THE AGE OF THE LION’S MARK:
THE STORY OF NJPW IN 2018
By Jasmine Olan
As 2018 nears its end, it is now time to look back on what has been another banner year for one of wrestling’s most respected promotions. This year New Japan Pro Wrestling once again raised the bar in terms of story telling and match quality and gave fans moments they will not soon forget. From outstanding comebacks and debuts to monumental crowning achievements for some of New Japan’s finest, the current renaissance taking place within the promotion is still showing little to no sign of slowing down. This year saw more of the company’s gaijin push to make their mark and their home grown talent continue to show why they are counted among the best in the world. 2018 has proven to be a year of continued growth. One thing that didn’t change in 2018 is that talent and passion were still the name of the game.
The year began with a night filled with critically acclaimed matches at WRESTLE KINGDOM 12. New Japan’s biggest night of the year saw Kenny Omega defeat Chris Jericho in the knockdown drag out fight that was the co main event. That night, NJPW also proved the continued success of its Young Lions program as Jay White returned from excursion to go one on one with The Ace Of The Universe, Hiroshi Tanahashi. Sho Tanaka and Yohei Komatsu also returned from excursion that night to defeat the Young Bucks for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships in their main roster debut as Roppongi 3K. WRESTLE KINGDOM 12 came to a close with then IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kazuchika Okada successfully defending his title against two time G1 Climax winner Tetsuya Naito.
Perhaps the greatest new beginning of the year was had by the Best Bout Machine, Kenny Omega. This year Kenny not only had the biggest crowning moment of his career to date, but was also one half of one of the most groundbreaking and emotionally gripping wrestling storylines of wrestling’s modern era. On January 28th at NEW BEGINNING IN SAPPORO, Kenny reunited with long time partner, Kota Ibushi after a betrayal at the hands of his Bullet Club stable mates. New Japan Pro-Wrestling showed a huge amount of bravery as they took on their first ever same sex love story. Throughout the rest of the year, fans got to see the relationship between the Golden Lovers continue to evolve as their storyline was woven into the larger story arc of the fracturing of the Bullet Club.
Later on in the year at DOMINION 6.9, Kenny would get his crowning moment as well as the chance to heal his strained friendship with the Young Bucks when the Golden ELITE was formed that same night. Love was on Kenny’s side when he ended Kazuchika Okada’s historic 720 day title reign as IWGP Heavyweight Champion. As New Japan’s number one gaijin, Kenny Omega remains the face of the promotion’s ongoing global expansion. It will definitely be exciting to see how things evolve for him in 2019. 2018 has also been the year that saw a living legend began making a major comeback.
For nearly two decades the Once In a Century Talent, Hiroshi Tanahashi has been a true staple of New Japan Pro-Wrestling. He truly embodies everything that the New Japan lion’s mark stands for. He faced some tough struggles over the past couple of years, but came back stronger than ever winning the prestigious G1 Climax tournament for the third time. His historic rivalry with the Rainmaker, Kazuchika Okada was revisited this year and even saw the two working together as allies during the latter part of the year as they feuded with the Bullet Club. Tanahashi is also now embroiled in a battle of ideologies with current IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Kenny Omega and looks to earn NJPW’s highest honor for an unprecedented eighth time. As time progresses, the Ace will no doubt continue to cement his legacy in the coming years.
Now the time draws near for another great new beginning at WRESTLE KINGDOM 13 in the historic Tokyo Dome. With a card that is shaping up to be positively outstanding, New Japan is definitely ready to continue being a true standard bearer within the wrestling world. While also being a year of great success, 2018 has also been a year of learning and evolution for NJPW as titles have changed hands and some performers have come and gone. That learning process will continue in 2019 with even greater success sure to come. Fans will be watching every step of the way, and talent and passion will forever be at the forefront of this ongoing movement.
