40 Years Of Fascinating WWE WrestleMania Facts (Part 4)
7. WrestleMania 34 - NJPW's Influence On WrestleMania Was Never Bigger
There was no All Elite Wrestling in 2018, Impact Wrestling and Ring Of Honor had never felt further adrift from the wrestling mainstream, and the seismic All In hype was yet to kick into overdrive ahead of an industry-changing night in Chicago.
In these respects, WWE's North American monopoly looked in rude health, but between major influences to the booking of the card and some notable attendees, the market leader's newest opposition made itself clearer than ever.
New Japan Pro-Wrestling was still riding monumental highs at home, but the net was spreading wider to the west. Shinsuke Nakamura's Royal Rumble win set up a Wrestle Kingdom rematch with AJ Styles that ultimately failed to live up to expectations, but it also drew the attention of friends and former colleagues Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kazuchika Okada, Minoru Suzuki, Tomohiro Ishii and Juice Robinson. The five were in attendance for the WWE Championship match, having individually and collectively drawn some headlines of their own under Gedo's once-impeccable pencil.