At NJPW Power Struggle, Kenny Omega and Gabe Kidd got into a backstage altercation after Omega addressed the crowd in Osaka.
The altercation stemmed from a Twitter exchange, where Kidd posted Omega's name with a clock and hourglass. Omega responded by saying, "Tell you what, brah - Go win that G1 and maybe I’ll think about gifting you with the “Kenny Omega touch”. The same one that scored all your top talent that bag here in the US."
While doing media leading up to NJPW Power Struggle, Omega called Gabe, "Greg," and said a match with him might be a little too soon.
In the altercation, Kidd can be seen talking to Omega and mentioning that he got his name wrong. As Kidd tried to walk away, he was pulled by Omega, leading to some shoving and fists flying.
Speaking to Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp, Kidd detailed everything about his beef with Omega.
"I was always trying to talk to him off camera. The only reason all those Japanese press people were there is because they just interviewed him. I knew where he was going to be after he got off the mic. I was like, ‘Hold up, I’ve never meet this geez before, I’m going to go speak to him.’ They hear something happening and go interrupt. There was somebody else filming as well, apparently. I just went to talk to him. I’ve never spoken to the guy in my life. I mentioned his name when I was drunk on Twitter. I mentioned his name and he wrote some paragraph back to me, ‘Maybe if you’re lucky and win the G1 I’ll bless you with the Kenny Omega touch.’ You think I give a fuck about you, geez? I was just saying it because I know there are some people that would love to watch me batter you. I wasn’t trying to do anything. I told him before anything, before pro wrestling, before anything, I’m a man. I don’t mess around with this pro wrestling stuff. You mess up my name intentionally -- All these guys like MJF and Kenny, they think they’re acting so cool when they get my name wrong when they obviously know it and they’re just trying to act cool in front of another bunch of uncool people, which are their fans. It’s just funny to me," said Gabe. "He called me Greg Kidd, acting like he didn’t know who I was, like he hadn’t responded to me already. First of all, you look dumb."
As noted by Kidd, he approached Kenny after Omega had spoken in the ring and said that he hoped to return at NJPW x AEW Wrestle Dynasty on January 5.
Asked about Kenny's demeanor when he approached, Kidd said, "He was a lot calmer than mine. I never met him before, so I don’t know if he’s heard stories or spoken to people about me. I don’t fuck around. I don’t fuck around with people trying to disrespect me. We’re supposed to be in a collaboration with AEW. What kind of collaboration is that? When they just bring their guys over for our big stuff and we go over there for fucking Ring of Honor. Are you mad? I’m a fucking famous wrestler. I did Ring of Honor and I beat two people."
Kidd wrestled and defeated Anthony Henry on ROH on HonorClub in October and Angelico on ROH on HonorClub in November.
During the Angelico match, which will air on November 14, the crowd chanted for Kenny.
"Yeah, the whole crowd was chanting it on Ring of Honor when he’s not in the building. He came back to New Japan before he came back to his workplace. How does that work out? He knows New Japan is number one. He knows where the best wrestling is. He said it in his promo. He said, ‘New Japan is where the best wrestling is. New Japan is number one.’ He said that. First of all, he’s lying to all these people that are backing him. What kind of role model is that? Little idiot," said Kidd.
In an interview after the altercation, Omega called Kidd "unprofessional" and referenced the AEW All Out 2022 altercation with CM Punk.
"He’s so unprofessional," Kidd stated about Omega. "He goes to the press after that altercation and says, ‘Gabe Kidd is unprofessional.’ I came up to you for a chat and was putting you in your place. Then you wanted to start getting mad, pulling me back. I was starting to walk away. You can watch it. I was trying to walk away and he pulled me back. Trying to hit my hat off, I’ll slap the shit out of him.
"All these things that have become news in wrestling, AEW Brawl Out, Brawl In, that is the most pussy shit I’ve ever seen in my life. They advertise on national TV, they thought it would be a good idea to show this fight, this talked about backstage fight with CM Punk and Jack Perry, and it was a push and front choke for two seconds. You are all pussies. If you want to be in a collaboration, that’s fine, but I’ll come to Japan and I’ll slap the shit out of any of you. Especially that knobhead, talking about me being unprofessional. He ran to the press. ‘I don’t want to wrestle him, he’s unprofessional. I want to wrestle....’ and listed off a bunch of names. Come on man."
Asked if he had any regrets over how it unfolded, Kidd stated, "Not at all. If he wanted to make it like that, that’s cool with me."
Omega has been sidelined since December 2023 after being diagnosed with diverticulitis and undergoing surgery. He has not officially been announced as being cleared for a return.
"He’s going to wish that he died from 'hiverticulitis' or whatever the fuck he had. He’s going to wish all that pain finished him off because when he’s in the ring with me, finally, it’s not a joke. When I see this guy again, I’m going to fuck him up. This guy wants to talk about me being unprofessional, he can fuck off," said Kidd.
Asked if he thinks Omega is willing to do the match, Kidd replied, "Who knows. If he wants to call me out for being unprofessional. He can be a little bitch about it, but I am very professional. I am the best professional wrestler on the planet. How can I not be professional? I know what my job is. He can say what he wants about me. If he’s talking about professionalism, he should turn up, make the match, and sell out the Tokyo Dome. If you want to talk about professionalism, you’ll do what’s best for the fucking job."
NJPW x AEW Wrestle Dynasty is a joint show between the two promotions and the first joint show in Japan.
Asked if he thought Kenny got the reaction he was looking for, Gabe said, "I don’t care what he thought of it. I said it before, I don’t know this guy. I never met this guy in my life. I just went up to him to tell him straight up, don’t be saying that shit if you don’t know me. I don’t know you like that. Don’t start saying this shit and acting like you don’t know me, trying to little league me. I am one of the best in the world. Don’t play with me. Whatever happened happened. I don’t give a fuck what he thinks or how he reacted to the situation. He got slapped and taken down. That’s it. He can sit in his big house and be sad about it."
Asked if he's had any interaction with Kenny since the incident, Gabe said, "No. What you think we met up for Yaki-Niku after? Of course fucking not. I don’t know the guy. I know people who know him."
NJPW announced that President Hiroshi Tanahashi fined and warned Kidd for his involvement in the altercation.
"I know they were pissed that he hasn’t been cleared and he’s getting in a scrap, but that’s his own fault," Gabe said when asked about AEW and NJPW's reaction to the altercation. "I got fined by New Japan. It doesn’t matter because I’m rich. They pay me. That’s half my G1 tour money. I don’t give a shit about that. They were talking to me about professionalism. I said you need to talk to the fucking partner company about professionalism. You need to talk about Kenny coming back for New Japan before AEW. You need to talk about that. I’m not worried about any of that."
Fightful acquired a video of the incident, which fans can view below.
Footage of Gabe Kidd's altercation with Kenny Omega in Japan was sent to Fightful by a Japanese press member who got footage a little sooner than the rest of the press that rushed over. pic.twitter.com/s2jTCqQJKC
— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) November 7, 2024
Kidd said about the footage, "I will say this, hand on heart, I didn’t know this shit was being filmed. The Japanese press were only there because they heard him talking and they heard something so they think it was whatever. I don’t care what people think it is. I haven’t read any of the comments on that video. I don’t care what people are saying about that video. That’s what happened and they rushed in and caught it on camera. That’s all there is to say about it. Some little snitches in these locker rooms these days. All these snitches releasing shit that shouldn’t be released. Fuck em. Little rats. They are inferior to me."
Asked what his ideal scenario would be coming out of the altercation, Kidd said, "The right thing for him to do is be a fucking professional. The right thing for him to do is to realize, ‘I’ve had a great career. It’s been fun times, but it’s time for the next guy. I will sacrifice my body.’ He should sacrifice himself in this match and realize that he is not the Kenny Omega that he once was. These people see him as a God, and I will treat him like a peasant and they will see me as a God and New Japan will take its top spot back as the number one pro wrestling company in the world. He should be a fucking professional, pull his thumb out of his ass, and stop crying. You got dealt with. You got warned. Now, it’s time. Fuck him. That’s it."
NJPW held its NJPW Fighting Spirit Unleashed Show on November 8th. The show was headlined by Kidd facing Kosei Fujita in the main event. Omega was not present.
Kidd is set to face Ryohei Oiwa at NJPW Strong Style Evolved on December 15th.
Asked if what could happen if Kenny shows up to an NJPW show, Kidd said, "It’s a seek him out situation. What do you want to do? I’m not one to run away from these things. I’ll go up to someone and I don’t give a fuck what you’ve done. I don’t give a fuck where you’ve worked. I will walk up to you and say what’s what. It’s a seek him out situation and whatever happens there, happens there. That is what it is. I’m not a fucking genie in a lamp. If he’s not a bitch, we’ll see what happens."
Reflecting on what happened during the altercation, Kidd said, "I felt, from the minute I started talking to him, he started defending it [mocks Kenny]. I thought, ‘This guy is a pussy, bro. I can feel him shaking.’ I could feel him getting ready for a fight as well. He was twitching at certain points. Then what happened, happened. He tried to touch me. As soon as he touched me, it was game on. I slapped him and then he hit me with a little punch, but I shrugged that off. You saw what happened. I don’t need to play-by-play. That is how I remember it. I look forward to the next time."
Omega has not wrestled since December 2023, and as mentioned, is not currently cleared for an in-ring return.
Asked if he felt bad going after a guy who isn't cleared, Kidd said, "I don’t give a shit. A few of your subscribers have probably been talking about me. I see people talking about me, saying I’m reckless and unsafe. ‘You can’t give Kenny Omega to Gabe, he’ll hurt him. Just like he hurt Eddie Kingston and this guy and this guy.’ I don’t give a shit. This is pro wrestling. What the fuck do you expect? We’re throwing each other through tables, off ladders, off cages. People get hurt. I’m happy to be the one doing it. I don’t give a fuck how many people I’ve hurt. People turning down bookings against me because they don’t want to get in the ring with me. Good. None of you should want to get in the ring with me."
As of now, a bout between Omega and Kidd has not been made official.
Fans can find Rocky Romero's comments on the situation by clicking here.
Watch the full interview with Kidd in the video above.
