A look at how to watch New Japan Pro Wrestling’s G1 Glimax 25 Finals and who will be fighting
New Japan Pro Wrestling’s (NJPW) G1 Climax is one of the most unique contests in the world of professional wrestling. While even NJPW’s biggest annual event in Wrestle Kingdom is staged just like any other promotion’s special event, the G1 Climax stands nearly unopposed in its format.
With the sprawl of 19 separate events over the course of a month to go with an unparalleled round robin tournament, and the tournament winner going on to challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom, the G1 is any die-hard wrestling fan’s dream. After 18 days of multi-man tag matches, 90 tournament matches, and real drama throughout, it’s time for the G1 Climax 25 Finals on Sunday.
Before diving in, it’s worth noting that the G1 winner must defend his spot as the challenger for the title at Wrestle Kingdom at least once before getting to NJPW’s biggest event of the year. In this way, it certainly differs from the King of the Ring/Royal Rumble equivalent in WWE. Now on to the action in the G1.
The event is predictably headlined by the tournament final featuring the finalist from Block A, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and the finalist from Block B, Shinsuke Nakamura. Both Tanahashi and Nakamura won their respective blocks with seven wins and two losses throughout the tournament. Tanahashi advanced with a win over AJ Styles on Day 17 of the G1 while Nakamura defeated current IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada on Day 18 to advance to the Finals.
However, this won’t be a one-match card on Sunday. Instead there will be two title defenses, including the Young Bucks in a tag team affair, as well as a multi-man tag team match on the card. While Tanahashi vs. Nakamura is going to be the main event, there’s entertainment in every spot on the admittedly small card.
Here’s the full match card for the G1 Climax 25 Finals:
G1 Finals Match:
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match:
KUSHIDA (c) vs. Ricochet
IWGP Junior Tag Team Championship Match:
Young Bucks (c) (Matt and Nick Jackson) vs. reDRagon (Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly)
BUSHI’s Return Match:
Tiger Mask IV, Yohei Komatsu and Sho Tanaka vs. Ryusuke Taguchi, BUSHI and Mascara Dorada
And here is how and when to watch the event on Sunday:
Date: August 16
Start Time: 2 AM ET (3PM JST)
Location: Tokyo, Japan
Arena: Ryogoku Kokugikan (Ryoguku Sumo Hall)
Live Stream: NJPW World