Wrestle Kingdom 11 is right around the corner, and the hype machine from NJPW is in full flow.
Widely regarded as the biggest wrestling show of the year in Japan, NJPW’s traditional January 4 Tokyo Dome show is gearing up to be yet another classic, headlined by G1 Climax winner Kenny Omega challenging Kazuchika Okada for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
Two former WWE stars will battle earlier in the show too, as Juice Robinson (NXT’s CJ Parker) takes on Cody Rhodes.
Juice recently gave an interview to New Japan Pro Wrestling’s website to talk about the show and his opponent, and had some interesting words of warning for The American Nightmare:
“The Cody I saw in WWE was a good guy, a good athlete and someone that respected pro wrestling. This guy, you can’t even compare, they’re so different.”
Juice is referring of course to Cody’s recent heel turn and alignment with NJPW’s notorious gaijin faction, Bullet Club.
Cody and Juice both left WWE in order to further themselves and evolve their careers, but whilst Juice headed to the NJPW dojo and worked hard from the bottom, Cody has fallen on his feet, picking up bookings left, right and centre as he continues to tick off the many names on his notorious list of dream matches.
Also read: WWE/ROH News: Cody Rhodes' next opponent revealed
Juice talks of this list in his interview, and in particular Cody’s desire to wrestle current NEVER Openweight Champion, Katsuyori Shibata.
“Let me say, Cody; Shibata is too much for you. It could well turn out to be a great match, but he hasn’t experienced anything like Shibata.”
Shibata is one of the few names left unchecked on Cody’s list, and the notoriously stiff champion could well meet up with the Grandson of a Plumber at some point during 2017.
The Wrestle Kingdom 11 match represents the pinnacle on an impressive career renaissance for the former CJ Parker. After arriving in NJPW in 2015, Robinson has become one of the most improved performers on the planet, and a marquee singles match at New Japan’s biggest show of the year is much deserved.
On a stacked card that features top talent like SANADA, Will Ospreay and Tomohiro Ishii in multi-man tag matches, being given a showcase singles bout is high praise indeed.
Wrestle Kingdom 11 takes place on January 4, 2017, and can be watched by signing up to NJPW’s New Japan World service, at njpwworld.com.
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