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NJPW G1 CLIMAX 29: NIGHT 8 REPORT
JULY 24, 2019
HIROSHIMA SUN PLAZA HALL
HIROSHIMA, JAPAN
AIRED LIVE ON NJPW WORLD
G1 CLIMAX 29: NIGHT 8 VIEWING GUIDE
(7) Jon Moxley vs. Shingo Takagi. (****)
(9) Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishiii. (****¼)
Note: This section will provide my spoiler free recommended matches to watch from each night of the tournament if you’re pressed for time and only want to see the essentials. The matches worth seeing will start at ***¾ or higher.
Commentary: Kevin Kelly and Rocky Romero.
UNDERCARD RESULTS
(1) Bullet Club (Chase Owens & Yujiro Takahashi & Bad Luck Fale) beat Yuya Uemura & Will Ospreay & Tomoaki Honma in 9:30.
(2) Suzuki-Gun (Minoru Suzuki & Lance Archer & Zack Sabre Jr.) beat L.I.J. (BUSHI & SANADA & EVIL) in 8:00.
(3) Shota Umino & Hiroshi Tanahashi beat Ren Narita & Kota Ibushi in 8:00.
(4) Toa Henare & YOSHI-HASHI & Kazuchika Okada beat Karl Fredericks & Clark Connors & KENTA in 9:00.
B BLOCK RESULTS & ANALYSIS
(5) JUICE ROBINSON (4) vs. TORU YANO (4) IN A G1 CLIMAX 29 B BLOCK MATCH
Yano offered a handshake and Robison didn’t accept at first, but Yano convinced him to and he rolled him up for a near fall. Robinson went for the Left Hand of God, but Yano blocked it with the turnbuckle pad. He tossed the pad at Robinson and rolled him up for a near fall. He ended up tossing Robinson through the exposed corner and he went shoulder-first into the ringpost. Yano whipped Robinson into the guardrail and tried to tie him to the guartdrailrail with tape and Robinson stopped him. They were trying to get back into the ring to beat the count, but Yano tripped him Robinson into the apron and he nearly got counted out. Robinson told the ref to check Yano and sure enough the ref found another roll of tape in his tights. He told the ref to check Robinson and when he did he rolled him up for a near fall. Yano baited Robinson into charging at him in the corner where the pad had been removed and he got out of the way and Robinson went into the exposed turnbuckle and he rolled him up for a nearfall. Yano kept going for low blows, but Robinson avoided them. He then hit the Left Hand of God and Pulp Friction for the win.
WINNER: Juice Robinson (6 pts) in 4:30. (**)
(Radican’s Analysis: Another character building match for Robinson, who avoided Yano’s traps and got the win.)
Taichi attacked young Lion Karl Fredericks, who was wearing an LA Dojo shirt before his match against Goto. Goto got into the ring and went right on the attack.
(6) TAICHI (W/MIHO ABE) (2) vs. HIROOKI GOTO (2) IN A G1 CLIMAX B BLOCK MATCH
Goto went on the attack and hit several forearms on Taichi against the ropes. Abe distracted Goto and Taichi went back after Fredericks on the floor. He ended up throwing Fredericks into Goto to get the upper hand. Goto tried to counter Taichi and hit the Ushigoroshi, but he raked his eyes. Taichi bounced off the ropes and Goto wiped him out with a lariat. They traded strikes until Taichi leveled Goto with a jumping kick to Goto’s head. Goto finally countered a kick attempt from Taichi and hit the Ushigoroshi and both men were down. They went to a big exchange and Goto used a headbutt to block a jumping kick from Taichi. That was different. Goto then hit a reverse GTR for a two count. They went back and forth and Taichi pulled the ref into Goto’s path and he ran him over coming off the rope. Taichi then hit a Saito suplex and both men were down. Taichi went to the corner and got his mic stand. Taichi tried to hit Goto with it, but he blocked it and eventually hit a headbutt.
Goto got the mic stand and tossed it to the floor. He then nailed Taichi with the mid kick. He had the GTR, but the ref ran right into Taichi’s grasp. He shoved the ref away and hit a low blow on Goto and he pinned him with the Gedo clutch.
WINNER: Taichi (4 pts) in 12:00. (*½)
(Radican’s Analysis: This was pretty poorly executed in terms of the obvious ref bumps. It really dragged before they went to the finish. Goto’s tournament now appears to be over.)
Jon Moxley came out through the crowd with Shota Umino carrying the IWGP U.S. Championship. He went head to head with Shingo and they began trading blows.
(7) SHINGO TAKAGI (4) vs. IWGP U.S. CHAMPION JON MOXLEY (6) IN A G1 CLIMAX 29 B BLOCK MATCH
Both men took turns hitting each other in the corner. Moxley fired back and took Shingo down with a shoulder tackle before clotheslining him over the top to the floor. Moxley went for a dive, but Shingo caught him and hit a DVD on the floor. Moxley set up a table on the floor and set up for a powerbomb on the apron, but Shingo got Moxley up on his shoulders. Moxley got out of it and Shingo’s leg got trapped in the ropes. Moxley then nailed Shingo’s trapped leg with a running dropkick. Moxley continued to work over Shingo’s leg, but Shingo mounted a comeback and hit a pair of big clotheslines in opposite corners. Shingo hit a big suplex, but sold his leg after. Moxley blocked a sliding lariat attempt from Shingo. They went back and forth and Moxley caught Shingo with a dropkick to the knee. He then slammed Shingo’s knee around the ringpost several times. Moxley then applied the figure 4 around the ringpost and Shingo screamed in pain.
Shingo fired back and hit a German, but MOxley got up and hit one of his own. Shingo got up and they began hitting clotheslines at the same time until Shingo wiped out Moxley with a western lariat. Moxley tried to bite Shingo, but he nailed him with a punch. Moxley fired back with a dragon screw, but Shigno caught him with an inside cradle when he went for a figure 4 for a near fall. Moxley went for the Cloverleaf, but Shingo fought out of it. Moxley eventually hit a clothesline for a two count. Moxley continued to go after Shingo’s knee and when he tried to whip him across the ring, Shingo’s leg gave out. Shingo blocked the Regal Knee and hit Noshigami. Shingo then hit a big running lariat. Shingo followed up with the Pumping Bomber for a near fall right before the 10 minute mark. Shingo went for Last of the Dragon, but his knee gave out. Moxley hit a short Death Rider and Shingo managed to kick out at two. They went to the floor and Moxley dropped Shingo knee first through the table set up on the outside. Moxley put a chair around Shingo’s ankle and slammed it with another chair. Kelly said the referees have given Moxley a lot of leeway throughout the tournament.
Shingo struggled to beat the 20 count and as soon as he got in at 19 Moxley hit the Regal Knee. He went for a Death Rider, but Shingo blocked it. Shingo blocked another knee attempt and turned it into Made in Japan for a near fall! They went back and forth trading counters of their finishers, but Moxley hit a kick to the knee and hit a big Regal Knee to the back of Shigno’s head. He hit another Regal Knee to the front of Shingo’s head for a near fall. He then applied the Cloverleaf and Shingo tapped.
WINNER: Jon Moxley (8 pts) in 15:00. (****)
(Radican’s Analysis: Moxley went after Shingo’s leg for the duration and although there were some brawling spots, Moxley proved he could win at the technical game. This was Shingo’s first submission lost in NJPW. Moxley has Naito up next.)
The announcers talked about Jay White not having a win in G1 yet. White came down to the ring and signaled six to the audience with his fingers as a way of saying he’s going to win the rest of his matches in G1.
(8) JAY WHITE (W/GEDO) (0) vs. JEFF COBB (2) IN A G1 CLIMAX B BLOCK MATCH
White went right to the floor after the opening bell. Cobb ended up taking down White with a nice dropkick. He then threw White across the ring and he rolled to the floor. Cobb went after White on the floor. Cobb went after Gedo on the floor and tossed him into the ring, but that allowed White to wipe him out from behind. White hit a hangman’s neckbreaker off the apron to the floor a short time later and the fans booed. White was upset the ref wasn’t starting the 20 count, so he went back to the floor and whipped Cobb into the guardrail. White went after Cobb’s neck back inside the ring. Cobb caught White coming off the ropes and lifted him up into a Samoan drop. He went kip up, but White pulled him down to the mat by the hair. White dragged Cobb back to the mat by the hair once again a short time later, which drew some boos from the crowd. Cobb caught White and launched him with an overhead belly to belly. He followed up with a huge backdrop a short time later and then a gutwrench suplex. Cobb popped White right into the vertical suplex position and dropped him down to the mat. He followed up with a standing moonsault for a two count.
Cobb set up for Tour of the Islands, but Cobb grabbed the ropes and snapped Cobb’s neck over the top rope when he went to grab him on the apron. White went for a gutwrench GErman, but he couldn’t lift Cobb up. He caught Cobb with a Flatliner and went for the gutwrench suplex again. Cobb tried to elbow out of it, so White turned it into a Saito suplex. White then hit a big uranagi suplex for a two count. The announcers did a great job of describing how White manipulated Cobb into firing the elbow so he could hit the Saito suplex. White went for the Kiwi Crusher, but he couldn’t get Cobb up. White raked Cobb’s eyes to escape a suplex, but Cobb grabbed him while still blinded and hit a fallaway slam. Cobb lifted White by his feet out of the corner and nailed him with a big swinging suplex. They battled up top, but Gedo held on to White’s leg so that CObb couldn’t suplex him. Cobb then grabbed White off the apron and hit a deadlift superplex that drew a big reaction from the crowd. Cobb rolled over, but White kicked out at the last second by lifting his shoulder up slightly. Cobb went for Tour of the Islands, but White hit several elbow strikes. Cobb went for Tour of the Islands, but White blocked it. He got a cobra clutch variation, but when Cobb shrugged him off he sent him right into the ref. Did we really need another poorly setup ref bump on this show.
Gedo got into the ring with the brass knux and he took a swing on Cobb, but he blocked it and hit a big slam. White went for the Blade Runner and Cobb went for Tour of the Islands with a counter. White escaped and hit a low blow at the 15 minute mark. White lifted Cobb for a Blade Runner, but he countered it into a snap German. Cobb nearly had Tour of the Islands, but his neck seemed to go out and White slipped out of it and hit Blade Runner and it was good for the win.
WINNER: Jay White (2 pts) in 16:00. (***½)
(Radican’s Analysis: This match really dragged at the start, but they turned it around and told a good story. Cobb looked really good here despite taking the loss. I really didn’t enjoy NJPW doing another ref bump on the same show that was so poorly executed.)
Tetsuya Naito came out first for the main event to a big pop.
(9) IWGP IC CHAMPION TETSUYA NAITO (2) vs. NEVER OPENWEIGHT CHAMPION TOMOHIRO ISHII (4) IN A G1 CLIMAX 29 B BLOCK MATCH
This is pretty much a must win for Naito, who only has two points right now and a loss would drop him to 1-3. The opening bell rang and the fans fired up and chanted for Naito. Naito jumped Ishii. They eventually traded bombs in the middle of the ring and the fans fired up. They continued to go back and forth until Naito hit his signature hip toss/dropkick combination. Naito teased a dive, but ended up hitting his pose instead. Natio began to target Ishii’s neck. Ishii fired back and caught Naito with a powerslam. Naito fired back a short time later and hit a one legged dropkick to conclude an exchange off the ropes. The pace picked up and Naito set up for his corner dropkick and connected. The fans fired up as Naito hit his pose. Naito spit in Ishii’s face, which he paid for with a big forearm that dropped him. Ishii hit his signature chop/forearm combination strikes. Naito kept going down, so Ishii would picked him up and repeated the sequence two more times. He hit a big Saito suplex a short time later for a two count. Ishii went for a powerbomb, but Naito countered it into a rana. They went back and forth trading counters. They traded big moves and Naito hit a satellite DDT and Ishii sold his neck.
Naito went up top just past the 10 minute mark, but Ishii cut him off. Naito tried to fight out of a superplex. He got the upper hand and lifted Ishii out for a high angle neck breaker. He put Ishii up top and hit a super hurricanrana for a near fall. Ishii tried to fire back, but Naito caught him with a flying forearm. He then hit Gloria for a two count. Naito went for Destino, but Ishii blocked it. Ishii missed a clothesline and ate a big German. Ishii got up right away, but Naito ducked his charge and hit a poison hurricanrana. Naito charged at Ishii for Destion, but he wiped him out with a hard lariat. The fans fired up and chanted for Naito with both men down. Naito sent Ishii into the corner with an enzuguri. Ishii placed Naito up top and nailed him with a headbutt to the chin. Ishii followed up with a delayed superplex for a near fall and the fans fired up. WOW! The 15 minute mark passed and Ishii set up for a clothesline, but Naito blocked it. Naito hit a slap and Ishii hit a headbutt. He then bounced off the ropes and hit a big clothesline for a near fall. Ishii went for the Vertical Drop Brainbuster, but Naito got out of it. Naito hit an enzuguri and Destino, but Ishii kicked out at the last second!
Ishii blocked Destino and they went into the corner. Ishii tried to turn it into a Vertical Drop Brainbuster, but Naito turned it into a DDT. Ishii got right up and hit a sliding clothesline for a nearfall. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! Naito blocked another Vertical Drop Brainbuster attempt from Ishii. Naito hit a Michinoku Driver for a near fall and the fans fired up with both men down. Naito signaled for the end and hit another Destino and it was good for the win.
WINNER: Tetsuya Naito (4 pts) in 19:00. (****¼)
(Radican’s Analysis: This was a great match. Naito badly needed the win with only one win under his belt coming into the match and he got it. The match dragged in spots, but it was excellent down the stretch, as Naito worked on Naito’s neck throughout the match and it paid off in the end. It was fun to listen to the crowd rally behind Naito, as he’s very over in Hiroshima.)
Naito cut a promo after the match in the Japanese that the fans responded well to. The announcers did not offer any translation. The fans responded well to Naito’s promo. He then did his signature L.I.J. sign off to end the show. The fans fired up and chanted Naito’s name over and over. Romero and Kelly said his momemtum was building, but the big test was coming Sunday when he faces Moxley.
Overall thoughts: The show got off to a bit of a rough start by G1 standards, but rounded out nicely with the last three matches of block action.
Moxley is having a great tournament and is putting on some really good matches. He showed on this show that he can alter his style and not just brawl. Moxley went after Shingo’s leg and tapped him out with a Cloverleaf, which was a shock given that Moxley hasn’t been known as much of a submission wrestler.
The big story of the night was Jay White getting his first win. White promised to run the table after going 0-3 to start the tournament and he had a good match against Cobb. Cobb is starting to look comfortable in the tournament and he came across really well in this match despite taking the loss.
Naito really needed a win to stay in the mix for the finals and he got it. He had a great match with Ishii and the fans provided a great atmosphere supporting him from start to finish. Naito worked over Ishii’s neck the entire match and came through big time in the end pinning Ishii with Destino after it seemed like Ishii wasn’t going to stay down for any move on this night.
Ishii is so much fun to watch in G1. He’s so damn believable in the ring that watching him you get sucked in and think he can beat anyone and win the tournament. I’d really love NJPW to surprise everyone and have Ishii win G1 one year. It would make for a great moment.
It’s worth going out of your way to see Moxley vs. Takagi and Ishii vs. Natio. The rest of the matches are skippable, but Cobb vs. White was good and worth checking out if you have time.
UPDATED G1 CLIMAX 29 STANDINGS THROUGH NIGHT 8
A BLOCK
KENTA 4-0 (8 pts)
Kazuchika Okada 4-0 (8 pts)
Lance Archer 2-2 (4 pts)
EVIL 2-2 (4 pts)
Kota Ibushi 2-2 (4 pts)
Hiroshi Tanahshi 2-2 (4 pts)
Will Ospreay 1-3 (2 pts)
SANADA 1-3 (2 pts)
Bad Luck Fale 1-3 (2 pts)
Zack Sabre Jr. 1-3 (2 pts)
B BLOCK
Jon Moxley 4-0 (8 pts)
Juice Robinson 3-1 (6 pts)
Tomohiro Ishii 2-2 (4 pts)
Toru Yano 2-2 (4 pts)
Taichi 2-2 (4 pts)
Shingo Takagi 2-2 (4 pts)
Tetsuya Naito 2-2 (4 pts)
Jeff Cobb 1-3 (2 pts)
Hirooki Goto 1-3 (2 pts)
Jay White 1-3 (2 pts)
Email Sean at radicansean@pwtorch.com. Follow him on twitter at twitter.com/sr_torch.
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