Jay White Comments On His Strategy For Preparing To Face Kazuchika Okada

IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Jay White is set to defend his title against Kazuchika Okada at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 next week. In an interview with Fightful, White spoke about how he has been preparing to face Okada in the Tokyo Dome. Here are highlights:

On preparing for Okada: “How am I preparing for Okada? I’ve been opposite a lot of times, here is how I’m preparing, I built a chicken coop the other day. That’s how I’m preparing for Okada. It’s 4-1 right now. I have his number. I’ve been next to him a lot, I’ve been opposite of him a lot. Nobody studies their opponents quite like I do. That’s what my prep is. Two days ago, we got an old chicken coop. I got six chickens, two ducks. Two younger ones, four are older. I needed to refresh the coop. We built a new coop, had to take the old one out. Bitch of a job, put the new one in. Stood on a goddamn nail, went through my Croc, a little bit into my foot, but it was okay. Switchblade was alright, stopped it before it was too bad. That’s my prep. I’m putting in chicken coops. That’s how I view Okada. That’s how I view him. It’s going to be 5-1. I don’t know how many more times I have to say it, but I’ll happily keep saying it. It is going to be 5-1. In 2023, I’m going to kick it off by going ‘Ichi, Ni, San, Da!’ and everyone will breathe with the Switchblade, and finally Rainmaker Era will be no more and Switchblade Era will continue in the name of the great Antonio Inoki.”

On Antonio Inoki: “I never met the man personally, myself, but at the same time, the stage that I had to do my thing on, he created that 50 years ago. To say that this will be an emotionally charged event, let alone match, not for myself, but for Okada, you have to think, he’s the one that’s channeling that. This is a big match, I see that objectively, but for me, emotionally, it’s just another match. It’s just another step in what I do. It’s just another box to tick, especially with Okada. It’s box number five to tick with him. His emotions are going to up. Will the fans be cheering? Who fucking knows at this point. It’s beyond a joke. Will they be? If they can be, it’ll be even more emotionally charged. What I love playing off, more than anything, is everybody else opposite me in that ring, getting emotional, making mistakes, I can pick them apart, and I can have fun with it. We’re going to see Switchblade having fun while everyone else is emotional. I’m going to dedicate my victory, in my way, not in New Japan’s way, not in Okada’s way, I’m going to do things my way and I’m going to dedicate that to Antonio Inoki.”