4 Ups & 4 Downs From NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 15 (Night 1)

3. Great-O-Khan Stands Out In Defeat

Should Great-O-Khan have defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi at WK15? Yes, that would have been good for him, though there's no shame in losing to one of the greatest wrestlers of all time inside the Tokyo Dome. Like Jay White at Wrestle Kingdom 12, O-Khan will rebound at this early stage in his career.

The former Tomoyuki Oka is in a similar place to where White was three years ago. Facing the Ace in a proving grounds match, he still splits opinion and hasn't yet put all the pieces together, as he experiments with what works and what doesn't. Again, like White, NJPW clearly wants him to be a big deal, with facing Tanahashi in the Dome a key part of that. Enter a shoddy performance against the most important wrestler in company history and he'd be toast.

Fortunately, O-Khan looked good in defeat. His look, style, and movement continue to make him feel distinct from anyone else on the roster. Whether he's slapping on claw holds from abdominal stretches or trying to lure opponents into his traps on the ground, he works unlike anyone else in the promotion. NJPW needs more wrestlers like that - particularly at the moment.

Tanahashi took the win via High Fly Flow, having prevented O-Khan from bringing a steel chair into play. This would be the surging Empire stable's first big setback on the night...