The Top Five G1 Climax 29 Matches (So Far)

Brian Fritz

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The Top Five G1 Climax 29 Matches (So Far) image

We’re quickly approaching the halfway point of the annual G1 Climax 29 presented by New Japan Pro Wrestling. The annual tournament is a showcase for some of the best matches of the year and this one has lived up to the hype with some incredible action.

As usual, the action has lived up to the hype so far with the first seven nights delivering some incredible wrestling matches.

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Some background on the G1 Climax: the tournament features 20 heavyweights which are split into two blocks of 10 competitors. Two points are given for a victory, one point for a draw, and zero points for a loss. At the end of the round-robin portion of the tournament, the top point scorers in each block with square off in the finals.

The winner of that match will earn the right to challenge for the IWGP heavyweight championship on Jan. 4, 2020 at Wrestle Kingdom 14 inside the Tokyo Dome. If current champion Kazuchika Okada wins the tournament, he will choose his Wrestle Kingdom opponent.

While there is still plenty of the tournament yet to come, it has already featured some awesome matches. Here’s a look at the top five matches of the G1 Climax 29.
 

5. KENTA vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (Night 3)

One of the biggest stories of the tournament is proving that this is KENTA, the Japanese superstar and not the Hideo Itami that struggled in NXT the past few years.

Both of them looked like they approached this match with something to prove. There was KENTA connecting again and again with his signature kicks as if he was trying too smash a hole in the “Ace” with Tanahashi selling the damage but keep coming back.

When Tanahashi put together some offense including a High Fly Flow, it looked like it was game over but instead, KENTA blocked a second HFF and finished off the Japanese legend with a penalty kick and the Go 2 Sleep.

 

4. EVIL vs. Kota Ibushi (Night 3)

Sometimes wrestling just needs to make sense. And it made sense that EVIL would focus on Ibushi’s bad ankle that he hurt on the opening night of the tournament. The match was all about EVIL looking to take advantage of the injury, looking to destroy that ankle while Ibushi had to find a way to win without his usual mobility.

When Ibushi connected with a flurry of slaps and punches, EVIL countered with a vicious kick to the bad ankle that put Ibushi on the mat and crushing his hopes in the process.

Ibushi put together one last effort down the stretch including several Bome Ye knee strikes but EVIL was too strong as he connected with Everything is EVIL to score the win. A simple yet very effective story.
 

3. Will Ospreay vs. Kota Ibushi (Night 5)

The talk heading into this match was how far these daredevils would venture into the danger zone in what they would do. Neither are afraid of taking risks — huge, scary risks — at the expense of putting on a memorable performance.

Instead, they focused on telling a story with each going into the match banged up with Ospreay dealing with a bad neck and Ibushi still suffering from an ankle injury. There were still some risky spots but because there were fewer, it made them feel more important with each that connected.

Both of them came out unscathed while putting on an innovative display of athleticism and violence in what turned out to be their latest gem.


2. Jon Moxley vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Night 6)

These two took the fight to one another the second the bell rung and it was all action from there. As expected between these two, this turned into a brawl that went into the crowd. While they were outside the ring for a long time but Kevin Kelly correctly said on the broadcast the crowd would have “tarred and feathered” the referee if he had counted them out.

As wild as this got, maybe the craziest thing of the tournament so far was seeing Ishii — a grounded, no-nonsense, true-blooded fighter — jumping off the top rope and connecting with a splash that sent Moxley through a table outside the ring.

Neither came out as the loser in this hard-hitting battle even though Moxley scored the two points in the win. The former Dean Ambrose has dialed it up since leaving WWE and this is the wild and dangerous Jon Moxley who is firmly putting his stamp on this tournament.
 

1. Will Ospreay vs. Kazuchika Okada (Night 7)

This isn’t just the match of the tournament so far but may end up being the best match of the year. Both Ospreay and Okada are on the top of their game as they told a wonderful story going back and forth, countering each other at every turn. Ospreay pulled out everything in his arsenal as he tried to make history and become the first IWGP junior heavyweight champion to defeat the heavyweight champion.  

The Korakuen Hall crowd was all-in, especially down the stretch as they traded near falls. Ospreay looked to secure the win with the Stormbreaker but Okada escaped and connected with two thunderous Rainmaker clotheslines to earn the win.

 

Brian Fritz

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Brian Fritz is a contributor with The Sporting News covering the NBA and NFL who previously worked at BasketballNews. He is a 20-year veteran of sports talk radio in Orlando, Florida, after graduating from the University of Central Florida. He now resides in Durham, North Carolina.