NJPW G1 Climax 2018: 10 Things You NEED To Know
Get to grips with wrestling's most prestigious tournament.
New Japan Pro Wrestling's G1 Climax 28 kicks off with a blockbuster card highlighted by Kazuchika Okada vs. Jay White and Minoru Suzuki this Saturday (14 July).
Almost a full month of world-class in-ring action will follow, as the promotion's signature round robin tournament sets the heavyweight roster's major players on their respective roads to Wrestle Kingdom (4 January). It's gruelling, both for the competitors and the viewers, but the sheer volume of four-star matches and concurrent storylines makes it wrestling deepest, most rewarding gauntlet.
20 wrestlers are split into two blocks, with each competitor wrestling everyone in their group once. Two points are assigned for a victory, one for a draw, and zero for a loss. The wrestler with the most points in each block then advances to the final, with the overall winner earning the right to challenge for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom. Last year's winner, Kenny Omega, currently holds that very prize, and leads a star-studded 2018 field including Okada, Tetsuya Naito, Kota Ibushi, and Hiroshi Tanahashi.
That's the framework covered. Now, let's dive into the biggest stories heading into the G1 Climax, and how they'll change the landscape coming out of it...
10. Juice Robinson: Champion
Juice Robinson's is one of modern wrestling's great underdog stories, and after spending the past three years shaking off his post-NXT stink, the former CJ Parker now holds his first piece of New Japan gold.
He felled IWGP United States Champion Jay White in a wild brawl at G1 Special in San Francisco. It was an exemplary clash, and one that not only served as a coming out party for White's 'Switchblade' character, but also signalled Juice's transition from plucky also-ran to divisional figurehead. A huge leap forward for a popular gaijin star, and one that ensures Robinson will be a massive part of NJPW's American expansion going forward.
This'll be Juice's second G1 Climax. He was last year's breakout star, delivering sterling performances against some of the biggest names in the company while scoring shock victories over veterans Michael Elgin, Satoshi Kojima, and most notably, Kenny Omega. Each pinfall was celebrated like a championship win, but now that he's a gold-holder himself, Robinson should enter with a reprised sense of self-worth, confidence, and fire.
Don't expect Juice to look as shocked as last year when he defeats an Omega, Naito, or Ibushi. The man's a star now.