AEW superstar and current number one contender Kenny Omega recently spoke with the Wrestling Observer to discuss all things pro-wrestling, including how he still feels attached to the NJPW product, and how his history with long-time partner/rival Kota Ibushi continues to write a larger story. Highlights are below.
How his exit from NJPW and Ibushi’s rise to stardom play into a larger story:
As life goes on and you separate from these individuals, it’s like those stories kind of get put in the back burner a little bit, but they don’t really ever die out. No one I believe ever really forgets. So you have me exiting New Japan for a period of time after losing to Tanahashi. Then, you see Ibushi team up with Tanahashi. They have their storyline together and of course, then [Kota would end up] winning the G-1 for the second time in a row and just developing more into a megastar that he deserves to be. It’s like even though we’re not linked or connected right now in the wrestling world, there are these things that definitely add to the story, even even though they’re not directly connected to one another. These are all things that could play into a series of matches, not necessarily even singles. Yeah, it could lead to that. But these are all things that work hand in hand with one another.
Says he still feels attached to NJPW even though he’s been gone:
But for the sake of Ibushi, it’s like our life experiences, being apart from one another, all play into a larger story. I could just press the unpause button [and] It’ll be interesting. Just because there’s so much material to use from our careers that have existed outside and apart from one another. So, it’s a shame we couldn’t continue the story right away, but I just feel that, you know, I had so many memorable moments with a lot of their roster that by Ibushi having memorable moments with their roster as well, it sort of fuels future storylines if we are ever to return to it. So I never feel like we’ve grown too far apart or now it doesn’t make sense anymore. I still feel as attached to that scene as I ever have, even though I’ve been gone for so long.
Thinks there is a lot of opportunity for AEW and NJPW to work together:
I feel like it would be so easy for guys to show up here or us to show up there. There’s so many common threads, Moxley’s got the US title and all that. You know, Ibushi had the thing with Jay White, who is Bullet Club and I was Bullet Club and now I’m not, you know what I mean? There’s so many things to play off of.
(H/T and transcribed by Fightful)
