At Wrestle Kingdom 14 in the Tokyo Dome, Tetsuya Naito achieved his destiny of becoming the first man to hold both the IWGP Intercontinental & Heavyweight Championships. He defeated Jay White on Night One to win the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. He then bested Kazuchika Okada on Night Two to win the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Following this historic feat, he would be blasted from behind by Bullet Club member KENTA. This attack has lead to Naito wanting revenge on KENTA. This could come at the cost of both his titles as he will defend them both against KENTA. Their match will take place at New Beginning in Osaka.
How Will Tetsuya Naito Defend Both Titles?
Fans were curious on how the belts would be defended now that one man holds them. It could have been similar to how Becky Lynch would defend both titles on the same night when she held the RAW & Smackdown Womens Championships following Wrestlemania last year. Instead it seems like it will simply be a winner takes all match once again, atleast for this first defense. With a double champion of two major singles titles like this being unprecedented in New Japan Pro Wrestling, they are likely still trying to figure out how they will handle this going forward. We could see Naito defend a singular championship down the line. On the other hand, it could be all or nothing in every title match going forward.
Could We See The Titles Be Unified?
We could even see NJPW completely unify both titles and replace the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. They could fill it’s role with their new United States title instead. It would be a shame to see a championship with an already storied legacy like the IWGP Intercontinental Championship be retired, but NJPW is getting to a point where they have too many singles championships. The IWGP United States, Intercontinental, and NEVER Openweight Championships all cover similar roles.
The Intercontinental is the oldest title of this bunch, being debuted in 2011 when MVP won a tournament to become the initial champion. He beat Toru Yano in the finals of a tournament which also included a young Kazuchika Okada & Tetsuya Naito. Okada & Naito were both Young Lions at the time. It has since went on to be held by the likes of Kenny Omega, Hiroshi Tanahashi, Minoru Suzuki, Kota Ibushi, and of course, Tetsuya Naito.
Are you excited to see Tetsuya Naito get his revenge on KENTA. Do you want to see him lose both titles? Let us know in the comment section down below.
