10 Things We Learned From NJPW G1 Special 2018

6. Neck Deep

Cody Kenny Omega
NJPW1972.com

That Hiromu Takahashi had enough about to him to finish his IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title match with Dragon Lee is either admirable or incredibly stupid if you elect to take a firm stance as many already have in the aftermath of their divisive war.

The crux of the debate between either side seems to revolve around the Dragon Driver that inadvertently caused Hiromu's potentially broken neck, but this obviously neglects a number of important factors that have led up to a move like the above even being innovated in the first place.

Lee and Takahashi are both ultra-skilled talents, but expectations for these contests in general have been smashing ceilings since Takahashi and Will Ospreay in particular went to terrifying lengths in order to try and win the 2018 Best Of The Super Juniors tournament and their Dominion battle for the belt a week later.

The answer to 'Can You Top This?' in wrestling is always yes, but if Roddy Piper was changing the questions in 1985, why aren't others today? Should the wrestlers still be expected to raise the bar? And if so, just where is the new limit that separates those safely wowing crowds and those taking painful early retirement?

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