Kota Ibushi may well be one of the most highly anticipated performers set to compete in The Cruiserweight Classic as he lays out his hope for the tournament.
The 34-year-old is one of the most respected names of the 32 participants and may well be one of the favorites, but rather than hyping his technical or high flying ability, Ibushi says his 'love' for professional wrestling will be his biggest advantage.
On representing Japan
Japanese wrestling has in the past couple of years blossomed in popularity with the western world with a large number of American and British fans tuning in to witness their truly game-changing style that Ibushi will be hoping to display for The Cruiserweight Classic audience.
On the prospect of representing his home nation he shies away from the suggestion as he says with the help of a translator "I don't mean to represent Japan but I want to show how good Japanese wrestling is by joining this time and more people will watch me and so I am happy."
With WWE still commanding the biggest draw of any wrestling show worldwide, Ibushi can clearly see the draw of the tournament and is hoping his stock and profile will soon rise because of it.
On his advantage and wrestling big names
Ibushi has in the past squared off against some of the top names in the industry, with the likes of Sami Zayn and NXT superstars Shinsuke Nakamura and Finn Balor on his long list of famous battles.
After facing a number of top level competitors, he says it was a 'really good experience' but says that despite this, his biggest advantage will come from the heart.
He said "It was a really good experience to wrestle against NXT superstars like Finn Balor Sammy Zayn and Shinsuke Nakamura and it was such a good experience but I have an advantage in a tournament."
His advantage as he spoke during the exclusive show on the WWE Network; Bracketology he stated that he will 'win' the tournament due to his love of professional wrestling.
He finished with "Once I compete I will win the tournament because I love pro wrestling the most I'm on the other wrestlers."