Night 19
Date: August 12, 2019
From: Nippon Budokan (Tokyo, Japan)
Match #1 – Tag Team:
Clark Connors & Karl Fredericks def. Ren Narita & Yota Tsuji
For the start of the final night of the G1 Tour we get to witness a “culmination” as of now at least between the mini rivalry going on between the young lions of the New Japan Dojo and the LA Dojo. I haven’t spoken about them at all but throughout the tour all four of these guys were really excellent, especially Karl Fredericks. The man just screams superstar, he’s got the looks and the size of a future champion and has the most potential out of anyone in the class in my opinion. Clark Connors is great too, will be participating in the Super J Cup. Then you got Yota Tsuji, whom as mentioned in the Super J-Cast has a big potential to become a top heel one day. With his current look I think he’ll fit with a character like a Great Kabuki, but I don’t know how a character like that would work nowadays so maybe something similar to an Akitoshi Saito or Masashi Aoyagi would suit him too, we just have to wait and see. Narita of course if you’ve seen the BOSJ, has improved immensely over the past few months alone. The future is bright for New Japan in various parts of the world.
The match itself was greatly worked too, I did not expect the LA Dojo boys to win but Connors made Tsuji tap out with the Boston Crab. Afterwards we got a little brawl once again between the two schools, teasing up the tension more.
Match #2 – Six Man Tag:
Cobb, Liger, & Tiger def. Archer, Taichi, & Kanemaru
This was your standard worked six man tag, lots of ’em later tonight too. Possibly setting up some feuds here and there as well. The only true significance of this match, at least for me is Jushin “Thunder” Liger’s first match in the Budokan in nearly a decade but would also be his last as this coming Wrestle Kingdom would be his retirement. Crowd obviously showed their love and respect for Liger and rightfully so. Cobb gets the win for his team at only 7 minutes in, hitting the Tour of the Islands on Kanemaru.
Match #3 – Six Man Tag:
Ospreay, SHO, & YOH def. Ishimori, Chase, & Yujiro
A classic CHAOS vs. Bullet Club match. Seems to me they’re setting up Ospreay vs. Ishimori for Royal Quest but I would prefer if he goes against El Phantasmo, don’t know why he’s not booked here. Roppongi 3K are back as well, SHO & YOH had a fantastic showing in the BOSJ and now they want payback to Ishimori who captured the IWGP Jr. Tag Belts from RP3K along with the aforementioned Phantasmo. Chase & Yujiro have been regulars throughout the tour, as well as Pieter. Always lovely to see her. I really like the chemistry of Ospreay and RP3K, if possible and I know the belts don’t mean much, but I think they’d make a great NEVER 6 Man Tag Champs. Yujiro takes the L for his team, receiving a Stormbreaker from the reigning Junior Heavyweight Champion.
Match #4 – Tag Team:
Juice Robinson & Toa Henare def. Jon Moxley & Shota Umino
A preview of their inevitable rematch again with Juice this time teaming up with Toa Henare against Moxley and Shooter. Pretty standard tag match, it’s just a build really for what’s to come. I was pretty impressed with Henare in this match, if only he gets something fresh, maybe tweak his character. There is potential in him, he just has to find it eventually. He gets the win for his team, hitting Umino with the Toa Bottom. After the match, Mox wasn’t done with Juice, attacked him some more and then puts him through a table.
Match #5 – Ten Man Tag:
Los Ingobernables de Japon def. GBH & CHAOS
All active members of Los Ingobernables de Japon took on the mixed team of CHAOS representatives in Toru Yano and Hirooki Goto, as well as GBH members Togi Makabe and Tomoaki Honma, of course leading the charge is Funky Weapon himself Ryusuke Taguchi, The Gooch is back! Again, just your typical 10 man tag. All wrestlers managed to get their stuff in, minus Yano actually who I think never got legally tagged in, being put on a Paradise Lock by SANADA to the entrance ramp earlier on. Seems like a rematch between Shingo and Goto is on the horizon now that The Dragon is officially a heavyweight. With them raising their fists up by the end, getting the victory, I expected another pareja of them to return, but sadly looks like he ain’t coming back yet anytime soon.
Match #6 – Six Man Tag:
GoD & Fale def. Ishii, YOSHI-HASHI, & KENTA
Let’s get the match out of the way real quick. Once again, your typical six man tag, GoD the reigning IWGP Heavyweight Tag-Team Champions are back after touring with ROH. The moment this was announced I found the other team a little odd, you got two CHAOS members in Ishii and YOSHI-HASHI, then KENTA who really looked out of place. What got me was that KENTA never got tagged in and when Fale attacked the corner, it was only Ishii that he hits, plus with the tweet from Tama earlier that they’ve recruited a new “high caliber athlete” among the ranks of Bullet Club, my suspicions became high of the former WWE wrestler. Then we go to the betrayal.
KENTA moved out of the way as Ishii was about to make the tag, he then proceeds to go back and hits the Go To Sleep on the Stone Pitbull, Tama getting the pin. A new Bullet Club member is born… but retaliation was on its way. To say I was shocked would be an understatement, Katsuyori Shibata, the man that brought KENTA to New Japan, his tag-team partner, trainer, and friend. Rushed into the ring and attacked his now ex-bestfriend. For someone who was on the verge of literal death, Shibata moved like he never lost a step! The high kicks and elbows towards KENTA, man you can just feel the emotion coming out of those strikes, plus his eyes you can see both the disappointment and anger due to the treacherous acts of someone who he thought was loyal. But eventually the numbers game were too much, BC kept on disrespecting Shibata with KENTA hitting the PK on him then doing his iconic pose on top of Shibata himself. After being hated by the New Japan fans and feeling like a total outsider, KENTA felt at home with the outsiders of the roster, the roots in which the Bullet Club founded itself. This has been a long overdue needed resurgence both for the faction and KENTA himself.
Match #7 – Tag Team:
Minoru Suzuki & Zack Sabre Jr. def. Kazuchika Okada & Hiroshi Tanahashi
After those revelations that we just witnessed, what could be considered a “breather” match is actually involving four of the very best wrestlers in the world. Minoru Suzuki and his protege Zack Sabre Jr. takes on what is dubbed as the “Dream Team” of Kazuchika Okada and Hiroshi Tanahashi. Funny enough, despite combining arguably two of the greatest in New Japan, the record of Okada & Tana as a team isn’t that impressive, mainly on the losing side. That proved to be true once again in this situation, Suzuki defeats the champion with his patented Gotch Style Piledriver. Seemingly setting up another match with The Rainmaker for Royal Quest. Okada & Suzuki never disappoint with their matches so UK fans are really lucky to receive such a treat in your soil. Then ZSJ vs. Tana is pretty much confirmed for the same event as well, they however would be duking it out for the RPW British Heavyweight Championship. This match itself was good, I mean obviously with the caliber of these four, it’s just that most of us are still in states of shock with what we’ve witnessed beforehand.
Match #8 – G1 Climax 29 Finals:
Kota Ibushi def. Jay White
Last but not the least, this is where it all leads to. 18 nights of grueling nonstop action will finally find its conclusion. Kota Ibushi of A Block and Jay White of B Block will duke it out for the finals of the 29th Annual G1 Climax. For the second year in a row Ibushi is back in the same position, he was close last year but fell at the hands of Tanahashi. Now he has surpassed God, and will face evil incarnate himself. Switchblade has prophesized this will happen, we all denied him and looked to be in peril at the beginning losing three straight to his former CHAOS stablemates whom he betrayed, but now he has done the biggest upset perhaps in G1 history, defeating Tetsuya Naito in the block finals and cementing himself as THE top heel of NJPW.
If from the beginning they were going for Ibushi anyway, then it is excellent that Switchblade was on the opposite side. Everyone in the entire arena and people watching all over the world, even those who chose Jay in their pick’ems, wanted The Golden Star to win. We all wanted nothing but to see Jay get knee’d in the face. Tokyo is usually a polite crowd but they were all united in hating one man and that was Switchblade.
Before the match, the entire Bullet Club came out with Jay White, really takes you back the old days of BC wherein Devitt and Styles were always accompanied by their brothers at ringside. But this time, Red Shoes has seen enough. He has kicked out every member out there including the newly recruited KENTA, Gedo however was permitted to stay barring the rest of them were out. Of course later on he would be kicked out himself but would come back eventually. They really tried everything to cheat their way to victory and bring back glory to BC. But kudos to Red Shoes for having none of that s**t.
Anyway as for the match itself, I thought it was the best match of Jay White’s career yet. Both men had me at the edge of my seat the entire time. I’m not the biggest Kota Ibushi fan but for that night, I was. Rooting hard for him with every step and move, hoping that he would bring disappointment to Jay White. By the end I was nervous, I thought it was all over for Ibushi, I’d be feeling anger once again. The brainbuster + bladerunner combination that ended Naito’s dreams was so close on ending Ibushi’s as well but that was reversed. Ibushi hits the Kamigoye at the 31 minute mark and takes the victory. What a rollercoaster ride of emotions, especially for the final minutes of sequence. That is what professional wrestling is all about. The sheer drama of it gets you attached with this beautiful good vs. evil story, in the end the bright side looms over and all is right with the world. Kota Ibushi has now become the first man to win the New Japan Cup, Best of the Super Juniors, and G1 Climax. Three of the premier tournaments in New Japan history. A feat only fitting for a Golden Star.
That ladies and gentlemen, was the 29th G1 Climax.
