NJPW G1 Special 2018 Results, Highlights, and Grades
The G1 Special in San Francisco is now available globally on NJPW World! Don't miss a spectacular night of pure excitement from the legendary Cow Palace! ▶︎https://t.co/1ZqQC8rECO#NJPW #G1USA #NJPWWorld @KennyOmegamanX @CodyRhodes pic.twitter.com/5CueJGQfWG
— NJPW WORLD (@njpwworld) July 8, 2018
IWGP Heavyweight Championship: Kenny Omega(c) def Cody Rhodes
The instant classic that Juice and Jay put on was a tough act to follow, but I think Kenny and Cody delivered a good main event that effectively wrapped up their feud. I’ve seen some saying that they went too long and the match felt bloated, but I don’t agree with that criticism at all. This was the conclusion of one of 2018’s biggest, most important rivalries. It needed to be epic. Anything less than 30 minutes wouldn’t have felt quite right to me.
Kenny asserted his dominance over Cody for the large majority of this match, stomping him through a table, power bombing him onto another, and hitting a ton of V-triggers. By the end of the match, it was natural to feel a bit of sympathy for Cody, which is exactly what they were going for.
Rating: ****
After the match, Kenny and The Bucks were posing on the ramp when, all of a sudden, Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa and King Haku attacked them from behind. After the Tongans had left all of Bullet Club laying, Cody came out and managed to run them off, turning face in the process. It was a stellar post-match angle, and a perfect way to reunite Kenny and Cody. I can’t wait to see this new Bullet Club civil war play out. It should be a ton of fun.
Next: Extreme Rules Match Card Predictions
In conclusion,
NJPW’s G1 Special in San Francisco was a solid show. A few of the matches didn’t fully realize their potential, but everything delivered that needed to. The new developments with Bullet Club are extremely interesting, The US Championship match was a legit MOTY contender, and the other Championship matches were solid to great.