Report: Top NJPW Star To Enter Free Agency in 2024

It appears that a top talent from New Japan Pro Wrestling will soon be a free agent. According to Sports Illustrated's Justin Barrasso, the ace of NJPW, Kazuchika Okada, will enter free agency in early 2024.

Okada's current contract is said to expire at the end of January and at this time he seems to be considering other options outside of Japan. Barrasso also reports that The Rainmaker's appearance on AEW Dynamite in October was also to help him get a greater sense of AEW. Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful has corroborated Barrasso's report.

Could Okada be All Elite or WWE Bound?

Should the star choose to leave NJPW and explore other options, the two major western promotions right now are AEW and WWE. While Okada has appeared in AEW over the last year and he has a relationship with a lot of the talent including the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega, it will likely come down to his goals at this stage of his career and what the best solution would be for his growing family. In WWE, it would allow Okada to work dream matches many never felt possible -- John Cena, CM Punk, The Rock, Randy Orton, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins -- or rematches with Shinsuke Nakamura and AJ Styles from their time in Japan. Working a WrestleMania is something that he's never had the opportunity to do.

In a recent report from Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Meltzer revealed that there has been a "renewed interest" within WWE to sign Okada. "Obviously they've had interest in him for years. But he's always been loyal to New Japan," Meltzer said. "The pitch is that he's now 36 and he's close with [Shinsuke] Nakamura and Nakamura has worked years in WWE and it's far easier on his body." 

Okada has wrestled in AEW three times over the last year, first at the inaugural Forbidden Door pay-per-view in a four-way IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match against former champion Jay White, Adam Cole, and "Hangman" Adam Page, Bryan Danielson at Forbidden Door 2023, and a tag match with Orange Cassidy against the BCC's Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli.

AEW recently signed Will Ospreay who is honoring his prior commitments with NJPW through the rest of the year in preparation for AEW Revolution in March. In an interview with BBC West Midlands, AEW President Tony Khan said Ospreay is able to go back to NJPW "virtually anytime" he wants.