NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 is NJPW’s January 4 show at Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan in 2024. The show was be headlined by IWGP World Championship match between Sanada and Tetsuya Naito.

MATCH CARD

Pre Show: Gabe Kidd, Alex Coughlin, Jeff Cobb, Henare, Tomohiro Ishii, Mikey Nicholls, Shane Haste, Yujiro Takahashi, Master Wato, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, YOH, SHO, Fujita Jr. Hayato, Taiji Ishimori, Douki, Toru Yano, Takashi Izuka, Taichi – New Japan Rambo Match(Final 4 advance to NJPW King Of Pro-Wrestling Championship Match at New Year Dash)
- Winner: YOH, Great-O-Khan, Toru Yano and Taiji Ishimori
Bullet Club War Dogs(Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney)(c) vs Catch 2/2 (TJP & Francesco Akira) – IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship
- Winner: Catch 2/2 (TJP & Francesco Akira)
Zack Sabre Jr. (c) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi – NJPW World TV Championship Match
- Winner: Hiroshi Tanahashi
Yota Tsuji vs Yuya Uemura – Singles Match
- Winner: Yuya Uemura
Shota Umino & Kaito Kiyomiya vs. House of Torture (Evil & Ren Narita) – Tag Team Match
- Winner: House of Torture (Evil & Ren Narita)
Shingo Takagi(c) vs Tama Tonga – NEVER Openweight Championship
- Winner: Tama Tonga
Bishamon (Hirooki Goto & Yoshi-Hashi) (c) vs El Phantasmo & Hikuleo – IWGP Tag Team Championship & NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Championship
- Winner: El Phantasmo & Hikuleo
Hiromu Takahashi(c) vs El Desperado – IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match
- Winner: El Desperado
Will Ospreay vs David Finlay vs Jon Moxley – IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship Match
- Winner: David Finlay
Bryan Danielson vs Kazuchika Okada – Singles Match
- Winner: Kazuchika Okada
Main Event: SANADA(c) vs Tetsuya Naito – IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match
- Winner: Tetsuya Naito

NOTES & STORYLINES

SANADA(c) vs Tetsuya Naito – IWGP World Heavyweight Championship Match

Tetsuya Naito won G1 Climax 33 tournament which earned him the right to challenge IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 18 against Sanada. They clashed in several tag team matches against each other from October to December 2023 in the build-up to this match.

Bryan Danielson vs Kazuchika Okada – Singles Match

Bryan Danielson defeated Kazuchika Okada at Forbidden Door 2023 event after Danielson challenged Okada to find out who is the best wrestler in the world right now. Danielson won the match, but he suffered a broken arm during the match. Okada then went to AEW Dynamite on October 25 episode to team up with Orange Cassidy to face Danielson and Castagnoli. Danielson & Castagnoli won the match, but Danielson suffered a broken orbital bone. At Power Struggle, Okada, Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tomohiro Ishii retained NEVER 6-Man title against TMDK. After the match, lights went out and Danielson appeared on the big screen to challenge Okada for a rematch at Wrestle Kingdom. Okada accepted the challenge.

Bullet Club War Dogs(Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney)(c) vs Catch 2/2 (TJP & Francesco Akira) – IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship

Catch 2/2 won Super Junior Tag League 2023 by beating House of Torture in the final match. This win earned them a shot at IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship against Bullet Club Wardogs.

Will Ospreay(c) vs David Finlay vs Jon Moxley – IWGP US/UK Heavyweight Championship Match

Will Ospreay defeated Shota Umino in the main event of Power Struggle 2023 event. After the match, he called out Jon Moxley. Both Moxley and Ospreay were then attacked by Bullet Club David Finlay. Finlay also smashed both IWGP US & custom UK belts. NJPW then announced a triple threat match between Moxley, Finlay and Ospreay at Wrestle Kingdom 18.

Hiromu Takahashi(c) vs El Desperado – IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship Match

Takahashi successfully defended IWGP Jr. Heavyweight title at Power Struggle against Taiji Ishimori. After the match, he challenged El Desperado for Wrestle Kingdom, and the match was later made official.

Shingo Takagi(c) vs Tama Tonga – NEVER Openweight Championship

Shingo Takagi defeated Tama Tonga at Fighting Spirit Unleashed event to win NEVER Openweight Championship. Takagi retained the title over Trent Baretta at Lonestar Shootout event on November 11. After the match, Takagi announced that he would give a rematch to Tonga at Wrestle Kingdom this year.

Zack Sabre Jr.(c) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi – NJPW World TV Championship Match

TMDK, led by Zack Sabre Jr., challenged Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kazuchika Okada and Tomohiro Ishii for NEVER 6-Man Championship at Power Struggle. Tanahashi pinned Sabre at the match to get the win. As Sabre was the reigning NJPW TV Champion, Tanahashi became eligible for a title shot himself. The match was later revealed for Wrestle Kingdom.

Bishamon(Hirooki Goto & Yoshi-Hashi)(c) vs Guerrillas of Destiny(El Phantasmo & Hikuleo) – IWGP Tag Team Championship & NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team Championship

IWGP Tag Team Champions Bishamon lost to Guerrillas of Destiny pairing of El Phantasmo and Hikuleo in their opening match of World Tag League 2023. These teams later faced off in the final of the tournament with Bishamon winning the match and the tournament. Courtesy of this win, Bishamon had the choice to pick their opponents at Wrestle Kingdom 18. They ended up picking up GOD with GOD’s NJPW Strong Openweight Tag Team title also to be put on the line.

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 Match Card, Date, Time, Location