After an incredible start to the tournament in Osaka we move way up to Sapporo on Japan’s northern most big island of Hokkaido. There’s 5 guys who have momentum to carry on and 5 others who have yet to begin their momentum. Night 3 is a story of ongoing rivalries and inter stable wars. We could be looking at night 3 as been the big turning point of A Block action…
Yuya Uemura v Gabriel Kidd
With a win over Yota Tsuji on night 1 Uemura has the advantage in the Young Lions unofficial C Block. Gabe Kidd really needs a win here though having lost to Tsuji on night 2. All three Young Lions in this unofficial competition keep impressing. This will be a fun and energetic opener, Kidd really could use a win though.
Jeff Cobb (0pts) v Shingo Takagi (0pts)
Two guys who came up short on opening night so will be desperately wanting a win. These guys have a similar path in the sense this is both their second G1 Climax having debuted last year. When these 2 met last summer it was Cobb who picked up the win. Not only are their G1 journeys similar they have also only held one NJPW singles title before and that was the NEVER Openweight Championship which says a lot about the style of match we will see Wednesday. The NEVER division has evolved into a heavy hitting, gut check of a division and I suspect we’ll get a match of that vein here. Shingo probably has the brightest future here so my money is on the Dragon here.
Kazuchika Okada (0pts) v Yujiro Takahashi (0pts)
A rivalry of sorts rekindled here for the second round of A Block action. Okada and Takahashi have been going at it for months but, truth be told, Okada has dominated Yujiro in this Chaos v Bullet Club match. Not much of a surprise really as we are talking the face of the company who held the IWGP Heavyweight Championship for 2 years not long ago taking on Bullet Club’s resident pinfall eater. Even teaming with Gedo and Jado in a 3 on 1 encounter Yujiro still couldn’t beat the Rainmaker. Yujiro also suffered a straight forward defeat against Will Ospreay on opening night as well. So, Okada should win easily then? Well… this is the G1. G1 matches sometimes exist in a bubble where anything can happen. Also, Okada hasn’t been on the best run of form himself either. Outside dominating Yujiro he got beaten by Toru Yano in his own KOPW2020 tournament, suffered two straight inter-Chaos defeats for the NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag Team Championships and lost to Kota Ibushi on night 1. With Gedo’s revenge still in full effect I have a sneaky feeling this could be the Tokyo Pimp’s night and the Rainmaker might be 0-2 when all is said and done.
Minoru Suzuki (2pts) v Taichi (2pts)
Not only have we got 2 winners from night 1 facing off, we have the dictator of Suzuki-gun facing off against one of his most long term and loyal followers. Taichi has been in Suzuki-gun since the beginning when he and Taka Michinoku betrayed Satoshi Kojima to destroy Kojima-gun and reform under the maniacal Minoru Suzuki. He stuck by Suzuki even during exile to Pro Wrestling NOAH. But Taichi seems to be getting bigger ideas now. He got in the face of Minoru Suzuki at a recent New Japan Road event. Is this just the pressure of the G1 Climax or is Taichi thinking Suzuki-gun needs a rebranding? Taichi-gun perhaps? Is Suzuki’s army ready to disintegrate?
Also remember that Minoru Suzuki is the current NEVER Openweight Champion which of course means that a Taichi win would out Taichi in line for a title shot which could really tear Suzuki-gun apart. This is one of the most intriguing matches of the tournament. Maybe it’s time for The Holy Emperor to go over The King of Wrestling…
Tomohiro Ishii (0pts) v Will Ospreay (2pts)
It’s an all Chaos battle in our semi main event. Unlike the all Suzuki-gun battle this has a less personal feel. Chaos have had a number of inter-stable battles over the summer whether it be for the NEVER Openweight 6 Man Tag Team Championship or KOPW2020 but things always seem okay after the match. I have a feeling this maybe a little different however. Will Ospreay’s promo after his win over Yujiro Takahashi had a touch of that arrogance that he showed when he turned heel briefly against Hiromu Takahashi at the beginning of the year. Given the real life controversy surrounding Ospreay could we see NJPW try to turn shoot heat into worked heat? I’m not 100% sure as it doesn’t seem to be a major story in Japan. However, the controversies surrounding Ospreay have seen him blackout on social media so who knows.
What is clear for this match though is this will be a heavyhitter. Both have NEVER Openweight Championship history and Ospreay has upped his striking game over the last 18 months. The Stone Pitbull though is the heaviest of hitters. I expect to see Ishii take the 2 points here and get his first win. Could we see Ospreay bend a few rules though?
Kota Ibushi (2pts) v Jay White (2pts)
Kota Ibushi has his second major Wrestle Kingdom rematch of the tournament. On the second night of Wrestle Kingdom 14 the Golden Star fell to Jay White. It was a disappointing couple of nights at Tokyo Dome for Ibushi. Head back a few months before that and the disappointment was that of King Switch when in last year’s G1 Climax final we saw Ibushi defeat the leader of Bullet Club. So, there’s plenty of story behind these 2.
Regardless of the back story here, these two have great chemistry. With a win each there’s leeway for both guys. Jay White has the chance to really build momentum in particular. Last year Jay White started 0-3 and still won his block. Many people have the Switchblade picked out as a winner for the whole thing and I can’t argue. I certainly can’t bet again him tonight either.
