Only moments after Kenny Omega beat Barretta to retain the IGWP United States Title during New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Power Struggle 2017 event, Chris Jericho shocked the world by appearing in a vignette and he challenged Omega to a match at Wrestle Kingdom 12 in January. Their match is now official , but a lot of people want to know the details about why this dream match is becoming a reality in a couple of months.
It’s already been revealed that Chris Jericho is not under contract with WWE and he’s a free agent, which is why he’s able to compete for NJPW. There has been speculation about tension developing between Jericho and WWE over the upcoming Chris Jericho Rock ‘N’ Wrestling Rager cruise. Despite the questions that wrestling fans have about Jericho vs. Omega, it’s now come to light how the idea for the match came to be.
Over the summer, Chris Jericho saw the build-up for the super fight between Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor and began brainstorming for something similar in the wrestling industry. Eventually, he had the idea for the match with Kenny Omega. Jericho spoke with Don Callis, who is a friend and an English color commentator for NJPW, and he started negotiating with the company in New York for over the summer. A deal was reached for Jericho to have a major one-off match with Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 12 next year.
It’s also been revealed that WWE officials weren’t aware of the plans for Jericho to face Omega in January and the powers that be learned about the news just like every other wrestling fan. Since Y2J doesn’t have a contract with WWE, he’s not necessarily under any obligation to tell them. It’s been confirmed that Jericho won’t be appearing at the Royal Rumble this year, which is only a couple of weeks after Wrestle Kingdom .
The chances are that Chris Jericho will be able to have more matches for New Japan if he’s interested. He’d have the opportunity to work with new opponents in front of an entirely new audience. At the moment, Y2J won’t be working with WWE for some time. However, Jericho working for New Japan is extremely exciting and fresh for a veteran with 20 years of experience. For now, wrestling fans just have to make it to January.
[Featured Image by WWE]
