NJPW G1 Climax 2019 Night 3 (July 14) - A BLOCK: Every Match Ranked From Worst To Best
4. Kazuchika Okada Vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
Marginally underwhelming in how underwritten the story was, it speaks to the in-built quality of both Kazuchika Okada and Zack Sabre Jr that a firecracking four star match could somehow seem unfinished by the time the IWGP Heavyweight Champion wiped him out with an elusive but ever-effective Rainmaker.
It was just 12 months ago that 'ZSJ' pinned Okada clean shortly after he'd lost his title to Kenny Omega in a return bout from their thrilling Championship clash earlier that year. The matches fed into their dynamic chemistry - Sabre Jr the submission specialist, using his skillset to counter the forceful and often fatal offence of NJPW's deadliest all-rounder.
Informing a slightly different narrative this year, Zack's arrogance after an opening round defeat to SANADA blinded him to his own battle plan here. He'd obnoxiously promised to simply beat the titleholder to get his shot rather than bothering his a*se worrying about the G1 itself. Here he couldn't manage either.
Rainmaker reversals were repeatedly deployed, using his devastating arsenal of switching submissions every time Okada threw a lariat his way, but the Champion had more methods of diffusing the threats this time. A discus Rainmaker was the key to Zack's lock - free from his grip, he finally neutralised the counter game, leaving him prone for the match-winning follow-up.