NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 15 Night 2 Predictions
After an exciting night one for New Japan Pro Wrestling, we now go for Wrestle Kingdom 15 Night 2 predictions.
Four Way Match to decide the Provisional KOPW 2021 Trophy
BUSHI vs. Chase Owens vs. Bad Luck Fale vs. Toru Yano
I went 0/4 on my predictions but I was hoping they went in a different direction. But hey I get it. They want to make this a comedy trophy going forward. Even if Chase or Fale or even BUSHI wins it, this is going to be more about Toru Yano than it will be a serious trophy deciding the KING OF PRO WRESTLING.
Kevin Kelly really tried to make a thing about Chase Owens doing Shawn Michaels spots so I’ve decided he’s now HBChase and Bad Luck Fale is now his Big Daddy Fale. I want them to go full throttle with this idea so eventually he can meet up to face Will Ospreay as The Heartbreak Will and his manager Sensational Priestley. I’m a dork.
Winner: Chase Owens
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
One or Eight vs. Suzuki-gun
The hardcore crowd sure loves El Desperado right now. And I get it! He was really good in the Best of the Super Juniors and had a fantastic match with Hiromu Takahashi! But the Junior Tag division is a better place for him than trying to battle it out with the best of the Junior singles once guys like Ryu Lee return. The Despy fans will disagree with me but I’m okay with that. They made the life choise of being 100% invested in El Desperado in 2021. One or Eight is Taguchi and Wato. They shouldn’t win.
Winners: Suzuki-gun
NEVER Openweight Championship
Jeff Cobb vs. SHINGO Takagi
Now here is one of my most anticipated matches of the two days, let alone one of my most anticipated matches of Wrestle Kingdom 15 Night 2. The only problem is that my original prediction was Jeff Cobb absolutely winning the championship for it to be a clean sweep for The Empire. Now that both Great-O-Khan and Will Ospreay ended up losers in their matches, I don’t know if that fares well for Cobb. He’s the late addition to the group and things would work better if they walk out empty handed so they have something to prove in 2021. SHINGO can hold it down for the night.
Winner: SHINGO Takagi
EVIL vs. SANADA
Western fans will probably hate this match. There’s going to be a lot of Dick. Togo. Lots of interference. Lots of cheating. Probably plenty of referee bumps. SANADA is at least bringing that passion he’s always accused of not having. He’ll need it because last night having Ospreay lose tells me that EVIL is going to end up the number one contender here, especially with SANADA trying to say if he beats EVIL he should be in line for a shot. It makes more sense for Kota Ibushi to dispatch Jay White later tonight and be confronted with EVIL as his second defence, similar to what Tetsuya Naito had with KENTA sitting on his chest. Picking EVIL to win this one and SANADA to stay under the glass ceiling.
Winner: SANADA
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
Hiromu Takahashi vs. Taiji Ishimori
Speaking of Bullet Club gauntlets, here’s LiJ member Hiromu Takahashi having to through two Bullet Club members to earn the IWGP Junior Heavyweight championship back. After dispatching El Phantasmo in a match I really enjoyed (and some people really hated because they think Phantasmo getting them mad means he’s doing his job poorly as a heel?), Takahashi has to beat the man who beat him for the gold. I don’t want to underestimate Bone Soldier, but this is for Takahashi to win and take his spot at the top of the division. Someone needs to carry the division and losing Takahashi to a heavyweight run would be devastating to the division. He might be a bigger star by far than others here but once Ryu Lee returns, we’ll at least get some match of the year candidates out of them.
Winner: Hiromu Takahashi
Wrestle Kingdom 15 Night 2 Main Event
IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championship
Jay White vs. Kota Ibushi
How do you beat a man who has so thoroughly beat you in 2020? Jay White beat Kota Ibushi in the losers match on the second night of the Tokyo Dome at Wrestle Kingdom 14. He beat Kota at the G1 that Ibushi eventually won. And then he challenged Kota for the briefcase title shot and won that match (with the most blatant cheating ever.) So now Kota, 24 hours after finally reaching the top of the mountain, has to beat a man he hasn’t been able to beat. The last time he beat Jay White was the 2019 G1 Final.
Of course that’s the story. Kota Ibushi is on his way to becoming God. The only way you can become God is if you can beat the Devil. And Jay White? Jay White is evil incarnate. He showed up all in black, refusing to be physical, to remind Kota of the uphill battle he faced the next night. Jay wasn’t going to do what KENTA did to Tetsuya Naito the year prior. He didn’t need to. In his mind, he was giving Kota his moment he wouldn’t get on Wrestle Kingdom 15 Night 2. There’s no need for the devil to play a trick other than plague Kota’s mind in doubt.
I cannot tell you how excited I am for this match. Jay White has been a low key MVP for 2020 with the way he talks and the way he wrestles in the ring. He looks incredible right now, firing on all cylinders and doing his job perfectly. When he looked ready to hit EVIL with the Blade Runner only to help him up and put him in the corner? I squealed in delight. He’s the perfect heel. The perfect Bullet Club leader. This spotlight was earned and he’ll be on top in New Japan Pro Wrestling for many years to come.
This is the Golden Star’s story to complete. It would be fun to see Jay White walk out crushing Kota Ibushi’s dream but after Night 1 of Wrestle Kingdom 15 and the All Elite Wrestling Brodie Lee tribute, I feel like pro wrestling in 2021 really just needs some happy moments. We do not need copious amounts of heat this year. Give us happy stories with happy endings. We will clap and stomp as loud as we would otherwise. Let Kota Ibushi complete his story with a defence and holding both titles high. Leave the heat for Dash. Or don’t have heat at all. The heat was 2020. Let’s overcome that instead and watch a man become a God.
Winner: God (Kota Ibushi)
Header image contains photo from Cerulean Blue
