Fighting Spirit Review: New Japan G1 Climax 2014, Day 1

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Date:  July 21st, 2014
Location:  Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center
Announced Attendance:  6,000 (Super No Vacancy Full House)

It is time for the G1 Climax!  The G1 Climax has taken place in New Japan every year since 1991, making it the longest running annual pro wrestling tournament in the world.  The tournament is massive this year, with 22 total wrestlers participating.  I am going to try to review each event as close to when it happens as I can, so wish me luck! Here are the blocks…

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Today’s matches are as follows:

– Block A: Bad Luck Fale vs. Tomohiro Ishii
– Block A: Doc Gallows vs. Shelton Benjamin
– Block B: Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Karl Anderson
– Block A: Satoshi Kojima vs. Yuji Nagata
– Block B: Minoru Suzuki vs. Toru Yano
– Block B: Tetsuya Naito vs. Yujiro Takahashi
– Block B: Hirooki Goto vs. Togi Makabe
– Block A: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomoaki Honma
– Block A: Katsuyori Shibata vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
– Block B: AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada

Let’s get rolling with Day 1.

Bad Luck Fale vs. Tomohiro Ishii

This match is in Block A of the G1 Climax.  They stare each other down to start, chops by Ishii but Fale absorbs the blows and elbows Ishii to the mat.  Ishii gets back up and elbows Fale but again Fale elbows Ishii down.  More elbows by Ishii, he ducks Fale’s elbow and goes off the ropes, hitting a jumping elbow smash.  Ishii goes off the ropes again but Fale hits a shoulderblock.  Fale stands on Ishii near the ropes but Ishii gets back up and headbutts Fale in the stomach.  They trade blows with Fale getting the better of it, he picks up Ishii, Irish whip from the corner but Ishii kicks Fale back.  Running elbow by Ishii and he goes for a suplex, but Fale blocks it and hits a scoop slam.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Elbow drop by Fale, cover, but again it gets a two.  Fale slaps Ishii in the back of the head, elbows by Fale and he puts Ishii on his shoulders, but Ishii gets off and hits a jumping DDT.  Ishii goes off the ropes and he hits a lariat, but Fale doesn’t go down.  Ishii goes off the ropes again and hits a second lariat, he picks up Fale and hits a vertical suplex.  Cover by Ishii, but it gets a two count.  Ishii chops Fale in the corner, Irish whip, but Fale fires out of the corner with a shoulderblock.  Fale picks up Ishii and punches him in the stomach but Ishii chops him in the throat.  Fale elbows Ishii down to the mat, he picks him back up but Ishii slaps him.  Fale picks up Ishii and throws him backwards into the corner, Fale charges Ishii and hits a body avalanche.  Body press by Fale, cover, but it gets a two count.  Fale picks up Ishii and goes for a suplex but Ishii lands on his back and knocks Fale to his knees.  Lariat by Ishii, cover, but Fale kicks out at two.  Ishii picks up Fale and applies a waistlock, but Fale elbows him off.  Elbows by Ishii and he goes off the ropes, but Fale catches him and hits a scoop slam.  Fale hits a body press, cover, but it only gets a two count.  Fale waits for Ishii to get up but Ishii hits an enzigieri.  Fale drives Ishii backwards into the corner, Fale goes off the ropes and hits a spear.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Fale picks up Ishii and goes for the Bad Luck Fall, but Ishii slides down his back.  German suplex by Ishii and he hits a lariat, cover, but Fale gets a shoulder up.  Ishii picks up Fale and goes for the brainbuster but Fale blocks it and throws Ishii head-first into the corner.  Headbutts by Ishii but Fale fires back with a lariat.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Elbows by Ishii and Fale returns fire, headbutt by Ishii and he hits a second one, but Fale hits the Grenade.  Cover, but Ishii barely gets a shoulder up.  Fale grabs Ishii and hits the Bad Luck Fall, cover, and he picks up the three count.  Your winner:  Bad Luck Fale

Match Thoughts:   Even Ishii can’t pull a good match out of Fale.  This actually wasn’t a bad match, Ishii certainly pulled his weight.  Fale is just bland and repetitious, that’s all.  Ishii’s headbutts were on-point and he timed his power spots well, so there was definitely some good here.  Some good, some bad, mostly average.  Score:  5.0

Doc Gallows vs. Shelton Benjamin

Benjamin ducks a Gallows lariat to start the match, tie-up, but Gallows throws Benjamin into the corner.  Benjamin avoids Gallows when he charges in but Gallows punches Benjamin down to the mat.  Gallows picks up Benjamin, waistlock by Benjamin but Gallows punches him to the mat.  Irish whip by Gallows to the corner and he hits an elbow followed by a jumping shoulderblock.  Benjamin falls out of the ring and Gallows goes out after him, and Gallows punches Benjamin against the post.  Gallows charges Benjamin but Benjamin moves out of the way, and then Benjamin pulls Gallows into the post.  Benjamin charges Gallows but Gallows moves and Benjamin goes into the guardrail.  Gallows pulls at the railing, he picks up Benjamin and throws him into the guardrail.  Stomp by Gallows, he gets a chair and he hits Benjamin in the ribs with it.  Another hit by Gallows with the chair and he hits him again.  Gallows rolls back into the ring and Benjamin very slowly comes back in the ring as well.  Stomps by Gallows and he stands on Benjamin against the ropes.  Gallows picks up Benjamin and he hits a vertical suplex.  Gallows goes off the ropes and hits an elbow drop, he then hits a second one.  Another elbow drop by Gallows, cover, but it gets a two count.  Gallows elbows Benjamin and clubs him in the chest.  Reverse chinlock by Gallows, Benjamin elbows out of it and goes for a suplex, but Gallows elbows out of it.  High kick by Gallows to the head, Gallows picks up Benjamin and puts him into the corner and punches him in the stomach.  More punches by Gallows, Irish whip, but Benjamin moves when Gallows charges in and hits a release German suplex.  Both wrestlers get up, elbows by Benjamin but Gallows drives him back into the corner.  Gallows charges Benjamin but Benjamin moves out of the way and Benjamin applies an ankle hold.  Gallows kicks him off and Gallows hits a sidewalk slam.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Gallows picks up Benjamin, punches by Gallows but Benjamin punches him back and they trade blows.  Gallows picks up Benjamin and hits a fallaway slam, cover by Gallows but Benjamin barely gets a shoulder up.  Gallows picks up Benjamin and charges him in the corner, and he hits a body avalanche.  Gallows goes off the ropes but Benjamin snaps off a superkick.  Cover by Benjamin, but it gets a two count.  Benjamin goes up to the top turnbuckle but Gallows catches him when he jumps off.  Benjamin kicks Gallows back and nails the Paydirt, cover, and Benjamin picks up the three count.  Your winner:  Shelton Benjamin

Match Thoughts:   Quick endings are ok I think in tournaments, all ten matches can’t be twenty minute classics.  That would be silly.  This was… not really good but I have seen a lot worse.  Gallows is limited and Benjamin is who he is, personally I like the guy but he didn’t have much to work with here.  Gallows dominated the match, not always interestingly, and Benjamin won so quick at the end that he didn’t get much of a chance to show off his offense.  Just one of those tournament matches done to set up the points the right way, nothing really to see here.  Score:  4.0

Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Karl Anderson

Tenzan pushes Anderson into the ropes to start the match but he gives a clean break.  Tie-up, Tenzan pushes Anderson into the ropes again but this time Anderson switches positions with him.  Kicks to the stomach by Anderson and he hits a Mongolian Chop.  Another one by Anderson, he goes off the ropes but Tenzan catches him with a heel kick.  Tenzan picks up Anderson and hits a headbutt, another headbutt by Tenzan and he hits a Mongolian Chop.  More chops by Tenzan and he chops Anderson in the throat.  Tenzan goes off the ropes and hits a falling headbutt.  Cover, but it gets a one count.  Tenzan applies a reverse chinlock, elbow by Tenzan and he kicks Anderson.  Tenzan goes off the ropes but Anderson dropkicks him in the knee.  Stomps to the knee by Anderson and he throws Tenzan out of the ring.  Anderson goes out as well, Anderson puts Tenzan’s leg within the rail and twists his leg.  Anderson then kicks Tenzan in the leg before returning to the ring.  Tenzan returns as well, stomps by Anderson and he drops his knee onto Tenzan’s leg.  Anderson applies a reverse chinlock but Tenzan elbows out of it, Tenzan headbutts Anderson into the corner, Irish whip, but Anderson moves when Tenzan charges in and kicks Tenzan in the head.  Tenzan hits a back bodydrop and stomps Anderson in the back.  Mongolian Chops by Tenzan, Irish whip, and Tenzan hits a lariat.  Tenzan goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits the calf branding, cover, but Anderson kicks out.  Tenzan picks up Anderson and hits a vertical suplex, cover, but it gets two.  Tenzan chops Anderson in the back of the head but Anderson rakes Tenzan in the eyes.  Anderson goes off the ropes but Tenzan headbutts him in the stomach, Tenzan goes off the ropes but Anderson hits an uppercut.  Anderson now goes off the ropes but Tenzan hits the Mountain Bomb.  Cover by Tenzan, but it gets a two count.  Tenzan picks up Anderson and slams him in front of the corner, Tenzan goes up to the top turnbuckle but Anderson rolls out of the way of the moonsault attempt.  Running kick by Anderson, he gets Tenzan on his shoulders and hits the Swivel Gun Stun.  Cover, but it only gets two.  Anderson waits for Tenzan to get up and goes for the Gun Stun but Tenzan blocks it.  Headbutt by Tenzan, he goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a diving headbutt.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Tenzan applies the Anaconda Vice, Anderson slowly gets back to his feet and elbows out of it.  Headbutt by Tenzan, he picks up Anderson and hits the Anaconda Buster.  Tenzan applies the Anaconda Max, and Anderson has no choice but to tap out!  Your winner:  Hiroyoshi Tenzan

Match Thoughts:  There was a time not too long ago that I thought Tenzan was done, that physically he just wasn’t going to be able to be a full time wrestler again.  He seems to have found the fountain of youth as even though he isn’t amazing he is certainly a competent wrestler still.  Anderson is solid as well and even though it didn’t feel like a ‘big’ match the action was perfectly fine.  It was slow at parts but overall no real complaints, it just felt like another mid-card match.  Score:  5.5

Satoshi Kojima vs. Yuji Nagata

They circle each other to start, tie-up, waistlock by Nagata, Kojima reverses it into a wristlock but Nagata rolls out of it and reverses it.  Side headlock takedown by Nagata but Kojima quickly gets out of it.  Tie-up, side headlock by Kojima, Nagata Irish whips out of it but Kojima shoulderblocks him down.  Kick by Nagata to the face but Kojima chops him back and the two trade blows.  Kicks by Nagata, but Kojima catches one and elbows him in the leg.  Running elbow by Kojima and Nagata falls out of the ring, Kojima goes out after him and throws Nagata into the guardrail.  Kick by Kojima and he throws Nagata back into the ring.  Kojima kicks Nagata into the corner and chops Nagata in the chest, Irish whip by Kojima, reversed, and Nagata knees Kojima in the stomach.  Kick to the back by Nagata and he stomps Kojima in the chest.  Nagata picks up Kojima and knees him before hitting the Drive Screw.  Nagata kicks Kojima in the leg and he applies an ankle hold, but Kojima gets to the ropes.  Nagata stomps on Kojima and kicks him in the knee before twisting his leg in the middle rope.  Nagata pushes Kojima to the mat and he applies a figure four leglock.  Kojima inches to the ropes and finally reaches them to force a break.  Nagata kicks Kojima in the leg but Kojima fights back with elbows.  Kicks to the leg by Nagata and he kicks Kojima in the chest until Kojima falls to the mat.  Nagata goes for a running boot in the corner but Kojima catches it and hits an elbow.  Chop by Kojima in the corner and he hits the rapid-fire chops.  Irish whip by Kojima and he hits the jumping elbow followed by the top rope elbow drop.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Kojima picks up Nagata but Nagata fights back.  Knee to the stomach by Nagata but Kojima catches a kick and hits a dragon screw leg whip.  DDT by Kojima and he hits the Koji Cutter.  Kojima picks up Nagata and goes for a suplex but Nagata blocks it, dropkick to the knee by Nagata and he hits an exploder.  Nagata applies the Nagata Lock but Kojima gets a hand on the ropes.  Kicks to the leg by Nagata but Kojima blocks the enzigieri.  Roaring lariat by Kojima, he goes off the ropes but Nagata ducks the lariat and hits a release German suplex.  Backdrop suplex by Nagata, cover, but it gets a two count.  Nagata picks up Kojima but Kojima elbows him off.  Nagata goes for a suplex but Kojima reverses it into a vertical suplex of his own.  Back up they trade elbows, big boot by Nagata and he hits a heel kick.  Elbow by Kojima, he goes off the ropes but Nagata kicks him when he goes for a lariat.  Nagata charges Kojima but Kojima catches him with the Lariat, cover, and he picks up the three count.  Your winner:  Satoshi Kojima

Match Thoughts:  These two wily old veterans certainly ‘brought it’ even though they were on the mid-card on the first day of the G1 Climax.  The leg work by Nagata was really good throughout to the point it seemed like he may win with a leg submission hold (especially since it is a tournament setting), and Kojima sold it solidly.  I am looking forward to the match that Kojima doesn’t force in his corner spot as it seemed unnecessary here, but otherwise they both stayed on point.  Since Nagata is normally hard to pin I wouldn’t have complained if Kojima had done a bit more to get the win, but I still thought it was a really good match and the first one that felt important.  Score:  7.0

Minoru Suzuki vs. Toru Yano

Suzuki attacks Yano before the match starts and kicks him out of the ring.  Suzuki goes out after him and throws Yano into the guardrail, he then picks him up and throws Yano into the rail again.  Suzuki throws Yano in the railing a third time, he then picks up a steel chair and hits Yano in the back with it.  Suzuki picks up Yano and slides him back into the ring, Suzuki takes off one of the turnbuckle pads and goes back to Yano but Yano elbows Suzuki.  Suzuki throws Yano into the exposed corner and then does it a second time.  Suzuki throws Yano into the corner a third time and charges Yano, Yano moves but Suzuki stops before he runs into the exposed corner.  Suzuki knocks Yano to the mat, he gets a steel chair and tries to hit Yano with it but Yano ducks and hits a low blow.  Inside Cradle by Yano and he picks up the three count!  Your winner:  Toru Yano

Match Thoughts:  Obviously not a whole lot to this match aside from a way to get Yano a win.  This will happen in the G1 Climax, like I mentioned earlier not every match can be a long one and matches like these keep fans on their toes since they can literally end any time.  It also fits into Yano’s character of picking up cheap wins.  So it got its point across, even if it wasn’t exactly a long and competitive match.  Score:  5.0

Tetsuya Naito vs. Yujiro Takahashi

Naito and Takahashi circle each other, kick by Takahashi to the stomach and he applies a side headlock.  Naito gets out of it and applies a hammerlock, but Naito reverses it.  Takahashi gets into the ropes to force a break, and Takahashi elbows Naito in the face.  Takahashi throws Naito out of the ring and goes out after him, but Naito quickly rolls back in, Takahashi returns but Naito greets him with a kick.  Side headlock by Naito but Takahashi bites Naito’s hand.  Wristlock by Takahashi but Naito reverses it, eye rake by Takahashi and he clubs Naito down to the mat.  Slaps by Takahashi, he goes off the ropes but Naito hits an armdrag.  Takahashi goes off the ropes but Naito delivers a dropkick.  Naito picks up Takahashi and applies a wristlock, elbows to the arm by Naito and he yanks on Takahashi’s arm.  Irish whip by Naito, Takahashi reverses it and he drops Naito throat-first on the top rope.  Takahashi grabs Naito and drives him head-first into the mat.  Naito rolls out to the apron and slowly gets up, but Takahashi boots Naito off the apron down to the floor.  Takahashi goes outside of the ring, he picks up Naito and drops him neck-first into the guard rail.  Takahashi returns to the ring with Naito slowly following, Takahashi picks up Naito and throws him into the corner.  Takahashi stomps Naito down in the corner,  he charges Naito and hits a big boot.  Takahashi picks up Naito and he hits a neckbreaker.  Cover, but it gets another two count.  Takahashi applies a reverse chinlock, he goes off the ropes and kicks Naito in the chest.  Cover, but it gets two.  Takahashi nudges Naito with his feet and he slaps Naito, but Naito slaps him back.  Irish whip by Takahashi to the corner but Naito moves when he charges in.  Naito hits a neckbreaker out of the corner, Irish whip by Naito and he hits an armdrag.  Dropkick by Naito and he delivers a somersault senton, Naito goes up to the top turnbuckle and hits a missile dropkick.  Takahashi falls in the corner, Naito charges Takahashi but Takahashi drops Naito on the apron and rams him into the ring post.  Takahashi picks up Naito, he puts him onto the top turnbuckle before joining him and hitting a belly to belly suplex.  Cover, but it only gets a two count. Takahashi picks up Naito but Naito blocks the suplex attempt.  Takahashi ducks an enzigieri and he hits a fisherman buster, cover, but he gets a two count.  Takahashi picks up Naito and hits an Olympic Slam.  Cover, but Naito gets a shoulder up.  Takahashi charges Naito but Naito ducks the lariat, roll-up by Naito but it gets a two count.  Another roll-up by Naito, and again he only gets two.  Eye rake by Takahashi, he grabs Naito and goes for the Miami Shine, but Naito slides out of it and kicks Takahashi.  Irish whip by Naito and he hits a jumping elbow smash.  German suplex hold by Naito, but it only gets a two count.  Naito picks up Takahashi and applies a hammerlock into a sidewalk slam.  Naito goes up to the top turnbuckle but Takahashi moves out of the way of the Stardust Press.  Naito charges Takahashi in the corner but Takahashi kicks him back, chops by Takahashi but Naito elbows him back.  They trade elbows, big boot by Takahashi and he gets Naito on his shoulders but Naito slides off an hits an enzigieri.  Irish whip by Naito, Takahashi avoids the strike and catches Naito with a German suplex hold for a two count.  Takahashi picks up Naito and powerbombs him into the turnbuckles, he picks him back up and he delivers the Miami Shine.  Cover, and he picks up the three count.  Your winner:  Yujiro Takahashi

Match Thoughts:   This match was good.  Not great, or memorable, or particularly exciting, but definitely good.  I thought that some of the transitions were lazy (eye rakes are so 1980s) and Naito’s offense doesn’t look very hurty, but both were really crisp aside from one badly missed kick.  Takahashi seems to be enjoying his new place on the card and is working hard, and Naito is always a ball of energy so the match had very little downtime.   A solid start to the tournament by both men.  Score:  6.0

Hirooki Goto vs. Togi Makabe

Makabe elbows Goto into the corner before the match starts but Goto returns fire and they trade blows.  Snapmare by Makabe and he hits mounted punches, but Goto reverses spots with him and they trade punches back and forth.  Goto invites Makabe to get up and they trade elbows, Goto goes off the ropes but he can’t knock down Makabe.  Goto goes off the ropes again but Makabe lariats Goto out of the ring.  Makabe picks up Goto out on the floor and throws him into the guardrail.  Makabe picks up Goto and throws him into the rail again before sliding him back into the ring.  Stomp by Makabe and he kicks Goto while he is on one knee.  Back up Makabe elbows Goto but Goto hits him back and they trade elbows.  Goto picks up Makabe and throws him out of the ring, Goto goes out after him and elbows Makabe in the back of the head before throwing him chest-first into the rail.  Goto slams Makabe into the ring post and elbows him again before sliding Makabe back in the ring.  Goto stomps Makabe in the chest and back, he throws Makabe in the corner and Goto elbows Makabe repeatedly.  Goto picks up Makabe and hits a vertical suplex, cover, but it gets a two count.  Reverse chinlock by Goto and he elbows Makabe in the face.  Kick to the back by Goto and then to the chest.  Makabe invites Goto to keep kicking him so he does, Goto goes off the ropes but Makabe catches a kick and hits a lariat.  Goto crawls to the corner and Makabe hits a lariat, then he hits a second one.  Makabe mounts Goto in the corner and hits a series of punches before hitting the Northern Lights Suplex for a two count.  Makabe picks up Goto but Goto elbows him off, Goto goes off the ropes but Makabe hits a lariat.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Makabe waits for Goto to get up but Goto catches him with a lariat of his own, and both wrestlers slowly get up.  Goto catches Makabe and hits a spinning heel kick followed by a backdrop suplex for a two count cover.  Goto picks up Makabe and gets him on his shoulders, but Makabe slides off.  Makabe goes off the ropes but Goto does also, Makabe ducks Goto’s lariat and goes off the ropes but Goto grabs him and hits a fireman’s carry onto his knee.  Cover, but Makabe kicks out.  Goto goes off the ropes but Makabe gets him on his shoulders, Goto slides off but Makabe delivers a powerbomb for a two count.  Makabe picks up Goto, he puts Makabe on his shoulders and hits a death valley bomb.  Makabe goes up to the top turnbuckle but Goto rolls out of the way of the King Kong Kneedrop.  Lariat to the back of the head by Goto, he picks up Makabe  and he drops Makabe face-first onto his knee.  Which looked painful.  Cover, but Makabe gets a shoulder up.  Goto picks up Makabe but Makabe shoves him off, both wrestlers hit lariats on each other but neither wrestler goes down.  Lariat by Makabe, cover, but it gets a two count.  Makabe picks up Goto and hits a short-arm lariat, he picks up Goto again and hits a second one.  Makabe picks up Goto but Goto knocks him back.  Goto grabs Makabe and he delivers the Shouten Kai, cover, and he picks up the three count.  Your winner:  Hirooki Goto

Match Thoughts:  Hope that Makabe’s jaw is ok, that weird move by Goto looked brutal.  This is one of the better Makabe matches I have ever seen, he was still a bit lariat-happy but not excessive about it, and it really did come across as just two big strong wrestlers trying to beat  each other into submission.  Lots of hard hits on both ends and while Goto sometimes has trouble hitting his finisher on big wrestlers he did a faster version here that looked pretty good.  The focus being more on power vs. power and Goto controlling much of the match helped a lot as the less Makabe is controlling on offense the better.  Fun match for sure.  Score:  7.0

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomoaki Honma

Wristlock by Tanahashi to start but Honma reverses it, Tanahashi reverses it back and gets Honma to the mat but Honma applies a headscissors.  Tanahashi gets out of that, they trade moves again and both men return to their feet.  Tie-up, Honma pushes Tanahashi into the ropes but Tanahashi reverses positions with him.  Tanahashi goes for a punch but Honma ducks, chops by Honma and he kicks Tanahashi in the corner.  Irish whip by Honma but Tanahashi elbows him when he charges in and delivers a dropkick.  Kick to the stomach by Tanahashi, Irish whip, reversed, and Honma elbows Tanahashi to the mat.  Scoop slam by Honma, he goes off the ropes and goes for a falling headbutt but Tanahashi avoids it.  Irish whip by Tanahashi but Honma avoids the dropkick but again he misses the falling headbutt.  Stomp by Tanahashi and he applies a neck crank, snapmare by Tanahashi and a cover, but it gets a two count.  Tanahashi throws Honma into the corner and punches Honma, scoop slam by Tanahashi and he hits a somersault senton off the second turnbuckle.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Tanahashi picks up Honma, chops by Honma but Tanahashi elbows him back.  Irish whip by Tanahashi, reversed, kick by Tanahashi and he delivers a dropkick.  Honma falls out of the ring and Tanahashi sails out onto him with a pescado.  Honma crawls back into the ring, Tanahashi grabs him from the ring but Honma hits him back.  Honma grabs Tanahashi from the apron and goes for a suplex but Tanahashi blocks it, Tanahashi brings Honma back into the ring but Honma drops Tanahashi with a vertical suplex.  Honma chops Tanahashi into the corner, Irish whip, and Honma hits a jumping elbow followed by a face crusher.  He finally hits the headbutt, Honma picks up Tanahashi and delivers a DDT.  Rolling neckbreaker by Honma, cover, but it gets a two count.  Honma picks up Tanahashi and picks up Tanahashi, but Tanahashi slides down his back.  Waistlock by Tanahashi, Honma elbows out of it and they trade chops and slaps.  Tanahashi goes off the ropes, elbow by Honma but Tanahashi ducks the lariat attempt.  Honma goes off the ropes, Tanahashi hits a dropkick but Honma follows with a lariat.  Honma charges Tanahashi and hits a lariat, he picks up Tanahashi and drops him with a brainbuster.  Cover, but Tanahashi kicks out at two.  Honma goes up to the top turnbuckle but Tanahashi rolls out of the way of the diving headbutt attempt.  Tanahashi and Honma get to their knees and trade elbows as they return to their feet, and Tanahashi hits a trapped German suplex for a two count.  Tanahashi goes off the ropes but Honma rolls up Tanahashi for a two count cover.  Dragon screw leg whip by Honma, he goes off the ropes but Tanahashi ducks the lariat and hits a dragon suplex.  Sling Blade by Tanahashi, he goes up to the top turnbuckle and nails the High Fly Flow.  Cover, and he picks up the three count.  Your winner:  Hiroshi Tanahashi

Match Thoughts:   While part of me is surprised that this match was on the later end of the card, it was a good match.  The crowd likes Honma a lot, I don’t think anyone really thought he was going to win but he had their support anyway.  Honma did get in some good offense here and it was a competitive match, but once Tanahashi whipped off his big moves in a row he went down pretty easy.  But Honma did all he could and his near falls got a good response, so no complaints from me.  Score:  6.5

Katsuyori Shibata vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Shibata and Nakamura circle each other to start, Shibata pushes Nakamura into the ropes and he gives a clean break.  They tie-up, Nakamura pushes Shibata into the ropes this time and Nakamura also gives a clean break, quick kick by Shibata and a snapmare, but Nakamura avoids the swinging kick attempt.  Back up, Shibata gets Nakamura to the mat and they jockey for position on the mat before returning to their feet, Shibata pushes Nakamura into the corner and he slaps Nakamura before backing off.  Knee to the stomach by Shibata but Nakamura elbows him and they trade elbows.  Shibata elbows Nakamura down in the corner, Shibata charges Nakamura but Nakamura delivers a jumping kick to Shibata’s head.  Nakamura puts Shibata across the corner, he gets a running start but Shibata has slid out to the apron and chokes Nakamura over the top rope.  Shibata pulls Nakamura over the top rope down to the floor, Shibata picks up Nakamura and throws him into the guard rail.  Running boot to the face by Shibata, he goes over to the other side of the rail to get Nakamura and throws him into the ring post.  Vertical suplex on the floor by Shibata, he picks up Nakamura and slides him back into the ring.  Shibata returns to the ring as well and Shibata applies a figure four leglock.  Nakamura eventually gets a hand on the ropes to break up the hold, kicks to the head by Shibata, Nakamura gets back up and they trade elbows.  Nakamura gets the better of it, and he hits an enzigieri.  Nakamura kicks Shibata in the corner, he gets a running start but Shibata moves out of the way.  Nakamura catches Shibata with a knee and then hits a running knee in the corner.  Cover by Nakamura, but it gets a two count.  Shibata falls out of the ring and Nakamura goes out after him, Nakamura sets up Shibata’s head over the apron and he delivers a running kneelift.  Nakamura gets back in the ring with Shibata, Nakamura picks up Shibata and applies a front facelock.  Nakamura applies a sleeper, he goes for an inverted powerslam but Shibata gets out of it and knees Nakamura in the stomach.  Sleeper by Shibata, Nakamura gets to the ropes but Shibata hits a backdrop suplex.  Kick to the chest by Shibata, Nakamura falls in the corner and Shibata hits a series of hard elbows.  Shibata gets a running start and delivers a dropkick.  Shibata picks up Nakamura and hits a single arm suplex, cover, but it only gets two.  Shibata picks up Nakamura again but Nakamura hits a release German suplex.  Shibata comes back with his own German suplex, but Nakamura hits a backstabber.  Sleeperhold by Nakamura, Shibata reverses it but Nakamura hits an inverted powerslam.  Nakamura waits for Shibata to get up but Shibata catches him with a jumping kick to the face.  Shibata picks up Nakamura and they trade elbows, Shibata goes for a kick but Nakamura blocks it and applies a sleeper.  Shibata reverses it into his own sleeper, kick to the back by Shibata and he goes off the ropes, but Nakamura ducks the PK.  Waistlock by Nakamura but Shibata elbows him into the corner, Nakamura kicks Shibata back and hits a jumping kick off the second turnbuckle.  Sliding kick by Nakamura, cover, but it gets a two count.  Nakamura waits for Shibata to get up but Shibata catches Nakamura with a jumping head kick.  Nakamura picks up Shibata but Shibata catches him with a back elbow, Shibata gets Nakamura on his shoulders and drops him onto his knee.  PK by Shibata, and he picks up the three count.  Your winner:  Katsuyori Shibata

Match Thoughts:  This was a fun and painful looking match, although it was a step below ‘awesome’ to me.  Their strikes were both on point and especially the ending looked painful for Nakamura.  I did think there was some wasted time, the figure four leglock for example was just a chunk of the match that wasn’t needed since the leg wasn’t really targeted before or after the hold.  Besides some structure issues in the middle though this is one of the better strike-based matches I’ve seen in a while as both of these guys excel at that style when they are paired off against the right type of opponent. Definitely worth watching even if it had its faults.  Score:  8.0

AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada

Tie-up to start, Styles pushes Okada into the corner and he goes for a punch, but Okada moves out of the way.  Tie-up, wristlock by Styles, Okada rolls out of it and reverses the hold, but Styles reverses it back.  Okada reverses the hold but Styles gets into the ropes to force a break.  Tie-up, side headlock by Styles, Okada Irish whips out of it, roll-up by Okada but Styles quickly gets out of it.  They face-off, elbows by Styles but Okada elbows him back.  Irish whip by Okada, chops by Styles, Irish whip, reversed, and Okada hits a back bodydrop.  Okada stomps down Styles in the corner, he picks him back up and hits a scoop slam before going out to the apron and hitting a slingshot senton.  Cross-arm submission by Okada but Styles gets a foot on the ropes.  Styles chops Okada, Irish whip, kick by Okada and he goes off the ropes but Styles drills him with a dropkick.  Okada rolls out of the ring, Styles goes out after him and he hits a scoop slam on the floor.  Styles picks up Okada and slides him back into the ring, Styles follows him in and hits a backbreaker.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Back up, Okada elbows Styles but Styles pokes him in the eye.  Styles picks up Okada and hits a scoop slam, he goes off the ropes and hits a jumping knee drop.  Knee to the back by Styles while he applies a reverse chinlock, back up he keeps on a front facelock but Okada elbows out of it.  Elbow to the back of the head by Styles, he goes off the ropes but Okada catches him with an elbow followed by a big boot.  Irish whip by Okada and he hits a flapjack.  Okada picks up Styles, snapmare, Okada goes off the ropes and he delivers a sliding kick.  Okada charges Styles but Styles moves out of the way, Okada then avoids Styles, puts him on the top turnbuckle and then dropkicks him down to the floor.  Okada goes out after Styles and Irish whips him towards the railing, Styles jumps over the rail but Okada dives over the rail with a crossbody onto Styles.  Okada gets back into the ring with Styles very slowly following, kick by Okada and he hits an uppercut.  DDT by Okada and he applies the Red Ink, but Styles gets to the ropes to force a break.  Okada picks up Styles and hits a scoop slam, Okada goes up to the top turnbuckle, Styles charges him but Okada jumps off.  Kick by Styles and he hits a vertical suplex on Okada into the turnbuckles.  Styles puts Okada on the top turnbuckle and then onto his shoulders, before hitting the Rack Bomb.  Cover, but it gets a two count.  Styles drags Okada near the ropes, he goes out to apron but Okada rolls out of the way of the swandive 450 Splash.  Elbow by Okada but Styles returns fire, jumping kick by Styles and he goes for the Styles Clash but Okada kicks out of it.  Irish whip by Okada but Styles avoids the dropkick.  Styles picks up Okada and goes for a tornado DDT, but Okada pushes him off.  Okada grabs Styles and hits a Schwein onto his knee, but amongst all this the referee has gotten knocked out.  Scoop slam by Okada, he goes up to the top turnbuckle and he hits the diving elbow drop.  Yujiro rolls in the ring and hits Okada from behind, he goes off the ropes and hits a lariat.  Yujiro picks up Okada but Okada gets away, eye rake by Yujiro and he goes off the ropes but Okada hits the dropkick.  Styles comes in with a swandive elbow strike, he picks up Okada and goes for the Bloody Sunday, but Okada blocks it.  Release German suplex by Styles and he hits the Pele Kick.  Styles goes for the Styles Clash but Okada blocks it, he spins Styles around and hits the tombstone piledriver.  German suplex hold by Okada, but Styles gets a shoulder up.  Okada keeps the waistlock applied as he returns to his feet, he spins around Styles and nails the Rainmaker.  Cover, and he picks up the three count.  Your winner:  Kazuchika Okada

Match Thoughts:  I thought this was a touch better than their last match in May and their best match to date.  They did a good job betraying this was about more than just the tournament, obviously their feud is bigger than that.  The high risk moves were well spread out and they were more fluid than in past matches.  I don’t like silly ref bumps in any match, particularly not main event matches, but it is what it is and besides that moment it was a straight up one on one match.  I also liked the ending with Okada getting the definite pinfall while keeping the Styles Clash (and the Bloody Sunday) protected by not having Okada kick out of either one.  Another good match on the show.  Score:  7.5

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Current Standings:

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Final Thoughts:

Best Match:  Katsuyori Shibata vs. Shinsuke Nakamura. This event had several really good matches, but this was probably the best one.  It was straight forward, just two guys that enjoy kicking other people in the face.  The ending was quick but definitive, and it established Shibata as a real threat to win the G1 Climax this year.

MVP:   Tomoaki Honma.  He may not win the G1 Climax but the crowd loves the guy.  He had a competitive back and forth match with a former IWGP Heavyweight Champion and the fans couldn’t have been more pleased.   He used most of his arsenal and didn’t appear over-matched by Tanahashi at all.  I don’t know how many points he will get but I am sure this won’t be the last entertaining match Honma has in the tournament.

Overall: As a full show, this event was pretty fantastic.  There were only a few matches I thought were average, and one really short match, but the rest ranged from solid to great.  The Makabe match was one of the better Makabe matches I have seen in a while, Shibata/Nakamura was great, the main event was fun… there was just a lot to like here.  New Japan has a lot of quality wrestlers right now, and while some of the gaijins they use are a bit bland from top to bottom it was an enjoyable card.  A great start to the tournament.

Grade: A-