Oh, lemme tell ya, that big ol’ match between Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 11 – now that was a real showdown! Folks were lookin’ forward to it like nothin’ else. These two, well, they was wrestlin’ for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, and let me tell ya, it was like seein’ two bulls lock horns in the middle of that ring.
Now, I ain’t no expert or nothin’, but Wrestle Kingdom 11, that’s somethin’ special over there in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). This here event, it pulls folks from all around the world to watch on that NJPW World – that there’s the internet, ya know? Well, on January 4, 2017, this match had the internet all fired up, with folks talkin’ about Okada and Omega like they was family or somethin’. And that Kenny Omega, well, he didn’t just show up like he was there to play, nah, he came in like a storm, tryin’ to take Okada’s belt right off him.
Now, Kenny, he’d been wrestlin’ in NJPW since about 2014, if I recall right. And he’d picked up a few belts along the way, the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship too. He was good, real good, ya see, but Okada? Okada was like the king o’ the mountain, defendin’ that belt with all he had. That’s how it was, two fellas wantin’ the same thing, but only one belt to go ‘round.
So, that match started up, and right from the get-go, it was clear: neither of ‘em was backin’ down. They went at it like two hungry dogs after a bone. Omega, well, he tried one o’ them Muta-style flashin’ elbows, and Okada, he just dodged right out the way, slick as ya like. And then what d’ya think happened? Okada goes in with a senton, tryin’ to get the upper hand, but Omega slips right out the way too!
Now, the crowd, they were roarin’ by now. Folks was standin’ up, cheerin’ like they was at a hometown fair or somethin’. They’d come to see a battle, and boy, they got one! These two was like cats, twistin’ and turnin’ every which way. Omega, he hit Okada with his moves, and Okada, he kept gettin’ back up, like one o’ them toys ya punch, and it just keeps poppin’ right back.
Then there was that big moment, let me tell ya – Omega goin’ for the One-Winged Angel, which is one o’ his biggest moves, ya know. Folks thought for sure he had it; he was just about to get Okada down for good. But no sir, Okada wriggled out of it, faster than a rabbit runnin’ from a fox! And not long after that, Okada hit him with his Rainmaker, that big ol’ finisher o’ his, layin’ Omega out flat.
By this time, folks in the crowd were breathin’ hard, like they was the ones in the ring. Omega got up after that, though, which got everyone thinkin’, “Could he do it?” But no, Okada didn’t give in either. This match just kept on goin’, both of ‘em refusin’ to stay down. It was long, too – I heard folks sayin’ it went almost 47 minutes, if ya can believe it!
So anyhow, after all that battlin’, Okada managed to keep that there championship belt. He’d done it, defended his title against one of the best wrestlers out there. Now, after this match, everyone was talkin’ ‘bout how Omega and Okada put NJPW on the map in a big way. Folks in America and everywhere else were startin’ to pay attention, sayin’ this was one of the best matches they’d ever seen.
And ya know, Omega, he left NJPW a couple years after, went on to AEW in 2019, but folks still talk ‘bout that match. They say it’s one o’ the best, and even though I ain’t seen too many, I reckon they’re right. Wrestle Kingdom 11 became one o’ those events people talk ‘bout for years – like when folks talk ‘bout old legends and the stories never die. So, there ya have it, two o’ the best, givin’ folks a show they’d never forget. And I tell ya, that’s the kinda stuff that sticks with ya.
Tags：[Kazuchika Okada, Kenny Omega, Wrestle Kingdom 11, NJPW, IWGP Heavyweight Championship]
