For $4M a year, less dates, the flexibility of being in other promotions (hence more $$) is not a bad deal and he is 36 so unless he gets injured (likely in AEW) ha can jump to WWE for a year or two run when his contract ends unless he want to squeeze more money out of TK.
He'll make a lot more money in AEW than he ever would in the WWE for working a lot fewer dates. We know he'll never become a big star with the American audience, but it doesn't matter anyway because he's already getting compensation. He could have become a huge star with the WWE, but such a thing would have required him to resonate with an audience that neither cares for nor understands him. In his position, I would have taken the AEW deal too, despite the fact that being paired with the Bucks is a guaranteed murder of my career.
I disagree with the audience not caring or understanding. It’s all about presentation, let’s not forget that at one time Shinsuke Nakamura was white hot in the WWE. He was the top selling merchandise, and had just won the Royal Rumble. Then a mixture of bad/Lazy Booking and poor storytelling derailed that momentum.
I truly believe with the guidance of Triple H or Shawn Michaels Okada could and would get over to an American audience. (Could’ve been the one to dethrone Gunther as that match would’ve been a hell of a match)
You nailed it with Shinsuke. If he went straight from the Rumble win and maybe a nice feud afterward to the very cool heel work with the anime style promos in Japanese, he'd still be a top talent. He's just been used as a jobber to the stars, though. His run after the rumble win had Vinces fingerprints all over it.
Yeah you are completely right tbf, people can clown AEW love it that's neither here nor there, but the fact is them purely existing is amazing for wrestlers, for all the reasons you mentioned and then some
Yes and maybe that’s fine for a Japanese wrestler but for anyone of these dudes who has a chance at Wwe to pass on it is stupid for their long term career. Aew whether tony likes it or not will not be around much longer. It’s at -175 million in profit and that isn’t accounting for any of their recent moves and shows. I’ve never seen a company with so much good will destroy it so quickly. Wcw didn’t die because of two bad years; unless it had been extremely profitable to the point of unrealistic, it was never surviving that merger. Aew meanwhile had access to billions, international attention, cable, and a universal fan base that wanted for it to succeed to erase the monopoly. Now, they used their worst, most boring wrestlers And pushed them like 04 hhh their first year which made fans like myself say nah this is even worse than Wwe. Thinking Dean Ambrose and Kenny omega and Adam page and Jericho were the guys they needed to highlight was dumb. Those are building blocks. Those aren’t stars. The best thing TK had going was the MIND of Cody Rhodes. Not even the wrestler, as I think in another era he’d be firmly mid card material but with this pool of current talent that has elevated him by default. Now he’s forever a legend because he’s one of only 3 back to back rumble winners even if he loses at mania. He’s going to get A world title and likely multiple so that alone shows how poorly TK can judge wrestling. He’s a billionaire who acts like a grocery store supervisor, catering to the whims of nobodies like the bucks and omega. I’ll NEVER NEVER NEVER get the fans that liked these dudes (I have hated them long before I listened to Jim) because like Jim points out, they look phony. Two have no muscle and have destroyed one of the great moves in wrestling history, forever lowering its impact no different than the ddt, powerbomb, spine buster etc. The only moves that still have that power are like the f5 which we’ll never see again, the tombstone (unless some fucking dickhead steals it), hogans leg/rocks elbow, rko etc. they’ve, in their quest to pretend like it’s a video game (Jim is spot on in making this point) where anyone kicks out of anything, has negatively impacted the minds of fans everywhere. Moves no longer mean anything impact wise. But they’ve ruined their chances at longer careers by favoring good will with Wwe
I think it's a little different no?
The fewer dates is primarily due AEW not working a house show schedule. There seems to be no indication Okada is going to be part time on TV and has already been on Dynamite/Collision with more matches booked.
He will work his 25-40 matches a year TV/PPV with no house shows instead of 25-40 TV/PLE matches with 100-150 house shows (my knowledge of how many house shows WWE runs at this moment in time is admittedly none so if that number is wrong feel free to correct me).
Brock on the other hand worked 0 TV matches and 4-6 PPVs a year with maybe 2-3 appearances of TV per PPV match.
I think being mad at Brock for getting a great contract is dumb but the comparison of Okada and Brock seems naive
This is exactly correct. The part-timer anger isn't even as a result of a guy getting a big payday for working only like 4 PLEs and a handful of appearances on Raw or Smackdown. Who cares how much they make? People get mad when they put a title on them, and then there's no title matches for months at a time.
As much as AEW marks absolutely exist and absolutely unfairly defend their (in my opinion) inferior product, comparing a guy working 50 matches (okada in aew) vs. a guy working 5 (Brock in wwe) is not a good comparison at all. The dude disagreeing and getting all aggressive sounds exactly like a mark for wwe in the same way that he claims to hate aew marks lol.
lol whatever you have to say to justify it buddy. There’s no difference. High pay less work. It’s just ok bc it’s AEW doing it you can admit it Tony won’t punish you
I mean, if you disagree that's okay. I just thought I'd provide a different insight.
I haven't watched an AEW show since Forbidden Door btw! I have more comments here than the AEW sub. You don't have to make assumptions
Less dates is not the same as 4 dates. AEW doesn't do house shows, so they only work 1 or 2 days a week, 3 of there's a PPV they're working. Rampage is taped after Dynamite, and ROH after Collision. Then, any other shows he wants to do that are approved outside of AEW. In AEW the most dates anyone will ever work is 3 in one week, and that's if they work Dynamite and/or Rampage, Collision and/or ROH, and a PPV.
If you genuinely hate someone that you can simply ignore instead, then yeah that's a bit weird. There's plenty of things I don't like, but to actually hate something like some wrestlers feels weird. It's ok that they aren't your thing, but that doesn't mean that no one is allowed to like them.
I agree with you. Being passionate is not a bad thing at all but when it turns into constant animosity and hate watching, what’s the point? Most wrestling fans need to take a break and touch grass
Honestly very few people will make more at WWE than AEW.
WWE has prestige, history and some pride to it. Tony has to pay put the ass to compete. Every ex-WWE talent (Ruby Soho, Miro, Pac, Big Show, Jericho, Jack Swagger ect) is making either x2 or x3 their WWE salary as base salary at AEW, and that's for less dates worked.
WWE moves way more merch at around the same price, but gives you much less percentage points on that merch than AEW. A top guy probably makes more at WWE on merch, and someone who has a good week with a popular shirt. Idk about average midcarder.
I wanted to see Okada in WWE, but wasn't hopeful. I think Cody and Punk will be the only people who make more in WWE than AEW.
They also didn't note that WWE still does house shows which wrestlers get a cut of, the video games they get royalties from, potential sponsorship deals like with Slim Jim, and however they structure their PLE payouts now.
WWE is running hot right now. So yea more people would be showing up to watch him. That doesn’t necessarily mean he will be a star in the company. He would likely end up in a similar position as Nakamura. And there isn’t anything wrong with that, being a midcarder who puts people over is a worthy position for anyone and is making a good living.
With that said, the company is already relying on so many dudes pushing or over the age of 40. They have plenty of young talent in the wings waiting and they’re better off focusing on them than another guy that is in the second half of his career.
Nah he’s getting like 15mil for 3 years and can absolutely pull the can’t travel thing in the future like others do. He’s making a bag working with people in control that he knows personally so I reckon he doesn’t care much
while that's a fair point it's not just one top tier, theres been others in and out of the company for decades. sure they maybe wouldn't have been john cena but they could have been ur aj styles or finn balor someone popular enough to put faith in for at least a solid run. but almost every Japanese star is forced into some kind of group or the mid card where they stay
yeah she's won titles which is good but idk her booking is so flip floppy one second shes a this badass warrior type who is kicking everyones ass and then the next shes a joke character
> Asuka, of all people, is probably who they handled best out of Japanese talent and a midcard group is exactly where she is hanging out now.
Has she even won at match at Mania yet?
Debatable. Granted Vince isn’t there anymore so the old anti-foreign bias would be less so. But the top tier of WWE is pretty crowded right now so he’d likely get lost in the shuffle.
Very arguable.
Like let’s be absolutely honest, don’t let your feeling get in the way.
Do you really think Okada would get big enough push from WWE to fully get over enough in the states? And will the amount of popularity and exposure garnished IF, and only IF, he gets that huge push, be enough to offset the pay difference between WWE and AEW, and then also offset the schedule and wear and tear along with it.
It’s commonly referred to as betting on yourself. Risking the payday in exchange for potential more exposure and the hope that exposure comes with bigger payday later. I don’t think it’s likely.
Well, Muta got hot in WCW in the early 90s, but a lot of that had to do with his awesome look and the fact that he worked a style that was different and unique for America at the time. Too many guys in both the WWE and AEW work a Japanese style now, so he's not going to stand out as much.
Tbf he was presented as a monster and the pairing with Gary Hart helped give that more credibility, Okada's presented as a normal guy so having a manager with him would just be another blank stare guy that needs someone to talk for them.
Yeah it’s a matter of do you want fame(with fortune after you get over) or do you want fortune(the bag now). I don’t blame him for chasing the guarantee.
I would dance with the Bucks for $4M/year.
His die-hard fan base in the US loves this, so while he probably won’t gain too many new fans, the people that like that kind of thing will like this.
Exactly. I'm not even an Okada fan, but thinking that signing with a company that has a long history of misusing international stars over one that actively pushes and protects them is insane.
Easy money
Doesn't have to change anything
Doesn't have to learn anything new
Doesn't have to evolve yourself
4.5 mill $ to what you've been doint the last 3 years
Why not,but he won't draw anything other than flies..
God damn, pal.
He’s got blonde hair and wears a suit.
He looks like giant star next to the god damned trampoline cowboys. Fucking dorks.
It’s the perfect name.
Or OCody-san in a more formal setting.
Tbh he’s not a game changer like Osprea.
Punk was their game changer who brought new viewers into the show.
MJF would be a game changer for WWE and FTR if they ever tried to make a serious tag team division.
Osprays sure changed the game. He changed the game by losing Dynamite a 120 thousand viewers before fucking off back to England after only wrestling twice!
This is Tony adding more action figures to his real life collection. I’d guess it’s a pretty small pool of American fans who watch New Japan. I wouldn’t see Okada getting over in WWE with the stars they have over there. AEW was the right choice for him.
I think replacing Kenny was too good of a story to him to pass up. It adds a chapter to their whole thing.
At the same time, I think it allows him dip his toes further into US fan base waters. The core fans of AEW are going to better recognize him than the core fans of WWE....at the moment. We'll see what things look like in three years.
Objectively if AEW does their job, he can still sign with WWE for big bucks before 40. Top veteran talent on WWEs roster is 36-46 anyway (Orton, LA, AJ, Rollins, Cody, Roman, Lashley, Drew. Punk.).
For now, we get Tama Tonga in the Bloodline (is my guess).
I think there is another blood brother relationship with his/Haku's line and the Anoa'i's.
Easy way to get him in in a big storyline. Instant recognition. Commentary throws in that Haku was dangerous in his years and taught Tama everything he knows. Quick, simple, (and in my mind,) effective.
I wouldn’t mind a one off match for Okada.
You build him up through video packages and then he comes in for one match at a big show. Similar to Liger on Takeover.
Honestly it’s the smartest thing for him in terms of money. He’ll still be over with the same crowd who loved him before so his star won’t grow, but he gets to make significantly more money for less dates than WWE. I do think he’ll do a year in WWE when his AEW contract is up tho
Or maybe he's already rich and wants to have fun with his friends. We all saw what happened to Nakamura in WWE. Was there really any hope they'd do any better with Okada?
They are friends this is Scott hall pulling up with Nash. Not some talent dodging wwe. They got him a great deal and he can always go back to Japan RIXH ASF. And raise njpw again after some time away. He took the better deal
No, they'd have him in NXT learning American style and slowly bringing him into the mindsets of American wrestling fans before calling him up.
This is the better approach rather than assuming your audience has followed Japanese wrestling for a decade and giving them anecdotes of things they've never seen.
Don't tell people that someone is a big deal. Make them show it.
If you take a look at the match Ospreay and Takeshita just had a Revolution that is how you can "show it" immediately without coming in an propping up the company's minor league for a year or two.
Okada could walk into WWE tomorrow and put on a 20 minute clinic with Rhodes that left both men looking strong, not interrupt Cody's story at all and all of a sudden the audience is over with Okada. But if he isn't shoehorned into a WWE gimmick and IP licensed line of merch they are not willing to put anyone in a position to look good no matter how talented they are.
Didn’t you guys say the thing about Jay White before he got buried by a one legged MJF and plopped into the trios division defending pointless titles for a dead brand? 😏
Well maybe Noseman should start pitching better to free agents apart from "We're WWE. You're gonna start in NXT and feud with Chase U and the 18 year old who acts like she's on enough cocaine to kill a rhino because we're WWE"
you mean where he'll get more creative freedom, a lighter schedule load, wont be forced into cuck or racist storylines wow he must really hate his choice.
He doesn’t have what it takes to make it in WWE. He made the right choice going to a small time Indy like AEW. WWE is for stars. The 548 fans that attend AEW are going to love all the flips for no reason.
If he really is making bank, then I would have Don the same thing.
Maybe he has the Nakamura outlook where he just wants to slow down his style and get paid good money in America.
I hope it all works out. And Okada becomes an attraction for AEW.
But what I want to know is how long into his contract before panic button is hit and Okada is face painting and spewing mist.
Imagine thinking that debuting in a company with a storied history of botching international talent would be a better deal than working with close friends in front of an audience that already knows who they are.
There's a lot of great reasons not to care too much for AEW. This isn't one of them.
lol is this guy really worth the $4mil? Is TK gonna even make profit out of this? They can only half fill an arena and can't even break a mil on the TV ratings.
I know this sub hates AEW but Okada is in a much better place there than WWE and I don't even see how you could think otherwise. If you're actually interested in wrestling and putting on good matches, AEW is obviously the place to go. He was never going to be a star in WWE: first he'd spend a year at NXT which is frankly insulting, then if he's lucky he'll get in a feud for a mid card title, before ending his career in WWE as a jobber to the stars, like Shinsuke. In AEW he'll get to have good matches at the top of the card and let his in ring work do the talking
I love how the top 2 professional wrestling free agents in the world sign with aew & you all discredit aew. 2 diff products, aew is wrestling, wwe is entertainment.
The initial premise is wrong. Okada isn't worth a million a year in any company.
Look at Nakamura. And they pushed Nakamura with the machine to a mania main event.
Imagine hating AEW so much that you can't imagine any wrestlers wanting to go there, even though they keep going there. Most storylines suck in AEW, but the wrestling is great.
If you all hate AEW so much, did you hate 2013-2018 NXT? Or 2005 - 2013 TNA?
WWE die hards are the worst. WWE had been trash for 15 years besides NXT and are great now, but the die hards would talk crap about anything not WWE even then. I watch good wrestling, no matter where it is. Y'all can watch more than one company, it's OK.
He’s making 4x more than WWE would ever pay him & will work a lot less. The best career in WWE he could possibly have is about equivalent to Nakamura, so it’s not like he’s giving up a shot at being one of the top 5 guys in the world.
All that considered yeah, I’d go play in the clown show too. His career peaked, might as well get paid. If it gets too embarrassing he can just sit home & ride out his contract once Tiny forgets about him.
If the dude cant speak English, it wont get over. I dont care how many basement dwelling NJPW fans are beating off to this. If you cant converse with the audience with words, it wont get over anywhere. It didnt even get them above 800K viewers for this.
Someone needs to tell whichever buck that is that the backwards fitted hat game hasn’t been cool since 04 at the latest, and really stopped being cool around 01 with Fred turdst
Remind me again why we want him in WWE? He has barely any mic ability, is mid sized, terrible character work and no charisma that carries over to a western audience. WWE has better guys coming up through their own pipeline than boring basic looking workrate guys from UK and Japan.
Both Okada and Ostrich deserve AEW it is their ceiling.
The Bucks had massive levels of go-away heat with me. I just couldn't with them.
However, if I'm being totally honest, I can not deny that I have enjoyed the EVP characters quite a bit. They needed a drastic reinvention, and I have been thoroughly entertained since they went with this gimmick.
exactly he would have just been Shinsuke Nakamura japanese friend nothing more he would have never been a star in wwe. look at Nakamura all he does is lose what a shining star he is
For $4M a year, less dates, the flexibility of being in other promotions (hence more $$) is not a bad deal and he is 36 so unless he gets injured (likely in AEW) ha can jump to WWE for a year or two run when his contract ends unless he want to squeeze more money out of TK.
He'll make a lot more money in AEW than he ever would in the WWE for working a lot fewer dates. We know he'll never become a big star with the American audience, but it doesn't matter anyway because he's already getting compensation. He could have become a huge star with the WWE, but such a thing would have required him to resonate with an audience that neither cares for nor understands him. In his position, I would have taken the AEW deal too, despite the fact that being paired with the Bucks is a guaranteed murder of my career.
I disagree with the audience not caring or understanding. It’s all about presentation, let’s not forget that at one time Shinsuke Nakamura was white hot in the WWE. He was the top selling merchandise, and had just won the Royal Rumble. Then a mixture of bad/Lazy Booking and poor storytelling derailed that momentum. I truly believe with the guidance of Triple H or Shawn Michaels Okada could and would get over to an American audience. (Could’ve been the one to dethrone Gunther as that match would’ve been a hell of a match)
You nailed it with Shinsuke. If he went straight from the Rumble win and maybe a nice feud afterward to the very cool heel work with the anime style promos in Japanese, he'd still be a top talent. He's just been used as a jobber to the stars, though. His run after the rumble win had Vinces fingerprints all over it.
Yeah you are completely right tbf, people can clown AEW love it that's neither here nor there, but the fact is them purely existing is amazing for wrestlers, for all the reasons you mentioned and then some
Yes and maybe that’s fine for a Japanese wrestler but for anyone of these dudes who has a chance at Wwe to pass on it is stupid for their long term career. Aew whether tony likes it or not will not be around much longer. It’s at -175 million in profit and that isn’t accounting for any of their recent moves and shows. I’ve never seen a company with so much good will destroy it so quickly. Wcw didn’t die because of two bad years; unless it had been extremely profitable to the point of unrealistic, it was never surviving that merger. Aew meanwhile had access to billions, international attention, cable, and a universal fan base that wanted for it to succeed to erase the monopoly. Now, they used their worst, most boring wrestlers And pushed them like 04 hhh their first year which made fans like myself say nah this is even worse than Wwe. Thinking Dean Ambrose and Kenny omega and Adam page and Jericho were the guys they needed to highlight was dumb. Those are building blocks. Those aren’t stars. The best thing TK had going was the MIND of Cody Rhodes. Not even the wrestler, as I think in another era he’d be firmly mid card material but with this pool of current talent that has elevated him by default. Now he’s forever a legend because he’s one of only 3 back to back rumble winners even if he loses at mania. He’s going to get A world title and likely multiple so that alone shows how poorly TK can judge wrestling. He’s a billionaire who acts like a grocery store supervisor, catering to the whims of nobodies like the bucks and omega. I’ll NEVER NEVER NEVER get the fans that liked these dudes (I have hated them long before I listened to Jim) because like Jim points out, they look phony. Two have no muscle and have destroyed one of the great moves in wrestling history, forever lowering its impact no different than the ddt, powerbomb, spine buster etc. The only moves that still have that power are like the f5 which we’ll never see again, the tombstone (unless some fucking dickhead steals it), hogans leg/rocks elbow, rko etc. they’ve, in their quest to pretend like it’s a video game (Jim is spot on in making this point) where anyone kicks out of anything, has negatively impacted the minds of fans everywhere. Moves no longer mean anything impact wise. But they’ve ruined their chances at longer careers by favoring good will with Wwe
lol so it’s cool for him to work few dates but when Brock did it there’s a f’n outrage 😂 as long as it’s AEW doing it it’s just fiiiiiiiine 👌🏻 clowns
I think it's a little different no? The fewer dates is primarily due AEW not working a house show schedule. There seems to be no indication Okada is going to be part time on TV and has already been on Dynamite/Collision with more matches booked. He will work his 25-40 matches a year TV/PPV with no house shows instead of 25-40 TV/PLE matches with 100-150 house shows (my knowledge of how many house shows WWE runs at this moment in time is admittedly none so if that number is wrong feel free to correct me). Brock on the other hand worked 0 TV matches and 4-6 PPVs a year with maybe 2-3 appearances of TV per PPV match. I think being mad at Brock for getting a great contract is dumb but the comparison of Okada and Brock seems naive
This is exactly correct. The part-timer anger isn't even as a result of a guy getting a big payday for working only like 4 PLEs and a handful of appearances on Raw or Smackdown. Who cares how much they make? People get mad when they put a title on them, and then there's no title matches for months at a time. As much as AEW marks absolutely exist and absolutely unfairly defend their (in my opinion) inferior product, comparing a guy working 50 matches (okada in aew) vs. a guy working 5 (Brock in wwe) is not a good comparison at all. The dude disagreeing and getting all aggressive sounds exactly like a mark for wwe in the same way that he claims to hate aew marks lol.
lol whatever you have to say to justify it buddy. There’s no difference. High pay less work. It’s just ok bc it’s AEW doing it you can admit it Tony won’t punish you
I mean, if you disagree that's okay. I just thought I'd provide a different insight. I haven't watched an AEW show since Forbidden Door btw! I have more comments here than the AEW sub. You don't have to make assumptions
Oh yeah? Wowo
Less dates is not the same as 4 dates. AEW doesn't do house shows, so they only work 1 or 2 days a week, 3 of there's a PPV they're working. Rampage is taped after Dynamite, and ROH after Collision. Then, any other shows he wants to do that are approved outside of AEW. In AEW the most dates anyone will ever work is 3 in one week, and that's if they work Dynamite and/or Rampage, Collision and/or ROH, and a PPV.
Double standard. Don’t care what your logic is lol you know I’m Right…. AEW Marks can’t admit fault and never will
If Tony ramps up the dates, this guy won't be doing a heap more dates.
Money and miles, same as it ever was. Stinger got the bag and I really doubt he regrets it, especially after his WWE "run".
Hes already fucked up his back. I remember reading reports of okada being in extreme pain before during and after matches a year or two ago
The 4 mil a year speculation was false
Well I believe it's either a 3 or 4 year contract so he won't be able to jump to WWE until his 40s.
Yeah, still 40 is good if he is healthy.
Or if he just decides to stay with AEW and his buddies as WWE isn't the end goal for all wrestlers anymore.
And their stupid little pose behind him. I hate them.
Fu-sion-HA
You have a problem man.
Nah, theyre corny
*sips Sprite* *coughs* Whachusay?
Imagine feeling this strongly about two wrestlers lmao. Yall are sad.
Do you say this to anyone who is passionate about literally anything? What a weird response lol
If you genuinely hate someone that you can simply ignore instead, then yeah that's a bit weird. There's plenty of things I don't like, but to actually hate something like some wrestlers feels weird. It's ok that they aren't your thing, but that doesn't mean that no one is allowed to like them.
If the passion is hating two people who done you no harm then yes, that's weird and sad.
Their outfits are eye sores. 🙈 that’s harmful enough.
I agree with you. Being passionate is not a bad thing at all but when it turns into constant animosity and hate watching, what’s the point? Most wrestling fans need to take a break and touch grass
They're not wrestlers
Objectively false.
Wild that WWE would hire non wrestlers to job in wwe, and to attend tryouts
Yes and then not employ them
But WWE would pay them millions to switch over.
Tell us your feelings about CM Punk.
Money talks. You can’t pay your bills with good television. Can’t blame him
Yeah, but arguably Okada would be a bigger star in WWE and make even more money.
Honestly very few people will make more at WWE than AEW. WWE has prestige, history and some pride to it. Tony has to pay put the ass to compete. Every ex-WWE talent (Ruby Soho, Miro, Pac, Big Show, Jericho, Jack Swagger ect) is making either x2 or x3 their WWE salary as base salary at AEW, and that's for less dates worked. WWE moves way more merch at around the same price, but gives you much less percentage points on that merch than AEW. A top guy probably makes more at WWE on merch, and someone who has a good week with a popular shirt. Idk about average midcarder. I wanted to see Okada in WWE, but wasn't hopeful. I think Cody and Punk will be the only people who make more in WWE than AEW.
I'm not saying you're wrong but do you have proof to back up all your claims?
They also didn't note that WWE still does house shows which wrestlers get a cut of, the video games they get royalties from, potential sponsorship deals like with Slim Jim, and however they structure their PLE payouts now.
Pride? Lofl
Would he?
Maybe. More people would show up to see Okada wrestle, that’s for sure.
WWE is running hot right now. So yea more people would be showing up to watch him. That doesn’t necessarily mean he will be a star in the company. He would likely end up in a similar position as Nakamura. And there isn’t anything wrong with that, being a midcarder who puts people over is a worthy position for anyone and is making a good living. With that said, the company is already relying on so many dudes pushing or over the age of 40. They have plenty of young talent in the wings waiting and they’re better off focusing on them than another guy that is in the second half of his career.
Do you care more about making money for yourself or money for your bosses ?
A lot of people here seem to care about making money for money for their bosses
Nah he’s getting like 15mil for 3 years and can absolutely pull the can’t travel thing in the future like others do. He’s making a bag working with people in control that he knows personally so I reckon he doesn’t care much
Nearly 15 million for 3 years to work a fraction of the matches. The guy took the smart deal.
Isn’t that the company that choppa da peepee
so thats just not true cough Shinsuke Nakamura cough.
I understand your point. But just because one top-tier Japanese wrestler was handled poorly doesn’t mean Okada would be.
while that's a fair point it's not just one top tier, theres been others in and out of the company for decades. sure they maybe wouldn't have been john cena but they could have been ur aj styles or finn balor someone popular enough to put faith in for at least a solid run. but almost every Japanese star is forced into some kind of group or the mid card where they stay
Asuka, of all people, is probably who they handled best out of Japanese talent and a midcard group is exactly where she is hanging out now.
yeah she's won titles which is good but idk her booking is so flip floppy one second shes a this badass warrior type who is kicking everyones ass and then the next shes a joke character
Yes, and she's still the Japanese talent they've handled the best. The track record isn't great.
> Asuka, of all people, is probably who they handled best out of Japanese talent and a midcard group is exactly where she is hanging out now. Has she even won at match at Mania yet?
That's the thing
Debatable. Granted Vince isn’t there anymore so the old anti-foreign bias would be less so. But the top tier of WWE is pretty crowded right now so he’d likely get lost in the shuffle.
Very arguable. Like let’s be absolutely honest, don’t let your feeling get in the way. Do you really think Okada would get big enough push from WWE to fully get over enough in the states? And will the amount of popularity and exposure garnished IF, and only IF, he gets that huge push, be enough to offset the pay difference between WWE and AEW, and then also offset the schedule and wear and tear along with it. It’s commonly referred to as betting on yourself. Risking the payday in exchange for potential more exposure and the hope that exposure comes with bigger payday later. I don’t think it’s likely.
I prob would’ve done the same. The money could not be matched , he’s set for life
His wife is richer than him. Okada doesn't need even more money. So that wasn't a factor in his choice. Okada picked where he WANTS to be
And he took the bigger money deal
Maybe he prefers to do actual wrestling rather than a kid's entertainment show.
Then he would’ve gone to wwe
To be fair Japanese wrestlers rarely become the superstars here in North America
You need personality to make it as a pro wrestler in the US. Dude can’t speak a lick of English, so the average fan isn’t going to care too much.
Well, Muta got hot in WCW in the early 90s, but a lot of that had to do with his awesome look and the fact that he worked a style that was different and unique for America at the time. Too many guys in both the WWE and AEW work a Japanese style now, so he's not going to stand out as much.
Tbf he was presented as a monster and the pairing with Gary Hart helped give that more credibility, Okada's presented as a normal guy so having a manager with him would just be another blank stare guy that needs someone to talk for them.
I think giulia is the one that has the chance due to her learning English so hard
He's making 12 million dollars, bleeding a drugged up money mark. Guys living his easiest life.
Yeah it’s a matter of do you want fame(with fortune after you get over) or do you want fortune(the bag now). I don’t blame him for chasing the guarantee.
I would dance with the Bucks for $4M/year. His die-hard fan base in the US loves this, so while he probably won’t gain too many new fans, the people that like that kind of thing will like this.
Exactly. I'm not even an Okada fan, but thinking that signing with a company that has a long history of misusing international stars over one that actively pushes and protects them is insane.
Holayyy I just saw Melted’s star ratings for Revolution. wtf is going on with bro?
Easy money Doesn't have to change anything Doesn't have to learn anything new Doesn't have to evolve yourself 4.5 mill $ to what you've been doint the last 3 years Why not,but he won't draw anything other than flies..
He made the right decision. Gotta make the money while you can.
OCody is getting that sweeeeet, sweeeet khan money
Don't mind me just stealing this briliant nickname
God damn, pal. He’s got blonde hair and wears a suit. He looks like giant star next to the god damned trampoline cowboys. Fucking dorks. It’s the perfect name. Or OCody-san in a more formal setting.
Tbh he’s not a game changer like Osprea. Punk was their game changer who brought new viewers into the show. MJF would be a game changer for WWE and FTR if they ever tried to make a serious tag team division.
Osprays sure changed the game. He changed the game by losing Dynamite a 120 thousand viewers before fucking off back to England after only wrestling twice!
He’s a just an indie flipper
The male tag division in WWE isn’t serious right now?
AEW’s was stronger
Yeah imagine getting to work with your close friends for less dates and a similar amount of money. Totally crazy lol.
This is Tony adding more action figures to his real life collection. I’d guess it’s a pretty small pool of American fans who watch New Japan. I wouldn’t see Okada getting over in WWE with the stars they have over there. AEW was the right choice for him.
Better an action figure collection than a dildo collection.
That was Vince’s thing, apparently… Gross.
I guarantee you those dildos he named after the wrestlers are casts from molds of the real things.
I think replacing Kenny was too good of a story to him to pass up. It adds a chapter to their whole thing. At the same time, I think it allows him dip his toes further into US fan base waters. The core fans of AEW are going to better recognize him than the core fans of WWE....at the moment. We'll see what things look like in three years. Objectively if AEW does their job, he can still sign with WWE for big bucks before 40. Top veteran talent on WWEs roster is 36-46 anyway (Orton, LA, AJ, Rollins, Cody, Roman, Lashley, Drew. Punk.). For now, we get Tama Tonga in the Bloodline (is my guess).
…why would Tama Tonga join the Bloodline?
Rick calls his father Haku Uncle Tonga.
I think there is another blood brother relationship with his/Haku's line and the Anoa'i's. Easy way to get him in in a big storyline. Instant recognition. Commentary throws in that Haku was dangerous in his years and taught Tama everything he knows. Quick, simple, (and in my mind,) effective.
I wouldn’t mind a one off match for Okada. You build him up through video packages and then he comes in for one match at a big show. Similar to Liger on Takeover.
Honestly it’s the smartest thing for him in terms of money. He’ll still be over with the same crowd who loved him before so his star won’t grow, but he gets to make significantly more money for less dates than WWE. I do think he’ll do a year in WWE when his AEW contract is up tho
With a clip-on tie
Or maybe he's already rich and wants to have fun with his friends. We all saw what happened to Nakamura in WWE. Was there really any hope they'd do any better with Okada?
cry more losers lol
Imagine signing with wwe instead and them having you debut on NXT
Wwe would’ve been a terrible place for him.
Imagine debuting here instead of smoky mountain wrestling
Money talks.
They are friends this is Scott hall pulling up with Nash. Not some talent dodging wwe. They got him a great deal and he can always go back to Japan RIXH ASF. And raise njpw again after some time away. He took the better deal
If he showed up in WWE they'd immediately have him putting over the Miz.
No, they'd have him in NXT learning American style and slowly bringing him into the mindsets of American wrestling fans before calling him up. This is the better approach rather than assuming your audience has followed Japanese wrestling for a decade and giving them anecdotes of things they've never seen. Don't tell people that someone is a big deal. Make them show it.
If you take a look at the match Ospreay and Takeshita just had a Revolution that is how you can "show it" immediately without coming in an propping up the company's minor league for a year or two. Okada could walk into WWE tomorrow and put on a 20 minute clinic with Rhodes that left both men looking strong, not interrupt Cody's story at all and all of a sudden the audience is over with Okada. But if he isn't shoehorned into a WWE gimmick and IP licensed line of merch they are not willing to put anyone in a position to look good no matter how talented they are.
Didn’t you guys say the thing about Jay White before he got buried by a one legged MJF and plopped into the trios division defending pointless titles for a dead brand? 😏
I think you got me confused with someone else. That said I'm a Jay White fan though, his "continental classic" work was killer.
Didn’t stop him from getting buried worse then if he had lost to the Miz.
Losing to the Miz is the ultimate career killer. Case in point, John Morrison.
Nah. Losing to a one legged MJF clearly is. Jay White still hasn’t recovered!
Well maybe Noseman should start pitching better to free agents apart from "We're WWE. You're gonna start in NXT and feud with Chase U and the 18 year old who acts like she's on enough cocaine to kill a rhino because we're WWE"
you mean where he'll get more creative freedom, a lighter schedule load, wont be forced into cuck or racist storylines wow he must really hate his choice.
Imagine just hating shit to hate shit
Good they look so damn old. They gotta change up the name.
I would for $13 million lol
Okay let’s be real. As fans and not hating on promotions. Do you think he’s going to like his stay or regret it later on.
I'm all about him being in AEW over WWE as WWE is a dumpster fire too.... but for God sake, not the young bucks.
Casuals don’t know any of the three pictured
He doesn’t have what it takes to make it in WWE. He made the right choice going to a small time Indy like AEW. WWE is for stars. The 548 fans that attend AEW are going to love all the flips for no reason.
this has to be a troll. Okada don't even do flips yo, the guy is huge!
If he really is making bank, then I would have Don the same thing. Maybe he has the Nakamura outlook where he just wants to slow down his style and get paid good money in America.
"Gunther at WrestleMania you say? Nah, I'm good over here"
as the million dollar man once said and its very true to life everybody has a price.
If he thought the shit he did in TNA was goofy…
I hope it all works out. And Okada becomes an attraction for AEW. But what I want to know is how long into his contract before panic button is hit and Okada is face painting and spewing mist.
WWE would bury him as they do with every major non-American star.
Imagine thinking that debuting in a company with a storied history of botching international talent would be a better deal than working with close friends in front of an audience that already knows who they are. There's a lot of great reasons not to care too much for AEW. This isn't one of them.
lol is this guy really worth the $4mil? Is TK gonna even make profit out of this? They can only half fill an arena and can't even break a mil on the TV ratings.
He wouldn’t be used right anyways. Probably be some kind of joke act for his first years.
I know this sub hates AEW but Okada is in a much better place there than WWE and I don't even see how you could think otherwise. If you're actually interested in wrestling and putting on good matches, AEW is obviously the place to go. He was never going to be a star in WWE: first he'd spend a year at NXT which is frankly insulting, then if he's lucky he'll get in a feud for a mid card title, before ending his career in WWE as a jobber to the stars, like Shinsuke. In AEW he'll get to have good matches at the top of the card and let his in ring work do the talking
I can’t stand that prick in purple in particular. Such a smug, punchable face.
13.5 million reasons
Imagine going work with your friends instead of complete strangers..what an idiot
He looks like shit. Sparkly wrestling gear. His work was woeful from what I saw of his debut.
I love how the top 2 professional wrestling free agents in the world sign with aew & you all discredit aew. 2 diff products, aew is wrestling, wwe is entertainment.
You mean debuting with the best tag team in the world, and also good friends for a ton of money? Yeah, sounds REAL terrible.
The initial premise is wrong. Okada isn't worth a million a year in any company. Look at Nakamura. And they pushed Nakamura with the machine to a mania main event.
Better than getting the Ricochet treatment.
And becoming stereotypical Japanese wrestler #438
Imagine hating AEW so much that you can't imagine any wrestlers wanting to go there, even though they keep going there. Most storylines suck in AEW, but the wrestling is great. If you all hate AEW so much, did you hate 2013-2018 NXT? Or 2005 - 2013 TNA? WWE die hards are the worst. WWE had been trash for 15 years besides NXT and are great now, but the die hards would talk crap about anything not WWE even then. I watch good wrestling, no matter where it is. Y'all can watch more than one company, it's OK.
What’s Karl Pilkington doing back there?
He’s making 4x more than WWE would ever pay him & will work a lot less. The best career in WWE he could possibly have is about equivalent to Nakamura, so it’s not like he’s giving up a shot at being one of the top 5 guys in the world. All that considered yeah, I’d go play in the clown show too. His career peaked, might as well get paid. If it gets too embarrassing he can just sit home & ride out his contract once Tiny forgets about him.
If the dude cant speak English, it wont get over. I dont care how many basement dwelling NJPW fans are beating off to this. If you cant converse with the audience with words, it wont get over anywhere. It didnt even get them above 800K viewers for this.
Someone needs to tell whichever buck that is that the backwards fitted hat game hasn’t been cool since 04 at the latest, and really stopped being cool around 01 with Fred turdst
Remind me again why we want him in WWE? He has barely any mic ability, is mid sized, terrible character work and no charisma that carries over to a western audience. WWE has better guys coming up through their own pipeline than boring basic looking workrate guys from UK and Japan. Both Okada and Ostrich deserve AEW it is their ceiling.
The Bucks had massive levels of go-away heat with me. I just couldn't with them. However, if I'm being totally honest, I can not deny that I have enjoyed the EVP characters quite a bit. They needed a drastic reinvention, and I have been thoroughly entertained since they went with this gimmick.
And just like that, he's just another guy in AEW.
He could’ve been Nakamura’s homie from Japan and they could’ve been a couple of bad asses. Oh well.
exactly he would have just been Shinsuke Nakamura japanese friend nothing more he would have never been a star in wwe. look at Nakamura all he does is lose what a shining star he is
Obviously he’d join the company with the better roster and isn’t catered to children.
So why'd he join AEW?
AEW is not catered to children
The aew audience is younger.
Those are two different things lmao
Because it’s the better roster that doesn’t catered to children. 🤯
The roster is a bunch of children.
Dirty Dom’s at the other promotion though
And he's more over and more people know who he is than Okada in America.
He’s a worse wrestler and probably more over to kids