NJPW G1 Climax 32 Night 18 (August 16) Results & Review

NEW JAPAN PRO WRESTLING
G1 CLIMAX 32 NIGHT 18
AUGUST 16, 2022
NIPPON BUDOKAN
CHIYODA, TOKYO, JAPAN

Watch: NJPW World

After all the dog days, after all the elimination scenarios, after all the G1 Math, we’ve made it to the Budokan. We’ve made it to the final night of block play in G1 Climax 31, with the only thing left to do is punch our tickets to the G1 Semi-Finals tomorrow night. Here’s a refresher on all the block-winning scenarios tonight.

• A Block: The winner of Kazuchika Okada vs. Lance Archer will win A Block.
• B Block: The winner of Switchblade Jay White vs. Tama Tonga will win B Block.
• C Block: If Hirooki Goto defeats EVIL, then Goto wins C Block. If EVIL defeats Goto, then the winner of Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tetsuya Naito will win C Block.
• D Block: If Shingo Takagi defeats El Phantasmo, he wins D Block. If Phantasmo defeats Takagi and Will Ospreay defeats Juice Robinson, then Ospreay wins D Block. If both Phantasmo and Robinson win, then D Block ends in an unprecedented seven-way tie that will be resolved tomorrow night.

G1 CLIMAX 2022 BLOCK D MATCH
WILL OSPREAY (4-2, 8 POINTS) DEF. JUICE ROBINSON (2-4, 4 POINTS)

The commentary team tonight is Kevin Kelly, Chris Charlton, and Chase Owens. We are back where we started when it comes to these two, as Juice Robinson stole the US Title from Ospreay again during the prelims of night 17. Neither man had ever lost their final G1 block match coming into this one, so something had to give. Ospreay got a jump start on Juice, attacking him during his entrance. Juice worked on Ospreay’s ribs, allowing Will to work this one as a babyface. After a ref bump, Juice pulled the US Title out from under the ring and hit Ospreay with it for a very slow nearfall. A piledriver on the floor and a Pulp Friction in the ring still couldn’t keep Ospreay down. Robinson went for the Rock Slide, but Ospreay landed on his feet and hit the Hidden Blade to win the match, get his physical belt back, and eliminate everyone in D Block outside of Shingo Takagi. Operation Chaos, the nickname for the much discussed 7-way tie, is a no-go. ***3/4

G1 CLIMAX 2022 BLOCK D MATCH
EL PHANTASMO (3-3, 6 POINTS) DEF. SHINGO TAKAGI (3-3, 6 POINTS)

With this result, Will Ospreay wins D Block.

The crowd was into this one, as the Ospreay result gave this one clear stakes. They were also into the upset, as they bit on several of ELP’s nearfalls. This wasn’t your Bullet Club shenanigan-filled contest, which has been the case for most of Phantasmo’s G1. He wrestled this match clean as a sheet and ended up beating Shingo with the CR-3, a piledriver out of the CR-2 position. We’ve always heard how New Japan liked Phantasmo and always had plans for him, but circumstances always changed and kept them from happening. Now, with a clean fall over a former January 4th main eventer, ELP is on his way to a full-on heavyweight run. If his performance in this G1 is anything to go by, he’ll be a welcome addition. ****

G1 CLIMAX 2022 BLOCK C MATCH
EVIL (3-3, 6 POINTS) DEF. HIROOKI GOTO (3-3, 6 POINTS)

This is a night of jump-starts, as EVIL jumps Goto before the bell. I’ve said it before, but EVIL’s schtick is a lot easier to deal with as a pre-intermission midcard act. I’ll never be the biggest fan of the interference, but this has always been the case with Bushiroad-era New Japan. From Bullet Club to Suzuki-gun to the House of Torture, it just comes with the territory. Goto fought off Dick Togo as much as possible, but a dick kick and an EVIL was too much to overcome. EVIL wins, eliminating Goto and making Naito/Sabre winner take all for C Block. ***1/2

G1 CLIMAX 2022 BLOCK C MATCH
TETSUYA NAITO (4-2, 8 POINTS) DEF. ZACK SABRE JR. (4-2, 8 POINTS)

With this win, Tetsuya Naito wins C Block.

Sabre eliminated Naito from the 2018 G1 Climax. Sabre took Naito out of the 2021 G1 Climax after one match. Sabre beat Naito in the New Japan Cup Final in March. In the time it took me to write that sentence, Naito pinned Zack with the Polvo De Estrella flash pin to win the C Block and get his payback. As per usual, England blows it in the big spots. Naito has been winning matches throughout the year with flash pins, winning all of his New Japan Cup matches with flash pins. Zack threw a massive tantrum after the match, much to the entertainment of Naito. The tantrum went longer than the match! ***

G1 CLIMAX 2022 BLOCK B MATCH
TOMOHIRO ISHII (2-4, 4 POINTS) DEF. SANADA (3-3, 6 POINTS)

Nine years and nine G1 tournaments ago, Tomohiro Ishii became Mr. G1 with classics against Hiroshi Tanahashi and Katsuyori Shibata. Ishii has had more great matches in G1’s alone than some all-time great wrestlers have had in their lives. His heart and passion came to define what the G1 Climax was all about. That time may have come to an end here. As first reported on the VOW Patreon page, Tomohiro Ishii was on the cut line for this year’s G1. The commentary team brought it up as this was possibly the last G1 match of his career. If this is the case and this was Ishii’s last G1 match, he went out with a big win after catching SANADA with a brainbuster. And like always, Ishii fought like hell to do it. This wasn’t to win the block or to eliminate SANADA. It wasn’t about hatred or getting back at somebody. This was strictly for pride. It’s always been about pride with Tomohiro Ishii. A poetic way for the Stone Pitbull to go. ***1/2

G1 CLIMAX 2022 BLOCK B MATCH
TAMA TONGA (5-1, 10 POINTS) DEF. JAY WHITE (5-1, 10 POINTS)

With this win, Tama Tonga wins B Block.

Switchblade falls on the final block night again, this time to the man he kicked out of Bullet Club. This was one of the best singles matches I’ve ever seen Tama Tonga have. It may have something to do with being in the ring with Jay White, who has somehow thrived in this clap crowd environment. But the babyface turn has really given Tama a new life. The crowd in Japan respects him for being a full-time roster member for over a decade, his work has a new energy to it, and he just has this new vibe as a good guy fighting Bullet Club. The finishing stretch here was good, with White fighting off the Gun Stun as much as he could before Tama hit the Bloody Sunday. With Jado holding Gedo back, a Gun Stun followed and scored the win and the block for Tama Tonga. ****

G1 CLIMAX 2022 BLOCK A MATCH
JONAH (4-2, 8 POINTS) DEF. BAD LUCK FALE (2-4, 4 POINTS)

With this win, JONAH has become the supreme big man in New Japan Pro Wrestling. While eliminated from the G1 Climax, JONAH left his mark with major wins over Jeff Cobb and Kazuchika Okada. Taking heads like that show that New Japan sees this guy as a major deal. Whenever the full unit of TMDK gets into New Japan proper, expect them to be big-time players in this company. This was a solid big man battle, with Fale showing visible effort for once. It’s an incredibly low bar, but he met it. JONAH got the win with a big bodyslam and the Torpedo. ***

G1 CLIMAX 2022 BLOCK A MATCH
KAZUCHIKA OKADA (5-1, 10 POINTS) DEF. LANCE ARCHER (3-3, 6 POINTS)

With this result, Kazuchika Okada wins the A Block.

This match was a fantastic end to the block portion of the G1. Archer dominated Okada from the jump, with his first move being a massive chokeslam. It took Okada hitting massive bombs to even stay in this thing, but Archer would keep the pressure on. Archer hit his own dropkick and laid out Okada with a Rainmaker, which popped me huge. A Blackout almost won it for Archer, but Okada caught him in a crucifix pin for a nearfall. The Money Clip couldn’t put Archer away, but the combination of a Landslide and a Rainmaker would. Kazuchika Okada wins the Monster Block, and looks to go back-to-back in the G1 Climax. ****1/4

Your G1 Climax 32 Semifinals are Kazuchika Okada vs. Tama Tonga, and Tetsuya Naito vs. Will Ospreay. Tama Tonga beat Okada in last year’s G1, Okada’s lone loss in that tournament. Naito vs. Ospreay is a rare first-time-ever matchup.

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