NJPW News: Kenny Omega feels he isn't up to leading Bullet Club anymore
What's the story?
Kenny Omega recently appeared on Sean Waltman's X-Pac 1,2,360 podcast, and he told the former 1-2-3 Kid that he isn't sure whether he is the right man to continue leading Bullet Club.
In case you didn't know...
Kenny Omega is arguably the biggest North American professional wrestler not working for WWE in the world. 2017 has seen Omega put on classic match after classic match, topping five stars on four separate occasions (three times vs. Kazuchika Okada, one vs. Tetsuya Naito), whilst seeing his stock rise away from the ring.
Omega has done all of this whilst at the helm of Bullet Club, but his focus has seemingly been more on his own career and that of The Elite, the sub-BC faction containing Omega and The Young Bucks. Omega recently lost in the final of the 2017 G1 Climax but continues on as IWGP United States Champion.
The heart of the matter
Omega spoke candidly to Waltman throughout the podcast, talking about the difficulties of working as a heel in Japan. Bullet Club is a true international phenomenon, but clearly, a heel unit in NJPW, whilst Omega himself continues to gain more and more adulation from the crowds. It is this that makes Omega question his role as leader.
"I'm not sure if I'm fit to be a leader anymore, right now. That is just because its to a degree where if you're shown working hard, you're just going to start getting over. People are going to love it, people are going to love you"
NJPW teased dissension within Bullet Club during the 2017 G1 Climax, in particular between Kenny Omega and Tama Tonga. Tama has been a part of BC since the very beginning, and the former IWGP Tag Team Champion has taken umbrage with Omega's individual focus.
A split in Bullet Club has been on the horizon for months, and this could well be the latest step in an nWo-style division.
What's next?
NJPW returns in two weeks with three Destruction shows, in Kobe, Hiroshima and Fukushima. The Kobe event will be headlined by Omega's first defence of the IWGP United States Championship when he takes on Juice Robinson for the strap. Will there be more Bullet Club tension during these shows?
Author's take
Kenny Omega and Bullet Club no longer feel like a good fit. BC has survived major losses in the past, but it has always been with similar talent coming in to shore up the ranks. Prince Devitt was replaced by AJ Styles and AJ by Kenny Omega, but it is difficult to see who follows Omega in the leadership role.
Either way, it is difficult to see Omega continuing to work as a heel in NJPW.
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