Last night on Dynamite, the so-called forbidden door between All Elite Wrestling (AEW) & New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) was kicked down by none other than KENTA. After Jon Moxley showed up on New Japan Strong to face down his next challenger for the IWGP United States Championship, KENTA wasn’t going to wait to strike back.
He would show up following the excellent six man tag team main event, which saw Kenny Omega & The Good Brothers defeat Jon Moxley, PAC & Rey Fenix. While this could be seen as Bullet Club helping it’s old members, it’s more than that. After rumors have bubbled since the very start of AEW, there is finally a working relationship between them and NJPW.
This was confirmed by Dave Meltzer on today’s Wrestling Observer Radio episode. The pandemic changing how the business works & the departure of Harold Meij from NJPW were major factors in this choice.
The Clip Was Uploaded To NJPW World In Record Time
While this appearance was obviously cleared by NJPW, KENTA wasn’t going rogue and asking for forgiveness afterwards, no one expected NJPW to upload the clip to their own streaming service so quickly. However, it’s already up on NJPW World.
This marks the first time Kenny Omega, Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson have shown up in new footage on the service since they left the company. Omega was only recently added back to the highlights before the G1 Climax during this past year’s tournament. Whatever hard feelings there were after the exit of Omega & The Young Bucks are mended, and now fans can get what they’ve been wanting. However, we will have to remain patient for the moment.
Don’t Expect NJPW Stars To Start Showing Up On Dynamite Frequently
While the sudden debut of KENTA was certainly a shocking moment, we can’t instantly expect names like Kota Ibushi, Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi to show up on AEW Dynamite. As cool as that would be, it’s simply not currently feasible with travel restrictions set in place due to COVID-19.
The reason KENTA was able to show up is that he resides in Florida, having moved there during his time in WWE as Hideo Itami. He was not in Japan for the New Beginning Tour, having returned home after Wrestle Kingdom. There are a few others who frequent America, namely other Bullet Club members Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa.
For now, we could see more names pop up, but until COVID-19 is more under control, fans will have to wait and see what this new AEW & NJPW partnership has to offer. What matches do you hope to see from AEW & NJPW once travel is more open? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
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