:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58201857/jerichojacket.0.png)
Chris Jericho made his return to New Japan Pro Wrestling today (and, as you can see, he brought his light-up jacket with him!) at Wrestle Kingdom 12 (full results ongoing right here), and he did it by having the match that his feud with Kenny Omega deserved.
They started off hot, brawling inside and outside of the ring, allaying any fears that their intense, bloody interactions would be subsumed into a standard pro wrestling match.
No DQ, No limits! @KennyOmegamanX & @IAmJericho tear up the #NJWK12 Tokyo Dome! pic.twitter.com/avU9nlUzcL
— njpw_global (@njpwglobal) January 4, 2018
Gradually the brawling was broken up by hardcore spots (Omega being busted open once again, this time by being repeatedly put into a chair wedged in the ropes) and big moves before inevitably they moved into Omega’s trademark finishing stretch.
The Alpha @IAmJericho showing the world what it means to be the Alpha of pro-wrestling! #AlphaVsOmega pic.twitter.com/FWHPGnFwcg
— njpw_global (@njpwglobal) January 4, 2018
They proceeded, trading nearfalls with aplomb, including a rare Liontamer (transitioned to out of the Walls of Jericho after rolling through the electric chair, no less!) and a One-Winged Angel that saw Jericho get the ropes.
In the end, Kenny stood victorious thanks to a One-Winged Angel on a chair and retained the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship.
But really the key takeaway here is that Jericho, who perhaps tried a little too hard to convince us that he was as good as he ever was in his last WWE run, came in and had a match that absolutely lived up to the standard New Japan has set and the standard Omega delivers just about every time he wrestles.
There you have it, folks
Kenny Omega remains your IWGP United States Champion, but Chris Jericho proved this excursion of his to not be just flash, and I for one would be happy to see him back for more. What say you, Cagesiders?