8 Ups & 6 Downs From NJPW King Of Pro-Wrestling 2019

3. Okada Goes 7-1 Vs. SANADA

While SANADA vs. Kazuchika Okada suffered similar problems to EVIL vs. Kota Ibushi in that the outcome was never in doubt, this was a lot easier to buy into on account of the duo's ongoing story.

This was Okada and SANADA's eighth singles clash. 'Cold Skull' has spent the past few years edging closer and closer to an elusive singles victory over the 'Rainmaker,' and finally got it in this year's G1 Climax, effectively setting this main event up. It was a huge, cathartic moment for the Los Ingobernables de Japon man, and it was received as such by the audience, who were totally in-tune with his triumph. Thus, Okada and SANADA at least had that history to build on.

The duo are so impossibly slick that it'd be ridiculously tough for them to have a bad match and Okada, the modern wrestling God, worked his magic to dramatise a routine outcome. The man's late kickouts at 2.99 are a thing of beauty. They're so impeccably timed that you could probably place Okada in a main event with YOSHI-HASHI and have people biting, so full credit to him and his opponent for navigating any concerns.

Okada's inevitable victory was followed by Kota Ibushi's appearance. Their Tokyo Dome date finally set in stone, it looks like the duo will collide in night one's main event, with 'The Golden Star's' lust for the IWGP and Intercontinental Championships keeping those winner-takes-all tournament rumours alive.