Curtain Jerker & Wrestling Brain Predicts – New Japan G1 Special

New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s G1 Special from Los Angeles is this Saturday and Sunday. NJPW takes over Los Angeles as stars from both ROH and NJPW, compete in the G1 special. The two main focal points over the two day event include a IWGP Heavyweight Championship match between Kazuchika Okada and Cody Rhodes, and an 8 man tournament to crown the first ever IWGP US Heavyweight Champion. Also on the card includes a IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championship between The Young Bucks and Roppangi Vice. Myself (The Wrestling Brain) and Colin Hebert (The Curtain Jerker) will run through our predictions on the matches listed above.

The Wrestling Brain: In a rematch from their match 3 weeks ago at Dominion, Matt and Nick Jackson put their titles on the line against Rocky Romero and Trent Beretta aka Roppangi Vice. I think this match is fairly easy to predict and it’s not just because they’re my favourite tag team at the moment, but I’m predicting that The Young Bucks will retain their Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships. Winners  – The Young Bucks

The Curtain Jerker: These 2 teams faced off 3 weeks ago at Dominion with The Bucks dominating Roppongi Vice.  Trent Baretta joined his other tag team partner, Chuck Taylor, to try to take the ROH World Tag Team titles from The Bucks at ROH’s Best In The World last Friday.  I predict another easy victory for The Young Bucks over Roppongi Vice, with the big news being a turn for either Baretta or Romero when one attacks the other.  I predict the Young Bucks to retain. Winners – The Young Bucks

The Wrestling Brain: This tournament was announced during the War of The World’s PPV in May, and it features some of the biggest names in both NJPW and ROH. The Quarter Final matches are Hangman Page vs Jay Lethal, Kenny Omega vs Michael Elgin, Tomohiro Ishii vs Tatsuya Naito and Juice Robinson vs Zack Sabre JR, now I have two favourites and for two different reasons, my first pick to win the tournament is Sabre JR, mainly because he’s representing Britain, but also it’ll cement himself as a big star in Japan. My second pick is Kenny Omega, who doesn’t really need the title to make him a bigger star, but if he’s The Elite and the leader of the Bullet Club he needs a title around his waist, especially if another member of The Bullet Club will be walking away with gold around his waist next weekend. Winner – Kenny Omega

The Curtain Jerker: I’m intrigued by this because with this being the first New Japan stand-alone shows in the U.S., they could go a number of ways with this tournament.  I can make a real case for 4 men to win the title.  And Kenny Omega will NOT be included in that mix.  He doesn’t need a title.  Michael Elgin was starting to become a fast-rising star in New Japan after a great 2015 G1 Climax tournament that led to him winning the IWGP Intercontinental title in 2016, but he has slowed dramatically since getting injured.  A tournament victory here is almost paramount to him gaining momentum for the G1 Climax.  Naito is an interesting choice because him winning it and what happens to title belts after he wins it could be interesting.  Naito could win it, then go on to disgrace the U.S. title, like he did the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental titles, for months and then have an American take it off him at the Tokyo Dome for great drama.  Zack Sabre Jr. is a rising star all over and he would bring a technical excellence to the belt that is missing from New Japan’s other title divisions.  But the man I’m going with, in a shocker, is Juice Robinson.  Robinson has risen up the card steadily over the past 2 years, and while he failed, he had a great series of interactions with Tetsuya Naito in the first half of 2017.  Putting it on an American and someone who has paid his dues would make for a great ending to the weekend. Winner – Juice Robinson

The Wrestling Brain: I highly doubt this will happen but I think Cody will walk out of LA, as your new IWGP World Heavyweight Champion, I think this is a possibility for a few reasons the main one can be, the cocky Cody telling Omega that he’s done something that Kenny failed to do twice by beating Okada, this can set up Omega winning the G1 climax for the 2nd year running, then a match at Wrestle Kingdom 12 in the main event between two non Japanese born wrestlers is set, and it can also be a battle to see who the true leader of the Bullet Club is, loyalties are tied, do The Young Bucks stay with their Elite partner or do they side with Cody Rhodes. Therefore I think this Saturday Cody Rhodes will somehow beat Kazuchika Okada leading to a red hot feud between the “American Nightmare” and in my opinion the “best wrestler in the world” in Kenny Omega. Winner – Cody Rhodes

The Curtain Jerker: It would be a very interesting scenario to see Cody Rhodes walk out as IWGP Heavyweight Champ and ROH World Champ, but I don’t think he’s the guy to beat Okada.  Cody isn’t going to be on the New Japan shows after this weekend for a long time and he has his ROH commitments as well.  Okada and Rhodes will have a 5-star match, because that’s all Okada seems to do in 2017.  I see Okada keeping the IWGP title until Wrestle Kingdom 12 now and dropping it to Kenny Omega at the Dome in January. Winner – Kazuchika Okada

There are our predictions for NJPW – G1 Special in the USA, but what are your? let us know below.