NJPW Climax 29 Night 11: Tanahashi and EVIL in A Block main event as G1 inches towards the finals

Night 11 of the NJPW G1 Climax 29 tournament was at the Takamatsu City Gymnasium in Kagawa prefecture this Tuesday and featured the next round of A-Block matches, featuring Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. EVIL in the main event.

YOSHI-HASHI, Hirooki Goto & Yota Tsuji defeated Tomohiro Ishii, Tomoaki Honma & Yuya Uemura by submission

The lighting setup looked great on Tuesday, crystal clear electric blue on the hard cam. Goto and Ishii kicked things off ahead of their match on Night 12 in Fukuoka and beat the crap out of each other. Young Lions Yota Tsuji and Yuya Uemura were in next. I hope these two get some sort of blow-off match at one of the G1 Sumo Hall shows in a few weeks — they’re always awesome together. YOSHI-HASHI tapped Uemura later with a butterfly lock. Ishii and Goto had a stare-down afterwards.

Toru Yano and Ren Narita defeated Jon Moxley and Shota Umino

Moxley was interested in buying one of Toru Yano’s DVDs but Yano insisted he pay 5,000円. The crowd started chanting “5,000” in English. Moxley’s protege, Shota Umino, went to the floor and told the ring announcer to give him money for the DVD. Umino recounted the money and passed it off to Yano who, in disbelief, went through with the transaction.

Once he turned his back, Moxley went for a school boy and bills were flying in the air. Yano went to pull the corner pad from the ring post so Moxley grabbed a chair, and when the ref pulled the chair from Mox, Yano schoolboy’d him for another near-fall. Moxley looked to be having a lot of fun for real here. Am I really looking forward to a Yano vs. Moxley match this week?

Umino and Narita were in together and looked good. Narita hit a big front suplex. Later, Mox was caught in the corner with the referee and Yano saw the opportunity to land a low bow and roll Umino up for the win. This was fun and painless. Yano ran away waving the ring announcer’s money and disappeared into the back.

Jay White, Yujiro Takahashi & Chase Owens defeated Taichi, Minoru Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru

Both teams tried ambushing each other before the bell and the gang fight went to the floor in seconds. Taichi and Jay White brawled deep into the crowd. It was all a real mess until they did the now-overused 19-count spot; this variation included all six wrestlers in the match. It was too choreographed for my taste.

White and Taichi tried to out-alpha each other and went tit-for-tat over the first bit of the match in the ring. Taichi whipped his pants off early, revealing his short trunks, the visual cue letting us know that now is when Taichi is getting serious. They continued exchanging moves until Taichi landed a gamengiri high kick.

Owens had nice exchanges with both Suzuki and Kanemaru. He scored the pin for his team after a package piledriver in this quick tease of a match. Taichi and White will face off on Wednesday in B Block action.

Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi & BUSHI defeated Juice Robinson, Jeff Cobb & Toa Henare

Takagi and Cobb teased their match scheduled for Night 12 in Fukuoka, as did Juice and Naito. There wasn’t much to this, but it wasn’t bad. It was a sampler platter match, a commercial for tomorrow, essentially.

Henare gave Takagi a deadlift suplex. I’ve noticed recent crowds have been more into him recently. BUSHI did a tope suicida in his sky-blue mask. Takagi used a reverse Gory bomb and then a hard Pumping Bomber to take Henare out for the three-count while Naito tried snapping Robinson’s hand from his wrist outside the ring. Robinson went after Naito when the two were broken up by security and laid in some fists. Naito got up and mocked Juice. They mirrored each other’s taunts.

A Block: Kota Ibushi (6) defeated Bad Luck Fale (w/ Jado and Chase Owens) (2)

Not even Ibushi could do it. “It” being have a great match with Fale. The style he wrestles makes sense in a live setting and for booking purposes, but it’s just not that exciting to watch more than a few times. It gets old fast.

Fale decked Ibushi before the bell and the crowd booed. Fale tried setting up a barricade for Ibushi outside the ring in the aisle after he’d beaten on him a bit in an attempt at nabbing a count-out victory. Ibushi made it back to the ring at 18. They literally just did this spot two matches earlier.

Fale worked over Ibushi’s back. He put him in a camel clutch. He’d walk around and stare at the crowd and lay in a forearm every now and then as people screamed Ibushi’s name. Fale locked in a bear hug for a long time. When Ibushi tried making a comeback, Owens got involved and Fale took Ibushi down with an avalanche in the corner and then a splash.

People started chanting for Ibushi more loudly just before Fale went to finish him with the Bad Luck Fall. Ibushi escaped and got Fale in a standing crucifix. Jado got on the apron but Ibushi took him out. Ibushi was able to hit a huge Boma-ye with an exposed knee and then a Kamigoe to score the win.

Zack Sabre Jr. (4) def. Will Ospreay (4)

Sabre recently cut the promo of 2019 on the U.K.’s new prime minister. The story is that Sabre is blaming Boris Johnson for his poor G1 performance and that he’s going to unleash his socialist rage on everyone else in the tournament this year so they can suffer like he now suffers. Ospreay was to be the first to feel the brunt of this.

ZSJ face-mashed Ospreay before the bell. The opening few minutes of this was all that is great about modern pro wrestling: subtle, crisp and logical mat work with a strong connection to both what’s current in wrestling but also in the ever-changing combat sports world. They look like they’re simulating an actual fight; you’re never rolling your eyes, you just want to keep watching to see what happens next in these exchanges.

Sabre went to collect himself on the floor for a few moments after kicking the guardrail. In the ring, he tightened his technique and locked on submissions with more conviction, the strikes laid in a bit heavier.

Sabre continued to bully Ospreay into the corner with kicks and uppercuts. He added a running commentary to much of his attack. He ripped the athletic tape from Ospreay’s neck and shoulder area and tried wearing him down with a straightjacket submission. Somehow, Ospreay rolled his way out of the straightjacket and was able to bounce off the ropes with a tumbling roundhouse kick.

Ospreay returned the attack with a space flying tiger drop to the floor, and back in the ring landed a few of his signature spots, like Pip Pip, Cheerio and the Robinson Special kick. Sabre then shifted momentum with a swinging DDT and later some very, very hard penalty kicks to Ospreay’s chest. Ospreay ate three and stood up on the fourth.

From here the match went into a sprint and they were exchanging holds and moves and running the ropes at light-speed. Sabre caught Ospreay in a neck crank when he went for the Os-Cutter. Will landed a big one of those moments later and scored a close fall. Ospreay later missed the Hidden Blade elbow.

The two slowed things down and sold for a minute so as the crowd caught its breath. When both were back up the crowd didn’t react until Ospreay started scoring more offense. He landed a Cheeky Nandos kick and a reverse Bloody Sunday off the second rope on Sabre, leaving Zack in position for a shooting star press. Sabre caught Ospreay in a triangle choke on the way down and this led to a close call until Ospreay lifted Sabre with his trapped arm and Liger Bomb’d him.

Ospreay hit a third hook kick and went for the Stormbreaker but ZSJ blocked it and locked in the manjigatame octopus hold for the relatively quick tap. Zack wins in the name of England. What an awesome match that was.

A Block: Kazuchika Okada (12) vs. Lance Archer (4)

Archer attacked some ring security before the match. He did the same to Okada, too, attacking the IWGP Heavyweight champion before he could even take his ring gear off. Archer did a running somersault senton, not unlike the one Jushin Liger often does, and then walked over to a Young Lion standing ringside and punched him in the face. I love the new Lance Archer. He also terrorized a poor kid in the front row until Red Shoes came to the floor and stood in front of the family. He whipped Okada into the guardrails a few times. He dominated the entirety of the opening part of this.

In the ring, Archer mocked Okada and did his own Rainmaker pose. He then walked the ropes and then did a moonsault onto Okada in the ring. I LOVE the new Lancer Archer.

Okada finally found a way back into the match and rallied against the giant Mad Max II henchman. He shook the guardrail and screamed “TAKAMATSU!” into the crowd. He later landed a flying elbow drop, a clean hit for a two-count. Archer locked in the EBD Claw but Okada walked to the ropes and got a rope break. He murdered Okada with a pounce and, later, wrestling’s highest chokeslam. He landed Blackout for two.

Underdog Okada countered seemingly everything the monster Archer threw at him. They built the match to make you feel that there could have been no way that Okada could beat Archer, but you still knew he was going to win in the end. Once Okada laid in a Rainmaker it was over, and Archer was out on his back for the three count. Very good match. And I love the new Lance Archer.

A Block: SANADA (4) def. KENTA (8)

Based how the Takamatsu crowd reacted to him, it sounded like no way SANADA was going to lose this one.

There was a loud “SA-NA-DA” call at the top of the match. KENTA tried soaking in some applause but got more boos than anything. He pointed to the corner and implied SANADA test the crowd again, and this is where he found his opening to attack.

They moved the match to the floor and it was mostly KENTA kicking SANADA and throwing him around ringside. Back in the ring, KENTA continued the methodical pace and locked in a headlock for a bit. He’d transition from submissions and then to his feet where he’d punish SANADA with kicks to his back and chest, and that was his strategy here.

When SANADA came back and used a pescado to the floor, the crowd erupted in support of him. Tons of chants. This crowd was ready to will SANADA to the win in Takamatsu.

KENTA was back in the match within minutes. He crushed SANADA’s guts with a diving double foot stomp. KENTA put him into Game Over but he was able to manage a rope break. Later, SANADA used a TKO for two.

SANADA went to land his Muto Moonsault but KENTA put his knees up. The two went back at it trading elbows. KENTA really dominated most of this up until SANADA was finally able to stick the moonsault landing and pick up the surprise win. It’s a surprise because SANADA hasn’t won a match since the first show in Dallas and he’s still one of the most over guys in the company this summer.

As far as quality, the ending was a nice surprise, but much of this was just all right. Not as contested or interesting as one might think it’d be on paper.

A Block: Hiroshi Tanahashi (8) def. EVIL (6)

This was pure mid-tempo hard-hitting pro wrestling. Not much flash or pizazz until midway through when they fought to the floor and EVIL grabbed a chair and hit home run across Tanahashi’s face, another chair draped over Tana’s head.

Back in the ring EVIL worked over Tanahashi’s knee as the crowd stomped in support of the Ace. He slapped on a Figure Four for a while and whenever Tana would fight back EVIL would move right back to Tanahashi’s knee.

Tanahashi finally made a more serious comeback when he snapped EVIL over with a dragon screw leg whip. Tanahashi had trouble skinning the cat and EVIL took advantage, knocking him over. Tanahashi then hit a mildly-botched sling blade for two.

Moments later, EVIL was on the floor and Tanahashi used a High Fly Attack from the top to the floor and with perfect extension, as per usual. That’s something I’m always impressed by: the consistency in it.

EVIL used Young Lion Yota Tsuji to do an assisted Magic Killer on Tanahashi to the floor. They teased another 20-count and both rolled in at 19. That’s three times in one show.

Tanahashi dropkicked EVIL in the knee, then used another dragon screw in an attempt to soften EVIL up for the coming Texas Cloverleaf. Later, EVIL used a high-impact top-rope superplex but only for two. Tanahashi’s selling was pretty intense at this point in the match, looking pretty broken.

EVIL went for Everything is Evil but Tanahashi countered with three Twist and Shout neck breakers and then a better-looking sling blade for redemption early on. He took his time climbing to the top rope to hit the High Fly Flow, but EVIL got his knees up and it was timed perfectly. Later, EVIL wrecked Tana with a running lariat and flattened him. He knocked Tanahashi back to his knees after a hard head-butt and he looked more dominant than ever in the match.

Tanahashi returned big with a Dragon Suplex with a bridge for a close two. The crowd was peaking and it was sharp; you could hear the screams bouncing off the ceiling of the Gymnasium. He finally landed the High Fly Attack and next a huge High Fly Flow across the ring to score the comeback win.

This was another really smart match from Tanahashi. EVIL looked excellent in this as well. Tanahashi has crawled back into second place of the A Block, now tied with KENTA. Tanahashi thanked the ecstatic crowd for their support after the match and treated them to some hot air guitar licks before the show wrapped. He went around the ring and high-fived every fan that wanted one, hugged everyone who insisted on one and wiped his sweat on at least 50 towels and wore a handful of hats. Tana-mania in Takamatsu. Amazing, always.

We’ll be back with more NJPW G1 Climax 29 coverage from Fukuoka, Japan.

Current G1 Standings

A Block

Kazuchika Okada 12

KENTA 8

Hiroshi Tanahashi 8

EVIL 6

Kota Ibushi 6

Lance Archer 4

Will Ospreay 4

Zack Sabre Jr. 4

SANADA 4

Bad Luck Fale 2

B Block

Jon Moxley 10

Juice Robinson 6

Tomohiro Ishii 6

Shingo Takagi 4

Toru Yano 4

Taichi 4

Tetsuya Naito 4

Hirooki Goto 4

Jeff Cobb 4

Jay White 2