NJPW confirmed the return of Shinsuke Nakmura a few hours before the show. This is the fourth day of competition for B Block.
Yujiro Takahashi defeated Satoshi Kojima in 13:01 via pinfall. Typical Takahashi performance until Kojima took over and woke up the crowd, some interference from Cody Hal and a low blow gave Takahashi the win. Not bad thanks to Kojima’s spirited performance.
Karl Anderson defeated Yuji Nagata in 11:15 via pinfall. Rather good but, again, thanks mostly to one man. Karl Anderson is on fire during this tournament and should receive another singles push in the near future. While I have nothing but respect for them, I’m starting to wonder if this isn’t the G1 too many for legends like Nagata and Tenzan.
Michael Elgin defeated Tomoaki Honma in 9:55 via pinfall. Very good match here, with a red-hot crowd that was 200% behind Honma. Elgin Impresses during his first tour in Japan. As I stated earlier, his style is tailor-made for Japanese puroresu and he confirms this match after match. A prolonged stay in Japan is definitely possible now. Honma is going all out to have the best match possible against everybody he faces, and the crowds adore him. We want Honma to win one this year, NJPW!
Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Tomohiro Ishii in 14:47 via pinfall. Nothing special until the latter stages. To be fair, we all know both can do much better. It was obvious Nakamura’s elbow was an issue here, with, especially, Ishii avoiding unnecessary risks. Good, heated finish to end it on an high note. Nakamura’s elbow still looked swollen under the bandages.
Hirooki Goto defeated Kazuchika Okada in 16:45 via pinfall. Very good outing between both champions. Goto outmaneuvered Okada in the end, dodging a rainmaker and countering with head-butts and the Shouten Kai for the win. Great stuff. NJPW is going out of its way to not make Goto’s IC title reign appear as a fluke.
Standings:
Tomohiro Ishii – 6
Kazuchika Okada – 6
Karl Anderson – 6
Hirooki Goto – 6
Shinsuke Nakamura – 4
Michael Elgin – 4
Yujiro Takahashi – 4
Satoshi Kojima – 2
Yuji Nagata – 2
Tomoaki Honma – 0
Analysis: In a way, the tournament seems to hold its breath a bit, waiting for definitive news about the Nakamura injury. While he seemed ok during his match against Ishii, this story can still go both ways. Takahashi is picking up some wins here and there, while this might seem strange, it might simply be that NJPW wants to build him up somewhat so that Honma can beat him later in the tournament. Elgin is doing much better than some expected, good for him. I hope he sticks around after the G1, there are some interesting matches and feuds waiting for him. Goto winning against Okada is big. Okada seemed untouchable until now, so the IC champ looks that much stronger. Okada vs Goto for the heavyweight title? Well with his win Goto now has a good reason to issue a challenge. Next day in B Block will feature Anderson vs Okada and Nakamura vs Goto. This should be good.
In other results:
Cody Hall and Doc Gallows defeated Jay White and David Finlay. (Gallows pinned White)
Tetsuya Naito, Kota Ibushi and Mascara Dorada defeated Togi Makabe, Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Yohei Komatsu. (Dorada pinned Komatsu)
A.J. Styles, Bad Luck Fale, Tama Tonga defeated Katsuyori Shibata, Tiger Mask, Captain New Japan. (Tonga pinned Captain New Japan)
Hiroshi Tanahashi, KUSHIDA and Ryusuke Taguchi defeated Toru Yano, Yoshi-Hashi and Gedo. (KUSHIDA made Gedo submit)
Next day is for tomorrow (Sunday 08/02) and we go back to A Block for the following matches:
Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Kota Ibushi
Katsuyori Shibata vs. Bad Luck Fale
AJ Styles vs. Doc Gallows
Togi Makabe vs. Tetsuya Naito
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Toru Yano
Most favorites avoid each-other, but there is still Shibata vs Fale (who are currently in the lead alongside A. J. Styles) and Tanahsahi vs Yano for a repeat of their feud. Can Yano bag another win against Tanahashi? I would say no, but I’ve said no befor and Yano still won so… I don’t expect big surprises in the other matches, Naito, Ibushi and Styles should win.
See you all tomorrow for more G1!
