The participants in the G1 Climax have been finalized!
During the fourth of July weekend, while everyone in the states was binging on hot dogs and beer, New Japan had their final two Play-in matches.
The first was Ryohei Oiwa vs. Satoshi Kojima and the matches went about ten minutes. The match was a back and forth encounter filled with chops and brain busters. Satoshi almost put Oiwa with a Koji Cutter and brain buster combo for a strong nearfall. However, Oiwa ended the match with his second discus clothesline that got a three count.
The second and final Play-in match was Yoshi-Hashi vs. Chase Owens. This was given a bit more time, but the match didn’t go over 13 minutes. Surprisingly, Owens did this solo as none of the HOUSE OF TORTURE members interfered. But that only came back to bite Owens in the ass Yoshi-Hashi wore him down with a superkick and clothesline. Then he finished Owens off the Kharma (pumphandle powerbomb) that got Yoshi-Hashi the three count.
However, New Japan had to make another match to determine one more entrant for the G1 Climax. That’s because former IWGP Heavyweight Champion Hirooki Goto was forced out of the tournament due to a right elbow injury. Officials put out a statement about Goto’s exit.
After medical evaluation through the week, it has been determined that Hirooki Goto, who missed July 4’s New Japan Soul card as a result of an elbow injury sustained at Tanahashi Jam on June 29, will be unable to compete in the G1 Climax 35 tournament, and currently has no set date for a return.
During the final New Japan Soul show on Sunday, Taichi survived a gauntlet match that featured the losers of the G1 Play-in matches.
Below is the official list for wrestlers who will compete in the 2025 G1 Climax:
A Block:
- Taichi
- Boltin Oleg
- Yuya Uemura
- Yota Tsuji
- David Finlay
- EVIL
- SANADA
- Hiroshi Tanahashi
- Callum Newman
- Ryohei Oiwa
B Block:
- Zack Sabre Jr. - IWGP World Heavyweight Champion
- El Phantasmo
- Shota Umino
- Shingo Takagi
- Great-O-Khan
- Gabe Kidd
- Ren Narita
- Konosuke Takeshita
- Drilla Moloney
- YOSHI-HASHI
The G1 Climax officially starts on July 19, and New Japan has already released the match brackets for that weekend.
Saturday, July 19 in Hokkaido at 4 a.m. ET
*A BLOCK: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Taichi
*B BLOCK: Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Ren Narita
*A BLOCK: Yota Tsuji vs. SANADA
*B BLOCK: Gabe Kidd vs. Konosuke Takeshita
*A BLOCK: Ryohei Oiwa vs. David Finlay
*B BLOCK: Shota Umino vs. El Phantasmo
*A BLOCK: Oleg Boltin vs. Yuya Uemura
*B BLOCK: Great O-Khan vs. Drilla Moloney
*A BLOCK: EVIL vs. Callum Newman
*B BLOCK: Shingo Takagi vs. YOSHI-HASHI
Sunday, July 20 in Hokkaido at 1 a.m. ET
*B BLOCK: Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Gabe Kidd
*A BLOCK: Taichi vs. Yuya Uemura
*B BLOCK: El Phantasmo vs. Konosuke Takeshita
*A BLOCK: EVIL vs. Yota Tsuji
*B BLOCK: Shingo Takagi vs. Great O-Khan
*A BLOCK: SANADA vs. David Finlay
*B BLOCK: YOSHI-HASHI vs. Ren Narita
*A BLOCK: Oleg Boltin vs. Ryohei Oiwa
*B BLOCK: Shota Umino vs. Drilla Moloney
*A BLOCK: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Callum Newman
Are you excited for the 2025 G1 Climax?