Power Struggle (2018)

Power Struggle (2018) is an upcoming professional wrestling event promoted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The event will take place on November 3, 2018, in Osaka, Osaka, at the Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium. It will be the eighth event under the Power Struggle name. The event will be headlined by Chris Jericho defending the IWGP Intercontinental Championship against EVIL.

Storylines
Power Struggle featured ten professional wrestling matches that involved different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and storyline. Wrestlers portrayed villains, heroes, or less distinguishable characters in the scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.

Power Struggle will be headlined by Chris Jericho making his first defense of the IWGP Intercontinental Championship against EVIL. The match was set up during the Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall. On June 9 at Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall, Jericho defeated Tetsuya Naito to win the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. After the match, Jericho attacked Naito until his Los Ingobernables de Japon stablemate EVIL made the save. On October 8 at King of Pro-Wrestling, Jericho returned to the promotion, attacking EVIL during his entrance, where he was disguised as one of the druids, leading to a match against Zack Sabre Jr., being ruled as a no contest. The following day, NJPW made the match official.

The NEVER Openweight Championship will also be defended at Power Struggle with defending champion Taichi making his first defense against challenger Will Ospreay. On October 8 at King of Pro-Wrestling, Taichi and Ospreay faced off in a six-man tag team match, where Taichi teamed with his Suzuki-gun stablemates Minoru Suzuki and Takashi Iizuka and Opsreay teamed with his CHAOS stablemates Hirooki Goto and Tomohiro Ishii. Ospreay scored the victory for his team by scoring a direct pinfall over Taichi. Following the match, Ospreay grabbed the NEVER Openweight Championship and made his intensions on being the next challenger for the title. Ospreay will be the fourth junior heavyweight wrestler to challenge for the NEVER Openweight Championship, with Kyle O' Reilly previously receive an opportunity in October 2016. The following day, NJPW made the match official.

Power Struggle will also include a singles match between Tetsuya Naito and Zack Sabre Jr. On March 11, 2018, Sabre defeated Naito in the first round in the New Japan Cup. Sabre went on to win the rest of the tournament. Sabre would defeat Naito in a second match during the 2018 G1 Climax, preventing Naito from reaching the finals of the tournament. On October 8 at King of Pro-Wrestling, Sabre was scheduled to face Naito's Los Ingobernables de Japon stablemate EVIL, but the match was declared a no cotest, after he was attacked by Chris Jericho. Despite EVIL being unable to compete, Sabre attacked EVIL anyway, leading to Naito to make the save. The following day, NJPW made the match official.

The event will also feature the finals of the 2018 Super Jr. Tag League. The tournament matches will take place during the Road to Power Struggle tour between October 16 until November 1.

IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega and his number one contender Hiroshi Tanahashi, who are set to headline Wrestle Kingdom 13 in Tokyo Dome, will meet at Power Struggle in a tag team match, where Omega will team with Kota Ibushi, while Tanahashi will team with David Finlay.