Kenny Omega Confirms His Official AEW Title, Length Of His Contract & Whether He Can Still Work NJPW
Following Thursday night’s explosive AEW Double or Nothing ticket release party in Las Vegas, the fledgling promotion’s latest major acquisition, Kenny Omega, spoke in depth with Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio about his new position within All Elite Wrestling.
Along with signing a full-time contract as an in-ring competitor, Omega will also be involved on the corporate end of the business. He has been named as another Executive Vice President, a title which he will share with Cody Rhodes and the Young Bucks, Nick and Matt Jackson.
He has been signed to a four-year deal which will expire in February 2023.
“I felt that I needed to go to a place where I could do more,” Omega said of his decision to leave New Japan Pro-Wrestling. “Japan will always be a home to me, and I’m always going to be back.”
For some fans, it was almost impossible to believe that the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion would ever leave his beloved home in New Japan, as he has been positioned as one of the promotion’s top three stars in recent years and was considered by many to be the cornerstone of their international expansion.
However, Omega clarified that he had a segment written into his contract with All Elite Wrestling that will allow him to perform for New Japan.
“I have it specifically written into my contact — and this is something I couldn’t have done in WWE — that I can go anytime I want and appear for New Japan Pro-Wrestling. I’ve made sure that it’s been written in, and I do have the freedom to appear there. I just hope that my last match in Japan wasn’t the match against Tanahashi. If so it’s a great way to go out, and I was really proud of that match. But there’s still a little more for me to do there, and I think that after coming back after doing the AEW thing, maybe it could even be better for me. [The] door’s always open.”