Kazuchika Okada is finally returning to TNA Wrestling.
The company (still operating as IMPACT Wrestling) announced that Kazuchika Okada will appear at its Snake Eyes event in January.
This will be Okada’s first match in TNA since he lost to Alex Shelley on the June 21, 2011 episode of TNA Xplosion.
It also appears that Okada had a change of heart about the company, as he previously said that he did not look back fondly on his time there.
Okada wrestled for TNA while he was in the United States in 2010 and 2011. He portrayed a character named Okato, reminiscent of Green Hornet’s sidekick Kato, alongside Samoa Joe. This role damaged the relationship between IMPACT and NJPW, which has since improved.
In his post-match comments after NJPW Road to Destruction in September, Okada previewed the upcoming match against Alexander, Sabin, and Shelley, and noted that he hates TNA.
“In Ryogoku, we’ll face IMPACT’s Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, and Josh Alexander. IMPACT Wrestling? Give me a break,” Kazuchika Okada said. “There’s not a promotion I hate more in this world. But I was a pretty big Motor City fan back in the day.
“A little while back, we faced them in a tag three-way. I know exactly how good they are. But this is a three-on-three NEVER Six-Man match, and we’re walking in as champions. Being the face of NJPW, I can say that I hate…actually, I don’t give a damn about IMPACT. Who I really hated was TNA.”