Yujiro Takahashi Was Surprised to Make it Back Into G1 Climax, Talks Feud With Okada

Yujiro Takahashi spoke with NJPW for a new interview discussing his involvement in the G1 Climax 30 and more. You can check out some highlights below:

On how he felt when he was announced for the G1 Climax 30: “I’ll be honest, I was taken aback a little bit. Even though I’d put it out there, I was still like ‘for real?’ I had my match right after the announcement so I was standing by backstage and heard my name called. I couldn’t stop smiling on my entrance.”

On the reaction from the crowd: “Well, I think that reaction came from the fans being taken by surprise. There was a lot of shock, a lot of ‘really? Yujiro?’ and I take that as a good thing.”

On being praised for his feud with Kazuchika Okada: “Well, I think when he turned his attention to me, I thought ‘I can use this’, and that’s when I started making my case for the G1. Then we had that handicap match… Even I would say, losing that match directly would have made a G1 case pretty difficult, but at least Gedo was the one taking the loss. Had that match been a lumberjack strap match like I’d wanted, and if I’d have lost that, well, I wouldn’t be in the G1.”

On not making the G1 Climax in 2016: “It was a surprise, yeah. I was kind of thinking ‘nearly G1 season’, like I was taking it for granted that I would be in there, and then when I wasn’t … cutting veterans is one thing, but here I was in my 30s, supposedly in my prime. Seeing the reality of the situation really hit home to me. I realised I had been over valuing myself.”

On being out for the next three after that: “I mean, if you really look at it, it is surprising that I would make it back in. When you don’t make the cut, it becomes very, very difficult to get back in. I know that more than anyone. It’s a game of musical chairs really … Especially as NJPW expanded overseas these last few years. We had more and more foreign wrestlers to compete with, too; the roster was getting bigger.”

On Naito winning his first IWGP Heavyweight Title the year he was kept out of the G1: “There was such a gap between us. We were on such different levels that I couldn’t even be jealous. When he was still in hontai I felt that envy toward him a little, but when he came back from Mexico and started LIJ, that changed everything. Him winning the New Japan Cup and then the title, that was huge.”

On being back in this year: “I’m excited, to be honest. I’m in the same block as guys like Will Ospreay, Shingo Takagi. I’ve only been in tags with them a couple of times, lost to both of them though.”