Since the inception of AEW in 2019, Kenny Omega has been an Executive Vice President of the company, giving him extra responsibilities.
Along with his in-ring work, Omega has had to oversee things backstage and off-screen to a certain degree.
Speaking to NJPW, Omega discussed the balancing act he's had to perform for the last five years.
"I would never wish it upon anybody else in the world, trust me. I miss those days of rolling up to an arena with just my carry case, my little bag, that had my gear in it, and focusing on that match, that one performance. The performance was just about me. Instead, I’m at the arena days before, trying to figure out, ‘How’re we gonna make this work? How do we make this guy’s entrance work? How do we make sure all the entrance videos are formatted? How do we make sure the extras and the talent are fed? How do we make sure that they’re healthy? How do we make sure they we keep them healthy? What do we do if something goes wrong?’ There’s always, it’s a balancing act of a million things, and if you’re not 100% confident in your wrestling ability and if you’re not completely dedicated and passionate, not only about the success of what you do out there, but the success of the entire company and maybe even the state of professional wrestling, you can’t do it. It’s a terrible undertaking. As much as the Young Bucks have betrayed me as of recently, I couldn’t have done it without them. It was really a group effort. But Tanahashi now, doing it all by himself with the help of a lot of talented people here, I understand the burden that it weighs on him," he said.
Omega continued, commented on Hiroshi Tanahashi performing a similar balancing act as an active wrestler and NJPW President.
"For him to still be an active professional wrestler, for him to still be in any title picture is nothing short of a miracle, and it really allowed for me to step back now that I’m resting from a serious illness, and I’m thinking man, was my all of this on the same plate, is that what drove me to being this way? The answer’s probably, ‘Yeah,’ short answer of that. But I mean, I did it for the state of wrestling, and I did it because I wanted to help people, help fans. I just wanted to help unite people all over the world, lovers of professional wrestling, people that have never watched wrestling and maybe could find a love for it, and did I sacrifice a bit of my physical and mental health for it? Sure, but I’m still standing. I think, much like Tanahashi, it’s our passion that fuels us," he said.
Omega has been sidelined since December with diverticulitis. It is unknown when he will return to the ring.
Elsewhere during the interview, Omega commented on his potential return. You can find his full comments by clicking here.
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