When Kota Ibushi came forward with the idea to unify the IWGP Intercontinental and IWGP Heavyweight Championships? There was a lot of mixed feelings.
Ultimately with New Japan Pro Wrestling set on doing it, and no one being able to stop it. The general consensus was to sit back and give the new IWGP World Heavyweight Championship some time. It has been five months, and ultimately has been a massive failure. Now more than ever the IWGP Intercontinental Championship is missed.
The Cursed History Of The IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
Since Kota Ibushi was first presented the unified championship it was immediately cursed. As in his first defense of the championship he lost it to Will Ospreay. Ospreay would be forced to vacate the championship after his first defense against Shingo Takagi. Causing New Japan to book Kazuchika Okada who was next in line to face Shingo Takagi at Dominion. At that event Takagi captured the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship. The guy who just failed in his last two big matches is now the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion. The good news is that the decision is fresh. Then Kota Ibushi threw out a challenge for Wrestle Grand Slam in Tokyo Dome.
The match would not take place as Ibushi became ill. That left Takagi without a opponent, and once again Hiroshi Tanahashi saves New Japan. ‘The Ace’ stepped in to face ‘The Dragon’. Due to how the Intercontinental Championship was elevated. Under normal circumstances, the belt would have slid into the main event spots of both Dominion and Wrestle Grand Slam.
Why It’s Needed Currently In NJPW
Due to a pandemic NJPW has went the direction of marketing to their native crowd. Which is smart, as NJPW Strong is taking off in America. However, outside of the IWGP World Championship there is no singles belt available for heavyweights not yet ready for the top belt. There is the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship, but the problem is the belt doesn’t mean much. Not just in general, but there is not a lot of native workers who have taken a interest to the belt. They’ve tried to elevate both set of tag belts, but not everyone is a tag team wrestler.
Taking a look at the current crop of guys in Japan, especially during this years G1 Climax. KENTA, YOSHI-HASHI, Hirooki Goto, Great-O-Khan, Taichi, Yujiro Takahashi, Sanada, and even guys left out like The Third Generation. Are all guys who could benefit from having the IWGP Intercontinental Championship to compete for. No telling when the pandemic will let down, but having that belt would keep these guys relevant. Where some of these guys aren’t thrown into G1, and their role on the roster is assumed. Which would make the G1 race a lot more interesting. It would also give the midcarders and lower main eventers something to fight for year around.
What Separates The Intercontinental Championship From The U.S. and NEVER Championships
NJPW has attempted to elevate the United States and NEVER Openweight Championships. However, the thing that separates those two belts from the Intercontinental is simple. Fans watched Shinsuke Nakamura, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Tetsuya Naito craft the Intercontinental Championship as an equal to the main belt. Not only that, but they crafted stories with the Intercontinental Championship. There is a lot of guys who could use that belt to tell their story of climbing to the top.
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