Introduction
Well, somehow the AEW roster has just got more stacked with the arrival of one of, if not, the best Japanese wrestlers of all time in the form of the Rainmaker: Kazuchika Okada. With his alliance with the Corporate Young Bucks, Okada seems well positioned to dominate the company both leading up to and post his match with Eddie Kingston presumably after Dynasty. Anyway with that in mind, here are 10 possible opponents for him after the Kingston feud, some of which seem downright obvious and confirmed whereas others are just pure fantasy suggestions. With that in mind, check out more wrestling content here, and without further ado here are our picks for 10 possible AEW opponents for Kazuchika Okada.
10. El Hijo Del Vikingo
Well, this is a good way to begin with a match which would probably shatter what remains of Dave Meltzer’s star rating system. Despite his AEW appearances slowing down recently, there’s no doubt El Hijo Del Vikingo is one of wrestling’s biggest prospects thanks to some phenomenal matches and near Darby Allin levels of reckless abandon for his body. So pair him with a five star match generating machine like Okada and just imagine how quickly that could get his AEW career revived again? And yes I’m purely suggesting this because they’d somehow find a way to counter a springboard 630 senton into a Rainmaker and the world needs to see that. While this would be a spot fest, what a spot fest it’d be for the fans.
9. Konosuke Takeshita
It’s kind of sad that it took Tony Khan forever to remember just how good Konosuke Takeshita is. So instead of letting that Ospreay match at Revolution be a flash in the pan, how about building him up to take down one of Japan’s greatest wrestlers? The similarities between the pair are notable and not just because both have had match of the year contenders with Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay. But if Tony Khan wanted to cement Konosuke as a top dog in the company later down the line, who better to pass the torch to than a talented wrestler currently going nowhere but with limitless potential? And no unfortunately that’s not alluding to Keith Lee. Anyway, this will likely be further down the line but when it eventually happens we will all be here for it.
8. Adam Cole
Let’s get ready for storytime with Adam Cole. While it’s difficult to remember a lot pre his fantastic partnership and feud with MJF, Cole was legitimately injured during the IWGP Title four way match at Forbidden Door 1. Considering how much unintended success AEW had with this situation between Moxley and Hangman, they could lean into it with Cole annoyed that Okada continues to get spotlighted despite taking him out for months. Not only would this match be a barnstormer but it’d also allow for a possible Blood and Guts match between the Corporate Elite and The Undisputed Kingdom. So overall, there’s plenty of upside once Adam Cole’s leg no longer resembles a cheese string.
7. Darby Allin
Given the genuine concern a lot of wrestling fans have after Darby’s promo last week on Dynamite about climbing Everest, this one may remain speculation for a while. However, if it does happen it could be equal parts phenomenal and worrying. Anyway, given the size difference between the pair they could go down a similar route to Cody vs Darby back at Fyter Fest 2019 where Darby spends the match being ragdolled but stubbornly refusing to go down. This would not only get over Okada as a now vicious and psychotic heel whilst it keeps Darby’s role as ragdoll underdog babyface firmly intact. Unlike Darby’s poor, poor bones… So, providing Darby survives Everest literally, he could be in for a metaphorical Everest upon his AEW return.
6. Swerve Strickland
Well AEW has definitely started to become Swerve’s House… Despite failing to beat Samoa Joe for the AEW World Championship, Swerve Strickland remains one of the most over and popular stars in the company with them finally allowing him to go full babyface. And with Okada slipping more and more into heelish antics, the stars seem to be aligning for what will be a criminally good match. Similarly to the Vikingo suggestion, this will probably be a massive spot fest but what a spot fest it could be. Conversely, few AEW wrestlers have such a good big match reputation currently as Swerve and we all know how good Okada is still so what are you waiting for Tony Khan?
5. Bryan Danielson
Yes, we are aware that Danielson and Okada have wrestled before in that polarising match at Forbidden Door 2 but given the anticlimactic nature of the finish, let’s just have a couple of sequels to settle the score. Given Danielson is on his retirement tour of facing all the best wrestlers and legends currently, let him rematch Okada fully fit and just watch the utter magic that the pair could conjure up. Would the outcome be predictable? More than likely yes. But then again wrestling would be the winner of this match happening again because if our only memory of them wrestling is at Forbidden Door 2 that feels like a true missed opportunity still. So once Danielson is finished with a certain Aerial Assassin, get the ball rolling Tony Khan.
4. Will Ospreay
Speaking of that Aerial Assassin, Will Ospreay is now full time with AEW and oh the possibilities. Whilst he’s currently having match of the year contenders with the entire Don Callis family, sooner rather than later Ospreay will end up crossing paths with his old former friend and rival. For anyone who hasn’t seen the pair’s work in NJPW, check it out because words will never be able to do it justice. Also, similarly to Adam Cole you could spin off a Corporate Elite versus Aussie Open and Ospreay trios match for further feuding progression. Whilst this feud will undoubtedly be on the backburner for now, that will eventually explode into a shower of stars like Randy Marsh at that computer.
3. Jay White
Speaking of Okada’s old acquaintances from NJPW, it’s time to breathe with the Switchblade as once his match at Big Business with Darby Allin is out of the way, surely it’ll only be a matter of time before he focuses his attention upwards to Okada? This is purely because the whole bang bang scissor gand joke has long since run its course, much like Jimmy Kimmel as an Oscars host. So with a little course correction thanks to Darby, a feud with Okada could be exactly the thing Jay White needs to reignite his world championship hopes after the clusterf**k of a title match with MJF. So, slight side track aside Jay White and Okada can make magic together so what are you waiting for Tony Khan? Go and get it noooooowwwww… Props to anyone who gets that reference…
2. PAC
Howay you Toon lad…. Besides showing off my possible love for Newcastle’s premier angry Wolverine impersonator, that set up on Collision seems to be hinting at one of two possibilities. One is a Death Triangle reunion to fight the Bucks and Okada but the second is much, much more exciting: a PAC vs Okada feud. Simply put, through no fault of his own, PAC has often been stunted by injuries at the worst possible times. After returning to temporarily aid the BCC last year, he’s returned to his most successful faction and honestly a PAC vs Okada match post Dynasty could be exactly the thing to remind the world how good the Toon Lad is. So howay PAC, gan and get that Okada bag you deserve.
1. Kenny Omega
It’s kind of shocking that it’s taken this long to address the enormous elephant in the room. That of course being the Cleaner and the main hailing from just south of North Carolina: Kenny Omega. Given the Bucks’s setup, this will likely be a 1 to 2 year slow burn but the mere prospect of Okada vs Omega 5 is more than enough to keep fans invested. And even besides the obvious reasons for a pentology, there’s further complications thanks to the Bucks seemingly turning their backs on him for his greatest rival so there’s even more to love here. Look there’s only so much we can do to sell this so just watch any of their prior 4 matches and you’ll understand why this is such a tantalising prospect.
