As the IWGP United States Champion Kenny Omega prepares to go up against WWE legend Chris Jericho at Wrestle Kingdom 12 on January 4th, Omega spoke with Sports Illustrated to discuss his match with Jericho.
“I really want this match to be a wake-up call to New Japan and WWE. This match is going to open up a lot of eyes, and it’s going to invoke a feeling you’ve never felt when watching a wrestling match. It’s a clash of unique worlds, and the match we’re going to show with aggression, violence, and disdain is going to evoke a new kind of emotion from people watching.”
“We knew there was a small chance of that ever happening, but what we wanted to do was engage the fans with something that could be really fun. We wanted to show the idea of us working together and having this social media feud was fun for everyone, even if it was just a dream match. Now we almost have just that: a super-special guest from WWE in Chris Jericho, a disciple of Vince McMahon, coming into New Japan Pro Wrestling after saying he’d never work for anyone else but Vince.”
“It’s ascended to a new height. It’s no longer, ‘What would happen if Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega fought?’ At Wrestle Kingdom 12, this match will actually happen. There will be a pay-off, and the success of this match could lead to more cross-over for the sake of good business.”
Kenny Omega also spoke about the WWE as a whole in comparison to New Japan.
“I don’t feel that WWE has anyone on the main event level that can compete with us. Both of our shows are for the spectacle, but our main events are going to be treated differently than what WWE puts on for WrestleMania. If we’re going to go match quality to match quality, then I can see our two main events really providing the full spectrum of what two storyline-driven main events can be with next-level athletics.”
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