Once again, the New Japan Pro Wrestling organization showed why they do tournaments better than any company in the world. Over the past month and some change, they've held the Grade 1 Climax, which is a League Style Tournament to determine who earns the right to challenge for their Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom.
(this will be published before the Final, then updated after the Final happens)
Here's how the Blocks Ended:
Block A
Final Standings
1(Winner))Tetsuya Naito (Goto, Ibushi, Nagata, YOSHI-HASHI, Sabre Jr, Makabe, Tanahashi) 14
2)Hiroshi Tanahashi(Fale, Goto, Nagata, Yoshi Hashi, Makabe, Ishii) 12
3)Bad Luck Fale (Ibushi, Makabe, Naito, Ishii, Fale, Nagata) 12
4)Hirooki Goto(Ishii, Nagata, Sabre Jr., HASHI, Ibushi) 10
5)Kota Ibushi(Ishii, Sabre Jr. , Tanahashi. HASHI, Nagata) 10
6)Zack Sabre Jr. (Fale, Makabe, Tanahashi, YOSHI-HASHI, Ishii) 10
7)Tomohiro Ishii(Makabe, Nagata, Naito, YOSHI-HASHI) 8
8)Togi Makabe (Goto, Ibushi, Nagata, HASHI) 8
9)Yoshi-Hashi(Fale, Nagata) 4
10)Yuji Nagata (Sabre Jr.) 2
Throughout this block, similar to the B Block of the Best of the Super Juniors Tournament, the bracket was essentially neck and neck, with different wrestlers taking the lead all throughout the Block session.
The only consistent up to the last 2 nights was that Yuji Nagata in his 19th and Final G1 was on the losing end, until he took out Zack Sabre Jr. Nagata finished at the bottom with the lone win over my favorite British wrestler, but every match was fantastic from him.
Yoshi-Hashi didn't have the same spark that he did last year when he beat eventual 2016 winner Kenny Omega in the opening night, but was able to get wins over Nagata and Bad Luck Fale.
Togi Makabe wasn't able to conjure the winning streak he did last year, but had solid matches across the board.
Tomohiro Ishii was so close in many of his matches, but I will say the submission he suffered at the hands of Sabre Jr. was one of the most brutal submissions I've ever watched.
While we're on the subject, Sabre Jr. at one point held the lead before falling to Tetsuya Naito and Yuji Nagata to eliminate himself.
Kota Ibushi was my original pick to win this bracket, and there were many chances for him to move up. Losses to Bad luck Fale and Hirooki Goto finished him off, so my dream final of him vs. Kenny Omega will have to wait another time.
Bad Luck Fale was the biggest surprise to me. Normally he does well but he found a way again to make it into the top 3 of his block and outside of the final A Block main event, he led everyone else this year. Not to mention, he's vastly improved as a New Japan wrestler.
The final came down to the Ace of New Japan, the one-armed Hiroshi Tanahashi (Torn bicep) and the leader of the most popular group in Japan, Tetsuya Naito of Los Ingobernables de Japon! They came in tied with 6 wins 0 draws 2 losses and a fantastic match they had. Naito focused on the arm, Tanahashi focusing on the leg, which he had used for the Cloverleaf to defeat Naito in their last meeting for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship. Tanahashi had made a great comeback in the standings after getting stretched by Sabre Jr., while Naito had stayed near the top of the standings for the majority of the tournament.
Naito won with DESTINO and took the A Block to the delight of the crowd at Ryogoku Sumo Hall.
Final Standings
14 Points 1)Kenny Omega (EVIL, Kojima, Suzuki, Tonga, Yano, SANADA, Okada) WINNER
13 Points 2)Kazuchika Okada(Elgin, Kojima, Robinson, SANADA, Tonga, Yano) (Draw with Suzuki)
3)EVIL (Robinson, Suzuki, Tonga, Yano, Okada, Kojima) 12
4)Minoru Suzuki(Kojima, Robinson, SANADA, Tonga)(Draw with Okada) 9 Points
5)SANADA (Elgin, EVIL, Robinson, Yano)8
6)Michael Elgin (Kojima, Omega, Suzuki, EVIL) 8
7)Toru Yano (Elgin, Kojima, Tonga, Suzuki)8
8)Juice Robinson(Kojima, Omega, Yano, Elgin) 8
9)Tama Tonga(Elgin, Robinson, Kojima, SANADA) 8
10)Satoshi Kojima (SANADA) 2 Points
Until the back end of the B Block, this side was entirely ALL Okada. That being said, here's how it broke down for this Block.
Satoshi Kojima wasn't able to grab any wins until taking care of SANADA. Similar to his 3rd gen buddy Nagata, he was the victim of many a loss. Competitive in all matches, glad he wasn't shut out.
After Kojima, you have a 5 way draw between SANADA, Elgin, Yano, Robinson, and Tonga. Out of those 5, Yano and Elgin shouldn't be tied. Elgin should have had 10 points but Marty Asami the referee made a bad mistake and (rare for New Japan, take a cue WWE) DQ'd Elgin. If all the other results were the same, Elgin would have finished 4th rather than essentially a tie for 5th. Tonga and Robinson in my opinion overachieved because they were able to gain a respectable 8 points during the block, when it's sometimes hard to gather more than 2. SANADA could have escaped the tie also, but similar to Zack Sabre Jr. (ok no more Sabre Jr. references for the rest of this post), he was also the lone mark of a 3rd gen record. Once again, Yano gets away with points when he shouldn't....this year due to tape rather than just low blows alone this time. Hilarious.....until that Elgin match. (I think Suzuki's gonna kill him eventually).
Speaking of that psychopath, Minoru Suzuki finished just outside of the top 3 due to the 1 draw of the tournament against Okada. However, you could also say that he was one of the reasons Okada didn't run away with this Block. That tie guaranteed that it wouldn't come down to a coin toss if there was a tie at the end. (For the record, I rooted against Suzuki in the final match of Block play because SCREW TAICHI)
EVIL was the biggest surprise for me. Considering I thought SANADA was going to be the break out LIJ member, EVIL defeating Okada was the biggest shock of the tournament. Unfortunately he wasn't able to keep up with Kenny Omega and was nearly knocked out. I gained so much respect for EVIL during this tournament, so I wouldn't be surprised if EVIL grabs a new championship to go along with the NEVER Openweight 6 man Championships.
This one came down to the final match of the Block events....and DEAR FLIPPIN' LORD WHAT A 3rd Match! Last time I heard/saw a trilogy this good it was Steamboat/Flair. And FINALLY, OMEGA got the win! Okada was dominant until his loss to EVIL, then his tie with Suzuki which gave Okada the 1 point lead going into the last day. Omega was clutch after his losses to Elgin and Robinson. The match was a barnburner to say the least!
So now the final comes down to A Block Winner Tetsuya Naito vs. B Block Winner Kenny Omega. The 2013 and 2016 winners will face of in a rematch of last year's 5 star B Block final.
Prediction: Naito exacts revenge in an instant classic to win the G1 Climax 2017 and finally get the main event spot that he truly belongs to. (Omega's the US Champion so he'll still have a high profile match coming up)
Results of Final G1 Climax Night:
Suzuki-Gun (Yoshinobu Kanemaru, TAKA Michinoku, El Desperado, and Taichi(WHO SUCKS)) def. Jushin Thunder Liger Liger, Hirai Kawato, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion and Ring of Honor Television Champion KUSHIDA, and Tiger Mask IV. There was also a fantastic post match brawl surrounding Desperado and KUSHIDA.
Guerillas of Destiny def. Manabu Nakanishi and Yuji Nagata. GoD then bowed out of respect to Nagata.
Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHI def. Togi Makabe and David Finlay
Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Satoshi Kojima, and Juice Robinson def. Bad Luck Fale, Yujiro Takahashi, and Chase Owens. Robinson is really getting a good rub as a top babyface amongst the 2nd tier.
Taguchi Japan (Coach Ryusuke Taguchi and The King of Flight Ricochet) def. The Young Bucks (Nick and Matt Jackson) to win the IWGP Jr. Tag Team Championships
In between, KATSUYORI SHIBATA returned to greet the crowd and remind them that "I'm Alive. That is all." (Admittedly I cried out of pure happiness along with that crowd)
War Machine (Warbeard Hanson and Raymond Rowe) def. The American Nightmare Cody (Rhodes.) and Hangman (Adam) Page to retain the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Championships. Post-Match, Suzuki-Gun's Killer Elite Squad (Davey Boy Smith Jr. and Lance Archer) returned to take out both teams and announce their desire for the Tag Titles.
Suzuki Gun (Zack Sabre Jr., Takashi Iizuka, and NEVER Openweight Champion Minoru Suzuki) def. Kota Ibushi, Michael Elgin, and IWGP Intercontinental Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi. Sabre has Tanahashi's number.
Los Ingobernables de Japon (Hiromu Takahashi w/Darryl!, and the NEVER Openweight 6-man Tag Team Champions EVIL, BUSHI, and SANADA) def. CHAOS (IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Toru Yano, and Gedo)
Finally, Tetsuya Naito def. Kenny Omega in a fantastic and highly dangerous match to win the G1 Climax for the 2nd time.
Tranquillo 焦んなよ
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