Where Will Kenny Omega Go?

Kenny Omega's contract with New Japan is up soon. But where will he end up plying his craft? We examine the possibilities.

What will Kenny Omega do?

The question is on everyone's mind these days in the purview of sports entertainment. Kenny Omega has been a major star in New Japan Pro Wrestling for several years, capturing the IWGP United States title and then the IWGP World Heavyweight championship, becoming one of a handful of Gaijin, foreign, wrestlers to hold that belt in the land of the rising sun.

But now he appears to be taking a step back from his home of the last few years, and speculation is running wild as to where he will wind up signing. This isn't even the first time that Kenny Omega has been in this situation; Just two years ago, rumours he would make a surprise debut at the Royal Rumble circulated wildly, until he resigned with New Japan Pro Wrestling.

What goes around comes around, and now Kenny Omega's contract is coming up again. Just where will Kenny Omega wind up wrestling? We will examine the possibilities, and speculate on which are the most likely.

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Possibility #1: The WWE

Could Kenny Omega make his debut at the Royal Rumble, just as AJ Styles did before him?

Reasons he might sign with the WWE: First and foremost, the WWE can offer Kenny Omega a type of financial compensation that the next closest competitor couldn't hope to match for just one talent. Second, the WWE offers the largest of all possible stages on which to ply his supreme technical wrestling and stiff striking. Finally, it would feel like personal validation for Omega to return to a company that once spurned him and become their top star.

Reasons he might not sign with the WWE: There might be some lingering resentment left after the way he was treated by the company the first time around. Also, creative control of his matches is very important to Kenny Omega, and this alone could be a deal breaker for the Best Bout Machine. Finally, most of Kenny's old Bullet Club alumni seem mired in the WWE's midcard, such as Finn Balor and the tandem of Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson.

Chances of signing with WWE: 50-50. Big money is said to be on the table, but Kenny eschewed a big offer from WWE once before, not to mention that his friends have their own wrestling promotion now...

Possibility #2: All Elite Wrestling

Kenny Omega could be heading to AEW....or maybe not.

Reasons he might sign with All Elite Wrestling: For one thing, his friends are the ones running the promotion! Omega's fellow Elite members Cody Rhodes, and Matt and Nick Jackson, the Young Bucks, are running the show in All Elite Wrestling. Omega can count on being treated well in that promotion. Also, he would probably have a lot of creative freedom working for All Elite Wrestling, that he might not enjoy elsewhere.

Reasons he might not sign with All Elite Wrestling: As of this writing, AEW has only one show planned, and its months away. Would a superstar as hot as Kenny Omega really want to sit on the sidelines for months and risk cooling off? Then there's the subject of compensation, even with the Khans backing AEW they may not be able to match WWE's money offer. Finally, there are no guarantees that All Elite Wrestling will go the distance, or end up in the scrap heap of history like WCW and ECW.

Chances of signing with AEW: 60-40 Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter recently stated that he believes Kenny is heading to AEW, but Mr. Meltzer has been wrong before (most famously when he said Kurt Angle would never wrestle for TNA, Angle spent nearly ten years with the promotion.) At this point, it's totally up to whether Omega values a big stage and bigger money against friendship and creative control.

Possibility #3: Ring of Honor

Kenny Omega and Cody Rhodes butted heads in ROH, and the promotion declared it their 'feud of the year' for 2018.

Reasons Kenny Omega might sign with Ring of Honor: Well, it wouldn't be for the money! Ring of Honor contracts are notoriously low balled, but there are a number of perks for working with the promotion. For one, they enjoy a great working relationship with New Japan Pro Wrestling, which would allow Kenny to continue to work in Japan if he desired. Second, ROH alone would be able to offer Kenny technically sound opponents that he could put on great matches with.

Reasons Kenny Omega might not sign with Ring of Honor: Money, first and foremost, would be limited in Ring of Honor. Then there is the fact that Ring of Honor mostly operates in very small venues, which might seem like a big step down for Omega.

Chances of signing with Ring of Honor: 20-80. Kenny Omega could reliably work for Ring of Honor just by staying with New Japan Pro Wrestling, and there's little ROH could offer him that other promotions could not.

Possibility #4: Impact Wrestling

Kenny Omega vs. Pentagon Jr was one of the best-received matches of All In. If Omega signed with Impact, fans might see it again.

Reasons Kenny Omega might sign with Impact Wrestling: Impact had been criticized for years for getting away from their 'total nonstop action' roots, but have tried to make amends since by putting wrestling action first. Signing Kenny Omega would be a real coup and ratings driver, and you can expect any offer they made would afford Omega a great deal of creative freedom and the ability to work in other promotions.

Reasons Kenny Omega might not sign with Impact: First and foremost, the Impact brand is struggling. While they continue to get critical acclaim and have a dedicated fanbase, the fact remains they have been circling the drain for years with a multitude of different owners coming and going. It might not be a stable enough gig for Omega to consider.

Chances of Kenny Omega signing with Impact: Practically zero. Anything Impact can offer, another promotion can do better, whether it's money or creative freedom or the ability to work for other companies.

Possibility #5: New Japan Pro Wrestling.

Kenny Omega might end up right back where he started, believe it or not.

Reasons Kenny Omega might re-sign with New Japan Pro Wrestling: Omega has been treated very, very well by the promotion, and after all, they are the ones who made him into the megastar he is today. Kenny Omega also likes working in Japan and enjoys the culture of the land of the rising sun.

Reasons Kenny Omega might no re-sign with NJWP: Kenny Omega seems to be ready to move on from New Japan Pro Wrestling, and he may not have anything left to accomplish with the promotion.

Chances of Kenny Omega signing with NJWP: 70-30. No, that's not a typo. Think about it; All of Kenny Omega's tweets about leaving NJPW have been in kayfabe. He said that Tanahashi 'has not surpassed' him, which is not a very gracious thing to say if you are leaving a company, and by all accounts, Kenny Omega is a very gracious person. New Japan could be working the smart fans who know that Omega's contract is up, and build on a possible future rematch between the Best Bout Machine and Tanahashi.

There you have it; Five possible scenarios for Kenny Omega when his contract comes up with New Japan. Where would you like to see Kenny wrestle? Please comment and let us know and as always thanks for reading.