Kazuchika Okada "Never Coming Back To New Japan"
Kazuchika Okada bids farewell to NJPW... and intends to never return.
Having formally bid farewell to New Japan Pro-Wrestling this weekend at New Beginning in Sapporo Night 2, those hoping for Kazuchika Okada to one day return to NJPW could be left disappointed.
That same show saw Tetsuya Naito successfully defend his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against SANADA, with Okada joining Naito in the ring post-match for the two long-time rivals to share one last moment together.
When the Rainmaker was later asked by Tokyo Sports (via Fightful) about the possibility of facing Naito one more time, he shot down the idea of not just that match, but seemingly of ever returning to NJPW in the future.
As Okada detailed:
"I'm already looking ahead to what's next, and I'm going out with the intention of never coming back to New Japan. I'm sorry about that, but I don't think so. Of course, I want to treasure the feeling and the words I received."
Having announced earlier this year his intention to finish up with NJPW when his deal expired in January, Okada stuck around to work several February dates for the promotion.
As for his future, there's been no official confirmation on where Kazuchika Okada will end up, with WWE and AEW both clearly having interest in the 36-year-old. The latest rumblings on this matter indicated that Okada's future will be decided by what he deems to be the bigger priorities; have more earning potential in WWE and work a safer style of more frequent matches on a larger stage, or be paid extremely well in AEW and work a harder style of far fewer matches while having the option to work outside dates.
Of course, there is also plentiful speculation that Okada is AEW-bound, and that he may even appear at the Big Business edition of AEW Dynamite from Boston's TD Garden on 13 March.