"Wrestle Kingdom 11" New Japan Rumble Spoilers, Cody Rhodes Writes About Dusty Rhodes, Dave Finlay
- In the New Japan Rumble it is expected that former IWGP champion Scott Norton, Billy Gunn, Michael Elgin and Cheeseburger will all make appearances.
- Dave Finlay (former wrestler, currently working for WWE as a producer) will be in attendance to watch his Son, David Finlay, wrestle in the NEVER Openweight 6-Man tag team championship gauntlet match.
- Cody Rhodes recently posted an entry on his Facebook page to talk about Wrestle Kingdom 11, his father Dusty Rhodes, and dedicating his match to his friend "Drax Shadow" a young boy with neuroblastoma who WWE "signed" during an in-ring ceremony.
Twas' the morning of Wrestle Kingdom 11, when all...
Actually it was me sitting in my hotel room(with a perfect view of the world renowned Tokyo Dome) jet-lagged to the gills hours after the press-conference, watching various NJPW matches. Styles and Naito, Omega and Tanahashi, and then I see a link for "Dusty Rhodes V Bob Backlund from Japan"...
I clicked on it. I found myself not paying attention to the match though...but instead drifting in thought, thinking of how every time I see Bob he tells me the story of said match and how he was surprised that my Father got "technical" with him. I think about all the stories Dream told me as a kid...how his driver made them change cars twice in various parking garages, so that the fans would not know who was meeting up with Inoki's motorcade. Or how when he brought my lovely mother to Tokyo, she was greeted by a mob of fans at the hotel and the company graciously gave her a handler to take her throughout the city and protect her while my Dad worked. I think about him sitting at a long table across from Inoki and when he had enough of the silence, he grabbed a bunch of fish eggs and shoved them into his mouth...and when the Japanese contingency laughed at him, he slammed his fist and did it again...to which then his opponent grabbed a handful as well and followed suit. I think about the skinny cans of Coke that he would bring my Sister and I after his trips...and how could I forget him leaving 6gs in his jeans at the hotel and then receiving his jeans pressed/cleaned a week later with the money in an envelope at our house in Florida. I think a lot.
My 2015 was defined by taking his position in our family. My 2016 was lateral motion...not forward, not backwards. Until August 19th that is...
Since then, I have ground my knuckles to the damn bone on this path. I've been flattered by record houses...I've been humbled by winning various championships...I've celebrated a record merchandise number for one of the largest pro-wrestling companies in the world...I've hitched a few new cars to the bandwagon for the new fans I've been lucky enough to earn. There still remains a skeptic or two...a doubter or three...and I LOVE them. That's the challenge. Proving some right, and proving others wrong. I'm from the Southern United States and I am the son of Dusty f–king Rhodes, you think pressure means a damn thing to me? It might as well be oxygen. I have always dealt with it. Today is no different. Today I will make it official. Within 10 months I will have competed at a WrestleMania, a Bound For Glory, a Final Battle...and now...Wrestle Kingdom 11. I hope you all tune-in and enjoy what a wonderful company NJPW is and I hope you see all the astounding wrestlers on its roster. I wanted to take a moment to dedicate my Match to my friend "Drax" Shadow...I've said it before, when we met they said he needed me but when the night was over...it was me that needed him. I also want to thank New Japan Pro Wrestling and The Bullet Club for bringing me out here in such style.
Is the World ready for The American Nightmare?
-CR
Source: PWInsider