Kenny Omega attacked IWGP Heavyweight Champion Yota Tsuji after NJPW King of Pro-Wrestling on Monday, then proposed a three-way match with Oleg Boltin at Power Struggle on November 3 that would earn him a title shot if he wins.
Tsuji had just retained against G1 Climax winner Ryohei Oiwa in a 35-minute main event at Ryogoku Kokugikan, his second defense of the title, when the lights went out during his post-match speech. Omega appeared on the entrance screen in a pre-taped video.
Omega called out Tsuji for skipping Forbidden Door, pointing out that the I in IWGP stands for International. POST Wrestling reported that he closed the video by telling Tsuji, “Show me, now, why you believe in the New Japan of today.”
Tsuji answered that if Omega wants the IWGP Heavyweight Championship, he has to come to Japan. In the storyline, Omega was already there. Boltin marched to the ring to stake his own claim, only for Omega to hit him from behind and then lay out Tsuji with a V-Trigger and the One Winged Angel. Omega held the title belt aloft afterward.
The Ryogoku crowd had cheered Omega’s video, but F4W/WON reported that the fans booed once he attacked the champion. On the mic, Omega accused Tsuji of having no manners and no class and reminded the building that he considers himself an NJPW legend. He then turned to NJPW president Hiroshi Tanahashi, saying Tanahashi has the clout to make the match happen even if Tsuji won’t accept it.
Omega pitches a three-way at Power Struggle
Backstage, Omega acknowledged that he isn’t the number one contender and pitched a three-way against Tsuji and Boltin at Power Struggle in Hiroshima. He said he’d accept a non-title match, with a win earning him a shot at Tsuji’s belt. For now it’s Omega’s proposal, and no official announcement has been reported.
The show is already taking shape. Taichi will challenge Gabe Kidd for the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship, and Will Ospreay and Callum Newman earned an IWGP Tag Team Championship match at King of Pro-Wrestling.
The heat has real-world roots. Tsuji sat out Forbidden Door earlier this year after urging NJPW wrestlers to boycott the show over what he saw as AEW’s disrespect toward NJPW and the IWGP title, Wrestling Inc reported. Omega, meanwhile, pinned Zack Sabre Jr. on that card, and he reportedly faces a major AEW contract decision in 2027.
