10 Early Predictions For NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12
10. The New Japan Rumble
The Wrestle Kingdom 12 pre-show will almost certainly feature the annual New Japan Rumble. This is a match that resembles WWE's Royal Rumble, but eliminations can also come via pinfall or submission. It is almost always a throwaway bit of fun, a way of getting everyone else on the card and warming up the crowd ahead of the main show.
The Rumble usually features a mixture of current performers and nostalgic entries, and predicting a winner is largely a futile task. Michael Elgin was a worthy victor in 2017, but Jado (of all people) stood tall the year prior. The winner usually gets a shot at a championship later in the year.
For the sake of conversation, let's go ahead and say that the 2018 edition of the New Japan Rumble will be won by a particularly grumpy Togi Makabe. With Honma out injured, Makabe's presence on the card is dwindling all the time. The man is still a star in Japan though, so don't expect him to come up short in a throwaway match.
Expect a strong performance from Katsuya Kitamura and surprise entries from Scott Norton, Lance Archer and others, including at least one ex-WWE star. Let's go with a random Bully Ray appearance.