The marquee match for G1 Climax 30 Night Two ended the first night of Block B action with an incredible performance from IWGP Heavyweight and IWGP Intercontinental ‘Double Champion’ Tetsuya Naito and former eight-time IWGP Heavyweight Champion Hiroshi Tanahashi. The 2,640 fans in attendance were on the edge of their seats throughout the match.
The Los Ingobernables de Japon (LIJ) leader Naito was looking to continue the momentum he gained after regaining the ‘Double Championship’ against Evil during Summer Struggle in Jingu.
Tanahashi wanted to earn two points and a possible title match against Naito after the G1 Climax 30 tournament. Yet, he also needed to prove to himself that he wasn’t far off from his prime — allowing him to compete against and defeat the best wrestlers in the world.
Naito and Tanahashi went through a feeling out process the first several minutes of the match, exchanging amateur wrestling holds and attempting to out leverage one another for an offensive position.
Despite not having the additional training from Animal Hamaguchi like Naito, Tanahashi was able to gain the advantage over Naito during the early portion of the match — transitioning his positive start to working over Naito’s leg.
However, Naito wasn’t without his tricks. Eventually attempting to bully Tanahashi with a physical approach, which is perhaps the one vulnerability Tanahashi has shown throughout his career. He can lose his edge if his opponent can string together a brute offensive attack.
Yet, Tanahashi showed the incredible spirit that has led him to become one of the most prolific champions in wrestling history. He battled from a disadvantage by re-engaging his attack on Naito’s knee.
Throughout the latter portions of the match, Tanahashi failed on several occasions when attempting a currently unnamed driver technique, likely something he’ll pull out again during the G1.
After hitting Tanahashi with his Valencia technique, Naito followed it with the second full Destino technique and would gain the fall at the 27 minute 16-second mark.
Despite the loss, Tanahashi showed that he still has a lot to give and remains a threat to anyone in Block B.
