NJPW crowns winner of G1 Climax 29
Kota Ibushi is the winner of this year’s G1 Climax.
Three straight nights at Budokan Hall wrapped up today with Ibushi defeating Jay White in the G1 finals. After White kicked out of a Kamigoye, Ibushi hit another one to win the tournament.
White had attacked Ibushi’s left ankle with a steel chair in an angle at the end of Sunday’s B Block finals. After saying that Gedo wouldn’t accompany him against Ibushi, White came out with Gedo and the Bullet Club. Referee Red Shoes had the Bullet Club ejected from ringside before the match, then had Gedo ejected after he interfered early.
Gedo got involved later in the match until being taken out of the ring by Rocky Romero.
This was the second straight year that Ibushi made the finals of the G1. He lost to Hiroshi Tanahashi in last year’s tournament.
On Saturday, Ibushi defeated Kazuchika Okada to win the A Block. Ibushi went 7-2 in block action and finished with 14 points. His two losses were against KENTA and EVIL.
By winning the G1, Ibushi has been set up as the IWGP Heavyweight Championship challenger for Wrestle Kingdom 14. He’ll likely defend the title shot between now and January.
Wrestle Kingdom 14 will be a two-night event with shows on both January 4 and 5. Okada is the current IWGP Heavyweight Champion.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.