DREAMS MADE REAL:
THE G1 CLIMAX 29 TOURNAMENT FINALS
By Jasmine Olan
In literature, we often hear of something called the hero’s journey. It’s that journey that the reader can relate to and be inspired by. The hero’s journey involves the story’s protagonist overcoming seemingly insurmountable odds. For the Golden Star, Kota Ibushi this year’s G1 CLIMAX tournament was all about that. In the end, Ibushi overcame those odds when he defeated Switchblade Jay White in the tournament finals. That night history was made, and a longtime dream was finally realized. On August 12, 2019, the Golden Star became the first to ever win all three of New Japan Pro Wrestling’s singles tournaments, having also won BEST OF THE SUPER JUNIORS in 2011 and the NEW JAPAN CUP in 2015. This historic win now has Ibushi on the path to becoming a living legend at just 37 years old.
In every story, every extraordinary hero requires an equally great villain. Heading into this year’s tournament finals, that villain was Switchblade Jay White. Over the last couple of years, the twenty-six year old New Zealand native has emerged as one of New Japan’s best heel wrestlers. The former young lion has already found great success just two years removed from his excursion. He quickly found himself in the main event picture, feuding with the likes of Hiroshi Tanahashi, Kenny Omega, and Kazuchika Okada. Those rivalries have earned him championship gold with runs with the IWGP United States and Heavyweight titles. New Japan clearly has major plans for him in the feature.
Although polar opposites in so many ways, White and Ibushi followed similar paths in G1 CLIMAX 29. Both had a rough start in block competition then went undefeated the rest of the way. Ibushi dropped his first two block matches while White dropped his first three. Ibushi also had to contend with an ankle injury, but managed to overcome that by carefully managing his risks. Meanwhile White did everything he could to win his remaining block matches. Although on similar paths, their approaches were very different. While one was able to win his tournament block through sheer determination and being smart about managing risks, the other just did whatever it took to win no matter how underhanded.
Heading into the tournament finals, NJPW fans were firmly in the corner of the Golden Star, despite the odds having been stacked so highly against. He already survived a tough situation when he defeated the Rainmaker, Kazuchika Okada in a winner take all match to win A block. Ibushi would have to fight just that much harder to defeat the Switchblade and win the tournament. White tried everything from attacking Ibushi the night before and bringing the entire Bullet Club with him to the ring for the match to having manager, Gedo interfere on his behalf, but in the end it was the Golden Star who would triumph and win the iconic G1 trophy.
In the end this match told a great story, of someone facing a challenge head on then knocking it down like a brick wall. We got to see a true star on the rise in the form of Jay White who gave an excellent performance in the match and was the perfect villain opposing Ibushi in the story being told. It was a highly emotional moment for fans and Ibushi himself who is getting closer and closer to realizing his ultimate dream of becoming IWGP Heavyweight Champion. That dream is now closer to coming to fruition than ever before. Winning G1 CLIMAX 29 was truly a crowning moment for one of the international wrestling scene’s most influential stars. With the roll Ibushi is on right now there is little doubt that his ultimate dream will be made real at WRESTLE KINGDOM 14 in the legendary Tokyo Dome in January.
