As the shininess of the new year wears off and we push through the 31 days of January, we need something to entertain us during these cold winter months.

For professional wrestling diehards and newcomers alike, the sport will be coming in hot as the new year initiates New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s 17th annual pay-per-view event, Wrestle Kingdom.

Imagine WWE’s (World Wrestling Entertainment) WrestleMania, but with some of the biggest stars in Japan and across the world duking it out at the Tokyo Dome – the Soldier Field or the United Center of Japan; take your pick.

At this year’s event, we’ll see two of the most renowned gaijin (foreign) wrestlers.

Former Bullet Club leader, Kenny Omega, will return to his old stomping grounds to challenge the rigid yet charismatic aerial assassin, Will Ospreay, for his IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship.

Omega, a former IWGP U.S. champ, looks to seize the day once more and reclaim the moniker of “King of Gaijin Wrestling.”

A match like this alone is something you’d create while playing any WWE 2K game. These don’t often happen in real life; it’ll be a once-in-a-lifetime extravaganza.

All signs point that this contest could (I think will) be the match of the year. And yet we still have 11 more months to go after that.

So, who are these contenders? What makes them so special? Let me explain.

Imagine all the most unconventional anime villains ever sculpted put together in one chiseled athlete; that’s Kenny Omega.

Although he’s a well-liked face now (a good guy in the sport), the persona he exudes best is his heel (bad guy) getup.

As the fourth ruler of the cataclysmic Bullet Club, Omega won and reigned every championship and tourney New Japan could offer, something completely unseen or heard of for foreign talents.

There’s a reason why he’s called “The Cleaner”; it’s cause he mops the floor with his opponents. The Canadian workhorse held down New Japan Pro-Wrestling from 2016 till his departure in 2019.

Ospreay, his opponent, would take on that challenge with an “anything you can do, I can do better” mindset.

The distinguished gravitational aerialist has mirrored Omega’s title wins by capturing the IWGP World Heavyweight, Junior Heavyweight, and currently, the U.S. Heavyweight championships.

The supercilious Brit also oversees the well-orchestrated faction, the United Empire, commanding a familiar grip Omega once had on the Bullet Club and now The Elite.

These two profound technicians will clash on Wednesday, January 4. More information on this match and Wrestle Kingdom itself is available on njpw1972.com

Brie Coder is a graduate student in communication and leadership. She can be reached at bmcoder@eiu.edu or 217-581-2812