Predicting The Wrestle Kingdom 13 Card (and the winners)

Written By Ben Hercik

January 4th has become one of my favorite days of the year, and if it wasn’t for Kazuchika Okada vs Kenny Omega 1 I may not have gotten back into wrestling. I am a massive fan of NJPW and whenever I’m given the chance, I look to see what New Japan shows I have to catch up on (because getting up at 2am to watch it live every time is a bit of a stretch). New Japan is one of the hottest promotions in the world, maybe the hottest or 2nd hottest next to NXT. Looking at the promotion itself, the only fault for it is the lack of names especially in the Junior Heavyweight Division. But that being said, I think that Wrestle Kingdom 13 is going to be one of the best shows of the year. We are halfway through the year, so let’s try and predict the card a half a year away. Yes over half of these predictions will be wrong, but some of these will work if some of my predictions for the overall year of 2019 in wrestling. On to the predictions!

Pre-Show Rumble Match

This match seems to becoming a staple for the show. It is a way to get all the names on the card and allows for a few surprises. There isn’t much to say for this match, as it is just a pre-show match. Some of the favorites are going to be Bushi, Jushin ‘Thunder’ Liger, Cheeseburger (based on last year), maybe a surprise of Flip Gordon, and Katsuya Kitamura, which is the super big guy who should be back from excursion at this time.

IWGP JUNIOR HEAVYWEIGHT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (El Desperado & Yoshinobu Kanemaru (C) vs Roppongi 3K vs Motor City Machine Guns vs Dragon Lee & ACH)

The old tradition for Wrestle Kingdom was that the Junior Tag Titles were defended in a fatal 4-Way before the Young Bucks kind of bucked that tradition the past couple years. I think that this match could actually happen given the recent history from the Best of the Super Juniors. Chris Sabin was in this years BOSJ and got wins over Kushida, Dragon Lee, and more importantly Desperado. Dragon Lee and ACH were in the past 2 BOSJ. The odd ball out is Alex Shelley for the Motor City Machine Guns. However Shelley was in the BOSJ from 2013-2015. And he was in the finals of 2013 against Prince Devitt (now Finn Balor) and would’ve been in the finals of 2014 if he didn’t withdraw due to an injury. It’s obvious that NJPW higher ups like those 4 plus Roppongi 3K is just amazing and Desperado and Kanemaru are phenomenal heels so there isn’t much to say about them that hasn’t been said. I don’t think the obvious winners of Despe & Yoshinobu or Roppongi are going to win, so I’m going with my gut and picking Motor City Machine Guns.


WINNERS: Motor City Machine Guns (NEW CHAMPIONS)

NEVER OPENWEIGHT 6-MAN TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (Ryusuke Taguchi, David Finlay, & Juice Robinson (C) vs Bad Luck Fale, Adam Page, & Yujiro Takahashi vs Zack Sabre Jr. & Killer Elite Squad vs Will Ospreay, Beretta & Chuckie T vs Tetsuya Naito, EVIL, & SANADA)

The Openweight 6-Man title gauntlet match also seems to have become a tradition starting at Wrestle Kingdom 11. This match has helped bigger names on the card, with last year being the best example with this match getting Fale, Tama Tonga, Tanga Loa, Ishii, Saber Jr., and Elgin getting on the card thanks to it. This year’s theme should also follow the theme from last year of the participants being from the stables of NJPW. Now the current 6-Man titles are held by Cody, Marty Scurll, and Adam Page. However with Cody challenging for the IWGP Title at the G1 USA Special, and the loser leaving Bullet Club, I can’t see Cody winning it, which and I doubt that Scurll and Page will leave with him. Taguchi Japan winning the titles also finishes the story of Taguchi winning the 6 man tag titles. Looking at the participants, 3 names stick out. Two really big names and 1 somewhat big name with Fale, Ospreay, and Naito. When trying to figure out members for Bullet Club, L.I.J., and Chaos those names needed to be on the card. I think it will come down to Chaos and L.I.J. I see this as the start of Naito’s build up back to prominence after his loss to Jericho.


WINNERS: Los Ingobernables de Japon (NEW CHAMPIONS)

NWA WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (Cody (C) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi)

These next 3 matches are pretty interchangeable in card position. The NWA Championship has been defended at Wrestle Kingdom before. It was defended at Wrestle Kingdom 8 where Rob Conway defended against Satoshi Kojima.This one it is currently the biggest stretch. To clarify why it is, the current NWA World Champion is Nick Aldis (formerly known in TNA as Magnus). Aldis defends the title at All In against Cody and I am banking on Cody winning it. This also seems to be the best way to see Hiroshi Tanahashi on the card. He is one of the best wrestlers in the world and both guys could have a fantastic match together. This can also bolster the prestige for once Billy Corgan wants to get the NWA back on either television or some streaming service (please be on Netflix) either of these 2 would be a worthy champion to start this run as. As far as picking a winner this one, it’s hard to predict but I think Cody sneaks it out and gets the win.


WINNER: Cody

IWGP UNITED STATES HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (Jay White (C) vs Yoshi-Hashi)

One thing that New Japan does well is long term booking. Earlier this year when Jay White joined Chaos, he asked why don’t stable mates challenge their fellow stable mate for titles at his introductory press conference with Okada. They have booked Jay White very strongly in this title run, and he has both really good and really okay-ish showings. This match could also go to either Okada or Ospreay, since Ospreay may be moving to the heavyweight division. I came to the choice of Yoshi-Hashi for 2 reasons. 1) At Dominion, the commentary team built up the fact that Yoshi-Hashi has been struggling recently, and 2) both White and Hashi are in the same pool for the G1 Climax. I can see them having Hashi give White a great match and it can be booked as White attacking his stable mate and makes a great story about this. It’s really hard to predict a winner here, but I see them letting Yoshi-Hashi get a run with the title and build him up to be a big star.


WINNER: Yoshi-Hashi (NEW CHAMPION)

ROH WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (Marty Scurll (C) vs KUSHIDA)

Now this may seem like a longshot to be at Wrestle Kingdom, but I think that it may happen. The ROH Championship has been defended at 2 different Wrestle Kingdoms, at 10 when Jay Lethal defended against Michael Elgin and 11 when Kyle O’Reilly defended against Adam Cole.The scenario for Scurll to win the title is simple. Chris Jericho’s cruise is holding a tournament to determine who gets a ROH Title shot. Looking at the bracket for the tournament, it does feature Lethal, both Briscoes, Flip Gordon, and Kenny King, but Scurll seems like the favorite. I am a big fan of Marty and think he deserves a title run. Also KUSHIDA does need a match on the card since he is the ace of the junior division. That being said, this one seems pretty easy to predict. Marty is under contract with ROH while Kushida is not.


WINNER: Marty Scurll

NEVER OPENWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (Hirooki Goto (C) vs Michael Elgin vs Minoru Suzuki vs Tomohiro Ishii)

This is another example of NJPW following stories from a little ways out. Both of these feuds started at Dominion and will probably continue for years to come. These are 4 hard hitting men just beating the absolute tar out of eachother. The only issue that could hinder this match is that Jeff Cobb is challenging Goto for the title next. I don’t see him taking the title, so this match could still be in the works. As for a winner, literally just pick a name out of a hat and you have a good chance of being correct. I really like Ishii and I hardly see him win in NJPW, so I think he would be a fair pick for this match.


WINNER: Tomohiro Ishii (NEW CHAMPION)

IWGP JUNIOR HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (Hiromu Takahashi (C) vs Rey Mysterio Jr)

This one may be wishful thinking on my part, but damn if I don’t want to see this match. Rey may be going back to WWE soon so this match could be a wash. Hypothetically though, if Rey is still available, then this is the match I want to see. Just imagine Hiromu getting to work with Rey and trying to act all crazy and be out there but it not affecting Rey thanks to his years of experience. I don’t see Rey winning this match, so Hiromu is the easy pick here. Also if Rey is unavailable, then Hiromu vs Taiji Ishimori would be a suitable replacement. I mean it was the BOSJ Final and got 5 and a half stars, so I mean the second time would also be good right.


WINNER: Hiromu Takahashi

IWGP HEAVYWEIGHT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (The Young Bucks (C) vs Guerillas of Destiny)

I think that the Guerillas of Destiny are one of the best tag teams in the world, and deserve another chance at tag team titles. They are my picks to win the World Tag League, which should be super stacked this year. We will be seeing teams like EVIL & SANADA and Killer Elite Squad. We also may see Bestfriends (Chuckie T & Beretta), Zack Sabre Jr & Minoru Suzuki, and more than likely Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano. Although, I would like to see the team of Ishii and Okada. That team could get to the finals to help put all the momentum on G.O.D. and have them be strong for a match with the Young Bucks. This would be Bullet Club vs Bullet Club and be all about respecting fellow stable mates. I see G.O.D. picking up the win for something that may happen concerning the men in the main event.


WINNERS: Guerillas of Destiny (NEW CHAMPIONS)

IWGP INTERCONTINENTAL HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (Chris Jericho (C) vs Kazuchika Okada)

Finding an opponent for Jericho was tough. I was torn between a rematch with Naito, Okada, and Tanahashi. I chose Okada because surprisingly, the only championship he has won is the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. He can easily add to his legacy by winning this title. The issue is we don’t know Jericho’s schedule. I would assume he would be free for this day, and defend the title. Jericho also wouldn’t leave NJPW without challenging the big 3 of Omega, Naito, and Okada. I also think that after this match, Jericho finishes up with NJPW. It’s tough to predict Jericho matches, but I believe that this time is the last time.


WINNER: Kazuchika Okada (NEW CHAMPION)

IWGP HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH (Kenny Omega (C) vs Kota Ibushi)

After a brief twitter conversation and seeing the pools for the G1, this is the only outcome I see happening. Kota has been knocking on the door of championship glory for a long time now and the prospect of him winning the G1 is so tantalizing that I can’t pass it up. Also seeing Kenny facing his best friend would title would be perfect. To cut to the chase, I think that Kota is winning the title, because this will be Kenny’s last match for NJPW. At the start of the year Kenny’s contract and both the Young Bucks as well as Cody’s ROH contracts are expiring. I’m not sure what is going to happen as far as Cody, but its been reported that both WWE and NJPW will enter a bidding war for the trio of Omega and the Young Bucks. While I would love to see them resign with NJPW and ROH for the Young Bucks, I think The Elite will go to the WWE on a special deal. Exclusive decisions regarding characters and they get the say in their storylines. This match would be the perfect send off for Kenny.


WINNER: Kota Ibushi (NEW CHAMPION)