Chris Jericho Attacks Tetsuya Naito, Staying In New Japan?
Wrestle Kingdom 12 spoilers within...
Jan 5, 2018
THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS FROM NJPW WRESTLE KINGDOM 12
Chris Jericho attacked Tetsuya Naito at today's NJPW New Year Dash show, all but confirming that he is to stay in New Japan for at least one more match.
Naito had just finished cutting a post-match promo, following a multi-man tag bout between members of the LIJ and CHAOS stables. Naito himself picked up the win with a pinfall over YOSHI-HASHI, before leading his teammates in a beatdown of IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada.
After Naito's promo, all other LIJ members left the ring, allowing their leader to soak in the acclaim of the Korakuen Hall crowd. However, this also left him open to an attack from Chris Jericho, who had lost his hugely-hyped match with Kenny Omega on the previous night's show.
https://twitter.com/MrLARIATO/status/949251953799958529
Naito also lost his Wrestle Kingdom match, failing to defeat Okada in the main event. In the build-up, Jericho and Naito had sniped at each other on social media and in the press, arguing over which bout was the true main event of Wrestle Kingdom.
Now, having lost their respective matches, it seems as though the pair will clash at a big New Japan event in the future - possibly the March show in Long Beach, CA. This should put end to speculation that Y2J's stint in NJPW was simply a 'one and done' deal.
It does make sense that New Japan would be keen to boost their global profile by booking Jericho in the main event of a US show - especially after the success of their first foray into North America with a two-night event last summer.
Other storyline developments at New Year Dash saw Kenny Omega welcome Jay White into Bullet Club, only for White to reject the offer and attack Omega - probably setting up a feud for the IWGP United States Championship. Elsewhere, freshly shaven-headed Minoru Suzuki beat down Hiroshi Tanahashi with the help of his stablemates, announcing his intention to challenge for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.