NJPW G1 Climax 2019 Night 5 (July 18) - A BLOCK: Every Match Ranked From Worst To Best

2. KENTA Vs. Lance Archer

KENTA Lance Archer
NJPW

Lance Archer scared the sh*t out of everybody from the referee, to the ring announcer, to the ringside fans in Korakuen Hall and even the LA Dojo Young Lions he ended up decking during his match with KENTA, but the recent NJPW returnee stood down any potential terror in another hugely enjoyable match to add to his growing collection.

Archer was in incredible form again after rebounding from KENTA's early kicking assault, no-selling mid-match attack with a brilliant "You're not KENTA...you're f*cking Hideo" howl. The former NXT struggler was very KENTA in response, nearly knocking his larger foe's head off with a slap before firing back with a decent onslaught that almost steered a mixed reaction in the building in his favour.

A "Lets Go Archer" chant made for an odd dynamic at points, but contribute to the chaos that's been a welcome presence in every battle he's been in thus far.

Peaking around the 10 minute mark, the battle between two of the three unbeaten A Block'ers reached the titular climax before it had time to outstay its welcome - a win for KENTA via his Game Over submission provided a finish as rewarding as the contest that preceded it.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 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. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, 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