10 Early Predictions For NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 13

3. IWGP Intercontinental Championship — Tetsuya Naito (C) Vs. Kota Ibushi

Kota Ibushi Tetsuya Naito
NJPW1972.com

Chris Jericho is the reigning IWGP Intercontinental Champion, and there is every chance that the legendary Y2J could make it all the way to Wrestle Kingdom without defending that title. There have been rumours of a Tokyo Dome showdown with Kazuchika Okada, which could very well come to pass. It is just as likely that Jericho will drop the title back to Tetsuya Naito however.

It has been a strange 12 months for Naito. The world and its dog expected him to defeat Okada at Wrestle Kingdom 12, but the Stardust Genius once again proved to be his own worst enemy and the Rainmaker retained. As we begin the build to Wrestle Kingdom 13, the IWGP Heavyweight Championship seems further away than ever for the leader of Los Ingobernables de Japon.

Naito and Kota Ibushi are the two odd men out heading towards Wrestle Kingdom 13, so why not pit them against each other? Even better, put the IWGP Intercontinental Championship on the line! Naito may have outgrown the belt, but its role in his rise cannot be overstated. As for Ibushi, the Golden Star has come close to winning the famous white strap on a number of occasions — will he climb that mountain in 2019?

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Born in the middle of Wales in the middle of the 1980's, John can't quite remember when he started watching wrestling but he has a terrible feeling that Dino Bravo was involved. Now living in Prague, John spends most of his time trying to work out how Tomohiro Ishii still stands upright. His favourite wrestler of all time is Dean Malenko, but really it is Repo Man. He is the author of 'An Illustrated History of Slavic Misery', the best book about the Slavic people that you haven't yet read. You can get that and others from www.poshlostbooks.com.