Kenny Omega: ‘I came back way too early’ from diverticulitis

Kenny Omega missed a year of his career due to diverticulitis. And in hindsight, he wishes he had stayed out longer. 

Omega discussed his health in an interview with Haley Miller of Vice Magazine. “I’m just still a little tiny bit on the mend, because it’s a process that takes a long time,” he said. “Plus, I came back way too early, so I hindered my own full recovery because of the schedule that I took [on] probably a year and a half too soon, which it is what it is, but here we are.” 

That early return only made Omega’s comeback even more difficult, but he says the worst is behind him. 

“Finally, I’ve been able to find the equation,” he said. “I’ve been able to figure out a diet, a workout plan, and a way to stay as healthy as possible and get results, which is the most important part. It was really difficult to regain usable energy. It was tough to feel like I had any spring left in my step.”

In fact, Omega says, at times he feels better than ever. 

“There are days when I don’t feel so great still, but then there are days when I do feel great,” he says. “When I’m at the gym, whether it be with a large group of people, or whether I’m just with one training partner, even heck, just by myself, I’m monitoring myself when I have those great days. I think, ‘My goodness, where is this energy coming from today? Where is the strength coming from today?’ This is the type of stuff the old Kenny Omega could be doing.”

Omega missed all of 2024 with diverticulitis, an intestinal condition that was nearly fatal. He returned at New Japan’s Wrestle Dynasty at the Tokyo Dome against Gabe Kidd on January 5 of 2025, a contest that would be voted Match of the Year in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards.