It's Time For NJPW's Super Jr's To Headline Wrestle Kingdom
Let's Recap: Will Ospreay's Main Event Caliber-year
His lights-out performance across the duration of the BOSJ tournament – which culminated in a mat classic, 5.75-star match with Shingo Takagi – rewarded Ospreay with a win over Dragon Lee for the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship at NJPW Dominion in June.
He has since carried the title with swagger, and exploited the ring better than even peak Shawn Michaels, who averaged a ~3.5 rating in 28 matches throughout his transcendent run from 1995-97 in the WWF.
The charismatic Brit hasn't just followed in Shawn's footsteps; he's cartwheeled past them into one of the most memorable pro wrestling runs in recent history. After an incredible showing in the G1 Tournament this year which resulted in another 5.75-star match with Kazuchika Okada, Ospreay and arch nemesis El Phantasmo started one of the best feuds in the business.
The pair delighted fans in the U.S. at the Super J Cup, and went on to compete carrying a trio of belts defended in both singles and tag matches from King of Pro Wrestling to the Super Junior Tag Tournament. Ospreay only defeats came due to interference by the Bullet Club and EL-P's penchant for sneaky shots to the nuts and other dirty tricks of the trade.
Following the one vs. one in Australia that pulled the very best from Robbie Eagles, the two formed an intercontinental tag-team that put on some of the best performances of the summer, pushing the IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champions to their limit and narrowly losing out to a shot at the straps.
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