NJPW G1 Climax 29
Night 13 – A Block
#g129
Event Date: August 3, 2019 (17:00 JST)
aired live on NJPW World
City: Naniwa, Osaka, Osaka, Japan
Venue: Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium (EDION Arena Osaka)
Attendance: 5,555
Series: G1 Climax 29
Commentary (English): Kevin Kelly, Rocky Romero, Chris Charlton
Commentary (Japanese): Haruo Murata, Milano Collection AT, Jushin Thunder Liger (5 – 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
Ren Narita & Yota Tsuji vs Toa Henare & Juice Robinson
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Toa Henare pins Yota Tsuji after the Toa Bottom
Time: 6:18
Match Thoughts
This was a good opener. The young lions looked good, particularly Narita. Narita took a beating, but he also fought off both Juice and Henare at one point late in the match. Tsuji and Henare finished the match against each other, but the best stuff was between Narita and Juice.
Match 2
Tomoaki Honma & Jeff Cobb & Toru Yano (NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag Champ) vs YOSHI-HASHI & Hirooki Goto & Tomohiro Ishii (NEVER Openweight Champ)
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: YOSHI-HASHI submits Tomoaki Honma with a butterfly lock
Time: 5:50
Match Thoughts
This was fun, though it felt short even for a tag preview match. Before the bell, Yano tried to switch teams so he could be with his Chaos stablemates. That didn’t work, so Yano tried cheating. That didn’t work well either, so he tagged out. Cobb and Goto gave a nice preview for their match, then YOSHI-HASHI finished the match against Honma. There wasn’t a lot to the match, but it was a decent preview for tomorrow’s B Block matches.
Match 3
Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Minoru Suzuki & Taichi vs BUSHI & Shingo Takagi & Tetsuya Naito (IWGP IC Champ)
(referee: Kenta Sato)
Result: Shingo Takagi pins Yoshinobu Kanemaru after Made in Japan
Time: 7:28
Match Thoughts
Good match. Suzuki Gun started with a brawl and dominated the first half of the match, but LIJ came back with some good individual efforts in the ring. Naito mostly battled Taichi, Shingo mostly battled Kanemaru, and BUSHI did a good job of keeping Suzuki out of the way as the match neared its finish. This was fun.
Match 4
Chase Owens & Jay White w/ Gedo vs Shota Umino & Jon Moxley (IWGP US Champ)
(referee: Marty Asami)
Result: Jay White pins Shota Umino after Blade Runner
Time: 5:55
Match Thoughts
Good match. White and Owens had a good plan to get under Moxley’s skin tonight. White and Owens completely isolated Umino for the entire match, and White antagonized Moxley to the point where Moxley was more concerned with getting his hands on White than with helping Umino or winning the match. Umino put up a good fight towards the end, but White was able to distract Umino while still keeping Moxley out of the way. Bullet Club was working as a fantastic team tonight.
Match 5
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
Bad Luck Fale (1-5-0: 2) w/ Jado vs KENTA (4-2-0: 8)
(referee: Marty Asami; guest commentary: Chase Owens)
Result: Bad Luck Fale wins via pinfall with a schoolboy
Time: 7:20
Match Thoughts
Pretty good match. Fale dominated a large portion of the match, and that made it a good Fale match rather than an average KENTA match. The match wasn’t really tense as much as it was frustrating. It was frustrating because Fale cheated a bunch, so the match made me feel exactly what it was supposed to. The match was also fairly shocking in the context of the tournament.
Match 6
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
Lance Archer (2-4-0: 4) vs Zack Sabre Jr. (2-4-0: 4) (RPW British Heavyweight Champ)
(referee: Marty Asami)
Result: Zack Sabre Jr. wins via pinfall with a modified crucifix pin
Time: 10:43
Match Thoughts
Very good match. As expected, this was power versus technique, and it was a lot of fun. Sabre went for hold after hold and counter after counter. Archer was able to defend himself early with his power and some technique of his own, but as the match went on Sabre seemed to put Archer into more and more dangerous positions. Just as often though, Archer would just overpower Sabre. Archer punished Sabre, so Sabre had to look for any way out as the match neared its end.
Match 7
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
EVIL (3-3-0: 6) vs Will Ospreay (2-4-0: 4) (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champ)
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: EVIL wins via pinfall after Everything is EVIL
Time: 17:08
Match Thoughts
Great match! It seemed like EVIL would have been fine to methodically wear Ospreay down with his power, but he couldn’t contain Ospreay’s quick and explosive offense throughout the match. EVIL did a good job of keeping up with Ospreay though, and that led to some fast and exciting sequences all the way through. The build up in this match was great, and by the final few minutes both men were hitting big moves and getting near falls. This was easily the most exciting match of the night so far, and it will be tough to beat.
Match 8
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
Kota Ibushi (4-2-0: 8) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi (4-2-0: 8)
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: Kota Ibushi wins via pinfall after Kmigoye
Time: 15:53
Match Thoughts
Fantastic match! There was a lot on the line in this match, and there was a ton of emotion involved. These two men faced in the finals of the G1 last year, and Tanahashi was the victor then. Plus, Ibushi looks up to Tanahashi as a role model. There was clearly mutual respect in this match. Despite their respect for each other, or maybe because of it, both men gave everything they had. Tanahashi went for Ibushi’s ankle early, but Ibushi fought back with speed, strikes, and powerful moves. This was a battle to keep hope alive in the tournament, but I think this match might be looked back on as a huge point in both men’s careers.
Match 9
G1 Climax 29 A Block Match
SANADA (2-4-0: 4) vs Kazuchika Okada (6-0-0: 12) (IWGP Heavyweight Champ)
(referee: Red Shoes Unno)
Result: SANADA wins via pinfall after a diving moonsault
Time: 29:47
Match Thoughts
Great match! Okada was supremely confident going into this match, but SANADA was staying calm despite never having beaten Okada one on one. Okada steadily gained control of the match in a entertaining back and forth, but when SANADA turned on the speed, he took control away from the champ. The last few minutes of the match were incredibly tense, and as much as I like both guys, I started pulling for SANADA more and more. This was a lot of fun and very satisfying.
Show Impressions
This was a great night. The final four match were all great, and they all felt important for different reasons.
Match of the Night
Kota Ibushi vs Hiroshi Tanahashi
I think the final three matches of the night were all competing for my favorite, but my initial reaction is that Ibushi versus Tanahashi was the best overall. I loved everything about that match from bell to bell.
Standings After Night 13
Block A
| Wrestler | Points | Wins | Losses | Draws |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kazuchika Okada (IWGP Heavyweight Champ) | 12 | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| Kota Ibushi | 10 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| EVIL | 8 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| KENTA | 8 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| Hiroshi Tanahashi * | 8 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| SANADA * | 6 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| Zack Sabre Jr. * (RPW British Heavyweight Champ) | 6 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
| Bad Luck Fale * | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| Lance Archer * | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| Will Ospreay * (IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champ) | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
* = eliminated
Block B
| Wrestler | Points | Wins | Losses | Draws |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Moxley (IWGP US Champ) | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Hirooki Goto | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Jay White | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Jeff Cobb | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Juice Robinson | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Tetsuya Naito (IWGP IC Champ) | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Tomohiro Ishii (NEVER Openweight Champ) | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Toru Yano (NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag Champ) | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Taichi | 4 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| Shingo Takagi | 4 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
Official Results (Japanese): https://www.njpw.co.jp/tornament/192656?showResult=1