37-year-old star reflects on Ricochet feud; teases unfinished business with AEW megastar
A top champion talked about how a massive AEW star outshined him and Ricochet during a major event. 37-year-old Zack Sabre Jr. is the current IWGP World Heavyweight Champion and recently discussed wrestling Ricochet, with the match being preceded by Kenny Omega's return bout.
After being absent for over one year, the Best Bout Machine returned to the ring at NJPW X AEW Wrestle Dynasty against Gabe Kidd. The match was filled with highly athletic spots. Both Omega and Kidd put on a great bout ahead of the main event between Zack Sabre Jr. and Ricochet for the top prize. The crowd was very invested in the match and on the edge of their seat the whole time.
After the excellent match, the main event saw the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion retain. However, the crowd didn't react the way they reacted towards the Omega-Kidd match. Recently, Sabre Jr. opened up about his bout at Wrestle Dynasty. While speaking with NJPW, the champion claimed that his match felt like an exhibition instead of a main event.
“I was warming up and I could hear the crowd. Gabe and Kenny was a match rooted in a lot of emotion and deeper meaning (...) Me and Ricochet was essentially an exhibition match- we’d only had one interaction when he surprised me in Osaka and then nothing for two months," he said. [H/T - NJPW]
Zack Sabre Jr. later stated that his fight with Ricochet did not have the emotional value as the one between Omega and Kidd. The IWGP World Champion hinted at defending his title in the future against an "outsider" as he stated that was his job against the AEW star. The star was potentially hinting at Omega and if he returned to his former stomping grounds to aim for Zack's title.
"But it was a remarkable match, and I'm happy for the fans they were able to see something like that. My purpose was really to make sure I defended the IWGP World Heavyweight title from an outsider."
Even though he praised Omega later in the interview, he stated that Japanese fans would always root for those who belonged to NJPW and not those who come from other promotions. It seems that Sabre Jr. could have some animosity with The Cleaner.
Ricochet to face a huge challenge in the coming weeks
The former WWE star has been feuding with Swerve Strickland for a few weeks now. A couple of weeks ago, he stabbed the former AEW World Champion with scissors.
On the latest episode of Dynamite, Ricochet threatened Prince Nana as he wanted to send a message to the Realest star. The duo will face on the February 5 edition of Dynamite.
It will be interesting to see if the Highlight of the Night picks a win over his arch-nemesis during their contest.