Will NJPW's Kazuchika Okada sign with WWE?
New Japan Pro Wrestling's Kazuchika Okada has long been hailed as one of, if not the best, wrestlers in the world and it looks like he could be ready to make a big move.
Okada has been NJPW's top star for around a decade now and many fans thought he'd be with the Japanese company for life.
However, Sports Illustrated reported earlier this week that Okada is set to become a free agent in 2024. The wrestler had been under a long-term deal with NJPW but it is now about to expire.
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While previously the idea of Okada leaving NJPW would have been unthinkable, the 36-year-old is said to be "seriously entertaining the possibility of wrestling for a different promotion", according to Sports Illustrated.
But where would Okada land outside of NJPW? The most obvious answer would be AEW, who has a working relationship with NJPW which has led to Okada appearing for the promotion.
At the first Forbidden Door pay-per-view, he wrestled in a four-way match for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship with Hangman Page, Adam Cole, and, champion at the time, Jay White.
A year later he had a memorable match with Bryan Danielson in the main event of the second Forbidden Door, with the rematch set to happen at Wrestle Kingdom 18 on January 4, 2024.
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He also made his in-ring Dynamite debut on October 25, teaming with Orange Cassidy against Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli.
However, according to Dave Meltzer, there is, unsurprisingly, strong interest in Okada from WWE.
Last month, Meltzer wrote that there's been a renewed push of late to try and bring him in, adding: "The pitch is that he's now 36 and he's close with [Shinsuke] Nakamura and Nakamura has worked years in WWE and it's far easier on his body."
In this week's Wrestling Observer, Meltzer added that WWE would make a harder push to sign Okada now, after failing to get Will Ospreay, who announced his signing with AEW last month.
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Okada has also been announced for TNA's Snake Eyes show which will take place in Las Vegas on January 14.
The event will occur the night after Hard To Kill, the first show using the TNA name after their rebranding from Impact Wrestling.
Okada famously had a bad experience with TNA when he wrestled there between 2010 and 2011, due to the company's poor use of him.
So where would you like to see Okada if he leaves NJPW? Let us know over on X @digitalspywwe.
Catch up on Raw, Smackdown, NXT and all the big WWE action via the WWE Network or TNT Sports. US viewers can access the WWE Network via Peacock.
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