On the cusp of the 27th annual New Japan Pro Wrestling G1 Climax, Wrestlezone’s Mike Killam, Jon Jansen and the self-proclaimed “Sherpa of the Mountain” Ross W. Berman break down everything you need to know about the greatest tournament in sports (entertainment).
Our boys run down the history and format of the G1, this year’s absolutely stacked blocks, and offer their thoughts and predictions on who will go on to the main event of Wrestle Kingdom 12. We talk the chances of a historic Kenny Omega repeat performance, Kazuchika Okada’s career-defining IWGP title run, the return of Kota Ibushi, Tetsuya Naito’s place on the roster, Michael Elgin, Juice Robinson and way more. Check out the full podcast in the player below.
The NJPW G1 Climax kicks off early Monday morning at 2AM EST live on New Japan World. The first night featuring tournament matches from the A BLOCK (including Tanahashi/ZSJ and Naito/Ibushi) will be broadcast for free, no subscription required. Kevin Kelly and Don Callis will be in Japan providing English commentary for the first four nights of the G1 and will return for the final three events as well. Wrestlezone will have complete live coverage of all 19 shows.
Update: There is a segment where I claimed Wrestle Kingdom 12 was taking place on a weekend, which is in fact not true. Next year’s Tokyo Dome will take place on a Thursday.
