It is the most wonderful time of the year, NJPW G1 Climax 35! It is Climax time! The G1 Climax is arguably the most prestigious pro wrestling tournament in the world.
The 35th edition of the G1 remains in its traditional summer slot. This particular tournament will continue the G1’s traditional format of two ten-wrestler blocks.
We even have a competitor from All Elite Wrestling in this year’s tournament. We have the makings of another truly memorable G1 Climax tournament.
G1 Climax 35 will have two ten-wrestler blocks competing in a very grueling round robin tournament. The top three wrestlers from each block will compete in playoffs on August 14th, the semifinals on August 16th and the finals on August 17th. Let us take a closer look at the A Block field which starts on July 19th.
NJPW G1 Climax 35
A Block:
Hiroshi Tanahashi
We start with “The Ace” Hiroshi Tanahashi. As Tanahashi gets even closer to his retirement at Wrestle Kingdom 20, he has one final shot at the G1 Climax Tournament. It will be his 23rd appearance in this gruelling tournament.
Tanahashi has had some singles success recently against Tiger Mask, Tomoaki Honma and most impressively against Yuya Uemura.
Can “The Ace” ride his recent momentum to win an impressive fourth G1 title win? It would be a historic ending for Tanahashi’s legendary career.
Boltin Oleg
Boltin Oleg is back for his 2nd G1 Tournament. Last year, he picked up eight points in an impressive debut performance. But Oleg has been even more successful in 2025?
Oleg won his first singles title, the NEVER Openweight Championship, on June 15 at New Japan Dominion. He defeated Konosuke Takeshita to do so. Can he ride his momentum to the A Block playoffs? You certainly wouldn’t want to bet against the powerful Oleg.
Taichi
It was quite a rollercoaster for Taichi to advance to his 6th G1 tournament. He was beaten by Callum Newman in the play-in tournament.
Just when it seemed like he would have to set out a second straight G1, a chance arose. Taichi won a four-man gauntlet match to advance to G1 Climax 35.
Taichi hasn’t held singles gold in NJPW since 2019. Can the tag-team specialist get back on track in the G1? Based on his difficult journey to qualify for this tournament, he seems ready to handle the pressure yet again.
Yota Tsuji
Youa Tsuji is at a bit of a crossroads. He recently lost the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship at Dominion. And he was the finalist in last year’s G1 Climax losing the tournament to Zack Sabre Jr.
Can Tsuji get back on track in this tournament? He will face frequent rival David Finaly in this A Block. If he can get past his War Dog rival on August 7th, can Tsuji make the final step to glory in his 3rd G1 appearance? It would be foolish to bet against him at this point.
Yuya Uemura
At last year’s tournament, Uemura had just picked up a big victory over Yota Tsuji. Sadly, he tore his triceps that put him out of the tournament. And he still had a chance to make the playoffs before the injury.
Can Uemura make up for last year’s sudden ending? He will face rivals like Yota Tsuji and David Finaly in this loaded A Block.
Will Uemura be able to make it to the playoffs this year in his 2nd appearance? He is certainly hoping for a better result in 2025.
David Finlay
It has been an interesting year for David Finlay in 2025. He won the New Japan Cup this year over Shota Umino to win a title shot at Sakura Genesis. But he also has faced a series of stinging losses.
He lost his World title shot to Hirooki Goto at Sakura Genesis. He lost his IWGP Global Heavyweight title to Yota Tsuji at Wrestle Kingdom 19. He even lost a brutal Dog Collar Match to EVIL at Dominion in June.
Can Finlay get back on track? His New Japan Cup title and his semifinal run last year proves he is a real threat in this year’s A Block. With rivals like Tsuji and EVIL in A Block, he certainly will have some real motivation.
EVIL
It has been an interesting year to say the least for EVIL. His House of Torture group was forced to leave the Bullet Club after losing a ten-man Steel Cage match. But the heartbreak of leaving Bullet Club didn’t last long.
At Dominion, EVIL faced David Finlay by TKO. That was with the help of his new members of the House of Torture. With ten members, the group seems as formidable as ever.
With this new momentum can EVIL improve on his semifinal run in 2023’s G1 Climax Tournament? With House of Torture in his corner, the odds seem quite likely of a deep and dangerous run. A Block better watch their backs.
SANADA
SANADA is in an interesting place heading into his 10th consecutive G1 tournament. He joined Bullet Club at Power Struggle helping David Finlay retain the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship.
But at Sakura Genesis just five months later, he joined his former tag team partner, EVIL, in the House of Torture group. SANADA is looking to get back to his World Title glory of 2023.
SANADA has some interesting storylines in the A Block. He will face David Finlay and Taichi, two former friends he has recently betrayed. He will even face EVIL as well. Can SANADA overcome the drama to make it out of A Block?
Callum Newman
For the second straight year, Callum Newman has qualified for the G1 Climax. And also for the second straight year, Newman made it by winning a play-in match. But will he have more success in 2024?
In G1 Climax 34, Newman had the lowest point total of both blocks. As he enters his sophomore campaign, he has had a lot more success in 2025.
He is now a two-time IWGP Tag Team Champion and challenged for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship at Wrestling Dontaku. Can the leader of the United Empire improve on his performance in the G1?
Ryohei Oiwa
The final entrant in the A Block is a wrestler making his G1 Climax debut. Ryohei Oiwa of TMDK, will join the tournament in 2025, The 26 year old Oiwa has many focused on tag team wrestling but that started to change this calendar year.
He has challenged for the NEVER Openweight Title twice, the NJPW Strong Openweight Title, NJPW World Television Title and New Japan Cup.
It was all in a losing effort but will the experience benefit Oiwa in this gruelling tournament? He really has nothing to lose and everything to gain in his first G1.
