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As WWE and NJPW compete for worldwide supremacy, they will always try to steal talent from each other. Sometimes it works out and sometimes it does not. Sometimes a prospect from WWE or NXT flourishes in NJPW (Juice Robinson), while at other times a talented wrestler from NJPW joins the WWE and receives the global recognition they may not have normally received in Japan (until recently).
The main problem with an NJPW wrestler transitioning to WWE is how WWE views Japanese superstars.
Traditionally, however, WWE has not booked Japanese wrestlers well. From Kaientai to Kenzo Suzuki to Tajiri, WWE hasn't always been the kindest to those wrestlers from the Land of the Rising Sun.
Shinsuke Nakamura was able to adapt because he has so much charisma. He was given WWE Championship matches, but they didn't want to pull the trigger on Nakamura as champ. He's currently the United States Champion, if you didn't know. He's barely on Smackdown from week to week.
Asuka suffered the same fate. She is arguably the best female talent on either show, yet they wasted her Royal Rumble win. I fear that any Japanese wrestler signed by WWE is likely to be booked insufficiently. Just ask Hideo Itami.
Gaijin like AJ Styles or Finn Balor, however, have been booked in the main event. Balor was the first ever Universal Champion while Styles has either been the WWE Champion or has consistently been in the title picture.
Gallows and Anderson did enter WWE with a bang, but you'd be hard-pressed to notice them on Smackdown any more.
The following wrestlers might be signed by WWE at some point. Hopefully, they will be booked near the way they have been in NJPW.
#1 Bad Luck Fale
Bad Luck Fale is as responsible for the Bullet Club as Finn Balor/Prince Devitt is. They were both there at the beginning and Fale has remained with the NJPW throughout the success the faction has had.
AJ Styles, Balor, Adam Cole, Gallows and Anderson were just the first few members of the worldwide juggernaut to be signed by the WWE. If history has taught us anything, it's that WWE will try to sign up any faction that garners the amount of global success that the BC has experienced.
Fale would be a perfect monster heel. He could translate his 'Underboss' character easily to the WWE as an enforcer for a new faction or a group like the Undisputed Era. He's clearly talented athletically as he was first a rugby player before shifting gears to professional wrestling. It wouldn't be the first time WWE looked to a wrestler with a background in another sport (gymnastics, American Football, rugby, soccer).
Let him be a monster like Lars Sullivan currently is in NXT. Anything else would be a mistake.
#2 Tama Tonga
Tama Tonga is another guy who has been a foundation on which the Bullet Club has enjoyed continual success. The adopted son of Haku has proven to be both a special talent in tag matches and in single matches.
He's held the NJPW Heavyweight Tag Team titles four times and is the current champion with his adoptive brother, Tanga Loa.
Tonga is another guy who just oozes charisma. He's always singing and rapping when he's headed to the ring and he understands that facial expressions are just as important as your physical ability on the mat.
Tama seems like a smaller, quicker and (hard to believe) even more explosive version of Roman Reigns. His fluidity between the ropes is impressive.
If WWE were to sign him, they'd have to let him be himself. Let him be loud and brash. He can certainly back it up in the ring and doesn't seem like someone who would back down from anyone. Just don't put him in the dang Cruiserweight Division.
#3 Kota Ibushi
Fans not familiar with Ibushi got just a taste of his talents during the Cruiserweight Classic. He blends speed, agility and strength in a package that few possess. He can kick you to death with his kicks, wow you with his Golden Triangle Moonsault or dead-lift suplex you.
Ibushi had a run to the semifinals of the classic before falling to eventual winner TJ Perkins. One could say Ibushi made the right decision by not signing a full-time contract then with WWE. The Cruiserweight Division hasn't been as respectable as it was during the tournament. Things have improved with Triple H behind the wheel of the division, but it rarely receives a constant spotlight.
Ibushi enjoys his freedom as a freelancer. Who doesn't? Being allowed to work as much or as little and anywhere he wants is appealing to Ibushi and guys like the Young Bucks.
He might remind you of a Japanese Daniel Bryan. He isn't the biggest or baddest, but he's damn tough, agile and has amazing resiliency. It is a sight to behold when he enters into a strike-fest with anyone.
If he did sign with WWE, he would need assurances that his booking wouldn't be wishy-washy like Nakamura's. He should stay away from the Cruiserweight Division but would be a great mid-card champion with the option to dabble in the main-event scene. Would WWE allow him to do so?
#4 Tetsuya Naito
Naito has an advantage over a lot of the other Japanese wrestlers in NJPW - he has a distinct and popular character.
Tomohiro Ishii and Hirooki Goto are great also, but Naito has an attitude that translates to any country or promotion.
Naito went from being a white-meat babyface to the cocky and 'tranquilo' version of the superstar we see today. Naito has parlayed the success he's had with Los Ingobernables de Japon into becoming one of the top three Japanese draws in NJPW along with Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada.
Okada is an amazing wrestler, but he's well behind Naito when it comes to personality. If WWE did sign Okada, he'd be relegated to Hideo Itami status - great wrestler with no discernible character other than great at wrestling.
The best thing for Naito was wrestling with La Sombra (now Andrade Almas) and forming a Japanese faction of LIJ. You could even say their popularity rivals that of the Bullet Club in NJPW and ROH.
Naito would be a great addition to WWE but he might suffer the same fate as Shinsuke Nakamura. Both are amazing in the ring but might fall victim to WWE's reluctance to book Japanese wrestlers as world champions.
#5 Kenny Omega
Of course, Kenny Omega would be on this list.
He's arguably the best wrestler in the world (contrary to what the Crown Jewel tournament might lead you to believe). He's named 'the Best Bout Machine' for a reason. Just go look at any of his matches with Okada. Or against the Young Bucks with Ibushi. Or any match he's had over the last four years.
He's a transcendental talent who, like Ibushi, can complete feats of strength, speed and agility that few can.
He understands the ring psychology part of wrestling that many wrestlers fail to grasp. Just watch his facial expressions and mannerisms in his matches with Okada, Ibushi, Minoru Suzuki and Chris Jericho.
Omega has been on the WWE's radar for what seems like forever, but he has opted to remain with NJPW.
It was a great decision on his part. He finally captured the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. He's helped in expanding NJPW's International portfolio to the U.S. with memorable appearances at Strong Style Evolved and Fighting Spirit Unleashed. He even won the inaugural IWGP U.S. Championship at the two night G1 special in July of 2017. He's synonymous with New Japan.
The only way WWE can sign him and use him correctly is to book him on par with how Styles has been booked. Styles was already a household name before his run in New Japan but his time there only upped his profile. Omega deserves to be booked like one of the top wrestlers in WWE if signed. Anything less would be disappointing.
