When it comes to the current crop of Young Lions within NJPW, there is a new addition who stands out. This is 22 yar old Gabriel Kidd, who has entered the dojo system already an experienced wrestler with a few years of top level experience. He is relearning his style, and has become a very stiff worker under Katsuyori Shibata, but he already had the style and timing a star needed. He will be refined as a young lion, and perhaps become one of the biggest stars of the decade.
His Resume Of Big Name Victories
Kidd first got his exposure as part of the now defunct What Culture Pro Wrestling (later Defiant Wrestling), where he would hold their Internet Championship. During his time with that title, which he defeated Cody Rhodes to claim, he also beat Zack Sabre Jr., Zack Gibson, Joe Coffey, and Travis Banks. Cody Rhodes & ZSJ are two of the biggest names in wrestling today, and both are well established within NJPW. Cody is a former IWGP United States Champion, and ZSJ has come within inches of being the IWGP Heavyweight Champion, and has put on absolute classics with the likes of Kazuchika Okada & Will Ospreay.
Those victories also came as a very fresh rookie, and he is now refining his skill set. This extra training and guidance will put him over the top, and make him one of the best in the world.
Could Gabriel Kidd Become Tiger Mask V?
Since joining NJPW as a young lion, he has found a mentor of sorts in the current incarnation of Tiger Mask. Yoshihiro Yamazaki is the fourth man to hold the gimmick of Tiger Mask, and has been in it since 1995. It will soon be time to reboot the character, and we could see Gabriel Kidd groomed into that role. He would join the likes of Satoru Sayama, Mitsuharu Misawa and Koji Kanemoto, which would sit him alongside some of the biggest legends in wrestling. It would be a huge responsibility, but with Kidd having insanely high potential as a wrestler, and being only 22, he could have time to truly make the gimmick his own.
Are you familiar with the work of Gabriel Kidd, and if so, do you think he could be a good fit for the character of Tiger Mask? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
SUBSCRIBE NOW: Get The Overtimer’s Hottest Stories, Breaking News and Special Features in your email, CLICK HERE!
