10 Reasons To Stick With NJPW After Wrestle Kingdom 12
2. Naito's Redemption Arc
Wrestle Kingdom 12's main event was utterly shocking.
All signs pointed towards Tetsuya Naito finally overcoming his WK8 misery, when he and Kazuchika Okada were voted out of the main event slot on account of the former's lack of popularity. Naito has been on one hell of a journey since then, having surged to become Japan's most popular wrestler after adopting his impossibly cool 'Ingobernable' persona in 2015, with his heat peaking at just the right time for a huge title change.
The Tokyo Dome was firmly behind him, and created a white-hot cauldron of noise comparable to Cena vs. Punk at Money In The Bank 2011, but it wasn't to be. Naito went too far. His failed 'Stardust Genius' personality returned, and he went tried Destino finisher too many. Okada took full advantage. The champ's match-winning Rainmaker stunned the audience to silence, and set the stage for another redemption story, similar to Okada's own in the wake of his loss to Hiroshi Tanahashi at WK9.
This fascinating for Naito's character. WK12 saw him knocked down again, and having overcome so many odds to make it back to that stage in the first place, it'll be exciting to see how he rebounds. Can he ever truly make the top spot his own, or is he destined to be Okada's 1B forever? We'll find out over the coming months...