10 Absolute Worst Matches From The NJPW G1 Climax 2018

7. Tomohiro Ishii Vs. Tama Tonga (1 August)

Tama Tonga Taka Michinoku
NJPW1972.com

Rating: *1/2

Not even Tomohiro Ishii, the most easy-to-root-for wrestler on the planet, could save the Firing Squad from yet more critical oblivion.

'The Stone Pitbull' tried his best. His defensive work was as sublime as ever, but not enough to counteract Tonga's cripplingly dull control periods. Ishii showed great fire in fending the Squad off, too, actually dragging Tanga Loa into the ring at one point, stifling a chair attack, and surviving Bad Luck Fale's Grenade interference. This helped him look good in defeat, but there's only anybody was capable of doing with the laboured layouts.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett