IWGP Intercontinental Championship
The night after Wrestle Kingdom 12 in Tokyo Dome at New Year Dash!! 2018, Jericho attacked Tetsuya Naito. On May 4, Jericho once again attacked Naito at Wrestling Dontaku, leading to a match between the two at Dominion 6.9 in Osaka-jo Hall, in which he defeated Naito to win the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. At King of Pro-Wrestling, Jericho attacked Evil before his match against Zack Sabre Jr. Backstage, Jericho challenged Evil to an IWGP Intercontinental Championship title match at Power Struggle. At the event, Jericho made Evil submit to the Liontamer to retain the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. After the match, Jericho refused to release the hold until Tetsuya Naito ran in for the save and challenged Jericho. Despite Jericho stating that Naito would not receive a rematch, the match was made official for Wrestle Kingdom 13 in Tokyo Dome. On December 15, NJPW held a press conference for Jericho and Naito's IWGP Intercontinental Championship match. The press conference ended when Naito spat water in Jericho's face, which resulted in the two then brawling before being separated. Later that same day during a Road to Tokyo Dome show, Jericho laid out Naito with steel chair shots, and after stated that at Wrestle Kingdom 13 he would end Tetsuya Naito's career. At the event, Jericho was defeated by Naito, losing the IWGP Intercontinental Championship in the process.