Kota Ibushi has won the prestigious G1 Climax tournament, becoming the first man to do so for the second consecutive year. The Golden Star and SANADA also set another record, delivering the longest match in G1 Climax history at 35 minutes and 12 seconds.
The bout was as exciting and hard-hitting as you'd expect given the competitors involved, and both men came very close to securing a victory with several scintillating near falls. At one point, SANADA appeared to have things in the bag after locking in an O’Connor Roll, but Ibushi managed to kick out with the ref's hand mere centimetres from the mat.
In the end, Ibushi's brutal Kamigoye knee strike proved too much for the Cold Skull to handle - although it did take two to keep him down for the 3-count.
Kota will now go on to face the IWGP Champion (currently Tetsuya Naito) at Wrestle Kingdom 15 in January... or will he? During the post-match press conference, Jay White issued a challenge to Ibushi for his Wrestle Kingdom spot.
What did you guys think of this year's G1 Climax? Were you surprised to see Ibushi win for the second year in a row?
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