Just when it seems like Taichi was going to change his ways in his match-up against Jeff Cobb, it didn’t take long for the former NEVER Openweight Champion to revert back to his old antics.
Cobb’s match-up against Taichi is arguably his most personal in the tournament, as Taichi was the man to dethrone the Ring of Honor star of the NEVER Openweight Championship shortly after the G1 Supercard in Madison Square Garden.
Taichi stalled for a bit after shaking Cobb’s hand to begin the match, with the former NEVER Openweight Champion eventually getting the advantage over Cobb thanks to the use of a microphone stand and chair.
Cobb would make a comeback and the bout turned into a back-and-forth encounter between the two competitors. Taichi would attempt a referee bump, but Cobb outsmarted the former NEVER Openweight Champion and shut him down instantly.
The Hawaii native then connected with the Tour of the Islands and got the three count within 13 minutes. Jeff Cobb’s G1 Climax tournament score is 2-3 (4 points), whereas Taichi’s score in the competition is 2-3 (4 points) as well.