12 Biggest Stories From New Japan's Power Struggle And What They Mean Going Forward
1. Tetsuya Naito Granted Rematch Despite Chris Jericho Refusing Challenge
After the match, Jericho again locked EVIL in the Walls of Jericho but Tetsuya Naito ran in to save his friend and stablemate, running the Intercontinental Champion off. As Jericho walked up the entranceway he continually shouted at Naito, “You want it?” The LIJ leader then took to the microphone to officially issue a challenge for Jericho's belt. However, Jericho responded backstage during his post-match comments by stating that there would be “no rematch for Naito… ever,” and that while he made Naito famous previously, if the Los Ingobernables leader wanted to be famous again, he’d have to “find somebody else.”
Despite Jericho’s insistence that the rematch won’t happen, it was announced during a press conference on Monday that the bout has been made official. The 4 January Tokyo Dome show will see Naito vie for the Intercontinental Championship. With Jericho making it clear that he had no intention of granting the match, he's sure to be unhappy with the decision of New Japan officials. Just what his retort to that decision will be is unknown, but the so-called Alpha has continually proved he's capable of just about anything.
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