A storied rivalry from Japan is set to be renewed on American soil, as All Elite Wrestling has announced that Kazuchika Okada will face Kota Ibushi on the 300th episode of AEW Dynamite. The broadcast is scheduled for Wednesday, July 2.
The stage for this high-stakes encounter was set during this week’s Dynamite broadcast. The night saw Ibushi make his in-ring return to AEW, where he secured a victory over Trent Beretta of The Don Callis Family. Following the match, Okada, who has recently aligned himself with Callis, entered the ring to confront Ibushi, leading to the official announcement of their match for the milestone episode.
This match carries a significant and dramatic history between the two competitors. Their last one-on-one bout occurred in the finals of the NJPW G1 Climax tournament in 2021, a match that ended abruptly when Ibushi suffered a severe shoulder injury, forcing a referee stoppage that awarded the win to Okada. Prior to that, Ibushi had defeated Okada in their G1 encounters in 2019 and 2020, while Okada was victorious in their main event match at Wrestle Kingdom 14 in 2020.
The matchup also deepens the ongoing AEW narrative, as Okada is scheduled to face Ibushi’s Golden Lovers tag team partner, Kenny Omega, at the All In event on July 12.
AEW’s 300th episode will also feature a TBS Championship defense, with Mercedes Moné putting her title on the line against Mina Shirakawa. This comes as Moné prepares to challenge Shirakawa’s ally, Toni Storm, for the AEW Women’s World Championship at All In.
Additionally, the show will include an All In Casino Gauntlet qualifying match featuring MJF. Mark Briscoe already secured the first spot in the gauntlet with a victory on this week’s program.
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