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Pantoja’s NJPW G1 Climax 32 Night 12 Review

August 6, 2022 | Posted by Kevin Pantoja
NJPW G1 Climax 32 Night Twelve - Shingo Takagi vs. Will Ospreay Image Credit: NJPW
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Pantoja’s NJPW G1 Climax 32 Night 12 Review  

NJPW G1 Climax 32 Night 12

August 6th, 2022 | Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium in Osaka, Japan | Attendance: 3,370

We got more lackluster results from the G1 on night 11 but there’s hope. They typically deliver when they come to Osaka, so I am at least a little bit intrigued by this weekend.

D Block: El Phantasmo [2] vs. YOSHI-HASHI [2]

We start with a first time ever meeting. It’s interesting with this setup that two guys with two points each are still technically alive in their block. That feels weird but it works because it makes something like this feel like it matters. ELP did his usual arrogant antics, while YOSHI-HASHI was the fiery underdog and that actually made for a rather compelling story. It’s simple but effective. I liked that after being in trouble for a while, HASHI took out ELP’s legs since that negates a lot of his offense and athletic ability. I also dug him busting out a somersault senton to the outside because it showed how he was willing to try new things to get a win in this tournament. He’s never had a chance to win a block this late even if it’s a slim one. ELP came back and hit Thunderkiss ’86 but his pin was way too cocky and that likely allowed HASHI to kick out. The crowd got into it and HASHI survived a rollup with a handful of tights before hitting a Destroyer and Karma to win in 15:47. When I heard that this went 15 minutes, I was worried. Thankfully, they overdelivered with an engaging match that was filled with energy [***½]

A Block: Lance Archer [2] vs. Toru Yano [2]

I saw them meet in the G1 24 (**¼) but they have other matches in their history. I chuckled at Yano avoiding Archer at every turn and then thinking he hit an atomic drop only for it to not have done anything because Archer was too tall. I also got a kick out of Archer tying Yano to the guardrail only for Yano to beat the count at 19. That set the stage for a match filled with shenanigans but the good kind. At no point did I find this to be boring or felt like it was bad comedy. Sometimes, Yano works best against guys who are super serious. In the end, Yano got caught in Blackout and lost at the 9:14 mark. That was pretty darn entertaining. [***]

C Block: Hirooki Goto [4] vs. Zack Sabre Jr. [4]

Five matches in their history, with ZSJ holding a 3-2 edge. Their bouts came in the G1 27 (***¼), Sakura Genesis 2017 (***½), G1 28 (***¼), and G1 30 (**½), with the fifth at a RevPro show I didn’t see. They typically work well together and the only match to get under *** only lasted three minutes when Goto was injured. Right from the start, you could tell this would be different from the rest of the show so far. They went for a more technical approach and ZSJ got annoyed that Goto was more than holding his own there. That meant he got aggressive and did things like kicked his arm into the guardrails. That gave ZSJ the target he needed as he kept going after the arm. Goto fought back with hard hitting stuff that at times floored ZSJ. This felt like a fight and a struggle in the best way possible. They went into a series of moves where both guys kicked out at one, adding to the sense that they knew potential control of C Block was on the line. One-man Shoto connected but due to the weakened arm, Goto couldn’t capitalize. ZSJ then countered GTR into a triangle choke that he transitioned into an armbar, getting the submission victory after 18:44 A war that never felt like it went too long, featured good, logical wrestling, and was really good throughout. Finally another **** match in this tournament. [****]

B Block: The Great-O-Khan [2] vs. Jay White [6]

No prior meetings here. I appreciated GOK charging at the bell, trying to take Jay by surprise. The champ responded by bailing into the crowd . Once back in, Jay got goaded into getting close and GOK took control. He overwhelmed Jay with a lot of his unorthodox offense and Jay couldn’t get going. Jay had to resort to hitting GOK from behind and getting help from Gedo. You could see Jay’s confidence grow as he got going. He started mocking Tanahashi and doing a Russell Westbrook “rock the baby” taunt after throwing GOK around. It was some quality heel work that put GOK on the defensive. Jay worked the leg to set up the TTO but GOK quickly got the ropes and even used his teeth to hold onto it. It was kind of weird since his arms were totally free but whatever works buddy. Jay’s attitude came back to haunt him as GOK rallied and laid into him with strikes. I bit on a handful of GOK close calls late which is hard to get me to buy into at times in this tournament. I thought the finish was great too as Jay nailed Blade Runner right out of the claw, winning in 18:14. Hell yeah, that was my favorite O-Khan match ever and another great one for Jay. I loved that they threw aside the slow start and did something totally different. [****]

D Block: Shingo Takagi [2] vs. Will Ospreay [4]

So, this pairing obviously works but I don’t consider their matches to be all-time greats like a lot of people do. Like, their 2019 BOSJ Finals wasn’t even in the conversation for MOTY for me but plenty of others gave it that title. Anyway, Will won in the BOSJ 2019 Finals (****¼), New Japan Cup last year (***½), and Wrestling Dontaku 2021 (***¼), while Shingo won in the G1 30 (****). Commentary noted that Will’s three wins took more than 30 minutes while the one sub-30 minute outing went to Shingo. They opened this with the expected back and forth that they’re known for while commentary tried their HARDEST to put over Will as the best in the world and a charitable person. That’s certainly a choice. This really started to pick up when Shingo slammed his own face into the turnbuckle as if to say that Will wasn’t hitting him hard enough. When they were trading shots and throwing big bombs I liked this but there were things I didn’t enjoy. Some of the counters and exchanges came off as super choreographed and looked cheesy rather than cool. Shingo survived a Spanish Fly and 450 splash before avoiding Storm Breaker. I loved him turning Hidden Blade into a short Cross Armbreaker snap to help remove that move completely. As they neared the 20 minute mark, they were throwing everything they had at each other. Their signature stuff like the Oscutter wasn’t getting it done so they had to reach deep into their bags of tricks. Shingo finally took it with Last of the Dragon after 21:55. They may have done a bit too much with some of their counter stuff but they kept this at 22 minutes which is what I’ve wanted from them since day one. My biggest issue with their other matches is that they felt long and like they were trying to have an epic rather than just having one. This one packed a ton of great action into the right timeframe, played off their history, and never went overboard. My #2 match of the tournament. [****½]

9.0
The final score: review Amazing
The 411
THANK YOU! This is the G1 Climax we’ve been waiting for. This whole tournament has only teased being great and has mostly been wildly mediocre but this is the kind of show I’m used to from the tournament. A fun Yano match, a really good opener, and three straight ****+ bangers. Please keep this up.
legend

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G1 Climax 32, Kevin Pantoja