10 Booking Steps For Kenny Omega As IWGP Heavyweight Champion
8. ...With A BIG Finish
A fiendishly exciting encounter loaded with long-term booking implications either side of it, the first bout between Golden Lovers Kota Ibushi and Kenny Omega since their tear-soaked reunion should be a sportsmanlike effort until Ibushi's tacit thirst for Kenny's title takes over in the closing stretch.
Their deep bond goes beyond anything between the ropes, but the towel slung over Kota's shoulder during Omega's epic with Kazuchika Okada betrayed the inspiration Ibushi had allegedly provided 'The Best Bout Machine' in the run up to their legendary clash. Was Kota - like Cody a year earlier - prepared to surrender on Kenny's behalf? And what did that say for his own training and preparation; the very tools that helped his Lover ascend?
These questions will still linger following their B Block clash, but Kota's unexpected will to win here and in an eventual final against Okada. Cynically targeting Omega's weak spots (despite a show-closing hug after the fact), Ibushi's gloat over beating the two men that assembled the greatest pro wrestling match in industry history will be as strong a claim for a Wrestle Kingdom title shot as the briefcase he'll carry all the way to the Tokyo Dome.