NJPW’s G1 Climax is an annual tournament that this year takes place from July 14 to August 12. Wrestlers are split into 2 Blocks of 10 and fight each person in their allocated Block. 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw and 0 for a loss. The two wrestlers at the top of Block A and Block B will face each other in the NJPW G1 Climax 28 Final, August 12 in Tokyo at the Budokan.
Below are the results from the Day 11 of the tournament and updated Block A standings:
Juice Robinson & David Finlay defeated Toa Henare & Shota Umino
Tama Tonga & Tonga Loa defeated Tomohiro Ishii & Sho
Tetsuya Naito & SANADA defeated Toru Yano & Gedo
Kenny Omega & Chase Owens defeated Zack Sabre Jr & TAKA Michinoku
Kota Ibushi & Yujiro Takahashi defeated Hirooki Goto & Yoh
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 11
Block A
Round 6
Togi Makabe vs Bad Luck Fale
The two big lads try to out power each other, both hitting strong forearm shots. Makabe has never beaten Fale, so he tried to cover his opponent almost every time he grounded him. Eventually Tonga Loa had enough and pulled out the ref on out of those pin attempts, Makabe clobbered him for his troubles but the numbers game was now in play. Fale hit Makabe over the head with his own steel chain for the three.
The fans are not happy and disgruntledly boo.
Winner: Bad Luck Fale (3 Wins 3 Losses = 6 Points)
Jay White vs Hangman Page
The quickly descended into a ringside scuffle, however Hangman held his own and even got the better of play in the brawl like setting. Until White dodged a shooting star off the apron and took Page out with Saito Suplex. Which took a lot out of the Bulllet Club man, Switchblade targeted the back as he noticed his opponent was in trouble.
Hangman had to dig deep to hit anything substantial and if he did he either needed a second to recover, or the move just didn’t have its full impact. But that didn’t stop him, he kept hitting White with everything he got. Even putting it all on the line in hitting a Moonsault to the outside off the top turnbuckle. But after going for a second one inside the ring, Jay White pushed him off sending him back first onto the apron!
White then tricked the ref into thinking he was going after Page with a chair, when in fact he had two! He willing gave up the first to distract the ref as he smashed Hangman across the back with the second. However the ref was onto him, when White went to use the chair later on he was shouted at to put it down almost immediately. Then Page picked up the chair himself! He got the same treatment from the ref, but put the steel object down pretty quickly.
However that gave White enough time to recover, he reversed Page’s attempt to hit the Right of Passage. Taking advantage of his opponents injured back, he flipped out of the move and swiftly delivered a low blow. Switchblade the followed up with the Blade Runner for the three.
Winner: Jay White (4 Wins 2 Losses = 8 Points)
EVIL vs Minoru Suzuki
Suzuki went after EVIL before the bell and immediately took the fight to the outside. However EVIL quickly got on top of things and brought the match straight back into the ring. There was a pattern emerging, as when Suzuki got back into things he took matters right back to the outside. Brawling into the audience and swinging steel chairs at his opponent. The Suzuki Gun leader then left his opponent out in the wild, making him get back into the ring via his own volition.
Back in the ring, Suzuki held control for a while, but just like earlier EVIL eventually got back in to things and got back into a swing of momentum. Until Suzuki found his target, going after EVIL’s right arm with unforgiving relent. He attempted an armbar, EVIL very quickly got his foot on the ropes, but he wasn’t going to escape having that arm wrapped around a ring post and a chair thrown at it. This caused obvious damage, but also to wake up EVIL who finally gave in and more than happily swung chairs like baseball bats.
Back into the ring once again, the match became a contest of who could hit their finisher. Both guys consistently finding more and more creative ways to escape the other’s attempts and the same in regards to trying to hit their own. For example Suzuki faking a chokehold to transition into the Gotch Style Piledriver, reversed. EVIL goading Suzuki into throwing a forearm, so he could duck and try and hit the STO.
After multiple reversals and counters, Suzuki got in a rhythm of catching EVIL in a chokehold before try anything. That wore EVIL down over time and it eventually payed off. Suzuki reversed EVIL’s attempt at an STO into yet another chokehold, before transition into the Gotch Style Piledriver and finally hitting it. 1, 2, 3.
Winner: Minoru Suzuki (4 Wins 2 Losses = 8 Points)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs YOSHI-HASHI
YOSHI-HASHI was clearly worn down and hurt walking into the match, Tana seemed to take his opponent somewhat lightly. This allowed YH to get in more offense than otherwise would have, and in result it took Tanahashi a little while to get into the match. Then when he did, he was a little laboured and YOSHI-HASHI was able to ground him with big moves.
However, similar to how the rest of his G1 has gone, YOSHI-HASHI’s offence was never really strong enough to put Tana in real danger. Wearing his opponent down, without looking like he had enough to beat the Ace. When YOSHI-HASHI did try to hit something with a tad bit more impact, Tanahashi found a way to reverse. YS went for Karma and Tana reversed with one hell of a neckbreaker.
Suddenly that seemed to wake HASHI up and he came close with some strong offence targeted at Tanahashi’s head. But he seemed to realise, if any move was going to put his opponent away it was going to be Karma. The issue was Tana countered/blocked the move every time.
This lead to Tana getting back into the match, hitting Swingblades but YOSHI-HASHI having enough to roll out of the trajectory of the High Fly Flow. YH went for the Butterfly Lock on the downed opponent, but Tanahashi rolled him up! 1, 2, 3!
Tana was not at full pace, if anything he just escaped that match.
Winner: Hiroshi Tanahashi (5 Wins 1 Loss = 10 Points)
Michael Elgin vs Kazuchika Okada
Agility versus raw power. Then to mix things up Elgin showcased his own agility, with suicide dives and slingshots! Okada was still quicker, but Elgin’s power matched with his athleticism gave the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion some real problems. As the match went on Elgin seemed to grow into the match, Okada had started strong but the Candian’s power became a stronger and stronger factor.
Elgin caught Okada’s attempt at the Scooby Dooby Doo Crossbody, put the Rainmaker on his shoulders and climbed the turnbuckles. However Okada rolled out, attempting a Sunset Flip Powerbomb to no avail. But was able to reverse whatever Elgin was going for into a Flapjack. Which was the story of the middle section of the match, Elgin was able to block a lot of offence and power out. However he wasn’t really able to hit anything of real significance.
That was until Elgin started to incorporate his strikes and agility a bit more, rocking Okada before hitting those big moves. An Enziguri allowed Elgin to hit a Superplex from the top rope, only a two. However Elgin started to find a rhythm, a Buckle Bomb soon followed for another close fall. Okada had pull out an absolutely amazing dropkick to get back into the match. The match became much more even with both guys able to hit something big for a close fall before their opponent came back at them. Elgin came the closest catching Okada’s dropkick into a Sit Down Powerbomb and rolling him up into a Splash Mountain Razor’s Edge, just a two though!
Elgin then went for a Burning Hammer, but Okada flipped out and into a Tombsto- no! Reversed into a Tombstone of his own from Elgi- no! Reversed again! Tombstone from Okada! Who then picked Elgin up immediately and hit a 360 Rainmaker, before picking Elgin up once more for a Rainmaker. 1, 2, 3! Okada successfully found a way to his fourth win.
Winner: Kazuchika Okada (4 Wins 2 Losses = 8 Points)
Block A Standings
Hiroshi Tanahashi (10 Points)
EVIL (8 Points)
Jay White (8 Points)
Kazuchika Okada (8 Points)
Minoru Suzuki (8 Points)
Bad Luck Fale (6 Points)
Michael Elgin (4 points)
Togi Makabe (4 points)
Hangman Page (2 Points)
YOSHI-HASHI (2 Points)
G1 is back Saturday July 28 for the Block B round 6 match ups: Tomohiro Ishii vs Tama Tonga, Juice Robinson vs SANADA, Toru Yano vs Tetsuya Naito, Kenny Omega vs Zack Sabre Jr and Hirooki Goto vs Kota Ibushi.
Full results of the show will be posted here on LOP shortly after.
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 1 (July 14 2018) – Jay White vs Kazuchika Okada
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 2 (July 15 2018) – Kenny Omega vs Tetsuya Naito
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 3 (July 16 2018) – Jay White vs Hiroshi Tanahashi
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 4 (July 19 2018) – Kenny Omega vs Hirooki Goto
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 5 (July 20 2018) – Kazuchika Okada vs Hangman Page
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 6 (July 21 2018) – Hirooki Goto vs Tomohiro Ishii
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 7 (July 22 2018) – Kazuchika Okada vs Togi Makabe
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 8 (July 26 2018) – Kota Ibushi vs SANADA
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 9 (July 27 2018) – Kazuchika Okada vs YOSHI-HASHI
NJPW G1 Climax 28 Day 10 (July 28 2018) – Kenny Omega vs SANADA
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