G1 Climax: Every Modern Final Ranked
This year's G1 final is gonna have a lot to live up to, as history shows.
NJPW's G1 Climax is just a few days away! We've been through one hell of a tournament, and with just a few shows left in the group stages, there's nine possible matches that have the potential to be the final.
Since 2012, New Japan has added a stipulation to the prestigious G1 tournament. What used to be simply a contest to determine the best wrestler in the company now has added stakes, as the winner gains the right to challenge the IWGP Heavyweight Champion at Wrestle Kingdom the following year. While some New Japan traditionalists have decried this change as taking away from the prestige of the tournament by changing its intent, this part of the G1 is an engrained aspect of watching and predicting for new fans of the promotion.
Six G1 finals have taken place during this new era of the tournament, and the results are what you would expect from a company going through a renaissance. Whatever final New Japan decides on for this year's G1, it's going to have to meet the standard of Match of the Year candidates and bouts that have broken Dave Meltzer's star rating system.
But which ones are the best? Which are merely above average? Let's find out.
6. Kazuchika Okada Vs. Karl Anderson (2012)
Once upon a time, Karl Anderson was a main event singles talent. Seriously, in New Japan, even before the formation of Bullet Club, the 'Machine Gun' was a featured act who would get high-profile title matches. A prominent example of this was in 2012, when he reached the finals of the G1 Climax for the first time in his career. His opponent? The super-rookie former champion Kazuchika Okada, who was still fresh as a cocky young heel.
A key difference between this final and the ones of the last few years is that Anderson/Okada took place on the same day of the final block matches. That means that both Anderson and Okada wrestled on the same show prior to this match. That would explain why it's so short compared to other G1 finals, and... well, not as good.
Granted, it's still a quality performance from both men that gets pretty heated toward the end. However, at this point, Okada still wasn't the top calibre wrestler he would soon become, and Karl Anderson was more of a tag specialist for a reason.
Nevertheless, this match was an important step for Okada, as he achieved his first G1 Climax victory, which would lead him to even more success in the years to come.