Jeff Cobb revealed as the newest member of top faction
On the first night of NJPW: World Tag League 2020, a new member for Will Ospreay's faction, The Empire, was revealed in the form of Jeff Cobb. Accompanying Great-O-Khan as his new tag team partner, the former NEVER Openweight Champion is now the fourth addition to the group.
Initial reports had suggested that Jeff Cobb would eventually be revealed as the newest member of The Empire as there was no given timeline of his return to Japan after the G1 Climax. However, it now looks like Cobb will be working in New Japan more as a regular, especially if he will be an enforcer for Ospreay.
Jeff Cobb revealed as the newest member of The Empire
When the teams for the World Tag League 2020 was announced, New Japan Pro Wrestling kept Great-O-Khan's tag team partner for the tournament as a mystery. However, tonight Jeff Cobb was finally revealed as the newest tag team partner for the RevPro Tag Team Champion.
In their match against the duo of Hiroshi Tanahashi and Henare, members of The Empire absolutely dominated with Cobb manhandling both his opponents like he always does. Cobb eventually hit the Tour of the Islands on Henare to pick up the win for his team and kick-start the World Tag League with the opening points on board.
After the match, O-Khan further attacked Tanahashi's left leg, particularly targeting his knee. With assistance from Cobb, the members of The Empire left a lasting impression on the first night of the World Tag League 2020. Cobb and O-Khan will definitely be a duo to watch out for in this year's World Tag League, which already consists of the likes of Guerillas of Destiny, Sanada & Shingo Takagi, and Dangerous Tekkers.
What to expect from Jeff Cobb in The Empire?
Initially, fans somewhat expected the third man of The Empire to be revealed as Rampage Brown. However, with Brown signing with WWE and being placed in NXT UK, New Japan had to find a new tag team partner for O-Khan. With Cobb now stepping into The Empire, Will Ospreay and Bea Priestly now find themselves with not one but two enforcers.