NJPW G1 Climax 25 Night Three Review
Location: Kyoto City, Japan inside the Kyoto City Budokan Center
After two nights that were total opposites when it comes to the presentation and crowd interaction, we get sort of the best of both worlds for night three. The multi-camera setup returns, but the commentators are still nowhere to be found. Presumably due to this being run on a TV station in Japan, but still it is funny how each night has felt different so far.
Night One featured to killer main events and a fun undercard, while Night Two’s undercard was lackluster, but delivered much better quality in the G1 matches. We are back to focusing on the A Block for night three and hopefully we receive as good an all-around show as the first.
Match 1: 8-Man Tag Team Match: Yohei Komatsu, Tiger Mask IV, Jushin “Thunder” Liger, & Satoshi Kojima vs. Jay White, David Finlay Jr., (CMLL World Welterweight Champion) Mascara Dorada, & Michael Elgin
Winners: Yohei Komatsu, Tiger Mask IV, Jushin Liger, & Satoshi Kojima (After Kojima Hit a Lariat on Finlay Jr.)
This was a lot of fun and probably the best opener we’ve seen out of the first three nights. Dorada looked good once again, although he didn’t get much of his trademark offense in here. His one highlight was a sweet looking Monkey Flip on Komatsu. The star of this match was clearly Michael Elgin. He was given every opportunity to shine here and he embraced it to the fullest. Elgin didn’t have the greatest interactions with his next opponent in the G1, Satoshi Kojima, but he did get to Double Suplex Liger and Tiger in a cool spot. He caught Komatsu’s crossbody and turned it into a Stalling Suplex and was able to do a Flying Codebreaker as well. Elgin was also involved in the finish when he accidentally gave Finlay Jr a Lariat, Kojima gives Elgin a second cutter, and then a Lariat to Finlay to end it. Everyone got to have a little moment in the match and the crowd was really hot for this as well. The reaction Liger received when he was tagged in was really loud and the crowd is reacting to Elgin very nicely. His match with Kojima tomorrow should be quite the slugfest. ***
Match 2: Tag Team Match: Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI (CHAOS) vs. Yujiro Takahashi & Cody Hall (Bullet Club)
Winners: Tomohiro Ishii & YOSHI-HASHI (After YOSHI-HASHI hits a Swanton Bomb off the top rope to pin Cody Hall)
This was better than I expected going in, but it was certainly a cool down to the fun from the first match. Yujiro continues to get little reaction when he’s on offense, but that’s ok because the crowd adored Ishii here. Cody Hall got a majority of the offense for the heel team and he continues to impress in this tournament. Ishii got a big Powerslam and his seated lariat allowed YOSHI-HASHI to get one of his own and went directly into the finish from there. Cody Hall isn’t quite there yet, but he improves with every match in which he participates. Let’s hope we get Ishii squashing Yujiro tomorrow and we don’t get the prolonged borefest we did with Yujiro against Goto. ** ¼ *
Match 3: Tag Team Match: (IWGP Tag Team Champion) Karl Anderson & Tama Tonga (Bullet Club) vs. Captain New Japan & (IWGP Intercontinental Champion) Hirooki Goto
Winners: Karl Anderson & Tama Tonga (After Anderson hit CNJ with a Gun Stun)
It is still really weird seeing Goto paired up with Captain NJ in these matches. This sort of went like the other tag match. CNJ did some comedy stuff with Tama Tonga to the delight of the crowd. Anderson and Tonga combine to make CNJ miss his diving headbutt and do some nice double team stuff like Tonga holding CNJ up for Anderson to kick him in the head. Goto did the hot tag portion, but didn’t really interact a whole lot with Anderson, especially since they are facing off in a G1 match tomorrow. Either way, this wasn’t really much of anything and I had already forgot about it once it was over. **
Match 4: 6-Man Tag Team Match: Yuji Nagata, Ryusuke Taguchi, & Tomoaki Honma vs. Gedo, (IWGP Heavyweight Champion) Kazuchika Okada & Shinsuke Nakamura (All CHAOS)
Winners: Yuji Nagata, Ryusuke Taguchi, & Tomoaki Honma (After Honma hit a top rope Kokeshi on Gedo)
This was perhaps the best undercard match of the whole tournament up to this point. It all really started with Taguchi wearing this Nakamura mask during the entrances and Nakamura goes straight over to Taguchi and kicks him for the blasphemy. The crowd was insane for Honma, especially his interactions with Okada, since those two will be facing each other in a G1 match tomorrow. They had a nice finisher counter at the beginning, which was a nice treat. Gedo and Taguchi provided the comedy, complete with Gedo yelling the “F” word after getting a hard Arm Wrench from Taguchi. The best part was a Double Kokeshi attempt by Taguchi and Honma, where they both missed and I couldn’t help but bust out laughing. Some other highlights include: Okada and Nakamura doing a double team Big Boot to Taguchi, Taguchi countering the Boma-Ye with an Ass Attack, which also leads to Nagata’s first entry into the match too. Nagata and Nakamura had some good interactions with a feeling of legit heat spurning from that match at New Beginning in Sendai. Nagata putting the Armbar on Okada drew a huge reaction and was a nice moment. Honma did get to hit a Kokeshi and Deadlift Suplex on Okada as well. The finish was a bit of a surprise, but the crowd popped huge for the top rope Kokeshi and win for Honma. This was a really fun match with the right mix of G1 build-up, comedy, cool moments, and wacky stuff too. *** ½ *
Before we get to the G1 matches, this would be a good time for a reminder of the participants in each block…
A Block Participants: AJ Styles (2nd consecutive appearance), Bad Luck Fale (2nd consecutive appearance), Doc Gallows (IWGP Tag Team Champion, 2nd consecutive appearance) (All Bullet Club) Kota Ibushi (2015 New Japan Cup Winner, 2nd appearance), Toru Yano (CHAOS, 10th appearance), Togi Makabe (G1 Winner in 2009, NEVER Openweight Champion, GBH, 12th consecutive appearance), Hiroyoshi Tenzan (G1 Winner in 2003, 2004, & 2006, NWA World Champion, 20th appearance), Hiroshi Tanahashi (G1 Winner in 2007, 14th consecutive appearance), Katsuyori Shibata (3rd consecutive appearance), Tetsuya Naito (G1 Winner in 2013, 6th consecutive appearance, Los Ingobernables)
B Block Participants: Kazuchika Okada (Defending G1 Champion, also won in 2012, IWGP Heavyweight Champion, CHAOS, 4th consecutive appearance), Shinsuke Nakamura (G1 Winner in 2011, CHAOS, 12th appearance), Tomohiro Ishii (CHAOS, 3rd consecutive appearance), Karl Anderson (IWGP Tag Team Champion, Bullet Club, 6th consecutive appearance), Yujiro Takahashi (Bullet Club, 6th consecutive appearance), Tomoaki Honma (GBH, 2nd consecutive appearance), Michael Elgin (ROH, first appearance), Satoshi Kojima (G1 Winner in 2010, 14th appearance), Yuji Nagata (G1 Winner in 2001, 17th consecutive appearance), Hirooki Goto (G1 Winner in 2008, IWGP Intercontinental Champion, 8th consecutive appearance)
G1 Climax Matches All Block A
Match 5: Kota Ibushi vs. (IWGP Tag Team Champion) Doc Gallows (Bullet Club)
Winner: Kota Ibushi (After Rolling Up Gallows for the Pin)
Gallows pretty much just beat up Ibushi for a lot of the match. Ibushi did get to his pick his spots here and there to retaliate with a big Pele kick out of the corner and he also hit the Springboard Moonsault to the outside on Gallows too. Gallows had his own near falls with a one-man Magic Killer and a Jackhammer too. The finish was a bit awkward because it looked like Ibushi slipped when trying to do the Reverse rana, but they recovered and Ibushi rolled up Gallows to get some points. This might have been the best Gallows has looked in a long while and Ibushi did a good job of selling the damage too. Overall, nothing spectacular, but it was still a good encounter. ***
Match 6: Togi Makabe (NEVER Openweight Champion) vs. Bad Luck Fale (Bullet Club)
Winner: Bad Luck Fale (After Bad Luck Fall)
This was pretty slow and plodding for the most part, but it wasn’t bad. Just wasn’t too great either. They went all the way into the crowd and brawled, Fale’s big move was a nerve hold after this and I think I might have even dozed off during this. The crowd got into it when Makabe started no selling some elbows and punches, they go to the corner for the Makabe 10 punches and a Death Valley Driver. Fale got to counter the Knee Drop, Makabe also countered the Spike, but it led to Fale gaining the upper hand and eventually hit the Bad Luck Fall for the surprise win on Makabe. ** ¼ *
Match 7: AJ Styles (Bullet Club) vs. Toru Yano (CHAOS)
Winner: AJ Styles (After making Yano TAP OUT to the Calf Killer)
This is a match that can be used against the Yano haters, because with the right opponent and especially one that is hated like AJ, his routine works. AJ has wrestled Yano before and knows his antics and it showed here. Yano did so much stuff in this and some of it worked and some of it didn’t. At one point they are both on the outside and AJ goes for a flying forearm off the barricade, but what he gets in return is a chair to the face. The crowd chanted for Yano several times and was very into the match as well, which really helps you stay invested in what they are doing. They also used some history between the Bullet Club and referee Red Shoes here, as later in the match AJ gets furious and yells “I’m going to kill you” and then proceeds to grab the chair. Red Shoes rips it away and AJ wonders why Yano can use it, but not him? AJ kind of has a bone to pick there. Yano of course picked a time to do his Yano pose and AJ responded with a Springboard Forearm to back of the head as a retaliation. Yano used a turnbuckle pad to whack AJ in the head, well AJ Suplexed Yano into that exposed turnbuckle. This was just so well worked and AJ did great to sell how frustrated and angry he was at all of the things going against him in the match. Once AJ was able to start working on Yano’s leg, I think we knew where this was headed, but they still had a few tricks up their sleeve. AJ blocking Yano’s low blow was genius and the finish with AJ countering a small package into the Calf Killer was great. This was one of those matches that I think many kind of had low expectations for and it totally over-delivered in the end. I dare Yano haters to watch this and tell me later they didn’t enjoy it. *** ½ *
Match 8: Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tetsuya Naito
Winner: Katsuyori Shibata (After hitting the Penalty Kick)
Terrific stuff here, as Shibata starts things out rough with another running Knee to knock Naito off the apron while he is taking off his jacket. Shibata is definitely not here to let Naito play around. Naito responds by wrapping Shibata’s leg around the barricade and then doing an Apron dropkick to it, which the sound of it was horrific and sounded very loud. Naito kept working on the leg even doing a return Figure four that Shibata had applied earlier. The best thing about Naito in this match is that before Shibata could get really going with anything, he would stop him before he could get a lot of momentum. The crowd here at least fully bought into Naito’s heel stuff as he got booed from the word go and they were fully behind Shibata as well. I don’t think I’ve seen too many people ever counter Naito’s swing corner dropkick, but Shibata was able to do it impressively with a Double Stomp. Shibata hit his Basement Dropkick here too. Shibata also removed his bandage in this match and the crowd went nuts for it. The closing stretch involved slaps from both men, Shibata putting in the Sleeper to a huge reaction and then scoring with the Penalty Kick for the win. These two worked wonderfully together and I think this is something you should go back and watch. This is where I think where Naito as a heel has been cemented. ****
Match 9: MAIN EVENT: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. (NWA World Champion) Hiroyoshi Tenzan
Winner: Hiroshi Tanahashi (After hitting the High Fly Flow)
These two are coming off of really opposite feelings after night one. Tanahashi had what is still the best match of the tournament so far with Kota Ibushi and Tenzan might have had one of the worst with Doc Gallows. Things would change here, as the hometown boy Tenzan was huge with the crowd in Kyoto, to the point where Tanahashi seemed rather bothered that Tenzan was getting more chants than him. That’s totally fine because subtle heel Tanahashi is great Tanahashi. Tenzan hits Mongolians and a Death Valley Driver early on, but Tana would gain advantage by hitting a Guillotine while on the apron and then turning a Sleeper into a Dragon Sleeper, which looked pretty cool. Tenzan would hit a Rolling Kick and a Suplex, but then miss the Headbutt. He smartly got his knees up on Tanahashi’s High Fly Flow and it was on after that. The crowd got really amped for Tenzan putting Tanahashi in the Anaconda Vise, which he locks in for a long while. He turns it into the Anaconda Buster for a near fall that the crowd bit on pretty well. This match wouldn’t last much longer as Tana won with the Sling Blade and the HFF. This is one of those situations where a crowd really helped make a match bigger than it would have been otherwise. They were hot and wanting to cheer on their guy Tenzan. Tenzan brought it and Tanahashi did what was needed to make the match work. Once again proving why he is the Ace of New Japan. He got to do some air guitar with the crowd after the match as well. *** ¾*
FINAL RATING: 9.0 This has to be the best night of the tournament so far. You have two very good main events and a third from AJ and Yano that over delivered considering it was a Yano match. Ibushi got a lot more out of Doc Gallows in their match as well. Then we have the highlight of the undercard as well with the six man that saw Honma get a big win and a lot of fun stuff in it throughout. Throw in there a fun opener and you have the makings of a really fun show that was also easy to watch. Go back and watch the last three matches for sure. If you have time I recommend that undercard six man as well, especially if you love Honma. Night four is going to have to do a lot to top this.
