A big show tonight from Dallas, TX as a G1 Climax show takes place for the first time ever in the United States.
(Note: As I did last year, I'll be writing some basic notes for the undercard matches and saving the grades for the actual tournament matches.)
Here we go!
Undercard
- Kevin Kelly and Rocky Romero welcome us to the show. Then we get a video highlighting the A Block participants: Tanahashi, Okada, Ibushi, Ospreay, Evil, Sanada, Sabre Jr., Fale, Archer, and KENTA.
1) Roppongi 3K vs. Guerrillas of Destiny- Ain't nobody more real than the Tongans. 3K takes the advantage early on, with even the cameraman having a hard time getting out of the ring in time. However, as expected, the aerial acrobatics and fast-paced offense of 3K get snuffed out by the brute force and aggression of The Tongans. YOH gets beaten down for a good bit of time, but he's able to spear one of The Tongans down and tag in SHO. SHO gets some good offense in before getting knocked down by Tama Tonga. 5 minutes have passed. 3K starting to double team each of The Tongans in order to get some momentum going. 3K signals for their finisher. GUN STUN TO YOH! The G.O.D. start assaulting SHO. SUPER POWERBOMB! 1-2-3! (That was a Dudley Boys style beating towards the end. Good opening match that got the crowd going for the beginning of the show. That's what an opening match is supposed to do. 6:43 for the record.)
(Arena looks half empty, but this was definitely a big step for NJPW to try to fill a big arena in the United States during the middle of summer. So, hopefully, they can pull this off and do better the next time around. Crowd was loud during the opening match. There's a big difference between only selling close to half the tickets of a 16,000 seat arena and only selling a third of a 5,000 seat building like ROH just did at Best in the World.)
2) Ren Narita and Jeff Cobb vs. Tomohiro Ishii and Shota Unimo- Good response for Cobb and Ishii who push off prior to the match even starting. Good display back and forth with both men shaking off the other's power moves. Unimo and Narita get the tags in as well, and we get some Young Lion action. (Crowd energy continues to be great despite a near half-empty at least house.) Narita gets isolated in the corner with Ishii getting tagged in. He beats down Narita. Narita shows heart by fighting back against The Stone Pitbull, but he makes the mistake of running into Ishii one too many times. HE HITS ISHII WITH A VERTICAL DROP BRAINBUSTER (ISHII'S OWN FINISHER)! Cobb gets tagged in and starts throwing his opponents around. Ishii eats another Vertical Suplex from Cobb. Cobb is able to throw Ishii around in his signature moves (which is impressive given how big Ishii is). Ishii and Cobb trade shots back and forth. Unimo gets the tag from Ishii and goes on the attack. Cobb nearly ends the match with a standing moonsault. But the Tour of the Islands finishes the job. Cobb and Narita win. Ishii and Cobb trade shots after the match, and they have to be pulled apart by Young Lions. (7:18; Good match here that gave a good preview for the Ishii vs. Cobb match, especially with the post-match confrontation.)
3) Jay White and Chase Owens vs. Hirooki Goto and Yoshi-Hashi- Kevin Kelly explains why Yoshi-Hashi was left out of the G1 Climax while Goto was allowed to stay despite scoring only 6 last year. (I'm glad to see Yoshi-Hashi has been kept out of the tournament this year. He lost so much and has been booked extremely weak in the last couple years. He's basically on Chase Owens's level right now. He can be rebuilt and revamped. But you can't ask people to take Yoshi-Hashi seriously if he loses 90% of his matches.)
Goto goes after White early on. But eventually Yoshi-Hashi (as expected) takes a lot of the beating from Bullet Club to set up Goto's hot tag. Goto gets it and starts clearing house on both White and Owens. White and Goto go at it for a few more moments, with White getting a desperation Saito Suplex before tagging in Owens. Owens gets some moves on Goto, including hitting a few running knees and his "finisher." 2 count. White comes in and helps out. He tells Owens to finish it, but he can't. Yoshi-Hashi helps keep White down on the floor while Goto finishes off Owens with the GTR. 1-2-3. (Another good undercard match here. This didn't do as much for me to build to the G1 Climax B Block match. But it did a good job of entertaining me for tonight. So, I can't hate on this too much.)
4) Juice Robinson, Toru Yano, and Jushin Thunder Liger vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi, and Bushi)- Liger gets the first entrance to a good ovation. Juice and Yano come out next to separate entrances. (I can't wait for Yano vs. Moxley in the B Block. That's going to be a clash of rule-breaking styles.) Naito and LIJ come out to good ovations too. Naito drags that Intercontinental Championship like a piece of garbage. (What else is new?) This crowd is louder than a lot of WWE crowds have been in the past. I'll give them that. There's only a few thousand of them (single digit thousand vs. double-digit thousand that WWE usually gets), but they are loud.
Liger ends up getting beaten down by LIJ for a good bit of the opening moments of the bout with all three men taking turns in the assault. BUT SHINGO EATS SHOTEI! Liger tags in Juice who starts decking all of LIJ. Juice and Shingo trade shots to build up their match for B Block. LEFT HAND OF GOD CONNECTS! But Shingo hits one of his big moves on Juice. Yano and Naito are tagged in! Yano goes for the corner pad! He gets it.Naito hits Combinacion Cabron (the corner trip to the slingshot dropkick) to Yano. Yano almost gets a rollup on Naito, but Naito gets a neckbreaker seconds later. Tag to Bushi. LIJ beats down on Yano, but Liger prevents the pin. Yano hits the low blow and rollup on Bushi. 1-2-3. After the match, Juice and Liger celebrate in the ring. NJPW plays Liger's theme and allow him to say goodbye to the crowd. (Another really fun match on this show here with some good previews for the two B Block matches coming next Saturday. And anytime America gets to see Liger between now and January 4th is a blessing.)
NJPW announces a tour for Fighting Spirit Unleashed: Boston, New York, and Philadelphia. Tiger Hattori (the legendary referee) announces that the New York show will be his last night as a referee.
A BLOCK ACTION BEGINS NOW!
1) Lance Archer vs. Will Ospreay
Lance Archer debuts a new haircut, decks a few Young Lions, and doesn't spit water on every fan on the way to the ring. Interesting. Archer charges Ospreay before the match starts, but HE GETS HIT WITH SPANISH FLY WHILE THE CAMERAMAN IS STILL IN THE RING! OSPREAY DIVES ONTO ARCHER OFF THE TOP TO THE FLOOR! SPRINGBOARD 450 IN THE RING! 1-2-Kickout! Wow. Hot start.
Ospreay goes after Archer, but Archer no-sells it. "You .... up now."- Archer. Archer levels Ospreay with a punch. Dropkick by Ospreay puts Archer on the floor. Ospreay gets caught going for the Sasuke Special, but ARCHER CATCHES HIM! A VICIOUS CHOKESLAM THROUGH THE ANNOUNCE TABLE ON THE FLOOR! HOLY CRAP!
Ospreay is rolled into the ring. And Archer is loving every second of this. He mows Ospreay over with a shoulder tackle and heels on the crowd. Archer continues to pound and assault Ospreay in the ring. ARCHER does Old School around two sides of the ring. (That would make Mean Mark proud.) 5 minutes have passed. (THAT'S IT?!) Archer rams his body into Ospreay's in the corner over and over again, faster and faster. Ospreay is trying to fight back, but Archer is having none of it. Ospreay is able to bounce off the ropes and hit a back kick to Archer.
Ospreay now starts hitting some moves, including a 6-1-9. Springboard Forearm connects. 2 count. Ospreay tries to go for Stormbreaker. (Is he nuts?!) Archer blocks it. Ospreay avoids a pounce once, but he gets POUNCED a second later anyways. Buckle Bomb by Archer. Last Ride by Archer. Both men go to the floor. Apron Bomb! (Archer says "Everybody dies." Ospreay may get there first with these bumps. Damn.) Archer drags Ospreay up the ramp. CODE RED BY OSPREAY ON THE RAMP! The count is on. At 19, Archer gets in the ropes. Springboard Dropkick and a SHOOTING STAR PRESS by Ospreay. 2 count only. Robinson Special! Oscutter is blocked. IT CONNECTS THE SECOND TIME! 1-2-KICKOUT! ARCHER KICKED OUT! OSPREAY IS INCREDULOUS!
Ospreay is going for Stormbreaker?! Yeah. That doesn't work. Kicks to the face by Ospreay. Hidden Blade is avoided by Archer. He decks Ospreay on the corner. MUSCLE BUSTER BY ARCHER! 1-2-KICKOUT! (This is a great match so far.) BLACKOUT! (Reverse Razor's Edge into a Michinoku Driver!) 1-2-KICKOUT BY OSPREAY! Archer goes for the Von Erich Claw! He gets it in Dallas no less! Ospreay is trying to fight out. He gets to the ropes. Archer threatens to mess (an F word was said instead) the ref up. Both men are on the corner. Archer goes for a Super Chokeslam! TOP ROPE SPANISH FLY BY OSPREAY! 1-2-KICKOUT BY ARCHER! (This is awesome! Absolutely awesome!) Ospreay tries Stormbreaker again. He kicks Archer again. HE GETS HIM UP!!!!!!! Archer avoids it! Headkick. More kicks! SUPERKICK TO THE BACK OF THE HEAD BY OSPREAY! Super Oscutter blocked by Archer. Archer and Ospreay are back on the corner. Big Running Knee by Archer up into the corner. Archer climbs up and hits SUPER BLACKOUT OFF THE TOP! The claw is back out! 1-2-3! Ospreay gets pinned. Young Lions get a taste of The Claw after the match.
Winner: Lance Archer (2 points)
Match Grade: A. That was absolutely incredible by both men. It's definitely the best match I've ever seen from Lance Archer. As for Ospreay, he's one of the elite wrestlers on this planet. And we are all witnesses to his greatness. Very well put together match to make both men look legit and even better than they looked coming in.
2) EVIL vs. Bad Luck Fale
Kevin Kelly brings up Fale's record from last year and his blatant disrespect of the tournament last year. EVIL shows up again without his scythe. (I guess it didn't make it past customs on the plane ride over. :( ) Evil jumps the match and goes after Fale. The bell rings. Both men brawl up the ramp. Evil charges down at Fale and grazes him with a shot that only causes Fale to move over. Evil tries to slam Fale, but Fale is the one who slams his opponent. The ref tells the combatants to get back in the ring. Evil gets in before the 20 count, but Fale continues to dominate the match by working the back of Evil. Punches to the lower back of Evil in the corner, followed by the classic "big man standing on the smaller guy's back" spot. Evil continues to get hammered by The Rogue General.
Evil starts to fight back and gets a bodyslam on Fale. Evil crumbles backwards from the pain as we cross the 5 minute mark. Fale gets clotheslined over the top to the floor. Evil and Fale fight over using chairs. Evil wraps the chair around Fale's neck and rams him into the ring post. Loud "EVIL" chant from Dallas. (I mean... The Cowboys play there, right? Not really shocking that they'd root for evil. Just kidding.)
Back in the ring, Evil contninues to attack Fale. Lariats by Evil knock Fale to a knee. But a shoulder tackle by Fale clocks Evil. Corner splash and a big splash in the middle of the ring gets a 2 count for Fale. Fale brings the chairs into the ring. While Fale and the ref argue over the chair, Evil kicks the chair and hits a lariat to Fale. 2 count. Everything is Evil is blocked. Grenade avoided by Evil. GRENADE CONNECTS! 1-2-EVIL KICKS OUT! Bad Luck Fall is escaped by Evil. The referee gets knocked to the floor by accident as we cross 10 minutes.
Evil has the chair. He uses it on the midsection of Fale. LOW BLOW BY FALE! The ref is still on the floor as Fale wraps a chair around the neck of Evil. Fale hits Evil's chair move around Evil's neck! BAD LUCK FALL!!!! 1-2-3!
Winner: Bad Luck Fale (2 points)
Match Grade: C-. There's no other way to say it: This was just an average match between two rulebreakers. It was hardly Evil's best match. But it's an improvement for Fale over last year's G1 shenanigans. So, I won't complain. Still, an average at best match.
3) Sanada vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
The match starts regularly this time. No one jumps the bell or anything. So, this is a change. Sabre works the arm for a few moments. Sanada does a ton of flips while in the armbar and goes for one of his own. Sabre and Sanada trade counters back and forth before doing a standoff. The crowd applauds as they should. This is wrestling.
Sabre and Sanada continue after a few moments, continuing to play the reversal game flipping through rollups and submission holds. Both almost get caught again in rollups before they break. Sanada takes a break on the outside of the ring before coming back into the ring. 5 minutes have passed.
Test of Strength called for by Sanada. Sabre mocks the call. A Single Arm Test of Strength is hooked in, which Sabre reverses into a Straight Jacket submission. Sanada reverses into one of his own. Sabre and Sanada trade reversals. Sabre uses his brain to literally step out of the move. They continue to trade reversals and submission holds, almost like a dance. Sanada does get a dropkick on Sabre, sending him to the floor. Sabre now takes a moment to breathe on the floor. Sabre mocks NJPW officials and the 20 count by taking his good time.
Paradise Lock is attempted by Sanada, but Sabre avoids it. Sabre gets an armbar on Sanada as we cross 10 minutes. Sanada gets to the ropes. Sabre snaps the arm over the shoulder, sending Sanada to the floor grabbing his arm in pain. Sabre and Sanada continue in the ring with Sabre having the advantage. Cobra Twist by Sabre, which Sanada escapes with a hip toss. Sanada starts jumping over the charging Sabre and dropkicks him down. Paradise Lock is on Sabre, this time using the bottom rope to keep him in place. Sanada gives him the key to get out in the form of a dropkick. Dive to Sabre on the floor by Sanada.
Back in the ring, Sanada continues to work on Sabre. Sabre avoids the dropkick off the top. Octopus Hold is on Sanada. Both arms are locked up by Sabre. Sanada is trying to get to the ropes. Sabre now rolls Sanada into the ring, and he has Sanada all kinds of twisted up. Sanada finally gets the boot on the rope. Sabre and Sanada trade shots in the ring. Skull End is avoided by Sabre. DDT by Sabre followed by a Skull End of his own. Sanada's arms are tied up, but he gets on his feet. TKO by Sanada is reversed into a Guillotine Choke by Sabre. Sanada escapes and hits Magic Killer while using the ropes. TKO by Sanada. 1-2-Kickout by ZSJ. Moonsault avoided by ZSJ. Backslide by Sanada is reversed into a PK Kick by ZSJ. Skull End by Sanada on ZSJ. Sanada spins ZSJ around. Moonsault by Sanada gets caught into a TRIANGLE LOCK by ZSJ. 20 minutes have passed. The crowd is cheering for Sanada. Sanada gets another Skull End on ZSJ. ZSJ fades. They trade rollups until Sanada catches Zack Sabre Jr. in a beautiful floatover rollup. 1-2-3. ZSJ attacks the referee after the match and starts destroying things at ringside.
Winner: Sanada (2 points)
Match Grade: A-. I love the matches between these two. Sabre and Sanada just have a great chemistry that should continue to bear fruit for New Japan for the next few years. The effortless counters, the near falls, the ability to just bring the best out of each other... this is what great pro wrestling is all about.
4) KENTA vs. Kota Ibushi
This could be awesome. Shibata is shown watching from one of the back corners of the arena as the bell rings. The former Hideo Itami has a LOT to prove here. Both men trade near shots to the other before breaking off to walk the ring a few more seconds. The crowd sounds 2-3x louder than their size would lead you to believe. Each man gets a cheer and a "Both These Guys" chant. A clean break by KENTA is turned into a SLAP IN THE FACE! KOTA IBUSHI RESPONDS! Well, that escalated quickly. Ibushi continues to attack KENTA with a series of kicks and punches. Kenta starts kicking the chest of Ibushi, which is followed with a 2nd Rope Knee Drop to the back of Ibushi's head. Kenta starts kicking the chest of Ibushi repeatedly. 5 minutes have passed as KENTA apples a headlock.
KENTA continues to apply pressure with vicious shots to Ibushi. Kenta drops the knees to the back of Ibushi's head and gives a disrespecting back kick to the head as well. Ibushi continues to get massacred by the hard shots of Kenta. Now, Kenta paintbrush kicks the head of Ibushi. Ibushi has had enough and starts firing back at Kenta. But Kenta reasserts control and kicks the back of Ibushi. Ibushi gets a dropkick in to finally get some separation.
Powerslam and Moonsault by Ibushi gets a 2 count. Leg Lariat by Kenta knocks Ibushi back down. 10 minutes have passed. Kenta knocks down Ibushi with some lariats and a suplex. Kenta goes back to the top rope and hits a leaping clothesline. 2 count. Kenta goes for a Tornado DDT, but Ibushi counters with a hard chop. Both men are on the corner now. Kenta crashes to the apron. Oh God. Ibushi sets up Kenta. Deadlift German off the ropes is blocked. Backflip Kick by Ibushi to Kenta sends Kenta to the floor. Ibushi dives over the ropes to KENTA, but Kenta gets a high knee on Ibushi. Ibushi seemed to be hobbling coming up from that. Ibushi is set up on the guard rail. KENTA dives off the apron and nails a double stomp to the back of Ibushi.
Ibushi rolls in at 12, but Kenta hits a springboard dropkick followed by running attacks including a running dropkick in the corner. 15 minutes have passed. DOUBLE STOMP OFF THE TOP ROPE! 1-2-Kickout by Ibushi. Ibushi signals for the GTS (Go To Sleep). Ibushi avoids it. Big lariat by Ibushi. LAST RIDE! 1-2-Kickout by Kenta. Kamigoye is avoided. Crucifix Pin by Ibushi. 2 count. Running knee attack at Kenta. (This is awesome chant by the crowd. I'm going to say "very good" at this point.) They trade punches and forearms on their knees. Slow at first and then becoming faster. Kicks are now coming in. High kick by Kenta. 2 count. Kick to the head by Kenta over and over again. Ibushi just crumbles at 20 minutes. ANOTHER KICK! 1-2-KICKOUT! Kenta is signaling for the end again. He drops the kneepad. GTS connects! 1-2-3! After the match, Kenta and Kota Ibushi shake hands with Kenta helping him to his feet. They hug before Ibushi leaves the ring for Kenta to celebrate.
Winner: KENTA (2 points)
Match Grade: B+. Another very good match on this show, although not on the level of the two earlier A level matches. It was good to see KENTA have the level of match that he is capable of having without the injuries or "creative hurdles" being in his way. This was the strong style match of the evening, and it delivered in spades. Looking forward to seeing what both men end up doing in the tournament.
MAIN EVENT
Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi
The crowd chants "Holy (bleep)" before the match even starts. The bell rings, and the crowd explodes. "New Japan, New Japan." Both Tanahashi and Okada soak in the crowd's applause. Tie up. Dueling chants by the crowd as Okada takes Tanahashi to the ropes. Clean break, but Tanahashi throws the first forearm. They trade forearms! The crowd makes noises to each forearm. Big boot by Okada, but Tanahashi gets right back up. Tanahashi avoids the dropkick. Both men avoid bombs by the other man. Standoff. Applause from the crowd. A "Both These Guys" chant breaks out. (God, if you can't love this, you need your head examined.)
Tanahashi hits a leaping elbow on Okada and plays that Air Guitar. Okada catches Tanahashi on the corner and dropkicks The Ace off the top to the floor. Tanahashi favors the knee on the floor as Okada rolls to the floor after him. SPIKE DDT by Okada on the floor as we cross the 5 minute threshold. The count is on while Okada waits in the ring. Tanahashi gets in at around the 14 mark.
Okada presses the attack with a dropkick to a seated Tanahashi. Red Shoes (the ref) tells Okada he won't count when Okada mocks Tanahashi by standing on him with the Rainmaker pose. Okada continues to assault Tanahashi in the corner. The Ace fights back. DRAGON SCREW TO TANAHASHI! (Okada uses a Tanahashi move against Tanahashi!) Neckbreaker. 2 count. (Kevin Kelly, while Okada has a chinlock on Tanahashi, puts over that neither man has ever beaten the other during a G1 Climax match.) DRAGON SCREW TO OKADA BY TANAHASHI!
Tanahashi starts going after Okada. Flying forearm by The Ace. Dropkick in the corner. Somersault Senton off the 2nd Rope. 2 count for Tanahashi. 10 minutes have passed. Running Elbow Strike by Okada. Corner Elbow attack and a DDT by Okada. 2 count. Both men continue to go back and forth against the other. Tanahashi gets DRAGON SCREW, wrenching Okada's leg against the middle rope. FLAPJACK to a running Tanahashi. (These guys are great.) Dropkick to the knee by Tanahashi. Okada gets Tanahashi up and hits a neckbreaker across the bad knee. 2 count, but Okada sells the knee for a second coming out of the pin. Still, he has the advantage. Slam by Okada. He calls for the Elbow Drop. He climbs to the top rope. It connects. RAINMAKER POSE!!!!!!Tanahashi rolls up Okada during the pose. 2 count. DRAGON SCREW by Tanahashi.
Tanahashi has the Texas Cloverleaf on Okada in Texas. That's a first. Okada gets to the ropes. DRAGON SCREW again to the leg of Okada, who rolls to the floor. 15 minutes have passed. Tanahashi climbs the corner!!!! OH NO! HIGH FLY FLOW TO OKADA ON THE FLOOR!!!!!!! Tanahashi holds the knee after coming down. Both men get back in the ring at the count of 15. Twist and Shout by Tanahashi. Shotgun Dropkick by Okada. Sling Blade by Tanahashi. Dropkick by Okada! TOMBSTONE BY OKADA!!!! RAINMAKER INTO A SLING BLADE BY TANAHASHI!
Tanahashi climbs the corner! HIGH FLY FLOW CROSSBODY! Tanahashi climbs back up!!!! HIGH FLY FLOW INTO THE KNEES OF OKADA! THE ACE IS DOWN! Okada beats Tanahashi up. Both men fight over getting a Tombstone. Big slap by Tanahashi. Sling Blade blocked! RAINMAKER! He holds the arm of Tanahashi. 20 minutes have passed! RAINMAKER!!!!! Okada calls for the end! ROLLUP BY TANAHASHI! 2 count! DRAGON SUPLEX! 2 count only for Tanahashi on both attempts! Wow.
Bombs are avoided by both men. Rainmaker avoided by Tanahashi with big slaps to Okada's face. Okada is bleeding from the back. SPINNING TOMBSTONE TO TANAHASHI! RAINMAKER! 1-2-3!
Winner: Kazuchika Okada (2 points)
Match Grade: A-. The magic is still there folks. This wasn't as good as some of their other classics, but this was another great chapter in the greatest rivalry in New Japan history and probably the best rivalry in modern wrestling.
Okada gets the mic after the match. He starts speaking and says "I'm sorry. I spoke Japanese! DALLAS!!!!!" Lol. "Okada" chants rain down to The Rainmaker. "How was G1 Climax?" The fans cheer. "Tonight is 1st Time G1 is in America. But not the last. So, we come back. So when I come back to Dallas, I am G1 Climax winner. Also, IWGP Heavyweight Champion. Thank you Dallas. Thank you very much." He says the rest in Japanese. "I will come back to Dallas to make it rain money."
Show Rating: A-. The undercard was strong enough to be worth a watch at least once and added some drama to most of the matches coming up on the B Block Premiere next week. As for the G1 Climax matches, 4 out of the 5 were worth the time to watch with several being great
battles (especially the Archer-Ospreay match which I loved). I think it is fair to say that A Block is going to set the bar high for the B Block to follow. The talent on this side of the tournament is going to produce high quality matches throughout its tour.
A Block Standings
Lance Archer (2)
Bad Luck Fale (2)
Sanada (2)
KENTA (2)
Kazuchika Okada (2)
Will Ospreay (0)
Evil (0)
Zack Sabre Jr. (0)
Kota Ibushi (0)
Hiroshi Tanahashi (0)
Hope you all enjoyed this review. I will be back with reviews for the G1 Climax starting around July 23rd once I return from vacation. So be sure to check out reviews around that time.
Until next time, take care of yourselves. Spread some awesomeness.
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