Jul 5, 2019 22:37:14 GMT Lionheart said:

The only tournament I've watched all of is BOSJ 2010 and I loved almost every single match. Only a couple weren't worth watching. I feel that it adds a lot to the feeling and getting into the tournament if you are watching the entirety of it and I don't think fatigue needs to come into play because you can pace yourself on the matches as much as you want.

Fatigue is definitely a factor. Watching every tournament match is a minimum two hour commitment per night. Try watching wrestling for two plus hours every night and see how it goes, while working a full time job. I get wrestling fatigue sitting through a single PPV these days.

Jul 5, 2019 22:37:14 GMT Lionheart said:

With the awesome roster on this year's G1, I am planning to watch every match on it as well.

I wish you the best of luck.

Jul 5, 2019 22:40:10 GMT Lionheart said:

I still feel like this is a made-up complaint that doesn't really make any sense. Working TOO hard to make a good match? Not feeling the moment? Taking every opportunity to make a match as good as it can be is feeling the moment in my book. Screw those lazy folks who half-ass their matches. You probably just had to invent some reason in your mind to resolve your internal paradox of Ziggler == GoodWrestler && Ziggler != Like. You probably just don't like how his face looks or something.

God forbid I don't think Dolph Ziggler is a good wrestler.

Get hyped.

So who is going to wat h every mat h to let me know what Two matches I should watch every night?

Jul 5, 2019 23:28:18 GMT Emperor said:

Jul 5, 2019 22:37:14 GMT Lionheart said:

The only tournament I've watched all of is BOSJ 2010 and I loved almost every single match. Only a couple weren't worth watching. I feel that it adds a lot to the feeling and getting into the tournament if you are watching the entirety of it and I don't think fatigue needs to come into play because you can pace yourself on the matches as much as you want.

Fatigue is definitely a factor. Watching every tournament match is a minimum two hour commitment per night. Try watching wrestling for two plus hours every night and see how it goes, while working a full time job. I get wrestling fatigue sitting through a single PPV these days.

That's kind of the point I was trying to make. You don't have to watch two hours every night. Watch two hours every week. Nothing is forcing you to watch it all at once.

Jul 5, 2019 23:28:18 GMT Emperor said:

Jul 5, 2019 22:37:14 GMT Lionheart said:

With the awesome roster on this year's G1, I am planning to watch every match on it as well.

I wish you the best of luck.

I don't think any luck is required. You just need hustle, loyalty, and respect.

Jul 5, 2019 23:28:18 GMT Emperor said:

Jul 5, 2019 22:40:10 GMT Lionheart said:

I still feel like this is a made-up complaint that doesn't really make any sense. Working TOO hard to make a good match? Not feeling the moment? Taking every opportunity to make a match as good as it can be is feeling the moment in my book. Screw those lazy folks who half-ass their matches. You probably just had to invent some reason in your mind to resolve your internal paradox of Ziggler == GoodWrestler && Ziggler != Like. You probably just don't like how his face looks or something.

God forbid I don't think Dolph Ziggler is a good wrestler.

U mad, bruh?

Jul 5, 2019 23:31:05 GMT nazzer said:

So who is going to wat h every mat h to let me know what Two matches I should watch every night?

I’ve told myself that I will watch every match this year because I owe it to myself and NJPW for putting together such a stacked tournament but I already know I’m lying to you andmyself and everyone else.

But like...there’s so many matches I want to see I might as well try to watch the whole thing. So I’m giving it my all next week. I’m fucking working out of town anyway I can just sit in my hotel and download matches all week. I think I’ll come pretty close.

I will watch them all first. You’re going down, rt.

Jul 6, 2019 2:21:53 GMT RT said:

Jul 5, 2019 23:31:05 GMT nazzer said:

So who is going to wat h every mat h to let me know what Two matches I should watch every night?

I’ve told myself that I will watch every match this year because I owe it to myself and NJPW for putting together such a stacked tournament but I already know I’m lying to you andmyself and everyone else.

But like...there’s so many matches I want to see I might as well try to watch the whole thing. So I’m giving it my all next week. I’m fucking working out of town anyway I can just sit in my hotel and download matches all week. I think I’ll come pretty close.

Download? You do know of the watch wrestling website don't you?

For the people mentioning downloading, you know about NJPW World right? It's a high quality streaming service, and it's very cheap. Cheaper than the WWE Network I believe.

Jul 6, 2019 0:02:37 GMT Lionheart said:

You don't have to watch two hours every night. Watch two hours every week. Nothing is forcing you to watch it all at once.

I'm not sure you realise the scope of this tournament. Two blocks, each a 10 man round robin. If my just-got-out-of-bed maths is correct, that's 45 matches in a single block. 90 matches for two blocks. And 1 more match - the final. So yes, your approach is possible. But then you fall so far behind that it defeats the purpose. It'd be Wrestle Kingdom (January) by the time you're finished. I suppose you're used to watching shows months after they happen though.

When I'm watching NJPW, I prefer to watch in real time, or as close as possible. It's much more exciting that way, and minimises the risk of seeing a spoiler.

Jul 5, 2019 23:31:05 GMT nazzer said:

So who is going to wat h every mat h to let me know what Two matches I should watch every night?

80% of the matches are going to be amazing, so might as well just watch all of them :coolthumb:

Jul 6, 2019 7:46:25 GMT Emperor said:

Jul 5, 2019 23:31:05 GMT nazzer said:

So who is going to wat h every mat h to let me know what Two matches I should watch every night?

80% of the matches are going to be amazing, so might as well just watch all of them :coolthumb:

Watch ALL of them? Good luck with that. I’m not sure you realize the scope of this tournament.

Touché.

It's not impossible, the time is there. That was never my argument. My point is that watching so much wrestling in such a short span of time dampens the experience. At least for me. I could watch a ***** match and think it's a *** match because of wrestling fatigue. It's happened in previous G1s.

I'm going to have to devise a way of spreading out my watching. If I could watch the G1 on my commute to work, that would make life a lot easier. But internet is unreliable on the train. Will I have to do the dreaded downloading...?

NJPW G1 A Block

Day 1 July 6th
1. Will Ospreay vs. Lance Archer
2. EVIL vs. Bad Luck Fale
3. SANADA vs. Zack Sabre Jr
4. Kota Ibushi vs. KENTA
5. Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

Day 3 July 14th
1. Lance Archer vs. Bad Luck Fale
2. Will Ospreay vs. SANADA
3. Kazuchika Okada vs. Zack Sabre Jr
4. Kota Ibsuhi vs. EVIL
5. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. KENTA

Day 5 July 18th
1. KENTA vs. Lance Archer
2. EVIL vs. SANADA
3. Kazuchika Okada vs. Bad Luck Fale
4. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Zack Sabre Jr
5. Kota Ibushi vs. Will Ospreay

Day 7 July 20th
1. Zack Sabre Jr vs. Bad Luck Fale
2. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Lance Archer
3. KENTA vs. EVIL
4. Kota Ibushi vs. SANADA
5. Kazuchika Okada vs. Will Ospreay

Day 9 July 27th
1. Kota Ibushi vs. Lance Archer
2. Will Ospreay vs. Bad Luck Fale
3. EVIL vs. Zack Sabre Jr
4. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. SANADA
5. Kazuchika Okada vs. KENTA

Day 11 July 30th
1. Kota Ibushi vs. Bad Luck Fale
2. Will Ospreay vs. Zack Sabre Jr
3. Kazuchika Okada vs. Lance Archer
4. KENTA vs. SANADA
5. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. EVIL

Day 13 August 3rd
1. KENTA vs. Bad Luck Fale
2. Zack Sabre Jr vs. Lance Archer
3. Will Ospreay vs. EVIL
4. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kota Ibushi
5. Kazuchika Okada vs. SANADA

Day 15 August 7th
1. SANADA vs. Lance Archer
2. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Bad Luck Fale
3. Will Ospreay vs. KENTA
4. Kota Ibushi vs. Zack Sabre Jr
5. Kazuchika Okada vs. EVIL

Day 17 August 10th
Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Will Ospreay
KENTA vs. Zack Sabre Jr
EVIL vs. Lance Archer
SANADA vs. Bad Luck Fale

NJPW G1 B Block 2019

Day 2 July 13th
1. Juice Robinson vs. Shingo Takagi
2. Jon Moxley vs. Taichi
3. Toru Yano vs. Tetsuya Naito
4. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Jeff Cobb
5. Hirooki Goto vs. Jay White

Day 4 July 15th
1. Toru Yano vs. Shingo Takagi
2. Juice Robinson vs. Hirooki Goto
3. Jeff Cobb vs. Jon Moxley
4. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Jay White
5. Tetsuya Naito vs. Taichi

Day 6 July 19th
1. Shingo Takagi vs. Taichi
2. Juice Robinson vs. Jeff Cobb
3. Toru Yano vs. Jay White
4. Hirooki Goto vs. Tetsuya Naito
5. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Jon Moxley

Day 8 July 24th
1. Juice Robinson vs. Toru Yano
2. Hirooki Goto vs. Taichi
3. Jon Moxley vs. Shingo Takagi
4. Jeff Cobb vs. Jay White
5. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Tetsuya Naito

Day 10 July 28th
1. Hirooki Goto vs. Toru Yano
2. Juice Robinson vs. Tomohiro Ishii
3. Jeff Cobb vs. Taichi
4. Shingo Takagi vs. Jay White
5. Tetsuya Naito vs. Jon Moxley

Day 12 August 1st
1. Jeff Cobb vs. Shingo Takagi
2. Toru Yano vs. Jon Moxley
3. Juice Robinson vs. Tetsuya Naito
4. Taichi vs. Jay White
5. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Hirooki Goto

Day 14 August 4th
1. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Toru Yano
2. Juice Robinson vs. Taichi
3. Hirooki Goto vs. Jeff Cobb
4. Jon Moxley vs. Jay White
5. Tetsuya Naito vs. Shingo Takagi

Day 16 August 8th
1. Toru Yano vs. Taichi
2. Jeff Cobb vs. Tetsuya Naito
3. Hirooki Goto vs. Jon Moxley
4. Juice Robinson vs. Jay White
5. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Shingo Takagi

Day 18 August 11th
Juice Robinson vs. Jon Moxley
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Taichi
Toru Yano vs. Jeff Cobb
Hirooki Goto vs. Shingo Takagi
Tetsuya Naito vs. Jay White

Lionheart, you have a week to digest the first round. That fits with your plans. Then on July 13th it gets a lot more hectic.

I am super hyped for today, especially KENTA vs Ibushi. If KENTA has the renewed passion and fire like Jon Moxley, then it will be an amazing match. But I have to admit, that's no guarantee. Ospreay vs Archer could be an awesome tournament opener.

For any newbies (I don't think we have any?) typically the 4th and 5th match of each show are designed to be show-stealers. On the odd occassion, match 3 is given more time or the other matches disappoint but it gives you an idea of what to expect.

Interesting to note NJPW doesn't give away the match order of the final days. The matches themselves provide some sort of clue of how the tournament is going to pan out, but Gedo has done a pretty good job, particularly with B Block to make things at least a little mysterious.

Jul 6, 2019 16:11:34 GMT Big Pete said:

For any newbies (I don't think we have any?) typically the 4th and 5th match of each show are designed to be show-stealers. On the odd occassion, match 3 is given more time or the other matches disappoint but it gives you an idea of what to expect.

Interesting to note NJPW doesn't give away the match order of the final days. The matches themselves provide some sort of clue of how the tournament is going to pan out, but Gedo has done a pretty good job, particularly with B Block to make things at least a little mysterious.

Yeah I like that the order isn’t given away because like Emperor said, the final days are usually the deciding matches. Without knowing the order there’s at least 2 (maybe 3) matches in each block that could be deciding the finals and make sense.

Man I can’t wait to watch some of these.

Crowd is red hot for Ishii and Cobb. That was fun. Next week’s match should be a good one.

I've been checking out the pre-tournament tags. Ishii/Umino vs Cobb/Narita was definitely the highlight. The other two tags, featuring White/Goto and Naito/Yano, were throwaway matches.

I'm exhausted now so time to fall asleep and watch the G1 Climax in the morning.

Aaaand Gedo says “fuck your predictions” with match #1 hahaha

Is it weird that Tanahashi does nothing for me?

Really liked the Osprey/Lance and the Kenta/Kota matches.

Jul 6, 2019 23:46:55 GMT RT said:

Aaaand Gedo says “fuck your predictions” with match #1 hahaha

Yep. Ospreay was the obvious choice, and I went for him, but I didn't think it was completely unreasonable that Archer would win. When Kevin Kelly said Dallas was Archer's hometown, I began to regret picking Ospreay, but even then it was not at all clear.

EVIL vs Fale was not so great as expected, but it was pretty short and had a different feel from the rest of the matches.

ZSJ vs SANADA was a really fun match. Possibly their best match yet. They have great chemistry, and I loved the finish despite it being a rehash of their finish from the G1 last year. Still caught me by surprise.

KENTA and Ibushi worked a little slower than I expected, they lost the crowd at some point, but in general it was still a smooth, well-paced match. Some of KENTA's offense looks a bit tame by modern standards, but his kicks are still awesome and Ibushi did a great job in putting them over. I didn't think they gelled that well together, there wasn't any real high drama and the finish was a bit flat, but there was nothing particularly wrong with the match either. A decent return from KENTA, but I suspect he needs a bit of warming up to get back to full puro power.

Okada vs Tanahashi - similar to the above. Slower than expected, not so much drama, and it didn't feel quite as epic as any of their previous encounters. Again, not a bad match, but perhaps a little underwhelming.

Pretty good opening night. Nothing particularly memorable, but nothing awful either. If I were to revisit any matches from this show, it would be Ospreay/Archer and ZSJ/SANADA. They stood out more while the two main events had a going-through-the-motions feel.

I think Ospreay/Archer stole the show and that’s a bit annoying considering the same show had KENTA/Ibushi and Okada/Tanahashi on it. Those matches were still great but I expected more and it felt like the crowd did too. They were hotter for Ishii and Cobb than they were for the finishes of the final two matches.

Can’t blame them though. It’s a loooong battle the G1. And KENTA has spent the last 5 years of his life pulling his kicks, getting injured or being sidelined. And he’s what? 40? Still a pretty damn good fight all things considered.

I just realized Ishii vs Moxley happens on my birthday. Happy birthday to me!

That was a very strange show. I really enjoyed the crowd and the atmosphere. I wish they'd spent a bit more money blocking off the empty seats and stuff just to make it all look a little better - but cool to kick things off somewhere else. Would be cool if they did a G1 night in London next year - I think the atmosphere would be amazing. Only really watched three matches properly.

Ospreay/Archer was weird. I just find Archer very hard to buy into as a singles guy. I was just too into TNA to see him as anything other than Lance Hoyt so I can never take him seriously. In a tag team it works ok - but as a singles guy I just don't buy it. So as a result, despite nearly everyone saying it was the match of the night, it felt too much like two guys pretending to be wrestlers to me. I'm sure I'm being very unfair but I just never bought into the drama of it. Even the finish just felt silly, even though it was cool for Ospreay to loose. A story of him doing pretty badly in the G1 will be great to knock his confidence off after having talked such a big game - only for him to rebuild over a year or two before cementing himself as a proper top guy. - ***1/4

ZSJ/Sanada was the highlight for me. I don't think I've ever changed my mind so much on someone as I have on ZSJ. During the CWC I thought he was a total fraud - endlessly boring and overhyped. Now he's probably my favourite wrestler. Everything just feels like he's trying to win a wrestling match - and in an era when they is so rarely the case it's so refreshing and such a change of pace that it's a joy to watch. I imagine I would hate it if every match on the card was like this, but it's such an important palate cleanser and I cannot take my eyes off of it. Really fun match - ****1/4

KENTA vs. Ibushi felt a lot more one sided than I expected but I really enjoyed watching KENTA viciously dismantle someone again. For sure it felt like they were holding back and it was more of a high profile introduction to KENTA than a high stakes dramatic match. Still good, but obviously disappointing considering I had hoped for a MOTYC which is just wasn't. I was never bored but I was never on the edge of my seat. Got my ready for KENTA to take things to the next level. - ***1/2

Roppongi 3K (SHO & YOH) vs. Guerrillas of Destiny (Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa)

Pretty fun match that made it seem like Roppongi actually had a good chance of winning at one point, but they were then quickly crushed. Overall, I felt it made them look a bit worse than I would have liked especially considering they impressed me a lot more than the Guerrillas.

Jeff Cobb & Ren Narita vs. Shota Umino & Tomohiro Ishii

Cobb doesn't look like someone that would be very exciting but he really showed off some good stuff. He reminds me of Kevin Owens since they have similar body types and agile styles. I'm really looking forward to his match with Ishii. Narita also showed off some pretty darn good wrestling skills and I look forward to seeing more of him too. Umino didn't really get much ring time for me to notice him much.

Chaos (Hirooki Goto & YOSHI HASHI) vs. Bullet Club (Chase Owens & Jay White)

Goto is the coolest looking badass motherfucker I have ever seen. Nothing too special happened during this match but it was solid wrestling all around and I hope he shows me more during his match with Jay White.

Juice Robinson, Jushin Liger, & Toru Yano vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon

This match was kind of silly and the only thing that really came from it was that Yano seemed like a pretty interesting wildcard. I wonder how many wins he'll end up stealing with his comical yet well-executed cheatery.

Will Ospreay vs. Lance Archer

What a fantastic match. I think Archer is kind of trying too hard to be The Undertaker and not doing it as well, but it still works well enough. I'd probably like him more if he weren't so ugly. Anyway, I 100% expected Ospreay to win this so that was a nice surprise. They had great chemistry as far as David and Goliath matchups go. Those don't usually work out well and just seem too unreal, but this was played out totally realistically. It had some pretty awesomely fresh stuff too like when Archer just shoved the fuck out of Ospreay with 1 second left on the countout. I thought that was going to be it and then Ospreay was just on the top rope out of nowhere and I was like HOLY SHIT.

EVIL vs. Bad Luck Fale

I was laughing this whole match at how bad...Bad Luck Fale is. More like Bad Luck to have to watch him Fail at wrestling. EVIL didn't show much either but I'm assuming it's just Fale's fault for making him look bad. Why is Fale in this tournament? He seems so out of place compared to everyone else and also has nothing special about him at all. Just a random big guy. I'd rather have watched EVIL fight Hornswoggle. I feel bad that Fale is taking up a tournament slot over talented guys like YOSHI HASHI.

SANADA vs. Zack Sabre Jr

This was a good matchup. Zack Sabre Jr sure seems talented with his wide submission playbook and his ability to transition between them in cool ways, but for some reason I simply did not like his style and found it a bit dull. I really liked SANADA though and he seemed a bit out of his element and kind of having to match Sabre's style but he did it well and the end result was a very enjoyable matchup. Would watch them fight again, especially if they had more time. I feel like there's a lot more to SANADA's arsenal that I didn't get to see because Sabre was in control for the vast majority of the matchup, but I'm sure I will see it in the rest of the tournament.

Kota Ibushi vs. KENTA

Like others, I had huge expectations for this match up which it did not meet. But this should not factor in to the overall opinion of the match. It seems the fears were true that KENTA would not immediately emerge restored to shining glory on his first match back, but even a slightly rusty KENTA is better than most other wrestlers. And indeed I felt his ring rust only did show a little and wasn't a defining feature in the match. The reason I feel the match didn't meet expectations was more importantly the length, the slower than expected pace from these two, and the weirdness of Ibushi trying to act like a powerhouse heavyweight for some reason when he is not and it doesn't really fit him.

That being said, these two can't hide their talent and it was an incredibly solid bout with great general wrestling techniques and movement. They were really selling it with their facial expressions too and I was chanting along with the LET'S GO KENTA...IBUSHI chants which were pretty prevalent throughout. My second favorite match of the night.

However, if you're looking for a masterpiece match to better satiate your KENTABushi craving, I highly recommend one of my favorite tag matches of all time:

Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

I'm not sure how to indicate this was my match of the night since I only have two thumbs, but anyway this was my match of the night. Someone mentioned it was a slow match for these two and I am confused and figured they were watching a different match. This was intense right out of the gate with big moves and dives happening almost right away. I was specifically thinking it was a particularly fast-paced match for these two. It was especially fast compared to the slow as Hell Tanahashi-Omega match this year that everyone loved so I don't get that complaint at all. 

Both guys had numerous places where I thought one or the other was going to win and one count was so close that I literally thought it had ended for a second but wasn't sure and then needed to look at the referee's hand signal to confirm it was a two count. That was really cool and I loved the effort to really drag that pin out to the last possible moment. I don't remember ever having to look at the referee to find out what happened on a pinfall before. Anyway, that's just something small but it was nice and built up the intensity a lot. Very exciting back and forth. I hope they end up wrestling again soon.

Jul 8, 2019 1:16:17 GMT PB said:

ZSJ/Sanada was the highlight for me. I don't think I've ever changed my mind so much on someone as I have on ZSJ. During the CWC I thought he was a total fraud - endlessly boring and overhyped. Now he's probably my favourite wrestler. Everything just feels like he's trying to win a wrestling match - and in an era when they is so rarely the case it's so refreshing and such a change of pace that it's a joy to watch. I imagine I would hate it if every match on the card was like this, but it's such an important palate cleanser and I cannot take my eyes off of it. Really fun match - ****1/4

It's always fun to read wreddit's opinion on ZSJ. He's the most polarising guy on there without a doubt. Half the people say he's awful, looks like shit, can't sell, transitions between holds without rhyme or reason, boring. The other half think he's god's gift to wrestling. I am definitely in the second group. His style is a breath of fresh air and I can't get enough of it, and somehow he makes it believable in strong style land where everyone is a jacked up tough guy. SANADA plays along with it better than others - he's a great opponent for ZSJ.

Jul 8, 2019 1:16:17 GMT PB said:

KENTA vs. Ibushi felt a lot more one sided than I expected but I really enjoyed watching KENTA viciously dismantle someone again. For sure it felt like they were holding back and it was more of a high profile introduction to KENTA than a high stakes dramatic match. Still good, but obviously disappointing considering I had hoped for a MOTYC which is just wasn't. I was never bored but I was never on the edge of my seat. Got my ready for KENTA to take things to the next level. - ***1/2

You nailed it when you said this is a high profile introduction to KENTA. It's basically Jon Moxley vs Juice Robinson. Here's KENTA. Here's what he's all about. Here's his finisher. The problem, the opening match in the biggest tournament of the year is not really the place to have an introduction match. Their hands were tied, I guess.

The commentary of that match was very strange. They talked in depth about how KENTA was not able to wrestle properly during his time in NXT/WWE without mentioning NXT or WWE. It was pretty jarring. "Five years away being unable to wrestle his style...psychological trauma". At least they could bring up his injuries.

Jul 8, 2019 4:45:55 GMT Lionheart said:

However, if you're looking for a masterpiece match to better satiate your KENTABushi craving, I highly recommend one of my favorite tag matches of all time:

Way ahead of ya.

pwcom.proboards.com/post/79381/thread

Jul 8, 2019 4:45:55 GMT Lionheart said:

Someone mentioned it was a slow match for these two and I am confused and figured they were watching a different match. This was intense right out of the gate with big moves and dives happening almost right away. I was specifically thinking it was a particularly fast-paced match for these two. It was especially fast compared to the slow as Hell Tanahashi-Omega match this year that everyone loved so I don't get that complaint at all. 

If you think that was fast, you haven't seen anything yet.

Tanahashi and Okada is one of the most legendary rivalries in the company's history. Certainly the defining rivalry of the 21st century. If you want to see more of them, I'd look to the past instead of the future. Tanahashi is far past his prime and I doubt he'll ever be booked on Okada's level again.

I read that you linked that video earlier but completely forgot about it. Whatever, two links are better than one. Plus now it is recommended favorably.

Tanahashi was recently champion and won it at the biggest PPV of the year in the main event. Isn’t that being booked on Okada’s level? What level is higher than that? I am confused.

Jul 8, 2019 15:22:35 GMT Lionheart said:

Tanahashi was recently champion and won it at the biggest PPV of the year in the main event. Isn’t that being booked on Okada’s level? What level is higher than that? I am confused.

All of this is true. That was Tanahashi's last hurrah. In general, Tanahashi's star has been fading since he lost to Okada in the main event of whichever Wrestle Kingdom it was a few years ago. Since then he's always been flirting at the top but tends to be bested by the younger top guys. Anyway, at the start of 2018 he was destroyed by Minoru Suzuki in a match, suffering an injury that took him out for close to six months. He returned in the G1, took a first round loss to Jay White, and didn't seem like much of a threat. Then suddenly he won match after match, beating literally everyone, until the final round. He couldn't beat Okada, but Okada couldn't beat him either: a time limit draw. Tanahashi advanced to the finals, and beat Ibushi. He then shockingly beat Okada in a match for the Tokyo Dome title shot. Tanahashi looked unstoppable. And indeed he was. Not even the Champion Kenny Omega could defeat him.

One month after Wrestle Kingdom, Jay White shocked the world by beating Tanahashi at New Beginning. That was the end of Tanahashi's short-lived and likely last IWGP Heavyweight Championship run. Since then, he had a decent showing in the New Japan Cup but lost to SANADA, then he lost to ZSJ in New York, and he lost another singles match to Jay White quite recently. Essentially Tanahashi is no longer the miracle man he was in late 2018. That was his last burst. Now he is a mortal man, and not on Okada's level anymore, as demonstrated in their first G1 match.

I still expect Tanahashi to be in the running for the block winner, but excluding late 2018, he's been booked as a wrestler who is no longer as strong, as fast, or as tough as the new generation, but he can still compete with them through experience and crafty wrestling.

Unless Gedo decides to randomly push Tanahashi to the top again, which I deem very unlikely, he and Okada won't have a competitive match again. That is why I say to look to the past.

Check out the post-show press conferences. All on the NJPW YouTube channel. They are good fun. Get to know the participants a little more.

This one is the best.