Five more title matches confirmed for NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12

After they were made apparent at yesterday’s Power Struggle show and in the fallout from it, New Japan Pro Wrestling confirmed five more title matches for the 2018 Tokyo Dome card.

Kenny Omega’s IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship will be on the line when he faces Chris Jericho at the January 4th Wrestle Kingdom event. As Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio last night, Jericho is able to work the match because he’s a free agent after his most recent short-term contract with WWE expired.

Kota Ibushi had been thought to be a possible opponent for Omega at Wrestle Kingdom, but he’ll instead be challenging for Cody Rhodes’ Ring of Honor World Championship. While that match is scheduled for after Cody’s title defense against Dalton Castle at ROH’s Final Battle pay-per-view, NJPW notes that Cody vs. Ibushi will be a non-title match if he loses the championship before January.

Prior to their matchup being announced, Cody and Ibushi took part in a post-show angle at Power Struggle.

Hiroshi Tanahashi defending the IWGP Intercontinental Championship against Jay White (who returned to NJPW as yesterday’s Switchblade reveal), Marty Scurll vs. Will Ospreay vs. KUSHIDA vs. Hiromu Takahashi for the Junior Heavyweight title, and The Young Bucks challenging for Sho & Yoh’s Junior tag titles were also made official after they were set up in challenges at Power Struggle.

With Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship having previously been confirmed as the main event, there are now six matches set for Wrestle Kingdom 12. The rest of the card should take shape over the next month as NJPW’s World Tag League tour takes place.