Kazuchika Okada vs Katsuyori Shibata(09/04/2017)

This was for Okada's IWGP heavyweight championship.

Wrestling is an art form like no other. You get attached to these complete strangers, playing characters and live their stories becoming happy in their victories and experiencing heartbreak in their losses. Nothing really captures emotions like professional wrestling does. So I pick one match to talk about today. The hardest thing that I’ve experienced in my life as a wrestling fan is being a fan of Katsuyori Shibata. This match is a battle of two ideologies. Two men who believe in completely opposite things. Shibata the traditionalist, a believer of the old ways, the way things used to be. The rebel who always trusted in himself and paved his own path. Okada is the exact opposite. The chosen one. The man who was handpicked to lead New Japan into the new era, trusted with its future. He lived up to the promise and took the promotion to new heights. No man is the villain of the story here. It’s two really admirable guys who despise each other because of what they believe in. The contrast in what they represent is captured so well right down to their ring gears and entrances. Shibata, the simplistic man with the black tights. Okada has his extravagant ring gear with the money raining during his entrance. Shibata is the minimalist. Okada is the representation of being extra.

Shibata had returned to company on the day of the G1 climax 22 final in 2012, the year Okada was making his first strides and coincidentally the first G1 that he won too. The chosen one was making big waves. Shibata on the other hand was met with immediate resistance, understandably so with him leaving the promotion in the tough times. He had to scratch and claw his way up to this title opportunity after earning back the love of the fans and the respect of his peers. The respect of all but one man, the IWGP heavyweight champion Kazuchika Okada. The wrestler wasn’t on The Rainmaker’s radar. He completely no sold Shibata’s challenge after his New Japan cup win too, not walking out to meet him face to face when he was called out.

This match, for a lack of a better term, is extraordinary. I doubt I will ever do justice to it with just words but I’ll try my best. It’s two wrestlers doing a lot of things right but it’s really so much more than just that. It’s two exceptional wrestling basically having a perfect night at the same time. Okada knows he can’t beat Shibata at grappling but because of his arrogance he gets into the exchange anyway and to no one’s surprise gets owned. Then to the crowd’s elation, Shibata invites him to the mat again, goading him and Okada not learning from his mistake, gives in once again! This continues throughout the first act as Shibata dares him to do what he wants. Okada does learn from mistakes though as has been one of his strongest traits and just about manages to keep him in check and doesn’t do anything drastic unless Shibata does something that can really put him out like the cross armbreaker. Shibata’s headlocks are so terrific and extremely mean. He grinds and twists his arm around Okada’s head while being sold well. Okada takes him to the corner but instead of giving him the clean break, he smashes him with the elbow establishing that level of disrespect between both men that would become the theme of this match. It only angers Shibata and he goads Okada into a strike exchange but he is no match for Shibata’s striking prowess. Even while being trapped in the figure four, Okada continues to talk shit and instigate Shibata.

Okada kept getting outclassed but never lets the match get away from him so as soon as he gets his opening, he gets in the turnbuckle dropkick and starts his usual neck work which is of course really good as usual. Shibata dares him strike him as best as he can and Okada takes the bait, once again no match for Shibata’s ability and gets brutalised. Shibata has his manjigatame as the Inokiism tribute. He makes Okada work extremely hard to even the slightest bit of his big offense. Like the big elbow drop into the Rainmaker pose but can’t get the Rainmaker in and gets countered. The strike exchange that follows literally features what maye be the best elbow strikes that Okada has ever thrown in his career. He gets a nearfall after a missile dropkick which really is a disguised opportunity for Shibata get in a submission on his arm. Okada has realised that he is outmatched in technique but what he lacks there, he makes up for with his resilience and his brain. We get a badass exchange of palm strikes on the mat after Okada invites Shibata which was really just him looking to create an opportunity to get a big opening and he gets Shibata in the corner with repeated kicks but his arrogance costs when he does the move theft and does the corner dropkick, he only pisses Shibata off even more. Shibata basically wrestles this match in a manner that made it feel like he was going to either win the title or simply die trying. He completely no sells the series of running dropkicks that Okada used to retire Tenryu and no sells the Rainmaker which he follows up with THAT bone chilling headbutt that was heard around the world. He locks in the manjigatame again and it really feels like he has the match in his grip. But, he wasn’t just here to win the championship. He wanted to do that and make a statement. The character arc of Katsuyori Shibata has seen him come up short in key matches so many matches because his hubris is his baggage. It’s what has always held him back from winning the big ones. It happens again as he plays around too much with the kicks, not going for the final blow of the PK. Okada’s resilience pays off in the end as he lands a sudden short arm Rainmaker and then another one which Shibata tries to no sell but is so spent that he falls to his knees and his eyes finally showed that fear of loss as he realised his mistake and panicked after having wrestled a perfect match. He tried to counter the final Rainmaker with an elbow but it was too little too late. Okada survived Shibata’s onslaught and retained his championship.

Watching this live was a surreal experience, like nothing I’d ever seen before. More than 5 years since the day, there has not been a single time that I haven’t ended up in tears every time I’ve rewatched this and as I am writing this piece, I experience that feeling again. Katsuyori Shibata, in the biggest match of his life went so far in trying to achieve the biggest prize that cost him his own career and still ended up on the losing side to cap off what is perhaps the greatest character arc in the history of professional wrestling. It’s the tragedy of The Wrestler. It left something to be desired as they made it feel like the it’s first match in a series with the sudden ending. But that is part of the charm of Okada vs Shibata. There really is only one and it’s special. For long I have felt conflicted about loving this match so much but it makes it a bit easier now that Shibata has wrestled again. At the time this happened I had only known both men for about 4 months and this match completely changed the way I view wrestling and I think it kind of cemented their place in my heart forever. The greatest wrestling match that ever happened.