New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s G1 Climax 36 has come to a bittersweet end. Fans around the world are collectively sad that it’s over, but beyond elated that it happened.
After an emotional semi-final night featuring Hiroyoshi Tenzan’s retirement match and ceremony, the finals blazed through in a sprint of fighting spirit and pure graps in the name of true wrestling.
Since New Japan had their own fans vote on special award winners, allow me to share my own award winners based on following this year’s G1 Climax religiously every active night. That along with many, MANY thoughts of how this tourney performed…
Oh, and Jeff Cobb came back to NJPW to align himself with Unbound Co, and Shun Skywalker officially debuted as a part of the House of Torture. A lot has happened in the past month!
Thoughts on the Winner: Ryohei Oiwa
What an absolutely deserving winner. Oiwa has been one of the most fascinating wrestlers I’ve seen in a long time, bringing a “less is more” approach to the table. The story of Oiwa being an afterthought heading into this tourney because he just barely made it in with the play-in qualifiers was beautifully told. Beginning as just another guy in TMDK, he clawed his way into qualification and gritted his teeth to craft an identity in a field of great workers (and also Great-O-Khan). Oiwa proved victorious against names like SANADA, Hirooki Goto, and Boltin Oleg all with headlocks and arm crunchers.
Truly, no one in this business is doing it like him right now, aside from fellow G1 Finalist Yuya Uemura. The Heat Storm was a huge favorite heading into this tournament after losing out on the New Japan Cup Finals. Uemura used his new Lion Shiner finisher along with armbars to put away people, making noise on the B Block to rival Oiwa’s A Block innovation. Making Uemura fall in the finals twice in a row is a real shame, but the rub couldn’t have gone to a better second candidate.
New Japan investing so much trust in someone with only five years of wrestling experience is so refreshing to see. The youngest G1 winner since Kazuchika Okada in 2012, and he returned from NOAH excursion less than two years ago, Oiwa’s a skyrocketing superstar. The eventual rematch between Oiwa and champion Yota Tsuji for the Heavyweight Title is going to be godly. Can’t wait!
Very Early Prediction: G1 Climax 37’s Winner
I am super happy for Ryohei Oiwa’s rapid ascension to the top, but if Yuya Uemura doesn’t win the G1 next year, I might duct tape Gedo to the ceiling. Uemura will be the saving grace of New Japan after Tanahashi’s retirement and his shining of that Lion Mark has been nothing short of spectacular as of late. Either this, or whenever Yota Tsuji drops the World Title we can have the redemption story feature a G1 victory.
Someone of the new generation winning G1 Climax 37 would be a million times preferable to someone over the age of 35 in this day and age. Since poor Shota Umino missed most of this tourney due to injury, maybe pulling the trigger on him next year wouldn’t be so out of place. Hell, give me Boltin Oleg to win the whole thing and make Kazakhstan proud!
The fact that there are so many realistically satisfying victors highlights how stable New Japan’s main event division is. It’s super, and if there is ever a time to follow it, it would be now heading into next year’s tourney. But allow me to lock it in: Yuya Uemura, you’ve got this, baby.
MVP of the G1 Climax 36
It’d be very easy to just spout Ryohei Oiwa’s praises and call it a day, but there are many other names worthy of praising, mostly from the A Block. IWGP Heavyweight Champion Yota Tsuji had an absolutely banger run with his plethora of moves bringing everyone to their absolute limit. Boltin Oleg used his strength and rage to out-power the competition completely. Even those on the older side like SANADA, Hirooki Goto, and Shingo Takagi had their golden moments this year. On the B Block side of things, Zack Sabre Jr. remained an undeniable technical wizard, and Yuya Uemura had his pride shine through above everyone else.
But my pick for MVP of the entire tournament is Yuto-Ice. He wanted his opponents to feel the pro-wrestling high with him, and he poked all those proverbial bears with very sharp sticks. His matches with the likes of Oleg, Tsuji, and Shingo were all showcases for not only Yuto’s opponents, but also Yuto’s ability to become the ultimate brawler. His match formula was easy, you have to beat him by a knockout, otherwise you’re getting bit by Cruella (his finisher name). And that has brought out aggressive sides from his opponents, and a sentimental side from SANADA.
While the Knock Out Brothers is still one of the best tag teams in wrestling right now, Yuto-Ice’s first ever G1 Climax run proved he can hang as a singles star. Right up there with OSKAR, who’s also had some good singles showings this year.
Worst Matches of G1 Climax 36
It’s never fun to reminisce about bad memories, but there can be comedy in it. Since comedy comes in threes, let’s break down my “Flop Three” matches of the G1 this year, representing total wastes of time and energy.
- Great-O-Khan v. Boltin Oleg – A Block Night 16
- Gabe Kidd v. Zack Sabre Jr. – B Block Night 7
- Jake Lee v. Yuto-Ice – A Block Night 10
Gabe v. Zack was the most disappointing match of the tourney, taking what could’ve been a classic and shaping it into an autopilot snoozefest. It featured endless forearms and uppercuts with no real direction of a match structure at all. It was a MASSIVE downgrade from their G1 Climax 34 match two years ago, which was actually very great.
For Jake Lee’s G1, he pulled tactic after tactic to get one over on his opponents. His match with Yuto-Ice was especially bad due to Yuto not exploring the potential of making Jake Lee feel that pro-wrestling high. Instead, Lee handcuffed Yuto and played up some terrible heat, then Yuto struggled for literal minutes to escape the cuffs. Not entirely his fault there, but I still yawned throughout the whole thing.
Then there’s the Great-O-Khan, easily the worst wrestler of this entire field. Oleg v. GOK was the match that eliminated Oleg from semi-final qualification, and damn it all the way to hell for doing so. Not only was it too long and boring, but O-Khan’s heat didn’t appear as a convincing thorn to Oleg’s side. The match ended in a count-out after O-Khan hit an Eliminator to Oleg on two tables on the outside. What a mess.
THE GRIP! 💪
Watch the #G1FINAL @njpwworld!#njpw pic.twitter.com/LqVfDI9CP0
— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) August 16, 2026
Sleeper Matches of G1 Climax 36
Now we get into the territory of good wrestling, a true breather from the awful O-Khan and Jake Lee crap. These matches were specifically memorable in my eyes for being either bold in booking or unforgettable in execution.
- Yota Tsuji v. Yuto-Ice – A Block Night 8
- Aaron Wolf v. Zack Sabre Jr. – B Block Night 17
- Yota Tsuji v. SANADA – A Block Night 4
- Yuya Uemura v. Callum Newman – B Block Night 1
- Gabe Kidd v. HENARE – B Block Night 11
Prepare to see a lot of the same matches in this section and the next section, especially with Yota Tsuji. His chop-fest with Yuto-Ice literally left the man’s chest purple when it was all said and done, so glorious. That one truly cemented Yuto’s character as a hardass, making Tsuji’s hand hurt after absorbing all those chops. Tsuji’s match with SANADA got the crowd riled up when a muscle atrophied SANADA shockingly beat the World Champion in a solid showcase. It briefly made everyone forget SANADA’s supposed to be a no-good heel in the House of Torture!
Aaron Wolf’s best match in this year’s G1 came from trading submissions with ZSJ, a true litmus test that Wolf passed with flying colors. Uemura and Newman’s rematch from the New Japan Cup in Chicago wowed the crowd and had those Lariats flying higher than Rob Van Dam in a hot air balloon. It also reminded the masses that Callum Newman does deserve to mingle around with NJPW’s stacked roster, fitting in like a glove.
Gabe Kidd wrestled particularly uninteresting matches this whole tourney after winning the Global Title and flag-bearing AEW. HENARE also wasn’t on a run that can be called “good” this year, winning too often and too decisively for my liking. All that considered, Kidd and HENARE went out there against each other and wailed away nonstop with hard smacks, hard lariats, and hard chops to the chest. Their previous Korakuen Hall encounter had the same amount of fire and grit as this one, and it was a shining mark for both of these guys. Even bench warmers can shoot three pointers if you give them enough faith.
A new star has risen in Ryogoku. 🌟
Ryohei Oiwa defeats Yuya Uemura and wins G1 CLIMAX 36!#G1FINAL #njpw pic.twitter.com/lA6mU7sLmm
— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) August 16, 2026
Best Matches of G1 Climax 36
There are too many matches to rant and rave about in this year’s G1, so I have to keep this list down to eight in no particular order. All of these ones I consider so many positive adjectives: from great to excellent to extraordinary.
- Boltin Oleg v. Yota Tsuji – A Block Night 12
- Callum Newman v. Zack Sabre Jr. – B Block Night 5
- Hirooki Goto v. Konosuke Takeshita – A Block Night 10
- Yuya Uemura v. Zack Sabre Jr. – B Block Night 3
- Boltin Oleg v. Konosuke Takeshita – A Block Night 6
- Shingo Takagi v. Yota Tsuji – A Block Night 8
- Ryohei Oiwa v. Yota Tsuji – A Block Night 10
- Ryohei Oiwa v. Yuya Uemura – G1 FINALE Night 19
Let’s round off the generational run Yota Tsuji’s been on as of late. Tsuji and Shingo’s Unbound Co. stable brawling led to a spotfest filled with excitement and drama. Eventual winner Ryohei Oiwa didn’t have the flashiest tourney thanks to his grounded headlock game, but against Tsuji it was like someone threw lighter fluid into Oiwa’s rumbling campfire. It made for a great combination of further establishing Tsuji as a star, and building Oiwa’s resiliency against the World Champion.
Tsuji and Boltin Oleg’s Korakuen Hall main event blew away everyone’s expectations and could very well be my personal match of the year. On that same merit, Oleg and Takeshita’s powerful striking and tossing around was also an expert use of both men’s strengths. Takeshita perfected the fighting spirit mixed with adrenaline style, with his grudge match against Hirooki Goto pulling out all the big moves to compliment that never-say-die attitude.
The A Block was more enjoyable to watch night to night than the B Block, but there were still some bangers on the B side. Zack Sabre Jr.’s pair of matches against Newman and Uemura were so incredible, highlighting Zack’s ability to work any kind of style you challenge him with. Uemura got the technical side downpat, while Newman displayed more flippy-doo tenacity. And they both served as perfect foils against Zack, who got screwed over by not being in the playoffs this year.
And of course, the finale between Oiwa and Uemura. What an unbelievable match. 35 minutes of pure professional wrestling, finishing with Ryohei Oiwa winning via headlock. These guys get the crowd screaming and shouting over basic wrestling moves and it’s turning the business into a no nonsense direction. All the struggle, grit, and ironwill from both guys was superb. And hell, neither of them escaped to ringside at any point in this match. That’s true determination and restraint.
If you love seeing the feeling out process extended way past its intended section and turned into the crux of the match, please go out and watch this for yourself. It’s the artform of “less is more” that got the motions working in this one. Oiwa and Uemura are literally changing wrestling’s trajectory in front of our very eyes. It’s amazing.
OVERALL: This has been the best G1 Climax in years. Probably since 2019, there hasn’t been this much excitement accumulated from multiple matches in the same tourney. The less said about United Empire, the better. It made me excited for standout stars like Yuto-Ice, OSKAR, Boltin Oleg, Aaron Wolf, and finalists Yuya Uemura and Ryohei Oiwa. And what a statement made from the winner of the whole thing. No repeated finalists, and it put a stamp of approval for the future.
If this tourney demonstrated nothing else, it showed that New Japan Pro-Wrestling will be in good hands for years to come.
