G1 Climax 2019 reaches its halfway point with the fifth night of A Block Action.
B Block Tag Matches
Suzuki-Gun (Minoru Suzuki, Taichi, & Yoshinobu Kanemaru) b. Jeff Cobb, Ren Narita, & Yota Tsuji when Kanemaru pinned Tsuji with a Deep Impact DDT – Naturally the heels attacked before the bell and took the fight to the floor where they pummeled the babyfaces with umbrellas, ring barriers, and just about everything else. Back in the ring, they got the heat on Narita. Cobb got the tag and battled Taichi to a double down. A double tag out to Tsuji and Kanemaru respectively. Tsuji held his own until Suzuki stepped in and positioned Tsuji so he could get hit with the Deep Impact DDT.
After the match, Taichi and Cobb had a staredown. Taichi offered a handshake, which Cobb cautiously accepted. Surprisingly, Taichi didn’t cheapshot and simply grinned as he walked away.
Bullet Club (Jay White, Yujiro Takahashi, & Chase Owens w/Gedo & Tokyo Latiina) b. Juice Robinson, Tomoaki Honma, & Toa Henare when Owens pinned Henare with a Package Piledriver – The heels attacked from behind, but at least this time they had the decency to wait until after the bell rang. They got the heat on Honma and triple-teamed him. When Juice got the tag a multi-man brawl broke out. Henare and Owens got tagged in. Henare tried for a tackle only for Owens to pull the referee in front of him. When Henare stopped himself, Owens struck and hit the Package Piledriver for the win.
Toru Yano & Tomohiro Ishii of CHAOS b. Hirooki Goto & YOSHI-HASHI of CHAOS when Yano pinned Hashi – An all CHAOS tag match where former champions Yano and Ishii faced Goto and Hashi. The fun started when Goto and Ishii were in and traded dueling strikes. Then Hashi & Ishii did the same. Yano removed a turnbuckle pad while Goto tagged in. Goto and Yano double teamed Yano, but in the end Yano hit his trademark low-blow and roll-up to pin Hashi.
IWGP Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito & Shingo Takagi of Los Ingobernables De Japon b. IWGP US Champion Jon Moxley & Shota Umino when Takagi pinned Umino with a Pumping Bomber – Umino started out opposite Naito. it didn’t take long for Naito’s taunting antics to get under Moxley’s skin. LIJ worked over Umino until Moxley finally got the tag and fought Naito to a standstill. In the end Takagi and Umino were left in the ring while Moxley and Naito brawled on the floor. A Pumping Bomber by Takagi put Umino down.
A Block Tournament Matches
Kota Ibushi (2-2, 4) p. Lance Archer (2-2, 4) with two Kamigoye knee strikes – With both men at only two wins, this match was a crunch time. Archer quickly took the battle to the floor and pummeled Ibushi along with several unfortunate Young Lions. Back in the ring, Archer stalked Ibushi for the next few minutes. Ibushi hit combination strikes and a moonsault. Archer kicked out and tried to block Ibushi from climbing to the top. In an impressive show of strength, Ibushi managed to powerbomb Archer off the buckles. Archer responded with a chokeslam for a near fall. Sensing victory, Archer went for the EBD Claw. Ibushi made the rope break and hit a Boma Ye. However, when Ibushi positioned Archer for the Kamigoye, Archer struck with his own Kamigoye. Ibushi kicked out, so Archer went for a Moonsault. Ibushi dodged the moonsault and hit another Boma Ye. Ibushi finally hit the Kamigoye, which Archer somehow managed to not go down. Ibushi looked shocked for a few seconds, but gathered his senses and hit a second Kamigoye to score the pin.
IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay (1-3, 2) b. Bad Luck Fale (w/Chase Owens & Jado) (1-3, 2) by DQ when Cullet Club interfered – Before Ospreay even made it to the ring, Fale distracted the referee so the other Bullet Clubbers could attack Ospreay. Fale spent the next several minutes working over Ospreay using his size to keep him grounded. Ospreay made his comeback and hit the Oscutter, only for the refereeto get yanked out of the ring before delivering the three count. The heels then struck and triple teamed Ospreay. Owens hit a Package Piledriver while the referee was down. Senior referee Red Shoes made his way to the ring. He counted two, but then flipped Fale the bird and called for the DQ. Fale, in a fit of rage, chased Red Shoes from the ring.
EVIL (2-2, 4) p. RevPro Champion Zack Sabre Jr. (1-3, 2) with Everything Is Evil – Both men kept each other grounded to the mat as they exchanged several holds. Sabre blocked a Scorpion Deathlock with an armbar and used his own Scorpion Deathlock and Heel Hooks. The match picked up after that when the two men started exchanging strikes and reversals. At the 15 minute mark, Sabre used an Octopush Hold which Evil reversed into Darkness Falls. After several more reversals and exchanges, Evil got the pin with Everything Is Evil.
Hiroshi Tanahashi (2-2, 4) p. SANADA (1-3) with a High Fly Flow – The match began with the feeling out process. Both men were crowd favorites. Neither man got the upper hand until Sanada got Tanahashi in the Paradise Lock. Sanada dropkicked Tanahashi to the floor and hit a Pescado. Back in the ring, Tanahashi fought back with a Slingblade but missed a High Fly Flow. Sanada immediately went for a Moonsault but also missed. The two kept reversing each other’s attempts at Skull Ends and eventually resorted to a battle of strikes. After getting a two count with a German Suplex, Tanahashi hit a standing High Fly Flow. He followed up with the regular High Fly Flow to get the pin.
IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada (4-0, 8) p. KENTA (4-0, 8) with a Rainmaker – Both men were undefeated at 8 points each, so something had to give. A very slow but tense opening few minutes with the two men feeling each other out. The crowd actually cheered Kenta pretty heavily. Okada did his classic rope break where he cleanly backed off with a smile. Then when Kenta backed Okada into the ropes, Kenta took the cheap shot. After that, the crowd no longer cheered Kenta. After stalking Okada for the next several minutes, Kenta mocked Okada’s Rainmaker pose. Now the crowd started booing Kenta. At the 15-minute mark, the match spilled out to the floor. Kenta set Okada up on the railing and delivered a dropkick from the apron. Back in the ring, Kenta hit the Shibata dropkick in the corner. Okada returned the favor and went to the top rope. Kenta met him at the top and lifted him for a superplex. Okada knocked him off and went for the elbow drop. Kenta caught him and reversed into Game Over (Lebell/Yes lock) ant around the 20-minute mark. Okada made the rope break. Around this time, Kenta started getting frustrated and resorted to more strikes. Okada kicked out of a double stomp. Kenta lifted Okada for the GTS which Okada reversed into a Tombstone attempt. Kenta reversed that back into the GTS. Okada blocked the GTS and hit a dropkick. Kenta ducked a Rainmaker and hit a discus lariat. The two traded dueling strikes at the 25-minute mark. Kenta erupted with a flurry of palm strikes that agitated Okada. Finally, Okada fired up, hit the spinning Tombstone, and hit a Rainmaker for the three count. Kevin Kelly noted that Okada set a new record with 11 straight G1 matches without a loss.
Okada stood over Kenta, and offered a handshake. Kenta rose to his feet and accepted. He pointed to the belt, indicating that he wanted a title shot.
Okada took the microphone and boasted about his fifth win. He then cut his usual “three things to say” promo and thanked the fans.
A BLOCK STANDINGS
10 Kazuchika Okada
8 KENTA
6 EVIL
6 Hiroshi Tanahashi
6 Kota Ibushi
4 Lance Archer
4 Will Ospreay
2 Bad Luck Fale
2 SANADA
2 Zack Sabre Jr.
