WWE News: Kenny Omega unable to compete at Royal Rumble due to previous booking
What’s the story?
The professional wrestling world has been clamoring for former New Japan Pro Wrestling star and Bullet Club leader Kenny Omega to make an appearance at the Royal Rumble. While there have been reports over the past few weeks that we may see Omega as one of the 30 entrants, chances are getting much slimmer as we get closer to the event.
Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer shot down the rumors, as Omega is booked for an event in Chile the same weekend as the Royal Rumble, making it nearly impossible to be at the event.
Hace unas horas os adelantábamos lo que la empresa acaba de confirmar. Enhorabuena Chile!! pic.twitter.com/sFzZF98sju
— Planeta Wrestling (@Planeta_Wrest) January 18, 2017
In case you didn’t know...
Having one of the best years in NJPW in 2016 after becoming the newest leader of the Bullet Club, winning the IWGP Intercontinental Championship, as well as the G-1 Climax tournament to become the number one contender for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 11 , Kenny Omega seemed to have his sights set on ruling the Japanese wrestling scene.
However, during a recent interview on The Taz Show, Omega admitted that he is now a free agent, which opens up many possibilities of where he could go in the near future.
The heart of the matter
Since Omega is most likely not going to appear at the Royal Rumble, he may still commit to dates outside of WWE for the next few months. Similar to Shinsuke Nakamura as well as Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, Omega could possibly debut sometime after the Rumble and before WrestleMania.
Although he stated in a recent interview that the social media references from John Cena will not lead to anything, that could very well change if it becomes popular enough.
Sportskeeda’s take
Omega would do well by first competing in NXT, if he does indeed sign with WWE. His character needs more popularity in the United States, and NXT would be a great platform to place him as a top star for the brand.
One would hope, though, that WWE will not feel the need to change his character.
Moreover, Omega achieved a great deal of success recently as the leader of the Bullet Club. With that no longer being the case in the WWE, the hill may be a bit steeper for Omega. However, there is always the idea of Omega debuting on Raw to start an alliance with Anderson, Gallows, and Balor, which would immediately increase his stock.