In the eyes of many fans, Kazuchika Okada is one of the best wrestlers on the planet. He even has a strong case for being the very best. Since returning to New Japan Pro Wrestling in 2012 and ending Hiroshi Tanahashi's reign as IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Okada has dominated like no other competitor anywhere in wrestling.
It goes deeper than the long list of accolades that Kazuchika Okada has racked up. He also has matches that are routinely considered excellent by audiences. The following is a list of his ten best matches.
10 Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki - 6/23/18
Minoru Suzuki has been a constant thorn in Kazuchika Okada's side. Though Okada holds a good record over him, Suzuki is known to brutalize him like nobody else. Of all of their encounters, we opted for the one at Minoru Suzuki's 30th Anniversary Event. To celebrate Suzuki's career, he faced Okada in a match with a unique atmosphere.
This show took place outdoors. And it started raining. So this battle between Okada and Suzuki happened completely in the rain. It added something to this that you can't find in other matches. There was no winner as it went to the 30-minute time limit. It has been dubbed "The Draw in the Downpour."
9 Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe - 6/22/13
A lot of fans who came to New Japan in recent years might not know how big a deal Togi Makabe is. He is at the tail end of his career and is relegated to tag matches these days. But this guy is a former IWGP Heavyweight Champion and former G1 Climax winner. At Dominion 2013, he proved to be one of Okada's toughest challengers.
Whenever these two got in the ring, it turned out to be a better match than some might expect because of their contrasting styles. With the legendary Stan Hansen watching at ringside, these two put on a stellar show. Makabe held the brawling edge but Okada had him beat in speed. It led to Okada hitting the Rainmaker and retaining the title.
8 Kazuchika Okada vs. Naomichi Marufuji - 10/10/16
The G1 Climax 26 saw the addition of Naomichi Marufuji from Pro Wrestling NOAH. He's their ace and he immediately made an impact in the tournament. On night one, Marufuji shocked the world by beating Okada in dominant fashion. It earned Marufuji a shot at Okada's title at King of Pro Wrestling.
For the rematch, Okada did his homework. He fared much better and it led to a contest filled with back and forth action. They looked evenly matched until Marufuji hit a piledriver on the apron. Okada was out of it. But Okada is successful for a reason and he rallied to keep the title after stealing Marufuji's Emerald Flowsion move and hitting the Rainmaker.
7 Kazuchika Okada vs. Tomohiro Ishii - 8/6/16
Tomohiro Ishii doesn't have the accomplishments to be on Okada's level but many argue that he's the superior wrestler. Ishii is the guy who you constantly see putting on the best matches and stealing the show. During the 2016 G1 Climax, the CHAOS stablemates were pitted against each other in a rare meeting.
Okada seemed to take his buddy lightly, so Ishii woke him up with a lariat that set the tone for a hard-hitting match. Even when Okada tried to do his signature Rainmaker pose, Ishii interrupted it with a chop. He would not be shown up. Ishii fought off the best that the IWGP Heavyweight Champion had to offer before hitting the Brainbuster and scoring the upset. Sadly, Ishii never got the title shot that he earned on this night.
6 Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito - 3/4/12
That date might surprise you. Most fans only know of the clashes between Kazuchika Okada and Tetsuya Naito since 2016 when they were the top two guys in the company. Or even their famous Wrestle Kingdom 8 outing. But you have to go back to 2012 to see them at their best together.
Okada was fresh off of returning from a disaster of a stint in TNA. He stunned everyone by dethroning Tanahashi for the IWGP Heavyweight Title. But was it a fluke? At the 40th Anniversary Show, he defended the gold against Naito in the match that changed everything. It was a classic that changed the perception of Okada and showed how great he could be. Without it, he wouldn't be the Okada that we know today.
5 Kazuchika Okada vs. Shinsuke Nakamura - 8/15/15
The year before this, Kazuchika Okada bested his stablemate Shinsuke Nakamura in the finals of the G1 Climax. Here, they met on the final night of B Block action. With their point totals, it came down to just them. Whoever would win would advance to the finals of the prestigious tournament.
Nakamura and Okada put on an even better match than the year prior. It was filled with intense action, late drama, and showed how closely matched they were with one another. In a surprising result, Nakamura trapped Okada in an armbar and forced him to submit. It remains the only submission loss for Okada since his 2012 return to NJPW.
4 Kazuchika Okada vs. AJ Styles - 7/5/15
The night that AJ Styles debuted in NJPW saw him take over as the leader of the Bullet Club and attack Kazuchika Okada. He then went on to beat Okada for the IWGP Heavyweight Title in his very first match. The two continued to feud throughout 2014 and into 2015, trading wins quite often.
By the time Dominion rolled around, Styles was champion again and Okada came knocking for a title shot. Styles was cocky with his Bullet Club buddies at ringside but once they got ejected, he became vulnerable and Okada pounced. Their chemistry is almost unmatched. The final few minutes of this match rank among the best and smoothest in history. Okada pulled out the win to start another reign as champion.
3 Kazuchika Okada vs. Kenny Omega - 8/12/17
The rivalry between Kenny Omega and Kazuchika Okada is viewed as one of the best in wrestling history. They met in three title matches, with Okada winning one, Omega winning one, and a 60-minute draw in the middle. But there's something special about their only non-title encounter. It came with the B Block of the G1 Climax 27 on the line.
With a 30-minute limit in these matches, Okada just had to play defense. Omega hadn't been able to beat him in over 100 minutes of previous wrestling. But Omega came out with a plan. He attacked Okada at a pace he hadn't seen before. He destroyed Okada's neck at every turn. And after about 25 minutes, Omega finally hit Okada with the One Winged Angel and beat him.
2 Kazuchika Okada vs. Katsuyori Shibata - 4/9/17
Okada has pretty much beaten every major name in NJPW on multiple occasions. Yet by the time 2017 rolled around, Katsuyori Shibata had only faced him once. And it was a short sub-10 minute meeting during the G1 Climax in 2013. When Shibata won the New Japan Cup, he immediately challenged Okada for the Heavyweight Title.
The match was set for Sakura Genesis and it was incredible. Shibata wrecked Okada with brutal strikes. Okada's pride made it so he was desperate to not only win but to beat Shibata at his own game. But even his best shots weren't enough. When he hit the Rainmaker and Shibata just stood there without falling, the fans lost their minds. Somehow, Okada managed to survive and retain his title.
1 Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi - 10/14/13
People call this the greatest rivalry of all time. Almost every meeting is a match of the year candidate. We opted to choose their encounter at King of Pro Wrestling in 2013. Okada won the title from Tanahashi at Invasion Attack earlier in the year and this was their highly anticipated rematch. Coming into this, their record against each other was 2-2-1. The stakes couldn't have been higher.
A desperate Tanahashi did everything to regain the title. From faking injuries to using underhanded tactics. Okada showed an unexpected resilience, weathering the storm of offense that arguably the greatest wrestler of all time was throwing at him. Tanahashi had him scouted and kept blocking the Rainmaker until one finally worked and it kept him down.