10 LIVE Observations From NJPW's G1 Special In USA
Strong Style Stateside!
This past weekend, for the first time in New Japan Pro Wrestling's 45-year history, the company ran a pair of shows in the United States that were entirely self-promoted. While NJPW had previously brought its stars to American shores as part of deals with stateside promotions, this marks the opening salvo in what is meant to be a legitimate U.S. expansion for the company.
The cards did not disappoint.
Built around an eight-man tournament to crown the inaugural IWGP United States Champion - a belt that will undoubtedly be key to the company's new market - both shows featured the bulk of the top talent in New Japan and utilized them wisely. Hardcore fans who watched the shows to see their favorites were happy, and newcomers who were getting introduced to the product surely had a new world of competition opened to them.
As live events, the shows were particularly impressive. They both sold out almost immediately, and the passionate attendees made both evenings memorable by enhancing an already wild atmosphere.
Being part of the crowd left viewers with some very strong impressions about the world's greatest wrestling promotion.
10. The Multi-Man Tag Matches Are Good Fun
On a typical New Japan show, especially a major show split up across two or three events, the company tries to get a lot of stars on the card by booking eight- and ten-man tag-team matches early on. Those also serve the purpose of putting top guys in action without forcing them to take a loss.
These matches are ultimately inconsequential compared to the main events, title matches, and special singles bouts on shows, but that's no reason to write them off entirely. Indeed, the tag matches often have a different feel from anything else on the card, and they're very entertaining.
In Long Beach, the first show opened up with two tag bouts - one pitting a Bullet Club faction (including The Young Bucks) against CHAOS, and another that saw Los Ingobernables de Japon take on Jushin Liger and a trio of CMLL stars. Neither bout was very long, but both were packed with action and comedy, something that wouldn't have worked in more important matches.
Later in the show, teams led by Hiroshi Tanahashi and Billy Gunn clashed, and that bout got incredibly heated, building up drama for day two's Intercontinental Title match.