10 months ago
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AEW and WWE have been having a silent war to acquire the best of the free agents currently streaming into the industry. According to Mark Henry on "Busted Open Radio," all promotions should be vying to sign Kazuchika Okada, now that he's become one of the hottest free agents. Per Henry, Okada is an A-rated wrestler. "As a talent, I would go so far as Okada is [an] A Player. Whether it's an A+ or an A-, he's [an] A." Henry continued, comparing him to Shinsuke Nakamura, whose WWE booking has often been criticized. "How he's been used? Sporadically he's had moments where he's had A-Booking, but for the most part, I'd say he's had C+ Booking."
Henry also noted that Okada will likely kick off "historic competition" between promotions, and explained that "The Rainmaker" will have a lot of leverage to get a massive deal. "It's going to come down to 'Hey, this is what I'm worth.' So, in America, you don't get the 15,000-dollar sponsorship handshakes." Henry also pointed out that Okada will likely not be allowed to compete outside WWE if he signs with them, which could be a deciding factor.
Additionally, Henry made his argument for Okada to be pursued by not only AEW and WWE, but TNA and any other promotion with the money to sign him. "If you have the money to spend, you should try to get that guy. He is an unbelievable talent and you could put him with anybody, and they're gonna be better right away. You put him with your greatest guys, and now you have the means to put [together] a main event, for every pay-per-view."
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" and provide Wrestling Inc. with a h/t for the transcription.
