NJPW G1 Climax 29
Night 7 – A Block
#g129
Event Date: July 20, 2019 (18:30 JST)
aired live on NJPW World
City: Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan
Venue: Korakuen Hall
Attendance: 1,722
Series: G1 Climax 29
Commentary (English): Kevin Kelly, Rocky Romero, Chris Charlton
Commentary (Japanese): Shigeki Kiyono, Milano Collection AT, YOSHI-HASHI (7 – 9)
Ring Announcer: Kimihiko Ozaki (1 – 4), Makoto Abe (5 – 9)
Video
The wrestlers in A Block of the G1 Climax tournament are briefly profiled.
Match 1
Shota Umino & Jon Moxley (IWGP US Champ) vs Yota Tsuji & Juice Robinson
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Shota Umino submits Yota Tsuji with a Boston crab
Time: 3:56
Match Thoughts
Pretty good match. This was more about the anger and aggression between Moxley and Robinson than it was a wrestling match. Moxley and Robinson started the match by brawling. After a minute or so each of their partners made a blind tag, but neither Moxley nor Robinson would stop fighting. They continued brawling all the way to the backstage area and left Umino and Tsuji to finish the match (although Moxley did return right before the end of the match).
Ring Area
After the match, Juice Robinson returns to the ring and attacks Jon Moxley. Both men have to be pulled apart by the young lions at ringside.
Match 2
Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Minoru Suzuki & Taichi vs Yuya Uemura & Toru Yano & Hirooki Goto
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Yoshinoby Kanemaru pins Yuya Uemura after Deep Impact
Time: 8:52
Match Thoughts
Good match. This was a preview for Taichi versus Goto, and for that it was fine but Uemura was the person who really stood out tonight. Uemura got beat up by Minoru Suzuki in a brawl early in the match, but Uemura would go after Suzuki multiple times later in the match. Uemura looked good (probably the best on his team tonight), and he finished the match against Kanemaru. Taichi looked good in this match as well, but Goto got beat up and frustrated throughout the match.
Match 3
Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi & Jay White w/ Gedo vs Toa Henare & Tomoaki Honma & Jeff Cobb
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Chase Owens pins Toa Henare after a package piledriver
Time: 9:50
Match Thoughts
This was fun. The match started with Honma getting beat up by all three members of Bullet Club. Then Cobb and White had a decent preview of their upcoming match, though Cobb had trouble getting a hold of White. Then Owens and Henare finished the match against each other. I think Cobb stood out the most here. When he finally got his hands on someone in this match, he made it count.
Match 4
BUSHI & Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito (IWGP IC Champ) vs Ren Narita & YOSHI-HASHI & Tomohiro Ishii (NEVER Openweight Champ)
(referee: Marty Asami)
Result: BUSHI pins Ren Narita after MX
Time: 7:33
Match Thoughts
Good match. This preview was for Naito versus Ishii, and if this match is any indication, Naito’s plan is to get Ishii ans angry and frustrated as possible. Naito and Ishii came together in the ring once during this match, but Naito seemed to be antagonizing Ishii the entire time. Everyone else in the match looked good, but Naito and Ishii were absolutely the focus.
Ring Area
After the match, Naito and Ishii are face to face at ringside. Ishii walks into Naito, pushing Naito backwards, then Ishii starts chopping Naito in the chest. Naito doesn’t react to the chops, but he is eventually forced back and over the barricade. Naito gets back up and stares at Ishii, and Ishii has to be held back by the ring crew.
Match 5
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
Bad Luck Fale (1-2-0: 2) w/ Jado, Chase Owens vs Zack Sabre Jr. (0-3-0: 0) (RPW British Cruiserweight Champ)
(referee: Marty Asami)
Result: Zack Sabre Jr. wins via count out
Time: 6:30
Match Thoughts
This was fun. It was kind of short, but it showed how smart and adaptable Sabre is. Sabre immediately started going for hold after hold on Fale, but after a while Fale used Jado and Owens to help him get Sabre off of him. Fale took the fight to the floor, but Sabre was able to adapt and make the best of a tough situation for the rest of the match.
Match 6
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
Lance Archer (2-1-0: 4) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi (1-2-0: 2)
(referee: Marty Asami)
Result: Hiroshi Tanahashi wins via pinfall with a victory roll
Time: 11:58
Match Thoughts
Good match. Tanahashi tried to chop down Archer early by going after his legs before the opening bell. Tanahashi did a pretty good job, but when the fight spilled to the floor, Archer Started using his dangerous combination of power and rare agility to dominate a significant portion of the match. Tanahashi did what he could to survive and find moments to try some offense throughout the rest of the match. This was fun, and it was neat to once again hear the crowd get behind Archer (although they were about 50/50 for Archer and Tanahashi at best).
Match 7
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
EVIL (2-1-0: 4) vs KENTA (3-0-0: 6)
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: KENTA wins via pinfall after Go 2 Sleep
Time: 15:03
Match Thoughts
Good match. KENTA continued to show no respect to his opponents in the G1, and in a way he was showing no respect to the crowd. The fans in attendance were solidly behind EVIL tonight, and that helped make this exciting as the intensity started to pick up. There was a big fight out in the crowd early in the match that gave KENTA a clear advantage, and KENTA pushed his advantage for a while. EVIL built momentum though, and the final few minutes of the match went back and forth as both men started hitting some heavy shots. I think this was the best match so far tonight.
Match 8
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
SANADA (1-2-0: 2) vs Kota Ibushi (1-2-0: 2)
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: Kota Ibushi wins via pinfall after the Kamigoye
Time: 19:14
Match Thoughts
Great match. Both men went from technical exchanges to bursts of quick offense to strong style strike exchanges seamlessly throughout the entire match. Ibushi’s ankle was questionable at the beginning of the match, and SANADA wisely went for Ibushi’s leg pretty early. Ibushi always pushes through though, and though SANADA’s attacks slowed Ibushi down at times, once the adrenaline got going, Ibushi met SANADA at full speed. This was a ton of fun, and I hope they have many more matches against each other in the future.
Match 9
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
Will Ospreay (1-2-0: 2) (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champ) vs Kazuchika Okada (3-0-0: 6) (IWGP Heavyweight Champ)
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: Kazuchika Okada wins via pinfall after the Rainmaker
Time: 21:56
Match Thoughts
Great match! Ospreay’s neck was still in bad shape, and Okada wasn’t shy about going after Ospreay’s neck, but that didn’t seem to matter as much late in the match as Ospreay threw everything he had at the IWGP Heavyweight Champ. This was a match with a great build from a tentative start to a series of counters and moves that had both men poised to win at any moment. This was easily the best match of the night.
Show Impressions
This was a really good night. Every match got progressively better, and the night ended in a spectacular fashion. The front-runners in A Block have pulled ahead to the point where it’s going to be difficult for anyone to overtake them, but there’s still some space if there are some huge shifts in momentum from multiple people.
Match of the Night
Will Ospreay vs Kazuchika Okada
The Ibushi versus SANADA match was great too, but the main event probably got me more excited to see a pinfall. I went into the match not really having a favorite to win, but by the end of the match I was fully behind Ospreay.
Standings After Night 7
Block A
| Wrestler | Points | Wins | Losses | Draws |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kazuchika Okada (IWGP Heavyweight Champ) | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| KENTA | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| EVIL | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Hiroshi Tanahashi | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Kota Ibushi | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Lance Archer | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Will Ospreay (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champ) | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| SANADA | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Zack Sabre Jr. (RPW British Heavyweight Champ) | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Bad Luck Fale | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
Block B
| Wrestler | Points | Wins | Losses | Draws |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Moxley (IWGP US Champ) | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Tomohiro Ishii (NEVER Openweight Champ) | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Juice Robinson | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Shingo Takagi | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Toru Yano (NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag Champ) | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Taichi | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Tetsuya Naito (IWGP IC Champ) | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Hirooki Goto | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Jeff Cobb | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Jay White | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
Official Results (Japanese): https://www.njpw.co.jp/tornament/192650?showResult=1