him to step out of that shadow. In this scenario, the shadow of Omega would cloud over the entire Road to the Tokyo Dome, as Omega would go on a warpath for Naito and Los Ingobernables de Japon at large. Omega would target Naito not just for the Intercontinental Championship, but in an effort to take his dreams away from him and make them his own. Now that Omega had been ousted as IWGP Champion, lost in the G1 Finals against his Golden Lover, and effectively isolated himself from the audience that once adored him (And that he once embraced), the only thing he had left was what he was at his essence: an attention-seeking, greedy, jealous man who sought to be at the top because it was what he himself wanted. After all, it was he who usurped AJ Styles at New Year’s Dash in 2016, laying waste to him and putting the spotlight on him as he transitioned to Heavyweight. It was Omega who kept Ibushi at his side and stated, in no uncertain terms, that a “clash between the Golden Lovers must be in a legendary building bigger than Budokan”, and, in a way, with Ibushi kept at his side, this would have effectively prevented the clash from happening. Now with Ibushi free and Omega’s anger boiling to the surface, it was Omega’s time to reassert himself as the “Alpha”.

From here, the storyline probably would’ve gone similarly to Jay White’s angle once more. Omega would chase Naito before claiming the IC Title from him, with perhaps Jay White slotting in against Naito in between as opposed to Taichi. After Omega would defeat Naito, Omega would then call out Okada, desperate for a rematch after the humiliating defeat at Madison Square Garden. When NJPW had finally made it to the World’s Most Famous Arena, Omega would suffer his most infamous defeat, and in the eyes of the Cleaner, this couldn’t stand. However, in doing so, he would effectively steal the spotlight from not only Naito, as he’s been wont to do for several years now, but from his Lover, Ibushi. This is when Omega’s true intentions would come to surface, as Ibushi would be standing directly in Omega’s path to history and Okada. This would then result in the Double Gold Dash being made official, as Naito would climb his way back into IC Title Contention, stating that the Double Gold Dash was his mission through the year.

Ibushi would stand firm, holding onto the G1 Briefcase and, perhaps in a show of a new side of Ibushi, he would flaunt it toward Omega as well, noting that it would be him defeating Okada…and then, Omega’s worst fear would be realized should he defeat Naito for the IC Title. If he couldn’t defeat Okada at MSG, how would he fare against Ibushi, a man he has never defeated 1-on-1, at the Tokyo Dome, fulfilling Omega’s words of having their clash at an arena “bigger than Budokan”? Omega would want to avoid this conflict, not wanting to risk losing to his Golden Lover at the Tokyo Dome, and at the same time, he’d want to avenge his loss to Okada at MSG. In the meantime, Naito would push to reclaim the thunder stolen from him by Omega, with the goal in-mind to take down either Omega’s Golden Lover in Ibushi or his own rival in Okada to end his chase and make history. Thus, the Double Gold Dash would be set: Okada vs. Ibushi and Omega vs. Naito would headline Night 1, and then, the winners would face off in Night 2.

Out of the Devil’s Sky

From here, the progression would seem easy to tell. Naito would defeat Omega and then, he’d go on to defeat Okada to claim Double Gold…and perhaps, instead of KENTA making the interruption, we’d have gotten an angry Switchblade cutting into the occasion during the signature roll call. The story for the Tokyo Dome would’ve also been injected with a bit of a personal flavor. Ibushi’s darker half surfacing as it did against Okada was already met with a showering of boos, yet in this case, it might’ve tied into Omega unleashing a darker side of himself as the chase progressed, linking the two almost inextricably right down to their darker tendencies. This can even go further. The Okada/Ibushi match can play out exactly as the actual match did, right down to Ibushi calling out to Omega by using the V-Trigger on Okada in a desperate plea, but by trying to reach out to his partner, it would prove to be Ibushi’s downfall, as the Omega he would face on Night 2 would willingly discard their love and friendship for the chance to beat Ibushi at the Tokyo Dome. As you remember, in the entrance video for Dominion 2018, Ibushi asks Omega “What did it cost?”, to which Omega replies with “Everything…”. Of course, we know it’s a reference to Avengers: Infinity War, but there’s more to it than that.

Omega reaching the top cost him more than others would care to admit. In a way, it cost him the perception that he was the underdog fighting upwards in a foreign land. It cost him the idea that he and his Lover were on equal terms, sacrificing this to put him squarely in his shadow despite his words claiming otherwise. Most importantly, as time went on, it cost him the adulation that he so craved. The acceptance he sought in NJPW would vanish during his run in the G1, right down to the commentary screaming and yelling for Ishii to put him down during their clash. If Omega had stayed, it’d become clear just how much he had lost on his path to the top. The Best Bout Machine who cared about putting on classics would be gone before it even got started. The Cleaner would resurface, and Kenny Omega’s path would be tinged in his darkness, a raging demon scouring the Double Gold Dash and taking out any who stood in his way…including his Golden Lover.

True Destiny

In the end, Naito would still find his way to the top of the mountain in NJPW, but this time, his path would’ve been far more arduous. Instead of his bouts with Taichi, perhaps we would’ve seen Jay White more pronounced in his harassment of Naito, forcing Naito to take down White prior to his conflict with Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 14. This would’ve also added to Naito’s legacy and legitimacy, having been put through Kenny Omega and Kazuchika Okada in two back-to-back nights and coming out on top. Meanwhile, Ibushi would be left on a journey to rediscover himself: would he give in to the darker side of his persona and reunite with his Golden Lover, or would Ibushi, like a phoenix, rise from the ashes of his defeat and allow the Golden Star shine brightly through the Devil’s Sky? All told, all paths led to the defeat of the Rainmaker as destiny ordained the crowning of NJPW’s Shuyaku, but the path of the Golden Lovers would’ve been a much more personal, winding path… What Could Have Been…

Fin~