Stone Cold Steve Austin has taken notice of New Japan Pro Wrestling's primary star in Kazuchika Okada.
During a recent episode of his podcast, Austin put over the IWGP Heavyweight Champion to an extreme degree. Austin seems to adore Okada's selling ability, among other things.
"When he (Okada) started selling with his match against Kenny Omega... holy smokes,that kid can sell," said Austin. "You know what he is really good at? The subtlety and nuances. I think in today’s United States scene, it’s more of an oversell and its losing the effect because it’s too much. I think guys need to dial it back. For a while guys weren’t selling at all, and now they are overselling, but I don’t want to nitpick that. One of the things I liked about that match was that they didn’t go crazy trying to work that crowd, they keep the majority -- 98% -- of their attention within the ring. It looks like an athletic contest, and when you look at Okada, you ask yourself 'what it is that he does that is so popular?'”
Beyond his selling ability, Austin thinks that Okada's size is a bit underrated.
“He’s got a great drop kick, he sells awesome, has great fire but with that first match that lasted 47 minutes with Omega and then that 60 minute Broadway, there was a couple of crazy bumps in there. The guy doesn’t do anything super crazy as far as high maneuvers. He’s bigger than you think he is -- he’s about 6’3, 220 -- But he’s a tall 6’3 so he takes up space," Austin continued.
You can hear the full podcast at this link.
