Jericho on Why His Match w/ Omega Is Bigger in Japan Than WrestleMania

Recent episode of the Busted Open Radio podcast show had Chris Jericho as the guest discussing why his match with Kenny Omega at next year’s Wrestle Kingdom event is more important than if it was at Wrestlemania.

Jericho mentioned he got the idea to do the match after watching the buildup to the Floyd Mayweather versus Conor McGregor boxing match. He also feels this match has a lot of potential in terms of bringing new fans and interest to New Japan Pro Wrestling.

“If I told you I’ve thought about the match in any way, shape or form up until now, I’d be lying. I haven’t even thought about the match yet. To me, it was about the announcement and the promotion. And like I said, when McGregor and Mayweather was announced, right off the bat it became the biggest match in boxing history just because you never though you’d see it,” Jericho said. “And I’m not saying it’s the biggest match in wrestling [history] but I think at the time, right now in November of 2017, it is because nobody thought they could see it. Now, there’s a whole contingency of people who have no idea that New Japan exists or who Kenny Omega is, that’s fine. I’m talking to the people that care about this, and if you’re a casual wrestling fan or know anything about any other company besides WWE, it is intriguing.”

When asked why he feels this match is more important to happen in Japan than in the WWE, Jericho mentioned it is due to Kenny Omega’s star power in Japan and him being very exciting to make his return to Japan after a long absence.

“I think just the fact that if Kenny left New Japan tomorrow and I went to the WWE and we had the same match at WrestleMania, it wouldn’t have the same mystique about it because there’s something about it now where everyone knows that Omega is so big in Japan and Jericho has a history in Japan, which is another thing I liked about it. Kenny and I’s careers mirror each other; I started in Japan, I grew up in Japan, I’ve been there 60 times, so there’s a big history of Jericho in Japan as well that started before I ever went to the WWE,” he said. “So there’s a combination of a lot of things that make this very special and a once-in-a-lifetime type of matchup. I think if it was in the WWE, even if there was no restrictions, it still wouldn’t be as big because it’s still WrestleMania in a WWE ring. This is different, it’s over in Tokyo, it’s at the Tokyo Dome fore New Japan Pro Wrestling. I think that adds to the intrigue and the mystique of the match right off the bat, as well.”

.@IAmJericho tells @bullyray5150 & @LarryDallasSXM that he vs. Kenny Omega happening in Japan is truly a special, once-in-a-lifetime match and has a unique mystique about it happening in Japan rather than the United States. pic.twitter.com/sB1WQnBiho

— SiriusXM Busted Open (@BustedOpenRadio) November 10, 2017