Getting a grip: Looking back at 2017; Wrestle Kingdom 12 preview; injuries mount

Brian Fritz

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Getting a grip: Looking back at 2017; Wrestle Kingdom 12 preview; injuries mount image

Each week, Sporting News runs down the biggest stories in the world of professional wrestling.

Looking back on 2017

AJ Styles will enter 2018 the same way he entered 2017 — as the WWE champion.

While "The Phenomenal One” made an immediate impact following his 2016 WWE debut, he proved over the past year that is he a bona fide top guy.

Styles continues to be the company’s best in-ring performer, but he has become much more than that. He carries himself with a swagger that translates to people knowing he is a main-event star, and he has turned a weakness, his promos, into a strength.

Styles is at the top of his game at age 40. He is more well-rounded than ever, which makes him a perfect fit in today’s WWE. There’s no question the company hit the jackpot when it signed him two years ago, and his decision to sign has paid off handsomely for him, too.

MORE: Kurt Angle remembers his 'Raw' debut

If anything, 2017 should be remembered as the year of actual wrestling considering the amount of incredible, high-level matches that took place in promotions around the world and the increasing number of wrestlers who have utilized their athleticism and creativity to expand the art form. Just a few years ago, many were worried about the future of independent wrestling. Now, the indies are not only alive but thriving.

It was the year of arguably the greatest trilogy in wrestling history with Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega delivering a series of breathtaking matches in New Japan Pro Wrestling. They raised the bar to a place everyone in the business will aspire to reach.

This year also showed that there is life outside WWE, one that can be financially lucrative and creatively fulfilling. Drew Galloway proved it in 2016 as he tirelessly worked shows around the globe, and Cody Rhodes took the baton this year. Rhodes and the Bullet Club have burst into the mainstream with their merchandise sales at Hot Topic stores in malls throughout the U.S.

The wrestling world is talent-rich, and 2018 should be another banner year, especially for fans who appreciate the sport. Watching where the sport will go should be exciting.

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12

We are a week away from what figures to be one of the most-anticipated shows of the new year, the New Japan Wrestle Kingdom 12 event at the Tokyo Dome on Jan. 4.

The show is now being billed as having a double main event, with the headliner being Kazuchika Okada defending his IWGP Heavyweight Championship against Tetsuya Naito. The other top match will have Chris Jericho, in his first match outside WWE in nearly 20 years, challenging Kenny Omega for the IWGP United States Championship in a no-disqualifications match.

The addition of Jericho has brought even more attention to the event, which is NJPW’s biggest show every year. The "no DQ" twist is something that traditionally does not happen in Japan. Considering the level of competitiveness and pride in their craft that Jericho and Omega have, you can only wonder how far they will take their fight in hopes of stealing the show.

They’ll have their work cut out for them if they hope to top what is expected to be an instant classic between Okada and Naito. Okada has not only established himself as the top wrestler in New Japan, a promotion that is stacked with talent, but as one of the promotion's all-time greats, and he's still just 30. He is a four-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion and his current title reign will reach a record 564 days come the day of the show.

This may be the right time for his streak to come to an end considering the stage and his opponent. Naito won last summer’s astonishing G1 Climax tournament, which many consider the greatest in the company’s history.

Here is the entire lineup for the show:

— IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito

— No-DQ match for the IWGP United States Championship: Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho

— IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Jay White

— Four-way match for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship: Marty Scurll vs. Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Tanahashi vs. Kushida

— NEVER Openweight Championship Hair vs. Hair match: Hirooki Goto vs. Minoru Suzuki

— IWGP Tag Team Titles: Killer Elite Squad vs. Evil and Sanada

— Cody vs. Kota Ibushi

— NEVER Openweight Six-Man Tag Team Championship: Bullet Club vs. Chaos vs. Michael Elgin and War Machine vs. Suzuki-Gun vs. Taguchi Japan

— IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships: Roppongi 3K vs. The Young Bucks

Count yours truly among the many here in the U.S. becoming more and more familiar with the New Japan product and watching more of its shows. If you’re interested in doing the same, Wrestle Kingdom 12 — available on the subscription streaming service NJPWWorld.com — would be a great place to start, especially considering the top two matches and what looks to be a good undercard. 

WWE injuries mount

More bad news for Dean Ambrose, who, as noted in this column last week, recently underwent surgery to repair a partially torn triceps. WWE reported this week that Ambrose will be sidelined for approximately nine months.

Even if Ambrose were to return quicker, he will not be a part of WrestleMania and is in jeopardy of missing SummerSlam in August.

Any plans for him, including a possible heel turn that would break up The Shield, are obviously out the window and WWE will have to make other plans without him for most of the coming year. While injuries are never good, the time away could be a blessing for “The Lunatic Fringe,” who can come back with a fresh outlook and have fans excited about his return.

You can also add The Brian Kendrick to the injury list after he was on the bad end of a GTS from Hideo Itami on “Raw" Monday night. Kendrick suffered a broken orbital bone and a broken nose.

It was obvious that something had gone wrong when Kendrick held his face after Itami connected flush with a knee. The good news is that Kendrick will not need surgery, but he will likely be out of action for two months.

News and notes

— “SmackDown Live” general manager Daniel Bryan announced this week an eight-superstar tournament to crown a new United States Champion after Dolph Ziggler vacated the title. Bobby Roode and Jinder Mahal have already advanced following wins over Baron Corbin and Tye Dillinger, respectively. The other two first-round matches, Zack Ryder vs. Mojo Rawley and Xavier Woods vs. Aiden English, will take place next week.

Roode and Mahal are the favorites, but English could be an interesting choice. He could sing his own praises as champion while also celebrating “Rusev Day,” which, as we all know, is every day.

— Speaking of Rusev, you have to give the “Bulgarian Brute” credit for getting himself over with the audience in his own way. Rather than sitting by and simply doing whatever WWE has for him creatively, he has been proactive in creating “Happy Rusev Day,” which has gone viral on social media and spilled over to television to the point WWE had to take notice and play off it. Rusev still has a ton of potential; here's hoping he gets another main-event opportunity soon.

— In the latest sign that kayfabe is dead, WWE created an online video titled “The Elf Among Men” starring, you guessed it, Braun Strowman. Some will wonder why WWE would do this considering Strowman has the look and appeal of a true monster, something rare in today’s product. Others will say that it’s all in good fun and that wall came down a long time ago.

It’s obvious Strowman is having fun, and in real life he's known to be a fun-loving guy, but it’s still a bit puzzling that WWE wouldn’t protect him more considering how distinctive he is. Regardless of where you stand on the argument, the video is a hit with more than 1 million views.

Brian Fritz can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BrianFritz and listen to his Between The Ropes podcast on Blog Talk Radio.

Brian Fritz

Brian Fritz Photo

Brian Fritz is a contributor with The Sporting News covering the NBA and NFL who previously worked at BasketballNews. He is a 20-year veteran of sports talk radio in Orlando, Florida, after graduating from the University of Central Florida. He now resides in Durham, North Carolina.