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New Japan Pro Wrestling found itself in a no-win situation heading into New Beginning in Osaka. With a “Loser Leave Japan” match booked between “Switchblade” Jay White, the leader of Bullet Club and former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion, and Hikuleo, the 6-foot-8, 264-pound son of the legendary Haku who, along with his brothers Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa, make up legendary NJPW stable Guerillas of Destiny, Gedo and company had to prepare for the unfortunate reality that one of his top stars would not be with the company moving forward, at least in Japan.
Unfortunately for NJPW, White came up short in the match, and fans immediately started fantasy booking new homes for “King Switch,” be that in AEW, WWE, or even Impact Wrestling, where he has a pair of pals in Ace Austin and Chris Bey.
But what if White's loss in the match doesn't mean his run in New Japan is over? Sounds crazy, right? Not according to Kevin Kelly, the long-time voice of NJPW. No, in an appearance on the Shining Wizards Wrestling Podcast, Kelly pointed out that if White's goal is to dominate America, that very well can still be done under the NJPW banner.
“I don’t think so,” White said via Fightful. “I think this is just what he’s doing. What else is there for him to do except conquer America? Where in that is written that he can’t do that under the New Japan banner? I don’t know, we seem to have some operations that are based in the US.”
Whoa, whoa, whoa, would White actually stick around in New Japan but only work North American dates? Would he really pass on the lucrative contracts and title opportunities presented by AEW, WWE, and even Impact to simply challenge Fred Rosser for the NJPW STRONG Openweight Championship? I mean, probably not, but as Kelly pointed out in his interview, it's unlikely that NJPW would like to lose either star, as one is like a current All-Pro and the other is a first-round pick with generational upside.
“None of us were happy about it. It was a lose-lose situation,” Kelly said. “It was either gonna be ‘Switchblade’ Jay White, the current top guy, or Hikuleo, the future top guy. Do I want to give up my All-Pro wide receiver, or do I want to give up my number one draft pick, who in a couple of years is gonna hopefully top all the records that the All-Pro set?”
“I think it speaks to the level of talent that Hikukeo has that he was in that spot. Let’s say Ken Patera wanted to leave the WWWF. He wouldn’t wrestle a Jose Estrada in a Loser Leave the Company match. He would wrestle a Chief Jay Strongbow, a top guy. He would wrestle a Pedro Morales, and the Intercontinental Title would be on the line. That’s what you’d have. So Hikuleo is in that conversation with Jay White, although Hikukeo hasn’t done what Jay White has done yet.”
On paper, Kelly's logic is dead-on; using White's exit to create a new star in Hikuleo is a fantastic way to get a new star over, as “King Switch” learned firsthand when he took over the Bullet Club from Kenny Omega. But losing White in his prime is a tough pill to swallow, which makes sense why some people in NJPW may be considering if he won't be leaving after all.
Chris Bey weighs in on the impending free agency of Jay White.
If White is open to new opportunities outside of NJPW, Chris Bey, his fellow member of Bullet Club from their share time in Impact, laid out the opens around the professional wrestling world, with just a little bit of bias thrown in there for good measure.
“The day would come in 2021 when Jay White would extend this offer and make me an official member of Bullet Club, and I would get my own real Bullet Club t-shirt,” Bey said via Fightful. “It was crazy and surreal. I remember asking Jay White after he gave me the t-shirt and we made it official, ‘this is real, right? You guys aren't going to beat me up in a couple of weeks and kick me out?' ‘No, this is 100% real.' Jay White, he just lost a loser leaves Japan match against Hikuleo, the traitor of Bullet Club, where does Jay White land? That's what we have to figure out. Does he come back to IMPACT Wrestling so we can reunite Bey Blade and the JBC, the Jay and Bey Connection. Does he join our brothers, the Good Brothers (Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows) in WWE, does he go to AEW, does he stay free and use the Forbidden Door, the ForBEYden Door and go all over the world? The only way to find that out is by following Jay White. I think him so much for making me part of Bullet Club.”
While reuniting Bey Blade in Impact full-time is probably the least likely outcome for “King Switch,” as he'd have higher-profile matches and bigger money title opportunities in either AEW or WWE, that doesn't mean there couldn't be a reunion between the two club members down the line, as where there's a will there's a Bey.
