Will Ospreay vs Jay White could be the biggest missed opportunity in NJPW – keep reading to find out why.
With Jay White seemingly out of New Japan after losing a “Loser Leaves Japan” match at New Beginnings in Osaka, the future of Switchblade is up in the air.
The 31-year-old Kiwi recently moved to AEW, where he is the leader of Bullet Club Gold.
Alongside Juice Robinson and The Gunn Club, he is part of Bullet Club Gold, the AEW chapter of the iconic NJPW faction.
In AEW, Jay White has more freedom in his matches compared to WWE, and can put on more classics, like his matches with Okada and Ibushi, that have made him one of the best wrestlers in the entire world.
He has shown this in his matches with FTR, which has gained a five-star rating from Dave Meltzer.
However, selfishly, I would have rather he stayed one more year in New Japan. He was putting on his best work as IWGP World Heavyweight Champion and Gedo clearly had enough faith in him to make him the world champion and put him against Okada at the Tokyo Dome.
He really should have defeated Okada to retain the title but if he is indeed leaving the company then they really had no choice but to take the belt off him – similar to Kenny Omega losing to Hiroshi Tanahashi in 2019.
This could have led to the first ever all-gaijan main event in Wrestle Kingdom history in a huge match that New Japan fans haven’t seen for nearly three years.
Will Ospreay vs Jay White
New Japan Pro Wrestling really missed a trick by not booking Will Ospreay vs Jay White in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom.
While it would have been impossible in 2023, Wrestle Kingdom 18 would have been the perfect spot for the first ever all-gaijan main event in the events history.
Will Ospreay battled against Kenny Omega in this years event, in one of the biggest matches of all time. The bout is regarded as one of the best matches of all time, earning over 6 stars from Dave Meltzer and it is currently the highest rated match in history on Cagematch.net.
Jay White fought Kazuchika Okada in the main event, another match that needed to happen. Okada is the biggest star in the company and is considered to be one of, if not the, greatest pro-wrestler to ever live.
However, he is getting slightly stale on top as champion and has huge potential with more runs outside the top of the card.
Will Ospreay and Jay White have both come into their in-ring prime in the last couple of years. Ospreay has transition from a high-flyer with little regard for his own safety to a technical wrestler who can pull out moves that nobody has ever seen before.
The Englishman has transition beautifully into his new style of wrestling with many critics raving non-stop about him – including Meltzer.
Jay White’s run as the top heel of the company has been inspiring. He is the ultimate heel and does not lower himself to try and pop the crowd or get them to like him. He is vicious, nasty and vindictive in the ring.
He also managed to excel during the pandemic era of the company, which is a hard thing to do.
His match with Kota Ibushi in the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 15 was a key example of that. While the crowd was silent outside of the occasional clap, White made enough noise for all of them.
He did not stop talking to Ibushi, the referee and the crowd during the match, keeping everyone invested in the match during the bout’s downtime.
A 40-minute match in front of a silent crowd can sometimes be a slog to get through, but his trash talking helped make it a must watch.
Pitting Will Ospreay against Jay White in the main event of the Tokyo Dome would signal to the world that they are going global. Two English speakers as their top star would help bring in even more worldwide fans, and because the two men are so popular with the local crowd too it should not eliminate the Japanese fans.
It would also put on one of the best matches of all time in a match-up that is rarely seen in New Japan.
Will Ospreay has only wrestled Jay White twice in New Japan and never on a big enough stage. The first was on the NJPW 47th Anniversary show, with White catching The Kingpin with a Switchblade to win a great match,
The second was during the 2020 G1 Climax. It was in front of a silent crowd and did not get the backing from the crowd that it deserved. Both men were coming into their primes in the ring but could not match their previous level without the crowd interaction they thrive off. They also wrestled once in ROH in 2017.
Will Ospreay left a heartfelt message for Jay White, Switchblade responded
After he lost to Hikuleo at New Beginnings in Osaka and his explusion from NJPW was confirmed, Jay White began to receive floods of tributes on social media. Fans and wrestlers alike thanked him for his work in the promotion and left heartfelt tributes to the New Zealander.
Former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay left one of the most heartfelt messages to Jay White.
He revealed that he’ll miss White, even the negative things he did to him lamented how they were so similar, yet so different. He also noted how he loved beating him up and wished him well in the future, in the Englishman’s own special way.
“Believe it or not. I’ll miss you calling me an idiot on a regular basis. We are similar & yet so different. Was a pleasure beating the piss outta you and seeing how much you developed into who you are now I hope my suit fits well wherever you go dickhead.”
Jay White responded in a much briefer, and much ruder reply.