10 Best Matches From The G1 Climax 30

The G1 is often at its finest when distanced from the traditional New Japan main event style, focusing on older, stiffer veterans unleashing physical torment on each other, with classics like Shibata/Ishii and Ishii/Goto being infamous for how much punishment these men threw out. This was a perfect example of that style of G1 encounter, an absolutely brutal fighting contest that will go down as a G1 classic.

Ibushi and Suzuki battered the life out of each other with kicks, palm strikes and submissions, having a relentlessly entertaining battle of the ages. Suzuki looked as terrifying as he ever has, mercilessly dissecting his younger opponent with relentless cruelty, while Ibushi snapped and battered him back with his knee strikes and babyface intensity. The two barely slowed down at all, selling their anguish with intense facial expressions and even harder strikes.

This and Ibushi's sensational match with Ishii earlier in the tournament prove that he's maybe even better at this style of 15 minute wars than he is at main events. It was a rollercoaster ride of a contest and deserves all the acclaim in the world, and didn't even go down as Kota's best of the tournament.