Pantoja’s NJPW G1 Climax 33 Night Two Review

NJPW G1 Climax 33 Night 2

July 16^th, 2023 | Hokkaido Sports Center in Sapporo, Hokkaido | Attendance: 3,145

Night one was about what I expected and I think we’ll get more of the same on night 2 and for the rest of this tournament. I am also watching this pretty late as I was HOOKED on the Men’s Wimbledon Final.

C Block: David Finlay [0] vs. Tomohiro Ishii [0]

These two met in the New Japan Cup this year (***½). I liked this on paper because Finlay is supposed to be this more aggressive, violent BC leader but there was no way he could outgun Ishii with things like strikes. So, he took to attacking the knee which is something he could do “viciously” and it feel more realistic than simply battering Ishii. Of course, Ishii is a tough dude who wouldn’t stay down. Finlay would get going but then Ishii would hit something that stopped him in his tracks. After they passed the 10 minute mark. Ishii ate some headbutts and dropped Finlay with one of his own before getting two on a powerbomb. That set up a strong closing stretch where Finlay won with Oblivion in 15:54. That was another good match between them though they haven’t quite sniffed greatness yet. The expected result too. [***½]

D Block: Hirooki Goto [0] vs. Toru Yano [0]

Obvious long history here between two G1 vets. I’ve seen meetings in the G1 24 (**), 28 (*¾), 29 (**), and 30 (NR). It’s a notorious pairing for super short G1 matches and they teased pulling that off again this time around. This had the expected antics including the two men countering Irish whips outside so much that they were both dizzy and Yano getting help from a local mascot. Goto withstood it and even wore the mascot head for a bit before winning with GTR in 6:44. It was entertaining for what it was. [**]

C Block: Henare [0] vs. Mikey Nicholls [0]

I like Nicholls and Haste as a team but them being included here is a choice. Henare has dropped the “Aaron” in his name and I feel like it wasn’t there initially, he added it, and now he dropped it. He’s also added some tribal tattoos on his face which is certainly a choice. Lastly, Henare is now BALD which I take an homage to the OG wrestling BALD HEAD, Ahmed Johnson. Anyway, as a match this was better than expected because they kept it physical. That fits Henare’s style and works for Nicholls who doesn’t have a huge personality. This was no-nonsense as it should’ve been.  That said, a few moments came off awkwardly which held it back from being as good as it could’ve been. The physicality really stood out late when Nicholls got busted open the hard way with a headbutt and then he dropped Henare on his head in ROUGH fashion to win in 12:21. A good, hard hitting fight and I hope Henare is alright. [***]

D Block: Alex Coughlin [0] vs. Shane Haste [0]

More proof that this tournament is too big. World Tag League still isn’t great but it has been better since singles guys who were never going to win have been removed. So, yeah. The main idea of this match was that Coughlin is an angry man. So, like most things involving this new Bullet Club. That was fine on paper as it made sure Coughlin looked legit and he basically kicked Haste’s ass form bell to bell. Then, the Gedo of it all kicked in. With a win basically in the bag, Coughlin went outside for chairs and his title and then shoved the referee. That allowed Haste to drop him on the chair and win with a uranage in 10:55. That was on the way to three stars but the new tag champ looks remarkably stupid in a classic case of bad booking. Gedo gonna Gedo.  [**]

C Block: Eddie Kingston [0] vs. Shingo Takagi [0]

Finally something to be excited about. They delivered just what I wanted, trading shoulder blocks, strikes, and chops in the opening couple of minutes. They kept up the hard hitting stuff throughout and did so in a way that more engaging than what we got in Henare/Nicholls. It also helped that the crowd was more into this. Kingston just staring down Shingo as he ate boots to the face was great. At one point, they just started dropping each other on their heads. Shingo used Kingston’s finisher and the defiant outsider kicked out at one, probably out of anger more than anything else. That kind of fired Eddie up as he survived some Shingo offense, hit a lariat of his own, and eventually got his first G1 win with the Northern Lights Bomb in 12:50. That was just what I was hoping for. Short, sweet, and to the violent point. [****]

D Block: Hiroshi Tanahashi [0] vs. Zack Sabre Jr. [0]

Oh, boy. There’s long history here. Sabre Jr. won at the G1 27 (****¼), New Japan Cup 2018 (****½), G1 Supercard (****), and Destruction in Beppu 2019 (***¾). Tanahashi won at Destruction in Hiroshima 2017 (***¾), New Japan Cup 2019 (****), G1 29 (****¼), Royal Quest (****), the G1 30 (***¾), and the G1 32 (***¾). It’s Tanahashi and ZSJ, so you know this was good even if Tanahashi has lost a step or two. They opened with the expected smooth grappling exchanges which fit into the story of Tanahashi trying to work around his limitations. The grounded style made sense. Of course, there’s where ZSJ would hold serve. However, the interesting twist here was that they wrestled like their opponent, with ZSJ doing Dragon Screws and a Cloverleaf. Tanahashi also did his best to work like Zack but the issue is that he’s unmatched in this environment. The finish saw Tanahashi apply a cross armbreaker only for ZSJ to turn it into a cradle for the three count at 16:09. The usual good outing from them but a subdued version. [***½]

C Block: EVIL [0] vs. Tama Tonga [0]

We’ve had meetings in the G1 27 (**¾), G1 31 (**), New Japan Cup 2022 (**), and Wrestling Dontaku 2022 (**¼). I’ve said it in the past but I just don’t have the energy for these anymore. This was filled with House of Torture shenanigans, interference from Dick Togo, a ref bump, etc. You know the drill. And they made it drag on for 17:34. EVIL won with Everything is Evil and this sucked. [*]

D Block: Jeff Cobb [0] vs. Tetsuya Naito [0]

Naito entered this unbeaten against Cobb, besting him in the G1 29 (***), Wrestle Kingdom 16 (***½), and last year’s New Japan Cup (***½). I’m pressed for time here so this will be a short review. I will say that I really liked the idea of Cobb toying with Naito by mocking his taunt and stealing his offense. It was an interesting twist you wouldn’t expect from someone who has never beaten Naito before but if you’re 0-3 against someone, you might as well try something new. That seemed to upset Naito who got going with some of his usual offensive moves. He was clearly in trouble though and went for some flash pins like a jackknife but he got caught in Tour of the Islands and Cobb won in 14:20. [***½]

6.5

The final score: review Average

The 411

About on par with night one because this is New Japan in a nutshell. Something great, a few things that are good, and some stuff that is really just not good at all.